The Battle of Poltava; russian: Полта́вская би́тва; uk, Полта́вська би́тва (8 July 1709) was the decisive and largest battle of the

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swed ...

. A Russian army under the command of Tsar Peter I defeated a Swedish army, under the command of Carl Gustaf Rehnskiöld. The battle put an end to the status of the

Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire was a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic region during the 17th and early 18th centuries ( sv, Stormaktstiden, "the Era of Great Power"). The beginning of the empire is usually ta ...

as a European great power, as well as its eastbound expansion, and marked the beginning of Russian hegemony in Northern Europe. During the course of six years in the initial stages of the war,

King Charles XII Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII ( sv, Karl XII) or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 O.S.), was King of Sweden (including current Finland) from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of t ...

and the Swedish Empire had defeated almost all participants in the anti-Swedish coalition, which initially consisted of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Denmark-Norway and the

Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia or Tsardom of Rus' also externally referenced as the Tsardom of Muscovy, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of Tsar by Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter I ...

. The latter under Tsar Peter I's rule was the only one still undefeated. Charles XII therefore chose to invade Russia in the autumn of 1707 and march towards

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

with a large Swedish army. However, the campaign was complicated by harsh weather conditions and by the Russians applying scorched earth tactics and surprise attacks, which forced Charles XII to interrupt his march on Moscow and instead march south to establish winter quarters in Ruthenia with the help of

Ivan Mazepa Ivan Stepanovych Mazepa (also spelled Mazeppa; uk, Іван Степанович Мазепа, pl, Jan Mazepa Kołodyński; ) was a Ukrainian military, political, and civic leader who served as the Hetman of Zaporizhian Host in 1687–1708. ...

hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...

of the Cossack Hetmanate Zaporizhian Host. After the extremely harsh Great Frost of 1708–1709, the weakened Swedish army resumed operations in the spring of 1709 and began a siege of the fortress of Poltava, an important trading center and military depot on the

Vorskla The Vorskla (; ) is a river that runs from Belgorod Oblast in Russia southwards into northeastern Ukraine, where it joins the Dnieper. It has a length of , and a basin area of . commanded by Peter, advanced to Poltava in order to relieve the siege. The two armies clashed, and ended with the Swedes being defeated and fleeing the battlefield. Charles and Mazepa retreated with 1,500 men south to the river

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and ...

, which they crossed, thus managing to escape the Russians and established themselves in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. The rest of the army was forced to surrender to the Russians at the village of Perevolochna on 11 July 1709. The Battle of Poltava, as well as the subsequent capitulation, ended in a decisive victory for Peter I and became the greatest military catastrophe in Swedish history. It marked a turning point in the continuation of the war in favour of the anti-Swedish coalition, which as a result of the battle was revived and with renewed vigor attacked the weakened Swedish Empire on several fronts. The battle thus marked the end of Sweden's time as the dominant power in Northern Europe, a position which after the war was taken over by the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. The battle is therefore of crucial importance in the history of Sweden as well as Russia and Ukraine.

Background

Charles XII had led Swedish forces to early victories in North Zealand (Summer 1700) and in the Battle of Narva in November 1700. However, it took six years for him to defeat Augustus II of

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

. Peter I withdrew from Poland in the spring of 1706, and offered to cede his Baltic possessions to Sweden except St. Petersburg, but Charles refused. Peter subsequently adopted a

scorched-earth A scorched-earth policy is a military strategy that aims to destroy anything that might be useful to the enemy. Any assets that could be used by the enemy may be targeted, which usually includes obvious weapons, transport vehicles, communi ...

policy in order to deprive the Swedish forces of supplies. Charles ordered a final attack on the Russian heartland with a possible assault on

from his campaign base in Poland. The Swedish army of almost 44,000 menTucker, S.C., 2010, A Global Chronology of Conflict, Vol. Two, Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, LLC, left

on 22 August 1707 and marched slowly eastwards. Charles took the field in November after waiting for reinforcements to arrive. Continuing east, he crossed the Vistula River on 25 December 1707, then continued through a hostile

Masuria Masuria (, german: Masuren, Masurian: ''Mazurÿ'') is a ethnographic and geographic region in northern and northeastern Poland, known for its 2,000 lakes. Masuria occupies much of the Masurian Lake District. Administratively, it is part of the ...

and took Grodno on 26 January 1708 after Russian troops had abandoned the city. At the time the Russians had been occupied with a large rebellion of Don Cossacks, known as the

Bulavin Rebellion The Bulavin Rebellion or Astrakhan Revolt (; Восстание Булавина, ''Vosstaniye Bulavina'') was a war which took place in the years 1707 and 1708 between the Don Cossacks and the Tsardom of Russia. Kondraty Bulavin, a democraticall ...

