Sviatopolk I of Kiev
Encyclopedia
Sviatopolk I Vladimirovich (Sviatopolk the Accursed, the Accursed Prince) (c. 980 – 1019) was the Kniaz' (Prince
) of Turov
(988–1015) and Velikii Kniaz (the Grand Prince
) of Kiev
(1015–1019) whose paternity and guilt in the murder of brothers are disputed.
in Bulgaria
and married to his lawful heir Yaropolk I. When Yaropolk was murdered by his brother Vladimir's agents, the new sovereign raped his wife and she soon gave birth to a child. Thus, Sviatopolk was probably the eldest of Vladimir's sons, although the issue of his parentage has been questioned
.
At the age of eight Vladimir put him in charge of Turov and later arranged his marriage with the daughter of the Polish
king Boleslaus I. The young princess came to Turov together with Reinbern
, the Bishop
of Kolberg. Dissatisfied with his father and instigated by his own wife and Reinbern, Sviatopolk began preparations for war against Vladimir, probably counting on support from his father-in-law. Vladimir soon found out about Sviatopolk's intentions and threw him, his wife and Reinbern in prison. Reinbern died in prison.
several miles from Kiev. When Vladimir died in 1015, Sviatopolk's retinue concealed his death from him due to the fact that he, being Vladimir's oldest son, could claim the Kievan throne. It didn't take long for Sviatopolk to find out about his father's demise and he seized power in Kiev almost immediately.
The citizens of Kiev did not show much sympathy for Sviatopolk and, therefore, he decided to distribute presents in order to win them over. Then, he decided to rid himself of his brothers' claims for the Kievan throne. Boris
was the one who presented most danger to him, because he had been in charge of Vladimir's druzhina
(personal guards) and army and enjoyed the support of the citizens. Sviatopolk sent his men to assassinate Boris, then Gleb
and Sviatoslav.
Even though family feud wasn't something unusual back then, Sviatopolk's cold-blooded reprisal earned him the nickname of the Accursed. The news of this triple murder reached Sviatopolk's younger brother Yaroslav
, Prince of Novgorod, who decided to go to war against Sviatopolk with the support from the citizens of Novgorod and the Varangians. The battle took place not far from Lubech, near Dnieper river
. Sviatopolk was defeated and fled to Poland
.
Later, he returned to Rus'
, defeated Yaroslav with the help from his father-in-law and seized Kiev in 1018. Boleslaus I and his army remained in Rus' for several months, but later left for Poland. On his way to Poland, Boleslaw seized some of the Cherven towns
.
Meanwhile, the posadnik
Konstantin Dobrynich
and other citizens of Novgorod persuaded Yaroslav to go to war against Kiev once again. Sviatopolk was defeated and fled to the steppe
s. Soon he returned with the Pecheneg army and attacked Yaroslav on the Alta River
, but was once again defeated and fled to Poland, eventually dying on his way there.
called Eymund's saga
(a part of Yngvars saga víðförla
), with remarkable details, puts on Yaroslav the blame of his brother Burizlaf's murder. This Burizlaf, however, may be Svyatopolk (whose troops were commanded by the Polish king Boleslaus I; the latter name is also rendered as Burizlaf in some sagas) as well as Boris. Therefore it has been suggested that Svyatopolk ascended the throne after Boris's assassination and tried to fence off Yaroslav's attacks as well as to punish his agents guilty of Boris's murder.
The chronicle of Thietmar of Merseburg
, who died in 1018, could have been regarded as the only contemporary and unbiased account of events, if it were not for the fact that Thietmar's data could have been supplied by Svyatopolk himself during his brief exile at the Polish court. Unfortunately it can be interpreted ambiguously as far as the question of Svyatopolk's guilt is concerned. One place in his chronicle can be understood (although this is not necessary) as telling that Svyatopolk escaped from Kiev to Poland immediately after his father's death. But Thietmar states that Boleslaus I of Poland firstly supported his son-in-law against Yaroslav in 1017, which is the date, according to the Russian Primary Chronicle, of Svyatopolk's first defeat by Yaroslav. Preparing a campaign against Kiev, Boleslaus abruptly stopped a successful war against the German Emperor Henry II
. So, it is unlikely that Svyatopolk had been present at his court since 1015, which is often supposed by the historians that consider Yaroslav guilty of Boris and Gleb's murders.
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
) of Turov
Principality of Turov and Pinsk
The Duchy of Turov and Pinsk was a medieval principality and state on the territory of modern southern Belarus and northern Ukraine. The principality's capital was Turov or Pinsk, other important cities were Mazyr and Slutsk, Lutsk, Brest, and Volodymyr-Volynskyi...
