Moldavian Magnate Wars
Encyclopedia
The Moldavian Magnate Wars refer to the period at the end of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th century when the magnate
s of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
intervened in the affairs of Moldavia, clashing with the Habsburgs
and the Ottoman Empire
for domination and influence over the principality.
, Polish grand crown chancellor
(kanclerz
) and military commander (grand crown hetman
), known for his opposition towards the Habsburgs, had been a vocal supporter of Commonwealth expansion in the southern direction. Since the early plans made by Commonwealth King Stefan Batory
for the war against the Ottomans, Zamoyski supported them, viewing those plans as a good long-term strategy for the Commonwealth. Any policy that was against the Ottomans was also supported by the Holy See
, and Pope
Sixtus V
strongly expressed his support for any war between the Commonwealth and the Ottomans. Three powerful magnate
families from the Commonwealth, the Potocki
s, Koreckis and Wiśniowiecki
s, were related to the Moldavia
n Hospodar
(Prince or Voivode) Ieremia Movilă
(Jeremi Mohyła), and, after his death in 1606, they supported his descendants.
Around the end of 16th century, the relations between the Commonwealth and the Ottomans, never too cordial, further worsened with the growing number of independent actions by Cossacks. From the second part of the 16th century, Cossacks started raiding the territories under Ottoman rule. The Commonwealth could not control the fiercely independent Cossacks, but was held responsible for them, since at that time they were nominally under the Commonwealth rule. At the same time, Tatars
living under the Ottoman rule were raiding the Commonwealth. However, they attacked mostly in the south-eastern areas of the Commonwealth, which were fairly sparsely inhabited, while the Cossacks were raiding the heart of Ottoman Empire, wealthy merchant port cities just two days away from the mouth of the Dniepr river (which the Cossacks used as their main transportation route). By 1615 , Cossacks had even burned the townships on the outskirts of Constantinople
. Consecutive treaties between the Ottoman Empire and the Commonwealth called both parties to curb Cossack and Tatar activities, but they were never implemented on either side of the border. In internal agreements, pushed forward by the Polish side, the Cossacks agreed to burn their boats and stop their raiding. However, Cossack boats could be built quickly, and the Cossack lifestyle required periodic hunts for glory and booty. Sometimes Cossacks just needed resources to ensure their subsistence, while on other occasions they were bribed by the Habsburgs to help ease Ottoman pressure on their borders. Also, there was widespread animosity between Cossacks and Tatars, after decades of border clashes and reciprocal looting of estates and villages. Cossacks raided Ottomans territories and their vassals near the Black Sea
almost yearly, usually attracting retaliatory Tatar raids (and vice-versa). The vicious circle of chaos and retaliations often turned the entire south-eastern Commonwealth border into a low-level warzone.
, Ğazı II Giray (Gazi Gerej II) plundered Pokucie and moved to Hungary through mountain passes, in order to plunder Habsburg lands. Commonwealth troops gathered too late to intercept it. The Prince of Transylvania
, Sigismund Báthory
(Zsigmond Báthory), nephew of former Polish king Stefan Batory
(István Báthory), had strengthened Habsburg influence in Moldavia after setting Ştefan Răzvan
(Stefan Rozwan) on the Moldavian throne. Ştefan Răzvan was a [Romanian people] from Walachia who had married a Moldavian noblewoman (his story was the basis of a play by 19th century Romania
n writer and historian Bogdan Petriceicu-Hasdeu).
A pro-Polish hospodar was mostly tolerated by the Porte when the Commonwealth was anti-Habsburg or neutral. Therefore, when Emperor Rudolf II
's forces gained control of Moldavia, Transylvania and started supporting Mihai Viteazul , prince of Wallachia
, the Ottomans didn't look too favourably at the Commonwealth's meddling.
In 1595 Zamoyski, persuaded by Moldavian refugees, decided to intervene. The Commonwealth forces (numbering ~7,000-8,000 soldiers) under hetman Jan Zamoyski crossed the Dniestr, defeated local opposition (while Transylvanian troops retreated to their own country) and Ottoman reinforcements, and set Ieremia Movilă
on the Moldavian throne as a Commonwealth vassal. This was seen by many as very dangerous step because Ottomans were preparing to place their own candidate on Moldavian throne. Zamoyski contacted grand vizier
Sinan Pasha
and negotiated with the Ottoman governor on the Black Sea
island of Tyahyn (near the Dniepr river) and convinced them of his peaceful intentions and that he did not want to fight with the Ottoman Empire. However, the Khan of Crimea, Ğazı II Giray, reacted and entered Moldavia with about 20,000 men (but no cannons and few janissaries
). Zamoyski fortified his camp near Cecora at Prut river, withstood a three-day siege (17–20 October), and managed to obtain an agreement with the Ottoman Empire that recognized Movilă as hospodar (Treaty of Cecora). Moldavia became Commonwealth's vassal
and paid tribute
to Istanbul at the same time (this is known as condominium
- territory under rule of two sovereign powers). Not satisfied with this, previous hospodar Ştefan Răzvan invaded Moldavia, but his troops were crushed by Zamoyski and Răzvan was impaled
by Movilă.
In 1599, Mihai Viteazul, wishing to unite Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania, defeated the ruler of Transylvania, Andrew Cardinal Báthory (Andrzej Batory), who lost his life fleeing after battle, and took over Transylvania. Later on, Mihai defeated Ieremia Movilă and took control over almost all of Moldavia, with the exception of Khotyn
(Chocim or Hotin, a castle and a city on the right bank of the Dniestr), which remained in Polish hands. Mihai used titles of voivode of Wallachia, Transylvania and Moldavia for the first time in May 1600 . He tried to get recognition from Emperor Rudolf II, offered his vassalage to the Commonwealth and organized an anti-Turkish league. After King Sigismund III Vasa
(Zygmunt III Waza) refused, Mihai sent his troops to take over Pokucie (as an area Moldavians were claiming to be theirs) but Commonwealth hetman Stanisław Żółkiewski met them with resistance.
In 1600 Zamoyski and hetman Jan Karol Chodkiewicz
gathered Commonwealth forces, returning to Moldavia, where they fought Mihai. Zamoyski defeated Mihai Viteazul under Bucov
(Bukova) in Wallachia (Battle of the Teleajăn River near Ploieşti
), restored Ieremia Movilă to the throne, and helped his brother Simion Movilă
to gain the throne in Bucharest
, thus temporarily extending the sphere of Commonwealth influence south all the way to the Danube
. In the meantime, Mihai Viteazul traveled to Vienna
to ask for the Emperor's help, in exchange for assisting the Habsburgs against the Ottomans and Imperial influence over Moldavia, previously aligned with the Commonwealth. The Emperor promised help and in 1601 sent an army led by Giorgio Basta
that was to accompany Mihai on the way back. Upon their arrival in Transylvania, after the joint victory at Gurăslău against the prince of Transylvania, Sigismund Báthory
, general Basta assassinated Mihai Viteazul during the night, on the field of Câmpia Turzii
(south of Cluj
), effectively taking Transylvania under Emperor's lead.
