The structure of the princely squad. II

Let's take a look at the composition of Russian society, which was ruled by the Grand Duke of Kiev. The highest class of this society, with which the prince shared the labors of managing and protecting the land, was the princely squad. It was divided into higher and lower: the first consisted of princely men, or boyars, the second of children, or youths; the oldest collective name for the junior squad, grid or gridba (Scandinavian grid - yard servant) was later replaced by the word yard or servants.

This squad, together with its prince, came, as we know, from among the armed merchants of large cities. In the 11th century it was not yet distinguished from this merchant class by any sharp features, either political or economic. The squad of the principality constituted, in fact, a military class; but large trading cities were also organized in a military manner, forming each solid organized regiment, called a thousand, which was divided into hundreds and dozens (battalions and companies). A thousand was commanded by a thousand chosen by the city, and then appointed by the prince; hundreds and tens were also commanded by elected sotskiy and ten's. These elected commanders constituted the military administration of the city and the region that belonged to it, the military-government elders, who are called in the chronicles “city elders.” City regiments, or more precisely, armed cities, took a constant part in the prince’s campaigns along with his squad. On the other hand, the squad served the prince as an instrument of governance: members of the senior squad, the boyars, constituted the prince’s Duma, his state council. “Bo Volodymyr,” the chronicle says about him, “loving the squad and thinking with them about the system of the earth, and about the military forces, and about the charter of the earth.” But in this druzhina, or boyar, Duma also sat the “city elders,” that is, the elected military authorities of the city of Kyiv, and perhaps other cities, thousand and sotsky. Thus, the very question of accepting Christianity was decided by the prince in consultation with the boyars and “elders of the city.” These elders, or city elders, appear hand in hand with the prince, together with the boyars, in matters of government, as in all court celebrations, forming, as it were, a zemstvo aristocracy next to the princely servants. Along with the boyars and mayors, “elders throughout the city” were invited to the princely feast on the occasion of the consecration of the church in Vasilevo in 996. In the same way, by order of Vladimir, boyars, gridis, sotskys, tens and all deliberate men were supposed to come to his Sunday feasts in Kyiv. But, constituting the military-governmental class, the princely squad at the same time remained at the head of the Russian merchant class, from which it separated, and took an active part in overseas trade. These are Russian merchants around the half of the 10th century. was far from being Slavic-Russian.
Kyiv could not remain the capital city of one of the local Varangian principalities: it had all-Russian significance as a key point of the commercial and industrial movement and therefore became the center of the political unification of the entire land. Askold's activities, apparently, were limited to protecting the external security of the Kyiv region: from the chronicle it is not clear that he conquered any of the devious tribes from which he defended his glades, although the words of Photius about Rosa, who was proud of the enslavement of the surrounding tribes, seem to hint at This. The first thing Oleg did in Kyiv is the expansion of his possessions, the gathering of the Eastern Slavs under his rule. The chronicle records this matter with suspicious consistency, adding one tribe to Kyiv every year. Oleg occupied Kyiv in 882; in 883 the Drevlyans were conquered, in 884 - the northerners, in 885 - the Radimichi; after that a long series of years were left empty. Obviously, this is the order of chronicle memories, or considerations, and not the events themselves. By the beginning of the 11th century. all tribes Eastern Slavs were brought under the arm of the Kyiv prince; at the same time, tribal names appear less and less often, being replaced by regional names based on the names of the main cities. Expanding their possessions, the princes of Kyiv established state order in the subject countries, first of all, of course, tax administration. The old urban areas served as a ready-made basis for the administrative division of the land. In the subordinate city regions of the cities of Chernigov, Smolensk and other cities, the princes installed their governors, posadniks, who were either their hired warriors or their own sons and relatives. These governors had their own squads, special armed detachments, acted quite independently, stood only in a weak connection with the state center, with Kiev, they were the same conings as the Prince of Kiev, who was considered only the eldest among them and in this sense was called the “Grand Duke Russians" in contrast to local princes and governors. To increase the importance of the Kyiv prince, these governors were called “grand princes” in diplomatic documents. Thus, according to a preliminary agreement with the Greeks in 907, Oleg demanded “structures” for the Russian cities of Kyiv, Chernigov, Pereyaslavl, Polotsk, Rostov, Lyubech and other cities, “because the city of the great princes is under Olga.” These were still Varangian principalities, only allied with the Kyiv principality: the prince then retained its former military-squad significance, without having yet acquired dynastic significance. The genealogical dispute that Oleg started near Kiev, reproaching Askold and Dir for the fact that they reigned in Kiev, not being princes, “not the kind of prince” - Oleg’s claim, which warned the course of events, and even more likely - the same speculation of the chronicle compiler himself vault. Some of the governors, having conquered this or that tribe, received it from the Kyiv prince for control with the right to collect tribute from it in their favor, just as in the West in the 9th century. The Danish Vikings, having captured one or another coastal region of the Empire of Charlemagne, received it from the Frankish kings as fief, that is, for feeding. Igor's governor Sveneld, having defeated the Slavic tribe of the Uluchi, who lived along the lower Dnieper, received tribute in his favor not only from this tribe, but also from the Drevlyans, so that his squad, the youths, lived richer than the squad of Igor himself.

IN. Klyuchevsky

Social structure of society in Rus' VaDEvil: According to Russian Truth: Princes are the leaders of tribes, later - the rulers of the state or state entities within a single state. Simply put, everyone who was from the house of Rurik. Senior Prince in Ancient Rus' the Kiev prince was considered, and the rest were appanage. For the 13th century, after the destruction of Kyiv by the Mongols, the ruler of the Vladimir-Suzdal land became the Grand Duke. Boyars are representatives of the upper class of feudal lords in Rus:i, descendants of the tribal nobility, large landowners. They enjoyed immunity and the right to travel to other princes. Druzhinniki are warriors of armed detachments of princes, participating in wars, managing the principality and the prince’s personal household for monetary reward. Men - in the pre-state and early state period - were free people. The general name for personally free people is City people - townspeople. In turn, they were divided into “best” or “weak” (wealthy) and “young” or “black” (poor). By occupation they were called “merchants” and “craftsmen”. Smerdas were free communal peasants who had their own farm and arable land. Purchases are smerdas who have taken a loan (“kupa”) from another landowner with livestock, grain, tools, etc. and must work for the lender until the debt is repaid. They had no right to leave the owner before this. The owner was responsible for the purchase if he committed theft, etc. Ryadovichi are smerds who entered into an agreement (“row”) with the landowner on the conditions of their work for him or the use of his land and tools. Forgiven people are freed (“forgiven”) slaves. They were under the patronage of the church and lived on its land in exchange for services. Serfs are a category of feudal-dependent population, whose legal status is close to slaves. Initially, they did not have their own farm and performed various jobs on the farm of the feudal lords. The sources of formation of this class were: captivity, sale for debts, marriage with a serf or servant. Outcasts are people who have lost their former social status and are unable to run an independent household.

The social structure of Ancient Rus' was complex. The bulk of the rural population, dependent on the prince, were called smerds. They lived both in peasant communities and in estates. Ruined peasants took out a loan from the feudal lords - "kupa" (money, harvest, etc.), hence their name - purchases. A person who lost his social status became an outcast. In the position of slaves were servants and serfs, replenished from among the captives and ruined fellow tribesmen.

The dependent people were opposed by a free population called people (hence the collection of tribute - “polyudye”). The social elite consisted of princes from the Rurik family, surrounded by a squad that had been divided since the 11th century. into the eldest (boyars) and the younger ("children's", youths, almsmen). “The new druzhina and zemstvo (zemstvo boyars) nobility, which took the place of the former tribal nobility, represented a kind of aristocratic layer that supplied political leaders.” The free population consisted mainly of residents of cities and villages, community members, who created a significant part of public wealth. They were the social core of the socio-political and military organization in the Old Russian state. This was expressed as follows.

