In different years in past centuries, foreign conquerors have repeatedly tried to conquer Rus', and it stands, unbroken, to this day. Difficult times on Russian soil arose more than once in history. But such a difficult period as in the 13th century, which threatened the very existence of the state, was not, it seems, either before or after. Attacks were carried out both from the west and from the south by various aggressors. Difficult times have come on Russian soil.

Rus' in the 13th century

What did she represent? At the beginning of the 13th century, Constantinople as a center of spirituality had already lost its influence. And some countries (for example, Bulgaria, Serbia) recognize the power and supremacy of Catholicism. Rus' became the stronghold of the Orthodox world, then Kievan. But the territory was not homogeneous. Before the invasion of Batu and his hordes, the Russian World consisted of several principalities that competed for spheres of influence among themselves. Civil strife tore apart the relatives-princes, did not contribute to the organization of one close-knit army capable of providing worthy resistance to the invaders. This paved the way for difficult times to happen on Russian soil.

Batu invasion

In 1227, Genghis Khan, the great eastern warrior, passed away. There was a usual redistribution of power between relatives. One of the grandsons, Batu, had a particularly militant character and organizational talents. He gathered a huge army according to those concepts (somewhere around 140 thousand people), consisting of nomads and mercenaries. In the autumn of 1237 the invasion began.

The Russian army was less numerous (up to 100 thousand people) and scattered. Therefore, it lost in the tragic It would seem that here is the opportunity to unite and unite to resist the enemy. But the ruling elite of the princes continued the strife, and in Novgorod, in the north, popular unrest broke out with renewed vigor. As a result - the further ruin of the principalities. First Ryazan, then - Vladimir-Suzdal. Kolomna, Moscow ... Having ruined Vladimir, Batu went to Novgorod, but before reaching, he turned south and went to the Polovtsian steppes - to replenish his strength. In 1240, the hordes of Batu ravaged Chernigov, Kyiv, entering Europe, the Mongol-Tatar warriors reached as far as the Adriatic. But later they stopped the war in these territories. And after - difficult times came on Russian soil. The two-hundred-year yoke was established within two decades after the invasion and meant the payment of tribute by all the conquered lands to the Tatar rulers. According to historians, it ended only in 1480.

Threat from the West

The difficult times on Russian soil were not limited to problems in the east and south in the 13th century. If there the invasions of the invaders were more of a punitive nature of the expeditions, then in the western part there were constant regular military attacks. Rus' opposed with all its might the Swedes, Lithuanians, Germans.

In 1239 he sent a large army against Novgorod. But in the same year, the Swedes were pushed back and defeated (Smolensk was taken). On the Neva also won. Prince Alexander of Novgorod, at the head of the squad, defeated the well-armed and trained Swedish army. For this victory, he was nicknamed Nevsky (at that time the hero was only 20 years old!). In 1242, the Germans were expelled from Pskov. And Alexander in the same year deals a crushing blow to the knightly troops in (Battle on the Ice). So many knights died that for another 10 years he did not risk attacking Russian lands. Although many battles of the Novgorodians were successful, they were still quite difficult, difficult times on Russian soil.

The world around (Grade 4)

Summing up, we can say, generalizing, that the entire 13th century was difficult both for the ruling princes-tops, and for the common people, who died and shed blood as a result of prolonged and numerous military operations. The Mongol yoke, of course, affected both the development of Russian statehood and the material well-being of cities forced to pay tribute.

And the battles with the Crusader Knights, due to their importance, are glorified in films and literature. This material can be used for the lesson

The history of Russia in the 13th century was marked mainly by the struggle against external invasions: the southwestern Russian lands were invaded by Batu Khan, and the North-Eastern was faced with danger coming from the Baltic.

By the beginning of the 13th century, it had a strong influence on the Baltic states, so the Polotsk land established close contacts with its inhabitants, which consisted mainly in collecting tribute from the local population. However, the Baltic lands also attracted German feudal lords, namely representatives of the German spiritual and knightly orders. The invasion of the German crusader knights (they were called so because they had an image of a cross on their clothes) into the southeastern Baltic began after the Vatican proclaimed a crusade to these lands.

In 1200, the crusaders, led by the monk Albert, captured the mouth of the Western Dvina, and a year later they founded the fortress of Riga, and Albert became the first archbishop of Riga. The Order of the Swordsmen was also subordinate to him (there was an image of a sword and a cross on the cloaks of these knights), which in Rus' was simply called the Order or the Livonian Order.

The population of the Baltics resisted the invaders, because. planting Catholicism with a sword, the crusaders exterminated the local residents. Rus', fearing the onset of the crusaders on their lands, helped the Baltic states, pursuing their own goals - to maintain influence on these lands. The local population supported the Russians, because. the tribute collected by the princes of Polotsk and Novgorod was preferable to the dominance of the German knights.

Meanwhile, Sweden and Denmark were active in the east of the Baltic. On the site of modern Tallinn, the Danes founded the Revel fortress, and the Swedes wanted to establish themselves on the coast of the Gulf of Finland, on the island of Saarema.

In 1240, a Swedish detachment under the command of one of the king's relatives appeared in the Gulf of Finland and, having passed along the Neva River, stood at the mouth of the Izhora River, where a temporary camp was set up. The appearance of the Swedes was unexpected for the Russians. At that time, the 19-year-old son of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, great-grandson, Alexander, ruled. During 1239, he built fortifications on the Shelon River, south of Novgorod, fearing an attack from this side by the Lithuanian prince Mindovg.

However, having received news of the attack by the Swedes, Alexander decided to go on a campaign with one squad. The Russians unexpectedly attacked the Swedish camp on July 15, 1240.

The Swedes were defeated and fled, having lost the opportunity to establish themselves on the banks of the Neva and Lake Ladoga, and Alexander Yaroslavovich received the nickname "Nevsky", with which he entered.

Nevertheless, the threat from the Livonian knights remained. In 1240, the Order captured (which became possible due to the betrayal of the posadnik) Izborsk, the Novgorod fortified settlement of Koporye. In Novgorod, the situation was complicated by the fact that after the battle on the Neva, Alexander quarreled with the Novgorod boyars and went to Pereyaslavl to his father. But soon the Novgorod veche again invites him to the throne in connection with the strengthening of the German threat. The decision of the boyars turned out to be correct, Alexander recaptured Koporye from the Order in 1241, and then. On April 5, 1242, the famous battle took place on the ice of Lake Peipus, which, due to the events that took place, was called the Battle of the Ice. Mother Nature came to the aid of the Russians. The Livonian knights were clad in metal armor, while the Russian soldiers were protected by plank armor. As a result, the April ice simply collapsed under the weight of the Livonian horsemen clad in armor.

After the victory on Lake Peipus, the Order abandoned attempts to conquer Russian lands and plant the "true faith" in Rus'. went down in history as a defender of Orthodoxy. The Mongols, unlike the German knights, were religiously tolerant and did not interfere in the religious life of the Russians. That is why the Orthodox Church perceived the Western danger so keenly.

