Prince is a title. During feudalism, it was worn by the head of state, who was the sole ruler. In the hands of the prince was concentrated all power. This term was endowed with high meaning among the Slavs and other peoples of Europe in the 9-16 centuries. Later, the prince - it was already just the highest noble title.
Who was called the prince?
The Slavs considered the leader of the tribe as a prince, and later, during the period of early feudalism, as the head of state or a single territory. At first, princely power was elected, but after a period of time, from the 9th to the 16th century, it began to be inherited from father to son. So, the Rurikovich clan appeared in Russia, where the rulers were the great princes Oleg, Igor, Yaropolk. This was until the beginning of the 18th century, when the title of prince in Russia was the only one inherited.
But during the reign of Peter 1, the title loses its prestige, as foreigners from Europe, called the princes, began to arrive in Russia. This title began to bestow their subjects for certain merits, which were of particular importance to the state. The first favorite of Peter the Great was Alexander Menshikov. At the dawn of the Great October Socialist Revolution, this and all other noble titles were abolished.
Grand Duke - who is it?
This ancient title was called the rulers of the Russian state. The clan of the Rurikovich began to expand, which made it necessary to distinguish the older clans. They were awarded the title "Grand Duke". At first it was an honorary title and all. The Grand Duke is a ruler who does not have the right to intervene in the management carried out by the younger princes. When Andrei Bogolyubsky ravaged Kiev, they began to assign this title to Vladimir princes, while Kiev was called by tradition.
In the time of the Tatars, power was vested with the title of the Khan. Then the great princes had the right to intervene in the management of the affairs of the specific princes. During the time of Vasily the Dark, Moscow finally became the capital of the great princes. During the reign of Ivan 3, this title was gradually replaced by the title of sovereign. The Grand Duke was also called the specific princes, if their land was fragmented and separated from the Vladimir and then Moscow principalities. The title "prince" over time began to be supplemented and overgrown with differences: His Serene Highness, Excellency.
Significant milestones of the reign of Prince Igor
- Igor is the ruler of Kiev since 912. He came to power after his brother Oleg died. The total term of his reign is 32 years. During this time, the prince managed to conquer the Uglich and the Drevlyans, forcing them to pay a tribute, for which he himself was poisoned annually with his squad. Such campaigns were called “polyudé” and played a fateful role in Igor’s life.
- In 1913, under his command, a trip was made to the shores of the Caspian Sea, the approaches to which were controlled by the Khazars. When the prince and his retinue approached Baku, the Khazars had to promise half the booty for further advancement. She really turned out to be huge. The Khazars received the promised share, but it seemed to them not enough. A terrible battle has begun. In it, Prince Igor lost almost all of his army.
- The Kiev prince is the only Russian commander who gathered a huge fighting squad to fight the Polovtsy. But this time, Igor’s goal was different: it was necessary to free the Russian land from the Pechenegs, who first attacked Russia. They, like the nomadic tribes of the Ugrians, Bulgars, Avars, came from the east. The Pechenegs, unable to withstand a meeting with a strong Igor’s army, retreated and went to Bessarabia, terrifying their neighbors. In 915, the defeated foreigners made peace with Prince Igor, who was violated by them five years later. Since 920, the nomadic Pecheneg tribes again began to encroach on Russian lands.
- The year 935 was marked by campaigns on Italy together with the Greeks. In general, little information has been preserved about the period of Igor’s reign in the annals.
- Prince Igor is the successor and follower of his brother Oleg. But there was nothing significant in his reign until 941, until he made a campaign against Constantinople, which ended in the complete defeat of the squad: more than half of the soldiers were destroyed. The Byzantines used Greek fire in this battle.
- Having been defeated in the last campaign, Prince Igor again went to the battle against the Greeks in 943. But the Bulgarians and Khazars warned the Byzantines about this. The Greeks proposed a favorable world for the Russian prince. Igor accepted him.
- In 944, the rulers of two states entered into a new peace treaty. Its essence was that the world would last as long as the sun shone and the world stood. The signing of this treaty was of great importance, as it became the first international document in which the country was called "Russian Land". Igor returned from this campaign as a winner, without entering the battle with the Byzantines.
It seemed that the time of failure had passed, and it was time for old Igor to rule peacefully. But that was not so. Indignation of their own grand-ducal squads began because of the emptiness of the treasury as a result of frequent unsuccessful campaigns and payments to hired soldiers. Igor’s squads urged him to go collect tribute with them. Such campaigns were called Polyud, as a result of which tribute was collected from subservient tribes.
The death of Prince Igor
The Prince of Kiev is the son of Rurik. Igor died due to his own imprudence. When, during the next polyud, tribute from the Drevlyans was collected, under the pressure of his retinue, he decided to return to Iskorosten and collect the tribute a second time. But he went on a campaign with a small retinue, as he sent the bulk of it to Kiev along with the looted goods. This was his mistake. Igor did not accept the offer of the Drevlyans to leave their land and not to collect tribute a second time, for which he was executed along with his soldiers. The period of the reign of Prince Igor is characterized by the spread of Rus’s power over vast territories: on both sides of the Dnieper, in its upper and middle reaches, to the Caucasus in the southeast and Volkhov in the north.