In December 1237, the army of the Mongol Khan Batu invaded Rus'. The Ryazan principality was the first of the Russian lands to be devastated. This event is described in many ancient chronicles. The work of art “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” has also been preserved. It contains many details that are not reported in the chronicles. Among other things, it tells about the feat of Evpatiy Kolovrat.
According to the Tale, Evpatiy Kolovrat was one of the noble boyars of the Ryazan principality. When he was overtaken by the news of Batu's invasion of Ryazan, he was in Chernigov with one of the Ryazan princes, Ingvar Ingvarevich. Obviously, Kolovrat was one of the boyars of the princely retinue. When Kolovrat learned about the invasion of the Mongol-Tatars, he abandoned his prince and, as they say, with a small squad (obviously, it was the boyar’s own squad, not the prince) rushed from Chernigov to Ryazan. But in place of Ryazan, Kolovrat saw only corpses and ashes. Nevertheless, he somehow managed to gather a squad of 1,700 people and follow in Batu’s footsteps. He caught up with the army of the formidable conqueror somewhere in Suzdal land.
There, Kolovrat’s squad suddenly attacked “the Batu camps. And they began to flog without mercy, and all the Tatar regiments were mixed up. And the Tatars looked like they were drunk or crazy. And Evpatiy beat them so mercilessly that even their swords became dull... It seemed to the Tatars that the dead had risen.” The frightened Batu sent the hero Khostovrul, the son of his brother-in-law, to capture Evpatiy alive. But Kolovrat cut Khostovrul in half. The Tatars were able to defeat Kolovrat’s squad only with the help of battering catapults. Evpatiy died. His body was brought to Batu. The Khan praised the bravery of the defeated enemy and gave his body to his captured warriors, whom he released out of respect for the valor of their leader. Some editions of the Tale provide additional information about Evpatiia. In particular, his patronymic name was Lvovich. The warriors brought his body to Ryazan, where it was solemnly buried in January 1238.
Now let's try to understand this information and compare it with known facts. The Tale, as befits a heroic tale, is replete with fantastic episodes and epic exaggerations. It is clear that using battering guns against manpower in a field battle is absolutely ineffective, and that these weapons (called “vices” in Rus') are mentioned only to emphasize the rage of Kolovrat’s squad. Apparently, it was the “vices” that most struck the Russians from the entire military arsenal of the Mongols, and the Russians attributed the properties of miracle weapons to these weapons.
It is not clear how Kolovrat, upon arrival in the Ryazan land, was able to assemble a squad of 1,700 brave and mighty men, if the Ryazan land had previously been devastated, and all the military men were killed in battle. If this is not a complete fiction, then one involuntarily asks: where and why did they sit out while their fellow countrymen died in an unequal struggle with the invaders? However, ancient sources are always guilty of exaggerations regarding the number of troops, the number of victims of wars, the scale of natural disasters, etc. The very mention of the fact that Kolovrat had a burial service in the cathedral of Ryazan before his burial shows that the city was by no means completely destroyed by the Mongols, unless, of course, the episode with the solemn funeral was invented later.
But there are details that there was no need to invent. Thus, the son of Batu’s brother-in-law is named by name – Khostovrul. This name is clearly not Mongolian or Turkic. As far as is known, until now no historian has tried to explain either his origin or how the author of the Tale could know the name of the son of the khan's brother-in-law.
“The Tale” is known from several copies, the oldest of which are no earlier than the second half of the 16th century, that is, they are more than three centuries distant from the events described. True, comparing them with other monuments, experts in ancient Russian literature believe that the “Tale” was composed before the end of the 13th century. But it should be borne in mind that the dating of other monuments dating back to this time is also hypothetical.
Historians doubt the existence of Prince Ingvar Ingvarevich himself, unless, of course, it is Ingvar Igorevich, the Ryazan prince who ruled since 1217. True, he died in 1235, but the news of his death that year is isolated, and it cannot be ruled out that he was alive in 1237. “The Tale” tells that in Ryazan, princes Yuri and Oleg Ingvarevich (that is, his sons) resisted Batu, and both died. It is impossible to establish exactly which prince Kolovrat might have been in Chernigov with. But it is not impossible that he was there at the time of Batu’s invasion. As you know, the Ryazan princes were a branch of the Olgovichs who reigned in Chernigov. Close relations were maintained between the two princely houses.
Despite the abundance of implausible details, quite explainable by the genre of a heroic work, Evpatiy Kolovrat may well be recognized as a historical figure. There are no contraindications to the fact that there really was a Ryazan boyar with that name, that in December 1237 he was in Ryazan-friendly Chernigov, that he did not make it to his homeland before the decisive battle of his fellow countrymen with Batu’s army, that he and a crowd of surviving soldiers attacked some then the lagging units of the Mongols (partisans, in other words). Over time, popular rumor attributed unprecedented feats to Evpatiy and wove him into the plot of the heroic saga.
By the way, Kolovrat is not a surname, as for some reason many people think. There were no surnames at all in Rus' in those days. According to his father, as already mentioned, Evpatiy was Lvovich. Kolovrat could be a nickname or a middle name. The princes of Rurik at home bore Slavic and Scandinavian names at that time, and are better known by them, and not by the Christian names given to them at baptism. Until the 17th century in Rus', even among the nobles, the tradition of being called by a second name, associated with some human quality or feeling (Luck, Fun, Resentment, Istoma, etc.) was preserved. Kolovrat means turning, turning. Perhaps he was given this nickname for his agility in hand-to-hand combat. The currently popular etymology of the name Kolovrat from the rotation of the sun across the sky has no scientific confirmation.
The feat of Evpatiy Kolovrat - a strong hero, governor and Ryazan nobleman - is forever inscribed in history as an example of courage and heroism in defending his Fatherland from foreign invaders.
Ryazan is in danger
In 1237, countless Mongol troops of Batu Khan attacked Russian territories. The first victim on the enemy’s path was the Ryazan principality, located in the southeastern part of the country and bordering on already captured lands. Yuri Ingvarevich, the Ryazan prince, turned to the heads of neighboring principalities for help in confronting the enemy, who demanded unquestioning submission to Batu Khan. The neighbors did not dare to help for fear of being helpless in front of the Mongol troops.
