Stockholm Vasa Museum, page 2 of 6

Outside the museum there is a garden that contains vegetables, medicinal herbs and flowers that were often grown in gardens in the 1600s.

In 1625 the Swedish king Gustav II Adolf decided to build the most powerful warship in the Baltic.  The ship was completed in August 1628 and weighed over 1200 tonnes, had 64 cannons and, what every warship needs, hundreds of sculptures.  Launch day was a very festive day with the quay packed with people and the crew were able to bring their families on board for a short cruise to an island in the harbour.

A gust of wind came across the ship causing it to lean just enough for water to pour in through the gun ports and within minutes the ship was on the bottom – at a depth of 32 metres.  The problem was that the upper part of the hull was too tall and heavily built for the relatively small amount of hull below the water.