Educational- identify the difference in the life of the Eastern Slavs before the emergence of the state and after its formation, determine the time of formation of the Old Russian state.
Developmental- continue to work on developing the ability to analyze a historical text, draw conclusions, highlight the main and secondary, expand and deepen students’ knowledge, develop students’ information and communication competencies.
Educational- to form the patriotic consciousness of students, a sense of love and pride in the history of their country, education of information culture, respect for the interlocutor, the ability to argue, present material, and work in a group.
Lesson objectives:
- To consolidate the idea of the diversity of objects in the surrounding world, the diversity of their properties, actions, relationships;
- Develop mental actions in the process of analyzing objects;
- Develop an information culture, present information in different forms;
- To form an idea of the Old Russian state and the time of its formation;
- To teach how to correlate a historical event with a certain stage in the development of the state;
Used pedagogical technologies, methods and techniques: the lesson is built on problem-dialogic technology, the technology of productive reading, the technology of assessing student achievements are used (the main technologies of the OS “School 2100”).
Various forms of work: individual, frontal.
Equipment: PC, multimedia projector, Microsoft PowerPoint presentation, table “River of Time in Russian History”, “Magic rulers” for assessing students’ knowledge.
During the classes:
I.Organizing time.
Guys, today we have guests at our history lesson, say hello to them. Check if you are all ready for the history lesson?
II. Checking homework. Updating knowledge.
What country do you and I live in? ( Russia)
Can our country be called a state? Why?
So what is a state?
- What was our country called before?( Rus)
When did the state appear in Rus'?
III.Lesson topic message.
Today in history lesson we will learn when the state appeared in Rus'.
IV. Explanation of new material.
- The Eastern Slavs, who were our ancestors, lived on the territory of our Motherland. Look at the map, where the territory occupied by the tribes belonging to the group of Eastern Slavs is indicated in green. This territory was located between the Baltic and Black Seas.
What is a tribe? ( Tribe is a union of clans living on the same land and descended from the same ancestor)
What is a genus? ( A clan is a union of families descended from the same ancestor. In one clan, everyone is related)
What tribes are shown on the map? ( Drevlyans, Polyans, Krivichi, Vyatichi, Radimichi, etc.)
In front of us is a Slavic village. Look carefully at the screen and tell me where the Slavs built their villages? ( Along river banks and near forests)
What did the forest give to people? ( Firewood for heating, logs for construction, food extraction - hunting, extraction of honey from wild bees - beekeeping)
And the river? ( Fish - fishing)
What else was the river needed for? ( In order to move along it: in winter on ice, and in summer on boats)
What else are the Slavs doing in the illustration? ( They graze livestock, which means cattle breeding is developed)
Where else did the Slavs get food, do you think? ( They grew it themselves, which means agriculture developed)
Now let's go visit a Slavic family. See what family members are doing? ( The girl is preparing food.)
What does she cook in? (In the dishes)
Where did they get it from? ( We made it ourselves)
Who makes dishes from clay? ( potter)
What else are family members doing? ( The head of the family chops wood with an ax, the housewife brings food into the house)
Please note that the ax and plow have metal parts, which means what kind of craft developed? ( blacksmith)
What are they wearing? ( In clothes) Where did they get it from? ( We sewed it ourselves) Of what? ( From fabric that we ourselves wove) That's right, near the woman we see a loom.
Open your workbooks to page 10 and complete task 1. Insert the appropriate words.
Let's check.
-“... The river flowed in the forests, in the meadows,
The rooks slid along the current
And on the high banks
Villages could be seen here and there...
N. Konchalovskaya."
Where could the Eastern Slavs sail? ( Fishing)
This boat was too big for fishing. And they transported goods for sale. Trading was a dangerous and profitable business. Therefore, to protect their ships, merchants or guests began to hire and arm special people who united in squads. At the head of the squad was a military leader - a prince. Trade contributed to the emergence of cities. In many cities, the right to establish and maintain order and exercise power passed to the princes. Gradually, the cities subjugated the surrounding territories. And to strengthen the power of their cities, the prince and his retinue collected tribute from these territories, which was called polyudye.
Look carefully at the map and name the neighbors of the Eastern Slavs. ( Varangians and Khazars)
Right. These were quite militant neighbors, and they constantly attacked the territory of the Slavs. Why do you think they did this? ( To seize territory, profit from goodness)
What conclusion can we draw? ( The common military threat that came from the Khazars in the south and the Varangians in the north-west forced the princes to unite and create a state.)
One of the large cities was Novgorod, where Prince Oleg reigned.
The answer to the question of what Grand Duke Oleg is famous for can be found in the textbook on page 30.
V.Lesson summary.
When was the Old Russian state formed in Rus'? ( In 882)
VI. Homework.
When did the state appear in Rus'?
work completed by 4th grade student Dima Zhestovsky 02/10/10
The Russians did not immediately form into a single nation. Their ancestors were numerous Slavic tribes who lived in Eastern Europe. Each tribe was called differently: Polyans, Drevlyans, Volynians, Radimichi, Northerners, Vyatichi, Krivichi, etc.
02/10/10 4 In ancient times, the Eastern Slavs lived in forest areas between the Dniester and Dnieper rivers. Then they began to move north, up the Dnieper. This land was covered with dense forests, and deep rivers flowed among the forests. Slavic tribes loved to settle along the banks of these rivers.
The Slavs lived in tribes - unions of clans, that is, in one village the inhabitants were related by family ties and descended from the same ancestor.
The main occupation of the Slavs was agriculture. The Slavs sowed rye, wheat, barley, and millet. It was not easy to cultivate the land, especially in the forest belt: here it had to first be recaptured from the forest.
