Vyachko

Information for an unambiguous statement about the origin of Vyachko stingy. According to the most common version, he came from the Polotsk branch of the Rurikovich ^[1] . At the same time, he is identified with Vyachko, the son of Polotsk Prince Boris Davydovich from his first marriage. This Vyachko is one of the heroes of the story of the Holy One retold by V. N. Tatishchev ^[2] . However, there are other versions of its origin. So O. M. Rapov , following Tatishchev, believed that he came from the Smolensk branch of the Rurikovich ^[3] .

The main source of Vyachko’s activity is the Chronicle of Livonia Henry of Latvia . According to her, Vyachko ( Vetseke ) was a prince in the Latgalian principality of Kukenojs , a vassal of Prince Polotsk , where he led the resistance to the Livonian Order .

In 1205, Vyachko transferred part of the land to the Bishop of Riga, Albrecht von Buksgevden, in exchange for a promise of protection from Lithuania .

In 1207, Vyachko was captured and delivered in chains to Riga, but the bishop later freed him. The resources of the Principality of Polotsk were not enough to effectively assist Vyachko in his struggle against the crusaders, and in 1208, Vyachko burned Kukenois and went into Russian lands, and the territory of his principality was completely occupied by the Order. ^[4] .

Only in 1216 , according to the testimony of Henry of Latvia, did the great war of Russians and Estonians begin against the swordsmen . Already in 1217 and 1219, joint Smolensk-Novgorod campaigns were launched in the Baltic states, and in 1221 and 1223 - Vladimir-Novgorod campaigns. Vyachko reappeared in the sources in 1223 , when the Prince of Novgorod, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, made him prince in the city of Yuriev (modern Tartu). Vyachko proved himself to be a brave commander, repelled several attacks of the crusaders, however, in 1224 he died during the defense of Yuryev from the army of Bishop Albrecht ^[5] , the auxiliary army from Novgorod managed to reach only Pskov (at the same time, the conflict between the Novgorod nobility and the Grand Duke of Vladimir Yuri Vsevolodovich ). The only mention of Vyachko in Russian annals is connected with this event - in the Novgorod First Annals , where under 6732 (1224) the year says:

That same summer, slaughtering Prince Vyachka Nemtsi in Gurgev, and taking the city ^[6] .

- Novgorod 1st Anniversary , year 6732

For the first time Vyachko appears on the pages of the Chronicle of Heinrich of Latvia in records for 1205 - “the seventh year of the bishopric of Albert ”. Concerned that the “Latin pilgrims” settled just three miles from him, he makes a bold decision - to clarify the situation in a personal meeting with the bishop , for which he descends on the ship down the river. In order to make this visit of his own free will, without an invitation, he must first send a messenger to Riga. From this record it follows that Vyachko makes contact with the bishop not for the first time, and “diplomatic etiquette” in relations between Riga and King Vyachko from Kukeynos (as Henry calls him) has already been agreed. The meeting had a typical protocol character ^[7] :

After shaking hands and mutual greetings, he immediately made a lasting peace with the Teutons, which, however, did not last long. At the conclusion of the world, having said goodbye to everyone, he joyfully returned to himself.

- Chronicle of Heinrich of Latvia

The following year , 1206, it was not Vyachko who appeared in the Chronicles, but his residence - the Russian castle of Kukeynos, where ambassadors from the overlord, Prince Vladimir of Polotsk, stopped waiting for the bishop's response to the proposal to hold talks on May 30 near the Voga River ^[8] .

“ The Ninth Year of the Bishopric ” was marked for Albert by promotion: he becomes the lazy of the empire , turning into a prince-bishop. Since the beginning of 1207, all of Livonia is his flax, and Albert has concentrated both secular and spiritual power in this land. The bishop returns to Riga from Teutonia only on Pentecost, on June 10, accompanied by two counts, other noble and respectable people, and a new landing group of pilgrim builders. Having heard about Albert’s arrival, Vyachko also goes to Riga:

he, together with his people, went out to meet them and, upon arrival in Riga, was received by all with honor. After spending many days in the most friendly atmosphere in the bishop's house, he finally asked the bishop to help him against the attacks of the Lithuanians, they offered half of his land and his castle for this. This was accepted, the bishop honored the king with many gifts, promised him help with people and weapons, and the king happily returned home ^[9] .

The question of the reasons for such a generous gift “to the kingdom” still remains unanswered. There is no information about any Lithuanian attacks on Kukeynos, the seriousness of which could be the reason, in the Chronicle.

