Mstislav Mstislavich Udaloy Mstislav Mstislavich Udaloy
(? - 1228), Russian prince. From 1193 he reigned in Tripoli, Torchesk, Novgorod, Galich, and others. He fought against the German knights; participant in the Battle of Lipitsa in 1216 (commanded the Novgorod army), the battle on the Kalka River in 1223.
MSTISLAV Mstislavich UdaloyMSTISLAV Mstislavich Udaloy (Udatny) (died 1228), Old Russian prince, commander and politician, son of Mstislav Rostislavich the Brave. In 1193 (as prince of Tripoli) and in 1203 (as prince Torcheska) he participated in the campaigns of South Russian princes against the Polovtsy. (cm. POLOVETS). In 1209 he became the prince of Toropets, in 1210-1215 and in 1216-1218 he was the prince of Novgorod. In 1212 and 1214 he organized three successful campaigns against the Chud. In 1215, he expelled Vsevolod Svyatoslavich Chermny from Kyiv and installed Mstislav Romanovich to reign there. In 1210, he liberated Torzhok, captured by Vsevolod the Big Nest, in 1216, the Novgorod militia under the command of Mstislav the Udaly, together with the troops of the princes allied to him, defeated the squads of the Vladimir-Suzdal princes on the Lipitsa River.
In 1219, Mstislav became a Galician prince, fought with the Poles, Hungarians, as well as with the Galician and Volyn princes and boyars. The initiator and one of the leaders of the campaign against the Mongol-Tatars in 1223. In the battle on the Kalka River, his detachment was defeated, and Mstislav himself, fleeing the chase, destroyed the means of crossing the Dnieper, which put the Russian troops remaining behind the river in a difficult situation. In 1227, he gave his daughter Maria in marriage to the Hungarian prince Andrei, to whom he transferred power over the Galician land, and he himself went to reign in Torchesk.
encyclopedic Dictionary. 2009 .
See what "Mstislav Mstislavich Udaloy" is in other dictionaries:
- (Udatny) (? 1228) Prince of Novgorod, Toropets and Galicia. Fought on the western borders of Russian lands. Member of the Battle of Lipitsa 1216 (commanded the Novgorod army), the battle on the river. Kalke 1223 ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
Prince Toropetsky, son of Prince Smolensky, later Novgorodsky. In 1208, M. sat in Novgorod, lost it a year later, and a year later captured it again and made Suzdal recognize him as the Novgorod table. In 1212, relying on love ... ... Biographical Dictionary
- (died 1228), ancient Russian prince, commander and politician, son of Mstislav Rostislavich the Brave. In 1193 ≈ prince of Tripoli, in 1203 ≈ Torcheska, in 1209 ≈ Toropets. In 1210≈15 and in 1216≈18 he ruled Novgorod, in 1219≈27 ≈ Galich, in 1227≈28 ≈… …
Mstislav Mstislavich Udatny ... Wikipedia
Mstislav Mstislavovich (left). Monument to the Millennium of Russia in Novgorod Mstislav Mstislavich, Mstislav Udatny (that is, "lucky"), in baptism Fedor (? 1228) Prince Tripolsky (1193 1203), Toropetsky (1206 1213), Novgorodsky (1210 1215,1216 ... ... Wikipedia
Udaloy (died 1228), old Russian prince, commander and politician, son of Mstislav Rostislavich the Brave. In 1193 Prince Tripoli, in 1203 Torchesk, in 1209 Toropets. In 1210 15 and in 1216 18 he ruled Novgorod, in 1219 27 Galich, in 1227 ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Daring (d. 1228) prince of Toropets (since 1206), Novgorod (since 1210), Galician (since 1219); son of Prince Mstislav Rostislavich the Brave. Participated in Russian campaigns. princes against the Polovtsians in 1193 and 1203. Becoming Novgorod. prince, M. M. began to fight with Prince. Vsevolod … Soviet historical encyclopedia
Big biographical encyclopedia
Prince of Novgorod and Galicia, nicknamed Daring. In 1193 to 1203 he went to the Polovtsians; in 1206, for the successful defense of Torchesk, he received from his uncle, Rurik of Smolensk, Toropetsky inheritance. In 1209, Torzhok was returned to the Novgorodians and they were proclaimed ... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron
Mstislav Udaloy, the son of Prince Mstislav the Brave of Novgorod, lived with his Polovtsian wife in the middle of Smolensk land, in Toropets, and peacefully raised his daughters when he heard that Vsevolod the Big Nest and his sons greatly offend Veliky Novgorod. In winter, Udaloy flew to the Volkhov, chained the Vsevolodov people in chains and sent them to the veche with the words: “I bow to St. Sophia, and to the coffin of my father, and to all Novgorodians. I came to you, having heard that the princes are doing violence to you - I am sorry for my fatherland! The Novgorodians struck with their foreheads: "Come, prince, to the table." The army of Mstislav frightened Vsevolod, and peace was restored without a fight.
As soon as Mstislav conquered Novgorod the whole Chud to the sea, the Monomakhoviches, who had been expelled from Kyiv by force by the Chernigov Olgovichi, threw themselves at his feet. Udaloy told about it at the meeting. “Where, prince, you look with your eyes, there we will turn with our heads!” - shouted the Novgorodians. In the campaign, the Smolensk people joined the army. Chernigov was expelled, but Mstislav did not touch their capital - he took gifts and made peace. The prince sent his cousin Mstislav Romanovich to Kyiv and returned to Novgorod.
Here they found his embassy: the Poles offered to drive the Hungarians out of Galich. “I have business in Russia,” Mstislav said to the people of Novgorod, “and you are free in the princes.” The daring drove the Hungarians away and betrothed his daughter to the young Daniel of Galicia, who then reigned in Volhynia. However, the Poles united with the Hungarians and part of the Galician boyars, the war played out in earnest. Then the news came that the princes were again committing violence against Novgorod. The Novgorodians were already dying of hunger, and a great many of them were languishing in the Vladimir-Suzdal land in chains, when Mstislav rode up, gathered a veche, kissed the cross and exclaimed: “Either I will return the Novgorod husbands and Novgorod volosts, or I will throw my head for Veliky Novgorod! » It was a shame to Daring that his own son-in-law, Prince Yaroslav, tormented the Novgorodians. "My son!" - Mstislav wrote to him, urging him to make peace. However, I had to go on a campaign, calling for help from Pskov, Smolensk and Rostov.
“I don’t want peace,” Yaroslav replied arrogantly, “let’s go - so go, a hundred of ours will be for one of yours!” "Let's throw saddles!" - shouted the numerous warriors of the Vladimir-Suzdal princes, waiting for Mstislav to fight at Lipitsa. No matter how he persuaded Daring not to shed blood, the princes of the world did not want. There was strength with them, with Mstislav the truth. “Brothers! - the prince said to his people, - if you run, you will not leave; go to battle, as anyone likes to die! The Novgorodians and Smolensk people got off their horses, threw off their boots and dress, and threw them with axes up the mountain, where the whole Vladimir-Suzdal land sparkled with armor. Mstislav himself with an ax cut through the enemy regiments three times until the enemy was defeated.
The daring did not allow either Vladimir or Pereyaslavl to storm, but ended the matter amicably, seating the princes in order of seniority. Only from the evil Yaroslav did he take his daughter. Not only enemies, but also traitors, the prince, having kept a little in prison, by the breadth of his soul invariably forgave and let go. However, it was time to go to Galich, where the Hungarians and Poles raged. The daring defeated them, skillfully separating them, in a single battle. The Hungarians dug in in Galicia - the prince took it by digging, again took pity on both the prisoners and the traitors, and even betrothed his daughter to the son of the Hungarian king.
When the Polovtsy came to ask for help against the terrible enemy of the Tatar-Mongol Horde, Mstislav called the princes to Kyiv and persuaded: "If we do not help them, then the Polovtsy will stick to the enemies and their strength will become greater." “It is better to meet the enemy in a foreign land than in one's own,” the princes decided. Mstislav with the young princes walked ahead of the main army. Three times the daring clashed with the Horde and won. On the ninth day, having crossed the Kalka River, Mstislav and his comrades entered the battle with all the enemy hordes - and was defeated for the first time in his life without receiving help from the senior princes. Nine princes, uncountable warriors and Polovtsy fell in May 1223 in a campaign against Kalka. But the advanced forces of the Horde also turned back, not reaching Pereyaslavl.
The daring escaped, then defeated the Hungarian king and died in peace, having taken care of the salvation of the soul. His authority and military happiness were not enough to force the Russian princes to unite.
When, after the death of Mstislav, the hordes of Batu fell upon Russia, the princes could not even go on a campaign together.
Mstislav
Udatny (Udaly)
OK. 1175–1228
Battles and victories
Old Russian prince and commander, prince of Tripolsky, Toropetsky, Novgorodsky, Galitsky and others. Winner in the Battle of Lipitsa. The first of the Russian princes who resisted the Mongols - in the battle of Kalka ...
Prince Mstislav Mstislavich is more often called Udaly, which is more familiar to the modern Russian ear, but “daring” means, rather, “dashing”, while “successful” means “lucky”. It would seem that the first is more honorable for a warrior, but after all, luck is no less important for him, and even more so for a ruler, especially since it is a gift from the Almighty.
Mstislav was the son of Mstislav the Brave and great-great-grandson of Vladimir Monomakh. He became the grandfather of one of the most famous heroes of ancient Russian history - Alexander Nevsky. However, this is all genealogy, and the fact that someone was someone's father or son does not yet indicate the significance of himself. But the very flattering nickname of Mstislav speaks volumes. Yes, and historians of later times highly appreciated the prince - suffice it to say that S.M. Solovyov. There was a place for him on the monument "Millennium of Russia". One should not be surprised - he ruled in Novgorod and Galich, the battles on Lipitsa and Kalka are associated with his name.
The chronology of the life and work of Mstislav Udatny is very confusing, and in the historical literature one can find a presentation of events with different dates and in a different sequence. To begin with, the year of his birth is unknown. It is most likely that Mstislav was born around 1175. He initially ruled in Trepol, near Kyiv - his grandfather, the Grand Duke of Kyiv Rostislav Mstislavich, made sure that his children got the cities of the Kyiv land, which more than once served as a springboard for them in the struggle for Kyiv. For the first time as a commander, Mstislav declared himself in 1196, taking part in the struggle of his uncle Rurik Rostislavich of Kyiv and his allies against Roman Mstislavich of Volyn and the Olgoviches.
Later, having dropped out of the struggle for Kyiv, Mstislav found himself drawn into the political affairs of North-Western Russia, especially Novgorod, for a long time. Here, since 1205, the son of the Vladimir prince Vsevolod the Big Nest Konstantin sat, relying on the Miroshkinichi group. In 1209, in the context of the intensified political struggle in the city on the Volkhov, Vsevolod installed Konstantin as a prince in Rostov, and instead sent his youngest son Svyatoslav. The opponents of the Miroshkinichs, the Mikhalkovichs, planned to expel him and, apparently, secretly turned to Mstislav with a proposal for an alliance. He attacked Torzhok, seized the nobles Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich and his governor there, and sent ambassadors to Novgorod, officially offering them his help:
I came to you to you, hearing violence from the prince, and sorry for my father.
After all, his father reigned here and died in 1180. After that, Svyatoslav's opponents rebelled and arrested Svyatoslav along with the boyars. Mstislav, accepted as a prince by the Novgorodians, gathered a militia and again moved to Torzhok, preparing to meet the Suzdal regiments. Vsevolod, obviously not ready for a fight with Novgorod and Mstislav, who was backed by the Rostislavichs, preferred a peace agreement and exchanged the Novgorod merchants he had captured with their goods for Svyatoslav and his people.
Having become the prince of Novgorod, Mstislav turned to the affairs of the Baltic. At this time, the Order of the Sword, which had completed the conquest of Livonia, was preparing to capture Estonia, after which the Novgorod-Pskov lands were next in line. The best way to avoid this scenario was to create a sphere of influence in the lands of the Estonians. In 1209, Mstislav sent posadnik Dmitri Yakunich with a detachment of Novgorodians to Velikie Luki, ordering him to “set up cities” (i.e., fortified points) on the border with the Order. Then he himself inspected the border, visited Torzhok, Toropets, and then arrived at Dmitri in Velikiye Luki. Here Mstislav agreed with his brother Vladimir, Prince of Pskov, on a joint campaign in the lands of the Chud. In 1212, their troops invaded Unganiya near Derpt (Yuriev), defeated the local princes, captured many prisoners and cattle, and then, after an eight-day siege, took the Bear's Head (Odenpe). They imposed tribute on the defeated and began to convert to Christianity according to the Orthodox rite ...
In battles, campaigns and sieges in the Northwest, Southwest and South, several more years passed. The intricacies of ancient Russian politics around Novgorod, Galich, Kyiv were cut with a sword. Mstislav Udatny was approaching his main victory and one of the largest battles in the history of civil wars of Ancient Russia.
