Battle of the Kalka River (May 31, 1223) was the first military engagement between the Mongol armies of Genghis Khan and the Rus warriors. Mongol invasions can refer to: 1205–1209 invasion of Western China 1211–1234 invasion of Northern China 1218–1220 invasion of Central Asia 1220-1223, 1235-1330 invasions of Georgia and the Caucasus 1220–1224 of the Cumans 1223–36 invasion of Volga Bulgaria 1231–1259 invasion of Korea 1237... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining. ... // Events August 6 - Louis VIII is crowned King of France. ... The Kalchik, or Kalmius River is a river in Ukraine. ... Location Map of Ukraine with Donetsk highlighted. ... now. ... The name Mongols (Mongolian: Mongol) specifies one or several ethnic groups. ... Kievan Rus′ (Ки́евская Ру́сь, Kievskaya Rus in Russian; Київська Русь, Kyivs’ka Rus’ in Ukrainian) was the early, mostly East Slavic¹ state dominated by the... 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It was fought on the bank of the Kalka River, somewhere between present-day Donetsk and Mariupol. The Kalchik, or Kalmius River is a river in Ukraine. ... Location Map of Ukraine with Donetsk highlighted. ... now. ...

Background

Early in 1223, the Mongol armies under Subedei Bahadur and Jebei Noyon 'the Arrow', Genghis Khan's dreaded "dogs of war", approached the steppe occupied by the Kipchak nomads. Khan Kotian of the Kipchaks escaped to the court of his son-in-law, Mstislav the Bold of Halych, and asked him for help, saying: "Today they will slaughter us, tomorrow they will come for you." Several other princes, including Mstislav III of Kiev, joined their forces with Kipchak allies in Kiev and sailed down the Dnieper. There was no unity in the Turco-Slavic camp, as the princes were political rivals and each hoped to obtain a supreme command over the army. The name Mongols (Mongolian: Mongol) specifies one or several ethnic groups. ... Subutai was the primary strategist and good friend of Genghis Khan and Ogedei Khan. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For other uses, see Genghis Khan (disambiguation). ... The Dogs of War are various fictional mercenary groups found in Warhammer Fantasy Battles. ... A steppe in Western Kazakhstan in early spring In physical geography, a steppe (Russian: - , Ukrainian: - , Kazakh: - ), pronounced in English as , is a plain without trees (apart from those near rivers and lakes); it is similar to a prairie, although a prairie is generally considered as being dominated by tall grasses... Kipchaks (also Kypchaks, Qipchaqs) are an ancient Turkic people, first mentioned in the historical chronicles of Central Asia in the 1st millennium BC. Their language was also known as Kipchak. ... Mstislav Mstislavich the Bold (Russian: ) was one of the most popular and active princes of Kievan Rus in the decades preceding Mongol invasion of Rus. ... Jackdaw on the coat-of-arms of Galicia alludes to the name of Halych Halych (Russian and Ukrainian: ) is a historic town in Western Ukraine on the Dniester River. ... Mstislav Romanovich the Old (Мстислав Романович Старый in Russian) (? - 1223), Prince of Pskov (1179 - ?), Smolensk (1197 - ?), Bilhorod, presently Bilohorodka (1206), Halych (? - ?) and Grand prince of Kiev (1212-1223). ... Location Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted. ... This article is about the river. ...

The Mongols sent several emissaries to the Slavic princes offering peace. They asked Mstislav and his army to let them have their way with the Kipchaks and promised not to raid into Slavic lands. Mstislav however was confident of victory and had the ambassadors killed. The princes then spied an advance guard of the Mongols and pursued it for eight days until they reached the fateful Kalka River.

The battle

Mstislav of Kiev's forces, which had chosen not to cross the river, were attacked and besieged in their camp by the main body of the Mongol horde. Another part of the Rus army crossed the river and attacked the Mongols, but the Kipchak allies retreated in disarray and only Mstislav the Bold stood firm and then escaped from the enemy with a tenth part of original force.

The camp where other princes were besieged was assaulted for three days, and finally taken. There was no mercy for the defeated army. Six princes were taken prisoner, stretched out under the wooden boards and slowly suffocated while Mongols feasted upon the boards during their victory banquet.

Aftermath

The Battle of the Kalka River is commonly viewed as a catastrophe in the disintegrating Kievan Rus'. The Mongol commanders, however, were not inclined to conquer Rus at that time. Genghis Khan viewed their mission as a mere reconnaissance in force to prepare a better attack in the future. The Mongols returned under the leadership of Batu Khan more than a decade later, in 1237, in a more extensive campaign (see Mongol invasion of Rus). The Kalchik, or Kalmius River is a river in Ukraine. ... Kievan Rus′ was an early, mostly East Slavic[1] state dominated by the city of Kiev from about 880 to the middle of the 12th century. ... Mixed reconnaissance patrol of the Polish Home Army and the Soviet Red Army during Operation Tempest, 1944 Reconnaissance is the military term for the active gathering of information about an enemy, or other conditions, by physical observation. ... Batu Khan (Russian: , Ukrainian: ) (c. ... // Events Thomas II of Savoy becomes count of Flanders. ... The Mongol Invasion of Rus was heralded by the Battle of the Kalka River (1223) between Subutais reconnaissance unit and the combined force of several princes of Rus. After fifteen years of peace, it was followed by Batu Khans full-scale invasion in 1237-40. ...

References