The battle on the ice or the battle on Lake Peipsi is the battle of the Novgorod-Pskov army of Prince Alexander Nevsky with the troops of the Livonian knights, which took place on April 5, 1242 on the ice of Lake Peipus. She put a limit to the advancement of German chivalry to the East. Alexander Nevsky - Prince of Novgorod, Grand Duke of Kyiv, Grand Duke of Vladimir, legendary commander, saint of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Causes

In the middle of the 13th century, foreign invaders threatened Russian lands from all sides. From the east, the Tatar-Mongols were advancing, from the north-west, the Livonians and Swedes claimed Russian land. In the latter case, the task of repelling fell on powerful Novgorod, which had a vested interest in not losing its influence in the region and, most importantly, in preventing anyone from controlling trade with the Baltic countries.

How it all began

1239 - Alexander took measures to protect the Gulf of Finland and the Neva, which were strategically important for the Novgorodians, and therefore was ready for the invasion of the Swedes in 1240. In July, on the Neva, Alexander Yaroslavich, thanks to extraordinary and swift actions, was able to defeat the Swedish army. A number of Swedish ships were sunk, Russian losses were extremely insignificant. After that, Prince Alexander was nicknamed Nevsky.

The offensive of the Swedes was coordinated with the next attack of the Livonian Order. 1240, summer - they took the border fortress of Izborsk, and then captured Pskov. The situation for Novgorod became dangerous. Alexander, not counting on help from the Vladimir-Suzdal Russia devastated by the Tatars, laid on the boyars large expenses for preparing for the battle and, after the victory on the Neva, tried to consolidate his power in the Novgorod Republic. The boyars turned out to be stronger and in the winter of 1240 they were able to remove him from power.

And the German expansion, meanwhile, continued. 1241 - the Novgorod land of Vod was taxed, then Koporye was taken. The crusaders intended to capture the coast of the Neva and Karelia. A popular movement broke out in the city for an alliance with the Vladimir-Suzdal principality and the organization of a rebuff to the Germans, who were already 40 miles from Novgorod. The boyars had no choice but to ask Alexander Nevsky to return. This time he was given emergency powers.

With an army of Novgorodians, Ladoga, Izhorians and Karelians, Alexander drove the enemy out of Koporye, after which he liberated the lands of the Vod people. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich sent Vladimir regiments re-formed after the Tatar invasion to help his son. Alexander took Pskov, then moved to the lands of the Estonians.

Movement, composition, disposition of troops

The German army was located in the Yuryev area (aka Derpt, now Tartu). The order gathered significant forces - there were German knights, the local population, the troops of the King of Sweden. The army that opposed the knights on the ice of Lake Peipsi had a heterogeneous composition, but a single command in the person of Alexander. "Grassroots regiments" consisted of princely squads, squads of boyars, city regiments. The army that Novgorod put up had a fundamentally different composition.

When the Russian army was on the western shore of Lake Peipsi, here, near the village of Mooste, a patrol detachment led by Domash Tverdislavich reconnoitred the location of the main part of the German troops, started a battle with them, but was defeated. Intelligence managed to find out that the enemy sent insignificant forces to Izborsk, and the main parts of the army moved to Lake Pskov.

In an effort to prevent this movement of enemy troops, the prince ordered a retreat to the ice of Lake Peipsi. The Livonians, realizing that the Russians would not let them make a detour, went straight to their army and also stepped on the ice of the lake. Alexander Nevsky deployed his army under the steep eastern bank, north of the Uzmen tract near the island of Voronii Kamen, against the mouth of the Zhelcha River.

Battle of the Ice

The two armies met on Saturday 5 April 1242. According to one version, Alexander had 15,000 soldiers at his disposal, and the Livonians had 12,000 soldiers. The prince, knowing about the tactics of the Germans, weakened the "brow" and strengthened the "wings" of his battle formation. The personal squad of Alexander Nevsky took refuge behind one of the flanks. A significant part of the prince's army was a foot militia.

The Crusaders traditionally advanced in a wedge ("pig") - a deep formation, shaped like a trapezoid, the upper base of which was turned towards the enemy. At the head of the wedge were the strongest of the warriors. The infantry, as the most unreliable and often not at all a knightly part of the army, was located in the center of the battle formation, mounted knights covered it in front and behind.

