In 1581-1585, the Muscovite kingdom, led by Ivan the Terrible, significantly expanded the borders of the state to the East, as a result of the victory over the Mongol-Tatar khanates. It was during this period that Russia for the first time included Western Siberia. This happened thanks to the successful campaign of the Cossacks, led by Ataman Ermak Timofeevich, against Khan Kuchum. This article offers a brief overview of such a historical event as the annexation of western Siberia to Russia.

Preparation of Ermak's campaign

In 1579, a detachment of Cossacks consisting of 700-800 soldiers was formed on the territory of Oryol-gorod (modern Perm region). They were led by Ermak Timofeevich, formerly the atamans of the Volga Cossacks. Orel-town was owned by the Stroganov merchant family. It was they who allocated the money to create the army. The main goal is to protect the population from raids by nomads from the territory of the Siberian Khanate. However, in 1581 it was decided to organize a retaliatory campaign in order to weaken the aggressive neighbor. The first few months of the hike were a struggle with nature. Very often, participants in the campaign had to wield an ax to cut a passage through impenetrable forests. As a result, the Cossacks suspended the campaign for the winter of 1581-1582, creating a fortified camp Kokuy-gorodok.

Progress of the war with the Siberian Khanate

The first battles between the Khanate and the Cossacks took place in the spring of 1582: in March, a battle took place on the territory of the modern Sverdlovsk region. Near the city of Turinsk, the Cossacks completely defeated the local troops of Khan Kuchum, and in May they already occupied the large city of Chingi-tura. At the end of September, the battle for the capital of the Siberian Khanate, Kashlyk, began. A month later, the Cossacks won again. However, after a grueling campaign, Ermak decided to take a break and sent an embassy to Ivan the Terrible, thereby taking a break in the annexation of Western Siberia to the Russian kingdom.

When Ivan the Terrible learned of the first skirmishes between the Cossacks and the Siberian Khanate, the Tsar ordered the recall of the “thieves,” meaning the Cossack detachments that “arbitrarily attacked their neighbors.” However, at the end of 1582, Ermak’s envoy, Ivan Koltso, arrived to the king, who informed Grozny about the successes, and also asked for reinforcements for the complete defeat of the Siberian Khanate. After this, the tsar approved Ermak’s campaign and sent weapons, salaries and reinforcements to Siberia.

Historical reference

Map of Ermak's campaign in Siberia in 1582-1585

In 1583, Ermak’s troops defeated Khan Kuchum on the Vagai River, and his nephew Mametkul was taken prisoner. The khan himself fled to the territory of the Ishim steppe, from where he periodically continued to launch attacks on Russian lands. In the period from 1583 to 1585, Ermak no longer made large-scale campaigns, but included new lands of Western Siberia into Russia: the ataman promised protection and patronage to the conquered peoples, and they had to pay a special tax - yasak.

In 1585, during one of the skirmishes with local tribes (according to another version, an attack by the army of Khan Kuchum), a small detachment of Ermak was defeated, and the ataman himself died. But the main goal and task in the life of this man was solved - Western Siberia joined Russia.

Results of Ermak's campaign

Historians highlight the following key results of Ermak’s campaign in Siberia:

1. Expansion of Russian territory by annexing the lands of the Siberian Khanate.
2. The emergence in Russian foreign policy of a new direction for aggressive campaigns, a vector that will bring great success to the country.
3. Colonization of Siberia. As a result of these processes, a large number of cities arise. A year after Ermak’s death, in 1586, the first city of Russia in Siberia, Tyumen, was founded. This happened at the place of the khan’s headquarters, the city of Kashlyk, the former capital of the Siberian Khanate.

The annexation of Western Siberia, which happened thanks to the campaigns led by Ermak Timofeevich, is of great importance in the history of Russia. It was as a result of these campaigns that Russia first began to spread its influence in Siberia, and thereby develop, becoming the largest state in the world.

The Khanate or Kingdom of Siberia, the conquest of which Ermak Timofeevich became famous in Russian history, was a fragment of the vast empire of Genghis Khan. It emerged from the Central Asian Tatar possessions, apparently no earlier than the 15th century - in the same era when the special kingdoms of Kazan and Astrakhan, Khiva and Bukhara were formed. The Siberian Horde, apparently, was closely related to the Nogai Horde. It was formerly called Tyumen and Shiban. The last name indicates that the branch of the Chingizids dominated here, which came from Sheibani, one of the sons of Jochi and the brother of Batu, and which ruled in Central Asia. One branch of the Sheibanids founded a special kingdom in the Ishim and Irtysh steppes and extended its borders to the Ural ridge and the Ob. A century before Ermak, under Ivan III, the Sheiban Khan Ivak, like the Crimean Mengli-Girey, was at enmity with the Golden Horde Khan Akhmat and was even his murderer. But Ivak himself was killed by a rival in his own land. The fact is that a part of the Tatars under the leadership of the noble Bek Taibuga separated from the Shiban Horde. True, Taibuga's successors were not called khans, but only beks; the right to the highest title belonged only to the descendants of Chingisov, i.e., the Sheibanids. Taibuga's successors withdrew with their horde further north, to the Irtysh, where the town of Siberia, below the confluence of the Tobol and the Irtysh, became its center, and where it subjugated the neighboring Ostyaks, Voguls and Bashkirs. Ivak was killed by one of Taibuga's successors. There was fierce enmity between these two clans, and each of them looked for allies in the Bukhara kingdom, the Kirghiz and Nogai hordes and in the Moscow state.

Oath of the Siberian Khanate to Moscow in the 1550-1560s

These internal strife explain the readiness with which the prince of the Siberian Tatars Ediger, a descendant of Taibuga, recognized himself as a tributary of Ivan the Terrible. A quarter of a century before Ermak Timofeevich’s campaign, in 1555, Ediger’s ambassadors came to Moscow and beat him with his forehead so that he would accept the Siberian land under his protection and take tribute from it. Ediger sought support from Moscow in the fight against the Sheibanids. Ivan Vasilyevich took the Siberian prince under his hand, imposed a tribute of a thousand sables a year on him and sent Dimitri Nepeytsin to him to swear in the inhabitants of the Siberian land and enumerate the black people; their number extended to 30,700. But in subsequent years the tribute was not delivered in full; Ediger justified himself by saying that he was fought by the Shiban prince, who took many people captive. This Shiban prince was the future enemy of Ermak’s Cossacks Kuchum, grandson of Khan Ivaka. Having received help from the Kyrgyz-Kaisaks or Nogais, Kuchum defeated Ediger, killed him and took possession of the Siberian kingdom (around 1563). At first, he also recognized himself as a tributary of the Moscow sovereign. The Moscow government recognized him as a khan, as a direct descendant of the Sheibanids. But when Kuchum firmly established himself in the Siberian land and spread the Mohammedan religion among his Tatars, he not only stopped paying tribute, but also began to attack our northeastern Ukraine, forcing the neighboring Ostyaks, instead of Moscow, to pay tribute to him. In all likelihood, these changes for the worse in the east did not occur without the influence of failures in the Livonian War. The Siberian Khanate came out from under the supreme power of Moscow - this later made it necessary for Ermak Timofeevich to go to Siberia.

