The first evidence about the Slavs. The Slavs, according to most historians, separated from the Indo-European community in the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. The ancestral home of the early Slavs (Proto-Slavs), according to archaeological data, was the territory east of the Germans - from the river. Oder in the west to the Carpathian Mountains in the east. A number of researchers believe that the Proto-Slavic language began to take shape later, in the middle of the 1st millennium BC.

The first written evidence about the Slavs dates back to the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. Greek, Roman, Arab, and Byzantine sources report on the Slavs. Ancient authors mention the Slavs under the name of the Wends (Roman writer Pliny the Elder, historian Tacitus, 1st century AD; geographer Ptolemy Claudius, 2nd century AD).

During the era of the Great Migration of Peoples (III-VI centuries AD), which coincided with the crisis of slave civilization, the Slavs developed the territory of Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe. They lived in the forest and forest-steppe zone, where, as a result of the spread of iron tools, it became possible to conduct a settled agricultural economy. Having settled the Balkans, the Slavs played a significant role in the destruction of the Danube border of Byzantium.

The first information about the political history of the Slavs dates back to the GU century. AD From the Baltic coast, the Germanic tribes of the Goths made their way to the Northern Black Sea region. The Gothic leader Germanarich was defeated by the Slavs. His successor Vinithar deceived 70 Slavic elders led by God (Bus) and crucified them. Eight centuries later, the author of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” unknown to us, mentioned “the time of Busovo.”

Relations with the nomadic peoples of the steppe occupied a special place in the life of the Slavic world. Along this steppe ocean, stretching from the Black Sea region to Central Asia, wave after wave of nomadic tribes invaded Eastern Europe. At the end of the 4th century. The Gothic tribal union was broken by the Turkic-speaking tribes of the Huns who came from Central Asia. In 375, hordes of Huns occupied the territory between the Volga and Danube with their nomads, and then advanced further into Europe to the borders of France. In their advance to the west, the Huns carried away some of the Slavs. After the death of the leader of the Huns, Atilla (453), the Hunnic Power disintegrated, and they were thrown back to the east.

15 In the 6th century. Turkic-speaking Avars (the Russian chronicle called them Obra) created their own state in the southern Russian steppes, uniting the nomadic tribes there. The Avar Khaganate was defeated by Byzantium in 625. The great Avars, “proud in mind” and in body, disappeared without a trace. “Pogibosha aki obre” - these words, with the light hand of the Russian chronicler, became an aphorism.

The largest political formations of the 7th-8th centuries. in the southern Russian steppes there were the Bulgarian kingdom and the Khazar Khaganate, and in the Altai region there was the Turkic Khaganate. The nomadic states were fragile conglomerates of steppe dwellers who lived on war booty. As a result of the collapse of the Bulgarian kingdom, part of the Bulgarians, under the leadership of Khan Asparukh, migrated to the Danube, where they were assimilated by the southern Slavs who lived there, who took the name of the warriors of Asparukh, i.e. Bulgarian Another part of the Turkic Bulgarians with Khan Batbai came to the middle reaches of the Volga, where a new power arose - Volga Bulgaria (Bulgaria). Her neighbor, who occupied from the middle of the 7th century. the territory of the Lower Volga region, the steppes of the North Caucasus, the Black Sea region and part of the Crimea, there was the Khazar Khaganate, which collected tribute from the Dne-Provsky Slavs until the end of the 9th century.

Eastern Slavs in the VI-XX centuries. In the VI century. The Slavs repeatedly carried out military campaigns against the largest state of that time - Byzantium. From this time, a number of works by Byzantine authors have reached us, containing unique military instructions on how to fight the Slavs. So, for example, the Byzantine Procopius from Caesarea in the book “War with the Goths” wrote: “These tribes, the Slavs and Ants, are not ruled by one person, but from ancient times they have lived in the rule of people (democracy), and therefore for them happiness and misfortune in life are considered a matter of general... They believe that only God, the creator of lightning, is the ruler over everyone, and they sacrifice bulls to him and perform other sacred rites... Both have the same language... And once upon a time even the name Slavs and Antes were one and the same.”

Byzantine authors compared the way of life of the Slavs with the life of their country, emphasizing the backwardness of the Slavs. Campaigns against Byzantium could only be undertaken by large tribal unions of the Slavs. These campaigns contributed to the enrichment of the tribal elite of the Slavs, which accelerated the collapse of the primitive communal system.

The formation of large tribal associations of the Slavs is indicated by a legend contained in the Russian chronicle, which tells about the reign of Kiya with his brothers Shchek, Khoriv and sister Lybid in the Middle Dnieper region. The city founded by the brothers was allegedly named after his older brother Kiy. The chronicler noted that 16 other tribes had similar reigns. Historians believe that these events occurred at the end of the 5th-6th centuries. AD

Territory of the Eastern Slavs (VI-IX centuries). The Eastern Slavs occupied the territory from the Carpathian Mountains in the west to the Middle Oka and the upper reaches of the Don in the east, from the Neva and Lake Ladoga in the north to the Middle Dnieper region in the south. The Slavs, who developed the East European Plain, came into contact with a few Finno-Ugric and Baltic tribes. There was a process of assimilation (mixing) of peoples. In the VI-IX centuries. The Slavs united into communities that no longer had only a tribal, but also a territorial and political character. Tribal unions are a stage on the path to the formation of statehood of the Eastern Slavs.

