Novgorod

(Travellers | Cities | Routes | Trade Goods | Themes)

by Caroline Stone

Novgorod was founded, according to the Novgorod Chronicle, in 854 A.D. The city was always orientated towards commerce. It lay on "the waterway from the Varangians to the Greeks", in other words it was the major link between Northern Europe and Islamic lands, in particular the Caliphate at Baghdad. Novgorod remained important until the late 15th century, after which it lost its independence and declined politically and as a center of trade.

The earliest written sources state that Novgorod was founded by the Slovenes (Slavs), but quickly came to be ruled by the Varangians (Vikings), called in to help defend the city from the Pecheneg nomads to the south, and the Rus. Novgorod's position on the River Volkhov made it a key link in the river system of trade routes that linked the Baltic with the Black Sea.

Archaeology and Byzantine sources suggest that Novgorod may have been founded somewhat later (10th century) than the date given by the Chronicle, but finds from the earliest period of glass, amber, walnuts, silver coins with Arabic inscriptions, and ceramics are a reminder of the far-flung trade network from the very beginning.

In spring, the prince of Kiev would make his way down the Dneiper with furs, slaves, wax and honey to Constantinople, returning with southern luxury goods and with new ideas. In 957 A.D., Princess Olga, who ten years earlier had organized Novgorod's tax system, made the journey to the great city and returned a fervent convert to the Orthodox faith, although the country in general remained pagan.

Her grandson, Vladimir, is said to have considered conversion and sent for Christian, Jewish and Muslim divines to set forth the merits of their respective faiths. He rejected Judaism on the grounds that it was sad, and Islam because "Russians are happier drinking", but was prepared to consider Christianity.

In 988 Vladimir married Anna, the daughter of the Emperor of Constantinople, as part of a pact that involved supplying the Emperor with soldiers for his war against the Bulgars. The next year, both Prince Vladimir and the city of Novgorod were baptized in the Orthodox faith. Trade links were strengthened and the Emperor's private guard, the Varangians, was recruited from among the men of the north, creating an important north-south route for goods, men and ideas.

In the early 11th century, Novgorod began to break away from the dominance of Kiev to become an independent principality. It was ruled by an oligarchy of nobles - boyars - and merchants, headed by the Archbishop and the Prince. With the decline of Kiev, Novgorod grew in power, and was given the title of "Lord Novgorod the Great".

Novgorod is towards the outer of edge of the area where agriculture in its traditional form could be relied upon. Hunting, fishing and forestry were generally more important, and commerce was a necessity to provide reserves against the years when the crops failed - even so, famines were frequent.

The wealth of Novgorod was largely founded on the trade in fur, amber, slaves, dried fish and fish oil, honey and timber. Many of these products were obtained - often extorted - from the peoples to the North, basically the Finns and Lapps. The mechanism of exchange is described in the Icelandic sagas. As pressure on these northern territories increased, the range of the trappers and fishermen extended further into the Arctic Circle and competition intensified between the Russians and the Swedish merchants from the opposite shore of the Baltic.

From the 12th century, the situation was complicated by a series of Catholic Crusades, aimed at converting both the pagans and the Orthodox Christians of such cities as Novgorod. Much of the fighting shows evidence of this double aim: holy war and the securing of commercial bases.

Attack did not only come from Sweden and Germany. Besides the traditional enemies to the south, such as the Pechenegs, from the 11th century there were ceaseless raids by new nomadic tribes of Turkish origin, the Cumans and Kipchak.

Worse was to come. In 1223, the Russian army was annihilated on the River Khalka by the Mongols under Genghiz Khan. After his death, his grandson Batu, Khan of the Golden Horde, leveled cities all across Russia. John of Plano Carpini records that at Kiev barely 200 houses were left standing and "we found in the fields countless heads and dead men's bones".

Russia was to live for the next two and half centuries under a brutal Mongol regime, which was to have a long lasting influence on their own political methods and structures. Novgorod escaped relatively lightly, largely thanks to Prince Alexander Nevsky, who became a vassal of the Mongols, and the boyars who succeeded in persuading the merchants to agree to Mongol demands for a census and tribute. As vassal of the Golden Horde, Novgorod enjoyed political autonomy, a degree of protection and was able to maintain its far-reaching international trade network.

Besides the Middle East, Novgorod's trade network extended from the Arctic to the Black Sea and Constantinople, and from Dubrovnik on the Adriatic to Central Asia. From the 13th century, they had their own permanent quarters in such trading cities as Visby, Lübeck and Riga, but from the 14th century, the Hanse became their preferred trading partner to the West.

Ironically, the weakening of Mongol power from the late 14th century led to the political decline of Novgorod. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the rulers of Moscow saw themselves as heirs of the Empire of the East and entered a period of expansion. Novgorod was subjected in 1478, losing its independence, but not yet its cultural importance. The Hanseatic merchants were expelled in 1494, which proved a major blow to the city's economy.

In 1570-1571, Ivan IV of Moscow, known as the Terrible, massacred and deported the population - this was a blow from which Novgorod never recovered.