Kazan and Astrakhan campaigns (XVI century). “Kazan Campaigns” of Ivan IV the Terrible Kazan campaigns of Russian troops against the Kazan x

"At the turn of the 40s and 50s of the 16th century, a significant change occurred in the field of Russian foreign policy towards the countries of the East, and in relation to the Kazan Khanate in particular. The idea of ​​pursuing an active aggressive policy to the east and south of the middle reaches of the Volga arose. annexation to Muscovy of the areas from the Volga to the Urals and from Kazan to the Caspian Sea inclusive."

Actually, the idea of ​​the geopolitical integrity of the Volga region became relevant for Russia when, during the period of the Turkish protectorate over the Kazan Khanate, it became clear that it was impossible to maintain the economic (primarily) and political interests of a growing Russia in the already tried and tested way - securing the Khan’s power in Kazan to a Moscow protege. The Kazan Khanate’s own potential and policies did not have the nature of a mortal threat to the Moscow state, but in combination with the forces of the Crimean Khanate, behind which stood the Ottoman Empire, the close proximity of the Kazan Khanate posed a constant threat to the existence and integrity of Russia. Paradoxically, it was the reorientation of Kazan towards a strategic alliance with the Crimean Khanate and Turkey that predetermined the historical fragility of the Kazan Khanate.
The “royal campaigns” against Kazan began in the fall of 1547. It should be noted that there is a discrepancy in dates: V.V. Pokhlebkin in the above book refers the 1st campaign to December 1548 - February 1549, other sources available to me call the winter of 1547-1548 - we will stick to this date. The fact that the Russian regiments were led by the young sovereign Ivan IV Vasilyevich himself, who was crowned king in January 1547, emphasizes the primacy of Russia’s “Eastern policy” and the significance of the problem of the Kazan Khanate. Note Shishkina S.P.

The first "Kazan campaign" of Ivan IV

(December 1547 - February 1548)

Reason for war: Arrival of an embassy from the right-bank Chuvash to Moscow with a request to accept them as Russian citizenship.

Progress of hostilities:
1. Having begun preparations for the campaign in December 1547, the troops entered the field, according to Russian custom, very late; The regiments of warriors advanced to Nizhny Novgorod only in January 1548 (infantry), artillery even later - on February 2 (by sled along the Volga).
2. The army gathering took place on the Volga in the area between the current settlements of Kadnitsa (left bank) and Nizhniye Rabotki (right bank). But considering that spring would soon come and the roads would become impassable, as soon as we got ready, we immediately decided to return to Moscow as soon as possible.
3. The other half of the army, i.e. The southern detachment, led by Shah-Ali and princes V. Vorotynsky and B. A. Gorbaty-Shuisky, united with the royal infantry at the mouth of the Tsivili River. He reached Kazan around February 4 and stood under its walls for about a week, not letting any visitors into the city. However, on February 10, 1548, he also decided to leave for Moscow, not seeing any possibility of storming the Kazan Kremlin. So ingloriously and quickly (in a week!) the first campaign of Ivan the Terrible ended.
Most likely, the campaign did not have the goal of capturing Kazan, but was in the nature of a military demonstration to establish pro-Russian sentiments among the Chuvash on the Right Bank of the Volga, which confirms the further development of events. Along the way (perhaps inappropriately) I would like to note one tendentiousness in V.V. Pokhlebkin’s interpretation of the facts: if the campaign did not lead to the capture of the Kazan Kremlin, then it means it ended “ingloriously”, “failure”, at best “inconclusively”; if Russian troops were defeated, then this would necessarily be a “catastrophic defeat,” etc. Don't you think so? Note Shishkina S.P.

The second "Kazan campaign" of Ivan IV

(November 17, 1549 – February 25, 1550)

Progress of hostilities:
1. This time setting out as a single detachment from Nizhny Novgorod, the Russian army, consisting of the Tsar’s Streltsy army, the Kasimov cavalry of Tsarevich Shah-Ali and the Astrakhan cavalry of Tsarevich Ediger, reached Kazan on February 12 and began its siege and artillery shelling. From cannons controlled by German gunners, prominent military leaders of Kazan were killed, who carelessly went out onto the Kremlin walls to survey the battlefield and the actions of the attackers: the Crimean prince Chelbak and one of the sons of Safa-Girey.
2. However, the onset of warm weather, the threat of early spring and thaw forced the tsar to lift the siege and return to Moscow.
3. Despite the enormous costs and somewhat better organization than before, the campaign produced absolutely no results - neither military nor political.

From the middle of the 16th century. In the Russian state, transformations and improvements are taking place in the field of military organization and military equipment:
Firstly, new types of selected, elite, privileged troops are being created (following the Turkish model).
Secondly, provincial nobles are attracted to military service as privates in the elite troops, which immediately increases the moral and political level of the army.
Thirdly, technical improvements focused on the development of artillery, mainly heavy, siege artillery, and in general on arming the army with firearms, which demonstrated the clear superiority of the European army and its difference from the East, where cavalry remained the main branch of the army, and the main type of weapons was cold steel.
Fourthly, engineering and fortification also acquired considerable importance in the military reform, which was also reconstructed with the help of European specialists brought in to train troops in conducting explosive pyrotechnic works during the siege of fortresses.
Fifthly, for the first time in the Russian army, special attention was paid to developing a preliminary plan for military campaigns, justifying the movement of troops, assessing their concentration points and conducting combat operations according to the developed disposition, and not at random, as it turns out.
Thus, the foundations were laid for such a new organ of the Russian army as the main headquarters of the active army, which also became an advantage of the Russian army compared to the eastern ones.

Finally, the experience of previous failures of the Russian army was subjected to critical analysis.
Thus, on the eve of the organization of a new campaign against Kazan in 1551, the reasons for the unsuccessful campaigns of 1545-1550 were studied. and the following decisions were made:
First: Abandoning the practice of winter hiking, which was considered easy
a) technically (sleigh track, going straight through the swamps, and not around) and
b) economically (without destroying crops, without distracting peasants from field work).
The start of hostilities was postponed to the spring, and the troops had to use the river routes as the main routes.
Secondly: A plan and program for the campaign was developed in advance by a special state commission, consisting of:
a) boyar Ivan Vasilyevich Sheremetev - from the command of the army;
b) Alexey Fedorovich Adashev - (member of the Elected Rada under Ivan IV) from the civil authorities (government administration);
c) clerk Ivan Mikhailov, an extremely experienced diplomat, participant in negotiations with the Swedes and Poles - from the foreign affairs department.

A plan for the conquest of the Kazan Khanate was developed in detail:
I. Military program:
1. Blockade of Kazan through the occupation of all river routes of the Khanate.
2. Foundation of the Russian fortress-outpost at the mouth of the Sviyaga River (Sviyazhsk).
II. Political program:
1. Deposition of the khans of the Crimean dynasty from the Kazan throne.
2. Liberation from slavery of all Russian captives (polonyanniks)
3. Annexation of the right bank of the Volga to Russia.
4. Replacement of the khan by a Russian governor in Kazan.
Both programs were to be implemented in stages, gradually. War efforts had to be economical and serve to support political demands.
III. The military plan of the company of 1551 and the leadership of the army were approved:
1. It was recommended that the tsar personally (Ivan IV was 20 years old at that time) - formally the commander-in-chief - participate in the campaign personally.
2. Boyar Ivan Vasilyevich Sheremetev was appointed chief of staff.
3. Commander of the royal regiment (guard): Prince Vladimir Ivanovich Vorotynsky.
4. Commander of the main forces of the army (Big Regiment): Prince Mikhail Ivanovich Vorotynsky.

The third "Kazan campaign" of Ivan IV

(April-July 1551)

Progress of hostilities:
1. Rafting of construction timber along the Volga to the mouth of the Sviyaga River in early April (30 km from Kazan upstream of the Volga).
The fortress-city (walls, towers, residential huts, churches) was secretly cut down in the winter of 1550-1551 in the forests near the city of Uglich in the estate of the Ushaty boyars. By the spring of 1551, the log houses were marked, dismantled and loaded onto ships. Note Shishkina S.P.

2. Departure of detachments to occupy river routes:
a) The 1st detachment left by ships from above the Volga and was then stationed above Kazan.
b) The 2nd detachment walked overland, across the field, and was stationed below Kazan (detachment of the Kasimov Tatars).
c) The 3rd detachment was the main Russian army sent to Sviyazhsk together with the builders.
d) The 4th detachment went from the Vyatka River (Bakhtiar Zyuzin’s detachment) to the Kama.
The detachments received orders to station themselves at all transport sites on the Volga, Kama, Vyatka, Sviyag, “so that military people from Kazan and to Kazan would not travel,” i.e. to blockade all river routes and, consequently, all transport and trade.

3. On May 17, the Russians occupied Krutaya Mountain at the mouth of the Sviyaga River - a dominant height (25 km from Kazan!).
On May 24, the Sviyazhsk fortress was founded on the territory of the Kazan Khanate. Within 24 hours, a whole city grew up, as hundreds of ready-made wooden log houses were floated down the Volga, which had been prepared in advance for a year in Uglich and Balakhna. All that remained was to install them.
At the same time, bribery of the Chuvash and Mari (Cheremis) inhabiting this territory of the Kazan Khanate was organized so that they would accept Russian citizenship. They were promised:
a) freedom from taxes for three years;
b) gifts: money, fur coats (velvet), horses;
c) similar benefits are also partly for the Tatars;
d) pressure was also used: Russian troops drove foreigners (unarmed) in front of them to Kazan, from where they were fired at. The Chuvash and Mari withstood this test without running away, which proved that they were ready to completely submit to the Russians.

4. Having surrounded the country with a blockade ring and actually torn away the right (mountain, i.e. high) bank of the Volga, Russian forces practically disorganized the economic life of the Kazan Khanate, since the fields and meadows were located on the meadow (left) side of the Volga, and the local population moved there Russian military detachments were not allowed in.
The population was told that the blockade would be lifted if the khan's government submitted to Russian demands: a change of khan and the transfer of all Russian Polonyans.
5. The blockade completely paralyzed the life of the Khanate: Volga trade was destroyed, the supply of products to Kazan stopped, navigation on the rivers was prohibited, all goods coming from the bottom of the Volga were taken away from Astrakhan. The villages on the left and right sides of the Volga were separated.
In June, unrest among the population began: they demanded that the khan satisfy Russian demands. But the Khan's troops suppressed the uprising of the Chuvash and Udmurts. However, unrest began inside the starving Kazan.
6. At the end of June, the Crimean garrison of Kazan decided to flee to the Kama, but all 300 people. princes, Murzas and other nobles, with their several hundred guards, were ambushed by Russian outposts, and everyone was destroyed: the privates were drowned, the princes and Murzas were taken to Moscow and executed (46 main military commanders).
7. Kazan was captured by the Russian army without a fight, the infant Khan Utyamysh and his regent mother were overthrown, and a provisional government was formed in Kazan led by Khudai-Kul-oglan and Prince Nur Ali Shirin. It entered into peace negotiations with the Russians, sending a delegation to Sviyazhsk.

