Year of birth of Svyatoslav. Grand Duke Svyatoslav Igorevich

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

Battle with the Drevlyans

For the first time Grand Duke Svyatoslav Igorevich participated in the battle in May 946, however, he led the army only formally, since he was only four years old. When his soldiers lined up on the battlefield against the Drevlyans, the governors Sveneld and Asmud brought 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 generals shouted, and the inspired Kiev army went forward. The Drevlyans were defeated, locked themselves in the 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 year. The first independent campaign of Svyatoslav. Having passed the lands of the Vyatichi, the only one of the East Slavic tribes that had not yet paid tribute to Kiev, descending along the Volga to the lands Khazar Khaganate, Svyatoslav defeated the old enemy of Russia. One of the decisive battles took place near Sarkel, an outpost of Khazaria in the west.

Two armies converged on the banks of the Don, Svyatoslav defeated the Khazar army and pushed back 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

Pushed on by Byzantium, the Grand Duke invaded Bulgaria, took its capital Preslav and began to consider it the middle (capital) of his land. But the raid of the Pechenegs on Kyiv forced him to leave the conquered lands.
When Svyatoslav returned, he found that the pro-Byzantine opposition in the capital had prevailed, and the whole city had risen against the prince. He had to take Preslav a second time.
The 20,000-strong Russian army was opposed by superior enemy forces. And the battle under the walls of the city at first took shape 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 course of the battle was turned, Svyatoslav occupied Preslav and brutally dealt with the traitors.

Siege of Philippopolis

The main rival of Russia was Byzantium, it was at Constantinople that Svyatoslav planned his main blow. To reach the borders of Byzantium, it was necessary to pass southern Bulgaria, where, fed by the Greeks, anti-Russian sentiments were strong. Rare cities surrendered without a fight, and in many Svyatoslav was forced to arrange demonstration executions. Particularly stubbornly resisted one of the oldest cities in Europe, Philippopolis. 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 the army of Svyatoslav was already a coalition: the Bulgarians, Hungarians, Pechenegs acted in alliance with him. After bloody battles, the city fell. Its garrison, governors, captured Greeks and Bulgarians who were irreconcilable to the Russians were executed. 20 thousand people, by order of Svyatoslav, were impaled.

Two pitched battles in Byzantium

Svyatoslav led further advance deep into Byzantium with two armies: one, consisting of the best Russian warriors, battle-hardened combatants, he led himself, the other - Russians, Bulgarians, Hungarians and Pechenegs - was under the command of the Kiev governor Sfenkel.
The coalition army collided with the main Greek army near Arcadiopol, 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 blow of the troops to their flank. The Pechenegs trembled and ran. The outcome of the battle was a foregone conclusion. The Russians, Hungarians and Bulgarians fought stubbornly, but were surrounded and defeated.
The battle of Svyatoslav's troops turned out to be no less difficult. The 10,000th squad of the prince 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 like it or not, we must fight. Thus, let us not disgrace the Russian land, but let us lay our bones here, for the dead have no shame. If we run, we will be disgraced.” 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 for a siege.

Protection of Dorostol

Violating the peace treaty, the Greeks in 971 first attacked Preslav, then, devastating the cities, went to the Danube, to the city of Dorostol, in which Svyatoslav was located. His position was more than difficult. The bloody battle under the walls of the city lasted from morning until dusk and forced the Russians with the Bulgarians to retreat behind the fortress walls. A long siege began. From the land, the city was surrounded by an army under the command of the emperor, the Danube was blocked by the Greek fleet. The Russians, despite the danger, made daring sorties. In one of them, a high-ranking official, Master John, was beheaded. The combatants made another one at night in heavy rain: they bypassed the enemy fleet in boats, collected grain supplies 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 walls of the city, 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 rather rich and unique history of its formation.

The position, which this moment occupies Russia in the world, its internal structure, is dictated precisely by the original history of the formation of our state, by the events that took place throughout the development of Russia, and most importantly by 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 aids only general phrases about their lives are given. One of these personalities is Svyatoslav Igorevich, the Grand Duke of Kyiv, also known by the people as Svyatoslav the Brave.

Consider the main milestones in the life of the prince:

• 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 Stary and Princess Olga. For certain, the year of birth of Grand Duke Svyatoslav is not known.

Most historians, referring to ancient chronicles, indicate the year 942 as such. But, in the Tale of Bygone Years, the name of Svyatoslav Igorevich was 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 the throwing of a spear by Svyatoslav 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 chief Kyiv governor, the Varangian Sveneld. The first taught the boy to hunt, to hold fast in the saddle, to swim, to hide from the eyes of enemies in any area.