Stroganovs

The origin of Ataman Ermak Timofeevich is unknown. According to one legend, he was from the banks of the Kama River, according to another, he was a native of the Kachalinskaya village on the Don. His name, according to some, is a change from the name Ermolai; other historians and chroniclers derive it from Herman and Eremey. One chronicle, considering Ermak's name a nickname, gives him the Christian name Vasily. Ermak was at first the chieftain of one of the numerous Cossack gangs that plundered on the Volga and robbed not only Russian merchants and Persian ambassadors, but also royal ships. Ermak’s gang turned to the conquest of Siberia after entering the service of the famous Stroganov family.

The ancestors of Ermak's employers, the Stroganovs, probably belonged to the Novgorod families that colonized the Dvina land, and during the era of Novgorod's struggle with Moscow, they went over to the latter's side. They had large estates in the Solvycheg and Ustyug regions and acquired great wealth by engaging in salt production, as well as by trading with Perm and Ugra foreigners, from whom they exchanged expensive furs. The main nest of this family was in Solvychegodsk. The wealth of the Stroganovs is evidenced by the news that they helped Grand Duke Vasily the Dark ransom from Tatar captivity; for which they received various awards and preferential certificates. Under Ivan III, Luka Stroganov was famous; and under Vasily III the grandchildren of this Luke. Continuing to engage in salt mining and trade, the Stroganovs are the largest figures in the field of settling the northeastern lands. During the reign of Ivan IV, they extended their colonization activities far to the southeast, to the Kama region. At that time, the head of the family is Anikius, the grandson of Luke; but he was probably already old, and his three sons are the leaders: Yakov, Gregory and Semyon. They are no longer simple peaceful colonizers of the Trans-Kama countries, but have their own military detachments, build fortresses, arm them with their own cannons, and repel attacks of hostile foreigners. A little later, the gang of Ermak Timofeevich was hired as one of these detachments. The Stroganovs represented a family of feudal owners on our eastern outskirts. The Moscow government willingly provided enterprising people with all the benefits and rights to defend the northeastern borders.

Preparation of Ermak's campaign

The colonization activities of the Stroganovs, whose highest expression soon became Ermak’s campaign, were constantly expanding. In 1558, Grigory Stroganov confronted Ivan Vasilyevich about the following: in Great Perm, on both sides of the Kama River from Lysva to Chusovaya, there are empty places, black forests, uninhabited and not assigned to anyone. The petitioner asks the Stroganovs to grant this space, promising to build a city there, supply it with cannons and arquebuses in order to protect the sovereign’s fatherland from the Nogai people and from other hordes; asks permission to cut down forests in these wild places, to plow arable land, to build courtyards, to summon unliterate and non-taxable people. By a letter dated April 4 of the same year, the tsar granted the Stroganovs lands on both sides of the Kama for 146 versts from the mouth of Lysva to Chusovaya, with the requested benefits and rights, and allowed the establishment of settlements; freed them for 20 years from paying taxes and zemstvo duties, as well as from the court of Perm governors; so the right to try the Slobozhans belonged to the same Grigory Stroganov. This document was signed by the okolnichy Fyodor Umny and Alexey Adashev. Thus, the energetic efforts of the Stroganovs were not without connection with the activities of the Elected Rada and Adashev, the best adviser of the first half of the reign of Ivan the Terrible.

Ermak Timofeevich's campaign was well prepared by this energetic Russian exploration of the Urals. Grigory Stroganov built the town of Kankor on the right side of the Kama. Six years later, he asked permission to build another town, 20 versts below the first on the Kama, named Kergedan (later it was called Orel). These towns were surrounded by strong walls, armed with firearms and had a garrison made up of various free people: there were Russians, Lithuanians, Germans and Tatars. When the oprichnina was established, the Stroganovs asked the tsar that their cities be included in the oprichnina, and this request was fulfilled.

In 1568, Gregory’s elder brother Yakov Stroganov challenged the Tsar to give him, on the same grounds, the entire course of the Chusovaya River and the twenty-verst distance along the Kama below the mouth of the Chusovaya. The king agreed to his request; only the grace period was now assigned to ten years (hence, it ended at the same time as the previous award). Yakov Stroganov set up forts along Chusovaya and started settlements that revived this deserted region. He also had to defend the region from attacks by neighboring foreigners - the reason why the Stroganovs then called upon Ermak’s Cossacks. In 1572, a riot broke out in the land of Cheremis; A crowd of Cheremis, Ostyaks and Bashkirs invaded the Kama region, plundered ships and beat several dozen merchants. But the Stroganovs’ military men pacified the rebels. Cheremis raised the Siberian Khan Kuchum against Moscow; he also forbade the Ostyaks, Voguls and Ugras to pay tribute to her. The next year, 1573, Kuchum’s nephew Magmetkul came with an army to Chusovaya and beat many Ostyaks, Moscow tribute-bearers. However, he did not dare to attack the Stroganov towns and went back beyond the Stone Belt (Ural). Informing the Tsar about this, the Stroganovs asked for permission to spread their settlements beyond the Belt, build towns along the Tobol River and its tributaries and establish settlements there with the same benefits, promising in return not only to defend the Moscow tribute-bearers Ostyaks and Voguls from Kuchum, but to fight and subjugate the Siberians themselves Tatars With a letter dated May 30, 1574, Ivan Vasilyevich fulfilled this request of the Stroganovs, this time with a twenty-year grace period.

Arrival of Ermak's Cossacks to the Stroganovs (1579)

But for about ten years the Stroganovs’ intention to spread Russian colonization beyond the Urals was not realized, until Ermak’s Cossack squads appeared on the scene.

According to one Siberian Chronicle, in April 1579 the Stroganovs sent a letter to the Cossack atamans who were robbing the Volga and Kama, and invited them to their Chusov towns to help against the Siberian Tatars. The place of the brothers Yakov and Grigory Anikiev was then taken by their sons: Maxim Yakovlevich and Nikita Grigorievich. They turned with the aforementioned letter to the Volga Cossacks. Five atamans responded to their call: Ermak Timofeevich, Ivan Koltso, Yakov Mikhailov, Nikita Pan and Matvey Meshcheryak, who arrived to them with their hundreds in the summer of the same year. The main leader of this Cossack squad was Ermak, whose name then became next to the names of his older contemporaries, the conquerors of America Cortez and Pizarro.

We do not have exact information about the origin and previous life of this remarkable person. There is only a dark legend that Ermak’s grandfather was a townsman from Suzdal, who was engaged in carriage; that Ermak himself, baptized Vasily (or Germa), was born somewhere in the Kama region, was distinguished by bodily strength, courage and the gift of speech; in his youth he worked in the plows that walked along the Kama and Volga, and then became an ataman of robbers. There are no direct indications that Ermak belonged to the Don Cossacks proper; rather, he was a native of north-eastern Rus', who, with his enterprise, experience and daring, resurrected the type of the ancient Novgorod free agent.

The Cossack atamans spent two years in Chusov towns, helping the Stroganovs defend themselves against foreigners. When Murza Bekbeliy with a crowd of Vogulichs attacked the Stroganov villages, Ermak’s Cossacks defeated him and took him prisoner. The Cossacks themselves attacked the Vogulichs, Votyaks and Pelymtsy and thus prepared themselves for the big campaign against Kuchum.