Russian-Kazan Peace Treaty of 1551

Signing date: July 6, 1551
Place of signing: Sviyazhsk
Kasimov's "king" Shah-Ali;
From the Kazan Khanate: The head of the Kazan clergy, the Grand Mufti Kul-Sherif, Prince Bibars Rastov;
Conditions of the truce 1. The truce is concluded for 20 days;
2. The Kazan provisional government sends ambassadors to Moscow for negotiations.

Moscow-Kazan Peace Treaty of 1551

Signing date: August 1551
Place of signing: Moscow, Kremlin
Authorized parties from Russia: clerk Ivan Mikhailovich Viskovaty;
From the Kazan Khanate: Ambassador Prince Enbars Rastov;
Terms of the truce 1. Recognize Shah Ali as the new Kazan Khan;
2. Hand over to the Russian government the young Khan Utyamysh (2 and a half years old!) and his regent mother Syuyun-Bike.
3. Hand over to the Russian government the families (wives and children) of the Crimean Tatars who fled and were executed;
4. Bring to the Kazan Ustye (Meaning the mouth of the Kazanka River at its confluence with the Volga, 7 km from the Kazan fortress itself) and hand over to the Russian boyars the Russian Polonyanniks who were in slavery from noble Kazan citizens (princes, murzas, nobles), and Polonyanniks, which belonged to ordinary Tatars, should be transferred later, when Shah-Ali was already on the Kazan throne.
5. Upon signing these terms, the Russian government lifts (stops) the blockade of river routes and transportation.

Negotiations on the final Moscow-Kazan Peace Treaty of 1551

(9-10 August 1551)

Authorized parties:
From the Moscow State: Shah-Ali, Prince P.S. Silver.
From the Kazan Khanate: Mulla Kasim, Prince Bibars Rastov, Khoja Ali-Merden.

After the meeting ceremony, verification of powers and the official opening of negotiations, the ambassadors of Kazan were unexpectedly announced that the Kazan Khanate would henceforth be divided in half, into mountainous (right) and meadow (left, Trans-Volga) parts, and that only the Trans-Volga part would be considered the Kazan Khanate, and the mountainous will go to Moscow.
The ambassadors, hearing for the first time such conditions, which they were not told about at the preliminary negotiations in Moscow, refused to sign the new terms of the peace treaty, but they were threatened if they refused to immediately begin military action against Kazan.
Making desperate attempts to save their state, Kazan diplomats nevertheless achieved a postponement of the decision on the division of the Kazan Khanate for several days and signed a peace treaty (initial) on the same terms as the peace treaty signed in Moscow a few days earlier. (apparently, these negotiations took place near Kazan - in Sviyazhsk or the Kazan estuary. Only this can explain the promptness of convening the kurultai - in 3 days. Note by S.P. Shishkin)
It was decided to transfer the decision to withdraw the mountainous side to the Moscow state to the “meeting of the whole earth,” which was to be convened at the mouth of the Kazanka River.
On August 11, 1551, the Kazan ambassadors agreed to hand over Khan Utyamysh and the queen (khansha) Syuyun-Bike to the Russian side.

Kurultai on the Kazanka River

(14 August 1551)

Place of convening of the kurultai: The mouth of the Kazanka River at its confluence with the Volga (7 km from Kazan).
Present:
a) all Muslim clergy headed by Kul-Sherif ibn Mansur, i.e. all sheikhs, sheikh-zade, mullahs, mullah-zade, hojas, dervishes;
b) oglans - relatives of the khans along all lines, led by Khudai-kul;
c) princes and murzas led by Nur-Ali, the son of Bulat-Shirin.
The agreement was signed under strong Russian pressure and threats: the mountainous side went to the Moscow state.

Moscow-Kazan Peace Treaty of 1551

Signing date: 14 August 1551
Place of signing: The mouth of the Kazanka River 7 km from Kazan
Signatories of the agreement: Representatives of the upper classes of the Kazan Khanate.
Terms of the agreement 1. The Kazan Khanate is divided into meadow and mountain parts, with the mountain part going to the Moscow state;
2. All Polonyans will be released. Keeping Christians in slavery in the Kazan Khanate is now prohibited. In case of incomplete liberation of the Polonyanniki, the Russian government immediately declares war.

Consequences of the peace treaty of 1551:
1. After signing the treaty, within 3 days (August 16-18), a mass Tatar oath of allegiance to the Russian government and the treaty took place. The oath was immediately pronounced by groups of 200-300 people.
2. On August 17, the release of Russian prisoners began. On the first day, 2,700 people were released (brought into the field). In total, 60,000 people were freed throughout the Khanate within a week. (established according to the bread allowance lists!)
3. After the liberation of the prisoners, Russian troops were withdrawn, the blockade of rivers and crossings was stopped, the Russian embassy remained in Kazan, headed by boyar I.I. Khabarov (soon replaced by Prince Dmitry Fedorovich Paletsky) and clerk Ivan Vyrodkov.
4. Russian administration was introduced in Sviyazhsk.

But the people of Kazan, including the new pro-Russian Khan Shah Ali, were unhappy with the division of the country. They hoped that they would be able to persuade the Russian Tsar to return the mountainous side of Kazan. For this purpose, an emergency embassy was sent to Moscow.

Embassy of the Kazan Khanate in Moscow

(October 1551)

Composition of the embassy:
Prince Nur-Ali ibn Bulat-Shirin, Greater Karachi;
Prince Shah-Abass Shamov, Khan's butler;
Bakshi Abdullah, Prince Kostrov, Khoja Ali-Merden.

Embassy requirement:
1) Give way back to the mountain side;
2) If they do not give in, then allow taxes to be collected in it;
3) If they don’t allow all taxes, then at least some of them;
4) For the king to take an oath that he will honor the agreement;

Russian government response:
1) No concessions regarding the mountain side. All taxes must go to Moscow;
2) The Tsar will take the oath only after the return of all the Polonians;
3) The ambassadors will be detained in Moscow as hostages until the Russian prisoners are completely released.

This led to completely the opposite results: prisoners began to be detained as the last chance to negotiate with Moscow.
At the same time, an opposition formed to eliminate Shah Ali as a Russian protege. The conspiracy was discovered, and more than 70 people. The “firebrands” of the conspiracy were killed, including the Rastov brothers, princes Bibars and Enbars, Oglan Karamysh, Murza Kulai and others. Since the conspirators were liquidated at Russian orders formally by Shah Ali Khan, he was in an extremely difficult situation. The Tatar aristocrats and clergy saw in him a direct enemy to national aspirations and were unanimous in their desire to eliminate him as a hated Russian protege. At the same time, the Russian side did not at all support him unambiguously and was ready at any moment to either remove him, simply replacing him with a Russian monger, i.e. without needing it as a “national screen”, or “to pay with it”, i.e. giving it to the Tatars to be torn to pieces in the event of a sharp strengthening of the national party in Kazan and the impossibility of overcoming the strength of resistance of the Tatar opposition.
Shah-Ali himself, who promised his people to “beg from the Russians” to return to the Kazan Khanate half of the territory seized from it, saw the preservation of both the throne and life for himself only if he fulfilled this promise and therefore refused to play the role of an obedient Russian puppet, looked at the Russians “ advisers" not as political allies, but as their blood enemies.
In this situation, the Russian government finally decided to abandon all diplomacy and, by decisively deposing Shah Ali and appointing a Russian governor in his place, legally complete the annexation of the entire Kazan Khanate to the Moscow state. However, in order not to cause an uprising of the Tatars by this measure, it was important to find such “technical” forms of carrying out the liquidation of the Kazan Khanate that would appear to be sanctioned by the Tatar elite itself. In view of this, the Kazan embassy, ​​which was detained in Moscow, was involved in the consultation. In January 1552, the Moscow government posed the question to him: “What is their custom for a governor to be?”
Tatar politicians who understood that the main thing in the current situation was, firstly, to preserve the unity of the territory of the Kazan Khanate, secondly, to preserve the actual autonomy of the Kazan Khanate under formally Russian rule and, thirdly, to prevent a military invasion of Russian troops and a war of extermination in unequal conditions, - the tsarist diplomats were advised:
1) Recall the Russian garrison from Kazan so that the khan, having lost Russian protection, would leave the capital of the khanate and his deposition would happen “naturally.”
2) Send from Moscow representatives of the Kazan aristocracy, detained hostage, to Kazan to explain the situation to the residents of the Khanate and take the oath to the Russian governor.
3) In fact, leave the Tatar Muslim administration intact in the Kazan Khanate.
In fact, preserve the autonomy of the Kazan Khanate in financial and economic terms (the treasury is managed by local authorities through the governor, and not by the central government in Moscow).
The annexation of the Kazan Khanate to Russia should be considered as a personal union between Russia and the Khanate, which should only be expressed in the replacement of the khan by a Russian governor.
The entire internal structure and religious Muslim organization remain inviolable. Only the slavery of Christian captives is destroyed; “Eternal peace” is established between Moscow and Kazan, both parts of the Khanate are reunited.

Note:
This project of annexing the Kazan Khanate to Russia was approved by the Russian commission consisting of the boyar I.V. Sheremetev, the personal representative of the Tsar A.F. Adashev, the Duma clerk I. Mikhailov, and in February 1552 A.F. Adashev himself arrived in Kazan , in order to “peacefully” depose Khan Shah Ali, who “voluntarily” had to give way to the Russian governor:
1) On March 6, 1552, the Khan left Kazan for Sviyazhsk along with 84 people. the princes and murzas handed over to Moscow by them were hostages.
2) On March 6, 1552, a royal charter was announced in Kazan on the liquidation of the Khanate and the appointment of Prince Semyon Ivanovich Mikulinsky as governor of the Sviyazhsk governor.
3) On March 7, 1552, the Kazan residents were sworn in to the governor and the tsar by the “troika” of royal representatives:
from Kazan: Prince Chapkun Otuchev, Prince Burnash;
from Moscow: Streltsy head Ivan Cheremisinov.
4) On March 8, 1552, the provisional Kazan government, headed by Oglan Khudai-Kul, went to Sviyazhsk, where it took an oath from the governor to extend the benefits and privileges of the Russian nobility to the Kazan (Tatar) nobility.

There were only two more formalities left to complete:
a) Departure of the Khansha from Kazan into exile in Moscow.
b) Entry into Kazan of the governor, Prince Mikulinsky, along with a mixed Russian-Tatar retinue and a Russian garrison.

