Kievan Rus' PDF

Early Slavs. Kievan Rus’ Origins Slavic ethnogenesis occurred in a large area, from the Oder in the west to the Dnieper in the east and south to the Danube. The Slavic languages are a major branch of the Indo-European language family. Slavic archaeological cultures and vectors of their spreading T...

Early Slavs. Kievan Rus’ Origins Slavic ethnogenesis occurred in a large area, from the Oder in the west to the Dnieper in the east and south to the Danube. The Slavic languages are a major branch of the Indo-European language family. Slavic archaeological cultures and vectors of their spreading There are 2 main theories of the origin and settlement of Slavic tribes: autochthonous theory, which considers the Slavs the original population of the East European plain; migration theory, which believes that the Slavs migrated from their ancestral homeland (There are Balkan, Scythian, Baltic and other variants of the Slavic ancestral home). In VI-VII centuries there was a split of a single Slavic community into 3 branches: Western, Eastern, southern Slavs. South Slavs-(inhabitants of the Balkan region) – in the future ethnic groups of Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Montenegrins, Bulgarians, etc. Western Slavs – (residents of Eastern Europe) –future Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, Moravians, etc.  By the 9th century AD, the lands between the Baltic Sea and Black Sea were primarily populated by eastern Slavic tribes. In the northern region around Novgorod were the Ilmen Slavs and neighboring Krivichi, who occupied territories surrounding the headwaters of the West Dvina, Dnieper, and Volga Rivers. To their north, in the Ladoga and Karelia regions, were the Finnic Chud tribe. On the river Sozh - a tributary of the Dnieper - located the Radimichi. In the south, in the area around Kiev, were the Poliane, a group of Slavicized tribes (probably with Iranian origins), the Drevliane and the Dregovichi to the west of the Dnieper, and the Severiane to the east. To their north and east were the Vyatichi, and to their south was forested land settled by Slav farmers, giving way to steppelands populated by nomadic herdsmen. In the lower reaches of the Dnieper located the Ulichi, and to the West of them between the Dniester and the Southern Bug lived the Tivertsy. Normanist and Antinormanist theories Whereas most Western historians tend to give credence to the Normanist theory, many Slavic scholars are strongly opposed and work to find other origins. Culture and heritage is what is ultimately at stake in this controversy. The question is whether East Slavic civilisation owes an element of its cultural origin to the Scandinavian rulers of the 9th to 11th centuries, as suggested by the Normanist theory, or whether that heritage can excusively attributed to the Slavs, as held by the Antinormanists. This uncertainty is due largely to a paucity of contemporary sources. Normanist theories focus on the earliest written source for the East Slavs, the Primary Chronicle, although even this account was not produced until the 12th century. To some extent the controversy is related to the foundation myths of modern states in the region. The theory is called the Normanist theory, as it suggests that Kievan Rus' may have been named after its Scandinavian overlords just as “Normans” ("Northmen" – people of the North). In the 18th century the Normanist theory gained prominence in Russia through the German historians Bayer, Müller and Schlözer. They argued that Russia owed its origin, name and early ruling dynasty to Normans - ethnically Scandinavian - Varangian. The "Rus" mentioned in the Chronicle in the legend is Varangians. This theory was advanced in the 19th century by the Danish philologist Vilhelm Thomsen and the German-Russian historian-philologist Ernst Eduard Kunik. Adherents of the Norman theory, based on the legend of the Nestor’ chronicle about the invitation of the Varangians from the sea, find confirmation of this story in the evidence of Greek, Arab, Scandinavian and Western European authors and in linguistic facts. This theory claims that the name Rus, like the Finnish name for Sweden, is derived from an Old Norse term for "the men who row" (rods-) as rowing was the main method of navigating the rivers, and that it is linked to the Swedish province of Roslagen (Rus-law) or Roden, from which most Varangians came. The name Rus would then have the same origin as the Finnish and Estonian names for Sweden: Ruotsi and Rootsi. Normanism denies the origin of the old Russian state as a result of internal socio-economic development. Due to the backwardness and weakness of the Eastern Slavs, they were not able