Eastern Slavs and Byzantium. Slavs and Byzantium in vi century

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Slavs and Byzantium

The creation of Slavic states should be attributed to the first quarter of the 7th century, when one of the first Slavic states was formed in Moravia. The story about him is preserved only in Latin sources. Samo laid the foundation for the Moravian Empire. It appeared around 622, when the Czech Slavs were brutally pressed by the Avars. Samo managed to organize the Slavs. During the struggle for the liberation of Moravia, they got rid of the Avars, and in 627, according to the chronicler Fredegard, Samo became king and reigned for about 35 years. From his 12 wives he had 22 sons and 15 daughters. Having freed the Slavs from their oppressors, he successfully fought against the Franks, who began to seek an alliance with him.

It is difficult to determine the boundaries of the Samo state based on the meager information available to history, but its core was Moravia, and its capital was Visegrad. Since 641, news of Samo ceased, and his state itself subsequently disintegrated. But it is extremely significant that an initiative was made: the Slavic element was able to assert its rights, despite cruel pressure from the Avar Kaganate.

The legend about Kuver, or Kuvrat, associated with the movement against the Avar Kaganate is typical. In the biography of Kuvrat one can trace the close interaction between Byzantium and the Slavs. Kuvrat was raised at the court of Constantinople and baptized. Personal valor was combined in him with a broad outlook and education. Thanks to his military talent and cunning, he captured the eastern part of the territory of modern Bulgaria and Macedonia, and then, in a treaty concluded with Byzantium, stipulated that he would remain on the occupied land. In addition, one of the clauses of the agreement retained his right to collect tribute from the Dregovichi. This is how a powerful power arose in the regions of eastern Bulgaria. Kuvrat died during the reign of Constans II (641-668). He was replaced by Asparukh, who after him assumed dominance over the (proto)Bulgaro-Slavic unification. In an effort to protect himself from an attack by the Avar Khaganate, which occupied the area between the Danube and Tissa, Asparukh created a fortified camp at the mouth of the Danube, called Asparukh's Corner. The Avars were already significantly constrained by Kuver from Macedonia and the state of Samo. In an effort to penetrate deeper and deeper into the regions of the Balkan Peninsula, the (proto) Bulgarian-Slavic association also moved its capital. Following the Asparuhov Angle, near Shumla, in the Aboba area, the first capital of the Bulgarians was founded. From here, from Aboba (Pliska), they extended their raids either to the walls of Constantinople, passing through Thrace, or rushed to Thessaloniki.

Excavations carried out in Aboba indicate the existence of a palace with a throne room and living quarters, a pagan temple, which was later converted into a Christian church. These monumental buildings date back to the 8th century, they appeared later than wooden residential buildings consisting of small rooms. The capital of the Bulgarian khans was surrounded by a wall with watchtowers, round and square. The eastern gate leading to the city is decorated with images of a horseman with a spear, a warrior in a high headdress, and a deer with branched antlers. Moose antlers, boar and elk skulls were found in the houses. Inscriptions in honor of heroes and statesmen of the Bulgarian Khanate in Greek were discovered, preserving their titles and names, as well as the names of cities that fell under the rule of the Bulgarians. Based on fragments of some inscriptions, one can judge the agreements between the Bulgarians and Byzantium. Parts of luxury items, jewelry, rings, bracelets, and necklaces have also been preserved. Gold and copper coins and lead seals indicate extensive trade relations of the khanate.

Excavations of the first Bulgarian capital give an idea of ​​the close connection with Byzantium in which the culture and writing of Bulgaria developed. The second capital of the Bulgarians was founded around 821 at the foot of the Balkan Mountains. Great Preslava is known from Russian chronicles. In the second half of the 7th century. Byzantium was forced to pay tribute to the Bulgarians. An attempt to refuse payment terms led to an attack by the Bulgarians. The emperor was forced to call in cavalry from Asia, where the Armenian and Arab cavalry was especially famous. It is safe to say that the introduction of cavalry in the Byzantine troops, which replaced heavily armed infantry - the main force of the Greek and Roman armies - occurred under the influence of the cavalry troops of Iran and the nomadic peoples on the European border.

In 688, in the Balkan klisurs (gorges), the Bulgarians were repulsed by Byzantine troops, then they moved through Macedonia to Thessaloniki, to the areas occupied by the Slavs. Byzantium took advantage of this moment and moved a large group of settlers - the Slavs - to Asia Minor, to the Opsik region. In fact, such colonization began earlier, since as early as 650 there is information about a Slavic colony in Bithynia, which supplied warriors to the empire. In 710, the Bulgarian Khan Tervel with 3000 Bulgarians and Slavs supported the Byzantine emperor and entered into an alliance with the Slavs of Asia Minor. In subsequent years, the Byzantine throne relied on the Bulgarian troops, who retained power under Justinian II. Khan Tervel received a high title for this, which did not prevent him, however, from raiding poorly defended Thrace, and in 712 reaching the golden gates of Constantinople and calmly returning with huge booty. Prisoners in 715-716 and 743-759 Treaties between the Bulgarians and Byzantium established the boundaries between both powers and contained clauses on the exchange of defectors. Traders, if they had a letter with seals, had the right to cross the border freely. It is interesting to note the point about the import of fine silk and formal clothes into Bulgaria, as well as red, well-dressed saffiano leather.

Throughout the 8th century. The Bulgarians continue to attack Byzantium. Along with this, in the 8th century. New moments are also emerging: the visit of the Bulgarian khans to Constantinople did not pass without a trace. By the middle of the 9th century. Bulgaria passed through the reigns of Krum and Omortag, its most prominent and active khans. From the time of the latter, a proud inscription in Greek has been preserved, in which he imitates the titles of the Byzantine rulers.

In the middle of the 9th century. In Byzantium, a major political figure emerged, a man of great intelligence, broad outlook and indestructible energy - Photius. A secular man, from December 20 to 25, 857, he went through all the levels of the clerical hierarchy to become the Patriarch of Constantinople and carry out purely political tasks. His statesman's mind appreciated the significance of the changes that had taken place in the ethnic composition of the empire and its neighbors. He successfully applied the old techniques of Byzantium in a new way - methods of peaceful inclusion in the empire. At this moment, there was a growing awareness of the need for a political mission among the Balkan peoples, for the success of which the Byzantine leaders abandoned the Greek language, which gave them enormous advantages over the Latin West.

The performers of a cultural task of world-historical significance were Cyril and Methodius. After 860, the brothers were sent by Photius “to the Khazars,” to the southern Russian steppes inhabited by the Slavs. Kirill probably already had some of his translations into Slavic. Here they converted the “Fulian tribe” to Christianity. After the first success, work, no less than the first, awaited the brothers, for Rostislav, Prince of Moravia, sent ambassadors to Emperor Michael, asking for cultural and political support. A charter from Pope Nicholas V dated 864 indicates that the claims of the German princes coincided perfectly with the interests of Rome.

Cyril and Methodius arrived in Velehrad, the capital of Moravia, in 863 “and, having gathered disciples, I taught the authority.” This was possible only due to the fact that, knowing the Slavic language, they brought a letter they had compiled and a translation of some sacred books, which contributed to the strengthening of the cultural independence of the Slavs, with their own language and literature. The brothers' educational activities met with opposition from the Latin clergy. In 867, the pope, concerned about the success of the Slavic preachers, summoned them to Rome. On the way, they stopped in Pannonia, where, at the request of the Slavic prince Kocel, they taught 50 young people to read and write and left copies of their translations. In 868, the Slavic enlighteners were solemnly received in Rome by Pope Adrian II, and their great work - the Slavic translation of the scriptures - received recognition here.

An undoubted consequence of the translation of books into the Slavic language and the invention of the Slavic alphabet should be considered the introduction of the Bulgarian state to Eastern Christianity.

Rus' AND BYZANTIUM

Like other Slavic peoples, Rus' collides with the Greek world in war and in peaceful relations. By the first quarter of the 9th century. includes information about the attack of Rus' on the Crimean coast from Korsun to Kerch, which belonged to Byzantium. In the second quarter of the same century, before 842 in any case, Rus' attacked the Asia Minor coast of the Black Sea. The areas from the Propontis to Sinop were plundered and devastated. But the most remarkable event was the Russian attack on Constantinople on June 18, 860, when 200 ships began to threaten the Byzantine capital from the sea. How highly aware the Slavs were of the affairs of their neighbors is evidenced by the fact that they used the time when Tsar Michael moved at the head of his troops to defend the coastal regions of Asia Minor. He hastily returned from the road, negotiated peace, as a result of which an agreement was concluded. From June 18 to 25, “Rus,” keeping the world capital in fear, ravaged its immediate surroundings and withdrew without defeat.

Under Emperor Theophilus, in 839, ambassadors of Rus' were in the capital, as reported by the Vertinsky annals. There is evidence of treaties concluded in 860, 866-867. The latter resulted in the adoption of Christianity by Russia from the hands of Byzantium. The message of Patriarch Photius suggests that Constantinople was perfectly aware of the state of this state, which originated in eastern Europe.

About the developed trade of Rus' in the first half of the 9th century. known from the reports of the Arab geographer Ibn Khordadbeh, its area was the Black Sea. But the capital of Byzantium radiated “magical spells” that forced Rus' to seek close relations with it. This is where the desires of the Dnieper Slavs were directed, but getting the opportunity to trade freely in the capital was not so easy. Olegov’s “shield on the gates of Constantinople” was a symbol of truly victorious Russian campaigns. The victories sung in Russian and Scandinavian folk songs preceded Oleg's treaty with Byzantium in 911. It makes no mention of Christianity or clerical ties, but does say in passing that previous agreements testified “for many years, the border between Christians and Russia was a former love.” But it contains many interesting details. Thus, ambassadors from Rus' were accepted in the capital if they had the gold seals of the Russian prince with them, merchants - guests - had to present silver seals, and, finally, ordinary soldiers who came with the goal of being accepted for military service in Byzantium were admitted. The seals had official significance, making the rulers of Rus' responsible for the actions of its natives, especially since the prince was obliged to prohibit them from “doing dirty tricks in the villages of our country,” that is, in Byzantine villages and regions. The ambassadors and all guests were to live on the outskirts of Constantinople near the monastery of St. Mammoth, and the first place went to the people of Kiev, the second - to the Chernigov people, the third - to the Pereyaslavl people, and then others. The ambassadors received their allowance, and the guests received a “month” in kind: bread, wine, meat, fish and fruit, and not only those who came to sell, but also to buy in the capital. This shows the importance the Byzantine government attached to exports. A special official was assigned to keep records of the guests and the “month,” which was issued for no more than six months. The concerns raised by the Russian guests do not require special comment. They were allowed into the markets only in groups of 50 people, without weapons, accompanied by the city “police officer.” Upon departure, the guests received provisions and ship gear for the journey, the latter, probably due to the wear and tear of such on the long journey “from the Varangians to the Greeks.”

