1242 Lake Peipus prince. Battle on the Ice: What Really Happened

Before my first year of university, I was sure that I knew the history of the Battle on the Ice. The legend that Russian soldiers by cunning defeated the knights of the Livonian order. And here at the university they are asked to find and analyze a problematic historical article. And then I was surprised to find out that everything I knew about the Battle of the Ice is a lie.

What year was the Battle of the Ice

Perhaps the only truth from my knowledge was that The battle on the ice took place in 1242. Presumably in the beginning of April. It's a long time ago, so, you know, the exact date cannot be determined. However, historians, based on the annals, say,that the battle was exactly on the 5th. What other facts are known for certain about the battle:

• the Danish king and the master of the Order decided to divide Estonia and, with the help of the Swedes, defeat the power of Russia. The Swedes, as you know, lost on the Neva, and Order followed them.
• Russia was defended by Novgorodians and representatives of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality in the amount of 15-17 thousand people.
• The Livonian Order and Denmark were represented by 10-12 thousand people.

The battle led by Alexander Nevsky is also called the Battle of Lake Peipus.. It is this very lake that haunts the Russian people and creates one of the main myths of Russian history.

The myth of the Battle of the Ice

What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you remember the Battle of the Ice? I am sure that many will answer that the battle on Lake Peipsi was won because the knights put on too heavy armor. The ice cracked. And the warriors bravely sank. And the Russians, dressed in lighter chain mail, of course, avoided this fatal trouble. For some reason, it even seems to me that we were told about this at school. But - All lies. The knights didn't drown. And that's why:

• in historical sources(annals) there is no mention of this generally;
• weight of equipment of the Livonian warrior and Russian about same;
• the exact geographical location of the battle has never been found, the battle was most likely on a dry shore.

So where did the beautiful tale come from that the knights sank under the weight of their armor? This legend has no ancient roots. Everything is much more prosaic. In 1938 Eisenstein and Vasiliev made the film "Alexander Nevsky", which included for entertainment a scene with the sinking of enemies. This is the story of the battle that took place in 1242 and overgrown with a beautiful legend already in the 20th century.

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Last year we rested on the shores of Lake Peipus. Before the trip, I decided to refresh my memory of the history of our country, and the further I plunged into the study of the famous Battle on the Ice, the more I realized that my understanding of many significant facts of the battle was very different from how it actually happened.

When was the Battle of the Ice

Perhaps the only thing historians agree on about this battle is its year. The battle on the ice took place in April 1242 on Lake Peipus between the knights of the Livonian Order and Novgorod troops led by Alexander Nevsky.

It is worth noting that a number of scientists believe that there was no battle at all. In their theory, they rely on the fact that its exact place has not yet been determined, no knightly armor and other traces of the ongoing battle have been found in the vicinity of the lake. Others argue that the meaning of this historical event greatly exaggerated, but in fact it was an ordinary inter-feudal skirmish. But these theories are refuted by the data of Russian and German chronicles.

Truth and myths about the Battle of the Ice

The main myth sounds like this: Prince Alexander Nevsky of Novgorod meets hordes of German knights on the ice of the lake, where heavily armed knights suffer a crushing defeat, and, retreating, fall through the ice.

Real facts look a little different:

• No more than 90 knights could participate in the battle. In the Baltic States, the Order had just such a number of castles by 1290. The rest of the army was a retinue, which could reach up to 100 people for each noble warrior.
• Nevsky made an alliance with Batu Khan, who helped Novgorod defeat the foreign invaders.
• The prince did not plan to deliberately lure the knights onto thin ice so that they would drown under the weight of their armor. Russian combatants were equipped no worse than the Germans, and such a strategy would have been suicidal.
• The victorious strategy consisted in the fact that Nevsky built the weakest part of his army in the central part of his army - the infantry, and the main forces struck at the flanks of the advancing "pig" enemy.

The victory in the Battle of the Ice helped stop the expansion of the Livonian Order in Russia. This was the first example of the defeat of a knightly army by infantry.

