The article briefly talks about the Livonian War (1558-1583), which was waged by Ivan the Terrible for the right to access the Baltic Sea. The war for Russia was initially successful, but after Sweden, Denmark and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth entered it, it became protracted and ended in territorial losses.
- Causes of the Livonian War
- Progress of the Livonian War
- Results of the Livonian War
Causes of the Livonian War
- Livonia was a state founded by the German knightly order in the 13th century. and included part of the territory of the modern Baltic states. By the 16th century it was very weak public education, power in which knights and bishops shared among themselves. Livonia was easy prey for an aggressive state. Ivan the Terrible set himself the task of capturing Livonia in order to secure access to the Baltic Sea and in order to prevent its conquest by someone else. In addition, Livonia, being between Europe and Russia, in every possible way prevented the establishment of contacts between them, in particular, the entry of European masters into Russia was practically prohibited. This caused discontent in Moscow.
- The territory of Livonia before the capture by the German knights belonged to the Russian princes. This pushed Ivan the Terrible to war for the return of ancestral lands.
- According to the existing treaty, Livonia was obliged to pay Russia an annual tribute for possession ancient Russian city Yuryev (renamed Dorpat) and neighboring territories. However, this condition was not met, which was the main reason for the war.
Progress of the Livonian War
- In response to the refusal to pay tribute, Ivan the Terrible in 1558 began a war with Livonia. A weak state, torn by contradictions, cannot resist the huge army of Ivan the Terrible. The Russian army victoriously passes through the entire territory of Livonia, leaving only large fortresses and cities in the hands of the enemy. As a result, by 1560 Livonia, as a state, ceased to exist. However, its lands were divided between Sweden, Denmark and Poland, which declared that Russia must abandon all territorial acquisitions.
- The emergence of new opponents did not immediately affect the nature of the war. Sweden was at war with Denmark. Ivan the Terrible concentrated all his efforts against Poland. Successful fighting lead to the capture of Polotsk in 1563. Poland begins to ask for a truce, and Ivan the Terrible convenes the Zemsky Sobor and addresses him with such a proposal. However, the cathedral responds with a sharp refusal, declaring that the capture of Livonia is necessary in economic terms. The war continues, it becomes clear that it will be protracted.
- The situation changes for the worse after Ivan the Terrible introduced the oprichnina. The state, already weakened during a tense war, receives a “royal gift.” The tsar's punitive and repressive measures lead to a decline in the economy; the executions of many prominent military leaders significantly weaken the army. At the same time, the Crimean Khanate intensified its actions, beginning to threaten Russia. In 1571, Moscow was burned by Khan Devlet-Girey.
- In 1569, Poland and Lithuania united into a new strong state - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In 1575, Stefan Batory became its king, who later showed the qualities of a talented commander. This became a turning point in the Livonian War. The Russian army holds the territory of Livonia for some time, besieges Riga and Revel, but soon the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Sweden begin active military operations against the Russian army. Batory inflicts a series of defeats on Ivan the Terrible and wins back Polotsk. In 1581 he besieged Pskov, whose courageous defense lasted five months. Batory's lifting of the siege becomes the last victory of the Russian army. Sweden at this time seizes the coast of the Gulf of Finland, which belongs to Russia.
- In 1582, Ivan the Terrible concluded a truce with Stefan Batory, according to which he renounced all his territorial acquisitions. In 1583, a treaty was signed with Sweden, as a result of which the captured lands on the coast of the Gulf of Finland were assigned to it.
Results of the Livonian War
- The war started by Ivan the Terrible promised to be successful. At first, Russia made significant progress. However, due to a number of internal and external reasons, a turning point occurs in the war. Russia loses the captured territories and, ultimately, access to the Baltic Sea, remaining cut off from European markets.
Ivan the Terrible, no matter how terrible he was, was still an outstanding ruler. In particular, he waged successful wars - for example, with Kazan and Astrakhan. But he also had an unsuccessful campaign. It can't be said that Livonian War- ended with a real defeat for the Muscovite kingdom, but many years of battles, expenses and losses ended in the actual restoration of the original position.
Window to Europe
Peter the Great was not the first to understand well the importance of the Baltic Sea for Russian, and not only Russian, trade. There is no clear indication in written sources that, when starting the war, his goal was precisely to provide his country with access to the Baltic. But the first tsar was an educated man, was interested in foreign experience, hired specialists from abroad, and even wooed the Queen of England. Consequently, his actions had so much in common with Peter’s policies (Peter, by the way, was very formidable), that one can reasonably assume that the war that began in 1558 had a “naval” purpose. The king did not need a layer between his state and foreign merchants and craftsmen.
