The purpose of the Russian-Swedish war of 1741 1743. The Russian-Swedish war (1741-1743). Command of the Russian army
War , which Sweden began in the hope of regaining lost during Northern war territory.
Foreign policy situation on the eve of the war
In Sweden at the Riksdag 1738-1739. the party of "hats" came to power, heading for the preparation of war with Russia . She was actively supported by France, which, in anticipation of death Austrian emperor Charles VI and the subsequent struggle for the division of the Austrian inheritance tried to tie Russia to war in the North. Sweden and France, through their ambassadors in St. Petersburg, E.M. von Nolken and the Marquis de la Chétardie, tried to pave the way for the successful completion of the planned war by establishing relations with Tsarina Elizabeth. The Swedes tried to obtain written confirmation from her that she would cede to Sweden the provinces conquered by her father if they helped her ascend the throne. However, despite all efforts, Nolken was never able to receive such a document from Elizabeth.
In addition, Sweden, in preparation for the war, concluded a treaty of friendship with France in October 1738, according to which the parties pledged not to enter into alliances and not to renew them without mutual consent. Sweden was supposed to receive subsidies from France in the amount of 300,000 riksdaler a year for three years.
In December 1739, a Swedish-Turkish alliance was also concluded, but Turkey promised to provide assistance only in the event of an attack on Sweden by a third power.
Declaration of war
On July 28, 1741, the Russian ambassador in Stockholm was informed that Sweden was declaring war on Russia. The cause of the war in the manifesto was Russia's interference in the internal affairs of the kingdom, the ban on the export of bread to Sweden and the murder of the Swedish diplomatic courier M. Sinclair.
The goals of the Swedes in the war
According to the instructions drawn up for future peace negotiations, the Swedes intended to put forward, as a condition of peace, the return of all the lands that had ceded to Russia under the Treaty of Nystad, as well as the transfer of the territory between Ladoga and the White Sea to Sweden. If third powers came out against Sweden, then she was ready to be satisfied with Karelia and Ingria together with St. Petersburg.
The course of the war
1741
Count Karl Emil Levenhaupt was appointed commander-in-chief of the Swedish army, who arrived in Finland and took command only on September 3, 1741. At that moment, there were about 18 thousand regular troops in Finland. Near the border there were two corps numbering 3 and 5 thousand people. The first of them, commanded by K. Kh. Wrangel, was located not far from Wilmanstrand, the other, under the command of Lieutenant General H. M. von Buddenbrook, was six miles from this city, the garrison of which did not exceed 1,100 people.
On the Russian side, Field Marshal Pyotr Petrovich Lassi was appointed commander in chief. Learning that the Swedish forces were small and divided, he moved towards Vilmanstrand. Having approached it, the Russians on August 22 stopped in the village of Armil, and in the evening Wrangel's corps approached the city. The number of Swedes, including the Wilmanstrand garrison, was different sources from 3500 to 5200 people. The number of Russian troops reached 9900 people.
On August 23, Lassi moved against the enemy, who occupied an advantageous position under the cover of city guns. The Russians attacked the Swedish positions, but due to the stubborn resistance of the Swedes, they were forced to retreat. Then Lassi threw the cavalry into the flank of the enemy, after which the Swedes were knocked down from the hills and lost their guns. After a three-hour battle, the Swedes were defeated.
After the drummer, sent to demand the surrender of the city, was shot dead, the Russians stormed Wilmanstrand. 1250 Swedish soldiers were taken prisoner, including Wrangel himself. The Russians lost Major General Ukskul, three headquarters and eleven chief officers and about 500 privates killed. The city was burned, its inhabitants were taken to Russia. Russian troops again retreated to Russian territory.
In September-October, the Swedes concentrated an army of 22,800 people near Kvarnby, of which only 15-16 thousand soon remained in service due to illness. The Russians, who were stationed near Vyborg, had about the same number of people. In late autumn, both armies moved into winter quarters. However, in November, Lewenhaupt, with 6,000 infantry and 450 dragoons, headed towards Vyborg, stopping at Sekkijervi. At the same time, several smaller corps attacked Russian Karelia from Wilmanstrand and Neishlot.
Having learned about the movement of the Swedes, the Russian government on November 24 gave the order to the guards regiments to prepare for a speech in Finland. This provoked a palace coup, as a result of which the princess Elizabeth came to power. She ordered a halt to hostilities and concluded a truce with Lewenhaupt.
1742
In February 1742, the Russian side broke the truce, and in March hostilities resumed. Elizaveta Petrovna published a manifesto in Finland, in which she called on its inhabitants not to take part in an unjust war and promised her help if they wanted to secede from Sweden and form independent state.
On June 13, Lassi crossed the border and at the end of the month approached Fredrikshamn (Friedrichsham). The Swedes hurriedly left this fortress, but first set fire to it. Levengaupt retreated beyond the Kyumen, heading towards Helsingfors. Morale fell sharply in his army, desertion grew. On July 30, Russian troops occupied Borgo without hindrance and began to pursue the Swedes in the direction of Helsingfors. On August 7, a detachment of Prince Meshchersky occupied Neishlot without resistance, and on August 26, the last fortified point of Finland, Tavastgus, surrendered.
In August, Lassi overtook the Swedish army at Helsingfors, cutting off her further retreat to Abo. At the same time, the Russian fleet locked the Swedes from the sea. Lewenhaupt and Buddenbrook, leaving the army, went to Stockholm, being summoned to give the Riksdag an account of their actions. The command of the army was entrusted to Major General J. L. Busquet, who on August 24 signed a capitulation with the Russians, according to which the Swedish army was to cross to Sweden, leaving all the artillery to the Russians. On August 26, the Russians entered Helsingfors. Soon, Russian troops completely occupied all of Finland and Österbotten.
1743
Military operations in 1743 were reduced mainly to operations at sea. The rowing fleet (34 galleys, 70 konchebass) left Kronstadt with a landing force on May 8. Later he was joined by several more galleys with troops on board. In the Suttonga area, the ships noticed the Swedish rowing fleet on the horizon, reinforced by sailing ships. However, the Swedes weighed anchor and left. On June 14, the enemy fleet again appeared near Degerby Island, east of the Aland Islands, but again chose not to get involved in the battle and retreated.
By the end of the war the Swedish ship fleet cruised between the islands of Dago and Gotland. On June 17, the Swedish admiral E. Taube received news of the signing of a preliminary peace agreement and took the fleet to Elvsnabben. On June 18, the news of peace reached the Russian fleet, which was off the Aland Islands.