In addition to farming, the ancient Slavs also raised livestock - sheep, cows and pigs, hunted various animals, and fished. A very important economic activity was beekeeping - collecting honey from wild bees.
They lived in above-ground pillar houses or semi-dugouts, where stone or adobe hearths and ovens were built. They lived in half-dugouts in the cold season, and in above-ground buildings in the summer.
In ancient times they did not know how to make stoves and chimneys, but they built hearths among the dwellings, where they lit a fire, and the smoke escaped into a hole in the roof or wall. Benches, tables and all household utensils were made of wood.
Clothes for cold winters were made from animal skins. They usually put bast shoes on their feet, and later they learned to make leather shoes. And in the summer, when it was warm, men wore only shirts and pants. If they had to fight in hot weather, they would take off their shirts and fight half-naked. Instead of a shirt, a piece of coarse fabric like a cloak was often thrown over the shoulders. Women's clothing - longer shirts and the same raincoats as men's.
The Slavs deified the forces of nature. Their religion was pagan. The god of the sun was called Dazhdbog, the god of the wind - Stribog, the god of thunderstorms - Perun. The gods had to be appeased and a sacrifice made to them.
The ancient Slavs worshiped their gods and made sacrifices to them on a special round platform - a temple. In the middle of the temple there were idols - wooden images of gods.
Gradually, important changes took place in the social life of the Slavs. More than a thousand years ago, Slavic tribes began to unite, and rich cities appeared, protected by fortress walls.
In each city, power passes into the hands of military leaders - princes.
There was no peace between the tribes, their neighbors oppressed them, the princes defended their lands and fought with each other.
In 882, the Novgorod prince Oleg, who had the strongest squad, united most of the tribes. He chose the city of Kyiv as his capital. This is how the Old Russian state arose.
One prince - one faith. Another hundred years later, in 988, Grand Duke Vladimir Svyatoslavich ordered all residents of Rus' to accept Christianity - a new faith in the one God Jesus Christ. He took this step to unite the diverse inhabitants of his state.
All over the country they began to destroy old idols and build new temples in their place. In the capital of the state - Kyiv - the Church of St. Sophia - the Wisdom of God - was built, the most beautiful temple of the Old Russian land at that time.
I understand that such an article can break the fan, so I will try to avoid sharp corners. I am writing more for my own pleasure, most of the facts will be from the category taught at school, but nevertheless I will gladly accept criticism and corrections, if there are facts. So:
Ancient Rus'.
It is assumed that Rus' appeared as a result of the merger of a number of East Slavic, Finno-Ugric and Baltic tribes. The first mentions of us are found in the 830s. Firstly, in the area of 813. (very controversial dating) some Rosas successfully raided the city of Amastris (modern Amasra, Turkey) in Byzantine Palphagonia. Secondly, the ambassadors of the “Kagan Rosov” as part of the Byzantine embassy came to the last emperor of the Frankish state, Louis I the Pious (a good question, however, is who they really were). Thirdly, the same Dews ran in 860, already to Constantinople, without much success (there is an assumption that the famous Askold and Dir commanded the parade).
The history of serious Russian statehood begins, according to the most official version, in 862, when a certain Rurik appeared on the scene.
Rurik.
In fact, we have a pretty bad idea of who it was or whether there was one at all. The official version is based on the “Tale of Bygone Years” by Nestor, who, in turn, used the sources available to him. There is a theory (quite similar to the truth) that Rurik was known as Rurik of Jutland, from the Skjoldung dynasty (a descendant of Skjold, the king of the Danes, mentioned already in Beowulf). I repeat that the theory is not the only one.
Where this character came from in Rus' (specifically, in Novgorod) is also an interesting question. Personally, the closest theory to me is that he was originally a hired military administrator, moreover in Ladoga, and brought the idea of hereditary transfer of power with him from Scandinavia, where it was just coming into fashion. And he came to power entirely by seizing it during a conflict with another similar military leader.
However, in the PVL it is written that the Varangians were nevertheless called upon by three tribes of Slavs, unable to resolve controversial issues themselves. Where did this come from?
Option one- from the source that Nestor read (well, you understand, there would be enough people from among the Rurikovichs who wanted to do exciting editing in their spare time. Princess Olga could also have done this, in the midst of a conflict with the Drevlyans, who for some reason had not yet realized that they would break the prince in half and offer a replacement, as has always been done in such cases in their memory - a bad idea).
Option two- Nestor could have been asked to write this by Vladimir Monomakh, who was actually called by the people of Kiev, and who really did not want to prove with his fingers the legitimacy of his reign to everyone who was older than him in the family. In any case, somewhere from Rurik a reliably known idea of a Slavic state appears. “Somewhere” because the real steps in building such a state were taken not by Rurik, but by his successor, Oleg.
Oleg.
Called "the prophetic", Oleg took the reins of Novgorod Rus in 879. Probably (according to PVL), he was a relative of Rurik (possibly brother-in-law). Some identify Oleg with Odd Orvar (Arrow), the hero of several Scandinavian sagas.
The same PVL claims that Oleg was the guardian of the real heir, Rurik’s son Igor, something like a regent. In general, in an amicable way, power among the Rurikovichs for a very long time was transferred to the “eldest in the family,” so Oleg could be a full-fledged ruler not only in practice, but also formally.
