Mongol-Tatar yoke and its role in Russian culture. Russian culture during the Mongol-Tatar yoke

Question:

Culture of Russia during the Mongol-Tatar yoke (XIII-XV centuries).

Culture of Russia during the Mongol-Tatar yoke (XIII-XV centuries)

In the historical and cultural process of the XIII - XV centuries. there are two periods. The first (from 1240 to the middle of the XIV century) is characterized by a noticeable decline in all areas of culture (due to the Mongol-Tatar conquest and simultaneous expansion by German, Swedish, Danish, Hungarian, Lithuanian and Polish feudal lords). Foreign invasions were especially disastrous for the southern and western lands.

The second period (from the second half of the 14th century) was marked by the rise of national self-awareness and the revival of Russian culture.

The fight against the Mongol-Tatars - main topic folklore of the 2nd half of the 13th-15th centuries Traditional genres (epics, legends) are dedicated to her.

The leading genre of this time was the war story. The idea of ​​all-Russian unity, having arisen in the pre-Mongol period, intensified in the difficult years of the Mongol-Tatar invasion.

After the Mongol-Tatar devastation, Russian architecture experienced a period of decline and stagnation. The monumental construction was stopped for half a century, the cadres of builders were essentially destroyed, and the technical continuity was undermined. Construction is now concentrated in two main areas: in the northwest (Novgorod and Pskov) and in the ancient Vladimir land (Moscow and Tver).

The first stone buildings in the Moscow Kremlin, which have not survived to this day, appeared at the turn of the XIII-XIV centuries. (Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin, 1326).

Art centers moved from south to north, to cities that escaped ruin (Rostov, Yaroslavl, Novgorod and Pskov), where there were many monuments of old art and living bearers of cultural traditions have survived.

In the XIII century. there was a final crystallization of the Novgorod and Rostov schools of painting, and in the XIV century. - Tver, Pskov, Moscow and Vologda.

XIV century. - time of brilliant flowering monumental painting Novgorod, the development of which was greatly influenced by the great Byzantine Theophanes the Greek, who came to Russia in the 70s of the XIV century. The works of F. Grek - frescoes, icons - are distinguished by their monumentality, dramatic expressiveness, and bold pictorial manner. He painted the Church of the Savior on Ilyin, the frescoes of which have come down to us only partially.

In Moscow, Theophanes the Greek paints the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin with the Lazarus side-altar, Arkhangelsk and (together with Elder Prokhor and Andrei Rublev) the Annunciation Cathedrals of the Moscow Kremlin, etc. A number of magnificent icons created in Theophan's circle have been preserved. The best of them is The Donskaya Mother of God from the Assumption Cathedral with the Assumption of the Virgin on the back.

The first 7 icons of the festive row ("Annunciation", "Transfiguration", etc.) from the iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral are traditionally associated with the name of the greatest artist of Ancient Russia Andrei Rublev (c. 1360/70 - 1427/30) - the monk of the Andronikov Monastery, reliable information about life and work of which little has survived. Rublev's most perfect work is the Trinity icon, created for the Trinity - Sergius Monastery. The style of the Moscow master, deeply national in its essence, distinguished by a unique individuality, for a long time determined the style not only of the Moscow school of painting, which reached its peak under him, but also of the entire Russian artistic culture.

The growth of national self-awareness, the idea of ​​unity, the tendency to overcome regional tendencies in social thought, literature, art - all this testified to the emergence of an all-Russian (Great Russian) culture.

Culturology
S.V. Supereka
2007 year

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By the XII century. Russia was one of the advanced countries of Europe. By sub-

accounts of historians, in the IX-X centuries. there were 25 cities in Russia,

in the XI - 89, by the end of the XII century. - 224, and on the eve of the Mongol-Tatar

invasions - about 300. Vast space along the trade

on the way from the Varangians to the Greeks≫ the Vikings called ≪Gardariki≫ -

≪country of cities≫. Although the time leading up to the tata invasion

Ro-Mongols, and it was a time of feudal fragmentation for Russia

indolence, it was not a period of decline. Tor-

govt and handicrafts: multicolored ceramics, the thinnest partitions

chased enamel, glass making. Self-governing was strong

veche traditions. The level of literacy of the population was also high.

niya. But the Mongol-Tatar invasion and the subsequent

then the Horde yoke led to dramatic changes

in the organization of power, in the culture and life of Russia.

At a time when the Russian land was torn apart by political

strife, thousands of kilometers away from it there was a mighty

centralized empire stretching from the shores of the Pacific

ocean to the shores of the Caspian Sea. The empire was led by that

lascivious, decisive, ruthless ruler - Temuchin,

or Genghis Khan (Great Khan). He managed to create a huge ar-

mission, the combat effectiveness of which was based on the strictest

discipline. Conquering new territories, Genghis Khan replenished

nil the Mongol army at the expense of the conquered population. And under-

repaired China, he was able to take advantage of the enormous scientific

the potential of this eastern empire. Mongolian army is

used Chinese siege battering and stone throwing ma-

tires, projectiles with a combustible mixture, which

included oil. Greek fire was also used.

The first clash of the southern Russian princes with the Mongol-Tatars

mi happened in 1223 at the Kalka River. Then the Russian troops

were defeated.

In 1236, the grandson of Genghis Khan began his campaigns of conquest

Batu. He quickly moved across Russian territory, capturing

howling and wreaking havoc first in the Ryazan lands, and then

in the lands of Suzdal. The Tatar-Mongols took and burned Vladi-

mir, Suzdal, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Pereyaslavl, Moscow, Tver.

Within two years, Batu conquered all of North-Eastern Russia.

In 1239-1240. Batu also conquered the southwestern Russian lands,

took and ravaged Chernigov, Pereyaslavl Yuzhny and, finally, ancient

nude capital of Russia Kiev. One of the main reasons for the military

failures of the Russian princes was specific fragmentation,

the richness of the land and sometimes hostile relations between themselves

princes: the Russian lands provided the conquerors with desperate cooperation

resistance "individual" and perished one by one.

In the southeast of the Great Russian Plain, the Tatar-Mongols

founded the Golden Horde, the capital of which was the city of Saray on

Lower Volga. Crushed, crushed and devastated

The Russian land became the possession of the Tatar khan. Power of the Tatar

go khan, or "tsar", as the Russian chronicles call him, did not

did not take over and did not replace the power of the Russian princes, but lay on top of this

authorities: Russians who survived the Tatar pogrom

the princes had to recognize the supreme power over themselves

khan and then received from him the approval of their sovereign

right. The title and position of the Grand Duke of Vladimir is also

survived during the yoke, but now, of course, the Grand Duke

Vladimirsky was to receive approval, or

nie, from the khan. Khan gave qyarlyk (letter) for the great reign

to whom he wanted, sometimes reckoning, and sometimes not reckoning with the senior

vom the candidate.

The entire population of the conquered Russian lands (with the exception of

clergy) was rewritten and overlaid with heavy Tatar

mi taxes: tribute, popluzhny (apply from the plow), pits (on pits-

skuyu chase - postal service; yam - post station on the road

ge). In addition, it was necessary to feed the Horde ambassadors, the number of

nicknames (Mongolian scribes), Baskaks (Tatar officials).

The Russian population has repeatedly raised uprisings against

their oppressors. Such rebellions then caused the appearance

punitive Tatar expeditions and brutal reprisals. In the first

half of the XIV century. Tatar khans found for themselves more convenient

nym and profitable to withdraw the collection of tribute in Russia from the hands of their officials

kov and tax farmers and entrust it to the Russian princes.