Captain John Smith, the famous leader of the colony at Jamestown, Virginia
and the Pocahontas
story, was serving Sigismund Báthory
as a mercenary. Smith was captured, and sold to Crimean Tatar
slave traders. He later escaped to Poland
before continuing on to England
, from where he sailed to America in 1607.
The Commonwealth was unable to capitalize on its gains, as the Polish-Swedish War had just started and the majority of Commonwealth forces were desperately needed to protect Livonia
(Inflanty). A year later, the Ottomans removed Simion Movilă and placed Radu Şerban on the Wallachian throne. The Commonwealth managed to retain control over Moldavia, and the only side not to gain anything was the Habsburgs: in fact, they lost control over all of their former possessions in the region. However, the Peace of Žitava
ended the Habsburg-Ottoman conflict known as the Long War
, and forced the Ottomans to recognize the Habsburgs as equals, due to the former's inability to penetrate Royal Hungary
. This ended direct war between the Ottomans and the Habsburgs for decades, but the two powers still struggled for influence in the region that constitutes modern-day Romania
.
A second intervention by Stefan Potocki (with the tacit assistance from Sigismund III, but against the will of Sejm
and Senate
) in 1612 was a complete failure. Potocki's 7,000 strong army was defeated on 19 July in Battle of Sasowy Róg (near Ştefăneşti
) by troops of Tomşa and Khan Temir
's Tatars of the Budjak Horde. Stefan Potocki and Constantin Movilă ended their lives in Ottoman captivity in Istanbul. A counter-raid of Tatars and Tomşa on the Commonwealth was stopped by Żółkiewski without a fight, and an agreement between Żółkiewski and Tomşa was signed in October 1612 (at Khotyn
). Tomşa assured about his friendliness, that he will help to patch up conflict between the Ottoman Empire and the Commonwealth and pledged allegiance to the Polish king.
In 1613 , when Sigismund signed a de facto
anti-Turkish defensive treaty with the Habsburgs, counting on their support for his restoration to the Swedish throne, Poland was further moved the enemy camp from the Ottoman point of view. Hetman Stanisław Żółkiewski, with a show of force, induced Moldavians and Turks to compromise and signed an agreement in 1612 with Ştefan Tomşa at Khotyn.
Ahmed I
wrote Sigismund III that he was sending Ahmed Pasha to punish “those bandits”, that this was not meant as a gesture of hostility to the Commonwealth, and that he asked of him not to be a host to fugitives; Ahmed Pasha wrote hetman Żółkiewski asking for cooperation. Żółkiewski answered that he had already done a lot in order to curb Cossack attacks, and that most of the Cossacks raiding Ottoman lands were not the Zaporozhian
Cossacks of the Commonwealth, but rather Don Cossacks
(and thus Muscovy subjects). Żółkiewski's troops made another demonstration, but Ahmed Pasha did not attempt to cross the border, and settled for building new fortifications in the region of Ochakov (Oczaków, tr:Ozi) in order to prevent future raids.
In 1615 , the Ieremia Movilă's widow and dukes Michał Wiśniowiecki
and Samuel Korecki
organized a third intervention, this time carried against king Sigismund's wishes. Their troops consisted of their own private troops, mercenaries
, Cossacks and Moldavians loyal to Movilă. Tomşa was removed and the juvenile Alexandru Movilă (Aleksander Mohyła) was set on throne. But this situation was not to last: in August 1616 Iskender Pasha
(Iskanderbasha), beylerbey
(bejlerbej) of Bosnia, defeated magante forces on the very same spot at Sasowy Róg, with duke Samuel Korecki and the Movilă family ending up as prisoners in Istanbul (Wiśniowiecki had died prior to imprisoning). Korecki managed to escape captivity, briefly reemerged, but was taken prisoner yet again after the defeat in the battle of Cecora
in 1620 and was strangled to death while in custody.
Again in 1616, Stefan Żółkiewski managed to cool the tensions, displaying Commonwealth military readiness and signing a new agreement with new hospodar, Radu Mihnea
, in Braha. He was promised Moldavian mediation in to patching up conflict between the Ottoman Empire and the Commonwealth. Radu Mihnea pledged allegiance to the Polish king and promised not to allow the Tatars passage through his territory. However, northern and eastern wars with Sweden and Muscovy diverted the attention of the Commonwealth and strained its military might to the limit. In 1617, after yet another wave of Cossack raids, the Sultan sent a powerful force under Iskander Pasha to the Commonwealth borders. The army consisted of janissaries
, Tatars and vassal troops form Transylvania, Moldavia and Wallachia (numbering up to 40,000). Żółkiewski met them near Busza (on the Jaruga
River), but neither side could decide to attack, and letters between leaders had been exchanged since the start of Iskander march. Żółkiewski had mostly magnate troops and no Cossacks troops, as the Commonwealth fought war with Muscovy and with newest Swedish aggression on Livonia at the same time, while the Ottomas were at war with Persia. Żółkiewski was forced to renounce all Polish claims to Moldavia through the Treaty of Busza (also known as the "Treaty of Jaruga") signed with Iskander Pasha. The treaty stated that Poland would not meddle in the internal affairs of Ottoman vassals in Transylvania, Moldavia and Wallachia, the Commonwealth was to prevent Cossacks from raiding lands in the Ottoman Empire, while ceding Khotyn. In return, the Turks promised to stop Tatar raids.
and Budjak
Hordes left Iskander's camp during talks. At first, Żółkiewki could not divide forces and Tatars plundered unopposed, but he met the Iskander Pasha's force near Kamianets-Podilskyi
(Kamieniec Podolski). On September 28, 1618, he drove it back while enduring heavy losses. In 1617 and 1619 Żółkiewski forced Cossacks to sign a new agreements ("umowa olszaniecka" and "biało-cerkiewna"). Boats were to be burnt and raids were forbidden. In exchange, the Cossack register was expanded, and the annual subsidy to Cossacks from the Crown was increased. However, Cossack raids did not cease, especially as they were encouraged by Muscovy. In July 1618, after many warnings to the Commonwealth, the young and ambitious sultan Osman II
send a letter to king Sigismund III with the threats of a new war and the burning of Kraków
. Since the Ottomans were involved in large-scale war with Persia, this was no more than a warning at the time. However, Osman planned for a war against the Commonwealth, in order to compensate for the heavy losses sustained against Persia, where, in the Ottoman-Persian wars of 1603–1611 and 1617–1618/1619, the Ottoman Empire lost the Caucasus
.
In 1618, the Thirty Years' War
began. Czech
Protestants were supported by German and Hungarian ones. The Hungarians asked the then Prince of Transylvania, Gabriel Bethlen
, for help and declared their wish to unite Hungary with Transylvania. Bethlen had been appointed to the office after the Sultan's removal of Gabriel Báthory (ordered to the troops of Iskander Pasha in 1613). He was anti-Polish and a loyal Ottoman vassal and had aspirations to extend his rule to Moravia
, Bohemia
, and Silesia
. Polish hetman Stefan Żółkiewski warned Bethlen against joining the Protestant side and promised help against the Ottoman Empire; however, Bethlen answered that it was too late to change allegiances. When the fight was joined by Gabriel Bethlen on the Protestant side, his siege of Vienna threatened to extend Transylvanian rule (and thus Ottoman) to Bohemia and Silesia.
