Yurii Soroka - 100 Key Ukrainian Personalities

“And the Drevlians tell her, “We have been sent by the Drevlian land to tell you this: your husband was killed since he stole from us and robbed us as a wolf. And our princes are kind as they have made our land rich. So marry our prince, our Mal”.

However, the proposal was fatal both for Mal himself and his embassy. Olha ordered to kill ambassadors and then set off to the Drevlian lands and burnt Iskorosten’ down.

“And Olha ordered her soldiers to catch them. And when she took the town, she burnt it down. And she burnt down the elders, killing other people as well”.

Later, Olha continued Kyivan princes’ foreign policy whose foundations were laid by Askold and Dir. First of all, it was, strengthening the relations with the Byzantine Empire. It is known that in 946 and in 957 Olha visited Tsargorod and the chronicles inform us about the visits in detail. Two pacts were signed between the allies then according to which Kyivan warriors were to serve the Emperor and Byzantium was to pay a tribute to Rus’ for that. During one of the visits to Tsargorod, Princess Olha was solemnly baptized. She was baptized by the Orthodox patriarch. The ritual was held in the Sophia Cathedral, the main cathedral in the Empire. Historians believe that the next Olha’s step might have been the introduction of Cristianity in Rus’ but due to unknown reasons, it did not happen.

As chronicles say, Olha transferred the reign to her son, Sviatoslav, in 964. Some researchers think that it was done under the pressure of Sviatoslav himself who was considered an ardent Pagan. That version also accounts for Olha’s unsuccessful attempt to introduce Christianity in Rus’. Olha died in 969 in Kyiv and the church chronicle registered that.

Olha’s Revenge on Drevlians’ idols. Print by F. Bruni

Historians have been depicting Sviatoslav Ihorovych as a hero-conqueror and an ascetic warrior. Although there is some logic there, it should be noted that foreign military campaigns did not prevent Sviatoslav from caring about his native country.

The Tale of Bygone Years presents a lively romantic portrait of Sviatoslav-

“When Prince Sviatoslav grew up and matured, he started gathering a lot of brave warriors. And he himself was brave and with easy gait like a leopard. And he fought a lot of wars. And he took neither any carts with him, nor pots, and did not boil any meat. He thinly cut some horsemeat, or game, or veal and broiled it and ate. And he had no tent but laid down in a numdah and put a saddle under his head. And all his warriors did the same. And he sent them to other lands saying, “I want to fight against you”.

Sviatoslav. Probably, portrait of Sviatoslav Ihorovych from the Title reference book. XVII century

Since the very beginning of Sviatoslav’s reign, Kyivan Rus’ declared to its enemies nearby that it was ruled by a warrior who did not only preserve what had been gained by his predecessors but also essentially expanded and strengthened all the gains. During his two victorious campaigns of 965 and 968, Sviatoslav practically destroyed the Khazar Khaganate that had been a constant threat to Kyiv. Similar successful was observed in Sviatoslav’s campaign against Byzantium and Bulgaria, its vassal, in 968–971. In 971, surrounded in Dorostol, a Bulgarian town, Sviatoslav showed his talent as a capable politician by signing a peace treaty with Emperor John Tzimiskes, which was rather beneficial for Kyiv. According to the peace treaty, the Rusiches were granted the right to leave the town armed and get some food for their return home.

Sviatoslav. Prince’s emblem

Historians of different periods portrayed Sviatoslav in detail, ascribing the traits of a real warrior and politician to him. One of the best known is the descriptions of Sviatoslav’s appearance by Leo Deacon, a Byzantine chronicler of the tenth century-

“There appeared Sviatoslav who sailed by the river on a Scythian boat. He was sitting and rowing together with his warriors just like one of them. His appearance was like this: he was neither tall, nor short, with bushy eyebrows and blue eyes, he was snub-nosed and clearly-shaven. He had long moustache above his upper lip. His head was shaven but on the one side there was hanging a strand of hair – a sign of noble origin. His neck was thick, his chest was broad and other parts of his body were quite presentable but he looked gloomy and wild. In one ear he was wearing a golden earring with a diamond and two pearls. His clothes were white and differed from the clothes of his warriors only by their cleanness. Sitting in the boat, he spoke with the emperor about state affairs and left”.

Taking that evidence into consideration, one cannot but draw a parallel between the Prince’s appearance and that of his descendants – Ukrainian Cossacks. M. Hrushevsky referred to Sviatoslav as “the first Zaporizhzhian on the Kyivan throne” or “a Spartan of Ancient Rus’”.

In March, 972, Sviatoslav perished in the battle against the Pechenegs on the island of Khortitsa. It is known that Kurya, the Pecheneg Khan made a wine cup from his skull. For us, Sviatoslav remains a model of courage, honesty, and stamina of a great military leader of Rus’.

І. Akimov. Great Prince Sviatoslav kisses his mother and children on returning from the Danube to Kyiv

Prince Volodymyr, known to our contemporaries as Baptizer of Kyivan Rus’, was a son of Sviatoslav Ihorovych by a woman whom the chronicles named as a slave housekeeper at Princess Olha’s court. Her name was Malka, or Malusha. As O. Shakhmatov, a Russian scholar of the late XIX century, believes, Malka was a daughter of Drevlian Prince Mal, the organizer of Ihor’s murder. However, there is no proof of Shakhmatov’s version, while The Tale of Bygone Years reports that “Malka’s father was Malko from Lubech”.

Volodymyr the Great. A portrait from the Title reference book, XVII century

When still little, Volodymyr was appointed the governor of Novgorod. Dobrynia, who evidently, was Malka’s brother, was appointed Regent for the minor Prince. In 977 there began a fight among Sviatoslav’s sons for the power in Kyivan Rus. It was then that Yaropolk, the oldest brother killed Oleh, the younger brother, and after that, Volodymyr hired some Norman warriors and went to Kyiv. In that feud, Yaropolk was killed and Volodymyr came to the prince’s throne in Kyiv. As Nestor Chornoryasnyk informs in his chronicle, it happened in 980-

“…And Volodymyr began to reign in Kyiv alone. And he put some idols on the hill behind the yard of his palace: a wooden statue of Perun with a silver head and golden moustache. And Hors, and Dazhboh, and Stryboh, and Simargl, and Mokosh…”

Prince Volodymyr began his state activities by making Southern Slav tribes join Kyiv. Those tribes had not been a part of Kyivan Rus’ or had left it after Yaropolk’s death. In 981, Volodymyr organized his first military campaign against the Croatians and the Dulebes. Then the uprisings of the Viatiches and Radymyches were suppressed. With that, the building of Rus’ was mainly completed. Thus, Prince Volodymyr could focus on state reforms. By Volodymyr’s order, all tribe chieftains were substituted by governors from the prince’s closest circle. Some new laws were adopted, the Law on Land is considered the main one among them. Volodymyr paid special attention to defending the borders of Kyivan Rus’ from the attacks of the tribes of Yatviags and Volga Bulgars.