Where Russia stood after the Troubles
After the Time of Troubles (ending in 1613), Russia was weak and had lost land. The aims of the new Romanov rulers were: win back lost lands in the west, reach the Baltic and Black seas, and protect the south from Crimean raids. Three neighbours mattered most: Sweden in the north-west, Poland–Lithuania in the west and the Ottoman Empire with its vassal, the Crimean Khanate, in the south.
North-west: Sweden and the Baltic
- Treaty of Stolbovo (1617): Russia got Novgorod back, but Sweden kept the Gulf of Finland coast. Russia lost its Baltic coast.
- War of 1656–58: while fighting Poland, Russia attacked Sweden and took some forts. In 1658 a truce was made and by the Peace of Kardis (1661) Russia gave back its gains. Russia got no Baltic coast; that waited for the next century.
West: Poland–Lithuania and Ukraine
- Truce of Deulino (1618): Smolensk and some other towns stayed with Poland–Lithuania.
- Smolensk War (1632–34): Russia tried to retake Smolensk and failed. By the Peace of Polyanovka (1634) the Polish king gave up his claim to the Russian throne, but kept Smolensk.
- 1654, Pereyaslav: the Cossack leader Bohdan Khmelnytsky, fighting Poland, asked for the tsar's protection. A Zemsky Sobor (1653) agreed to take Left-Bank Ukraine under the tsar. This led to the Thirteen Years' War (1654–67).
- Truce of Andrusovo (1667): Smolensk and Left-Bank Ukraine went to Russia. Kyiv, on the right bank, was given for two years but stayed in Russia.
- Eternal Peace (1686): Poland accepted these gains for good, including Kyiv. Russia joined Poland and other states in the Holy League against the Ottomans.
South: Azov, the Ottomans and Crimea
- Azov (1637–42): Don Cossacks took the Ottoman fort of Azov and held it for years. Moscow was not ready for a big war, and gave it back in 1642.
- War of 1676–81: the Ottomans attacked in Ukraine (Chigirin). The truce of Bakhchisarai (1681) kept Russia's rule on the Left Bank and Kyiv.
- Crimean campaigns (1687 and 1689): led by Prince Vasily Golitsyn, they failed in the dry, hot steppe. Russia would try again, with more success, under Peter I.
What to remember for exams
Learn the year, the two sides, and the result: Stolbovo 1617 (loss, no Baltic coast), Deulino 1618 and Polyanovka 1634 (loss), Pereyaslav 1654 and Andrusovo 1667 (gain), Eternal Peace 1686 (gain), Azov 1637–42 (given back), Bakhchisarai 1681 (truce). Overall the result: Russia returned to the west and kept Left-Bank Ukraine, but had no access to the Baltic or Black Sea yet.
Key formulas and definitions
- Stolbovo 1617: Russia loses the Baltic coast to Sweden
- Deulino 1618, Polyanovka 1634: Smolensk stays with Poland–Lithuania
- 1654 Pereyaslav → Thirteen Years' War → Andrusovo 1667 (Smolensk, Left-Bank Ukraine)
- Eternal Peace 1686: Kyiv stays with Russia; Holy League against the Ottomans
- Azov 1637–42 (Cossacks, given back); Bakhchisarai 1681; Crimean campaigns 1687 and 1689 (failed)
Worked examples
1. How long did the Thirteen Years' War between Russia and Poland last, and why is it so called?
From 1654 to 1667: 1667 − 1654 = 13 years. That is why it is called the Thirteen Years' War.
2. Why did the Smolensk War of 1632–34 fail?
Russia's army, led partly by foreign-trained units, was surrounded and could not take the strong fortress of Smolensk. Russia had to make peace at Polyanovka (1634) and Smolensk stayed with Poland.
3. Was the 1656–58 war with Sweden a success? Explain.
No. Russia took some forts, but by the Peace of Kardis (1661) it gave them back. Russia got no Baltic coast.
4. Sort the events into gains, losses or no change: Stolbovo 1617, Andrusovo 1667, Azov 1637–42.
Stolbovo = loss; Andrusovo = gain; Azov = no change (the fort was given back in 1642).
Common mistakes
- Thinking Russia reached the Baltic in the 1600s. That came under Peter I in the next century.
- Mixing Stolbovo (Sweden, 1617) with Deulino (Poland, 1618).
- Saying Russia won the Smolensk War of 1632–34. It failed; Smolensk came back only in 1667.
- Forgetting that Azov was captured by Cossacks, not by the tsar's army, and was given back.