Every cultured person should know the history of his people, especially since it repeats itself periodically. The cyclical nature of history has been proven and argued. Therefore, it is important to know what happened on our native land and how it affected economically.

Unfortunately, history has often been changed or rewritten, so it is no longer possible to find out reliable facts. Let's talk briefly about the most important thing in the Mongol-Tatar invasion of Rus' and its consequences in the formation of the state. The article briefly outlines the most important events of those times. We’ll tell you where to find all the nuances at the end of the article.

Mongol-Tatar yoke

In 1206, Genghis Khan was recognized as ruler by all Mongols. He was quite a talented leader, as in a short time he assembled a strong invincible army. The army conquered the East (China and neighboring countries), and then rushed to Rus'.

On May 31, 1223, a terrible, crushing battle took place on the Kalka River, in which the united army of the South Russian and Polovtsian princes was defeated. However, a year later Genghis Khan died, and his eldest son Jochi also died. As a result, until 1236 there was neither a rumor nor a breath about the Mongols in Rus'. However, Batu soon decided to continue to implement his grandfather’s plan and conquer land from sea to sea (from Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic)

As soon as the army of thousands of the Golden Horde set foot on Russian soil, pogroms and devastation of the land began. The Horde immediately began burning villages and killing civilians. After the pogroms, only ashes remained instead of cities or villages. Thus began the Mongol invasion of Rus'.

Looking at the historical map for grade 10, you can see that the Mongol army reached Poland, the Czech Republic, and then stopped and settled in place. Russian princes received letters allowing them to manage their estates.

In fact, the country continued to live its normal life, but now it was necessary to regularly pay tribute to the khan. During the entire period of subordination to the Golden Horde, there were several significant events. One of the key ones is. The official end of the Mongol-Tatar yoke dates back to 1480. Read more about the beginning and end dates of this historical phenomenon.

Reasons for the capture of Rus'

The main reason for the spread of the Horde's power was that the Russian principalities were disunited. Each of them pursued their own interests. This led to division, and a unified strong army was not created.

The conquerors had a fairly large army, which was equipped best weapon, which they borrowed, among other things, from Northern China. Also, the Mongols had sufficient experience in conquering lands.

In the Horde army, each soldier was raised from childhood, so they had discipline and skill high level. It was not difficult for the Mongols to obtain Russian lands.

Stages Mongol invasion:

Batu's campaigns

• 1236 – conquest of Volga Bulgaria.

Batu's first campaign December 1237 to April 1238

• In December 1237, a victory was achieved over the Cumans near the Don.
• Later the Ryazan principality fell. After six days of assault, Ryazan was wrecked.
• Then the Mongol army destroyed Kolomna and Moscow.
• In February 1238, the siege of Vladimir took place. The prince of this city tried to adequately repel the armyBatu, but four days later the city was taken by storm. Vladimir was burned, and the prince's family burned alive in their shelter.
• In March 1238, the Mongols changed tactics and split into several units. Some went to the Sit River, and the rest to Torzhok. Before reaching Novgorod, the Mongol-Tatar army turned back, but in the city of Kozelsk it encountered strong resistance. The townspeople bravely resisted the army for seven weeks, but were soon defeated. The invaders razed the city to the ground.

Batu's second campaign 1239 - 1240

• In the spring of 1239, the Mongol-Tatar army reached the southern part of Rus'. Pereslavl was defeated in March.
• Then Chernigov fell.

In the fall of 1240, the main forces of Batu's army began the siege of Kyiv. However, under the wise leadershipDaniil Romanovich Galitsky, managed to hold the Mongol army for about three months. The conquering troops nevertheless captured the city, but suffered heavy losses.

In the spring of 1241, Batu's army was going to march on Europe, but turned to the Lower Volga. The army no longer decided to make new campaigns.

Consequences

The territory of Rus' was completely devastated. Cities were plundered or burned, and residents were taken prisoner. Not all cities were able to be restored after the invasion. The captured Russian territories did not become part of the Golden Horde. However, tribute had to be paid annually.

The Khan had the right to leave control to the Russian princes, issuing them his charters. The development of the economy and culture of Rus' slowed down significantly. This happened due to destruction, pogroms, and a reduction in the number of craftsmen or artisans.

Considering the century in which these events took place, we can conclude that the development of the Russian state is significantly behind European countries. Economically, the country was thrown back several hundred years. This affected the further history of the country.

Mongol yoke - fact or fiction?

Some literate scholars believe that the Mongol-Tatar yoke is just a myth. They believe that it was invented for a specific purpose.

It is impossible to imagine that the Mongols, who were accustomed to living in a warm environment, could withstand the harsh Russian winters well. It is interesting that the Mongols themselves learned about the Tatar-Mongol yoke from Europeans. Theory, archaeological data and guesses say that something completely different could be hidden behind the Mongol-Tatar invasion.

For example, the mathematician Fomenko argued that the Mongol yoke was invented in the 18th century. But this is all from the realm of fantasy. The city of Sarai-batu is currently an archaeological site and it is safe to say that there was a Mongol yoke.

True, the assessment of this yoke is very different among all historians. For example, academician Lev Gumilyov argued that the yoke is not a decline, but rather a cultural dialogue, a symbiosis of Russian Orthodox and Mongolian civilizations, that the Mongols, they say, enriched Russian culture. This does not take into account the obvious campaigns of the Mongol armies against Rus' as punishment for the uprisings.

History says that Rus' fought many wars and battles. There was an invasion of the Crusaders, the fight against them by Alexander Nevsky, other wars or tragic events. But the Mongol-Tatar yoke was one of the most tragic and lengthy incidents in history. It is an example of the fact that disunity within a country always leads to the victory of the invaders.

Knowing the historical past of your people, in what century the invasion took place, you can be sure that Russia will no longer repeat mistakes that lead to tragic or fatal events that bring grief to the people and economic decline to the state.

In conclusion, I would like to say that in this article we have only touched upon this broad topic. Our training courses have an hour-long video lesson in which we examine all the nuances of this serious topic. 90 points for history is the average result of the guys after our courses. .

The Mongol-Tatar invasion of Rus' became a black page in our history. The Russian princes did not want to hear the call of the author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” that it was necessary to unite.

Reasons for the invasion

In the 12th century, the Mongol tribes were localized in central Asia. The year 1206 was the year of the congress of the Mongolian nobility - the kurultai. Its result was the proclamation of Temujin as the great Kagan. It was at this congress that Temujin received the name Genghis Khan. In 1223, the Mongols attacked the Cumans. The latter had no other choice but to turn to the Russian princes for help.

Thus, the Russians and Cumans joined forces and opposed the Mongols. They crossed the Dnieper and razed to the east. In turn, the Mongols pretended to retreat. They successfully managed to lure the combined troops of the Russians and Cumans to the Kalka River. The decisive battle between them took place on May 31, 1223, and ended in the complete defeat of the combined forces.

The reasons for the defeat are as follows:

• Scattered actions of the Polovtsian and Russian troops;
• Disputes between princes;
• Refusal of some princes to participate in the battle.

Despite their victory, the Mongols did not go to Rus' immediately, since there was not enough strength for this. He died in 1227. A new campaign against Europe was led by his grandson Batu in 1235.

The main stages of the Mongol-Tatar invasion

• In 1236, the Mongols headed for the Cumans, and they were finally defeated in December 1237 near the Don. Next was Ryazan. The city withstood the assault for only six days, after which it was completely destroyed. Ryazan was followed by the destruction of Kolomna and Moscow, and Batu destroyed Vladimir. In February 1238, the Mongols began to besiege the city. The prince's attempts to gather militias to stop the Mongols ended in failure. The siege lasted four days, the city was stormed and set on fire. The princely family, along with the townspeople, tried to find shelter in the Assumption Cathedral, but they all died in a fire.
• After these events, the Mongol troops were divided into two parts. One of them besieged Torzhok, the second moved to the Sit River. The Russians lost the Battle of the City on March 4, 1238, and their prince was killed. The Mongols went to Novgorod, but returned a hundred miles from the city. On the way back they ravaged the cities they met. The residents of Kozelsk tried to resist, but they could only withstand a week-long siege. The city fell and was completely destroyed by order of Batu.
• In Southern Rus', the Mongol invasion began in the spring of 1239. Pereslavl fell in March, Chernigov in October. The siege of Kyiv began in September 1240. The Kyiv prince at that time was Danilo Romanovich Galitsky. Residents defended the city for three months. The Mongols were able to conquer it only at the cost of huge losses. Thus ended the Mongol invasion of Rus'.

