Chapter I Grand Duke Yaroslav II Vsevolodovich. 1238-1247 Yaroslav's vivacity. Properties of George. Liberation of Smolensk. Civil strife. Batu devastates southern Russia. The beauty of Kyiv. Generosity of citizens. Siege and capture of Kyiv. State of Russia. The reason for the success of the Batyevs. Properties and

Years of life: 1190-1246
Reign: 1236-1238

Yaroslav (Feodor) Vsevolodovich.
Third son of Vladimir-Suzdal Prince Vsevolod the Big Nest (mother - Czech princess, Princess Maria), grandson Prince of Kyiv Yuri Dolgoruky, born February 8, 1190.
From the family of Vladimir-Suzdal princes.

Prince of Pereyaslavl in 1201 - 1206.
Prince Pereyaslavl-Zalessky in 1212 - 1238.
Prince of Novgorod in 1215, 1221 - 1223, 1224 - 1228, 1230 - 1236.
Prince of Torzhsky in 1215 - 1216
Grand Duke of Kiev in 1236 - 1238.
Grand Duke of Vladimir in 1238 - 1246.

In the Laurentian Chronicle, under 1201, it is recorded that Vsevolod Yuryevich put his son Yaroslav to reign in Pereyaslavl-Russky and he reigned for 7 years. Upon returning to North-Eastern Rus' Yaroslav Vsevolodovich received from his father Pereyaslavl-Zalessky.

In 1209 Vsevolod the Big Nest sent Yaroslav Vsevolodovich reign in Ryazan, where all the cities took the oath of allegiance to Yaroslav, and he installed his governors in them. But he will not reign there for long. Soon the Ryazan people captured and arrested his mayors, and they wanted to hand Yaroslav himself over to the Chernigov princes. Having learned about this, Vsevolod came to Ryazan and burned the city. After this, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich again returned to reign in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky.

In 1212, after the death of his father, Yaroslav inherited Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, Volokolamsk and Tver, Nerokhot (Nerekhtu?) and Dmitrov. Civil strife began between Vsevolod's sons Yuri and Konstantin. Yaroslav sided with Yuri and twice in 1213 and 1214. helped him in disputes, but there were no battles.

In 1215, Yaroslav was invited by the Novgorodians to reign. There he immediately began to deal with the boyars he disliked. The townspeople kicked him out of Novgorod. He left for Torzhok, from where he tried to create a kind of blockade of Novgorod in order to subjugate its inhabitants. At the invitation of the Novgorodians, the warriors of Mstislav and his allies inflicted a crushing defeat on the squads of Yuri, Yaroslav and Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich in the Battle of Lipetsk. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich went to reign in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky. Thus, he temporarily had to give up his claims to Novgorod.

The second time Yaroslav received the reign in Novgorod in the spring of 1223 and lived there for about a year.

In 1226, the Novgorodians called him to reign for the third time. This time he stayed there until the winter of 1228.

In 1225, the Lithuanians devastated villages near Torzhok, killed merchants and captured the Toropetsk volost. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich defeated them near Usvyat and took the booty. In 1227, Yaroslav went with the Novgorodians to the pit, bringing with him many prisoners. The following year he went to Pereyaslavl, leaving his sons in Novgorod. In 1230, on December 30, the Novgorodians again sent for Yaroslav, who immediately arrived, but still did not live permanently in Novgorod. Despite this, he remained the main Novgorod prince and later (until 1236) actively participated in Novgorod affairs.

In 1234 Yaroslav Vsevolodovich with his regiments and Novgorodians he opposed the Germans near Yuryev. The Russians won. Yaroslav made peace with them on terms favorable to himself.

Around 1236, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich managed to capture Kyiv and he became the Grand Duke. However, he failed to retain the throne and left for North-Eastern Rus'.

In 1238, after the death of his brother Yuri in a battle with the Tatars, Yaroslav took the Vladimir grand-ducal throne. He began to take care of restoring order and prosperity in the Russian land, devastated by the Tatars, and also tried to repel the Lithuanian attack on Smolensk land, where he imprisoned Prince Vsevolod Mstislavich.

In the early 40s of the 13th century, Yaroslav again made an attempt to subjugate Kyiv with the help of Batu. When Batu returned from his campaign to the southwest and settled in Sarai, Yaroslav was the first to fulfill the khan’s demand in 1243 and came to bow to him.

In 1245, Yaroslav's son Konstantin was sent by his father to Mongolia to the Great Khan. Constantine returned and said that Ogedei was demanding himself Yaroslav Vsevolodovich. Yaroslav went to long way and in August 1246 he arrived in Mongolia, where he witnessed the accession of Kayuk, son of Ogedeyev.

Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was called to the mother of the Great Khan, who, supposedly wanting to honor the Russian prince, gave him something to drink and eat from own hands. Returning from her, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich fell ill and died 7 days later, while his body turned blue, which is why the version of poisoning arose.
He died in 1246 on September 30.
The body of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was brought to Rus' and laid to rest in the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir.

Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was married twice:
1) from 1205 on the daughter of the Polovtsian Khan Yuri Konchakonich and the granddaughter of Khan Konchak;
2) from 1214 on the daughter of Prince of Smolensk Mstislav Mstislavich the Udal, Princess Rostislava (+ May 4, 1244). Children from this marriage: Yaroslav Tverskoy and Vasily Mizinny. And also Fedor, Alexander, Andrey, Mikhail, Daniil, Konstantin, Afanasy, Maria, Evdokia, Ulyana.

