The Horned Fortress is a bastion fortification attached to the Vyborg city wall in the 16th century. The territory, once within the Main Vyborg Fortress, is called the Old Town.

In the 1470s, under the leadership of Vyborg’s governor Erik Axelsson Tott, a fortress wall with towers was erected around the city located on a peninsula. The constructed city fortifications were named the "Stone City." About ten towers (rectangular or round in plan, either with gates or solid) were built into the wall. Gustav Vasa, seeing how quickly the city wall was deteriorating, came to the idea of expanding the fortress territory. However, only his successor Erik XIV ordered the development of a new fortification project in 1562. Its construction began under the supervision of Johann de Messa the following year and was completed only by the late 1580s. The hornwork, consisting of three curtains and two corner bastions, was built over more than 20 years. Several chief builders changed during the construction of the Horned Fortress (its corner bastions resembled animal horns in plan).

The structures of the Horned Fortress started from the Round Tower. The curtain faced with granite boulders stretched 300 meters southeast. Here the line of fortifications turned southwest and, crossing the peninsula, reached the shore of the Vyborg Bay. The length of this curtain was 400 meters. Turning northwest, the southern curtain, 200 meters long, ran along the shore and connected with the old granite wall near the Monastery Gate. Two powerful bastions were erected on the flanks of the fortress deep within the peninsula. The northeast bastion Eurypya was built from 1575 to 1576. Swedish engineers paid special attention to strengthening the fortress’s left flank.

The Swedes took on other sections of the Stone City walls after building the bastions and curtains of the Horned Fortress: from 1588 to 1591, a new wall was built in its northern part, starting from the Water Gate and leading toward the Small Gate. According to the records, it was 10 cubits high and 2 fathoms thick. Most likely, bulwarks were not built on this section of the wall because the fortress wall was quite close to the water’s edge. Therefore, the Swedes preferred simply to reconstruct this section of the Stone City wall according to the current requirements of fortification art.

At the same time, near the Water Gate (Vassenport), under the supervision of Peter Hertig, who was then the master mason of Vyborg, Olafsborg, and Kexholm, a bastion of the same name (Vassenport) was constructed.

In 1591, the Italian fortifier Antonius Rosetti arrived in Vyborg, appointed by the king to oversee construction work. He replaced P. Hertig, who died in June of the same year.

From 1592 to 1594, according to his project, a pentagonal bastion was built near the New Gate (Neiport). In 1593, 3,862 man-days were spent on this, and in 1594 — 1,494 man-days. Although, according to reports, this structure was called not a bastion but a "pastei" or round tower. This is quite understandable since fortification terminology had not yet stabilized at that time.

Judging by the plans of the Vyborg fortress from the 1630s, these structures were built according to the so-called old Italian fortification system. It implied relatively small bastions (at an early stage of their development); the presence of so-called oreillons (oreillon - "ear" in French), which protected the guns located on the bastion flanks from frontal artillery fire of the besiegers; as well as multi-tiered defensive fire.

Due to military actions in the last third of the 16th and early 17th centuries in this region, the construction of fortifications in Vyborg was almost continuous, so various parts of even the Stone City belonged to fortress construction techniques of different times. Moreover, while some parts were being completed, others deteriorated and already required repair.

Since the 16th century, city fortifications were improved. Some towers were rebuilt into bastions; a barbican was built in the eastern wall, including the Cattle Drive and Round towers. Due to military actions in the last third of the 16th and early 17th centuries, construction of fortifications in Vyborg practically never stopped, so various parts of the fortifications belonged to fortress construction techniques of different times. Moreover, while some parts were being completed, others deteriorated and already required repair. In the 18th century, the wall between the Stone City and the Horned Fortress was dismantled. Together they formed the Main Vyborg Fortress. The main elements of defense were curtains and bastions, including the following bastions:

·         Valport;

·         Vasserport;

·         Goltz;

·         Europ (Eurup, Euryapya);

·         Zant;

·         Kleinplatform;

·         Neiport;

·         Panzerlax;

·         Eleonora.

In 1861, a general development plan for Vyborg was approved, according to which new streets and a park-esplanade were laid out on the site of the demolished fortifications of the Stone City and the Horned Fortress.

