DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.22262#0132
Irma Wallenborg
The shape and appearance of the tents varied according to their function. The tents
were used not only on campaign but also in peacetime, for example on festive oc-
casions. There were also tents for special ceremonies such as religious services, ex-
ecutions or bathing. Certain tents were used as repositories (e.g. for treasures, relics,
carpets, ammunition, foodstuffs) or as stables for horses.
At the battle of Kliszow in 1702, the battlefield included a swamp-like area with
a watercourse in the middle. The Polish-Saxon army and their Swedish enemy
moved into position before the battle. The Swedish King Charles XII captured from
the combined Polish-Saxon army of Augustus IIforty-six metal cannons, entire
camp, ammunition and all baggage, many flags, standards and drums, the Polish
King's tent, kitchen, cellar, and silver service.' The words 'kitchen' and 'cellar' refer
to tents used for those purposes.
On 26 November 1703 a fleet of 18 ships sailed from Danzig (Gdańsk) to
Karlskrona, carrying both metal and textile trophies, chests of muskets and Rus-
sian and Saxon prisoners of the Kliszow war. When they were about halfway there,
the ships were scattered by a violent storm. Divers have recovered a bronze cannon
from ships sunken in the bays in the summer of 1704. Today, our National Trophy
Collection has very few trophies from what was a great Swedish victory, the rest must
have been lost on the homeward voyage. The Turkish tent was not on any of those
ships.
The tent was Charles XII's personal property and accompanied him at first in
Poland and then to Bender in Turkey, where he stayed for four years until 1713.
He was taken prisoner in the tumult at Bender in 1713 and forced to leave the
country.
Following the death of Charles XII, subseąuent Kings of Sweden retained the tent
as their property, and the inventory list compiled in 1859 features the tent under
the heading 'Tent: large with flowers, Charles XII - useless.' King Oscar II presented
it to the former Artillery Museum in 1898.
In 1975, while conservation work on the tent was in progress we decided to take it
down. Conservation involved inserting new, dyed cotton fabric under the appliąue
work and sewing down the original in running stitch or couch stitch.
I began discussing the fabric of Turkish tents with our Polish colleagues. Earlier
records showed that specialists in both Poland and Sweden belived these tents were
mostly linen. Yet technical analyses showed to our surprise that many of them were
cotton.
We also corresponded with our Polish colleagues about the materiał used for the
outsides of the tents, which was impregnated with a chemical agent that we were
130
The shape and appearance of the tents varied according to their function. The tents
were used not only on campaign but also in peacetime, for example on festive oc-
casions. There were also tents for special ceremonies such as religious services, ex-
ecutions or bathing. Certain tents were used as repositories (e.g. for treasures, relics,
carpets, ammunition, foodstuffs) or as stables for horses.
At the battle of Kliszow in 1702, the battlefield included a swamp-like area with
a watercourse in the middle. The Polish-Saxon army and their Swedish enemy
moved into position before the battle. The Swedish King Charles XII captured from
the combined Polish-Saxon army of Augustus IIforty-six metal cannons, entire
camp, ammunition and all baggage, many flags, standards and drums, the Polish
King's tent, kitchen, cellar, and silver service.' The words 'kitchen' and 'cellar' refer
to tents used for those purposes.
On 26 November 1703 a fleet of 18 ships sailed from Danzig (Gdańsk) to
Karlskrona, carrying both metal and textile trophies, chests of muskets and Rus-
sian and Saxon prisoners of the Kliszow war. When they were about halfway there,
the ships were scattered by a violent storm. Divers have recovered a bronze cannon
from ships sunken in the bays in the summer of 1704. Today, our National Trophy
Collection has very few trophies from what was a great Swedish victory, the rest must
have been lost on the homeward voyage. The Turkish tent was not on any of those
ships.
The tent was Charles XII's personal property and accompanied him at first in
Poland and then to Bender in Turkey, where he stayed for four years until 1713.
He was taken prisoner in the tumult at Bender in 1713 and forced to leave the
country.
Following the death of Charles XII, subseąuent Kings of Sweden retained the tent
as their property, and the inventory list compiled in 1859 features the tent under
the heading 'Tent: large with flowers, Charles XII - useless.' King Oscar II presented
it to the former Artillery Museum in 1898.
In 1975, while conservation work on the tent was in progress we decided to take it
down. Conservation involved inserting new, dyed cotton fabric under the appliąue
work and sewing down the original in running stitch or couch stitch.
I began discussing the fabric of Turkish tents with our Polish colleagues. Earlier
records showed that specialists in both Poland and Sweden belived these tents were
mostly linen. Yet technical analyses showed to our surprise that many of them were
cotton.
We also corresponded with our Polish colleagues about the materiał used for the
outsides of the tents, which was impregnated with a chemical agent that we were
130