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I live in the Pskov region, so I was lucky enough to walk around the places more than once great battle. On excursions, I always experienced twofold sensations: on the one hand, pride in the glorious warriors, on the other, sadness. After all, war is war - these are human sacrifices, first of all.

How was the Battle of the Ice

The battle on the ice is a famous battle that took place on the ice of Lake Peipus, the piggy bank of knowledge about it is replenished every year with new facts. Sometimes invented.

But, nevertheless, it is known for sure that in 1238 landmeister Hermann Balk and the Danish king Valdemar decided to divide Estonia among themselves and capture Russia. It was during this period that the defensive forces of Russia were weaker than ever. They were exhausted by constant Mongol invasions.

The following military forces fought:

• Swedes and Livonian knights;
• squad of Yaroslav Vladimirovich;
• Estonian army;
• Derptian army.

The year in which the Battle of the Ice took place

They began their offensive in 1240. In the same year, the Swedish troops were completely overthrown on the Neva.

The land battle continued for another 2 years, until in 1242 the main Russian detachments entered the ice of Lake Peipus in order to conduct the final battle. An important event took place on April 5, 1242 under the leadership of Alexander Nevsky (from the Russian side) and the military of the Livonian Order - from the enemy.

Results

But, on whose side the victory turned out, there are still disputes. Some claim that she was behind Nevsky, others that she was not in a draw at all. Because in the same year Herman Balk and Warband:

• abandoned all previously captured Russian territories;
• concluded a peace agreement with Novgorod;
• returned the prisoners to their homeland.

True, 10 years later they again attacked Pskov, but that's a completely different story ...

In memory of the Battle of the Ice

It was enough important event in the life of Russia, so April 5 is considered one of the memorable days in our country.

In honor of the battle, many interesting and instructive films were shot, beautiful songs and books were written.

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Some consider the Battle of the Ice one of the main events of our ancient history, others attribute it to local battles that did not differ either in scale or historical significance. For me, this is a good reason to get to know this corner of Russia better, where they once thundered Knight armour and harrowed native Russia Novgorodians with Suzdalians under the leadership of Alexander Nevsky.

When did the Battle of the Ice happen?

It is this date that is indicated in the Novgorod First Chronicle, which describes the massacre in more detail. Even the day of the week when it happened is Saturday. But in the Livonian rhymed chronicle (Russian troops fought with the knights of the Livonian Order, which was an offshoot of the Teutonic Order), where the battle is mentioned, it is noted that the dead fell into the grass. It turns out that the battle was later, since in these parts at the beginning of April there is still no grass

Historical places

About the affairs of bygone years in the Pskov region remind:

the Battle on the Ice monument, which was opened in 1993 near Pskov, on Mount Sokolikha;

Kobyle Settlement - an ancient village near the battlefield;

a museum in the village of Samolva, which contains materials from a scientific expedition that studied the events of 1242.

There are not even two dozen inhabitants in the Kobylye Settlement now. But this place has been inhabited since time immemorial and is mentioned in ancient chronicles. The Church of the Archangel Michael, built in 1462, testifies to the past prosperity. The Battle on the Ice is reminiscent of the Poklonny Cross and the monument to Alexander Nevsky.

A new chance for the development of these places was the motor rally " silver ring Alexander Nevsky, which was invented and implemented by the Petersburgers. Every summer, starting from 1997, they start from the northern capital and make their way through the preserved fortresses and monasteries of the Leningrad, Novgorod, Pskov regions to Kobylye Gorodishche. The rally participants have already landscaped this historical place and installed a new chapel.

Sources brought to us very scarce information about the Battle of the Ice. This contributed to the fact that the battle gradually overgrown large quantity myths and contradictory 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 at 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 a large number heavily armed warriors and cavalry would make it impossible to conduct a battle on a 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 supported by modern research by using the latest equipment the bottom of Lake Peipsi, during which neither weapons nor armor of the 13th 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, even in Soviet time 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 knechts (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 real numbers much more modest, since some of the knights had 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.