A new campaign with a 40,000-strong army against Byzantium was launched in 941 under Prince Igor, while the Byzantine fleet was distracted by the Arabs. But it was not possible to take Constantinople. The Russians ravaged the coast from the Bosporus to Byzantium, moving along the coast of Asia Minor, but here they were overtaken by Byzantine troops. After a brutal defeat, Igor returned across the Sea of ​​Azov, fearing a Pecheneg ambush on the Dnieper. Only in 944 was the peace treaty with Byzantium renewed, but much less profitable. Some points of this agreement are of great interest: the Byzantine emperor received the right to call Russian “warriors” in wartime and, for his part, promised to provide the Russian prince with military force, apparently to protect the Byzantine regions of Crimea, “as much as is required.” The protection of Crimea was entrusted to Kievan Rus, since Byzantium itself did not have enough strength for this. The regions of Chersonese had to be protected from the Black Bulgarians, and the Russian prince took upon himself the obligation not to let them “do dirty tricks” in the Korsun country. How can we explain this new clause in the Russian-Byzantine treaty? Is it because Rus' managed to firmly establish itself near Chersonesus? Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenite, a contemporary of Igor and Princess Olga, in his essay “On the Administration of the Empire,” dwells in detail on the political structure and trade relations of Rus'. Byzantium was excellently informed about all Russian affairs. Igor's widow, Princess Olga, visited Constantinople twice. But negotiations with the emperor did not satisfy her much, since he saw his support in the Pechenegs and did not seek to encourage the strengthening of Rus'.

During the reign of Prince Svyatoslav, events of great significance took place. Emperor Nikifor Phokas, wanting to bring Bulgaria to obedience, but distracted by the Arabs to his Asian border, turned to the Kyiv prince for help. With an army of 60,000, Svyatoslav invaded Bulgaria in 968 and achieved military success. Temporarily he returned to Kyiv, then to return to Bulgaria. But his desire to unite Great Preslava with the Principality of Kyiv under his rule frightened Constantinople. John Tzimiskes in 971 won the support of the Bulgarians and began a brutal blockade of Dorostol, which lasted three months. He skillfully took advantage of the mistake of Svyatoslav, who did not leave guards in the mountain passes. After futile attempts to break through, Svyatoslav entered into negotiations with Tzimiskes, promising to maintain the previous agreement and provide military support to the empire if necessary.

During severe military uprisings and unrest in Byzantium between 986-989. Military assistance was provided to her by the Kyiv prince Vladimir, who also captured the city of Chersonesos. Constantinople received it back only “for the queen’s vein”, as a ransom for the royal sister, who was married to Vladimir. In turn, Vladimir became a Christian.

Soon after, the ties between Byzantium and Rus' weakened somewhat. Both sides are distracted by more pressing tasks: the fight “with the steppe” in Rus', the fight against the Arabs and the West in Byzantium.
Rus' has developed into a strong, independent state with its own traditions and culture. Relations with Byzantium, Scandinavia, and Bulgaria made it from the first steps a power with world ties.

BYZANTINE CULTURE AND ITS IMPORTANCE FOR THE SLAVS

The outstanding role played by Byzantium in the general culture of the Middle Ages is unanimously recognized by both Latin and Greek medieval writers, Syrian and Armenian historians, Arab and Persian geographers. The annals that were compiled by the mandarins of the “Heavenly Empire” are aware of the great power of the far West for them. The high level of material culture and extensive trade relations were the most important reasons for its power.

Alexandria in Egypt, Antioch in Syria, Edessa on the Euphrates, Mayferkat and Dvin in Armenia, many cities in Asia Minor, Chersonesos in Taurica, Thessaloniki on the Balkan Peninsula were strongholds of the regions, located at the crossroads of trade and strategic roads. But all roads led to the second Rome - Constantinople, the world capital. Constantinople, the political, administrative, commercial and cultural center of the empire, was a huge market. Goods flocked here from the most distant world markets. Raw silk was brought from China and Central Asia, which passed from the hands of Sogdian merchants to the Persians and Syrians, who delivered it to the coastal cities, and from there to the capital. Russian and Scandinavian boats delivered wax, furs, and honey. From Iran and Arabia, raisins, apricots, almonds, dates, wine, Syrian and Saracen fabrics, carpets and widely famous ready-made clothes were delivered on camels to the harbor of the Syrian coast. From here, large and small ships transported goods to the Bosphorus. Grain came from Egypt, and gold sand and ivory came from the depths of Africa. The capital greedily devoured huge quantities of fresh and salted fish, which were brought from all over the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions. This was the food of the poorest population of the cities. Cattle were brought to Nicomedia from Asia Minor. Herds of horses grazed in Thrace, from where they were driven to the outskirts of the capital. Olive oil came from Asia Minor, Hellas, and the Peloponnese.

Byzantium was also the center of medieval education. The culture, Greek in language, connected it with the Hellenic tradition, with unsurpassed examples of the Homeric epic, the prose of Thucydides and Xenophon, the philosophical dialogues of Plato, the comedies of Aristophanes and the tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. The Athenian Academy, where “pagan philosophy” flourished, existed until the middle of the 6th century. Higher schools in Alexandria, Antioch and Constantinople, in addition to a cycle of clerical subjects, had medical and law faculties. A number of legislative acts provided teachers and doctors with salaries from the treasury and exemption from all duties in order to provide them with “the necessary freedom to engage in spidering.” University of Constantinople from the 5th century. numbered 31 professors who taught students literature, oratory, philosophy and legal sciences. For this, professors received support from the state.

This made it possible to preserve education in Byzantium, which in turn contributed to the further development of law and legislation, the preservation of medical and agricultural knowledge, as evidenced by the relevant treatises. The Byzantine chronicle and historiographic tradition through Procopius and Theophylact Simokatta is connected with ancient Greek models; through the chronography of Theophanes, and especially John Malala, it draws new strength from the living folk language.

Both the material culture of Byzantium and the fruits of its education became the property of other peoples. From Byzantium the Slavs received the alphabet and the first translations from Greek into their native language. The Slavic and Russian chronicles trace their origins, chronology, and tradition to Byzantine chronography, in particular from George Amartol, who was translated early in Bulgaria. This is also typical for other literary works (poems, hagiographies), which were translated and perceived in order to later give rise to new, original examples. But Byzantium with its civilization also carried the poison of treachery, humiliation, and violence that flourished in it.

With the adoption of Christianity, with the emergence of Slavic writing and the flourishing of this wonderful culture, the Slavic peoples quickly became one of the culturally advanced peoples of the medieval world. The assimilation of Byzantine models did not occur mechanically, but was creatively processed, taking on new, unique organic forms, therefore much of the spiritual heritage of Byzantium continued to live in the culture of Moscow Rus'.

Constantinople was ruled by the Palaiologi, who inherited feudalism and the impoverishment of the country from the Latin Empire (1204-1261), deprived of most of the original population. Asia Minor - the birthplace of Orthodoxy - was captured by the Turks, Greece - by French and Catalan adventurers. Inside the capital itself was the Genoese colony of Galata. Thessalonica was devastated by the atrocities of the Zealot sect, and Albania and Macedonia by the warlike Serbs who dominated the Balkan Peninsula.

In this hopeless situation, the Palaiologists sought help in the West, but the Catholics did not love the Greeks, but used them. The last citadel of Orthodoxy remained not the Patriarchate of Constantinople, but the Athos Monastery.

It would seem that the Orthodox empire should have been saved by the southern Slavs, but they were in the same phase of ethnogenesis as the Greeks. Strife crushed the Serbian tribes, and even an attempt at unification undertaken by the Serbian king Stefan Dusan around 1350 did not save the people. After his death, strife resumed, and in 1389 the Serbian army fell prey to the Ottomans.

The Turkophile princes maintained a semblance of independence for some time, but in 1459 the remnants of Serbia were turned into the Turkish Pashalyk. The laws of ethnogenesis, like any natural phenomenon, are inexorable.

Historians who adhere to the theory of evolution, or the so-called “religion of progress,” believe that the Serbs lost the war with the Turks due to their backwardness. Strong zhupans and rulers spent their time in strife, which was supposedly a relic of tribal life, and their morals were characterized by primitive (?!) rudeness. Against this background, the reign of Stefan Dušan was an exception, like the empire of Charlemagne. See: Traichevsky A. Decree. Op. P.120 »».

Is not it? In the 7th century The Bodrite Serbs from the mountains of modern Saxony “moved” their surplus population to Illyria and conquered its northern part, leaving the Illyrians only the inaccessible mountains of modern Albania. In the 9th century, at the same time as the Bulgarians, the Serbs adopted Christianity, and their northern part - the Croats - fell under the subordination of Rome, and most of them were connected with Constantinople, not only in religious terms. The Serbs maintained their political independence from both Byzantium and Hungary. “Primitive rudeness” did not bother them at all. Only at the end of the 12th century. Manuel Komnenos included Serbia into the Byzantine Empire, and then not for long. In the 13th century. The Serbs liberated themselves and began the struggle for hegemony on the Balkan Peninsula, which ended in 1389 on Kosovo.

So, the Serbs lived through all the phases of ethnogenesis as part of the Slavic-Byzantine superethnos: a breakdown - the conquest of Illyria, an inertial phase - introduction to Christian culture, obscuration and an attempt at regeneration in the 13th-14th centuries, cut short by an external invasion, and a memorial phase in Montenegro (for all the remaining Serbian subethnic groups were subordinated to the Turks or Austrians), which existed until the 20th century. What kind of “backwardness” is there! And from whom?

