Who founded the city in ancient Russia. Ancient cities in Ancient Rus: names, education and development

The question about "The most ancient city in Russia" has long been debatable for scientists and historians. The fact is that they single out several settlements at once, as the most ancient city in Russia.

Among them is Old Novgorod

Derbent

.

Derbent is located in Dagestan and it was built many years before our era, and, accordingly, long before the foundation of the Kievan Rus and the Russian Empire in general.

Now Derbent is part of Russian Federation and on this basis, a colossal number of scientists ascribe it to the status of "The most ancient city in Russia." Critics of this theory, no less prominent scientists and historians, point out that this city cannot be considered the most ancient city in Russia, even because it was when there was no memo about Russia or Russia. In addition, this region differs significantly from ancient Russia and in general from the culture of the Russian people, therefore it is difficult to attribute it to a Russian city. Whether it is true or not, it's up to everyone to decide. It remains only to say that a true patriot of his country should know at least a little the history of his homeland.

Adding fuel to the fire, I would like to note that

If Ancient Novgorod was founded in 859, then Moore celebrated its formation in 862,

but this date cannot be considered 100% true, since the only source of its mention is the Tale of Bygone Years.

In this city, research is being carried out, according to the results of which, it is already becoming known that even before 862 there were settlements of the Finno-Ugric peoples, who called this city by its current name (Murom). The Finno-Ugric people themselves appeared in these parts as early as the 5th century AD, respectively, the city may well claim to be the oldest in Russia, since it this moment maybe already about 1500 years old

It is also worth mentioning one of the oldest cities in Russia, which bears the name

Bryansk .

It is officially believed to have been founded in 985. Over the years of its formation, the city has undergone minor changes in its name, since it was originally called Debryansk. The first mention of the city is in the Ipatiev Chronicle, which dates back to 1146.

As we can see, the question of the most ancient city in Russia remains controversial to this day. It is extremely difficult to find the true truth, but knowing the facts about the cities of your country is necessary and interesting.

Smolensk

is one of the first cities of Russia. In the dated part of the Tale of Bygone Years, it was first mentioned under the year 862 as the center of the tribal union of the Krivichi.

According to the Ustyuzhensky (Arkhangelsk) vault, it was recorded under the year 863, when Askold and Dir, on a campaign from Novgorod to Constantinople, bypassed the city, since the city was heavily fortified and crowded. In 882, the city was captured and annexed to the Old Russian state by Prince Oleg, who handed it over to Prince Igor, from whose childhood power in the city was exercised by governors and squads, and general management was carried out from Kiev.

Staraya Russa- an old provincial town in the Novgorod region. His exact age is not known, since Karamzin had a hand in history, who confused many events in ancient Russia.

Veliky Novgorod appears on a paper five-ruble banknote, and Staraya Russa on an iron ten-ruble coin.

So judge who is older.

The town of Staraya Russa is mentioned in The Tale of Bygone Years, a fundamental book in the history of Rus. The city stands on museum treasures. The area of ​​the ancient settlement is 200 hectares, and excavations were carried out carelessly on one thousandth of this territory. Staraya Russa is an ideal springboard for anyone who wants to make a historical discovery.

Temple Miraculous icons Old Russian Mother of God

Velikiy Novgorodconsidered the most ancient.

At least, almost every resident of the city thinks so. The year 859 is considered the date of reckoning. The grandiose city, washed by the waters of the Volkhov River, became the progenitor of Christianity in Russia, the Kremlin and numerous architectural monuments remember the rulers of the early period of our state. This version is also supported by the fact that Novgorod has always been Russian city and there is a starting point for calculating age (not something blurry, such and such an age ...).

Another version, which also has the right to exist, is the one that most historians insist on.

Staraya Ladoga- the most ancient city in Russia. Now Staraya Ladoga has the status of a city and the first mention of it reaches us already from the middle of the VIII century. There are tombstones that date back to 753 year ... Not so long ago, when visiting Staraya Ladoga, V.V. Putin decided to conduct additional studies of the city's surroundings in order to nominate it for the title of a monument in 2014 world heritage UNESCO, and this will serve as an impetus for the study of its history

In Staraya Ladoga, a church has been preserved in which, according to legends, the descendants of Rurik were baptized.

The debate on this issue will not stop yet long time until hard evidence is found:

Belozersk (Vologda region) - 862

From the name of Lake Beloe it happenedthe name of the city of Belozersk.

The first mention of the city dates back to 862 in the Tale of Bygone Years called Beloozero. This date is also the date of foundation of the present Belozersk.Initially, the city was located on the northern shore of the White Lake, in the Ⅹ century it was moved to the southern shore, where it stood until 1352.

From 1238 the city became the center of the Belozersk principality and from 1389 it passed into the Moscow principality. The city was devastated by epidemics in 1352 and revived again, flourished in the century and fell into decay at the end of the ⅩⅦ century.
At the beginning of the ⅩⅨ century, the development of the city was facilitated by the Belozersk bypass channel (the construction of the Mariinsky water system). The canal is used to transport materials from the timber industry to St. Petersburg Belozersk... With the opening of the Volga-Baltic waterway, Belozersk established ties with other industrial cities.
The current coat of arms of the city was approved on October 12, 2001 and is: "In a wavy-crossed with azure and silver shield, at the top there is a broadened cross over a silver crescent, at the bottom there are two crossed silver sterlets with scarlet fins, thinly edged with azure." The previous coat of arms was approved at Soviet power in 1972.

Former and current coat of arms of Belozersk

The architecture of Belozersk - along the embankment of the Belozersky canal, a complex of one-story buildings from 1846. Five of its buildings are arranged symmetrically
* Kremlin and Spaso-Preobrazhensky cathedral - a ring of an earthen rampart surrounded on all sides by a moat. The embankment and the moat are striking in their scales. A three-span stone bridge leads across the moat to the territory of the Kremlin. The five-domed Transfiguration Cathedral rises in the center of the Kremlin.
* Church of the All-Merciful Savior (1716-1723) - the five-domed church is one of the first stone temples in the city.
* Church of Elijah the Prophet (1690-1696) - a wooden three-tiered one-domed church in the western part of the city
* Church of the Assumption (1553) - the oldest building in Belozersk. This five-domed temple, together with the Church of the Epiphany, make up architectural complex... At the moment, these churches are active.
* Belozersk Art and History Museum - the museum is divided into 8 parts, for example
- "Russian hut museum"
- "Museum of the History of the Region"
- "Museum of Nature"
* Monument created for the 1112th anniversary of the city (note the date) a boat, symbolizing the fact that the history of the city is closely connected with waterways.