And in quantitative terms, the assembled Russian army would certainly have lost before the countless forces of the enemy horde. Therefore, the people of Ryazan were left alone before the foreign enemy.
Alone with the enemy
At first, the Ryazan prince wanted to reach an agreement peacefully, so he sent his son Fedor to negotiate with the Mongol leader. The overwhelming demands made by the enemy were not accepted by the young prince, for which the latter was mercilessly killed. Next, his wife Eupraxia, whom the Mongols were going to deliver to Batu, died by throwing herself from a high tower.
The Ryazan warriors, having failed in reconciliation with Batu and not receiving help from their neighbors, went out to battle themselves, which was terrible and losing. For one Russian there were a thousand Mongols, for two - ten thousand. In this bloody battle, which took place on December 16, 1237, the Mongol horde won a victory and came close to Ryazan.
For five days the foreigners attacked the city, the defenders of which did not have a moment's rest. On the sixth day, the Mongols broke into the fortress. Ryazan suffered a terrible and brutal defeat, a very large number of city residents died - the enemy did not spare either the old or the young. Having devastated the neighboring cities of the Ryazan land, Batu went further - to conquer new lands.
Feat of Evpatiy Kolovrat
At the time of the defeat, Kolovrat was in the neighboring Chernigov land, where he was negotiating to provide assistance to the people of Ryazan. Having received news of the capture of his land and the death of Yuri Ingvarevich and realizing the further meaninglessness of his stay in the Chernigov region, Kolovrat Evpatiy decided to return back. It was necessary to prevent the enemy by any means and protect the lands that had not yet been captured.
Returning to the ashes of Ryazan and seeing a terrible picture full of horror and sorrow, Kolovrat Evpatiy gathered his surviving fellow countrymen (about 1,700 people), with whom he caught up with the enemy already in the Suzdal lands.
For the Mongols, such a sudden attack was unexpected: it seemed to them that the dead had risen from the ground to avenge themselves.
Both sides suffered losses. The mighty Khostovul went out to fight Evpatiy, who was cut in half by a Russian warrior. The enemy was able to defeat the Ryazan people by using a weapon for throwing stones, used when storming cities. This was the only way the Mongols killed Kolovrat Evpatiy, whose body was immediately delivered to Batu. The Mongol ruler and his entourage were admired by the courage and courage of the Russian warrior. A broad gesture on the part of the khan was the order to release the surviving Ryazan residents, to whom Kolovrat’s body was handed over for burial according to custom. The legend of Evpatiy Kolovrat has come down to our times from the “Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.”
Evpatiy Kolovrat is a shining example of a defender of the Russian land
Unfortunately, the valor of the Russian soldiers could not replace the lack of cohesion and unity of the principalities in the face of a powerful enemy. Rus' had to pay for the civil strife and discord with military failures, and then with two hundred years of enslavement by foreign invaders. But the feat that Kolovrat Evpatiy accomplished became a striking example of courage and patriotism.
P. Ryzhenko. Evpatiy Kolovrat
First, the historical background. When at the end of 1237 Batu's hordes were approaching Ryazan, governor Evpatiy Kolovrat with a small detachment went to Chernigov to ask for help against the Mongols. But, having learned that Batu was already standing under the walls of Ryazan, he hurried to his hometown... But he was late. He found Ryazan destroyed. Blood and ashes appeared before Evpatiy. Batu had already left the city, the Mongol horde was moving further to the West. With a detachment of one and a half thousand, Evpatiy rushed in pursuit. Other Ryazan warriors joined his detachment - the wounded and those who were away during the battle. Evpatiy overtook the enemy on Suzdal land. He attacked the Mongol rearguard and almost completely destroyed it. Batu sent the hero Khostovrul, his wife’s brother, against Evpatiy, and with him strong regiments. Khostovrul promised Batu to bring the skilled Russian commander alive, but died in a duel with Kolovrat.
V. Chernega Evpatiy Kolovrat. Duel
Despite the huge numerical superiority of the nomads, in a new fierce battle, Evpatiy Kolovrat, as the chronicle says, “began to flog the Tatar force, and beat many of the famous heroes of the Batyevs.” Ambassador Batu, sent to negotiate, asked Evpatiy: “What do you want?” And I received the answer - “Only die!” The Mongols managed to destroy Evpatiy’s detachment only with the help of stone-throwing weapons designed to destroy fortifications: “And they attacked him with many vices, and began to beat him with numerous vices, and barely killed him.” Struck by the desperate courage, courage and military skill of the Ryazan hero, Batu, saying “Oh, Evpatiy! If you served with me, I would hold you close to my heart!”, gave the body of the murdered Evpatiy Kolovrat to the surviving Russian soldiers and, as a sign of respect for their courage, ordered them to be released...
Litvinsky P.P. Kolovrat
Stories about the exploits of Kolovrat supported the morale of the Russian people in the most difficult years. There are many legends about Evpatia. It is described in detail in the ancient Russian story about the ruin of Ryazan by Batu. The people have not forgotten their hero!
B. Pashkov, D. Voronotsov. Illustration for the book “The Tale of Evpatiy Kolovrat.” M.: Society for the Preservation of Literature. heritage; Studio "Filmstrip". 2003
Why is thousand-year-old Russian history so bumpy and sorrowful? After all, throughout its entire length there is not a single completely peaceful and calm period lasting more than ten years. Amazing! It is impossible to answer this historical riddle without taking into account the second, spiritual, plan of Russian fate. By the providence of God, the people of the Third Rome were not allowed to relax and doze off, just as it is unthinkable to fall asleep in a Russian cart jolting along their native country road. On the other hand, it was precisely this eternal turbulence that gave birth and will continue to give birth until the end of time to brilliant heroes of body and spirit, soldiers of Christ, who, like milestones, mark our amazing history.
B. Pashkov. Evpatiy Kolovrat (film strip)
One of the most striking figures in this sacred series cannot but be recognized as Evpatiy Kolovrat. A boyar by birth and a warrior by vocation, he accomplished, perhaps, the most unprecedented, most desperate and, for modern consciousness, a completely illogical feat. When, upon returning home, Evpatiy found his native Ryazan devastated and burned by the army of the Tatar-Mongol Khan Batu, he and a small retinue boldly rushed after the enemies and unexpectedly attacked them.