From the payment of a heavy Tatar tribute, or "exit", it was

all added Russian clergy... Tatars treated with complete

tolerance for all religions, and the Russian Orthodox

the church not only did not tolerate any oppression from the khans, but,

on the contrary, the Russian metropolitans received from the khans special

certificates of privilege (≪yarlyki≫), which ensured the rights

and the privileges of the clergy and the inviolability of the church

property. This contributed to the fact that the position of the Orthodox

Noah church to the XIV century. increased significantly1.

The consequences of the Tatar-Mongol yoke literally affected

all walks of life. The most obvious were the economic

consequences: for more than two hundred years, it was necessary to pay a huge

tribute. The yoke was also reflected in demographic situation, many

families were destroyed, some of them were never rebuilt.

The Tatar yoke threw Russian culture back, as it were.

Stone construction ceased altogether for 100 years. Many-

Some of the crafts were forgotten, since in the Middle Ages the craft was based

came out on manual technique, and, consequently, on skills,

acquired in the course of many years of work. Craftsmen are taking away-

were taken prisoner, the connection between the master - the journeyman - the apprentice was interrupted,

the secrets of the craft could not be passed on and were forgotten.

The Russians took over from the Tatars some orders and

administrative customs, in particular the money account (the word itself

≪money≫ - Tatar), ≪tamgu≫ - duties on goods, organizational

the postal service (yamy≫ and yamshchiki≫), a more rigid system

the theme of punishment than it was in Ancient Russia.

Obviously, the very fact of foreign conquest, the need

bow to someone else's power or grovel and cheat in front of it

affected the mentality and caused the extinction of personal

human dignity.

Tatar rule for a long time separated Eastern Russia from

Western Europe, and after the formation of the Grand Duchy of Lie-

Tovskoy, the eastern branch of the Russian people was on several

for centuries separated from the western branch1.

The influence of the Tatar yoke on internal political relations

nia in the Russian principalities affected the strengthening of the princely power

over the population and in the further weakening of the veche, demo

a cratic element in North-Eastern Russia. Russian princes

they ceased to be sovereign sovereigns, because they must

were to recognize themselves as subjects of the Tatar "king", but on the other hand,

having received from him recognition of their ownership rights, they could

in the event of a collision with the subordinate Russian population, the

scramble for Tatar force... The invasion of the Tatars first introduced

lo Russian princes with a power that cannot be entered into

ness, which must be obeyed unconditionally. Tatar khans

did not need to enter into an agreement with the people. They were

strong enough to command him. No wonder that

in the Tatar era, the word "veche" acquired the meaning of a rebellious

gatherings. If earlier the prince was controlled "from below", on him

could influence the boyars and veche (national assembly), then

now the actions of the prince were ruled "from above", that is, the prince was

accountable to the khan, and all the rest depended on him. To master

butt from the Tatar yoke, I had to sacrifice the internal

freedom. Obviously, it was from this time that the constant

tough Russian state structure

centralization and suppression of society .__

The Mongol-Tatar invasion caused serious damage to Russian culture. The military defeat, heavy tribute, withdrawal to the full of masters significantly impoverished the cultural process. However, the tradition has not been interrupted. Moreover, one can hardly speak of any noticeable influence of Mongolian culture on Russian, especially at first. For a long time, the steppe world of the nomadic Mongols and the world of Slavic agricultural cities existed aloof, it took more than one century for mutual rapprochement.

First of all, the influence of the Tatar-Mongol yoke had on literature.

The Battle of Kulikovo was a natural result and a striking manifestation of the socio-economic and political development of the Russian lands in the XIV century. The works of literature and art dedicated to her in a vivid, distinct form revealed the main ideas and moods that determined the nature of Russian social thought of that period.

The Battle of Kulikovo and related events accelerated the formation of the ideology of a single centralized state. The ideological wealth of the monuments suggests that from the end of the XIV century. started new stage in the development of Russian social thought. Its development in the second half of the XIV-XV centuries. was determined by the main factor political life Rus - by the existence of the Mongol-Tatar yoke. Understanding the reasons for the establishment of the yoke, searching for ways to revive the country, glorifying the first successes in the struggle against the oppressors are the main content of Russian social thought in the 13th-15th centuries. Its development in the second half of the XIII-XV centuries. according to changes in attitude to the main issue - the issue of the Mongol-Tatar yoke, about national revival- can be conditionally divided into three stages.

The first stage, which lasted approximately until the beginning of the XIV century, is characterized by the absence of any coherent political theory, any consistently pursued socio-political idea. Mourning over the death of Russia, the deepening of the sense of national dignity constitute the main content of the monuments created during this period.

At the second stage, the ideology of new political centers, especially Moscow and Tver, is gradually being formed, a slow gathering of the spiritual forces of the people takes place, which served as one of the foundations of the national upsurge of the late XIV - early XV centuries. These theories could not, of course, bear an openly anti-Horde character, but their very appearance meant a new step in the spiritual revival of the country.

The Battle of Kulikovo and the accompanying national upsurge determine the beginning of a new, third, stage in the development of Russian medieval thought. The idea of ​​the unity of all Russian principalities is triumphant. The most developed and proved its vitality and strength during the events of 1380. the idea of ​​Moscow's priority in the Russian lands, one of the main reasons for which is the leading role of Moscow in the struggle to overthrow the Horde yoke, becomes the core of Russian social thought of the next century. The idea of ​​readiness for self-sacrifice in open armed struggle triumphs in literature. The main idea of ​​all literary monuments becomes - the idea of ​​the unity of the Russian land as the basis of victory over the enemy.

One of the first responses to what happened was "The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batu". The "Tale" describes the death of Ryazan and the family of Ryazan princes. The Mongol invasion was perceived by contemporaries as the end of the world, as “the great final doom”. Hence the tragedy that fills the works of that period. The motive of heroic death is the leading one in the literature on the invasion. The call for unity is the ideological core of all editions of the Chronicle Tale, Zadonshchina, Legends of the Massacre of Mama. The traditional for Old Russian literature the theme of heroism, military glory, ideals of military valor. These ideals were reflected in such earlier literary works the period of the Mongol-Tatar yoke, as "The Tale of Mercury of Smolensk", "The Life of Alexander Nevsky", the chronicle tale "about the battle on the Vozhzha River", as well as in folklore. Memories of the Mamayev massacre will forever remain in the memory of the people. Bright ideals of selfless service and self-sacrifice, created by intense spiritual work the best people of the then Russia, were sealed with the blood of the heroes of the Kulikovo battle and therefore gained strength and inviolability.

Great harm was done by the Tatar-Mongol yoke on the development of architecture. The establishment of the Mongol-Tatar yoke led to a long decline in stone construction in almost all Russian lands. Even in the first half of the XIV century. in northeastern Russia, the construction of a stone temple was an outstanding event that attracted everyone's attention. The ideological and political "load" of each monument has increased dramatically. The great political significance of the construction of each stone church, the memorial nature of architectural monuments manifested themselves with particular clarity in the construction of Moscow in the second half of the 14th - early 15th centuries.

The Mongol-Tatar invasion and the establishment of a foreign yoke influenced the development of Russian architecture in many ways. The construction of cities, both in Mongolia itself and in the Golden Horde, was only to a small extent carried out by the forces of Russian builders. Much more difficult was the fact that the Mongols in various ways pumped out of the Russian land a huge part of its wealth. Terrible impoverishment, the constant threat of a repetition of the invasion - these are the main factors that "froze" the development of Russian architecture in the 13th century. More than other types of art in need of security and peace, architecture most of all suffered from Mongol conquest...