Rostov (Yaroslavl region) - 862

Smolensk - 862

The word fortress in Russia was synonymous with the word city, and the expression "to build a city" meant to build a fortress. That is why we will consider urban construction in Russia within the framework of our topic. First of all, let's consider how the cities arose in the Russian lands. The problem of the emergence of ancient Russian cities has always been in the center of attention of historians studying Kievan Rus, which is not surprising, because the question of the role of the city as a whole in the development of society in any era is generally one of the central problems of social sciences. What do modern researchers call the ancient Russian city? Some typical definitions are:

"The city is a settlement in which the industrial and commercial population is concentrated, in one way or another, divorced from agriculture."

There are also many other definitions. What is the reason for this diversity? Why until now scientists can not come to a consensus? The reason is that the early Russian city is still poorly understood.

As a result, the problem of the emergence of ancient Russian cities does not lose its relevance to this day. It was put in historiography a very long time ago, but the most interesting and well-founded theory on this subject in pre-revolutionary historiography was formulated by V.O. Klyuchevsky. Soviet historians N.A.Rozhkov and M.N.Pokrovsky, who laid the foundation for the study of Ancient Rus in Soviet historiography, generally adhered to the concept of V.O. Then this problem began to attract more and more attention of Soviet scientists. Often their opinions differed from the concept proposed by V.O.Klyuchevsky. Although K. Marx and F. Engels in their views were close to the theory of V.O. Klyuchevsky, they exaggerated the importance of the economic factor in all spheres of social life. Historians of B.D. Grekov's school devoted Special attention handicraft production and its importance in the development of ancient Russian cities. The discussion on the problem was continued by such scientists as S.V. Yushkov, who put forward his theory, strongly criticizing the concept of Klyuchevsky. The historian M.N. Tikhomirov was actively involved in the issue of the ancient Russian city, who devoted a separate monograph to this topic. Gradually, the ideas formulated by S.V. Yushkov, B.D.Grekov, and M.N. Tikhomirov were significantly developed and supplemented by a number of scientists. The works of A.V. Kuza about ancient Russian cities are very interesting. The scientist himself has been engaged in excavations of ancient Russian cities for many years. Later, the works of B. A. Rybakov, P. P. Tolochko and I. Ya. Froyanov appeared. The historian V.V.Sedov tried to reconcile the views of scientists in his concept. And finally, the historian V.P.Darkevich harshly criticizes all existing theories and proposes his own. Thus, we see that discussions on the problem under consideration do not fade away and have not yet found a compromise.

Naturally, the idea of ​​one or another author about the origin of ancient Russian cities directly depends on his general view about old Russian reality. Hence such terminological diversity: proto-cities, tribal and feudal cities, city-states, etc. In this case, each author stubbornly tries to fit all existing material under his given scheme. But all the material so far has not fit into any scheme, and as new material accumulates, all the old concepts have found themselves in a state of crisis. And so far, none of the problems of ancient Russian urban life has found a convincing solution.

That is why we set the goal of this chapter: to identify the basic concepts of the origin of ancient Russian cities, to consider their strengths and weaknesses. In this regard, we have set the following tasks:

To study historiography on the problem of the origin of ancient Russian cities

· Consider each concept separately, identify its strengths and weaknesses.

The historian V. O. Klyuchevsky paints the following picture of the emergence of ancient Russian cities: “A quick glance at the geographical location of these cities is enough to see that they were created by the success of Rus' foreign trade. Most of them stretched out in a long chain along the main river route "from the Varangians to the Greeks", along the Dnieper-Volkhov line; only a few - Pereyaslavl on Trubezh, Chernigov on the Desna, Rostov in the Upper Volga region - moved to the east from this, how to say, the operational basis of Russian trade as its eastern outposts, indicating its flank direction to the Azov and Caspian Seas. The general meaning of this theory is associated with Klyuchevsky's idea of ​​trade as the driving force behind the emergence of early Russian cities. According to Klyuchevsky, after the Avar invasion in the VI-VIII centuries. In the course of settling in Eastern Europe, the Slavs enter a period of disintegration of clan ties, replaced by territorial ones. A "new social cohesion" is being formed, conditioned by economic interest, the driving force of which was trade with the countries of the East. Trade pulled single courtyards into special trading centers - graveyards, which then evolved into large trading cities with areas stretching to them. These cities appeared already in the 8th century. and become centers of foreign trade, and in the IX century. surrounded by fortifications, they concentrate the military and trade elite of the ancient Russian society.

According to F. Engels, the separation of handicrafts and agriculture contributed to the transition from barbarism to civilization, from pre-class to class society ("the second major division of labor"). Hence - the emergence of fortified cities in the era of military democracy: "The grave of the tribal system gapes in their ditches, and their towers already abut civilization."

The historian B. D. Grekov relies heavily on Marxist theory, he criticizes the theory of Klyuchevsky, but also comes to the idea that cities arose along rivers and waterways. “The various trade relations of these cities had great importance in the history of their economic and political growth. It is no coincidence that these cities very early, before the arrival of the Varangians, became centers that united separate Slavic tribes, ”he writes.

The historian S. V. Yushkov paid great attention to the problem of the origin of ancient Russian cities. Yushkov saw the main reason for the emergence of cities in the division of industry, trade and Agriculture.

The number of cities began to increase rapidly during the late 9th-10th centuries. At this time, major changes took place in the life of Ancient Rus. The Old Russian state was created and strengthened. Fundamental changes have taken place in both the economic and social spheres. The craft is separated from agriculture, which becomes the main occupation of the inhabitants. Feudalism is established. First of all, cities arise where handicrafts and agriculture are successfully developing, the result of which is the emergence of an urban district and a city as its center. Let's take a look at the map of the location of cities in Russia in IX-X centuries: it is obvious that the largest concentration of cities is observed around Kiev. Moreover, many of these cities are not only not associated with the Dnieper by water but also with other waterways too. These are cities such as Belgorod, Iskorosten, Vruchiy and others. What is the reason for such a cluster? Here the agricultural character of the area should be taken into account. There are many ancient Russian villages known to us from written sources, such as Olzhichi and Berestovo. Another similar cluster of cities can be found in the area of ​​the upper reaches of the Bug. One of the largest cities in the region, Cherven, is located away from major waterways. The third such clot is found between the Klyazma and the upper Volga. Some of the oldest cities in this region - Suzdal and Rostov are also located at some distance from the Volga and Oka rivers. Although a large waterway from the Baltic Sea to the Caspian and passed along the Volga. Thus, we see that the location of cities along major trade routes in this case cannot be the reason for their emergence.