In addition, the support of a number of states for the weak and unauthoritative Livonian Confederation proves the same point: they fought not for Livonia, but against the strengthening of Russia’s trade position.
We conclude: the reasons for the Livonian War boil down to the struggle for the possibilities of Baltic trade and dominance in this matter.
With varied success
It is quite difficult to name the sides of the war. Russia had no allies in it, and its opponents were the Livonian Confederation, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Poland (after the Union of Lublin in 15696), Sweden, and Denmark. On different stages Russia fought with different opponents in different numbers.
The first stage of the war (1558-1561) against the weak Livonian Confederation was successful for the Moscow army. The Russians took Narva, Neuhausen, Dorpat and many other fortresses and marched through Courland. But the Livonians, taking advantage of the proposed truce, recognized themselves as vassals of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1561, and this large state entered the war.
The course of the war with Lithuania (until 1570) showed its “maritime” essence - Germany and Sweden declared a blockade of Narva, preventing the Russians from gaining a foothold in the Baltic trade. Lithuania fought not only for the Baltic, but also for the lands on its border with Russia, where Polotsk was captured by the Russians in 1564. But further success was on the side of Lithuania, and there were two reasons for this: greed and treason. Many boyars preferred to fight with the Crimea, hoping to profit from the southern black soil. There were many direct traitors, the most famous of whom was Andrei Kurbsky.
At the third stage, Russia fought on two sides: with Sweden (1570-1583) and Denmark (1575-1578) and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1577-1582). For this period, the fact that military operations were most often carried out on previously devastated lands, where the population had a negative attitude towards the Russians due to the duration of the war, was important. Russia itself was also weakened, both by prolonged hostilities and by the oprichnina. Polish-Lithuanian detachments successfully reached quite far into the Russian rear (as far as Yaroslavl). As a result, Lithuania received Polotsk back, and the Swedes captured not only Narva, but also Ivangorod and Koporye.
During this period, funny episodes also occurred. So, the king of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Stefan Batory did not find anything better than to send Ivan... a challenge to a personal duel! The Tsar ignored this stupidity, worthy of a petty quarrelsome nobleman, and did the right thing.
Modest results
The war ended with the signing of the Yam-Zapolsky truce with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1582, and in 1583 - the Plyussky truce with Sweden. Russia's territorial losses were insignificant: Ivangorod, Yam, Koporye, a small part of the western lands. Basically, Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth divided the former Livonia (the current Baltic states and Finland).
For Rus', the main result of the Livonian War was something else. It turned out that for 20 years, with interruptions, Russia fought in vain. Its northwestern regions are depopulated and resources are depleted. Crimean raids on its territory became more devastating. Failures in the Livonian War actually turned Ivan 4 into the Terrible - numerous real betrayals became one of the reasons that, however, the right punished more than the guilty. Military ruin was the first step towards the future Time of Troubles.
In parallel with the internal breakdown and struggle since 1558, Grozny waged a stubborn struggle for the Baltic coast. The Baltic question was one of the most difficult international problems at that time. Many Baltic states argued for dominance in the Baltic, and Moscow’s efforts to establish a firm foot on the seashore raised Sweden, Poland, and Germany against the “Muscovites.” It must be admitted that Grozny chose the right moment to intervene in the struggle. Livonia, towards which he directed his attack, was at that time, to use an apt expression, a country of antagonisms. There was a centuries-old tribal struggle between the Germans and the aborigines of the region - Latvians, Livonians and Estonians. This struggle often took the form of an acute social clash between the alien feudal lords and the serf native masses. With the development of the Reformation in Germany, religious ferment spread to Livonia, preparing the secularization of the order's possessions. Finally, to all the other antagonisms there was also a political one: between the authorities of the Order and the Archbishop of Riga there was a chronic feud for supremacy, and at the same time there was a constant struggle between the cities with them for independence. Livonia, as Bestuzhev-Ryumin put it, “was a miniature repetition of the Empire without the unifying power of Caesar.” The disintegration of Livonia did not escape Grozny's attention. Moscow demanded that Livonia recognize its dependence and threatened with conquest. The question of the so-called Yuryevskaya (Derpt) tribute was raised. From the local obligation of the city of Dorpat to pay a “duty” or tribute to the Grand Duke for something, Moscow made a pretext for establishing its patronage over Livonia, and then for war. In two years (1558–1560) Livonia was defeated by Moscow troops and disintegrated. In order not to give in to the hated Muscovites, Livonia piecemeal succumbed to other neighbors: Livonia was annexed to Lithuania, Estland to Sweden, Fr. Ezel - to Denmark, and Courland was secularized into fief dependence on the Polish king. Lithuania and Sweden demanded that Grozny clear their new possessions. Grozny did not want to, and thus the Livonian War from 1560 turned into the Lithuanian and Swedish War.