Heavy economic situation Russian lands, the decline in the skill of architects lead to the fact that the construction of the XIV - XV centuries. (until Ivan III) does not go beyond the framework of pillarless or four-pillar temples. The almost complete cessation of stone construction, as well as the later abrupt nature of its revival, practically destroyed the possibility of the consistent development of compositional and decorative solutions, due to the presence of continuous construction practice. The extreme scarcity of temples erected during the period of the Mongol-Tatar yoke led to a sharp increase in the ideological significance of each of them. During the two and a half centuries of the Mongol-Tatar yoke, Russian architecture was invariably associated with the struggle for national liberation.

In 1374, Prince Vladimir Andreevich, a cousin and loyal associate of Dmitry Donskoy, built a wooden fortress in Serpukhov. In 1380 and just before the Battle of Kulikovo itself, the wooden Trinity Cathedral was solemnly consecrated in the Serpukhov Kremlin. The dedication of this temple, as it were, called for unity, for heroic deeds. Simultaneously with the construction of the Serpukhov Kremlin, by order of Vladimir Andreevich, the Vysotsky Monastery was founded near the city, which strengthened the defensive potential of Serpukhov. The cathedral of the new monastery was dedicated to the Conception of Anna. The cult of Anna, the mother of the Virgin Mary, was an integral part of the Mother of God cult, which, since the time of Kalita, assumed the character of an official Moscow cult. In 1379, construction began on the stone Assumption Cathedral in Kolomna. In the same year, Sergius of Radonezh founded a monastery, which was also dedicated to the Assumption. In Moscow itself in 1379 the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Simonov Monastery was founded. Such a dedication of Moscow and Moscow region cathedrals, built or laid on the eve of the Battle of Kulikovo, was apparently caused not only by the special political significance of the cult of the Mother of God for Moscow. It also affected the fact that the battle on the Vozha River took place a few days before the celebrated Dormition of the Mother of God.

The stagnation of construction in the Moscow lands, caused primarily by the temporary strengthening of the Horde yoke in the 80s of the XIV century, continued until the early 90s.

Since the beginning of the 90s, the international situation has been developing more favorable for Moscow. The time of relative "silence" (90s of the XIV century) was marked primarily by the construction in the Moscow Kremlin. This construction had a distinct ideological orientation, continuing the connection between the Moscow stone construction and the armed struggle against the Horde yoke, which had arisen in the 70s.

The first, at the very beginning of the 90s, was built the Church of the Annunciation in honor of the reconciliation of the princes after numerous feuds on the feast of the Annunciation. The Church of the Annunciation was, as it were, a symbol of unity, the subordination of selfish interests to a common cause, which made it possible to defeat the Horde on the Kulikovo field.

In 1392, at the direction of Vasily I, the Assumption Cathedral in Kolomna was painted. Large expensive paintings in the Moscow land were still a rarity at that time. By decorating the church with paintings, the history of the creation of which reminded of the Battle of Kulikovo, the young Moscow prince demonstrated his loyalty to the heroic liberation tradition, his respect for the memory of his father.

The connection between the architecture of Moscow and the struggle for the liberation of Rus from the Horde yoke remained until the end of the 15th century. The memorial character of stone churches, which received special development in connection with the struggle for national independence in the XIV-XV centuries, became a characteristic feature of Russian architecture in subsequent centuries.

The Mongol-Tatar yoke slowed down the development of ancient Russian painting for more than a century. The question of the direct or indirect reflection of the struggle against the Golden Horde yoke in Russian medieval painting is one of the most difficult and little-studied issues in the history of Russian art. Finding out the influence of the Horde yoke on the development of Old Russian painting is an extremely difficult task, firstly, due to the almost complete absence of precisely dated painting monuments of this period, and secondly, due to the very nature of medieval painting, based on the creation of an extremely generalized image-sign, as a rule that does not accept any momentary features.

Trying to connect the appearance of new images and moods in painting with reality, to find specific historical content in these images, the researcher constantly runs the risk of falling into oversimplification, being accused of vulgarizing the history of ancient Russian painting. And yet the traditional interpretation of the development of Russian medieval painting as a closed process, subject only to its internal laws, is gradually giving way to more or less successful attempts to better understand the language of colors, images and symbols, to find the hidden connections between painting and the living reality of Russia.

The influence of the Battle of Kulikovo on the work of artists of that time can be traced in a number of painting monuments associated with the Moscow principality. The icon "Archangel Michael", apparently written for the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin, erected in 1394 in the Moscow Kremlin, has become a kind of picturesque hymn to the Battle of Kulikovo. The pathos of the icon corresponded to the ideological orientation of the construction of the temple, the dedication of which reminded of September 8, 1380. The angry archangel with a raised sword, depicted in the centerpiece of the icon, can be recognized as a classic symbol of the heroic period of the history of Moscow Russia.

The drama of the era of the Golden Horde determined, according to researchers, the high emotional tension of the images of the icon "The Dormition of the Mother of God" painted on reverse side the famous "Our Lady of the Donskoy". The same symbolism can be seen in the surviving fragments of the murals of the Zvenigorod cathedrals. On the pillars of the Cathedral of the Assumption on Gorodok there are placed in circles the images of Florus and Lavr, contemporary to the construction of the temple. The images of Florus and Laurus, patrons of horse breeding, as well as the equestrian army, are rare in Moscow art of that time. Their appearance in the murals of the Assumption Cathedral is apparently associated with memories of the Battle of Kulikovo: on the day of the memory of Flor and Laurus, August 18, 1380, Sergius of Radonezh, according to the "Legend of the Massacre of Mama," blessed Dmitry Donskoy for the battle with Mamai.

In order to better understand the historical significance of another monument of Moscow painting of the end of the XIV century. - the deisis tier from the current iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, once again we turn to political history Rus during this period. End of the 90s of the XIV century. was full of war worries. Two huge armies were amassing to the south and west of the borders of Muscovite Rus. It was assumed that a great duel was being prepared between Lithuania and the Horde. However, no one could be sure how events would develop. Everyone remembered freshly the events of 1395, when the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitovt, spreading rumors that he was going to war against Timur, the new owner of the Golden Horde, in fact moved to the Russian lands and took possession of Smolensk. They also remembered the events of 1380, when the alliance of the Horde and Lithuanian princes against Russia became a formidable political reality. The danger was especially great from the west, where a powerful anti-Russian coalition was clearly taking shape. The Russian land was preparing for the fight. It was necessary again, as before the Battle of Kulikovo, to inspire people to the feat of arms. This goal was served not only by the Mozhaisk-Zvenigorod construction, but also by the painting of the Grand Ducal Cathedral, dedicated to the leader of the heavenly army, Michael the Archangel, executed in 1399 by Theophanes the Greek. In this regard, the Deesis rite of the current iconostasis of the Annunciation Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin deserves special attention. Let us turn to the images of Dmitry Solunsky and George the Victorious, whose images were included in the Deesis order. The popularity of George at the end of the XIV century. in the princely environment, they sometimes explain by the similarity to the second son of Dmitry Donskoy, Yuri Zvenigorodsky, or, justifying the appearance of George in the Deesis rank of the Annunciation Cathedral, indicate his similarity to Kalita's older brother Yuri Danilovich. All these interpretations raise a number of questions. However, everything falls into place, if we assume that Vasily I Dmitrievich considered George to be his heavenly patron, with whose memory some important events in his life.

