Holy Reverend Andrian in the world - Rodion Oslyabya. One of the famous historical characters of Ancient Russia, the hero of the famous battle with the Mamai army during the Battle of Kulikovo. His name is immortalized not only by the Orthodox Church, but also by modern culture - the motor ship of the Volga River Flotilla is named after Rodion Oslyaby.
Rodion Oslyabya: biography before…
Rodion was a native of the Bryansk region. Born presumably in the city of Lubutsk. He came from an ancient boyar family and had a close relationship with another hero of the battle on the Kulikovo field - Alexander Peresvet. It is believed that they were brothers. The degree of relationship is indicated as blood. But perhaps they were cousins. Before being tonsured a monk, Rodion, like his brother, served in the princely army, participated in battles against Lithuania. However, it is assumed that it was precisely the failures in the battles with the Lithuanians that led the brothers to the decision to leave worldly life. They took tonsure and went to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery.
Studying the descriptions of the appearance of Rodion Oslyaby, we find out that he was a middle-aged man with"brown mustache and luxuriant beard." In addition, some sources mention the presence of his son Jacob, who allegedly died with his father during the Battle of Kulikovo. Both Peresvet and Oslyabya were not only very strong men, but also experienced warriors, including in command and control of the army. Sometimes they are even called commanders.
Hero of the Battle of Kulikovo
Together with his brother Alexander Peresvet, Rodion Oslyabya was sent by Reverend Sergius of Radonezh to a righteous battle with the hordes of the Horde Khan Mamai, who had usurped power in the western part of the split Golden Horde. An unrecognized ruler, who was not a descendant of Genghis Khan, Mamai decided to strengthen his power among the Horde warriors with the help of military victories.
Before leaving for the princely army, Sergius of Radonezh, instead of armor, put on his monks cloaks with embroidered crosses as a sign of God's patronage and protection - the Great Schema. In it, put on a monastic dress, they went out to fight. Sergius of Radonezh blessed Peresvet and Oslyabya before the campaign with the miraculous icon of Our Lady of Tikhvin.
After the famous duel between Alexander Peresvet and Chelubey and their death, two troops met on the Kulikovo field in a hot battle. Rodion Oslyabya fought valiantly in the forefront from the very first minute. His contribution to the battle largely determined the outcome.
According to one of the existing versions, Rodion Oslyabya died in a battle with the Horde on the Kulikovo field, and according to another, he returned to his monasteryand continued his service.
Biography after…
After the victory over the army of Mamai and the loss of his brother, Rodion Oslyabya returned back to the Trinity-Sergius monastery. However, after the accession of the son of Dmitry Donskoy, Vasily I, he was sent to the Byzantine emperor with an embassy that had a charitable mission - the delivery of assistance to Tsargrad, which had suffered from the troops of the Turkish Sultan Bayazet. He returned to Moscow with the icon of the Savior as a thank-you gift to the Moscow prince from the Byzantine emperor. Perhaps, for his merits, Rodion Oslyabya was awarded a plot of land in the Kolomna region, where the village of Oslebyatievskoye arose, mentioned in the possessions acquired by the wife of Vasily I, Evdokia Dmitrievna.
Rodion Oslyabya - a warrior monk - after his death was buried in the Simonovsky Monastery in Moscow.
Was there a find?
In the 18th century, the bell tower was dismantled in the monastery's Mother of God-Nativity Church. It is suggested that during these works a brick crypt was discovered, the floor of which was covered with nameless tombstones, after removing which the builders discovered the sarcophagi of Alexander Peresvet and Rodion Oslyabi.
Over time, tombstones were placed over them. They were destroyed twice: in 1794 and 1928. And only in 1989 they were created for the third time - now at the initiative of the artist P. D. Korin. Above the burial place of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo, a wooden tombstone was installed, exactly copying its first cast-iron version. Access to the alleged grave is open to everyone. However, it is still unknown whether the remains actually lie here. Peresvet and Oslyaby. But next to the graves there are precious lamps made at the expense of the Naval Department of Imperial Russia.
In your name…
In the middle of the 19th century, ships named after the heroes-monks of the Kulikovo battle - "Peresvet" and "Oslyabya" were included in the Russian fleet. The latter was a steam 45-gun frigate built at one of the B altic shipyards in 1860 and was in combat formation until 1874. During the American Civil War, when the combined fleet of the southerners and the British put strong pressure on the northerners, Abraham Lincoln turned to the Russian Emperor Alexander II for help. On September 24, 1863, a squadron under the command of Rear Admiral S. S. Lesovsky participated in the salvation of New York. In 1864, "Oslyabya" took part in a campaign in the Mediterranean Sea.
In 1901, a new screw ship "Oslyabya" came off the stocks of the B altic shipyards. He fought heroically in the Battle of Tsushima during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, without losing the honor of the name by which he was named. In the battle, he led the left column of the military squadron, received holes and sank. Together with the ship, 514 crew members out of 899 were killed.
Rodion Oslyabya is back in service
In 2005, by order of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, one of the multi-deck landing ships of the Pacific Fleet, designed to transport and land troops with military equipment, was assignedname "Oslyabya".
From February to May 2017, the motor ship "Rodion Oslyabya" was undergoing scheduled repairs at the docks: all engines were brought into working condition, pumps and pipelines, the propeller complex were repaired, the old sections were completely sandblasted and the new sections were painted, repaired frame. In addition, the ship was also modernized: the hydraulic system of hatches, the superstructure with decks were re-equipped. Technical support of the work was carried out around the clock.
