An analysis of the reasons why the Ryazan prince Yuri Igorevich decided to attack Batu's army without waiting for the support of other princes.

--- And he went out against the wicked king Batu and met him near the borders of Ryazan. And attacked Batu, and began to fight with perseverance and courage. And the slaughter was cruel and terrible, and many warriors of the strong Batu regiments fell. And Tsar Batu saw that the Ryazan army was fighting selflessly and courageously, and was frightened. Who can stand against the wrath of God? And Batu has a great many troops: one<рязанец>fights with a thousand, and two with darkness. .... And the strong Tatar regiments barely defeated them ---

These are lines from the famous work " THE STORY ABOUT THE RUIN OF RYAZAN BY BATU”, telling about the battle of the Ryazan squad led by Prince Yuri Igorevich, with the army of Batu.

On the one hand, it would seem that there is nothing unusual in the fact that the prince decided to meet the enemy right on the border of his principality. But on the other hand, this issue is full of ambiguities and dark spots.

Firstly, all sources report that Batu's headquarters was right near the southern borders of the Ryazan principality, on the Voronezh River. Meanwhile, from Ryazan to those same southern borders, at least 300 km, so that in order to reach it, the Ryazan squad, even if it moved lightly, would take at least 8-12 days. Therefore, Prince Yuri Ryazansky decided to go on a campaign before he received information about the invasion of the horde. The annals do not clearly indicate that the battle took place on Ryazan land at all. And the very phrase from the Tale, “ near the borders of Ryazan”, in the meaning more hints at the fact that the battle took place outside the principality.

Secondly, despite the fact that in the annals, as well as in the Tale, it is emphasized that the prince of Ryazan sent for help to the prince of Vladimir, but he did not come, we nevertheless know that although Prince Yuri of Vladimir himself really didn’t go, but he sent his son Vsevolod to help “with all the people”, that is, at least with a strong Vladimir squad, and also possibly with squads of the southern Vladimir cities. This army was already on January 1 at Kolomna. On the way from Vladimir (400 km) it would take her 10-15 days. Minimum. Plus at least another week to get ready. The final decision to go to the aid of Ryazan was made in early December. That is, even before the start of the siege of Ryazan, and possibly even before the news of Batu's invasion reached Vladimir.

In addition, Prince Yuri Ryazansky was waiting for help from Chernigov. As I noted earlier, there are reasonable assumptions that Evpatiy Kolovrat was sent to Chernigov for help, and that the Chernigov squad sent to help was the backbone of his detachment.

Why did Prince Ryazansky not even try to wait for help?

A partial answer to this is given in the same Tale. (Sorry for the long quote).

-In 6745 (1237), twelve years after bringing the miraculous image from Korsun, the godless Tsar Batu came to the Russian land with many Tatar warriors and camped on the river in Voronezh, near Ryazan land. And he sent ambassadors to Ryazan to the Grand Duke Yuri Ingorevich of Ryazan without any benefit to the cause, asking for tithes in everything: in princes, and in people of all classes, and in everything.

And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingorevich Ryazansky heard about the arrival of the godless Tsar Batu, and quickly sent to the city of Vladimir to the noble Grand Duke Georgy Vsevolodovich Vladimirsky, asking him either for help with soldiers against the godless Tsar Batu, or for him to bring troops himself. The great prince Georgy Vsevolodovich of Vladimir himself did not lead the army, and did not send soldiers to help, wanting to fight Batu alone, alone.

And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingorevich Ryazansky found out that there was no help from the Grand Duke George Vsevolodovich of Vladimir, and quickly sent for his brothers: for Prince Davyd Ingorevich of Murom, and for Prince Gleb Ingorevich of Kolomensky, and for Oleg Krasny, and for Vsevolod Pronsky and for others princes. And they began to consult, and decided that the wicked must be satisfied with gifts.

And sent<князь Юрий>son of his prince Fyodor Yurievich of Ryazan to the godless tsar Batu with gifts and great pleas not to fight the Ryazan land. Prince Fedor Yurievich came to the Voronezh River to Tsar Batu and brought him gifts and prayed to the Tsar not to fight the Ryazan land. The godless Tsar Batu, being deceitful and merciless, accepted the gifts and insincerely promised not to go to war on the Ryazan land. And he threatened and boasted to fight the Russian land.

And he began to ask the Ryazan princes for a daughter or a sister on his bed. And out of envy, one of the Ryazan nobles whispered to the godless Tsar Batu that Prince Fyodor Yurievich of Ryazan had a princess of the royal family, beautiful in appearance. Tsar Batu, crafty and merciless in his paganism, overwhelmed by carnal passion, said to Prince Fyodor Yuryevich: “Give me, prince, to know the beauty of your wife!” The noble prince Fyodor Yuryevich Ryazansky laughed and said to the tsar: “It is not good for us Christians to bring you, the impious tsar, your women to fornication - when you defeat us, then you will have power over our women.”

And one of the uncles of Prince Fyodor Yurievich, named Aponitsa, was saved, and looking at the blissful body, honors worthy of his master, and seeing him abandoned, wept bitterly, and took his beloved sovereign and buried him secretly.

And he hurried to the Blessed Princess Evpraksia and told her how the wicked Tsar Batu killed the Blessed Prince Fyodor Yuryevich. Blessed Princess Evpraksia<тогда>stood in her lofty chamber and held<на руках>his beloved child, Prince Ivan Fedorovich. And having heard such deadly, full of grief words, she rushed from her lofty tower with her son Prince Ivan to the ground and broke to death.

And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingorevich heard about the murder of his beloved son, Prince Fedor, other princes, many embassy people killed on the orders of the godless king, and began to cry, and with the Grand Duchess, and with other princesses, and with brothers. And the whole city wept for a long time, and hardly came to their senses from that great weeping and sobbing.

