In which city was Rurik invited to reign. Rurik - the first Russian prince

Rurik (d. 879) - the chronicle founder of the statehood of Russia, the Varangian, the prince of Novgorod since 862 and the ancestor of the princely, which later became royal, Rurik dynasty.

Some Normanists identify Rurik with King Rorik (Hrørek) from Jutland Hedeby (Denmark) (d. before 882). According to the anti-Norman version, Rurik is a representative princely family obodrites, and his name is a Slavic generic nickname associated with a falcon.

The calling of the Varangians
According to the Old Russian chronicle of the XII century "The Tale of Bygone Years", in 862 the Varangian Rurik with his brothers, at the invitation of such tribes as: Chud, Ilmen Slovenes, Krivichi and the whole, was called to reign in Novgorod. This is the event from which the beginning of statehood is traditionally counted. Eastern Slavs, in historiography received the conditional name Calling of the Varangians. The chronicler called the reason for the invitation the civil strife that engulfed the Slavic and Finno-Ugric tribes living in the Novgorod lands. Rurik came with all his kind, called Rus, ethnicity which continues to be discussed.
The chronicle tells how, after the death of the brothers, power was concentrated in the hands of the eldest of them, Rurik:
... And they came and sat the eldest, Rurik, in Novgorod, and the other, Sineus, on Beloozero, and the third, Truvor, in Izborsk. And from those Varangians the Russian land was nicknamed. The Novgorodians are those people from the Varangian family, and before that they were Slovenes. Two years later, Sineus and his brother Truvor died. And one Rurik took all power, and began to distribute cities to his men - Polotsk to that, Rostov to that, Beloozero to another. Varangians in these cities are finders, and indigenous people in Novgorod - Slovenia, in Polotsk - Krivichi, in Rostov - Merya, in Beloozero - all, in Murom - Murom, and Rurik ruled over all of them.

Rurikovich (IX-XI centuries)
Rurik
Igor, wife: Olga, co-ruler: Oleg
Svyatoslav
Yaropolk
Svyatopolk the Cursed
Oleg Drevlyansky
Vladimir
Vysheslav
Izyaslav Polotsky
Polotsk branch
Yaroslav the Wise
Vsevolod
Mstislav the Brave
Evstafiy
Svyatoslav Drevlyansky
St. Boris
St. Gleb
Stanislav
Pozvizd
Sudislav Pskovskiy

According to the annals, one can notice the expansion of the lands subject to Rurik. His power extended to Novgorod, as well as to the Western Dvina Krivichi (the city of Polotsk) in the west, the Finno-Ugric tribes of Meri (the city of Rostov) and Murom (the city of Murom) in the east. In the late Nikon chronicle (1st half of the 17th century) it is reported about the turmoil in Novgorod, whose inhabitants were dissatisfied with the rule of Rurik. The event is attributed to the year 864, that is, when, according to the Ipatiev Chronicle, Rurik founded Novgorod. Novgorod itself was built, according to archaeological dating, after the death of Rurik near his fortified residence (fortified settlement).

In 879, according to the chronicle, Rurik dies, leaving his young son Igor under the care of his commander and, possibly, a relative of Oleg.

Old Russian chronicles began to be compiled 150-200 years after the death of Rurik on the basis of some oral traditions, Byzantine chronicles and the few existing documents. Therefore, in historiography there are different points view of the chronicle version of the calling of the Varangians. In the XVIII - the first half of the XIX century, the opinion about the Scandinavian or Finnish origin of Prince Rurik prevailed, later a hypothesis was proposed about his Pomeranian origin.

Origin of Rurik

There are many versions around the ancestor of the princely Rurik dynasty, up to attempts to prove his legendary character. The legend of Rurik is generated by the lack of information about his origin: where he came from to reign and to which people-tribe he belonged. The theme of Rurik's homeland is closely connected with the etymology of the words Rus and Rus.
There are several versions of the origin of Rurik, of which the main ones are Norman and West Slavic.

Norman version

The name ruRikr on runestone fragment U413 used to build Norrsunda Church, Uppland, Sweden.
Based on the fact that in the Russian chronicles Rurik is called the Varangian, and the Varangians are Rus according to various sources associated with the Normans or the Swedes, supporters of the Norman concept consider Rurik, like his entire squad, Viking Varangians from Scandinavia.

According to the generally accepted opinion of Germanic philologists, the modern names Roderich, Roderick, Rodrigo have a common origin with the name Rorik (Rurik). The Rurik name is currently in circulation in Finland, Denmark, Sweden and Iceland.

