Battle of Batoh

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Khmelnytsky Uprising
Żółte Wody • Korsuń • Piławce • Zbaraż • Zboriv • Beresteczko • Batoh • Kiev

The Battle of Batoh was a battle in 1652 in which Polish forces under Marcin Kalinowski were defeated by Cossacks commanded by Hetman Bohdan Chmielnicki. About 8,000 Polish soldiers were taken prisoners and were massacred after the battle, including Samuel Jerzy Kalinowski, Zygmunt Przyjemski, Jan Odrzywolski and Marek Sobieski. The defeat had severe and long-lasting consequences for the history of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and for Ukraine.

[edit] The background

Cossack Hetman Bohdan Chmielnicki, in 1652, marched toward Moldavia in order to form an alliance against the Poles with Hospodar Basil Lupu. Additionally, he wanted to marry his son Tymofieja with Rozalin the daughter of the ruler.

Hetman Marcin Kalinowski, leader of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth’s Crown army, decided to foil that plan. In May 1652, he concentrated armies to block the road against the march of the Cossacks and accompanying Crimean Tatars. The assembly point was designated as the entrenched camp at Batoh, founded previously near the river Boh. This was a significant mistake of the Polish leadership, which lost the opportunity to prevent the unification of the enemy forces. The camp was, however, in good naturally defensive terrain and appeared good to serve as the base to further actions, but it worked out differently.

It is difficult to estimate the strength of the sides because of the paucity of records. Sometimes the Crown banners ordered to move to the camp never arrived. This is tied to the unpopularity of Hetman Kalinowski among junior officers.

[edit] The battle

Poor leadership and the passivity of the Crown army led to the enemy, without hardship, crossing the Boh. The camp thus became surrounded. Though the camp could have been easily defended for quite some time, a rebellion broke out. At that time, Kalinowski decided to treat with senior men of the army. June 1, 1652 was the first day of the battle of Batoh. As a result of the negotiations, part of the units faithful to Polish Hetman wanted to defend in the camp, whereas the rioters wished to flee. On June 2, 1652, the battle at the camp ended as a defeat of the armies of the Crown, and the camp was overcome by fire after the grass was set ablaze. Many who were running away were captured by the Tatars. Hetman Kalinowski fell at the side of his son Samuel.

[edit] The followup

After the battle, the Tatars, with blessings from the Cossacks, slaughtered the Polish captives. This avenged Chmielnicki’s defeat at Berest (Brest) in June 1651. It was a complete massacre of the Poles: 8000 soldiers, including many of the best.

The losses included Samuel Jerzy Kalinowski; Sigmund Przyjemski; general of Crown Artillery and the Chancellor of the Crown, John Odrzywolski; Castellan of Czernihow; Marek Sobieski; Starost of Krasnystaw; and the brother of John the future king.

The Battle of Batoh had crucial significance because it destroyed the best Crown units. This permitted Chmielnicki to cross to the offensive and as a result tear parts of the Ukraine from the Commonwealth. Defeat of the Poles contributed to the wars to come with Muscovy, which in turn resulted in the ‘deluge’ of the country by Swedish armies.