Battle of Halych (1221) was an armed clash as part of the Galician War of Succession, which took place between a coalition of Ruthenian princes supported by the Polovtsians and Hungarian-Polish forces led by the voivode File.
Battle.
The coalition of Ruthenian princes, led by Mstislav Mstislavich, formed two main battle groups, supported by troops of the Polovtsians. The Hungarian-Polish forces deployed in two battle lines, with the Hungarian File troops supported by the Halychians on one wing and the Poles on the other. The battle began with a strike by the Poles, which forced Vladimir Rurykovich's unit to retreat. However, at the decisive moment, thanks to the attack of the Polovtsians and the return of some of the Ruthenian troops, Mstislav managed to tip the balance of power. The Hungarian and Polish forces were shattered and the voivode File was taken prisoner. The "Galician-Volhynian Chronicle" describes the moment as follows:
After the victory, Mstislav proceeded to lay siege to Halych, where the Hungarian king Coloman and his wife Salomea took refuge. After a brief resistance, the crew, deprived of water supplies, surrendered the city. Mstislav, as a humanitarian gesture, supplied water to the besieged, which contributed to the surrender. The capture of Halych and the capture of Coloman and Salomea was a significant triumph for the Rus' coalition, and the event had a significant impact on the subsequent succession struggle in the region. The "Galician–Volhynian Chronicle" afterwards describes the capture of the city as follows: