Rus’ chronicle

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Rus' chronicle
Old East Slavic: лѣтопись
Radzivill chronicle 121.jpg
Tale of Bygone Years (Primary Chronicle) in Radziwiłł Chronicle of 15th century.
Author(s)chroniclers, who were mainly churchmen
LanguageOld Church Slavonic and Old Russian
Date11-18th centuries
GenreHistory

Rus’ chronicle[1][2][3] or Russian chronicle[4][5]: 51 [6] or Rus’ letopis (Old East Slavic: лѣтопись) is the main type of Rus' historical literature. Chronicles were composed from 11th to 18th centuries. Chronicles were one of the leading genres of Old Rus’ literature.[7]

Chronicles were the main form of historical narrative until the middle of the 16th century, the time of Ivan the Terrible, when they gave primacy to another historiographical genre — chronographs.[7]

Copies

Old Rus' chronicles survive in some hundreds copies (codices). Some chronicles are known in multiple versions, but others are known from only a single copy. Every chronicle was a svod, or "collection" because it included materials from various earlier chronicle texts. Individual chronicles were revised, shortened or added to with entries on the events of the last year or even decades. There are probably several tens of svods in existence.[7]

Сharacteristic

The chroniclers (singular letopisets) were mainly churchmen. Rus' chronicles were composed in monasteries, at the princely (see: knyaz) courts (later at the courts of the tsars of Moscow and kings of Galicia-Volhynia) and in the offices of Metropolitans. Individual chronicles often contradicted each other. Chronicles typically consisted of collections of short factual entries for the preceding year, often including speeches and dialogues between princes. In some instances the chronicler would provide an extended narrative on the most significant events of Rus’ history, often embellished with literary phrases, including standard speech formulas, epithet's, rhetorical figures and others.[7]

Aleksey Shakhmatov was the foremost expert in textology of the old Rus' chronicles. He considered that the main part of the chronicle texts were svods, that is collections of separate records from different sources, and every new chronicle was a svod of some previous chronicles and newly added historical records[8][9]

In recent studies much of the chronicles have become viewed as collections of annual records, produced in certain state or church offices - as are West European annals. For example, the hypothetical "Novgorod Archbishop Chronicle" is believed to have been prepared at the office of Novgorod archdiocese from 12th to 14th centuries and was the main basis of the Novgorod First Chronicle of the 15th century.[10]

Sources

Sources for the oldest chronicles include Byzantine and South Slavic texts on sacred history and other subjects, the Chronicle of George Hamartolos on the Generations of Noah (in Primary Chronicle),[11] legends, legal documents such as the Rus'–Byzantine Treaties (in Primary Chronicle) and Short redaction of Russkaya Pravda (in Novgorod First Chronicle), historical records and others.[8][9]

Genealogy

The Primary Chronicle of the beginning of the 12th century is the oldest surviving old Rus' chronicle, narrating the earliest history of Rus'. However Shakhmatov paid attention to the abundance of entries about the 11th century Novgorod, which are also present in the Novgorod First chronicle (of the 15th century), but absent in the Primary Chronicle. This and some others textual facts were a base for Aleksey Shakhmatov's theory that the beginning of Novgorod First Chronicle includes text that is older than that in Primary Chronicle. The scholar named it "Primary Svod" (Collection) and dated it to the end of the 11th century. This svod was also a basis for the Primary chronicle. If two or more chronicles coincide with each other up to a certain year then either one chronicle is copied from another (more rarely) or these chronicles had a common source, an older svod. Shakhmatov discovered and developed a method of study on the chronicle (svod) genealogy. Based on textual analysis, Shakhmatov built extensive genealogy of the old Rus' chronicles. He connected most of these chronicles and created a genealogy table, in which the extant chronicles of the 14th-17th centuries went back not only to the "Primary Svod", but also to earlier hypothetical svods of the 11th century and even to historical records of the end of the 10th century. Shakhmatov's method and theories became a mainstay in the Russian chronicle studies.[8][9][10][12]

