Princess Anna of Byzantium. Byzantine princess Anna Romanovna

In 988, Prince Vladimir of Kyiv and his wife Anna baptized Russia in the waters of the Dnieper and its tributary Pochaina. Orthodoxy came to the Russian lands. And now, for almost 1025 years, Russia has been living under the shadow of the faith of Christ.

THEOPHANO AND HER EMPERORS

Anna, daughter of the Byzantine emperor Roman II, was born on March 13, 963. Anna's mother came from a family by no means noble, and her name was Theophano. Leo the Deacon, a Byzantine priest and historian of Armenian blood, described Theophano as "the most beautiful, seductive and refined woman of her time, equally distinguished by her beauty, abilities, ambition and depravity." The daughter of the Constantinopolitan tavern Krotir, a native of Armenia, she was named Anastasia in childhood. Captivated by the charm and grace of the figure, as well as the whiteness of the skin, the intelligence and grace of Roman, the young heir to the throne, she fell in love with him and captured the heart of an ardent lover. Blinded by a passion for her charms, he completely forgot about his lawful young wife Berta, the illegitimate daughter of the king of Italy.

Since the appearance of Theophano among the high-born brides of the empire remains a mystery, it can be assumed that Roman met her long before the matchmaking with Bertha (she died a virgin) and entered into a love affair with her. Having learned about the attraction of his son, the noble father Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus did not want to offend the feelings of his heir. In addition, the future daughter-in-law managed to charm with her beauty not only the emperor-basileus himself, but also the Empress Elena.

After the death of Constantine VII, the 18-year-old Theophano, the newly-appeared empress, forced her husband to expel five sisters from the palace, who shone with education and good manners, and imprison them in the monastery walls. The unseemly act of Roman, who lost his head from ardent feelings, soon brought Queen Elena to the grave, with whom Theophano did not want to share the position of the August ruler.

The chronicler describes the young basileus as a stately handsome man with a mop of blond wheaten hair, a "Roman nose" and expressive eyes. Pleasant in conversation, calm and rosy-cheeked, he evoked love from his subjects and admiration from women. Having adopted his father's scholarship, Roman II was fluent in word and writing. However, even in state affairs, he did not forget to please his flesh with amorous amusements. Over time, hunting, ball games, hippodrome competitions and feasts pushed his studies into the background.

A lover of wild races on thoroughbred trotters and indefatigable carnal pleasures, Roman II on March 15, 963, returning from hunting, fell ill: deadly spasms choked him. It was rumored that Roman, who had reigned for only four years, was poisoned. But even in a short period of marriage, Theophano managed to give birth to two sons, Vasily and Konstantin, and a daughter, Theophano. And literally two days before the sudden death of Roman, the young queen gave birth to Anna.

The Patriarch of Constantinople reluctantly elevated Theophano to the rank of regent over her young sons. As a result of palace intrigues, the noble commander Nikifor Foka took over the throne, immediately marrying Theophano. It remains to be thought that it was she who glorified Fok in order to protect her children and herself from encroachment. Most likely, Feofano entered into a close relationship with Foka while her husband was still alive: the old warrior could not resist her charms. For her sake, he defeated the Baghdad Caliphate, captured Crete and invaded Syria ...

In front of the growing Anna, bathed in wealth and luxury, her mother changed the unpretentious Phocas to his impudent and stately associate, the handsome John Tzimiskes, a born warrior Armenian origin. A conspiracy was brewing within the walls of the palace. Not without the help of the empress, the bribed assassins entered the chambers and ruthlessly dealt with the emperor in his own bed. So in 969, John I Tzimisces declared himself emperor. However, having barely established himself in his omnipotence, John not only did not want to marry the dissolute Theophano, but also expelled her from the capital, exiling her six-year-old Anna to a deserted island in the Aegean Sea, to a cold cell. In indescribable sadness, Theophano looked from this harsh shore to her former halls, cherishing the hope of returning there again. She even managed to escape from the island and hide behind the walls of Hagia Sophia, but Tzimiskes was informed of the escape, and he ordered Theophano and her daughter to be sent to a remote Armenian monastery.

Upon the death of the 50-year-old Tzimiskes in 976 (according to one version, he caught some kind of disease in the East, others believed that he was poisoned), power passed to Theophano's eldest son, Vasily II, which allowed the disgraced mother and sister to return to imperial palace.

ANNA, GRANDDUCH OF PURPOSE

Basil I, the founder of the dynasty, came from Armenians who settled in Macedonia, therefore in historiography this Byzantine dynasty is often referred to as "Macedonian", and the emperor himself - Basil I the Macedonian. Authoritative historians tend to refer to this dynasty as "Armenian", because during the two centuries of its rule (867-1056), most of Byzantine emperors, military leaders and officials had Armenian roots. In the history of Byzantium, the Armenian dynasty remained perhaps the greatest.

The genealogy of Vasily (Barsega) is mentioned in one of the chronicles. Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (according to the Byzantine chronicler Michael Psellos, “crimson-born” meant born in scarlet diapers), the author of the chapter on Basil the Macedonian, writes that the ancestors of his grandfather Basil fled from Armenia to Byzantium in the second half of the 5th century and settled in around Andriapolis, in Macedonia. The same chronicle contains information about the origin of the ancestors of Basil I from the Armenian king Tiridates from the Arshakid dynasty.

From an early age, familiar with hard peasant labor, Barsegh - Vasily grew up handsome, energetic and extremely strong. As a child, with his family and many other Armenians, he was captured by Bulgarian Khan Krum. For several years he lived among the wild pagan Bulgarians, and after returning to Macedonia, he went to serve the local aristocrat. He set foot on the land of Constantinople as an unknown young man who could only tame wild horses. Rumors about a tall and stately hero reached Emperor Michael III, and he called him to his service. Vasily fell in love with the crown bearer so much that he declared his favorite as his co-ruler and even crowned him with the imperial crown in Hagia Sophia ...

Basil I single-handedly ruled from 867. On August 29, 886, already advanced in years, Vasileus died from bleeding caused by bruises while hunting, having managed to appoint the Armenian Zautz, also a native of Macedonia, as the guardian of his sons Leo and Alexander. Shortly before his death, the emperor recognized independence Armenian state Bagratids, and Patriarch Photius I of Constantinople (877-886), an ethnic Armenian (his family was distinguished by nobility, piety and education), was the first to canonize Gregory of Armenia in Byzantium (Gregory the Illuminator, who converted Armenia to Christianity in 301).

Growing up, Anna became interested in the writings of her great-great-grandfather Vasily I, addressed to her son Leo, the future emperor Leo VI the Philosopher, or the Wise (886-912), an educated person with a wide range of interests, including theology. In these treatises - "Chapters instructive to the son of Leo" and "Another instruction to the son, the emperor Leo" - Anna drew lessons in practical morality.

The co-ruler of Leo the Philosopher was Alexander, who outlived his brother by only a year. The son of Leo VI, Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, or Porphyrogenet (who was born in the Porphyry Chamber of the Grand Imperial Palace, where only empresses were allowed to give birth), the only legitimate heir to power in Byzantium, sat on the throne for 46 years.

Grandfather of Anna of Byzantium, Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, a passionate book lover, endowed with the same literary gift, left a number of treatises on medicine, history, agronomy and other sciences. Neither before him nor after did Byzantium have such a great champion and patron of the sciences. Anna grew up on his works - “On the management of the empire”, “On the themes (theme is a military administrative district in Byzantium. - M. and G.M.)”, “On the ceremonies of the Byzantine court”, on the biographies of saints, lovingly collected together and processed by her glorious grandfather. Under Porphyrogenitus, a scriptorium was also opened for making copies of manuscripts of ancient authors. Anna was especially admired by the amazing beauty of the miniatures from the so-called Paris Psalter, which she inherited.

The figure of Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus literally grew out of the chronicles. So Anna learned that her crowned grandfather was loved not only by his close associates, but also by ordinary people, for whom he built hospitals and shelters, and established a system for distributing alms. The emperor was keenly interested in the fate of the inmates of his prisons and dungeons, trying to personally understand the case of each sentenced. Many, thanks to his foresight, were set free. If possible, Porphyrogenitus prevented all kinds of abuses of officials, trying to appoint honest and incorruptible people to positions. He also had a habit of not losing sight of them.

Pagan OLGA, GODDESS OF KONSTANTINE VII

In the summer of 955, Princess Olga arrived in Constantinople, called Constantinople by the Russians, from Kievan Rus, where pagan gods were worshiped. After the death in 945 of her husband, Prince Igor - the son of the chronicle founder of the statehood of Russia - Rurik, she took the reins of government into her own hands.

“Olga went to the Greek land and came to Constantinople,” the chronicle says. And then Caesar Constantine reigned. And Olga came to him. And the king saw that she was beautiful in face and intelligent. He was surprised at the liveliness of his mind and said to her: "You are worthy to reign with us in our capital." She, understanding the meaning of what was said, answered the king: “I am a pagan. If you want to baptize me, then baptize me yourself. Otherwise, I will not be baptized.” And the king and the patriarch baptized her. Enlightened, she rejoiced in body and soul. And the patriarch instructed her in faith and said to her: “Blessed are you in the wives of Russians, because you loved the light and left the darkness. Russian sons and your descendants will bless you.

The Russian princess accepted Holy Baptism under the arches of the Hagia Sophia. Anna's grandfather, Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, was her successor. Together with Princess Olga (in baptism Elena), she received the Holy Cross and her entire retinue - boyars, merchants, guards and their wives, which did not fail to affect the nature of relations between Kievan Rus and Byzantium.

And here is how this event is presented by the historian S.M. Solovyov:

“The Emperor Konstantin Porphyrogenitus,” says the legend, “offered his hand to Olga; she did not renounce, but first demanded that he be her successor; the emperor agreed, but when, after the sacrament, he repeated his proposal, Olga reminded him that, according to Christian law, the godfather could not marry his goddaughter. "Olga, you outwitted me!" - the amazed emperor exclaimed and released her with rich gifts ... Upon returning to Kyiv, Olga began to persuade her son Svyatoslav (father of the Baptist of Russia Vladimir. - M. and G.M.) to accept Christianity, but he did not want to hear about it; however, whoever wanted to be baptized was not forbidden, but only laughed at him ... "

However, another historian, N.M. Karamzin, expressed doubts about the authenticity of the chronicler's message:

“Firstly, Constantine had a wife; secondly, Olga was then no less than sixty years old. She could captivate him with intelligence, not beauty.