It was worse for the Czechs. Close proximity to Germany, which was located at the end of the 13th century. in political disintegration, tempted the last Premyslovich - Ottokar II - to seize Austria, which he immediately lost in 1272 along with the life and Slavic tradition of his people. Already under him, the kingdom of Bohemia became a province of the German Empire. The German language began to dominate not only in government papers, but also in literature and in private life. The throne passed to the Luxemburg family, and Charles IV in 1348 founded a university in Prague, in the academic council of which 3/4 of the seats belonged to the Germans. Orthodox communion from the chalice was strictly prohibited "" How unpleasant the German expansion was for the Czechs was shown by the Hussite war, which broke out in 1419. The fierceness of the war is evidenced by the fact that the population of the Czech Republic in 200 years decreased from 3 million to 800 thousand (Traychevsky A. Op. op. p. 120) »».

The same penetration of German culture is observed in Poland under the last Piast - Casimir III the Great. He willingly attracted Germans to Poland, who settled at court and in the cities (they received the profitable “Magdeburg Law”), and Jews, who took control of the country’s economy. He suppressed the opposition aristocracy, patronizing the claps and students of the University of Krakow, founded in 1364. Poland became Germanized, like the Czech Republic.

After his death in 1370, the throne of Poland passed to the Angevin dynasty, which ruled in Hungary, but already in 1371, Louis of Anjou died, and his daughter Jadwiga, elected “King of Poland,” ascended the Polish throne. The West pulled Poland into its superethnos, and the fate of the Czech Republic awaited it, if not for the unexpected intervention of nature: a passionary push raised Lithuania and Ottoman Turkey, and the balance of power changed. The German “civilizers” did not have time to reach Moscow and the remnants of Kievan Rus.

LITHUANIA

The last peaceful conquest of the Western world was the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The talented and strong-willed princes Gediminas, Olgerd and Keistut stopped the aggression of the Teutonic Order, which rendered a great service to the papal throne. The Teutonic Order was transferred from Palestine to Prussia by Frederick II of Hohenstaufen and consistently supported the Ghibellines, not hesitating to quarrel with the Riga episcopate. Therefore, the popes did not sympathize with the “Knights of God.”

But the Lithuanians also behaved extremely independently. In the middle of the 13th century, when a rise in passionary tension emerged in Eastern Europe, the Lithuanians switched from defense to attempts to attack the Germans. In 1250, Mindovg converted to the Catholic religion, but “his baptism was flattering,” and by 1263, Alexander Nevsky and Mindovg were planning a joint campaign against the order. They both died young that same year.

For half a century, the Lithuanian land was torn apart by unrest and fratricide, which is typical for the incubation period of ethnogenesis. Passionarity grows without finding a way out, because there is no new culture, i.e. an effective system of prohibitions and goals, prompted by a new or updated worldview, because the old no longer inspires anyone, like any cult without creative dogma. It was necessary to accept a foreign culture, and the choice was simple: Orthodoxy or Catholicism.

The Order and Poland were ready to resist the Lithuanian pagans, while the Russian princes preferred capitulation.

Gediminas, the heir of Prince Viten, was a typical passionary of the ascent phase. While Viten was still alive, he subjugated the Berestey land and launched an attack on Volyn and Galicia, where the schismatics ruled - princes Lev and Andrei Yurievich. By 1323, Volyn was conquered by the Lithuanians, the princes disappeared from the pages of history.

In 1321, Gediminas defeated a coalition of Russian princes near the river. Irpen and took Kyiv, leaving a vassal prince there. But since the Russian princes, if necessary, turned to the Golden Horde for help, Gedimin decided to balance the forces. He agreed to the baptism of Lithuania into Catholicism and made peace with Livonia, Riga and Denmark, and a year later, under pressure from the pope, with the Teutonic Order. See: Shabuldo F.M. The lands of southwestern Rus' as part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. P.10"". With this, he freed the hands of the West to attack Rus'.

Tver was a rival of Moscow and, therefore, an ally of Lithuania, but Metropolitan Theognost took the side of the Moscow-Tatar alliance against Lithuania. Around 1327, Prince Alexander of Tver fled to Lithuania.

Gediminas' son Olgerd (1341-1377) achieved great success. He subjugated Kyiv, Bryansk, Rzhev, and Seversk Rus' to Lithuania, while his brother Keistut defended Zhmud and Lithuania from the German knights. This is how a powerful power was formed with a Lithuanian dynasty, a predominantly Russian population and a bizarre mixture of Western and Old Russian cultures. The Great Russians held out only with Tatar support "" Right there. P.38"". But Olgierd formulated his program in 1358, declaring to the ambassadors of Emperor Charles IV of Luxembourg: “All Rus' must belong to Lithuania,” and made them unacceptable proposals: the return of the lands seized by the order to Lithuania, the movement of the crusaders to the steppe to fight the Horde and the refusal of the order “ rights to Russians" "" Right there. pp. 9, 55 »».

In response to this brazen statement, the crusaders besieged Kovno in 1362. After all, the order was essentially a springboard for the entire European chivalry and could find replenishment in all European countries. The Germans, French, British and Italians, clad in chain mail, attacked Lithuania. Right there. P.66"". Olgerd and Keistut with Lithuanian-Russian troops came to the rescue of the besieged fortress, but did not dare to engage in battle. Kovno Castle fell.

This episode showed that even such a warlike ethnic group cannot live without friends. In Lithuania there were supporters of Orthodox Rus' and its opponents. These forces tore Lithuania apart, like two large planets tear apart a comet flying between them. The situation was complicated by the active policy of the Horde. Where the prince and the city entered into an alliance with the Tatars, the Lithuanians were not successful, and conversely, the Russian lands, united with Lithuania, voluntarily rejected the alliance with the Horde. As long as there was order in the Horde, which the “good king Janibek” was able to maintain, the situation seemed strong. But the socio-ethnic system of the Golden Horde was extremely unstable, and here’s why.

From the beginning of the 6th century, on the northern border of the Byzantine Empire, along the lower and middle Danube, invasions of Slavic tribes began.

The Danube border has always been a particularly troubled frontier of the empire. Numerous barbarian tribes that occupied the lands north of the Danube and the Black Sea steppes were a constant threat to Byzantium. However, the destructive waves of barbarian invasions that swept across the empire in the 4th-5th centuries did not stay within its borders for a long time or spread so much that they soon disappeared without a trace. Neither the Black Sea Goths - newcomers from the distant Baltic states, nor the nomads of the Asian steppes - the Huns were able to stay long on the territory of Byzantium and, moreover, have a noticeable impact on the course of its internal socio-economic development.

The invasions of the Transdanubian barbarians take on a different character when the Slavic tribes become the main and decisive force in them. The turbulent events that took place on the Danube border in the first half of the 6th century marked the beginning of a long era of the introduction of the Slavs into the Byzantine Empire.

Massive invasions and settlement of a number of Byzantine districts and regions were a natural stage in the entire previous history of the Slavs.

By the 6th century Slavs as a result of their gradual resettlement from the lands they occupied in the 1st-2nd centuries. n. e. east of the Vistula (between the Baltic Sea and the northern spurs of the Carpathian Mountains), they became immediate neighbors of Byzantium, firmly settling on the left bank of the Danube. Contemporaries quite clearly indicate the places of settlement of the Sklavins and Ants - related Slavic tribes who spoke the same language and had the same customs 1 . According to Procopius, they occupied most of the lands along the left bank of the Danube. The territory inhabited by the Sklavins extended in the north to the Vistula, in the east to the Dniester and in the west to the middle reaches of the Sava 2. The Ants lived in close proximity to the Sklavins, constituting the eastern branch of the Slavic tribes that settled on the northern borders of the Byzantine Empire. Particularly densely, apparently, the Antes populated the lands in the Northern Black Sea region - east of the Dniester and in the Dnieper region 3.

The resettlement of the Slavs from their original habitats and their invasion of Byzantium were determined both by external factors - the movement of various ethnic masses during the era of the “Great Migration of Peoples”, and, primarily, by the development of the socio-economic life of the Slavic tribes.

The transition of the Slavs, thanks to the emergence of new agricultural tools, to arable farming made it possible for individual families to cultivate the land. And although arable land remained, apparently, in the ownership of the community by the middle of the 1st millennium, the emergence of individual peasant farming, which provided the opportunity to use the product of labor for personal enrichment, as well as the constant growth of population, created a need to expand land suitable for cultivation. The socio-political system of the Slavs, in turn, changed. According to Procopius, the Sklavins and Antes are not governed by one person, but since ancient times they have lived in the rule of people, and therefore their fellow tribesmen share both happiness and misfortune together 4 . However, the testimony of the same Procopius and other Byzantine writers of the 6th century. allow us to see that the Slavs had a tribal nobility and primitive slavery existed 5.

Economic and social evolution leads to the formation of military democracy among the Slavs - that form of political organization in which it is war that opens up the greatest opportunities for the tribal nobility to enrich themselves and strengthen their power. The Slavs (both individuals and entire detachments) begin to willingly join mercenary troops 6. However, service in a foreign army could satisfy their growing needs only partially; the desire to master new, already cultivated fertile lands, the thirst for spoils pushed the Slavic tribes into the Byzantine Empire.

In alliance with other peoples of the Danube-Black Sea basin - the Carps, Costoboci, Roxolani, Sarmatians, Gepids, Goths, Huns - the Slavs, in all likelihood, participated in raids on the Balkan Peninsula earlier, back in the 2nd-5th centuries. Byzantine chroniclers were often confused in determining the ethnicity of the numerous barbarians who attacked the empire. Perhaps it was the Slavs who were the “Getian horsemen” who, according to the testimony of Comite Marcellinus, devastated Macedonia and Thessaly in 517, reaching Thermopylae 7 .

Under their own name, the Slavs were first mentioned as enemies of the empire by Procopius of Caesarea. He reports that soon after Emperor Justin came to the throne, “the Antes..., having crossed the Ister, with a large army invaded the Roman land” 8. A Byzantine army led by the prominent military leader Herman was sent against them, which inflicted a strong defeat on the Antes. This apparently stopped their raids on the territory of the empire for some time. In any case, during the entire subsequent reign of Justin, sources do not record a single invasion of Antes and Sclavenians.