In 1247 Prince Yaroslav, the son of Vsevolod the Big Nest, dies. The throne was inherited by his brother Svyatoslav. However, the sons of Yaroslav - Alexander Nevsky and Andrei are not satisfied with the state of affairs and come to the Horde to receive a label for reigning. As a result, Alexander receives the great reign of Kiev and Novgorod, and Andrei - the principality. Svyatoslav tried to defend his rights, but achieved nothing and died in 1252.

In the same year, already Alexander, dissatisfied with such a division of power, comes to the Horde to inform the khan that Andrei is withholding part of the tribute from him. As a result, the Mongol punitive troops moved to Rus', which invaded Pereyaslavl-Zalessky and Galicia-Volyn land. Andrei fled to Sweden, and Alexander became the Grand Duke.

During his reign, Alexander sought to prevent anti-Mongolian uprisings. In 1264 the prince dies.

The great reign was in the hands of the younger brothers of the prince - Yaroslav of Tver, and then Vasily Kostroma. In 1277, Vasily dies, and the son of Alexander Nevsky, Dmitry Pereyaslavsky, receives the Vladimir principality. But after 4 years, his brother Andrei Gorodetsky receives a label from the Khan for reigning and drives Dmitry out of Vladimir. A fierce struggle for reign begins between the brothers.

In order to gain the upper hand over each other, the brothers turned to the help of the Mongols, as a result, during their reign (for 1277-1294), 14 cities were devastated (the Pereyaslav principality, the patrimony of Dmitry, was especially hard hit), many areas of North-Eastern Rus', the environs of Novgorod.

In 1294 Dmitry Alexandrovich died. After 8 years, his son Ivan died childless. Pereyaslavl passed to the youngest of the sons of Alexander Nevsky - Daniil of Moscow.

Thus, the 13th century in the history of Russia is one of the bloodiest centuries. Rus' had to fight simultaneously with all the enemies - with the Mongols, with the German knights, and besides, it was torn apart by internal strife of the heirs. For 1275-1300. the Mongols made fifteen campaigns against Rus', as a result, the Pereyaslavl and Gorodetsky principalities weakened, and the leading role was transferred to new centers - and.

The Russian state, formed on the border of Europe with Asia, which reached its peak in the 10th - early 11th centuries, has always been distinguished by its mentality: unity, strength and courage. The people have always united against the enemy. But at the beginning of the 12th century, as a natural stage in the development of the country, it broke up into many principalities in the course of feudal fragmentation. The reason for this was, firstly, the feudal mode of production, and, secondly, the formation of almost independent politics, economics and other areas of individual principalities. The communication of the princes almost ceased, the lands became isolated. The external defense of the Russian land was especially weakened. Now the princes of individual principalities pursued their own separate policy, taking into account, first of all, the interests of the local feudal nobility and entered into endless internecine wars. This led to the loss of centralized control and to a strong weakening of the state as a whole. It was during this period that the Mongol-Tatars invaded the Russians, who were not prepared for a long and strong confrontation with opponents, lands.

Background of the campaign of the Tatars to Rus'

At kurultai 1204 - 1205 the Mongols were tasked with the conquest of world domination. Northern China was already in the hands of the Mongols. Having won and realizing their military power, they wanted more significant conquests and victories. And now, without stopping and without deviating from the outlined path, they went to the west. Soon, after some events, their military mission was more clearly defined. The Mongols decided to conquer the big and rich, as they believed, Western countries, and first of all Rus'. They understood that in order to accomplish this task, they first needed to take the small, weak peoples located near Rus' and on its borders. So what served as the main prerequisites for the Mongol-Tatars' campaign against Rus' and further, to the west?

Battle on the Kalka

Moving west, in 1219 the Mongols first defeated the Central Asian Khorezmians, then advanced into Northern Iran. In 1221, the army of Genghis Khan, under the leadership of his best commanders Jebe and Subede, invaded Azerbaijan, and then received an order to cross the Caucasus. Pursuing their old enemies, the Alans (Ossetians), who were hiding with the Polovtsians, both commanders had to hit the latter and return home bypassing the Caspian Sea.

In 1222, the Mongol army moved into the lands of the Polovtsians. The battle on the Don took place, in which their army defeated the main forces of the Polovtsians. At the beginning of 1223, she invaded the Crimea, where she captured the ancient Byzantine city of Surozh (Sudak). The Polovtsy fled to Rus' to ask for help. But the Russian princes did not trust their old opponents and met their request with doubt. And they perceived the appearance of a new Mongol army on the border of Rus' as a way out of the steppe of another weak horde of nomads. Therefore, only a small part of the Russian princes came to the aid of the Polovtsy. A small but strong Russian-Polovtsian army was formed, ready to defeat the still unprecedented Mongolian one.

On May 31, 1223, the Russian-Polovtsian army reached the Kalka River. There they were met by a powerful onslaught of the Mongol cavalry. Already at the beginning of the battle, part of the Russians could not resist the skillful Mongol archers and ran. Even the furious onslaught of the squad of Mstislav the Udaly, who almost broke through the battle lines of the Mongols, ended in failure. The Polovtsian troops turned out to be very unstable in battle: the Polovtsians could not withstand the blow of the Mongol cavalry and fled, upsetting the battle formations of the Russian squads. Even one of the strongest Russian princes, Mstislav of Kiev, never went into battle with his numerous and well-armed regiment. He died ingloriously, surrendering to the Mongols surrounding him. The Mongolian cavalry pursued the remnants of the Russian squads to the Dnieper. The rest of the Russian-Polovtsian squad tried to fight to the last. But in the end, the Mongol army won. The Russian soldiers were slaughtered. The Mongols themselves put the princes under a wooden platform and crushed them, arranging a festive banquet on it.

Russian losses in the battle were very high. The Mongolian army, already exhausted by battles in Central Asia and the Caucasus, was able to defeat even the elite Russian regiments of Mstislav the Udaly, which speaks of its military strength and power. In the Battle of Kalka, the Mongols first encountered Russian methods of warfare. This battle showed the advantage of Mongolian military traditions over European ones: collective discipline over individual heroism, well-trained archers over heavy cavalry and infantry. These tactical differences became the key to the Mongol success on the Kalka, and subsequently the lightning conquest of Eastern and Central Europe.

For Rus', the battle on the Kalka turned into a disaster, "which has never happened." The historical center of the country - the southern and central Russian lands lost their princes and army. Fifteen years before the start of the Mongol invasion of Rus', these territories were never able to restore their potential. The battle turned out to be a harbinger of the hard times that befell Kievan Rus during the Mongol invasion.

Kurultai 1235

In 1235, the Mongols held another kurultai, at which they decided on a new conquest campaign in Europe, "to the last sea." After all, according to their information, Rus' was located there, and it was famous for its numerous riches.

