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The originality of the "Tale of Bygone Years" as an annalistic code:. The origin of the military story genre

The Tale of Bygone Years is an ancient Russian chronicle created at the beginning of the 12th century. The story is an essay that tells about the events that took place and are taking place in Rus' at that time.

The Tale of Bygone Years was compiled in Kyiv, later rewritten several times, but was not greatly changed. The chronicle covers the period from biblical times up to 1137, dated articles begin from 852.

All dated articles are compositions beginning with the words “In the summer such and such ...”, which means that entries were added to the annals every year and told about the events that took place. One article per year. This distinguishes the Tale of Bygone Years from all the chronicles that were written before. The text of the chronicle also contains legends, folklore stories, copies of documents (for example, teachings of Vladimir Monomakh) and extracts from other chronicles.

The story got its name thanks to its first phrase, which opens the narrative - "The Tale of Bygone Years ..."

The history of the creation of the Tale of Bygone Years

The author of the idea of ​​the Tale of Bygone Years is the monk Nestor, who lived and worked at the turn of the 11th and 12th centuries in the Kiev Caves Monastery. Despite the fact that the author's name appears only in later copies of the chronicle, it is the monk Nestor who is considered the first chronicler in Rus', and The Tale of Bygone Years is considered the first Russian chronicle.

The oldest version of the annalistic code, which has come down to the present, is dated to the 14th century and is a copy made by the monk Lavrenty (Laurentian Chronicle). The original edition of the creator of the Tale of Bygone Years, Nestor, has been lost, today there are only revised versions from various scribes and later compilers.

Today, there are several theories regarding the history of the creation of The Tale of Bygone Years. According to one of them, the chronicle was written by Nestor in Kyiv in 1037. It was based on ancient legends, folk songs, documents, oral stories and documents preserved in monasteries. After writing, this first edition was rewritten and revised several times by various monks, including Nestor himself, who added elements of Christian ideology to it. According to other sources, the chronicle was written much later, in 1110.

Genre and features of the Tale of Bygone Years

The genre of the Tale of Bygone Years is defined by experts as historical, but scientists argue that the chronicle is neither a work of art nor historical in the full sense of the word.

A distinctive feature of the chronicle is that it does not interpret events, but only tells about them. The attitude of the author or scribe to everything that is told in the annals was determined only by the presence of God's Will, which determines everything. Causal relationships and interpretation from the point of view of other positions was uninteresting and was not included in the annals.

The Tale of Bygone Years had an open genre, that is, it could consist of completely different parts - from folk tales to notes about the weather.

The chronicle in ancient times also had a legal significance, as a set of documents and laws.

The original purpose of writing the Tale of Bygone Years is to study and explain the origin of the Russian people, the origin of princely power and a description of the spread of Christianity in Rus'.

The beginning of the Tale of Bygone Years is a story about the appearance of the Slavs. The Russians are presented by the chronicler as the descendants of Japheth, one of the sons of Noah. At the very beginning of the narrative, stories are given that tell about the life of the East Slavic tribes: about the princes, about the calling of Rurik, Truvor and Sineus to reign, and about the formation of the Rurik dynasty in Rus'.

The main part of the content of the chronicle is made up of descriptions of wars, legends about the reign of Yaroslav the Wise, the exploits of Nikita Kozhemyaka and other heroes.

The final part consists of descriptions of battles and princely obituaries.

Thus, the basis of the Tale of Bygone Years is:

  • Traditions about the resettlement of the Slavs, the calling of the Varangians and the formation of Rus';
  • Description of the baptism of Rus';
  • Description of the life of the Grand Dukes: Oleg, Vladimir, Olga and others;
  • Lives of the Saints;
  • Description of wars and military campaigns.

The significance of the Tale of Bygone Years can hardly be overestimated - it was it that became the first document in which the history of Kievan Rus was recorded from its very formation. The chronicle later served as the main source of knowledge for subsequent historical descriptions and research. In addition, due to the open genre, the Tale of Bygone Years has a high value as a cultural and literary monument.

