The Rise of Galicia-Volyn

By the second half of the 12th century, the rising power of Suzdal and Vladimir was being overshadowed by two south­western principalities, Galicia and Volyn. Following Prince Volodimerkos death in 1152, his son Iaroslav “Osmomysl” (“Eight Senses”) became Prince of Galiciawith the consent of the powerful boyars’ and it was during his long reign until 1187 that Galicia emerged as a prosperous city-state with its capital at Galich (Halych), in the foothills of the Carpathian moun­tains.

Prince Iaroslav Osmomysl remained on good terms with the boyar aristocracy, many of whom had become wealthy dur­ing his reign. The boyars had also become powerful, and when Osmomysls son Volodimer tried to succeed him in 1187 he was expelled and had to seek help abroad. King Bela of Hungary agreed to send an army in support, but instead proceeded to occupy Galician territory and install his son Andrew as king. Volodimer turned to the Polish Prince Kazimierz of Krakow and together with the Galician boyars (who had changed sides) Andrewwas expelled in 1190 and Volodimer was installed as Prince of Galicia.

A neighboring principality to the north was also growing in strength. As the personal domain of the princes of Kyiv, the western region of Volin with capital at Volodimer was given by Iziaslav of Kyiv to his son Mstislav, who continued to spend most of his time in the struggle with Suzdal for possession of Kyiv.

A year after his seizure of Galicia, Roman turned to his main objective, the title of Great Prince of Kyiv and Rus. Al­though diminished in stature, Kyivwas still the main prize and being the residence of the head of the Greek Orthodox Church of Eastern Europe gave it much prestige. Kyiv was ruled by Romans former father-in-law Riurik Rostislavich, who was allied with Chernihiv, and in a surprise move Roman appeared before the city with a Galician-Volynian army, supported by the “Black Hoods” nomads. The people of Kyiv also turned against Riurik, and Romans men were allowed to enter the Podol section and occupy the entire lower town district. Riurik retreated to the “Gora” (Hill), Iaroslav s fortified city, but his position was hopeless and he submitted without a fight. Riurik was sent off to his possession of Ovruch and for the next 2-3 years Roman reigned as Great Prince of Kyiv and Rus, known in the west as ^aRomanus Rex Ruthenorum^w or simply as “Rex Russiae^w

Romans rising dominance had alarmed many princes who saw the balance of power shifting once again. Anyone could be next, and the Olgovichi of Chernihiv felt particularly vulnerable.

The same winter (December-January 1202-03) Great Prince Ri- urik Rostislavich of Kyiv desiring to get back Kyiv, joined the Ol- govichi, took the Polovtsian khans... and summoned all the Polovtsian land: so he came with great forces, and the great and glorious city of Kyiv was taken by Riurik, by the Olgovich princes and by the entire Polovtsian land. And such great evil oc­curred in the land of Rus as has not been seen since the Chris­tianization of Kyiv. There were many misfortunes, occupations by the enemy which befell it but never such misfortune as hap­pened now. Not only did they burn the Podol and the upper city but they robbed the metropolitan cathedral of Holy Sophia, the holy Church of the Tithes of the Theotokos (Mother of God), and all the monasteries. They seized all jewels from the icons and they stole others, and venerable crosses and sacred vessels and books and costly vestments of the first princes, which hung in the holy churches as mementos of them. Old monks and nuns, priests, the blind, lame and deaf, the handicapped—all were massacred. And those who were young were taken captive by the Alans (Polovtsi)... to their encampments. Then the princes of Chernigov went to Chernigov and Riurk Rostislavich went to Ovruch.¹⁸

For the next seven years, however, the Rostislavichi and Olgo- vichi clans continued to fight each other for possession of Kyiv, which repeatedly changed hands.

The fortified border cities of Cherven and Peremyshl and the territory between the Buh and Visla rivers had become im­portant for trade and commerce. Two major trade routes passed through it: the east-west trade route from the orient to Kyiv, and through Liublin to Poland and Germany; and the north­south route, from the Slavic Baltic towns (Section 7.5) and along the Buh and Dnister rivers to the Black Sea and on to Constantinople.

This would be Prince Roman s last year to carry the sword. The following year he invaded Leszek s Little Poland and cross­ing the Vistula captured several towns, but in early June while leading a reconnaissance (or a hunting) party he was ambushed and killed by the Poles. The main Galician-Volinian force was then surprised at Zawichost on the Vistula by Leszek and his brother Conrad of Mazovia and suffered a crushing defeat.