At the first stage of the battle, the knights were able to defeat the advanced Russian regiment, and then broke through the "brow" of the Novgorod military order. When, after some time, they scattered the "brow" and rested against the steep, precipitous shore of the lake, they had to turn around, which was not easy to do for a deep formation on the ice. In the meantime, Alexander's strong "wings" struck from the flanks, and his personal squad completed the encirclement of the knights.

A stubborn battle was going on, the whole neighborhood was resounded with shouts, crackling and clanging of weapons. But the fate of the crusaders was sealed. The Novgorodians dragged them off their horses with spears with special hooks, ripped open the stomachs of their horses with knives - “bootmakers”. Crowded in a narrow space, skillful Livonian warriors could not do anything. Stories about how ice cracked under heavy knights are widely popular, but it should be noted that a fully armed Russian knight weighed no less. Another thing is that the crusaders did not have the opportunity to move freely and they crowded into a small area.

In general, the complexity and danger of conducting hostilities with the help of cavalry on ice in early April leads some historians to conclude that the general course of the Battle on the Ice was distorted in the annals. They believe that not a single sane commander would have led an army rattling with iron and riding horses to fight on the ice. Probably, the battle began on land, and during it the Russians were able to push the enemy back onto the ice of Lake Peipsi. Those knights who were able to escape were pursued by the Russians to the Subolich coast.

Losses

The question of the losses of the parties in the battle is controversial. During the battle, about 400 crusaders were killed, and many Estonians fell, attracted by them into their army. The Russian annals say: “and the fall of Chudi was beschisla, and Nemets 400, and 50 with the hands of Yash and brought to Novgorod.” The death and capture of such a large number of professional soldiers by European standards turned out to be a rather heavy defeat, bordering on disaster. About Russian losses it is said vaguely: "many brave soldiers fell." As you can see, the losses of the Novgorodians were actually heavy.

Meaning

The legendary battle and the victory of the troops of Alexander Nevsky in it was of exceptional importance for the entire Russian history. The advance of the Livonian Order to Russian lands was stopped, the local population was not converted to Catholicism, and access to the Baltic Sea was preserved. After the victory, the Novgorod Republic, headed by the prince, moved from defensive tasks to the conquest of new territories. Nevsky made several successful campaigns against the Lithuanians.

The blow inflicted on the knights on Lake Peipus reverberated throughout the Baltic. The 30,000th Lithuanian army launched large-scale military operations against the Germans. In the same year, 1242, a powerful uprising broke out in Prussia. The Livonian knights sent ambassadors to Novgorod, who reported that the order renounces claims to the land of Vod, Pskov, Luga and asks for an exchange of prisoners, which was done. The words that were spoken to the ambassadors by the prince: “Whoever comes to us with a sword, will die by the sword,” became the motto of many generations of Russian commanders. For his military exploits, Alexander Nevsky was awarded the highest award - he was canonized by the church and declared a Saint.

German historians believe that while fighting on the western borders, Alexander Nevsky was not pursuing any coherent political program, but that success in the West provided some compensation for the horrors of the Mongol invasion. Many of the researchers believe that the very scale of the threat that the West posed to Russia is exaggerated.

On the other hand, L. N. Gumilyov, on the contrary, believed that not the Tatar-Mongol "yoke", but precisely Catholic Western Europe, represented by the Teutonic Order and the Archbishopric of Riga, was a mortal threat to the very existence of Russia, and therefore the role of Alexander's victories Nevsky in Russian history is especially great.

Due to the variability of the hydrography of Lake Peipsi, historians for a long time could not accurately determine the place where the Battle of the Ice took place. Only thanks to long-term research, which was carried out by the expedition of the Institute of Archeology of the USSR Academy of Sciences, they were able to establish the place of the battle. The battle site is submerged in summer and is located about 400 meters from the island of Sigovets.

Memory

The monument to the squads of Alexander Nevsky was erected in 1993, on Mount Sokolikha in Pskov, almost 100 km away from the actual battlefield. Initially, it was planned to create a monument on the island of Voronie, which geographically would be a more accurate solution.

