The beginning of the specific period of the principalities of Southern Russia is considered to be the year 1132, when the Grand Duke of Kiev Mstislav, the son of Vladimir Monomakh and the English Princess Gita of Wessex, died. Its demise plunged the state into an abyss of bloody civil wars, unleashed by greedy and power-hungry heirs, which had a significant impact on the course of all future history. Previously united Russia was divided into many small principalities and a century later became easy prey for the Tatar-Mongol invaders. What caused this process and what were its main features?
The beginning of the Great Troubles
The bloody feuds and the division of the inheritance, which began the specific period in Russia, followed immediately after the Grand Duke of Kiev Mstislav Vladimirovich, who had previously held the reins of power tightly, died on April 15, 1132. He bequeathed his throne to his brother Yaropolk, having made a number of reservations regarding the transfer of power in several cities to other relatives.
However, many representatives of the princely family did not want to fulfill the will of the deceased and began to put forward claims based not on laws then in force, but only on the strength of their own squads. The outbreak of strife escalated into a string of internecine wars in which the Mstislavovichi - the sons of the deceased prince - and their closest relatives Vladimirovich, also direct descendants of Vladimir Monomakh, converged on the battlefield.
Olgovichi, representatives of the dynasty, originating from the legendary prince Oleg Svyatoslavovich, did not want to miss the bold chunk. As a result, Russia for many years plunged into the atmosphere of bloody unrest, which almost put into question the very fact of its existence. Many domestic chroniclers subsequently wrote bitterly about these events. A photo of the sculptural image of one of them (Nestor) opens our article.
Years of strife and hostility
The specific period in the history of Russia lasted almost four centuries, during which the Grand Dukes only formally occupied a dominant position, while the real power was held in their hands by the rulers of individual principalities, each of which was, in fact, an independent state. At the same time, feuds between the princes did not cease, caused by both territorial disputes and claims to a higher position in the general hierarchy.
The extremely negative features of the specific period in Russia were reflected in all areas of its life. This was especially noticeable during the Tatar-Mongol yoke, which lasted from 1237 to 1480. Great damage was done not only to the social structure of the nation, but also to its culture and everyday life. It was possible to get rid of the hated burden and restore statehood only through the unification of disparate principalities and the establishment of centralized power.
The most likely causes of state fragmentation
Analyzing the reasons for the establishment of a specific period of history in Russia, the researchers indicate that they are based on both political and economic processes that took place at that time. As one of the most important factors, they call the dominance of subsistence farming, in which the production of all the products necessary for life is a cycle closed within a particular area. With such an organization of the economy, the relationship between the principalities is extremely weak, and therefore, there is no need for interaction.
One of the important reasons for the specific period in Russia, historians also see in the rapid development of trading cities, which, due to their advantageous geographical position, were able to quickly grow, develop and very soon required political independence. Considering that by the middle of the XII century the authority of Kiev was noticeably shaken, their inhabitants, and especially the princes, did not want to pay the previously established taxes.
In addition, it is believed that in the history of Russia the specific period arose as a result of the cohabitation of a large number of different nationalities, each of which had its own, closed culture. If in the previous centuries such a rich ethnic group did not pose a threat to the state, then by the middle of the XII century the national question had become extremely aggravated and generated a tribal struggle.
The lack of a single army
And finally, oddly enough, historians see one of the reasons for the emergence of the specific period of Russia in the fact that over the previous centuries the state did not have strong external enemies. A relatively calm life, only periodically violated by nomad raids, and the complete absence of large-scale hostilities eliminated the need for a strong united army. Local conflicts were usually resolved with the help of scattered princely squads.
This was one of the reasons for the rapid conquest of Russia by the Tatar-Mongol hordes. At the time of the Batu invasion, the state did not have a sufficiently large and efficient army, and it was not possible to assemble it in a short time due to the same specific fragmentation.
Features of the Russian state in the period of fragmentation
Carefully studying world history, it is not difficult to verify that in any given period almost all states faced fragmentation, but in Russia the specific period had its own distinctive features. They stemmed largely from the fact that the rulers of absolutely all the principalities (destinies) belonged to the same clan dynasty, which is not recorded anywhere else in the world. As a consequence of this, each unitary prince had the right to claim supreme supremacy, that is, to have a kind of historical claim.
In addition, unlike other states, Russia for a long time practically had no capital. Officially, this status belonged to Kiev, but after the death of the Grand Duke Mstislav Vladimirovich in 1132, his influence shook, and after taxes ceased to come from the controlled lands, it generally turned into an empty formality. This further weakened Russia in the period of specific fragmentation. When in December 1240, the Mother of Russian cities was captured and burned by the Tatars, representatives of the city, which had become much stronger at that time, began to advance to the great reign.
The impoverishment of the people as a result of specific fragmentation
Having considered in general terms the reasons for the specific period of Russia, we now dwell on its consequences, which in many respects determined the entire subsequent course of Russian history. One of them was the extreme impoverishment of the population, the reason for which, according to historians, is not only and not so much in the encroachment of external enemies, but in the processes that took place within the state itself.
So, it is noted that against the backdrop of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, as well as the constant incursions of Polish and Livonian invaders on the Russian land, its own princes did not stop internecine wars, in which a significant part of the working population was drawn. The separation of producers from their farms, as well as the destruction of their property during hostilities led to an economic disaster and a sharp drop in the standard of living of all segments of the population.
State deprived of a single army
As the main feature of the specific period of Russia, they call the extremely low defense capability, which was simultaneously the cause of the fragmentation of the state and its consequence. As already mentioned above, the Tatar-Mongol yoke was established in view of the fact that the specific princes could not come out against the enemy on a united front and were defeated separately. The same state of things persisted over the next four centuries and was a serious problem that had to be solved when creating a single centralized state, uniting all previously independent specific principalities under the authority of Moscow. In the period of specific Russia, meanwhile, processes were taking place that had very favorable consequences for the further development of the state. They should also be mentioned.
Positive effects of specific fragmentation
Paradoxically, they really were. First of all, they include the development of trade and crafts, which is explained very simply: being in their estates full owners, the princes were vitally interested in their economic development. This allowed them to avoid material dependence on neighbors and maintain their own sovereignty.
It is further noted that the fragmentation resulting from the division of power and the other reasons set forth above, to some extent created the prerequisites for the establishment of relative political stability in the country. This is because, in need of protection and economic support, small and weak principalities began to accept the status of vassals and become subordinate to their more powerful neighbors. Accordingly, their rulers were forced to maintain the political line of their lords, which introduced some stability into the life of the country.
Forced development of vacant land
And finally, the division of the state into many separate principalities contributed to its uniform settlement. Since internecine wars did not stop in the southern regions, aggravated by the frequent raids of the steppe tribes, a significant part of their inhabitants was forced to go north and develop new lands there. It is noted that if in the first half of the XII century, that is, at the beginning of the formation of a specific state in Russia, its northern regions were empty, then by the end of the XV century they were developed and densely populated.