School encyclopedia. The Principality of Novgorod: form of government, religion, culture Cultural achievements of the Principality of Novgorod

Velikiy Novgorod. Or Mister Veliky Novgorod, as his contemporaries called him, occupied a special place among other Russians principalities. As the center of Slavic lands in the northwestern corner of Rus', Novgorod by the end of the 9th century. becomes a rival of Kyiv. He defeated Kyiv, but after the capital of united Rus' was moved to the south, the Kyiv princes began to send their eldest sons as their governors.

And yet Novgorod retained its special position; princely power did not take root here, as in other cities of Rus'. The reason for this was the entire structure of life in ancient Novgorod. From the very beginning the city grew primarily as a trade and craft center. It was located on the famous road "from the Varangians to the Greeks".

From here there were routes to the Southern Baltic, to the German lands, to Scandinavia. The route to the Volga ran through Lake Ilmen and the Meta River, and from there to the countries of the East.

Novgorodians had something to trade. They exported primarily furs, which were mined in the northern forests. Craftsmen of Novgorod supplied their products to the domestic and foreign markets. Novgorod was famous for its masters of blacksmithing and pottery, gold and silversmiths, gunsmiths, carpenters, and tanners. The streets and “ends” (districts) of the city often bore the names of craft professions: Plotnitsky End, Kuznetskaya, Goncharnaya, Shchitnaya streets. Associations of large merchants appeared in Novgorod earlier than in other cities of Rus'. Rich traders had not only river and sea vessels, but also warehouses and barns. They built rich stone houses and churches. Many foreign merchants came to Novgorod. The “German” and “Gothic” courtyards were located here, which indicated the close trade ties of the city with the German lands. Not only merchants and artisans, but also boyars and representatives of the church were involved in trade in Novgorod.

The confident economic development of Novgorod was largely explained not only by favorable natural and geographical conditions, but also by the fact that for a long time it did not face any serious external danger. Neither the Pechenegs nor the Polovtsians reached these places. German knights appeared here later. This created favorable conditions for the development of the region.

Greater strength in Novgorod Principality Over time, large landowner boyars received it. It was their land holdings, forests, and fishing grounds that provided the main trade products - furs, honey, wax, fish, and other products of the land, forests, and water. It was the boyars and large merchants who often organized long-distance expeditions of ushkuiniks, river and sea, in order to master new fishing lands and extract furs. The interests of the boyars, merchants, and the church were intertwined, which is why the top of the city, the so-called aristocracy, relying on their untold wealth, played such a large role in the political life of Novgorod.

The aristocracy in political life led artisans and other people. Novgorod acted as a united front against political pressure either from Kyiv or from the Rostov-Suzdal principality. Here, all the Novgorodians were together, defending their special position in the Russian lands, their sovereignty. But in the internal life of the city there was no such unity: there were often fierce clashes of interests between ordinary citizens and the city elite, which resulted in open protests, uprisings against the boyars, rich merchants, and moneylenders. More than once rebel townspeople broke into the archbishop's courtyard. The city aristocracy also did not represent a single whole. Separate boyar and merchant groups competed with each other. They fought for lands, income, privileges, to put their protege at the head of the city - a prince, a mayor or a thousand.

Similar orders developed in other large cities of the Novgorod land - Pskov, Ladoga, Izborsk, where they had their own strong boyar-merchant clans, their own craft and working population. Each of these cities, being part of the Novgorod principality, at the same time claimed relative independence.

Novgorod competed with Kiev not only in economic and commercial terms, but also in terms of the external appearance of the city. Here, early on the left bank of the Volkhov, on a hill, a Kremlin appeared, surrounded by a stone wall, unlike many other Russian Detinets, fenced with wooden and earthen fortifications. The son of Yaroslav the Wise, Vladimir, built the St. Sophia Cathedral here, which competed in beauty and majesty with the Kyiv Sofia. Opposite the Kremlin there was a market, where the city meeting usually took place - a gathering of all politically active Novgorodians. At the meeting, many important issues in the life of the city were decided: city authorities were elected, the candidacies of the invited princes were discussed, and the military policy of Novgorod was determined.

