When Princess Olga ruled in Russia. Grand Duchess Olga

July 24(July 11 O.S.) The Church honors the memory of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga, named Elena in holy baptism. The Holy Princess Olga ruled the Old Russian state from 945 to 960 as a regent for her young son Svyatoslav, after the death of her husband, Prince Igor Rurikovich of Kyiv. Olga was the first of the rulers of Russia to accept Christianity. Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga is prayed for the strengthening of the Christian faith and for the deliverance of the state from enemies. Saint Olga is also revered as the patroness of widows.

Life of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga

Chronicles do not report the year of Olga's birth, however, the later book of degrees states that she died at the age of about 80, which places her date of birth at the end of the 9th century. The approximate date of her birth is reported by the late Arkhangelsk Chronicler, who specifies that Olga was 10 years old at the time of marriage. Based on this, many scientists calculated the date of her birth - 893. The prologue life of the princess claims that at the time of her death she was 75 years old. Thus, Olga was born in 894. But this date is called into question by the date of birth of Olga's eldest son, Svyatoslav (c. 938-943), since Olga at the time of her son's birth should have been 45-50 years old, which seems unlikely. Looking at the fact that Svyatoslav Igorevich was the eldest son of Olga, the researcher of Slavic culture and the history of Ancient Russia B.A. Rybakov, taking 942 as the date of birth of the prince, considered the year 927-928 to be the last point of Olga's birth. A. Karpov in his monograph "Princess Olga" claims that the princess was born around 920. Consequently, the date around 925 looks more accurate than 890, since Olga herself in the annals for 946-955 appears young and energetic, and gives birth to her eldest son in 942. The Tale of Bygone Years names the name of the future enlightener of Russia and her homeland in the description of the marriage of the Kyiv prince Igor:

And they brought him a wife from Pskov, named Olga.

The Joachim Chronicle specifies that she belonged to the family of the princes of Izborsk, one of the ancient Russian princely dynasties.

Igor's wife was called the Varangian name Helga, in Russian pronunciation Olga (Volga). Tradition calls the birthplace of Olga the village of Vybuty not far from Pskov, up the Velikaya River. The life of St. Olga tells that here for the first time she met her future husband. The young prince was hunting on the Pskov land and, wishing to cross the Velikaya River, he saw "a certain person floating in a boat" and called him to the shore. Having sailed from the shore in a boat, the prince found that he was being carried by a girl of amazing beauty. Igor was inflamed with lust for her and began to incline her to sin. Olga turned out to be not only beautiful, but chaste and smart. She shamed Igor, reminding him of the princely dignity of the ruler:

Why do you embarrass me, prince, with immodest words? Let me be young and humble, and alone here, but know that it is better for me to throw myself into the river than to endure reproach.

Igor broke up with her, keeping in mind her words and a beautiful image. When it came time to choose a bride, the most beautiful girls of the principality were gathered in Kyiv. But none of them pleased him. And then he remembered Olga and sent Prince Oleg after her. So Olga became the wife of Prince Igor, the Grand Russian Duchess.

In 942, a son, Svyatoslav, was born into the family of Prince Igor. In 945, Igor was killed by the Drevlyans after repeatedly exacting tribute from them. Fearing revenge for the murder of the Kyiv prince, the Drevlyans sent envoys to Princess Olga, offering her to marry their ruler Mal (d. 946). Olga pretended to agree. By cunning, she lured two embassies of the Drevlyans to Kyiv, betraying them to a painful death: the first was buried alive "in the prince's courtyard", the second was burned in a bathhouse. After that, five thousand Drevlyansky men were killed by Olga's soldiers at the funeral feast for Igor near the walls of the Drevlyan capital Iskorosten. The next year, Olga again approached Iskorosten with an army. The city was burned with the help of birds, to whose feet a burning tow was tied. The surviving Drevlyans were captured and sold into slavery.

Along with this, the chronicles are full of evidence of her tireless "walking" on the Russian land in order to build the political and economic life of the country. She achieved the strengthening of the power of the Kyiv Grand Duke, centralized state administration with the help of the "pogost" system. The chronicle notes that she, with her son and a retinue, passed through the Drevlyansk land, setting tributes and dues, marking villages and camps and hunting grounds to be included in the Kyiv grand-princely possessions. She went to Novgorod, arranging graveyards along the rivers Msta and Luga. Life tells about the works of Olga:

And Princess Olga ruled the regions of the Russian land subject to her not as a woman, but as a strong and reasonable husband, firmly holding power in her hands and courageously defending herself from enemies. And she was terrible for the latter, loved by her own people, as a merciful and pious ruler, as a righteous judge and offending no one, imposing punishment with mercy and rewarding the good; she inspired fear in all the evil, rewarding each in proportion to the dignity of his deeds, in all matters of management she showed foresight and wisdom. At the same time, Olga, merciful at heart, was generous to the poor, the poor and the needy; fair requests soon reached her heart, and she quickly fulfilled them ... With all this, Olga combined a temperate and chaste life, she did not want to remarry, but remained in pure widowhood, observing her son until the days of age his princely power. When the latter matured, she handed over to him all the affairs of government, and she herself, having abstained from rumors and care, lived outside the cares of management, indulging in the deeds of charity..

Russia grew and strengthened. Cities were built surrounded by stone and oak walls. The princess herself lived behind the reliable walls of Vyshgorod, surrounded by a faithful retinue. Two-thirds of the tribute collected, according to the chronicle, she gave at the disposal of the Kyiv Council, the third part went "to Olga, to Vyshgorod" - to the military structure. The establishment of the first state borders of Kievan Rus belongs to the time of Olga. The heroic outposts, sung in epics, guarded the peaceful life of the people of Kiev from the nomads of the Great Steppe, from attacks from the West. Foreigners rushed to Gardarika, as they called Russia, with goods. Scandinavians, Germans willingly joined the Russian army as mercenaries. Russia became a great power. But Olga understood that it was not enough to worry only about state and economic life. It was necessary to take care of the organization of the religious, spiritual life of the people. The Power Book writes:

Her feat was that she recognized the true God. Not knowing the Christian law, she lived a pure and chaste life, and she wished to be a Christian of her own free will, with the eyes of her heart she found the path of knowing God and followed it without hesitation..

Reverend Nestor the Chronicler(c. 1056-1114) tells:

Blessed Olga from an early age sought wisdom, what is the best in this world, and found a valuable pearl- Christ.

Grand Duchess Olga, having entrusted Kyiv to her grown son, set off with a large fleet to Constantinople. Old Russian chroniclers will call this act of Olga "walking", it combined both a religious pilgrimage, a diplomatic mission, and a demonstration of the military might of Russia. " Olga wanted to go to the Greeks herself in order to see with her own eyes the Christian service and be fully convinced of their teaching about the true God.”, - tells the life of St. Olga. According to the chronicle, in Constantinople Olga decides to become a Christian. The sacrament of Baptism was performed on her by Patriarch Theophylact of Constantinople (917-956), and the emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus (905-959) was the godfather, who left in his essay “On the Ceremonies of the Byzantine Court” a detailed description of the ceremonies during Olga’s stay in Constantinople. At one of the receptions, a golden dish adorned with precious stones was brought to the Russian princess. Olga donated it to the sacristy of Hagia Sophia, where he was seen and described at the beginning of the 13th century by Russian diplomat Dobrynya Yadreykovich, later Archbishop Anthony of Novgorod (d. 1232): “ A dish of great gold service to Olga the Russian, when she took tribute when she went to Constantinople: in Olga's dish is a precious stone, Christ is written on the same stone". The Patriarch blessed the newly baptized Russian princess with a cross carved from a single piece of the Life-Giving Tree of the Lord. On the cross was the inscription:

The Russian land was renewed with the Holy Cross, which was received by Olga, the noble princess.