And he began to gather an army and arrange regiments. Grand Prince Yuri Ingorevich, seeing his brothers, and boyars, and governor, bravely and courageously prancing<верхом>, raised his hands to heaven and said with tears: “Defend us from our enemies, O God, and deliver us from those who rise up against us, and save us from the host of evildoers and from the multitude of those who do iniquity. May their path be dark and slippery!

And he said to his brothers: “O my lords and brothers! If we have received good from the hand of the Lord, shall we not also endure evil? It is better for us to achieve eternal life by death than to be in the power of the Gentiles. And I, your brother, before you will drink the cup of death for the saints of God's churches, and for the Christian faith, and for the fatherland of our ancestor Igor Svyatoslavich!

That is, here the motives of the prince are clearly visible. The son was killed, the daughter-in-law and her grandson died, other princes refused to help, the only hope is for themselves, so it’s better to die in battle and take revenge.

Here we must recall that The story of the ruin of Ryazan, this is a literary work, which possibly absorbed folk traditions and legends about the invasion of Batu. And for folk legends there is a certain characteristic feature, which has long been noted by researchers: Objective motives are too subtle for the legend, too little understood, too everyday, and now she replaces them with personal ones."(Hans Delbruck. History of military art. T1).

What objective reasons could have prompted the prince of Ryazan to decide to fight without waiting for help?

And the answer lies in the following words "And one of the uncles of Prince Fyodor Yurievich, named Aponitsa, was saved." This "uncle", apparently, not only brought the news of the death of Fyodor Yuryevich, but also told the prince about the approximate size of the horde, and most importantly, indicated the exact location of its camp.

What was the main difficulty in the fight against the steppe nomads? The fact that it was impossible to strike back at the nomads. They could come at any moment, devastate and rob the border regions and cities, and when the main military forces of the principality approached, they could go back to their vast steppes, where it was pointless to look for them, and chasing them would be suicidal. Successful operations against the nomads were successful only if it was possible to somehow squeeze the horde between the city besieged by it and the army that came to the rescue, or, let's say, it was possible to press it to the river, crossing which was impossible in this place. But the best way was, of course, to attack her camp. And then the prince learns that the camp of the horde is right here, right at the borders. And apparently, the approximate number of nomads seemed to him quite acceptable in order to try to defeat them with a surprise attack. Therefore, I believe that the "uncle" named a number in the region of 5-7 thousand maximum.

The prince really had every reason to believe that one and a half to two thousand heavily armed horsemen with a surprise attack on the camp could defeat a horde of five to seven thousand soldiers.

But either the reconnaissance of the nomads turned out to be on top, or the military guard did not let us down, or, by some chance, the horde itself moved forward at the same time, but apparently there was no surprise attack. The rest is known.

Thank you for your attention.

To be continued...

In the year 6745 (1237). In the twelfth year after the transfer of the miraculous image of Nikolin from Korsun. The godless Tsar Batu came to the Russian land with many Tatar soldiers and stood on the river in Voronezh near the land of Ryazan. And he sent unlucky ambassadors to Ryazan to the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan, demanding from him a tenth of everything: in princes, in all sorts of people and in the rest. And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan heard about the invasion of the godless Tsar Batu and immediately sent to the city of Vladimir to the noble Grand Duke George Vsevolodovich of Vladimir, asking him for help against the godless Tsar Batu or to go to him himself. The Great Prince Georgy Vsevolodovich of Vladimir did not go himself, and did not send help, planning to fight Batu alone.

And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan heard that he had no help from the Grand Duke George Vsevolodovich of Vladimir, and immediately sent for his brothers: for Prince Davyd Ingvarevich of Murom, and for Prince Gleb Ingvarevich of Kolomensky, and for Prince Oleg Krasny, and for Vsevolod Pronsky, and for other princes. And they began to hold advice - how to satisfy the wicked with gifts. And he sent his son, Prince Fyodor Yurievich of Ryazan, to the godless Tsar Batu with great gifts and prayers so that he would not go to war on the Ryazan land.

And Prince Fyodor Yuryevich came to the river to Voronezh to Tsar Batu, and brought him gifts, and prayed to the Tsar not to fight the Ryazan land. The godless, deceitful and merciless Tsar Batu accepted the gifts and, in his lie, feignedly promised not to go to war on the Ryazan land, but only boasted and threatened to fight the entire Russian land. And he began to ask the princes of the Ryazan daughters and sisters to ask him on the bed. And one of the nobles of Ryazan, out of envy, informed the godless Tsar Batu that Prince Fedor Yuryevich Ryazansky had a princess from the royal family and that she was the most beautiful of all with her body.

Tsar Batu was cunning and unmerciful, in his disbelief he inflamed in his lust and said to Prince Fyodor Yuryevich: “Give me, prince, to taste the beauty of your wife.” The noble prince Fyodor Yuryevich Ryazansky laughed and answered the tsar: “It is not good for us Christians to lead our wives to you, the impious tsar, for fornication. When you overcome us, then you will rule over our wives.”

The godless Tsar Batu was offended and furious, and immediately ordered to kill the noble prince Fedor Yuryevich, and ordered his body to be torn to pieces by animals and birds, and killed other princes and best warriors. And one of the tutors of Prince Fyodor Yuryevich, named Aponitsa, took cover and wept bitterly, looking at the glorious body of his honest master. And seeing that no one was guarding him, he took the beloved of his sovereign and secretly buried him. And he hurried to the Blessed Princess Evpraksia and told her how the wicked Tsar Batu killed the Blessed Prince Fyodor Yuryevich. The blessed Princess Evpraksia was standing at that time in her lofty chamber and holding her beloved child, Prince Ivan Fedorovich, and when she heard the deadly words filled with sorrow, she threw herself from her lofty chamber with her son Prince Ivan straight to the ground and broke to death .