This war dragged on for a long time. At first, Grozny had great success in Lithuania: in 1563 he took Polotsk, and his troops reached as far as Vilna. In 1565–1566 Lithuania was ready for an honorable peace for Grozny and ceded all its acquisitions to Moscow. But the Zemsky Sobor of 1566 spoke in favor of continuing the war with the aim of further land acquisitions: they wanted all of Livonia and the Polotsk district to the city of Polotsk. The war continued sluggishly. With the death of the last Jagiellon (1572), when Moscow and Lithuania were in a truce, even the candidacy of Ivan the Terrible arose for the throne of Lithuania and Poland, united into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. But this candidacy was not successful: first Henry of Valois was elected, and then (1576) the Semigrad prince Stefan Batory (in Moscow “Obatur”). With the advent of Batory, the picture of the war changed. Lithuania went from defense to offense. Batory took Polotsk from Grozny (1579), then Velikiye Luki (1580) and, bringing the war within the boundaries of the Moscow state, besieged Pskov (1581). Grozny was defeated not only because Batory had military talent and a good army, but also because by this time Grozny had run out of means of waging war. As a result of the internal crisis that struck the Moscow state and society at that time, the country, in modern expression, “was exhausted and desolate.” The properties and significance of this crisis will be discussed below; Now let us note that the same lack of forces and means paralyzed the success of Ivan the Terrible against the Swedes in Estland.
Siege of Pskov by Stefan Batory in 1581. Painting by Karl Bryullov, 1843
The failure of Batory near Pskov, who heroically defended himself, allowed Grozny, through the papal ambassador Jesuit Antonius Possevinus, to begin peace negotiations. In 1582, peace was concluded (more precisely, a truce for 10 years) with Batory, to whom Grozny ceded all his conquests in Livonia and Lithuania, and in 1583 Grozny made peace with Sweden by ceding Estland to it and, in addition, his lands from Narova to Lake Ladoga along the shore of the Gulf of Finland (Ivan-Gorod, Yam, Koporye, Oreshek, Korelu). Thus, the struggle, which lasted a quarter of a century, ended in complete failure. The reasons for the failure lie, of course, in the discrepancy between Moscow’s forces and the goal set by Ivan the Terrible. But this discrepancy was revealed later than Grozny began the struggle: Moscow began to decline only in the 70s of the 16th century. Until then, its forces seemed enormous not only to Moscow patriots, but also to Moscow’s enemies. Grozny's performance in the struggle for the Baltic Sea, the appearance of Russian troops near the Gulf of Riga and Finland and hired Moscow privateer ships in the Baltic waters amazed central Europe. In Germany, the “Muscovites” seemed to be a terrible enemy; the danger of their invasion was outlined not only in the official communications of the authorities, but also in the extensive flying literature of leaflets and brochures. Measures were taken to prevent Muscovites from accessing the sea and Europeans from entering Moscow and, by separating Moscow from the centers of European culture, to prevent its political strengthening. In this agitation against Moscow and Grozny, a lot of unreliable things were invented about Moscow morals and the despotism of Grozny, and a serious historian should always keep in mind the danger of repeating political slander and accepting it as an objective historical source.
To what has been said about the policies of Ivan the Terrible and the events of his time, it is necessary to add mention of the very known fact the appearance of English ships at the mouth of the S. Dvina and the beginning of trade relations with England (1553–1554), as well as the conquest of the Siberian kingdom by a detachment of Stroganov Cossacks led by Ermak (1582–1584). Both were accidents for Ivan the Terrible; but the Moscow government managed to take advantage of both. In 1584, Arkhangelsk was built at the mouth of the S. Dvina, as sea port for fair trade with the British, and the British were given the opportunity to trade in the entire Russian north, which they very quickly and clearly studied. In those same years, the occupation of Western Siberia began by the forces of the government, and not the Stroganovs alone, and many cities were established in Siberia with the “metropolitan” Tobolsk at its head.
Trying to reach the Baltic coast, Ivan IV fought the grueling Livonian War for 25 years.
The state interests of Russia required the establishment of close ties with Western Europe, which was then most easily accomplished through the seas, as well as ensuring the defense of Russia’s western borders, where its enemy was the Livonian Order. If successful, the opportunity to acquire new economically developed lands opened up.
