Report on the battle of Poltava in literature. Battle of Poltava: how Peter I defeated Charles XII

Recognizing the magnificent victory, many researchers suggest not to fall into euphoria. Moreover, according to the historian Vasily Klyuchevsky, “it was a shame to lose the Battle of Poltava”, the preparation of the Russian and Swedish armies was so different. What facts of this battle usually remain behind the scenes? And how did events unfold 307 years ago?

Carl is an adventurer?

The Battle of Poltava is one of the largest battles of the Northern War, which lasted from 1700 to 1721. Then ambitious and young (he entered the throne at 15, and at the time of the Battle of Poltava he was only 27 years old), the Swedish king Charles XII won one victory after another. He actually disabled Saxony and Poland, our allies, and on the wave of success moved to Russia. At the end of 1707, his army crossed the Vistula and rushed to our borders. Karl did not hide: he wanted to make the Russian state a colony of Sweden with the help of weapons and thereby weaken its economic and political development. Cut off Russia from sea trade routes. The king believed that to achieve this goal is simple: you need to defeat the Russian army with one blow, and then by the shortest route, through Smolensk, make your way to Moscow, take the capital and, thus, capture the country. He was going to force Peter to sign a peace favorable to Sweden. However, this adventurous plan underestimated the strength of Peter's army and the steadfastness of our people.

Karl felt it very quickly. The first serious clash occurred already on September 28, 1708 near the village of Lesnoy. The Swedes suffered a resounding defeat there. They lost the entire convoy with provisions and up to 8.5 thousand people were killed. As a result, from the 16,000th corps of General Lewenhaupt, only the remnants of a defeated unit without artillery and ammunition, which the Swedes badly needed, reached Karl. The victory at Lesnaya, in addition to the military one, was of great moral importance. She showed the strength of the Russian army, its readiness to resist the enemy. No wonder Peter called this battle "the mother of the Battle of Poltava."

Mazepa betrayed Peter

There was another side to this war, which is perceived in a special way today. Advancing on Russia, Charles XII hoped very much for the strengthening of his army in Ukraine. This was facilitated by the history of Hetman Mazepa. Previously a loyal ally, in 1708 he betrayed Peter and, together with part of the Zaporizhzhya Cossacks, swore allegiance to the Swedish crown. But the actions of the elite did not find support among the people. The Ukrainians did not support the traitor Mazepa. On the contrary - the peasants hid food from the Swedes and led guerrilla war with the enemy. So instead of the supposed rest, the Swedes were forced to spend the entire winter of 1708-1709 in fruitless battles with Russian troops and partisans. And wintering in Ukraine, in fact, in the encirclement, further weakened the Swedish army.

The Russian army lost 1345 people killed, 3290 people wounded. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

In 1709, Karl again conceived an attack on Moscow through Kharkov and Belgorod. On this way, one of the strongholds of the Russians was the fortress of Poltava. In April, the Swedes besieged Poltava, but the garrison, where only 2,200 people served, bravely defended for three months with the support of the population. More than twenty assaults of the enemy were reflected! The long and stubborn defense of the fortress made it possible to prepare Russian troops for a general battle with the Swedes.

It was clear that the main battle was near. It is interesting how both emperors inspired their troops to fight. On the eve of Peter I traveled all the regiments, where he demanded to fight not for the king, but for "Russia and Russian piety ..." Charles XII also tried to raise the spirit of his army. Inspiring the soldiers, he announced that tomorrow they would dine in the Russian convoy, where a large booty awaited them.

They exhausted the Swedes with redoubts

Charles scheduled the battle for June 26th. One of the decisive moments was to be surprise. But from the very beginning, everything went wrong. At 11:00 pm on June 26, the king gave the order to wake up the army and build it for the march. However, the Swedes were unable to quickly bring the troops into battle order. The necessary readiness was achieved only by two o'clock in the morning on June 27. Thus, the Swedes lost three important hours and completely missed the speed. Further more. Russian redoubts were the first to stand in their way. They took the first two on the move (many historians claim that these were unfinished structures), and then the problems began. The Swedes were going to just go through them, but no such luck. The attacks choked, and the cavalry, which arrived in time under the leadership of Menshikov, did not allow them to seize important fortifications. As a result, the redoubts were taken with great difficulty, only on the way to the main battlefield the enemy lost up to 3 thousand people.

Having exhausted the enemy with redoubts, Peter at 4 in the morning gives the order to retreat. Photo: Public Domain

Peter used an interesting tactic. Having exhausted the enemy with redoubts, Peter at 4 in the morning gives the order to retreat. The Swedes also took a wait-and-see position, counting on the approach of their cavalry. But the support never came and then their infantry lined up and prepared for battle. Building in a line was the strategic strong point of Charles XII. It was believed that in such a battle formation it was impossible to defeat his troops. But the reality turned out to be different.