The battle was hopeless from beginning to end: more than a hundred Horde soldiers stood against each Russian. However, the aggressors, taken by surprise, suffered such serious losses, and were so amazed by the fearlessness and skill of the Russian braves, that the khan himself ordered not to kill him, but to invite him to serve. Evpatiy refused and with the remaining warriors fell on the battlefield and was buried with honors by the stunned and admiring Mongols.
“The Last Battle of Evpatiy Kolovrat”, artist S. Babyuk
What motivated the hero? Hatred of cruel conquerors? To some extent, yes. But hatred alone cannot explain the scale and greatness of his feat. Who, if not he, wise from life and battles with the Horde, knew the objective merits of foreign hordes? The latter had the best weapons for that period, primarily light and fast-firing bows, which were superior to all European analogues. The nomads spent their entire lives in the saddle, made do with the merest food (dried goat meat), and did not keep carts. They had the strictest military discipline. For example, since the time of Genghis Khan, if ten soldiers fled from the field, the hundred they were part of were executed. But it was fear, nothing more. For the time being, the Horde did not have its own religion and therefore, perhaps, treated the foreign spiritual and secular culture with a certain respect. This, on the one hand, allowed Holy Rus' to preserve churches and the Orthodox faith, and on the other, to accumulate that phenomenal spiritual power, which manifested itself first in Alexander Nevsky, and then in hundreds of other famous and unknown Russian heroes, including Evpatiy Kolovrat.
Druzhina Evpatiy Kolovrat Hieromonk Raphael (Sergei Simakov)
It was faith and God’s help, and not just fear and hatred, that turned out to be that unknown and incomprehensible weapon for the Horde, that victorious motive that imperiously prompted a handful of brave men to rush in pursuit of Batu’s indestructible army instead of “reasonably” sitting out in the wilderness, accumulating strength and wait for the right opportunity for revenge. Yes, Evpatiy fell in that battle. But his act, his boldness before God and people, his refusal to bow to the almighty khan, marvelously shone in the hearts of the divided, robbed and humiliated Russian people. The Lord Himself, through the righteous boyar Evpatiy, sent the grace of His Spirit to help the chosen people. So, drop by drop, step by step, from defeat to defeat, from feat to feat, Holy Rus' gathered, matured and strengthened for future victories. Evpatiy and his squad did not fight to the death for themselves or even for the burned Ryazan. She fell “for her friends,” for the whole people, fulfilling the main commandment of the Savior, which says that there is no greater love than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends...
EVPATIY KOLOVRAT, semi-legendary hero, Ryazan boyar. In the winter of 1237/38, with a regiment of 1,700 people, he defeated the Mongol Tatars near Ryazan. Killed in battle. His exploits are described in the Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu. Source: Encyclopedia... ...Russian history
Semi-legendary hero, Ryazan boyar. In the winter of 1237/38, with a regiment of 1,700 people, he defeated the Mongol Tatars in Vladimir-Suzdal land. Killed in battle. His exploits are described in the Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
Semi-legendary hero, Ryazan boyar. In the winter of 1237/1238, with a “regiment” of 1,700 people, he defeated the Mongol Tatars in Vladimir-Suzdal land. Killed in battle. His exploits are described in “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.” * * * EVPATIY KOLOVRAT... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
Hero of the Ryazan folk tale, who accomplished feats during the invasion of Batu. The story of his exploits was preserved in the Tale of the Coming of Batu’s Army to Ryazan, which was included in some later chronicles and collections. The story was published by Undolsky... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Ephron
Ryazan boyar and governor, fighter against the Mongols in 1237 (Polovtsov) ... Large biographical encyclopedia
Legendary Russian hero who fought against the Tatar-Mongol conquerors in the 13th century. The struggle of the Ryazan “nobleman” E.K. and his “regiment” (numbering 1,700 people) after the capture of Ryazan by the Tatars (1237) is told in the ancient Russian... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
Legendary Russian hero who fought against the Mong. conquerors in the 13th century. Oh partisans. The struggle of the Ryazan nobleman E.K. and his regiment (numbering 1,700 people), which unfolded after the capture of Ryazan by the Mongols (1237), is told in other Russian. Stories about... ... Soviet historical encyclopedia
Evpatiy Kolovrat- Evpatiy Kolovr at, Evp atiy Kolovr ata... Russian spelling dictionary
Evpatiy Kolovrat- EVPATII (Ipatiy), Kolovrat, semi-legendary. Ryazan boyar, mentioned only later. chronicles. After Batu defeated Ryazan in 1237. land, E.K., who was then with the prince. Igor in Chernigov, hurried to his homeland and with... ... Military encyclopedia
Evpatiy Kolovrat- semi-legendary hero, Ryazan boyar, hero of the Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu (1st half of the 14th century). According to the story, after the capture of Ryazan by Batu (1237), E.K. appears in the city, gathers a squad (about 1,700 people), rushes after Batu and... ... Russian humanitarian encyclopedic dictionary
Books
- Evpatiy Kolovrat. Historical guide to the era, Volkov Roman Valerievich. Was the legendary Evpatiy Kolovrat a pagan? Did he fight with two swords? How were they able to shoot him with stone throwers? Where did he find his final resting place? Why didn’t Batu’s army go to...
- Evpatiy Kolovrat Historical guide to the era, Volkov R.. Was the legendary Evpatiy Kolovrat a pagan? Did he fight with two swords? How were they able to shoot him with stone throwers? Where did he find his final resting place? Why didn’t Batu’s army go to...
Evpatiy Kolovrat (sk. 1237/38), Ryazan nobleman, governor and hero. With a detachment of 1,700 people who survived the Tatar-Mongol defeat of Ryazan, he attacked the camp of Batu Khan and threw the invaders into confusion, killing many “deliberate” Mongol heroes. The Tatars managed to defeat Kolovrat’s detachment after they used “vices” against him - stone throwers. Evpatiy died in the battle and received the highest praise even from his enemies - Khan Batu and his entourage.