Negotiations and peace
Back in the spring of 1742, the former Swedish ambassador to St. Petersburg, E. M. von Nolken, arrived in Russia to start peace negotiations, but the Russian government rejected the condition he put forward to mediate France in the negotiations, and Nolken returned to Sweden.
In January 1743, peace negotiations began between Sweden and Russia in Åbo, which took place in the context of ongoing hostilities. Representatives from the Swedish side were Baron H. Sederkreuz and E. M. Nolken, from the Russian side - General-in-Chief A. I. Rumyantsev and General I. L. Lyuberas. As a result of lengthy negotiations, on June 17, 1743, the so-called "Assurance Act" was signed. In it, the Swedish Riksdag was recommended to elect the Regent of Holstein, Adolf Friedrich, as the heir to the throne. Sweden ceded to Russia the Kymenigord fief with all the mouths of the Kymeni River, as well as the Neishlot fortress. Russia returned to the Swedes Österbotten, Björnborg, Abo, Tavast, Nyland fiefs, part of Karelia and Savolaks, occupied during the war. Sweden confirmed the terms of the Nystadt Peace Treaty of 1721 and recognized Russia's acquisitions in the Baltic states.
On June 23, 1743, the Riksdag elected Adolf Friedrich as heir to the throne. At the same time, peace was declared with Russia. The Russian Empress signed a peace treaty on 19 August.
Sweden, defeated in the Northern War of 1700-1721, did not reconcile with the conditions of the Nystadt peace and hatched revanchist plans. In 1738 she entered into a defensive alliance with France, which undertook to subsidize Sweden's military preparations.
In 1740, the Prussian attack on Austria began a war between European states for the Austrian inheritance. Russia was in alliance with both Austria and Prussia. In order to prevent Russia from taking the side of Austria, Prussia and its ally France hurried Sweden to unleash a war against Russia. In January 1741, an agreement was concluded between Prussia and France, according to which Prussia agreed not to interfere with Sweden in seizing the Baltic lands.
Even before the outbreak of hostilities, the Swedish government tried to impede the navigation of Russian merchant and mail ships in the Gulf of Finland. On July 11, 1740, the Russian packet boat "New Courier" (Lieutenant F. Nepenin), supporting the postal service between Lubeck and Kronstadt, was met by a Swedish shnyava two miles from Gogland, who demanded to stop for inspection. On the refusal of the commander of the packet boat, shnyava began the pursuit, threatening to open fire. F. Nepenin prepared his ship for battle, after which the Swedes stopped the pursuit.
Having received a report about this case, the Russian government immediately sent a frigate to cruising in the Gogland region to suppress such "obscene acts" on the part of the Swedish.
On July 24, 1741, Sweden declared war on Russia. The impending war seemed so easy to the Swedes that the manifesto declaring war was announced before the order to concentrate the troops scattered throughout Finland. Sweden was not ready for war: there was no developed war plan, the army in Finland was not numerous, the fortresses were poorly prepared for defense. The Swedish fleet had a shortage of personnel and was poorly supplied with provisions.
But the Russian fleet was not in the best position either. After the death of Peter the Great, his favorite offspring - the fleet began to gradually decline. The funds allocated for the maintenance of the fleet were cut and delayed. The construction of large ships has been reduced. By 1739, the shortage of battleships and frigates amounted to 9 units (according to the state, it is supposed to have 33, in stock - 24). In the rowing fleet, instead of the 130 galleys laid down by the state, there were only 83. There was a terrible shortage of crews in the fleet (instead of 9 thousand people, there were barely 4.5 thousand). There was an acute shortage of naval officers and flag officers.
Reduced squadrons (4–5 battleships and 2–3 frigates each) entered the Kronstadt roadstead only by the middle of summer and spent the entire campaign on the roadstead or at Krasnaya Gorka. Since 1730, the squadron was not based in Reval, which was freed from ice much earlier than Kronstadt.
The Swedish squadron (10 battleships, 4 frigates, 1 bombardment ship) was sent from Karlskrona to the Gulf of Finland, to the Aspe Islands, in May 1741. The Swedish rowing flotilla (30 ships) arrived from Stockholm and anchored off Friedrichshamn. Swedish troops were concentrated in the area of the fortresses of Wilmanstrand and Friedrichshamn.
The Russian government, having learned about the intention of the Swedes to start a war, from the beginning of July 1741 began to concentrate troops on the border with Finland and in the Baltic states. The command of the Russian army was entrusted to Field Marshal P.P. Lassi. The corps of General Ya.V. was concentrated near Vyborg. Keita. To repel a possible landing of Swedish troops in the St. Petersburg region, another corps was located near Krasnaya Gorka. Small detachments were sent to Livonia and Estonia to defend the coast.
On August 13, Russia declared war on Sweden. Russian troops under the command of Field Marshal P.P. Lassi, speaking from Vyborg on August 23, defeated the Swedes near Wilmanstrand. This was the end of hostilities in 1741.
The Russian squadron under the command of Rear Admiral Ya.S. Barsha (14 battleships, 3 frigates, 2 bombardment ships, 2 prams, 2 shnyavs) entered the Kronstadt raid in early June. The frigates "Hector", "Warrior" and "Russia" took turns cruising to Gogland to monitor the Swedish fleet. Two shnyavs alternately cruised between the Berezovye Islands and Gogland. The battleships stood in the roadstead engaged in training teams. In early August, 9 ships were pulled into the harbor, and the rest - "Northern Eagle", "Foundation of Prosperity", "Arkhangelsk", "St. Andrey", as well as prams and bombardment ships remained in the raid until late autumn, in case you need to protect Kronstadt. Only on November 10, with the onset of frost, did all the ships enter the harbor. Thus, the fleet did not directly participate in hostilities.
In Arkhangelsk there were new ships built at the Solombala shipyard. Three battleships and one frigate left the mouth of the Northern Dvina and arrived in Kola on July 22, where they stayed for the winter. In the spring of next year, they were supposed to go to the Baltic Sea.
32-gun frigate "Russia"
In November 1741, Empress Elizabeth, the daughter of Peter the Great, came to the throne. She concluded a truce with Sweden and began peace negotiations. The Swedes were firmly convinced that with the accession to the throne of Elizabeth, with the complicity of France, they would be able to conclude a favorable peace for themselves and return part of the lands conquered by Peter, but they were very wrong in their calculations. Elizabeth not only did not agree to any concessions, but, on the contrary, decided to energetically continue the war.
From March 1742 hostilities were resumed. The main forces of the Swedish army concentrated west of Friedrichshamn. The Swedish fleet stationed in Karlskrona consisted of 22 battleships and 7 frigates. However, due to a shortage of personnel and a lack of provisions, only 15 battleships and 5 frigates went to sea, which on June 5 anchored off the Aspe Islands. The Swedish rowing flotilla, consisting of 31 ships, arrived at Friedrichshamn on June 6.