The ruler of Kyiv, Olga, departed to another world in 969. Weeping for the princess was all over Kyiv. After her death, not only the pagans were killed, but also the Mohammedans, whom she warmed and took care of. And that she accepted another faith, so that was her princely business. But most of all, Christians grieved over it, losing support in life. The princess bequeathed not to celebrate feasts on her and not to pour a mound over her. She sent money in advance to the Patriarch of Constantinople for the remembrance of her soul.

Olga, the first person of princely blood, who kissed the Cross, was buried by a Christian priest. Ranked among the saints.

PRINCE VLADIMIR. "PARADE" OF RELIGIONS

The son of Princess Olga - Svyatoslav, as a true pagan, was a polygamist. From different women he gave birth to three sons - Yaropolk, Oleg and Vladimir. The mothers of the first two were his legal wives, and Vladimir was born from the concubine Malusha, the housekeeper of Princess Olga.

With the death of Svyatoslav, power in Kyiv passed to Yaropolk. His craving for Christianity irritated the pagan Drevlyans, and he went to war against them. And he beat them. Oleg, his brother, who went over to the Drevlyans, fell in battle. Having learned about the death of Oleg, Vladimir left Novgorod "over the sea" to the Varangians. Yaropolk appointed his governor to rule in Novgorod. So Russia united its lands for a while.

Meanwhile, having matured, Vladimir, leading a strong Varangian squad, took possession of Novgorod. Meanwhile, Yaropolk's position in Kyiv was becoming increasingly precarious. Yes, it reached his ears that a conspiracy against him was ripening. And he left the capital city. Vladimir's people advised Yaropolk to go to his brother and make peace with him. But as soon as he crossed the threshold of the chambers of Vladimir, the guards of the prince pierced Yaropolk with swords.

Vladimir began to rule in Russia alone in 980.

Having gained power, the first thing the prince paid tribute to was the main pagan god Perun, placing his statue on a hill near the Terem Palace. Perun was carved from wood, his head was made of silver, and his mustache was golden. For the first time in many years, living people were sacrificed to Perun, among them several Christians.

Wishing to push the limits of his principality, Vladimir went to war against the Poles, taking away their cities, suppressed the rebellious Vyatichi, and defeated the Yotvingians, cutting their lands to his own. After that, the Radimichi and the Volga Bulgars submitted to him ...

In 986, Vladimir staged a "parade" of religions in Kyiv. Mohammed's permission to have many wives pleased the prince. But, having learned about the rite of circumcision, the ban on eating pork and not drinking wine, he was painfully upset.

“Drinking is the joy of Russia,” he said and ordered the Mohammedans to get out.

The Khazar Jews fell at his feet, saying that in their faith they keep the Sabbath, do not eat pork, hare, and perform the rite of circumcision.

- Where is your land? the prince asked.

“In Jerusalem, but only God was angry with our fathers for their sins and scattered them throughout the world,” the Jews answered.

To which Vladimir reproached them:

“You teach others, but you yourself are rejected by God and scattered over the earth. If your law were right, you would be sitting on your own land.

The German Catholics, envoys of the Pope of Rome, also told him about their faith. They said that it was customary for them to “fast according to their strength, and if someone eats or drinks, then everything is for the glory of God.”

And Vladimir said to them:

“Go back from whence you came, for even our fathers did not accept you!”

And then the Greek philosopher-preacher stepped forward. He refuted the delusions of all those who tempted the prince with their faith. Vladimir liked the mood of Christian Orthodoxy: “If someone converts to our faith, then, having died, he will rise again, and he will not die forever; but if it be in another law, then in the next world he will burn in fire.

And Vladimir sent his elders around the countries to observe different religions.

When they returned, they confessed to the prince:

- Your grandmother, the wisest Olga, would not have adopted the Greek law if it were bad. Byzantium knows to whom it prays.

The name of Olga, who converted to Orthodoxy, and the desire to stand on a par with the Byzantine emperors prevailed in Vladimir and prevailed ...

ANNA'S CROWNED BROTHERS

The death of the childless John I Tzimiskes opened the way to the throne for the sons of Roman II, Basil and Constantine. The eldest of the heirs will go down in history as Vasily II the Bulgar Slayer (976-1025), and the youngest as Constantine VIII (976-1028).

Blue-eyed, with slightly arched eyebrows, short stature, Vasily II was distinguished by a straight posture, physical strength, the ability to ride a horse and wield weapons. The ancestral instinct inherent in the offspring of the Armenian-Macedonian dynasty obliged the 18-year-old king to remind his entourage who was the ruler in Byzantium. Having returned his mother to the palace, he nevertheless did not let her come close to the affairs of the empire.

The reign of Basil II the Bulgar Slayer (nicknamed Bulgarokton or the Bulgar Slayer for the ferocity shown in the wars with Bulgaria) was marked by exhausting wars and rebellions. In the year of his accession to the throne, the military leader Barda Sklir, a relative of Tzimisces, was the first to raise his head, crushing all Asian themes under him. Vasilevs sent another Varda, Phocas, the nephew of Nicephorus II Phocas, to him. He in 978 pacified the rebel Skleros, who fled to the Arabs. But Skleros 9 years later, already a deep old man, reappeared within the Byzantine state.

Having moved his detachments against Bardas Skleros, Vardas Phokas unexpectedly proclaimed himself emperor in August 987, captured him by cunning and, having united both troops, went to Antioch, which he captured by the end of the year. When the rebels approached the walls of Chrysopolis, which separated the Bosporus Strait from Constantinople, when the threat of capturing the capital arose, Vasily II turned his gaze to the north, seeking help from the "barbarian" Vladimir Svyatoslavovich, the Grand Duke of Kyiv. The emperor reminded Vladimir of the Greco-Russian treaty of 954 between Prince Igor and Byzantium, which contained a clause on mutual assistance. “And his wealth (Vasily) was depleted, and the need prompted him to enter into correspondence with the king of the Rus. They were his enemies, but he asked them for help,” writes the Arab historian Yahya of Antioch about the events of the 980s. Vladimir promised support, but on the condition that Vasily II and Constantine VIII give him their sister Anna as a wife.

Insolence was unheard of in those days. It was not customary to marry Byzantine princesses to "despicable" foreigners. There was another obstacle to that: Vladimir was a pagan. However, the hopelessness of the situation forced the emperors to reconcile. The crowned bearers agreed to the marriage if the Russian prince was baptized and married her according to the Christian rite.

The Russian squad of six thousand soldiers rose to the defense of Constantinople. In April 988, together with forces loyal to Basil II, she defeated the army of Varda Foki. The rebel Varda Skleros bowed his head before the emperors and obeyed.

VLADIMIR'S BAPTISM

Having accepted help from the Prince of Kyiv, the brother-emperors, however, were in no hurry. They dreamed of giving their sister a better place. And they wooed a Byzantine princess - a blue-eyed and well-built beauty - from everywhere.

In his treatise "On the Governance of the Empire", Anna's grandfather, Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, expressed the attitude of the rulers of Byzantium towards dynastic marriages with barbarian northern peoples, among which he mentioned the Rus, as follows:

“If ever the people of any of these unfaithful and impious northern tribes ask for kinship through marriage with the basileus of the Romans, that is, either get his daughter as a wife, or give his daughter, whether to basileus as a wife or son of basileus, you must reject and this unreasonable request of them ... Since each people has different customs, different laws and regulations, it must adhere to its own rules, and make and create alliances for mixing lives within the same people.

At the same time, Porphyrogenitus made an exception for the ruling houses of Western Europe, the “Franks”.

At the turn of the 10th-11th centuries, an Armenian historian nicknamed Asohik (Stepanos Taronatsi) writes about the forced tricks of the basileus associated with the matchmaking of Anna, whose hand was asked by one of the Bulgarian princes:

“...Tsar Vasily sent the Metropolitan of Sevastia to the country of the Bulgars to establish peace. Bulgaria asked Tsar Vasily to give his sister in marriage to her Tsar. The emperor, accompanied by the metropolitan, sent some woman from his subjects, who looked like his sister. Upon the arrival of that woman in the country of the Bulgars, they found out who she was, and therefore they condemned the metropolitan as an adulterer and a deceiver; the kings of the Bulgars burned it, overlaying it with brushwood and straw.

Suspecting Vasily II and his brother of unwillingness to marry Anna to him, outraged by the cunning of the emperors, Vladimir, wanting to whip them up, set out on a campaign against the “Greek city”, ancient Chersonese, called by the Russians Korsun (today it is part of the city of Sevastopol). During the siege of Chersonese, as the chronicle says, "you cannot take it: the city is strong, and the Greek army in it is courageous."

But someone shot an arrow into the Russian camp with a note on parchment: “Prince! Dig and cross the water from the well, which lies to the east from you. There are no other wells in Korsun besides this one. The prince left the city without water and after a couple of days he opened the gates.

From Chersonesus, Vladimir sent ambassadors to the Basil brothers with a threatening letter: "If you do not give Anna for me, then I will do the same to your capital as to this city." And the answer came to the prince: “If you accept the cross and be of the same faith with us, we will give you your sister. And if you remain a pagan, it’s better for all of us to lie down in battle than to condemn our souls to eternal torment.

“Your Orthodox faith came to my heart,” Vladimir wrote to Constantinople, “and I will accept the service, and let your priests, who will come with Anna, baptize me and my people.”

The decisive argument for Anna was the words put by the chroniclers into the lips of the brothers: “Maybe God will turn the Russian land to repentance, and save the Greek land from a terrible war. Do you see how much evil Russia did to the Greeks?

Remembering the raids of the Russians, Anna, "Wishing the Greek kingdom of peace," exclaimed: "May the will of the Lord be done." And resigned to fate.

The wedding flotilla arrived in Chersonese. Anna sailed in two galleys with Armenian priests, an icon of the Mother of God in Greek writing, many holy relics and other shrines. They also brought gold cups. On the third, which never reached the shore, there was wine poisoned by the brothers so that the wedding would turn into an orgy of death. The Byzantine princess lamented that she was not on board the missing ship. She did not want to be in a foreign land.

Prince Vladimir came ashore to meet the bride in an embroidered golden robe and with a crown on his head. She liked him immediately, and he pleasantly struck Anna.

Anna's arrival in Chersonese is described differently in another chronicle. Going ashore, the Byzantine princess found out that Vladimir had fallen ill with his eyes, and so badly that he could hardly see. And Anna sent to her bridegroom to say: “If you are not baptized, you will not escape your illness.”

Soon, in the main temple of Chersonese - in the church of St. Basil - the Armenian priests from Constantinople, after the announcement, baptized the Grand Duke of Kyiv and called him a Christian name - Basil. Perhaps Anna persuaded the holy fathers to show her this courtesy, naming the groom after the eldest of her brothers. And then, oh, a miracle! Vladimir has matured. He recovered his sight and hugged Anna. Seeing the grace of God, the prince ordered his squad and the boyars accompanying him to accept the Cross. And, as Karamzin accurately noted, "he took it into his head ... to conquer the Christian faith and accept its shrine by the hand of the conqueror."

