Who wrote the life of the holy noble prince Alexander Nevsky is not known for certain
The Tale of the Life and Courage of the Blessed and Grand Duke Alexander or The Tale of the Life of Alexander Nevsky is a literary work of the 13th century, of the hagiographic genre. The main character of the work is Alexander Nevsky. There are 13 known editions of the Life of the 13th-17th centuries.
The earliest first edition, compiled around the 1260s, survives in 11 complete copies of the 15th–17th centuries. The author of the story was probably a scribe from the circle of Vladimir Metropolitan Kirill, who came from Galicia-Volyn Rus' in 1246, therefore the story reflects the established literary traditions of the South-West and North-East of Rus'.
The author reports that he personally knew Alexander Nevsky and witnessed his actions. It is generally accepted that the story was written no later than the 80s of the 13th century in the Monastery of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Vladimir, where Prince Alexander Nevsky is buried.
The story of the life of Alexander Nevsky
The story of the life of Alexander Nevsky
- a historical and hagiographic story about an outstanding statesman and military figure of Ancient Rus'. P. has come down to us in several editions of the 13th–18th centuries. The history of its text is extremely complex; much remains controversial, in particular the initial history of the monument, the relationship between its senior editions - the Initial, Special, Likhachevskaya and the SIL edition.
The first biography of Alexander Nevsky, according to some scientists (N.I. Serebryansky, V.L. Komarovich), was the secular druzhina Tale of Alexander’s “courage and life,” which was not preserved in its original form, but was partially reflected in two editions of P. - Initial and Special. It is not clear, however, what from the texts of these two editions could be read in the secular biography of the prince. It was believed, for example, that the introduction to P. was the Word about the destruction of the Russian land and that the narrative about the life of Alexander began with praise to the prince (preserved in the Special Edition of the Life), where he was likened to Alexander the Great, Achilles, Digenis Akritos. Subsequently, the text of the Tale was restored mainly according to P.’s original edition, with the exclusion of biblical parallels and a description of the miracle with “spiritual literacy.” N.I. Serebryansky believed that the author of Alexander’s secular biography was his warrior, but not one of those who took part in the prince’s hostilities. V.L. Komarovich suggested that the author of P. could be Fyodor Danilovich or Yakim, warriors of Prince Yaroslav - Alexander's father, but did not give reasons for this attribution. The basis for the hypothesis about the existence of an ancient secular biography of the prince was observations of the stylistic heterogeneity of the original edition of P., the text of which combines two different points of view - a monk and a warrior and two different stylistic principles - church and secular. The fusion of various stylistic trends proves, according to the supporters of the hypothesis, that the Initial edition is an ecclesiastical adaptation of the secular druzhina biography of the prince. The hypothesis about the existence of a secular biography of the prince was built on an erroneous premise, denying the possibility of combining different stylistic principles in the works of ancient Russian literature. N.K. Gudziy, I.P. Eremin, U. Philip, Yu.K. Begunov, criticizing this hypothesis, noted that it does not have serious textual evidence.
The surviving lists of P. on the life of Alexander Nevsky are divided into the following editions.
1
. Original edition. In the scientific literature there are different designations for it: Initial (V. O. Klyuchevsky, V. Mansikka), Church Chronicle (N. I. Serebryansky), Chronicle (V. L. Komarovich), First (Yu. K. Begunov). The title of this edition varies: “The Tale of the Life and Courage of the Blessed and Grand Duke Alexander”, “The Life of the Blessed Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich of All Russia Nevsky”, “The Tale of the Grand Duke Alexander Yarosdavich”, etc.
The content of the original edition of P. consists of short stories about the main, from the author’s point of view, episodes from the life of Alexander (battles on the Neva and Lake Peipsi, diplomatic relations with the Pope and the Horde), which recreate the heroic image of the warrior prince, valiant commander and wise politician . The author constructs the biography of the prince as a hagiography. In accordance with the canons of the genre, in the preface he calls himself “thin”, “many sinners”, “with little understanding”; the story about Alexander’s life begins, as befits a life, with a message about his birth from pious parents. The entire narrative is replete with biblical quotations and analogies; comparisons with Samson, Solomon, Joseph the Beautiful, David, Joshua, Hezekiah emphasize the eternal, timeless nature of Alexander’s activities. The author constantly reminds of the prince’s heavenly protection, trying to show that “God looks upon such people,” emphasizes Alexander’s piety, puts prayers and appeals to God into his mouth. The original edition ends with a description of the death of the prince and the miracle with a “spiritual letter.”
Along with the hagiographical ones, the original edition also clearly shows the traditional features of military stories: Alexander is beautiful in appearance, courageous, hot-tempered, and fearless. In accordance with the canons of military stories, the prince “flared up in his heart” upon learning of the approach of the enemy; set out on a campaign “in a small squad, not using much of his strength”; in battle, “put a seal on the face of the king himself with your sharp spear.” The fame of Alexander’s bravery spread “across all countries”; his name “began... to be cherished” by many nations; Khan Batu admits that “there is nothing like this prince,” and the Tatar wives scare their children with the words: “Alexander is coming!” According to I.P. Eremin, Alexander “appears before us in the image of either a king-military leader of biblical antiquity, or a brave knight of a book epic, or an iconographic “righteous man.” This somewhat motley stylistic outfit, in which the author of the life sometimes dresses his hero, is another enthusiastic tribute on his part to the blessed memory of the late prince" ( Eremin
. Life of Alexander Nevsky, p. 355).
The name of the author of the Original Edition is unknown, but the text contains some information about him. The author says that he knows a lot about Alexander from the stories of “his father” (“his father is a household member”), and he himself “is a witness of his age,” that is, of Alexander’s mature years. The author was not a participant in the Neva Battle; the prince and other participants in the battle told him about it. He also received information about the Battle of Peipus from a “self-witness,” however, the author refers to the “self-witness” in that part of the story about the battle, which tells about the miraculous help of “God’s regiment” to Alexander. Based on these author's comments, it is difficult to establish the author's social position and the degree of his closeness to the prince. Even the first P. researchers noted that the author of the Initial Edition could not be a Novgorodian: his story does not contain many details and facts that could be gleaned from Novgorod and Pskov sources, and sometimes his story contradicts these sources. Thus, the author of the Initial Edition mentions the role of the Novgorodians in the victory on the Neva, saying that many Novgorodians “did not copulate in the wild,” and the prince set out on a campaign with a “small squad”; According to the Novgorod chronicles, Alexander goes on a campaign against the Swedes mainly with the Novgorodians and Ladoga residents. The inclusion in the text of unflattering reproaches of ingratitude for the Pskovites (“Oh neveglasi Pskovians! If you forget this, you will become the great-grandchildren of the Alexandrovs, and you will become like a Jew...”) excludes the possibility of the Pskov origin of the Original edition. Much indicates that the author was a resident of the northeastern lands, Suzdal or Vladimir. Alexander is depicted primarily as the Prince of Vladimir-Suzdal, he is called “the sun of the land of Suzdal,” etc.
