With the death of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, Ukraine faced one of the most tragic moments in its history, when military operations were carried out throughout its territory, and the Cossack troops and the political elite were divided into several groups. The ruin was born, both due to objective processes, and to a greater extent due to the short-sighted policy of most of the Cossack elders, unable to choose a leader worthy of the spirit of the deceased Bohdan Khmelnitsky. One of those who could become the new head of Ukraine was Ivan Vygovsky, whose military talent was manifested in one of the largest military clashes in Ukraine - the Konotop (Sosnovskaya) battle.
Parties to the battle of Konotop
The Konotop battle of 1659 happened in the summer, in the steppes between the villages of Shapovalovka and Sosnovka. Its sides were: the fifty-thousandth army led by Prince Trubetskoy, enlisted the support of the regiment of Prince Romodovsky, on the one hand, and the Ukrainian Cossack army led by hetman Ivan Vygovsky. As a result of the fighting, the total losses of the two armies amounted to about 45,000 killed: 30,000 from Trubetskoy, and 15,000 from Vygovsky.
The reflection of the battle in history
The battle of Konotop through the eyes of Russian historians seems to be the most catastrophic defeat of Moscow troops. There is very little information about this battle, since its study was carried out at a minimum level. In most historical books and textbooks this battle is not mentioned at all. Therefore, there is conflicting information about how the Battle of Konotop passed and how it ended. Myths and facts are mixed together, and it is almost impossible to find the truth about a particular moment or small event. In the Soviet Union, there were restrictions on public discussion of the division of the seventeenth-century Ukrainian people into pro-Moscow and anti-Moscow trends.
Vygovsky’s election as hetman
Ivan Vygovsky officially came to power in Ukraine in mid-August 1657. The title of hetman was received by the general clerk Ivan Vygovsky at the Petty Officer Council in the city of Chigirin. Another candidate was
Yuri Khmelnitsky, who was the youngest son of Bogdan Khmelnitsky. However, in addition to being related to the great hetman, Yuri did not have other supernatural qualities necessary for governing the country. Not in favor of his candidacy spoke and the young age of Khmelnitsky Jr.
Geopolitical views of Vygovsky
At first, the new hetman was not perceived by ordinary Cossacks. One of the reasons is the origin of Vygovsky and his past. Ivan is a native of the Volyn nobility clan. Initially, he was a clerk with the Polish commissioner, who opposed the Cossacks in Ukraine. The Vygovsky family also had the roots of the Polish gentry. Also, the Cossacks, who fought for an independent Ukrainian state, were alarmed by the desire of the new Hetman to surrender Little Russia under the protectorate of the Commonwealth. According to one unverified version, Vygovsky announced his decision during the funeral of Bogdan Khmelnitsky. He shared the ideas of tearing Little Russia away from Moscow and joining the Ukrainian lands to Poland with the Ambassador of the Commonwealth, Kazimir Benevsky. This fact became known to the Moscow Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. However, the king questioned the reliability of the fact of this conversation and ignored it. On the contrary, he sent a message addressed to Martin Pushkar, the Poltava colonel, as well as Yakov Barabash, the chieftain of the Cossack army. In the dispatch, Alexei Mikhailovich ordered that the new hetman obey completely and avoid riots.
Pereyaslav Rada and the Vygovsky Army
Vygovsky also did not show his intentions regarding the Polish vector. On the contrary, in the new Pereyaslavskaya Rada, in the presence of the arrived Russian ambassador Bogdan Khitrov, the hetman Vygovsky swore allegiance to the
Moscow state and the tsar. It is believed that with this diplomatic gesture he deliberately reassured the king. With the weakening of control on the part of Moscow, Ivan established positive diplomatic relations with the Crimea and secured the loyalty of the khan's army. He also began to strengthen the army. He spent part of the Cossack treasury inherited from Bohdan Khmelnitsky on the creation of a hired army. About a million rubles were spent on the recruiting of soldiers of German and Polish origin.
At the same time, internal protests in Ukraine began to grow. In the first year of hetmanat Vygovsky, as a result of the civil war, about 50,000 civilians were killed. The fighting took place in cities such as Gadyach, Lubny, Mirgorod and other settlements of
Left-Bank Ukraine.The tsar, having familiarized himself with such a course of affairs, sent governor Grigory Romadovsky to Ukraine, led by a significant Russian army. The Moscow presence in Kiev was strengthened, as prescribed by the Pereyaslav agreements. In Kiev, a detachment of Vasily Shemetev was stationed.