Yaroslav's address to the children before his death:
“O my beloved sons, the fruit of my womb, the brave and wise Alexander, and the hasty Andrew, and the daring Konstantin, and Yaroslav, and the dear Danila, and the good Michael! Be true champions of piety, and God-approved patrons of the majesty of the Russian state. May God's grace and mercy and blessing be multiplied upon you throughout all generations and generations forever. I am no longer able to see you, nor in the land of the judgments of everyday life; For my strength is already exhausted and the end of my life is approaching. You will not despise my two daughters, Evdokia and Ulyany, your sisters, who at this time have been the bitterest of bile and wormwood, having left their mother, but now they are deprived of the name of their father; but in both cases, God is the orphan’s helper and the glory of all his righteous destinies.”

PRINCE YAROSLAV VSEVOLODOVICH

Prince Yaroslav, third eldest son of the Grand Duke Vsevolod of Vladimir-Suzdal, born in 1190. Already at the age of 12, in 1202 he took part in Vsevolod’s campaign against the Polovtsians. The march of Russian regiments to Great Steppe ended peacefully, and the prize - the Polovtsian princess - was received by its youngest participant.
There was nothing unusual in the marriage of a Russian prince with a Polovtsian woman. Yaroslav's mother was Ash, the princes of the vast Rurik family were related to almost everyone ruling houses Europe, including the Byzantine emperors. So the mother of Vsevolod the Big Nest was a daughter Alexey Komnin and Vsevolod spent almost his entire childhood at the court of Constantinople.
However, in 1202, when young Yaroslav in a shining gilded helmet first rode at the head of a regiment in a military campaign against the Polovtsians, the end of Byzantium was already approaching. Fall of Constantinople happened under the blows of the crusaders during the Fourth Campaign in 1204. This event largely predetermined the fate of not only Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, but also his sons. For Constantinople was not only the capital of a once mighty empire, but also a stronghold of orthodox Christianity, which was still just establishing itself in Rus', thanks not least to Vsevolod the Big Nest and his descendants.
The irony of fate was that while establishing Christianity in Rus', the princes of Rurik at home essentially chopped off the branch on which they were sitting. For their power since the time of Rurik rested on the solid foundation of the Vedic or, if you like, pagan tradition. The Rurikovichs were revered as direct descendants of Yarila’s son and only in this capacity could they maintain the power of their clan in Rus'. The first to understand this was the son of Vladimir the Baptist, Yaroslav, whom it was not in vain that his descendants, if not his contemporaries, nicknamed him the Wise. The result of his efforts was a kind of alliance between Christianity and Vedic tradition, which later received the name “dual faith” among historians. The clearest reflection of this dual faith was “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” which miraculously survived to this day.
However, the descendants of Vsevolod the Big Nest, including Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, were fanatical adherents of orthodox Byzantine Christianity and for them a compromise not only with pagans, but also with Catholics was absolutely unacceptable. Bye Byzantine Empire lived and flourished, while Constantinople-Constantinople seemed like a mighty stronghold of Christianity, the Rurikovichs had nothing to fear for their fate. But with the fall of Constantinople, the question of their legitimacy, now supported only by established tradition, became acute. But traditions are too flimsy a support in an era of drastic changes.

The first experience of ascending to power was short-lived for Yaroslav and ended badly. At the age of 16, the third son of Prince Vsevolod flew with his squad on dashing horses all over Rus' in three weeks to take the throne of the richest Russian city of Galich in the west, offered to him by the allied Hungarians. But he was three days late: the Galician boyars gave the throne to a competitor, a prince from Novgorod-Seversky, who belonged to the family union of Chernigov princes. They, having strengthened themselves, expelled Yaroslav even from Pereyaslavl-Yuzhny. (Not to be confused with Pereyaslavl-Zalessky) Vsevolod the Big Nest could not stand up for his son.

Yaroslav continued his career, helping his father in the war Vladimir-Suzdal land against Ryazan Principality. After the victory over the Ryazan people (1208), Vsevolod left Yaroslav in Old Ryazan as governor. The inexperienced Yaroslav was unable to cope with the Ryazanians. The city has risen. During the subsequent punitive expedition, which was headed by Vsevolod himself, Old Ryazan was burned as punishment for disobedience, and its inhabitants were exiled to the cities of Suzdal land.

In 1213, Prince Mstislav Udatny, who ruled in Novgorod, received an offer from the Poles to expel the Hungarians from Principality of Galicia. Mstislav could not resist this proposal and plunged headlong into the strife that broke out in Galich. (Read the article “Southwestern Rus' on the eve of the Horde invasion”). Apparently, it was he who, when leaving Novgorod, pointed out to the local boyars his recently acquired son-in-law Yaroslav Vsevolodovich.
However, Yaroslav did not live up to his father-in-law's hopes. The problem was that Yaroslav, raised at his father’s court, was a Byzantine in spirit, who did not value the veche way of life at all. Within a few months, the Novgorodians became convinced that they had made a terrible mistake in choosing the prince. Arriving in Novgorod, Yaroslav, a despot by nature and upbringing, set about strengthening his personal power. To do this, he tried to destroy the opposition in the person of his father-in-law's supporters - the most authoritative citizens of Novgorod. Yaroslav's cruelty and his violation of the age-old Novgorod freedoms caused mass discontent in the city. Unable to bear it " probationary period", Yaroslav was forced to leave Novgorod.