The picture changes dramatically under Justinian. Characterizing the state of imperial affairs (for the period from Justinian’s accession to the throne until the middle of the 6th century), Procopius writes with bitterness that “the Huns (Hunno-Bulgars. - Ed.), Sklavins and Antes almost annually raid Illyricum and all of Thrace, that is, all areas from the Ionian Gulf (Adriatic Sea. - Ed.) right up to the outskirts of Constantinople, including Hellas and the region of Chersonesus [Thracian]....” 9 . Another contemporary of the events that took place under Justinian, Jordan, also speaks of “the daily persistent onslaught from the Bulgars, Antes and Sklavins” 10.

At this first stage of the Slavic offensive, their invasions, which followed one after another and were accompanied by terrible devastation of the Byzantine lands, were, for all that, only short-term raids, after which the Slavs, having captured the booty, returned to their lands on the left bank of the Danube. The Danube border still remains the boundary separating Byzantine and Slavic possessions; The empire is taking urgent measures to protect and strengthen it.

In 530, Justinian appointed the brave and energetic Hilvudius - judging by his name, a Slav - as strategist of Thrace. Having entrusted him with the defense of the northern border of the empire, Justinian apparently hoped that Hilvudiy, who had advanced far in the Byzantine military service and was well acquainted with the military tactics of the Slavs, would be more successful in the fight against them. Khilvudii indeed justified Justinian's hopes for some time. He repeatedly organized forays onto the left bank of the Danube, “beating and taking into slavery the barbarians who lived there” 11 .

But already three years after Hilvudiy was killed in one of the battles with the Slavs, the Danube “became accessible for the barbarians to cross at their request, and the Roman possessions were completely open to their invasion” 12.

Justinian was clearly aware of the danger that threatened the empire. He directly stated that “in order to stop the movement of the barbarians, resistance is needed, and serious resistance at that” 13 . In the very first years of his reign, work began on a grandiose scale to strengthen the Danube border. Along the entire bank of the river - from Singidun to the Black Sea - the construction of new and restoration of old fortresses was carried out; the defensive system consisted of several lines of fortifications that reached the Long Walls. Procopius names several hundred fortified points erected in Dacia, Epirus, Thessaly and Macedonia.

However, all these structures, stretching for many tens of kilometers, could not prevent the Slavic invasions. The Empire, waging difficult and bloody wars in North Africa, Italy, Spain, forced to keep its troops in a vast space from the Euphrates to Gibraltar, was unable to staff the fortresses with the necessary garrisons. Talking about the Slavic raid in Illyricum (548), Procopius complains that “even many fortifications that were here and seemed strong in the past, the Slavs managed to take, since no one defended them...” 14.

The widespread attack of the Slavs on the Byzantine lands was significantly weakened due to the lack of unity between the Sclavenians and the Antes. In 540, as a result of a conflict between these two largest Slavic tribes, war broke out between them, and joint attacks on the empire ceased. The Sklavins entered into an alliance with the Hun-Bulgars and in 540-542, when the plague was raging in Byzantium, they invaded its borders three times. They reach Constantinople and break through the outer wall, causing terrible panic in the capital. “Nothing like this has been seen or heard since the founding of the city,” writes an eyewitness of this event, John of Ephesus 15. However, having plundered the outskirts of Constantinople, the barbarians left with captured booty and prisoners. During one of these attacks they penetrated as far as Chersonese of Thracia and even crossed the Hellespont to Avidos. Around the same time (somewhere between 540 and 545) the Antes invaded Thrace.

Justinian was not slow to take advantage of the strife between the Antes and the Sklavins, which led to the disunity of their actions. In 545, ambassadors were sent to the Antes. They announced Justinian’s agreement to grant the Ants the fortress of Turris, located on the left bank of the lower Danube, and the lands surrounding it (most likely to authorize their settlement in this “originally Roman-owned” area), and also to pay them large sums of money, demanding in return that they continue to comply with peace with the empire and counteract the raids of the Hun-Bulgars.

The negotiations ended, in all likelihood, successfully. Since that time, sources have never mentioned the Antes’ performances against Byzantium. Moreover, in documents containing the full title of Justinian, the latter has been called “Αντιχος” since 533; more than half a century later, in 602, the Antes were also in allied relations with Byzantium 16.

From now on, having lost their closest and natural ally, the Sclavenians are attacking the lands of the Byzantine Empire - both alone and together with the Hun-Bulgars.

The onslaught of the Sklavins on the empire increased noticeably in the late 40s and especially in the 50s of the 6th century. In 548, their numerous detachments, crossing the Danube, marched throughout Illyricum all the way to Epidamnus. An idea of ​​the scale of this invasion can be formed on the basis of the news of Proconius (even if he somewhat exaggerates the number of imperial forces), as if the Slavs were followed by a 15,000-strong Byzantine army, but “they did not dare to come close to the enemy anywhere” 17 .

From the middle of the 6th century. The Slavic offensive against Byzantium entered a new stage, qualitatively different from previous invasions. In 550-551 A real Slavic-Byzantine war is playing out. Slavic troops, acting according to a pre-planned plan, wage open battles with the Byzantine army and even achieve victory; they take Byzantine fortresses by siege; Some of the Slavs who invaded the territory of the empire remain in its lands for the winter, receiving fresh reinforcements from across the Danube and preparing for new campaigns.

War 550-551 began with the Slavic invasion of Illyricum and Thrace (spring 550). Three thousand Slavs crossed the Danube and, without meeting resistance, also crossed the Maritsa. Then they split into two parts (1800 and 1200 people). Although these detachments were much inferior in strength to the Byzantine army sent against them, thanks to a surprise attack they managed to defeat him. Having won the victory, one of the Slavic troops then entered into battle with the Byzantine commander Aswad. Despite the fact that under his command there were “numerous excellent horsemen..., and the Slavs put them to flight without much difficulty” 18. Having seized a number of Byzantine fortresses, they also captured the seaside city of Topir, guarded by a Byzantine military garrison. “Before,” notes Procopius, “the Slavs never dared to approach the walls or go down to the plain (for open battle) ...” 19.

In the summer of 550, the Slavs again crossed the Danube in a huge avalanche and invaded Byzantium. This time they appear near the city of Naissa (Nish). As the Slavic captives later showed, the main goal of the campaign was to capture one of the largest cities of the empire, which was also well fortified - Thessalonica. Justinian was forced to give an order to his commander Herman, who was preparing an army in Sardika (Serdika) for a campaign in Italy against Totila, to immediately abandon all matters and march against the Slavs. However, the latter, having learned that Herman, who had inflicted a strong defeat on the Antes during the reign of Justin, was heading against them, and assuming that his army represented a significant force, decided to avoid a collision. Having passed through Illyricum, they entered Dalmatia. More and more fellow tribesmen joined them, crossing the Danube without hindrance20.

Having spent the winter on the territory of Byzantium, “as if in their own land, without fear of the enemy,” 21 the Slavs again poured into Thrace and Illyricum in the spring of 551. They defeated the Byzantine army in a fierce battle and marched all the way to the Long Walls. However, thanks to an unexpected attack, the Byzantines managed to capture some of the Slavs and force the rest to retreat.

In the autumn of 551, a new invasion of Illyricum followed. The leaders of the army sent by Justinian, as in 548, did not dare to engage in battle with the Slavs. Having stayed within the empire for a long time, they crossed back across the Danube with rich booty.

The last action of the Slavs against the empire under Justinian was an attack on Constantinople in 559, carried out in alliance with the Kutrigur Huns 22 .

By the end of Justinian's reign, Byzantium found itself helpless against Slavic invasions; the alarmed emperor did not know “how he would be able to repel them in the future” 23. The construction of fortresses in the Balkans, once again undertaken by Justinian, was intended not only to repel the Slavic invasions from across the Danube, but also to counter the Slavs who had managed to gain a foothold in the Byzantine lands, using them as a springboard for further advancement into the depths of the empire: the fortification of Philippopolis and Plotinopolis in Thrace were built, according to Procopius, against the barbarians who lived in the areas of these cities; For the same purpose, the fortress of Adina in Moesia was restored, around which the “barbarian Slavs” took refuge, carrying out raids on neighboring lands, as well as the fortress of Ulmiton, which was completely destroyed by the Slavs who settled in its vicinity 24.

The empire, exhausted by wars, did not have the means to organize active resistance to the increasingly intensifying Slavic onslaught. In the last years of Justinian's reign, the Byzantine army, according to the testimony of his successor Justin II, was “so upset that the state was left to continuous invasions and raids of barbarians” 25.

The empire's local population, especially the ethnically diverse ones in the northern Balkan provinces, were also poor defenders of their land. The economic life of the Danube regions, which had been repeatedly subjected to barbarian invasions for several centuries, noticeably died out in a number of areas, and these areas themselves became depopulated 26 . During the reign of Justinian, the situation became even more complicated due to increased tax oppression. “...Despite the fact that... all of Europe was plundered by the Huns, Sklavins and Antes, that some of the cities were destroyed to the ground, others were completely plundered due to monetary indemnities, despite the fact that the barbarians took everyone with them into captivity people with all their property, that as a result of their almost daily raids, all regions became deserted and uncultivated - despite all this, Justinian, nevertheless, did not remove taxes from anyone ... ", states Procopius with indignation in "The Secret History" 27. The severity of taxes forced the inhabitants either to leave the empire altogether, or to go over to the barbarians, who did not yet know the developed forms of class oppression and whose social system, therefore, brought relief to the exploited masses of the Byzantine state. Later, settling on the territory of the empire, the barbarians softened the burden of payments that lay on the local population. Thus, according to John of Ephesus, in 584 the Avars and Pannonian Slavs, addressing the inhabitants of Moesia, said: “Come out, sow and reap, we will take only half from us (taxes or, most likely, the harvest. - Ed.)" 28 .

The success of the Slavic invasions was also facilitated by the struggle of the masses against the exorbitant oppression of the Byzantine state. The first Slavic raids on Byzantium were preceded and, obviously, facilitated by the uprising that broke out in 512 in Constantinople, which in 513-515. spread to the northern Balkan provinces and in which, along with the local population, the federated barbarians took part 29-30. During the reign of Justinian and under his successors, the situation was favorable for Slavic invasions in Pannonia and especially in Thrace, where the Scamari movement developed widely 31.

