Ancient burials of Tatar Mongol troops. Yaroslavl massacre

Invasion of Batu. Traditional version

In 1234, the "Mongol" armies completed the conquest of Northern China. In 1235, a congress of nobility was held on the banks of the Onon, where it was decided to organize the Great Western Campaign, to reach “the last sea.” In the east, the borders of the empire were washed Pacific Ocean. It was necessary to reach the same border in the west. The grandson of Genghis Khan, Batu, was appointed military leader of the campaign. Several khans, who had their own military corps, were sent with him.

The question of the size of the army remains to this day - various researchers give figures from 30 to 500 thousand soldiers. Apparently, those who believe that the army actually had a “Mongol-Tatar” core of 30-50 thousand soldiers, as well as a significant number of less combat-ready militias from the vassal, subordinate tribes of the “Ulus of Jochi”, are right. A significant part of them were representatives of Turkic tribes, Turkmens, Karakalpaks, Kipchaks, there were also Tajiks and warriors of Siberian peoples. There were also a significant number of robbers, adventurers, volunteers of all stripes who flocked to the successful conquerors. Among them were even the Knights Templar (which is a very interesting line).

In 1236, an avalanche overturned the barrier of the Bashkirs and Mansi, who had been waging a border war with enemy troops for 13 years. Some of their defeated detachments were also included in Batu’s army. Then the wave reached Volga Bulgaria. The Bulgarian Bulgars defeated the corps of Jebe and Subedei after the battle on the Kalka River. Now this “debt” has been paid with interest. The Bulgarians had many rich trading cities and towns, which they put up stubborn resistance, but were destroyed one after another. The capital of the state, Great Bolgar (Bilyar), was also captured. The surviving Bulgarians fled into the forests and appeared in Nizhny Novgorod, Rostov and Vladimir.

Grand Duke Vladimir Yuri II knew that the "Mongols" had good reasons for enmity with the Bulgarians. But they did not collide with Vladimir Russia; there were no visible reasons for hostility. There was no point in standing up for a foreign, and often hostile, country. Mstislav Udalov had already stood up for his Polovtsian friends, but it ended very badly. It is clear that the pogrom of a neighboring state was an alarming signal. But Rus' has long been dealing with the “steppe”. Usually everything was done with raids on the border areas, and then more or less stable relations were established, including trade, dynastic marriages, and twinning of princes with steppe leaders.

Empire of Genghis Khan at the time of his death.

Initially it seemed that this would be the case. Having defeated Volga Bulgaria, Batu’s army retreated further south, and part of it clashed with the Polovtsians. It must be said that the stubborn war with the Polovtsians will continue for several years, until their complete defeat. Then part of the Polovtsy will go to Europe, Transcaucasia and Asia Minor. Most of the Polovtsy will be subjugated and will form the bulk of the population of the Golden Horde. From Bulgarians, merchants, and random Russians, Batu collected information about Russian principalities, cities, and roads. The best time They considered the winter to strike, when it would be possible, following the example of the Russians, to move along the beds of frozen rivers.

Devastation of the Ryazan land

By this time, the situation with intelligence was very bad for the Russian princes. The times when “heroic outposts” stood in the steppe are long gone. Thus, in Ryazan they learned about the approach of the enemy army from the “Tatar” ambassadors themselves - two khan officials and a certain “sorceress wife”. The ambassadors calmly reported Batu’s demands - to express their submission to the khan, and to begin paying “tithes,” which included not only a tenth of wealth, livestock, horses, but also people - warriors, slaves. The Ryazan princes naturally refused: “When no one is alive, then everything will be yours.” Proudly, but hardly reasonable. If the reconnaissance had been carried out well, the princes should have already known about the fate of their neighbors. The tithe that was customarily paid to the church, or the devastation of the entire land, the destruction of cities and thousands of dead and stolen for sale into slavery, their own death. What's better?

The Ryazan rulers did not have the strength to resist Batu’s army. The “Tatar” ambassadors were not touched, but were allowed to continue to Vladimir. Ryazan residents began to look for help. The Ryazan prince Ingvar Ingvarevich, together with the boyar Evpatiy Kolovrat, went to Chernigov for help. Prince of Kolomna Roman Ingvarevich went to Vladimir to ask for troops. However, the Vladimir prince at this time simply could not allocate significant forces to help Ryazan - his selected regiments went with Yaroslav to the Dnieper in 1236 and fought with the Chernigovites for Galich. At the same time, Yuri apparently believed that it was more profitable to sit behind the walls of cities and fortresses. The enemy will devastate the surrounding area, maybe take one or two towns, besiege powerful Russian cities and flee to the steppe.

The Grand Duke of Ryazan Yuri Igorevich began to form an army. The Ryazan people had extensive experience in fighting the Polovtsians, and believed that the “Tatars” were steppe dwellers. Therefore, they decided to bring the squads out to meet the enemy and give battle. The steppe people usually could not withstand the blows of well-armed and trained squads. Yuri Ryazansky, his son Fyodor Yuryevich, Oleg Ingvarevich Krasny, Roman Ingvarevich, and the regiments of the Murom princes came out with their squads. Yuri tried to enter into negotiations with the enemy again and sent an embassy with his son Fedor. However, Batu decided that the time for talking was over. Fedor was killed. A fierce battle took place on the border river Voronezh. Some princely squads fought to the last, others, seeing that the larger enemy army was surrounding them, tried to retreat. Oleg Ingvarevich was captured and was released only in 1252. Murom princes Yuri Davydovich and Oleg Yuryevich died. After this battle, the “Tatars” quite easily captured the cities of the Ryazan land that were left without defenders - Pronsk, Belgorod, Izheslavets, Voronezh, Dedoslavl.

