Year of birth of Svyatoslav. Grand Duke Svyatoslav Igorevich

With the light hand of Karamzin, Prince Svyatoslav is considered the ancient Russian Alexander the Great. Information about the battles he fought and won over the years is not rich in details, but one thing is clear: by the age of thirty, Svyatoslav managed to organize a dozen military campaigns, and won most of them.

Battle with the Drevlyans

First Grand Duke Svyatoslav Igorevich took part in the battle in May 946, however, he led the army only formally, since he was only four years old. When his warriors lined up on the battlefield against the Drevlyans, the governors Sveneld and Asmud took out the horse on which the young Svyatoslav was sitting, gave the boy a spear, and he threw it towards the enemies. “The prince has already begun, let’s pull, squad, after the prince!” - the commanders shouted, and the inspired Kiev army went forward. The Drevlyans were defeated and locked themselves in cities. Three months later, thanks to the cunning of Princess Olga, Iskorosten was taken, and the first of Svyatoslav’s military campaigns ended in victory.

Battle of Sarkel

965 Svyatoslav's first independent campaign. Having passed the lands of the Vyatichi, the only East Slavic tribe that had not yet paid tribute to Kyiv, descending along the Volga to the lands Khazar Khaganate, Svyatoslav defeated the longtime enemy of Rus'. One of the decisive battles took place near Sarkel, an outpost of Khazaria in the west.

Two armies met on the banks of the Don, Svyatoslav defeated the Khazar army and pushed it into the city. The siege did not last long. When Sarkel fell, its defenders were mercilessly beaten, the inhabitants fled, and the city itself was burned to the ground. In its place, Svyatoslav founded the Russian outpost Belaya Vezha.

Second capture of Preslav

Encouraged by Byzantium, the Grand Duke invaded Bulgaria, took its capital Preslav and began to consider it the middle (capital) of his land. But the Pechenegs’ raid on Kyiv forced him to leave the conquered lands.
When Svyatoslav returned, he discovered that the pro-Byzantine opposition in the capital had gained the upper hand, and the entire city had rebelled against the prince. He had to take Preslav a second time.
The 20,000-strong Russian army was confronted by superior enemy forces. And the battle under the city walls initially went in favor of the Bulgarians. But: “Brothers and squad! We will die, but we will die with firmness and courage!” - the prince turned to the soldiers, and the decisive attack was crowned with success: the tide of the battle was turned, Svyatoslav occupied Preslav and brutally dealt with the traitors.

Siege of Philippopolis

The main rival of Rus' was Byzantium, and it was against Constantinople that Svyatoslav planned his main blow. To reach the borders of Byzantium, it was necessary to pass through southern Bulgaria, where, fueled by the Greeks, anti-Russian sentiments were strong. Rare cities surrendered without a fight, and in many cases Svyatoslav was forced to carry out show executions. One of the oldest cities in Europe, Philippopolis, resisted especially stubbornly. Here, on the side of the Bulgarians who rebelled against the Russian prince, the Byzantines also fought, whose main army was located several tens of kilometers to the south. But Svyatoslav’s army was already a coalition: the Bulgarians, Hungarians, and Pechenegs were in alliance with him. After bloody battles the city fell. Its garrison, governors, captured Greeks and Bulgarians irreconcilable with the Russians were executed. By order of Svyatoslav, 20 thousand people were impaled.