All of Mongolia began to prepare for a new grandiose conquest campaign against the West. The army was carefully prepared. The best military leaders, a number of Mongol princes, were involved. A new khan, the son of Genghis Khan Jochi, was put at the head of the campaign. But in 1227 they both died, so the trip to Europe was entrusted to the son of Jochi - Batu. The new Great Khan Udegei sent troops from Mongolia to reinforce Batu under the command of one of the best commanders - the wise old Subede, who participated in the battle on Kalka, to conquer the Volga Bulgaria and Rus'. As always, Mongolian intelligence was at the highest level. With the help of merchants who traded along the Great Silk Road (from China to Spain), all the necessary information was collected about the state of the Russian lands, about the routes leading to the cities, about the size of the Russian army, and many other information. After that, it was decided to first completely defeat the Polovtsy and the Volga Bulgars in order to secure the rear, and then attack Rus'.

Campaign to the North-Eastern Rus'. On the way to Rus'

The Mongol-Tatars headed towards the southeast of Europe. In the autumn of 1236 their main forces, which came from Mongolia, united with the detachments of Jochi sent to help within Bulgaria. In the late autumn of 1236, the Mongols began to conquer it. “Toe of the autumn,” as the Laurentian Chronicle says, “come from the eastern countries to the Bulgarian land of the godlessness of the Tatars, and taking the glorious Great City of Bulgaria and beating with weapons from the old man and to the unago and to the existing baby, and taking a lot of goods, and burning their city with fire, and capturing their whole land.” Eastern sources also report the complete defeat of Bulgaria. Rashid-ad-Din ("In that winter") writes that the Mongols "reached the city of Bulgar the Great and its other regions, defeated the army there and forced them to submit." Volga Bulgaria was terribly devastated. Almost all of its cities were destroyed. Rural areas were also massively devastated. In the basin of the Berda and Aktai rivers, almost all settlements were destroyed.

By the spring of 1237, the conquest of the Volga Bulgaria was completed. A large Mongol army led by Subede moved to the Caspian steppes, where the war with the Polovtsy, which began back in 1230, continued.

The first blow in the spring of 1237 was dealt by the Mongols to the Polovtsy and Alans. From the Lower Volga, the Mongol troops moved "in a raid, and the country that fell into it was captured, marching in formation." The Mongol-Tatars crossed the Caspian steppes on a wide front and united somewhere in the Lower Don region. The Polovtsians and Alans suffered a strong, crushing blow.

The next stage of the war of 1237 in South-Eastern Europe was a blow to the Burtases, Moksha and Mordovians. The conquest of the Mordovian lands, as well as the lands of the Burtases and Arjans, ended in the autumn of the same year.

The campaign of 1237 was aimed at preparing a bridgehead for the invasion of North-Eastern Rus'. The Mongols dealt a strong blow to the Polovtsians and Alans, pushing the Polovtsian nomad camps to the west, beyond the Don, and conquered the lands of the Burtases, Mokshas and Mordovians, after which preparations began for a campaign against Rus'.

In the autumn of 1237, the Mongol-Tatars began preparations for a winter campaign against North-Eastern Rus'. Rashid-ad-Din reports that "in the autumn of the mentioned year (1237), all the princes who were there held a kurultai and, by common agreement, went to war against the Russians." This kurultai was attended by both the Mongol khans who smashed the lands of the Burtases, Mokshas and Mordovians, as well as the khans who fought in the south with the Polovtsians and Alans. All the forces of the Mongol-Tatars gathered to march on North-Eastern Rus'. The lower reaches of the Voronezh River became the place of concentration of the Mongolian troops in the autumn of 1237. Mongol detachments approached here, ending the war with the Polovtsians and Alans. The Tatars were ready for an important and difficult offensive against the Russian state.

Campaign to the North-East of Rus'

In December 1237, Batu's troops appeared on the frozen rivers Sura, Voronezh, a tributary of the Volga and Don. Winter opened the way for them along the ice of the rivers to North-Eastern Rus'.

“An unheard-of army came, the godless Moabites, and their name is Tatars, but no one knows who they are and where they came from, and what their language is, and what tribe they are, and what kind of faith they are. And some speak taurmen, and others - Pechenegs. With these words begins the chronicle of the invasion of the Mongol-Tatars on Russian soil.

Ryazan land

At the beginning of the winter of 1237, the Mongol-Tatars moved from the Voronezh River along the eastern edge of the forests stretching in its floodplain to the borders of the Ryazan principality. Along this path, covered by forests from the Ryazan guard posts, the Mongol-Tatars silently passed to the middle reaches of the Lesnoy and Polny Voronezh. But there they were noticed by the Ryazan sentinels and from that moment came into the field of view of the Russian chroniclers. Another group of Mongols also approached here. Here their rather long parking took place, during which the troops were arranged and prepared for the campaign.

The Russian troops could not oppose anything to the strong Mongol detachments. The strife and strife between the princes did not allow united forces to be put up against Batu. The princes of Vladimir and Chernigov refused to help Ryazan.

Approaching the Ryazan land, Batu demanded from the Ryazan princes a tenth of everything that was in the city. In the hope of reaching an agreement with Batu, the Ryazan prince sent an embassy to him with rich gifts. The Khan accepted the gifts, but put forward humiliating and impudent demands: in addition to a huge tribute, to give princely sisters and daughters as wives to the Mongol nobility. And for himself personally, he looked after the beautiful Evpraksinya, Fedor's wife. The Russian prince responded with a decisive refusal and, together with the ambassadors, was executed. And the beautiful princess, together with her little son, in order not to get to the conquerors, rushed down from the high bell tower. The Ryazan army moved to the Voronezh River in order to strengthen the garrisons on the fortified lines and not let the Tatars deep into the Ryazan land. However, the Ryazan squads did not have time to reach Voronezh. Batu rapidly invaded the Ryazan principality. Somewhere on the outskirts of Ryazan, a battle took place between the united Ryazan army and the hordes of Batu. The battle, in which the Ryazan, Murom and Pronsk squads participated, was stubborn and bloody. 12 times the Russian squad left the encirclement, “one Ryazan fought with a thousand, and two with darkness (ten thousand)” - this is how the chronicle writes about this battle. But Batu's superiority in strength was great, the Ryazan army suffered heavy losses.

After the defeat of the Ryazan squads, the Mongol-Tatars immediately moved deep into the Ryazan principality. They passed through the space between Ranova and Pron, and went down the Pron River, destroying the cities of Pron. On December 16, the Mongol-Tatars approached Ryazan. The siege has begun. Ryazan held out for 5 days, on the sixth day, on the morning of December 21, it was taken. The entire city was destroyed and all the inhabitants were exterminated. The Mongol-Tatars left behind only ashes. The Ryazan prince and his family also perished. The surviving residents of the Ryazan land gathered a squad (about 1700 people), headed by Evpaty Kolovrat. They caught up with the enemy in the Suzdal land and began to wage partisan struggle against him, inflicting heavy losses on the Mongols.

