Russian lands and principalities at the beginning of the 12th - first half of the 13th century. Russian lands and principalities at the beginning of the 12th - first half of the 13th century

Work plan.

I .Introduction.

II .Russian lands and principalities in XII-XIII centuries.

1. The causes and essence of state fragmentation. Socio-political and cultural characteristics of Russian lands during the period of fragmentation.

§ 1. The feudal fragmentation of Rus' is a natural stage in the development of Russian society and the state.

§ 2. Economic and socio-political reasons for the fragmentation of Russian lands.

§ 3. The Vladimir-Suzdal principality as one of the types of feudal state formations in Rus' in the 12th-13th centuries.

§ 4 Features of the geographical location, natural and climatic conditions of the Vladimir-Suzdal land.

§ 5. Features of the socio-political and cultural development of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality.

2. The Mongol-Tatar invasion of Rus' and its consequences. Rus' and the Golden Horde.

§ 1. The originality of the historical development and way of life of the nomadic peoples of Central Asia.

§ 2. Batya’s invasion and the formation of the Golden Horde.

§ 3. The Mongol-Tatar yoke and its influence on ancient Russian history.

3. The struggle of Rus' against the aggression of the German and Swedish conquerors. Alexander Nevskiy.

§ 1. Expansion to the East of Western European countries and religious and political organizations in beginning of XII I century.

§ 2. Historical significance of the military victories of Prince Alexander Nevsky (Battle of the Neva, Battle of the Ice).

III . Conclusion

I . INTRODUCTION

The XII-XIII centuries, which will be discussed in this test work, are barely visible in the fog of the past. In order to understand and understand the events of this most difficult era in the history of medieval Rus', it is necessary to get acquainted with the monuments of ancient Russian literature, study fragments of medieval chronicles and chronicles, and read the works of historians relating to this period. It is historical documents that help us see in history not a simple set of dry facts, but a complex science, the achievements of which play an important role in the further development of society, allowing us to better understand the most important events of Russian history.

Consider the reasons that determined feudal fragmentation - the political and economic decentralization of the state, the creation on the territory of Ancient Rus' of practically independent, independent state entities on the territory of Ancient Russia; understand why the Tatar-Mongol yoke on Russian soil became possible, and how the dominance of the conquerors was manifested for more than two centuries in the field of economic, political and cultural life, and what consequences it had for the future historical development of Rus' - this is the main task of this work.

The 13th century, rich in tragic events, still excites and attracts the attention of historians and writers. After all, this century is called the “dark period” of Russian history.

However, its beginning was bright and calm. The huge country, larger in size than any European state, was full of young creative force. The proud and strong people who inhabited it did not yet know the oppressive weight of the foreign yoke, did not know the humiliating inhumanity of serfdom.

The world in their eyes was simple and whole. They did not yet know the destructive power of gunpowder. Distance was measured by the swing of arms or the flight of an arrow, and time by the change of winter and summer. The rhythm of their life was leisurely and measured.

At the beginning of the 12th century, axes were knocking all over Rus', new cities and villages were growing. Rus' was a country of craftsmen. Here they knew how to weave the finest lace and build skyward cathedrals, forge reliable, sharp swords and paint the heavenly beauty of angels.

Rus' was a crossroads of peoples. In the squares of Russian cities one could meet Germans and Hungarians, Poles and Czechs, Italians and Greeks, Polovtsians and Swedes... Many were surprised at how quickly the “Russians” assimilated the achievements of neighboring peoples, applied them to their needs, and enriched their own ancient and unique culture.

At the beginning of the 13th century, Rus' was one of the most prominent states in Europe. The power and wealth of the Russian princes were known throughout Europe.

But suddenly a thunderstorm approached the Russian land - a hitherto unknown terrible enemy. The Mongol-Tatar yoke fell heavily on the shoulders of the Russian people. Exploitation of conquered peoples Mongol khans was ruthless and comprehensive. Simultaneously with the invasion from the East, Rus' was faced with another terrible disaster - the expansion of the Livonian Order, its attempt to impose Catholicism on the Russian people. In this difficult historical era, the heroism and love of freedom of our people manifested themselves with particular force, people rose to the occasion, whose names were forever preserved in the memory of posterity.

II . RUSSIAN LANDS AND PRINCIPALITIES IN XII-XIII BB.

1. CAUSES AND ESSENCE OF STATE Fragmentation. SOCIO-POLITICAL AND CULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF RUSSIAN LANDS

PERIOD OF FRAGRANCE.

§ 1. FEUDAL Fragmentation of Rus' – A LEGAL STAGE

DEVELOPMENT OF RUSSIAN SOCIETY AND STATE

Since the 30s of the 12th century, the process began in Rus' feudal fragmentation. Feudal fragmentation is an inevitable stage in the evolution of feudal society, the basis of which is the natural economy with its isolation and isolation.

The system of natural economy that had developed by this time contributed to the isolation from each other of all individual economic units (family, community, inheritance, land, principality), each of which became self-sufficient, consuming all the product it produced. There was practically no exchange of goods in this situation.

Within the framework of a single Russian state, over the course of three centuries, independent economic regions emerged, new cities grew, large patrimonial farms and the estates of many monasteries and churches arose and developed. Feudal clans grew and united - the boyars with their vassals, the rich elite of the cities, church hierarchs. The nobility arose, the basis of whose life was service to the overlord in exchange for a land grant for the duration of this service. The huge Kievan Rus with its superficial political cohesion, necessary, first of all, for defense against an external enemy, for organizing long-distance campaigns of conquest, now no longer met the needs of large cities with their branched feudal hierarchy, developed trade and craft layers, and the needs of patrimonial lands.

The need to unite all forces against the Polovtsian danger and the powerful will of the great princes - Vladimir Monomakh and his son Mstislav - temporarily slowed down the inevitable process of fragmentation of Kievan Rus, but then it resumed with new strength. “The whole Russian land was in disarray,” as the chronicle says.

From the point of view of general historical development, the political fragmentation of Rus' is a natural stage on the path to the future centralization of the country, future economic and political takeoff on a new civilizational basis.

Europe also did not escape the collapse of early medieval states, fragmentation and local wars. Then the process of formation of national states of a secular type, which still exist today, developed here. Ancient Rus', having gone through a period of collapse, could have come to a similar result. However, the Mongol-Tatar invasion disrupted this natural development of political life in Rus' and threw it back.

§ 2. ECONOMIC AND SOCIO-POLITICAL REASONS

Fragmentation of the Russian lands

We can highlight the economic and socio-political reasons for feudal fragmentation in Rus':

1.Economic reasons:

The growth and development of feudal boyar land ownership, the expansion of estates by seizing the lands of community members, purchasing land, etc. All this led to increased economic power and independence of the boyars and, ultimately, to an aggravation of contradictions between the boyars and the Grand Duke of Kyiv. The boyars were interested in such princely power that could provide them with military and legal protection, in particular in connection with the growing resistance of the townspeople, the Smerds, to contribute to the seizure of their lands and increased exploitation.

The dominance of subsistence farming and the lack of economic ties contributed to the creation of relatively small boyar worlds and the separatism of local boyar unions.

In the 12th century, trade routes began to bypass Kyiv, “the path from the Varangians to the Greeks,” which once united around itself Slavic tribes, gradually lost its previous meaning, because European merchants, as well as Novgorodians, were increasingly attracted to Germany, Italy, and the Middle East.

2. Socio-political reasons :

Strengthening the power of individual princes;

Weakening influence of the Grand Duke of Kyiv;

Princely strife; they were based on the Yaroslav appanage system itself, which could no longer satisfy the expanded Rurik family. There was no clear, precise order either in the distribution of inheritances or in their inheritance. After the death of the Grand Duke of Kyiv, the “table”, according to existing law, went not to his son, but to the eldest prince in the family. At the same time, the principle of seniority came into conflict with the principle of “fatherland”: when the prince-brothers moved from one “table” to another, some of them did not want to change their homes, while others rushed to the Kiev “table” over the heads of their older brothers. Thus, the continued order of inheritance of “tables” created the preconditions for internecine conflicts. In the middle of the 12th century, civil strife reached unprecedented severity, and the number of participants increased many times as a result of the fragmentation of the princely possessions. At that time in Rus' there were 15 principalities and separate lands. In the next century, on the eve of Batu’s invasion, it was already 50.