Defense of Ryazan. Diorama of Deshalyt
The tragic events of 1237-1241 showed many examples of the courage and dedication of our ancestors. No one was going to submit to the powerful conquerors without a fight. All Russian principalities responded with a decisive refusal to the proposal to recognize slavish dependence on the Mongols. The exploits of the Ryazan hero Evpatiy Kolovrat, the defenders of Kozelsk and Kyiv and many other famous and unknown heroes of that distant era are covered with unfading glory. But the valor of the Russian soldiers could not compensate for the lack of unity and cohesion in the face of enemies. They had to pay for the discord and civil strife with bitter defeats, and then two hundred years of subjugation to foreigners.
The first victim of the Mongol invasion of Rus' was the Ryazan principality, located in the southeast of the country and bordering on the territories captured by the enemy. The descendants of the Chernigov prince Svyatoslav Yaroslavich (the third son of Yaroslav the Wise) - close relatives of the princes of Chernigov, Novgorod Seversky, Putivl - ruled in Ryazan, Murom, Pronsk. However, the Ryazan Principality had no less close connection than with the Chernigov land with the neighboring Grand Duchy of Vladimir. Back in the 12th century, under the Vladimir prince Vsevolod the Big Nest, the Ryazan princes were in vassal dependence on the latter. When, at the end of 1237, enemy hordes approached the borders of the Ryazan land, when Batu’s ambassadors arrived in Rus' and demanded submission to the Mongol Khan, it was to Chernigov and Vladimir that the Ryazan prince Yuri Ingvarevich turned to him with a request to help him repel the aggression. However, even if other princes had sent their regiments to defend Ryazan, the overwhelming numerical superiority would still have been on the side of the conquerors. It was almost impossible to stop the Horde hordes at the borders of Rus' in those conditions. And each prince, caring primarily about the security of his territory, did not want to waste the forces necessary to defend his own possessions. The residents of Ryazan had to confront formidable enemies alone.
The ancient monuments that have reached us - chronicles, historical stories, lives of saints - shed light on the tragic events of the winter of 1237-1238 in different ways.
According to the information in “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu,” the Ryazan prince Yuri Ingvarevich sent his son Fyodor to Batu for negotiations. The Mongols deliberately presented unacceptable conditions and, having received a refusal from Fyodor Yuryevich, killed the young prince. And soon his wife, Eupraxia, also died: the Mongols were going to deliver her to their khan, and the princess, in order not to fall into the hands of enemies, threw herself from a high tower and fell to her death.
Having received no help from their neighbors, having failed in attempts to reconcile with Batu on acceptable terms, the Ryazan, Pron, and Murom princes with their troops met the hordes of Mongols “in the field,” not far from the border, “and the slaughter was evil and terrible.” Describing the enormous numerical superiority of the enemies, the witness adds that the Russians fought “one with a thousand, and two with darkness” (ten thousand). The Mongols won this battle and on December 16, 1237 approached Ryazan. For five days, the Horde continuously stormed the city. The large number of troops allowed them to replace troops tired in battle with fresh forces, and the defenders of Ryazan did not have time to rest. On the sixth day, December 21, 1237, when many Ryazan residents died in battle, and the rest were wounded or exhausted from the continuous battle, the Mongols broke into the fortress. Ryazan suffered a terrible defeat, most of the townspeople died. “And there was not a single living person left in the city: they all died and drank the same cup of death. There was no one moaning or crying here - no father and mother about the children, no children about the father and mother, no brother about the brother, no relatives about relatives, but they all lay dead together.” Having devastated some other cities of the Ryazan land, Batu moved on, intending to conquer the rest of the Russian principalities.
However, not all Ryazan residents died. Some left their hometown for trade or for some other reason. One of the most valiant warriors of Prince Yuri Ingvarevich, boyar Evpatiy Kolovrat, was not in Ryazan at the fateful hour. He was in Chernigov - apparently, on behalf of his master, he was negotiating to provide assistance to the principality that had been subjected to aggression. But then the sad news came about the death of Ryazan and the death of Prince Yuri Ingvarevich. Further stay in Chernigov lost its meaning for Kolovrat, and he considered that he should be where the fate of his land was being decided in mortal battles. It is necessary to step in the way of the enemy, to avenge Ryazan, to protect the cities and villages that have not yet been captured by the Mongols.
And Evpatiy Kolovrat with his small retinue hastily returns to the ashes of Ryazan, perhaps still hoping to find one of his relatives and friends alive. But on the site of the city that had recently flourished, Kolovrat and his companions saw a terrible sight: “I saw the city devastated, the sovereigns killed and many people killed: some were killed and flogged, others were burned, and others were drowned in the river.” His heart was filled with unspeakable sorrow, Evpatiy gathered the surviving Razan warriors (in total there were now about one thousand seven hundred people in the squad) and went after the Mongols. It was possible to overtake the enemies already within the Suzdal land. Evpatiy Kolovrat and his warriors suddenly attacked the Horde camps and mercilessly beat the Mongols. “And all the Tatar regiments were mixed up... Evpatiy, driving right through the strong Tatar regiments, beat them mercilessly. And he rode among the Tatar regiments bravely and courageously,” reports the ancient author. Heavy damage was caused to the enemy. The Horde, who did not expect a blow from the Ryazan land they had devastated, were horrified - it seemed that the dead had risen to avenge themselves. Doubts receded only when they managed to capture five wounded Russian soldiers. They were brought to Batu, and when the khan asked who they were, the answer was: “We are people of the Christian faith, and the soldiers of the Grand Duke Yuri Ingvarevich of Ryazan, and from the regiment of Evpatiy Kolovrat. We were sent to honor you, a strong king, and honestly see you off, and give honor to you. Do not be surprised, king, that we do not have time to pour the cups [of mortals] on the great power - the Tatar army." Batu was surprised at their answer. And one of the noble Mongols, the mighty Khostovrul, volunteered to defeat the leader of the Ryazan people in a duel, capture him and deliver him alive to the khan. It turned out, however, completely differently. When the battle resumed, the Russian and Mongolian heroes came together to fight one on one, and Kolovrat cut Khostovrul in half, to the saddle. Some other strongest Mongol warriors also laid down their lives on the battlefield. Unable to cope with a handful of brave men in open battle, the frightened Horde sent stone-throwing guns, which were used in storming the fortifications, against Evpatiy Kolovrat and his squad. Only now the enemies managed to kill the Russian knight, although at the same time they had to destroy many of their own. When the rest of the Ryazan warriors died in an unequal battle, the Mongols brought the dead Kolovrat to Batu. Those close to the khan admired the courage of the Russian heroes. Batu himself exclaimed: “Oh Kolovrat Evpatiy! You defeated many heroes of a strong horde, and many regiments fell. If such a man served with me, I would hold him against my heart." The Khan ordered the release of the Ryazan people captured in the battle and the body of Kolovrat given to them to be buried according to their custom.
