Kievan Rus: formation and development of the ancient Russian state. When did the Old Russian state emerge?

It seems very difficult to accurately determine the time period with which the emergence of the Old Russian state is associated. It is known that this event was preceded by a long period of formation and development of tribal relations in the communities inhabiting the East European Plain.

Already in the first millennium of the new era, Slavic agricultural tribes began to develop the territory of future Rus'. In the fifth century, during the process of formation in society, several dozen separate principalities or unions were formed. These were unique political associations, which later transformed into a slaveholding or early feudal state. From the Tale of Bygone Years the location and name of these reigns becomes known. So, the Polyans lived near Kyiv, the Radimichi - along the Sozh River, the Northerners - in Chernigov, the Vyatichi - near Dregovichi occupied the Minsk and Brest regions, the Krivichi - the cities of Smolensk, Pskov and Tver, the Drevlyans - Polesie. In addition to the plain, the Proto-Balts (ancestors of the Estonians and Latvians) and the Fino-Ugrians inhabited the plain.

In the seventh century, more stable political formations were formed, and cities emerged - centers of principalities. This is how Novgorod, Kyiv, Polotsk, Chernigov, Smolensk, Izborsk, Turov appeared. Some historians are inclined to connect the emergence of the Old Russian state with the formation of these cities. This is partly true. However, an early feudal state with a monarchical form of government emerged a little later, in the ninth and tenth centuries.

The emergence and development of the Old Russian state among the East Slavic peoples is associated with the founding of the ruling dynasty. From chronicle sources it is known that in 862 Prince Rurik ascended the Novgorod throne. In 882, the two main centers of Southern and Northern Rus' (Kyiv and Novgorod) were united into one state. The new administrative-territorial entity was named Kievan Rus. became its first ruler. During this period, a state apparatus appeared, order was strengthened, and princely rule became a hereditary prerogative. This is how the Old Russian state emerged.

Later, other northerners, the Drevlyans, the Ulichs, the Radimichi, the Vyatichi, the Tivertsy, the Polyans, and others, also became subordinate to Kievan Rus.

Historians are inclined to believe that the emergence of the Old Russian state was caused by the active growth of trade and economic relations. The fact is that a waterway ran through the lands of the East Slavic peoples, which was popularly called “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” It was he who played a significant role in bringing these two principalities together to achieve common economic goals.

The main function of the Old Russian state was to protect the territory from external attack and implement an active foreign policy of a military orientation (campaigns against Byzantium, the defeat of the Khazars, etc.).

It falls during the reign of Ya. the Wise. This period is characterized by the presence of an established system of public administration. The squad and boyars were under the authority of the prince. He had the right to appoint posadniks (to manage cities), governors, mytniks (to collect trade duties), and tributaries (to collect land taxes). The basis of the society of the Old Russian principality was made up of both urban and rural residents.

The emergence of a state is a long and complex process. Kievan Rus was heterogeneous in its ethnic composition and multinational. Along with it, it also included Baltic and Finnish tribes. And subsequently it gave growth and development to three Slavic peoples: Ukrainians, Russians and Belarusians.

Hi all!

Ivan Nekrasov is with you, and today I have prepared for you an analysis of the next topic on Russian history. In the last article, we covered the topic “Eastern Slavs” in full, as much as possible, that is, the base of the first lesson will be enough for you to write even some complicated Olympiad, and if you have not yet studied that material, do not start this, because they are a logical complement to each other =) At the end of the article you will find a summary for study and homework to consolidate this topic. And also, dear friends, let's be more active, judging by the likes and reposts of these lessons, you exist and visit this site

Prerequisites for the formation of the state

So, the prerequisites for the formation of the Old Russian state, in general in the 6th–9th centuries. the prerequisites for the formation of the state of the Eastern Slavs were formed. The economic prerequisites for this process were the transition to arable farming, the separation of crafts from agriculture, the concentration of crafts in cities, the emergence of exchange relations, and the predominance of free labor over slave labor.

Political prerequisites were taking shape: the need of the tribal nobility for an apparatus to protect their privileges and seize new lands, the formation of tribal unions of the Slavs, the threat of attack by enemies, a sufficient level of military organization. The social prerequisites were the change of the clan community to a neighboring one, the emergence of social inequality, the presence of patriarchal forms of slavery, and the formation of the ancient Russian nationality.

A common pagan religion, similar customs, rituals, and social psychology created the spiritual prerequisites for the formation of statehood.

Rus' was located between Europe and Asia within the plains, so the need for constant protection from enemies forced the Eastern Slavs to rally to create a strong state power.

