G. “Russian Truth” - the first written set of laws of Ancient Rus'
1. The established structure of ancient Russian society was reflected in the oldest code of laws - “Russian Truth”. In “Yaroslav’s Truth,” the law still allowed blood feud for the murder of a person, but only close relatives (brother, father, son) could take revenge.
2. And at 1072 ᴦ. three Yaroslavich brothers (Izyaslav, Svyatoslav and Vsevolod) supplemented the code with new laws. It was called “Yaroslavich Pravda” and became the second part of “Russian Pravda”. Subsequently, the code was repeatedly supplemented by princely statutes and church regulations. in ʼʼPravda Yaroslavicheyʼʼ revenge was generally prohibited and replaced with a fine - vira. Vira went to the prince. The law protected the administration, property and working population of the princely estates.
3 The Law already showed features of social inequality; it reflected the beginning of the process of class division. There was a fine for harboring other people's servants; a free man could kill a slave for offense. For the murder of a princely steward there was a fine of 80 hryvnia, a headman - 12 hryvnia, and a serf or serf - 5 hryvnia. Fines were also established for theft of livestock, poultry, plowing someone else's land, and violating boundaries. The power of the Grand Duke passed according to seniority - the eldest in the family became the Grand Duke.
4. “Russian Truth” regulated relations between people in society with the help of laws, which put state and public life in order.
The political unity of the Old Russian state was preserved for some time after the death of Yaroslav the Wise (1054 ᴦ.). Izyaslav occupied Kyiv, Svyatoslav - Chernigov, Vsevolod - Pereyaslavl, Igor - Vladimir, Vyacheslav - Smolensk. The sons of Yaroslav, according to the will, jointly ruled Russia. After death in 1057 ᴦ. Vyacheslav Yaroslavich of Smolensk's eldest sons formed a kind of triumvirate, distributing income at their own discretion and eliminating unwanted princes. The first example of eliminating an inconvenient person with the help of the church is the tonsure of Uncle Sudislav as a monk.
Gradually, strife flared up within the princely family. The struggle for the volosts intensified. The triumvir brothers managed to retain power in their hands and even increase their lands (the Yaroslavichs established control over Polotsk, which had almost fallen away from Kievan Rus at that time).
In the 70s of the 11th century. Relations between the brothers have already become complicated. After the death of Svyatoslav, his nephews also took part in the civil strife. Yaroslav's offspring grew larger and became cramped for them. The redistribution of control over the volosts began. The main goal of the opponents in this struggle is to capture the richest volosts. At the same time, both sides were not picky in their means: they attracted the Polovtsians, Byzantium, crippled the enemy, etc. Tmutarakan became a kind of center where the princes who lost the fight fled.
The Kiev reign of Vsevolod Yaroslavich (1078-1093) was a time of relative stability in the domestic and foreign political life of Rus'. At this time, the son of Vsevolod, the Chernigov prince Vladimir Monomakh (who received his nickname from his mother, the daughter of the Byzantine Emperor Constantine IX Monomakh) finally subjugated the Vyatichi - the last East Slavic union of tribal principalities that still retained its own princes. After the death of Vsevolod in 1093 ᴦ. A period of aggravation of strife and struggle with the Polovtsians begins.
Constant civil strife forced the princes to seek a compromise. At 1097 ᴦ. At the congress of South Russian princes in Lyubech, an agreement was concluded according to which Svyatopolk, Vladimir and Oleg with the brothers Davyd and Yaroslav Svyatoslavich were to own patrimony - regions transferred to their fathers for administration according to the will of Yaroslav the Wise. At the congress, an agreement was also reached on joint actions to defend Rus' from external danger.
Soon after the congress, the strife flared up again. At 1100 ᴦ. Another attempt at reconciliation was made: the initiator of the feud, Davyd Igorevich, was moved to the insignificant city of Buzhsk. The fighting subsides for a while.
G. “Russian Truth” - the first written set of laws of Ancient Rus' - concept and types. Classification and features of the category “G. “Russian Truth” - the first written set of laws of Ancient Rus'” 2017, 2018.
RUSSIAN TRUTH- a monument of legislation of the 11th–12th centuries, considered the earliest code of legal norms of early medieval Rus' that has reached modern researchers.
