Saint George of Vladimirskoye (Yuri Vsevolodovich), the Faithful Prince — founder Nizhny Novgorod. Memorial Day, February 17.
Origin
Yuri, who was younger than his brother Konstantin, succeeded to the grand duchy in accordance with their father’s will following his death in 1212, which was a violation of the established order. A protracted civil war broke out between Yuri and Konstantin, culminating in Yuri’s defeat at the Battle of Lipitsa (1216). A bloody battle took place on the Lipitsa River between the armies of Konstantin and Yuri, in which Konstantin emerged victorious. Yuri fled to Gorodets, and Konstantin proclaimed himself Grand Prince of Vladimirskoye.
The brothers eventually reconciled. Konstantin Vsevolodovich, bypassing his own sons, named Yuri as heir to the throne of Vladimirskoye. Yuri, for his part, vowed to put the feuds behind him and act as a father to his older brother’s young children.
Vladimir took the throne, and Konstantin sent Yuri to rule Rostov and Yaroslavl. After Konstantin’s death (1219), Yuri once again (this time legitimately) assumed the grand duchy.
Military Activities
In 1220, the Volga Bulgars captured Ustyug. Yuri Vsevolodovich sent his younger brother, Svyatoslav, against them, and he emerged victorious. After receiving gifts from the Bulgars and concluding a peace treaty with them, with the aim of securing the inter-river region for Rus’ Oka River and Volga River, which Yuri Vsevolodovich founded in 1221 Nizhny Novgorod.
In December 1237, Khan Batu led his horde through Ryazan, Kolomna, and Moscow to To Vladimir. The Siege City Vladimir It began on February 11, 1238, and lasted four days. Grand Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich had previously left City toward the City River, where scattered remnants of the troops and approaching reinforcements were gathering. Left behind in Vladimir were his wife Agafia Vsevolodovna, his sons Vsevolod and Mstislav, their wives Maria and Christina, his daughter Feodora, his grandchildren, and the voivode Pyotr Osledyukovich—all of whom perished. On March 4, 1238, in the Battle of the Siti River, the Grand Prince’s forces were defeated. Yuri himself was killed. Modern historians question the reliability of these chronicle accounts.
The prince’s decapitated body was discovered on the battlefield by Bishop Cyril of Rostov, who transported the body to Rostov and buried it in a stone coffin in the Church of the Mother of God. The prince’s head was found and reattached to his body. Two years later, the remains were solemnly transferred by Yaroslav Vsevolodovich to the Cathedral of the Dormition in Vladimir; according to eyewitness accounts, “the holy head clung to the holy body, so that there was not even a trace of the severing on his neck; his right hand was raised as if he were alive, pointing to his feat” (Book of Degrees 1, 137).
The Folk Account of the Prince's Death
Yuri Vsevolodovich managed to gather all the combat-ready militias on the Sit River. But the courage of the Russians was no match for Batu’s hordes. In a bloody battle (March 4, 1338), the entire Russian army was wiped out, along with Grand Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich and his two sons.
After the battle, Bishop Kirill of Rostov identified the body of Yuri Vsevolodovich among the fallen by his princely robes (the Grand Prince’s head had been severed in battle and was never found). A rumor spread among the people that Prince Yuri had managed to take refuge in Gorod Kitezh on the shore of the lake Svetlyar, but Batu caught up with him there and put him to death.
At that very moment, Kitezh sank into the waters of the lake. According to legend, Kitezh is destined to reappear on the eve of the Last Judgment.