Event date: 08/11/1378
A battle took place on the banks of the Vozha River, which had a significant impact on the domestic political situation and the international position of the Russian state. The battle, in which large military forces participated, was the dress rehearsal for the Battle of Kulikovo.
In the 70s. 14th century Moscow is taking a number of measures to stop internal feudal wars in the country, which significantly increased the possibilities for fighting to overthrow the Tatar-Mongol yoke. The southern and southeastern borders of the state are being strengthened. This contributed to the suppression of the predatory raids of the Tatars on Russian lands. The independent policy of the Moscow Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich caused discontent in the Horde. Horde khans take countermeasures to weaken the military and economic power of the Russian state. For this purpose, punitive expeditions are carried out.
In 1378, Mamai sent a large detachment of Murza Begich into a predatory raid on Moscow. Begich quickly marched deep into the Ryazan lands to the river. Vozhi. The large Ryazan cities of Pronsk, Pereyaslavl, Staraya Ryazan remained in his rear. By such a maneuver, the Tatars probably sought to separate the forces of the Ryazan and Moscow principalities. The people of Ryazan were able to warn Muscovites of the imminent danger in time. Dmitry Ivanovich quickly gathers military force and in a short time advances towards the Tatars. Prince Daniil from Pron came to his aid with an army.
Approaching the Vozha, Begich did not expect to meet a large Russian army here, so the confrontation of the troops on the banks of the river continued for several days. For a long time Begich did not dare to start the crossing in full view of the Russians.
Dmitry Ivanovich used a military trick: he withdrew a large regiment from the banks of the Vozha, and two flank regiments secretly took up positions on the sides of the crossing. One wing was commanded by Timofey Velyaminov, the other by Daniil Pronsky, a large regiment was led by the Moscow prince himself. After the Tatars began crossing on August 11, the Russians dealt a crushing blow with all their might. After a fierce battle, the enemy turned to flight. The destruction was complete. Many Tatar warriors remained on the battlefield, and many drowned in the river. The large number of the Tatar army is evidenced by the fact that only five Horde Murzas were killed. Only the coming night did not allow to pursue the enemy who had fled in a panic. The Russians got large war trophies and the entire convoy.
Victory in the battle on the river. Vozhe was won by the joint efforts of the Moscow and Ryazan regiments. For the support of Moscow, the Ryazan principality was severely plundered in the autumn of 1378. The attack was led by Mamai himself. Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky was taken and plundered, the district was devastated, many residents were taken into captivity. For a long time, historians have tried to determine the exact place where the battle took place. The works of recent years make it possible to assert, with a high degree of probability, that the battle took place in the area of \u200b\u200bthe modern village of Glebovo-Gorodishche (Rybnovsky district). Here is the stone Church of the Assumption, built in 1694, on the site of which stood a wooden church, mentioned in written sources under 1676. one of the most revered holidays of the Orthodox Church is the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It should be noted that immediately after the Battle of Vozh, the temples of the Assumption were laid in Kolomna, in the monastery on the "Stramyn", in Moscow, near the big Kolomna road in the Simonov Monastery. Historian N.S. Borisov believes that the foundation of these cathedrals was caused not only by the special political significance of the cult of the Mother of God for Moscow, but also by the fact that the battle on the river. Vozhe happened a few days before the celebration of the Assumption of the Mother of God. It is likely that the Church of the Assumption in the village. Glebovo-Gorodishche was erected in honor of the victory of Russian weapons in the Battle of Vozh.
BATTLE ON THE RIVER VOGE
“In the year 1378, the Horde prince, rotten Mamai, having gathered a large army, sent Begich an army against Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich and all the Russian land. Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich, having heard about this, gathered many soldiers and went to meet the enemy with a large and formidable army. And, having crossed the Oka, he entered the land of Ryazan and met the Tatars at the river near Vozha, and both forces stopped, and there was a river between them.
This is how the Tale of the Battle on the Vozha River begins (see Appendix 4 - The Tale of the Battle on the Vozha River). As you can see, Murza Begich was sent precisely to the possessions of Dmitry Ivanovich, and not to Ryazan land. But Prince Dmitry found out about the upcoming campaign and went out to meet the enemy. Let us ask ourselves the question - why did the prince not meet the Tatars on the border of his Moscow principality?
The Vozha River flows into the Oka north of Pereyas-lavl-Ryazansky. Having crossed the Oka and stood behind Vozha, the Muscovites lost the advantage that the deeper Oka could have given them. If the purpose of the actions of Dmitry Ivanovich and his governor is to consider only the defense of Moscow lands, then the most reasonable step for them would be to stand with an army beyond the Oka and attack the Tatars when they begin to cross the river. But Dmitry Ivanovich preferred to carry out the same maneuver not on the Oka, but on the much less full-flowing Vozha.