It is difficult to say who exactly took the main initiative in this enterprise. Some chronicles say that the Stroganovs sent Cossacks to conquer the Siberian kingdom. Others say that the Cossacks, led by Ermak, independently undertook this campaign; Moreover, with threats they forced the Stroganovs to supply them with the necessary supplies. Perhaps the initiative was mutual, but on the part of Ermak’s Cossacks it was more voluntary, and on the part of the Stroganovs it was more forced by circumstances. The Cossack squad could hardly carry out boring guard duty in the Chusov towns for a long time and be content with meager booty in the neighboring foreign lands. In all likelihood, it soon became a burden for the Stroganov region itself. Exaggerated news about the river expanse beyond the Stone Belt, about the riches of Kuchum and his Tatars and, finally, a thirst for exploits that could wash away past sins - all this aroused the desire to go to a little-known country. Ermak Timofeevich was probably the main driver of the entire enterprise. The Stroganovs got rid of the restless crowd of Cossacks and fulfilled the long-standing idea of ​​their own and the Moscow government: to transfer the fight with the Siberian Tatars to the Ural ridge and punish the khan who had fallen away from Moscow.

Beginning of Ermak's campaign (1581)

The Stroganovs supplied the Cossacks with provisions, as well as guns and gunpowder, and gave them another 300 people from their own military men, including, in addition to the Russians, hired Lithuanians, Germans and Tatars. There were 540 Cossacks. Consequently, the entire detachment was more than 800 people. Ermak and the Cossacks realized that the success of the campaign would have been impossible without strict discipline; therefore, for violation of it, the atamans established punishments: those who disobeyed and fugitives were to be drowned in the river. The upcoming dangers made the Cossacks pious; they say that Ermak was accompanied by three priests and one monk, who performed divine services daily. The preparations took a lot of time, so Ermak’s campaign began quite late, already in September 1581. The warriors sailed up the Chusovaya, after several days of sailing they entered its tributary, Serebryanka, and reached the portage that separates the Kama River system from the Ob system. It took a lot of work to get over this portage and go down into the Zheravlya River; quite a few boats were stuck in the portage. The cold season had already arrived, the rivers began to become covered with ice, and Ermak’s Cossacks had to spend the winter near the portage. They set up a fort, from where one part of them undertook searches to the neighboring Vogul regions for supplies and booty, while the other prepared everything needed for the spring campaign. When the flood came, Ermak’s squad descended down the Zheravleya River into the Barancha rivers, and then into Tagil and Tura, a tributary of the Tobol, entering the boundaries of the Siberian Khanate. On Tura there was an Ostyak-Tatar yurt Chingidi (Tyumen), which was owned by a relative or tributary of Kuchum, Epancha. Here the first battle took place, which ended in complete defeat and flight of the Epanchin Tatars. Ermak's Cossacks entered Tobol and at the mouth of the Tavda had a successful deal with the Tatars. The Tatar fugitives brought Kuchum news of the coming of Russian soldiers; Moreover, they justified their defeat by the action of guns unfamiliar to them, which they considered special bows: “when the Russians shoot from their bows, then fire plows from them; the arrows are not visible, but the wounds are fatal, and it is impossible to defend against them with any military harness.” These news saddened Kuchum, especially since various signs had already predicted for him the arrival of the Russians and the fall of his kingdom.

The Khan, however, did not waste time, gathered Tatars, subordinate Ostyaks and Voguls from everywhere and sent them under the command of his close relative, the brave prince Magmetkul, to meet the Cossacks. And he himself built fortifications and fences near the mouth of the Tobol, under Chuvasheva Mountain, in order to block Ermak’s access to his capital, a town in Siberia, located on the Irtysh, slightly below the confluence of the Tobol. A series of bloody battles followed. Magmetkul first met the Cossacks of Ermak Timofeevich near the Babasany tract, but neither the Tatar cavalry nor the arrows could withstand the Cossacks and their arquebuses. Magmetkul ran to the abatis under Chuvasheva Mountain. The Cossacks sailed further along the Tobol and on the road captured the ulus of Karachi (chief adviser) Kuchum, where they found warehouses of all sorts of goods. Having reached the mouth of the Tobol, Ermak first avoided the aforementioned abatis, turned up the Irtysh, took the town of Murza Atika on its bank and settled down here to rest, pondering his further plan.

Map of the Siberian Khanate and Ermak's campaign

Capture of the city of Siberia by Ermak

A large crowd of enemies, fortified near Chuvashev, made Ermak think. The Cossack circle gathered to decide whether to go forward or turn back. Some advised retreat. But the more courageous ones reminded Ermak Timofeevich of the vow he had made before the campaign to stand rather to fall to a single person than to run back in shame. It was already deep autumn (1582), the rivers would soon be covered with ice, and the return voyage would become extremely dangerous. On the morning of October 23, Ermak’s Cossacks left the town. When shouting: “Lord, help your servants!” They hit the ambush, and a stubborn battle began.

The enemies met the attackers with clouds of arrows and injured many. Despite desperate attacks, Ermak’s detachment could not overcome the fortifications and began to exhaust. The Tatars, considering themselves already winners, broke the abatis themselves in three places and made a sortie. But then, in desperate hand-to-hand combat, the Tatars were defeated and rushed back; The Russians burst into the abattoir. The Ostyak princes were the first to leave the battlefield and went home with their crowds. The wounded Magmetkul escaped in the boat. Kuchum watched the battle from the top of the mountain and ordered the Muslim mullahs to say prayers. Seeing the flight of the entire army, he himself hurried to his capital Siberia; but did not stay in it, because there was no one left to defend it; and fled south to the Ishim steppes. Having learned about Kuchum's flight, on October 26, 1582, Ermak and the Cossacks entered the empty city of Siberia; here they found valuable booty, a lot of gold, silver, and especially furs. A few days later, the residents began to return: the Ostyak prince came first with his people and brought Ermak Timofeevich and his squad gifts and food supplies; then little by little the Tatars returned.

Conquest of Siberia by Ermak. Painting by V. Surikov, 1895

So, after incredible work, Ermak Timofeevich’s detachment hoisted Russian banners in the capital of the Siberian kingdom. Although firearms gave him a strong advantage, we must not forget that the enemies had a huge numerical superiority: according to the chronicles, Ermak had 20 and even 30 times more enemies against him. Only extraordinary strength of spirit and body helped the Cossacks defeat so many enemies. Long trips along unfamiliar rivers show to what extent the Cossacks of Ermak Timofeevich were hardened in hardships and accustomed to fighting northern nature.

Ermak and Kuchum

With the conquest of Kuchum's capital, however, the war was far from over. Kuchum himself did not consider his kingdom lost, which half consisted of nomadic and wandering foreigners; the vast neighboring steppes provided him with reliable shelter; from here he made surprise attacks on the Cossacks, and the fight with him dragged on for a long time. The enterprising prince Magmetkul was especially dangerous. Already in November or December of the same 1582, he waylaid a small detachment of Cossacks engaged in fishing, and killed almost all of them. This was the first sensitive loss. In the spring of 1583, Ermak learned from a Tatar that Magmetkul was encamped on the Vagai River (a tributary of the Irtysh between Tobol and Ishim), about a hundred miles from the city of Siberia. A detachment of Cossacks sent against him suddenly attacked his camp at night, killed many Tatars, and captured the prince himself. The loss of the brave prince temporarily protected Ermak’s Cossacks from Kuchum. But their number has already greatly decreased; supplies were exhausted, while much work and battles still lay ahead. There was an urgent need for Russian help.

