The reign of Prince Rurik is a time shrouded in legends and secrets. It is still not known exactly who this legendary person was, who gave the Slavs the first ruling dynasty.
The Tale of Bygone Years tells us that in 862, the Ilmen Slovenes (Chud, Meri and Vesi tribes), tired of the protracted internecine wars for power, called on a foreign ruler. They hoped that in this way they could make a long-awaited peace. Three brothers immediately responded to their request - Truvor, Sineus and Rurik. The first of them is a donkey in Izborsk, the second - on the White Lake, and the third - in Novgorod. After the death of the brothers, Rurik gathered all the power over their lands into his own hands.
The rule of Rurik is connected with the hypothesis that the northern prince was not completely alien to the Slavs. Later sources say that he was a descendant of Gostomysl, the Novgorod prince-elder: his middle daughter, Umila, married one of the Varangian rulers. The new prince of Novgorod took Efanda, who came from a noble local family, as his wife.
During the rule of Rurik, the Novgorodians rebelled. However, the prince severely suppressed the forces of Vadim the Brave, and executed him himself. Many rebels, fearing the revenge of the ruler, fled to Kiev. The chronicle also describes how two boyars took leave of the prince on a campaign (or to help Constantinople).
Askold and Dir left Novgorod with their clans and squads, but did not reach their destination, and also settled on the banks of the Dnieper. Rurik's reign continued twelve years after these events. After the death of the ruler, power passed to his closest relative,
Oleg Veshchiy, who was appointed guardian of the young Igor. He drove Askold and Dir from the golden-domed Kiev, and proclaimed himself the
Grand Duke.
However, some historians believe that the rule of Rurik was not at all based on the calling of his boyars. Most likely, he seized power during the military campaign, so the Novgorodians rebelled against him. Perhaps the boyars did not agree: some of them supported the Varangian, and some were against the stranger. It is also unknown who the legendary prince was: the Baltic Slav, Finnish or Scandinavian.
The name Rurik in Europe has been known since the fourth century. Some researchers believe that it comes from the name of a Celtic tribe - either Raurik, or Rurik. In the eighth and ninth centuries, princes of that name ruled on the Jutland Peninsula . Sineus can be translated from the same Celtic language as "elder", Truvor means "third by birth." Other historians consider Rurik Rerik, the leader of the Vikings. Perhaps the plot with the calling of the Varangian to the throne of Novgorod was introduced in the annals much later, so there is so little detailed information in it.
However, despite a number of inaccuracies, the rule of Rurik on the territory of Russian lands remains a fact. It had important consequences for the Slavs, since it established the ruling dynasty (of the Rurikovich), promoted the development of Russia as a state, and centralized power. The reign of Rurik, whose tribal sign was a trident (or trident), marked a new page in the development of Kievan Rus, its golden age, the apogee of which fell on the reign of Yaroslav the Wise.