The growth and strengthening of cities as new political and cultural centers can also be considered the reason for the further fragmentation of Rus', although some historians, on the contrary, regard the development of cities as a consequence of this process.

The fight against nomads also weakened the Principality of Kiev and slowed down its progress; in Novgorod and Suzdal it was much calmer.

After a period of active “gathering” of lands and “tormenting” of tribes by the Kyiv princes in the 10th - first half of the 11th century. the common border of Rus' in the west, south and southeast stabilized. In these zones, not only are there no new territorial annexations, but, on the contrary, some possessions are lost. This was due both to internal strife that weakened the Russian lands, and to the emergence of powerful military-political formations on these borders: in the south, such a force was the Polovtsians, in the west - the kingdoms of Hungary and Poland, in the north-west at the beginning of the 13th century. A state was formed, as well as two German orders - the Teutonic and the Order of the Sword. The main directions where expansion continued common territory Rus', became the north and northeast. The economic benefits of developing this region, a rich source of fur, attracted Russian merchants and fishermen here, along whose routes a stream of settlers rushed to new lands. The local Finno-Ugric population (Karelians, Chud Zavolochskaya) did not offer serious resistance to Slavic colonization, although there are isolated reports of clashes in the sources. The relatively peaceful nature of the penetration of the Slavs into these territories is explained, firstly, by the low density of the indigenous population, and secondly, by the different natural “niches” occupied by local tribes and settlers. If the Finno-Ugric tribes gravitated more towards dense forests, which provided ample opportunities for hunting, then the Slavs preferred to settle in open areas suitable for farming.

Appanage system in the 12th – early 13th centuries

By the middle of the 12th century. Old Russian state broke up into principalities-lands. In the history of fragmentation, two stages are distinguished, separated by the Mongol-Tatar invasion of the 1230s–1240s. to the lands of Eastern Europe. The beginning of this process is defined by researchers in different ways. The most well-reasoned opinion seems to be that the tendency towards fragmentation has been clearly manifested since the middle of the 11th century, when, after the death of Yaroslav the Wise (1054), Kievan Rus was divided between his sons into separate possessions - appanages. The eldest of the Yaroslavichs - Izyaslav - received the Kyiv and Novgorod lands, Svyatoslav - the Chernigov, Seversk, Murom-Ryazan lands and Tmutarakan. Vsevolod, in addition to the Pereyaslavl land, received the Rostov-Suzdal land, which included the northeast of Rus' to Beloozero and Sukhona. The Smolensk land went to Vyacheslav, and the Galicia-Volyn land to Igor. The Polotsk land was somewhat isolated, owned by Vladimir’s grandson Vseslav Bryachislavich, who actively fought with the Yaroslavichs for independence. This division was subject to repeated revision, and even smaller appanages began to form within the established territories. Feudal fragmentation is fixed by the decisions of several congresses of princes, the main one of which was the Lyubech Congress of 1097, which established “everyone should keep his fatherland,” thereby recognizing the independence of possessions. Only under Vladimir Monomakh (1113–1125) and Mstislav Vladimirovich (1125–1132) was it possible to temporarily restore the supremacy of the Kyiv prince over all Russian lands, but then fragmentation finally prevailed.

Population of principalities and lands

Principality of Kiev. After the death of the Kiev prince Mstislav Vladimirovich and Novgorod gaining independence in 1136, the direct possessions of the Kiev princes narrowed to the ancient lands of the glades and Drevlyans on the right bank of the Dnieper and along its tributaries - Pripyat, Teterev, Ros. On the left bank of the Dnieper, the principality included lands up to Trubezh (the bridge across the Dnieper from Kyiv, built by Vladimir Monomakh in 1115, was of great importance for communication with these lands). In the chronicles, this territory, like the entire Middle Dnieper region, was sometimes called “Russian Land” in the narrow sense of the word. Among the cities, in addition to Kiev, Belgorod (on Irpen), Vyshgorod, Zarub, Kotelnitsa, Chernobyl, etc. are known. The southern part of the Kiev land - Porosye - was an area of ​​​​a kind of “military settlements”. On this territory there was a number of towns that began to be built during the time of Yaroslav the Wise, who settled the captured Poles here (). In the Rosi basin there was a powerful Kanevsky forest and fortress towns (Torchesk, Korsun, Boguslavl, Volodarev, Kanev) were erected here thanks to the support that the forest provided against the nomads, at the same time strengthening this natural defense. In the 11th century The princes began to settle in Porosye the Pechenegs, Torks, Berendeys, and Polovtsians who were captured by them or who voluntarily entered their service. This population was called black hoods. Black hoods led a nomadic lifestyle, and they took refuge in the cities that the princes built for them only during Polovtsian attacks or for the winter. For the most part, they remained pagans, and apparently got their name from their characteristic headdresses.

Cowl(from Turkic - “kalpak”) - the headdress of Orthodox monks in the form of a high round cap with a black veil falling over the shoulders.

Perhaps the steppe people wore similar hats. In the 13th century black hoods became part of the population of the Golden Horde. In addition to the cities, Porosye was also fortified with ramparts, the remains of which were preserved at least until the beginning of the 20th century.

Principality of Kiev in the second half of the 12th century. became the subject of a struggle between numerous contenders for the Kiev grand-ducal table. It was owned at various times by Chernigov, Smolensk, Volyn, Rostov-Suzdal, and later Vladimir-Suzdal and Galician-Volyn princes. Some of them, sitting on the throne, lived in Kyiv, others considered the Principality of Kiev only as a governed land.

Pereyaslavl Principality. The Pereyaslav land adjacent to Kyiv covered the territory along the left tributaries of the Dnieper: Sule, Pselu, Vorskla. In the east, it reached the upper reaches of the Seversky Donets, which was here the border of the Russian Pale of Settlement. The forests that covered this area served as protection for both the Pereyaslav and Novgorod-Seversky principalities. The main fortified line ran east from the Dnieper along the border of the forest. It consisted of cities along the river. Sule, the banks of which were also covered with forest. This line was strengthened by Vladimir Svyatoslavich, and his successors did the same. The forests stretching along the banks of Psel and Vorskla gave the Russian population the opportunity already in the 12th century. advance south of this fortified line. But successes in this direction were small and were limited to the construction of several cities, which were, as it were, outposts of the Russian Pale. On the southern borders of the principality also in the 11th–12th centuries. settlements of black hoods arose. The capital of the principality was the city of Pereyaslavl South (or Russian) on Trubezh. Other cities that stood out were Voin (on Sula), Ksnyatin, Romen, Donets, Lukoml, Ltava, Gorodets.

Chernigov land was located from the middle Dnieper in the west to the upper reaches of the Don in the east, and in the north to the Ugra and the middle reaches of the Oka. Within the principality, a special place was occupied by the Seversk land, located along the middle Desna and Seim, the name of which goes back to the tribe of the northerners. In these lands the population was concentrated in two groups. The main mass stayed on the Desna and Seimas under the protection of the forest; the largest cities were also located here: Chernigov, Novgorod-Seversky, Lyubech, Starodub, Trubchevsk, Bryansk (Debryansk), Putivl, Rylsk and Kursk. Another group - the Vyatichi - lived in the forests of the upper Oka and its tributaries. At the time in question, there were few significant settlements here, except for Kozelsk, but after the invasion of the Tatars, a number of cities appeared on this territory, which became the residences of several specific principalities.

Vladimir-Suzdal land. From the middle of the 11th century. the northeast of Kievan Rus is assigned to the Rurikovich branch, originating from Vsevolod Yaroslavich. By the end of the century, the territory of this appanage, ruled by Vladimir Vsevolodovich Monomakh and his sons, included the environs of Beloozero (in the north), the Sheksna basin, the Volga region from the mouth of the Medveditsa (the left tributary of the Volga) to Yaroslavl, and in the south it reached the middle Klyazma. The main cities of this territory in the X-XI centuries. There were Rostov and Suzdal, located between the Volga and Klyazma rivers, so during this period it was called Rostov, Suzdal or Rostov-Suzdal land. By the end of the 12th century. As a result of successful military and political actions of the Rostov-Suzdal princes, the territory of the principality occupied much larger spaces. In the south, it included the entire Klyazma basin with the middle course of the Moscow River. The extreme southwest went beyond Volokolamsk, from where the borders went to the north and northeast, including the left bank and lower reaches of the Tvertsa, Medveditsa and Mologa. The principality included the lands around White Lake (to the source of the Onega in the north) and along the Sheksna; retreating somewhat south of the Sukhona, the borders of the principality went east, including the lands along the lower Sukhona. Eastern borders were located along the left banks of the Unzha and Volga to the lower reaches of the Oka.