The free community members had their own military organization, which was far superior in combat power to the princely squad. It was a people's militia led by a leader - the thousand (the militia itself was called "thousand"). The supreme authority in the Russian lands of the X-XII centuries. there was a people's assembly of the "elder city" - the veche, which was the highest form of self-government. According to L.I. Semennikova, ancient Russian society was dominated by the ideal of popular rule, collective communal governance: “The prince in Kievan Rus was not in the full sense of the word a sovereign either in the East or in western version. Arriving in one or another volost, the prince had to conclude a “row” (agreement) with the people’s assembly - “veche”. This means that he was also an element of communal power, called upon to safeguard the interests of society and the collective; The composition of the meeting was democratic. The Old Russian nobility did not have the necessary means to completely subjugate him. With the help of the veche, the people influenced the course of social and political life."

Opinion of L.I. Semennikova’s opinion about the folk character of the veche is shared by many scientists, including I.Ya. Froyanov, A.Yu. Dvornichenko. At the same time, in science there is a view of the veche as a narrow-class government body that ordinary people could not get into (V.T. Pashuto, V.L. Yanin, etc.). Another point of view boils down to the following: the veche became a relic in Rus' by the 11th century. and was collected in exceptional cases, and as the highest form of power it was until the 15th century. existed only in Novgorod, Pskov and partly in Polotsk.

The veche played a prominent role in the political life of Ancient Rus', therefore the political system of that time can be called veche democracy.

An analysis of the socio-political situation in Kievan Rus leads to the conclusion that the people were an active political and social force, based on the traditions of freedom and social institutions dating back to antiquity, but built on a territorial basis. Through the veche, the people often decided which of the princes to “sit on the table”, discussed issues of war and peace, acted as a mediator in princely conflicts, and resolved financial and land problems. As for the nobility, it has not yet emerged as a separate closed class, has not turned into a social whole opposing the bulk of the population.

Social structure of Ancient Rus' The highest class in Rus' were the princes, and from the 10th century. also members of the clergy, because they owned (obviously since the 11th century) land property (votchina). The squad occupied a privileged position. The druzhina organization had an internal hierarchy: the top of the druzhina layer was the oldest druzhina; its members were called boyars. The lowest stratum was the junior squad. Its representatives were called youths. The lower class consisted of the free rural population, subject to tribute, and free townspeople, who were called people. For the personally dependent population of fiefs, as well as for unfree servants, the terms servants and serfs were used. Smerds constituted a special category of the population. The question of its essence is debatable. In the second half of the 11th century. a category of purchasers appears - people who become dependent on the landowner for debts and are forced to work for the master until the amount of the debt is paid. Their legal status was intermediate between free people and slaves.

Social structure of the society of Kievan Rus The population of the ancient Russian state, according to various estimates, ranged from 5 to 9 million people. At the head of Rus' were the Rurikovichs - the Grand Duke of Kiev and his relatives. The prince enjoyed great power. He led the army, organized the defense of the country and directed all campaigns of conquest. In the former tribal principalities, his brothers and sons ruled on behalf of the great Kyiv prince. Senior squad Former tribal princes and the best men of the period of “military democracy” made up the senior squad, the top of the squad layer. They were called boyars and constituted the permanent council (“Duma”) of the prince. Junior squad The junior squad are ordinary soldiers (“gridi”, “youths”, “children’s”). From the junior squad, the prince's personal squad was recruited, which was in his service. From the pre-state period to social structure A squad came to Kievan Rus. But during this period it is divided into older and younger. People are personally free residents of Kievan Rus. By occupation, people could be both urban artisans and communal peasants. Craftsmen were a fairly large group of the population of Rus'. As the social division of labor grew, cities became centers for the development of crafts. By the 12th century. in the cities of Rus' there were over 60 craft specialties; artisans produced more than 150 types of iron products. The growth of cities and the development of crafts is associated with the activities of such a group of the population as merchants. The Russian-Byzantine treaty of 944 allows us to talk about the existence of an independent merchant profession. Peasants united into a rural community - verv, which consisted of economically independent families. The word "rope" is most often associated with a rope, which may have been used to mark out individual areas. The community owned a certain territory and was responsible for public order on it to the state (for a corpse found on its territory, it had to pay or find and extradite the killer), paid a fine - viru - for its members, owned land, which it periodically distributed among families . Vladimir I (Saint) Svyatoslavovich (died in 1015), Prince of Novgorod (from 969), Grand Duke of Kiev (from 980). The youngest son of Svyatoslav. Came to power in Kyiv after 8 years of internecine war. Conquered the Vyatichi, Radimichi and Yatvingians; fought with the Pechenegs, Volga Bulgaria, Byzantium and Poland. Under him, defensive lines were built along the rivers Desna, Osetr, Trubezh, Sula, etc., and the city of Kyiv was re-fortified and built up with stone buildings. In 988–990 introduced Christianity as the state religion. Under Vladimir I, the Old Russian state entered its heyday, and the international authority of Rus' strengthened. In Russian epics it was called the Red Sun. Canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church. The squad, which previously performed only military functions, from the end of the 10th century. increasingly turned into an apparatus of state power. The warriors carried out various orders of the Grand Duke (in military affairs, in governing the country, in the field of diplomatic relations). At the same time, the prince was forced to take into account the opinion of the squad. The chronicle cites a case when a squad expressed its dissatisfaction with the stinginess of Vladimir, who displayed wooden dishes during a feast; The prince, considering that the loss of the squad was worth more than silver and gold, satisfied her demand. In the cities, the prince relied on the boyar-posadniks, in the army - on the governor, who were also, as a rule, representatives of prominent boyar families. The main group of the population of Kievan Rus were free community members - people. Semi-independent population of Kievan Rus At the beginning of the 12th century. a group of semi-dependent people appears - purchasing. Most often, these were ruined community members who went into bondage for receiving a loan - “kupa”. While working off the debt, the purchaser could work on his master’s land, but at the same time he maintained his farm. The law protected the purchaser from the owner’s possible desire to turn him into a white-washed (i.e., complete) slave. The purchase was deprived of personal freedom, but he could redeem himself by repaying the debt. But if the purchaser tried to escape, he became a complete slave. “Russian Truth” is a code of ancient Russian law. It included individual norms of the “Russian Law”, the Truth of Yaroslav the Wise (the so-called Most Ancient Truth), the Truth of the Yaroslavichs, the Charter of Vladimir Monomakh, etc. Dedicated to the protection of the life and property of princely warriors and servants; free rural community members and townspeople; regulated the position of dependent people; set out the rules of obligation and inheritance law, etc. Preserved in 3 editions: Brief, Long, Abridged (lists of the 13th–18th centuries). A small group of the semi-dependent population of Rus' were the ryadovichi. Their lives, according to “Russian Truth,” were protected only by a 5-hryvnia fine. Their connection with the drawing up of a contract is likely. Perhaps the ryadovichi are tiuns who entered into an agreement, key holders, husbands of slaves, as well as children from marriages of slaves and freemen. Ryadovichi often carried out minor administrative tasks for their masters. Dependent population of Kievan Rus The completely dependent population groups include slaves, known as servants and serfs. Probably, servants is an early name, serfs - a later one. Another possible explanation: servants are slaves from prisoners of war, slaves are internal slaves. The slave did not have the right to be a witness in court; the owner was not responsible for his murder. Not only the slave, but also everyone who helped him was punished for escaping. The sources of slavery were captivity, selling oneself into slavery, marrying a slave or marrying a slave, entering the service of a prince (tiun, housekeeper) without an appropriate contract. In Rus' there was patriarchal slavery, when slaves were involved in work in household, but Roman classical slavery did not exist. The bulk of slaves performed menial work. Their lives were valued at five hryvnia. But at the same time, slaves could be managers, overseers, and housekeepers. Their life (for example, the prince's tiun) was valued at 80 hryvnia, and he could act as a witness in court. Despite the existence of an unfree population in Kievan Rus, most historians believe that slavery in Rus' was not widespread due to economic unprofitability. In addition, in Rus' there are categories of semi-dependent and completely dependent residents. Smerds were a special group of the population. These are probably unfree princely tributaries. Smerd did not have the right to leave his property to his heirs. It was handed over to the prince. One more group can be distinguished - outcasts, people who have lost their social status - a slave who has been bought into freedom, a community member expelled from the rope, a bankrupt merchant or artisan, and even a prince who has lost his principality.

Usually, when we hear the word knight, images appear in our minds that are familiar from childhood to the novels of Walter Scott or from films about King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. This is a heavily armed mounted warrior, protector of the weak and oppressed. And the events themselves take place in “good old England” or “dear France”.