In order to rein in the Novgorodians, Yaroslav ordered to cut off the supply of food to the city. He gave this order during a crop failure that struck the Novgorod land. But even severe hunger did not break the Novgorodians and did not force them to bow their heads. Instead of going to bow to Yaroslav, they sent to Galich for their favorite Mstislav. The noble prince considered his son-in-law’s behavior a complete disgrace. The worst thing was that Yaroslav left his wife, Mstislav’s beloved daughter, in Novgorod, knowing that in her presence the Novgorodians were unlikely to decide to exterminate the prince’s nobles and the governor. Prince Mstislav responded to the call of the Novgorodians and called for help from Smolensk and Pskov. In turn, Yaroslav received support from Yuri Vsevolodovich. Then Mstislav enlisted the support of Vsevolod the Big Nest's eldest son, Konstantin, with the Rostov regiments.
In vain Mstislav Udatny sent proposals not to shed blood at every opportunity. Yaroslav and Yuri responded to all his calls for peace with a proud refusal. Moreover, confident of the impending victory, they began to divide other people's principalities among themselves. Mstislav Udatny had no choice but to engage in a decisive battle with his brothers. Yaroslav's regiment took the main blow and was almost completely destroyed. Yuri's regiment stood against the troops of his brother Konstantin - but, seeing the defeat of Yaroslav, the warriors rushed to run, throwing off their heavy armor as they went. Even on horseback, few people were able to go off-road. The later chronicle gives quite realistic figures: 9233 people killed and 60 prisoners. According to historians, more than 30,000 people participated on both sides in the Battle of Lipica. (Batu had little more when he invaded the Vladimir-Suzdal principality.)

“Yuri, in only his undershirt, having thrown off even his under-armor caftan, almost killing the fourth horse, returned to Vladimir alone. Yaroslav, having lost his helmet in battle (it was later found and is now kept in the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin), drove four horses and rode on the fifth to Pereyaslavl, where his wife was anxiously waiting. Yaroslav could no longer fight, but he still showed a tough temper: he ordered to torture the Novgorod prisoners so that many of them died.”

Mstislav Udatny showed generosity; he forgave Yaroslav Vsevolodovich when he confessed to him, but he took his daughter from him. As for Yuri, he was forced to give up the great table to his older brother Konstantin. Yuri Vsevolodovich returned to capital Vladimir only in 1218, after the death of Constantine. A little later, Yaroslav and his wife were reunited.
The reunion was stormy. In 1220 the princess gave birth to Fyodor, and in 1221 to Alexander. They were followed by princes Andrei, Mikhail Khoroborit, Daniil, Yaroslav, Vasily and Konstantin. Thanks to his sincere love for Rostislava Mstislavna, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich surpassed his father, Vsevolod the Big Nest, in offspring (he had only 6 sons). From him came not only the Vladimir and Moscow, but also the Tver great princes.

In the second half of 1222, an Estonian uprising broke out. The Estonians storm and completely destroy the Danish fortress on Ezel. Residents of Yuryev, Odenpe, Fellin rebel. The Estonians renounced Christianity and sent a message to the Bishop of Riga that they were returning to the faith of their fathers. At the same time, expecting a punitive expedition, they send an embassy to the Russians, seeking their help. Having united all their forces, the Germans suppress the desperate resistance of the defenders of free Estonia. The Estonians were defeated at Imer. After a long siege using battering machines, the fortress on the Pale River was taken.
Events in Livonia force the Novgorodians to turn to the Vladimir-Suzdal princes for help. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich with a strong army responded to the call of the defeated Estonians. The Russians are greeted as liberators and German prisoners are handed over to them. Initially planning to go to Riga, Yaroslav turns to Revel. Unexpectedly, he learns that the Germans have again captured Fellin and have outweighed the captured small Russian garrison. In a rage, Yaroslav ravaged Fellin and the surrounding area, and mostly suffered civilians. Then he moved to Revel, besieged the fortress, but could not take it. After four weeks of siege, Yaroslav withdrew his troops back to the Novgorod borders. However, Yaroslav did not risk staying in Novgorod and retired with his family to Pereyaslavl.

In the same year, Veliky Novgorod had serious problems in the lands of the Finnish tribe. Apparently, the missionaries who penetrated there from Sweden achieved great success in promoting the breakaway of the Finns from the republic. At the beginning of 1227, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich with his retinue and Novgorodians (i.e., with a large army) made a rapid expedition across the ice of the Gulf of Finland to the most remote lands of the Emija, where, according to the Laurentian Chronicle, none of the Russian princes had ever been. According to the Novgorod Chronicle, he brought many prisoners. Moreover, the prince took extraordinary measures to strengthen Russian influence among the Finno-Ugric peoples, baptizing the population of the dependent territory en masse.
These violent actions of the newly-minted Orthodox crusader did not please the Novgorodians. In any case, it was in the same year 1227 that four wise men unexpectedly appeared in Novgorod. Actually, they “appear” unexpectedly in the chronicles, and for the Novgorodians of that time, servants of the Vedic gods were by no means a novelty. All four Magi were “burnt at Yaroslav’s court.” Apparently, incensed by his successes in a foreign land, the newly-minted baptist decided to restore order in Novgorod. This time there were no popular unrest, although it is possible that the chronicler simply “forgot” about them. But he reported on a conflict that suddenly broke out between Archbishop Anthony and Yaroslav. It seems that Yaroslav, true to his “Byzantineism,” again began to establish his own order in the trading city, which ran counter to the aspirations and benefits of its inhabitants.

“While the prince fought with Archbishop Anthony (and still forced him to go to the Khutyn monastery), the propaganda against Rus' was gathering strength. In July 1228, a very strong Finnish army - more than two thousand soldiers - went out on boats to fight on Lake Ladoga. The news of the invasion came to Novgorod on August 1 (“On Savior Day”). This time, the Novgorodians themselves hurried on the campaign: Ladoga lay in the center of their possessions.”(Bogdanov. “Alexander Nevsky”)

The Finns, however, were defeated even before the main forces arrived by the Ladoga mayor. The last fugitives were killed trying to sneak through the lands of the Karelians who lived on the right bank of the Neva and north of Ladoga.

