In the 16th century, Russia needed access to the Baltic Sea. He opened trade routes and eliminated intermediaries: German merchants and Teutonic knights. But between Russia and Europe stood Livonia. And Russia lost the war with it.

Beginning of the war

Livonia, also known as Livonia, was located on the territory of modern Estonia and Latvia. Initially, this was the name given to the lands inhabited by the Livs. In the 16th century, Livonia was under the control of the Livonian Order - military and political organization German Catholic knights.
In January 1558, Ivan IV began to “cut a window to Europe.” The moment was chosen well. The knighthood and clergy of Livonia were disunited, weakened by the Reformation, and the local population was tired of the Teutons.
The reason for the war was the non-payment to Moscow by the bishopric of the city of Dorpat (aka Yuryev, also known as modern Tartu) of the “Yuryev tribute” from the possessions ceded by the Russian princes.

Russian army

By the middle of the 16th century, Russia was already a powerful power. Reforms, centralization of power, and the creation of special infantry units—the Streltsy Army—played a big role. The army was armed with modern artillery: the use of a carriage made it possible to use guns in the field. There were factories for the production of gunpowder, weapons, cannons and cannonballs. New methods of taking fortresses were developed.
Before starting the war, Ivan the Terrible secured the country from raids from the east and south. Kazan and Astrakhan were taken, and a truce was concluded with Lithuania. In 1557, the war with Sweden ended in victory.

First successes

The first campaign of the Russian army of 40 thousand people took place in the winter of 1558. The main goal was to get the Livonians to voluntarily cede Narva. The Russians easily reached the Baltic. The Livonians were forced to send diplomats to Moscow and agreed to transfer Narva to Russia. But soon the Narva Vogt von Schlennenberg ordered the shelling of the Russian fortress of Ivangorod, provoking a new Russian invasion.

20 fortresses were taken, including Narva, Neishloss, Neuhaus, Kiripe and Dorpat. The Russian army came close to Revel and Riga.
On January 17, 1559, the Germans were defeated in a major battle near Tiersen, after which they again concluded a truce, again for a short time.
By the fall, the Livonian master Gotthard von Ketler had secured the support of Sweden and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and opposed the Russians. Near Dorpat, the Livonians defeated the detachment of the governor Zakhary Ochin-Pleshcheev, then began the siege of Yuryev, but the city survived. They tried to take Lais, but suffered heavy losses and retreated. The Russian counter-offensive took place only in 1560. The troops of Ivan the Terrible occupied the strongest fortress of the knights Fellin and Marienburg.

The war drags on

Russian successes accelerated the collapse of the Teutonic Order. Revel and the cities of Northern Estonia swore allegiance to the Swedish crown. Master Ketler became a vassal of the Polish king and Grand Duke of Lithuania Sigismund II Augustus. The Lithuanians occupied more than 10 cities of Livonia.

In response to Lithuanian aggression, Moscow governors invaded the territory of Lithuania and Livonia. Tarvast (Taurus) and Verpel (Polchev) were captured. Then the Lithuanians “walked” through the Smolensk and Pskov regions, after which a full-scale fighting along the entire border.
Ivan the Terrible himself led an army of 80 thousand. In January 1563, the Russians moved to Polotsk, besieged and captured it.
The decisive battle with the Lithuanians took place on the Ulla River on January 26, 1564, and thanks to the betrayal of Prince Andrei Kurbsky, it turned out to be a defeat for the Russians. The Lithuanian army went on the offensive. At the same time, the Crimean Khan Devlet-Girey approached Ryazan.

Formation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

In 1569, Lithuania and Poland became a single state - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Ivan the Terrible had to make peace with the Poles and deal with relations with Sweden, where his enemy Johan III ascended the throne.
On the lands of Livonia captured by the Russians, Ivan the Terrible created a vassal kingdom under the leadership of the Danish prince Magnus of Holstein.
In 1572, King Sigismund died. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was on the threshold civil war. In 1577, a Russian army invaded the Baltic states, and Russia soon gained control of the coast of the Gulf of Finland, but the victory was short-lived.
The turning point of the war occurred after the accession to Polish throne Stefan Batory. He suppressed the unrest in the country and, in alliance with Sweden, opposed Russia. He was supported by the Duke of Mangus, the Saxon Elector Augustus and the Elector of Brandenburg Johann Georg.

From offense to defense

On September 1, 1578, Polotsk fell, then the Smolensk region and the Seversk land were devastated. Two years later, the Poles again invaded Russia and took Velikiye Luki. Pali Narva, Ozerische, Zavolochye. The army of Prince Khilkov was defeated near Toropets. The Swedes occupied the Padis fortress in Western Estonia.

Batory invaded Russia for the third time in 1581. His goal was Pskov. However, the Russians figured out the Poles' plans. It was not possible to take the city.
In 1581 Russia was in difficult situation. In addition to the Poles, she was threatened by the Swedes and the Crimean Khan. Ivan the Terrible was forced to ask for peace on the enemy’s terms. The negotiations were mediated by Pope Gregory XIII, who hoped to strengthen the Vatican's position in the East. Negotiations took place in Yam Zapolsky and ended with the conclusion of a ten-year truce.

Results

Ivan the Terrible's attempt to open a window to Europe ended in failure.
According to the agreement, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth returned to the Russians Velikie Luki, Zavolochye, Nevel, Kholm, Rzhev Pustya, the Pskov suburbs of Ostrov, Krasny, Voronech, Velyu, Vrev, Vladimerets, Dubkov, Vyshgorod, Vyborets, Izborsk, Opochka, Gdov, Kobylye fortification and Sebezh.
The Moscow state transferred 41 Livonian cities to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
The Swedes decided to finish off the Russians. In the fall of 1581, they captured Narva and Ivangorod and forced them to sign peace on their own terms. Livonian War ended. Russia lost part of its own territories and three border fortresses. The Russians retained only the small fortress of Oreshek on the Neva and a corridor along the river a little more than 30 kilometers long. The Baltic remained unattainable.

Formal reasons were found for the start of the war (see below), but the real reasons were Russia’s geopolitical need to gain access to the Baltic Sea, as the most convenient for direct connections with the centers of European civilizations, as well as the desire to accept Active participation in the division of the territory of the Livonian Order, the progressive collapse of which was becoming obvious, but which, not wanting to strengthen Russia, prevented its external contacts. For example, the Livonian authorities did not allow more than a hundred specialists from Europe invited by Ivan IV to pass through their lands. Some of them were imprisoned and executed.

The presence of such a hostile barrier did not suit Moscow, which was striving to break out of continental isolation. However, Russia owned a small section of the Baltic coast, from the Neva basin to Ivangorod. But it was strategically vulnerable, and there were no ports or developed infrastructure. So Ivan the Terrible hoped to take advantage of the Livonia transport system. He considered it an ancient Russian fiefdom, illegally seized by the crusaders.

The forceful solution to the problem predetermined the defiant behavior of the Livonians themselves, who, even in the opinion of their own historians, acted unreasonably. The reason for the deterioration of relations was the mass pogroms Orthodox churches in Livonia. The outraged Grozny sent a message to the authorities of the Order, in which he stated that he would not tolerate such actions. A whip was attached to the letter as a symbol of imminent punishment. By that time, the truce between Moscow and Livonia (concluded in 1504 as a result of the Russian-Lithuanian war of 1500-1503) had expired. To extend it, the Russian side demanded the payment of the Yuryev tribute, which the Livonians undertook to pay again Ivan III, but in 50 years they have never collected it. Having recognized the need to pay it, they again failed to fulfill their obligations. Then in 1558 Russian troops entered Livonia. Thus began the Livonian War. It lasted a quarter of a century, becoming the longest and one of the most difficult in the history of Russia.

Livonian War (1558-1583)

The Livonian War can be divided into four stages. The first (1558-1561) is directly related to the Russian-Livonian war. The second (1562-1569) involved primarily the Russian-Lithuanian war. The third (1570-1576) was distinguished by the resumption of the Russian struggle for Livonia, where they, together with the Danish prince Magnus, fought against the Swedes. The fourth (1577-1583) is associated primarily with the Russian-Polish war. During this period, the Russian-Swedish war continued.

In the middle of the 16th century. Livonia did not represent a significant military force capable of seriously resisting the Russian state. Its main military asset remained powerful stone fortresses. But formidable to arrows and stones, knightly castles were by that time no longer very capable of protecting their inhabitants from the power of heavy siege weapons. Therefore, military operations in Livonia were reduced mainly to the fight against fortresses, in which Russian artillery, which had already proven itself in the Kazan case, distinguished itself. The first fortress to fall from the onslaught of the Russians was Narva.

Capture of Narva (1558). In April 1558, Russian troops led by governors Adashev, Basmanov and Buturlin besieged Narva. The fortress was defended by a garrison under the command of the knight Vocht Schnellenberg. The decisive assault on Narva took place on May 11. On this day, a fire broke out in the city, which was accompanied by a storm. According to legend, it arose because drunken Livonians threw an Orthodox icon of the Virgin Mary into the fire. Taking advantage of the fact that the guards had left the fortifications, the Russians rushed to attack. They broke through the gates and took possession of the lower city. Having captured the guns located there, the attackers opened fire on the upper castle, preparing the stairs for the attack. But it did not follow, because by the evening the defenders of the castle surrendered, having agreed on the condition of free exit from the city.
It was the first large fortress taken by the Russians in the Livonian War. Narva was a convenient sea harbor through which direct relations between Russia and Western Europe. At the same time, the creation of its own fleet was underway. A shipyard is being built in Narva. The first Russian ships on it were built by craftsmen from Kholmogory and Vologda, whom the tsar sent abroad “to supervise how guns are poured and ships are built in the west.” A flotilla of 17 ships was based in Narva under the command of the Dane Carsten Rode, who was accepted into Russian service.