History

Old Rus' chronicles were systematically prepared from the middle of the 11th century. There were two centers of the old Rus' Chronicles preparation in this early period: Kiev (the capital of early Rus') and Novgorod. The Primary Chronicle of the beginning of the 12th century was a combination of Kievan and Novgorodian chronicle records, as well as the Novgorod First chronicle. The "Primary Chronicle" survives in Laurentian and Hypatian codices. Chronicles of South Russian princedoms of 12th-13th centuries survive in the Hypatian Chronicle:[7][8][9] hypothetical "Kievan Chronicle",[13] chosen from Hypatian Chronicle, was a continuation of Primary Chronicle and covered events from 1118 to 1200; Galician–Volhynian Chronicle, also containing in Hypatian Chronicle, covered events in Galician and Volhynian princedoms from 1201 to 1292.[14] Chronicles of Rostov, Vladimir and Pereyaslavl of Suzdal of the end of 12th - the beginning of the 13th century better remained in Laurentian, Radziwill chronicles (codices) and Chronicle of Pereyaslavl of Suzdal.[7][8][9]

Hypatian Chronicle of the end of the 13th - the beginning of the 14th centuries is an All-Rus' svod in south redaction (presumedly). It survives in сopies of the 15th-18th centuries.[14] Laurentian Chronicle of the 14th century is a svod from North-East Rus' (Vladimir-Suzdal). One copy of 1377.[15]

"Tverian svod" of 1375 reflected in Rogozhskiy Chronicle and Tverian Collection of the 16th century.[7][8][9] Chronicle svod, related with Cyprian, Metropolitan of Moscow, was continued up to 1408 and survived in Troitskaya ("Trinity") Chronicle, which burnt in 1812 Fire of Moscow. It was reconstructed by Mikhail Prisyolkov.[16] Chronicle svod was made in Tver about 1412, it reflected additional revision (similar to Troitskaya Chronicle) of All-Rus' svod of the end of the 14th - the beginning of the 15th century. This "Tverian svod" reflected in Simeon and Rogozhskiy chronicles. "Novgorodsko-Sofiysky Svod" of the 1430s (or "Svod of 1448" according to Shakhmatov) was compiled at office of Moscow Metropolitan and united All-Rus' and Novgorodian chronicles. The svod was preserved in Sofia First and Novgorod Fourth chronicles.[7][8][9]

First known Moscow grand princely appeared at the middle of the 15th century. "Chronicle Svod of 1472" reflected in Vologda-Perm and Nicanor chronicles. Basis of "Svod of 1472" was "Novgorodsko-Sofiysky Svod", edited by Moscow grand princely chroniclers, who brought censorship, excluded in particular the mentions of Novgorodian liberty, because Novgorod State was joint to Moscow Grand Princedom. In the end of the 1470s, "Novgorodsko-Sofiysky Svod", the svod similar to Troitskaya Chronicle and other sources was compiled together. This compilation was censored even more than "Svod of 1472". The "Compilation of the 1470s" reflected in "Moscow Grand Princely Svod of 1479", surviving in copy of the 18th century, and in its later redaction was continued up to 1492. This "Svod of 1479" underlaid all of official chronicles of the end of the 15th - the 16th centuries. The compilation of the 1470s also reflected in the first part of Yermolin Chronicle. The "Svod of Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery" contained text, independent of Moscow Grand Princedom. This svod reflected in the second part of Yermolin Chronicle and in so-called Abridged Chronicle Svods of the end of the 15th century. "Rostov Archbishop Svod" of the 1480s reflected in Typographical Chronicle. Another "Chronicle Svod of 1480s", made in unofficial church sphere, reflected in "Svod of 1518", which in turn reflected in Sofia Second Chronicle and Lvov Chronicle. Ioasaf Chronicle was made the end of the 1520s at office of Moscow Metropolitan. It covered events of 1437-1520. In the same years, the first redaction of Nikon Chronicle. Immediate source of Nikon Chronicle was Ioasaf Chronicle. Nikon Chronicle was the largest Rus’ chronicle. Voskresenskaya ("Resurrection") Chronicle was another extensive chronicle, it was made between 1542-1544. In the second half of the 1550s, in the reign of Ivan the Terrible, initial redaction of Nikon Chronicle was united with passages from Voskresenskaya Chronicle and Chronicle of the Beginning of Tsardom - chronicle of events of 1533-1552, i.e. the beginning of Ivan's reign (as grand prince, and since 1547 as tsar). In 1568—1576, also in the reign of Ivan the Terrible, multivolume Illustrated Chronicle Svod. This svods was the last All-Rus' chronicles, they give place to another form of historiographical texts — chronographs. Russian chronicles of 17th-18th centuries were local, provincial texts,[7][8][9] like Siberian Chronicles of the late 16th - 18th centuries.[17][18]

Development of Rus' chronicles were Lithuanian Chronicles of the 15th - 16th centuries[19] and Ukrainian Chronicles of the 17th - 18th centuries.[20]

Some Rus’ chronicles

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Russian Chronicles.