State formation

According to the Tale of Bygone Years (hereinafter referred to as PVL), the oldest chronicle of Rus', in 862 the Varangians, who had previously imposed tribute on the tribes of the Ilmen Slovenes and Chuds, were expelled overseas. After which civil strife began on the lands of the tribal union of the Ilmen Slovenes. Unable to resolve conflicts on their own, local tribes decided to call upon a ruler not associated with any of the clans:

“Let us look for a prince who would rule over us and judge us by right.” And they went overseas to the Varangians, to Rus'. Those Varangians were called Rus, just as others are called Swedes, and some Normans and Angles, and still others Gotlanders, and so are these. The Chud, the Slovenians, the Krivichi and all said to the Russians: “Our land is great and abundant, but there is no order in it. Come reign and rule over us." And three brothers were chosen with their clans, and they took all of Rus' with them, and they came and the eldest, Rurik, sat in Novgorod, and the other, Sineus, in Beloozero, and the third, Truvor, in Izborsk. And from those Varangians the Russian land was nicknamed. Novgorodians are people from the Varangian family, but before that they were Slovenians.”

V. Vasnetsov. Calling of the Varangians

The semi-legendary calling of Rurik to reign in Novgorod in 862 (his brothers are completely fictional characters) is traditionally considered the beginning of the history of the Russian state.

The same year the chronicler dates the formation of the second center of Russian statehood - the Kyiv principality of Askold and Dir. According to the PVL, Askold and Dir, Rurik’s warriors, left their prince and occupied Kyiv, the tribal center of the glades that had previously paid tribute to the Khazars. Now the legend about the exodus of Askold and Dir from Rurik is considered unhistorical. Most likely, these princes had no relation to the Varangian ruler of Novgorod and were representatives of the local dynasty.

In any case, in the second half of the 8th century. On the lands of the Eastern Slavs, two centers of statehood were formed.

Norman question

There are two main hypotheses for the formation of the Old Russian state. According to the classical Norman theory, it was brought from outside by the Varangians - the brothers Rurik, Sineus and Truvor in 862. The authors of the Norman theory were G. F. Miller, A. L. Schlötzer, G. Z. Bayer, German historians who worked in the first half XVIII century at the Russian Academy of Sciences. The anti-Norman theory, the founder of which was M.V. Lomonosov, is based on the concepts of the impossibility of “learning statehood” and the formation of the state as a natural stage in the internal development of society.

The problem of the ethnicity of the Varangians is directly related to the Norman question. Normanists consider them Scandinavians; some anti-Normanists, starting with Lomonosov, suggest their West Slavic, Finno-Ugric or Baltic origin.

At this stage of the development of historical science, the concept of the Scandinavian origin of the Varangians is adhered to by most historians; at the same time, the fact is recognized that the Scandinavians, who were at a similar or even lower level of development of social relations than the Eastern Slavs, could not bring statehood to the lands of Eastern Europe. Thus, the emergence of the Old Russian state was the logical conclusion of the process of internal development of East Slavic society; the ethnicity of the princely dynasty did not play a primary role in the formation of Rus'.

N. Roerich. Overseas guests

The first Kyiv princes

Oleg the Prophet (879–912)

In 879 Rurik died in Novgorod. Since Rurik’s son, Igor, was a child. power passed to his “relative” Oleg, nicknamed the Prophetic in ancient Russian chronicles. Little is known about Oleg’s relationship with Rurik. V.N. Tatishchev, with reference to the Joachim Chronicle, called Oleg his brother-in-law (brother of Rurik’s wife, Efanda).

In 882, Oleg went on a campaign from Novgorod to the south along the Dnieper. He conquered Smolensk and Lyubech, captured Kyiv. According to the chronicle. Oleg cunningly lured the rulers of Kyiv, Askold and Dir, out of the city and killed them under the pretext of their “non-princely origin.” Kyiv became the capital of the new state - “the mother of Russian cities.” Thus, Oleg united under his rule the two original centers of ancient Russian statehood - Novgorod and Kyiv, and gained control over the entire length of the great trade route “from the Varangians to the Greeks.”

Oleg kills Askold and Dir

Within a few years after the capture of Kyiv, Oleg extended his power to the tribes of the Drevlians, Northerners and Radimichi, who had previously paid tribute to the Khazar Khaganate. The prince's control over the subordinate tribes was carried out through polyudya - an annual tour by the prince with a retinue of subordinate tribes in order to collect tribute (usually furs). Subsequently, the furs, which were extremely highly valued, were sold on the markets of the Byzantine Empire.