Actually, what Oleg did during his reign - he made Rus'. In 882 he gathered an army and in turn subjugated Smolensk, Lyubech and Kyiv. Based on the history of the capture of Kyiv, we, as a rule, remember Askold and Dir (I won’t say for Dir, but the name “Askold” seems very Scandinavian to me. I won’t lie). PVL believes that they were Varangians, but had no relation to Rurik (I believe, because I heard somewhere that not only did they have - Rurik at one time sent them along the Dnieper with the task “capture everything that is worth little "). The chronicles also describe how Oleg defeated his compatriots - he hid military paraphernalia from the boats, so that they looked like merchant ships, and somehow lured both governors there (according to the official version from the Nikon Chronicle - he let them know that he was there ... but said he was sick, and on the ships he showed them young Igor and killed them. But perhaps they were simply inspecting the incoming merchants, not suspecting that an ambush awaited them on board).
Having seized power in Kyiv, Oleg appreciated the convenience of its location in relation to the eastern and southern (as far as I understand) lands compared to Novgorod and Ladoga, and said that his capital would be here. He spent the next 25 years “swearing in” the surrounding Slavic tribes, winning some of them (the northerners and Radimichi) from the Khazars.
In 907 Oleg undertakes a military campaign against Byzantium. When 200 (according to PVL) boats with 40 soldiers on board each appeared in sight of Constantinople, Emperor Leo IV the Philosopher ordered the city’s harbor to be blocked with tensioned chains - perhaps in the hope that the savages would be satisfied with plundering the suburbs and go home. "Savage" Oleg showed ingenuity and put the ships on wheels. The infantry, under the cover of sailing tanks, caused confusion within the city walls, and Leo IV hastily ransomed. According to the legend, at the same time an attempt was made to slip wine with hemlock to the prince during the negotiations, but Oleg somehow sensed the moment and pretended to be a teetotaler (for which, in fact, he was called “Prophetic” upon his return). The ransom was a lot of money, tribute and an agreement according to which our merchants were exempt from taxes and had the right to live in Constantinople for up to a year at the expense of the crown. In 911, however, the agreement was re-signed without exempting merchants from duties.
Some historians, having not found a description of the campaign in Byzantine sources, consider it a legend, but recognize the existence of the treaty of 911 (perhaps there was a campaign, otherwise why would the Eastern Romans bend so much, but without the episode with the “tanks” and Constantinople).
Oleg left the stage due to his death in 912. Why and where exactly is a very good question, the legend tells about a horse’s skull and a poisonous snake (interestingly, the same thing happened with the legendary Odd Orvar). The circular ladles hissed, foaming, Oleg left, but Rus' remained.
Generally speaking, this article should be brief, so I will try to briefly summarize my thoughts below.
Igor (reigned 912-945). The son of Rurik, took over the rule of Kiev after Oleg (Igor was governor of Kyiv during the war with Byzantium in 907). He conquered the Drevlyans, tried to fight with Byzantium (however, the memory of Oleg was enough, the war did not work out), concluded with her in 943 or 944 an agreement similar to the one that Oleg concluded (but less profitable), and in 945 he unsuccessfully went for the second time take tribute from the same Drevlyans (there is an opinion that Igor perfectly understood how all this could end, but could not cope with his own squad, which at that time was not particularly surprising). Husband of Princess Olga, father of the future Prince Svyatoslav.
Olga (reigned 945-964)- Igor's widow. She burned the Drevlyan Iskorosten, thereby demonstrating the sacralization of the figure of the prince (the Drevlyans offered her to marry their own prince Mal, and 50 years before that it seriously could have worked). She carried out the first positive taxation reform in the history of Rus', establishing specific deadlines for collecting tribute (lessons) and creating fortified courtyards for its reception and housing for collectors (cemeteries). She laid the foundation for stone construction in Rus'.
What’s interesting is that from the point of view of our chronicles, Olga never officially ruled; from the moment of Igor’s death, his son, Svyatoslav, ruled.
The Byzantines were not put off by such subtleties, and in their sources Olga is mentioned as the archontissa (ruler) of Rus'.
Svyatoslav (964 - 972) Igorevich. Generally speaking, 964 is rather the year of the beginning of his independent rule, since formally he was considered the Prince of Kyiv from 945. But in practice, until 969, his mother, Princess Olga, ruled for him, until the prince got out of the saddle. From PVL “When Svyatoslav grew up and matured, he began to gather many brave warriors, and he was fast, like a pardus, and fought a lot. On campaigns, he did not carry carts or boilers with him, did not cook meat, but, thinly slicing horse meat, or an animal, or beef, and fried it on coals, and ate it like that; he did not have a tent, but slept, spreading a sweatcloth with a saddle on his head - the same were all the rest of his warriors. And he sent (envoys) to other lands with the words: . .. I’m coming at you!” In fact, he destroyed the Khazar Khaganate (to the joy of Byzantium), imposed tribute on the Vyatichi (to his own joy), conquered the First Bulgarian Kingdom on the Danube, built Pereyaslavets on the Danube (where he wanted to move the capital), frightened the Pechenegs and, on the basis of the Bulgarians, quarreled with Byzantium; the Bulgarians fought against on the side of Rus' - the vicissitudes of wars). In the spring of 970, he put up a free army of 30,000 people from his own, Bulgarians, Pechenegs and Hungarians against Byzantium, but lost (possibly) the battle of Arcadiopolis, and, taking a retreat, left the territory of Byzantium. In 971, the Byzantines already laid siege to Dorostol, where Svyatoslav set up his headquarters, and after a three-month siege and another battle, they convinced Svyatoslav to take another compensation and go home. Svyatoslav did not make it home - first being stuck in the winter at the mouth of the Dnieper, and then running into the Pecheneg prince Kurya, in a battle with whom he died. Byzantium ended up with Bulgaria as a province and minus one dangerous rival, so it seems to me that Kurya stuck around on the doorsteps all winter for a reason. However, there is no evidence of this.
By the way. Svyatoslav was never baptized, despite repeated proposals and the possible breakdown of the engagement with the Byzantine princess - he himself explained this by saying that the squad would not specifically understand such a maneuver, which he could not allow.