However, historians have long established that heavily armed cavalry has been an integral part of the Russian army since the times of the Old Russian state. In this respect, the Russians were heirs to the heavy cavalry traditions of the Sarmatian Alans. And the word “knight” itself is Slavic, Old Russian - “knight”, close to the word tsar, South Russian - “litsar, ritsar”, Polish - “ruсerz”. According to one version, this word goes back to the Indo-European words “rys” - to ride on horseback, and “sar” - a noble person. According to another version, to the German word ritter - “rider”. In Europe, knights were not actually called knights. In France, these were chevalier (chevalier) - “riding a horse”; in Spain - caballero (caballero) - “horseman, knight, nobleman” (from Lat. caball?rius “groom” from Lat. caballus “horse”); in Italy - cavaliere (“cavalier”); in England - knight (from Old English cniht “guy”); in Germany - ritter (“rider”).

In Rus', most often these warriors were designated by the word “brave” or “knight” (from the Indo-European “vidyati” - to win, Skt. Vijaya). The word knight was widespread among other Slavic peoples: Bosnian, Slovenian, Croatian - vitez, Serbian - vitez.

As a result, a myth arose that the real knights are “over there,” in the West. We liked to paint Russian warriors as these simple-minded, powerful heroes - “felt boots”, who were no longer taken by skill and knowledge, but by “strength”, or generally by luck. These ideas go back to the 18th century, when there was a process of total revision of Russian history, which was written in the interests of the West, often simply by Germans. The church also made its contribution, instilling the idea that Russian-Slavs have always been a “God-fearing”, meek, almost timid people. How did the “peaceful” and “God-fearing” Russians defend themselves in conditions of constant war on the north-western, western, southern and eastern borders, and often internal wars, and then also occupy a territory greater than which no other nation occupied ( this means Russian territory itself, and not overseas colonies), with this view remains a mystery.

If you study the texts of epics, chronicles, and the pages of the wars waged by the Russians, everything falls into place. There have never been any “peace-loving louts” (otherwise the Russians simply would not exist anymore, or they would live out their days as part of a foreign state). It should be noted right away that in the military aspect the Russian people are invincible. Even the last brief outbreaks of his military activity, such as the rush of paratroopers into Pristina or the defeat of the Georgian army, trained by the best Western instructors, still cause hysteria and panic in the world. And this despite the fact that now the Russian giant is lulled to sleep by “fairy tales” about “world peace”, the triumph of pacifism and humanism and other nonsense. Russian soldiers at all times were able to very firmly defend the people’s right to life, putting any enemy in their place.

At the head of the squad was the prince. It originally performed four main functions. Firstly, a prince is a military leader, a defender of a tribe, a land-principality. This is his main task - to protect his people; if he did not cope with it, in the Old Russian state he could simply be expelled. Secondly, the prince’s duty is to “attend,” that is, to maintain order in the territory entrusted to him. Thirdly, the prince performed a judicial function, within its framework such a monument of Russian law as “Russian Truth” appeared. Fourthly, the prince had sacred power and performed priestly functions before the adoption of Christianity. Left without a prince (later a tsar), the Russian people felt uncomfortable and lost contact with heaven. It was not for nothing that Prince Vladimir carried out two religious reforms - he erected idols in 980, and in approximately 988 he accepted Christianity and began the baptism of Rus'. And with the adoption of Christianity, the attitude towards the prince as a high priest almost did not change. It was the princes who promoted Christianity in masses. The first Russian saints were also princes. Subsequently, this view of princely power was strengthened by the Byzantine theory of the divine origin of power. This attitude was preserved in Muscovite Rus' and Russian Empire, where the church has always been in a subordinate position in relation to the royal (imperial) power.

The prince always performed surrounded by a loyal squad, comrades, comrades-in-arms, guards and the striking force of the entire Russian army. In the 9th-12th centuries, the prince and the squad were something indissoluble, a single whole. Relationships in the squad were similar to family relations and initially they were replaced, because a warrior who joined the squad lost contact with his family and tribe. All Slavic peoples have the word “druzhina”. It comes from the word “friend” (friend, assistant, ally).

The size of the squad could range from several tens to several thousand warriors. However, these were selected professional warriors, whose lives were devoted only to military service (in modern world, military special forces can be compared with them). If simple “warriors”-militia, after completing a task - a campaign, repelling a raid, an invasion, went home and returned to their former life as a farmer, artisan or hunter, then the warriors were professional warriors. According to the Arab traveler Ibn Fadlan from 922, together with the Kyiv prince “in his castle there are 400 men from among the heroes, his associates.” The squad of Svyatoslav Igorevich, with which he crushed Khazaria and conquered Bulgaria, consisted of about 10 thousand fighters. The squad of his great-grandson, the son of Yaroslav the wise - Svyatoslav II Yaroslavich, with whom he defeated the Polovtsian army, consisted of 3 thousand soldiers.

Based on the fact that the vigilantes were always on the front line, facing danger head-on, they received a privileged position. They received the best parts of the spoils of war. The prince generously presented the warriors with gold and silver. At feasts, they ate with the best dishes and got the best pieces. It is enough to recall the grievance of the warriors against Vladimir: “Woe to our heads: he gave us to eat with wooden spoons, not silver.” Hearing this, Vladimir ordered to look for silver spoons, saying: “I won’t find a squad with silver and gold, but with a squad I will get silver and gold, just as my grandfather and father with a squad found gold and silver.” For Vladimir loved the squad and consulted with it about the structure of the country, and about the war, and about the laws of the country.”

It should be noted that feasts with warriors played an important role at that time. The Russian feast was a real ritual action that dates back to ancient times (apparently from primitive hunters eating a hunted animal together). By performing it, people felt themselves to be part of a single clan, tribe, people. Sitting at the same table, everyone could feel like they were part of a huge, powerful whole (a sense of unity).

With the development of the social system, by the 11th-12th centuries. the squad is divided into two layers: the oldest squad, lepshyu (best), front, and the younger squad, junior. Senior warriors (princely men, boyars) began to receive not only movable assets taken during campaigns, but also regular tributes from cities and settlements. They began to occupy the highest military and civil positions - mayors, governors, thousand, ambassadors, advisers to the prince, his closest Duma. A feudal system was taking shape, with the prince at the top. His immediate vassals were the senior boyars (some could trace their lineage back to tribal princes); they received entire cities as volosts. Carrying out administrative, tax, judicial and military functions, they simultaneously received the right to “feed” from the territory under their control. The vassals of the senior boyars were minor boyars, and possibly younger warriors.

The younger squad apparently included several categories: children, youths, nobles, gridi, stepsons, boyar children, swordsmen. As the feudal system developed, they ceased to be “friends” of the prince, becoming the military-service class. They could receive small villages for their service and merits, from several households, and in the future became “nobles.”

The exact meaning of the ranks of the junior squad is unknown. Thus, there is an assumption that “grids” were the name given to the prince’s bodyguards, who lived directly next to him, in gridnitsa. The “swordsmen” were part of the prince’s immediate circle, performing various administrative functions. The word “kmeti” meant not only vigilantes, but also free community members. It’s even more difficult with “youths” (translated as “those without the right to speak or vote”). This word originally meant a junior member of the clan who did not have the right to express his opinion in the council of adult men. According to the sources, it is clear that not all the youths were junior warriors; some of them served as courtyard servants. Therefore, there is an opinion that the youths constituted the lowest rank of the junior squad and performed job responsibilities at the princely court. Perhaps some of them were "apprentices", children who were undergoing military training (some of them may have been children of vigilantes). On the other hand, in sources the squad in general may be called youths. Thus, the Tale of Bygone Years reports that when the Polovtsian invasion began: “Svyatopolk began to gather soldiers, planning to go against them. And the men said to him: “Do not try to go against them, for you have few warriors.” He said: “I have 700 of my youths who can resist them.”

Another category of the junior squad is “children”. They stood higher in rank than the youths. They did not serve in the courtyard and could occupy high administrative positions. According to I. Ya. Froyanov, a significant proportion of them could be the children of the nobility, the boyars (Froyanov I. Ya. Kievan Rus: Essays on Socio-Political History).