The term “truth”, often found in ancient Russian sources, means the legal norms on the basis of which the trial was carried out (hence the expressions “to judge the right” or “to judge in truth”, that is, objectively, fairly). Sources of codification are norms of customary law, princely judicial practice, as well as borrowed norms from authoritative sources – primarily the Holy Scriptures. There is an opinion that even before Russian truth there was a certain Russian Law(its norms are referenced in the text Treaty Rus' with Byzantium 907), however, which of his articles were included in the text of Russian Pravda, and which are original, there is no exact data. According to another hypothesis, the name “Pravda Roskaya” comes from the lexeme “ros” (or “rus”), which means “combatant”. In this case, in the text of the set of norms one should see a code adopted to regulate relations in the princely-squad environment. The importance of tradition and customary law (not written down anywhere or by anyone) was less important in it than in the community environment.
Russian Truth has survived to this day in copies of the 15th century. and eleven lists from the 18th–19th centuries. According to traditional Russian historiography, these texts and lists are divided into three editions Russian Truth: Brief, Extensive And Abbreviated.
The oldest list or the first edition Russian Truth is Brief Is it true(20–70s of the 11th century), which is usually divided into The truth of Yaroslav the Wise(1019–1054) and Pravda Yaroslavich. First 17 articles Pravda Yaroslav(according to the breakdown of later researchers, since there is no division into articles in the source text itself), preserved in two lists of the 15th century. as part of the Novgorod I Chronicle, contain an even earlier layer - the first 10 recorded norms, “as Yaroslav judged” - they are called The Most Ancient Truth (« Pravda Roska"). Its text was compiled no earlier than 1016. A quarter of a century later, the text The Most Ancient Truth formed the basis of all Pravda Yaroslav– code of norms of case law. These norms regulated relations within the princely (or boyar) economy; Among them are regulations on fees for murder, insults, mutilations and beatings, theft and damage to other people's property. Start Brief Truth convinces of the fixation of the norms of customary law, since they deal with blood feud (Article 1) and mutual responsibility (Article 19).
Pravda Yaroslavich(sons of Yaroslav the Wise) are referred to as articles 19–41 in the text Brief Truth. This part of the code was compiled in the 70s of the 11th century. and until the end of the century it was constantly updated with new articles. These include articles 27–41, divided into Pokon Virny(that is Charter on fines in favor of the prince for the murder of free people and the standards of feeding the collectors of these payments), the appearance of which is associated with the uprisings of 1068–1071 in Rus', and Lesson for bridge builders(that is, Rules for those who pave roadways in cities). In general Brief edition Russian Truth reflects the process of the formulation of laws from particular cases to general norms, from the solution of specific issues to the formulation of general state law at the stage of formation of the medieval feudal order.
Vast Truth– second edition Russian Truth, a monument to a developed feudal society. Created in the 20–30s of the 12th century. (a number of researchers associate its origins with the Novgorod uprisings of 1207–1208 and therefore attribute its composition to the 13th century). Preserved in more than 100 lists as part of legal collections. The earliest - Synodal list of Extensive Truth- compiled in Novgorod around 1282, included in the Kormchaya Book and was a collection of Byzantine and Slavic laws. Another early list is Trinity, 14th century. - included in The standard of the righteous, also the oldest Russian legal collection. Most of the lists Dimensional Truth– later, 15–17 centuries. All this wealth of texts Dimensional Truth is combined into three types (in source studies - editions): Synodal-Troitsky, Pushkin-Archaeographic And Karamzinsky. Common to all types (or versions) is the combination of text Brief Truth with the norms of the princely legislation of Svyatopolk Izyaslavich, who ruled Kiev from 1093 to 1113, as well as the Charter of Vladimir Monomakh 1113 (the charter determined the amount of interest charged on contractual loans). By volume Vast Truth almost five times more Brief(121 articles with additions). Articles 1–52 are referred to as Court of Yaroslav, Articles 53–121 – as Charter of Vladimir Monomakh. Norms Dimensional Truth operated before the Tatar-Mongol yoke in Rus' and in its first period.
Some researchers (M.N. Tikhomirov, A.A. Zimin) believed that Vast Truth was primarily a monument of Novgorod civil legislation, and later its norms became all-Russian. Degree of "officiality" Dimensional Truth is unknown, as are the exact boundaries of the region covered by its rules.
The most controversial monument of ancient Russian law is the so-called Abridged Truth– or third edition Russian Truth, which arose in the 15th century. It reached only two lists of the 17th century, placed in Helmsman's book special composition. It is believed that this edition originated as a reduction of the text Dimensional Truth(hence the name), was compiled in the Perm land and became known after its annexation to the Moscow principality. Other scholars do not rule out that this text was based on an earlier and unknown monument from the second half of the 12th century. Disputes still continue among scholars regarding the dating of various editions. Truth, especially this third one.