WEDDING OF VLADIMIR AND ANNA

The chronicle says: "After the baptism of Vladimir, the queen was brought to complete the marriage." Having accepted the Holy Cross, 33-year-old Vladimir took Anna, 25 years old, as his wife.

Vladimir ordered all their wedding gifts to be sent back to the emperor brothers, asking them to tell the basileus that the most valuable of the gifts, the beautiful Anna, would be enough for him.

The chronicler mentions that after the baptism and wedding, “the prince did not recognize himself”: with a light heart, he returned Chersonese to Vasily and Konstantin as a “vein”, or ransom for the bride. Moreover, it was in the custom of the Russians to pay such a ransom. And in memory of his baptism, the prince founded a church in Chersonese in the name of St. John the Baptist. This marriage provided Vladimir with power over the Russian Church and independence from Constantinople.

“And then,” the chronicle says, “Vladimir took the queen… the priests… the relics of the saints,” taking with him church vessels and “icons for his own blessing,” and, accompanied by his retinue, boyars, and clergy, moved to Kyiv.

BAPTISM OF RUSSIA

Returning to Kyiv, "the mother of Russian cities," the Grand Duke first of all gathered his sons and baptized them in a spring called Khreshchatyk.

Vladimir appointed the day of the general baptism of the people of Kiev and, as is believed, this event fell on August 1, 988. A decree was announced throughout the city: “If anyone does not come tomorrow to the river - rich or poor, beggar or slave - will be my enemy!”

“The very next day Vladimir went out ... to the Dnieper,” the chronicler describes the arrangement by the prince of the baptism of the people of Kiev, “and there came together people without number. They entered the water and stood there, some up to the neck, others up to the chest ... the priests prayed, standing still.

Mikhailo Lomonosov described this action as follows:

“An innumerable multitude of people gathered on the specified day and place. And the great autocrat himself, with all the synclite and the consecrated cathedral, adorned the presence of this great action and wonderful disgrace. At the shore, clothed priests and deacons stand on rafts, the river is filled with naked people of all ages and genders: some in water up to their knees, others up to their waists, others up to their necks - they wash, bathe, swim. Meanwhile, baptismal prayers are read; each with a special immersion receives a name in baptism and anointing with the world.

And the prince commanded to destroy pagan idols everywhere: some were burned, others chopped into chips. The main idol - Perun - was ordered to be tied to the tail of a horse, dragged to the Dnieper, thrashing along the road with sticks for public reproach, and then, tying a stone around his neck, drown in the river. So it sank into the water - Russian paganism. With tears and cries, Perun was escorted by those who had not yet discovered the light of true faith. Seeing how pagan idols were being overthrown, the Metropolitan of Kyiv exclaimed: “Temples are destroyed and churches are supplied, idols and icons of saints appear, demons run away. The cross sanctifies the city.

In addition to Kyiv, Chernigov was also baptized under Vladimir - in 992 - and Smolensk - in 1012. Under Vladimir, the question of the inadmissibility of the death penalty was raised. The prince called her a sin before God.

Vladimir Svyatoslavovich laid the foundation for the concept of "Grand Duke of Russia". "Vladimir ... soon proved that he was born to be a great sovereign ... This prince, called Equal to the Apostles by the Church, deserved the name of the Great in history," Karamzin noted.

In Byzantine sources, the name “powerful basileus” was assigned to him. Vladimir began to mint coins with signs of imperial power - in royal clothes with a crown on his head and a scepter with a cross in his right hand.

Having converted to the faith of Christ and realizing that he had one wife, Anna, given by God, Vladimir renounced three hundred wives, eight hundred concubines (300 of them were in Vyshgorod, 300 in Belgorod and 200 in the village of Berestovo) and five legal wives. “Every lovely wife and girl was afraid of his lustful gaze,” wrote Karamzin. He set free all the wives and concubines, passing some off as his close associates.

The first of the legal wives - Rogneda, a Norwegian by birth, was from the Varangians, the daughter Polish king Boleslav the Brave. Behind her were Ragnvalda, the daughter of the Scandinavian prince of Polotsk, who was killed by Vladimir, renamed Gorislava by her husband; "Greek" Julia, a former Greek nun; "Chechine" Malfrida, sister of the Duke of Bohemia Vladivost; "Bulgarian" Milolika, daughter of the ruler of Tarnov, the capital of Bulgaria.

"PRINCE VOLODYMIR WITH HIS PRINCESS ANNA..."

From Orthodox Byzantium, Anna brought the Greek church charter Nomocanon, which in Russia began to be called the Pilot Book. It formed the basis of the Charter of the Russian Church, created by Vladimir and Anna, consisting of three parts. This fact is confirmed by the phrase of the Charter of Vladimir: “Behold, Prince Volodymyr, having guessed with your princess Anna and with your children ...”

The first part of the Charter spoke of the tithe granted by the Grand Duke in favor of the church. The Church of the Most Holy Theotokos in Kyiv, founded by Anna, designed to become a place of service for the Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Russia, was called Tithes. And on the "Perun Hill" stood the temple of St. Basil.

The tithe church was built, most likely, on the model of the Pharos church at the Great Imperial Palace in Constantinople, where Anna liked to go to prayers. And although neither the Pharos nor the Church of the Tithes survived, archaeologists managed to recreate them appearance. The church, 27 meters long and 18 meters wide, was crowned with five large domes. It was decorated with frescoes and mosaics made of multi-colored glass, as well as jaspers. Because of the abundance of marble on the floor and the towering columns with carved capitals, contemporaries called the Church of the Tithes "marble". The parapets at the choir, the altar barrier and the cornices at the main windows were trimmed with marble. The floor of the altar, in addition to multi-colored marble tiles, was laid out of tiled tiles. The building itself was made of flat, thin bricks smeared with white plaster.

The church was built by masters from Byzantium and, it is possible, from Transcaucasia. What do the logs dug into the foundation and filled with cementing mortar indicate. It was they who did not allow the church to slide from the clay slope to the Dnieper.

Princess Anna introduced the annual celebration of the day of the Assumption of the Mother of God into church life - immediately after the completion of the construction of the Church of the Tithes in the fall of 996. At the insistence of the princess, Vladimir purchased a skete for Russian monks on Mount Athos. She also took care of the construction of hospitals and almshouses, taking care of the food of the poor people of Kiev.

From Anna went to Russia and the fashion for glass jewelry. Byzantine craftsmen, who were engaged in melting glass for the stained-glass windows of the Church of the Tithes, gave waste in the form of drops of various shapes and sizes of various colors to local craftsmen, who, after giving them a frame, turned them into decorations.

As for the main mission of Anna, she fulfilled the covenant of the brothers-emperors in full and became the first enlightener in Russia. Through her efforts, special schools were created for the training of Russian priests. Icons and church utensils brought by Anna from Byzantium became the standard for copying by Russian painters and artisans. Anna was also engaged in enlightenment in the grand-ducal family: all the sons of Vladimir willingly accepted Christianity and began to spread it in their possessions. Even Rogneda, one of the former wives of the Kyiv ruler, turned into a zealous Christian and, following the example of Anna, brought a new faith to the Polotsk land. Later Rogneda will open the first convent in Russia and will be the first to be tonsured.

BORIS AND GLEB

Anna's angelic soul flew off to the Lord in the year 6519 from the creation of the world according to the Byzantine chronology, which corresponds to 1011/1012 ( New Year started on September 1). And she was 48 years old. Perhaps the cause of her death was an epidemic.

Vladimir Svyatoslavovich, her beloved husband, ordered for her stone-cutting Armenians from Byzantium a luxurious marble sarcophagus of elegant carving. And he installed it in the aisle of the Church of the Tithes. After that, in the same church of the Most Holy Theotokos, another sarcophagus appeared - Prince Vladimir.

Even the Byzantine emperors, the vicars of God on earth, were not awarded such an honor. They were buried outside the church walls. Anna and Vladimir were equated with similar honors to saints, for the spouses together baptized and enlightened the Russian people.

Prince Vladimir, popularly nicknamed Vladimir Krasno Solnyshko, had 12 sons. But not all have gone down in history. Yaroslav, the son of Vladimir from Rogneda, was appointed by his father to reign in Novgorod, and his brother Mstislav - in Tmutarakan. But most of all, Vladimir complained of Boris and Gleb, whom Anna presented to Prince.

The names and lives of Boris and Gleb (in the baptism of Roman and David), the first canonized Russian saints, are known to almost everyone. Firstborn Boris baptismal name most likely he received his from Anna's father - Emperor Roman II, the princely name Boris was given to him in honor of the baptist of Bulgaria Boris-Michael. Boris-Roman was born around the year 990, when his mother's brother, Vasily II the Bulgar Slayer, went to Bulgaria with a Russian squad. Anna and Vladimir thought of placing their eldest son on the Bulgarian throne. Gleb, born around the year 1000, received his baptismal name from the biblical king David, revered as a model of a Christian ruler.

As for Svyatopolk, the eldest of the sons, referred to in the annals as “the son of two fathers,” Vladimir could not stand him, for he took his Greek mother already pregnant from his brother Yaropolk, who was also killed by him. Svyatopolk responded to him with the same hostility. For his connection with a Catholic German, Vladimir even imprisoned Svyatopolk in a dungeon, from where he was rescued by Yaropolk's faithful servants.

In the summer of 1015, having escorted his main women to the Kingdom of God, Vladimir, the great polygamist, was slowly fading away in sad loneliness. On July 15, the Grand Duke of Kyiv passed away. At that moment, only Svyatopolk, who had galloped from Vyshgorod, was at his bedside. "The son of two fathers" considered himself twice a worthy heir to the throne of Kyiv. The hour has struck for revenge on stepfather Vladimir for his murdered father, humiliated mother and his ordeals.

Having wrapped the body of the Grand Duke of Russia in a carpet, he secretly carried him out of the chambers and took him to the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, as if hiding something base and shameful. Who knows if he "helped" Vladimir to pass into another world?!

On the same day, having sat on the throne, Svyatopolk began to coax the people of Kiev with gifts. But they said with one voice:

- We want Boris, the son of Princess Anna.

Then Svyatopolk sent murderers to his half-brothers - Boris and Gleb. Having learned about the atrocity, the people called Svyatopolk the Accursed.

... Before his death, he was Vladimir the Baptist prophetic dream. Grandmother Olga appeared to him and said: “The accursed baby,“ the son of two fathers ”, will come and destroy the settled world of our princely house.”