Thus, in the 12-13 centuries, the free squad of the times of “military democracy” began to lose mobility and turn into a feudal class burdened with lands and villages. Senior warriors had their own personal squads, which joined the general army, if necessary. But even after becoming feudal lords, the warriors remained the striking force of the army, its advisers and comrades-in-arms.

Since ancient times, Russian warriors and Russian combatants have been distinguished by a special psychology, which was characterized by the cult of “combat anger”, contempt for death, desperate audacity and courage, aggressive disregard for the enemy’s forces. One can recall several statements of the great Russian commander Alexander Suvorov, who, raising “miracle heroes”, was the successor of the ancient glory of Russian weapons: “... nothing can stand against Russian weapons - we are strong and self-confident”; “We are Russians, we will overcome everything”; “No army in the world can resist the brave Russian grenadier”; “Nature has produced only one Russia. She has no rivals"; “...the Russians cannot retreat”; “All of Europe will move towards Russia in vain: it will find Thermopylae, Leonidas and its own coffin there.”

The exploits of the great Svyatoslav provide an excellent example of the Russian warrior and the Russian spirit. Before a decisive battle with the Romans (Byzantines), who significantly outnumbered his squads, Svyatoslav said: “So we will not disgrace the Russian land, but we will lie down with bones, for the dead have no shame. If we run, it will be a shame for us. We won’t run, but we’ll stand strong, and I’ll go ahead of you: if my head falls, then take care of yourself.” And the warriors answered: “Where your head lies, there we will lay our heads.”

According to the Roman chronicler Leo the Deacon, Svyatoslav made a similar speech in the besieged Dorostol, when at the military council the idea of ​​a secret retreat from the besieged city by ship or peace negotiations with the Romans was expressed. Svyatoslav (the Byzantine calls him Sfendoslav) took a deep breath and exclaimed with bitterness: “The glory that marched behind the army of the Russians, who easily defeated neighboring peoples and enslaved entire countries without bloodshed, has perished, if we now shamefully retreat before the Romans. So, let us be imbued with the courage [that our ancestors bequeathed] to us, let us remember that the power of the Russians has so far been indestructible, and we will fight fiercely for our lives. It is not proper for us to return to our homeland, fleeing; [we must] either win and survive, or die with glory, having accomplished feats [worthy] of valiant men!” Further, Leo the Deacon reports that the Dews (he often calls them “Tavro-Scythians” and “Scythians”) never surrender to their enemies, even when defeated, when there is no longer any hope of salvation, they kill themselves.

Initially, the composition of the squad was not socially homogeneous. Most of the warriors in the first centuries of the development of the ancient Russian state had a simple origin, from free community members, warriors of tribes, lands. They occupied their position thanks not to their origin, but to their personal qualities. It was earned by one's own courage, earned or obtained through a lucky chance. Social mobility was very high back then. An ordinary warrior or militia could become a princely warrior, and his descendants could become boyars. In turn, the line of ancient Slavic princes and elders could easily be interrupted, or fall to the level of the common people. At the initial stage, people were taken into the squad solely on the basis of personal qualities: military skill, bravery, courage. Thus, one can recall the story in the Tale of Bygone Years about how Prince Vladimir made Kozhemyak, who defeated the Pecheneg hero in single combat, a “great husband” and his father too. Yes, and the epics report that Ilya was a “peasant son”, and Alyosha was “of the priest’s family.” And not everything is clear with Dobrynya Nikitich. His courtyard is rich, but in some epics he is called “the peasant’s son.”

It should be noted that many people have a very misconception about epics as “fairy tales”. This is largely due to the fact that for children the epics are retold in a “fairytale”, simplified form. “Adult”, cruel, even bloody episodes were excluded from them, and the vocabulary was softened. The person grew up, but the ideas remained childish. Epics are not fairy tales, but songs, the main distinctive quality of which is that the folk singers who performed them retold true events. In ancient times they were performed throughout Rus'. In the 18th and 19th centuries, when they began to be written down and searched for, they were preserved only in the Russian North, especially among free Pomor peasants.

The melodies of these songs are drawn-out and majestic. The plots are sometimes cruel, like life itself. The performers were not afraid to use “adult” words. It is clear that over the centuries, inaccuracies and corrections could appear in epics. Thus, the ancient Khazars, Pechenegs and Polovtsians were replaced by the later Tatars. However, the historical basis is very visible in them. And so much so that the famous Soviet historian B. D. Grekov called the epic epic “oral history.” It is Russian chronicles, epics and Byzantine sources that give us most of the data on the structure of the Russian army. Initially, the word “squad” or “army” covered the entire set of full-fledged men. Only with the deepening of social stratification, only the military elite, the prince’s immediate associates, began to be called “druzhina”.

Russian epics are a very important source for identifying the psychology of Russian knights. The image of a hero-knight - a heavily armed warrior on horseback, a defender of the Fatherland, with his own ideas about honor, duty, with a certain pride (for some heroes it reaches the point of arrogance), gives rise to an association with Western European chivalry.

However, there is a major difference; Western knights are all noble people. Russian epics were the “product” of the common people. Most often, the epic begins with the hero leaving a rich house, like Dobrynya Nikitich’s, or a peasant house, like Ilya’s. The reason that makes them leave their small homeland is the desire to protect people, or to “go for a walk” (a very common motive). The future hero is full of unspent energy; he is a “violent” Gumilevian passionary. Currently, such a person is called a person with an active life position. The potential inherent in a person requires release.

In this regard, one immediately notices the dissimilarity of the epic heroes to the usual portrait of the Russian people, as they were portrayed by some historians or philosophers, like N.A. Berdyaev, no passivity, no femininity. A whole myth was even created about the primordial passivity of the Slavs, who need “Varangians”, Germans, in order to lead and guide them. A sign of heroism is their activity, even riotousness. This is one of their socio-psychological traits.

Another important feature of the Russian knight is the clear social orientation of his activities. He lives in the interests of society and the people. Even such an ancient character, endowed with many magical properties, as Volkh Vseslavich, who does not need anyone’s care or praise, is not alien to common interests. He begins his campaign “against the Indian kingdom, against Tsar Saltyk Stavrulievich” because he “boasts, boasts: He wants to take Kyiv-grad behind the shield.” In the Russian epic, the hero is not thought of as living outside the interests of the people and the state. The ancient struggle with the Serpent Gorynych, full of mythical symbolism, turns into retribution for the burned cities and the liberation of people taken captive.

In epics, in order to join the squad, you usually need to perform two feats. One (or several) heroes perform at will on the road to Kyiv, the other already has the character of a princely task. Often the first feat has the character of simple daring: Dobrynya just like that, without any special purpose, enters into a fight with the Serpent, crushes his cubs; Alyosha kills no one who is not touching him, sometimes even a sleeping Neodolishch. Princely assignments are already of a “socially useful” nature. Dobrynya encounters the Serpent for the second time, rescuing the prince’s niece Zabava Putyatishna; Alyosha liberates the capital city of Kyiv from Tugarin.

Patriotism in the epic epic is present not only in the form of a conscious belief, but also as a deep psychology that determines the worldview. For a hero, participation in the affairs of the people is the meaning of life. The interest of the Russian land to the hero-knight is more important than personal (this distinguishes heroes from many heroes of fairy tales who strive only for their own well-being). So, Ilya overcomes personal hostility towards Vladimir and resentment towards him in order to protect Kyiv and ordinary people.

Another feature of the psychology of Russian knights is a sense of personal dignity and honor. Bogatyrs are proud and “passionate”, they do not let go of grievances. An insult is not forgiven to anyone. Even such a wise and generally calm hero like Ilya is very cool in matters of honor. Offended by the prince, he arranges a feast for the “tumbleweed.” Ilya fights with Dobrynya, due to the fact that his fame as a great master of fighting has spread.

The main features of the psychology of heroes are activity, the social orientation of their actions, deep patriotism and a sense of personal dignity; this is all the legacy of the era of the so-called. "military democracy". In the 10th-13th centuries. this era had not yet been forgotten, most of the population was free and armed. Serfdom was still a long way off. Unfortunately, many people extend ideas about peasants of the 18th and 19th centuries to an earlier era. Each full-fledged community member, if necessary, participated in military operations. The “voi”, urban and rural militias did not differ significantly from the vigilantes in either weapons or fighting techniques. There were no clear social boundaries. In its lower part, the squad was often replenished from the common people. Therefore, the warriors and heroes were seen as “our own.”

