In the summer of 1709, the Swedish army under the command of King Charles XII invaded Russia. At the Russian headquarters, nothing was known about the plans for the direction of Karl's campaign. Maybe he will go to wipe St. Petersburg from the face of the earth and win back the original Russian lands. Maybe he will go east and, having captured Moscow, will dictate the terms of peace from there.
Peter has been trying to make peace with his northern neighbors for a long time. But Charles XII each time rejected the proposals of the emperor, wanting to destroy Russia as a state and divide it into small vassal principalities. During the campaign, Charles XII changed plans and led his troops to Ukraine. Hetman Mazepa was waiting for him there, having treacherously betrayed Russia and decided to cooperate with the Swedes. The history of the Battle of Poltava will be outlined below.
Movement to Moscow
The Swedish army moved slowly, and the Russians retreated, taking away cattle along the way, destroying food and fodder and arranging fences that made it difficult for the enemy to move. Peter believed thatdelay the decisive battle, and tried to wear down the enemy forces. But there was a collision. It ended in defeat for the Russians. Peter used it for educational purposes. And this was the last success of the Swedes in the annals of the Great Northern War.
The passionate and enthusiastic king, for whom the battlefield was more interesting than the balls, and the sounds of artillery cannonade and the groans of the wounded were music for him, did not develop success and turned to Mogilev. He waited a month for reinforcements. But it was delayed. Having not received a convoy with fodder, food, gunpowder, uniforms, as well as a detachment of 16 thousand people, Charles XII went to Smolensk. A battle took place near the village of Dobry, in which the Swedes suffered losses of 1-2 thousand people, while the Russians had ten times less. Peter rejoiced like a child at the excellent training of the Russian army.
Move south
The Swedes abruptly changed direction from Smolensk, and Peter learned that the long-awaited reinforcements were coming to them. The Russians attacked him. The result of a long battle in swamps and swamps was the loss of 8,000 soldiers and all the supplies that the convoy was carrying by the Swedish army. Peter highly appreciated the significance of the first big victory - it preceded the battle of Poltava. And Charles, instead of a large army, received 6,700 ragamuffins, completely demoralized. Before the loss of this corps and convoy, Karl had the opportunity to maneuver. He could go north to seize Petersburg, he could go east to smash Moscow. Ukraine was the third direction. And in the end, Karl had the opportunity to stop playing with fate and calmlyreturn to his native land, from where he came as an uninvited guest. Charles did not intend to retreat, this would mean the loss of the glory of the great commander. Therefore, only the road to the south, to Mazepa, opened before him. Almost a year remained before the crushing defeat that the battle of Poltava would bring him.
Mazeppa
The cunning hetman managed to insinuate himself deeply into the confidence of Menshikov and Peter. All the reports that he has treacherous ties with Poland and Sweden, no one carefully investigated. Moreover, those who had the courage to tell the truth, citing irrefutable evidence, were punished up to execution. And when Mazepa fled to Baturin and began to wait for Charles with provisions and troops, this was a big blow for Peter. But it was decided that the Russian troops would capture Baturin before Charles arrived in it. I had to hurry. The bill went not even for days, but for hours. Menshikov, as always, was ahead.
Baturin took his detachment by storm. Menshikov took out absolutely everything he could. The rest was simply burned. Approaching the ashes, the Swedes did not receive the forage and food that Mazepa promised. And the 30,000th army, which he promised the king, Mazepa did not have. With him was a small detachment of Cossacks, whom he lured with him, promising that they would fight the enemy. (And the battle of Poltava is still ahead, it will require forces that are already lacking.)
Winter in Ukraine
Winter was extremely harsh. The army of the Swedish king needed warm winter quarters and still needed food and fodder for the horses. Instead ofThis was surrounded by Russian troops and periodically attacked. The local population, which did not want to be captured by the Catholics, gathered in partisan detachments and also haunted the Swedes. As best they could, the Swedes set up camps in the open air in the most severe cold. The army roamed the steppes, trying to find shelter, rest and food. Every town that they met on their way had to be besieged, while suffering losses, often tangible. The army melted. And in April 1709, Poltava attracted the attention of Charles. He could not even imagine what the battle of Poltava would result in!
Poltava
It was a strategic location. It allowed them to calmly contact the Crimean Khanate and receive reinforcements from there. This was realized by both Karl and Peter. In Poltava, which was protected only by oak walls, a Russian garrison was stationed. Its number was ridiculous - 4200 people. Charles approached her with an army of 35,000 men. Naturally, it seemed to him that he could easily take possession of this small fortress. In April, attempts began to storm the fortress.