In order to improve the situation of Russian merchants and robbery in 907, Oleg, at the head of a militia of the tribes under his control, made a grandiose campaign against the Byzantine Empire and, reaching the walls of Constantinople, took a huge ransom from Emperor Leo VI the Philosopher. As a sign of victory, Oleg nailed his shield to the city gates. The result of the campaign was the conclusion of a peace treaty between the Byzantine Empire and the Old Russian state (907), which granted Russian merchants the right to duty-free trade in Constantinople.

After the campaign against Byzantium in 907, Oleg received the nickname Prophetic, that is, one who knows the future. Some historians have expressed doubts about the campaign of 907, which is not mentioned by Byzantine authors. In 911, Oleg sent an embassy to Constantinople, which confirmed peace and concluded a new treaty, from which references to duty-free trade disappeared. Linguistic analysis eliminated doubts about the authenticity of the 911 treaty. Byzantine authors have information about it. In 912, Oleg, according to legend, died from a snake bite.

Igor Rurikovich the Old (912–945)

Igor Rurikovich entered Russian history with the nickname “Old”, i.e. the oldest. The beginning of his reign was marked by the uprising of the Drevlyan tribe, who tried to free themselves from dependence on Kyiv. The uprising was brutally suppressed, the Drevlyans were subject to heavy tribute.

K. V. Lebedev. Polyudye

In 941, Igor made an unsuccessful campaign against Constantinople. The Russian fleet was burned by “Greek fire.” The repeated campaign in 944 was more successful. The Byzantine Empire, without waiting for troops to arrive on its lands, agreed to pay tribute to Igor, as before to Oleg, and concluded a new trade agreement with the Kyiv prince. The treaty of 944 was less beneficial for Russian merchants than the previous one, since it deprived them of the right to duty-free trade. In the same year, the Rus fleet, allowed by the Khazar Kagan into the Caspian Sea, devastated the city of Berdaa.

In 945, Igor was killed during Polyudye by the newly rebelling Drevlyans (according to PVL, he was torn apart by two trees) after an attempt to collect tribute again. Of Igor’s wives, only Olga is known, whom he revered more than others because of “her wisdom.”

Olga (945–960)

According to legend, Igor's widow, Princess Olga, who assumed power due to the childhood of her son Igor Svyatoslavich, took cruel revenge on the Drevlyans. She cunningly destroyed their elders and Prince Mal, killed many common people, burned the tribal center of the Drevlyans - the city of Iskorosten - and imposed a heavy tribute on them.

V. Surikov. Princess Olga meets the body of Prince Igor

To prevent uprisings like the Drevlyan one, Olga completely changed the system of collecting tribute. On the territory of each tribal union, a graveyard was established - a place for collecting tribute, and a lesson was established for each tribe - the exact amount of tribute.

Tiuns, representatives of the princely authorities responsible for collecting tribute, were sent to the lands subject to Kyiv. In fact, Olga's reform contributed to the transformation of Rus' from a loose union of tribes, united only by princely power, into a state with administrative divisions and a permanent bureaucratic apparatus.

Under Olga, the connection between Kievan Rus and the Byzantine Empire, the richest and most developed state of the early Middle Ages, strengthened. In 956 (or 957) Olga visited Constantinople and was baptized there, thus becoming the first Christian ruler of the Old Russian state.

S. A. Kirillov. Princess Olga (Epiphany)

At the same time, Olga’s adoption of Christianity was not followed by the conversion of either her son Svyatoslav, who was a zealous pagan, or his squad.

Svyatoslav Igorevich (960–972)

Svyatoslav spent almost his entire short reign on military campaigns, weakly dealing with the internal affairs of the state, which his mother actually continued to head.

In 965, Svyatoslav made a campaign against the Khazar Kaganate and, having defeated the Kagan’s army, took the city of Sarkel. In place of Sarkel, a Russian outpost arose in the steppe - the Belaya Vezha fortress. After this, he devastated the Khazar possessions in the North Caucasus. Probably, this campaign is associated with the assertion of the power of the Kyiv prince over the Taman Peninsula, where the Tmutarakan principality later arose. In fact, Svyatoslav’s campaign put an end to the power of Khazaria.

V. Kireev. Prince Svyatoslav

In 966, Svyatoslav subjugated the Vyatichi tribal union, who had previously paid tribute to the Khazars.

In 967, Svyatoslav accepted the Byzantine Empire’s proposal for joint military action against Danube Bulgaria. By drawing Svyatoslav into the anti-Bulgar coalition, Byzantium tried, on the one hand, to crush its Danube rival, and on the other, to weaken Rus', which had sharply strengthened after the fall of the Khazar Kaganate. On the Danube, Svyatoslav over the course of several months broke the resistance of the Bulgars “and took 80 of their cities along the Danube, and sat down to reign there in Pereyaslavets, taking tribute from the Greeks.”