Olga returned to Kyiv with icons and liturgical books. She erected a temple in the name of St. Nicholas over the grave of Askold, the first Christian prince of Kyiv, and converted many Kyivans to Christ. With the preaching of faith, the princess went to the north. In the Kyiv and Pskov lands, in remote villages, at crossroads, she erected crosses, destroying pagan idols. Princess Olga laid the foundation for a special veneration of the Most Holy Trinity in Russia. From century to century, the story of a vision that she had near the Velikaya River, not far from her native village, was transmitted. She saw that "three bright rays" were descending from the sky from the east. Addressing her companions, who were witnesses of the vision, Olga said prophetically:

May it be known to you that by the will of God there will be a church in this place in the name of the Most Holy and Life-Giving Trinity, and there will be a great and glorious city here, abounding in everything.

On this place Olga erected a cross and founded a temple in the name of the Holy Trinity. It became the main cathedral of Pskov. On May 11, 960, the Church of Hagia Sophia of the Wisdom of God was consecrated in Kyiv. The main shrine of the temple was the cross received by Olga at Baptism in Constantinople. In the Prologue of the 13th century, it is said about Olga's cross:

Izhe now stands in Kyiv in Hagia Sophia in the altar on the right side.

After the conquest of Kyiv by the Lithuanians, Holgin's cross was stolen from St. Sophia Cathedral and taken by the Catholics to Lublin. His further fate is unknown. At that time, the pagans looked with hope at the growing Svyatoslav, who resolutely rejected his mother's persuasion to accept Christianity. " Tale of Bygone Years' says this about it:

Olga lived with her son Svyatoslav, and persuaded his mother to be baptized, but he neglected this and plugged his ears; however, if someone wanted to be baptized, he did not forbid him, nor mocked him ... Olga often said: “My son, I have known God and rejoice; so you too, if you know, you will also begin to rejoice.” He, not listening to this, said: “How can I want to change my faith alone? My warriors will laugh at this! She told him: “If you are baptized, everyone will do the same.

He, not listening to his mother, lived according to pagan customs. In 959 a German chronicler wrote: The ambassadors of Elena, the queen of the Russians, who was baptized in Constantinople, came to the king and asked him to consecrate a bishop and priests for this people". King Otto, the future founder of the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation, responded to Olga's request. A year later, Libutius, from the monastery of St. Alban in Mainz, was appointed Bishop of Russia, but he soon died. Adalbert of Trier was consecrated in his place, whom Otto finally sent to Russia. When in 962 Adalbert appeared in Kyiv, he " did not succeed in anything for which he was sent, and saw his efforts in vain. On the way back " some of his companions were killed, and the bishop himself did not escape mortal danger”, - this is how the chronicles tell about the mission of Adalbert. The pagan reaction manifested itself so strongly that not only the German missionaries suffered, but also some of the Kyiv Christians who were baptized along with Olga. By order of Svyatoslav, Olga's nephew Gleb was killed and some churches built by her were destroyed. Princess Olga had to come to terms with what had happened and go into matters of personal piety, leaving control to the pagan Svyatoslav. Of course, she was still reckoned with, her experience and wisdom were invariably referred to in all important cases. When Svyatoslav left Kyiv, the administration of the state was entrusted to Princess Olga.

Svyatoslav defeated the old enemy of the Russian state - the Khazar Khaganate. The next blow was dealt to Volga Bulgaria, then came the turn of the Danube Bulgaria - eighty cities were taken by Kyiv warriors along the Danube. Svyatoslav and his warriors personified the heroic spirit of pagan Russia. Chronicles have preserved the words Svyatoslav, surrounded with his retinue by a huge Greek army:

Let's not disgrace the Russian land, but let's lie down with bones here! The dead have no shame!

While in Kyiv, Princess Olga taught her grandchildren, the children of Svyatoslav, the Christian faith, but did not dare to baptize them, fearing the wrath of her son. In addition, he hindered her attempts to establish Christianity in Russia. In 968 Kyiv was besieged by the Pechenegs. Princess Olga and her grandchildren, among whom was Prince Vladimir, were in mortal danger. When the news of the siege reached Svyatoslav, he hurried to help, and the Pechenegs were put to flight. Princess Olga, already seriously ill, asked her son not to leave until her death. She did not lose hope to turn her son's heart to God, and on her deathbed she did not stop preaching: Why do you leave me, my son, and where are you going? Looking for someone else's, to whom do you entrust yours? After all, Your children are still small, and I am already old, and sick, - I expect an early death - a departure to the beloved Christ, in whom I believe; now I don’t worry about anything, but about you: I regret that although I taught a lot and urged me to leave idol wickedness, to believe in the true God that I knew, and you neglect this, and I know what your disobedience is a bad end awaits you on earth, and after death - eternal torment prepared for the pagans. Fulfill now at least this last request of mine: do not go anywhere until I pass away and be buried; then go wherever you want. After my death, do not do anything that pagan custom requires in such cases; but let my presbyter with the clergy bury my body according to the Christian custom; do not dare to pour a grave mound over me and make funeral feasts; but send gold to Constantinople to the most holy patriarch, so that he makes a prayer and an offering to God for my soul and distributes alms to the poor». « Hearing this, Svyatoslav wept bitterly and promised to fulfill everything bequeathed by her, refusing only to accept the holy faith. After three days, blessed Olga fell into extreme exhaustion; she partook of the Divine Mysteries of the Most Pure Body and the Life-Giving Blood of Christ our Savior; all the time she remained in fervent prayer to God and to the Most Pure Theotokos, whom she always, according to God, had as her helper; she called all the saints; Blessed Olga prayed with particular zeal for the enlightenment of the Russian land after her death; seeing the future, she repeatedly predicted that God would enlighten the people of the Russian land and many of them would be great saints; Blessed Olga prayed for the speedy fulfillment of this prophecy at her death. And another prayer was on her lips, when her honest soul was released from the body and, as a righteous one, was received by the hands of God.". The date of the death of Princess Olga is July 11, 969. Princess Olga was buried according to Christian custom. In 1007, her grandson Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavichokolo (960-1015) transferred the relics of the saints, including Olga, to the Church of the Virgin in Kyiv, which he founded.

Veneration of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga

Probably, during the reign of Yaropolk (972-978), Princess Olga began to be revered as a saint. This is evidenced by the transfer of her relics to the church and the description of miracles given by the monk Jacob in the 11th century. Since that time, the day of memory of St. Olga (Helena) began to be celebrated on July 11 (Old Style). Under Grand Duke Vladimir, the relics of St. Olga were transferred to the Church of the Tithes of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos and laid in a sarcophagus. There was a window in the church wall above the tomb of St. Olga; and if someone came to the relics with faith, he saw the relics through the window, and some saw the radiance emanating from them, and many sick people were healed. The prophecy of the Holy Princess Olga about the death of her son Svyatoslav came true. He, according to the chronicle, was killed by the Pecheneg prince Kurei (tenth century), who cut off the head of Svyatoslav and made a cup out of the skull, bound it with gold and drank from it during feasts. The prayerful labors and deeds of St. Olga confirmed the greatest deed of her grandson St. Vladimir - the Baptism of Russia. In 1547 Olga was canonized as a saint Equal-to-the-Apostles.

The main information about Olga's life, recognized as reliable, is contained in the Tale of Bygone Years, the Life from the Book of Degrees, the hagiographic work of the monk Jacob "Memory and praise to the Russian prince Volodimer" and the work of Konstantin Porphyrogenitus "On the ceremonies of the Byzantine court." Other sources provide additional information about Olga, but their reliability cannot be accurately determined. According to the Joachim Chronicle, Olga's original name is Beautiful. The Joachim Chronicle reports the execution by Svyatoslav of his only brother Gleb for his Christian beliefs during the Russian-Byzantine war of 968-971. Gleb could be the son of Prince Igor both from Olga and from another wife, since the same chronicle reports that Igor had other wives. The Orthodox faith of Gleb testifies in favor of the fact that he was the youngest son of Olga. The medieval Czech historian Tomas Peshina in his work in Latin “Mars Moravicus” (1677) spoke about a certain Russian prince Oleg, who became (940) the last king of Moravia and was expelled from there by the Hungarians in 949. According to Tomas Peshina, this Oleg of Moravia was Olga’s brother. The existence of a blood relative of Olga, calling him anepsia (meaning a nephew or cousin), was mentioned by Constantine Porphyrogenitus in the list of her retinue during a visit to Constantinople in 957.

