turned southeast, thus leaving northwest Russia free. What are now
known as the Baltic Provinces, was at that time covered with dense
forests, inhabited by the Finns or Suomi, the Tchouds, Jmouds, and
Lithuanians, all of the same race and speaking the same language, but
constantly at war with one another. In the 13th century a chief named
Mindvog, after killing his brothers and sons, united the tribes, and
made himself master of Lithuania. He then invaded Russia whose dukes,
suffering under the Tartar yoke, were unable to withstand him. He
captured Grodno and Novogredek, when he was confronted by Alexander
Nevsky and Daniel of Volhynia in front, and by the Knights of Livonia
in his rear. In this extremity Mindvog sent to the Pope promising that
he would be converted in return for his good services. Pope Innocent
IV replied by sending a papal legate to Grodno, where Mindvog and his
wife were baptized, and he was made King of Lithuania (1252). Soon
after he had a dispute with the Livonian Knights to whom he was forced
to cede the country of the Jmouds. He again became a pagan and, marching
against the Knights, defeated them. Upon his return from this (p. 080)
expedition, he was murdered by a chief named Dovmont whom he had
injured. Lithuania again fell into anarchy until another enterprising
chief named Gedimin restored order in 1315.
Gedimin invaded Russia, defeated a Russo-Tartar army in 1321, and took
Tchernigof and Vladimir. He then went south, where the Russian cities
readily opened their gates to him, hoping for relief from the Mongol
yoke. He took the old capital Kief, and there had his sons baptized in
the Greek church and tried to marry them into the families of Russian
dukes. He established his capital at Wilna where he attracted many
German artists and mechanics by granting them special privileges. He
died a pagan, in 1340, dividing his country among his sons and his
brother.
One of his sons, Olgerd, succeeded in getting possession of the whole,
and then started upon a career of conquest. He first attacked
Novgorod, where one of his brothers had taken refuge, and made
conquests east and south, until he reached the Black Sea. Although he
was a pagan, Simeon the Proud, Grand Duke of Moscow, gave him his
daughter; but this did not prevent Olgerd from waging war with
Simeon's successors. In 1368, he defeated the Tartars of the Lower
Dnieper, and destroyed Cherson in the Crimea.
When he died he followed Gedimin's example by dividing his territories
among his sons, but one of them, Jagellon, became sole ruler by
putting his brothers to flight and his uncle to death. At this time
the Russian language was adopted and with it the Greek Church,
although Jagellon was still a pagan. When he married Hedwiga, the (p. 081)
heiress to the Kingdom of Poland, he embraced the Roman Catholic
church; in 1386, he went to Cracow, where he was crowned King of
Poland, and soon after gave orders that his people must join the same
church, converting them as Vladimir had introduced Christianity among
the people of Kief. Jagellon made Cracow his capital. Some time
afterwards one of his cousins, Vitovt, raised a revolt against him in
Lithuania, and Jagellon was compelled to cede that territory to him.
Thus Vitovt became Grand Duke of Lithuania.
Vitovt married the sister of Vassili, Grand Duke of Moscow, and
extended his domain toward the east. He invaded Smolensk, whose Grand
Duke Sviatoslaf, when fighting in Russia, had taken a delight in
impaling and burning alive Russian women and children. That savage had
been killed in 1387, in a battle with the Lithuanians, and his son had
succeeded him. Vitovt, before Smolensk, invited this prince and his
brothers to visit him in his tent. They accepted and were warmly
received, but when they were ready to depart, they were told that they
were prisoners of war. Smolensk was taken by surprise, and pillaged.
Vitovt contemplated the conquest of Russia. His territory bordered in
the east on Souzdal and Riazan. He had defeated an army of Tartars in
the south, and was making preparations for a bold stroke. Collecting
an army of Lithuanians, Poles, Russians, and five hundred Knights of
the Teutonic Order, he set out from Kief and came upon the Tartar army
near Pultowa where, in 1399, he suffered a serious defeat. He
recovered from this blow, and after some time began a war with the
Teutonic Order which he defeated in 1410, at the battle of the (p. 082)
Tannenberg. He thereupon re-annexed the Jmoud country.