It seems that the forced baptism of Finns and the execution of the Magi are in no way connected with the events in Pskov. Pskov was a “suburb” Mr. Veliky Novgorod, that is, dependent land. Not allowing the prince and the Novgorod mayor into the city, the Pskovites concluded an alliance treaty with Riga, breaking off vassal relations with Novgorod. Having sent forty of his noble men as hostages to Bishop Albert, Pskov relied on military assistance from the Germans. The most amazing thing is that the Novgorodians did not react to the actions of the Pskovites. Moreover, they flatly refused to participate in Yaroslav’s campaign not only against Pskov, but also against Riga. There is nothing surprising in this seemingly strange confrontation. For the “Byzantine” Yaroslav, power was inseparable from Orthodox faith. And for him, both the pagan Finns and the Catholic Germans were enemies of the faith, and therefore of his power. And the Novgorodians were trading people, for them both the Finns and the Germans were either tributaries or partners. They became enemies only if they encroached on the interests of Veliky Novgorod. Orthodox Christians, Catholics, Muslims from Volga Bulgaria and pagans, both Finno-Ugric and Slavic, coexisted calmly in the trading city. Approximately the same situation was in Pskov. The shameless actions of the newly-minted baptist irritated not only the Pskovites, but also the Novgorodians. That is why the former rebelled, and the latter flatly refused to pacify them under the leadership of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich.

Yaroslav's patience ran out, and he and his wife left Novgorod, leaving their sons behind. At this moment, princes Fyodor and Alexander turned into princes. But the hope of Yaroslav and Rostislava that the Novgorodians would seize on their tradition of “nurturing” young princes and the Yaroslavichs would become “their own” in the city did not come true.
The high prices that came in the summer continued in the fall, when “great rain fell on the Novgorod lands both day and night,” until the beginning of December people did not see a single bright day, they could neither harvest hay nor cultivate the fields.
I am ready to assert with almost one hundred percent certainty that the Novgorodians blamed Yaroslav Vsevolodovich for their troubles. And the riot, which did not take place immediately after the execution of the Magi, still broke out. With this execution, Prince Yaroslav angered the pagan gods, who took it out on the Novgorodians to the fullest extent. In any case, this is exactly how the Novgorodians could interpret the disaster that befell them. The archbishop was literally kicked out of the Sofia courtyard, “pushed out of the gate like a villain.” Right from the evening, the armed people rushed to destroy the courts of the thousand Vyacheslav, Sudislav and other noble people who supported Prince Yaroslav. Those who managed to escape had their wives seized, “and there was a great rebellion in the city.”
The situation of the republic by that time had become dire. Prince Mikhail of Chernigov, who arrived in Novgorod at the call of the boyars, was first forced to release from tribute for 5 years all free Smerd peasants who had fled to a “foreign land”: the exodus from the land affected by poor crops became widespread. Meanwhile, disasters and popular discontent only intensified. Even doing everything according to the will of the boyars, Mikhail did not sit still on the Novgorod table and was forced to go back to Chernigov. It is interesting that the famine was stopped only thanks to the efforts of the Hanseatic merchants: Novgorod was a member of this union.

However, Yaroslav at this time also did not sit idly by, but closely watched his enemies accumulating in Pskov. Here, with the active support of Mikhail Chernigovsky, a new attack was being prepared not so much against Novgorod as against Yaroslav. However, Yaroslav, having learned about the detention of his representative, undertook a blockade of Pskov, and the Pskovites went over to his side, expelling Yaroslav’s enemies. They fled to Odenpe, where the son of Prince Vladimir of Pskov, Yaroslav, was located. Yaroslav Vladimirovich with Novgorod exiles and German knights took Izborsk at the beginning of 1233, but the Pskovites recaptured the city, and Yaroslav Vladimirovich himself, together with the Novgorodians who had defected to the Germans, were brought in chains to Yaroslav Vsevolodovich.

“Embittered by failure, the Germans stopped hiding behind the Novgorod-Pskov “dissidents.” The crusaders attacked Tesov in the land of Novgorod, captured the noble man Kirill Sinkinich and kept him in chains in the Bear's Head. Alexander Yaroslavich, who was reigning at that time, did not yet have a strong squad: he had to call his father for help. In the winter of 1234, Yaroslav's army settled in Novgorod. He was joined by republican militias from the city and the entire region. The force, in the ranks of which Alexander acted with his young squad, moved towards Yuryev - the residence of the bishop, who, as was rightly believed in Rus', led the attacks of the crusaders. The purpose of the Russian campaign was to inflict economic damage on the Germans, which would force the bishop to abandon hostile actions."(Bogdanov. “Alexander Nevsky”)

Having set up camp near Yuryev, Yaroslav began to rob and destroy enemy property. The episcopal knights from Yuryev and the order brothers from the Bear's Head could not stand the insult, left the fortress and attacked the guard posts. The Russian regiments, however, were ready and struck towards the enemy. The surviving knights, sergeants and bollards tried to escape along the fragile ice of the Omovzha River, but the ice cracked under their weight with very sad consequences for the fugitives. Having picked up several of their fallen warriors and completed the destruction of the outskirts of Yuryev, the princes moved home with the joyful Novgorodians, who did not lose a single person.

Yaroslav, who shrewdly decided to stay in Novgorod and help his son, barely had time to release large regiments to Pereyaslavl, when Lithuania flew into the possessions of the republic. Dashing horsemen suddenly attacked Staraya Russa and flew through the fortified settlement until the auction. The garrison led by the princely governor, Yaroslav's fire manager with his grid assistants, merchants and guests immediately grabbed their weapons and drove the enemy out of the settlement into the field. Yaroslav immediately responded to the call of the inhabitants of Russa and, together with his son Alexander, rushed after the departing Lithuanians. A bloody battle broke out 120 kilometers from Russa. The Lithuanians were completely defeated. The few who escaped from the battlefield fled into the forests, abandoning their booty, defensive weapons and 300 of their horses.

In 1235, the troops of Izyaslav and Mikhail of Chernigov captured and devastated Kyiv. In 1236, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich moved to Kyiv with the grassroots and Novgorod regiments. He took the city and gave the Novgorodians some of the rich booty. Polovtsian mercenaries walked around Rus'. It was plundered by the allied princes, Hungarians and Poles. And the princes continued to fight furiously with each other, devastating the land even worse than the foreigners.

