Why was Svyatoslav called Alexander the Great of Eastern Europe? The battle formation of the army consisted of a continuous deep formation of twenty or more ranks

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17. Foreign policy of Svyatoslav

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23. Svyatoslav’s conquests were enormous, but he paid little attention to the life of Rus' itself.

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§ 4. The reign of Svyatoslav

Svyatoslav - “Alexander the Great” of Eastern Europe. Starting from the time when in 962, having matured and become the head of the squad, Svyatoslav really began to rule the state, he began to further expand Russia. He succeeded in what his predecessors failed to do: he subjugated the principality of the Vyatichi, located between the Oka and Volga rivers.

He continued the efforts of Oleg and Olga to centralize power. Oleg installed his governors only in the cities along the upper Dnieper - in Smolensk and Lyubech, and in the remaining lands there were local princes, although they were subordinate to him. Olga sent managers to tribute collection points. Now Svyatoslav, leaving for war, sent his sons to the most important lands of Russia. He left his eldest son, Yaropolk, in Kyiv, sent his second son, Oleg, to rule the Drevlyan land, and sent the youngest, Vladimir, with his uncle, the famous governor Dobrynya, to rule Novgorod. The sons of the Grand Duke in the former semi-independent principalities essentially became his governors.

Svyatoslav continued the foreign policy of his predecessors. But he gave it such proportions, breathing into it such strength and passion, that he captured the imagination of both his contemporaries and descendants.

In 964 he set out on a campaign to the east. The main goal of this campaign was the destruction of the ancient enemy - Khazaria.

By this time, Svyatoslav was already an established leader of the squad, brave in battle, unpretentious to the hardships of military life. This is how the chronicler describes him: “And he easily went on campaigns, like a pardus (cheetah), and fought a lot. On campaigns, he did not carry carts or cauldrons with him, did not cook meat, but thinly sliced ​​horse meat, or animal meat, or beef and fried it over coals, and ate it that way. He didn’t even have a tent, but he slept with a sweatcloth on him, with a saddle in his head... and he sent him to other lands with the words: “I want to attack you.” His appearance was well conveyed by the Byzantine historian: a shaved head according to Russian custom with a long lock of hair hanging down, a gold earring with a large ruby ​​in his left ear, a gloomy look, simple modest clothes, distinguished, however, by their cleanliness, a high sense of self-esteem that radiated from his entire figure.

Having passed through the Oka-Volga forests, the land of the Vyatichi, Svyatoslav unleashed his first blow on Volga Bulgaria, an ally of Khazaria. The Bulgar army was defeated, and their capital Bulgar and other cities were taken, and the population dispersed. Along the way, Svyatoslav defeated the Burtases, hostile to Rus', captured and burned their cities, and scattered the population.

Then the Russian army went down the Volga and approached the borders of the Khazar Kaganate. The attack from the north was swift and unexpected. Usually Russian armies came to the borders of Khazaria along the Sea of ​​Azov and the Don. Now they first defeated the allies of Khazaria. This shows a well-thought-out plan for the entire military campaign.

The Kagan himself went out with an army to meet the Rus, but was defeated, and the capital of Khazaria, the city of Itil in the lower Volga, was also captured by Svyatoslav.

The Russian army passed through the entire Khazar land with fire and sword, leaving behind destruction and ashes. At first, Svyatoslav’s path lay in the Khazar possessions in the North Caucasus. From there he moved to the Don, defeating along the way the tribes of the Yases and Kasogs (present-day Ossetians and Circassians) who were at war with Rusyu and allied to Khazaria. On the banks of the Don, Svyatoslav’s army stormed the Khazar fortress Sarkel, which was built here back in the 9th century. with the help of Byzantine engineers to guard the Khazar borders from the Russians. Traces of fires, destroyed buildings, broken fortress walls - this is how Sarkel appears according to archaeologists. The fortress was literally wiped off the face of the earth.

Thus, the goal of the campaign was achieved. Khazaria essentially ceased to exist as a strong state.

Leaving garrisons in the occupied territory, Svyatoslav returned to Kyiv, and his troops began attacks on the Crimean possessions of Byzantium. The Russians continued the line of previous years: the rich Greek colonies continued to attract their attention. Relations with Byzantium became tense.

Hiking on the Danube. During the three-year Eastern Campaign, Svyatoslav captured vast territories from the Oka forests to the North Caucasus. The Byzantine Empire remained silent at the same time: the Russian-Byzantine military alliance was in effect.