"The Tale of Bygone Years" is an ancient Russian chronicle created by the monk Nestor at the beginning of the 12th century.

The story is a large work that describes the events taking place in Rus' from the arrival of the first Slavs and ending with the 12th century. The chronicle itself is not an integral narrative, it includes:

  • historical notes;
  • annual articles (starting from 852); one article tells about the events that took place in one year;
  • historical documents;
  • teachings of princes;
  • the lives of the saints;
  • folk tales.

The history of the creation of "The Tale of Bygone Years"

Before the appearance of The Tale of Bygone Years, there were other collections of essays and historical notes in Rus', which were mainly written by monks. However, all these records were of a local nature and could not represent the full history of the life of Rus'. The idea of ​​creating a unified chronicle belongs to the monk Nestor, who lived and worked in the Kiev Caves Monastery at the turn of the 11th and 12th centuries.

There are some disagreements among scholars about the history of writing the story. According to the generally accepted theory, the chronicle was written by Nestor in Kyiv. The original edition was based on early historical records, legends, folklore stories, teachings and records of monks. After writing, Nestor and other monks revised the chronicle several times, and later the author himself added Christian ideology to it, and this edition was already considered final. As for the date of creation of the chronicle, scientists name two dates - 1037 and 1110.

The chronicle compiled by Nestor is considered the first Russian chronicle, and its author is considered the first chronicler. Unfortunately, ancient editions have not survived to this day, the earliest version that exists today dates back to the 14th century.

Genre and idea of ​​"The Tale of Bygone Years"

The main goal and idea of ​​​​creating the story was the desire to consistently present the entire history of Rus' from biblical times, and then gradually supplement the chronicle, painstakingly describing all the events that took place.

As for the genre, modern scholars believe that the chronicle cannot be called a purely historical or purely artistic genre, since it contains elements of both. Since The Tale of Bygone Years was rewritten and supplemented several times, its genre is open, as evidenced by parts that sometimes do not agree with each other in style.

The Tale of Bygone Years was different in that the events told in it were not interpreted, but simply retold as dispassionately as possible. The task of the chronicler is to convey everything that happened, but not to draw conclusions. However, it should be understood that the chronicle was created from the point of view of Christian ideology, and therefore is of an appropriate nature.

In addition to historical significance, the chronicle was also a legal document, as it contained some codes of laws and instructions from the great princes (for example, "Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh").

The story can be roughly divided into three parts:

  • at the very beginning it tells about biblical times (the Russians were considered descendants of Japheth), about the origin of the Slavs, about for reigning, about becoming, about the Baptism of Rus' and the formation of the state;
  • the main part is made up of descriptions of the life of princes (, Princess Olga, Yaroslav the Wise, etc.), descriptions of the life of saints, as well as stories about conquests and great Russian heroes (Nikita Kozhemyaka, etc.);
  • the final part is devoted to the description of numerous wars and battles. In addition, it contains princely obituaries.

The meaning of "The Tale of Bygone Years"

The Tale of Bygone Years was the first written document that systematically outlined the history of Rus', its formation as a state. It was this chronicle that later formed the basis of all historical documents and legends, it was from it that modern historians drew and draw their knowledge. In addition, the chronicle has become a literary and cultural monument of Russian writing.

For more than 900 years, Russians have been drawing information about their history from the famous Tale of Bygone Years, the exact date of which is still unknown. There is also much controversy about the authorship of this work.

A few words about myths and historical facts

Scientific postulates often change over time, but if in the field of physics, chemistry, biology or astronomy such scientific revolutions are based on the discovery of new facts, then history has been rewritten more than once to please the authorities or according to the dominant ideology. Fortunately, a modern person has a lot of opportunities to independently find and compare facts regarding events that occurred many centuries and even millennia ago, as well as get acquainted with the point of view of scientists who do not adhere to traditional views. All of the above applies to such an important document for understanding the history of Russia as The Tale of Bygone Years, the year of creation and authorship of which have recently been questioned by some members of the scientific community.

