The Battle on the Irpin River was a semi-legendary battle between the armies of 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, ...

and Principality of Kiev. According to the story,

Gediminas Gediminas ( – December 1341) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1315 or 1316 until his death in 1341. He is considered the founder of Lithuania's capital Vilnius (see: Iron Wolf legend). During his reign, he brought under his rule lands from t ...

, the

Grand Duke of Lithuania This is a list of Lithuanian monarchs who ruled Lithuania from its inception until the fall of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1795. The Lithuanian monarch bore the title of Grand duke, Grand Duke, with the exception of Mindaugas, who was crown ...

, conquered

Volhynia Volhynia or Volynia ( ; see #Names and etymology, below) is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between southeastern Poland, southwestern Belarus, and northwestern Ukraine. The borders of the region are not clearly defined, but in ...

before turning his attention to Kiev. He was opposed by

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

Stanislav of Kiev allied with the Principality of Pereyaslavl and

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 ...

. Lithuanians achieved a great victory and extended their influence to

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, ...

. There are no contemporary sources attesting to the battle. It is known only from late and generally unreliable Lithuanian Chronicles. Therefore, historians disagree whether it was an actual battle in the early 1320s or a fictional story invented by later scribes. Lithuanians gained full control of the city only in 1362 after the Battle of Blue Waters against the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as ''Ulug Ulus'' ( in Turkic) was originally a Mongols, Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the division of ...

Account in the Lithuanian Chronicles

As told by the Lithuanian Chronicles, having made peace with the

Teutonic Order The Teutonic Order is a religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious institution founded as a military order (religious society), military society in Acre, Israel, Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Sa ...

, Gediminas marched against

. The Lithuanian Army successfully attacked and captured Volodymyr. Prince Vladimir (most likely an incorrect name for Andrew of Galicia) was killed during the battle. His brother Leo II of Galicia fled to his brother-in-law in Bryansk. The Lithuanian Army spent the winter in Brest and, the second week after Easter, marched against the Principality of Kiev. The Lithuanians captured Ovruch and

Zhytomyr Zhytomyr ( ; see #Names, below for other names) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the Capital city, administrative center of Zhytomyr Oblast (Oblast, province), as well as the administrative center of the surrounding ...

. At Belgorod Kievsky on the small Irpin River about south-west of Kiev, Gediminas was stopped by the joint army of Stanislav of Kiev, Oleg of Pereyaslavl, Roman of Bryansk, and Leo II of Galicia. The Lithuanians achieved a decisive victory. Oleg and Leo were slain on the battlefield. Stanislav escaped first to Bryansk and then to

Ryazan Ryazan (, ; also Riazan) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative center of Ryazan Oblast, Russia. The city is located on the banks of the Oka River in Central Russia, southeast of Moscow. As of the 2010 C ...

. Gediminas then captured Belgorod Kievsky and besieged Kiev for a month. Left without its ruler, Kiev surrendered. The Lithuanians also captured Vyshhorod,

Cherkasy Cherkasy (, ) is a city in central Ukraine. Cherkasy serves as the administrative centre of Cherkasy Oblast as well as Cherkasy Raion within the oblast. The city has a population of Cherkasy is the cultural, educational and industrial centre ...

, Kaniv, Putyvl, as well as Pereiaslav. Algimantas, Mindaugas' son from the Alšėniškiai family, was installed in Kiev as Gediminas' viceroy.

Analysis

Information about the Lithuanian conquest comes from generally confused and unreliable Lithuanian Chronicles (second and third (''

Bychowiec Chronicle The ''Bychowiec Chronicle'' (; ; also spelled ''Bykhovets'', ''Bykovets'' or '' Bychovec'') is an anonymous 16th-century chronicle of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Although one of the least reliable sources of the epoch, it is considered the most ...

