At the beginning of the thirteenth century, the Mongol Empire's western expedition wiped out the Central Asian states, including the rising Turkmen Empire, Khwarazm. These savage Mongols, who had an endless desire for land, were determined to fight all the way to the ends of the earth and turn every piece of land into pasture. After learning that there were a number of Rus' principalities further afield, these Mongol armies began their expeditions to Eastern Europe.
First, here they are again!
At the beginning of the thirteenth century, the hapless Khwarazm Sultan Mokomo, for his brother's greed for money, murdered the Mongol Empire's trading caravans.
This led to the Western Expedition of the Mongol Empire, which brought a huge catastrophe to the whole of Central Asia and even the Western world.
After the ruler of the Khwarazm, the Sultan of Mokomo, beat the head-hugging rat. Genghis Khan heard that in the northwest of Khwarazm, there was a vast prairie. It was ruled by a group of forces called the Duchies of Rus,
In order to seize this legendary steppe, he gave the land of the occupied kingdom of Khwarazm to his eldest son, Shuchi, thus establishing the foundation of the Khanate of Chincha.
Also known as the Golden Horde, the Khanate of Chincha was to serve as a logistical base for the Mongol army's western expedition. Genghis Khan then ordered his generals Tetsubetsu, Subutai and his son-in-law, Da Nayan-Tolhuza, to lead an army to search for the legendary water-rich Russian steppe.
According to some European legends, Genghis Khan's Eastern European Expeditionary Force marched along the route taken by the Huns.
Their ultimate goal was Hungary, the last place where the Huns were supposed to settle down. Of course, this is only a European legend, and there is not enough historical basis, and in fact everyone knows,
The Mongols pursued a policy of "declaring war as soon as the territory borders".
So for the Mongol army, there is no such thing as pursuing the route taken by the Huns, they are just carrying out the strategy of Genghis Khan.
And eager to turn the world into Mongolia's great pastures.
The Chronicle of Tver records that "the Mongols first appeared in Kievan Rus' in the far east, on the border of the Volga, wielding sabers, robbing people of their finances today, kidnapping them tomorrow, and finally taking away their lands." ”
Cross the steppes like a whirlwind, attack the Slavic settlements, and then retreat like the wind.
This tactic reminds all the Slavs of the horror of being beaten by the terrible "Whip of God", the Huns led by Attila.
In order to resist another invasion from the nomads,
Grand Duke of Kievan Rus' and Mstislav Romanovich sent a letter to the entire Duchy of Rus',
They were asked to send an army to unite against the Mongol invasion.
II. The Rus' Coalition
Letters from the Duke of Kiev were quickly delivered to the king "Kotian Sutović", who ruled the Crimean region.
King Kotien had always been at odds with the heads of the Rus' principalities, but who called the Duke of Kiev, Mstislav, who called for help, his son-in-law?
Therefore, he happily agreed to send troops to help his son-in-law teach the uncultured barbarian Mongols.
On the other hand, letters from Duke Mtislav were also sent to his half-brother, Prince Mstislav Udani of Galicia.
In order to enable his brothers to support his wise decision-making, he also gave a large amount of gold and silver jewelry, accompanied by a personal letter explaining the threat of the Mongol army.
At the same time, Duke Mstyslav also issued harsh words, saying that if the Rus' principalities could not unite against the Mongols. Then he led his army to join the Mongols and help the barbaric nomads to destroy the other Rus' princes.
So Prince Galicia - Udani, Prince Chernihiv - Kozersky, Prince Suzdal - Vysevorodovich, Prince Tulov - Ivanovich, Prince Tebrowski - Izaslav, Prince Smolensk - Rulykovich, Prince Garetsky - Daniel Romanovich, Prince Lilsky - Sviatoslavich, The famous warrior Prince Trubchevsky - Vysevorodović, and so on...
A total of 21 Rus' princes and nobles united and mobilized a large army to prepare against the Mongols.
Exactly how many armies the Princes of Rus had gathered is still a mystery.
In the 21st century, some Russian historians have examined the rus' kings' armies at between 405,000 and 1 million men.
The specific numbers, they also do not know clearly.
But in any case, the total number of the kings' armies exceeded that of the Mongols,
Even the most conservative estimate is about 100,000 people. If there is one flaw, it is that they are mostly mobilized soldiers.
Only the armies of the sons of the nobility had excellent armor and weapons, and the others were armed with sticks and axes, or spears as tall as a man.
