In the previous article, after Rurik's death, Igor, who took over the position of Grand Duke of Novgorod, went south along the Nepro River system, conquered most of the East Slavic tribes, and finally captured Kiev as the capital, laying a strong foundation for Kievan Rus' to rule the Eastern European continent for more than 300 years.
After Igor was killed by one of his subordinates, the Dons (Delivlians), his 3-year-old son, Svyatoslav, ascended to the throne and was regent by his mother, Olga. But in fact, due to the fact that Svyatoslav was away with his troops for a long time. Therefore, until Olga's death in 969 AD, the state affairs of Kievan Rus' were handled by Olga on his behalf. Here are some additional information about the life and subsequent development of Grand Duke Svyatoslav.
In 957, at the age of 15, Svyatoslav began his campaign. According to the ** historical book "Chronicles of the Past Years", Svyatoslav was vigorous, light as a leopard and had the courage of 10,000 enemies. When they set out on the expedition, they did not bring pots and ladles, grain and grass, but only dried horses or beef tied to the horses as war rations, and the food was provided by the villages they passed through or the enemy villages were plundered and supplied on the spot. Stay overnight without a tent, sleep with your pillow and horse up to the sky. On the one hand, it can be seen that the Kievan Rus' army at that time was brave and invincible, and on the other hand, it can also be seen that they were quite barbaric and unconstrained by etiquette.
From ** sculptor EugeneBlueThurSvyatoslav sculpture of the hand of the column.
The young Svyatoslav Horse showed his ability to fight as he defeated the Khazar Khanate, the biggest obstacle to his expansion in Eastern Europe, and controlled many tribes from the northern shore of the Black Sea to the lower Oka River. In 964, a series of military campaigns forced the Vyadich people in the West Oka River valley to sever their alliance with the Khazars and incorporate them into their territory, and Kievan Rus' has since conquered all the East Slavic tribes.
After defeating the Khazars, his forces were invincible in southern Eastern Europe. In 965 he led his army eastward, conquering the Bulgarians and Magyars (Hungarians) east of the Oka River and west of the Volga River. At the same time, he divided his army to conquer the North Caucasus in the south, and also inflicted heavy losses on the local strongholds of the Khazars. And on the way to Kiev, completely destroyed the Khazar Khanate.
Svyatoslav on the Russian Millennium Monument in the Novgorod Kremlin.
War broke out in 966 when the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) Emperor Nikephoros II refused to pay tribute to the Bulgarian kingdom in the Danube Valley. Svyatoslav took advantage of the situation to advance eastward, quickly occupying all areas north of the Danube. The following year, the Byzantine army joined forces with Svyatoslav's army and captured the country's capital, Preslav.
Svyatoslav withByzantiumEmperor John I meets
At this time, the high-spirited Svyatoslav ambition exploded instantly, threatening to use the city of Preslav as a stronghold for attacking Byzantium, and build it as the new capital of Kievan Rus', and the **, fabrics, wine, fruits, Hungarians, cattle and sheep from Greece will belong to him. Olga's early efforts to make peace with Byzantium came to naught. The enraged Byzantine emperor instigated one of the Western Turks, the Pechenegs, to besiege Kiev in 968 AD, forcing Svyatoslav to abandon the city of Preslav and return to Kiev. Byzantium immediately sent troops to occupy the Bulgarian territory previously controlled by Svyatoslav.
In 971, the reluctant Svyatoslav again led his army eastward into the Danube Valley. However, the Byzantine emperor had already prepared, and soon after the Rus' army reached the north bank of the Danube, it was surrounded by a Byzantine army of 100,000, and Svyatoslav hastily withdrew his troops and suffered heavy losses. The nightmare began only after returning to Kyiv, when the Pechenegs, whom he had previously repulsed, took turns to invade Kyiv. In 972, Svyatoslav and his army were defeated by the Pechenegs and were killed in battle on the lower Dnieper. In the same year, he was succeeded by his eldest son, Aropolok.
Death of Svyatoslav
Before Svyatoslav marched into Bulgaria, he was crowned his second son, Grand Duke Novgorod, and third son, Duke Delivlian respectively, and the two brothers, who held the land, naturally became the thorn in the side of Yaroborok after his accession to the throne, and since then the eight-year struggle for power has begun, during which the civil war has continued, resulting in the decline of the national power of Kievan Rus'.
In 977, Yaroborok led his army north, eliminated his third brother Oleg and drove his second brother Vladimir out of Novgorod. According to the "Chronicles of the Past Years", Vladimir fled to"The other side of the sea", from which it is not difficult to deduce that he fled across the Baltic Sea to Scandinavia, the homeland of the Varyags. Taking advantage of the prestige of his father's ancestors, he gathered a group of warriors there and led them back to Novgorod, where he drove away by force the rulers of Yaropolok's cronies.
Vladimir's army continued to advance southward, passing through Polotsk, which was controlled by Maharaja Rogvorod. He first sent messengers demanding that he marry the prince's daughter, Rogneta, in order to consolidate his power in the region. Unexpectedly, the prince refused, Vladimir ordered a storming of the city, the prince Rogvolod was executed by Vladimir, and Rogneda was also defeated by Vladimir**, and gave birth to a son, Izyaslav (later the prince of Polotsk). Polotsk also became the most important stronghold on Vladimir's southern expedition.
Vladimir with Rogneda
In 980 A.D., Vladimir led his army to Kiev, where he seduced Yaroborok and killed him after he left the city, succeeding him as Grand Duke of Kievan Rus'. During the reign of Vladimir, the regime was stable and the national strength was strong, and he introduced the ** religion into the country and required the people to convert to replace the original Slavic faith through coercive means, laying the foundation for the continuous civilization and development of the European continent in the name of the ** religious country in the future.