The beginning of Timur's invasion of Russian lands. Good bad evil

After the devastating campaigns of the Golden Horde khans, the Russian lands were drained of blood. They would not have withstood the impending invasion of Tamerlane. However, it never took place. Let's try to imagine what the results of the Iron Lame's campaign against Rus' could have been.

Tamerlane (Timur in Arabic) was born for conquest. Let's take a look at his banner, inside of which there were three ovals. They say they symbolized the parts of the world that submitted to the conqueror - Europe, Asia and Africa. Of course, it’s said loudly (he never made it to Africa), although Tamerlane’s ambitions and self-confidence cannot be denied.

He crushed strong armies Turkish Sultan Bayazid and Horde Khan Tokhtamysh, fought in the territories of China, Persia, India and Asia Minor, expanding the borders of his empire from the Caspian to the Arabian Sea. The court chronicler of Tamerlane, Giyassaddin Ali, even claimed that his master reached the lands of the Franks.

Other subjects of Tamerlane flattered him even more, assuring future readers of the chronicles that in his campaign to the north their ruler had reached “the limits of the sixth climate.” According to the ideas of Islamic scientists, the world was divided into seven climates: the first was the equator, the seventh was the pole. The sixth, according to this logic, should have corresponded to the Arctic.

The real picture of Tamerlane's conquests was apparently not so large-scale. However, historians suggest that in the conditions of the war with Tokhtamysh, the Central Asian commander could well have conducted military operations on the lands ancient Russian principalities. Intending to destroy Golden Horde, Tamerlane probably expected to inflict damage on her tributary - Rus'.

To Rus'

Mamai, defeated by Dmitry Donskoy, turned out to be not the last, nor the most terrible enemy of Rus'. In 1382, Moscow was burned by another Horde khan, Tokhtamysh, who again forced the Moscow prince to pay tribute. However, here he entered the political arena Iron Lame, whose plans did not include the revival of the power of the Golden Horde.

In 1388, Tamerlane dealt with the rebellious Khorezm city of Urgench, and two years later he sent his army towards Tokhtamysh. The confrontation between the rulers of the two empires lasted for five years, which was framed by the battles of 1390 and 1395, and in both of them Tamerlane crushed Tokhtamysh.

During the war with the Golden Horde, Tamerlane moved up the Volga and, according to historians, reached present-day Saratov. All along the way, the Horde lands were subjected to devastation and ruin. But did the Central Asian warrior have any intention of moving further into the heart of Russian lands?

Arab chronicles say that Tamerlane went further and invaded the Moscow principality. And he not only invaded, but also plundered Moscow. “There were whole packs of beavers, a countless number of black sables, so many ermines that you couldn’t count them,” the chronicler describes the spoils. The author was especially struck by Russian women, whom he compared to roses.

After the Moscow pogrom, according to an Arab source, the conqueror turned south, plundering cities along the way and destroying non-believers. The final destination of this campaign was the capital of the Horde, Sarai, the chronicler assures.

Historians put the words of the Arab writer under big doubt, since there are no other sources confirming Tamerlane’s capture of Moscow. The commander really intended to reach the Russian capital, but he never got there, historians are sure.

God's will

Russian chroniclers have their own point of view on these events. They report that the formidable conqueror was stopped by the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God, which was brought to Moscow with a religious procession before the planned campaign of a huge Turkic army. The chronicle says that Tamerlane had a dream in which the Mother of God called on him to leave the Russian land. According to another version, Tamerlane went to Vladimir, but such a vision forced him to turn back.

There is also an Arab legend that says that the Islamic preacher Khizr appeared to Tamerlane and ordered him not to fight, but only to demonstrate his strength. According to legend, Tamerlane threw a two-year-old stallion into the city wall, and when the wall collapsed, the commander shouted so “that the soldiers lost their tongues from fear and a terrible pallor covered their entire faces.”

However, perhaps Arab sources talk about the siege of another Russian city - Yelets, which at that time was the outskirts of the Ryazan lands. Tamerlane's army of thousands easily captured the weakly defended fortress, after which it remained standing in place under the cold autumn rains. Only after two weeks had passed, Tamerlane decided to return the army to Samarkand.

Not for the sake of war

Historians still cannot find an unambiguous explanation for Tamerlane’s act, but they are almost sure that if he decided to go to Rus', the consequences for our state could be catastrophic. Considering the scope and power of Tamerlane’s empire, which was little inferior to the Golden Horde in its heyday, the “great emir” could gather an army of at least 200 thousand people. This is exactly how many, according to Tamerlane himself, took part in the campaign against the Golden Horde.

The Russian state, not yet recovered from Mongol invasion and mired in civil strife, actually did not have the strength to oppose anything to the armada of the Iron Lame. Tokhtamysh's campaign against Moscow in August 1382, during which the khan was able to ravage the central regions of the great reign without clashing with his united forces and then achieve the renewal of his dependence on the Golden Horde, confirmed the inability of the Russian state to resist large-scale aggression.

The Russian principalities did not threaten Tamerlane's empire in any way, and therefore the commander had no need to carry out punitive campaigns. The only thing he needed was funds to maintain an army of thousands. The Arab chronicler Sharaf ad-Din Yazdi describes the large booty taken by Tamerlane in the Russian lands, but does not report military operations against the local population, although the meaning of his “Book of Victories” (“Zafar-name”) is a description of the exploits of Tamerlane himself and the valor of his warriors .

It can be assumed that Tamerlane’s further campaign against Rus' would have been caused not by the desire to prove his military superiority, but by the intention to obtain rich booty. If the besieged city had not capitulated, the conqueror would probably have treated it as he did with the conquered Urgench - razed it to the ground, and planted the deserted place with barley. The townspeople would most likely have faced the sad fate of the inhabitants of Iranian Isfahan, some of whom were beheaded by Tamerlane’s soldiers, and the other part crushed to death by horses.

