Skirmish at Bender

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Skirmish at Bender
Part of Great Northern War
The skirmish as depicted in 1894
Date February 1, 1713 Location Bendery in the Ottoman Empire (present day Moldavia) Result Ottoman victory
Belligerents
Sweden	Ottoman Empire
Commanders
Charles XII of Sweden  #
Strength
1,000 men, of which 45 were participating	10,000 [1]
Casualties and losses
Over 500 captured, including Charles XII [2]	200 dead

v • d • e Great Northern War Narva – Daugava – Erastfer – Kliszów – Pułtusk – Jēkabpils – Poznań – Punitz – Gemauerthof – Warsaw – Grodno – Fraustadt – Kalisz – Holowczyn – Malatitze – Lesnaya – Poltava – Perevolochna – Helsingborg – Gadebusch – Bender – Pälkäne – Storkyro – Gangut – Stralsund – Dynekilen – Ösel – Stäket – Grengam

The skirmish at Bender (Swedish: Kalabaliken i Bender) took place on February 1, 1713 on Ottoman territory, in what is now the town of Bendery, Moldavia.

After the battle of Poltava and surrender at Perevolochna in 1709, Charles XII of Sweden fled together with a few hundred Swedish soldiers and a large number of cossacks to the Ottoman Empire, where they spent a long time. The Ottomans got tired of their guests and attacked the camp on February 1, 1713 in order to force the king to leave.

Together with some 40 soldiers, Charles XII held a stand against many hundred Turks. The life guard Axel Erik Roos in particular distinguished himself during the skirmish and accounts tell that he saved the king's life three times during the day. The fighting continued until the king tripped on his own spurs while running, and was captured.

[edit] Popular culture

In Turkish the word for "crowd" is kalabalık, which after the incident has become a Swedish loanword, kalabalik, with the meaning "confusion" or "great disorder".

The incident was the inspiration for Mats Ahren's 1983 film comedy Kalabaliken i Bender. Even in the early 1920s a big motion picture was produced with scenes from the skirmish.

[edit] References

1. ^ Liljegren, B., 2000. Karl XII: En biografi. p 213.
2. ^ Liljegren, B., 2000. Karl XII: En biografi. p 213.