In the chronicle story about the settlement of the Slavic tribes, one and a half dozen associations of the Eastern Slavs are named. The term "tribes" in relation to these associations has been proposed by historians. It would be more accurate to call these associations tribal unions. These unions included 120-150 separate tribes, whose names have already been lost.

Each individual tribe, in turn, consisted of a large number of clans and occupied a significant territory (40-60 km in diameter).

The chronicle's story about the settlement of the Slavs was brilliantly confirmed by archaeological excavations in the 19th century. Archaeologists noted the coincidence of the excavation data (burial rites, women's jewelry - temple rings, etc.), characteristic of each tribal union, with the chronicle indication of the place of its settlement.

The Polyans lived in the forest-steppe along the middle reaches of the Dnieper. To the north of them, between the mouths of the Desna and Ros rivers, lived the northerners (Chernigov). To the west of the glades on the right bank of the Dnieper, the Drevlyans “sedesh in the forests”. To the north of the Drevlyans, between the Pripyat and Western Dvina rivers, the Dregovichi (from the word “dryagaa” - swamp) settled, who along the Western Dvina were adjacent to the Polochanamn (from the Polota River, a tributary of the Western Dvina). To the south of the Bug River were the Buzhans and Volynians, as some historians believe, descendants of the Dulebs. The area between the Prut and Dnieper rivers was inhabited by the Ulichi. The Tiverts lived between the Dnieper and the Southern Bug. The Vyatichi were located along the Oka and Moscow rivers; to the west of them lived the Krivichi; along the river Sozh and its tributaries - Radimichi. The northern part of the western slopes of the Carpathians was occupied by the White Croats. The Ilmen Slovenes lived around Lake Ilmen.

Chroniclers noted the uneven development of individual tribal associations of the Eastern Slavs. At the center of their story is the land of glades. The earth is girded" tmk indicated by the Chroniclers" wore taiYk^KD^ t 4 g ^ | &^%»/^"- ^T^-L^< -»0 Сс»^ i ^ Wy . "-^-^ Г-чЗД РСр звание «русь». Историки полагают, что так звали одно из племен, жившее по реке Рось и давшее имя племенному союзу, историю которого наследовали поляне. Это лишь одно из возможных объяснений термина «русь». Вопрос о происхождении этого названия до конца не выяснен.

The neighbors of the Eastern Slavs in the north-west were the Baltic Letto-Lntov (Zhmud, Lithuania, Prussians, Latgalians, Semigallians, Curonians) and Finno-Ugric (Chud-Ests, Livs) tribes. The Finno-Ugrians neighbored the Eastern Slavs both in the north and in the northeast (Vod, Izhora, Karelians, Sami, Ves, Perm). In the upper reaches of the Vychegda, Pechora and Kama lived the Yugras, Meryas, Cheremis-Marys, Muroms, Meshcheras, Mordovians, and Burtases. To the east of the confluence of the river. Belaya in the Kama to the middle Volga was the Volga-Kama Bulgaria, its population were Turks. Their neighbors were the Bashkirs. South Russian steppes in the VIII-DC centuries. occupied by the Magyars (Hungarians) - Finno-Ugric cattle breeders, who, after their resettlement to the area of ​​Lake Balaton, were replaced in the 9th century. Pechenegs. The Khazar Khaganate dominated the Lower Volga and the steppe expanses between the Caspian and Azov seas. The Black Sea region was dominated by Danube Bulgaria and the Byzantine Empire.

The path “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” The great waterway “from the Varangians to the Greeks” was a kind of “highway” connecting Northern and Southern Europe. It arose at the end of the 9th century. From the Baltic (Varangian) Sea along the river. Neva caravans of merchants ended up in Lake Ladoga (Nevo), from there along the river. Volkhov to Lake Ilmen and further along the river. Fish to the upper reaches of the Dnieper. From Lovat to the Dnieper in the area of ​​Smolensk and on the Dnieper rapids they crossed by “portage routes”. The western shore of the Black Sea reached Constantinople (Tsaryrada). The most developed lands of the Slavic world - Novgorod and Kyiv - controlled the northern and southern sections of the Great Trade Route. This circumstance gave rise to a number of historians following V.O. Klyuchevsky argues that trade in fur, wax and honey was the main occupation of the Eastern Slavs, since the path “from the Varangians to the Greeks” was “the main core of the economic,” political, and then cultural life of the Eastern Slavs.” ^ Economy of the Slavs. Main occupation Eastern Slavs had agriculture. This is confirmed by archaeological excavations that discovered seeds of cereals (rye, wheat, barley, millet) and garden crops (turnips, cabbage, beets, carrots, radishes, garlic, etc.). Man in those days identified life with arable land and bread, hence the name of grain crops - “zhito", which has survived to this day. The agricultural traditions of this region are evidenced by the Slavs’ borrowing of the Roman grain norm - quadrantal (26.26 l), called in Rus' 18 chetyrekom and which existed in our system of measures and scales until 1924

The main farming systems of the Eastern Slavs are closely related to natural and climatic conditions. In the north, in the region of taiga forests (a remnant of which is Belovezhskaya Pushcha), the dominant farming system was slash-and-burn. In the first year, trees were cut down. In the second year, the dried trees were burned and grain was sown using the ash as fertilizer. For two or three years the plot produced a high harvest for that time, then the land was depleted and it was necessary to move to a new plot. The main tools of labor were an axe, a hoe, a plow, a harrow and a spade, which were used to loosen the soil. Harvesting was done with sickles. They threshed with flails. The grain was ground with stone grain grinders and hand millstones.