Troparion and kontakion to the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga

Troparion, tone 1

Krill of God-reason, fixing your mind, you flew up above the visible creatures, seeking God and the Creator of all kinds. And having found that, thou hast accepted the packs of debauchery by baptism. And enjoying the tree of the animal cross of Christ, you remain incorruptible forever, ever glorious.

Kontakion, tone 4

Let us sing today the Benefactor of all God, who glorified God-wise Olga in Russia. And by her prayers, Christ, grant forgiveness to our souls of sins.

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Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga. Icons

On the icons, the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga is depicted full-length or waist-high. She is dressed in royal clothes, her head is decorated with a princely crown. In her right hand, the holy princess Olga Vladimir holds a cross - a symbol of faith, as the moral foundation of the state, or a scroll.

Temples in the name of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga

In the north-west of Russia there was a churchyard of Holguin Krest. It was here, as chronicle sources say, that Princess Olga came in 947 to collect taxes. In memory of her amazing rescue while crossing the rapids and ice-free Narova, Princess Olga put up a wooden, and then a stone cross. In the Holgin Cross tract there were local revered shrines - a temple in the name of St. Nicholas, built in the 15th century, a stone cross, established, according to legend, in the 10th century by Princess Olga. Later, the cross was built into the wall of the church of St. Nicholas. In 1887, the temple was supplemented with a chapel in the name of the Holy Princess Olga. St. Nicholas Church was blown up in 1944 by the retreating German troops.

In Kyiv on Trekhsvyatitelskaya street (street of Victims of the Revolution) until the 30s. 20th century there was a church in the name of three saints - Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom. It was built in the early 80s. XII century by Prince Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich in the princely court and consecrated in 1183. The church had a chapel in the name of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga.

In the Church of the Assumption from the ferry (from Paromeny) in Pskov, a chapel was consecrated in the name of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga. The church was put on the site of an earlier one, built in 1444. Since 1938, the church has not operated, in 1994 worship was resumed in it.

In the name of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga, a church of the same faith was consecrated in Ulyanovsk. The church was built in 1196.

In the city of Ulyanovsk there is a common faith church of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Folk memory of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga

In Pskov, there is the Olginskaya embankment, the Olginskiy bridge, the Olginskaya chapel, as well as two monuments to the princess. Monuments to the saint were erected in Kyiv and Korosten, as well as the figure of Olga is present on the monument "Millennium of Russia" in Veliky Novgorod. In honor of the Holy Princess Olga, the Gulf of Olga of the Sea of ​​Japan and an urban-type settlement in the Primorsky Territory are named. Streets in Kyiv and Lvov are named after St. Olga. Also in the name of St. Olga, the following orders were established: Badge of distinction of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga (established by Emperor Nicholas II in 1915); "Order of Princess Olga" (state award of Ukraine since 1997); Order of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga (ROC).

Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga. Paintings

Many painters addressed the image of the Holy Princess Olga and her life in their works, among them V.K. Sazonov (1789–1870), B.A. Chorikov (1802–1866), V.I. Surikov (1848–1916), N.A. Bruni (1856–1935), N.K. Roerich (1874–1947), M.V. Nesterov (1862–1942) and others.

The image of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga in art

Many literary works are dedicated to the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga, these are “Princess Olga” (A.I. Antonov), “Olga, Queen of the Rus” (B. Vasiliev), “I know God!” (S.T. Alekseev), "The Great Princess Elena-Olga" (M. Apostolov) and others. Such works as “The Legend of Princess Olga” (directed by Yuri Ilyenko), “The Saga of the Ancient Bulgars. The Tale of Olga the Holy ”(director Bulat Mansurov) and others.

Name: Princess Olga (Olga)

Date of Birth: 920

Age: 49 years old

Place of Birth: Vybuty, Pskov region

Place of death: Kyiv

Activity: princess of Kyiv

Family status: widow

Princess Olga - biography

In the history of ancient Russia there are unconditional heroes and heroines, whose biographies are based only on the legends preserved by the annals. The most mysterious of these legends is associated with Princess Olga. Her date of birth, origin, and even her name remain the subject of controversy, and many of her exploits do not agree with the title of saint assigned to her.

Olga first appeared on the pages of history in 903. The Tale of Bygone Years retained a meager mention of this: “Igor, I’ll grow up ... and bring him a wife from Pleskov, named Olga.” We are talking about Igor, the son of Rurik, who was not yet the prince of Kyiv - this title was borne by his tutor Oleg the Prophet. Later, a beautiful legend was born that Olga was a carrier in the Pskov region.

Once, while hunting, Igor needed to cross the river, and he called a boat, which was driven by a beautiful girl. In the middle of the way, the loving prince began to speak immodest speeches to her, but the girl answered: “Why are you embarrassing me, prince? Even if I am young and ignorant, but know: it is better for me to throw myself into the river than to endure reproach!” Ashamed, Igor generously paid the carrier and said goodbye to her. And then, when the time came for him to marry, he remembered the Pskovite woman and took her as his wife.

In another legend, before marriage, Olga was called Beautiful or Preslava, and received a new name in honor of Oleg, who arranged her marriage to Igor. And she was not a carrier at all, but a noble person, the granddaughter of the legendary Novgorod prince Gostomysl. This is more like the truth - princely marriages were already concluded by calculation, and the "Varangian guest" Igor needed to establish his power in the Russian lands as firmly as possible. However, according to chronicles, Igor's father Rurik died in 879, which means that at the time of the wedding, the "young man" Igor was already thirty years old, and Olga, according to the same chronicle, gave birth to Svyatoslav's first child only in 942, that is, when she was... over 55 years old.

Most likely, the marriage of Igor and Olga took place much later than the annalistic date, and the princess herself was born around 920. But Igor at that time was still well over forty. Why didn't he get married before? And if he was married, where did his heirs go? There may be two answers. Igor could very well not be the son of Rurik, but an impostor, a protege of the cunning Oleg. Perhaps, as pagans used to do, Igor had other wives and children, but Olga managed to get them out of the way. Both are unprovable, although the annals mention the names of princely relatives who disappeared no one knows where. True, this happened already after Igor became the prince of Kyiv in 912, replacing the mysteriously deceased Oleg.

It was probably then that, in order to strengthen his power, he married Olga. And she was by no means a simple carrier - especially from Pskov, which, according to archaeologists, did not exist at that time. The chronicle name of Pskov "Pleskov" is very similar to the name of the first Bulgarian capital Pliska (Pliskovy). Bulgaria in the 10th century was well known to the Russians, inhabited by a kindred Slavic people and ruled by Simeon, who in 919 assumed the title of king.

He could well, as a sign of friendship, marry his daughter or niece to the prince of Kyiv - otherwise, why later did Olga’s son Svyatoslav consider Bulgaria his “fatherland”? When he came there with an army, the country submitted to him without a fight - is it not because the Bulgarians considered the young prince to be their blood? In addition, before marriage, Olga was called Preslava - this is a Bulgarian name, which later became the name of the new capital of the country. The Bulgarian word "boyar" also came into use in Russia from the time of Olga and Svyatoslav, as did the name Boris, which belonged to the father of Tsar Simeon. Olga's second son was named Gleb - this name also came from Bulgaria.

And yet it is impossible to say with absolute certainty that Olga is a Bulgarian princess. In the Bulgarian chronicles there is no her name, as well as the mention of the wedding of the royal relative with the Kyiv prince. Yes, and the behavior of the princess does not resemble soft Slavs, but harsh Norman Valkyries. But the Bulgarian version seems to be the most probable - also because of this. that the Bulgarians, unlike the Russians and Scandinavians, were already Orthodox, and Olga felt a deep attraction to this religion.

