Gleb Svyatoslavich ( 1052 – 30 May 1078) was Prince of Tmutarakan and

Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the V ...

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavs, East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical At ...

. He ruled Tmutarakan under the overall authority of his father Sviatoslav Iaroslavich, Prince of Chernigov. He was twice expelled from his principality by one of his cousins Rostislav Vladimirovich. His father appointed him prince of Novgorod in 1067 or 1068. He suppressed a rebellion incited by a volkhv against the bishop of the town. Later he was expelled from Novgorod and was killed by the Chudes. The '' Russian Primary Chronicle'' writes that he "was kindly toward the poor and hospitable to strangers, zealous toward the church, warm in faith, peaceful, and fair in appearance".

Early life

Gleb was the eldest of four sons of Sviatoslav Iaroslavich, Prince of Chernigov by his first wife, Killikiya. According to historian Martin Dimnik, Gleb was born around 1049. He was named after his father's holy uncle, Gleb. His father appointed him to rule Tmutarakan, an important port by the Strait of Kerch, but the year of his appointment is unknown.

Prince of Tmutarakan

According to the '' Russian Primary Chronicle'', Gleb's cousin Rostislav Vladimirovich "fled to Tmutorakan"''Russian Primary Chronicle'' (year 6572), p. 144. in 1064. He expelled Gleb from Tmutorakan and "occupied his principate for himself". Although Gleb was restored by his father in 1065, once Sviatoslav Iaroslavich had returned with his army to Chernigov, Rostislav invaded again and displaced Gleb from power once more. However, the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

katepano The ''katepánō'' (, ) was a senior Byzantine military rank and office. The word was Latinized as ''capetanus/catepan'', and its meaning seems to have merged with that of the Italian "capitaneus" (which derives from the Latin word "caput", mean ...

'' or governor of Cherson poisoned Rostislav who died on 3 February 1067. According to the ''Life of Feodosy'', the citizens of Tmutorakan requested the monk Nikon the Great to persuade Sviatoslav Iaroslavich to again appoint Gleb as their prince. The saintly monk succeeded and Gleb returned to Tmutarakan. According to the inscription of the " Stone of Tmutarakan", Gleb had the width of the frozen Strait of Kerch measured in the winter of 1067-68.

Prince of Novgorod

Gleb was transferredaccording to historian Martin Dimnik, by his fatherfrom Tmutarakan to

in 1067 or 1068. A distant relative of his, Vseslav Briacheslavich lay siege to Novgorod "on October 23, the day of the

Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...

's brother, St James, a Friday, at the sixth hour of the day",''The Chronicle of Novgorod'' (year AD 1068 AM 6576), p. 5. according to the '' Chronicle of Novgorod''. However, Gleb and the Novgorodians routed him on the brook Gzen near the town. Gleb's rule in Novgorod was confirmed when his father became the Grand Prince of Kiev in 1073. According to the Hypatian version of the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', Gleb visited his father in

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

and witnessed the death of the saintly Abbot Feodosy of the Monastery of the Caves in 1074. He seems to have been on friendly terms with his cousin, Vladimir Monomach whose first son was born in his court at Novgorod. A late source Vasily Tatishchev's compilation of medieval chronicleswrites that Sviatoslav Iaroslavich appointed Gleb and Vladimir Monomach to command the Rus' troops sent to fight against the

Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...

at Cherson upon the request of the

Byzantine Emperor The foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, which Fall of Constantinople, fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as legitimate rulers and exercised s ...

Michael VII Ducas, but the source's reliability is doubtful. The ''Russian Primary Source'' narrates that a " magician" (a volkhv)''Russian Primary Chronicle'' (year 6579), p. 154. arrived in Novgorod and stirred up the townsfolk against the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

. The volkhv planned to murder the prelate but Gleb and his '' druzhina'' or retinue remained loyal to him. Gleb dared the volkhv who had stated that he could foretell the future to predict "what was about to happen that very day", according to the ''Russian Primary Chronicle''. The volkhv declared that he would "perform great miracles", but Gleb pulled out an axe and killed him. After the volkhv's death, his followers broke up. Gleb's father died on 27 December 1076. According to Novgorodian sources, the citizens of the town rose in revolt and dethroned Gleb in 1078. He fled beyond the lands beyond the river Volkhov, known as Zavoloch'e, where the Chudes killed him on 30 May. His body was transferred to Chernigov where he was buried in the Holy Savior Cathedral on 23 July. No source makes mention of Gleb's marriage or his children, suggesting that he never married and died childless.

References

Sources

Primary sources

*''The Russian Primary Chronicle: Laurentian Text'' (Translated and edited by Samuel Hazzard Cross and Olgerd P. Sherbowitz-Wetzor) (1953). Medieval Academy of America. . *''The Chronicle of Novgorod, 1016–1471'' (Translated from the Russian by Rober Michell and Nevill Forbes, with an introduction by C. Raymond Beazley, and an account of the text by A. A. Shakhmatov) (1914, 2011). BiblioLife.

Secondary sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gleb Svyatoslavich 1050s births 1078 deaths Princes of Novgorod Princes of Tmutarakan Sviatoslavichi family 11th-century princes from Kievan Rus' Military personnel killed in action