As V. Dolgov and M. Savinov write: “The people in epics remember first of all about themselves. The story about the princely warrior warriors, the knights of Holy Rus', is perceived as information not about the ancestors of the ruling class, but about the roots of the people as a whole. This is... a socio-psychological portrait of the main part of Russian society of the Old Russian state - “people”, full-fledged community members, from whom the squad was formed - the heroic brotherhood. It is preserved by the people’s memory as a memory of a free and noble past” (Vadim Dolgov, Mikhail Savinov. Braves of Ancient Rus'. M, 2010).

Raising a Warrior

The preparation of a warrior began from childhood. It must be said that it was very short then; at the age of 15-16, a man was already considered an adult, he could get married and start an independent life. During these years, the boyar's son joined the squad.

The first milestone, which marked the boy’s maturation and his transition from the state of infancy to the state of a child, occurred at 2-3 years. He was marked by tonsure. Some ethnographers believe that this custom existed not only among the nobility, but also in all social strata. Sometimes this ritual could coincide with another - mounting a horse. These customs dated back to pagan antiquity and had the character of a military-age initiation (dedication). In a later period, the openly pagan mounting of a horse was forced out of life, and the rite of tonsure, close to Christian ritual in form, remained as “decent.” In the West, this ancient custom was transformed into a knighting ritual. In Rus', boys were thus prepared for the future; they were destined to become warriors.

WITH early childhood children were taught to use weapons. Archaeologists often find children's wooden swords. Usually their shape corresponded to the shape of real weapons of a given era. It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that children's swords, daggers, spears and bows in Rus' did not serve an entertaining purpose, like modern toys. Through the game, the boy gained experience in handling weapons. With wooden weapons one could learn fighting techniques just like real ones. Children's weapons were necessary for gradually learning techniques, gaining skill, developing strength (for example, a blade made of oak was comparable in weight to a real one), and dexterity.

In addition to weapons, the kit of the future warrior included a horse, boats, tops, sleds, and balls of various sizes. They were necessary not only for entertainment, but also for the development of dexterity and coordination of movement. In addition, the children of the nobility received real weapons from early childhood - swords and daggers.

Was there a special school (or several) of weapons and hand-to-hand combat in Rus'? This question was answered by a person who specifically looked for traces of this system in the surviving customs of Russian fist fighters - the creator of the Slavic-Goritsky wrestling, Alexander Belov. Here are the conclusions he made: “... with the almost complete involvement of the male population (lower social strata) pre-revolutionary Russia In one form or another of folk competitions, such a link as special training, school is completely absent... Probably, a special, training role in the preparation of future wrestlers and fist masters was played by children's fun - a folk game. In order to evade the “damask chingali” flying at you, you had to spend your entire childhood running from snowballs rolled by friends and swinging with your feet on a swing, learning to distribute movement from your heels to your shoulders, ride down a mountain on your feet on an icy path without falling, run around in felt boots on the ice when your legs move apart, and run into “tag tag”, dodging a comrade who is trying to get you... However, can you really list everything? Yard play and sports are essentially the same thing. Learning the technique of combat itself is not a difficult matter. Especially if competitions of masters have been taking place right in front of your eyes since childhood. And everything else is practice” (Belov A.K. Slavic-Goritsky struggle. Origin. M., 1993).

In addition, it is necessary to note another “school” for an ordinary resident of Ancient Rus', which almost every Russian went through. This is life in the forest or forest-steppe. Hunting was a good training for a fighter. She taught the ability to read tracks, wait, sit in ambush, and kill. It must be remembered that Rus' was then covered with dense forests full of game. Nowadays hunting is more entertainment than a real threat to human life. The medieval hunter was in completely different conditions. Getting the “owner of the forest” with a spear is a serious matter.

Thus, the tradition of combat training covered almost the entire male population and existed from the time of the clan system until the beginning of the 20th century. Its basis was folk games, ritual actions - from children to adults, when wall to wall met street to street, village to village.

In the Old Russian state, a warrior, having gone through the stage of children's games of catch, snowballs, knives, the stage of play fights with wooden weapons, having learned to shoot from a simple bow, was involved in real combat operations from the very beginning. Fortunately, there were plenty of opportunities to fight. It is clear that practice took its toll in lives, but those who survived, and these were usually the majority, learned quickly and well. No school with artificial training situations will teach you this way.

Armament

The main supplier of information about ancient weapons is archeology. In addition, some data can be obtained from written and visual sources. Archeology allows us to study the weapons themselves, allows us to determine their shape, size, weight, material, and manufacturing technology. Visual sources - icons, frescoes, miniatures, etc., allow you to see how weapons were worn and used, to see whole those objects that only survived in the form of fragments.

The largest number of archaeological finds of Russian weapons come from burial grounds and ancient cemeteries. In burials of the pagan period, weapons were a mandatory attribute of warriors-combatants, often ordinary community members. This tradition did not disappear with the spread of Christianity, although the total number of burials with weapons decreased. Interestingly, burials with weapons are found not only in rural areas (as is known, Christianity penetrated slowly among rural residents and coexisted with paganism for a long time), but also in the burials of warriors. Weapons are also found during excavations of ancient settlements, sometimes at battle sites.

The equipment of professional warriors included a sword, helmet, chain mail, and weapons with decorations. The specific weapons of the vigilantes primarily include high-quality swords and sabers, the manufacture of which required considerable skill, as well as most defensive weapons (except for relatively easy-to-make wooden shields). According to the Arab traveler Ibn Fadlan, who observed the Rus on the Volga, everyone had an ax, a sword and a knife with them, and they never parted with their weapons.

Sword. The most honorable and prestigious weapon of the Russian warrior was the sword, a chopping and slashing-piercing double-edged melee weapon. The sword was used mainly for chopping blows, so until about the 13th century the tip was not sharpened; the tip of the sword was rounded. For a long time They tried to declare this type of weapon “Scandinavian”. Russian swords were similar to them in the shape of the blade and the type of handle. However, the Scandinavians were not the inventors of the heavy cutting sword. This type of sword appeared in Central and Western Europe by the 8th century.

Scientists identify among the swords found in Rus' in the 9th-11th centuries. about 20 types and subtypes. Basically, they have different sizes and shapes of the handle (“handle”), the blades are of the same type. The average length of the blade was about 95 cm. The width of the blade at the handle reached 5-7 cm, and it gradually tapered towards the end. In the middle of the blade there was a “full” - a wide longitudinal depression. It is sometimes called a "blood groove", but in fact it served to lighten the sword, which weighed about 1.5 kg. The thickness of the blade in the fuller area was about 2.5 mm, on its sides - up to 6 mm. However, thanks to the skill of the blacksmiths and the special preparation of the metal, such a difference in thickness did not in any way affect the strength of the sword.

Swords, like other weapons, change significantly over time. At the end of the 11th - beginning of the 12th century, swords became shorter - up to 86 cm, lighter - up to 1 kg and thinner. In the IX-X centuries. The dol occupied half the width of the blade; in the 11th–12th centuries. already a third, and the XIII century. turned into a narrow groove. In the XII - XIII centuries. the blade lengthens - up to 120 cm, and becomes heavier - up to 2 kg, due to the strengthening of protective weapons. The hilt also becomes longer, resulting in two-handed swords. The valley gradually disappears to make the sword heavier. In an earlier era, “heroic” swords were an exception. At this time they were still cutting weapons, but in the chronicle of 1255 the first piercing blow is mentioned.

Swords were worn in sheaths, usually wooden, covered with leather, behind the back or on the belt. Often the scabbard was decorated with a cast tip. Warrior-horses used swords less often than foot soldiers, this was due to the fact that the center of gravity was shifted to the handle, and made it difficult to strike from top to bottom, from the saddle. Usually swords belonged only to warriors, less often to wealthy militias. Swords were very expensive due to the fact that the process of producing a good blade was long and complicated. In addition, they required considerable skill from the owner; these were the weapons of a professional. The sword was used in the Russian army until the 16th century. By this time, in the cavalry he was significantly displaced by the saber, which was more convenient for mounted combat.

