At the Kalka, a small stream flowing into the Sea of Azoff, they encountered the Mongol forces, led by two great commanders, Subotai and Chepé. Mystislav the Gallant, Daniel of Volynia, and Oleg of Kursk, wishing to win for themselves all the glory of the victory, rushed forward without the aid of the Prince of Kief, and even without warning him of their intention. The Polovtsi advanced also but when the critical moment of the struggle came, they were seized with panic, and fell back upon their Russian allies, thus throwing them into terrible disorder. The defeat was overwhelming; hardly a tenth of the men under those rash leaders escaped, six princes and seventy distinguished voevodas were killed. Mystislav of Kief, abandoned by the army, tried to defend himself in his hastily fortified camp on the banks of the Kalka. The Mongols offered him his life and the lives of his sons-in-law if he would surrender and pay them a ransom for himself and his personal following. Knowing well that he could not successfully contend with the victors, he surrendered. But the Mongols did not regard their promise; they massacred Mystislav’s men, and putting the three princes under heavy planks, they sat upon those planks and feasted while the unfortunate Russians died in the greatest agony. After this victory, the Mongols returned to the East, vanished, and were not seen again for thirteen years. Mystislav died four years after that disastrous battle on the Kalka, and sad was the end of his glory. He began a war on Volynia by reason of a calumny that his son-in-law, Daniel, was trying to deprive him of Galitch,—nay more, there was a direct accusation that Daniel intended to kill him. These accusations were brought against Daniel by Bailski. Later on, Mystislav repented and became friendly with Daniel. He gave rich presents to his daughter Anna, the wife of Daniel, and gave Daniel his best horse, Aklaz. No steed on earth, as he thought, was the equal of that one, for had he not brought him alive from the terrible slaughter on the Kalka. Nevertheless Mystislav betrothed his youngest daughter to the son of Andrei of Hungary, and gave his son-in-law Peremysl at the advice of boyars in Galitch, chief among whom was Sudislav “the traitor,” as people still called him. In bringing Mystislav to give his daughter to the king’s son, these men believed that Galitch would fall to Hungary a second time, and their efforts were directed toward that object very earnestly. All at once a report spread that Mystislav the Gallant had decided to go to the lower country and give Galitch to his father-in-law, Kotyan, a Polovtsi khan. This report was monstrous, and invented doubtless by tricksters, still Galitch men were so greatly alarmed because of it, that many left the country and went to Hungary.