Only two years have passed since the glorious victory of Prince Dmitry Donskoy over the hordes of Mamai, and the Russian land shuddered again from the tread of the hooves of the Tatar cavalry. The terrible invasion of Tokhtamysh in Moscow in 1382 and its consequences became the subject of study for many generations of historians who tried from different angles to illuminate the causes of the accident. But on one point they agree - they did not manage this time to the unit princes to show unity, which became the guarantee of their victory on the Kulikovo field.
The nomination of a new Horde Khan
At the end of the XIV century, among the rulers of the Golden Horde, the struggle for power intensified. Tohtamysh Khan came to the fore, the influence of which previously extended only to the so-called White Horde, or, as the Tatars themselves called it, Ak-Orda. With the support of his ally Tamerlan, in 1379 he captured the main capital of the Tatar state - Saray al-Jedid - and soon became the ruler of all the lands located on the lower reaches of the Don.
Nomination of Tokhtamysh was largely facilitated by the setbacks that befell his main rival, the shadow ruler of the Horde Mamai, who was utterly defeated in 1380 by Dmitry Donskoy. Escaping ingloriously after a crushing defeat, he fled to the Crimea, where he tried to collect the remnants of his loyal forces for a new campaign to Moscow. But this was not destined to happen. Tokhtamysh advanced his army against him for a decisive battle on the Kalka River.
Momai was preparing to accept the battle, but at the last moment he was betrayed by his close associates, who had abandoned him and overrun the enemy. He had to flee again. This time, Mamai rushed to Kafu - a fortified city in the Crimea, but even there, another betrayal awaited him. Former allies and masters of the city, the Genoese treacherously killed him and robbed him. Thus, the once formidable ruler of the Golden Horde ended ingloriously.
The bloody invasion of Tokhtamysh in Moscow
Whenever Tatar cavalry raids on Russian lands, they always carried blood and fires with them, but under Khan Tokhtamysh these invasions were especially destructive. An example of this is the events that occurred in August 1382. They began with the fact that the new ruler of the Golden Horde sent his ambassadors to the Moscow prince. Through them, he thanked Dmitry Donskoy for the victory he won over Mamai, in his words - “a vile usurper of power”, and informed that now he reigned in the Golden Horde - her rightful lord of the Genghisids clan.
But this was only an introduction, the main thing was that the khan demanded further payment of tribute. After listening to the ambassadors and, as usual, giving them generously, Prince Dmitry ordered the khan to convey his best wishes, but categorically refused to pay tribute. The subsequent Tokhtamysh invasion of Moscow was a consequence of his statement.
Historical documents indicate that from the side of the Tatar Khan in 1381 another attempt was made to diplomatic pressure on Prince Dmitry. To this end, he sent another embassy to Moscow, led by the young prince Ak-Khozem, accompanied by a powerful detachment of soldiers. But for unknown reasons, they never arrived in the capital, and thus the invasion of Khan Tokhtamysh to Moscow was a foregone conclusion.
Trekking begun in an environment of strict secrecy
Starting the campaign in 1382, the Tatar leader showed outstanding organizational skills. First of all, he took measures in order to keep the movement of his troops secret from the enemy. To avoid the slightest leak of information, the khan ordered all Moscow merchants who were in Kazan subject to him to kill or hide in a prison, and use their ships to transport troops to the right bank of the Volga.
From the written monuments that have reached us at that time, it is known that his hordes moved quickly, but with the utmost precautions - "preventing the news from overtaking himself." Thanks to this, Tokhtamysh’s invasion of Moscow was a surprise for its inhabitants and deprived them of the opportunity to carefully prepare for reflection. At all times, the suddenness of the attack largely contributed to the luck of the whole thing.
Betrayal of the Ryazan Prince
The khan also played into the hands of such a sad factor for the Russians as the propensity of part of the specific princes to betray in the interests of their own security and benefits. This was manifested throughout the entire period of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, and one of the examples was the unexpected transition to the side of Tokhtamysh Prince Oleg Ryazansky. He not only showed humility before the invaders, but also voluntarily showed comfortable fords through the Oka. Subsequently, he suffered severely because of this at the hands of the Tatars themselves.
It is known that the diplomatic methods of the invasion of Tokhtamysh in Moscow tried to prevent the Prince of Nizhny Novgorod Dmitry Konstantinovich. To this end, he sent his sons for negotiations with the khan, but they did not fulfill the instructions simply because they could not catch up with the Tatar cavalry, which was moving with extraordinary speed.
However, no matter how hard the invaders tried, the news of their approach nevertheless reached the Grand Duke. Dmitry Donskoy, remembering the unanimity with which the specific princes rose two years ago to fight the hordes of Mamaia, this time pinned hopes on their help, but miscalculated. When Tokhtamysh’s invasion of Moscow became apparent, the prince did not receive support from them and was forced to go to form Kostroma to form troops, and his closest associate Vladimir Andreevich Serpukhovskaya — to Volok Lamsky.
On the outskirts of Moscow
Using the fords indicated to him by Prince Ryazan Oleg, Tokhtamysh crossed the Oka and, having plundered Serpukhov along the way, sent his cavalry to Moscow. The entire territory where the invaders passed was a continuous scorched earth, on which the ashes of the villages later blackened for many years, and the bones of the inhabitants remaining without burial turned white in the grass.