Victims

The number of those killed in the Battle of the Ice is as difficult to calculate as the number of participants. The Novgorod Chronicle reports on the victims of the enemy: “and the fall of Chud was beschisla, and Nemets 400, and 50 with the hands of a yash and brought to Novgorod.” But the Livonian rhymed chronicle speaks of only 20 dead and 6 captured knights, though not mentioning the victims among the soldiers and the militia. The Chronicle of Grandmasters, written later, reports the death of 70 order knights.
But none of the chronicles contain information about the losses of Russian troops. There is no consensus on this matter among historians, although according to some reports, the losses of Alexander Nevsky's troops were no less than those of the enemy.

The battle on the ice or the Battle of Peipsi is the battle of the Novgorod-Pskov troops of Prince Alexander Nevsky with the troops of the Livonian knights on April 5, 1242 on the ice of Lake Peipus. In 1240, the knights of the Livonian Order (see Spiritual and Knightly Orders) captured Pskov and advanced their conquests into Vodskaya Pyatina; their patrols approached 30 versts to Novgorod, where at that time there was no prince, because Alexander Nevsky, having quarreled with the veche, retired to Vladimir. Hindered by the knights and Lithuania, which raided southern regions, Novgorodians sent ambassadors to ask Alexander to return. Arriving at the beginning of 1241, Alexander cleared the Vodskaya Pyatina from the enemy, but decided to liberate Pskov only after the Novgorod detachments joined the grassroots troops, who arrived in 1242 under the command of his brother, Prince Andrei Yaroslavich. The Germans did not have time to send reinforcements to their insignificant garrison, and Pskov was taken by storm.

However, it was impossible to end the campaign on this success, as it became known about the preparation of the knights for the fight and about their concentration in the Derpt (Tartu) bishopric. Instead of the usual waiting for the enemy in the fortress, Alexander decided to go towards the enemy and deliver a decisive blow to him with a sudden attack. Following the well-known path to Izborsk, Alexander sent a network of advanced reconnaissance detachments. Soon one of them, probably the most significant, under the command of the mayor's brother Domash Tverdislavich, stumbled upon the Germans and Chud, was defeated and forced to retreat. Further reconnaissance revealed that the enemy, having sent an insignificant part of the forces to the Izborskaya road, moved with the main forces straight to the ice-covered Lake Peipus in order to cut off the Russians from Pskov.

Then Alexander “backed away on the lake; the Germans, and the Chud, went over them, ”that is, by a successful maneuver, the Russian army avoided the danger that threatened it. Turning the situation in his favor, Alexander decided to take the fight and remained at Lake Peipsi in the Uzmeni tract, at the Voronei Kameni. At dawn on April 5, 1242, the knightly army, together with the contingents of the Estonians (Chuds), formed a kind of closed phalanx, known as the “wedge” or “iron pig”. In such order of battle the knights moved across the ice on the Russians and, crashing into them, broke through the center. Carried away by success, the knights did not notice the Russians bypassing both flanks, who, holding the enemy in pincers, inflicted a defeat on him. The pursuit after the Battle on the Ice was carried out to the opposite Sobolitsky shore of the lake, and the ice began to break under the crowded fugitives. 400 knights fell, 50 were taken prisoner, and the bodies of a lightly armed monster lay 7 miles away. The astonished master of the order awaited Alexander with trepidation under the walls of Riga and asked the Danish king for help against "cruel Russia".

Battle on the Ice. Painting by V. Matorin

After the Battle of the Ice, the Pskov clergy met Alexander Nevsky with crosses, the people called him father and savior. The prince shed tears and said: “Pskovites! If you forget Alexander, if my most distant descendants do not find a true home in misfortune with you, then you will be an example of ingratitude!”

The victory in the Battle of the Ice was of great importance in political life Novgorod-Pskov region. The confidence of the pope, the Bishop of Dorpat and the Livonian knights in the imminent conquest of the Novgorod lands collapsed for a long time. They had to think about self-defense and prepare for the age-old stubborn struggle, which ended with the conquest of the Livonian-Baltic coast by Russia. After the Battle of the Ice, the ambassadors of the order made peace with Novgorod, renouncing not only Luga and the Vodskaya volost, but also ceding a large part of Letgalia to Alexander.