Yuri Ryazansky with the remnants of his squad was able to break through and galloped to his city, organizing a defense. Roman Ingvarevich led his soldiers north to join the Vladimir army. However, the walls of even powerful fortresses were not an obstacle to the “Mongol-Tatars”. Prisoners and auxiliary troops led engineering work, erecting a palisade to prevent forays, filling up a ditch, preparing siege engines and battering guns. The army had a contingent of engineers for siege work. Initially, the attack was carried out by auxiliary troops, who were not spared, Bulgars, Bashkirs, Turkmens, etc. Their death was not considered a great loss. The large size of the army made it possible to stage one attack after another, and the ranks of the defenders were constantly melting away, and there was no replacement for them. On the sixth day of the siege, December 21, 1237, Ryazan fell. Prince Yuri fell in battle. From Ryazan, Batu’s army moved across the ice of the Oka to Kolomna.

Meanwhile, in Chernigov, the Ryazan prince Ingvar was also not given help - the Chernigov residents at that time were fighting with the regiments of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich for Kyiv and Galich. The prince went back. Ahead was boyar Evpatiy Kolovrat. The picture of completely destroyed and devastated Ryazan enraged him, and he, with a small squad of Ryazan residents and Chernigov volunteers, rushed to catch up with the enemy army. Along the way, his squad was replenished with local residents. Evpatiy overtook the enemy in the Suzdal land and with a sudden blow destroyed a number of rear detachments: “And Evpatiy beat them so mercilessly that the swords were dulled, and he took Tatar swords and cut them with them.” Surprised by the unexpected blow, Batu sent a selected detachment led by the hero Khostovrul against Evpatiy the Furious. However, this detachment was also destroyed, and Khostovrul was struck down by the hand of Evpatiy Kolovrat. The Russian warriors continued their attacks and the Ryazan knight “beat many famous heroes of the Batyevs here...”. According to legend, Batu’s envoy, sent to negotiate, asked Evpatiy, “What do you want?” And I received the answer - “Die!” Batu was forced to send the main forces in a sweep arc, and only then was the Russian squad surrounded. The Russian heroes fought so fiercely, exterminating Batu’s best hundreds, that according to legend, the “Tatars” had to use stone throwers. Batu appreciated strong opponents and, respecting the desperate courage and military skill of Evpatiy Kolovrat, left the last defenders of the hero’s body alive and allowed them to bury him.

Battle of Kolomna. The destruction of Vladimir land

At this time, Yuri II was able to gather some forces and, putting his son Vsevolod at their head with the governor Eremey Glebovich, sent them to help the Ryazan people. However, they were late; near Kolomna they were met only by the squad of Prince Roman Ingvarevich. Both princes were young and brave, in Russian traditions there was an attack, not defense, outside the city walls. Therefore, princes Vsevolod, Roman and governor Eremey Glebovich led their troops into the floodplain of the Moscow River onto the river ice and on January 1, 1238, struck the enemy vanguard.

Russian heavy squads broke through the enemy’s front, and many noble “Tatars” fell in battle, including Genghis Khan’s youngest son Kulkan. The battle was stubborn and lasted three days. Batu pulled up the main forces, the Russian regiments were forced to retreat to the walls of the city and into the fortress itself. Prince Roman and Voivode Eremey laid down their heads in battle. Vsevolod with a small squad was able to break out of the encirclement and retreated to Vladimir.

After Kolomna it was Moscow’s turn, it was defended by the youngest son of the Vladimir prince Yuri, Vladimir, and the governor Philip Nyanka. On January 20, 1238, after a 5-day siege, the fortress fell. Along the Yauza and Klyazma, Batu’s army moved towards the capital of the grand duchy. Grand Duke Yuri II found himself in a difficult situation. He sent all available forces with Vsevolod to the Ryazan people; time was needed to gather a new militia, which was not available. Messengers were sent to the Novgorodians, and to Kyiv to their brother Yaroslav. But Novgorod and Kyiv are far away, and the enemy regiments were moving rapidly. As a result, he left his sons Vsevolod and Mstislav to defend the capital city, and he himself went to the Upper Volga to collect regiments. In general, the plan was not stupid. Such a maneuver could have brought success if Vladimir had withstood a long-term siege. At this time, the Grand Duke could gather warriors, militias from cities and churchyards into a fist, and receive reinforcements. A serious threat to the rear of Batu’s army would arise, forcing him to lift the siege. However, for this it was necessary for Vladimir to hold on.

On February 2, “Tatar” detachments appeared near Vladimir and showed the townspeople Prince Vladimir, captured in Moscow. They did not immediately launch an assault; they surrounded the city with a fence. Confusion and despair reigned in the city. Vsevolod and Mstislav either wanted to go beyond the walls and die “with honor,” they were especially eager to fight when Vladimir Yuryevich was killed in front of their mother and brothers, then they asked Bishop Mitrofan to tonsure them, their wives and boyars into the schema. Voivode Pyotr Oslyadyukovich dissuaded them from the sortie and suggested defending from the walls. In general, there was no single firm hand that could organize the multitude of people crowded into the city. Some went to the walls, preparing to fight to the last, others just prayed and waited for the end.

The “Mongolian” command, realizing that there was no need to expect a fierce battle here like at the walls of Kolomna, calmed down. Batu even sent part of the army to take Suzdal to replenish supplies. Suzdal fell quickly, and a large load was brought from there. Vladimir was taken according to the same procedure as Ryazan. First they built a tyn around the city, then assembled siege engines, and on the sixth day a general assault began. Vsevolod and Mstislav with their personal squads tried to break through, but the ring was tight, everyone died (according to others, they tried to negotiate and were killed at Batu’s headquarters). On February 7, the “Tatars” burst into the city and set it on fire. Vladimir fell, the entire family of the Grand Duke died. According to another source, the enemy only broke through the first line of defense; in the city itself, fighting continued until February 10.

