Russian anti-Mordovians: how they fought with each other

History 02/03/20 Paul Regeneratsia against Mordovians: how they fought with each other

the Name of the people of Mordva, Mordvins or was given to them by neighbors. Among the Mordvins, it is never been used. Mordvinians anciently divided into two large, close to each other, group (some people consider them separate ethnic groups) – Moksha and Erzya. Until the late nineteenth century ethnographers allocated within the Mordovians two small subethnos – taruhan and Karatau.

the Centuries-long war for independence

In written sources, the Mordvins are first mentioned in the VI century in “the Origin and deeds of the willing” of the Jordan. Talking about the Gothic “Empire Germanarich” supposedly existed in the late fourth century, Jordan mentions among its conquered peoples “merens” and “mordens”. Most historians consider them to be known later in old Russian annals Merey and Mordovians. At the same time, many historians do not recognize the reality of conquest of these peoples Germanarium. Drawing attention to the nature of the transaction peoples Jordan, academician B. A. Rybakov showed convincingly that Jordan enjoyed some itineraries (guide). This genre of geographical writings was very common in late antiquity and the early middle ages. And there is no reason to believe that this itinerary was written significantly before the book of Jordan.

In the VIII-IX centuries. on the territory of present Central Russia, in the neighbourhood of the Mordvins, penetrate the first Slavic settlers. Mordvinians at this time, as the Slavs passed from primitive society to the early class state. This process, however, because of geographical conditions, Mordovians late. Its consolidation was slower than the Slavs. In addition, the Slavs had at that time more powerful demographic potential. All this predetermined the outcome of the clash between the Slavs and the Mordovians. Mordva was forced eventually to surrender.

However, no nation gives up its freedom without a fight. The war between Russia and Mordovians was long and bloody, lasted for centuries. In 2012, some Patriotic circles said “1000 years of the voluntary entry of the Republic of Mordovia in the Russian state”. Not to mention the fact that the subjugation of the Mordvins the power of the Russian princes was not voluntary, in the year 1012 is not mentioned in any event connected with these edges. Russian sources know Mordovians only since the beginning of the XII century. The turning point in the struggle with Russia Mordovians in favor of Russia emerged only in the late XIV century. But after most of the Mordovians were not the direct subjects, but only vassals of the Russian princes, finally entering into the composition of Russia only in the end of the seventeenth century.

the First clashes

the First mention of the Mordvins in the Russian Chronicles dates back to the year 1103. Characteristically, it involves a war between the Russians and Mordovians, in which the Rus were defeated. In that year, on 4 March, the founder of the Murom-Ryazan Principality Yaroslav Svyatoslavovich fought with Mordovians and, according to the chronicler, “was defeated”.

After some time of colonialist movement of the Slavs on the lands of the Mordvins was headed by the Vladimir-Suzdal princes. Mordvinians lived on their current land, but on the Volga from the mouth of the Oka to the mouth of the Sura. In 1221 in the heart of the Mordovian land Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich founded Nizhny Novgorod. He had become a reference point for military campaigns against the Volga Bulgars and Bulgarians allied conquest of the Mordvins.

writes Karamzin, the great Prince “from time to time sent the army and he went to the Mordovians to burn the villages and bread, to seduce people and take the cattle for a prey. Residents commonly sought refuge in the dense forests, but they seldom escaped from the Russians.” These raids, of course, not always go unpunished. Mordovian princes thus sought to eliminate Nizhny Novgorod – the stronghold of Russian rule in the Volga region. The struggle for independence was led by the Prince Purgas. In 1229 he came with his army to Nizhny Novgorod, burned Posad, but to take the fortress failed. In response suzdalska army again pogroms land of the Mordvins. Purges headed early state formation Erza, and in Alliance with Russia, fought some of the leaders of Moksha. Thus, during the conquest of the Mordvins Rus used the tribal strife among the Mordovians.

at the same time with the campaigns Suzdaltsev Mordovians, the Mongol-Tatar troops ravaged Volga Bulgaria, which Mordvinians focused its opposition to Russian colonization. The defeat of Volga Bulgaria opened the Horde way in the North-Eastern Russia. Thus, according to one chronicle version, the conductors of the Mongol-Tatars in the Russian land served as Mordvins. At the same time, sources report that the hordes of Khan Batu destroyed and Mordovians, and Prince Purges was killed in battle with the Horde in winter 1238/39 G.

the Final conquest

In the new geopolitical situation and Russia, the Mordvins became tributaries of the Golden Horde. But the movement of the Slavs to the East continued, and a decisive clash was inevitable. At the same time Russian and Mordvin rulers were involved in the struggle for power of the Horde factions of courtiers and called to his aid the Union of the Tatar troops.

In 1377 Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod Prince Dmitry Konstantinovich gave a rat against the side of the Horde, but showed in the campaign carelessness. When his army rested during the daylight near the river Drunk, he is suddenly attacked by the Tatar Prince Arapa and destroyed most of it. Russians blamed for the defeat of the Mordovians, who helped Elapse secretly to come, and did not hesitate to revenge.

in Winter, 1377/78 G. brother of the Suzdal ‘ Prince Boris, Prince of Gorodets, he headed a punitive expedition. He “emptied out without a fight all the land of Mordovia, destroying homes and residents,” writes Karamzin. The Prince returned from Mordovians with a rich booty in the form of slaves (women and children), and with a few prisoners of the Mordovian elders, which are then executed in Nizhny Novgorod. A crowd of people has abused their bodies, tying them to the dogs, provolochek them across the ice of the Volga.

the Impact of the Mordovian independence was dealt, but not yet fatal. In the early fifteenth century, the deposed descendants of Suzdal princes (their state was annexed to the Moscow power) joined the struggle for the return of her paternal and often resorted to the help of the Mordovians. For a time they even managed to regain Nizhny Novgorod, but the victory eventually remained with Moscow.

Final submission Mordovians Moscow was detained by the education Kasimov Kingdom the Kazan Prince Ulu Muhammad in 1445. Qasim khanate entered into a vassal relationship to the Moscow Grand Dukes and lasted in that position until 1681. In his inner life of Qasim khanate was completely Autonomous and governed by its own laws. Its ruling class consisted of Tatars, but most of its population was Mordvinov. The state religion it was Islam.

Mordvinians, part of which had superficially converted to Orthodoxy, now as superficially converted to Islam, and for the most part adhered to their traditional “pagan” beliefs. Therefore, when the end of the XVII century Russian Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich abolished the Qasim khanate (not least due to the fact that a large part of Mordovians made together with the insurgent army of Stepan Razin against Moscow), intensely turned violent Christianization of the Mordovians. It ended in basically the middle of the XVIII century. Since that time, and can be considered the “entry” of Mordva in Russia.

Yaroslav Butakov

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