Coup of March 9, 1552

On the morning of March 9, 1552, the governor, retinue, Russian military detachment, Tatar hostages (84 aristocrats) left Sviyazhsk for Kazan. At the same time, the Khansha left Kazan. On the Volga, near Krokhov Island, they were met by representatives of Kazan - the princes of Shamsya and Khan-Kildy.
Near the village of Bezhboldy (later Admiralteyskaya Sloboda), three Kazan aristocrats separated from the governor’s retinue - princes Kebek, Islam and Murza Alik Narykov, who asked permission to go ahead to prepare a meeting for the governor’s ceremonial entry into the gates of Kazan (the distance was about 2 kilometers).
Arriving in Kazan, the Tatar aristocrats locked the gates, called on the residents to arm themselves and refused to let in the governor and the Russian detachment. After standing at the gates of Kazan for several hours, Prince Mikulinsky was forced to return to Sviyazhsk, arrest the entire Tatar retinue and former hostages, but still not begin military action, since he still hoped for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
However, the Kazan people were determined to defend their independence. The coup was carried out seriously - so the Russians were confused.
The plan for the “peaceful annexation” of the Kazan Khanate to Russia failed. The project to preserve the autonomy of the Kazan Khanate also did not take place. But this could not fundamentally change the balance of power between the Russian and Tatar sides. A military confrontation occurred, which simply temporarily delayed the annexation of Kazan.

Military activities of the Kazan government in March-May 1552
1. The new Tatar government, which decided to fight with Moscow, was formed on March 10, 1552 and was headed by Prince Chapkun Otuchev.
2. The Russian archers who remained in the city (180 people) were disarmed and killed.
3. The Kazan people invited the Astrakhan prince Yadiger-Muhammad to the throne, began active military operations against the Russians and even achieved the withdrawal of the mountainous side from Moscow. Thus, all the results of the year-long diplomatic preparation for the annexation of the Kazan Khanate to Russia were eliminated.
Russia had to start the war from the beginning.

The Fourth (Great) "Kazan Campaign" of Ivan IV

(16 June – 12 October 1552)

Participants in the war and their goals:
1. Russia.
The initiator and organizer of the 4th campaign was Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible. He set the goal of destroying Kazan and annexing it to Russia.
2. Kazan Khanate with its allies (Crimean Khanate, Astrakhan Khanate, Nogai Horde).
The Turkish Sultan Suleiman II the Magnificent called on all Tatar states to unite to defend the independence of Kazan. The Crimean Khan Devlet-Girey promised to save the Kazan Khanate and create a unified Crimean-Kazan Tatar state capable of resisting Russian aggression and conquests.

The fifth "Kazan campaign" of Ivan the Terrible

(summer 1553 - August 1556)

Purpose of the war: Completely conquer the Kazan Khanate and stop the struggle for the independence of its population with brutal measures.
Progress of hostilities:
1. Large punitive detachments were sent to the banks of the Volga, Kama and Vyatka under the general leadership of D.F. Adashev. They "combed" all the settlements along the banks of these rivers, killing everyone they suspected of participating in the uprising, terrorizing the entire country. They seized all transportation and crossings across these rivers, controlling and prohibiting the movement of Kazan residents around the country. But this was only the first wave of occupation actions.
2. In September 1553, a regular army was moved to the Kazan Khanate under the leadership of the governor: Prince Mikulinsky, boyar I.V. Sheremetev. Military operations unfolded throughout the country - Russian troops marched through, destroying everything in their path - not only the Middle Volga region, but also climbed 250 km up the Kama. The scorched earth tactics were used: villages were destroyed, leveled to the ground, livestock was taken away and driven away, the male population, as a rule, was destroyed, and the entire working population was taken captive.
3. Since the “war” took on the character of a massacre of an unarmed population, this caused the unification of all the nations inhabiting the Kazan Khanate: the Chuvash and Mari, who had previously ceded to the Russians, and in some cases opposed the Tatars, united with them. This caused a new wave of intensifying Russian repression.
4. In the winter of 1553/54, i.e. from November-December 1553 to February 1554, Russian troops undertook a new action - the destruction of strongholds of the rebels, the destruction of housing in general in winter conditions. The fortress on the Mesha River was burned, 6,000 men and 15,000 women were captured. Driven to despair, the population was forced to swear allegiance to the king and pay taxes.
5. In the summer of 1554, hostilities resumed. United detachments of Tatars and Mari began to resist the Russian troops, who were marching with punitive purposes. The attempts of the Russian governors to send against the rebels the inhabitants of the regions that had sworn allegiance to Russia, forced to take this step in the winter, completely failed, for the conquered again joined the rebels; the entire territory of the Kazan Khanate represented a war zone. The rebels began to kill everyone who collaborated with the Russian authorities, they approached Kazan itself and defeated the guard regiment of the Russian army stationed there.
6. Then the tsarist government sent a new large detachment under the command of Prince I.F. Miloslavsky, who occupied and devastated 22 volosts in the central part of the country, razed several dozen villages to the ground. About 50 thousand people were captured, and all of them were executed.
The chronicles were not able to record and list at least part of the numerous battles that took place in different parts of the Khanate. Suffice it to say that Prince Kurbsky alone notes that his detachment had over 20 battles with the rebels in 1554.
7. In the Arsk region (Udmurtia), a number of forts were built, in which military garrisons were left so as not to weaken control over the population.
8. However, all this did not lead to the liquidation of the rebel detachments of Mamysh-Berda; they retained their combat effectiveness and strength.
9. In 1555, both sides took a break. The royal troops are tired. The population was suppressed not only by military repression, but also by economic devastation - in the country, sowing was disrupted for two years in a row and the meager harvest was destroyed during the war. The working population was taken captive.
10. But in the spring of 1556, Mamysh-Berdy launched an offensive with his faithful, brave 2,000-strong army. However, it was not in vain that the Russian military leaders prepared for a whole year. In April 1556, the army of boyar P.V. Morozov approached the capital of the rebels, Chalym, and besieged it. Like Kazan before, the fortress was taken as a result of a series of undermining, mining and gigantic explosions (up to 300 pounds of gunpowder at a time!). Khan Ali-Akram was killed, and Mamysh-Berdy was captured by cunning, taken to Moscow and executed. The hero who replaced him, Akhmed (Akhmetek-batyr), was also captured and executed.
11. Having defeated the uprising in the central region of the Kazan Khanate, the Russian government turned against the second area of ​​the uprising - in Udmurtia. This entire area was devastated by the army of P.V. Morozov already in May 1556. As usual, all the men were killed, the women and children were taken prisoner. As a result, Udmurtia, and then the entire Kama region (Permyak and Bashkir regions) were devastated.
12. In 1557, the people, deprived of leaders, exsanguinated by the destruction of the male part of the population and the captivity of all able-bodied people, driven to despair by the many years of continuous devastation of the country, refused to continue the struggle. The war ended, no peace was concluded. The country was simply annexed to Russia, and a Russian administration was introduced.
13. Its last inhabitants, the Tatars, were evicted from Kazan, they were given a place in Kuransheva Sloboda, beyond the Bulak River, and 7,000 Russians moved into the empty city, which had fallen into complete decline. This was all that remained of the almost hundred thousand population of the Tatar capital in the 50s of the 16th century. A 50-kilometer ring strip of empty, abandoned lands was formed around Kazan, which in the coming years were distributed by the tsar to the Russian nobility, who brought peasants from Central Russia to settle these lands.

In Kazan itself, new construction began already in 1552, especially intensifying in 1556, when Pskov builders and the architect Posnik Yakovlev arrived in Kazan.

Note: The liquidation of the Kazan Khanate caused deep despondency and indignation among all Muslim states: Turkey, the Crimean and Astrakhan khanates, as well as the Nogai Horde did not recognize the Russian conquests. However, they were not ready for unity of action and could not organize a joint military campaign against Moscow. On the contrary, due to their internal contradictions, the Moscow government of Ivan IV managed to continue the policy of conquest in the Volga region without any interruption, and the Astrakhan Khanate became the next object of capture.

The troops of the Crimean Khanate staged regular raids on the southern territories of Muscovite Rus' from the beginning of the 16th century (raids of 1507, 1517, 1521). Their goal was to plunder Russian cities and capture the population. During the reign of Ivan IV, the raids continued.

It is known about the campaigns of the Crimean Khanate in 1536, 1537, undertaken jointly with the Kazan Khanate, with the military support of Turkey and Lithuania.
In 1541, the Crimean Khan Sahib I Giray made a campaign that ended in an unsuccessful siege of Zaraysk. His army was stopped at the Oka River by Russian regiments under the command of D. F. Belsky.
In June 1552, Khan Devlet I Giray made a campaign to Tula.
In 1555, Devlet I Giray repeated the campaign against Muscovite Rus', but, before reaching Tula, he hastily turned back, abandoning all the booty. During the retreat, he entered into battle near the village of Sudbischi with a Russian detachment that was inferior in number to him. This battle did not affect the result of his campaign.

The tsar gave in to the demands of the opposition aristocracy to march on the Crimea: “brave and courageous men advised and advised, so that he (Ivan) himself, with his head, with great troops, should move against the Perekop Khan.”

In 1558, the army of the Polish prince Dmitry Vishnevetsky, allied with Moscow, defeated the Crimean army near Azov, and in 1559 the Moscow army under the command of D. F. Adashev made a campaign against the Crimea, destroying the large Crimean port of Gezlev (now Evpatoria) and freeing many Russian captives .

After Ivan the Terrible captured the Kazan and Astrakhan khanates, Devlet I Giray vowed to return them. In 1563 and 1569, together with Turkish troops, he made two unsuccessful campaigns against Astrakhan.

The campaign of 1569 was much more serious than the previous ones - together with the Turkish land army and Tatar cavalry, the Turkish fleet rose along the Don River, and between the Volga and Don the Turks began construction of a shipping canal - their goal was to lead the Turkish fleet into the Caspian Sea for the war against their traditional enemy - Persia. The ten-day siege of Astrakhan without artillery and under the autumn rains ended in nothing; the garrison under the command of Prince Serebryany repulsed all attacks. The attempt to dig a canal also ended unsuccessfully - Turkish engineers did not yet know the lock system. Devlet I Giray, not happy with the strengthening of Turkey in this region, also secretly interfered with the campaign.

After this, three more campaigns are made to the Moscow lands:
1570 - devastating raid on Ryazan;
1571 - the campaign against Moscow - ended with the burning of Moscow. As a result of the April Crimean Tatar raid, agreed with the Polish king, the southern Russian lands were devastated, tens of thousands of people died, more than 150 thousand Russians were taken into slavery; with the exception of the stone Kremlin, all of Moscow was burned. A week before the khan crossed the Oka, due to conflicting intelligence data, John left the army and went into the interior of the country to gather additional forces; upon news of the invasion, he moved from Serpukhov to Bronnitsy, from there to Aleksandrovskaya Sloboda, and from the settlement to Rostov, as his predecessors Dmitry Donskoy and Vasily I Dmitrievich did in similar cases. The winner sent him an arrogant letter:
I burn and waste everything because of Kazan and Astrakhan, and I apply the wealth of the whole world to dust, hoping for the majesty of God. I came against you, I burned your city, I wanted your crown and head; but you didn’t come and didn’t stand against us, and you still boast that I’m the sovereign of Moscow! If you had shame and dignity, you would come and stand against us.