After the fall of Vladimir, Batu became convinced that the resistance had been broken. The army was divided, so it was easier to feed the soldiers and horses. One corps marched along the Volga to Gorodets and Galich, the second marched to Pereyaslavl, and the third to Rostov. In total, 14 cities were occupied in February. Almost all of them were taken without a fight. People fled through the forests. Only Pereyaslavl-Zalessky offered resistance. In addition, the residents of Torzhok fought for two weeks; its residents waited until the last for help from Veliky Novgorod. The townspeople fought off the attacks and made forays. But the Novgorodians, who had recently declared war on the Vladimir prince for Torzhok, now behaved differently. A meeting was held. They discussed the situation, argued and decided not to send soldiers, but to prepare Novgorod itself for defense. In addition, there is still a question whether the enemy will reach Veliky Novgorod. On March 5, 1238, the heroic Torzhok fell.

The day before his fall, on March 4, the troops of Yuri Vsevolodovich were destroyed in the Battle of the Sit River. He set up a camp in the Volga forests on the river. Sit (northwest of the Yaroslavl region). His brother Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich from Yuryev-Polsky, Yaroslavl prince Vsevolod Konstantinovich, nephews Vasilko and Vladimir Konstantinovich, rulers of Rostov and Uglich, came to his call. Burundai's corps was able to defeat the Russian army. Yuri Vsevolodovich and Vsevolod Konstantinovich fell in battle, Vasilko was captured and executed. Svyatoslav and Vladimir were able to leave.

A very interesting fact should be noted. Batu’s actions clearly contradict the myth of the “Tatar-Mongol” invasion. They instilled in us from school, they love to show it in rich colors and works of art, like the popular works of V. Yan, that the cruel “Mongols” swept through Rus' with fire and sword, destroying everything in their path. All Russians who were not killed were naturally enslaved and then sold. All Russian cities were destroyed and burned. A sort of SS and Sonderkommando of the 13th century. However, if you take a closer look at the invasion. You can pay attention to the fact that many cities survived. In particular, the rich and populous Rostov, Yaroslavl, Uglich and other cities entered into negotiations with the “Mongols”. Into negotiations with those who allegedly destroyed everything in their path! They paid the required tribute, provided food, fodder, horses, people for carts, and survived. A very interesting situation would have emerged if the Ryazan princes and Yuri Vsevolodovich had behaved less proudly.

Another fact about the total “terror” on the part of the “Tatar-Mongol troops” - while moving back (Batu’s army turned back before reaching Novgorod 100 versts), the khan’s warriors stumbled upon the “evil city” - Kozelsk. During the siege of Kozelsk, Batu forbade the destruction of surrounding villages; on the contrary, he was merciful to the common people, receiving provisions and fodder. By the way, the siege of Kozelsk and Torzhok are also very interesting facts, which violate the “harmonious” picture of the almighty “Mongolian” hordes sweeping away everything in their path. The capitals of the great principalities - Ryazan and Vladimir - were taken in a few days, and small towns, actually villages with defensive fortifications, fought for weeks.

The behavior of the other princes during this terrible time is also very interesting. It seemed that at such a time - an invasion of unknown “Tatars”, sweeping away everything in their path, they should forget past quarrels, join forces, and actively prepare for battle with the invaders. “Get up, huge country, get up for mortal combat?” No! Everyone behaved as if the events in North-Eastern Rus' did not concern them. The reaction was the same as to ordinary princely strife, and not the invasion of an unknown enemy.

Not only was there no reaction to the invasion of Batu’s army. The Russian princes at this time continued to enthusiastically fight each other! It turns out that the “Tatar” invasion was not an event for them that went beyond the traditional politics of the region?! Mikhail Chernigovsky was still firmly in Galich. To withstand the onslaught of Yaroslav, he entered into an alliance with the Hungarian king Bela IV. He betrothed his son Rostislav to the daughter of the Hungarian monarch. Daniel, who actually pushed Yuri II and Yaroslav into a war with the Chernigov prince, turned out to be a frivolous and unreliable ally. When he realized that the Vladimir regiments did not frighten the Chernigov prince Mikhail and did not force him to cede Galich, Daniil entered into negotiations with the enemy. The Volyn prince agreed to a separate peace, receiving Przemysl for this. Now Mikhail Chernigovsky could concentrate all his forces in order to recapture Kyiv and Chernigov. He left Rostislav in Galich.

Yaroslav Vsevolodovich was preparing to meet the troops of the Chernigov ruler. However, then came heavy and confusing news that the “Tatars” were destroying the cities of Vladimir Rus'. The messages were menacing and unclear, capable of stunning anyone. The mighty and populous Vladimir Rus' collapsed in just a month. Yaroslav convened the regiments and moved home. Mikhail Chernigovsky triumphantly occupied Kyiv. Accepted the title of Grand Duke of Kyiv. He handed over Chernigov to his cousin Mstislav Glebovich. His son Rostislav immediately disregarded the agreement with Daniil and captured Przemysl from him. But the quarrel with Daniel was a very rash step. When Rostislav went on a campaign against the Lithuanian tribes, Daniil suddenly appeared near Galich. The common people, despite the resistance of the boyars, immediately recognized him as their prince and opened the gates. The nobility had no choice but to bow to the prince. He joyfully forgave the traitors again. Rostislav rushed to ask for help in Hungary.