The first prince to distribute reigns to more than one son. Perhaps this led to the first strife in Rus', when, after the death of their father, the sons fought for the Kiev throne.
Yaropolk (972-978) and Oleg (prince of the Drevlyans 970-977) Svyatoslavichs- two of the three sons of Svyatoslav. Legitimate sons, unlike Vladimir, the son of Svyatoslav and the housekeeper Malusha (however, it is still a good question how such a small thing played a role in Rus' in the mid-10th century. There is also an opinion that Malusha is the daughter of the same Drevlyan prince Mal who executed Igor) .
Yaropolk had diplomatic relations with the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. In 977, during a strife, speaking against his brothers, he attacked Oleg’s possessions in the land of the Drevlyans. Oleg died during the retreat (if you believe the chronicle, Yaropolk lamented). In fact, after the death of Oleg and Vladimir’s flight somewhere “overseas”, he became the sole ruler of Rus'. In 980 Vladimir returned with a squad of Varangians, began to take the cities, Yaropolk left Kiev with the better fortified Roden, Vladimir besieged it, famine began in the city and Yaropolk was forced to negotiate. Instead of or in addition to Vladimir, two Varangians appeared on the spot and did their job.
Oleg is the prince of the Drevlyans, the first successor of Mal. Perhaps he accidentally started the strife by killing the son of governor Yaropolk, Sveneld, who was poaching on his land. Version from the chronicle. Personally, it seems to me (along with Wikipedia) that the brothers would have had enough motives even without their father-voivodes burning with a thirst for revenge. Also, perhaps, he laid the foundation for one of the noble families of Maravia - only the Czechs and only the 16th-17th centuries have evidence of this, so whether to believe it or not is up to the conscience of the reader.
Brief history of Rus'. How Rus' was created
14 ratings, Average rating: 4.4 out of 5By the beginning of the 9th century, tribal unions first appeared in the East Slavic lands, and later, as a result of their unification, strong inter-tribal groupings appeared. The whole life of the Slavs led to this result: the development of economic and trade ties that pulled the lands together, religious community (most of the Eastern Slavs by this time prayed to the same gods). This was facilitated by the general military strengthening - repelling external enemies, in particular the Khazars, and organizing long-distance campaigns of conquest.
The centers of such a union were the Middle Dnieper region, led by Kiev, and the northwestern region, led by the cities of Ladoga and Novgorod. These were the most developed East Slavic lands in all respects. There, the initial East Slavic statehood began to take shape, which strengthened and developed those features of the state that arose in ancient times.
One of these signs was, as already mentioned, the emergence of princely power, squads, and governors. In the 9th century. they showed their veto power in relations with their neighbors. A number of blows were struck against Khazaria, and the glades were freed from paying tribute to it. The attacks of the Russian army on the Crimean possessions of Byzantium date back to the same time. It was from this time that the first news from Greek and Eastern authors reached us about the name “Dews”, “Rus” of the Eastern Slavs, the inhabitants of the Dnieper region. Sometimes the tracks were used in relation to the Slavs and the former name of the peoples of these places - Scythians, and sometimes the terms "Scythian-Taurs" and "Tavro-Scythians" were used. The Taurians were the oldest tribes, known from ancient sources, who inhabited the mountainous and coastal part of the Crimea, which received the name Tavrika from them, and then Tavria, Taurida. Therefore, it is more correct to call the Eastern Slavs as the rest of the world and ancient chronicles called them - Rus', Russians, Rusyns.
The Russians traveled on high-speed boats, which could move both with oars and under sails, and covered long distances along rivers, the Black, Azov, and Caspian Seas. From one body of water to another, ships were dragged by dragging, for which special wooden rollers were used. The Russians also knew the equestrian system. The cavalry squad often accompanied the fighting boats along the shore.
A blow to the Crimean possessions of Byzantium at the beginning of the 9th century. - this is the first mention of the state formation of Rus' known to us. The Russians conquered the entire coast of Crimea to the Kerch Strait, stormed the city of Surozh (present-day Sudak) and plundered it. The legendary news has been preserved that the leader of the Russians, in order to recover from an illness, received baptism from the hands of a local Greek bishop, and the illness immediately receded. This fact is significant. At that time, most European countries (the Frankish Empire, the English kingdoms, Gothic Spain and others) adopted Christianity. The transition from paganism to a new monotheistic faith marked the advent of a new civilization, a new spiritual life, a new culture in these countries, the unity of the entire people within the state, and Rus' took the first, still rather timid, step on this path. He has not yet shaken the foundations of Slavic paganism.
A few years later (in 830), Rus' launched a second offensive, this time on the southern coast of the Black Sea. True, the Russian army had not yet decided to storm Constantinople itself. In 838–839 in Constantinople, and then in the Frankish state, embassies of the state of Rus' appeared - in Byzantium to regulate its relations with the recent enemy, and in the land of the Franks - to establish diplomatic and trade relations with the powerful Western empire.
Finally, on June 18, 860, an event occurred that literally shook the world of that time. Constantinople unexpectedly came under a fierce attack by the Russian army. The Russians approached from the sea in two hundred boats. They besieged the city for a week, but it survived. Having taken a huge indemnity (military tribute) and concluded an honorable peace with Byzantium, on June 25 the Russians lifted the siege and went home. The names of the Russian princes who led the campaign have been preserved. These were Askold (?-882) and Dir (?-882). From that time on, Rus' was officially recognized as a great empire. June 25th can be considered the day of the beginning of Russian statehood. This was two years before the so-called calling of the Varangians and goes back to the history of Southern Rus'.
A few years later, Greek priests appeared in the land of the Russians and baptized their leader and his squad. Presumably it was Askold.
