The Swedish plan sends each ship past the anchored Russian line in succession. Swedish crews must manage sails and steering while the stationary Russians can devote more men to their guns. Even the weakest Swedish units therefore exchange broadsides with 100-gun first rates instead of combining against a selected target. Sweden loses one ship captured, another destroyed, five heavily damaged, more than 200 men killed, and about 520 captured, while Russia reports eight killed and 27 wounded. Swedish and English-language accounts agree on the outline, supporting the criticism of the plan. That criticism extends to the flag captain and other advisers, who should have challenged the decision before it was carried out.
Notable Point · 40:53-42:35
Sailing past Reval's guns magnifies every disadvantage
Swedish ships handle sails and steering while taking turns against fully manned Russian broadsides, producing an extreme loss ratio that both Swedish and English-language sources acknowledge.