to create a state on their own. The Norman theory was also consistent with the racial theory widespread at the time that Normans (and their descendants) were naturally suited to government, whereas Slavs were not. Normanists associate the beginning of statehood in Russia with the moment of calling the Varangians to reign in Novgorod and their conquest of the Slavic tribes in the Dnieper basin. Opponents of the Norman theory criticized all the main provisions of this concept. Old Russian state, in the opinion of Lomonosov, existed long before the calling of the Varangian, in the form of fragmented tribal alliances and the individual principalities. Russian and Ukrainian historians generally believe the origin of the old Russian state as a result of internal socio-economic development. They argue that the Rus’ were themselves Slavs. Origins for the Rus’ they derived from river Ros or the Iranian tribe of the Roxolani (from the Persian, rokhs ‘light’). Nationalist accounts have suggested that the Rus were present before the arrival of the Varangians, noting that only a handful of Scandinavian words can be found in modern Russian and that Scandinavian names in the early chronicles were soon replaced by Slavic names. It would seem therefore certain that the early ruling dynasty was Slavic. On balance, it seems likely that the Rus proper were a small minority of Scandinavians who formed an elite ruling class, while the great majority of their subjects were Slavs. Considering the linguistic arguments mounted by nationalist scholars, if the proto-Rus were Scandinavians, they must have quickly become nativized, adopting Slavic languages and other cultural practices. Invitation of the Varangians According to the Primary Chronicle East Slavic tribes paid tribute to the Khazars and the Varangians. The Varangians are first mentioned imposing tribute from Slavic and Finnic tribes in 859. In 862, the Finnic and Slavic tribes in the area of Novgorod rebelled against the Varangians, driving them "back beyond the sea and, refusing them further tribute, set out to govern themselves." The tribes had no laws, however, and soon began to make war with one another, prompting them to invite the Varangians back to rule them and bring peace to the region. They said to themselves, "Let us seek a prince who may rule over us, and judge us according to the Law." They accordingly went overseas to the Varangian. … The Chuds, the Slavs, the Krivichs and the Ves then said to the Rus, "Our land is great and rich, but there is no order in it. Come to rule and reign over us". They thus selected three brothers with their kinfolk, who took with them all the Rus' and migrated. The three brothers—Rurik, Sineus, and Truvor—established themselves in Novgorod, Beloozero, and Izborsk, respectively. Two of the brothers died, and Rurik became the sole ruler of the territory and progenitor of the Rurik Dynasty. A short time later, two of Rurik’s men, Askold and Dir, asked him for permission to go to Tsargrad (Constantinople). On their way south, they discovered "a small city on a hill," Kiev, captured it and the surrounding country from the Khazars, populated the region with more Varangians, and "established their dominion over the country of the Polyanians." Stages of the development Of Kievan Rus’ 1. Initial stage: from the end of IX to the end of X century 2. The heyday of Kievan Rus’: the end of X – beginning of XII century 3. Stage of feudal fragmentation: the beginning of XII - 30-40 years of XIII century Initial stage: The main tasks of the first Kievan princes: (Oleg, Igor, Olga, Svyatoslav, Vladimir) - Unification of all tribal unions under the rule of the Grand Duke of Kiev. - Protection of trade routes and acquisition of overseas markets (conquests). - Protection of borders from attacks of steppe nomads. - The strengthening of the statehood. - Creation of a single spiritual space throughout the territory. Foundation of the Kievan state Rurik led the Rus until his death in about 879, bequeathing his kingdom to his kinsman, Prince Oleg, as regent for his young son, Igor. In 880-82, Oleg led a military force south along the Dnieper river, capturing Smolensk and Lyubech before reaching Kiev, where he deposed and killed Askold and Dir, proclaimed himself prince. Oleg set about consolidating his power over the surrounding region and the riverways north to Novgorod, imposing tribute on the East Slav tribes. In 883, he conquered the Drevlians, imposing a fur tribute on them. By 885 he had subjugated the Poliane, Severiane, Vyatichi, and Radimichs, forbidding them to pay further tribute to the Khazars. Oleg continued to develop and expand a network of Rus forts in Slav lands, begun