Augustin Ehrensvärd

Augustin Ehrensvärd (1710-1772)

Augustin Ehrensvärd was born in 25.09.1710 in Sweden, Västmänlann, Fullerö mansion, where he spent his first ten years. His parents were Anna Margaretha Mannerheim and Jacob Johan Scheffer (raised to nobility in 1717 by the name Ehrensvärd). In 1739 Augustin Ehrensvärd was wed to Catarina Elisabet Adlerheimin and in 1745 they had a boy, Carl Augustin.

Augustin Ehrensvärd joined the artillery at the age of 16 when he also studied at the Upsala university. During his travels in Europe he studied for two years the artillery and fortresses of different countries. He also studied painting, drawing and engraving in Paris.

Augustin Ehrensvärd was a member of the ruling political party, the hats, as also of the Majestic science-academy. He took part in the war of the hats against Russia (1741- 1743). His mission was to bring the artillery into wartime capacity and to command the expansion of the defence at Hamina city.

Sweden had lost large land areas and all its western fortresses to Russia in the beginning f the 18th century. The foundation of St. Petersburg in 1703 and the threath of the strong Russian fleet in the Gulf of Finland forced Sweden in measures against Russia. In 1747 King Fredrik accepted the defensive plan by Ehrensvärd. The plan included two new fortresses and the fortifying of Helsinki and Degerby cities. As a part of his studies for the defensive plan Ehrensvärd had sailed in his sloop Diana in the summer of 1747 with two other officers, excavating the southern Finnish coast for good positions for fortresses. During his trip he wrote a journal with lavish illustrations.

The fortification works of Helsinki and the Susiluoto-islands begun in 1748. There was no comprehensive plans for the whole project and the plans and drawings were made at the site, taking the hard weather circumstances and the difficult terrain into consideration. Because the budget was small, Ehrensvärd soon had to give up the fortification works in Helsinki city and instead concentrate only on the work on the islands. In Helsinki the fortification works lives today on as memories in names; i.e. Ulrikasborg (Ullanlinna, named after the Swedish queen) and in a couple of still standing fortification buildings.

In the summer of 1750 king Fredrik accepted Ehrensvärd's proposal for the name of the fortress and the fortress on the Susiluoto islands was given the name Sveaborg. Later the name was twisted into Viapori in the speach of the Finnish soldiers. ( In 1918 the fortress was named Suomenlinna)

Ehrensvärd planned skilfully a sea fortress, which based on the French bastion-fortress system with a naval base. In addition he emphasized the importance of architectural solutions, for ex. squares and monumental architecture. He planned for ex. the Great Courtyard and the King's Gate at the site where king Adolf Fredrik had landed during his visit at the fortress. In the beginning of the building period the court intendant Carl Hårleman consulted and participated in the architectural planning. Ehrensvärd had to his aid a large amount of officers and drawers. In addition the best specialist of the time took part in the planning; Daniel af Thunberg (1712-1788) planned the galley-dock and a multifunctional mill and Fredrik Henrik af Chapman (1721-1808) planned a whole new and modern archipelago-fleet, the Army Fleet, for Sveaborg.

Ehrensvärd was a talented artist, who was the first to bring the skill of picturing light in drawing to Sweden. Many drawings and paintings by Ehrensvärd have survived to our days. In addition to military schools he maintained an art-school for the officers' sons. The young artist Elias Martin (1739-1818) taught art at the fortress and later Ehrensvärd sent him to Europe to study more art. Today Elias Martin's works belong the most famous paintings from the 18th century, especially amongst landscape-painting. Also Ehrensvärd's own son, Carl August, got attention as an artist in addition to his military career.

The location of Sveaborg had from the start been chosen with the naval base in mind. The construction works of the galley-dock begun in 1750 and in 1764 the first frigate Hämeemaa Oden could be launched. The Army Fleet was independent from the rest of the Swedish fleet and was lead by the commander of the fortress, Augustin Ehrensvärd.

Ehrensvärd took part in the Pomeranian War 1757-1762, during which the construction works at Sveaborg quieted down. In 1761 he was promoted as the chief of the Swedish forces and belonged now to the Finnish household troops, whose colonel's residence in Mietoinen came into his disposal.

After the Pomeranian War the fortification works of Sveaborg and the construction of the Army fleet continued. In 1764 Ehrensvärd was elevated into the rank of barony. He also spent time in Stockholm speaking for Sveaborg: ” What good does honorary titles and fine bands bring me. If the King wants to show me mercy, let Him give funds for the fleet and the fortification works. Everything else is useless”.

As the result of power-struggles between the two political parties, the hats and the caps, Ehrensvärd was dismissed in 1765 from the commander's office. None the less, he returned in 1769, when the hats regained the control in Stockholm. The following year he was chosen as a knight into the Majestic order of the Seraphim and promoted as the commander-in-chief for all troops in Finland.

Ehrensvärd had been wounded in the the Pomeranian War and the injury had bothered him ever since. His condition declined considerable and in 1771 he retired from the fortification works to his residence at Mietoinen. October fourth in 1772 he died in pneumonia. Three weeks earlier, the king Gustav III had promoted him  to field-marshal and count.

The burial ceremony of Ehrensvärd was kept in Mynämäki church, from where his coffin was moved next summer to Turku and further to Helsinki. In Helsinki his copper coffin was buried in the Ulrika Eleonora church. It was not until 1783, before Ehrensvärd was laid down to rest by the king Gustav III, in the centre of the Great Courtyard at Sveaborg, where his monumental tomb had been constructed. The monumental tomb was designed by king Gustav III together with Carl August Ehrensvärd and Jean Eric Rehn. The sculptures on the tomb were made by Johan Tobias Sergel and the stonecutter Nils Stenstam. The tomb was finished in 1807 -half a year before Sveaborg surrendered against Russia.

The logo of the Ehrensvärd Society is designed after the ornaments on the tomb of Augustin Ehrensvärd.

Literature: Gardberg C.J. 1998. Viapori Suomenlinna. Keuruu, Otavan Kirjapaino.