It is possible that Vasily, like some other Russian princes, had two Christian names: Vasily and George. The second name was not mentioned by the chroniclers in order to avoid confusion between Vasily I and his brother Yuri Zvenigorodsky. It is significant that Vasily I named his first child, who was born almost a month before the spring St. George's Day, George. The veneration by Vasily I of George the Victorious as his personal patron in the language of religious symbols generally understood in Ancient Rus expressed the idea of ​​the continuity of his policy in relation to the policy of his father. The image of George directly reminded of heroic times Battle of Kulikovo. Gradually, it became a symbol of the military valor of Muscovites. It is this idea of ​​the continuity of the heroic deeds of the son and father, loyalty to the glorious memory of the Battle of Kulikovo that found expression in the appearance of the images of George and Dmitry in the Deesis rank of the Annunciation Cathedral and after him in other prominent Deesis ranks of the time of Vasily I.

The history of painting in the era of Vasily I is unthinkable without the name of Andrei Rublev. The literature dedicated to Rublev is truly immense. And yet, the connection between the work of the great artist and the living, suffering and jubilant Russia of the late XIV - early XV centuries. remains not fully disclosed. It is difficult to imagine a greater contrast than the horror of the Tatar pogroms and the silent conversation of the angels of Rublev's "Trinity". And yet Rublyov's painting is a product of his time. Moreover, it is a kind of summary of one and a half centuries of the history of Russia. Rublyov's painting does not fit in the dark and cramped cells of the Moscow hesychasts. It is more significant than just a "call for unity" from time immemorial to warring appanage uncles and nephews. And although this painting is vitally connected with its time, its historicism lies in the fact that it is, first of all, the product of a whole period in the history of Russia - the period of the struggle against the Horde yoke.

Rublev, like everyone great artist, carried on his shoulders the burden of his people's history. And his merit is that he was able to understand and express the most tragic and at the same time the most heroic period of this history. Rublev's Trinity is a work of a spiritually free person. And this is its great historical value.

It was the look of the best people of a whole generation, the generation that led an open struggle to liberate the Motherland from the hated yoke of the Golden Horde.

The beginning of the Vladimir murals partly makes it possible to understand what thoughts took possession of the artist when he entered the vaults of the ancient Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir and found himself alone with the stately images of Vladimir-Suzdal Rus, which had disappeared in the fire of the Horde pogroms. The work of Rublev and Daniil Cherny in Vladimir was the first time that the artists of Muscovy Rus came face to face with the works of their great predecessors. It obliged them to realize historical significance almost two centuries that have passed since the time of Vsevolod the Big Nest and Yuri Vladimirsky. And having started their work, the artists thereby, as it were, expressed the result of their thoughts - a firm belief that the finally acquired shrine is freedom native land from a foreign yoke - will never be lost.

The impact of the Battle of Kulikovo on the development of Russian culture was profound and versatile. The main ideas of that era - the ideas of unity, the heroic struggle for the Russian land, the revival of the Kiev and Vladimir historical and cultural traditions - were vividly embodied in a variety of literary and artistic monuments. The development of these areas of spiritual culture proceeded in close connection with the struggle for national liberation. The battle of Kulikovo filled with new historical content, gave a special patriotic flavor traditional images and subjects of ancient Russian art.

Thus, despite the heroic resistance of the Russian people, Russia was devastated by the Mongols and was deprived of: old cities and urban culture; a number of crafts; many princes, a strong squad; opportunities for democratic development. The whirlwind of the Mongol invasion wiped out remarkable monuments from the face of the earth ancient Russian culture since the fire of the conflagrations killed the works of ancient Russian architects, artists, chroniclers and artisans about whom they composed songs and legends, wrote chronicles. Many talented craftsmen were taken captive by the Horde, and there was no one to pass on to the new generations the traditions of crafts and architecture that had been accumulating for many years. And the consequences, in the opinion of historians, were quite depressing for our country: the population of Russia decreased; 49 out of 74 Batu cities were destroyed, in 14 life was not restored, and many turned into villages; trade links suffered, leading to the decline of the craft; most of Russian craftsmen was hijacked to the Golden Horde.

Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov

Faculty of Foreign Languages ​​and Regional Studies

Department of Regional Studies and International Relations

Course work

Influence of the Tatar-Mongol yoke on the culture of Russia

(according to the memoirs of foreign travelers)

Completed:

Maksimov Ivan

student of group 201

Supervisor:

Art. Stulberg Ave.

Anna Moiseevna

Moscow 2014

Introduction

Russians through the eyes of Europeans

Conclusion

culture rus mongolian yoke

Introduction

The period in the history of Russia from the beginning of the XIII to the end of the XV centuries. in Russian historiography it is customary to call it the era of the Tatar-Mongol yoke. Encyclopedia of F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron gives us a strict definition of this concept: "The Mongol-Tatar yoke in Russia is the system of rule of the Mongol-Tatar feudal lords over the Russian lands in the 13th-15th centuries, which aimed at regular exploitation of the conquered country through various extortions and predatory raids." However, in recent years, the influence of the Tatar-Mongol yoke on Russian culture has been the subject of heated discussions, since this period of history medieval Russia is critical for the entire course of development of our state. It is known that in the pre-Mongol period, states developed on the territory of Russia were governed by the principle of popular vote (veche). And the princes in such states played the role of only one of the branches of government (executive). Such a political situation in the Russian principalities testified to their movement along the path of democratic regimes. An example of such states were Novgorod the Great, the Pskov Republic, Yuzhny Belgorod, the Vyatka land, the Kiev principality. Nevertheless, with the end of the Tatar-Mongol yoke in Russia, by that time already a single state, a regime of absolute power of the Grand Duke was formed, which speaks of the influence of the despotic regime of power of the former Mongol empire on him.

Thus, the period of the Tatar-Mongol yoke was and still is a relevant topic for detailed research both by professional historians and those who are not indifferent to the past of the Russian state. Over time, historians and archaeologists have surprised scientific world new findings and research. So, in the XX century, a corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences found a fragment from the manuscript of Plano Karpini, which was kept in the scientific library of the Irkutsk State University named after I. A.A. Zhdanov. This manuscript is a valuable source of information in the study of the history of Russia in the Mongolian period, as it gives a more objective look at the problem, relying not only on the data of Russian chronicles, but also on the information of a foreign traveler. In his manuscript, Plano Carpini captured what he saw on his way to the Mongol state, the path to which ran through the devastated Russian lands. Therefore, we decided to choose the specified manuscript as the main source in order to achieve the set scientific goal, that is, to find out what influence the Tatar-Mongol yoke had on Russian culture in the first half of the 13th century.

In accordance with the goal, we have set the following scientific tasks:

) Reveal the ideas of Europeans about Russian culture in the XIII century. and show her image in the vision of Europeans;

) Reveal the ideas of Europeans about Mongolian culture and compare them with the ideas about Russian culture;

) Reveal the features of the Mongolian national character and find out if they are characteristic of Russian culture;

) Determine the degree of influence of the Tatar-Mongolian igan on the culture of Russia of the specified period.

In addition to the main one, auxiliary sources were selected, such, for example, as "News of the Hungarian missionaries of the XII-XIII centuries." in translation by S.A. Anninsky, as well as a description of Guillaume Rubruck's journey to the eastern countries. The first of these sources sheds light on some aspects of the Russian national character, and the second makes it possible to better understand the culture of the Tatar-Mongols, and, therefore, to reveal the traits of their national character.

