Defense of Putivl in the Spring of 1613

The article deals with the events that took place on the territory of the Putivl district in the spring of 1613. The authors used and analyzed archival materials with details of the events that took place then. They are supplemented by the results of archaeological research, which supplement the data of written sources. In the winter of 1613, the King of the Commonwealth, Sigismund III, granted Putivl County to Prince Mikhail Vyshnevetsky. A Cossack detachment was located in Putivl, left there by Prince Semyon Lyko. At the same time, the newly elected Tsar of Moscow, Mikhail Romanov, attempted to fight the troops of Ataman Zarutsky. Against the backdrop of these actions, preparations begin in Rylsk for a campaign against Putivl. By royal decree, a detachment was assembled from the border cities, commanded by Prince D. Dolgoruky. His task is to capture Putivl. In April 1613, the Moscow detachment approached the city and stopped on the Kleven River, 10 miles from the city. After several skirmishes with the Cossack detachments, the Moscow troops forced them to retreat to the fortress, and they themselves began to ravage the surroundings of Putivl. To protect the city and divert the forces of the Moscow army, a detachment of Cossacks left Putivl. For a month, Putivl was attacked and shelled, and after another assault was taken. The Cossacks withdrew to Putivl, where reinforcements arrived the day before, led by Prince Semyon Lyko. Having won, but not having achieved its tasks, the Moscow army retreated to Rylsk, and then dispersed to the surrounding cities. After that, the Cossack troops began to ravage the Rylsky district and burned the Rylsk settlement. Thus, the victory in the field battle turned into a defeat, the goals set were not achieved, and the losses incurred made it impossible to defend our own city.

Source: Sergey I. Degtyarev, Evgenij M. Osadchij (2023). Defense of Putivl in the Spring of 1613. Bylye Gody. 18(1): 14-25

Source web-site: https://bg.cherkasgu.press/journals_n/1677676520.pdf