Where was Yaroslav Vsevolodovich during Batu's invasion of Rus', the chronicles are silent. Either in Kyiv, or in Novgorod, or in Pereyaslavl. In any case, he did not participate in either the Battle of Kolomna or the Battle of the City River. Let me remind you that in 1206, sixteen-year-old Yaroslav traveled from the capital of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality to Galich in three weeks. Either the years took their toll, or circumstances interfered, but Yaroslav Vsevolodovich appeared in Vladimir for a “head-by-side analysis” when Batya’s horde retreated to the Polovtsian steppes. What prevented him from occupying the Vladimir table that was empty after the death of his brother.

Amazingly, the very next year, 1239, Yaroslav led his regiments to Smolensk, which was quietly captured by the Lithuanians. He drove out the Lithuanians, but the Smolensk people did not express much enthusiasm for the actions of the new Grand Duke of Vladimir-Suzdal. And again we are faced with a situation already familiar to us from the events in Novgorod and Pskov. A rich trading city, and this is exactly what Smolensk was, is in no hurry to open its arms to a prince from the Rurik family, moreover, it is ready to leave under the arm of a “foreign” Lithuanian prince.
Meanwhile, the Horde are returning from the European campaign and the Russian princes are faced with the question of establishing some kind of relationship with the conquerors. Here is what Kargalov writes about this:

“Apparently, there was no complete unanimity in North-Eastern Rus' on this issue. Strong and rich cities in the northwestern and western outskirts that were not subject to Tatar defeat (Novgorod, Pskov, Polotsk, Minsk, Vitebsk, Smolensk) opposed the recognition of dependence on the Horde khans. The northwestern Russian lands, almost unaffected by the invasion, not only retained their wealth and armed forces, but even replenished their population with fugitives from the eastern principalities. This, of course, had a significant influence on the Grand Duke’s foreign policy. Northwestern Rus', which opposed subordination to the Horde khan, was opposed by a group of Rostov princes: Vladimir Konstantinovich Uglitsky, Boris Vasilkovich Rostovsky, Gleb Vasilkovich Belozersky, Vasily Vsevolodovich Yaroslavsky. Their principalities suffered relatively little from Batu's invasion: Rostov and Uglich surrendered without a fight and were probably not destroyed by the Tatars, and the conquerors did not reach Beloozero at all. Even during the invasion, some cities of the Rostov land probably established some kind of relations with the conquerors.”(“The end of the Horde yoke”)

The existence of two groups - the northwestern one, which opposed the recognition of dependence on the Horde, and the Rostov one, which was inclined to establish peaceful relations with the conquerors - largely determined the policy of the Grand Duke of Vladimir. Moreover, both of these groups had nothing to thank the great Vladimir-Suzdal princes for, nor the late Yuri Vsevolodovich, who mediocrely destroyed his regiments, nor Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, who disappeared who knows where during the time of disaster, but preserved his regiments. But if the Rostovites still clung to the princes from Rurik’s house, then the Novgorodians, Smolensk, and Pskovites were already ready to look for princes on the side.

Actually, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich had no choice, contrary to the opinion of many historians. The new Vladimir-Suzdal prince fought for too long with Catholics and pagan Lithuanians to find sympathy and understanding in their camp. At the same time, it was not only about the fate of Yaroslav himself, but about the fate of the entire Rurik family, whose legitimacy was rapidly approaching zero. The prince's only support was the Orthodox, or rather the Byzantine Orthodox Church. But the problem is both Yaroslav and christian church in Rus' was that the Byzantine Empire fell in 1204, and its fragment Nicene Empire she herself desperately needed the help of the Horde in order to resist the aggression of the Catholics. Any, even the weakest onslaught of the Horde could lead to the fall of the grand ducal power and the complete collapse of Vladimir-Suzdal Rus'.

Meanwhile, in the early 40s, the position of the victor Batu Khan was little better than that of Prince Yaroslav. The death of Khan Ogedei, which followed at the end of 1241, served as a signal for the end of the Horde campaign. Having received this news, three influential princes from Batu's army - Guyuk, son of Ogedei, Buri, grandson of Jagatai and Mongke, son of Tului, left the troops and moved to Karakorum, preparing to enter the fight for the vacated throne. The most likely candidate was considered Guyuk, who was Batu's worst enemy. In addition to all these troubles, Batu had practically no troops or land left at hand where he could recruit these troops. For, according to the will of his grandfather Genghis Khan, the lands of the Jochi ulus were divided between Batu’s brothers, and Batu himself was only a nominal ruler. True, he retained all the lands conquered by the Horde from the Volga to the Dniester. And the right to form a regular army. Alas, the Polovtsian steppe was devastated by the war. And he could not rely on the Tatars from the Jochi ulus in the confrontation with Khan Gayuk, who was just about ready to fly to the Great Khan’s throne. There was no doubt that Kagan Gayuk would not hesitate to get even with his personal enemy Khan Batu. A paradoxical situation was created: the Horde empire at that time was stronger than ever, but its representative in Eastern Europe Batu Khan was so weak that he could easily have been blown away by even a small gust of wind. Another thing is that the death of Batu gave absolutely nothing to Rus'; he could easily be replaced by any other Genghisid loyal to Gayuk.

Batu needed time to form new tumens on the conquered lands, subordinate only to him. It is difficult to say whether Yaroslav Vsevolodovich knew about the problems of Khan Batu, but he came to him with gifts, ahead, by the way, of all the other princes, at the most necessary moment. No wonder he was welcomed with open arms. Batu found a vassal who also had military force, albeit insufficient for a war with the central government, but quite sufficient for intrigue and maneuvers. In turn, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich received not only the label for the great reign, but also gained legitimacy, which had practically already been lost by the Rurikovichs. The Byzantine Church in Rus', which received a number of important privileges from Batu and, as a result, became the dominant denomination, was also not left unscathed. From that moment on, the determining factor in the politics of the Vladimir and then the Moscow principalities for more than a century was the orientation towards the khan, or as he was called in Rus', the “king” of the Golden Horde. For only the Golden Horde “tsar” could serve as a reliable guarantor of secular and spiritual power in North-Eastern Rus' both for the princes of Rurik’s house and for the orthodox Byzantine Christian church.