Batu was on the threshold of Europe, but could not go further because his troops were bleeding. A new campaign was never organized. From 1240 to 1480, the Mongol-Tatar yoke reigned in Rus'.

Consequences of the Mongol-Tatar invasion

• The foreign policy of Rus' began to focus on the Golden Horde. All contacts, including trade, with Western Europe ceased.
• The Horde intervened in domestic policy powers. The collection of tribute and the appointment of princes became mandatory. In case of disobedience, punitive campaigns were ordered against the principalities.
• In its development, Rus' lagged behind the countries of Europe, since it was necessary to restore everything in the state that the Mongols destroyed.
• The economy collapsed. In order to protect themselves from the Mongols, farmers headed to the northern regions of the country. Craftsmen fell into slavery to the Mongols, so in Rus' many crafts ceased to develop, or they no longer existed.
• Cultural development also slowed down. Many churches were destroyed, and new ones were not built yet for a long time after the invasion.
• Some scientists claim that the invasion was the reason for stopping the political fragmentation of Rus'. Others say it helped bring them together.

Some modern researchers claim that there was no yoke in Rus'. According to them, the Tatars are crusaders, people from Tartary, and on the Kulikovo Field, in fact, there was a battle between Orthodox and Catholics.

XIV. MONGOL-TATARS. – GOLDEN HORDE

(continuation)

The rise of the Mongol-Tatar Empire. – Batu’s campaign against Eastern Europe. – Military structure of the Tatars. - Invasion of Ryazan land. - Devastation of Suzdal land and the capital city. – Defeat and death of Yuri II. – Reverse movement to the steppe and the ruin of Southern Rus'. - Fall of Kyiv. – Trip to Poland and Hungary.

For the invasion of the Tatars in Northern Rus', the Lavrentievsky (Suzdal) and Novgorod chronicles are used, and for the invasion of Southern Russia - the Ipatievsky (Volynsky). The latter is told in a very incomplete manner; so we have the most scant news about the actions of the Tatars in the Kyiv, Volyn and Galician lands. We find some details in later vaults, Voskresensky, Tverskoy and Nikonovsky. In addition, there was a special legend about Batu’s invasion of Ryazan land; but published in Vremennik Ob. I. and Dr. No. 15. (About him, in general about the devastation of the Ryazan land, see my “History of the Ryazan Principality,” chapter IV.) Rashid Eddin’s news about Batu’s campaigns was translated by Berezin and supplemented with notes (Journal of M.N. Pr. 1855. No. 5 ). G. Berezin also developed the idea of ​​the Tatar method of operating by raid.

For the Tatar invasion of Poland and Hungary, see the Polish-Latin chronicles of Bogufal and Dlugosz. Ropel Geschichte Polens. I. Th. Palatsky D jiny narodu c "eskeho I. His Einfal der Mongolen. Prag. 1842. Mailata Ceschichte der Magyaren. I. Hammer-Purgstal Geschichte der Goldenen Horde. Wolf in his Geschichte der Mongolen oder Tataren, by the way (chap. VI) , critically reviews the stories of the named historians about the Mongol invasion; in particular tries to refute Palacki’s presentation in relation to the mode of action of the Czech king Wenzel, as well as in relation to the well-known legend about the victory of Jaroslav Sternberk over the Tatars at Olomouc.

Mongol-Tatar Empire after Genghis Khan

Meanwhile, a menacing cloud moved in from the east, from Asia. Genghis Khan assigned the Kipchak and the entire side to the north and west of the Aral-Caspian to his eldest son Jochi, who was to complete the conquest of this side begun by Jebe and Subudai. But the attention of the Mongols was still diverted by the stubborn struggle in eastern Asia with two strong kingdoms: the Niuchi empire and the neighboring Tangut power. These wars delayed the defeat of Eastern Europe for more than ten years. Moreover, Jochi died; and he was soon followed by Temujin [Genghis Khan] himself (1227), having managed to personally destroy the Tangut kingdom before his death. Three sons survived after him: Jagatai, Ogodai and Tului. He appointed Ogodai as his successor, or supreme khan, as the most intelligent among the brothers; Jagatai was given Bukharia and eastern Turkestan, Tula - Iran and Persia; and Kipchak was to come into the possession of the sons of Jochi. Temujin bequeathed to his descendants to continue the conquests and even outlined a general plan of action for them. The Great Kurultai, assembled in his homeland, that is, on the banks of Kerulen, confirmed his orders. Ogodai, who was still in charge of the Chinese War under his father, tirelessly continued this war until he completely destroyed the Niuchi empire and established his rule there (1234). Only then did he turn his attention to other countries and, among other things, began to prepare a great campaign against Eastern Europe.

During this time, the Tatar temniks, who commanded the Caspian countries, did not remain inactive; and tried to keep the nomads subdued by Jebe Subudai in subjection. In 1228, according to the Russian chronicle, “from below” (from the Volga) the Saksins (a tribe unknown to us) and Polovtsi, pressed by the Tatars, ran into the borders of the Bulgarians; The Bulgarian guard detachments they had defeated also came running from the country of Priyaitskaya. Around the same time, in all likelihood, the Bashkirs, fellow tribesmen of the Ugrians, were conquered. Three years later, the Tatars undertook a reconnaissance campaign deep into Kama Bulgaria and spent the winter there somewhere short of the Great City. The Polovtsians, for their part, apparently took advantage of the circumstances to defend their independence with weapons. At least their main khan Kotyan later, when he sought refuge in Ugria, told the Ugric king that he had defeated the Tatars twice.

Beginning of Batu's invasion

Having put an end to the Niuchi Empire, Ogodai moved the main forces of the Mongol-Tatars to conquer Southern China, Northern India and the rest of Iran; and for the conquest of Eastern Europe he allocated 300,000, the leadership of which he entrusted to his young nephew Batu, the son of Dzhuchiev, who had already distinguished himself in the Asian wars. His uncle appointed the famous Subudai-Bagadur as his leader, who, after the Kalka victory, together with Ogodai, completed the conquest of Northern China. The Great Khan gave Batu and other proven commanders, including Burundai. Many young Genghisids also took part in this campaign, by the way, the son of Ogodai Gayuk and the son of Tului Mengu, the future successors of the Great Khan. From the upper reaches of the Irtysh, the horde moved westward, along the nomadic camps of various Turkish hordes, gradually annexing significant parts of them; so that at least half a million warriors crossed the Yaik River. One of the Muslim historians, speaking about this campaign, adds: “The earth groaned from the multitude of warriors; the troops went mad from the sheer numbers wild animals and night birds." This was no longer the selected cavalry that launched the first raid and fought on Kalka; now a huge horde with its families, wagons and herds was slowly moving. It constantly migrated, stopping where it found sufficient pastures for its horses and other livestock Having entered the Volga steppes, Batu himself continued to move to the lands of the Mordovians and Polovtsians; and to the north he separated part of the troops with Subudai-Bagadur for the conquest of Kama Bulgaria, which the latter accomplished in the fall of 1236. This conquest, according to Tatar custom, was accompanied by a terrible devastation of the land. by beating the inhabitants; by the way, the Great City was taken and set on fire.

Khan Batu. Chinese drawing XIV century

By all indications, Batu’s movement was carried out according to a premeditated method of action, based on preliminary intelligence about those lands and peoples that it was decided to conquer. At least this can be said about the winter campaign in Northern Rus'. Obviously, the Tatar military leaders already had exact information about what time of year is most favorable for military operations in this wooded area, replete with rivers and swamps; among them, the movement of the Tatar cavalry would be very difficult at any other time, with the exception of winter, when all the waters are covered with ice, strong enough to endure horse hordes.