The main blow of Tamerlane's army would fall on the rich Moscow and Vladimir lands, however, the rich jackpot in the form of Pskov and Novgorod would hardly have gone to the conqueror. The harsh climate, natural obstacles in the form of forests and swamps would have blocked the path of the Iron Lame army just as they had stopped their advance half a century ago. Mongol horde. As a result of the city Northwestern Rus', given the weakened Muscovy, probably would have quickly integrated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Shackled by a military campaign in China, Persia, India and Asia Minor, Tamerlane would hardly have kept significant forces in Russian lands. Sooner or later, the united princes would have repulsed the conqueror. Tamerlane was interested in the Great Silk Road, which passed along southern territories his empire. It was for the convenience of controlling rich caravans that he destroyed the northern branch silk road and redirected it through his lands. The greatness and wealth of Samarkand is the best evidence of the success of the commercial enterprise of the “great emir”.

In 1395, Tamerlane again attacked the Golden Horde, exterminated its population and razed cities to the ground, then marched through North Caucasus and through Taman moved to Rus'. The Mongols took the city of Yelets in the Ryazan principality by storm, but, after standing near the Don for two weeks, they suddenly turned back to Crimea. In Rus', their retreat was perceived as a miracle - after all, bloodless Rus' would hardly have resisted such an enemy.

In 1395, during the reign of the faithful and Christ-loving Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, autocrat of the Russian land, grandson of the Grand Duke Ivan Ivanovich, great-grandson of the Grand Duke, autocrat Ivan Danilovich, under the benevolent Archbishop Cyprian, Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus', in the fifteenth year of the reign of To Khtamysha and in the seventh year of the reign of Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, and in the third indictment, and in the thirteenth year after the Tatars, after the capture of Moscow, it rose great turmoil in the Horde.

A certain king Temir Aksak came from eastern country, from the Blue Horde, from Samarkand land, big war he started many rebellions in the Horde and in Rus' with his arrival.

Temir Aksak was told about this that by origin he was not of a royal family: neither a royal son, nor a royal tribe, nor a princely, nor a boyar, just the lowest of the most seedy people from among the Zayitsky Tatars, from the Samarkand land, from the Blue Horde, what's beyond the Iron Gates. By trade he was a blacksmith, but by disposition and behavior he was ruthless, a robber, a rapist, and a robber. When I previously worked for one owner, he, seeing his evil behavior, abandoned him and, beating him, drove him away; He, having no food, lived on robbery.

Once, when he was still young and stealing food from hunger, he stole a sheep from someone, but people immediately tracked him down. He tried to escape, but was quickly surrounded by many, captured and tied tightly, and they beat him mercilessly, and they decided to kill him to death; and they broke his leg in half at the thigh, and immediately threw him as if dead, motionless and lifeless; for they decided that he had died, and left him to be eaten by dogs. As soon as this mortal wound healed, he stood up, bound his broken leg with iron, and for this reason he limped; That’s why Temir was nicknamed Aksak, for Temir means iron, and Aksak means lame; This is how the name Temir Aksak, translated from the Polovtsian language, is explained, which means Iron Lame, for, having received a name from things and deeds, he earned a nickname for himself by his deeds.

So then, having been healed from his wounds, after that terrible beating, he did not change his former evil disposition, did not humble himself, did not tame himself, but only became more deteriorated: stronger than the past and more than before, he became a fierce robber. And then dashing fellows, fierce men, all sorts of people accosted him evil people, similar to him, the same robbers and robbers - and there were a lot of them. And when their number reached one hundred, they called him their chieftain; and when their number reached a thousand, then they called him prince; and when they multiplied greatly, more in number became, captured many lands, captured many cities and kingdoms, then they named him their king.

And this Temir Aksak began to start many wars and frequent battles, achieved many victories, defeated many enemies, destroyed many cities, killed many people, conquered many countries and lands, captivated many states and peoples, conquered many principalities and kingdoms...<…>

And he gathered all his warriors, went through the entire Horde and the entire Tatar land, approached the borders of the Ryazan land, took the city of Yelets, and captured the prince of Yelets, and tortured many people. Having heard about this, the prince great Vasily Dmitrievich gathered his numerous soldiers and went from Moscow to Kolomna, wanting to meet him; Having approached with the army, he stood on the bank of the Oka River, but Temir Aksak stood in one place for fifteen days, thinking, damned, to go to the whole Russian land in order, like the new Batu, to ruin the Christians.

The faithful and Christ-loving Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, autocrat of the Russian land, heard about the plans for the Orthodox faith of that faithless, fierce and terrible tormentor and destroyer Aksak Temir the Tsar; the God-loving Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, raising his hands to the sky, prayed with tears, saying: “Our creator and protector, Lord, Lord, look from your holy dwelling, look - and humble that barbarian and those with him, who dared to blaspheme the great holy your name and your most pure, all-immaculate Mother! Our intercessor, Lord, let not the barbarian say: “Where is their God?” For you are our God, who opposes the proud! Arise, O Lord, to help your servants, look at your humble servants! Do not allow, Lord, this damned enemy to revile us, for your strength is incomparable to anything and your kingdom is indestructible! Listen to the speech of this barbarian, deliver us and our city from the cursed and godless king Temir Aksak.”<…>

The prince also ordered his governors, rulers, and city governors to strengthen the fortifications and gather all the soldiers. They, having heard the command of their master, gathered noble people and the entire city and strengthened the defense.