(988–1015) and Velikii Kniaz (the Grand Prince
Grand Prince
The title grand prince or great prince ranked in honour below emperor and tsar and above a sovereign prince .Grand duke is the usual and established, though not literal, translation of these terms in English and Romance languages, which do not normally use separate words for a "prince" who reigns...
) of Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
(1015–1019) whose paternity and guilt in the murder of brothers are disputed.
Early life
Sviatopolk's mother was a Greek nun captured by Sviatoslav ISviatoslav I of Kiev
Sviatoslav I Igorevich ; , also spelled Svyatoslav, was a prince of Rus...
in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
and married to his lawful heir Yaropolk I. When Yaropolk was murdered by his brother Vladimir's agents, the new sovereign raped his wife and she soon gave birth to a child. Thus, Sviatopolk was probably the eldest of Vladimir's sons, although the issue of his parentage has been questioned
Family life and children of Vladimir I
Until his baptism, Vladimir I of Kiev was described by Thietmar of Merseburg as a great profligate . He had a few hundred concubines in Kiev and in the country residence of Berestovo. He also had official pagan wives, the most famous being Rogneda of Polotsk...
.
At the age of eight Vladimir put him in charge of Turov and later arranged his marriage with the daughter of the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
king Boleslaus I. The young princess came to Turov together with Reinbern
Reinbern
Reinbern was the only bishop of the short-lived Diocese of Kolberg) .Reinbern was born in the Hassegau area of the medieval Duchy of Saxony. When Holy Roman Emperor Otto III met with his friend, the Polish duke Boleslaw I in the Congress of Gniezno , the Archbishopric of Gniezno was founded...
, the Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of Kolberg. Dissatisfied with his father and instigated by his own wife and Reinbern, Sviatopolk began preparations for war against Vladimir, probably counting on support from his father-in-law. Vladimir soon found out about Sviatopolk's intentions and threw him, his wife and Reinbern in prison. Reinbern died in prison.
Biography according to domestic sources
Not long before Vladimir's death, Sviatopolk was freed from prison and sent to govern the town of VyshgorodVyshgorod
Vyshgorod may refer to:*Vyshhorod a residence of the medieval Kievan rulers, now a town in Kiev Oblast, Ukraine*Vyshgorod, Russia, a village in Ryazan Oblast, Russia...
several miles from Kiev. When Vladimir died in 1015, Sviatopolk's retinue concealed his death from him due to the fact that he, being Vladimir's oldest son, could claim the Kievan throne. It didn't take long for Sviatopolk to find out about his father's demise and he seized power in Kiev almost immediately.
Boris and Gleb
Boris and Gleb , Christian names Roman and David, respectively, were the first saints canonized in Kievan Rus' after the Christianization of the country....
was the one who presented most danger to him, because he had been in charge of Vladimir's druzhina
Druzhina
Druzhina, Drużyna or Družyna in the medieval history of Slavic Europe was a retinue in service of a chieftain, also called knyaz. The name is derived from the Slavic word drug with the meaning of "companion, friend". -Early Rus:...
(personal guards) and army and enjoyed the support of the citizens. Sviatopolk sent his men to assassinate Boris, then Gleb
Boris and Gleb
Boris and Gleb , Christian names Roman and David, respectively, were the first saints canonized in Kievan Rus' after the Christianization of the country....
and Sviatoslav.
Even though family feud wasn't something unusual back then, Sviatopolk's cold-blooded reprisal earned him the nickname of the Accursed. The news of this triple murder reached Sviatopolk's younger brother Yaroslav
Yaroslav I the Wise
Yaroslav I, Grand Prince of Rus, known as Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav I, Grand Prince of Rus, known as Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav I, Grand Prince of Rus, known as Yaroslav the Wise (Old Norse: Jarizleifr; ; Old East Slavic and Russian: Ярослав Мудрый; Ukrainian: Ярослав Мудрий; c...
, Prince of Novgorod, who decided to go to war against Sviatopolk with the support from the citizens of Novgorod and the Varangians. The battle took place not far from Lubech, near Dnieper river
Dnieper River
The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...
. Sviatopolk was defeated and fled to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
Later, he returned to Rus'
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
, defeated Yaroslav with the help from his father-in-law and seized Kiev in 1018. Boleslaus I and his army remained in Rus' for several months, but later left for Poland. On his way to Poland, Boleslaw seized some of the Cherven towns
Red Ruthenia
Red Ruthenia is the name used since medieval times to refer to the area known as Eastern Galicia prior to World War I; first mentioned in Polish historic chronicles in the 1321, as Ruthenia Rubra or Ruthenian Voivodeship .Ethnographers explain that the term was applied from the...