Ivan answered the humble petitioner:
If you are angry for the refusal to Kazan and Astrakhan, then we want to give up Astrakhan to you

He went out to the Tatar ambassadors in a homespun, telling them: “Do you see me, what am I wearing? This is how the king (khan) made me! Still, he captured my kingdom and burned the treasury, and I have nothing to do with the king.” Karamzin writes that the tsar handed over to Devlet-Girey, at his request, a certain noble Crimean captive who converted to Orthodoxy in Russian captivity. However, Devlet-Girey was not satisfied with Astrakhan, demanding Kazan and 2000 rubles, and the next summer the invasion was repeated.
1572 - the last big campaign of the Crimean Khan during the reign of Ivan IV ended with the destruction of the Crimean-Turkish army. A 120,000-strong Crimean-Turkish horde moved to decisively defeat the Russian state. However, in the Battle of Molodi, the enemy was destroyed by a 60,000-strong Russian army under the leadership of governors M. Vorotynsky and D. Khvorostinin - 5-10 thousand returned to Crimea (see Russian-Crimean War of 1571-1572). The death of a selected Turkish army near Astrakhan in 1569 and the defeat of the Crimean horde near Moscow in 1572 put a limit to Turkish-Tatar expansion in Eastern Europe.

The winner at Molodi, Vorotynsky, the very next year, following a denunciation from a slave, was accused of intending to bewitch the Tsar and died from torture, and during the torture the Tsar himself raked up the coals with his staff.

, Crimea , the Astrakhan Khanate and the Nogai Horde aggressive policy towards Russia. The Kazan Khanate closed the Volga trade route for Russia, carried out constant raids, in the middle. XVI century in Kazan there were approx. 100 thousand Russian prisoners. The struggle for the annexation of Kazan began in the 15th century, but intensified in the 40s of the 16th century. Some of the Tatar feudal lords (“Moscow party”) advocated the transition to Russian citizenship. The campaign of 1545 was in the nature of a military demonstration and strengthened the positions of the “Moscow group” and other opponents of Khan Safa-Girey, who was expelled from Kazan in 1545 and replaced by a protege in the spring of 1546 Ivan IV Shah-Ali (Shigalei). But soon Safa-Girey, supported by the Crimeans, returned to Kazan. The campaign of 1547 - 48 was unsuccessful. After the death of Safa-Girey (1549), under his young son Utyamysh-Girey, the Crimean group led by the uhlan Kuchak ruled. The campaign of 1549 - 50 was also unsuccessful. The government of Ivan IV launched serious preparations for a new campaign; a number of reforms were carried out to strengthen the army. In 1551, as a result of the diplomatic mission of P. Turgenev, it was possible to break away the Nogai Horde from the anti-Russian coalition. Not far from Kazan, the Sviyazhsk fortress was built (1551) as a military base. In August 1551, Shah Ali was again “set as king.” An intense struggle between factions continued in Kazan; Shah-Ali could not cope with the difficult situation and left Kazan in February 1552. The attempt to install a Russian governor in Kazan failed. The Tatar princes invited the Astrakhan prince Yadigar (Ediger) to the throne. On June 16, the Russian army (up to 150 thousand people) set out from Moscow. In connection with the approach of the Crimean army of Khan Devlet-Girey, the Russian army headed south and southeast to the region of Kashira and Kolomna; a regiment of the right hand (15 thousand people) was sent against the 30,000-strong Crimean army. Near Tula, Devlet-Girey's troops were defeated and hastily retreated. Russian troops moved to Kazan. Thanks to the good preparation of the campaign, they covered 850 km in 43 days and concentrated near Sviyazhsk on August 13. On August 30, the siege of Kazan began. Tatar detachments operating from outside were repulsed. The siege was carried out using a system of parallels, battle towers, siege weapons, and mine tunnels. The mine explosion destroyed the water source, and the besieged were deprived of water. After several breaches in the walls, a general assault was launched on October 2. By evening the city was taken. The Kazan Khanate fell. As a result of the Kazan campaigns, the Middle Volga region was annexed to Russia, the preconditions were created for advancing to the Urals and Siberia and expanding trade relations with the countries of the Caucasus and the East.

V. Buganov

Literature:

1. Afanasyev V. 1552-1902 To the 300th anniversary of the conquest of Kazan. A true record of the Kingdoms of the Kazan campaign. Books of 1552 and the legend of the prince. Kurbsky about the conquest of Kazan. -M„ 1902.

2. Bogdanovich M.I. Military-historical essay on the siege of Kazan // Engineering magazine. - 1898. - No. 8-9.

3. Military encyclopedia. -SPb., Publishing house I.D. Sytin, 1913. -T.P. - pp. 283-284.

4. Military encyclopedia: In the 8th volume / Ch. ed. commission P.S. Grachev (prev.). - M., 1995. - T.Z. - pp. 447-448.

5. Military engineering art and troops of the Russian army. Sat. Art. - M„ 1958. P. 9-71.

6. Military encyclopedic lexicon, published by the Society of Military and Writers. - Ed. 2nd. - In the 14th volume - St. Petersburg, 1854. - T.6. - P. 400-402.

7. Geisman P.A. History of military art in the Middle and New Ages (VI-XVIII centuries). - Ed. 2nd. - St. Petersburg, 1907. P. 498-503.

8. Heroes and battles. Publicly available military-historical anthology. - M., 1995. P. 273-282.

9. Golitsyn N. S. General military history of ancient times. - St. Petersburg, 1878. - 4.3. - pp. 215-226.

10. Golitsyn N.S. Russian military history. - St. Petersburg, 1878. - 4.2. - P. 135-150.

11. Elchaninov A.G. Ivan the Terrible near Kazan in 1552 // Military Historical Bulletin. - Kyiv. - 1910. - No. 5-6. - P. 43-53.

12. Zimin A.A., Khoroshkevich A.L. Russia during the time of Ivan the Terrible. - M„ 1982. P. 58-69.

13. History of the USSR from ancient times to the present day. - M„ 1966. - T.2. - pp. 170-173.

14. Marine Atlas/Ans. ed. G.I. Levchenko. -M., 1958. -T.Z, part 1. - L.5.

15. Soloviev S.M. Op. - M., 1989. - Book.Z, vol.5-6. - P. 441-468.

16. Encyclopedia of military and maritime sciences: In the 8th volume / edited by. ed. G.A. Leera. - St. Petersburg, 1889. - T.4. - pp. 76-77.

Russian-Kazan wars- a series of wars that took place between the Kazan Khanate and the Russian state in 1437-1552.

Has survived to this day very few actual Kazan historical sources, and the history of the Khanate is studied mainly based on foreign, mostly Russian, sources. And since the Russians were interested in the Kazan Khanate in what had to do with Russia, that is, Russian-Kazan relations and wars, the Russian-Kazan wars are the most studied part of Kazan history.

Khanate of Kazan

There is no clear opinion among historians when the Kazan Khanate was formed. Some experts consider the year of formation of the Khanate to be 1438, another part - 1445. There is also an opinion that there was no formation of the Kazan Khanate in those years, but there was only a change of dynasty in an already existing state, originating from Volga Bulgaria. In any case, historians agree that The Kazan Khanate includes the Bulgar and Horde layers, but there is no unity on the issue of their relationship.

The Kazan Khanate traces its origins to the Volga Bulgaria

The Kazan Khanate was a fairly large Muslim power, but the territory inhabited directly by the Kazan Tatars was small, and the main part of the territory of the Khanate was inhabited by other peoples, sometimes rather weakly subordinate to the center. The main occupations of the inhabitants of the Khanate were agriculture and cattle breeding. Some types of crafts were also developed. Fur production played an important role, but at the time described, the Russians established themselves in Vyatka, Perm and the Northern Urals, thus depriving the Khanate of an important source of income. In addition, the Russians were actively involved in fishing on the Volga. In peacetime, large Russian fishing artels reached the territory of the present Saratov region and below. The Volga River has always been a major trade route, and trade played an important role in the Kazan Khanate. Every year, a large fair was held on the Volga island near Kazan, attracting merchants from different countries. But Russian-Kazan conflicts were often accompanied by the beating of Russian merchants(and other Russians who were on the territory of the Khanate) at the fair. Therefore, after the establishment of the Crimean dynasty in Kazan, Vasily III succeeded in moving the fair to Nizhny Novgorod land, where it later developed into the famous Makaryevskaya fair. This also dealt a major blow to the Khanate's economy.

A dynasty of Crimean Tatars established itself in Kazan

The slave trade played a significant role in the Kazan economy. The capture of slaves was ensured by raids on Russian lands. Some slaves remained in the Khanate, some were sold to Asian countries. The liberation of Russian slaves and the cessation of the slave trade was one of the main requirements in all agreements with the Khanate.

The head of the khanate was the khan. He had to be a Muslim and Genghisid. Representatives of the khan's family who converted to Orthodoxy were deprived of the right to the khan's throne. In the last year of the Khanate's existence, the only non-Genghisid became the head, but this was an exception caused by extraordinary circumstances. Most of the khans who occupied the throne grew up outside of Kazan and relied on external forces. In Kazan itself there were groups of feudal lords who had large armed forces and power and had different opinions about the development of their state. Moscow, Nogai, Crimean and other groups fought for power in the Khanate. As a result, during the existence of the khanate, 15 khans of six different dynasties were replaced, and some of them occupied the throne several times. All this made the Kazan Khanate an unstable state entity, creating many problems for its neighbors.

Political aspect of the Russian-Kazan wars

The most important reason for the Russian-Kazan wars was the fact that from the very beginning of its existence, the Kazan Khanate pursued an aggressive policy towards Russia, regularly carrying out devastating raids, including capturing Russians into slavery (in particular, in the mid-16th century there were about 100,000 Russian prisoners). It was with the aim of preventing these raids that the Russians repeatedly launched campaigns against Kazan.

The main reason for the wars is the cessation of Tatar raids for Russian slaves and robberies

The very formation of the Khanate is associated with a major war, which led to the capture of Grand Duke Vasily the Dark by the Kazan people. The exact conditions of his release are unknown, but they were certainly quite difficult. A change in this order of things, obviously, became one of the reasons for subsequent military clashes. Moreover, the wars were caused by competition for fur resources North-Eastern Europe and the struggle for control of the Volga trade route. Of course, the most important reason for the Russian campaigns against Kazan was fight against the slave trade and preventing the predatory raids associated with it.

In 1487, the Russians subjugated the Kazan Khanate by establishing a protectorate.