Illustration. Principality of Novgorod

Between the left bank and right bank Novgorod, a bridge was built across the Volkhov, which played an important role in the life of the city. Fist fights often took place here between various warring factions. From here, by the verdict of the city authorities, criminals sentenced to death were thrown into the depths of the Volkhov.

Novgorod was for its time a city of high culture of life. It was paved with wooden pavements, and the authorities closely monitored the order and cleanliness of the city streets. A sign of the high culture of the townspeople is widespread literacy, manifested in the fact that many Novgorodians mastered the art of writing on birch bark letters, which archaeologists find in abundance when excavating ancient Novgorod dwellings. Birch bark letters were exchanged not only by boyars and merchants, but also by ordinary townspeople. These were promissory notes and requests for loans, notes to wives, petitions, wills, love letters and even poems.

As the power of the Kyiv princes weakens and political separatism develops, it becomes increasingly independent from Kyiv. This became especially evident after the death of Mstislav the Great. In Novgorod then "sat" his son Vsevolod. When he left Novgorod and unsuccessfully tried to get himself a more honorable throne in the princely family of Pereyaslavl, the Novgorodians did not allow him back. But the city needed a prince - to command the army, to defend its possessions. Apparently considering that Vsevolod Mstislavich had received a good lesson, the boyars returned him back, but Vsevolod again tried, relying on Novgorod, to get involved in the inter-princely struggle for power. He drew Novgorod into a confrontation with Suzdal, which ended in the defeat of the Novgorod army. This overwhelmed the patience of the Novgorodians. The boyars and "black people"; Neither the church nor the merchants, whose rights he infringed, supported him. In 1136, Vsevolod and his family were taken into custody by the verdict of the veche, in which representatives from Pskov and Ladoga took part.

He was then expelled from the city, accused of being “the stink does not watch”, i.e., does not express the interests of ordinary people, poorly led the army during the war with the Suzdalians and was the first to flee the battlefield, dragging Novgorod into the struggle in the south.

After the events of 1136, the city aristocracy finally came to power in Novgorod - large boyars, wealthy merchants, and an archbishop. The city became a kind of aristocratic republic, where several large boyar and merchant families, the mayor, the thousand, and the archbishop determined all politics. The veche invited princes as military leaders and supreme judges. Undesirable princes were expelled. Sometimes several princes were replaced during the year.

Over time, Novgorod in its economic relations was oriented less and less towards the south, its connections with the South Baltic world, Scandinavian and German lands became closer. Among the Russian lands the strongest ties Novgorod remained with its neighbors: Polotsk, Smolensk and Rostov-Suzdal principalities.

There is no exact information about how old Novgorod is. Like Moscow, this city is mentioned in chronicles as already existing. Novgorod stood during the reign of Rurik and did not just stand, but was a solid principality. The Novgorod Kremlin-Detinets is the oldest on Russian soil.

Presumably the city began to be built in the 9th century with a wooden Kremlin. But already in the 11th century, wooden buildings began to be replaced with stone ones. The land of Novgorod included the lands of the Slavs and Krivichi. Afterwards he was received by Prince Oleg, the same one whose “shield on the gates of Constantinople” immortalized the courage and combat readiness of the Slavs in Byzantium. Prince Oleg united the Eastern Slavs into a single state, imposed tribute on the Novgorodians, and went to fight in the south.

Novgorod was a city with a fairly high level of culture for its time. Its development was facilitated by trade relations with the Dutch and Germans, trade routes passing through the Novgorod land.

Architecture

The Novgorod principality has long been famous for its carpenters. They knew how to build quickly, firmly and beautifully. Novgorodians were among the first to build buildings made of stone. During the period from 1054 to 1229, 69 churches were built (or felled).

Already in those years, the tops of churches (domes) were gilded. The outer walls were covered with tin. Inside, the walls were decorated with icons, wall paintings, silver chandeliers, the icons were decorated with gold, expensive stones, pearls, and enamel.

Among the Russian icon painters of that time, St. Alimpiy Pechersky. He learned icon painting, as well as mosaic skills from the Greek masters who painted the Pechersky Monastery.