And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich heard about the murder of the godless tsar of his beloved son, Prince Fedor, and many princes, and the best people, and began to cry about them with the Grand Duchess and other princesses and with his brethren. And the whole city cried for a long time. And as soon as the prince had a rest from that great weeping and sobbing, he began to gather his army and arrange regiments. And the great prince Yuri Ingvarevich saw his brethren, and his boyars, and the governor, galloping bravely and fearlessly, raised his hands to heaven and said with tears: “Deliver us, God, from our enemies, and free us from those who rise against us, and hide us from the assembly of the wicked, and from the multitude of those who do iniquity. May their path be dark and slippery." And he said to his brethren: “O my lords and brethren! If we have received good things from the hands of the Lord, shall we not tolerate evil? It is better for us to gain eternal glory by death than to be in the power of the filthy. May I, your brother, before you drink the cup of death for the holy churches of God, and for the Christian faith, and for the fatherland of our father, Grand Duke Ingvar Svyatoslavich. And he went to the Church of the Assumption of the Most Holy Lady of the Mother of God, and wept a lot in front of the image of the most pure, and prayed to the great miracle worker Nicholas and his relatives Boris and Gleb. And he gave the last kiss to the Grand Duchess Agrippina Rostislavovna and received a blessing from the bishop and all the clergy. And he went against the wicked Tsar Batu, and they met him near the borders of Ryazan, and attacked him, and began to fight him hard and courageously

Read-those from-ry-wok from “In-ve-sti about ra-zo-re-nii Rya-for-no Ba-you-em”

“In the year 6745 (from the Co-creation of the World) .... The godless Tsar Batu came to the Russian land with a multitude of new Tatars and stood on the river on Vo-ro-not near the land of Ryazan . And he sent the words of no-way to Ryazan to the great prince Yuri Ing-va-re-vi-chu (Igo-re-vi-chu) Ryazan- sko-mu, demanding from him de-Xia-that share in everything: in princes, and in all people, and in the rest. And the great prince Yuri Ing-va-re-vich Ryazansky heard about the invasion of the Godless Tsar Batu, and immediately sent to the city of Vla- di-peace to the b-go-ver-no-mu ve-li-ko-mu prince Ge-or-gy All-in-lo-do-vi-chu Vla-di-peace-sky, asking him help against Godless Tsar Batu, or so that he himself would go to him. Prince ve-li-ky Ge-or-giy Vse-vo-lo-do-vich Vla-di-mir-sky didn’t go himself, and didn’t send help, for-du-mav one crap -zits-sya with Ba-you-eat. And the great prince Yuri Ing-va-re-vich Ryazansky heard that he had no help from the great prince Georgy All-in- lo-do-vi-cha Vla-di-world-sko-go, and that hour sent for his brothers-mi: for the prince Da-vi-house Ing-va-re -with-than Mu-rom-skim, and for prince Gle-bom Ing-va-re-vi-than Ko-lo-men-sky, and for prince Oleg Kras-ny, and for Everything -in-lo-house of Pron-skim, and for other princes-zya-mi. And they began to hold advice on how to satisfy the unholy stiv-tsa da-ra-mi. And he sent the son of his prince Fe-do-ra Yurye-vi-cha Ryazan-sky to the godless king Batu with yes-ra-mi and prayer-ba-mi ve-li-ki-mi, so that the war-noy does not go to the Ryazan land. And Prince Fyodor Yuryevich came to the river on Vo-ro-nezh to Tsar Batu, and brought him gifts, and prayed to the Tsar not to enter the Ryazan land. The godless, deceitful and not-cute-hearted tsar Batu accepted gifts and in his lie-creation, but promised not to go to war on Ryazan- sky land. But praise-lil-sya-threat-zil-sya in-e-wat the whole Russian land. And he began to ask the princes of the Ryazan do-che-rei and sister to his bed. And one of the nobles of the Ryazan-sky, for the sake of it, reported to the Godless Tsar Batu that Prince Fe-do-ra Yurye-vi-cha of the Ryazan-sky prince had -gi-nya from the royal family and that she is more beautiful than all the beauty of that body. Tsar Batu was cunning and not-merciful in his unbelief, spread out in his own way and said to Prince Fe-do-ru Yurye-vi-chu: “Give me, prince, from-ve-give the beauty of your wife.” Blessed-faithful Prince Fedor Yuryevich Ryazan-sky laughed and answered the tsar: “It’s not good for us, christ-a-a-us to lead to you, not-for-a-thing-to-my king, your wives for fornication. When you eat us, then you will rule over us. Godless Tsar Batu was furious and insulted, and at that hour ordered to kill the blessed prince Fe-do-ra Yurye-vi-cha, and his body was to be thrown to ras-ter-for-the-beasts and birds, and other princes and, in-and-new, the best in-kill ... ".

Using from-ry-wok, you-be-ri-those in the given list are three true judgments. For-pi-shi-te in response to the numbers, under someone-ry-mi they indicate-for-us.

1) the invasion of Batu’s troops into Russia for the first time in the winter of 1237

2) soon after the gi-be-li Rya-for-no attack by the troops of Batu, the cities of Vla-di-mi-ro-Suz-dal-sky prince-stva were subjected to

3) after the defeat of the gro-ma Rya-for-ni on the howl of the mon-go-lo-Tatars, it was co-ver-she-but on-pa-de-nie friends of the rya-zan-sko- go bo-yari-na Ev-pa-tiya Ko-lo-vra-ta

4) moving through the Cher-ni-gov-principality, a detachment of mon-go-lo-tatars on the move captured and plundered Ko-zelsk

6) for-shield-no-ki Nov-go-ro-da su-me-whether you-keep the assault on the city-ro-da war-ska of Batu

Clear-no-no.