Conquest of Siberia by Ermak. Painting by V. Surikov, 1895. Fragment

Immediately after the capture of the city of Siberia, Ermak Timofeevich and the Cossacks sent news of their successes to the Stroganovs; and then they sent Ataman Ivan the Ring to Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich himself with expensive Siberian sables and a request to send them royal warriors to help.

Cossacks of Ermak in Moscow near Ivan the Terrible

Meanwhile, taking advantage of the fact that in the Perm region after the departure of Ermak’s gang there were few military people left, some Pelym (Vogul) prince came with crowds of Ostyaks, Voguls and Votyaks, reached Cherdyn, the main city of this region, then turned to Kama Usolye, Kankor, Kergedan and Chusovskie towns, burning out surrounding villages and taking peasants captive. Without Ermak, the Stroganovs barely defended their towns from the enemies. Cherdyn governor Vasily Pelepelitsyn, perhaps dissatisfied with the privileges of the Stroganovs and their lack of jurisdiction, in a report to Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich blamed the devastation of the Perm region on the Stroganovs: they, without the royal decree, called the thieves' Cossacks Ermak Timofeevich and other atamans to their prisons, the Vogulichs and They sent Kuchum and they were bullied. When the Pelym prince came, they did not help the sovereign cities with their military men; and Ermak, instead of defending the Perm land, went to fight to the east. Stroganov sent an unmerciful royal letter from Moscow, dated November 16, 1582. Stroganov was ordered not to keep the Cossacks from now on, but to send the Volga atamans, Ermak Timofeevich and his comrades, to Perm (i.e. Cherdyn) and Kamskoe Usolye, where they should not stand together, but separated; It was allowed to keep no more than a hundred people at home. If this is not carried out exactly and again some misfortune occurs over the Perm regions from the Voguls and the Siberian saltan, then “great disgrace” will be imposed on the Stroganovs. In Moscow, obviously, they knew nothing about the Siberian campaign and demanded that Ermak be sent to Cherdyn with the Cossacks, who were already located on the banks of the Irtysh. The Stroganovs were “in great sadness.” They relied on the permission previously given to them to establish towns beyond the Stone Belt and fight the Siberian Saltan, and therefore they released the Cossacks there, without communicating with either Moscow or the Perm governor. But soon news arrived from Ermak and his comrades about their extraordinary luck. With her, the Stroganovs personally hurried to Moscow. And then the Cossack embassy arrived there, led by Ataman Koltso (once sentenced to death for robbery). Of course, opals were out of the question. The Tsar received the ataman and the Cossacks kindly, rewarded them with money and cloth, and again released them to Siberia. They say that he sent Ermak Timofeevich a fur coat from his shoulder, a silver cup and two shells. He then sent Prince Semyon Volkhovsky and Ivan Glukhov with several hundred military men to reinforce them. The captive Tsarevich Magmetkul, brought to Moscow, was granted estates and took his place among the serving Tatar princes. The Stroganovs received new trade benefits and two more land grants, Big and Small Sol.

Arrival of the detachments of Volkhovsky and Glukhov to Ermak (1584)

Kuchum, having lost Magmetkul, was distracted by the renewed struggle with the Taibuga clan. Meanwhile, Ermak's Cossacks completed the imposition of tribute on the Ostyak and Vogul volosts, which were part of the Siberian Khanate. From the city of Siberia they walked along the Irtysh and Ob, on the banks of the latter they took the Ostyak city of Kazym; but then during the attack they lost one of their atamans, Nikita Pan. The number of Ermak’s detachment decreased greatly; barely half of it remained. Ermak was looking forward to help from Russia. Only in the fall of 1584 did Volkhovskaya and Glukhov sail on plows: but they brought no more than 300 people - the help was too insufficient to consolidate such a vast space for Russia. The loyalty of the newly conquered local princes could not be relied upon, and the irreconcilable Kuchum still acted at the head of his horde. Ermak happily met the Moscow military men, but had to share meager food supplies with them; In winter, the death rate in the Siberian city began due to lack of food. Prince Volkhovskaya also died. Only in the spring, thanks to the abundant catch of fish and game, as well as bread and livestock delivered from surrounding foreigners, did the people of Ermak recover from hunger. Prince Volkhovskaya, apparently, was appointed Siberian governor, to whom the Cossack atamans had to surrender the city and submit, and his death freed the Russians from the inevitable rivalry and disagreement of the chiefs; for it is unlikely that the atamans would willingly give up their leading role in the newly conquered land. With the death of Volkhovsky, Ermak again became the head of the united Cossack-Moscow detachment.

Death of Ermak

Until now, success has accompanied almost all of Ermak Timofeevich’s enterprises. But happiness finally began to change. Continued success weakens constant precaution and gives rise to carelessness, the cause of disastrous surprises.

One of the local tributary princes, Karacha, that is, a former Khan's adviser, conceived treason and sent envoys to Ermak with a request to defend him from the Nogai. The ambassadors swore that they did not think any harm against the Russians. The atamans believed their oath. Ivan Ring and forty Cossacks with him went to the town of Karachi, were kindly received, and then treacherously all were killed. To avenge them, Ermak sent a detachment with ataman Yakov Mikhailov; but this detachment was also exterminated. After that, the surrounding foreigners bowed to the admonitions of Karachi and rebelled against the Russians. With a large crowd, Karacha laid siege to the city of Siberia itself. It is very possible that he was in secret relations with Kuchum. Ermak's squad, weakened by losses, was forced to withstand the siege. The last one dragged on, and the Russians were already experiencing a severe shortage of food supplies: Karacha hoped to starve them out.

But despair gives determination. One June night, the Cossacks split into two parts: one remained with Ermak in the city, and the other, with ataman Matvey Meshcheryak, quietly went out into the field and crept to the Karachi camp, which stood several miles from the city, separate from the other Tatars. Many enemies were beaten, and Karacha himself barely escaped. At dawn, when the main camp of the besiegers learned about the attack of Ermak’s Cossacks, crowds of enemies hastened to the aid of Karacha and surrounded the small squad of Cossacks. But Ermak fenced himself off with the Karachi convoy and met the enemies with rifle fire. The savages could not stand it and scattered. The city was freed from the siege, the surrounding tribes again recognized themselves as our tributaries. After that, Ermak undertook a successful trip up the Irtysh, perhaps to search beyond Kuchum. But the tireless Kuchum was elusive in his Ishim steppes and built new intrigues.

Conquest of Siberia by Ermak. Painting by V. Surikov, 1895. Fragment

As soon as Ermak Timofeevich returned to the city of Siberia, news came that a caravan of Bukhara merchants was heading to the city with goods, but stopped somewhere, because Kuchum did not give him the way! The resumption of trade with Central Asia was very desirable for the Cossacks of Ermak, who could exchange woolen and silk fabrics, carpets, weapons, and spices with furs collected from foreigners. In early August 1585, Ermak personally with a small detachment sailed towards the merchants up the Irtysh. The Cossack plows reached the mouth of the Vagai, however, not meeting anyone, they swam back. One dark, stormy evening, Ermak landed on the shore and found his death. Its details are semi-legendary, but not without some plausibility.