Vitovt had given up his designs upon Russia; he planned to raise
Lithuania into a kingdom, and to have a Metropolitan of its own,
instead of being dependent upon the head of the Greek Church at
Moscow. He succeeded in the last-named object, but met with a check in
the former, and, as he was eighty years old, the disappointment caused
an illness from which he died, in 1430. After his death, Lithuania had
no more influence upon Russia. Sometimes it had a grand duke of its
own, at other times it was united with Poland. In 1501, it became the
property of the King of Poland, who added to his title that of Grand
Duke of Lithuania. Its nobles spoke the Polish language.
It was necessary to sketch in a few words the history of Lithuania,
not only because it is part of Russia to-day, but because it has
always been claimed by Russia. The history of that country, however,
from the beginning of the 14th century, is centered about Muscovia,
the territory of the Grand Duke of Moscow. At the time of the
Lithuanian conquest, Muscovia was bounded on the north by Tver, on the
east by Souzdal, on the south by Riazan, and on the west by Lithuania.
It belonged to Alexander Nevski, who at his death left it to his son
Daniel. Its area was increased by him by the towns of Peréiaslaf,
Zabiesski and Kolomna. Daniel died in 1303, and was buried in the
church of St. Michael the Archangel, which remained the burial place
of the Muscovite princes until the time of Peter the Great.
The next grand duke was Daniel's son George, whose first act was (p. 083)
to capture the Duke of Smolensk from whom he took the town of Mojaïsk.
In 1304 the Grand Duke of Souzdal died. Michael of Tver claimed the
succession as the eldest of the family, but George of Moscow contested
it. Michael was supported by the boyards of Vladimir and the people of
Novgorod; the khan at Saraï also declared in his favor, and Michael
was installed. George, however, was not satisfied and began a war; he
was defeated in battle, and twice besieged in Moscow. Suddenly he
heard that the khan was dead; he hastened to Saraï, and there made
friends with the new Khan Uzbeck, who gave him his sister Kontchaka in
marriage, and ordered that George should have possession of Souzdal.
He returned to Moscow with a Tartar army and Michael, considering the
odds, proposed to cede Vladimir on condition that his own patrimony of
Tver should remain intact. George refused, and the war broke out anew.
Michael defeated him and captured Kontchaka and the Tartar general,
but he released his prisoners, and the dispute was again brought
before the khan. George took good care to be at Saraï, and having
ample means at his disposal from his poll-tax collecting, distributed
bribes right and left. Michael, confident in the justice of his cause,
committed the mistake of sending his twelve-year-old son in charge of
high boyards, to represent him; but when he was informed of George's
methods, he, too, proceeded to Saraï, after making his will. Upon his
arrival, he was accused of having drawn his sword upon the Khan's
envoy, and of having poisoned Kontchaka. Uzbeck would not even listen
to such absurd complaints, but George invented other falsehoods, (p. 084)
and at last Michael was arrested. The khan went on a hunting trip in
the Caucasus, and the wretched Duke of Tver was dragged after him in
chains. One day he was put in the pillory in the market of a populous
town, where the people crowded around him to look at the man who, a
short time before, was a powerful prince in his own country. Michael's
boyards urged him to escape, but he dreaded the khan's vengeance upon
his family and people. George increased his bribes, and thus secured
the order that Michael should be put to death.
One of Michael's pages came to the tent occupied by him, and told him
that George and a Tartar general were approaching. "I know what their
object is," said the unfortunate duke. He at once sent his young son
to one of the khan's wives, who had promised to protect the child. The
two men came to the tent and ordered the Tver boyards to leave. Hired
assassins were called in, and a Russian ruffian named Romanetz stabbed
the unfortunate duke. When George and the Tartar entered, they saw the
nude corpse; it had been despoiled. The Tartar was shocked. "What!" he
cried, "Will you allow the body of your uncle to be outraged!" George
only smiled; but one of his attendants threw a cloak over the murdered
man.
When Michael's children grew up, one of his sons, Dmitri of the
Terrible Eyes, secured some friends at the khan's court. He obtained
the title of grand duke, and a baskak received orders to install him.
When George heard this, he hurried to Saraï; there the two men met, and
Dmitri, drawing his sword, killed his father's murderer (1325). (p. 085)
Dmitri was arrested and put to death by order of the khan, but his
brother Alexander was permitted to succeed him at Tver.