The Russian plan of 1742 provided for offensive actions. In early June 1742, a 25,000-strong corps under the command of P.P. moved from Vyborg along the coast of the Gulf of Finland. Lassi.
A. Hansen. Galley fleet in skerries
The Russian rowing fleet (106 vessels) with a 10,000-strong landing force, following the skerries, provided the left flank of the corps in its operations on the coast and delivered food and combat equipment.
In Kronstadt, a squadron of the naval fleet was armed, including 23 pennants (13 ships, 3 frigates and 7 other ships) under the command of Vice Admiral Z.D. Mishukov (flag on the battleship "St. Alexander"), junior flagships - Rear Admirals D.S. Kalmykov (flag on the battleship Revel) and Ya.S. Barsh - the flag on the "Ingermanland".
Arkhangelsk squadron of 4 ships, 5 frigates and 1 hukor under the command of Vice Admiral P.P. Bredal was supposed to go to the Baltic to connect with Z.D. Mishukov.
Corps P.P. Lassi, following the rapidly retreating enemy, who was expecting not war, but peace, reached Helsingfors almost without a shot, where, cutting off the Swedes' path to further retreat, on August 24 he captured the city and forced the entire 17,000th Swedish corps to surrender to surrender. Soon, Russian troops occupied Abo, where peace negotiations began, which did not lead to anything.
In contrast to the successful actions of the army, our naval fleet distinguished itself by amazing inaction. From May 20 to June 29, detachments of ships left Kronstadt for cruising in the Beryozovye Islands - Seskar Island - Hogland Island - Aspe Islands.
At the end of June, the entire fleet under the command of Z.D. Mishukova moved to the island of Seskar, where he anchored. Despite the order of P.P. Lassi to attack the Swedes, the admiral avoided meeting with the enemy, as the crews of the ships were not completed. On July 12, the Russian fleet weighed anchor and tried to catch up with the Swedish fleet, which was leaving the Aspe Islands for the Gangut Peninsula. In search of the enemy, the Russian fleet approached Helsingfors on July 16, and then retreated to about. Gogland, where, due to a headwind, the repair of damage to ships stood from July 19 to August 3. Z.D. Mishukov approached the island of Nargen on August 7, and Gangut on August 10, but did not dare to attack the Swedish fleet. Z.D. Mishukov, commanding a fleet equivalent to the enemy, showed surprising indecision and took advantage of all possible circumstances so as not to meet with the Swedish fleet, which with the same persistence tried to evade the Russian.
The refusal to assist the fleet forced P.P. Lassi, with the surrender of the Swedes, agree to more lenient conditions for them. Fortunately for us, in this campaign the enemy fleet, in fact, was even weaker than ours. In addition, in the absence of energy, the Swedish flagships were not inferior to Z.D. Mishukov. At the end of the campaign over the actions of Z.D. Mishukov was appointed an investigation. The admiral's explanations of his actions were in most cases very unsatisfactory. So, for example, the failure to fulfill the field marshal's demand that the fleet approach Helsingfors at the same time as the army and cut off the Swedes' communication with the sea, Mishukov explains that the "fair wind" was blowing then, in which it would then be difficult to move away from the Finnish coast.
In August 1742, the Admiralty Board decided to divide the ship's fleet and keep one squadron in Reval, so that in the spring it would go to sea before Kronstadt. In Revel, 7 battleships, a frigate, and a bombardment ship were left. The rest of the ships returned to Kronstadt on October 10.
For the defense of the coast of Finland, 12 galleys, a frigate and two prams were left for the winter in Helsingfors, 5 galleys in Friedrichsgamn, and 4 in Borgo.
The Arkhangelsk squadron in the campaign of 1742 also did not take part in the hostilities. Three battleships and a frigate that had wintered in Ekaterininsky Harbor set out to sea in early June, but moved not to the Baltic Sea, but to Arkhangelsk. At the same time, the ships remaining in Arkhangelsk began to raid. The ship "Prosperity" when crossing the bar of the Northern Dvina ran aground, got a leak and did not participate in the campaign.
Finally, the squadron under the command of Vice Admiral P.P. Bredal, consisting of 4 battleships, 5 frigates and a hukor, left Arkhangelsk on July 19. The ships were preparing for battle and meeting with the enemy. On August 9, the ships passed the North Cape, and the next day they got into a strong storm that lasted three days. The council of captains decided, in view of the damage to the ships, to go to the island of Kildin, where they arrived on August 13. August 20 P.P. Bredal with five frigates went to Arkhangelsk, and the ships of the line remained to spend the winter in Ekaterininskaya harbor. Only the gukor "Kronshlot" continued sailing, but did not dare to go to the Baltic alone and wintered in Christiansand (Norway). Thus, out of ten ships that left Arkhangelsk on July 19, not one reached the Baltic ports this year.
In April of the following year, P.P. Bredal was recalled to St. Petersburg for an investigation. The Admiralty Board recognized the reasons for the return as disrespectful and sent its opinion to the Senate.
Despite the fact that there were no military clashes between the ship fleets, both the Russians and the Swedes suffered losses. The Russian frigate "Hector" on July 29 near the island of Gogland ran into a reef not marked on the map and crashed. The crew was saved. On October 24, the Swedish frigate Ulriksdal was brought by a storm into the Revel Bay, where he was taken prisoner. Subsequently, the frigate served in the Russian fleet for 30 years.
Despite the inaction of the naval fleet, thanks to the successes of the army, obtained with the participation of the galley fleet, all of Finland was occupied by the Russians, a detachment of Swedish troops, driven beyond Torneo, could not move from there, held by our dragoons and Cossacks. P.P. Lassi returned to St. Petersburg in the autumn, and General Ya.V. Keith with the main forces settled down for the winter at Abo.
After the surrender of the army, Sweden could not count on a successful outcome of the war and offered to make peace. Peace talks resumed in Abo in March. But now the Swedes did not agree to territorial concessions.
In March 1743, peace negotiations began in Åbo, but Sweden was preparing to continue hostilities, which resumed in the spring.
At the beginning of 1743, the Swedish corps concentrated at Torneo, which was supposed to head to Finland. A rowing flotilla (18 galleys, prams and several other ships) left Stockholm for the Aland Islands with landing troops for landing on the coast of Finland. The Swedish naval fleet (16 battleships, 5 frigates, 2 bombardment ships, 4 auxiliary ships) left Karlskrona on April 30 and anchored off Gangut on May 18. 5 battleships were sent to cruise between Gangut and Dago Island.
