Among the images of the holy saints of God, looking at us from the walls of Orthodox churches, you can see the icon of a warrior holding military weapons in his hands, but at the same time dressed in a monastic schema testifying to his monastic service. This is Rev. Andrei (Oslyabya) of Radonezh, whose path of earthly life is connected with the bright and heroic event of our history - the Battle of Kulikovo.
Brothers from the city of Lubutsk
Reliable information about the life of Andrei Oslyaby has been preserved extremely little. Even the exact dates of his birth and death are hidden from us. It is only known that he and his brother, who took the name Alexander (Peresvet) as a monk, came from the ancient Russian city of Lubutsk, which was once located on the right bank of the Dvina River near the confluence of its tributary Dugna. From birth, the future saint received the name Rodion, with whom he broke up, taking monastic tonsure.
Monks called to battle
The main information available to researchers about his life is contained in a literary work of the 15th century, called the "Legend of the Mamaev Massacre." According to this historical document, Grand Duke Dimitry I Ivanovich, who later received the title of “Donskoy”, before setting off for a decisive battle with the hordes of the Tatar temnik (commander) Mamaia, arrived at the monastery of St. Sergius of Radonezh to ask for his blessings.
The "Great Sorcerer of the Russian Land," as St. Sergius is commonly called, not only blessed the Prince of Moscow, but also sent two schemons to him, his brothers Alexander Peresvet and Andrei Oslyabyu. It is quite understandable that with their presence the young monks could not strengthen the power of the thousands of princely troops, and their calling to battle had a purely spiritual significance. The power of God's people did not lie in the perishable weapon, which, incidentally, they perfectly owned, but in the imperishable Cross of the Lord, the image of which was sewn on their monastic vestments.
In parting with Alexander Peresvet and Andrey Oslyabyu, St. Sergius urged them to fight hard for the Fatherland and the faith of Christ, trampled upon by filthy foreigners. He put in their hands and battle swords, sprinkling with holy water and having served a prayer service for granting victory to the Orthodox army. Overwhelmed by the blessings of their spiritual father and mentor, the brothers went with Prince Dimitri to where the Nepryadva River flows into the Don, and where the famous Kulikovo battle took place on September 8, 1380, culminating in the complete defeat of the Mamaev hordes.
Two mutually exclusive versions
There are two versions of how the further fate of monk Andrei has developed, each of which has many supporters in the scientific world. According to some reports, he died during the battle, while according to others, he remained alive and even excelled in public service. As evidence of this version, excerpts from documents from the early 90s of the XIV century are mentioned, in which it is mentioned that a certain monk named Andrei Oslyabya was included in the delegation of the Russian Metropolitan Kiprian, who was leaving for Constantinople on a diplomatic mission.
Opponents of this version quite reasonably say that there is no reason to argue that the monk who went with Metropolitan Cyprian to Byzantium was the same monk Andrei, whom the Monk Sergius of Radonezh sent to the army of the Moscow Prince. These could be completely different people, and the commonality of names (very common then in a monastic environment) can hardly serve as conclusive evidence.
The hero of the famous painting
As for the monk’s brother Andrei Oslyaby - Alexander Peresvet, his heroic death is colorfully described in the above-mentioned “Tale of the Mamayev Massacre”. As the author of the essay testifies, before the start of the battle, he, according to tradition, met in a duel with the Tatar hero Chelubey, and both of them fell, piercing each other with spears. This scene is captured in the famous painting of the artist M. Avilov, written by him in 1943 during the Battle of Stalingrad. Reproduction of the canvas is given in the article.
The salvation of the grand duke
As you know, many historical events, and especially those that are distant from us by centuries past and are sparingly reflected in historical documents, give impetus to the birth of legends. This happened with the participation of the Radonezh monk Andrei Oslyaby in the Battle of Kulikovo.
A legend has survived, but nowhere documented, however, according to which, in the midst of the battle, the terrible blow of the Tatar club fell upon Prince Demetrius Donskoy, and falling from his horse, he lost consciousness. Probably, the Russian army would have remained without its leader if the monk Andrei had not arrived in time. He lifted the lifeless body of the prince from the earth and, having cut through the enemy army, carried him to a safe place, thereby preserving her God-chosen son for holy Russia. In honor of this feat, the Russian battleship Oslyabya got its name, who heroically died during the Tsushima battle in May 1905.
We also note that historians who have disputed the version of the death of St. Andrew on the battlefield, cite the fact that in the memorial synodics of that time, as well as in the chronicle lists of people who were “killed on the Kulikovo field” that have survived to this day, only the name monk Alexander Peresvet, while nothing is said about his brother.
Holy Martyr Brothers
It is known that the nationwide veneration of Andrei Oslyaby began much later than his brother Alexander, who became famous for his death in a duel with the Tatar hero Chelubey. Moreover, the oldest documents telling about the Battle of Kulikovo do not contain any mention of it, and only one of them - a literary monument of the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries, known as Zadonshchina - mentions that during the battle two monks-heroes gave their lives - Alexander and Andrey.
About when the legendary brothers were canonized, there is also no exact data, it is only known that in the middle of the XVII century their names were entered in the holy calendar, and they themselves are mentioned as saints of God, numbered among the saints. At the end of the same century, a book was published in Moscow, entitled "Description of Russian Saints", and in both of them they already appeared as martyrs, that is, people who suffered and who gave their lives for faith. The most ancient of the icons that came to us with the image of brothers belong to the same time.
Grave of brothers
The burial place of St. Andrew Oslyaby and his brother Alexander Peresvet is considered to be the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, located in Simonova Sloboda on the left bank of the Moscow River. The tombstone built over their graves was repeatedly disassembled and restored again, and in the Soviet period it was completely destroyed. Already in the perestroika years, when the temple closed in 1928 was revived, a stone canopy was installed at the burial site. The remains of the saints themselves were not found. Today, a spiritual monument “Andrei Oslyabya”, opened in Moscow at the church of St. Sergius of Radonezh (on Khodynka), became a kind of monument to one of the brothers.
Holy warrior icon
On the icons, the image of the Monk Andrei of Radonezh is presented in several versions. Sometimes he is alone, but there are also plots (canonically acceptable options), which depict his brother Alexander or in combination with other historical figures, such as his spiritual father the Monk Sergius of Radonezh, Prince Dmitry Donskoy or Metropolitan of Moscow Alexy. He figures on the icon "Cathedral of Radonezh Saints." But, regardless of the compositional and plot features of the icon, the Monk Andrei always appears before the audience in monastic vestments and with arms in hand - as an indestructible defender of faith and Fatherland.