But now, when the northern giant began to put pressure on the Byzantine possessions in Crimea, Constantinople became worried. A messenger was urgently sent to Kyiv with the aim of settling relations between Russia and Byzantium.

Already at this time, a plan was ripening in Kyiv to invade the Danube region and annex the mouth of the Danube to Russia. But these lands belonged to Bulgaria, which was hostile to Byzantium at that time, and Svyatoslav secured the neutrality of Byzantium during his upcoming campaign on the Danube, and for this he promised to cede the Crimean possessions of the empire. This was already great diplomacy, which had in mind the interests of Russia both in the East and in the West.

In the summer of 967, the Russian army, led by Svyatoslav, moved south. The Russian army is supported by Hungarian troops. Bulgaria relied on the help of the Yases and Kasogs, hostile to Russia, and on the Khazar troops.

The war with Bulgaria was over very quickly. True to his lightning-fast style of warfare, Svyatoslav broke through the Bulgarian outposts and defeated the army of the Bulgarian Tsar Peter in an open field. The Bulgarians were forced to conclude a peace, according to which the lower reaches of the Danube with the strong fortress of Pereyaslavets went to Russia.

It was here that Svyatoslav’s true plans were revealed. He moves his residence here and, according to the chronicle, declares: “I don’t like to sit in Kiev, I want to live in Pereyaslavets on the Danube - there is the middle of my land, all the benefits flow there: from the Greek land - gold, pavolok (precious fabrics), wine , various fruits, from the Czech Republic and from Hungary - silver and horses, from Russia - fur and wax, honey and slaves."

The appearance of Svyatoslav on the Danube and the defeat of Bulgaria alarmed Byzantium. Now a cruel, successful and merciless rival has appeared nearby. The attempt of Byzantine diplomacy to pit Bulgaria and Rus' against each other and thereby weaken both failed.

Having bribed the Pechenegs, the Byzantines organized their campaign against Kyiv. Svyatoslav was forced to go to the rescue of his capital city. Having driven away the Pechenegs and made peace with them, Svyatoslav returned to the Danube in 969. It was at this time that he installed his sons as governors in the Russian principalities.

During his absence, the Bulgarians captured Pereyaslavets, but Svyatoslav quickly restored his previous position: the Bulgarian army was again defeated, and Pereyaslavets ended up in the hands of the Russians.

The Russian-Byzantine War and the death of Svyatoslav. At this time, a talented commander and statesman, an Armenian by nationality, John Tzimiskes, came to power in Constantinople at this time. The Byzantines demanded the departure of the Russian army from the Danube region. But Svyatoslav asked for an unimaginable ransom for leaving the local cities. And when the Greeks refused, he proudly declared that he would soon pitch his tents in front of the walls of Constantinople. The parties were heading towards war.

Svyatoslav managed to attract his longtime allies - the Hungarians - to the military confrontation with Byzantium; He also hired Pecheneg cavalry. The united army also included a detachment of Bulgarians friendly to Rus'.

Widespread military action broke out across the vast expanses of Thrace and Macedonia in the summer of 970. According to Byzantine authors, the Kiev prince led 60 thousand people, not counting his allies.

The Russians won the first stage of the war. In the decisive battle with the commanders of John Tzimiskes, Svyatoslav won. At a critical moment of the battle, when the Russians were afraid of the superior forces of the enemy, Svyatoslav addressed the soldiers with a speech:

“Let us not disgrace the Russian land, but let us lie down with bones; the dead have no shame.” The Russians unitedly attacked the enemy and won.

However, the Byzantines brought up new troops and managed to defeat one of the units of the Russian army, which was supported by the allies. There were already many casualties on both sides, and the war was becoming protracted. Svyatoslav himself with the main army was already on the approaches to Constantinople, and the Greeks asked for peace.

According to the peace concluded in 970, the Russians achieved the preservation of their positions on the Danube, the Byzantines undertook to pay tribute to Russia, as before, and the terms of the previous treaties were preserved.

After this, Svyatoslav left for the Danube, and John Tzimiskes began preparing a new army. For this purpose, all forces were mobilized, the best troops were pulled in from everywhere.