Ermak's Cossacks landed on an island on the Irtysh, and therefore, considering themselves safe, fell into sleep without posting a guard. Meanwhile, Kuchum was nearby. (The news of the unprecedented Bukhara caravan was almost released by him in order to lure Ermak into an ambush.) His spies reported to the khan about the Cossacks’ lodging for the night. Kuchum had one Tatar who was sentenced to death. The Khan sent him to look for a horse ford on the island, promising pardon if he was successful. The Tatar crossed the river and returned with the news of the complete carelessness of Ermak’s people. Kuchum did not believe it at first and ordered to bring proof. The Tatar went another time and brought three Cossack arquebuses and three canisters with gunpowder. Then Kuchum sent a crowd of Tatars to the island. With the sound of rain and howling wind, the Tatars crept into the camp and began to beat the sleepy Cossacks. Ermak, who woke up, rushed into the river towards the plow, but ended up in a deep place; Having iron armor on him, he was unable to swim out and drowned. With this sudden attack, the entire Cossack detachment was exterminated along with its leader. This is how this Russian Cortes and Pizarro died, the brave, “veleum” ataman Ermak Timofeevich, as the Siberian chronicles call him, who turned from robbers into a hero whose glory will never be erased from people’s memory.

Two important circumstances helped Ermak’s Russian squad during the conquest of the Siberian Khanate: on the one hand, firearms and military training; on the other, the internal state of the Khanate itself, weakened by civil strife and discontent of local pagans against Islam forcibly introduced by Kuchum. Siberian shamans with their idols reluctantly gave way to Mohammedan mullahs. But the third important reason for success is the personality of Ermak Timofeevich himself, his irresistible courage, knowledge of military affairs and iron strength of character. The latter is clearly evidenced by the discipline that Ermak was able to establish in his squad of Cossacks, with their violent morals.

Retreat of the remnants of Ermak's squads from Siberia

Ermak's death confirmed that he was the main driver of the entire enterprise. When news of her reached the city of Siberia, the remaining Cossacks immediately decided that without Ermak, given their small numbers, they would not be able to hold out among the unreliable natives against the Siberian Tatars. Cossacks and Moscow warriors, numbering no more than one and a half hundred people, immediately left the city of Siberia with the Streltsy leader Ivan Glukhov and Matvey Meshcheryak, the only one remaining of the five atamans; By the far northern route along the Irtysh and Ob, they went back beyond the Kamen (Ural ridge). The Russians had barely cleared Siberia when Kuchum sent his son Aley to occupy his capital city. But he didn't stay here long. We saw above that Prince Taibugin of the Ediger clan, who owned Siberia, and his brother Bekbulat died in the fight against Kuchum. Bekbulat's little son, Seydyak, found refuge in Bukhara, grew up there and became an avenger for his father and uncle. With the help of the Bukharians and Kyrgyz, Seydyak defeated Kuchum, expelled Aley from Siberia and himself took possession of this capital city.

Arrival of Mansurov's detachment and consolidation of the Russian conquest of Siberia

The Tatar kingdom in Siberia was restored, and the conquest of Ermak Timofeevich seemed lost. But the Russians have already experienced the weakness, diversity of this kingdom and its natural wealth; They were not slow in returning.

The government of Fyodor Ivanovich sent one detachment after another to Siberia. Still not knowing about Ermak’s death, the Moscow government in the summer of 1585 sent governor Ivan Mansurov with a hundred archers and, most importantly, a cannon to help him. On this campaign, the remnants of the detachments of Ermak and Ataman Meshcheryak, who had gone back beyond the Urals, united with him. Finding the city of Siberia already occupied by the Tatars, Mansurov sailed past, went down the Irtysh to its confluence with the Ob and built a wintering town here.

This time the task of conquest went easier with the help of experience and along the paths laid by Ermak. The surrounding Ostyaks tried to take the Russian town, but were repulsed. Then they brought their main idol and began to make sacrifices to it, asking for help against the Christians. The Russians aimed their cannon at him, and the tree along with the idol was smashed into chips. The Ostyaks scattered in fear. The Ostyak prince Lugui, who owned six towns along the Ob, was the first of the local rulers to go to Moscow to fight so that the sovereign would accept him as one of his tributaries. They treated him kindly and imposed a tribute of seven forty sables on him.

Foundation of Tobolsk

Ermak Timofeevich's victories were not in vain. Following Mansurov, the governors Sukin and Myasnoy arrived in the Siberian land and on the Tura River, on the site of the old town of Chingiya, they built the Tyumen fortress and erected a Christian temple in it. The following year, 1587, after the arrival of new reinforcements, the head of Danil Chulkov set off further from Tyumen, went down the Tobol to its mouth and here on the banks of the Irtysh founded Tobolsk; this city became the center of Russian possessions in Siberia, thanks to its advantageous position at the junction of Siberian rivers. Continuing the work of Ermak Timofeevich, the Moscow government here also used its usual system: to spread and strengthen its rule by gradually building fortresses. Siberia, contrary to fears, was not lost to the Russians. The heroism of a handful of Ermak's Cossacks opened the way for the great Russian expansion eastward - all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

Articles and books about Ermak

Solovyov S. M. History of Russia since ancient times. T. 6. Chapter 7 – “The Stroganovs and Ermak”

Kostomarov N.I. Russian history in the biographies of its main figures. 21 – Ermak Timofeevich

Kuznetsov E.V. Initial literature about Ermak. Tobolsk Provincial Gazette, 1890

Kuznetsov E.V. Bibliography of Ermak: Experience of indicating little-known works in Russian and partly in foreign languages ​​about the conqueror of Siberia. Tobolsk, 1891

Kuznetsov E.V. About the essay by A.V. Oksenov “Ermak in the epics of the Russian people.” Tobolsk Provincial Gazette, 1892

Kuznetsov E.V. Information about the banners of Ermak. Tobolsk Provincial Gazette, 1892

Oksenov A.V. Ermak in the epics of the Russian people. Historical Bulletin, 1892

Article “Ermak” in the Brockhaus-Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (Author - N. Pavlov-Silvansky)

Ataman Ermak Timofeevich, conqueror of the Siberian kingdom. M., 1905

Fialkov D.N. About the place of Ermak’s death and burial. Novosibirsk, 1965

Sutormin A. G. Ermak Timofeevich (Alenin Vasily Timofeevich). Irkutsk, 1981

Dergacheva-Skop E. Brief stories about Ermak’s campaign in Siberia - Siberia in the past, present and future. Vol. III. Novosibirsk, 1981

Kolesnikov A. D. Ermak. Omsk, 1983

Skrynnikov R. G. Siberian expedition of Ermak. Novosibirsk, 1986

Buzukashvili M. I. Ermak. M., 1989

Kopylov D.I. Ermak. Irkutsk, 1989

Sofronov V. Yu. Ermak’s campaign and the struggle for the Khan’s throne in Siberia. Tyumen, 1993

Kozlova N.K. About the “Chudi”, Tatars, Ermak and Siberian mounds. Omsk, 1995

Solodkin Ya. G. To the study of chronicle sources about Ermak’s Siberian expedition. Tyumen, 1996

Kreknina L.I. Theme of Ermak in the works of P.P. Ershov. Tyumen, 1997

Katargina M.N. The plot of the death of Ermak: chronicle materials. Tyumen, 1997

Sofronova M. N. About the imaginary and the real in the portraits of the Siberian ataman Ermak. Tyumen, 1998