From the beginning of the 14th century. Russian Truth began to lose its significance as a valid source of law. The meaning of many of the terms used in it became unclear to copyists and editors, which led to distortions of the text. From the beginning of the 15th century. Russian Truth ceased to be included in legal collections, which indicates that its norms have lost legal force. At the same time, its text began to be included in chronicles - it became history. Text Russian Truth(various editions) formed the basis of many legal sources - Novgorod and Smolensk with Riga and the Gothic coast (Germans) of the 13th century, Novgorod And Judgment letters, Lithuanian Statute 16th century, Sudebnik Casimir 1468 and finally the all-Russian code of norms of the era of Ivan III - Sudebnik 1497.
Brief Truth was first discovered by V.N. Tatishchev in 1738 and published by A.L. Shletser in 1767. Vast Truth first published by I.N. Boltin in 1792. In the 19th century. above The truth outstanding Russian lawyers and historians worked - I. D. Evers, N. V. Kalachev, V. Sergeevich, L. K. Goetz, V. O. Klyuchevsky, who analyzed the time and reasons for the creation of individual parts and editions Russian Truth, the relationship between the lists, the essence of the legal norms reflected in them, their origins in Byzantine and Roman law. In Soviet historiography, the main attention was paid to the “class essence” of the source under consideration (works of B.D. Grekov, S.V. Yushkov, M.N. Tikhomirov, I.I. Smirnov, L.V. Cherepnin, A.A. Zimin ) – that is, to study with the help Russian Truth social relations and class struggle in Kievan Rus. Soviet historians emphasized that Russian Truth perpetuated social inequality. Having fully defended the interests of the ruling class, she openly proclaimed the lack of rights of unfree workers - serfs, servants (thus, the life of a serf was valued 16 times lower than the life of a free “husband”: 5 hryvnia versus 80). According to the conclusions of Soviet historiography, Russian Truth asserted the inferiority of women both in the property and private spheres, but modern research shows that this is not so (N.L. Pushkareva). In Soviet times, it was customary to talk about Russian Truth as a single source that had three editions. This corresponded to the general ideological orientation towards the existence of a single legal code in ancient Rus', just as the Old Russian state itself was viewed as the “cradle” of three East Slavic nationalities. Currently, Russian researchers (I.N. Danilevsky, A.G. Golikov) more often talk about Brief, Spatial And Abridged Truths as independent monuments that are of great importance for the study of various parts of the state of Rus', similar to all-Russian and local chronicles.
All texts of Russian Truth have been published several times. There is a complete academic edition of it according to all known lists.
Russian Truth is a legal document of Ancient Rus', a collection of all laws and legal norms that existed in the 10th and 11th centuries.
Russian Truth is the first legal document in Ancient Rus', which united all the old legal acts, princely decrees, laws and other administrative documents issued by a variety of authorities. Russian Truth is not only an important part of the history of law in Russia, but also an important cultural monument, since it reflects the way of life of Ancient Rus', its traditions, principles of economic management, and is also an important source of information about the written culture of the state, which at that time was just emerging.
The document includes rules of inheritance, trade, criminal law, as well as principles of procedural law. Russian Truth was at that time the main written source of information about social, legal and economic relations on the territory of Rus'.
The origin of Russian Truth today raises quite a few questions among scientists. The creation of this document is associated primarily with the name Yaroslav the Wise - the prince collected all the legal documents and decrees that existed in Rus' and issued a new document around 1016-1054. Unfortunately, today not a single copy of the original Russian Pravda has survived, only later censuses, so it is difficult to say exactly about the author and the date of creation of Pravda. The Truth was rewritten several times by other princes, who made modifications to it according to the realities of the time.
Main sources of Russian Truth
The document exists in two editions: short and lengthy (more complete). The short version of Russian Pravda includes the following sources:
Pokon virny - determining the order of feeding princely servants, vira collectors (created in the 1020s or 1030s);
Pravda Yaroslava (created in 1016 or 1030s);
Pravda Yaroslavich (does not have an exact date);
A lesson for bridge workers - regulation of wages for builders, pavement workers, or, according to some versions, bridge builders (created in the 1020s or 1030s).