Capture of Neuhaus (1558). The defense of the Neuhaus fortress, which was defended by several hundred soldiers led by the knight Von Padenorm, was particularly tenacious during the campaign of 1558. Despite their small numbers, they steadfastly resisted for almost a month, repelling the onslaught of the army of governor Pyotr Shuisky. After the destruction of the fortress walls and towers by Russian artillery, the Germans retreated to the upper castle on June 30, 1558. Von Padenorm wanted to defend himself here to the last extremity, but his surviving associates refused to continue their pointless resistance. As a sign of respect for the bravery of the besieged, Shuisky allowed them to leave with honor.

Capture of Dorpat (1558). In July, Shuisky besieged Dorpat (until 1224 - Yuryev, now the Estonian city of Tartu). The city was defended by a garrison under the command of Bishop Weyland (2 thousand people). And here, first of all, Russian artillery distinguished itself. On July 11, she began shelling the city. The cannonballs destroyed some towers and loopholes. During the shelling, the Russians brought some of the guns almost to the very fortress wall, opposite the German and St. Andrew's Gates, and opened fire at point-blank range. The shelling of the city continued for 7 days. When the main fortifications were destroyed, the besieged, having lost hope of outside help, entered into negotiations with the Russians. Shuisky promised not to destroy the city and to keep its residents under the same control. On July 18, 1558 Dorpat capitulated. Order in the city was indeed maintained, and its violators were subjected to severe punishment.

Defense of Ringen (1558). After capturing a number of cities in Livonia, Russian troops, leaving garrisons there, left in the fall for winter quarters within their borders. The new Livonian master Ketler took advantage of this, who gathered an army of 10,000 and tried to regain what had been lost. At the end of 1558, he approached the fortress of Ringen, which was defended by a garrison of several hundred archers led by governor Rusin-Ignatiev. The Russians bravely held out for five weeks, repelling two attacks. A detachment of governor Repnin (2 thousand people) tried to help the besieged, but he was defeated by Ketler. This failure did not affect the spirit of the besieged, who continued to resist. The Germans were able to take the fortress by storm only after its defenders ran out of gunpowder. All defenders of Ringen were destroyed. Having lost a fifth of his army (2 thousand people) near Ringen and having spent more than a month on the siege, Ketler was unable to build on his success. At the end of October, his army retreated to Riga. This small victory turned into a major disaster for the Livonians. In response to their actions, the army of Tsar Ivan the Terrible entered Livonia two months later.

Battle of Thiersen (1559). In the area of ​​this city in Livonia, on January 17, 1559, a battle took place between the army of the Livonian Order under the command of the knight Felkensam and the Russian army led by Voivode Serebryany. The Germans suffered a complete defeat. Felkensam and 400 knights died in battle, the rest were captured or fled. After this victory, the Russian army freely carried out a winter raid across the lands of the Order all the way to Riga and returned to Russia in February.

Truce (1559). In the spring, hostilities did not resume. In May, Russia concluded a truce with the Livonian Order until November 1559. This was largely due to the presence of serious disagreements in the Moscow government regarding foreign strategy. Thus, the tsar’s closest advisors, led by the okolnichy Alexei Adashev, were against the war in the Baltic states and advocated continuing the struggle in the south, against the Crimean Khanate. This group reflected the sentiments of those circles of the nobility who wanted, on the one hand, to eliminate the threat of attacks from the steppes, and on the other, to obtain a large additional land fund in the steppe zone.

The truce of 1559 allowed the Order to gain time and carry out active diplomatic work with the aim of involving its closest neighbors - Poland and Sweden - in the conflict against Moscow. With his invasion of Livonia, Ivan IV affected the trade interests of the main states that had access to the Baltic region (Lithuania, Poland, Sweden and Denmark). At that time, trade on the Baltic Sea was growing from year to year, and the question of who would control it was very relevant. But it was not only the problems of their own trade benefits that interested Russia’s neighbors. They were concerned about the strengthening of Russia due to the acquisition of Livonia. Here is what, for example, the Polish king Sigismund Augustus wrote to the English Queen Elizabeth about the role of Livonia for the Russians: “The Moscow sovereign daily increases his power by acquiring objects that are brought to Narva; for not only goods are brought here, but also weapons, to this day unknown to him... the artists (specialists) themselves come, through whom he acquires the means to defeat everyone... Until now we could defeat him only because he was alien to education. But if the Narva navigation continues, then what will happen to him unknown?" Thus, the Russian struggle for Livonia received wide international resonance. The clash of interests of so many states in the small Baltic patch predetermined the severity of the Livonian War, in which military operations were closely intertwined with complex and confusing foreign policy situations.

Defense of Dorpat and Lais (1559). Master of the Livonian Order Ketler actively used the respite given to him. Having received help from Germany and concluding an alliance with the Polish king, the master violated the truce and went on the offensive in early autumn. He managed to defeat the detachment of governor Pleshcheev near Dorpat with an unexpected attack. 1 thousand Russians fell in this battle. Nevertheless, the head of the Dorpat garrison, governor Katyrev-Rostovsky, managed to take measures to defend the city. When Ketler besieged Dorpat, the Russians met his army with gunfire and a brave sortie. For 10 days the Livonians tried to destroy the walls with cannon fire, but to no avail. Not deciding on a long winter siege or an attack, Ketler was forced to retreat.
On the way back, Ketler decided to capture the Lais fortress, where there was a small Russian garrison under the command of the Streltsy head Koshkarov (400 people). In November 1559, the Livonians set up tours, broke the wall, but were unable to break into the fortress, stopped by the fierce resistance of the archers. The brave garrison of Lais steadfastly repulsed the attacks of the Livonian army for two days. Kettler was never able to defeat the defenders of Lais, and he was forced to retreat to Wenden. The unsuccessful siege of Dorpat and Lais meant the failure of the autumn offensive of the Livonians. On the other hand, their treacherous attack forced Ivan the Terrible to resume military operations against the Order.

Battles of Wittenstein and Ermes (1560). Decisive battles between Russian and Livonian troops took place in the summer of 1560 near Wittenstein and Ermes. In the first of them, the army of Prince Kurbsky (5 thousand people) defeated the German detachment of the former Master of the Order Firstenberg. Under Ermes, the cavalry of governor Barbashin (12 thousand people) completely destroyed a detachment of German knights led by Landmarshal Bel (about 1 thousand people), who tried to suddenly attack the Russian horsemen resting on the edge of the forest. 120 knights and 11 commanders, including their leader Bel, surrendered. The victory at Ermes opened the way for the Russians to Fellin.

Capture of Fellin (1560). In August 1560, a 60,000-strong army led by governors Mstislavsky and Shuisky besieged Fellin (known since 1211, now the city of Viljandi in Estonia). This most powerful fortress in the eastern part of Livonia was defended by a garrison under the command of the former master Firstenberg. The success of the Russians at Fellin was ensured by the effective actions of their artillery, which conducted continuous shelling of the fortifications for three weeks. During the siege, Livonian troops tried to help the besieged garrison from the outside, but were defeated. After artillery fire destroyed part of the outer wall and set the city on fire, Fellin's defenders entered into negotiations. But Firstenberg did not want to give up and tried to force them to defend themselves in an impregnable castle inside the fortress. The garrison, which had not received pay for several months, refused to carry out the order. On August 21, the Fellins capitulated.

Having surrendered the city to the Russians, its rank and file defenders received a free exit. Important prisoners (including Firstenberg) were sent to Moscow. The released soldiers of the Fellin garrison reached Riga, where they were hanged by Master Kettler for treason. The fall of Fellin actually decided the fate of the Livonian Order. Desperate to defend himself from the Russians on his own, Ketler in 1561 transferred his lands to Polish-Lithuanian ownership. The northern regions with the center in Reval (before 1219 - Kolyvan, now Tallinn) recognized themselves as subjects of Sweden. According to the Treaty of Vilna (November 1561), the Livonian Order ceased to exist, its territory was transferred to the joint possession of Lithuania and Poland, and the last master of the order received the Duchy of Courland. Denmark also declared its claims to part of the order's lands, having occupied the islands of Hiuma and Saaremaa. As a result, the Russians faced a coalition of states in Livonia that did not want to give up their new possessions. Having not yet managed to capture a significant part of Livoni, including its main ports (Riga and Revel), Ivan IV found himself in an unfavorable situation. But he continued the fight, hoping to separate his opponents.

Second stage (1562-1569)

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania became the most implacable opponent of Ivan IV. She was not satisfied with the Russian seizure of Livonia, since in this case they would gain control over grain exports (via Riga) from the Principality of Lithuania to European countries. Lithuania and Poland were even more afraid of Russia's military strengthening due to its receipt of strategic goods from Europe through Livonian ports. The intransigence of the parties on the issue of dividing Livonia was also facilitated by their long-standing territorial claims against each other. The Polish-Lithuanian side also tried to seize northern Estonia in order to control all the Baltic trade routes leading to Russia. With such a policy, a clash was inevitable. By laying claim to Revel, Lithuania spoiled relations with Sweden. Ivan IV took advantage of this and concluded peace agreements with Sweden and Denmark. Having thus ensured the safety of the Narva port, the Russian Tsar decided to defeat his main competitor - the Principality of Lithuania.