Throughout the long reign of Igor, Olga remained in the shadow of her husband. However, while the prince disappeared on long campaigns, it was she who had to deal with the daily affairs of the country. And in 945, when Igor died at the hands of the Drevlyans, the issue of power in Kyiv was not discussed - it was entirely concentrated in the hands of Olga, who spoke on behalf of the young son of Svyatoslav.

It is difficult to judge from the annals what Russia was in that period. The tribal principalities of which it consisted were very conditionally subordinate to Kyiv. Only during the annual "polyudya" - the collection of tribute - did they show obedience to the prince. Or disobedience, like the Drevlyans: when Igor wanted to collect additional tribute from them, they said the famous phrase: “If we don’t kill him, then he will destroy us all.” The prince, the winner of Byzantium, did not expect any resistance from a small forest tribe and easily fell into a trap. The Greeks, having learned about his death “in the trees” (that is, among the Drevlyans), composed a legend that the prince was tied by the legs to young trees and thus torn in two.

Having killed the prince, the Drevlyans decided to take possession of his wife and all his property. This was the custom of those times, but Olga did not recognize these customs.
Having met the Drevlyansk ambassadors in Kyiv, who arrived to woo her for Prince Mal, she ordered them to be thrown into a pit and buried alive. The slow-witted Drevlyans sent a second embassy, ​​which Olga locked in a bathhouse and suffocated with a ferry. After that, in memory of her husband, she arranged a feast for the noble Drevlyans and killed them. Then she set off with an army on a campaign against the Drevlyansk capital Iskorosten, taking with her the three-year-old Svyatoslav.

Having besieged the city, she demanded tribute from the inhabitants - three doves from the yard. Having received the birds, she tied burning torches to them and launched them back into the city, and they burned Iskorosten with all its inhabitants. Olga gave the surviving Drevlyans into slavery, and distributed their lands to those close to her. Together with his subjects, Prince Mal died, and a Kyiv governor was planted in the Drevlyane land. After that, Olga, with all possible energy, set about arranging the rest of her possessions, setting up tribute collection points throughout Russia - graveyards.

From now on, Olga's messengers no longer needed to travel around the possessions, knocking out taxes from subjects - they were delivered on their own, which was easier and safer. However, the princess tried to make the tribute not too heavy. The author of Olga's life emphasized that she herself "has been living all over the Russian land, tributes and lessons are easy to set."

In foreign policy, the princess also preferred to act softly. Khazaria, to which Russia until recently was subordinate, was busy with the war with the Arab Caliphate. There was no need to be afraid of the Scandinavian Vikings, all of whose forces were thrown into raids in England and France. Byzantium remained, which did not allow the Russians to the Black Sea trade routes. In 955 Olga went on a visit to Constantinople. Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, according to the chronicler, "seeing the goodness of the land with great lyceum and intelligence," offered to become her godfather. Olga agreed, and after baptism, when Konstantin suddenly offered her a hand and heart, she stated that he baptized her and called her daughter, so marriage with her would be incest. The emperor was forced to admit: "Olga outwitted me (outwitted) me."

Of course, this is a legend composed to emphasize the independence of the Russian princess, who flatly refused to recognize the supreme power of her "godfather". However, the very fact of Olga's visit to Constantinople is beyond doubt. Emperor Constantine mentions him in the book “On the Management of the Empire”, without saying anything about his “matchmaking” - after all, at that time he was happily married to Elena Lakapin, who bore him four children.

Olga returned to Kyiv together with Orthodox priests, who began to introduce Christianity in Russia. The princess wisely judged that the new faith could unite the state much better than pagan tribal beliefs. According to some reports, soon the first Christian church appeared in Kyiv. Presumably, it was erected in the suburban Vyshgorod, where the fortified princely residence was located. Kyiv itself then consisted of several settlements inhabited by Khazars, Varangians, Slavs and other multilingual population, which had yet to merge into a single ancient Russian people. This was greatly facilitated by the princess with her Christian pathos, which, according to the testament of the Gospel, did not distinguish between "neither a Greek nor a Jew."

To Olga's chagrin, her son Svyatoslav did not share her Christian sentiments. The young man spent all his time with the combatants in violent pleasures - feasts, hunting and military games. She tried to teach her son the basics of faith, saying: "I have known God, my son, and I rejoice, if you know, you will rejoice." He answered: “How can I accept the new faith alone, if my squad starts laughing at me?” And then he got completely angry and stopped listening to his mother's sermons. In 965, he dared to oppose the previously invincible Khazars, weakened by constant wars. The campaign ended with an unexpected victory - the Khazar capital Belaya Vezha (Sarkel) fell. In the eyes of its neighbors, Russia finally established itself as an independent state.

This strengthening of Russia led to a cooling in Olga's relations with Byzantium. Even earlier, her "fiance" Konstantin asked her for the soldiers promised under the treaty, and Olga replied: "If you stand with me in Pochaina as I do in the Court, then I will give it to you." Comparing the Kyiv river Pochaina with the harbor of Constantinople, the princess expressed her claims to her equality with the emperor. But he endured the insult and, apparently, agreed with the "bride" - in any case, the Russian detachments have since participated on the side of Byzantium in many wars.

But Olga did not trust the Greeks too much and in 959 sent an embassy to the Holy Roman Emperor Otto I. He sent Catholic missionaries led by Bishop Adalbert to Russia, but they were met with a cold reception in Kyiv. Olga quickly realized that the strict spiritual control of the Pope could limit the power of the Kyiv princes much more than the soft influence of the Orthodox Byzantium, and expelled the papal representatives.

But there was no peace with Constantinople either. In 967, Prince Svyatoslav went on a campaign against Bulgaria and began to seriously threaten the Greek possessions and Constantinople itself. The new emperor Nikephoros II Phocas took action - he bribed the Pecheneg leaders, asking them to attack Russia. The Pechenegs with a large army approached the walls of Kyiv, where Olga and her grandchildren were. By that time, Svyatoslav managed to marry Princess Predslava, who gave birth to his sons Yaropolk and Oleg. Another son, Vladimir, was born to the prince by the housekeeper Malusha.

Olga led the defense of Kyiv. When the city began to fail from hunger, she found a boy who knew the Pecheneg language and sent him for help. Passing through the enemy camp with a bridle, the young man asked if anyone had seen a horse. Only when the youth rushed to the Dnieper and swam, the Pechenegs realized their mistake and opened archery. The Kyivian managed to cross to the other side, where there was a detachment that did not take part in the campaign of Svyatoslav. While the detachment made its way to the city, Olga managed to send a messenger to her son with bitter words: “You, prince, are looking for someone else's land. Don't you feel sorry for your fatherland, your old mother and your children? Having received this news, Svyatoslav and his retinue hurried to Kyiv and drove the Pechenegs away.

The strain of forces during the siege turned out to be fatal for Olga. She was, if not seventy years old. as follows from the chronicle story, then about fifty, for that time - a deep old age. In the summer of 969, she fell ill, and the prince postponed another campaign to Bulgaria. to see the mother on her last journey. She died on July 11, and "her son, and her grandchildren, and all the people, wept for her with a great cry, and carried her and buried her in the chosen place." Olga bequeathed not to perform a pagan feast on her, but to bury her according to the Orthodox rite. The author of The Tale of Bygone Years concludes the story about the princess with the words: “She was before the herald of the Christian land, like a daylight before the sun, like the dawn before dawn, and shone among the pagans, like pearls in the mud.”

In 1000, Prince Vladimir, after a fratricidal feud, replaced his father, who died at the hands of the Pechenegs, ordered the transfer of Olga's remains to the Kyiv Church of the Tithes. Immediately, rumors about miracles spread throughout Russia: if someone came to the tomb of the princess with firm faith, a window on the top of the sarcophagus opened, and a wonderful light poured out from there. Many healings took place at the tomb, and soon the Church recognized Olga as a saint and equal to the apostles. It is not known when her official canonization took place, but for a long time the princess was a beloved Russian saint. The cruel revenge on the Drevlyans was forgotten, but “light tributes”, alms and feats of piety were remembered. Whoever Olga was - a Bulgarian princess, a Pskov commoner or a northern Valkyrie - she fully quenched the craving of the people for a merciful, albeit punishing, but fair power. This is how it remained in the memory of the people.