"The Tale of Bygone Years": authorship

From the Tale of Bygone Years itself, one can only learn about its creator that at the end of the 11th century he lived in the Pechora Monastery. In particular, there is a record of the Polovtsian attack on this monastery in 1096, which was witnessed by the chronicler himself. In addition, the document mentions the death of Elder Jan, who helped write the historical work, and indicates that the death of this monk occurred in 1106, which means that at that time the person who made the record was alive.

Russian official science, including Soviet, since the time of Peter the Great believes that the author of the story "The Tale of Bygone Years" is the chronicler Nestor. The oldest historical document that refers to it is the famous one written in the 20s of the 15th century. This work includes in a separate chapter the text of The Tale of Bygone Years, which is preceded by a mention as its author of a certain black-bearer from the Pechersk Monastery. The name of Nestor is first found in the correspondence of the monk Polycarp of the Caves with Archimandrite Akindin. The same fact is confirmed by the "Life of St. Anthony", compiled on the basis of oral monastic traditions.

Nestor the Chronicler

The “official” author of the story “The Tale of Bygone Years” was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church, so you can read about him in the lives of the saints. From these sources we learn that the Monk Nestor was born in Kyiv in the 1050s. At the age of seventeen, he entered the Kiev Caves Monastery, where he was a novice of the Monk Theodosius. At a fairly young age, Nestor took the tonsure, and later he was ordained a hierodeacon. He spent his whole life in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra: here he wrote not only The Tale of Bygone Years, the year of creation of which is not known for certain, but also the famous lives of the holy princes Gleb and Boris, as well as a work telling about the first ascetics of his monastery. Church sources also indicate that Nestor, who had reached a ripe old age, died around 1114.

What does "The Tale of Bygone Years" tell about?

“The Tale of Bygone Years” is the history of our country, covering a huge time period, incredibly rich in various events. The manuscript begins with a story about one of which - Japheth - went to manage such lands as Armenia, Britain, Scythia, Dalmatia, Ionia, Illyria, Macedonia, Media, Cappadocia, Paphlagonia, Thessaly and others. The brothers began the construction of the Pillar of Babylon, but the angry Lord not only destroyed this structure, which personifies human pride, but also divided the people “into 70 and 2 nations”, among which were the Norics, the progenitors of the Slavs, descended from the sons of Japheth. Further, the Apostle Andrew is mentioned, who predicted that a Great City would appear on the banks of the Dnieper, which happened when Kyiv was founded with the brothers Shchek and Khoriv. Another important mention concerns the year 862, when “Chud, Slovene, Krivichi and all” went to the Varangians to call them to reign, and the three brothers Rurik, Truvor and Sineus with their families and close associates came at their call. Two of the alien boyars - Askold and Dir - asked to leave Novgorod for Tsargrad and, seeing Kyiv on the way, stayed there. Further, The Tale of Bygone Years, the year of the creation of which historians have yet to clarify, tells about the reign of Oleg and Igor and tells the story of the baptism of Rus'. The story ends with the events of 1117.

"The Tale of Bygone Years": the history of the study of this work

The Nestor Chronicle became known after Peter the Great in 1715 ordered a copy to be made from the Radzivilov list stored in the library of Koenigsberg. Documents have been preserved confirming that Jacob Bruce, a person remarkable in all respects, drew the attention of the tsar to this manuscript. He also handed over the transcription of the Radzivilov list into modern language, which was going to write the history of Russia. In addition, such well-known scientists as A. Shleptser, P. M. Stroev and A. A. Shakhmatov were engaged in the study of the story.

Chronicler Nestor. “The Tale of Bygone Years”: the opinion of A. A. Shakhmatov

A new look at The Tale of Bygone Years was proposed at the beginning of the 20th century. Its author was A. A. Shakhmatov, who proposed and substantiated the “new history” of this work. In particular, he argued that in 1039 in Kyiv, on the basis of Byzantine chronicles and local folklore, the Kiev code was created, which can be considered the oldest document of this kind in Rus'. Approximately at the same time in Novgorod it was written It was on the basis of these two works in 1073 that Nestor first created the first Kiev-Pechersk Code, then the second, and finally the Tale of Bygone Years.