) supported the Czechs (at least verbally) because the struggle of Czech and Hungarian nobles was viewed as a struggle of "free" nobility
against absolutist monarchs. Nobles would not fight the Protestants, and the Sejm had even forbidden Sigismund III to send Polish armed forces as assistance to the Habsburgs. However, the king of Poland, Sigismund, was a devout Roman Catholic and a long time sympathizer of the Habsburgs. Additionally, some of Polish magnates and szlachta hoped to get back some parts of Silesia in exchange for helping out the Habsburgs. During talks with the Sigismund's son, prince Władysław IV Waza, on his voyage to Silesia in mid-1619, Emperor Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor
promised to allow a temporary occupation of part of Silesia by the Poles, with the possibility of incorporating those areas into Poland at a later date. Some of the Piast (old Polish dynasty) dukes of Silesia also supported returning their lands to the Polish realm, especially given the attractive religious tolerance policy of the Commonwealth and the fact that the Polish western regions had been very peaceful and secure for a long time.
Sigismund III decided to help the Habsburgs and privately hired an infamous mercenary group called the Lisowczycy
(name took from their founder Aleksander Józef Lisowski
), who were unemployed after the end of the wars with Muscovy (Dymitriads
) and were plundering and terrorizing the entire region of Lithuania. Sigismund sent the Lisowczycy to aid the Habsburgs towards the end of 1619. In the end, Ferdinand did not agree to any permanent concessions in Silesia, and only made prince Karol Ferdynand (Władysław's brother) bishop
of Wrocław. Neither did Habsburgs provide any help against the Ottoman Empire. The Lisowczycy crushed Transylvanian forces led by George I Rákóczi
http://www.bartleby.com/65/ra/Rakoczy.html (Jerzy Rakoczy) at Závada, Humenné District
and Humenné
(November 13http://edu.clk.pl/~pinio/ or 21-24http://slawek-dabrowski.webpark.pl/lisowczycy.htm, sources vary; see Battle of Humenné
) and started looting, plundering, killing even children and dogs (as a contemporary historian wrote), and burning Eastern Slovakia
, thus forcing Bethlen to lift his siege of Vienna and try to save his own lands. Later, the Lisowczycy plagued Silesia and Bohemia and took part in the Battle of White Mountain
.
The ruler of Moldavia, another vassal of the Ottoman sultan, a hospodar of Croat origin, Gaspar Graziani
(Kasper Gratiani in Polish), decided he would be better off under Polish rule and started talks with Polish king, promising to send 25,000 men. The Polish envoy to Istanbul who arrived in April, 1620, was received very coldly. Later Cossack raiding and burning of Istanbul suburbs did not help.
The Habsburgs had no qualms about repaying Sigismund's help with treachery. Their envoy actively worked against a new treaty between the Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire because the Habsburgs knew that any Polish-Ottoman conflict meant less trouble for themselves. This intrigue, coupled with Ottomans annoyance with Commonwealth pro-Habsburg actions and constant attempts by some Polish magnates to gain influence in Moldavia, caused a new war to be unavoidable. In Poland, the king and the hetmans exaggerated the danger in order to recruit more troops and raise taxes for the army. However, the nobles did not trust such measures, and could not be convinced to pay raised taxes for the army, speculating about the reasons behind the expedition. The nobles often thwarted the king's initiatives, even if these could prove to be in the interest of the country at large (including their own long-term purpose), becoming suspicious of any raise in the king's power as a potential reduction of their privileges. The status quo
, which translated into their high standard of life, was generally favoured over any alternative.
Some historians say that king Sigismund decided to intervene in Moldavia because of internal problems caused mainly by the dispatch of Lisowczycy mercenaries to the Habsburg side and their conduct in war. Others point out that some nobles threatened with armed rebellion (rokosz
), and, in case of a successful intervention, the king would increase his and the hetman's authority and focus noblemen's attention on external instead of internal problems. Additionally, hetman Żółkiewski, foreseeing confrontation with the Ottoman Empire, preferred to meet their troops on foreign soil.
In retrospect, this time the nobles were right about the lack of danger since neither Tatars nor Turks were ready in 1620. While the Sultan was indeed planning an expedition to Poland in 1621, this was to be done with a small contingent. However, it can be argued that the continuous policy of neglect for the military would dearly cost the Commonwealth in the coming decades.
proved the last spark. The new young Ottoman sultan Osman II made peace with Persia and promised to burn the Commonwealth to the ground and "water his horses in the Baltic Sea
". Żółkiewski's forces went deep into Moldavia to strike at Ottomans before they were ready, but a large Ottoman force had already invaded Moldavia to remove hospodar Graziani.
In early September 1620 the Royal Grand and Field Hetman's Zolkiewski and his protegee, future hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski, assembled 8,000 men and marched south. However, Graziani's contribution comprised just 600 men. At the battle of Cecora (18 September to 6 October 1620), on the river Prut
, Zolkiewski met the 22,000 strong army of Iskander Pasha, withstanding repeated attacks during September 1620. On September 29 he ordered a retreat, and for 8 difficult days discipline held despite enemy attacks. On approaching the Polish border, order in much of the army melted and the forces disintegrated on the spot. The Ottomans attacked and much of the Commonwealth army was destroyed. Zolkiewski was killed, his head sent to the Sultan as a trophy, while Koniecpolski was captured.
The following year, in 1621, an army of 100,000–160,000 Turkish soldiers led by Sultan Osman II in person advanced from Adrianople towards the Polish frontier, but the disaster of Cecora caused the Commonwealth to mobilise a large army (of about 25,000 Poles and 20,000 Cossacks) in response. Hetman Chodkiewicz crossed the Dniester
in September 1621 and entrenched himself in the fortress of Khotyn
on the very path of Ottoman advance. It was here that, for a whole month (2 September to 9 October), during the battle of Khotyn
, the Commonwealth hetman held the sultan at bay, up until the first autumn snow. The deaths of approximately 40,000 of his men compelled Osman to withdraw. However, the victory was to be dearly ransomed by Poland. A few days before the siege was raised, the aged grand hetman died of exhaustion in the fortress on September 24, 1621. After his death the Polish forces were led by Stanisław Lubomirski.
Chodkiewicz wasn't the only one to die as a result. Sultan Osman himself paid the highest price for the failure of his plans. After the tides turned, the defeat and subsequent retreat of the Ottoman armies, coupled with internal matters, triggered the rebellion of janissaries in 1622, during which Osman II was murdered.
An honorable peace (Treaty of Khotyn
) was agreed, based on that at Busza, and the Commonwealth-Ottoman border was to be fairly quiet until the Polish–Ottoman War (1633–1634).
Magnate
Magnate, from the Late Latin magnas, a great man, itself from Latin magnus 'great', designates a noble or other man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities...
s of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
intervened in the affairs of Moldavia, clashing with the Habsburgs
Habsburg Monarchy
The Habsburg Monarchy covered the territories ruled by the junior Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg , and then by the successor House of Habsburg-Lorraine , between 1526 and 1867/1918. The Imperial capital was Vienna, except from 1583 to 1611, when it was moved to Prague...
and the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
for domination and influence over the principality.
