Battle of Shelon

The Battle of Shelon (Russian: Шелонская битва) was a decisive battle between the Muscovite forces and the army of the Novgorod Republic, which took place on the Shelon River on July 14 of 1471.

The war between the Muscovy and the Novgorod Republic was caused by the latter's anti-Muscovite politics and violation of the Treaty of Yazhelbitsy (1456) by the boyar government of Novgorod, led by Marfa Boretskaya. The battle took place in the morning on the left bank of the Shelon River (between the mouth of the river and the town of Soltsy, possibly, near the village of Skirino) after an accidental encounter of the Muscovite forces (around 5,000 men) under the command of Prince Daniel Kholmsky with the army of Novgorod (20,000 to 40,000 men). The badly organized army of Novgorod was not able to withstand the pressure of the princely forces. The Battle of Shelon lasted for two hours and ended with Novgorod's defeat. More than 12,000 Novgorodians were killed during the battle and the subsequent pursuit. Some 2,000 men were taken prisoners.

The outcome of the Battle of Shelon predetermined the elimination of political independence of the Novgorod Republic.