Speaking about the author of the Initial Edition, all scientists note his great erudition. Among the established sources of the Initial Edition, in addition to biblical texts, are “The History of the Jewish War” by Josephus, Alexandria Chronographic, “The Chronicler Soon” by Patriarch Nicephorus (all these works, according to D. S. Likhachev, could have been known to the author through a compilation chronograph), Devgenie’s act, etc. V. O. Klyuchevsky also noticed “the literary trend of the old Kyiv or Volyn south under this northern Suzdal pen” (Old Russian Lives, p. 70). Having compared the Initial edition with the Galician Chronicle, D.S. Likhachev established similarities between them in style, in the manner of describing military actions and the exploits of the prince, especially in that part of the Galician Chronicle where the biography of Daniil Galitsky is read. The original edition, in his opinion, reflects the Western Russian, Galician literary tradition. Literary connections between Galich and northeastern Rus' could be carried out, as D.S. Likhachev suggested, through Metropolitan Kirill, who in 1250 moved from the south from Daniil Galitsky to Alexander Nevsky. “Without any doubt,” writes D.S. Likhachev, “Kirill was involved in the compilation of Alexander’s biography. He could have been the author, but first of all, he commissioned a life from one of the Galician scribes who lived in the north" ( Likhachev
. Galician literary tradition, p. 52). The author refers to Kirill, describing a miracle with a “spiritual letter”; he also conveys the words of Kirill upon the news of the death of the prince: “My children, understand that the sun of the land of Suzdal has already set.” Developing the conclusions of D. S. Likhachev, Yu. K. Begunov connects the composition of the Initial Edition with the Monastery of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Vladimir. Alexander's body was buried here; the monastery played a big role in the creation of the cult of the prince. It was here, in the Monastery of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, that he lived from 1250 to 1274. Metropolitan Kirill. The patron of the monastery was Prince Dmitry Alexandrovich, the son of Alexander Nevsky, to whom the author of the Initial Edition pays special attention, portraying Dmitry Alexandrovich as a worthy successor to his father’s power. The original edition of P. was probably compiled on the initiative of Dmitry Alexandrovich and Metropolitan Kirill in the 80s. XIII century a scribe at the Monastery of the Nativity of the Virgin in Vladimir, a Galician by literary school and, possibly, by origin. This edition had a long handwritten tradition; it was preserved in 13 lists of the 14th–17th centuries, the oldest of which are the lists of the Laurentian Chronicle, the Pskov II Chronicle and the Collection of States. archive of the Pskov region, f. 449, No. 60. The most interesting stage in the manuscript history of the Initial Edition is associated with the “Tale of the Destruction of the Russian Land.” It was the study of the history of the text of the Initial Edition that showed that “The Word of Perdition” is an independent work and was added to this edition around the 80s. XV century
The significance of the original edition of P. for Old Russian literature is great. It was the main source for all subsequent editions of the monument. For a long time, her style of narration became a model for princely biographies of subsequent times.
2
. A special edition of P. (V. Mansikka called it Special, Second, New; N. I. Serebryansky - Special; V. L. Komarovich and U. Philip - Prolozhnaya; Yu. K. Begunov - Third) has come to us in six lists XVI–XVII centuries It is called: “The Dormition of the Grand Duke of Novgorod Alexander Yaroslavich.” Much in the presentation of events from the life of the prince in the Special Edition coincides with the Initial Edition and, apparently, its compiler knew the text of the Initial Edition. The Special Edition does not, however, contain many historical episodes and details; events are depicted concisely and laconically. In the Special Edition there are no prayers of the prince, mentions of angelic help, descriptions of miracles, there are almost no biblical quotations and analogies, which gives the prince’s biography a more secular character. At the beginning of the Special Edition, a conventional image of a warrior prince is drawn - smart, brave, invincible, whose name is “formidable in terms of speed.” This is a prince similar in courage to Alexander the Great, Achilles and Digenis Akritos - Alexander is now likened to these literary, not biblical heroes, the fame of his courage spread throughout many countries of the Varangian Sea to Rome. This characteristic is illustrated by three examples, in a conventionally literary manner, with almost no historical details, depicting the prince in the battles on the Neva and Lake Peipsi, and the campaign in Pomerania. The second part of the Special Edition reveals other aspects of the prince’s personality and activities. The traditional etiquette description of the “good” prince (meek, humble, friendly, merciful, honoring monks and priests, etc.) is supplemented by a description of Alexander’s activities in restoring the principality after the Nevryu invasion and approval of his policy in relations with the Horde. In the description of the death and burial of the prince there are many similarities with the Initial Edition, but in the Special Edition there is no author’s lament “Oh woe to you, poor man!” and a story about a miracle with “spiritual literacy.” In its extreme generalization of what is depicted and the brevity of the narrative, the Special Edition is more reminiscent of detailed praise than a biography.
Regarding the time of creation of the Special Edition, its sources and relationships with other editions, there are different, sometimes directly opposite, points of view. V. Mansikka and Yu. K. Begunov believed that the Special Edition dates back to SIL, and attributed its creation to the second half of the 15th century. (Yu. K. Begunov), XV - early XVI centuries. (V. Mansikka). N.I. Serebryansky dated the Special Edition to the 16th century, believing that it did not depend on SIL. In his opinion, the author of the Special Edition followed mainly the unpreserved secular Tale of Alexander, but he also had the Initial Edition of P. under his hand. Both points of view at the time of the creation of the Special Edition have not been textologically proven. The fallacy of the hypothesis of V. Mansikki - Yu. K. Begunov about the dependence of the Special Edition on SIL is confirmed by facts from the history of the text of the Tale of Dovmont, all editions of which have borrowings from the Special Edition of P. on the Life. The presence of the text of the Tale of Dovmont in the general protograph of SIL and NIVL shows that both the Tale of Dovmont and, especially, its source - the Special Edition of P. were created before the 40s. XV century, and perhaps even at the beginning of this century (see: Okhotnikova V.I.
The Tale of Dovmont and Pskov Chronicles. On the question of dating the Tale. – In the book: Russian and Georgian medieval literature. L., 1979, p. 182–191). Researchers unanimously, following N.I. Serebryansky, call Novgorod the place where the Special Edition was compiled. This is evidenced by the constant references in its text to the fact that Alexander made campaigns with the Novgorod regiments, calling him “Grand Duke of Novgorod”, repeated mention of Sophia of Novgorod and the prince’s desire to serve her, the definition of Pskov as a suburb of Novgorod, etc., and on the other hand, there is poor awareness of the circumstances of the prince’s death in Vladimir.