In 1561-1562 hostilities between Lithuanians and Russians took place in Livonia. In 1561, Hetman Radziwill recaptured the Travast fortress from the Russians. But after the defeat at Pernau (Pernava, Pernov, now the city of Pärnu), he was forced to leave it. The next year passed in minor skirmishes and fruitless negotiations. In 1563, Ivan the Terrible himself took up the matter, leading the army. The goal of his campaign was Polotsk. The theater of military operations moved to the territory of the Lithuanian principality. The conflict with Lithuania significantly expanded the scope and goals of the war for Russia. The long-standing struggle for the return of ancient Russian lands was added to the battle for Livonia.

Capture of Polotsk (1563). In January 1563, the army of Ivan the Terrible (up to 130 thousand people) marched towards Polotsk. The choice of the purpose of the campaign was not accidental for a number of reasons. Firstly, Polotsk was rich shopping center, the capture of which promised great booty. Secondly, it was the most important strategic point on the Western Dvina, which had a direct connection with Riga. He also opened the road to Vilna and protected Livonia from the south. The political aspect was no less important. Polotsk was one of the princely centers Ancient Rus', the lands of which were claimed by the Moscow sovereigns. There were also religious considerations. Large Jewish and Protestant communities settled in Polotsk, which was located near the Russian border. The spread of their influence within Russia seemed very undesirable for the Russian clergy.

The siege of Polotsk began on January 31, 1563. The power of Russian artillery played a decisive role in its capture. The volleys of its two hundred guns were so strong that the cannonballs, flying over the fortress wall on one side, struck from the inside on the opposite side. Cannon shots destroyed a fifth of the fortress walls. According to eyewitnesses, there was such cannon thunder that it seemed as if “the sky and the whole earth had fallen on the city.” Having taken the settlement, Russian troops besieged the castle. After the destruction of part of its walls by artillery fire, the defenders of the fortress surrendered on February 15, 1563. The wealth of the Polotsk treasury and arsenal were sent to Moscow, and the centers of other faiths were destroyed.
The capture of Polotsk became the greatest political and strategic success of Tsar Ivan the Terrible. "If Ivan IV had died... at the time of his greatest successes on Western Front, your preparation for final conquest Livonia, historical memory would have given him the name of a great conqueror, the creator of the world’s largest power, like Alexander the Great,” wrote historian R. Vipper. However, after Polotsk a series of military failures followed.

Battle of the Ulla River (1564). After unsuccessful negotiations with the Lithuanians, the Russians launched a new offensive in January 1564. The army of governor Peter Shuisky (20 thousand people) moved from Polotsk to Orsha to join there with the army of Prince Serebryany, which was coming from Vyazma. Shuisky did not take any precautions during the campaign. There was no reconnaissance; people walked in discordant crowds without weapons or armor, which were carried on sleighs. Nobody thought about the Lithuanian attack. Meanwhile, the Lithuanian governors Trotsky and Radziwill received accurate information about the Russian army through spies. The governors waylaid him in a wooded area near the Ulla River (not far from Chashnikov) and unexpectedly attacked him on January 26, 1564 with a relatively small force (4 thousand people). Not having time to take the battle formation and properly arm themselves, Shuisky’s warriors succumbed to panic and began to flee, abandoning their entire convoy (5 thousand carts). Shuisky paid for carelessness with his own life. The famous conqueror of Dorpat died in the ensuing beating. Having learned about the defeat of Shuisky’s army, Serebryany retreated from Orsha to Smolensk. Soon after the defeat at Ulla (in April 1564), a major Russian military leader, a close friend of Ivan the Terrible from his youth, Prince Andrei Mikhailovich Kurbsky, fled from Yuryev to the side of Lithuania.

Battle of Ozerishchi (1564). The next failure of the Russians was the battle near the town of Ozerishche (now Ezerishche) 60 km north of Vitebsk. Here, on July 22, 1564, the Lithuanian army of governor Pats (12 thousand people) defeated the army of governor Tokmakov (13 thousand people).
In the summer of 1564, the Russians set out from Nevel and besieged the Lithuanian fortress of Ozerische. An army under the command of Patz moved from Vitebsk to help the besieged. Tokmakov, hoping to easily deal with the Lithuanians, met them with only one of his cavalry. The Russians crushed the advanced Lithuanian squad, but could not withstand the blow of the main army approaching the battlefield and retreated in disarray, losing (according to Lithuanian data) 5 thousand people. After the defeat at Ulla and near Ozerishchi, Moscow’s onslaught on Lithuania was suspended for almost a hundred years.

Military failures contributed to Ivan the Terrible’s transition to a policy of repression against part of the feudal nobility, some of whose representatives at that time took the path of conspiracies and outright treason. Peace negotiations with Lithuania also resumed. She agreed to cede part of the lands (including Dorpat and Polotsk). But Russia did not gain access to the sea, which was the goal of the war. To discuss such an important issue, Ivan IV did not limit himself to the opinion of the boyars, but convened a Zemsky Sobor (1566). He firmly spoke out in favor of continuing the campaign. In 1568, the Lithuanian army of Hetman Chodkiewicz launched an offensive, but its onslaught was stopped by the persistent resistance of the garrison of the Ulla fortress (on the Ulla River).

Unable to cope with Moscow alone, Lithuania concluded the Union of Lublin with Poland (1569). According to it, both countries united in single state- Rzeczpospolita. This was one of the most important and very negative results of the Livonian War for Russia, which influenced further destinies of Eastern Europe. With formal equality of both sides, the leading role in this unification belonged to Poland. Having emerged from behind Lithuania, Warsaw now becomes Moscow's main rival in the west, and the final (4th) stage of the Livonian War can be considered the first Russian-Polish war.

Third stage (1570-1576)

The combination of the potentials of Lithuania and Poland sharply reduced the chances of Grozny's success in this war. At that time, the situation on the southern borders of the country also seriously deteriorated. In 1569, the Turkish army marched on Astrakhan, trying to cut off Russia from the Caspian Sea and open the gates for expansion in the Volga region. Although the campaign ended in failure due to poor preparation, Crimean-Turkish military activity in this region did not decrease (see Russian-Crimean wars). Relations with Sweden also deteriorated. In 1568, King Eric XIV, who had developed friendly relations with Ivan the Terrible, was overthrown there. The new Swedish government has begun to worsen relations with Russia. Sweden established a naval blockade of the port of Narva, which made it difficult for Russia to purchase strategic goods. Having completed the war with Denmark in 1570, the Swedes began strengthening their positions in Livonia.

The deterioration of the foreign policy situation coincided with rising tensions within Russia. At that time, Ivan IV received news of a conspiracy by the Novgorod elite, who were going to surrender Novgorod and Pskov to Lithuania. Concerned by the news of separatism in the region located near military operations, the tsar at the beginning of 1570 set out on a campaign against Novgorod and carried out brutal reprisals there. People loyal to the authorities were sent to Pskov and Novgorod. A wide range of people were involved in the investigation into the “Novgorod case”: representatives of the boyars, clergy and even prominent guardsmen. In the summer of 1570, executions took place in Moscow.

In conditions of aggravation of the external and internal situation, Ivan IV is taking a new diplomatic move. He agrees to a truce with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and begins to fight the Swedes, trying to oust them from Livonia. The ease with which Warsaw agreed to a temporary reconciliation with Moscow was explained by the internal political situation in Poland. Lived there last days the elderly and childless king Sigismund Augustus. Expecting his imminent death and the election of a new king, the Poles sought not to aggravate relations with Russia. Moreover, Ivan the Terrible himself was considered in Warsaw one of the likely candidates for the Polish throne.

Having concluded a truce with Lithuania and Poland, the tsar opposes Sweden. In an effort to secure the neutrality of Denmark and the support of part of the Livonian nobility, Ivan decides to create a vassal kingdom in the lands of Livonia occupied by Moscow. The brother of the Danish king, Prince Magnus, becomes its ruler. Having created the Livonian kingdom dependent on Moscow, Ivan the Terrible and Magnus begin new stage fight for Livonia. This time the theater of military operations moves to the Swedish part of Estonia.

First siege of Revel (1570-1571). The main goal of Ivan IV in this area was the largest Baltic port of Revel (Tallinn). On August 23, 1570, Russian-German troops led by Magnus (over 25 thousand people) approached the Revel fortress. The townspeople who had accepted Swedish citizenship responded to the call to surrender and refused. The siege began. The Russians built wooden towers opposite the fortress gates, from which they fired at the city. However, this time it did not bring success. The besieged not only defended themselves, but also made bold forays, destroying siege structures. The number of besiegers was clearly insufficient to capture such a large city with powerful fortifications.
However, the Russian governors (Yakovlev, Lykov, Kropotkin) decided not to lift the siege. They hoped to achieve success in the winter, when the sea would be frozen and the Swedish fleet would not be able to supply reinforcements to the city. Without taking active action against the fortress, the Allied troops were engaged in devastation of the surrounding villages, turning the local population against themselves. Meanwhile, the Swedish fleet managed to deliver a lot of food and weapons to the Revelians before the cold weather, and they endured the siege without much need. On the other hand, the murmur increased among the besiegers, who did not want to endure the difficult winter conditions. After standing at Revel for 30 weeks, the Allies were forced to retreat.