For the next two decades Galicia and Volin would become the object of a power struggle between the Kings of Hungary and Poland and the Orthodox princes. Although an anti-Or- thodox Crusade had not been proclaimed by the Pope, religion was beginning to play a greater role when Pope Innocent III crowned King Andrew II s son Kolman as King of Galicia. In the meantime Prince Roman s widow Anna was forced to flee with her two infant sons Danylo (Daniel) and Vasilko when the Galician boyars invited Volodimer, the son of Igor of Novgorod- Siversky who had survived the fatal battle with the Polovtsi. Not welcome in either Galicia or Volyn, Princess Anna fled to Poland from where her young son Daniel was sent to Hungary to be raised under the guardianship of King Andrew. By the treaty of Spisz in 1214 eastern Galicia with Galich fell to Hun­gary while western Galicia and many border towns of Volyn went to Poland.

It was Riurik s nephew Mstislav the Daring, who would play the key role in restoring Galicia. Born sometime before 1176, he was the son of Prince Mstislav “Khrabry” (“The Brave”) and is first mentioned as commanding the Kyivfortress of Trepol on the Dnipro River. We know he later held Torchesk, was driven out in 1207 and invaded Novgorod territory, cap­turing the important eastern outpost of Torzhok. In 1210 he was invited to be prince of Novgorod, and in the next four years he showed his ability by capturing Chud (Estonian) and Cher­nihiv towns. As observed by the Nikonian Chronicle he “was very intelligent, brave, and always careful in his actions,” traits which he would soon exhibit in the west. His opportunity came in 1216-17 when Leszek of Cracow had a falling out with the King ofHungary and asked Mstislav for help. With his cousin Volodimer Riurikovich and troops from Polotsk and some Polovtsi cavalry, Mstislav the Daring invaded Galicia in 1218. He had married the daughter of the Polovtsi Khan Kotian and could also count on his father-in-laws support. Kalman, the son of King Andrew ofHungary, was taken prisoner with his family and sent back to Hungary, and Mstislav installed himself as Prince of Galicia. The following year Mstislav^,s daughter Anna married Romans eldest son Danylo, who by now was Prince of Volodimer-in-Volin, perhaps with a view of restoring the union of the two principalities. Ayear later, how­ever, Mstislav the Daring was expelled from Galich by a com­bined Polish-Hungarian army, and Prince Kalman returned to rule.

Left to their own devices. Prince Daniel and his brother Vasylko set out against King Kalman to regain their father s do­main. “Upon his return (from Galych), Danylo went forthwith his brother (Vasylko) and took Berestia, Ugrovesk, Vereshchin, Stolp, Komov and all of Okraina ”²⁰

A Polish force sent along the Buh River was also defeated and suffered heavy casualties.

Mstylav the Daring had withdrawn to Rus to raise a larger army and in 1221 with Mstislav Romanovich of Kyiv, a force from Suzdal, and Polovtsi cavalry he unleashed his third cam­paign in Galicia. The first battle took place on the Seret River where Filio, the “ever-proud” Hungarian commander,” had boasted “one stone can break many pots, or... that one needed only a sharp sword and a swift steed (to kill) many Rusins.”²¹

The decisive encounter of the war occurred on the Dnister River, not far from Galich where a mighty battle began to un­fold. Prince Mstislav put into effect the “Rusian battle,” as was anticipated by Filio who briefed his commanders that “Rus is quick to battle but bear their attack since they cannot endure long”

This was the standard battle tactic of Rus, dating to Svi­atoslav the Conqueror, and was especially used when outnum­bered by the enemy. The idea was to deliver the first blow, pen­etrate the enemy ranks and break up his battle lines into isolated pockets that could then be destroyed more easily. The two battle lines met, and pressed by the superior Polish-Hungarian forces the Rusian and Polovtsi regiments began to give way, just as Filio had predicted, but this time it was a ruse. Mstislav had held a part of his army back, waiting for the enemy to push for­ward and overextend himself. At Mstislav s signal the hidden reserves struck the enemy’s flanks, and surrounded and hemmed in on all sides, most of Filio s men were cut down and he himself barely escaped with his bodyguard and several com­manders. The two Mstislavs had won a great victory which ended the Catholic attempts to dominate Galicia and Volin. As recorded by the Nikonian Chronicle: “The same year (1221) Mstislav Mstislavich (the Daring) fought against the Hungar­ians, slew a great multitude of them, captured the son of the Hungarian King (Kalman) and himself ascended to the throne of Galich.”