This is the story of the feat of the Ryazan hero Evpatiy Kolovrat and his brave squad, told by an ancient military tale (most likely created in the 14th century). There is no mention of Evpatiy Kolovrat in other sources. However, from some chronicles it is known that the remnants of the Ryazan and Pron regiments under the leadership of Prince Roman Ingvarevich fought the Mongols already within the Suzdal land.
In January 1238, a large and stubborn battle with the Mongols took place near Kolomna. Grand Duke Georgy Vsevolodovich sent his regiments to this fortress, which covered the path to the capital Vladimir. The surviving Ryazan warriors also came here. According to some researchers, in this case an attempt was made by the Grand Duke's army of Vladimir to restrain the further advance of the Horde, and the battle of Kolomna is one of the most significant during the period of Batu's invasion of Rus'. On the Mongols’ side, the combined army of all twelve Chinggisid princes took part in the battle, aimed at conquering Rus'. As historians note, the seriousness of the battle near Kolomna is evidenced by the fact that one of the Chinggisid khans, Kulkan, was killed there, and this could only happen in the event of a major battle, accompanied by deep breakthroughs in the battle formation of the Mongols (after all, the Chinggisid Tserevichs were located during the battle behind the battle lines). Only due to the enormous numerical superiority did Batu manage to win. Almost all Russian soldiers (including Prince Roman) died in battle. The path to Moscow and Vladimir was open. However, stubborn battles such as this exhausted the forces of the conquerors and were able to delay the enemies for a long time. It is no coincidence that Batu could not get to Veliky Novgorod, Pskov, Polotsk, and Smolensk.
The details of what happened near Kolomna, the names of the distinguished warriors are unknown - the messages in the chronicles are too short and laconic. Perhaps the exploits of the Ryazan boyar Evpatiy Kolovrat and his small squad are also connected with these events. It was probably the Ryazan people, who lost relatives and friends due to the fault of the Mongols, who showed extraordinary courage near Kolomna. They did not come out of the battle alive, but the memory of these heroes could be preserved for several decades in oral legends, which were later recorded and became part of the “Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.”
The idea of finding the final resting place of Evpatiy Kolovrat was firmly lodged in my head fifteen years ago, when I read “Origin”. Something in his image, so vividly depicted by Selidor, inexorably attracted me. I really wanted to visit those places, to touch the GLORY of a HERO hidden in the ground, who so desperately and selflessly defended the Motherland.
Apparently it is no coincidence that I am now building my family nest not far from the supposed place of his burial. The small village of Sennitsa, where I am trying to rebuild a house, is located about sixty kilometers from the Vozha River, on the banks of which, according to legend, the legendary berserker who terrified the Mongols was buried, fiercely avenging the devastation of his native land, tormenting the rear of the Mongol invasion with his a desperate squad; the epic hero, who cut to the saddle in a ritual duel, before his last battle, Batu's brother-in-law, the Horde hero Khostavrul.
The closest city to these places is Zaraysk, just fifteen kilometers from Sennitsy. Over the course of eight years, I visited there quite often. I started making inquiries at the local history museum. By the way, I didn’t receive any clear information there. Of course, they knew that he was buried somewhere near Zaraisk, but they did not say anything specific about the place of his burial; they recommended contacting the historical archive of Ryazan. I didn’t get there, but suddenly, almost by accident, in 2008, I came across the following information on the official Zaraisk website:
Historical Chronograph of Zaraysk:
1237 December 28 (?). The Russian hero-voivode of Ryazan, Evpatiy Kolovrat, who returned from Chernigov and visited the plundered and burned Ryazan, arrived in Krasny (Zaraisk) and, according to legend, formed a squad of 1,700 warriors on the Great Field.
1238 January (?). Evpatiy Kolovrat's squad overtook Batu's regiments on Suzdal land and attacked their camps
March 4th. The decisive battle of the squad of Evpatiy Kolovrat with the Mongol-Tatars on the Sit River; Evpatiy died in this battle.
March, April (?). The surviving five Russian knights, “exhausted from great wounds,” brought the body of Evpatiy Kolovrat to the Zaraisk land and buried, as popular rumor says, on the left bank of the Vozha River, between the villages of Kitaevo and Nikolo-Kobylskoye; this place is popularly known as the Tomb of the Bogatyr.
In the book “The Art of Guerrilla Warfare,” Selidor refers to an article by a certain V. Polyanichev, “The Last Refuge of Evpatiy Kolovrat?”, published in April 1986 in the Lenin Banner newspaper. Here are excerpts from the book:
“...From Zaraysk the funeral procession (with the body of the governor) continued its journey south, to Ryazan.
Vozha stood in the way... The river swelled under the pressure of spring waters, and it became impossible to overcome it. The warriors realized: it would no longer be possible to save Evpatiy’s body from decay, and they decide to bury him right there on the river bank...” Further, the researcher writes that meetings with old-timers of the Vozh villages led him to this conclusion. In these places there was an ancient road along which people traveled Ryazan ambassadors to Batu's headquarters. Just a mile from the road is the village of Ostroukhovo, on a water meadow that stretches between the ancient Zaraysk villages of Kitaevo and Nikolo-Kobylskoye, where Evpatiy Kolovrat rests. His grave is called the “Chapel”, because there used to be a chapel over it When the chapel was dismantled in the thirties, due to the need for bricks on the collective farm, they found a stone underground, under which was the grave of “some epic hero.”
