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Please place your
cursor over the individual names to see which are linked to descriptions and
charts. This chart continues the elaboration of the houses of the
princes of Yaroslavl. For anticedents in the house of Rostov please see
chart.
Yaroslavl is one of the more ancient of Russian cities founded by Yaroslav the
Wise around 1010. Archeological evidence shows the area was inhabited at least
from the 8th century and was an important trade and artisan settlement by
Finno-Ugric tribes. Then Yaroslav arrived and wiped out the existing
settlements in order to build his key post on the northern reach of the Volga.
Yaroslavl occupies a beautiful, commanding position on a high ridge dominating
the right bank fo the Volga at the mouth of the Kostrol river. (We have
extensive photography of the city in the web site section on Russian cities.)
This river flows north from the key agricultural region around Rostov. Thus
Yaroslavl is at a strategic location both to protect Rostov from the north and
to control trade traffic on the Volga. It also is in a good position from which
to exert influence into the far northern area of European Russia. From this
beginning Yaroslavl was directly connected with Kyivan Rus. Most likely it was
governed by a namestnik (lieutentant) sent from Kyiv. In the middle 11th
century it came into the control of the Rostov territorial princes. At that
time the town did not have an independent government but was still controled by
deputies, now sent from Rostov. Then it was part of the united grand
principality of Vladimir.
Only in 1207 was it separated as a 'votchina' as Vsyevolod Bolshoi Gnezdo
provided appanages for his sons. Yaroslavl fell to the lot of
Konstantin Vsyevolodovich. (See
chart) He gave it to his son,
Vsyevolod Konstantinovich in 1218. He was the first actual appanage prince
of the Yaroslavl principality. At this point the principality contained a very
large territory on both banks of the Volga and its tributaries, the Ukhota,
Mologa, Sutka, Cheremkha, Pazha, Kurbitsa, Kotorosl, and it included lands on
the lower reaches of the Sheksna and Inopasha. Already the town was a major
port for transport along the Volga and also a center of artisan crafts. In
February 1238 the town was taken by the Mongols. Vsyevolod Konstantinovich died
in the battle at the Siti River on 4 March. It then passed to his son,
Vasilii Vsyevolodovich. But this family dynasty
died out.
In a unique occurance, the group of Valdimir princes decided that rule of the
principality should go to the betrothed groom of Vasilii's daughter, Maria
Vasil'eyvna Yaroslavskaya, who was Fedor Rostislavich Cherni, younger son of
the powerful ruler of Smolensk. Then, unexpectedly, in 1278, on the death of
his father at the Horde, Fedor received also Smolensk. But he could not
continue to rule two so separated principalities. Apparently it was about this
time that Fedor's first wife, Maria, because of whom he had received the right
to Yaroslavl, died and he married a daughter of the powerful Mongol prince and
general, Nogai. At the start of the 14th century there were anti-Tatar
uprisings throughout northeast Rus, including Yaroslavl. This principality
began to decline. Mikhail and Konstantin Fedorovich died without heirs. The
entire votchina of Yaroslavl passed to David
Fedorovich, whose mother was the Mongol princess, Anna, daughter of the famous
warrior general, Nogai. David divided it for his sons, giving Vasilii Grozni
the main region around Yaroslavl and Mikhail the north-western region with
capital at Mologa. This soon formed a separate principality. We follow the
family on David's side with separate charts for each of his three grandsons,
Vasilii, Gleb and Roman. On Mikhail's side the family held together around
Mologa sufficiently so one diagram will show all the princes.
About 1321 prince David Fedorovich began to divide
his votchina amongst his sons. He gave his youngest son, Mikhail, Mologa, which from then on in practice gained
its independence from Yaroslavl. About this time the principality also came
into the interests of the Muscovite princes who started interfering with
internal affairs. In 1332 Ivan I Kalita obtained the khan's order and brought a
Tatar army to storm Yaroslavl and burn it. A few years later
Ivan I married the Yaroslavl prince,
Vasilii Davidovich Groznii to his own daughter,
Yevdokia and became in practice the real khozain of the city.
Vasilii Davidovich tried to regain freedom from Moscow by entering into
alliance with Tver and Beloozero, but under Ivan I's orders was required by the
Khan to cease anti-Muscovite politics. From then on Yaroslavl was a subordinate
ally of Moscow, although retaining its princes. It sent its troops to support
Muscovite military campaigns. After the death of Ivan I in 1345, Moscow
interfered in Yaroslavl all the more. Although beginning with Vasilii
Davidovich the ruling prince of the house at Yaroslavl began to use the title
"grand prince", in actuality he was subordinate to Moscow. The
internal social situation in Yaroslavl and the relationship with the Tatars
also enabled Moscow to strengthen its control over Yaroslavl. In the second
quarter of the 15th century
In 1463 Ivan III required the Yaroslavl prince, Aleksandr Fedorovich Brukhatii,
to sign an aggrement on the future fransfer of Yaroslavl to Moscow and from
then on Moscow sent its namenstniks to govern.
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