For the entire Northern War there was no more important battle than the Battle of Poltava. In short, she finally changed the course of that campaign. Sweden was at a disadvantage, and she had to make concessions to a strengthened Russia.
Events on the eve
Peter the Great started the war against Sweden in order to gain a foothold on the Baltic coast. In his dreams, Russia was a great sea power. It was the Baltic states that became the main theater of military operations. In 1700, the Russian army, which had just begun to undergo reforms, lost the battle of Narva. King Charles XII took advantage of his success to tackle his other opponent - the Polish monarch Augustus II, who supported Peter at the beginning of the conflict.
While the main Swedish forces were far in the west, the Russian tsar switched his country's economy to war footing. He in a short time managed to create a new army. This modern, European-trained army conducted several successful operations in the Baltic states, including in Courland and on the banks of the Neva. At the mouth of this river, Peter founded the port and the future capital of the empire, St. Petersburg.
Meanwhile, Charles XII finally defeated the Polish king and brought him out of the war. In his absence, the Russian army occupied a considerable chunk of Swedish territory, but so far it has not had to fight the main enemy army. Karl, wanting to inflict a mortal blow to the enemy, decided to head straight to Russia to gain a decisive victory in a long conflict there. That is why the battle of Poltava happened . In short, the site of this battle was far from the previous position of the front. Karl moved south - to the Ukrainian steppes.
Mazepa's betrayal
On the eve of the general battle, Peter became aware that the hetman of the Zaporozhye Cossacks Ivan Mazepa went over to the side of Charles XII. He promised the Swedish king assistance in the amount of several thousand well-trained cavalrymen. Treason has infuriated the Russian Tsar. Units of his army began to besiege and capture the Cossack towns in Ukraine. Despite the betrayal of Mazepa, some of the Cossacks remained loyal to Russia. These Cossacks chose Ivan Skoropadsky as the new hetman.
Mazepa's help was urgently needed by Charles XII. The monarch with his northern army went too far from its own territory. The army had to continue the campaign in unusual conditions. Local Cossacks helped not only with weapons, but also with navigation, as well as food. The precarious mood of the local population forced Peter to abandon the use of the remnants of loyal Cossacks. Meanwhile, the Battle of Poltava was approaching. Having briefly assessed his position, Charles XII decided to besiege the important Ukrainian city. He hoped that Poltava would quickly capitulate to his considerable army, but this did not happen.
Siege of Poltava
Throughout the spring and early summer of 1709, the Swedes stood near Poltava, unsuccessfully trying to storm it. Historians have counted 20 such attempts, during which about 7 thousand soldiers died. The small Russian garrison held on, hoping for tsarist help. The besieged took bold attacks, which the Swedes did not prepare for, because no one thought about such fierce resistance.
The main Russian army under the command of Peter approached the city on June 4. At first, the king did not want a “general battle” with the army of Charles. However, delaying the campaign every month was becoming increasingly difficult. Only a decisive victory could help Russia consolidate all its important acquisitions in the Baltic states. Finally, after several military advice with his close associates, Peter decided on a battle, which became the Battle of Poltava. Briefly and quickly preparing for her was too unreasonable. Therefore, the Russian army gathered reinforcements for several more days. The Cossacks of Skoropadsky finally joined. The tsar also hoped for a Kalmyk detachment, but he did not have time to approach Poltava.
Between the Russian and Swedish armies was the Vorskla River. Due to unstable weather, Peter gave the order to cross the waterway south of Poltava. This maneuver turned out to be a good solution - the Swedes were not ready for such a turn of events, waiting for the Russians in a completely different area of military operations.
Karl could still turn back and not give the general battle, which became the battle of Poltava. The brief description of the Russian army that he received from the defector also did not give the Swedish generals optimism. In addition, the king did not wait for help from the Turkish Sultan, who promised to bring him an auxiliary detachment. But against the background of all these circumstances, the vivid character of Charles XII affected. The brave and still young monarch decided to fight.
Condition of troops
June 27, 1709 (July 8, according to the new style), the Battle of Poltava took place. Briefly, the most important thing was the strategy of the commanders and the size of their troops. Karl had 26 thousand soldiers, while Peter had some quantitative advantage (37 thousand). The king achieved this through the exertion of all the forces of the state. For several years, the Russian economy has gone a long way from agrarian farming to modern industrial production (at that time). Guns were cast, foreign firearms were purchased, soldiers began to receive a military education in the European pattern.
Surprising was the fact that both monarchs themselves directly on the battlefield commanded their armies. In the New Age, this function passed to the generals, but Peter and Karl were exceptions.
Battle progress
The battle began with the fact that the Swedish avant-garde organized the first attack on Russian redoubts. This maneuver was a strategic mistake. The regiments, detached from their convoy, were defeated by the cavalry, commanded by Alexander Menshikov.
After this fiasco, the main armies entered the battle. In the mutual confrontation of the infantry, the winner could not decide for several hours. The decisive was the confident attack of the Russian cavalry on the flanks. She crushed the enemy and helped the infantry squeeze the Swedish regiments in the center.
Summary
The great significance of the Battle of Poltava (it is rather difficult to characterize it briefly) was that after its defeat Sweden finally lost its strategic initiative in the Northern War. The entire subsequent campaign (the conflict continued for another 12 years) was marked by the superiority of the Russian army.
The moral results of the Battle of Poltava were also important, which we will now try to briefly describe. News of the defeat of the hitherto invincible Swedish army shocked not only Sweden, but all of Europe, where Russia was finally started to be seen as a serious military force.