Tsar Alexei's campaign of 1654–1655
| Tsar Alexei's campaign of 1654–1655 | |||||||||
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| Part of Northern War of 1655–1660 and Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) | |||||||||
Portrait of Alexis by an unknown Russian artist, c. 1670 – c. 1680 | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
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Tsardom of Russia Cossack Hetmanate |
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Crimean Khanate | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Alexis of Russia Aleksey Trubetskoy Ivan Khovanaky Yakov Cherkassky Yuri Baryatinsky Bohdan Khmelnytsky Vasily Sheremetev Ivan Zolotarenko Ivan Bohun |
John Casimir Janusz Radziwiłł (WIA) Stanisław Lanckoroński Wincenty Korwin Gosiewski Stanisław "Rewera" Potocki Mehmed IV Giray | ||||||||
Tsar's Campaign of 1654–1655 also known as Tsar Alexei's campaign of 1654–1655 was a campaign of the Muscovite army against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as part of the Russo-Polish "Thirteen Years" War. Army of the Tsardom of Russia fought with the army of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (mainly Lithuanian) on a vast territory during the so-called "deluge". As a result, the Muscovites were able to return and seize significant lands, including the capital of Lithuania, Vilnius.
In May 1654, the Russian army entered the territory of the Commonwealth, concentrating on capturing Smolensk. After a long siege, the city fell in October 1654. A further Russian offensive included the seizure of other strongholds in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, including Vitebsk, Polotsk and Mogilev. Fighting took place both in the form of sieges and field battles against the troops of Lithuanian Grand Hetman Janusz Radziwiłł. In 1655, the campaign intensified, with the Russian army, supported by Cossacks, taking Minsk, Grodno and Vilnius, which was looted and burned. In Ukraine, the Tsar's army interacted with Cossack troops, waging hostilities against the Crown and Lithuanian armies. The Russians took control of Kyiv and their offensive expanded westwards. The military situation was complicated by the Swedish invasion of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1655, which drew back some of the Polish-Lithuanian forces and allowed the Tsarist army to continue its march. The warfare involved numerous sieges, the destruction of cities.