“Know that the sun of the Russian land has gone down!”
Great reignThe Grand Duke of Vladimir Andrei Yaroslavich, intermarried with Prince Daniel of Galicia, together with his father-in-law began to act as a decisive opponent of peaceful relations with the Golden Horde. Daniel swallowed the "bait" of the West and hoped for help from European countries in the fight against the Horde. It was a gamble. Neither of them had any real military forces capable of opposing the Horde. And Western rulers were not going to support the Russian princes in the fight against the Horde. Most likely, they wanted the Horde to weaken the Russian principalities even more so that they could be easily subdued.
As a result, the Grand Duke Vladimirsky stopped collecting tribute in favor of the Horde and did not take more expensive gifts to the Shed, causing irritation of the Golden Horde princes. Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky tried to protect his younger brother from unwise decisions, but without success.
Worried Alexander and Norway. On the Kola Peninsula, the people of Novgorod faced the Norwegians. There was an urgent need to determine the state border of Russia with Norway. A representative embassy is sent to her king, who also has the task of wooing the son of Alexander Nevsky, Vasily, for the daughter of the Norwegian king Cristina. The border was determined, but the matchmaking did not take place. In 1251, Alexander Nevsky concluded an agreement with the Norwegian king Hakon IV Old about settling border disputes and delimitations in the collection of tribute from the vast territory inhabited by Karelians and Saami.
In 1251, with the participation of the forces of the Golden Horde, the ally Batuy Munch won a victory in the struggle for sovereignty in the Mongolian empire. The following year, Alexander again came to the Horde, trying to divert disaster from the Russian lands. King Batu was well aware of what was happening in Russia. The words and actions of Grand Prince Vladimir Andrey and his father-in-law Prince Daniil Galitsky did not remain for him a great secret. Both of them wanted to stand at the head of a wider uprising in Russia in order to free themselves from the power of the Horde. They began to prepare an armed uprising, but clearly they hurried. And hopes for help from the West and a penny were not worth it.
Therefore, when Batu received new evidence of direct insubordination of the Grand Duke of Vladimir, he became angry and ordered to punish the tributary of the Golden Horde, who had come out of obedience and was preparing an open rebellion. The Horde had a rich practice of such punitive campaigns. Possessions of recalcitrant princes were to be plundered and devastated.
A strong horseman moved to Vladimirskaya Rus. At its head, the ruler of the Golden Horde put an experienced commander - Prince Nevryuya. Khan Batu ordered him to “bring” Prince Andrey Yaroslavich to Sarai. Alexander Nevsky, who was already in the khan's headquarters, did not know about the campaign “Nevryuyeva rati”. Some researchers blame Alexander for helping to organize a punitive campaign against his brother during his trip to the Horde, but there is no direct evidence for this conclusion. And it is doubtful that the Grand Duke and the brilliant commander, who had repeatedly shown the high human qualities that attracted both ordinary people and enemies to him, could do that.
The battle between the cavalry army of Nevryuy and the few detachments of Prince Vladimirsky Andrei Yaroslavich and Prince of Tver Yaroslav Yaroslavich, who bravely went out to meet the enemy, occurred near the city of Pereyaslavl. The chronicler said about that battle: "And there was a great slaughter, but with the wrath of God, for the multiplication of our sins, the foul Christians would have won the battle." Here we see that the chronicler calls the Horde "unclean", that is, pagans. There were no "Mongolo-Tatars" in Russia. There were Caucasian pagans and Christians, both branches of the Rus superethnos were the direct heirs of Scythian civilization (Great Scythia). Therefore, in the sources in the figures there are no differences between the "Mongols" and the Russians, they were representatives of the same race, their military organization (decimal system) and weapons were of the same type.
Andrei Yaroslavich was broken. He first sought salvation in Novgorod, from where he retired to Sweden. But ordinary people had nowhere to run. Horde once again ravaged the Russian land. Nevryu ruined Pereyaslavl, where the wife of Yaroslav Yaroslavich was killed and the children were captured. Villages of Vladimir-Suzdal land were subjected to terrible devastation. The “Horde” of people, horses and cattle was taken to the Horde. Simultaneously with the campaign "Nevruyeva rati", the 60-thousandth army of the temnik Kuremsa moved to Galicia-Volyn land, and the possessions of Prince Daniil Galitsky were also devastated. The Pope did not provide him with military assistance. True, Daniel continued to resist with some success. And received in 1254, the royal crown. His successors called themselves “Rex Russiae” and “duces totius terrae Russiae, Galicie et Ladimirie” (“the king of Russia” or “the prince of all the land of the Russian, Galician and Vladimir”). That is, no "Ukraine-Rus" never existed. In Galicia, Volynsk and Carpathian Rus always lived Russians, which in the XX century, recorded in the "Ukrainians".
