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The Swedes lost 1,000 men dead and wounded and 4,000 missing in the battle. Russian casualties totaled 1,111 killed and 2,856 wounded, about one third of those engaged (Lewenhaupt, probably basing himself on the account of a Russian prisoner-of-war, in his diary claimed 16,000 rather than 12,000 Russian combatants)
In his hurry to rejoin Charles' main army, Lewenhaupt decided to abandon the cannon, the cattle and most of the food, driving part of his soldiers to mutiny. After stealing the alcohol, some of the Swedish soldiers got drunk, and Lewenhaupt was forced to leave about 1,000 of them in the woods. By the time they finally reached Charles and the main force on October 19 (October 8 OS), virtually no supplies and only 6,000 men remained, only increasing Charles' victuals problem.
This is seen as the greatest significance of the battle.
Another effect of the battle of Lesnaya was that it convinced the Russian army that they could stand a match against Sweden's soldiers. This new-found confidence would aid them morally during the 1709 campaign in which they destroyed Charles' main Swedish army. Peter referred to Lesnaya as "the mother of the Battle of Poltava."
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Lesnaya
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