Causes
Jan ZamoyskiJan Zamoyski
Jan Zamoyski , was a Polish-Lithuanian nobleman, magnate, 1st duke/ordynat of Zamość. Royal Secretary since 1566, Lesser Kanclerz ) of the Crown since 1576, Lord Grand-Chancellor of the Crown since 1578, and Grand Hetman of the Crown since 1581...
, Polish grand crown chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
(kanclerz
Kanclerz
Kanclerz was one of the highest officials in the historic Poland. This office functioned from the early Polish kingdom of the 12th century until the end of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795. A respective office also existed in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since the 16th...
) and military commander (grand crown hetman
Hetman
Hetman was the title of the second-highest military commander in 15th- to 18th-century Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which together, from 1569 to 1795, comprised the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, or Rzeczpospolita....
), known for his opposition towards the Habsburgs, had been a vocal supporter of Commonwealth expansion in the southern direction. Since the early plans made by Commonwealth King Stefan Batory
Stefan Batory
Stephen Báthory was a Hungarian noble Prince of Transylvania , then King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania . He was a member of the Somlyó branch of the noble Hungarian Báthory family...
for the war against the Ottomans, Zamoyski supported them, viewing those plans as a good long-term strategy for the Commonwealth. Any policy that was against the Ottomans was also supported by the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
, and Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
Sixtus V
Pope Sixtus V
Pope Sixtus V , born Felice Peretti di Montalto, was Pope from 1585 to 1590.-Early life:The chronicler Andrija Zmajević states that Felice's family originated from modern-day Montenegro...
strongly expressed his support for any war between the Commonwealth and the Ottomans. Three powerful magnate
Magnate
Magnate, from the Late Latin magnas, a great man, itself from Latin magnus 'great', designates a noble or other man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities...
families from the Commonwealth, the Potocki
Potocki
Potocki is the surname of a Polish noble family.-History:The Potocki family is a great artistocratic family originated from Potok in the Kraków Voivodeship; their family name derives from that place name. The family is heavily entwined with the cultural development and history of Poland's Eastern...
s, Koreckis and Wiśniowiecki
Wisniowiecki
Wiśniowiecki is the name of a family notable in the history of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. They were powerful magnates in Ruthenia of Rurikid or Gediminids descent. The family traditions traces their descend to Gediminids, but modern historians believe there is more evidence for the Rurikid...
s, were related to the Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
n Hospodar
Hospodar
Hospodar or gospodar is a term of Slavonic origin, meaning "lord" or "master".The rulers of Wallachia and Moldavia were styled hospodars in Slavic writings from the 15th century to 1866. Hospodar was used in addition to the title voivod...
(Prince or Voivode) Ieremia Movilă
Ieremia Movila
Ieremia Movilă was a Hospodar of Moldavia between August 1595 and May 1600, and again between September 1600 and July 10, 1606.-Rule:...
(Jeremi Mohyła), and, after his death in 1606, they supported his descendants.
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
living under the Ottoman rule were raiding the Commonwealth. However, they attacked mostly in the south-eastern areas of the Commonwealth, which were fairly sparsely inhabited, while the Cossacks were raiding the heart of Ottoman Empire, wealthy merchant port cities just two days away from the mouth of the Dniepr river (which the Cossacks used as their main transportation route). By 1615 , Cossacks had even burned the townships on the outskirts of Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. Consecutive treaties between the Ottoman Empire and the Commonwealth called both parties to curb Cossack and Tatar activities, but they were never implemented on either side of the border. In internal agreements, pushed forward by the Polish side, the Cossacks agreed to burn their boats and stop their raiding. However, Cossack boats could be built quickly, and the Cossack lifestyle required periodic hunts for glory and booty. Sometimes Cossacks just needed resources to ensure their subsistence, while on other occasions they were bribed by the Habsburgs to help ease Ottoman pressure on their borders. Also, there was widespread animosity between Cossacks and Tatars, after decades of border clashes and reciprocal looting of estates and villages. Cossacks raided Ottomans territories and their vassals near the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
almost yearly, usually attracting retaliatory Tatar raids (and vice-versa). The vicious circle of chaos and retaliations often turned the entire south-eastern Commonwealth border into a low-level warzone.
1593–1595
In 1593, war between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburgs started. In 1594 a very strong Tatar raid, carried by about 20,000-30,000 men led by the Khan of CrimeaCrimean Khanate
Crimean Khanate, or Khanate of Crimea , was a state ruled by Crimean Tatars from 1441 to 1783. Its native name was . Its khans were the patrilineal descendants of Toqa Temür, the thirteenth son of Jochi and grandson of Genghis Khan...
, Ğazı II Giray (Gazi Gerej II) plundered Pokucie and moved to Hungary through mountain passes, in order to plunder Habsburg lands. Commonwealth troops gathered too late to intercept it. The Prince of Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, Sigismund Báthory
Sigismund Báthory
Sigismund Báthory was Prince of Transylvania.-Biography:Hailing from the Báthory family's Somlyó branch, he was the son of Christopher Báthory, Voivod of Transylvania, and nephew of Stephen Báthory, King of Poland...
(Zsigmond Báthory), nephew of former Polish king Stefan Batory
Stefan Batory
Stephen Báthory was a Hungarian noble Prince of Transylvania , then King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania . He was a member of the Somlyó branch of the noble Hungarian Báthory family...
(István Báthory), had strengthened Habsburg influence in Moldavia after setting Ştefan Răzvan
Stefan Razvan
Ştefan Răzvan was a Rom from the historical Romanian state of Wallachia, who became the Voivode of Moldavia .-Biography:...
(Stefan Rozwan) on the Moldavian throne. Ştefan Răzvan was a [Romanian people] from Walachia who had married a Moldavian noblewoman (his story was the basis of a play by 19th century Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n writer and historian Bogdan Petriceicu-Hasdeu).
A pro-Polish hospodar was mostly tolerated by the Porte when the Commonwealth was anti-Habsburg or neutral. Therefore, when Emperor Rudolf II
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor
Rudolf II was Holy Roman Emperor , King of Hungary and Croatia , King of Bohemia and Archduke of Austria...
's forces gained control of Moldavia, Transylvania and started supporting Mihai Viteazul , prince of Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
, the Ottomans didn't look too favourably at the Commonwealth's meddling.
In 1595 Zamoyski, persuaded by Moldavian refugees, decided to intervene. The Commonwealth forces (numbering ~7,000-8,000 soldiers) under hetman Jan Zamoyski crossed the Dniestr, defeated local opposition (while Transylvanian troops retreated to their own country) and Ottoman reinforcements, and set Ieremia Movilă
Ieremia Movila
Ieremia Movilă was a Hospodar of Moldavia between August 1595 and May 1600, and again between September 1600 and July 10, 1606.-Rule:...
on the Moldavian throne as a Commonwealth vassal. This was seen by many as very dangerous step because Ottomans were preparing to place their own candidate on Moldavian throne. Zamoyski contacted grand vizier
Grand Vizier
Grand Vizier, in Turkish Vezir-i Azam or Sadr-ı Azam , deriving from the Arabic word vizier , was the greatest minister of the Sultan, with absolute power of attorney and, in principle, dismissable only by the Sultan himself...