1992 - on the territory of the village of Kobylye Gorodishche, Gdov District, in a place close to the alleged battle site, near the Church of the Archangel Michael, a bronze monument to Alexander Nevsky and a wooden bow cross were erected. The Church of the Archangel Michael was founded by the people of Pskov in 1462. The wooden cross was destroyed over time under the influence of adverse weather conditions. 2006, July - on the occasion of the 600th anniversary of the first mention of the village of Kobylye Gorodishche in the Pskov Chronicles, it was replaced with a bronze one.

Sources brought to us very scarce information about the Battle of the Ice. This contributed to the fact that the battle was gradually overgrown with a large number of myths and conflicting facts.

Mongols again

The battle on Lake Peipsi is not entirely correct to call the victory of Russian squads over German chivalry, since the enemy, according to modern historians, was a coalition force that included, in addition to the Germans, Danish knights, Swedish mercenaries and a militia consisting of Estonians (chud).

It is quite possible that the troops led by Alexander Nevsky were not exclusively Russian. The Polish historian of German origin Reinhold Heidenstein (1556-1620) wrote that Alexander Nevsky was pushed to battle by the Mongol Khan Batu (Batu) and sent his detachment to help him.
This version has the right to life. The middle of the 13th century was marked by a confrontation between the Horde and Western European troops. So, in 1241, Batu's troops defeated the Teutonic knights in the Battle of Legnica, and in 1269, the Mongolian detachments helped the Novgorodians defend the walls of the city from the invasion of the Crusaders.

Who went under water?

In Russian historiography, one of the factors that contributed to the victory of the Russian troops over the Teutonic and Livonian knights was called the fragile spring ice and the bulky armor of the crusaders, which led to the massive flooding of the enemy. However, according to the historian Nikolai Karamzin, the winter that year was long and the spring ice preserved the fortress.
However, it is difficult to determine how much ice could withstand a large number of warriors dressed in armor. Researcher Nikolai Chebotarev notes: “It is impossible to say who was heavier or lighter armed at the Battle of the Ice, because there was no uniform as such.”
Heavy plate armor appeared only in the XIV-XV centuries, and in the XIII century the main type of armor was chain mail, over which a leather shirt with steel plates could be worn. Based on this fact, historians suggest that the weight of the equipment of the Russian and order warriors was approximately the same and reached 20 kilograms. If we assume that the ice could not support the weight of a warrior in full gear, then the sunken ones should have been on both sides.
It is interesting that in the Livonian rhymed chronicle and in the original version of the Novgorod chronicle there is no information that the knights fell through the ice - they were added only a century after the battle.
On Voronii Island, near which Cape Sigovets is located, due to the peculiarities of the current, there is rather weak ice. This gave rise to some researchers to suggest that the knights could fall through the ice exactly there when they crossed a dangerous area during the retreat.

Where was the massacre?

Researchers to this day cannot accurately establish the place where the Battle of the Ice took place. Novgorod sources, as well as historian Nikolai Kostomarov, say that the battle was near the Raven Stone. But the stone itself has never been found. According to some, it was a high sandstone, washed away over time, others argue that this stone is the Crow Island.
Some researchers are inclined to believe that the massacre is not at all connected with the lake, since the accumulation of a large number of heavily armed warriors and cavalry would make it impossible to conduct a battle on thin April ice.
In particular, these conclusions are based on the Livonian rhymed chronicle, which reports that "on both sides, the dead fell on the grass." This fact is also supported by modern research using the latest equipment on the bottom of Lake Peipsi, during which neither weapons nor armor of the XIII century were found. The excavations also failed on the shore. However, this is not difficult to explain: armor and weapons were very valuable booty, and even damaged ones could be quickly carried away.
However, back in Soviet times, the expeditionary group of the Institute of Archeology of the Academy of Sciences, led by Georgy Karaev, established the alleged place of the battle. According to researchers, this was a section of the Warm Lake, located 400 meters west of Cape Sigovets.