Two general battles in Byzantium

Svyatoslav led his further advance into Byzantium with two armies: one, consisting of the best Russian warriors, battle-hardened warriors, he led himself, the other - the Russians, Bulgarians, Hungarians and Pechenegs - was under the command of the Kyiv governor Sfenkel.
The coalition army clashed with the main Greek army near Arcadiopolis, where a general battle took place. Calculating that the Pechenegs were the weak link in the Allied army, the Byzantine commander Varda Sklir directed the main attack of the army on their flank. The Pechenegs trembled and ran. The outcome of the battle was a foregone conclusion. The Russians, Hungarians and Bulgarians fought hard, but found themselves surrounded and defeated.
The battle of Svyatoslav’s army turned out to be no less difficult. The prince's 10,000-strong squad was opposed by a detachment under the command of Patrician Peter. As before, Svyatoslav managed to turn the tide of the battle at a critical moment for himself: “We have nowhere to go, whether we want it or not, we must fight. So we will not disgrace the Russian land, but we will lie here as bones, for the dead have no shame. If we run, it will be a shame for us.” He rushed forward and the army followed him. The Greeks fled from the battlefield, and Svyatoslav continued his victorious march to Constantinople. But, having learned about the defeat of the second army, he was forced to agree to a truce with the Byzantine emperor: the allies did not have the strength to siege.

Defense of Dorostol

Having violated the peace treaty, the Greeks in 971 first attacked Preslav, then, ravaging the cities, headed to the Danube, to the city of Dorostol, where Svyatoslav was located. His situation turned out to be more than difficult. The bloody battle under the city walls lasted from morning until darkness and forced the Russians and Bulgarians to retreat behind the fortress walls. A long siege began. From land, the city was surrounded by an army under the command of the emperor, and the Danube was blocked by the Greek fleet. The Russians, despite the danger, made daring forays. In one of them, a high-ranking official, Master John, was beheaded. Another thing the warriors did at night in heavy rain: they went around the enemy fleet in boats, collected grain reserves in the villages and beat many sleeping Greeks.
When the position of his army became critical, Svyatoslav considered it a shame to surrender or run away and led the army outside the city walls, ordering the gates to be locked. For two days, with a break for the night, his soldiers fought with the Byzantines. Having lost 15 thousand people, the Grand Duke returned to Dorostol and agreed to the peace proposed by Emperor Tzimiskes.

The Russian state has a fairly rich and unique history of its formation.

The position that is this moment Russia occupies the world, its internal structure is dictated precisely by the original history of the formation of our state, the events that took place throughout the development of Russia, and most importantly by the people, great personalities who stood at the origins of every important transformation in the life of Russian society.

However, many of them in modern educational historical manuals Only general phrases about their lives are given. One of such personalities is Svyatoslav Igorevich, the Grand Duke of Kiev, popularly known as Svyatoslav the Brave.

Let's look at the main milestones in the prince's life:

• Birth, youth;
• First military steps. Khazar Khaganate;
• Bulgarian campaigns;
• Homecoming. Death of the Grand Duke.

Birth and youth

Svyatoslav Igorevich was only son Prince Igor the Old and Princess Olga. The exact year of birth of Grand Duke Svyatoslav is not known.

Most historians, citing ancient chronicles, indicate the year 942 as such. But, in the Tale of Bygone Years, the name of Svyatoslav Igorevich is first mentioned only in 946, when Princess Olga took her son on a campaign against the Drevlyans, who killed her husband a year earlier, Prince Igor.

According to the Tale of Bygone Years, the battle began precisely with Svyatoslav throwing a spear towards the Drevlyans. At that time, according to sources, Prince Svyatoslav was 4 years old. The campaign against the Drevlyans ended in success for the Russian squad.

Svyatoslav’s mentors in his youth were the Varangian Asmud and the main Kiev governor, the Varangian Sveneld. The first taught the boy to hunt, stay firmly in the saddle, swim, and hide from the eyes of enemies in any terrain.

Sveneld taught the young prince the art of military leadership. Thus, Svyatoslav spent the first half of his short life on countless campaigns, while any princely privileges were alien to him.

He slept under open air, slept on a horse blanket with a saddle under his head, his clothes were no different from his surroundings, which remained the same throughout his life. It was at this stage that Svyatoslav and his friends gathered their future army.

The 10th century in Rus' is marked by the adoption of Christianity, however, during the years of Svyatoslav’s life, Christianity was still slowly spreading across the country. But his mother, Princess Olga, who converted to Christianity, tried with all possible methods to persuade her son to come to the new faith.