Prayers in memory of the murdered brothers began on July 24, shortly after the construction in 1021 in Vyshgorod of the first church in the name of Boris and Gleb.

Grand Duke Yaroslav the Wise, having expelled his brother-monster Svyatopolk from Kyiv in 1019, named his daughter-Goldilocks Anna. Thus, he paid tribute to the Baptist of Russia. The comprehensively educated beauty Anna Yaroslavna, who spoke Greek and Latin, will marry King Henry I and leave a noticeable mark on the political life of France. Anna, Queen of France, corresponded with Pope Nicholas II. “Rumors of your virtue, charming maiden, have reached our ears,” the Pope wrote to her, “we will learn with great joy with what commendable conscientiousness and remarkable tact you perform your royal duties in this very Christian country.”

On June 1, 2010, the President of the Russian Federation D.A. Medvedev signed the federal law, according to which Russia celebrates July 28 as the Day of the Baptism of Russia.

Marina and Hamlet Mirzoyan

Vladimir Svyatoslavovich Anna of Byzantium married him in 988 on the eve of the baptism of Russia. She was the daughter and sister of the emperors who reigned in Constantinople.

Anna's personality

Princess Anna of Byzantium was born in the family of Emperor Roman II in 963. My father only had to rule for 4 years. The girl's mother was a noble girl of Armenian origin. Roman died a few days after the birth of his daughter. The commander Nikifor Foka came to power, whom Anna's mother Feofano married. In 969 there was a coup d'état. Another commander, John Tzimisces, became emperor. He expelled Anna and her mother from the capital.

The girl returned to Constantinople only after her older brothers took the throne. Anna was an enviable European bride, who was predicted to be the wife of many monarchs. Relatives treated the princess as an important political card and were in no hurry to marry her off.

Dynastic marriages at that time were an integral part of state affairs. Anna was a valuable wife, not only because she came from the reigning Byzantine dynasty, but also because the girl received the most better education, which only that era could give her. Contemporaries gave the bride the nickname Rufa (Redhead).

enviable bride

Since 976, Anna's two brothers ruled in Constantinople - Vasily II the Bulgar-Slayer and Constantine VIII. European sources of that time have confusing evidence about which of the Christian monarchs wooed a Byzantine princess before the Slavic prince Vladimir.

In 988, ambassadors from Paris arrived in Constantinople. The French king Hugh Capet was looking for a bride of equal dynastic stature for his son Robert II. The mission of envoys to Byzantium was of great importance for this monarch. His Capetian dynasty had just begun to rule, and it needed to emphasize its legitimacy. Robert was 9 years younger than Anna, but the age difference at that time was rarely considered when it came to politics. For unknown reasons, the organization of the marriage failed, and the girl remained at home.

Vladimir's matchmaking

How Anna Byzantine married Vladimir of Kyiv is best known thanks to The Tale of Bygone Years. According to this document, the Slavic prince went with an army to the Crimea, which belonged to the empire. On the peninsula, Vladimir captured the important city of Korsun. Rurikovich in a letter threatened Emperor Basil that he would attack Constantinople if he did not marry his younger sister to him.

Anna of Byzantium agreed to the marriage, but at the same time announced her condition. She demanded that Vladimir be baptized according to the Orthodox Greek model. For the inhabitants of the empire, the Slavs were wild pagans from the northern steppes. In the then Greek chronicles, they were even called Tauris and Scythians.

The organization of Anna's move dragged on for several months. The emperor brothers hoped that they would be able to buy time and offer Vladimir other conditions. However, the Slavic prince firmly insisted on his own. For greater persuasiveness, he again promised to go with the army to the capital of the empire. When news of this threat reached Constantinople, Anna was hastily put on a ship.

Circumstances of Anna's arrival

Even before the Crimean events in Byzantium, there was a military rebellion by the influential commander Barda Foka. The two brother emperors found themselves in a precarious position. When, among other things, they were attacked by a Slavic prince, they agreed to accept his conditions concerning their marriage to Anna. Vladimir, according to pagan custom, had many concubines. However, it was not without reason that he chose the Byzantine princess. Rumors of personal merit circulated among diplomats of all European countries. They also reached Kyiv. For Vladimir, the wedding to the sister of the Byzantine emperor was not only family business but also a matter of reputation.

According to the Greek chronicles, Anna regarded her inevitable marriage as public debt. In fact, she sacrificed herself to the prince's ambitions. wild country. The princess did not want a destructive war for her homeland and therefore agreed to leave for Kyiv. At that moment, she certainly did not expect happiness in Russia.

Wedding with a Slavic prince

Byzantine princess Anna, when meeting with her chosen one, persuaded him to accept Christianity as soon as possible. The prince was indeed baptized very soon. After that, in 988, the couple married. Vladimir made peace with and returned Korsun to him.

When the sovereign returned to Kyiv, he ordered to get rid of pagan idols and baptize all compatriots. The adoption of Christianity was an important state step for Vladimir, which he decided even before the start of the war with Byzantium. The campaign for him was just an excuse to talk with Vasily on an equal footing.

Christian marriage

With the help of the capture of Korsun, the Kyiv prince achieved two important things. Firstly, Princess Anna of Byzantium became his wife, which made him related to the powerful Greek dynasty. Secondly, Orthodoxy was adopted, which soon united the whole country. Before East Slavs were divided into several tribal unions, living apart from each other. They had not only their own customs, but also gods. Pantheons often differed from each other. Christianity became an important religious bond that created the Russian nation.

Anna Byzantine (wife of Prince Vladimir) contributed to the spread of her native faith in a foreign country. The husband often consulted with his wife in religious matters. On her initiative, several churches were built. Especially important was the Kyiv Cathedral in honor of the Assumption of the Virgin. Later, it was nicknamed the Church of the Tithes due to the fact that a tenth of the princely income was spent on it. Together with Anna, numerous Greek missionaries and theologians came to the Russian lands.

Founder of the Church of the Tithes

There is a lot of evidence that the daughter of the Byzantine emperor Anna became a founder in Kyiv. The temple was dedicated to the Mother of God, which hints that a woman was the initiator of its creation. Anna wanted the new building to have the architecture of Constantinople familiar to her.

The tithe church is often compared with the two great Byzantine churches - Blachernae and Pharos. She appeared next to Anna's palace in Kyiv. The climate of this city suited the Greek princess much more than the atmosphere of northern Novgorod, where Vladimir himself came from and where he spent his youth. His wife rarely left southern capital. There, from Kherson, she was brought rich Greek gifts from her homeland, which replenished Anna's own treasury. Byzantine architects and craftsmen came from Crimea to help implement the project of the new Church of the Tithes.

Anna's death

Slavic Prince Vladimir and Anna of Byzantium were married for 22 years. However, during this time they never had children. The sons of Vladimir, who later inherited his state, were offspring from the monarch's former connections. Being a pagan, Vladimir had his own harem and concubines. When the prince married a Greek princess, he left behind his former life.

Anna died in 1011 at the age of only 48. It is not known exactly what caused her death. Most likely, it was a disease caused by an epidemic. For Vladimir it was a heavy loss. After the death of his wife, he himself did not live long and died in 1015.

A marble sarcophagus was made for Anna. It was made by Greek craftsmen who decorated their creation with unique carvings. It was decided that it was in the Church of the Tithes that Anna Byzantine would be buried. An Armenian by origin, she was born and raised in Byzantium, and adult life She lived in Russia, where she died. A few years later, Vladimir was buried next to his wife. Their tombs were destroyed in 1240 when the Tatars captured and leveled Kyiv.

The meaning of marriage for Vladimir

Marriage with Anna exalted Vladimir. Some foreign chroniclers began to call him king, according to the title of his wife. It was under him that Russia finally became a part of Christian Europe and the local civilization. At the same time, one should not forget that Vladimir, while still a pagan, considered the possibility of converting to Islam or Judaism in public purposes. But in the end he chose Orthodoxy.

It was the Byzantine princess Anna (the wife of Prince Vladimir) who helped him not to become dependent on the Byzantine emperor after the adoption of Christianity. On the contrary, the Kyiv ruler found himself on the same level as the monarch of Constantinople.

Russian Church without Anna

Anna's death hit the young Russian church noticeably. In 1013, the stepson of Vladimir Svyatopolk, who claimed the future supreme power in Russia, married the daughter of Boleslav I - the Polish king and political opponent of the Kyiv princes. Even preparations began for the creation of the Turov Catholic Diocese. However, Vladimir did not tolerate the defiant behavior of his stepson. He arrested Svyatopolk and expelled the Catholic missionaries from the country.

Vladimir's son paid much attention religious matters. Under him, the Kyiv Metropolis was created, the first Russian hierarch Hilarion appeared. All these events somewhat overshadowed that important role, which was played by Anna of Byzantium in the Christianization of Russia. did not like the Greek influence on the church and therefore did everything so that the chroniclers did not particularly spread about the activities of Vladimir's wife. In many respects, the paucity of Russian sources that told about Anna is connected with this.

The publication presents facts about the role of Princess Anna of Byzantium in the history of the baptism of Russia.

THEOPHANO AND HER EMPERORS

In front of the growing Anna, bathed in wealth and luxury, her mother replaced the unpretentious Fok with his impudent and stately associate, the handsome John Tzimisces, a born warrior of Armenian origin. A conspiracy was brewing within the walls of the palace. Not without the help of the empress, the bribed assassins entered the chambers and ruthlessly dealt with the emperor in his own bed. So in 969, John I Tzimisces declared himself emperor. However, having barely established himself in his omnipotence, John not only did not want to marry the dissolute Theophano, but also expelled her from the capital, exiling her six-year-old Anna to a deserted island in the Aegean Sea, to a cold cell. In indescribable sadness, Theophano looked from this harsh shore to her former halls, cherishing the hope of returning there again. She even managed to escape from the island and hide behind the walls of Hagia Sophia, but Tzimiskes was informed of the escape, and he ordered Theophano and her daughter to be sent to a remote Armenian monastery.

Upon the death of the 50-year-old Tzimiskes in 976 (according to one version, he caught some disease in the East, others believed that he was poisoned), power passed to Theophano's eldest son, Vasily II, which allowed the disgraced mother and sister to return to imperial palace.

ANNA, GRANDDUCH OF PURPOSE

Basil I single-handedly ruled from 867. On August 29, 886, already advanced in years, Vasileus died from bleeding caused by bruises while hunting, having managed to appoint the Armenian Zautz, also a native of Macedonia, as the guardian of his sons Leo and Alexander. Shortly before his death, the emperor recognized the independence of the Armenian state of the Bagratids, and Constantinople I (877-886), an ethnic Armenian (his family was distinguished by nobility,? Patriarch Photius was pious and educated), was the first to canonize Gregory of Armenia in Byzantium (Gregory the Illuminator, who converted in 301 Armenia to Christianity).