Capture of Wittenstein (1572). After this, Ivan the Terrible changes tactics. Leaving Revel alone for the time being, he decides to first completely oust the Swedes from Estonia in order to finally cut off this port from the mainland. At the end of 1572, the king himself led the campaign. At the head of an 80,000-strong army, he besieges the Swedish stronghold in central Estonia - the Wittenstein fortress ( modern city Paide). After a powerful artillery shelling, the city was taken by a fierce attack, during which the Tsar’s favorite, the famous guardsman Malyuta Skuratov, died. According to the Livonian chronicles, the king, in a rage, ordered the burning of captured Germans and Swedes. After the capture of Wittenstein, Ivan IV returned to Novgorod.

Battle of Lod (1573). But hostilities continued, and in the spring of 1573, Russian troops under the command of Voivode Mstislavsky (16 thousand people) met in an open field, near Lode Castle (Western Estonia), with the Swedish detachment of General Klaus Tott (2 thousand people). Despite their significant numerical superiority (according to the Livonian chronicles), the Russians were unable to successfully resist the military art of the Swedish warriors and suffered a crushing defeat. The news of the failure at Lod, which coincided with the uprising in the Kazan region, forced Tsar Ivan the Terrible to temporarily stop hostilities in Livonia and enter into peace negotiations with the Swedes.

Fighting in Estonia (1575-1577). In 1575, a partial truce was concluded with the Swedes. It assumed that until 1577 the theater of military operations between Russia and Sweden would be limited to the Baltic states and would not spread to other areas (primarily Karelia). Thus, Grozny was able to concentrate all his efforts on the fight for Estonia. During the campaign of 1575-1576. Russian troops, with the support of Magnus's supporters, managed to take possession of all of Western Estonia. The central event of this campaign was the capture by the Russians at the end of 1575 of the Pernov (Pärnu) fortress, where they lost 7 thousand people during the assault. (according to Livonian data). After the fall of Pernov, the remaining fortresses surrendered almost without resistance. Thus, by the end of 1576, the Russians had virtually captured all of Estonia, with the exception of Revel. The population, tired of the long war, rejoiced at peace. It is interesting that after the voluntary surrender of the powerful Gabsal fortress, local residents staged dances that so amazed the Moscow nobles. According to a number of historians, the Russians marveled at this and said: “What a strange people the Germans are! If we, Russians, had surrendered such a city unnecessarily, we would not have dared to raise our eyes to an honest man, and our tsar did not know what kind of execution to inflict on us.” "And you, Germans, celebrate your shame."

Second siege of Revel (1577). Having captured all of Estonia, the Russians again approached Revel in January 1577. The troops of governors Mstislavsky and Sheremetev (50 thousand people) arrived here. The city was defended by a garrison led by the Swedish general Horn. This time the Swedes prepared even more thoroughly to defend their main stronghold. Suffice it to say that the besieged had five times more guns than the besiegers. For six weeks, the Russians bombarded Revel, hoping to set it on fire with hot cannonballs. However, the townspeople took successful measures against fires, creating a special team that monitored the flight and fall of shells. For its part, the Revel artillery responded with even more powerful fire, inflicting brutal damage on the besiegers. One of the leaders of the Russian army, Voivode Sheremetev, who promised the Tsar to take Revel or die, also died from a cannonball. The Russians attacked the fortifications three times, but each time without success. In response, the Revel garrison made bold and frequent forays, preventing serious siege work.

The active defense of the Revelians, as well as cold and disease, led to significant losses in the Russian army. On March 13, it was forced to lift the siege. When leaving, the Russians burned their camp, and then told the besieged that they were not saying goodbye forever, promising to return sooner or later. After the siege was lifted, the Revel garrison and local residents raided the Russian garrisons in Estonia, which, however, was soon stopped by the approach of troops under the command of Ivan the Terrible. However, the king no longer moved to Revel, but to the Polish possessions in Livonia. There were reasons for this.

Fourth stage (1577-1583)

In 1572, the childless Polish king Sigismund Augustus died in Warsaw. With his death, the Jagiellon dynasty ended in Poland. The election of a new king dragged on for four years. Anarchy and political anarchy in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth temporarily made it easier for the Russians to fight for the Baltic states. During this period, Moscow diplomacy carried out active work with the aim of bringing the Russian Tsar to the Polish throne. The candidacy of Ivan the Terrible enjoyed some popularity among the small nobility, who were interested in him as a ruler capable of ending the dominance of the large aristocracy. In addition, the Lithuanian nobility hoped to weaken Polish influence with the help of Grozny. Many in Lithuania and Poland were impressed by the rapprochement with Russia for joint defense against the expansion of Crimea and Turkey.

At the same time, in the choice of Ivan the Terrible, Warsaw saw a convenient opportunity for the peaceful subjugation of the Russian state and the opening of its borders for Polish noble colonization. This, for example, has already happened with the lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania under the terms of the Union of Lublin. In turn, Ivan IV sought the Polish throne primarily for the peaceful annexation of Kyiv and Livonia to Russia, with which Warsaw categorically disagreed. The difficulties of uniting such polar interests ultimately led to the failure of the Russian candidacy. In 1576, the Transylvanian prince Stefan Batory was elected to the Polish throne. This choice destroyed the hopes of Moscow diplomacy for a peaceful solution to the Livonian dispute. In parallel, the government of Ivan IV negotiated with the Austrian Emperor Maximilian II, trying to obtain his support for the termination of the Union of Lublin and the separation of Lithuania from Poland. But Maximilian refused to recognize Russia's rights to the Baltic states, and the negotiations ended in vain.

However, Batory did not meet with unanimous support in the country. Some regions, primarily Danzig, refused to unconditionally recognize him. Taking advantage of the unrest that broke out on this basis, Ivan IV tried to annex southern Livonia before it was too late. In the summer of 1577, the troops of the Russian Tsar and his ally Magnus, violating the truce with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, invaded the southeastern regions of Livonia controlled by Poland. The few Polish units of Hetman Khodkevich did not dare to engage in battle and retreated beyond the Western Dvina. Without encountering strong resistance, the troops of Ivan the Terrible and Magnus captured the main fortresses in southeastern Livonia by the fall. Thus, all of Livonia north of the Western Dvina (with the exception of the areas of Riga and Revel) came under the control of the Russian Tsar. The campaign of 1577 was the last major military success of Ivan the Terrible in the Livonian War.

The tsar's hopes for long-term unrest in Poland were not justified. Batory turned out to be an energetic and decisive ruler. He besieged Danzig and obtained an oath from the local residents. Having suppressed internal opposition, he was able to direct all his forces to the fight against Moscow. Having created a well-armed, professional army of mercenaries (Germans, Hungarians, French), he also concluded an alliance with Turkey and Crimea. This time, Ivan IV was unable to separate his opponents and found himself alone in the face of strong hostile powers, whose borders stretched from the Don steppes to Karelia. In total, these countries surpassed Russia both in population and military power. True, in the south the situation after the terrible years of 1571-1572. somewhat discharged. In 1577, the irreconcilable enemy of Moscow, Khan Devlet-Girey, died. His son was more peaceful. However, the peacefulness of the new khan was partly explained by the fact that his main patron, Turkey, was at that time busy with a bloody war with Iran.
In 1578, the governors of Bathory invaded southeastern Livonia and managed to recapture from the Russians almost all of their conquests of the previous year. This time the Poles acted in concert with the Swedes, who almost simultaneously attacked Narva. With this turn of events, King Magnus betrayed Grozny and went over to the side of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. An attempt by Russian troops to organize a counteroffensive near Wenden ended in failure.

Battle of Wenden (1578). In October, Russian troops under the command of governors Ivan Golitsyn, Vasily Tyumensky, Khvorostinin and others (18 thousand people) tried to recapture Wenden (now the Latvian city of Cesis) taken by the Poles. But arguing about which of them was more important, they lost time. This allowed the Polish troops of Hetman Sapieha to connect with the Swedish detachment of General Boe and arrive in time to help the besieged. Golitsyn decided to retreat, but the Poles and Swedes on October 21, 1578 decisively attacked his army, which barely had time to line up. The Tatar cavalry was the first to falter. Unable to withstand the fire, she fled. After this, the Russian army retreated to its fortified camp and fired back from there until dark. At night, Golitsyn and his associates fled to Dorpat. The remnants of his army followed.
The honor of the Russian army was saved by the artillerymen under the command of the okolnichy Vasily Fedorovich Vorontsov. They did not abandon their guns and remained on the battlefield, deciding to fight to the end. The next day, the surviving heroes, who were joined by the troops of governors Vasily Sitsky, Danilo Saltykov and Mikhail Tyufikin who decided to support their comrades, entered into battle with the entire Polish-Swedish army. Having shot the ammunition and not wanting to surrender, the Russian artillerymen hanged themselves with their guns. According to the Livonian chronicles, the Russians lost 6,022 people killed near Wenden.

The defeat at Wenden forced Ivan the Terrible to seek peace with Batory. Having resumed peace negotiations with the Poles, the tsar decided in the summer of 1579 to strike at the Swedes and finally take Revel. Troops and heavy siege artillery were assembled for the march to Novgorod. But Batory did not want peace and was preparing to continue the war. Determining the direction of the main attack, the Polish king rejected proposals to go to Livonia, where there were many fortresses and Russian troops (up to 100 thousand people). Fighting under such conditions could cost his army great losses. In addition, he believed that in Livonia, devastated by many years of war, he would not find enough food and booty for his mercenaries. He decided to strike where he was not expected and take possession of Polotsk. By this, the king provided a safe rear for his positions in southeastern Livonia and received an important springboard for the campaign against Russia.