Number of parties

Soviet historians, determining the number of forces clashed on Lake Peipsi, state that the troops of Alexander Nevsky numbered approximately 15-17 thousand people, and the number of German knights reached 10-12 thousand.
Modern researchers consider such figures to be clearly overestimated. In their opinion, the order could give no more than 150 knights, who were joined by about 1.5 thousand knights (soldiers) and 2 thousand militias. They were opposed by squads from Novgorod and Vladimir in the amount of 4-5 thousand soldiers.
It is rather difficult to determine the true balance of forces, since the number of German knights is not indicated in the annals. But they can be counted by the number of castles in the Baltic, which, according to historians, in the middle of the XIII century was no more than 90.
Each castle was owned by one knight, who could take from 20 to 100 people from mercenaries and servants on a campaign. In this case, the maximum number of soldiers, excluding the militia, could not exceed 9 thousand people. But, most likely, the real figures are much more modest, since some of the knights died in the Battle of Legnica the year before.
With confidence, modern historians can only say one thing: none of the opposing sides had significant superiority. Perhaps Lev Gumilyov was right, assuming that the Russians and the Teutons gathered 4 thousand soldiers each.

By the middle of the 13th century, the Eastern Baltic became a place of conflict of interests of several geopolitical players at once. Short truces gave way to outbreaks of hostilities, which sometimes escalated into real battles. One of the greatest events in history was the Battle of Lake Peipus.

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background

The main center of power in medieval Europe was the Roman Catholic Church. The Pope of Rome possessed unlimited power, had colossal financial resources, moral authority and could remove any ruler from the throne.

The crusades organized by the popes in Palestine for a long time were in a fever throughout the Middle East. After the defeat of the crusaders, the lull was short-lived. The pagan Baltic tribes became the object, which was to taste the "European values".

As a result of the active preaching of the Word of Christ, the pagans were partly exterminated, some were baptized. The Prussians are gone.

The Teutonic Order settled on the territory of modern Latvia and Estonia, whose vassal was the Livonian Order (the former clan of the Swordsmen). It had a common border with the feudal republics of Russia.

States of medieval Russia

Mr. Veliky Novgorod and the Pskov state had their own views on the Baltic. Even Yaroslav the Wise founded the Yuryev fortress on the land of the Estonians. The Novgorodians, having subjugated the frontier Finno-Ugric tribes, made their way to the sea, where they encountered Scandinavian competitors.

In the 12th century, there were several waves of Danish invasion of the Baltic lands. Systematically capturing the territory of the Estonians, the Danes settled in the north and the islands of the Moonsund archipelago. Their goal was to turn the Baltic Sea into a "Danish lake". The Swedish expeditionary force, with which Alexander Nevsky fought, had the same goals as the Novgorodians.

The Swedes were defeated. However, for Alexander Yaroslavich himself, the victory on the Neva turned into an unexpected "surprise": the Novgorod elite, fearing the strengthening of the prince's influence, forced him to leave the city.

Composition and forces of the opposing sides

Lake Peipsi became a place of clash between Novgorodians and Livonians, but there were much more parties interested and involved in this event. On the side of the Europeans were:

1. Livonian Landmaster of the Teutonic Order (what is commonly called the Livonian Order). His cavalry took a direct part in the conflict.
2. Bishopric of Derpt (an autonomous part of the Order). The war was going on in his territory. The city of Derpt fielded a foot militia. The role of the foot soldiers is not fully understood.
3. The Teutonic Order, which carried out the overall leadership.
4. The throne of Rome - provided financial support, as well as a moral and ethical justification for European expansion to the East.

Forces against the Germans were not homogeneous. The army consisted of representatives of different lands, who had their own convictions. Among them were those who adhered to traditional pre-Christian beliefs.

Important! Many of the participants in the battle were not Christians.

Forces of the Orthodox-Slavic military alliance:

1. Mr Veliky Novgorod. Nominally, it was the main military component. Novgorodians carried out material supply and provided rear services, they were also infantrymen during the battle.
2. Pskov feudal republic. Initially, it acted in alliance with Novgorod, then stepped aside, taking a neutral position. Some Pskov volunteers fought on the side of Novgorod.
3. Vladimir-Suzdal principality. Direct military ally of Alexander Nevsky.
4. Volunteers from among the Prussians, Curonians and other Baltic tribes. Being pagans, they were highly motivated to go to war against the Catholics.