Igor Tychinin

Grand Duchess Olga is the most recognizable character in the early history of Russia. The well-known facts of her biography are well known to many. Especially, ritual revenge for the murder of her husband, Prince Igor. Journey to Constantinople. Baptized into Orthodoxy, godfather Emperor Konstantin Porphyrogenitus. Misunderstanding with his son, Svyatoslav, an implacable pagan. Raising grandchildren: Yaropolk, Oleg and Vladimir. Yes, and much more.
Nevertheless, Olga's chronicle biography contains many secrets and omissions.
To start at least with her origin, age at marriage with Igor and at the birth of Svyatoslav.
Or more. Why, when taking revenge on the Drevlyans, Olga did not suffer the Drevlyan prince Mal. How did his daughter Malusha, being like a slave, turned out to be the servant closest to Olga (housekeeper, a major position at the court of monarchs of any level). And she gave birth to the son of Olga Svyatoslav, the great son of Vladimir. And Mal's son, Dobrynya, turned out to be Vladimir's mentor.
Was Olga a legitimate ruler or guardian under her son Svyatoslav? How did it happen that her son Svyatoslav decided to move the capital of Russia from Kyiv to Bulgaria? And why did he have a difficult relationship with his mother? Finally, did Olga baptize her grandchildren or not? And many many others. But let's confine ourselves to these questions.
According to the chronicles, Olga married Igor in 903. The son Svyatoslav was born to Olga and Igor in 943. Igor at the time of the wedding was from 26 to 38 years old, according to various annals. Accordingly, he gave birth to Svyatoslav at the age of 66 to 78 years.
How old Olga was when she got married, we do not know. We can assume the most probable variation from 12 to 15 years. Then she gave birth to Svyatoslav at the age of 52 to 55 years. In principle, this is possible, however, in our time. In the time of Olga and Igor, they gave birth at a much earlier age. Suppose, before Svyatoslav, only girls were born to Olga and Igor. But they should have been known for sure. It remains to be assumed that both girls and boys were born, but they all died in infancy, or for some reason we do not know about them. And only Svyatoslav, the last attempt of his parents, was lucky. However, all these calculations raise deep doubts.
Moreover, there is another oddity in the activities of Olga and Igor. Their guardian, Grand Duke Oleg, died in 915 (12 years after their marriage). But, having come to power, Igor (and Olga along with him) did not show themselves in any way for 25 years. It is not clear what they did. Apparently, they accumulated strength for the subsequent breakthrough in the 40s of the 10th century. But it would have looked more logical that both Olga and Igor were born later, by about 30 years. Then the messages of the annals would not cause any discrepancies. They would have married in time, and would have given birth to a son in time, and in time they would have begun to show themselves at the head of Russia.
There would be one more ambiguity. Emperor Constantine's flared love for 60, and according to a number of data, for 70-year-old Olga during a reception in Constantinople. In this case, she would have been a young, blooming woman in her 30s.
Well, now a few words about the birthplace of Olga. This is the city of Pleskov. Pskov in the northwest of Russia and Pliska in Bulgaria are known under this name. The second option looks exotic, but it is more likely if one pays attention to Svyatoslav's decision to move his capital to Bulgaria. Perhaps not without the influence of mother's stories from childhood about her homeland.
Now about Olga's revenge. It has long been noted that all the horrors that she unleashed on the Drevlyans were nothing unusual, not terrible. This is a well-known pagan procedure, seemingly lost long ago. Another thing is that during the period of revenge, she appears as a young, determined woman, bursting with energy.
Another thing is the fate of Mal, the prince of the Drevlyans. Most often it is believed that after the persecution of Olga, he turned into Malko Lubechanin. A very strange, solitary, but at peace living person. We must not forget that Mal wooed Olga after the murder of her husband by his subjects. It may have played a role, but not likely. Matchmaking also followed from a typical pagan ritual.
Moreover, it seems that Olga refused not only Mal. From one well-known oral tradition, it follows that Olga translated many of the princes of suitors, "who will be ruined ... she was much cunning."
But Olga faced an extremely important problem. Until her husband was properly buried, her son, whether a child or an adult, was deprived of paternal protection. On the contrary, Mal, having killed the prince of a neighboring tribe, acquired sacred power, as well as his women and his children. But Olga, partially following the general rules, went against them. Or still didn't go. And the chronicles present us with a beautiful, and sometimes bloody, terrible tale. Are there any grounds for such a conclusion? Perhaps there is. But it is unlikely that among them there is the following reason. See. From whom, after all the vicissitudes of the initial period of the history of Russia, did the family of Russian grand dukes come from? That's right, from St. Vladimir. And who was St. Vladimir in relation to our heroes Igor and Olga and, attention, to Mal? Yes, he was a grandson, that's who. Grandson to all three. Recall, to Igor - the grandson on the paternal side, to Mal - the grandson on the female side through the daughter Mala Malusha, mother of Vladimir.
And it can say a lot. There are many options for the development of events. For example, like this. Olga nevertheless became, or almost became, nominally the wife of Mal in accordance with pagan traditions, which is why Mal saved his life. But this marriage was in Olga's throat, in order to get away from following pagan laws, she was baptized, converted to Christianity. Becoming a free woman. But at what cost. After all, there are only pagans around, after all, they can inflict reprisals. And at the cost of the wedding, why not, the son of Svyatoslav with his daughter Mala Malusha. So Vladimir is born. At the same time, Mal, renouncing his pagan rights, retires to an honorable rest. This is one of the options, you can think of others, but we will not do this.
Well, what then were the famous three revenges of Olga. All of them, of course, were. Only Olga has nothing to do with it. Unless she made sure that everything was done correctly, so that before the pre-prepared "suicide bombers" were placed in the pit, they did not forget to place oak coals. And so that before burning in the bath other people chosen for this purpose (in the annals of the “ambassadors”), they should not forget to give them honey to drink. And, finally, that the number of warriors of the deceased leader who commit suicide when the barrow is being built should not be less than 5000. Accounting and control, that's all.
The next question is whether Olga was an independent ruler, or led the country on behalf of her son. According to the annals, she was unequivocally the regent for her son, in fact, the issue is moot.
First of all, the hierarchy of the ruling layer of Russia, described by Konstantin Porphyrogenitus, speaks of its much greater role. In his work “On Ceremonies”, he describes the reception of the Russian archontissa with those close to her palace and the value of gifts to guests at the reception. To a certain extent, this reflects the hierarchy of the Russian court. So, after Olga, her nephew was placed in this hierarchy. And the people of Svyatoslav lurk already in 11th place, receiving a meager reward.
The list also includes 6 archontisses, who, according to the table of ranks, are higher than Svyatoslav. The opinion was expressed that these were wives from Igor's harem. I throw up a version that it could be the daughters of Igor and Olga. And she took them with her to Constantinople in the hope of finding a groom. Why not.
There is an interesting point here as well. During the life of Igor, in his treaty with Byzantium, Svyatoslav was put in second place, before Olga. And a few years after the death of Igor, Svyatoslav is already in 11th place in the report card, or rather, his people (ambassadors), but this does not change matters significantly.
And this says, at least, that Olga was not regent under Svyatoslav. She is a completely independent, legitimate Grand Duchess. And Svyatoslav is generally removed from power.
Now a few words about Olga's baptism. In PVL, it is described in an amazing way. It is clear that far from life.
It follows from the PVL message that Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus fell in love with Olga during her courtesy visit to Constantinople. He began to call for marriage, and this is with a living wife, most Christian sovereign. Olga began to excuse herself by saying that she was a pagan. She is baptized right there, the emperor is an imprisoned father.
After that, the harassment continues, but now Olga has a reinforced concrete argument to reject them. Marriage between a godfather and a goddaughter is forbidden according to the canons of Christianity. The emperor is annoyed, Olga outwitted him. And we understand that this whole story is a folk fiction of the chronicler, which does not add honor to him. But in any fiction there is always at least a handful of truth, otherwise it would not have arisen at all.
It seems to us that such handfuls exist. Olga was baptized not only out of love for Christianity, she also had some political goals.
One of the goals could be the desire to avoid marriage with the emperor. But with what? Obviously not with Konstantin. Then with whom? It seems to us that with the prince, and possibly the kagan, i.e. Emperor Mal, whose wife she was to become according to pagan laws.
At the same time, apparently, the baptism did not go smoothly. It is known that Olga returned to Kyiv annoyed. Hence these omissions with Constantine in the folk legend. The emperor did not like something about Olga's baptism. Maybe her desire to push her son away and not baptize him.
And further. From this passage, no matter how fantastic it may be, it clearly follows that after the death of Igor, Olga was a young, beautiful woman. And all these tales about her 40-year marriage to Igor and about the birth of Svyatoslav at his grandmother's age must be resolutely discarded.
Now about the relationship between Olga and Svyatoslav. Why were they bad? It is believed because Olga became a Christian, but Svyatoslav did not want to be baptized and remained a pagan. But is that the whole point? We see that Olga, having untied Mal, who claimed the throne, also decisively pushed her son away from him. And it is not a fact that she would not have done this if he had been baptized. It is unlikely that the young and energetic prince liked this much.
By the way, if the chronicle is right and Olga really was many years old at the time of the birth of Svyatoslav, then he could not be her son, but the son of one of Igor's other wives. That would immediately explain a lot. But this is already too much, so we are not going to edit the PVL.
One thing is clear that the characters of Olga and Svyatoslav were powerful. And so that the sparks from their collision would not burn all of Russia, Svyatoslav left Russia. And he did not return to Kyiv, except that he arrived during the last days of his mother. And that is not a fact. If you look closely at the Russian history of this period. Svyatoslav was not a prince of Kyiv at all. He was a Russian prince outside Kievan Rus, which he left to his mother, and he himself decided to create some kind of new Rus. Russia, which would not touch the mother, and to form its capital in the mother's homeland, in Bulgaria, perhaps in retaliation for her disgrace in the homeland.
And the last. Baptism of grandchildren. It is very doubtful that a Christian grandmother would not baptize her grandchildren, having in the country, we recall, we are talking about Kievan Rus, full power.
Another thing is that Vladimir, most likely, while still under his father in his homeland (it seems that Vladimir is the eldest son of Svyatoslav) was sent to Novgorod, much more pagan than Kyiv.
Most likely, he could remain unbaptized. It is quite possible, nothing can be said here, that after the death of Olga, Yaropolk and Oleg, fearing their father, returned to paganism. And after his death, the grandmothers returned to the faith.
This is our vision of a number of mysteries connected with Grand Duchess Olga. Gradually, I think, they will open up. And if you managed to guess at least a small part of them here, it would be great.