This duke was in sympathy with the people. Suffering under the
oppression of the Tartar tax collectors, the people revolted under the
leadership of Alexander. The palace of the baskak was attacked, and he
and his attendants were killed. Uzbeck, incited by Ivan Kalita,
George's brother and successor at Moscow, prepared to take revenge,
when Ivan volunteered to punish Tver, as well as Riazan and Novgorod
which had given evidence of sympathy. The offer was accepted, and Ivan
at the head of a Muscovite army reënforced by 50,000 Tartars marched
upon the doomed city. Alexander and his brothers fled. Tver and two
other cities were sacked, the Duke of Riazan was put to death, and
Novgorod had to pay a heavy fine. Ivan thought that his services would
procure him Tver and Riazan, but Uzbeck did not intend to extend the
power of the treacherous family, and Constantine, another son of
Michael, was made Duke of Tver. He and Ivan went to Saraï, where the
latter was ordered to bring Alexander before the khan. The prince had
found an asylum in Pskof, where Ivan's messengers appeared to demand
his surrender. The envoys urged him to give himself up under the plea
"not to expose a Christian people to the wrath of the infidels." The
people of Pskof thought otherwise. "Do not go to the Horde, my lord,"
said they; "whatever happens, we will die with you." Alexander refused
to obey the summons, and the people of Pskof began to construct a
new fort. Ivan Kalita, the Grand Duke of Moscow, persuaded the (p. 086)
Metropolitan to place Alexander and Pskof under the ban of the Church,
which was done. We see here a Christian prince persecuting a relative,
and a Christian priest excommunicating a Christian people,--all to
please an infidel conqueror! Still the people of Pskof refused to
yield, but Alexander left the city and took refuge in Lithuania. Then
Pskof informed Ivan of his departure, saying, "Alexander is gone; all
Pskof swears it, from the smallest to the greatest, popes,[10] monks,
nuns, orphans, women, and children." (1329.)
[Footnote 10: Priests.]
Some years afterwards an attempt was made by Alexander to recover
Tver. He went to Saraï with some of his boyards. There he made
submission. "Lord, all-powerful Czar," he said, "if I have done
anything against you, I have come hither to receive of you life or
death. Do as God inspires you; I am ready for either." Uzbeck pardoned
him and Alexander returned to Tver. This did not please Ivan Kalita,
who knew that he was hated everywhere, and that his enemies only
needed a leader. He went to Saraï where he told Uzbeck that Alexander
was a very dangerous enemy to the Tartars. Alexander was summoned to
appear and when he complied, he was arrested, condemned to death, and
beheaded.
X--DECLINE OF THE TARTAR POWER. (p. 087)
DMITRI DONSKOI.
Crafty and unscrupulous, the grand dukes of Moscow were feared by
their neighbors. Ivan Kalita, as farmer of the poll-tax, grew
immensely wealthy. He collected a double tax from Novgorod, which the
republic, although allied with Lithuania, dared not refuse. He bought
several towns, besides land in the neighborhood of Vladimir, Rostof,
and Kostroma. His title was still Grand Duke of Vladimir, but Moscow
was the real capital. Ivan took very good care to stand well with the
Church. He built convents and churches, and never went out without an
alms-bag or _kalita_ to give money to the poor; hence his surname. The
seat of the Metropolitan was still at Vladimir, but he often came to
Moscow, and finally moved there; so that it became also the capital of
the Church. It is reported that the Metropolitan said to Ivan, "God
will bless you and raise you above all other dukes, and this city
above all other cities. Your house will reign in this place during
many centuries; their hands will conquer all their enemies; the saints
will make their dwelling here, and here my bones shall rest."
When Ivan with the Alms-bag died in 1341, he left the bulk of his (p. 088)
possessions to his eldest son Simeon, and gave only small estates to
his other children; he also forbade that Moscow's territory should be
divided. His body was scarcely in the grave before the dukes of Tver
and Souzdal were on the way to Saraï to claim the grand dukedom of
Vladimir; they were supported by other dukes who disliked and dreaded
the Muscovite family. Simeon hurried after them, well provided with
some of his father's treasure. He used it so well, that he received
the iarlikh, and was installed at Vladimir. Servile toward the khan,
he was overbearing toward the other Russian dukes, which procured for
him the surname of the Proud. He was the first to assume the title of
Grand Duke of all the Russias; and, acting in that capacity, he
graciously confirmed the charter of Novgorod, for which he demanded
and obtained payment. Simeon died in 1353 of the "black death," a
pestilence which was imported from Asia.
