⚓  Friedrich Wilhelm Zu Pferde  ⚓

Brandenburg frigate 1661-1692

The story..

The frigate FRIEDRICH WILHELM ZU PFERDE belonged to the Brandenburg fleet of the Grosse Kurfuerst Frederick William in the years 1685 - 1693.
The ship had typical Dutch construction features. As two-decker she carried 54 cannons and had a crew of 200-250 men. The overall length over all was 37 m / 125 feet and the tonnage about 900 tons.
The "Friedrich Wilhelm zu Pferde", a German frigate, was built between 1660 and 1661 in the shipyard of Pillau Princpaute by Mr. G.C. Peckelhering.
The "Friedrich Wilhelm zu Pferde" made several trips ... in 1685 from Pillau to Emden, in September 1691 from Emden to Shetland Islands under the guide of Captain Jean Le Sage as an escort for the " Derfflinger". On July 25 1692, along with a large fleet, the "Friedrich Wilhelm zu Pferde" sailed from Emden, heading towards Guinea. During the trip it and the "Salamander" won a victory over a French ship.
At this time in history, Brandeburg was at war France. In the night of October 30/31 1692. three French ships fought the "Friedrich Wilhelm zu Pferede" With the first cannonades, Captain Jean Le Sage was killed and the ship was captured and was set on fire.

Brandenburg Navy

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Brandenburg Navy on the open sea, 1684.The Brandenburg Navy was the navy of the Margraviate of Brandenburg in Germany from the 16th century to 1701, when it became part of the Prussian Navy.[1]
The Navy was originally assembled as the Hohenzollern rulers of Brandenburg began to increase in importance and to desire the prestige and security of having a suitable naval defence force. During the 17th century, the navy was of great use in numerous battles in the Baltic Sea, and it also served the interests of Brandenburg's colonies in Africa (specifically the Brandenburger Gold Coast) and the Caribbean. By the year 1680, the Brandenburg Navy had almost thirty active warships. These ships were used primarily to secure control over hostile trade routes and maritime trading, as blockades and to provide naval defence, and to also provide reinforcement on various military operations, which would frequently involve engagements with unfriendly warships.
In 1682, Frederick William, the prince-elector of Brandenburg, who was intensely involved in the navy's affairs, secured the navy a base at Greetsiel, but they shifted to Emden a year later.
Frederick William died in 1688, and his descendants took no interest in the Brandenburg Navy. Frederick III and his grandson Frederick the Great recognized that they could never compete directly with the great maritime powers and concentrated instead on building the best army in Europe while maintaining good relations with naval powers such as Denmark and the Netherlands. The overseas colonies were eventually sold to the Dutch in 1721. In 1701, Frederick was crowned King in Prussia, marking a shift from Brandenburg to Prussia as the most important Hohenzollern realm. The Brandenburg Navy was consequently merged into the Prussian Navy that year.

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A hajó története

Az 1660. és 1661. években megépített Friedrich Wilhelm zu Pferde német fregatt félelmetes német hadihajó volt a maga 900 to vízkiszorításával.
A hajó eljutott Afrikáig és Skóciáig. Ezeken az utakon 250 fo személyzetet és 50-60 löveget vitt magával.
1692. október 30-án, miközben Brandenburg hadban állt Franciaországgal, a fregattot megtámadta három francia hajó és felgyújtották. Ebben nem kis szerepet játszott, hogy az elso lövéssel megölték Jean Le Sage kapitányt, így a hajó parancsnok nélkül végül is a franciák kezére került.

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