Copyright: Igor Tychinin, 2016
Publication Certificate No. 216122401723

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The first meeting of Prince Igor with Olga, Vasily Kondratievich Sazonov

• Years of life: about 878 - 945
• Father and mother: Rurik, mother's name is unknown.
• Spouse: Olga.
• Children: Svyatoslav Igorevich.

Igor (≈878 - 945) - Prince of Kievan Rus.

In 912, after the death of his father, Igor takes power.

Igor was the first Russian prince mentioned in Western sources.

Igor had a wife, Olga, who bore him a son, Svyatoslav.

The Drevlyans, taking advantage of the change of power, decided not to pay tribute. But Igor pacified the rebellion, and tribute was paid.

In 913, Igor went on a campaign to the coast of the Caspian Sea.

But it could only be approached through the territories belonging to the Khazars. Prince Igor promised them half of the booty for letting his army through.

Igor kept his promise, but the Khazars began to claim the other half. As a result, a battle took place, and the prince lost most of his troops.

During the reign of Igor, the Pechenegs attacked the Russian lands for the first time.

In 915 a peace treaty was concluded with them. Until 920, the Pechenegs no longer attacked Russian lands.

In 941 Igor made a campaign against Tsargrad. The Byzantines destroyed most of the Russian fleet with Greek fire.

Igor Rurikovich

In September 941, after a series of defeats, Igor returned to Kievan Rus.

In 944, Igor decided to mount a second campaign to wash away the shame of his defeats. The prince gathered an army of Russians, Slavs, Varangians and Pechenegs and went to Byzantium. Emperor Roman I Lekapin learned about Igor's huge army and sent envoys with gifts and a proposal to conclude a peace treaty. The prince accepted the gifts and deployed the army.

In 944, Kievan Rus and Byzantium signed a military-trade agreement.

Igor no longer fought, but sent a squad of the boyar Sveneld for tribute.

This caused discontent, because. Sveneld's squad grew rich, but Igor's squad did not.

Igor's warriors persuaded him to go for tribute himself. As a result, he agreed and in the fall of 945 went to the Drevlyans for tribute. Igor discovered the shortage and decided to collect the tribute again. The Drevlyans were outraged by this behavior of Igor, and they killed Igor's entire army and himself.

The widow Olga, according to legend, during her reign avenged the death of her husband.

Princess Olga ruled the ancient Russian state from 945 to 960. She was the first of the ancient Russian rulers to accept Christianity, when all her subjects were still in paganism.

1. Origin
2. The reign and death of Igor
3. Drevlyans and Olga's revenge
4. Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duchess Olga

Origin

"The Tale of Bygone Years" told that Olga became Igor's betrothed at the age of 10 years.

The prince had several wives, but respected Olga more than others for her wisdom. Regarding the origin of Olga, there are several historical versions.

• There is a legend that she was a simple Varangian peasant woman from near Pskov, who liked the prince.
• Some chronicles testify that she came from the legendary family of Gostomysl and was called Beautiful, but Oleg the Prophet gave the girl his name.
• Some historians consider her the daughter of Oleg, who gave his daughter to Prince Igor.
• A 15th-century manuscript tells of its Bulgarian origin - it was brought by Oleg from the town of Pliski.

Historians failed to establish the exact origin of Olga.

The reign and death of Igor

According to the chronicle, Prince Igor was not a particularly active ruler.

Historical fame he gained due to his tragic death. Igor came to reign in 912. After a series of raids on the villages of the Drevlyans, as well as the imposition of exorbitant tribute, they decided not to pay the new prince, they had to be conquered. The prince managed to defeat the Drevlyans and Ulichi in 914.

In 920, a war broke out with the Pechenegs, but its results are unknown.

The glory of Oleg made Prince Igor want to become famous too, so he went on a campaign to Byzantium twice.

What was the name of the wife of Prince Igor "The Tale of Igor's Campaign"?

The first in 941 ended in the defeat of the prince - the Byzantines were warned of the attack and burned the ships of the attackers right in the sea. The prince himself with the remnants of the squad and without glory fled to Kyiv.

In 944, another campaign took place, the army included many Slavic tribes, and the Pechenegs acted as mercenaries.

To avoid betrayal, Igor took hostages from them and sent his army in two ways - by land on horseback and by sea on boats. The Byzantine emperor was again warned by the Bulkharas. The emperor, learning about the number of approaching troops, sent envoys to Igor with an offer of peace and a generous tribute. The parties made peace and signed lucrative trade agreements. In these treaties, the phrase "Russian land" is mentioned for the first time.

In the autumn of 945, at the insistence of a disgruntled squad, the prince advanced for tribute to the Drevlyans.

Tribute was received, but on the way home, this seemed not enough to the prince. Part of the squad with tribute went to Kyiv, and Igor returned to the Drevlyans and put forward new demands. The Drevlyans were indignant and killed the squad. They executed Igor by tying him to the trunks of young trees, which tore him apart.