.
Meanwhile, the posadnik
Posadnik
Posadnik was the mayor in some East Slavic cities or towns. Most notably, the posadnik was the mayor of Novgorod and Pskov...
Konstantin Dobrynich
Konstantin Dobrynich
Konstantin Dobrynich was an 11th-century posadnik of Novgorod. According to the Novgorod chronicles, he was the son of Dobrynya and wielded great influence at the court of his own cousin, Yaroslav the Wise....
and other citizens of Novgorod persuaded Yaroslav to go to war against Kiev once again. Sviatopolk was defeated and fled to the steppe
Steppe
In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...
s. Soon he returned with the Pecheneg army and attacked Yaroslav on the Alta River
Alta River
Alta River is a small river in Ukraine and is a right tributary of the Trubizh River. The ancient town of Pereyaslav is situated between the Trubizh and Alta rivers....
, but was once again defeated and fled to Poland, eventually dying on his way there.
Biography according to foreign sources
During the last century, the traditional account of Svyatopolk's career has been somewhat modified. It has been argued that it was Boris who succeeded Vladimir in Kiev, while Svyatopolk was still in prison. One Norse sagaNorse saga
The sagas are stories about ancient Scandinavian and Germanic history, about early Viking voyages, the battles that took place during the voyages, about migration to Iceland and of feuds between Icelandic families...
called Eymund's saga
Eymund's saga
Eymundar þáttr hrings is a short Norse saga, which is preserved in two versions. One of them appears as Eymundar þáttr hrings in the Flatey Book and the other one is an introductory chapter in Yngvars saga víðförla...
(a part of Yngvars saga víðförla
Yngvars saga víðförla
Yngvars saga víðförla is a legendary saga said to have been written in the twelfth century by Oddr Snorrason. Scholars have been skeptical towards this claim but in recent years it has gained more acceptance....
), with remarkable details, puts on Yaroslav the blame of his brother Burizlaf's murder. This Burizlaf, however, may be Svyatopolk (whose troops were commanded by the Polish king Boleslaus I; the latter name is also rendered as Burizlaf in some sagas) as well as Boris. Therefore it has been suggested that Svyatopolk ascended the throne after Boris's assassination and tried to fence off Yaroslav's attacks as well as to punish his agents guilty of Boris's murder.
The chronicle of Thietmar of Merseburg
Thietmar of Merseburg
Thietmar of Merseburg was a German chronicler who was also bishop of Merseburg.-Life:...
, who died in 1018, could have been regarded as the only contemporary and unbiased account of events, if it were not for the fact that Thietmar's data could have been supplied by Svyatopolk himself during his brief exile at the Polish court. Unfortunately it can be interpreted ambiguously as far as the question of Svyatopolk's guilt is concerned. One place in his chronicle can be understood (although this is not necessary) as telling that Svyatopolk escaped from Kiev to Poland immediately after his father's death. But Thietmar states that Boleslaus I of Poland firstly supported his son-in-law against Yaroslav in 1017, which is the date, according to the Russian Primary Chronicle, of Svyatopolk's first defeat by Yaroslav. Preparing a campaign against Kiev, Boleslaus abruptly stopped a successful war against the German Emperor Henry II
Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry II , also referred to as Saint Henry, Obl.S.B., was the fifth and last Holy Roman Emperor of the Ottonian dynasty, from his coronation in Rome in 1014 until his death a decade later. He was crowned King of the Germans in 1002 and King of Italy in 1004...
. So, it is unlikely that Svyatopolk had been present at his court since 1015, which is often supposed by the historians that consider Yaroslav guilty of Boris and Gleb's murders.
Family
- father - Yaropolk I of KievYaropolk I of KievYaropolk I Svyatoslavich was a young and rather enigmatic ruler of Kiev between 972 and 980. His royal title is traditionally translated as "Prince"....
- mother - a Greek nun
- wife - a daughter of Bolesław I Chrobry and EmnildaEmnilda of LusatiaEmnilda of Lusatia , was a Slavic princess and by marriage Duchess of Poland. She was a daughter of certain Dobromir, a Slavic leader ruler of Lusatia and Milsko, who was named venerable by Thietmar of Merseburg.- Life :...
(wife of Sviatopolk 1013–1018)