Siege of Lyakhavichy
The siege of Lyakhavichy or Lachowicze took place from 23 March to 28 June 1660 during the Russo-Polish War (1654–67).[1] Lachowicze was one of the major Grand Duchy of Lithuania strongholds in the disputed region (modern Belarus). A Russian army of about 11,000 under Ivan Nikitich Khovansky laid siege to the castle, defended by Mikołaj Judycki. After four failed sieges, Khovansky was forced to face a Polish relief army under hetmans Stefan Czarniecki and Paweł Jan Sapieha, and was defeated at the Battle of Polonka. This meant the end of the siege of Lachowicze.
| Siege of Lyakhavichy | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) | |||||||
Jan Chryzostom Pasek in the 1660 Battle of Lachowicze, by Juliusz Kossak | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth | Tsardom of Russia | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Mikołaj Władysław Judycki Jan Chryzostom Pasek | Ivan Khovansky | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 2,500 | 11,000 | ||||||
Lachowicze was the only fortress of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that evaded capture by Russians during that war. Due to a legend that it was protected by the Mary, mother of Jesus it was compared to Jasna Góra (which recently withstood a similar siege).
References
- Showalter, Dennis, ed. (September 16, 2013). Early Modern Wars 1500–177. Amber Books Limited. p. 1610. ISBN 9781782741213.