The Slavic offensive against Byzantium, which increased year by year, however, began in the early 60s of the 6th century. temporarily suspended by the appearance of the Turkic horde of Avars on the Danube. Byzantine diplomacy, which widely practiced the policy of bribery and pitting one tribe against another, did not fail to use new newcomers to counter the Slavs. As a result of negotiations between the embassy of the Avar Khakan Bayan and Justinian, which took place in 558, an agreement was reached under which the Avars obliged, subject to receiving an annual tribute from Byzantium, to protect its Danube border from barbarian invasions. The Avars defeated the Utigur Huns and the Kutrigur Huns, who were at war with each other because of the machinations of Justinian, and then began to attack the Slavs. First of all, the lands of the Antes were subjected to raids by the Avars, moving from the Trans-Caspian steppes along the Black Sea coast to the lower Danube. “The Anta rulers were brought into distress. The Avars plundered and devastated their land,” reports Menander Protiktor 32. To ransom their fellow tribesmen captured by the Avars, the Antes sent an embassy to them in 560, led by Mezamir. Mezamir behaved at the Avars' headquarters very independently and with great insolence. On the advice of one Kutrigur, who convinced the Avars to get rid of this influential man among the Ants, Mezamir was killed. “From then on,” Menander ends his story, “the Avars began to ravage the land of the Antes even more, and did not stop plundering it and enslaving the inhabitants” 33.

Feeling their strength, the Avars begin to make increasing demands on Byzantium: they ask to provide them with places to settle and to increase the annual reward for maintaining the union and peace. Disagreements arise between the empire and the Avars, which soon lead to open military action. The Avars entered into allied relations with the Franks, and then, intervening in the feuds of the Lombards and Gepids, in alliance with the former, in 567 they defeated the Gepids, who were under the protection of the empire, and settled on their lands in Pannonia along the Tisza and the middle Danube. The Slavic tribes living on the Pannonian Plain had to recognize the supreme power of the Avars. From that time on, they attacked Byzantium together with the Avars, taking an active part in their struggle against the empire.

The first news of such combined invasions is contained in the contemporary Western chronicler John, abbot of the Biklyari monastery. He reports that in 576 and 577. Avars and Slavs attacked Thrace, and in 579 occupied part of Greece and Pannonia 34. In 584, according to another contemporary of the events described - Evagrius, the Avars (no doubt, together with their Slavic allies) captured Singidun, Anchial and devastated “all of Hellas” 35. The Slavs who were in the Avar army, who were generally known for their ability to cross rivers, participated in the construction of a bridge across the Sava in 579 to carry out the capture of Sirmium planned by the Avars; in 593, the Pannonian Slavs made ships for the Avar Khakan, and then built a bridge across the Sava from them 36.

In the Avar army (as in general in the Avar Khakanate), the Slavs were, in all likelihood, the most significant ethnic group: it is significant that in 601, when the Byzantine army defeated the Avars, a Slavic detachment of 8 thousand people was captured, much more superior in number to the Avars themselves and other barbarians who were in the Khakan’s army and other barbarians under his control 37 .

However, since the Avars politically dominated the Pannonian Slavs, Byzantine authors, when talking about the Avar attacks on the empire, often completely do not mention the participation of the Slavs in them, although the presence of the latter in the Avar army is beyond doubt.

The Avars repeatedly tried to subjugate the Slavs who lived on the lower Danube, but all their efforts invariably ended in failure. Menander says that Bayan sent an embassy to the Sklavinian leader Davrita and “those who stood at the head of the Sklavinian people,” demanding that they submit to the Avars and undertake to pay them tribute. The independent answer, full of confidence in their strength, that the Avars received to this is well known: “Was that person born in the world and warmed by the rays of the sun who would subjugate our strength? It is not others who are ours, but we who are accustomed to possessing what is someone else’s. And we are sure of this as long as there is war and swords in the world." 38

The Sklavins from the lower Danube continued to retain their independence. They fought both against Byzantium and against the Avars.

The Sklavinian invasions of the empire resumed with renewed vigor in the late 70s - early 80s of the 6th century. In 578, 100 thousand Sklavins, crossing the Danube, devastated Thrace and other Balkan provinces, including Greece proper - Hellas 39. Emperor Tiberius, who, due to the war with Persia, did not have the opportunity to counteract the Slavic invasions with his own forces, invited the Avar Khakan, who at that time was in peaceful relations with the empire, to attack the possessions of the Sklavins. Bayan, “nurturing a secret enmity towards the Sklavins... because they did not submit to him,” willingly agreed to Tiberius’s proposal. According to Menander, the Khakan expected to find a rich country, “since the Sklavins plundered the Roman land, while their land was not ravaged by any other people.” A huge Avar army (according to Menander - 60 thousand horsemen) was transported on Byzantine ships across the Sava, carried through the territory of the empire to the east to some place on the Danube and here it was transported to its left bank, where it began “to burn villages without delay.” Sklavins, ruin them and devastate the fields" 40.

The brutal devastation carried out by the Avars on the lands of the Sklavins did not, however, lead to their submission to the power of the Khakan. When in 579 Bayan tried, citing the upcoming campaign against the Sklavins, to build a bridge across the Sava and capture the strategically important Byzantine city of Sirmium, as a reason for this campaign he put forward to Tiberius the fact that the Sklavins “did not want to pay him the established annual tribute" 41.

The attack of the Avars on the Sklavins, provoked by the empire, did not save Byzantium from their new invasions. On the contrary, they are becoming even more formidable and are now entering their last, final stage - the mass settlement of the Slavs on its territory. In 581, the Sklavins made a successful campaign into the Byzantine lands, after which they no longer returned beyond the Danube, but settled within the empire. An exceptionally valuable description of this invasion of the Sklavins is given by John of Ephesus, a direct witness to the events he depicts. “In the third year after the death of Tsar Justin and the accession of the victor Tiberius,” he says, “the cursed people of the Sklavins attacked. They quickly crossed all of Hellas, the region of Thessalonica [Thessaly?] and all of Thrace and conquered many cities and fortresses. They devastated and burned them, took prisoners and became masters of the earth. They settled on it as masters, as if it were their own, without fear. For four years and until now, due to the fact that the king is busy with the Persian war and sent all his troops to the East, for this reason they spread over the earth, settled on it and expanded on it now, as long as God allows them. They cause devastation and fires and capture prisoners, so that at the very outer wall they captured all the royal herds, many thousands (of heads) and other various (boots). And to this day, that is, until 895 42, they remain, live and remain calmly in the countries of the Romans - people who did not dare (before) to appear from dense forests and (places) protected by trees and did not know that such weapons, except for two or three lonchidia, that is, darts” 43.

In 584 the Sklavins attacked Thessalonica. And although this attack, like subsequent attempts by the Slavs to capture the city, ended in failure, the fact that the Slavic detachment of 5 thousand people, consisting of people “experienced in military affairs” and including “the entire chosen flower of the Slavic tribes”, decided for such an undertaking is in itself quite indicative. The Slavs “would not have attacked such a city if they had not felt their superiority in strength and courage over all those who had ever fought with them” 44, it is directly stated in “Miracles of St. Demetrius" - a remarkable hagiographical work of this era, dedicated to the description of the “miracles” that his patron, Demetrius, allegedly performed during the siege of the city by the Slavs, and containing important historical data about the Slavs.

The vicissitudes of the Slavic-Avar-Visayan struggle of this time were very complex. As a rule, the Avars were in alliance with the Pannonian Slavs. Sometimes the latter acted independently, but with the sanction of the hakan. Having failed to achieve the subjugation of the Lower Danube Sklavins, the Avar Khakan nevertheless, on occasion, claimed that Byzantium would recognize their lands for him. This was the case, for example, in 594, after the emperor’s campaign against the Sklavins: the Khakan demanded his share of the spoils, claiming that the Byzantine army had invaded “his land.” However, not only Byzantium considered these Slavic lands as independent, but even those close to Bayan considered his claims to them “unfair” 45. Bayan himself, if it was beneficial for him, in his relations with Byzantium also proceeded from the fact that the Sklavins on the lower Danube were independent of him: when in 585 the Sklavins, at the instigation of the Khakan, invaded Thrace, breaking even through the Long Walls, the peace between the Avars and Byzantium was not officially broken, and the Khakan received conditional tribute from the empire, although his machinations were known to the court of Constantinople 46 .

A new invasion of the Avars and Slavs into Byzantium followed at the end of 585-586, after Emperor Mauritius rejected the Khakan's demand to increase the tribute paid to him by the empire. During this major Avar-Slav attack (in the fall of 586), another attempt was made to take Thessalonica. A huge Slavic army, having captured the surrounding fortifications, began to besiege the city. A detailed description of this siege in “Miracles of St. Demetrius" shows how far ahead the military technology of the Slavs had gone by this time: they used siege engines, battering rams, stone-throwing weapons - everything that the art of siege of cities knew at that time.

In 587-588, as evidenced by sources, in particular the anonymous “Monemvasian Chronicle”, probably compiled in the 9th century. 46a, the Slavs take possession of Thessaly, Epirus, Attica, Euboea and settle in the Peloponnese, where over the next two hundred years they live completely independently, not subordinate to the Byzantine emperor.

The successful attack of the Slavs on Byzantium in the late 70s - 80s of the 6th century. was to a certain extent alleviated by the fact that until 591 she waged a difficult twenty-year war with Persia. But even after the conclusion of peace, when the Byzantine army was transferred from the East to Europe, the persistent attempts of Mauritius to resist further Slavic invasions (the emperor even first took command personally - a precedent that had not taken place since the time of Theodosius I) did not yield any significant results.

Mauritius decided to transfer the fight against the Slavs directly to the Slavic lands on the left bank of the Danube. In the spring of 594, he ordered his commander Priscus to head to the border to prevent the Slavs from crossing it. In Lower Moesia, Priscus attacked the Slavic leader Ardagast, and then devastated the lands under his rule. Moving further, the Byzantine army invaded the possessions of the Slavic leader Musokia; Thanks to the betrayal of the Gepid, Priscus, who had defected from the Slavs, he managed to capture Musokia and plunder his country. Wanting to consolidate the successes achieved, Mauritius ordered Priscus to spend the winter on the left bank of the Danube. But the Byzantine soldiers, who had recently won victories over the Slavs, rebelled, declaring that “countless crowds of barbarians are invincible” 47.