According to one version, Rurik was the Viking Rorik of Jutland (or Friesland) from the Skjoldung dynasty, the brother (or nephew) of the exiled Danish king Harald Klak, who in 826 or about 837 received from the emperor of the Franks Louis the Pious a fief on the coast of Frisia with a center in Dorestad, which was raided by the Vikings.
In 841, he was expelled from there by Emperor Lothair. Rorik's name appears in the Xanten Annals in 845 in connection with a raid on the lands of Frisia. In 850, Rorik fights in Denmark against the Danish king Horik I, and then plunders Frisia and other places along the Rhine. King Lothair I was forced to yield to Rorik Dorestad and most Frisia, baptizing him in return.
In 855-857, Rorik with his nephew Gottfried (son of Harald Klak) returned royalty in Denmark, when the throne was vacated after the death of Horik I.
Around 857-862 Rorik, according to some writers, conquers the Wendish Slavs. According to Saxo the Grammar, the Danish king Hrorik the Ring Thrower, who is identified by these writers with Rorik of Jutland, breaks the flotilla of Curonians and Swedes in naval battle off the coast of Denmark, and then forces the attacking Slavs to pay tribute to him after, again, a sea clash. However, the lifetime of Hrorik the Ring Thrower, the grandfather of the famous Prince Hamlet, is dated by researchers to the 7th century.
In 863, Rorik unsuccessfully tried with the Danes to return Doreshtad. In 867, his attempt to gain a foothold in Friesland is again mentioned. He succeeded only in 870-873. In 873, Rorik, "the bile of Christianity" according to the chronicler of Xanten, takes an oath of allegiance to Louis the German.
In 882, Emperor Charles the Fat handed over Frisia to Gottfried, Rorik's nephew, apparently in connection with the death of the latter.
The version of his involvement in the "calling of the Varangians" is supported by some linguistic coincidences. In Frisia (now the northeastern part of the Netherlands and part of Germany) there was a coastal region of Wieringen in the 9th century. AT modern pronunciation the name sounds something like Vierega, which is close to the ancient Russian Vikings, but in ancient times given territory called Wiron and pagus Wirense. According to archaeological finds in the area, assumptions are made about the existence of Rorik's base here.
Also connected with Frisia is the remark of the 12th-century chronicler Helmold about "the Frisians, who are called rusters." The seaside province of Rüstringen is marked on 17th-century maps in eastern Friesland, on the border of modern Germany with the Netherlands.

Another version of the Scandinavian origin of Rurik connects him with Eirik Emundarson, king of the Swedish Uppsala. In the composition of the Icelandic skald early XIII century Snorri Sturluson "Circle of the Earth" tells about the national gathering (Thing) in 1018 in Uppsala. One of the participants in the gathering said: “Torgnir, my paternal grandfather, remembered Eirik Emundarson, the king of Uppsala, and said about him that while he could, every summer he undertook a campaign from his country and went to various countries and conquered Finland and Kirjalaland, Eistland and Kurland, and many lands in Austrland. And if you want to return under your rule those states in Austrweg that your relatives and ancestors owned there, then we all want to follow you in this. Australland ( Eastern land) and Austrwegi ( Eastern paths) in the sagas was called Russia.

According to the calculations of the famous Swedish archaeologist Birger Nerman, King Eirik of Uppsala (ancient Scandinavian Eiríkr), the son of Emund, died in 882, and the “conquest of the Eastern lands” refers to the beginning of his reign - 850-860, which almost coincides with the dates of Rurik's reign. Nerman's method for such an accurate calculation of dates is unknown. For more on the Swedish raids on the Baltic in the middle of the 9th century, see Rimbert's "Life of Ansgar" and Grobin's article.
During the time of Eirik Emundarson, Norwegian king Harald Fairhair had a son named Hrörek (Snorri Sturluson's saga of Harald Fairhair). King Harald died in the province of Rugaland (Rygjafylke), transferring power to his son Eirik the Bloody Axe, and the saga does not report anything about the fate of King Hrörek.

West Slavic version

An alternative to the Norman version is the version about the origin of Rurik from among the West Slavic tribes of Obodrites, Ruyans and Pomeranians. The Tale of Bygone Years directly says that Rurik, being a Varangian, was neither a Norman, nor a Swede, nor an Englishman, nor a Gotlander.
] Varangians from Wagrs or Prussians
The Austrian Herberstein, being an adviser to the ambassador in the Grand Duchy of Moscow in the 1st half of the 16th century, was one of the first Europeans to get acquainted with the Russian chronicles and expressed his opinion about the origin of the Varangians and Rurik. Associating the name of the Varangians with the Slavic Baltic tribe of the Vagrs, Herberstein comes to the conclusion that: “the Russians summoned their princes rather from the Vagrs, or Varangians, than handed over power to foreigners who differed from them in faith, customs and language.” The Scandinavians and Germans called the Wagrs and all the Pomeranian Slavs Wends. In synchronous sources, there is no information about the connection of the Pomeranian Slavs with the Varangians, although in the 2nd half of the 10th century, sea raids of the Wends on their neighbors were noted.
M.V. Lomonosov deduced Rurik with the Varangians from the Prussians, relying on toponyms and later chronicles, which replaced the lexeme "Varangians" with the pseudo-ethnonym "Germans". Slavic origin Rurik Lomonosov a priori accepted as an indisputable fact:
... the Varangians and Rurik with their family, who came to Novgorod, were Slavic tribes, spoke the Slavic language, came from the ancient Russians and were by no means from Scandinavia, but lived on the eastern-southern shores of the Varangian Sea, between the rivers Vistula and Dvina ... named after Rus in Scandinavia and northern shores The Varangian Sea has not been heard anywhere ... Our chroniclers mention that Rurik and his Family came from the Germans, and the Indian says that from Prussia ... Between the Vistula and Dvina rivers, the river flows into the Varangian Sea from the east-south side, which is above, near the city of Grodno , is called Nemen, and Rusa is known to its mouth. Here it is clear that the Varangians-Rus lived in the east-south shore of the Varangian Sea, near the river Rusa ... And the very name of the Prussians or Poruss shows that the Prussians lived along the Russ or near the Russ.

