On July 15, 1240, an epoch-making battle took place on the Neva River. Russian troops under the command of Prince Alexander Yaroslavovich won a crushing victory over the Swedish army. After this event, Alexander received the famous nickname Nevsky. This name is known to every Russian to this day.
Backstory
The Battle of the Neva River in 1240 did not start spontaneously. It was preceded by a number of important political and historical events.
In the first half of the 13th century, the Swedes, united with the Novgorodians, made regular raids on the Finnish tribes. They called them punitive campaigns, the purpose of which was to subjugate more and more people to their will. The sum and em tribes suffered the most from the Swedes. This has led to protracted conflicts. The Swedes were afraid of a blow from the Finns, so they sought to christen them and make them their allies.
The conquerors did not stop there. They periodically carried out predatory raids on the lands along the Neva, as well as directly on Novgorod territory. Sweden was significantly weakenedinternal conflicts, so she sought to attract as many warriors and nobles to her side as possible. They did not disdain persuasion to win over to their side and lovers of easy money. For a long time, the Finno-Karelian troops raided the Swedish lands, and in 1187 they completely united with the Novgorodians. They burned Sigtuna, the ancient capital of Sweden.
This confrontation went on for a long time. Each of its sides, both Swedish and Russian, sought to establish their power on the Izhora land, which was located along the Neva, as well as on the Karelian Isthmus.
The landmark date preceding such a famous event as the Battle of the Neva River was the proclamation of the second crusade against Finland by Pope Gregory IX in December 1237. In June 1238, the King of Denmark, Voldemar II, and the master of the united order, Hermann von Balk, agreed on the division of the Estonian state, as well as on the start of hostilities against Russia in the B altic states with the involvement of the Swedes. This is what provoked the battle on the Neva River. The date, the events of which are known even now, became the starting point in the history of Russia and its relations with neighboring states. The battle showed the ability of our state to repulse the powerful army of the enemy. One should take into account the fact that the battle on the Neva River took place at a difficult time. The Russian lands had just begun to recover after the many years of the Mongol invasion, and the forces of the troops were significantly weakened.
Battle on the Neva River: sources
Information about such long-standing events historians have to collect literally bit by bit. Many researchers are interested in such an event as the battle on the Neva River, date. The battle is briefly described in chronological documents. Of course, such sources are few and far between. One of the most famous can be called the Novgorod First Chronicle. Also, information can be gleaned from the story of the life of Alexander Nevsky. It is assumed that it was written by contemporaries of those events no later than the eighties of the XIII century.
If we consider the Scandinavian sources, they do not contain detailed information about such significant battles as the battle on the Neva River and the Battle of the Ice. One can only read that a small Swedish detachment was defeated in the framework of the Finnish crusade.
It is also not known for certain who led the Scandinavian army. Based on Russian sources, scholars say that it was the king's son-in-law, Birger Magnusson.
But he became Jarl of Sweden only in 1248, and at the time of the battle he was Ulf Fasi, who, most likely, led the campaign. At the same time, Birger did not participate in it, although there is an opposite opinion. Thus, the results of archaeological excavations indicate that Birger was wounded in the front of the head during his lifetime. This coincides with the information that Alexander Nevsky wounded the king himself in the eye.
Battle on the Neva River: date
Historical events until the 16th century were not recorded in certain official sources. Very often historiansthey cannot establish the exact day or even the approximate period when this or that battle took place. But this does not apply to such an important event as the battle on the Neva River. What year did it take place? Historians know the exact answer to this question. This battle dates from July 15, 1240.
Events before the battle
No battle starts spontaneously. A number of events also took place that led to such a difficult moment as the battle on the Neva River. The year in which it took place began for the Swedes by unification with the Novgorodians. In summer, their ships arrived at the mouth of the Neva. The Swedes and their allies landed on the coast and pitched their tents. This happened at the place where the Izhora flows into the Neva.
The composition of the troops was motley. It included Swedes, Novgorodians, Norwegians, representatives of Finnish tribes and, of course, Catholic bishops. The borders of the Novgorod lands were under the protection of the sea guard. It was provided by the Izhorians at the mouth of the Neva, on both sides of the Gulf of Finland. It was the elder of this guard, Pelgusius, at the dawn of a July day, who discovered that the Swedish flotilla was already close. The messengers hurried to inform Prince Alexander about this.
The Livonian campaign of the Swedes to Russia began only in August, which indicates that they took a wait-and-see attitude, as well as the immediate and lightning-fast reaction of Prince Alexander. Having received the news that the enemy was close, he decided to act on his own, without resorting to the help of his father. Alexander Yaroslavovich went into battle with a small squad. The battle on the Neva River became a chance for the young prince to prove himself as a commander. Somany troops did not have time to join him. On the side of Alexander, the Ladoga militias also joined him along the way.
