Calmare Nyckel

[john sefton]

In January 1629, in Stockholm, the representatives of Swedish coastal towns had drawn up the constitution of the so called 'Ship Company' at the request of the Swedish King Gustavus II Adolphus, for building or buying a number of vessels (16) of about 360 tons and armed with 12 - 16 guns. This company was given certain privileges.
In peacetime the vessels would be used for trade, but in war they would be transferred to the Navy.
The towns of Kalmar and Jonkoping were to provide one ship. In 1629 a new, three masted ship was bought in Holland for 13,450 Daler silver coins. She was given the name "Calmare Nyckel". Her dimensions were:- length 33 metres. breadth 8.1 metres and height between decks 1.95 metres. Her armament consisted of 16-6 pdr. guns.
"Calmare Nyckel" was transferred to the Navy in 1634, but was later lent to the "South Company" founded in 1626 and later to the "West Indian Company" founded in 1640, or as it was also called "Nova Suecia Company". She was in service for the former company as "Calmare Nyckel" and together with the "Fogel Grip" sailed from Gothenburgh on November 27th 1637 with colonialists for the future Colony New Sweden on the Delaware River in North America. After a dramatic and adventurous voyage over the North Sea, the vessels were forced to call at the Dutch island of Texel for repairs. In the middle of March 1638 they arrived at the estuary of the Delaware River. On March 29th the colonialists could occupy their new land, when the leader Peter Minuit had finished the negotiations with the Indians.
The Captain of "Calmare Nyckel" was Anders Nils Krober, 1st Officer Michael Simmsen and 2nd Officer Jakob Sandelin.
In June the same year "Calmare Nyckel" set out for the West Indies on the return journey to Sweden. Also this time the North Sea offered rough weather. With broken main mast and other severe damage, she was forced to visit Holland for repairs, before she could continue home.
In 1639 - 1640 "Calmare Nyckel" made a second voyage. One of the passengers on this trip was the first Governor of the Colony, Lieutenant Peter Hollender.
Two further trips were made in 1641 - 1642 and 1643-1644 to "New Sweden" and West Indies respectively. After returning home she was transferred to the Navy.
As a naval vessel"Calmare Nyckel" took part in sea operations on the West Coast in 1645. In 1646 - 1647 she belonged to the fleet in the Baltic Sea and served as a troop transport.
In 1649 she was to be equipped for a new expedition to "New Sweden" but she was found in such bad condition that this was impracticable.
"Calmare Nyckel" was sold in 1651 to Cornelius Rolofson. Her further activities after this date are unknown.

Log BookAugust 1971 article by Goran Liljestrom

Finland SG1147 Sweden SG204 518 USA SG846 A2345

[aukepalmhof]

The USA stamp of 3c, marks the 300th anniversary of the landing of the Swedes and Fins near the present day Wilmington, Delaware.
The stamp was designed by Victor McClosky and based on a painting made by Stanley M. Arthurs which depicts colonist Peter Minuit greeting American Indians, with the expedition ship the KALMAR NYCKEL in the background. Peter Minuit was the former Governor of New Netherland see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wikiPeter_Minuit