The Russian command, seeking to speed up the conclusion of peace on favorable terms for Russia, intended, following the example of 1719, to deliver a decisive blow to Sweden by landing on its own shores. The task of the ship fleet was to cover the rowing fleet during the transition and landing.
Squadron of Rear Admiral Ya.S. Barsha (7 ships, 1 frigate and 1 bombardment vessel), wintering in Revel, already reached the roadstead on April 15, moved to Nargen Island on April 28, and two days later went to sea and on May 1 approached Gangut to ensure the passage of rowing ships . From 10 to 15 May, she cruised in the area of Gangut - Dagerort - Rogervik Bay. Then she connected with the Kronstadt squadron.
On May 14, Russian rowing ships wintering in Finland united at Gangut, General Ya.V. took command of the united detachment (21 galleys, 2 prams). Kate.
Two days before, Ya.V. Keith sent Ya.S. Barsh demanded to go with the squadron to the Aland Islands and take a position to cut off the escape route of the enemy galleys, but Ya.S. Barsh, citing ignorance of the skerry fairway, continued cruising in the Gulf of Finland.
Heading to the Aland skerries, the detachment of Ya.V. On May 15, Keita anchored off Korpo Island, 45 versts from Abo. On the evening of May 18, the Swedish galleys appeared, marching in three columns. Before reaching three miles to the Russian position, they also anchored. I'M IN. Keith pushed 2 prams and 8 galleys into the narrow passage between the islands. 13 galleys could not line up due to the narrowness of the passage and did not participate in the battle. The Russians placed two batteries on the islands, using four landing field guns and removing four guns from the galleys.
Battle off Korpo Island May 20, 1743On May 20, the Swedish ships moved to the Russian position. I'M IN. Keith was on the coastal battery, captain I.I. commanded the battle on the ships. Kaisarov.
Around 15 o'clock the Swedes made the first sighting shots, but their cores did not even reach the coastal batteries. Russian ships stood further. swedish pram boats towed. At 16 o'clock the Swedes approached the cannon shot, but Ya.V. Keith ordered not to open fire until the enemy came up to a rifle shot. After that, the Russian prams fired the first volleys.
The Swedish pram was badly damaged, disengaged and took cover behind one of the nearby islands. Several enemy galleys were also badly damaged. The battle lasted 2.5 hours - from 17 to 19.30. At 8 pm the last Swedish galley left the battle.
The main burden of the battle fell on the prams: "Oliphant" (lieutenant A. Soymonov) and "Wild Bull" (lieutenant P. Pronchishchev). During the battle, 1063 shots were fired from Russian prams, 322 from galleys, and 89 from coastal batteries. The intensity of the battle can be judged by the fact that the Wild Bull received 39 holes, 3 guns were damaged, 3 were killed and 2 sailors were wounded , on the "Oliphant" - 20 holes, 3 killed, 7 wounded. The battle off Korpo Island was the only naval battle in the entire war.
At the beginning of May, Field Marshal P.P. also moved from St. Petersburg. Lassi with 9 regiments of infantry, 8 companies of grenadiers and 200 Cossacks, stationed in 112 galleys and konchebass, to land troops on the Swedish coast. The landing corps was personally led by P.P. Lassi. The sea trip was very slow, with long stops.
The Kronstadt squadron consisted of eight battleships, one bombarding ship and two fireships. In April, Admiral N.F. was appointed commander of the Baltic Fleet and the Kronstadt squadron. Golovin, who was commanded by the highest decree, " if need calls, then attack the enemy fleet not only with a superior force over the enemy, in the number of ships and cannons, but also with an equal against it».
In 1743, the squadron began the campaign earlier than in 1742 - on May 1, the ships left the harbor for the raid. On May 7, Empress Elizabeth visited the fleet, she examined the flagship St. Peter". Two days later, the Kronstadt squadron went to sea and on May 12 arrived at Nargen Island, where on May 15 it joined up with the Revel squadron. On May 21, the fleet weighed anchor and went west, and on May 24, the Swedish fleet was discovered at Gangut - 21 pennants.
Approaching the Swedish fleet, N.F. Golovin, in full view of the enemy, lay down in a drift, on May 25 he gathered a general council of flagships and all the captains and proposed to approach the Swedish fleet and attack it with firewalls and bombardment ships. But the general council did not agree with him and decided by a majority of votes: "Wait for the attack until the arrival of the galleys, because it is not capable of attacking in such a narrow place."
P.P. Lassi arrived with galleys on May 26 to Tvereminna, but the further way to the west was blocked by the Swedish fleet, stationed at Gangut on the very fairway. The field marshal had to wait for the arrival of N.F. Golovin, who, after joining the Revel squadron, had enough strength to attack the enemy and thereby distract him from Gangut. But N.F. In this case, Golovin turned out to be no better than Z.D. Mishukov. Approaching Gangut with 25 ships (the battleships "St. Peter", "St. Alexander", "Northern Eagle", "Revel", "Glory to Russia", "Ingermanland", "Foundation of Prosperity", "Astrakhan", "Arkhangelsk ”, “Kronstadt”, “Azov”, “Neptune”, “St. Andrei”, “Northern Star”, frigates “Russia”, “Warrior”, bombardment ships “Jupiter”, “Samson” and 6 small ships), Admiral , despite the urgent demands of the field marshal, for some time stood idle at anchor near the Swedish fleet.
On May 30, due to a severe storm, the fleet was forced to take shelter, going to Rogervik, and then headed for Gangut, on June 6 it anchored in the visibility of the Swedish fleet, the ships prepared for battle. Closer to the Swedes, the bombardment ships "Jupiter" and "Samson" stood up and opened fire. On June 7, the fleet weighed anchor and, covering the rowing fleet, went to rendezvous with the Swedes. Both fleets, built in the line of battle, held out for more than a day at sea, one against the other, but the quiet wind and fog allowed the Swedes to evade the battle. The next day we saw Swedish ships in the fog. The leading ship of the line "St. Alexander "opened fire on the enemy, but the Swedes did not respond and, having added sails, broke away. On June 9, the Russian fleet, without pursuing the Swedes, entered Rogervik. Until August, the fleet cruised in the Gulf of Finland, then the ships left for Revel and Kronstadt.
On June 8, when the Swedish fleet departed from Gangut, the Russian rowing fleet, numbering 48 galleys, 86 konchebass and 46 other rowing vessels, passed Gangut and on June 12 joined the rowing vessels of Ya.V. Keita. The Swedish rowing flotilla left for Stockholm on June 13. The Russian rowing fleet headed for the coast of Sweden for landing, but on June 18, news was received that peace negotiations had begun.