Vladimir principality

Now in front of Batu lay several roads into the depths of the Vladimir-Suzdal land. Since Batu was faced with the task of conquering all of Rus' in one winter, he went to Vladimir along the Oka, through Moscow and Kolomna. The invasion came close to the borders of the Vladimir principality. Grand Duke Yuri Vsevolodovich, who at one time refused to help the Ryazan princes, himself was in danger.

“And Batu went to Suzdal and Vladimir, intending to captivate the Russian land, and uproot the Christian faith, and destroy the churches of God to the ground,” the Russian chronicle writes. Batu knew that the troops of the Vladimir and Chernigov princes were coming against him, and he expected to meet them somewhere in the region of Moscow or Kolomna. And he turned out to be right.

The Laurentian Chronicle writes as follows: “The Tatars surrounded them at Kolomna, and fought hard, there was a great slaughter, they killed Prince Roman and the governor Yeremey, and Vsevolod with a small retinue ran to Vladimir.” In this battle, the Vladimir army perished. Having defeated the Vladimir regiments near Kolomna, Batu approached Moscow, quickly took and burned the city in mid-January, and killed or took the inhabitants prisoner.

On February 4, 1238, the Mongol-Tatars approached Vladimir. The capital of North-Eastern Rus', the city of Vladimir, surrounded by new walls with powerful stone gate towers, was a strong fortress. From the south it was covered by the Klyazma River, from the east and north by the Lybed River with steep banks and ravines.

By the time of the siege, the situation in the city was very disturbing. Prince Vsevolod Yurievich brought the news of the defeat of the Russian regiments near Kolomna. New troops had not yet gathered, and there was no time to wait for them, since the Mongol-Tatars were already close to Vladimir. Under these conditions, Yuri Vsevolodovich decided to leave part of the collected troops for the defense of the city, and he himself went to the north and continued to collect troops. After the departure of the Grand Duke, a small part of the troops remained in Vladimir, headed by the governor and the sons of Yuri - Vsevolod and Mstislav.

Batu approached Vladimir on February 4 from the most vulnerable side, from the west, where a flat field lay in front of the Golden Gate. The Mongol detachment, leading Prince Vladimir Yurievich taken prisoner during the defeat of Moscow, appeared in front of the Golden Gate and demanded the voluntary surrender of the city. After the refusal of the Vladimirites, the Tatars killed the captured prince in front of his brothers. To inspect the fortifications of Vladimir, part of the Tatar detachments traveled around the city, and the main forces of Batu camped in front of the Golden Gate. The siege began.

Before the assault on Vladimir, the Tatar detachment defeated the city of Suzdal. This short trip is quite understandable. Starting the siege of the capital, the Tatars learned about the exit of Yuri Vsevolodovich from the city with part of the army and were afraid of a sudden blow. And the most likely direction of the blow of the Russian prince could be Suzdal, which covered the road from Vladimir to the north along the Nerl River. Yuri Vsevolodovich could rely on this fortress, which was only 30 km from the capital.

Suzdal was left almost without defenders and was deprived of its main water cover, due to winter time. That is why the city was taken by the Mongol-Tatars at once. Suzdal was plundered and burned, its population was killed or taken into captivity. Also, settlements and monasteries in the vicinity of the city were destroyed.

At this time, preparations for the assault on Vladimir continued. To intimidate the defenders of the city, the conquerors led thousands of prisoners under the walls. On the eve of the general assault, the Russian princes who led the defense fled the city. On February 6, the Mongol-Tatar wall-beating vehicles broke through the walls of Vladimir in several places, but on this day the Russian defenders managed to repulse the assault and did not let them into the city.

The next day, early in the morning, the wall-beating guns of the Mongol-Tatars still broke through the city wall. A little later, the fortifications of the "New City" were broken through in several more places. By the middle of the day on February 7, the "New City", engulfed in fire, was captured by the Mongol-Tatars. The defenders who survived fled to the middle, "Pecherny city". Pursuing them, the Mongol-Tatars entered the "Middle City". And again, the Mongol-Tatars immediately broke through the stone walls of the Vladimir citadel and set it on fire. It was the last stronghold of the defenders of the Vladimir capital. Many residents, including the princely family, took refuge in the Assumption Cathedral, but the fire overtook them there too. The fire destroyed the most valuable monuments of literature and art. Numerous temples of the city turned into ruins.

The fierce resistance of the defenders of Vladimir, despite the significant numerical superiority of the Mongol-Tatars and the flight from the city of princes, caused great damage to the Mongol-Tatars. Eastern sources, reporting on the capture of Vladimir, create a picture of a long and stubborn battle. Rashid ad-Din says that the Mongols “took the city of Yuri the Great in 8 days. They (besieged) fought fiercely. Mengu Khan personally performed heroic deeds until he defeated them.

Hike deep into Rus'

After the capture of Vladimir, the Mongol-Tatars began to smash the cities of the Vladimir-Suzdal land. This stage of the campaign is characterized by the death of most cities in the interfluve of the Klyazma and the Upper Volga.

In February 1238, the conquerors moved from the capital in several large detachments along the main river and trade routes, destroying the urban centers of resistance.

The campaigns of the Mongol-Tatars in February 1238 were aimed at defeating the cities - centers of resistance, as well as the destruction of the remnants of the Vladimir troops, which were collected by the fled Yuri Vsevolodovich. They also had to cut off the grand-princely "camp" from Southern Rus' and Novgorod, from where reinforcements could be expected. Solving these tasks, the Mongolian detachments moved from Vladimir in three main directions: to the north - to Rostov, to the east - to the Middle Volga (to Gorodets), to the north-west - to Tver and Torzhok.

The main forces of Batu went from Vladimir to the north to defeat the Grand Duke Yuri Vsevolodovich. The Tatar army passed on the ice of the Nerl River and, not reaching Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, turned north, to Lake Nero. Rostov was abandoned by the prince and his retinue, so he surrendered without a fight.

From Rostov, the Mongol troops went in two directions: a large army headed north along the ice of the Ustye River and further along the plain to Uglich, and another large detachment moved along the Kotorosl River to Yaroslavl. These directions of movement of the Tatar detachments from Rostov are quite understandable. Through Uglich lay the shortest road to the tributaries of the Mologa, to the City, where Grand Duke Yuri Vsevolodovich was encamped. The campaign to Yaroslavl and further along the Volga to Kostroma through the rich cities of the Volga cut off Yuri Vsevolodovich's retreat to the Volga and provided somewhere in the Kostroma region a meeting with another Tatar detachment moving up the Volga from Gorodets.

The chroniclers do not report any details of the capture of Yaroslavl, Kostroma and other cities along the Volga. Only on the basis of archaeological data can we assume that Yaroslavl was badly damaged and could not recover for a long time. There is even less information about the capture of Kostroma. Kostroma, apparently, was the place where the Tatar detachments met, who came from Yaroslavl and Gorodets. Chroniclers report on the campaigns of the Tatar detachments even to Vologda.

