Peter Wessel
| Peter Wessel Tordenskjold | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
28 October 1690 Trondheim, Norway |
| Died | 12 November 1720 (aged 30) Hildesheim, Electorate of Cologne |
| Buried | Church of Holmen |
| Allegiance |
 Denmark–Norway
|
| Service/branch |
 Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy
|
| Years of service | 1705–1720 |
| Rank | Vice-Admiral |
| Battles/wars | |
Peter Jansen Wessel Tordenskiold (28 October 1690 – 12 November 1720), commonly referred to as Tordenskjold (lit. Thunder Shield), was a Norwegian nobleman and an eminent naval flag officer in the service of the Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy. He rose to the rank of Vice-Admiral for his services in the Great Northern War. Born in Trondheim, Peter Wessel travelled to Copenhagen in 1704, and was employed in the navy. He won a name for himself through audacity and courage, and was ennobled as Peter Tordenskiold by King Frederick IV in 1716. His greatest exploit came later that year, as he destroyed the supply fleet of Charles XII of Sweden at the Battle of Dynekilen. In 1720, he was killed in a duel. In Denmark and Norway he is among the most famous national naval heroes. He experienced an unusually rapid rise in rank and died when he was only 30 years old.
His birth name was Peter Jansen Wessel. His name occurs with spellings as Peder and Pitter. Upon his ennoblement in 1716, he received the name Tordenskiold. This was also the orthographical form which he used. In newer times, the form Tordenskjold has become usual.
Born in Trondheim in Norway, he was the tenth child of alderman Jan Wessel, and the brother of later Rear-Admiral Caspar von Wessel. Peter Wessel was a wild, unruly lad who gave his pious parents much trouble, eventually stowing away on a ship heading for Copenhagen in 1704. In Copenhagen, he unsuccessfully sought to become a navy cadet. He befriended the king's chaplain Dr Peder Jespersen who sent Wessel on a voyage to the West Indies, and finally procured for him a vacant cadetship. After further voyages, this time to the East Indies, Wessel was appointed Second Lieutenant in the Royal Danish-Norwegian Navy on 7 July 1711, and went on to serve on the frigate Postillion. While on Postillion, he befriended Norwegian admiral baron Waldemar Løvendal, who was the first to recognize the young man's potential as a naval officer. Løvendal soon made Peter Wessel the captain of the 4-gun sloop Ormen (HMS Serpent).
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