Shkerin V. A. Ermak’s Sylven campaign: a mistake or a search for a way to Siberia? Ekaterinburg, 1999

Solodkin Ya. G. On the debate about the origin of Ermak. Ekaterinburg, 1999

Solodkin Ya. G. Did Ermak Timofeevich have a double? Ugra, 2002

Zakshauskienė E. Badge from Ermak’s chain mail. M., 2002

Katanov N. F. The legend of the Tobolsk Tatars about Kuchum and Ermak - Tobolsk chronograph. Collection. Vol. 4. Ekaterinburg, 2004

Panishev E. A. The death of Ermak in Tatar and Russian legends. Tobolsk, 2003

Skrynnikov R. G. Ermak. M., 2008

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Conquest of Siberia by Ermak

Modern historians cannot reliably determine who exactly owned the idea of ​​going to the Siberian lands: ataman Ermak Timofeevich, the industrialists Stroganov, or the first Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible IV. Most likely, the truth is somewhere in the middle, because all of the parties listed had their own interests. Thus, the monarch of Rus' wanted new territories and vassals, Ermak and his Cossacks wanted to profit from local wealth, hiding behind a state pretext, and the Stroganovs wanted security for their own business.

Researchers highlight the following as the main goals pursued by Ermak’s Siberian campaigns:

• formation of a springboard for the subsequent conquest of Siberia;
• establishing full control over the Ob River, which is the main Siberian waterway;
• imposing tribute on the Siberian peoples and bringing them into vassalage;
• protection of the Stroganovs' possessions and production.

In addition, another possible version is being considered, according to which Ermak was in fact not a simple rootless Cossack chieftain, but a native of the princes of Siberia, who had previously been exterminated by the Bukhara protege Kuchum when he seized power in the Siberian lands. Thus, the ataman had legal rights to the throne occupied by the invaders, which radically changes the very meaning of the campaign.

Supporters of the above version cite as arguments the fact that Russian troops in Siberia practically did not encounter serious resistance from the local population, who could understand that it would be better for them to live according to the laws of “their” Ermak than under the orders of Kuchum.

At the same time, if Ermak’s power was successfully established over Siberia, he was automatically transferred from the category of robbers to soldiers of the “regular” army, becoming sovereign people with a lot of privileges. Perhaps for this reason the Cossacks endured the harsh difficulties of the campaign.

The beginning of Ermak's military campaign

In the early autumn of 1581 (according to other sources - in the summer of 52), Ataman Ermak went on a military campaign. His army at that time included five hundred and forty Cossack forces, as well as three hundred people from the Stroganovs. The detachments headed up the Chusovaya River on plows. According to some documents, there were a total of eight dozen plows with ten people on each.

Map: Conquest of Siberia by Ermak

Historians believe that Ermak’s troops then moved along the Tagil River to Tura, where they won their first victory over the Tatar troops. From the memories of the participants in the campaign, semi-legends came down about the strategic mind of the ataman and his tactics. So, Ermak planted specially prepared stuffed animals on the plows, dressed them in Cossack clothes, hid his army on the shore and attacked the Tatars from the rear. However, the first major battle with the army of Khan Kuchum, according to documents, took place in October 1582.

All subsequent military operations of the Cossack ataman Ermak Timofeevich also took place not from a position of strength, but according to a strictly developed detailed plan. That is why, most researchers believe, he was able to successfully fight an enemy outnumbered on foreign territory.

As a result of Ermak's campaigns, Kuchum was expelled from his capital Kashlyk, which, according to some sources, was also called Siberia or Isker and of which not a trace remains today. At the same time, archaeologists note that, most likely, it was located seventeen miles from modern Tobolsk.

Further continuation of Ermak’s Siberian campaigns

Having removed his main enemy from the road by 1583, Ataman Ermak decided to finish the job and conquer all the Vogul and Tatar towns that were located along the banks of the Ob and Irtysh. Somewhere the Cossack army met good-natured local residents, and somewhere else they met a tough military resistance.

Having expelled Kuchum, the ataman sent messengers with a report to the tsar and the Stroganovs. Ivan Vasilyevich was very pleased with the outcome of the military campaign and generously rewarded the Cossacks who came to him, sending them three hundred warriors with the governors Ivan Glukhov and Semyon Bolkhovsky to reinforce them.

Although the reinforcements sent by the monarch arrived in the Siberian lands in the fall of 1583, which was relatively quickly, the governors could no longer correct the current situation. Numerous Tatar detachments separately defeated the Cossack detachments upon their arrival, killing all the main atamans.

After the death of Ivan the Fourth the Terrible in the spring of 1584, the Moscow government abandoned the idea of ​​​​developing the Siberian direction, which made it possible for Kuchum to regain his strength again and finish off the rest of the Russian army in Siberia.

A year later, the ataman himself died. With fifty soldiers, he was forced to stop for a rest on the banks of the Vagai River, which flows into the Irtysh, where the detachment was suddenly attacked at night by Tatar troops and killed most of the Cossacks.

Surviving warriors later said that Ermak jumped into the river to get to the plows, but the two chain mail shirts he was wearing pulled him to the bottom.

His biographical data is unknown for certain, as are the circumstances of the campaign he led in Siberia. They serve as material for many mutually exclusive hypotheses, however, there are generally accepted facts of Ermak’s biography, and such moments of the Siberian campaign about which most researchers do not have fundamental differences. The history of Ermak’s Siberian campaign was studied by major pre-revolutionary scientists N.M. Karamzin, S.M. Soloviev, N.I. Kostomarov, S.F. Platonov. The main source on the history of the conquest of Siberia by Ermak is the Siberian Chronicles (Stroganovskaya, Esipovskaya, Pogodinskaya, Kungurskaya and some others), carefully studied in the works of G.F. Miller, P.I. Nebolsina, A.V. Oksenova, P.M. Golovacheva S.V. Bakhrushina, A.A. Vvedensky and other prominent scientists.

The question of the origin of Ermak is controversial. Some researchers derive Ermak from the Perm estates of the salt industrialists Stroganovs, others - from the Totemsky district. G.E. Katanaev assumed that in the early 80s. In the 16th century, three Ermacs operated simultaneously. However, these versions seem unreliable. At the same time, Ermak’s patronymic name is precisely known - Timofeevich, “Ermak” can be a nickname, abbreviation, or a distortion of such Christian names as Ermolai, Ermil, Eremey, etc., or maybe an independent pagan name.

Very little evidence of Ermak’s life before the Siberian Campaign has been preserved. Ermak was also credited with participating in the Livonian War, robbery and robbery of royal and merchant ships passing along the Volga, but no reliable evidence of this has survived either.

The beginning of Ermak’s campaign in Siberia is also the subject of numerous debates among historians, which is mainly centered around two dates – September 1, 1581 and 1582. Supporters of the start of the campaign in 1581 were S.V. Bakhrushin, A.I. Andreev, A.A. Vvedensky, in 1582 - N.I. Kostomarov, N.V. Shlyakov, G.E. Katanaev. The most reasonable date is considered to be September 1, 1581.