The Mongolian detachment, which was moving from Vladimir to the northwest, was the first to meet the city of Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, a strong fortress on the shortest waterway from the Klyazma River basin to Novgorod. A large Tatar army along the Nerl River approached Pereyaslavl in mid-February and, after a five-day siege, took the city by storm.

From Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, the Tatar detachments moved in several directions. According to the chronicle, some of them went to the aid of the Tatar Khan Burundai to Rostov. Another part joined the Tatar rati, which had turned from the Nerl to Yuryev even earlier. The rest of the troops on the ice of Lake Pleshcheev and the Nerl River moved to Ksnyatin in order to cut the Volga route. The Tatar army, moving along the Nerl to the Volga, took Ksnyatin and quickly moved up the Volga to Tver and Torzhok. Another Mongol army captured Yuryev and went further west, through Dmitrov, Volokolamsky and Tver to Torzhok. Near Tver, the Tatar troops connected with the detachments rising up the Volga from Ksnyatin.

As a result of the February campaigns of 1238, the Mongol-Tatars destroyed Russian cities on a vast territory, from the Middle Volga to Tver.

Battle of the City

By the beginning of March 1238, the Mongol-Tatar detachments, which were pursuing the Prince of Vladimir Yuri Vsevolodovich, who had fled from the city, reached the border of the Upper Volga on a wide front. Grand Duke Yuri Vsevolodovich, who was gathering troops in a camp on the City River, found himself in the vicinity of the Tatar army. A large Tatar army moved from Uglich and Kashin to the City River. On the morning of March 4, they were at the river. Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich was never able to muster sufficient forces. A fight ensued. Despite the suddenness of the attack and the large numerical superiority of the Tatar army, the battle was stubborn and prolonged. But still, the army of the Vladimir prince could not withstand the blow of the Tatar cavalry and fled. As a result, the Russian army was defeated, the Grand Duke himself died. The historical source Rashid ad-Din did not attach much importance to the battle in the City, in his view it was just a pursuit of the prince who had fled and was hiding in the forests.

Siege of Torzhok

Almost simultaneously with the battle on the City, in March 1238, the city of Torzhok, a fortress on the southern borders of Novgorod land, was taken by a Tatar detachment. The city was a transit point for wealthy Novgorod merchants and merchants from Vladimir and Ryazan, who supplied Novgorod with bread. There were always large stocks of grain in Torzhok. Here the Mongols hoped to replenish their fodder supplies, which had become depleted over the winter.

Torzhok occupied an advantageous strategic position: it blocked the shortest route from the "Nizovsky Land" to Novgorod along the Tvertsa River. The defensive earthen rampart on the Borisoglebskaya side of Torzhok had a height of 6 sazhens. However, in winter conditions, this important advantage of the city largely disappeared, but still Torzhok was a serious obstacle on the way to Novgorod and delayed the Mongol-Tatar offensive for a long time.

The Tatars approached Torzhok on February 22. There was neither a prince nor a princely squad in the city, and the posad population, headed by elected posadniks, took on the entire burden of defense. After a two-week siege and the continuous work of the Tatar siege engines, the city people weakened. Finally, Torzhok, exhausted by a two-week siege, fell. The city was subjected to a terrible defeat, most of its inhabitants died.

Campaign to Novgorod

Regarding Batu's campaign against Novgorod, historians usually say that significant forces of the Mongol-Tatars had concentrated near Torzhok by this time. And only the Mongol troops, weakened from continuous battles, due to the approach of spring with its thaw and floods, were forced to return, not having reached 100 miles to Novgorod.

However, the chroniclers report that the Mongol-Tatars headed for Novgorod immediately after the capture of Torzhok, pursuing the surviving defenders of the city. Taking into account the location at that time of all the Mongol-Tatar troops, it can be reasonably assumed that only a small separate detachment of the Tatar cavalry was moving towards Novgorod. Therefore, his campaign did not have the goal of taking the city: it was a simple pursuit of a defeated enemy, common to the tactics of the Mongol-Tatars.

After the capture of Torzhok, the Mongol-Tatar detachment began to pursue the defenders of the city who had left the encirclement by the Seliger route further. But, before reaching Novgorod a hundred miles, this cavalry Mongol-Tatar detachment connected with the main forces of Batu.

And yet, the turn from Novgorod is usually explained by spring floods. In addition, in the 4-month battles with the Russians, the Mongol-Tatars suffered huge losses, and Batu's troops were scattered. So the Mongol-Tatars did not even try to attack Novgorod in the spring of 1238.

Kozelsk

After Torzhok, Batu turns south. He passed through the entire territory of Rus', using the tactics of a hunting round-up. In the upper reaches of the Oka, the Mongols met fierce resistance from the small fortress of Kozelsk. Despite the fact that the city prince Vasilko Konstantinovich was still too small, and despite the fact that the Mongols demanded to surrender the city, the Kozel residents decided to defend themselves. The heroic defense of Kozelsk continued for seven weeks. The Kozelchans destroyed about 4 thousand Mongols, but they could not defend the city. Bringing siege equipment to him, the Mongol troops destroyed the city walls and entered Kozelsk. Batu did not spare anyone, despite his age, he killed the entire population in the city. He ordered the city to be destroyed to the ground, plowed up the ground and covered with salt so that it could never recover again. Prince Vasilko Konstantinovich, according to legend, drowned in blood. The city of Kozelsk Batu called "evil town". From Kozelsk, the combined forces of the Mongol-Tatars, without stopping, moved south to the Polovtsian steppes.

Mongol-Tatars in the Polovtsian steppes

The stay of the Mongol-Tatars in the Polovtsian steppes from the summer of 1238 to the autumn of 1240. is one of the least studied periods of the invasion. In historical sources, there is an opinion that this period of the invasion is the time of the retreat of the Mongols to the steppes for rest, the restoration of regiments and the horse army after a hard winter campaign in North-Eastern Rus'. The entire time of the Mongol-Tatars' stay in the Polovtsian steppes is perceived as a break in the invasion, filled with recuperation and preparation for a big campaign to the West.

However, Eastern sources describe this period in a completely different way: the entire period of Batu's stay in the Polovtsian steppes is filled with continuous wars with the Polovtsians, Alans and Circassians, numerous invasions of Russian frontier cities, and suppression of popular uprisings.

Hostilities began in the autumn of 1238. A large Mongol-Tatar army headed for the land of the Circassians, beyond the Kuban. Almost simultaneously, a war began with the Polovtsy, whom the Mongol-Tatars had previously driven out beyond the Don. The war with the Polovtsy was long and bloody, a huge number of Polovtsy were killed. As the annals write, all the forces of the Tatars were thrown into the fight against the Polovtsy, so it was peaceful in Rus' at that time.