Rostov is located on the shores of Lake Nero. But this city is located quite far from the Volga, although it is connected with it by a network of small rivers. Thus, we can conclude that non-river trade routes played an important role in the emergence and development of Rostov. A much more important factor was its location in the "opolya". This was the name of the plots in the North-Eastern part of Russia. Their soil was very fertile and allowed them to successfully engage in agriculture and horticulture. In addition, Lake Nero was famous for its fish wealth. The city of Suzdal is even less connected to the river network. Nearby flows only the Nerl River, which is a tributary of the Klyazma, and may have been of trade value in ancient times. But Suzdal, like Rostov, was located in the center of the opolye. This allowed him to be promoted from among other cities in the area. In the same way, cities such as Uglich, Pereslavl Zalessky and Yuryev Polskoy appeared and developed.

The problem of the prehistory of ancient Russian cities was also investigated by the historian M.N. Tikhomirov, who believed that fertile lands were the reason for the emergence of cities. All conditions were created here for the separation of agriculture from handicrafts, as a result of which cities appeared - trade and craft centers.

Thus, there are two main reasons for the emergence and development of ancient Russian cities. This is a geographical location on important trade routes, as well as a location in fertile lands.

However, many scientists dispute this concept and give strong enough arguments against it. They argue that domestic trade at this time was in its infancy, subsistence farming prevailed. And, consequently, the emergence of cities cannot be explained by the importance of water trade routes. In addition, they deny the separation of handicrafts from agriculture. Speaking of the fact that during excavations, even in large cities, they simultaneously find both hoes, sickles and scythes, and fishing tackle and shears for shearing sheep, which indicates the mixed nature of the occupations of the inhabitants of these cities.

In conclusion, it should be said that the socio-economic concept distinguishes trade and the separation of handicrafts from agriculture as the main driving forces the emergence of cities in Ancient Russia. Like other concepts, it has supporters and opponents and is not devoid of weaknesses... Since it is one of the earliest concepts, it has some discrepancies with modern archaeological data.

S. V. Yushkov resolutely rejects the concept of V.O. Klyuchevsky and a number of other pre-revolutionary prehistoric times and governed by a commercial and industrial democracy ”. According to the scientist, “the main territorial unit that was part of the Kiev state was originally a tribal principality, and then, when tribal relations underwent decay, a large feudal lord that arose on the ruins of these tribal principalities. Each of these feudal lords had its own center - a city, but this city, although it was turning into a commercial and industrial center, was still primarily a center of feudal rule, where the main political force was the feudal lords different types, not commercial and industrial democracy ”.

This point of view was also reflected in the works of the historian A.V. Kuza: trade and craft settlements did not play a role in the formation of cities in the early period. "Feudal lords stood at the origins of the cities," but "they could not complete this process without merchants and artisans." That is why "artisans and merchants appear simultaneously with the feudal lords or soon after them in the emerging cities."

Supporters of this concept argued that cities in Russia arose from tribal or inter-tribal centers. According to B.A. Rybakov, cities emerged as political centers in the era of the tribal system. The history of each city begins “not only from that elusive moment when it finally acquired all the features and characteristics of a feudal city, but, if possible, from the time when this topographic point stood out from the environment of neighboring settlements, became in some way above them and acquired some special, inherent functions ". He also writes that cities cannot arise instantly, and their formation is a long historical process: magic power". He points out that "the move historical development the tribal system leads to the multiplication of tribal centers and to the complication of their functions. "

The theory of the development of cities from tribal and intertribal centers was most developed in the works of P.P. Tolochko and I. Ya. Froyanov. According to PP Tolochko, the most ancient Russian city was "basically agrarian, the birth and development entirely due to the agricultural district." The oldest cities are formed on the basis of the previous "tribal cities". The emergence of the latter, however, no longer belongs entirely to the primitive era, but to the "transitional stage" to the 8th-9th centuries. At the same time, the addition of statehood is taking place. These oldest cities“Were not, for the most part, centers of craft and trade; their economic development was based on the agricultural production of the district. " The leading functions of the early cities were political, administrative and military, as well as cult. The main organizing force in the initial period is political power. Only later did the cities become centers of feudal rule, and from them the feudal development of the area began. Gradually, craft and trade are also concentrated in cities.

According to I. Ya. Froyanov, the emergence of cities must be associated with a late stage in the development of the tribal system. The early cities, in his opinion, are tribal centers. "The organization of society (at a later stage of the tribal system) becomes so complex that its further life without coordinating centers is impossible", in the "environment saturated with social connections, cities crystallize, which are clots of these ties." Over time, tribal ties and associations appeared, which were large enough and needed organizing centers. The cities became them. Their main functions were of a military-political, administrative and religious nature. Later, cities are transformed into centers of city-states. All the most important social institutions were located there, such as the power in the person of the prince, the people's veche, tribute flowed to the cities, they were also a sacred center. I. Ya.Froyanov believes that many scientists artificially divide old Russian cities into several types. He also denies that proto-cities or other predecessors of cities existed in Russia.

Scientists opposed to this concept cite a lot of archaeological data that are at odds with the main provisions of the theory. "The capitals of many of the largest principalities," writes BA Rybakov, "were at one time the centers of tribal unions: Kiev near the Polyans, Smolensk near the Krivichi, Polotsk near the Polotsk, Novgorod the Great near the Slovens, and Novgorod Seversky near the Northerners." But in these centers not even the layers of the 9th century were found, let alone the earlier ones. This theory is based on the fact that early Slavic settlements with traces of the existence of stone-cutting, jewelry and blacksmithing were found on the site of many cities, but its followers do not take into account the fact that many similar settlements were found outside the cities that subsequently emerged.

Thus, the concept of the development of cities from tribal centers is based on the continuity of ancient Russian cities with earlier proto-urban formations. This concept is largely borrowed from foreign historians, and, like the previous one, has discrepancies with archaeological data.

V.V.Sedov proposed a completely different theory, although it should be noted that the scientist's views are constantly developing and improving. He considers that the existence of several ways of the formation of cities in Ancient Russia has been unequivocally proven archaeologically. Cities are formed along four main paths:

· Education from tribal or inter-tribal centers;

· Education from fortified camps and graveyards, as well as centers of parishes;

· Education from border fortifications;

· One-time construction of cities.

It is interesting that V.V.Sedov tried to look at the origin of ancient Russian cities in the context pan-European process the formation of the city as a certain social phenomenon that arises at a certain stage in the development of society. The scientist showed that the process of city formation outside the borders of the Roman Empire is a process common for huge regions of Europe, subject to uniform historical laws. In the VIII-VIII centuries. to the east and north of the zone of Romano-Germanic synthesis and the borders of Byzantium on the lands of the Germans, Slavs and Balts in the regions of concentration of the rural population, “non-agricultural” settlements appeared, in which professional craftsmen and merchants were concentrated. Some of these settlements arose directly due to the development of "broad trade relations". These settlements are proto-cities. They also become centers of crystallization of the military-retinue and merchant class.

