Propulsion Sails Length 48 m Beam 14 m | Armament 107 guns Launched 1564 Tons burthen 635,000 kg | |
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Fate Sank in 1564, location confirmed in 2011 Tonnage Displacement 1800 tonnes Crew 350 sailors, 450 soldiers Notes Source for dimensions & Tonnage "Swedish Unrated Warship Mars (1563", Three Decks - Warships in the Age of Sail | ||
Mars, also known as Makalös ("peerless; astounding") was a Swedish warship that was built between 1563 and 1564. It was the leading ship of king Eric XIV of Sweden's fleet, and at 48 meters and, equipped with 107 guns, was one of the largest warships of the time, even larger than the famous Swedish ship Vasa. In 1564, during the Northern Seven Years' War, the ship caught fire and exploded during the first battle of Öland in the Baltic Sea. Mars has a place in the history of naval warfare for being the first ship to sink another ship with gunfire.
Wreck location
On 19 August 2011, it was announced that the shipwreck of Mars was possibly found by a team of divers, at a depth of 75 meters and around 18.5 kilometers north of Öland, after several years of research. Although not examined by archaeologists yet, in a statement by technical diver Richard Lundgren, it was announced that "Everything suggests that it is indeed the Mars that we have found".
On 1 November 2011, it was announced that the shipwreck had been confirmed to be Mars. According to Richard Lundgren, one of the divers who discovered the wreck, unique ship cannons had been identified along with "other findings" which confirmed the identity.
