Russian revenge
Fortress walls and towers of Smolensk
prehistory
During the 1569th-XNUMXth centuries, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia (from XNUMX part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth) was the main opponent of the Russian state in the West. The battle between the two Russian powers for hegemony in the Russian world was underway.
Since the reign of Ivan III, Moscow had the upper hand in the confrontation, but the conclusion of the Union of Lublin in 1569 dramatically changed the balance of power in the region. Lithuanian Rus' fell under the rule of Polish kings, the Western Russian nobility was quickly Polonized and adopted Catholicism. Poland, having received vast Russian territories, had a chance to create a leading power in Eastern Europe.
Russia first lost the Livonian War, then the Time of Troubles began, in which Poland took the most active part. First, the Poles installed their protégé, False Dmitry, in Moscow, then, with the help of the Russian boyars, their Tsarevich Vladislav. Moscow lost the Russo-Polish War of 1609-1618. According to the Truce of Deulino, Russia lost the Smolensk, Chernigov and Novgorod-Seversk lands.
Poland reached its maximum power, almost subjugating Muscovite Rus'. However, the Polish lords were unable to create a unified Polish-Russian empire, to "digest" the Russian borderland. Polish colonial policy, religious, national and economic oppression led to a series of brutal uprisings in Southern Rus' (Little Russia). The uprisings were drowned in blood. Warsaw did not learn its lessons, only increasing pressure on the Western Russian population.
This eventually caused another uprising, led by the talented military leader and statesman Bohdan Khmelnitsky. The uprising grew into a peasant and Russian national liberation war, which liquidated the Polish yoke in the Russian borderland. The brutal war, where both sides mercilessly slaughtered each other, was fought with varying success. The Crimean Tatar hordes took part in it, sometimes supporting the Cossacks, sometimes abandoning them. The Crimean feudal lords were primarily engaged in plundering lands, taking Slavs captive for sale into slavery.
Khmelnitsky, after failing to reach an agreement with Warsaw (the Cossack elders dreamed of the position of the gentry), understood that the Hetmanate could not be held on its own. Sooner or later, the Poles would be able to mobilize enough forces to take over, and Crimea would betray at a critical moment. Therefore, he decided to accept the citizenship of the Russian sovereign. He repeatedly sent messages and ambassadors to Moscow.
The tsarist government acted cautiously. On the one hand, the return of lands lost during the Time of Troubles became one of the most important goals of Russian foreign policy. However, the first attempt to solve this problem was made in 1632-1634 during the unsuccessful Smolensk War and ended in failure (How the government of Mikhail Fedorovich failed the war for Smolensk). Moscow remembered the military power of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Also, the Russian state itself at that time almost collapsed into a new turmoil, experienced a number of uprisings and rebellions. Therefore, the tsar's commanders and boyars looked with apprehension at the large-scale rebellion of the "rabble" and Cossacks on the Dnieper.
On the other hand, Warsaw showed weakness during the war with Khmelnitsky's Cossacks. The foreign policy situation was unfavorable for Poland. Moscow carried out preliminary military preparations: troops, weaponThe moment was opportune to begin the war for the liberation of Russian lands.
By 1653, the decision to go to war had been made: the Zemsky Sobor approved the entry of Little Rus' into the Russian state. In January 1654, the Pereyaslav Rada was held, at which the Cossack elders spoke out in favor of citizenship to the Russian Tsar (Forever with Moscow). The Tsar's regiments strengthen the Cossack army.
Khmelnitsky's campaign, illustration to historical the novel "With Fire and Sword" by Henryk Sienkiewicz, artist Juliusz Kossak
Russia is preparing revenge
Moscow prepared a decisive blow. Three armies were concentrated. The Northern Army in the Velikiye Luki region: 13 thousand warriors under the command of boyar Vasily Sheremetev and Stepan Streshnev. The core of the army were soldier regiments and noble cavalry.
The main army, with Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich himself, was stationed in the Vyazma region. 41 thousand soldiers under the command of Prince Yakov Cherkassky. The Sovereign's Regiment (17-20 thousand people), which included Moscow nobles and streltsy, new regiments of hussars, reiters, dragoons and soldiers. The Large Regiment (about 9 thousand) of Princes Cherkassky, Prozorovsky, Mosalsky, the Advanced Regiment (about 6 thousand) of Princes Odoevsky, Khvorostinin, Lvov, the Guard Regiment (about 6 thousand) of Prince Temkin-Rostovsky, V. Streshnev, the Yertaulny Regiment of Pyotr Sheremetev and Prince Shcherbatov. Artillery The outfit, which included 40 heavy siege weapons, was commanded by Fyodor Dolmatov-Karpov and Prince Pyotr Shchetinin.
