Istorija se uvek piše u službi dnevne politike, uvek se piše za potrebe vlasti i uvek se prilagođava njenim potrebama.
Ima neka začkoljica sa ugovorima koje je Porfirogenit sklapao sa Rusima, tako da bi možda njegove konstrukcije o doseljavanju Srba na Avarima od Romana opražnjen zapadni Balkan trebalo staviti i proučiti u tom kontekstu. Verovatno je stavljajunjem Srba u istorijski kontekst Balkanskih domazetovića želeo da oslabi eventualne pretenzije slovenskog povezivanja između Rusa i Srba.
Bugari su neslovenske pridošlice, u redu, Hrvati su neslovenske pridošlice, u redu, ali Sloveni na Balkanu nisu. Dakle, falsifikovao je doseljavanje Srba, a na Slovence, Moravce (Panonske Slovene), Dakijske Slovene je i zaboravio. Očigledno mu nisu bili interesantni.
Rus in Byzantine Constantinople
1. Hostile relations
The presence of
Rus' in Constantinople was recorded in the oldest Russian chronicle
Повесть временных лет (the
Primary Chronicle, often translated in english as «Tale of Bygone Years» ), which dates back to the 10th c., as well as in
Byzantine sources ([SIZE=+0]Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus'[/SIZE]
De administrando Imperio). Initially, relations between Kiev and Constantinople were hostile. In 860 the Rus' besieged the Byzantine capital and the first half of the 10th century saw a number of seaborne raids against the city and its surrounding areas, led by princes Oleg and Igor. The Byzantine Empire had to pay an annual tax to the prince of Kiev.
2. Trade (9th-15th c.)
The famous journey of princess Olga from Kiev to Constantinople and her visit to emperor
Constantine VIIwas also recorded in the [SIZE=+0]
Primary Chronicle[/SIZE]. It contains information on the trade treaties between Kiev and Byzantium. To avoid military complications, the Byzantines agreed to grant rights of free trade to Russian merchants from Kiev and Novgorod (as stipulated in treaties dating from 907, 911, 943 and 972). Following these treaties, a great number of merchants of precious furs, wax and slaves (prisoners of war from the territories bordering Kiev and ruled by the
Pechenegs) travelled along the river Dnieper in their dug-outs. Back to Kiev the merchants brought silk textiles, weapons, golden works of art and luxury items. According to Constantine Porphyrogenitus, there were two fleets of Russian ships: the first started from Kiev in April and arrived at
Constantinople in June, the second (from Chernigov and Peryaslavl in NW Russia) started later and arrived in August.
[SUP]1[/SUP] The
neighbourhood where the Rus' merchants lodged was in the area of the monastery of
St. Mamas, which was outside the
city walls in the corner of the
Golden Horn next to the
Blahernae palace. The nearest gate was Xyloporta. Through it the Rus' entered the city in groups of 50 unarmed men and traded in furs, wax and slaves. They had the right to stay and receive financial support by the treasury for six months.
During the 11th-12th c. the same state of affairs was probably preserved, since An[SIZE=+0]th[/SIZE]ony (a Russian pilgrim who visited the capital in the year 1200) described the commercial streets of the city along with the
places of pilgrimage.
Trade relations between the northern peoples and Byzantium were interrupted at the time of the Tatar invasion (second half of the 13th century), after which intermediation in the trade with the Byzantines in the
Black Sea region and adjoining lands passed into the hands of
Venetians and especially
Genoese merchants, who stepped into the important points of communication in the
Crimea and the estuaries of the great northern rivers – the Dnieper, Dniester and Volga.
In the 14th-15th c. the Russians again headed for the southern coast of the Black Sea, but the main interest was in the lands of
Asia Minor, and Constantinople remained outside the main route for the movement of goods. During this period the Russian lands were united under the Grand Duchy of Moscow.
3. Pilgrimage (9th-15th c.)
As early as the 9th-10th c. there were records of Russian pilgrims to Constantinople. However, it was after the baptism of prince Vladimir in 988 and the
adoption of Christianity in Kiev that Russian monks became among the most ardent visitors to the Byzantine capital. One of the most interesting and important historical sources is the preserved description of Constantinople from 1200, written by the Novgorod monk and pilgrim Anthony.
[SUP]2[/SUP] This description is among the most detailed accounts of the
holy places and relics of Constantinople.
Pilgrimages from the Russian lands to Constantinople in the 14th-15th c. (until 1453 – the
conquest of Constantinople by the Turks) were very active. Numerous accounts by pilgrims called "хождения" (Hozhdenija – texts of Russian pilgrims about their visits in Constantinople or in the Holy Lands) bear witness to this rise in pilgrimage.
[SUP]3[/SUP] It seems that the imperial capital was among the most famous sacred places for Orthodox Christians, along the Holy Land in Palestine, and attracted a great number of pilgrims. Some of their accounts are in fact guide books about the places of worship and the relics which were preserved in the various churches of the city. A special place of honour was awarded to the main temple of the city,
Saint Sophia. Other texts contain unique information on events which happened in the city during the stay of the respective pilgrim.
4. Literary activity and church relations between Moscow and Constantinople (14th-15th c.)
The great number of accounts dating to the end of the Middle Ages show the active role of Russian
men of letters and copyists in Constantinople. They had their own copying centres (
scriptoria), such as the monastery of John Prodromos or
Stoudios, from where numerous manuscripts and literary works from the 14th-15th c. originated. Monks from Serbia, Russia and Bulgaria lived together in such communities. Another major literary hub was the monastery of
Theotokos Peribleptos.
[SUP]4[/SUP] Known are the names of Athanasios of Serpukhov (or Visotsky, 1387) and Ignatius of Smolensk (he accompanied the Muscovite metropolitan Poemen to Constantinople in 1389).
In 1387 metropolitan Cyprian traveled to Constantinople. His suite included Athanasios of Serpukhov (celebrated locally), who remained in the Byzantine capital until his death.
During the 13th - 14th c. Byzantines and Russians took turns at becoming metropolitans of Kiev. At the end of the 14th c. and during the 15th c. certain Muscovite metropolitans traveled to
Constantinople (such as Poemen and Cyprian) to negotiate the formation of an archbishopric in Moscow. The close relations of Russia with the
patriarchate of Constantinople continued throughout the Middle Ages.
1. Novello G., "I Rus’ a Costantinopoli nel X secolo: la via del Dnepr e la permanenza nella capitale", Porphyra 6 (2005) 14-29 (accessed in www.porphyra.it).
2. Лидов А. М., (ed.), Реликвии в Византии и Древней Руси. Письменные источники (Москва 2006).
3. Majeska G., Russian Travelers to Constantinople in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries (Wachington DC 1984).
4. Meyendorff J., Byzantium and the Rise of Russia (Cambridge 1981), 239; Malamut E., "Le monastère Saint-Jean Prodrome de Pétra de Constantinople", in M. Kaplan (ed.), Le sacré et son inscription dans l'espace à Byzance et en Occident (Byzantina Sorbonensia 18, Paris 2001), 219-233.
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