For the development of the economy here big influence had relatively favorable natural and climatic conditions. In the Volga-Klyazma interfluve (Zalessky region), mostly covered with forest, there were open areas - the so-called opoles, convenient for the development of agriculture. Quite warm summers, good soil moisture and fertility, and forest cover contributed to relatively high and, most importantly, sustainable harvests, which was very important for the population of medieval Rus'. The amount of grain grown here in the 12th – first half of the 13th centuries made it possible to export part of it to the Novgorod land. Opolye not only united the agricultural district, but, as a rule, it was here that cities appeared. Examples of this are the Rostov, Suzdal, Yuryevsk and Pereyaslavl opoles.

TO ancient cities Beloozer, Rostov, Suzdal and Yaroslavl in the 12th century. a number of new ones are being added. Vladimir, founded on the banks of the Klyazma by Vladimir Monomakh, and under Andrei Bogolyubsky became the capital of the entire earth, is rapidly rising. Yuri Dolgoruky (1125–1157) was particularly noted for his vigorous urban planning activities, who founded Ksnyatin at the mouth of the Nerl, Yuryev Polskaya on the river. Koloksha - the left tributary of the Klyazma, Dmitrov on Yakhroma, Uglich on the Volga, built the first wooden one in Moscow in 1156, transferred Pereyaslavl Zalessky from Lake Kleshchina to Trubezh, which flows into it. The founding of Zvenigorod, Kideksha, Gorodets Radilov and other cities is also attributed to him (with varying degrees of justification). Dolgoruky's sons Andrei Bogolyubsky (1157–1174) and Vsevolod the Big Nest (1176–1212) paid more attention to the expansion of their possessions to the north and east, where the rivals of the Vladimir princes were the Novgorodians and Volga Bulgaria, respectively. At this time, the cities of Kostroma, Sol Velikaya, Nerekhta appeared in the Volga region, somewhat to the north - Galich Mersky (all associated with salt mining and salt trade), further to the northeast - Unzha and Ustyug, on the Klyazma - Bogolyubov, Gorokhovets and Starodub. On the eastern borders, Gorodets Radilov on the Volga and Meshchersk became strongholds in the wars with Bulgaria and the Russian colonization of the middle.

After the death of Vsevolod the Big Nest (1212), political fragmentation led to the emergence of a number of independent principalities in the Vladimir-Suzdal land: Vladimir, Rostov, Pereyaslav, Yuryev. In turn, smaller units appear in them. So, from the Rostov principality around 1218, Uglich and Yaroslavl were separated. In Vladimir, the Suzdal and Starodub principalities were temporarily allocated as appanages.

Main part Novgorod land covered the basin of the lake and the Volkhov, Msta, Lovat, Sheloni and Mologa rivers. The northernmost suburb of Novgorod was Ladoga, located on the Volkhov, not far from its confluence with Lake Nevo (Ladoga). Ladoga became a stronghold for the subjugation of the northwestern Finno-Ugric tribes - Vodi, Izhora Korela () and Emi - to Novgorod. In the west, the most important cities were Pskov and Izborsk. Izborsk, one of the oldest Slavic cities, practically did not develop. Pskov, located at the confluence of the Pskova and the Velikaya River, on the contrary, gradually became the largest of the Novgorod suburbs, a significant trade and craft center. This allowed him to subsequently gain independence (the Pskov land, stretching from Narva through Lake Peipsi and Pskov lakes south to the upper reaches of the Velikaya, finally separated from Novgorod in the middle of the 14th century). Before the Order of the Swordsmen captured Yuryev and its surrounding area (1224), the Novgorodians also owned the lands west of Lake Peipsi.

South of Lake Ilmen was another of the most ancient Slavic cities, Staraya Russa. The Novgorod possessions to the southwest covered Velikiye Luki, on the upper reaches of the Lovat, and in the southeast the upper reaches of the Volga and Lake Seliger (here, on a small Volga tributary of the Tvertsa, Torzhok arose - an important center of Novgorod-Suzdal trade). The southeastern Novgorod borders were adjacent to the Vladimir-Suzdal lands.

If in the west, south and southeast the Novgorod land had fairly clear boundaries, then in the north and northeast during the period under review there was an active development of new territories and the subjugation of the indigenous Finno-Ugric population. In the north, the Novgorod possessions include the southern and eastern coasts (Tersky coast), the lands of Obonezhye and Zaonezhye up to. The northeast of Eastern Europe from Zavolochye to the Subpolar Urals becomes the target of penetration by Novgorod fishermen. The local tribes of Perm, Pechora, and Ugra were connected with Novgorod by tributary relations.

Several areas arose in the Novgorod lands and in their immediate vicinity, where iron ore mining and iron smelting took place. In the first half of the 13th century. The city of Zhelezny Ustyug (Ustyuzhna Zheleznopolskaya) arose on Mologa. Another area was located between Ladoga and Lake Peipus in the lands of water. Iron production also took place on the southern coast of the White Sea.

Polotsk land, which separated itself before all others, included the space along the Western Dvina, Berezina, Neman and their tributaries. Already from the beginning of the 12th century. In the principality there was an intensive process of political fragmentation: independent Polotsk, Minsk, Vitebsk principalities, appanages in Drutsk, Borisov and other centers appeared. Some of them in the east came under the authority of the Smolensk princes. Western and northwestern lands (Black Rus') from the middle of the 13th century. retreat to Lithuania.

Principality of Smolensk occupied the territories of the upper reaches of the Dnieper and Western Dvina. Among the significant cities, besides Smolensk, are Toropets, Dorogobuzh, Vyazma, which later became centers of independent destinies. The principality was an area of ​​developed agriculture and a supplier of grain for Novgorod, and since the most important transport hub was located on its territory, where the headwaters of the largest rivers in Eastern Europe converged, the cities conducted a lively intermediary trade.

Turovo-Pinsk land was located along the middle reaches of the Pripyat and its tributaries Ubort, Goryn, Styri and, like Smolensk, had Russian lands on all its borders. The largest cities were Turov (the capital) and Pinsk (Pinesk), and in the 12th - early 13th centuries. Grodno, Kletsk, Slutsk and Nesvizh arose here. At the end of the 12th century. The principality split into Pinsk, Turov, Kletsk and Slutsk appanages, which were dependent on the Galician-Volyn princes.

In the far west and southwest independent Volyn and Galician lands, at the end of the 12th century. united into one Galicia-Volyn principality. The Galician land occupied the northeastern slopes of the Carpathian (Ugric) mountains, which were the natural border with. The northwestern part of the principality occupied the upper reaches of the San River (a tributary of the Vistula), and the center and southeast occupied the basin of the middle and upper Dniester. The Volyn land covered territories along the Western Bug and the upper reaches of Pripyat. In addition, the Galician-Volyn principality owned lands along the Seret, Prut and Dniester rivers up to , but their dependence was nominal, since there was very little population here. In the west, the principality bordered with. During the period of fragmentation in the Volyn land there were Lutsk, Volyn, Berestey and other appanages.

Murom-Ryazan land until the 12th century was part of the Chernigov land. Its main territory was located in the Middle and Lower Oka basin from the mouth of the Moscow River to the outskirts of Murom. By the middle of the 12th century. The principality split into Murom and Ryazan, from which Pronsky later emerged. The largest cities - Ryazan, Pereyaslavl Ryazansky, Murom, Kolomna, Pronsk - were centers of handicraft production. The main occupation of the population of the principality was arable farming; grain was exported from here to other Russian lands.

Standing out in a separate position Principality of Tmutarakan, located at the mouth of the Kuban, on the Taman Peninsula. In the east, his possessions reached the confluence of the Bolshoi Yegorlyk and the Manych, and in the west they included. With the beginning of feudal fragmentation, Tmutarakan's connections with other Russian principalities gradually faded.

It should be noted that the territorial fragmentation of Rus' had no ethnic basis. Although in the XI–XII centuries. the population of the Russian lands did not represent a single ethnic group, but was a conglomerate of 22 different tribes; the boundaries of individual principalities, as a rule, did not coincide with the boundaries of their settlement. Thus, the distribution area of ​​the Krivichi turned out to be on the territory of several lands at once: Novgorod, Polotsk, Smolensk, Vladimir-Suzdal. The population of each feudal possession was most often formed from several tribes, and in the north and northeast of Rus' the Slavs gradually assimilated some indigenous Finno-Ugric and Baltic tribes. In the south and southwest, elements of nomadic Turkic-speaking ethnic groups joined the Slavic population. The division into lands was largely artificial, determined by the princes, who allocated certain inheritances to their heirs.