In the southern regions, the leading farming system was fallow. There was a lot of fertile land there and plots of land were sown for two to three years or more. As the soil became depleted, they moved (transferred) to new areas. The main tools used here were a plow, a ralo, a wooden plow with an iron ploughshare, i.e. implements adapted for horizontal plowing.

Livestock breeding was closely related to agriculture. The Slavs raised pigs, cows, and small cattle. In the south, oxen were used as draft animals, and horses were used in the forest belt. Other occupations of the Slavs include fishing, hunting, beekeeping (collecting honey from wild bees), which had a large share in the northern regions. Industrial crops (flax, hemp) were also grown.

Community. The low level of productive forces in farming required enormous labor costs. Labor-intensive work that had to be carried out within a strictly defined time frame could only be completed by a large team; his task was also to ensure the proper distribution and use of land. Therefore, the community - mir, rope (from the word “rope”, which was used to measure the land during divisions) acquired a large role in the life of the ancient Russian village.

By the time the state was formed among the Eastern Slavs, the clan community was replaced by a territorial, or neighborhood, community. The community members were now united primarily not by kinship, but by a common territory and economic life. Each such community owned a certain territory on which several families lived. All possessions of the community were divided into public and private. The house, personal land, livestock, and equipment constituted the personal property of each community member.

In common use were arable land, meadows, forests, reservoirs, and 19 fishing grounds. Arable land and meadows were to be divided between families.

As a result of the transfer of the right to own land by the princes to the feudal lords, part of the communities came under their authority. (A fief is a hereditary possession granted by a prince-lord to his vassal, who is obliged to perform court and military service for this. A feudal lord is the owner of a fief, a land owner who exploited the peasants dependent on him.) Another way of subordinating neighboring communities to feudal lords was their seizure by warriors and princes. But most often, the old tribal nobility turned into patrimonial boyars, subjugating the community members.

Communities that did not fall under the power of feudal lords were obliged to pay taxes to the state, which in relation to these communities acted both as the supreme power and as the feudal lord.

Peasant farms and the farms of feudal lords were of a subsistence nature. Both of them sought to provide for themselves from internal resources and were not yet working for the market. However, the feudal economy could not survive completely without a market. With the advent of surpluses, it became possible to exchange agricultural products for handicraft goods; Cities began to emerge as centers of craft, trade and exchange, and at the same time as strongholds of feudal power and defense against external enemies.

City. The city, as a rule, was built on a hill at the confluence of two rivers, as this provided reliable defense against enemy attacks. The central part of the city, protected by a rampart, around which a fortress wall was erected, was called the Kremlin, Krom or Detinets. There were palaces of princes, courtyards of the largest feudal lords, temples, and later monasteries. The Kremlin was protected on both sides by a natural water barrier. A ditch filled with water was dug from the base of the Kremlin triangle. Behind the moat, under the protection of the fortress walls, there was a market. Settlements of artisans adjoined the Kremlin. The craft part of the city was called posad, and its individual areas, inhabited, as a rule, by artisans of a certain specialty, were called settlements. In most cases, cities were built on trade routes, such as the route “from the Varangians to the Greeks” or the Volga trade route, which connected Rus' with the countries of the East. Communication with Western Europe was also maintained via land roads.

The exact dates of the founding of ancient cities are unknown, but many of them existed at the time of the first mention in the chronicle. For example, Kyiv (the legendary chronicle evidence of its foundation dates back to the end of the 5th-6th centuries), Novgorod, Chernigov, Pereyaslavl South, 20 Smolensk, Suzdal, Murom, etc. According to historians, in the 9th century. in Rus' there were at least 24 large cities that had fortifications.

Social system. At the head of the East Slavic tribal unions were princes from the tribal nobility and the former clan elite - “deliberate people”, “best men”. The most important issues of life were decided at public meetings - veche gatherings.

There was a militia (“regiment”, “thousand”, divided into “hundreds”). At their head were the thousand and sotskys. The squad was a special military organization. According to archaeological data and Byzantine sources, East Slavic squads appeared already in the 6th-7th centuries.

The squad was divided into the senior squad, which included ambassadors and princely rulers who had their own land, and the junior squad, which lived with the prince and served his court and household. The warriors, on behalf of the prince, collected tribute from the conquered tribes. Such trips to collect tribute were called “polyudye”. The collection of tribute usually took place in November-April and continued until the spring opening of the rivers, when the princes returned to Kyiv. The unit of tribute was the smoke (peasant household) or the area of ​​land cultivated by the peasant household (ralo, plow).

Slavic paganism. The ancient Slavs were pagans. At an early stage of their development, they believed in evil and good spirits. A pantheon of Slavic gods emerged, each of which personified various forces of nature or reflected the social and public relations of that time. The most important gods of the Slavs were: Perun, the god of thunder, lightning, war; Svarog - god of fire; Veles is the patron of cattle breeding; Mokosh - who protected the female part of the household; Simargl is the god of the underworld. The sun god was especially revered, who was called differently by different tribes: Dazhdbog, Yarilo, Khoros, which indicates the absence of stable Slavic inter-tribal unity.