Scheme of Ermak's Siberian campaign. 1581 - 1585

A completely different point of view was expressed by V.I. Sergeev, according to whom Ermak set out on a campaign already in September 1578. First, he went down the river on plows. Kama, climbed its tributary river. Sylve, then returned and wintered near the mouth of the river. Chusovoy. Swimming on the river Sylve and wintering on the river. Chusovoy were a kind of training that gave the ataman the opportunity to unite and test the squad, to accustom it to actions in new, difficult conditions for the Cossacks.

Russian people tried to conquer Siberia long before Ermak. So in 1483 and 1499. Ivan III sent military expeditions there, but the harsh region remained unexplored. The territory of Siberia in the 16th century was vast, but sparsely populated. The main occupations of the population were cattle breeding, hunting, and fishing. Here and there along the river banks the first centers of agriculture appeared. The state with its center in Isker (Kashlyk - called differently in different sources) united several indigenous peoples of Siberia: Samoyeds, Ostyaks, Voguls, and all of them were under the rule of the “fragments” of the Golden Horde. Khan Kuchum, from the Sheybanid family, which went back to Genghis Khan himself, seized the Siberian throne in 1563 and set a course to oust the Russians from the Urals.

In the 60-70s. In the 16th century, merchants, industrialists and landowners the Stroganovs received possessions in the Urals from Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible, and they were also granted the right to hire military men in order to prevent raids by the Kuchum people. The Stroganovs invited a detachment of free Cossacks led by Ermak Timofeevich. In the late 70s - early 80s. In the 16th century, Cossacks climbed the Volga to the Kama, where they were met by the Stroganovs in Keredin (Orel-town). The number of Ermak's squad that arrived at the Stroganovs was 540 people.

Ermak's campaign. Artist K. Lebedev. 1907

Before setting out on a campaign, the Stroganovs supplied Ermak and his warriors with everything they needed, from gunpowder to flour. Stroganov stores were the basis of the material base of Ermak’s squad. The Stroganovs’ men were also dressed up for their march to the Cossack ataman. The squad was divided into five regiments led by elected esauls. The regiment was divided into hundreds, which in turn were divided into fifty and tens. The squad had regimental clerks, trumpeters, surnaches, timpani players and drummers. There were also three priests and a fugitive monk who performed the liturgical rites.

The strictest discipline reigned in Ermak's army. By his order, they ensured that no one “would incur the wrath of God through fornication or other sinful deeds.” Anyone who violated this rule was imprisoned for three days “in prison.” In Ermak's squad, following the example of the Don Cossacks, severe punishments were imposed for disobedience to superiors and escape.

Having gone on a hike, the Cossacks along the river. Chusova and Serebryanka covered the path to the Ural ridge, further from the river. Serebryanka to the river. Tagil walked through the mountains. Ermak’s crossing of the Ural ridge was not easy. Each plow could lift up to 20 people with a load. Plows with a larger carrying capacity could not be used on small mountain rivers.

Ermak's offensive on the river. The tour forced Kuchum to gather his forces as much as possible. The chronicles do not give an exact answer to the question of the number of troops; they only report “a great number of the enemy.” A.A. Vvedensky wrote that the total number of subjects of the Siberian Khan was approximately 30,700 people. Having mobilized all the men capable of wearing, Kuchum could field more than 10-15 thousand soldiers. Thus, he had a multiple numerical superiority.

Simultaneously with the gathering of troops, Kuchum ordered to strengthen the capital of the Siberian Khanate, Isker. The main forces of the Kuchumov cavalry under the command of his nephew Tsarevich Mametkul were advanced to meet Ermak, whose flotilla by August 1582, and according to some researchers, no later than the summer of 1581, reached the confluence of the river. Tours in the river Tobol. An attempt to detain the Cossacks near the mouth of the river. The tour was not a success. Cossack plows entered the river. Tobol and began to descend along its course. Several times Ermak had to land on the shore and attack the Khucumlans. Then a major bloody battle took place near the Babasanovsky Yurts.

Promotion of Ermak along Siberian rivers. Drawing and text for “History of Siberia” by S. Remezov. 1689

Fights on the river Tobol showed the advantages of Ermak’s tactics over the enemy’s tactics. The basis of these tactics were fire strikes and combat on foot. Volleys of Cossack arquebuses inflicted significant damage on the enemy. However, the importance of firearms should not be exaggerated. From the arquebus of the late 16th century it was possible to fire one shot in 2-3 minutes. The Kuchumlyans generally did not have firearms in their arsenal, but they were familiar with them. However, fighting on foot was Kuchum's weak point. Entering into battle with the crowd, in the absence of any kind of battle formations, the Kukumovites suffered defeat after defeat, despite their significant superiority in manpower. Thus, Ermak’s successes were achieved by a combination of arquebus fire and hand-to-hand combat with the use of edged weapons.

After Ermak left the river. Tobol and began to climb up the river. Tavda, which, according to some researchers, was done with the aim of breaking away from the enemy, taking a breather, and finding allies before the decisive battle for Isker. Climbing up the river. Tavda approximately 150-200 versts, Ermak made a stop and returned to the river. Tobol. On the way to Isker, Messrs. were taken. Karachin and Atik. Having gained a foothold in the city of Karachin, Ermak found himself on the immediate approaches to the capital of the Siberian Khanate.

Before the assault on the capital, Ermak, according to chronicle sources, gathered a circle where the likely outcome of the upcoming battle was discussed. Supporters of the retreat pointed to the many Khucumlans and the small number of Russians, but Ermak’s opinion was the need to take Isker. He was firm in his decision and supported by many of his colleagues. In October 1582, Ermak began an assault on the fortifications of the Siberian capital. The first assault was a failure; around October 23, Ermak struck again, but the Kuchumites repulsed the assault and made a sortie that turned out to be disastrous for them. The battle under the walls of Isker once again showed the advantages of the Russians in hand-to-hand combat. The Khan's army was defeated, Kuchum fled from the capital. On October 26, 1582, Ermak and his retinue entered the city. The capture of Isker became the pinnacle of Ermak's successes. The indigenous Siberian peoples expressed their readiness for an alliance with the Russians.

Conquest of Siberia by Ermak. Artist V. Surikov. 1895

After the capture of the capital of the Siberian Khanate, Ermak’s main opponent remained Tsarevich Mametkul, who, having good cavalry, carried out raids on small Cossack detachments, which constantly disturbed Ermak’s squad. In November-December 1582, the prince exterminated a detachment of Cossacks who went fishing. Ermak struck back, Mametkul fled, but three months later he reappeared in the vicinity of Isker. In February 1583, Ermak was informed that the prince’s camp was set up on the river. Vagai is 100 versts from the capital. The chieftain immediately sent Cossacks there, who attacked the army and captured the prince.

In the spring of 1583, the Cossacks made several campaigns along the Irtysh and its tributaries. The farthest was the hike to the mouth of the river. The Cossacks on plows reached the city of Nazim, a fortified town on the river. Ob, and they took him. The battle near Nazim was one of the bloodiest.

Losses in the battles forced Ermak to send messengers for reinforcements. As proof of the fruitfulness of his actions during the Siberian campaign, Ermak sent Ivan IV a captured prince and furs.

