Mars 1564
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Marker: recorded wreck position (Age of Sail).
Key facts
| Name | Mars | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Year lost | 1564 | Wikidata P793 significant event, point-in-time qualifier |
| Era | Age of Sail | derived from year |
| Ship type | ship of the line | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Cause of loss | Fire or explosion | Wikidata P828 has cause (on P793 event): explosion |
| Nationality / flag | Sweden | Wikidata P8047 country of registry |
| Operator | Swedish Navy | Wikidata P137 operator |
| Conflict | Action of 30 May 1564 | Wikidata P607 conflict |
| Sea / ocean | Baltic Sea | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | Sweden | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 19 km from land |
| Position | 57.1403, 17.3489 | Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0) |
About the wreck
Mars, also known as Makalös ("peerless; astounding"), traditionally referred to as Jutehataren ("The Jute Hater"), was a Swedish warship that was built between 1561 and 1563. She was the leading ship of King Eric XIV of Sweden's fleet and one of the largest warships of the time. In 1564, during the Northern Seven Years' War, she caught fire and exploded during the First battle of Öland in the Baltic Sea.
Diving & visiting
The wreck of Mars settled to the sea bed at a depth of 75 metres (246 ft) 12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi) north-east of Öland. At this depth and with the exact location unknown, the highly valuable bronze guns were out of reach of any historic salvage attempt. After the explosion, the ship's hull was broken into three main pieces at the surface and these sank to the bottom independently. With the forward part of the hull mostly destroyed, these major fragments were the port side, the starboard side and the lower part of the hull.
The wreck site was located by the company Ocean Discovery in 2011 after a long-term search with sidescan sonar.
Location
- Recorded position: 57.1403, 17.3489 (Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: Baltic Sea
- Nearest coast: Sweden
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Swedish warship Mars (revision 1380467423), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Wreck”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby wrecks
- Swiks 1906 · 27 km
- Finnbirch 44 km
- Kronan 1676 · 87 km
- German aircraft carrier Graf Zeppelin 1947 · 189 km
Browse more: Europe wrecks · wrecks off Sweden · Baltic Sea · Age of Sail