Alexander Nevsky returned from the Horde to Russia with a label on the great reign in the capital city of Vladimir. Such was the will of Batu Khan, who wanted to see the eldest among the Russian princes a loyal and rational person, an authoritative ruler. Batu did not want a new distemper. The inhabitants of Vladimir rendered a solemn meeting to the new grand prince, which testified to the high personal authority of the winner in the Battle of the Neva and the Battle of the Ice. He immediately began to restore the destroyed, to gather into the empty cities and villages the fled as far as the eyes of the people.
Continuing the fight with the West
However, the danger of war once again knocked on the door of Novgorod Russia. A new war followed with its western neighbors. Lithuanians again attacked Toropetsky parish. The eldest son of Alexander Nevsky, who was seated on the Novgorod table, Vasily defeated the Lithuanian army in the battle near the town of Toropets. Then came the Swedish knights. They landed troops from the ships and began to hastily build a fortress on the east, Russian, banks of the Narova River. However, having learned about the formation of the Novgorod militia, the Swedes abandoned the construction of a fortress and "beat across the sea." Then the German knights from Livonia attacked Pskov, but could not take it, only burnt the suburb. Pskov, together with Novgorod and Karelians struck back, they invaded the Baltic States and defeated the German knights on their land, after which peace was concluded on the terms of Pskov and Novgorod. The Pskov invited Yaroslav Yaroslavich of Tver, the younger brother of Alexander Nevsky, to reign.
To prevent the new invasion of the Swedish feudal lords in the lands of Veliky Novgorod, the Grand Duke of Vladimir Alexander Yaroslavich planned a great campaign in Finland, in its central part. By that time, the Swedish knights had conquered the lands of the Finnish tribes, and reached the borders of Karelia, whose population had been an ally of Novgorod since ancient times in opposition to the Swedish invaders.
Novgorod eminent boyars, most of all gladdening for their primordial rights, which were associated with trade with the West, constituted a strong opposition to Alexander Yaroslavich. At the beginning of 1255, the boyars ousted Prince Vasily Alexandrovich, the prince of Novgorod, the son of Nevsky. He with a retinue and a family drove off to Torzhok and waited for help from his father. The Grand Duke was not slow to appear with the squad, moving to Novgorod. After a long and stormy debate, the Novgorod Chamber dismissed the boyar protege Ananias from the post of the city mayor. After that, Alexander Yaroslavich with his team entered Novgorod and himself appointed a mayor of the people loyal to him. He became a popular man, Mikhail Stepanovich, one of the heroes of the battle on the Neva. The freedom-loving Novgorod this time did not oppose the princely will. This was the first time in storieswhen the will of the prince, let him be stronger than Novgorod veche customs. In essence, the future of Novgorod was shown. Novgorod boyars and large merchants were bound by interests with the West, rich in transit trade and trade in local goods. As a result, the Novgorod elite was ready to go under the West, just to maintain personal interest. Alexander, like the future great princes of Vladimir and Moscow, acted in the interests of the entire Russian land.
Soon, the younger brother of Alexander Nevsky, Andrei Yaroslavich, returned from the “German Land” - he was received with “love”. In 1256, Andrei Yaroslavich returned to Russia. Alexander made peace with Khan and gave Gorodets and Nizhny to the lot, and then, with the permission of Khan, and Suzdal. As a result, Andrei Yaroslavich became the founder of a branch of the Suzdal (then Nizhny Novgorod, then Shuisk) princes.
Good relations with the Horde allowed to spend a winter hike in Finland, the possession of the Swedish kingdom. Vladimir and Novgorod warriors were to march along winter roads — roads: channels of frozen rivers and lakes. The Russian army moved to Finland from Koporie, crossing the ice of the Gulf of Finland. Soon the Allied Karelian troops joined her. The Finnish campaign ended successfully — the Russian army did not quite reach the Arctic Circle. Swedish feudal lords had to flee partly to Sweden, partly to “shut up” in stone castles, which local residents helped to take to the Russian soldiers. The result of the campaign was that the Swedes in the subsequent 37 years did not violate the borders of Novgorod Rus, stopping in their advance to the East along the line of the Kymiiyoki River.
In 1257, the Grand Duke of Vladimir Alexander Yaroslavich made a successful trip to the Horde: his younger brother Andrei was forgiven. This was largely due to the fact that one of the Russian princes, Gleb Vasilyevich, married the Horde princess who converted to Christianity. However, at the same time, the policy of Alexander Yaroslavich was subjected to severe testing. The Horde decided to rewrite the entire population of their empire, including Russia, in order to streamline the collection of tribute. Khan's "members" did not delay with the arrival in the Russian principalities. At the same time, the Golden Horde agreed with the arguments of the Grand Duke of Vladimir, so that the Russian princes, who ruled their lands, would be in charge of collecting the tribute. At the same time, Khan obliged Alexander Yaroslavich to assist the “nominees” in the census of the urban and rural population of Russia.
