The Mongols-Tatars, as early as the 13th century had conquered Russia and had made most of the tax princes vassals. In 1370, Khan Mamai took over the leadership of the Golden Horde, one of the successor states of Genghis Khan's empire.
At the same time the various Russian principalities were at war with each other. The prince of Vladimir Dmitry (later Dmitry Donskoy, i.e. Don) was fighting with the principality of Tver. Mamai intervened in favor of Tver, as he feared the growing power of Dmitri. Hostilities between the two rivals began in 1375, with victory smiling sometimes on one and sometimes on the other.
However, the final conflict took place in Kulikovo, in the wider region of Tula, between the Don River and the Nepriadva and Smolka tributaries.
Mamai advances
For the coming conflict Mamai gathered every available man. According to the sources, he had over 150,000 soldiers, Tatars, Circassians, Turks, Armenians, even Italians from the Genoese colony of Caphas in the Crimea. Sources of the time raise the number of men to unreal heights, speaking of 703,000 commanded by 33 princes.
The same sources state that Prince Dmitri's Russian army numbered 450,000 men. In reality the Russians did not exceed 60-70,000 men.
The Russians deployed in three lines supporting their right flank on the Nepriadva River and their left flank on adjacent forests and the Smolka River in order to avoid encirclement by the famous Tatar light cavalry, but also to offset the enemy's numerical superiority.
At the extreme left of the line was ambushed an elite cavalry division under Prince Dmitry Bebrok and Prince Vladimir of Serpukov. At the head of the army, Prince Dmitri commanded the experienced boyar Michael Brenk, who heroically fell in battle. Mamai ordered the forces into five bodies.
Blood flows profusely
The Tatars attacked first. Against them the Russian infantry suffered overwhelming losses, but successfully acted as a breakwater, breaking the first enemy wave. The Tatars attacked again. This time they found against them elite Russian divisions under Prince Dmitri himself, who twice lost his horse and was wounded . The Russian right repulsed the enemy attack after a fierce three-hour engagement. The Russian left, however, relented, exposing the Russian center as well.
And the Tatars had of course suffered terrible losses. Both opponents threw their last reserves into the battle. But then the Russian division that was in ambush in the forest attacked the apparently victorious Tatars and, taking them by surprise, began to slaughter them.
Immediately the rest of the Russian forces regrouped and with a general counterattack swept the opponents. The Russians pursued their opponents for 50 km to the Krasivaya Meka river, slaughtering thousands. Losses on both sides were appalling. The two opponents have both lost at least 50% of their original strength.
A particular incident that shows the fanaticism of the two opponents and the ferocity of the battle is the duel between the Russian monk Alexander Peresviet and the Tatar bodyguard of Mamai Cheli Bey. The two gladiators were killed by each other's spear.
The duel of the monk Peresviet with the Tatar bodyguard.