The pro-Vladimir group in Novgorod obtained an invitation from Prince Yaroslav, the son of Vsevolod the Big Nest, the father of Alexander Nevsky and, incidentally, the son-in-law of Mstislav Udatny. However, the autocracy of Yaroslav, who, among other things, persecuted the supporters of his father-in-law, caused strong discontent among the Novgorodians. When the inhabitants of Prusskaya Street rebelled against the supporters of the prince and killed two of them, he moved his residence to Torzhok and blocked the supply of bread, which caused famine in Novgorod. The prince arrested those who came from there twice with a request to lift the blockade and return the ambassadors, as well as many Novgorod merchants. Then the Novgorodians turned to Mstislav with an appeal to save them, and he, again taking the Novgorod table, suggested that his son-in-law release the arrested and leave Torzhok. Having received a refusal, the prince convened a veche, at which he called for the expulsion of Yaroslav from Torzhok: “May there not be New Novgorod, nor Novgorod Tarzhk. (…) And God is in many things, and God is in small things!”
On March 1, 1216, Mstislav, together with his brother Vladimir, set out on a campaign, rescued Rzhev from the siege, captured Zubtsov, where the Smolensk prince Vladimir Rurikovich arrived in time with the army. Having reached Holokhnya, near Staritsa, the princes offered Yaroslav to put up, but he proudly refused: “I don’t want the world.”
Moving along the Volga, the allies entered the Tver volost, threatening to cut off Yaroslav from the Suzdal land. He hurriedly left Torzhok (which the Novgorodians wanted so badly) and sent the vanguard to Tver. Realizing that Yaroslav was already in Tver or was about to be there, Mstislav bypassed it from the east, continuing to move to Pereyaslavl. Yaroslav had to leave Tver, and then - to flee to Yuri-Polsky. Here, on the Lipitsky field, the enemy armies met. On the one hand - detachments from Rostov, Novgorod, Pskov, Smolensk lands, on the other - from Vladimir, Suzdal, Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, Yuri-Polsky and other cities.
The Novgorod chronicler assures that at the feast before the Battle of Lipitsk, the boyars “from the Suzdal side” shouted that they would throw saddles at the enemies (“we will overthrow their saddles”). Yuri and Yaroslav de-divided the Russian land in advance: Yuri - Vladimir and Rostov, Yaroslav - Novgorod, both of them - the Galician land, Svyatoslav - Smolensk, and the Olgovichs - Kyiv. On this, they allegedly kissed the cross and signed the letters, which, after the battle, were captured by the Smolensk people. All this is often repeated in the scientific literature without any doubt. Doubts, however, are quite appropriate, given the partiality of the Novgorod chroniclers, who were hardly told what happened in the prince's tent before the battle. And it is all the more doubtful that tipsy princes and boyars began to engage in such a boring business as writing letters - in those days, as A.A. correctly points out. Kuznetsov, they would have completely dispensed with oral declarations, and fixing with the help of acts, and even in such a specific form, is more reminiscent of the practice of the 15th-16th centuries, when the corresponding annals were compiled.
However, the fact remains that Yuri and Yaroslav were not ready for the battle. Mstislav, however, was in no hurry to get into a fight, but again resorted to maneuver, moving on Vladimir, bypassing Mount Avdova, where Yuri's soldiers were stationed. As soon as they began to leave it in order to attack the enemy advancing on the capital city, Mstislav's warriors turned against them and forced them to retreat with a strong counterattack.
The main battle took place on 21 April. Vladimir Smolensky stood on the flank against Yaroslav, Mstislav and Vsevolod (son of Mstislav Romanovich) stood in the center against Yuri with his Suzdal regiments, and Konstantin on the other wing against Svyatoslav and Vladimir, the younger brothers of Yuri and Yaroslav.
But Mstislav and Volodimer began to strengthen Novogorodtsy and Smolny residents, roaring: “Brothers, behold, thou hast entered the land of strength, but look at God, we will stand strong, do not look back: run away, do not leave. And let's forget, brothers, houses, wives and children, and if you like to die, who wants to walk, or who is on a horse.
Before the battle, Mstislav, among other things, declared to the soldiers: "And who wants to go, and who wants to - on horses." Many Novgorodians, declaring that they want to fight, “like our fathers fought,” not only “sat down from a horse,” but also “sweeping ports and boots” (hence, armor). Some of the Smolensk people also dismounted and took off their shoes, but not to the end, but “crossed” their legs, but they did not take off their armor. Part of the Smolensk people, the regiment of governor Ivor Mikhailovich, went on horseback through a dense forest ("wilds"). The infantry entered the fray with Yaroslav's men, without waiting for the cavalry, and overturned one of Yaroslav's banners, and then, when the cavalry arrived, the second.
Now Mstislav attacked with Vsevolod and Vladimir. The chronicler assures that the daring prince galloped “through the regiment” of Yuri and Yaroslav, drawing attention to himself, because he had an “axe with a pavoroza” (a belt or loop that tied a weapon to his hand), with which he chopped enemies. In the end, his warriors "reached their way to the goods", i.e. broke through to the convoy, after which Yuri, Yaroslav and their younger brothers fled from the battlefield, where supposedly 9233 defeated were left to lie, 60 were captured, while only 4 or 5 Novgorodians fell, and only one Smolensk (!).
This whole picture requires a lot of corrections and clarifications. The behavior of Novgorodians who took off their armor, shoes and dismounted is apparently explained not only by purely practical considerations (for Novgorodians, cavalry combat is not typical at all), but, as A. S. Shchavelev believes, and by some military custom, reminiscent of the customs of the Vikings, demonstrating a readiness to fight to the death ... The obvious result of the rhetorical comprehension of the text was the episode with Mstislav passing through the enemy line three times and the incredibly huge loss figures - 9233. Many scientists confidently repeat them as quite reliable, but there is no certainty that so many people from one of the sides participated in the battle at all. The true scale of the losses reflects the modest number of prisoners of Suzdal.
Having stood on the battlefield, the next day the winners slowly moved to Vladimir, where Yuri locked himself. The inhabitants were by no means eager to defend the prince in the face of a strong enemy (not the first case in the history of Russia). While the allies were standing under the walls, "I think where the capture came from," fires broke out in Vladimir at night. Mstislav and Vladimir did not allow the Novgorodians and Smolensk, who were eager to plunder the defenseless city, to enter it, and the next morning Yuri capitulated and went to Radilov Gorodets, left to him by the victors.
The helmet of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, thrown by him on the field of the Battle of Lipitsa
As for Yaroslav, he had to return the surviving Novgorod and Novotorzh captives, and in addition, Mstislav took his daughter from him, although Yaroslav persuaded him to leave her (later the marriage would resume, and Theodosia would become the mother of Alexander Nevsky). The disputed lands on Voloka, presumably, were also returned to the Novgorodians. But Yaroslav, unlike Yuri, remained to reign where before, although his fault in the conflict was, perhaps, more.
For Novgorod, the victory at Lipitsa meant the collapse of the attempts of the Suzdal princes to rule autocratically on the banks of the Volkhov. Then Yaroslav will reign there more than once, but he will no longer allow himself such tyrant tricks as before. And the winner at Lipitz, despite the requests of the Novgorodians, would eventually leave the banks of the Volkhov forever - Galich seemed a much more tempting target.
In 1219 or 1220, Mstislav Udatny and Vladimir Rurikovich invaded the Galician land with Russian and Polovtsian detachments. The Hungarian-Polish-Moravian army came out to meet him, but suffered a complete defeat and was captured. The victors took possession of the city gates and entered Galich. The Hungarians took refuge in the Church of the Virgin, which they turned into a fortress, and fired back from there. The besiegers were helped by the townspeople, who willingly opposed the conquerors. The Hungarians, who ran out of water, had to surrender. Those of the interventionists who escaped from the city, "the stinkers of the beating of the bysh" - the villagers also did not favor the invaders. However, Mstislav understood that, first of all, it was necessary to establish relations with the local boyars, whose influence was decisive here much more than in other principalities.
When the Hungarian henchman Sudislav began to beg the prince for mercy, "wearing his nose, promising to be his work," i.e. promising to be a slave, the victor at Lipitsa, "believing his word and honoring him with great honor," appointed Zvenigorod governor.
In 1223, his father-in-law, the Polovtsian Khan Kotyan, turned to Mstislav for help, who was pressed by new conquerors - the Mongols. The winner at Lipica invited the princes to discuss Kotyan's request for help. They gathered in Kyiv, where they decided to help the Polovtsy. In addition to Mstislav himself, his namesakes - the princes of Kyiv, Chernigov and Lutsk, as well as Vladimir Rurikovich Smolensky, Daniil Romanovich Volynsky and other rulers of Russia, not to mention the Polovtsian khans Kotyan, Basty and others took part in the campaign.
Mstislav Mstislavovich
Artist B. Chorikov
In April, the army set out on a campaign, and at the city of Zarub, at the crossing to the left bank of the Dnieper, they were met by Mongolian ambassadors. They declared that the Mongols were at war with the Polovtsians, the enemies of the Russians, but they had nothing against the Russians themselves - so they deceived the Polovtsy themselves at one time when they wanted to help the Alans and Circassians. The princes did not believe the false words of the ambassadors and ordered them to be killed.
The reason for such a strong reaction is unclear, but such cases occurred suspiciously often - Mongolian ambassadors were killed in Khorezm, Hungary ... A.A. Nemirovsky, who drew attention to this circumstance, explains it by the fact that the Mongols considered themselves entitled to massacre the peoples whose rulers killed their ambassadors, and the khans instructed their representatives to make such statements that caused legitimate indignation on the receiving side - for example, they immediately named the Khorezmshah on behalf of Genghis Khan one of his favorite sons, i.e. vassal, and then demanded the extradition of his closest relative, through whose fault the Mongol caravan died in Otrar. It is not surprising that one of the ambassadors was eventually executed, but his fellow tribesmen considered themselves entitled not to observe any rules in relations with Khorezm. Perhaps something similar happened in Zarub - the representatives of the Mongols behaved so arrogantly that the angry princes simply could not help but kill them.
Soon Mstislav ran into the advance detachment of the enemy led by Gemyabek and defeated him, Gemyabek himself tried to hide, but he was found and killed (according to another version, this happened to Semeyabek, and Gemyabek fled). Continuing the campaign, at the Khortytsky ford, the allies met with reinforcements that had approached from Galich under the command of Yuri Domerich and Derzhikrai Volodislavich. The Polovtsian detachments also approached here. After a short delay, the allied rati moved on and soon ran into the enemy's advance detachment.
Streltsy Russians won and (them. - A.K.) and drove into the field, cutting far away and taking their cattle.
Eight days later, the Russian regiments reached the Kalka River. The advanced Russian-Polovtsian detachment started a battle with the enemy "watchmen", in which the governor Ivan Dmitrievich and two more nameless warriors (or also the governor?) died.
On May 31, Mstislav Udatny ordered Daniil to cross the Kalka, and then he did it himself. Having found the main enemy forces under the command of Jebe and Subedei in front of them, the princes decided to attack. What follows is not entirely clear. It is not clear, first of all, whether the princes realized that these were the main forces, and not just another advanced detachment, although more numerous, Ibn al-Nasir writes that the Mongols lured the Russians and Polovtsians and attacked when they did not expect it. The Ipatiev Chronicle reports that Mstislav, who called the other princes to arms, did not tell the princes of Kyiv and Chernigov anything, “because of which (the quarrel. - A.K.) is great between the ima”, but for some reason nothing was said about it before . In addition to the princes of Galicia and Volyn, Oleg Kursky and Mstislav Nemoy, the ruler of Lutsk, took part in the battle. It seems that Mstislav of Chernigov also fought - the chroniclers do not reproach him for evading the battle, as the prince of Kyiv. Daniel showed miracles of courage, "not feeling the wounds that were on his body." The Novgorod chronicler assures that the Polovtsy are to blame for everything - "the Polovtsy did not run back, and the Russian princes ran away." One way or another, the allies were completely defeated, Mstislav of Kyiv, who did not take part in the battle, was surrounded in the camp and three days later (the figure, however, purely conditional) surrendered on parole, which was given to him by an ally of the Mongols, the leader of the roamers Ploskin. But after the murder of their ambassadors, Jebe and Subedei considered themselves entitled to break any promises and dealt with the prince and his entourage.
Obviously, Mstislav became a victim of his own prowess - he began the battle without waiting for the concentration of the main forces. Apparently, previous successes have gone to his head. The guilt of the Polovtsy for the defeat seems to be greatly exaggerated - it is unlikely that they were so numerous that they decided the outcome of the battle with their flight. In addition, it should be taken into account that the allies faced the strongest warriors of their time, perfectly trained, brave, experienced, who were led by capable commanders who, judging by Ibn al-Nasir, used here the proven tactics of luring. The battle on the Kalka became a formidable harbinger of what awaits Russia in the near future.
The last battle of Mstislav was with the Hungarians near Zvenigorod.
Mstislav, I won and drove them to the camps of the queen, secantly and, at the same time, killed Martinish, the governor of the queen. The king is confused in mind and poide and land greyhound.
It is difficult to say what guided Mstislav when he finally handed over Galich and left for Torchesk. There, in 1228, "Mstislav the great and successful prince died."
Mstislav Udatny did not become famous for victories over the Polovtsy, like Vladimir Monomakh, over the crusaders, like Alexander Nevsky, or over the Tatars, like Dmitry Donskoy. After the battle near Zvenigorod, Mstislav almost immediately lost Galich, for which he had fought for so long. The Lipitskaya victory remains, which strengthened the position of Novgorod and subsequently forced Yaroslav to behave on the banks of the Volkhov, as befits a statesman, and not a highway robber. On a larger scale, Mstislav fought in that war to uphold the rules. It cannot be said that all the actions of this prince are approved, but we do not hear him reproached for betrayal, perjury or meanness.
