Читать книгу 100 Key Ukrainian Personalities - Юрий Сорока - Страница 9

Yaroslav, a son of Volodymyr Sviatoslavych, who was called the Wise for his balanced state policy, was born late in the tenth century. The Prince’s mother was Rognida, a Polotsk princess. As his other eleven brothers, he began to take part in ruling over Rus’ when he was little – already in 988, by his father’s order, he was appointed the governor of Rostov and later, when his elder brother died, in Novgorod. The chronicle runs as follows-

“…put Yaroslav to reign in Rostov and when the elder brother, Vysheslav, died in Novgorod, sent Yaroslav there…”.

Yaroslav the Wise. A portrait from the Title reference book, XVII century

It is known that in 1014, Yaroslav gave up paying the tribute to Kyiv and Volodymyr even began to organize campaign against the disobedient son. But the prince’s death prevented another feud. It was Yaroslav, who started it and five years later, after a severe struggle for Kyiv and the death of his brothers Borys, Hlib, Sviatopolk and Sviatoslav, Yaroslav got what he wanted. While fighting for the throne, he had to oppose Yaroslav the Brave, a Polish Prince who had supported Sviatopolk.

Prince’s emblem of Yaroslav the Wise

On the whole, the reign of Yaroslav the Wise was a peak period of Kyivan Rus’. He strengthened the borders and established contacts with many European countries. Yaroslav attended a lot to state building. By his orders, Christianity spread, and the chroniclers called him God-Preserved and God-Wise. Monasteries were founded, churches and cathedrals were built, sciences flourished. The Tale of Bygone years testifies-

“Yaroslav liked books and having copied many of them, he placed them in Saint Sophia Church”.

Yaroslav Volodymyrovych’s seal, found in Novgorod

That brief note informs us of Yaroslav the Wise’s legendary library that has been raising historians’ interest. Some scholars devoted a number of years to search for the library but it has never been found. Some people believe that the library perished, when the Mongolian Tatars attacked Kyiv in December, 1240, others think that it was distributed among different book collections after Yaroslav’s death. Quite recently, there appeared a version that it was hidden in the dungeons of Mezhigorsky monastery. Still the information has not been proved.

The period of Yaroslav the Wise’s reign featured the beginning of work on the norms of law in ancient Rus’. The work resulted in compiling the so-called Yaroslav’s Pravda, the earliest part of Rus’ka Pravda. Yaroslav’s ramified international relations were supported by his family members’ marriages to the representatives of the ruling dynasties of the Western European countries. Besides the well-known marriage of Princess Anna to the King of France, Yelizaveta, a daughter of Yaroslav, became Queen of Norway, Anastasiya – Queen of Hungary. Polish Prince, Kazimir, married Yaroslav’s sister, Dobroneha, and so was connected with Kyivan Rus’ by the dynasty marriage.

Yaroslav the Wise died in 1054 and was buried in Sophia cathedral in Kyiv. There is an entry in The Tale of Bygone Years about that-

“Yaroslav, the Prince of Rus’, died. When he was still alive, he gathered his sons together and told them, “Now that I leave this world and you, my sons, live in love for each other since you all are brothers and have the same father and the same mother…”

Monument to Yaroslav the Wise. Kyiv