“Go, prince, to the table of your father and grandfather”

Vladimir Monomakh on the throne of Kiev, Front Chronicle, XNUMXth century

"The property of Dazhd-God's grandchildren perished"

In April 1113, the great Russian prince Svyatopolk II Izyaslavich fell ill and died. His reign for Rus' was difficult. Several bloody internecine wars swept between the Russian princes. The Polovtsy took advantage of this, they had to wage heavy wars. Prince Vladimir Monomakh became famous in these wars.

Therefore, in the "Word of Igor's Campaign" it is noted:

“From the same Kayala, Svyatopolk carefully took his father between the Hungarian pacers to St. Sophia, to Kyiv. Then, under Oleg Gorislavich, strife was sown and sprouted, the property of Dazhd-God's grandchildren perished, the human age was reduced in princely strife. Back then, on Russian soil, the plowmen rarely called out, but often the crows roared, dividing the corpses among themselves, and the jackdaws spoke in their own way, intending to fly for the profit.

Svyatopolk himself was distinguished by great greed. His environment was appropriate. The prince's pets went into all serious trouble, robbing the people. The Jewish ("Kazar"-Khazar) quarter in Kyiv flourished even more than under Izyaslav. The Jews were under the special patronage of the prince. They "received many pre-Christian liberties", many Kievans "lost trade and crafts."

Also, the Jews of Kyiv had connections with their fellow tribesmen in the former Khazaria, in the Crimea, who restored the profitable slave trade with the countries of the East. The Polovtsy drove people in full, and the slave merchants bought them up and sold them further to the bazaars of the Caucasus, Persia and Egypt. The laws of Byzantium forbade the Gentiles to trade in Christians, but the local authorities turned a blind eye to this, receiving "kickbacks" and generous gifts. In addition, the slave traders for the sake of appearance adopted Christianity, receiving the legal right to trade in Christians.

And the Kiev prince himself was not shy about making money. The former rulers granted a monopoly on the salt trade to the Pechersk Monastery. Svyatopolk took it away, began to trade in salt through his tax-farmers. His son from the concubine Mstislav killed the monks Fedor and Vasily, seeking the so-called Varangian gold and silver, which was stored in the Varangian cave, in which the monk Fedor lived. He was informed that the monks had found the treasure and were hiding it.

Having no support among the people, Svyatopolk looked for her among foreigners. Tried to get closer to Poland and Hungary, with Byzantium. For a formal alliance with Constantinople, Svyatopolk recognized the loss of Tmutarakan, was listed as a vassal of the basileus, and completely surrendered his position to the Russian Church. The Caves Monastery, which was in opposition to the Grand Duke, was taken under control. At this time, The Tale of Bygone Years was severely edited. Places in the Russian chronicle that were objectionable to the Grand Duke and the Byzantine Greeks were "cut off". Svyatopolk, his brothers and father Izyaslav were praised in every possible way. Khazaria, the great victories of Svyatoslav Igorevich over the Khazars, practically disappeared from the annals.

The "Kazarsky" quarter rose. The Jews became financiers-usurers, officials, tax collectors. Having captured profitable trades and crafts, having ruined people, moneylenders-financiers "rescued" them with loans. They entangled with interest and enslaved people who could not repay their debts were sold into slavery. From the Russian capital, ships with slaves went south. From Kherson, the unfortunate were taken further, to the eastern harems and brothels, to the mines and to the galleys.

The popular uprising

After the death of Svyatopolk, the people of Kiev turned to Monomakh. His name was on everyone's lips: a direct and just man, a peacemaker among princes, a thunderstorm of the Polovtsians. But the Pereyaslavl prince, like 20 years ago, refused the Kyiv table. He did not want to break the traditional order: according to the system of ladders (ladders), Svyatopolk Izyaslavich was to be succeeded by the Svyatoslavichs - Davyd Chernigov, Oleg Seversky, Yaroslav Muromsky. The Kievan boyars and the Jewish quarter also supported the Svyatoslavichs.

