Ice slaughter on Lake Peipsi and the wisdom of Prince Alexander

Sergei Eisenstein, no doubt, was a great director, but to study history from his cinematographic works would be somewhat frivolous. In his paintings, the storming of the Winter Palace (which was not there) and the shooting of peaceful Odessa citizens on the Giant ladder (which could not even be) was vividly shown.

In the wonderful film "Alexander Nevsky" the great artist painted the Battle of the Ice on Lake Peipsi, which took place, but in the spring, in April. If you believe the Livonian rhymed chronicle, the victims of this battle, slain by the enemy bulat, fell into the grass, which managed to grow, despite the fact that the case was in the northern region.

In order to assess the military and diplomatic talent of the defender of the Russian land, St. Alexander Nevsky as objectively as possible, artistic hyperbolization is not needed. Without any exaggeration, it can be argued that our national hero saved his homeland from mockery. The prince does not need to embellish his role, he has accomplished his uneasy task so successfully.

With the greatest likelihood of figuring out how the Battle of Lake Peipsi took place , it is possible, having studied all available sources, including those in which the Livonians described this battle. It is necessary to pay tribute to the European chroniclers, they did not suffer special adornment, admitting that in a tactical way Prince Novgorod defeated them.

In the fact that there was such a Battle of the Ice, in what year it happened and who participated in it from both sides, there are almost no differences in the opinion of historians. True, they called it Livonians otherwise, the battle of Lake Peipus (and today Estonians mark the Peipsi Lake on maps ). It does not matter.

However, there are some points to pay attention to, in particular, the opinion of the historian Heydenshtein, who lived in the second half of the XVI - early XVII centuries. He insists that the Tatar troops of Khan Baty took an active part in the battle . On the side of the Rusich, of course. This he explains the numerical superiority of the enemy, who was able to achieve military success.

Of course, one can not believe this European collector of legends, it is quite possible that he wants to justify the dog-knights close to him in order to play down the bravery of the Russian squad. However, there are some inconsistencies in the narrative of our, domestic chroniclers.

Thus, the "visionaries", that is, the immediate participants in the events, recalled the assistance rendered to them by some kind of "God's regiment" that appeared "out of thin air" (like snow on the enemy's head). Perhaps, what they meant was not a host of angels, but some kind of force, which entered the battle very timely. The result was an ice-cold battle on Lake Peipsi, which went down in history as a strategic victory of Russian arms, as well as a change in the geopolitical situation, in modern terms. The Levon Order refused to attempt to seize our northern territories, leaving Pskov. There was an exchange of prisoners.

Opponents of this version object. They do not see the advisability of providing military assistance from the Khan to the Russian prince. And the sense in this act was. A year before the events described, there was a clash between the Crusaders and the "sons of Genghis Khan," in which Batu's troops defeated the Euro-Christian army. Despite his luck, the khan did not believe that he had fully accomplished the military task, the success should be reinforced.

According to the Russian historian Solovyov, the initiator of negotiations on a temporary military alliance was Batu, who sent Alexander a letter of appropriate content. The Russian prince successfully held a "summit meeting" and even managed to get into a quarrel with Chingizid, the khan's son. What can not you do for the Russian land!

Having provided himself with substantial reinforcements in addition to a reliable rear, Alexander brilliantly held the Ice Battle on Lake Peipsi, showing generals along with diplomatic talents. He skillfully used the features of the terrain, turned the heavy weapons of knights into a destructive factor for them, successfully imposed on the enemy a maneuverable character of the battle, in short, did everything for victory and achieved it.

The Battle of Ice of 1242 showed the wisdom of the Russian prince, manifested in both tactical and strategic matters. He also received God's help, but only he who deserves it is worthy.

And was there ice on Lake Peipsi? It is possible that in those parts it is cold in April.