1) the second Batu troops invaded Russia in the winter of 1237 - YES, right, we are talking about Batu Khan in Russia, someone started in de -kab-re 1237 from on-pa-de-niya to the Ryazan land.

2) soon after the gi-be-li Rya-for-no attack by the troops of Batu, the cities of Vla-di-mi-ro-Suz-dal-sky-go-princeship were subjected to - YES, that's right, Vla-di-mi-ro-Suz-dal-principality was subjected to ra-zo-re-nia.

3) after the defeat of the gro-ma Rya-for-ni on the howl of the mon-go-lo-Tatars, it was co-ver-she-but on-pa-de-nie friends of the rya-zan-sko- go bo-yari-na Ev-pa-tiya Ko-lo-vra-ta - YES, right, the hero of the Ryazan land was Ev-pa-tiy Ko-lo-vrat.

4) moving through the Cher-ni-gov-principality, a detachment of mon-go-lo-tatars on the move captured and plundered Ko-zelsk - NO, not- it’s true, Ko-zelsk was ra-zo-ren in 1238, and the Cher-ni-gov-principality was ra-zo-re-but in 1239.

6) for-shield-no-ki Nov-go-ro-da su-me-whether you-keep the assault on the city-ro-yes of Batu war - NO, not-true-but, mon-go-ly 100 versts did not reach Nov-go-ro-yes.

Lake Svetloyar is one of the most mysterious places in Russia. It is with this lake that a beautiful story about Russian antiquity is connected. Grand Duke Georgy Vsevolodovich founded on the shore of the lake, as it was written in the chronicles, "in a very beautiful place" the magnificent city of Kitezh. And when the Mongol-Tatar hordes approached the walls of the city, and for a long time they could not take it by storm, the Lord, seeing from heaven the heroism of the Russian soldiers and the doom of the city and wishing to save the inhabitants from suffering, performed a miracle. Literally before the eyes of the Tatars, the city sank to the bottom of the lake and disappeared.
The city of Kitezh remained a symbol of Holy Russia - an unconquered island among the global ashes. And this city is supposedly alive. There is a certain special path along which the righteous, pure in thoughts and soul, can get to this city. They can literally walk on the water and hear the raspberry ringing of bells, see the lights of the procession, literally communicate with the inhabitants of Kitezh. And this city will rise only when either the second coming of Christ to the Russian land comes, or Russia simply resurrects in all its glory.

"And the godless Tatars came to the Sit against Grand Duke Yuri. Prince Yuri with his brother Svyatoslav, and with his nephews Vasilko, and with his soldiers went against the filthy. And both troops met, and there was a fierce battle .. And then Prince Yuri was killed And Vasilko was taken prisoner by the godless and led to their camps. And this misfortune happened in the month of March on the fourth day..
And the Tatars led Vasilko of Rostov to the Shern forest, forcing him to live according to their custom and fight on their side. But he did not submit to them and did not take food from their hands. They, cruelly torturing him, killed him on March 4, in the middle of Great Lent, and threw his body into the forest. Vasilek was handsome in face, bright and formidable in his eyes, immensely brave in hunting, light in heart, affectionate with the boyars. Vasilek deeply loved his servants, courage and intelligence lived in him, truth and truth walked with him .. "

The February raid of the horde on the Vladimir land was swift; all the cities of the principality fell one after another, because there were few defenders left in them; they died near Kolomna, in Moscow, on the outskirts of Vladimir and Vladimir itself, on the City. Nevertheless, almost every city was taken from the battle. Batu had less and less strength left. Considerable thousands of them departed immediately upon entering Russian soil - it was not the air that was cut with swords by the strong Muromo-Ryazan frontier army! Not all arrows and stones from the walls of Ryazan flew past for a week, not all boiling resin poured into the ditches. The victory at Kolomna was not cheap for Subudai, the horde of Isada, Izheslavets, Novy Olgov, Moscow, Starodub on Klyazma, Suzdal, Bogolyubov, Vladimir, Kostroma, Galich, Volok Lamsky, Dmitrov and other cities got not without victims. Subudai's army was melting before our eyes. The horde also suffered heavy losses in the City, where "the Tatars suffered a great ulcer, fell more and there are a considerable number of them." The horde suffered considerable damage during the capture of Tver and the painful two-week assault on Torzhok.
In the conquered cities of Russia, the horde did not leave garrisons, and now the entire army has accumulated in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bLake Seliger. Saturday thought. He sacrificed to the great god of war Sulde all the people of the last recalcitrant city and is full, and now, for this night, it was necessary to make the most important decision - which way to go to the steppe?
The main task of the victorious but perished army was now to retreat to the steppe and save the Genghisides - with their booty. Subudai recalled how a hundred of his warriors from a small, five-day general assault on the town of the Uruses, where all the horses did not have enough food, rushed with a captive guide into an untouched forest village and did not return. And the reconnaissance soon reported that they saw warriors with dissected heads and horses with broken legs in a large and fresh tree blockage in a large and fresh blockage of trees. He sent three punitive hundreds to approximately punish the inhabitants of this miserable village, only it was empty - no cattle, no fodder, no people, and the snow that had fallen day and night had covered their tracks. The warriors warmed themselves by the burning dwellings and returned with nothing, having lost several more horses among the blockages of trees.
Hurry, hurry out of here, before the snow is soaked with water! He, Subudai, was ready to stay in these snows forever, if only his sons would get out of them alive ... There was absolutely nothing to feed the horses, all the dry grass around and ahead was burned. And the Uruses on well-fed shod horses will flood these confused ice roads with the blood of his warriors.
The army was thinning, if this slow and disorderly chain of dismounted horsemen with bony horses wandering behind them could still be called an army. The horses were completely starved and the people were exhausted .. And here is a gift on the way - an untouched city where you can relax, dry off, warm up, feed the horses. The advance detachment of Subudai went to Kozelsk.

