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: ''For the Ukrainian military facility, see Lyubsha (air base).''
Lyubsha () is an archaeological site situated on the right bank of the
Lyubsha () is an archaeological site situated on the right bank of the Volkhov
Volkhov () is an industrial types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Volkhovsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the river Volkhov (river), Volkhov east of Saint Petersburg, St. Petersbu ...
, about 1,500 metres downstream from Staraya Ladoga
Staraya Ladoga ( rus, Ста́рая Ла́дога, p=ˈstarəjə ˈladəɡə, r=Stáraya Ládoga, t=Old Ladoga), known as Ladoga until 1704, is a rural locality (a '' selo'') in Volkhovsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the ...
. As was determined by the 1997 excavations, Lyubsha is the site of one of the oldest Slavic
Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to:
Peoples
* Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia
** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples
** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples
** West Slav ...
fort in Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
, established in the first half of the 8th century, thus predating Ladoga. Its layout and dimensions closely resemble the contemporaneous hill fort
A hillfort is a type of fortification, fortified refuge or defended settlement located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typical of the late Bronze Age Europe, European Bronze Age and Iron Age Europe, Iron Age. So ...
s of Great Moravia
Great Moravia (; , ''Meghálī Moravía''; ; ; , ), or simply Moravia, was the first major state that was predominantly West Slavic to emerge in the area of Central Europe, possibly including territories which are today part of the Czech Repub ...
.
The fortress was destroyed by fire towards the end of the 9th century. Constantine Zuckerman
Constantin Zuckerman (; born 1957) is a French historian and Professor of Byzantine studies at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes in Paris.
Biography
Academic rank: professor. Highest degree: doctorate. Job title: The Deputy Director of the Ce ...
connects its destruction with a conflict (Vadim
Vadim (Cyrillic: Вадим) is a Slavic masculine given name derived from the Ruthenian word ''vaditi'' (), meaning ''to blame'' or as a diminutive of Vadimir.Rus' Khaganate
Rus' Khaganate (, ''Russkiy kaganat'', , ''Ruśkyj kahanat''), or Kaganate of Rus is a name applied by some modern historians to a hypothetical polity suggested to have existed during a poorly documented period in the history of Eastern Europe b ...
. The Norse name of Lyubsha is unknown.
Immediately north of Lyubsha lies the village of Gorchakovshchina, which used to be a trading post at the head of navigation on the Volkhov, near its ancient entry into Lake Ladoga
Lake Ladoga is a freshwater lake located in the Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Oblast in northwestern Russia, in the vicinity of Saint Petersburg.
It is the largest lake located entirely in Europe, the second largest lake in Russia after Lake ...
. Dmitry Machinsky
Dmitry Alexeyevich Machinsky (, 1937 – 8 January 2012) was a Russian archaeologist. He lived in Saint Petersburg and worked in the Hermitage Museum. Machinsky is particularly well known for having excavated Lyubsha and other Viking settlemen ...
ranks it, along with Ladoga and Alaborg
Álaborg or Áluborg is the name of a Varangian fort mentioned in the Norse sagas about Halfdan Eysteinsson and Hrolf Ganger. The first saga indicates that it was possible to sail from Staraya Ladoga, Aldeigjuborg (Ladoga) to Alaborg northward by ...
, among the most important centres of the khaganate.Мачинский Д.А. О роли финноязычного населения бассейнов Волхова и Великой в сложении этносоциума "Русь" (VIII-XI вв.) // Современное финноугроведение. Опыт и проблемы. Leningrad, 1990.
References