Ruler Princess Olga, Vasily Petrovich Vereshchagin

• Years of life: circa 890 – July 11, 969
• Father and mother: unknown, presumably not of noble origin.
• Spouse: .
• Children: .

Princess Olga (≈890 – July 11, 969) – ruler of Kievan Rus. Ruled after the death of her husband Igor Rurikovich from 945 to 966. Olga was the first of the Russian rulers to convert to Christianity. At baptism she was named Elena.

Unfortunately, Olga’s origins are unknown for certain. Historians still have not come to a consensus on this matter. According to the Tale of Bygone Years, she was of ignoble origin - a peasant from Pskov.

According to the opinion of the Piskarevsky chronicler and the typographic chronicle (XV century), Olga was the daughter of the Prophetic Oleg. He ruled Kievan Rus and was Igor’s guardian, and then he married Igor and Olga.

The Normanists believed that Olga was of Varangian origin. In accordance with the Joachim Chronicle, Olga is of noble origin from the Gostomyslov family.

Historians from Bulgaria believe that Olga has Bulgarian roots. There are other theories.

There is also a legend about the acquaintance of Igor and Olga. The young prince went hunting in the Pskov region. There he wanted to cross the river. Igor saw a boat in which Olga, dressed in men's clothing, was sailing; he asked the girl to take him to the other side. Igor began to pester Olga, but was refused in response.

When Igor decided to get married, the most beautiful girls came to Kyiv. But the prince did not like any of them. Then he remembered Olga, his casual acquaintance. Igor sent Prophetic Oleg for her. And Olga became the wife of Prince Igor.

Olga owned Vyshgorod, Olzhichi, the village of Budutino, etc. In addition, she had her own squad, her own ambassador. Olga, while her husband was away on campaigns, was involved in domestic politics.

The princess gave her husband a son, Svyatoslav.

In 945, the Drevlyans killed Igor. Svyatoslav was only three years old, so Princess Olga became the ruler of Kievan Rus.

Princess Olga's revenge for the death of her husband

First revenge. The Drevlyans were afraid of Olga's revenge, so they sent Prince Mal to woo her. He and 20 Drevlyans sailed on a boat. Olga agreed to their proposal. Then she ordered to dig a large hole into which they threw the Drevlyan boat, then the matchmakers were sent there too. Olga ordered them to be buried alive.

Second revenge. Olga sent a messenger demanding that they send her the best people from the Drevlyans so that she could “marry with great honor” for their prince. The Drevlyans obeyed and sent her the best husbands. Olga ordered the bathhouse to be lit for them, and while the Drevlyans were washing, all the doors were locked and the bathhouse was set on fire.

Third revenge. Olga went to the Drevlyans to arrange a funeral feast for her late husband. She came, cried at her husband’s grave, and then had a feast. After getting the Drevlyans drunk, Olga ordered their heads to be cut off. According to data, about five thousand Drevlyans died that day.

Fourth revenge. In 946, Olga decided to capture Iskorosten, the capital of the Drevlyans. The siege dragged on, and the princess decided to use a trick. She sent envoys to the city to make peace. The Drevlyans had to pay a tribute of three doves and sparrows. Of course, the Drevlyans were pleased with this news and sent tribute. At night, Olga ordered tinder to be tied to the birds and released. The birds flew to their nests, located in Iskorosten. A fire started in the city. Residents fled the city, and Olga’s squad was already waiting for them there. So the princess captured the city. Some of the Drevlyans were killed, some became slaves, and Olga ordered them to pay a large tribute.

Princess Olga: domestic politics

Olga was the official ruler until Svyatoslav came of age. Although even after that she was the actual ruler, because her son was constantly on military campaigns.

Olga established tribute on the land during her reign. The princess established a system of "cemeteries". Cemeteries are places where tribute is collected. Olga also established “polyudya” (taxes to Kyiv) and “tributes, charters.” All lands were divided into parts, and a tiun (princely administrator) was appointed at the head of each. There was a centralization of power and a weakening of the power of the tribes.