Growing up, Anna became interested in the writings of her great-great-grandfather Vasily I, addressed to her son Leo, the future emperor Leo VI the Philosopher, or the Wise (886-912), an educated person with a wide range of interests, including theology. In these treatises - "Instructive chapters to the son of Leo" and "Another instruction to the son, the emperor Leo" - Anna drew lessons of practical morality.

The grandfather of Anna of Byzantium, Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, a passionate book lover, endowed with the same literary gift, left a number of treatises on medicine, history, agronomy and other sciences. Neither before him nor after did Byzantium have such a great champion and patron of the sciences. Anna grew up on his works - "On the management of the empire", "On the themes (theme - a military administrative district in Byzantium. - M. and G.M.)", "On the ceremonies of the Byzantine court", on the biographies of saints, lovingly collected together and processed by her glorious grandfather. Under Porphyrogenitus, a scriptorium was also opened for making copies of manuscripts of ancient authors. Anna was especially admired by the amazing beauty of the miniatures from the so-called Paris Psalter, which she inherited.

Basil I, the founder of the dynasty, came from Armenians who settled in Macedonia, therefore in historiography this Byzantine dynasty is often referred to as "Macedonian", and the emperor himself - Basil I the Macedonian. Authoritative historians tend to call this dynasty "Armenian" because during the two centuries of its rule (867-1056), most of the Byzantine emperors, military leaders and officials had Armenian roots. In the history of Byzantium, the Armenian dynasty remained perhaps the greatest.

The genealogy of Vasily (Barsega) is mentioned in one of the chronicles. Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (according to the Byzantine chronicler Michael Psellos, "crimson-born" meant - born in scarlet swaddling clothes), the author of the chapter on Basil the Macedonian, writes that the ancestors of his grandfather Basil fled from Armenia to Byzantium in the second half of the 5th century and settled in around Andriapolis, in Macedonia. The same chronicle contains information about the origin of the ancestors of Basil I from the Armenian king Tiridates from the Arshakid dynasty.

From an early age, familiar with hard peasant labor, Barsegh - Vasily grew up handsome, energetic and extremely strong. As a child, with his family and many other Armenians, he was captured by the Bulgarian Khan Krum. For several years he lived among the wild pagan Bulgarians, and after returning to Macedonia, he went to serve the local aristocrat. He set foot on the land of Constantinople as an unknown young man who could only tame wild horses. Rumors about a tall and stately hero reached Emperor Michael III, and he called him to his service. Vasily fell in love with the crown bearer so much that he declared his favorite as his co-ruler and even crowned him with the imperial crown in Hagia Sophia ...

Pagan OLGA, GODDESS OF KONSTANTINE VII

“Olga went to the Greek land and came to Constantinople,” the chronicle says. “And then Caesar Constantine reigned. And Olga came to him. And the king saw that she was beautiful in face and reasonable. to reign with us in our capital." But she, understanding the meaning of what was said, answered the king: "I am a pagan. If you want to baptize me, then baptize me yourself. Otherwise, I won’t be baptized.” And the tsar and the patriarch baptized her. When enlightened, she rejoiced in body and soul. Russian sons and your descendants will bless you."

The Russian princess received Holy Baptism under the vaults of the Hagia Sophia. Anna's grandfather, Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, was her successor. Together with Princess Olga (baptized Elena), she received the Holy Cross and her entire retinue - boyars, merchants, guards and their wives, which did not fail to affect the nature of relations between Kievan Rus and Byzantium.

And here is how this event is presented by the historian S.M. Solovyov:

“The Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus,” says the legend, “offered his hand to Olga; she did not renounce, but first demanded that he be her godparent; the emperor agreed, but when, after the sacrament, repeated his proposal, Olga reminded him that, according to Christian law, the godfather cannot marry her goddaughter.” “Olga, you outwitted me!” the astonished emperor exclaimed and released her with rich gifts ... Upon returning to Kyiv, Olga began to persuade her son Svyatoslav (father of the Baptist of Russia Vladimir. - M. and G.M.) to the adoption of Christianity, but he did not want to hear about it; however, whoever wanted to be baptized was not forbidden, but only laughed at him ... ".

However, another historian, N.M. Karamzin, expressed doubts about the authenticity of the chronicler's message:

"Firstly, Konstantin had a wife; secondly, Olga was then no less than sixty years old. She could captivate him with her mind, not her beauty.".

Olga, the first person of princely blood, who kissed the Cross, was buried by a Christian priest. Ranked among the saints.

PRINCE VLADIMIR. "PARADE" OF RELIGIONS

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“Drinking is the joy of Russia,” he said and ordered the Mohammedans to get out.

The Khazar Jews fell at his feet, saying that in their faith they keep the Sabbath, do not eat pork, hare, and perform the rite of circumcision.

- Where is your land? - asked the prince. “In Jerusalem, but only God was angry with our fathers for their sins and scattered them throughout the world,” the Jews answered.

To which Vladimir reproached them:

“You teach others, but you yourself are rejected by God and scattered over the earth. If your law were right, you would be sitting on your own land.

The German Catholics, envoys of the Pope of Rome, also told him about their faith. They said that it was customary for them to "fast according to their strength, and if someone eats or drinks, then everything is for the glory of God."

And Vladimir said to them:

“Go back from whence you came, for even our fathers did not accept you!”

And then the Greek philosopher-preacher stepped forward. He refuted the delusions of all those who tempted the prince with their faith. Vladimir liked the attitude of Christian Orthodoxy: "If someone converts to our faith, then, having died, he will rise again, and he will never die; if he is in a different law, then in the next world he will burn in fire."

And Vladimir sent his elders around the countries to observe different religions.

When they returned, they confessed to the prince:

- Your grandmother, the wisest Olga, would not have accepted the Greek law if it were bad. Byzantium knows to whom it prays.

The name of Olga, who converted to Orthodoxy, and the desire to stand on a par with the Byzantine emperors prevailed in Vladimir and prevailed ...

ANNA'S CROWNED BROTHERS

The death of the childless John I Tzimiskes opened the way to the throne for the sons of Roman II - Basil and Constantine. The eldest of the heirs will go down in history as Vasily II the Bulgar Slayer (976-1025), and the youngest as Constantine VIII (976-1028).

Having moved his detachments against Bardas Skleros, Vardas Phokas unexpectedly proclaimed himself emperor in August 987, captured him by cunning and, having united both troops, went to Antioch, which he captured by the end of the year. When the rebels approached the walls of Chrysopolis, which separated the Bosphorus Strait from Constantinople, when the threat of capturing the capital arose, Vasily II turned his gaze to the north, seeking help from the "barbarian" Vladimir Svyatoslavovich, the Grand Duke of Kyiv. The emperor reminded Vladimir of the Greco-Russian treaty of 954 between Prince Igor and Byzantium, which contained a clause on mutual assistance. "And his (Basil's) wealth was depleted, and his need prompted him to enter into correspondence with the Tsar of the Rus. They were his enemies, but he asked them for help," writes the Arab historian Yahya of Antioch about the events of the 980s. Vladimir promised support, but on the condition that Vasily II and Constantine VIII give him their sister Anna as a wife.

VLADIMIR'S BAPTISM

"If ever the people of any of these unfaithful and impious northern tribes ask for kinship through marriage with the basileus of the Romans, that is, either get his daughter as a wife, or give his daughter, whether to basileus as a wife or son of basileus, you must reject and this unreasonable request of them ... Since each nation has different customs, different laws and regulations, it must adhere to its own rules, and to conclude and create alliances for mixing lives within the same people.

At the same time, Porphyrogenitus made an exception for the ruling houses of Western Europe, the "Franks".

"... Tsar Vasily sent the Metropolitan of Sebastia to the country of the Bulgars to establish peace. Bulgaria asked Tsar Vasily to give his sister in marriage to her tsar. The emperor, accompanied by the metropolitan, sent some woman from his subjects, similar to his sister. Upon the arrival of that woman in the country of the Bulgars, they found out who she was, and therefore they condemned the metropolitan as an adulterer and a deceiver; the kings of the Bulgars burned him, covering him with brushwood and straw.

Suspecting Vasily II and his brother of unwillingness to marry Anna to him, outraged by the cunning of the emperors, Vladimir, wanting to whip them up, set out on a campaign against the "Greek city", ancient Chersonese, called by the Russians - Korsun (today it is part of the city of Sevastopol). During the siege of Chersonesos, as the chronicle says, "you cannot capture: the city is strong, and the Greek army in it is courageous."

But someone shot an arrow into the camp of the Russians with a note on parchment: "Prince! Dig and transfer water from the well, which lies to the east from you. There are no other wells in Korsun except this one." The prince left the city without water and after a couple of days he opened the gates.

From Chersonese, Vladimir sent ambassadors to the Basil brothers with a threatening letter: "If you do not give Anna for me, then I will do the same to your capital as to this city." And the answer came to the prince: “If you accept the cross and be a fellow believer with us, we will give you your sister. “Your Orthodox faith came to my heart,” Vladimir wrote to Constantinople, “and I will accept the service, and let your priests, who will come with Anna, baptize me and my people.”

Remembering the raids of the Russians, Anna, "Wishing peace to the Greek kingdom," exclaimed: "May the will of the Lord be done." And resigned to fate.

Prince Vladimir came ashore to meet the bride in an embroidered golden robe and with a crown on his head. She liked him immediately, and he pleasantly struck Anna. Anna's arrival in Chersonese is described differently in another chronicle. Going ashore, the Byzantine princess found out that Vladimir had fallen ill with his eyes, and so badly that he could hardly see. And Anna sent to her bridegroom to say: "If you are not baptized, you will not escape your illness."

WEDDING OF VLADIMIR AND ANNA

The chronicle says: "After the baptism of Vladimir, the queen was brought to complete the marriage." Having accepted the Holy Cross, 33-year-old Vladimir took Anna, 25 years old, as his wife. Vladimir ordered all their wedding gifts to be sent back to the emperor brothers, asking them to tell the basileus that the most valuable of the gifts, the beautiful Anna, would be enough for him. The chronicler mentions that after the baptism and wedding, "the prince did not recognize himself": with a light heart, he returned Chersonese to Vasily and Konstantin as a "vein", or ransom for the bride. Moreover, it was in the custom of the Russians to pay such a ransom. And in memory of his baptism, the prince founded a church in Chersonese in the name of St. John the Baptist. This marriage provided Vladimir with power over the Russian Church and independence from Constantinople.