In 1239, the Mongol-Tatars stepped up military operations against the Russian principalities. Their campaigns fell upon the lands that were located next to the Polovtsian steppes, and were carried out in order to expand the land they had conquered.

In winter, a large Mongol army moved north, to the region of Mordva and Murom. During this campaign, the Mongol-Tatars suppressed the uprising of the Mordovian tribes, took and destroyed Murom, devastated the lands along the Lower Klyazma and reached Nizhny Novgorod.

In the steppes between the Northern Donets and the Dnieper, the war of the Mongol troops with the Polovtsians continued. In the spring of 1239, one of the Tatar detachments that approached the Dnieper defeated the city of Pereyaslavl, a strong fortress on the borders of Southern Rus'.

This capture was one of the stages in the preparation of a large campaign to the west. The next campaign had the goal of defeating Chernigov and the cities along the Lower Desna and the Seim, since the Chernigov-Seversk land had not yet been conquered and threatened the right flank of the Mongol-Tatar army.

Chernihiv was a well-fortified city. Three defensive lines protected him from enemies. The geographical position near the borders of the Russian land and active participation in internecine wars created in Rus' an opinion about Chernigov as a city famous for a large number of soldiers and a courageous population.

Mongol-Tatars appeared within the Chernigov Principality in the autumn of 1239, invaded these lands from the southeast and surrounded them. A fierce battle began on the walls of the city. The defenders of Chernigov, as the Lavrentiev Chronicle describes, threw heavy stones at the Tatars from the walls of the city. After a fierce battle on the walls, the enemies broke into the city. Taking it, the Tatars beat the local population, robbed the monasteries and set fire to the city.

From Chernigov, the Mongol-Tatars moved east along the Desna and further along the Seim. There they destroyed numerous cities built to protect against nomads (Putivl, Glukhov, Vyr, Rylsk, etc.), and devastated the countryside. Then the Mongol army turned south, to the upper reaches of the Northern Donets.

The last Mongol-Tatar campaign in 1239 was the conquest of the Crimea. Defeated by the Mongols in the Black Sea steppes, the Polovtsy fled here, to the steppes of the northern Crimea and further to the sea. Pursuing them, the Mongol troops came to the Crimea. The city was taken.

Thus, during 1239, the Mongol-Tatars defeated the remnants of the Polovtsian tribes that they had not conquered, made significant campaigns in the Mordovian and Murom lands, conquered almost the entire Left Bank of the Dnieper and the Crimea. Now the Tatar possessions came close to the borders of Southern Rus'. The southwestern direction of Rus' was the next object for the Mongol invasion.

Campaign to South-Western Rus'. Preparing for a hike

At the beginning of 1240, in winter, the Mongol army approached Kyiv. This campaign can be regarded as reconnaissance of the area before the start of hostilities. Since the Tatars did not have the strength to take fortified Kyiv, they limited themselves to reconnaissance and a short throw to the right bank of the Dnieper to pursue the retreating Kyiv prince Mikhail Vsevolodovich. Having captured the "full", the Tatars turned back.

In the spring of 1240, a significant army was moved south along the Caspian coast to Derbent. This advance to the south, to the Caucasus, was not accidental. The forces of the Juchi ulus, partially released after the campaign against North-Eastern Rus', were used to complete the conquest operation of the Caucasus. Previously, the Mongols continuously attacked the Caucasus from the south: in 1236, the Mongol troops devastated Georgia and Armenia; 1238 conquered the lands between the Kura and the Araks; in 1239 they captured Kars and the city of Ani, the former capital of Armenia. The troops of the ulus of Jochi took part in the general Mongol offensive into the Caucasus with strikes from the north. The peoples of the North Caucasus offered stubborn resistance to the conquerors.

By the autumn of 1240, preparations for a large campaign to the west were completed. The Mongols conquered areas that were not conquered in the campaign of 1237-38, suppressed popular uprisings in the Mordovian lands and Volga Bulgaria, occupied the Crimea and the North Caucasus, destroyed the Russian fortified cities on the left bank of the Dnieper (Pereyaslavl, Chernigov) and came close to Kiev. It was the first point of attack.

Campaign to the southwest of Rus'

In historical literature, the presentation of the facts of Batu's campaign against South Rus' usually begins with the siege of Kyiv. He, "the mother of Russian cities", was the first major city on the path of a new invasion of the Mongols. The bridgehead for the invasion of it was already prepared: Pereyaslavl, the only large city that covered the approaches to Kyiv from this side, was taken and destroyed in the spring of 1239.

The news of the impending campaign of Batu reached Kyiv. However, despite the immediate danger of invasion, in Southern Rus' there were no noticeable attempts to unite to repel the enemy. Princely strife continued. Kyiv was actually left to its own forces. He received no help from other South Russian principalities.

Batu began the invasion in the autumn of 1240, again gathering all the people devoted to himself under his command. In November, he approached Kyiv, the Tatar army surrounded the city. Spread out on high hills above the Dnieper, the great city was heavily fortified. The powerful ramparts of Yaroslav's city covered Kyiv from the east, south and west. Kyiv resisted the incoming enemies in full force. Kievans defended every street, every house. But, nevertheless, with the help of powerful battering rams and rapids, on December 6, 1240, the city fell. It was terribly devastated, most of the buildings perished in a fire, the inhabitants were killed by the Tatars. Kyiv lost its importance as a major urban center for a long time.

Now, after the capture of the great Kyiv, the way to all the centers of Southern Rus' and Eastern Europe was open for the Mongol-Tatars. Now it's Europe's turn.

Exit Batu from Rus'

From the destroyed Kyiv, the Mongol-Tatars moved further west, in the general direction to Vladimir-Volynsky. In December 1240, under the onslaught of the Mongol-Tatar troops, the cities along Sredny Teterev were abandoned by the population and garrisons. Most of the Bolokhov cities also surrendered without a fight. Tatars confidently, without turning, went to the west. On the way, they met strong resistance from small towns on the outskirts of Rus'. Archaeological studies of the settlements in this area recreate a picture of the heroic defense and the death of fortified towns under the blows of superior Mongol-Tatar forces. Vladimir-Volynsky was also taken by the Mongols by storm after a short siege. The final point of the “raid”, where the Mongol-Tatar detachments united after the devastation of South-Western Rus', was the city of Galich. After the Tatar pogrom, Galich became deserted.

As a result, having defeated the Galician and Volyn lands, Batu left the Russian lands. In 1241 a campaign began in Poland and Hungary. The whole campaign of Batu in South Rus' thus took very little time. With the departure of the troops of the Mongol-Tatars abroad, the campaign of the Mongol-Tatars to the Russian lands ended.

Coming out of Rus', Batu's troops invade the states of Europe, where they terrify and fear the inhabitants. In Europe, it was stated that the Mongols had escaped from hell, and everyone was waiting for the end of the world. But Rus' still resisted. In 1241 Batu returned to Rus'. In 1242, in the lower reaches of the Volga, he set up his new capital - Sarai-bata. At the end of the 13th century, after the creation of the state of the Golden Horde by Batu, the Horde yoke was established in Rus'.

