Simeon Ivanovich Gordiy (the Proud) (Семён Иванович Гордый in Russian) (7 September 1317 – 27 April 1353) was Prince of Moscow and Grand Prince of Vladimir. Simeon continued

his father His or HIS may refer to: Computing * Hightech Information System, a Hong Kong graphics card company * Honeywell Information Systems * Hybrid intelligent system * Microsoft Host Integration Server Education * Hangzhou International School, in ...

's policies aimed to increase the power and prestige of his state. Simeon's rule was marked by regular military and political standoffs against the Novgorod Republic and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. His relationships with neighboring Russian principalities remained peaceful if not passive: Simeon stayed aside from conflicts between subordinate princes. He had recourse to war only when war was unavoidable. A relatively quiet period for Moscow was ended by the

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

that claimed the lives of Simeon and his sons in 1353.

Biography

In 1340 Simeon, the eldest son of Ivan Kalita, was stationed in Nizhny Novgorod. Upon receiving news of his father's death, Simeon and his brothers Andrey and Ivan left for the Golden Horde to seek Uzbeg Khan's patent (''yarlyk'') for taking over the title of Grand Prince. Rivals

Konstantin of Tver The first name Konstantin () is a derivation from the Latin name ''Constantinus'' (Constantine) in some European languages, such as Russian and German. As a Christian given name, it refers to the memory of the Roman emperor Constantine the Great. ...

and Konstantin of Suzdal also paid their homage to the Khan, claiming seniority over Moscow princes.Curtin, p. 336 Simeon won the patent through bribing the Khan's retinue;Karamzin, ''1340'' princes of Tver and

Suzdal Suzdal ( rus, Суздаль, p=ˈsuzdəlʲ) is a town that serves as the administrative center of Suzdalsky District in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which is located on the Kamenka River, north of the city of Vladimir. Vladimir is the admin ...

had to agree to his seniority; Uzbeq also extended his benevolence to Simeon's issue. He was also granted the ceremonial title () by the Byzantine Empire,Anton Kartashev. History of the Russian church
/ref> which can be loosely translated as

seneschal The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...

or stolnik. In the same 1340 Simeon engaged in his first military standoff with Veliky Novgorod. Simeon claimed his right to collect taxes in the Novgorodian town of Torzhok. Torzhok boyars locked up Simeon's tax collectors and called for help from Novgorod. Simeon and metropolitan Theognostus hastily organized a coalition of princes against Novgorod, claiming that "They ovgorodiansmake war and peace with whomever they please, consulting no one. Novgorod regards not all Russia, and will not obey her Grand Prince", referring to Novgorod incursions into

Ustyuzhna Ustyuzhna (russian: У́стюжна) is a town and the administrative center of Ustyuzhensky District in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the Mologa River, west of Vologda, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: History Consi ...

and Beloe Ozero.Curtin, p. 337 As the coalition forces approached Novgorodian lands, the people of Torzhok revolted against the boyars and sided with Muscovite troops. Novgorod Republic accepted the fact and ceded all taxes from Torzhok area, estimated at 1,000 roubles in silver annually, to Simeon who agreed to honor the existing

civic charter Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

.Karamzin, ''1340'' In 1341, shortly after the dismissal of the Muscovite coalition army,

Algirdas Algirdas ( be, Альгерд, Alhierd, uk, Ольгерд, Ольґерд, Olherd, Olgerd, pl, Olgierd; – May 1377) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania. He ruled the Lithuanians and Ruthenians from 1345 to 1377. With the help of his bro ...