The decisive offensive of the Swedes began at 9 am. However, the Russian artillery, together with the arrows, began such a heavy shelling that the enemy suffered huge losses from the first minutes. The famous system was completely destroyed. It was not possible to build a line of attack that would be longer than the Russian detachments, stretching up to 2 km. As a result, panic and flight began. At 11 am everything was finished. For 2 hours, Peter's troops won a complete victory. Its price was great. The Russian army lost 1345 people killed, 3290 people wounded. The losses of the Swedish army were catastrophic. Infantry and artillery simply ceased to exist. All generals were killed or captured. 9,000 soldiers and commanders were killed, 3,000 were captured immediately and another 16,000 were captured after 3 days, when they overtook the retreating near the village of Perevolochny.

Could you capture the king?

Nevertheless, without detracting from the result, experts pay attention to other facts. In the army of Charles during Poltava, there were 37 thousand, the Russians had 60, and according to modern estimates 80 thousand people. In addition, the Swedes were exhausted and half-starved, because they spent almost a year on enemy territory without the necessary provisions. Also with weapons. All historians confirm that the Swedes had only 4 guns, and the Russians had 111! The course of the battle itself speaks of the inequality of forces. The general battle lasted only two hours. For comparison, the Battle of Borodino thundered for a day ... In addition, the results of the victory could have become even more impressive if the Russian army had not immediately begun to celebrate "Victoria", but immediately rushed in pursuit of the enemy retreating in panic. Surely at that time they would have been able to catch up with the king and take him prisoner, which also affected the further course of history. But the chance was missed. As a result, Karl managed to leave and cross to Turkey, and then wage war for another 12 years.

The memory of Poltava in Russia is widely immortalized. A.S. Pushkin wrote his famous poem "Poltava" (originally he wanted to call it "Mazepa"). In Peterhof, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the battle in 1735, a sculptural group "Samson Tearing the Lion's Mouth" was installed, designed by Rastrelli. The lion was associated with Sweden, on the coat of arms of which this heraldic beast is located. In honor of the 200th anniversary of the battle, a medal was established, and a temple was erected on the site itself. The people kept set expression“disappeared like a Swede near Poltava”, denoting a complete failure, with no hope of salvation.

Well, the Swedes themselves in informal conversations often admit that they are very grateful to Peter I. Firstly, after the crushing defeat, the country moderated its imperial ambitions and embarked on the path of the European state". Secondly, by the Battle of Poltava, Peter forever weaned the Swedes from attacking Russia, with which we have good neighborly relations today. And he taught such a lesson that they chose a policy of neutrality that allowed the nation to prosper and successfully go through many difficult periods of history.

And with them the royal squads

Converged in the smoke among the plains -

And the battle broke out, the Poltava battle! ..

Swede, Russian - stabs, cuts, cuts;

Drum beat, clicks, rattle,

The thunder of cannons, the clatter, the neighing moan -

And death, and hell from all sides.

A. S. Pushkin. Poltava.

June 27 (July 8) 1709 in six miles from the city of Poltava in Little Russia (Left-bank Ukraine) the largest battle took place Northern war between Russian and Swedish troops, culminating in the defeat of the Swedish army of Charles XII.

In April 1709 Swedish troops besieged the city of Poltava, which was defended by a small garrison under the command of Colonel A. WITH. Kelin. The Swedes made daily attacks on the fortress. In the event of the capture of the city, a threat was created to Voronezh - a key supply base and the formation of the Russian army.

At the end of May 1709 the main forces of the Russian army under the command of Peter I . The Russian army, numbering 42 thousand people and 72guns, located in the fortified camp she created, 5 km north of Poltava. Considering experience Battle of Lesnaya , the Russian army chose a small rugged space surrounded by forest to make it difficult for the enemy to maneuver. Peter took command of the first division, and distributed the other divisions among the generals. The cavalry was assigned A. D. Menshikov , command of the artillery was assigned to Bruce.

About 20 thousand people and 4 guns (28 guns were left in the convoy without ammunition). The rest of the troops (up to 10 thousand people), including the Cossacks and Ukrainian Cossacks who acted on the side of Sweden, led by Hetman I.S.Mazepa, were in reserve. by the Swedish army, due to the wounding of Charles XII , commanded by Field Marshal Rehnschild. The infantry and cavalry were commanded by Generals Lewenhaupt and Kreutz.