The reason for the war was the delay by the Livonian Order of 123 Western specialists invited to Russian service, as well as the failure of Livonia to pay tribute for the city of Dorpat (Yuryev) and the adjacent territory over the past 50 years.
The beginning of the Livonian War was accompanied by victories of Russian troops, who took Narva and Yuriev (Dorpat). A total of 20 cities were taken. Russian troops advanced towards Riga and Revel (Tallinn). In 1560, the Livonian Order was defeated, and its master W. Furstenberg was captured. This entailed the collapse of the Livonian Order (1561), whose lands came under the rule of Poland, Denmark and Sweden. The new Master of the Order, G. Ketler, received Courland and Semigallia as possession and recognized dependence on the Polish king. The last major success at the first stage of the war was the capture of Polotsk in 1563.
In 1565-1566, Lithuania was ready to give Russia all the lands it had conquered and conclude an honorable peace for Russia. This did not suit Ivan the Terrible: he wanted more.
The second stage (1561 – 1578) coincided with the oprichnina. Russia, opposed by Lithuania, Poland and Sweden, had to go on the defensive. In 1569, Lithuania and Poland united to form the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The new ruler of Lithuania and Poland, Stefan Batory, went on the offensive and recaptured Polotsk (in 1579), captured Velikiye Luki (in 1580), and besieged Pskov (in 1581). A truce was concluded as the war with Sweden began.
In the third stage, from 1578, Russia had to fight with the king of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Stefan Batory, who besieged Pskov, and continue the war with Sweden. Pskov defended itself desperately, which allowed Ivan the Terrible to begin peace negotiations and in 1582 conclude a ten-year truce with Stefan Batory. Under the terms of the truce, Russia gave up everything it had conquered in Livonia and Lithuania. In 1583, peace was concluded with Sweden, which received the Russian cities of Narva, Yama, Koporye, Ivan-Gorod and others.
Russia was unable to get through to Baltic Sea. This problem was solved by Peter I in Northern War (1700–1721).
The failure of the Livonian War was ultimately a consequence of Russia's economic backwardness, which was unable to successfully withstand a long struggle against strong opponents. The ruin of the country during the oprichnina years only made matters worse.
Domestic policy of Ivan IV
Authorities and management bodies in Russia in the middleXVIV.
The war became protracted, and several European powers were drawn into it. The contradictions within the Russian boyars, who were interested in strengthening the southern Russian borders, intensified, and dissatisfaction with the continuation of the Livonian War grew. Figures from the tsar’s inner circle, A. Adashev and Sylvester, also showed hesitation, considering the war futile. Even earlier, in 1553, when Ivan IV became dangerously ill, many boyars refused to swear allegiance to his little son Dmitry. The death of his first and beloved wife Anastasia Romanova in 1560 was a shock for the tsar.
All this led to the cessation of the activities of the Elected Rada in 1560. Ivan IV took a course towards strengthening his personal power. In 1564, Prince Andrei Kurbsky, who had previously commanded the Russian troops, went over to the side of the Poles. Ivan IV, fighting the rebellions and betrayals of the boyar nobility, saw in them main reason failures of their policies. He firmly stood on the position of the need for strong autocratic power, the main obstacle to the establishment of which, in his opinion, was the boyar-princely opposition and boyar privileges. The question was what methods would be used to fight.
In these difficult circumstances for the country, Ivan IV introduced the oprichnina (1565–1572).
Since then he has owned most of the modern Baltic states - Estland, Livonia and Courland. In the 16th century, Livonia lost some of its former power. From within, it was engulfed in strife, which was intensified by the church Reformation that was penetrating here. The Archbishop of Riga quarreled with the Master of the Order, and the cities were at enmity with both of them. Internal turmoil weakened Livonia, and all its neighbors were not averse to taking advantage of this. Before the start of the conquests of the Livonian knights, the Baltic lands depended on the Russian princes. With this in mind, the Moscow sovereigns believed that they had completely legal rights to Livonia. Due to its coastal position, Livonia was of great commercial importance. Afterwards, Moscow inherited the commerce of Novgorod, which it had conquered, with the Baltic lands. However, the Livonian rulers in every possible way limited the relations that Muscovite Rus' conducted with Western Europe through their region. Fearing Moscow and trying to interfere with its rapid strengthening, the Livonian government did not allow European craftsmen and many goods into Rus'. The obvious hostility of Livonia gave rise to hostility towards it among the Russians. Seeing the weakening of the Livonian Order, the Russian rulers feared that its territory would be taken over by some other, more strong enemy, which will treat Moscow even worse.
