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Chronology of events. Igor Svyatoslavovich's campaign against the Polovtsy 1185 event

Prince Igor Svyatoslavovich ( Prince Novgorod-Seversky, Prince of Chernigov) was born on April 2, 1151 in the family Prince Svyatoslav Olegovich and Princess Catherine of Novgorod.

First historical event with the participation of Prince Igor the campaign began Andrey Bogolyubsky and 11 more princes to Kyiv, where he ruled Mstislav Izyaslavovich. In 1169, the coalition successfully captured Kyiv, and the throne was given to Bogolyubsky’s brother, Gleb.

1171 - campaign against the Polovtsians, in which the Polovtsian khans Konchak and Kobyak were defeated in the area of the Vorskla River.

1184 - another campaign against the Polovtsians and Battle of the Aurelie River, on the Hiriya River and on the Merle River.

Campaign of 1185 and “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.”

In 1185 Igor Svyatoslavovich decided to finally consolidate his military successes in the war with the Polovtsians and gathered an army from the Kovuy tribe (who submitted to the Chernigov princes), as well as his brother Vsevolod Svyatoslavovich with his squad and nephew Svyatoslav Olegovich and went to the Southeast, towards the Sea of Azov.

Campaign of 1185 against the Polovtsians - one of the most famous in the history of the Old Russian state, mainly, of course, due to the fact that it was described in detail in “ The Tale of Igor's Campaign».

At the beginning of the campaign, the chronicler recorded a solar eclipse. By the way, in 1185 the phenomenon of solar prominences was first described.

The first clash took place on the Syurliy River. What kind of river it was and what it is called now is not known. Researchers suggest both one of the rivers of the Dnieper basin, and rivers of the Aurélie basin and even the Don basin. In this clash, Russian troops easily won and drove the Polovtsians back. As it turned out later, it was just a reconnaissance detachment.

The main battle took place in May 1185, the exact date is unknown, only that the solar eclipse the day before was May 1, 1185. Like the date, the location of the battle is also disputed. “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” talks about the battle near the Kayala River. There are several versions of where this river flows:

One of the rivers in the Voronezh region, for example, Potudan.
The Chir River flows into the Don, or more precisely into the Tsimlyansk Reservoir on the Don.
The Berda River flows into the Sea of Azov, after which the city of Berdyansk is named.
The river is fast, flowing into the Seversky Donets (flows in the Rostov region).
The Kalitva River also flows into the Seversky Donets in the Rostov region.
The Balakleyka River flows into the Seversky Donets in the Kharkov region.
Kagalnik is a tributary of the Don in the Rostov region.
Kalmius - river in Donetsk region, flowing into the Sea of Azov.
The famous (Kalchik), where the battle of the Mongol-Tatars and the Russian troops took place in 1223, as well as the battle of Tokhtamysh and Mamaia, is a river in the Volodarsky district of the Donetsk region, flowing into the Kalmius.

The most likely ones are:

the Chir River, since archaeologists found there the remains of Russian weapons from the 11th-12th centuries (although, given the number of military clashes with the Cumans, Vyatichi and Khazars in that area, these could have been traces of another battle);
(Kalchik) - for the same reason, as well as linguistic analysis(Kalka-Kayala); in addition, chroniclers described Igor’s campaign as a campaign towards the Seversky Donets, and Kalka is closer to the Donets than the Chir River;
the Kalmius River - for the same reasons as the Kalka; Another point in favor of the last two versions is that the Polovtsians often roamed in the Azov region.

In this battle, the Polovtsians gathered almost all their forces and were many times superior to Igor’s troops. In fact, they were completely surrounded. The outcome was decided before the battle began. Since the Polovtsian troops were mostly on foot, the princes and their squads could easily break through the encirclement (they were on horses), but Prince Igor did not want to abandon his infantry to the mercy of fate, and accepted the battle.

“The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” describes the battle as a constant movement towards the Donets, that is, the battle did not take place in one place - Igor tried to get out of the encirclement along with the infantry, and the Polovtsian ring moved with him. At the same time, Igor constantly changed the direction of movement. The Kovui wavered and tried to escape, breaking out of the encirclement - most of them died, the rest were captured, and Igor did not have time to help them. After an unsuccessful attempt to help the Kovayas, Igor found himself alone surrounded by the Polovtsians. He and other princes were taken prisoner, most of the army was killed. The famous chapter from “The Lay...” Yaroslavna's cry"describes grief for the fallen soldiers.