“And then,” the chronicle says, “Vladimir took the tsarina… the priests… the relics of the saints,” taking with him church vessels and “icons for his own blessing,” and, accompanied by his retinue, boyars, and clergy, moved to Kyiv.

BAPTISM OF RUSSIA

Returning to Kyiv, "the mother of Russian cities," the Grand Duke first of all gathered his sons and baptized them in a spring called Khreshchatyk.

Vladimir appointed the day of the general baptism of the people of Kiev and, as is believed, this event fell on August 1, 988. A decree was announced throughout the city: "If someone does not come to the river tomorrow - rich or poor, beggar or slave - I will be an enemy!"

"The very next day Vladimir went out ... to the Dnieper," the chronicler describes the arrangement of the baptism of the people of Kiev by the prince, "and there came together people without number. They entered the water and stood there, some up to the neck, others up to the chest... the priests prayed, standing still" .

Mikhailo Lomonosov described this action as follows:

“An innumerable multitude of people gathered on the specified day and place. And the great autocrat himself, with all the synclite and the consecrated cathedral, adorned the presence of this great action and a wonderful disgrace. On the shore, dressed priests and deacons stand on rafts, the river is filled with naked people of all ages and sexes: others in water knee-deep, others waist-deep, others neck-deep - wash, bathe, swim. Meanwhile, baptismal prayers are read; each, with a special immersion, receives a name in baptism and anointing with the world ".

And the prince commanded to destroy pagan idols everywhere: some were burned, others chopped into chips. The main idol - Perun - was ordered to be tied to the horse's tail, dragged to the Dnieper, thrashing along the road with sticks for public reproach, and then, tying a stone around his neck, drown in the river. So it sunk into the water - Russian paganism. With tears and cries, Perun was escorted by those who had not yet discovered the light of true faith. Seeing how pagan idols were being overthrown, the Metropolitan of Kyiv exclaimed: "Temples are destroyed and churches are supplied, idols and icons of saints appear, demons flee. The cross sanctifies the city."

In addition to Kyiv, Chernigov was also baptized under Vladimir, in 992, and Smolensk, in 1012. Under Vladimir, the question of the inadmissibility of the death penalty was raised. The prince called her a sin before God.

Vladimir Svyatoslavovich laid the foundation for the concept "Grand Duke of Russia". "Vladimir ... soon proved that he was born to be a great sovereign ... This prince, called the Equal-to-the-Apostles Church, deserved the name of the Great in history"- noted Karamzin.

In Byzantine sources, the name "powerful basileus" was assigned to him. Vladimir began to mint coins with signs of imperial power - in royal clothes with a crown on his head and a scepter with a cross in his right hand.

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Having converted to the faith of Christ and realizing that he had one wife - Anna, given by God, Vladimir renounced three hundred wives, eight hundred concubines (300 of them were in Vyshgorod, 300 in Belgorod and 200 in the village of Berestovo) and five legal wives. "Every lovely wife and girl was afraid of his lustful gaze," wrote Karamzin. He set free all the wives and concubines, passing some off as his close associates.

The first of the legal wives - Rogneda, a Norwegian by birth, was from the Varangians, the daughter of the Polish king Boleslav the Brave. Behind her were Ragnvalda, the daughter of the Scandinavian prince of Polotsk, who was killed by Vladimir, renamed Gorislava by her husband; "Greek" Julia, a former Greek nun; "Chechina" Malfrida, sister of the Duke of Bohemia Vladivost; "Bulgarian" Milolika, daughter of the ruler of Tarnov, the capital of Bulgaria.

"PRINCE VOLODYMIR WITH HIS PRINCESS ANNA..."

From Orthodox Byzantium, Anna brought the Greek church charter "Nomokanon", which in Russia began to be called "The Pilot Book". It formed the basis of the Charter of the Russian Church, created by Vladimir and Anna, consisting of three parts. This fact is confirmed by the phrase of the Charter of Vladimir: "Behold, Prince Volodymyr, having guessed with your princess Anna and with your children ...".

The tithe church was built, most likely, on the model of the Pharos church at the Great Imperial Palace in Constantinople, where Anna liked to go to prayers. And although neither the Pharos nor the Church of the Tithes survived, archaeologists managed to recreate their appearance. The church, 27 meters long and 18 meters wide, was crowned with five large domes. It was decorated with frescoes and mosaics made of multi-colored glass, as well as jaspers. Because of the abundance of marble on the floor and the towering columns with carved capitals, contemporaries called the Church of the Tithes "marble". The parapets at the choir, the altar barrier and the cornices at the main windows were trimmed with marble. The floor of the altar, in addition to multi-colored marble tiles, was laid out of tiled tiles. The building itself was made of flat, thin bricks smeared with white plaster.

Princess Anna introduced into church life the annual celebration of the day of the Assumption of the Mother of God - immediately after the completion of the construction of the Church of the Tithes in the fall of 996. At the insistence of the princess, Vladimir purchased a skete for Russian monks on Mount Athos. She also took care of the construction of hospitals and almshouses, taking care of the food of the poor people of Kiev.

As for the main mission of Anna, she fulfilled the covenant of the brothers-emperors in full and became the first enlightener in Russia. Through her efforts, special schools were created for the training of Russian priests. Icons and church utensils brought by Anna from Byzantium became the standard for copying by Russian painters and artisans. Anna was also engaged in enlightenment in the grand-ducal family: all the sons of Vladimir willingly accepted Christianity and began to spread it in their possessions. Even Rogneda, one of the former wives of the Kyiv ruler, turned into a zealous Christian and, following the example of Anna, brought a new faith to the Polotsk land. Later, Rogneda will open the first convent in Russia and be the first to take tonsure.

BORIS AND GLEB

Anna's angelic soul flew off to the Lord in the year 6519 from the creation of the world according to the Byzantine calendar, which corresponds to 1011/1012 (the new year began on September 1). And she was 48 years old. Perhaps the cause of her death was an epidemic.

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The names and lives of Boris and Gleb (in the baptism of Roman and David), the first canonized Russian saints, are known to almost everyone. The first-born Boris most likely received his baptismal name from Anna's father, Emperor Roman II, while the princely name Boris was given to him in honor of the baptist of Bulgaria, Boris-Michael. Boris-Roman was born around the year 990, when his mother's brother, Vasily II the Bulgar-Slayer, went to Bulgaria with a Russian squad. Anna and Vladimir thought of placing their eldest son on the Bulgarian throne. Gleb, born around the year 1000, received his baptismal name from the biblical king David, revered as a model of a Christian ruler.

As for Svyatopolk, the eldest of the sons, referred to in the annals as "the son of two fathers," Vladimir could not stand him, for he took his Greek mother already pregnant from his brother Yaropolk, who was also killed by him. Svyatopolk responded to him with the same hostility. For his connection with a Catholic German, Vladimir even imprisoned Svyatopolk in a dungeon, from where he was rescued by Yaropolk's faithful servants.

On the same day, having sat on the throne, Svyatopolk began to coax the people of Kiev with gifts. But they said with one voice:

- We want Boris, the son of Princess Anna.

Then Svyatopolk sent murderers to his half-brothers - Boris and Gleb. Having learned about the atrocity, the people called Svyatopolk the Accursed.

Before his death, Vladimir the Baptist had a prophetic dream. Grandmother Olga appeared to him and said: "The accursed baby," the son of two fathers ", will come and destroy the settled world of our princely house."

Prayers in memory of the murdered brothers began on July 24, shortly after the construction in 1021 in Vyshgorod of the first church in the name of Boris and Gleb.

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“Rumors of your virtue, charming maiden, have reached our ears,” the Pope wrote to her, “we will learn with great joy with what commendable conscientiousness and remarkable tact you fulfill your royal duties in this very Christian country.”

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On June 1, 2010, the President of the Russian Federation D.A. Medvedev signed the Federal Law, according to which Russia celebrates July 28 as the Day of the Baptism of Russia.

Anna Byzantine

Ekaterina Cheltsova

Russian chronicles keep a rare silence about the life of this woman. Perhaps only two facts are mentioned. The first - among the many wives Kyiv prince Vladimir Svyatoslavovich Anna, undoubtedly, stood out for her nobility, since she came from a family of Byzantine emperors who once claimed the role of rulers of the world. The second - in many ways, it was under her influence that Christianity was strengthened in Russia at that time, and a unique style arose. Orthodox churches and temples. So, the role played by Anna Romanovna in history is truly grandiose. And, go and know what the world would have looked like if she had not set foot on Kievan land at the end of the 10th century. However, first things first.

The Byzantine princess Anna was born on March 13, 963. Moreover, its birth was preceded by a very dramatic story. Her father, Emperor Roman II, who ruled for only four years, became famous, among other things, for marrying a completely noble girl - the daughter of an innkeeper named Anastasia. Having thus turned into Empress Anastasia, she changed her name to Theophano (meaning “chosen by God”), seized all the existing levers of power and gave birth to her husband first two sons - Vasily and Konstantin, and a few days before his death - daughter Anna. It gave Roman great pleasure to ride furiously on thoroughbred trotters, and this was precisely the reason for his tragic death. The death of her husband greatly disappointed Theophano. Not wanting to miss out on the blessings that had befallen her, this power-hungry woman immediately married the prominent commander Nikephoros Foku, who, under her pressure, was soon proclaimed emperor.

At first, this situation suited both of them - Theophano still ruled, and Foka enjoyed the benefits assigned to him by status and fought to his heart's content. But a little time passed, and the temperamental woman became disappointed in her middle-aged wife, who always disappears in military campaigns. In addition, the wars so beloved by Phocas drained the treasury. Realizing that it could not continue like this, Theophano chose a new object of passion - the commander John Tzimisces, who was Fok's nephew. Having skillfully organized a palace coup in 969, she dealt with her annoying husband with one blow and elevated John to the throne. He showed rare ingratitude and, following the lead of the clergy, not only refused to marry, but also expelled Theophano from the capital. Anna, who at that time was only six years old, followed her mother into exile.

When, after seven years, power passed to the eldest son of Theophano Vasily, the disgraced woman, along with her daughter, was able to return to the imperial palace. Since that time, the grown-up Anna began to be considered one of the most enviable brides. She was distinguished not only by nobility, the best education by the standards of that time, a rich dowry, but also by the beauty that she inherited from her mother. Although no documentary source describes the appearance of the Byzantine princess, it can be assumed that Anna looked like brothers: she was a short, blue-eyed, fair-haired and beautifully built girl. Contemporaries gave her the nickname Rufa, which means "redhead".