by Rurik in the north. Protection of trade routes and acquisition of overseas markets The new Kievan state prospered due to its abundant supply of furs, beeswax, honey, and slaves for export, and because it controlled three main trade routes of Eastern Europe. In the north, Novgorod served as a commercial link between the Baltic Sea and the Volga trade route to the lands of the Volga Bulgars, the Khazars, and across the Caspian Sea as far as Baghdad, providing access to markets and products from Central Asia and the Middle East. Trade from the Baltic also moved south on a network of rivers and short portages along the Dnieper known as the "route from the Varangians to the Greeks," continuing to the Black Sea and on to Constantinople. Kiev was a central outpost along the Dnieper route and a hub with the east-west overland trade route between the Khazars and the Germanic lands of Central Europe. These commercial connections enriched Rus' merchants and princes. Trade routes "from Varangians to Greeks" and " from Varangians to Persians" Constantine Porphyrogenitus described the annual course of the princes of Kiev, collecting tribute from client tribes, assembling the product into a flotilla of hundreds of boats, conducting them down the Dnieper to the Black Sea, and sailing to the estuary of the Dniester, the Danube delta, and on to Constantinople. On their return trip they would carry silk fabrics, spices, wine, and fruit. The importance of this trade relationship led to military action when disputes arose. The Primary Chronicle reports that prince Oleg attacked Constantinople in 907, probably to secure trade access. After the next raid in 910, a trade agreement of 911 with the Byzantine Empire granted the Rus quarters and supplies for their merchants and tax-free trading privileges in Constantinople. In 941 and 944, prince Igor led another attacks on Constantinople, over trading rights again. The trade agreement was signed but this time with terms less favorable for Kiev.  Protection of borders from attacks of steppe nomads. The rapid expansion of the Rus' to the south led to conflict and volatile relationships with the Khazars and other neighbors on the Pontic steppe The Khazars dominated the Black Sea steppe during the 8th century, trading and frequently allying with the Byzantine Empire against Persians and Arabs. Slavs increasingly worked against the Khazar Khaganate to secure control of the trade routes and were raiding and plundering into the Caspian Sea region from 864, with the first large-scale expedition in 913, when they extensively raided Baku, Gilan, Mazandaran and penetrated into the Caucasus. From the 9th century, the Pecheneg nomads began an uneasy problem to Kievan Rus′. The Pechenegs were nomads roaming the steppe raising livestock which they traded with the Rus' for agricultural goods and other products. The lucrative Rus' trade with the Byzantine Empire had to pass through Pecheneg- controlled territory. For over two centuries they launched sporadic raids into the lands of Rus′, which sometimes escalated into full-scale wars. Sviatoslav Following the death of Grand Prince Igor in 945, his wife Olga ruled as regent in Kiev until their son Sviatoslav reached maturity (963). His decade-long reign over Rus' was marked by rapid expansion through the conquest of the Khazars of the Pontic steppe and the invasion of the Balkans. By the end of his short life, Sviatoslav carved out for himself the largest state in Europe. Shortly after his accession to the throne, Sviatoslav began campaigning to expand Rus’ control over the Volga valley and the Pontic steppe region. His greatest success was the conquest of Khazaria, which for centuries had been one of the strongest states of Eastern Europe. The Rus’ had an interest in removing the Khazar hold on the Volga trade route because the Khazars collected duties from the goods transported by the Volga. Sviatoslav began by rallying the East Slavic vassal tribes of the Khazars to his cause. Those who would not join him, such as the Vyatichs, were attacked and forced to pay tribute to the Kievan Rus’ rather than to the Khazars. According to a legend recorded in the Primary Chronicle, Sviatoslav sent a message to the Vyatich rulers, consisting of a single phrase: "I want to come at you!" Proceeding by the Oka and Volga rivers, he attacked Volga Bulgaria, then destroyed the Khazar city of Sarkel around 965, sacking Khazar city of Kerch on the Crimea as well. At Sarkel he established a Rus’ settlement called Belaya Vyezha ("the white tower" or "the white fortress"). He subsequently destroyed the Khazar capital of Atil. Byzantine Emperor in 967 or 968 asked Sviatoslav assisting him in a