Military Hans Högman
Copyright © Hans Högman 2017-08-10

Research of Soldiers, Sweden

The Navy Rolls

The Navy archives are as a rule not as well preserved as the Army archives. The Navy archives start with the year 1630 and contain the same type of information as the general muster rolls of the Army. The Navy rolls also have notes regarding experience in seamanship, annual enrollment (inmönstring) and discharge (utmönstring), leave of absence (permission), name of the ships etc. The rolls also contain information regarding the "fördubblingsmanskapet" (reserve båtsmän). These reserve båtsmän are in the rolls next to the regular båtsman. (Catalogue: 500, 501 and 502) See also the card index:  "Rullor över sjömilitär personal" (Rolls covering naval personal). The Navy recruits were called "båtsmän" (seamen) and served aboard the Navy ships. They manned the artillery and also had sailing duties. (It is one båtsman but two båtsmän.) The system of recruiting "båtsmän" was very similar to the system of recruiting soldiers in the infantry. A number of farmers in coastal areas formed a "rote" and were required to recruit a "båtsman" and provide him with a croft (båtmanstorp) and a uniform. The båtsmän were annually enrolled in early summer and discharged at late fall (not necessarily every year). The båtsmän were not kept together in regiments but in companies. Respective "båtsmanskompani" (båtsman company) belonged to a naval station (örlogsstation), normally the station in Karlskrona or Stockholm. The Navy Archives contain five folio volumes:

Volym nr 1 (Volume no 1)

Volym nr 1, förteckning nr 500A (volume no 1, catalogue no 500A), contains  the "Amiralitetskollegiets kansliers" archive (the Admiralty Board's  secretariats' archive)

Volym nr 2 (Volume no 2)

Volym nr 2, förteckning nr 501 (volume no 2, catalogue no 501), (Sjömilitiekontoret - The office for Naval  Military Affairs) contains economical affairs and records, among other's, the following four departments: 1. Regementsskrivaren för Båtsmanshållet - The regimental scribe for the Navy Allotment System. These rolls start in 1683. 2. Regementsskrivaren för Kofferdibåtskompanierna samt matros och Skeppsgossekåren - The regimental scribe for the enlisted companies (kofferdikompanier) plus the Seaman and Cabin Boy Corps. These rolls start in 1758. (Kofferdimatros = Navy seaman enrolled from the merchant fleet. When they weren’t annually enrolled they served on merchant ships). 3. Regementsskrivarna för Volontär- och Sjöartilleriregementena - The regimental scribes for the Volunteer regiments and the Sea Artillery Regiments. These rolls start in 1692 but contain gaps during the 1700's. 4. Timmermans- och Hantverksstaterna samt Arbetskarlar och Arrestanter - The Carpenter's and Craftsmen's Offices plus laborers and prisoners. Only a few rolls from the years between 1771 and 1777 are preserved.  

Volym nr 3 (Volume no 3)

Volym nr 3, förteckning nr 502 (volume no 3, catalogue no 502), contain information regarding the Administration of Justice (Rättskipningen), the Commissariat Supply Service (Intendenturen) and the Pilotage Service (Lotsväsenet).

Volym nr 4 (Volume no 4)

Volym nr 4, förteckning nr 503:A (volume no 4, catalogue no 503:A), contains information regarding the Army Fleet (The Galley Fleet). These rolls cover the years 1756 to 1766, 1777 to1790 and 1797 to 1823. Between 1756 and 1823 the Galley fleet was a part of the Army and therefore called the Army Fleet. The archive material is divided between the different squadrons; The Stockholm, Finnish (Sveaborg), Åbo, Stralsund, Landskrona, Malmö and Göteborg squadrons. The number of squadrons has varied over the years.

Volym nr 5 (Volume no 5)

Volym nr 5, förteckning nr 503:B (volume no 5, catalogue no 503:B), contains information about the Stockholm Naval Station and records both the Navy and the Army Fleet personal. In 1824 the Army Fleet was reorganized and become a part of the Navy. These rolls start around 1715 even if older material is available.