Vasily and Konstantin were in no hurry to marry Anna off, looking, obviously, for the best match for her. The girl's feelings this case didn't solve anything. Given the great interest of European monarchs in marriage with Byzantine princesses, the brothers considered their sister only as a major trump card in the political game and, regardless of the costs, spread information about her virtues everywhere.

These rumors also reached the court of Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavovich, who already had many wives of different nationalities. It is likely that the Russian ruler, oversaturated with feminine charms, wanted to become the husband of the most famous and enviable bride in Europe. It is possible that Vladimir more than once wooed Anna, but each time he was refused under the pretext that he was not a Christian.

However, time passed, and the position of Byzantium changed. A rebellion rose up against the emperors Basil and Constantine, and in September 987 there was even a threat of the rebels capturing the capital. Since the brothers could not cope with the rebels on their own, they had to seek military help from neighboring countries. One of the first, apparently, responded Vladimir, interested in rapprochement with the Byzantine emperors. But he offered help not free of charge, and as a payment he demanded consent to marry Anna.

Delicate negotiations ended with the signing of an agreement, according to which the Russian prince would first be baptized, then receive Anna's hand, marry her according to the Christian rite, and immediately provide military assistance to new relatives in the fight against the rebels. The baptism itself and the wedding were supposed to take place in Chersonese, so Vladimir went to this city with a large squadron of ships full of well-armed warriors. However, for some reason, the bride was late. And when the prince's patience snapped in order to push the emperor to the speedy implementation of the treaty, he captured Chersonese without much difficulty. In this In a difficult situation, Vasily and Konstantin had to urgently put their sister on a ship and send them to the groom with a large retinue of clergy.

Anna, at first, categorically refused to marry the barbarian, believing that she would be captured by him. But the brothers said that God entrusted her with a great mission - to convert an entire pagan country to the true faith. At the same time, she will save her relatives from a cruel enemy.

The Russian prince, after learning about the departure of the bride, ordered to rebuild special chambers for her, amazing with the luxury of decoration. And when the Byzantine ships arrived at the city, all the locals came out to meet the princess and honorably took her to the mansions.

Preparations for the baptism of Vladimir and the wedding took place without any special incidents. At the beginning of the summer of 988, the barbarian fulfilled his promises and accepted the religion offered by Byzantium. During the wedding feast on the streets of Khersonesad, vessels with wine and honey, vats of meat, fish and vegetables were taken out for ordinary people. Then the newlyweds distributed money to the beggars and widows.

At the time of her marriage to Vladimir, Anna was 25 years old. She was considered quite grown woman with established views, tastes and worldview, therefore it is not surprising that Vladimir, who was inferior in education and culture, began to listen to the advice of his wife. Byzantine chronicles report that Anna built many churches in the Russian state. After all, she perfectly understood that without the construction of churches and the training of priests, it would not be possible to carry out the Christianization of a large state. At first, the clergy and craftsmen who came with her built small churches in various places, including Chersonese and Kyiv. When Anna saw that the local population liked the architectural innovations, she decided to build a grandiose cathedral in her princely residence in Kyiv.

It must be said that although in the time of Vladimir and Anna Kyiv did not surpass Novgorod in its grandeur, it was undoubtedly more convenient for a heat-loving Byzantine princess to live in it than in northern capital. In Kyiv, she was attracted by the mild climate and the possibility of a quick connection with Byzantium, because the Dnieper was a direct waterway to Anna's homeland, and merchants could deliver her usual things: clothes, jewelry, fruits, vegetables. Anna's Khersones, which belonged to Anna, was also relatively close, from which significant funds came to her treasury. From the Crimea, they probably delivered the necessary for the temples and the palace construction material especially marble.

Anna decided to build a majestic cathedral in Kyiv in honor of the Assumption of the Virgin. Later it was called the Church of the Tithes, since it existed on a tenth of the princely income. The dedication of the Kyiv Cathedral to the Virgin indicates that the initiator of its construction was a woman who was well acquainted with similar buildings in Byzantium. The fact is that the main court temple of the Byzantine emperors was dedicated to the Mother of God, and the Church of the Tithes, in its essence, was also a court church. Some connoisseurs of the history of architecture even expressed the opinion that the Kyiv temple was built on the model of the Pharos Church at the Grand Imperial Palace in Constantinople. And although neither the Pharos nor the Tithes Church have survived to our time (the latter collapsed during the invasion of Batu in 1240), archaeologists managed to reconstruct their appearance. In particular, the Church of the Tithes was an imposing structure 27 meters long and 18 meters wide, crowned with five large domes. Its appearance subsequently became a model for the construction of cathedrals in many Russian cities, but the interior of the Kyiv church was distinguished by its special splendor. For decoration, frescoes and mosaics made of multi-colored glass, as well as jasper, were used. Due to the abundance of marble, which covered the floor with large slabs and ascended upwards in the form of columns, contemporaries called the Church of the Tithes “marble”.

Another merit of the newly-born princess was the annual celebration of the day of the Assumption of the Mother of God. This happened for the first time in the autumn of 996, immediately after the completion of the construction of the Church of the Tithes. Assumption of the Mother of God has become a favorite for Russian people. At the same time, no one remembered that the Byzantine princess Anna Romanovna was the first to install it in Russia.

Under Anna, not only the Church of the Tithes was erected, the construction of the palace complex next to it can also be associated with her name. The palace looked very beautiful and resembled similar buildings in Byzantium. Its walls were decorated with fabulous frescoes and bright mosaics, the bottom was covered with slate slabs with bas-reliefs, doors and round glazed windows - carved marble architraves. On the square in front of the palace stood copper statues of horses taken from Chersonese. Greek-style patios may have been decorated with ornamental plants and flowers. Before in Russia, nothing like this was built. They say that Prince Vladimir liked to walk around the territory of the palace and did not get tired of praising himself for the perseverance shown in the conquest of the Byzantine princess.

Anna Romanovna also had a considerable influence on the fashion world. It was thanks to her example that Russian women learned and fell in love with glass jewelry. At first, Byzantine glassmakers were engaged only in the manufacture of mosaics and window panes for the Church of the Tithes. But then multi-colored glass drops of various shapes and sizes began to come out of their workshops, which local jewelers set into a frame, sometimes gold. This is how amazing in their beauty and relatively cheap earrings, rings, monista were obtained. Russian artisans learned the art of colored glassmaking, and the manufacture of various glass products became a mass phenomenon in pre-Mongolian Russia. Unfortunately, after the invasion of the Mongol-Tatars, the Russians lost the glass-making technology.

Anna also took care of the development of brick construction. It was during the reign of her husband that the custom appeared to decorate temples and palaces with wall paintings, mosaics, carved stone, and inlaid floors with multi-colored tiles. Byzantine luxury and sophistication more and more actively penetrated into the life of the nobility, this especially affected clothes and jewelry.

As for the most important mission of Anna Romanovna, then, undoubtedly, she fulfilled the covenant of the emperor brothers and became the first enlightener of Russia. The representatives of the clergy surrounding her taught Russian priests, for which special schools were created. The icons and church utensils brought by the princess turned into a standard for copying by local painters and artisans. They were sent to newly built churches in all cities. Anna herself worked educational activities in the grand ducal family and among the nobility. It is known that all the numerous children of Prince Vladimir readily accepted Christianity and spread it in their possessions. Even ex-wives Kyiv ruler turned into zealous Christians, especially Rogneda. Following the example of Anna, she brought a new religion to the Polotsk land. Then she founded the first nunnery and took tonsure.

But the historical chronicles keep complete silence about the personal relationship between Vladimir and Anna. There is not even any mention of their children, although they lived for 22 years in marriage.

Anna died quite early - in 1011, at the age of 48. Perhaps she was the victim of some epidemic. However, judging by the burial, Vladimir Svyatoslavovich passionately loved his Byzantine wife, despite the fact that, in fact, he was a polygamist. This last shelter great woman found in a luxurious sarcophagus created by Greek masters, decorated with beautiful carvings and installed in the aisle of the Church of the Tithes. It should be noted: in Byzantium, even the emperors, the vicars of God on earth, were not awarded such an honor. They were buried outside churches. Only in the countries of Western Europe was there a custom to install the tombs of rulers inside the temples. Thus, they were equated with saints. It is possible that Anna, immediately after her death, was elevated to the rank of a locally revered saint because, together with her husband, she baptized and enlightened the Russian people.

Marriage of the Kyiv prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich with Anna of Byzantium (PORPHYROGENITE)(963-1011/1012) in 988/989 became a resounding international recognition at the very highest level of that time, the power of Rus, headed by him, with its capital in Kyiv.

Anna was not only the only sister of the brothers-co-rulers, emperors of Byzantium Basil II(958-1025) and Constantine VIII(960-1028), she was also porphyritic(or purple-colored), which, according to the ideas of the early Middle Ages, made her almost a celestial.
Porphyrogenitus in the Byzantine tradition (which later passed into all ruling houses Europe) were the children of the emperor of both sexes born during his reign (as opposed to children born before the accession of the father to the imperial throne). Porphyrogenite children had an undoubted right to the imperial throne, even despite primogeniture ( primogeniture) - perhaps because their birth was carefully witnessed, and also due to the fact that their parents at the time of their conception were already bearers of divine sacred power. Empress mothers gave birth to such children in a special Crimson (Porphyry) hall of the palace (from where the term came from), in infancy they were swaddled exclusively in crimson diapers (which in those days cost a lot of money, since the dye for purple hues has been developed since antiquity only from needle mollusks, and for dyeing 1 kg of thread, from which the fabric was then woven, about 10 thousand such mollusks were required).
Porphyrogenic brides were valued in the monarchical marriage market much more than their "ordinary" relatives. The Byzantines tried not to marry off such princesses, giving away to the West and the barbarians (who, of course, the Kyiv prince was in their eyes) distant relatives of their rulers.

While paternal Anna, of course, was a direct descendant of the emperors of Byzantium from the Macedonian dynasty - the rulers of Constantinople since 867, on the maternal side she was the granddaughter and great-granddaughter of ordinary (albeit wealthy) Greek Armenians. Her mother, the Empress Theophano(real name Anastasia), according to the opinion of the Byzantine writer and historian Leo Deacon(c.950-c.1000) "the most beautiful, seductive and refined woman of her time, equally distinguished by her beauty, abilities, ambition and depravity", was the daughter of a Constantinople innkeeper, in whose institution she was engaged in prostitution. It was she who captivated the then very young heir to the Byzantine throne, Romana- who, by the way, at the time of their acquaintance had already managed to become a widow. His father, emperor Konstantin Porphyrogenitus, as a child married him to the illegitimate daughter of the king of Italy, Hugh of Arles, Berte(became in Byzantium Evdokia), who was at least 8 years older than her boy husband. This marriage was exclusively dynastic, and was purely nominal, and after death Bertha in 949 (the young widower just turned 11 years old) - the road to the throne was opened for an enterprising Armenian woman. Father and mother Anna of Byzantium, shocking her grandfather and court, were officially married in 956. In the end, the imperial couple resigned themselves to the choice of their son - clever Theophano began to give birth to children, and the ruling Macedonian dynasty was in great need of heirs - Novel was the only son of his parents (his older brother died as a child), besides him, they had five more daughters.

