History 09/03/20 What new weapon helped Ivan the terrible to take Kazan
Firearms beginning in the sixteenth century gradually began to displace Europe’s traditional methods of warfare, and its development led to the emergence of a new kind of troops in the expanding Russian state, Ivan the terrible.
Gunpowder weapons were first used in China in the XI century, but their full use in battle along with the usual propelling means began only in the XIV century. Although even then, the gun was inferior to the traditional catapults and kamnemetov, possessing a much greater rate of fire and reliability.
His efficiency with firearms start to show with the proliferation of fine-grained gunpowder closer to the end of the XV century, with the result that all the leading powers of the time drew attention to the new technique.
the Appearance of guns in Russia
The earliest documented use of guns in the Russian land refers to 1382, when in the defense of Moscow from the army of Khan Tokhtamysh was applied positional artillery, which was called the mattresses”. The term is of Oriental origin, but in Russia the wide circulation of firearms is associated with Europe, where the powder came through the Great silk road.
In 1475 in Moscow at the invitation of Ivan III (1462-1505) arrived the Italian Aristotle Fioravanti, who was to build the main Cathedral Church of Russia – assumption Cathedral. The engineer, having wide knowledge in many Sciences, not only coped with the main task, but established at the request of the king, together with other Italians “gun house”, engaged in the production of firearms.
So with the name Fioravanti is associated with the first mention of the production of guns in Russia. Until the beginning of the reign of Ivan the terrible manufacturer of firearms involved experts from Italy, which then became into itenets the founders of German origin.
swordsmith
Skilled foreigners is very appreciated in the Russian state, getting not only a decent salary, but also having a number of privileges: freedom from customs duties, the right not to appear in court on claims of Russian and the like. Heinrich Staden, a German Oprichnik of Ivan the terrible, wrote that the foreigner had to try, “to reach the death penalty.”
However, noted German cost the foreigner to try and get away from the Russian state, then “nothing will not help him” – neither the skill nor the money. According to Staden, foreigners rarely tried to escape, “because the road to the country wide and spacious, and from the country – a narrow-pruska”. This forcible retention of professionals was due primarily to the lack of its qualified personnel.
However the situation began to change when Ivan the terrible, and from the beginning of the 1570’s foundry began to lead who studied at foreign visitors domestic masters. Since that time, the Russian guns began to be decorated with original ornaments, and their appearance was different from Western models.
New branch
the Reign of Ivan the terrible related to another important innovation: in 1550 appeared the first regular army of the Russian state – archers. They were armed with heavy guns (hand gun), which, due to the impact and great weight it was impossible to apply without support. In her role was the Berdysh (analog axes) used as chopping knives.
the Initial number of archers was up to three thousand people, but every year the size of this army was more and more increased. Part recruited from personally free citizens and peasants who received for his service the land and allowance. In peacetime, the Musketeers carrying the garrison and frontier service, and also ran errands for the local administration.
While they were engaged in private economy: craft and trade productionthe base products.
Before the advent of Riflemen of the Russian army were local (noble) cavalry, however, firearms have turned the infantry of the subsidiary into an independent and essential branch of service. After receiving the baptism of fire during the siege of Kazan in 1552, the archers began to be used from now on in all the Russian campaigns.
Because the guns of that period long been recharged, the main tactics of the Riflemen in the field was shooting ranks shoot when the war had started, freeing up space on the front lines the rear ranks. The defense and siege of fortresses archers, as a rule, were fighting from cover.
Artillery
During the reign of Ivan Grozny attack and defense of the citadel could not do without artillery, was widely used in battles with its Western neighbors. As noted by the British diplomat Giles Fletcher, the battles with the Tatars of the Russian “take very little” guns, but the situation is changing in the wars with the poles.
somehow the use of guns and gunpowder by the army of Ivan the terrible made it possible to defeat the khanate of Kazan, which had adopted the much less firearms. Artillery of the Russian state consisted of large siege guns, which were given names (“Wolf”, Inrog, “lions head”), serfs, and the regimental guns of smaller caliber.
artillery fire iron and stone balls, and cut the lead. Production capacity of casting allowed to produce up to six big guns in the year (not counting the smaller ones), so in 1577, enlarged Armory Park is managed and maintained by the special Agency – the “Cannon order”.
Since the mid-XVI century masters, created the guns, stopped going to military campaigns, giving way to the trained gunners. They were recruited from artisans, and their specialty was inherited from father to son. This separation significantly increased the quality of the manufacture and use of artillery.
the results of the innovation
By the end of the XVI veka Russian state in terms of development of firearms began to overtake most of its neighbors. The Englishman Fletcher even thought that probably “none of the Christian princes has such a good stock of military projectiles, as Russian king”.
During the reign of Ivan Grozny, a high level of domestic specialists, for example, Andrei Chokhov, who soon after the death of the king is one of the largest artillery pieces in the world – the Tsar cannon. Thanks to innovations in the military sphere, the Russian state has achieved significant success in military campaigns.
Fedor shatsillo
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© Russian Seven
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