The author of the manuscript is most likely the Kiev boyar Peter Borislavovich. “The Word...” is almost the only work Ancient Rus' , not written by clergy, and this is immediately noticeable in the text. Therefore, this chronicle is of much greater value for literature than “ The Tale of Bygone Years"and other chronicles, consisting of a dry presentation of events with little Christian morality, but without special means of expression - epithets, rhetoric, comparisons and other literary devices.

Igor escaped from captivity of the Polovtsians and reached Russian lands on foot in the area of the present Kharkov region. His son Vladimir Igorevich was able to escape from captivity by marrying the daughter of Khan Konchak.

While Igor was in captivity, the Polovtsians invaded Rus' in the direction of Pereyaslavl and Kursk, but everywhere their attacks were repulsed by Vladimir Glebovich and the sons of Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich, respectively.

1191 - Prince Igor gathered a serious army and conducted a successful campaign against the Polovtsy (he took revenge for 1185).

1198 - Igor became Prince of Chernigov.

In 1201, Igor Svyatoslavovich died, leaving behind 5 sons and one daughter - all from his wife Euphrosyne Yaroslavna.

In the question section. What events are associated with the dates 1111, 1168, 1183, 1185? given by the author STEVEN GERRARD the best answer is 1111 - (Monomakh) - the first trip into the depths of the Polovtsian field. The troops left Pereyaslavl on the second Sunday of Lent, February 26, 1111.
1168 - the campaign of Prince Mstislav Izyaslavich against the Polovtsians.
1183 - Konchak made a campaign against Rus' in alliance with Khan Gleb Tirpeevich. Hearing that the Russian princes had come out to meet him, he did not accept the battle and retreated. It is noteworthy that Igor Svyatoslavich, a former ally of Konchak, refused to participate in repelling the Polovtsian attack.
1185 - Konchak Khan came to Rus' with a large Polovtsian horde, but was defeated at Khorol by the Russian princes, led by Grand Duke Svyatoslav. The campaign of the Russian princes against the Polovtsians and their defeat. Captivity of several princes (including Igor Svyatoslavich). The campaign is described in the Ipatiev Chronicle and “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” and was accompanied by a solar eclipse on May 1, 1185. It was in the description of this eclipse in the Novgorod Chronicle that the oldest (first) mention of observations of prominences was discovered
Thus, all the events of these years are connected with the struggle of the Russian princes with the Polovtsians.

In chapter Schools to the question. What events are associated with the dates 1111, 1168, 1183, 1185? given by the author STEVEN GERRARD the best answer is 1111 - (Monomakh) - the first trip into the depths of the Polovtsian field. The troops left Pereyaslavl on the second Sunday of Lent, February 26, 1111.
1168 - the campaign of Prince Mstislav Izyaslavich against the Polovtsians.
1183 - Konchak made a campaign against Rus' in alliance with Khan Gleb Tirpeevich. Hearing that the Russian princes had come out to meet him, he did not accept the battle and retreated. It is noteworthy that Igor Svyatoslavich, a former ally of Konchak, refused to participate in repelling the Polovtsian attack.
1185 - Konchak Khan came to Rus' with a large Polovtsian horde, but was defeated at Khorol by the Russian princes, led by Grand Duke Svyatoslav. The campaign of the Russian princes against the Polovtsians and their defeat. Captivity of several princes (including Igor Svyatoslavich). The campaign is described in the Ipatiev Chronicle and “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” and was accompanied by a solar eclipse on May 1, 1185. It was in the description of this eclipse in the Novgorod Chronicle that the oldest (first) mention of observations of prominences was discovered
Thus, all the events of these years are connected with the struggle of the Russian princes with the Polovtsians.

1185 East - West. Rus. West. West vs East

The design used illustrations provided by the agencies Fotobank, Shutterstock, RIA Novosti, MIA Rossiya Segodnya, Diomedia, Fotodom and free sources

The stormy youth of princes

Georgia, Armenia, Byzantium were the eastern frontier of the Christian world, opposing the world of Islam. Rus', divided into principalities, disunited and restless, was a shield that protected Europe from the Great Steppe, and at the same time a mediator between the peoples of the Steppe and Europe.

The trade routes that passed through Rus' were branches of the Great Silk Road. Two main branches went along the Volga and Dnieper valleys. On the Dnieper, an older road, the cities of Southern Rus' grew up, Western principalities gravitated towards it, and Veliky Novgorod, the gateway to the Baltic, became the main transshipment point there.