Under Olga, the first stone buildings were built - Olga's tower and the city palace. The princess was also involved in the improvement of Pskov, Novgorod and other lands belonging to Kyiv. Also during her reign, the churches of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary, St. Nicholas and St. Sophia, the Holy Life-Giving Trinity, were erected.

Princess Olga: foreign policy

There were no major campaigns under Olga. The princess decided to raise the prestige of Kievan Rus in the world. But she did not conquer him by force, but decided to act diplomatically.

Olga's baptism

Olga was the first ruler to convert to Orthodoxy. In 955, the princess was baptized in Byzantium, and the Emperor of Byzantium became her godfather. But under Olga, Christianity did not take root in Rus'.

Olga tried to introduce Svyatoslav to Christianity. But he refused, because... I was afraid of losing the respect of my squad.

On July 11, 969, Olga died. The place of her burial is unknown. During the reign of Vladimir in 1547, she was canonized and her relics were transferred to the Tithe Church.

Olga is revered as the patroness of Christian converts and widows.

Reign of Princess Olga (briefly)

The reign of Princess Olga - a brief description

Researchers' opinions differ when it comes to the date and place of birth of Princess Olga. Ancient chronicles do not give us accurate information whether she was from a noble family or from a simple family. Some are inclined to believe that Olga was the daughter of the Grand Duke Oleg the Prophet, while others claim that her family descends from the Bulgarian Prince Boris. The author of the chronicle “The Tale of Bygone Years” directly says that Olga’s homeland is a small village near Pskov and that she is “from a simple family.”

According to one version, Prince Igor Rurikovich saw Olga in the forest, where he was hunting game. Deciding to cross a small river, the prince asked for help from a girl passing by on a boat, whom he initially mistook for a young man. The girl turned out to be pure in intentions, beautiful and smart. Later the prince decided to take her as his wife.

Princess Olga, after the death of her husband (and also during the reign of Igor in Kyiv) from the Drevlyans, proved herself to be a firm and wise ruler of Rus'. She dealt with political issues, managed with warriors, governors, complainants, and also received ambassadors. Very often, when Prince Igor went on military campaigns, his responsibilities fell entirely on the shoulders of the princess.

After Igor was killed in 945 for collecting tribute again, Olga brutally repaid them for the death of her husband, showing unprecedented cunning and will. Three times she killed the Drevlyan ambassadors, after which she gathered an army and went to war against the Drevlyans. After Olga was unable to take the main city of Korosten (while the remaining settlements were completely destroyed), she demanded three sparrows and three doves from each house, and then ordered her warriors to attach tinder to the birds’ legs, set it on fire and release the birds. The burning birds flew to their nests. And so Korosten was taken.

After the pacification of the Drevlyans, the princess took up tax reform. It abolished polyudyas and divided them into regions of the earth, for each “lessons” (fixed tax) were established. The main goal of the reforms was to streamline the tribute system, as well as strengthen state authority.

Also during Olga’s reign, the first stone cities appeared, and her foreign state policy was carried out not through military methods, but through diplomacy. Thus, ties with Byzantium and Germany were strengthened.

The princess herself decided to convert to Christianity, and although her baptism did not influence Svyatoslav’s decision to leave pagan Rus', Vladimir continued her work.

Olga died in 969 in Kyiv, and in 1547 she was canonized as a saint.

Princess Olga became one of the first rulers of the Russian land who turned her attention to domestic politics.

The first princes chose an extensive path of development, expanding their borders and growing rich by seizing foreign territories.

During Olga's reign, extensive and intensive paths of development converged in symbiosis, which allowed the princess to leave a big mark on the history of Rus'.

