Smolensk Fortress (Russia)
Smolensk Fortress
Smolensk Fortress (often called the Smolensk Kremlin) is a defensive construction built in 1595-1602 under the rule of Tsar Fedor Ioannovich and Boris Godunov. The city of Smolensk has always been the “key to the Moscow state”, Russia’s guard on its western border. Hardly any big war in Europe during the last 500 years has not touched it: at the time of both Russian-Polish-Lithuanian wars, the Patriotic war of 1812, and the Great Patriotic war of 1941-1945 Smolensk had a strategically important significance for the Moscow state, Russian Empire, and then the USSR.
Possession of Smolensk always opened a direct highway to the Russian capital – Moscow. This is the reason why the city was always surrounded by advanced and strong fortifications: at first wooden, than made of stone.
There are enough reasons to suppose that Smolensk became a fortified point before the period of the chroniclers. Probably, towns built on the Cathedral Mountain, on Shklyanaya, Tikhvin and Voznesenskaya mountains and in other locations were the first fortified tribal settlements of the eastern Balts. Smolensk’s hills (there are 12 of them) attracted ancient people by the fact that they could be quite easily fortified and turned into hardly accessible towns because of steep slopes and deep ravines that surrounded them.
Such high hilled and so burrowed with ravines area cannot be found up or down the Dnieper’s stream.
The site, on which Smolensk emerged, was noteworthy due to the fact that commercial highways crossed here; here was a key point of crucial ancient communication — trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. Originally, the city was situated ten kilometers west of today’s Smolensk. It was a big tribal center of Dnieper’s krivichi. Having assimilated the local tribes of Balts, Slavic krivichi by the IX century formed their own proto-city, in which 4-5 thousand tradesmen-warriors and craftsmen lived. Old Smolensk (today’s Gnezdovo village) controlled and served one of the most important sections of the thoroughfare from the Varangians to the Greeks: 10 kilometers to the west of the city Katynka river flows into Dnieper; there, on Katynka, was a difficult section of the route – a portage. Here the biggest burial mound was formed – the result of the city being at a busy crossroads of commercial tracks.
The first mention of the city dates back to 862 and it informs us that Smolensk is “great and many with people”. Askold and Dir were sailing by and did not dare to try to capture the city, which, no doubt, was vast in size, and one part of it was thoroughly fortified by a ground work.
In XI century a new stage of Smolensk’s establishing began. In 1054 Yaroslav the Wise’s son – Vyacheslav Yaroslavich began to rule in the city. Probably, it is at that time that under the first princes of Smolensk on the high hills of the left bank of Dnieper in the vicinity of Smiadyni the prince’s residence was erected.
The city’s citadel was the Cathedral Mountain. Its top was fenced by a wooden wall. The site of the mountain, fortified from the south, was separated from the lowland part by an artificial ditch. As early as at the time of Vladimir Monomakh (1053-1125) fortification constructions covered almost the entire territory of the city protecting the surrounding town.
They were the groundwork with a fence on top. Fortifications of the Citadel and the surrounding town looked on the high hills pretty impressive.
Gradually, on the uninhabited place a suburb grew, while Gnezdovo was at the same time declining. The suburb was freely developing on the territory along Dnieper between Bolshaya Rachevka and Churilovsky Brooks. Its eastern part received a name of Kryshelovetsky End, its western — Piatnitsky End.
In 1078, Polish prince Vseslav attacked the city; he set the fortress on fire and besieged it for a long time. Vladimir Monomakh hurried to the city’s rescue. Vseslav ended his siege and fled.
Polotsk in XII-XIII centuries constantly fought against Smolensk for its independence. Struggle between Smolensk and Novgorod was as severe. It is at that time that in Smolensk new fortifications were constructed. They were erected in 1134 by prince Rostislav Mstislavich. They were a high earthwork which stretched from the top of Georgy’s Hill and left Abramievsky monastery outside the defense line.
Round fortifications of several lines were a characteristic feature of old Russian fortresses of the XII century. “Big old wooden city”, mentioned in the older written sources is the ancient fortress of Smolensk.
The defense of the city was strengthened by stone churches and monasteries. Boris and Gleb monastery controlled dry land road to the West; Spassky monastery –– to the South. Even the Tatars were not able to seize the fortress. In spring of 1239, they did not manage to reach Smolensk. But in summer of 1333, prince of Briansk, Dmitry Romanovich, brought Tatar troops under the very walls of the city. The enemies held the fortress under siege for a long time but were forced to go away with nothing. In 1339, in winter, Smolensk was once again besieged by the Tatar troops with many Russian regiments on their side.
“And a great army pitched their camp around Smolensk but did not take the city,” –– says a chronicle.
