Rus-Byzantine War (988)

The Rus'-Byzantine War of 988 (capture of Korsun) - a siege and capture by the Kiev prince Vladimir of the Greek city of Korsun in Crimea in 988 or 989.

In the consciousness of the ancient Russian scribes, the seizure of Korsun is inextricably linked with the subsequent Baptism of Rus'. Actually the story of the fighting was just a frame for describing the most important stage in the life of the people - the adoption of the Orthodox faith. The conflict over Korsun in 988 led to the marriage of Vladimir to the Byzantine princess Anne and the subsequent spread of Orthodoxy in Russia. According to another version, the capture of Korsun in 989 occurred after the baptism of Vladimir in 987 as a means of pressure on Byzantium in order to make it fulfill its obligations.

The fall of Korsun is reflected only in ancient Russian sources, with the exception of the only mention of this event by a contemporary, Byzantine historian Leo Diacon.



Background of the conflict
After the war of the Kiev prince Svyatoslav with Byzantium in 970 - 971 the relationship between the Byzantine Empire and Rus' remained unfriendly. When Svyatoslav died in 972 in a battle with the Pechenegs on the Dnieper rapids, an internecine war broke out between his sons for the throne of Kiev. In 979, Prince Vladimir won in 978 and started military campaigns against his neighbors.

Strengthening Kievan Rus made the prince of Kiev think about the adoption of a religion that could become a state in Russia. The choice fell on Orthodoxy. According to the "Tale of Bygone Years" Vladimir by 988 decided to receive baptism in the Greek city of Korsun in the Crimea, and the subsequent capture of the city and baptism are described in the framework of the hagiographic tradition with concomitant miracles.

In Byzantium from 976, the young emperor Vasily II ruled, who from the very beginning of his rule collided with the defeat of his army by the Bulgarians and the rebellion of the generals. First, the commander of the Eastern armies of the empire Ward Sklir rebelled. To fight against him sent to 978 former rebel Ward Fok, popular in the troops. However, having defeated Varda Skler, in 987 he proclaimed himself emperor. At the beginning of 988 rebel troops approached the Byzantine capital of Constantinople, from which they were separated only by the Bosporus Strait. Simultaneously, according to the Syrian historian of the 11th century Yahya of Antioch, the Bulgarians devastated the Byzantine possessions in the west.

The Russian-Byzantine Union
Basil II desperately needed military assistance when he learned of the desire of the Kiev prince Vladimir to be baptized. Yahya Antioch, usually accurately reflecting the chronology of events, spoke about the Russo-Byzantine alliance: "It was he [Varda Foka] who was troubled by Tsar Vasily because of the strength of his troops and his victory over him. And his wealth was exhausted and prompted his need to send the Rus to the Tsar - and they are his enemies - to ask them to help him in his present position. And he agreed to this. And they concluded a treaty of property with one another, and the Tsar Rusov married the sister of Tsar Vasily [Anne], after he had made him a condition that he be baptized and all the people of his countries, and they are a great people. And the Ruses did not consider themselves then to any law and did not recognize any faith. And afterwards, Metropolitan and Bishop sent him to him, and they christened the king and everyone who was hugging his land, and sent his sister to him, and she built many churches in the country of Rus. And when it was decided between them about the marriage, the troops arrived Russ and joined with the troops of the Greeks, which were at Tsar Vasily, and went all together to fight with Varda Fock by sea and land, in Chrysopolis. And they defeated Foku ... " The size of the Russian military assistance to Byzantium was reported by the Armenian historian Stephen of Taron, a contemporary of Prince Vladimir. He called the figure of 6 thousand soldiers. According to Yahyu, the combined forces of the Rus and the Greeks defeated the troops of Varda Foki at Chrysopolis (on the Asian coast of the Bosphorus) at the end of 988, and on April 13, 989, the allies in the battle of Abydos finished Varda Foka. Yahya Antioch mentions the fighting of the Rus in the Byzantine army and after, in northern Syria in 999.

Thus, the Russo-Byzantine alliance was concluded no later than the autumn of 988, after which the Russian corps fought in the Byzantine army at least until the beginning of the eleventh century. According to eastern sources, the union was preceded by the decision of Prince Vladimir to be baptized and the consent of Emperor Basil II to extradite his sister to Vladimir.