The blessed Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, remembering the deliverance of the reigning city, when our most pure mistress, the Mother of God, preserved capital city from the invasion of the pagan Tsar Khozroy, he decided to send for the icon of our most pure Lady Theotokos. The God-loving Cyprian, Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus', having heard this order of his master, Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, sent servants of the great cathedral church of the Holy Mother of God, which is in Vladimir, to the old and glorious city of Vladimir for the icon of our Most Pure Lady Theotokos. The archpriest consulted with the servants, they took the Most Pure Wonderful Icon and carried it from the city of Vladimir to Moscow, out of fear of Temir Aksak of the Tatar, who, as we heard, happened in legends, was somewhere there, far away, where the sun rises, but now here, at the door, he approached - and was getting ready, sharpening his temper at us. And then it was the fifteenth day of the month of August, the very feast of the glorious Dormition of our Lady Theotokos, the companion of the Virgin Mary, they went out to see off the wonderful icon, which they celebrated with honor, with faith and love, with horror and anguish, with crying, far out of town, and in great faith many tears were shed.<…>

So, by God's grace, ineffable mercy, through the prayers of the Holy Mother of God, our city of Moscow remained safe and sound, and Temir Aksak the Tsar returned back and went to his land. What a glorious miracle! What a great wonder! What mercy for the Christian people! On the very day when they brought the icon of the Most Pure Mother of God from Vladimir to Moscow, on the same day Temir Aksak the Tsar was frightened, and frightened, and horrified, and fell into confusion, and fear and trembling came over him, fear invaded his heart and horror entered his soul, trembling entered his bones, and immediately he refused and was afraid to fight the Russian land, and the desire to quickly go to Return trip, and quickly rushed into the Horde, showing Rus' his rear, and turned home with his fellow tribesmen; They returned without success, fell into confusion and hesitated, as if someone was persecuting them. It was not we who persecuted them, but God expelled them with the invisible power of his and his most pure Mother, our quick intercessor in troubles, and the prayer of his saint, the God-loving His Grace Peter, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Rus', the firm intercessor of our city of Moscow and the prayer book of our city of Moscow from the troubles that come upon us; sent fear and trembling upon them so that they froze in place.<…>

It was not our governors who drove away Temir Aksak, it was not our troops that frightened him, but fear and trembling fell upon him with an invisible force, he was frightened by the fear of God, he was expelled by the wrath of God and left the Russian land without booty, retreating to where he came from, the Russian land barely touching her, he did not violate her, did not deprive her, did not harm her in any way, but left without looking back. We stood up and stood openly, but he, lowering himself, disappeared; we came to life and were healed, for the Lord, who created heaven and earth, gave us help.

The noble Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, having heard about the departure of the cursed and evil Tsar Temir Aksak, returned again to his possessions, to the city of Moscow, and was met by the God-loving Cyprian, Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus', with crosses and icons, with archdeacons and archimandrites , with the abbots, with the priests and with the deacons, and all the Christian people with great joy. The blessed Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, and the saint, and all the people with tears raised their hands to the sky and offered gratitude, saying: “Your right hand, O Lord, was glorified by firmness, your right hand, Lord, crushed enemies, and with the greatness of your glory you erased our opponents,” for the insane Temir Aksak, having come with many countless troops, left in disgrace.

The blessed Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich, entering the temple of our most pure Lady Theotokos, saw the miraculous icon of our most pure Lady Theotokos of Vladimir; falling with tenderness before the face of the holy icon, shed heartfelt tears from his eyes and said: “I thank you, most pure lady, our most immaculate mistress Theotokos, sovereign helper of Christians, for showing us protection and firmness; You, madam, delivered us and our city from the evil king Temir Aksak.” The noble Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich and the God-loving Archbishop Cyprian, Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus', soon commanded, at the place where they met the miraculous icon of the Most Pure Mother of God, to erect a church in the name of the Most Pure Mother of God, her glorious meeting in memory of that unforgettable mercy of God, so as not to people have forgotten the works of God. The same church was consecrated by the Metropolitan himself, a monastery was erected, and the abbot and the brethren were ordered to live here. And from then on, they decided to celebrate the holiday in the month of August on the twenty-sixth day, on the day of remembrance of the holy martyrs Andrean and Natalia. This same wonderful icon of the Holy Mother of God was painted by the hand of the holy Apostle and Evangelist Luke. We, the sinful servants of Christ, having heard about this miracle of our Lord Jesus Christ and his most pure mother, the Theotokos, decided to write all this down for the glory of the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and his most pure mother, our mistress Theotokos, intercessor of the Christian people. Through her prayers, Christ our God, have mercy on us now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

This miraculous deliverance from the threat allowed Rus' to take a breath. In 1392, Sergius of Radonezh died, and in 1396, Stefan of Perm, who baptized the Zyryans (Komi) and Permians; Feofan the Greek painted Cathedral of the Archangel and the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, Andrei Rublev and Daniil Cherny painted the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir. Andrei Rublev painted an icon of the Holy Trinity for the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. A few years later (in 1408), Prince Vasily - strife continued in the Horde, and rulers changed one after another - again refused to pay tribute to the Mongols. And, like his father Dmitry, the prince thereby brought trouble to Rus': Tokhtamysh came to punish Dmitry, and the military leader Edigei came to punish Vasily.

Tamerlane (Timur ibn Taragai Barlas) 1336 - 1405

Let's leave pictures, humor and politics aside. Let's plunge into history... into the mysteries of history...

In the 14th century in Rus' there were many smart people, who understood that Mamai, beaten by Dmitry Donskoy, especially who managed to go south with a significant part of his army, was not the last and not the most terrible enemy of Rus'.

Wreathed in glory, triumphant Russian army was returning home. It seemed to everyone that from now on Rus' would be free. But in fact, as the wise historian Karamzin writes, the Battle of Kulikovo “did not have those important direct consequences that Dmitry and the people expected... It has not yet stopped the misfortunes of Russia, but proved the revival of its strength.”

Dmitry, being primarily a skilled politician, forgave the traitor Oleg Ryazansky and did not aggravate relations with the Lithuanian prince Jogaila.