If we assume that Dmitry Ivanovich suddenly inflamed with love for Oleg Ryazansky and decided to save the Ryazan principality from the Tatar devastation, then again it is not clear why he chose Vozha as the frontier for his troops. After all, standing behind this river, Moscow troops could not prevent the Tatars from plundering most of the Ryazan principality. Oleg's capital, Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, was located south of Vozha, 20 kilometers to the south.
Paiza of a military leader - this could have been given by Mamai to Murza Begich
And where was Oleg Ryazansky himself at that time? Why does not a single chronicle mention the devastation of the Ryazan lands by the Tatars? After all, before, when the Tatars beat the Ryazanians, the annals each time regularly reported this.
In the army that participated in the battle, in addition to the Muscovites, there was also Prince Daniel Pronsky. But about other Ryazan princes, including about the Grand Duke Oleg Ivanovich, the chronicle does not mention a word.
Most likely, the Tatars of Begich passed through the Ryazan land, without touching or ruining anyone (otherwise the chroniclers would not have failed to report this). There was a reason for this. Firstly, a year before, Oleg Ryazansky fought with Arapsha, Mamai's opponent. And secondly, Mamai sent his Murza to Dmitry of Moscow, and not to Oleg Ryazansky. Under such conditions, it would be wise for Begich not to turn the prince of Ryazan against him. Moreover, we believe that Mamai, sending Begich to Moscow, counted not only on neutrality, but also on the active help of his ally, Oleg.
However, in the annalistic reports about the battle on the Vozha, Oleg does not mention any help to the Tatars. One gets the impression that Oleg Ivanovich, and indeed the entire Ryazan principality (with the exception of Pronsk) does not exist at all for the chronicler.
On the other hand, Daniil Pronsky commanded during the battle an entire wing of the Russian army, that is, approximately a third or a quarter of the entire army put up against Begich. It is unlikely that Dmitry Ivanovich would have entrusted Daniel with the command of a large number of his own, Moscow forces. Daniil Pronsky was not a famous commander - until 1378 we do not find any reports about him related to the war. Perhaps he was simply the most noble or most trustworthy prince among the Ryazanians who came to the aid of Muscovites. Apparently, he brought with him not only a personal squad, but also many other soldiers from the Ryazan lands. But this he could not have done without the knowledge and consent of Oleg Ryazansky.
Oleg Ivanovich himself, apparently, quietly sat with his retinue in the capital - Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, and simply waited for how it all would end. He did not want to quarrel with Moscow or fight with Mamai. Oleg Ivanovich understood perfectly well that for open resistance to Begich's army he would be immediately punished by Mamai. And Dmitry Ivanovich of Moscow again will not defend him from the Tatars, as he did not do this in 1373.
So, Oleg took a wait-and-see position. And Dmitry Ivanovich advanced his troops to the borders of the Ryazan principality in order to connect with the detachment of Prince Pronsky, and stood up so that Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky was right behind the Tatars. Probably, Dmitry Ivanovich hoped that Oleg Ivanovich, when the battle began, would attack the Tatars from the rear.
The battle was preceded by standing at the Vozha River: “And they stood, among themselves a river of property. A few days later, the Tatars moved to our side ... ”- writes a Moscow chronicler.
Let's ask ourselves a question - why did the Tatars wait for several days? Perhaps Begich was waiting for reinforcements. But from whom? Mamai had already given him as many troops as he saw fit. Maybe Begich was waiting for Oleg Ivanovich to join his army? But Oleg did not join.
And Begich decides to cross the river in full view of the Russian troops. This is a very risky move. After all, if the army is attacked at the time of the crossing, then it can be easily defeated and thrown into the river. It is unlikely that Mamai sent an inexperienced commander to the war with a dangerous enemy - the Moscow Principality. Nevertheless, Murza decides to cross.
All previous researchers call the fear of Mamai the only motive for this act of Begich. But Begich would not have destroyed himself and the entire army just out of fear of possible punishment, especially since by exposing the army entrusted to him to unjustified risk, he would also inevitably be punished.
A well-known historian and researcher of military affairs of medieval Rus' A.N. Kirpichnikov assumed that the right and left wings of the Russian army before the battle at Vozha were hidden from the eyes of the Tatars in the adjacent ravines and groves, and hit the enemy unexpectedly, from an ambush.