Military organization of the Mongol-Tatars

Only the invention of European firearms and the establishment of large standing armies brought about a revolution in the attitude of sedentary and agricultural peoples to nomadic and pastoral peoples. Before this invention, the advantage in the fight was often on the side of the latter; which is very natural. Nomadic hordes are almost always on the move; their parts always more or less stick together and act as a dense mass. Nomads have no differences in occupations and habits; they are all warriors. If the will of an energetic khan or circumstances united a large number of hordes into one mass and directed them towards sedentary neighbors, then it was difficult for the latter to successfully resist the destructive impulse, especially where the nature was flat. The agricultural people, scattered throughout their country, accustomed to peaceful occupations, could not soon gather into a large militia; and even this militia, if it managed to set out on time, was far inferior to its opponents in speed of movement, in the habit of wielding weapons, in the ability to act in harmony and onslaught, in military experience and resourcefulness, as well as in a warlike spirit.

All such qualities in high degree owned by the Mongol-Tatars when they came to Europe. Temujin [Genghis Khan] gave them the main weapon of conquest: unity of power and will. While nomadic peoples are divided into special hordes, or clans, the power of their khans, of course, has the patriarchal character of the ancestor and is far from unlimited. But when, by force of arms, one person subjugates entire tribes and peoples, then, naturally, he rises to a height unattainable for a mere mortal. Old customs still live among these people and seem to limit the power of the Supreme Khan; The guardians of such customs among the Mongols are kurultai and noble influential families; but in the hands of the clever, energetic khan many resources have already been concentrated to become a limitless despot. Having imparted unity to the nomadic hordes, Temujin further strengthened their power by introducing a uniform and well-adapted military organization. The troops deployed by these hordes were organized on the basis of strictly decimal division. The tens united into hundreds, the latter into thousands, with tens, hundreds and thousands at the head. Ten thousand made up the largest department called “fogs” and were under the command of the temnik. The place of the previous more or less free relations with the leaders was replaced by strict military discipline. Disobedience or premature removal from the battlefield was punishable by death. In case of indignation, not only the participants were executed, but their entire family was condemned to extermination. The so-called Yasa (a kind of code of laws) published by Temuchin, although it was based on old Mongol customs, significantly increased their severity in relation to various actions and was truly draconian or bloody in nature.

The continuous and long series of wars started by Temujin developed among the Mongols strategic and tactical techniques that were remarkable for that time, i.e. general art of war. Where terrain and circumstances did not interfere, the Mongols operated in enemy soil by round-up, in which they are especially accustomed; since in this way the Khan usually hunted wild animals. The hordes were divided into parts, marched in encirclement and then approached the pre-designated main point, devastating the country with fire and sword, taking prisoners and all kinds of booty. Thanks to their steppe, short, but strong horses, the Mongols were able to make unusually fast and long marches without rest, without stopping. Their horses were hardened and accustomed to endure hunger and thirst just like their riders. Moreover, the latter usually had several spare horses with them on campaigns, which they transferred to as needed. Their enemies were often amazed by the appearance of barbarians at a time when they considered them to be still far away from them. Thanks to such cavalry, the Mongols' reconnaissance unit was at a remarkable stage of development. Any movement of the main forces was preceded by small detachments, scattered in front and on the sides, as if in a fan; Observation detachments also followed behind; so that the main forces were secured against any chance or surprise.

Regarding weapons, although the Mongols had spears and curved sabers, they were predominantly riflemen (some sources, for example, Armenian chroniclers, call them “the people of riflemen”); They used bows with such strength and skill that their long arrows, tipped with an iron tip, pierced hard shells. Usually the Mongols first tried to weaken and frustrate the enemy with a cloud of arrows, and then rushed at him hand-to-hand. If at the same time they met a courageous resistance, they turned to feigned flight; As soon as the enemy began to pursue them and thereby upset their battle formation, they deftly turned their horses and again made a united attack, as far as possible from all sides. They were covered with shields woven from reeds and covered with leather, helmets and armor, also made of thick leather, some even covered with iron scales. In addition, wars with more educated and rich peoples brought them a considerable amount of iron chain mail, helmets and all kinds of weapons, which their commanders and noble people wore. The tails of horses and wild buffalos fluttered on the banners of their leaders. The commanders usually did not enter the battle themselves and did not risk their lives (which could cause confusion), but controlled the battle, being somewhere on a hill, surrounded by their neighbors, servants and wives, of course, all on horseback.

The nomadic cavalry, having a decisive advantage over sedentary peoples in the open field, however, encountered an important obstacle in the form of well-fortified cities. But the Mongols were already accustomed to dealing with this obstacle, having learned the art of taking cities in the Chinese and Khovarezm empires. They also started up battering machines. They usually surrounded a besieged city with a rampart; and where the forest was at hand, they fenced it off with a tine, thus stopping the very possibility of communication between the city and the surrounding area. Then they set up battering machines, from which they threw large stones and logs, and sometimes incendiary substances; in this way they caused fire and destruction in the city; They showered the defenders with a cloud of arrows or put up ladders and climbed onto the walls. In order to tire out the garrison, they carried out attacks continuously day and night, for which fresh detachments constantly alternated with each other. If the barbarians learned to take large Asian cities, fortified with stone and clay walls, the easier they could destroy or burn the wooden walls of Russian cities. Crossing large rivers did not make it particularly difficult for the Mongols. For this purpose they used large leather bags; they were stuffed tightly with clothes and other light things, tied tightly and tied to the tail of the horses, and thus transported. One Persian historian of the 13th century, describing the Mongols, says: “They had the courage of a lion, the patience of a dog, the foresight of a crane, the cunning of a fox, the farsightedness of a crow, the rapacity of a wolf, the battle heat of a rooster, the care of a hen for its neighbors, the sensitivity of a cat and the violence of a boar when attacked.” .

Rus' before the Mongol-Tatar invasion

What could ancient, fragmented Rus' oppose to this enormous concentrated force?

The fight against nomads of Turkish-Tatar origin was already a familiar thing for her. After the first onslaughts of both the Pechenegs and the Polovtsians, fragmented Rus' then gradually became accustomed to these enemies and gained the upper hand over them. However, she did not have time to throw them back to Asia or to subjugate them and return to their former borders; although these nomads were also fragmented and also did not submit to one power, one will. What a disparity in strength there was with the menacing Mongol-Tatar cloud now approaching!

In military courage and combat courage, the Russian squads, of course, were not inferior to the Mongol-Tatars; and they were undoubtedly superior in bodily strength. Moreover, Rus' was undoubtedly better armed; its complete armament of that time was not much different from the armament of the German and Western European armaments in general. Among her neighbors she was even famous for her fighting. Thus, regarding Daniil Romanovich’s campaign to help Konrad of Mazovia against Vladislav the Old in 1229, the Volyn chronicler notes that Konrad “loved Russian battle” and relied on Russian help more than on his Poles. But the princely squads that made up the military class of Ancient Rus' were too few in number to repel the new enemies now pressing from the east; and the common people, if necessary, were recruited into the militia directly from the plow or from their crafts, and although they were distinguished by the fortitude common to the entire Russian tribe, they did not have much skill in wielding weapons or making friendly, quick movements. One can, of course, blame our old princes for not understanding all the dangers and all the disasters that were then threatening from new enemies, and not joining their forces for a united rebuff. But, on the other hand, we must not forget that where there was a long period of all kinds of disunity, rivalry and development of regional isolation, no human will, no genius could achieve rapid unification and concentration. popular forces. Such a benefit can only be achieved through the long and constant efforts of entire generations under circumstances that awaken in the people the consciousness of their national unity and the desire for their concentration. Ancient Rus' did what was in its means and methods. Every land, almost every significant city bravely met the barbarians and desperately defended themselves, hardly having any hope of winning. It couldn't be otherwise. A great historical people does not yield to an external enemy without courageous resistance, even under the most unfavorable circumstances.

