set out. On 20 April they were joined at Novobogoroditskoye by 30-40,000 Cossacks under Mazepa. They followed the 1687 route, but marched in six separate columns and made much better time. By 3 May they were at the point where the 1687 expedition had turned back. On 15 and 16 May they were attacked by Crimean Tatars near Zelenaya Dolina and Chernaya Dolina. The Crimeans did fairly well but were driven back by the Russian's tabor defense and artillery. On 20 May they reached the isthmus of Perekop. Golitsyn was dismayed to find that all the grass in the area had been trampled down and that there was no source of drinking water north of the peninsula, thereby making a long siege or blockade impossible. Further on, the Tatars had dug a 7km ditch which made moving the artillery forward impossible. The next day, Golitsyn ordered his army to turn back. The Crimean campaigns of 1687 and 1689 diverted some of the Ottoman and Crimean forces in favour of Russia's allies. They also led to the end of the alliance between the Crimean Khanate, France and Imre Thököly signed in 1683. However, the Russian army didn't reach the goal of stabilizing Russia's southern borders. The unsuccessful outcome of these campaigns was one of the reasons the government of Sophia Alekseyevna collapsed. Notes References Brian L Davies, Warfare, State and Society on the Black Sea Steppe 1500-1700, Routledge, 2007. Battles of the Great Turkish War Conflicts in 1687 Conflicts in 1689 Wars involving the Ottoman Empire Wars involving the Russian Empire Russo-Turkish wars Military operations involving the Crimean Khanate 1687 in the Ottoman Empire 1689 in the Ottoman Empire 1687 in Russia 1689 in Russia History of Crimea 17th century in the Crimean Khanate