The main military force of the Russians was the squad of Alexander Nevsky.

Enemy tactics

The Livonians chose an opportune moment to start the war. Strategically, the Russian lands were an ineffective dynastic union, whose members had no other connections than mutual grievances and claims.

The unsuccessful war reduced Russia to a semi-subordinate state to other states.

Tactically, the matter seemed no less winning. The Novgorodians who drove Alexander away were good merchants, but not soldiers.

Their loose, poorly trained militia was not capable of meaningful and sustained fighting. There were no experienced governors (military specialists - professionals capable of commanding troops). There was no question of any unified management. The Novgorod veche, with all the positive aspects, did not contribute to the strengthening of state structures.

Another important "trump card" of the Livonians was the presence of agents of influence. In Novgorod itself, there were supporters of maximum rapprochement with the Catholics, but the Pskovites had much more of them.

Role of Pskov

The Pskov Republic carried the greatest losses from the Slavic-German conflict. Being at the very turn of the confrontation, the Pskovites were the first to come under attack. A small territory with limited resources was increasingly burdened by this situation. Both the government and the population, especially the rural population, had a place.

The beginning of the war

In August 1240, the crusaders became more active, capturing the city of Izborsk. The few Pskov detachments that tried to recapture it were dispersed, and Pskov itself was besieged.

After negotiations, the gates were opened, the Germans left their representatives in the city. Obviously, some agreements were concluded, according to which the Pskov lands passed into the enemy zone of influence.

In the official national history, the behavior of Pskov is characterized as shameful and treacherous. However, it should be borne in mind that it was a sovereign state that had the right to enter into any kind of alliances with any side. Politically, Pskov was as independent as Novgorod or any Russian principality. Pskovians had the right to choose with whom to make alliances.

Attention! Novgorod did not help his ally.

Novgorodians also proved incapable of countering the enemy on the coast. Not far from the sea, the Livonians built a wooden fortress (Koporye) and imposed tribute on the local tribes. This move went unanswered.

Alexander Nevsky came to the rescue

“Prince Alexander came to Novgorod, and for the sake of Novogorodtsy’s former,” says the chronicle. Realizing that the further development of events could lead to a sad outcome, the authorities of Novgorod asked for help. The Grand Duke of Vladimir sent them a detachment of cavalry. However, only Alexander Yaroslavich, with whom the Novgorodians recently clashed, could handle the germans.

The young military leader, who had recently tested the sword on the Swedes, acted quickly. In 1241, his squad, reinforced by a militia of Karelians, Izhors and Novgorodians themselves, approached Koporye. The fortress was taken and destroyed. Some of the captured Germans Alexander released. And the Vod (a small Baltic people) and Chud (Estonians), the winner hung up as traitors. The immediate threat to Novgorod was eliminated. We had to choose the place of the next strike.

Liberation of Pskov

The city was well fortified. The prince did not storm the fortified fort, even having received reinforcements from Suzdal. In addition, the enemy garrison was small. The Livonians relied on their Pskov henchmen.

After a short skirmish, the German army was blocked, the soldiers laid down their arms. Alexander left the Germans for later ransom, and the Russian traitors and Estonians ordered to hang. Then the path went to Izborsk, which was also liberated.

In a short time, the territory was cleared of uninvited guests. Before the prince's retinue was a foreign land. Pushing forward the vanguard, for reconnaissance and robbery, Alexander entered the borders of Livonia. Soon the advance detachment stumbled upon the enemy cavalry, retreating after a fleeting battle. The opponents learned the location of each other and began to prepare for battle.

Great battle

Both sides relied on heavy cavalry. At the time described troop efficiency(briefly) estimated as follows:

1. Regular heavy cavalry. Striking force of almost any European army.
2. Feudal militia. Knights who served a certain number of days. Unlike the regular cavalry, they had low discipline and did not know how to fight on horseback.
3. Regular infantry. Almost absent. Archers were the exception.
4. Foot militia. The Europeans were almost absent, and in the states of medieval Russia it was forced to be used quite widely. Its combat effectiveness was very low. A hundred knights could defeat thousands of irregular infantry.