“Batu went to Kozelsk. There was a young prince in Kozelsk named Vasily. The inhabitants of Kozelsk, after consulting among themselves, decided not to surrender to the filthy themselves, but to lay down their heads for the Christian faith. The Tatars came and laid siege to Kozelsk, like other cities, and began beat out vices, and, knocking out the wall, went up to the rampart. And a fierce battle took place here, so that the townspeople were slaughtered with the Tatars with knives; and others went out of the gate and attacked the Tatar regiments, so that they killed four thousand Tatars. When Batu took the city ", he killed everyone, even children. And what happened to their prince Vasily is unknown; some said that he drowned in blood. And Batu ordered from then on to call the city not Kozelsk, but an evil city; after all, three sons of temniks died here, and not found them among the many dead."

For two months I could not take this small southern Russian town of Subudai. And the last assault lasted continuously for three days and three nights - it was a proven and reliable way to wear down the besieged. Under the cover of rockfall and aimed shooting from behind the shields, the ditch was overcome. The besieged could not interfere - arrows hit them on the destroyed towers and crowns of the wall, stones killed and maimed even behind the wall, on the inner approaches to it.
“Those who broke the hail wall and carried on the rampart Tatar. The goats cut their knives with them. "The terrible massacre on the inner rampart of Kozelsk was resolved in favor of the besieged, the enemies retreated through the gap, in a panic they cleared the barrier across the ditch. There was a pause in the battle, because the townspeople were another "light of the same creation." And now the besieged " came out of the city, and sekosha their sling "...
The chronicler briefly reports on the last battle of the Kozeltsy with the Tatar regiments, without specifying the details. there is a younger one, 12 years old "
When, at the end of the 19th century, a railway was being pulled through Kozelsk to Tula, during earthworks in the middle of the Batu field, a pile of human skulls was touched. Obviously, long before Tamerlane, who crowned his victories with pyramids of the heads of the vanquished, such a pyramid was built near the walls of the Kozelskaya fortress in May 1238. Workers, foremen, engineers carefully collected all the tragic evidence of the event and reburied it in honor.
Ryazan, Vladimir, Suzdal, Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, Bogolyubov, and all other large and small Russian cities, fought to the death in those tragic days, fought to the last man who could hold an ax or a sword in his hands, cook and pour resin from the walls, forge hooks and arrowheads, throw stones. Countless thousands of warriors, governors, militiamen, civilians and at least fifteen Russian princes died in the winter of 1237/38. The famous Russian historian of the 19th century A. I. Kostomarov wrote that during the invasion of the horde into Russia, "not a single city, not a single prince surrendered." Famous historian, academician M.N. Tikhomirov: "We do not know a Russian city that would have surrendered to the mercy of the winner."
And Archimandrite Serapion of Vladimir wrote simply and tragically: “Our blood and father and our brothers, like a lot of water, water the land ... our brothers and children are many in captivity of the knowledge of the past; ; our wealth ... our labor is inherited by your filth ... our land became a foreigner into the property.
And who and when will calculate how many people were then sold into slavery to distant countries: No other trade on the Black Sea in the XIV-XV centuries could compare with the supply of slaves. In the slave trade of the Golden Horde with Egypt, Syria, Italy and France, Russian women were the main commodity. The Italians bought them in the XIII century and the Black Sea markets twice as many as men, and later four slaves were taken for one slave, and invariably at a higher price. In one Western European document of that time, the highest price that was paid for a seventeen-year-old Russian girl is 2093 liras, and the most popular multi-tribal live goods were sold at a price of 136-139 liras "a piece". The local legislators in the same XIII century developed legal norms for slaves. In France, the children of "white Tatars" - Marf, Mari, Katherine - were considered slaves, even if they were born from marriage with a free man. And in Venice, a guilty slave could be subjected to any execution and torture ...
A distant, bitter and terrible time... Cities died out in those summers, villages disappeared, fields overgrown with weeds and bushes, crafts were forgotten. Raids on the surviving cities and villages, internecine wars, robbery of the ushkuins did not stop. Part of the population of northeastern Russia went to Vyatka, Ustyug, Totma. Those who remained faithful to the land of their ancestors, pawned the future with inhuman labors and patience, accumulated rage, which, over time, nothing could resist.
However, enlightened Western Europe knew nothing about all this! The British, for example, who had accumulated a lot of information about Russia in pre-Mongolian times and even absorbed some Russian words into their language, simply forgot about our homeland, which bled for two and a half centuries. Even in the first half of the 16th century, the most educated Englishmen had a very vague idea of ​​where this Russia or Ruthenia was located, with the princes of which their kings once considered it an honor to intermarry. And how not to recall the words of Pushkin here:
“For a long time, Russia was completely separated from the fate of Europe. Its wide plains swallowed up countless crowds of the Mongols, stopped their destructive invasion. The barbarians did not dare to leave enslaved Russia in their rear and returned to the steppes of their East. Christian enlightenment was saved by tormented, dying Russia,. .but Europe has always been as ignorant as it is ungrateful towards Russia."

It was a long time ago, and it seems it’s time to forget about it, but everything is somehow not forgotten, just as the last war, monstrous in terms of destruction, and another Patriotic War, when, almost six hundred years after the invasion of the eastern horde, the Napoleonic army " "twelve languages" completely plundered and burned Moscow, and its "great" leader, before retreating, ordered to blow up the Kremlin with all its cathedrals, palaces, bell towers and towers; okay, there wasn’t enough gunpowder and the wicks were damp... Or maybe we shouldn’t forget... After all, this is the memory that gives rise to legitimate pride in our ancestors and in our great history. This is a memory that “connects everything to everything”, which means it helps to understand our present and our future.