Was The Tale of Bygone Years written by a Russian monk or a Scottish prince?

The last two decades have been rich in all sorts of historical sensations. However, in fairness, it must be said that some of them have not found scientific confirmation. For example, today there is an opinion that the Tale of Bygone Years, whose year of creation is known only approximately, was actually written not between 1110 and 1118, but six centuries later. In any case, even official historians admit that the Radzivilov list, that is, a copy of the manuscript, the authorship of which is attributed to Nestor, was made in the 15th century and then decorated with numerous miniatures. Moreover, Tatishchev wrote the “History of Russia” not even from him, but from a retelling of this work into the language of his day, the author of which, perhaps, was Jacob Bruce himself, the great-great-grandson of King Robert the First of Scotland. But this theory does not have any serious justification.

What is the main essence of Nestor's work

Experts who hold an unofficial view of the work attributed to Nestor the Chronicler believe that it was necessary to justify autocracy as the only form of government in Russia. Moreover, it was this manuscript that put an end to the question of the rejection of the "old gods", pointing to Christianity as the only correct religion. This was its main essence.

“The Tale of Bygone Years” is the only work that tells the canonical version of the baptism of Rus', all the rest simply refer to it. This alone should make one study it very closely. And yet it is the “Tale of Bygone Years”, the characteristic of which is now being questioned in official historiography, is the first source telling that the Russian sovereigns descended from the Rurikovich. For each historical work, the date of creation is very important. The Tale of Bygone Years, which is of exceptional importance for Russian historiography, does not have one. More precisely, at the moment there are no irrefutable facts that allow us to indicate even a specific year of its writing. And this means that new discoveries are ahead, which, perhaps, can shed light on some dark pages in the history of our country.

The Tale of Bygone Years occupies a special place in the history of Russian public consciousness and the history of Russian literature. This is not only the oldest of the chronicles that have come down to us, telling about the emergence of the Russian state and the first centuries of its history, but at the same time the most important monument of historiography, which reflected the ideas of ancient Russian scribes of the early 12th century. about the place of the Russians among other Slavic peoples, ideas about the emergence of Rus' as a state and the origin of the ruling dynasty, in which, as they would say today, the main directions of foreign and domestic policy are illuminated with extraordinary clarity. The Tale of Bygone Years testifies to the highly developed national self-consciousness at that time: the Russian land conceives itself as a powerful state with its own independent policy, ready, if necessary, to enter into single combat even with the powerful Byzantine Empire, closely connected by political interests and kinship relations of rulers not only with neighboring countries - Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, but also with Germany, and even with France, Denmark, Sweden. Rus' conceives itself as an Orthodox state, already from the first years of its Christian history, sanctified by special divine grace: it is rightfully proud of its patron saints - princes Boris and Gleb, its shrines - monasteries and temples, its spiritual mentors - theologians and preachers, the most famous of which , of course, was in the XI century. Metropolitan Hilarion. The guarantee of the integrity and military power of Rus' should have been the dominion in it of a single princely dynasty - the Rurikovichs. Therefore, reminders that all princes are blood brothers are a constant motif of The Tale of Bygone Years, because in practice Rus' is shaken by internecine strife and brother raises his hand to brother more than once. Another topic is persistently discussed by the chronicler: the Polovtsian danger. The Polovtsian khans, sometimes allies and matchmakers of the Russian princes, most often nevertheless acted as leaders of devastating raids, they besieged and burned cities, exterminated the inhabitants, and led away lines of prisoners. The Tale of Bygone Years introduces its readers to the very thick of these political, military, and ideological problems that were relevant for that time.