Formation of the Old Russian state. The tribal reigns of the Slavs had signs of emerging statehood. Tribal principalities often united into large super-unions, revealing features of early statehood.

One of these associations was a union of tribes led by Kiy (known from the end of the 5th century). At the end of the VI-VII centuries. there was, according to Byzantine and Arab sources, a “Power of the Volynians”, which was an ally of Byzantium. The Novgorod chronicle reports about the elder Gostomysl, who headed in the 9th century. Slavic unification around Novgorod. Eastern sources suggest the existence on the eve of the formation of the Old Russian state of three large associations of Slavic tribes: Cuiaba, Slavia and Artania. Cuyaba (or Kuyava), apparently, was located around Kyiv. Slavia occupied the territory in the area of ​​Lake Ilmen, its center was Novgorod. The location of Artania is determined differently by different researchers (Ryazan, Chernigov). Famous historian B.A. Rybakov claims that at the beginning of the 9th century. On the basis of the Polyansky Tribal Union, a large political association “Rus” was formed, which included some of the northerners.

Thus, the widespread spread of agriculture using iron tools, the collapse of the clan community and its transformation into a neighboring community, the growth in the number of cities, and the emergence of squads are evidence of the emerging statehood.

The Slavs developed the East European Plain, interacting with the local Baltic and Finno-Ugric populations. The military campaigns of the Antes, Sklavens, and Rus against more developed countries, primarily against Byzantium, brought significant military booty to the warriors and princes. All this contributed to the stratification of East Slavic society. Thus, as a result of economic and sociopolitical development, statehood began to emerge among the East Slavic tribes.

Norman theory. A Russian chronicler of the early 12th century, trying to explain the origin of the Old Russian state, in accordance with medieval tradition, included in the chronicle a legend about the calling of three Varangians as princes - the brothers Rurik, Sineus and Truvor.

Many historians believe that the Varangians were Norman (Scandinavian) warriors who were hired to serve and swore an oath to the Byzantine emperor. A number of historians, on the contrary, consider the Varangians to be a Russian tribe that lived on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea and on the island of Rügen.

According to this legend, on the eve of the formation of Kievan Rus, the northern tribes of the Slavs and their neighbors (Ilmen Slovenes, Chud, Vse) paid tribute to the Varangians, and the southern tribes (Polyans and their neighbors) were dependent on the Khazars. In 859, the Novgorodians “expelled the Varangians overseas,” which led to civil strife. Under these conditions, the Novgorodians who gathered for the council sent for the Varangian princes: “Our land is great and abundant, but there is no order (order - Author) in it. Come reign and rule over us.” Power over Novgorod and the surrounding Slavic lands passed into the hands of the Varangian princes, the eldest of whom Rurik, as the chronicler believed, laid the beginning of the princely dynasty. After the death of Rurik, another Varangian prince Oleg (there is information that he was a relative of Rurik), who ruled in Novgorod, united Novgorod and 22 Kyiv in 882. This is how, according to the chronicler, the state of Rus' (also called Kievan Rus by historians) was formed.

The legendary chronicle story about the calling of the Varangians served as the basis for the emergence of the so-called Norman theory of the emergence of the Old Russian state. It was first formulated by German scientists G.-F. Miller and G.-Z. Bayer, invited to work in Russia in the 18th century. M.V. was an ardent opponent of this theory. Lomonosov.

The very fact of the presence of the Varangian squads, by which, as a rule, the Scandinavians are understood, in the service of the Slavic princes, their participation in the life of Rus' is beyond doubt, as are the constant mutual ties between the Scandinavians and Russia. However, there are no traces of any noticeable influence of the Varangians on the economic and socio-political institutions of the Slavs, as well as on their language and culture. In the Scandinavian sagas, Rus' is a country of untold riches, and service to Russian princes is the surest way to gain fame and power. Archaeologists note that the number of Varangians in Rus' was small. No data has been found on the colonization of Rus' by the Varangians. The version about the foreign origin of this or that dynasty is typical of antiquity and the Middle Ages. Suffice it to recall the stories about the calling of the Anglo-Saxons by the Britons and the creation of the English state, about the founding of Rome by the brothers Romulus and Remus, etc.

In the modern era, the scientific inconsistency of the Norman theory, which explains the emergence of the Old Russian state as the result of foreign initiative, has been fully proven. However, its political meaning is still dangerous today. The “Normanists” proceed from the position of the supposedly primordial backwardness of the Russian people, who, in their opinion, are incapable of independent historical creativity.

It is possible, as they believe, only under foreign leadership and according to foreign models.

Historians have convincing evidence that there is every reason to assert: the Eastern Slavs had strong traditions of statehood long before the calling of the Varangians. State institutions arise as a result of the development of society. The actions of individual major individuals, conquests or other external circumstances determine the specific manifestations of this process. Consequently, the fact of the calling of the Varangians, if it really took place, speaks not so much about the emergence of Russian statehood as about the origin of the princely dynasty. If Rurik was a real historical figure, then his calling to Rus' should be considered as a response to the real need for princely power in Russian 23 society of that time. In historical literature, the question of Rurik’s place in our history remains controversial. Some historians share the opinion that the Russian dynasty is of Scandinavian origin, like the name “Rus” itself (“Russians” were the Finns’ name for the inhabitants of Northern Sweden). Their opponents are of the opinion that the legend about the calling of the Varangians is the fruit of tendentious writing, a later insertion caused by political reasons. There is also a point of view that the Varangians-Rus and Rurik were Slavs who originated either from the southern coast of the Baltic (Rügen Island) or from the area of ​​the Neman River. It should be noted that the term “Rus” is repeatedly found in relation to various associations both in the north and in the south of the East Slavic world.