The brief edition contained 43 articles and described new state traditions that appeared shortly before the creation of the document, as well as a number of older legal norms and customs, in particular, the rules of blood feud. The second part contained information about fines, violations, etc. The legal foundations in both parts were built on a principle quite common for that time - class. This meant that the severity of the crime, the punishment or the size of the fine depended not so much on the crime itself, but on what class the person who committed it belonged to. Also, different categories of citizens had different rights.
A later version of the Russian Pravda was supplemented by the charter of Yaroslav Vladimirovich and Vladimir Monomakh , the number of articles in it was 121. Russian Truth in an expanded edition was used in court, civil and church, to determine punishment and settle commodity-money litigation and relations in general.
In general, the norms of criminal law described in the Russian Pravda correspond to the norms adopted in many early state societies of that period. The death penalty is still retained, but the typology of crimes is significantly expanding - murder is now divided into intentional and unintentional, different degrees of damage are designated, from intentional to unintentional, fines are levied not at a single rate, but depending on the severity of the offense. It is worth noting that Russian Truth describes fines in several currencies at once for the convenience of the legal process in different territories.
The document also contained a lot of information about the legal process. Russian Pravda determined the basic principles and norms of procedural legislation: where and how it is necessary to hold court hearings, how it is necessary to contain criminals during and before the trial, how to judge them and how to carry out the sentence. In this process, the class principle mentioned above is preserved, which implies that more noble citizens could count on a more lenient punishment and more comfortable conditions of detention. Russian Pravda also provided for a procedure for collecting monetary debt from a debtor; prototypes of bailiffs appeared who dealt with similar issues.
Another side described in Russian Pravda is social. The document defined different categories of citizens and their social status. Thus, all citizens of the state were divided into several categories: noble people and privileged servants, which included princes, warriors, then ordinary free citizens, that is, those who were not dependent on the feudal lord (all residents of Novgorod were included here), and the lowest category were considered dependent people - peasants, serfs, serfs and many others - who were in the power of feudal lords or the prince.
The meaning of Russian Truth
Russian Truth is one of the most important sources of information about the life of Ancient Rus' at the earliest period of its development. The presented legislative norms allow us to get a fairly complete picture of the traditions and way of life of all segments of the population of the Russian land. In addition, Russian Pravda became one of the very first legal documents, which was used as the main national legal code.
The creation of Russian Pravda laid the foundations for the future legal system and in the creation of new legal codes in the future (in particular, the creation code of law of 1497 ) has always remained the main source, which was taken as a basis by legislators not only as a document containing all acts and laws, but also as an example of a single legal document. Russkaya Pravda for the first time officially consolidated class relations in Rus'.
In our literature on the history of Russian law, there is no consensus on the origin of Russian Pravda. Some consider it not an official document, not a genuine monument of legislation, but a private legal collection compiled by some ancient Russian lawyer or group of lawyers for their own personal purposes. Others consider the Russian Pravda to be an official document, a genuine work of the Russian legislative power, only spoiled by copyists, as a result of which many different lists of Pravda appeared, which differ in the number, order and even text of the articles. Installation of LED curtain.
It is indisputable that, like any other legal act, Russian Truth could not arise from scratch, without having a basis in the form of sources of law. All that remains for us is to list and analyze these sources, to evaluate their contribution to the creation of Russian Pravda.
The sources of codification are customary law and princely judicial practice. The norms of customary law include, first of all, provisions on blood feud (Article KP) and mutual responsibility (Article KP). The legislator shows a different attitude towards these customs: he seeks to limit blood feud (narrowing the circle of avengers) or completely abolish it, replacing it with a monetary fine - vira (there is a similarity with the “Salic truth” of the Franks, where blood feud was also replaced by a monetary fine); Unlike blood feud, mutual responsibility is preserved as a measure that binds all members of the community with responsibility for their member who committed a crime (“Wild Virus” was imposed on the entire community).
Another source of Russian Truth was the Russian Law (rules of criminal, inheritance, family, procedural law). Disputes about its essence still continue to this day. In the history of Russian law there is no consensus on this document. It is known that it is partially reflected in the treaties between Rus' and the Greeks in 911 and 944 and in the Russian Truth. For example, in the treaty of 911 it is written: “If you strike with a sword or beat with a katz or a vessel, for that strike or beating you will give 5 liters of silver according to the Russian law.”