It is difficult to determine the level of population of each of the lands, since there are no direct indications of this in the sources. To some extent, in this matter one can focus on the number of urban settlements in them. According to rough estimates by M.P. Pogodin, in the Kiev, Volyn and Galician principalities, more than 40 cities are mentioned in the chronicles each, in Turov - more than 10, in Chernigov with Seversky, Kursk and the land of the Vyatichi - about 70, in Ryazan - 15, in Pereyaslavl - about 40, in Suzdal - about 20, in Smolensk - 8, in Polotsk - 16, in Novgorod land - 15, in total in all Russian lands - more than 300. If the number of cities was directly proportional to the population of the territory, it is obvious that Russia south of the line of the upper Neman - upper Don was an order of magnitude higher in population density than the northern principalities and lands.

In parallel with the political fragmentation of Rus', the formation of church dioceses took place on its territory. The borders of the metropolitanate, the center of which was in Kyiv, in the 11th - first half of the 13th centuries. completely coincided with the general borders of the Russian lands, and the borders of the emerging dioceses basically coincided with the borders of the appanage principalities. In the XI–XII centuries. the centers of the dioceses were Turov, Belgorod on Irpen, Yuriev and Kanev in Porosye, Vladimir Volynsky, Polotsk, Rostov, Vladimir on Klyazma, Ryazan, Smolensk, Chernigov, Pereyaslavl South, Galich and Przemysl. In the 13th century Volyn cities were added to them - Kholm, Ugrovsk, Lutsk. Novgorod, which was originally the center of the diocese, in the 12th century. became the capital of the first archbishopric in Rus'.

Already in the middle of the 12th century. the power of the Kyiv princes began to have real significance only within the limits of Principality of Kyiv, which included lands along the banks of the tributaries of the Dnieper - Teterev, Irpen and semi-autonomous Porosye, inhabited by the "Black Klobuks" vassals from Kyiv. The attempt of Yaropolk, who became the prince of Kyiv after the death of Mstislav I, to autocratically dispose of the “fatherland” of other princes was decisively stopped.
Despite the loss of Kiev's all-Russian significance, the struggle for its possession continued until the Mongol invasion. There was no order in the inheritance of the Kiev throne, and it passed from hand to hand depending on the balance of power of the fighting princely groups and, to a large extent, on the attitude towards them on the part of the powerful Kiev boyars and the “Black Klobuks”. In the conditions of the all-Russian struggle for Kyiv, the local boyars sought to end the strife and to political stabilization in their principality. The invitation by the boyars in 1113 of Vladimir Monomakh to Kiev (bypassing the then accepted order of succession) was a precedent that was later used by the boyars to justify their “right” to choose a strong and pleasing prince and to conclude a “row” with him that protected them territorially. corporate interests. The boyars who violated this series of princes were eliminated by going over to the side of his rivals or through a conspiracy (as, perhaps, Yuri Dolgoruky was poisoned, overthrown, and then killed in 1147 during popular uprising Igor Olgovich Chernigovsky, unpopular among Kiev residents). As we get drawn into the struggle for Kyiv, everything more Princes of Kiev boyars resorted to a unique system of princely duumvirate, inviting representatives from two of several rival princely groups to Kiev as co-rulers, thereby achieving for some time the relative political balance that was so necessary for the land of Kiev.
As Kiev loses its all-Russian significance, individual rulers of the strongest principalities, who have become “great” in their lands, begin to be satisfied by the installation of their proteges in Kyiv - “henchmen”.
Princely strife over Kyiv turned the Kyiv land into an arena of frequent military operations, during which cities and villages were ruined, and the population was taken prisoner. Kyiv itself was subjected to brutal pogroms, both from the princes who entered it as victors and those who left it as defeated and returned to their “fatherland.” All this predetermined the development that emerged from the beginning of the 13th century. the gradual decline of the Kyiv land, the flow of its population to the northern and northwestern regions of the country, which suffered less from princely strife and were virtually inaccessible to the Polovtsians. Periods of temporary strengthening of Kiev during the reign of such outstanding political figures and organizers of the fight against the Polovtsians as Svyatoslav Vsevolodich of Chernigov (1180-1194) and Roman Mstislavich of Volyn (1202 - 1205) alternated with the reign of colorless, kaleidoscopically successive princes. Daniil Romanovich Galitsky, into whose hands Kyiv passed shortly before Batu’s capture of it, had already limited himself to appointing his mayor from the boyars.

Vladimir-Suzdal Principality

Until the middle of the 11th century. The Rostov-Suzdal land was governed by mayors sent from Kyiv. Its real “princeship” began after it went to the younger “Yaroslavich” - Vsevolod of Pereyaslavl - and was assigned to his descendants as their ancestral “volost” in the XII-XIII centuries. The Rostov-Suzdal land experienced an economic and political upsurge, which put it among the strongest principalities in Rus'. The fertile lands of the Suzdal “Opolye”, vast forests cut through by a dense network of rivers and lakes along which ancient and important trade routes to the south and east ran, the presence of iron ores accessible for mining - all this favored the development of agriculture, cattle breeding, rural and forestry industries , crafts and trade. In accelerating the economic development and political rise of this forest region, the rapid growth of its population at the expense of the inhabitants of the southern Russian lands, subjected to Polovtsian raids, was of great importance. In the 11th-12th centuries, a large princely and boyar (and then ecclesiastical) state was formed and strengthened here. land ownership, which absorbed communal lands and involved peasants in personal feudal dependence In the 12th - 13th centuries, almost all the main cities of this land arose (Vladimir, Pereyaslavl-Zalesskii, Dmitrov, Starodub, Gorodets, Galich, Kostroma, Tver, Nizhny Novgorod, etc.) , built by the Suzdal princes on the borders and inside the principality as strongholds and administrative points and equipped with trade and craft settlements, the population of which was actively involved in political life. In 1147, the chronicle first mentioned Moscow, a small border town built by Yuri Dolgoruky on the site of the estate of the boyar Kuchka, which he had confiscated.
In the early 30s of the 12th century, during the reign of Monomakh’s son Yuri Vladimirovich Dolgoruky (1125-1157), the Rostov-Suzdal land gained independence. The military-political activity of Yuri, who intervened in all the princely strife, stretched out his “long hands” to cities and lands far from his principality, made him one of the central figures in the political life of Rus' in the second third of the 11th century. The struggle with Novgorod and the war with Volga Bulgaria, begun by Yuri and continued by his successors, marked the beginning of the expansion of the borders of the principality towards the Podvina region and the Volga-Kama lands. Ryazan and Murom, which had previously been “pulling” towards Chernigov, fell under the influence of the Suzdal princes.
The last ten years of Dolgoruky’s life were spent in a grueling and alien to the interests of his principality struggle with the southern Russian princes for Kyiv, the reign of which, in the eyes of Yuri and the princes of his generation, was combined with “eldership” in Rus'. But already the son of Dolgoruky, Andrei Bogolyubsky, having captured Kiev in 1169 and brutally robbed it, handed it over to the management of one of his vassal princes, “helpers”, which indicated a change on the part of the most far-sighted princes in their attitude towards Kiev, which had lost its significance all-Russian political center.
The reign of Andrei Yuryevich Bogolyubsky (1157 - 1174) was marked by the beginning of the struggle of the Suzdal princes for the political hegemony of their principality over the rest of the Russian lands. The ambitious attempts of Bogolyubsky, who claimed the title of Grand Duke of all Rus', to completely subjugate Novgorod and force other princes to recognize his supremacy in Rus' failed. However, it was precisely these attempts that reflected the tendency to restore the state-political unity of the country based on the subordination of appanage princes to the autocratic ruler of one of the strongest principalities in Rus'.
The reign of Andrei Bogolyubsky is associated with the revival of the traditions of the power politics of Vladimir Monomakh. Relying on the support of the townspeople and noble warriors, Andrei dealt harshly with the rebellious boyars, expelled them from the principality, and confiscated their estates. To be even more independent from the boyars, he moved the capital of the principality from a relatively new city - Vladimir-on-Klyazma, which had a significant trade and craft settlement. It was not possible to completely suppress the boyar opposition to the “autocratic” prince, as Andrei was called by his contemporaries. In June 1174 he was killed by conspiratorial boyars.
The two-year strife, unleashed after the murder of Bogolyubsky by the boyars, ended with the reign of his brother Vsevolod Yuryevich the Big Nest (1176-1212), who, relying on the townspeople and the squads of feudal lords, dealt harshly with the rebellious nobility and became the sovereign ruler in his land. During his reign, the Vladimir-Suzdal land reached its greatest prosperity and power, playing a decisive role in the political life of Rus' at the end of the 12th - beginning of the 13th century. Extending his influence to other Russian lands, Vsevolod skillfully combined the force of arms (as, for example, in relation to the Ryazan princes) with skillful politics (in relations with the southern Russian princes and Novgorod). The name and power of Vsevolod were well known far beyond the borders of Rus'. The author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” proudly wrote about him as the most powerful prince in Rus', whose numerous regiments could sprinkle the Volga with oars, and with their helmets draw water from the Don, from whose very name “all countries trembled” and with rumors about which “the world was full of the whole earth."
After the death of Vsevolod, an intensive process of feudal fragmentation began in the Vladimir-Suzdal land. The quarrels of Vsevolod's numerous sons over the grand-ducal table and the distribution of principalities led to a gradual weakening of the grand-ducal power and its political influence on other Russian lands. Nevertheless, until the invasion of the Mongols, the Vladimir-Suzdal land remained the strongest and most influential principality in Rus', maintaining political unity under the leadership of the Vladimir Grand Duke. When planning a campaign of conquest against Rus', the Mongol-Tatars linked the result of the surprise and power of their first strike with the success of the entire campaign as a whole. And it is no coincidence that North-Eastern Rus' was chosen as the target of the first strike.