M.O. Mikeshin, I.N. Schroeder.
Monument to the Millennium of Russia.
1862 (detail)
Now let's turn to the features of the commander's handwriting. Mstislav was, speaking in high style, a knight without fear or reproach, he personally participated in battles more than once and showed himself as a brave warrior. Of course, you can accuse the prince of dangerous youth, but we don’t even hear about his injuries, besides, it worked for his reputation both in the eyes of society and his own soldiers. Of course, a swift attack was clearly to Mstislav's liking, but during the campaign to Lipica, he showed himself to be a skilled strategist, a master of maneuver, constantly forcing Yaroslav to retreat. The only major defeat of Mstislav is Kalka, but much here is explained by the lack of knowledge of the enemy, who, moreover, had no equal in those days. And even if the princes had managed to win on Kalka, this, unfortunately, would not have saved Russia from Batu's pogrom.
It should also be noted Mstislav's ability to successfully choose the time to strike (political calculation is an integral part of the strategy). However, in the case of Galich, there is also an important drawback of Mstislav - he chose a target beyond his strength. There were too many enemies here (Hungarians, Poles, some of the local princes and boyars), and his forces were very modest. Meanwhile, Mstislav was guided by clearly not the most noble considerations, simply wishing himself a more prestigious table. But such was the psychology of almost all the princes, and it is difficult to reproach him for this.
A.V. KOROLENKOV, Academic Publishing and Data Center "Science"
Literature
Grushevsky M.S. History of Ukraine-Rus. Lviv, 1905
Kostomarov N.I. Russian history in the biographies of its main figures.
T. 1. St. Petersburg, 1873
Pashuto V.T. Essays on the history of Galicia-Volyn Rus. M., 1950
Soloviev S.M. Works. Book. I. M., 1988
Emmaussky A.V. Mstislav Udaloy. From the history of the Old Russian state on the eve of the Mongol-Tatar conquest. Kirov, 1998
Internet
Kazarsky Alexander Ivanovich
Captain Lieutenant. Member of the Russian-Turkish war of 1828-29. He distinguished himself in the capture of Anapa, then Varna, commanding the Rival transport. After that, he was promoted to lieutenant commander and appointed captain of the Mercury brig. On May 14, 1829, the 18-gun brig "Mercury" was overtaken by two Turkish battleships "Selimiye" and "Real Bey". Having accepted an unequal battle, the brig was able to immobilize both Turkish flagships, one of which was the commander of the Ottoman fleet himself. Subsequently, an officer from the Real Bey wrote: “In the continuation of the battle, the commander of the Russian frigate (the infamous Raphael, which surrendered without a fight a few days earlier) told me that the captain of this brig would not give up, and if he lost hope, then he would blow up the brig If in the great deeds of ancient and our times there are feats of courage, then this act should overshadow all of them, and the name of this hero is worthy to be inscribed in gold letters on the temple of Glory: he is called Lieutenant Commander Kazarsky, and the brig is "Mercury"
Shein Mikhail Borisovich
He led the Smolensk defense against the Polish-Lithuanian troops, which lasted 20 months. Under the command of Shein, repeated attacks were repulsed, despite the explosion and a breach in the wall. He held and bled the main forces of the Poles at the decisive moment of the Time of Troubles, preventing them from moving to Moscow to support their garrison, creating an opportunity to assemble an all-Russian militia to liberate the capital. Only with the help of a defector, the troops of the Commonwealth managed to take Smolensk on June 3, 1611. The wounded Shein was taken prisoner and was taken away with his family for 8 years in Poland. After returning to Russia, he commanded an army that tried to return Smolensk in 1632-1634. Executed on boyar slander. Undeservedly forgotten.
Yudenich Nikolai Nikolaevich
The best Russian commander during the First World War. An ardent patriot of his Motherland.
Drozdovsky Mikhail Gordeevich
Ermolov Alexey Petrovich
Hero of the Napoleonic Wars and the Patriotic War of 1812. Conqueror of the Caucasus. Smart strategist and tactician, strong-willed and brave warrior.
Suvorov Alexander Vasilievich
according to the only criterion - invincibility.
Suvorov, Count Rymniksky, Prince of Italy Alexander Vasilyevich
The greatest commander, a genius strategist, tactician and military theorist. Author of the book "The Science of Victory", Generalissimo of the Russian Army. The only one in the history of Russia that did not suffer a single defeat.
Chichagov Vasily Yakovlevich
He excellently commanded the Baltic Fleet in the campaigns of 1789 and 1790. He won victories in the battle of Eland (15/07/1789), in Revel (02/05/1790) and Vyborg (06/22/1790) battles. After the last two defeats, which were of strategic importance, the dominance of the Baltic Fleet became unconditional, and this forced the Swedes to make peace. There are few such examples in the history of Russia when victories at sea led to victory in the war. And by the way, the battle of Vyborg was one of the largest in world history in terms of the number of ships and people.
Ridiger Fedor Vasilievich
Adjutant general, cavalry general, adjutant general... He had three Golden sabers with the inscription: "For courage"... In 1849, Ridiger participated in a campaign in Hungary to suppress the unrest that arose there, being appointed head of the right column. On May 9, Russian troops entered the borders of the Austrian Empire. He pursued the rebel army until August 1, forcing them to lay down their arms in front of the Russian troops near Vilyaghosh. On August 5, the troops entrusted to him occupied the fortress of Arad. During the trip of Field Marshal Ivan Fedorovich Paskevich to Warsaw, Count Ridiger commanded the troops located in Hungary and Transylvania ... On February 21, 1854, during the absence of Field Marshal Prince Paskevich in the Kingdom of Poland, Count Ridiger commanded all the troops located in the area of the active army - as a commander separate corps and at the same time served as head of the Kingdom of Poland. After the return of Field Marshal Prince Paskevich to Warsaw, from August 3, 1854, he served as the Warsaw military governor.
Prince Svyatoslav
Loris-Melikov Mikhail Tarielovich
Known mainly as one of the secondary characters in the story "Hadji Murad" by L.N. Tolstoy, Mikhail Tarielovich Loris-Melikov went through all the Caucasian and Turkish campaigns of the second half of the middle of the 19th century.
Having shown himself excellently during the Caucasian War, during the Kars campaign of the Crimean War, Loris-Melikov led intelligence, and then successfully served as commander-in-chief during the difficult Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878, having won a number of important victories over the united Turkish troops and in the third once captured Kars, by that time considered impregnable.
Prince Monomakh Vladimir Vsevolodovich
The most remarkable of the Russian princes of the pre-Tatar period of our history, who left behind great fame and a good memory.
Platov Matvei Ivanovich
Military ataman of the Don Cossack army. He began active military service at the age of 13. A member of several military companies, he is best known as the commander of the Cossack troops during the Patriotic War of 1812 and during the subsequent Foreign Campaign of the Russian Army. Thanks to the successful actions of the Cossacks under his command, Napoleon's saying went down in history:
- Happy is the commander who has Cossacks. If I had an army of Cossacks alone, then I would conquer all of Europe.
Barclay de Tolly Mikhail Bogdanovich
Full Knight of the Order of St. George. In the history of military art, according to Western authors (for example: J. Witter), he entered as the architect of the strategy and tactics of "scorched earth" - cutting off the main enemy troops from the rear, depriving them of supplies and organizing a guerrilla war in their rear. M.V. Kutuzov, after taking command of the Russian army, in fact, continued the tactics developed by Barclay de Tolly and defeated Napoleon's army.
Suvorov Mikhail Vasilievich
The only one who can be called GENERALLISIMUS ... Bagration, Kutuzov are his students ...
Muravyov-Karssky Nikolai Nikolaevich
One of the most successful commanders of the middle of the 19th century in the Turkish direction.
Hero of the first capture of Kars (1828), leader of the second capture of Kars (the biggest success of the Crimean War, 1855, which made it possible to end the war without territorial losses for Russia).
Antonov Alexey Innokentievich
He became famous as a talented staff officer. Participated in the development of almost all significant operations of the Soviet troops in the Great Patriotic War since December 1942.
The only one of all the awarded Soviet military leaders with the Order of Victory in the rank of army general, and the only Soviet holder of the order who was not awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Dovator Lev Mikhailovich
Soviet military leader, major general, Hero of the Soviet Union. Known for successful operations to destroy German troops during the Great Patriotic War. The German command appointed a large reward for the head of Dovator.
Together with the 8th Guards Division named after Major General I.V. Panfilov, the 1st Guards Tank Brigade of General M.E. Katukov and other troops of the 16th Army, his corps defended the approaches to Moscow in the Volokolamsk direction.
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
He was the Supreme Commander during the Great Patriotic War, in which our country won, and made all strategic decisions.
Denikin Anton Ivanovich
The commander, under whose leadership the white army with smaller forces for 1.5 years won victories over the red army and captured the North Caucasus, Crimea, Novorossia, Donbass, Ukraine, the Don, part of the Volga region and the central black earth provinces of Russia. He retained the dignity of the Russian name during the Second World War, refusing to cooperate with the Nazis, despite his uncompromisingly anti-Soviet position
Skopin-Shuisky Mikhail Vasilievich
In the conditions of the decomposition of the Russian state during the Time of Troubles, with minimal material and human resources, he created an army that defeated the Polish-Lithuanian interventionists and liberated most of the Russian state.
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
Victory in the Great Patriotic War, saving the entire planet from absolute evil, and our country from extinction.
Stalin from the first hours of the war exercised control over the country, front and rear. On land, at sea and in the air.
His merit is not one or even ten battles or campaigns, his merit is the Victory, made up of hundreds of battles of the Great Patriotic War: the battle of Moscow, the battles in the North Caucasus, the Battle of Stalingrad, the battle of Kursk, the battle of Leningrad and many others before the capture Berlin, success in which was achieved thanks to the monotonous inhuman work of the genius of the Supreme Commander.
Paskevich Ivan Fyodorovich
The armies under his command defeated Persia in the war of 1826-1828 and completely defeated the Turkish troops in Transcaucasia in the war of 1828-1829.
Awarded all 4 degrees of the Order of St. George and the Order of St. Apostle Andrew the First-Called with diamonds.
Saltykov Petr Semenovich
One of those commanders who managed to exemplary defeat one of the best commanders of Europe in the 18th century - Frederick II of Prussia
Suvorov Alexander Vasilievich
The great Russian commander, who did not suffer a single defeat in his military career (more than 60 battles), one of the founders of Russian military art.
Prince of Italy (1799), Count of Rymnik (1789), Count of the Holy Roman Empire, Generalissimo of the Russian land and sea forces, Field Marshal of the Austrian and Sardinian troops, grandee of the Sardinian kingdom and prince of royal blood (with the title "king's cousin"), knight of all Russian orders of their time, awarded to men, as well as many foreign military orders.
Drozdovsky Mikhail Gordeevich
He managed to bring his subordinate troops to the Don in full force, fought extremely effectively in the conditions of the civil war.
Romanov Alexander I Pavlovich
The actual commander in chief of the allied armies that liberated Europe in 1813-1814. "He took Paris, he founded a lyceum." The Great Leader who crushed Napoleon himself. (The shame of Austerlitz is not comparable to the tragedy of 1941.)
Stalin (Dzhugashvili) Joseph Vissarionovich
Comrade Stalin, in addition to the atomic and missile projects, together with General of the Army Antonov Alexei Innokentyevich, participated in the development and implementation of almost all significant operations of the Soviet troops in the Second World War, brilliantly organized the work of the rear, even in the first difficult years of the war.
Yudenich Nikolai Nikolaevich
One of the most successful Russian generals during the First World War. The Erzurum and Sarakamysh operations carried out by him on the Caucasian front, carried out in extremely unfavorable conditions for the Russian troops, and ending in victories, I believe, deserve to be included in a row with the brightest victories of Russian weapons. In addition, Nikolai Nikolayevich, distinguished by modesty and decency, lived and died an honest Russian officer, remained faithful to the oath to the end.
Peter the First
Because he not only won the lands of his fathers, but also approved the status of Russia as a power!
Nakhimov Pavel Stepanovich
Successes in the Crimean War of 1853-56, victory in the Battle of Sinop in 1853, defense of Sevastopol in 1854-55.
Nakhimov Pavel Stepanovich
Rurik Svyatoslav Igorevich
Year of birth 942 date of death 972 Expansion of the borders of the state. 965 the conquest of the Khazars, 963 the campaign to the south to the Kuban region the capture of Tmutarakan, 969 the conquest of the Volga Bulgars, 971 the conquest of the Bulgarian kingdom, 968 the foundation of Pereyaslavets on the Danube (the new capital of Russia), 969 the defeat of the Pechenegs in the defense of Kyiv.
Stalin (Dzhugashvilli) Joseph
Svyatoslav Igorevich
I want to propose "candidates" for Svyatoslav and his father, Igor, as the greatest generals and political leaders of their time, I think that it makes no sense to list their services to the fatherland to historians, I was unpleasantly surprised not to meet their names in this list. Sincerely.