Despite all his mother’s attempts, Svyatoslav firmly stood his ground; he was a pagan, like his squad. Otherwise, if they accepted Christianity, the squad, according to the convictions of the Grand Duke, simply would not respect him.

First military steps. Khazar Khaganate

In 964, Svyatoslav’s squad left Kyiv, and his story began military glory. The goal of the prince's campaign was most likely the defeat of the Khazar Kaganate, but on his way, first he meets the Vyatichi, Volga Bulgarians, Burtases, and his squad emerges from each battle victorious.

Only in 965 did the Grand Duke of the Khazar Kaganate attack, defeating his army and destroying the capital, the city of Itil. The campaign continued further, the Russian squad took the well-fortified fortresses of Sarkel on the Don, Semender and others.

Thus, this campaign of Svyatoslav against the Khazar Kaganate expanded Kyiv authorities above all Eastern Slavs, and, in addition, the borders of the Kyiv kingdom increased to the North Caucasus.

Bulgarian campaigns

After Prince Svyatoslav returned to Kyiv, almost immediately he and his squad set off on a new military campaign directed against Danube Bulgaria. Historians give different reasons for leaving their lands so quickly.

However, the most common position is based on Byzantium’s interest in resolving the misunderstanding with Bulgaria and, if possible, not with its own hands. And also, the possibility of weakening the Kyiv state.

Thus, having returned from a military campaign against Khazaria, Prince Svyatoslav was met by Greek ambassadors who relied on the Russian-Byzantine treaty of 944, supported by a fairly substantial gold offering.

As a result, the young prince in 968 advanced with his 10,000-strong army to the Bulgarian lands. There, defeating a 30,000-strong Bulgarian army, Svyatoslav captured the city of Pereslav, which he then renamed Pereyaslavets and moved the capital to the newly conquered city.

At the same time, it was during the prince’s next military campaign that the Pechenegs attacked Kyiv. Svyatoslav has to return from the conquered territories and repel the aggressors.

Simultaneously with the offensive of the Pechenegs, Princess Olga, who served as the ruler of the state throughout Svyatoslav’s campaigns, dies.

Svyatoslav, justifying his inability to sit in Kyiv with the desire to live on the Danube, essentially divided government between his sons: he left the eldest son, Yaropolk, in Kiev, sent the middle son, Oleg, to Ovruch, and the youngest, Vladimir, to Novgorod.

Such an act of the prince will further affect the history of the country in the form of civil strife and the tense situation in the country. Having dealt with the political affairs of the state, Svyatoslav again set out on a campaign against Bulgaria, in which he had already completely mastered the territory of the entire country.

The ruler of Bulgaria, hoping to receive help from Byzantium, turned to its emperor. Nikifor Phokas, the ruler of Byzantium, observing the strengthening of the Russian state and concerned about its strengthening, granted the request of the Bulgarian king.

In addition, the emperor hoped to marry a Bulgarian royal family in order to strengthen their union. But as a result of the coup, Nicephorus Phokas was killed and John Tzimiskes ascended the imperial throne.

The marriage contract was never destined to be fulfilled, but Byzantium nevertheless agreed to help the Bulgarian kingdom.

Contrary to its promises, Byzantium was in no hurry to help Bulgaria. As a result, the new Bulgarian king concluded a peace treaty with Prince Svyatoslav, pledging to act with him against the Byzantine Empire.

Homecoming. Death of the Grand Duke

In 970, Grand Duke Svyatoslav with his army, which included Bulgarians, Pechenegs, and Hungarians, led his numerically superior army into the territory of the Byzantine state. Over the course of a year and a half, various battles took place with varying success for both troops.

Ultimately, a decisive battle took place in the spring of 971, which ended in a peace treaty. But, based on the conditions of this agreement, neither side could consider itself the winner of the last war.

Svyatoslav undertook to leave the territory of Bulgaria, in turn, the Byzantine side had to provide the Russian squad with food for two months.