Invasion of the Mongol-Tatars into the Ryazan Principality

At the beginning of the winter of 1237, the Tatars passed through the Mordovian forests and camped on the banks of some river Onuza. From here Batu sent to the Ryazan princes, according to the chronicle, a “sorceress wife” (probably a shaman) and with her two husbands, who demanded from the princes part of their estate in people and horses.

The eldest prince, Yuri Igorevich, hastened to convene his relatives, the appanage princes of Ryazan, Pron and Murom, to the Diet. In the first impulse of courage, the princes decided to defend themselves, and gave a noble answer to the ambassadors: “When we do not survive, then everything will be yours.” From Ryazan, Tatar ambassadors went to Vladimir with the same demands. Seeing that the Ryazan forces were too insignificant to fight the Mongols, Yuri Igorevich ordered this: he sent one of his nephews to the Grand Duke of Vladimir with a request to unite against common enemies; and sent another with the same request to Chernigov. Then the united Ryazan militia moved to the shores of Voronezh to meet the enemy; but avoided battle while waiting for help. Yuri tried to resort to negotiations and sent his only son Theodore at the head of a ceremonial embassy to Batu with gifts and a plea not to fight the Ryazan land. All these orders were unsuccessful. Theodore died in the Tatar camp: according to legend, he refused Batu’s demand to bring him his beautiful wife Eupraxia and was killed on his orders. Help didn't come from anywhere. The princes of Chernigovo-Seversky refused to come on the grounds that the Ryazan princes were not on Kalka when they were also asked for help; Probably, the Chernigov residents thought that the thunderstorm would not reach them or was still very far from them. And the slow Yuri Vsevolodovich Vladimirsky hesitated and was just as late with his help, as in the Kalka massacre. Seeing the impossibility of fighting the Tatars in an open field, the Ryazan princes hastened to retreat and took refuge with their squads behind the fortifications of the cities.

Following them, hordes of barbarians poured into the Ryazan land, and, according to their custom, engulfing it in a wide raid, began to burn, destroy, rob, beat, capture, and commit desecration of women. There is no need to describe all the horrors of ruin. Suffice it to say that many villages and cities were completely wiped off the face of the earth; some famous names after that they are no longer found in history. By the way, a century and a half later, travelers sailing along the upper reaches of the Don saw only ruins and deserted places on its hilly banks where once flourishing cities and villages stood. The devastation of the Ryazan land was carried out with particular ferocity and mercilessness also because it was in this regard the first Russian region: the barbarians came to it, full of wild, unbridled energy, not yet satiated with Russian blood, not tired of destruction, not reduced in number after countless battles. On December 16, the Tatars surrounded the capital city of Ryazan and surrounded it with a tyn. The squad and citizens, encouraged by the prince, repelled the attacks for five days. They stood on the walls, without changing their positions and without letting go of their weapons; Finally they began to grow exhausted, while the enemy constantly acted with fresh forces. On the sixth day the Tatars made a general attack; They threw fire on the roofs, smashed the walls with logs from their battering guns and finally broke into the city. The usual beating of residents followed. Among those killed was Yuri Igorevich. His wife and her relatives sought salvation in vain in the cathedral church of Boris and Gleb. What could not be plundered became a victim of the flames. Ryazan legends decorate the stories about these disasters with some poetic details. So, Princess Eupraxia, hearing about the death of her husband Feodor Yuryevich, threw herself from the high tower together with her little son to the ground and killed herself to death. And one of the Ryazan boyars named Evpatiy Kolovrat was on Chernigov land when the news of the Tatar pogrom came to him. He hurries to his fatherland, sees the ashes of his native city and is inflamed with a thirst for revenge. Having gathered 1,700 warriors, Evpatiy attacks the rear detachments of the Tatars, overthrows their hero Tavrul and finally, suppressed by the crowd, perishes with all his comrades. Batu and his soldiers are surprised at the extraordinary courage of the Ryazan knight. (The people, of course, consoled themselves with such stories in past disasters and defeats.) But along with examples of valor and love for the homeland, among the Ryazan boyars there were examples of betrayal and cowardice. The same legends point to a boyar who betrayed his homeland and handed himself over to his enemies. In each country, Tatar military leaders knew how to first of all find traitors; especially such were among the people captured, frightened by threats or seduced by caresses. From noble and ignorant traitors the Tatars learned everything they needed about the state of the land, about its weaknesses, properties of rulers, etc. These traitors also served as the best guides for the barbarians when moving into countries hitherto unknown to them.

Tatar invasion of Suzdal land

Capture of Vladimir by the Mongol-Tatars. Russian chronicle miniature

From the Ryazan land the barbarians moved to Suzdal, again in the same murderous order, sweeping this land in a raid. Their main forces went the usual Suzdal-Ryazan route to Kolomna and Moscow. Just then they were met by the Suzdal army, going to the aid of the Ryazan people, under the command of the young prince Vsevolod Yuryevich and the old governor Eremey Glebovich. Near Kolomna, the grand ducal army was completely defeated; Vsevolod escaped with the remnants of the Vladimir squad; and Eremey Glebovich fell in battle. Kolomna was taken and destroyed. Then the barbarians burned Moscow, the first Suzdal city on this side. Another son of the Grand Duke, Vladimir, and the governor Philip Nyanka were in charge here. The latter also fell in battle, and the young prince was captured. With how quickly the barbarians acted during their invasion, with the same slowness military gatherings took place in Northern Rus' at that time. At modern weapons Yuri Vsevolodovich could put all the Suzdal and Novgorod forces in the field in conjunction with the Murom-Ryazan forces. There would be enough time for these preparations. For more than a year, fugitives from Kama Bulgaria found refuge with him, bringing news of the devastation of their land and the movement of the terrible Tatar hordes. But instead of modern preparations, we see that the barbarians were already moving towards the capital itself, when Yuri, having lost the best part of the army, defeated in parts, went further north to gather the zemstvo army and call for help from his brothers. In the capital, the Grand Duke left his sons, Vsevolod and Mstislav, with the governor Peter Oslyadyukovich; and he drove off with a small squad. On the way, he annexed three nephews of the Konstantinovichs, appanage princes of Rostov, with their militia. With the army that he managed to gather, Yuri settled down beyond the Volga almost on the border of his possessions, on the banks of the City, the right tributary of the Mologa, where he began to wait for the brothers, Svyatoslav Yuryevsky and Yaroslav Pereyaslavsky. The first one actually managed to come to him; but the second one did not appear; Yes, he could hardly have appeared on time: we know that at that time he occupied the great Kiev table.

At the beginning of February, the main Tatar army surrounded the capital Vladimir. A crowd of barbarians approached the Golden Gate; the citizens greeted them with arrows. "Do not shoot!" - the Tatars shouted. Several horsemen rode up to the very gate with the prisoner and asked: “Do you recognize your prince Vladimir?” Vsevolod and Mstislav, standing on the Golden Gate, together with those around them, immediately recognized their brother, captured in Moscow, and were struck with grief at the sight of his pale, sad face. They were eager to free him, and only the old governor Pyotr Oslyadyukovich kept them from a useless, desperate sortie. Having located their main camp opposite the Golden Gate, the barbarians cut down trees in the neighboring groves and surrounded the entire city with a fence; then they installed their “vices”, or battering machines, and began to destroy the fortifications. The princes, princesses and some boyars, no longer hoping for salvation, accepted monastic vows from Bishop Mitrofan and prepared for death. On February 8, the day of the martyr Theodore Stratilates, the Tatars made a decisive attack. Following a sign, or brushwood thrown into the ditch, they climbed onto the city rampart at the Golden Gate and entered the new, or outer, city. At the same time, from the side of Lybid they broke into it through the Copper and Irininsky gates, and from Klyazma - through the Volzhsky. The outer city was taken and set on fire. Princes Vsevolod and Mstislav with their retinue retired to the Pecherny city, i.e. to the Kremlin. And Bishop Mitrofan with the Grand Duchess, her daughters, daughters-in-law, grandchildren and many noblewomen locked themselves in the cathedral church of the Mother of God in the tents, or choirs. When the remnants of the squad with both princes died and the Kremlin was taken, the Tatars broke down the doors of the cathedral church, plundered it, took away expensive vessels, crosses, vestments on icons, frames on books; then they dragged the forest into the church and around the church, and lit it. The bishop and the entire princely family, hiding in the choir, died in smoke and flames. Other churches and monasteries in Vladimir were also plundered and partly burned; many residents were beaten.