Gadiak Treaty with Poland and the beginning of the first clashes
An open confrontation against Moscow began in the early fall of 1858, when the Peace Treaty was concluded with the Poles in the city of Gadyach (the so-called Gadyach Peace Treaty). The agreement stipulated the transfer of Little Russia to the power of the Commonwealth, and Vygovsky began to prepare for war against Russia. Chronicler Samoilo Velichko speaks of Vygovsky's betrayal. He directly calls the hetman the culprit of ruin and a long war in Ukraine.
The first thing that was decided to be done was the
"liberation" of Kiev from the Sheremet garrison. However, Danil, the brother of Vygovsky sent to fulfill this task, failed the task. Who came to the rescue, Ivan Vygovsky himself was captured. Under pressure, in captivity, he again assured everyone of his loyalty to Moscow, while promising to dissolve the army of mercenaries and Tatars. Believing this statement, the tsar had mercy on Vygovsky and released him.
Very soon, Ivan launched an attack on the army of Romodanovsky. Having learned about these plans, it was decided to send fifty thousandth reinforcements to help Romodanovsky, led by Prince Trubetskoy. Trubetskoy’s army advanced towards the Konotop fortress, capturing Serebryannoe along the way.
The siege of Konotop
Trubetskoy united with the regiments of Romodanovsky and Bespaly in February 1659. In mid-April, the Moscow army approached Konotop, and on April 21, shelling and siege began. The battle of Konotop in 1659 was described by contemporaries as a fratricidal battle. Moreover, the armies that fought on both sides consisted mainly of Ukrainians and Russians, in approximately equal proportions.
The old map of the Battle of Konotop gives a concept of the battlefield. Konotop itself at that time was a fortress with four entrance gates. She was surrounded by a moat on both sides. Also nearby was another fortification, surrounded on three sides by a rampart and a moat, and on the fourth protected by the Konotop River. The garrison of the fortress consisted of four thousand Cossacks of several regiments.
Konotop battle
On June 27, 1659, near the village of Shapovalovka, the first clashes began between the Vygovsky army and the Moscow army. In these clashes, Moscow forces suffered serious damage. However, this information is contradictory, and is disproved by other contemporaries. It is believed that after the battle the Moscow army rushed after Vygovsky’s cavalry and on June 29 in the morning, near the villages of Sosnovka and Shepetovka, the battle that went down in history as the Battle of Konotop in 1659 began.
Units led by Pozharsky were trapped between two rivers. This area is characterized by a large number of swamps. Therefore, the patency of the troops was difficult. Fatal for Pozharsky was the blow of the troops of the Crimean Khan from the rear. As a result of this attack, according to various estimates, the cavalry of the Russians lost from five to thirty thousand people killed. Pozharsky’s arrogance played a trick on him. The start of the attack was not prepared. Pozharsky did not even bother to conduct reconnaissance of the area. As a result of illiterate leadership, he was captured by the khan and was executed.
The departure of the Moscow army
The Moscow army, under the leadership of Trubetskoy, carried out an organized withdrawal to Putivl. The defeat at Konotop was unexpected for Moscow. It was expected that the troops of the Crimean Khan after such a victory will go to her. However, the Tatars quarreled with Vygovsky and began to plunder the cities of Little Russia. So the battle of Konotop ended. Who won this battle? The victory was won by the army of Hetman Vygovsky, however, the consequences of this victory led to the plunder of the country by the Tatars.
It was believed that after such a defeat, Alexei Mikhailovich would not be able to assemble a strong army, but this was not so. On July 28, 1659, the Crimean Khan was expelled from Ukraine by the efforts of the Don Cossacks Yakovlev, the troops of Ataman Sirk and former associates of Bohdan Khmelnitsky. It is worth noting that the consequences of the "management" of the Crimean Khan significantly weakened Ukraine. This is the fault of the hetman Vygovsky.
Konotop battle. The history of the Cossacks and the next hetman
Already in mid-October, a new hetman of Ukraine, Yuri Khmelnitsky, was elected instead of Ivan, who was brought by Alexei Trubetskoy. Five years after the end of the battle, Vygovsky was accused of treason by the Poles and executed.