Perhaps Begich, when deciding to cross, did not see all the forces of the Russians and that is why he counted on victory. Or perhaps he was prompted to take decisive action by the incomprehensible position of Oleg Ryazansky. Perhaps Begich began to fear that Oleg, who did not come to his aid, would begin to act against the Tatars.
Of course, strategically, it was more profitable for Begich not to attack the Russian troops in the forehead, but to maneuver - to try to cross the Vozha in another place and impose a battle on the Russians in a more convenient position for themselves. Or just wait for the Russian troops to strike and, during the crossing, overturn them themselves into the river. But behind the back of the Russian army stood all the food resources and the friendly population of Moscow and the northern part of the Ryazan principality. And behind Begich was the Ryazan land. For a long standing on this land, the Tatars needed food, horses, fodder, that is, the active support of Prince Oleg Ivanovich. It is unlikely that Oleg would provide them with all this. Rather, a guerrilla war would have unfolded against the Tatars who had been delayed for too long. They would have had to get food already at the risk of their lives, all the while fearing a surprise attack by Oleg's squad from Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, located just twenty kilometers south of Vozha.
One way or another, but Begich risked crossing the river in front of the enemy and, having crossed on the move on a wide front, attacked the Russian forces.
“After a few days, the Tatars moved to our side and hit their horses, and quickly vanished, and sniffed their voices, and walked on the grounds and poked at ours.
And Timofey (Velyaminov. - Note. auth.) roundabout, and on the other hand, Prince Daniil Pron-sky, and the great prince hit in the face (that is, on the forehead. - Note. auth.). The Tatars, in that hour, threw down their spears and ran across the river for Vozha, and ours after them, beating them and whipping and prickly ... "
Thus, the Russians rushed at Begich, who attacked them in the forehead, simultaneously from three sides. There was an oncoming cavalry battle on spears. And the Tatars, unable to withstand the flank attacks, threw down their spears and rushed to their heels.
Battle on the Vozha River. Miniature from the 16th century Facial Vault.
“Here are the names of their murdered princes: Khazibey, Koverga, Karabuluk, Kostrov, Begichka,” writes a Moscow chronicler. Apparently, these Horde princes, in order to maintain the spirit of their soldiers, were in the forefront of the attacking Tatar cavalry. And the Tatars fled precisely after the death of most of their leaders. The Russians did not come cheap either. In the battle on the Vozha, the Russian governors Monastyrev and Kusakov died, and with them a large number of ordinary warriors.
However, having defeated the enemy, the Russians did not dare to immediately pursue him. Perhaps the Russian governors and princes feared that the flight of the Tatars was feigned, and, having set off in pursuit of them, they would fall into an ambush.
“And when the evening came, and the sun went down, and the light grew dim, and night fell, and it became dark, it was impossible to chase them across the river. And the next day in the morning there was heavy fog. And the Tatars, as they ran in the evening, continued to run all night. The great prince on this day only in the pre-dinner time went after them, chasing them, and they had already fled far ... ”the chronicler writes further.
Thus, the Russians did not pursue the Tatars across the river. Some researchers suggest that the battle was protracted and lasted until the evening or even until the night. But the oncoming cavalry battle simply cannot be protracted. This is the most fleeting and most bloody type of cavalry battle for both sides. Rather, it can be assumed that, having attacked Begich's troops from three sides, the Russians coped with them surprisingly quickly, which could give them the impression that they had now defeated not the entire Tatar army, but only part of it. They suspected that the flight of the Tatars was feigned. That is why the prince did not dare to give the order to pursue the Tatar army until lunch the next day.
Bakhterets found on the Vozha River
The destruction of Ryazan by the Tatars. Miniature from the 16th century Facial Vault.
And only after making sure that it was really the whole army of Begich and that it was really defeated, Dmitry Ivanovich ordered to start pursuing the enemy. The Russian troops, of course, have not caught up with the Tatars. But on the other hand, they found a convoy abandoned by them in the steppe. The Tatars, apparently, did not doubt for a second that the Russian troops were rushing after them, and that is why they abandoned all their property.
In the same autumn, Mamai made a devastating raid on the Ryazan lands and ruined the capital of the principality. Prince Oleg did not lock himself in Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, but instead, went with his retinue to the northern part of the Ryazan principality, beyond the Oka.
The Mamaev Tatars burned the Ryazan capital and other cities, and, having ruined the Ryazan land, returned to the steppe. According to Mamai, attacking the Moscow principality, and even pursuing Oleg Ivanovich beyond the Oka, having the hostile Ryazan land behind him, was useless and even dangerous.