Already during the siege of Vladimir, the Tatars took and burned Suzdal. Then their detachments scattered throughout the Suzdal land. Some went north, took Yaroslavl and captured the Volga region all the way to Galich Mersky; others plundered Yuryev, Dmitrov, Pereyaslavl, Rostov, Volokolamsk, Tver; During February, up to 14 cities were taken, in addition to many “settlements and graveyards.”

Battle of the City River

Meanwhile, Georgy [Yuri] Vsevolodovich still stood on the City and waited for his brother Yaroslav. Then terrible news came to him about the destruction of the capital and the death of the princely family, about the capture of other cities and the approach of Tatar hordes. He sent a detachment of three thousand for reconnaissance. But the scouts soon came running back with the news that the Tatars were already bypassing Russian army. As soon as the Grand Duke, his brothers Ivan and Svyatoslav and his nephews mounted their horses and began to organize regiments, the Tatars, led by Burundai, attacked Rus' from different sides, on March 4, 1238. The battle was brutal; but the majority of the Russian army, recruited from farmers and artisans unaccustomed to battle, soon mixed up and fled. Here Georgy Vsevolodovich himself fell; his brothers fled, his nephews also, with the exception of the eldest, Vasilko Konstantinovich of Rostov. He was captured. The Tatar military leaders persuaded him to accept their customs and fight the Russian land together with them. The prince firmly refused to be a traitor. The Tatars killed him and threw him into some Sherensky forest, near which they temporarily camped. The northern chronicler showers Vasilko with praise on this occasion; says that he was handsome in face, intelligent, courageous and very kind-hearted (“he is light at heart”). “Whoever served him, ate his bread and drank his cup, could no longer be in the service of another prince,” the chronicler adds. Bishop Kirill of Rostov, who escaped during the invasion of the remote city of his diocese, Belozersk, returned and found the body of the Grand Duke, deprived of his head; then he took Vasilko’s body, brought it to Rostov and laid it in the cathedral church of the Mother of God. Subsequently, they also found the head of George and placed him in his coffin.

Batu's movement to Novgorod

While one part of the Tatars was moving to Sit against the Grand Duke, the other reached the Novgorod suburb of Torzhok and besieged it. The citizens, led by their mayor Ivank, courageously defended themselves; For two whole weeks the barbarians shook the walls with their guns and made constant attacks. The novotors waited in vain for help from Novgorod; at last they were exhausted; On March 5, the Tatars took the city and terribly devastated it. From here their hordes moved further and went to Veliky Novgorod along the famous Seliger route, devastating the country right and left. They had already reached the “Ignach-cross” (Kresttsy?) and were only a hundred miles from Novgorod, when they suddenly turned south. This sudden retreat, however, was very natural under the circumstances of that time. Having grown up on the high planes and mountain plains of Central Asia, characterized by a harsh climate and variable weather, the Mongol-Tatars were accustomed to cold and snow and could quite easily endure the Northern Russian winter. But also accustomed to a dry climate, they were afraid of dampness and soon fell ill from it; their horses, for all their hardiness, after the dry steppes of Asia also had difficulty withstanding swampy countries and wet food. Spring was approaching in Northern Russia with all its predecessors, i.e. melting snow and overflowing rivers and swamps. Along with disease and horse death, a terrible thaw threatened; the hordes caught by it could find themselves in a very difficult situation; the beginning of the thaw could clearly show them what awaited them. Perhaps they also found out about the preparations of the Novgorodians for a desperate defense; the siege could be delayed for several more weeks. There is, in addition, an opinion, not without probability, that there was a raid here, and Batu for lately I found it inconvenient to compose a new one.

Temporary retreat of the Mongol-Tatars to the Polovtsian steppe

During the return movement to the steppe, the Tatars devastated the eastern part of the Smolensk land and the Vyatichi region. Of the cities they devastated at the same time, the chronicles mention only one Kozelsk, due to its heroic defense. The appanage prince here was one of the Chernigov Olgovichs, young Vasily. His warriors, together with the citizens, decided to defend themselves to the last man and did not give in to any flattering persuasion of the barbarians.

Batu, according to the chronicle, stood near this city for seven weeks and lost many killed. Finally, the Tatars smashed the wall with their cars and burst into the city; Even here, the citizens continued to desperately defend themselves and cut themselves with knives until they were all beaten, and their young prince seemed to have drowned in blood. For such defense, the Tatars, as usual, nicknamed Kozelsk “the evil city.” Then Batu completed the enslavement of the Polovtsian hordes. Their main khan, Kotyan, with part of the people, retired to Hungary, and there he received land for settlement from King Bela IV, under the condition of the baptism of the Polovtsians. Those who remained in the steppes had to unconditionally submit to the Mongols and increase their hordes. From the Polovtsian steppes, Batu sent out detachments, on the one hand, to conquer the Azov and Caucasus countries, and on the other, to enslave Chernigov-Northern Rus'. By the way, the Tatars took Southern Pereyaslavl, plundered and destroyed the cathedral church of Michael there and killed Bishop Simeon. Then they went to Chernigov. Mstislav Glebovich Rylsky came to the aid of the latter, cousin Mikhail Vsevolodovich, and courageously defended the city. The Tatars placed throwing weapons from the walls at a distance of one and a half arrow flights and threw such stones that four people could hardly lift them. Chernigov was taken, plundered and burned. Bishop Porfiry, who was captured, was left alive and released. In the winter of the following 1239, Batu sent troops north to complete the conquest of the Mordovian land. From here they went to the Murom region and burned Murom. Then they fought again on the Volga and Klyazma; on the first they took Gorodets Radilov, and on the second - the city of Gorokhovets, which, as you know, was the possession of the Assumption Cathedral of Vladimir. This new invasion caused a terrible commotion throughout the entire Suzdal land. The residents who survived the previous pogrom abandoned their homes and ran wherever they could; mostly fled to the forests.

Mongol-Tatar invasion of Southern Rus'

Having finished with the strongest part of Rus', i.e. with the great reign of Vladimir, having rested in the steppe and fattened their horses, the Tatars now turned to Southwestern, Trans-Dnieper Rus', and from here they decided to go further to Hungary and Poland.

Already during the devastation of Pereyaslavl Russky and Chernigov, one of the Tatar detachments, led by Batu’s cousin, Mengu Khan, approached Kyiv to scout out its position and means of defense. Stopping on the left side of the Dnieper, in the town of Pesochny, Mengu, according to the legend of our chronicle, admired the beauty and grandeur of the ancient Russian capital, which picturesquely rose on the coastal hills, shining with white walls and gilded domes of its temples. The Mongol prince tried to persuade the citizens to surrender; but they did not want to hear about her and even killed the messengers. At that time, Kiev was owned by Mikhail Vsevolodovich Chernigovsky. Although Menggu left; but there was no doubt that he would return with greater forces. Mikhail did not consider it convenient for himself to wait for the Tatar thunderstorm, he cowardly left Kyiv and retired to Ugria. Soon afterwards the capital city passed into the hands of Daniil Romanovich of Volyn and Galitsky. However, this famous prince, with all his courage and the vastness of his possessions, did not appear for the personal defense of Kyiv from the barbarians, but entrusted it to the thousandth Demetrius.