To be continued…

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Ill. 1.
To understand the events of our country’s past, to understand whether there was a “calling of the Varangians”, the conquest of Rus' by hordes from the East, “which predetermined the economic backwardness of Russia”, one should turn to sources - charters, chronicles, decrees, diplomatic correspondence, visual sources. Thus, what constituted, for example, the Tatar-Mongol yoke (TMI) can be seen from the charters - legal documents drawn up by a third party, certified by witnesses, according to which the ruling class built the life of the state.

In the Agreement between V.K. Dmitry Ivanovich and K. Vladimir Andreech, 1362, No. 7, we read:
1. “And what about our Ordintsy and Deeni, and therefore know their service, as it was under our father” [Ancient Russian Vivliofika. T. 1 / Ed. N. Novikov. Ed. 2. - M. Printing company, 1788. - P. 75-76].
The legal status of the Horde is clear: they are hired military personnel, moreover, from ancient times, as it was “under their fathers,” that is, it has always been. There was no conquest of Rus' with 2 million people by 2 tumens of cavalry ("tumen" - from "darkness"). “In the presence of the father” - in the presence of distant ancestors, because it is not written “in the presence of the father.” Princes were raised based on authority Holy Scripture. According to Scripture, Christ is the “Son of David,” that is, a descendant of King David. Therefore, “fathers” are ancestors, ancestors.
There was no devastation of many cities of Rus' by “filthy” ones, since many of these cities were already by the 30s. 14th century according to o.x. devastated during strife, which can be read about in Russian chronicles.

2. “And give the Ordean burden and burden to me, your eldest brother, from your inheritance according to ancient documents” [Ibid., pp. 76-77].
“Orda burden” is a tax on the maintenance of troops, which was sometimes called tribute, quitrent. There can be no talk of indemnity to the conquerors, or payment to medieval “racketeers.” I admit the possibility that some Horde military leaders would like to see an indemnity in taxes on the maintenance of troops, but this was suppressed, as can be seen from the events caused by the boundless pride and greed of Edigei. The Horde military leaders in the charters are called princes, not khans...

In the Agreement between V.K. Vasily Dmitrievich and K. Vladimir Andreevich, 1390, No. 15 it is written:
3. “And God, the Lord, will change the Horde, and I will receive tribute from my inheritance... And your son will mount a horse, then I will mount the horse with him” [Ibid. - pp. 118-119].
Thus, there were times when Rus' did not have a regular army, a horde, in its service, since the country did not need a horde for a certain period of time. Sometimes the princes themselves had to gather squads and go on a campaign led by the Grand Duke - “mount a horse.”
4. In the Treaty of V.K. Vasily Dmitrievich with the princes, 1402, No. 17 it is written:
"... and the God of the Tatars will change the qi (if the Horde separates from us), and that place is for me, Grand Duke Vasily Dmitrievich. And what your father took away. Prince Oleg Ivanovich, the Tatar and Mordovian places, and that is yours" [ Ibid., S. 126]. Thus, the “horde” itself often wanted to separate from the prince it served, but, as we remember, the agreement was drawn up by a third party and in the presence of witnesses... It is not surprising to note that “places” were simply taken away from the Tatars.
The events that N. Karamzin mentions in the “History of the Russian State” also indicate that there was no Mongol-Tatar yoke, because even before the Kulikovo victory there were only permanent raids of Russian “ushkuiniki” on the settlements of the Volga region and Western Siberia: “ushkuiniki” in 1361 they went down the Volga to the very nest of the Tatars, to their capital Saraichik, and in 1364-65, under the leadership of the young Whatman Alexander Obakumovich, they made their way beyond the Ural ridge and walked along the Ob River to the sea. [Cm. by: Savelyev E. P. Ancient history Cossacks. T.2. - Novocherkassk, 1915. - Reprint: Vladikavkaz, “Spas”, 1991. - P. 199. See also Skrynnikov, 1986, P. 82].
In some "grams" there were estates of the kings and princes of the Tatars in the Moscow land: Koshira, Dmitrov.
It is clear that these cities and lands were received by the “Tatars” - kings, princes, khans - for their service to the Moscow V.K., and then to the Tsar.
There was a mention in several documents of the royal label on Dimitrov, which was received by V.K. Moskovsky. It would seem that here it is - proof of the existence of the terrible Mongol yoke! How did you get it? Let's figure it out.
It is noteworthy that not to Moscow, which was the patrimony of V.K., but to one of the cities near Moscow, which, apparently, was the “place” of the Tatar king, from which he RECEIVED INCOME FOR SERVICE, but which, being outside the city ( in the Horde, of course), COULD NOT DIRECTLY MANAGE the city and land, and handed over the label - POWER OF ATTORNEY to manage the city V.K.T. o., LABEL - THIS IS A POWER OF ATTORNEY FOR THE DISPOSAL OF PROPERTY.
In subsequent “letters” of the treaty, Dmitrov is already mentioned as the patrimony of V.K. Moskovsky, but also with the mention “from the tsar”.
Many treaty documents mention the right of V.K. Moskovsky to “give access to the Horde.” By "Horde" we mean a regular army. We often talk about the release of V.K. Moskovsky’s subjects to serve in the Horde (simply in the troops...), about assignments for service, and sending on a campaign. T. o., V. K. - ruler in the Horde. Can V.K.’s rule be called a yoke?
In the letters EVERYWHERE there is a typical phrase that consolidated the right of V.K. Moskovsky to “rule the Horde”: “And the Grand Duke will know and rule the Horde, but you will not know the Horde” [Ancient Russian Vivliofika, Vol. 1. Ed. 2nd. - P. 218], “And the Horde, Lord, shall be ruled and known by you, the Grand Duke” [Ibid. - P. 224].
Visual sources also indicate that the Horde and the warriors of the princes had the same weapons and looked the same, i.e. they were representatives of the same people (see Fig. 1).
The king of the horde was not the overlord for V.K. or for any other prince, and V.K. was not a vassal to the king of the horde: the king addresses V.K. (see ill. 2, 3): “My brother and Master Grand Duke" [The Legend of the Kazan Kingdom. - pp. 34, 40]. So who is the overlord? The word “brother” in those days was used when communicating with relatives descended from the same ancestor...