Minikh Khristofor Antonovich
Due to the ambiguous attitude to the period of the reign of Anna Ioannovna, the largely underestimated commander, who was the commander-in-chief of the Russian troops throughout her reign.
Commander of the Russian troops during the War of the Polish Succession and architect of the victory of Russian arms in the Russo-Turkish War of 1735-1739.
Sheremetev Boris Petrovich
Slashchev Yakov Alexandrovich
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War. Under his leadership, the Red Army crushed fascism.
Peter I the Great
Emperor of All Russia (1721-1725), before that, Tsar of All Russia. He won the Great Northern War (1700-1721). This victory finally opened free access to the Baltic Sea. Under his rule, Russia (the Russian Empire) became a Great Power.
Gagen Nikolai Alexandrovich
On June 22, trains with units of the 153rd Infantry Division arrived in Vitebsk. Covering the city from the west, the Hagen division (together with the heavy artillery regiment attached to the division) occupied a 40 km long defense zone, it was opposed by the 39th German motorized corps.
After 7 days of fierce fighting, the battle formations of the division were not broken through. The Germans no longer contacted the division, bypassed it and continued the offensive. The division flashed in the message of the German radio as destroyed. Meanwhile, the 153rd Rifle Division, without ammunition and fuel, began to break through the ring. Hagen led the division out of the encirclement with heavy weapons.
For the steadfastness and heroism shown during the Elninsk operation on September 18, 1941, by order of the People's Commissar of Defense No. 308, the division received the honorary name "Guards".
From 01/31/1942 to 09/12/1942 and from 10/21/1942 to 04/25/1943 - commander of the 4th Guards Rifle Corps,
from May 1943 to October 1944 - commander of the 57th Army,
from January 1945 - the 26th Army.
The troops under the leadership of N. A. Hagen participated in the Sinyavino operation (moreover, the general managed to break out of the encirclement for the second time with weapons in his hands), the Battles of Stalingrad and Kursk, battles in the Left-Bank and Right-Bank Ukraine, in the liberation of Bulgaria, in Iasi-Kishinev, Belgrade, Budapest, Balaton and Vienna operations. Member of the Victory Parade.
Petrov Ivan Efimovich
Defense of Odessa, Defense of Sevastopol, Liberation of Slovakia
Stessel Anatoly Mikhailovich
Commandant of Port Arthur during his heroic defense. The unprecedented ratio of losses of Russian and Japanese troops before the surrender of the fortress is 1:10.
Vladimir Svyatoslavich
981 - the conquest of Cherven and Przemysl. 983 - the conquest of the Yatvags. 984 - the conquest of the natives. 985 - successful campaigns against the Bulgars, the taxation of the Khazar Khaganate. 988 - the conquest of the Taman Peninsula. 991 - the subjugation of the White Croats. 992 - successfully defended Cherven Rus in the war against Poland. in addition, the saint is equal to the apostles.
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
Chairman of the GKO, Supreme Commander of the USSR Armed Forces during the Great Patriotic War.
What other questions might there be?
Ushakov Fedor Fedorovich
The great Russian naval commander, who won victories at Fedonisi, Kaliakria, at Cape Tendra and during the liberation of the islands of Malta (Ioanian Islands) and Corfu. He discovered and introduced a new tactic of naval combat, with the rejection of the linear formation of ships and showed the tactics of "alluvial formation" with an attack on the flagship of the enemy fleet. One of the founders of the Black Sea Fleet and its commander in 1790-1792
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
"As a military leader, I.V. Stalin, I studied thoroughly, since I went through the whole war with him. I.V. Stalin mastered the organization of front-line operations and operations of groups of fronts and led them with complete knowledge of the matter, well versed in large strategic questions...
In leading the armed struggle as a whole, JV Stalin was assisted by his natural mind and rich intuition. He knew how to find the main link in a strategic situation and, seizing on it, to counteract the enemy, to conduct one or another major offensive operation. Undoubtedly, he was a worthy Supreme Commander"
(Zhukov G.K. Memoirs and reflections.)
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, Generalissimo of the Soviet Union, Supreme Commander. Brilliant military leadership of the USSR in World War II.
Romanov Petr Alekseevich
Behind the endless discussions about Peter I as a politician and reformer, it is unfairly forgotten that he was the greatest commander of his time. He was not only an excellent rear organizer. In the two most important battles of the Northern War (the battles of Lesnaya and Poltava), he not only developed battle plans himself, but also personally led the troops, being in the most important, responsible areas.
The only commander I know of was equally talented in both land and sea battles.
The main thing is that Peter I created a national military school. If all the great commanders of Russia are the heirs of Suvorov, then Suvorov himself is the heir of Peter.
The Battle of Poltava was one of the greatest (if not the greatest) victory in Russian history. In all other great predatory invasions of Russia, the general battle did not have a decisive outcome, and the struggle dragged on, went to exhaustion. And only in the Northern War did the general battle radically change the state of affairs, and from the attacking side the Swedes became the defender, decisively losing the initiative.
I think that Peter I deserves to be in the top three in the list of the best commanders of Russia.
Suvorov Alexander Vasilievich
For the highest art of military leadership and boundless love for the Russian soldier
Chernyakhovsky Ivan Danilovich
To a person to whom this name does not say anything - there is no need to explain and it is useless. To the one to whom it says something - and so everything is clear.
Twice Hero of the Soviet Union. Commander of the 3rd Belorussian Front. The youngest front commander. Counts,. that of the army general - but before his death (February 18, 1945) he received the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
He liberated three of the six capitals of the Union Republics captured by the Nazis: Kyiv, Minsk. Vilnius. Decided the fate of Keniksberg.
One of the few who pushed back the Germans on June 23, 1941.
He held the front in Valdai. In many ways, he determined the fate of repelling the German offensive on Leningrad. He kept Voronezh. Freed Kursk.
He successfully advanced until the summer of 1943. Having formed the top of the Kursk Bulge with his army. Liberated the Left Bank of Ukraine. Take Kyiv. Repelled Manstein's counterattack. Liberated Western Ukraine.
Carried out the operation Bagration. Surrounded and captured by his offensive in the summer of 1944, the Germans then humiliatedly marched through the streets of Moscow. Belarus. Lithuania. Neman. East Prussia.
Rokossovsky Konstantin Konstantinovich
Soldier, several wars (including World War I and World War II). passed the way to Marshal of the USSR and Poland. Military intellectual. not resorting to "obscene leadership." he knew tactics in military affairs to the subtleties. practice, strategy and operational art.
Eremenko Andrey Ivanovich
Commander of the Stalingrad and South-Eastern fronts. The fronts under his command in the summer-autumn of 1942 stopped the advance of the German 6th field and 4th tank armies on Stalingrad.
In December 1942, the Stalingrad Front of General Eremenko stopped the tank offensive of the group of General G. Goth on Stalingrad, in order to unblock the 6th army of Paulus.
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
Stalin during the Patriotic War led all the armed forces of our country and coordinated their combat operations. It is impossible not to note his merits in the competent planning and organization of military operations, in the skillful selection of military leaders and their assistants. Joseph Stalin proved himself not only as an outstanding commander who skillfully led all fronts, but also as an excellent organizer who did a great job of increasing the country's defense capability both in the pre-war and war years.
A short list of military awards I.V. Stalin received during the Second World War:
Order of Suvorov, 1st class
Medal "For the Defense of Moscow"
Order "Victory"
Medal "Gold Star" Hero of the Soviet Union
Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945"
Medal "For the Victory over Japan"
Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich
Successfully commanded the Soviet troops during the Great Patriotic War. Among other things, he stopped the Germans near Moscow, took Berlin.
Kutuzov Mikhail Illarionovich
Certainly worthy, explanations and proofs, in my opinion, are not required. It's amazing that his name isn't on the list. was the list prepared by representatives of the USE generation?
Saltykov Pyotr Semyonovich
The commander-in-chief of the Russian army in the Seven Years' War, was the main architect of the key victories of the Russian troops.
Suvorov Alexander Vasilievich
If someone has not heard, write to no avail
Kornilov Vladimir Alekseevich
During the outbreak of the war with England and France, he actually commanded the Black Sea Fleet, until his heroic death he was the immediate superior of P.S. Nakhimov and V.I. Istomin. After the landing of the Anglo-French troops in Evpatoria and the defeat of the Russian troops on the Alma, Kornilov received an order from the commander-in-chief in the Crimea, Prince Menshikov, to flood the ships of the fleet in the roadstead in order to use sailors to defend Sevastopol from land.
Chernyakhovsky Ivan Danilovich
The only one of the commanders, who on 06/22/1941 carried out the order of the Stavka, counterattacked the Germans, threw them back in his sector and went on the offensive.
Romodanovsky Grigory Grigorievich
An outstanding military leader of the 17th century, prince and governor. In 1655, he won his first victory over the Polish hetman S. Pototsky near Gorodok in Galicia. Later, being the commander of the army of the Belgorod category (military administrative district), he played a major role in organizing the defense of the southern border of Russia. In 1662, he won the biggest victory in the Russian-Polish war for Ukraine in the battle of Kanev, defeating the traitorous hetman Y. Khmelnitsky and the Poles who helped him. In 1664, near Voronezh, he forced the famous Polish commander Stefan Czarnecki to flee, forcing the army of King Jan Casimir to retreat. Repeatedly beat the Crimean Tatars. In 1677 he defeated the 100,000th Turkish army of Ibrahim Pasha near Buzhin, in 1678 he defeated the Turkish corps of Kaplan Pasha near Chigirin. Thanks to his military talents, Ukraine did not become another Ottoman province and the Turks did not take Kyiv.
Donskoy Dmitry Ivanovich
His army won the Kulikovo victory.
Kovpak Sidor Artemevich
Member of the First World War (he served in the 186th Aslanduz Infantry Regiment) and the Civil War. During the First World War, he fought on the Southwestern Front, a member of the Brusilov breakthrough. In April 1915, as part of the guard of honor, he was personally awarded the St. George Cross by Nicholas II. In total, he was awarded St. George's crosses III and IV degrees and medals "For Courage" ("George" medals) III and IV degrees.
During the Civil War, he led a local partisan detachment that fought in Ukraine against the German invaders together with the detachments of A. Ya. .Denikin and Wrangel on the Southern Front.
In 1941-1942, Kovpak's formation carried out raids behind enemy lines in the Sumy, Kursk, Oryol and Bryansk regions, in 1942-1943 - a raid from the Bryansk forests on the Right-Bank Ukraine in the Gomel, Pinsk, Volyn, Rivne, Zhytomyr and Kyiv regions; in 1943 - the Carpathian raid. The Sumy partisan formation under the command of Kovpak fought over 10 thousand kilometers in the rear of the Nazi troops, defeated the enemy garrisons in 39 settlements. Kovpak's raids played a big role in the deployment of the partisan movement against the German occupiers.
Twice Hero of the Soviet Union:
By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of May 18, 1942, for the exemplary performance of combat missions behind enemy lines, the courage and heroism shown in their performance, Kovpak Sidor Artemyevich was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal (No. 708)
The second medal "Gold Star" (No.) Major General Kovpak Sidor Artemyevich was awarded by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of January 4, 1944 for the successful conduct of the Carpathian raid
four Orders of Lenin (18.5.1942, 4.1.1944, 23.1.1948, 25.5.1967)
Order of the Red Banner (24.12.1942)
Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, 1st class. (7.8.1944)
Order of Suvorov, 1st class (2 May 1945)
medals
foreign orders and medals (Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia)
Pavel Kovalev
Karyagin Pavel Mikhailovich
Colonel Karyagin's campaign against the Persians in 1805 does not resemble real military history. It looks like a prequel to "300 Spartans" (20,000 Persians, 500 Russians, gorges, bayonet charges, "This is crazy! - No, this is the 17th Jaeger Regiment!"). A golden, platinum page of Russian history, combining the slaughter of madness with the highest tactical skill, delightful cunning and stunning Russian impudence
Barclay de Tolly Mikhail Bogdanovich
In front of the Kazan Cathedral there are two statues of the saviors of the fatherland. Saving the army, exhausting the enemy, the battle of Smolensk - this is more than enough.
Istomin Vladimir Ivanovich
Istomin, Lazarev, Nakhimov, Kornilov - Great people who served and fought in the city of Russian glory - Sevastopol!
Kutuzov Mikhail Illarionovich
The Greatest Commander and Diplomat!!! Who utterly defeated the troops of the "first European Union" !!!
Nevsky, Suvorov
Undoubtedly holy noble prince Alexander Nevsky and Generalissimo A.V. Suvorov
Bennigsen Leonty Leontievich
Surprisingly, a Russian general who did not speak Russian, who made up the glory of Russian weapons at the beginning of the 19th century.
He made a significant contribution to the suppression of the Polish uprising.
Commander-in-Chief in the Battle of Tarutino.
He made a significant contribution to the campaign of 1813 (Dresden and Leipzig).
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich
He was the Supreme Commander of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War! Under his leadership, the USSR won the Great Victory during the Great Patriotic War!
