Vladimir Monomakh

Few people outside of Russia have probably ever heard the name Vladimir Monomakh and even fewer probably know the pivotal role he played in the development of Russia.  He was a great man who was unfortunately born in a very rough, dark time.  Not only did he help bring Russians together for the first time as a collective group, but he also passed groundbreaking laws that lead the way for further reforms.  Vladimir Monomakh was one of the first true Russian heroes.

Monomakh means “one who fights his own battles”.  Vladimir was born in 1053 to Vsevolod I Yaroslavich and his wife, who was a daughter of the Byzantine emperor Constantine Monomachos (see Byzantine Empire).  It was from his grandfather that Vladimir got his name.  Monomakh’s father, Vsevolod I of Kiev, was the favorite son of Yaroslav The Wise one of the most beloved rulers of Kievan Rus.  It was under Yaroslav that the Greek Orthodox religion really began to take hold in Russia.  Religion played a big part in Monomakh’s early life and later on in his rule.

When Yarslav died in 1054, there was a power vacuum that opened up Kiev.  The princes of the lands began to bicker and quarell amongst themselves and soon mini wars were beginning to break out all over the place.  This internal fighting left the country wide open for invasion and a group called the Polovtsi took advantage.

The Polovtsi were a Turkish tribe that lived along the Volga River in Russia.  They attacked settlements looking for prisoners and riches to take back to their land.  As the attacks grew worse and worse something needed to be done but the different leaders of Russia were too busy fighting amongst themselves.  After losing a son in a fight with the Polovtsi, Vladimir Monomakh called a congress of princes in 1097 at the city of Lubetz.  Here the princes ironed out who got what territory and drastically changed the order of succession.  This peace was short lived however, as one of the princes secretly planed to attack Poland (sorry DYT) and several other lands.  Fighting broke out again among the princes until a second conference was called by Monomakh in 1100 A.D.  The princes finally united under Vladimir to fight the continuous onslaught of the Polovtsi. 

Under the leadership of Monomakh, the princes gradually begin to push the Polovtsi back toward the Volga River and their own lands.  There is no clear account of the campaign but it is known that Vladimir was a natural leader who men rallied to in droves.  The Russians pushed the Polovtsi back to the steppes and Monomakh and a couple other princes took Polovtsi woman as wives to help reduce the chances of war happening again.  Two years after the Polovtsi were driven back, the leader of Kievan Rus died.

The throne should have gone to Oleg, who was son of the deceased ruler, but the people wouldn’t have it.  There was an uprising where the Kievans demanded that Vladimir Monomakh be given rule of the city.  They took their frustrations out on the local Jewish population who had been brought into the country for fiscal purposes.  Oleg relinquished his rule and in 1113 A.D., Monomakh became the ruler of Kievan Rus.

The rule of Vladimir Monomakh was a glorious time.  He was a wise king and a good person who was beloved by his subjects.  Under his rule, the interest rate was dropped from 120% to 20%.  Anyone who had paid the previous amount for 1 year was absolved from their debt.  Monomakh also abolished servitude as a method of debt payment.  This had sprung up during the wars with the Polovtsi.  Many lands were laid to waste and people didn’t have any way to support their families.  As a result, many poor people moved on to the estates of the wealthy who used them as slaves.  No longer could someone be a slave just because they owed money.  The laws of the growing Russian state were put into written form in the Russkaya Pravda which had been started by Yaroslav The Wise.  Vladimir contributed heavily to this which was the first Russian code of laws.  Monomakh continued to fight the Polovtsi and managed to push them back far enough to where they were no longer a problem.  One of the few unfortunate events that did happen under Vladimir was the expulsion of the Jews from Russia.  He ordered that all those of the Jewish faith must leave Russia.

Vladimir Monomakh was not only a fine statesman but also a quotable writer.  He penned Poucheniie ditiam (Instructions for my children) around 1117.  In it, he described parts of his life and what it took to be a good person.  Monomakh relied heavily on his religious beliefs and laid down some general principles that a person should follow.  These included passages such as “harbor no pride in your heart and in your head for we are mortals and today we are alive, tomorrow-in the coffin.  Our possessions are not ours, we are just caretakers of what is given us by God.” and “Love your wives but never let them rule over you. 

Keep in mind all the useful things you know and learn what you don’t know.”

Knowing that his time was drawing short, Monomakh gave his son Yuri the symbols of royal power to safeguard until a great leader came along to unify Russia.  The worst thing that could happen to Russia according to Monomakh, were for the princes to resume their fighting.  Sadly this what happened upon Vladimir Monomakh’s death in 1125.  Russia broke apart into many principalities and it was easy for the Golden Horde to take over in 1240 A.D.

Vladimir Monomakh is buried in Kiev in [Saint Sophia Catedral] and is known throughout Russia as an early founding father.  The crown that the later Czars would wear was actually called the Monomakh hat in honor of the great leader of early Russia.