The formation of the state of Rus' (the Old Russian state or, as it is called after the capital, Kievan Rus) is the natural completion of a long process of decomposition of the primitive communal system among one and a half dozen Slavic tribal unions that lived on the way “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” The established state was at the very beginning of its journey: primitive communal traditions retained their place in all spheres of life of East Slavic society for a long time.

1. The process of historical knowledge must be based on science, on clearly defined events, facts and evidence, and not on assumptions and arguments. There are many methods<...>, but they all boil down to the fact that they are based on scientific knowledge. The principle of historicism. This is when you consider any event in the context of time. Phases of ethnogenesis: 1. Rising phase. 2. Akmatic phase 3. Fracture phase. 4. Inertia phase. 5. Obscuration phase. 6. Memorial phase and the further fate of the ethnos. The entire history of mankind, wrote L.N. Gumilyov, consists of a series of changes. People have long tried to understand and explain the origins of their history. The answers were different, because history is multifaceted: it can be the history of socio-economic formations, or military history, the history of science and culture, etc. Gumilyov views history as the history of peoples. It is within the framework of peoples (ethnic groups) in contact with each other that history is made, for each historical fact is the property of the life of a particular people. “Ethnic groups existing in space and time are the actors in the theater of history” (2). What is an ethnos and what are the patterns of its emergence, development and decline - the author is trying to answer this question.

2. Eastern Slavs. Formation of the Old Russian state. Norman theory.

Territory of the Eastern Slavs (VI-IXcenturies). The Eastern Slavs occupied the territory from the Carpathian Mountains in the west to the Middle Oka and the upper reaches of the Don in the east, from the Neva and Lake Ladoga in the north to the Middle Dnieper region in the south. The Slavs, who developed the East European Plain, came into contact with a few Finno-Ugric and Baltic tribes. Tribal unions are a stage on the path to the formation of statehood of the Eastern Slavs. These unions included 120-150 separate tribes, whose names have already been lost. Each individual tribe, in turn, consisted of a large number of clans and occupied a significant territory (40-60 km across). The path “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” The great waterway “from the Varangians to the Greeks” was a kind of “highway” connecting Northern and Southern Europe. It arose at the end of the 9th century. From the Baltic (Varangian) Sea along the Neva River, merchant caravans reached Lake Ladoga (Nevo), from there along the Volkhov River to Lake Ilmen and further along the Lovat River to the upper reaches of the Dnieper. From Lovat to the Dnieper in the area of ​​Smolensk and on the Dnieper rapids they crossed by “portage routes”. The western shore of the Black Sea reached Constantinople (Tsargrad). Community. By the time the state was formed among the Eastern Slavs, the clan community was replaced by a territorial, or neighborhood, community. There were two forms of ownership in the community - personal and public. Formation of the Old Russian state. The tribal reigns of the Slavs had signs of emerging statehood. Tribal principalities often united into large super-unions, revealing features of early statehood. One of these associations was a union of tribes led by Kiy (known from the end of the 5th century). The famous historian B. A. Rybakov claims that at the beginning of the 9th century. On the basis of the Polyansky Tribal Union, a large political association “Rus” was formed, which included some of the northerners. Norman theory. A chronicle story about the calling of three Varangians as princes - the brothers Rurik, Sineus and Truvor. In 862, the Varangian Rurik was called in to stop local strife. His successor Oleg took Kyiv in 882 and began to control the route “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” 882 is considered the date of formation of the Old Russian state. According to the “Norman theory”, the Varangians played a decisive role in this, but, apparently, they only accelerated its creation, due to previous development. The formation of the “State of Rus'” is the natural completion of a long process of decomposition of the primitive communal system of one and a half dozen Slavic tribal unions that lived on the way “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” (early feudal monarchy).

3. Vladimir I the Saint. The Baptism of Rus' and its meaning.

Under Vladimir I (980-1015), the lands of the Eastern Slavs were united as part of Kievan Rus. The Vyatichi, the lands on both sides of the Carpathians, and the Chervlensk cities were finally annexed. The state apparatus was further strengthened. Princely sons and senior warriors received control of the largest centers. One of the most important tasks of that time was solved: ensuring the protection of Russian lands from the raids of numerous Pecheneg tribes. Acceptance of Christianity. In 988, under Vladimir I, Christianity was adopted as the state religion. Reasons: -with the help of a monopolistic religion, Vladimir wanted to strengthen the country and territorial unity; - the adoption of X-V brought Rus' on the same level as the European peoples. Meaning: - X helped create the spiritual foundation of the state; - formation of equality before God, tolerance towards one's neighbor; - shifts in the development of culture

The history of the emergence of the state uniting the tribes of the Eastern Slavs still causes a lot of controversy. There are two theories of the formation of the Old Russian state: Norman and anti-Roman. We will talk about them, as well as the reasons for the emergence and development of the state in Rus' today.