war against Bulgaria. Sviatoslav was paid 15,000 pounds of gold and set sail with an army of 60,000 men. He defeated the Bulgarian ruler Boris II and proceeded to occupy the whole of northern Bulgaria. But Sviatoslav refused to turn his Balkan conquests over to the Byzantines and decided to move his capital to Pereyaslavets in the mouth of the Danube due to the great potential of that location as a commercial hub. In the Primary Chronicle record for 969, Sviatoslav explains that it is to Pereyaslavets, the centre of his lands, "all the riches flow: gold, silks, wine, and various fruits from Greece, silver and horses from Hungary and Bohemia, and from Rus' furs, wax, honey, and slaves". John Tzimiskes, the new Byzantine emperor came to the Balkans with a large army and promoting himself as the liberator of Bulgaria from Sviatoslav, forced him to abandon the Balkans. Fearing that the peace with Sviatoslav would not endure, the Byzantine emperor induced the Pecheneg khan Kurya to kill Sviatoslav before he reached Kiev. So Sviatoslav was ambushed and slain by the Pechenegs when he tried to cross the cataracts near Khortitsa early in 972. The Primary Chronicle reports that his skull was made into a chalice (scull cup) by the Pecheneg khan. Reign of the Grand Duke Vladimir I In 969, on the eve of the campaign in the Balkans Sviatoslav divided his dominion into three parts, each under a nominal rule of one of his sons (Vladimir was a prince of Novgorod), but did not establish a stable succession. A war broke out between his legitimate sons, Oleg and Yaropolk, in 976, at the conclusion of which Oleg was killed. In 977 Vladimir fled Novgorod to escape Oleg's fate and went to Scandinavia, where he raised an army of Varangians and returned in 980. Yaropolk was killed, and Vladimir became the sole ruler of Kievan Rus’. The Grand Prince ("velikiy kniaz'") of Kiev Vladimir controlled the lands around the city, and his formally subordinate relatives ruled the other cities and paid him tribute. Vladimir continued to expand his territories beyond his father's extensive domain. In 981, he seized the Cherven towns from the Poles; in 981–982, he suppressed a Vyatichi rebellion; in 983, he subdued the Yatvingians; in 984, he conquered the Radimichs; and in 985, he conducted a military campaign against the Volga Bulgars, planting numerous fortresses and colonies on his way. Christianization of Kievan Rus' In 957, the ruling regent, Olga of Kiev, visited Constantinople and it is usually presumed that Olga was baptized there. Her son, Sviatoslav, continued to worship Perun and other gods of the Slavic pantheon. According to the Primary Chronicle, he believed that his warriors would lose respect for him and mock him if he became a Christian. In 980, there was an attempt to unify the various beliefs and priestly practices of pagan Slavic religion in order to bind together the Slavic peoples in the growing centralized state. After failing the pagan religious reform prince Vladimir turned to monotheism. The Primary Chronicle reports that in the year 987, after consultation with his boyars, Vladimir the Great sent envoys to study the religions of the various neighboring nations. Ultimately, in 989, Vladimir settled on Eastern Orthodox Christianity. The Chronicle said he was impressed by the account of his envoys describing a majestic Divine Liturgy in Hagia Sophia at Constantinople. Vladimir's choice of Eastern Christianity may also have reflected his political interests: the Byzantine Empire was a powerful state, dominated the Black Sea and hence trade on Kiev's most vital commercial route, the Dnieper River. A dynastic marriage was concluded between Prince Vladimir and Emperor Basil II's sister, Anna. Thus, Kievan Rus’ became part of the broader Christian world, under Byzantium's influence and was involved in the Byzantine cultural circle and indirectly joined the ancient heritage. The church provided the concepts of territorial and hierarchical organization that helped to make states out of tribal territories; its teachings transformed a charismatic prince into a king possessing the attributes and responsibilities of a national leader, judge, and first Christian of the realm. Economy and Society During the Kievan era, trade and transport depended largely on networks of rivers and portages. The peoples of Rus' experienced a period of great economic expansion, opening trade routes with the Vikings to the north and west and with the Byzantine Greeks to the south and west; traders also began to travel south and east, eventually making contact with Persia and the peoples of Central Asia. Kievan Rus’ exported furs, wax, honey, flax, linen, and silver articles to