Defense of Polotsk (1579). At the beginning of August 1579, Batory’s army (30-50 thousand people) appeared under the walls of Polotsk. Simultaneously with his campaign, Swedish troops invaded Karelia. For three weeks, Batory's troops tried to set fire to the fortress with artillery fire. But the defenders of the city, led by governors Telyatevsky, Volynsky and Shcherbaty, successfully extinguished the fires that arose. This was also favored by the prevailing rainy weather. Then the Polish king, with the promise of high rewards and booty, persuaded his Hungarian mercenaries to storm the fortress. On August 29, 1579, taking advantage of a clear and windy day, the Hungarian infantry rushed to the walls of Polotsk and, using torches, managed to light them. Then the Hungarians, supported by the Poles, rushed through the flaming walls of the fortress. But its defenders had already managed to dig a ditch in this place. When the attackers burst into the fortress, they were stopped at the ditch by a salvo of cannons. Having suffered heavy losses, Batory's warriors retreated. But this failure did not stop the mercenaries. Seduced by the legends about the enormous wealth stored in the fortress, the Hungarian soldiers, reinforced by German infantry, again rushed to attack. But this time too the fierce assault was repulsed.
Meanwhile, Ivan the Terrible, having interrupted the campaign against Revel, sent part of the search to repel the Swedish onslaught in Karelia. The tsar ordered the detachments under the command of governors Shein, Lykov and Palitsky to rush to the aid of Polotsk. However, the governors did not dare to engage in battle with the Polish vanguard sent against them and retreated to the area of ​​​​the Sokol fortress. Having lost faith in the help of their search, the besieged no longer hoped for the protection of their dilapidated fortifications. Part of the garrison, led by Voivode Volynsky, entered into negotiations with the king, which ended with the surrender of Polotsk on the condition of free exit for all military men. Other governors, together with Bishop Cyprian, locked themselves in the Church of St. Sophia and were captured after stubborn resistance. Some of those who voluntarily surrendered went into the service of Batory. But the majority, despite the fear of reprisals from Ivan the Terrible, chose to return home to Russia (the tsar did not touch them and placed them in border garrisons). The capture of Polotsk brought a turning point in the Livonian War. From now on, the strategic initiative passed to the Polish troops.

Defense of the Falcon (1579). Having taken Polotsk, Batory on September 19, 1579 besieged the Sokol fortress. The number of its defenders by that time had decreased significantly, since the detachments of Don Cossacks, sent along with Shein to Polotsk, left without permission for the Don. During a series of battles, Batory managed to defeat the manpower of the Moscow army and take the city. On September 25, after heavy shelling by Polish artillery, the fortress was engulfed in fire. Its defenders, unable to stand in the burning fortress, made a desperate sally, but were repulsed and, after a fierce battle, ran back to the fortress. A detachment of German mercenaries burst in behind them. But the Falcon’s defenders managed to slam the gate behind him. Lowering the iron bars, they cut off the German detachment from the main forces. Inside the fortress, in fire and smoke, a terrible battle began. At this time, the Poles and Lithuanians rushed to the aid of their comrades who were in the fortress. The attackers broke the gate and burst into the burning Falcon. In a ruthless battle, its garrison was almost completely destroyed. Only governor Sheremetev and a small detachment were captured. Voivodes Shein, Palitsky and Lykov died in a battle outside the city. According to the testimony of the old mercenary, Colonel Weyer, in none of the battles did he see so many corpses lying in such a limited space. They were counted up to 4 thousand. The chronicle testifies to terrible abuses of the dead. Thus, German market women cut out fat from dead bodies to make some kind of healing ointment. After the capture of Sokol, Batory carried out a devastating raid on the Smolensk and Seversk regions, and then returned, ending the campaign of 1579.

So, this time Ivan the Terrible had to expect attacks on a wide front. This forced him to stretch his forces, thinned out during the war years, from Karelia to Smolensk. In addition, a large Russian group was located in Livonia, where Russian nobles received lands and started families. Many troops stood on the southern borders, expecting an attack by the Crimeans. In a word, the Russians could not concentrate all their forces to repel Batory’s onslaught. The Polish king also had another serious advantage. We are talking about the quality of combat training of his soldiers. The main role in Batory’s army was played by professional infantry, which had a wealth of experience in European wars. She was trained modern methods conducting combat with firearms, possessed the art of maneuver and interaction of all types of troops. Of great (sometimes decisive) importance was the fact that the army was personally led by King Batory - not only a skillful politician, but also a professional commander.
In the Russian army, the main role continued to be played by the mounted and foot militia, which had a low degree of organization and discipline. In addition, the dense masses of cavalry that formed the basis of the Russian army were highly vulnerable to infantry and artillery fire. There were relatively few regular, well-trained units (streltsy, gunners) in the Russian army. Therefore, the overall significant number did not at all indicate its strength. On the contrary, large masses of insufficiently disciplined and united people could more easily succumb to panic and flee from the battlefield. This was evidenced by the generally unsuccessful field battles of this war for the Russians (at Ulla, Ozerishchi, Lod, Wenden, etc.). It is no coincidence that Moscow governors sought to avoid battles in the open field, especially with Batory.
The combination of these unfavorable factors, along with the increase in internal problems (impoverishment of the peasantry, the agrarian crisis, financial difficulties, the fight against the opposition, etc.), predetermined Russia’s failure in the Livonian War. The last weight thrown on the scales of the titanic confrontation was the military talent of King Batory, who turned the tide of the war and snatched the treasured fruit of his many years of efforts from the tenacious hands of the Russian Tsar.

Defense of Velikiye Luki (1580). The following year, Batory continued his attack on Russia in a northeast direction. By this he sought to cut off Russian communications with Livonia. Starting the campaign, the king harbored hopes that part of society would be dissatisfied with the repressive policies of Ivan the Terrible. But the Russians did not respond to the king's calls to rebel against their king. At the end of August 1580, Batory’s army (50 thousand people) besieged Velikiye Luki, which covered the path to Novgorod from the south. The city was defended by a garrison led by governor Voeikov (6-7 thousand people). 60 km east of Velikiye Luki, in Toropets, there was a large Russian army of governor Khilkov. But he did not dare to go to the aid of Velikiye Luki and limited himself to individual sabotage, waiting for reinforcements.
Meanwhile, Batory began an attack on the fortress. The besieged responded with bold forays, during one of which they captured the royal banner. Finally, the besiegers managed to set fire to the fortress with red-hot cannonballs. But even under these conditions, its defenders continued to fight valiantly, wrapping themselves in wet skins to protect themselves from fire. On September 5, the fire reached the fortress arsenal, where gunpowder reserves were located. Their explosion destroyed part of the walls, which made it possible for Batory's soldiers to break into the fortress. The fierce battle continued inside the fortress. Almost all the defenders of Velikie Luki fell in a merciless massacre, including the governor Voeikov.

Battle of Toropets (1580). Having captured Velikiye Luki, the king sent a detachment of Prince Zbarazhsky against the governor Khilkov, who stood inactive at Toropets. On October 1, 1580, the Poles attacked the Russian regiments and won. Khilkov's defeat deprived him of protection southern regions Novgorod lands and allowed Polish-Lithuanian troops to continue military operations in this area in the winter. In February 1581 they made a raid on Lake Ilmen. During the raid, the city of Kholm was captured and Staraya Russa was burned. In addition, the fortresses of Nevel, Ozerishche and Zavolochye were taken. Thus, the Russians were not only completely ousted from the possessions of Rech Postolitaya, but also lost significant territories on their western borders. These successes ended Batory's campaign in 1580.

Battle of Nastasino (1580). When Batory took Velikiye Luki, a 9,000-strong Polish-Lithuanian detachment of the local military leader Philo, who had already declared himself the governor of Smolensk, set out for Smolensk from Orsha. Having passed through the Smolensk regions, he planned to unite with Batory at Velikie Luki. In October 1580, Philon’s detachment was met and attacked near the village of Nastasino (7 km from Smolensk) by the Russian regiments of the governor Buturlin. Under their onslaught, the Polish-Lithuanian army retreated to the convoy. At night, Philo left his fortifications and began to retreat. Acting energetically and persistently, Buturlin organized the persecution. Having overtaken Philo’s units 40 versts from Smolensk, on Spassky Meadows, the Russians again decisively attacked the Polish-Lithuanian army and inflicted a complete defeat on it. 10 guns and 370 prisoners were captured. According to the chronicle, Philo himself “barely fled into the forest on foot.” This single major Russian victory in the 1580 campaign protected Smolensk from Polish-Lithuanian attack.

Defense of Padis (1580). Meanwhile, the Swedes renewed their onslaught in Estonia. In October - December 1580, the Swedish army besieged Padis (now the Estonian city of Paldiski). The fortress was defended by a small Russian garrison led by governor Danila Chikharev. Deciding to defend himself to the last extreme, Chikharev ordered to kill the Swedish envoy who came with a proposal to surrender. Lacking food supplies, the defenders of Padis suffered terrible hunger. They ate all the dogs and cats, and at the end of the siege they ate straw and skins. Nevertheless, the Russian garrison steadfastly held back the onslaught of the Swedish army for 13 weeks. Only after the third month of the siege did the Swedes manage to take the fortress by storm, which was defended by half-dead ghosts. After the fall of Padis, its defenders were exterminated. The capture of Padis by the Swedes put an end to the Russian presence in the western part of Estonia.