3
. The Likhachev edition (the third type of the second edition according to the terminology of Yu. K. Begunov) is entitled: “O our great prince and let us be wise and strong-minded...”. The edition was preserved in one list of the late 15th – early 16th centuries. (LOI, collected by N.P. Likhachev, No. 71), opened by V. Mansikka. The text of the Likhachev edition reveals similarities with the Initial and Special editions, the chronicle notes of the NIL of the older edition and the edition of P. in the SIL. V. Mansikka, publishing the text of the Likhachev edition, indicated that its sources, apparently, were the protograph SIL, the Special and Initial editions of P.; he attributed its composition to the end. XV – beginning XVI century N.I. Serebryansky considered the Likhachev edition to be a combination of texts from the Initial and Special editions, supplemented by extracts from the Scientific Literary Literature and the editor’s personal guesses, and independent of the Scientific Literary Literature. V. Mansikki’s point of view on the history of the text of the Likhachev edition was developed recently by Yu. K. Begunov, but in his works it did not receive convincing textual justification. The question of the relationship between the Likhachev edition and other editions of P. and the time of its creation remains open.
4
. The SIL edition is the most complete reflection of the all-Russian chronicle edition of the 40s. XV century (i.e., the vault of 1448 - the protograph of SIL and NIVL, which has not been preserved in its original form). The biography of Alexander as part of the SIL consists of chronicle articles of 1240–1243, 1246, 1251, 1262. NIL of the older edition and the text of the Initial edition, it is separated by years and broken down by chronicle messages of other content. Entire phrases, individual expressions and phrases bring this edition of the poem closer to the Special edition (see, for example, the introduction “About the Grand Duke”, the beginning of the description of the Battle of Chud, the message about the campaign against Chud, the enumeration of the boundaries of the spread of Alexander’s glory, etc.). This similarity was interpreted by researchers in different ways: V. Mansikka, Yu. K. Begunov believed that the Special Edition of the Life was compiled on the basis of SIL, N. I. Serebryansky saw in the Special Edition one of the sources of the edition of SIL. There is a similar contradiction in the views on the relationship between the editorial boards of SIL and Likhachevskaya.
The compiler of the all-Russian chronicle edition did not combine works of different styles and genres about Alexander Nevsky mechanically. His attitude towards the Special Edition was critical; its text, unlike the Initial Edition, was not used in full, perhaps this was caused by the secular nature of the Special Edition by P. The entire narrative was compiled by the compiler of the 40s. gave an all-Russian orientation. Alexander is presented here as the prince of the entire Russian land (“the sun of the Russian land”). SIL has retained these features of the all-Russian edition.
The all-Russian chronicle edition of P. through SIL and HIVL was included in most chronicles of the 15th–17th centuries. (Nikanorovskaya, Ermolinskaya, Typografskaya, Lvovskaya, Voskresenskaya, Simeonovskaya, Novgorodskaya 5, Nikonovskaya and many others.)
5
. A word of praise or Vladimir edition of P. (title: “A word of praise to the blessed Grand Duke Alexander, also called Nevsky, the new miracle worker, in which he confessed about his miracles”). The word of praise was written, as is clear from the introduction, on the initiative of Metropolitan Macarius, who, after the council of 1547, ordered a search for the miracles of the saint and forced the “poor writer” to compile a life. In 1550 it became part of the Military Military District. The author of the Word of Praise is unknown. V. O. Klyuchevsky suggested that he could be Mikhail, a monk of the Vladimir Nativity Monastery, who composed the service to Alexander Nevsky. Klyuchevsky was objected to by V. Mansikka, who noted that the story about the death of the prince and the miracle with “spiritual letters” in the service and the Word of Praise goes back to different versions. N.I. Serebryansky agreed with V. Mansikka, adding that the author of the Word of Praise calls the Nativity Monastery “that monastery”, “that monastery”; for a monk of this monastery, the pronouns “this”, “our” would be more natural. However, there is no doubt that the Word was written by a Vladimir scribe (Vladimir for him is “our city”). The author was a well-read person, well acquainted with the hagiographic canons; he compiled a correct life that met the requirements of the Makaryev literary school. This was manifested in a strict composition (traditional introduction, biography, miracles, akathist-type praise), in the development of each part, and in the selection of material. In terms of information, the Word of Praise adds almost nothing to the content of its main source - the Initial Edition of P. From its text, the author of the Word of Praise eliminates everything that does not correspond to the hagiographic character of the monument (the comparison with Vespasian is omitted, the story about the six brave men is shortened, there is no appeal to the Pskovites " About the Neveglasia of the Pskovians,” a story about the campaign in Lithuania, etc.), but distributes the text of the Original Edition with hagiographical motifs, especially in the story about the prince’s childhood and his death, he puts pious instructions into Alexander’s mouth, and expands the prayers. The author of the Word of Praise was also familiar with the traditional formulas of military stories with which he “decorates” the description of the Battle of the Neva and the Battle of the Ice. The presentation of thirteen miracles is also traditional, almost all of them date back to late times and were recorded from the words of the monks of the Nativity Monastery.
6
. Edited by Vasily-Varlaam, a writer of the Makariev circle, author of the lives of many Pskov and Novgorod saints (title: “The Life and Life and the Tale of Courage and Miracles, Briefly Described, of the Holy Great Prince Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky, the new miracle worker”). Vasily-Varlaam based his edition on the original edition of P., supplemented it according to the chronicle close to SIL, and distributed it with borrowings from hagiographic literature. Among the literary sources of Vasily-Varlaam are the lives of Mikhail of Chernigov, written by Pachomius the Serb, John of Novgorod, Fyodor of Yaroslavl, written by Anthony, the Chronicle story of the Massacre of Mamaev, etc.
7
. A piece on the life of Alexander Nevsky in a special edition (“The Life and Labors, together with partly the miracles of the most praised and blessed Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich, reccomago Nevsky, named Alexy in the monastery”) is placed in the 8th degree of the Degree Book. The edition of the Degree Book is compiled on the basis of the Praiseworthy Word and chronicle sources close to the SIL, Resurrection, Ermolin, Nikon chronicles. The author gave the edition the character of a coherent historical narrative; he deliberately avoids common hagiographic passages and rhetorical lengths of the Word of Praise, shortening it, in his own words, “for the sake of other deeds,” information about which he draws from chronicle sources. In the chronicle news, he omits unnecessary details and details, changes the syllable, bringing it into line with the general style of the narration of the Degree Book. Certain expressions and phrases in this edition remind P. of the life in the edition of Vasily-Varlaam.
The question of the author of Alexander's biography in the Degree Book has not been finally resolved. N.S. Derzhavin, without much evidence, attributed it to Vasily-Varlaam. He did not see anything surprising in the fact that Vasily-Varlaam almost at the same time appeared two very different works about Alexander Nevsky, explaining this by the difference in tasks - hagiographic and historiographic ( Derzhavin N.S.
"The Degree Book" as a literary monument.
Experience in researching the literary composition of Miller's Book of Degrees. Batum, 1902, p. 24, 77–78, 85–87). Convincingly disputing the participation of Vasily-Varlaam in the compilation of the Degree Book, P. G. Vasenko considers her to be the editor and compiler of most of the biographies of Athanasius; he did not specifically consider the question of the author of the prince’s biography in the Degree Book; only doubts were expressed about the attribution proposed by N. S. Derzhavin ( Vasenko P. G.