Western Europe. Costly fabrics (Byzantine pavoloka [heavy, ornamented brocade], brocade, and Oriental silk), dirhems of silver, tin, lead, copper, spices, perfumes, medicinal plants, dyes, and Byzantine church plates were imported. The economic development of Kievan Rus may be translated into demographic statistics. Around 1200, Kiev had a population of 50,000, Novgorod and Chernigov both had around 30,000. Constantinople had population of about 400,000 around 1180.The Soviet scholar Mikhail Tikhomirov calculated that Kievan Rus' on the eve of the Mongol invasion had around 300 urban centres. Development of feudal relations Taxation. The first form of collecting tribute – polyudje. After the end of the season of military campaigns, the Prince and his retinue toured all the lands of the tribal unions under his control. The vigilantes were engaged in collecting tribute, and the Prince holds court. More regular system of taxes appeared after the riot of drevlyans in year 945. Princess Olga introduced the fixed size of a tribute (lessons) and places of collecting it (pogosts) with delivery of a tribute by community members (povoz). Individual Rurikid princes maintained military retinues led by boyars. At first the princes and boyars had their most significant incomes from trophies obtained in campaigns, later - from the tribute or taxes collected annually in kind (in natural form) from territories under their control and disposed of in the export trade. The bulk of the population, apparently free peasants living in traditional agricultural communes, had little other connection with the dynasty and its trading cities. Forms of ownership in Kievan Rus’ State ownership of land: the state is the Supreme owner. The Grand Duke of Kiev managed the state lands. Communal property – collective property of rural communities (verves). Private ownership of land in the form of fiefdoms – votchinas (princely, boyar, Church). This is full private ownership of land with the right of free alienation (inheritance, donation, purchase and sale, transfer to holding).Fixed at the Congress of princes in Lubech in 1097. Conditional ownership of land in Kievan Rus’ has not yet developed. Hierarchical structure of the feudal estates Upper class groups: Princes Boyars (the senior men in the squad) Clergy Military service group (junior squad, servants of the Prince's court) Relations within this social group were based on the principle of squad vassalage (the system of vassal-fief relations has not developed as in Western Europe). Lower class groups: Free: People Free peasants – members of communities. Townspeople: merchants (guests) and artisans (craftsmen). Semi-free (in various forms of dependence) Smerds, procurement, ryadoviches, outcasts, orphans. But serfdom has not yet arisen. Slaves Political system Kievan Rus’ as a state was a seigniorial (early feudal) monarchy (from the Latin "Senor" – senior). Prince Vladimir (980-1015), instead of tribal princes, sent his governors (boyars from the senior squad) to these lands, and then handed over the management of the lands to his sons, the younger princes. The Grand Duke of Kiev was considered the first (senior) among equals (junior princes) in the Rurik dynasty. In Kievan Rus’ there was no special state apparatus of management. The state functions were performed by the squad (druzhina). Rota system In Kievan Rus’ an unusal power succession system was established (rota system): power was transferred to the eldest member of the ruling dynasty rather than from father to son, i.e. in most cases to the eldest brother of the ruler (and further – to next brothers), and only then – to the eldest son of the ruler. Such a system was suited to the needs of the dynasty, because, by providing a rotating advancement of members of the clan through apprenticeships in the various territories of the realm, it assured control of the key points by princes who were subject to traditional sanctions, and it gave them experience in lands over which they could someday expect to rule from Kiev. But this system often led to hatred and rivalry within the royal family. Familicide was frequently arisen to obtain power. This system served well for a century after it was given final form by Vladimir I. Some grand princes tried to set up principle of primogeniture: from father to eldest son of ruling family (Vladimir Monomakh). X-XII centuries – the heyday of Kievan Rus. In the X – XI C, land becomes a value, forms of feudal land ownership evolve. This leads to further social differentiation and strengthening of the early feudal monarchy, the flourishing of culture and economy. The first social layers are being formed. Legal relations are being formed