The Olgovichi or Olhovychi were one of the four dominant princely clans of

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 ...

in the 12th and 13th century. First mentioned in the Hypatian continuation of the ''

Primary Chronicle The ''Primary Chronicle'', shortened from the common ''Russian Primary Chronicle'' (, commonly transcribed ''Povest' vremennykh let'' (PVL), ), is a Rus' chronicle, chronicle of Kievan Rus' from about 850 to 1110. It is believed to have been or ...

'' (PVL) under the year 1116 and literally meaning "the sons of Oleg", they were named after Oleg I Sviatoslavich,

Prince of Chernigov The Prince of Chernigov () was the ''kniaz'', the ruler or sub-ruler, of the Rus' people, Rus' Principality of Chernigov, a lordship which lasted four centuries straddling what are now parts of Ukraine, Belarus and the Russian Federation. List of ...

() and

Principality of Novgorod-Seversk The Principality of Novgorod-Seversk or Novhorod-Siversk was a medieval Rus' principality centered on the town now called Novhorod-Siverskyi. The principality emerged after the central power of Kievan Rus' declined in the late 11th century, and ...

(). He was the grandson of

Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav I Vladimirovich ( 978 – 20 February 1054), better known as Yaroslav the Wise, was Grand Prince of Kiev from 1019 until his death in 1054. He was also earlier Prince of Novgorod from 1010 to 1034 and Prince of Rostov from 987 to 1010, ...

; ruling dynasty in the Chernigov principality, Novgorod-Seversky principality, as well as with interruptions: in the Kiev, Galicia, Volyn, Pereyaslav principalities, Novgorod lands.

Overview

The

Principality of Chernigov The Principality of Chernigov was one of the largest and most powerful states within Kievan Rus'. For a time the principality was the second most powerful after the Principality of Kiev. The principality was formed in the 10th century and maint ...

(modern

Chernihiv Chernihiv (, ; , ) is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, which serves as the administrative center of Chernihiv Oblast and Chernihiv Raion within the oblast. Chernihiv's population is The city was designated as a Hero City of Ukraine ...

in northern

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

) was the main Olgovichi

patrimony Patrimony may refer to: Law * Patrimony, or property, the total of all personal and real entitlements, including movable and immovable property, belonging to a real person or a juristic person * Patrimony, or inheritance, a right or estate inher ...

(hence the term "Olgovichi of Chernigov"), with the

(modern

Novhorod-Siverskyi Novhorod-Siverskyi (, , , ''Novgorod-Severskiy''), historically known as Novhorod-Siversk () or Novgorod-Seversk (), is a historic city in Chernihiv Oblast, northern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Novhorod-Siverskyi Raion, alth ...

) serving as the primary

appanage An appanage, or apanage (; ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a monarch, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture (where only the eldest inherits). It was ...

. From 1054 to 1186, the Principality of Murom–Ryazan was subordinate to the Olgovichi of Chernigov; then it sought an independent existence between Chernigov and Suzdalia until

Vsevolod the Big Nest Vsevolod III Yuryevich, or Vsevolod the Big Nest (; 1154–1212), was Grand Prince of Vladimir from 1176 to 1212. During his long reign, the city reached the zenith of its glory. Family Vsevolod was the tenth or eleventh son of Yuri Dolgoruk ...

destroyed and depopulated Ryazan in 1208. The Olgovichi frequently managed to put one of their clan members on the grand princely throne of Kiev (modern

Kyiv 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, ...

), including

Michael of Chernigov Mikhail Vsevolodovich ( – 20 September 1246), known as Michael or Mikhail of Chernigov, was Grand Prince of Kiev (1236–1239; 1241–1243); he was also Prince of Pereyaslavl (1206), Novgorod-Seversk (1219–1226), Chernigov (1223–1235; 1242� ...

