Kazan campaigns of Ivan the Terrible - one of the most relevant topics in the history of Russia. This is primarily due to a wide range of different interpretations and assessments of those events, often erroneous. An attempt to present this conflict only as a clash of interests between two interested parties (the Russian kingdom and the Crimean Khanate) does not give the whole picture. In the context of an ongoing civil war on the ruins of the once powerful empire of the Golden Horde, which was carefully heated by neighboring states, tough, decisive measures were needed to stop even more violence. However, first things first.
Agricultural development in Russia of the 16th century
By the beginning of the 16th century, the total population of Muscovite Russia was about 6 million people, and the very size of the state did not allow ignoring this young, but gaining power. The main occupation of the population was agriculture. But even such a number of workers with then available agricultural methods of cultivating the land (three-field crop rotation, double-tootted plow) and difficult climatic conditions led to the fact that hunger was a frequent guest in these parts. Even those close to the king suffered from him.
Livestock did not play a major role in the economy. Gardening gradually developed. Another acute problem on the eve of the campaigns of the Russian troops against the Kazan Khanate was an acute shortage of labor. This can be traced to the emergence of a new type of slavery - bonded. In the time of Ivan the Terrible, the word "bondage" meant a loan receipt. Thus, the peasant fell into complete dependence on the borrower before paying the debt.
Another indicator of the lack of working hands and an increase in the appetites of Russian feudal lords was an increase in corvee for all peasants up to 4 days a week. From all this it can be seen that the Russian service class was vitally interested in including in its sphere of influence. This desire was one of the driving forces directing the Moscow kingdom to the Crimean campaigns .
Volga trade route and the interests of Russian merchants
The development of the Crimean direction in the future gave not only control over high-yielding lands, rivers full of fish, which was very much appreciated by traders, and population growth. These, of course, were important reasons, but not the main ones. The Volga Trade Route was the main interest of Muscovite Russia, which was gaining strength against the background of the collapse and civil strife, which inevitably occurs on the fragments of any empire.
This water artery, which strengthened the economic ties between the Russian lands and the countries of the East, was not only the cheapest, but also the fastest way to deliver any goods. The cities of Nizhny Novgorod, and even more so Kazan, benefited maximally from their geographical location. The Russian merchants could only watch helplessly as Kazan merchants profit from their goods (they simply wouldn’t let the Russian merchants go further). Therefore, Russian trading circles were also ready to support the Kazan and Astrakhan campaigns with two hands.
Trade in the Caspian Sea would bring not just huge profits, but superprofits. Therefore, the merchants looked with hope at the king, hoping that he would clarify this difficult situation. The lack of fertile land, the oppression of Russian trade, the inclusion of the Kazan principality in the orbit of its influence by Turkey, the desire of the military aristocracy to improve their financial situation - all these factors became the cause of the Kazan campaign not without the intervention (direct or indirect) of other states.
Other participants in the big political game
The Kazan Khanate in its policy maintained allied relations with the Crimean Khanate, which has been a vassal of the Ottoman Port since 1478. Having such powerful patrons, Kazan threatened the territorial integrity of the Moscow kingdom.
In the West, they were also afraid of the strengthening of the Muscovites and did everything possible to prevent this. First of all, this is the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Poland, Sweden. For them, the strengthening of Moscow posed a real threat. The Kazan campaigns of Grozny, like other military campaigns conducted by this great commander, were a continuation of the policy of gathering Russian lands. And his pedigree gave serious legal reasons to apply for supreme power in the Kazan Khanate.
On the one hand, he was a direct descendant of Ivan 3, who, after the capture of Kazan in 1487, assumed the title of Prince of Bulgaria. In addition, on the maternal side, Ivan the Terrible was a descendant of Mamaia. The founder of the Glinsky family, Alexander Mansurovich, was a grandson of this beckerbeck.
The first Kazan campaign (1547-1548)
December 20, 1547 Ivan the Terrible personally led the campaign. But as soon as he got to Nizhny Novgorod, the thaw began. The Moscow army nevertheless decided to take a chance, crossing the Volga to the other side. The result was the loss of squeaks, guns, people. “With many tears,” the king was forced to return. More to demonstrate his military presence, he sent under the walls of the rebellious city of D.F. Belsky with the army. Without artillery, one could not hope for success.
For a week they stood under the walls and, in the best traditions of all military campaigns, ravaged the neighborhood, and then returned home.
The second campaign (1549-1550)
This time all the military forces were concentrated in one fist. The performance began from Nizhny Novgorod. I managed to find beautiful German gunners. Cavalry under the control of the princes Shah Ali and Ediger was also well trained.
Nothing seemed to portend a collapse of plans. Moreover, before this military action a certain agreement was reached with that part of the Kazan nobility, which was oriented towards Moscow. They promised, for their part, that they would not resist.
The shelling of the city walls immediately bore fruit: the Crimean prince Chelbak and several other prominent Kazan commanders were destroyed. The vagaries of the weather prevented success. In February 1550 there was a sharp thaw. One and a half weeks it rained, forcing some rivers to leave the banks. "Sputum unmeasured" did not allow to approach the walls. There was a real threat for the whole army to get into the spring thaw. Having appreciated all these factors, the king decided to retreat.