According to the then existing customs, the entire squad gathered at the Hagia Sophia, where they were blessed by Archbishop Spiridon. Then Alexander delivered a parting speech, quotes from which are known even now: "God is not in power, but in truth!"
The detachment moved overland along the Volkhov to Ladoga itself. From there he turned to the mouth of the Izhora. For the most part, the army consisted of mounted warriors, but there was also infantry. To save travel time, this part of the detachment also traveled on horseback.
Chronology of the battle
The battle began on July 15, 1940. It is known that in addition to the princely squad, at least three more detachments of noble Novgorod commanders, as well as Ladoga residents, participated in the Russian army.
The "Life" mentions the names of six warriors who performed heroic deeds during the battle.
Gavrilo Olekseich boarded the enemy ship, from where he was thrown wounded, but despite this he boarded again and continued to fight. Sbyslav Yakunovich was armed only with an ax, but nevertheless rushed into the thick of the battle. Alexander's hunter Yakov Polochanin fought no less bravely. The lad Savva burst into the enemy camp and cut down the tent of the Swedes. Misha from Novgorod took part in the foot battle and sank three enemy ships. Ratmir, a servant of Alexander Yaroslavovchia, bravely fought with several Swedes, after which he was wounded anddied on the battlefield.
The battle went on from morning until evening. By nightfall, the enemies dispersed. The Swedes, realizing that they had suffered a crushing defeat, retreated on their surviving ships and crossed to the opposite shore.
It is known that the Russian army did not pursue the enemy. The reason for this is unknown. Perhaps the knightly custom did not interfere with burying their fighters during a respite. Maybe Alexander did not see the need to finish off a handful of the remaining Swedes and did not want to risk his army.
The losses of the Russian detachment amounted to XX noble warriors, and their combatants should also be added here. Among the Swedes, there were much more dead. Historians speak of dozens if not hundreds of warriors killed.
Results
The Battle on the Neva River, the date of which was remembered for centuries, made it possible to prevent the danger of an attack by Sweden and the Order on Russia in the near future. Alexander's army resolutely stopped their invasion of Ladoga and Novgorod.
However, the Novgorod boyars began to fear that Alexander's power over them would increase. They began to build various intrigues for the young prince, as a result, forcing him to leave for his father Yaroslav. However, very soon they asked him to return to continue the battle with the Livonian Order, which approached Pskov.
Memory of the battle
In order not to forget about the distant events on the Neva, the descendants of Alexander sought to perpetuate the memories of them. Thus, monumental architectural monuments were created, whichhave been restored several times. In addition, the image of Alexander Nevsky found its reflection on coins and commemorative stamps.
Alexander Nevsky Lavra
This monolithic building was erected by Peter I in 1710. The Alexander Nevsky Monastery was built at the mouth of the Black River in St. Petersburg. During that period, it was erroneously assumed that the battle took place in this place. The inspirer and creator of the Lavra was Domenico Trezzini. Subsequently, other architects continued the work.
In 1724, the remains of Alexander Yaroslavovich were brought here. Now the territory of the Lavra is a state national reserve. The ensemble includes several churches, a museum and a cemetery. Famous people such as Mikhail Lomonosov, Alexander Suvorov, Nikolai Karamzin, Mikhail Glinka, Modest Mussorgsky, Pyotr Tchaikovsky, Fyodor Dostoevsky rest on it.
Church of Alexander Nevsky in Ust-Izhora
This building was erected in honor of the victory in the battle of 1240. Date of construction - 1711. The church burned down and was rebuilt several times. At the end of the 18th century, the parishioners built a stone church with iron bars and a bell tower.
In 1934 the church was closed and was used as a warehouse for a long time. During the blockade of Leningrad, the tower of the temple was blown up, as it served as a guide for German artillery.
In 1990, work began on the restoration of the church, and a few years later it was consecrated. At the temple there is a small cemetery, as well as a monument-chapel withimage of Alexander Nevsky.
Printing coins and stamps
Periodically, the image of Alexander Yaroslavovich is also used in printing. So, in 1995, a commemorative coin with his image was issued. In the anniversary years after the battle, significant stamps are also issued, which are of great interest to philatelists.
Screenings
In 2008, the author's film "Alexander. Battle of the Neva" was released. It tells about the beginning of the reign of the young prince in Novgorod. At the end of the film, battle scenes of the battle on the Neva unfold.
The film featured actors such as Anton Pampushny, Svetlana Bakulina and Igor Botvin. Directed by Igor Kalenov.