Following the Grand Duke, other princes flocked to the Horde “about their fatherland.” In 1244, the princes Vladimir Konstantinovich Uglitsky, Boris Vasilkovich Rostovsky, Vasily Vsevolodovich Yaroslavsky returned to the Horde and returned.

Yaroslav Vsevolodovich's trip to Karakorum was most likely part of the intrigue led by Batu against the election of Khan Gayuk to the throne. In a sense, it was a show of strength. And the widow of Ogedei and the mother of Gayuk Torageny-Khatun, who carried out all the affairs in Karokorum and the Horde empire, appreciated her. Apparently, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was poisoned precisely on her orders, but the purpose of this poisoning was to weaken not so much Rus' as Batu. If you believe the papal ambassador Paolo Carpini, who was in Karakorum at that time, the khansha planned to poison not only Yaroslav, but also his heir Alexander in order to behead Rus', but the latter did not respond to her call. And he did this, presumably, not without the consent of Batu Khan.

Yaroslav played a big role in the history of our country. His reign was noted both positive and negative points. We will talk about all this in this article. We also note that the son of Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, presented below), became famous throughout the country as great commander, and was also canonized by the church. But today we will not talk about him, but about his father, whose reign was eventful.

So, let's begin our story. To begin with, the main dates associated with the name of Yaroslav. He was born in 1191, from 1212 to 1238 - the years of the reign of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky. IN different time he also reigned in Novgorod (1215, from 1221 to 1223, from 1224 to 1228, from 1230 to 1236). Having captured Torzhok, he ruled there from 1215 to 1216. Yaroslav was Kyiv from 1236 to 1238. From 1238 to 1246 Yaroslav Vsevolodovich reigned in Vladimir.

Vsevolod Yurievich died in 1212. He left Pereyaslavl-Zalessky to Yaroslav. Strife immediately began between Vsevolod’s sons, Yuri and Konstantin. Yaroslav took Yuri’s side. He went to his aid twice with his Pereyaslavl people, in 1213 and 1214, but it never came to a battle.

Arrival of Yaroslav in Novgorod, renunciation of reign

In 1215, the Novgorodians invited Yaroslav to reign. Mstislav Mstislavich Udaloy, who had just left this city, left many of his supporters in Novgorod. As soon as he appeared, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich ordered the two boyars to be imprisoned. Then he convened a meeting against Yakun Namnezhich. The people began to plunder his yard, and the boyar Ovstrat and his son were killed by the residents of Prusskaya Street. Yaroslav did not like such self-will. He did not want to stay in Novgorod any longer and went to Torzhok. Here Yaroslav began to reign, and sent a governor to Novgorod. In this case, he followed the example of his father, grandfather and uncles, who left Rostov and established themselves in new cities.

How Yaroslav conquered Novgorod

Soon the opportunity presented itself to constrain Novgorod and completely subjugate it to its will: in the fall, frost destroyed all the grain in the Novgorod volost, only in Torzhok the harvest was preserved. Yaroslav ordered not a single cartload of bread to be allowed from the Lower Land to help the starving. In such need, the Novgorodians sent three boyars to Yaroslav in order to return the prince to Novgorod. Yaroslav detained the arrivals. Meanwhile, hunger intensified, people had to eat linden leaves, pine bark, and moss. They gave their children into eternal servitude. The corpses of the dead were strewn everywhere - in the field, in the streets, in the market place. The dogs did not have time to eat them. Most of the residents simply died of hunger, others went in search of better life to foreign countries.

Exhausted Novgorodians decided to send mayor Yuri Ivanovich with noble people to Yaroslav. They again tried to call the prince to them, but he ordered them to be detained as well. Instead of answering, Yaroslav sent two of his boyars to Novgorod in order to take his wife out of there. Residents of the city turned to the prince with last speech. He detained the ambassadors and all the Novgorod guests. The chronicler testifies that there was crying and sadness in Novgorod. But Yaroslav Vsevolodovich did not heed the pleas of the residents. The photo below is a copy of his helmet. It was lost in 1216 at the Battle of Lipitsa and found in 1808.

Arrival of Mstislav in Novgorod

Yaroslav's calculation turned out to be correct: it was not easy for the city to survive under such difficult circumstances. However, Rus' was still strong under Mstislav. Mstislav II the Udaloy, having learned about what was happening in Novgorod, arrived there in 1216. He captured Khot Grigorievich, Yaroslav's mayor, reforged his nobles and promised not to part with the Novgorodians.

War with Mstislav

Having learned about all this, Alexander Nevsky's father Yaroslav Vsevolodovich began to prepare for war. He ordered to make ambushes along the road to the river. Tvertse. The prince sent 100 people from the residents who seemed loyal to him to Novgorod with instructions to rebel against Mstislav and drive him out of the city. But these 100 people, as soon as they arrived in Novgorod, immediately went over to Mstislav’s side. Mstislav Udaloy sent a priest to Torzhok to promise peace to the prince if he released the people. Yaroslav did not like this proposal. He released the priest sent to him without answer, and called all the Novgorodians detained in Torzhok (more than two thousand) outside the city to the field, ordered them to be put in chains and sent to their cities. And he distributed the horses and property to the squad.

