The Crimean rebellion occurred in late 1655 when the Polish-backed former Khan of the Crimean Khanate, Mehmed IV Giray, was restored to the throne after a civil war with supporters of Islam III Giray. Polish mercenaries helped Mehmed capture much of his former realm, and the gradual defection of the Crimean Khanate's lords to Mehmed's side ultimately resulted in Islam's overthrow and the establishment of a Polish-Crimean alliance.
Background[]
In 1475, the Ottoman Empire established a protectorate over the Crimean Khanate, acquiring veto power over the selection of new Crimean khans and regularly deposing or imprisoning khans for disobeying their will. In 1644, Mehmed IV Giray was deposed by the Turks for ravaging Circassia without proper authorization; his older brother Islam III Giray, who had long complained of being passed over, was enthroned as his successor. Under Islam Giray, the Crimean Khanate allied itself with the rebellious Cossack Hetmanate in Ukraine, contributing soldiers to the 1649 Siege of Zbarazh. The Tatars and Cossacks would be defeated at the Battle of Berestechko in 1651 and the Battle of Batih in 1652, but Islam Giray remained committed to the war effort.
Meanwhile, Poland-Lithuania was greatly weakened by concurrent wars with Russia and Sweden. After Jerzy Wisniewski and his band of Polish mercenaries inflicted several defeats on the Swedes and recaptured Warsaw in late September 1655, King John II Casimir Vasa schemed to use his new protege to knock Crimea out of the war. The king assigned Wisniewski a dangerous mission: he would formally renounce his allegiance to Poland-Lithuania (thus forfeiting his rule over Vydzy), seek out the exiled Mehmed Giray, and restore him to the Crimean throne through the rallying or defeat of the Crimean nobility. In exchange, John Casimir promised to support Wisniewski at the next election for the job of Marshal. Wisniewski renounced his oath to the king at Narva before learning from a traveler that Mehmed was in the Ukrainian town of Sich. Wisniewski met with Mehmed and persuaded the eager claimant to join him in an invasion of Crimea at the head of 100 battle-hardened Polish, Tatar, and German mercenaries.
On 30 October, Wisniewski's army invaded the Crimean Khanate. He was immediately confronted by the Bey of Poltava, Bukryn-bey, whom he persuaded to help restore Mehmed to the throne. Thus, Poltava surrendered without a fight and became the center for Mehmed's faction. Lords loyal to Islam III Giray immediately mobilized to stop Mehmed's restoration. On 31 October 1655, the rebels crushed a smaller loyalist army at the Battle of Trudove. This success persuaded Ahmed-pasha to join the rebellion, and the enlarged rebel army defeated another loyalist force at the Battle of Malyi Utlyuh that same day.
On 1 November, the rebels took Kyzyl-yar Fortress by storm, cutting the khanate in half. The rebels promptly secured the eastern half with their capture of Azaq-kale, enabling them to turn back west to focus on the Crimea, southern Ukraine, and Budjak. Before Mehmed's forces could besiege Kilburun Fortress, however, loyalist armies marched north from the Crimea and threatened to retake Kyzykermen. At the large Battle of Aslan-horod on 5 November, three loyalist armies were destroyed and Kyzykermen was saved. In the aftermath of this major rebel victory, the rebels moved south and took the Crimean capital of Bakhchysarai on 7 November 1655, completing the conquest of the Crimea (Kaffa and Perekop having defected to the rebels).