Pskov defense (1581). In 1581, having with difficulty obtained the consent of the Sejm for a new campaign, Batory moved to Pskov. Through this The largest city There was a main connection between Moscow and the Livonian lands. By capturing Pskov, the king planned to finally cut off the Russians from Livonia and victoriously end the war. On August 18, 1581, Batory’s army (from 50 to 100 thousand people, according to various sources) approached Pskov. The fortress was defended by up to 30 thousand archers and armed townspeople under the command of governors Vasily and Ivan Shuisky.
The general attack began on September 8. The attackers managed to break through the fortress wall with gunfire and take possession of the Svinaya and Pokrovskaya towers. But the defenders of the city, led by the brave commander Ivan Shuisky, blew up the Pig Tower occupied by the Poles, and then drove them out of all positions and sealed the breach. In the battle at the breach, courageous Pskov women came to the aid of the men, bringing water and ammunition to their warriors, and at a critical moment they themselves rushed into hand-to-hand combat. Having lost 5 thousand people, Batory’s army retreated. The losses of the besieged amounted to 2.5 thousand people.
Then the king sent a message to the besieged with the words: “Surrender peacefully: you will have honor and mercy, which you will not deserve from the Moscow tyrant, and the people will receive a benefit unknown in Russia... In case of insane stubbornness, death to you and the people!” The answer of the Pskovites has been preserved, conveying through the centuries the appearance of the Russians of that era.

“Let your Majesty, the proud Lithuanian ruler, King Stefan, know that in Pskov even a five-year-old Christian child will laugh at your madness... What is the benefit for a person to love darkness more than light, or dishonor more than honor, or bitter slavery more than freedom? The better to leave us your holy Christian faith and submit to your mold? And what gain of honor is there in leaving our sovereign to us and submitting to a foreigner of other faiths and becoming like the Jews?.. Or do you think to deceive us with crafty affection or empty flattery or vain wealth? But also the whole world's treasures We don't want a kiss on the cross, with which we swore allegiance to our sovereign. And why are you, king, frightening us with bitter and shameful deaths? If God is for us, then no one is against us! We are all ready to die for our faith and for our sovereign, but we will not surrender city ​​of Pskov... Prepare for battle with us, and God will show who will defeat whom.”

A worthy response from the Pskovites finally destroyed Batory’s hopes of taking advantage of Russia’s internal difficulties. Having information about the opposition sentiments of part of Russian society, the Polish king did not have real information about the opinion of the overwhelming majority of the people. It did not bode well for the invaders. In the campaigns of 1580-1581. Batory met stubborn resistance, which he did not count on. Having become acquainted with the Russians in practice, the king noted that they “in defense of cities do not think about life, they calmly take the place of the dead... and block the gap with their breasts, fighting day and night, eating only bread, dying of hunger, but not surrendering.” . The defense of Pskov also revealed the weak side of the mercenary army. Russians died defending their land. Mercenaries fought for money. Having met persistent resistance, they decided to save themselves for other wars. In addition, the maintenance of a mercenary army required huge funds from the Polish treasury, which by that time was already empty.
On November 2, 1581, a new assault took place. He did not have the same drive and also failed. During the siege, the Pskovites destroyed tunnels and made 46 bold forays. At the same time as Pskov, the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery was heroically defended, where 200 archers led by Voivode Nechaev, together with the monks, managed to repel the onslaught of a detachment of Hungarian and German mercenaries.

Yam-Zapolsky Truce (concluded on January 15, 1582 near Zapolsky Yam, south of Pskov). With the onset of cold weather, the mercenary army began to lose discipline and demand an end to the war. The Battle of Pskov became the final chord of Batory’s campaigns. It represents a rare example of a successfully completed defense of a fortress without outside help. Having failed to achieve success near Pskov, the Polish king was forced to begin peace negotiations. Poland did not have the means to continue the war and borrowed money abroad. After Pskov, Batory could no longer get a loan secured by his successes. The Russian Tsar also no longer hoped for a favorable outcome of the war and was in a hurry to take advantage of the Poles’ difficulties in order to get out of the battle with the least losses. On January 6 (15), 1582, the Yam-Zapolsky Truce was concluded. The Polish king renounced claims to Russian territories, including Novgorod and Smolensk. Russia ceded the Livonian lands and Polotsk to Poland.

Defense of Oreshok (1582). While Batory was fighting with Russia, the Swedes, having strengthened their army with Scottish mercenaries, continued their offensive operations. In 1581 they finally ousted Russian troops from Estonia. Narva was the last to fall, where 7 thousand Russians died. Then the Swedish army under the command of General Pontus Delagari moved hostilities to Russian territory, having captured Ivangorod, Yam and Koporye. But the Swedes' attempt to take Oreshek (now Petrokrepost) in September - October 1582 ended in failure. The fortress was defended by a garrison under the command of the governors Rostovsky, Sudakov and Khvostov. Delagardie tried to take Oreshek on the move, but the defenders of the fortress repelled the attack. Despite the setback, the Swedes did not retreat. On October 8, 1582, during a strong storm, they launched a decisive assault on the fortress. They managed to break the fortress wall in one place and break in. But they were stopped by a bold counterattack by parts of the garrison. The autumn flood of the Neva and its strong excitement that day did not allow Delagardie to send reinforcements to the units that broke into the fortress in time. As a result, they were killed by the defenders of Oreshok and thrown into a stormy river.

Truce of Plyussa (concluded on the Plyussa River in August 1583). At that time, Russian cavalry regiments under the command of Voivode Shuisky were already rushing from Novgorod to help the besieged. Having learned about the movement of fresh forces to Oreshek, Delagardi lifted the siege of the fortress and left Russian possessions. In 1583, the Russians concluded the Truce of Plus with Sweden. The Swedes retained not only Estonian lands, but also captured Russian cities: Ivangorod, Yam, Koporye, Korela and their districts.

Thus ended the 25-year Livonian War. Its completion did not bring peace to the Baltic states, which henceforth for a long time became the object of bitter rivalry between Poland and Sweden. This struggle seriously distracted both powers from affairs in the east. As for Russia, its interest in accessing the Baltic has not disappeared. Moscow was accumulating strength and biding its time until Peter the Great completed the work begun by Ivan the Terrible.

Livonian War (briefly)

Livonian War - brief description

After the conquest of the rebellious Kazan, Russia sent forces to take Livonia. Researchers identify two main reasons for the Livonian War: the need for trade by the Russian state in the Baltic, as well as the expansion of its possessions. The struggle for dominance over the Baltic waters was between Russia and Denmark, Sweden, as well as Poland and Lithuania.

The reason for the outbreak of hostilities (Livonian War)

The main reason for the outbreak of hostilities was the fact that the Livonian Order did not pay the tribute that it was supposed to pay under the peace treaty of fifty-four. The Russian army invaded Livonia in 1558. At first (1558-1561), several castles and cities were taken (Yuryev, Narva, Dorpat).

However, instead of continuing the successful offensive, the Moscow government grants a truce to the order, while at the same time equipping a military expedition against Crimea. The Livonian knights, taking advantage of the support, gathered forces and defeated the Moscow troops a month before the end of the truce.

Russia did not achieve a positive result from military actions against Crimea. The favorable moment for victory in Livonia was also missed. Master Ketler in 1561 signed an agreement according to which the order came under the protectorate of Poland and Lithuania.

After making peace with the Crimean Khanate, Moscow concentrated its forces on Livonia, but now, instead of a weak order, it had to face several powerful contenders at once. And if at first it was possible to avoid a war with Denmark and Sweden, then a war with the Polish-Lithuanian king was inevitable.

Biggest achievement Russian troops in the second stage of the Livonian War there was the capture of Polotsk in 1563, after which there were many fruitless negotiations and unsuccessful battles, as a result of which even the Crimean Khan decided to abandon the alliance with the Moscow government.

The final stage of the Livonian War

The final stage of the Livonian War (1679-1683)- the military invasion of the Polish king Batory into Russia, which was simultaneously at war with Sweden. In August, Stefan Batory took Polotsk, and a year later Velikiye Luki and small towns were taken. On September 9, 1581, Sweden took Narva, Koporye, Yam, Ivangorod, after which the struggle for Livonia ceased to be relevant for Grozny. Since it was impossible to wage war with two enemies, the king concluded a truce with Batory.

The result of this war it was a complete conclusion two treaties that were not beneficial for Russia, as well as the loss of many cities.

Main events and chronology of the Livonian War

Livonian War(1558-1583) was fought by the Russian Kingdom for territories in the Baltic states and access to the Baltic Sea in order to break the blockade by the Livonian Confederation, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Sweden and establish direct communication with European countries.

Background

The Livonian Confederation was interested in controlling the transit of Russian trade and significantly limited the opportunities of Russian merchants. In particular, all trade exchanges with Europe could only be carried out through the Livonian ports of Riga, Lindanise (Revel), Narva, and goods could only be transported on ships of the Hanseatic League. At the same time, fearing the military and economic strengthening of Russia, the Livonian Confederation prevented the transport of strategic raw materials and specialists to Russia (see the Schlitte Affair), receiving the assistance of the Hanseatic League, Poland, Sweden and the German imperial authorities.

In 1503, Ivan III concluded a truce with the Livonian Confederation for 50 years, under the terms of which it had to annually pay tribute (the so-called “Yuriev tribute”) for the city of Yuryev (Dorpat), which previously belonged to Novgorod. Treaties between Moscow and Dorpat in the 16th century traditionally mentioned the “Yuriev tribute,” but in fact it was long forgotten. When the truce expired, during negotiations in 1554, Ivan IV demanded the return of arrears, the renunciation of the Livonian Confederation from military alliances with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Sweden, and the continuation of the truce.