'') redaction) and Ukrainian ('' Hustyn Chronicle'') produced many years after the events. No contemporary sources directly corroborate the story. In the 1880s, Ukrainian historian Volodymyr Antonovych was the first to critically evaluate the chronicles and dismiss the campaign and battle as fiction. However, after careful analysis, modern historians believe that Antonovich was too critical and that there is some truth to the story.

Political situation

The

Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia The Principality or, from 1253, Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, also known as the Kingdom of Ruthenia, Kingdom of Rus', or Kingdom of Russia, also Halych–Volhynian Kingdom was a medieval state in Eastern Europe which existed from 1199 to 1349. I ...

attracted Gediminas' attention early on; he attacked Brest in 1315 and arranged a marriage between his son

Liubartas Liubartas or Demetrius of Liubar (died ) was a Lithuanian prince from the Gediminid dynasty. He was the prince of Volhynia, and from 1320, he ruled over Lutsk, Liubar and Zhytomyr. Liubartas was also the last ruler of the Kingdom of Galicia–Vo ...

and Euphemia, daughter of Andrew of Galicia. After the attack in 1315, the Principality allied with the

, a long-standing Lithuanian enemy. A link between this alliance and the Lithuanian attack was suggested by Bronisław Włodarski. Galicia–Volhynia was also a rich land and offered access further south to Kiev. Letters of Gediminas from 1323 would suggest that commercial rivalry was a contributing factor in the attack. There were no known attacks by the Teutonic Knights on Lithuania between July 1320 and March 1322, which could indicate the peace mentioned in the chronicle. There was an attack on Lithuania by the

in 1325; historians Feliks Shabuldo and Romas Batūra interpreted it as a direct reprisal for the Lithuanian expansion. The Lithuanian takeover of

, Kaniv, Putyvl probably refers to a campaign led by

Vytautas Vytautas the Great (; 27 October 1430) was a ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He was also the prince of Grodno (1370–1382), prince of Lutsk (1387–1389), and the postulated king of the Hussites. In modern Lithuania, Vytautas is revere ...

in 1392. It is known that brothers Andrew and Leo of Galicia–Volhynia died sometime between May 1321 and May 1323. However, their death did not bring Lithuanian control to Galicia–Volhynia. The brothers did not have a male heir and were succeeded by Bolesław Jerzy II of Mazovia, son of their sister Maria, and not by Liubartas. Bolesław Jerzy was poisoned in 1340 bringing about the prolonged

Galicia–Volhynia Wars The Galicia–Volhynia Wars were several wars fought in the years 1340–1392 over the succession in the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, also known as Ruthenia. After Yuri II Boleslav was poisoned by local Ruthenian nobles in 1340, both the Gran ...

that split the territory between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...

. Contemporary sources also do not indicate that the brothers were slain by the Lithuanians. Swiss chronicler John of Winterthur recorded that they were poisoned by their rebellious subjects. In a letter to

Pope John XXII Pope John XXII (, , ; 1244 – 4 December 1334), born Jacques Duèze (or d'Euse), was head of the Catholic Church from 7 August 1316 to his death, in December 1334. He was the second and longest-reigning Avignon Papacy, Avignon Pope, elected by ...

, Polish King Władysław I the Elbow-high lamented that the death of Andrew and Leo left Poland vulnerable to an attack from the

, and made no mention of a Lithuanian aggression.

Personal names

Names recorded in the Lithuanian Chronicle are often confused. The Lithuanian Chronicle mentions Prince Vladimir of Volodymyr. No such prince was known at the time of Gediminas' reign; the last Prince Vladimir III Ivan Vasilkovich died in 1289. However, it is a conceivable error – a scribe might have accidentally transferred the name of the city to Prince Andrew of Galicia. The case for a simple mistake is bolstered by the fact that his brother's name is correctly recorded as Leo II of Galicia. Further, contemporary sources attest that brothers Andrew and Leo of Galicia–Volhynia died sometime between May 1321 and May 1323. Roman of Bryansk was a 13th-century prince; Dmitry Romanovich was Prince of Bryansk at the time. It could also be explained as an error and confusion of the

patronymic name A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, ...