Error handling
After analyzing two unsuccessful Crimean campaigns, the military-political leadership of the Moscow kingdom decided to fundamentally change the entire structure of the army that existed before, abandon the tradition of campaigning in the winter for centuries, with more emphasis on mobility.
For these purposes, it was necessary to maximize the use of river routes, and if necessary not to be afraid to overcome the swamps. To do everything possible to get to the desired area in the shortest possible way. The foreign intelligence service was beautifully delivered. Despite the changing situation for the better in the military sphere, Ivan the Terrible was aware that these measures were clearly not enough. It was necessary to quickly solve a whole range of problems to achieve superiority over the enemy. Conventionally, they can be divided into the following areas:
- creation of strong points in the immediate vicinity of Kazan;
- a qualitative improvement in the combat effectiveness of the Russian troops;
- seeking support among the local population;
- establishment of a rigid vertical of power.
Sviyazhsk
In 1551, the Russian autocrat gave clear instructions to his clerk Ivan Vyrodkov to begin the procurement of building material for the future construction of the fortress. Unprecedented measures were taken to keep these works secret from the enemy. The result was impressive: 20 versts from Kazan, a well-fortified strong point called Sviyazhsk appeared on the Sviyage River.
And so that the Kazan citizens would not get bored, “Bautiyar should come from Vyatka ...” to both the Cossacks and prominent Tatar military leaders who were in the service of Moscow and located in different parts of the state. They were all ordered to take control of the transport along the Kama, Volga, and Vyatka rivers. In order "so that military people from Kazan and Kazan do not go."
Kazan fell into a blockade. Her trade began to incur large losses, and the military could not transfer their forces by water. Food delivery to the city became impossible. In addition, all mowing fields were controlled by the Russians.
This was the Third campaign to the Kazan Khanate (April - July 1551). Kazan was under siege, and the only way to get out of this critical situation was to change the khan and release all Russian prisoners. The attempt of all representatives of the Kazan aristocracy with their guards to cowardly escape, leaving their own people in difficult times, ended sadly for them. They were captured and further punished. The privates were drowned right there, and the most senior military leaders were cut off their heads, but already in Moscow.
Kazan surrendered without a fight. Shah Ali - a protege of the Russians - took the throne. And the main result of this confrontation was that the right (mountain) side of the Kazan Khanate went to Moscow. And nobody was going to return it.
Sagittarius and artillery
Possessing a huge analytical mind, the brilliant autocrat of all Russia understood that it was necessary to create elite military units like the Janissaries. They became about 3000 pishchikov, or, as they will be called later, "archers". The armament of these foot soldiers was a saber, a multifunctional reed (they could be chopped, cut, and also used as a support for a musket) and, of course, a wick musket. Russians already had half a century of experience with firearms. But he did not attach much importance, therefore, not the best and most disciplined fighters served in such units.
Now the situation has changed. The first "pishchiki" were selected from the best sons of the Fatherland. The state provided them with a good salary and everything necessary. Having settled them on the Sparrow Hills, Ivan the Terrible very wisely solved another problem: he reduced the mobilization time.
Russian artillery was the best in the world at that time. Firstly, the number of guns is amazing. Sources call the figure 2000 units. In the Kazan campaigns of Ivan the Terrible, Russian artillery easily suppressed their opponents.
Secondly, the presence of a wide selection of systems and calibers. Specialists distinguish 3 main types of guns that were in service in the Russian army: majors (mortars designed for mounted shooting), howitzers, “mattresses” (shot with a “shotgun” - a prototype of buckshot).
Thirdly, artillery as a separate branch of the army was formed precisely under Ivan the Terrible. Then the first rudiments of its tactical use began to take shape.
The coup in Kazan in 1552
Not all Kazan residents came to terms with the results of the events of 1551. Prince Chelkun Otuchev led the dissatisfied and directed their fury at the small garrison (about 180-200 people) of the Russians in the city. They were disarmed and then executed. The rebels acted decisively, so the Russians were bewildered. Another factor was that Prince Mikulinsky believed to the last, that the overdue conflict could be resolved peacefully. However, when blood began to spill, hope disappeared.
Changing the tactics of warfare
The Kazan campaign of 1552 differed in almost everything from previous campaigns. The first thing that catches your eye is the amazing coherence of all the arms and services of the Russian Tsar. The second is a perfectly set reconnaissance, which managed not only to get it on time, but also to analyze valuable information about the movement of the Crimean soldiers, to carry out all the necessary work on misinformation about the location of its main forces. The result was the defeat of the enemy and its destruction near Tula. Now a treacherous blow to the back from the Crimean Tatars could not be feared.
The next step, on which the outcome of the entire campaign depended, was the most rapid movement of troops to Murom and Meshchera. Moving one marching column, stretching over a long distance, would be dangerous. Separated troops, moving in the southern and northern directions, covered each other.
Finally, having arrived in Sviyazhsk and having a rest, the military men of Grozny began slowly crossing the Volga. Nobody was going to storm such serious fortifications with a snap. Huge preparatory work was ahead.
Conclusion
If you describe this Kazan campaign briefly, the first battle happened on August 23, 1552. Kazan made a desperate outing, but were defeated. So the first regular Russian infantry - archers - passed their baptism of fire. They made a significant contribution to this victory.
The Russian soldiers were determined to win. Flood, Astrakhan Khan Yepancha, courageous resistance of Kazan - all these obstacles could not stop the process of creating a common Great Russia for all the peoples living there.