THE LEGEND ABOUT THE APOSTLE ANDREY

When the glade lived on their own on these mountains, there was a path from the Varangians to the Greeks and from the Greeks along the Dnieper, and in the upper reaches of the Dnieper it dragged to Lovot, and along Lovot you can enter Ilmen, a great lake; Volkhov flows out of the same lake and flows into the Great Lake Nevo, and the mouth of that lake flows into the Varangian Sea. And by that sea you can even reach Rome, and from Rome you can come along the same sea to Constantinople, and from Constantinople you can come to the Pontus Sea, into which the Dnieper River flows. The Dnieper flows out of the Okovsky forest and flows south, and the Dvina flows from the same forest and goes north, and flows into the Varangian Sea. From the same forest, the Volga flows to the east and flows through seventy mouths into the Khvalis Sea. Therefore, from Rus' you can sail along the Volga to the Bolgars and Khvalisy, and go east to the lot of Sim, and along the Dvina to the Varangians, and from the Varangians to Rome, from Rome to the Khamov tribe. And the Dnieper flows into the Pontic Sea by three mouths; this sea is called Russian, - St. Andrew, Peter's brother, taught him along the shores.

As they say, when Andrei taught in Sinop and arrived in Korsun, he learned that the mouth of the Dnieper was not far from Korsun, and he wanted to go to Rome, and sailed to the mouth of the Dnieper, and from there he went up the Dnieper. And it so happened that he came and stood under the mountains on the shore. And in the morning, getting up, he said to the disciples who were with him: “Do you see these mountains? So the grace of God will shine on these mountains, there will be a great city, and God will build many churches. And having ascended these mountains, he blessed them and put up a cross, and prayed to God, and descended from this mountain, where Kyiv would later be, and went up the Dnieper. And he came to the Slavs, where Novgorod now stands, and saw the people living there - what is their custom and how they wash and whip, and marveled at them. And he went to the Varangians, and came to Rome, and told about how many he taught and whom he saw, and told them: “I saw a miracle in the Slavic land when I came here. I saw wooden bathhouses, and they would heat them up strongly, and they would undress and be naked, and douse themselves with soap, and take brooms, and start whipping, and they would finish themselves off so much that they would barely get out, barely alive, and douse themselves with icy water, and only in this way would they come to life. And they do this all the time, not tormented by anyone, but they torment themselves, and then they do not wash themselves, but<...>torment." Those, hearing, were amazed; Andrew, having been in Rome, came to Sinop.

"TALE OF TIME YEARS" AND ITS EDITIONS

In 1110-1113, the first edition (version) of the Tale of Bygone Years was completed - a lengthy chronicle that absorbed numerous information on the history of Rus': about the Russian wars with the Byzantine Empire, about the call to Rus' for the reign of the Scandinavians Rurik, Truvor and Sineus, about the history of the Kievan- Caves monastery, about princely crimes. The probable author of this chronicle is the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk monastery Nestor. This edition has not survived in its original form.

The first edition of the Tale of Bygone Years reflected the political interests of the then Kyiv prince Svyatopolk Izyaslavich. In 1113, Svyatopolk died, and Prince Vladimir Vsevolodovich Monomakh ascended the throne of Kiev. In 1116, the monk Sylvester (in the Promonomach spirit) and in 1117-1118. unknown scribe from the entourage of Prince Mstislav Vladimirovich (son of Vladimir Monomakh), the text of the Tale of Bygone Years was revised. This is how the second and third editions of the Tale of Bygone Years arose; the oldest list of the second edition has come down to us as part of the Laurentian, and the earliest list of the third - as part of the Ipatiev Chronicle.

EDITING THE "TALE OF TIME YEARS"

Having become the prince of Kyiv, Vladimir Monomakh retained his "fatherland" - the principality of Pereyaslavl, as well as Suzdal and Rostov. He recognized the power of Vladimir and Veliky Novgorod, obeying his orders and accepting princes from him. In 1118, Vladimir demanded to himself "all the boyars of Novgorod" to bring them to the oath. He sent some of them back to Novgorod, and “leave others with you.” Under Vladimir, the former military power of the ancient Russian state, weakened by the previous feudal strife, was restored. The Polovtsy suffered a crushing blow, and they did not dare to attack the Russian land ...