However, ordinary Kievans did not want the rule of the Svyatoslavichs, the continuation of the dominance of the rich and powerful. Prince Oleg was remembered as the initiator of the bloody turmoil. The city boomed in unison: “We don’t want Svyatoslavichev!” Tysyatsky Putyata and other boyars associated with usurers proposed a new candidate - the son of Svyatopolk, Yaroslav Volynsky.

The people exploded. The hatred accumulated over the years burst out. The Kievans destroyed the Putyaty's court, staged a pogrom in the Jewish quarter. Kiev nobility and clergy were afraid, they could be next. They called again to Vladimir:

“Come, prince, to Kyiv; if you don’t come, then know that many troubles will happen, not only Putyatin’s yard, not only the Sots and Jews will be robbed, but they will attack your daughter-in-law, and the boyars, and the monasteries, and you will keep the answer, prince, if they plunder and monasteries."

After hesitating, Vladimir Vsevolodovich agreed. The arrival of Monomakh and his retinue restored order in the capital city. The rebellion stopped on its own, the people joyfully met their defender. The Svyatoslavs recognized the supremacy of Vladimir. They could not resist the desire of the entire Russian land.

Vladimir quickly eliminated the roots of the uprising. He replaced the capital administration headed by Putyata. The debts of the people of Kiev to the Jews were forgiven, those sold into slavery were released.

Monomakh decided to eliminate the source of the problem once and for all. Gathered princes and thousands. It was clear that the financiers-usurers were destroying the Russian land: by ruining and enslaving people, they thereby undermined the strength of the state and the princes. Therefore, it was decided to expel all the Jews from the borders of Rus'. They could take movable property, but had no right to return. Otherwise, they were outside the law.

Russkaya Pravda, the code of laws of the Russian state, was also supplemented. The Charter of Vladimir was adopted. He limited the arbitrariness of usurers. Thus, it was forbidden to take more than 20% per annum for the provided debt. The charter contained new provisions to alleviate the fate of smerds, purchases, ryadoviches, serfs (dependent categories of the population). In particular, the sources of servility were clearly defined.

This made things easier for the common people.

Comments

[Max2022]

The limitation of lending rates at 20% per annum for a number of banking products even now looks decent, we still have 1% per day for microloans ...

[Ilya-spb]

So let's do it again! Let's disperse lovers of loan interest - bankers!

[north 2]

Unlike the organized Crusade by the European Catholics, when the pogroms of the Jews were carried out on a religious and national basis, in fact at the same time in the Russian city of Kiev the uprising against the Jews that arose was not on a religious or national basis. It’s just that the Kyiv Jews then were the sponsors of the wrong thing, and in combination with their greed, they received the expulsion of the Jews, and even with the pogroms of the Jews ...
Everything there then was much more prosaic and simpler than the difficult path then, so that ordinary people would then themselves make an uprising. If translated into a modern way, then the Jews in ancient Kiev under Svyatopolk and after his unexpected death were sponsors of the Svyatoslavich party. But given that the Svyatoslavichs were greedy and easy to rob the population like Jews, then the uprising at the call of Monomakh to expel these sponsors became even real pogroms. This is not something that ordinary people need to be taught ... By the way, exile and pogroms then took place not only in the Russian city of Kyiv, but also in other cities of what was then Russia.
In a word, the Jews then paid for the fact that Svyatopolk was a pawn in the hands of Jewish usurers who controlled even the foreign policy of the prince. Monomakh, having come to power, was not going to tolerate this, and this was the main reason to expel the Jews. Well, what ordinary people also staged pogroms, so he will always arrange it, just give him a command to expel any bloodsuckers - usurers and bankers from the country ... and it doesn’t matter who they are, Jews or Russians.

[sergej_84]

In April 1113, the great Russian prince Svyatopolk II Izyaslavich fell ill and died.

The author, in his own style, from the first lines pulled an owl to the globe. The title "Great Russian Prince" did not exist. At the beginning of the XII century, there was the title "Grand Duke of Kiev" - the head of all the princes. From the second half of the XNUMXth century, the title "Grand Duke" refers to the rulers of the largest principalities, which included vassal specific principalities (Grand Dukes of Moscow, Tver, Yaroslavl, Ryazan, Smolensk, Nizhny Novgorod and others).