Sinan Pasha
Sinan Pasha
Sinan Pasha or Sinan Pashë Kahremanliu was an Albanian Grand Vizier, Ottoman military commander and statesman.-Life:...
and negotiated with the Ottoman governor on the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
island of Tyahyn (near the Dniepr river) and convinced them of his peaceful intentions and that he did not want to fight with the Ottoman Empire. However, the Khan of Crimea, Ğazı II Giray, reacted and entered Moldavia with about 20,000 men (but no cannons and few janissaries
Janissary
The Janissaries were infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops and bodyguards...
). Zamoyski fortified his camp near Cecora at Prut river, withstood a three-day siege (17–20 October), and managed to obtain an agreement with the Ottoman Empire that recognized Movilă as hospodar (Treaty of Cecora). Moldavia became Commonwealth's vassal
Vassal
A vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...
and paid tribute
Tribute
A tribute is wealth, often in kind, that one party gives to another as a sign of respect or, as was often the case in historical contexts, of submission or allegiance. Various ancient states, which could be called suzerains, exacted tribute from areas they had conquered or threatened to conquer...
to Istanbul at the same time (this is known as condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
- territory under rule of two sovereign powers). Not satisfied with this, previous hospodar Ştefan Răzvan invaded Moldavia, but his troops were crushed by Zamoyski and Răzvan was impaled
Impalement
Impalement is the traumatic penetration of an organism by an elongated foreign object such as a stake, pole, or spear, and this usually implies complete perforation of the central mass of the impaled body...
by Movilă.
1599–1601
Khotyn
Khotyn is a city in Chernivtsi Oblast of western Ukraine, and is the administrative center of Khotyn Raion within the oblast, and is located south-west of Kamianets-Podilskyi. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, it has a population of 11,124...
(Chocim or Hotin, a castle and a city on the right bank of the Dniestr), which remained in Polish hands. Mihai used titles of voivode of Wallachia, Transylvania and Moldavia for the first time in May 1600 . He tried to get recognition from Emperor Rudolf II, offered his vassalage to the Commonwealth and organized an anti-Turkish league. After King Sigismund III Vasa
Sigismund III Vasa
Sigismund III Vasa was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, a monarch of the united Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1587 to 1632, and King of Sweden from 1592 until he was deposed in 1599...
(Zygmunt III Waza) refused, Mihai sent his troops to take over Pokucie (as an area Moldavians were claiming to be theirs) but Commonwealth hetman Stanisław Żółkiewski met them with resistance.
Jan Karol Chodkiewicz
Jan Karol Chodkiewicz was a famous Lithuanian military commander and one of the most prominent noblemen of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.-Biography:...
gathered Commonwealth forces, returning to Moldavia, where they fought Mihai. Zamoyski defeated Mihai Viteazul under Bucov
Bucov
Bucov is a commune in Prahova County, Romania, just east of Ploieşti, the county seat. It is composed of five villages: Bighilin, Bucov, Chiţorani, Pleaşa and Valea Orlei....
(Bukova) in Wallachia (Battle of the Teleajăn River near Ploieşti
Ploiesti
Ploiești is the county seat of Prahova County and lies in the historical region of Wallachia in Romania. The city is located north of Bucharest....
), restored Ieremia Movilă to the throne, and helped his brother Simion Movilă
Simion Movila
Simion Movilă, a boyar of the Movileşti family, was twice Prince of Wallachia and Prince of Moldavia on one occasion ....
to gain the throne in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, thus temporarily extending the sphere of Commonwealth influence south all the way to the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. In the meantime, Mihai Viteazul traveled to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
to ask for the Emperor's help, in exchange for assisting the Habsburgs against the Ottomans and Imperial influence over Moldavia, previously aligned with the Commonwealth. The Emperor promised help and in 1601 sent an army led by Giorgio Basta
Giorgio Basta
Giorgio Basta, Count of Huszt was an Italian general of Arbëreshë descent, employed by the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II to command Habsburg forces in the Long War of 1591-1606 and later to administer Transylvania as an Imperial vassal to restore Catholicism as a predominant religion in...
that was to accompany Mihai on the way back. Upon their arrival in Transylvania, after the joint victory at Gurăslău against the prince of Transylvania, Sigismund Báthory
Sigismund Báthory
Sigismund Báthory was Prince of Transylvania.-Biography:Hailing from the Báthory family's Somlyó branch, he was the son of Christopher Báthory, Voivod of Transylvania, and nephew of Stephen Báthory, King of Poland...
, general Basta assassinated Mihai Viteazul during the night, on the field of Câmpia Turzii
Câmpia Turzii
Câmpia Turzii is a city in Cluj County, Romania, which was formed in 1925 by the union of two villages, Ghiriş and Sâncrai...
(south of Cluj
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
), effectively taking Transylvania under Emperor's lead.
Captain John Smith, the famous leader of the colony at Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown was a settlement in the Colony of Virginia. Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607 , it was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States, following several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke...
and the Pocahontas
Pocahontas
Pocahontas was a Virginia Indian notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of Chief Powhatan, the head of a network of tributary tribal nations in Tidewater Virginia...
story, was serving Sigismund Báthory
Sigismund Báthory
Sigismund Báthory was Prince of Transylvania.-Biography:Hailing from the Báthory family's Somlyó branch, he was the son of Christopher Báthory, Voivod of Transylvania, and nephew of Stephen Báthory, King of Poland...
as a mercenary. Smith was captured, and sold to Crimean Tatar
Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
slave traders. He later escaped to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
before continuing on to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, from where he sailed to America in 1607.
The Commonwealth was unable to capitalize on its gains, as the Polish-Swedish War had just started and the majority of Commonwealth forces were desperately needed to protect Livonia
Livonia
Livonia is a historic region along the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It was once the land of the Finnic Livonians inhabiting the principal ancient Livonian County Metsepole with its center at Turaida...
(Inflanty). A year later, the Ottomans removed Simion Movilă and placed Radu Şerban on the Wallachian throne. The Commonwealth managed to retain control over Moldavia, and the only side not to gain anything was the Habsburgs: in fact, they lost control over all of their former possessions in the region. However, the Peace of Žitava
Peace of Žitava
The Peace of Zsitvatorok was a peace treaty which ended the Fifteen Years' War between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg Monarchy on November 11, 1606...
ended the Habsburg-Ottoman conflict known as the Long War
Long War (Ottoman wars)
The Long War took place from 1591 or 1593 to 1604 or 1606 and was one of the numerous military conflicts between the Habsburg Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire that developed after the Battle of Mohács.- History :The major participants of this war were the Habsburg Monarchy ,...
, and forced the Ottomans to recognize the Habsburgs as equals, due to the former's inability to penetrate Royal Hungary
Royal Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary between 1538 and 1867 was part of the lands of the Habsburg Monarchy, while outside the Holy Roman Empire.After Battle of Mohács, the country was ruled by two crowned kings . They divided the kingdom in 1538...
. This ended direct war between the Ottomans and the Habsburgs for decades, but the two powers still struggled for influence in the region that constitutes modern-day Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
.
