b o o k ceiving that he continued motionlefs, an alarm was given to
. v|Ij , the officers, who came with a light, and difcerned that he was
dead. Nordberg's account correfponds in general with that
given by Motraye. It being determined to conceal the fatal
accident, Siquier, who was devoted to the prince of Heffe,
took off the king’s hat, covered the head with his own wig
and h a t; and wrapping the body in a grey cloak, ordered it
to be tranfported to his quarters as that o f an officer, Who
was juft killed. Siquier himfelf flew without delay to the
prince o f Heffe, “ who was quartered at Torpum, about the
». diflance o f three quarters * of a mile. The" prince was
“ at fupper,M writes a page who was prefent t, “ with fome
“ generals and officers. Siquier, without being announced,
“ approached and whifpered the prince; the latter did the
“ fame to the perfbn who fat next to him ; and the whifper
“ being circulated round the company in the fame manner,
“ the prince retired from table, and gave immediate orders
“ for poft-horfes.” “ I followed,” adds the fame perfbn,
“ the officers to the place where the king was killed. The
“ prince ordered the generals and officers who were prefent
% to place the body in a litter prepared to convey it to the
“ head quarters. One and twenty foldiers ftanding around
“ with wax tapers in their hands; we obferved that the
“ king, in the agonies o f death, had drawn his fword half
“ out o f the fcabbard, and that the hilt was fo tightly grafped
“ by the right-hand, as not to be difengaged without dif-
“ ficulty. The body was no fooner removed than the prince
“ held a council with the officers, when it was determined
“ to raife the fiege, and to difpatch field-marfhal Ducker to
* Pro b ab ly o f a Swedifli m ile, w h ich is H e fle , w h o was th a t da y in waitin g . See
eq u a l to abou t 6 | E n g liih miles. V o n K a r ls X I I . T o d e & in S chloe tze r’s
4* T h is a c cou n t is taken from the narra- Brie fwe ch fe l, vol.. I. p . 230.
liv e o f Ph ilg ren , a p a ge to the p rin c e o f
“ Sandfborg,
“ Sandfborg, in order to prevent any one from paffing to CHAP-
“ the enemy, and fpreading the report o f the king’s death: «_
“ but this precaution was too late, as that very night a
“ Swedifh lieutenant, accompanied by a drummer, went over
“ the Glomma to the enemy, and acquainted them with the
“ king’s death.”
From thefe circumftances. we have no reafon: to fuppofe
that the king was affaffinated, but rather that he received his
wound from one of the Daniffi batteries; Let us then ex-
aminethe reafons which have induced many perfons to affert
that he was killed by treachery ; and that Frederick prince
of Heffe, who hadefpoufed his youngeft fifter Ulrica Eleonora-
and was foon afterwards raifed to the throne, was not wholly
unfufpeited o f being concerned in his death.
The duke o f Holftein, fon o f Hedwige eldeft fifter o f
Charles XII. was the undoubted heir to the crown, and would,
according to the opinion o f his minifter Baffevitz, have fuc-
teeded, if he had immediately fhown himfelf to the troops.
“ The duke was in the camp. Charles had brought him
“ to the army in that fevere campaign in order to form him
“ to war. Upon the firft news o f the king’s death, the
“ young prince retired to his tent overwhelmed with af-
“ fliition. The generals who were attached to him, in vain
“ demanded admittance. Duker conjured his favouriteRoep-
“ ftorf, that he would perfuade him to appear before the
“ troops, and offered to proclaim him upon the fpot. Roep-
“ ftbrf gained admittance to his mafter, but foon returned
f< with an anfwer, that he was too much affeited to hold
“ converfation with any one. ‘ If h e will not ait,’ fays
“ Duker, | affairs muft go as, they can.”'
“ This delay was the fafety o f the Swedifli liberty. For'
“ how would the nation have dared to propofe the fup-
Z z 2 a preflion