[ArchiPhil]

Quote: sergej_84

Since the second half of the XNUMXth century, the title "Grand Duke" refers to the rulers of the largest principalities, which included vassal specific principalities (Grand Dukes of Moscow,

Can you tell us a little more about the Grand Dukes of Moscow in the twelfth century? I suspect a bug.

[sergej_84]

You just have to read carefully. I have nowhere written that since the middle of the twelfth century, it was precisely the great princes of Moscow who appeared. It is written that from the middle of the twelfth century, in addition to the title of the Grand Duke of Kiev, other "great" ones appeared without reference to specific dates.
Am I clearly explaining?

[sergej_84]

At this time, The Tale of Bygone Years was severely edited. Places in the Russian chronicle that were objectionable to the Grand Duke and the Byzantine Greeks were "cut off". Svyatopolk, his brothers and father Izyaslav were praised in every possible way. Khazaria, the great victories of Svyatoslav Igorevich over the Khazars, practically disappeared from the annals.

That is, according to the author, the creator of "The Tale of Bygone Years" Nestor was a simple opportunist, and not a chronicler at all, and wrote "The Tale ..." under the dictation of Svyatopolk.
This is a new word in historical science.

[Stirbjorn]

Quote: sergej_84

Nestor was a simple opportunist, and not a chronicler at all, and wrote "The Tale ..." under the dictation of Svyatopolk.

Then it is not surprising why there is nothing about the Russians there, and about the "star temple" and so on. Svyatopolk crossed out to please the Jews

[venaya]

Quote: Stirbjorn

Then it is not surprising why there is nothing about the Russians there ..

And who was there then, really the most "Slavs"? By the way, they appeared in Rus' only in 1701, thanks to the efforts of Peter, who published a translation of a book first published only in 1601. Specify your personal version of how to call people who lived in that distant time ..

[Ezekiel 25-17]

Here's how: 910 years have passed, but nothing has changed, the usurers of the Jews, and now they enslave the common people, but on the primordially Russian land, in Kiev, they don’t even allow mass to be served. Our temples are desecrated, Satanists and idolaters serve in them...

[Diviz]

At that time, there were a lot of such small towns as Kyiv in those places around it.
There is no special significance for it to represent importance like Constantinople. Both economically, politically and commercially, Constantinople was the most important artery and everyone tried to capture it.
Therefore, the strange fact is that Igor's regiment rushed to the west, but apparently there was a reason and did not reach the goal, and Monomakh calmly reached Kiev, well, apparently he was not a stranger among the same Jews. Then you can divide the two groups of people into Ross and Russ.
It can be understood that the main task of Rosov was to rob neighbors and assert their power. They attacked Constantinople in 1046 to Kazan as an example, Yuri Dolgoruky used the Polovtsy and the northern lands.
But it was difficult to take the northern lands due to climatic conditions and difficult terrain.
It is also hard to imagine that Igor's regiment patrolled Tmutarakan and its trails. Which at one time broke through the Sassanids. Yes, it makes sense to take risks.
Then which side put the stone Tmutarakansky. It turns out that the Dews, after all, drew the border from the west.
And what does Constantinople have to do with it, and despite the fact that there is the same story about Scythian Basil only with other rulers. And since Constantinople was the most important city, the story about Scythian Basil is the primary source.

[Diviz]

Even under Alexei I, a conflict broke out between Byzantium and Russia. The Grand Duke of Kiev Vladimir Monomakh supported the pretender to the Byzantine throne, posing as Leo Diogenes, the youngest son of the deposed Emperor Roman IV Diogenes. In 1116, False Diogenes managed to conquer many Danubian cities. However, on August 15 of the same year, the assassins of the emperor managed to kill the impostor. Control over the Danube cities was restored. Vladimir Monomakh still did not abandon attempts to seize the Danube lands and acted in the interests of Vasily, the son of the deceased impostor.
From this I want to believe that Scythian Basil was a hired force of the Byzantine Empire and not the son of Diogenes.