(1707–1708). This revolt was contained in part by the forces of the

Cossack Hetmanate The Cossack Hetmanate ( uk, Гетьманщина, Hetmanshchyna; or ''Cossack state''), officially the Zaporizhian Host or Army of Zaporizhia ( uk, Військо Запорозьке, Viisko Zaporozke, links=no; la, Exercitus Zaporoviensis) ...

led by

Hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...

. The Swedes continued to the area around Smorgon and

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...

, where the army went into winter quarters. Charles left 8,000 dragoons under Major General Ernst Detlof von Krassow in western Poland. Poor weather and road conditions kept the Swedish troops in winter quarters until June 1708. In July the Swedes defeated Marshal Boris Sheremetyev's forces at the Battle of Holowczyn and advanced to the

Dnieper River } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine an ...

. During the spring General Lewenhaupt in Courland had been ordered to gather supplies and march his army of about 12,000 men to join Charles' forces. However, his departure from Mitau was delayed until late June and consequently he only joined Charles' forces on 11 October. Rather than winter in Livonia or wait for Lewenhaupt, Charles decided to move southwards into Ukraine and join Mazepa, who had decided to rebel against Peter. Peter sent Sheremetev to shadow the Swedish army.Frost, R. I., 2000, The Northern Wars, 1558–1721, Harlow: Pearson Education Limited, Lewenhaupt followed south and was attacked while crossing a river near a small village that gave name to the Battle of Lesnaya, losing the supply train and half of his force. In need of resupply, Charles moved towards

Baturyn Baturyn ( uk, Бату́рин, ), is a historic city in Chernihiv Oblast (province) of northern Ukraine. It is located in Nizhyn Raion (district) on the banks of the Seym River. Baturyn lost its city status in 1923 and received it back only in ...

, Mazepa's headquarters, but Russian troops under Aleksandr Menshikov reached the city first. Anticipating the Swedish arrival, Menshikov ordered the merciless massacre of the population, razing the city and destroying or looting arms, ammunition and food. By the spring of 1709 Charles' force had shrunk to half of its original size. After the coldest winter in Europe in over 500 years, Charles was left with 20,000 soldiers and 34 cannons. Short of supplies, he laid siege to the Russian fortress at Poltava on the

Vorskla River The Vorskla (; ) is a river that runs from Belgorod Oblast in Russia southwards into northeastern Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, w ...

on 2 May 1709. Peter's force of 80,000 marched to relieve the siege. Upon his arrival, Peter built a fortified camp on the Vorskla, 4 km north of Poltava. While observing the Russian position on 20 June, Charles was struck in the foot by a stray bullet that wounded him so severely that he could not stand. In addition, Charles' last hope of reinforcement expired, as the Swedish forces under von Krassow had turned aside to deal with the anti-Swedish Sandomierz Confederation in Poland. Between the Russian and Swedish forces the Yakovetski and Budyschenski woods formed a corridor, which the Russians defended by building six forts across the gap.Englund, P., 1992, The Battle that Shook Europe, London: I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd., Peter, in addition, ordered four more

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on earthworks, although some are constructed of stone or brick. It is meant to protect soldi ...

s built so the entire system of ten forts would have a ''T'' shape, providing flanking fire to a Swedish advance. Two of the redoubts were still being constructed on the morning of the battle, but 4,000 Russians manned the remaining eight, with 10,000 cavalry under General

Aleksandr Danilovich Menshikov Prince Aleksander Danilovich Menshikov (russian: Алекса́ндр Дани́лович Ме́ншиков, tr. ; – ) was a Russian statesman, whose official titles included Generalissimo, Prince of the Russian Empire and Duke of Izhora ...

stationed behind them.