There is a folk legend about Rurik and his brothers, published in the 30s years XIX century by the French traveler and writer Xavier Marmier in the book Northern Letters. He recorded it in northern Germany, among the Mecklenburg peasants who lived on former lands Bodrichi, by that time completely Germanized. The legend tells that in the 8th century the Obodrite tribe was ruled by a king named Godlav, father of three young men, the first of which was called Rurik the Peaceful, the second - Sivar the Victorious, the third - Truvar the Faithful. The brothers decided to go in search of glory in the lands to the east. After many deeds and terrible battles, the brothers came to Russia, whose people suffered under the burden of a long tyranny, but did not dare to rebel. The encouraging brothers awakened the dormant courage in the local people, led the army and overthrew the oppressors. Having restored peace and order in the country, the brothers decided to return to their old father, but the grateful people begged them not to leave and take the place of the former kings. So Rurik received Novgorod principality(Nowoghorod), Sivar - Pskovskoe (Pleskow), Truvar - Belozerskoe (Bile-Jezoro). Since after a while the younger brothers died, leaving no legitimate heirs, Rurik annexed their principalities to his own, becoming the founder ruling dynasty. It should be noted that this is the only mention of Rurik in Western folklore, although the date of the origin of the legend cannot be established. The legend was written down a century after the publication of the Mecklenburg genealogy of Rurik.

Coat of arms of Staraya Ladoga - a falcon falling down (the coat of arms of Rurik)
The coat of arms of the Rurikids is interpreted by some researchers as a schematic representation of a falcon falling on its prey. At the same time, others see in it the image of a scepter, anchor, trident or pitchfork. A stylized version of this image is the current coat of arms of Ukraine. In support of the Balto-Slavic etymology, archeological finds from the times of the first Rurikids with the image of a falcon are given. A similar image of a falcon (or Odin's raven) was also minted on the English coins of the Danish king Anlaf Gutfritsson (939-941). However, the falcon is called differently in the Scandinavian languages.

Joachim Chronicle

The Joachim Chronicle is a chronicle text of unknown origin, preserved only in extracts made by V. N. Tatishchev. The chronicle is named after Joachim, the first Novgorod bishop, to whom Tatishchev attributed authorship, based on the content of the chronicle. Historians treat it with great distrust, but use it as auxiliary material.
According to the Joachim Chronicle, Rurik was the son of an unknown Varangian prince in Finland from Umila, the middle daughter of the Slavic elder Gostomysl. The chronicle does not say what tribe the prince was in Finland, it only says that he was a Varangian. Before his death, Gostomysl, who reigned in the "Great City" and lost all his sons, gave the order to call the sons of Umila to reign, in accordance with the advice of the prophets.
So Rurik, according to the matrilateral tradition (inheritance on the maternal side), appeared with two brothers Sineus and Truvor in the "Great City", which corresponds to either Staraya Ladoga or the Bodrich city of Veligrad. In the 4th year of his reign, Rurik moved to the "Great New City" (one can mean Rurik's Settlement or Novgorod) to Ilmen. After the death of his father, Finnish lands passed to Rurik.
One of Rurik's wives was Efanda, the daughter of the "Urman" (Norman) prince, who gave birth to Ingor (Igor Rurikovich). Efanda's brother, the "Urman" prince Oleg began to reign after the death of Rurik. The Finnish origin of Rurik may be associated with one of the versions of the etymology of the word Rus. According to her, Russia is the Slavic pronunciation of the Finnish Ruotsi, that is, the Finnish name for the Swedes. It is believed that in the 9th century, the Finns called so all the Vikings-Varangians who collected tribute from the local population.

Rurik (Miniature from the "Royal titulary". 17th century

Coin of the Bank of Russia 50 rubles, gold, reverse. (2011)

For the first time, the name of Rurik is mentioned in the "Life of the Holy Prince Vladimir", written presumably around 1070 by the monk Jacob Chernorizets: "to the autocrat of all the Russian land Volodimer, to the grandson of Iolzhin (Princess Olga) and to the great-grandson of Ryurikov." The earliest chronicle of those that have come down to us, The Tale of Bygone Years, was written about forty years later, and the history of the Varangian Rurik was detailed there. Historians are not aware of other independent sources on Prince Rurik, with the exception of attempts to connect him with the Viking Rorik of Jutland from Western Europe.