One of the measures during the reign of Vladimir Monomakh in Kyiv in 1113 was the correction of Nestor's "Tale of Bygone Years" in order to more correctly cover the reign of Svyatopolk Izyaslavich, hated by the Kyiv working people. Monomakh entrusted this matter to the abbot of the Vydubetsky monastery, Sylvester. The Vydubetsky Monastery was founded by the father of Vladimir Monomakh, Prince Vsevolod Yaroslavich, and, naturally, he took the side of this prince, and after his death - the side of his son. Sylvester conscientiously fulfilled the task entrusted to him. He rewrote The Tale of Bygone Years and supplemented it with several inserts about Svyatopolk's negative actions. So, Sylvester introduced into the "Tale of Bygone Years" under the year 1097 the story of the priest Vasily about the blinding of Vasilko Rostislavich. Then, in a new way, he outlined the history of the campaign of the Russian princes against the Polovtsians in 1103. Although this campaign was led by Svyatopolk, as the senior prince of Kiev, Sylvester's pen Svyatopolk was relegated to the background, and Vladimir Monomakh, who really participated in this campaign, but did not lead it, was put in the first place.

The fact that this version could not belong to Nestor, a monk of the Kiev-Pechersk monastery, is clear from a comparison with it of a story about the same campaign that is available in the Kiev-Pechersk Patericon, which probably follows the tradition from Nestor himself. In the story “Paterika”, Vladimir Monomakh is not even mentioned, and the victory over the Polovtsy is attributed to one Svyatopolk, who received a blessing before the campaign from the monks of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery.

While editing Nestor's The Tale of Bygone Years, Sylvester did not continue it for a single year, but issued an indication of the authorship of the Kiev-Pechersk monk. Under the same year 1110, Sylvester made the following addition: “Hegumen Sylvester of St. Michael wrote these books, chronicler, hoping from God to receive mercy under Prince Volodimer, who ruled him Kiev, and at that time I was abbess at St. Michael, in the summer of 6624 (1116) indicta 9. And if you read these books, then be in prayers. Since Sylvester's edition received official recognition, it formed the basis of all further Russian chronicle writing and has come down to us in many later chronicle lists. Nestor's text of The Tale of Bygone Years, which remained the property of only the Kiev-Pechersk tradition, has not reached us, although some traces of differences between this text and the Sylvester edition have been preserved, as already mentioned, in separate stories of the later Kiev-Pechersk Patericon. In this "Paterik" there is also an indication of Nestor, who wrote the Russian "chronicler".

In 1118, the Sylvestrian edition of The Tale of Bygone Years was continued, apparently in connection with the inclusion of the well-known Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh written in that year. According to the convincing assumption of M. Priselkov, the addition was made by the son of Vladimir Monomakh Mstislav, who was then in Novgorod. Of great interest among these additions are two stories about the northern countries, heard by the author in 1114, when he was present at the laying of a stone wall in Ladoga. The Ladoga posadnik Pavel told him about the northern countries beyond Yugra and Samoyed. Another story about these countries, heard by the author from the Novgorodian Gyuryata Rogovich, is placed under the year 1096, indicating that he was heard "for the past 4 years." Since both stories are closely related in content, the words “previously 4 years” should be attributed to the time of writing this insert in 1118, when the author heard the first story as well .. Since the original manuscript of Mstislav has not come down to us, but only her later lists, then the only explanation for the resulting confusion may be a random rearrangement of the original sheets from which these lists were then made. Such an assumption is all the more admissible, since in the available lists under the year 1096 there is also the "Instruction of Vladimir Monomakh", written no earlier than 1117.

THE TALE OF TIME YEARS CHRONICLE- Old Russian chronicle, created in the 1110s. Chronicles are historical works in which events are described according to the so-called yearly principle, combined according to annual, or “weather” articles (they are also called weather records). “Annual articles”, which combined information about events that occurred within one year, begin with the words “In the summer such and such ...” (“summer” in Old Russian means “year”). In this regard, chronicles, including Tale of Bygone Years, are fundamentally different from the Byzantine chronicles known in Ancient Rus', from which Russian compilers borrowed numerous information from world history. In translated Byzantine chronicles, events were distributed not by years, but by the reigns of emperors.