The Arkhangelsk squadron did not take part in the campaign of 1743, since the first ships from those intended for the passage came to the Baltic Sea after the signing of peace. On July 15, two battleships and three frigates left Arkhangelsk. Having connected with the ships that wintered in the Ekaterininskaya harbor, on August 6, the entire squadron under the flag of V.F. Lewis went on. From 10 to 21 August, the ships fell into a zone of strong storms. Three ships of the line entered Ekaterininskaya harbor, one frigate returned to Arkhangelsk, one crashed. The rest - three battleships, a frigate and a gukor (joined in Copenhagen) arrived in Kronstadt in early November.
On August 7, a peace treaty was signed in Abo between Russia and Sweden. The border with Sweden was established along the Kymen River and Lake Saimaa. The southeastern part of Finland with the fortresses of Friedrichsgamn, Wilmanstrand and Neishlot went to Russia. Sweden recognized Russia's assertion in the Baltic.
As a result of the Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743, Russia strengthened the security of its northwestern borders.
During the Russian-Swedish war of 1741-1743, all the shortcomings of our fleet were expressed with particular relief, but the Swedes did not succeed in this campaign only because they were even worse equipped in comparison with our fleet and acted even more indecisively.
This war showed that a real fleet is not only a large number of different ships. In order for the fleet to become truly combat-ready, well-trained sailors, experienced officers, and determined flagships are needed. All these qualities are acquired only during voyages and exercises.
Plan
Introduction
1 Foreign policy situation on the eve of the war
2 Declaration of war
3 Goals of the Swedes in the war
4 Course of the war
5 Negotiations and peace
6 Sources
Bibliography
Russo-Swedish War (1741-1743)
Introduction
Russo-Swedish War 1741-1743 (Swedish hattarnas ryska krig) is a revanchist war that Sweden started in the hope of regaining the territories lost during the Great Northern War.
1. Foreign policy situation on the eve of the war
In Sweden at the Riksdag 1738-1739. the party of "hats" came to power, heading for the preparation of war with Russia. She was actively supported by France, which, in anticipation of the death of the Austrian Emperor Charles VI and the subsequent struggle for the division of the Austrian inheritance, tried to tie Russia to war in the North. Sweden and France, through their ambassadors in St. Petersburg, E.M. von Nolken and the Marquis de la Chétardie, tried to pave the way for the successful completion of the planned war by establishing relations with Tsarina Elizabeth. The Swedes tried to obtain written confirmation from her that she would cede to Sweden the provinces conquered by her father if they helped her ascend the throne. However, despite all efforts, Nolken was never able to receive such a document from Elizabeth.
In addition, Sweden, in preparation for the war, concluded a treaty of friendship with France in October 1738, according to which the parties pledged not to enter into alliances and not to renew them without mutual consent. Sweden was supposed to receive subsidies from France in the amount of 300,000 riksdaler a year for three years.
In December 1739, a Swedish-Turkish alliance was also concluded, but Turkey promised to provide assistance only in the event of an attack on Sweden by a third power.
2. Declaration of war
On July 28, 1741, the Russian ambassador in Stockholm was informed that Sweden was declaring war on Russia. The cause of the war in the manifesto was Russia's interference in the internal affairs of the kingdom, the ban on the export of bread to Sweden and the murder of the Swedish diplomatic courier M. Sinclair.
3. The goals of the Swedes in the war
According to the instructions drawn up for future peace negotiations, the Swedes intended to put forward, as a condition of peace, the return of all the lands that had ceded to Russia under the Treaty of Nystad, as well as the transfer of the territory between Ladoga and the White Sea to Sweden. If third powers came out against Sweden, then she was ready to be satisfied with Karelia and Ingria together with St. Petersburg.
4. The course of the war
1741
Count Karl Emil Levenhaupt was appointed commander-in-chief of the Swedish army, who arrived in Finland and took command only on September 3, 1741. At that moment, there were about 18 thousand regular troops in Finland. Near the border there were two corps numbering 3 and 5 thousand people. The first of them, commanded by K. Kh. Wrangel, was located not far from Wilmanstrand, the other, under the command of Lieutenant General H. M. von Buddenbrook, was six miles from this city, the garrison of which did not exceed 1,100 people.
Carl Emil Lewenhaupt (1691-1743)
On the Russian side, Field Marshal Pyotr Petrovich Lassi was appointed commander in chief. Learning that the Swedish forces were small and divided, he moved towards Vilmanstrand. Having approached it, the Russians on August 22 stopped in the village of Armil, and in the evening Wrangel's corps approached the city. The number of Swedes, including the Wilmanstrand garrison, according to various sources, ranged from 3500 to 5200 people. The number of Russian troops reached 9900 people.
On August 23, Lassi moved against the enemy, who occupied an advantageous position under the cover of city guns. The Russians attacked the Swedish positions, but due to the stubborn resistance of the Swedes, they were forced to retreat. Then Lassi threw the cavalry into the flank of the enemy, after which the Swedes were knocked down from the hills and lost their guns. After a three-hour battle, the Swedes were defeated.
Pyotr Petrovich Lassi (1678-1751)
After the drummer, sent to demand the surrender of the city, was shot dead, the Russians stormed Wilmanstrand. 1250 Swedish soldiers were taken prisoner, including Wrangel himself. The Russians lost Major General Ukskul, three headquarters and eleven chief officers and about 500 privates killed. The city was burned, its inhabitants were taken to Russia. Russian troops again retreated to Russian territory.
In September-October, the Swedes concentrated an army of 22,800 people near Kvarnby, of which only 15-16 thousand soon remained in service due to illness. The Russians, who were stationed near Vyborg, had about the same number of people. In late autumn, both armies moved into winter quarters. However, in November, Lewenhaupt, with 6,000 infantry and 450 dragoons, headed towards Vyborg, stopping at Sekkijervi. At the same time, several smaller corps attacked Russian Karelia from Wilmanstrand and Neishlot.
Having learned about the movement of the Swedes, the Russian government on November 24 gave the order to the guards regiments to prepare for a speech in Finland. This provoked a palace coup, as a result of which the princess Elizabeth came to power. She ordered a halt to hostilities and concluded a truce with Lewenhaupt.
1742
Theater of military operations in 1741-1743.
In February 1742, the Russian side broke the truce, and in March hostilities resumed. Elizaveta Petrovna published a manifesto in Finland, in which she urged its inhabitants not to take part in an unjust war and promised her help if they wanted to secede from Sweden and form an independent state.
