Vasa: The Swedish Warship That Sank On Its Maiden Voyage and Remained Intact for Over 300 Years
Vasa was the world’s most high-tech warship when it first set sail. It only navigated about 1,300 meters before sinking in front of horrified onlookers.
Vasa is a Swedish warship built between 1626 and 1628. Its rather peculiar story has gone down in history: despite being one of the Swedish navy’s biggest achievements and among the most spectacular warships ever built, Vasa sank within twenty minutes of setting sail, just 1,300 m (1,400 yd) into her maiden voyage on 10 August 1628.
“The warship survived the first blast of wind it encountered on its maiden voyage in Stockholm Harbor,” writes Lucas Laursen for Archaeology. “But the second gust did it in. The sinking of Vasa took place nowhere near an enemy. In fact, it sank in full view of a horrified public, assembled to see off their navy’s – and Europe’s – most ambitious warship to date .
Upon completion, Vasa was one of the most powerfully armed vessels in the world. However, she was dangerously unstable, with too much weight in the upper structure of the hull.
Despite this lack of stability, she was ordered to sea and foundered only a few minutes after encountering a wind stronger than a breeze.