Doubted in different time the chronology of Rurik's vocation was put, and the reality of Rurik and his brothers, and their origin, and, especially, the very political idea of "calling the Varangians" - foreign rulers. In the historiography of the 19th-20th centuries (especially the Soviet one), this issue was overly ideologized. It was stated that the version of the foreign origin of the first princes was "anti-scientific Norman theory”, allegedly designed to prove that the Slavs could not create a state on their own.

Some historians believe that Sineus and Truvor, identified in the annals as Rurik's brothers, did not really exist. So, Sineus could not have been a Beloozero prince from 862 to 864, since the existence of the city of Beloozero can be traced archaeologically only from the 10th century. Rybakov believes that the name "Sineus" is a distorted "one's own family" (Swedish sine hus), and "Truvor" is a "faithful squad" (Swedish thru varing). Thus, Rurik comes to reign not with his two brothers, but with his family (which includes, for example, Oleg) and a faithful squad. D.S. Likhachev assumed that Rurik, Sineus and Truvor, according to the plan of the chronicler, should have become the “mystical ancestors” of Novgorod, like Kiy, Shchek and Khoriv for Kyiv.

Heirs

It is not known how many wives and children Rurik had. Chronicles report only one son - Igor. According to the Joachim Chronicle, Rurik had several wives, one of them and Igor's mother was the "Urman" (that is, Norwegian) princess Efanda.
In addition to Igor, Rurik may have had other children, since in Russian-Byzantine treaty 944, Igor's nephews are mentioned - Igor and Akun.

It was this man who was destined to initiate the construction of a new state, which over more than a thousand years of history has grown into largest state peace. Let's get acquainted briefly with who was the first prince of young Russia?

History of the Eastern Slavs before Rurik

The ancient Russian chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years", answering the question: "Where did the Russian land come from," says that before the advent of the first prince of the Varangian Rurik in the territory future Russia many scattered tribes lived - Krivichi, Slovenes and others. All these tribal unions had common culture, language and religion. Each of them tried to unite the rest of the tribes under its command, but the balance of power and constant wars did not reveal the winner. It was then that the leaders of the tribes decided that none of them would get power and it was decided that the invited prince would rule all the tribes. At that time, the most formidable warriors who were respected among the Slavic tribes, with whom there were close trade and cultural connections, were the Vikings - the inhabitants of Scandinavia. They easily served as Byzantine emperors, so they went to hired squads in the west, and were also free to accept the local belief, which forced the Slavic leader Gostomysl and his companions to go to Scandinavia and invite the Rus tribe and their king, Rurik, to rule.

Rice. 1. Prince Rurik.

Biography of the first Russian prince

We know very little about Rurik's biography. The date and place of his birth are unknown, and the years of reign are considered 862-879.

Rurik did not come to Russia alone. He was accompanied by two brothers - Sineus and Truvor. Their squads landed in northeastern Russia and were invited to Novgorod. Often there are disputes in which city Rurik ruled. There is an opinion that this is Ladoga - ancient capital northeastern Slavs. However, it was in Novgorod, having taken the reins of government, that Rurik went down in history as the first Russian prince.

Rice. 2. The calling of the Varangians.

He sent his brothers to reign in other strategically important cities. Sienus assumed power in Beloozero, and Truvor began to reign in Izborsk.

The internal policy of the prince was aimed at strengthening the external borders of the state, as well as their expansion. During the period of his reign, Smolensk, Murom and Rostov became part of Russia. Rurik made attempts to move south, but things did not go beyond the robberies of local peoples. Rurik's squad advanced to the Kyiv lands. So famous rulers Kyiv Askold and Dirom Rurik signs a peace treaty. And although Askold still tried to plunder the lands of Rurik, his squad was defeated.

Table “Immediate descendants of Rurik”

*Prince*	*Who is Rurik*	*Years of government*
Igor Rurikovich
	daughter-in-law
Svyatoslav the Warrior
Yaropolk Svyatoslavich

Rurik (862 - 879) - the first great Russian prince, one of the legendary figures in European history, the founder of the ancient Russian state. According to the chronicles, called from the Varangians by the Slavs, Krivichi, Chud and the whole in 862, Rurik first occupied Ladoga, and then moved to Novgorod. Ruled in Novgorod under an agreement concluded with local nobility, which asserted the right to collect revenues. Founder of the Rurik dynasty.

1148 years ago, according to the testimony of the chronicler Nestor in The Tale of Bygone Years, the head of the Varangian military detachment Rurik, who arrived along with the brothers Sineus and Truvor, was called to "rule and reign over the Eastern Slavs" on September 8, 862.

The chronicle tradition connects the beginning of Russia with the calling of the Varangians. So "The Tale of Bygone Years" tells that in 862 three Varangian brothers with their clans came to rule the Slavs, laying the city of Ladoga. But where did they come from and who were these Varangians by origin, who gave rise to Russian statehood? Indeed, in historiography they managed to visit both the Swedes, and the Danes, and the Scandinavians in general; some authors considered the Varangians to be Normans, others, on the contrary, to be Slavs. Again and again, inattention to the problem posed in the very historical source, was the reason for contradictory statements For ancient chronicler the origin of the Varangians was obvious. He placed their lands on the south-Baltic coast up to "the land of Aglian", i.e. to the Angeln area in Holstein.