The Degree Book of the Tsar’s genealogy and its significance in ancient Russian historical writing. St. Petersburg, 1904, part. 1). The problem of the authorship of the life in the Degree Book still requires further research.
8
. Secular processing of the third quarter of the 16th century. The original edition was preserved in the list of the 16th century. GPB, QI321 (title: “23rd day of the repose of the holy and great prince Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky. This is the great prince Alexander...”). The list contains interesting additions: a lot of attention is paid to the “knights” of A.N., with details unknown to other editors, the origin of six brave men and their exploits in the Battle of the Neva is told, the description of the death of the prince includes the cry of his “knights” and the entire Russian land. The rest of the processing of the source apparently consisted of abbreviations and updating of the style, which in some expressions resembles the editions of the Life of Alexander Nevsky, the Degree Book and the Nikon Chronicle. V. Mansikka considers the new details of this edition “fantastic”, invented by the author himself; Yu. K. Begunov suggests that he could be a Novgorodian. The composition of this edition presumably dates back to the third quarter of the 16th century.
9
. The prologue version of the life was compiled in the 16th century. by an unknown author, included in the printed Prologue, is an abbreviation of the life as edited by Vasily-Varlaam. The main attention in the Prologue edition is paid to two episodes from the life of the prince - the Battle of the Neva and the trip to the Horde. They are preserved in almost all their details. All other episodes are either very much shortened or omitted completely; There is no story in the Prologue edition about the capture of Koporye, the Battle of the Ice, the Lithuanian campaign, the dispute with the ambassadors of the Pope. Many of Vasily-Varlaam’s rhetorical turns have also been simplified. In some expressions and details (description of a miracle with a “spiritual letter”, Alexander’s monastic name is Alexey) the Prologue edition is close to the Word of Praise; perhaps it was one of the sources of this edition. There are no opinions about the compiler of the Prologue edition, only N.I. Serebryansky suggested that he, like Vasily-Varlaam, was a Pskovite.
In addition to those discussed above, there are known editions of P., compiled by Jonah Dumin, Vincent, Titus (in the list of the GPB, collection of OLDP, No. 198; the edition is a compilation of the edition of Vasily-Varlaam and the edition of the Degree Book). Special editions of the 17th century are also known. One of them, found in the GPB list, Q.XVII.24, represents a reworking of Jonah Dumin’s edition. The author treated his original freely, not only shortened it, but also corrected it stylistically, mainly simplified it, and conveyed a lot in his style, which was also not devoid of rhetorical turns. Among the new information contained in this edition, it is worth noting the addition of the section on miracles and some historical clarifications (the name of the Grand Duchess who burned in the Vladimir fire of 1237 is Agafya; an indication that during the Nevryu campaign the Tatars did not take the city of Vladimir, but only his district, etc.). Most of the additions can be considered literary, among them the description of the appearance of Alexander, his personal courage and the bravery of six daredevils, the power of the Swedes and angelic help during the Battle of the Neva, the legend of the death of Georgy Vsevolodovich, the details of the death of Batu and how the “Moabite women” frightened their children named after Alexander, the vision of Kirill, etc. The sources of these additions have not been studied. As a result of all the changes, the editorial text became more secular. V. Mansikka makes a conclusion about the Vladimir origin of the author: this is evidenced by his knowledge of the details of the Vladimir fire, unknown from other editions, which he could glean from local legends, as well as the naming of Alexander “the miracle worker of Vladimir.”
Secular edition of the last quarter of the 17th century. also read in the GPB collection, collection. Pogodin, No. 1408. Its author is unknown. The source of the new edition of P. was the Nikon Chronicle. From her chronicle articles, the compiler selected four episodes - the Battle of the Neva, the Battle of the Ice, a trip to the Horde, the death of the prince - significantly shortened and modified their text, showing a desire to emphasize the secular, military virtues of Alexander and omit everything that characterizes him as a saint; hagiographical elements are completely absent in this edition.
Ed.
:
Mansikka V.
Life of Alexander Nevsky: Analysis of editions and text.
– PDP, No. 180. St. Petersburg, 1913; Serebryansky
: Princely Lives;
Azbelev S. N.
Secular adaptation of “The Life of Alexander Nevsky.”
– TODRL, 1958, vol. 14, p. 147–153; Begunov Yu. K.
1) On the issue of studying the Life of Alexander Nevsky. – TODRL, 1961, vol. 17, p. 348–357; 2) Monument of Russian literature of the 13th century. "The Word about the destruction of the Russian land." M.; L., 1965; 3) Die Vita des Fürsten Aleksandr Nevskij in der Novgoroder Literatur des 15. Jahrhunderts. – Zeitschrift für Slavistik, 1971, Bd 16, H. 1, S. 105–109.
Lit.
:
Klyuchevsky
.
Old Russian Lives, p. 65–71, 238–242, 251–258, 312–313; Bugoslavsky S.A.
On the issue of the original text of the Life of Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky.
– IORYAS, 1914, vol. 19, book. 1, p. 261–290; Orlov A. S.
Alexander Nevsky in medieval literature.
- Vestn. Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1942, No. 4, p. 72–79; Komarovich V.L.
The Tale of Alexander Nevsky.
– In the book: History of Russian literature. M.; L., 1946, vol. 2, part 1, p. 50–58; Likhachev D.S.
1) Galician literary tradition in the Life of Alexander Nevsky.
– TODRL, 1947, vol. 5, p. 36–56; 2) Replies: (Regarding the article by N.V. Vodovozov “The Tale of the 13th century about Alexander Nevsky” and “The Tale of the Battle of the Kalka River”). – TODRL, 1958, vol. 15, p. 499–502; Eremin I.P.
Life of Alexander Nevsky.
– In the book: Fiction of Kievan Rus of the 11th–13th centuries. / Comp. lane and note. I. P. Eremina and D. S. Likhachev. M., 1957, p. 354–356; Vodovozov N.V.
Tale of the XIII century.
about Alexander Nevsky: (On the question of the composition of the story and its author). - Scientist. zap. Moscow State Pedagogical Institute named after. V. P. Potemkina. M., 1957, t. 67, issue. 6, p. 21–45; Philipp W.
Über das Verhältnis des “Slovo o pogibeli Russkoj zemli” zum “Žitie Aleksandra Nevskogo”.
– Forschungen zur Osteuropäischen Geschichte, 1957, Bd 5, S. 7–37; Begunov Yu. K.
1) The Life of Alexander Nevsky as part of the Novgorod I and Sofia I chronicles.