Since ancient times, a wide range of beliefs and legends have been associated with the sword. It was not just a weapon, a killing tool. He was part of the culture of the people. The sword is glorified in the heroic epic, it is used in religious rituals, it acts as a sacred offering, the most expensive gift. The sword is a symbol of high social status.

The sword often ends up on the pages of Russian chronicles and other documents. The Tale of Bygone Years contains a story about tribute to the Khazars from the glades with swords. In it, the sword serves as a symbol of the future victory of the Slavs over the Khazars. During the conclusion of a peace agreement with the Romans, Russian warriors use the sword in the oath ritual. Svyatoslav, when the Byzantines, testing him, sent him rich gifts, gold and pavoloks (expensive silk fabric), showed indifference. He was only interested in swords and other weapons. The Byzantine ambassadors informed their ruler: “This man will be fierce, for he neglects wealth and takes weapons. Pay him tribute."

The prince and the princely squad, along with the city council, personified the most important state institutions Kievan Rus.

As I.Ya. writes Froyanov, the word squad is common Slavic. It is derived from the word “friend”, the original meaning of which is companion, comrade in war.

In Russian historical science, a squad is usually understood as a detachment of warriors (“Svyatopolk, and Volodymyr and Rostislav, having completed the squad, went away”) or the prince’s inner circle (“you love the squad greatly”).

It is difficult to say when and how the squad appears among the Eastern Slavs. One can only speculate about the origin of the squad based on indirect data and analogies. As a rule, when it comes to such questions, one is drawn to early evidence about the squads of the ancient Germans. In the 1st century AD Among the ancient Germans, warriors constituted a special group. She lived separately from her community with the chief. The warriors existed thanks to military campaigns in which booty was captured, as well as thanks to gifts from their fellow tribesmen and neighboring tribes. The leader had the right to distribute the funds received in this way. He was bound to the squad by mutual obligations of personal loyalty. The squad was recruited from noble youths and valiant warriors. Tacitus also mentions some hierarchical division among the vigilantes.

Apparently, the East Slavic squad also had similar characteristics. However, we can only draw this conclusion by analogy. Moreover, in the sources the word “squad” is clearly not unambiguous. Thus, in the story about the Kiev uprising of 1068, two different squads are mentioned: “Otherwise people speak against the governor of Kosnyachka; I went up the mountain from the evening, and came to the Kosnyachkov courtyard and did not find it, standing at the courtyard of Bryachislavl and deciding: “Let’s go and disembark our squad from the cellar.”<…>Izyaslav sits on the porch with his retinue...” As you can see, in addition to the princely squad, “their” squad of the rebels of Kiev is also mentioned here. It is difficult to say who it consists of in this case, but it is obvious that in addition to the princely squads, there were others. However, in historical literature it is customary to call a princely detachment of warriors a squad.

The selection of the princely squad, according to A.A. Gorsky, contributes to the destruction of the tribal structure that engulfed the Slavic ethnic group in the V-VI centuries. S.V. Yushkov believes that the princely squads, as a circle of his closest associates and collaborators, have existed since the very emergence of the Kyiv state. I agree with both of them, since I consider the armed detachments of tribal leaders of the V-VII centuries to be the prototype of the princely squad of Kievan Rus.

Despite the paucity of sources, we can guess what the size of the squad was and who it consisted of. One of the earliest mentions of the size of the squad of Russian princes is a fragment from the notes of Ibn Fadlan, who says that “together with the king of the Russians in<…>Four hundred men from among the heroes, his associates, are constantly in the castle.” A.A. Gorsky supports the opinion of T. Vasilevsky that the squad consisted of two hundred to four hundred people, with which I.N. agrees. Danilevsky, but M.B. Sverdlov believes that the number of soldiers reached five hundred to eight hundred people.

There is a unity of opinion on the issue of squad composition in historical literature. The main contingent of the squad, according to S.V. Yushkov, can be considered “the ancestral nobility, but anyone whom the prince considered valuable in military affairs could be included in the number of warriors.” From this it is clear that the prince could receive people different nations and tribes, as confirmed by sources. In addition to the Slavs and Varangians, the squad also included Ugrians (Hungarians), Torci, and other tribes. I.D. Belyaev believes, and one cannot but agree with him, taking into account the Varangian origin of the Rurik dynasty, that initially the squad consisted only of Varangians. But already under Vladimir Svyatoslavich, this element loses its primary importance, since, according to I.D. Belyaev, these free and restless warriors could become an obstacle in the exercise of his power, and after the death of Yaroslav, the chronicles do not mention the Varangian squads at all. However, already under Oleg, the Varangians perceived themselves as an indigenous population (as Slavs). Such assimilation is depicted before us by Oleg’s treaty with Byzantium in 911, in which his warriors swear by “Perun, their god, and Volos, the cattle god.” I.D. Belyaev also says that Hungarians, Pechenegs, Poles, Polovtsians, etc. now served in the squad.

It is indisputable that the princely squads had a hierarchical structure. As a rule, it is divided into “senior”, “junior” and “middle” - a group of “husbands” that cannot be classified as either the first or the second.

The “senior” squad consisted of those who served the prince’s father (“the father’s squad”). It passes to the younger generations of princes, armed with the same influence and authority in the druzhina and public environment. Most often, this group of warriors includes boyars, less often husbands, S.V. Yushkov believes that “from its ranks come the thousanders, posadniks and other representatives of the princely administration.” The chronicles are replete with stories about princes who were in boyar company under a variety of life situations, social and everyday: “... and after singing the liturgy, the brothers dined on a stingy meal, each with his boyars,” “and the noble prince Vsevolod went against him with his son<…>and all the bolyars, and blessed Metropolitan John with the monks and with the prosvutera. And all the kiyans wept greatly over him,” “Svyatopolk convened the bolyars and kiyans, and told them what Davyd had told him<…>. And deciding the boys and the people...” The old tradition of the duma of the prince and his squad was fundamental in the relations of the prince with the boyars. Whatever the prince was up to, he always had to “reveal” his plan to the boyars who served him, otherwise risking losing the boyars’ support, which threatened him with failure. Princes sometimes neglected to consult with the boyars, but such facts were rare. However, over time, the prince prefers to focus on the “average” squad, not listening to the advice of the boyars, but from the “senior” squad, the commanders of the “warriors” invariably stand out, because they are the most experienced and valiant.

The “middle” layer of the squad consisted of the Gridba, according to S.M. Soloviev and I.E. Zabelin, or princely men (S.V. Yushkov, I.A. Porai-Koshits). It is possible that, unlike the boyars who were involved in governance, the men were only engaged in military service. These warriors constituted the main combat contingent of the prince's personal military forces. Gradually, the prince prefers to rely not on his father’s warriors - the boyars, but on his peers. Perhaps this is precisely what is connected with the numerous reproaches of the chroniclers against the princes, that they listen to the advice of the “unique”, neglecting the opinion of their elders: “And [Grand Duke Vsevolod Yaroslavich] began to love the meaning of the wise, creating light with them, and now began to make Prince of Truth, I began to rob this union and sell people, for this I do not lead in my illnesses.” Perhaps this hides the gradual strengthening of the role of the prince, who sought to get rid of the influence of the squad. The layer of the “middle” squad consisted of the prince’s peers. According to I.N. Danilevsky, they grew up and were raised with the prince from the age of 13-14. Together with these warriors, the prince studied military affairs and went on his first campaigns. Hence it is clear why their position was closer to the prince, why he sought support among his peers.