(then prince of Vitebsk, allied with prince of Smolensk) besieged Mozhaysk. News of the death of Gediminas forced Algirdas to quit the campaign before Simeon could arrange a military response.Karamzin, ''1341'' Uzbeg Khan, Simeon's sovereign, died soon afterwards; his successor, Jani Beg, secured the control of the Horde through killing his brothers. Simeon and Theognostus had to travel to the Horde again. Jani Beg reassured Simeon in his rights and let him go, but kept Theognostus hostage to extort money from the church; eventually, Theognostus was released for 600 roubles.Karamzin, ''1342'' In 1333, Simeon married Aigusta (Anastasia), sister of Algirdas.Basil Dmytryshyn, ''Medieval Russia:A source book, 850-1700'', (Academic International Press, 2000), 193. After her death in 1345, Simeon married Eupraxia of Smolensk, but soon sent her back to her family, claiming that Eupraxia was cursed since wedding and "appears to be dead each night". Eupraxia remarried Prince Fominsky, and Simeon married Maria of Tver; their four sons died in infancy.Karamzin, ''1353'' Throughout the 1340s Lithuanian and Swedish military campaigns and internal political disarray decreased the influence of the Novgorod Republic. Simeon, whose title of Grand Prince obliged him to protect Novgorod, was reluctant to do so, as if expecting the weakened republic to collapse for his own benefit. In 1347, when Novgorodians called for help against the Swedes, Simeon dispatched his brother Ivan and Constantine of Rostov; the envoys refused to fight for the Novgorodians.Karamzin, ''1347'' Simeon himself was busy with offsetting the Lithuanians' influence in the Horde, meanwhile harboring two renegade Lithuanian princes as potential claimants to the Lithuanian crown.Curtin, p. 338 He manipulated Jani Beg into believing that increasing Lithuanian influence became the most important threat to the Horde.Curtin, p. 339 Jani Beg eventually concurred with Simeon's envoys (of Mongolian ethnicity) and extradited Lithuanian envoys to Simeon's mercy. Simeon preferred to sign a truce with Algirdas, releasing the prisoners and securing marriages between Lithuanian princes and Russian brides. The marriage of

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

Algirdas to Orthodox Uliana of Tver, unlawful from the viewpoint of the church, was nevertheless approved by Theognostus; it gave birth to Jogaila.Karamzin, ''1349'' In 1351–1352 Simeon raised arms against Algirdas over control of small towns in Smolensk area. This conflict, again, did not develop into an open war as Algirdas preferred negotiations to fighting. Although the first round of talks was broken by Lithuanians, Simeon secured the disputed towns for Moscow. This campaign was his last act of Simeon's life.Curtin, p. 340 The

was recorded in present-day southern Russia and Ukraine as early as 1346. It hit Scandinavia in 1349,

Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=pskov-ru.ogg, p=pskof; see also names in other languages) is a city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, located about east of the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population ...

in the beginning of 1352 and Novgorod in August 1352; by the end of the year two thirds of Pskov were reported dead. The same pattern repeated in Lithuania and north-eastern Russia.Karamzin, ''1352'' In 1353 plague arrived in Moscow, killing Theognostus, Simeon, his two sons, Simeon Simeonovich, Ivan Simeonovich and his brother Andrey who survived Simeon by six weeks. Before his death in 1353, Simeon took

monastic vows Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic life plays an important role ...

and took the name of Sozont. He installed Alexis as Metropolitan of Moscow, successor to the late Theognostus, and secured a profitable

estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representat ...

for Maria. Simeon’s will is considered to be the first usage of paper in Russia, as parchment was used previously. Simeon is buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the

Moscow Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of the kremlins (R ...

Issue

With Aigusta of Lithuania

*Vasili Simeonovich (12 April 1337 – 1338) *Vasilisa Simeonova (died 20 April 1369), married ''Prince Mikhail Vasilievich of Kashin'' *Konstantin Simeonovich (born and died in 1341) *A daughter who married ''Aleksandr of Lithuania'', son of Karijotas of Poland

With Maria of Tver

*Daniil Simeonovich (15 December 1347 – died young) *Mikhail Simeonovich (1348 – died young) *Ivan Simeonovich (1351 – March 1353), died at the same time as his father of the plague *Simeon Simeonovich (1352 – March 1353), died at the same time as his father of the plague

Notes

References