In the spring of 971, in the days when the entire Christian world celebrated Easter, unexpectedly for the Russians, John Tzimiskes broke through the Balkan ridge and entered Bulgaria. There, on its fields, Svyatoslav, who hastened to meet the enemy, gave the Greeks several battles. But the preponderance of forces was already on the side of Byzantium. Svyatoslav's allies abandoned him. In the end, the Byzantine army blocked the Russian army in the Danube fortress of Dorostol. In July 971, Svyatoslav tried to break through the blockade ring and left the fortress for the last battle. The onslaught of the Russians, led by the prince himself, was so swift that the Greeks wavered, and then John Tzimiskes, shining with gilded armor, himself led the troops into battle. Svyatoslav was wounded in battle. The Russians had to retreat. The Russian Grand Duke asked for peace, which was joyfully accepted by the Byzantines.

According to the terms of the peace treaty of 971, sealed by a personal meeting between Svyatoslav and John Tzimiskes, the Russians had to leave the Danube; they pledged not to attack these lands anymore. But Russia retained its conquests in the Black Sea and Volga regions. The terms of the old Russian-Byzantine treaty were restored.

Svyatoslav also turned to the Byzantine emperor with a request to help in the passage of the Russian army through the lands controlled by the Pechenegs. John Tzimiskes promised to do this. But, instead of fulfilling the terms of the agreement, the Greeks decided to remove their dangerous rival: the Greek embassy brought gold, expensive gifts and a request from the emperor to strike Svyatoslav during his return to Kiev.

In the fall, the Russian army appeared at the mouth of the Dnieper. But all routes to the north were cut off by the Pechenegs. Then Svyatoslav spent the winter in Russian settlements located on the banks of the Dnieper estuary.

In the spring of 972, he again tried to break through to Kyiv, but on the rapids, where the Russians dragged their boats along the shore, bypassing the seething whirlpools, the Pechenegs waylaid him. A small Russian army was surrounded and destroyed. Svyatoslav himself died in battle. And from his skull, the Pecheneg khan Kurya, according to the old steppe custom, made a cup, bound it with gold and drank from it at feasts.

The first strife in Rus'. After the death of Svyatoslav in Kyiv, young Yaropolk, surrounded by his father’s governors, took power. Oleg, who was a year younger, ruled in the Drevlyan land, the youngest, Vladimir, the son of Svyatoslav from his concubine Malusha, sat in Novgorod.

After the death of their father, both Oleg and Vladimir found themselves independent rulers of their lands. They became the center of attraction for forces who wanted to regain the independence of Kiev.

Yarololk initially established himself as a ruler who sought to consolidate what had been conquered by his predecessors. Separated from his father from an early age, he was greatly influenced by his grandmother, the Christian Olga. His wife was a beautiful Greek nun whom Svyatoslav captured during the war with Byzantium.

However, three years later the situation changed dramatically. And again, a threat to the unity of Rus' came from the Drevlyan lands. By order of Oleg, who reigned there, who was only 13 years old, the Grand Duke's governor was killed in the Drevlyan forests.

The result of this discord was the campaign of the Kyiv army led by Yaropolk against the Drevlyans two years later. The Kievans defeated the Drevlyans, who fled beyond the fortress walls of the city of Ovruch. There was a stampede on the bridge over the fortress moat, in which the young Prince Oleg died. The Drevlyans were again subordinated to Kyiv.

Novgorod also showed a desire to secede. Having received news of the death of his brother, Vladimir fled to the Varangians. Yaropolk sent his governor in his place. The Russian land was united again. But Vladimir did not accept the position of an outcast prince. After spending more than two years in a foreign land, he hired a detachment of Varangians and drove the governor Yaropolk out of Novgorod. Then he gathered a large army, consisting of Slovenes, Krivichi and Chuds, and together with the Varangians moved south, repeating the path of Oleg.

Once again the North made its claims to leadership in the Russian lands. Again Novgorod took the initiative to unite Rus'. Along the way, Vladimir captured Polotsk, where he killed the Varangian Rogvold, who reigned there, and his sons, and forcibly took his daughter Rogneda as his wife. In Kyiv, Yaropolk's position was precarious. The squad was distrustful of the prince, who patronized Christians. In addition, Vladimir entered into secret negotiations with some Kyiv boyars, including those close to Yaropolk.

