The siege of the Troitsky monastery () was an abortive attempt of the Polish–Lithuanian

irregular army Irregular military is any military component distinct from a country's regular armed forces, representing non-standard militant elements outside of conventional governmental backing. Irregular elements can consist of militias, private armies, ...

that acted in support of

False Dmitry II False Dmitry II (; died ), historically known as Pseudo-Demetrius II and also called ("the thief of Tushino"), was the second of three pretenders to the Russian throne who claimed to be Tsarevich Dmitry Ivanovich, the youngest son of Ivan the T ...

to capture the

Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius () is a lavra and the most important Russian monastery, being the spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. The monastery is situated in the town of Sergiyev Posad, about to the northeast from Moscow ...

, north-east of

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

. The siege lasted for 16 months, from 23 September 1608 until 12 January 1610.

Siege

In December 1608, the

Polish army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

of some 15,000 men, led by

Jan Piotr Sapieha Jan Piotr Sapieha (English: ''John Peter Sapieha'', 1569–1611) was a Polish-Lithuanian nobleman, general, politician, diplomat, governor of Uświat county, member of the Parliament and a skilled commander of the Polish troops stationing in th ...

and Aleksander Lisowski, laid siege to the

fortress A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...

of the Trinity Monastery (), which had been protecting the northern approaches to Moscow. The Russian garrison (estimated at between 2,200 and 2,400 men) consisted of

dvoryane The Russian nobility or ''dvoryanstvo'' () arose in the Middle Ages. In 1914, it consisted of approximately 1,900,000 members, out of a total population of 138,200,000. Up until the February Revolution of 1917, the Russian noble estates staffed ...

streltsy The streltsy (, ; , ) were the units of Russian firearm infantry from the 16th century to the early 18th century and also a social stratum, from which personnel for streltsy troops were traditionally recruited. They are also collectively kno ...

, monastic servants,

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

s, and

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasan ...

s, led by the

voyevoda Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

s Prince Grigory Dolgorukov and Aleksey Golokhvastov. In early October 1608, the attackers began shelling and

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

the monastery. Numerous assaults in October and November were repelled by the Russians and resulted in heavy losses for the Polish army. The besieged undertook frequent sallies, one of which (9 November) ended with the explosion of a mine under a monastery tower and the destruction of an enemy

battery Battery or batterie most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source * Battery indicator, a device whic ...

on the Red Mountain, with two peasants, Shipov and Sloba, losing their lives during this sally. There had been no significant military activity from late November 1608 until May 1609, but the besieged garrison suffered many casualties due to an outbreak of

scurvy Scurvy is a deficiency disease (state of malnutrition) resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, fatigue, and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, anemia, decreased red blood cells, gum d ...

. In May through July 1609, the Russians repelled a number of enemy attacks. On 19 October 1609, and 4 January 1610, auxiliary detachments under the command of David Zherebtsov (900 men) and Grigory Valuyev (500 men) managed to make their way into the fortress. Under the threat of the approaching army of

Mikhail Skopin-Shuisky Prince Mikhail Vasilyevich Skopin-Shuisky (; – ) was a Russian statesman and military figure during the Time of Troubles. He was the last representative of a cadet branch of the Shuysky family. Life Having lost his father, Vasili Feodorovich S ...

, the Polish forces raised the siege on 12 January 1610 and retreated to

Dmitrov Dmitrov () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Dmitrovsky District, Moscow Oblast, Dmitrovsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located to the north of Moscow on the Yakhroma River and the Mosc ...

Aftermath

This defeat was a major blow for

. After King

Sigismund III Vasa Sigismund III Vasa (, ; 20 June 1566 – 30 April 1632 N.S.) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1587 to 1632 and, as Sigismund, King of Sweden from 1592 to 1599. He was the first Polish sovereign from the House of Vasa. Re ...

arrived at

Smolensk Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest cities in Russia. It has been a regional capital for most of ...

in September 1609, the majority of his Polish supporters left him and joined with the armies of the Polish king. At the same time, a strong Russo-Swedish army under

and

Jacob De la Gardie Field Marshal and Count Jacob Pontusson De la Gardie (20 June 1583 – 22 August 1652) was a wikt:statesman, statesman and a soldier of the Swedish Empire, and a Marshal from 1620 onward. He was Privy Council of Sweden, Privy Councilor from ...

approached Tushino, forcing him to flee his camp disguised as a peasant and go to Kostroma. He was killed by his own men on 11 December 1610.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Troitsky monastery, Siege of Battles of the Polish–Russian War (1609–1618) Sieges involving the Tsardom of Russia 17th-century military history of Russia 1610 in Russia 1609 in Russia 1608 in Russia Conflicts in 1608 Conflicts in 1609 Conflicts in 1610 History of Moscow Oblast Sieges involving the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Attacks on churches in Russia

Siege

Aftermath

See also

References

Sources