The first payment of the debt for Dorpat was supposed to take place in 1557, but the Livonian Confederation did not fulfill its obligation.

In 1557, in the city of Posvol, an agreement was concluded between the Livonian Confederation and the Kingdom of Poland, establishing the vassal dependence of the order on Poland.

In the spring of 1557, Tsar Ivan IV established a port on the banks of Narva ( “The same year, July, a city was built from the German Ust-Narova River Rozsene by the sea as a shelter for sea ships.”). However, Livonia and the Hanseatic League do not allow European merchants to enter the new Russian port, and they are forced to go, as before, to Livonian ports.

Progress of the war

By the beginning of the war, the Livonian Confederation was weakened by defeat in the conflict with the Archbishop of Riga and Sigismund II Augustus. In addition, the already heterogeneous Livonian society was even more split as a result of the Reformation. On the other hand, Russia was gaining strength after the victories over the Kazan and Astrakhan khanates and the annexation of Kabarda.

War with the Livonian Confederation

Russia started the war on January 17, 1558. The invasion of Russian troops in January-February 1558 into the Livonian lands was a reconnaissance raid. 40 thousand people took part in it under the command of Khan Shig-Aley (Shah-Ali), governor Glinsky and Zakharyin-Yuryev. They walked through the eastern part of Estonia and returned back by the beginning of March. The Russian side motivated this campaign solely by the desire to receive due tribute from Livonia. The Livonian Landtag decided to collect 60 thousand thalers for settlements with Moscow in order to end the war that had begun. However, by May only half of the declared amount had been collected. In addition, the Narva garrison fired at the Ivangorod fortress, thereby violating the armistice agreement.

This time a more powerful army moved to Livonia. The Livonian Confederation at that time could put no more than 10 thousand in the field, not counting the fortress garrisons. Thus, its main military asset was the powerful stone walls of the fortresses, which by this time could no longer effectively withstand the power of heavy siege weapons.

Voivodes Alexey Basmanov and Danila Adashev arrived in Ivangorod. In April 1558, Russian troops besieged Narva. The fortress was defended by a garrison under the command of the knight Vocht Schnellenberg. On May 11, a fire broke out in the city, accompanied by a storm (according to the Nikon Chronicle, the fire occurred due to the fact that drunken Livonians threw an Orthodox icon of the Mother of God into the fire). Taking advantage of the fact that the guards had left the city walls, the Russians rushed to storm. They broke through the gates and took possession of the lower city. Having captured the guns located there, the warriors turned them around and opened fire on the upper castle, preparing the stairs for the attack. However, by the evening the defenders of the castle themselves surrendered, on the condition of free exit from the city.

The defense of the Neuhausen fortress was particularly tenacious. It was defended by several hundred warriors led by the knight von Padenorm, who repelled the onslaught of the governor Peter Shuisky for almost a month. On June 30, 1558, after the destruction of the fortress walls and towers by Russian artillery, the Germans retreated to the upper castle. Von Padenorm expressed a desire to hold the defense here too, but the surviving defenders of the fortress refused to continue their pointless resistance. As a sign of respect for their courage, Pyotr Shuisky allowed them to leave the fortress with honor.

In July, P. Shuisky besieged Dorpat. The city was defended by a garrison of 2,000 men under the command of Bishop Hermann Weyland. Having built a rampart at the level of the fortress walls and installed guns on it, on July 11, Russian artillery began shelling the city. The cannonballs pierced the tiles of the roofs of houses, drowning the residents taking refuge there. On July 15, P. Shuisky invited Weiland to surrender. While he was thinking, the bombing continued. Some towers and loopholes were destroyed. Having lost hope of outside help, the besieged decided to enter into negotiations with the Russians. P. Shuisky promised not to destroy the city to the ground and to preserve the previous administration for its residents. On July 18, 1558 Dorpat capitulated. The troops settled in houses abandoned by residents. In one of them, warriors found 80 thousand thalers in a cache. The Livonian historian bitterly tells that the people of Dorpat, because of their greed, lost more than the Russian Tsar demanded from them. The funds found would be enough not only for the Yuryev tribute, but also for hiring troops to defend the Livonian Confederation.

During May-October 1558, Russian troops took 20 fortified cities, including those that voluntarily surrendered and entered into the citizenship of the Russian Tsar, after which they went into winter quarters within their borders, leaving small garrisons in the cities. The new energetic master Gotthard Ketler took advantage of this. Having collected 10 thousand. army, he decided to return what was lost. At the end of 1558, Ketler approached the Ringen fortress, which was defended by a garrison of several hundred archers under the command of the governor Rusin-Ignatiev. A detachment of governor Repnin (2 thousand people) went to help the besieged, but he was defeated by Ketler. However, the Russian garrison continued to defend the fortress for five weeks, and only when the defenders ran out of gunpowder were the Germans able to storm the fortress. The entire garrison was killed. Having lost a fifth of his army (2 thousand people) near Ringen and having spent more than a month besieging one fortress, Ketler was unable to build on his success. At the end of October 1558, his army retreated to Riga. This small victory turned into a big disaster for the Livonians.

In response to the actions of the Livonian Confederation, two months after the fall of the Ringen fortress, Russian troops carried out a winter raid, which was a punitive operation. In January 1559, Prince-voivode Serebryany at the head of his army entered Livonia. The Livonian army under the command of the knight Felkensam came out to meet him. On January 17, at the Battle of Terzen, the Germans suffered a complete defeat. Felkensam and 400 knights (not counting ordinary warriors) died in this battle, the rest were captured or fled. This victory opened the gates to Livonia wide for the Russians. They passed unhindered through the lands of the Livonian Confederation, captured 11 cities and reached Riga, where they burned the Riga fleet at the Dunamun raid. Then Courland passed along the path of the Russian army and, having passed through it, they reached the Prussian border. In February the army returned home with huge booty and a large number prisoners.

After the winter raid of 1559, Ivan IV granted the Livonian Confederation a truce (the third in a row) from March to November, without consolidating his success. This miscalculation was due to a number of reasons. Moscow was under serious pressure from Lithuania, Poland, Sweden and Denmark, who had their own plans for the Livonian lands. Since March 1559, Lithuanian ambassadors urgently demanded that Ivan IV stop hostilities in Livonia, threatening, otherwise, to take the side of the Livonian Confederation. Soon the Swedish and Danish ambassadors made requests to end the war.

With its invasion of Livonia, Russia also affected the trade interests of a number of European countries. Trade on the Baltic Sea was then growing from year to year and the question of who would control it was relevant. Revel merchants, having lost the most important source of their profits - income from Russian transit, complained to the Swedish king: “ We stand on the walls and watch with tears as merchant ships sail past our city to the Russians in Narva».

In addition, the Russian presence in Livonia affected complex and confusing pan-European politics, upsetting the balance of power on the continent. So, for example, the Polish king Sigismund II Augustus wrote to the English Queen Elizabeth I about the importance of the Russians in Livonia: “ The Moscow sovereign daily increases his power by acquiring goods that are brought to Narva, because, among other things, weapons are brought here that are still unknown to him... military specialists arrive, through whom he acquires the means to defeat everyone...».

The truce was also due to disagreements over foreign strategy within the Russian leadership itself. There, in addition to supporters of access to the Baltic Sea, there were those who advocated continuing the struggle in the south, against the Crimean Khanate. In fact, the main initiator of the truce of 1559 was the okolnichy Alexei Adashev. This group reflected the sentiments of those circles of the nobility who, in addition to eliminating the threat from the steppes, wanted to receive a large additional land fund in the steppe zone. During this truce, the Russians attacked Crimean Khanate, which, however, did not have significant consequences. The truce with Livonia had more global consequences.

Truce of 1559

Already in the first year of the war, in addition to Narva, Yuryev (July 18), Neishloss, Neuhaus were occupied, the troops of the Livonian Confederation were defeated at Thiersen near Riga, Russian troops reached Kolyvan. The raids of the Crimean Tatar hordes on the southern borders of Rus', which occurred already in January 1558, could not fetter the initiative of Russian troops in the Baltic states.

However, in March 1559, under the influence of Denmark and representatives of the large boyars, who prevented the expansion of the scope of the military conflict, a truce was concluded with the Livonian Confederation, which lasted until November. Historian R. G. Skrynnikov emphasizes that the Russian government, represented by Adashev and Viskovaty, “had to conclude a truce on the western borders,” as it was preparing for a “decisive clash on the southern border.”

During the truce (August 31), the Livonian Landmaster of the Teutonic Order, Gothard Ketler, concluded an agreement in Vilna with the Lithuanian Grand Duke Sigismund II, according to which the lands of the order and the possessions of the Riga Archbishop passed under “clientella and protection,” that is, under the protectorate of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In the same 1559, Revel went to Sweden, and the Bishop of Ezel ceded the island of Ezel (Saaremaa) to Duke Magnus, the brother of the Danish king, for 30 thousand thalers.

Taking advantage of the delay, the Livonian Confederation gathered reinforcements, and a month before the end of the truce in the vicinity of Yuriev, its troops attacked Russian troops. Russian governors lost more than 1000 people killed.

In 1560, the Russians resumed hostilities and won a number of victories: Marienburg (now Aluksne in Latvia) was taken; German forces were defeated at Ermes, after which Fellin (now Viljandi in Estonia) was taken. The Livonian Confederation collapsed.