Also, strong ties connected the prince with the “junior” squad, which included youths, children, almsmen, stepsons, who, depending on the individual duties assigned to them, were swordsmen, throwers, virniks, and others. Sources introduce us to the youths earlier than to the rest of the representatives of the “younger” squad - in the 10th century: “therefore the villagers sat down to drink, and Olga commanded her youth to serve before them,” “and Svyatoslav said, except in vain, his youth...”. They are with the prince, one might say, relentlessly. The youths are, first of all, servants of the prince. This can be judged by the relationship between the words “youth” and “servant”: “and when he heard the war, he left him. Boris stood with his youths<…>and behold, she attacked like a beast near the tent, and put on spears, and gored Boris, and his servant, falling on him, and gored with him.” The official purpose of the youths is revealed quite easily in written monuments. “The Tale of Bygone Years” tells about the youths who served Olga and Svyatoslav. In the Extensive Pravda, the princely youth is placed in a row with the groom and the cook: “even as a princely youth, or as a groom, or as a cook.” Based on the material of the Extensive Pravda, we can conclude that the youth performed the functions of Virnik’s assistant (“And behold, the horses of Virnia were beaten under Yaroslav: Virnik take seven buckets of malt for a week, either weed the ram, or two nogate; and on the middle, kuna cheese, and in Friday same<…>now and then a virnik with a youth..."), a bridge worker ("And this is the lesson of the bridge workers"), according to M.B. Sverdlov, and a swordsman, and an independent agent in collecting vir. The youths are not only household, but also military servants of the prince. Svyatopolk Izyaslavich had 700 youths ready for battle: “He [Svyatopolk Izyaslavich] said: “I have 700 of my own youths.” Data about the youths indicate their belonging to the princely house. But the question of their freedom remains open. Most likely, some of them were slaves in the past, however, I think that among them there were also free ones, because... the youth could occupy the usual position of assistant to a virnik for a free man and, in general, be in the service.

Many researchers combine adolescents and children, which is not entirely correct, because they differed in their functions and position. According to Article 86 of the Dimensional Pravda, “pay forty kunas to an ironman, and five kunas to a swordsman, and half a hryvnia to a child; then this is an iron lesson, who knows what.” It follows that the child supervised the testing of the iron in court, and therefore was the main executor of the sentence in court. According to Article 108 of the Dimensional Pravda, “even if the brothers stretch out before the prince on their ass, which children go and divide, then he will take the hryvnia kun.” It turns out that in the event of a judicial division of the inheritance between brothers, the child is entitled to a small payment. “During the uprising in Vladimir in 1178, not only the princely posadniks and tiuns were killed, but also the children’s and swordsmen, “and their houses were plundered,” which means that the children’s had a house like the tiuns and posadniks.” From the above material it is clear that the activities of children are much more limited, hence their unequal position.

From the end of the 12th century. one can trace how the “junior” squad is gradually absorbed by the princely court. The term “nobles” appears in the sources. Over time, the princely squad began to collapse, become attached to the ground, losing its ability to fight, because... Most of the soldiers, in order to preserve traditions, should be exempted from management and service at the princely court.

S.V. Yushkov believes that “already by the beginning of the 11th century. there has been a process of disintegration of the squad relations, which manifested itself in the separation of the most influential squad members from the princely court.” I am also of the opinion that with the split of the squad into “senior” and “junior”, with the constant growth of differences between them, symptoms of the collapse of the squad began to appear.

To summarize, it should be noted once again that within the Old Russian squad there was a hierarchical division into “senior”, “middle” and “junior”. Within each specific social layer, only its specific functions were inherent. Over time, the role of the squad in political affairs and its influence on the prince changed. The Old Russian squad existed until the 13th century.

We would look in vain for strictly (legally) defined social relations and institutions, i.e. harmonious state order in Rus' in the pre-Mongol era. Her social order bears the stamp of uncertainty and formlessness in the sense of our real concepts of state life. Social strata are still in a period of fermentation and have not frozen within certain boundaries. Written law and legal regulations barely penetrate into people's life; customs and traditions inherited from ancestors still dominate all its aspects; but at the same time they gradually yield to the influence of the Greek Church and other principles brought from outside or arising from collisions and crossings with foreigners. And yet in this Rus', divided into several lands and subdivided into many volosts, we already see the solid foundations of state life and clearly marked steps of the social ladder.

The first and most solid foundation is the patrimonial hereditary princely power, without which almost all Russian people from time immemorial could not even imagine the existence of their land. We see that the immoderate autocracy or tyranny of some princes aroused displeasure and even revenge on the part of the vigilantes or the popular crowd. But at the same time, the very concept of princely power, as a necessary social connection, not only did not suffer, but sometimes, with the help of the church and scribes, rose to an even clearer level of consciousness, especially after the turmoil of anarchy. Curious, for example, are the Russian chronicler's arguments about the murder of Andrei Bogolyubsky and the rebellion of the mob, who beat his children and swordsmen and plundered their houses, being embittered against them for various extortions and oppression. “They did not see what was said: where there is law, there are many insults,” notes the chronicler. “The Apostle Paul writes: every soul obeys the authorities, for the authorities are created by God; by nature, for the king of the earth is like every man, but by authority elevate the dignity, as "God. The great Speech of Zlatustets: whoever resists the authorities, resists the law of God; the prince does not wear a sword, for he is God's servant." This is when our church scribes began to transfer the Byzantine theory of royal power to Russian soil and apply it to their princes.

Old Russian prince with his retinue

The prince and his squad - these two inextricable foundations of state life - continue to serve as its representatives and guardians in this era. The prince is inseparable from his retinue; with her he “thinks,” or consults, about all matters, goes to war, to hunt, on a detour or in the wild; he feasts and revels with her. The squads of our ancient princes came from that energetic Slavic tribe that lived on the middle Dnieper, in the Kiev-Chernigov region, and called itself Russia. Together with the descendants of old Igor, these squads spread to other regions of Eastern Europe, united them and gradually gave them their name of Rus' (which acquired a broader meaning). Little by little they formed into a special military class, which, however, did not have a closed character for a long time; As new conquests took place, it accepted both local Slavic squads and military people from foreigners. In addition, the princes willingly accepted into their service foreigners, such as the Varangians, Germans, Poles, Ugrians, Polovtsians, Khazars, or Circassians, Yasses, or Alans, etc. But these foreigners, entering the environment of the squad, did not violate it at all of a purely Russian character and often became the founders of noble Russian families. The squad received half of its maintenance and salary from the prince in money, food supplies and other natural products, which it collected for him in the form of tributes. In addition, already in early times vigilantes receive land and lands and own villages. Families of senior warriors, or boyars, concentrating significant land property in their hands, and sometimes in different regions of Rus', naturally lay the foundation of the upper class in Rus', or the patrimonial landowning aristocracy.

With the division of Igor's descendants into separate branches that had the character of local dynasties, the warriors also became more and more settled as a military, governmental and property class. The rivalry of appanage princes and the desire to have the strongest and most loyal squad around them, of course, increased the importance and rights of the warriors. They considered themselves military people, people who serve whomever they want; If one prince doesn’t like it, they move on to another. It should not be thought, however, that such transitions actually happen often. On the contrary, the loyalty of the squad to its prince, according to popular concepts, was one of its first qualities. The transition was also complicated by the fact that it was accompanied by the deprivation and alienation of real estate granted by the prince. The sons of warriors usually became the same faithful servants of the prince or his successor as their fathers. The Old Russian squad was a military class that emerged from the people, and not a detachment of some mercenaries like the Varangians, Germans, Polovtsians, etc. This is partly indicated by the favorite princely saying that was current in Rus' in the 11th and 12th centuries, attributed to Vladimir the Great: “If there were a squad, with her I will get silver and gold."

Otherwise, the prince would have said the opposite: “There would be silver and gold, and with it I would get myself a squad.” With money it was indeed possible to get yourself a squad, but a hired one, and mostly from a foreign tribe.

The size of the salary in those days can be judged by the following indication from the chronicle, dating back to the first period Tatar yoke. Complaining about the increased luxury of princes and warriors and their unfair exactions, the chronicle recalls the ancient princes with their husbands who knew how to defend the Russian land and conquer other countries. “Those princes,” she says, “did not collect much property, did not invent new virs and sales from the people; and if the virs were fair, then they took them and gave them to the squad for weapons. And the squad obtained food for itself, fighting other lands, and fought , saying: “Brothers, let us strive for our prince and for the Russian land.” They did not say then: “Prince, two hundred hryvnia is not enough for me”; they did not put gold hoops on their wives; but their wives walked in silver. Those princes and squads multiplied the land Russian." Consequently, in the pre-Tatar era, two hundred hryvnias of silver was approximately the usual salary that senior warriors received; and the younger ones, of course, received less.