On June 13, Lassi crossed the border and at the end of the month approached Fredrikshamn (Friedrichsham). The Swedes hurriedly left this fortress, but first set fire to it. Levengaupt retreated beyond the Kyumen, heading towards Helsingfors. Morale fell sharply in his army, desertion grew. On July 30, Russian troops occupied Borgo without hindrance and began to pursue the Swedes in the direction of Helsingfors. On August 7, a detachment of Prince Meshchersky occupied Neishlot without resistance, and on August 26, the last fortified point of Finland, Tavastgus, surrendered.
In August, Lassi overtook the Swedish army at Helsingfors, cutting off her further retreat to Abo. At the same time, the Russian fleet locked the Swedes from the sea. Lewenhaupt and Buddenbrook, leaving the army, went to Stockholm, being summoned to give the Riksdag an account of their actions. The command of the army was entrusted to Major General J. L. Busquet, who on August 24 signed a capitulation with the Russians, according to which the Swedish army was to cross to Sweden, leaving all the artillery to the Russians. On August 26, the Russians entered Helsingfors. Soon, Russian troops completely occupied all of Finland and Österbotten.
Baltic Fleet under the command of Vice-Admiral Z.D. Mishukov in 1742, in every possible way evaded active actions, for which Mishukov was removed from command, and an investigation was launched over his activities.
1743
Military operations in 1743 were reduced mainly to operations at sea. Rowing fleet (34 galleys, 70 konchebass) under the command of N.F. Golovin left Kronstadt with a landing force on May 8. Later he was joined by several more galleys with troops on board. In the Suttonga area, the ships noticed the Swedish rowing fleet on the horizon, reinforced by sailing ships. However, the Swedes weighed anchor and left. On June 14, the enemy fleet again appeared near Degerby Island, east of the Aland Islands, but again chose not to get involved in the battle and retreated.
By the end of the war, the Swedish fleet sailed between the islands of Dago and Gotland. On June 17, the Swedish admiral E. Taube received news of the signing of a preliminary peace agreement and took the fleet to Elvsnabben. On June 18, the news of peace reached the Russian fleet, which was off the Aland Islands.
5. Negotiations and peace
Back in the spring of 1742, the former Swedish ambassador to St. Petersburg, E. M. von Nolken, arrived in Russia to start peace negotiations, but the Russian government rejected the condition he put forward to mediate France in the negotiations, and Nolken returned to Sweden.
In January 1743, peace negotiations began between Sweden and Russia in Åbo, which took place in the context of ongoing hostilities. Representatives from the Swedish side were Baron H. Sederkreutz and E. M. von Nolken, from the Russian side - General-in-Chief A. I. Rumyantsev and General I. L. Luberas. As a result of lengthy negotiations, on June 17, 1743, the so-called "Assurance Act" was signed. In it, the Swedish Riksdag was recommended to elect the Regent of Holstein, Adolf Friedrich, as the heir to the throne. Sweden ceded to Russia the Kymenigord fief with all the mouths of the Kymeni River, as well as the Neishlot fortress. Russia returned to the Swedes Österbotten, Björnborg, Abo, Tavast, Nyland fiefs, part of Karelia and Savolaks, occupied during the war. Sweden confirmed the terms of the Nystadt Peace Treaty of 1721 and recognized Russia's acquisitions in the Baltic states.
On June 23, 1743, the Riksdag elected Adolf Friedrich as heir to the throne. At the same time, peace was declared with Russia. The Russian Empress signed a peace treaty on 19 August.
6. Sources
· Solovyov S. M. History of Russia since ancient times, vol. 21
· Military Encyclopedia. - St. Petersburg, 1911-1915.
· Stavenow L. Sveriges historia till våra dagar: Frihetstiden, D. 9. - Stockholm, 1922.
LiteratureShpilevskaya N.S. Description of the war between Russia and Sweden in Finland in 1741, 1742 and 1743. - St. Petersburg, 1859. References:
1. V. V. Pokhlebkin. Foreign policy Russia, Russia and the USSR for 1000 years in names, dates, facts. M .: "International Relations", 1995., p. 238
2 Eighteenth Century Death Tolls
3. Stavenow L. Sveriges historia till våra dagar: Frihetstiden, D. 9. - Stockholm, 1922. - S. 182. According to other estimates, Swedish losses amounted to 50,000 people ( Shpilevskaya N. Description of the war between Russia and Sweden in Finland in 1741, 1742 and 1743. - St. Petersburg, 1859 - S. 267).
At the end of the 1930s, the situation on the western and northwestern borders of Russia began to become more complicated again. The danger from the Prussian side of Frederick II the Great grew.
Revanchist plans gradually matured in Sweden. With the death of the Austrian emperor Charles VI in October 1740, a struggle unfolded around the Austrian throne, which Charles VI bequeathed to his daughter Maria Theresa. Taking advantage of the situation, Prussia sought to seize Silesia from Austria. To do this, Frederick II decided to neutralize Russia, which was in alliance with Austria, and offered her his alliance. It was concluded in December 1740 through the efforts of B.Kh. Minikh and A.I. Osterman. But Frederick II invaded Silesia a little earlier. And Russia found herself in an ambiguous position, although it would have been in her interests to take the side of Austria. It was a major diplomatic miscalculation. True, in April 1741 Russia concluded a Russian-English alliance for a period of 20 years. This is what she has been striving for for years. But the weak point of the union was the extension of the Biron trade agreement.
The highest Russian dignitaries quickly realized that Prussia was actively pushing Sweden to go to war with Russia. Minich was removed from business. In vain was France's attempt to force Russia to oppose Austria. But the French envoy, the Marquis de Chétardie, on behalf of Versailles, at the same time, as we have seen, started an intrigue with Elizabeth Petrovna, plotting a palace coup. The calculations of French diplomacy were quite simple - to force the future empress to abandon the conquests of Peter I in the Baltics. As already shown, this calculation failed.
Nevertheless, on July 27, 1741, Sweden declared war on Russia under the banner of protecting the heirs of Peter I. Prussia immediately refused to help Russia. Swedish troops entered Finland in two corps. But the 20,000th corps of P.P. Lassi in August 1741 quickly defeated the Swedes. A palace coup in November 1741 seemed to eliminate the casus belli, but the war continued. During 1742, the Swedish troops retreated all the time, surrendering fortress after fortress.
In August 1742, near Helsingfors, the Swedish army capitulated. An important point was the support of the Russian troops by the local Finnish population. Back in March 1742, Elizabeth issued a manifesto promising Finland's independence. Ten Finnish regiments after the surrender of the Swedish army surrendered their weapons and went home. Long negotiations began in Abo, at times accompanied by hostilities. On August 7, 1743, a peace favorable to Russia was concluded, which received a number of Finnish fortresses.