Being entirely on land, it was the most vulnerable. The defense of the right flank of the Horned Fortress was carried out by the second bastion — Panzerlax. In the 1580s, a coastal curtain was built between Panzerlax and the Monastery Gate of the Stone City. Between them, a third wooden bastion — Valport — was erected. The builders took into account the mistakes made during the construction of the Stone City fortifications, which quickly deteriorated and collapsed. Walls built along the shores fell into the water in some places. To avoid this, a solid foundation of large boulders was laid under the Horned Fortress structures, 4.5 meters wide at the bottom and over three meters at the top. From the Round Tower to the Eurypya bastion, at the site of the current park, a wide moat was dug, filled with water up to the Salakka-Lahti bay. A ravelin called Carolus was built in the moat.

The collapsed Lakamundu tower was dismantled, and a new bastion was built on its foundation, named after the queen — Eleonora. A dry moat 30 meters wide crossed the peninsula in front of the southeastern curtain. It contained the Large Ravelin, and on both sides of it, two stone redoubts — auxiliary defensive structures. The Horned Fortress was built over more than thirty years. It was constantly repaired and updated. Almost simultaneously, construction of military fortifications was underway on the Sikanemi (Resin Shore) cape, west of the castle. It was supervised by the master builder Jacob Stendal. The cape had no fortifications and was the most vulnerable point in Vyborg’s defensive belt. The fortress structures of the Stone City were reconstructed according to the bastion system principles. On the southern shore of the peninsula, at the site of the current port, the bastions Goltz, Neiport, and Zant were built, and on the northern shore — Kleinplatform and Vasserport. From the latter, the curtain ran to the Eleonora bastion.

The situation on the Russian-Swedish border became quite tense by the end of the 16th century. In 1580, the famous military leader Pontus de la Gardie arrived in Vyborg. The Swedish detachment under his command undertook a campaign to the shores of Ladoga. Later, Vyborg became the target of a retaliatory strike. The Horned Fortress then faced its first serious test. This happened on January 29, 1592, when the vanguard of Russian troops approached the city walls from the southeast, and the bastions Eurypya and Panzerlax participated in combat for the first time. The two-thousand-strong Swedish garrison, commanded by the experienced marshal Klaus Fleming, along with armed townspeople and heavy fire from the newest fortifications, promised the besiegers only heavy losses and no success. The Russian troops lifted the siege on January 31 and retreated. The Horned Fortress and other Vyborg fortifications in the 16th-17th centuries resisted not only the onslaught of Russian warriors. They were also stormed with varying success during internal wars arising from political and religious motives.

The construction and transformation of the Horned Fortress were a heavy burden on Vyborg’s residents. Soldiers were not involved in building fortifications; it was considered that the civilian population was obliged to work off various tax privileges they enjoyed. By the early 18th century, there were only about 500 men aged 16 to 60 in Vyborg capable of performing heavy work on fortress construction. It was obvious that no funds or time remained for the city’s improvement. Citizens’ houses deteriorated, and the streets were full of potholes and muddy puddles. On the other hand, building military fortifications was a known stimulus for the city’s growth. The territory of the Horned Fortress quickly became built up and populated. Wealthy residents of Vyborg quickly built houses and settled on the Sikanemi cape.

If in 1617 the city had 1,800 inhabitants, by the 1640s their number had doubled. By the end of the 17th century, the Horned Fortress was severely dilapidated. The curtain crossing the peninsula between the Eurypya and Panzerlax bastions had collapsed to ground level in several places. The Neiport bastion had completely collapsed, the remaining towers were roofless, and horses rode over the remains of the curtains. In the "carefree, cheerful" Vyborg, it was believed that the ruins of once formidable fortifications would never be needed again. But the situation in Vyborg changed sharply when news arrived that power in Moscow had passed to the young energetic tsar Peter. Later, the events of the Northern War became known: the Russians reached the shores of the Gulf of Finland and founded a city here "to spite the arrogant neighbor" — the future capital of Russia — Petersburg. The Horned Fortress and other military fortifications of Vyborg began to be actively restored and repaired. Work was carried out in great haste, and wooden structures were often used instead of stone ones.

The plans for the structures being built were drawn up and construction supervised by the fortifier Captain Lorenzo Stobius. In the autumn of 1706, the Horned Fortress was unexpectedly besieged. A Russian corps of nearly 20,000 men under General Roman Bruce secretly approached Vyborg on October 11 and caught its garrison by surprise. At such a late time of year, due to impassable roads, the possibility of an attack was not even suspected. The fortress garrison commander, General Meidel, had only a thousand soldiers. The burghers, obliged to take up arms and defend the city, were at a fair in Lappeenranta at the time. On October 22, the bombardment of the fortress began. Russian artillery fired about two thousand cannonballs at the city. The fortifications suffered significant damage. Residential buildings in the Karyaportinkatu (Drive Street) area were completely destroyed.

