Streltsy
| Streltsy | |
|---|---|
| Russian:стрельцы | |
 | |
| Active | 1550–1720 |
| Country |  Russia |
| Type | Infantry |
| Part of | Russian Army |
| Garrison/HQ | Moscow |
| Patron | Saint George |
| Engagements | Siege of Kazan Livonian War Battle of Molodi Polish–Russian War (1609–1618) Smolensk War Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) Great Northern War |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Ivan the Terrible |
Thestreltsy(Russian:стрельцы,IPA:[strʲɪlʲˈt͡sɨ],lit. 'shooters/riflemen';sg.стрелец,strelets,IPA:[strʲɪˈlʲet͡s]) were the units of Russianfirearminfantry from the 16th century to the early 18th century and also a social stratum, from which personnel for streltsy troops were traditionally recruited. They are also collectively known asstreletskoye voysko(стрелецкое войско, riflemen army). These infantry troops reinforced feudal levy horsemen orpomestnoye voysko(поместное войско). The first units were established byIvan the Terribleas part of the first standing army in Russia.[1]
Origins and organization[edit]
The first streltsy units were created by Ivan the Terrible sometime between 1545 and 1550 and armed with arquebuses. During his reign, Russia was fighting wars almost continuously, including theLivonian Waragainst Scandinavia and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the north and wars against thekhanatesof the south. They first saw combat at thesiege of Kazanin 1552.
Tsar Ivan passed a decree on 1 October 1550 "on the stationing in Moscow and surrounding districts of one thousand service people," which is considered to be the formal founding of thestreltsyregiments.[2]
Initially, streltsy were recruited from among the free tradespeople and from the rural population. Later,military servicein this unit became lifelong andhereditary.While earlier in the 16th century they had been an elite force, their effectiveness was reduced by poor training and lack of choice in recruiting.[3] Streltsy were subdivided into "select" (Russian:выборные,romanized:vybornyje), later "Muscovite" (Russian:московские); and "municipal" (городские,in different Russian cities).
- The Muscovite streltsy guarded theKremlin,performed general guard duty, and participated inmilitary operations.They also carried out generalpolicingandfire brigadefunctions in Moscow.Grigory Kotoshikhin,a Russian diplomat who had spied for and then defected to theSwedish Empirein the 1660s, reported that they used axes and buckets and copper pumps as well as hooks to pull down adjacent buildings so that fires would not spread.Adam Olearius,a German who traveled to Russia in the 17th century, noted that they never used water.[4]
- The municipal streltsy performedgarrisonandborderduty and carried out orders of thelocal government.
The streltsy came under the control of theStreletsky prikaz(стрелецкий приказ). In times of war, they came under their superiors. The municipal streltsy were also under thejurisdictionof the localvoivodes(local governors or semi-independent rulers).
The largest military administrative unit of the streltsy forces was the Gear or Kit (прибор) that was later renamedprikazes (Russian:приказ,romanized:prikaz,lit. 'office, department') and in 1681regiments(полк). The commanders of the streltsy (стрелецкие головы) andcolonelsin charge of regiments were chiefs of thePrikazy.They had to benoblesand appointed by the government.
Regiments were subdivided into "Hundreds" (сотни) and "Decades" (Russian:десятки,romanized:desyatki,lit. 'tens'). They could be dragoons or cavalry (Russian:стремянные,lit. 'with stirrups') or footsoldiers (пешие).
Uniforms and equipment[edit]
The streltsy had identical uniforms, training and weapons. Uniforms consisted of red, yellow, blue or green coats (kaftans) with orange boots. Their primary weapon was anarquebusormusket,and they carriedpollaxesorbardiches,andsabresfor defense. Some units usedpikes.The longer weapons were also used to support the arquebus or musket while firing.
Service conditions[edit]
The Russian government was chronically short of cash and so often did not pay the streltsy well. While "entitled" to an estimated four rubles a year in the 1550s, they were often allowed to farm or trade in order to supplement their incomes. This reduced their combat effectiveness and often their desire to go on campaigns, since a season campaigning meant loss of income.[citation needed]
The streltsy and their families lived in their own neighborhoods or districts settlements and received money and bread from the State Treasury. In certain locations, the streltsy were granted strips of land instead of money. The streltsy settlement in Moscow was located near where the main campus ofMoscow State Universitynow stands.[5][dubious–discuss]
Military tactics[edit]
Military commanders deployed the streltsy in static formations, often against set formations or fortifications. They often fired from a platform and employed a mobile wooden "fortification" known in Russian as a "gulyay-gorod"(literally a" walking fort "). They reportedly fired in volley orcaracolefashion, the first line firing and then stepping back to reload while the second line stepped forward to fire.[6]
Politics[edit]
At the end of the 16th century, there were 20,000 to 25,000 streltsy. In 1681, there were 55,000, including 22,500 in Moscow alone. The engagements of the streltsy inhandicraftsand trade led to a significant proprietaryinequalityamong them and their blending with tradesmen. Even though the streltsy demonstrated their fighting efficiency on several occasions, such as during the siege of Kazan in 1552, the war withLivonia,theNorthern Warsin the early 17th century, and military operations inPolandandCrimea,in the second half of the 17th century, the streltsy started to display their backwardness compared to the regular soldier orreiterregiments (seeImperial Russian Army).