Ill. 2. Read the text on L.40.

Ill. 3. Read L. 34.

When V.K. did not need the help of a regular army - the horde - he did not give orders to the horde to go on a campaign (see Fig. 4 and 5). Prince Edigei, who came from the horde to Moscow, complains about this: “Otherwise, if there is good, how do you repair it? As Tsar-Emir Kotluy sat down as king, and You became the sovereign of the ulus (country - author), from those places you were not in the horde of the king (You - author), you did not see the king in his eyes, neither his princes nor the boyars Thou art thy elders and youngest, - I DID NOT SEND ANYONE ELSE, neither son nor brother, with any word. And then Janibek reigned for EIGHT years, - and you didn’t visit him either and you didn’t send anyone with a word; and the kingdom of Jadibek also passed away. And Bulat Saltan sat on the throne and has been reigning for the third year already, - you yourself have never been like this, you have not sent either a son, or a brother, or the oldest boyar, and yet over such a great ulus, the oldest is the Grand Duke" [ Collection of state charters and agreements. Part 2. (1229 - 1612) / Ed. N. Rumyantsev - M., 1819. - P. 16]. We see that Prince Edigei reproaches V.K. for forgetting about his Horde, admonishes V.K. to seek the help of the horde OFTEN, since V.K. THEN MUST PAY FOR THIS HELP! Edigei - a professional warrior - asks for CASES.
But when they came Hard times, when Rus' needed the help of the Horde, then V.K. GAVE ORDERS to the Horde to field an army: “And whatever grievances you may have, either from the Russian princes, or from Lithuania, - and you send us letters of complaint against them - flattery - those letters of complaint! - and you ask us for defense from them, and peace (now - author) in that we have nothing from You... We ourselves have not seen this ulus of Yours with our own eyes, we only heard with our ears. AND YOUR ORDERS AND LETTERS were sent to us in the horde" [Ibid. - P. 17]. We see that V.K. - overlord, giving orders to the entire Horde when necessary. However, V.K. knew that the soldiers would then need to be paid, so he rarely turned to the horde for help. Thus, the relationship between V.K. and the Horde was built according to the scheme: mercenary - employer, since the Horde did not help V.K. if he did not give the Horde payment for military labor. Things got to the point of curiosity, as the princes from the Horde looked into V.K.’s wallet (one of V.K. was nicknamed - KALITA - author) - they simply BEGED FOR MONEY FROM HIM: “What did you have in Your power with The entire ulus is worth two rubles, and where do you put that silver?” [Ibid. - P. 17]. The Horde messengers, as usual, explained their behavior by the fact that they cared, imagine, about the well-being of Christians: “Otherwise this evil would not have been done to the ulus, and the peasants would not have died to the end” [Ibid. - P. 17].
It is not surprising that representatives of the horde in the capital were mocked: “Ambassadors and guests from the horde will come to you, and you laugh at the ambassadors and guests” [Ibid. - P. 16].

Ill. 4. Letter from Prince Edigei to V.K. Vasily Dmitrievich.

Ill. 5. Completion of diploma.

Already in 1487, Kazan, which had fallen out of obedience to V.K., was taken. Tsar Aligam is called a “koromolnik” and “sent into captivity in Vologda” (Vologda-Perm Chronicles. - M.-L., 1959. - P. 278. 1487, L 459).
Based on materials from G. Volya.

1480 Moscow has not paid tribute to the Khan of the Great Horde, Akhmat, for 7 years. He came to collect what was his and stopped on the banks of the Ugra River. The troops of Moscow Prince Ivan III lined up on the opposite bank.

They stood opposite each other for more than a month. Only the river separated them.
On November 6 (old style), 1480, Khan Akhmat left. “He fled from Ugra in the night of November on the 6th day,” sources of that time tell us.

Together with Khan Akhmat, the Tatar-Mongol yoke also went away.
Let’s not argue whether it was in Rus' or not. For some of us it was a yoke, for others it was peculiarities political relations. Let's better describe the events of 1237-1480 in the language of numbers.

People

169 documented trips
Russian princes committed to the Horde from 1243 to 1430 for a variety of reasons. In reality, there were most likely even more trips.

11 Russian princes
were killed in the Horde. Often, people of non-princely dignity, family members, and accompanying people were also killed with them. This figure did not include those who died outside the Horde, such as Alexander Nevsky, who was poisoned by Khan Berke and was returning home.

70 Ryazan boyars
died on the Kulikovo field in September 1380. So, at least, “Zadonshchina”, which was written in the 14th or 15th century, tells us.

24,000 people
died during the sack of Moscow by Tokhtamysh in 1382. In fact, every second resident of the capital died.

27 and 70 skulls
discovered by archaeologists during excavations at the site of Ryazan, devastated by the Mongols. The main version is traces of executions, cutting off heads.

Let us explain that modern Ryazan is, in fact, the ancient Russian city of Pereyaslavl-Ryazan, which began to be called that way in the mid-14th century. That Ryazan, which was devastated in 1237, was never restored.

4 younger brothers
Prince Mstislav Glebovich died after the fall of Chernigov, during the devastation of nearby cities such as Gomiy, Rylsk and others by the Mongols.