Cover of the Mstislav Gospel, created no later than 1117 in Novgorod by order of the Novgorod prince Mstislav for the Church of the Annunciation on the Settlement. Russia

The route along the Volga was younger than the Dnieper and flourished in those centuries when states became stronger Central Asia. The Bulgarian kingdom existed along this route; along this route, Persian silver reached the upper reaches of the Kama, and furs from the taiga reached the court of the Baghdad caliph. This path helped the formation of the cities of Northern Rus' - Vladimir, Suzdal, and then Moscow. It also eventually reached the Baltic Sea, strengthening the importance of Novgorod.

Trade routes along the Dnieper and Volga often determined the policies of states that gravitated towards them. This is another reason for the complex relations between Rus' and the Steppe and connections with states far from Russian forests. The Russian princes were not indifferent to the events in the North Caucasus, in the Volga region and off the coast of the Black Sea.

This explains both military campaigns in those regions and dynastic alliances. True, by the end of the 12th century, the external activity of Rus' was declining: the civil strife of the princes and the wars with the Polovtsians absorbed too much energy. And yet, Russian Prince Yuri Andreevich marries Queen Tamara, her aunt marries the Grand Duke of Kyiv, Ossetian princesses live in Russian courts...

Polovtsian nomads in the steppes south of Rus' interfered with the connections of Russian princes with the Caucasus and the Black Sea region. But the memory of these connections remained, like the memory of the Tmutarakan principality, created by the offspring of the Rurikovichs near the Black Sea.

"The Tale of Igor's Campaign." Saint Petersburg. 1914 edition

And when, in the great Russian poem “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” Prince Igor sets out on a campaign to the south, he strives for the Black Sea, remembering the Russian campaigns in those lands and how the Russian princes nailed their shields to the gates of Constantinople.

“The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” a largely mysterious poem that still causes heated debate among historians and writers, carries within itself not only a story about the events of 1185, but also the memory of what happened on the southern border of Rus' decades before.

The mysteries of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” arose from the day the poem was found. And they are not allowed today.

In 1812, during the occupation of Moscow by Napoleon's troops, among many houses, the house of an old Catherine nobleman, a famous connoisseur and collector of ancient manuscripts, and secret adviser to Count Alexei Ivanovich Musin-Pushkin, burned down. The library burned down. The manuscript was also burned - a large one, bound in leather, listed in the catalog under No. 323. Under one binding it contained eight works from different times, including “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” written in “ancient letters.”

Johann Baptist Lampi the Elder. Portrait of Count A.I. Musina-Pushkin. Miniature. 1792–1797

This work has been known since late XVIII century. Musin-Pushkin brought this manuscript from somewhere, translated it for many years with the help of the best experts in the Old Russian language, introduced Catherine II to its contents, and finally in 1800 published its text and translation into his contemporary language. After this, the manuscript remained for another twelve years in the Musin-Pushkin collection, first in St. Petersburg, and then in his Moscow house, and some of his colleagues could see it.

“The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” became a literary sensation in Russia. Contemporaries understood that the first Russian poem had been discovered, ranking with such masterpieces as “The Song of the Nibelungs” or “The Song of Roland.”

Of course, keeping a unique manuscript created at the end of the 12th century and preserved in a copy of the 15th century at home was dangerous, and it should have been transferred to a state repository. But the fact is that such repositories were just being created, and it was difficult to decide where the manuscripts were safer to be located. Emperor Alexander I would have been glad to receive the Lay, but when the St. Petersburg Public Library was opening, Musin-Pushkin gave it another manuscript, also priceless, the Laurentian Chronicle.

Musin-Pushkin did not talk about the origin of the manuscript, and few people asked that question then. There could be several sources. It is enough to refer to the count’s biography. In 1775, he began serving at court as master of ceremonies. Even then he collected coins and various antiquities. The position expanded the Count's capabilities. Apparently, he received ancient manuscripts from other courtiers on whose estates they settled. For example, Count Golovkin, as Musin-Pushkin himself recalled, “noticing his inclination towards Russian history, gave him several chronicles and ancient coins.” On this basis, the collector gained confidence in the empress herself, which is understandable: with the zeal of an exemplary student, the former Anhalt-Zerbst princess studied Russian history. For her, this was not self-indulgence, as is sometimes portrayed in historical works - it is hardly possible to find a greater Russian patriot than the empress. The level of her work was quite at the level of contemporary historical science.

Catherine liked the collector Musin-Pushkin. She studied his collection, and then, as a sign of favor, as a colleague, she gave him several ancient Russian manuscripts. For this, the Count promised to translate what she needed and supply her with materials for royal studies.