Notes

  1. ^ Lunt, Horace G. (1995). "What the Rus' Primary Chronicle Tells Us about the Origin of the Slavs and of Slavic Writing". Harvard Ukrainian Studies. 19: 335–357. ISSN 0363-5570. JSTOR 41037009.
  2. ^ The Chronicle of Novgorod, 1016–1471. Royal Historical Society. 1914.
  3. ^ Sužiedėlis, Simas, ed. (1970–1978). "Chronicles, Lithuanian". Encyclopedia Lituanica. Vol. I. Boston, Massachusetts: Juozas Kapočius. pp. 519–521. OCLC 95559.
  4. ^ "The Russian Primary Chronicle". Britannica.
  5. ^ Cross, Samuel Hazzard; Sherbowitz-Wetzor, Olgerd P., eds. (1953). The Russian Primary Chronicle, Laurentian Text. Cambridge, MA: The Mediaeval Academy of America.
  6. ^ Lunt, Horace G. (1988). "On Interpreting the Russian Primary Chronicle: The Year 1037". The Slavic and East European Journal. 32 (2): 251–264. doi:10.2307/308891. JSTOR 308891.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Lurye, Yakov. Chronicles // Literature of Old Rus'. Biographical and Bibliographical Dictionary / ed. by Oleg Tvorogov. - Moscow: Prosvescheniye ("Enlightenment"), 1996. (Russian: Лурье Я.С. Летописи // Литература Древней Руси. Биобиблиографический словарь / под ред. О.В. Творогова. - М.: Просвещение, 1996).
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Aleksey Shakhmatov. Investigation on the Oldest Kievan Rus' chronicle svods. - Saint Petersburg: Printing-House of M.A. Aleksandrov, 1908. — XX, 686 p. — Reprint from Chronicle of Work of Imperial Archaeographic Commission. — Vol. 20. (Russian: Шахматов А.А. Разыскания о древнейших русских летописных сводах. — СПб.: Типография М.А. Александрова, 1908. — XX, 686 с. — Оттиск из кн.: Летописи занятий Императорской Археографической Комиссии. — Т. 20).
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h Aleksey Shakhmatov. Review of Rus' chronicle svods of 14th—16th Century. Moscow / ed. by A.S. Orlov, Boris Grekov; Academy of Sciences of USSR, Institute of Literature. — Moscow, Leningrad: Publisher of Academy of Sciences of USSR, 1938. — 372 p. (Russian: Шахматов А.А. Обозрение русских летописных сводов XIV—XVI вв. / отв. ред.: А.С. Орлов, акад. Б.Д. Греков; АН СССР, Институт литературы. – М.; Л.: Издательство АН СССР, 1938. — 372 с.).
  10. ^ a b Гиппиус А.А. К истории сложения текста Новгородской первой летописи // Новгородский исторический сборник. — СПб., 1997. — Вып. 6 (16) / Рос. акад. наук, Институт рос. истории, С.-Петербургский филиал; отв. ред. В.Л. Янин. — C. 3—72; Гиппиус А.А. К характеристике новгородского владычного летописания XII–XIV вв. // Великий Новгород в истории средневековой Европы: К 70-летию В.Л. Янина. – М.: Русские словари, 1999. — С. 345–364; Гимон Т.В. События XI — начала XII в. в новгородских летописях и перечнях // Древнейшие государства Восточной Европы: 2010 год: Предпосылки и пути образования Древнерусского государства / отв. ред. серии Е.А. Мельникова. Институт всеобщей истории РАН. – М.: Рус. Фонд Содействия Образ. и Науке, 2012. — С. 584–706.
  11. ^ Petrukhin, Vladimir. Rus' in the 9-10th centuries. From Varangians Invitation to the Сhoice of Faith / 2nd edition, corrected and supplemented. — Moscow: Forum; Neolit, 2014. — 464 p. Russian: Петрухин В.Я. Русь в IX—X веках. От призвания варягов до выбора веры / Издание 2-е, испр. и доп. — М.: Форум; Неолит, 2014. — 464 с.).
  12. ^ Бобров А. Г. Новгородские летописи XV века. — СПб. : Дмитрий Буланин, 2000. — 287 с.
  13. ^ In quotes, there are hypothetical chronicle, existence of which is supposed in textology studies
  14. ^ a b Лихачева О.П. Летопись Ипатьевская // Словарь книжников и книжности Древней Руси / АН СССР. ИРЛИ; Отв. ред. Д.С. Лихачев. — Л.: Наука, 1987. — Вып. 1 (XI – первая половина XIV в.). — С. 236; Лихачева О.П. Летопись Ипатьевская // Литература Древней Руси. Биобиблиографический словарь / под ред. О.В. Творогова. - М.: Просвещение, 1996
  15. ^ Лурье Я.С. Летопись Лаврентьевская // Словарь книжников и книжности Древней Руси / АН СССР. ИРЛИ; Отв. ред. Д.С. Лихачев. — Л.: Наука, 1987. — Вып. 1 (XI – первая половина XIV в.).
  16. ^ Приселков М.Д. Троицкая летопись: Реконструкция текста. – 2-е изд. – СПб.: Наука, 2002. – 512, [2] с.
  17. ^ (in Russian) [1] Sergei Soloviev about Chronicles authenticity.
  18. ^ Сергеев В.И. Сибирские летописи // Жуков Е.М. Советская историческая энциклопедия: В 16 т. - М.: Государственное научное издательство «Советская энциклопедия», 1961-1976.
  19. ^ Лурье Я.С. Летописи белорусско-литовские (западнорусские) // Словарь книжников и книжности Древней Руси / АН СССР. ИРЛИ; Отв. ред. Д.С. Лихачев. — Л.: Наука, 1987-.
  20. ^ Марченко М. І., Українська історіографія (З давніх часів до сер. XIX ст.), К., 1959; Українські письменники. Біо-бібліографіч. словник, т. 1, К., 1960.

