In the 16th century, the
Wild Steppes in Russia were exposed to the Khanate. During the wars, the Crimean Khanate (supported by the Turkish army) invaded central Russia, devastated
Ryazan, and
burned Moscow. However, the next year they were defeated in the
Battle of Molodi. Despite the defeat, the raids continued. As a result, the Crimean Khanate was invaded several times, and conquered in the late 18th century. The Tatars eventually lost their influence in the regions.
The raids began shortly after the establishment of the Russian buffer state,
Qasim Khanate, and the domination of Russia in the
Russo-Kazan Wars of the late 15th century.
The Crimean invasions of Russia began in 1507, after the death of Moscow's grand duke
Ivan III, with the
Crimean Khanate attacking the Russian towns of Belev and
Kozelsk.
Over the course of the 16th century, the outer border of the Wild Steppes was near the city of
Ryazan, outside the
Oka River. The main path for the invading forces to Moscow was the
Muravsky Trail, running from the Crimean
Isthmus of Perekop, between the basins of the
Dnieper and
Seversky Donets rivers, and finally up to
Tula. The Tatars would turn back only after extensive looting and kidnapping, the Tartars usually managed to penetrate 100–200 kilometers into Russian territory. Captives were subsequently sent to the Crimean city of
Caffa to be sold into
slavery. As a result, the Russian population in the border regions suffered heavily.
Each spring, Russia mobilized up to several thousand soldiers for border service. The defensive lines consisted of a circuit of fortresses and cities.
To protect from invasions by the
Nogai Horde in the region between the Volga and Ural
rivers, the Volga cities of
Samara (1586),
Tsaritsyn (1589), and
Saratov (1590) were founded.
The most damaging invasions occurred in 1517, 1521 (supported by the
Khanate of Kazan), 1537 (supported by the Khanate of Kazan, the
Lithuanians, and the
Ottoman Empire), 1552, 1555, 1570–72 (supported by Sweden and the Ottoman Empire), 1589, 1593, 1640, 1666–67 (supported by
Poland–Lithuania), 1671, and 1688.
Russo-Crimean War of 1570
In 1570 the Crimean Tatars' horde devastated the
Ryazan borderland of Russia.[citation needed]
In May 1571, the 120,000-strong Crimean[4] and Turkish army (80,000 Tatars, 33,000 irregular Turks, and 7,000 janissaries) led by the khan of
CrimeaDevlet I Giray, and Big and Small
Nogai hordes and troops of
Circassians, bypassed the
Serpukhovdefensive fortifications on the
Oka River, crossed the
Ugra River, and rounded the flank of the 6,000-man Russian army. The sentry troops of Russians were crushed by the Crimeans. Not having forces to stop the invasion, the Russian army retreated to Moscow. The rural Russian population also fled to the capital.
The Crimean army devastated unprotected towns and villages around Moscow, and then
set fire to suburbs of the capital.[5] Due to a strong wind, the fire quickly expanded. The townspeople, chased by a fire and refugees, rushed to the northern gate of the capital. At the gate and in the narrow streets, there was a crush, people "went in three lines went on heads one of another, and top pressed those who were under them".[citation needed] The army, having mixed up with refugees, lost order, and general prince
Belsky died in a fire.
Within three hours, Moscow burnt completely. In one more day, the Crimean army, sated with its pillage, left on the Ryazan road to the steppes. Contemporaries counted up to 80,000 victims of the invasion in 1571,[4] with 150,000 Russian taken as captives.[4] Papal ambassador
Possevin testified of the devastation: he counted in 1580 no more than 30,000 inhabitants of Moscow, although in 1520 the Moscow population was about 100,000.[citation needed]
After the burning of Moscow,
Devlet Giray Khan, supported by the
Ottoman Empire, invaded Russia again in 1572. A combined force of Tatars and Turks, however, this time they were repelled in the
Battle of Molodi. In July–August, the 120,000-strong horde of
Devlet I Giray of Crimea was also defeated by the Russian army, led by Prince Mikhail
Vorotynsky and Prince Dmitriy Khvorostinin.[6]
After 1572
Later, the Russian expansion turned to the
Black Sea region and the Crimean Khanate was invaded several times in the 18th century and finally conquered during the
Russo-Turkish Wars.
1591:The defeat of the Crimean troops near Moscow, this was the last campaign in which the Crimean troops reached Moscow[17]
1598: Crimeans stopped by Bank Line,[clarification needed] withdraw and sue for peace.[7]: 46
1614:
Nogai raids within sight of Moscow. During the
Time of Troubles so many captives were taken that the price of a slave at Kaffa dropped to fifteen or twenty gold pieces.[7]: 66
1618: Nogais release 15,000 captives in peace treaty with Moscow.[18]
1632: Force from Livny ambushed by Tatars and
Janissaries (sic). 300 killed and the rest enslaved.[7]: 67
1632: 20,000 Tatars raid the south, as troops were shifted north for the
Smolensk War.[7]: 76
1633: 30,000 Tatars cross Abatis and Bank lines. Thousands were captured from Oka region.[7]: 76 This was the last deep raid into Russia.[19]: 26
1635: Many small war parties invaded Russia south of
Ryazan.[7]: 79
1637, 1641–1643: Several raids were led by Nogais and Crimean nobles without permission of Khan.[7]: 90
1643: 600 Tatars and 200 Zaporozhian Cossacks (sic) raid
Kozlov. 19 were killed, and 262 were captured.[7]: 23
1644: 20,000 The Tatars raid southern Russia, 10,000 captives.[7]: 91
1645: A raid captures 6,000 captives. It is claimed that the Turks encouraged these raids to obtain galley slaves for a war with Venice.[7]: 91 [who?]
^Зимин А. А. [coollib.com/b/218132/read Россия на пороге нового времени (Очерки политической истории России первой трети XVI в.)]. — М.: Мысль, 1872.
^Волков В. А. Под стягом Москвы. Войны и рати Ивана III и Василия III. — М., 2016
^Пенской В. В. Численность и развёртывание московского и татарского войска в кампанию 1521 года // Война и оружие: Новые исследования и материалы. 2-я Международная научно-практическая конференция, 18-20 мая 2011 года. — СПб.: ВИМАИВиВС, 2011. — Т. 2. — ISBN 978-5-903501-12-0.
^Stevens, Carol (2007). Russia's Wars of Emergence 1460-1730.
^ Н. К. Фомин. Оборона Тулы от нашествия крымских татар (1552 г.). Тульская областная универсальная научная библиотека. Архивировано из оригинала 12 июня 2013 года
^ И.Ф. Афремов. Историческое обозрение Тульской губернии. М. Тип. В. Готье. 1850. Осада Тулы 1552 года. стр. 133-137
^ Карамзин Н. М. История государства Российского: в 12 томах. — СПб.: Тип. Н. Греча, 1816—1829.
^Филиппов, В. В. 100 главных битв Древней Руси и Московского царства / В. В. Филиппов, М. Елисеев. — М. : Яуза : Издательство «Э», 2016
^Карамзин Н. М. Глава III // История государства Российского. — СПб.: Тип. Н. Греча, 1816—1829. — Т. 10.
^Khodarkovsky, Michael (2002). Russia's Steppe Frontier. p. 22.