– In the book: Novgorod historical collection. Novgorod, 1959, issue. 9, p. 229–238; 2) The Life of Alexander Nevsky in easel painting of the early 17th century. – TODRL, 1966, vol. 22, p. 311–326; 3) Utwory literackie o Aleksandrze Newskim w składzie łatopisów ruskich. – Slavia orientalis, 1969, rocz. 18, no. 3, s. 293–309; 4) Old Russian traditions in the works of the first quarter of the 18th century. about Alexander Nevsky. – TODRL, 1971, vol. 26, p. 71–84; 5) Alexander Nevsky in Pskov literature of the 15th–16th centuries. – Zeitschrift für Slawistik, 1976, Bd 21, N. 3, S. 311–318; 6) Life of Alexander Nevsky in a collection from the collection of N. P. Likhachev. – TODRL, 1976, vol. 30, p. 60–72; Lammich M.
Fürstenbiographien des 13. Jahrhunderts in dem russischen Chroniken.
Köln, 1973; Dmitriev L. A.
The story of the life of Alexander Nevsky.
– In the book: History of Russian literature of the 10th–17th centuries. M., 1980, p. 173–177; Okhotnikova V.I.
The Tale of Dovmont and princely biographies of the 11th–14th centuries. – In the book: Source study of the literature of Ancient Rus'. L., 1980, p. 115–128.
Add.
:
Okhotnikova V.I.
The Tale of Dovmont: Research. and texts. L., 1985, p. 24–29, 56–62, 138–155.
V. I. Okhotnikova
The holy noble prince Alexander Yaroslavovich Nevsky was born in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky
Alexander Yaroslavovich Nevsky is the Prince of Novgorod, the Grand Duke of Kiev, the Grand Duke of Vladimir, an outstanding commander, a saint of the Russian Orthodox Church. He was born on May 13, or according to the old historiographical tradition, May 30, 1220 in the city of Pereyaslavl-Zalessky.
Alexander's father Yaroslav received the name Fedor at baptism. He was the youngest son of the Grand Duke of Moscow Vsevolod III the Big Nest and the brother of the holy noble prince Yuri Vsevolodovich.
Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavovich Nevsky.
Miniature from the “Tsar’s Title Book”, 1672. Prince Alexander reigned in Veliky Novgorod, Kyiv and Vladimir. Known for his military victories over the Livonian and Teutonic orders. Photo: upload.wikimedia.org
The mother of St. Alexander, Theodosia Mstislavna - presumably the daughter of the Galician prince Mstislav the Udal, the Toropetsk princess, the daughter of the prince of Novgorod and Galician Mstislav the Udal. She became the third wife of Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich.
Prince Yaroslav had an eldest son, Alexander's brother, the holy noble prince Theodore. At the age of 15 he died.
Prince Alexander Nevsky was born and spent his childhood in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky.
The life of the saint says that his childhood was spent in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky. His father reigned here and Alexander’s princely tonsure took place here. This is a rite of initiation into warriors and it was performed in the Transfiguration Cathedral of Pereslavl by Saint Simon, Bishop of Suzdal, one of the compilers of the Kiev-Pechersk Patericon.
The elder blessed Alexander Yaroslavich for military service in the Name of God, for the defense of the Russian Church and the Russian land.
Saint Simon, Bishop of Vladimir and Suzdal.
Engraving. Saint Simon performed princely tonsure on the youth Alexander in Pereslavl-Zalessky. Photo: nne.ru
In 1227, the Novgorodians asked the brother of Prince Yaroslav, the Grand Duke of Vladimir Yuri, to send him to reign in Novgorod the Great. He took his sons with him. The following year, he prepared to go on a campaign against Riga and appointed boyar Fyodor Danilovich and tiun Yakim as guardians for the children.
During the famine that came in winter, the guardians and princes fled from the city, fearing reprisals from the Novgorodians against them.
Holy Prince Alexander Yaroslavich became prince of Veliky Novgorod after the death of his brother Fedor
The Novgorodians, dissatisfied with the rule of Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, invited St. Michael of Chernigov to reign. Because of this, in February 1229 he and his sons left Pereslavl. In 1230, Yaroslav made peace with the Novgorodians and returned with his children to Novgorod.
Here, the daughter of Mikhail of Chernigov, Theodulia, became engaged to Alexander’s older brother, Theodore. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich himself left Veliky Novgorod two years later, and left his sons to reign there.
Yaroslav Vsevolodovich.
Fresco from the Church of the Savior on Nereditsa near Novgorod. Around 1246. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich's son Alexander accompanied him on military campaigns from childhood. Photo: upload.wikimedia.org
In 1233, Fyodor dies, and the young princess Theodula retires to a monastery, where she is glorified as the Venerable Euphrosyne of Suzdal. From an early age, Holy Prince Alexander Yaroslavich accompanied his father on campaigns.
In 1235 he took part in the battle on the Emajõgi River (in present-day Estonia). Here his father's troops defeated the Germans. The following year, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich went to reign in Kyiv, and later - in Vladimir. Instead of himself, he left his son Alexander to defend the Novgorod lands.
1239
this year Alexander Nevsky got married
In 1239, Prince Alexander got married. His wife was the daughter of the Polotsk prince Bryachislav. In 1240, the first-born of the prince. They named him Vasily. At this time, the prince took part in battles with the Lithuanians and Germans.
At the beginning of the 13th century, Mongol hordes moved to Russian lands, seeing this, with the blessing of the Pope, German knights, blasphemously calling themselves “crusaders,” set off on a “crusade” to Rus'.
Battle of the Neva (fragment of the icon “Alexander Nevsky with scenes from his life”, 19th century).
The Battle of Neva is the first major victory of the holy prince Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky. He got his nickname from her. Photo: upload.wikimedia.org
Beginning in 1240, the holy prince had to participate in several battles, repelling their attacks. This year Alexander took on the Swedes. Russian chronicles attribute the command of the battle at the mouth of Izhora near Ladoga to Earl Birger, although at that time the jarl was Ulf Fase, and Birger commanded the crusade to Finland.
That is why Alexander Yaroslavovich took the battle with the Swedish fleet, along with which several bishops sailed. On July 15, he, together with hastily assembled detachments of Ladoga and Novgorod residents, without waiting for help from Vladimir, completely defeated the Swedes in their own camp.
Yuri Begunov
ALEXANDER NEVSKIY
LIFE AND ACTS OF THE SAINT AND Blessed Grand Duke
God is not in power, but in truth!
St. Alexander Nevsky
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Over the past decades, many books dedicated to Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky have been published in our country. Including in the Young Guard series “The Life of Remarkable People”, where back in the 70s of the last century one of the best biographies of the Grand Duke was published, written by the remarkable researcher of medieval Rus' Vladimir Terentyevich Pashuto. But both before and after Pashuto’s book, historians, writers, and publicists again and again turned to the personality of Alexander Nevsky and the policies he pursued, trying to find in it answers to many questions that are relevant to our country to this day. And this is natural, because Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich is, without a doubt, one of the key figures in our history, and the time of his reign visibly separates the history of ancient, pre-Mongol Rus' from the history of Moscow Rus'. And many features of the political life of our state, many features of the policy of the Moscow Grand Dukes, and then the Tsars, were laid down precisely in the reign of their great ancestor.