The next period of the genesis of ancient Russian cities according to V.V.Sedov was the 9th-10th centuries. - the emergence of the actual early feudal cities. Not all proto-cities have grown into "real" urban centers, but only those that, along with craft and trade functions, had military, political, administrative and religious functions.

It must be said that in many respects V.V.Sedov's concept is an attempt to reconcile old ideas coming from B.D.Grekov and M.N. Tikhomirov with new materials, primarily archaeological (including those obtained by V.V. . Sedov). V.V.Sedov's concept is to a certain extent a combination of old and new approaches; it combines both their strengths and weaknesses.

Speaking about the problem of the emergence of ancient Russian cities, one cannot but pay attention to the phenomenon of "transfer of cities", which is observed in almost all of Ancient Russia. The first to seriously investigate this phenomenon was A. A. Spitsyn, and then such scientists as I. I. Lyapushkin, L. V. Alekseev, V. A. Bulkin and others. Most clearly, the "transfer of the city" can be traced on the example of Gnezdov - Smolensk. Gnezdovo is a settlement with an area of ​​about 16 hectares. It includes a fortified settlement at the mouth of the river. Lead (with an area of ​​about 1 hectare) and a settlement. The settlement arose at the turn of the 9th-10th centuries. This place is marked by traces of buildings deepened into the ground, as well as by accumulations of molded ceramics. By the middle of the X century. The nest grows along the banks of the Svin and the Dnieper, merging with the mounds that encompass it in a half-ring. The most intense period of the existence of this settlement falls on the second half of the 10th century. At this time, new fortifications were erected in its central part.

Similar processes took place in other Russian lands during the formation of the early feudal state. This can be evidenced by both the high degree of division of agriculture and handicrafts, and noticeable social differentiation, as well as the ever-growing role of the squad and international relations. But at the beginning of the 11th century, the progressive development in Gnezdovo was replaced by a sharp decline. The cessation of active trade and craft activities leads to the fact that the settlement acquires an ordinary rural character. At the same time, Smolensk, which is 13 km away. from the settlement begins to develop intensively. By the XII century, it was transformed into a major center of craft and trade, the capital of the principality. External relations and city functions are developing in the city. Thus, one can see how the tribal center, where the local nobility dominated, is replaced by a new center focused on external Relations, collection of tribute, service of the squad, etc. Gnezdovo is not the only example of such a “city relocation”. Such new princely centers instead of old tribal centers arose mainly on international trade routes, which attracted warriors, artisans and merchants there. Such examples are the Sarskoe settlement near Rostov, Shestovitskoe near Chernigov, Timirevskoe near Yaroslavl.

Thus, we can say that the "transfer of the city" takes place in those cases when the new emerging class of feudal lords is not able to completely reverse the tribal nobility. New feudal centers arose, initially closely associated with the old centers. However, their independence gradually increases, and the old centers disappear or lose their significance.

But not all scientists agree with this interpretation of the phenomenon of "city transfer". Some associate him with the Scandinavians and assign them a leading role in the functioning of centers such as Gnezdov or Shestovits. In Gnezdovo, a group of large mounds is distinguished in the center of the necropolis, which are an aristocratic cemetery. Here, according to the Scandinavian rite, military leaders are buried. This is confirmed by the inventory accompanying the burial: amulets, jewelry, weapons. Similar Scandinavian elements were found in other burials at the "proto-towns". It has been archeologically confirmed that by the 11th century the Varangians who settled in Russia were assimilated by the Slavs. It was at this time that the squad camps, in which there were soldiers and trade and fiscal centers, were being transformed into qualitatively new formations, cities of a new type. This was facilitated by the adoption of Christianity and the transition to a more orderly domestic policy.

The phenomenon of "city transfer" is the most archaeologically confirmed, but no less controversial concept, since disputes arise around the interpretation of the available archaeological data. Its supporters claim the emergence of a city near a pre-existing but decayed fortified settlement.

The historian V.P.Darkevich criticizes all the above concepts of the development of ancient Russian cities and denies the existence of the phenomenon of the transfer of cities. Instead, he offers his own theory, in which he connects the process of urbanization and the formation of the Old Russian state. He believes that in connection with the emergence of the ancient Russian statehood, the organization of society becomes noticeably more complicated and the emergence of coordinating centers becomes a necessity. These functions were performed by the first cities. "The main centers were Novgorod and Kiev, located, as in an ellipse, in two" foci "of the region involved in the" trade movement ";" The path from the Varangians to the Greeks "is the axis of not only the political map, but also the political life of Kievan Rus. unity is strong as long as both ends of the path are in the same hands. "

V.P.Darkevich believes that the formation of the state in Russia and the emergence of cities was not a long evolutionary process, but was a dynamic phenomenon. Citing archaeological data, he argues that the cities have nothing to do with the numerous suburban formations. Cities as a historical and cultural phenomenon with new properties arise along with the emergence of the state, are an integral part of it and symbolize the transition to another, qualitatively new stage in the development of society. Only towards the end of the 10th century are conditions created for the emergence of settlements of a new type, which are capable of performing new functions - military, cultural and administrative. It was not economic factors, but the search for new forms of cooperation and solidarity that forced people to unite and create cities. The 10th century became a transitional period.

An important role in the construction of cities, according to Darkevich, was played by the princes, they were in charge of the designers and "city-makers". The cities served not only as an important center of command, but also as a refuge in case of war danger. That is why the construction of powerful fortifications was seen as a great thing. This reason was one of the first to move the builders. Cities were built collectively.

V.P.Darkevich singles out the emergence of ancient Russian cities as a new stage in the development of society at that time and considers this process not evolutionary, but dynamic, burst-like. Thus, he rejects all previously proposed concepts. His theory today has few supporters, but it is based on a sufficient amount of evidence and, like other concepts, has its drawbacks, and we could not lose sight of it in the study of the problem of the origin of ancient Russian cities.

Thus, in the course of the chapter, we examined the research of leading scientists in the field of the question of the origin of ancient Russian cities and identified five main concepts:

A socio-economic concept that highlights trade and the separation of crafts from agriculture as the main driving forces behind the emergence of cities in Ancient Rus. Like other concepts, it has supporters and opponents and is not devoid of weaknesses. Since it is one of the earliest concepts, it has some discrepancies with modern archaeological data.

The concept of the development of cities from tribal centers, which is based on the continuity of ancient Russian cities with earlier proto-urban formations. This concept is largely borrowed from foreign historians, and, like the previous one, has discrepancies with archaeological data.

The concept of several ways of urban development, which combines several proposed concepts and is rather a compromise theory, but it is also not devoid of weaknesses and has its opponents.