At two o'clock in the morning 27 June (8 July) the Swedish infantry moved in four columns to the Russian redoubts, followed by six cavalry columns. After a stubborn two-hour battle, the Swedes managed to capture only two advanced redoubts. Renschild, trying to bypass the Russian redoubts on the left, regrouped the troops. At the same time, six right-flank battalions and several squadrons of Generals Schlippenbach and Ross broke away from the main forces of the Swedes, retreated to the forest north of Poltava, where they were defeated by Menshikov's cavalry.

Having broken through the redoubts, the bulk of the Swedes came under heavy artillery and rifle fire from the Russian camp, and retreated in disorder to the Budishchensky forest.

At nine o'clock hand-to-hand combat began. Under the onslaught of superior forces, the Swedes began a retreat, which soon turned into a disorderly flight. A detachment of A.D. was sent in pursuit of the retreating.Menshikov, who the next day overtook the enemy at Perevolochna on the Dnieper and forced the remnants of the Swedish army (16 thousand) under the command of A.D.Lewenhaupt to capitulate. The Swedish king Charles XII and the Ukrainian hetman Mazepa with a small detachment fled to the territory of the Ottoman Empire.

During the Battle of Poltava, the Swedes lost over 9 thousand killed and over 18 thousand prisoners, while the losses of the Russians were much less - 1 thousand 345people killed and 3 thousand 290 the wounded.

The Russians were the first in the military science of that era to use earthen field fortifications, as well as fast-moving horse artillery. The decisive victory of the Russian army in the Battle of Poltava led to a turning point in the Northern War in favor of Russia and put an end to the dominance of Sweden as the main military force in Europe. The ancient Russian lands went to Russia, and it was firmly entrenched on the shores of the Baltic Sea.

Lit .: Assanovich P. L. Emperor Peter the Great: Poltava. SPb., 1909; Bogdanovich P. N. Poltava Victoria. Buenos Aires, 1959; Borisov V. E., Baltiysky A. A., Noskov A. A., Battle of Poltava. 1709-27 June 1909. Sat. Art. St. Petersburg, 1909; Dyadichenko V. A. Battle of Poltava. Kiev, 1962; Zlain A. I. Battle of Poltava. M., 1988; Poltava. To the 250th anniversary of the Poltava battle. Sat. Art. M., 1959;Telpukhovsky B. S. The Northern War of 1700-1721. M., 1946;State Historical and Cultural Reserve "Field of the Battle of Poltava": website. B.d.URL :

In the spring of 1709, after an unsuccessful winter campaign in Ukraine, the army of the Swedish king Charles XII (35 thousand soldiers, 32 guns) laid siege to Poltava. There it was supposed to replenish supplies and continue the journey in the direction of Kharkov, Belgorod and further to Moscow. In April-June, the Poltava garrison (4.2 thousand soldiers, about 2.5 thousand armed citizens, 29 guns), led by the commandant Colonel A.S. Kelin, supported by the cavalry of General A.D. Menshikov and Ukrainian Cossacks, who came to the rescue, successfully repelled several enemy assaults. The heroic defense of Poltava fettered the forces of Charles XII. Thanks to her, the Russian army was able at the end of May 1709 to concentrate in the area of ​​​​the fortress and prepare for battle with the enemy.

27 (June 16) at the military council, Peter I decided to give the Swedes a general battle. On July 1 (June 20), the main forces of the Russian army (42 thousand soldiers, 72 guns) crossed to the right bank of the Vorskla River. July 6 (June 25) Peter I placed the army in position near the village of Yakovtsy (5 kilometers north of Poltava), placing it in a fortified camp. The field in front of the camp, about 2.5 kilometers wide, covered from the flanks by the Budishchi and Yakovets forests and dense thickets, was fortified with a system of field engineering structures of 6 frontal and 4 quadrangular redoubts perpendicular to them. The redoubts were located at a distance of a rifle shot from each other, which ensured tactical interaction between them. The redoubts housed 2 battalions of soldiers and grenadiers, behind the redoubts - 17 cavalry regiments under the command of Menshikov.
The idea of ​​Peter I was to wear down the enemy at the forefront (line of redoubts), and then defeat him in an open field battle.

On the night of July 8 (June 27), the Swedish army under the command of Field Marshal Renschild (Charles XII was wounded during reconnaissance) numbering about 20 thousand soldiers and with 4 guns - 4 columns of infantry and 6 columns of cavalry - moved to the position of the Russians. The remaining troops - up to 10 thousand soldiers, including some of the Cossacks and Ukrainian Cossacks of Hetman Mazepa, were in reserve and guarding Swedish communications.