Svyatoslav VS Khazar Khaganate

The Kiev prince did not have time to gain a foothold in his new Danube possessions. In 968, a horde of Pechenegs, Turkic-speaking nomads who had previously been dependent on the Khazar Kaganate, approached Kyiv. Svyatoslav was forced to curtail the conquest of Bulgaria and rush to the aid of the capital. Despite the fact that the Pechenegs retreated from Kyiv even before Svyatoslav’s return, the arrangement of affairs in their state delayed the prince. Only in 969 was he able to return to Pereyaslavets on the Danube, which he hoped to make his new capital.

The desire of the Kyiv prince to gain a foothold on the Danube caused complications in relations with the Byzantine Empire. In 970, war broke out between Svyatoslav and Byzantium. Despite the initial successes of Svyatoslav and his allies, the Bulgars and Hungarians, his army was defeated in the Battle of Arcadiopolis (PVL speaks of the victory of the Russian army, but data from Byzantine sources, as well as the entire subsequent course of the war, suggest the opposite).

The campaign of 971 was personally led by Emperor John Tzimiskes, an exceptionally experienced and talented commander. He managed to transfer the war to the territory of Danube Bulgaria and besiege Svyatoslav in the Dorostol fortress. The fortress was heroically defended for several months. The huge losses of the Byzantine army and the hopelessness of Svyatoslav's situation forced the parties to enter into peace negotiations. Under the terms of the concluded peace, Svyatoslav left all his Danube possessions, which came under the rule of Byzantium, but retained the army.

K. Lebedev. Meeting of Svyatoslav with John Tzimiskes

In 972, on the way to Kyiv, Svyatoslav, passing the Dnieper rapids, was ambushed by the Pecheneg Khan Kurei. In a battle with the Pechenegs, the Kiev prince met his death.

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Old Russian state (Kievan Rus)- a state that existed in the East Slavic lands from the end of the 9th century to the second third (according to another point of view, to the middle) of the 12th century. and united a significant part of the East Slavic lands (and at the end of the 10th - beginning of the 11th centuries - almost all of them).

The capital is Kyiv. Self-names - Rus', Russian land; It is called the Old Russian state (or Kievan Rus) in historical science.

Form of government

The head of the state was the Russian Grand Duke; until the middle of the 11th century. he was called the title “Kagan” borrowed from the Khazars (in historical science the head of the Old Russian state is called the Grand Duke of Kyiv). For the period from the 960s. by 1054 the coat of arms of the Russian Grand Duke (Kagan) is known. Under Svyatoslav Igorevich (964 - 972) and Svyatopolk the Accursed (1015 - 1016 and 1018 - 1019) it was a bident, under Vladimir Svyatoslavich (978 - 1015) and Yaroslav the Wise (1016 - 1018 and 1019 - 1054 .) - trident.

Socio-economic structure

In Soviet historiography, the Old Russian state was considered early feudal - i.e. one whose character was determined by the formation of feudal relations at that time. According to scientists of the Leningrad school I.Ya. Froyanov, the feudal structure in the Old Russian state was by no means system-forming.

State apparatus and legislation

Legislation of the Old Russian state at the end of the 9th - 10th centuries. was oral (“Russian Law”). During the XI - early XII centuries. a set of written laws is being formed - Russian Truth (formed by such legislative monuments as Yaroslav's Truth, Pokonvirny, Lesson for Bridge Workers, Yaroslavich's Truth and the Charter of Vladimir Monomakh).

Functions of the state apparatus at the end of the 9th - end of the 10th century. performed by the warriors of the Grand Duke (Kagan); from the end of the 10th century such officials as virniks, mytniks, and swordsmen are known.

Stages of formation

The Old Russian state was formed around 882 as a result of the unification of the states by the Novgorod prince Oleg the Prophet, conventionally called Novgorod and Kyiv in science. In the history of the Old Russian state, four large periods can be distinguished.

1) Around 882 - early 990s. The state is federal in nature; The territories of the East Slavic tribal unions included in it enjoy broad autonomy and are generally weakly connected with the center. Therefore, the Old Russian state of this period is often characterized as a “union of tribal unions.” After the death of Svyatoslav Igorevich in 972, the state generally splits into three independent “volosts” (Kyiv, Novgorod and Drevlyanskaya, again united by Yaropolk Svyatoslavich only around 977).