The Battle on Lake Peipus, better known as the Battle of the Ice, is one of the most important battles in history. Kievan Rus. The Russian troops were commanded by Alexander Nevsky, who received his nickname after the victory in.

Date of the Battle of the Ice.

The battle on the ice took place on April 5, 1242 on Lake Peipus. The Russian army took the battle with Livonian Order who invaded Russian lands.

A few years earlier, in 1240, Alexander Nevsky had already fought with the army of the Livonian Order. Then the invaders of Russian lands were defeated, but a few years later they again decided to attack Kievan Rus. Pskov was captured, but in March 1241 Alexander Nevsky was able to recapture it with Vladimir's help.

The order army concentrated its forces in the Derpt bishopric, and Alexander Nevsky went to Izborsk, captured by the Livonian Order. The reconnaissance detachments of Nevsky were defeated by the German knights, which affected the self-confidence of the command of the Order Army - the Germans went on the attack in order to win an easy victory as quickly as possible.

The main forces of the Order Army moved to the junction between the Pskov and Peipsi lakes in order to get to Novgorod by a short path and cut off the Russian troops in the Pskov region. The Novgorod army turned to the lake and carried out an unusual maneuver to repel the attack of the German knights: it moved across the ice to the island of Voronii Kamen. Thus, Alexander Nevsky blocked the path of the Order's army to Novgorod and chose a place for the battle, which was of great importance.

The course of the battle.

The order army lined up in a “wedge” (in Russian chronicles this order was called a “pig”) and went on the attack. The Germans were going to break a strong central regiment, and then attack the flanks. But Alexander Nevsky unraveled this plan and deployed the army differently. Weak regiments were in the center, and strong ones along the flanks. There was also an ambush regiment to the side.

The archers, who came out first in the Russian army, did not cause serious damage to the armored knights and were forced to retreat to strong flank regiments. The Germans, putting out long spears, attacked the Russian central regiment and broke through its defensive lines, a fierce battle ensued. The rear ranks of the Germans pushed the front ones, literally pushing them deeper and deeper into the Russian central regiment.

Meanwhile, the left and right regiments forced the knights, who covered the knights from the rear, to retreat.

After waiting until the whole "pig" was drawn into the battle, Alexander Nevsky gave a signal to the regiments located on the left and right flanks. The Russian army clamped the German "pig" in pincers. Meanwhile, Nevsky, together with his squad, struck the Germans from the rear. Thus, the Order army was completely surrounded.

Some Russian warriors were equipped with special spears with hooks to pull the knights off their horses. Other warriors are equipped with cobbler knives, with which they incapacitate horses. Thus, the knights were left without horses and became easy prey, and the ice began to crack under their weight. An ambush regiment appeared from behind the shelter, and the German knights began a retreat, which almost immediately turned into a flight. Some knights managed to break through the cordon and fled. Some of them rushed to the thin ice and drowned, the other part german army was killed (the cavalry of the Novgorodians drove the Germans to the opposite shore of the lake), the rest was taken prisoner.

Results.

The battle on the ice is considered the first battle in which the foot army defeated the heavy cavalry. Thanks to this victory, Novgorod retained trade ties with Europe, and the threat posed by the Order was eliminated.

The Battle of Neva, the Battle of the Ice, the Battle of Toropets - battles that were of great importance for the whole of Kievan Rus, because attacks from the west were held back, while the rest of Russia suffered from princely strife and the consequences of the Tatar conquest.

Period: , .

Battle on the Ice of 1242. Miniature from the "Face Chronicle". 16th century

In difficult years Mongol invasion the Russian people had to repel the onslaught of the German and Swedish feudal lords.

The Swedish government sent large forces against Russia (including a detachment of subject Finns) led by Jarl (Prince) Ulf Fasi and the king's son-in-law, Birger.

The purpose of this campaign was to capture Ladoga, and if successful, Novgorod itself. The predatory goals of the campaign, as usual, were covered with phrases that its participants were striving to spread among the Russian people the "true faith" - Catholicism.

