Battle of Belyov
| Battle of Belyov | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of First Russo-Kazan war (1437–1445) | |||||||
 Miniature from the Illustrated Chronicle of Ivan the Terrible | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
|
Grand Duchy of Moscow | Faction of the Golden Horde | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Dmitry Shemyaka Dmitry Krasny | Ulugh Muhammad | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 40,000 (overestimated) | 3,000 | ||||||
The Battle of Belyov (
. The result of the battle was the complete defeat of the Russian army.Background
By 1437 Khan
1437 Campaign
Vasily II sent to Belyov an army under the command of his cousins
Going to spend the winter near Belyov, Ulugh Muhammad built near the town a kind of fortification ("ostrog") – wicker walls were covered with snow and watered. After the water froze, a strong "ice fortress" was formed. The fortification was well located: from the West and South the approaches were protected by a deep ravine, along which the Belyovka River flowed, and from the East there was the steep bank of the Oka River. The gentle approach was only from the North, and at the narrowest point the passage was no more than 100 m (300 ft) wide.[6][7]
Battle
On 4 December Russian forces attacked the Tatars and drove them into the ice fortress, but were defeated trying to take it at once. Princes Pyotr Kuzminsky and Semyon Volynets, who broke into the fortification on the heels of the retreating Tatars, were killed. According to the Russian chronicle, the losses of the Tatars were also heavy, some unnamed Ulug Mohammed's son-in-law was even killed there.
Instead of preparing for a coordinated assault, the Russian commanders entered into negotiations and lost their vigilance. In some chronicles, the main blame is assigned to Grigory Protasyev, voivode of Mtsensk, who allegedly sided with Ulug Mohammed and "made a treason". Protasyev reported that the Grand Duke wished to conclude peace and did not order "to fight with the Tsar".[a] During the negotiations on the morning of 5 December, Ulu-Mohammed refused to pay him any tribute and promised not to attack the Russian principalities, and offered his son as a hostage. In return, Ulu-Mohammad asked only to be allowed to remain near Belyov until spring. However, voivodes Vasily Sobakin and Andrei Goltyaev, who conducted the negotiations, rejected this proposal. Then Ulug Mohammed, who found himself in a desperate situation, personally led the attack on the Russian army. Taking advantage of the "great mist" the Tatars made the turning movement and attacked from the rear of the unprepared Russian troops. There was panic and total flight, and thus Ulug Mohammed won a complete victory.[8][9]
Aftermath
After the defeat at Belyov, Vasily II together with Dmitry Shemyaka and Dmitry Krasny signed a treaty with Boris Aleksandrovich, Grand Prince of Tver, envisaging, in particular, mutual aid in case of invasion of "Tsar" (Khan) or other Tatars. In return, Vasily and his cousins promised not to accept the city Tver and Kashin from the Tatars.[10][b]
Ulug Mohammed after the victory at Belyov captured the desolate city of Kazan, strengthened there and founded the Khanate of Kazan, and soon began raids on Russia.[11]
Notes
- ^ At that time, The Grand Duchy of Moscow recognized its submission to the Tatars and called the Khan of the Golden Horde the "Tsar" (i.e. the supreme ruler).
- ^ As the supreme ruler, the Khan of the Golden Horde could theoretically take away the rights to rule from the Tver Prince and transfer his lands to the Grand Duchy of Moscow.
References
- ^ "Казанская история". Древнерусские повести. Tula. 1987. p. 109.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Bespalov 2005, p. 40–41.
- ^ Zimin 1991, p. 81.
- ^ Патриаршая или Никоновская летопись [Patriarch's or Nikon Chronicle]. PSRL. Vol. 12. Moscow. 2000. p. 24.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Летописный свод 1497 г. PSRL (in Russian). Vol. 28. Moscow. 1963.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Bespalov 2005, p. 40.
- ^ Zimin 1991, p. 81-82.
- ^ Bespalov 2005, p. 42–48.
- ^ Zimin 1991, p. 82.
- ^ Zimin 1991, p. 88.
- ^ Zimin 1991, p. 83.
Sources
- Zimin, Aleksandr (1991). Витязь на распутье. Феодальная война в России XV в. [The Knight at the Crossroads. The feudal war in Russia of the 15th century]. Moscow: Мысль. ISBN 5-244-00518-9.
- Bespalov, R. A. (2005). Белёвское побоище 1437 г. в истории Северо-Восточной Руси первой половины XV в.. Белёвские чтения (in Russian). 5: 31–55.