Russian history 32: Provinces of Volyn' and Galich, their unification

At about the same time when Suzdal was growing in the north-east, provinces of Volyn' and Galich began to develop fast in the opposite end, in the south-west. Around 1200, they united and formed one strong duchy.

The duchy of Volyn' and its capital city Vladimir Volynski occupied lands on the right bank of the Western Bug, the upper Pripyat and Southern Bug. It was named after the ancient town Volyn' and the tribe of volynians (aka dulebs). Since the ancient times the duchy submitted to the knyaz of Kiev, but in the mid-XII century a separate dynasty is formed by the successors of the elder son of Vladimir Monomakh. Famous knyaz Izyaslav Mstislavich (see chapter 18) stayed in Volyn' and from here he, like his son Mstislav Izyaslavich did later, attacked Kiev. So, the knyazes of Volyn', like their brothers and uncles from Suzdal, made Volyn' their own land and attempted to adjoin Kiev. Son of Mstislav Izyaslavich, Roman Mstislavich, was especially successful. Not only did he take Kiev, but he also united his duchy with the neighbouring duchy of Galich.

The duchy of Galich consisted of two parts: the mountainous parts and the lowlands. The former was situated on the eastern slopes of Carpathian mountains and its capital was Galich on river Dniester. The latter part was spreading northwards and was called "towns of Cherven", after an ancient city Cherven. Located in the outskirts of Rus, the land of Galich was never very attractive for the knyazes. On the other hand, Poles, Ugrians and steppe nomads often attempted to subjugate these towns. So, the Kievan knyazes usually sent young knyazes to Galich, those who had no other place in Rus. In the end of XI century, the congress of Lyubech agreed to give Galich to two knyazes-izgoys, Vasilko and Volodar, great-grandsons of Yaroslav the Wise. Since then, the Galich outskirts became a duchy of its own. Volodar's son Volodimerko (died in 1152) united all towns under his hand and made Galich the capital of the duchy. He expanded its territory and increased the population by attracting settlers from other areas. For the duchy, he played the same role that Yuri Dolgorukiy played for Suzdal. Treacherous and cruel Volodimerko left no good memories after himself. The unification of the duchy was continued by his son Yaroslav, nicknamed Osmomysl (roughly translated as "has-eight-thougts"), who ruled in 1152-1187. Settlers came to Galich not only from Rus, but also from the west, from Poland and Hungary. The fertility of the land and the location of the territories between Western Europe and Rus were quite attractive. The Tale of Igor's Campaign names Yaroslav one of the two strongest knyazes together with Vsevolod the Big Nest. Yaroslav had diplomatic relations with Hungary, Bulgaria, Byzantine empire, he influenced the political affairs of Kiev, especially till Andrei Bogolyubski came to Kiev.

After the death of Yaroslav Osmomysl his dynasty ended and the throne was taken by the knyaz of Volyn' Roman Mstislavich (1199) and Galich and Volyn' became one united duchy. The state strengthened even more under Roman's son, Daniil Romanovich (see chapter 37).

The rise of Galich lands, just like the rise of the duchy of Rostov and Suzdal, was explained by the influx of settlers. The political situation of Galich, though, was less stable. First, the neighbours of Galich were not weak tribes, but strong militant peoples: Ugrians, Poles and Lithuanians. When not in war with them, knyazes of Galich often allied with them. These foreign countries kept an eye on the events in Galich and were always ready to pick the weakening power (and sometimes they succeeded, as we will see later). Second, the monocracy of the knyazes was contested in Galich by the strong nobility: boyars and druzhina. Even strong knyazes, like Osmomysl and Roman, had to reckon with the boyars. Knyaz Roman attempted to suppress the opposition by brute force, but failed. After the Roman's death the boyars took active part in the feuds which weakened the duchy of Galich and Volyn'.

The proximity of strong foreign countries and the oligarchy of boyars were the main reasons for the failure of Galich and Volyn' to form a strong united country. After a period of glory in XII-XIII centuries the duchy began to decline and was conquered by Poland and Lithuania.

February 15 in Russian history

1045: The construction of the Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Novgorod began. This is the oldest church in Russia that survived till now. Russia.com writes about the cathedral:

This five-domed stone cathedral was built by Vladimir of Novgorod, son of Yaroslav the Wise. His father’s last request was that the St. Sophia Cathedral of Novgorod be built as a sign of appreciation to the Novgorodians due to the fact that they had given so much support to him during his struggle for Kiev. Before the St. Sophia Cathedral was built an ancient wooden, 13-domed church established in 989 existed in its place. The cupolas or the dome-shaped roof are thought to have gained their present shape in the 1150’s, after it was rebuilt after being in a fire. The interior rooms were painted in the 11th and 12th centuries but certain parts of the interior had to be repainted in 1860s. The many frescoes, or paintings done directly on partly dry plaster, have faded to the point where not much of the pictures can be seen due to the many fires. In the 15th century the white stone bell tower was added and the clock tower was finished by 1673. The St. Sophia Cathedral was built as a ceremonial and spiritual institution of the Novgorod Republic during the 12th to the 15th century and stretched from the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains. The St. Sophia has been seen by the Novgorodians as a monument standing for their independence something they are very proud of. Fortunately, the Cathedral survived the Nazi occupation of Novgorod, even though the Kremlin was damaged so much from the Nazi abuse. When the Spanish infantry came they removed the large cross from the main dome of the church. In fact till November 16, 2004 the cross spent 60 years in the Madrid’s Military Engineering Academy Museum. Then in 2004 the Spanish minister of defense Jose Bono gave it back to the Russian Orthodox Church. The main cathedral gates of the St. Sophia have led to much speculation as to their origination. Customarily they were thought to have been brought by Saint Vladimir from Korsun in Crimea as part of the apparent Korsun Treasures. There are still a few objects left that can be seen but the gates itself have been replaced on many occasions. Year 1335, Archbishop Basil donated a gate, which was later transferred to Ivan III residence in Alexandrov near Moscow on his request and can still be seen there today. The gates that stand at the St. Sophia Cathedral now are bronze doors that are thought to have been taken by Novgorodian pirates from Sigtuna a Swedish town in 1187. These gates are only opened on special occasions twice a year.

Wikipedia also has an interesting article about the temple.

1495: Elena, daughter of Ivan III, marries Alexander, the Great Duke of Lithuania. Both countries hoped that the marriage will increase their influence in this constantly competing couple, but the balance was too stable, Russia did not become catholic and Lithuania did not accept orthodoxy. Elena suffered because of this competition between her father and her husband. After their death, she spent the rest of her life under home arrest in a Lithuanian castle.

1895: Sisters Eugenia, Helen and Maria Gnessin, known in Moscow as outstanding pianists, founded the first musical college in Russia. This college, renamed to the Gnessin State Musical College, is one of the best Russian musical schools.

1919: The Council of Workers' and Peasants' Defense adopted the decree on cleaning the railroads from snow. Railroads were very important during the Civil War and the winter was snowy. All men in the age from 18 to 50, living withing 20 kilometres from a railroad, were obliged to participate in the cleaning: "Some committee members from the areas where the works are not done satisfactorily, whould be arrested. In the same areas, a number of peasants must be taken as hostages and executed if the snow is not cleaned."