And then the Iron Lame appeared on the political stage, great conqueror Tamerlane, from the same Mongol tribes as Genghis Khan. In those years when Dmitry led Russian troops to the Don, Tamerlane became close to Khan Tokhtamysh, expelled from the Volga uluses. Tokhtamysh initially decided to regain power over the Golden Horde and took advantage of the fact that Mamai was drained of blood and his authority had fallen quite low. After all, in the eyes of his compatriots, he was beaten by a slave, a vassal.

It is not surprising that Tokhtamysh completely defeated Mamai. He fled to the Crimea, to Cafa, where the Genoese poisoned him just in case. Nobody needs former rulers.

Tokhtamysh reigned over the Horde and sent word to Moscow that he had defeated the “common enemy.” Dmitry was glad to resume good relations with the Horde. He did not intend to fight with her. He sent Tokhtamysh rich gifts. But for the Tatars there was no question of any friendship. In order to establish himself on the throne, Tokhtamysh was absolutely necessary to put the Russians in their place, to humiliate them, to raze them to the ground.

Many understood this in Moscow as well. And Dmitry’s eternal rival, the traitor Oleg Ryazansky, has already rushed to Tokhtamysh, offering him an alliance against Moscow. There was no agreement in the Russian camp. Even Dmitry's father-in-law, Prince Dimitry of Nizhny Novgorod, sent his sons to the Horde with gifts. Every day my confidence in my abilities fell. In those years, Rus' could once rise up against the rule of the Tatars, but two years later it was unable to repeat this feat.

And most importantly, the main leaders of Rus', to whom the eyes of the population were turned, did not have confidence in their abilities. By rebelling against the Tatars, Moscow enraged the weakening but still formidable Horde beast. Moreover, behind him stood the great and invincible Tamerlane himself, who at that time was breaking down the Asian states one after another.

Moscow, where Tokhtamysh moved with his army, was big city, surrounded by fortified walls and densely populated. So, with organized resistance to the enemy, with the determination to defend the city, no one would have taken Moscow. But in history textbooks it is not customary to write about what happened to the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo. And I will give the floor to the cautious monarchist Karamzin, who never allowed himself an extra bad word about the Russian rulers. And this is what happens in his “History”, even when he wants to be extremely polite: “ Grand Duke Having lost his courage, he decided that it was better to defend himself in fortresses than to seek death in the field. He retired to Kostroma with his wife and children, wanting to gather more troops there..."

Last words - pure lie, because Dmitry Donskoy sat on the edge of the impassable Kostroma forests and did not gather any troops. And it is not entirely clear why it is more convenient to defend in the weak fortress of Kostroma than in fortified Moscow? Following Dmitry, Metropolitan Cyprian, head of the Orthodox Church. He disappeared into Tver. And behind them, all the governors, commanders, boyars - everyone who could - left the capital.

And do you know who took over the defense of Moscow when half of the inhabitants fled from there after the leaders? Young Lithuanian prince Ostey! The most amazing thing is that the city, abandoned by the princes and abandoned by the church, skillfully resisted Tokhtamysh. The desperate assault continued for three days, and Moscow held out. It became clear to Tokhtamysh that he could not take the city. And even if it falls White City, the defenders can retreat to the Kremlin.

And then Tokhtamysh sent an embassy to Moscow with an offer of honorable peace. The embassy was headed by the princes of Nizhny Novgorod, who obediently arrived in a Tatar convoy. The princes swore that they would vouch for the Tatars. The Duma gathered - everyone there was older and more noble than the Lithuanian youth. And of course they voted for peace. And Prince Ostey was sent with a deputation to Tokhtamysh to negotiate the terms of surrender.

Tokhtamysh invited Ostey to enter his tent first. And you should have seen with what pleasure the khan’s guards attacked the young man! The khan himself slashed Ostey with a dagger and cut off his head. Well, then the city was given over to the army for plunder. Let us again give the floor to Karamzin: “This populous capital was once seething with wealth and glory, but in one day its beauty perished, leaving only smoke, ashes, bloody ground, corpses and empty burnt churches.”

The only prince who dared to fight the Tatars was his unloved Dmitry younger brother Vladimir, who with a small detachment hurried to the aid of Moscow and defeated one of the khan’s detachments. And Tokhtamysh himself, whose convoy was immensely burdened with booty and slaves, immediately after that battle began to retreat.

Then Dmitry Donskoy appeared, terribly upset by what had happened, and ordered the gravediggers to be given a ruble for every eighty buried bodies. And in total he gave them three hundred rubles. Multiply and you will understand how many people died in Moscow 2 years after the Battle of Kulikovo. And then triple this figure, because it did not include tens of thousands of prisoners and many thousands of those who drowned and burned.

Probably after this Dmitry Donskoy hastened to catch up and approximately punish Tokhtamysh? Nothing like this! He gathered an army and went to the city of Ryazan, which was also plundered by the Tatars, but where his enemy Oleg ruled. And what did Dmitry Donskoy’s army do? Word to Karamzin: “Dmitrie’s army, frenzied with anger, completely devastated Ryazan, considering it a nest of treason and blaming the inhabitants for their zeal for Oleg.”

Then Dmitry roughly punished the metropolitan, informing Tver that he was exchanging Cyprian for Pimen. Well, after these decisive steps, he sent his son Vasily to the Horde to ask Tokhtamysh for friendship and mercy. Honestly! There is no secret in everything that I have told you, except for the fact that you did not learn about it at school. But there is a mystery in subsequent events. And you can learn about it from any historical work.

The fact is that the great conqueror Tamerlane discovered with some surprise that Khan Tokhtamysh, whom he warmed up, whom he helped in the war with Mamai and whom he supported in intrigues within the Horde, suddenly got out of control and declared that the time had come to deal with Tamerlane . He gathered troops from all over the Horde and soon suffered a decisive defeat from Timur, so decisive that even Tamerlane’s ordinary soldiers received one hundred head of cattle per capita.

This happened in 1391. The loot from Rus' went into the treasury of Tamerlane. Of course, Tokhtamysh’s defeat did not teach him anything, and three years later he gathered an army larger than before, and was defeated again on the Terek River. He had to flee with the pitiful remnants of his troops.