Horde officials came to the Russian land not alone, but accompanied by military detachments, ready, in case of disobedience, to respond with punitive raids. These units were commanded by the Baskaks. "Chislenniki" rewrote the population of Suzdal, Ryazan, Murom and other Russian lands. Their actions were led by the "great baskak" who was sitting in Vladimir. In the course of the census of the Russian population, the Ordynts made it of foremen, centurions and tysyatskys, whose duty was to charge a tribute. This ensured the regular flow of the “exit” from Russia to the Horde. From the tribute freed only the clergy.
In the Vladimir-Suzdal land, the census was rather calm. The "scribes" arrived in Novgorod and there was a serious conflict. Free Novgorod and Pskov, not victims of military defeat, were indignant. They, together with Prince Vasily Alexandrovich, refused to accept Khan’s officials and ambassadors of the Grand Duke. In Novgorod, began unrest. Attempts by the Novgorodian clergy to reassure people did not lead to success. The "black people", the merchants joined the boyars. Posadnik Michael, who tried to persuade the citizens, Novgorod was killed. It went to war and the ruin of the Novgorod land.
Khan officials returned to Vladimir and threatened the Grand Duke that they would complain to the Horde. Alexander perfectly understood, the Horde could again send a large army to Russia. And then thousands and thousands of Russian people will be "trapped" and taken to full, many cities and villages will be subject to ruin. In that military-political situation, this was simply not allowed. It was necessary to pacify the free city, which, with its rampage, was putting all Russia under attack. Alexander Nevsky, the chronicler writes, “having understood the misfortune of thuja”, convened the Yaroslavich brothers and, not without difficulty, endowing with values, persuaded the khan officials to return to Novgorod. He himself, along with his brother Andrew and Rostov Prince Boris, went to Novgorod, taking a strong squad.
In Novgorod, unrest reached its apogee. Prince Vasily Alexandrovich declared that he did not want to obey his father. However, with the approach of the grand duke squads, he fled to Pskov. Novgorodians were quiet, meeting the officials of the Khan peacefully, but refused to census. Then the Horde officials, having received rich gifts, made diplomatic concessions: they drove off to the Horde, allowing the Grand Duke to settle the conflict himself. Alexander Nevsky chose the "lesser evil". According to some sources, he ordered to seize his son Vasily in Pskov and exiled him to Nizovskaya land, to Gorodets Radilov. The grand duke squad without resistance entered Novgorod. The most avid rebel townspeople were severely punished. Tight order in the city was restored. The grand prince appointed Mikhail Fedorovich, a resident of Ladoga, who was not involved in the boyar feuds. The Grand Duke spoke at the Novgorod Chamber, urging citizens to prudence, not to conflict with the Horde, who was at the top of his military power.
In 1259, the census of the Novgorod land began. Khan officials considered the number of souls and all impose the same tribute. This situation suited the boyars and the rich merchants, but not the “black people.” There were numerous riots, which sometimes ended in the murder of the “captives” and their guards. Then the Khan's officials had to take refuge in the Settlement, under the protection of the Grand Duke’s squad. However, the census was continued. As a result, the census was completed. Taking a tribute from the northern Russian lands, the Horde left for Sarai. The next tribute collection was laid on the Novgorod prince. They became a young Prince Dmitry Alexandrovich. After the unrest in Novgorod Russia, caused by the Horde census, there was a lull in Russia. The chronicler noted: "There is a great silence for Christians." It was peaceful next year, 1260.
However, although the world was given a great price, the situation was difficult. The internecine strife between the Russian princes, who seemed to have forgotten about the Batu pogrom, did not cease. Among the appanage princes, a latent opposition to the power of Grand Duke Vladimir, who labeled the great khan for seniority among other rulers in Russia, began to appear. Tver, Ryazan, Yaroslavl and other princes began to go to Sarai to bow to the khan of the Golden Horde in order to gain autonomy of their principalities, each of which separately did not pose a serious threat to either the Horde or the western rulers. Worried Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich and Novgorod. There continued to exist a strong boyar opposition to the grand-ducal power, which was based on wealth and ties with the West. Thus, for the unity of Russia, the path was long.
On the western and eastern border was calm. The Swedes, Lithuanians and German knights, frightened by Alexander Yaroslavich’s menacing pace, were afraid of starting a war. The horde, pleased with the order and rich "way out", did not disturb Russia. In 1261, they succeeded in creating a Sarai bishopric in the capital of the Golden Horde. The first bishop in it was Mitrofan. The Orthodox influence in the Horde, where there was a lot of Russian people, intensified. Ordynism began to accept Horde.
