Successors of Kyiv Empire. Formation of Ruthenian ( Ukrainian) and Muscovite (Russian) Nation. The Mongol Invasion and its Outcomes, Детальна інформація

School 1 Grade 11v Lutsk 2002

Ukranian History Project

Successors of Kyiv Empire. Formation of Ruthenian ( Ukrainian) and Muscovite (Russian) Nation. The Mongol Invasion and its Outcomes.

(by Nazar Demchuk)

In mid-1100s two major powers on the former Kyiv Empire's territory appear to be Galician Principality, since in 1170s the throne of Galicia was seized by Volhynian Prince Roman Mstyslav, and Volodymir-Suzdal' Principality under the Boholiubsky Dynasty. This period -- between the death of Yaroslav the Wise in 1037 and the first Mongol Aggression in 1248 is not covered very well in the world's history because of Russian and later Soviet shovinism in historiography. But that was the very period, when two dominant Eastern Slavic nations formed -- the Ruthenians (later Ukrainians) and Russians (later Muscovites)-- since nothing could keep different peoples and interests of the Empire together anymore.

Both Great Princedoms -- and that's the way their leaders referred to themselves as -- were more of princely leagues, since they comprised an innumerable number of semi-integrated little princedoms, landowner's ( boyars) estates, nomades and highlander's villages. Both saw the capture of Kyiv as their primary objective for a long time -- the demolishing of Kyiv by Andriy Boholyubsky of Volodymir-Suzdal' and capture of Kyiv by Roman Mstislawitch of Galicia are the most known examples. As Kyiv declined as an economic center, the interests of these new countries turned in different directions.

Galician princes engaged in dynastical marriages or incessant wars with Hungarian, Polish or Vallaccian ( Romanian) nobility and the Galician territory and influence extended all over modern geographic Western Ukraine ( everything to the West from Kyiv), partly Belarus' ( Polozk Princedom), Moldova ( both the one now named the republic of Moldova and the Romanian Moldova to the West from Dnister(Nistru), South-Eastern Poland and Transcarpathia. Galicia under Mstyslawitch Dynasty -- belligerent, glorious and rich state -- became one of the largest European countries and, what the most important -- an ally of Byzantium, and, of course an object of envy to many East European monarchs.

North-East, the Volodymir-Suzdal, had close relations with North European Nations and growing Lithuania and Novgorod Republic, trying not to lose their relationship with Byzantium.

In 1199 The Great Prince Roman of Galicia was killed in a battle with Hungarians. His two sons -- the eldest --Vasyl'ko, and the younger -- Daniel were saved by their relatives from the boyars' anger -- the Boyars, the large landowners, were fed up with the absolute rule of Roman and they started to change princes on the throne fast. When Vasyl'ko became of age, they blinded him. The great internal feud weakened the country.

Daniel, even though becoming of age in the time of trouble, has shown himself as a gifted leader, gathering all forces he could and he suppressed, the boyars oligarchy bloodily and severely in 1220s. Apprehending the Mongol menace after Kalka Battle, in which his predecessor Mstyslav II of Galicia was killed and defeated, Daniel was travelling around Europe seeking for help. The only thing he acquired was a king's crown from the Pope..

Under Daniel, the first king among Eastern Slavic rulers, Galicia was fortified, the new capital was built -- Kholm ( now Khelm in Poland), It ceased back the power it lost after Roman's death and became the strongest among the other Eastern Slavic states.

The first invasion of Eastern Slavic states by Mongols was led by Batu Khan in 1248, who rolled his 400,000 army over Volga River and swept thru South-Eatern princedoms in a matter of two months -- R'yazan'was the first. Batu's straightforward march to Vladimir and Suzdal demolished the North-East princely coalition. Batu's failure to reach Novgorod saved the craddle of the Russian nation from loot and fire but not from vassal dependance on the gigantic Mongolian State, the capital of which, Saray, was set up on the Lower Volga.

Around the same time the 15,000 army of Khan Kuromsah, one of the Batu's chief commanders invaded Kingdom of Galicia, but was defeated and kept back by Galician army led by King Daniel. Mongols could not stand a big independent state on their way to Europe and a 50,000 army of Burunday, the third noble among the Mongols,swept through Galicia and ceased the former capital, Galytch. Daniel was forced to negociate and agreed to become a Mongolian ally, but not to pay tribute. The Galician authority was dramatically reduced comparatively to what it was before, but it still remained, damaged and stripped, an independent country.

Before his death Daniel built the city of L'viv, named after his son Lev, who became the second King of Galicia. Under Lev's rule, ( late 13th-early 14th cent.), Galicia started to experience strong pressure from Lithuania Poland and Hungary, especially because of dynastical marriages between Galicians and Poles ( Lev's son, Shwarno, became the heir of Polish throne and the Lithuanian heir married Lev's daughter), however the kingdom was still successful in diplomatic balancing between Western Slavs, Hungarians and Mongols.

North Eastern remnants of Kyiv Rus' stagnated under the Mongols' Yoke, even though Russian nobles started to build up their influence among Mongols through dynastical marriages and rights to collect tribute.

During the rule of the Lev's son, Yuri, Galicia lost Transcarpathia to Hungarians and big chunk of Bukovina with the fortress Chern to the Moldavians. The country started to decay. Yuri was the last from the Daniel's (Mstyslawitch-Romanowitch) dynasty to rule the Ruthenian people. His successor, prince Hedimin, was of Lithuanian blood.

At the time,in late 1320s, the first uprising of the Slavs in the North against Mongols took place -- a Muscovite warlord, prince Dmitriy Donskoy defeated a large army of Khan Mamay, the Mongolan Commander, at Kulikowo. This uprising was praised by Russian historians as the end of Mongolan domination of North Eastern Rus'. It was, however, not quite so, if not so at all. The next action undertaken by Mongols was the destruction of Russian troops wherever found, great fire of Moscow and a holocaust. North East was very quickly "tied back to the Prairy Warrior's horse". The real meaning of this uprising were signs of decay in Mongol's empire.

These signs were ideally interpreted by Lithuanian Great Prince Mindovgas, who defeated 50,000 Mongolan troops in Volinia and declared by this fact the birth of a new power-breaker in the area. Nobody could oppose Lithuania at the time -- nor reduced to nothing by incessant wars and internal conflicts Galician Kingdom, nor Catholic and thus obnoxious and suspicious Poland, nor short-handed Hungary, nor mixed with Mongols and trying in vain to draw a border between themselves and conquerers Muscovite nobility, nor Mongols themselves, squabbling between each other.

In 1350 Galician leadership exchanged the country's independence for their own security, territory's autonomy and the right to speak their own language -- which already could be called Ukrainian, also protection from Mongols, Poles and Hungarians. Kyiv Princedom, badly ran by prince Mykhaylo -- the last prince of kyiv and vassal of Mongols, joined Lithuania with great relief and joy. The Polozk Princedom -- most of modern Belarus -- was also quickly integrated into this new superstate.

Lithuanian nobility was speaking this South East Slavic, which was the archaic prototype of Ukrainian, preached Christianity and comprised together with West Kyiv Rus', Galicia and Belarus a new Empire, which later came to be known as Lithuanian Rus'...