Today it is the North German state of Mecklenburg, whose population was not German in antiquity. What it was like - the names that have survived to this day speak about it. settlements Varin, Russov, Rerik and many others. However, despite all the clarity of the chronicle evidence, the question of the origin of the Varangians (and, therefore, the roots of Russian statehood) became debatable for posterity. The confusion was introduced by the version that appeared in political circles at the court of the Swedish king about the origin of Rurik from Sweden, which was subsequently picked up by some German historians. Objectively speaking, this version did not have the slightest historical basis, but it was completely politically conditioned. Back in the years Livonian War between Ivan the Terrible and the Swedish king Johan III, a sharp controversy erupted over the issue of titles. The Russian tsar considered the Swedish ruler to come from a "male family", to which he replied that the ancestors of the Russian dynasty itself allegedly came from Sweden. This idea finally took shape as a political concept on the eve of the Time of Troubles in early XVI I century, when the Swedes claimed Novgorod lands, trying to justify their territorial claims some kind of chronicle "calling". It was assumed that the Novgorodians were to send an embassy to Swedish king and invite him to rule, as once they allegedly called on the "Swedish" prince Rurik. The conclusion about the "Swedish" origin of the Varangians at that time was based only on the fact that they came to Russia "from across the sea", which means, most likely, from Sweden.

Subsequently, in the first half of the 18th century, German scientists from the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences turned to the Varangian theme, who, according to the same logic, sought to justify German domination in Russia during the time of Biron's regency. They also formulated the so-called. "Norman theory", according to which the Varangians, the founders of the ancient Russian state, were recognized as immigrants from Sweden (that is, "Germans", as all foreigners were then called). Since then, this theory, dressed in a kind of scientific character, has become entrenched in Russian historiography. At the same time, many eminent historians starting with M.V. Lomonosov, pointed out that the "Norman theory" does not correspond real facts. For example, the Swedes could not create a state in Russia in the 9th century, if only because they themselves did not have statehood at that time. In the Russian language and in Russian culture, it was not possible to find Scandinavian borrowings. Finally, careful reading the chronicle itself does not allow us to confirm the fabrications of the Normanists. The chronicler distinguished the Varangians from the Swedes and others Scandinavian peoples, writing that "those Varangians were called - Rus, as others are called Swedes, others are Normans, Angles, other Goths." Therefore, when concluding peace treaties with Byzantium, the pagan combatants of princes Oleg and Igor (the very Varangians whom the Normans consider Swedish Vikings) took an oath in the names of Perun and Veles, and not Odin or Thor at all. A.G. Kuzmin noted that this fact alone could refute the entire "Norman theory". It is clear that in this form the "Norman theory" could not be viable in academic science. But she was again and again turned to when it was necessary to strike a blow at the idea of Russian statehood. Today this destructive theory has acquired new form, and modern Normanists, fed by grants from numerous foreign funds, speak not so much about the "Scandinavian origin of the Varangians", but about a kind of division of "spheres of influence" in the ancient Russian state.

By new version Normanism, the power of the Vikings allegedly extended to the northern regions of Russia, and the Khazars to the southern ones (there was supposedly an agreement between them). Russians are not supposed to play any significant role in their own early history. However, the very development of the Russian state completely refutes all the conjectures of Russia's political enemies. could Ancient Russia become powerful Russian Empire without the outstanding historical mission of the Russian people? A great history took place together with a great people descended from the Varangian origin. It is unfortunate that today more and more replicas are heard that the ancestors of the Russians were non-Russians. This is not true. Our ancestors were the Varangians, who were also Russians. The only thing to be clarified is that it is Russia that is our original family name, and the ancient Russian navigators were called the Varangians. Ambassador Sigismund Herberstein, who visited Moscow at the beginning of the 16th century, wrote that the homeland of the Varangians - Vagria - was located on the south Baltic coast and from them the Baltic was called the Varangian Sea. He expressed the broad opinion that prevailed in the enlightened circles of Europe at that time. With the development of scientific genealogy, works began to appear on the connections of the Russian royal dynasty with the ancient royal families of Mecklenburg. In North German Pomorye about the Varangians and their historical connections with Russia they remembered until the 19th century. To this day, many traces of the presence of the pre-German population remain in the Mecklenburg region. It is obvious that it became "German" only after the Varangians and their descendants were forced out to the east or Germanized by Catholic orders. The French traveler K. Marmier once wrote down a folk legend about Rurik and his brothers in Mecklenburg. In the VIII century, the Varangians were ruled by King Godlav, who had three sons - Rurik, Sivar and Truvor. Once they went from the southern Baltic to the east and founded old Russian principality with centers in Novgorod and Pskov.