During excavations of the devastated Gomiya, archaeologists discovered a workshop destroyed by the invasion, where artisans made armor. We talked more about this workshop in the article “Lamellar armor of Russian squads”

4,000 Mongol warriors and siege engines
were destroyed by the defending residents of Kozelsk during a sortie on the third day of the assault. However, the detachment itself died, after which the city, which had lost its protection, was destroyed.

Money

14 types of tribute
The Russians paid the Mongols. They paid not only a fixed amount for the khan, but there were also various “gifts” and “honors” to the khan, his relatives and associates, as well as payment from trade, the obligation to maintain the khan’s embassy, ​​and so on. In addition, unscheduled fundraisers were periodically announced - for example, before a large military campaign.

300 rubles
Dmitry Donskoy spent on burying the bodies of dead Muscovites (a ruble for 80 buried bodies) after the destruction of Moscow by Tokhtamysh. At that time - serious money, a sixth of the tribute that the Vladimir Principality paid to the Golden Horde.

3,000 Lithuanian rubles
gave Kyiv as compensation to the Nogais of Edigei, who pursued the allies retreating from Vorskla in the Kyiv and Lithuanian lands. More about this battle below.

5,000 rubles
It was no longer the Russians who paid the Horde, but vice versa. The matter began in the spring of 1376. Voivode and namesake of Dmitry Donskoy, Prince Bobrok-Volynsky (future hero of the Battle of Kulikovo) invaded Volga Bulgaria. On March 16, he defeated the united army of its rulers - Emir Hasan Khan and Muhammad Sultan, installed by the Horde.

Time

5 days
Moscow resisted the Mongols, which was defended by Prince Vladimir Yuryevich and governor Philip Nyanka “with a small army.” Pereyaslavl-Zalessky also defended for the same amount of time, which found itself on the path of the main forces of the Mongols moving from Vladimir to Novgorod.

6 days
The siege of Ryazan continued, which fell at the end of December and was completely devastated. More on this above.

8 days
The besieged Vladimir defended itself, but was nevertheless captured in early February 1238. The entire family of Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich died in the city. The Mongols hesitated, and began the assault on Vladimir only after the return of another Mongol detachment with many prisoners from the captured Suzdal.

Almost 50 days
The siege of Kozelsk continued.

3 days
The assault on Kozelsk continued, ending its long siege by the Mongols (May 1238)

12 years
It was Prince Vasily of Kozelsky when the Mongols besieged the city in which he was planted to rule. The defense was led by an experienced governor and boyars, under the formal command of the prince.

14 years in Mongol captivity
carried out by Prince Oleg Ingvarevich Krasny, after which he was released.

Territories

5 Russian principalities
as well as 3 principalities of the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Teutonic Order and Tokhtamysh, who was deprived of the khan’s throne the day before in the Horde, with a detachment of several thousand Tatars.

All of them rose up against the Khan of the Golden Horde, Kutlug.
But on August 12, 1399, on the banks of the Vorskla River, the allies were defeated.

11 cities
captured by the Tatars before standing on the Ugra River in 1480, in order to prevent an attack on them from the rear.

14 cities in a month
were taken by the Tatars in February 1238. If you calculate average, then the gates of Russian cities were opened to the invaders every other day.

Pali Suzdal, Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, Yuryev-Polsky, Starodub-on-Klyazma, Tver, Gorodets, Kostroma, Galich-Mersky, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Uglich, Kashin, Ksnyatin, Dmitrov, as well as the Novgorod suburbs of Vologda and Volok Lamsky.

We'll put an end to this. Numbers are numbers.

And again, genetics struck a blow at the positions of supporters of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, unearthing new evidence of the purity of the Russian race. In terms of the fact that the influence of the Mongols on the Russian genotype is not visible.

It is clear that there is no point in arguing with geneticists. However, for me personally, this argument regarding the Tatar-Mongol yoke is comparable to the debate about the Norman theory. In the 18th century, they not only argued about this issue, but also punched people in the face. And they quickly realized its harmfulness. Only the method of defense was chosen incorrectly. And instead of simply justifying the natural historical approach to the development of society, according to which a state cannot be created where historical conditions for this have not developed, they began to argue that the story of Rurik’s invitation was a fake. But then it was clear. And now? After Frazer's "Golden Bough" the theme was already dropped.

Now about the Tatar-Mongol yoke. I note that, despite all efforts, the position that there was no Tatar-Mongol yoke is not convincing. It was just not the same as it was served in the times of Karamzin and Yan. Therefore, Rus'’s dependence on the Horde strongly resembles military-political union. But they paid tribute and bore hardships. And was it any different for the Huns? However, the material on genetics is worth knowing for anyone.

We look at staryiy in The whole truth about purebred Russians

An average portrait of modern Russians, obtained by superimposing thousands of photographs and subsequent computer processing

Geneticists refute popular theories about the influence of the Tatar-Mongol invasion on the “indigenous” gene pool. There is a common opinion that there are simply no Russians as a people and they all remain in the legends of deep antiquity, and at present the country is inhabited by mestizos of a thousand and one bloods. And, naturally, they refer to the fact that Rus' spent 250 years under the Mongol-Tatar yoke. Actually this is not true.

Who inherited it?

It must be said that over the past ten years the genetics of Russians from Smolensk to Vladivostok have been studied in great detail. Doctors of Biological Sciences Elena Balanovskaya and her son Oleg Balanovsky made a huge contribution to the study of the issue.

Balanovskaya’s monograph “The Russian Gene Pool on the Russian Plain” is considered one of the fundamental works on this issue.

Important research was carried out by the head of the genetics laboratory of the Institute of Biological Problems of the North, Doctor of Biological Sciences Boris Malyarchuk.