Initially, the goals of the Russians boiled down to imposing their will on the khans and concluding a peace beneficial to themselves. Subsequently, having become convinced of the fragility of such agreements, the Russians subjugated the Khanate in 1487, establishing a Russian protectorate over it. For several decades, the khans depended on Moscow and coordinated all their most important actions with it, while the Russians interfered quite little in the internal life of the Khanate. But the protectorate turned out to be an insufficiently reliable method of control. Several times power in Kazan fell into the hands of anti-Russian groups, which led to the beating of Russian people within the Khanate and sudden attacks on Russian lands.

In 1521, power in Kazan fell into the hands of the Crimean dynasty, hostile to Russia.

In 1521, power in Kazan ended up in the hands of the Crimean dynasty, hostile to Russia. In response to this, the Russians achieved a transfer important for the Kazan Khanate and Russia Volga fair in Nizhny Novgorod region. In those same years, the Russian government for the first time built a fortress on Mari land - Vasilsursk, which caused a mixed reaction within Russia. There were both supporters of this action and opponents, who feared that the construction of the fortress could cause a permanent Russian-Kazan war. But subsequent wars depended little on the existence of Vasilsursk.

Until the last campaigns of Ivan the Terrible, the Russians tried to continue their line aimed at controlling the Kazan Khanate through khans dependent on the Russian state. But each time this turned out to be ineffective and led after some time to restoration of a dynasty hostile to Russia, allied with the Crimean Khanate. As a result, by agreement with pro-Moscow groups in Kazan, a plan for the abolition of the Khanate was developed in Moscow. According to this plan, a Russian governor was installed in Kazan, subordinate to the Grand Duke. At the same time, the former Khanate retained a significant degree of autonomy in internal affairs. But this plan was not accepted by a significant part of Kazan society, which led to the last Russian campaign against Kazan and a forceful solution to the Kazan problem.

Organizational and strategic aspect

Of all the states formed as a result of the collapse of the Golden Horde, the Kazan Khanate was the closest to the Moscow Principality, which made it easier to organize raids and major campaigns. But it was noticeably inferior to the Moscow state in population, territory and resources. The main territories of Rus' were inaccessible to Kazan troops. The Kazan people repeatedly attacked Murom, Nizhny Novgorod, Galich and other border cities, but Kazan troops reached Moscow only twice - in 1439, during the difficult era of the feudal war for Rus', and in 1521, together with the Crimean troops, during one of the largest raids of the Crimean Tatars on Rus'. Russian troops reached Kazan on almost every major campaign, which left a noticeable imprint on the entire development of the Kazan state.

At the same time, it should be noted that many Russian-Kazan wars were accompanied by major military clashes between Russia and other states, as a result of which Moscow could use only part of its forces in the Kazan direction.

The retaliatory nature of Russian actions was a characteristic feature of the Russian-Kazan wars

Russian campaigns against Kazan were carried out either for the purpose of protection from the devastating raids of the Tatars, or were initiated by the Tatars, who saw in Moscow an opportunity to achieve their interests. This retaliatory nature of Russian actions was a characteristic feature of the Russian-Kazan wars. In most campaigns, the main routes of attack were navigable rivers flowing from Rus' to Kazan. The Volga, Kama and Vyatka made it possible to invade the Kazan Khanate from several directions simultaneously, while being convenient for transporting heavy weapons and supplies. The cavalry usually moved along the coast or marched across the field from Murom directly to Kazan. But such a method of attack required coordination of the actions of troops over a space of hundreds and thousands of kilometers. Her absence could lead to heavy losses or death of Russian troops, which happened repeatedly. Moscow governors well understood the importance of this aspect of combat operations and tried in every possible way to achieve consistency in the movement of units. If in the first Kazan campaigns there was constantly a difference in the approach of troops to the meeting place, then later it was possible to achieve more coordinated actions, to the point that detachments that began moving hundreds of kilometers from each other converge “at the same hour, as if from a single yard” !

The first campaigns against Kazan are reminiscent of Ushkuinichi freemen, when soldiers can choose their own commander, ignore direct orders and act as they see fit. Subsequently, Russian actions became more and more organized and disciplined. The troops are acting according to a plan developed by the high command. Have a connection with management. Their actions are coordinated by a discharge order. The Russians are using new methods of war. More and more artillery and firearms are used on campaigns. Towards the end of the Russian-Kazan wars, archers took part in campaigns.

The Kazan people, for their part, at the first opportunity make rapid raids on the Russian border areas and quickly leave. But they almost never manage to take well-fortified cities. Therefore, the Russian government is building new fortresses in the directions that are most dangerous for Kazan strikes. When Russian troops advance, Kazan residents always conduct an active defense - they meet the Russians on the distant approaches to the city, try to prevent them from crossing, if possible, beat the Russians in parts. When the Russians approach the city, the Kazan people make regular sorties, station a special cavalry detachment away from the city in a place difficult to reach for the Russians and use it to attack the besiegers from the rear.

The Kazan fortress posed a big problem for Russian troops

Kazan was truly an impregnable fortress, which, despite many sieges, was captured only twice - in 1487, when the Kazan people themselves opened the gates, and in 1552, using the most effective assault technologies at that time.

The rest of the time, the Kazan fortress posed a big problem for the Russian troops. It was impossible to take it without a long, systematic assault and the use of heavy weapons. But its delivery as well delivery of supplies to Kazan presented a serious problem. And their loss as a result of the actions of the Kazan people or weather factors led to the disruption of the campaign, since new weapons and supplies could not be delivered on time.

In the middle of the 16th century, when the Russian government set a course for the complete subjugation of Kazan, all the mistakes of past campaigns were taken into account. The final stage of the conquest of the Kazan Khanate began with the construction of a Russian support base 26 versts from Kazan. Under the leadership of the Russian military engineer Ivan Grigorievich Vyrodkov, hundreds of kilometers from Kazan in winter, log buildings were made that were to become the basis of the future city. They were dismantled and in the spring transported along the Volga to the confluence of Sviyaga, where they were quickly assembled into a fortress wall. The Tatars did not have time to react during construction, and then it was too late. The appearance of Sviyazhsk caused significant territories to fall away from the Kazan Khanate. In addition, for a long time, Cossack detachments carried out a blockade of river routes in the Kazan Khanate.

In the last campaign, heavy weapons and supplies were rafted along the Volga to Sviyazhsk, where they waited for the main forces to arrive. The main forces, having set out from Murom, marched in two columns to the Russian border, so that the southern group covered the northern one. From the Russian border they reached Sviyazhsk together, where heavy weapons and supplies awaited them. Having crossed the Volga, the troops began the siege of Kazan, which was carried out decisively and systematically. Both old, long-known methods of siege were used: tours, tyn, siege towers, and new ones - artillery and gunpowder mines. During the siege, the troops lost some of their weapons, but thanks to the base in Sviyazhsk, the losses were promptly replenished. Despite the courage and heroism of the defenders of Kazan, they were unable to save the Khanate. On October 2, 1552, part of the fortress wall was blown up, and by evening the city was in Russian hands.

Course of events

Formation of the Kazan Khanate

In 1437, the Horde Khan Ulu-Mukhammed was expelled from the Golden Horde and appeared with an army in the city of Belev, in the upper reaches of the Oka. Wanting to have good relations with the new khan, Grand Duke Vasily Vasilyevich sent an army against Ulu-Muhammad led by his cousins, the sons of his uncle Dmitry Yuryevich Shemyaka and Dmitry Yuryevich Krasny (their father gave them the same name). On the first day brothers defeated the Tatars, and they tried to enter into negotiations with the Russians. Confident of their victory, the princes refused, but the next day, thanks to the betrayal of Ulu-Mukhamed, he defeated the Russian army.

In 1439, the khan suddenly attacked Moscow, did not take the fortress, but heavily plundered the Russian lands. At the end of 1444 he made a new raid on Rus'. Vasily II gathered large troops, but after the defeat of his forward detachments, Ulu-Mukhamed, not daring to engage in battle, retreated, taking up the siege of the Nizhny Novgorod fortress, where the governors Fyodor Dolgolyadov and Yushka Dranitsa were “hunting out”. At the end of spring the Grand Duke began to prepare for a new offensive against the Tatars, but on June 29, the Nizhny Novgorod governors galloped to him with the message: “that they ran out of the city at night, setting it on fire, because they could not stand the hunger any longer: they all overate what was in the grain supply.” Having learned about the fall of the city, the Grand Duke was forced to set out on a campaign without completing preparations; some units did not have time to arrive.

Historians do not have a common opinion regarding the time of formation of the Kazan Khanate

On June 7, 1445, a battle took place near Suzdal, near the walls of the Spaso-Evfimev Monastery. Initially, the Russians were successful and began to pursue the enemy, but in the end they suffered complete defeat. The Grand Duke himself was captured. The Tatars retreated with great booty and Vasily II was released in Kurmysh. The actual conditions of release are unknown. Chroniclers give completely different ransom sizes. It is only known that the conditions were quite difficult, but it is not known to what extent the Grand Duke fulfilled them. The prince returned home accompanied by a large Tatar detachment.

Ulu-Muhammad soon died, possibly from his children. His son Mahmud became the new khan. Another son of Ulu-Muhammad, Kasim, was forced to flee to Rus', where he received possessions on the Oka from the Grand Duke, formed the Kasimov Khanate. Over the course of several years, the Kazan people made several more raids on Rus', ending without much success.

There is no unity among historians on the question of when the Kazan Khanate was formed. Some believe that this happened in 1438, when Ulu-Mukhammed left for Kazan after the battle near Belev, while others believe that in all subsequent years, Ulu-Mukhammed did not have a permanent base and the horde managed to establish itself in Kazan only in 1445, retreating after battle of Suzdal. In addition, there is a point of view that there was only a change of dynasty, and no serious changes occurred in Kazan.

First Kazan

In 1461, an army gathered in Vladimir against the Tatars, but peace was concluded. Soon after the death of Vasily the Dark in 1462, clashes began in the upper reaches of the Kama. But a major war broke out only in 1467.

The khan died in Kazan, and one of the power groups called Tsarevich Kasim, who had the right to the throne, to the throne. Taking advantage of this, Ivan III on September 14, 1467 sent an army to support him in Kazan under the command of the governor Ivan Vasilyevich Striga Obolensky and Prince Daniil Dmitrievich Kholmsky. But it turned out that the majority of Tatars support the new khan Ibrahim, and at the mouth of Sviyaga the army was met by the Kazan people, who did not allow the Russians to cross. An attempt to capture Tatar ships ended in failure, and the army was forced to retreat from Kazan in very difficult conditions.

The first major Russian campaign against Kazan ended in complete failure

In response, the Kazan people attacked Galich, plundered the surrounding area, but were unable to take the city and were forced to retreat. On December 6, the Russians left Galich on a ski trip under the leadership of Prince Semyon Romanovich Yaroslavsky. Having passed through the forests, they unexpectedly attacked the “land of the Cheremis”, terribly plundering it, before reaching Kazan only a day’s journey. Other mutual raids were also carried out.