After some time, Rurik became the head of the dynasty, which reigned until 1598. This legend from Northern Germany is completely consonant with the Tale of the calling of the Varangians from the annals. However, a careful analysis of the facts allows, to some extent, to correct the chronicle chronology, according to which Rurik and his brothers began to rule in Russia from 862. A. Kunik generally considered this date to be erroneous, leaving the inaccuracy on the conscience of the later scribes of the chronicle. It is obvious that the events briefly reported in the Russian chronicles receive historical content from German sources. The Germans themselves refuted the Norman fictions. The Mecklenburg jurist Johann Friedrich von Chemnitz referred to a legend according to which Rurik and his brothers were the sons of Prince Godlav, who died in 808 in a battle with the Danes. Considering that the eldest of the sons was Rurik, it can be assumed that he was born no later than 806 (after him, before the death of his father in 808, two younger brother who were not of the same age). Of course, Rurik could have been born earlier, but we do not yet have reliable information about this. According to German sources, Rurik and his brothers were "summoned" around 840, which seems very plausible. Thus, the Varangian princes could appear in Russia at a mature and capable age, which looks completely logical. And indeed, according to the latest archaeological finds, it was possible to establish that the Rurik settlement near modern Novgorod, which is the ancient Rurik Novgorod, existed earlier than 862. On the other hand, while making a mistake in chronology, the chronicle points more precisely to the place of "calling". Most likely it was not Novgorod (as according to German data), but Ladoga, which was founded by the Varangians in the middle of the VIII century. And Novgorod (Rurik's settlement) Prince Rurik "cut down" later, uniting the lands of the brothers after their death, as evidenced by the name of the city.

The family tree of Rurik from the ancient Varangian kings was recognized by connoisseurs and researchers of genealogy. Mecklenburg historians wrote that his grandfather was King Wittslav, who was an equal ally of the Frankish king Charlemagne and participated in his campaigns against the Saxons. During one of these campaigns, Witslav was killed in an ambush while crossing a river. Some authors directly called him "the king of the Russians." The North German genealogies also indicate the relationship of Rurik with Gostomysl, who acts in the annalistic legend about the calling of the Varangians. But if the stingy lines of the chronicle tell almost nothing about him, then in the Frankish chronicles he is mentioned as an opponent of Emperor Louis the German. Why did Rurik and his brothers set off from the South Baltic coast to the East? The fact is that the Varangian kings had a "next" system of inheritance, according to which the senior representative always received power ruling family. Later, such a system of inheritance of princely power became traditional in Russia. At the same time, the sons of the ruler who did not have time to take the royal throne did not receive any rights to the throne and remained outside the main "queue". Godlove was killed before his older brother and never became king during his lifetime. For this reason, Rurik and his brothers were forced to go to the peripheral Ladoga, where from that time began glorious history Russian state. Prince Rurik was a full-fledged ruler of Russia and a native of the "Russian family", and not at all a foreign ruler, as those who wish to imagine the entire Russian history only under foreign domination.

When Rurik died, his son Igor was still small, and Igor's uncle Oleg became the prince ( Prophetic Oleg, i.e., knowing the future, died in 912), who moved the capital to the city of Kyiv. It is Prophetic Oleg who is credited with the formation of the Old Russian state - Kievan Rus, with the center in Kyiv. Oleg's nickname - "prophetic" - referred exclusively to his penchant for sorcery. In other words, Prince Oleg as Supreme ruler and the leader of the squad at the same time also performed the functions of a priest, sorcerer, sorcerer, sorcerer. According to legend, Prophetic Oleg died from a snake bite; this fact formed the basis of a number of songs, legends and traditions. Oleg became famous for his victory over Byzantium, as a sign of which he nailed his shield on the main gates (gates) of Constantinople. So the Russians called the capital of Byzantium - Constantinople. Byzantium was then the most strong state peace.

In 2009, the celebration of the 1150th anniversary of Veliky Novgorod took place. I would like to believe that this most important date in our history will become the starting point for a new study of the ancient Russian past. New facts and discoveries constantly enrich historical science and our knowledge. There is more and more evidence that Russian history did not begin with a myth invented by medieval politicians and scribes, but from the real Grand Duke Rurik, who was born in royal dynasty in the Russian Baltic region one thousand two hundred years ago. God grant that the names of our ancestors and grandparents are not forgotten.

Annalistic information about the reign of Rurik is extremely scarce, but the analysis archaeological finds made in the Ladoga region, the use of data from Western European and Arab sources allows us to shed light on the activities of the Novgorod prince.
As archaeologists have established, the Normans appeared within the Eastern Slavs in the 7th century. Aldeygyuborg (Ladoga), mentioned in the Scandinavian sagas, arose at the confluence of the Ladoga and Volkhov rivers, not far from its confluence with Lake Ladoga. These places, originally inhabited by Finnish tribes, were invaded by the Vikings from Baltic Sea, through the Neva and Lake Ladoga, and founded the settlement.