Towards the end of the same year, a conflict is being played out, acting as a prologue to the final loss by the Russian prince of his principality. This event takes place between the Christmas attack of the Lithuanians on Turaida ( December 24, 1207 ) and Easter ( April 6, 1208 ). Unlike other events of the chronicle, Heinrich does not disclose the history of the conflict and its causes, blaming Vyachko for the phrase itself: “At this time, a dispute arose between King Kukenojsa and knight Daniil from Lenevarden. This king caused a lot of trouble to the people of Daniel and, despite repeated exhortations, did not cease to bother them. ” The bishop was up to date, but in addition to some exhortations (deafly mentioned about them), he did nothing. This impunity was perceived by those around, down to people of the lowest origin, servants as permissiveness, and as a result

... one night, Daniel's servants rose with himself and quickly moved to the king’s castle. Arriving at dawn, they found sleeping people in the castle, and the guards on the rampart were not very vigilant. Having unexpectedly ascended the shaft, they captured the main fortification; the Russians, who retreated to the castle, as Christians, did not dare to kill, but threatening them with swords, some fled, others were taken prisoner and tied up. Including captured and tied the king himself, and all the property that was in the castle, demolished in one place and carefully guarded. They called their lord Daniil, who was nearby, and, wishing to listen to the advice of the bishop about this case, he informed all the residents of Riga ^[10] .

So, there is an open insult to the honor and dignity of the head of the neighboring state (Henry calls Vyachko, like the princes of Pskov and Polotsk, the king - in contrast to the tribal leaders, whom he calls only elders). It was committed not even by a knight (subject to the bishop), but by his low-born servants. In that era, much less significant events gave rise to war, and therefore, at least formally, Albert should show disapproval:

The bishop, along with all his people, was very upset and did not approve of what was done, ordered the king to be returned to his castle and all property to be returned to him, then, having invited the king to his place, he accepted him with respect, presented him with horses and a lot of precious clothes ...

and only on Easter (April 6, 1208), again “treating Vyachko with the retinue in the most affectionate way” and “having euthanized all enmity between him and Daniil”, he gladly lets the prince go home ^[10] .

In 1223, an uprising unfolded against the crusaders throughout Estonia. The Germans and Danes ests chopped heads; some priests were sacrificed to pagan gods. By eliminating garrisons in this way, the Estonians seized several fortresses. Russian troops from Novgorod and Pskov came to the rescue, who rose in key fortresses - Fellin and Derpt ^[11] . To Prince Vyachko, whose crusaders had already occupied the principality of Kukeynos , Novgorod gave a squad of 200 warriors so that he could sit in Yuriev or any other place that he could conquer for himself ^[12] .

By 1224, Yuryev remained the last center of resistance to the crusaders between Lake Peipsi and the sea. The inhabitants of Sakala , Uganda and other nearby lands joyfully joined its inhabitants. On Easter 1224, the crusaders besieged Yuryev, but after five days of fighting they were forced to withdraw. Then the bishops sent ambassadors to Vyachko, asking him to abandon the "pagan rebels" and leave the fortress, but he decided to stay ^[13] . On August 15, 1224, the crusader army, reinforced by a large number of Livs and Letts converted to Christianity, returned under Yuryev, and again besieged the city.

The second siege of St. George in 1224 lasted "many days and nights." Vyachko and his two hundred warriors again offered a free exit from the fortress. However, the prince, who was waiting for help from Novgorod, again refused. When Yuriev fell, the crusaders carried out a barbaric massacre, sparing neither women nor children. Heinrich of Latvia writes that Vyachko and a group of combatants took the battle in one of the fortifications of the fortress, but in the end they all were defeated, pulled out and killed. Of all the defenders of Yuriev, the crusaders left only one Russian from Suzdal - they put him on a horse and sent him to Novgorod to inform him of the fall of Yuriev. The promised help from Novgorod came only to Pskov, where, after receiving sad news, the Novgorodians hastened to make peace with the Germans ^[14] .

Nothing is said about the wife and children of Vyachko in the sources. However, the Tizengauzen clan derived its genus from Vyachko, although the history of the clan is documented only from the sixteenth century onwards . According to the research of M. A. Taube ^[15] , Vyachko had a daughter, Sophia (d. After 1269 ; 1st husband from 1229 Dietrich the Younger von Kockengusen, d. 1245/54; 2nd husband from 1254 Bernard de Geye, mind . after 1254 ).

Vyachko is the main character of the novel by Belarusian author Leonid Davydovich Dayneko “ Sword of Prince Vyachka ”.

• Campaigns of Russian princes against the Order of the Swordsmen

• Henry of Latvia. Chronicle of Livonia / Introduction, translation and commentary by S. A. Anninsky. - 2nd ed. - M. - L .: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1938. - 185 p.
• Rapov O. M. Princely possessions in Russia in the X - the first half of the XIII century. - M .: Publishing house of Moscow University, 1977. - 261 p.
• Novgorod is the first chronicle of senior and junior vodov. // Complete collection of Russian chronicles. Volume Three - M. - L .: Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1950.
• Tatishchev V.N. Russian History. - M .: Nauka, 1964 .-- T. 3 .-- 360 p. (Reprint: M .: Ladomir, 1994)