Tamerlane decided that he should not step on the same rake for the third time. We will have to go through the Horde with fire and sword and deprive it of the opportunity to be reborn. Tamerlane climbed the Volga to present-day Saratov, and then turned to the Dnieper. He destroyed the troops of Tokhtamysh’s commanders one by one. The Horde suffered a catastrophic defeat and devastation.

If we turn to the Arab chronicles, which describe Tamerlane’s campaign through the lands subject to the Golden Horde, we learn that Timur soon reached the city of Moscow. The chronicler spent many lines describing the booty captured in this city. “Whole packs of beavers glittered, there were also countless numbers of black sables, so many bunches of ermines that you couldn’t count them...” And so on. The chroniclers were especially struck by Russian women, like roses. After Moscow, Tamerlane went to the poop, to Azov, a rich trading port, where he killed all non-Muslims, and then rushed to the capital of the Horde, Sarai, from which he also left nothing.

Another eastern source says that Timur, having conquered the Bulgars on the Volga, went to Moscow and besieged the city of Vladimir. Then he wondered whether it was worth going further to the borders of the North, and then Saint Khizr appeared to him and ordered him to show the Russians his invincible strength. Timur picked up a two-year-old stallion and threw him at the fortress tower of Vladimir. The tower, of course, collapsed, and Tamerlane shouted so loudly that all the soldiers “lost their tongues from fear and a terrible pallor covered their entire face.”

What do our chronicles say about Timur’s campaign against Russian lands? It turns out that they don’t really remember this trip. Various chronicles even indicate different dates. Although if we turn to the sources of that time, it turns out that upon the news of the defeat of Tokhtamysh and the appearance of Tamerlane on the Volga, Rus' was gripped by horror. What was still missing was a new Batu invasion! Moreover, after the defeats recent years Rus' did not have time to regain its strength.

Dmitry Donskoy had already died by that time, while still a relatively young man. The throne was taken by young Vasily, his son, who spent a long time as a hostage in the Horde, and then returned home across all of Europe. Vasily began to gather troops, but the mood in Moscow was depressing. Nobody believed in victory. Then, on the advice of the boyars, Vasily sent people to Vladimir, where the miraculous icon of the Vladimir Mother of God was kept in the cathedral, and it was transferred to Moscow. The people of Vladimir were in grief and mourning, but all the way to Moscow people stood along the road on their knees - the icon seemed to them the last defender of the fatherland.

What happened next, from the point of view of Muscovites, is described in the chronicles of those days: “Tamerlane had a dream - high mountain and from it the Saints with golden rods coming towards him. Above them, in a radiant radiance, appeared a wife of unwritten splendor and grandeur, surrounded by darkness of lightning-like warriors, who all menacingly rushed towards Tamerlane. He trembled, woke up and, calling the nobles, asked them about the meaning of such a dream. This majestic wife, they answered, is the Mother of God, the protector of Christians. And so we will not defeat them, said the Chagatai monarch, and ordered his regiments to go back.”

So the Mother of God (or most likely, it was the Vladimir Icon) influenced Tamerlane from a distance. And he didn’t go to any Rus' at all.

So there are three versions. According to one, Tamerlane took Moscow and ruined Rus', according to the second, he limited himself to throwing a stallion at the wall of Vladimir, and according to the third, he was so frightened when he saw the Mother of God of Vladimir in a dream that he turned back. Is it really impossible to establish what really happened? It turns out that it is possible.

The external side of the events is still unraveling, because “journalists” worked under Tamerlane’s army and recorded events day after day. And then it becomes clear that there is a fourth version. Along it, having ravaged the Golden Horde, Tamerlane moved northwest, towards Rus'. He reached the city of Yelets.

Yelets was a small town that lay in the steppe between Russia and the Horde. He was so insignificant that his princes are not even included in any list of Russian chronicles. Although it is known that Prince Fyodor, a tributary of Oleg Ryazansky, was sitting there. But from Ryazan to Yelets it was necessary to get across deserted land. About her in “The Journey of Metropolitan Pimen from Moscow to Constantinople” it is said: “The traveling procession was sad and gloomy everywhere, no city, no village... everything was empty and not inhabited.”

The huge army took Yelets without difficulty; most likely, he did not resist. But the Tatars did not find any valuables there. And then Tamerlane stopped... froze... There was no such thing in the history of his campaigns that a gigantic army stood aimlessly in place for two weeks under the torrential rains of early autumn. And then Tamerlane ordered to turn south...

When the news of Tamerlane's departure reached trembling Moscow, celebrations began there. It was officially announced that the Vladimir Icon saved Moscow. And so that there would be no doubt, they immediately began to erect a stone temple in her honor. But the mystery remained. And no one, except the unfortunate Yelets prince Fyodor and his few subjects, ever saw the terrible Iron Lame.

If we put it together existing theories, then we can imagine the most likely explanation for Tamerlane’s behavior. End of August. Rains. There are dense unknown forests ahead. The town of Yelets, which sacrificed itself to save all of Rus', turned out to be such a poor backwater that it made no sense to conquer it. At the same time, spies from the north report that the Muscovites are gathering troops and intend to fight. In the cold. In the rain, on muddy roads... And for what? Tamerlane is well aware that Tokhtamysh completely plundered Rus' thirteen years ago, took out everything he could, and burned everything he couldn’t take out.

And why, one might ask, lead armies to the north when so many rich kingdoms and cities await in the warm south? Tamerlane was a very calculating and cold thinker. For two weeks he weighed the pros and cons. I listened to spies and “analysts” for two weeks. And he left to plunder Azov, burn Astrakhan and Sarai. And he continued to do this for another ten years, until his untimely death.

