The Death Seat of Two Russian Soldiers – Folklore From the Great Wrath

Abstrakti

The period known as the Great Wrath was associated with the Great Northern War (1700–1721) and the Russian invasion to Finland therein. The Great Wrath lasted from 1714 to 1721 being an extremely painful epoch especially for Northern Ostrobothnia. The devastation caused by the Russian Military was so complete that the conventional written sources from that time, such as parish registers, are almost absent. Most of the houses and churches in the area were burnt and people killed or enslaved. In addition, the great majority of the local authorities fled to safer regions. Thus direct historical sources and material culture associated with this period are sparse. Significant part of the information about the everyday life and particular events is based on oral tradition being generated 300 years ago.

This study was focused on a particular tale from Haapavesi, Northern Ostrobothnia. An old wooden bench being the main character of this story. According to the folklore, at some point during the Great Wrath two Russian soldiers were sitting on the bench, then located in a house called Ojala and killed by the members of local resistance. The soldiers were then buried in nearby forest. The burial place was later renamed as Ryssänkorpi (Russian backwoods) to reflect this incidence. There are also other local names that are potentially associated with the Great Wrath such as flight routes and hiding places.

In this study we take a closer look at the old wooden bench that potentially represents an exceptional artefact, directly related to incidences of the Great Wrath. To confirm the authenticity of the bench a dendrochronological analyses were performed to provide accurate dating for the wood that was used to construct the bench.

The results of dendrochronological analyses indicated that the pine tree that was used as raw material for the bench had grown at least until 1839. The bench was thus probably manufactured in 1840s. This is more than hundred years after the Great Northern War. The bench was thus not linked with Great Wrath or killings of the Russian soldiers. It is possible that the original bench has disappeared at some point or the accuracy of the folklore is weak. Oral tradition can not be considered as accurate. Places, names and points of time tend to change.