The following year, Mauritius appointed his brother Peter as commander-in-chief instead of Priscus. However, the new campaign brought even less results. While Mauritius made every effort to move the war beyond the Danube, the Slavs continued their attacks on imperial lands: in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bMarcianople, the advanced detachment of Peter's army encountered 600 Slavs, "carrying large booty captured from the Romans" 48 . By order of Mauritius, Peter had to stop his campaign in the Slavic lands altogether and remain in Thrace: it became known that “large crowds of Slavs were preparing an attack on Byzantium” 49 . Peter set out before receiving this order, and, encountering the Slavic leader Piragast, defeated him. When Peter returned to the camp, the Slavs attacked him and put the Byzantine army to flight.

In 602, during renewed hostilities between Byzantium and the Avars, Mauritius, seeking to secure the empire from Slavic invasions, again ordered Peter to move into the Slavic lands. In turn, the Khakan gives orders to his military leader Apsikh “to exterminate the Ant tribe, which were allies of the Romans” 50 . Having received this order, part of the Khakan's army (in all likelihood, Slavs who did not want to fight against their fellow tribesmen) went over to the side of the emperor. But the campaign against the Antes obviously took place and led to the defeat of this Slavic tribe. From now on, the Ants disappear forever from the pages of Byzantine sources.

With the onset of autumn, Mauritius demanded from Peter that he spend the winter in the lands of the Slavs on the left bank of the Danube. And again, as in 594, the Byzantine soldiers, realizing the futility of fighting “the countless barbarians who, like waves, flooded the entire country on the other side of the Istra” 51, rebelled. Having moved towards Constantinople and captured it, they overthrew Mauritius from the throne and proclaimed the centurion Phocas, half-barbarian by birth, emperor.

This was the inglorious result of Byzantium's attempt to carry out an active struggle against the Slavs. The Byzantine army, which had just victoriously ended the war with Persia, the strongest power of that time, was powerless to close the Danube border of the empire to Slavic invasions. Even when winning, the soldiers did not feel like winners. These were not the battles with properly organized troops that Byzantine soldiers usually fought. New ones immediately appeared to replace the defeated Slavic troops. In the Slavic land beyond the Danube, every inhabitant was a warrior, an enemy of the empire. On its territory, the Byzantine army, due to the very system of its organization, also could not always count on the support of the local population. Since military operations against the Slavs were usually carried out in the warm season, the army was disbanded for the winter, and the soldiers had to take care of their own food. “With the onset of late autumn, the general disbanded his camp and returned to Byzantium,” says Theophylact Simokatta about the campaign of 594. “The Romans, not engaged in military service, scattered throughout Thrace, obtaining food for themselves in the villages” 52.

Byzantium well understood the difficulties of fighting against the Slavs and the need to use special tactics in the war against them. A special section of the Strategikon consists of advice on how best to carry out short-term raids on their villages, with what caution one should enter their lands; Pseudo-Mauritius recommends plundering Slavic villages and taking food supplies out of them, spreading false rumors, bribing princes and turning them against each other. “Since they (Slavs - Ed.) have many princes (ρηγων),” he writes, “and they disagree with each other, it is advantageous to attract some of them to their side - either through promises or rich gifts, especially those who are next door to us" 53. However, as the Slavs' consciousness of their ethnic integrity and unity of goals grows, and as they further unite, this policy brings less and less success. Justinian, as already noted, managed to separate the Antes from the joint struggle of the Slavs against the empire 54. Having lost the support of their fellow tribesmen, the Antes, whose tribes, according to Procopius, were “countless” 55, were first subjected to devastating raids and then defeated by the Avars. But already at that time, to which the work of Pseudo-Mauritius directly relates, one can see that the leaders of individual Slavic tribes, despite the danger, go to each other’s rescue. When the Byzantine army defeated Ardagast in 594, Musokiy immediately allocated a whole flotilla of single-frame boats and rowers to cross his people. And, although the sources do not directly say this, it was the Slavic warriors who apparently refused to participate in the campaign of the Avar Khakan against the Antes in 602.

The civil war that broke out in the Byzantine Empire after the overthrow of the Emperor Mauritius, and the renewed war with Persia, allowed the Slavs to lead the way in the first quarter of the 7th century. offensive of the greatest magnitude. The scope of their invasions is expanding significantly. They acquire a fleet of single-frame boats and organize sea expeditions. George Pisida reports about Slavic robberies in the Aegean Sea in the first years of the 7th century, and the anonymous author of “The Miracles of St. Demetrius” says that the Slavs “destroyed the whole of Thessaly, the adjacent islands, and Hellas from the sea. The Cyclades islands, all of Achaia and Epirus, most of Illyricum and part of Asia” 56. Feeling their strength at sea, the Slavs again made an attempt in 616 to take Thessalonica, surrounding it from land and sea. The siege of Thessalonica is carried out this time by tribes that have already firmly settled the territory of Macedonia and the Byzantine regions adjacent to it: the author of “The Miracles of St. Demetrius” notes that the Slavs approached the city with their families and “wanted to settle them there after capturing the city” 57.

During the siege, as in other naval enterprises of this period, a large alliance of Slavic tribes, including the Draguvites, Sagudates, Veleyesites, Vayunits, Versites and others, opposed the empire; At the head of the Slavs besieging Thessalonica is their common leader, Hatzon.

After the death of Hatzon, the Slavs were forced to lift the siege of Thessalonica. But two years later, having secured the support of the Avar Khakan, the Macedonian Slavs, together with the army brought by the Khakan (a significant part of which were Slavs who were under his supreme authority), again subjected the city to a siege, which lasted for a whole month.

The general picture that had created in the empire by this time as a result of the Slavic invasions and their development of Byzantine lands emerges quite clearly from the motivation with which the Slavs turned to the Avar Khakan, asking him to provide them with assistance. capture of Thessalonica: “It should not be,” said the Slavic ambassadors, “that when all the cities and regions are devastated, this one city remains intact and receives fugitives from the Danube, Pannonia, Dacia, Dardania and other regions and cities” 58 .

The difficult situation of Byzantium was well known in the West: Pope Gregory I wrote in 600 that he was very worried about the Slavs threatening the Greeks; He was especially worried about the fact that they had already begun to approach Italy through Istria 59 . Bishop Isidore of Seville notes in his chronicle that “in the fifth year of the reign of Emperor Heraclius, the Slavs took Greece from the Romans” 60. According to a Jacobite writer of the 7th century. Thomas the Presbyter, in 623 the Slavs attacked Crete and other islands 61; Paul the Deacon speaks of the Slavic attacks in 642 on Southern Italy 62 .

Finally, in 626, the Avars and Slavs entered into an alliance with the Persians and launched a siege of Constantinople. The city was besieged from land and sea. To storm the walls of the Byzantine capital, many siege weapons were assembled. Countless Slavic one-wood boats, arriving from the Danube, entered the Golden Horn Bay. However, the outcome of this siege was determined by Byzantium's superiority at sea. After the death of the Slavic fleet, the Avar-Slavic army was defeated on land and was forced to retreat from Constantinople.

The sieges of Constantinople and Thessalonica, attacks on coastal Byzantine cities and islands were carried out primarily by the Slavs, who were firmly settled in the territory of the empire. They most densely populated Macedonia and Thrace. To the west of Thessalonica (to the city of Verroi), as well as along the Vardaru River and in the Rhodope Mountains, the Draguvites settled. To the west of Thessalonica, as well as in Chalkidiki and Thrace, the Sagudates settled. The Vayunits settled along the upper reaches of the Bystritsa. Northeast of Thessalonica, along the Mesta River, lived the Smolensk people. On the Strymon (Struma) River, along its lower and middle reaches, they extended, reaching lakes in the west. Langazy, settlements of the Strymonians (Strumians); On the lands adjacent to Thessalonica from the east, in Chalkidiki, the Rhynhins settled. In the Ohrid area, sources indicate the place of residence of the Verzites. In Thessaly, on the coast around Thebes and Dimitrias, the Velaesites (Welsites) settled. In the Peloponnese, the slopes of Taygetos were occupied by the Milings and Ezerites. Seven Slavic tribes unknown by name settled on the territory of Moesia. Slavic tribes unknown by name also settled, as narrative and toponymic data show, in other areas of Greece and the Peloponnese. Numerous Slavic settlers appeared in the 7th century. in Asia Minor, especially in Bithynia.

The very fact of the massive settlement of Macedonia and Thrace by the Slavs at the end of the 6th and 7th centuries, as well as other, more distant regions of the Byzantine Empire - Thessaly, Epirus, Peloponnese, does not currently raise any serious objections. Numerous and indisputable evidence from written sources, as well as toponymic and archaeological data leave no doubt here. Linguistic studies show that even in the very south of the Balkan Peninsula - in the Peloponnese - there were several hundred names of places of Slavic origin63. The author of a large work on the Byzantine Peloponnese, A. Bon, notes that toponymy data indicate the predominance of the Slavic population in certain parts of the Peloponnese 64. P. Lemerle, who wrote a fundamental work on Eastern Macedonia, states that “Macedonia in the 7th-8th centuries. was more Slavic than Greek" 65. Rejecting the attempt of D. Georgakas to again study the word σχλαβος and interpret εσδλαβωδη in the famous phrase of Constantine Porphyrogenitus: εσδλαβωδη δε πασα η χωρχχαι γεγονε βαρβαρος (“the whole country became glorified and became barbaric”) 66 as εσχλαβωδη, i.e. “was turned into slavery” 67, P. Lemerle wittily asks who, if not the Slavs, were, in this case, the masters of these slaves? 68 The term σχλαβος, as F. Delger finally established, could only be an ethnikon at that time 69.

