Around 1095 a new chronicle was compiled, which Alexei Shakhmatov suggests calling The Primary Chronicle. He argues convincingly that The Primary Chronicle was preserved in The Novgorod First Chronicle, although in somewhat revised form. Thus, with a high degree of probability we can pick out from the extant text of […]

At the beginning of the 12th century (around 1113 it is assumed) The Primary Chronicle was again revised, this time by the monk Nestor of the Kiev Crypt Monastery. Nestor’s work became known among specialists as The Tale of Bygone Years from the opening words of its lengthy title: “Se […]

The Tale of Bygone Years carried the account up to the first decade of the twelfth century. Throughout this century chronicle-writing continued in various Russian principalities. These chronicles have not survived, however, and we know about them only from later chronicles in which they were wholly or partially included. We […]

Novgorodian chronicle-writing is of a completely different nature. Firstly, it is emphatically local: the Novgorodian chroniclers rarely make references to national Russian events or events in other Russian lands. The Novgorodian chronicle also lacks the religious rhetoric that was characteristic, as already mentioned, of the chronicle of Vladimir-SuzdalianRussia. The Novgorodian […]

A place of honour among the genres of Byzantine literature was held by the writings of the Church Fathers, theologians and preachers. These sermons and homilies by Byzantine authors were widely known in Old Russia, and original works by Russian writers had appeared by the eleventh century: The Sermon on […]

Hilarion’s Sermon was by no means the only work of oratorial prose. In the middle of the twelfth century the writings of Metropolitan Clement of Smolensk72 enjoyed great authority, of whom the chronicle said that he was “a writer and philosopher”, the like of which had never been known before […]

A late Life of St Cyril says that he took vows early, became a hermit and during the period of his reclusion expounded much of the Holy Scriptures”. Later the prince and townspeople “begged” Cyril to become bishop of Turov (in the north-west of the principality of Kiev). Cyril died […]

In the process of transplanting Byzantine and Old Bulgarian literature the Russian scribes acquired works representing the most varied genres of early Christian mediaeval literature. The unique quality of Old Russian literature, however, revealed itself, in particular, in the fact that already in the early period of original literature Old […]

The RussianChurch was striving to achieve legal and i eological independence of the Byzantine Church. Ever since a Russian, Yaroslav the Wise’s confessor, Hilarion, was appointed etropolitan in 1051, the authority of the Russian monasteries, in particular the Kiev Crypt Monastery, had been growing. It was extremely important for the […]

An example of the first group of subjects is The Life of St Theodosius of the Caves.85 It was written by Nestor, a monk in the Kiev Crypt Monastery, whom we mentioned earlier as the compiler of The Tale of Bygone Years. There is some difference of opinion as to […]