Establishing a yoke in Rus'

The campaign of the Mongol-Tatars to the Russian lands ended. Rus' was in devastation after a terrible invasion, but gradually it begins to recover, normal life is restored. The surviving princes return to their capitals. The dispersed population is gradually returning to the Russian lands. Cities are being restored, villages and villages are populated in a new way.

In the first years after the invasion, the Russian princes were more worried about their destroyed cities, were engaged in their restoration, and the distribution of princely tables. To a lesser extent now they were worried about the problem of establishing any relations with the Mongols-Tatars. The invasion of the Tatars did not have a great influence on the interpersonal relations of the princes: in the capital of the country, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich sat on the grand prince's throne, and transferred the rest of the lands to his younger brothers.

But the peace of Rus' was broken again when the Mongol-Tatars, after a campaign against Central Europe, appeared on Russian lands. Before the Russian princes, the question arose of establishing some kind of relationship with the conquerors. Touching upon the issue of further relations with the Tatars, the problem of disputes between the princes arose: opinions differed in further actions. The cities captured by the Mongol armies were in a terrible ruined state. Some cities were completely burned out. Temples, churches, cultural monuments were destroyed, also burned. To restore the city before the time of the Mongol invasion, huge forces, funds and time were needed. The Russian people had no strength: neither to restore cities, nor to fight the Tatars. The opposition was joined by strong and wealthy cities in the northwestern and western outskirts, which were not subjected to the Mongol invasion (Novgorod, Pskov, Polotsk, Minsk, Vitebsk, Smolensk). They, accordingly, opposed the recognition of dependence on the Horde khans. They did not suffer, retaining their lands, wealth and armies.

The existence of these two groups - the northwestern one, which opposed the recognition of dependence on the Horde, and the Rostov group, which was inclined to establish peaceful relations with the conquerors - largely determined the policy of the Grand Prince of Vladimir. In the first decade after the invasion of Batu, it was ambivalent. But the people of northeastern Rus' did not have the strength to openly resist the conquerors, which made it inevitable that Rus' was dependent on the Golden Horde khans.

In addition, a significant circumstance influenced the decision of the prince: the voluntary recognition of the power of the Horde Khan provided the Grand Duke personally with certain advantages in the struggle for subordinating other Russian princes to his influence. In the case of non-recognition of the dependence of the Russian land on the Horde, the prince could be overthrown from his grand prince's table. But on the other hand, the prince's decision was influenced by the existence of a strong opposition to the Horde authorities in North-Western Rus' and the repeated promises of military assistance from the West against the Mongol-Tatars. These circumstances could arouse hope, under certain conditions, to resist the claims of the conquerors. In addition, in Rus', the masses constantly opposed the foreign yoke, with whom the Grand Duke could not ignore. As a result, a formal recognition of Rus''s dependence on the Golden Horde was proclaimed. But the fact of recognition of this power did not mean in reality the establishment of a foreign yoke over the country.

The first decade after the invasion is the period when the foreign yoke was just taking shape. At that time, in Rus', the people's forces were fighting for Tatar rule, and so far they were winning.

The Russian princes, recognizing their dependence on the Mongol-Tatars, tried to establish relations with them, for which they often visited the Horde Khan. Following the Grand Duke, other princes reached out to the Horde “about their fatherland”. Probably, the trip of the Russian princes to the Horde was somehow connected with the formalization of tributary relations.

Meanwhile, strife continued in North-Eastern Rus'. And among the princes, two oppositions stood out: for and against dependence on the Golden Horde.

But in general, at the beginning of the 50s of the 13th century, a rather strong anti-Tatar group was formed in Rus', ready to resist the conquerors.

However, the policy of Grand Duke Andrei Yaroslavich, aimed at organizing resistance to the Tatars, collided with the foreign policy of Alexander Yaroslavich, who considered it necessary to maintain peaceful relations with the Horde in order to restore the strength of the Russian princes and prevent new Tatar campaigns.

It was possible to prevent new Tatar invasions by establishing peaceful relations with the Horde, that is, by recognizing its power. Under these conditions, the Russian princes made a certain compromise with the Mongol-Tatars. They recognized the supreme power of the khan and donated part of the feudal rent to the Mongol-Tatar feudal lords. In return, the Russian princes received confidence in the absence of the danger of a new invasion from the Mongols, and they also more firmly established themselves on their princely throne. The princes who opposed the power of the khan risked losing their power, which, with the help of the Mongol khan, could pass to another Russian prince. The Horde khans, in turn, were also interested in an agreement with the local princes, as they received an additional tool to maintain their rule over the masses.

Later, the Mongol-Tatars established a "regime of systematic terror" in Rus'. The slightest disobedience of the Russians caused punitive expeditions of the Mongols. During the second half of the 13th century, they carried out at least twenty devastating campaigns against Rus', each of which was accompanied by the ruin of cities and villages, and the deportation of Russian people into captivity.

As a result of the recognition by Russia of dependence on the Golden Horde in Rus' for many years there was a restless, difficult, stressful life. Between the princes there was a struggle for and against the Golden Horde, there were frequent strife. Anti-Tatar groups constantly acted. Both some Russian princes and the Mongol khans opposed the popular mass uprisings. The people experienced constant pressure from the Golden Horde. Rus', already once shaken by the terrible tragedy of the Mongol invasion, now again lived in constant fear of a new destructive offensive of the Golden Horde. Rus' was in such a position dependent on the Golden Horde until the end of the 14th century on September 8, 1380. Grand Duke Dmitry Donskoy in the Battle of Kulikovo defeated the main forces of the Golden Horde, and dealt a serious blow to its military and political dominance. It was a victory over the Mongol-Tatars, and the final liberation of Rus' from the dependence of the Golden Horde.

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1203 1204. Successful campaign of the Galician Volyn prince Roman Mstislavich against the Polovtsians. 1204. The capture and defeat of Constantinople by the participants of the Fourth Crusade. Formation by the crusaders of the Latin Empire with its center in Constantinople. encyclopedic Dictionary

St. Ignatius, Archimandrite of the Rostov Epiphany Monastery, from 1261 to the year of death (1288) Bishop of Rostov. He was present at the Vladimir Cathedral, gathered by Metropolitan Kirill to correct church affairs, participated in enlightenment ... ... Biographical Dictionary

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Books

• Monuments of literature of Ancient Rus'. XIII century, Dmitry Likhachev, Lev Dmitriev, We bring to your attention the book "Monuments of literature of Ancient Rus'. XIII century" ... Category: Poetry Publisher: Fiction,
• Battles in Livonia (XIII century), Mikhail Briedis, Popular essays telling about the decisive events that took place in the XIII century at the borders of North-Western Rus', in Livonia. In the book, in art form, an attempt is made to paint a picture... Category: Library science Publisher: Nobel Press, Manufacturer:

The earliest human settlements in the area
Russia were found in Kostenki (Voronezh
region), they are about 45 thousand years old. people's dwellings
were made of mammoth bones covered with
skins.