In addition, under the terms of the treaty, trade between Kievan Rus and Byzantium was resumed. Having failed in the conquest of the Byzantine kingdom, Prince Svyatoslav headed home.

According to some reports, it was the Greeks who convinced the Pechenegs to attack Svyatoslav’s army in order to avoid a possible repetition of the campaign against Byzantium. In 972, during the spring thaw, the prince tried to walk along the Dnieper again.

However, this time, it was the final battle to the death of Grand Duke Svyatoslav.

According to the customs of the attacking Pechenegs, a cup was made from the prince’s skull, from which the leader of the Pechenegs then drank, uttering the words: “Let our children be like him!”

Thus, the life of the Grand Duke of Kyiv Svyatoslav the Brave ended. It ended in battle, which is what such a glorious warrior as Svyatoslav could hope for, igniting in his warriors faith in victory and in the great kingdom of Kiev.

He is undeservedly classified only as princes of conquerors. After all, if you look at the geography of his campaigns, he purposefully and thoughtfully provided his state with access to the Caspian Sea, to the eastern trade route.

On the other hand, the Danube, the main trading branch of Europe, also as a result of Svyatoslav’s actions, comes under the banner of the Russian kingdom. But the prince’s short life does not allow him to preserve the results of his conquests.

Princess Olga, Igor's wife, was left a widow with a three-year-old son. It fell to her lot to restore order in the state, developing cities, promoting the development of trade, and pacifying the internal revolts of the tribes that had barely joined Rus'. But the son grew up to be a completely different person, and he ruled his “patrimony” not as a zealous owner, but rather as a military leader. What are the results of his reign?

It was difficult for Olga to raise a child, since government affairs took up a lot of her time. Moreover, according to the concepts of that time, a man, even a prince, had to be, first of all, a warrior and distinguished by courage and courage. Therefore, Igor’s son grew up with a squad. Little Svyatoslav, being under the tutelage of governor Sveneld, took part in campaigns almost on equal terms with adult warriors. When Svyatoslav was 4 years old, during the next campaign of the Russians he was given a spear. The young prince threw a spear at the enemy with all his strength. And although it fell near the horse, this example greatly inspired the soldiers, who went together against the enemy.

Campaigns against the Khazars. Conquest of the Bulgarian Kingdom

Russian merchants on the Volga suffered a lot of inconvenience. They were oppressed by the Khazars, and were often attacked by the Bulgarians. Svyatoslav, already an adult, undertook repeated campaigns against the Khazars. For several years (judging by the chronicles) he fought with this warlike tribe. In 964 the decisive campaign took place. The Khazars were defeated. Their two main cities - Itil and Belaya Vezha - ended up in the hands of the Russians.

Further, after securing the trade route along the Volga for the Russians, Svyatoslav decided to conquer the Bulgarian lands. The “instigator” in this case was the Greek emperor Nicephorus Phocas, who wanted to quarrel between the Bulgarians and the Russians in order to weaken both of them, thereby protecting himself from possible invasions. He promised Svyatoslav enormous wealth - 30 pounds of gold if he defeated the Bulgarians. The Russian prince agreed and sent a countless army against the Bulgarians. Soon the Bulgarians submitted. Many of their cities fell into the hands of the Russians, including Pereyaslavets and Dorosten. While they were fighting with the Bulgarians, in Kyiv the Pechenegs almost captured Princess Olga and Svyatoslav’s small children - almost miraculously, one of the faithful warriors managed to “scoot” them away from danger.

Returning to Kyiv, Svyatoslav did not stay there long. The Bulgarian land beckoned to the prince. He admitted to his mother that he “didn’t like” living in Kyiv, but wanted to go to Pereyaslavets, where he planned to move the capital of the principality. Olga, who by that time had already retired, was very ill, persuaded her son to wait for her death and only then leave.