Portrait of Prince Yakov Kudenetovich Cherkassky (died in 1666), found by P. P. Beketov and placed in his collection. Engraving by masters N. Sokolov and I. Rozanov, A. G. Afanasyev from the "Collection of Portraits of Russians...", made from the original portrait of the 1654th century. Son of the prince-valiy of Kabarda Kudenet Kambulatovich Cherkassky. Before baptism, he bore the name Uruskan-murza. The Polish war, which began in XNUMX, gave the prince an opportunity to prove himself in military affairs: he is ranked among the most outstanding commanders of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich.
The southern army of Prince Alexei Trubetskoy was stationed in the Bryansk region – about 18 thousand people (local cavalry, soldier regiments and riflemen). The advance of the Russian army was to be supported by the 20-thousand-strong Cossack corps of Colonel Ivan Zolotarenko (Nezhinsky, Chernigov and Starodubsky regiments), the deployment site was Novgorod-Seversky.
The regiment of the voivode Andrey Buturlin (including 3 dragoon regiments, a total of 4,5 thousand people) was sent to help Hetman Khmelnitsky. To support him and to ensure security from the Crimean Khanate, the Rylsk discharge regiment of Vasily Sheremetev was deployed on the Belgorod line, which included, among other units, 4 soldier and dragoon regiments of the new formation (a total of up to 7 thousand people).
The northern and central strike groups were to attack in the Polotsk and Smolensk directions. The southern army, in cooperation with the Dnieper Cossacks, was to strike deep into the enemy rear, tying down and distracting Polish forces from the main (Smolensk) direction.
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich's departure to review the troops in 1664. Painting by N. E. Sverchkov
Poland misses a blow
The Polish lords were let down by their noble "freedom" and traditional pride and arrogance. The lords were confident in their strength, although they had already been defeated more than once by Russian Cossacks and other "khlops" (serfs-slaves). In Warsaw they still remembered how their ancestors had ruled in Moscow. Therefore, they did not believe in a decisive offensive by the tsarist army. They said that everything would be limited to border skirmishes. They were not ready for a big war.
The Polish lords, led by King Jan Kazimierz, were preparing to continue the war in the Russian borderland. Already in February-April 1654, the Polish army launched a series of attacks in Little Russia. The 20-strong Polish army occupied Lyubar, Chudnov, Kotelnya, and broke through to Belaya Tserkov. The Crimean Khan, enraged by the alliance between Moscow and Chigirin, threatened to join the Polish king.
The worried Hetman Khmelnitsky asked Prince Trubetskoy and Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich for help. The Tsar agreed that the southern army "would go to Bohdan Khmelnitsky and do business together." However, Trubetskoy was an experienced commander and did not violate the original plan. He correctly estimated that the Cossacks would cope on their own. He sent only reinforcements with cannons. That was enough. Khmelnitsky and Buturlin stopped and pushed back the enemy.
The Polish elite, partly under the influence of magnates who wanted to regain their possessions in Little Russia, assessed the situation incorrectly. The main forces were planned to be used in the Ukraine, the Lithuanian direction was considered secondary. This caused a delay in sending crown (royal) troops to help Lithuania and their small number.
Plus problems with supplies and manning. The gentry did not want to fight and leave their homes. Most of the troops were distinguished by low discipline and fighting spirit.
These factors weakening the country's defense capability were compounded by the separatism of a part of the elite of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, primarily Hetman Janusz Radziwill, who wanted to achieve Lithuania's independence under the protection of Sweden. The pro-Russian sentiment of a significant part of the peasantry and urban population of the eastern part of the Grand Duchy was also noted.
A major statesman and military figure of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the Radziwill family, Grand Underchamberlain of Lithuania (1633), General Starosta of Samogitia (1646-1653), Field Hetman of Lithuania (1646-1654), Voivode of Vilnius (1653-1655), Grand Hetman of Lithuania (1654-1655) Janusz Radziwill (1612 - 1655). Artist: Daniel Schulz, circa 1652-1654.