So from 860 the news of the second baptism of the Russians comes.
In the second half of the 9th century. squads from the Middle Dnieper region broke through the Khazar cordons to the Volga, North Caucasus, and the Caspian Sea. They tried to attack Bulgaria in the Balkans.
The Kyiv armies also went north to bring under the control of Kyiv the entire Slavic part of the route “from the Varangians to the Greeks” and the exits to the Baltic Sea. Attempts were made, unsuccessful so far, to take possession of Polotsk and conquer Polopan.
The Slavic south began an active offensive against the Slavic north.
During these same decades, in the area of the lake. Ilmen, r. Volkhov, on the shores of Lake Ladoga. events took place that became remarkable in Russian history. A powerful alliance of Slavic and Finno-Ugric tribes was formed here, the unifier of which was the Ilmen Slavs (Slovenians). This unification was facilitated by the struggle that began here between the Slovenians, Krivichi, Meri and Chud with the Varangians, who for some time managed to establish control over the local population. And just as the glades overthrew the power of the Khazars in the south, in the north an alliance of local tribes drove out the Varangian rulers. However, later discord began between the local tribes. The chronicle says, “And generation after generation rose.” Under these conditions, they decided to stop the never-ending civil strife in the traditional way - by inviting another ruler from the outside. The choice fell on the Varangian princes, and they appeared in the Russian north-west with their squads.
Who were the Varangians? This question has haunted historians both in our country and abroad for over two hundred years.
Some considered the Varangians to be Normans, Scandinavians, based on the fact that this was the era of Norman sea invasions of rich European countries, where the Norman robbers went for prey.
For a long time, the so-called “Normanists” had the point of view that it was the Normans who created the Old Russian state in the lands of the Slavs (the so-called Norman theory of the origin of the Russian state), and the Slavs themselves were unable to create a state due to backwardness and doom. These views were especially popular in the West during periods of acute confrontation between our Motherland and its Western enemies. Later, when scientists both in Russia and in other countries proved that statehood was maturing among the Slavs long before the appearance of the Normans, this Point of View was rejected.
However, even today there are Normanists and anti-Normanists, only the dispute is about something else - who were the Varangians by nationality? Normanists consider them Scandinavians and believe that the name Rus' is of Scandinavian origin. The main argument of the Normanists is the numerous artifacts of Scandinavian origin in the Slavic lands and information in Western sources about a certain Popik of Friesland, whom they identify with Rurik of Novgorod. Anti-Normanists prove that the first Russian princes in the Russian north-west have nothing to do with Scandinavia. They could have been either Balts or Pomeranian Slavs from the southern shores of the Baltic: Vagr (Polabian Slavs; historian V.N. Tatishchev suggested that it was they who gave the name to the Varangians mentioned in Rus'), Lyutichs, Bodrichis, Ruyans (residents of the island of Rügen, Slavic Ruyan, considered the religious center of the Pomeranian Slavs). As for archaeological finds, this is only evidence of trade and other contacts in the region. Recent works by historians have shown that the Friesland prince had nothing to do with the Slavic lands.
And, nevertheless, the dispute about the origin of the Varangians is still ongoing, and essentially the dispute is about the fate of Russia, the Eastern Slavs, about their historical self-sufficiency and independence.
And what does Nestor the chronicler, whose information is primarily used by both, say about this? He writes that at the request of various tribes, Varangian princes appeared in the Slavic lands in 862 - Prince Rurik and his brothers and their squads. “Those Varangians were called Rus,” he notes, just as the Swedes, Normans, English, etc. had their ethnic names. Thus, for him “Rus” is primarily a national definition.
The Varangians, in his opinion, “sit” to the east of the Western peoples, along the southern shore of the Varangian (Baltic) Sea. “But the Slavic language and Russian are one,” the chronicler emphasizes. This means that those princes who were invited by the Ilmen Slavs and Krivichi were related to them, and the newcomers painlessly and quickly penetrated into the Russian environment.
Thus, the name “Rus”, “Russians” appeared in the 9th century. both in the Slavic north and south.
As has been shown, the Slavs occupied vast territories in Central, Eastern and Southern Europe from ancient times. Among these Slavic tribes, the names Rus and Rusyns were very common. In the West they were called rutens, rugs. The descendants of these Rusyns still live in Germany, Hungary, and Romania. In the Slavic language, "blond" means "light." This is a typically Slavic word and a typically Slavic ethnonym. The resettlement from the Danube, from Transcarpathia to the Dnieper region brought this name here. The Slavs came to the Slavs, the Rusyns came to the glades.
Other Rus, Ruthenians, and Ruthenians lived in the lands adjacent to the southern shores of the Baltic Sea. There have long been strong Slavic tribal alliances there, which waged a harsh struggle with the Germanic tribes.
At the time of the creation of tribal unions of the Eastern Slavs, the Baltic Slavs already had their own state formations with princes, squads, and a detailed pagan religion, very close to East Slavic paganism. From here there were constant migrations to the East. The Varangians - Rus' came here not only with peace, but also with war. And only later the Ilmen Slavs, the Krivichi, invited the Varangian princes to lead their lands, stop the local civil strife and protect them from Varangian raids.
This case was very typical for the entire European history. Information has been preserved that the princes who came were relatives of the former local princely dynasty - the Ilmen Slavs. However, there is no data about the name “Rus” in Scandinavia, just as there is no data that in Scandinavia at that time there was a princely, royal power or some kind of long-term state formation that could send its princes to the Slavic lands. And no later branched trade relations between Rus' and Scandinavia, as well as the appearance of hired Scandinavian squads here, can explain to us the fact of the appearance in 862 of the Varangians - Rus of non-Slavic or Baltic origin - in the northwestern Slavic lands. But the dispute continues.