The references of treaties to the law of the young Russian state, used as a source of law along with the laws of the Byzantine Empire, became the topic of lively discussion in historical and legal literature. For example, supporters of the Norman theory of the origin of the Old Russian state considered the Russian Law to be Scandinavian law. V.O. Klyuchevsky believed that the Russian Law was a “legal custom”, and as a source of Russian Truth it represents “not the primitive legal custom of the Eastern Slavs, but the law of urban Rus', which developed from quite diverse elements in the 9th - 11th centuries.” According to V.V. Mavrodin, the Russian Law was customary law created in Rus' over the centuries. L.V. Cherepnin suggested that between 882 and 911 a princely legal code was created, necessary for the implementation of princely policies in the annexed Slavic and non-Slavic lands. In his opinion, the code reflected relations of social inequality. It was “the right of an early feudal society, located at a lower stage of the process of feudalization than the one at which the Most Ancient Truth arose.” A.A. Zimin also allowed for the formation of early feudal law at the end of the 9th - beginning of the 10th centuries. He believed that under Oleg, customary law still existed, and under Igor, princely laws appeared - “charters”, “pokons”, which introduced monetary punishment for violation of property rights and mutilation, limited blood feud, and replaced it in some cases with monetary compensation, began to use the institutions of witness-video, code, duels, oath. These norms were later included in the Communist Code. Although some of the conclusions of A.A. Zimin and L.V. Cherepnin remain debatable (about the development of early feudal ancient Russian law in the 9th - 10th centuries from legal custom and customary law), their observations prove that Russian Truth is not just a record of the customary law of an individual tribe. Not being a supporter of the Norman theory of the origin of the Old Russian state, I support the point of view of A.A. Zimin. In the second half of the 9th century, in the middle Dnieper region, the unification of the Pravda Slavic tribes, similar in composition and social nature, took place into the Russian Law, the jurisdiction of which extended to the territory of the state formation of the Slavs with its center in Kyiv. The Russian Law represents a qualitatively new stage in the development of Russian oral law in the conditions of the existence of the state. Also in Russian Pravda there are numerous norms developed by princely judicial practice.
The concept of Russian Truth
Russian truth is the oldest monument to the history of the fatherland, in other words, it is a collection of legal norms of Kievan Rus. The original text of the truth has not reached us. If you believe the basic data, then the Russian Truth was written in 1037 by Yaroslav the Wise for the Novgorodians. For many centuries, Russian truth served as a guide for legal proceedings. Subsequently, truth itself entered other sources of law. It is believed that the Russian Truth is the first stage in the codification of Russian law, but this information is not reliable, since the text of the Russian Truth itself contains a reference to the Russian Law.
Russian Truth has three editions: Abridged, short and lengthy.
The earliest version of this source of law is considered to be the Brief Truth, which arose during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise. It consisted of Pravda Yaroslav, Pravda Yaroslavich, Pokon Virny, Lesson of Bridge Workers. Each component of truth is presented as a series of articles in the source.
It is believed that after a brief edition, a lengthy truth appeared; it was released after 1113 during the reign of Vladimir Monomakh. The extensive truth includes the Court of Yaroslav and the Charter of Vladimir Monomakh.
The last, third edition is considered to be the Abridged Truth. It appeared in two lists of the 17th century, placed in the Helmsman’s Book of a special composition. It is believed that this edition arose as an abbreviation of the text of the Extensive Truth. Disputes still continue among scientists regarding the dating of various editions of Pravda, especially this third one.
Origin of Russian truth
Nowadays, it is generally accepted that Russian Truth is one of the largest legal works of the Middle Ages. Some scientists naively believe that Russian Truth arose under the influence of Byzantine and Scandinavian law; this is not so. Russian truth arose entirely on Russian soil. This means that Russian truth as a source of law is analogous to the “Salic truth”, “Anglo-Saxon legal codes” and other sources of law of that time.
As for the place of origin of the document, this issue also remains controversial. Some historians (B.G Grekov, S.V Yushakov and others) believe that Russian truth takes its roots from Kyiv, others (M.N Tikhomirov) believe that it came from Novgorod. Each of the theories of origin is significant and controversial and often, apart from general considerations and theories, does not carry any serious evidence.
Until now, the question of the origin of the first texts of Russian Truth is controversial. Some scientists associate the emergence of Russian truth with the name of Yaroslav the Wise, a famous political figure of that time, builder of libraries and educational institutions. The lists of the Brief Edition are not numerous, there are two of them, Academic and Archaeographic. Both documents are similar in content, which indicates that they originated from the same source or protographer.
The lengthy truth has been preserved in more lists. They are longer in content and contain a larger number of articles, which indicates deeper legal thinking.
M.H. Tikhomirov dates the emergence of lengthy truth to the beginning of the thirteenth century, due to the movements in Novgorod in 1209.