§ 4. Russia and the war for the "Austrian inheritance" (1743-1748)
In international relations in Europe during the 40s - early 50s of the XVIII century. there was a process of gradual but radical regrouping of forces and the creation of new coalitions. The Austro-Prussian contradictions were clearly and permanently determined, since Prussia took away from Austria the most important part of it - Silesia. In Russia, an anti-Prussian direction of foreign policy was gradually emerging. The inspirer of this policy was the outstanding Russian diplomat Count A.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin.
After some cooling of relations with Austria (the "conspiracy" of the Marquis Botta d "Adorno), in 1745 a new Petersburg Treaty was concluded for a period of 25 years. It was directed against Prussian aggression. At the same time, Russia entered into a number of agreements on helping England with troops (for money) to protect the European possessions of England from France and Prussia. This contributed to the end of the war for the "Austrian inheritance". In 1748, the Peace of Aachen was concluded. Relations between Russia and Prussia simply broke off. This happened in 1750.
§ 5. Seven Years' War (1757-1763)
In the 1950s, there was a sharp change in the relations between the former fierce enemies and rivals in Europe - France and Austria. The strength of the Anglo-French and the severity of the Austro-Prussian contradictions forced Austria to look for an ally in France. They were unexpectedly helped by a long-time ally of France, the Prussian King Frederick II. Prussia willingly agreed with England, promising her help with the army (in exchange for money!) To protect English possessions from France. At the same time, the Prussian king counted on only one thing: by an agreement with England, to secure himself from the formidable Russia, with whom England was on friendly terms. But everything turned out differently. In 1756 England led with Russia new negotiations on the protection (again for money) of English possessions in Europe from France. But now Russian diplomats agreed to help England only against the threat from Prussia, seeking to strengthen the anti-Prussian coalition of England, Austria and Russia. But literally 2 days later, on January 27, 1756, England concludes a non-aggression agreement with Prussia. This caused a storm of indignation among French diplomats. As a result, in May 1756, Maria Theresa concludes an agreement with Louis XV on mutual assistance in the event of an attack by any aggressor. So, the new coalitions were completely determined: on the one hand, Prussia and England, and on the other, Austria, France, Russia, Saxony. With all this, the powers of the anti-Prussian coalition did not fully trust each other.
On August 19, treacherously, without declaring war, the Prussian hordes attacked Saxony and occupied Leipzig and Dresden. The Austrians came to the rescue, but were defeated. Saxony capitulated. But the war continued. The patina of mutual distrust in the anti-Prussian coalition is now gone, and Russia is joining the Austro-French alliance. France and Austria enter into a secondary agreement in May 1757. Finally, Sweden joins the coalition.
In July 1757, Russian troops under the command of Field Marshal S.F. Apraksin entered East Prussia and, having occupied a number of cities (Memel, Tilsit, etc.), headed for Koenigsberg. Under Koenigsberg stood the Prussian elite 40,000th army of Field Marshal Lewald. On August 19, 1757, the largest battle took place near the town of Gross-Egersdorf. Despite the unfavorable role of the field marshal, who tried to stop the battle, the Russians won. Moreover, the fate of the battle was decided by the sudden blow of the reserve army of P.A. Rumyantsev. Soon Apraksin, for whom Frederick II was an idol, was arrested and put on trial. The new commander Fermor in January 1758 took Koenigsberg and soon all of East Prussia.
Fearing the success of the Russians, Austria and France tirelessly asked them for help for the battles in Silesia, so the main blow in the 1758 campaign was already south of Pomerania and East Prussia. Russian troops besieged the Kustrin fortress. Upon learning of this, Frederick II made a swift throw under Kustrin. Confused, Fermor lifted the siege and led the entire army under the village of Zorndorf to a rather unfortunate position (there were hills ahead), where a bloody battle took place. And again, during the battle, the commander of the Russian troops, Field Marshal Fermor, fled from the battlefield (!). True, the soldiers courageously repulsed the attack and eventually put Frederick II to flight. The field marshal was removed. P.S. stood at the head of the troops. Saltykov.
Meanwhile, success did not accompany either the French or the Austrians.
For the next 1759, the joint plan of the allies provided for the capture of Brandenburg by Russian and Austrian troops. In June, Saltykov entered Brandenburg, and on July 12, Wedel's corps was defeated near the village of Palzig. In the battle, artillerymen distinguished themselves from the Russian side, firing from the new Shuvalov howitzers and unicorns. Soon Russian troops captured Frankfurt an der Oder and became a real threat to Berlin.
Desperately resisting, forced to fight simultaneously in three directions, the Prussian king Frederick II decides to throw an almost 50,000-strong army near Berlin. At that time, instead of the approach of the main forces of the Austrians, only the 18,000th corps of Laudon joined the Russian troops. Frederick II attacked the Russian army on August 1, 1759 near the village of Kunersdorf, but now the Russian position was excellent. They settled on the heights.
Frederick II decided to go in from the rear, but Russian command figured out his plans. The Prussian commander tirelessly threw his regiments into attacks, but they were all repulsed. Two energetic counterattacks by the Russian troops determined the further course of the fierce battle. With a common bayonet counterattack, Saltykov crushed the Prussians, and they, together with the commander, fled from the battlefield in disarray. However, the Austrians not only did not support Saltykov's troops, but tried in every possible way to divert them from Berlin to Silesia. Saltykov refused to follow the Austrian demands. In the meantime, getting a breather. Frederick II gathered his strength again and continued the difficult war for him, which dragged on due to indecisive actions and fruitless advances of Russian allied troops.
The Vienna court and Versailles, of course, were for the victory over Frederick II, but not for the strengthening of Russia. Hence the delays and the fruitless results of the brilliant victories of the Russian troops. Not wanting to endure this further, Saltykov resigns. The mediocre field marshal A.B. becomes the head of the troops. Buturlin.
At the end of September 1760, at a time when the main forces of Frederick II were pinned down by the Austrians, the Russian regiments rushed to Berlin. The assault on Berlin was scheduled for September 28, but the city surrendered. After 3 days, the Russian troops left the city, as they were severely separated from their rear. The war continued.
In 1761, the main forces of the Russian troops were again sent to Silesia. Only the body of P.A. Rumyantsev acted in Pomerania. The capture by Rumyantsev with the support of the fleet of the Kolberg fortress created the possibility of a complete capture of Pomerania and Brandenburg and a new threat to Berlin. This threatened Prussia with complete defeat.