In the year 6745 (1237). In the twelfth year after the transfer of the miraculous image of Nikolin from Korsun. The godless Tsar Batu came to the Russian land with many Tatar soldiers and stood on the river in Voronezh near the land of Ryazan. And he sent unlucky ambassadors to Ryazan to the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich Ryazansky, demanding from him a tenth share in everything: in princes, and in all sorts of people, and in the rest. And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan heard about the invasion of the godless Tsar Batu, and immediately sent to the city of Vladimir to the noble Grand Duke George Vsevolodovich of Vladimir, asking him for help against the godless Tsar Batu or to go to him himself. The Great Prince Georgy Vsevolodovich of Vladimir did not go himself, and did not send help, planning to fight Batu alone. And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan heard that there was no help for him from the Grand Duke George Vsevolodovich of Vladimir, and immediately sent for his brothers: for Prince David Ingvarevich of Murom, and for Prince Gleb Ingvarevich of Kolomensky, and for Prince Oleg Krasny, and for Vsevolod Pronsky, and for other princes. And they began to hold advice on how to satisfy the wicked with gifts. And he sent his son, Prince Fyodor Yurievich of Ryazan, to the godless Tsar Batu with great gifts and prayers so that he would not go to war on the Ryazan land. And Prince Fyodor Yuryevich came to the river to Voronezh to Tsar Batu, and brought him gifts, and prayed to the Tsar not to fight the Ryazan land. The godless, deceitful and merciless Tsar Batu accepted the gifts and, in his lie, feignedly promised not to go to war on the Ryazan land.

But he boasted, threatened to make war on the entire Russian land. And he began to ask the princes of Ryazan daughters and sisters to his bed. And one of the nobles of Ryazan, out of envy, informed the godless Tsar Batu that Prince Fyodor Yuryevich of Ryazan had a princess from the royal family and that she was the most beautiful of all in bodily beauty. Tsar Batu was cunning and unmerciful in his disbelief, inflamed in his lust and said to Prince Fedor Yuryevich: “Give me, prince, to taste the beauty of your wife.” The noble prince Fyodor Yuryevich Ryazansky laughed and answered the tsar: “It is not good for us Christians to lead our wives to you, the impious tsar, for fornication. When you overcome us, then you will rule over our wives.” The godless Tsar Batu was furious and offended and immediately ordered to kill the noble Prince Fedor Yuryevich, and his body was to be thrown to be torn to pieces by animals and birds, and he killed other princes and best warriors.

And one of the tutors of Prince Fyodor Yuryevich, named Aponitsa, took cover and wept bitterly, looking at the glorious body of his honest master; and seeing that no one was guarding him, he took the beloved of his sovereign and secretly buried him. And he hurried to the Blessed Princess Evpraksia, and told her how the wicked Tsar Batu killed the Blessed Prince Fyodor Yuryevich. The blessed Princess Evpraksia was standing at that time in her lofty chamber and holding her beloved child, Prince Ivan Fedorovich, and as she heard these deadly words filled with sorrow, she rushed from her lofty chamber with her son Prince Ivan straight to the ground and broke to the ground. of death. And the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich heard about the murder of his beloved son, the blessed Prince Fedor, and other princes by the godless tsar, and that many of the best people were killed, and began to cry about them with the Grand Duchess and with other princesses and with his brethren. And the whole city cried for a long time. And as soon as the prince had a rest from that great weeping and sobbing, he began to gather his army and arrange regiments. And the great prince Yuri Ingvarevich saw his brethren, and his boyars, and the governor, galloping bravely and courageously, raised his hands to heaven and said with tears: “Deliver us, God, from our enemies. And deliver us from those who rise up against us, and hide us from the assembly of the wicked, and from the multitude of those who do iniquity. May their path be dark and slippery." And he bound his brethren: “O my lords, brethren, if we have received good things from the hands of the Lord, then shall we not tolerate evil?! It is better for us to gain eternal glory by death than to be in the power of the filthy. May I, your brother, drink the cup of death before you for the holy churches of God, and for the Christian faith, and for the homeland of our father, Grand Duke Ingvar Svyatoslavich. And he went to the Church of the Assumption of the Most Holy Lady of the Theotokos. And he cried a lot before the image of the Most Pure Mother of God, and prayed to the great miracle worker Nicholas and his relatives Boris and Gleb. And he gave the last kiss to the Grand Duchess Agrippina Rostislavovna, and received a blessing from the bishop and all the clergy. And he went against the wicked king Batu, and met him near the borders of Ryazan. And they attacked him, and began to fight him hard and courageously, and the slash was evil and terrible. Many strong regiments of the Batuyevs fell. And Tsar Batu saw that the Ryazan force was beating hard and courageously, and he was frightened. But who can stand against the wrath of God! Batu's forces were great and irresistible; one Ryazan fought with a thousand, and two - with ten thousand. And the great prince saw that his brother, Prince Davyd Ingvarevich, was killed, and exclaimed: “Oh, my dear brothers! Prince Davyd, our brother, drank a cup before us, but won’t we drink this cup!” And they moved from horse to horse and began to fight stubbornly. The Batyevs passed through many strong regiments, fighting bravely and courageously, so that all the Tatar regiments marveled at the fortress and courage of the Ryazan army. And the strong Tatar regiments barely defeated them. Here the faithful Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich was killed, his brother Prince Davyd Ingvarevich of Murom, his brother Prince Gleb Ingvarevich Kolomensky, their brother Vsevolod Pronsky and many local princes, and strong governors, and the army: daring and frisky Ryazan. All the same, they died and drank the single cup of death. None of them turned back, but they all fell dead together. All this was brought about by the god of sins for our sake.