Already Ivan III, after the conquest of Novgorod, built the Russian fortress Ivangorod on the Livonian border, opposite the city of Narva. After the conquest of Kazan and Astrakhan, the Chosen Rada advised Ivan the Terrible to turn to the predatory Crimea, whose hordes constantly raided the southern Russian regions, driving thousands of captives into slavery every year. But Ivan IV chose to attack Livonia. The successful outcome of the war with the Swedes of 1554–1557 gave the king confidence in easy success in the west.
Beginning of the Livonian War (briefly)
Grozny remembered the old treaties that obligated Livonia to pay tribute to the Russians. It had not been paid for a long time, but now the tsar demanded not only to renew the payment, but also to compensate for what the Livonians had not given to Russia in previous years. The Livonian government began to drag out negotiations. Having lost patience, Ivan the Terrible broke off all relations and in the first months of 1558 began the Livonian War, which was destined to drag on for 25 years.
In the first two years of the war, Moscow troops acted very successfully. They destroyed almost all of Livonia, except for the most powerful cities and castles. Livonia could not resist powerful Moscow alone. The order's state disintegrated, surrendering piecemeal to the supreme power of its stronger neighbors. Estland came under the suzerainty of Sweden, Livonia submitted to Lithuania. The island of Ezel became the possession of the Danish Duke Magnus, and Courland was subjected to secularization, that is, it turned from a church property into a secular one. The former master of the spiritual order, Ketler, became the secular Duke of Courland and recognized himself as a vassal of the Polish king.
Entry of Poland and Sweden into the war (briefly)
The Livonian Order thus ceased to exist (1560-1561). His lands were divided by neighboring powerful states, which demanded that Ivan the Terrible renounce all the seizures made at the beginning of the Livonian War. Grozny rejected this demand and opened a fight with Lithuania and Sweden. Thus, new participants were involved in the Livonian War. The struggle between the Russians and the Swedes proceeded intermittently and sluggishly. Ivan IV moved his main forces to Lithuania, acting against it not only in Livonia, but also in the regions south of the latter. In 1563, Grozny took the ancient Russian city of Polotsk from the Lithuanians. The royal army ravaged Lithuania all the way to Vilna (Vilnius). The war-weary Lithuanians offered Grozny peace with the concession of Polotsk. In 1566, Ivan IV convened a Zemsky Council in Moscow on the question of whether to end the Livonian War or continue it. The Council spoke in favor of continuing the war, and it went on for another ten years with the Russians outnumbered, until the talented commander Stefan Batory (1576) was elected to the Polish-Lithuanian throne.
The turning point of the Livonian War (briefly)
By that time, the Livonian War had significantly weakened Russia. The oprichnina, which ruined the country, undermined its strength even more. Many prominent Russian military leaders fell victims to the oprichnina terror of Ivan the Terrible. From the south to Russia they began with more more energy attack Crimean Tatars, whom Ivan the Terrible frivolously allowed to conquer or at least completely weaken after the conquest of Kazan and Astrakhan. The Crimeans and the Turkish Sultan demanded that Russia, now bound by the Livonian War, renounce its possession of the Volga region and restore the independence of the Astrakhan and Kazan khanates, which had previously brought it so much grief with brutal attacks and robberies. In 1571, the Crimean Khan Devlet-Girey, taking advantage of the diversion of Russian forces to Livonia, staged an unexpected invasion, marched with a large army all the way to Moscow and burned the entire city outside the Kremlin. In 1572 Devlet-Girey tried to repeat this success. He again reached the Moscow outskirts with his horde, but the Russian army of Mikhail Vorotynsky at the last moment distracted the Tatars with an attack from the rear and inflicted a strong defeat on them in the Battle of Molodi.
Ivan groznyj. Painting by V. Vasnetsov, 1897
The energetic Stefan Batory began decisive action against Grozny just when the oprichnina brought the central regions of the Moscow state to desolation. The people fled en masse from the tyranny of Grozny to the southern outskirts and to the newly conquered Volga region. State Center Russia is depleted of people and resources. Grozny could no longer easily send large armies to the front of the Livonian War. Batory's decisive onslaught did not meet with adequate resistance. In 1577, the Russians achieved their last successes in the Baltic states, but already in 1578 they were defeated there near Wenden. The Poles achieved a turning point in the Livonian War. In 1579 Batory recaptured Polotsk, and in 1580 he took the strong Moscow fortresses of Velizh and Velikiye Luki. Having previously shown arrogance towards the Poles, Grozny now sought the mediation of Catholic Europe in peace negotiations with Batory and sent an embassy (Shevrigin) to the pope and the Austrian emperor. In 1581