The Order and Alexander Nevsky had at hand armored horsemen with iron discipline and many years of training. It was they who fought on April 5, 1242 on the shores of Lake Peipus. This date has become a landmark for Russian history.

The course of hostilities

The knightly cavalry crushed the center of the Novgorod army, which consisted of infantrymen. However, the uncomfortable terrain forced the Crusaders slow down. They got stuck in a static cabin, stretching the front more and more. The Derpt foot militia, which could have balanced the forces, did not come to the rescue.

Having no room to maneuver, the cavalry lost its “move” and found itself squeezed into a small, inconvenient space for combat. Then the squad of Prince Alexander struck. The place of its deployment, according to legend, was the island of Raven Stone. This turned the tide of the battle.

The Order's cavalry retreated. The Russian cavalry pursued the enemy for several kilometers, and then, having collected the prisoners, returned to the banner of Prince Alexander Yaroslavich. Nevsky won the battle. The victory was complete and received a loud name - Battle of the Ice.

Data on the exact location of the battle, the number of participants, losses vary. The scheme of the Battle on the Ice is approximate. There are different versions of the event. Including those who deny the very fact of the battle.

Meaning

The victory over the knights significantly reduced the pressure on the borders of the Russian lands. Novgorod defended access to the sea and continued profitable trade with Europe. An important moral and political aspect of the victory was the failure of the plans of the Roman Church to penetrate Catholicism into the East. The border between Western and Russian civilizations was established. With minor changes, it still exists today.

Secrets and mysteries of the battle on Lake Peipsi

Alexander Nevsky, battle on the ice

Conclusion

Another important significance of the battle should be noted. After a long series of defeats, the Mongol invasion and national humiliation, won a resounding victory. The significance of the Battle on the Ice is that, in addition to military success, a significant psychological effect was achieved. From now on, Russia realized that it was capable of defeating the most powerful enemy.

In a fierce battle on Lake Peipsi on April 5, 1242, the Novgorod warriors under the command of Prince Alexander Nevsky won a significant victory over the army of the Livonian Order. If we say briefly “Battle on the Ice”, then even a fourth-grade student will understand what is at stake. The battle under this name is of great historical significance. That is why its date is one of the days of military glory.

At the end of 1237, the Pope proclaimed the 2nd Crusade to Finland. Taking advantage of this plausible pretext, in 1240 the Livonian Order captured Izborsk, and then Pskov. When the threat hung over Novgorod in 1241, at the request of the inhabitants of the city, Prince Alexander led the defense of Russian lands from the invaders. He led an army to the Koporye fortress and took it by storm..

In March of the following year, his younger brother, Prince Andrei Yaroslavich, came to his aid from Suzdal with his retinue. Together, the princes recaptured Pskov from the enemy.

After that, the Novgorod army moved to the Derpt bishopric, which was located on the territory of modern Estonia. In Derpt (now Tartu), Bishop Hermann von Buxgevden, the brother of the commander of the order, ruled. The main forces of the crusaders were concentrated in the vicinity of the city. The German knights met with the advance detachment of the Novgorodians and defeated them. They were forced to retreat to the frozen lake.

Troop formation

The united army of the Livonian Order, Danish knights and Chudi (Baltic-Finnish tribes) was built in the form of a wedge. Sometimes such a formation is called a boar's head or a pig. The calculation is made to break the enemy's battle formations and wedge into them.

Alexander Nevsky, assuming a similar construction of the enemy, chose the layout of his main forces on the flanks. The correctness of this decision was shown by the outcome of the battle on Lake Peipsi. The date April 5, 1242 is of decisive historical importance..

The course of the battle

At sunrise, the German army under the command of Master Andreas von Felphen and Bishop Hermann von Buxgevden moved towards the enemy.

As can be seen from the battle diagram, archers were the first to enter the battle with the crusaders. They fired at the enemies, who were well protected by armor, so under the pressure of the enemy, the archers had to retreat. The Germans began to push the middle of the Russian army.