In the absence of the Grand Duke, panic arose in the capital, which was provoked by the invasion of Tokhtamysh in Moscow. In addition, in a short time, a large number of residents of the surrounding villages gathered together with all their property hoping to hide from the enemy behind the Kremlin walls. As a result, riots and robberies began, exacerbating the already tense situation.
Defense organization
Some order was managed to bring to the Lithuanian prince Ostei, who arrived in the city, who was in the Russian service. Under him, a national assembly was convened, which decided not to let anyone out of Moscow and to direct all forces to prepare for defense. The prince himself, as a military man, supervised the work related to the installation of protective structures on the walls, the preparation of tar, tar and stones, which in the event of an assault had to fall upon the heads of the besiegers. By his order, all the posadas were burned around the city. This measure deprived the enemy of material for a siege and shelter.
The appearance of the enemy under the walls of the city
Inevitable, like rock, the invasion of Tokhtamysh was approaching Moscow. The date of August 23, 1382 became a black day in the history of Russia. This morning, the Tatars advanced detachment approached the Kremlin walls. The Horde did not take any active action, and when they learned that Prince Dmitry Donskoy was not in the city, they drove some distance in anticipation of the main forces. But their very appearance caused a certain psychological breakdown among Muscovites.
As contemporaries testify, in order to relieve tension, the residents resorted to a tried and tested remedy - general drunkenness. To do this, they opened the cellars of rich houses, rolled out barrels of honey and braga, and then drank from small to large. In a drunken state, they climbed the Kremlin walls and from there threatened the Tatars, showering them with desperate abuse.
Assault attempts repelled by Muscovites
Tokhtamysh’s invasion of Moscow can be briefly described, outlining the events that took place over four days - from August 23 to 26. If on the first day the townspeople saw the Tatar avant-garde, then the next morning the main forces of the enemy, led by the khan, approached the walls of the capital. The Horde attacked, but were repelled by the defenders of the city and with great losses retreated. The assault on August 25 did not bring them success. Under a hail of arrows, pouring showers of boiling water and burning tar from the walls, the uninvited guests were again forced to leave.
Deceitful Asians and Betrayal of Tribesmen
So they would have gone with nothing if not for their Asian cunning and treacherous betrayal of the Suzdal young princes. Realizing that Muscovites could not defeat them by force, Tokhtamysh sent a delegation of noble Horde to the city walls and included two sons of the Suzdal prince - Vasily and Semyon, those who were sent to him at the beginning of the campaign by his father with a diplomatic mission, but were delayed, and then they joined the environment of the khan. They enjoyed the special trust of Muscovites, since they were siblings to the wife of Prince Dmitry Donskoy - Evdokia.
Tohtamysh also played on this trust. On his behalf, the brothers assured the townspeople that the Horde did not have hostility towards them, and they came to deal with only one prince Dmitry. Since there is no such thing in the city, they are ready to leave, provided that the residents, opening the gate, go out to meet the khan with honors and gifts. The Khan, on the other hand, will not harm anyone, but when he sees a city about which he has heard a lot, he will lead his army away. They confirmed their words with an oath.
Horde invasion of Moscow
If the townspeople had heard this from the lips of strangers, they would probably have doubted it. But at that moment compatriots spoke to them, and besides, relatives of the Grand Duke himself, and they believed the deception. The Kremlin gates opened, and from there appeared a procession of residents of the capital, led by Prince Ostei and the clergy. In the blink of an eye, all of them were chopped off by Tatars who attacked from all sides.
Bursting into a more unprotected city, the Horde began to rob and burn everything that came in the way. The hell they built inside the Kremlin walls is beyond description. Historians have found that 24,000 people became victims of this bloody feast that day. Since in these years the population of Moscow was 40,000 people, it turns out that on August 26 more than half of the capital's inhabitants died. In addition, a huge number of prisoners stolen into slavery became the khan's prey.
The Tokhtamysh invasion of Moscow in 1382 and its consequences were an example of what the fragmentation of the state, the lack of unity in reflecting the danger, and vulnerability to internal betrayal lead to. In those days when Muscovites fought on the Kremlin walls and died, becoming a victim of treachery of compatriots, the Grand Duke and his wife Evdokia were in Kostroma. They tried in vain to convince the princes, again, like two years ago, to join forces and prevent the invasion of Tokhtamysh in Moscow.
Year of the great Russian tribulation
The next day, fed up with the blood of innocent victims and aggravated by rich prey, the Tatars left the city. But before returning to the Horde, they divided into several independent groups and, at the same time, seized and ravaged Vladimir, Zvenigorod, Mozhaysk and Yuryev. Not without reason 1382 entered the history of Russia as one of the most mournful episodes of its history. Tens of thousands of slain and driven into slavery - such is its outcome.
The only time the Tatars received a serious rebuff, trying to attack Volok Lamsky. Here their cavalry was stopped by Prince Serpukhov, who hastily managed to collect the militia. The main forces of the Tatars, led by the khan on the way back, contrary to the promise, plundered the lands of the traitor Oleg Ryazansky, who fled from the battlefield.
So ended the invasion of Tokhtamysh to Moscow. Its results are very sad. Having suffered huge economic losses and having given human lives, Russia remained in political dependence on the Horde khans. To avoid new bloodshed, Prince Dmitry was forced to continue paying tribute and paying Tokhtamysh for two years after the victory on the Kulikovo field. He himself and subsequent princes ruled in their estates only on the basis of labels received in the Golden Horde. Until the overthrow of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, a whole century remained.