Some editions

  • Complete Collection of Russian Chronicles: Russian: Полное собрание русских летописей. — СПб.; М, 1843; М., 1989. — Т. 1—38.
  • Новгородская первая летопись старшего и младшего изводов. — М.; Л., 1950.
  • Псковские летописи.— М.; Л., 1941—1955. — Вып. 1—2.
  • Рассказы русских летописей XII—XIV вв. / Перевод и пояснения Т.Н. Михельсон. — М., 1968; 2-е изд. — М., 1973.
  • Рассказы русских летописей XV—XVII вв. / Перевод и пояснения Т.Н. Михельсон — М., 1976,
  • Севернорусский летописный свод 1472 года / Подг. текста и комм Я.С. Лурье; Перевод В.В. Колесова // Памятники литературы Древней Руси: Вторая половина XV века. — М., 1982. — С. 410—443, 638—655.
  • The Rus' Primary Chronicle, Laurentian Text. Translated and edited by Samuel Hazzard Cross and Olgerd P. Sherbowitz-Wetzor. Cambridge, MA: The Mediaeval Academy of America, 1953.
  • [https://web.archive.org/web/20081207013842/http://www.uoregon.edu/~kimball/chronicle.htm Excerpts of Primary Chronicle, including founding of Novgorod by Rus', Attacks on Byzantines, and Conversion of Vladimir. Also mentions several Slavic tribes by name.
  • A collation of Primary Chronicle by Donald Ostrowski in Cyrillic is available at https://web.archive.org/web/20050309022812/http://hudce7.harvard.edu/~ostrowski/pvl/ together with an erudite and lengthy introduction in English. This is an interlinear collation including the five main manuscript witnesses, as well as a new paradosis, or reconstruction of the original.
  • The Chronicle of Novgorod 1016-1471. Intr. C. Raymond Beazley, A. A. Shakhmatov (London, 1914).
  • Savignac, David (trans). The Pskov 3rd Chronicle.