In 1261, the ambassadors of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Mindovg arrived in Novgorod. They concluded with the Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich a military alliance against German knighthood. The agreement provided for a joint military campaign in Livonia. In 1262, the Russian army, which included the Polotsk squad of Prince Tovtivila and 500 of the Lithuanian warriors, captured the fortified city Derpt-Yuryev, although the German knights managed to hide in the stone citadel. After completing the campaign in the lands of the Order in Veliky Novgorod, the ambassadors from the merchant guilds of Hamburg, Lübeck and other German cities on the Baltic coast arrived to sign a mutually beneficial trade agreement. Thus, the German merchants abandoned the idea of blocking the Baltic trade of Russia with the help of the Livonian Order.
The last feat
1262 was marked by revolts against the Horde. Khan Berke decided that his Baskaks keep most of the requisitions from the Russian lands, transferred the collection from them to the Khiva merchants-usurers. "Bessemeny" handlers contributed money to the Horde's ruler in advance, and then collected tribute in the Russian principalities on an even larger scale than the Khan Baskaks. Those people who could not immediately pay the duty, Khivans gave a delay, but at high interest rates. Their greed did not know the measure.
The 1262 uprising of the year against merchants-usurers began simultaneously in Rostov, Vladimir, Suzdal, Yaroslavl, Pereyaslavl and other cities. The people are no longer "I can not tolerate violence from the unclean." The most hated haunters were “beaten”; others, less tainted by illegal extortion, were “driven out of the cities.” The Grand Duke did not hinder this. There is information that Aleksandr Yaroslavich sent letters of ratification to Russian cities calling for the expulsion of the blasphemers and their minions.
Alexander Nevsky wanted to prevent the punitive campaign of the Horde army and put an end to the system of uncontrollable robbery by the “bessemeny” of the Russian lands. Therefore, Alexander Nevsky once again went to Sarai, "to otmolit people from the trouble." Another goal of the trip, no less important, was to stop the forced recruitment of Russian soldiers into the Horde army. In 1263, the Grand Duke of Vladimir Alexander Yaroslavich last visited the Golden Horde. Khan Berke almost a year kept around him a famous commander of Russia. Tom had to winter at the Khan's headquarters. Alexander achieved his goals: 1) now the collection of "exit" finally passed into the hands of the Russian princes. Russia no longer knew the "bessemenov"; 2) Russian principalities were exempt from military service.
From the Golden Horde, the Grand Duke of Vladimir was returning home completely sick. Apparently, he was poisoned by enemies (many people turned in the Horde, including messengers and spies of the West). In November, Alexander arrived first in Nizhny Novgorod, and then in Gorodets. There he stopped at the Fedorov monastery, in the same place where there was a copy of the particularly revered icon of the Theodore of Our Lady. She is considered the patroness of the Yaroslavich family. In Gorodets, the grand prince-warrior of Ancient Russia fell into an even greater affliction. Accompanying people and monks saw the patient leave the last forces. All were disheartened. Alexander Nevsky, feeling his quick demise, told others: "Go away and do not crush the soul with my pity."
According to the custom of the ancestors, the grand duke called on the hegumen of the monastery and expressed a desire to become a monk: “Father, I am sick of velm ... I do not drink your stomach and will forgive you my tonsure”. It was an Orthodox Christian tradition, when people, before their death, left social life for “black monks”. The last will of the famous warrior was performed. In the cell of the Gorodetsky Fedorovsky Monastery, the Grand Duke of Vladimir Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky was tonsured as a monk and received a new name Alexy. On the night after the sacrament, 14 on November 1263, he passed away. The coffin with its ashes was transported to Vladimir and, with a large gathering of people, was buried in Bogolyubovo, in the monastery of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary.
Alexander Nevsky will mourn in all corners of the Russian land - the nationwide grief turned out to be so great. In the capital city of Vladimir, Metropolitan Kirill, addressing the people, will say: “My dear children! Know that the sun of the Russian land has gone! ”
People's love and grief are the main indicators of the activities of the Grand Duke and the Soldier. Thanks to Alexander Nevsky, a new page has opened in the history of Russia. Vladimirskaya and then Moscow Rus began to restore their positions step by step, which eventually led to Moscow becoming the main center of the degraded Golden Horde and heir to the northern imperial tradition. With military victories on the western frontiers of the country and skillful policies in the east, Alexander Yaroslavich predetermined the fate of Russia for centuries to come.
Alexander Yaroslavich showed heirs the main strategic line. At its core: 1) an uncompromising, uncompromising struggle with the West and flexible policies in the East; 2) strengthening the centralized grand princely power; 3) overcoming feudal fragmentation, the unity of Russia.
At the same time, Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky was a great commander. Winning everywhere, he was not defeated by anyone. He was feared and respected both in the West and in the East.
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