Golden age Yaroslav, known as "the Wise" In his youth was sent by his father to rule the northern lands around Rostov the Great but was transferred to Novgorod the Great, as befitted a senior heir to the throne, in 1010. While living there, he founded the town of Yaroslavl (literally, Yaroslav's) on the Volga. During the next years Yaroslav waged a complicated and bloody war for Kiev against his half-brother Svyatopolk, known as “the Accursed”. During the course of this struggle, several other brothers (Boris and Gleb, Svyatoslav) were brutally murdered and Svyatopolk seized power in Kiev. Yaroslav, with the active support of the Novgorodians and the help of Viking mercenaries, defeated Svyatopolk and became the grand prince of Kiev in 1019. One of his first actions as a grand prince was to confer on the loyal Novgorodians (who had helped him to regain the throne), numerous freedoms and privileges. Thus, the foundation for the Novgorod Republic was laid. To defend his state from the Pechenegs and other nomadic tribes threatening it from the south he constructed a line of forts, composed of Yuriev, Boguslav, Kaniv, Korsun, and Pereyaslav. To celebrate his decisive victory over the Pechenegs in 1036 (who thereupon never were a threat to Kiev), he sponsored the construction of the Saint Sophia Cathedral in 1037. Like Vladimir, Yaroslav was eager to improve relations with the rest of Europe, especially the Byzantine Empire. Fs a result Kievan Rus' began to play an important genealogical role in European politics. Yaroslav the Wise, whose stepmother belonged to the Macedonian dynasty, which ruled the Byzantine empire from 867 to 1056, married the only legitimate daughter of the king who Christianized Sweden. His daughters became queens of Hungary, France and Norway, his sons married the daughters of a Polish king and a Byzantine emperor (not to mention a niece of the Pope). Yaroslav also arranged marriage for his sister to the king of Poland. Yaroslav's granddaughter, Eupraxia the daughter of his son Vsevolod I, Prince of Kiev, was married to Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor. A grandson married the only daughter of the last Anglo-Saxon king of England. Thus the Rurikids were a well-connected royal family of the time. Yaroslav the Wise preferred alliances and peace over conflict. He was convinced that ties of family and of religion would secure peace and prosperity. Yaroslav the Wise promulgated the first East Slavic law code, Russkaya Pravda (Russian Justice, Russian Truth ), which drew on "Russian customs, Scandinavian dynastic rules and Byzantine laws and hence, had a truly international character. He also used Kiev’s wealth to turn the city into a cultural and artistic center, building monuments, stone palaces, and churchesYaroslav built the Cathedral of St. Sophia, named in honor of the Mother Church in Constantinople, as his metropolitan's seat. The Christian school for rich people’s children and the first Kievan Rus library founded by Yaroslav the Wise were situated here.13-domed Cathedral of St. Sophia had skillfully crafted frescoes, mosaics, and other decorations made it one of the most beautiful churches of its day. This magnificent structure still graces the city, as does Yaroslav’s impressive Golden Gate, one of the fortifications he built for Kiev. In addition, Yaroslav ordered to build the cathedrals of St. Sophia in Novgorod, Polotsk and other cities; patronized local clergy and monasticism; Yaroslav was one of the most cultured men in Europe at the time speaking several European and even classical languages. He founded a school for translating texts from Latin, Greek, Ancient Hebrew and Syrian into Slavic languages.. In 1051, the Russian monk Ilarion was proclaimed the metropolitan of Kiev. Ilarion's discourse on Yaroslav and his father Vladimir is frequently cited as the first work of Old Russian literature. Yaroslav's sons developed the great Kiev Pechersk Lavra (monastery), which functioned in Kievan Rus' as an ecclesiastical academy. Vladimir Monomakh A skilled military commander and highly capable ruler, was the best educated of Kiev’s grand princes; he encouraged learning and the writing and preservation of chronicles. His military achievements included a string of victories over steppe nomads, as well as successful campaigns against enemies to the west. He is respected above all for his Testament, which urged his successors to educate themselves so they could govern as peaceful and moral rulers. By Vladimir’s reign in the early 12th century, Kiev was an impressive urban center with as many as 50,000 people - including merchants, clergymen, skilled artisans, and the governing elite - and