Great changes were taking place at Saraï, in the Khan of the Golden
Horde. Its power was broken by internal discord, when Mourout, the
legal heir of Bati, was attacked by a rival Mamaï, who succeeded in
establishing himself at Saraï. Simeon was succeeded by his brother,
Ivan II, an easy-going, good-natured man whose reign of six years did
not increase the influence of Moscow. At his death, in 1359, he left
several minor children, the oldest of whom was Dmitri, a boy of
twelve. Dmitri of Souzdal went to Saraï--and secured the iarlikh,
which made him Grand Duke of Vladimir, but Alexis, the Metropolitan,
was loyal to Ivan's children, and appealed to the khan in the name of
his young ward. Mourout, the heir of Bati, declared in his favor, (p. 090)
and young Dmitri was taken to Vladimir escorted by an army, and
installed. (1363.)
[Illustration: Dmitri Donskoï]
The appointment was disputed by the dukes of Tver, Souzdal, and
Riazan. Dmitri of Souzdal held an iarlikh from Mourout's opponent, and
tried to enter in Vladimir, but was expelled. The Metropolitan
excommunicated the opponents of Ivan's son, who held the fort as Grand
Duke. Young Dmitri made war upon the Duke of Tver, and after a seven
years' struggle (1368-1375), compelled him to renounce his claims.
Dmitri was summoned before the Khan, in 1371. He went but what he saw
at Saraï convinced him that the Tartars were no longer able to uphold
their authority. He did not hesitate to engage in a struggle with
Riazan, although it was supported by a Tartar army. Thereafter, when
orders arrived from the khan, Dmitri ignored them. In 1376, he sent a
large army to Kazan on the Volga, and forced two Mongol chiefs to pay
tribute. Two years later, in 1378, a battle was fought between Dmitri
and one of Mamaï's generals in Riazan, when the Tartars were defeated,
which made the grand duke exclaim: "Their time is come, and God is
with us!" The khan sent an army to ravage Riazan, and made
preparations to reëstablish his authority at Moscow.
To make sure of success, Mamaï took two years to collect an immense
army and to mature his plans. This could not remain secret to the
Russians, who, aroused by Dmitri, laid aside their private feuds to
make common cause against the infidels. A large number of dukes
assembled at Moscow, and even the Lithuanians promised to send (p. 091)
troops to Kostroma where the Russian army was gathering. The
Metropolitan assured Dmitri of the victory, and sent two monks to go
with the troops. Making the sign of the Cross on their cowls, he said,
"Behold a weapon which faileth never!"
Russia was united against the Mongol; all the dukes, with the
exception of those of Tver and Riazan, lent their aid. These two
dreaded Moscow's power, and the Duke of Riazan tried to conclude an
alliance with Jagellon of Lithuania and Mamaï.
Dmitri, at the head of an army estimated at 150,000 men, marched
through Riazan to the Don where the Tartars were drawn up, awaiting
the reinforcements of their ally Jagellon, who was still fifteen
leagues distant. Dmitri resolved to fight the Tartars before a
junction could be effected. He crossed the Don and met the enemy on
the plain of Koulikovo,--the Field of the Woodcocks,--where a furious
battle was fought. It was decided by a sudden attack upon the Tartars
from an ambush, which threw them into a panic. The Tartars were
routed; Mamaï's camp, his chariots and camels, were all captured.
Dmitri was found in a swoon from loss of blood. He was surnamed
Donskoï, in honor of this victory. (1380.)
It seemed as if the end of the Mongol yoke had come, when another
great leader appeared among them. Tamerlane, after conquering Bokhara,
Hindostan, Iran, and Asia Minor, entered Europe, and ordered Mamaï to
be put to death. He summoned Dmitri Donskoï to appear before him, and
received a curt refusal. Tamerlane sent one of his generals with
an immense army to Moscow, and Dmitri, not finding the former (p. 092)
support, went to Kostroma to collect troops. The Tartars appeared
before Moscow, which they tried to carry by assault but failed. They
pretended to enter into negotiations, when they surprised the gates
and Moscow was delivered up to fire and sword. It is said that 24,000
inhabitants were slaughtered. Vladimir and other towns suffered the
same fate.
It is told that Dmitri wept when he saw the charred remains of his
capital after the Tartars had withdrawn. There was nothing for it but
to make peace with the khan, and once more the Tartar tax gatherers
went their rounds. But Dmitri's heart was sore against the Dukes of
Tver and Riazan who had abetted Mamaï, and Novgorod, which had used
the opportunity of Moscow's distress to plunder some of its towns.