By the beginning of 1762, the situation for Prussia had become hopeless. And so, when Frederick II was ready to abdicate, the unexpected death of the Russian Empress Elizabeth on December 25, 1761 saved him from inevitable defeat. New Emperor of Russia Peter III immediately stopped all hostilities, concluded with Friedrich
II alliance, according to which the Russian troops were to fight now with former allies. One way or another, but Russia waged this war on foreign territory, although it was forced to do so by the alignment of political forces in Europe. The pro-German sentiments of Peter III, all his behavior caused, as we know, acute discontent of the Russian nobility. A palace coup on June 28, 1762 overthrew the emperor. His wife Catherine II was elevated to the throne. The new empress broke off the alliance with Prussia, but did not resume the war. In November 1762 Russia's allies, France and England, also made peace.
Thus ended the difficult war with Prussia. The Russian Empire did not achieve its goals - it did not annex Courland, could not move forward in resolving the issue of Belarusian and Ukrainian lands. True, as a result of the brilliant military victories, Russia's international prestige has risen to an unprecedented height. in military power Russian Empire in Europe now no one doubted.
Chapter 11. Russia in the era of Catherine II. "Enlightened Absolutism"
Empress and throne
The very first royal orders of the new Empress Ekaterina Alekseevna reveal her sharp mind and ability to navigate in a complex internal political and court situation.
In addition to amnesties and awards, so common for any coup, Catherine II takes a number of emergency measures. Almost immediately, she subordinated the entire army infantry of the Petersburg and Vyborg garrisons to Kirill Razumovsky personally devoted to her, and the cavalry to Count Buturlin. All the innovations of the Prussian order were immediately canceled in the army. Sinister destroyed secret office. By banning the export of grain, the sharp rise in the price of bread in St. Petersburg is rather quickly eliminated. In addition, the new Empress on July 3 also reduces the price of salt (by 10 kopecks per pood).
On July 6, a manifesto was issued on the accession of Catherine II. In essence, it was a pamphlet against Peter III. Having pushed out all the most “disgusting” actions of Peter III to the society of that time, the new empress with great “mental anguish” described the unworthy attitude of the former emperor towards the Russian Church and Orthodoxy in general. Catherine also cancels the decree of Peter III on the secularization of church estates.
And yet, for the first time, Catherine, who was placed on the throne, feels insecure and is extremely afraid of court intrigues. She makes desperate attempts to strangle her old romance with Stanislav Poniatowski, which is about to flare up again.
And yet, the main danger in the court situation was not in Poniatowski - he was alive, although already the former Emperor Peter III. It is this circumstance that gnaws at the new empress during the first days and nights after the coup. To liquidate the abdicated Peter III, no special conspiracies were needed: the masterminds of the coup on June 28 understood the desires of the new queen at a glance. The course of the case in Ropsha is still unknown, but the little that historians know makes us doubt the murder of Pyotr Fedorovich. Sent to Ropsha, Peter III was in a trance, he was unwell all the time. On July 3, the doctor Leader was sent to him, and on July 4, the second doctor, Paulsen. It is quite symptomatic that on the morning of July 6, on the day of the murder, Peter III's valet was kidnapped from Ropsha, who went out into the garden "to breathe clean air."
In the evening of the same day, the rider delivered a package to Catherine II from Ropsha, where there was a note with drunken scribbles by Alexei Orlov. In particular, it said the following: “Mother! Ready to go to death; but I don't know how it happened. We died when you do not have mercy. Mother - he is not in the world. But no one thought of this, but how can we think of raising our hands against the sovereign! But, sir, disaster has struck. He argued at the table with Prince Fyodor; we didn’t have time to separate, but he was already gone. ”
The moment was critical, because the “merciful empress” could become angry and even punish the guilty who killed the unfortunate Peter III. But she did not do this - none of those present in Ropsha either in July 1762 or later were punished. Rather, on the contrary, everyone successfully moved up the official and other levels. The murder itself was hidden, since it was announced that Peter III had died of hemorrhoidal "severe colic." At the same time, Orlov's note was sacredly kept by Catherine II for more than thirty years in a special box, where her son, Emperor Paul, found it. Apparently, this was supposed to serve as evidence (very shaky, of course) of personal innocence in front of his son.
The solemn entry of Catherine II into Moscow took place on September 13. On September 22, the traditional magnificent performance of the coronation took place in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, in which loud-voiced spiritual hierarchs hypocritically called: “Come, defender of the fatherland, come defender of piety, enter your city and sit on the throne of your ancestors (!).” This was proclaimed with complete seriousness, although, of course, none of Catherine's ancestors sat on the Russian throne.
Noble aristocratic circles, both before and now, were not slow to turn to projects of limiting autocratic power. In particular, Nikita Panin tirelessly began to seek the approval of the project to limit the autocrat's power by the so-called imperial council. When Panin's pressure reached its maximum (in December 1762), Catherine II was forced to sign the decree as a whole. But on the same day, having decided to take the risk, she tears it up.
Finally, one more stroke in the court struggle for the throne is the “Mirovich case”. Back in September 1762 in Moscow, at a dinner with Lieutenant Peter Khrushchov, there was talk of rights to the throne sadly famous Ivan Antonovich. One of the officers of the Izmaylovsky Guards Regiment, a certain I. Guryev, inadvertently noticed that about 70 people were already trying about Ivanushka. As a result, both Khrushchev and Guryev were exiled forever to Siberia. The wary empress, through Nikita Panin, gave the strictest instructions for the protection of Ivan Antonovich. The order now spoke of the immediate destruction of the noble prisoner at the slightest attempt to free him. But less than two years later, such an attempt took place.
In those years, the Smolensk Infantry Regiment was guarding the Shlisselburg fortress. The lieutenant of this regiment, Vasily Mirovich, accidentally found out that the former emperor Ivan Antonovich was imprisoned in the fortress. The ambitious second lieutenant soon decided to release the prisoner and proclaim him emperor. Having prepared a false manifesto and oath and found a few supporters in the regiment, on the night of July 5, with a small team, he arrested commandant Berednikov and attacked the garrison guard, threatening him with an unloaded cannon. But all was in vain. As it turned out later, Captain Vlasyev and Lieutenant Chekin, seeing what was happening, immediately killed the prisoner. The Supreme Court sentenced Mirovich to death. At the St. Petersburg glutton market, the executioner cut off his head. The corpse of the executed and the scaffold were immediately burned. In essence, it was unsuccessful attempt a typical palace coup, with the only difference that the leader prepared it clumsily, without concentrating in his hands the main levers of the coup mechanism.
All these, sometimes sharp, palace intrigues and conflicts, although they created an atmosphere of uncertainty around the throne, did not at all determine the complexity of the socio-political situation in the country as a whole.
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