The phenomenon of "city transfer", which is the most archaeologically confirmed, but no less controversial concept, since disputes arise around the interpretation of the available archaeological data. Its supporters claim the emergence of a city near a pre-existing but decayed fortified settlement.

The concept of the dynamic formation of cities, which was proposed by the historian Darkevich, who singles out the emergence of ancient Russian cities as a new stage in the development of society at that time and considers this process not evolutionary, but dynamic, burst-like. Thus, he rejects all previously proposed concepts. His theory today has few supporters, but is based on a sufficient amount of evidence and, like other concepts, has its drawbacks, and we could not lose sight of it in the study of the problem of the origin of ancient Russian cities.

These are the most common points of view on this issue in Russian historiography. Of course, there are other opinions, but they, one way or another, fit into the scheme we have proposed.

Consideration of these concepts will help us to continue our research in the field of ancient Russian cities and, more specifically, in the area of ​​kremlin in ancient Russian cities, since it was the Kremlin that was the center and, one might say, the heart of the ancient Russian city. We saw that the question of the emergence of cities in Ancient Russia is very ambiguous, which gives us reason to believe that their further development also went in different ways. These common features and we will try to identify differences in the course of our work.

The question of when the Slavs appeared on the territory where the Old Russian state was later formed has not yet been finally resolved. Some researchers believe that the Slavs are the original population of this territory, others believe that non-Slavic tribes lived here, and the Slavs moved here much later, only in the middle of the 1st millennium AD. At the moment, there are many scientific works devoted to the emergence of the Old Russian state, but the question of the emergence of cities and the role they played in the economic, political and spiritual life of Ancient Russia remains quite important. The main goal of this work was to find the role of the city in the Old Russian state. Also, tasks were identified to determine the functions of cities in the economy, politics and culture, as well as theories of the origin of urban settlements in the territory of Ancient Russia.

In any case, the Slavic settlements of the 6th - 7th centuries. within the territory of modern Ukraine are already well known. They are located in the southern part of the forest-steppe, almost on the border of the steppes. Apparently, the situation here at that time was quite calm and there was no need to fear enemy attacks - Slavic settlements were built unfortified. Later, the situation changed dramatically: hostile nomadic tribes, and here they began to build near the city.

Apparently, the emergence of cities was a consequence of the success of the Eastern trade of the Slavs, which began in the 8th century, and there was the emergence of the most ancient trading cities in Russia, but the role of the city was not limited only to trade. The story of the beginning of the Russian land does not remember when these cities arose: Kiev, Pereslavl. Chernigov, Smolensk, Lyubech, Novgorod, Rostov, Polotsk. At the moment with which she begins her story about Russia, most of these cities, if not all of them, apparently, were already significant settlements. A quick glance at the geographical location of these cities is enough to see that they were created by the successes of Rus' foreign trade. Most of them stretched out in a long chain along the main river route "from the Varangians to the Greeks", along the Dnieper-Volkhov line; only a few, Pereslavl on Trubezh, Chernigov on Desna. Rostov in the Upper Volga region, moved to the east from this, how to say, the operational basis of Russian trade as its eastern outposts, indicating its flank direction to the Azov and Caspian Seas. The rise of these large trading cities was the completion of a complex economic process, which began among the Slavs in new places of residence. We saw that the Eastern Slavs settled along the Dnieper and its tributaries in lonely fortified yards. With the development of trade among these one-yard yards, prefabricated trade points arose, places of industrial exchange, where trappers and beekeepers converged for trade, for a guest, as they said in the old days. Such collection points are called graveyards. Subsequently, with the adoption of Christianity, in these local rural markets, as usual human gatherings, first of all, Christian churches were erected: then the churchyard acquired the significance of a place where a rural parish church stands. At the churches, the dead were buried: hence the significance of the churchyard as a cemetery. Rural administrative divisions coincided with the parishes or were timed to coincide with them: this informed the churchyard the importance of a rural volost. But all these are the later meanings of the term: initially, this was the name of prefabricated trade, "living" places. Small rural markets were drawn to larger ones that emerged along particularly brisk trade routes. From these large markets, which served as intermediaries between native industrialists and foreign markets, Our ancient trading cities grew up along the Greek-Varangian trade route. These cities served as trade centers and the main storage points for the industrial districts formed around them. These are two important economic consequences that accompanied the resettlement of the Slavs along the Dnieper and its tributaries: 1) the development of the external southern and eastern Black Sea-Caspian trade of the Slavs and the forest industries caused by it, 2) the emergence of the most ancient cities in Russia with commercial and industrial districts stretching to them ... Both of these facts can be attributed to the 8th century.

What significance, besides the center for trade, was the city? Some of its functions are reflected in the name itself, for example, the word city in the Old Russian language meant a fortified settlement, as opposed to a vesi or a village - an unfortified village. Therefore, any fortified place was called a city, both a city in the socio-economic meaning of this word, and a fortress itself or a feudal castle, a fortified boyar or prince's estate. Everything that was surrounded by a fortress wall was considered a city. Moreover, up to the 17th century. this word was often used to refer to the defensive walls themselves. From the above, it can be concluded that the cities played the role of defensive fortifications, served as a refuge from enemy raids.

In ancient Russian written sources, especially in the annals, there is great amount mentions of the siege and defense of fortified points and the construction of fortifications - cities.

The fortifications of the early Slavic castles were not very strong; their task was only to delay the enemy, prevent him from suddenly bursting into the village and, in addition, provide the defenders with cover from where they could hit the enemies with arrows. Yes, the Slavs in the 8th - 9th, and partially even in the 10th century, still did not have the opportunity to build powerful fortifications - after all, at that time an early feudal state was just forming here. Most of the settlements belonged to free, relatively sparsely populated territorial communities; they, of course, could not build powerful fortress walls around the settlement on their own or count on someone's help in their construction. Therefore, they tried to build the fortifications so that their main part was made up of natural barriers.

The most suitable for this purpose were the islets in the middle of the river or in the middle of an impassable swamp. A wooden fence or palisade was built along the edge of the site, and this was limited. True, such fortifications also had very significant flaws. First of all in Everyday life the connection of such a settlement with the surrounding area was very inconvenient. Moreover, the size of the settlement here depended entirely on the natural size of the islet; it was impossible to enlarge its area. And most importantly, it is far from always and not everywhere that you can find such an island with a site protected by natural barriers from all sides. Therefore, island-type fortifications were used, as a rule, only in swampy areas. Some of the settlements of the Smolensk and Polotsk lands are typical examples of such a system.

