Prince is a title. During feudalism, it was worn by the head of state, who was the sole ruler. All power was concentrated in the hands of the prince. This term was endowed with a high meaning among the Slavs and other peoples of Europe in the 9th-16th centuries. Later, the prince was already just the highest title of nobility.
Who was called a prince?
The Slavs considered the leader of a tribe to be a prince, and later, during the period of early feudalism, the head of state or a single territory. At first, princely power was elective, but after a while, from the 9th to the 16th century, it began to be inherited from father to son. So, the Rurik dynasty appeared in Russia, where the rulers were the Grand Dukes Oleg, Igor, Yaropolk. This was before the beginning of the 18th century, when the title of prince in Russia was the only one that was inherited.
But during the reign of Peter 1, the title loses its prestige, as foreigners from Europe, called princes, began to arrive in Russia. This title began to bestow on their subjects for certain merits, which were of particular importance to the state. The favorite was first granted to the princesPeter 1 Alexander Menshikov. At the dawn of the Great October Socialist Revolution, this and all other noble titles were abolished.
The Grand Duke - who is this?
The rulers of the Russian state were called this ancient title. The genus of Rurikovich began to expand, which made it necessary to distinguish between older families. They were given the title "Grand Duke". At first it was an honorary title and that's it. The Grand Duke is a ruler who does not have the right to interfere in the administration carried out by the junior princes. When Andrei Bogolyubsky ravaged Kyiv, this title began to be assigned to the princes of Vladimir, while the princes of Kyiv were called by tradition.
During the time of the Tatars, power was given along with the title from the khan. Then the great princes had the right to interfere in the management of the affairs of the specific princes. During the time of Vasily the Dark, Moscow finally became the capital of the Grand Dukes. During the reign of Ivan 3, this title is gradually replaced by the title of sovereign. The specific princes were also called the Grand Duke, if their land was crushed and separated from the Vladimir, and then the Moscow principalities. The title "prince" over time began to be supplemented and overgrown with differences: His Serene Highness Prince, Excellency.
Significant milestones in the reign of Prince Igor
- Igor has been the ruler of Kyiv since 912. Came to power after his brother Oleg died. The total term of his reign is 32 years. During this time, the prince managed to subdue the Uglichs and Drevlyans, forcing them to pay tribute, for which he annually poisoned himself with his squad. Such trips are called "polyudye"and played a fatal role in Igor's life.
- In 1913, under his command, a campaign 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, they had to promise the Khazars half of the booty for further advancement. She really was huge. The Khazars received the promised share, but it seemed to them not enough. A terrible battle began. In it, Prince Igor lost almost all of his army.
- The Kyiv 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 liberate 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 bear the meeting with the strong Igor's army, retreated and went to Bessarabia, terrifying their neighbors. In 915, the defeated foreigners made peace with Prince Igor, which was broken by them five years later. Since 920, the nomadic Pecheneg tribes again began to encroach on Russian lands.
- 935 was marked by campaigns against Italy together with the Greeks. In general, little information has been preserved in the annals about the period of Igor's reign.
- 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.
- Being defeatedin the past campaign, Prince Igor in 943 again went to a military battle against the Greeks. But the Bulgarians and Khazars warned the Byzantines about this. The Greeks offered a peace favorable to the Russian prince. Igor accepted it.
- In 944, the rulers of the two states signed a new peace treaty. Its essence was that the world would last as long as the sun would shine and the world would stand. The signing of this treaty was of great importance, since it became the first international document in which the country was called the "Russian Land". Igor returned from this campaign as a winner, without entering into battle with the Byzantines.
It seemed that the time of failures had passed and it was high time for old Igor to rule peacefully. But it wasn't. The indignation of the 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 warriors urged him to go collect tribute with them. Such campaigns were called polyuds, as a result of which tribute was collected from subject tribes.
Death of Prince Igor
The Prince of Kyiv is the son of Rurik. Igor died due to his own indiscretion. When during the next polyudya tribute was collected from the Drevlyans, under pressure from his squad, he decided to return to Iskorosten and collect tribute a second time. But he went on a campaign with a small squad, since he sent the bulk of it to Kyiv along with the loot. This was his mistake. Igor did not accept the offer of the Drevlyans to leave their land and not to collect tribute again, for which he was executed along with his soldiers. Periodthe reign of Prince Igor is characterized by the spread of the power of the Russians over vast territories: on both sides of the Dnieper, in its upper and middle reaches, to the Caucasus in the southeast and the Volkhov in the north.