At this time, a regiment of left and right hands hit the crusaders from both flanks. The attack was unexpected for the enemy, his battle formations lost harmony, and confusion ensued. At this moment, the squad of Prince Alexander attacked the Germans from the rear. Now the enemy was surrounded and began a retreat, which soon turned into a flight. Russian soldiers pursued the fleeing seven miles.

Side losses

As with any military action, both sides suffered heavy losses. Information about them is rather contradictory - depending on the source:

• The Livonian rhymed chronicle mentions 20 dead knights and 6 captured;
• The Novgorod First Chronicle reports 400 Germans killed and 50 prisoners, as well as a large number of those killed among the Chud "and the pade of Chudi beschisla";
• The chronicle of grandmasters gives data on the fallen seventy knights of the "70 order gentlemen", "seuentich Ordens Herenn", but this is the total number of those killed in the battle on Lake Peipsi and during the liberation of Pskov.

Most likely, the Novgorod chronicler, in addition to the knights, also counted their combatants, which is why there are such big differences in the chronicle: we are talking about different dead.

Data on the losses of the Russian troops is also very vague. “Many brave warriors fell,” our sources say. The Livonian Chronicle says that for every German who died, there were 60 Russians killed.

As a result of two historical victories of Prince Alexander (on the Neva over the Swedes in 1240 and on Lake Peipsi), the Crusaders managed to prevent the capture of Novgorod and Pskov lands by the crusaders. In the summer of 1242, ambassadors from the Livonian department of the Teutonic Order arrived in Novgorod and signed a peace treaty, in which they refused to encroach on Russian lands.

About these events in 1938 the feature film "Alexander Nevsky" was created. The battle on the ice went down in history as an example of military art. The brave prince was ranked among the saints by the Russian Orthodox Church.

For Russia, this event plays a big role in the patriotic education of young people. The school begins to study the topic of this fight in the 4th grade. Children will find out in what year the Battle of the Ice took place, with whom they fought, mark on the map the place where the Crusaders were defeated.

In the 7th grade, students are already working on this historical event in more detail: they draw tables, battle diagrams with symbols, make reports and reports on this topic, write essays and essays, read an encyclopedia.

The meaning of the battle on the lake can be judged by the way it is represented in different types of art:

According to the old calendar, the battle took place on April 5, and in the new one - on April 18. On this date, the day of the victory of the Russian soldiers of Prince Alexander Nevsky over the crusaders was legally established. However, a discrepancy of 13 days is valid only in the interval from 1900 to 2100. In the 13th century the difference would have been only 7 days. Therefore, the actual anniversary of the event falls on April 12. But as you know, this date was staked out by the cosmonauts.

According to the doctor of historical sciences Igor Danilevsky, the significance of the battle on Lake Peipus is greatly exaggerated. Here are his arguments:

A well-known expert on medieval Russia, Englishman John Fennel, and a German historian specializing in Eastern Europe, Dietmar Dahlmann, agree with him. The latter wrote that the significance of this ordinary battle was inflated in order to form a national myth in which Prince Alexander was appointed the defender of Orthodoxy and Russian lands.

The famous Russian historian V. O. Klyuchevsky did not even mention this battle in his scientific works, probably due to the insignificance of the event.

Data on the number of participants in the fight is also contradictory. Soviet historians believed that about 10-12 thousand people fought on the side of the Livonian Order and their allies, and the Novgorod army was about 15-17 thousand warriors.

At present, most historians are inclined to believe that there were no more than sixty Livonian and Danish knights on the side of the order. Taking into account their squires and servants, this is approximately 600 - 700 people plus Chud, about the number of which there is no data in the annals. According to many historians, there were no more than a thousand Chuds, and about 2500-3000 Russian soldiers. There is another curious circumstance. Some researchers reported that Tatar troops sent by Khan Batu helped Alexander Nevsky in the battle on Lake Peipus.

In 1164 there was a military clash near Ladoga. At the end of May, the Swedes sailed to the city on 55 ships and laid siege to the fortress. Less than a week later, Novgorod prince Svyatoslav Rostislavich arrived with his army to help the Ladoga residents. He committed a real Ladoga massacre to uninvited guests. According to the testimony of the Novgorod First Chronicle, the enemy was defeated and put to flight. It was a real rout. The victors captured 43 ships out of 55 and many prisoners.

