| Battle of Wesenberg | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theNorthern Crusades | |||||||
 Map showing the location of the battle in the context of 13th-centuryLivonia | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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| Strength | |||||||
| c. 10,000–20,000 | c. 20,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheBattle of Wesenberg,Rakvere orRakovor[1] (German:Schlacht bei Wesenberg;Russian:Раковорская битва) was fought on 18 February 1268 between the combined forces ofDanish Estonia, theBishopric of Dorpat, theLivonian Order, and localEstonian militias on one side, and the forces ofNovgorod andPskov, led byDmitry of Pereslavl, on the other. Medieval accounts of the battle vary with both sides claiming victory; however, the Livonian victory is seen as more plausible as Novgorodian-Pskovian forces retreated out of Danish Estonia, with Livonian Knights launching a retaliatory attack onIzborsk and Pskov soon afterward, in June 1269.[2]: 78–79
In 1267,Novgorodian forces launched a campaign toVironia.[3]Yury of Suzdal is mentioned in Russian chronicles as leading the army in what was initially supposed to be a campaign against theGrand Duchy of Lithuania. As they approached thePskov region, they instead moved towardsWesenberg.[4] In 1268, the joint forces of several Russian princes, including those led byDmitry of Pereslavl andDaumantas of Pskov, went on a raid in northern Estonia and clashed with the joint forces of theLivonian Order, theBishopric of Dorpat, and the Danish king.[5]
According to theLivonian Rhymed Chronicle, the only contemporary primary source describing the battle whose text survives in unaltered form to the present day,[2]: xxi–xxii the combined forces of the two Russian republics invaded the territory of Danish Estonia in January 1268 where they commenced with looting of the countryside. The Danish vassals requested reinforcements from the neighboring territories ruled by the Livonian Order and the Bishopric of Dorpat, which they received in the form of 34 Brothers from castlesWeissenstein,Leal andFellin plus an unknown number of lesser troops, and from the Bishopric an unknown number of men under the leadership of Bishop Alexander of Dorpat. The contingent of the Livonian Knights was most likely led by a castellan of one of the aforementioned castles, as the Master of the Order,Otto von Lutterberg, was campaigning in the south, inSemgallia (Otto was inRiga on January 16).[2]: 77
When all the forces were assembled the native Estonian troops were positioned on the left flank, which they were told to hold during the battle, while the larger group, the Danishking's men, were stationed on the right. The Brothers and their men are mentioned as having fought on all fronts. The death of Bishop Alexander is listed early in the description of the battle. Two formations of Russians advanced upon them but were beaten back and forced to retreat across a broad field, the retreat turning into a rout and a pursuit. Then, PrinceDmitry Aleksandrovich, who is complimented by the chronicler as being brave, managed to regroup about 5,000 men for a counterattack, while the rest of his army had fled. The Brothers' forces met Dmitry's attack along a deep river. At that point the Brothers are mentioned as having 180 men plus 80 footsoldiers. The footsoldiers led an attack upon a bridge. Then the Brothers joined the attack and the battle was over with 5,000 Russians dead, the rest defeated and routed.[2]: 78
TheChronicle of Novgorod, 1016–1471 is the main Russian source describing the battle. However, the chronicle was rewritten on multiple occasions, most notably in the 15th century,[6]: xxxvii–xli and edited according to the political ideology of the era.[7]
According to theChronicle of Novgorod, the united Russian forces crossed theNarva River and moved towards Rakvere but did not take the town. They looted the countryside and found a huge cave filled with theChuds (Estonians). Unable to attack the hiding Estonians for three days, the Russians finally devise a way to channel some water into the cave which forces the Estonians to flee and many of them are slain. Then the Russians advanced on Rakvere and met theGerman force atKegola river. The Russian forces without delay crossed the river and organized their battle lines by placing the men from Pskov on the right, Dmitry's force on the right higher up, the remainder of the Novgorodian forces forming up in the center and on the right. The Germaniron troops are described as advancing in a great wedge. Then the chronicle lists a long string of names of boyars who were slain in the battle whileknyazYury fled. However the Germans are pushed back and pursued as far as the town. At that time another German wedge attacks the Russian transport but due to nightfall the Germans and the Russian main force do not engage each other. The two forces end up facing each other over a close distance but the Germans flee from the battlefield before the sun rises.[6]: 100–103
The result of the battle was inconclusive, with both sides having suffered heavy losses. The battle was followed by an unsuccessful siege of Pskov by the Livonian Order. After a long period of negotiations, the Livonians were able to make peace with Novgorod, and in the following two decades, Novgorod managed to increase its domination ofVotia; however, Catholic writers did not see the region as belonging to the Russians, and in 1301,Pope Boniface VIII lifted theinterdict imposed on the north ofDanish Estonia, since it was surrounded "by Russians, Karelians, Izhorians, Votians and Lithuanians", who encouragedapostasy among Estonian converts.[3]