During the capture of Fellin, the former Livonian landmaster of the Teutonic Order, Wilhelm von Furstenberg, was captured. In 1575, he sent his brother a letter from Yaroslavl, where the former landmaster had been granted land. He told a relative that he “has no reason to complain about his fate.”

Sweden and Lithuania, who acquired the Livonian lands, demanded that Moscow remove troops from their territory. Ivan the Terrible refused and Russia found itself in conflict with the coalition of Lithuania and Sweden.

War with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

On November 26, 1561, the German Emperor Ferdinand I banned supplies to the Russians through the port of Narva. Eric XIV, King of Sweden, blocked the port of Narva and sent Swedish privateers to intercept merchant ships sailing to Narva.

In 1562, there was a raid by Lithuanian troops on the Smolensk and Velizh regions. In the summer of the same year, the situation on the southern borders of the Moscow state worsened, which moved the timing of the Russian offensive in Livonia to the fall.

The path to the Lithuanian capital Vilna was closed by Polotsk. In January 1563, the Russian army, which included “almost all the armed forces of the country,” set out to capture this border fortress from Velikie Luki. At the beginning of February, the Russian army began the siege of Polotsk, and on February 15 the city surrendered.

As the Pskov Chronicle reports, during the capture of Polotsk, Ivan the Terrible ordered all Jews to be baptized on the spot, and ordered those who refused (300 people) to be drowned in the Dvina. Karamzin mentions that after the capture of Polotsk, John ordered “all Jews to be baptized, and the disobedient to be drowned in Dvina.”

After the capture of Polotsk, there was a decline in Russia's successes in the Livonian War. Already in 1564, the Russians suffered a series of defeats (Battle of Chashniki). A boyar and a major military leader, who actually commanded the Russian troops in the West, Prince A. M. Kurbsky, went over to the side of Lithuania; he betrayed the king’s agents in the Baltic states to the king and participated in the Lithuanian raid on Velikiye Luki.

Tsar Ivan the Terrible responded to military failures and the reluctance of eminent boyars to fight against Lithuania with repressions against the boyars. In 1565 the oprichnina was introduced. In 1566, a Lithuanian embassy arrived in Moscow, proposing to divide Livonia on the basis of the situation existing at that time. The Zemsky Sobor, convened at this time, supported the intention of the government of Ivan the Terrible to fight in the Baltic states until the capture of Riga.

Third period of the war

The Union of Lublin, which in 1569 united the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into one state - the Republic of Both Nations, had serious consequences. A difficult situation has developed in the north of Russia, where relations with Sweden have again become strained, and in the south (the campaign of the Turkish army near Astrakhan in 1569 and the war with Crimea, during which the army of Devlet I Giray burned Moscow in 1571 and devastated the southern Russian lands). However, the onset of a long-term “kinglessness” in the Republic of Both Nations, the creation in Livonia of the vassal “kingdom” of Magnus, which at first had an attractive force in the eyes of the population of Livonia, again made it possible to tip the scales in favor of Russia. In 1572, the army of Devlet-Girey was destroyed and the threat of large raids was eliminated Crimean Tatars(Battle of Molodi). In 1573, the Russians stormed the Weissenstein (Paide) fortress. In the spring, Moscow troops under the command of Prince Mstislavsky (16,000) met near Lode Castle in western Estland with a Swedish army of two thousand. Despite the overwhelming numerical advantage, the Russian troops suffered a crushing defeat. They had to leave all their guns, banners and convoys.

In 1575, the Sage fortress surrendered to the army of Magnus, and Pernov (now Pärnu in Estonia) surrendered to the Russians. After the campaign of 1576, Russia captured the entire coast except Riga and Kolyvan.

However, the unfavorable international situation, the distribution of land in the Baltic states to Russian nobles, which alienated the local peasant population from Russia, and serious internal difficulties (economic ruin looming over the country) negatively influenced the further course of the war for Russia.

Fourth period of the war

Stefan Batory, who, with the active support of the Turks (1576), ascended the throne of the Republic of the Crown of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, went on the offensive and occupied Wenden (1578), Polotsk (1579), Sokol, Velizh, Usvyat, Velikiye Luki. In the captured fortresses, the Poles and Lithuanians completely destroyed the Russian garrisons. In Velikiye Luki, the Poles exterminated the entire population, about 7 thousand people. Polish and Lithuanian troops ravaged the Smolensk region, the Seversk land, the Ryazan region, the southwest of the Novgorod region, and plundered Russian lands right up to the upper reaches of the Volga. The devastation they caused was reminiscent of the worst Tatar raids. The Lithuanian governor Philon Kmita from Orsha burned 2,000 villages in the western Russian lands and captured a huge town. Lithuanian magnates Ostrozhsky and Vishnevetsky, with the help of light cavalry units, plundered the Chernihiv region. The cavalry of the nobleman Jan Solomeretsky ravaged the outskirts of Yaroslavl. In February 1581, the Lithuanians burned Staraya Russa.

In 1581, the Polish-Lithuanian army, which included mercenaries from almost all of Europe, besieged Pskov, intending, if successful, to march on Novgorod the Great and Moscow. In November 1580, the Swedes took Korela, where 2 thousand Russians were exterminated, and in 1581 they occupied Rugodiv (Narva), which was also accompanied by massacres - 7 thousand Russians died; the victors did not take prisoners and did not spare civilians. The heroic defense of Pskov in 1581-1582 by the garrison and the population of the city determined a more favorable outcome of the war for Russia: the failure at Pskov forced Stefan Batory to enter into peace negotiations.

Results and consequences

In January 1582, a 10-year truce was concluded in Yam-Zapolny (near Pskov) with the Republic of Both Nations (Rzeczpospolita) (the so-called Peace of Yam-Zapolny). Russia renounced Livonia and Belarusian lands, but some border lands were returned to it.

In May 1583, the 3-year Truce of Plyus with Sweden was concluded, according to which Koporye, Yam, Ivangorod and the adjacent territory of the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland were ceded. The Russian state again found itself cut off from the sea. The country was devastated and northwestern regions depopulated.

It should also be noted that the course of the war and its results were influenced by the Crimean raids: only for 3 years out of 25 years of the war there were no significant raids.

The Livonian War of 1558-1583 became one of the most important campaigns of the entire 16th century, perhaps.

Livonian War: brief background

After the great Moscow Tsar managed to conquer Kazan and

Astrakhan Khanate, Ivan IV turned his attention to the Baltic lands and access to the Baltic Sea. The capture of these territories for the Muscovite kingdom would mean promising opportunities for trade in the Baltic. At the same time, it was extremely unprofitable for the German merchants and the Livonian Order, who had already settled there, to allow new competitors into the region. The Livonian War was supposed to be the resolution of these contradictions. The formal reason for it should also be briefly mentioned. They were motivated by the non-payment of tribute which the Bishopric of Dorpat was obliged to pay in favor of Moscow according to the treaty of 1554. Formally, such a tribute existed from the beginning XVI century. However, in practice, no one remembered it for a long time. Only with the aggravation of relations between the parties did he use this fact as a justification for the Russian invasion of the Baltic.

Livonian War: briefly about the vicissitudes of the conflict

Russian troops launched an invasion of Livonia in 1558. The first phase of the conflict, which lasted until 1561, ended

crushing defeat of the Livonian Order. The armies of the Moscow Tsar carried out pogroms across eastern and central Livonia. Dorpat and Riga were taken. In 1559, the parties concluded a truce for six months, which was supposed to develop into a peace treaty on the terms of the Livonian Order from Russia. But to the rescue German knights the kings of Poland and Sweden hurried. King Sigismund II, through a diplomatic maneuver, managed to take the order under his own protectorate. And in November 1561, under the terms of the Vilna Treaty, the Livonian Order ceased to exist. Its territories are divided between Lithuania and Poland. Now Ivan the Terrible had to confront three powerful rivals at once: the Principality of Lithuania, the Kingdoms of Poland and Sweden. With the latter, however, the Moscow Tsar managed to quickly make peace for some time. In 1562-63, the second large-scale campaign to the Baltic began. The events of the Livonian War at this stage continued to develop well. However, already in the mid-1560s, relations between Ivan the Terrible and the boyars of the Chosen Rada deteriorated to the limit. The situation worsens further due to the flight of one of the closest princely associates, Andrei Kurbsky, to Lithuania and his defection to the enemy’s side (the reason that prompted the boyar was the growing despotism in the Moscow principality and the infringement of the ancient liberties of the boyars). After this event, Ivan the Terrible becomes completely embittered, seeing all the traitors around him. In parallel with this, defeats occurred at the front, which were explained by the prince internal enemies. In 1569, Lithuania and Poland united into a single state, which

strengthens their power. In the late 1560s - early 70s, Russian troops suffered a number of defeats and even lost several fortresses. Since 1579, the war has become more defensive in nature. However, in 1579 the enemy captured Polotsk, in 1580 Velikiy Luk, and in 1582 the long siege of Pskov continued. The need for peace and respite for the state after decades of military campaigns becomes obvious.

Livonian War: briefly about the consequences

The war ended with the signing of the Plyussky and Yam-Zapolsky truces, which were extremely unfavorable for Moscow. The exit was never obtained. Instead, the prince received an exhausted and devastated country that found itself in an extremely difficult situation. The consequences of the Livonian War accelerated the internal crisis that led to the Great Troubles of the early 16th century.