View source for Battle of Loyew (1651)

{{Short description|1651 battle}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Battle of Loyew (1651)
| partof            = the [[Khmelnytsky Uprising]]
| image             = Loyew Battle 1651.jpg
| caption           = The Battle of Loyew (1651) on the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish–Lithuanian]] painting by Abraham van Westerveld in the XVII century
| date              = 6 July 1651
| place             = [[Loyew]], [[Sozh|Sozh River]], [[Minsk Voivodeship]], [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]]
| result            = Polish–Lithuanian victory
| combatant1        = [[File:Chorągiew królewska króla Zygmunta III Wazy.svg|22px]] [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]]
| combatant2        = [[File:Flag of the Cossack Hetmanat.svg|24px|border=no]] [[Cossack Hetmanate]]
| commander1        = [[File:Chorągiew królewska króla Zygmunta III Wazy.svg|22px]] [[Janusz Radziwiłł (1612–1655)|Janusz Radziwiłł]]
| commander2        = [[File:Flag of the Cossack Hetmanat.svg|24px|border=no]] Martyn Nebaba <br /> [[File:Flag of the Cossack Hetmanat.svg|24px|border=no]] [[Stepan Pobodailo]] <br /> [[File:Flag of the Cossack Hetmanat.svg|24px|border=no]] Prokip Shumeyko <br /> [[File:Flag of the Cossack Hetmanat.svg|24px|border=no]] Lytvynenko
| strength1         = [[File:Chorągiew królewska króla Zygmunta III Wazy.svg|22px]] 20,000–15,000 Lithuanian hussars, cavalry and infantry<ref name=władysław>Władysław Andrzej Serczyk, “Na płonącej Ukrainie. Dzieje Kozaczyzny 1648—1651”. Warszawa: "Książka i Wiedza", 1998, p. 347.</ref>
| strength2         = [[File:Flag of the Cossack Hetmanat.svg|24px|border=no]] 15,000–20,000 Zaporozhian Cossacks<ref name=kudrytsky>Anatoliy Kudrytsky, “Battle on the Sozh River 1651 // Chernihiv”. 1990, — 1007 pages.</ref>
| casualties1       = 200 killed and wounded<ref name=władysław>Władysław Andrzej Serczyk, “Na płonącej Ukrainie. Dzieje Kozaczyzny 1648—1651”. Warszawa: "Książka i Wiedza", 1998, p. 347.</ref>
| casualties2       = 5,000 killed and wounded<ref name=kudrytsky>Anatoliy Kudrytsky, “Battle on the Sozh River 1651 // Chernihiv”. 1990, — 1007 pages.</ref>
| image_size        = 275px
}}
{{Campaignbox Khmelnytsky Uprising}}
The '''Battle of Loyew''' ([[Belarusian language|Belarusian]]: ''Бітва пад Лоевам,'' [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]]: ''Битва під Лоєвом,'' [[Polish language|Polish]]: ''Bitwa pod Łojowem;'' 6 July 1651) was fought between the [[Crown Army|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]] against the [[Cossack Hetmanate]] as a part of the [[Khmelnytsky Uprising]]. Near the site of the present-day town of [[Loyew]] on the [[Sozh|Sozh River]] in [[Belarus]], the [[Crown Army|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth’s]] forces under the command of [[Prince]] [[Janusz Radziwiłł (1612–1655)|Janusz Radziwiłł]] and Mirski attacked and defeated a forces of the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]] under the command of [[Colonel]]s Martyn Nebaba, [[Stepan Pobodailo]] and Prokip Shumeyko with Lytvynenko.