1607–1613
Ieremia Movilă died in 1606 . In 1607 Stefan Potocki set his brother-in-law (and son of Ieremia), Constantin Movilă (Konstanty Mohyła), on the Moldavian throne. However, Stefan Potocki was one of the pro-Habsburg magnates and Gabriel Batory, the anti-Habsburg ruler of Transylvania, removed Constantin Movilă in 1611 . The Moldavian throne now fell to Ştefan II Tomşa (Tomża).A second intervention by Stefan Potocki (with the tacit assistance from Sigismund III, but against the will of Sejm
Sejm
The Sejm is the lower house of the Polish parliament. The Sejm is made up of 460 deputies, or Poseł in Polish . It is elected by universal ballot and is presided over by a speaker called the Marshal of the Sejm ....
and Senate
Senate of Poland
The Senate is the upper house of the Polish parliament, the lower house being the 'Sejm'. The history of the Polish Senate is rich in tradition and stretches back over 500 years, it was one of the first constituent bodies of a bicameral parliament in Europe and existed without hiatus until the...
) in 1612 was a complete failure. Potocki's 7,000 strong army was defeated on 19 July in Battle of Sasowy Róg (near Ştefăneşti
Stefanesti
Ştefăneşti may refer to several places.*in Moldova:**Ştefăneşti, a commune in Floreşti District**Ştefăneşti, Ştefan Vodă, a commune in Ştefan Vodă District**Ştefăneşti, a village in Tănătarii Noi Commune, Căuşeni District*in Romania:...
) by troops of Tomşa and Khan Temir
Khan Temir
Khan Temir was a powerful khan of the Budjak Nogais ; around 1603, he formed and subsequently led the Nogai Khanate.-Biography:...
's Tatars of the Budjak Horde. Stefan Potocki and Constantin Movilă ended their lives in Ottoman captivity in Istanbul. A counter-raid of Tatars and Tomşa on the Commonwealth was stopped by Żółkiewski without a fight, and an agreement between Żółkiewski and Tomşa was signed in October 1612 (at Khotyn
Khotyn
Khotyn is a city in Chernivtsi Oblast of western Ukraine, and is the administrative center of Khotyn Raion within the oblast, and is located south-west of Kamianets-Podilskyi. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, it has a population of 11,124...
). Tomşa assured about his friendliness, that he will help to patch up conflict between the Ottoman Empire and the Commonwealth and pledged allegiance to the Polish king.
In 1613 , when Sigismund signed a de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
anti-Turkish defensive treaty with the Habsburgs, counting on their support for his restoration to the Swedish throne, Poland was further moved the enemy camp from the Ottoman point of view. Hetman Stanisław Żółkiewski, with a show of force, induced Moldavians and Turks to compromise and signed an agreement in 1612 with Ştefan Tomşa at Khotyn.
1614–1617
In 1614 SultanOttoman Dynasty
The Ottoman Dynasty ruled the Ottoman Empire from 1299 to 1922, beginning with Osman I , though the dynasty was not proclaimed until Orhan Bey declared himself sultan...
Ahmed I
Ahmed I
Ahmed I or Ahmed Bakhti was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1603 until his death in 1617.-Biography:...
wrote Sigismund III that he was sending Ahmed Pasha to punish “those bandits”, that this was not meant as a gesture of hostility to the Commonwealth, and that he asked of him not to be a host to fugitives; Ahmed Pasha wrote hetman Żółkiewski asking for cooperation. Żółkiewski answered that he had already done a lot in order to curb Cossack attacks, and that most of the Cossacks raiding Ottoman lands were not the Zaporozhian
Zaporozhian Host
The Zaporozhian Cossacks or simply Zaporozhians were Ukrainian Cossacks who lived beyond the rapids of the Dnieper river, the land also known as the Great Meadow in Central Ukraine...
Cossacks of the Commonwealth, but rather Don Cossacks
Don Cossacks
Don Cossacks were Cossacks who settled along the middle and lower Don.- Etymology and origins :The Don Cossack Host was a frontier military organization from the end of the 16th until the early 20th century....
(and thus Muscovy subjects). Żółkiewski's troops made another demonstration, but Ahmed Pasha did not attempt to cross the border, and settled for building new fortifications in the region of Ochakov (Oczaków, tr:Ozi) in order to prevent future raids.
In 1615 , the Ieremia Movilă's widow and dukes Michał Wiśniowiecki
Michal Wisniowiecki
Michał Wiśniowiecki was a Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth szlachcic, prince at Wiśniowiec, magnate, grandfather of future Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth monarch, Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki...
and Samuel Korecki
Samuel Korecki
Samuel Korecki was a nobleman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. His coat of arms was Pogonia. In his military career he achieved the rank of colonel...
organized a third intervention, this time carried against king Sigismund's wishes. Their troops consisted of their own private troops, mercenaries
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
, Cossacks and Moldavians loyal to Movilă. Tomşa was removed and the juvenile Alexandru Movilă (Aleksander Mohyła) was set on throne. But this situation was not to last: in August 1616 Iskender Pasha
Iskender Pasha
Iskender Pasha , also Iskender Paşa, was an Ottoman Commander and the beylerbey of Oczakov . In 1620 Iskender Paşa led an Ottoman army, with Wallachian contingents against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at the Battle of Ţuţora , where he was victorious.-Notes:...
(Iskanderbasha), beylerbey
Beylerbey
Beylerbey is the Ottoman and Safavid title used for the highest rank in the hierarchy of provincial administrators It is in western terms a Governor-general, with authority...
(bejlerbej) of Bosnia, defeated magante forces on the very same spot at Sasowy Róg, with duke Samuel Korecki and the Movilă family ending up as prisoners in Istanbul (Wiśniowiecki had died prior to imprisoning). Korecki managed to escape captivity, briefly reemerged, but was taken prisoner yet again after the defeat in the battle of Cecora
Battle of Tutora (1620)
The Battle of Ţuţora was a battle between the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Ottoman forces , fought from 17 September to 7 October 1620 in Moldavia, near the Prut River.- Prelude :Because of the failure of Commonwealth diplomatic mission to Constantinople, and violations of the Treaty of...
in 1620 and was strangled to death while in custody.
Again in 1616, Stefan Żółkiewski managed to cool the tensions, displaying Commonwealth military readiness and signing a new agreement with new hospodar, Radu Mihnea
Radu Mihnea
Radu Mihnea was Voivode of Wallachia between September 1601 and March 1602, and again between March and May 1611, September 1611 and August 1616, August 1620 and August 1623, and Voivode of Moldavia in 1616-1619, 1623-1626...
, in Braha. He was promised Moldavian mediation in to patching up conflict between the Ottoman Empire and the Commonwealth. Radu Mihnea pledged allegiance to the Polish king and promised not to allow the Tatars passage through his territory. However, northern and eastern wars with Sweden and Muscovy diverted the attention of the Commonwealth and strained its military might to the limit. In 1617, after yet another wave of Cossack raids, the Sultan sent a powerful force under Iskander Pasha to the Commonwealth borders. The army consisted of janissaries
Janissary
The Janissaries were infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops and bodyguards...