Chernigov and Smolensk principalities

These two large Dnieper principalities had economic and political system has much in common with other South Russian principalities, which were ancient centers of culture for the Eastern Slavs. Here already in the 9th -11th centuries. Large princely and boyar land ownership developed, cities grew rapidly, becoming centers of handicraft production, serving not only the nearby rural districts, but also having developed external connections. The Smolensk Principality had extensive trade relations, especially with the West, where the upper reaches of the Volga, Dnieper and Western Dvina converged - the most important trade routes of Eastern Europe.
The separation of Chernigov land into an independent principality occurred in the second half of the 11th century. in connection with its transfer (together with the Murom-Ryazan land) to the son of Yaroslav the Wise Svyatoslav, to whose descendants it was assigned. Back at the end of the 11th century. The ancient ties between Chernigov and Tmutarakan, which was cut off by the Polovtsians from the rest of the Russian lands and fell under the sovereignty of Byzantium, were interrupted. At the end of the 40s of the 11th century. The Chernigov principality was divided into two principalities: Chernigov and Novgorod-Seversky. At the same time, the Murom-Ryazan land became isolated, falling under the influence of the Vladimir-Suzdal princes. The Smolensk land separated from Kyiv at the end of the 20s of the 12th century, when it went to the son of Mstislav I Rostislav. Under him and his descendants (“Rostislavichs”), the Smolensk principality expanded territorially and strengthened.
The central, connecting position of the Chernigov and Smolensk principalities among other Russian lands involved their princes in all the political events that took place in Rus' in the 12th-13th centuries, and above all in the struggle for their neighboring Kiev. The Chernigov and Seversk princes showed particular political activity, indispensable participants (and often initiators) of all princely strife, unscrupulous in the means of fighting their opponents and more often than other princes resorted to an alliance with the Polovtsians, with whom they devastated the lands of their rivals. It is no coincidence that the author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” called the founder of the dynasty of Chernigov princes Oleg Svyatoslavich “Gorislavich,” who was the first to “forge sedition with the sword” and “sow” the Russian land with strife.
The grand ducal power in the Chernigov and Smolensk lands was unable to overcome the forces of feudal decentralization (the zemstvo nobility and the rulers of small principalities), and as a result, these lands at the end of the 12th - first half of the 13th centuries. were fragmented into many small principalities, which only nominally recognized the sovereignty of the great princes.

Polotsk-Minsk land

The Polotsk-Minsk land showed early trends towards separation from Kyiv. Despite the unfavorable soil conditions for agriculture, the social economic development The development of the Polotsk land occurred at a high pace due to its advantageous location at the crossroads of the most important trade routes along the Western Dvina, Neman and Berezina. Lively trade relations with the West and the Baltic neighboring tribes (Livs, Lats, Curonians, etc.), which were under the sovereignty of the Polotsk princes, contributed to the growth of cities with a significant and influential trade and craft stratum. A large feudal economy with developed agricultural industries, the products of which were exported abroad, also developed here early.
At the beginning of the 11th century. The Polotsk land went to the brother of Yaroslav the Wise, Izyaslav, whose descendants, relying on the support of the local nobility and townspeople, fought for the independence of their “fatherland” from Kiev for more than a hundred years with varying success. The Polotsk land reached its greatest power in the second half of the 11th century. during the reign of Vseslav Bryachislavich (1044-1103), but in the 12th century. an intensive process of feudal fragmentation began in it. In the first half of the 13th century. it was already a conglomerate of small principalities that only nominally recognized the power of the Grand Duke of Polotsk. These principalities, weakened by internal strife, faced a difficult struggle (in alliance with neighboring and dependent Baltic tribes) with the German crusaders who invaded the Eastern Baltic. From the middle of the 12th century. The Polotsk land became the target of an offensive by the Lithuanian feudal lords.

Galicia-Volyn land

The Galician-Volyn land extended from the Carpathians and the Dniester-Danube Black Sea region in the south and southwest to the lands of the Lithuanian Yatvingian tribe and the Polotsk land in the north. In the west it bordered with Hungary and Poland, and in the east with the Kyiv land and the Polovtsian steppe. The Galicia-Volyn land was one of the most ancient centers of the arable farming culture of the Eastern Slavs. Fertile soils, mild climate, numerous rivers and forests interspersed with steppe spaces created favorable conditions for the development of agriculture, cattle breeding and various crafts, and at the same time early development feudal relations, large feudal princely and boyar land ownership. Craft production reached a high level, the separation of which from agriculture contributed to the growth of cities, which were more numerous here than in other Russian lands. The largest of them were Vladimir-Volynsky, Przemysl, Terebovl, Galich, Berestye, Kholm, Drogichin, etc. A significant part of the inhabitants of these cities were artisans and merchants. The second trade route from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea (Vistula-Western Bug-Dniester) and overland trade routes from Rus' to the countries of South-Eastern and Central Europe passed through the Galicia-Volyn land. The dependence of the Dniester-Danube lower land on Galich made it possible to control the European shipping trade route along the Danube with the East.
Galician land until the middle of the 12th century. was divided into several small principalities, which in 1141 were united by the Przemysl prince Vladimir Volodarevich, who moved his capital to Galich. The highest prosperity and power Principality of Galicia reached under his son Yaroslav Osmomysl (1153-1187) - a major statesman of that time, which highly raised the international prestige of his principality and successfully defended in his policies all-Russian interests in relations with Byzantium and the European states neighboring Russia. The author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” dedicated the most pathetic lines to the military power and international authority of Yaroslav Osmomysl. After the death of Osmomysl, the Principality of Galicia became the arena of a long struggle between the princes and the oligarchic aspirations of the local boyars. Boyar land ownership in the Galician land was ahead of the princely land in its development and significantly exceeded the latter in size. The Galician “great boyars”, who owned huge estates with their own fortified castle cities and had numerous military servants-vassals, in the fight against the princes they disliked, resorted to conspiracies and rebellions, and entered into an alliance with the Hungarian and Polish feudal lords.
The Volyn land separated from Kyiv in the middle of the 12th century, securing itself as a ancestral “fatherland” for the descendants of the Kyiv Grand Duke Izyaslav Mstislavich. Unlike the neighboring Galician land, a large princely domain was formed early in Volyn. Boyar land ownership grew mainly due to princely grants to serving boyars, whose support allowed the Volyn princes to begin an active struggle to expand their “fatherland.” In 1199, the Volyn prince Roman Mstislavich managed to unite the Galician and Volyn lands for the first time, and with his occupation in 1203, Kyiv brought all of Southern and Southwestern Rus' under his rule - a territory equal to the large European states of that time. The reign of Roman Mstislavich was marked by the strengthening of the all-Russian and international position of the Galicia-Volyn region
lands, successes in the fight against the Polovtsians, the fight against the rebellious boyars, the rise of Western Russian cities, crafts and trade. Thus, the conditions were prepared for the flourishing of Southwestern Rus' during the reign of his son Daniil Romanovich.
The death of Roman Mstislavich in Poland in 1205 led to the temporary loss of the achieved political unity of Southwestern Rus' and to the weakening of princely power in it. All groups of the Galician boyars united in the struggle against the princely power, unleashing a devastating feudal war that lasted over 30 years.
The boyars entered into an agreement with the Hungarian and
Polish feudal lords who managed to take possession of the Galician land and part of Volyn. During these same years, an unprecedented case in Rus' occurred in the reign of boyar Vodrdislav Kormilich in Galich. The national liberation struggle against the Hungarian and Polish invaders, which ended in their defeat and expulsion, served as the basis for the restoration and strengthening of the positions of princely power. Relying on the support of cities, the service boyars and the nobility, Daniil Romanovich established himself in Volyn, and then, having occupied Galich in 1238, and Kiev in 1240, he again united all of South-Western Rus' and the Kiev land.