L.V. Cherepnin believes that this source of law arose in parts at princely congresses (Lyubechesky), and as a whole it appeared in 1209.
S.V. Yushkov believed that the Long Truth was compiled in the twelfth century as a result of a mechanical combination of the Court of Yaroslav Vladimirovich and the Charter of Vladimir Monomakh.
B. A. Rybakov believes that the Extensive Truth was created during the reign of Vladimir Monomakh or his son Mstislav.
The abbreviated truth is attributed by most researchers (such as N.A. Maksimeyko, A.A. Zimin) to the 15th or even the 17th century. However, M.N Tikhomirov believes that it was written in the second half of the 12th century.
Russian truth did not arise out of nowhere; it reflects the development of thought and is the result of the progress of the ancient Russian state. Many researchers believe that the first text, which appeared during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise, was written to eradicate old pagan customs. This time needed written law. In the codification of the law.
Sources of Russian Truth
As we may have already noticed, the concept of Russian Truth refers to three different documents, which can be designated as “short”, “lengthy” and “abbreviated”
Considering the first texts of Russian Pravda (Brief edition), we can say that the sources of codification were common law and judicial practice.
The norms of customary law were the provisions on circular felling and bloody revenge.
The norms of princely judicial practice are numerous in Russian Pravda and are associated with the names of the princes who adopted them.
Special attention should be paid to such a source as Byzantine canon law.
As a specific source, we can highlight the Russian Law. Little is known about this document. It is believed that this is a set of rules that existed even before the first texts of Russian Truth. There is practically no written evidence; it is only mentioned in a few documents. It is believed that this was an oral set of rules.
Another source of Russian truth is custom (here it is necessary to distinguish between custom and custom sanctioned by the state), it becomes the norm of customary law and these norms could exist both orally and in written form.
More complex in structure and composition, after the short truth, is the lengthy truth; it was compiled more thoroughly and in detail.
The very first and perhaps one of the main sources of law is the short truth. Borrowings from the short truth were placed in both chapters of the long truth (articles 71, 72, 73, 76, 77 and 78).
But the legislator of that time did not limit himself to borrowing articles from the first edition. The compilers of the Extensive Truth used the charter of Vladimir Monomakh. It included regulations on the collection of interest and on purchases, which was associated with the uprising of 1113 in Kyiv.
Researchers consider the third source to be the protograph of the Abridged Truth, but this is only Tikhomirov’s working hypothesis.
The abbreviated truth is the most complex source of law, compared to the previous two truths. Most researchers note this edition as a very late legal monument.
There is a theory that this is a simple excerpt from the text of a lengthy truth, but the Abridged Truth has a number of features that cannot be explained by the assumption that it is a simple abbreviation of the previous edition. It differs in the content of the articles or there are new sections. In the text of this truth, all articles of the abridged edition that were borrowed from the short version are omitted.
“Russian Truth” is a legal document of Ancient Rus', a collection of all laws and legal norms that existed in the 10th-11th centuries.
“Russian Truth” is the first legal document in Ancient Rus', which united all the old legal acts, princely decrees, laws and other administrative documents issued by different authorities. “Russian Truth” is not only an important part of the history of law in Russia, but also an important cultural monument, since it reflects the way of life of Ancient Rus', its traditions, principles of economic management, and is also an important source of information about the written culture of the state, which that moment was just emerging.
The document includes rules of inheritance, trade, criminal law, as well as principles of procedural law. “Russian Truth” was at that time the main written source of information about social, legal and economic relations on the territory of Rus'.
The origin of “Russian Truth” today raises quite a few questions among scientists. The creation of this document is associated primarily with the name - the prince collected all the legal documents and decrees that existed in Rus' and issued a new document around 1016-1054. Unfortunately, not a single copy of the original “Russian Pravda” has survived, only later censuses, so it is difficult to say exactly about the author and the date of creation of “Russian Pravda”. “Russian Truth” was rewritten several times by other princes, who made modifications to it according to the realities of the time.
Main sources of "Russian Truth"
The document exists in two editions: short and lengthy (more complete). The short version of “Russian Truth” includes the following sources:
- Pokon virny - determining the order of feeding the prince's servants, vira collectors (created in the 1020s or 1030s);
- Pravda Yaroslav (created in 1016 or in the 1030s);
- Pravda Yaroslavich (does not have an exact date);
- A lesson for bridge workers - regulation of wages for builders, pavement workers, or, according to some versions, bridge builders (created in the 1020s or 1030s).