with the first name of a more famous predecessor. There is no evidence to prove or disprove whether Leo and Dmitry Romanovich were brothers-in-law. Historians had suggested that the three names were borrowed from an earlier campaign: the '' Galician–Volhynian Chronicle'' recorded a 1274 battle between the Lithuanians and Vladimir of Volodymyr, Leo I of Galicia, and Roman of Chernihiv and Bryansk at Drahichyn. However, historian S. C. Rowell found no other textual similarities between the 1274 battle in the Codex and the 1320s campaign in the Lithuanian Chronicles. Nothing can be said about Oleg of Pereyaslavl as nothing is known on princes of Pereyaslavl after its devastation in 1240 during the

Mongol invasion of Rus' The Mongol Empire invaded and conquered much of Kievan Rus' in the mid-13th century, sacking numerous cities such as Principality of Ryazan, Ryazan, Principality of Yaroslavl, Yaroslavl, Principality of Pereyaslavl, Pereyaslavl and Vladimi ...

. Stanislav of Kiev is not found in any other sources and cannot be easily explained as an error. The Lithuanian Chronicles mention that he escaped to the Principality of Ryazan where he married a daughter of the local prince and succeeded to the throne. That contradicts known facts that Ivan Yaroslavich of Ryazan was succeeded by his son Ivan Ivanovich Korotopol in 1327. S. C. Rowell found a mention of Ioann Stanislavich who, Rowell extrapolated, could have been a prince of Vyazma and son of Stanislav of Kiev (Stanislav is not a common name among

East Slavs The East Slavs are the most populous subgroup of the Slavs. They speak the East Slavic languages, and formed the majority of the population of the medieval state Kievan Rus', which they claim as their cultural ancestor.John Channon & Robert Huds ...

). The genealogy of the Shilovskys ( :ru:Шиловские), a

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russia), Moldavia and Wallachia (and later Romania), Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. C ...

family from Ryazan, mentioned that they fled Kiev with Stanislav. If nothing else, this mention in the genealogy proves that the story of the Battle on the Irpin River well predates the chronicles. Algimantas, son of Mindaugas from the Alšėniškiai family, is the only Lithuanian, other than Gediminas, mentioned by the Lithuanian Chronicle. A list of Olshanskis found in the Pskov-Caves Monastery mentions Algimantas (Olgimont) who was baptized as Michael. His son Ivan Olshansky was a prominent noble in the Grand Duchy and, in 1399, became viceroy in Kiev after Skirgaila's death. Historians struggled to reconcile Algimantas with Fiodor (Theodore) mentioned in 1331. At the time, newly consecrated archbishop Basil Kalika traveled from Volodymyr home to

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 ...

. He was stopped by Prince Fiodor of Kiev, a Tatar ''

basqaq ''Darughachi'' (Mongol form) or ''Basqaq'' (Turkic form) were originally designated officials in the Mongol Empire who were in charge of taxes and administration in a certain province. The singular form of the Mongolian word is ''darugha''. They ...

'' (tax collector), and fifty warriors. In 1916, new evidence was published that Fiodor was a brother of Gediminas and historians reinterpreted that the 1331 incident shows that Fiodor was still paying a tribute to the Mongols. Lithuanians gained full control of the city only in 1362 after the Battle of Blue Waters against the

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * *{{cite encyclopedia , editor-first=Simas , editor-last=Sužiedėlis , encyclopedia= Encyclopedia Lituanica , title=Theodore , year=1970–1978 , publisher=Juozas Kapočius , volume=V , location=Boston, Massachusetts , pages=446–447, lccn=74-114275 Irpin River 14th century in Lithuania Irpen' River 1321 Irpen' River 1321 Irpin 1320s in Europe Irpin River Historiography of Lithuania Historiography of Ukraine Lithuanian legends Ukrainian legends