Sveneld (also called Svenald or Sveinald; ; or ), is a semi-legendary 10th-century
Varangian
The Varangians ( ; ; ; , or )Varangian ," Online Etymology Dictionary were
Sviatoslav I
Sviatoslav or Svyatoslav I Igorevich (; Old Norse: ''Sveinald''; – 972) was Prince of Kiev from 945 until his death in 972. He is known for his persistent campaigns in the east and south, which precipitated the collapse of two great powers ...
and his family. Most of the information about Sveneld is scarce. He is described as a rich man and a '' voevoda'' ("troop commander") 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 ...
, but his relation to the reigning
Rurikid
The Rurik dynasty, also known as the Rurikid or Riurikid dynasty, as well as simply Rurikids or Riurikids, was a noble lineage allegedly founded by the Varangian prince Rurik, who, according to tradition, established himself at Novgorod in the ...
princes, if it existed, has not been positively established.
Biography
Sveneld started his military career under (or perhaps independently of)
Igor of Kiev
Igor (; ; – 945) was Prince of Kiev from 912 to 945. Traditionally, he is considered to be the son of Rurik, who established himself at Novgorod and died in 879 while Igor was an infant. According to the '' Primary Chronicle'', Rurik was succ ...
, when he put to the sword the tribe of
Ulichs
The Uliches or Ugliches ( or ; or , or ; , or ) were a tribe of Early East Slavs who, between the eighth and the tenth centuries, inhabited (along with the Tivertsi) Bessarabia, and the territories along the Lower Dnieper, Bug River and the ...
and secured for himself the right to exact tribute from them and from the
Drevlians
The Drevlians, Derevlians or Derevlianians ( or , ) were a tribe of East Slavs between the 6th and the 10th centuries, which inhabited the territories of Polesia and right-bank Ukraine, west of the Polans (eastern), eastern Polans and along the ...
. The historian Lev Gumilev suggests that Sveneld's enormous fortune, recorded in 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 ...
Caucasian Albania
Caucasian Albania is a modern exonym for a former state located in ancient times in the Caucasus, mostly in what is now Azerbaijan (where both of its capitals were located). The modern endonyms for the area are ''Aghwank'' and ''Aluank'', among ...
, now
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
, in which Sveneld is presumed to have been the commander-in-chief.
Igor's druzhina became jealous of Sveneld's wealth and attempted to levy tribute in his lands, but the Drevlyans revolted and killed Igor.
Aleksey Shakhmatov
Aleksey Aleksandrovich Shakhmatov (, – 16 August 1920) was a Russian philology, philologist and historian credited with laying the foundations for the science of Textual criticism, textology. Shakhmatov held the title of Doctor of Russ ...
theorizes that the Drevlyan uprising against Igor was led by Sveneld's son Mstisha. This theory is not universally agreed upon, though.
Igor's successor Svyatoslav seemed to have been on better terms with Sveneld, who was the second in command during his campaigns in
Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
and
Byzantium
Byzantium () or Byzantion () was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' continued to be used as a n ...
. In 971, he was in charge of the defense of
Preslav
The modern Veliki Preslav or Great Preslav (, ), former Preslav (; until 1993), is a city and the seat of government of the Veliki Preslav Municipality (Great Preslav Municipality, new Bulgarian: ''obshtina''), which in turn is part of Shumen P ...
against the Greeks. Although the Byzantine historians John Skylitzes and Leo the Deacon testify that Sphangel (as he was known to them) met his death at Dorostolon the same year, the Slavonic chronicles mention Sveneld's activities several times thereafter.
It has even been suggested that Sveneld's own tales found reflection in the chronicle's account of Svyatoslav's campaigns. For example, not entirely impartial is a passage about Sveneld's attempts to warn Svyatoslav to avoid the Dnieper cataracts on his way back 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, ...
. According to the chronicle, Svyatoslav slighted Sveneld's wise advice and was ambushed and killed by the
Pechenegs
The Pechenegs () or Patzinaks, , Middle Turkic languages, Middle Turkic: , , , , , , ka, პაჭანიკი, , , ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Pečenezi, separator=/, Печенези, also known as Pecheneg Turks were a semi-nomadic Turkic peopl ...
, while the old general successfully returned to Kiev by land.
Sveneld seems to have held much of the true power during the minority of Svyatoslav's son Yaropolk. The chronicle blames him for having fomented a fratricidal war between Yaropolk and his brother Oleg of the Drevlyans. Indeed, Sveneld may have coveted Oleg's Drevlyan lands as his own ancient possession. In later centuries it was said that the war was sparked by Oleg's order to kill Sveneld's son Lyut (''Ljótr'') when he hunted in the Drevlyan lands which Oleg regarded as his own.For a sceptical review, see Alexander Nazarenko. ''Древняя Русь на международных путях''. Moscow, 2001. . Page 361.
After the death of Lyut Sveneld is not mentioned further in the chronicles. Instead, it is Blud who acts as his successor in command of Yaropolk's army, to become the ultimate traitor of this prince. Most historians conclude naturally that Sveneld who was certainly very old by the end of 970s should have died before the war between Yaropolk and Vladimir I of Kiev.
In popular culture
Sveneld is a major supporting character in the
Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
Viking
Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9 ...
'' as an antagonistic character, played by veteran Russian theatrical actor
Maksim Sukhanov
Maksim Aleksandrovich Sukhanov (Russian language, Russian: Макси́м Алекса́ндрович Суха́нов; born 10 November 1963) is a Soviet Union, Soviet and Russian actor, producer, theatrical composer, and restaurateur. His fil ...