The tactical situation in the summer of 1651 in the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish–Lithuanian]] theater of clashes was not in favor of the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]]. The [[Crown Army|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth’s]] forces under the command of [[Prince]] [[Janusz Radziwiłł (1612–1655)|Janusz Radziwiłł]] were numbered around 40,000 men was moving towards [[Chernihiv]] with the subsequent strategic goal of capturing [[Kyiv]]. To counteract him from [[Podolia|Podillia]] after the campaign of the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]] under the command of [[Ataman|Otaman]] [[Tymofiy Khmelnytsky]] against the [[Moldavia|Principality of Moldavia]]. [[Colonel]] Martyn Nebaba was sent to help the already active group of the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]] under the command of [[Colonel]] [[Stepan Pobodailo]]. Upon arrival, [[Colonel]] Martyn Nebaba realized that organized resistance would not work, since the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks|Zaporozhian Cossack’s]] military units were scattered within the territories of [[Gomel]] and [[Chernihiv]]. The speed of advance of the [[Crown Army|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth’s]] forces did not allow grouping in an area convenient for the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]]; in the current situation, [[Colonel]] Martyn Nebaba decided to use short blows to slow down the advance of the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Poles]] and [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Lithuanians]] to [[Chernihiv]] as much as possible, which needed to be strengthened for the siege. For this purpose, blows were struck and the [[Crown Army|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth’s]] forces in the area of the town of [[Ripky]] when crossing to the [[Left-bank Ukraine|Left-Bank]] of the [[Dnieper|Dnipro River]], but this operation did not have deep successes and the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]] had to limit themselves to the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish–Lithuanian]] military convoy and victory over 1,500 [[Polesia|Polissian]] [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish–Lithuanian]] militia. In order to gain time, [[Colonel]] Martyn Nebaba sent a military convoys which was led by [[Colonel]] [[Stepan Pobodailo]] to [[Prince]] [[Janusz Radziwiłł (1612–1655)|Janusz Radziwiłł]], but he did not consider the negotiations a reason to stop the offensive and sent squadrons of dragoons south of [[Loyew]] to the area of the city of [[Liubech|Lyubech]]. In the current situation, [[Colonel]] Martyn Nebaba had to accept a general battle and give the opportunity to the other [[Colonel]] [[Stepan Pobodailo]] to retreat to [[Chernihiv]] and strengthen it.

At the first stage of the battle, the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks|Zaporozhian Cossack’s]] positions fortified with carts were attacked by the [[Brandenburg-Prussia|German]] mercenaries called [[landsknecht]]s who’s helping the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]], but the general assault of the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish–Lithuanian]] [[infantry]] did not give immediate success due to the dense [[musket]] fire of the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]]. Then, under the cover of darkness, the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish–Lithuanian]] [[Polish hussars|winged hussar’s]] [[cavalry]] corps and squadrons of the [[Crown Army]] attacked a forces of the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]] from the rear. In a fierce battle, casualties and losses of the [[Zaporozhian Cossacks]] was numbered around 6,000–7,000 men and the casualties and losses of the [[Crown Army|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth’s]] forces was numbered around 6,500–8,000 men, including the entire [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Polish–Lithuanian]] [[Polish hussars|winged hussar’s]] corps and squadrons under the command of Mirski.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

=== Sources ===
*Marcin Domagała: Biała Cerkiew 23-25 IX 1651. Zabrze: "Inforteditions", 2007. {{ISBN|8389943158}}.
*Władysław Andrzej Serczyk: Na płonącej Ukrainie. Dzieje Kozaczyzny 1648–1651. Warszawa: Książka i Wiedza, 1998, p.&nbsp;347. {{ISBN|83-05-12969-1}}.
*Natalia Jakowlenko: Historia Ukrainy. Od czasów najdawniejszych do końca XVIII wieku. Lublin: Instytut Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej, 2000, p.&nbsp;228. {{ISBN|83-85854-54-1}}.
*Tadeusz Korzon: Dzieje wojen i wojskowości w Polsce. Lwów: Ossolineum, 1923, p.&nbsp;339.

{{Polish wars and conflicts}}

{{coord missing|Belarus}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Loyew (1651)}}
[[Category:Conflicts in 1651]]
[[Category:1651 in Europe]]
[[Category:Battles of the Khmelnytsky Uprising|Loyew (1651)]]
[[Category:Gomel Region]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]]