It would seem that everything has been written about Alexander Nevsky. Historians and biographers can only argue about individual nuances in his biography, about this or that coverage of long-established facts extracted from long-published and carefully studied sources - chronicles, lives, princely treaties, Western European chronicles, notes of foreign diplomats and travelers. But here we have a book in which many well-known facts are presented in a new way, and some of them are completely unknown to researchers of the life of Alexander Nevsky and the Rus' of his time. The author of the book brought to the attention of the reader is the famous St. Petersburg scientist Yuri Konstantinovich Begunov, a full member of several academies of sciences - the Petrine, International Slavic and Russian, professor of political science, doctor of philological sciences of Russia and Bulgaria, honorary doctor of the Veliko Tarnovo University named after Saints Cyril and Methodius, member of the Russian Historical Society and the Association of Bulgarians of the CIS. His name is well known to specialists in the history of ancient Russian literature; The author has been working on subjects related to the name of Alexander Nevsky for more than half a century, and his monograph, based on his Ph.D. thesis, “The Tale of the Destruction of the Russian Land - a monument of Russian literature of the 13th century” (1965), in which the handwritten tradition is explored The Life of Saint Alexander Nevsky and the reconstructed original text of this outstanding monument of Russian hagiography still serves as the basis for most studies of both the work itself and the circumstances of the life of its main character - the holy and blessed Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich. Subsequently, Yu. K. Begunov published several dozen articles devoted to the Life of Alexander Nevsky, the biography of the prince, and his portrayal in Russian literature and art of the 13th–19th centuries [1]. With his participation, conferences dedicated to Alexander Nevsky were organized and held - international, held in St. Petersburg and dedicated to the 750th anniversary of the Neva Battle and the Year of Alexander Nevsky (1990), and scientific and practical ones held in the city of Kolpino (1989, 1994 , 1999). Unlike previous biographers of Alexander Nevsky, the author of the book managed to attract many new sources that still remain outside the field of view of historians. First of all, these are various editions of the Life of the Holy and Blessed Grand Duke Alexander Yaroslavich, which were compiled during the 13th–18th centuries (according to the author, their number exceeded 20); Church Service to the Holy Prince in editions of the 16th–17th centuries; “Confession of Faith of St. Alexander Nevsky” written in the 16th century; “Rostov Chronicler” by A. Ya. Artynov (XIX century). When describing the Mongol-Tatar invasion of Rus' and the measures taken by Alexander Nevsky to ward off the threat from Novgorod, the author used the so-called “Code of Bulgar Chronicles” (XVII century), practically unknown even to specialists, which also preserved the chronicle of the famous Tatar (more precisely, Bulgar ) the 13th century commander Gazi-Baraj Burundai, one of the most notable participants in the Tatar campaign against Rus' and the subsequent establishment of the Horde’s power over Russia.
The publishers of the book are undoubtedly aware that these monuments have a later - as a rule, even very late - origin, and therefore the degree of their reliability cannot but raise serious doubts. Probably, some of the specialists, researchers of Ancient Rus', will treat such sources with disdain, completely rejecting their testimony. However, this approach can hardly be considered correct. In any case, it seemed to us that it would be useful and interesting for the reader to get acquainted with a new biography, rich in new, often unexpected facts, of one of the largest figures of medieval Russia.
In conclusion, let's say something special about the structure of the book. A significant part of it consists of documentary appendices - texts of two editions of the Life of St. Alexander Nevsky, church services and other materials. We have already said that the author of the book, prof. Yu. K. Begunov is known primarily as a researcher of hagiographic works dedicated to the holy prince. Therefore, the materials he collected are of considerable interest and considerable, including purely scientific, value. All translations of ancient Russian monuments into modern Russian were made by Yu. K. Begunov.
CHOICE OF ALEXANDER NEVSKY
Alexander Nevsky is a key figure in Russian history: the winner of the Swedish and German knights, who stopped the crusade against Rus', the builder of the Russian national state with the city of Vladimir as the center, the guardian of the Russian freemen - Novgorod the Great and Pskov, the defender of the Russian people from the Horde invasions, the creator of the dynasty of Moscow greats princes, etc.
They say about such people: a hero with a thousand faces, a man of many merits and virtues, marked by God. It is not surprising that the Russian Orthodox Church canonized him: first, locally in the Nativity Monastery in Vladimir, where he was buried as the schema-monk Alexy (1263), with a pious Life written in his honor (1280s); then - also locally - with the discovery of the relics by the holy Metropolitan Cyprian (1381), with the writing of the “Miracle of the Don Victory”, even later - conciliarly - with the all-Russian canonization in Moscow in 1547, with the writing by the Vladimir monks of “Words of praise to the blessed Grand Duke Alexander, as Nevsky is called, to the new miracle worker, and in it I confessed about his miracles.”
Subsequently, over the centuries, Saint Prince Alexander Nevsky was glorified as the “Second Constantine” and “New Vladimir”; Temples were dedicated to him, isographers painted icons. From the pens of ancient scribes came the ideal image of a prince-saint, the son of pious and noble parents, descendants of Vladimir Monomakh.
The entire short, long-suffering life of Prince Alexander was only 43 years! - an example of selfless service to the Fatherland. The Russian idea of peace, freedom and justice is associated with his name. They say that heroes become by the will of God. Saint Alexander Nevsky was such a hero in whom it is impossible to separate the heroic from the human, the angelic likeness from human service to the world, the heavenly from the earthly, the eternal from the temporary.
Historians, with the light hand of G.V. Vernadsky, talk about two feats of Nevsky: firstly, about an earthly, military feat, since the prince and his associates saved the Russian land from foreign enslavement, and, secondly, about a spiritual feat, since the earthly warrior, led by Saint Sophia and the Holy Trinity, defended his native land, people and the Orthodox faith: he did not agree to a union with the Roman Catholic Church, he steadfastly defended Christians from the “filthy” who established the cruelest yoke in Rus'.
In the most difficult conditions of double onslaught - from the West and from the East - his Choice took place.
This was a princely
Choice,
for which he prepared gradually, with his entire life, with all his princely and selfless service to Russia: in Novgorod (first seat as governor at the age of eight on the Novgorod table; he has been a Novgorod prince continuously since 1236), in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky (with 1237), in Kiev (1249–1250), in Vladimir and Suzdal (1252–1263). Princely sorrow for the Earth and Family was the main content of his ministry. His five trips to the Horde and the Mongol Empire were also a source of princely sadness.
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See bibliography at the end of the book.
For the Battle of the Neva, the people called Saint Prince Alexander “Nevsky”
The life of the saint says that on the day of the battle he was not yet 20 years old. Before the battle, he prayed for a long time in the Novgorod Church of Sophia, the Wisdom of God. Coming out of the temple, he uttered his famous phrase:
“God is not in power, but in righteousness”! At the same time, the warrior Pelguy (after Philip’s baptism) standing on the sea patrol saw a boat floating on the sea, and on it the holy martyrs Boris and Gleb. At the same time, Boris said to Gleb: “Brother Gleb, tell us to row, and let us help our relative Alexander.”