The prince was buried near Iskorosten in a high mound.

Drevlyans and Olga's revenge

After the execution of Igor, the Drevlyans sent matchmakers to the widow to become the wife of the Drevlyan prince.

Olga buried the matchmakers alive along with the boat, on which the guests sailed. After that, the widow began to blame the Drevlyans for sending mediocre matchmakers, she asked the best to come. Olga burned the new distinguished guests, luring them into a bathhouse so that they could wash themselves before visiting the Grand Duchess. Then the widow went to the Drevlyans to celebrate a feast at her husband's grave. At the feast, Olga gave the guests strong wine to drink and ordered them to chop them all. The annals speak of 5,000 dead Drevlyans present at the feast.

In 946, Olga went on a campaign against the Drevlyans and won the battle.

The last to fall was Iskorosten, the Drevlyansk capital. The siege lasted for a summer, then the princess ordered the besieged to give her tribute in the form of domestic pigeons.

Reassured and exhausted by the siege, the Drevlyans fulfilled a strange request, hoping to propitiate the enemies. Olga ordered to attach a set of tow on fire to the paws of the birds and let them go.

Pigeons flew home to Iskorosten, and the city burned down. The authenticity of this legend is rejected by many historians - they call it a beautiful legend. The princess established a new tribute in the conquered territories and returned to Kyiv.

Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duchess Olga

At the time of Igor's death, his son Svyatoslav was only three years old. After taking revenge on her husband's killers, Olga officially ruled until her son came of age.

Her actual reign lasted even later - Prince Svyatoslav did not like state affairs, preferring to spend time in numerous military campaigns. During the reign of Olga in Russia, they began to build from stone, before that they used wood. The princess devoted a lot of time to the improvement of Kyiv, Novgorod, Pskov and other lands subject to her.

In 955, Olga was baptized with the name Helena in Constantinople.

According to legend, it happened like this. Upon arrival in Constantinople, Olga received a marriage proposal from Emperor Constantine VII himself. The clever princess gently rejected this proposal, referring to the fact that it is impossible for a Christian to marry a pagan. The emperor was forced to admit that she was right, offering the woman to be baptized. Olga agreed, the patriarch and the emperor himself baptized her.

Then Olga again rejected the claims of the emperor, noting that it was unworthy for the godfather to marry the goddaughter.

Some historians argue that this is a legend. They claim that Olga visited Constantinople, already a devout Christian. She was baptized much earlier by the priest Gregory, who was always with her. But most historians are inclined to believe that Olga was baptized in the autumn of 957 in Constantinople.

Whatever it was, but Olga persuaded her son Svyatoslav to be baptized, he flatly refused.

During the life of his mother, Svyatoslav did not forbid others to be baptized, but he mocked this foreign custom. Most likely, the prince was afraid of being considered dependent on his mother and losing the respect of his squad. After the death of his mother, Svyatoslav executed his only younger brother Gleb for his adherence to Christianity.

Olga was buried according to Christian custom in 969.

Grandson Vladimir Svyatoslavovich in 1007 transferred the ashes of the princess to the new Church of the Holy Mother of God (Kyiv). Grand Duchess Olga was canonized as a saint Equal to the Apostles, besides her, only 5 women in Christianity were honored with this. The Orthodox Church celebrates the memory of Olga on July 11, the saint is revered as the protector of newly converted Christians and widows.

Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duchess Olga, baptized Elena (c. 890 - July 11, 969), ruled Kievan Rus after the death of her husband, Prince Igor Rurikovich from 945 to 962. The first of the Russian rulers adopted Christianity even before the baptism of Russia, the first Russian saint. The name of Princess Olga is at the origin of Russian history, and is associated with the greatest events of the founding of the first dynasty, with the first establishment of Christianity in Russia and the bright features of Western civilization. The Grand Duchess went down in history as the great creator of the state life and culture of Kievan Rus. After her death, the common people called her cunning, the church - a saint, history - wise.

Olga came from the glorious family of Gostomysl (the ruler of Veliky Novgorod even before Prince Rurik). She was born in the Pskov land, in the village of Vybuty, 12 km from Pskov, up the Velikaya River, in a pagan family from the dynasty of princes Izborsky. The names of Olga's parents have not been preserved.

In 903, that is, when she was already 13 years old, she became the wife of the Grand Duke of Kyiv Igor. According to legend, Prince Igor was engaged in hunting. Once, when he was hunting in the Pskov forests, while tracking down the beast, he went to the river bank. Deciding to cross the river, he asked Olga, who was passing by on a boat, to transport him, mistaking her at first for a young man. When they sailed, Igor, carefully peering into the face of the rower, saw that this was not a young man, but a girl. The girl turned out to be very beautiful, smart and pure thoughts. Olga's beauty wounded Igor's heart, and he began to seduce her with words, inclining her to impure carnal confusion. However, the chaste girl, understanding the thoughts of Igor, inflamed by lust, shamed him with wise admonition. The prince was surprised at such an outstanding mind and chastity of a young girl, and did not harass her.

Igor was the only son of the Novgorod prince Rurik (+879). When his father died, the prince was still very young. Before his death, Rurik handed over the rule in Novgorod to his relative and governor Oleg and appointed him Igor's guardian. Oleg was a successful warrior and a wise ruler. People called him Prophetic. He conquered the city of Kyiv and united many Slavic tribes around him. Oleg loved Igor like his own son and raised a real warrior out of him. And when it was time to look for a bride for him, in Kyiv they arranged a show of beautiful girls in order to find among them a girl worthy of the prince's palace, but not one of them

did not like the prince. For in his heart the choice of a bride had long been made: he ordered that the beautiful boatwoman who had transported him across the river be summoned. Prince Oleg brought Olga to Kyiv with great honor, and Igor entered into marriage with her.

In 903, the aging Oleg, having married the young prince to Olga, began to diligently make sacrifices to the gods in order to give Igor an heir. For a long nine years, Oleg brought many bloody sacrifices to idols, burned so many people and bulls alive, waited for the Slavic gods to give Igor a son. Not wait. He died in 912 from a snake bite that crawled out of the skull of his former horse.

Pagan idols began to disappoint the princess: many years of sacrifices to idols did not give her the desired heir. Well, how will Igor act according to human custom and take another wife, a third? The harem will lead. Who will she be then? And then the princess decided to pray to the Christian God. And Olga began at night to fervently ask Him for a son-heir.

And in the twenty-fourth year of marriage, an heir was born to Prince Igor - Svyatoslav! Prince Olga filled up with gifts. She took the most expensive ones to the church of Elijah - for the Christian God. Happy years have flown by. Olga began to think about the Christian faith and about the benefits from it for the country. Only Igor did not share such thoughts: his gods in battles never cheated on him.

According to the chronicle, in 945, Prince Igor died at the hands of the Drevlyans after repeatedly collecting tribute from them (he became the first ruler in the history of Russia who died from popular indignation). Igor Rurikovich was executed, in the tract, with the help of an honorary "break". Having bent over two young, flexible oaks, they tied them by the arms and legs, and let them go ...

The heir to the throne, Svyatoslav, was then only 3 years old, so Olga became the actual ruler of Kievan Rus in 945. Igor's squad obeyed her, recognizing Olga as the representative of the legitimate heir to the throne.

After the murder of Igor, the Drevlyans sent matchmakers to his widow Olga to call her to marry their prince Mal. The princess cruelly took revenge on the Drevlyans, showing cunning and strong will. Olga's revenge on the Drevlyans is described in detail and in detail in The Tale of Bygone Years.

Revenge of Princess Olga

After the reprisal against the Drevlyans, Olga began to rule Kievan Rus until Svyatoslav came of age, but even after that she remained the de facto ruler, since her son was absent from military campaigns most of the time.

The foreign policy of Princess Olga was carried out not by military methods, but by diplomacy. She strengthened international ties with Germany and Byzantium. Relations with Greece revealed to Olga how much the Christian faith is higher than the pagan one.