The chronicle says that after turning to the Varangians in 862, three brothers arrived from their lands to the Slavic and Finno-Ugric lands - Rurik, Sineus and Truvor with their squads. According to this version, the eldest, Rurik, sat down to reign among the Ilmen Slavs. His first residence was the city of Ladoga, then he moved to Novgorod, where he “cut down” a fortress for himself. Novgorod had a number of advantages over Ladoga: it was located in the center of the Slavic lands, the most developed here, and was more advantageously located on the route “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” The middle brother, Sineus, settled in the lands of the Finnish tribe, all in the city of Beloozero, and the younger brother - in the lands of the Krivichi, in the fortress of Izborsk. There is a lot of legend in this story, starting with the scheme widespread in Europe with the appearance of three brothers in foreign lands (let us remember, for example, Kiya, Shchek and Khoreb). But a reliable fact is the appearance of a Varangian ruler in the northwestern Russian lands.
But according to some data, soon the Novgorodians began a struggle against Rurik, which probably flared up after he began to exceed his powers as an “arbiter” in local affairs and a “hired sword” defending the land from enemies, and took full power into his own hands . But Rurik suppressed the uprising and established himself in Novgorod. Some of the dissatisfied boyars fled to Kyiv.
Subsequently, Rurik united under his command the entire north and north-west of the East Slavic and Finno-Ugric lands. Thus, in the north, as in the south, a strong state center was formed, uniting the surrounding lands under a single princely authority. Now Novgorod stood against Kyiv, Rurik - against the Kyiv princes and those who supported them in the south. Both of these centers called themselves Russia: Southern Rus', where the local Polyansky dynasty established itself, and Northern Rus', where Slavic immigrants from the southern Baltics took power. Rivalry between these centers began immediately after their formation. Kyiv launched an offensive to the north and tried to recapture the lands of the Krivichi and Polonians from Novgorod. Rurik also launched an attack on Polotsk. A historical confrontation was brewing between the two East Slavic centers.
In 879, Rurik died, leaving behind his young son Igor. Either the governor or Rurik’s relative Oleg (?–912) took control of all affairs in Novgorod. But Igor remained the official Novgorod prince. Power was inherited - from father to son. This is how the Rurik dynasty began, which ruled the Russian lands in a straight line until the death in 1598 of its last representative, the childless Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, the son of Ivan the Terrible.
It was Oleg who was destined to unite two Old Russian state centers. In 882, he gathered a large army and launched a campaign to the south. The striking force of Oleg’s army was the Varangian squad. Along with him were detachments representing all the northwestern Russian lands: here were the Ilmen Slavs, the Krivichi, as well as their allies and tributaries - Chud, Merya, everyone. Little Igor sailed with him in the prince’s boat.
The first blow was to those territories and cities for which there had long been a dispute between Kiev and Novgorod. Oleg captured the main city of the Krivichi, Smolensk, then took Lyubech. Having sailed to Kyiv, he realized that it would be difficult for him to take the well-fortified and populous city by storm. In addition, the experienced warrior Askold, who distinguished himself in battles with Byzantium, reigned here; He also fought against the Bulgarians, Khazars and the new steppe nomads of the Pechenegs. And then Oleg resorted to a trick. Having hidden the soldiers in the boats, he sent news to the Kyiv prince that a merchant loaf had sailed from the north, and the merchants were inviting the princes to go ashore. The Kiev ruler, who did not suspect anything, came to the meeting.
Oleg's warriors jumped out of cover and surrounded the Kievites. Oleg picked up little Igor in his arms and declared to the Kyiv ruler that he did not belong to the princely family, but he himself “was of the princely family,” and Igor was the son of Prince Rurik. Askold was killed right there on the shore, and Oleg established himself in Kyiv and made this city his capital. He declared: “Let Kyiv be the mother of Russian cities.” One might think that the Kyiv pagans did not stand up for their Christian ruler and helped Oleg’s pagans take possession of the city. Thus, probably, ideological views for the first time in Rus' influenced the change of power.
So, the Novgorod North defeated the Kyiv South. Novgorod became the unifier of Russian lands into an East Slavic state.
Since then, 882 has been celebrated as the beginning of a unified Russian state.
However, this was only a military victory. In economic, commercial, and cultural terms, the Middle Dnieper region was far ahead of other Slavic lands. At the end of the 9th century. it was the historical center of Russian lands, and Oleg, by making Kyiv a capital city, only confirmed this position.
Oleg did not complete his military successes here. He continued the unification of the remaining Slavic lands. Firstly, he streamlined his relations with Northern Russia: he imposed tribute on the territories under his control - he “set tribute” to the Ilmen Slavs, Krivichi, and other tribes and peoples who lived there. Oleg also concluded an agreement with the Varangians, which was valid for about 150 years. According to it, Rus' was obliged to pay some Varangian southern Baltic state 300 silver hryvnia (this was the largest monetary unit in Rus') annually for peace on the Russian northwestern borders and for regular military assistance to Rus' from the Varangians. We are talking specifically about a South Slavic, Pomeranian state, since at that time there was no state in Scandinavia with which such a long-term agreement could be concluded.
Then Oleg undertook campaigns against other Slavic tribal unions - against the Drevlyans, Northerners, Radimichi, imposing a tribute on them with furs. Here he encountered Khazaria, whose tributaries were the Radimichi and the northerners. But military success again accompanied Oleg. Now these East Slavic tribes ceased their dependence on Khazaria and became part of Rus'. However, the inhabitants of the Slavic northeast - the Vyatichi - still remained tributaries of Khazaria.
