Skirmish at Bender

infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Skirmish at Bender
partof=Great Northern War


caption=The skirmish as depicted in 1894
place=Bendery in the Ottoman Empire (present day Moldavia)
date=February 1, 1713
result=Ottoman victory
combatant1=flag|Sweden|naval
combatant2=flag|Ottoman Empire|1453
commander1=Charles XII of Sweden POW
commander2=
strength1=1,000 men, of which 45 were participating
strength2=10,000 [Liljegren, B., 2000. "Karl XII: En biografi". p 213.]
casualties1=Over 500 captured, including Charles XII [Liljegren, B., 2000. "Karl XII: En biografi". p 213.]
casualties2=UnknownThe 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 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 excelled 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.

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 1920's a big motion picture was produced with scenes from the skirmish.

References