The last trip to Bulgaria. Treaty with Byzantium

Having buried his mother, Svyatoslav again set out on a campaign to the Bulgarian land he loved. He left his children in Rus', dividing the principality into inheritances. Descendants bitterly regretted this decision of Svyatoslav: it was with him that the unkind tradition of leaving inheritances and cities to sons began, which led to fragmentation and weakening of the state. To the future Grand Duke Vladimir the Red Sun - youngest son Svyatoslav - went to Novgorod.

Svyatoslav himself went to Pereyaslavets, but they did not receive him as he expected. By this time, the Bulgarians had entered into allied relations with the Greeks, which helped them resist the Russians. Byzantium was much more frightened by the possible proximity of the formidable Svyatoslav than the Bulgarians, so they tried to protect themselves from such danger. Victory at first was on the side of the Russian prince, but every battle was not easy for him, he lost soldiers, they were decimated by hunger and disease. Having occupied the city of Dorosten, Svyatoslav defended himself for quite a long time, but his strength was running out. After analyzing the situation, he turned to the Greeks asking for peace.

The Greek emperor arrived at the meeting on a well-equipped ship, in rich clothes, and Svyatoslav - in a simple boat, where he could not be distinguished from the warriors. The parties entered into a peace treaty, under the terms of which the Russians were obliged to never start a war with Greece.

After an unsuccessful campaign, the Russian prince decided to return to Kyiv. Faithful people They warned Svyatoslav that he could not cross the water rapids - the Pechenegs were hiding in secluded places. The prince nevertheless tried to overcome the rapids, but he failed - he had to spend the winter on Bulgarian soil.

In the spring, a second attempt was made to reach Kyiv by water, but the Pechenegs forced a battle on the Russians, in which the latter lost, as they were already completely exhausted. In this battle, Svyatoslav died - right in battle, as befits a real warrior. According to legend, the Pecheneg prince Kurya ordered a bowl to be made from his skull.

Results of the board

Prince Svyatoslav was brave and courageous; he could not imagine his life without campaigns. He didn’t hide from the enemy, didn’t try to take him by cunning, on the contrary, he honestly warned “I’m going to attack you!”, challenging him to open battle. He spent his life on a horse, ate beef or horse meat, slightly smoked over a fire, and slept with a saddle under his head. He was distinguished by his belligerence and fearlessness. But these qualities are wonderful when a military leader is endowed with them. The Grand Duke must have a more flexible mind, must be not only the leader of the army, but also a cunning diplomat and a zealous owner. Svyatoslav managed to defeat the dangerous Khazar Khanate, but was unable to establish a relationship with Byzantium that was beneficial for Rus', and did not convert special attention on the internal affairs of the state. Kievan Rus again needed a far-sighted politician and business executive on the throne.

Reign of Svyatoslav (briefly)

The reign of Prince Svyatoslav - a brief description

The Russian prince Svyatoslav spent the bulk of his life on military campaigns. His first baptism of fire took place at the age of four. This campaign against the Drevlyans was organized by Svyatoslav’s mother, Grand Duchess Olga, who decided in this way to avenge her husband, Prince Igor, whom the Drevlyans brutally killed. By Slavic tradition Only the prince could lead the army, and it was four-year-old Svyatoslav who threw the first spear, thereby giving the order to the army.

Svyatoslav was not at all interested in internal state political affairs, and therefore he gave all rights to resolve these issues to his mother. The prince was a real warrior, and his squad was mobile, since Svyatoslav did not take with him either tents or any amenities. In addition, the prince enjoyed authority even among his enemies, since he never attacked on the sly, but warned the enemy about the attack.

In 964, Prince Svyatoslav went on a campaign to Khazaria. Its route passes through the lands of the Vyatichi, who paid tribute to the Khazars. Svyatoslav forces them to pay tribute to Rus' and sets out again (to the Volga). After the defeat of the Volga Bulgaria, the great warrior prince in 965 completely defeats the Khazars, capturing their main city of Belaya Vezha. This campaign ended with the capture of the Caucasus.