By the way, even as heir to the throne, in 957, Novel with his wife Theophano was present at the solemn reception which his father, the emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus arranged in honor of Kievan princess Olga in Constantinople, so that he was personally acquainted with the grandmother of the future husband of his future daughter.

Emperor of Byzantium Roman II, father of Anna of Byzantium.

dying Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus bequeathed to his son as a mentor an experienced politician, eunuch Joseph Vringu. He and the wife of the new emperor, already in August Feofano, Basically, they ruled the country. “He [the king] himself had nothing else in his thoughts, how to spend time with depraved and spoiled little people, lustful women, mimes and jesters, being distracted from business.”
Theophano forced her husband to send his sisters (who, however, did not become nuns) and mother (who soon died there) to the monastery.
After the death of her husband in 963, she became regent with her young sons (one was five, the other three years old), in order to maintain power Theophano was forced to marry a very popular commander Nikifor Foka(c.912-969), who became emperor thanks to this.

And six years after the wedding, the mother Anna of Byzantium together with her lover, nephew Nicephora Foki, John Tzimiskes(c.925-976) (exactly this historical character later he was repeatedly a military opponent of the Kyiv prince Svyatoslav Igorevich), led a conspiracy against her husband. As a result of which he was killed (the nephew cut his uncle's throat with his own hands), the killer became the next emperor, and in order to strengthen his power he married - but not on his mistress, but on one of the daughters Constantine VII, Theodore- native aunt Anna and her brothers. Theophano but, contrary to her expectations, she was sent by him from the palace to a cell on the bare island of Antigoni (Kynalyada), from where she could see her former palaces. When she managed to escape and hide behind the walls of Hagia Sophia, her mother of young emperors (they remained co-rulers first of their stepfather Nicephora Foki, and after his murder - who became their uncle (thanks to marriage with their own aunt Theodora) John Tzimiskes- pulled out of the cathedral by force and sent to a remote Armenian monastery; from there she was returned to the palace only after the death of her treacherous lover Tzimisces(from poison), in 976, when her grown sons finally came to power - Vasily was 18 Constantine – 16. Anna by that time she was 13 years old - and, by the way, she could well share with her mother Theophano all / or partially of its deprivation (no information about this, however, is available). Exhausted by years of confinement in a monastery, their mother, who returned to Constantinople, no longer took any part in the political life of Byzantium and the lives of her children. Historians know nothing about recent years her hectic life.

Byzantine coin from the reign of the brothers of Princess Anna, Emperors Basil II and Constantine VIII, with their images

An interesting point - not only the year of birth of the wife of the Grand Duke of Kyiv has come down to our days Vladimir, but even (a very rare case) and the date is March 13. Because the chronicles indicate that she was born two days before the death of her father. Emperor of Byzantium Roman II(938-March 15, 963) died very young, at the age of 25 - from the consequences of his intemperate food, alcohol and sexual excesses of life. The version that his wife poisoned him does not hold water. Certainly, Theophano was that bitch in life, but it is unlikely that she was in proper physical shape just two days after giving birth to carry out such a responsible event.

The marriage of the younger sister of the most powerful rulers of Europe, Anna Porphyrogenites, with yesterday's pagan Vladimir still looks, to put it mildly, strange - even in the light of the annalistic explanation that she was married off in exchange for military assistance to Byzantium from Kyiv (7 thousand soldiers), and after the capture of the main Byzantine city of Korsun in Crimea by Russia. In any case, it was too small a price for such a bride. Since she had more rights to the Byzantine throne than her brothers - the oldest brother, Vasily II, was born a year before their father Roman II the Younger became emperor, and the second brother, Constantine VIII, who was already born the son of the emperor, was, however, conceived by him not yet on the “throne” (then such nuances were of great importance). After a hated marriage (the saying has been preserved Anna before leaving Byzantium: “I’m going as if I’m full, it would be better for me to die here”) the Byzantine princess was referred to in all the chronicles of her time exclusively "byzantine queen" , and not the Grand Duchess of Kyiv - thus maintaining her premarital status as a member of the imperial family.

Hypothetically, if Anna and Vladimir lived longer and left behind common children, they would have every right to claim the crown of Byzantium - since in 1056, after the death of the last childless niece Anna of Byzantium, empresses Theodora(984-1056) - daughters of the youngest brother-emperor of the prince's wife Vladimir, Constantine VIII ( she was 5 years old when her aunt left for Kyiv forever) - the Macedonian dynasty of Constantinople basileus was cut short.

But who could have known at the conclusion of this marriage that, one way or another, he would not leave behind a common offspring? The brothers-emperors, giving their porphyry-born sister in marriage to Kyiv, thereby provided her heirs, and, accordingly, Russia, with powerful levers of influence on their own empire. And given that the rulers of Byzantium could easily marry a prince Vladimir some of their own, not even blood, a very distant relative (later they did this with Rurikovich repeatedly, and always successfully), and he would still be glad and happy (any relationship with the Byzantine kings was then valued even by the ruling houses of Europe worth its weight in gold) - this dynastic marriage looks simply mysterious. It is quite obvious that some important factor, which influenced his conclusion, was lost in time. Especially when you consider the fact that a year before the prince Vladimir to Anna unsuccessfully wooed the king of France Hugo Capet(he wanted to marry his son and heir, Robert II, on the Byzantine princess in order to strengthen his royal dynasty, since he himself was her first representative on the French throne, but his grandson, Henry I, married 60 years later Kyiv princess Anna Yaroslavna- a funny coincidence, she was the namesake of a Byzantine princess). There are also references to matchmaking Anna representatives of the Holy Roman Emperor of the German Nation and the rulers of Bulgaria.

It is noteworthy that Anna was about the same age (she married the prince of Kyiv at 25-26 years old - according to the ideas of that time, a completed old maid) with the unfortunate princess of Polotsk Rogneda, which Vladimir ten years before the wedding with a Byzantine, he made him his second wife, publicly raping him in front of his father, mother and brothers (having previously captured the Principality of Polotsk), after which he killed the whole family Rognedy(she herself was then about 15-16 years old) in front of her eyes. The baptism of the Grand Duke of Kyiv and the marriage to the princess, on the one hand, finally freed Rogned from the murderer of her entire family (to their pagan wives Vladimir offered after a divorce marriage with any of his boyars, but she, having converted to Christianity along with all members of the family of the Kyiv prince, preferred to be tonsured as a nun under the name Anastasia), and, on the other hand, they deprived her of her children (and by 989 she had six or seven children from Vladimir, including the future prince Yaroslav the Wise) rights to the princely inheritance of their father, since from the point of view of the church they were illegitimate.

Historians do not have a unanimous opinion about the common offspring Vladimir and Anna. With a high degree of probability, given the lack of accurate information on the date of birth of all children Vladimir Svyatoslavich, sons Anna may be (or not be) the first Russian saints, Boris(988/989-1015) and Gleb(c.987-1015), and daughter - Maria Dobronega(c.1012-1087), wife (since 1039) of a Polish prince Casimir I Piast (1016-1058).
However, these assumptions do not withstand a simple chronological analysis. Historians know for sure that the brothers Boris and Gleb was not only a common father, but also common mother(hence their special closeness and affection for each other). And, if the estimated year of birth of the youngest of the brothers, the beloved son of the prince Vladimir, Boris(to whom he wanted to leave the throne of Kyiv after his death), still somehow admits that his mother could be Anna Byzantine(since the day and month of his birth are unknown, as well as the exact date and even year (988 or 989) of marriage Vladimir and Anna), then here is the year of birth of the eldest, Gleb(one or two years before the prince's wedding Vladimir with the princess) completely excludes this possibility both for himself and for his brother. More likely, Boris and Gleb, after all, were sons Vladimir from a certain noble "Bulgarian" (this is the only mention in the annals of their mother, only her homeland was Volga Bulgaria, not the territory of present-day Bulgaria).
Most researchers, however, believe that the Byzantine princess gave birth to only one daughter in marriage, Theophano who died shortly after birth. In any case - to consolidate the dizzying success of marriage Vladimir common with the Byzantine dynasty, the offspring did not work.

Herself Anna died in Kyiv in 1011, at the age of about 48, and was buried in the Church of the Tithes. prince Vladimir outlived her by 4 years - he died on July 15, 1015, at the age of about 55-60, leaving behind a young widow (he remarried after the death of a Byzantine woman), presumably of noble German origin, and a little daughter from her, who , quite likely, was the future Polish Grand Duchess Maria-Good.

Undoubtedly, in the acceptance of the prince Vladimir the decision to become a Christian himself and baptize Russia, the primary (if not the only) role was played by the desire to intermarry with the emperors of Byzantium - not without reason, by the way, he took his name at baptism Vasiliy- in honor of the eldest of the Byzantine brother-emperors. Such a dynastic marriage, in keeping with the traditions of the time, raised his own importance as a ruler; and Ancient Russia, as states - on European level. It was a real breakthrough to the most “advanced” medieval civilization at that time.

As for sincerity Vladimir as a neophyte - it seems to me that there is no need to build any illusions about this. This pragmatic depraved cynic (PVL about the prince Vladimir before marrying Anna of Byzantium: “and he had 300 concubines in Vyshgorod, 300 in Belgorod and 200 in Berestov ... And he was insatiable in fornication, bringing to himself married women and corrupting girls") could neither read nor write, and did not know any foreign languages. And the first translation of the Gospel (Ostromirovo) on Old Slavonic language was made only 50 years after his death.
Calling a spade a spade - in order to get a Byzantine princess as a wife, prince Vladimir was ready for anything, and easily went to the deal. Another question is that this deal benefited his state, and for centuries to come.
Say what you like, but such global decisions, and without being aware of this, can only be taken by really great rulers.
But, nevertheless, the question of WHY the emperors Vasily II and Constantine VIII married off their high-born younger sister to a semi-wild lecher - the ruler of a little-known country in the outskirts of civilization, refusing to do this to the best suitors in Europe - remains open.

PS. On the title thumbnail before recording - Constantinople. Engraving from the chronicle of Hartman Schedel, 1493. The capital of Byzantium fell under the onslaught of the Ottoman Turks in 1453, 40 years before.