However, before starting work, it should be noted that the problem of the role of the 250-year-old Tatar-Mongol yoke in Russian history has been worrying the minds of outstanding scientists for more than three centuries.

Thus, the historian of the 18th century I.N. Boltin, believed that the Tatar-Mongol culture in no way influenced the Russian, and the devastation brought was not so significant and did not differ much from the devastation after other conquests: the reprimands of the villages of their Baskaks and the troops of the cities themselves returned home. Under their rule, they were ruled by the Russians by the same laws that they had before their possession ... Manners, dresses, language, names of people and countries remained the same as they were before ... ".

The great Russian historian N.M. Karamzin. He claims that the yoke "overthrew" Russia and thereby threw it in development for several centuries ago, and also entailed the suppression of legal freedoms, the hardening of morals and the formation of a slave mentality. However, the historian sees in what happened not only negative, but also positive sides... With his famous dictum "Moscow owes its greatness to the khans", he emphasizes the positive role of the Tatar-Mongol yoke in the unification of the Russian lands.

Another famous historian S.M. Soloviev does not give of particular importance the influence of the Tatar-Mongols on Russian culture. In his opinion, “even in the early days of the conquest, the Tatars did not have a serious impact on the internal structure of the conquered country,” and therefore he does not single out this period of time as a special period in the history of the Russian state.

The position of N.I. Kostomarov on this issue is similar to the position of N.M. Karamzin in the positiveness of the Tatar-Mongolian influence on the culture of Russia. He noted that "slavery, common to all, created by the Tatars, gave unity to the country divided into districts."

IN. Klyuchevsky, student and successor of S.M. Solovyov at the Department of Russian History of Moscow University, took the position of Kostomarov and only emphasized the role of the Mongol Khan's policy aimed at uniting the fragmented Russian lands.

The role of the Tatar-Mongol in Russian history was written by the linguist N.S. Trubetskoy, who came to the conclusion that the key to a correct understanding of the history of the Muscovite state is the awareness of the political and moral principles that formed the basis of the Tatar-Mongol empire.

According to the just remark of G.V. Vernadsky V.A. Ryazanovsky and B.D. Grekov returned to the position of S.M. Solovyova: Ryazanovsky, having thoroughly researched the Tatar-Mongol law, minimized its significance for the Russian legal system; Grekov's position is formulated as follows: "The Russian state headed by Moscow was created not with the help of the Tatars, but in the process of the hard struggle of the Russian people against the yoke of the Golden Horde." From this it can be seen that Grekov does not deny the fact of the significant influence of the Tatar-Mongol yoke on the history of Russia, but he also emphasizes its negative essence, attributing the potential for unification to the Russian people.

Thus, in Russian historiography at the moment there are two most widespread points of view on the Mongol yoke. The first, the main one, is that for Russia the yoke was a terrible disaster that brought numerous material and cultural losses. This concept stems from the texts of ancient Russian chronicles (such as Lavrentievskaya, Ipatievskaya, Tverskaya), as well as literary works of those years ("The Tale of the Ruin of Ryazan by Batyms").

Russian historian V.V. Kargalov, being a vivid exponent of this concept, considered the Tatar-Mongol yoke a tragic phenomenon for the entire Russian people, which was the main reason for the almost three-century economic and cultural lag of Russia from other countries.

In turn, adherents of a different point of view regard Batu's invasion as an ordinary attack by the nomadic peoples of the steppe on the Russian states. Moreover, some representatives of this theory believe that there was no yoke in Russia at all, and instead there was a mutually beneficial economic and political cooperation between the two states. And although the majority of representatives of such views do not reject the fact of the subordination of the Russian principalities first to the Chingizid empire, and then to the khans of the Golden Horde, just as they do not reject the severity of such dependence, they assess the period of the yoke positively.

Of this group of researchers, L.N. Gumilev with his extravagant theory of ethnogenesis. In his opinion, the reason for various historical events lies in the energy coming from space and unevenly distributed over the surface of the Earth. As a result of the hit of this energy on one or another community of people (the so-called "passionary impulse"), an ethnos is born from it, which eventually goes through stages of development, such as: rise, flowering, breakdown, inertia, obscuration, etc. If you follow the concept of Gumilev, Batu's campaign was due to the surge of passionarity of the Tatar-Mongol ethnos, which, in turn, coincided with the decline thereof among the Russian ethnos. From this, the historian concludes that the self-destruction of the Russian ethnos is inevitable and that Batu's campaign only accelerated this process. Further, Gumilev believes, there is a new passionary impulse, this time aimed at uniting the Russian lands, which explains the success of the Russians in the struggle against the Tatar-Mongol yoke.

However, in addition to the two main points of view, there are also less popular ones that originated in last years... So, historians D.V. Kalyuzhny and S.I. Valyansky put forward the theory of "sound hallucination", which states that the Russians fought not with the Tatars, but with the Tatars - the inhabitants of the Hungarian Tatras. Subsequently, the Catholics-crusaders conquered this area and began to arrange punitive campaigns from there to the East Slavic territories, for which they received the name of the toponym and began to be called Tartars - descendants from hell.

From all of the above, it follows that there is no consensus on the impact of the Tatar-Mongol yoke on Russian culture, which is the incentive to write this work, the purpose of which, on the basis of foreign sources, to restore historical picture those times and formulate your own position in relation to this period national history... Besides this topic, in our opinion, will not lose its relevance for a long time to come, in view of the fact that Russia is a state standing at the fault of civilizations. This means that it combines both Western and Eastern culture, which, of course, creates a contradiction in the minds of many and raises the question of whether we are Europe or Asia.

1. Russians through the eyes of Europeans

Before starting the research, I would like to dwell on the personality of Plano Carpini, as well as clarify the purpose of his mission in the eastern lands. In his report on the work done, the author writes about himself as follows: “John de Plano Carpini, brother of the Orderaminorites, legate of the Apostolic See, messenger to the Tatars and other peoples of the East.” he lived a rather eventful life, participating in many Christian missions not only in Europe, but also in Asia. It was thanks to his rich experience and gift of persuasion that Plano Carpini was chosen as the ambassador from all Catholic lands.

Speaking about the mission of Plano Carpini, a short background should be told. In the XIII century, the powerful Mongolian army, led by the grandson of Genghis Khan Batu (Batu), moved from east to west, conquering new territories and levying tribute to them. However, having reached Western Europe, the army suddenly turns around and returns to the Mongolian steppes. But European rulers continue to remain in fear in anticipation of a new military invasion, because they were well aware of the Mongol claims to world domination. The preaching of Pope Innocent IV with the aim of organizing a crusade against the Mongols did not have the desired success. The energetic Innocent IV also made attempts to find out the further intentions of the Mongols and, if possible, convert them to Christianity, for which in 1245 he sent Plano Carpini with a bull to the Mongol khan. The Pope resorted to such an unusual move as the baptism of the Tatar-Mongols in connection with the legend that existed in Europe at that time about Presbyter John, who ruled a certain powerful Christian state in Asia.

Thus, the mission organized by the Pope had two main tasks: intelligence and missionary. The last task determined the composition of the mission, selected entirely from the Franciscans-Minorites, reputed to be good preachers.

So, Plano Carpini made a great trip, visiting countries such as Poland, Hungary, Bohemia, Russia and Mongolia. And since the study of Russian culture for him (like that of Guillaume Rubruck) was not a priority task of the diplomatic mission, descriptions of Russian mores are extremely rare. The same can be said about the "News of the Hungarian Travelers", in which special attention is paid to the culture of the Tatar-Mongols. However, this did not prevent us from finding out what Russia looked like in the perception of European travelers.