Having downloaded a map of the area on the Internet, I noticed that the villages of Nikolo-Kobylskoye and Ostroukhovo were not marked there; I had to go and figure everything out on the spot.
As soon as the opportunity presented itself, I went there. On foot from Zaraysk, I think I would have walked all day and spent the same amount of time looking for a place, but hiking was not part of my plans. Since there was little time - a regular weekend, on Monday to work - my beloved and children needed attention, so I decided to combine business with pleasure: I took the whole family with me, since the car allowed.
The Korean all-wheel drive Hyundai Tuskon, which I happened to get at work, was perfectly suited for this trip: it is still more of a crossover than a jeep, and the cross-country ability is better than that of ordinary cars, but worse than that of SUVs. Nevertheless, the machine coped with the task quite well.
Having left Zaraysk towards the village of Karino, after 25 km I turned onto a country road near the village of Kobylye. Judging by the map, through the villages of Vereykovo and Klishino I can easily get to Kitaev in about 10-12 km. However, the realities of off-roading in the middle zone have made their own adjustments. We had to go around ravines, streams and holiday villages not marked on the map. Having finally arrived at Nikolo-Kobylskoye, which was not marked on the map, I realized that there was no correspondence with the map; what was more confusing was that the Vozha River was not nearby and there was no trace of it, it flows much further south. I decided to move towards the village of Kitaevo, at least it is mentioned in the article and on the map.
After three hours of wandering along rough forest roads, I arrived at the village of Kalinovka, located near the Vozha River, overgrown with forest on both banks.
Judging by the map, the desired Kitaevo was very close. After asking local residents, I headed in the right direction. On the outskirts of Kalinovka (for some reason associations with the Kalinov Bridge over the River Oblivion came to mind) I noticed a lonely hill, as if leaning against a small forest.
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It turns out that theoretically this hill could well be the burial mound of a frantic warrior! The place is the highest in the area, probably the same “chapel” stood here. And indeed, local residents already from the village of Kitaevo nodded towards the hill: “Well, yes, there is a chapel, the Tomb of the Bogatyr - we know it!”
I, exhausted from the journey, rejoiced at my luck, but later doubts arose: could five wounded warriors be able to build a rather impressive mound? Over the 770 years that have passed since those events, the landscape of the area could have changed more than once. Even the surrounding villages have changed their names since 1986: Ostroukhovo - Kalinovka?
I was unable to find out this, nor why Nikolo-Kobylskoye turned out to be much to the north of the Vozha River.
In other words, I will not say that this is the “Kolovrat Mound,” but I propose to organize an expedition there in the summer of 2009, preferably bringing together specialists in this matter, people with geological and archaeological education, and stocking up on satellite navigators. In short, conduct a detailed study of this issue.
I think this will be interesting to many. After all, the story of Evpatiy Kolovrat is the story of a real ancient Russian HERO - a warrior and governor. This is our history, our Earth and our people. She must not be forgotten! No matter how pretentious it sounds, this is actually true.
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The story begins with a message about the arrival of the “godless Tsar” Batu on Russian soil, his stop on the Voronezh River and the Tatar embassy to the Ryazan prince demanding tribute. The Grand Duke of Ryazan Yuri Ingorevich turned to the Grand Duke of Vladimir for help, and having received a refusal, he convened a council of Ryazan princes, who decided to send an embassy with gifts to the Tatars.
The embassy was headed by the son of Grand Duke Yuri, Fedor. Khan Batu, having learned about the beauty of Fyodor’s wife, demanded that the prince let him know the beauty of his wife. Fedor indignantly rejected this offer and was killed. Having learned about the death of her husband, Prince Fyodor's wife Eupraxia threw herself with her son Ivan from a high temple and fell to her death.
Having mourned the death of his son, Grand Duke Yuri began to prepare to repel his enemies. Russian troops marched against Batu and met him at the Ryazan borders. In the heated battle, many Batyev regiments fell, and among the Russian soldiers, “one fought with a thousand, and two with darkness.” David Muromsky fell in battle. Prince Yuri again turned to the Ryazan braves, and the battle broke out again, and the strong Tatar regiments barely defeated them. Many local princes - both staunch governors, and daring and brave armies, the color and decoration of Ryazan - still “drank one cup of death.” Batu tried to win the captured Oleg Ingorevich Krasny over to his side, and then ordered his execution. Having ravaged the Ryazan land, Batu went to Vladimir.
At that moment, Evpatiy Kolovrat, who was in Chernigov during the Tatar-Mongol invasion, rushed to Ryazan. Gathering a squad of one thousand seven hundred people, he suddenly attacked the Tatars and “cut them down mercilessly” that even their swords became dull, and “the Russian soldiers took Tatar swords and flogged them mercilessly.” The Tatars managed to capture five wounded Ryazan braves, and from them Batu finally learned who was destroying his regiments. Evpatiy managed to defeat Khristovlur, the brother-in-law of Batu himself, but he himself fell in battle, killed by stone-throwing weapons.
“The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” ends with a story about the return of Ingvar Ingorevich from Chernigov to the Ryazan land, his crying, praise to the family of Ryazan princes and a description of the restoration of Ryazan.
It was N.M. Karamzin who first drew attention to the story. Since then, it has been studied by many researchers, and writers and poets have turned to it. Back in 1808, G. R. Derzhavin wrote his tragedy "Eupraxia", the heroine of which was the wife of Prince Fyodor. D. Venevitinov, who created the poem “Eupraxia” in 1824, also turned to the same plot. In the same 1824, N. M. Yazykov also wrote his poem “Evpatiy”. At the end of the 50s of the 19th century, L. A. Mei created the “Song about the boyar Evpatiy Kolovrat.” In the 20th century, S. A. Yesenin wrote a poem about Evpatiy Kolovrat based on the plot of “The Tale”; its poetic translation was created by Ivan Novikov. The material from the ancient Russian "Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu" was used by D. Yan in the story "Batu" and V. Ryakhovsky in the story "Evpatiy Kolovrat". It is known to a wide circle of readers in the retelling of the school textbook and from its numerous publications.