“Oleg Ryazansky, after the departure of the Tatars, saw his land empty and burned by fire, and all his wealth and the Tatars’ estate were taken and deeply saddened, and those few people who escaped from the full Tatar began to move in and create dwellings in the land of Ryazan, since the whole land was empty and burned by fire.
This devastating raid, according to Mamai, was supposed to make Oleg Ivanovich more accommodating next time. Apparently, after the raid, some kind of correspondence and exchange of ambassadors took place between Oleg Ivanovich and Mamai. At least in 1380, Mamai was convinced that Oleg of Ryazan had become his faithful ally.
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On the part of the Horde troops, the following commanders, murzas, noyons and temniks participated in the battle: Begich (Begichka), Khazibey, Kavergui, Karabuluk, Kostruk (Kostrov). Historians estimate the number of Horde troops at 5 tumens, or 10 thousand people.
From the side of the Russian troops: Grand Duke Vladimir, Moscow and Novgorod Dmitry Ivanovich, princes Vladimir Andreevich Serpukhovskoy and Daniil Vladimirovich Pronsky, roundabout Timofey Vasilyevich Velyaminov, as well as Moscow governors Dmitry Alexandrovich Monastyrev, Nazar Danilovich Kusakov and others.
The route of the Horde: Crimea - Lower river. Don - the middle course of the Vozha River near the villages of Palnye and Glebovo-Gorodishche - Crimea.
Prerequisites
Begich did not dare to cross the river in full view of the Russian army and, according to the chronicler, "stood for many days." Then Dmitry Ivanovich himself decided to move away from the river, to “give up the bank” to the Horde in order to force them into a “direct battle”. Begich fell into a trap.
According to the historian of military art E. A. Razin, the Horde could not cross the river blocked by the Russians, and did it on the flanks, and then hit from the north. In any case, the onslaught of the Tatar cavalry was repulsed, and the Russians, who fought in a semicircular formation, launched a counteroffensive. According to the chronicler, the Horde could not stand it and “they ran across the river for Vozha, throwing their spears, and ours followed them, chasing them, they were beaten, flogged, stabbed and cut in half, and they killed many of them, and others drowned in the river”. Further pursuit and complete defeat of the retreating managed to avoid thanks to the onset of darkness. The next morning there was heavy fog, and only after it dissipated, the Russian army crossed the river and captured the convoy abandoned by the Horde. Four Horde princes and Begich himself were killed in the battle.
Consequences
The battle on the Vozha was the first serious victory of the troops of North-Eastern Rus' over a large army of the Golden Horde and was of great psychological significance. The military threat of an attack by the Horde into the depths of North-Eastern Rus', Ryazan and Pronsky principalities was eliminated. She demonstrated the vulnerability of the Tatar cavalry, which could not withstand a staunch defense and decisive retaliatory strikes. For Mamai, the defeat on Vozha from Prince Dmitry Ivanovich was a serious blow, after which he began to rapidly lose his position in favor of Tokhtamysh, as well as the reason for the ruin of the Ryazan principality in 1379 and the campaign against Dmitry Ivanovich himself in 1380, with a significant involvement of mercenaries. There is news that Mamai's advisers told him: Your horde is impoverished, your strength is exhausted; but you have a lot of wealth, go hire Genoese, Circassians, Yases and other peoples» .
Karl Marx praised the battle on the Vozha River in his Chronological Extracts:
“On August 11, 1378, Dmitry Donskoy completely defeated the Mongols on the Vozha River (in the Ryazan region). This is the first proper battle with the Mongols won by the Russians.
There is a version (V. A. Kuchkin), according to which the story of Sergius of Radonezh blessing Dmitry Donskoy to fight Mamai does not refer to the Battle of Kulikovo, but to the battle on the Vozha River, and later, when compiling the life of the saint, was attributed to the Battle of Kulikovo, as to a more significant event. Among those killed in the battle on the Vozha, Dmitry Monastyrev is mentioned, whose death is also known in the Battle of Kulikovo.