Only in May 1654 did the Sejm convene, which after the usual debates summoned the pospolite ruszenie (noble militia), which, according to the royal decree, was to assemble in July. The Sejm determined the commanders. Stanislav Potocki became the Crown Hetman, his deputy (Field Hetman) Lanckoronsky. Radziwill remained the Grand Hetman of Lithuania, and Gonsevsky the Field Hetman.
As a result, at the beginning of the military actions, the Lithuanian army numbered about 8-10 thousand soldiers, not counting the garrisons of the fortresses. Additional Lithuanian troops (about 10 thousand) under the command of Vincent Gąsiewski and Bogusław Radziwill were mobilized only in the summer and appeared at the front in September-October 1654.
The noble militia was assembled slowly, in practice only a few thousand were deployed. Some remained in their districts. The magnates deployed their squads-banners, and several thousand more warriors.
Rider (comrade) of the hussar banner of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Painting by J. Brandt
Fortresses
The Polish-Lithuanian command's main hope was in the fortresses, primarily Smolensk, Polotsk, Vitebsk, Mogilev, Gomel, etc. They were supposed to stop the Russians and tie down their forces until the main forces of the Polish-Lithuanian army arrived. As in the Smolensk War of 1632-1634, when the Russian army got stuck at Smolensk.
However, most of the fortresses did not fulfill their function. This was due to the fact that the authorities were careless, did not prepare for war, fortresses were not repaired, updated, or modernized in time. Fortress cities were not prepared for defense, they usually did not have sufficient and combat-ready garrisons or supplies.
As with fortifications, the maintenance of garrisons also fell on the residents and local authorities, and they did not want to bear such "unjustified" expenses. Therefore, by the beginning of the war, the defenders of the fortresses were mainly armed residents and the surrounding gentry, who had minimal combat capability and motivation. The only exceptions were usually private fortresses, which were repaired and updated in a timely manner and where there were garrisons of professional mercenaries.
The inhabitants of the border fortresses (Russian people), who were part of the Russian state until 1618, were well disposed towards the Russian troops and did not offer resistance during the war. In many places, the city elite, having received guarantees of safety for themselves and their property, surrendered the cities.
King Jan II Casimir Vasa (reigned 1648-1668)
First successes
The Russians did not wait for the Poles to gather for war, they waited until the roads dried out. On May 18, 1654, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich reviewed the troops at the Maiden Monastery. When setting out on the campaign, the troops were given a strict order from the Tsar not to take prisoner or destroy "Belarusians of the Orthodox Christian faith who do not dare to fight."
Hundreds and regiments marched through Moscow, where they were blessed by Patriarch Nikon. The Tsar personally led the campaign. But while he was moving toward the border with select regiments, three Russian armies had already begun their offensive.
On the right wing, Sheremetev occupied Nevel on the move on June 1 (11) and went to Polotsk. The Lithuanian militia decided to give battle on the approaches, but they were simply swept away. The most important trade center in Podvinye had wood and earth fortifications, including the Upper Castle (7 towers) and the Lower Castle - a trading quarter (9 towers). The fortress was almost completely destroyed by fire in 1649 and was partially restored only just before the start of the war. The fortress artillery consisted of only 13 guns and about 100 arquebuses. There was no permanent garrison in the fortress. The townspeople capitulated on the first day of the siege - June 17 (27). Almost all the townspeople swore allegiance to the Tsar.
After this, the army stood still for a month, waiting for supplies to be delivered. Separate Russian detachments took the fort of Glubokoe, Disna and Druya. Lipnitsky's Lithuanian detachment (2,5 thousand men of the noble militia) was defeated and retreated under the threat of complete annihilation.
On the left wing, Trubetskoy's troops occupied Roslavl without resistance on June 7. The much more fortified Mstislavl put up fierce resistance and was taken by storm after four days of fighting, on July 12 (22). Due to the rapid fall of the fortresses, the troops of the Lithuanian hetman did not have time to come to their aid.
Siege of Gomel
The Cossack corps of Zolotarenko, having set out from Starodub, besieged Gomel in June. The siege lasted for two months, as the Cossacks had no siege artillery, and the fortress was one of the strongest. The city was located at the confluence of the Gomya and Sozh rivers. The city was surrounded by a moat and earthen rampart, and the center of defense was a wooden castle standing on a high hill. The walls and towers were coated with clay to prevent arson. The fortifications were maintained in good condition.