The earliest surviving list Tales of Bygone Years belongs to the 14th century. He got the name Laurentian Chronicle by the name of the scribe, the monk Lawrence, and was compiled in 1377. Another ancient list Tales of Bygone Years preserved in the so-called Ipatiev Chronicle(middle of the 15th century).

Tale of Bygone Years- the first chronicle, the text of which has come down to us almost in its original form. Through careful textual analysis Tales of Bygone Years researchers have found traces of earlier works included in its composition. Probably, the oldest chronicles were created in the 11th century. The hypothesis of A.A. Shakhmatov (1864–1920), which explains the emergence and describes the history of Russian chronicle writing in the 11th and early 12th centuries, received the greatest recognition. He resorted to the comparative method, comparing the surviving chronicles and finding out their relationships. According to A.A. Shakhmatov, approx. 1037, but not later than 1044, was compiled The most ancient Kyiv chronicle, who told about the beginning of history and the baptism of Rus'. Around 1073 in the Kiev-Pechersk monastery, probably the monk Nikon completed the first Kiev-Pechersk chronicle. In it, new news and legends were combined with the text ancient vault and with borrowings from Novgorod Chronicle mid 11th century In 1093–1095, here, on the basis of the code of Nikon, a second Kiev-Pechersk vault; it is also called Primary. (The name is explained by the fact that A.A. Shakhmatov originally considered this chronicle to be the earliest.) It condemned the folly and weakness of the current princes, who were opposed by the former wise and powerful rulers of Rus'.

In 1110–1113 the first edition (version) was completed Tales of Bygone Years- a lengthy chronicle that absorbed numerous information on the history of Rus': about the Russian wars with the Byzantine Empire, about the calling to Rus' for the reign of the Scandinavians Rurik, Truvor and Sineus, about the history of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery, about princely crimes. The probable author of this chronicle is the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk monastery Nestor. This edition has not survived in its original form.

In the first edition Tales of Bygone Years the political interests of the then Kyiv prince Svyatopolk Izyaslavich were reflected. In 1113 Svyatopolk died, and Prince Vladimir Vsevolodovich Monomakh ascended the throne of Kiev. In 1116 the monk Sylvester (in the spirit of Pronomakh) and in 1117–1118 an unknown scribe from the entourage of Prince Mstislav Vladimirovich (son of Vladimir Monomakh) text Tales of Bygone Years has been redesigned. This is how the second and third editions arose. Tales of Bygone Years; the oldest list of the second edition has come down to us as part of Lavrentievskaya, and the earliest list of the third is in the composition Ipatiev Chronicle.

Almost all Russian chronicles are vaults - a combination of several texts or news from other sources of an earlier time. Old Russian chronicles of the 14th–16th centuries. open with text Tales of Bygone Years.

Name Tale of Bygone Years(more precisely, Tales of Bygone Years- in the Old Russian text the word "story" is used in the plural) is usually translated as Tale of past years, but there are other interpretations: A story in which the narrative is distributed over the years or Narrative in a measured time frame, The story of the end times- telling about the events on the eve of the end of the world and the Last Judgment.