Kornilov Lavr Georgievich
KORNILOV Lavr Georgievich (08.18.1870-04.31.1918) Colonel (02.1905). Major General (12.1912). Lieutenant General (08.26.1914). Infantry General (06.30.1917). with a gold medal from the Nikolaev Academy of the General Staff (1898). Officer at the headquarters of the Turkestan Military District, 1889-1904. Participant in the Russian-Japanese war of 1904 - 1905: headquarters officer of the 1st rifle brigade (at its headquarters). When retreating from Mukden, the brigade got surrounded. Having led the rearguard, he broke through the encirclement with a bayonet attack, ensuring the freedom of defensive combat operations of the brigade. Military attache in China, 04/01/1907 - 02/24/1911. Participant in the First World War: commander of the 48th Infantry Division of the 8th Army (General Brusilov). During the general retreat, the 48th division was surrounded and General Kornilov, who was wounded on 04.1915, was captured near the Dukla Pass (Carpathians); 08.1914-04.1915. Captured by the Austrians, 04.1915-06.1916. Having changed into the uniform of an Austrian soldier, he escaped from captivity on 06.1915. Commander of the 25th Rifle Corps, 06.1916-04.1917. Commander of the Petrograd Military District, 03-04.1917. Commander of the 8th Army, 04.24-07.08.1917. On 05/19/1917, by his order, he introduced the formation of the first volunteer "1st Shock Detachment of the 8th Army" under the command of Captain Nezhentsev. Commander of the Southwestern Front...
Alekseev Mikhail Vasilievich
One of the most talented Russian generals of the First World War. Hero of the Battle of Galicia in 1914, savior of the Northwestern Front from encirclement in 1915, chief of staff under Emperor Nicholas I.
General of Infantry (1914), Adjutant General (1916). Active participant in the White movement in the Civil War. One of the organizers of the Volunteer Army.
John 4 Vasilyevich
Chapaev Vasily Ivanovich
01/28/1887 - 09/05/1919 life. Head of a division of the Red Army, participant in the First World War and the Civil War.
Cavalier of three St. George's crosses and the St. George medal. Cavalier of the Order of the Red Banner.
On his account:
- Organization of the county Red Guard of 14 detachments.
- Participation in the campaign against General Kaledin (near Tsaritsyn).
- Participation in the campaign of the Special Army against Uralsk.
- An initiative to reorganize the Red Guard detachments into two regiments of the Red Army: them. Stepan Razin and them. Pugachev, united in the Pugachev brigade under the command of Chapaev.
- Participation in battles with the Czechoslovaks and the People's Army, from whom Nikolaevsk was recaptured, renamed in honor of the brigade in Pugachevsk.
- Since September 19, 1918, the commander of the 2nd Nikolaev division.
- From February 1919 - Commissar of Internal Affairs of the Nikolaevsky district.
- From May 1919 - brigade commander of the Special Alexander-Gai Brigade.
- Since June - the head of the 25th Infantry Division, which participated in the Bugulma and Belebeev operations against Kolchak's army.
- The capture by the forces of his division on June 9, 1919 of Ufa.
- The capture of Uralsk.
- A deep raid by a Cossack detachment with an attack on the well-guarded (about 1000 bayonets) and located in the deep rear of the city of Lbischensk (now the village of Chapaev, West Kazakhstan region of Kazakhstan), where the headquarters of the 25th division was located.
Blucher, Tukhachevsky
Blucher, Tukhachevsky and the whole galaxy of heroes of the Civil War. Don't forget Budyonny!
Vorotynsky Mikhail Ivanovich
“The compiler of the charter of the guard and border service” is, of course, good. For some reason, we have forgotten the battle of YOUTH from July 29 to August 2, 1572. But it was precisely from this victory that Moscow's right to a lot was recognized. The Ottomans were recaptured a lot of things, they were very sobered by the thousands of destroyed Janissaries, and unfortunately they helped Europe with this. The battle of YOUTH is very difficult to overestimate
Shein Mikhail Borisovich
Governor Shein - the hero and leader of the unprecedented defense of Smolensk in 1609-16011. This fortress decided a lot in the fate of Russia!
Uborevich Ieronim Petrovich
Soviet military leader, commander of the 1st rank (1935). Member of the Communist Party since March 1917. Born in the village of Aptandriyus (now the Utena region of the Lithuanian SSR) in the family of a Lithuanian peasant. He graduated from the Konstantinovsky Artillery School (1916). Member of the 1st World War 1914-18, second lieutenant. After the October Revolution of 1917 he was one of the organizers of the Red Guard in Bessarabia. In January - February 1918 he commanded a revolutionary detachment in battles against the Romanian and Austro-German invaders, was wounded and captured, from where he fled in August 1918. He was an artillery instructor, commander of the Dvina brigade on the Northern Front, from December 1918 the head of the 18 divisions of the 6th Army. From October 1919 to February 1920 he was commander of the 14th Army during the defeat of the troops of General Denikin, in March - April 1920 he commanded the 9th Army in the North Caucasus. In May - July and November - December 1920 the commander of the 14th Army in battles against the troops of bourgeois Poland and the Petliurists, in July - November 1920 - the 13th Army in battles against the Wrangelites. In 1921, assistant commander of the troops of the Ukraine and Crimea, deputy commander of the troops of the Tambov province, commander of the troops of the Minsk province, led the fighting in the defeat of the gangs of Makhno, Antonov and Bulak-Balakhovich. From August 1921 commander of the 5th Army and the East Siberian Military District. In August - December 1922 Minister of War of the Far Eastern Republic and Commander-in-Chief of the People's Revolutionary Army during the liberation of the Far East. He was commander of the North Caucasian (since 1925), Moscow (since 1928) and Belorussian (since 1931) military districts. Since 1926 he was a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR, in 1930-31 he was deputy chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR and head of armaments of the Red Army. Since 1934 he has been a member of the Military Council of the NPO. He made a great contribution to the strengthening of the defense capability of the USSR, the education and training of command personnel and troops. Candidate member of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) in 1930-37. Member of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee since December 1922. He was awarded 3 Orders of the Red Banner and Honorary Revolutionary Weapons.
Olsufiev Zakhar Dmitrievich
One of the most famous commanders of Bagrationov's 2nd Western Army. He always fought with exemplary courage. He was awarded the Order of St. George 3rd degree for heroic participation in the Battle of Borodino. He distinguished himself in the battle on the Chernishna (or Tarutinsky) River. The award to him for participating in the defeat of the vanguard of Napoleon's army was the Order of St. Vladimir, 2nd degree. He was called "general with talents". When Olsufiev was captured and was delivered to Napoleon, he said to his entourage the famous words in history: "Only Russians know how to fight like that!"
Paskevich Ivan Fyodorovich
Hero of Borodin, Leipzig, Paris (division commander)
As commander in chief, he won 4 companies (Russian-Persian 1826-1828, Russian-Turkish 1828-1829, Polish 1830-1831, Hungarian 1849).
Knight of the Order of St. George 1st class - for the capture of Warsaw (according to the statute, the order was awarded either for saving the fatherland or for taking the enemy capital).
Field Marshal.
Yulaev Salavat
The commander of the Pugachev era (1773-1775). Together with Pugachev, having organized an uprising, he tried to change the position of the peasants in society. He won several dinners over the troops of Catherine II.
Denikin Anton Ivanovich
Russian military leader, political and public figure, writer, memoirist, publicist and military documentary.
Member of the Russo-Japanese War. One of the most productive generals of the Russian Imperial Army during the First World War. Commander of the 4th Rifle "Iron" Brigade (1914-1916, since 1915 - deployed under his command into a division), 8th Army Corps (1916-1917). Lieutenant General of the General Staff (1916), commander of the Western and Southwestern Fronts (1917). An active participant in the military congresses of 1917, an opponent of the democratization of the army. He expressed support for the Kornilov speech, for which he was arrested by the Provisional Government, a member of the Berdichevsky and Bykhov sittings of generals (1917).
One of the main leaders of the White movement during the Civil War, its leader in the South of Russia (1918-1920). He achieved the greatest military and political results among all the leaders of the White movement. Pioneer, one of the main organizers, and then commander of the Volunteer Army (1918-1919). Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the South of Russia (1919-1920), Deputy Supreme Ruler and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army, Admiral Kolchak (1919-1920).
Since April 1920 - an emigrant, one of the main political figures of the Russian emigration. The author of the memoirs "Essays on Russian Troubles" (1921-1926) - a fundamental historical and biographical work about the Civil War in Russia, the memoirs "The Old Army" (1929-1931), the autobiographical story "The Way of the Russian Officer" (published in 1953) and a number of other works.
Kotlyarevsky Petr Stepanovich
Hero of the Russo-Persian War of 1804-1813
"General Meteor" and "Caucasian Suvorov".
He fought not in numbers, but in skill - first, 450 Russian soldiers attacked 1,200 Persian sardars in the Migri fortress and took it, then 500 of our soldiers and Cossacks attacked 5,000 askers at the crossing over the Araks. More than 700 enemies were exterminated, only 2,500 Persian fighters managed to escape from ours.
In both cases, our losses are less than 50 killed and up to 100 wounded.
Further, in the war against the Turks, with a swift attack, 1000 Russian soldiers defeated the 2000th garrison of the Akhalkalaki fortress.
Then, again in the Persian direction, he cleared Karabakh of the enemy, and then, with 2,200 soldiers, defeated Abbas-Mirza with a 30,000-strong army near Aslanduz, a village near the Araks River. In two battles, he destroyed more than 10,000 enemies, including English advisers and artillerymen.
As usual, Russian losses were 30 killed and 100 wounded.
Kotlyarevsky won most of his victories in night assaults on fortresses and enemy camps, preventing the enemies from coming to their senses.
The last campaign - 2000 Russians against 7000 Persians to the fortress of Lankaran, where Kotlyarevsky almost died during the assault, lost consciousness at times from blood loss and pain from wounds, but still, until the final victory, he commanded the troops as soon as he regained consciousness, and after that he was forced to be treated for a long time and move away from military affairs.
His feats for the glory of Russia are much cooler than the "300 Spartans" - for our generals and warriors have repeatedly beaten a 10-fold superior enemy, and suffered minimal losses, saving Russian lives.
Generals of Ancient Russia
Since ancient times. Vladimir Monomakh (fought with the Polovtsians), his sons Mstislav the Great (campaigns against Chud and Lithuania) and Yaropolk (campaigns against the Don), Vsevood the Big Nest (campaigns against the Volga Bulgaria), Mstislav Udatny (battle on Lipitsa), Yaroslav Vsevolodovich (defeated knights of the Order of the Sword), Alexander Nevsky, Dmitry Donskoy, Vladimir the Brave (the second hero of the Mamaev battle) ...
In their assessments of the activities and personal qualities of Mstislav Udaly, historians and writers practically agree, not stinting on compliments. V. Buzeskul - one of the authors of the XIX century. - called Mstislav Mstislavich one of "... the most outstanding and at the same time likeable personalities of pre-Tatar Russia." Courage, unselfishness and nobility, combined with the rare military talent of Prince Toropetsky, apparently made him the most popular figure in Russia in the tenth and early twenties of the XIII century. What were the conditions that served the formation of such a personality?
His great-grandfather was the eldest son of Vladimir Monomakh Mstislav the Great. A remarkable statesman, a worthy successor to his father's work, but, unfortunately, he died in his prime. Mstislav's grandfather Roman, the founder of the Smolensk Rurik dynasty, canonized by the church, was more famous for his family virtues and piety, but his sons were real warriors. However, against their background, the father of our hero shone with valor, who received the honorary nickname "Brave" at a time when courage was an indispensable quality of any man. Therefore, we can say that the younger Mstislav was brought up by the heroic time itself, which everywhere gave birth to heroes who fought constantly, not only because of material reasons, but also for the sake of fame, as a kind of virtual "trophy" and an indispensable attribute of a noble warrior. Militancy and chivalrous prowess were the main features of this time and not only in Russia. However, along with brilliant courage, a thirst for exploits characteristic of the figures of that era, many of them clearly show Christian virtues, brotherly love, the desire to limit the shedding of Russian blood and, if possible, conclude peace.
In Mstislav Mstislavich, who absorbed both the swearing spirit of the era and the ideals of early, joyful, young Russian Orthodoxy, brought up on stories about glorious ancestors and, first of all, about an incomparable father, these qualities developed to the maximum extent. In addition, it should be added that the exploits and glory of his father, who enjoyed universal love and popularity, forcing him to do the same, predisposed everyone in favor of his son.
It is known that the prince of Novgorod Mstislav the Brave, dying, "ordered" his youngest son Vladimir "with his parish" to his neighbor boyars and his brothers, but nothing is said about his eldest son, from which we can conclude that in 1180 the young Mstislav Mstislavich was already endowed with an inheritance and was its independent owner, which was then an ordinary phenomenon. Most likely, this "volost" was Toropets, in the north of the Smolensk region.
The place and exact date of birth of Mstislav, the son of Mstislav Rostislavich the Brave, is not known. One can only assume that by the time the Kyiv chronicle finds him as the prince of the town of Trepol, he was a young man of sixteen or eighteen, an orphan, a "son", who received from the mercy of the powerful uncle Rurik a third-rate inheritance on the restless Polovtsian border.
However, by 1193 the war, which had lasted for about a century and a half, had already subsided. Its new aggravation was just the Berendey-Russian raid on the Polovtsy, the main character of which was the son of the Kyiv prince Rostislav Ryuikovich Torchesky, who took with him to the steppe a still young and inexperienced "stryichich".
