Russo-Livonian War (1480–1481)

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Russo-Livonian War
The ruins of the Fellin Fortress
The ruins of the Fellin Fortress
date Winter 1480 to spring 1481
place Pskov Republic , Livonian Confederation
output Russian victory
consequences Novgorod Armistice
Parties to the conflict

LivonianShield.svg Livonian Confederation

Herb Moskovia-1 (Alex K) .svg Russia Pskov Republic
Coat of Arms of Pskov.png

Commander

Bernhard von der Borch

Andrei Obolenski
Jaroslaw Obolenski
Wassili Schuiski

Troop strength
unknown 20,000
losses

unknown

unknown

The Russo-Livonian War from 1480 to 1481 was a war between the Livonian Confederation and the newly formed centralized Russian state , along with the allied Pskov Republic , which became part of it in 1510.

prehistory

A low-intensity border war between Livonia and Pskow had been going on since 1469. The Landmaster of the Teutonic Order in Livonia Bernd von der Borch was in conflict with the bishops of Riga and Dorpat , who regularly complained to the Pope about his policies. Von der Borch viewed a victorious major campaign against Pskov as a means of consolidating his shaky position. His calculation was that the Grand Duke of Moscow and the whole of Rus Ivan III. the allied Pskov will not come to the aid, since he will be exposed to a large joint campaign of the Great Horde and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , in whose planning was initiated by the Borch.

Course of war

Acts of war in the winter of 1480

In January 1480, von der Borch's troops attacked the Pskov area. They captured the Vyshgorodok fortress and killed all of its residents. Then they began to siege the city of Gdow , which, however, withstood heavy artillery fire and could not be captured. The Teutonic Knights could only plunder the surrounding area and burn down the Gdower suburb ( Possad ). After these events, Pskov turned to the Russian Grand Duke. Despite the tense situation in the south, Ivan III. an open ear for the Pskovs and sent an army under the leadership of Andrei Obolensky . After this army united with the Pskovs, it penetrated Livonia, devastated the area around Dorpat and returned home with a large booty and numerous prisoners.

Livonian offensive in the summer of 1480

After the troops of Ivan III. Having left the theater of war, the Teutonic Knights have resumed attacks against Pskov. The Borchs Army besieged Isborsk in the spring and withdrew when the Pskov Army arrived. Bloody border clashes continued. In August 1480 the Teutonic Knights were able to take the town of Kobyli Gorodok , whose inhabitants were massacred. Afterwards von der Borch launched another major attack against Isborsk and Pskow, but both sieges failed. The attempt to land a ship in the rear of Pskov was also unsuccessful. When the news in the fall at the defeat of Akhmat Khan in standing at the Ugra arrived, the Landmeister recognized his strategic mistakes and led the troops hastened to Livonia back.

Great Russian Campaign in Livonia 1481

As soon as Ivan III. Having got rid of the Tatar danger in the south, he responded to the Livonian activities by sending an army of 20,000 men under Jaroslaw Obolenski and Vasily Shuisky . Together with the Pskovs, the Russian army launched an offensive in three directions. One part advanced to the fortress of Karkus , another to the fortress of Tarwast , while the third and the greater part of the army, together with the artillery, advanced on one of the most powerful order fortresses of Fellin . After a month, the Russians were able to take the first two fortresses, which was due to the surprise effect of the attack in the middle of the snowy winter. The unprepared Livonians had to choose passive defense tactics.

On March 1, the Russians began to siege the residence of Landmeister Fellin. One day before the Russians arrived, von der Borch fled to Riga. The Novgorod part of the Russian army pursued to the suburbs of Riga and was able to capture a large part of its trek. The besiegers of Fellin were able to burn down the surrounding area of ​​Fellin and destroy the outer walls of the fortress with the artillery fire. Without waiting for a storm, the people of Fellin offered the Russians a large ransom. The siege army agreed and withdrew with rich booty and many prisoners. As a sign of victory, the Russians took eight large bells from Fellin with them.

consequences

For the first time after the Battle of Wesenberg in 1268, the Russians were able to penetrate this far into the Baltic States. As the Chronicle wrote, the Confederation campaign caused great damage as the Russians devastated the whole country between Dorpat and Riga. The landmaster began peace negotiations. On September 1, 1481, a ten-year truce was signed in Novgorod . The Livonian Confederation granted trade privileges to Russian merchants, and the old border between Livonia and Pskov was confirmed. To secure the borders, Ivan III built. in the following period the fortifications from, among other things, he laid the foundation stone for the fortress Ivangorod opposite Narva .

literature