Domestic politics of Princess Olga

The reign began with tragedy. The Drevlyans killed her husband. They killed him because the squad returned to collect tribute again. The Drevlyans had nothing to lose, so a “rebellion” happened. They refused to pay tribute, caused great damage to Igor’s squad, and killed the prince himself.
Olga brutally suppressed the Drevlyan uprising. But the reasons for the riot became a good lesson for her. She rightly decided that it was necessary to establish a clear and fair amount of tribute in order to avoid conflicts in the future.

If the action took place in the modern world, then one could say that Olga carried out tax reform. The new rules included the establishment of a place for collecting tribute - “pogost”, and the amount of tribute - “lesson”.

Subsequently, incidents similar to the incident with the Kyiv prince and the Drevlyans did not happen.

Princess Olga's politics in the table

After the introduction of graveyards and lessons, Olga actively builds cities and fortresses around them, strengthening the defense of Ancient Rus'.

Foreign policy of Princess Olga

Princess Olga's foreign policy boiled down to finding new allies and strengthening international relations. In 956, the Byzantine emperor came to Kyiv. A year later, Olga made a visit to Constantinople, where she converted to Orthodoxy under the name Elena. In 958, Olga went to Germany, seeking to gain a new ally. The Germans sent Christian clergymen to Kyiv. But pagan Kyiv did not accept the preachers and sent them home.

Under Olga, Rus' survived the war with Khazaria and the Pechenegs. In 968 the Pechenegs besieged Kyiv. The city was defended, and the princess personally led its defense.

Results of Olga's policy

• Strengthening centralized power
• Development of diplomatic relations with European countries
• Establishing tax amounts
• First steps to Christianity

There is a historical tale that the ideal ruler for Princess Olga was the Roman Emperor Constantine. This cannot be proven, but the fact is that she was similar to him: just as intelligent, persistent, talented and completely ruthless.

Long regency

Olga was a de facto ruler, but not a de jure one. After the death of her husband Igor in 945, she became only a regent for her young son Svyatoslav. Some sources claim that he was 3 years old, but this is doubtful; one thing is important: he was incapable of independent rule. And the last documented fact of Olga’s participation in state affairs dates back to 968. At this time, Svyatoslav is no longer only an adult, but also a seasoned warrior, and his mother leads the defense of Kyiv from the Pechenegs while her son robs the Bulgarians.

Consequently, Olga was actually not only a regent, but also a co-ruler of Svyatoslav. This prince was not at all interested in the internal structure of the state and willingly pushed such matters onto his mother.

Carrot and stick

This is how we can characterize Olga’s attitude towards the internal structure of the country. She became a widow as a result. The prince became the first victim of tax evasion in our history - the Drevlyans took revenge on him for trying to collect tribute from them twice. But such actions undermined the prestige of the Kyiv authorities. And Olga, to begin with, decisively stopped them.

Chronicles tell horror stories of the “four vengeances,” with ambassadors buried alive, funeral participants slaughtered, and a city burned with the help of sparrows. Almost certainly this excess is on the conscience of the artistic imagination of the authors of the chronicles. But it’s a fact: Olga suppressed the resistance of the Drevlyans by force and put an end to their princely dynasty.

But then she did exactly the opposite. She established the exact amounts of the “uplift” (that is, per household) tribute. Thus, antics like the one that led to Igor's death were now excluded. For the convenience of collecting taxes and resolving local conflicts, places were organized near some settlements where tribute was paid and where litigation was resolved. It is characteristic that later the word “pogost” became synonymous with cemetery - one can guess how they were punished for offenses. But for those years it was the norm.

Diplomacy successes

On the external frontiers, Olga preferred negotiations to force. It is known that she visited Byzantium (approximately in 955) and negotiated with the German Emperor Otto I. This should also include her adoption of Christianity - this was well received by foreign sovereigns.

This could only harm domestic politics. It is known that the Russians simply kicked out the missionary sent by Otto I. Son Svyatoslav responded to his mother’s offer to be baptized with a categorical refusal and stated that he did not want to become a laughing stock in the eyes of his own soldiers. Christianity was not persecuted in Rus', but the prince and most of his subjects considered the baptized “strange” and sarcastically teased them.