On the territory of the Russian state, Plano Carpini enters the road from Bohemia through Poland, where he had acquaintances and patrons. In Poland, the mission is met by Prince Konrad, "some warriors and the Bishop of Krakow", who at their own expense equip it for a further journey, and also "earnestly ask" the Russian Prince Vasilko, "to help ... in moving to the Tatars." In this episode, it is clear that the Russian prince is far from being disinterested. This is evidenced by the fact that Vasilko simultaneously negotiated with both Batu and Pope Innocent IV, wanting to achieve a weakening of the yoke on the one hand and enlist the support of Catholic countries on the other. It seems that such qualities as cunning and flexibility in relations with different cultures are characteristic of Russian culture. And they are conditioned geographic location the Russian state, obliging to be able to negotiate with representatives of both the eastern and western cultures.

Upon arrival in Kiev, Plano Carpini sees a sad picture of the ruined Russian state: “they [Tatars - approx. author] then entered the land of the Turks, who are pagans, having defeated it, they marched against Russia and made a great massacre in the land of Russia, destroyed cities and fortresses and killed people, besieged Kiev, which was the capital of Russia, and after a long siege they took it and killed residents of the city ". From this description, we see that the European monk does not consider Russia a pagan country and treats it rather positively, calling it in the manner of a European power (for comparison, Russia and the country of Russ). Hence, the Europeans saw Russia as a formed state, but unfortunately Russian people are treated with participation. This can be seen from how fully Plano Carpini describes the disasters in Russia and how scanty they are in the land of the Turks. We also see that the Catholic Carpini sympathizes with Orthodox people more than Muslim (Karpini considers Islam to be paganism), and this speaks of the spiritual closeness of the Russian and European cultures.

It is noteworthy that the Europeans considered Kiev by no means a big city, which is clearly shown by Karpini's quote: “when we drove through their land [Rus - approx. author], we found countless heads and bones of dead people lying in the field; for this city was very large and very crowded. " Obviously, in the imagination of Western travelers, the idea of ​​the Russian capital as a small, economically undeveloped settlement, lost somewhere among the fields, took root.

Nevertheless, the Franciscan diplomats continued on their way and "hastily set out from Kiev to other barbarian peoples." This phrase makes it clear that, despite the good attitude towards Russian culture, Europeans consider it savage, i.e. below developed European civilizations... It is interesting that the stereotype that the Russians are a barbaric people lagging behind the civilized West still exists and is accepted not only by Europeans, but also by Russians.

Continuing the story, Plano Carpini lists the peoples conquered by the Tatars. At the same time, he talks about unknown countries in which unprecedented monsters live. The Italian heard some of the legends from the lips of Russian clerics, which tells us about the superstition of the Russian people and about their belief in all kinds of miracles. It is also noteworthy that such legends about incredible peoples were widespread both in Europe and in Asia. Can superstition be considered a national character trait? It seems that it is impossible, because even those cultures that put materialism and rationality at the forefront are susceptible to superstition no less, and sometimes even more, than other cultures.

The manifestation of a bright trait of the Russian national character, in our opinion, was captured in colors by Plano Carpini in the chapter on the customs and beliefs of the Tatar-Mongols. This trait is devotion to the idea together with great willpower. So, the author gives an episode in which the Russian prince Mikhail went to bow to Bat. The Tatars demanded that he “go between two fires; after that they told him to bow to Genghis Khan at noon. " Michael refused them, motivating his action by the fact that "it is not proper for Christians to do this," and added that "it is better to want to die than to do something that is not appropriate." For such a bold act, Prince Mikhail was severely beaten and then beheaded. The same fate befell one of his warriors, who tried to cheer up his prince with the words: "Be firm, since this torment for a short time will continue for you, and eternal joy will immediately follow." Perhaps it was not so much a manifestation of faith as a desire to show the enslaver his fortitude and fearlessness.

Finally, the mission of Plano Carpini reached the residence of the emperor of the Mongol Empire. The ambassadors were treated extremely badly, not giving them food or drink. Just then, according to the Italian, "The Lord ... prepared ... a certain Russian named Cosmu, who was a goldsmith of the emperor and was very beloved by him." Obviously, we are talking about a Russian captive craftsman, captured during the first raids of the Tatar-Mongols in Russia. This episode is interesting in that in it a Russian artisan showed a feeling of compassion for the hungry foreign envoys and "provided ... what kind of support." In our opinion, the feeling of compassion is characteristic of the Russian person and is a bright and typical feature Russian national character.

Summing up the above, we would like to note that the image of Russian culture and civilization in the perception of European travelers did not coincide with what they saw. For them, Russia is a barbaric state (undeveloped, semi-savage), main city which, Kiev is a small undeveloped city. Plano Carpini himself refutes this stereotype, seeing the real size of the Old Russian capital, and also stating the fact that the Tatar-Mongols captured many Russian artisans (this is evidence of high level development of Russian culture) .In other words, the Italian does not see any signs of a barbarian people, moreover, he has a positive attitude towards the ruling this state "lord" Vasilko (Carpini uses the same address in relation to Pope Innocent IV) and "King" Daniel Also from the story of Plano Carpini, we learned about such traits of the Russian national character as cunning, the ability to find a common language with different (often opposite) cultures, dedication to an idea, fortitude, and a sense of compassion. Based on how foreigners saw Russia, we can proceed to a further comparison of Russian and Mongolian cultures, since there is a common basis for such a comparison.

Tatar-Mongols through the eyes of Europeans

Since the missions of the Hungarian monks, Plano Carpini, and also Guillaume Rubruk were of an intelligence nature, and the main object of their mission was the Tatar-Mongol state (the Hungarian missionaries had the object of Great Hungary), in the reports of these Europeans about the work done by them, we can glean a lot of valuable information about Mongolian culture.

Describing the arrival of the Mongols in the state, Rubruk writes that he was shocked when he saw the life of a completely different culture. According to him, it was as if he "got into some other world." For an urban person accustomed to a compact type of residence, it was unusual to see how only one courtyard of a rich Tatar looks like big city". Rubruk was also struck by the fact that this people, with all their buildings, roamed the steppes, which was allowed by the large spaces of that area.

Further, the ambassador writes about the customs of the Mongols, for example, that they treat all other peoples with contempt, as they "consider themselves the rulers of the world." Most likely, this is due to the policy of conquest pursued by the Mongol Empire, which instilled in the Mongols a sense of superiority over others. This also explains the indignation of Rubruk, who is apparently confident in the superiority of the European nation.

Guillaume Rubruck openly calls Mongol empire a country of barbarians. Obviously, there is a sense of the superiority of the European traveler over the uneducated and insolent nomads. But such an assumption seems not entirely correct in view of Rubruk's felt personal resentment towards the "ungrateful" Mongols, who "very annoyingly and shamelessly ask for what they see, and if a person gives them, then he loses, since they are ungrateful."

Indeed, among the Mongols, the custom was widespread to bring all kinds of gifts to the one from whom the applicant would like to receive a service. Moreover, the richer the offerings, the more willingly and better the service was provided. Karpini and Rubruk note that the Mongols not only offered their services in exchange for gifts, but demanded them. Perhaps, over time, the custom of providing a service for gifts migrated into Russian culture, and so firmly rooted that it still exists today. However, the difference between our culture and the Mongolian in this case can be the fact that in Russian culture it is not customary to demand gifts from the one asking.