However, this trick turned against the prince himself. The Novgorodians who remained in the city marched together with Mstislav against Yaroslav on March 1, 1216. Mstislav on the river Vazuze united with Vladimir Rurikovich Smolensky, his cousin. Despite this, he again sent people to Yaroslav with an offer of peace, but he again refused. Then Vladimir and Mstislav moved towards Tver. They began to burn and capture villages. Yaroslav, having learned about this, left Torzhok and headed to Tver. Mstislav did not stop there and began to ruin the Pereyaslavl volost. He proposed to enter into an alliance with him to Konstantin Rostovsky, who immediately united with him. The brothers Vladimir, Svyatoslav and Yuri came to the aid of Yaroslav, and with them the whole of Suzdal. They called everyone, both villagers and townspeople, and if they did not have a horse, they walked. The chronicler says that sons went against fathers, brother against brother, fathers against children, masters against slaves, and slaves against masters. The Vsevolodovichs settled on the river. Kze. Mstislav sent people to Yaroslav, offering to release the Novgorod and Novgorod residents, return the Novgorod volosts captured by him, and make peace with them. However, Yaroslav refused here too.

Yaroslav's flight

Confident in own strength The Vsevolodovichs won. Mstislav had to retreat to the river. Lipice. April 21 happened here great battle. WITH great strength The Novgorodians attacked Yaroslav's regiments. The Pereyaslavl residents fled, and after a while the entire army took flight. Yaroslav ran to Pereyaslavl on his fifth horse (he drove four) and shut himself up in this city.

The prince's reprisal against Smolyans and Novgorodians

The chronicler notes that the first evil was not enough for him; he was not satisfied with human blood. In Pereyaslavl, Nevsky’s father Yaroslav Vsevolodovich ordered to seize all the Smolensk and Novgorod residents who entered his land to trade, and throw some into a cramped hut, others into a cellar, where they all died (about 150 people in total).

Reconciliation with Mstislav and Vladimir

Yuri, meanwhile, handed over Vladimir to the Mstislavichs. Konstantin, his brother, stayed here. Yuri went to Radilov, located on the Volga. However, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich did not want to submit. He decided to lock himself in Pereyaslavl, believing that he would sit out here. However, when Konstantin and Mstislav headed towards the city, he got scared and began to ask them for peace, and then he himself came to his brother Konstantin, asking him not to extradite Vladimir and Mstislav and to shelter him. Konstantin reconciled him with Mstislav on the road. When the princes arrived in Pereyaslavl, Yaroslav and the governor presented them with rich gifts. Having taken the gifts, Mstislav sent for his daughter, Yaroslav’s wife, to the city. Yaroslav asked him many times to return his wife, but Mstislav turned out to be adamant.

Yaroslav returns to Novgorod

Mstislav left Novgorod in 1218 and went to Galich. Troubles began again among the Novgorodians. To stop them, I had to ask Yaroslav again from Yuri Vsevolodovich. The prince was again sent to them in 1221. The Novgorodians were delighted with him, according to the chronicler. When the prince went to his volost in 1223, they bowed to him and begged him to stay. However, Yaroslav did not listen to them and left for Pereyaslavl-Zalessky. In 1224, the Novgorodians managed to invite him to their place for the third time. Yaroslav appeared and stayed this time in Novgorod for about three years, defending this volost from various enemies. In the photo below - Yaroslav Vsevolodovich in front of Christ with a model of the Church of the Savior.

Fight against Lithuanians

Lithuanians numbering 7 thousand in 1225 devastated the villages located near Torzhok. They did not reach the city itself only three miles. The Lithuanians killed many merchants and subjugated the entire Toropetsk volost. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich caught up with them near Usvyat. He defeated the Lithuanians, killed 2 thousand people and took away the loot they had stolen. In 1228, Yaroslavl left for Pereyaslavl, leaving his sons in Novgorod. The inhabitants of the city again sent for him in 1230. The prince arrived immediately, vowed to fulfill everything he had promised, but was still not constantly in Novgorod. His place was taken by his sons Alexander and Fedor.

Conquest of the Germans

Yaroslav in 1234 opposed the Germans with the Novgorodians and his regiments. He went to Yuryev and settled down not far from the city. He sent his people to fight in the surrounding areas and collect food supplies from them. Some of the Germans made a sortie from Odenpe, others from Yuryev, but the Russians beat them. Some Germans fell in the battle, but most died in the river when the ice broke off beneath them. Taking advantage of the victory, the Russians devastated the land. They destroyed the German grain, and this people had to submit. Yaroslav made peace with the Germans on terms favorable to himself.

The reign of Yaroslav in Kyiv, new battles

Having learned that Mikhail Vsevolodovich was fighting with the Galician princes Vasilko and Daniil Romanovich, Yaroslav left his son Alexander in Novgorod in 1236 and went on a campaign. He took with him noble Novgorodians, a hundred Novorot residents, Rostov and Pereyaslavl regiments and moved south. Yaroslav ruined Chernigov volost and began to reign in Kyiv.

His reign lasted more than a year, but suddenly it became known about the invasion of the Tatars and the devastation of the Vladimir-Suzdal land. The prince, abandoning Kyiv, hurried north, but did not arrive in time. Yuri Vsevolodovich was defeated at City. He died in battle. Yaroslav, having learned about his death, went to reign in Vladimir. He cleared the churches of corpses, gathered the remaining people and began to administer the volosts.

Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich spoke out in 1239 against the Lithuanians who fought near Smolensk. He defeated them, took their prince prisoner, and then imprisoned him with the Smolensk people, who was the son of Mstislav Romanovich. After this, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich returned home with honor and great booty.

Regulating relations with Batu

But the most important task of this prince - settling relations between the Russians and the Tatars - was still ahead. Soon after the invasion, Batu sent one Saracen to Rus' as a Baskak. This man captured all the unmarried women and men, the beggars, from each family that had 3 sons, he took one for himself. He imposed a tribute on the rest of the inhabitants, which had to be paid in fur to each man. If a person could not pay, he was taken into slavery.