The settlement of free Slavic community members on the territory of Byzantium strengthened local rural communities, increased the weight of small free property, and accelerated the elimination of slave-owning forms of exploitation. Already during their invasions, plundering and destroying Byzantine cities - the centers of the slave economy and the main stronghold of the slave system of the Byzantine state - smashing the palaces and estates of the nobility, exterminating and taking many of its representatives into captivity with entire families, the Slavs facilitated the transition of the forced population of the empire - the slaves and colons - on the position of free peasants and artisans. With the end of the invasions and the accompanying devastation of cities, villages, and fields, new settlers greatly contribute to increasing the vitality of Byzantium, significantly increasing the productive agricultural layer of the population of the Byzantine Empire. The Slavs, the original farmers, continue to engage in arable farming in the imperial regions they inhabited: in “The Miracles of St. Demetrius" it is said that Thessalonica during its siege in 675 and 676. The Macedonian Slavs purchased food from the Veleyesites, and the Draguvites supplied the litany of former captives of the Avar Khakan who moved from Pannonia to Macedonia (between 680-685) with food 70 .

The Slavic agricultural population replenishes the ranks of the bulk of the Byzantine taxpayers and provides combat-ready personnel for the Byzantine army. In Byzantine sources there are very definite indications that the main concern of the empire in relation to the Slavs was to ensure the regular receipt of taxes and the fulfillment of military service. It is also known that from the Slavs whom Justinian II resettled from Macedonia to Asia Minor, he formed an entire army of 30 thousand people.

However, it was not immediately and not everywhere that Byzantium succeeded in turning the new settlers into obedient subjects. Starting from the middle of the 7th century, the Byzantine government waged a long struggle against them, trying to achieve recognition of its supreme power - payment of taxes and the supply of military units. The empire had to expend especially much effort to conquer the Slavic population of Macedonia and the Peloponnese, where entire regions were formed, entirely populated by the Slavs and directly called “Sclavinia” in the sources. In the Peloponnese, such a “Sclavinia” arose in the Monemvasia region, in Macedonia - in the Thessalonica region. In 658, Emperor Constant II was forced to make a campaign in the Macedonian “Sclavinia”, as a result of which part of the Slavs living there was subjugated.

However, just two decades after the campaign of Constant II, the Macedonian Slavs again opposed the empire. Author of "Miracles of St. Demetrius” says that the Slavs who settled near Thessalonica kept peace only for appearances, and the leader of the Rinkhins, Pervud, had evil intentions against the city. Having received a message about this, the emperor ordered Perwood to be captured. The leader of the Rhynchins, who was in Thessalonica at that time, was arrested and taken to Constantinople. Having learned about Pervud's fate, the Rynhins and Strymonians demanded his release. The emperor, busy with the war with the Arabs, and, apparently, fearing the uprising of the Slavs, at the same time did not dare to immediately release Perwood. He made a promise to return the Rinhin chieftain at the end of the war. However, Perwood, not trusting the Greeks, tried to escape. The attempt was unsuccessful, Perwood was caught and executed. Then the Rynhins, Strymonians and Sagudates came out against the empire with united forces. For two years (675-676) they subjected Thessalonica to a blockade: the Strymonians operated in the areas adjacent to the city on the eastern and northern sides, and the Rynchins and Sagudates - on the western and coastal areas. In 677, the Slavs besieged Thessalonica, and for an unknown reason the Strymonians refused to participate in this enterprise, while the Draguvites, on the contrary, joined the besiegers. Together with the Sagudates, they approached Thessalonica from land, and the Rhynchins - from the sea. Having lost many of their leaders during the siege, the Slavs were forced to retreat. However, they continued to attack Byzantine villages, and in the fall of the same 677 they again besieged Thessalonica, but failed a second time. Three years later, the Rynhins, this time again in alliance with the Strymonians, embark on sea robbery along the Hellespont and Propontis. They organize attacks on Byzantine ships en route to Constantinople with food, and carry out raids on the islands, taking with them booty and captives. The emperor was finally forced to send an army against them, directing the main blow against the Strymonians. The latter, having occupied gorges and fortified places, called on other Slavic leaders for help. The further course of the war is not entirely clear; Apparently, after the battle that took place between the Byzantine army and the Macedonian Slavs, an agreement was reached and peaceful relations were established.

But soon the Macedonian Slavs rebelled again. In 687-688. Emperor Justinian II was faced with the need to once again make a campaign in the Macedonian “Sclavinia” in order to bring the Slavs living there to submit to Byzantium.

The empire’s efforts to retain the northern Balkan provinces populated by the Slavs were even less successful. Moesia was the first to fall away from Byzantium, where a union of “seven Slavic tribes” was formed - a permanent tribal association. The proto-Bulgarians of Asparukh, who appeared in Moesia, subjugated the Slavic tribes that were part of this union, and later they formed the core of the Bulgarian state formed in 681.

The Slavic tribes, which the Byzantine government managed to keep under its rule, continued to fight for their independence for a long time. In subsequent centuries, the Byzantine Empire had to make a lot of efforts to turn the Slavs who settled within its borders into its subjects.

At the beginning of the 6th century, when the heir of Rome - Byzantium - had not yet recovered from the stormy onslaught of the “barbarian” tribes, and the most insatiable of them - the remnants of the Hunnic hordes - had already calmed down somewhat, the possibility of long campaigns to the southwest to the Balkan possessions of Byzantium and, obviously, to the southeast, in the Azov region. The advance of the Slavs (known by two names - “Sclavins” and “Antes”) to the banks of the Danube and to the Balkans has been best studied. Byzantine writers of the 6th century. the Sklavins are assigned the western section - from the upper Danube to the Dniester, and the Antam - the eastern section - from the Dniester approximately to the Sea of ​​​​Azov. In their campaigns against Byzantium, the Sklavins attacked mainly the Illyrian borderland of the empire, and the Antes attacked the more eastern Thracian borderland (the lower reaches of the Danube and the Balkans).

Contemporaries pointed out that the Sklavins and Antes come from the same root, from the “Vends”, and are similar to each other: “ They(Wends) , coming from the same tribe, now have three names: i.e. Wends, Antes and Sklavins"- writes the Gothic historian Jordanes. Comparing the Antes and Sklavins, he notes that the Ants are the bravest of both tribes. The unity of the Sklavins and Antes is also noted by another writer of the 6th century. - Procopius of Caesarea. Emperor Mauritius of Byzantium (582-602), with whose name a special strategic manual on methods of waging war with the Slavs is associated, also unites these two wings of the Slavic squads attacking the empire: “ The tribes of the Slavs and Antes are similar in their way of life, in their morals, in their love of freedom; they cannot in any way be induced into slavery or subjection in their own country» .

All these authors wrote at a time when Slavic settlers came very close to the borders of Byzantium and occupied the entire left bank of the Danube for hundreds of kilometers. The settlements of the Slavs and Antes (Eastern Slavs) represented by the beginning of the 6th century. like a huge camp stretching along the entire northern borderland of Byzantium. Only the full-flowing Danube separated two different worlds - the world of slave-owning Byzantium and the world of Slavic colonists who came here to seek happiness and new lands. From their border fortresses, the Byzantines observed the life and everyday life of their new neighbors on the other side of the Danube.

  « Slavic and Anto tribes in..., - wrote Emperor Mauritius, - They are numerous, hardy, and easily tolerate heat, cold, rain, nakedness, and lack of food. They treat foreigners who come to them kindly and, showing them signs of their affection, when moving from one place to another, they protect them if necessary, so that if it turns out that, due to the negligence of the one who receives a foreigner, the latter suffered(any) the damage that took it before starts the war(against the culprit) , considering it a duty of honor to avenge the foreigner. They do not keep those they have captives in slavery, like other tribes, for an unlimited time, but, limiting(time of slavery) at a certain time, offer them a choice: do they want to return home for a certain ransom, or stay there?(Where are they located) in the position of free men and friends?

  They have a large variety of livestock and the fruits of the earth lying in heaps, especially millet and wheat.

  The modesty of their women exceeds all human nature, so that most of them consider the death of their husband to be their death and voluntarily strangle themselves, not counting being a widow for life.

  They settle in forests, near impassable rivers, swamps and lakes, and arrange many exits in their homes due to the dangers that naturally occur to them. They bury the things they need in secret places, do not openly own anything unnecessary, and lead a wandering life.

  They love to fight their enemies in places covered with dense forest, in gorges, on cliffs; use it to their advantage(ambush) , sudden attacks, tricks day and night, inventing a lot(various) ways. They are also experienced in crossing rivers, surpassing all people in this regard.» .

  « These tribes, the Slavs and the Antes, are not ruled by one person, but have lived in the rule of people since ancient times(democracy) , and therefore they consider happiness and unhappiness in life to be a common matter. And in all other respects, both of these barbarian tribes have the same life and laws. They believe that only one god, the creator of lightning, is the ruler over all, and they sacrifice bulls to him and perform other sacred rites... They honor rivers, and nymphs, and all sorts of other deities, make sacrifices to all of them and with the help of these sacrifices produce and fortune telling. They live in miserable huts, at a great distance from each other, and they all often change their place of residence. When entering battle, most of them go at enemies with shields and javelins in their hands, but they never put on shells. Both have the same language, which is quite barbaric. And in appearance they are no different from each other. They are very tall and of great strength» .

These most valuable testimonies very vividly paint us a picture of a motley, multi-tribal camp of Slavic migrants in the 6th century. Slavic squads came here from different parts of the vast land, now from the banks of the Laba and Odra, now from the Carpathian Mountains, now from the Dnieper forests. People from different tribes who occupied the left bank of the Danube, obviously, really moved from place to place, lived in temporary dwellings and did not recognize a single authority.

  « Since there is no unanimity among them, they do not gather together, and if they do gather, then what they decide is immediately violated by others, since they are all hostile to each other... If there are many leaders among them(princes) and there is no agreement between them, it is not stupid to win some of them over to your side with speeches or gifts, especially those who are located near our borders, but to attack others, so that not everyone is convinced(to us) enmity or would not become under the rule of one leader", wrote Mauritius.