The short edition contained 43 articles and described new state traditions that appeared shortly before the creation of the document, as well as a number of older legal norms and customs (in particular, the rules of blood feud). The second part contained information about fines, violations, etc. The legal foundations in both parts were built on a principle quite common for that time - class. This meant that the severity of the crime, the punishment or the size of the fine depended not so much on the crime itself, but on what class the person who committed it belonged to. In addition, different categories of citizens had different rights.
A later version of “Russian Truth” was supplemented by the charter of Yaroslav Vladimirovich and Vladimir Monomakh, the number of articles in it was 121. “Russkaya Pravda” in an expanded edition was used in court, civil and ecclesiastical, to determine punishment and settle commodity-money litigation and relations in general .
In general, the norms of criminal law described in Russian Pravda correspond to the norms adopted in many early state societies of that period. The death penalty is still retained, but the typology of crimes is significantly expanding: murder is now divided into intentional and unintentional, different degrees of damage are designated, from intentional to unintentional, fines are levied not at a single rate, but depending on the severity of the offense. It is worth noting that “Russkaya Pravda” describes fines in several currencies at once for the convenience of the legal process in different territories.
The document also contained a lot of information about the legal process. “Russian Truth” determined the basic principles and norms of procedural legislation: where and how it is necessary to hold court hearings, how it is necessary to contain criminals during and before the trial, how to judge them and how to carry out the sentence. In this process, the class principle mentioned above is preserved, which implies that more noble citizens could count on a more lenient punishment and more comfortable conditions of detention. “Russian Truth” also provided for a procedure for collecting monetary debt from a debtor; prototypes of bailiffs appeared who dealt with similar issues.
Another side described in “Russkaya Pravda” is social. The document defined different categories of citizens and their social status. Thus, all citizens of the state were divided into several categories: noble people and privileged servants, which included princes, warriors, then ordinary free citizens, that is, those who were not dependent on the feudal lord (all residents of Novgorod were included here), and the lowest category were considered dependent people - peasants, serfs, serfs and many others who were in the power of feudal lords or the prince.
The meaning of "Russian Truth"
“Russian Truth” is one of the most important sources of information about the life of Ancient Rus' at the earliest period of its development. The presented legislative norms allow us to get a fairly complete picture of the traditions and way of life of all segments of the population of the Russian land. In addition, “Russian Truth” became one of the very first legal documents that was used as the main national legal code.
The creation of the “Russian Pravda” laid the foundations for the future legal system, and when creating new codes of law in the future (in particular, the creation of the Code of Laws of 1497), it always remained the main source, which was taken as a basis by legislators not only as a document containing all acts and laws, but also as an example of a single legal document. “Russian Truth” for the first time officially consolidated class relations in Rus'.
Great statesman. A supporter of education, the development of literacy, the first schools and libraries at monasteries. Yaroslav the Wise. l Collector of the first set of legal documents and decrees that existed in Rus' in the 10th-11th centuries - Russian Pravda (c. 1016)
"A Brief Truth" consisted of 43 articles. The first part, the most ancient, also spoke about the preservation of the custom of blood feud, about the lack of a sufficiently clear division of the size of court fines depending on the social status of the victim. The second part reflected the further process of development of feudal relations: blood feud was abolished, the life and property of feudal lords were protected by increased penalties. Parts of "Russian Truth". "The Brief Truth".
Parts of "Russian Truth". "Vast Truth". Extensive Pravda is the second edition of Russian Pravda, a monument to a developed feudal society. Created in the 20–30s of the 12th century. (a number of researchers associate its origins with the Novgorod uprisings of 1207–1208 and therefore attribute its composition to the 13th century).
Parts of "Russian Truth". "Abridged Truth". Abridged Pravda - or the third edition of the Russian Pravda, which arose in the 15th century. It survived in only two copies of the 17th century, placed in the Helmsman’s Book of a special composition. It is believed that this edition arose as an abbreviation of the text of the Extensive Truth (hence the name), was compiled in the Perm land and became known after its annexation to the Moscow principality.
Currently, Russian researchers (I.N. Danilevsky, A.G. Golikov) more often talk about the Brief, Long and Abbreviated Truths as independent monuments that are of great importance for the study of various parts of the state of Rus', similar to all-Russian and local chronicles.