In retaliation for the defeat of the Horde army on the Vozha, where Ryazan troops under the command of Daniil Vladimirovich Pronsky took part, Khan Mamai already in September 1378 undertook a campaign and ravaged Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, Dubok and their volosts.
perished
monuments
- In the village of Glebovo-Gorodishche, not far from the Vozha River, a monument was erected to the defenders of the Russian land, which is a peak stuck into the ground with shields installed on them from three sides, on which the coats of arms of the Ryazan, Moscow and Pronsky principalities are located, each looking towards their own land. The inscription on the pedestal reads:
- Every year, at the beginning of August, the Battle on the Vozha River festival takes place at the battle site, during which the reconstruction of the battle is carried out by historical clubs. This is preceded by the festival of historical clubs "Vozhskaya Battle"
- In honor of the victory of the Russian army
13:24 — REGNUM
Battle on the Vozha River. 1378 Miniature of the front chronicle. 70s 16th century
1378 year. On August 11, the Russian army of Dmitry Donskoy defeated the Horde in the battle on the Vozha River
“In August 1375, Demetrius and his allies entered the land of Tver, took Mikulin, besieged Tver. He stood there for four weeks, and meanwhile his soldiers burned villages in the Tver region, poisoned bread in the fields, killed people or drove them into captivity. Michael, not waiting for help from anywhere, sent Vladyka Euthymius to Demetrius to ask for peace. It seemed that the most favorable moment had come to put an end forever to the difficult and ruinous struggle against the irreconcilable enemy, to destroy the Tver reign, to annex the Tver land directly to Moscow and thereby ensure the internal peace of Rus' from this side. But Demetrius was content with the forced humility of the enemy, who, in extreme trouble, was ready to agree to any humiliating treaty, if only there was an opportunity to violate it in the future. Mikhail undertook for himself and his heirs to be in such relations with Moscow as Vladimir Andreevich was, to consider the Moscow prince the oldest, to go to war or send his governors on the orders of the Moscow prince, not to seek and not accept from the khan the grand ducal dignity, to renounce the union with Olgerd and not help him if he goes to the prince of Smolensk for his participation in the war against Tver. Mikhail pledged not to intervene in the affairs of the Kashin land, and thus the Tver land was divided from that time on into two independent halves, and the power of Mikhail Alexandrovich extended only to one of these halves. To satisfy Novgorod, the prince of Tver was obliged to return the church and private property plundered in Torzhok, and to free all the people of Novgorod, whom he had enslaved to himself by means of letters. Mikhail undertook to return to Novgorod all the lands bought by his boyars, and all goods ever seized from the Novgorod guests. Finally, what is most important in this treaty, it was decided in relation to the Tatars that if it was decided to live in peace with them and give them a way out, then Michael should give, and if the Tatars go to Moscow or Tver, then both sides should be at the same time against them; if the Moscow prince himself wants to go against the Tatars, then the Tver prince must go along with the Moscow one. Thus, Moscow, having previously risen exclusively by Tatar power, now already had so much of its own power that it obliged the princes of other lands to obey it in the war against the Tatars themselves.The unfortunate fugitives, who had incited Michael to a new struggle with Demetrius, were, by agreement, betrayed by Michael to their fate. All other boyars and servants of both lands were granted a free departure, and the princes were not supposed to "intercede" in their villages, and the estates of Ivan and Nekomat were provided without exception to the Moscow prince. A few years after that, they themselves were lured by cunning and brought to Moscow. There, on the Kuchkov field (where the Sretensky Monastery is now), on August 30, 1379, a public death penalty was carried out over them, as far as is known - the first in Moscow. The people looked with sadness at the death of Ivan, a handsome young man; along with Ivan's head, all the cherished traditions of ancient veche freedom were cut off for him. His execution, however, did not prevent his brothers from serving Demetrius and being governor of him. The pacification of the prince of Tver irritated Olgerd, but not against Demetrius, but against the prince of Smolensk, because the latter, whom he considered already his henchman, participated in the war against Mikhail. Olgerd devastated the Smolensk land in revenge and took many people prisoner. Much more irritated for Tver, Mamai and, moreover, for all Russian princes in general: he saw a clear disregard for his power; his last label, given to Mikhail, was put to nothing by the Russians. Then one Tatar detachment attacked the Nizhny Novgorod land, announcing her punishment for the fact that her army went to the Tver land; another detachment for the same devastated the land of Novosilsk. Following that, in 1377, the Tatar prince Arapsha from the Mamaev Horde again attacked the Nizhny Novgorod land. The united Suzdal and Moscow armies, by their own oversight, were defeated near the Pyana River, and the capture and ruin of Nizhny Novgorod was the result of this defeat. Finally, in 1378, Mamai sent Murza Begich to the Grand Duke. His militia went through the Ryazan land. The Grand Duke warned Begich, having crossed the Oka, entered the Ryazan land; here, on the banks of the Vozha River, on August 11, the Tatars were utterly defeated.