During the Khmelnitsky Uprising, Gomel found itself in the center of military action more than once: it was captured by the Cossacks twice (1648 and 1649), and in 1651 it withstood a long siege and assaults. Therefore, there was a strong garrison here - about 2 thousand people under the command of Stanislav Bobrovnitsky. The garrison included 5 companies of Polish infantry, 1 company of German infantry (a total of about 700 soldiers), Cossack and Tatar banners. A large number of local gentry also gathered in the fortress. Before the start of the war, cannons were brought to Gomel from Vilnius.
According to Colonel Zolotarenko in his letters to the Tsar:
"Gomel... is the head of all Lithuanian border places. It is a very defensible place, there are many people serving, there is a lot of ammunition and gunpowder...".
The garrison did not defend the city itself, taking refuge in the castle. Over the course of a month, the Cossacks attempted to storm it four times, but were unsuccessful. In turn, the besieged made sorties, inflicting significant losses on the enemy. During one of the sorties, Colonel Stepan Podbaylo of the Chernigov Regiment was killed.
The Cossacks, having abandoned the attacks, moved on to a siege. Having dragged field guns to the high Spasskaya Church, standing in the settlement, they began to fire at the castle with red-hot cannonballs, causing fires. In early August, the Cossacks managed to destroy the underground passage that led from the castle to the water source. This forced the garrison to agree to an honorable capitulation. The conditions of the capitulation were not fulfilled by the Cossacks, and most of those who surrendered were taken prisoner and taken to Little Russia.
During the siege, Zolotarenko did not tie up his corps; his troops attacked the surrounding towns and villages, successively capturing the towns of Rechitsa, Zhlobin, Streshin, and Rogachev. The capture of Gomel secured the southeastern regions of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania for the Cossacks.
The beginning of the siege of Smolensk
In the center, the advance detachments already occupied Belaya and Dorogobuzh without a fight on June 1–3 (June 10–13), 1654, opening the road to Smolensk. Thanks to good preparation and organization of the march, the army’s movement was very fast. On June 26 (July 6), units of the Advance Regiment were already standing at the walls of the Smolensk fortress. On June 28 (July 8), the tsar arrived near the city.
At one time, it was one of the most powerful fortresses in Eastern Europe. The Smolensk fortress was built by Russian craftsmen in the early 1611th century and was captured by the Poles in 6500. The fortifications were based on a high wall 36 m long with 8 towers (including 1609 gate towers). The sections of the wall that were seriously damaged during the sieges of 1611-1632 and 1634-XNUMX were reinforced by the construction of two bastion forts: the "Sigismund Fortress" and the "Vladislav Fortress" ("Sheinov Val").
Despite its power, the fortress was in poor condition, as almost no funds were allocated for its maintenance and repair. The artillery consisted of 55 guns of various calibers. There were no supplies of weapons and ammunition prepared for the siege.
The fortress garrison numbered approximately 3,5–4 thousand people, led by Philip Kazimierz Obukhovich, not counting the local residents. But the Smolensk people did not want to fight the Russians. The most combat-ready were the two German regiments of Korf and Tiesenhausen (up to 1100 people), which occupied the most dangerous places ("Sigismund's Fortress" and "Wladyslaw's Fortress"). The Polish-Lithuanian commanders hoped for quick help from the troops of the Lithuanian hetman, who was stationed in the Orsha region.
The Russian troops were located in several camps around the city, generally repeating the disposition of Mikhail Shein's army during the previous siege. At first, the Smolensk garrison made several large sorties. Russian artillery actively shelled the city. But the outfit was pulled up to the fortress until the beginning of autumn. Russian soldiers began to dig tunnels.
A significant part of the army under the command of Prince Cherkassky (the Grand Regiment and other units and formations) was allocated to neutralize the Lithuanian army of Radziwill. At this time, the remaining troops were conducting a siege and preparing for an assault.
A mounted tenant in 1678. Tenants were one of the categories of service rank in the Russian Tsardom, they were foot soldiers and mounted (winged horsemen). Source: Historical description of clothing and weapons of Russian troops, edited by A. V. Viskovatov, St. Petersburg, 1841-1862.
To be continued ...
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