Already behind Russia, Mstislav with his governor Sdislav Zhiroslavich joined the detachment of his cousin and overlord. "Departure" - a horse march-throw they overcame a no-man's land of the steppe to the Polovtsian border - the Ivly River, where their intelligence captured the Polovtsian guards. Having found out that the nomad camps were located in another passage from the line, the princes raced all night and in the morning raided the camps of the Lukomorskaya horde, capturing them, which is called "without leakage".
The daring men, weighed down with all sorts of booty, were accompanied to the very Ros by the Polovtsy, who did not dare to attack the crowded regiments of the merchant prince. The hero, crowned with glory, went to his father in Ovruch, intending to join the campaign against Lithuania. It was clear, however, that the steppe dwellers would definitely try to rescue their captives, or at least take revenge. This was primarily understood by the co-ruler of Rurik Rostislavich Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich, who forced him to "watch his land" instead of going west. Rostislav's father sent him away from the eyes of the stern old man, to his father-in-law Vsevolod Yurievich in Vladimir. The chronicle is silent about Mstislav Trepolsky because of his insignificance. One can only guess that he had to fully disentangle the porridge brewed by others, since the Polovtsians wandered around the border all winter, attacking the Torks and Berendeys.
A few years after this, the chronicles do not report anything about Mstislav Trepolsky, until, in 1197, Rurik Rostislavich sent him to Vladimir Galitsky for help against his enemy Roman Volynsky. Together with the Galicians, Mstislav Mstislavich ravaged the environs of the city of Peremil in the Romanov volost.
In 1203, Mstislav Mstislavich participated in the victorious winter campaign of the Grand Duke Roman of Kyiv, Galicia and Volyn against the Polovtsy, the details of which, unfortunately, remain unknown. In the same year, the Prince of Trepol married the daughter of the Polovtsian Khan Kotyan.
The year 1207 finds Mstislav already in the capital of Porosye, Torchesk. The fall of Rurik Rostislavich meant drastic changes for him as well. The army of the Chernigov Olgoviches, led by Vevolod Chermny, laid siege to the city. There was little hope of holding out, but Mstislav prepared well for the siege and decided to fight. According to V.N. Tatishcheva Mstislavich, having encouraged the army, he staged a successful sortie, killing many enemies and retreating back to the fortress only because of the threat of being cut off from the gates. Probably, Mstislav decided to follow the example of his father, who managed to withstand, at one time, the unprecedented siege of Vyshgorod against the huge army of Andrei Bogolyubsky, destroying the color of his squad on sorties, but it turned out differently. The Chernihivites used the "scorched earth tactics" and began to ruthlessly ravage the environs of Torchesk.
The brave, but humane prince could not endure this spectacle and offered Vsevolod to surrender the city if he would stop the atrocities and give him guarantees of unhindered departure. He agreed with pleasure and Mstislav Mstislavich left South Russia, returning to the Smolensk region, to his Toropets.
This small and frankly poor lot occupied a unique position, controlling the sources of the Western Dvina, Lovat, Volga and Dnieper. From here it was not far to the Kyiv South, but even closer to the Pskov and Polotsk West, the Novgorod North and the Suzdal East. The Prince of Toropetsk could act as a mediator in their disputes and influence the policy of these state formations. Not far from here was Lithuania, which continued its strengthening.
Mstislav Mstislavich did not stay long in Toropets, looking closely at what was happening in neighboring lands. Less than three years later, the Novgorod-Vladimir contradictions gave him a chance to express himself.
In the winter of 1210, the Prince of Toropet unexpectedly showed up in Torzhok for everyone. His nobles seized the local posadnik, appointed by the Vladimir prince Vsevolod and his son, the next governor of Novgorod, Svyatoslav. To the Novgorodians, Mstislav sent a messenger with the words: "I bow to Hagia Sophia and the tomb of my father and to all Novgorodians. I came to you, hearing the violence done to you by the Vladimir princes, because I feel sorry for my fatherland." It was a precisely calculated move. It is possible that one of the opponents of the Vladimir party himself offered it to Mstislav. In any case, the Novgorodians, tired of extortion and Vladimir's arbitrariness, responded to the call of the son of their beloved prince and, not thinking about the consequences, overthrew Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich, putting him in custody. Mstislav was called "with great honor" to reign in Novgorod. He solemnly entered the city "and the people of Novgorod were glad," placing him on the "away from the table."
This meant war, and Mstislav with the Novgorod army moved again to Torzhok, but bloodshed was avoided. It is possible that the old and sick Vsevolod had already lost the necessary firmness and, moreover, was worried about the fate of his son. In any case, he was satisfied with Mstislavich's formal recognition of formal vassalage: "you are my son, and I am your father" and Svyatoslav's leave with his people.
In 1212, Mstislav, like his father, made a trip to the land of the Chuds - South-East Estonia "and brought many captives of them and livestock." ..recommended by the Bear's Head" (Est. Otepaa, German Odenpe). As a result, the Chud recognized its dependence on Novgorod by paying tribute, or rather, surrendered itself under the protection of the Russians in the face of the threat of a German conquest, preferring the lesser evil.
The next march to the West took place in 1214. The Novgorod army, led by Mstislav Mstislavich, passed through Estonia right up to the sea, devastating villages, burning fortifications and stood "under the city of Vorobein" (Varbola castle). And here the tribute was taken. However, the German chronicler believed that the main goal of the Russians was to search for German troops in Estonia and protect their interests. Numerous relatives and allies of Mstislav participated in the campaign: brother Vladimir, nephew Davyd from Toropets, Prince Vsevolod Borisovich of Pskov. The army returned home without loss and with a huge crowd. One third of the booty was given by the Novgorodians to the prince and divided among his nobles.
In the same year, the brothers - the "grandchildren of Rostislavli", expelled by Vsevolod Chermny from South Russia - called Mstislav for help. At the Yaroslav's court, the prince convened a veche and asked the people of Novgorod for help. They answered their favorite: "Where you look with your eyes, there we will throw our heads." With the posadnik Tverdislav and the Novgorodians, he moved south and, having united with the Smolensk people, took Rechitsa "on the shield", ruined other Chernigov cities along the Dnieper. Near Vyshgorod, they defeated the Chernigovites, capturing princes David in the battle, as well as Rostislav and Yaropolk Yaroslavich, after which the city opened the gates and Vsevolod had to flee from Kyiv, where he had been sitting for ten whole years. Now Mstislav Mstislavich, having become the master of the situation, "put" his older cousin Mstislav Romanovich on the Kyiv table. Then followed a campaign to Chernigov, under the walls of which peace was concluded, which consolidated the results of the campaign.
After returning from the south, Mstislav did not stay long in Novgorod. Having become the conqueror of Kyiv, he now felt like a different person, capable of more than he had achieved so far, and the north, as it seemed to him, could no longer give new, greater glory. Soon Mstislavich, having convened a veche, resigned the reign of Novgorod and went south to seek new exploits.
In 1215, the Novgorodians chose their son-in-law Mstislav, Yaroslav of Tverskoy and Pereyaslavsky, the son of Vsevolod Yurievich of Suzdal. He was the complete opposite of his father-in-law. Proud, arrogant, angry, stubborn, vengeful and vindictive, he did not get along with the Novgorodians. Having left for Torzhok, Yaroslav blocked the supply of food to Novgorod, began to grab merchants along the roads and rob their property, and even took away from Novgorod its other trading "suburb" - Volok Lamsky. When the Novgorodians sent ambassadors to their prince, they shared the fate of the merchants and also ended up in a cut. A famine began in Novgorod, so strong that parents began to sell their children into slavery. People in search of food began to disperse from the city to the villages in search of food.
And suddenly, at this critical moment, Mstislav reappeared in Novgorod. Having convened a veche, he said: "I bow to Hagia Sophia. I learned about your troubles. Either I turn back your husbands and volosts to you, or I will lay my head for Novgorod" and on that he kissed the cross. Novgorodians enthusiastically swore allegiance to the new prince, and the governor Yaroslavov and his nobles were immediately seized.
Yaroslav, having learned about what had happened, began to prepare for defense, ordering impenetrable barriers not only on the road to Novgorod, but also on the Tvertsa River. Mstislav, as usual, preferred to put up, but his truce went to Yaroslav in vain. He persisted and only sent away the Novgorod hostages. He hoped for the help of his brother Yuri Suzdal. Then Mstislav, encouraging the discouraged hungry and few Novgorodians, said: "Let Torzhok not be Novgorod, but Novgorod Torzhok! Where St. Sophia is, there is Novgorod! Let's go look for our husbands - your brothers and volosts."
On the new, 1216 year, on March 1, the prince set out on a campaign along the Seliger route, bypassing the Yaroslavl aisles, through his inheritance, trying to collect the supplies of food and fodder necessary for the campaign, since none of this could be found in Novgorod. He had negligible strength - only five hundred people, since it was hard for the Novgorodians to get ready for a campaign
Warned from Novgorod, Yaroslav sent a regiment of brother Svyatoslav to this direction, who, with five thousand, besieged the Mstislav border fortress of Rzhev, where the governor Yarun defended himself with a hundred soldiers. Mstislav hurried to the rescue, and the besiegers fled at his approach.
Having united with the garrison of Rzhev and the Pskovites of his brother Vladimir, Mstislav entered the Tver inheritance of Yaroslav, laid siege to Zubtsov. Here, his cousin brother Vladimir Rurikovich approached him with the Smolensk army. Then it was decided to go to Tver, where Yaroslav also moved. Before reaching Tver, Yarun, sent forward, defeated Yaroslav's watchman in a hundred people, but the brothers did not begin to besiege Tver. Apparently, at this time, Mstislav became aware of the intention of Konstantin of Rostov, the eldest of the sons of Vsevolod, to enter into an alliance with him against the brothers in order to resolve the dispute with them about the Grand Duke's table belonging to him by customary law.
The army turned to the Volga and ruining the Volga cities, moved to connect with the Rostovites of Constantine. The war has acquired a completely new content. Now it was not so much about the revenue of the Novgorodians and the punishment of Yaroslav, but about who should reign in Vladimir and Yuri Vsevolodovich gathered a huge army under his banner. In view of the formidable danger, wandering steppe mercenaries, residents of the Volga cities and Murom vassals came under the grand ducal banners, even foot smerds were called up, which, apparently, was not the usual here, and moreover, the chronicler mentions serfs in the composition of the Grand Duke's troops. Of course, the combat capability of such an army was minimal.
Having united with Konstantin, the army of Mstislav stood at Yuryev Polsky. Vsevolodovichi also came here. During the campaign, Mstislav repeatedly turned to Yaroslav with calls for peace, but was refused. Now that the scale of the impending tragedy had become clear, Mstislavich again tried to avoid it (“we came ... not to bloodshed”), sending truce truants twice, but the brothers did not want to listen to the voices of reason. They have already shared the fruits of future victory. At the same time, having taken a strong position, they were in no hurry to measure their strength with an experienced enemy on the plain. The coalition forces had to approach the camp of the Vsevolodovichi, located on Avdova Gora, under which the Tuneg stream, overgrown with bushes, flowed. The flat top of the mountain was surrounded by stakes and wattle along the edge, behind which stood the regiments of the younger brothers of Constantine.
After a rainy, windy and cold day spent in sluggish attacks and skirmishes, which looked like reconnaissance in small forces of only the "young" ones, while the leaders hesitated, deciding whether to go straight for Vladimir left unprotected, under pressure from Mstislav, it was decided the solution is to attack the Vsevolodovichi position. The chronicle preserved his argument: "The mountain will not defeat us and the mountain will not help us, but looking at the Holy Cross and the truth, let's go to them." Based on this phrase, one might think that the commander relies entirely on the moral and psychological factor - the superiority of the spirit of his troops, convinced of their rightness, but events showed that this was not entirely true.
The morning of April 21 came. The regiments of the anti-Suzdal coalition lined up in the following order. On the left flank - Vladimir Rurikovich with the Smolensk people - against Yaroslav, to the right - Mstislav (here for the first time another member of the coalition, Vsevolod Mstislavich, the son of Mstislav Romanovich of Kyiv with a retinue, in the same regiment with Mstislav) is mentioned for the first time) with the Novgorodians - against Yuri, then - brother Vladimir with the Pskovites - against Svyatoslav Yuryevsky, and on the right flank - Konstantin with the Rostovites - against his youngest brother, Ivan Starodubsky.
Riding in front of the front of his regiments, Mstislav Mstislavich addressed the soldiers in a loud voice: “Brothers, we have entered a strong land. Looking at God and the truth, we will stand strong, not looking back. anyway, sometime to die (i.e. it is better to die with honor, on the battlefield, defending a just cause)". Knowing the Novgorod custom, he offered the Novgorodians a choice: to go into battle on horseback or on foot. They did not want to "die on horseback", preferring to fight on foot, feeling the ground, "like grandfathers on Kolaksha" in the same places. Dismounting from their horses, they took off their outer clothing (“ports”) and, having taken off their shoes, ran at the enemy at a run (“bosi poskotsish”). Looking at them, some of the Smolensk also dismounted. To help them, Vladimir Rurikovich sent the cavalry regiment of governor Ivor Mikhailovich, but he hesitated, making his way through the swampy "wilds". The princes with their retinues followed, forming, as it were, a third echelon, reserved for a decisive blow or development of success.
