The Novgorod land was far superior to other lands in size, the possessions of Veliky Novgorod stretched from the river. Narov to the Ural Mountains. The peculiarity of Novgorod was the presence of republican principles. Veliky Novgorod was ruled by an archbishop and mayor, elected by the vechem from boyar families. There were no princely lands in the Novgorod region.
In the second half of the 15th century, the Grand Duchy of Moscow increased its pressure on Novgorod. Ivan III Vasilievich pursued a policy of "collecting lands". The threat of independence forced the Novgorodian trade and aristocratic elite to seek an alliance with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Novgorod, despite its wealth, could not resist Moscow itself. The anti-Moscow party was led by its energetic widow of the mayor, Martha Boretskaya, with her sons. However, some of the Novgorodians were against the appeal to the Grand Duke of Lithuania Casimir, since there was enmity between the Catholics and the Orthodox. Therefore, the Orthodox prince Mikhail Olelkovich, the son of the Kiev prince and cousin of Ivan III, was invited to Novgorod. He arrived in Novgorod on November 8, 1470.
However, Prince Mikhail did not stay in Novgorod for long. In connection with the death of the Novgorod Archbishop Jonah, who had invited Mikhail, a new wave of internal political struggle followed in Novgorod. As a result, on March 15, 1471, Prince Michael left the city. The anti-Moscow party won and an embassy was sent to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. A draft treaty was drawn up with the Grand Duke Casimir. According to him, Veliky Novgorod recognized the supreme power of the Grand Duke of Lithuania, but retained its previous structure. Casimir promised to provide military assistance in the fight against Moscow. The conflict between Moscow and Novgorod became inevitable.
Ivan III Vasilievich tried to settle the matter peacefully. He sent his ambassador, Ivan Tovarkov-Pushkin, to the Novgorodians with "kind speeches." However, his mission was unsuccessful. Ivan III tried to influence the Novgorodians with the help of representatives of the Orthodox Church. The Moscow Metropolitan reproached Novgorod for betraying Orthodoxy, demanding that the Novgorodians renounce the "Latin state". But church intervention failed to dampen political passions.
The impending war with Moscow split the Novgorodians in two. At the veche, opponents of Moscow shouted: “We do not want for the Grand Duke of Moscow, nor call ourselves his fatherland. Free esma people of Veliky Novgorod "; "We want for the king!" Military preparations in Novgorod took on a significant scale. Only on the Pskov border in July 1471, 40 thousand troops were sent. The Novgorod army was supposed to prevent the Pskov army, allied to the Moscow prince, from connecting with the main forces of Novgorod's opponents. 12 thous. a detachment under the command of Vasily Shuisky was sent to defend the Novgorod lands down the Northern Dvina. Property was taken from those who refused to go on a campaign. Despite the large size of the Novgorod army, its combat effectiveness was low. The army was formed hastily, the townspeople were not trained in military affairs, many did not want to fight against the Grand Duke of Moscow.
In Moscow, they knew about the preparations of the Novgorodians and were also preparing for a military campaign. Ivan III planned to organize an all-Russian campaign against Novgorod, giving it a religious flavor. On June 6, 1471, 10 thousand men set out from Moscow.detachment under the command of Daniil Kholmsky. The troops under the command of Kholmsky moved to bypass Lake Ilmen from the south to the city of Rusu. A week later, forces under the command of Striga Obolensky moved on a campaign to Volochek and Mstu. On June 20, the main forces of the Moscow troops under the command of the Grand Duke set out from Moscow and moved towards the allies through Tver. There the Tver regiment joined the Moscow troops.
Having reached the border, the Moscow troops adopted a battle formation: the regiments of Kholmsky and Striga marched to the right and left, in the center, somewhat behind them, the Grand Duke. They attacked without carts, Moscow warriors plundered the local population (this was a common thing during medieval wars). To intimidate the Novgorodians, the Moscow governors acted without "mercy" with the prisoners, punished them like rebellious slaves - "they cut their noses, ears and lips." Kholmsky's detachment captured the Demyan fortress and burned Rusu. He stopped at Korostyn and waited for the allied Pskov troops. The Novgorod command sent a hastily assembled detachment on ships along Lake Ilmen to meet the Moscow troops. In the very first battle at Korostin, the Novgorod troops were defeated.