And the battle began. At 3 am on July 8 (June 27), the Russian and Swedish cavalry began a stubborn battle near the redoubts. By 5 o'clock in the morning, the Swedish cavalry was overturned, but the infantry following it captured the first two Russian redoubts. Menshikov asked for reinforcements, but Peter I, adhering to the plan of the battle, ordered him to retreat behind the line of redoubts. At six o'clock in the morning, the Swedes, advancing behind the retreating Russian cavalry, fell on their right flank under cross rifle and cannon fire from the Russian fortified camp, suffered heavy losses and retreated in a panic to the forest near the village of Malye Budishchi. At the same time, the right-flank Swedish columns of Generals Ross and Schlippenbach, cut off from their main forces during the battles for redoubts, were captured by Menshikov's cavalry in the adjacent forest by order of Peter I.

At the second stage of the battle, the struggle of the main forces unfolded. At about 6 o'clock in the morning, Peter I built an army in front of the camp in two lines. He placed infantry under the command of Field Marshal B.P. Sheremetev in the center, and the cavalry of Generals R.Kh. Bour and A.D. Menshikov on the flanks. Artillery under the command of General Ya.V. Bryus deployed in the first line of infantry. A reserve (9 battalions) was left in the camp. Part of the infantry and cavalry Peter I sent to reinforce the Ukrainian Cossacks who remained loyal to him in Malye Budishchi and the Poltava garrison in order to cut off the retreat paths for the Swedes and prevent them from capturing the fortress during the battle.

Shortly before the decisive battle, Tsar Peter I addressed the troops with famous words that expressed the essence of his nature: "Warriors! The hour has come that must decide the fate of the Fatherland. You should not think that you are fighting for Peter, but for the state, handed over to Peter, for the family your own, for the Fatherland, for our Orthodox Faith and Church. You should not be embarrassed by the glory of the invincibility of the enemy, to which you have proven lies more than once with your victories. Have Truth and God, your protector, in front of you in the battle. And know about Peter that his life is not road. Only Russia would live in glory and prosperity for your well-being." What could Charles XII say to his soldiers? Nothing but a promise to find rich booty in the Russian camp. Small consolation for professionals on the eve of the battle, which actually decided their entire further fate. This time, the Swedish veterans were confronted not by "Narva runners", but by a well-armed, numerically and morally superior army, which was ready to adequately stand up for their homeland.

The Swedish army lined up against the Russians also in a linear order of battle. At 9 o'clock in the morning the Swedes went on the offensive. Met by strong Russian artillery fire, they rushed into a bayonet attack. In fierce hand-to-hand combat, they managed to push the center of the Russian first line. But Peter I, who carefully watched the course of the battle, personally led the counterattack of the battalion of the second line of the Novgorod regiment and threw the Swedes back to their original positions. Soon the Russian infantry, inspired by the example of Peter, his military courage, began to push the enemy, and the cavalry covered his flanks. By 11 o'clock the Swedes began to retreat, which soon turned into a stampede. Charles XII with the traitor Mazepa fled to the Ottoman Empire. The remnants of the Swedish troops retreated to Perevolochna, where they were overtaken and laid down their arms. The Swedes lost a total of more than 9 thousand people killed, over 18 thousand prisoners, 32 guns and the entire convoy. The losses of the Russian troops amounted to 1345 people killed and 3290 wounded.

The Battle of Poltava is one of those battles that decide the fate of peoples. The military power of Sweden was crushed, and Russia became one of the great powers. This battle opened the way to outstanding Russian victories of the 18th century. She played a huge role in the self-consciousness of the Russian soldier, who for the first time in the Poltava fields felt like one of the first in Europe. The day of Poltava ends the era of the Swedish onslaught on the East, which began in the time of Alexander Nevsky. The medal "For the Battle of Poltava" was issued for the participants of the battle.

"From Ancient Rus' to the Russian Empire". Shishkin Sergey Petrovich, Ufa.

Kingdom of Russia Commanders Charles XII
Carl Gustav Rehnschild Peter I
Alexander Danilovich Menshikov Side forces General Forces :
26,000 Swedes (about 11,000 cavalry and 15,000 infantry), 1,000 Wallachian hussars, 41 guns, about 2,000 Cossacks

Total: about 37,000. 30 thousand Swedes, 6 thousand Cossacks, 1 thousand Vlachs.

Forces in battle:
8270 infantry, 7800 dragoons and reytars, 1000 hussars, 4 guns

Did not take part in the battle: Cossacks

General Forces :
about 37,000 infantry (87 battalions), 23,700 cavalry (27 regiments and 5 squadrons), 102 guns (according to other sources, 302 guns)

Total: about 60,000 (according to modern data, 80,000). of which 8 thousand Cossacks Skoropadsky.