KALMAR NYCKEL: She was built circa 1625 in the Netherlands as a merchant vessel, when and were unknown, also the name under which she was built is unknown.
When in 1629 in Sweden an alarming and threatening political situation abroad deteriorated, the king of Sweden called a meeting in Stockholm with all the burghers from all towns in Sweden, in which was discussed what could be done on the defence of the country.
It was agreed to form a new shipping company to buy 16 good merchant ships which could be used during war as navy or transport vessels.
The town of Kalmar and Jönköping together should supply one of this vessels and 80 men. It was decided by the burghers of the two towns to buy a suitable ship in the Netherlands, and a representative travelled to the Netherlands to buy a ship.
She was the later famous KALMAR NYCKEL as given she was a pinnace (Dutch pinas) a heavily armed merchant ship of about 250 tons with a dimensions of about 115 x 25 x 13 feet.
In 1630 still in use as a merchant ship, she was armed with 10 – 6 pdrs, and as warship in 1648 with 10 – 6 pdrs. and 2 – 3 pdrs. guns.
In 1630 was she used by the navy, and bought in 1634 by the Swedish Crown and incorporated in the Swedish Navy.
During a visit to Amsterdam the Swedish chancellor Axel Oxenstierna came in contact with the Dutch merchants Samuel Blommaert, Peter Spiring who was in Swedish service and the German Peter Minuit born in Wesel, who was suspended after he got in trouble with the landowning settlers from the service of the Dutch Westindische Compagnie (WIC).
He was the former third Governor of New Netherland and his name got famous later of the governor who bought Manhattan Island for 60 Dutch Guilder from the Canarsie Indianan on 24 May 1626.
This gentlemen made plans for a Swedish colony at the Delaware River, North America. With the help of Swedish Government the New Sweden Company was founded in which the cost even was split between the Dutch merchants and the Swedish government.
Two ships were made ready in Gothenburg the KALMAR NYCKEL and the FAGEL GRIP with a mixed Dutch/Swedish crew, the KALMAR NYCKEL under command of Jan Hindriksen van der Water and Peter Minuit as an officer, most probably was he the leader of the expedition.
December 1638 the two ships sailed from Gothenburg in the North Sea she encountered bad weather and the two ships sailed to Medenblik in the Netherlands for repairs.
01 January 1638 the KALMAR NYCKEL sailed from the Netherlands and arrived in North America on 15 March 1638, after arrival Minuit started negotiations with the Indians on land purchase and on 29 March the first land was bought on which a fort was built and a few houses. The fort was named Fort Christina.
The KALMAR NYCKEL sailed back via the Caribbean loaded partly with furs from the new colony and to pick up more cargo in the Caribbean for Europe.
After this voyage the KALMAR NYCKEL made an other three voyages across the Atlantic to the new founded Swedish colony.
1643 She returned to the Swedish Navy and she took part in the war against Denmark in 1644.
1648 She transported troops to Germany and used for patrol duty in the Kattegat.
1651 Out of service and sold, she was bought by Cornelius Rolofsson, not much is known of her history and fate afterwards, some say she was lost on the coast of the UK in the late 17th century another source that she was lost off Kalmar.
Sweden 1938 15 ore sg204, scott269 and 1958 15/40 ore sg 395 and 397 scott521. (She is the sailing vessel on the right of the stamp, the liner is the GRIPSHOLM who brought in 1938 the Swedish Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Sweden to Delaware landing at Wilmington on 27 June 1938.
Sweden 1966 15 ore sg, scottB54
USA 1938 3c sg846, scott836
In January 1629, in Stockholm, the representatives of Swedish coastal towns had drawn up the constitution of the so called 'Ship Company' at the request of the Swedish King Gustavus II Adolphus, for building or buying a number of vessels (16) of about 360 tons and armed with 12 - 16 guns. This company was given certain privileges.
In peacetime the vessels would be used for trade, but in war they would be transferred to the Navy.
The towns of Kalmar and Jonkoping were to provide one ship. In 1629 a new, three masted ship was bought in Holland for 13,450 Daler silver coins. She was given the name "Calmare Nyckel". Her dimensions were:- length 33 metres. breadth 8.1 metres and height between decks 1.95 metres. Her armament consisted of 16-6 pdr. guns.
"Calmare Nyckel" was transferred to the Navy in 1634, but was later lent to the "South Company" founded in 1626 and later to the "West Indian Company" founded in 1640, or as it was also called "Nova Suecia Company". She was in service for the former company as "Calmare Nyckel" and together with the "Fogel Grip" sailed from Gothenburgh on November 27th 1637 with colonialists for the future Colony New Sweden on the Delaware River in North America. After a dramatic and adventurous voyage over the North Sea, the vessels were forced to call at the Dutch island of Texel for repairs. In the middle of March 1638 they arrived at the estuary of the Delaware River. On March 29th the colonialists could occupy their new land, when the leader Peter Minuit had finished the negotiations with the Indians.
The Captain of "Calmare Nyckel" was Anders Nils Krober, 1st Officer Michael Simmsen and 2nd Officer Jakob Sandelin.
In June the same year "Calmare Nyckel" set out for the West Indies on the return journey to Sweden. Also this time the North Sea offered rough weather. With broken main mast and other severe damage, she was forced to visit Holland for repairs, before she could continue home.
In 1639 - 1640 "Calmare Nyckel" made a second voyage. One of the passengers on this trip was the first Governor of the Colony, Lieutenant Peter Hollender.
Two further trips were made in 1641 - 1642 and 1643-1644 to "New Sweden" and West Indies respectively. After returning home she was transferred to the Navy.
As a naval vessel"Calmare Nyckel" took part in sea operations on the West Coast in 1645. In 1646 - 1647 she belonged to the fleet in the Baltic Sea and served as a troop transport.
In 1649 she was to be equipped for a new expedition to "New Sweden" but she was found in such bad condition that this was impracticable.
"Calmare Nyckel" was sold in 1651 to Cornelius Rolofson. Her further activities after this date are unknown.

