The siege of

Kromy Kromy (russian: Кромы) is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia. ;Urban localities * Kromy, Oryol Oblast, an urban-type settlement in Kromskoy District of Oryol Oblast ;Rural localities * Kromy, Ivanovo Oblast, a '' selo'' in ...

was the last major clash of government troops of Boris Godunov with the rebel army of

False Dmitry I False Dmitry I ( rus, Лжедмитрий I, Lzhedmitriy I) (or Pseudo-Demetrius I) reigned as the Tsar of Russia from 10 June 1605 until his death on 17 May 1606 under the name of Dmitriy Ivanovich ( rus, Дмитрий Иванович). A ...

Prelude

After Battle of Dobrynichy, most noblemen and mercenaries with whom

began his campaign left him, but under his banner, peasants and Cossacks flocked massively, dissatisfied with the rule of Godunov and who supposedly believed False Dmitry to be "the lawful sovereign".

The siege

A small garrison of Kromy was reinforced by five hundred Cossacks led by the ataman Andrei Korela, who retreated here after the

battle of Dobrynichi The Battle of Dobrynichi took place on 21 January 1605 between the armies of False Dmitry I and ''Fyodor Mstislavsky'' near the village of Dobrynichi (today's Bryansk Oblast in Russia). Prelude Fyodor Mstislavsky commanded an army of some 20, ...

. The walls were destroyed by artillery fire, but the defenders of Kromy effectively defended themselves in the system of trenches, which they dug in the city. Nevertheless, the losses on both sides were high and the ataman Korela demanded reinforcements from False Dmitry I in Putivl, threatening to surrender the city. False Dmitriy reacted by sending a large detachment to Kromy. Thanks to the fact that the tsarist troops accepted these warriors for their own, they entered the fortress with a large train. The fighting lasted a few more weeks before the ceasefire. In the huge camp of Mstislavsky began an epidemic of dysentery. Godunov's order not to leave the army caused indignation among the nobles, and many in spite of the ban went home.

Aftermath

On April 13, 1605, Boris Godunov died and his son, Fedor, became Tsar. Many of the boyars began to look for ways to get rid of the elected Zemstvo dynasty. On May 7, most of the government army, following the agitation of the hero of the Novgorod-Seversk siege, Peter Basmanov (who took part in the conspiracy against the Godunovs), took the side of False Dmitry. Tsar Fedor II Godunov was killed by the Pretender's agents on June 10, 1605 and

entered Moscow as the new Tsar. His rule would last till May 17, 1606, when he would be killed and replaced by Vasili IV Shuiski.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kromy, Siege of 1605 in Europe

History of Oryol Oblast Conflicts in 1605 1605 in Russia