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

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

The tenth century in Russia is marked by the adoption of Christianity, but during the years of Svyatoslav's life, Christianity was still slowly walking around the country. But his mother, Princess Olga, who converted to Christianity, tried with all sorts of methods to persuade her son to come to the new faith.

With all the attempts of his mother, Svyatoslav firmly stood his ground, he was a pagan, like his squad. Otherwise, in the event of the adoption of 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 team leaves Kyiv, and his story begins. military glory. The purpose of the prince's campaign was most likely the defeat of the Khazar Khaganate, but on his way, at first he meets Vyatichi, Volga Bulgarians, Burtases, and his squad comes out of every battle with a victory.

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

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

Bulgarian campaigns

After the return of Prince Svyatoslav to Kyiv, almost immediately he and his retinue set off on a new military campaign against the Danube Bulgaria. Historians name different reasons for such a quick abandonment of their lands.

However, the most common position is based on the interest of Byzantium in resolving the misunderstanding that has arisen with Bulgaria and, if possible, not with their own hands. And also, the possibility of weakening the Kiev state.

Thus, returning from a military campaign against Khazaria, Prince Svyatoslav was met by Greek ambassadors who relied on the Russian-Byzantine treaty of 944, backed up by a fairly solid gold offering.

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

At the same time, it was during the next military campaign of the prince that the Pechenegs attacked Kyiv. Svyatoslav had to return from the conquered territories and repulse the aggressors.

Simultaneously with the onset of the Pechenegs, Princess Olga dies, who, all the time of Svyatoslav's campaigns, acted as the ruler of the state.

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

Such an act of the prince in the future will affect the history of the country in the form of civil strife and tension in the country. Having dealt with the political affairs of the state, Svyatoslav again went on a campaign against Bulgaria, in which he had already completely mastered the territory of the whole country.

The ruler of Bulgaria, hoping to get help from Byzantium, turned to its emperor. Nicephorus Foka, the ruler of Byzantium, watching the strengthening of the Russian state and worried about its strengthening, satisfied the request of the Bulgarian king.

In addition, the emperor hoped to marry a Bulgarian royal family to cement their union. But as a result of the coup, Nicephorus Foka was killed and John Tzimisces ascended the imperial throne.

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

Contrary to their 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 oppose the Byzantine Empire with him.

Homecoming. Death of the Grand Duke

In 970, Grand Duke Svyatoslav with his army, which included Bulgarians, Pechenegs, Hungarians, leads his numerically superior army to the territory of the Byzantine state. In the course of a year and a half, various battles went on with alternate success for both troops.

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

Svyatoslav undertook to leave the territory of Bulgaria, in turn, the Byzantine side was 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 the army of Svyatoslav in order to get rid of a possible repetition of the campaign against Byzantium. In 972, during the spring thaw, the prince tried to cross the Dnieper again.

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

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

Thus, the life of the Grand Duke of Kiev Svyatoslav the Brave ended. It ended in battle, which could be hoped for by such a glorious warrior as Svyatoslav, who kindles in his combatants faith in victory and in the great kingdom of Kiev.

He is undeservedly classified as only the princes of the 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.

And on the other hand, the Danube - the main trade branch of Europe, also as a result of the actions of Svyatoslav, passes under the banner of the Russian kingdom. But the short life of the prince does not allow him to save 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, equipping the cities, promoting the development of trade, and subduing the internal rebellions of the tribes that had barely joined Russia. But the son grew up as a completely different person, and he ruled his “patrimony” not as a zealous master, but rather as a military leader. What are the results of his reign?

It was difficult for Olga to raise a child, because state affairs took a lot of time from her. In addition, according to the concepts of that time, a man, even a prince, had to be, first of all, a warrior and be distinguished by courage and courage. Therefore, Igor's son grew up with a squad. Little Svyatoslav, being under the tutelage of the governor Sveneld, took part in the campaigns almost on an equal footing with adult combatants. 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 might. And although it fell near the horse, this example greatly inspired the soldiers, who unanimously went to the enemy.

Campaigns against the Khazars. The conquest of the Bulgarian kingdom

Russian merchants on the Volga endured many inconveniences. They were oppressed by the Khazars, 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 a 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 Foka, who wanted to quarrel the Bulgarians and the Russians in order to weaken both of them, thereby protecting himself from possible invasions. He promised Svyatoslav huge wealth - 30 pounds of gold if he defeated the Bulgarians. The Russian prince agreed and sent a vast army against the Bulgarians. Soon the Bulgarians submitted. In the hands of the Russians were many of their cities, including Pereyaslavets and Dorosten. While they were fighting with the Bulgarians, in Kyiv, the Pechenegs almost captured Princess Olga and the small children of Svyatoslav - almost miraculously, one of the faithful vigilantes managed to "rush" them away from danger.