Novgorod feudal republic

A special political system, different from princely monarchies, developed in the 12th century. in Novgorod land, one of the most developed Russian lands. The ancient core of the Novgorod-Pskov land consisted of the lands between Ilmen and Lake Peipsi and along the banks of the Volkhov, Lovat, Velikaya, Mologa and Msta rivers, which were divided territorially and geographically into “pyatitins”, and
in administrative terms - “hundreds” and “cemeteries”. The Novgorod “suburbs” (Pskov, Ladoga, Staraya Russa, Velikiye Luki, Bezhichi, Yuryev, Torzhok) served as important trading posts on trade routes and military strongholds on the borders of the land. The largest suburb, which occupied a special, autonomous position in the system of the Novgorod Republic (the “younger brother” of Novgorod), was Pskov, distinguished by its developed crafts and its own trade with the Baltic states, German cities and even with Novgorod itself. In the second half of the 13th century. Pskov actually became an independent feudal republic.
From the 11th century active Novgorod colonization of Karelia, the Podvina region, the Onega region and the vast northern Pomerania began, which became Novgorod colonies. Following the peasant colonization (from the Novgorod and Rostov-Suzdal lands) and the Novgorod trade and fishing people, the Novgorod feudal lords also moved there. In the XII - XIII centuries. there already were the largest patrimonial estates of the Novgorod nobility, who jealously did not allow feudal lords from other principalities to enter these areas and create a princely state there land ownership.
In the 12th century. Novgorod was one of the largest and most developed cities in Rus'. The rise of Novgorod was facilitated by its exceptionally advantageous location at the beginning of trade routes important for Eastern Europe, connecting the Baltic Sea with the Black and Caspian Seas. This predetermined a significant share of intermediary trade in Novgorod’s trade relations with other Russian lands, with Volga Bulgaria, the Caspian and Black Sea regions, the Baltic states, Scandinavia and North German cities. Trade in Novgorod was based on crafts and various trades developed in the Novgorod land. Novgorod artisans, distinguished by their wide specialization and professional skills, worked mainly to order, but some of their products came to the city market, and through merchant buyers to foreign markets. Craftsmen and merchants had their own territorial (“Ulichansky”) and professional associations (“hundreds”, “brotherhood”), which played a significant role in the political life of Novgorod. The most influential, uniting the top of the Novgorod merchants, was the association of merchants-women (“Ivanskoye Sto”), who were mainly engaged in foreign trade. The Novgorod boyars also actively participated in foreign trade, virtually monopolizing the most profitable fur trade, which they received from their possessions in the Podvina and Pomerania and from the trade and fishing expeditions they specially equipped to the Pechersk and Ugra lands.
Despite the predominance of the trade and craft population in Novgorod, the basis of the economy of the Novgorod land was agriculture and related crafts. Due to unfavorable natural conditions, grain farming was unproductive and bread was a significant part Novgorod import. Grain reserves in the estates were created at the expense of food rent collected from smerds and were used by feudal lords for speculation in frequent lean years of famine, to entangle the working people in usurious bondage. In a number of areas, peasants, in addition to ordinary rural crafts, were engaged in the extraction of iron ore and salt.
In the Novgorod land, large boyar and then church land ownership arose early and became dominant. The specificity of the position of the princes in Novgorod, sent from Kiev as prince-deputies, which excluded the possibility of Novgorod turning into a principality, did not contribute to the formation of a large princely domain, thereby weakening the position of the princely authorities in the fight against the oligarchic aspirations of the local boyars. Already the end! V. the Novgorod nobility largely predetermined the candidacies of the princes sent from Kyiv. Thus, in 1102, the boyars refused to accept the son of the Kyiv Grand Duke Svyatopolk into Novgorod, declaring with a threat to the latter: “if your son had two heads, then they ate him.”
In 1136, the rebels of Novgorod, supported by the Pskovians and Ladoga residents, expelled Prince Vsevolod Mstislavich, accusing him of “neglecting” the interests of Novgorod. In the Novgorod land, freed from the rule of Kyiv, a unique political system was established, in which republican governing bodies stood next to and above the princely power. However, the Novgorod feudal lords needed the prince and his squad to fight the anti-feudal protests of the masses and to protect Novgorod from external danger. In the first time after the uprising of 1136, the scope of the rights and activities of the princely power did not change, but they acquired a service-executive character, were subject to regulation and were placed under the control of the mayor (primarily in the field of court, which the prince began to administer together with the mayor). As the political system in Novgorod acquired an increasingly pronounced boyar-oligarchic character, the rights and sphere of activity of the princely power were steadily reduced.
The lowest level of organization and management in Novgorod was the unification of neighbors - “ulichans” with elected elders at their head. Five urban “ends” formed self-governing territorial-administrative and political units, which also had special Konchan lands in collective feudal ownership. At the ends, their own veche gathered and elected Konchan elders.
The highest authority, representing all ends, was considered the city veche meeting of free citizens, owners of city yards and estates. The bulk of the urban plebs, who lived on the lands and estates of feudal lords as tenants or enslaved and feudal-dependent people, were not authorized to participate in the passing of veche sentences, but thanks to the publicity of the veche, which gathered on Sophia Square or Yaroslav's Courtyard, they could follow the progress of veche debates and with its violent reaction often exerted a certain amount of pressure on the eternalists. The Veche considered critical issues domestic and foreign policy, invited the prince and entered into a relationship with him, elected the mayor, who was in charge of administration and court and controlled the activities of the prince, and the thousand, who headed the militia and the court of special importance in Novgorod trade affairs.
Throughout the history of the Novgorod Republic, the positions of posadnik, Konchan elders and tysyatsky were occupied only by representatives of 30 - 40 boyar families - the elite of the Novgorod nobility (“300 golden belts”).
In order to further strengthen the independence of Novgorod from Kiev and transform the Novgorod bishopric from an ally of the princely power into one of the instruments of its political domination, the Novgorod nobility managed to achieve the election (since 1156) of the Novgorod bishop, who, as the head of the powerful church feudal hierarchy, became soon one of the first dignitaries of the republic.
The veche system in Novgorod and Pskov was a kind of Feudal “democracy”, one of the forms of the feudal state, in which the democratic principles of representation and election of officials at the veche created the illusion of “democracy”, the participation of “the whole of Novgovgorod in governance, but where in reality all the power was concentrated in the hands of the boyars and the privileged elite of the merchant class. Taking into account the political activity of the urban plebs, the boyars skillfully used the democratic traditions of Konchan self-government as a symbol of Novgorod freedom, which covered their political dominance and provided them with the support of the urban plebs in the fight against the princely power.
Political history of Novgorod in the XII - XIII centuries. was distinguished by the complex interweaving of the struggle for independence with anti-feudal protests of the masses and the struggle for power between boyar groups (representing the boyar families of the Sofia and Trade sides of the city, its ends and streets). The boyars often used anti-feudal protests of the urban poor to eliminate their rivals from power, dulling the anti-feudal nature of these protests to the point of reprisals against individual boyars or officials. The largest anti-feudal movement was the uprising in 1207 against the mayor Dmitry Miroshkinich and his relatives, who burdened the urban people and peasants with arbitrary exactions and usurious bondage. The rebels destroyed the city estates and villages of the Miroshkinichs, and seized their debt bonds. The boyars, hostile to the Miroshkinichs, took advantage of the uprising to remove them from power.
Novgorod had to wage a stubborn struggle for its independence with neighboring princes who sought to subjugate the rich “free” city. The Novgorod boyars skillfully used the rivalry between the princes to choose strong allies among them. At the same time, rival boyar groups drew the rulers of neighboring principalities into their struggle. The most difficult thing for Novgorod was the struggle with the Suzdal princes, who enjoyed the support of an influential group of Novgorod boyars and merchants connected by trade interests with North-Eastern Russia. An important weapon of political pressure on Novgorod in the hands of the Suzdal princes was the cessation of the supply of grain from North-Eastern Rus'. The positions of the Suzdal princes in Novgorod were significantly strengthened when their military assistance to the Novgorodians and Pskovians became decisive in repelling the aggression of the German Crusaders and Swedish feudal lords who sought to seize the western and northern Novgorod territories.