Many researchers also turned to “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.” Through their efforts, dozens of its manuscripts have been collected, various editions have been identified, and the relationships between them have been defined. However, the question of the time of creation of this masterpiece of ancient Russian literature still remains open. V. L. Komarovich and A. G. Kuzmin are inclined to date it to the 16th century, D. S. Likhachev dates the “Tale” to the end of the 13th - beginning of the 14th century. The latter point of view was entrenched in textbooks on ancient Russian literature, was reflected in publications of the Tale, and was used in studies on the history of literature of ancient Rus'. For some reason, the works of V. L. Komarovich and A. G. Kuzmin were not even included in a reputable academic reference book.
Perhaps this situation with the dating of “The Tale of the Devastation of Ryazan by Batu” is explained by the peculiarities of the monument itself. Indeed, what doubts can there be about its early appearance? After all, the events of Batu’s campaign against Rus' were taken as the plot. The author describes the invasion emotionally and colorfully, reports many details, among which there are also those that were not preserved in the pages of ancient Russian chronicles. In addition, such monuments of ancient Russian literature as “Zadonshchina”, “The Tale of the Invasion of Tokhtamysh on Moscow”, “The Tale of the Life and Repose of Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsar of Russia”, the story of Nestor-Iskander, have lines similar to the text of the “Tale” about the ruin of Ryazan by Batu", from which, it would seem, one can conclude that this story was known to Russian scribes of the 14th-15th centuries.
But if only everything were so simple! After all, the author can choose as a plot for his work not only recent events, but also affairs of bygone days. Facts unknown to other chronicles may indicate not only the awareness of the creator of the Tale, but also his artistic imagination and raise doubts about the reliability of the information he reports.
At the same time, in “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” a number of oddities that are alarming are striking. Perfectly describing the fallen soldiers, whose bodies were covered with snow on the battlefield, the walls of the city cathedral blackened from the inside, the author forgets the names of the Ryazan princes and their family ties. Thus, David Muromsky and Vsevolod Pronsky, named among those who fell in the battle with the Tatars, died before the Tatar-Mongol invasion. Mikhail Vsevolodovich, who, according to the Tale, had to restore Pronsk after Batu, did not live to see the ruin of Ryazan. Oleg Ingorevich Krasny, who, by the way, was not the brother, but the nephew of the Ryazan prince Yuri, did not fall from the Tatar knives. The terrible death attributed to him by the author of the Tale awaited his son Roman 33 years later.
The Bishop of Ryazan also did not die in the besieged city, but managed to leave it shortly before the arrival of the Tatars. Svyatoslav Olgovich and Ingor Svyatoslavich, who in fact were not the founders of the Ryazan princely house, are named as the ancestors of the Ryazan princes. The title of Yuri Ingorevich itself, “Grand Duke of Ryazan,” appeared only in the last quarter of the 14th century. Finally, the definition of Evpatiy Kolovrat’s squad, which numbered 1,700 people, as small does not correspond to the realities of pre-Mongol and appanage Rus'.
Let's look at the text of the "Tale" itself. Among its ten editions, the oldest are considered to be those named by D.S. Likhachev Basic A and Basic B. The latter has been preserved in two forms. It is to them that all other editions of the Tale go back.
The similarity of individual fragments of the text of “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” with some literary monuments of the late XIV-XV centuries is beyond doubt and has been noted by many researchers. But it can be generated by general literary cliches used by ancient Russian scribes when describing certain events. The relationship may also turn out to be the opposite, that is, it was not the “Tale” that influenced the literary monuments of the 15th century, but, on the contrary, they served as the author’s source for creating the work.
If you look closely at the text, you can say that the similarity of “The Tale” with “Zadonshchina” is explained by the common genre nature of the monuments. Both military stories do not have literal textual matches. These coincidences exist between “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” and “The Tale of Tokhtamysh’s Invasion of Moscow.” But on the basis of these texts it is impossible to say which of the monuments was older. But this can be said about the “Tale of the Life and Repose of Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsar of Russia”: Evdokia’s cry for Prince Dmitry from this monument certainly served as the basis for the “cry of Ingvar Ingorevich” from “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.” This is evidenced by Ingvar’s use of addresses in the singular in relation to many of the fallen (“lord”, “my red month”, “quickly deceased”).
These words, which do not correspond to the cry for the devastated Ryazan land, were appropriate in the mouth of Evdokia, turning to her husband. But “The Tale of the Life and Death of Dmitry Ivanovich” is part of a cycle of stories about the events of the last quarter of the 14th - early 15th centuries, compiled for the chronicle of 1448. Among them is “The Tale of Tokhtamysh’s Invasion of Moscow.” Consequently, she was also the source of “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.” Another 15th-century monument, “The Tale,” is associated with the expressions “one fights a thousand, two fights darkness,” “giant force,” “sanchakbey.” We find these words and figures of speech in Nestor-Iskander’s story about the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453. But the title “sanchakbey” is connected specifically with the organization of the Turkish army and could not have been borrowed by Nestor-Iskander from the story of the Mongol invasion. It seems more likely that the Ryazan story is dependent on a work written in the second half of the 15th century.
In addition, “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” came to us as part of a cycle of legends about Nikolai Zarazsky. This cycle united literary monuments that were different in character, information content and artistic merit. In addition to our “Tale,” it includes “The Tale of the Bringing of the Icon of St. Nicholas of Korsun to Ryazan,” the closely related “Tale of the Death of Prince Fyodor and His Family,” “Genealogy of the Priests Who Served at the Icon of St. Nicholas,” and “Tales of miracles from the icon in 1513 and 1531." An analysis of this literary convoy can provide some basis for dating “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.”
The cycle has come down to us in various editions, but in most cases it opens with “The Tale of the Bringing of the Icon of St. Nicholas of Korsun to Ryazan.” Most likely, it was written by Eustathius II, the son of the priest Eustathius Raki, who brought the icon. The former independent existence of this text is confirmed by the ending phrase preserved in some editions: “Glory to our God,” which is appropriate in the absence of other works of the Nikolo-Zarazsky cycle. The time of creation of this story is the 13th century.
