Battles at Göta Älv

The battles at Göta älv were a series of battles and sieges which took place in and around the Gothenburg area between 1717 and 1719, between the Swedish Empire and Denmark–Norway, during the Great Northern War.

When Charles XII was forced to halt his assault on southern Norway in 1716, Dano-Norwegian troops, under the command of the young commander Peter Tordenskjold, attempted to blockade Gothenburg and assault its newly constructed naval base; Nya Varvet (the New Yard) in the spring of 1717, but was unsuccessful. Tordenskold also attempted an assault on Strömstad, also without success. The attacks resulted in the Swedes rebasing their Gothenburg Squadron to Marstrand, some smaller vessels were rebased to Strömstad.

Following Charles XII's renewed assault on Norway in the autumn of 1718, as well as the breakdown of the 1719 peace negotiations, Denmark–Norway launched yet another assault targeting Bohuslän. The goal for the Dano-Norwegian forces was to achieve a quick end of the war with a resulting territorial loss for Sweden, but also to halt the Swedes' privateering operations which were taking a toll on Denmark–Norway. Strömstad was quickly conquered by early July 1719, and the strong Carlsten Fortress at Marstrand was conquered by Tordenskjold, partly thanks to psychological warfare. During the battles in and around Marstrand, large parts of the Gothenburg Squadron were sunk by friendly forces in order to prevent its vessels from falling under enemy control. A subsequent Dano-Norwegian assault against the Älvsborg fortress in the riverhead of Gothenburg's inlet port was countered by the Swedes. Just before hostilities would calm down in the autumn of 1719, Tordenskjold launched yet another assault on Nya Varvet, this time with fewer troops but ultimately resulting in a more successful operation than the one that preceded it.