The Galician-Volyn principality, whose geographical position is Eastern Europe, is an interesting symbiosis of close cultures. It arose in 1199, after the unification of the Galician and Volyn lands. Recognized by the largest principality of Southern Russia since the feudal fragmentation.
Geographical position
The Galician-Volyn principality is located on the fertile lands of South-Western Russia. And what interesting neighbors surrounded the young state! In the north, the Galicia-Volyn principality bordered on Lithuania, in the south - with the Golden Horde, in the east - with the Kiev and Turovo-Pinsk principalities, in the west - with the Kingdom of Poland. And behind the mighty ridge of the Carpathians, Hungary was already spread.
The south-west of Russia was distinguished not only by its picturesque nature, but also by a large number of reservoirs. The Pripyat and Styr rivers flowed in the east of the Galician-Volyn principality, and the majestic Danube in the south.
The geographical position of the Galicia-Volyn principality, frankly, was obviously advantageous.
Who formed the united principality and how?
The formation of the Galician-Volyn principality occurred at the end of the 12th century. Historians call this historical period of time a period of feudal fragmentation of Russia.
The key role in uniting the two lands (Galicia and Volhynia) was played by the wise prince Roman Mstislavovich. First, he occupied Galich, and after the death of Vladimir Yaroslavovich (the last representative of the Rostislavovich dynasty), the wise politician deftly united two culturally close territories. The result was an influential Slavic state that existed for as long as 200 years! The prince himself went down in Russian and Ukrainian history as an “autocrat of all Russia” (source - chronicle).
Objective reasons for the unification of Galicia and Volhynia
The Principality of Galicia-Volyn (briefly the act of reunification is presented above) arose not only because of the desire of one person, albeit a very resourceful one. There are quite logical reasons why these two lands decided to become one:
- successful geographical position of the Galicia-Volyn principality;
- the presence of common opponents: Poles, Hungarians and the Golden Horde;
- cultural proximity of the inhabitants of Galicia and Volhynia;
- large salt deposit.
Temporary decay
During the reign of Prince Roman, things were good in the principality: agriculture flourished, constant boyar feuds ceased, and neighbors in the person of Poles and Hungarians began to respect the young state. But all good things sooner or later end ...
The time has come and the Grand Duke Roman died. Immediately after this tragic event, the situation grew tense again - the struggle for power began. Also, the nearest neighbors began to influence the politics of the Galicia-Volyn principality. The period of instability lasted about 30 years, until a new strong figure appeared - Danila Galitsky. In 1238, the prince took power into his own hands.
Another reunion and the heyday of the principality
Danilo Galitsky managed to restore order and restore the unity of the two lands. Moreover, the new politician spread the influence of the Galicia-Volyn principality to Kiev. During his reign (1238-1264), the Slavic state successfully opposed the Golden Horde.
Prince Yuri became the successor of Danila. Under him, the heyday of cities, the growth of foreign and domestic trade, and also peaceful life on the lands of the Galicia-Volyn principality were observed.
The fall of the principality
The history of the state ended tragically. The blow came from the southern neighbor: the army of Khan Uzbek defeated the two young sons of Prince Yuri.
Having existed for 200 years, the Principality of Galicia-Volyn (we are already familiar with its history briefly) had a great cultural influence on the development of Russia. The history of this southwestern territory is an integral part of the history of our land.
Characteristics of the Galicia-Volyn principality
In this section, we consider two aspects - large cities and the local economy. The geographical position of the Galicia-Volyn principality was very successful. That is why in that area agriculture (arable farming) and various crafts were especially developed.
Improving the economic situation contributed to the growth of large cities. The largest cities of the Galicia-Volyn principality are:
- Lviv is one of the most beautiful cities in the CIS. Named in honor of the son of Danil the Galician Leo.
- Vladimir-Volynsky is a city in the very west of Ukraine. Due to its favorable geographical position, in the 13-14 centuries. a large Jewish community was formed here. The history of the ancient people during the Second World War is very tragic: the Nazis and local residents killed about 25,000 civilians. Today, a memorial complex has been built on the site of mass shooting.
- Galich - the first capital of the Galicia-Volyn principality.
On the territory of the Galicia-Volyn principality there were about 80 cities. Such data gives a chronicle.
The political system and power
Political features of the Galicia-Volyn principality still cause controversy among historians. Official science holds that powerful boyars have real power. It was they who chose candidates for princes and made the decision to depose a person. Of course, the administration of the Galicia-Volyn principality also depended on a specific person. Especially if the prince became a wise politician who could make independent decisions.
The main authority of the big boyars was the Council. It included the most influential people in the principality - bishops and large landowners. A certain social system characterizes the Galicia-Volyn principality. A description of it will be presented in the next chapter.
Social order
A feudal society was formed on the territory of the Galicia-Volyn principality . It consisted of approximately 5 classes, the difference between which was significant. Let us consider what that enormous gap was between people belonging to different classes. Interesting characters inhabited the Galicia-Volyn principality. The table below will tell you about their lifestyle.
The estates of the Galicia-Volyn Principality| Estate Name | What did you own? |
| "Men of Galicia" | Large land owners, patrimonial. |
| Service feudal lords | They were in the service of the prince. Their land ownership was very conditional, very often it ceased after the end of the service. |
| Large church nobility | Only educated people belonged to this estate: archbishops and hegumens. They owned peasants and land. The latter was brought as a gift by the prince. |
| Artisans | This category of citizens included owners of jewelry and pottery workshops. Settled exclusively in large cities. The goods they produced went to the domestic and foreign market. |
| Peasants (smerds) | The most dependent and numerous estate. They were subordinate to the feudal lords, worked on the fertile lands of Western Ukraine. They did not have private property. |
The characteristic of the Galicia-Volyn principality would be incomplete without a detailed description of the estates.
Western Ukraine today
One of the provocative and interesting questions: “Where did the inhabitants of Western Ukraine have such a vivid self-awareness?” To answer it, you need to go a little deeper into history: the geographical location of the Galicia-Volyn principality and its fate will explain a lot.
The historical lands of the Galicia-Volyn principality is the territory of modern Western Ukraine. Former Galicia roughly corresponds to Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv and Ternopil regions. Volyn is a historical region in the north-west of modern Ukraine. It covers the current Rivne, Zhytomyr and Volyn regions.
After the fall of the Galicia-Volyn principality, the fate of the two lands was largely determined by the western neighbors of Southern Russia. In the 14th century, Poland captured Galicia, and Volyn came under Lithuanian control. Then came the united Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which again captured these territories.
For many years, the population of Galicia and Volhynia was influenced by Polish and Lithuanian cultures. Also, the Ukrainian language of Western Ukraine is somewhat similar to Polish. This makes it clear why Western Ukrainians have always wanted to become independent.