The Battle of Poltava is one of the significant victories of the Russian troops. This event dates back to the Great Northern War of 1700-1721. between Russia and Sweden, when two strong opponents clashed.
The reason for the war is access to the Baltic
The Russians needed access to the Baltic Sea. By the beginning of the 18th century, as a result of the current difficult foreign policy situation, there was a great risk of losing it. Most importantly, trade in the Baltic Sea was controlled by Sweden, which charged huge customs duties. Not only could it not be beneficial for Russia, it also did not have direct contact with Western countries.
A similar situation was resolved in the course of a difficult long Northern War. The command of the troops was taken over by Peter the Great, who recently entered the Russian throne. It is worth saying that Sweden turned out to be an insidious and powerful adversary, and Charles XII was a wise ruler and a brave warrior.
Interestingly, the beginning of the Northern War was a failure for Peter. This was due to the beginning of the reorganization in the Russian army. The first major battle near Narva in 1700 turned out to be devastating. The Swedish king was jubilant: it is unlikely that Russia will be able to recover from such a serious defeat.
However, the culmination of the Northern War was the Battle of Poltava in 1709. By this time, the war was going on with varying success: the Swedes had already suffered a number of defeats, but they were advancing on the territory of Russia. The Swedish command decided to capture the city of Poltava. It seemed an easy task: a small city with a population of 4 thousand could hardly offer strong resistance. However, this calculation failed Karl.
The Swedes laid siege to the city, placed explosives under its walls. However, the Russians had a counterattack to such a blow: they dug explosives at night, fought light battles during the day and prepared for a decisive battle.
Troops arrived to the aid of the Poltava residents under the leadership of the irreplaceable assistant of Peter the Great Menshikov. It is interesting that the Swedes undertook a number of sorties in the hope of penetrating the Poltava walls into the city, but they were repulsed by the Russians.
Devastating battle
The reason for the outbreak of hostilities was the escape of a German soldier from the Russian army. Peter suspected that he could go over to the side of the enemy, so he changed the battle plan with the Swedes. And it was no longer possible to hesitate. It is noteworthy that on the evening of June on the eve of the battle, Peter I toured his troops and addressed the soldiers with patriotic speeches. The story goes that the Swedish king did the same with his army.
On June 27 (July 8), 1709, the turning point of the Northern War took place, marked by the victory of the Russian troops in the battle called Poltava. The battle began early in the morning, after dark. Charles XII decided not to wait and ordered his cavalry to advance. However, the Russian soldiers soon overcame the Swedish cavalry. The infantry went on the offensive.
It is worth saying that the battle at Poltava lasted more than one hour. By the way, the Russian troops turned out to be several thousand more than the Swedes. But this was not the decisive factor. The Swedes and the Russians fought both on horseback and hand-to-hand. The dedication of the soldiers led Russia to victory in this battle. The Swedish army was completely drained of blood. The Swedish king, together with the Russian traitor Mazepa, fled to Bender.