Closely related to the story of the bringing of the icon is the second story of the Nikolo-Zarazsky cycle, which tells about the death of Prince Fyodor during an embassy to Batu and the suicide of his wife, who threw herself down from a high temple. This legend has the character of a toponymic legend. It ends with the phrase: “and because of this guilt the great miracle worker Nikolai Zarasky is called, as the blessing of Eupraxea with her son Prince Ivan infected herself,” which indicates that we have before us a literary treatment of the folk etymology of the toponym Zarazsk. But a toponymic legend cannot appear before the appearance of a place with that name. The “List of Russian cities near and far,” compiled at the end of the 14th century, does not include the town of Zarazsk, from which we can conclude that the legend about Prince Fedor and his family appeared no earlier than the 15th century.
But after all, “The Tale of the Death of Prince Fyodor and His Family” preceded the “Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.” The latter repeats the text of the Zaraz legend almost word for word, which is why it is duplicated within a single cycle. Consequently, our “Tale” was formed no earlier than the 15th century. But when?
The answer to this question can be suggested by the “Genealogy of the priests who served at the icon of St. Nicholas of Zaraz” and “The Tale of the Miracle from the Icon that Happened in 1513.”
The genealogy of priests (or the Priestly Family) has two main editions: listing 9 generations without indicating the period of continuous service of the clan with the icon, and listing 10 generations who served for 335 years. It is significant that the first edition usually precedes the “Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu”, following immediately after the “Tale of the Death of Prince Fyodor”, and the second is placed after the legend of Batu’s invasion of Ryazan.
Consequently, we have the right to assume that the “Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan” was added to the Genealogy of Priests, which consisted of 9 generations and originally completed the story of the bringing of the icon and the death of Prince Fyodor. After one generation, this story began to immediately adjoin the story of the death of Prince Fyodor, and the Popovsky family, brought to 10 generations, began to complete the entire cycle.
It is easy to calculate that the Basic Editions A and B of the first type arose before 1560. This date indicates to us the period of uninterrupted service of one priestly family. But since the author of the genealogy allocates 33.5 years for one generation (335 years divided into 10 generations), the oldest edition of “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” was created after 1526 (1560 minus 33.5), since it was preceded by a genealogy compiled in one generation earlier.
The Tale of the Miracle of 1513, which follows the oldest edition of the Tale, helps to clarify this date even more. It was created before 1530, since in the call to prayer for the sovereign’s health, the brother of the Grand Duke was named as the heir, which would have been unthinkable after the birth of Ivan the Terrible on August 25, 1530.
This means that the oldest edition of “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu” was written after 1526, but before 1530. This finding is of great importance.
What does the new dating of the monument give us? First of all, it obliges us to change our attitude towards the unique details reported by the author of “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu”, since he worked in the 16th century, and not in the 13th.
Secondly, our ideas about the history of ancient Russian literature are changing. Rus', torn apart by the Mongol invasion, was unable to create such a monument as “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu.” The tragic pathos of this work was based on confidence in the unconditional final victory over the enemy. This level of awareness of events was not yet available to the Russian people in the first years of the Mongol yoke. With the new dating of the “Tale,” the author’s verbosity and ecclesiastical edification, more characteristic of the 15th–16th centuries than of the 13th century, become clear.
The “Tale” itself was created on the basis of the Ryazan legend about Batu’s invasion, preserved in the Novgorod First Chronicle and supplemented by the local legend about Prince Fyodor, the story of the death of Oleg the Red, the legend of Evpatiy Kolovrat and the lament of Ingvar Ingorevich. As sources, the author, in addition to the First Novgorod Chronicle, used the code of 1448 (primarily “The Tale of the Life and Repose of Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsar of Russia” and “The Tale of Tokhtamysh’s Invasion of Moscow”) and the life of Jacob of Persia. A special place among the sources is occupied by “Praise to the Family of the Ryazan Princes,” introduced in the final part of the “Tale.” Compiled on the basis of praise for the house of the Novgorod-Seversk princes, it contains many archaisms. Thus, among the merits of the princes their struggle with the Polovtsians is named (“and the filthy Polovtsians fought for the holy churches and the Orthodox faith”). We may have the remains of a 12th century monument.
With all this, the “Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu,” dating back to the 16th century, does not lose its significance as a source. Its value lies not in telling us new details about the Mongol invasion, but in reflecting this event in the public consciousness of Russia on the eve of the Russian capture of Kazan. The very appeal to the topic of the devastation of Russian lands at a time when the strengthening Russian state was preparing for the last battle with a once dangerous, but increasingly weakening enemy is indicative. The author of the story leaves no room in history for the 250-year yoke. In his opinion, clearly expressed in the last lines of the text, the people who survived Batu’s defeat had already been delivered by God from the Tatars. In some lists, this story is continued by the fantastic story of the murder of Batu.
The abundance of prayers and calls to stand up against the “warriors of the Christian faith” reveal both the author’s perception of the confrontation between Russians and Tatars as a religious struggle, and the special role of the church in shaping public opinion on the Tatar issue. It seems important that in this struggle between the Forest and the Steppe, the national question did not occupy a large place in the minds of people of the 16th century. As enemies, for them the Polovtsians (mentioned in “Praise to the Family of the Ryazan Princes”), the Mongols, and the Crimeans (present in the “Tale of Miracles”) are united.
Of particular interest is the colorful description of the feat of Evpatiy Kolovrat. Of course, this is a recording of an epic tale about a hero. Even his death is unusual. Evpatiy is hit from siege engines, which is impossible in a real field battle.+ This image is close to a whole galaxy of similar images reflected in Russian literature of the 15th-17th centuries. Mercury Smolensky, Demyan Kudenievich, Sukhman - all of them suddenly encounter the enemy, independently make a decision to repel the enemy, fight with superior enemy forces, win and die, but not in a duel, but as a result of some kind of enemy trick; Their feat initially had no witnesses.
The story about Evpatiy Kolovrat, as well as the Life of Mercury of Smolensk and the Nikon Chronicle, records the process of formation of this legend. Neither the name of the hero nor the location of the action have yet been established (Ryazan, Smolensk, Pereyaslavl Russky). All this will take on its final form only in the 17th century in “The Tale of Sukhman”. Consequently, reading the pages of “The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu”, we are present at the birth of epics of the 16th-17th centuries.