2) Early 990s. - 1054 As a result of the liquidation of most tribal princes by Vladimir Svyatoslavich and the replacement of tribal princes with governors (sons) of the Russian Grand Duke (Kagan), the state acquired the features of a unitary one. However, as a result of strife between Yaroslav the Wise and his brother Mstislav Vladimirovich (Lyuty), in 1026 it again breaks up - into two halves (with the border between them along the Dnieper) - and only after the death of Mstislav in 1036, Yaroslav restores the unity of the state .

3) 1054 - 1113 According to the will of Yaroslav the Wise, the state again takes on the features of a federation. It is considered the common property of the princely family of the Rurikovichs, each of which has the right to reign in one or another region ("volost"), but must obey the eldest in the family - the Russian Grand Duke. However, as a result of what began in the 11th century. rapid growth of cities (potential regional centers) and the decline in the importance of the Dnieper trade route (which was blocked every now and then by the Polovtsians), the role of Kiev as a single center controlling the Dnieper route begins to decline, and the federation shows a tendency to turn into a confederation (i.e. to the collapse of a single states).

4) 1113 - 1132 Vladimir Monomakh (1113 - 1125) and his eldest son Mstislav the Great (1125 - 1132) manage to stop the beginning of the collapse of the Old Russian state and again give it the features of a federation (rather than a confederation).

Collapse of the Old Russian State

Since neither Vladimir Monomakh nor Mstislav the Great managed to eliminate the objective reasons for the growth of centrifugal tendencies (and these, in addition to those listed above, included the weak controllability of a huge state with the then means of communication and communications), after the death of the latter in 1132, these tendencies triumphed again . The city "volosts" one after another began to leave the subordination of the Russian Grand Duke. The last of them to do so were in the 1150s. (which is why the time of the final collapse of the Old Russian state is sometimes attributed to the middle of the 12th century), but usually the end of the existence of the Old Russian state is considered to be the boundary of the first and second thirds of the 12th century.

Rus- a historically formed name given to the lands of the Eastern Slavs.

It was first used as the name of the state in the text of the treaty between Russia and Byzantium in 911. Even earlier mentions characterize Rus as an ethnonym (name of a people, ethnic community). As evidenced by the chronicle legend "The Tale of Bygone Years", created in the 11th - 12th centuries, this name takes its origins from the Varangian tribes called by the Finno-Ugric and Slavic tribes (Krivichi, Slovenes, Chud, and all) Rus in 862. According to some historical information, the lands of the Eastern Slavs had an even earlier state with the conventional name Russian Kaganate, but this fact did not find sufficient evidence, and therefore the Russian Kaganate refers, rather, to historical hypotheses.

Formation of the state of Rus'

The earliest historical documents confirming the existence of the Old Russian state include the Bertine Annals, which testify to the arrival of a Byzantine embassy from Emperor Theophilus to Louis the Pious, the Frankish emperor, in May 839. The Byzantine delegation consisted of ambassadors from the rhos people, who were sent to Constantinople by the emperor, named in the document as chacanus. The state of Rus', about the existence of which there is practically no information during this period, is today conventionally designated by historians as a kind of Russian Kaganate.

There are references to Rus' in a later entry by Jacob Reitenfels from 1680 about the times when Michael I, the Byzantine emperor, reigned: “In 810, the Greek emperor Michael Kuropalate waged a war with varying success with the Bulgarians, supported by the Russians. The same Russians helped Krunn, the king of the Bulgarians, when he captured the richest city of Mesembria, when he inflicted a terrible defeat on the emperor."

This event is conventionally dated 01.11. 812, however, this information has not yet been confirmed by official historical data. It is unknown what the ethnicity of the mentioned “Russians” is and where exactly they lived.

Some chronicles contain information that the first mentions of Rus' are associated with the reign of Irina, the Byzantine queen (797-802). According to chronicle researcher M. N. Tikhomirov, this information comes from Byzantine church sources.

In addition, according to existing legend, Andrew the First-Called came to Russian lands back in the 1st century AD.

The emergence of Novgorod Rus'

In the earliest ancient Russian chronicle, The Tale of Bygone Years, records of the formation of Rus' are based on legends. They were created after 250 years, and dated to 862. Then the alliance of the northern peoples, which consisted of the Slavic tribes, Ilmen Slovenes, Krivichi and Finno-Ugric tribes of the whole and Chud, invited the overseas princes of the Varangians to stop internecine wars and internal strife (for more details, see the article “Calling the Varangians”). As the Ipatiev Chronicle of the Varangians indicates, Rurik first reigned in Ladoga, and after the death of his brothers he cut down Novgorod and went there.