, Tatars and vassal troops form Transylvania, Moldavia and Wallachia (numbering up to 40,000). Żółkiewski met them near Busza (on the Jaruga
Jaruga
Jaruga is a village in the municipality of Bosansko Grahovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina....
River), but neither side could decide to attack, and letters between leaders had been exchanged since the start of Iskander march. Żółkiewski had mostly magnate troops and no Cossacks troops, as the Commonwealth fought war with Muscovy and with newest Swedish aggression on Livonia at the same time, while the Ottomas were at war with Persia. Żółkiewski was forced to renounce all Polish claims to Moldavia through the Treaty of Busza (also known as the "Treaty of Jaruga") signed with Iskander Pasha. The treaty stated that Poland would not meddle in the internal affairs of Ottoman vassals in Transylvania, Moldavia and Wallachia, the Commonwealth was to prevent Cossacks from raiding lands in the Ottoman Empire, while ceding Khotyn. In return, the Turks promised to stop Tatar raids.
1618
However, few of the treaty provisions were ever fulfilled. The Tatar raids resumed in 1618 (or perhaps even 1617), as commanders of the DobrujaDobruja
Dobruja is a historical region shared by Bulgaria and Romania, located between the lower Danube river and the Black Sea, including the Danube Delta, Romanian coast and the northernmost part of the Bulgarian coast...
and Budjak
Budjak
Budjak or Budzhak is a historical region in the Odessa Oblast of Ukraine. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube and Dniester rivers this multiethnic region was the southern part of Bessarabia...
Hordes left Iskander's camp during talks. At first, Żółkiewki could not divide forces and Tatars plundered unopposed, but he met the Iskander Pasha's force near Kamianets-Podilskyi
Kamianets-Podilskyi
Kamyanets-Podilsky or Kamienets-Podolsky is a city located on the Smotrych River in western Ukraine, to the north-east of Chernivtsi...
(Kamieniec Podolski). On September 28, 1618, he drove it back while enduring heavy losses. In 1617 and 1619 Żółkiewski forced Cossacks to sign a new agreements ("umowa olszaniecka" and "biało-cerkiewna"). Boats were to be burnt and raids were forbidden. In exchange, the Cossack register was expanded, and the annual subsidy to Cossacks from the Crown was increased. However, Cossack raids did not cease, especially as they were encouraged by Muscovy. In July 1618, after many warnings to the Commonwealth, the young and ambitious sultan Osman II
Osman II
Sultan Osman II or Othman II was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1618 until his death on 20 May 1622...
send a letter to king Sigismund III with the threats of a new war and the burning of Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
. Since the Ottomans were involved in large-scale war with Persia, this was no more than a warning at the time. However, Osman planned for a war against the Commonwealth, in order to compensate for the heavy losses sustained against Persia, where, in the Ottoman-Persian wars of 1603–1611 and 1617–1618/1619, the Ottoman Empire lost the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
.
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
began. Czech
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
Protestants were supported by German and Hungarian ones. The Hungarians asked the then Prince of Transylvania, Gabriel Bethlen
Gabriel Bethlen
Gabriel Bethlen was a prince of Transylvania , duke of Opole and leader of an anti-Habsburg insurrection in the Habsburg Royal Hungary. His last armed intervention in 1626 was part of the Thirty Years' War...
, for help and declared their wish to unite Hungary with Transylvania. Bethlen had been appointed to the office after the Sultan's removal of Gabriel Báthory (ordered to the troops of Iskander Pasha in 1613). He was anti-Polish and a loyal Ottoman vassal and had aspirations to extend his rule to Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, and Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
. Polish hetman Stefan Żółkiewski warned Bethlen against joining the Protestant side and promised help against the Ottoman Empire; however, Bethlen answered that it was too late to change allegiances. When the fight was joined by Gabriel Bethlen on the Protestant side, his siege of Vienna threatened to extend Transylvanian rule (and thus Ottoman) to Bohemia and Silesia.
1619–1620
Polish nobles (SzlachtaSzlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
) supported the Czechs (at least verbally) because the struggle of Czech and Hungarian nobles was viewed as a struggle of "free" nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
against absolutist monarchs. Nobles would not fight the Protestants, and the Sejm had even forbidden Sigismund III to send Polish armed forces as assistance to the Habsburgs. However, the king of Poland, Sigismund, was a devout Roman Catholic and a long time sympathizer of the Habsburgs. Additionally, some of Polish magnates and szlachta hoped to get back some parts of Silesia in exchange for helping out the Habsburgs. During talks with the Sigismund's son, prince Władysław IV Waza, on his voyage to Silesia in mid-1619, Emperor Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor
Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor
Ferdinand II , a member of the House of Habsburg, was Holy Roman Emperor , King of Bohemia , and King of Hungary . His rule coincided with the Thirty Years' War.- Life :...
promised to allow a temporary occupation of part of Silesia by the Poles, with the possibility of incorporating those areas into Poland at a later date. Some of the Piast (old Polish dynasty) dukes of Silesia also supported returning their lands to the Polish realm, especially given the attractive religious tolerance policy of the Commonwealth and the fact that the Polish western regions had been very peaceful and secure for a long time.
Sigismund III decided to help the Habsburgs and privately hired an infamous mercenary group called the Lisowczycy
Lisowczycy
Lisowczycy or chorągiew elearska ; or in singular form: Lisowczyk or elear) - the name of an early 17th century irregular unit of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth light cavalry. The Lisowczycy took part in many battles across Europe and the historical accounts of the period characterized them as...
(name took from their founder Aleksander Józef Lisowski
Aleksander Józef Lisowski
Aleksander Józef Lisowski was a Polish-Lithuanian noble , commander of a mercenary group that after his death adopted the name "Lisowczycy." His coat of arms was Jeż ....
), who were unemployed after the end of the wars with Muscovy (Dymitriads
Polish-Muscovite War (1605–1618)
The Polish–Muscovite War took place in the early 17th century as a sequence of military conflicts and eastward invasions carried out by the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, or the private armies and mercenaries led by the magnates , when the Russian Tsardom was torn into a series of civil wars, the...
) and were plundering and terrorizing the entire region of Lithuania. Sigismund sent the Lisowczycy to aid the Habsburgs towards the end of 1619. In the end, Ferdinand did not agree to any permanent concessions in Silesia, and only made prince Karol Ferdynand (Władysław's brother) bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of Wrocław. Neither did Habsburgs provide any help against the Ottoman Empire. The Lisowczycy crushed Transylvanian forces led by George I Rákóczi
George I Rákóczi
György Rákóczi I was elected Hungarian prince of Transylvania from 1630 until his death. During his influence Transylvania grew politically and economically stronger.-Biography:...
http://www.bartleby.com/65/ra/Rakoczy.html (Jerzy Rakoczy) at Závada, Humenné District
Závada, Humenné District
Závada is a village and municipality in Humenné District in the Prešov Region of north-east Slovakia.-Geography:The municipality lies at an altitude of 230 metres and covers an area of 9.033 km².It has a population of about 81 people.-External links:...
and Humenné
Humenné
Humenné is a town in the Prešov Region in eastern Slovakia and the second largest town of the historic Zemplín region. It lies at the volcanic Vihorlat mountains and at the confluence of the Laborec and Cirocha Rivers.-Characteristics:...
