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Swedish warships entered the Neva in July 1240. They moored to set camp around the mid-course of the Neva at the mouth of the Izhora and start fortification works. The Swedes were confident about their victory: they expected that the Novgorodians would be unable to gather enough warriors promptly, while the time bought allowed the invaders to improve their position. This is why Prince Alexander could stake only on an agile and unexpected attack. Various interpretations of his secret itinerary exist, yet the key point is clear: the attack of Russian warriors did take the enemy by surprise. The details of this battle can be found in the hagiography of Alexander (compiled in the 1280s) and in the Novgorod Chronicle. This event was depicted in a diorama by Igor Zhebrovsky. This diorama is exhibited in the local municipal museum (currently the site of the battle is situated in Ust-Izhora community, a suburb of Saint Petersburg.
Reconstruction of the battle, Museum-diorama of the Neva battle (MORE PHOTOS)
The battle started at dawn on 15 July. Prince Alexander fought in the forefront, and his spear left a bleeding wound on the face of the Swedish leader. Among Russian warriors was an ancestor of A. Pushkin Gavrilo Olexich, who charged on horseback up the gangway on board a Swedish war ship, defeating the enemies around him. Novgorodian Sbyslav Yakunovich, who must have been an artisan, fought against the invaders with a hatchet that his hands were more familiar with. Jacob Polochanin, Prince Alexander’s servant, fought with his sword and did it so skilfully that deserved praise from Yaroslavich. The unit of Novgorodian Misha destroyed three enemy war ships, while young warrior Savva successfully penetrated to the heart of the enemy’s camp and chopped off the supporting pole of the Swedish leader. Obviously, the collapse of the tent did inspire the Russian warriors. Another servant of the Prince, Ratmir, fought ferociously dismounted and defeated many an enemy, yet eventually, surrounded by the Swedes, he sacrificed his life for his homeland... The Novgorodians won, and the surviving crusaders had to hoist sail.
According to the hagiography, a miracle occurred during the battle. The Novgorodians did not know about it until the battle had been over. Across the Izhora, where Alexander’s troops had not fought, bodies of dead enemies were found. The hagiographer interprets this phenomenon as heavenly help that arrived through a warrior angel.
The importance of the Battle of the Neva is great in the historical memory. This is primarily evidenced by the fact that Alexander Yaroslavich was awarded an honorary title of Nevsky in the 15th century.
An honorary monument «Chapel on the site of God’s help on the day of the Battle of the Neva (sculptors V. Kozenyuk and A. Palmin, architects V. Chulkevich and V. Zhukov) was built in 2002 in commemoration of this event.
Two wooden churches were also built at the mouth of the Izhora (left bank) in the 18th century in commemoration of Alexander Nevsky, although both of them were destroyed by fire. At the close of the 18th century a stone church was built on the site, which twice underwent alteration in the 19th century and has been restored. The first secular monument to the prince’s victories, a stele, was erected upon the initiative of the military community of the town. An ambitious monument to the military leader was erected on the bank of the Neva by the tercentenary of the Northern capital (sculptor V. Gorevoy, architect V. Popov).
For quite a while it was assumed that all authentic artefacts of the battle (i.e., directly related to that period) had been lost. In Ust-Izhora you can still hear stories about artefacts found in the 19th and early 20th centuries, yet each of these stories has the same end: the artefact had existed and eventually was lost. For this reason, such stories are difficult to believe in. That notwithstanding, today researchers do possess an artefact that was occasionally found near the north-western corner of Alexander Nevsky church at the turn of this century and initially described by P. Sorokin. It is an arrowhead dated the 13th century, which quite allows relating it to the fierce battle that took place here on 15 July 1240.
Scarcity of information sources and lack of archaeological findings give rise to different interpretations of the events that took place in 1240. No reliable data are available with regard to the fact that the final combat took place on a particular side of the Izhora and the exact location of the Swedish camp. Traditionally, it is assumed that it was the right bank side. However, I. Shakolsky suggested a different approach. According to his version, the battle should have taken place on the left bank of the river, since the rough terrain of the right bank is inconvenient for encampment.
A. Degtyarev found further arguments: the Swedes should have attempted to use the Izhora as a barrier for defence from the most probable attack from the east, i.e., from Ladoga. According to A. Degtyarev, relying on the river as a natural fortification, they failed to post proper guards, which was favourable for Alexander’s sudden attack. Encampment on the left bank also had psychological reasons: behind the Swedes lay a familiar itinerary where they had faced no complications. Another indirect evidence may consist in the fact that the first church in honour of Alexander Nevsky, although wooden, was erected in the days of Peter the Great on the left bank. We cannot preclude that it was not a mere coincidence as some extra information that was lost later was available in those days.
These arguments were not accepted. For example, his opponents refer to the fact that the rough terrain of the right bank promontory was a perfect site for encampment on one of the hills, since it would make defence easier. It was there that an earthwork fortress for defence from an unexpected Swedish attack was built during the Northern War (1700-1721) in the 18th century (P. Sorokin).
Another reason for disputes is the role of the Ingrians in the battle. Some modern historians have attempted to link the «miracle» news from the hagiography of Alexander Nevsky with an intervention of local warriors in the conflict. I. Danilevsky obviously overestimated the role of the Ingrians in his rather bold hypothesis stating that this attack was crucial.
Scholars estimate differently the number of warriors that fought on the Neva banks. The numbers range from five thousand Swedes (V. Pashuto) to several hundred warriors on each side (A. Kirpichnikov). According to P. Sorokin, the Swedish army was manned more or less similarly to the armies that participated in the attack on Ladoga in 1164 or defended Landskrona construction in 1300. We know that 55 galleys participated in the raid of 1164 and 1500-2000 warriors in the raid of 1300. According to P. Sorokin, the number of Russian warriors should have been quite close to those numbers. The latter approach seems to be more reasonable, since it takes into consideration a reference to a similar event (Ladoga invasion) on the one hand, and is based on a detailed assessment of the possible capacity of each galley on the other hand.
Therefore, although the battle did not involve many warriors neither on the modern nor on the medieval scale, its importance was tremendous. Rus’ was able to demonstrate its self-defence capacity and neutralize a formidable enemy — the Swedes — for a substantial period of time. However, German Red Cross knights that were devising deliberate invasion of the Pskovian and Novgorodian realms remained.
The site of the Battle of the Neva is easily accessible by municipal buses departing from Rybatskoe metro station for Kolpino or Saperny today. The trip will take no longer than half an hour, provided there is no traffic, and «Slavyanskaya Doroga» bus stop is recognizable by the typical graffiti depicting the virtue of old Russian warriors. From there you will need to walk about 200 hundred meters towards the Neva, and you will arrive virtually in the centre of Ust-Izhora community located along the old Schlusselburg road where you can still see the 19th century stone pavement, which is rarely seen nowadays. After that you can start exploring the site of the Battle of the Neva and the monuments described in this section.
Ust-Izhora
Museum-diorama of the Neva battle
We express our gratitude to the Museum-diorama of the Neva battle (https://www.neva1240.info/) for permission to place photos of museum exhibits on our website.
R. A. Sokolov
Tags: places of memory, Battles, 13 century, По маршруту Александра Невского: Ледовое побоище, Following Alexander Yaroslavich: the Battle of the Neva, North-West Russia, Kingdom of Sweden