At the turn of the 9th–10th centuries. Oleg suffered a painful defeat from the nomadic horde of the ancestors of the Hungarians - the Ugric tribes of the Magyars, or Hungarians. These were the last surges of the Great Migration. The Hungarians left the Trans-Urals and broke through the Black Sea steppes into Europe. But along the way they encountered another large Turkic horde - the Pechenegs, suffered a series of defeats from them and rolled further to the west. The Hungarians only touched the Russian lands during their nomadic movement. Oleg came out to meet them, but was defeated and locked himself behind the Kyiv walls. The Hungarians besieged the city, but could not take it, and then the opponents made peace. According to the peace treaty, the Russians paid tribute to the Hungarians, supplied them with food for the road, and the Hungarians promised to be loyal allies of Rus' in the fight against common enemies. This happened in 898. That was the beginning of relations between Rus' and Hungary. Soon the Hungarians broke through into the Danube region and in the Pannonian Lowland (part of the territory of modern Hungary) created their own state, or, as they began to say, “found their homeland.” Since then, peace and alliance between the two countries have existed for more than 200 years.
Having united the East Slavic lands, defending them from the onslaught of foreigners, Oleg gave the princely power unprecedented authority and international prestige. He took the title of Grand Duke, i.e. the prince of all princes. The remaining rulers of individual Russian principalities became his tributaries, vassals, although they retained the rights to govern their principalities.
The new state of Rus' was not inferior in scale to the Frankish Empire of Charlemagne or the Byzantine Empire, however, many of its regions were sparsely populated and unsuitable for life.
In addition, the difference in the level of development of individual parts of the state was too great, moreover, it immediately became multinational, incorporating different peoples. All this made it loose and fragile.
Prince Oleg was known not only for his unification policy and the fight against the Khazars. From their very inception, the rulers of Rus' set themselves large-scale tasks: mastering the mouth of the Dnieper, the mouth of the Danube, establishing themselves in the Northern Black Sea region and the Balkans, breaking through the Khazar cordons to the east and subordinating the Taman Peninsula and the Kerch Strait to their control. These were strategically important operational points on trade routes, strong military bridgeheads. Some of these tasks were outlined by the Antes, and later by the Polyansky princes, and now matured and united Rus' again tried to repeat the impulse of its ancestors.
Part of this policy was the famous campaign of Rus' against Byzantium in 907.
At the beginning of summer, a huge Russian army on boats and on horseback moved along the shore towards Constantinople. The Greeks, as they had done before, closed the Bay of Constantinople with a huge chain, throwing it from one bank to the other to prevent the advance of Russian ships. They hoped for mighty city walls. Unable to take the city with a direct attack, the Russians landed on the shore, “made war” on the outskirts of the city, took huge booty, and then pulled the ships onto land, raised the sails and, under the cover of the boats that protected them from enemy arrows, moved under the very walls of the city. This practice of moving ships on rollers during the assault on cities was used by many seafaring peoples at that time. The Greeks were horrified at the sight of this unusual sight and asked for peace.
According to the peace treaty, the Greeks undertook to pay a monetary indemnity to Rus', pay tribute annually, and open the Byzantine market widely to Russian merchants. They even received the right to duty-free trade within the empire, which was unheard of.
As a sign of the end of hostilities and the conclusion of peace, the Russian Grand Duke hung his shield on the gates of the city. This was the custom of many peoples of Eastern Europe.
In 911 Oleg confirmed his agreement with Byzantium. A Russian embassy appeared in Constantinople, which concluded the first written agreement in the history of Eastern Europe with the empire. One of the articles discussed the establishment of a military alliance between Byzantium and Russia. From now on, Russian troops began to regularly appear as part of the Byzantine army, and Russian squads attacked the enemies of the Byzantine Empire in Transcaucasia.
Chronology of events
- 9th century Formation of the Old Russian State
- 862 Mention in the chronicle of Rurik’s calling to reign in Novgorod
- 882 Unification of Novgorod and Kyiv under the rule of Prince Oleg
- 980 - 1015 Reign of Vladimir Svyatoslavovich
The emergence of statehood among the Slavs
The formation of the Old Russian state is a long process. Most historians date the beginning of the formation of the state to the 9th century. In the VI - VII centuries. Eastern Slavs settled most of the Russian (East European) Plain. The borders of their habitat were the Carpathian Mountains in the west, the upper reaches of the Don in the east, the Neva and Lake Ladoga in the north, and the Middle Dnieper region in the south.
The literary and documentary chronicle, “The Tale of Bygone Years,” which historians date back to the mid-12th century, describes in detail the settlement of East Slavic tribes. According to it, on the western bank of the Middle Dnieper (Kyiv) were located clearing, to the north-west of them, along the southern tributaries of the Pripyat, - Drevlyans, to the west of them, along the Western Bug, - Volynians, or dulebs; lived on the eastern bank of the Dnieper northerners; along the Dnieper tributary Sozha - Radimichi, and to the east of them, along the Upper Oka, - Vyatichi; on the upper reaches of three rivers - the Dnieper, the Western Dvina and the Volga - they lived Krivichi, southwest of them - Dregovichi; to the north of them, along the Western Dvina, a branch of the Krivichi settled Polotsk residents, and to the north of the Krivichi, near Lake Ilmen and further along the Volkhva River lived Ilmensky Slavs.
Having settled across the East European Plain, the Slavs lived tribal communities. “Everyone lives with his family and in his own places, owning each of his family,” writes the chronicle. In the VI century. family relationships gradually disintegrate. With the advent of metal tools and the transition to arable farming, the clan community was replaced by a neighboring (territorial) one, which was called “mir” (in the south) and “rope” (in the north). In the neighboring community, communal ownership of forest and hay lands, pastures, reservoirs, and arable land is retained, but the family is already allocated plots for use.