Forces in battle:
25,000 infantry, 9,000 dragoons, Cossacks and Kalmyks, another 3,000 Kalmyks came to the end of the battle

Poltava garrison:
4200 infantry, 2000 Cossacks, 28 guns

Military casualties 6700-9234 killed and wounded,
2874 prisoners during the battle and 15-17 thousand at Perevolochna 1345 killed, 3290 wounded

Northern War (1700-1721)

Poltava battle- the largest battle of the Northern War between Russian troops under the command of Peter I and the Swedish army of Charles XII. It took place on the morning of June 27 (July 8), 1709, 6 versts from the city of Poltava on Russian lands (the Left Bank of the Dnieper). The decisive victory of the Russian army led to a turning point in the Great Northern War in favor of Russia and put an end to the dominance of Sweden as one of the leading military forces in Europe.

background

In October 1708, Peter I became aware of the betrayal and defection to the side of Charles XII, Hetman Mazepa, who negotiated with the king for quite a long time, promising him, in case of arrival in Ukraine, up to 50 thousand Cossack troops, food and comfortable wintering. On October 28, 1708, Mazepa, at the head of a detachment of Cossacks, arrived at Karl's headquarters. After that, Peter I was amnestied and recalled from exile (accused of betrayal on the slander of Mazepa) Ukrainian colonel Semyon Paliy ( real name Gurko); thus the king enlisted the support of the Cossacks.

Of the many thousands of Ukrainian Cossacks (registered Cossacks, there were 30 thousand, Zaporozhye Cossacks - 10-12 thousand), Mazepa managed to bring only about 10 thousand people, about 3 thousand registered Cossacks and about 7 thousand Cossacks. But even those soon began to scatter from the camp of the Swedish army. Such unreliable allies, of whom about 2 thousand remained, King Charles XII did not dare to use in battle, and therefore left them in the wagon train.

Charles XII, having received information about the imminent approach to the Russians of a large Kalmyk detachment, decided to attack Peter's army before the Kalmyks completely disrupted his communications (a defector from the Germans was allegedly sent to the Swedes. He said that Tsar Peter would not come today - tomorrow he would come to the rescue detachment of Kalmyk cavalry numbering 18 thousand sabers). Wounded during reconnaissance on June 17, the king handed over command to Field Marshal K. G. Renschild, who received 20 thousand soldiers at his disposal. About 10 thousand people, including Mazepa's Cossacks, remained in the camp near Poltava.

On the eve of the battle, Peter I traveled around all the regiments. His brief patriotic appeals to soldiers and officers formed the basis of the famous order, which required the soldiers to fight not for Peter, but for "Russia and Russian piety ..."

Tried to raise the spirit of his army and Charles XII. Inspiring the soldiers, Karl announced that tomorrow they would dine in the Russian wagon train, where a lot of booty awaited them.

The course of the battle

Swedish attack on redoubts

According to Englund, two battalions of the Uppland Regiment suffered the greatest losses, which were surrounded and completely destroyed (14 out of 700 people survived).

Side losses

Church at the site of the battle

In the battle, the Swedes lost over 11 thousand soldiers. Russian losses were 1,345 killed and 3,290 wounded.

Results

As a result of the Battle of Poltava, the army of King Charles XII was so bloodless that it could no longer conduct active offensive operations. Menshikov, having received reinforcements of 3,000 Kalmyk cavalry by evening, pursued the enemy to Perevolochna on the banks of the Dnieper, where about 16,000 Swedes were taken prisoner.

During the Battle of Poltava, Peter used tactics that are still mentioned in military schools. Shortly before the battle, Peter dressed the experienced soldiers in the uniform of the young ones. Karl, knowing that the form of experienced fighters is different from the form of young ones, led his army to young fighters and fell into a trap.

Cards

event memory

Museum-Reserve "Field of the Battle of Poltava"

• On the site of the battle at the beginning of the 20th century, the Poltava Battlefield Museum-Reserve was founded (now the National Museum-Reserve). A museum was built on its territory, monuments to Peter I, Russian and Swedish soldiers were erected, on the site of the camp of Peter I, etc.
• In honor of the 25th anniversary of the Battle of Poltava (held on the day of St. Sampson the Hospitable) in 1735, a sculptural group "Samson Tearing the Mouth of a Lion" was installed in Peterhof, designed by Carlo Rastrelli. The lion was associated with Sweden, whose coat of arms contains this heraldic beast.
• In honor of the Battle of Poltava, the Sampson Cathedral in St. Petersburg and the Sampson Church in Poltava were built.
• To commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Poltava, the medal "In Commemoration of the 200th Anniversary of the Battle of Poltava" was instituted.

• Monument at the resting place of Peter I after the battle
• Monument to Colonel Kelin and the valiant defenders of Poltava.

