Izyaslav Vladimirovich (Prince of Polotsk)

There is very little information in the sources about him. According to the Tale of Bygone Years, he was born in Kiev in 980/98 , however, taking into account the fact that the date of marriage of parents should not be attributed to 980 as in the PVL, but to winter or spring of 978 ^[1] , the birth of Izyaslav, the eldest of sons from this marriage should also be attributed to the end of 978 or the beginning of 979.

In 987, after the mother’s unsuccessful attempt on his father, he was sent with her to live in Izyaslavl ^[2] . In 988, he was baptized with other brothers, and in 988 he received the inheritance of Polotsk . In 1001, he died, leaving, from an unknown wife, the sons of Bryachislav and Vseslav ^[3] .

100 years after his death, the chronicler, wishing to explain the reason for the enmity between the descendants of Vladimir , who occupied Kiev, and those who occupied the Principality of Polotsk , cites the legend of the attempted assassination of Rogneda (in Predslavin) on Vladimir’s life and her deliverance from death through Izyaslav. Nevertheless, on the advice of the boyars, Vladimir gave Izyaslav and Rogneda the region of the latter's father ( Rogvolod ), that is, Polotsk, in which he built the city of Izyaslavl (now Zaslavl) for them. Izyaslav rebuilt the destroyed capital, moving it to a higher and inaccessible place at the mouth of the Polota River , on its left bank. It is likely that at first the regent was with him his mother Rogneda.

His tribal sign ( tamga ) is known - a trident with a small cross on the middle prong.

According to the chronicler, Izyaslav's character was "quiet, and meek, and meek, and merciful." Nikon's chronicle shows him as an intelligent, educated person ^[4] . “To be this prince is quiet and meek, and humble, and merciful, and lovingly and reverently honoring the priestly office, monastic, and diligent in reading divine scriptures, and turning away from vain mockeries, and tearful, and tender, and long-suffering ...,” says him. The first of the East Slavic princes, described by the chronicler as a scribe. On the Polotsk throne, Izyaslav, apparently, was active in domestic and foreign policy: his seal was found during archaeological excavations in Novgorod .

The seal of Izyaslav, found in 1954 in Novgorod, is widely known, the inscription on which is one of the oldest written monuments in Eastern Europe . The seal was stamped on a lead strip and hung from a letter on a leather strap. The obverse of the print depicts a variant of the Rurikovich’s sign “Trident” crowned with a cross with the inscription ΝΖAC ** OΖO (probably other Russian ΝΖACΛΑOZO - written in Cyrillic Greek letters of the name Izyaslav: Izas [lav] os). There is no image on the reverse side, the inscription is erased, but the initial letters ГРΑΔ are read, the other five are indistinguishable (perhaps ГРΑΔΠΛΤСΚ, which means "the city of Polotsk"). The dimensions of the print are 38 mm in width and 24-30 mm in length. The thickness of the strip is 11 mm, in place of the print is 8 mm.

Izyaslav's trident is similar to a princely sign of his father Vladimir Svyatoslavich and differs in an average tooth. It is believed that a trident with a cruciform middle prong became a patrimonial sign of the Izyaslavichi of Polotsk. There are signs of a later time, with additions and changes relating to the Princes of Polotsk - the descendants of Izyaslav ^[5] . In modern heraldry, the Izyaslav trident is embodied in the coat of arms of Zaslavl .

The name of his wife is unknown. Sons:

• Vseslav (d. 1003 ), Prince of Polotsk with 1001 ^{[6] [7]}
• Bryachislav (d. 1044 ), Prince of Polotsk with 1003 ^{[6] [7]}

• Slavic Encyclopedia. Kievan Rus - Muscovy: in 2 volumes / Compiled by V.V. Boguslavsky . - M .: OLMA-PRESS, 2001 .-- T. 1 . - 784 p. - 5,000 copies. - ISBN 5-224-02249-5 .
• Voitovich L.V. Rurikovich. Izyaslavichi Polotsk // Prince’s dynasty of Europe і s Europe (Kinets IX - cob of the 16th century): warehouse, role and political role. History-genealogical research . - Lviv: Institute of Ukrainian Studies im. I. Krip'yakevicha, 2000 .-- 649 p. - ISBN 966-02-1683-1 . (Ukrainian)
• Karpov A. Yu . St. Vladimir . - M .: Young Guard , 1997 .-- 446 p. - (The Life of Wonderful People : A Series of Biographies; Issue 738). - 10,000 copies. - ISBN 5-235-02274-2 .
• Karpov A. Yu . Yaroslav the Wise . - M .: Young Guard , 2001 .-- 583 p. - (The Life of Wonderful People : A Series of Biographies; Issue 1008 (808)). - 6000 copies. - ISBN 5-235-02435-4 .
• N. V — n — v. Polotsk princes // Russian Biographical Dictionary : in 25 volumes. - SPb. - M. , 1896-1918.
• Ryzhov K. All the monarchs of the world. Russia. - M .: Veche, 1998 .-- S. 371-372.