They failed twice. The Swedes thought about it and decided to start the siege. But a small Russian cavalry detachment was already hurrying to the aid of Poltava - 7,000 people under the command of K. E. Renne. The siege of Poltava by the Swedes was complicated by the fact that it was entrusted to lead the Cossacks. They were forced to carry out earthworks, and the ardent Cossacks considered this a humiliation for themselves. In addition, the Swedes did not have siege weapons. And the garrison and the inhabitants fortified the small fortress. They didn't even think about giving it up.the Swedes. No one knew yet that three months remained before the Battle of Poltava began. The year 1709 will forever go down in our history, and July 10 will be celebrated as the Day of Russian Military Glory.
Preparing for battle
While the Russian side was preparing for the most important battle, Poltava heroically defended itself. Peasants from nearby villages fled to the city, but there was not enough food in it. Already in May, people began to die of hunger. There were not enough cores, and the cannons began to be loaded with cobblestones. The garrison adapted to setting fire to Swedish wooden buildings with pots filled with boiling tar. Poltava dared to make sorties against the Swedes. The position of the latter was terrible. Summer brought new worries. Because of the heat, worms started in the meat, and it became unfit for food. Bread was scarce and in small quantities. There was no s alt. The wounded quickly developed gangrene. The bullets were cast from Russian lead picked up on the ground. And for days on end the Russian cannonade did not stop. The Swedish army was already exhausted, but Peter believed that it was not enough.
The concerns of the Russian command
The Russian command helped the fortress to hold on. Nine hundred soldiers were able to get into the garrison. With them, both gunpowder and lead appeared in the fortress. In early June, led by Boris Sheremetyev, the entire Russian army gathered in a fortified camp. During one of the sorties of the Russian regiments, more than a thousand Russian soldiers taken prisoner by the Swedes were released. Soon Peter arrived in the army.
She was on the other side of the river. The military council decidedbuild crossings and cross to the side where Poltava stood. This has been done. And behind the Russians, as once on the Kulikovo field, there was a river. (The Battle of Poltava in 1709 will take place very soon. In two weeks.)
Work in the Russian camp
The army tirelessly strengthened its position. Two flanks were protected by a dense forest, the rear - by a river with bridges. In front of the vanguard was a plain. It was from there that Peter was waiting for the attack of the Swedes. Here they built defensive structures - redoubts. On this plain, the Battle of Poltava will take place, which will go down in our history along with such turning points as the Battle of the Ice, the Battle of Kulikovo and the Battle of Stalingrad.
Prelude
Before the battle, just a couple of days before it, Charles XII was wounded on his birthday. It was him, who had not received a single scratch over the years of battles, that a Russian bullet lay in wait. She hit the heel and went through the entire foot, crushing all the bones. This did not dampen the ardor of the king, and the battle began in the dead of night on June 27. He did not take the Russians by surprise. Menshikov with his cavalry immediately noticed the movements of the enemy. Artillery fired on the Swedish infantry at close range.
Four Swedish guns accounted for a hundred of ours. The superiority was overwhelming. Menshikov was eager to fight, asking for reinforcements. But Peter restrained his ardor and removed him to the rear. The Swedes mistook this maneuver for a retreat, rushed after them and imprudently approached the camp guns. Their losses were heavy.
Battle of Poltava, year 1709
At eight in the morning, Peter rebuilt the army. Placed in the centerinfantry, among which artillery was evenly distributed. The cavalry was on the flanks. Here it is - the beginning of the general battle! Gathering all his strength, Karl threw them into the center of the infantry and pushed it slightly. Peter himself led the battalion into the counterattack.
Russian cavalry rushed from the flanks. The artillery didn't stop. The Swedes, falling and dropping guns in huge numbers, made such a roar that it seemed that the walls were crumbling. Two horses were killed near Menshikov. Peter's hat was shot through. The entire field was covered in smoke. The Swedes fled in panic. Carl was lifted up in his arms, and he tried to contain the frantic retreat. But no one listened to him. Then the king himself got into the carriage and rushed to the Dnieper. He was never seen again in Russia.
On the battlefield there are more than nine thousand forever fallen Swedes. Our losses amounted to a little over a thousand. The victory was complete and unconditional.
Hunting
The remnants of the Swedish army, and it was 16,000 people, were stopped the next day and surrendered to the victors. The military power of the Swedes was forever undermined.
If we say what the Battle of Poltava is, in short, it can be expressed in one word - it is a triumph that raised the opinion of Russia highly in Western countries. The country has come a long way from Russia to Russia and completed it on the field near Poltava. And therefore we must remember in what year the Battle of Poltava took place - one of the four greatest in the history of our Motherland.