On coins

In honor of the 300th anniversary of the Battle of Poltava, on June 1, the Bank of Russia issued the following commemorative silver coins (only reverses are shown):

In fiction

• In the novel "Poltava Peremoga" by Oleg Kudrin (shortlist for the Nonconformism 2010 Prize, Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Moscow), the event was "replayed" in the genre of alternative history.

In music

• The Swedish heavy metal band Sabaton dedicated their song "Poltava" from the album Carolus Rex to the Battle of Poltava. The song was recorded in two versions: in English and Swedish.

Images

Documentary film

Art films

In philately

Notes

1. A. A. Vasiliev. On the composition of the Russian and Swedish armies in the battle of Poltava. Military history magazine. 1989. No. 7.]
2. see Krotov P. A. Battle of Poltava: on the 300th anniversary. St. Petersburg: Historical Illustration, 2009. 416 p.
3. All wars of world history, according to the Harper Encyclopedia of Military History by R. Dupuis and T. Dupuis with comments by N. Volkovsky and D. Volkovsky. St. Petersburg, 2004, book 3, p.499
4. The Day of Military Glory of Russia - The Day of Victory over the Swedes in the Battle of Poltava is celebrated not on the eighth, but on July 10. The date of the battle fell on the day of remembrance of St. Sampson the Stranger, who is rightfully considered the heavenly patron of the Battle of Poltava; in memory of which the Sampson Church near Poltava and the Sampson Cathedral in St. Petersburg were built. A day of memory of Sampson the Stranger Orthodox Church honors annually by no means on the 8th, but on July 10th.
5. There is no documentary evidence of the details of Mazepa's preliminary proposals to Karl. However, it is known that the negotiations were conducted for quite a long time. According to T. G. Tairova-Yakovleva in his book “Mazeppa”, which is replete with typos and inaccuracies, he opened his entourage on September 17, 1707. In her book, Tairova-Yakovlevna cites Mazepa’s statement, recorded by his faithful follower, clerk Orlik: “I did not want and did not want Christian bloodshed, but I intended, having come to Baturin with the Swedish king, to write a letter of thanks for the protection of the royal majesty, describing everything our grievances ... ". Thus, plans to bring Karl to Baturin existed. In addition, in a later signed agreement with Karl Mazepa, he undertakes to give him, in addition to other cities, Baturin (which has already been completely burned and is not suitable for these purposes) as a base for the duration of the war. Apparently, the agreement itself was prepared before the burning of Baturin.
6. Sergey Kulichkin. Peter the First. Historical portrait of the commander.
7. According to the research of P. A. Krotov, based on a comparison of archival documents, there were much more guns in the battle - 302 , see Krotov P. A. Battle of Poltava: on the 300th anniversary. SPb., 2009
8. All wars of world history, according to the Harper Encyclopedia of Military History by R. Dupuis and T. Dupuis with comments by N. Volkovsky and D. Volkovsky. St. Petersburg, 2004, book 3, pp. 499-500
9. Vitaly Slinko. Poltava battle. Orthodox news agency "Russian Line"
10. V. A. Artamonov Battle of Poltava and Eastern Europe -, Golden Lion Magazine No. 213-214 - edition of Russian conservative thought
11. Englund P. Poltava: A story about the death of one army. - M: New book review, 1995. - 288 with ISBN 5-86793-005-X
12. According to P. Englund, out of 8000 Swedish infantrymen, 2000 died during the assault on the redoubts, and about 2000 separated with Roos.
13. Vladimir Lapin Poltava // "Star". - 2009. - V. 6.

Literature

• Krotov P. A. Battle of Poltava: on the 300th anniversary. - St. Petersburg: Historical illustration, 2009. - 416 p.
• Krotov P. A. Peter I and Charles XII in the fields near Poltava ( comparative analysis military leadership) // Problems of war and peace in the era of modern and modern times (on the 200th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Tilsit): Materials of the international scientific conference. St. Petersburg, December 2007 - St. Petersburg: SPbGU Publishing House, 2008. - P. 48-57.
• Krotov P. A. Military leadership of Peter I and A. D. Menshikov in the Battle of Poltava (To the 300th anniversary of the Poltava victory) // Menshikov Readings - 2007 / Ed. ed. P. A. Krotov. - St. Petersburg: Historical illustration, 2007. - S. 37-92.
• Moltusov V. A. Battle of Poltava: Lessons of military history. - M.: OR of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation; Kuchkovo field, 2009. - 512 p. ISBN 978-5-9950-0054-9
• Poltava: To the 300th anniversary of the Poltava battle. Digest of articles. - M.: Kuchkovo field, 2009. - 400 p. ISBN 978-5-9950-0055-6
• Pavlenko N. I., Artamonov V. A. June 27, 1709. - M .: Young Guard, 1989. - 272 p. - (Memorable dates of history). - 100,000 copies. - ISBN 5-235-00325-X(reg.)
• Englund Peter. Poltava: The story of the death of one army = Englund P. Poltava. Berattelsen om en armés undergång. - Stockholm: Atlantis, 1989. - M .: New Book Review, 1995. - ISBN 5-86793-005-X

see also

• Mass grave of Russian soldiers who fell in the Battle of Poltava

Links

• Oleg Bezverkhny Battle of Poltava (Russian). Archived from the original on August 22, 2011. Retrieved March 12, 2010.