Battle

Swedish attack

Because of his wound, Charles turned over operational command to Field Marshal Carl Gustav Rehnskiöld. Four columns of infantry and six columns of cavalry were to form during the night, 600 meters south of the redoubts, intending to attack before dawn in order to swiftly bypass the redoubt system and hit the Russian fort. The infantry was in place by 2:30 a.m. but the cavalry arrived late, having lost their way. Riding forward, Axel Gyllenkrok observed the Russians at work on the two nearest redoubts and rode back to inform Rehnskiöld. A reconnoitre by Major General Wolmar Anton von Schlippenbach was discovered by the Russians and the alarm was sounded by the firing of a pistol. Having lost the element of surprise, and without sufficient cannon to breach the fortifications, Rehnskiöld consulted with Charles,

Carl Piper Count Carl Piper (July 29, 1647, Stockholm – May 29, 1716, Schlüsselburg) was a Swedish statesman. He entered the foreign office after completing his academical course at Uppsala, accompanied Bengt Gabrielsson Oxenstierna on his embassag ...

and Lewenhaupt on whether or not to proceed with the assault. By the time Rehnskiöld decided to proceed with the attack by quoting, "In the name of God then, let us go forward", it was nearly 4:00 a.m. on 28 June (Swedish calendar) and dawn was already approaching. The Swedes in Carl Gustaf Roos' column quickly overran the first two redoubts, killing every Russian soldier inside them, but by 4:30 a.m. the attempts to take the third redoubt stalled. Start of Poltava

Lewenhaupt's ten battalions on the right bypassed the first four redoubts entirely, advancing to the back line and, with the aid of cavalry, took some redoubts while bypassing others. Two of Roos' rear battalions joined them, indicating that issued orders lacked clarity as to whether to avoid the redoubts or attack them in series. The cavalry on the left wing, commanded by Major General Hamilton and an infantry regiment, advanced by passing the redoubts on the left and charged the Russian cavalry, forcing them to retreat. It was 5:00 a.m. when the left and right wings of the Swedish army made it past the back line of redoubts, sending the Russian cavalry in retreat. However, Rehnskiöld ordered his cavalry to stop their pursuit and Lewenhaupt, already advancing towards the fort, to withdraw to the west. There they awaited Roos' battalions for two hours, while the Russian cavalry and

Ivan Skoropadsky Ivan Skoropadsky ( uk, Іван Скоропадський) (1646 – 3 July 1722) was a Cossack Hetman of the Zaporizhian Host (in office: 1708–1722), and the successor to the famous Hetman Ivan Mazepa. Biography Born into a noble Cossack ...

's Cossacks waited to the north, with 13 Russian battalions deployed north of their camp and ten to the south, anticipating a Swedish advance.

Surrender of Roos and Russian advance

General Roos and six battalions (one-third of the Swedish infantry) became isolated while attempting to take the third Russian redoubt. After suffering severe casualties from several assault attempts, Roos led the remaining 1,500 of his original 2,600 men into the Yakovetski woods to the east at 6:00 a.m. The Russians reoccupied the first two redoubts and launched a two-pronged attack by ten regiments around 7:00 a.m., forcing Roos to retreat towards Poltava and take refuge in an abandoned fort by 9:00 a.m. when he could not make it to the Swedish siege works. Roos was forced to surrender his command at 9:30 a.m. The Swedes continued to wait for Roos' troops to return, unaware of their surrender. As time went by Peter led the 42 battalions of Russian infantry—22,000 soldiers—into an advance out of the fortified camp, supported by 55 three-pounder cannons and 32 guns on the ramparts of the fort. Ten regiments of dragoons formed under Lieutenant General Adolf Fredrik Bauer on the Russian right and six regiments under Menshikov on the left. Just west of the camp the Russians were faced by 4,000 Swedish infantry, formed into ten battalions with four three-pounders, and the cavalry under Major General Carl Gustaf Creutz in the rear. The Russians slowly moved forward to engage. According to Charles and reports from other Swedish officers, the weather at that time was already very hot and humid, with the sun obscured by smoke from the Russian cannons in the fort. Engraving of the battle of Poltava