As a result, Yaropolk was unable to gather troops to fight his brother and locked himself behind the Kyiv walls. Feeling that a conspiracy was brewing against him in Kyiv, Yaropolk fled the city, and then, on the advice of his boyars, who had already secretly sided with Vladimir, came to him for negotiations. As soon as Yaropolk entered Vladimir’s tent, he was immediately raised to the sword by two Varangians.

Karamzin called Prince Svyatoslav “Russian Macedonian”, historian Grushevsky - “Cossack on the throne”. Svyatoslav was the first to make an active attempt at extensive land expansion. Legends still circulate about his exploits.

Svyatoslav's reign

After the death of his father, Igor Rurikovich, in 945 from the Drevlyans, three-year-old Svyatoslav formally became a prince, but de facto his mother, Olga, ruled the cities. According to the Tale of Bygone Years, already at the age of four, Svyatoslav had the opportunity to demonstrate his courage: together with his young son, Olga went on a campaign against the Drevlyans, and “Svyatoslav threw a spear at them, and the spear flew between the horse’s ears and hit the horse’s legs, for Svyatoslav was still a child."

Having besieged the Drevlyan Iskorosten, the cunning Olga did not take revenge for the murder of her husband, and offered the offenders an insignificant tribute, “from each yard three doves and three sparrows.” The Drevlyans rejoiced at such mercy, not recognizing the military trick: according to the legendary description of Nestor, the army of Olga and Svyatoslav tied tinder to the birds, the city was engulfed in flames, after which it was completely devastated.

In 955, Olga went to Constantinople to be baptized, but upon returning home, she could not persuade her son to do the same - he was faithful to paganism until the end of his days. “How can I accept a different faith alone? And my squad will mock.”

Chronicles describe Svyatoslav as a brave warrior who did not shy away from living in the same conditions as ordinary warriors: on campaigns he did not have his own tent, he did not carry “neither carts nor boilers” with him, roasting the meat of animals caught along the way at the stake .

Svyatoslav became famous for sending the foreigners against whom he was going on a campaign in advance a messenger with the laconic phrase “I want to go to you...” (I’m going to you). In 965, he defeated the Khazar Kaganate, and gained a foothold in the former Khazar territories, including the cities of Belaya Vezha and Tmutarakan.

Campaign against the Bulgarians

In 966, a conflict was brewing between the Byzantine Empire and Bulgaria. Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus called the Bulgarians “a godless people” and tried to promote internal political strife in Bulgaria, which by that time was a dangerous rival of Byzantium. In addition, Constantinople paid a shameful tribute to the Bulgarians, and in 966 the ambassadors who came for it were expelled from the city: this marked the beginning of the confrontation.

A year later, the emperor of Byzantium sent patrician Kalokir with an embassy to Svyatoslav in order to ask for help in crushing the Bulgarian kingdom - and the prince agreed, receiving almost 500 kilograms of gold to arm the troops. However, Kalokir had his own, quite ambitious plans - he persuaded Svyatoslav to assist him in seizing the Byzantine throne after the Bulgarian campaign.

In 968, Svyatoslav defeated the Bulgarians and remained in Pereyaslavets, where, presumably, he wanted to found a new capital of his state, “for there is the middle of my land, all the benefits flow there.” After a successful campaign, Svyatoslav had to urgently return to Kyiv, which was besieged by the Pechenegs in his absence. However, even the death of his mother due to illness did not keep him there for long: having defeated the Pechenegs, the warlike Svyatoslav again organized a campaign against Bulgaria.

War with Byzantium

Svyatoslav again managed to defeat the Bulgarian troops and firmly establish himself in the capital of the Bulgarian kingdom - Pereyaslavts, which seriously concerned the Byzantine authorities. Having provoked the Russians into a war with Bulgaria, the Byzantine Empire miscalculated somewhat, since now Svyatoslav’s mighty army stood not far from its borders.

He was asked to leave from there, in accordance with a previously concluded agreement, but the prince refused, hoping to use the captured lands for the needs of his state, which had significantly increased in size. The clash of interests ended in a large-scale war between Russia and Byzantium: its results, however, are covered differently in ancient chronicles.

The Tale of Bygone Years speaks of the devastating victory of the princely warriors, who defeated the Byzantine army, which was ten times larger in number. According to Nestor, Svyatoslav’s army reached almost all the way to Constantinople, subsequently collecting a huge tribute. But Byzantine historians give a completely different picture: during the battles, the Byzantine warrior Anemas “rushed forward on horseback, rushed at Sfendoslav (Svyatoslav), and, hitting him on the collarbone with a sword, threw him head down to the ground, but did not kill him.”