Rulllor Flotan 1635 - 1925, förteckning 503 (Navy Rolls 1635 - 1925, catalogue 503)

The Navy Allotment System's part of this archive is organized per båtsman company. Båtsmän It is difficult to find an English translation of the title "Båtsman". They were a type of seamen serving aboard the Navy ships as explained above. The special thing about the "båtsmän" were the way they were provided, recruited and trained. The "båtsmän" were deckhands doing all sorts of duties plus manning the guns during battle. Generally you could say that the "båtsmän" were low in rank and duties on board the ships. Enlisted seamen (kofferdimatroser) from the mercantile navy were in charge of the qualified sailing duties on the ships. The number of "båtsmän" aboard a ship of the line in the 1780's was about 250 and the number of enlisted seamen about 20. Including the 110 army soldiers, there was in total about 560 to 570 men and officers aboard a ship of the line. The title seaman is not incorrect but "seaman" doesn't pinpoint the special type of seaman the "båtsmän" were. A direct translation would be boatsman, however there is no such naval title in the English language. Since båtsmän only existed in Sweden and since this title is very difficult to translate I’ve kept the Swedish word "båtsman" in the articles on my website. It then won't be mixed with any English/American naval titles. It is "båtsman" in singualr and "båtsmän" in plural. More information about "båtsmän" and the båtsman companies  In order to find a båtsman in the Navy rolls you have to (like for the army soldiers and cavalrymen) know the name of the parish where he lived in as an active båtsman. Like for the Army personal you use the Grill books to find name of the båtsman company the båtsman served in. Unlike the Army GMRs there are no uniting series of rolls for the Navy. For the period after 1860, information about the regular båtsmän should be searched in the catalogues of the Båtsman Company’s archives (Båtsmansrulla) belonging to the Stockholm Naval Station or the Karlskrona Naval Station. You will also find the båtsman's contracts in the naval station's archives. The earliest are from the 1800's. The Kompanirulla (company rolls) were kept from the 1800's to 1947 and corresponds to the army's "stamrulla". Rolls for the enlisted sailors (enrolleringsmanskapet) are often found together with the rolls for the regular båtsmän. The rolls for the Cabin Boy Corps (Skeppsgossekåren) starts  in 1677. The Cabin Boy Corps was situated at the naval station in Karlskrona (south eastern Sweden). The corps was divided into two companies in 1828 and later a third company was established. In 1907 another  Cabin Boy Corps (two companies) was established at Marstrand on the west coast. This corps belonged however to the Stockholm Naval Station. In order to find a member of the crew of a specific ship you have to study the ship’s skeppsmönsterrullor (Ship Muster Rolls). Information of a ship’s naval expeditions is found in respective ship’s logbooks.
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Related Links

The Allotment System Swedish Regiments Swedish Military Unit Numbers Tutorial: How to Research Soldiers Tutorial: Conscription Enrollment Numbers Example of soldier rolls & documents  About the enrollment Numbers (Conscripts) Examples of different notations in general muster rolls Terms, soldier research The rote numbering of the Södermanland regiment

Source References

Krigsarkivet och släktforskaren, Christopher von Warnstedt, SSGFs skriftserie, nr 1. 1989. Släktforskaren och Krigsarkivet by Lars Ericsson, article in Båtsmän, ryttare & soldater, Årsbok Sveriges Släktforskarförbund 1988. Soldatforska, Lars Ericson Wolke, 2012 Soldatforskning, by P Clemensson, L Ericsson, P Frohnert and B Lippold. Krigsarkivet 1995. Släktforskarna och Krigsarkivet, en vägvisare till de militära källorna. Message from Krigsarkivet XIX, 2000. Beståndsöversikt Krigsarkivet Inskrivningar av värnpliktiga 1812 - 1969, en översikt av Evabritta Personne, 1968. My own experiences Top of page
Military Hans Högman
Copyright © Hans Högman 2017-08-10