Plano Carpini notes the severity of Mongolian laws, namely the presence of: death penalty for "robbery or obvious theft", "obvious adultery"; severe beatings for high treason, insulting elders. If we compare these sanctions with the sanctions enshrined in the Russian Truth, then we can be sure that the latter are much milder, since the main type of punishment in this document is a monetary penalty. This fact indicates that the Russian national character was less cruel than the Mongolian.

An important feature the spiritual culture of the Mongols is that they, like the Russians, do not resort to an accurate depiction of the appearance of deities, but to symbolic images. This feature simultaneously combines Russian and Mongolian cultures and separates Russian from European culture.

Thus, Guillaume Rubruck and Plano Carpini saw nomadic people, wandering across vast steppe territories, and this people lives according to harsh laws and has a bad disposition, that is, it despises other peoples, considering itself the master of the whole world, but at the same time it is very immodest in terms of asking for gifts. These features strongly distinguish Mongolian culture from Russian, which is less aggressive, living a sedentary life and seems to us more modest. But at the same time, both cultures have some common features, such as: giving gifts in the hope of receiving a particular service, as well as the predominance of content over form in the religious sphere of life.

Mongolian national character

This chapter contains a description of the main features of the Mongolian national character noted by foreign travelers.

First of all, it is worth noting that the identification of the character of the Tatar-Mongols was then the priority mission of Plano Carpini and Guillaume Rubruk, since Europe was preparing for a war with the hordes of nomads and, therefore, needed the most accurate information about them as a potential enemy. However, the first Europeans to describe the Mongol-Tatars were Hungarian missionaries who went far to the east in search of Great Hungary, which was then considered a pagan state. During the journey, they met both the Mongols themselves and those who had occasion to deal with them.

In his letter about the Mongol War, brother Julian describes in detail the military tactics of the Tatar-Mongols. And since they were a constantly belligerent people, it would be logical to look for traits of their national character in the manner of military operations. So, for example, "they do not attack fortified castles, but first they devastate the country and plunder the people and, having gathered the people of that country, drive them to battle to besiege their own castle." From this passage it can be seen that the Mongols prefer the tactics of predatory raids to open battles, which characterizes them as very cautious, if not cowardly warriors, sometimes cruel and cunning. It seems that the Russians learned some elements of the tactics of the Tatar-Mongols, and began to use the military cunning of the Tatar-Mongols in a battle against them, referring to the use of an ambush regiment during the Battle of Kulikovo. However, there is not enough evidence of who exactly the authorship of this military trick belongs.

The treachery of the Mongol commanders who besieged fortified cities is noteworthy. If it is not possible to take the city by storm, the Mongols "speak kindly to its inhabitants and promise them a lot with the aim that they surrender into their hands." After which they "kill everyone who is taken prisoner, unless they wish to keep someone in order to have them as slaves." We believe that treachery for the sake of achieving selfish goals is not characteristic of Russian culture. Proof of this is oral law that has existed for a long time in Russia, which implied such a concept as the word of honor. In addition, in Russian history there are very few examples of the treachery of military leaders who captured fortresses in this way.

In Plano Carpini, a separate chapter of the diplomatic report is devoted to describing the good and bad manners of the Mongol-Tatars. So, the Italian emphasizes the positive qualities: unquestioning obedience to a superior official, mutual assistance (the finder returns the missing cattle to its owner, the Mongols ransom their captive warriors), mutual respect (Mutual envy ... they do not have; among them there are almost no serious quarrels; no one despises the other "), Patience, soulfulness and high self-awareness (" starving for one or two days and not eating anything at all, they ... sing and play as if they had eaten well "), drinking culture (" although they reach the point of strong intoxication, however, in spite of their drunkenness, never enter into quarrels or fights "). If we consider these qualities more closely, we can see that iron discipline in the Mongolian state-army was achieved through administrative measures (division of the army into tens, hundreds, thousands; the commander's responsibility for the soldiers entrusted to him), mutual assistance, as well as mutual respect, were due to life in harsh climatic conditions... In this case, it seems possible to distinguish the soulfulness and culture of drinking into the features of the national Mongolian character. The first trait unites the Mongolian culture with the Russian, and the second, on the contrary, makes them different (a well-known trait of the Russian character is to talk "heart to heart" with the interlocutor after strong intoxication, often ardently proving something).

Carpini also lists the bad manners of the Mongols, among which: pride and contempt for other nations ("they despise everyone, moreover, they consider them, so to speak, for nothing"), treachery and cunning ("All the evil that they want to do to other people, they surprisingly conceal ”), reverence for drunkenness (“ whoever drinks a lot, spits it back out there, but because of this does not leave him to drink again ”), stinginess together with the skill of“ begging for something ”. Here the features of the Mongolian character can be called contempt for other nations, opposite to the curiosity of the Russian character; treachery and cunning, not inherent in the Russian mentality; reverence for drunkenness, partly characteristic of Russian culture; stinginess and immodesty in requests, which, in our opinion, are the complete opposite of Russian generosity and modesty.

So, we tried to highlight some of the main features of the Mongolian national character, and also compared them with the character traits of the Russian. It turns out that the Mongols are characterized by such positive traits as soulfulness and culture of drinking and negative traits such as contempt for other peoples, deceit and cunning, reverence for drunkenness, stinginess and "the skill to beg for something." At the same time, the Russian national character is characterized by soulfulness, a (more active) drinking culture different from the Mongols, curiosity towards other nations, rather a contradictory attitude towards drunkenness, generosity and, at the same time, modesty.

The influence of the Tatar-Mongols on the culture of Russia

In the previous three chapters, we tried to identify specific traits Russian and Mongolian culture, as well as the features of their national characters. Therefore, now we will compare the Russian and Mongolian cultures in order to answer the question: did the Tatar-Mongol yoke have an impact on the culture of Russia in the first half of the XIII century?

What was Russia in the first half of the 13th century? in the perception of European missionaries? Contrary to the stereotypes that were rooted by that time in the European consciousness, Russia was a developed and once economically active power before the Batu invasion and the establishment of the Tatar-Mongol yoke. The capital of Russia - Kiev, formerly a large and populous city, has become a cemetery, where "they found countless heads and bones of dead people lying on the field" and where "there are barely ... two hundred houses." The influence of the Tatar-Mongol culture is obvious here. It consists in a reduction in the number of the Russian population, which means a reduction in the number of carriers of Russian material and spiritual culture. But is there something in the Russian national character that makes Russian and Mongolian culture akin?

We have already found out that the Russian national character is characterized by peacefulness, flexibility and sometimes cunning in relations with other peoples, which is the complete opposite of the uncompromising and arrogant character of the Tatar-Mongols, who consider themselves the masters of this land. Perhaps it was the rigidity and sometimes the severity of the Tatar-Mongol culture that influenced the culture of Russia in such a way that the latter distanced itself more from the former, opposing the creative character to the destructive character. In other words, Russian culture began to distance itself from the cruelty and deceit of the Tatar-Mongols, developing the character traits necessary for a peaceful existence next to a strong and aggressive neighbor.

Confirmation of this point of view is the mention of the goldsmith Cosme, who was sympathetic to the starving Italian ambassadors and provided them with "some support", while the Mongols themselves, who received the ambassadors, starved them.