Since the middle of the 8th century, there was an unfortified settlement of Ladoga, while in Novgorod there was no dated cultural layer earlier than the 30s. X century. However, there is confirmation of the location of the residence of the princes, called the Rurik settlement, which arose at the beginning of the 9th century. near Novgorod.

Historians attribute the events to the same time when Rus' made a campaign against Constantinople in 860, however, the Tale of Bygone Years indicates that this event dates back to 866 and is associated with the Kyiv princes Dir and Askold.

The year 862 is accepted as the starting point for the existence of Russian statehood, although this is probably a conditional date. According to one version, this year was chosen by an unknown Kyiv chronicler of the 11th century, based on the memory of the first baptism of Rus', which followed the raid of 860.

From the text of the chronicle it follows that the author also tied the emergence of the Russian land to the campaign of 860:

In the chronicler's further calculations it is stated: “from the birth of Christ to Constantine there are 318 years, from Constantine to Michael this is 542 years.” As it is easy to see, the chronicle erroneously indicates the date of the beginning of the reign of the Emperor of Byzantium, Michael III. In addition, some historians express the view that, in fact, by 6360 the author meant 860. Since the year is designated according to the Alexandrian era (also called Antiochian), for correct calculation it is necessary to subtract 5.5 thousand years. However, the indictment is designated precisely by the year 852.

As indicated in the “Tale of Bygone Years”, then the Varangian-Rus created 2 independent centers: in Kyiv, Rurik’s fellow tribesmen Askold and Dir reigned, and in the area of ​​Novgorod and Ladoga - Rurik himself. Kievan Rus (Varangians who ruled the Polyanian lands) adopted Christianity from a bishop from Constantinople.

The emergence of Kievan Rus

With the development of the state, in 882, Prince Oleg, Rurik’s successor, moved the capital of the ancient Russian state to Kyiv. Then he killed Dir and Askold, the Kyiv princes who ruled there, and united the Kyiv and Novgorod lands into a single state. Later, historians designated this period as the beginning of the times of Kievan or Ancient Rus' (with a change in the location of the capital).

Some historical hypotheses

A. A. Shakhmatov in 1919 suggested that the Scandinavians called Staraya Russa Holmgard. According to his hypothesis, Rusa is the original capital of the ancient country. It was from this “most ancient Rus'...soon after” 839 that the movement of Rus' to the south began, which subsequently led to the formation of a “young Russian state” in Kyiv in 840.

Academician S. F. Platonov noted in 1920 that further research would, of course, make it possible to collect more extensive material to understand and confirm A. A. Shakhmatov’s assumption about the existence of a Varangian center on the Ilmen Southern Bank. He concluded that now the hypothesis has all the characteristics and is qualitatively scientifically constructed, and is capable of opening up a potential historical perspective for us: the city of Rusa and the region of Rusa acquire a new and quite significant meaning.

G.V. Vernadsky expressed his opinion: in the 9th century. near Lake Ilmen, a community of Swedes merchants was formed, connected in a certain way, due to commercial activities, with the Russian Kaganate (according to the historian’s assumption, this is approximately the area of ​​​​the mouth of the Kuban River on Taman). Thus, Staraya Rusa, most likely, was the center of this northern “branch”.

According to Vernadsky, in the “calling of the Varangians”, in accordance with the Ipatiev list (“Rkosha Rus, Chud, Sloven, and Krivichi and all: our land is great and abundant, but there is no outfit in it: let you go and reign over us”) - members of the Swedish colony in Staraya Rus, mainly merchants conducting trade with the Russian Kaganate in the Azov region, take part “under the name “Rus”. Their goal in “calling the Varangians” was, first of all, to reopen the trade route to the south with the help of new detachments of Scandinavians.”

V.V. Fomin already in 2008 did not rule out that at the time of Rurik’s reign the territory of Staraya Russa could have been inhabited by Russia, and also that the early appearance of Rus' in these places is explained by this fact - in those days salt, the need for which was felt by vast territories Rus, was mined exclusively in the Southern Ilmen region (including processing of leather and fur, which were then exported).

Archaeological evidence

Archaeological research confirms the fact of significant socio-economic improvements in the territory of the Eastern Slavs in the 9th century. In general, the results of various archaeological studies correspond to the Tale of Bygone Years, including the events of 862 - the calling of the Varangians.