For comparison: in the famous battle on the Neva River in 1240, Prince Alexander took neither prisoners nor enemy ships. The Swedes buried the dead, took the loot and departed home, but now this event is forever associated with the name of Alexander.

Some researchers question the fact that the battle took place on ice. It is also considered speculation that during the flight the crusaders fell through the ice. In the first edition of the Novgorod chronicle and in the Livonian chronicle, nothing is written about this. This version is also supported by the fact that nothing was found at the bottom of the lake in the supposed place of the battle, confirming the "under-ice" version.

In addition, it is not known exactly where the Battle of the Ice took place. Briefly and in detail about this can be found in various sources. According to the official point of view, the battle took place on the western shore of Cape Sigovets in the southeastern part of Lake Peipus. This place was identified based on the results of a scientific expedition in 1958−59 headed by G. N. Karaev. At the same time, it should be noted that no archaeological finds have been found that unequivocally confirm the conclusions of scientists.

There are other points of view about the place of the battle. In the eighties of the twentieth century, an expedition led by I. E. Koltsov also investigated the alleged battle site using dowsing methods. The proposed burial places of the fallen soldiers were marked on the map. According to the results of the expedition, Koltsov put forward a version that the main battle took place between the villages of Kobylye settlement, Samolva, Tabory and the Zhelcha River.

He defeated the army of the Livonian Order. In contrast to the laconic and restrained German chronicles, in the Russian chronicles the events on Lake Peipus are described on an epic scale. “And the Nemtsy and Chud came to the regiment, and pierced through the regiment like a pig, and the slaughter was great by the German and Chudi,” narrates the Life of Alexander Nevsky. The battle on the ice has long been the subject of controversy among historians. The discussion was about the exact location of the battle, and about the number of participants.

Chronicle of the legendary battle that forced the Germans to stop their expansion to the East:

In August 1240, the Livonian Order began a campaign against Russia. The knights captured Izborsk, Pskov and the coast of the Gulf of Finland. In 1241, Prince Alexander Nevsky of Novgorod gathered an army. Warriors from Suzdal and Vladimir arrive to help him. Alexander recaptures Pskov and Izborsk, the Livonian knights retreat to Lake Peipus.

Most of the enemy forces were Estonians - in Russian-language sources "chud". The vast majority of Estonians were not professional soldiers and were poorly armed. In terms of numbers, detachments from enslaved peoples significantly outnumbered the German knights.

The battle on Lake Peipsi began with the performance of Russian riflemen. Ahead, Nevsky placed a regiment of light cavalry, archers and slingers. The main forces were concentrated on the flanks. The prince's cavalry squad was in ambush behind the left flank.

The German cavalry broke through the enemy line. The Russians attacked her from both flanks, which forced the other detachments of the Order to retreat. The squad of Alexander Nevsky struck from the rear. The battle broke up into separate pockets. “And Nemzi that padosha, and Chyud dasha splashing; and, chasing, bish them for 7 versts along the ice to the Subolichsky coast, ”it is said in the Novgorod First Chronicle of the senior version.

Thus, the Russian army pursued the enemy on the ice for 7 versts (more than 7 kilometers). In later sources, information appeared that the Germans went under the ice, but historians still argue about its reliability.

The Novgorod First Chronicle, the Suzdal and Laurentian Chronicles, "The Life of Alexander Nevsky" tell about the Battle of the Ice. For a long time, researchers have been debating the exact location of the battle; the annals mention that the troops converged on the shores of Lake Peipus at the Voronye stone and the Uzmen tract.

The number of warring parties is unknown. In Soviet times, the following figures appeared: up to 12 thousand soldiers of the Livonian Order and up to 17 thousand people from Alexander Nevsky. Other sources indicate that up to 5 thousand people fought on the side of the Russians. About 450 knights were killed in the battle.

The victory on Lake Peipsi delayed the German offensive for a long time and was of great importance for Novgorod and Pskov, which suffered from Western invaders. The Livonian Order was forced to make peace, renouncing their territorial claims.