Vladimir was baptized in 987, as his earliest "Life" [1], composed by the monk Jacob , informs that " according to holy baptism, the blessed prince Vladimir is 28 years old " [2] , and " Prince Vladimir was baptized in the tenth summer by the murder of his brother Yaropolk " [3]. A later source, The Tale of Bygone Years, connects Vladimir's baptism with the baptism of all Rus and the campaign for Korsun.

The road to Korsun
Vladimir's campaign on Korsun. N. Roerich, 1900 Chronology of the hike The reasons and date of the campaign of Prince Vladimir to the Greek city of Korsun in the Crimea remain unclear[ source not specified 1045 days ]. The tale of temporary years dates the campaign in the spring and summer of 988, which, on the whole, does not contradict the eastern evidence of the conclusion of the Russo-Byzantine alliance.

However, the Byzantine historian Leo Deacon, the only Greek to mention the capture of Chersonese ( Korsun ) "Tavroskifami", timed this event to a comet, observed in July and August of 989. "Life" of the monk of Jacob informs: " The next summer he went to the rapids by baptism, on the third summer Korsun took the city ." That is, the capture of the city occurred in 989.

In this case, the question arises of the participation of a large Russian unit in the Byzantine army at a time when Vladimir is besieging the Greek city. Historians put forward various versions explaining the campaign of Vladimir to Korsun. According to the most widespread version of Byzantium, having received a 6,000-strong Russian detachment, was not in a hurry to fulfill the treaty that was humiliating from its point of view: to marry a "barbarian", baptized without the participation of the Byzantine church, the Emperor's sister. The capture of Korsun and the threat to go to Constantinople became a means to compel Basil II to fulfill his obligations to become related to the Tavroskis [4]. Another version was proposed [5] that the city was deposited from the empire, joining the mutiny of Varda Foki, and Vladimir acted against him as an ally of Basil.

According to various medieval sources of siege Korsun took from 6 [6] to 9 months, which allows the possibility of a siege in the autumn of 988 (already after the dispatch of the military detachment to the aid of Basil II ), and the fall of Korsun in the summer of 989.

Fortress Korsun
The ancient Chersonese of Tauric (ancient Korsun, modern territory of Sevastopol ) was located on a rocky stretch of the Crimean coast, adjoining the Karantinnaya Bay in the east and stretching along the seashore towards the Pesochnaya Bay in the west. [7] Founded it at the end of the 5th century. BC. e. Greek colonists, natives of Heraclea Pontic.

The defensive system in the Middle Ages was a powerful fortress wall along the entire perimeter, including the sea. The total length of the walls is 2.9-3.5 km, thickness is up to 4 m. 32 towers, 7 battle wickets and 6 gates are open. The height of the walls reached 8-10 m, the towers 10-12 m [8] The lower outer part of the walls is composed of large, carefully scoured and fitted limestone blocks. Above, smaller blocks were used for masonry on lime mortar.

On the most threatened southern section (far from the sea), a lower auxiliary wall (protechism) was built in front of the main wall, which greatly hampers the access to the walls. Behind the Sandy Bay to the west is the Streletskaya Bay, where, according to the historians' assumption, Vladimir landed with the army. [9] [10]

The Tale of Bygone Years
The earliest ancient Russian chronicle from the surviving to our time, " The Tale of Bygone Years ", describes the siege and capture of Korsun: "In 6496 ( 988 ), Vladimir went with his army to Korsun, the Greek city, and the Korsunians in the city were shut. And Vladimir became on the other side of the city by the pier, in the distance of the arrow from the city, and fought hard from the city. Vladimir besieged the city. People in the city became exhausted, and Vladimir said to the townspeople: "If you do not give in, then I'll just be three years old."

They did not obey him, but Vladimir, having made his army, ordered to pour a mound to the city walls. And when they poured, they, Korsun, digging down the city wall, stealing piled up land, and carrying it to themselves in the city, and poured in the middle of the city. The warriors sprinkled even more, and Vladimir stood.

And then a certain Korsunian husband, named Anastas, started up an arrow, writing on it: "Dug up and take water, it goes through the pipes from the wells that follow you from the east." Vladimir, having heard about this, looked at the sky and said: "If it comes true, I myself am baptized!". And immediately commanded him to dig pipes and take water. People have succumbed to thirst and surrendered. "

After the capture of the city, Vladimir demanded from his Byzantine emperor his sister, promising to be baptized instead; waited there for Anna with the church suite, after which he was baptized, married and returned to Korsun of Byzantium. Upon his return to Kiev, Vladimir proceeded to baptize the people with the help of Greek priests. The chronicler notes that the prince took from Korsun not only the relics of saints and icons, but also other trophies, including all utensils and copper statues [11].