Time from the beginning of the XII to the end of the XV century. traditionally called the specific period. And indeed, on the basis of Kievan Rus, approximately 15 principalities and lands were formed by the middle of the 12th century, about 50 principalities by the beginning of the 13th century, approximately 250 in the 14th century.

The rise of the economy of the Kyiv state took place against the background of the continued expansion of its territory due to the further development of the East European Plain.

The separation of individual principalities and the process of their crystallization within the framework of the Kyiv state had been prepared for a long time.

Political fragmentation has become a new form of organization of Russian statehood in the conditions of the development of the country's territory and its further development along an ascending line. Arable farming spread everywhere. Tools were improved: archaeologists count more than 40 types of metal tools used in the economy. Even on the most remote outskirts of the Kyiv state, boyar estates developed. An indicator of economic recovery was the growth in the number of cities. In Rus' on the eve of the Mongol invasion there were about 300 cities - centers of highly developed crafts, trade, and culture.

Princely and boyar estates, like peasant communities that paid taxes to the state, had a natural character. They sought to satisfy their needs as much as possible using internal resources. Their connections with the market were very weak and irregular. The dominance of subsistence farming opened up the possibility for each region to separate from the center and exist as an independent land or principality.

Further economic development of individual lands and principalities led to inevitable social conflicts. To resolve them, strong local authorities were needed. The local boyars, who relied on the military power of their prince, now no longer wanted to depend on the central government in Kyiv.

The main force in the process of separation was the boyars. Relying on his power, local princes were able to establish their power in each land. However, subsequently, inevitable contradictions and a struggle for influence and power arose between the strengthened boyars and the local princes. In different lands-states it was resolved in different ways. For example, boyar republics were established in Novgorod, and later in Pskov. In other lands, where the princes suppressed the separatism of the boyars, power was established in the form of a monarchy.

The order of occupation of thrones that existed in Kievan Rus, depending on seniority in the princely family, created a situation of instability and uncertainty, which hindered the further development of Rus'; new forms of political organization of the state were needed, taking into account the existing balance of economic and political forces. Political fragmentation, which replaced the early feudal monarchy, became such a new form of state-political organization.

Fragmentation

Fragmentation is a natural stage in the development of Ancient Rus'. The assignment of certain territories-lands to certain branches of the Kyiv princely family was a response to the challenge of the time. The “circle of princes” in search of a richer and more honorable throne hindered the further development of the country. Each dynasty no longer regarded its principality as a spoil of war; economic calculation came first. This allowed local authorities to more effectively respond to peasant discontent, crop shortages, and external invasions.

Kyiv became the first among equal principality-states. Soon other lands caught up and even surpassed him in their development. Thus, a dozen and a half independent principalities and lands were formed, the borders of which were formed within the framework of the Kyiv state as the boundaries of appanages, volosts, where local dynasties ruled.

The title of Grand Duke was now given not only to the princes of Kyiv, but also to the princes of other Russian lands. Political fragmentation did not mean a severance of ties between the Russian lands and did not lead to their complete disunity. This is evidenced by a single religion and church organization, a single language, the legal norms of the “Russian Truth” in force in all lands, and people’s awareness of a common historical destiny.

As a result of fragmentation, the principalities emerged as independent principalities, the names of which were given to the capital cities: Kiev, Chernigov, Pereyaslav, Murom, Ryazan, Rostov-Suzdal, Smolensk, Galicia, Vladimir-Volyn, Polotsk, Turovo-Pinsk, Tmutarakan; Novgorod and Pskov lands. Each of the lands was ruled by its own dynasty - one of the branches of the Rurikovichs. The prince's sons and boyar-deputies ruled local fiefs. Civil strife both within individual branches of the princes of Rurik's house and between individual lands largely determine the political history of the period of appanage fragmentation.

Let us consider the history of the largest Russian lands from the moment of their separation from Kyiv until the Mongol-Tatar conquest.

Vladimir-Suzdal Principality

Northeastern Rus' - Vladimir-Suzdal or Rostov-Suzdal land (as it was called at first) - was located between the Oka and Volga rivers. Here at the beginning of the 12th century. A large boyar landholding developed. In the Zalessk region there were fertile soils suitable for farming. Plots of fertile land were called opoly (from the word “field”). One of the cities of the principality even received the name Yuryev-Polskaya (that is, located in the opole region).

Old cities grew here and new ones emerged. At the confluence of the Oka and the Volga in 1221, Nizhny Novgorod was founded - the largest supporting and shopping mall in the east of the principality. The old cities received further development: Rostov, Suzdal, Vladimir, Yaroslavl. New fortified cities were built and fortified: Dmitrov, Yuryev-Polskoy, Zvenigorod, Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, Kostroma, Moscow, Galich-Kostromskoy, etc.

The territory of the Rostov-Suzdal land was well protected from external invasions by natural barriers - forests and rivers. It was called the Zalessk region. Because of this, one of the cities received the name Pereyaslavl-Zalessky. In addition, on the way of the nomads to Rostov-Suzdal Rus' lay the lands of other southern Russian principalities, which took the first blow. The economic recovery of northeast Rus' was facilitated by a constant influx of population. In search of protection from enemy attacks and normal conditions for farming, the population of lands subject to raids by nomads rushed to the Vladimir-Suzdal opillia. The colonization flow also came here from the north-west in search of new fishing lands.

Among the factors that contributed to the rise of the economy and the separation of the Rostov-Suzdal land from the Kyiv state, one should mention the presence of profitable trade routes passing through the territory of the principality. The most important of them was the Volga trade route, which connected northeastern Rus' with the countries of the East. Through the upper reaches of the Volga and the system of large and small rivers it was possible to go to Novgorod and further to the countries of Western Europe.

In the Rostov-Suzdal land, the capital of which was then the city of Suzdal, the sixth son of Vladimir Monomakh, Yuri (1125-1157), reigned at that time. For his constant desire to expand his territory and subjugate Kyiv, he received the nickname “Dolgoruky”.

Yuri Dolgoruky, like his predecessors, devoted his entire life to the struggle for the Kiev grand-ducal throne. Having captured Kyiv and becoming the Grand Duke of Kyiv, Yuri Dolgoruky did not forget about his northeastern lands. He actively influenced the politics of Novgorod the Great. Ryazan and Murom came under the traditional influence of the Rostov-Suzdal princes. Yuri carried out extensive construction of fortified cities on the borders of his principality. Under 1147 The chronicle first mentions Moscow, built on the site of the former estate of the boyar Kuchka, confiscated by Yuri Dolgoruky. Here, on April 4, 1147, negotiations between Yuri and the Chernigov prince Svyatoslav took place, who brought Yuri a pardus (leopard) skin as a gift.

Even during his father’s life, Yuri’s son Andrei realized that Kyiv had lost its former role. On the dark night of 1155, Andrei and his entourage fled from Kyiv. Having captured the “shrine of Rus'” - the icon of Our Lady of Vladimir, he hurried to the Rostov-Suzdal land, where he was invited by the local boyars. The father, who tried to reason with his rebellious son, soon died. Andrey never returned to Kyiv.

During the reign of Andrei (1157-1174), a fierce struggle unfolded with the local boyars. Andrei moved the capital from the rich boyar Rostov to the small town of Vladimir-on-Klyazma, which he built up with extraordinary pomp. The impregnable white stone Golden Gates were built, and the majestic Assumption Cathedral was erected. Six kilometers from the capital of the principality, at the confluence of the Nerl and Klyazma rivers, Andrei founded his country residence - Bogolyubovo. Here he spent a significant part of his time, for which he received the nickname Bogolyubsky. Here, in the Bogolyubsky Palace, on a dark July night in 1174, Andrei was killed as a result of a conspiracy of boyars, led by the Kuchkovich boyars, the former owners of Moscow.