In the summer of 1468, the “outpost” of Prince Fyodor Semenovich Ryapolovsky defeated a selected Tatar army near Zvenichev Bor, 40 versts from Kazan. Another Russian detachment descended the Vyatka River to the Kama and began operating behind enemy lines. Concerned about this, the Tatars made a campaign against Vyatka and brought it out of the war. Tatar representatives were left in the city, but the terms of peace themselves were quite mild; the main condition was not to support Moscow troops. As a result, a small Russian detachment 300 people under the leadership of governor Ivan Dmitrievich Runo found himself cut off. Despite this, he continued to operate in the Kazan rear. A Tatar detachment was sent against him. When they met, the opponents left their positions and fought on foot on foot. The Russians won. Subsequently, the Russian detachment returned home by a roundabout route.

In 1469, the Russians began to prepare for a new attack on Kazan. The main army, under the leadership of governor Konstantin Aleksandrovich Bezzubtsev, was supposed to descend on ships from Nizhny Novgorod, another detachment was supposed to travel thousands of kilometers along Vyatka and Kama and arrive at Kazan at the same time as the main forces. To implement the plan, it was necessary to coordinate the actions of detachments over a space of thousands of miles. It failed.

The exit of the Nizhny Novgorod detachment was delayed, and then the Grand Duke ordered Voivode Bezzubtsev to send a detachment of volunteers to Kazan. They were supposed to plunder the territory of the Khanate, but not approach Kazan. But almost all the soldiers who were in Nizhny Novgorod at that time turned out to be volunteers. They united into a detachment, chose Ivan Runo as governor and set off on a campaign. Despite the order, they went straight to Kazan. On the third day of the journey, at dawn on May 21, Moscow ships reached the city. The attack was unexpected. The Russians managed to free a large number of prisoners, take loot and burn the settlement, after which they retreated to the Volga islands, awaiting the arrival of the main forces.

A few days later, the Tatars tried to defeat this detachment, but were repulsed. Voivode Bezzubtsev and his detachment hurried to the aid of Ivan Runo, but the combined army did not have enough strength. They expected the approach of the northern army from the Kama and other forces, but soon they ran out of supplies, and, having no news from other detachments, they began to retreat. During the retreat the Russians received false news that peace had been concluded. On Sunday, July 23, the Russians stopped on Zvenichev Island to celebrate mass, but at that time they were attacked by the Tatars from the river and shore. The Russian army had to fight to leave for Nizhny Novgorod.

The northern army under the leadership of Daniil Vasilyevich Yaroslavsky was delayed on the way and was still on the Kama at that time. She did not receive the expected support of the Vyatchans; moreover, the Tatar representatives in Vyatka reported to Kazan all the information about the composition and movement of the Russian detachment. On the way, the Russians received false news about the conclusion of peace, which dulled their vigilance. The Tatars gathered large forces and, at the confluence of the Kama and the Volga, blocked the path of the Russian flotilla, blocking the Volga with tied ships. The Russians made a breakthrough. About half of the army died in a fierce battle. The chief governor fell. Prince Vasily Ukhtomsky, who took command, led the Russian detachment that had broken through to Nizhny Novgorod. Upon arrival in the city, the fighters were awarded and armed at public expense.

On September 1, the Russian army again approached Kazan. The city was surrounded, the Tatar attacks were repulsed. Soon Russians blocked Kazan residents' access to water. The Tatars started negotiations. A peace beneficial for the Russians was concluded and all Russian slaves were handed over. This war marked a radical change in Russian-Kazan relations. For nine years, reports of hostile actions by Kazan residents disappeared from the chronicles. This was the first major Russian foreign policy success in a long time.

Establishment of a Russian protectorate

In 1478, Kazan received false news that Ivan III had suffered a serious defeat in the war with Novgorod. Trying to take advantage of the moment, the khan sent troops to Vyatka, but upon receiving news of the victory of the Moscow prince, he ordered him to retreat. The Russians sent a naval army to Kazan under the leadership of Prince Khripun Ryapolovsky and governor Vasily Fedorovich Obrazts Simsky, but weather conditions and disorganization prevented the attack. At the same time, the possessions of the Kazan residents were ravaged by the Ustyuzhans and Vyatchans. Peace was soon concluded.

Khan Ibrahim died in 1479 and a struggle for power began in Kazan. With the help of the Nogais, Ilham won. One of his brothers, Muhammad-Amin, fled to Moscow, the other, Abdul-Latif, fled with his mother to Crimea. In 1482, the Russians were preparing for a campaign against Kazan. An army was being prepared in Nizhny Novgorod, artillery was assembled under the leadership of Aristotle Fioravanti, but the khan sent envoys and peace was concluded.

Internal strife began again in Kazan, in which the Russians actively intervened. In 1484, Moscow troops again marched on Kazan and, with the support of the Moscow party, installed Muhammad-Amin on the Khanate. Subsequently, power repeatedly passed from one khan to another, and as a result, in 1486, Muhammad Amin was forced to flee to Rus'.

In 1487, the Principality of Moscow organized a large campaign against Kazan

It was led by the best Moscow governors: princes Daniil Dmitrievich Kholmsky, Joseph Andreevich Dorogobuzhsky, Semyon Ivanovich Khripun Ryapolovsky and Semyon Romanovich Yaroslavsky. On April 11, the army set out on a campaign. Ilham advanced to meet them, but was defeated at the mouth of Sviyaga. On May 18, the siege of Kazan began. The Kazan people repeatedly made forays; Ali-Gaza’s cavalry detachment disturbed the Russians from the rear, but it was soon defeated and the city was tightly surrounded. On July 9, Kazan capitulated. The Russians entered the city and they put their protege Muhammad-Amin in it and viceroy of Dmitry Vasilyevich Shein. Ilham and his family were taken to Russia, where he died.

Ivan III took the title of Prince of Bulgaria in connection with the victory over the Tatars in 1487

In Moscow, the victory was celebrated with festivities and ringing of bells, foreign states were notified of the victory, and Ivan III accepted the title of Prince of Bulgaria. The Kazan Khanate could not conduct activities displeasing to the Grand Duke, Even for marriage, the khan asked permission from Ivan III, but the Russians did not interfere much in the internal life of the Khanate. Not a piece of territory was taken away, and there is no news of permanent tribute.

Protectorate

In 1490, the eastern party called the Siberian khan Mamuku Sheybanid to the throne. Having learned about the conspiracy, Muhammad-Amin called for Russian troops to help. Mamuka retreated, his supporters fled the city. Khan Muhammad-Amin released the Russian troops, but, as it turned out, in vain. Mamuka approached the city and entered it without resistance. Muhammad Amin fled to Rus'. But the new khan soon alienated even his fiercest supporters. He introduced high taxes, robbed citizens, imprisoned princes. As a result, when he went on a campaign against a city that disobeyed him, the Kazan people abandoned him and returned to the city. Kazan was prepared for defense, and Mamuka had to leave the Khanate. He died soon after.

The Siberian Tatar Khan Mamuka Sheybanid turned the Kazan Tatars against himself

The Kazan people turned to Ivan III with a request to send them a new khan, but not Muhammad-Amin, but his brother Abdul-Latif. He was brought up at the court of the Crimean Khan (Crimea was then an ally of Rus'), but in recent years he lived in Rus'. The Grand Duke fulfilled their request.

In 1499, Kazan was again in danger from the Siberian Tatars, and at the request of the khan, a Russian detachment was stationed there. The following year he participated in the defense of Kazan from an attack by the Nogais. After a while Abdul-Latif stopped satisfying Kazan residents, and his opponents secretly turned to Moscow with a request to replace the khan. In 1502, Russian representatives came to Kazan and, with the help of the Kazan people, captured Abdul-Latif and installed the former khan, Muhammad-Amin.

War of 1505-1507

In 1505, in anticipation of the imminent death of Ivan III, the Kazan Khan Muhammad-Amin suddenly began a war with Russia. On June 24, many Russians who were within the Kazan Khanate were killed and captured. The princely ambassadors Mikhail Stepanovich Klyapik-Eropkin and Ivan Bryukho-Vereshchagin were arrested. The property of many Russian merchants who arrived in Kazan for the fair was seized. The Russian government was taken by surprise. On August 30, the Tatar-Nogai army crossed Sura and soon the Nizhny Novgorod suburb burned down. The city was not ready for defense; there were almost no troops in it. The voivode released Lithuanian prisoners taken in the Battle of Vedroshi from prison. One of them managed to kill the Nogai Murza with a successful cannon shot, after which clashes began between the Kazan and Nogai people and the attackers were forced to retreat. During the retreat, the Nogais plundered not only the Russians, but also the Kazan lands.

In April 1506, the new Grand Duke Vasily III sent a large army against Kazan, led by his brother Dmitry Ivanovich Uglichsky and Fyodor Ivanovich Belsky. The main forces moved along the river; a cavalry detachment under the leadership of Prince Alexander Vladimirovich of Rostov walked along the shore. On May 22, the ship's army landed near Kazan and went to the city. The Tatars tied them up in battle and then struck from the rear. The Russians suffered a serious defeat. There were many killed and captured. One of the governors, Dmitry Vasilyevich Shchenya, was captured and executed a month later.

The Russians suffered defeats due to lack of coordination

Upon learning of the defeat, Vasily III sent a detachment led by Prince Vasily Danilovich Kholmsky to help and ordered the governors not to engage in battle with the Tatars until all forces arrived. On June 22, the cavalry of Prince Rostov approached the remnants of the ship’s army and on June 25, the Russian leadership, without waiting for the approach of other troops and disobeying the order of the Grand Duke, the beginning of a new attack. The Russians were defeated, lost all their guns and were forced to retreat. They left Kazan in two detachments. The army on ships went up the Volga to Nizhny Novgorod. A cavalry detachment under the leadership of governor Fyodor Mikhailovich Kiselev and the Tatar prince Dzhanai, who participated in the campaign on the side of the Russians, left the field for Murom. Not reaching 40 kilometers from the Russian border, which ran along the Sura, the detachment was overtaken by the Tatars, but fought back and went to their own.

The Russians were preparing for a new big campaign against Kazan in 1507, but Muhammad-Amin sent envoys, and peace was concluded on the old terms. Russian prisoners were released. Thanks to the victory over the Russians, the Khan's internal position strengthened, and he reigned in Kazan until his death in 1518.

Establishment of the Crimean dynasty

In 1518, Khan Muhammad-Amin died without leaving an heir. Several years before his death, the Kazan people asked the Moscow prince to appoint Abdul-Latif, who was in Russia, as heir, but he died before Muhammad-Amin. The Kazan people sent ambassadors to Moscow, and Vasily III gave them the Kasimov prince Shah-Ali as khan. His family was an implacable enemy of the Crimean khans.

The Kasimov family of Shah Ali was an implacable enemy of the Crimean khans

Shah Ali was a minor, and Russian representatives Fedor Andreevich Karpov and Vasily Yuryevich Bushma-Podzhogin had great influence on state affairs under him. Soon the new government lost popularity, and a conspiracy arose in Kazan. The conspirators called on the brother of the Crimean Khan Sahib-Girey, and when he approached the city in the spring of 1521, an uprising occurred. The Russians who were in the city were killed or captured. Shah Ali fled to Moscow.