In 954, Princess Olga went to Tsargrad (Constantinople) for the purpose of religious pilgrimage and diplomatic mission, where she was received with honor by Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus. For two whole years she got acquainted with the basics of the Christian faith, attending divine services in St. Sophia Cathedral. She was struck by the grandeur of Christian churches and the shrines gathered in them.

Baptism of Olga

The sacrament of baptism over her was performed by Patriarch Theophylact of Constantinople, and the emperor himself became the recipient. The name of the Russian princess was named in honor of the holy Empress Helena, who received the Cross of the Lord. The Patriarch blessed the newly baptized princess with a cross carved from a single piece of the Life-Giving Tree of the Lord with the inscription:“The Russian land was renewed with the Holy Cross, and Olga, the noble princess, accepted it.”

Upon returning to Kyiv, Olga, who took the name Elena in baptism, tried to introduce Svyatoslav to Christianity, but “he did not even think of listening to this; but if someone was going to be baptized, he did not forbid, but only mocked him. Moreover, Svyatoslav was angry with his mother for her persuasion, fearing to lose the respect of the squad. Svyatoslav Igorevich remained a convinced pagan.

Upon her return from Byzantium, Olga zealously carried the Christian gospel to the pagans, began to erect the first Christian churches: in the name of St. Nicholas over the grave of the first Christian prince of Kyiv Askold and Hagia Sophia in Kyiv over the grave of Prince Dir, the Church of the Annunciation in Vitebsk, the temple in the name of the Holy and Life-Giving Trinity in Pskov, the place for which, according to the chronicler, was indicated to her from above by the “Ray of the Tri-radiant Deity” - on the banks of the Velikaya River, she saw “three bright beams” descending from the sky.

Holy Princess Olga died in 969, at the age of 80. and was buried in the earth according to the Christian rite.

Her imperishable relics rested in the Church of the Tithes in Kyiv. Her grandson, Prince Vladimir I Svyatoslavich, the Baptist of Russia, transferred (in 1007) the relics of the saints, including Olga, to the church he founded Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Kyiv (Church of the Tithes). Most likely, during the reign of Vladimir (970-988), Princess Olga began to be revered as a saint. This is evidenced by the transfer of her relics to the church and the description of miracles given by the monk Jacob in the 11th century.

In 1547 Olga was canonized as a saint Equal-to-the-Apostles. Only 5 other holy women in Christian history have received such an honor (Mary Magdalene, First Martyr Thekla, Martyr Apphia, Empress Helena Equal to the Apostles and Enlightener of Georgia Nina).

Icon of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga

The memory of Equal-to-the-Apostles Olga is celebrated by Orthodox and Catholic and other Western churches.

Princess Olga became the first ruler of Kievan Rus to be baptized, although both the squad and the Old Russian people were pagan under her. Olga's son, the Grand Duke of Kyiv Svyatoslav Igorevich, also lived in paganism. Olga was the first of the Russian princes to officially accept Christianity and was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in the pre-Mongolian period. The baptism of Princess Olga did not lead to the establishment of Christianity in Russia, but she had a great influence on her grandson Vladimir, who continued her work. She did not wage wars of conquest, but directed all her energy to domestic politics, so for a long time the people kept a good memory of her: the princess carried out an administrative and tax reform, which alleviated the situation of ordinary people and streamlined life in the state.

Grand Duchess Olga

The Holy Princess Olga is revered as the patroness of widows and newly converted Christians. Residents of Pskov consider Olga its founder. In Pskov there is the Olginskaya embankment, the Olginskiy bridge, the Olginskaya chapel. The days of the liberation of the city from the fascist invaders (July 23, 1944) and the memory of St. Olga are celebrated in Pskov as City Days.

GRAND DUCHESS OLGA (890-969)

From the cycle "History of the Russian State".

Princess Olga is one of the outstanding and mysterious personalities on the throne of Kiev. She ruled Russia for 15 years: from 945 to 960. And she became famous as the first woman ruler, as a firm, decisive politician and as a reformer. But some facts of her affairs and life are very contradictory, and many points have not been clarified so far. This allows you to question not only its political activity, but its very existence. Let's take a look at the data that has come down to us.

We can find information about Olga’s life in the “Book of Powers” ​​(1560-1563), which gives a systematic presentation of Russian history, in the “Tale of Bygone Years”, in the collection “On the Ceremonies of the Byzantine Court” by Konstantin Porphyrogenitus, in Radziwillovskaya and in some others. annals. Some of the information that can be gleaned from them is controversial, and sometimes directly opposite.

Personal life

The biggest doubts are the dates of the birth of the princess. Some chroniclers report the year 893, but then she would have married at the age of ten, and gave birth to her first son at 49. Therefore, this date seems unlikely. Modern historians put forward their dating: from 920 to 927-928, but confirmation of these guesses is nowhere to be found.

Olga's nationality also remained unclear. She is called a Slav from Pskov (or from ancient times near Pskov), a Varangian (due to the similarity of her name with the Old Norse Helga), and even a Bulgarian. This version was put forward by Bulgarian historians, having translated the ancient spelling of Pskov Pleskov as Pliska, the capital of what was then Bulgaria.

Rod Olga also causes controversy. It is customary to consider her an ignorant family, but there is the Joachim Chronicle (although its authenticity is in doubt), which tells about the princely origin of the princess. Some other chronicles, also controversial, confirm the conjecture that Olga was supposedly the daughter of Prophetic Oleg, regent Igor Rurikovich.

Olga's marriage is the next controversial fact. According to The Tale of Bygone Years, the wedding took place in 903. There is a beautiful legend about the unintentional meeting of Igor and Olga in the forests near Pskov. Allegedly, the young prince was crossing the river on a ferry, which was ruled by a beautiful girl in men's clothes - Olga. He proposed to her - she refused, but later their marriage still took place. Other chronicles report a legend about intentional marriage: the regent Oleg himself chose Igor's wife - a girl named Prekrasa, to whom he gave his name.

We cannot know anything about Olga's later life. Only the fact of the birth of her first son is known - approximately 942. In chronicles, she reappears only after the death of her husband in 945. As you know, Igor Rurikovich died while collecting tribute in the Drevlyane lands. His son was then a three-year-old child, and Olga took over the board.

Beginning of the reign

Olga began with the massacre of the Drevlyans. Ancient chroniclers claim that the Drevlyan prince Mal twice sent matchmakers to her with an offer to marry him. But the princess refused, cruelly killing the ambassadors. Then she made two military campaigns in the lands of Mala. During this time, more than 5,000 Drevlyans were killed and their capital, the city of Iskorosten, was destroyed. This begs the question: how, after that, Olga was canonized as a Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles and was called Saint?

The subsequent reign of the princess was more humane - she set the first example of building stone buildings (the Kyiv Palace and Olga's country residence), traveled around the lands of Novgorod and Pskov, and established the amount of tribute and the place of its collection. But some scientists doubt the truth of these facts.

Baptism in Constantinople

All sources name only the approximate date, place and godchildren of Olga, which also raises many questions. But most of them agree that she accepted the Christian faith in 957 in Constantinople, and the Byzantine emperor Roman II and Patriarch Polievkt became her godchildren. Slavic chronicles even cite a legend about how the emperor wanted to take Olga as his wife, but she outwitted him twice and left him with nothing. But in the collection of Konstantin Porphyrogenitus it is indicated that Olga was already baptized during the visit.

Assumptions

Of course, such contradictions in the sources can be explained by the antiquity of Olga's era. But it can be assumed that the chronicles tell us about two (or even more) women of the same name. After all, then in Russia there was a custom of polygamy, and there is evidence of several wives of Igor. Maybe the prince in 903 married one Olga of one origin, and another Olga of a different origin gave birth to him Svyatoslav. This easily explains the confusion with the year of her birth, the date of her marriage and the birth of her son.

And in the same way, I would like to believe that a completely different Olga was canonized as a saint, not the one who carried out the brutal reprisals against the Drevlyans.