But even after such effective artillery preparation, the fortress assault did not take place. The Russian command decided that resources were insufficient and lifted the siege on October 23, withdrawing the troops. However, the experience of the 1706 campaign was not wasted. Peter I was convinced of the necessity of using the fleet. Without its participation, it would be impossible to take the strongly fortified maritime and land fortress of Vyborg. Supplying the siege corps with manpower reserves, guns, ammunition, food, and forage could only be done by water. Four years later, the Horned Fortress participated in combat for the last time in its nearly one-and-a-half-century history. The Russian troops besieging Vyborg in 1710 faced a powerful system of fortifications created by the Swedes over four centuries. It consisted of the castle, modernized Stone City structures, and the Horned Fortress, which was advanced for its time. In mid-March 1710, a 13,000-strong detachment under General Admiral F. M. Apraksin set out from Kronstadt across the ice of the Gulf of Finland to Vyborg. It bypassed Koivisto (Primorsk) and attacked the Swedish defense on the Sikanemi cape directly over the ice. The surviving defenders of the rather weak fortifications here retreated into the fortress, not even managing to set fire to the houses.

After a successful first battle, the besiegers completely blockaded Vyborg from the land side. Russian attacks were mainly conducted in two directions: from the cape across the strait against the Stone City and from the mainland on the southeastern front of the Horned Fortress. For a week, Russian soldiers dug approaches — zigzag trenches for covertly approaching enemy fortifications — on the glacis. Frozen ground and rocky soil greatly complicated the work. Parapets had to be made from bags stuffed with wool. Siege engineering preparations were carried out all the time under aimed fire from fortress artillery. Being in the open air, the besiegers were not protected from severe frosts and piercing winds. The guns installed in the main tower of the castle posed a particular danger to them. Peter’s grenadiers called it the "Long Hermann." After the fleet’s arrival and unloading of ships, the battery on the cape was reinforced to forty guns aimed at the curtain between the Zant and Neiport bastions. Below the guns, a trench was dug for a hundred musketeers and seventy hand mortars. They were to prevent the besieged from closing breaches and cover their soldiers going on the assault with fire.

After the bombardment from the cape, sailors were to complete the destruction of the coastal fortifications. The wooden bastions Goltz and Neiport were to be burned with fire ships — special unmanned vessels whose holds were filled with combustible and explosive substances. The impact of such a ship on a coastal fortification or enemy vessel caused a strong explosion and fire. The bastion Valport, built one of the last and well-armed, was intended to be blown up with a delayed-action mine — "infernal."

Peter’s regiments under General Bergholz continuously attacked the Panzerlax bastion. These actions were a diversionary maneuver, preventing the besieged garrison from concentrating large forces on the main attack direction. By the end of May, all engineering preparations for the assault were completed. On June 1, at 7 p.m., artillery preparation began. The fortress bombardment lasted six days. As a result, the curtain at the main attack site was completely destroyed. In several places, the fortifications on Castle Island suffered severe damage. Due to wall collapses, the guns of the Olaf tower fell silent. "There was not a single fathom of intact ground in the entire fortress, where there was flatness and no bomb craters; many streets were blocked by collapsed buildings and impassable." In the auxiliary attack, the bastions Eurypya and Panzerlax suffered significant damage.

They gaped with collapsed granite facings. From the Large Ravelin, all guns were silenced by artillery fire, and the left stone redoubt turned into ruins. On June 7 and 8, Russian troops prepared for the assault. An original method was planned to build two floating bridges. They were placed along the shore so that before the assault they could be pushed and, using the current, set across the strait. But the assault did not take place. The Swedish command entered negotiations and agreed to surrender. The fortress commandant Colonel Magnus Schernstrohle, 11 staff officers, 120 senior officers, 30 officials, and 1,800 soldiers who survived from the 4,000-strong garrison surrendered.

The trophies included a large amount of weapons and military equipment. The victory of the Russian troops in taking Vyborg was facilitated by the correct choice of the fortress’s weakest defense section from the strait side, skillfully organized cooperation between land forces and the fleet, concentration of large artillery masses on narrow front sections, simultaneous attacks from different sides that broke the garrison’s forces and deprived it of maneuvering ability. After the dismantling of outdated military fortifications in the mid-19th century, the Panzerlax bastion of the Horned Fortress was preserved.

Sources:

http://nik-rech.narod.ru/viborg_photoprogulki/history_zdaniya/rogataya_krepost.htm

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Рогатая_крепость

http://bigring.ru/?trID=580