hundreds of churches. Its wealth derived from production as well as trade. In the centuries that followed the state's foundation, Rurik's descendants shared power over Kievan Rus'. Princely succession moved from elder to younger brother and from uncle to nephew, as well as from father to son. Junior members of the dynasty usually began their official careers as rulers of a minor district, progressed to more lucrative principalities, and then competed for the coveted throne of Kiev. Fragmentation and decline The political history of Rus’ is one of clashing separatist and centralizing trends inherent in the contradiction between local settlement and colonization on the one hand and the hegemony of the clan elder, ruling from Kiev, on the other. As Vladimir’s 12 sons and innumerable grandsons prospered in the rapidly developing territories they inherited, they and their retainers acquired settled interests that conflicted both with one another and with the interests of unity. The gradual disintegration of the Kievan Rus' began in the 11th century, after the death of Yaroslav the Wise. The position of the Grand Prince of Kiev was weakened by the growing influence of regional clans. An unconventional power succession system was established (rota system) whereby power was transferred to the eldest member of the ruling dynasty rather than from father to son, i.e. in most cases to the eldest brother of the ruler, fomenting constant hatred and rivalry within the royal family. Familicide was frequently deployed to obtain power and can be traced particularly during the time of the Yaroslavichi (sons of Yaroslav), when the established system was skipped in the establishment of Vladimir II Monomakh as the Grand Prince of Kiev, in turn creating major squabbles between Olegovichi from Chernihiv, Monomakhs from Pereyaslav, Izyaslavichi from Turov/Volhynia, and Polotsk Princes. The most prominent struggle for power was the conflict that erupted after the death of Yaroslav the Wise. Three of Yaroslav's sons that first allied together found themselves fighting each other especially after their defeat to the Cuman forces in 1068 at the Battle of the Alta River. At the same time, an uprising took place in Kiev, bringing to power Vseslav of Polotsk who supported the traditional Slavic paganism. The ruling Grand Prince Iziaslav fled to Poland asking for support and in couple of years returned to establish the order. The affairs became even more complicated by the end of the 11th century driving the state into chaos and constant warfare. On the initiative of Vladimir II Monomakh in 1097 the first federal council of Kievan Rus’ took place near Chernihiv in the city of Liubech with the main intention to find an understanding among the fighting sides. However, even though that did not really stop the fighting, it certainly cooled things off. The last ruler to maintain a united state was Mstislav the Great. After his death in 1132, the Kievan Rus' fell into recession and a rapid decline. In 1169, as the Kievan Rus' state was full of internal conflict, Andrei Bogolyubsky of Vladimir sacked the city of Kiev. The sack of the city fundamentally changed the perception of Kiev and was evidence of the fragmentation of the Kievan Rus'. By the end of the 12th century, the Kievan state became even further fragmented and had been divided into roughly twelve different principalities. Along with the fall of the authority of Kiev as a center of political power, Rus' started to disintegrate into smaller principalities as the Rurik dynasty grew. The segmentation of the principalities of Kievan Rus was an inevitable consequence of the absence of the European majorat principle in the inheritance of landholdings. Becides, the Crusades brought a shift in European trade routes: in the late 11th century opened up a more direct trade route between Western Europe and Constantinople via the Mediterranean Sea, making the Dnieper trade route marginal. In 1204, the forces of the Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople. The decline of Constantinople – a main trading partner of Kievan Rus' – played a significant role in the decline of the Kievan Rus'. The trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks, along which the goods were moving from the Black Sea (mainly Byzantine) through eastern Europe to the Baltic, was a cornerstone of Kiev wealth and prosperity. Kiev was the main power and initiator in this relationship, once the Byzantine Empire fell into turmoil and the supplies became erratic, profits dried out, and Kiev lost its appeal. At the same time, the Teutonic Knights (of the Northern Crusades) were conquering the Baltic region and threatening the Lands of