Residential buildings were exclusively wooden. The chronicles also mention the construction of bridges across the Volkhov.

Literature

Solovyov’s book “History of Russia from Ancient Times” mentions ancient Russian poems, the main character of which is Vasily Buslaevich. This hero led the local youth and led a wild life. The townspeople suffered from his liberties. One of the songs tells how Vasily Buslaevich and his brave fellows beat the Novgorodians. Another song is about how he went to Jerusalem to pray.

Vasily Buslaevich served mass for the health of his mother and himself, served a memorial service for his father, who lived to be 90 years old, and his loved ones. But he was not able to return home. He ignored the advice not to jump past the magic stone, and found his death under it.

Another hero is noted in Novgorod songs and legends - Stavr, the Novgorod sotsky, who lived with his wife. From a chronicle dated 1118, it becomes known that he summoned Stavr to Kyiv along with several other Novgorod boyars who were accused of robbing two citizens. In the song, Stavr was accused of boasting about his wealth. Prince Vladimir found it offensive that some centurion could be richer than him, the Grand Duke of Kyiv.

“What kind of fortress is this in Kyiv, near Grand Duke Vladimir? I, the boyar Stavr, have a wide yard no worse than the city of Kiev: - and my yard is seven miles away, and the grids, the white-oak lighthouses, are covered with grids of gray beaver, the ceiling is in the grids of black sables, the floor, the middle is one silver, hooks and holes in Damascus steel is zlacheny.”

Another Novgorod chronicle for 1167 mentions Sadka Sytinich, who built the church of St. Boris and Gleb from stone. A song is also sung about Sadka. It tells that Sadko brought a bow from the Volga to his brother Ilmen, and he awarded Sadko with untold riches. Sadok's passion to build temples of God did not go without reward. From another song we learn that when Sadko found himself in the power of the sea king, St. helped him. Nikolai.

Almost all significant evidence of Russian written culture is related to Veliky Novgorod. In addition to chronological chronicles and poems that were sung, the following were created in Novgorod:

• Ostromir Gospel - by order of the mayor Ostromir in 1057;
• Certificate of Prince Mstislav Vladimirovich. It was issued in 1130 to the Yuryev Monastery;
• Spiritual Clement XIII, and many others.

“The bookishness of Novgorod,” emphasized D.S. Likhachev, “is distinguished by a single, common feature: the closeness of the written language to the spoken language. This testifies to the long path of cultural development traversed by the Russian language in Novgorod in previous eras. Thanks to this, despite the abundance of works of Church Slavonic writing that flooded into Novgorod after its baptism, the Russian literary language of Novgorod remained pure of Church Slavonicisms and retained all its Russian characteristics.”

Novgorod stood out from the cities of the north-west with its power. “Mr. Great Novgorod” - they called him. Thanks to its geographical location, Novgorod became a trade intermediary between the West and the East.

The power of the prince in Novgorod was limited to the veche, which was revered as the supreme state body. It was a boyar republic, but the voice of the people at the veche was heard.

Since ancient times, Novgorodians were famous as builders of wooden temples, fortresses, and palaces.

In 1045-1050 they erected the first stone cathedral - St. Sophia in the center of Detinets (Novgorod Kremlin), on the banks of the Volkhov. Its founder is Prince Vladimir, the son of Yaroslav the Wise. This is a five-nave temple with five apses in the east. It is simpler and more severe than the Kyiv Sophia, has five chapters (instead of thirteen). From the paintings in the temple, a composition depicting the first Christian emperor Constantine and his mother Helen has been preserved. Next to her head is the inscription “Olepa,” which indicates the Novgorod origin of the author of the fresco.

At the beginning of the 12th century, Novgorod turned into a veche republic, the princes were expelled from Detinets. They settle in Gorodishche, where they build fortress monasteries with temples, asserting their authority.

The largest monument of this time is St. George's Cathedral of the Yuryev Monastery. It combined monumentality, epic power and simplicity. Impenetrable steppes are dissected by powerful blades. The cathedral has three asymmetrically located domes, towards which the entire internal space of the temple seems to be directed.

