Battle of Orsha

The Battle of Orsha (Lithuanian: Oršos mūšis), was fought on 8 September 1514, between the allied forces of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, under the command of Lithuanian Grand Hetman Konstanty Ostrogski; and the army of the Grand Duchy of Moscow under Konyushy Ivan Chelyadnin and Kniaz Mikhail Bulgakov-Golitsa. The Battle of Orsha was part of a long series of Muscovite–Lithuanian Wars conducted by Muscovite rulers striving to gather all the former Kievan Rus' lands under their rule.

Battle of Orsha
Part of Lithuanian–Muscovite War (1512-1522)

Battle of Orsha painting attributed to Hans Krell
Date8 September 1514
Location
Orsha, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, present-day Belarus
54°30′N 30°23′E
Result Polish–Lithuanian victory
Belligerents
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Kingdom of Poland		 Grand Duchy of Moscow
Commanders and leaders
 Ivan Chelyadnin  (POW)
Strength
Different estimates:
  • 12,000 men;
  • 25,000 men;
  • 35,000 men.
300 cannons
Different estimates:
  • 12,000 men;
  • 35,000–40,000 men;
  • 80,000 men.
140 to 300 cannons
Casualties and losses
500 13,000–40,000 dead and wounded (?)
At least 5,000 captured
Location within Belarus

According to Rerum Moscoviticarum Commentarii by Sigismund von Herberstein, the primary source for information on the battle, the much smaller army of Lithuania–Poland (under 30,000 men) defeated a force of 80,000 Muscovite soldiers, capturing their camp and commander. These numbers and proportions have been disputed by some modern historians.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.