, who in the wake of the

Mongol invasion The Mongol invasions and conquests took place during the 13th and 14th centuries, creating history's largest contiguous empire, the Mongol Empire (1206–1368), which by 1260 covered large parts of Eurasia. Historians regard the Mongol devastati ...

was executed by

Batu Khan Batu Khan (–1255) was a Mongol ruler and founder of the Golden Horde, a constituent of the Mongol Empire established after Genghis Khan's demise. Batu was a son of Jochi, thus a grandson of Genghis Khan. His '' ulus'' ruled over the Kievan ...

in 1246 and later canonised as an Orthodox saint. There is some uncertainty regarding his descendants, who from the late 13th century appear to have expanded Olgovichi control to

Bryansk Bryansk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Bryansk Oblast, Russia, situated on the Desna (river), Desna River, southwest of Moscow. It has a population of 379,152 at the 2021 census. Bryans ...

Kursk Kursk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur (Kursk Oblast), Kur, Tuskar, and Seym (river), Seym rivers. It has a population of Kursk ...

, and the

Upper Oka Principalities In Russian historiography the term Upper Oka Principalities () traditionally applies to about a dozen tiny and ephemeral polities situated along the upper course of the Oka River at the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries. They were reigned b ...

(in the present-day

Russian Federation 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 ...

). From 1301 to 1324, the Olgovichi reigned in Kiev again. In the 14th and 15th centuries, the Olgovichi principalities were gradually divided between the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

(where the clan was incorporated into the

Ruthenian nobility The Ruthenian nobility (; ; ) originated in the territories of Kievan Rus' and Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, Galicia–Volhynia, which were incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and later the Russian Emp ...

) and the

Principality of Moscow A principality (or sometimes princedom) is a type of monarchical state or feudal territory ruled by a prince or princess. It can be either a sovereign state or a constituent part of a larger political entity. The term "principality" is often ...

. The creator of "The Tale of Igor's Regiment" criticized the founder of this family, Oleg Svyatoslavich, Oleg Goreslavich for excessive lust for power and undermining the integrity of the Russian state. The Olgovichs cooperated with the Polovtsian khans the most among all princely clans and fought with them against the rest of the Russian princes.Kotlyar N. F. Udelnaya razplennost Rusi pecific fragmentation of Rus'// Olgovichi (73-81) / NAS of Ukraine. Institute of History of Ukraine. — Kyiv: Institute of History of Ukraine, 2013. — 270 p. (78 p.) (Russian) ISBN 978-966-02-6747-3 Slovenian–Canadian Slavistics researcher and priest Martin Dimnik (1941–2020) has published extensive studies on the Olgovichi.

Notes

References

Bibliography

Primary sources

* — A modern annotated Ukrainian translation of the ''

'', ''

Kievan Chronicle The ''Kievan Chronicle'' or ''Kyivan Chronicle'' is a chronicle of Kievan Rus'. It was written around 1200 in Vydubychi Monastery as a continuation of the ''Primary Chronicle''. It is known from two manuscripts: a copy in the '' Hypatian Codex'' ...

'' and ''

Galician–Volhynian Chronicle The ''Galician–Volhynian Chronicle'' (GVC) (, called "Halicz-Wolyn Chronicle" in Polish historiography), also known as ''Chronicle of Halych–Volhynia'' and by other names is a prominent work of Old Ruthenian literature and historiographyKotl ...

'', based on the

Hypatian Codex The ''Hypatian Codex'', also known as Hypatian Letopis or Ipatiev Letopis, is a compendium of three Rus' chronicle, Rus' chronicles: the ''Primary Chronicle'', ''Kievan Chronicle'' and ''Galician-Volhynian Chronicle''. It is the most important sou ...

with comments from the

Khlebnikov Codex The ''Khlebnikov Codex'' (; ) is a codex of Rus' chronicles compiled in the 1560s. Provenance and physical description The ''Khlebnikov Codex'' was unexpectedly discovered in the summer of 1809. It is named after one of its previous owners, ...

. * – A modern Dutch translation of the ''Primary Chronicle'', including the Hypatian continuation.

Literature

* * * {{cite book , last=Raffensperger , first=Christian , last2=Ostrowski , first2=Donald , authorlink2=Donald Ostrowski , title=The Ruling Families of Rus: Clan, Family and Kingdom , publisher=Reaktion Books , location=London , date=2023 , pages=309 , isbn=978-1-78914-745-2 (e-book)