In painting at the beginning of the 12th century, there were two directions: Greek, influenced by Byzantium (paintings of the St. Nicholas Cathedral and others), and a direction influenced by Western Europe (frescoes of the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in the Antoniev Monastery).

Of particular importance were the frescoes of the Church of the Spa on Nereditsa, which once covered the walls, vaults, and dome of the temple with a single carpet. Opp indicate that Novgorod had its own school of fresco painters. In the dome there is a scene of the Ascension of Christ, in the apse there is the Mother of God of O rank with Christ depicted on the chest in a circle, and under her there are two rows of saints. On the western wall the Last Judgment is depicted, on the steppes - the Gospel story of the passion of Christ. The art is harsh and even menacing. In the images of saints, truly popular, strong-willed and courageous strength breathes.

Icon painting has reached a high level. In the icon “Angel of the Golden Lass” (late 12th century), the influence of the Byzantine Empire is still felt, but “the sadness in the eyes, so radiant and deep” (L. Lyubimov), already reflects the state of the Russian soul. The face of Christ in the icon “Savior Not Made by Hands” is expressive. The icon of the Dormition (first half of the 13th century) amazes with the truth of life in its depiction of the grief of the saints mourning Mary.

The Novgorod school includes the icon “Christ on the Path” (13th century), distinguished by its bright, folk character of painting and ornamentation. The icon “Nicholas the Wonderworker” (\29/\) was painted in the local, Novgorod manner, the first work of easel painting bearing the artist’s signature - Alexey Petrov. The saint’s face is round, Russian, and has a good-natured, affectionate appearance.

Evidence of the high level of culture of Novgorod are birch bark letters, which preserved the features of the colloquial speech of the Novgorodians, their way of life, and way of life.

A trade and craft center similar to Novgorod was Pskov, where the veche also ruled and life was distinguished by great democracy.

Pskov is the leading edge of defense against the Livonian knights and Lithuania. Powerful fortifications are being erected here. Cathedrals resemble fortresses. Architectural structures of this period: the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery, the Transfiguration Cathedral of the Mirozhsky Monastery. The art of Pskov was influenced by the folk principle. In icon painting, it is not cinnabar that predominates, as in

Novgorod icons, and the green color: “The Cathedral of Our Lady”, “The Descent into Hell” and others.

The Mongol-Tatar yoke led to the destruction of many art monuments of North-Eastern Rus', the masters died or were taken into captivity. In the first half of the 14th century, the revival of Rus' began, and the northeastern principalities were united. Cultural centers - Novgorod, Pskov, at the end of the 14th century - Moscow.

In the 14th century, Novgorod experienced a cultural upsurge. Intense philosophical thought is evidenced by heretical teachings, which were a kind of protest against the official church. Novgorodians travel, rapprochement with the southern Slavs occurs.

New features appear in architecture. The churches of Fyodor Strathnlat (1360s) and the Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyin (1374) were erected; they are characterized by an eight-slope roof and one apse in the east. These are single-domed high temples with elegant decoration. In the 15th century, especially outstanding buildings were the stone walls and towers of the Novgorod Kremlin, the bishop's palace, as well as the building that later received the name of the Faceted Chamber.

The flourishing of monumental painting of the 14th century is associated with the activities of Theophanes the Greek, an artist who came to Rus' from Byzantium. In 1378, he painted the Novgorod Church of the Transfiguration on Ilyin. The subjects of the frescoes are traditional: the formidable Christ Pantocrator, prophets and forefathers. Theophan was a master of sharp individual characterizations of saints who are endowed with stern and strong characters. One of the most striking subjects is the Trinity, next to it are the figures of saints. Here the pillars are the first holy hermits who tortured the flesh and lived on the pillars; and ascetics who retired to the desert. The Saints of Theophapius are wise philosophers, just like the artist himself.

The overall red-brown tone, dark contours, folds of clothing, sometimes forming lightning-like zigzags, masterfully thrown whitewash “engines” - “nervous, extremely dynamic painting, conveying (...) human passions, doubts, thoughts, impulses” (L. Lyubimov ).