Here, Olgerd's son Andrey appeared as an associate of Demetrius. Olgerd was no longer alive. The militant prince not only converted to Christianity, but before his death took the veil as a monk and died, as they say, a schemer. Andrei Olgerdovich did not get along with his father's successor, his half-brother Jagello, and fled to Pskov, where he was planted as a prince, and then served with the Pskovites in Moscow against the Tatars. After the Vozh battle, this prince, together with Vladimir Andreevich and the governor (sometimes called the prince in the annals) Dimitri Mikhailovich Bobrok, a Volhynian, took the cities of Trubchevsk and Starodub in the Seversk land with their volosts, which were under the rule of Lithuania. Andrei's brother, Prince Dimitri Olgerdovich, who reigned in Bryansk and Trubchevsk, also dissatisfied with Jagiello, voluntarily surrendered to the hand of the Grand Duke, who gave him Pereyaslavl-Zalessky with all the duties, that is, princely income. These hostile attitudes towards Lithuania aroused enmity against Moscow on the part of Olgerdov's successor Jagiello and forced him to enter into an alliance against her with Mamai.
After the Vozh battle, Mamai first of all punished the Ryazan land, because the defeat of the Tatars took place in the Ryazan land. The Tatar hordes broke in there, devastated many villages, took many people into captivity and burned Pereyaslavl Ryazan. Oleg did not have time to gather his strength and ran away, and then, in order not to endanger his parish again, he went to the khan, bowed to him and promised to faithfully serve Mamai against Moscow.
Quoted from: Kostomarov N.I. Russian history in the biographies of its main figures. Moscow: Astrel, 2006
History in faces
Chronicle according to the Typographic list:
In the summer of 6886, Tatarov went into exile to Novgorod Nizhny. The prince, however, was not on the city, but on Gorodets, and the citizens, having fallen over the city, ran across the Volga. And Prince Dmitry sent to the Tatars, giving them a payback from the city. They did not take the payback and burned the city. And departed, having fought Berezov, the Field and the county were all and did a lot of evil and went away. About the massacre, like on Vozhi. That same summer, the Orda prince Mamai was filthy, having gathered in many ways the ambassador Begych to the army against the Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich and the whole Russian land. Behold, having heard the great prince Dmitry Ivanovich, and having gathered a lot, and went against them with his great strength. And crossed the river Oka and went to the land of Ryazan and met with the Tatars on the river on Vozha. And I stood between myself about the river of Vozha for a few days, then Tatarov crossed over to this side and hit his horses, shouting and jumping in the borz and then walking on the ground; Rustians also poured half a dozen against them. And strike them from the side, Prince Danilo Pronsky, and Timothy, the grand duke's roundabouts, from the other side, and the great prince from the shelf with his face. Tatarov, at that hour, damaged his copy and ran across the Vozhya River, and the great prince chased them from his regiment, beating them, and a lot of beating them, and in the river was a heap. And these are the names of the beaten Tatar princes: Khazibiy, Koverga, Karubuluk, Kostrok, Begichka. After that, evening came and the sun went down and it was night, and do not run after them across the river. In the morning, the darkness was great, and Tatarov ran away like that from evening and through the whole night running. The great prince, on the morning, already before dinner, went after them, following them, and, walking far behind them, having found their courts and their tents and their tents and their carts in poly, and in them there is a lot of goods, then everything is crushed, but they themselves are not found, Byahu, for such people ran to the Horde. Then, in the war, that certain priest, who came from the Horde, Ioannov Vasilyevich, was taken away from him, and obtained from him a bag of evil and fierce potions and tortured him a lot and sent him into confinement on Lake Lache, where Danil the Imprisoner would be. The Grand Duke Dmitri Ivanovich returned to Moscow with a great victory and with much self-interest, and let the army loose every time. Then Dmitry Monastyrov and Nazar Danilov Kusakova were killed at that battle. There was a massacre of this month of August at 11, on Wednesday, at evening. Oh, they are Ishmaelteni, who ate a widosh with that battle, having run to the Horde to their king, and even more so to Mamai who sent them, since the king imakh in his own Horde is not in possession of anything before Mamai, but all the elders are restrained by Mamai and rule over everything in the Horde. Seeing Mamai the exhaustion of those sent from him, the beating of the princes of Ordinsky and the many bent in them, and he got angry and gathered his residual strength and went exiled to the Ryazan land. Prince Oleg Ryazansky, however, did not have time to gather his forces in the bborz and not stand against the battle, but leaving his city and running across to this side of the Oka River and with all his people. Tatars, having come, took the city of Pereaslavl and burned it with fire. Volosts and villages fought, and there were a lot of people, and others led them in full and returned to their country and did a lot of evil. That same summer, there would be a great rebellion in Lithuania, I will unleash my anger on them, stand up for yourself and kill the Grand Duke Kestuti Gedimanovich and his boyars beat him, and his son, Prince Vitovt, fled to the Germans and did a lot of evil to the land of Lithuania, raised more Byache Kestutey was a great reign under prince Jagail.