Two theories

The date of formation of the Old Russian state is considered to be 862, when the Slavs, due to strife between tribes, invited a “third” party - the Scandinavian princes Rurik to restore order. However, in historical science there are discrepancies regarding the origin of the first state in Rus'. There are two main theories:

• Norman theory(G. Miller, G. Bayer, M. M. Shcherbatov, N. M. Karamzin): referring to the chronicle “The Tale of Bygone Years,” the creation of which belongs to the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery Nestor, scientists came to the conclusion that statehood in Rus' - the work of the Normans Rurik and his brothers;
• Anti-Norman theory(M.V. Lomonosov, M.S. Grushevsky, I.E. Zabelin): followers of this concept do not deny the participation of the invited Varangian princes in the formation of the state, but believe that the Ruriks did not come to an “empty” place and this form of government has already existed among the ancient Slavs long before the events described in the chronicle.

Once, at a meeting of the Academy of Sciences, Mikhailo Vasilyevich Lomonosov beat Miller for a “false” interpretation of the history of Rus'. After the death of the great Russian scientist, his research in the field of the history of the Old Russian state mysteriously disappeared. After some time, they were discovered and were published under the editorship of the same Miller. It is interesting to note that modern research has shown that the published works do not belong to the hand of Lomonosov.

Rice. 1. Collection of tribute from Slavic tribes

Reasons for the formation of the Old Russian state

Nothing in this world happens for nothing. For this or that event to happen, reasons are needed. There were prerequisites for the formation of a state among the Slavs:

• Uniting Slavic tribes to confront more powerful neighbors: At the beginning of the 9th century, the Slavic tribes were surrounded by stronger states. In the south there was a large medieval state - the Khazar Khaganate, to which the northerners, Polans and Vyatichi were forced to pay tribute. In the north, the hardy and warlike Normans demanded ransom from the Krivichi, Ilmen Slovenes, Chud and Merya. Only the unification of the tribes could change the existing injustice.
• Destruction of the clan system and clan ties: Military campaigns, the development of new lands and trade led to the fact that in clan communities based on property equality and joint farming, stronger and richer families appeared - clan nobility;
• Social stratification: The destruction of the tribal and communal system among the Slavs led to the emergence of new layers of the population. This is how a layer of tribal nobility and warriors was formed. The first included the descendants of the elders who managed to accumulate more wealth. The second, the warriors, were young warriors who, after military campaigns, did not return to agriculture, but became professional warriors who defended rulers and the community. A layer of ordinary community members, as a sign of gratitude for the protection of the soldiers and princes, presented gifts, which later turned into obligatory tribute. In addition, a layer of artisans emerged who moved away from agriculture and exchanged their “fruits” of labor for products. There were also people who lived exclusively through trade - a layer of merchants.
• Urban development: In the 9th century, trade routes (land and river) played a major role in the development of society. All new layers of population - nobility, warriors, artisans, merchants and farmers sought to settle in villages located on trade routes. Thus, the number of residents increased, the social system changed, new orders emerged: the power of princes turned into state power, tribute into a mandatory state tax, small cities into large centers.

Rice. 2. Gifts to vigilantes for protection from enemies

Two centers

All of the above main stages in the development of statehood in Rus' naturally led in the first half of the 9th century to the formation of two centers on the map of modern Russia - two early ancient Russian states:

• in the north- Novgorod Union of Tribes;
• on South- merger with the center in Kyiv.

By the middle of the 9th century, the princes of the Kyiv Union - Askold and Dir achieved the liberation of their tribes from the “offerings” of tribute to the Khazar Kaganate. Events in Novgorod developed differently: in 862, due to strife, the residents of the city invited the Norman prince Rurik to reign and own the lands. He accepted the offer and settled in the Slavic lands. After his death, his close associate Oleg took control into his own hands. It was he who went on a campaign against Kyiv in 882. Thus, he united the two centers into one state - Rus or Kievan Rus.

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After Oleg’s death, the title “Grand Duke” was taken by Igor (912 -945), the son of Rurik. For excessive extortions, he was killed by people from the Drevlyan tribe.

Rice. 3. Monument to Prince Rurik - the founder of the Old Russian state

What have we learned?

Today the following questions on history (6th grade) were briefly discussed: to what century did the formation of the Old Russian state date back (9th century), what events became the prerequisites for the emergence of statehood in Rus' and who were the first Russian princes (Rurik, Oleg, Igor). These theses can be used as a cheat sheet for preparing for history exams.

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The first evidence about the Slavs:

*The first written evidence about the Slavs dates back to the beginning of the 1st millennium AD. Greek, Roman, Arab, and Byzantine sources report on the Slavs. Ancient authors mention the Slavs under the name of the Wends.

*During the era of the Great Migration of Peoples (III-VI centuries AD), the Slavs conquered the territory of Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe. They lived in the forest and forest-steppe zone, where, as a result of the spread of iron tools, it became possible to conduct a settled agricultural economy.

*The largest political formations of the 7th-8th centuries. in the southern Russian steppes there were the Bulgarian kingdom and the Khazar Khaganate, and in the Altai region there was the Turkic Khaganate.

Territory of the Eastern Slavs:

*The Eastern Slavs occupied the territory from the Carpathian Mountains in the west to the Middle Oka and the upper reaches of the Don in the east, from the Neva and Lake Ladoga in the north to the Middle Dnieper in the south.