1. Explain why after the death of Prince Vladimir, who strengthened the Russian state, strife began.
In the chronicle, all the blame for the strife is placed on Svyatopolk. But such strife occurred after the death of not only Vladimir and his father Svyatoslav, but also many of Vladimir’s descendants. This means that the system itself allowed such strife to arise and pushed the heirs of the Grand Duke to fight. And indeed, under the authority of each of them there was his own inheritance, which provided resources for the struggle, and most importantly, each of them had his own squad, which was devoted only to its master, because it was from him that it received all the wealth and favors.
2. What policy did Yaroslav the Wise pursue in relation to neighboring peoples and states? What was the result of this policy? When answering, use the text of the paragraph and the map on p. 41.
Yaroslav subjugated some weaker peoples, thus expanding the territory of the state. He actively built cities, thus consolidating his power over the conquered lands, and also built a line of defense against the peoples roaming the Black Sea steppes (Pechenegs). Yaroslav did not conquer other nations, but subordinated them to his influence - so his proteges were two successive kings of Norway (Harald III the Severe and Magnus I the Noble). Finally, Yaroslav strengthened the international authority of the Old Russian state as a whole, even among distant peoples, for example, through the marriages of his children: his sons married princesses from the Holy Roman Empire, Poland, Byzantium, his daughters were married to Norway, England, France and Hungary.
3. Tell us about the creation of the first Russian code of laws - Russian Pravda.
Before this, crimes were judged according to the so-called customary law, that is, customs that were passed down orally from generation to generation. In this case, different interpretations of the laws were possible. The development of learning made it possible to write down laws. They began to do this precisely under Yaroslav the Wise, creating the so-called Brief Truth. Later, already under the heirs of Yaroslav, the code of laws was significantly expanded to the Extensive Truth. Some historians suggest that the Brief Truth, compiled under Yaroslav, was intended only for the prince’s squad, and according to the Long Truth, all his subjects were judged.
4. Name the main crimes and forms of punishment for them recorded in Russian Pravda.
Russian Truth punished murder, self-mutilation, theft, robbery, various arson, etc. The usual form of punishment was the payment of a fine (vira), which was paid by the criminal, and if he was hiding, then by the residents of the area where the crime was committed. The latter measure seems unfair today, but thanks to it, these residents themselves were interested in finding and apprehending the criminal.
5. How was the inequality of the position of different groups of the population reflected in Russian Pravda?
In Russian Pravda, penalties for murder, for example, were different depending on what position a person occupied in society. This was true under the conditions of that time. They paid viru to relatives - this was, as it were, compensation for what the murdered person could have earned for the family. The higher a person's position, the more income he had, the more income his relatives lost if he was killed. This is how social inequality was expressed in Russian Pravda.
6. Describe the contribution of Yaroslav the Wise to the development of ancient Russian culture. What was the significance of his founding of the Church of Hagia Sophia in Kyiv?
Yaroslav the Wise sought not only the flourishing of Russian culture, he even sought to surpass Byzantium. The St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv was built in imitation of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Constantinople - the main temple of Byznatia (and in imitation of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, churches with the same name appeared in Polotsk and Novgorod). Under Yaroslav, in principle, stone construction flourished, the creation of books, and not only translated ones; Russian works proper also appeared (for example, “The Tale of Boris and Gleb”).
7*. Draw up a historical portrait of Yaroslav the Wise (use the instruction on drawing up a historical portrait on p. 52).
Yaroslav Vladimirovich the Wise received the first principality (Novgorod) in 1010, became the Great Prince of Kyiv in 1016, although due to strife he united his father’s entire inheritance under his rule only in 1036, and died in 1054. He was smart and reasonable, even cunning. Yaroslav can be called a talented statesman - he knew the needs of the state, he was able to solve problems that arose. There is a well-known reconstruction of his appearance, which Mikhail Mikhailovich Gersimov carried out based on the found skull: an old man with a wide nose, prominent cheekbones and deep-set eyes is looking at us. In addition to the struggle for his father’s inheritance, he became famous for strengthening the state, expanding its borders, strengthening its international authority, both among its closest neighbors and among distant peoples. Under Yaroslav, culture flourished - one of the most significant manifestations of this was the construction of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. It was under Yaroslav that the first Metropolitan of Kiev of Russian origin, Hilarion, was known. Yaroslav also became famous as a legislator: it was under him that the first version of Russian Truth was created.
In history, Yaroslav remained precisely as the Wise - the ruler of a powerful and united Old Russian state, whom his enemies feared and his friends respected. The image of Yaroslav especially wins against the backdrop of his heirs constantly fighting with each other.