Narration in Tales of Bygone Years begins with a story about the settlement on earth of the sons of Noah - Shem, Ham and Japhet - together with their families (in the Byzantine chronicles, the starting point was the creation of the world). This story is taken from the Bible. The Russians considered themselves descendants of Japheth. Thus, Russian history was included in the history of the world. Goals Tales of Bygone Years there was an explanation of the origin of the Russians (Eastern Slavs), the origin of princely power (which for the chronicler is identical to the origin of the princely dynasty) and a description of the baptism and spread of Christianity in Rus'. Narrative of Russian events in Tales of Bygone Years opens with a description of the life of the East Slavic (Old Russian) tribes and two legends. This is a story about the reign in Kyiv of Prince Kiy, his brothers Schek, Khoriv and sister Lybid; about the calling by the warring northern Russian tribes of three Scandinavians (Varangians) Rurik, Truvor and Sineus, so that they become princes and establish order in the Russian land. The story about the Varangian brothers has an exact date - 862. Thus, in the historiosophical concept Tales of Bygone Years two sources of power in Rus' are established - local (Kiy and his brothers) and foreign (Varangians). The erection of ruling dynasties to foreign clans is traditional for medieval historical consciousness; similar stories are also found in Western European chronicles. So the ruling dynasty was given greater nobility and dignity.

Major events in Tales of Bygone Years- wars (external and internecine), the foundation of churches and monasteries, the death of princes and metropolitans - the heads of the Russian Church.

chronicles, including Tale..., are not works of art in the strict sense of the word and not the work of a historian. Part Tales of Bygone Years included treaties of Russian princes Oleg the Prophetic, Igor Rurikovich and Svyatoslav Igorevich with Byzantium. The chronicles themselves apparently had the significance of a legal document. Some scientists (for example, I.N. Danilevsky) believe that the annals and, in particular, Tale of Bygone Years, were compiled not for people, but for the Last Judgment, at which God will decide the fate of people at the end of the world: therefore, the annals listed the sins and merits of the rulers and the people.

The chronicler usually does not interpret events, does not look for their distant causes, but simply describes them. In relation to the explanation of what is happening, the chroniclers are guided by providentialism - everything that happens is explained by the will of God and is considered in the light of the coming end of the world and the Last Judgment. Attention to the cause-and-effect relationships of events and their pragmatic rather than providential interpretation are irrelevant.

For the chroniclers, the principle of analogy, the echo between the events of the past and the present is important: the present is thought of as an “echo” of the events and deeds of the past, primarily the deeds and deeds described in the Bible. The chronicler presents the murder of Boris and Gleb by Svyatopolk as a repetition and renewal of the homicide committed by Cain (the legend Tales of Bygone Years under 1015). Vladimir Svyatoslavich - the baptizer of Rus' - is compared with St. Constantine the Great, who made Christianity the official religion in the Roman Empire (the legend of the baptism of Rus' under 988).

Tales of Bygone Years the unity of style is alien, it is an "open" genre. The simplest element in an annalistic text is a brief weather record that only reports the event, but does not describe it.

Part Tales of Bygone Years legends are also included. For example - a story about the origin of the name of the city of Kyiv on behalf of Prince Kyi; legends about the Prophetic Oleg, who defeated the Greeks and died from the bite of a snake hiding in the skull of the deceased prince's horse; about Princess Olga, cunningly and cruelly taking revenge on the Drevlyane tribe for the murder of her husband. The chronicler is invariably interested in news about the past of the Russian land, about the founding of cities, hills, rivers, and about the reasons why they received these names. This is also reported in the legends. IN Tales of Bygone Years the proportion of legends is very large, since the initial events of ancient Russian history described in it are separated from the time of the work of the first chroniclers by many decades and even centuries. In the later annals, telling about contemporary events, the number of legends is small, and they are also usually found in the part of the annals devoted to the distant past.

Part Tales of Bygone Years stories about saints, written in a special hagiographic style, are also included. Such is the story of the brothers-princes Boris and Gleb under 1015, who, imitating the humility and non-resistance of Christ, meekly accepted death at the hands of their half-brother Svyatopolk, and the story of the holy Pechersk monks under 1074.

Much of the text in Tales of Bygone Years occupied by narratives of battles written in the so-called military style, and princely obituaries.

Editions: Monuments of literature of Ancient Rus'. XI - first half of the XII century. M., 1978; Tale of Bygone Years. 2nd ed., add. and correct. SPb., 1996, series "Literary monuments"; Library of Literature of Ancient Rus', v. 1. XI - the beginning of the XII century. SPb., 1997.

Andrey Ranchin

Literature:

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