In October 1708, Peter I became aware of the betrayal and defection to the side of Charles XII, Hetman Mazepa, who negotiated with the king for quite a long time, promising him, in case of arrival in Ukraine, up to 50 thousand Cossack troops, food and comfortable wintering. On October 28, 1708, Mazepa, at the head of a detachment of Cossacks, arrived at Karl's headquarters. It was in this year that Peter I amnestied and recalled from exile (accused of betrayal on the slander of Mazepa) the Ukrainian colonel Paliy Semyon (real name Gurko); thus the sovereign of Russia enlisted the support of the Cossacks.

Of the many thousands of Ukrainian Cossacks (registered Cossacks, there were 30 thousand, Zaporozhye Cossacks - 10-12 thousand), Mazepa managed to bring only up to 10 thousand people, about 3,000 registered Cossacks and about 7,000 Cossacks, but they soon began to scatter from the camp of the Swedish army. Such unreliable allies, of which about 2 thousand remained, King Charles XII was afraid to use them in battle, and therefore left them in the wagon train.

Swedish attack on redoubts

On the eve of the battle, Peter I traveled around all the regiments. His brief patriotic appeals to soldiers and officers formed the basis of the famous order, which required the soldiers to fight not for Peter, but for "Russia and Russian piety ..."

Tried to raise the spirit of his army and Charles XII. Inspiring the soldiers, Karl announced that tomorrow they would dine in the Russian wagon train, where a lot of booty awaited them.

At the first stage of the battle, the battles went for the advanced position. At two o'clock in the morning on June 27, the Swedish infantry advanced from Poltava in four columns, followed by six horse columns. By dawn, the Swedes took to the field in front of the Russian redoubts. Prince Menshikov, having lined up his dragoons in battle formation, moved towards the Swedes, wanting to meet them as soon as possible and thereby gain time to prepare for the battle of the main forces.

When the Swedes saw the advancing Russian dragoons, their cavalry quickly rode between the columns of their infantry and swiftly rushed to the Russian cavalry. By three o'clock in the morning, a heated battle was already in full swing in front of the redoubts. At first, the Swedish cuirassiers pressed the Russian cavalry, but, quickly recovering, the Russian cavalry pushed the Swedes back with repeated blows.

The Swedish cavalry retreated and the infantry went on the attack. The tasks of the infantry were as follows: one part of the infantry should pass the redoubts without a fight in the direction of the main camp of the Russian troops, while the other part of it, under the command of Ross, was to take longitudinal redoubts in order to prevent the enemy from conducting destructive fire on the Swedish infantry, which was advancing towards the fortified camp Russians. The Swedes took the first and second advanced redoubts. Attacks on the third and other redoubts were repulsed.

The fierce stubborn battle lasted more than an hour; during this time, the main forces of the Russians managed to prepare for battle, and therefore Tsar Peter orders the cavalry and defenders of the redoubts to retreat to the main position near the fortified camp. However, Menshikov did not obey the order of the king and, dreaming of putting an end to the Swedes at the redoubts, continued the battle. Soon, however, he was forced to retreat.

Field Marshal Renschild regrouped troops, trying to bypass the Russian redoubts on the left. After capturing two redoubts, the Swedes attacked Menshikov's cavalry, but the Swedish cavalry forced them to retreat. According to Swedish historiography, Menshikov fled. However, the Swedish cavalry, obeying the general plan of the battle, did not develop success.

During the equestrian battle, six right-flank battalions of General Ross stormed the 8th redoubt, but they could not take it, losing up to half of their personnel during the attack. With the left-flank maneuver of the Swedish troops, a gap formed between them and Ross's battalions and the latter were lost from sight. In an effort to find them, Rehnschild sent 2 more infantry battalions to search for them. However, Ross's troops were defeated by the Russian cavalry.

Meanwhile, Field Marshal Rehnschild, seeing the retreat of the Russian cavalry and infantry, orders his infantry to break through the line of Russian fortifications. This order is immediately executed.