There is a limit to the patience and genetic survival of a nation. And it’s scary to think what would have happened to ruined, humiliated Russia if another skating rink of ruthless killers had rolled through its poor villages and half-burnt cities.

Or maybe Timur did have a prophetic dream?

By the time the campaign against Rus' began, Tamerlane was already famous commander, which conquered many countries. He was deservedly called “invincible.”

Even on those troubled times he was distinguished by his ruthlessness and cruelty. Rus' was weakened first by the invasion of Mamai, then by the campaign of Tokhtamysh. Tamerlane's army could conquer almost effortlessly Russian state, but that didn't happen.

Historians are unanimous in describing why Tamerlane went to Rus'. The commander pursued his main enemy at that time, the Golden Horde Khan Tokhtamysh. The conflict between them flared up several years before Tamerlane's campaign. Initially, Tokhtamysh enjoyed the support of Tamerlane - he helped him in the fight against Mamai and intrigues within the Horde, but, having received power, Tokhtamysh began to think about getting rid of his patron.

In 1391 he collected Horde army and attacked Tamerlane. He completely defeated his former protege - they even got rich booty ordinary soldiers Tamerlane. Three years later, Tokhtamysh tried to take revenge. And again without success. The enraged Tamerlane decided to destroy the Horde completely: he gathered an army and began to destroy the armies of the commanders of Tokhtamysh. Having ruined the Horde, Tamerlane moved to Rus'.

He reached Yelets and easily destroyed the small town. Historian Sergey Soloviev wrote: “Tamerlane, having captured the ruler of Yelets with all his boyars, moved to the upper reaches of the Don and walked along the banks of this river, devastating the villages. Famous Persian historian this time Sherefeddin“, loving to praise the virtues of his hero, admits that Tamerlane, like Batu, strewn the fields in Russia with corpses, killing not warriors, but only unarmed people.” The commander moved towards Moscow, but without even starting the assault, he deployed his army and left the borders of Rus'. There are still theories as to why this happened.

Intercession of the Virgin Mary

In Orthodoxy, Tamerlane's retreat is considered one of the miracles revealed by the icon of the Vladimir Mother of God. Having learned about the approach of Tamerlane, Prince Vasily left with an army near Kolomna. Metropolitan Cyprian gave his blessing for the fight young prince and equipped an embassy to Vladimir. The icon was carried to Moscow in a religious procession. The chronicles say that on the day the icon arrived in Moscow (August 26, 1395), Tamerlane had a dream: the Mother of God ordered him to leave Russian borders. Later, Cyprian founded the Sretensky Monastery at the meeting place of the icon.

Lack of rich loot

Sergei Soloviev adhered to this version. He wrote that the booty from Yelets and several small towns of the Ryazan principality could not satisfy Tamerlane’s commanders, spoiled by rich trophies. Arab sources, on the contrary, indicated that during his journey to the upper reaches of the Don, Tamerlane received furs, fine linen, and ingots of silver and gold. The “chronicler” of Tamerlane’s victories, Sharafaddin Yazdi, also describes large booty, but does not mention a single episode of the battle. Perhaps gifts were brought to the commander by princes who sought to protect their lands from raids.

Strategic interests

Autumn was approaching and weather were not conducive to a long hike. Muscovites were also preparing for battle; the army of the Lithuanian prince Vitovt came to their aid.

The Russians, as tributaries of the Horde, had to take the side of Tokhtamysh and fight for him, but the invasion of the khan and the defeat of Moscow in 1382 did not contribute to this. Prince Vasily was ready to give battle to Tamerlane, but was not ready to support his enemy. Only having recently become a prince in 1389, Vasily did not come to the aid of Tokhtamysh. Perhaps the commander was aware of this as well. Tamerlane, after all his victorious campaigns, for example, against Persia and Iran, did not really need Rus'.

Much more important for him was the final defeat of the Horde. The commander went to Yelets with one goal - to catch up with one of the Horde military leaders, Bek-Yaryk-Oglan. He was able to escape Tamerlane’s army at the Dnieper and fled to the east. In the west there were Lithuanian possessions, where the Horde commander was also not favored. He hid in Yelets. After the fall of the city, he managed to escape further into the depths of Rus'.

According to the chronicles, Tamerlane spent two weeks thinking about future plans near Yelets. Some historians write that the army did not like this delay and began to grumble. The commander went back through the Crimean Peninsula and into Transcaucasia, defeating important Horde cities. In these territories he was able to collect a good tribute in order to return triumphantly to Samarkand.

The Battle of Kulikovo, no matter how significant it was, did not determine the subsequent history of the Moscow Principality and Rus' as a whole. On the contrary, in my opinion, it served as the beginning of the bloodiest and most unhappy decades of our history. We see, know and study what was beneficial for the rulers of Russia both then and today to know, see and study. The real drama was played out by the same characters who met on the Kulikovo Field, but they played completely different roles.

In the 14th century in Rus' there were many smart people who understood that Mamai, who was beaten by Dmitry Donskoy, especially who managed to go south with a significant part of his army, was not the last and not the most terrible enemy of Rus'.

The triumphant Russian army, covered in glory, returned home. It seemed to everyone that from now on Rus' would be free. But in fact, as the wise historian Karamzin writes, the Battle of Kulikovo “did not have those important direct consequences that Dmitry and the people expected... It has not yet stopped the misfortunes of Russia, but proved the revival of its strength.”

Dmitry, being primarily a skilled politician, forgave the traitor Oleg Ryazansky and did not aggravate relations with the Lithuanian prince Jogaila.

And then the Iron Lame, the great conqueror Tamerlane, from the same Mongol tribes as Genghis Khan, appeared on the political scene. In those years when Dmitry led Russian troops to the Don, Tamerlane became close to Khan Tokhtamysh, expelled from the Volga uluses. Tokhtamysh initially decided to regain power over the Golden Horde and took advantage of the fact that Mamai was drained of blood and his authority had fallen quite low. After all, in the eyes of his compatriots, he was beaten by a slave, a vassal.