Log BookAugust 1971 article by Goran Liljestrom

Finland SG1147 Sweden SG204 518 USA SG846 A2345
john sefton

In this stamp booklet issued by Sweden for the 350th anniversary that the first colonist from Sweden on board the KALMAR NYCKLE and FAGEL GRIP sailed to the New Sweden colony in the USA..
The other stamps shows us descendants from this colony, which have been important for the development of the USA.
1) In the 1840s the “prophet” Erik Jansson came with his followers to Illinois where he founded Bishop Hill named for the Biskopskulla in Uppland. The motif also future the painter Olof Krans.
2) Carl Sandburg (1878-1967) the son of a Swedish emigrant, is one of the great poets of modern american literature.
3) Jenny Lind (1820-1887), the singer from Stockholm, had a glorious career abroad including a tour of the United States.
4) Charles Lindbergh 1902-1974) was the grandson of a Swedish farmer. In his monoplane, he made a non-stop solo flight from New York to Paris in just over 33 hours.
5) The pilot Alan Bean is seen with a Swedish Hasselblad camera during the Apollo XII moon landing in 1969.
6) Many Swedish ice hockey players have made for themselves in the USA playing in the National Hockey League.

Sweden 1988 3k60 sg1380, Scott?
Sweden 1958 15 and 40 Ore, sg 395, 395a, 397, Scott? The sailing vessel on this stamps is given as the CALMAR NYCKLE. The liner is the GRIPSHOLM viewtopic.php?f=2&t=6184&p=15673#p15673

[Anatol]

Calmar Nyckel
Togo2013;2500f;SG?

[Anatol]

Kalmar Nyckel (Key of Kalmar) was a Swedish ship built by the Dutch[a] famed for carrying Swedish settlers to North America in 1638, to establish the colony of New Sweden. The name Kalmar Nyckel comes from the Swedish city of Kalmar and nyckel meaning key in Swedish. The name was also a tribute to Kalmar Castle which was a symbol of power during the time of the Swedish Empire when Sweden was a military great power. A replica of the ship was launched at Wilmington, Delaware, in 1997.
The bow of the replica Kalmar Nyckel including a two-tailed lion figurehead, one tail symbolizing the old ship and one symbolizing the new ship.
In 1986, composer Benjamin Lees was commissioned to write a symphony to honor the founding of Wilmington, Delaware. Lees named the resulting work Symphony No. 5: Kalmar Nyckel. The piece was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2003, following release of a recording by the German orchestra Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz.
For more details about ship “Kalmar Nickel” see: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10177.
Beliz 2019; 5$. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalmar_Nyckel#See_also.