Quoted from: Complete collection of Russian chronicles. Volume 24. Chronicle according to the Typographical list. Pg., 1921
The world at this time
In 1378, the Great Schism began - a split in the Roman Catholic Church.
Map of the Great Schism. Regions supporting Avignon in red, Rome in blue
“Even before the sfumato (the white smoke signifying that the pope had been elected) had risen, an armed group of impatient Romans stormed the conclave by force. The cardinals, whose lives were in danger, did not dare to announce the results of the vote and fled. This became possible due to the fact that one of them suddenly threw a pallium over the shoulder of the aged and almost unable to move Roman Cardinal Tybaldeschi. The elder could not run, and despite all his objections, the jubilant crowd elevated him to the throne. They forcibly put the papal regalia on him, put a tiara on his head. While he was honored by the leaders of the city, the rabble plundered the Roman palace of the cardinal. In addition, there was a tradition according to which if a cardinal, elected pope, had a home in Rome, then it was robbed on the grounds that moving to the papal palace did not need this good. Only after the crowd had been pacified by the evening did the truth become clear.
The new pope chose the name Urban VI (1378-1389). Although he was well versed in the affairs of church administration, he, as a person, hardly corresponded to such a high position, which, moreover, became very delicate. He was unfamiliar with patience and compromise; he was an assertive, arrogant person, who was characterized by indomitability, moreover, rudeness. His unsuitability was soon understood by his contemporaries; it was said that he was nervous. Urban VI was crowned pope on April 10, 1378, and was honored by the cardinals as legitimately elected pope. Thus, they retroactively recognized the canonicity of the election. Later, the concept of the curia, and the historical literature identified with it, considered a number of popes canonically elected, beginning with Urban VI. However, recent historical research casts doubt on whether cardinals voluntarily paid homage to the pope at their coronation; in all likelihood, this was done under duress.<…>
The turbulent course of the conclave that elected Urban VI clearly showed that the church was ripe for reform. The first step here could be the reformation of the curia and the cardinal consistory. When the pope announced this kind of intention, the French cardinals, who had previously observed his actions with suspicion, embarked on the path of open resistance, left Urban and gathered in Anagni, where they openly began to assert that the election of Urban VI was under duress and therefore allegedly invalid . Therefore, the papal throne should be considered free and the election of a new pope is necessary.
The party that opposed Urban was led by the Cardinal of Amiens. The opposition cardinals were under the armed protection of Count Fonda Gaetani. They also entered into contact with the French king Charles V, who assured them of his support. At the same time, Urban got involved in a conflict with the Neapolitan kingdom, with Queen Joanna, against whom he supported an ally of the Hungarian king Lajos I - Duke Charles Durazzo. Now all the cardinals, with the exception of one Tybaldeschi (who soon died), were in Anagni. In response, Pope Urban appointed 29 new cardinals, of course, from the adherents of his party, including many of his relatives.
The cardinals, gathered for the election of a new pope, settled in Fondi, in Neapolitan territory, where on September 20, 1378, the French cardinal Robert of Geneva, who took the name of Clement VII (1378-1394), was elected pope. The new pope was more of a politician and military leader than a holiness-living hierarch of the church. Consequently, his chances were higher in the upcoming fights. After Urban, who firmly held his position in Rome, anathematized the antipope and his cardinals, Clement VII, who temporarily resided in Fondi, did the same with respect to Urban. Thus, the church schism became a fait accompli.
The jurisdiction of both popes within the universal church was recognized depending on political and imperious interests. The legitimacy of Urban VI was recognized by the German-Roman Empire, Hungary, Poland, the Scandinavian countries and England; the churches that expressed their obedience to Clement VII belonged to the churches of such states as France, Scotland, Naples, Sicily and the states of the Iberian Peninsula. This division basically reflected the composition of the opposing blocs in the Hundred Years War. Naturally, there were exceptions; so, for example, the Austrian Duke Leopold took the side of Clement. Universities, provinces of monastic orders, bishoprics themselves decided on the issue of their jurisdiction. The fact of the formation of national churches indicates that the churches, as a rule, followed the line of conduct adopted by the secular authorities. And in the monastic orders, the division took place according to the provinces.