Final stage and turning point

At 9:45 a.m. Rehnskiöld ordered Lewenhaupt and the Swedish line to move forward, advancing towards the Russian line, which started firing its cannons at 500 meters. When the Swedes were 50 meters from the Russian line, the Russians opened fire with their muskets from all four ranks. Advancing to within 30 meters of the Russian line, the Swedes fired a volley of their own and charged with their muskets and pikemen, and the Russian first line retreated towards their second line. The Swedes seemed to be on the verge of a breakthrough and needed the cavalry under Creutz to break the Russian lines. Unfortunately for the Swedes, Creutz's and the other cavalry units were unable to reform completely in time. With the Russian line longer than the Swedish line, the Swedish infantry on the left flank lagged behind the right and finally threw down their weapons and fled. As the Swedish right flank was still advancing, a gap began to open in the Swedish line which the Russians filled and the battle turned into a Cannae variation. Barely able to gather his cavalry squadrons, Creutz tried to advance on the right flank, but the Russian battalions were able to form into hollow squares, while Menshikov's cavalry outflanked the Swedes and attacked them from the rear. At this point the Swedish assault had disintegrated and no longer had organized bodies of troops to oppose the Russian infantry or cavalry. Small groups of soldiers managed to break through and escape to the south through the Budyschenski woods, while many of the rest were overwhelmed, ridden down or captured. Realizing they were the last Swedes on the battlefield, Charles ordered a retreat to the woods, gathering what remaining forces he could for protection, including the remnants of Creutz's detachment. The Russians halted at the edge of the woods and their artillery fire stopped; only the Cossacks and Kalmycks roamed the plains south of the woods. Emerging from the woods at around noon, Charles—on horseback after his litter was destroyed, and protected by a square of a couple of thousand men—headed to Pushkaryovka and his baggage train 5 km to the south, reaching it after 1:00 p.m., by which time the battle was over. Charles gathered the remainder of his troops and baggage train and retreated to the south later that same day—at about 7:00 p.m., abandoning the siege of Poltava. Lewenhaupt led the surviving Swedes and some of the Cossack forces to the Dnieper River, but was doggedly pursued by the Russian regular cavalry and 3,000 Kalmyk auxiliaries and forced to surrender three days later at Perevolochna on 1 July.

Aftermath

High-ranking Swedes captured during the battle included Field Marshal Rehnskiöld, Major Generals Schlippenbach, Stackelberg, Hamilton and Prince Maximilian Emanuel, as well as Piper. Peter the Great held a celebratory banquet in two large tents erected on the battlefield.

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...

assumed Peter's reason for this, in raising a toast to the Swedish generals as war masters, was to send a message to his own generals about disloyalty.Voltaire
The History of Charles XII, King of Sweden
(1908) Two mass graves contained the Russian dead, 500 meters southwest of their camp. Previously defeating Peter, Charles had gone so far as to pay the Russian troops. Peter instead took many Swedes, with great pride, and sent them to

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...

. Charles and Mazepa escaped with about 1,500 men to

Bendery Bender (, Moldovan Cyrillic: Бендер) or Bendery (russian: Бендеры, , uk, Бендери), also known as Tighina ( ro, Tighina), is a city within the internationally recognized borders of Moldova under ''de facto'' control of the un ...

Moldavia Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and for ...

, then controlled by the

. Charles spent five years in exile there before he was able to return to Sweden in December 1715. During this time, even handicapped, he retained his magisterial calm demeanor under fire, fighting his way out of several situations. The high

vizier A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called '' katib'' (secretary), who was ...

of the Turks was eventually paid off, with much intrigue and espionage involved and plots within plots, at one point involving a ransom of the Russian crown jewels, according to Charles' prison translator.Friedrich Ernst von Fabrice
The Genuine Letters of Baron Fabricius Envoy from His Serene Highness the Duke Administrator of Holstein to Charles XII of Sweden
(1761)

Notes

References

Sources

* * Brown, Peter B. "Gazing Anew at Poltava: Perspectives from the Military Revolution Controversy, Comparative History, and Decision-Making Doctrines." ''Harvard Ukrainian Studies'' 31.1/4 (2009): 107–133
online
* * * * Frost, Robert I. "' Everyone understood what it meant': The Impact of the Battle of Poltava on the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth." ''Harvard Ukrainian Studies'' 31.1/4 (2009): 159-17
online
* Gerner, Kristian. "The Battle of Poltava as a Realm of Memory and a Bone of Contention." ''Harvard Ukrainian Studies'' 31.1/4 (2009): 679–69
online
* * Kamenskii, Alexander. "The Battle of Poltava in Russian Historical Memory." ''Harvard Ukrainian Studies'' 31.1/4 (2009): 195–20
online
* * LeDonne, John. "Poltava and the geopolitics of Western Eurasia." ''Harvard Ukrainian Studies'' 31.1/4 (2009): 177-19
online
* . popular history * Plokhy, Serhii, ed. ''Poltava 1709: The Battle and the Myth'' (Harvard University Press, 2012). *
online
* *

External links

by Bertil Haggman

on the Encyclopedia of Ukraine
Russian Order at Battle

Swedish Order at Battle

Voltaire's History of Charles XII King of Sweden
by Voltaire {{DEFAULTSORT:Poltava Battles of the Great Northern War Conflicts in 1709 Battle of Poltava Battle of Poltava Battles involving Russia Battles involving Sweden Battle of Poltava Battles involving Ukraine Cossack Hetmanate Charles XII of Sweden Ivan Mazepa History of Poltava Oblast

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

18th century in the Zaporozhian Host