Scientists note that in the Russian genome, when examining mitochondrial DNA inherited through the female line, only 2% of Mongolian characteristics are found. For comparison, for Poles and Czechs this figure is 1.5%. The study of heredity along the male line (the so-called Y-DNA) shows that Mongoloid admixture constitutes about 0.2–0.5% of the Russian genome.

Researchers directly state that the Tatar-Mongol invasion did not leave noticeable traces in the Russian genome. “The Russian gene pool is not intermediate between the typical European and Asian gene pool. The Russian gene pool is the most eastern of the typically European ones,” note the Belanovskys.

Malyarchuk agrees with them: “It has been established that, structurally, the mitochondrial gene pools of Czechs and others Slavic peoples(Russians, Poles, Slovenes) are practically the same.”

Geneticists have noticed that the frequency of Mongolian markers in the European part of the country increases not from west to east, but from south to north. This prompted them to assume that even those eastern characteristics that are found in the genes of Russians are not at all associated with the invasion of the 13th century, but with earlier processes of mixing the Slavs with Finno-Ugric tribes, which had characteristics similar to the Mongols. This assumption is also supported by the strong heterogeneity (heterogeneity) of the Russian genetic cluster.

The realities of medieval warfare

What happens: there was never any Tatar-Mongol yoke? Is the great writer and historian Lev Nikolaevich Gumilyov really right, and his opponents, all these boring archaeologists and chronicles specialists devoid of imagination, screwed up?

No, unfortunately. The yoke, unfortunately, was, and Rus' really for a long time was dependent on the Horde.

The problem is that those who talk about the genetic consequences of this conquest transfer ideas about wars to the Middle Ages modern type. In this case, “mixing” refers to two processes: mass rape of women in captured cities and cross-marriages between the conquerors and the conquered population in subsequent years.

It can be difficult for a modern person to imagine the customs of that time. However, they are very clearly visible when studying sanitary burials from the time of the invasion of Batu Khan. In 2004–2005, an expedition from the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, led by Asya Engovatova, explored mass graves in the historical center of Yaroslavl.

Sanitary burial of residents of Yaroslavl who died during the attack of Batu’s army

Scientists discovered that the male population was killed on the defensive ramparts and outskirts of the city. But women's and children's skeletons were discovered en masse in pits in the center of the settlement. Forensic analysis showed that most of the men died from slashing and crushing wounds inflicted on the face, and most of the women were killed by arrows.

Many townspeople were wounded in the back - this suggests that they tried to escape. Most children died from blows to the head; many were shot with bows, some were raised on spears (characteristic injuries remained on the spines and ribs of several children's skeletons).

In 2011, a similar discovery was made in the city of Vladimir. During excavations in the city center, archaeologists saw the same picture. The remains of people, randomly dumped in wells and utility pits, male skeletons with traces of two or three serious wounds - Russian soldiers fought to the last, - female and children's skeletons with pierced heads.

Skull of a 13th-century resident of Vladimir, killed by a Tatar warrior

In the graves, scientists found not only fragments of winter clothing, but also a large amount of women's jewelry: the conquerors were not interested in enrichment, and certainly not in sexual pleasures. Faithful to the precepts of Genghis Khan, Batu’s warriors purposefully exterminated the population of rebellious cities.

Intolerant Muscovy

As for mixed marriages, here too the conquerors failed to “inherit.” The first decades after the conquest, the Golden Horde khans tried to exercise direct control over Russian cities.

For this purpose, tax collectors - Baskaks, who were accompanied by small detachments of Horde residents, settled in them. However, this practice was unsuccessful. The Russians of Suzdal, Tver, Yaroslavl and Rostov systematically rebelled, slaughtering the occupation forces.

The Horde invariably responded with punitive campaigns, during which the population of the rebel principalities was destroyed as mercilessly as under Batu. In general, assimilation according to the Bulgarian scenario did not work out in Rus'.

Later, when the pendulum of history swung to the opposite side, and already the Moscow kingdom began to absorb the Horde, which had broken up into separate khanates, the attitude towards the Tatars was very, very negative.

Unlike the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (the union Polish-Lithuanian state), Moscow rulers did not allow yesterday’s enemies to settle in compact groups on their territory. Tatar defectors were required to undergo baptism and linguistic assimilation. A telling fact: the first mosque in Minsk, which was then under the control of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, appeared in 1599, and in Moscow only in 1744.

Kitab is a text written in Belarusian in Arabic letters. The legacy of the mass resettlement of Tatars to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

In general, the Russian rulers of the 15th – 16th centuries pursued a policy that made Muscovy a very unpleasant place for resettlement from the Horde. The Tatar clans, unable to stay in the steppe, preferred to move to the more hospitable Polish-Lithuanian kingdom. According to some estimates, up to 200 thousand steppe residents moved there.

Relatively few representatives of the Tatar nobility went into service with Muscovy, who naturally did not leave a noticeable mark on the Russian gene pool.

After the 16th century, there were no significant movements of large ethnic groups. Russians and Tatars lived as neighbors, neither assimilating nor exterminating each other. Cross-marriages, of course, happened later, but this no longer had anything to do with the Horde or the yoke. And it didn’t have a big impact on the Russian gene pool.

Where are the burials of the Mongols, Zin?

I didn’t want to address this topic, but our alternativeists certainly demand that we show them the burials of the Mongols on the territory of Rus'. I think that this material will help to understand one of the aspects of the life of the Mongols during the Mongol Empire.