Returning to Kyiv, Svyatoslav did not stay there for long. Prince Manila Bulgarian land. He confessed to his mother that he “disliked” living in Kyiv, but he 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.

Last trip to Bulgaria. Treaty with Byzantium

After burying his mother, Svyatoslav again set off on a campaign in the Bulgarian land he loved. He left his children in Russia, dividing the principality into destinies. The descendants had to bitterly regret this decision of Svyatoslav: it was with him that the unkind tradition of leaving destinies and cities to his sons began, which led to fragmentation and weakening of the state. To the future Grand Duke Vladimir the Red Sun - younger 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, on the other hand, was much more frightened by the possible proximity of the formidable Svyatoslav than the Bulgarians, so they tried to protect themselves from such a danger. At first, victory was on the side of the Russian prince, but each battle was not easy for him, he lost soldiers, they were mowed down by hunger and disease. Having occupied the city of Dorosten, Svyatoslav defended himself for quite a long time, but his forces were running out. After analyzing the situation, he turned to the Greeks with a request 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 concluded a peace treaty, under the terms of which the Russians were obliged never to start a war with Greece.

After an unsuccessful campaign, the Russian prince decided to return to Kyiv. Faithful people 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 did not succeed - 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 to make a bowl from his skull.

Board results

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 with cunning, on the contrary, he honestly warned “I’m going to attack you!”, Calling him into open battle. He spent his life on a horse, eating beef or horsemeat, slightly smoked on the fire, sleeping with a saddle under his head. He was distinguished by militancy and fearlessness. But these qualities are beautiful when a military leader is endowed with them. The Grand Duke, on the other hand, must have a more flexible mind, must be not only the leader of the army, but also a cunning diplomat and a zealous master. Svyatoslav managed to defeat the dangerous Khazar Khanate, but could not establish relations with Byzantium that were beneficial for Russia, did not pay special attention on the internal affairs of the state. Kievan Rus again needed a far-sighted politician and business executive on the throne.

The reign of Svyatoslav (briefly)

The reign of Prince Svyatoslav - a brief description

The main part of his life, the Russian prince Svyatoslav spent in 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 the 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 granted all the 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 enemies, since he never attacked stealthily, but warned the enemy about the attack.

In 964, Prince Svyatoslav sets out on a campaign in Khazaria. His route passes through the lands of the Vyatichi, who paid tribute to the Khazars. Svyatoslav makes them pay tribute to Russia and sets off again (to the Volga). After the defeat of the Volga Bulgaria, the great prince-warrior 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 embassy of Nikifor Foka, who arrived, asked for help against the Bulgarians who lived on the Danube lands. This trip was also a success. Moreover, Prince Svyatoslav even wanted to move his capital from Kyiv to Pereyaslavets.

In 968, during the absence of Svyatoslav in Kyiv, the Pechenegs surrounded the city. Only thanks to the voivode Petich called by Olga, the nomads retreated. After returning to the Kiev lands, the prince was completely driven far beyond the borders of the state.

After the death of Princess Olga in 969, Svyatoslav leaves his sons (Yaropolk, Vladimir and Oleg) to rule, and he himself puts forward a squad in 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 on which he had to leave the lands, hand over the prisoners and prevent any attacks on Byzantium.

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

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 old he was left without a father, and formally began to be considered a prince. Wanting to take revenge on the Drevlyans for the death of her husband, Princess Olga takes her four-year-old son on a campaign. Being just a kid at that time, Svyatoslav for the first time in his life began the battle with a throw of a spear ... And so began his glorious history as a commander and prince.

In short, Prince Svyatoslav was a very skillful and agile warrior, one chronicler compared him with 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 could 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 launched his first major campaign against the Khazars. He chose the path not straight through the steppes, but
along the rivers, along the Oka and Volga. His allies in the campaign were the Pechenegs and Guzes. Having taken Itil, Semender, Sarkel, he completely drove the Khazars from the Volga, which surprised Byzantium very much. And after that, victoriously returned 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 offered 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 repulsed them from the Capital, he organized a campaign, after which the Kaganate would have been 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 Oleg over the Drevlyans. Then 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 in Byzantium they were 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 the Hungarians, they attacked Byzantium. The Greeks first surrounded the Pechenegs and defeated them, then they took up the main forces of the Rusichs; Svyatoslav was not with them, he was in Dorostol, where the battle subsequently shifted smoothly. The city was taken in a three-month siege. The army on both sides was exhausted, Svyatoslav was wounded in one of the battles. In the end, Byzantium and Russia concluded 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 the attacks of the tribes. Meanwhile, Russia was being devastated by the Pechenegs, and when the prince returned, the Pechenegs lay in wait for him in this deadly fight 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.