Novgorod icons of the 15th century are a brilliant page in the history of world painting. They are marked by a strong originality. This is mainly an image of saints popular in Novgorod - the prophet Elijah, Paraskeva and Anastasia, patronesses of trade, Saint George slaying the dragon. St. Dahlia is revealed as a fighter for the victory of light over darkness.

An interesting icon is “The Battle of the Suzdalians with the Novgorodians,” the earliest painting on a historical theme in Russian art. The composition is three-tiered, where the story of the transfer of the nkopa from the Church of the Savior on Ilyin to Detinets, the treachery of the Suzdalians and the victory of the Novgorodians unfolds sequentially. The beauty of an icon lies in its graphic clarity, in the rhythm of what is depicted, in the extreme expressiveness of its color.

One of the famous Novgorod icons of the 15th century is “Depsus and the Praying Novgorodians,” commissioned by the Kuzmin boyars; they are presented on the lower tier of the icon. Episodes of the gospel tale are depicted in the icon “The Nativity of Christ” (the Mother of God and Child are written in the center in bright cinnabar). The icon “Florus and Laurus” is unusual, dating back to Slavic pagan art. The plot of the “Entombment” icon is dramatic, characterized by its emotional, expressive character. The Mother of God, falling to the body of Christ, reveals an image of inconsolable suffering. This is a traditional Russian cry over the deceased, this is maternal grief, so familiar to Russian women.

During the Middle Ages, there were 15 principalities on the territory of Rus', but their number, as a result of feudal fragmentation, increased to 50. However, 3 of them, the largest, played a special role. These were Galicia-Volynskoe, Vladimirsko-Suzdalskoe and Novgorodskoe. Something can be more or less reliably learned about the latter only from the 9th century. The date of the official founding of Novgorod is considered to be 859, but historians note that the city itself appeared much earlier; it is simply not possible to establish the exact time.

The fact is that all the buildings at that time were completely wooden. Consequently, they easily burned and rotted, and little remained of them. And the activities of people who lived on the same land in later centuries almost completely buried the hopes of archaeologists to reliably establish something about those times. In addition, many written references to the Principality of Novgorod disappeared due to the Tatar-Mongol invasion. A huge number of documents simply perished in the fire.

However, from what we have been able to establish, it becomes clear that the Novgorod principality became acquainted with statehood quite early. And local historians even suggest that Rurik was here. But no confirmation has yet been found, only assumptions.

The earliest records concern the sons of Svyatoslav, Oleg and Yaropolk. A power struggle broke out between them. As a result of fierce battles, Yaropolk defeated his brother and became the Grand Duke, capturing Kyiv. He chose mayors to govern Novgorod. Who were killed by their younger brother, Vladimir, who fled to the Varangians, from where he returned with a mercenary army, received power first in Novgorod, and then in Kyiv. And it was his son, Yaroslav the Wise, who refused to pay tribute to Kyiv. Vladimir, who was gathering a squad to deal with this problem, suddenly died. Power was seized by Svyatopolk the Accursed, who fought rather brutally for power without choosing any methods. But in the end, Yaroslav won, largely with the help of the support of the people, who feared a more cruel prince. Now Yaroslav became the Grand Duke, and he began to send his sons to Novgorod.

Even a brief retelling of a relatively short period of time concerning events from the 9th to the 11th centuries clearly shows that the Novgorod principality had time to get used to both the frequent change of princes and the constant struggle for power between them. It is noticeable that the majority sought to seize the throne, ultimately in Kyiv. Staying in Novgorod was often considered as an intermediate option. What affected a certain perception of princely power by the people: firstly, as temporary, and secondly, inextricably linked with war, squads and campaigns.

At the same time, Novgorod was a fairly large city, where a kind of democracy with elements of oligarchy gradually began to form. This became especially noticeable during the period of feudal fragmentation, when the prince was forced to sign a charter (agreement), on the basis of which he could legally stay in the city. At the same time, his powers were greatly limited. In particular, the prince could not declare war or make peace, independently trade, distribute lands, or grant privileges to anyone. He did not even have the right to hunt in the wrong place or keep a squad in the city itself: the latter was due to the fear that power would be seized by force.