Boris and Gleb, holy princes and passion-bearers; Icon. Russia. Tver. XIII century. There is a legend that a soldier of Alexander Nevsky saw in a vision how the holy noble princes Boris and Gleb sailed on a boat to help their relative Alexander Nevsky before the Battle of Neva. Photo: foma.ru
After the Battle of the Neva, people began to call Saint Alexander Nevsky. However, there is an alternative opinion that the nickname “Nevsky” applied to him and his children, because they had possessions on the Neva.
For the first time this nickname was heard in an extra-chronicle article entitled “And these are the princes of Russia” of the 15th century, who wrote it is not known for certain.
Battle on the Ice.
Miniature from “The Life of Alexander Nevsky,” included in the Litsey Chronicle. "Face" - in the name means "drawn in faces." The Ice Battle on Lake Peipus is the main battle of the Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky. Photo: upload.wikimedia.org
However, the danger did not pass and the troops of the Livonian Order captured Pskov in 1241. Despite this event, the Novgorodians, who were in conflict with Alexander, sent him to Pereslavl-Zalessky.
Only after the Germans captured the land of Vozhan and Koporye, and also approached Novgorod at a distance of 30 versts, did they send messengers to Yaroslav with a request to return him. The father wanted to send his other son, Andrei, with Alexander, but the Novgorodians insisted on their own.
April 5, 1242
The famous Battle of the Ice took place - the main battle of Alexander Nevsky
In 1241, the squads of Alexander Yaroslavich recaptured Koporye. In 1242, he waited for reinforcements from Vladimir from his brother Andrei and liberated Pskov. In the spring of the same year, a decisive battle took place with the troops of the Teutonic Order. On April 5, the famous Battle of the Ice took place.
On the ice of Lake Peipus, the order’s army struck a powerful blow at the center of the Russian battle formation, but then the prince’s cavalry struck from the flanks and decided the outcome of the battle. According to the Novgorod chronicle, the Russians pursued the Germans across the ice for 7 versts.
Travel to Inner Mongolia
The impression that the Khan's capital probably made on the prince echoes another legend about Alexander Nevsky - the Eurasian one. It began with reports from a historical work of the 16th century, containing a factual error, and later the eastern line was developed under the pen of the historian and geographer Lev Gumilyov and his followers, who also sinned against the truth. The essence of the Eurasianists’ constructions is simple: Alexander Nevsky felt a spiritual kinship with the Mongols and became a subject of the Horde not out of fear, but out of conscience. But evidence for this theory, drawn from non-classical and later sources, usually does not stand up to criticism.
The tone of the ambiguous “eastern argumentation” was set by the 16th-century Polish historian Reinhold Heidenstein, who wrote (he outlined the course of the wars of his time) that the Horde had previously participated in the Battle of the Ice on the ancient Russian side. Nowadays this evidence is not taken into account. The fact is that Alexander could hardly ask for Mongol help in 1242, since by that time he had not managed to establish personal contacts with the Mongols and had no reason to count on their favor. And after three centuries, Heidenstein had nowhere to obtain sensational information that was not available in other sources. Most likely, the Polish author transferred what he knew about Muscovite Rus' to Ancient Rus'. But only Ivan the Terrible was served by auxiliary Tatar detachments, and in the case of Alexander Nevsky, had the great conqueror Khan Batu (Batu) come to his aid, the situation would have looked completely different.
In the 20th century, Lev Gumilev handled historical evidence just as carelessly. In his books, he declared Alexander Nevsky to be a sworn brother of the Mongol Khan Sartak, the son of Batu... but he borrowed evidence of this from an unreliable source - the fictional novel of the 1940s by the Soviet writer Yugov “Ratobortsy”.
And yet, looking for Mongolian sympathies from Alexander Nevsky, the Eurasians started from the actual fact - unlike his son Vasily, brother Andrei, and other relatives who led the rebellions against the Horde, Alexander considered a large uprising impossible, and preferred to extinguish local unrest on his own - then there before the arrival of the Mongols, thus acting on their side. Did this mean pragmatism or devotion to the conquerors not out of fear, but out of conscience? In any case, the experience of victory with little blood on the Neva in the case of the khans seemed inapplicable to Alexander.
After the Battle of the Ice, Khan Bata summoned Alexander Nevsky's father to the Golden Horde and poisoned him there.
Contemporaries understood the significance of the Battle of Lake Peipsi: information about it appeared in written sources of most states of that time. After the Battle of the Ice, the Teutonic Order abandoned all recent conquests and gave part of Latgall to Veliky Novgorod.
After this, Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was summoned to the Golden Horde in Karakorum to see Batu Khan. The fact is that Alexander Nevsky’s father entered into an alliance with the khan, but upon his arrival in the Horde he was poisoned there on September 30, 1246. The Mongols offered another Russian prince Mikhail of Chernigov to undergo a pagan rite, and after refusing to do so, he was also killed.
Bust of Batu Khan in the Turkish city of Kayseri.
Prince Alexander Nevsky received the label for the great reign after the death of his father during a trip to the khan in the Golden Horde. Photo: upload.wikimedia.org
The Holy Prince had to go to the Horde himself. He returned from Karakorum together with his brother Andrei only in 1249. Yaroslav Vsevolodovich indicated in his will that Andrei was to become the prince of Vladimir, and Alexander of Novgorod and Kyiv, but Batu wanted to place Alexander on the Vladimir table.
This is what happened, and in 1248 the holy prince received from Batu a label for the great reign. At the same time, promising his allied support to the khan, he gave him the opportunity to elevate the leader of the Christian Tatars (from the Nestorians) Mongke to the throne in Mongolia.
Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky refused to convert to Catholicism.
There is information that the Pope sent two messages to Alexander Yaroslavich. In his first message, he referred to the works of Plano Capini, who wrote that his father Yaroslav Vsevolodovich agreed before his death to submit to the Roman throne, and also to begin joint activities with the Teutons in the event of an attack by the Tatars on Rus'.
In the second message, the pope mentions Alexander’s agreement to be baptized into the Catholic faith and build a Catholic church in Pskov, and also asks to receive his ambassador, the Archbishop of Prussia
"Prince Alexander Nevsky receives the papal legates."
Henryk Semiradsky. 1876 The Pope sent his envoys twice to Prince Alexander Nevsky, but he refused to accept the Catholic faith. Photo: upload.wikimedia.org
In 1251, Rome sent two cardinals with a bull to the defender of Russian cities. At the same time, brother Alexander Nevsky in Vladimir was married to Ustinya Danilovna by Metropolitan Kirill, an associate of Daniil Galitsky.