Kholmsky received the order of the Grand Duke to go to Shelon and unite with the Pskovites. At this time, the Novgorod army under the command of Vasily Kazimir and Dmitry Boretsky was moving up the river. Sheloni. The infantry was put on ships, and the cavalry went along the coast. Having met, both rati for some time walked along different banks of the river. Following a long-standing custom, before the battle, the Novgorodians started a verbal skirmish, "blasphemous words of wear on the governor of the Grand Duke" and on himself. On July 14, 1471, a battle took place. The Novgorod ship men fought bravely and "beat the Muscovite a lot" at the crossing. However, when the Novgorodians overturned the Moscow regiments and chased them behind Shelon, they were ambushed by the warriors of the ruler of the Kasimov Khanate, Daniyar. The Novgorod infantry wavered and ran. The situation could have been straightened out by the cavalry regiment of Archbishop Theophilos, but his governors did not move, saying that they had been sent only against the Pskovites. Apparently, they acted on instructions received from the archbishop. The main losses were suffered by the Novgorodians during the pursuit. The Moscow army pursued the Novgorodians for 12 versts. In this battle, about 12 thousand Novgorodians fell, about 2 thousand more were taken prisoner. Among the captives were the mayor and the main Novgorod boyars. Ivan Vasilievich, having arrived in Rusu, arranged a trial and reprisals. Dmitry Boretsky and three other mayors were whipped and then beheaded. Vasily Kazimir and three boyars were sent to the prison of Kolomna. Other noble people were ransomed, ordinary Novgorodians were simply released.
On July 27, the Grand Duke arrived in Korostynya, where he began negotiations for peace with representatives of Novgorod. On August 11, 1471, a peace agreement was signed between Moscow and Novgorod the Great. The Novgorod Republic admitted its defeat, promised to break off relations with Lithuania and pay Moscow a large indemnity in the amount of 15, 5 thousand rubles. By order of the Moscow sovereign, the defenses in the Novgorod fortresses of Demyan and Rusa were torn down. Grand Duke Ivan III was in a hurry to conclude this treaty. Opponents of Moscow at this time tried to create a broad coalition with the participation of Lithuania, the Great Horde and Livonia. Therefore, the Moscow sovereign accepted the main demand of the Novgorodians - to preserve the veche system in Novgorod. Novgorod retained the right to invite princes to its throne, excluding the enemies of Moscow. However, the entire population of Novgorod was sworn in. In addition, a significant part of the vast Dvina land was ceded to Moscow.
Moscow-Novgorod war of 1477-1478
In the fall of 1475, Ivan III Vasilievich arrived in Novgorod "peacefully", but accompanied by an impressive force. The reason for his arrival in Veliky Novgorod was the conflict between the boyars of Slavkova Street (they gravitated towards Moscow) with the boyars of the Nerevsky end (many of them were oriented towards Lithuania). Disputes between these parts of Novgorod were accompanied by mutual attacks, pogroms and looting. The Grand Duke, violating the tradition of Novgorod - Novgorod officials had the right to judge only the Council of Masters and Veche, declared several leaders of the anti-Moscow party guilty. Several Novgorod boyars were sent to Moscow. Archbishop Theophilus wanted to help out the arrested boyars and came to Moscow, but his mission was unsuccessful.
In fact, during this period, a judicial dual power developed in Veliky Novgorod: some complainants were sent directly to Moscow and there they presented their claims. The Moscow sovereign, seeking complete subordination of Novgorod, wanted to abolish the special Novgorod court, replacing it with a grand ducal one. This situation became the reason for the new Moscow-Novgorod war, which ended with the fall of the trade and aristocratic republic.
In the spring of 1477, “complainants against the mayor and boyars” flocked to Moscow, among them were supporters of Moscow - mayor Vasily Nikiforov and boyar Ivan Kuzmin. Together with others, Ivan III Vasilyevich received two minor officials - Nazar's stock and Zakhari, the clerk. In presenting their complaint, they called the Grand Duke "sovereign" instead of the traditional address "lord", this title presupposed the equality of "lord of the grand duke" and "lord of the great Novgorod." Moscow used this situation in order to finally resolve the Novgorod issue.
Ambassadors Khromoy-Chelyadnin and Tuchko-Morozov were sent to Novgorod, who, referring to the words of Nazar and Zakhary, began to demand official recognition for Ivan Vasilyevich of the title of sovereign of Veliky Novgorod. They also demanded the establishment of the Grand Duke's residence at the Yaroslav's settlement and the replacement of the Novgorod court by the Grand Duke's court. Veche, after listening to the Moscow ambassadors, said that Novgorod had not authorized any changes in the title of the ruler of Moscow. “We, - said the inhabitants of the city, - didn’t send, we sent the boyars, but the people do not know”. Nazar and Zachary were outlawed. A new wave of clashes began between the pro-Moscow and pro-Lithuanian parties. Boyarin Nikiforov, who secretly took the oath to the Moscow prince and entered his service, was killed. Posadnik Ovinov and his brother took refuge in the archbishop's court. But this did not save them, they were killed in the royal court. The archbishop could not save them. The influential boyars Fedorov and Zakharyin were put into custody. The Moscow ambassadors were released "with honor," but all Moscow's demands were resolutely rejected.
