The war for Azov was waged for decades between Russia and Turkey. The Prut world was one of the stages of this ongoing confrontation. Despite its conditions, Russia's losses were temporary. She achieved her goal in twenty-five years. Then Azov finally became part of the Russian Empire.
Campaign Result
In 1711, the campaign of the army of Peter the Great in Moldova against the Ottoman Empire took place. This was one of the stages of the Russo-Turkish war, which lasted from 1710 to 1713.
The Russian army was led by Sheremetev. The king went with the army. The Russians were pinned to the right bank of the Prut River. The situation became hopeless, as the enemy army consisted of one hundred and twenty thousand Turkish soldiers and seventy thousand cavalry of the Crimean Tatars. Peter the Great had to negotiate, because his forty-thousandth army could not break through. So the Prut Peace was concluded. Who signed the contract?
Russian messengers
The subject of negotiations was the possibility of the Russian troops, together with Peter the Great, to leave the encirclement. In exchange for this, the king had to make substantial concessions.
From the side of Russia in the negotiations took part:
He was a representative of Polish Jews who converted to Orthodoxy. He began his service in a Polish order. Under Peter the Great, he took part in campaigns, concluded contracts. He was a Privy Councilor, later Vice Chancellor, and headed the state post for about twenty years.
- Boris Petrovich Sheremetev.
He was from an old boyar family. He showed himself as a military man and diplomat. He participated in the signing of the "Eternal Peace", served as the Belgorod governor, was commander in the Northern War.
The envoys not only discussed the terms of the treaty, they turned out to be hostages of the Turks.
Turkish representative
On the part of the Ottoman Empire, the Prut Peace Treaty was signed by Baltaji Mehmed Pasha. He is considered an eighteenth-century politician. He was twice the Great Vizier under Ahmed the Third, including at the time of signing the treaty with Russia.
The Sultan was dissatisfied with the conditions of the world that the vizier signed, so he was soon removed from his post. Mehmed Pasha was too soft in military and political affairs. He was even sentenced to death, but thanks to the intercession, Emetullah Sultan was left alive.
Mehmed Pasha was exiled to the island of Lesbos, and later to Lemnos. There he died, although there is a version that he was strangled by order of the Sultan.
Peace terms
The Prut world assumed that Russia should abandon the acquisitions of the Northern War and recognize Leshchinsky as a candidate for the Polish throne.
From the Turkish camp, Shafirov was sent to Peter the Great. Under him were peace conditions, which consisted of the following items:
- the king was to give the Ottoman Empire to Azov, territories were covered up to the Oreli and Sinyuhi rivers;
- Taganrog fortresses, Stone Zaton, Bogoroditsk should have been torn down;
- Russians should not interfere in the affairs of Poland;
- it was forbidden to influence the activities of Zaporizhzhya Cossacks;
- the Swedish king with the army was able to get home through the lands of Russia.
The full text has not been preserved in either of the two languages. You can judge it only by partial information.
The Prut Peace Treaty allowed Russia to keep the troops, withdrawing them from the encirclement along with all their weapons. The contract was sealed 07/23/1711. Towards evening, the Russian army, accompanied by the Turkish cavalry, headed for Iasi.
The agreement did not resolve all issues, and the Russo-Turkish war lasted another two years. The main points of the world in 1711 were confirmed by the Andrianopol Treaty.
The myth of bribing the great vizier
In Russian historiography, disputes about how Peter the Great managed to avoid the shameful captivity still do not cease. There is a legend according to which the Turkish vizier was bribed. The issue price was one hundred and fifty thousand rubles.
Mistress, and soon the wife of Peter the Great, Catherine, gave her jewelry for the transaction. It was for this that the king instituted the Order of St. Catherine, with whom he awarded her. The wedding between Peter and Catherine happened after an unsuccessful campaign. Most likely, this is just a legend.
The fact is that the participants of the campaign and the Prut world did not confirm a similar story. So the Danish ambassador Just Jul quite scrupulously recorded his observations. He indicated that Catherine handed out her jewelry to the officers for safety. After they left the encirclement, she collected her belongings.
The French mercenary Moro de Brazé indicated the amount that the Russians wanted to give to Mehmed Pasha. But he does not mention that this happened. At the same time, it is difficult to trust this source, since he called himself a colonel, although his name was not on the list of officers.
The legend was a successful propaganda move, as it was able to discredit the vizier by exposing the king and his mistress in a favorable light. The Turks themselves wanted to end the war, they wanted to get rid of the encirclement of the Swedish king.