Back in 1246-1247, his dad offered him the royal crown. As for Nevsky, the chronicler says that after consulting with wise people, he told the envoys the history of Rus', after which he said: “We have learned everything good, but we do not accept teachings from you.”
Mother of Rome
Alexander's policies in the second half of the 1240s led to his canonization by the Orthodox Church as a defender of Eastern Christianity - in the language of the medieval culture of the noble prince. This meant: in the course of correspondence with Pope Innocent IV, who urged him to accept Catholicism, Alexander refused this opportunity. The pope made the proposal to him in the following words: “This is what we ask your lordship, we remind you and zealously exhort, so that those who were recognized by the Mother Roman Church would obey the pope, and also zealously encourage your subjects to obey the apostles.”
Alexander did not answer immediately. Meanwhile, the pope’s letter stated that the prince’s father, the Grand Duke of Vladimir Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, had previously agreed and accepted Catholicism before his death: “For, as we learned from the message of our beloved son, brother John de Plano Carpini of the Minorite Order, our trustee, sent to the Tatar people, your father, passionately desiring to become a new man, humbly and piously gave himself to the obedience of the Roman Church, his mother, through this brother, in the presence of Emer, the military adviser. And soon all people would have known about this if death had not so unexpectedly and happily snatched him from life.”
Researchers really consider the death of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich not fully explained: they sometimes believe that he was poisoned in the Horde. They could deal with the ancient Russian ruler if he was suspected of rebellion. And the condition for preparing for the performance could well be an alliance with the Roman Catholic Church.
There were reasons for choosing in favor of the Holy See. The fall of Constantinople in 1204 reduced the prestige of Orthodox Christianity in the medieval world. In the same year, the Bulgarian ruler Kaloyan concluded a union with the Roman Church. For a short period of his reign, Bulgaria turned to Catholicism. Submission to the Pope is also discussed by the Greeks. In 1274, the Emperor of Byzantium, Michael VIII Palaiologos, would also conclude a union with the pontiff in Lyon, the signing of which would be accompanied by a symbolic gesture: the Patriarch of Constantinople, George Acropolis, would swear an oath to the pope. Against this background, Rus''s conversion to Catholicism would not have looked incredible. Moreover, from the correspondence it follows that Alexander Nevsky himself... fully considered this possibility: “You with all zeal asked to be included as a member of the single head of the church through true obedience,” the pope reminded Alexander of the past, adding that the prince agreed move from words to deeds - build a Catholic cathedral in Pskov.
And yet, having ascended the throne of the Grand Dukes of Vladimir in 1252, Alexander refused negotiations with Innocent IV. The last answer to dad sounded like this: “...we don’t accept teachings from you.”
What influenced Alexander’s decision is unknown. But sometimes they call it a trip for the right to a great reign to Karakorum, the legendary capital of the Mongol Empire, which coincided with the beginning of the 1250s. Having seen the main city of the country that had subjugated Rus', Alexander may have been depressed and considered resistance to the countless hordes impossible. After this, all negotiations with the Roman Church were curtailed as useless from a practical point of view.
Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky died during his fourth trip to the Golden Horde
In 1256, Tatar tribute farmers (Baskaks) were killed in Vladimir, Suzdal, Rostov, Pereslavl and Yaroslavl. They say that Nevsky did not interfere with this. In addition, Khan Berke demanded that he conduct a military recruitment among the inhabitants of Russian lands, since his possessions were attacked by the Ilkhan of Iran Hulagu.
In order to dissuade the khan from this, Prince Alexander went on his fourth trip to the Golden Horde. This trip dragged on for a year and, although Berke managed to persuade him to give up his claims, Alexander Nevsky fell ill during his stay in the Horde and, already sick, left for Rus'.
Death of Alexander Nevsky.
G.V. Semiradsky. 1876 During his fourth trip to the Golden Horde, the holy noble prince Alexander Nevsky fell ill and on the way from there died in Gorodets Volzhsky. Photo: artchive.ru
Before his death, the saint accepted schism under the name Alexy. There are two versions about the death of the prince. According to the first of them, Saint Alexander Nevsky died in Gorodets Volzhsky. The second talks about Gorodets Meshchersky.
However, there is no dispute about the date of his death - it happened on November 14, 1263. Metropolitan Kirill announced to the people in Vladimir about his death with the words: “My dear children, understand that the sun of the Russian land has set,” and everyone cried out with tears: “We are already perishing.”
Initially, Alexander Nevsky was buried in Vladimir in the Nativity Monastery. In 1724, Peter the Great ordered the relics of the saint to be solemnly transferred to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg. Nowadays, the main part of them is kept in the Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra.
They pray to the saint for successful service, protection and courage
The Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky in the Russian Orthodox Church was canonized as a miracle worker under Metropolitan Macarius at the Moscow Council in 1547. His memory is celebrated (according to the Julian calendar): November 23 and August 30 (transfer of relics from Vladimir-on-Klyazma to St. Petersburg, to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery (from 1797 - Lavra) on August 30, 1724).
Icon of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky.
On icons, Saint Prince Alexander is usually depicted in royal robes, armor and with a sword. Photo: www.pravoslavie.ru
On icons, the saint is usually depicted in royal robes as a symbol of power. In addition, the presence of armor and a sword is also characteristic. These are symbols of a warrior for the faith. The saint is also often depicted on horseback or standing tall.
1547
this year Prince Alexander Nevsky was canonized
Despite the fact that Saint Prince Alexander Nevsky, like all other saints, helps everyone who sincerely turns to him, it is generally accepted that it is better for him to pray for what the saint himself was directly involved in in earthly life.
Since Saint Alexander defended the fatherland and fought, military personnel usually turn to him in prayer for successful service, protection and courage. In addition, everyone prays to him for protection and patronage, for strengthening faith and strengthening in everyday affairs, for the gift of wisdom and much more.
The text of the prayer to Saint Alexander Nevsky is as follows:
“The speedy helper of all those who diligently come running to you, and our warm representative before the Lord, holy blessed Grand Duke Alexandra! look mercifully upon us, unworthy, who have created for ourselves by many iniquities, who now flow to the race of your relics and cry out from the depths of your soul: in your life you were a zealot and defender of the Orthodox faith, and you have unshakably established us in it with your warm prayers to God.
You carefully carried out the great service entrusted to you, and with your help, instruct us to abide in what we were called to do. You, having defeated the regiments of adversaries, drove away from the borders of Russia, and brought down all visible and invisible enemies against us. You, having left the corruptible crown of the earthly kingdom, you chose a silent life, and now, righteously crowned with an incorruptible crown, reigning in heaven, you intercede for us too, we humbly pray to you, a quiet and serene life, and arrange for us a steady march towards the eternal Kingdom of God.
Standing before the throne of God with all the saints, pray for all Orthodox Christians, may the Lord God preserve them with His grace in peace, health, long life and all prosperity in the coming years, may we ever glorify and bless God, in the Trinity of the Holy Saints, the Father and the Son and The Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen".
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