In 1521, the Crimean Tatars Sahib-Girey received power in Kazan

In the same 1521, the Crimean and Kazan Tatars carried out one of the most devastating invasions of Rus'. Lithuanian detachments also acted together with them. The enemy reached Moscow and destroyed all the surrounding areas. Vasily III was forced to give the Crimean Khan a letter, where he promised to pay tribute, after which the Tatars turned home. Passing by Ryazan, where the Russian garrison was located, the Crimean Tatars decided to take possession of the city and entered into negotiations with the governor Ivan Vasilyevich Khabar-Simsky, demanding submission, since Vasily III recognized himself as a tributary of the Crimean Khan. The voivode demanded to show him the letter. Since they did not have time to make a copy, the original was delivered to the city, hoping to break into the fortress when the Russians’ attention was diverted. But the Russians were on alert and, having received the letter, opened fire against the enemies near the city. The Tatars were forced to flee.

The next year, 1521, the Russians organized a reliable defense of the southern border, and the Crimean Khan did not dare to attack Rus', but sent troops to Astrakhan, but during the campaign he was killed by the Nogais, who then ruined the entire Crimean Khanate. For some time, Crimea had no time for Rus'. At the same time, a peace treaty was concluded with Lithuania. The only opponent of the Russian state remained the Kazan Khanate.

The Crimean Khan was killed by the Nogais

At this time, Sahib-Girey executed the ambassador Vasily Yuryevich Bushma-Podzhogin, who was in his captivity, and Russian merchants, which caused serious discontent among the Russians.

In September 1523, a new campaign against Kazan began. The ship's army reached Kazan and, having ravaged the shores and surrounding areas, returned back. The cavalry army, having reached Sviyaga, defeated a large Tatar detachment. While these troops distracted the attention of the Tatars, the Russians built the Vasil-Gorod (Vasilsursk) fortress at the mouth of the Sura. The fortress was built on the right, Kazan bank. For the first time, the Russians annexed part of the Kazan land. This caused a mixed reaction; Metropolitan Daniel and the clergy strongly supported the annexation of the Kazan lands, but voices were heard that in the presence of Vasilsursk, peace with Kazan would be impossible.

On October 17, 1523, the Tatars made a large raid on Galich. They didn’t take the city, but they destroyed the surrounding area. But the Kazan Khan, apparently, was more interested in the Crimean throne, so he soon went to Crimea and never returned to Kazan. His nephew Safa-Girey became the new khan.

In 1524, the Russians sent a large army to Kazan led by Shah Ali. The ship's army set out on May 8, the horse army on May 15. In July, the ship's army under the command of Ivan Fedorovich Belsky landed near Kazan and began to await the approach of the cavalry. The Tatars tried to attack them and were repulsed, but constantly harassed the Russians with attacks. A cavalry detachment under the command of Ivan Vasilyevich Khabar-Simsky and Mikhail Semenovich Vorontsov defeated the Tatars opposing him, but was delayed on the way. The Russian army stationed near Kazan was running out of supplies. To deliver them, a flotilla under the leadership of Prince Ivan Fedorovich Paletsky left Nizhny Novgorod. She was accompanied along the shore by a detachment of cavalry. Not far from Kozmodemyansk, the Russians were attacked by the Kazan people and reached Kazan only with heavy losses.

The Kazan Khanate was subjected to Nogai raids

On August 15, 1524, all Russian regiments united and began the siege of Kazan, but to no avail. Soon the Russians lifted the siege and left in exchange for the Tatars' promise to send envoys to Moscow for negotiations. After the Russians left, the Khanate was devastated by Nogai raids, so Kazan residents were vitally interested in establishing peace with Moscow. He was imprisoned the same year. Taught by the bitter experience of repeated beatings of merchants, the Russians achieved the transfer of the Kazan Fair to Nizhny Novgorod; The Makaryevskaya Fair subsequently grew out of it.

War of 1530-1531

In 1530, the people of Kazan created “evil spirits and disgrace” to the Russian ambassador Andrei Fedorovich Pilmev. In May 1530, the Russians sent a ship and horse army against Kazan. The ship's army under the leadership of Ivan Fedorovich Belsky and Mikhail Vasilyevich Gorbatov reached Kazan without difficulty. On July 10, they were joined by the horse army of Mikhail Lvovich Glinsky and Vasily Andreevich Sheremetyev. The Tatars were well prepared for the war, detachments of Nogais and Astrakhan came to their aid, a fort was built on the Bulak River, from where they were going to disturb the Russians with surprise attacks.

As a result of the first battles, the Russian detachment of Ivan Fedorovich Ovchina Obolensky completely destroyed the fort on Bulak and killed most of the defenders. The Russians began shelling the city. Khan Safa-Girey fled, the Kazan people were ready to make peace. According to some chronicles, the city remained practically unprotected for some time and the Russians could enter it without resistance, but Voivodes Belsky and Glinsky started a local dispute and time was lost. A storm began, the Kazan soldiers made a sortie, captured a significant amount of weapons and supplies and inflicted serious damage on the Russian troops. Five governors died, including the chief governor of the advanced regiment, Prince Fyodor Vasilyevich Lopata-Obolensky.

The Russians tried to continue the siege, but on July 30 they began to retreat. Ivan Belsky was sentenced to death, but was subsequently pardoned.

The Tatars sent ambassadors to Moscow for negotiations, but Safa-Girey, who returned to Kazan, sabotaged them in every possible way. A conspiracy arose among the Kazan residents against him. Having learned about him, Safa-Girey began repressions and wanted to kill the Russian ambassador, but an uprising occurred and the khan had to flee. The Kazan people turned to Vasily III to give them Jan-Ali, Shah-Ali's younger brother, as their new khans. The new khan obeyed the Grand Duke in everything. Soon he married Syuyumbik.

War with Safa-Girey

Soon after the death of Vasily III (1533), a coup took place in Kazan, Jan-Ali was killed and Safa-Girey, whose uncle Sahib-Girey had by this time become the Crimean Khan, again ascended the throne. Many Russian supporters had to flee Kazan.

A new war has begun. Kazan detachments reached Balakhna, Nizhny Novgorod and Gorokhovets. In summer Kazan residents defeated a Russian detachment near Kostroma, killing the Kostroma governor Prince Pyotr Vasilyevich Pestroy-Zasekin and the governor Menshik Polev.

In the winter of 1537, the Tatars suddenly attacked Murom, but were unable to take the fortress and retreated to Nizhny Novgorod. The Russian side responded by building new cities, strengthening old ones and installing outposts. In 1538, a campaign against Kazan was planned, but under pressure from the Crimea, the Russian government entered into negotiations with the Kazan Khanate. They lasted until 1539 when Tatars unexpectedly attacked Murom, and raided Galich and Kostroma places. Near Plyos there was a fierce battle between the Russians and the Tatars, four commanders were killed, but the Kazan people were defeated and the entire army was recaptured.

On December 18, 1540, the Tatars again attacked Murom, again they did not take the city and left. The Kasimov Tatars of Shah-Ali managed to recapture part of it from them.

Moscow made peace with Lithuania and began preparing for war with Kazan and Crimea. In 1541, the Crimean Khan with a large army approached the Oka, but seeing many Russian troops, said: “You told me that people went to Kazan for the Grand Duke, that there would be no meeting for me, and I have never seen so many smart people in one place.” After which he retreated, but the Russian campaign against Kazan did not take place.

In 1545, there was a new Russian campaign against Kazan. Three detachments came out from three different points; when they approached the city, they were supposed to be helped by Russian supporters in Kazan. The army under the leadership of Prince Semyon Ivanovich Punkov-Mikulinsky, which came out from Nizhny Novgorod, and the detachment of Prince Vasily Semyonovich Serebryany, which came out from Vyatka, met near Kazan exactly according to plan “ at one hour, as if from one yard" But the coup in Kazan did not take place, and the Russians were forced to retreat. The third detachment, coming from Perm under the leadership of Prince Lvov, was delayed on the way and was destroyed by the Kazan people.

After the Russians left, Safa-Girey intensified repressions against the dissatisfied, but despite this, a coup took place in Kazan in January 1546. Safa-Girey fled. He returned with the Astrakhan detachment, but was repulsed. The Russian protege Shah Ali again became Khan, but the Kazan residents refused to allow the Russian garrison into the city. Shah Ali lasted only a month and fled at the approach of Safa-Girey with renewed vigor. Safa-Girey, entering the city, started mass terror. Representatives of the Crimeans came to power. The Russian party in Kazan was defeated, many of its supporters were killed.

In February 1547, the Russian army marched into the Kazan lands at the request of the mountain Mari.

Kazan campaigns of Ivan the Terrible

In the fall of 1547, Ivan Vasilyevich was crowned Tsar of Russia. In December 1547 he set out on a campaign from Vladimir, and in February he left Nizhny Novgorod. Another detachment set out from Meshchera. Due to the abnormally warm winter most of the artillery fell through the ice. Realizing that Kazan would be impossible to take, Ivan the Terrible returned from Rabotok Island to Moscow, sending an army to Kazan. Russian troops united on February 18 and defeated the army of Safa-Girey near Kazan, plundered the surrounding area for 7 days, but due to the lack of heavy weapons they were forced to return. The Tatars responded with a raid on the Kostroma lands, but were defeated.

Safa-Girey died from accidentally hitting his head on a washbasin

At the beginning of 1549, Safa-Girey unsuccessfully hit his head on a washbasin and died. The Kazan throne again became vacant. His two-year-old son Utamysh-Girey was made Khan, in whose name his mother Syuyumbike ruled. During 1549, the Russians could not organize a campaign against Kazan due to the Crimean danger.

The new campaign was thoroughly prepared. On December 20, 1549, an army under the command of governor Vasily Mikhailovich Yuryev and Fyodor Mikhailovich Nagoy left Vladimir. Metropolitan Macarius accompanied the army on the campaign. On January 23, 1550, troops set out from Nizhny Novgorod, and on February 12 they approached Kazan. For 11 days, the Russian army besieged Kazan, but suddenly a strong thaw with rain began, the area was flooded, and many supplies and weapons were lost. It was impossible to bring in new ones, and the Russians retreated to Nizhny Novgorod.

One of the reasons for the failures was the isolation of the Russians from their bases

One of the reasons for the Russian failures was the isolation of the Russians from their bases and the lack of a stronghold near Kazan. Therefore, it was decided to build fortress 26 versts from Kazan at the confluence of the Sviyaga and the Volga. Under the leadership of the clerk of the discharge order, Ivan Grigorievich Vyrodkov, in the winter of 1550/51, on the upper Volga in the Uglich district in the estate of Prince Ushaty, the construction of log houses and other structures that were to form the basis of the future fortress began.