And Prince Oleg Ingvarevich was captured barely alive. The tsar, seeing many of his regiments beaten, began to grieve and be horrified, seeing many Tatars killed from his troops. And he began to fight the Ryazan land, leading to kill, chop and burn without mercy. And the city of Pronsk, and the city of Bel, and Izheslavets ruined to the ground and beat all the people without mercy. And Christian blood flowed like a plentiful river, for the sake of our sins.

And Tsar Batu saw Oleg Ingvarevich, so beautiful and brave, exhausted from grave wounds, and wanted to heal him from grave wounds, and to persuade him to his faith. But Prince Oleg Ingvarevich reproached Tsar Batu and called him godless and an enemy of Christianity. The accursed Batu breathed fire from his vile heart and immediately ordered Oleg to be cut into pieces with knives. And he was the second passion-bearer Stefan, accepted the crown of suffering from the all-merciful God and drank the cup of death together with all his brothers. And Tsar Batu the accursed Ryazan land began to fight, and went to the city of Ryazan. And he laid siege to the city, and fought for five days relentlessly. Batu's army changed, and the townspeople fought incessantly. And many citizens were killed, and others were wounded, and others were exhausted from great labors. And on the sixth day, early in the morning, the filthy ones went to the city - some with lights, others with vices, and still others with countless stairs - and took the city of Ryazan in the month of December on the twenty-first day. And they came to the cathedral church of the Most Holy Theotokos, and the Grand Duchess Agrippina, the mother of the Grand Duke, with her daughters-in-law and other princesses, they cut them with swords, and they betrayed the bishop and priests to fire - they burned them in the holy church, and many others fell from weapons. And in the city many people, both wives and children, were flogged with swords. And others were drowned in the river, and priests and monks were flogged without a trace, and they burned the whole city, and all the glorified beauty, and the wealth of Ryazan, and their relatives - the princes of Kyiv and Chernigov - were captured. And they destroyed the temples of God and shed a lot of blood in the holy altars. And not a single living person remained in the city: they still died and drank a single mortal cup. There was no moaning, no crying - no father and mother for children, no children for father and mother, no brother for brother, no relatives for relatives, but all lay dead together. And it was all for our sins.

And the godless Tsar Batu saw the terrible shedding of Christian blood, and became even more furious and hardened, and went to the city of Suzdal and Vladimir, intending to captivate the Russian land, and uproot the Christian faith, and ruin the churches of God to the ground.

And one of the nobles of Ryazan named Evpaty Kolovrat was at that time in Chernigov with Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich, and heard about the invasion of the evil king Batu, and set out from Chernigov with a small squad, and rushed off quickly. And he came to the land of Ryazan, and saw it deserted, cities devastated, churches burned, people killed. And he rushed to the city of Ryazan, and saw the city devastated, the sovereigns of the slain and many people who had fallen: some were killed and whipped, others were burned, and others were drowned in the river. And Yevpaty cried out in the sorrow of his soul, burning in his heart. And he gathered a small squad - one thousand seven hundred people, whom God kept outside the city. And they chased after the godless king, and barely overtook him in the land of Suzdal, and suddenly attacked the camps of Batyev. And they began to flog without mercy, and all the Tatar regiments mixed up. And the Tatars became as if drunk or insane. And Yevpaty beat them so mercilessly that the swords were blunted, and he took the Tatar swords and whipped them. It seemed to the Tatars that the dead had risen. Yevpaty, driving through the strong Tatar regiments, beat them mercilessly. And he rode among the Tatar regiments so bravely and courageously that the tsar himself was frightened. And the Tatars from Evpatiev's regiment barely caught five military men who were exhausted from great wounds. And they brought them to King Batu. Tsar Batu began to ask them; “What faith are you, and what land, and why do you do so much evil to me?” They answered: “We are of Christian faith, slaves of the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan, and from the regiment we are Yevpaty Kolovrat. We were sent from Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich of Ryazan to honor you, a strong king, and to see you off with honor, and to honor you. Do not marvel, tsar, that we do not have time to pour bowls on the great power - the Tatar army. The king marveled at their wise answer. And he sent his Shurich Khostovrul to Yevpatiy, and with him strong Tatar regiments. Khostovrul also boasted before the king, promised to bring Evpaty alive to the king. And Evpaty was surrounded by strong Tatar regiments, trying to take him alive. And Khostovrul came together with Evpatiy. Evpaty was a giant in strength and cut Khostovrul to the floor to the saddle. And he began to flog the Tatar force, and beat many of the famous heroes of the Batyevs here, cut some in half, and cut others to the saddle. And the Tatars were afraid, seeing what a strong giant Evpaty was. And they brought on him many vices, and began to beat him from countless vices, and barely killed him. And they brought his body to King Batu. Tsar Batu sent for murzas, and princes, and sanchak-beys, and everyone began to marvel at the courage, and fortress, and courage of the Ryazan army. And they said to the king: “We have been with many kings, in many lands, in many battles, but we have not seen such daring and frisky people, and our fathers did not tell us: These are winged people, they do not know death and are so strong and courageous, on Riding around on horseback, they fight - one with a thousand, and two - with ten thousand. Not one of them will leave the battlefield alive. And Tsar Batu said, looking at the body of Evpatyevo: “O Kolovrat Evpaty! Well, you treated me with your small retinue and beat many heroes of my strong horde and defeated many regiments. If such a one served me, I would keep him close to my heart. And he gave the body of Evpatiy to the remaining people from his squad, who were captured in the massacre. And King Batu ordered to let them go and not harm them in any way.

Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich was at that time in Chernigov, with his brother Prince Mikhail Vsevolodovich of Chernigov, saved by God from that evil apostate and Christian enemy. And he came from Chernigov to the land of Ryazan, to his homeland, and saw it empty, and heard that his brothers were all killed by the impious, law-criminal Tsar Batu, and he came to the city of Ryazan, and saw the city ruined, and his mother, and his daughters-in-law, and his relatives, and many many people lying dead, the city was ruined and the churches were burned, and all the ornaments from the treasury of Chernigov and Ryazan were taken. Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich saw the great last death for our sins and cried out pitifully, like a trumpet calling to the army, like a sweet organ sounding. And from that great cry and terrible cry, he fell to the ground like a dead man. And they barely cast it and departed in the wind. And with difficulty his soul came to life in him. Who will not mourn over such a death, who will not mourn for so many people of the Orthodox people, who will not pity so many great sovereigns killed, who will not groan from such captivity?

Dismantling the corpses of the dead, Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich found the body of the mother of his Grand Duchess Agrippina Rostislavovna, and recognized his daughters-in-law, and called priests from the villages whom God had preserved, and buried his mother and his daughters-in-law with great lamentation instead of psalms and church hymns: he shouted loudly and sobbed. And he buried the rest of the bodies of the dead, and cleansed the city, and sanctified it. And a small number of people gathered, and comforted them a little. And he wept incessantly, remembering his mother, his brethren, and his family, and all the patterned Ryazan, without time perished. Everything happened because of our sins. There was the city of Ryazan, and the land was Ryazan, and its wealth disappeared, and its glory departed, and it was impossible to see any of its blessings in it - only smoke and ashes; and the churches were all burned, and the great church within was burned and turned black. And not only this city was captivated, but many others. There was no singing or ringing in the city; instead of joy, weeping ceaselessly. And Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich went to the place where his brothers were beaten by the wicked Tsar Batu: Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan, his brother Prince Davyd Ingvarevich, his brother Vsevolod Ingvarevich, and many local princes, and boyars, and governors, and all the army, and daring men , and frisky, patterned Ryazan. They all lay on the devastated ground, on the feather grass, faded with snow and ice, not washed by anyone. The beasts ate their bodies, and many birds devoured them. All lay, all died together, they drank a single cup of death. And Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich saw a great many dead bodies lying, and cried out in a bitterly loud voice, like a sounding trumpet, and beat his chest with his hands, and fell to the ground. Tears from his eyes flowed like a stream, and he said pitifully: “Oh, my dear brethren and army! How did you sleep, my precious lives? I was left alone in such a perdition! Why didn't I die before you? And where did you hide from my eyes, and where did you go, the treasures of my life? Why don't you say anything to me, your brother, the flowers are beautiful, my gardens are unripe? Do not give sweetness to my soul! Why, my lords, don't you look at me, your brother, and talk to me? Have they really forgotten me, your brother, born from the same father and from the same womb of our mother - the Grand Duchess Agrippina Rostislavovna, and nourished by the single breast of a multi-fruited garden? To whom have you left me, your brother? My dear sun, setting early, my red month! Soon you perished, eastern stars; why did you leave so early? You lie on the empty earth, not guarded by anyone; you do not receive honor-glory from anyone! Your glory has faded. Where is your power? Over many lands you were sovereigns, and now you lie on an empty land, your faces have darkened from decay. Oh, my dear brethren and affectionate squad, I will no longer have fun with you! My clear lights, why have you dimmed? A little happy with you! If God hears your prayer, then pray for me, your brother, that I die with you. After all, after joy, weeping and tears came to me, and after joy and joy, lamentation and sorrow came to me! Why did he not die before you, so as not to see your death, but his own destruction? Do you hear my sorrowful words, pitifully sounding? Oh earth, oh earth! oh oak trees! Cry with me! How will I describe and how will I call the day on which so many sovereigns died and many ornamental Ryazan - brave brave men? None of them returned, but they died anyway, they drank a single mortal cup. From the bitterness of my soul, my tongue does not obey, my lips close, my eyes darken, my strength is exhausted.

There was then a lot of anguish, and sorrow, and tears, and sighs, and fear, and trembling from all those evil ones who attacked us. And the Grand Duke Ingvar Ingvarevich raised his hands to heaven, and cried out with tears, saying: “My God, I trust in you, save me and deliver me from all persecutors. Most pure mistress, mother of Christ our God, do not leave me in the hour of my sorrow. Great passion-bearers and our relatives Boris and Gleb, be my helpers in battles, a sinner. O brothers, my army, help me in your holy prayers against our enemies - against the Hagarites and the grandchildren of the Ishmael clan.

And Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich began to disassemble the bodies of the dead, and took the bodies of his brothers - Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich, and Prince Davyd Ingvarevich of Murom, and Prince Gleb Ingvarevich of Kolomensky, and other local princes - his relatives, and many boyars, and governor, and neighbors, known to him, and brought them to the city of Ryazan, and buried them with honor, and collected the bodies of others right there on empty ground and performed a funeral service. And having buried like this, Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich went to the city of Pronsk, and collected the dissected parts of the body of his brother, the faithful and Christ-loving Prince Oleg Ingvarevich, and ordered them to be carried to the city of Ryazan, and the great prince Ingvar Ingvarevich himself carried his honest head to the city, and kissed her kindly, and put him with the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich in the same coffin. And his brothers, Prince Davyd Ingvarevich and Prince Gleb Ingvarevich, he laid in one coffin near the grave of those. Then Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich went to the river to Voronezh, where Prince Fyodor Yuryevich Ryazansky was killed, and took his honest body, and wept over it for a long time. And he brought him to the region to the icon of the great miracle worker Nikola Korsunsky, and buried him together with the Blessed Princess Evpraksia and their son Prince Ivan Fedorovich Postnik in a single place. And he placed stone crosses over them. And for this reason, the icon of Zarazskaya, the great wonderworker Nikola, is called, that the blessed princess Evpraksia with her son Prince Ivan “infected” (smashed) herself in that place.

Monuments of literature of Ancient Russia. XIII century / trans. D.S. Likhachev. M., 1981. S. 184-200.