On October 9, 1477, the Moscow army moved to Novgorod. She was joined by regiments from Tver and Pskov. In November Veliky Novgorod was besieged. The Novgorodians were actively preparing for the defense and refused to surrender. In order to prevent an attack from the side of the river, the military leader of the Novgorodians, Prince Vasily Grebenka-Shuisky and the townspeople hastily erected a wall on ships, blocking the Volkhov. The townspeople hoped that the large enemy army would not be able to provide itself with food and would sooner or later leave, fleeing hunger and cold. However, their calculations were only partially justified. Ivan did not try to storm the powerful Novgorod fortifications and dispersed half of the army in the vicinity so that the soldiers could get food by plunder. In addition, Pskov rendered a great service to the Grand Duke's army, which began to supply it with food.
Novgorod had a chance to withstand if there was unity in the ranks of its defenders. Moscow's supporters, remembering the recent executions, were in a hurry to leave the city and get into the grand prince's camp. Among the first defectors were the boyar Tucha and the son of the murdered boyar Nikiforov. It is also necessary to take into account the fact that the most determined opponents of Moscow have already been executed or were in prison. There were no people who would be able to organize decisive and lasting resistance. Moscow's supporters began to insist on negotiations with the Grand Duke. One of the supporters of the beginning of negotiations and the conclusion of peace was the Novgorod archbishop Theophilus.
On November 23, the Novgorod embassy, together with Vladyka Theophilos, appeared at the tent of the Moscow sovereign on the banks of the Ilmen. The Novgorodians wanted to conclude peace on the terms of the treaty of 1471. Ivan Vasilyevich gave a feast in their honor, but rejected all the proposals of the Novgorodians. Hopes for an honorable peace have disappeared. The Moscow sovereign declared that he wants to see Novgorod as the same "fatherland" as Moscow. Then the Moscow boyars informed the Novgorodians of the will of the great Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich: "… in Novgorod there will be no veche bell, no mayor, but there will be only the power of the sovereign, as in the country of Moscow."
When the ambassadors outlined these demands at the veche, unrest broke out in the city. "Raise the rabble against the boyars and the boyars against the rabble." New boyars fled to the Moscow camp. The posadniki tried to reach an agreement with the Moscow boyars. The Muscovites assured their ambassadors that the sovereign would not evict Novgorodians "to Niz" and would not take their lands. These assurances put an end to the hesitation of the Novgorod government. Wanting to receive guarantees of the inviolability of their property, the boyars asked the Grand Duke to personally confirm the agreement by swearing an oath on the cross. But they were refused.
Seeing that there was a "great rebellion" and "disorder" in the city, Prince Grebenka-Shuisky gave up the kiss of the cross to Novgorod and asked Ivan Vasilyevich to take him into his service. Vasily Grebyonka was not punished. He was promoted to boyar dignity and became the governor of Nizhny Novgorod. Novgorodians, having lost their military leader, decided to yield to the requirements of the Grand Duke. On January 13, 1478, they announced the subordination of Novgorod to the Moscow prince. The Novgorodians agreed to restore the grand ducal domain in the lands of Novgorod and determined the procedure for collecting taxes in favor of the grand duke.
On January 15, 1478, the Moscow boyars entered Novgorod and swore the residents of the city. The veche order was destroyed, the veche in Novgorod was no longer convened. The veche bell and the city's archives were taken to Moscow. Novgorod court, elective offices were abolished. The Novgorod Republic was destroyed.
Already in February, the sovereign ordered the arrest of Martha Boretskaya. The huge patrimony of the Boretskys went to the treasury. Martha and her grandson were first brought to Moscow, and then sent to Nizhny Novgorod, where she was tonsured as a nun under the name of Mary. Vasily Kazimir and three other Novgorod mayor were accepted into the service, but soon they found themselves in disgrace and lost their estates.
Ivan III was still afraid of the intervention of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and, having received a denunciation of the leaders of the Prolitov party, ordered the arrest of the boyar I. Savelkov. In total, up to 30 people were arrested in the case of secret relations with the Lithuanians, and their lands were confiscated. In the late 1480s, according to the scribes, the Moscow sovereign ordered 1,054 people to be evicted from Novgorod. Along with family members, about 7 thousand people were evicted. Were evicted "golden belts" - about 300 noble families of the Novgorod land and 500 - 600 merchants. The common people were not affected by this eviction. Novgorod boyars and merchants were distributed in various cities, from Vladimir and Rostov to Murom and Kostroma. The Novgorod aristocracy was actually destroyed, it was reduced to the level of ordinary service people.
Thus, Moscow eliminated the possibility of rebellion, since the Novgorod boyars and merchants still had great economic opportunities. Given the unfavorable foreign policy situation for Moscow, the Novgorodians could try to restore independence.
