The historical portrait of Princess Olga is very controversial. On the one hand, she, in fact ruling the state, was cruel, implacable to enemies, arrogant, prudent. Times required these qualities in order to maintain their independence. On the other hand, after converting to faith, she built temples, preached the ideals of the gospel, and conducted missionary work.
All this intertwined and melted in the character and actions of this outstanding personality. At school, high school students receive the task: "Make a historical portrait of Princess Olga." Below we will try to do this.
Origin
Annals give neither the exact time nor the place of birth of Olga. And who would follow the birth of a girl. Here the boy is another matter, he is the continuer of the clan. Presumably she came out of the Pskov noble Varangian clan with the name Helga. There are other options:
- The girl came from a noble family of Gostomysl.
- She was the daughter of Prince Oleg.
- She was brought from the Bulgarian city of Pliska.
Only one thing is clear: the girl was unusually beautiful and smart from her youth.
Legendary meeting
The meeting of future spouses by our time has become fabulous. Young Prince Igor hunted in the Pskov lands. He needed to cross the river to rich hunting grounds. A young girl was standing in the boat. Her attractive appearance caused the prince to indecently do with her. To which the girl replied that it would be better to drown than to lose girlhood and honor. The strength of character from a young age is the sign that is included in the historical portrait of Princess Olga.
The marriage and death of Igor
The exact date of the wedding of Igor and Olga by ancient historians has not been established. It is also unclear how old she was. It is known that Igor had other wives. But he respected Olga more than others. Despite the fact that Igor was in continuous military campaigns, their son Svyatoslav was born in 942.
In 945, Igor's squad went to the conquered Drevlyans for tribute. They got it. But on the way back part of the squad went to Kiev, and Igor with the rest of the troops returned back to collect even more. The Drevlyans were outraged and brutally executed Igor. He was tied to the tops of two trees, and those, having straightened up, tore it apart.
Olga's character
Since her son was only three years old, the squad recognized her as ruler of Kievan Rus. Princess Olga was distinguished by her iron character. Her historical portrait will not be complete without a description of revenge for the death of her husband. Drevlyany poorly imagined this cruel woman. They sent 20 matchmakers to her to marry their prince Mala. They sailed on the boats. They were asked to wait until the next day, after which the rook with them was solemnly carried in their arms into the capital. She was put in a dug hole and everyone who was there was buried alive.
The insidious Olga turned to the drevlyans and asked to send more noble matchmakers. Those eagerly responded. Dear guests were sent before a meeting with the princess in a bathhouse and burned alive in it. Treacherous and dangerous Olga, pretending to be a inconsolable widow, arrived with a detachment to celebrate a funeral trip for the late Igor. She drank the drevlyans with strong wine, and five thousand people were mercilessly destroyed. The ruthless Olga continued to pursue the Drevlyans. She besieged their capital Iskorosten and said she would lift the siege if she was given a sparrow from each yard. Without flinching, Olga brought her revenge to the end.
Having received the birds, the avenger tied a burning tow to their feet, which they brought on wings to their native nests. The city burned to the ground.
Governing body
The growing son was little interested in the affairs of the state. Everything fell on the shoulders of the princess. She began to build stone houses instead of wooden houses, set the size and terms of taxes in favor of Kiev, and divided the land into administrative units. The ruler of Kievan Rus possessed a great intelligence in political and state affairs. So little by little the historical portrait of Princess Olga is taking shape.
Epiphany
For the pagan, it was an unusual act. To believe, one needs, as a rule, to grow up in this belief, therefore the author is inclined to think that it was a political action that speaks of Olga's pragmatism. The Eastern Empire was a powerful neighbor with whom it is possible to establish friendships, profitably trade and grow rich. There crossed the paths of wealthy Venetian merchants who traded duty-free with people carrying goods from India and Arabia. Perhaps, the clever and reasonable Olga counted on such preferences. One way or another, but in 955 she was baptized, taking the Greek name Elena. Two years later, the ruler with a large embassy arrives in Constantinople, but, having apparently not received the expected benefits, goes to her homeland and coldly receives Byzantine ambassadors in Kiev.
Veneration
During the life of Olga, her son did not receive baptism. Svyatoslav Igorevich, like the whole squad, was a pagan. Only his son Vladimir, wanting to marry the Byzantine princess, was baptized and baptized pagan Russia with fire and sword. In 969, on June 11, the princess died and was buried according to the Christian rite, bequeathed not to arrange trizny on her own.
Her grandson Vladimir, the baptist of Rus, built a temple in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary and transferred the relics of her mother there. We finish the historical portrait of Princess Olga, briefly composed with some clarifications:
- In 1547 Olga was canonized as saints and equally apostles.
- Her memory is celebrated on June 11 in the Russian Orthodox Church.
- She is considered the patroness of widows and converts Christians.
We tried to objectively recreate the historical portrait of Princess Olga.