# Moldavian campaign (1686)

In 1686, the Polish king, Jan III, launched another military expedition in order to seize control of Moldova. Initially, the campaign achieved success by capturing the city of Iași. Further attempts to invade the Crimean Khanate were repelled, and a fire broke out in Iași, forcing the Polish king to abandon the campaign.

## Background

In early 1685, Poland sent its plans to Rome, Vienna, Venice, and Paris. The Poles suggested the Austrians dispatch a strong infantry to assist them in capturing Kamenets from the Ottomans or invade Translvania, while the Poles would invade Moldova and Wallachia together. The Austrian emperor, Leopold I, rejected the plan and argued for the Poles to besiege Kamenets alone. With this, Jan III decided to campaign alone. Another factor in launching another campaign was the inevitable signing of a bad peace deal with Russia. The unfortunate treaty's settlements needed to be delayed, or better yet, rejected completely, in order for the Polish monarch to obtain a military and political edge over Russia. The advantage would be assured if he subjugated Moldavia and Wallachia and installed Prince Jakub on the throne of one of the aforementioned nations.
According to the military strategy for 1686, Moldavia and Wallachia would be taken over by crossing the Dniester and continuing the offensive towards the Danube. Then Sobieski thought of taking on and neutralizing the Crimean Tatars' military power. Due to this victory, the Ottomans would be forced to withdraw from Kameenets and Moldavia, and the crew of the fortress would be forced to surrender and give the fortress back to the Polish.

## Campaign

The Polish assembled an army of 36,000 men and 88 cannons, supported by a small number of foreign officers, mainly French and German. Jan expected the Moldavians and Wallachians to side with him. On July 21, the Polish marched towards Moldavia, crossing the Bukowina forest without being attacked. On August 14, the Polish arrived at Cecora, where Jan's great-grandfather was killed at the site of the battle in 1620. Two days later, he captured Iași, where he was welcomed as a liberator of Christians. The Moldavian prince, Constantin Cantemir, and the majority of Moldavian Boyas refused to ally with Jan and left the town before their arrival. Jan then established a strong garrison, which would serve as their base.
The majority of Moldavians sided with the Ottomans, while only 2,000 joined the Poles. Jan left Jassy and headed towards the Crimean Territory. The Ottoman-Crimean forces made the Polish march difficult; they destroyed who was left behind from the main army, heavily attacked the Polish camp at night, and laid fire to the steppe, all while avoiding open battles. The king held a council at September 1–2, and his commanders argued to return to Iași. The king ordered a retreat while the Crimean-Ottoman forces exhausted the Poles with their attacks. Two weeks later, they arrived at Iași. A fire broke out on September 15, causing great damage to the city. Anti-Polish sentiment began rising, prompting the Poles to retreat two days later.
The Ottoman-Crimean forces attacked the retreating Poles. The only important fight happened on October 2, when the Polish routed 2,000 Crimean cavalry. They enganged in another last battle six days later. On October 13, they crossed the border near Sniatyn.

## Aftermath

The campaign of 1686 ended in failure. The Poles have lost 20% to 30% of their forces, and their political aims were not achieved. According to the Polish historian, Władysław Konopczyński, the whole charm of the Polish swords gained in Vienna was lost in the forests of Bukovina and Moldavia's steppes. The Polish side gave up on trying to conquer Moldavia in the future and instead concentrated on trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to take Kamenets back from the enemy.