The Byzantines vigilantly ensured that the violent squads of the Danube Slavs were not led by one prince; they did not even stop before the insidious murder of those noble Ants who were respected by " countless Ant tribes" Thus, at the headquarters of the Avar Khan, obviously not without the knowledge of the empire, the Anta ambassador Mezamir was killed. Ant princes in the 6th century. often mentioned in Byzantine service, either in the Balkans, or on the Black Sea, or in Italy. Inviting individual Slavic princes to serve, building numerous fortresses on the Danube and special training of their garrisons in “methods of waging war with the Slavs” - all this is a manifestation of the Byzantines’ concern for the security of their northern borders, all this is aimed at containing the growing onslaught of the Slavs.

And everything turned out to be in vain: after 533, when the Slavs managed to win on the Danube and capture one Byzantine commander, Khilbudiy, “ river(Danube) the Roman region became forever accessible for the barbarians to cross at their request(Byzantium) completely open to their invasion". Beginning with the reign of Emperor Justinian (527-565), Slavic troops marched throughout Byzantium from north to south, from the Danube to ancient Sparta; The Slavic fleet sailed the seas that washed Greece, and even reached the distant island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea. Even Constantinople, the capital of Byzantium, was attacked.

The result of the Slavic campaigns against Byzantium was, firstly, the settlement of a huge number of Slavs in the Transdanubian lands, which later laid the foundation for the Bulgarian kingdom, the Serbian principality and other Slavic states of the Balkan Peninsula. Secondly, an important result of these campaigns was the enrichment of those Slavic princes who did not remain in the conquered territory with herds, weapons and slaves, but returned with booty to the Slavic lands. It is not without reason that among the collections of our museums there are many treasures of gold and silver items from the 5th-6th centuries. Byzantine work, found mainly in the Slavic forest-steppe zone.

Different East Slavic (“Antian”) regions participated in the wars with Byzantium in different ways: colonization flows were sent to the Danube from the underdeveloped regions of the Dnieper Polesie (which affected the characteristics of Byzantine writers), and the spectacular campaigns of thousands of individual princes, ending with a triumphant return to their tribal lands , obviously, were carried out by squads of the most advanced Slavic lands like the Kiev region or the entire Middle Dnieper region, where the largest number of trophies taken from Byzantium were found.

COMMENTS

   SKLAVINS(Latin Sclavini, Sclaveni, Sclavi; Greek Sklabinoi) - a common name for all Slavs, known both among Western early medieval and early Byzantine authors. Later it switched to one of the groups of Slavic tribes.
The origin of this ethnonym remains controversial. Some researchers believe that “sklavins” is a modified word for “Slovene” in the Byzantine environment.
In the end V - beginning VI centuries The Gothic historian Jordan called the Sklavins and Antes the Venets. " Live from the city of Novistun(city on the Sava River) and a lake called Murcian(apparently, this means Lake Balaton) , to Danastra, and to the north - to Viskla; instead of cities they have swamps and forests". The Byzantine historian Procopius of Caesarea defines the lands of the Sklavins as located " on the other side of the Danube River not far from its bank", i.e. mainly on the territory of the former Roman province of Pannonia, which The Tale of Bygone Years connects with the ancestral home of the Slavs.
Actually, the word “Slavs” in various forms became known in the 6th century, when the Sklavins, together with the Ant tribes, began to threaten Byzantium.

   ANTS(Greek Antai, Antes) - an association of Slavic tribes or a related tribal union. In the III-VII centuries. inhabited the forest-steppe between the Dnieper and Dniester and east of the Dnieper.
Typically, researchers see in the name “Anty” a Turkic or Indo-Iranian designation for a union of tribes of Slavic origin.
The Ants are mentioned in the works of Byzantine and Gothic writers Procopius of Caesarea, Jordan and others. According to these authors, the Ants used a common language with other Slavic tribes, they had the same customs and beliefs. Presumably, earlier Ants and Sklavins had the same name.
The Antes fought with Byzantium, the Goths and Avars, and together with the Sklavins and Huns they ravaged the areas between the Adriatic and Black Seas. The leaders of the Ants - "archons" - equipped embassies to the Avars, received ambassadors from the Byzantine emperors, in particular from Justinian (546). In 550-562 the Antes' possessions were devastated by the Avars. From the 7th century Ants are not mentioned in written sources.
According to archaeologist V.V. Sedov, 5 tribal unions of the Antes laid the foundation for the Slavic tribes - Croats, Serbs, Ulichs, Tiverts and Polyans. Archaeologists classify the Ants as the tribes of the Penkovo ​​culture, whose main occupations were arable farming, sedentary cattle breeding, crafts and trade. Most of the settlements of this culture are of the Slavic type: small semi-dugouts. During burial, cremation was used. But some finds cast doubt on the Slavic nature of the Antes. Two large craft centers of Penkovo ​​culture have also been opened - Pastorskoye Settlement and Kantserka. The life of the artisans of these settlements was unlike the Slavic one.

"Slavs and Byzantium"
Slavic history, both in the first stages of its development and right up to the formation of the Old Russian state, was closely connected with Byzantium. The cultural influence of the latter left a powerful mark on the life of the ancient Slavs. But relations between the Slavs and Byzantium were one-sided. And Byzantium “received” its own from the Slavs, though not always positive. For example, she suffered from their attacks for several years. And this was reflected in the state and political system of Byzantium. As a result, we can say that the ancient Slavs and Byzantium were in constant interaction.
Confronting Byzantium, the Slavs studied military science, which the enemy was at a worthy stage of its development. It should not be denied that the Slavs plundered mercilessly and a lot. The wealth of the princes was increasingly replenished at the expense of Byzantium, but considerable funds were also spent on military needs.
The Slavic campaigns against Byzantium took place at the beginning of the new era. Moreover, at that time they were still part of other tribes. Together they constituted a huge and destructive force.
The Slavs first attacked the Byzantine Empire in 493. Passing through the Danube, they plundered Thrace. Fifteen years later they had already set off for the southern possessions (the invasion took place in Macedonia, Epirus and Thessaly). The next attack occurred another ten years later. But it turned out to be unsuccessful: the troops of the empire turned out to be stronger. Emperor Justinian ordered the construction of eight fortifications. However, this event had no meaning: the campaigns continued.
By 540, the Slavs had set their sights on the very capital of the empire, the richest Constantinople (now Istanbul). Although they failed to take the city, they managed to rob it and almost burn it.
Byzantine chroniclers left us descriptions of Slavic warriors. Their weapons were very primitive and meager: a spear, a bow and arrows, and shields. They skillfully covered this shortcoming with various tricks in their strategy. Their ambushes were always unexpected. Well, the Slavs certainly could have taken the enemy by surprise.
But let's get back to hiking. One of the major ones took place in 550. Then the Slavic troops managed to take several cities in Macedonia, the fortified city of Toper.
At the end of the sixth century, the Slavs began to be interested in the Balkan tidbit of Byzantium. According to contemporaries, their number was about one hundred thousand people.
The patience of the Byzantine emperor, like that of any person, was far from rubber. And so, in the 590s, counterattacks begin. Byzantine troops cross to the other side of the Danube, invading Slavic territories. On their first campaign they managed to devastate the possessions of enemy princes. The second time things didn't work out so well. Although the victory was for Byzantium, it was very costly.
The most vulnerable were the north and north-west of the Byzantine Empire. Starting from the sixth century, the Slavs made campaigns more and more often, uniting with the Avars.
In the capital (Constantinople), Avar ambassadors began to receive valuable gifts (gold, silver, clothes). Emperor Justinian, who ruled at that time, simply wanted to use the Avar force to defeat the Slavs (the latter were considered barbarians). However, this strategy turned out to be faulty. For example, in the middle of the sixth century, the Avars and the Slavs tried to take one of the cities of Byzantium in order to strengthen their positions on the Danube. As a result, both of them penetrated deeper and deeper into the possessions of the Byzantine Empire.
As time went. The Eastern Slavs began to build sea vessels. And, as you know, Byzantium was in close proximity to the seas. And now Slavic troops are plundering merchant ships, as well as coastal cities.
At the end of the ninth century, the Eastern Slavs united into a state (Kievan Rus). When Prince Oleg (the Prophet) came to power, the first campaign against the Byzantine Empire took place as a fundamentally new political entity. Moreover, the strength of the Slavs, their organization and discipline moved to a new stage. Oleg's campaign against Constantinople ended in defeat for Byzantium. The latter had to sign an unfavorable peace treaty in order to somehow protect the capital.
Another important campaign took place in the middle of the tenth century, when Prince Igor was on the throne. It was a real war that lasted for months. The fighting was fierce, no one wanted to give in. As a result, the prince's troops were defeated. But Igor did not calm down. Three years later - a new campaign. The Greeks immediately decided to surrender, offering peace. Some conditions from the previous agreement were removed, but new ones also appeared.
After Igor, Svyatoslav came to the throne, continuing his father’s policies. Under him, the war with Byzantium lasted for a long time, ending in peace negotiations.
After this, other campaigns, attacks, and wars took place. But they were already of less importance both for Kievan Rus and for the Byzantine Empire.
The role of Byzantium in the development of the culture of the Eastern and Southern Slavs
There is no doubt that the most important influence of Byzantium on the culture of the Slavs is Christianity, which was adopted precisely from the empire in the tenth century. And this is not surprising, because the ties of Kievan Rus (both economic and state) were much closer with Byzantium, and not with the West.
Along with religion, other elements of culture smoothly flow to the Slavs. The fate of the latter was predetermined by Prince Vladimir. First, the first temples appear. Their interior decoration, by the way, was also adopted from Byzantium (mosaics, frescoes, icons). Divine services were also conducted according to the Byzantine model. Secondly, painting is experiencing its heyday. Thirdly, with the advent of Christianity, literature also developed. Until this time, one might say, it did not exist. Fourthly, music. And it came in the form of church chants, which, upon hearing in Constantinople, the Russian princes were simply stunned. This is what attracted the Eastern Slavs to Byzantium.
Also, for a very long time, the Slavs conducted active trade with Byzantine merchants. This was possible thanks to the legendary path “from the Varangians to the Greeks.” Honey, furs, wax, and fish were imported into the empire. And they imported fabrics, luxury goods, books (when writing appeared).
Thus, the relations between Byzantium and the Slavs were very close, very versatile and very long-lasting. Probably no other state has left such a deep mark on Russian history and culture. The Slavs and Byzantium are a vivid example of how an entire people can adopt the characteristic features of one country.