(November 13http://edu.clk.pl/~pinio/ or 21-24http://slawek-dabrowski.webpark.pl/lisowczycy.htm, sources vary; see Battle of Humenné
Battle of Humenné
The Battle of Humenné took place on November 23, 1619 near Humenné during the first period of the Thirty Years' War between the Transylvanian army and the Polish forces of Lisowczycy...
) and started looting, plundering, killing even children and dogs (as a contemporary historian wrote), and burning Eastern Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, thus forcing Bethlen to lift his siege of Vienna and try to save his own lands. Later, the Lisowczycy plagued Silesia and Bohemia and took part in the Battle of White Mountain
Battle of White Mountain
The Battle of White Mountain, 8 November 1620 was an early battle in the Thirty Years' War in which an army of 30,000 Bohemians and mercenaries under Christian of Anhalt were routed by 27,000 men of the combined armies of Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor under Charles Bonaventure de Longueval,...
.
The ruler of Moldavia, another vassal of the Ottoman sultan, a hospodar of Croat origin, Gaspar Graziani
Gaspar Graziani
Gaspar Graziani Gaspar (or Gaşpar) Graziani Gaspar (or Gaşpar) Graziani (also credited as Grazziani, Gratiani and Graţiani; Kasper Gratiani in Polish; ca...
(Kasper Gratiani in Polish), decided he would be better off under Polish rule and started talks with Polish king, promising to send 25,000 men. The Polish envoy to Istanbul who arrived in April, 1620, was received very coldly. Later Cossack raiding and burning of Istanbul suburbs did not help.
The Habsburgs had no qualms about repaying Sigismund's help with treachery. Their envoy actively worked against a new treaty between the Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire because the Habsburgs knew that any Polish-Ottoman conflict meant less trouble for themselves. This intrigue, coupled with Ottomans annoyance with Commonwealth pro-Habsburg actions and constant attempts by some Polish magnates to gain influence in Moldavia, caused a new war to be unavoidable. In Poland, the king and the hetmans exaggerated the danger in order to recruit more troops and raise taxes for the army. However, the nobles did not trust such measures, and could not be convinced to pay raised taxes for the army, speculating about the reasons behind the expedition. The nobles often thwarted the king's initiatives, even if these could prove to be in the interest of the country at large (including their own long-term purpose), becoming suspicious of any raise in the king's power as a potential reduction of their privileges. The status quo
Status quo
Statu quo, a commonly used form of the original Latin "statu quo" – literally "the state in which" – is a Latin term meaning the current or existing state of affairs. To maintain the status quo is to keep the things the way they presently are...
, which translated into their high standard of life, was generally favoured over any alternative.
Some historians say that king Sigismund decided to intervene in Moldavia because of internal problems caused mainly by the dispatch of Lisowczycy mercenaries to the Habsburg side and their conduct in war. Others point out that some nobles threatened with armed rebellion (rokosz
Rokosz
A rokosz originally was a gathering of all the Polish szlachta , not merely of deputies, for a sejm. The term was introduced to the Polish language from Hungary, where analogous gatherings took place at a field called Rákos....
), and, in case of a successful intervention, the king would increase his and the hetman's authority and focus noblemen's attention on external instead of internal problems. Additionally, hetman Żółkiewski, foreseeing confrontation with the Ottoman Empire, preferred to meet their troops on foreign soil.
In retrospect, this time the nobles were right about the lack of danger since neither Tatars nor Turks were ready in 1620. While the Sultan was indeed planning an expedition to Poland in 1621, this was to be done with a small contingent. However, it can be argued that the continuous policy of neglect for the military would dearly cost the Commonwealth in the coming decades.
Battle of Cecora and its aftermath (1620–1621)
The next phase of the Ottoman-Commonwealth conflict would begin in 1620: the Cossacks' burning of VarnaVarna
Varna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
proved the last spark. The new young Ottoman sultan Osman II made peace with Persia and promised to burn the Commonwealth to the ground and "water his horses in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
". Żółkiewski's forces went deep into Moldavia to strike at Ottomans before they were ready, but a large Ottoman force had already invaded Moldavia to remove hospodar Graziani.
In early September 1620 the Royal Grand and Field Hetman's Zolkiewski and his protegee, future hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski, assembled 8,000 men and marched south. However, Graziani's contribution comprised just 600 men. At the battle of Cecora (18 September to 6 October 1620), on the river Prut
Prut
The Prut is a long river in Eastern Europe. In part of its course it forms the border between Romania and Moldova.-Overview:...
, Zolkiewski met the 22,000 strong army of Iskander Pasha, withstanding repeated attacks during September 1620. On September 29 he ordered a retreat, and for 8 difficult days discipline held despite enemy attacks. On approaching the Polish border, order in much of the army melted and the forces disintegrated on the spot. The Ottomans attacked and much of the Commonwealth army was destroyed. Zolkiewski was killed, his head sent to the Sultan as a trophy, while Koniecpolski was captured.
The following year, in 1621, an army of 100,000–160,000 Turkish soldiers led by Sultan Osman II in person advanced from Adrianople towards the Polish frontier, but the disaster of Cecora caused the Commonwealth to mobilise a large army (of about 25,000 Poles and 20,000 Cossacks) in response. Hetman Chodkiewicz crossed the Dniester
Dniester
The Dniester is a river in Eastern Europe. It runs through Ukraine and Moldova and separates most of Moldova's territory from the breakaway de facto state of Transnistria.-Names:...
in September 1621 and entrenched himself in the fortress of Khotyn
Khotyn
Khotyn is a city in Chernivtsi Oblast of western Ukraine, and is the administrative center of Khotyn Raion within the oblast, and is located south-west of Kamianets-Podilskyi. According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, it has a population of 11,124...
on the very path of Ottoman advance. It was here that, for a whole month (2 September to 9 October), during the battle of Khotyn
Battle of Khotyn (1621)
The Battle of Khotyn was a battle fought between a Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth army and an invading Ottoman Imperial army. Here, for a whole month , the Commonwealth forces halted the Ottoman advance...
, the Commonwealth hetman held the sultan at bay, up until the first autumn snow. The deaths of approximately 40,000 of his men compelled Osman to withdraw. However, the victory was to be dearly ransomed by Poland. A few days before the siege was raised, the aged grand hetman died of exhaustion in the fortress on September 24, 1621. After his death the Polish forces were led by Stanisław Lubomirski.
Chodkiewicz wasn't the only one to die as a result. Sultan Osman himself paid the highest price for the failure of his plans. After the tides turned, the defeat and subsequent retreat of the Ottoman armies, coupled with internal matters, triggered the rebellion of janissaries in 1622, during which Osman II was murdered.
An honorable peace (Treaty of Khotyn
Treaty of Khotyn
Treaty of Khotyn , signed in the aftermath of the Battle of Khotyn , ended the Polish-Ottoman War . This peace treaty resulted in no border change but Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth agreed to stop its interference in Moldavia...
) was agreed, based on that at Busza, and the Commonwealth-Ottoman border was to be fairly quiet until the Polish–Ottoman War (1633–1634).