After this event, despite all the courage of the Russian troops, Svyatoslav entered into peace negotiations with the emperor of Byzantium, and demanded the following conditions: he would give Bulgaria to the Byzantines, and in exchange Byzantium would not pursue his army on the way to Kyiv, and especially would not attack “on them along the road with fire-bearing ships” - the famous “Median fire” was meant.

After the conclusion of the peace treaty, Svyatoslav met with Emperor John, and the Byzantine chronicle describes in detail all the details of this historical meeting, including the appearance of the prince: “Sfendoslav also appeared, sailing along the river on a Scythian boat; he sat on the oars and rowed along with his entourage, no different from them. This is what his appearance was: of moderate height, not too tall and not very short, with shaggy eyebrows and light blue eyes, snub nose, beardless, with thick, excessively long hair above his upper lip.

His head was completely naked, but a tuft of hair hung from one side of it - a sign of the nobility of the family; the strong back of his head, wide chest and all other parts of his body were quite proportionate, but he looked gloomy and wild. He had a gold earring in one ear; it was decorated with a carbuncle framed by two pearls. His robe was white and differed from the clothes of those close to him only in its cleanliness.”

Many historians are of the opinion that such a description is far from reality and was only a stereotypical visual characteristic of a “steppe dweller” as the Byzantines saw the prince of the Russians. After the meeting, the sovereigns parted as allies - however, it is not known whether their truce was sincere.

Death of Svyatoslav

It is possible that Byzantium still did not leave Svyatoslav alone: ​​after the truce, John sent messengers to the Pechenegs, a tribe that, according to the Byzantines, “ate lice, carried houses with them and spent most of their lives in carts.”

Most likely, it was the emperor who ordered the Pechenegs to make an ambush, waiting for the approaching Svyatoslav; one way or another, when trying to cross the Dnieper, the Pechenegs attacked the prince and killed him, and then made a cup from his skull. Svyatoslav died fighting along with his squad, as befitted a noble commander.

Prince Svyatoslav, with his numerous military companies, became a real legend for Russian and Ukrainian historians. Karamzin called him the Russian Alexander the Great, and Grushevsky called him the Cossack on the throne. The memory of the great conqueror lives well today: songs are written in honor of the famous “I’m Coming to You,” novels are written about Svyatoslav and coins are issued with his portrait.

With the light hand of Karamzin, Prince Svyatoslav is considered the ancient Russian Alexander the Great. Information about the battles he fought and won over the years is not rich in details, but one thing is clear: by the age of thirty, Svyatoslav managed to organize a dozen military campaigns, and won most of them.

Battle with the Drevlyans

For the first time, Grand Duke Svyatoslav Igorevich took part in the battle in May 946, however, he led the army only formally, since he was only four years old. When his warriors lined up on the battlefield against the Drevlyans, the governors Sveneld and Asmud took out the horse on which the young Svyatoslav was sitting, gave the boy a spear, and he threw it towards the enemies. “The prince has already begun, let’s pull, squad, after the prince!” - the commanders shouted, and the inspired Kiev army went forward. The Drevlyans were defeated and locked themselves in cities. Three months later, thanks to the cunning of Princess Olga, Iskorosten was taken, and the first of Svyatoslav’s military campaigns ended in victory.

Battle of Sarkel

965 Svyatoslav's first independent campaign. Having passed the lands of the Vyatichi, the only East Slavic tribe that had not yet paid tribute to Kyiv, descending along the Volga to the lands of the Khazar Kaganate, Svyatoslav defeated the longtime enemy of Rus'. One of the decisive battles took place near Sarkel, an outpost of Khazaria in the west.

Two armies met on the banks of the Don, Svyatoslav defeated the Khazar army and pushed it into the city. The siege did not last long. When Sarkel fell, its defenders were mercilessly beaten, the inhabitants fled, and the city itself was burned to the ground. In its place, Svyatoslav founded the Russian outpost Belaya Vezha.

