Battle of Oposhnya

Battle of Oposhnya
Part of the Swedish invasion of Russia
Date January 28, 1709 (O.S.) January 29, 1709 (Swedish calendar) February 8, 1709 (N.S.) Location Opishnia, Ukraine Result Swedish victory
Belligerents
Swedish Empire	Tsardom of Russia
Commanders and leaders
Charles XII of Sweden	Otto Rudolf von der Schaumburg Aleksandr Danilovich Menshikov Karl Evald von Rönne
Strength
2,000–2,500 men	6,000 men
Casualties and losses
19	450

The Battle of Oposhnya took place on February 8, 1709 during the Swedish invasion of Russia in the Great Northern War.

Prelude

After the costly siege of Veprik the Swedes under Charles XII of Sweden started an offensive against the Russian army in the area. The intention of this offensive was not clear to the Russians, as they subsequently had to spread their main forces out to cover possible attack directions. One of these were the troops under Otto Rudolf von der Schaumburg positioned at Oposhnya (Opishnia) on the river Vorskla to block any attempt by the Swedes to cross the river.

Battle

Charles intended to surprise Schaumburg and his 6,000 cavalry and force them off the location. He led 2,000–2,500 cavalry for this task and managed to catch the Russians completely off guard while they were having dinner. Charles immediately charged with his men and swept the Russian forces out of the town followed by a hot pursuit on step. During the battle, Russian generals Aleksandr Danilovich Menshikov and Karl Evald von Rönne also showed up.

Aftermath

In this action the Russians lost more than 450 men, the Swedes only 19. Perhaps more importantly however, the Swedes could now cross the river Vorskla. The offensive continued for a while and Charles reached Krasnokutsk where he forced another Russian army on the run.