The winter and summer of 1584 passed without major battles. Kuchum did not show activity, since there was restlessness within the horde. Ermak took care of his army and waited for reinforcements. Reinforcements arrived in the fall of 1584. These were 500 warriors sent from Moscow under the command of governor S. Bolkhovsky, supplied with neither ammunition nor food. Ermak was put in a difficult position, because... had difficulty procuring the necessary supplies for his people. Famine began in Isker. People died, and S. Bolkhovsky himself died. The situation was somewhat improved by local residents who supplied the Cossacks with food from their reserves.

The chronicles do not give the exact number of losses of Ermak’s army, however, according to some sources, by the time the ataman died, 150 people remained in his squad. Ermak's position was complicated by the fact that in the spring of 1585 Isker was surrounded by enemy cavalry. However, the blockade was lifted thanks to Ermak's decisive blow to the enemy's headquarters. The liquidation of Isker's encirclement became the last military feat of the Cossack chieftain. Ermak Timofeevich died in the waters of the river. Irtysh during a campaign against Kuchum’s army that appeared nearby on August 6, 1585.

To summarize, it should be noted that the tactics of Ermak’s squad were based on the rich military experience of the Cossacks, accumulated over many decades. Hand-to-hand combat, accurate shooting, strong defense, maneuverability of the squad, use of terrain are the most characteristic features of Russian military art of the 16th - 17th centuries. To this, of course, should be added the ability of Ataman Ermak to maintain strict discipline within the squad. These skills and tactical skills contributed to the greatest extent to the conquest of the rich Siberian expanses by Russian soldiers. After the death of Ermak, the governors in Siberia, as a rule, continued to adhere to his tactics.

Monument to Ermak Timofeevich in Novocherkassk. Sculptor V. Beklemishev. Opened May 6, 1904

The annexation of Siberia had enormous political and economic significance. Up until the 80s. In the 16th century, the “Siberian theme” was practically not touched upon in diplomatic documents. However, as Ivan IV received news of the results of Ermak’s campaign, it took a strong place in diplomatic documentation. Already by 1584, documents contain a detailed description of the relationship with the Siberian Khanate, including a summary of the main events - the military actions of Ataman Ermak’s squad against the army of Kuchum.

In the mid-80s. In the 16th century, colonization flows of the Russian peasantry gradually moved to explore the vast expanses of Siberia, and the Tyumen and Tobolsk forts, built in 1586 and 1587, were not only important strongholds for the fight against the Kuchumlyans, but also the basis of the first settlements of Russian farmers. The governors sent by the Russian tsars to the Siberian region, harsh in all respects, could not cope with the remnants of the horde and achieve the conquest of this fertile and politically important region for Russia. However, thanks to the military art of the Cossack ataman Ermak Timofeevich, already in the 90s. In the 16th century, Western Siberia was included in Russia.

The development of Siberia is one of the most significant pages in the history of our country. The vast territories that currently make up most of modern Russia were, in fact, a “blank spot” on the geographical map at the beginning of the 16th century. And the feat of Ataman Ermak, who conquered Siberia for Russia, became one of the most significant events in the formation of the state.

Ermak Timofeevich Alenin is one of the most little-studied personalities of this magnitude in Russian history. It is still not known for certain where and when the famous chieftain was born. According to one version, Ermak was from the banks of the Don, according to another - from the outskirts of the Chusovaya River, according to the third - his place of birth was the Arkhangelsk region. The date of birth also remains unknown - historical chronicles indicate the period from 1530 to 1542.

It is almost impossible to reconstruct the biography of Ermak Timofeevich before the start of his Siberian campaign. It is not even known for certain whether the name Ermak is his own or is it still the nickname of the Cossack chieftain. However, from 1581-82, that is, directly from the beginning of the Siberian campaign, the chronology of events has been restored in sufficient detail.

Siberian campaign

The Siberian Khanate, as part of the collapsed Golden Horde, coexisted in peace with the Russian state for a long time. The Tatars paid an annual tribute to the Moscow princes, but when Khan Kuchum came to power, the payments stopped, and Tatar detachments began to attack Russian settlements in the Western Urals.

It is not known for certain who was the initiator of the Siberian campaign. According to one version, Ivan the Terrible instructed the merchants Stroganov to finance the performance of a Cossack detachment into uncharted Siberian territories in order to stop Tatar raids. According to another version of events, the Stroganovs themselves decided to hire Cossacks to protect their property. However, there is another scenario: Ermak and his comrades plundered the Stroganov warehouses and invaded the territory of the Khanate for the purpose of profit.

In 1581, having sailed up the Chusovaya River on plows, the Cossacks dragged their boats to the Zheravlya River in the Ob basin and settled there for the winter. Here the first skirmishes with Tatar detachments took place. As soon as the ice melted, that is, in the spring of 1582, a detachment of Cossacks reached the Tura River, where they again defeated the troops sent to meet them. Finally, Ermak reached the Irtysh River, where a detachment of Cossacks captured the main city of the Khanate - Siberia (now Kashlyk). Remaining in the city, Ermak begins to receive delegations from indigenous peoples - Khanty, Tatars, with promises of peace. The ataman took an oath from all those who arrived, declaring them subjects of Ivan IV the Terrible, and obliged them to pay yasak - tribute - in favor of the Russian state.

The conquest of Siberia continued in the summer of 1583. Having passed along the course of the Irtysh and Ob, Ermak captured the settlements - uluses - of the peoples of Siberia, forcing the inhabitants of the towns to take an oath to the Russian Tsar. Until 1585, Ermak and the Cossacks fought with the troops of Khan Kuchum, starting numerous skirmishes along the banks of Siberian rivers.

After the capture of Siberia, Ermak sent an ambassador to Ivan the Terrible with a report on the successful annexation of the lands. In gratitude for the good news, the tsar gave gifts not only to the ambassador, but also to all the Cossacks who participated in the campaign, and to Ermak himself he donated two chain mail of excellent workmanship, one of which, according to the court chronicler, had previously belonged to the famous governor Shuisky.

Death of Ermak

The date August 6, 1585 is noted in the chronicles as the day of the death of Ermak Timofeevich. A small group of Cossacks - about 50 people - led by Ermak stopped for the night on the Irtysh, near the mouth of the Vagai River. Several detachments of the Siberian Khan Kuchum attacked the Cossacks, killing almost all of Ermak’s associates, and the ataman himself, according to the chronicler, drowned in the Irtysh while trying to swim to the plows. According to the chronicler, Ermak drowned because of the royal gift - two chain mails, which with their weight pulled him to the bottom.

The official version of the death of the Cossack chieftain has a continuation, but these facts do not have any historical confirmation, and therefore are considered a legend. Folk tales say that a day later, a Tatar fisherman caught Ermak’s body from the river and reported his discovery to Kuchum. All the Tatar nobility came to personally verify the death of the ataman. Ermak's death caused a great celebration that lasted for several days. The Tatars had fun shooting at the Cossack's body for a week, then, taking the donated chain mail that caused his death, Ermak was buried. At the moment, historians and archaeologists are considering several areas as the supposed burial places of the ataman, but there is still no official confirmation of the authenticity of the burial.

Ermak Timofeevich is not just a historical figure, he is one of the key figures in Russian folk art. Many legends and tales have been created about the ataman’s deeds, and in each of them Ermak is described as a man of exceptional courage and courage. At the same time, very little is reliably known about the personality and activities of the conqueror of Siberia, and such an obvious contradiction forces researchers again and again to turn their attention to the national hero of Russia.