Prince's call. Meeting of the prince with the retinue, elders and people of the Slavic city. HELL. Kivshenko. 1880

Ancestors of Rurik. From here, bypassing Lake Ladoga, along the Svir River, the Scandinavians went to Lake Onega and further to White Sea. Along the Volkhov it was possible to reach the sources of the Dnieper and Volga, which led them to the rich south and east. From the 9th century, representatives of Slavic and Finnish tribes began to appear in Ladoga, but until the 10th century, the Scandinavian population was the majority here. The sagas speak of Aldeiguborg as one of the kingdoms where the kings ruled. It is there, according to Scandinavian sagas, grandfather and father of Rurik of Jutland - Eystein and Halfdan, found their life partners. Although there is no, even indirect, information about the campaign of Rurik of Jutland in the lands of the Eastern Slavs, the version of the existence of his transshipment base in Ladoga, where his ancestors were kings, may have grounds. Some historians admit that Rurik could go east with Frisian merchants, guarding them from robbers, could spend some time in Ladoga, and then return to Jutland.
Scandinavian settlement in Ladoga. Wherever the Scandinavians settled, they built "long" houses, where all representatives of the same clan settled. The wooden building, often up to 100 meters long, consisted of a vestibule and a room without windows, with a door facing south. In the center of the house there was a hearth, and above it there was a hole in the roof for the exit of smoke. Along the perimeter of the walls, benches and shelves for dishes were attached. Outside, the walls and roof of the house were covered with turf for warmth. In the settlements of the Varangians there were craft workshops. In Ladoga, archaeologists discovered a smithy with a variety of tools, which belonged to immigrants from the Swedish island of Gotland. In the middle of the 9th century, the Varangian-Slavic-Finnish nobility held power in Ladoga. A number of scientists believe that even before being called to Russia, while fighting for his lands in Friesland, Rurik did not lose sight of Ladoga as a convenient haven on the Great Volga Route.
Reigning in Ladoga. In 862, according to the "Joachim Chronicle", Rurik " with the brethren and their houses"arrived in Ladoga and spent about two years there. He rebuilt the city and fortified the port. Having concluded an agreement with the elders of the Slavic and Finno-Ugric tribes, he undertook to protect his subjects from attacks by other Scandinavians, ensure the normal functioning of trade in the region, regulate "in truth" relations between tribes, defend them common interests. In return, he received food for himself with a squad and a payment in silver, as was customary everywhere. Chronicles report that one of Rurik's brothers, Sineus, was sent by him "to Beloozero". In those days, it was the territory of the entire tribe. Beloozero played important role in the extraction of furs, which explains the desire of Rurik to put him under his control. Another brother - Truvor, began to reign in Izborsk, in tribal center Krivichi. The rest of the city, the prince distributed to the management of the governors from the squad.

Distribution of land to "finders". In 864 Sineus and Truvor died. " And one Rurik took all the power,- says in the annals. - And he began to distribute to his husbands volosts and cities - Polotsk to that, Rostov to that, Beloozero to another. The Varangians in these cities are nakhodniki, and the indigenous people in Novgorod are Slavs, in Polotsk - Krivichi, in Rostov - Merya, in Beloozero - all, in Murom - Murom, and Rurik ruled over all of them". Rurik himself moved to the settlement at the source of the Volkhov. Now it has become a fortress, trade, craft and military administrative center Northern Russia. There was the court of the prince, and his squad was standing. It is believed that the Rurik settlement was the original Novgorod - a new city in relation to the old Ladoga.

Ruins of the Church of the Annunciation of the XII century. Rurik's settlement. contemporary photography

When was Novgorod founded?"The Tale of Bygone Years" reports two mutually exclusive versions of the emergence of Novgorod. According to one of them, Novgorod was "cut down" by Rurik. According to another, it was founded by the Slavs, who came to the north in the process of settling from the Dnieper region and then invited Rurik to the princes. Archaeological research on the territory of Novgorod Detinets, they showed that there was a temple and a cemetery there before the appearance of the original fortress. This indicates the existence of an ancient inter-tribal center in Novgorod. In pagan times, the cemetery served as a place of veche gatherings, and a place of court, and a place of religious festivities and games. Scientists believe that Novgorod was the center of the federation of Slovenes, Mary, Chud and Krivichi, and it arose in the 8th century before Rurik appeared in it.
Rise of Vadim the Brave. Having accepted "all power alone", Rurik, apparently, did not renew the previous "row" (agreement) with the elders. He relied on a strong Varangian squad, with whom he held advice. From a service mercenary, he turned into an autocratic ruler, which did not suit the tribal nobility. In 864, in the absence of Rurik, an uprising broke out in Novgorod, led by Vadim the Brave. According to V.N. Tatishchev, he was a Slovenian prince and raised the people to fight for the return of their lost liberty. The Nikon Chronicle says that the Novgorodians " suffered in every possible way from Rurik and from his kind"And they no longer wanted to live" like slaves. " Returning from the campaign, Rurik killed Vadim and severely punished the participants in the rebellion. Fearing reprisals, many "noble men" then fled to Kyiv, where the Varangians Askold and Dir established themselves to reign. Rurik quickly expanded the limits Novgorod land. Under his control were Krivichi Polotsk, Meryan Rostov and Murom. N.M. Karamzin wrote: The memory of Rurik, as the first autocrat of Russia, remained immortal in our history, the main action of his reign was the firm accession of some Finnish tribes to the Slavic people".
The participation of the Varangians in the life of Northern Russia. Natives of Scandinavia surprisingly easily joined the life of the Slavic and Finno-Ugric tribes. They willingly settled in cities, traded, built ships and forged weapons, and were engaged in jewelry craft. Rurik and his deputies strengthened the principality, erected powerful border fortresses, created an organized squad that ensured law and order. In place of the warring tribal areas, a single economic and social space. The actions of the ruler of Northern Russia contributed to the preservation of peace in Novgorod, dynamic development economy and culture.