*There was a process of assimilation (mixing) of peoples. In the VI-IX centuries. The Slavs united into communities that no longer had only a tribal, but also a territorial and political character. Tribal unions are a stage on the path to the formation of statehood of the Eastern Slavs.

*The great waterway “from the Varangians to the Greeks” arose at the end of the 9th century.

Economy of the Slavs:

*The main occupation of the Eastern Slavs was agriculture.

*Cattle breeding was closely related to agriculture. The Slavs raised pigs, cows, and small cattle. In the south, oxen were used as draft animals, and horses were used in the forest belt. Other occupations of the Slavs include fishing, hunting, and beekeeping.

Community:

*By the time of the formation of the state among the Eastern Slavs, the clan community was replaced by a territorial, or neighboring, community. The community members were now united primarily not by kinship, but by a common territory and economic life.

*Peasant farms and farms of feudal lords were of a subsistence nature. Both of them sought to provide for themselves from internal resources and were not yet working for the market.

*With the advent of surpluses, it became possible to exchange agricultural products for handicraft goods; Cities began to emerge as centers of craft, trade and exchange, and at the same time as strongholds of feudal power and defense against external enemies.

Social system:

*At the head of the East Slavic tribal unions were the princes of the tribal nobility and the former clan elite - “deliberate people”, “the best men”. The most important issues of life were decided at popular meetings and veche gatherings.

*A special military organization was the squad. The squad was divided into senior and junior.

Reasons for the formation of the Old Russian state:

*internal

*development of productive forces, which led to the emergence of a neighboring community and the emergence of classes

*increase in the number of cities as the first independent organizations of residents

*emergence of the military squad nobility

*the emergence of common cultural traditions associated with language, writing and some rituals

*external

*the need to create armed forces to protect cities and populations

*development of permanent targeted trade and economic relations between cities and states

Norman theory:

According to this theory, on the eve of the formation of Kievan Rus, the northern tribes of the Slavs and their neighbors paid tribute to the Varangians, and the southern tribes (the Glades and their neighbors) were dependent on the Khazars. In 859, the Novgorodians “expelled the Varangians overseas,” which led to civil strife. In these conditions The Novgorodians who gathered for the council sent for the Varangian princes and invited them to reign over them. Power over Novgorod and the surrounding Slavic lands passed into the hands of the Varangian princes, the eldest of the cats. Rurik marked the beginning of the princely dynasty (2 other brothers of Rurik - Truvor and Sineus). After the death of Rurik, another Varangian prince Oleg, who ruled in Novgorod, united. Novgorod and Kyiv in 882. This is how the state of Rus' (also called Kievan Rus by historians) came into being.

2 tickets. Socio-political system of Kievan Rus IX - early XII centuries. The historical significance of the adoption of Christianity for Ancient Rus'.

Unification of Novgorod and Kyiv:

*As a result of the joint activities of the leading cities and squads, 2 large East Slavic associations were created: Novgorod (north), Kyiv (south). 884-885 - formation of Kievan Rus. At the head of the state was the Grand Duke of Kiev, to whom the subject tribes, relatives and warriors of the prince were subordinate, they created and laid the first legal foundations - the court.

Oleg(879-912):

*organization of the first military campaigns against Byzantium

*first written contract

*882 - captured Kyiv, killed Askold and Dir

*subjugated the Drevlyans, Northerners, and Radimichi.

Prince Igor (912-945):

* 944 the agreement with Byzantium was confirmed

*Under Igor, the first popular indignation occurred - the uprising of the Drevlyans in 945.

*Killed by the Drevlyans while collecting tribute in 945.

Olga(945-969)

* brutally took revenge on the Drevlyans for the murder of her husband.

*Olga established a clear procedure for collecting tribute (“polyudya”) by introducing: “lessons”—determining the exact amount of tribute

"cemeteries" - establishment of places for collecting tribute

Svyatoslav (964-972):

*annexed the lands of the Vyatichi

*conquered the Mordovian tribes and subjugated them to Kyiv

*defeated and conquered the Khazars (robbers)

*repelled the onslaught of the Pechenegs

Vladimir I:

*Under Vladimir I (980-1015) all the lands of the Eastern Slavs united as part of Kievan Rus. The Vyatichi, the lands on both sides of the Carpathians, and the Chervlensk cities were finally annexed. The state apparatus was further strengthened, one of the most important tasks of that time was solved: ensuring the protection of Russian lands from the raids of numerous Pecheneg tribes.

Acceptance of Christianity:

*In 988, under Vladimir I, Christianity was adopted as the state religion.

*Vladimir, having been baptized himself, baptized his boyars, and then the whole people. The spread of Christianity often met resistance from the population, who revered their pagan gods.

*Reasons for accepting Christianity:

1) the need to strengthen the power of the Kyiv prince

2) the need for state unification on a new spiritual basis.

3) justification of social inequality

4) the need to introduce Rus' to pan-European political realities, spiritual and cultural values.

*The adoption of Christianity was of great importance for the further development of Rus':

*Christianity affirmed the idea of ​​equality of people before God

*The adoption of Christianity strengthened state power and territorial unity of Kievan Rus

*The adoption of Christianity played a big role in the development of Russian culture, which was influenced by Byzantine, and through it, ancient culture (stone structure, increased literacy)

*Ideological rule

*A metropolitan, appointed by the Patriarch of Constantinople, was installed at the head of the Russian Orthodox Church; Some regions of Rus' were headed by bishops, to whom priests in cities and villages were subordinate.