Batu set up his camp on the banks of the Volga. Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich went here. According to the chronicler, Batu received Yaroslav with honor and released him, punishing him to be the eldest among the Russian princes. That is, he, along with Vladimir, received Kyiv from the hands of Batu, but this had only symbolic meaning after the destruction of the capital of Rus' by the Tatars.

The last years of life and death of Yaroslav

Constantine returned in 1245 and said that Ogedei demanded Yaroslav to join him. He set off and arrived in Mongolia in August 1246. Here Yaroslav Vsevolodovich Vladimirsky witnessed the accession of Ogedeev's son Kayuk. Yaroslav died in the same year. He was called to the khan's mother, who gave him something to drink and eat from her hands, supposedly showing him honor. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was poisoned and died 7 days later. Unfortunately, the reason why the Russian prince was treated this way is unknown. His body was brought to Rus' and buried in the Assumption Cathedral of Vladimir.

Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich (1191-1246) - Prince of Vladimir, Prince of Pereyaslav-Zalessky, Prince of Pereyaslav, Prince of Novgorod, Prince of Vladimir, Grand Duke of Kiev; son of Vsevolod the Big Nest, father of Alexander Nevsky.

He took part in civil strife between princes and waged an active struggle for power with numerous relatives.

Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was the first of the Russian princes during the Tatar-Mongol invasion to receive from the Tatar Khan a label to reign in the new capital Ancient Rus'- the city of Vladimir.

Yaroslav Vsevolodovich. short biography

Prince Yaroslav was born in 1191 and was one of the many offspring of Vsevolod the Big Nest. In 1212, after the death of his father, Yaroslav became prince in the city of Pereyaslavl Zalessky, but was soon forced to leave it in order to take part in the struggle for power between his two brothers - Yuri (Yaroslav acted on his side) and Konstantin - in 1213 and 1214.

After the civil strife between the brothers, he took an active part in the struggle for Novgorod, which lasted with varying success from 1215 to 1236 (during this period, Yaroslav acquired and lost the title of Prince of Novgorod several times). In 1236 he became the Prince of Vladimir, appearing to bow in Golden Horde and received a label for reign there.

Death overtook Yaroslav during his second trip to the Golden Horde, when he was called to bow to the khan’s mother, where he accepted a treat from her hands. A week later, Yaroslav died. The exact cause of death is unknown, but it is believed that the prince could have been poisoned.

Yaroslav Vsevolodovich's struggle for power

In domestic policy Particularly noteworthy is Yaroslav’s long-term struggle for the right to reign in Novgorod. He was first called upon by the Novgorodians in 1215, when Mstislav Mstislavich left the city. Yaroslav arrived in the city, but was dissatisfied with the unrest that happened there because of his arrival, so he soon left to reign in Torzhok, however, accepting the title Prince of Novgorod. Yaroslav's governor remained in Novgorod. Some time later, Yaroslav, by cunning and force, tried to win power in Novgorod during the famine that overtook the city, refusing help and sending messengers from Novgorod back. ABOUT difficult situation Mstislav found out in the city and immediately offered Yaroslav to release all the captured Novgorodians, but he refused. Thus began a long-term struggle.

On March 1, 1216, Mstislav, dissatisfied with Yaroslav’s behavior and worried about the Novgorodians, gathered the townspeople and moved to Torzhok with a proposal for a truce. Yaroslav rejected the offer, and Mstislav's army moved towards Tver, destroying all the cities along the way. Soon Mstislav was joined by Yaroslav's brother Konstantin (against whom Yaroslav had fought at one time), Yuri, Svyatoslav and Vladimir sided with Yaroslav. An internecine conflict ensued.

On April 21, 1216, the famous battle took place on the Lipitsa River between the troops of Mstislav and Yaroslav, as a result of which Yaroslav was defeated and was forced to give the title of Prince of Novgorod back to Mstislav.

However, the struggle for Novgorod did not end there. Yaroslav became the Prince of Novgorod several more times: in 1218 he was sent there by his fathers, in 1221 and 1224 he was called to reign by the townspeople themselves. Only after his calling in 1224 did Yaroslav finally remain in Novgorod for a long time with the title of prince and began to rule the city.

Already, together with the Novgorodians, Yaroslav made several successful military campaigns. In 1225, he opposed the Lithuanians, driving them from Russian lands back to the Principality of Lithuania; in 1227, a campaign against Finnish tribes took place on Yam, and in 1228, Yaroslav successfully repelled a retaliatory attack from the Finns.

In 1226, Yaroslav was again forced to prove his right to rule in Novgorod. This time, Prince Mikhail Vsevolodovich of Chernigov opposed him, but the struggle was not successful for Mikhail. Moreover, in 1231 Yaroslav, together with his brother Yuri, gathered an army and invaded Chernigov.

In 1234 Yaroslav opposed German troops near the city of Yuryev, the result of the battle was the defeat of the enemy troops and peace beneficial for Rus'.

In 1236, Yaroslav received the title of Grand Duke of Kyiv and went to Kyiv, leaving his son in Novgorod.

In 1238, Yaroslav returned to Vladimir and began reigning there. After several years of successful reign, during which Vladimir finally becomes the capital of Rus', Yaroslav receives an order to appear from Khan Batu. From a trip to the Golden Horde, Yaroslav returns with a label for the Great Reign in Vladimir. During this period, Kyiv finally lost its status as the capital of Ancient Rus'.

Results of the reign of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich

During the years of Yaroslav's reign, Vladimir officially became the new capital of Rus', Kyiv lost its power, political and economic. Also, thanks to the activities of Yaroslav, Rus' was able to recover from the attack of the Western crusaders, while maintaining its statehood and not breaking up into separate territories.

In foreign policy Yaroslav tried to regulate relations with the Golden Horde, as well as to protect the country, which was already in a difficult situation, from attack by the Germans and Lithuanians.