In the spring of 1551, the cavalry detachment of Peter Semyonovich Serebryany suddenly attacked Kazan and plundered the surrounding area. Many Cossack detachments scattered throughout the Kazan Khanate, cutting rivers and other lines of communication. Under the cover of these actions On May 24, a Russian river caravan with a dismantled fortress approached the mouth of Sviyaga. It was assembled from ready-made parts in four weeks. There weren’t enough blanks and 7% of the wall had to be completed on site.

The founding of Sviyazhsk had a huge impact on the surrounding peoples; almost the entire mountainous side of the Volga came under Russian citizenship. The situation in Kazan became increasingly difficult, the blockade of waterways made it difficult to deliver supplies and caused discontent in the city. Representatives of the Crimean Khanate number 300 people tried to escape to Crimea, but due to blocked roads they had to take roundabout routes. They were intercepted by the Russians while crossing Vyatka and almost all died in the battle. The survivors were executed in Moscow.

After the Crimeans fled, the Kazan people entered into negotiations with the Russians, handed over the young khan and his relatives, recognized Shah Ali as khan and handed over Russian prisoners. Together with the new khan, a small detachment of Russians entered Kazan. The main forces of the Moscow army returned home. The Moscow government did not intend to return to the Kazan people who had sworn allegiance to Moscow mountain side of the Volga, and this caused discontent among many Tatars. Shah Ali began reprisals against his opponents, but this did not improve the situation. There was a fear that he would not remain on the throne. At this time, among the Moscow leadership and part of the Kazan elite, the idea arose of removing the khan and placing the khanate under the authority of the Moscow governor. The project assumed a large share of the khanate's autonomy in internal affairs.

Fearing reprisals from the Kazan people, the khan secretly transported some of the weapons to Sviyazhsk and on March 6, during a fishing trip, he left for Sviyazhsk and stayed there. News of the new order of things was sent to Kazan, and many Kazan residents took the oath. The future governor sent a convoy to the city and headed to Kazan to station a garrison there. But when approaching the city Three Tatars broke away from the detachment, who had previously been in the Khan’s retinue. They were the first to rush into the city, closed the gates and called on the people to resist.

When the Russian detachment approached, the enemies of the Russians had already taken power. The event was so unexpected that many Russians who were in the city were captured. The approaching troops stood near the city all day, negotiating, but were forced to retreat. At the same time, not a single shot was fired and the landing was not touched. The parties hoped to resolve the matter peacefully.

Became the new Khan of Kazan Astrakhan Tsarevich Ediger. Soon, fighting began, and the Russians captured during the coup were executed. The Russian government began to prepare for a new big campaign against Kazan. Russian troops again blocked all roads in the Kazan Khanate.

Capture of Kazan

Large forces were preparing for the campaign. The king himself was supposed to take part in it. The Crimean allies of the Kazan people attacked the Russian borders, but delayed the campaign only for 4 days. On July 3, the Russian army set out on a campaign. Heavy weapons and supplies were sent by ship to Sviyazhsk, while the main forces marched overland in two columns. The northern column, under the leadership of the tsar, included the Guard Regiment, the Sovereign Regiment and the Left Hand Regiment, and the southern column included the Great Regiment, the Advance Regiment and the Right Hand Regiment. The northern column went from Vladimir through Murom to Alatyr, the southern column from Ryazan through Meshchera. They met beyond Sura at the Boroncheev settlement. On August 13, the united Russian army reached Sviyazhsk.

The Kazan people were well prepared for the assault and the fortress was greatly strengthened. A fort was built 15 versts from Kazan, where a large cavalry detachment was stationed to attack the Russians from the rear. Approaches to the fort covered swamps and fences. At the very beginning of the siege on August 24, a strong storm occurred and many supplies and weapons were lost. In previous campaigns this would have led to the failure of the operation. But this time the Russians had a base in Sviyazhsk, from which new supplies were brought in.

The Kazanians, as usual, actively defended themselves. They struck the first blow immediately as the Russians approached the city, but were repelled by the fire of the archers. Soon Kazan was surrounded by trenches, tours and tyn. Siege towers were built. Epanchi's detachment, which was in the prison, greatly alarmed the Russians. During one of the attacks, voivode Tretyak Ivanovich Loshakov was killed. After this, the Russian command developed an operation to destroy the enemy detachment. The detachments of Princes Gorbaty and Serebryany lured the enemy with a feigned retreat and defeated them. The fort was destroyed.

After this, the Russians, without much hindrance, shelled the city and engaged in siege work. On October 1, when everything was ready for the assault, he was sent to Kazan parliamentarian with an offer to surrender. Kazan residents refused. On the morning of October 2, two powerful explosions destroyed the walls. Columns of attackers burst into the city. The Tatars defended themselves desperately. Advancing into the city, some of the Russians rushed loot. Noticing this, the Tatars went on the offensive. In some places, panic began to arise among the attackers. Seeing this, the Russian command brought new troops into battle, ordering the looters and alarmists to be killed on the spot. Discipline was restored and the assault continued. A hot battle took place at mosques , where all its defenders, led by Sayyid, died Kul Sharif.

The last battle took place at the khan's court, where Khan Ediger and his relatives were captured. The whole city was littered with corpses. A small part of the city’s defenders managed to break through the Russian ranks, cross the Kazanka and escape persecution. It was all over.

On October 12, 1552, the Russian army marched back to Moscow. Prince A. B. Gorbaty-Shuisky remained the governor of Kazan. Outside Kazan, resistance continued for several more years, but this could no longer change anything.

Meaning

The conquest of the Kazan Khanate had a great influence on the history of Russia. In the coming years, Astrakhan was annexed to Russia. The Volga trade route fell into the hands of the Russians. The slave trade ended, new cities and villages appeared on the Volga. Soon Russian colonization poured into the Urals, Siberia and the Wild Field. The lands that had recently been borderlands became deep in the rear and could develop without military clashes.

Where nomads roamed for thousands of years, the farmer established himself

The importance of the changes that took place was already understood by contemporaries. Just a few decades ago, the Tatars took tribute from Rus', and before their eyes, the Tatar kingdom fell under the complete power of Russia. The clergy compared Ivan the Terrible with Dmitry Donskoy. In honor of the greatest victory, the Intercession Cathedral was built near the walls of the Kremlin, which became the greatest monument of Russian architecture and one of the symbols of the Russian capital.

The period of the reign of Ivan IV is known in history as a time of expansion of state borders and an increase in the territory of the Russian state. An aggressive foreign policy led to numerous wars with its neighbors - the Astrakhan and Kazan khanates, Livonia and Sweden. Not all campaigns were successful, but the increased combat capability of the Russian army thanks to the reforms helped the new kingdom to establish itself in the political arena.

After the collapse of the Golden Horde, the Kazan and Astrakhan khanates became Rus''s closest neighbors. Its favorable location - on the Volga trade route - created a constant threat to Rus''s foreign trade. Endless border skirmishes and the destruction of border settlements forced Ivan IV to decide to conquer the Kazan Khanate.

The first Kazan campaign took place in the winter of 1547. However, the tsar’s army did not even reach Kazan - due to a thaw, while crossing the Volga in the vicinity of Nizhny Novgorod, part of the army and almost all the cannons drowned. The hike had to be completed.

The second Kazan campaign turned out to be more successful. Despite the fact that Kazan still remained in the hands of the Tatars, part of the territories of the Khanate was still subjugated. The second campaign turned out to be longer than the first - it took place from the autumn of 1549 to the spring of 1550. As a result, not far from Kazan, on the orders of the tsar, the Sviyazhsk fortress was erected. It became a stronghold for the subsequent, victorious campaign.

The first two attempts to solve problems with raiding neighbors by military means showed the weakness and insolvency of the Russian army. It was these campaigns that became the impetus for understanding the need for military reforms.

The third Kazan campaign began in the summer of 1552. The 150,000-strong tsarist army approached Kazan well-prepared and armed. With 150 large cannons and a good engineering team, the army was ready for the siege of Kazan.

Several tunnels were made under the high walls of the Kazan Kremlin, into which sappers placed barrels filled with gunpowder. The explosions made holes in the walls - and as a result of a long and difficult assault, Kazan was taken, and Khan Ediget-Magmet was captured.

In honor of the capture of Kazan, construction of the Intercession Cathedral began in Moscow, now better known as St. Basil's Cathedral. The icon painted in honor of this event, “Blessed is the army of the heavenly king,” has also survived to this day, and is kept in the Tretyakov Gallery.

However, the capture of Kazan did not mean the complete destruction and ruin of the Kazan Khanate. A far-sighted politician, Ivan the Terrible tried to preserve the governing structure of the occupied lands. Prince Gorbaty-Shuisky was appointed governor of Kazan, and Vasily Serebryany was appointed his assistant. The tsar invited all the Tatar nobility to his service, promising to maintain their previous statuses. This decision not only made it possible not to leave a large army in Kazan to strengthen power, but also helped the new lands to organically join the Russian state.

This policy had another important consequence - after the Kazan campaign, the Siberian Khan Ediger voluntarily asked to be “under the arm” of the king, agreeing to become a tributary of Rus'.

Astrakhan campaigns

After the successful capture of Kazan, Ivan the Terrible decided to eliminate the second threat - from the Astrakhan Khanate. The Khanate controlled the lower part of the Volga, posing a threat to both foreign trade and the border lands of Rus'.

The first Astrakhan campaign took place in 1554. The detachment of the Astrakhan Khan that came out to meet the Russian army was completely defeated, as a result, the capital of the Khanate was taken without a fight. But at that time, Tsar Ivan IV considered it inappropriate to annex the lands of the Khanate. With the active support of Rus', Dervish-Ali became the new khan, promising to remain faithful to Ivan the Terrible.

However, the new khan did not keep his promises and a year later openly went over to the side of the Crimean khan, who supported the Ottoman Empire - the eternal enemy of Rus'. Tsar Ivan the Terrible in 1556 decided on a second campaign.

The Russian army, reinforced by the Don Cossacks, again completely defeated the army of the Astrakhan Khan. Astrakhan was again surrendered without a fight - the city had no defenders left. This campaign subjugated the Khanate of Rus', adding new lands to the territory of the kingdom.

Results of the first campaigns

As a result of the first victorious campaigns - Kazan and Astrakhan - the territory of the Russian kingdom expanded significantly, and the influence of Ivan the Terrible extended all the way to the Caucasus Mountains. In 1559, the Cherkasy and Pyatigorsk princes asked Ivan IV to protect their principalities from the encroachments of the Crimean Khan; Thus, the king’s zone of influence extended to part of the Caucasus.

In addition to the foreign policy consequences, the success of the first campaigns had a great influence on domestic politics. The authority of Ivan IV grew enormously, strengthening the power of the young tsar. In addition, Orthodoxy began to quickly spread in the captured and annexed lands - the tsar paid great attention to issues of faith.