Research of Soldiers,

Sweden

The Navy Rolls

The Navy archives are as a rule not as well preserved as the Army archives. The Navy archives start with the year 1630 and contain the same type of information as the general muster rolls of the Army. The Navy rolls also have notes regarding experience in seamanship, annual enrollment (inmönstring) and discharge (utmönstring), leave of absence (permission), name of the ships etc. The rolls also contain information regarding the "fördubblingsmanskapet" (reserve båtsmän). These reserve båtsmän are in the rolls next to the regular båtsman. (Catalogue: 500, 501 and 502) See also the card index:  "Rullor över sjömilitär personal" (Rolls covering naval personal). The Navy recruits were called "båtsmän" (seamen) and served aboard the Navy ships. They manned the artillery and also had sailing duties. (It is one båtsman but two båtsmän.) The system of recruiting "båtsmän" was very similar to the system of recruiting soldiers in the infantry. A number of farmers in coastal areas formed a "rote" and were required to recruit a "båtsman" and provide him with a croft (båtmanstorp) and a uniform. The båtsmän were annually enrolled in early summer and discharged at late fall (not necessarily every year). The båtsmän were not kept together in regiments but in companies. Respective "båtsmanskompani" (båtsman company) belonged to a naval station (örlogsstation), normally the station in Karlskrona or Stockholm. The Navy Archives contain five folio volumes:

Volym nr 1 (Volume no 1)

Volym nr 1, förteckning nr 500A (volume no 1, catalogue no 500A), contains  the "Amiralitetskollegiets kansliers" archive (the Admiralty Board's  secretariats' archive)

Volym nr 2 (Volume no 2)

Volym nr 2, förteckning nr 501 (volume no 2, catalogue no 501), (Sjömilitiekontoret - The office for Naval  Military Affairs) contains economical affairs and records, among other's, the following four departments: 1. Regementsskrivaren för Båtsmanshållet - The regimental scribe for the Navy Allotment System. These rolls start in 1683. 2. Regementsskrivaren för Kofferdibåtskompanierna samt matros och Skeppsgossekåren - The regimental scribe for the enlisted companies (kofferdikompanier) plus the Seaman and Cabin Boy Corps. These rolls start in 1758. (Kofferdimatros = Navy seaman enrolled from the merchant fleet. When they weren’t annually enrolled they served on merchant ships). 3. Regementsskrivarna för Volontär- och Sjöartilleriregementena - The regimental scribes for the Volunteer regiments and the Sea Artillery Regiments. These rolls start in 1692 but contain gaps during the 1700's. 4. Timmermans- och Hantverksstaterna samt Arbetskarlar och Arrestanter - The Carpenter's and Craftsmen's Offices plus laborers and prisoners. Only a few rolls from the years between 1771 and 1777 are preserved.  

Volym nr 3 (Volume no 3)

Volym nr 3, förteckning nr 502 (volume no 3, catalogue no 502), contain information regarding the Administration of Justice (Rättskipningen), the Commissariat Supply Service (Intendenturen) and the Pilotage Service (Lotsväsenet).

Volym nr 4 (Volume no 4)

Volym nr 4, förteckning nr 503:A (volume no 4, catalogue no 503:A), contains information regarding the Army Fleet (The Galley Fleet). These rolls cover the years 1756 to 1766, 1777 to1790 and 1797 to 1823. Between 1756 and 1823 the Galley fleet was a part of the Army and therefore called the Army Fleet. The archive material is divided between the different squadrons; The Stockholm, Finnish (Sveaborg), Åbo, Stralsund, Landskrona, Malmö and Göteborg squadrons. The number of squadrons has varied over the years.

Volym nr 5 (Volume no 5)

Volym nr 5, förteckning nr 503:B (volume no 5, catalogue no 503:B), contains information about the Stockholm Naval Station and records both the Navy and the Army Fleet personal. In 1824 the Army Fleet was reorganized and become a part of the Navy. These rolls start around 1715 even if older material is available.