In the winter of 1240, a countless Tatar force crossed the Dnieper, surrounded Kyiv and fenced it off with a fence. Batu himself was there with his brothers, relatives and cousins, as well as his best commanders Subudai-Bagadur and Burundai. The Russian chronicler clearly depicts the enormity of the Tatar hordes, saying that the inhabitants of the city could not hear each other due to the creaking of their carts, the roar of camels and the neighing of horses. The Tatars directed their main attacks on that part that had the least strong position, i.e. to the western side, from which some wilds and almost flat fields adjoined the city. The battering guns, especially concentrated against the Lyadsky Gate, hit the wall day and night until they made a breach. The most persistent slaughter took place, “spear breaking and shields clumping together”; clouds of arrows darkened the light. The enemies finally broke into the city. The people of Kiev, with a heroic, albeit hopeless defense, supported the ancient glory of the first throne of the Russian city. They gathered around the Tithe Church of the Virgin Mary and then at night hastily fenced themselves off with fortifications. The next day this last stronghold also fell. Many citizens with families and property sought salvation in the choirs of the temple; the choirs could not withstand the weight and collapsed. This capture of Kyiv took place on December 6, on St. Nicholas’ day. The desperate defense embittered the barbarians; sword and fire spared nothing; the inhabitants were mostly beaten, and the majestic city was reduced to one huge heap of ruins. Tysyatsky Dimitri, captured wounded, Batu, however, left alive “for the sake of his courage.”

Having devastated the Kyiv land, the Tatars moved to Volyn and Galicia, captured and destroyed many cities, including the capital Vladimir and Galich. Only some places, well fortified by nature and people, they could not take in battle, for example, Kolodyazhen and Kremenets; but they still took possession of the first, persuading the inhabitants to surrender with flattering promises; and then they were treacherously beaten. During this invasion, part of the population of Southern Rus' fled to distant countries; many took refuge in caves, forests and wilds.

Among the owners of South-Western Rus' there were those who, at the very appearance of the Tatars, submitted to them in order to save their inheritance from ruin. This is what the Bolokhovskys did. It is curious that Batu spared their land on the condition that its inhabitants sow wheat and millet for the Tatar army. It is also remarkable that Southern Rus', compared to Northern Russia, offered much weaker resistance to the barbarians. In the north, the senior princes, Ryazan and Vladimir, having gathered the forces of their land, bravely entered into an unequal struggle with the Tatars and died with weapons in their hands. And in the south, where the princes have long been famous for their military prowess, we see a different course of action. The senior princes, Mikhail Vsevolodovich, Daniil and Vasilko Romanovich, with the approach of the Tatars, left their lands to seek refuge either in Ugria or in Poland. It’s as if the princes of Southern Rus' had enough determination for a general resistance only during the first invasion of the Tatars, and the Kalka massacre brought such fear into them that its participants, then young princes, and now older ones, are afraid of a new meeting with wild barbarians; they leave their cities to defend themselves alone and perish in an overwhelming struggle. It is also remarkable that these senior southern Russian princes continue their feuds and scores for the volosts at the very time when the barbarians are already advancing on their ancestral lands.

Campaign of the Tatars to Poland

After Southwestern Rus', it was the turn of the neighboring Western countries, Poland and Ugria [Hungary]. Already during his stay in Volyn and Galicia, Batu, as usual, sent detachments to Poland and the Carpathians, wanting to scout out the routes and position of those countries. According to the legend of our chronicle, the aforementioned governor Dimitri, in order to save South-Western Rus' from complete devastation, tried to speed up the further campaign of the Tatars and told Batu: “Don’t hesitate long in this land; it’s time for you to go to the Ugrians; and if you hesitate, then there They will have time to gather strength and will not let you into their lands." Even without this, the Tatar leaders had the custom of not only obtaining all the necessary information before a campaign, but also with quick, cunningly planned movements to prevent any concentration of large forces.

The same Dimitri and other southern Russian boyars could tell Batu a lot about the political state of their western neighbors, whom they often visited together with their princes, who were often related to both the Polish and Ugric sovereigns. And this state was likened to fragmented Rus' and was very favorable for the successful invasion of the barbarians. In Italy and Germany at that time, the struggle between the Guelphs and the Ghibellines was in full swing. Barbarossa's famous grandson, Frederick II, sat on the throne of the Holy Roman Empire. The aforementioned struggle completely distracted his attention, and in the very era of the Tatar invasion, he was diligently engaged in military operations in Italy against the supporters of Pope Gregory IX. Poland, being fragmented into appanage principalities, just like Rus', could not act unanimously and present serious resistance to the advancing horde. In this era we see here the two eldest and most powerful princes, namely, Konrad of Mazovia and Henry the Pious, ruler of Lower Silesia. They were on hostile terms with each other; moreover, Conrad, already known for his short-sighted policy (especially calling on the Germans to defend their land from the Prussians), was least capable of a friendly, energetic course of action. Henry the Pious was in family relations with the Czech king Wenceslaus I and the Ugric Bela IV. In view of the threatening danger, he invited the Czech king to meet the enemies with joint forces; but did not receive timely help from him. In the same way, Daniil Romanovich had long been convincing the Ugric king to unite with Russia to repel the barbarians, and also to no avail. The Kingdom of Hungary at that time was one of the strongest and richest states in all of Europe; his possessions extended from the Carpathians to Adriatic Sea. The conquest of such a kingdom should have especially attracted the Tatar leaders. They say that Batu, while still in Russia, sent envoys to the Ugric king demanding tribute and submission and reproaches for accepting the Kotyanov Polovtsians, whom the Tatars considered their runaway slaves. But the arrogant Magyars either did not believe in the invasion of their land, or considered themselves strong enough to repel this invasion. With his own sluggish, inactive character, Bela IV was distracted by various disorders of his state, especially feuds with rebellious magnates. These latter, by the way, were dissatisfied with the installation of the Polovtsians, who carried out robberies and violence, and did not even think of leaving their steppe habits.

At the end of 1240 and the beginning of 1241, the Tatar hordes left Southwestern Rus' and moved on. The campaign was maturely thought out and organized. Batu himself led the main forces through the Carpathian passes directly to Hungary, which was now his immediate goal. Special armies were sent in advance on both sides to engulf Ugria in a huge avalanche and cut off all help from its neighbors. By left hand In order to get around it from the south, the son of Ogodai Kadan and the governor Subudai-Bagadur took different roads through Sedmigradia and Wallachia. And according to right hand another cousin of Batu, Baydar, son of Jagatai, moved. He headed along Lesser Poland and Silesia and began to burn their cities and villages. In vain, some Polish princes and commanders tried to resist in the open field; they suffered defeats in unequal battles; and most of them died the death of the brave. Among the devastated cities were Sudomir, Krakow and Breslau. At the same time, individual Tatar detachments spread their devastation far into the depths of Mazovia and Greater Poland. Henry the Pious managed to prepare a significant army; received the help of Teutonic, or Prussian, knights and waited for the Tatars near the city of Liegnitz. Baidarkhan gathered his scattered troops and attacked this army. The battle was very stubborn; Unable to break the Polish and German knights, the Tatars, according to the chroniclers, resorted to cunning and confused the enemies with a deft cry fired through their ranks: “Run, run!” The Christians were defeated, and Henry himself died a heroic death. From Silesia, Baydar went through Moravia to Hungary to connect with Batu. Moravia was then part of the Czech kingdom, and Wenceslaus entrusted its defense to the courageous governor Yaroslav from Sternberk. Ruining everything in their path, the Tatars, among other things, besieged the city of Olomouc, where Yaroslav himself locked himself up; but here they failed; the governor even managed to make a lucky sortie and inflict some damage on the barbarians. But this failure could not have a significant impact on the general course of events.