Old Russian cities: development

Along the Volkhov River in the 8th century, 2 buildings were founded: Lyubsha Fortress (built by the Ilmen Slovenes on the territory of a Finnish fortress in the 8th century). According to some assumptions, a little later, 2 kilometers from the fortress on the opposite bank of the Volkhov, Ladoga, a Scandinavian settlement, was formed. In the 760s. it was subject to invasions by the Ilmen Slovenes and Krivichi. By the 830s, its population had become overwhelmingly Slavic (according to assumptions, Krivichi).

Ladoga burned down in the late 830s and its population changed again. Now there is a clearly visible presence of the military elite of Scandinavia (Scandinavian military male burials, and also “Thor’s hammers”, etc.).

A wave of wars and fires passed through the northwestern territory of Rus' in the 860s. The Lyubsha fortress, Ladoga, and the Rurik settlement burned down (according to the arrowheads found in its walls, the capture and siege of Lyubsha was carried out exclusively by the non-Scandinavian, but predominantly Slovenian population). Lyubsha disappeared forever after the fires, and as for the population of Ladoga, it became almost completely Scandinavian. And from these times the city became little different from the Danish and Swedish cities of this period.

VIII-IX centuries archaeologists consider the time of the emergence of the Rurik settlement, not far from which in the 930s. 3 settlements were formed (Krivichi, Ilmen Slovenes and Finno-Ugric peoples). Later they merged into Veliky Novgorod. By the nature of the settlement, the Rurik settlement can be called a military-administrative center with a clear Scandinavian culture, not only in the military strata, but also in the household (families). The relationship between the Rurik settlement and Ladoga is observed by the special characteristics of beads, which have become particularly widespread in both settlements. Some information about the origin of the arriving population of the Rurik settlement is provided by studies of pottery ceramics that were found in the south of the Baltic.

Archaeological excavations in Kyiv prove the existence from the beginning of the 6th-8th centuries. several small isolated settlements that were located on the territory of the future capital. Since the 8th century, defensive fortifications have been visible - the main city-forming feature (in the 780s, the northerners built fortifications on Starokievskaya Mountain). Archaeological research indicates that the city began to play a central role only in the 10th century. From this same time, the presence of the Varangians was established.

In the second half of the 9th century. Rus' covered a network of cities (Sarskoe Mountain near Rostov, Gnezdovo near Smolensk, Timerevo near Yaroslavl). The Scandinavian military elite was present here. The settlements served trade flows with the East, and at the same time served as centers of colonization for local tribes. Some cities (Smolensk, Rostov) are mentioned in ancient Russian chronicles as tribal centers of the 9th century. No cultural layers older than the 11th century have been identified here, although small settlements have been discovered.

Arab coins: treasures

In the 780s, the Volga trade route began, which was called “From the Varangians to the Bulgars.” It was in this decade that Arab silver dirhams were found (the oldest treasure in Ladoga is dated 786). On the lands of the future Novgorod, the number of treasures before 833 significantly exceeds the number of similar ones in Scandinavia. Thus, only local needs were initially served by the Volga-Baltic route. While through the basin of the Upper Dnieper, Don, Western Dvina, Neman, Arab dirhams (the main flows) entered the Southern Baltic and Prussia, to the islands of Bornholm, Rügen and Gotland, where the richest treasures in the region at that time were discovered.

In the 9th century, Arab silver came through Ladoga to Central Sweden. However, after Ladoga burned down (860), the flow of silver to the island was suspended for approximately 10 years. Gotland to and Sweden.

According to the research of T. Noonan, in the second half of IX the number of coin hoards in Sweden and Gotland increased 8 times compared to the first half. This indicates the stable functioning and final formation of the trade route passing to Scandinavia from Northern Rus'. The distribution of early treasures indicates that in the 9th century the route “From the Varangians to the Greeks” did not yet function along the Dnieper: treasures dating back to that period in the Novgorod land were discovered along the Oka, upper Volga, Western Dvina (Neva - Volkhov route).

The route “from the Varangians to the Persians” to the countries of Scandinavia passed through the territory of the Novgorod lands, which was a continuation of the path to the Eastern camps “from the Varangians to the Bulgars.”

One of the earliest treasures that were found in Peterhof (the earliest coin is dated 805) has many graffiti inscriptions on the coins, thanks to which it became possible to determine the ethnic composition of their owners. Among the graffiti, an inscription in Greek was found (name Zacharias), runic inscriptions (magic signs and Scandinavian names) and Scandinavian runes, Khazar (Turkic) runes and, directly, Arabic graffiti.

Between the Dnieper and Don in the forest-steppe in the 780-830s. coins were minted - the so-called “imitation of dirhams”, which were in use among the Slavs, who had the Volyntsev (later Borshev and Romny) culture and the Alans, who had the Saltov-Mayak culture.