It is not surprising that Tokhtamysh completely defeated Mamai. He fled to the Crimea, to Cafa, where the Genoese poisoned him just in case. Nobody needs former rulers.

Tokhtamysh reigned over the Horde and sent word to Moscow that he had defeated the “common enemy.” Dmitry was glad to resume good relations with the Horde. He did not intend to fight with her. He sent Tokhtamysh rich gifts. But for the Tatars there was no question of any friendship. In order to establish himself on the throne, Tokhtamysh was absolutely necessary to put the Russians in their place, to humiliate them, to raze them to the ground.

Many understood this in Moscow as well. And Dmitry’s eternal rival, the traitor Oleg Ryazansky, has already rushed to Tokhtamysh, offering him an alliance against Moscow. There was no agreement in the Russian camp. Even Dmitry's father-in-law, Prince Dimitry of Nizhny Novgorod, sent his sons to the Horde with gifts. Every day my confidence in my abilities fell. In those years, Rus' could once rise up against the rule of the Tatars, but two years later it was unable to repeat this feat.

And most importantly, the main leaders of Rus', to whom the eyes of the population were turned, did not have confidence in their abilities. By rebelling against the Tatars, Moscow enraged the weakening but still formidable Horde beast. Moreover, behind him stood the great and invincible Tamerlane himself, who at that time was breaking down the Asian states one after another.

Moscow, where Tokhtamysh moved with his army, was a large city, surrounded by walls and densely populated. So, with organized resistance to the enemy, with the determination to defend the city, no one would have taken Moscow. But in history textbooks it is not customary to write about what happened to the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo. And I will give the floor to the cautious monarchist Karamzin, who never allowed himself an extra bad word about the Russian rulers. And this is what happens in his “History,” even when he wants to be extremely polite: “The Grand Duke, having lost his courage, decided that it was better to defend himself in fortresses than to seek death in the field. He retired to Kostroma with his wife and children, wanting to gather more troops there..."

The last words are a complete lie, because Dmitry Donskoy was sitting on the edge of the impassable Kostroma forests and did not gather any troops. And it is not entirely clear why it is more convenient to defend in the weak fortress of Kostroma than in fortified Moscow? Following Dmitry, Metropolitan Cyprian, the head of the Orthodox Church, fled from Moscow. He disappeared into Tver. And behind them, all the governors, commanders, boyars - everyone who could - left the capital.

And do you know who took over the defense of Moscow when half of the inhabitants fled from there after the leaders? Young Lithuanian Prince Ostej! The most amazing thing is that the city, abandoned by the princes and abandoned by the church, skillfully resisted Tokhtamysh. The desperate assault continued for three days, and Moscow held out. It became clear to Tokhtamysh that he could not take the city. And even if the White City falls, the defenders can retreat to the Kremlin.

And then Tokhtamysh sent an embassy to Moscow with an offer of honorable peace. The embassy was headed by the princes of Nizhny Novgorod, who obediently arrived in a Tatar convoy. The princes swore that they would vouch for the Tatars. The Duma gathered - everyone there was older and more noble than the Lithuanian youth. And of course they voted for peace. And Prince Ostey was sent with a deputation to Tokhtamysh to negotiate the terms of surrender.

Tokhtamysh invited Ostey to enter his tent first. And you should have seen with what pleasure the khan’s guards attacked the young man! The khan himself slashed Ostey with a dagger and cut off his head. Well, then the city was given over to the army for plunder. Let us again give the floor to Karamzin: “This populous capital was once seething with wealth and glory, but in one day its beauty perished, leaving only smoke, ashes, bloody ground, corpses and empty burnt churches.”

The only prince who dared to fight the Tatars was his younger brother Vladimir, unloved by Dmitry, who with a small detachment hurried to the aid of Moscow and defeated one of the khan’s detachments. And Tokhtamysh himself, whose convoy was immensely burdened with booty and slaves, immediately after that battle began to retreat.

Then Dmitry Donskoy appeared, terribly upset by what had happened, and ordered the gravediggers to be given a ruble for every eighty buried bodies. And in total he gave them three hundred rubles. Multiply and you will understand how many people died in Moscow 2 years after the Battle of Kulikovo. And then triple this figure, because it did not include tens of thousands of prisoners and many thousands of those who drowned and burned.

Probably after this Dmitry Donskoy hastened to catch up and approximately punish Tokhtamysh? Nothing like this! He gathered an army and went to the city of Ryazan, which was also plundered by the Tatars, but where his enemy Oleg ruled. And what did Dmitry Donskoy’s army do? Word to Karamzin: “Dmitrie’s army, frenzied with anger, completely devastated Ryazan, considering it a nest of treason and blaming the inhabitants for their zeal for Oleg.”

Then Dmitry roughly punished the metropolitan, informing Tver that he was exchanging Cyprian for Pimen. Well, after these decisive steps, he sent his son Vasily to the Horde to ask Tokhtamysh for friendship and mercy. Honestly! There is no secret in everything that I have told you, except for the fact that you did not learn about it at school. But there is a mystery in subsequent events. And you can learn about it from any historical work.

The fact is that the great conqueror Tamerlane discovered with some surprise that Khan Tokhtamysh, whom he warmed up, whom he helped in the war with Mamai and whom he supported in intrigues within the Horde, suddenly got out of control and declared that the time had come to deal with Tamerlane . He gathered troops from all over the Horde and soon suffered a decisive defeat from Timur, so decisive that even Tamerlane’s ordinary soldiers received one hundred head of cattle per capita.

This happened in 1391. The loot from Rus' went into the treasury of Tamerlane. Of course, Tokhtamysh’s defeat did not teach him anything, and three years later he gathered an army larger than before, and was defeated again on the Terek River. He had to flee with the pitiful remnants of his troops.