A few years later, Catherine’s collaboration with Musin-Pushkin opened up another useful path for him. He was appointed Chief Prosecutor of the Holy Synod, which gave him, among other things, the right to audit monastery libraries and find unique items stored there. Moreover, in order to make the count’s work easier, the empress issued a decree according to which monasteries and churches were obliged to send the historical works they had to the synod for making copies. A very wise move.

Musin-Pushkin supervised the making of copies, and also used his post to acquire manuscripts for the collection, and by the turn of the 19th century his collection became the largest in the world.

When the manuscript of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” fell into his hands, he immediately appreciated its significance for Russian history and literature, showed it to other experts and, together with them, began working on the translation. The work turned out to be difficult. Until 1800, when the count and his assistants considered it possible to publish it, only a few saw the manuscript. Musin-Pushkin did everything in his power to return her great work to Russia. And he remained in Russian history as the discoverer of “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.”

To the question: What was the name of the poem about the unsuccessful campaign of the ancient Russians against the Polovtsians in 1185? And why was it called that? given by the author *@ Catherine @ * the best answer is
....Isn’t it stupid for us, brothers, to begin with the old words of difficult stories about Igor’s regiment, Igor Svyatoslavlich! Start that song according to the epics of this time, and not according to Boyan’s plans! Bojan is prophetic, if someone wants to create a song, then the thought will spread across the tree, like a gray wolf along the ground, like a crazy eagle under the clouds. If we remember the speech of the first times of strife, then send 10 falcons against a flock of swans; which came before, that song was belted out to the old Yaroslav, the brave Mstislav, who stabbed Rededya before the Kasozh regiments, the red Romanov Svyatoslavlich. Boyan, brethren, is not 10 a falcon for a flock of swans in the forest, but his own things and fingers for living strings; They themselves are the prince, glory to the roar... .

“The Lay of Igor’s Campaign” (“The Lay of the Campaign of Igor, Igor, the son of Svyatoslav, the grandson of Olegov”, other Russian. The Lay of the Campaign of Igor, Igor, the son of Svyatoslav, the grandson of Olgov) is the most famous monument of ancient Russian literature. The plot is based on the unsuccessful campaign of the Russian princes against the Polovtsians in 1185, undertaken by the Novgorod-Seversk prince Igor Svyatoslavich. The vast majority of researchers date the “Lay” to the end of the 12th century, shortly after the event described (often the same year 1185, less often one or two years later). Imbued with motifs of Slavic folk poetry and pagan mythology, in its artistic language “The Lay” stands out sharply against the background of ancient Russian literature and ranks among the largest achievements of the European medieval epic. In the history of the study of the monument, the version of the “Word” as a forgery of the 18th century (the so-called skeptical point of view), which is currently generally rejected by the scientific community, caused a great resonance.

N.K. Roerich “Igor’s Campaign”. 1942.
The manuscript of “The Lay” (which was part of a collection of several literary texts) was discovered in the Transfiguration Monastery in Yaroslavl by one of the most famous and successful collectors of Russian antiquities - Count Alexei Musin-Pushkin. The only medieval copy of the Lay known to science perished in the Moscow fire of 1812, and information about this is contradictory and confusing, which gave reason to doubt the authenticity of the work.
In the short and concise expressions of the “Tale”, not only the events of the unsuccessful campaign against the Polovtsy of Novgorod-Seversk Prince Igor in 1185 are depicted, as it is narrated in the chronicles (in two editions - southern and northern, according to the Ipatiev Chronicle and the Laurentian Chronicle), but and events from princely feuds, campaigns and successful battles, starting from ancient times, are recalled. Before us is a kind of folk history, a folk epic in the book presentation of a writer of the late 12th century.

Victor Vasnetsov. After the massacre of Igor Svyatoslavich with the Polovtsians. 1880
B. A. Rybakov, attributing most of the Kyiv Chronicle of the 12th century. (known as part of the Ipatiev list) to the Kiev boyar Pyotr Borislavich appearing in it, and, taking into account the non-trivial similarities between the Kiev Chronicle and the “Tale of Igor’s Campaign” long known to linguists, he admitted that the “Tale” was also written by Pyotr Borislavich. He supported this hypothesis by analyzing the political concept of both texts. However, the attribution of the chronicles of this period to the boyar Peter is in itself hypothetical, and the similarities between the works do not necessarily indicate a single authorship.