In fact, the figure of the prince was reduced to the role of a military leader, a commander who was obliged to defend the city and received certain privileges in this regard. But his position often remained precarious. In order to gather people other than his own squad, for example, for a military campaign, the prince could address the residents at a people's meeting, which remained the highest authority. But he had no right to order.

Any free man could take part in the meeting. The meeting was convened by the mayor or the thousand, whom the veche appointed, taking away this right over time from the prince. The assembly was also considered the highest judicial body. The posadnik was the highest official who received ambassadors in the absence of the prince and led the armed forces in the same conditions. Tysyatsky was his right hand and assistant. The exact duration of their powers was not specified, but each could lose their position by losing the trust of the people. The Veche had the right to remove anyone it appointed from the relevant position. In general, the breadth of powers is clearly demonstrated by the fact that in Novgorod even a bishop was elected at a people's meeting.

As for the Boyar Council, it, in fact, dealt with trade issues. It also served as an advisory body. United all influential people, headed by the prince. I was preparing questions that were worth bringing up at the meeting.

Times of feudal fragmentation

The uniqueness of the Novgorod principality was fully manifested during the period of feudal fragmentation. Historically, such a division is usually assessed negatively, and it really had an extremely negative impact on the Slavs, making them vulnerable to the Tatar-Mongol yoke. But for individual lands this had its advantages. In particular, the geographical location of the Novgorod principality gave it some protection: it turned out to be quite far away even for nomads, and as a result, it suffered less than all other lands from the actions of the Mongols. The Russian princes were much better at defending the western borders. And thanks to fragmentation, Novgorodians did not get involved in the problems of their neighbors.

Also, do not forget that the Novgorod land itself was quite large. It was comparable in size to European states of the same period. And its favorable geographical position allowed it to establish trade with the Hansa and some other neighbors. In addition to Novgorod itself, the principality included Pskov, Yuryev, Ladoga, Torzhok and other territories, including even part of the Urals. Through Novgorod it was possible to gain access to the Neva and the Baltic Sea. But it was not only the geographical location that made the principality so unique, but a combination of various factors, political, economic and cultural. And religious ones, too.

Life, religion and culture

With regard to such a state phenomenon as the Principality of Novgorod, the description will not be complete if attention is not paid to issues of religion, culture and life. The baptism of Novgorod took place shortly after Kyiv, from where the Byzantine priest Joachim Korsunanin was sent for this purpose. But, like many Slavs, the Novgorodians did not immediately abandon pagan beliefs. It got to the point that the Christian religion, not wanting to constantly face resistance from its flock, absorbed some traditions, combining them with Christmas (fortune telling and other rituals).

As for culture, a careful study of the chronicles shows that here, until the capture of the Novgorod principality in the 15th century by Ivan III, a fairly good level of writing and education was maintained. It also affected that these lands suffered less than others from the invasion of the Tatar-Mongol yoke. Much knowledge was passed on from parents to children and was preserved. Which, in turn, affected everyday life. Thus, Novgorodians were ardent adherents of wooden housing construction, cleanliness, and certain rituals associated with nature. The identified cultural layer is so powerful that it is still being studied.

Since ancient times, a library was created in the St. Sophia Cathedral, known far beyond the borders of Novgorod. Of all the ancient Russian books that have reached us (since the 11th century), more than half belonged to Novgorod. This testifies to the huge role of the city in the development of Russian writing.

The chronicle of 1030 says that Prince Yaroslav the Wise gathered in Novgorod “300 elders and priests’ children to teach books” and ordered to open a school for them.
Yaroslav obliged the priests in his parishes to teach people to read and write.
Literacy in ancient Novgorod was significantly widespread compared to other cities. This is proven not only by birch bark letters (about 600 of them were found in Novgorod), but also by graffiti (inscriptions and drawings scratched on the walls of buildings), inscriptions of the names of the owners on numerous objects.