Where there were few swamps, but moraine hillocks were abundant, fortified settlements were built on outlier hills. This technique was widespread in the northwestern regions of Russia. However, this type of defense system is associated with certain geographic conditions; individual hills with steep slopes on all sides are also far from everywhere. Therefore, the most widespread type of fortified settlement became the cape type. For their construction, a cape was chosen, bounded by ravines or at the confluence of two rivers. The settlement turned out to be well protected by water or steep slopes on the sides, but had no natural protection on the floor side. It was here that it was necessary to erect artificial earth obstacles - to tear off a moat. This increased the labor costs for the construction of fasteners, but it also gave huge advantages: in almost any geographic conditions it was very easy to find comfortable spot, select in advance the required size of the territory to be fortified. In addition, the earth obtained by tearing off the ditch was usually poured along the edge of the site, thus creating an artificial earthen rampart, which made it even more difficult for the enemy to access the settlement.

It should be remembered that it was in the cities that the craft developed. It was through the cities that Christianity penetrated into the pagan environment, and after the baptism of Rus, the cities firmly consolidated their role as a center of spiritual culture.

By the beginning of the IX century. in Russia, there were about 24 large cities. The Varangians (Normans), who walked through this territory on the way from the Varangians to the Greeks or from the Varangians to the Persians, called Russia Gardarika - the country of Cities. In the center of the ancient Russian city, fortified in a natural and (or) artificial way, there was a Detinets (krom - the Kremlin), which was surrounded by the settlements of artisans, and on the outskirts there were settlements (settlements).

This is how the Eastern Slavs built their fortifications until the second half of the 10th century, when the ancient Russian early feudal state - Kievan Rus was finally formed.

1. Country of cities

Western European travelers medieval Russia seemed to be a country of endless forests and plains with villages and villages scattered everywhere. And only occasionally did they meet cities on the way.

The Vikings (Varangians) had a completely different impression: they called the vast area along the important trade route “from the Varangians to the Greeks” “Gardariki” - “the country of cities”. In the sagas recorded by the ancient Icelanders, 12 large cities of Ancient Russia are mentioned. Among them are Novgorod, Staraya Ladoga, Kiev, Polotsk, Smolensk, Murom, Rostov. There were much more urban settlements in the East Slavic lands than in Scandinavia.

According to historians, in the IX-X centuries. in Russia there were 25 cities, in the XI - 89, by the end of the XII century. - 224, and on the eve of the Mongol-Tatar invasion - about 300. Among them, the capital centers of lands and principalities stood out. An unforgettable impression on contemporaries was made by majestic Kiev, which in the era of its heyday occupied a huge area (more than 350 hectares). Nevertheless, small towns prevailed, the fortified part of which - "Detinets", or the Kremlin, usually comprised only 2-2.5 hectares.

Finally, there were even smaller settlements - numerous feudal women scattered throughout the country. They were sometimes called simply "townships" or "fortified settlements". Enclosed by ramparts and ditches, protected by wooden walls, they often did not even have a permanent population. For the surrounding villages and villages, such towns were a refuge in case of a sudden attack by nomads. V Peaceful time only a few guards lived here.

"The cities, shining with majesty", were thrown into dust as a result of the invasion of Batu. Their number has dropped dramatically. So they could not again become the capital of the principality, destroyed to the foundation of Saray Ryazan. The once noisy and huge and populous Kiev, according to the descriptions of eyewitnesses, was reduced to almost nothing. Pope's ambassador Plano Carpini in 1245 wrote: "There are hardly 200 houses there, and the Tatars are keeping those people in the most difficult slavery."

The rise of urban life began again only in the XIV century. So, by the end of this century, only in Zalesskaya Rus there were 55 cities, in Novgorod - 35, in the Tver principality - 8, etc.

In those days, a traveler was led to the city by a well-worn road running through dense forests, dangerous swamps, along the river banks. Gradually the forests parted, more and more villages, villages and repairs appeared, and in the distance the dark silhouette of the fortress and the village spreading around it grew. Among the one-storey buildings above the wooden Kremlin wall, the city cathedral and the impressive mansions of the “best people”, several stories high, towered.

2. What is a city?

Cities arise in the era of the formation of statehood. The word "city" itself means "a fortified, fenced-in place." Initially, the city opposed the village and the countryside, although its very development was largely due to the needs of the rural area in handicrafts and imported goods. It was a fortified settlement of artisans and merchants, an exchange center, an economic center of a large territory.

Cities arose for a variety of reasons. Not so long ago, historians believed that only that settlement, which is a trade and craft center, should be considered a city. In Russia there were many cities that grew out of trade and craft settlements: Staraya Ladoga, for example, or Gnezdovo, which later grew into Smolensk. But now scientists have paid attention to other ways of the emergence of ancient Russian cities.

Darkevich, V. P. The origin and development of the cities of ancient Russia (X-XIII centuries) [ Electronic resource] / V. P. Darkevich // Electronic scientific library on the history of ancient Russian architecture RusArch. 2006. Access mode: www.rusarch.ru/darkevich1.htm

History of Russia: textbook. / A. Orlov, V. A. Georgiev, I90 N. G. Georgieva, T. A. Sivokhina. - 3rd ed., Rev. and add. - M: TK Welby, Prospect Publishing House, 2008.- 528 p.

Encyclopedia for Children: Vol. 5, Part 1 (History of Russia and Nearest Neighbors). / Comp. S. T. Ismailova. M .: Avanta +, 1995.

Small settlements on cleared lands

Rybakov B.A.First centuries of Russian history

Rybakov B.A.Kievan Rus and Russian principalities of the XII - XIII centuries.

Princely administrators

Usually history of Eastern Europe, which was inhabited by the Slavs, begin to study from the foundation of Kievan Rus. According to official theory, this is the first state in these lands, which was known in the world, reckoned with, and the rulers were respected. One after another, ancient cities arise in Ancient Rus, and this process stopped only with the invasion of the Mongols. With the invasion of the horde, the state itself, fragmented among the numerous descendants of the princes, goes into oblivion. But we will talk about its heyday, we will tell you what the ancient cities of Russia were like.

A little about the country

The term "Ancient Rus" is usually used to refer to a state united around Kiev, which existed from the ninth to the middle of the thirteenth centuries. In fact, it was a union of principalities, the population of which was made up of Eastern Slavs, subordinate to the Grand Duke. This union occupied vast territories, had its own army (squad), established norms of law.

When the ancient cities in Ancient Rus adopted Christianity, the active construction of stone temples began. New religion further strengthened the power Kiev prince and contributed to foreign policy relations with European states, the development cultural ties with Byzantium and other highly developed countries.

