1708 year in the Belarus: an comparative analysis of the three biggest battles blind spots

Abstract

The article is devoted to one of the key moments of the Great Northern war – the campaign of the Swedish king Charles XII to Moscow. The historians of this campaign until now has not come to a consensus about what caused the sudden turn of the Swedish army to the South with a main route to Moscow. In the article on the basis of the analysis of historiographical achievements of recent years, a comparative analysis of military operations that took place on the territory of Belarus in the summer – autumn of 1708. In this period there were three major battles at the crossings of important water boundaries: when Golovchino, Maletichy and Lesnaja. All of them had different outcomes, so it is interesting to analyze in detail the features of these battles. The author believes that the Russian army managed to combine the impact on the Swedish army of different kind of troops: guards infantry, horse dragoon regiments and irregular cavalry (cossacks, kalmyks and tatars). The Russian army tried to weaken the enemy forces by creating difficulties in supply. The main motive for turning to the South of Charles XII was the loss of a military convoy, accompanied by a corps Lewenhaupt. The degree of reliability of the sources covering the events of the Great Northern war on the territory of Belarus in 1708 is analyzed. Based on the method of comparative analysis of sources, the author attempts to restore the real picture of the events. The conclusion is made about deliberate distortion of facts in the official Russian historiography in order to create a positive image of Tsar Peter I and his associates both in the international arena and within the country. The stability of this tradition for a long time is revealed.