It was through this territory that the most active flow of dirhams passed from the earliest period - until 833. Here, according to many historians, the center of the Russian Kaganate was located at the beginning of the 9th century. And already in its middle, the minting of these coins was stopped after the Hungarian defeat.

Origin of the name "Rus"

As chronicle sources testify, it was from the Varangians - Rus', that the Slavic state of Rus acquired its name. Before the arrival of the Varangians, there were Slavic tribes on the territory of the Russian state and bore their own names. It was “from those Varangians that the Russian land was nicknamed,” noted ancient Russian chroniclers, the earliest of them the monk Nestor (beginning of the 12th century).

Ethnonyms

Russian people, Russian, Russian, Russian- an ethnonym that designates the population of Kievan Rus. A representative of the people of Rus' in the singular was called Rusin (“Rousin” graphically, due to the inherited method of transferring the letter [u] from Greek graphics), one resident of Rus' was called “Russky” or “Rusky”. Despite the fact that from the content of the Russian-Byzantine agreement of 911 (the Treaty of Prophetic Oleg) it is not entirely clear whether all inhabitants of Rus' were called Rus, or only Varangians-Rus, the Russian-Byzantine agreement of 944 (Igor Rurikovich) allows us to conclude that Rus refers to " to all people of the Russian land».

A fragment of the agreement between the Greeks and Igor from 944 (according to the dating of PVL-945):

In this case, “Grchin” is used in the meaning of “Byzantine”, Greek; but the meaning of the word “Rusin” is not known exactly: it was “a representative of the people of Rus'”, or maybe “a resident of Rus'”.

Already in the earliest versions of “Russian Truth” that have come down to us, Rus' and the Slavs became completely equal:

The words “Rusyn” and “Slav” become synonymous (or instead of “Rusyn” “citizen” is used) only in later editions; in addition, for example, fines of 80 hryvnia appear for the princely tivun.

In the text of the German-Smolensk treaty of the 13th century, “Rousin” means “Russian warrior”:

Russia

At the end of the fifteenth century, the Moscow principality was given the name Russia, and the great John III, Prince of Moscow, became the Sovereign of All Russia: “We are John, by the grace of God Sovereign, of all Russia, Volodymyr, and Moscow, and Novgorod, and Pskov, and Tfer, and Ugorsky, and Vyatsky, and Perm, and Bulgarian, and others.”

Turn of the XV-XVI centuries. was marked by the fact that initially, as a church-book and common name, and then in official documentation, the name “Russia” appeared, close to the Greek “Pwaia”. Thus, instead of the designations White, Little and Great Rus', Great Russia - Great Russia, Little Russia - Little Russia, Belarus - Belorussia - White Russia began to be used. In addition, Galician Rus' was sometimes called Red (Chervona) Russia - Krasnorossiya, Western Belarus - Black Russia - Chernorossiya. Also, there were the designations Horde, Purgas Rus, South-Western, Lithuanian, North-Eastern, Carpathian Rus, etc.

Due to the annexation of new territories, the names New Russia - Novorossiya (the south of Ukraine today, the southern part of European Russia) and the not so common Yellow Russia - Zheltorossiya (began with Turkestan, and then Manchuria, after - the eastern and northern parts of modern Kazakhstan) were formed , as well as the bordering steppe territories of the Volga region, southern Siberia and the southern Urals of modern Russia). By analogy, the names Green Russia or Zelenorossiya (territory of Siberia), Goluborossiya or Blue Russia (territory of Pomerania), etc. were proposed to other and new territories of Russia by analogy, but were practically not used.

There are several historiographical names for the state that prevailed in literature at different times - “Old Russian State”, “Ancient Rus'”, “Kievan Rus”, “Kievan State”. Currently, three historiographical names are most widespread - “Old Russian State”, “Kievan Rus” and “Ancient Rus”. The definition of “Old Russian” is not connected with the division of antiquity and the Middle Ages in Europe generally accepted in historiography in the middle of the 1st millennium AD. In relation to Rus', it is usually used to designate the so-called pre-Mongol period of the 9th - mid-13th centuries, in order to distinguish this era from subsequent periods of Russian history.

Old Russian state- a state that arose in the early Middle Ages in Eastern Europe, in 862 as a result of the unification of a number of East Slavic and Finno-Ugric tribes under the rule of the princes of the Rurik dynasty of the two main centers of the Eastern Slavs - Novgorod and Kyiv, as well as lands (settlements in the area of ​​​​Staraya Ladoga, Gnezdov ).

"Varangians", Vasnetsov V.M. 1909