Gardarika

The emergence of cities in Ancient Russia was stormy. It is not for nothing that in the Western European chronicles it is called Gardarika, that is, the country of cities. From written sources dating from the 9th-10th centuries, 24 large settlements are known, but it can be assumed that there were many more. The names of these settlements, as a rule, were Slavic. For example, Novgorod, Vyshgorod, Beloozero, Przemysl. By the end of the twelfth century, the role of cities in Ancient Russia was truly invaluable: there were already 238 of them, they were well fortified, they were centers of politics, trade, education and culture.

The structure and characteristics of the settlement in the old days

A city in Ancient Rus is a settlement for which a place was carefully chosen. The territory should be convenient in terms of defense. A fortified part (the Kremlin) was erected on the hill, as a rule, at a separation from the river. Residential buildings were located closer to the river, in the lowlands or, as they said, on the hem. Thus, the first cities of Ancient Rus consisted of a central part - a well-defended detinets, and a more convenient, but less secure, trade and handicraft part. A little later, settlements, or foothills, appear in the settlements.

Ancient cities in Ancient Rus were not built of stone, like most settlements in Western Europe of that time, but made of wood. Hence the verb "cut down" the city, not build. The fortifications formed a protective ring of wooden log cabins filled with earth. You could get inside only through the gate.

It is worth noting that in Ancient Russia not only a settlement was called a city, but also a fence, a fortress wall, a fortress. In addition to the Detinets, in which the main buildings were located (cathedral, square, treasury, library), and the trade and craft quarter, there was definitely trading area and school.

Mother of Russian cities

This is the epithet awarded by historians main city state. was the city of Kiev - beautiful and very convenient in terms of geographic location... People lived in this area 15-20 thousand years ago. Legendary founder settlement probably lived during the period of the Chernyakhov culture. Velesovaya Kniga claims that he came from the South Baltic and lived around the middle of the second century. But this source dates the foundation of the castle itself to Scythian times, which echoes the message of Herodotus about the chipped stones. Perhaps the Polyana prince did not lay the foundation for the city, but only fortified it and made it a pivotal one. believes that Kiev was founded later, in the 5-6th century, when the Slavs actively settled the territories over the Dnieper and Danube, moving to the Balkan Peninsula.

The emergence of cities in Ancient Rus after Kiev was natural, as people felt safe behind the fortified walls. But at the dawn of the development of the state, the capital city of Glades was part of the Khazar Kaganate. In addition, Kiy met with the Byzantine emperor, presumably with Anastasius. It is not known who ruled the hail after the death of its founder. History names only the names of the last two rulers before the arrival of the Varangians. Prophetic Oleg seized Kiev without bloodshed, made it his capital, pushed back the nomads, crushed the Khazar Kaganate and launched an offensive against Constantinople.

Golden time of Kiev

The campaigns of Oleg and his successor Igor, also did not contribute to the development of the city. Its borders have not expanded since the time of Kiy, but a palace was already rising in it, pagan and Christian churches were built. Prince Vladimir has already undertaken the arrangement of the settlement, and after the baptism of Russia, stone shrines grow in it, the mounds of the former gods are compared to the ground. Under Yaroslav, St. Sophia Cathedral and the Golden Gate were erected, and the territory of Kiev and its population increased several times. Crafts, printing and education are rapidly developing. There are more and more cities in Ancient Rus, but the city of Kiya still remains the main one. Today, in the central part of the Ukrainian capital, you can see buildings erected during the heyday of the state.

Sights of the Ukrainian capital

Ancient cities in Ancient Rus were very beautiful. And of course, the capital is no exception. Today, architectural monuments of that time provide an opportunity to present the splendor of Kiev. The most outstanding attraction is the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, founded by the monk Anthony in 1051. The complex includes stone temples, decorated with paintings, cells, underground caves, fortress towers. The Golden Gate, built under Yaroslav the Wise, is a unique monument of defensive architecture. Today, there is a museum inside, and around the building there is a square with a monument to the prince. It is worth visiting the famous St. Sophia Cathedral (1037), St. Michael's Golden-Domed Cathedral (XI-XII centuries), St. Cyril, Trinity Gate Church, Church of the Savior-on-Berestove (all XII century).

Velikiy Novgorod

Large cities of Ancient Rus are not only capital Kiev. Novgorod is also the most beautiful, which has survived to this day, since it was not touched by the Mongols. Subsequently, to emphasize important role settlement in history, to official name the authorities added the prefix "Great".

The amazing castle, divided by the Volkhov River, was founded in 859. But this is the date when the settlement was first mentioned in written sources. The chronicle mentions that in 859 the Novgorod governor Gostomysl died, and therefore Novgorod arose earlier, long before Rurik was called to the principality. Archaeological excavations have shown that people have settled in these lands since the fifth century. In the eastern chronicles of the tenth century, al-Slaviya (Slava, Salau) is mentioned, one of the cultural centers of the Rus. This city means Novgorod or its predecessor - Old city Ilmenian Slavs. It is also identified with the Scandinavian Holmgard, the capital of Gardariki.

Features of the capital of the Novgorod Republic

Like all major cities of Ancient Rus, Novgorod was divided into parts. It had quarters for craft and guild purposes, residential areas without streets, fortifications. Detinets was formed already in 1044. In addition to it, the shaft and the White (Alekseevskaya) tower have survived to this day. In 1045-1050 St. Sophia Cathedral was built in the city, a little later - Nikolo-Dvorishchensky, St. George and the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin.

When a vechevaya republic was formed, architecture flourished in the city (the Novgorod architectural school appeared). The princes lost the right to build temples, but the townspeople, merchants and patrons of the arts were actively involved in this. The dwellings of the people, as a rule, were wooden, and only religious buildings were erected from stone. It is noteworthy that already at that time a wooden water supply system was functioning in Novgorod, and the streets were paved with cobblestones.

Glorious Chernigov

Studying the large cities of Ancient Rus, one cannot fail to mention Chernigov. People lived in the vicinity of the modern settlement already in the 4th millennium BC. But as a hail, it was first mentioned in written sources in 907. After the Battle of Listven in 1024, Mstislav Vladimirovich, brother of Yaroslav the Wise, makes Chernigov his capital. Since then, it has been actively developing, growing and building up. Here the Ilyinsky and Eletsky monasteries are being erected, which for a long time become the spiritual centers of the principality, whose territory stretched to Murom, Kolomna and Tmutarakan.

The invasion of the Mongol Tatars stopped peaceful development the city, which was burned by the troops of Chingizid Mongke in October 1239. From princely times to the present, several architectural masterpieces have come down, from which tourists begin to familiarize themselves with the city. These are the Savior Cathedral (XI century), St. Elias Church, Borisoglebsky and Assumption Cathedrals, Eletsky Assumption Monastery (all - XII century), Pyatnitskaya Church of St. Paraskeva (XIII century). The Anthony Caves (XI-XIX centuries) and the Chornaya Mogila, Gulbische and Bezymyanny mounds are noteworthy.