Princess Olga began to rule the ancient Russian state after the tragic death of her husband, Prince Igor of Kyiv, who was brutally dealt with by the Drevlyans for their arbitrariness in collecting tribute.

The young power, brought together by the Prophetic Oleg, represented separate lands subjugated by his sword, where various East Slavic, Finno-Ugric and other tribes lived. Their payment of tribute to Kyiv formally meant that a new political system of power had arisen in Rus', but the mechanism of interaction between the center and individual territories had not yet developed. Kievan Rus of the 10th century occupied a huge space, where many volosts were ruled by local princes, who, although they recognized the supreme power of Kyiv, continued to live according to their own laws.

Having become a ruler under the young heir Svyatoslav, Olga was able to force the princely squad, led by the powerful governor Sveneld, to serve her. With his help, she brutally suppressed the rebellion of the Drevlyans, destroying virtually the entire tribal elite and elders of this tribe. Showing the strength of the central government, she toured her lands and began to “organize” them. Olga’s organization of churchyards to collect tribute and her establishment of “lessons” - a certain amount of payments from the population - became the first manifestation of the establishment of state power as such.

Olga's reign was sharply different from its predecessors: chronicles about the reign of Prophetic Oleg and Prince Igor are filled with reports of aggressive campaigns and numerous wars. Olga adhered to a peaceful foreign policy. During her time, peace and quiet reigned on Russian soil. Having made a campaign against the Drevlyans, the princess took up the internal arrangement of the country. The state received a peaceful respite for almost twenty years, which contributed to its economic strengthening. Having received holy baptism in Constantinople, Princess Olga became the “harbinger of Christianity” in Rus'. Her attempts to spread Orthodoxy in her own country were unsuccessful, but they paved the way for the subsequent baptism of the entire Russian land.

CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS

  945 The murder of Prince Igor by the Drevlyans. The beginning of Olga's reign in Kievan Rus.

  946 spring- Arrival of the Drevlyan ambassadors to Kyiv with the intention of marrying Olga to Prince Mal. Olga's reprisal against the Drevlyan embassy.

  946 summer— Arrival in Kyiv to Olga of the “best husbands” of the Drevlyansky land. Burning of the Drevlyan matchmakers on the orders of Olga.

  946 end of summer- Olga’s third revenge on the Drevlyans. The murder of representatives of the Drevlyan clans during the funeral feast for Igor.

  946 The march of the Kyiv army, led by governor Sveneld, together with Princess Olga and Prince Svyatoslav, to the Drevlyansky land. Siege, capture and burning of Iskorosten. Murder of city elders. End of the war with the Drevlyans. Imposing a “heavy tribute” on them.

  947 Princess Olga's tour of the volosts of Kievan Rus. Establishment of graveyards and camps for collecting tribute in the Meta and Luga basins and along the Dnieper and Desna. Determination of the fixed amount of tribute from subject tribes.

  Mid-10th century Relocation of the Polovtsians to the steppes of the Black Sea region and the Caucasus.

  Mid-10th century Annexation of the land of the Tivertsi to the Principality of Kyiv.

  Mid-10th century Separation of the Principality of Polotsk.

  Mid-10th century The first mention in the chronicles of Vyshgorod is a city north of Kyiv.

  2nd half X century Formation of the Vladimir-Volyn principality.

  954 Participation of the Byzantines (together with the Russians) in the battle of Al-Hadas.

  955 Chronicle record of Olga's journey to Constantinople. Kyiv Princess Olga's baptism (with the name Elena).

  957 September 9— Reception of Princess Olga in Constantinople by the Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus.

  959 autumn— Report from a German chronicle about the embassy of Princess Olga to the German king Otto I with a request to send a Catholic bishop to Russian soil.