Great Northern War
During the Great Northern War (1700–1721) Sheremetev proved to be a capable but cautious and sluggish military leader. During the war he was the commander-in-chief and most senior officer in the Russian army. Sheremetev was very cautious in his movements but proved more effective than the younger Prince Menshikov, the 2nd in command whose impulsiveness was not always successful.
In 1700 he joined the Russian army in its attack on Narva at the outbreak of the Great Northern War but was driven back from his position in Estonia by Charles XII of Sweden. He then became commander of the Russian forces fighting the Swedish armies in the Baltic provinces. Sheremetev was subsequently defeated by W. A. Schlippenbach at Rauge in 1701 but later prevailed at Erastfer. This victory won him the title of field marshal, and was followed up by another victory at the battle of Hummelshof in 1702. He then took the fortresses of Nöteborg and Nyenskans in 1703 (allowing the foundation of the city of Saint Petersburg) and the important Baltic cities Dorpat and Narva in 1704. In 1705 he was sent to Astrakhan, where he forcefully and successfully repressed the Astrakhan revolt.
Later in the Great Northern War, Sheremetev clashed with the Swedish general Lewenhaupt, who beat him at Gemäuerthof in 1705, and Charles XII, who defeated him at Holowczyn. His revenge came at the battle of Poltava, where he was the senior Russian commander and the Swedish army was soundly defeated by the Russian army. Armies under his command conquered Riga in 1710. He then led the main forces of the army in the Prut campaign. Fighting against Turkey in 1711, he suffered an encirclement at Prut. in 1715–17 he commanded armies in Pomorze and Mecklenburg.
Although sympathetic to Peter the Great's strivings to Westernise Russia, he never became close to the tsar. one of the etymologies of Sheremetev's surname is that of Tatar origin (shir Akhmat, "lion Ahmad"). He died in 1719 in Moscow and is buried in St. Petersburg.
Read more about this topic: Boris Sheremetev
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