Mongol-Tatar invasion of Hungary

Meanwhile, the main Tatar forces were moving through the Carpathians. The detachments sent forward with axes partly chopped up, partly burned out those forest axes with which Bela IV ordered to block the passages; their small military coverings were scattered. Having crossed the Carpathians, the Tatar horde poured onto the plains of Hungary and began to brutally devastate them; and the Ugric king was still sitting at the Diet in Buda, where he consulted with his obstinate nobles about defense measures. Having dissolved the Diet, he now only began to gather an army, with which he locked himself in Pest, adjacent to Buda. After a futile siege of this city, Batu retreated. Bela followed him with an army, the number of which had grown to 100,000 people. In addition to some magnates and bishops, his younger brother Coloman, the ruler of Slavonia and Croatia (the same one who in his youth reigned in Galich, from where he was expelled by Mstislav the Udal), also came to his aid. This army carelessly settled down on the banks of the Shayo River, and here it was unexpectedly surrounded by the hordes of Batu. The Magyars succumbed to panic and crowded in disorder in their cramped camp, not daring to join the battle. Only a few brave leaders, including Koloman, left the camp with their troops and, after a desperate battle, managed to break through. The rest of the army was destroyed; the king was among those who managed to escape. After that, the Tatars raged unhindered in Eastern Hungary for the whole summer of 1241; and with the onset of winter they crossed to the other side of the Danube and devastated its western part. At the same time, special Tatar detachments also actively pursued the Ugric king Bela, as before the Sultan of Khorezm Mohammed. Fleeing from them from one region to another, Bela reached the extreme limits of the Ugric possessions, i.e. to the shores of the Adriatic Sea and, like Mohammed, also escaped from his pursuers to one of the islands closest to the shore, where he remained until the thunderstorm passed. For more than a year, the Tatars stayed in the Hungarian kingdom, devastating it far and wide, beating the inhabitants, turning them into slavery.

Finally, in July 1242, Batu gathered his scattered troops, burdened with countless booty, and, leaving Hungary, headed back through the Danube valley through Bulgaria and Wallachia to the southern Russian steppes. The main reason for the return campaign was the news of the death of Ogodai and the accession of his son Gayuk to the supreme khan throne. This latter had left Batu’s hordes earlier and was not on friendly terms with him at all. It was necessary to provide for his family in those countries that fell to Jochi’s share in the division of Genghis Khan. But other than too large removal from their steppes and the threatening disagreements between the Genghisids, there were, of course, other reasons that prompted the Tatars to return to the east without consolidating the subordination of Poland and Ugria. For all their successes, the Tatar military leaders realized that further stay in Hungary or movement to the west was unsafe. Although Emperor Frederick II was still keen on the fight against the papacy in Italy, a crusade against the Tatars was preached everywhere in Germany; The German princes made military preparations everywhere and actively fortified their cities and castles. These stone fortifications were no longer as easy to take as the wooden cities of Eastern Europe. The iron-clad, military-experienced Western European knighthood also did not promise an easy victory. Already during their stay in Hungary, the Tatars more than once suffered various setbacks and, in order to defeat their enemies, often had to resort to their military tricks, such as: a false retreat from a besieged city or a feigned flight in an open battle, false treaties and promises, even forged letters, addressed to the residents as if on behalf of the Ugric king, etc. During the siege of cities and castles in Ugria, the Tatars very sparingly spared their own forces; and more they took advantage of the crowds of captured Russians, Polovtsians and the Hungarians themselves, who, under the threat of beating, were sent to fill up ditches, make tunnels, and go on an attack. Finally, the most neighboring countries, with the exception of the Middle Danube Plain, due to the mountainous, rugged nature of their surface, already provided little convenience for the steppe cavalry.

In 1237 - 1241 Russian lands were attacked by the Mongol Empire, a Central Asian state that conquered in the first half of the 13th century. a vast territory of the Eurasian continent from the Pacific Ocean to Central Europe. In Europe, the Mongols began to be called Tatars. This was the name of one of the Mongol-speaking tribes that roamed near the border with China. The Chinese transferred its name to all Mongolian tribes, and the name “Tatars” as a designation for the Mongols spread to other countries, although the Tatars themselves were almost completely exterminated during the creation of the Mongol Empire.

The term “Mongol-Tatars”, widespread in historical literature, is a combination of the self-name of the people with the term by which this people was designated by its neighbors. In 1206, at the kurultai - a congress of the Mongolian nobility - Temujin (Temuchin), who took the name of Genghis Khan, was recognized as the great khan of all Mongols. Over the next five years, Mongol troops, united by Genghis Khan, conquered the lands of their neighbors, and by 1215 they conquered Northern China. In 1221, the hordes of Genghis Khan defeated the main forces of Khorezm and conquered Central Asia.

Battle of Kalka.

The first clash of Ancient Rus' with the Mongols occurred in 1223, when a 30,000-strong Mongol detachment marched from Transcaucasia to the Black Sea steppes for reconnaissance purposes, defeating the Alans and Cumans. The Polovtsy, defeated by the Mongols, turned to the Russian princes for help. At their call, a united army led by the three strongest princes of Southern Rus' set out in the steppe: Mstislav Romanovich of Kyiv, Mstislav Svyatoslavich of Chernigov and Mstislav Metis-lavich of Galitsky.

May 31, 1223 in the battle on the river. Kalka (near the Sea of ​​Azov), as a result of uncoordinated actions of its leaders, the allied Russian-Polovtsian army was defeated. Six Russian princes died, three, including the Kiev prince, were captured and brutally killed by the Mongols. The conquerors pursued the retreating right up to the Russian borders, and then turned back to the Central Asian steppes. Thus, for the first time in Rus', the military power of the Mongol hordes was felt.

Invasion of the Mongol-Tatars in Rus'.

After the death of the founder of the Mongol Empire, Genghis Khan (1227), according to his will, at the kurultai of the Mongol nobility in 1235, it was decided to begin an aggressive campaign against Europe. The grandson of Genghis Khan, Batu Khan (called Batu in Russian sources), was placed at the head of the united army of the Mongol Empire. The prominent Mongol commander Subedei, who participated in the Battle of Kalka, was appointed its first military commander.

Campaign to North-Eastern Rus' (1237 - 1238).

A year after the start of the campaign, having conquered Volga Bulgaria, the Polovtsian hordes between the Volga and Don rivers, the lands of the Burtases and Mordovians in the Middle Volga in the late autumn of 1237, Batu’s main forces concentrated in the upper reaches of the Voronezh River to invade North-Eastern Rus'.

The number of Batu's hordes, according to a number of researchers, reached 140 thousand soldiers, and the Mongols themselves numbered no more than 50 thousand people. At this time, the Russian princes could gather no more than 100 thousand soldiers from all lands, and the squads of the princes of North-Eastern Rus' amounted to no more than 1/3 of this number.

Inter-princely feuds and strife in Rus' prevented the formation of a united Russian army. Therefore, the princes could only resist the Mongol invasion individually. In the winter of 1237, Batu's hordes ravaged the Ryazan principality, whose capital was burned and all its inhabitants exterminated. Following this, in January 1238, Mongol troops defeated the army of the Vladimir-Suzdal land near Kolomna, led by the son of the Grand Duke Vsevolod Yuryevich, captured Moscow, Suzdal, and on February 7 - Vladimir. On March 4, 1238, on the City River in the upper Volga, the army of Grand Duke Yuri Vsevolodich was defeated. The Grand Duke himself died in this battle.

After the capture of the “suburb” of Veliky Novgorod, Torzhok, which bordered the Suzdal land, the road to North-Western Rus' opened before the Mongol hordes. But the approach of the spring thaw and significant human losses forced the conquerors to turn back to the Polovtsian steppes. An unprecedented feat was accomplished by residents of the small town of Kozelsk on the river. Zhizdre. For seven weeks they held the defense of their city. After the capture of Kozelsk in May 1238, Batu ordered that this “evil city” be wiped off the face of the earth and all its inhabitants destroyed.

Batu spent the summer of 1238 in the Don steppes, restoring his strength for further campaigns. In the spring of 1239 he destroyed the Pereyaslavl principality, and in the fall the Chernigov-Seversk land was devastated.

Conquest of Southern Rus' (1240 - 1241).

In the autumn of 1240, Batu's troops moved towards Europe through Southern Rus'. In September they crossed the Dnieper and surrounded Kyiv. Kiev was then owned by the Galician prince Daniil Romanovich, who entrusted the defense of the city to the thousand-year-old Dmitry. The South Russian princes were never able to organize a united defense of their lands from the Mongol threat. After a stubborn defense in December 1240, Kyiv fell. Following this, in December 1240 - January 1241, the Mongol hordes ravaged almost all the cities of Southern Rus' (except Kholm, Kremenets and Danilov).