There are many hypotheses about how and from where Rurik appeared on Russian soil. One of them seems quite true, because it has a serious historical basis.

Rurik is the son of Umila and the grandson of Gostomysl, and therefore a direct descendant of the legendary Slovene. In the ancient "Book of Veles" it is written that in 2578 BC Grand Duke Sloven built the city of Slovensk, “which is now called Veliky Novgorod, from the mouth of the great lake Ilmer along the Volkhov River, half a third of the way. And from that time, the newcomers Scythians began to be called Slovenians ... ”. It is believed that Veliky Novgorod was meant.

According to an excerpt from the Joachim Chronicle cited by Tatishchev, Gostomysl came from an ancient princely Slavic family, descended from the legendary leaders of the Slavs Slaven, Vandal and Vladimir. Gostomysl's father was Burivoi, who fought with the Varangians in the Baltic. Displaced by the Varangians from his native land, Burivoy, together with his relatives and subject princes, stayed on an island in the city of Byarma. The Varangians captured the Great City and imposed a heavy tribute on the Slavs, Rus and Chud. The inhabitants of the Great City turned to Burivoi with a request to send them their son Gostomysl. The latter, having come to the Great City, seized power there, killed some Varangians, expelled others and refused to pay tribute to the invaders. He concluded a peace agreement with them, after which "there was silence throughout the whole earth." Gostomysl, elected prince by the Slavs, after driving away the Varangians, then ruled calmly, beloved by the people for his courage, intelligence and justice.

Gostomysl had four sons and three daughters. All the sons died: some died of disease, others were killed in the war, leaving no male heirs. The daughters of Gostomysl were given in marriage, as usual, for political reasons, to various overseas princes. The eldest is for the Norman king. The youngest - for the son of the Bulgar kagan, and the middle one, Umila, for one of the West Slavic princes from the island of Rugen, the prince of Obodriches. Obodrichi - "about the Oder" who lived - a Slavic family that once had a direct relationship with the inhabitants of Novgorod. By the end of his life, Gostomysl found himself without an heir, which worried him very much. But once in a dream he saw how a large and fruitful tree grew from the womb of his middle daughter Umila, which covered the entire Great City and from the fruits of which all the people of his land were fed. Gostomysl demanded that the magicians-prophetists interpret this dream for him. They said: a dream means that one of the sons of Umila will be his heir, and "the earth will be fertilized by his reign."

Before his death, Gostomysl gathered the elders from the Slavs, Rus, Chud, Vesi, Mary, Krivichi and Dregovichi, told them about his dream and advised them to send an embassy to the Varangians to ask for the prince. Gostomysl died in 860. Following his will, the Slavs of Novgorod, Krivichi, the tribes of Vesi and Chud in 862 sent an embassy overseas to the sons of his daughter Umila: Rurik (Rorik is a Slavic name, from the fiery bird Rarog), Sineus and Truvor, with the words: “Our land great and plentiful, but there is no order in it: come reign and rule over us. Thus, Rurik, the grandson of Gostomysl, was called to reign in the land of Novgorod, to whom Gostomysl, as the son of his middle daughter Umila, bequeathed the city of Ladoga back in 844.

Umila was married to a prince Slavic tribe bodily Godoslav (Godlv). It lived on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea. The capital of the tribe was the city of Ragon - the future Neusterlitz near the German Mecklenburg. Prince Godlav was killed by Gottfried of Denmark. Rurik had to leave his home and become a Varangian - a hired warrior - and wander for a long time in a foreign land.

According to The Tale of Bygone Years, Rurik first came to Ladoga, and a few years later he cut down Novgorod. But there is an opinion that Rurik. The Novgorod chronicle tells about this time: “In the fourth year of his reign, the great moved to Ilmen from the old city to the New City ...”. That is, the prince left Old city Ladoga and settled in Novgorod. But at that time there was no Novgorod yet. It emerged as a trading and craft center at the end of the 10th century. It is believed that Rurik did not leave Ladoga anywhere, and until his death, in 879, he ruled in it. The chroniclers, describing the events of two centuries ago, could not belittle the significance of the Lord Veliky Novgorod in the history of the state, and therefore wrote in their writings that legendary prince moved the princely table from Ladoga to the upper reaches of the Volkhov to the place where he later rose main city Novgorod feudal republic. Chronicle researchers note later insertions made by experienced editors on those pages that talk about the transfer of the capital to Novgorod.

In the photo: the painting "Rurik, Truvor and Sineus" by I. Glazunov

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Table “Immediate descendants of Rurik”

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