Military service hardships, frequent salary delays, abuse on the part of local administration and commanders led to regular streltsy, especially the poorest ones, to participate in anti-serfdomuprisings in the 17th and early 18th centuries. These included the peasant wars in theTime of Troublesand after the lastRurikidswere replaced by theRomanov tsarsat the beginning of the 17th century and in 1670–1671 (such as by the cossacks ofStenka Razin),urbanuprisings such as theMoscow uprising of 1682,thestreltsy uprisingof 1698, and theBulavin Rebellionof 1705–1706 inAstrakhan.
At the same time, those streltsy who had been on top of thehierarchyenjoyed theirsocial statusand, therefore, tried to hold back the regular streltsy forces and keep them on the government’s side. In the late 17th century, the streltsy of Moscow began to actively participate in a struggle for power between different government groups, supporting theOld Believersand showing hostility towards any foreign innovations.
The streltsy became something of a "praetorian element" in Muscovite politics in the late 17th century.[4]In 1682, they attempted to preventPeter Ifrom coming to the throne in favor of his half-brother,Ivan V.
Disbandment[edit]
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After the fall ofSophia Alekseyevnain 1689, the government ofPeter Iengaged in a process of gradual limitation of the streltsy's military and political influence. Eight Moscow regiments were removed from the city and transferred toBelgorod,Sevsk,andKiev.
In spite of these measures, the streltsy revolted yet again during theGrand Embassy of Peter the Greatin Europe. Although the revolt was put down by the Scottish generalPatrick Gordonwho had entered Russian service underAlexis Iin 1661 even before the tsar's return to Russia, Peter cut short his embassy and returned to crush the streltsy with reprisals, including public executions and torture.
Tortures included roasting the bare back, tearing flesh with iron hooks, and crushing feet in wooden presses calledbutuks. Executions included beingbroken on the wheeland being buried alive. Many of the bodies were hung aroundNovodevichy Conventwhere Sophia Alekseyevna and Eudoxia were confined for aiding the rebellion.
The corps was technically abolished in 1689. After having suffered adefeat at Narvain 1700, the government stopped their disbandment. The most efficient streltsy regiments took part in the most important military operations of theGreat Northern Warand in Peter’sPruth River Campaignof 1711. Gradually, the streltsy were incorporated into the regular army. At the same time, the Municipal Streltsy started to be disbanded.
The liquidation of most streltsy units was finished in the 1720s. The Municipal Streltsy were kept in some cities until the late 18th century.
ThePreobrazhensky Regimentand theSemyonovsky Regimentof theImperial Guardreplaced the streltsy and the traditionalryndyas the tsar's bodyguards.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^Møller, Jørgen (19 December 2016).State Formation, Regime Change, and Economic Development.Taylor & Francis. p. 241.ISBN978-1-134-82700-8.
- ^День Сухопутных войск России. Досье(in Russian). TASS. 31 August 2015.
- ^Michael C. Paul, "The Military Revolution in Russia 1550-1682,"The Journal of Military History68 No. 1 (January 2004): 9-45, esp. pp. 20-22.
- ^abPaul, "The Military Revolution in Russia," 21.
- ^Paul, "The Military Revolution in Russia," 20, 41; Chernov, "Obrazovanie stel'tsogo voiska," Istoricheskie zapiski 38 (1951): 282-284; Hellie, Enserfment and Military Change in Muscovy, 161; John Keep, Soldiers of the Tsar: Army and Society in Russia 1462-1874 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1985), 60.
- ^Richard Hellie,Enserfment and Military Change in Muscovy (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1971), 164-165; Paul, "The Military Revolution in Russia," 22.
Further reading[edit]
- Moutchnik, Alexander(2006).Der Strelitzen-Aufstand von 1698, in: Volksaufstände in Russland, ed. by Heinz-Dietrich Löwe(in German). Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag. pp. 163–196.ISBN3-447-05292-9.