Rulllor Flotan 1635 - 1925, förteckning 503

(Navy Rolls 1635 - 1925, catalogue 503)

The Navy Allotment System's part of this archive is organized per båtsman company. Båtsmän It is difficult to find an English translation of the title "Båtsman". They were a type of seamen serving aboard the Navy ships as explained above. The special thing about the "båtsmän" were the way they were provided, recruited and trained. The "båtsmän" were deckhands doing all sorts of duties plus manning the guns during battle. Generally you could say that the "båtsmän" were low in rank and duties on board the ships. Enlisted seamen (kofferdimatroser) from the mercantile navy were in charge of the qualified sailing duties on the ships. The number of "båtsmän" aboard a ship of the line in the 1780's was about 250 and the number of enlisted seamen about 20. Including the 110 army soldiers, there was in total about 560 to 570 men and officers aboard a ship of the line. The title seaman is not incorrect but "seaman" doesn't pinpoint the special type of seaman the "båtsmän" were. A direct translation would be boatsman, however there is no such naval title in the English language. Since båtsmän only existed in Sweden and since this title is very difficult to translate I’ve kept the Swedish word "båtsman" in the articles on my website. It then won't be mixed with any English/American naval titles. It is "båtsman" in singualr and "båtsmän" in plural. More information about "båtsmän" and the båtsman companies  In order to find a båtsman in the Navy rolls you have to (like for the army soldiers and cavalrymen) know the name of the parish where he lived in as an active båtsman. Like for the Army personal you use the Grill books to find name of the båtsman company the båtsman served in. Unlike the Army GMRs there are no uniting series of rolls for the Navy. For the period after 1860, information about the regular båtsmän should be searched in the catalogues of the Båtsman Company’s archives (Båtsmansrulla) belonging to the Stockholm Naval Station or the Karlskrona Naval Station. You will also find the båtsman's contracts in the naval station's archives. The earliest are from the 1800's. The Kompanirulla (company rolls) were kept from the 1800's to 1947 and corresponds to the army's "stamrulla". Rolls for the enlisted sailors (enrolleringsmanskapet) are often found together with the rolls for the regular båtsmän. The rolls for the Cabin Boy Corps (Skeppsgossekåren) starts  in 1677. The Cabin Boy Corps was situated at the naval station in Karlskrona (south eastern Sweden). The corps was divided into two companies in 1828 and later a third company was established. In 1907 another  Cabin Boy Corps (two companies) was established at Marstrand on the west coast. This corps belonged however to the Stockholm Naval Station. In order to find a member of the crew of a specific ship you have to study the ship’s skeppsmönsterrullor (Ship Muster Rolls). Information of a ship’s naval expeditions is found in respective ship’s logbooks.

Related Links

The Allotment System Swedish Regiments Swedish Military Unit Numbers Tutorial: How to Research Soldiers Tutorial: Conscription Enrollment Numbers Example of soldier rolls & documents  About the enrollment Numbers (Conscripts) Examples of different notations in general muster rolls Terms, soldier research The rote numbering of the Södermanland regiment

Source References

Krigsarkivet och släktforskaren, Christopher von Warnstedt, SSGFs skriftserie, nr 1. 1989. Släktforskaren och Krigsarkivet by Lars Ericsson, article in Båtsmän, ryttare & soldater, Årsbok Sveriges Släktforskarförbund 1988. Soldatforska, Lars Ericson Wolke, 2012 Soldatforskning, by P Clemensson, L Ericsson, P Frohnert and B Lippold. Krigsarkivet 1995. Släktforskarna och Krigsarkivet, en vägvisare till de militära källorna. Message from Krigsarkivet XIX, 2000. Beståndsöversikt Krigsarkivet Inskrivningar av värnpliktiga 1812 - 1969, en översikt av Evabritta Personne, 1968. My own experiences Top of page