Meanwhile, the infantry, having climbed the slope, screamed at the regiments of Yaroslav and Yuri. Those, unaccustomed to abandoning their stakes and axes, recoiled from the edge of the mountain. One banner of Yaroslav was cut off. The front ranks of the Vladimirites died on the spot, but they could not escape, held back by many rows of deep formation. With the help of the cavalry that came to the rescue, Ivor Mikhailovich managed to push the enemy back, cutting down the second Yaroslav banner, but there were too many enemy forces. Seeing that there was not enough strength to win, Mstislav, turning to Vladimir Smolensky, said: "God forbid, brother, to betray these good people." In these words, the whole Mstislav. For him, the main thing in life is to keep his word, not to let others down. Everything else is not so important. At the same time, the rest of the coalition forces entered into action, tying up the rest of the Vsevolodovich regiments in battle.
According to the chronicles, the princely squads of Mstislav and Vladimir Rurikovich attacked the Yaroslav regiment "through their pawns." It is hard to imagine how the cavalry squads drove through the dense formation of the fighting. In order for this to be possible, the pawns had to open up, forming passages for the cavalry, and before that - to leave the battle. That is probably what happened. The first onslaught - "suim" is over. Novgorodians and Smolensk, having exhausted their fuse, stopped, which was noticed by the commander, who immediately decided to send a reserve into battle. The case in the military art of pre-Mongol Russia is exceptionally rare. However, it is precisely this "through" that seems to be unique. Could it be that our ancestors were so organized that, like the Romans, they were able to make reorganizations on the battlefield. To do this, it was necessary not only to have a clear organization, with the division of units ("regiments") into units, not only to be able to use various sound control signals, but also to have the skills of drill.
This is partly confirmed by the mention in a single context of the number of banners (units), as well as "pipes" (squadrons?) and "tambourines" (mouths?) in the troops of Yuri and Yaroslav. Quite a long time ago A.N. Kirpichnikov conjectured that the musical (signal) instruments listed along with the banners are here synonymous with divisions, like the horns of Roman maniples. Unfortunately, this is the only such mention, which does not allow drawing such far-reaching conclusions. However, if such an organization had the "raw", hastily recruited troops of the Vsevolodovichs, for the most part consisting of farmers inexperienced in military affairs, then with much greater probability this can be assumed in relation to the Smolensk, Novgorodians and Pskovites experienced in it.
In this battle, Mstislav Mstislavich proved himself not only as a wise and experienced commander, who, like most of the princes of his contemporaries, did not rush headlong into battle at the head of the advance detachment, but retained control over the development of events, but also as a powerful fighter, having acquired the laurels of personal heroism. Both Novgorod and Suzdal sources unanimously report that he passed through the regiments of Yuri and Yaroslav "cutting people" three times.
Again we have a mystery. How can one imagine that the prince, wielding, moreover, not with a sword, but with an ax "with a twist" i.e. a loop on the handle, cutting through the surrounding system (or crowd) of enemies, then again through them "returns to its original position" to repeat it again and again! Here a comparison with Western Europe comes to mind, where the same, verbatim description of the feat of an outstanding warrior is the conceivable limit of military prowess. However, it looked different there. The knight, having knocked the enemy out of the saddle with a spear (or having defeated him in a duel with other weapons), scattered his retinue, which had no right by its status (and even a real opportunity) to fight with him on an equal footing, and thus ended up in the rear of the enemy battle formation , which was a line of knightly "spears". No longer seeing an equal opponent in front of him, he returned back to face a new opponent - something similar to modern sports tournaments organized according to the "knockout" Olympic system. We see something similar in the description of the Battle of Shumsk in 1231, when Daniel of Galicia, having defeated another enemy, being surrounded by enemy foot servants, looks around and does not see who else he could fight with.
On Lipica, of course, there was no time for proper spear fights. However, it seems that there must have been a certain similarity. It consisted in the fact that only persons who had the same status of a noble husband - a professional and an appropriate set of weapons could really resist the prince. The pawns, especially those who did not possess either training or suitable weapons, simply did not represent an obstacle for him, no matter how densely they stood in their close ranks. Most likely, they simply ran away from his path, not daring to raise their weapons against the prince. So, in reality, Prince Mstislav with his ax, apparently, defeated three noble opponents in a row in duels (which is cleaner than three collisions on spears). And the attribution to him of the trinity of "passing through the enemy system" possibly testifies to the penetration and existence in Russia of that time of knightly ideology.
According to the legend recorded by the compilers of the late Nikon chronicle, Mstislav, having made his way to the tents and convoy of the enemy ("goods and cats"), almost died here from the sword of the Rostov "brave" Alexander Popovich, who also cut through the Suzdal people, a man of extraordinary strength. Having received a formal challenge, the prince hastened to name himself. Apparently, the real "Alyosha" was terrible, a few years earlier, near Rostov, who single-handedly changed the course of the battle with the brothers in favor of Konstantin.
Meanwhile, Yaroslav's regiment, which was under the most pressure, could not stand it and ran. The Pereyaslavites were followed by the Vladimirians and the Suzdalians, and there all the steelmen rushed to their heels, littering their way with the bodies of the hacked, damming the rivers with the drowned. Smolensk immediately rushed to rob the camp, rip off clothes from the dead. Seeing this, he Mstislav urged everyone not to disperse, but to end the battle ("adhere to the battle") so that the army, which has turned into a crowd of marauders, would not be destroyed by the enemy who came to his senses. He, however, continued to flee, losing 9200 people only killed. The mountain "defeated" the Vladimirians, who seemed to be hostages of their tight arched position with an impenetrable convoy and a camp in the middle, deprived of the opportunity to support each other. Having chosen the weak link - Yaroslav's regiment - Mstislav, like Epamenond under Leuctra, concentrated the best forces on the direction of the main attack - in strict accordance with the main principle of military art! Having no direct indications of this, after such an example, can we doubt that Russia, having borrowed Christianity from the Greek-Byzantine heirs of Rome, and with it also classical culture, did not familiarize itself with the basics of ancient military affairs?
Coming the next day to the walls of Vladimir, where Yuri Vsevolodovich took refuge, the victors overthrew him and sent him into exile on the Volga, in Gorodets. Constantine became the Grand Duke, taking the smallest part in the Battle of Lipitsa. The fate of the second Grand Duke was already decided by Mstislav Mstislavich, always and everywhere showing the greatest peacefulness and nobility. So near Vladimir, he did not allow the winners to break into the defenseless city at night, which saved him from the pogrom.
Then Mstislav and Konstantin went to Pereyaslavl to rescue the Novgorodians and punish Yaroslav, who still continued to be spiteful, now grabbing Smolensk merchants as well. Upon learning of the approach of Mstislav and Konstantin, he realized that he had driven himself into a corner and finally went to the world. But now Mstislav was implacable. Only the presence of Konstantin saved Yaroslav from severe punishment, and Pereyaslavl from being taken "on the shield." Limiting himself to indemnity, Mstislavich took his daughter from his son-in-law and did not return her for two years.
Returning to Novgorod, Mstislav did not stay there for long. The very next year he left for Kyiv, and then returned only to say goodbye to the Novgorodians. Then, in Torzhok, his son Vasily died. Rejecting all requests to stay, the prince declared that he wanted to seek the Galich reign, which he had probably been thinking about for a long time. Now those dreams have come true. Mstislav Mstislavich received a letter from the Polish king Leshko the White. He called him brother and called to reign in Galicia, which, however, still had to be conquered from the Hungarians. Did the Prince of Udatny, as they began to call him now, understand that the sun of his exploits had already passed its zenith and was fading, that he would no longer perform greater feats than with Novgorodians in the west?
The Galician principality, having lost the dynasty of its rulers, passed from hand to hand in a series of conspiracies, coups, betrayals and continuous bloodshed. The sons of Roman Mstislavich Volynsky Daniil and Vasilko were still small to lay claim to Galich, during these years they were deprived of their legal homeland. Finally, Galich went to foreigners - Ugrians and Poles, patrons of orphans, but they could not peacefully share the booty and Leshko now called on Mstislav against the Hungarian king Endre, as a tool for implementing his sophisticated plans.
Arriving in Kyiv, Mstislav began to recruit an army for a campaign to the west. It didn't work for him. Volunteers considered it an honor to serve under the banner of such an illustrious commander, whose fame seems to have become on a par with Monomakh's. As a warrior and military leader, Mstislav grew up in the south. Everything here was familiar to him. Having soon gathered considerable forces, including the squads of the brothers, he set out on a campaign against Galich.
His name alone forced the cruel occupiers and their henchmen, the Galician boyars, to flee. Without any difficulty, Mstislav Mstislavich inherited the golden throne of his relative, Yaroslav Osmomysl. Soon he gave his daughter Anna to Daniil Romanovich, who, after many years of work, achieved his father's table in Vladimir-on-Volyn. The new Galich prince foresaw the upcoming struggle with the Hungarians, but unexpectedly, Leshko also turned into an enemy, due to the fact that Daniel demanded from him the previously captured Volyn border cities. Since Leshko was not going to give them away, Daniel complained to Mstislav. He, however, did not support his son-in-law, bound by his gratitude to the king of Poland. Daniil managed himself, defeating the Poles and recapturing the cities on the Bug, but Leshko decided that the Volyn prince owed these successes to Galich help. In a letter to King Endre (Andrew), Leshko refused his share in Galich, giving it to his son-in-law - the son of the Hungarian king, married to his daughter, "as soon as we drive out the Russians." Having received it, Andrei approached Przemysl with an army. Yarun, who was sitting there as a thousandth, was forced to flee. The detachment sent by Mstislav from Galich to Gorodok, which had settled away from him, was defeated by the Hungarians and Poles who came to the rescue. Many of the nobles close to Mstislav, who wore the golden chains bestowed upon them, perished.
Mstislav stood on the river. Bison with princes allies. The fugitives from the broken detachment arrived here, informing them of the strength of the enemy. Having assessed the situation, the commander decided to withdraw, convincing Daniil Galitsky and Alexander Belzsky to go to defend Galich. Daniel went, but Alexander did not dare, which started the enmity between them.
The Poles and the Hungarians moved to Galich, but in a stubborn battle on the Bloody Ford, Daniel did not allow them to break through to the city. Then the enemies turned to Mstislav, forcing him to leave the principality. He managed to forestall Daniel about his departure, and he, fighting day and night, managed to break through with a group of comrades-in-arms with great risk and hardship, to Mstislav, who rewarded his courage and showered his son-in-law with many gifts.
Not having enough strength, Mstislavich invited Daniil to return to Vladimir (Volynsky), and he himself went to the Wild Field to his father-in-law Kotyan for help. King Andrew, leaving the voevoda Filnius to help his son, went home. Large forces of the Poles also remained in Galich, and besides them, according to the Novgorod chronicle, mercenaries from the Czech Republic and Moravia.
The year 1219 passed in preparation for revenge, and the next summer Mstislav returned with Polovtsian help. His enemies did not doze off in anticipation of a return move, so that as soon as the rumor about the return of Mstislav from the steppe with the horde spread, Leshko opposed Daniel in order to prevent his connection with Mstislav. Filny, having strengthened Galich, left in it the prince Koloman (Kalman) with his wife and moved on Mstislav. He was waiting for him nearby with Vladimir Rurikovich Smolensky and the Polovtsy, left in an ambush.
The regiments converged and soon Vladimir's wing trembled, backed up and ran. The Poles, and behind them a part of the Ugrians, set off in pursuit. Mstislav, who remained in place, waited until they seemed to be at a sufficiently safe distance, hit the remaining Hungarians and Galicians, confusing them and defeated them. At this time, Vladimir, having completed the task of separating the enemy troops by luring, stopped his squad and overturned the pursuers. Philnius was captured. Meanwhile, those Poles who galloped furthest from the battlefield returned without suspecting anything. Mstislav sent the Polovtsy against them, and he himself raised the captured Polish white banner, using a rare old trick. The Poles, having thrown back the Polovtsy, broke through to him, hoping that their own people were still holding there, and here everyone found their death.
The dead enemies were countless. The screams of the dying were heard even in Galich. On the bloody field, where the corpses lay in heaps, the Polovtsy gathered a rich harvest of trophies and captives. Those of the enemies that escaped death on the battlefield were caught by smerds and exterminated without mercy.
At this time, the Galicians, having figured out what had happened, began to catch and cut the invaders. Seeing it. Kalman ordered the entire population of the city to be driven out of the gate along with their families. So he hoped not only to protect himself from a rebellion, but also to obtain the food necessary for the siege. The victors, meanwhile, approached the city walls and offered the defenders surrender and life. They refused, to which Mstislav promised that now none of them would be alive. At night, they managed to dig under the gate opposite the floor side, who made their way inside the gate tower, opened them and the equestrian warriors, led by Mstislav, who were on alert, broke into the fortress, exterminating the rushing enemies.