The most well-equipped of these armies were those led by King Cotien,
Because of his high acceptance of Byzantine culture, most of his troops were equipped with some armor. The Guards were equipped with armor and helmets with iron masks.
Far more than the miscellaneous army pulled out by the Kings of Rus.
However, due to the large size of the coalition of 21 people and horses, it is very difficult to coordinate. The Princes of Rus had to let the nobles lead their own troops and follow the banner of their respective supreme commanders.
Iii. The Battle of the Kalka River
The battle began on 31 May 1223, and the Rus' kings, through two skirmishes, found out the details of the Mongol army. The Mongol army that was assembling on the Kalitschk River was not as strong as it was rumored, even though the Mongols had ambushes,
That adds up to 20,000 people. As a result, the Kings of Rus disagreed over whether to attack or defend.
Some princes and nobles advocated defensiveness to avoid the possibility that the Mongols were luring the enemy. Others advocated an offensive to encircle and annihilate the Mongols, to teach the men who knew only how to ride horses a lesson.
The powerful King Cotien supported the attack and immediately sent his cavalry across the river. In addition, the prince of Galicia, Prince Daniel Romanovich, in order to show his courage, cut himself and led his army to cross the river together.
Seeing the black pressure of the Rus' grand army, the Mongol army began to retreat,
And try to escape. Seeing the Mongols retreating, the combined forces of the Princes of Rus launched a pursuit, and they became confused in their pursuit.
The princes and nobles had no doubt that the Mongols were seducing them.
So the iron-hearted Daniel Romanovich was the first to crash into the arms of the Mongol heavy cavalry,
Daniel's large army, consisting mainly of mobilized troops, could not withstand the onslaught of the Mongol heavy cavalry. The temporarily mobilized miscellaneous soldiers fled, the troops fell into chaos, and Daniel and his retinue left the troops and fled for their lives.
After Daniel's army was attacked,
Cotien's cavalry was also attacked by The Mongol cavalry,
Losing allied support, Kotien was able to lead his troops in retreat.
Later, in the Novgorod Chronicle, Slavic scholars accused Cotien of treachery that led to the change in the fighting situation.
The two main forces in pursuit were attacked by The Mongol heavy cavalry, throwing the Rus' coalition into chaos. Another Mongol heavy cavalry unit, hidden on the right flank of the battlefield, attacked the Prince of Galicia and the combined legions of Borovt, Lutsky and Kursky. They tried to organize a counterattack,
But the confusion of the mobilized troops led to a shameful defeat, and the Mongol heavy cavalry swept through the troops of the miscellaneous soldiers.
Duke Mstislav was terrified when he saw the friendly troops being beaten by the Mongol cavalry,
He couldn't take care of his allies anymore. If you don't flee, I'm afraid you'll be the next Mongol army's sword-
With the escape of the Grand Duke of Kiev, the army of the Rus' kings fell into complete chaos.
And the Mongol cavalry, like a hunt, was constantly harvesting their lives.
As the fleeing Grand Duke burned down the ships, although the Mongols could not catch up with him, the combined forces of the Rus' princes could not cross the river, and they were surrounded by Mongol troops.
You may not believe it, but even after a terrible defeat, it is unimaginable that a Mongol soldier would have to surround at least four or five Rus' principalities. (No wonder Yelü Yanxi, the Tianzuo Emperor of the Liao Kingdom at that time, asked his subordinates: "You 1 person surrounded me with 7 Jurchens to try?") ”）
As the Rus' army remained numerous, the Mongols sent emissaries demanding surrender and promising to guarantee the lives of the Rus' princes and nobles.
But the frightened kings of Rus, who did not know where to commit the axis, killed the messengers.
But the Mongols still promised that as long as they surrendered,
"will make the princes and nobles bloodless",
So the nobles eventually surrendered.
The Mongols then killed 90 percent of the Rus' soldiers and, as promised, killed 12 of the remaining 20 Rus' princes without bloodshed.
Avenge their messengers.
epilogue
The Princes of Rus' were poorly prepared for intelligence in the battle against the Mongols. Although the kings united against the enemy, the hearts of the people were uneven, and there were always some who wanted to take the lead and arrogantly despised the enemy. Moreover, the use of troops composed of mobilized troops to fight the Mongol army was exactly in the hands of the Mongol army, and it was not surprising that it lost the national fortune.
bibliography:
History of the East Slavs: The Mongol Invasion of Russia
Russia and the Nomads
Kievan Rus' and the Steppe Peoples
Genghis Khan's Mongol Invasion of Russia