At dawn July day In 1240, the Swedish flotilla unexpectedly appeared in the Gulf of Finland and, having passed along the Neva, stopped at the mouth of the Izhora. Here was a temporary camp of the Swedes.

Prince of Novgorod Alexander Yaroslavich (son of Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich), having received a message from the head of the sea guard, Izhorian Pelgusy, about the arrival of enemies, gathered his small squad and part of the Novgorod militia in Novgorod.

Considering that the Swedish army was much more numerous than the Russian, Alexander decided to deliver an unexpected blow to the Swedes.

On the morning of July 15, the Russian army suddenly attacked the Swedish camp. The cavalry squad fought its way to the center of the location of the Swedish troops. At the same time, the foot Novgorod militia, following along the Neva, attacked enemy ships.

Three ships were captured and destroyed. With blows along the Izhora and the Neva, the Swedish army was overturned and pushed into the corner formed by two rivers. The balance of forces changed, and the Russian cavalry and foot detachments, united, threw the enemy into the water.

The plan of the talented commander Alexander Yaroslavich, designed for a sudden attack on the Swedish army, combined with the heroism of ordinary soldiers, ensured them a quick and glorious victory.

Russian fell only about twenty people.

For the victory won on the Neva, Prince Alexander was nicknamed "Nevsky".

The struggle for the mouth of the Neva was a struggle to preserve access to the sea for Russia. The victory over the Swedes prevented Russia from losing the shores of the Finnish salvo and the threat of ending economic ties with other countries.

Thus, this victory facilitated the further struggle of the Russian people for independence and for the overthrow of the Mongol yoke.

But the fight against the Swedish invaders was, however, only part of the defense of Russia.

In 1240 German and Danish feudal lords captured the city of Izborsk. Then the German knights besieged and, relying on the betrayal of the boyars, took Pskov, where they planted their governors (Vogts).

Meanwhile, due to feuds with the Novgorod boyars, Alexander Nevsky in the winter of 1240 left Novgorod with his entire court and went to Pereyaslavl. At the beginning of 1241, the German knights took Tesovo, Luga and Koporye, after which detachments of German feudal lords appeared near Novgorod.

At that moment, a popular uprising broke out in Novgorod, and at the request of the veche, Alexander Nevsky was again called to the city.

In the same year unexpected blow Russian regiments under the command of Prince Alexander drove the enemy out of Koporye. The successes of the Russian troops caused an upsurge in the liberation movement in the Baltic states. An uprising broke out on the island of Saaremaa.

Regiments from the Suzdal land arrived to help Alexander Nevsky, and the united Russian army under his command was "exiled" ( quick blow) liberated Pskov. Further, the path of the Russian army lay in the land of the Estonians. To the west of Lake Peipsi, it met up with the main German forces and retreated to an ice-covered lake.

It was here that on April 5, 1242, the famous battle took place, called the Battle of the Ice. The knights formed troops in a wedge shape, but were attacked from the flanks.

Russian archers brought confusion to the ranks of the surrounded German knights. As a result, the Russians won a decisive victory.

Only 400 knights were killed, in addition, 50 knights were captured. Russian soldiers furiously pursued the enemy who had turned to flight.

The victory on Lake Peipsi was of great importance for the further history of both the Russian and other peoples. of Eastern Europe. The battle on Lake Peipsi put an end to the predatory advance to the east, which the German rulers had carried out for centuries with the help of the German Empire and the papal curia.

It was during these years that the foundations of the joint struggle of the Russian people and the peoples of the Baltic states against the centuries-old German and Swedish feudal expansion were strengthened. The battle on the ice also played a big role in the struggle for the independence of the Lithuanian people. The Curonians and Prussians rebelled against the German knights.

The Tatar-Mongol invasion of Russia deprived her of the opportunity to expel German feudal lords from Estonian and Latvian lands. The Livonian and Teutonic knights also occupied the lands between the Vistula and the Neman and, united, cut off Lithuania from the sea.

Throughout the thirteenth century the raids of the order robbers on Russia and Lithuania continued, but at the same time the knights repeatedly suffered severe defeats, for example, from the Russians at Rakvere (1268), and from the Lithuanians at Durba (1260).