The oldest chronicle records in Novgorod are known from the 11th century. Chronicle writing was carried out not only in the St. Sophia Cathedral, but also in some suburban monasteries.
In the middle of the 12th century, the learned monk Kirik lived in Novgorod. He is rightly called the first Russian mathematician. Kirik was the leader of the choir of the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary at the Anthony Monastery. He was 26 years old when in 1136 he wrote the essay “The Teaching of Telling a Man the Numbers of All Years.” Kirik’s “Teaching,” dedicated to counting time, reflects the data of the ancient Russian calendar, with the help of which it was possible to make complex mathematical calculations with large numbers. And Kirik's treatise contains information about the units of time: year, month, week, day, hour.
Kirik owns another work - “Questioning”, in which he acted as a chronicler, recording in the form of a diary conversations with the Novgorod Archbishop Nifont and other clergy.
“Teaching” and “Questioning” testified to the high education of Kirik, who was familiar with the works of Byzantine, Greek and Latin authors.

The development of carpentry among the Ilmen Slavs of the 9th-12th centuries can be judged by samples of wooden structures known from chronicles, the conclusions of scientists after archaeological excavations, household items and decorations found by archaeologists. The chronicler wrote that in 989 the Novgorodians cut down the first wooden church of St. Sophia “with thirteen peaks,” which amazed contemporaries with its “splendor.”
By the end of the 12th century, the built-up area of ​​the city with its estates was at least 100 hectares (of which 12.5 hectares was the area of ​​Detinets). At the end of the 12th century there were at least 50 streets in Novgorod.
Archaeologists have discovered and studied hundreds of foundations of wooden residential and commercial buildings, defensive structures, and streets paved with wood. Already from the 10th century, the streets of the city were covered with wooden pavements made of thick pine blocks. Novgorod stands on deposits of dense clay, and the ancient Novgorodians used a complex system of gutters and wooden pipes to drain groundwater. The remains of such a system can be seen in the Novgorod Museum.

The first stone buildings appeared in Novgorod in the middle of the 11th century. A striking example of the skill of ancient Novgorod architects is the St. Sophia Cathedral, built in 1045-1050 under Prince Vladimir, the son of Yaroslav the Wise.
The stone architecture of Novgorod developed during two periods - princely (until 1136) and republican (until 1478). Of the famous Novgorod churches of the princely period, several have survived - St. Sophia Cathedral; St. Nicholas Cathedral on Yaroslav's Courtyard (1113-1136), which, as archaeologists and restorers established, was connected from the west by a gallery with the wooden palace of the prince; in the Yuryev and Anthony monasteries, the buildings of the cathedrals of St. George (1119) and the Nativity of the Virgin Mary (1117-1119), etc., survived.
All stone buildings from the period of the reign of the princes belong to the temple architecture of the Kiev-Byzantine style. They are built from limestone slabs and boulders with Byzantine plinths (bricks). During construction, Byzantine cement was used - a mixture of lime with crushed brick, which in terms of binding qualities was not inferior to cement.

From the middle of the 12th century, a feudal republic was established in Novgorod. The stone temple buildings in Priilmen of that period were distinguished by their small size. Some scientists explain this by the fact that the customers of the buildings were no longer princes or rich boyars, but residents of the streets, small monasteries, and even individual families. Traditionally, the interior of temples was decorated with wall paintings.
In the buildings of the princely period, fresco paintings and mosaics were partially preserved in the St. Sophia Cathedral, in the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary of the Anthony Monastery, in the St. Nicholas Cathedral in the Yaroslav's Courtyard and in the staircase tower of the St. George's Cathedral of the St. George's Monastery.

In small churches, paintings from the second half of the 12th century can be seen in the churches of the Annunciation in Arkazhi, St. George and the Assumption in Staraya Ladoga. The fresco painting in the Church of the Savior on Nereditsky Hill near the Rurik settlement, built by Prince Yaroslav Vladimirovich for the princely family in 1198 and painted with frescoes in 1199, was famous throughout the world. The frescoes were in excellent condition before the Great Patriotic War. The Nazis destroyed the building to the ground.
After the war, it was restored, but the frescoes were lost forever, and only minor fragments were preserved.