The rest in Kyiv from military labors was not long, since the arriving embassy of Nikephoros Phocas asked for help against the Bulgarians who lived on the Danube lands. This campaign was also a success. Moreover, Prince Svyatoslav even wanted to move his capital from Kyiv to Pereyaslavets.

In 968, during Svyatoslav’s absence from Kyiv, the Pechenegs surrounded the city. Only thanks to the governor Petich, called by Olga, did the nomads retreat. After returning to the Kyiv lands, the prince was completely driven far beyond the borders of the state.

After the death of Princess Olga in 969, Svyatoslav left his sons (Yaropolk, Vladimir and Oleg) to rule, and he himself put forward his squad on a new military campaign against the Bulgarians, which ended very badly for the Russian squad, where during the war with the Greeks, Svyatoslav concluded a peace treaty according to which he had to leave the lands, hand over prisoners and prevent any attacks on Byzantium.

At the same time, Kyiv was again surrounded by the Pechenegs, who defeated Svyatoslav’s army, killing the prince. After him, his son Vladimir ascended the Kiev throne.

Prince Svyatoslav short biography for children

Back in 942, he was born into a princely family, in the future great commander, and Prince Svyatoslav Igorevich. IN three years of age he was left without a father, and formally began to be considered a prince. Princess Olga, who wants to take revenge on the Drevlyans for the death of her husband, takes her four-year-old son on a hike. Being just a boy at that time, Svyatoslav, for the first time in his life, began a battle by throwing a spear... And so began his glorious history as a commander and prince.

Prince Svyatoslav, to put it briefly, was a very skillful and agile warrior, one chronicler compared him to a cheetah for his speed and agility in battle, and the chronicler also emphasized the prince’s ability to select the best warriors for his squad. He described him not as a pompous and whimsical prince, but as a real warrior who knew how to endure all the hardships of military campaigns, he slept in the open air, and did not indulge himself in princely dishes. He did not accept Christianity as his mother insisted, but remained a pagan like his entire squad, he was afraid that the soldiers would not understand such an act...

In 964 he began his first major campaign against the Khazars. He chose the path not directly across the steppes, but
along the rivers, along the Oka and Volga. His allies on the campaign were the Pechenegs and Guzes. Having taken Itil, Semender, Sarkel, he completely knocked out the Khazars from the Volga, which greatly surprised Byzantium. And after that, he returned victoriously to Kyiv.

After the Grand Duke defeated the Khazars, in 968 an embassy from Byzantium arrived to him with a huge amount of gold and many different gifts, they proposed a campaign against Bulgaria. Very soon Svyatoslav was already sitting in Pereyaslavets at the mouth of the Danube. But soon he was forced to return to Kyiv, as the Pechenegs attacked him. Having fought them off from the Capital, he organized a campaign, as a result of which the Kaganate would be completely defeated. After the death of his mother, he reorganized the administration of the state by placing Yaropolk in the reign of Kiev, Vladimir in Novgorod, and placing Oleg over the Drevlyans. After which he moved with his squad to Bulgaria again.

After the coup in Byzantium, the political situation changed a little, the Bulgarians rushed to her for
help. But while Byzantium was thinking, the Bulgarians entered into an alliance with the Rusichs. And in 970, together with them, as well as with the rest of the allies, the Pechenegs and Hungarians, they attacked Byzantium. The Greeks first surrounded the Pechenegs and defeated them, then took on the main forces of the Russians. Svyatoslav was not with them, he was in Dorostol, where the battle subsequently smoothly shifted. The city was taken under a three-month siege. The army on both sides was exhausted, Svyatoslav was wounded in one of the battles. Ultimately, Byzantium and Rus' entered into an agreement, after which the prince handed over all the captured Greeks and left Bulgaria, he also pledged not to attack Byzantium and protect it from attacks by tribes. Meanwhile, Rus' was devastated by the Pechenegs, and when the prince returned, the Pechenegs waylaid him in this mortal combat the prince was killed. The life of the Grand Duke and commander ended in the spring of 972 at the mouth of the Dnieper River.