In the spring of 1241, having captured the Galicia-Volyn land, Batu invaded Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and reached the borders of Northern Italy and Germany. However, not receiving reinforcements and suffering significant losses, the Mongol troops by the end of 1242 were forced to return to the steppe lower reaches of the Volga. Here the westernmost ulus of the Mongol Empire was formed - the so-called Golden Horde.

Russian lands after Batu's invasion

The Principality of Kiev ceased to be an object of struggle between the Russian princes. The Horde khan appropriated the prerogative of delivering the Kyiv prince, and Kyiv was transferred first to the Grand Duke of Vladimir Yaroslav Vsevolodich (1243), and then to his son Alexander Nevsky (1249). Both of them, however, did not sit directly in Kyiv, preferring Vladimir-on-Klyazma.

Kyiv lost its status as a nominal all-Russian capital, which was consolidated in 1299 by the departure of the Metropolitan of All Rus' to Vladimir. In Kyiv until the middle of the 14th century. minor princes reigned (apparently from the Chernigov Olgovichi), and in the 60s of the same century the Kiev land came under the rule of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

In the Chernigov land after the invasion, territorial fragmentation intensified, small principalities were formed, each of which established its own line of the Olgovichi branch. The forest-steppe part of the Chernihiv region was systematically subjected to devastation by the Tatars. For some time, the Bryansk principality became the strongest in the Chernigov land, whose princes simultaneously occupied the Chernigov table.

But at the end of the 14th century. The Principality of Bryansk passed (obviously on the initiative of the Horde) into the hands of the Smolensk princes and the possibility of integrating the small principalities of the Chernigov region under the auspices of Bryansk was lost. The reign of Chernigov was never assigned to any of the Olgovichi lines, and in the 60s and 70s of the 14th century. Most of the territory of the Chernigov land was taken over by the Grand Duke of Lithuania Olgerd. Only in its northern, Upper Oka, part were the principalities preserved under the control of the Olgovichi, which became the object of a long struggle between Lithuania and Moscow.

In the Galicia-Volyn land, Prince Daniil Romanovich (1201-1264) managed to form a large state. In 1254 he accepted the royal title from the papal curia. The Galician-Volyn principality was almost not subject to fragmentation and retained its power during the second half of the 13th - early 14th centuries. At the same time, the foreign policy situation of the Galicia-Volyn land was extremely unfavorable. It was surrounded by three opposing state entities - Lithuania, Poland and Hungary - and at the same time was a vassal of the Golden Horde.

In this regard, the Galician-Volyn princes were forced, on the one hand, to participate in the Horde campaigns against Lithuanian, Polish and Hungarian lands, and on the other, to repel the raids of the Horde khans. After suppression in the early 20s of the 14th century. male line Daniel's descendants in the Galicia-Volyn land were reigned by their heir female line Boleslav - Yuri, and after his death (1340) Southwestern Rus' became the arena of struggle between Lithuania and Poland. As a result, in the middle of the 14th century. Volhynia became part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and Galicia became part of the Kingdom of Poland.

The Smolensk principality, which did not directly border the possessions of the Golden Horde, practically did not experience Mongol-Tatar devastation. But the Smolensk princes, weakened in the internecine war of the 30s of the 13th century, already on the eve of Batu’s invasion acted as minor political figures. From the middle of the 13th century. they apparently recognized the suzerainty of the Grand Dukes of Vladimir. From the second half of this century, the main foreign policy factor influencing the Smolensk Principality was the onslaught of Lithuania. For a long time, the Smolensk princes managed to maintain relative independence, maneuvering between Lithuania and the Grand Duchy of Vladimir. But in the end, in 1404, Smolensk fell under the rule of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

In the Novgorod land in the second half of the XIII - XIV centuries. The republican form of government finally takes shape. Moreover, since the time of Alexander Nevsky, Novgorod recognized the Grand Duke of Vladimir as its overlord, i.e. supreme ruler of North-Eastern Rus'. In the 14th century in fact, the Pskov land acquired complete independence, where a form of government similar to Novgorod was formed. At the same time, the Pskovites during the 14th century. fluctuated in orientation between the Lithuanian and Vladimir grand dukes.

The Ryazan principality managed in the second half of the XIII - XIV centuries. maintain relative independence, although from the end of the 14th century the Ryazan princes began to recognize the political eldership of the great Vladimir princes (from the Moscow house). The small Principality of Murom did not play an independent role, and at the end of the 14th century. came under the authority of the Moscow princes.

In the first half of the 13th century, another invasion of nomads hit Asia and Europe. The Mongols conquered one country after another. And soon they approached the borders of Rus'.

It all started in 1206, when the Mongol nobility elected Genghis Khan as ruler. By that time, he already had great authority among the Mongols, and was not going to stop there. The new ruler united many tribes under his rule, among which one of the largest were the Tatars. That is why the aggressive campaign of Genghis Khan, and then his grandson Batu, is known as the Mongol-Tatar invasion.

By 1223, the nomads subjugated China and Transcaucasia. Having reached the Azov steppes, the Mongols entered into confrontation with the Polovtsy, who called the Russian princes for help. In May 1223, the united army met the enemy in Rusichi and suffered a simply catastrophic defeat: according to chroniclers, only one in ten survived. The road to Kyiv and other cities was open. But then the Volga Bulgars attacked the Mongols from the rear. Exhausted by the long march, the nomads decided not to start a new battle and went home. The Mongol-Tatar invasion was postponed.

The campaign against Rus' and its consequences

In 1227 Genghis Khan died. His son Ogedei became his successor, who soon began thinking about new campaigns. In 1235, at the next kurultai (congress of the nobility), it was decided to go west. In the winter of 1237, the Mongol hordes were already at the borders of the Ryazan principality. Genghis Khan's grandson Batu, who led the campaign, demanded tribute from the Ryazan princes. They refused and began to prepare for battle. The forces were unequal, and the Mongols won. After a 6-day siege, Ryazan was taken by storm, but the Ryazan people themselves resisted the invaders for a long time, leading

There was no unity between the Russian princes. Even in the face of the enemy, they were unable to create any kind of coalition. This contributed to the victories of the Mongols, who were distinguished by iron discipline. A significant role Siege technology borrowed from the Chinese also played a role. Throughout 1237-1238, the Mongol-Tatar invasion only gained momentum. The Vladimir-Suzdal principality was defeated and captured, after which the conquerors turned south. Here they also had to put in a lot of effort. The small town of Kozelsk alone did not surrender to the enemy for 7 weeks. In the same year, the Mongols attacked the Polovtsian Khan, who was forced to retreat to Hungary.

In 1239, the nomads took over the southwestern Pereyaslav and Chernigov. The Mongols have not yet decided to approach Kyiv; instead, they attacked Crimea. Only a year later the nomads set off on a new campaign, this time to the capital of Rus'. In November 1240, Mongol troops were already standing under the walls of Kyiv. The siege began. Having made breaks in the fortifications with the help of battering machines, the Mongols broke into the city. Kyiv was taken.

The wave of invasion rolled to the west, leaving behind conflagrations. Having passed through Galicia and Volyn, the Mongols moved on. The nomads managed to capture Poland and Hungary. European kings were in panic. Having reached Italy, the Mongols decided to turn back. They did not have enough strength for further campaigns; moreover, Khan Ogedei died in December 1241. Therefore, Batu returned to Rus'.

The Mongol-Tatar invasion and its consequences became a heavy blow for the Russian lands. Mass destruction, the decline of trade and crafts threw Rus' back for a long time. The princes became vassals of the Golden Horde khans and were obliged to pay them tribute and help them in their campaigns. Without a khan's label (letter), none of them could govern their principality. According to historians, the consequences of the Mongol-Tatar invasion were deeper for Rus' than just destruction and human casualties. This event changed the path of development of a significant part of the Russian lands, which was now more Asian than European. The destruction of cities weakened the role of the urban population in the life of the country and led to the persistence of serfdom for a longer period than in European countries. The situation is not the best in agriculture, which has been subsistence for a long time.