Some literature

  • Сухомлинов М.И. О древней русской летописи как памятнике литературном. — СПб., 1856.
  • Aleksey Shakhmatov. Investigation on the Oldest Rus' Chronicle Svods. — Saint Petersburg: Printing-House of M.A. Aleksandrov, 1908. — XX, 686 p. — Reprint from Chronicle of Work of Imperial Archaeographic Commission. — Vol. 20. (Russian: Шахматов А.А. Разыскания о древнейших русских летописных сводах. – СПб.: Типография М.А. Александрова, 1908. — XX, 686 с. — Оттиск из кн.: Летописи занятий Императорской Археографической Комиссии. — Т. 20).
  • Aleksey Shakhmatov. Review of Rus' Chronicle Svods of 14th—16th Century. Moscow / ed. by A.S. Orlov, Boris Grekov; Academy of Sciences of USSR, Institute of Literature. — Moscow, Leningrad: Publisher of Academy of Sciences of USSR, 1938. — 372 p. (Russian: Шахматов А.А. Обозрение русских летописных сводов XIV—XVI вв. / отв. ред.: А.С. Орлов, акад. Б.Д. Греков; АН СССР, Институт литературы. – М.; Л.: Издательство АН СССР, 1938. — 372 с.).
  • Приселков М.Д. История русского летописания XI—XV вв. — Л., 1940.
  • Приселков М.Д. Троицкая летопись: Реконструкция текста. – 2-е изд. – СПб.: Наука, 2002. – 512, [2] с.
  • Лихачев Д.С. Русские летописи и их культурно-историческое значение. — М.; Л., 1947.
  • Дмитриева Р.П. Библиография русского летописания. — М.; Л., 1962
  • Насонов А.Н. История русского летописания XI — начала XVIII века. — М., 1969
  • Творогов О.В. Сюжетное повествование в летописях XI—XIII вв. / Истоки русской беллетристики: Возникновение сюжетного повествования в древнерусской литературы. — Л.: Наука, 1970. — С. 31—66.
  • Лурье Я.С. К изучению летописного жанра // Труды Отдела древнерусской литературы. — 1972. — Т. 27. — С. 76—93.
  • Лурье Я.С. Общерусские летописи XIV—XV вв. — Л., 1976.
  • Корецкий В.И. История русского летописания второй половины XVI — начала XVII века. — М., 1986.
  • Словарь книжников и книжности Древней Руси / АН СССР. ИРЛИ; Отв. ред. Д.С. Лихачев. — Л.: Наука, 1987. — Вып. 1 (XI – первая половина XIV в.). — С. 234—251; Л.: Наука, 1989. — Вып. 2, ч. 2. — С. 17—18, 20—69.
  • Лурье Я.С. Две истории Руси XV века. — СПб., 1994.
  • Literature of Old Rus'. Biographical and Bibliographical Dictionary / ed. by Oleg Tvorogov. - Moscow: Prosvescheniye ("Enlightenment"), 1996. (Russian: Лурье Я.С. Летописи // Литература Древней Руси. Биобиблиографический словарь / под ред. О.В. Творогова. - М.: Просвещение, 1996).
  • Бобров А.Г. Новгородские летописи XV века. — СПб.: Дмитрий Буланин, 2000. — 287 с.
  • Гиппиус А.А. К истории сложения текста Новгородской первой летописи // Новгородский исторический сборник. — СПб., 1997. — Вып. 6 (16) / Рос. акад. наук, Институт рос. истории, С.-Петербургский филиал; отв. ред. В.Л. Янин. — C. 3–72.
  • Гиппиус А.А. К характеристике новгородского владычного летописания XII–XIV вв. // Великий Новгород в истории средневековой Европы: К 70-летию В.Л. Янина. — М.: Русские словари, 1999. — С. 345–364.
  • Гимон Т.В. События XI – начала XII в. в новгородских летописях и перечнях // Древнейшие государства Восточной Европы: 2010 год: Предпосылки и пути образования Древнерусского государства / отв. ред. серии Е.А. Мельникова. Институт всеобщей истории РАН. — М.: Рус. Фонд Содействия Образ. и Науке, 2012. — С. 584–706.
  • Сергеев В.И. Сибирские летописи // Жуков Е.М. Советская историческая энциклопедия: В 16 т. - М.: Государственное научное издательство «Советская энциклопедия», 1961-1976.
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