In the 12th century, part of the younger squad, youths and children, who lived with the prince, in his court, as his bodyguards and servants, judging by the direct instructions of the chronicle, began to be called nobles; this name was subsequently destined to acquire a broad meaning. With the proliferation of Igor’s offspring and the division of lands into appanages, the number of individual squads that were constantly under the prince could not be large; in this era it usually consisted of several hundred people. This number was sufficient to maintain internal order and for minor internecine wars. But in the case of large enterprises and in wars with neighbors, the princes convened their squad, scattered throughout the cities and volosts, and, in addition, recruited an army from the urban and rural population; Moreover, they helped its weapons from their own reserves. The warriors formed the core of this temporary army, mostly on foot; whereas the prince's squad was usually mounted. Given the warlike spirit of the Russian people, with their inclination towards daring and in the absence of class isolation of that time, often commoners, especially those who had been in the war, no longer parted with their weapons and entered the category of vigilantes. The princes willingly took all sorts of daring people into their service; Thus, their squad could always be reinforced by a surge of fresh energetic forces from the people. A commoner who distinguished himself by military exploits could even rise to the rank of boyar; but such cases seem to have been rare; at least in the pre-Tatar era, with the exception of the chronicle legend about Yan Usmovich, who defeated the Pecheneg hero in single combat under Vladimir the Great, we can give an indication of only two Galician boyar families, who rose from the common people, namely: Domazhirichi and Molibogovichi, who came “from the stinking tribe” (Chronicle mention of this under 1240).

The squad, which served as the armed guard of the princely power, naturally became the main body of administration and court. From among their boyars and youths, the princes appointed posadniks, thousanders, tiuns, birichi, etc. In those days there was no distribution of power across various industries, and princely officials often combined in one person the management of both military and civil affairs, as well as judicial and economic affairs. In addition to the salary from the prince, a certain part of the profits and sales went in their favor, i.e. legal penalties and fees. According to Russian Pravda, when visiting volosts, residents of the vervi, or community, were obliged to deliver to the judges, their assistants and servants the required amount of food supplies and feed for their horses for the entire duration of the trial. Little by little, it became a custom for officials and judges to generally receive gifts and offerings from residents, both in money and in natural products.

From here, a whole system of so-called feeding subsequently developed. Chronicles and other sources sometimes tell us about popular displeasure against the princely mayors and tiuns, who oppressed the population with arbitrary exactions, sales (judicial penalties) and various extortions; what especially happened under the careless princes and weak in character or with those who indulged their warriors too much. The population suffered mainly from them if the prince came to the table from another region and brought with him an out-of-town squad, to whom he distributed positions of rulers and judges. We see examples of this, firstly, in Kyiv, when the great table was taken over by Vsevolod Olgovich, who came with the Chernigovites, and then Yuri Dolgoruky, surrounded by his Suzdalians; secondly, in the Suzdal land, when the grandchildren of Dolgoruky, two Rostislavichs, came from Chernigov to Rostov and Suzdal with South Russian warriors and allowed them to offend the residents with their extortion. And vice versa, the princes, active, fair and strong in character, tried not to offend the zemstvo to their boyars and servants; they themselves supervised the entire administration; were not lazy to often go to polyudye, i.e. make detours around cities and volosts, and they themselves sorted out litigation and observed the collection of tributes. Examples of such princes are especially Vladimir Monomakh and his grandson Vsevolod the Big Nest.

Maintaining their family and squad or their court required large expenses from the princes and, of course, forced them to gradually find new sources, so that by the end of this period the latter had managed to develop into a rather complex and diverse system. In the initial era, the main sources were military booty and tribute from conquered peoples - income subject to many accidents. With the development of greater sedentism and peaceful relations with neighbors, with the establishment of more state orders in one's own country, incomes were received by more defined and permanent types with their various divisions. In first place remained the tributes that were imposed on the volosts based on the size of their population and the wealth of natural products. Then come the taxes and sales, more varied trade duties, especially the duty levied on transported goods. In addition to a large amount of food supplies, furs and other natural products, which the population delivered to the prince’s treasury in the form of tributes and quitrents, the Russian princes also had their own farm, more or less extensive in size - a farm that they ran with their own servants or slaves. They had their own special villages; and near some villages there were princely courts with storerooms and cellars, in which large reserves of iron and copper items, honey and all kinds of goods were accumulated; on the threshing floors there were hundreds of stacks of different grains; Several thousand horses grazed in the meadows, etc. The princes also had their own fishermen, beaver growers, beekeepers and other industrialists in their volosts. And the prince's hunt, which sometimes reached very significant proportions, although it served as a subject of amusement and physical exercise for the princes, at the same time gave them a large number of every animal and game, therefore, meat for consumption, as well as fur and leather. Given the combination of all these sources, it is very natural that those princes who were distinguished by their economic character, thriftiness and thrift, sometimes accumulated great wealth, consisting of precious metals, clothing, weapons, utensils and all kinds of goods.

Already in that era, we find around the prince court ranks separated from the squad for various types of service (most of them later received the character of honorary titles). These are: courtier, steward, sword-bearer, printer, housekeeper, stablemaster, hunter, saddlemaker; in addition, a scribe or clerk. There were also breadwinners, or uncles, chosen from the boyars, to whom the young princes were given under the supervision. The household and agriculture of the prince, in addition to the housekeepers, were in charge of the elders, stablemasters, etc., who were appointed both from the warriors, that is, free people, and from servants or slaves.

In general, the druzhina-princely life of Ancient Rus' represented many features of the pagan era, slightly changed under the influence of time, especially under the influence of the Greek Church and living ties with Byzantium. For example, one of the important rituals in princely life is “tonsuring”. Obviously, this ritual comes from ancient times and is in connection with the custom of noble people among Russians and Bulgarians to shave their beards and cut the hair on their heads, with the exception of the forelock, as we see in the example of Svyatoslav Igorevich and the ancient Bulgarian princes. When the boy reached approximately three or four years of age, his hair was cut for the first time and solemnly mounted on a horse, which generally served as an inseparable companion of the warlike Russian princes and warriors. The child's parents accompanied this celebration with a feast and drinking bout, depending on the degree of their wealth and their nobility. In Christian times, the Sarmatian custom of the ancient Russians to completely shave their heads and shave their beards was gradually softened under the influence of Byzantium. Princes and boyars began to grow beards, small at first, and also wear short hair on their heads. But the custom of ceremoniously tonsuring a child and placing him on a horse still remained and was accompanied by a feast. Only this rite was already sanctified by the blessing of the church; The cutting of hair was probably carried out by a clergyman, and among princes, perhaps by the bishop himself. In the same way, the participation of the church sanctified the important rite of enthronement, or “seating on the table,” which, of course, already existed in pagan times. Now it took place in cathedral church; and then, of course, feasts and treats followed. Particularly generous meals and heavy drinking bouts accompanied the marriages of Russian princes, which took place very early, usually in adolescence. In general, Russian princes and warriors, like true Slavs, loved to live cheerfully. When the princes were not busy with war or hunting, they devoted their day from early morning to government and judicial studies together with the prince's Duma, which consisted of boyars; and after lunch we spent time with the squad watching the steps strong honey or overseas wine, and they were often amused by storytellers, songwriters, guslar players and various kinds of “players” (dancers, buffoons and acrobats). One must assume that the richest princely courts abounded in people skilled in this kind of entertainment. Some musical and acrobatic games, in all likelihood, spread to Rus', especially from Byzantium. (The frescoes on the stairs of the Kiev St. Sophia Cathedral give a visual representation of these various amusements.)

The boyars very naturally tried to imitate the princes in their everyday life. They also had in their courtyard numerous servants or slaves, with whom they also managed a large economy on their lands. They went to war or hunting, accompanied by their own armed servants, or youths, so that they had, as it were, their own squad. Those boyars who held the positions of governors, mayors and mayors surrounded themselves with special pomp and crowds. With the exception of those serving in cities and volosts, the boyars were obliged to appear in the mansion of their prince every day early in the morning to form his council, or duma, and generally help him in business. Among the boyars and warriors, favorites, or “almsmen” are sometimes mentioned, who enjoyed the special trust of the prince, which, of course, aroused envy and displeasure in other Duma members. Another curious circumstance is that the young sons of the boyars, apparently, lived with the prince himself and were part of his youths, or junior squad. It was probably from them that the name “children of the boyars” subsequently spread to this entire junior squad.