"Venus" from
Kostenok. done
from mammoth tusk.
20-30 thousand years.

At the beginning of the 13th century, the Mongol hordes invaded the Black Sea steppes through the Caucasus, defeating the Polovtsy, and advancing to Rus'. The united army of Russian princes and Polovtsy came out against them. The battle took place on May 31, 1223 on river Kalka
and ended in complete defeat - only a tenth of the army survived.

The invasion of Batu into Rus' took place in the winter of 1237. The Ryazan principality was the first to be destroyed. Then Batu moved to the Vladimir-Suzdal principality.
In January 1238 Kolomna and Moscow fell, in February Vladimir, Suzdal, Pereslavl and others. Battle of the River Sit(March 4, 1238) ended with the defeat of the Russian army.
7 weeks held the defense of the "evil city" (Kozelsk). The Mongols did not reach Novgorod (according to the dominant version, because of the spring thaw).

Mongol-Tatar invasion of Rus'. Briefly

History of the Old Russian State 9-12 centuries. Briefly

In 1238, Batu sent troops to conquer southern Rus'. In 1240,
having captured Kiev, his army moved to Europe.
During the invasion, the Mongols captured all Russian lands except Novgorod.
Every year Russian principalities paid tribute. The right to reign label)
Russian princes received in the Golden Horde.

Diorama of the storming of Vladimir by the Tatars (Exposition in the Golden Gate). In the foreground is the Golden Gate. The Mongols were unable to enter through them and made a breach in the wall. Author of the photo: Dmitry Bakulin (Photos-Yandex)

Slavic tribes. Baptism of Rus'. Formation of the ancient Russian state.

Princes of the ancient Russian state. Feudal fragmentation in Rus'.

Mongol-Tatar invasion of Rus' in 1237-1240.

ancient Russian state. Mongolian
Tatar invasion.

1300-1613

1613-1762

1762-1825

9th-13th centuries

1825-1917

1917-1941

1941-1964

1964-2014

Brief summary of the history of Russia. Part 1
(9th-13th centuries)

History of the Old Russian state 9-12 centuries.
Mongol-Tatar invasion of Rus'.

Brief history of Russia. Brief summary of the history of Russia. History of Russia in pictures. History of the Old Russian State 9-12 centuries. The Mongol-Tatar invasion is brief. History of Russia for children.

website 2016 Contacts: [email protected]

After the death of the prince Mstislav(ruled: 1125 -1132) Kievan Rus collapses
into principalities that are comparable in size to Western European
kingdoms. In 1136, an uprising in Novgorod led to
to the emergence of an independent state - Novgorod
republics, which occupied the territory from the Baltic
sea ​​to the Ural Mountains (in the north).

IN 6th century the Great Migration of the Slavs takes place, the first political associations of the Eastern Slavs appear in the region of the Dnieper and Lake Ilmen. It is known about the existence of 13 tribes: Polyany, Krivichi, Drevlyans, Ulichi, Vyatichi, etc. At that time, the territory of modern Central Russia was inhabited by Finno-Ugric tribes, they gradually assimilated with the Slavs.

The development of crafts in the 8th-9th centuries led to the emergence
cities. Most often they were built on the confluence of rivers,
which served as trade routes. The most famous
trade route of the time "from the Varangians to the Greeks", on
Novgorod was located in the north of the path, and Kyiv in the south.

IN 862 the inhabitants of Novgorod called on the Varangian princes to rule the city
(according to the Norman theory). Prince Rurik became the ancestor of the princely,
and later the royal dynasty. The Norman theory was refuted more than once by famous historians and scientists (M. Lomonosov, V. Tatishchev, etc.)

After the death of Rurik, the Prince of Novgorod becomes
Oleg(Prophetic). He captures Kyiv and transfers there
the capital of Rus'. Subjugates a number of Slavic tribes.
In 907 he makes a successful campaign against Byzantium,
receives tribute and concludes a lucrative trade agreement.

Prince Igor subjugated the eastern tribes of the Slavs.
In 945, he was killed by the Drevlyans when he tried again
receive tribute from them. Princess Olga(wife) took revenge
to the Drevlyans, but makes the tribute fixed.
In Tsargrad, she accepts Christianity. In the 16th century it
counted among the saints.

Olga ruled during childhood Svyatoslav And
continued to rule after her son became prince
in 964 Svyatoslav was in the military almost all the time
hikes. They defeated the Bulgarian and Khazar
kingdoms. Upon returning to Rus', after an unsuccessful
campaign against Byzantium (971), he was killed by the Pechenegs.

The death of Svyatoslav led to internecine struggle between
his sons. After the murder of brother Yaropolk to power
the prince comes Vladimir.
In 988 Vladimir is baptized in Chersonese
(now it is a museum-reserve in Sevastopol). Begins
stage of formation of Christianity in Rus'.

During civil war (1015-1019), after the death of Vladimir, die
at the hands of Svyatopolk, princes Boris and Gleb (became the first Russian saints).
In the fight against Svyatopolk, the prince wins
Yaroslav the Wise. He strengthens the state, delivers
Rus' from the raids of the Pechenegs. Under Yaroslav began
creation of the first set of laws in Rus' - "Russian Truth".

After the death of Yaroslav the Wise (1054), a division takes place
Rus' between his sons - " Triumvirate of the Yaroslavichs".
In 1072, "The Truth of the Yaroslavichs" was compiled, the second part
"Russian Truth".

After the death of the Kyiv prince Svyatopolk (reign: 1093 - 1113), according to
at the insistence of the people of Kiev comes to power Vladimir Monomakh. During the years of his reign, Kievan Rus was strengthened, princely civil strife stopped.
As a result of the agreement at the Dolobsky Congress of Russian princes (1103), it was possible to stop the strife and in subsequent years, with a joint army, defeat the Polovtsian khans.

In 1169 Andrey Bogolyubsky destroys Kyiv. He endures
the capital of Rus' in Vladimir. Power centralization policy
leads to a conspiracy of the boyars. In 1174 the prince was killed in his
Palace in Bogolyubovo (suburb of Vladimir).
His successor is Vsevolod the Big Nest.

862

945

988

1019

1113

1136

1169

1223

1237

1242

The Novgorod Republic escaped the Mongol invasion, but experienced
aggression from Western neighbors. July 15, 1240 took place Neva battle.
The squad led by Prince Alexander Yaroslavovich (who became Nevsky) defeated the Swedish army.
On April 5, 1242, on Lake Peipsi, a battle took place between the Russian army, led by Alexander Nevsky, and the knights of the Livonian Order. During ice battle the German knights were defeated. In the 16th c. A. Nevsky was canonized as a saint.