Novgorod. Some of the main regional centres that developed later were Novgorod, Chernigov, Halych, Kiev, Ryazan, Vladimir-upon-Klyazma, Volodimer-Volyn and Polotsk. Novgorod Republic In the north, the Republic of Novgorod prospered because it controlled trade routes from the River Volga to the Baltic Sea. As Kievan Rus' declined, Novgorod became more independent. The veche achieved its greatest power in Novgorod. By the 2th century the city was called “Lord Novgorod the Great” and had essentially evolved into a republic. Novgorod even had a special bell it used to call its veche into session, a bell that became a symbol both for the city and for its proud tradition of self-government. A local oligarchy of boyars and merchants ruled Novgorod; major government decisions were made by a town assembly, which also elected a prince as the city's military leader. In 1136, Novgorod revolted against Kiev, and became independent. Now an independent city republic, it would spread its "mercantile interest" to the west and the north; to the Baltic Sea and the low-populated forest regions respectively. In 1169, Novgorod acquired its own archbishop, named Ilya, a sign of further increased importance and political independence. Novgorod enjoyed a wide degree of autonomy although being closely associated with the Kievan Rus. Northeast In the northeast, Slavs from the Kievan region colonized the territory that later would become the Grand Duchy of Moscow by subjugating and merging with the Finnic tribes already occupying the area. The city of Rostov, the oldest centre of the northeast, was supplanted first by Suzdal and then by the city of Vladimir, which become the capital of Vladimir-Suzdal'. The combined principality of Vladimir-Suzdal asserted itself as a major power in Kievan Rus' in the late 12th century. In 1169, Prince Andrey Bogolyubskiy of Vladimir-Suzdal sacked the city of Kiev and took over the title of the Velikiy Knyaz (Grand Prince or Grand Duke) to claim primacy in Rus'. Prince Andrey then installed his younger brother, who ruled briefly in Kiev while Andrey continued to rule his realm from Suzdal. In 1299, in the wake of the Mongol invasion, the metropolitan moved from Kiev to the city of Vladimir and Vladimir-Suzdal. Southwest To the southwest, the principality of Halych had developed trade relations with its Polish, Hungarian and Lithuanian neighbours and emerged as the local successor to Kievan Rus'. In 1199, Prince Roman Mstislavych united the two previously separate principalities. In 1202 he conquered Kiev, and assumed the title of Knyaz of Kievan Rus', which was held by the rulers of Vladimir-Suzdal since 1169. His son, Prince Daniel (r. 1238–1264) looked for support from the West. He accepted a crown as a "Rex Rusiae" ("King of Rus") from the Roman papacy, apparently doing so without breaking with Constantinople. However, a long and unsuccessful struggle against the Mongols combined with internal opposition to the prince and foreign intervention weakened Galicia- Volhynia. With the end of the Mstislavich branch of the Rurikids in the mid-14th century, Galicia-Volhynia ceased to exist; Poland conquered Halych; Lithuania took Volhynia, including Kiev, conquered by Gediminas in 1321 ending the rule of Rurikids in the city. Lithuanian rulers then assumed the title over Ruthenia. Final disintegration The state finally disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of Rus', fragmenting it into successor principalities who paid tribute to the Golden Horde (the so-called Tatar Yoke). In the late 15th century, the Muscovite Grand Dukes began taking over former Kievan territories and proclaimed themselves the sole legal successors of the Kievan principality according to the protocols of the medieval theory of translatio imperii. On the western periphery, Kievan Rus' was succeeded by the Principality of Galicia-Volhynia. Later, as these territories, now part of modern central Ukraine and Belarus, fell to the Gediminids, the powerful, largely Ruthenized Grand Duchy of Lithuania drew heavily on Rus' cultural and legal traditions. Due to the fact of the economic and cultural core of Rus' being located on the territory of modern Ukraine, Ukrainian historians and scholars consider Kievan Rus' to be a founding Ukrainian state. On the north-eastern periphery of Kievan Rus', traditions were adapted in the Vladimir-Suzdal Principality that gradually gravitated towards Moscow. To the very north, the Novgorod and Pskov Feudal Republics were less autocratic than Vladimir- Suzdal- Moscow until they were absorbed by the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Russian historians consider Kievan Rus "the first period of Russian history".