Tamerlane decided that he should not step on the same rake for the third time. We will have to go through the Horde with fire and sword and deprive it of the opportunity to be reborn. Tamerlane climbed the Volga to present-day Saratov, and then turned to the Dnieper. He destroyed the troops of Tokhtamysh’s commanders one by one. The Horde suffered a catastrophic defeat and devastation.

And then the mysteries begin.

If we turn to the Arab chronicles, which describe Tamerlane’s campaign through the lands subject to the Golden Horde, we learn that Timur soon reached the city of Moscow. The chronicler spent many lines describing the booty captured in this city. “Whole packs of beavers glittered, there were also countless numbers of black sables, so many bunches of ermines that you couldn’t count them...” And so on. The chroniclers were especially struck by Russian women, like roses. After Moscow, Tamerlane went to the poop, to Azov, a rich trading port, where he killed all non-Muslims, and then rushed to the capital of the Horde, Sarai, from which he also left nothing.

Another eastern source says that Timur, having conquered the Bulgars on the Volga, went to Moscow and besieged the city of Vladimir. Then he wondered whether it was worth going further to the borders of the North, and then Saint Khizr appeared to him and ordered him to show the Russians his invincible strength. Timur picked up a two-year-old stallion and threw him at the fortress tower of Vladimir. The tower, of course, collapsed, and Tamerlane shouted so loudly that all the soldiers “lost their tongues from fear and a terrible pallor covered their entire face.”

What do our chronicles say about Timur’s campaign against Russian lands? It turns out that they don’t really remember this trip. Different chronicles even indicate different dates. Although if we turn to the sources of that time, it turns out that upon the news of the defeat of Tokhtamysh and the appearance of Tamerlane on the Volga, Rus' was gripped by horror. What was still missing was a new Batu invasion! Moreover, after the defeats of recent years, Rus' did not have time to regain its strength.

Dmitry Donskoy had already died by that time, while still a relatively young man. The throne was taken by young Vasily, his son, who spent a long time as a hostage in the Horde, and then returned home across all of Europe. Vasily began to gather troops, but the mood in Moscow was depressing. Nobody believed in victory. Then, on the advice of the boyars, Vasily sent people to Vladimir, where the miraculous icon of the Vladimir Mother of God was kept in the cathedral, and it was transferred to Moscow. The people of Vladimir were in grief and mourning, but all the way to Moscow people stood along the road on their knees - the icon seemed to them the last defender of the fatherland.

What happened next, from the point of view of Muscovites, is described in the chronicles of those days: “Tamerlane saw a dream - a high mountain and from it Saints walking towards him with golden rods. Above them, in a radiant radiance, appeared a wife of unwritten splendor and grandeur, surrounded by darkness of lightning-like warriors, who all menacingly rushed towards Tamerlane. He trembled, woke up and, calling the nobles, asked them about the meaning of such a dream. This majestic wife, they answered, is the Mother of God, the protector of Christians. And so we will not defeat them, said the Chagatai monarch, and ordered his regiments to go back.”

So the Mother of God (or most likely, it was the Vladimir Icon) influenced Tamerlane from a distance. And he didn’t go to any Rus' at all.

So there are three versions. According to one, Tamerlane took Moscow and ruined Rus', according to the second, he limited himself to throwing a stallion at the wall of Vladimir, and according to the third, he was so frightened when he saw the Mother of God of Vladimir in a dream that he turned back. Is it really impossible to establish what really happened? It turns out that it is possible.

The external side of the events is still unraveling, because “journalists” worked under Tamerlane’s army and recorded events day after day. And then it becomes clear that there is a fourth version. Along it, having ravaged the Golden Horde, Tamerlane moved northwest, towards Rus'. He reached the city of Yelets.

Yelets was a small town that lay in the steppe between Russia and the Horde. He was so insignificant that his princes are not even included in any list of Russian chronicles. Although it is known that Prince Fyodor, a tributary of Oleg Ryazansky, was sitting there. But from Ryazan to Yelets it was necessary to get across deserted land. About her in “The Journey of Metropolitan Pimen from Moscow to Constantinople” it is said: “The traveling procession was sad and gloomy everywhere, no city, no village... everything was empty and not inhabited.”

The huge army took Yelets without difficulty; most likely, he did not resist. But the Tatars did not find any valuables there. And then Tamerlane stopped... froze... There was no such thing in the history of his campaigns that a gigantic army stood aimlessly in place for two weeks under the torrential rains of early autumn. And then Tamerlane ordered to turn south...

When the news of Tamerlane's departure reached trembling Moscow, celebrations began there. It was officially announced that the Vladimir Icon saved Moscow. And so that there would be no doubt, they immediately began to erect a stone temple in her honor. But the mystery remained. And no one, except the unfortunate Yelets prince Fyodor and his few subjects, ever saw the terrible Iron Lame.

If we put together existing theories, we can present the most likely explanation for Tamerlane’s behavior. End of August. Rains. There are dense unknown forests ahead. The town of Yelets, which sacrificed itself to save all of Rus', turned out to be such a poor backwater that it made no sense to conquer it. At the same time, spies from the north report that the Muscovites are gathering troops and intend to fight. In the cold. In the rain, on muddy roads... And for what? Tamerlane is well aware that Tokhtamysh completely plundered Rus' thirteen years ago, took out everything he could, and burned everything he couldn’t take out.

And why, one might ask, lead armies to the north when so many rich kingdoms and cities await in the warm south? Tamerlane was a very calculating and cold thinker. For two weeks he weighed the pros and cons. I listened to spies and “analysts” for two weeks. And he left to plunder Azov, burn Astrakhan and Sarai. And he continued to do this for another ten years, until his untimely death.

There is a limit to the patience and genetic survival of a nation. And it’s scary to think what would have happened to ruined, humiliated Russia if another skating rink of ruthless killers had rolled through its poor villages and half-burnt cities.

Or maybe Timur did have a prophetic dream?

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