The fight between the two popes ended in an inglorious armed struggle in Italy, in which, in addition to the French and Neapolitans, the Hungarians also took part. The interests of Clement VII were defended by French troops allied with Joan of Naples, while Urban, recognizing the claims of the Hungarian Anjou to Naples, could rely on Italian and Hungarian weapons. Rome again split into two parties; At the head of the opposition to Urban was the Orsini clan. At the beginning of 1379, Urban's mercenaries were victorious, so that both Castel Sant'Angelo and the Vatican fell into their hands; Urban strengthened his power in the Church state. Clement VII fled from Fondi to Naples, and in June 1379 he finally settled in Avignon. From among his French supporters, he appointed new cardinals, and in the papal palaces that had not yet cooled down, he immediately set about a new organization of the curia. Thus, the holy mother-church had two chapters - two popes, two curias, and accordingly coming from Rome and Avignon, equally claiming their exclusivity and legitimacy, parallel appointments, conflicting resolutions, taxes imposed by both sides. - all this created anarchy in the management of the church. In this situation, secular princes began to pretend to be guardians of the decaying church order; the implementation of this or that papal decree, the filling of benefices depended on their will. Thus, the competing popes themselves provided an opportunity for the state to rise above the church and contribute to the creation of national ecclesiastical autonomy.
Quoted in: Gergely E. History of the Papacy. M.: Republic, 1996
After the Tatars defeated Dmitry Konstantinovich Nizhny Novgorod, the main ally of Moscow Prince Dmitry Ivanovich, in the Battle of the Pyan River (1377), the omnipotent temnik Mamai, then omnipotent in the Horde, was in a hurry to strike the same blow both to Moscow itself and to its other ally, Oleg Ryazansky. Having won a victory on Pyan, the Tatar prince Arapsha in the autumn of the same 1377 went on an exile (raid) to the Ryazan land and captured and plundered part of it. Taken by surprise, Oleg Ivanovich was taken prisoner, but escaped and ran away, all wounded by Tatar arrows.
In the summer of the following 1378, Mamai sent a large army under the command of Murza Begich to Ryazan and Moscow. Dmitry Ivanovich of Moscow realized the impending danger, personally arrived with his army on the southern side of the Oka and met the Tatars on the banks of its right tributary, the Vozha River, about 15 versts from Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky. For several days, both armies stood opposite each other on different banks. On August 11, 1378, the Tatars were the first to cross the Vozha and entered the battle. But Dmitry has already prepared his army for battle. One of its wings was commanded by Daniil Pronsky, the other by the Moscow roundabout Timofey Velyaminov. The Grand Duke himself struck at the enemies with the main regiment. The Tatars did not hold out the battle for long and ran back for Vozha. At the same time, many of them were beaten and drowned in the river. Begich himself and some other noble murzas were among the fallen: Khazibey, Koverga, Karuluk, Kastrok. The falling night prevented Russian pursuit. The next morning after the battle, there was thick fog on the Vozha. Only when it dissipated did Dmitry cross the river and chase the Tatars. It was no longer possible to overtake them; but on the other hand, Rus' collected a lot of booty, because the enemies in a hasty flight abandoned their tents and carts filled with various goods. A monument to the battle on the Vozha in 1378 are high mounds, under which the fallen soldiers are buried.
Until now, Dmitry Ivanovich still retained tributary relations with the Horde, although he paid much less tribute than his predecessors. In the battle on the Vozha in 1378, the first great victory of Rus' over its enslavers was won. This was already an open and decisive uprising of the Moscow prince against the Golden Horde, a harbinger of the Kulikovo battle that took place two years later. One can imagine the fury of Mamai and the Golden Horde Murzas when the fugitives brought them the news of their defeat on the Vozha. First of all, Mamai was in a hurry to take out his annoyance on the Ryazan region. Having collected the remnants of the broken army, he rushed to Ryazan. Not expecting such an early return of the Tatars after their defeat, Oleg Ryazansky turned out to be unprepared for defense and retired to the left forest side of the Oka. The Tatars burned his capital Pereyaslavl and some other cities, destroyed many villages and took away a large number of captives. This sudden attack was to be followed by the devastation of the Moscow reign. But, having tested his power in the battle on the Vozha, Mamai decided to first prepare large forces to remind Rus' of Batu's invasion. His preparations were all the more successful because Mamai managed to restore autocracy in the Golden Horde after long troubles. He ordered the young Khan Muhammad to be killed and himself assumed the title of khan, although he did not belong to the royal family of the Jochids (the descendants of the eldest son of Genghis Khan, Jochi, who ruled in the Golden Horde).
Started in 1380, Mamai's campaign against Rus' ended with the defeat of the Tatars in the battle on the Kulikovo field.