In the 7th - 8th centuries. the Slavs actively The process of decomposition of the primitive system is underway.
The number of cities increases, power is gradually concentrated in the hands of the tribal and military nobility, private property appears, and the division of society begins on social and property principles. By the 9th - 10th centuries. the main ethnic territory of the Old Russian nationality was formed, the process of maturation of feudal relations.
In Russian historiography, for a long time there was a struggle between Normanists and their opponents on the issue of the origin of the Russian state. The founder of the Norman theory in the 18th century. was a member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences A.L. Schlözer. He and his supporters G.Z. Bayer, G.F. Miller adhered to the point of view that before the advent of the Varangians, “the vast expanse of our plain was wild, people lived without government.”
A refutation of the Varangian theory was made by, who considered one of the main tasks of historical science to be the fight against this theory. M.V. Lomonosov wrote in “Ancient Russian History” that “the Slavic people were within the current Russian borders even before the birth of Christ, this can be proven beyond doubt.”
Russian historian of the 19th century. I.E. Zabelin wrote that the Eastern Slavs lived on the Russian plain even BC. and went through a complex process from tribal unions to tribal political unions and created their own statehood.
The Soviet historical school actively supported and developed this point of view. The largest domestic specialist of the 20th century. on Slavic-Russian archeology B.A. Rybakov connected the formation of the state of Rus' with the founding of the city of Kyiv in the land of glades and the unification of 15 large regions inhabited by the Eastern Slavs.
Modern Russian historians have no doubt that the unification of the East Slavic lands into the ancient Russian state was prepared by internal socio-economic reasons, but this happened in 882 with the active participation of the Varangian squad led by Prince Oleg. According to the famous Russian historian of the 19th century. V. O. Klyuchevsky, it turned out to be a “not bad combined legal structure of the beginning of the Russian state,” when principalities with Varangian rule (Novgorod, Kyiv) and principalities with Slavic rule (Chernigov, Polotsk, Pereslavl) united.
Conventionally, the history of the state of Rus' can be divided into 3 large periods:- first - 9th century - mid-10th century - the formation of an early feudal state, the establishment of the Rurik dynasty on the throne and the reign of the first Kyiv princes in Kyiv: Oleg, Igor (912 - 945), Olga (945 - 964), Svyatoslav (964 - 972);
- second - second half of the X - first half of the XI centuries. - the heyday of Kievan Rus (the time of Vladimir I (980 - 1015) and Yaroslav the Wise (1036 - 1054);
- third - second half of the 11th - early 12th centuries. - gradual transition to feudal fragmentation.
Socio-political and economic system of Kievan Rus
The Old Russian state (Kievan Rus) was early feudal monarchy. Supreme power belonged to to the Grand Duke of Kyiv, who was the formal owner of all the land and the military leader of the state.
Upper class of society consisted of a princely squad, which was divided into higher and lower. The first consisted of princely husbands or boyars, the second - of children or youths. The oldest collective name for the junior squad is grid (Scandinavian courtyard servant), which was later replaced by the word “yard”.
Government was built on the principle of military organization in the lands and cities subject to the Grand Duke. It was carried out by princely governors - posadniks and their closest assistants - tysyatskys, who led the people's militia during military operations in the 11th - 12th centuries. - through the princely court and numerous administration, which was in charge of collecting tribute and taxes, court cases, and collection of fines.
Taxes- the main goal of the princely administration. Both Oleg and Olga traveled around their subject lands. Tribute was collected in kind - “fast” (with bellows). It could be a cart, when subject tribes brought tribute to Kyiv, or polyudye, when the princes themselves traveled around the tribes. It is well known from the “Tale of Bygone Years” how Princess Olga took revenge on the Drevlyans not only for the death of her husband, Prince Igor, who was killed in 945, but also for disobedience and refusal to pay taxes. Princess Olga went down in Russian history as the “organizer of the Russian land,” who established graveyards (strong points) and tributes everywhere.
The entire free population of Kievan Rus was called “people”. Hence the term meaning collection of tribute - "polyudye". The bulk of the rural population, dependent on the prince, was called stinkers. They could live both in peasant communities, which bore duties in favor of the feudal lord, and in estates.
A closed social system designed to organize all types of human activity - labor, cultural ritual. Free community members had a subsistence economy, paid tribute to the princes and boyars, and at the same time were a source for the feudal lords to replenish the category of dependent people.
In the early feudal society of Kievan Rus there were two main classes - peasants (smerds) and feudal lords. Both classes were not homogeneous in their composition. Smerdas were divided into free community members and dependents. Free stinkers had a subsistence economy, paid tribute to the princes and boyars, and at the same time served as a source for the feudal lords to replenish the category of dependent people. Dependent the population consisted of purchases, ordinary people, outcasts, free spirits and slaves. Those who became dependent by taking on a kupa (debt) were called purchasers. Those who became dependent after concluding a series (agreement) became ordinary people. Outcasts are impoverished people from the communities, and freedmen are freed slaves. The slaves were completely powerless and were actually in the position of slaves.
The class of feudal lords consisted of representatives of the grand ducal house with the Grand Duke at its head, princes of tribes and lands, boyars, as well as senior warriors.
An important element of feudal society was the city, which was a fortified center of craft production and trade. At the same time, the cities were important administrative centers in which wealth and large volumes of large food supplies were concentrated, which were imported by the feudal lords. According to ancient chronicles, in the 13th century. There were about 225 cities of different sizes in Rus'. The largest were Kyiv, Novgorod, Smolensk, Chernigov and others. Kievan Rus was famous for its carpentry, pottery, blacksmithing, and jewelry. At that time, there were up to 60 types of crafts in Rus'.