🇬🇧 On October 9, 1621, the Battle of Khotyn came to an end, stopping the largest army in the world at that time.

Beginning on September 2, Sultan Osman II had been besieging the fortified camp on the Dniester River for over a month. He was opposed by the combined forces of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Zaporozhian Cossacks. On Osman’s side were armies from across the empire, including the Crimean Khanate, Moldavia, and Wallachia — approximately 120,000 to 160,000 soldiers. The Europeans were far fewer in number: several tens of thousands, including 25,000 to 40,000 Cossacks.

The army of Petro Konashevych-Sahaidachny, hetman of the Registered Cossacks and leader of the Sich, played a key role. The Zaporozhian Cossacks repelled attacks and launched their own assaults. On September 24, during the siege, the Grand Hetman of Lithuania, Jan Karol Chodkiewicz, died; thereafter, the combined forces of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth were led by Stanisław Lubomirski. Sahaidachny was seriously wounded and died a few months later.

On October 9, the sultan agreed to a peace treaty. The campaign to the north fell through. Osman II returned to Istanbul without a victory, and the following year the Janissaries deposed and killed him.

Khotyn was and remains an example of Cossack strength and courage. The skillful leadership of the Cossack forces stopped an empire that was unrivaled at the time.

Si vis pacem, para bellum.

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