Treaty of the Pruth

The Treaty of the Pruth was signed on the banks of the river Pruth between the Ottoman Empire and the Tsardom of Russia on 22 July 1711 ending the Russo-Turkish War of 1710–1711. The treaty was a political victory for Ottoman Empire.

The Treaty stipulated the return of Azov to the Ottomans, Taganrog and several Russian fortresses were to be demolished and the Tsar pledged to stop interfering in the affairs of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which the Russians increasingly saw as under their sphere of influence.

Background

The indirect causes of the war can be attributed to the aggressive expansion of the Swedish Empire throughout the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Sweden’s aggressive expansion in Scandinavia forced a coalition of Eastern European nations to form and contain them, including the Tsardom of Russia . After defeat at the Battle of Narva in 1700, Russia was invaded by King Charles XII as part of the Great Northern War. The invasion of Russia was unsuccessful, and many of Charles’ army died of disease and attrition. In addition, Peter the Great’s reign consisted of a period of increasing western influence and orientation, characterised by establishing the capital of Russia as Saint Petersburg in 1703, opening direct naval links to the west.

The Pruth River Campaign erupted as a direct result of the defeat of King Charles XII at the Battle of Poltava in the summer of 1709 and his retreat into the Ottoman Empire . Despite repetitive calls from Russia to extradite King Charles, the Ottoman Court refused. These repetitive calls and aggressive diplomacy on behalf of King Charles XII lead the Ottomans to declare war on Russia on 20^th November 1710. Concurrently, Russia and Moldovia (now Moldova) signed an agreement which guaranteed Russian military access through Moldovia and promised troops and logistics.

Pruth River Campaign

A Russian army of 80,000 men advanced down the Pruth River in the summer of 1711, utilising Moldovan support and military access. The army was led by Peter the Great and Boris Sheremetev and attempted to invade Ottoman occupied Moldovia with the support of exiled ruler (Voivode) of Moldova Dimitrie Cantemir. The campaign was ill-prepared and lacked proper planning and logistic support, and although the Russian army was large and well equipped, it was outmanoeuvred by a 70,000 strong Ottoman army under the command of Grand Vizier Baltacı Mehmet Pasha.

The decisive moment of the campaign was the four-day Battle of Stănileşti, which began on the 18^th July 1711. The two armies engaged on the floodplains of the Pruth River in an unprepared battle. During the engagement, Ottoman forces surrounded and cut off the large Russian army, leading to their eventual surrender on the 22^nd July.

Negotiations

The Russian army was fully surrounded by the 22^nd of July, leading Peter to open peace negotiations with Grand Vizier Baltaci Memhet Pasha. The situation that arose gave the Ottomans a dominant negotiating position, which was further aggravated by the calls for harsher terms by General Stanislaw Poniatowski – the emissary of King Charles XII.

Although Field Marshal Boris Sheremetev was nominally in charge of the Russian Forces, Peter the Great was supreme military commander, and ordered his Vice Chancellor, Baron Peter P. Shafirov to negotiate peace with the Turks. In his diploma of authorisation is written: "Whatever Our Vice-Chancellor will generate and decide, that will be strong and indisputable."In his instruction, Peter the Great emphasised his willingness to cede to the Sublime Porte the territories and fortresses won in the Azov Campaigns of 1695-1696 and confirmed by the Treaty of Constantinople in 1700. Peter the Great was also willing to cede to the Swedes Livonia, Pskov and other provinces, and to recognise Stanislaw Leszczynsk as King of Poland.

There were several major influences during the peace negotiations. The Crimean Khan Devlet II Giray argued for harsher terms of surrender on the surrounded Russian army. His reasons for harsher terms were motivated by the increasing threat a united and Imperial Russia posed on the Crimean Khanate and continued Russian expansion south towards the Caucasus mountain range. Together with the exiled King Charles XII of Sweden, he desired a reduced Russian presence in the Ukraine and Crimean regions, as well as the return of King Charles to Sweden to continue the Great Northern War.

Notably, Charles was not present in the Ottoman camp, despite being one of the principle reasons why the two empires were at war. Instead, Charles sent General Stanislaw Poniatowski as the emissary of both King Charles of Sweden and then former King Stanislaw Leszczynsk of Poland, who had been exiled after the defeat of Charles at the Battle of Poltava. Poniatowski sent several letters from the Ottoman camp back to Charles who was at this point residing in Bender with a significant retinue.

Stipulations

The treaty primarily stipulated the return of the strategic fortress of Azov to the Ottoman Empire. The fortress was taken from the Ottomans in 1700 through the signing of the Treaty of Constantinople. Additionally, the treaty stipulated the destruction of several key Russian fortresses, listed as follows:

• Razed fortresses: Taganrog Fortress, Kodak Fortress (Stari Kodaky, Dnipro), Novobogoroditskaya Fortress (Samar, Dnipro) as well as Kamenny Zaton (Rocky Backwater, today Kamianka-Dniprovska)
• Surrendered fortress: Azov Fortress

Upon the signing of the Peace Treaty, Peter P. Shafirov and M.M. Sheremetev (the son of the Field Marshall General), were taken to Constantinople, where they were to remain until the full implementation by Russia of its obligations. The two remained in Istanbul for several years, and acted as diplomats and negotiators on behalf of Peter the Great.

Moreover, terms of the treaty included an end to Russian political influence in the Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth, which the Russians increasingly saw within their own sphere of influence.

Reactions

Within the Ottoman Empire, the treaty was received relatively positively. A protracted war with Russia was not considered favourable and would have been a large scale and relatively unsustainable conflict. The influence of Swedish King Charles XII was significant however and he continued to live in the Ottoman court. Moreover, he called for another war to reclaim land lost to Russia in the Great Northern War and harsher treaty stipulations on Peter the Great. Particularly, he sent General Stanislaw Poniatowski with the Ottoman forces in an attempt to influence the eventual treaty. He was however, sent away from the negotiations for his aggressive and war mongering negotiating tactics.

Whilst the Treaty ended the immediate military conflict, the larger geopolitical conflict was still very active. The expansion of Russia into the Caucus and Ukraine regions threatened Ottoman control in these areas. Over the next two years, several wars were declared. On the 9th of December 1711, a new conflict was declared, although there was no military action and the conflict was resolved through the Russian ambassadors in Constantinople. The Turks declared war on Russia again on 31 October 1712 and the 13th April 1713 although the conflicts followed similarly to the first, and no military action was conducted. Skilled ambassadors in Constantinople avoided large scale war and the events culminated in the signing of the Treaty of Adrianople in 1713. The Treaty confirmed the stipulations agreed upon by the Treaty of the Pruth and added a special clause to deliminate the borders between the two states. The Treaty of Adrianople saw peace for 33 years.

In England, the treaty was received relatively well. The English levant company, which had significant vested trading interest in the east had become increasingly worried about the influence of the Russian Navy on their Eastern profits.