Historian V. V. Mavrodin assumed that the Korsun legend of Vladimir's baptism was added to the initial chronicle [12] by one of the Korsun priests, since the chronicler knew the topography of Chersonesus and inserted Greek words into the Russian text. [9] The hagiographic cliches, that is, the traditional combination of real events with descriptions of miracles occurring during these events (Vladimir's sudden blindness and epiphany after baptism) give the legendary character of the capture of Korsun.

An Unusual View of Vladimir's Life
A somewhat different version of the march to Korsun is set out in the "An Unusual View of Vladimir's Life".

According to him, initially Vladimir asked for himself the daughter of the "Prince of Korsun Castle", but the latter refused the pagan with contempt. Then the offended Vladimir assembled an army of "Varangians, Slovene, Krivich, Bulgarians with black people" and moved to punish the offender. During the siege a certain Varangian from Korsun named Zhdburn (or Izhbern) sent an arrow to the camp to his fellow Varangians and shouted: "Bring this arrow to Prince Vladimir!" A note was attached to the arrow with the message: "If you are able to stand under the city for a year or two or three, you will not repay Korsun. Korabelniki also come by way of earth with drinking and with food to hail." Vladimir ordered to dig an earth path and in 3 months took the city.

Then came the massacre of the inhabitants of the city: "And he caught the prince of Korsun and captured the princess, and took his daughter to his tent to him, and tied the prince and the princess at the tent roof, and created their lawlessness against them. And on three days he ordered the prince and the princess to be killed, and their daughter for the boyar Izhbern gave with many estates, but in Korsun he appointed him governor ... " Perhaps in this episode the author of the Life wanted to emphasize the barbarity of the Russian prince, who enlightened in spirit only after baptism, but in this case Vladimir copied the image of his previous actions in relation to the Polotsk prince Rogvolod and his daughter Rogneda. After capturing Korsun, Vladimir sent an embassy to Constantinople headed by military commander Oleg and Varangian Zhdburn. These characters are not known by other sources.

Thus, "Life of a special composition", despite contradictions with other sources, conveys the history of the fall of Korsun more realistically and with greater detail than the " PVL ". However, historians are alarmed not by a clear version with a "dirt road", through which water and food were delivered to the city by ship crews. The version of the " PVL " with the dug in the water pipe is obvious, although the dependence of a large, well-fortified fortress from an external water pipe, whose location could not be kept secret for a long time from the enemy, is not fully understood.

Historians do not exclude that both stories of the Korsun seizure have a real basis, and along with the historically reliable Anastas who came to trust in Vladimir after the fall of the city, the Varangian Zhdburn acted simultaneously, it was more convenient for him to release an arrow in the direction of the besiegers and talk with them on one language.

After the hike
At least until 1000, the Russian contingent [14], sent by Vladimir to the aid of Byzantium, fought in various parts of the vast empire. It is known about the Rus in the Greek army and later, however it was already purely mercenary detachments like the Varangian unit.

After the capture of Korsun, the next Russian-Byzantine war took place 55 years later in 1043 with the son of Vladimir, the Kiev prince Yaroslav. Around 1024, during the troubled time of the struggle for power in Russia, a Russian freeman's foray into Byzantine islands in the Aegean Sea was noted, but all 800 Russian soldiers were killed in Lemnos.

After the Russian raid, the city of Korsun continued to live and maintain ties with Kievan Rus, but gradually faded with the weakening of the Byzantine Empire. In the XII century, the colonies of Italian republics Venice and Genoa were captured in the Black Sea, and in 1399 the city ​​was again destroyed by the Tatars, after which it did not recover. After the annexation of the Crimea to Russia, in 1783, Sevastopol was founded next to the ruins of the ancient Chersonesos, which soon swallowed up the fortified settlement.

Anna Porphyrogenita [15], becoming the wife of the prince of the "tauroscyths" under such circumstances, left a good memory in Russia with the spread of Christian teaching. She died before her husband, in 1011.

Anastas Korsunyan, who betrayed the city in the hands of Vladimir, reached a high position at the court of the prince. He is one of the founders of the Church of the Tithes in Kiev. After Vladimir's death, in 1018 he went to the Polish king Boleslaw.