A certain number of Hungarians and Poles escaped by climbing to the roof of the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, where, by order of Philnius, shelters were arranged ahead of time, from where they began to fight back. Prince Kalman and his Polish wife were also there. However, after some time they began to suffer from thirst. Taking pity on the woman, Mstislav ordered to give them a barrel of water. When hunger was added to thirst, the prince surrendered to the mercy of Mstislav. He and his wife were sent to Torchesk, and all the rest fell into slavery to the Polovtsy and the people of Mstislav. Among others, the head of the Galician boyars, Sudislav, was also captured. Rolling at the feet of the prince, he begged for mercy. To his misfortune, Mstislav Mstislavich believed him and even gave him possession of Zvenigorod. Soon arrived in Galich and Daniil, who fought off Leshka.
King Endre threatened war, but it was impossible to frighten Mstislav. He calmly offered God's judgment to his neighbor, and he moderated his tone. Negotiations continued until Mstislav heeded Sudislav's advice: to release Koloman on the condition that he renounce Galich, who in three years would be inherited by Maria, the third daughter of Mstislav, who would marry another son of the king. Przemysl, at the wedding, was transferred as a dowry. These conditions destroyed the Hungarian-Polish alliance, since Leshka's daughter lost her rights to Galich, but, on the other hand, Daniil also lost Galich, not to mention the fate of Mstislav's younger sons, about whom the father seemed not to think at all. This agreement, the negative results of which did not appear immediately, gave the long-awaited peace to Galicia, which lasted until one day, from his steppes, Kotyan, expelled by the Mongols, rushed to the courtyard of Mstislav as a black herald of impending troubles.
The events of the Kalki campaign and the details of the unfortunate battle are well known, as is the role of Mstislav Mstislavich in them, the initiator of the campaign and the main culprit of the unheard-of defeat. Deciding to single-handedly defeat the really not so great numerical forces of an unknown enemy, he overestimated his own. Luck turned away, finally, from the "successful" prince. Fate laughed bitterly at the age-old seeker of exploits and ever greater glory, clearly showing all their futility. The one who until recently was extolled throughout Russia was now cursed throughout her south and west. Having rushed one of the first to the Dnieper crossing, he, apparently being completely at a loss, ordered to push the boats away from the shore and cut down the boats, dooming other fugitives to death and captivity.
Returning almost alone to Galich, the prince, who had lost his last faithful comrades-in-arms on Kalka, was doomed to live a century amidst betrayals and anxieties, surrounded by people absolutely alien to him. Those who did not love, and often hated him, were unable to either take his word for it or keep it, accustomed instead of the rules of the code of honor, to be guided only by selfish benefit and the instinct of power. The situation that developed at the new court of Mstislav is characterized by the following episode. A certain Zhiroslav spread a rumor among the boyars that the prince was going to go to the steppe and return with a horde of Kotyan to exterminate them all. And all the boyars suddenly fled over the mountain passes to Przemysl, sending from there to ask the unsuspecting Mstislav if this was true. The prince had to send a confessor to his servants, to convince them that they believed idle fiction ....
Mstislav Mstislavich loved Daniil like a son, but once he believed the slanderer Alexander Belzsky, who hated the Romanovichs, that Daniil was inciting the Poles to help him capture Galich. Mstislav, as gullible as he was honest, believed this and supported Alexander against Daniel, who actually brought help from Poland. The fighting was unsuccessful for Mstislav and, especially, for Alexander. The Poles fought part of Galicia, and the Romanovichs - the vicinity of Belz and Cherven. The following year, Mstislav called Kotyan with his horde and Vladimir Rurikovich, now the prince of Kyiv, but he himself, suffering from the need to fight with Daniel, decided to check the veracity of Alexander. His lie was revealed, but he was once again forgiven. Daniel was received and treated with even greater love and showered with gifts. For Daniil, Mstislav was ready to give even the best - his beloved horse Aktaz, which had no equal.
Soon the war with the Hungarians began. Either because of the impatience of the king to get the promised Galich as soon as possible, or because the prince had to flee from Przemysl for some unknown reason (which could well have been a provocation). The Hungarians again took Przemysl, followed by Zvenigorod and approached Galich, but could not cross the flooded Dniester, on the other side of which Mstislav stood. After standing, the king went to Terebovl, took it, and then Tihoml and laid siege to Kremenets, under which he suffered heavy losses from the besieged, after which he returned to Zvenigorod. Mstislav came here with an army. Daniel was forced to stand on the Bug, defending himself from Leshka, who again acted according to a joint plan with the Hungarians.
The Hungarian army left the camp to meet the Galicians. In the battle, Mstislav defeated and drove the enemies to the camp (apparently fortified). King Endre, not hoping for victory, with the remnants of the troops hastily headed for the border. Mstislav could have captured him, but, having listened to the traitors of the boyars, he did not pursue the enemy and allowed him to safely leave for the Carpathians. This was not enough for Sudislav. Now he insisted that Mstislav give up Galich. Passing it on to Prince Andrei (the younger), since the boyars do not want him to continue to reign. Mstislav wanted to give Galich to Daniil, but he had to act against his will .... The old prince left "Ponizye" - the current Podolia - after which he left for his Torchesk. Realizing his mistake, Mstislav supported Daniel in his rights to the inheritance of Mstislav the Mute - the Principality of Lutsk and even promised that he would help recapture Galich next year, but it was too late. Disease crept up to the not too old prince. Sensing the approach of death, Mstislav Mstislavich wanted to see Daniel, "having great love for him in his heart." He wanted to entrust his young sons to him, but this was prevented. The valiant knight passed away in an unknown backwoods (there is no certainty that this happened in Torchesk, where he was going to reign), deprived of friendly support and participation, being unable to give his sons worthy destinies. According to some reports, before his death he took the schema.
Only in 1231, Daniil Romanovich, having received from Vladimir Rurikovich "a part in the Russian land" i.e. Kiev region, gave the children of Mstislav "shyuryatom svoim" their fatherland - Torchesk: "for your father, accept good deeds and keep the Tortsky city."
Yuri Valentinovich Sukharev, researcher at the Center for Military History of Russia at the Institute of Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences
One of the most controversial and mysterious personalities during the decline of the Old Russian state was Prince Mstislav Udaloy. He was distinguished by unprecedented courage, fighting with the enemies of Russia, but quite often used his skills in internecine strife. It will be very interesting for the modern generation of people to get acquainted with the biography of such an outstanding personality as Mstislav Udaloy. A brief biography of this prince will be the subject of our study.
Nickname origin
The original nickname of Prince Mstislav was Udatny, which means "lucky" in Old Russian. But due to misinterpretation, the translation of "Udaloy" became generally accepted. It was under this nickname that the prince got on the pages of most history textbooks.
We will not change the generally accepted tradition.
Birth
The date of birth of Mstislav Udaly remains a mystery to historians. There is no doubt only that he was born within the second half of the XII century and was named Fedor in baptism. He was the son of the Novgorod prince Mstislav Rostislavovich the Brave from the Smolensk branch of the Monomakhoviches. The origin of Mstislav Udaly's mother is controversial. According to one version, she was the daughter of the prince of Galich, according to another, the Ryazan prince Gleb Rostislavovich.
The place of Mstislav the Udaly among the sons of Mstislav Rostislavovich is also ambiguous. Some researchers consider him to be the eldest son, others - the youngest, moreover, born after the death of his father. In the latter case, the year of his birth may be 1180.
Early references
The first mention of Mstislav Udal in chronicles is dated to 1193. It was then that he, while still the prince of Tripolsky, took part in the campaign against the Polovtsy, together with his cousin Rostislav Rurikovich.
In 1196, Rostislav's father, Prince of Kyiv Rurik Rostislavovich, sent Mstislav the Udaly to help Vladimir Yaroslavovich of Galicia, who opposed Volynsky. In 1203, already as Prince Torchesky, the young Mstislav Udaloy again made a campaign against the Polovtsians. But in 1207, he was driven out of Torchesk by the troops of the representative of the Olgovichi line, Vsevolod Svyatoslavovich Chermny, when he made a successful campaign against Kyiv, which at that time was controlled by Rurik Rostislavovich.
After that, Mstislav Mstislavovich Udaloy fled to the Principality of Smolensk, where he received from his relatives a fiefdom in Toropets. Since then, he became known as Prince Toropetsky.
Novgorod reign
Remaining the prince of Toropetsk, in 1209 Mstislav Udaloy was invited to reign in their lands. His father was also a prince of Novgorod in his time. Prince Svyatoslav, the son of the Great Vladimir Big Nest, who until then ruled in Novgorod, was deposed by the Novgorodians themselves. Replaced by Mstislav Udaloy. The years of the reign of this prince in Novgorod were marked by a special confrontation with the Vladimir-Suzdal principality.
In 1212, Mstislav made a successful campaign at the head of the Novgorod army against the pagan Chud tribe.
Hike to Chernihiv
Meanwhile, after the death of Rurik Rostislavovich, who was then in the Chernigov reign, and the old enemy of Mstislav the Udaly Vsevolod the Big Nest, a feud broke out with renewed vigor between Vsevolod Chermny, who ruled in Kyiv, and the Smolensk branch of the Monomakhoviches, whom he accused of killing two of his relatives.
Realizing that he himself could not cope with the Kyiv prince, Mstislav Romanovich Smolensky asked for help from his cousin, Mstislav the Udaly. He immediately responded.
The united army of Novgorodians and Smolensk began to ravage the Chernihiv land, which, by right of patrimony, belonged to Vsevolod Chermny. This forced the latter to leave Kyiv and accept the reign in Chernigov. Thus, the capital city of Russia was captured without a fight by Mstislav Udaly, who put Ingvar Yaroslavovich Lutsky on a temporary reign. But after the conclusion of peace with Vsevolod Chermny, Mstislav Romanovich Smolensky, later nicknamed the Old, became the Grand Duke of Kyiv.
Participation in civil strife
In the meantime, after the death of Vsevolod the Big Nest in North-Eastern Russia, a major (between his heirs) flared up for the possession of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality. Mstislav Udaloy supported the eldest son of Vsevolod of Rostov, Prince Konstantin, in this struggle. At the same time, according to the will left by Vsevolod the Great Nest, the principality was to be inherited by his son Yuri, who was supported by his brother Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, while simultaneously claiming the reign of Novgorod.
In 1215, when Mstislav Udaloy, together with his retinue, moved south, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich captured Novgorod - at the invitation of the local residents themselves. But soon he had a conflict with the Novgorodians. Yaroslav captured a large city in the south of the Novgorod land - Torzhok. The Novgorodians again called on Mstislav.
The decisive battle between the troops of Mstislav the Udaly, which was joined by the Smolensk army, the son of Mstislav the Old with his retinue and Konstantin of Rostov, and the army of the Vladimir-Suzdal princes Yuri and Yaroslav, took place in 1216 on the Lipitsa River. It was the largest battle of the internecine wars of that period. The Novgorod-Smolensk army won a complete victory. During the flight, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich even lost his helmet.
The result of the battle was the approval of Konstantin Vsevolodovich on the reign of Vladimir and the temporary refusal of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich from Novgorod. However, already in 1217, Mstislav Udaloy abandoned Novgorod in favor of Svyatoslav, the son of Mstislav the Old.
Reigning in Galicia
The refusal of Novgorod was due to the fact that Mstislav Udaloy put forward his claims to Galich. According to one version, he began trying to seize power there even earlier, but without much success. In 1218, with the support of the Smolensk princes, he finally expelled the Hungarians from Galich.
Since then, Mstislav Udaloy became the Galician prince. His foreign and domestic policy was particularly active. He concluded an alliance agreement with Daniil Romanovich Volynsky, fought against the Hungarians and Poles. During these wars, Galich passed from one hand to another. But in 1221, Mstislav was still able to finally establish himself there.
Battle on the Kalka
1223 was a turning point in the fate of all of Russia. Hordes of Mongol-Tatars under the leadership of Genghis Khan's loyal commanders Jebe and Subudai invaded the southern Russian steppes. Against the common danger, most of the principalities of southern Russia united with the Polovtsian army of Khan Katyan (who was the father-in-law of Mstislav Udaloy), who took an active part in creating a coalition.
Although the formal head of the coalition was the Great Kyiv Prince Mstislav the Old, in reality many princes did not obey him. Disunity served as the main reason for the defeat that the Russian-Polovtsian army suffered in the Battle of the Kalka. Many Russian princes and ordinary soldiers died in this battle, among them was Mstislav of Kyiv. Few managed to survive. But among those who were lucky enough to escape was Mstislav Udaloy.
Further fate and death
After the battle on Kalka, Mstislav returned to Galich. There he continued to fight with the Hungarians, Poles and with his former ally Daniil Volynsky, who later became the king of Russia. Despite the relatively successful outcome of these wars, in 1226 Mstislav left the reign in Galich and moved to the city of Torchesk, located in the south of Kyiv land, where he had already ruled in his youth.
Shortly before his death, he became a monk. He died in 1228 and was buried in Kyiv.
Personality characteristic
Researchers name many lands and cities where Mstislav Udaloy ruled. These are Tripoli, Torchesk, Toropets, Novgorod, Galich, but nowhere did he settle for a long time. And the reason for this lay not so much in the intrigues of other princes, but in his character, thirsting for change. Contemporaries note that Mstislav the Udaly had a violent temper, but at the same time, this man was distinguished by amazing prudence.
Undoubtedly, this prince played one of the key roles in the history of our state in the first half of the 13th century.