Having broken through the redoubts, the bulk of the Swedes came under heavy artillery and rifle fire from the Russian camp and retreated in disorder to the Budischensky forest. At about six o'clock in the morning, Peter led the army out of the camp and built it in two lines, having infantry in the center, Menshikov's cavalry on the left flank, and General R. H. Bour's cavalry on the right. A reserve of nine infantry battalions was left in the camp. Rehnschild lined up the Swedes opposite the Russian army.

Decisive battle

At the second stage of the battle, the struggle of Ch. forces.

OK. 6 o'clock in the morning Peter I built an army in front of the camp in 2 lines, placing infantry in the center under the command of General Feldm. , on the flanks of the cavalry gene. R. X. Bour and A. D. Menshikov, in the first line of infantry deployed artillery under the command of General I'M IN. bruce. A reserve (9 battalions) was left in the camp. Part of the infantry and cavalry Peter I sent to reinforce Ukrainian. Cossacks in Mal. Budishchi and the garrison of Poltava, in order to cut off the retreat of the Swedes and prevent them from capturing the fortress during the battle. The Swedish army lined up against the Russians. also in line of battle.

At 9 o'clock the Swedes went on the offensive. Met by strong Russian artillery fire, they rushed into a bayonet attack. In a fierce hand-to-hand fight, the Swedes pushed the center of the Russian first line. But Peter I, who was watching the course of the battle, personally led the counterattack of the Novgorod battalion and threw the Swedes back to their original positions. Soon Russian. the infantry began to push the enemy, and the cavalry to cover his flanks.

Encouraged by the presence of the king, the right wing of the Swedish infantry furiously attacked the left flank of the Russian army. Under the onslaught of the Swedes, the first line of Russian troops began to retreat. The pressure of the enemy, according to Englund, succumbed to the Kazan, Pskov, Siberian, Moscow, Butyrsky and Novgorod regiments (the advanced battalions of these regiments). In the front line of the Russian infantry, a dangerous break in the battle formation formed: the Swedes "overturned" the 1st battalion of the Novgorod regiment with a bayonet attack. Tsar Peter I noticed this in time, took the 2nd battalion of the Novogorodsky regiment and, at the head of it, rushed to a dangerous place.

The arrival of the king put an end to the successes of the Swedes and order on the left flank was restored. First, in two or three places, under the onslaught of the Russians, the Swedes faltered.

The second line of Russian infantry joined the first, increasing the pressure on the enemy, and the melting thin line of the Swedes did not receive any reinforcements. The flanks of the Russian army covered the battle formation of the Swedes. The Swedes are already tired of the intense battle.

At 9 a.m. Peter moved his army forward; the Swedes went to meet the Russians, and a stubborn but short battle caught fire along the entire line. Struck by artillery fire and flanked by Russian cavalry, the Swedes were everywhere overturned.

By 11 o'clock the Swedes began to retreat, which turned into a stampede. Charles XII fled to the Ottoman Empire with the traitor Hetman Mazepa. The remnants of the Swede, the army retreated to Perevolochna, where they were overtaken and laid down their arms. The Swedes lost more than 9 thousand people in total. killed, St. 18 thousand prisoners, 32 guns and the entire convoy. The losses of Russian troops amounted to 1345 people. killed and 3290 wounded.

Charles XII tried to inspire his soldiers and appears in the place of the hottest fight. But the ball breaks the stretcher of the king, and he falls. Through the ranks of the Swedish army, the news of the death of the king swept with lightning speed. Panic broke out among the Swedes. Waking up from the fall, Charles XII orders to put himself on crossed peaks and raise him high so that everyone can see him, but this measure did not help either. Under the onslaught of the Russian forces, the Swedes, who had lost their formation, began a disorderly retreat, which turned into a real flight by 11 o'clock. The fainting king barely had time to be taken out of the battlefield, put in a carriage and sent to Perevolochna.

According to Englund, the most tragic fate awaited the two battalions of the Uppland Regiment, which were surrounded and completely destroyed (out of 700 people, a few dozen survived).

Both royal commanders did not spare themselves in this battle: Peter's hat was shot through, another bullet hit the cross on his chest, the third was found in the saddle arch; Karl's litter was smashed by a cannonball, the drapants surrounding him were all killed. More than 4,600 people were out of action among the Russians; the Swedes lost up to 12 tons (including prisoners). The pursuit of the remnants of the enemy army continued to the village of Perevolochny. The consequence of P.'s victory was the reduction of Sweden to the level of a second-class power and the rise of Russia to an unprecedented height.

Side losses

Menshikov, having received reinforcements of 3,000 Kalmyk cavalry by evening, pursued the enemy to Perevolochna on the banks of the Dnieper, where about 16,000 Swedes were captured.

In the battle, the Swedes lost over 11 thousand soldiers. Russian losses were 1,345 killed and 3,290 wounded.