In the next 1340, “the entire Smolensk was burned on the eve of the Savior’s Day.” This record testifies that the city’s wooden fortifications had to be kept in proper order because a danger was rising from Lithuanian side for the weakening Smolensk Princedom. And there is no doubt that they were constantly renewed and perfected. It enabled the fortress to stand against numerous Lithuanian attacks (in 1356, 1358, 1359, and 1386). Somewhere around 1392-1393, Vytautas’ protégé Gleb Sviatoslavovich sat on the throne of Smolensk Princedom. At his time the city obtained big siege guns called cartuns, from which the first ever in Russia artillery salutation was made in honor of the coming of Moscow prince Vasily Dmitrievich. In 1395, great Lithuanian prince Vytautas captured the city by shrewdness. He understood that the fortress could not be taken by storm, so he spread the rumor that he is going on a march against the Tatars. When he approached the city curious Smolensk dwellers came out with gifts to greet him and look at the Lithuanian army. A big group of Lithuanians broke into the city through the open gate.
“They did much evil in the city, took a lot of riches, led many into captivity, and executed without mercy,” –– tells us the chronicle about this event.
In the beginning of 1409, rebellious Smolensk’s residents overthrew the Lithuanian governor. Vytautas, who did not want to loose the city of great importance to him, brought his army to Smolensk and besieged it in the autumn of the same year. He brought cannons with him. But Smolensk’s dwellers organized a solid defense of the city. Not only so, they undertook frequent sorties to the Lithuanian camp and during one of such attacks seized the enemy’s new weapon –– cannons. Vytautas had to seize the siege.
Only on June 24, 1404, Vytautas at last captured the city after a long siege. Absence of prince Yuri in Smolensk, famine, illnesses and the boyars’ betrayal did their job. For 110 years Smolensk was under Lithuanian power. Vytautas granted the residents of the region special privileges trying to attach the people to himself. In this he absolutely succeeded. And in six years, in the bloodshed at Grunewald, brave Smolensk regiments proved their loyalty to him.
In 1440, an upsurge against Polish-Lithuanian gentry occurred in Smolensk, which was called “the great tumult.” That year and the next year, the city suffered severe artillery bombardments and storms until it was finally captured. It is after this that Lithuanians thoroughly reconstructed the greatly damaged fortress wall. Its remaking was necessary even more because the artillery art developed rapidly.
In the end of XV century, the state of Moscow became so strong that it started fighting for Smolensk’s liberation. The march of Ivan III’s troops in 1492 resulted in reunion with Vyazma. In 1500, Moscow conquered Dorogobuzh. But an attempt to take Smolensk in 1502 was unsuccessful. A decade later, struggle for Smolensk became a principle one.
On December 19, 1512, great prince Vasily III himself headed a march to the city. Yet, his six-day siege resulted in a failure: the mighty fortress did not fall.
In 1514, Vasily III undertook a third march to Smolensk, which was preceded by an intensified preparation. All the artillery of the Moscow state was gathered: around 300 guns including heavy siege mortars. The concentration of so many forces had never been undertaken for a siege of one city before.
Even before the march, private negotiations with the Russian inhabitants of Smolensk and mercenaries, who defended the city, had been held.
The storm of the city was carried out by voivodes in a very organized and scheduled way, and on July 21, the fortress surrendered. On August 1, Vasily III entered the city, at the gates of which he was met by a procession of the Cross of the entire people with “pure souls and much love.”
In this way Smolensk became part of the Moscow state. Lithuania many times tried to annex the city but Moscow did everything to protect the key front post on its western border. Many soldiers were sent to Smolensk. In 1526, the town on the right bank of the Dnieper was strengthened by a poling. The garrison of the fortress was strengthened to the extent that it was able to fight in an open field. In 1534, Smolensk inhabitants proved it in action when they did not allow the Lithuanians even to get near the city and burn the suburbs.
At the time of Ivan the Terrible, a work began on erecting new city fortifications. A fire in the spring of 1554 almost completely burned the city, and Smolensk had to be rebuilt. A real threat of attack and a necessity to defend the significantly larger territory of the growing city were the reasons of making a new fortress which was called Big New City.
Besides, the defense constructions of the new fortress had to match the power of siege artillery that had significantly grown.
To gain an access to the Baltic Sea was one of the main goals of Moscow’s foreign policy. Its interests encountered opposition on Swedish and Polish sides. In 1590, a peace treaty for 12 years was signed with Poland. Military clashes with Sweden ended in signing the “Eternal Treaty” in 1595. In this way during six years, starting from 1596, the Moscow government had a peaceful respite on its western borders. The Russian authorities foresaw war against Poland, which aspired to further the success of the Lithuanian war, to capture Smolensk and to use it as a base for economical and political expansion into the borderline regions of Moscow Rus.