Second capture of Preslav

Encouraged by Byzantium, the Grand Duke invaded Bulgaria, took its capital Preslav and began to consider it the middle (capital) of his land. But the Pechenegs’ raid on Kyiv forced him to leave the conquered lands.
When Svyatoslav returned, he discovered that the pro-Byzantine opposition in the capital had gained the upper hand, and the entire city had rebelled against the prince. He had to take Preslav a second time.
The 20,000-strong Russian army was confronted by superior enemy forces. And the battle under the city walls initially went in favor of the Bulgarians. But: “Brothers and squad! We will die, but we will die with firmness and courage!” - the prince turned to the soldiers, and the decisive attack was crowned with success: the tide of the battle was turned, Svyatoslav occupied Preslav and brutally dealt with the traitors.

Siege of Philippopolis

The main rival of Rus' was Byzantium, and it was against Constantinople that Svyatoslav planned his main blow. To reach the borders of Byzantium, it was necessary to pass through southern Bulgaria, where, fueled by the Greeks, anti-Russian sentiments were strong. Few cities surrendered without a fight, and in many Svyatoslav was forced to carry out show executions. One of the oldest cities in Europe, Philippopolis, resisted especially stubbornly. Here, on the side of the Bulgarians who rebelled against the Russian prince, the Byzantines also fought, whose main army was located several tens of kilometers to the south. But Svyatoslav’s army was already a coalition: the Bulgarians, Hungarians, and Pechenegs were in alliance with him. After bloody battles the city fell. Its garrison, governors, captured Greeks and Bulgarians irreconcilable with the Russians were executed. By order of Svyatoslav, 20 thousand people were impaled.

Two general battles in Byzantium

Svyatoslav led his further advance into Byzantium with two armies: one, consisting of the best Russian warriors, battle-hardened warriors, he led himself, the other - the Russians, Bulgarians, Hungarians and Pechenegs - was under the command of the Kyiv governor Sfenkel.
The coalition army clashed with the main Greek army near Arcadiopolis, where a general battle took place. Calculating that the Pechenegs were the weak link in the Allied army, the Byzantine commander Varda Sklir directed the main attack of the army on their flank. The Pechenegs trembled and ran. The outcome of the battle was a foregone conclusion. The Russians, Hungarians and Bulgarians fought hard, but found themselves surrounded and defeated.
The battle of Svyatoslav’s army turned out to be no less difficult. The prince's 10,000-strong squad was opposed by a detachment under the command of Patrician Peter. As before, Svyatoslav managed to turn the tide of the battle at a critical moment for himself: “We have nowhere to go, whether we want it or not, we must fight. So we will not disgrace the Russian land, but we will lie here as bones, for the dead have no shame. If we run, it will be a shame for us.” He rushed forward and the army followed him. The Greeks fled from the battlefield, and Svyatoslav continued his victorious march to Constantinople. But, having learned about the defeat of the second army, he was forced to agree to a truce with the Byzantine emperor: the allies did not have the strength to siege.

Defense of Dorostol

Having violated the peace treaty, the Greeks in 971 first attacked Preslav, then, ravaging the cities, headed to the Danube, to the city of Dorostol, where Svyatoslav was located. His situation turned out to be more than difficult. The bloody battle under the city walls lasted from morning until darkness and forced the Russians and Bulgarians to retreat behind the fortress walls. A long siege began. From land, the city was surrounded by an army under the command of the emperor, and the Danube was blocked by the Greek fleet. The Russians, despite the danger, made daring forays. In one of them, a high-ranking official, Master John, was beheaded. Another thing the warriors did at night in heavy rain: they bypassed the enemy fleet in boats, collected grain reserves in the villages and beat many sleeping Greeks.
When the position of his army became critical, Svyatoslav considered it a shame to surrender or run away and led the army outside the city walls, ordering the gates to be locked. For two days, with a break for the night, his soldiers fought with the Byzantines. Having lost 15 thousand people, the Grand Duke returned to Dorostol and agreed to the peace proposed by Emperor Tzimiskes.

Battle with the Pechenegs

According to the terms of the peace, the remnants of Svyatoslav’s army left Bulgaria unhindered and reached the rapids of the Dnieper. The prince planned to use it to get to Kyiv, but the path was blocked by recent allies of the Pechenegs, who learned either from the Bulgarians or from the Greeks that the Russians were carrying great treasures. Waiting for help, Svyatoslav spent the winter here. But help did not arrive in time, and the Grand Duke attempted to break the blockade. The attempt was successful: part of the army passed the Pechenegs, but Svyatoslav himself fell in the battle. As you know, the Pecheneg Khan made a cup from his skull, inlaid it and was very proud of his victory.