Very little news has reached us from history.pre-Christian Russia. But what we know is of particular interest to lovers of antiquity. One of the well-studied facts is the Drevlian uprising, which occurred during the reign of Prince Igor. What caused it and what consequences did it have for the country? Let's see.
Prehistory
The revolt of the Drevlyane in 945 g was not spontaneous.It had good reasons. When the Prophetic Oleg entered Kiev, he slowly began to subjugate all the tribes living in the neighborhood of the capital. The Slavic tribe of the Drevlyane at that time was a semi-savage people (according to the Tale of Bygone Years). They ate everything, did not condemn the murders, did not use the practice of marriages. However, they had a prince or leader who ruled their lives. Having conquered the Drevlyane, Oleg besieged them with a tribute, but he did not touch the local authorities. The tribute was called Polyudya and she gathered in November. When this time came, the Russian squad on the forehead with the Kiev prince went to the conquered tribes and wintered at them. That is, they were on the full content of the common people. And with the onset of spring, the army returned to the capital.
Prince Igor
The revolt of the Drevlyane occurred during the reign.Prince Igor, who ascended the throne after the death of Oleg. The new ruler of the old Russian state needed money: it was necessary to pay tribute to the Khazars, and his squad increased due to the Varangian troops. Drevlyans and uglichi rose to fight with Kiev. Only three years later, Igor defeated the rebels (year 945). The revolt of the Drevlians brutally strangled Varangian troops under the command of Sveneld, and the prince increased the tribute. Perhaps the Vikings and their leader received the right to dispose of the collected money.
Death of the prince of Kiev
But Prince Igor appears to be a mercenary man.and greedy, because he is returning after the field, taking with him only a small detachment (so as not to share with the Vikings). And this had fatal consequences for him. The new revolt of the Drevlyane was inevitable: the people were exhausted from the huge tribute, and the prince himself seemed to them easy prey. They decided to kill him so that he would not destroy them later, like a wolf flock of sheep, dragging them one by one. Under the leadership of Prince Mala, the Drevlyans left Korosten, their capital (maybe they were not so wild, once lived in cities?) And killed those who came. Igor himself was tied to two trees and torn to pieces. Interestingly, the Byzantine historian Leo Deacon reports that the Kiev prince died during the campaign against the Germans, but his death also came: Igor was tied to the trunks of bent plants and released. The body was brought home and buried under Korosten.
Duchess Olga
The revolt of the Drevlyane was caused by the iniquity of Igor,therefore, they considered the killing of a prince to be fair. However, Olga, who ruled instead of her minor son Svyatoslav, thought otherwise. She gathered veche, but which was decided to take revenge on the rebels, because the country was left without a ruler. However, the princess, unlike her late husband, was distinguished by intelligence, ingenuity and prudence, so she thought out the plan for revenge to the smallest detail.
When Mal sent the matchmakers to the princess (they say that weyours were killed, because he retreated from the established order, but we are good), he proposed to unite forces and create a single state. Here you can see that under the command of Mal a whole union of tribes acted, and not one semi-feral group. In addition, historians have found the capital of the Drevlian prince - the city of Malin.
Revenge of the Grieved Widow
Olga was eager for revenge, as custom demanded.Then she will accept Christianity and will be proclaimed holy and equal to the apostles. And then she worshiped the gods who demanded retribution, an eye for an eye. She invited the Drevlian ambassadors to her, and when they arrived, they demanded to carry them in boats. The enraged princess performed their will, but the porters threw the boat with people into the pit, where they were bombarded with live earth. Then Olga demanded that other ambassadors, fifty men from the Drevlian family, come to her. But she also killed these ambassadors: they were burned in a bathhouse.
But that was not enough for her, and Olgasent to the Drevlyane itself, ostensibly to cope with the treasury. She asked to make a feast, to which they agreed. Arriving with a small detachment, the princess ordered to pour a high barrow and arrange a banquet. But when the Drevlians got drunk, her team chopped everyone. Chronicler names about five thousand people! After which the princess calmly returned to Kiev.
A year has passed, and the Kiev princess is gathering troops,to finally conquer the rebels. But Korosten, they could not take. Then Olga again took advantage of the trick, promising that she would lift the siege in return for a tribute. What she demanded brought laughter to the Drevlians: three sparrows and three pigeons from each yard. The besieged gladly executed her will. But the princess ordered to tie embers to the birds and let them go. And the birds immediately rushed home to their nests. The fire started in the city. Olga punished those people who survived with a heavy tribute, which was divided into two parts. Most came to Kiev, and the smaller - to Vyshgorod, where the princess lived. This is how the Drevlian uprising ended!
Epilogue
Нужно отдать Ольге честь - она хорошо исполнила your widow's debt. Although the story says that the Drevlians were right, the princess avenged her husband, the father of her only son. And at that time, if she did not do this, she would not be considered a worthy relative, she would be despised in her own environment.
But Olga went further:Drevlian uprising (year 945) was crushed, and their capital was wiped off the face of the earth. However, the princess learned her lesson, because the following year she established the rules and procedures for collecting tribute throughout the country. She left Svetoslav a powerful state with a strong centralized power and a lack of financial problems.