*The entire population of the country was obliged to pay a tax to the church "tithe"

*Vladimir was canonized by the church as a saint and for his services in the baptism of Rus' is called “equal to the apostles”

Yaroslav the Wise (1019-1054):

* Kievan Rus reached its greatest power

*strengthened the position of the Baltic states

*built in Yuryev

*closed the border to the Pechenegs, strengthened the southern borders

*created the first state Schools

*built monasteries

* in the process of strengthening and creating a single centralized state, managing it, he divided Rus' between his sons, which led to feudal fragmentation

Vladimir Monomakh(113-1125):

*On the initiative of Vladimir Monomakh, the Lyubech Congress of Princes took place in 1097. It was decided to stop the strife and the principle “Let everyone keep his fatherland” was proclaimed.

*Vladimir Monomakh was forced to make certain concessions by issuing the so-called “Charter of Vladimir Monomakh,” which became another part of “Russian Pravda.” The Charter streamlined the collection of interest by moneylenders, improved the legal status of merchants, and regulated the transition to servitude. Monomakh devoted a lot of space in this legislation to the legal status of procurement, which indicates that procurement became a very widespread institution and the enslavement of smerds proceeded at a more decisive pace.

*Under Monomakh, the international authority of Rus' strengthened, and the initial Russian chronicle “The Tale of Bygone Years” was compiled. The prince himself was the grandson of the Byzantine emperor Constantine Monomakh. His wife was an English princess. Under Vladimir Monomakh

*The son of Vladimir Monomakh, Mstislav I the Great (1125-1132), managed to maintain the unity of the Russian lands for some time. After the death of Mstislav, Kievan Rus finally disintegrated into one and a half dozen principalities-states. A period has begun, which in history is called the period of fragmentation or the specific period.

Eastern Slavs before the formation of the Old Russian state.

There are several versions of the origin (ethnogenesis) of the Slavs. Let us recall some of them.

"Danube version" became widespread in pre-revolutionary historical literature and in the works of famous Russian historians. Let's say IN. Klyuchevsky believed that the Slavs left the Danube for the Carpathians and lived there from the second to the seventh centuries AD. And only after “parking in the Carpathians” did they come to the Dnieper. (Compare the chronicle version and the “Danube version” of the ethnogenesis of the Slavs. What do they have in common and how are they different from each other?)

“So, before the Eastern Slavs from the Danube reached the Dnieper, they remained for a long time on the Carpathian slopes; this was their intermediate stop.”

(Klyuchevsky V.O. Course of Russian history. Part 1 // Klyuchevsky V.O. Works: In 9 volumes. T.1. M., 1987. P.122)

Soviet historical science claimed that the ancestors of the Slavs lived on a large territory of Central and Eastern Europe, stretching from north to south 400 km, from west to east - about 1.5 thousand km. Then the Slavs settled in more local areas.

The issue of the formation and development of East Slavic society on the eve of the formation of the Old Russian state also requires consideration of relations with neighboring tribes and peoples.

The most numerous neighbors of the Eastern Slavs were the Finno-Ugric tribes. There were no serious clashes with them. As a rule, under pressure from the Slavs, they went to live in more remote territories. Most of these tribes were eventually assimilated by the Slavs and became Slavic.

Lithuanian tribes became other neighbors of the Eastern Slavs. Unlike the Finno-Ugric ones, they were more warlike. And their clashes with the Eastern Slavs were common. In addition, the lands of the Slavs in the north were subject to constant raids by people from Scandinavian tribes - the Vikings (in Rus' they were called Varangians), who began active penetration into the region in the 8th - 9th centuries and gradually moved south along river trade routes.

In the south, warlike tribes of nomads caused a lot of trouble. At different times, danger was posed by various nomadic tribes - Magyars, Pechenegs, Torques, Polovtsians. Clashes with nomads became a characteristic component of the life of the Eastern Slavs, and the protection of the southern borders of the Eastern Slavic state from their raids became a constant subject of concern for the princely authorities during the period of the existence of Kievan Rus.

In addition to the tribes that were at the pre-state level of development, the neighbors of the Eastern Slavs were also peoples that already had developed statehood. The most famous in this regard was the Byzantine Empire, located near the place of residence of the Eastern Slavs, and then from Kievan Rus. She had a huge influence on the development of East Slavic society, although Rus''s relations with Byzantium were ambiguous.

Another state located adjacent to the East Slavic lands was Volga Bulgaria (Bulgaria), located between the Volga and Kama rivers. Relations with her were predominantly peaceful. Historical sources indicate the existence of developed trade relations between Volga Bulgaria and Russia, starting even before the formation of the Old Russian state.

Another neighbor of the Eastern Slavs was the Khazar Khaganate. It was located between the Volga and Don rivers. The Khazars were a warlike people who sought to conquer and place their neighbors in tributary relations. Volga Bulgaria was dependent on Khazaria. Some East Slavic tribal unions were also forced to pay tribute to the Khazar Khaganate (which?). On the other hand, the Khazar state, according to a number of researchers, covered the Slavs from the southeast from wilder and more aggressive nomadic peoples for quite a long time.

So, being in various relationships with their neighbors, the Eastern Slavs settled their territory. Gradually, they developed the prerequisites for the formation of a state.