STRAW MARQUETRY

The boxes crafted by Napoleonic prisoners of war tell a story of artistry born from hardship. Emma Longstaff delves into the surprising history and enduring beauty of this centuries-old craft

- Emma Longstaff

Straw marquetry, also known as straw work, has mysterious origins. It was potentially first practised by European religious communities in the 1600s, or its roots may go back to ancient Far Eastern decorative arts. Origins aside, the craft involves cutting, colouring, splitting, flattening and glueing strips of straw onto a wooden surface to create patterns or images.

Fans of straw marquetry often gravitate towards work by Napoleonic prisoners of war. Around 120,000 French soldiers and sailors were detained during the Napoleonic Wars of 1803 to 1815: a number so great it represented over 1 per cent of the population of England and Wales. In previous campaigns, prisoner exchanges had been commonplace. Napoleon, determined to build a French Empire that stretched across Europe, refused to return any captured British men, in case they returned to fighting. Consequently, until Napoleon was finally defeated at the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815, the number of detainees in both French and British prisons steadily grew.

Some men languished in captivity for more than a decade. In Britain, if they took an oath not to escape to France, officers were given relative freedom, and were paroled in private homes in towns across the nation. Allowed to work, socialise, marry, and even bring their wives and families over from France, the officers became part of the local communities.

Their men fared very differently, packed into barracks, camps, depots, and decommissioned war ships.

As Clive Lloyd explains in his book