The influence of the yoke on Russian culture, in our opinion, is also evidenced by the custom of giving gifts to officials in exchange for any service, even the one that is already mandatory according to the regulations. So, the Mongolian border guards extorted gifts from Karpini and Rubruk, despite the fact that it was their direct duty, and not goodwill, to make a bid to the authorities.

Conclusion

Summing up this study, we would like to note that despite the fact that the considered period of time is rather short (~ 100 years), Tatar-Mongol influence through the yoke, it still affected Russian culture. This influence lies in the fact that the culture of the Tatar-Mongols negative qualities forced the Russians to distance themselves, opposing themselves to the culture of the invaders.

However, if you conduct a more detailed study at the level of material culture, the influence of Mongolian culture will certainly become noticeable and predictable. For example, the influence of the material culture of the Mongols is manifested in the luxurious decoration of the chambers of the Russian tsars of the 15th - 16th centuries. Perhaps research this issue will be the topic of our next work, since the issue of the influence of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, in our opinion, is still very acute and controversial.

If we think globally, then the influence of the Tatar-Mongol culture on the Russian one is such that the Russian state today combines both Western rationalism and spirituality. oriental cultures.

List of sources and literature

1. Travel to the eastern countries of Plano Carpini and Rubruk. Ed. N.P. Shastina. State publishing house geogr. lit-ry. M. 1957.

Anninsky S.A. News of the Hungarian missionaries of the 13-14 centuries. Historical archive, vol. III. Publishing house of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. Leningrad, 1940

3. Grekov B.D., A.Yu. Yakubovsky. Golden Horde and her fall. - M., 1998.

Russkaya Pravda: Historical and Legal Analysis

Valyansky G.V., Kalyuzhny D.I. The Mongol-Tatar yoke is a great lie of history // TVNZ... - 1998 .-- August 11.

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Cultures in Russian lands after invasions and the establishment of Horde domination as a whole did not undergo such serious destructive changes, similar to those that occurred in the socio-political sphere. However, as a result of the Tatar raids, severe damage was inflicted on material and cultural property... The sharp increase in the disunity of the Russian lands from the middle of the 13th century made itself felt, which negatively affected the development of all-Russian cultural processes. Immediately after the establishment of the Horde dominion in Russia, the system temporarily ceases

a set of stone buildings. The art of a number of artistic crafts was lost (the production of items with niello and granulation, cloisonné enamel, etc.). The scale of the production of handwritten books has decreased. The horizons of the chroniclers are significantly narrowed, they almost lose interest in the events taking place in other principalities.
At the same time, the most important genre of literature in the 13th century, which received dynamic development, is the oral folk art: epics, songs, legends, military stories. They reflect the ideas of Russian people about their past and about the world around them.
In the XIV century. comprehending Mongolian Conquest is devoted to a number of stories - tales: about the battle on Kalka, about the devastation of Ryazan, about the invasion of Batu, the legend of Yevpatiy Kolovrat, as well as the defender of Smolensk, the Smolensk youth, Mercury, who saved the city at the behest of the Mother of God from Batu's army.
In North-Eastern Russia, which during the XIV - early XV centuries. gradually went to the restoration of state unity, favorable preconditions were created for a cultural upsurge, enriched by the growth of national self-awareness. A powerful impetus to the development of patriotic feelings of the Russian people was given by the Battle of Kulikovo. A number of outstanding works of literature are dedicated to the brilliant victory of Russian soldiers on the Kulikovo field: a chronicle tale, a military tale. Another work from the anti-Horde cycle is the historical song about Shchelkan Dudentievich, which tells about the uprising in Tver in 1327, about the devastation of Moscow by Tokhtamysh in 1382, about invasions to Russia of Tamerlane and Khan Edigey.
The idea of ​​national liberation and patriotism is also reflected in the works dedicated to the defense of the northwestern borders of the Russian Land: "The Life of Dovmont" and Alexander Nevsky>.
A number of hagiographic works are dedicated to the princes who died in the Horde. This and. The princes appear in these works as defenders of the Orthodox faith and their Motherland.
Gradually from the second half of the XIII century. chronicle writing is gradually being restored in the Russian lands. Its main centers remained Galicia-Volyn principality, Novgorod, Rostov the Great, Ryazan, a little later (from about 1250) - Vladimir, and from the end of the XIII century - Tver. From the second half of the XIV century.
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the compilation of chronicles and handwritten books is experiencing a significant upsurge. Leading place the Moscow chronicle tradition gradually took over, and Simonov, Andronikov and other monasteries became its centers. It has come down to us as part of the Trinity Chronicle of the early 15th century. and is, in contrast to the local chronicle records, the first collection of an all-Russian character since the time of Ancient Rus.
Along with the development of literature, writing is developing. Indicators of the degree of literacy among all segments of the population are found in the XX century. birch bark letters during excavations in Novgorod. Gradually, with the development of bookishness, the character of writing changes, and business documentation expands. In the XIV century. comes to replace - a more fluent and free writing. And from the end of the XIV century. the development of cursive writing begins, the very name of which speaks of the principle of writing. Expensive parchment is gradually being replaced by a cheaper material - paper.
At the end of the XIII-XIV century. stone construction is resumed in the Russian lands. To this day, the Church of St. Nicholas on Lipna (1292), the Church of Fyodor Stratilat on the Stream (1360) and the Church of the Savior on Ilyin Street (1374) have survived in the Novgorod-rank. Preserved in Novgorod and several civil buildings of the XIV - early XV centuries. The most interesting building among them is the Faceted Chamber (the name appeared later), built in 1433. It was erected at the direction of Archbishop Euthymius of Novgorod, an ardent enemy of Moscow, to emphasize the sovereignty of Novgorod.
Under Ivan Kalita, four stone churches were built in the Moscow Kremlin: the Assumption Cathedral (1326), the Church of Ivan Lestvich-Nik (1329), the Church of the Savior on Bor (1330) and the Archangel Cathedral (1333). Some of them have preserved separate fragments. The resumption of stone construction in Moscow is associated with the reign of Dmitry Donskoy, during which the white-stone fortifications of the Moscow Kremlin were erected (1360s). The surviving monuments of stone architecture of the first quarter of the 15th century. testify to their new technical quality. An example of this kind of monuments is the Assumption Cathedral in Zvenigorod. In addition to Moscow, stone fortresses are being erected around a number of monasteries, as well as in Izborsk, Oreshka, Yama, Koporye and Porkhov.
The powerful rise of Russian culture at the end of the XIV century. found reflection in the development of Russian painting. One of the earliest monuments of monumental painting is the frescoes of the cathedral of the Snetogorsk monastery in Pskov (1313). The largest artist of this period was Theophanes the Greek (c. 1340 - 61

after 1405), Byzantine master. The frescoes of Theophanes the Greek in the surviving Novgorod churches are distinguished by an extraordinary virtuosity of performance, freedom in dealing with eschatological traditions, and an original monochrome performance in deep red-brown tones.
In addition to fresco painting, Theophanes the Greek is credited with the image of the Assumption on the back of a famous icon from the Annunciation Cathedral in Moscow. A large icon from Pereyaslavl Zalessky belongs to his brush. At the turn of the XIV-XV centuries in Moscow, Russian national school of icon painting. The early period creativity of the genius Russian artist Andrei Rublev.
A huge role in the development of culture in Russia in this era was played by the great spiritual pastors, Metropolitan Alexy (c. 1310-1378) and Abbot Sergius of Radonezh (1314 (or 1319) -1392). The latter, the founder of the Trinity Monastery near Moscow, is the real inspirer of the struggle of the Russian people against the Horde rule.