Battle of The Kalka River - Aftermath

Aftermath

The battle was a very costly defeat for the Rus' princes, with Richard Gabriel claiming that they lost 50,000 men, while the Mongol losses were minimal. Out of the Rus' primary sources, The Primary Chronicle gives a number of 10,000 killed while the much later (and much less reliable) Nikonian Chronicle cites 60,000 killed. The Novgorodian First Chronicle (the most reliable), contemporary to the battle, gives no figures at all. Out of the Rus' princes, the wounded Daniel of Volhynia and Mstislav the Bold managed to escape the battle. This battle was a significant defeat, given that many of the Rus principalities lost much of their armies, with the notable exception of Vladimir-Suzdal. Historian Robert Marshall describes the raid as follows: "The rest of Subedai's campaign has entered the annals of military history as one of the greatest adventures of cavalry warfare."

The Mongols executed Mstislav of Kiev and the Kievan nobles in the traditional Mongol manner reserved for royalty and nobility; without shedding blood. Mstislav and his nobles were buried and suffocated under the Mongol general's victory platform at the victory feast. Meanwhile, Mstislav the Bold managed to reach the western side and the Dnieper with what remained of his army. To stop the Mongols from crossing to the western side of the Dnieper, Mstislav destroyed all the boats he could find.

What the Rus' feared would happen did not as the Mongols pursued the Prince of Galich and plundered a few towns in the south before turning around. The Mongol army crossed the Volga River near modern-day Volgograd and passed through Volga Bulgaria, where they were defeated in an ambush by the Bulgars. The Mongol army encountered the Bulgars in another battle in which they routed the Bulgars. The Mongols followed this up by attacking the Kanglis Cumans, who had supported their fellow Cumans in the Caucasus a year before. They fought against the Cuman army near the Ural Mountains, defeating and killing the Khan before making them pay tribute.

Following this victory, the Mongols turned east and met Genghis Khan and the rest of the Mongol army in the steppes to the east of the Syr Darya River. Genghis Khan showed great appreciation for his general's achievements and heaped praise on Jebe and Subutai. Jebe, however, did not survive the campaign long; he died soon afterwards. The importance of the expedition was immense. The expedition was history's longest cavalry raid, with the Mongols riding 5,500 miles (8,900 km) in three years. Subutai also stationed numerous spies in Russia, who provided frequent reports on what was happening in Europe and Russia. In 1237, Subutai together with Batu led another attack on Rus', this time with 120,000 men and with this army, he conquered Kievan Rus'.