Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Battle of the Vorskla River

Battle of the Vorskla River was a battle fought on 12 August 1399 at Vorskla, in what is now Ukraine. It was part of Military conflicts between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Golden Horde. The recorded result: Golden Horde victory. Recorded strength: 90,000 against 38,000 with 50 princes.

See it on the globe Read the article

Битва на Ворскле. Миниатюра XVI в. из Лицевого летописного свода. "и удал, рассуди, если я старше тебя, а ты моложе меня, то подобает мне быть твоим отцом, а тебе стать моим сыном, отдавать мне каж- д
Битва на Ворскле. Миниатюра XVI в. из Лицевого летописного свода. "и удал, рассуди, если я старше тебя, а ты моложе меня, то подобает мне быть твоим отцом, а тебе стать моим сыном, отдавать мне каж- д. Anonymous Russian manuscript illuminators, 1560-1570s Facial Chronicle (Illustrated Chronicle of Ivan the Terrible) (in , Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought12 August 1399
WhereVorskla, Ukraine48.904N, 34.122E
OutcomeGolden Horde victory
BelligerentsGolden HordeagainstGrand Duchy of Lithuania; Kingdom of Poland; Principality of Kiev; Principality of Polotsk; Principality of Smolensk; Principality of Bryansk; Moldavia; Wallachia; Teutonic Order; Forces of Tokhtamysh
Part ofMilitary conflicts between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Golden Horde

Record

Date12 August 1399
PlaceVorskla, Ukraine
48.904N, 34.122E
KindBattle, medieval
Territorial changeLithuania loses the Black Sea coast and southern part of the Wild Fields to the Tatars; Smolensk, Novgorod, and Pskov rebel against Lithuania
Strength90,00038,000 with 50 princes
Casualties and lossesUnknownmost of the army destroyed (including 11 Teutonic Knights, notably Thomas Surville and Hanus)
Commanders
  • Edigu
  • Temür Qutlugh
  • Vytautas
  • Tokhtamysh
  • Andrey of Polotsk
  • Demetrius I Starshy
  • Spytko II of Melsztyn
Battle of the Vorskla RiverBattle of the Vorskla RiverBattle of Zhovti VodyBattle of Kurukovo LakeBattle of PoltavaNikopol–Krivoi Rog OffensiveSiege of St. Elizabeth fortressBattle of Zhovti VodyBattle of Kurukovo LakeBattle of PoltavaNikopol–Krivoi Rog OffensiveKharkivDniproCherkasyKryvyy Rih100 km48.904N, 34.122E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of the Vorskla River
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 10 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of the Vorskla River today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2023-08-19. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2023.

The recorded site stands at about 61 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 39 to 137 m, 98 m of relief, gently rolling country and today it is 32% tree cover, 29% water, 16% wetland.

tree cover: 32%water: 29%wetland: 16%cropland: 15%grassland: 7%tree cover 32%water 29%wetland 16%cropland 15%grassland 7%
west to east, 10.0 km61 to 114 mnorth to south, 10.0 km61 to 127 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Elsewhere in 1399

Battle of the Vorskla River is one of 566 engagements of the 14th century in the atlas and one of 301 in present-day Ukraine.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q597478, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of the Vorskla River, revision 1370602670, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.