After the country had sufficiently recovered, he compelled the Duke of
Riazan to conclude "a perpetual peace," and Novgorod paid an indemnity
besides agreeing to an annual tribute.
When Dmitri died in 1389, he left Moscow the most powerful of Russian
dukedoms. He was succeeded by his eldest son Vassili, with the consent
of his cousin Vladimir, who was the eldest of the family. Vassili
mentioned Novgorod as "his patrimony," and acted as if the republic
was his private property. He visited Saraï in 1392, and while there
bought an iarlikh, which placed him in possession of Souzdal, Nishni
Novgorod, and Mourom. In 1393, the people of Novgorod revolted, but
Vassili's army convinced them that the republic was fast losing its
former power.
At this time Tamerlane, dissatisfied with his generals, arrived in
Europe and after pillaging the Golden Horde, moved westward, (p. 093)
spreading ruin and desolation. He drew near to Moscow, where the
famous eikon of the Virgin was taken in solemn procession, when the
Tartar army stopped and turned to the south, where Azof, Astrakhan,
and Saraï, were plundered and destroyed. (1395.) After Tamerlane's
withdrawal, Vassili pretended not to know to whom to pay the
tribute,--and so paid none at all. The Tartars under Ediger marched
upon Moscow to collect it, but the city was bravely defended and
Ediger, fearing an invasion from Asia, agreed to accept a ransom of
3000 rubles, which was paid by the boyards.
More dangerous were the attacks of Vitovt of Lithuania, Vassili's
father-in-law, who marched three times against Moscow. Both Vitovt and
Vassili were indisposed to risk a decisive battle, fearing that, if
defeated, their enemies would despoil them. In 1408 a treaty was
signed whereby the Ouger was made the frontier between them. This gave
Smolensk to Lithuania, and Kozelsk to Moscow.
Vassili extended his territory, and with it his name; one of his
daughters married the Byzantine Emperor, John Palaeologus. At his
death, in 1425, he left his territory to his son Vassili, the Blind,
whose title was contested by his uncle George, on the ground of being
the eldest of the family. The dispute was submitted to the khan, in
1431. Both sides humbled themselves, but the argument of Vassili's
boyards prevailed. "My Lord Czar," they said to the khan, "let us
speak,--us, the slaves of the grand duke. Our master, the grand duke,
prays for the throne of the grand dukedom, which is your property, (p. 094)
having no other title but your protection, your investiture, and your
iarlikh. You are master and can dispose of it according to your good
pleasure. My Lord, the Duke George, his uncle, claims the grand
dukedom by the act and will of his father, but not as a favor from the
all-powerful." Vassili the Blind, was the first grand duke to be
crowned at Moscow instead of at Vladimir.
His reign was disturbed by constant wars with his uncle, and
afterwards with his cousins. In 1446 he was taken prisoner by one of
the latter, who ordered his eyes to be put out. In 1450, peace was
restored when the second son of George died of poison. Notwithstanding
the loss of his sight Vassili displayed considerable energy in
reëstablishing his authority. Novgorod was forced to pay another
indemnity, and to give a written promise that in future all deeds
would be void unless stamped with the seal of the grand duke.
The most remarkable incident of Vassili's reign was the Council at
Florence, Italy, in 1449, where delegates of the Roman and Greek
Churches tried to effect a union. There were seventeen Metropolitans,
among them Isidore of Moscow, who signed the Act of Union. When
Isodore returned and declared what he had done, a great opposition
appeared. Vassili himself insulted the Metropolitan, who fled to Rome.
In 1453, Mahomet II captured Constantinople when a host of priests,
monks, artists, and learned men fled from the extinct Byzantine
Empire, to find an asylum in Russia.
While nothing resulted from the Council of Florence, owing to the
opposition of members of the Greek Church, the fall of Constantinople
left a deep impression upon Russia, which chose to consider itself (p. 095)
as the heir to the Byzantine Empire. More than this, the influence of
the men who found a refuge in Russia, served to inoculate the country
of their adoption with the semi-oriental civilization which had
distinguished Constantinople from Western Europe. The time, too, was
propitious. Russia was gradually recovering from the blow of Tartar
rule, which had marred its progress during two centuries. Here was,
therefore, to all intent and purposes, a virgin soil, which promised
to yield a rich harvest to whatever principles were planted in it. It
might even regenerate the decaying elements of the Byzantine
civilization.
[Illustration: Ivan III] (p. 096)
XI--IVAN III, THE GREAT. (p. 097)