Old Ryazan

There was one more hail which played an exceptional role. There were many cities in Ancient Rus, but not every one of them was the center of the principality. Ryazan, completely destroyed by Khan Batu, was no longer revived. In 1778, Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, which is 50 km away from the old princely settlement, was given a new name - Ryazan, but it is used together with the prefix "New". The ruins of the ancient Russian castle are of great interest to historians and archaeologists today. The remnants of the fortifications alone occupy over sixty hectares. The archaeological reserve also includes the ruins of outposts, the Novy Olga fortress, near which the All-Russian Rodnovercheskoe Sanctuary is nestled.

Amazing Smolensk

V upstream Dnieper is located ancient and very beautiful city... The toponym Smolensk goes back to the name of the Smolnya River or to the name of the Smolyan tribe. It is also likely that the castle was named in honor of the fact that it lay on the way from the Varangians to the Greeks and was the place where travelers pitched boats. It is first mentioned in the "Tale of Bygone Years" under the year 862 and is called the center of the tribal union of the Krivichi. In the campaign against Constantinople, Askold and Dir bypassed Smolensk, since it was heavily fortified. In 882, the castle was captured by Oleg the Prophet and became part of his state.

In 1127 the city became the inheritance of Rostislav Mstislavich, who in 1146 ordered the construction of the Church of Peter and Paul on Gorodianka, the Church of St. John the Theologian. Before the Mongol invasion, Smolensk reaches its peak. It occupied about 115 hectares, and 40 thousand people permanently lived there in eight thousand houses. The Horde invasion did not touch the city, which allowed it to preserve many architectural monuments. But over time, it lost its importance and fell under the dependence of other principalities.

Other cities

As you can see, the high development of the cities of Ancient Russia allowed them to be not only political center regions, but also to establish external relations with other countries. For example, Smolensk had close relations with Riga, and there are legends about the trade relations of Novgorod. What other settlements existed in Russia?

• Polotsk, located on a tributary of the Western Dvina. Today it is located on the territory of Belarus and is loved by tourists. Sophia Cathedral (11th century, destroyed and rebuilt in the 18th century) and the oldest stone building in the country - the Transfiguration Church (12th century) remind of the princely era in it.
• Pskov (903).
• Rostov (862).
• Suzdal (862).
• Vladimir (990). The city is part of the Golden Ring of Russia, famous for the Assumption and Dmitrievsky Cathedrals, the Golden Gate.
• Murom (862), burned to ashes during the Mongol invasion, rebuilt in the fourteenth century.
• Yaroslavl is a city on the Volga, founded by Yaroslav the Wise at the beginning of the tenth century.
• Terebovlya ( Galicia-Volyn principality), the first mention of the city dates back to 1097.
• Galich (Galicia-Volyn principality), the first written mention of it dates back to 1140. However, the epics about Duke Stepanovich say that he was better than Kiev during the life of Ilya Muromets, and was baptized long before 988.
• Vyshgorod (946). The castle was the lot of Princess Olga and her favorite place. It was here that three hundred concubines of Prince Vladimir lived before his baptism. Not a single building has survived from the Old Russian era.
• Pereyaslavl (modern Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky). In 907 it was first mentioned in written sources. Today in the city you can see the remains of fortifications of the 10-11th centuries.

Instead of an afterword

Of course, we have not listed all the cities of that glorious era in the history of the Eastern Slavs. Moreover, they could not describe them in full the way they deserve, due to the limited size of our article. But we hope we have awakened interest in studying the past.

Russian chronicles, Byzantine and other sources tell us about the existence of cities on the territory of Ancient Rus. The Scandinavians mention the territory of Ancient Rus as a country of cities and call it Gardaria. It is possible with a high degree of probability to list at least 25 large ones that existed in the ancient Russian state already in the 9th-10th centuries. These cities are mentioned in Russian chronicles. Slavic roots sound in their names - Beloozero, Belgorod, Vasilev, Izborsk, Vyshgorod, Vruchey, Iskorosten, Ladoga, Kiev, Lyubich, Novgorod, Murom, Peresechen, Przemysl, Pskov, Polotsk, Pereyaslavl, Smolensk, Rostov, Rodnya, Turov, Cherven , Chernihiv. Failure to mention in the annals does not mean that the city did not exist. For example, the ancient Russian city of Suzdal is mentioned for the first time in the chronicle in the XI year, although archaeological excavations confirm that the city existed much earlier. The same is with the rest of the cities, they arise much earlier than the chronicles mention them. For example, the Byzantine emperor Constantine Bagryanorodsky left a description of the ancient Russian cities that were located on the way “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” Historians learned that the ancient Russian city of Vitichev, which is mentioned in the Russian chronicle only in the XI, is one or two centuries older.

The existence of cities is a confirmation of the existence of the state. Cities arose as centers of administration, the development of crafts, and, of course, the perpetual motion machine of civilization - trade. Territory the old Russian state crossed two busy military and trade routes - the Volga and “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” The oldest, the Volga route, connected Scandinavia and the states located on the shores of the Caspian Sea. But in the 10th century the Pechenegs cut this trade route for many centuries, which was reflected in the development of cities. The situation was completely different with the cities that arose on the way "from the Varangians to the Greeks." The brisk trade between distant regions had a beneficial effect on the development of cities. From small settlements, they grew into military-administrative centers that controlled the river systems. Cities became centers of a wide variety of crafts, which were used not only in the cities themselves, but also became objects of trade. The very term "city" in the Middle Ages in Russia had a completely different meaning than it is now. It was a settlement, which necessarily had a fortification. It does not matter what it was - in the form of an earthen rampart or a wooden child, but it should have been an obstacle for the unexpected or unwanted Therefore, the place for the city was chosen taking into account the natural natural barriers - an island among the river, hills or impassable swamps.In addition to the natural barriers, additional fortifications were installed.If there was an opportunity, and there were enough workers, then an artificial earthen obstacle was erected around the city - an earthen ditch. This made it possible to additionally strengthen the city with an earthen rampart and made it difficult for opponents to access the settlement. Wooden fortifications in ancient Russian cities were called the Kremlin or Detinets. Actually, the city was everything that was inside the Kremlin.

The inhabitants of the ancient Russian cities did not differ much from the peasants. They were engaged in cultivation of vegetable gardens, orchards and kept pets. Archaeologists find bones not only of horses, but also of cows, pigs, and sheep. The central place is the city square. It was the place where city meetings were held, when the inhabitants chose or drove out the prince, and traded. In the pre-Christian period, all kinds of rituals were held here. After the adoption of the Christian faith, the central place of the city, as a rule, became the temple and the square in front of it. Such were the ancient Russian cities during the early feudal period.