The rulers of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality bore the title of grand dukes. The center of Russian political life moved to the northeast. In 1169, Andrei's eldest son captured Kyiv and subjected it to brutal plunder. Andrei tried to subjugate Novgorod and other Russian lands. His policy reflected the tendency to unite all Russian lands under the rule of one prince.

Andrei's policy was continued by his half-brother, Vsevolod II the Big Nest (1176-1212). The prince had many sons, which is why he received his nickname (his sons are depicted on the relief of the wall of the Demetrius Cathedral in Vladimir). The twenty-two-year-old son of a Byzantine princess, Vsevolod, brutally dealt with the conspiratorial boyars who killed his brother. The struggle between the prince and the boyars ended in favor of the prince. Power in the principality was finally established in the form of a monarchy.

Under Vsevolod, white stone construction was continued on a large scale in Vladimir and other cities of the principality. Vsevolod the Big Nest tried to subjugate Novgorod to his power, expanded the territory of his principality at the expense of Novgorod lands along the Northern Dvina and Pechora, and pushed the border of Volga Bulgaria beyond the Volga. The Vladimir-Suzdal prince was at that time the strongest in Rus'. The author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” spoke about the power of Vsevolod: “He can splash the Volga with oars, and scoop up the Don with helmets.”

The Vladimir-Suzdal principality retained primacy among the Russian lands, and after the death of Vsevolod the Big Nest. The winner in the internecine struggle for the Vladimir grand-ducal throne between his sons was Yuri (1212-1216; 1219-1238). Under him, control was established over Veliky Novgorod. In 1221 he founded Nizhny Novgorod - the largest Russian city in the east of the principality.

The process of further economic growth of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality was interrupted by the Mongol invasion.

Galicia-Volyn Principality

Southwestern Rus' - the Galician-Volyn principality occupied the northeastern slopes of the Carpathians and the territory between the Dniester and Prut rivers. There were rich black soils in wide river valleys, as well as vast forests favorable for fishing activities, and significant deposits of rock salt, which were exported to neighboring countries. On the territory of the Galicia-Volyn land there arose big cities: Galich, Vladimir-Volynsky, Kholm, Berestye (Brest), Lvov, Przemysl, etc. Convenient geographical position(neighborhood with Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic) made it possible to conduct an active foreign trade. In addition, the lands of the principality were relatively safe from nomads. As in Vladimir-Suzdal Rus', there was a significant economic boom here.

In the first years after separation from Kyiv, the Galician and Volyn principalities existed as independent ones. The rise of the Galician principality began under Yaroslav Osmomysl of Galicia (1153-1187). (He knew eight foreign languages, which is why he received his nickname; according to another version, “eight-thoughtful,” i.e., wise.) Highly appreciating the power of the prince and his power, the author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” wrote, addressing Yaroslav: “Highly you sit on your gold-plated throne, propping up the Hungarian mountains with your iron regiments... you open the gates of Kiev” (i.e. Kiev is subjugated to you - Author). And indeed, in 1159, Galician and Volyn squads temporarily captured Kiev.

The unification of the Galician and Volyn principalities occurred in 1199 under the Volyn prince Roman Mstislavich (1170-1205). In 1203 he captured Kyiv and took the title of Grand Duke. One of the largest states in Europe was formed (the Pope even offered Roman Mstislavich to accept the royal title). Roman Volynsky and Galitsky waged a stubborn struggle against the local boyars, which ended in his victory. Here, as well as in the northeast of Rus', a strong grand ducal power was established. Roman Mstislavich successfully fought with the Polish feudal lords, the Polovtsians, and led an active struggle for supremacy over the Russian lands.

Roman Mstislavich's eldest son Daniil (1205-1264) was only four years old when his father died. Daniel had to endure a long struggle for the throne with both Hungarian, Polish, and Russian princes. Only in 1238 did Daniil Romanovich assert his power over the Galicia-Volyn land. In 1240, having occupied Kyiv, Daniel managed to unite southwestern Rus' and the Kyiv land. However, in the same year, the Galicia-Volyn principality was devastated by the Mongol-Tatars, and 100 years later these lands became part of Lithuania (Volyn) and Poland (Galich).

Novgorod Boyar Republic

The Novgorod land (northwestern Rus') occupied a vast territory from the Arctic Ocean to the upper Volga, from the Baltic to the Urals.

The Novgorod land was far from the nomads and did not experience the horror of their raids. The wealth of the Novgorod land lay in the presence of a huge land fund that fell into the hands of the local boyars, who grew out of the local tribal nobility. Novgorod did not have enough of its own bread, but commercial activities - hunting, fishing, salt making, iron production, beekeeping - received significant development and provided the boyars with considerable income. The rise of Novgorod was facilitated by its exceptionally favorable geographical position: the city was located at the crossroads of trade routes connecting Western Europe with Russia, and through it - with the East and Byzantium. Dozens of ships stood at the berths of the Volkhov River in Novgorod.

As a rule, Novgorod was owned by the prince who held the Kiev throne. This allowed the eldest prince among the Rurikovichs to control the great path “from the Varangians to the Greeks” and dominate Rus'. Using the discontent of the Novgorodians (uprising of 1136), the boyars, who had significant economic power, managed to finally defeat the prince in the struggle for power. Novgorod became a boyar republic. The highest body of the republic was the veche, at which the Novgorod administration was elected, the most important issues of domestic and foreign policy were considered, etc. Along with the citywide veche, there were “Konchansky” (the city was divided into five districts - ends, and the entire Novgorod land - into five regions - Pyatin) and “Ulichansky” (uniting street residents) veche gatherings. The actual hosts at the meeting were 300 “golden belts” - the largest boyars of Novgorod.

The main official in the Novgorod administration was the posadnik (from the word “to plant”; usually the great Kiev prince “planted” his eldest son as governor of Novgorod).

The posadnik was the head of the government, in his hands were the administration and the court. In fact, boyars from the four largest Novgorod families were elected as posadniks.

The veche elected the head of the Novgorod church - the bishop (later the archbishop). The ruler managed the treasury, controlled the external relations of Veliky Novgorod, trade measures, etc., and even had his own regiment.

The third important person in the city administration was the thousand, who was in charge of the city militia, the court for commercial matters, and also the collection of taxes.

The veche invited the prince who controlled the army during military campaigns; his squad maintained order in the city. It seemed to symbolize the unity of Novgorod with the rest of Russia. The prince was warned: “Without a mayor, prince, you should not judge the court, you should not hold volosts, you should not give charters.” Even the prince’s residence was located outside the Kremlin, on the Yaroslav’s Courtyard - the Trade Side, and later - a few kilometers from the Kremlin on the Gorodishche.

Residents of the Novgorod land managed to repel the onslaught of crusader aggression in the 40s of the 13th century. The Mongol-Tatars were also unable to capture the city, but heavy tribute and dependence on the Golden Horde affected the further development of this region.

Principality of Kiev

The Principality of Kiev, endangered by nomads, lost its former importance due to the outflow of population and the decline in the role of the route “from the Varangians to the Greeks”; however, it still remained a major power. According to tradition, the princes still competed for Kyiv, although its influence on all-Russian life had weakened. The day before Mongol invasion the power of the Galician-Volyn prince Daniil Romanovich was established in it. In 1299, the Russian metropolitan moved his residence to Vladimir-on-Klyazma, as if establishing a new balance of power within Rus'. The Mongol invasion from the east, the expansion of the Catholic Church from the west, changes in the world (the weakening of Byzantium, etc.) largely determined the nature of the further development of the Russian principalities and lands - the successors of the Kiev state.

Although there was no longer political unity within Rus', the factors of the future unification were objectively preserved: a single language, a single faith, a single legislation, common historical roots, the need to defend the country and survive in a vast territory with a sharply continental climate, a sparse population, poorly fertile soils in the absence of natural borders. The idea of ​​the unity of Rus' continued to live in the minds of people, and the experience of joint historical practice only confirmed the need for unity. The appeal of the author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” to inner world and agreement in the fight against nomads in those conditions, the alarm sounded like a call for the unity of Rus'.