First from Wikipedia (translation of texts today is completely from Google and not combed

Sky burial (Tibetan: བྱ་གཏོར་, Wylie: bya gtor, lit. "scattered by bird") is a funeral practice in which a human corpse is placed on a mountaintop to decompose when exposed to the elements or to be eaten by scavenging animals, especially carrion birds . This is a special type of general survival practice. It is practiced in the Chinese provinces and autonomous regions of Tibet, Qinghai, Sichuan and Inner Mongolia, as well as in Mongolia, Bhutan and parts of India such as Sikkim and Zanskar. The sites of preparation and burial of heaven are understood in Vajrayana Buddhist traditions as coal lands. Comparable practices are part of Zoroastrian burials, where the deceased are exposed to the elements and birds of prey on stone structures called Dakhma. Few such sites continue to function today due to religious marginalization, urbanization, and the destruction of vulture populations.

I think that many people also know about the towers of silence...

Abkhazians and Circassians also practiced this method of burial:

"The article is devoted to the analysis of one of the most striking rites of Abkhaz-Adyghe paganism, the cult of “air” burial. Based on historical documents, archival sources and translated literature, “air” burial is presented as a phenomenon characteristic of the culture of the Abkhaz and Adyghe people within the framework of the foreseeable historical era until the middle of the 19th century. The culturological approach chosen by the researcher made it possible to identify the typology of the “air” burial rite, to determine its stable and mobile, general and local elements." Hence

So, how the Mongols buried their dead:

Underground open-air burial of the Mongols

from Heike Michel

After the 1921 revolution, the Mongols began to change their funeral rites.

Atheists such as Suksbaatar and other representatives of the Communist Party, scientists and "heroes" of the new generation were buried in the cemetery named altan olgiï(golden cradle) in the northeastern part of Ulaanbaatar.

After the revolution, especially in the 1930s, a strong campaign began against traditional beliefs and superstitions. I could not find a decree, law or anything similar that prohibited traditional so-called "open air" burial, but it was not permitted. Only very old people, mainly in rural areas, were secretly buried in the traditional way until the late 60s.

Step by step, European funeral practices were introduced, a process accelerated by Soviet influence. One of the consequences of the change in socialism was a truly serious intrusion into nomadic life. The established form of existence became more and more important, and relatively big cities. This is one of the main reasons why many nomadic traditions were lost, including open-air sacrificial burial, which I will now talk about in more detail.

Open-air burial or "cast-off" burial is a very ancient custom among the nomads of Asia; it was already in use, several centuries BC. This is what we know from Cicero and other old writers. This is a quote from Henning Haslund's book The Mongolian Journey.

Besides open-air burial, other funerals existed in Mongolia such as cremation, embalming, and "water burial", another form of open-air burial.

The choice of one of these funeral procedures depends mainly on social status, cause of death and geographical location.

The people who were mostly embalmed were those known as "Reincarnations of Buddha" and other high-ranking figures of the Lamaistic Church. Such bodies were usually buried in coffins in a sitting position, as if in prayer.

Nobles were also buried in coffins, but unlike Lamaist dignitaries, these coffins were buried with additions such as weapons, horses, food and other things that would help them in the next world - the kingdom of Erlik-Hans. Erlik Khan is the god of death. The location of the nobleman's tomb was kept secret to ensure peace.

When people died from infectious diseases, they were cremated to reduce the risk of epidemics.

Sometimes Lama's corpses were also cremated to allow their spirit to ascend directly to heaven without any desecration of the spirit. This is because Mongolian people believe that fire purifies everything.

Mongols have different customs, to bury children under the age of 3 because their souls were considered innocent and pure.

It is also interesting how they touched the bodies of executed people.

But today this is not the topic of my newspaper. I want to tell you more about “banishing” or “open air sacrificial burial.”

It is not easy to translate Mongolian terminology into English language because we have neither the customs nor the appropriate expression for it in Europe. There are many different designations in Mongolian, for example, "ilä orusiGulxu" in Inner Mongolia and "sul"a orusiGulxu" in Outer Mongolia. According to European understanding, "to bury" means to place a body in the ground, but this is not what the Mongols did , and what Mongolian terms describe. For example:

"Ilä" or "sul"a" can mean open, free, unoccupied or visible.

"Ködägäläkü", another expression for the same procedure means "to surrender a corpse in the steppe".

It must be said that Mongol funeral rites were influenced by bloody shamanic sacrifices, such as killing horses, animals and even people before placing them in the graves of nobles.

In the 16th century, when Altan Khan (1543-83) established Lamaism in Mongolia as official state religion, the following decision was made (the so-called Ärdäniïn Tobci):

“The former Mongol state allowed the killing of widows, serfs, servants, horses and other animals. Now you must give such animals to people in need.

Don't end the lives of other living beings when someone dies. If a person continues to kill people as before, he must lose his own life.

If a person continues to kill horses and other animals, all his property should be confiscated."

As A. Sarkozy wrote, “it was these lamas who led these ceremonies, and without them such a ceremony would have been unimaginable.” Determining how many lamas were called upon to direct the burial depended on social status. In other words, the richer the family, the more llamas it could afford. The first thing the lama had to do was to approve a suitable day and time for the burial. Such days were usually Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He also had to approve the direction in which the funeral procession should leave the yurt and from which direction it should return after depositing the corpse in the steppe. The lamas took this information from a special book called “Altan Saw.”

The Mongols believed that the soul of the deceased could return. Thus, the lamas had the following tasks: to pray, direct the spirit to heaven and offer food (white or dairy dishes and meat), burn incense on the fire and do other things to protect the remaining family from misfortunes and diseases, the spirit or other evil spirits may hurt the family.

Some Mongols placed blue stones in one or two places on a bed in which someone died and left them there for three days to prevent evil spirits from haunting the bed.

After death, the corpse's face was covered with a white hadak, which is "a long piece of silk or other fabric specially made... to commemorate a special occasion."

The Mongolian proverb according to this custom “in life covers your private parts, in death your face” (amidaa nuucaa, öwäl nüürää).

He was not allowed to look at or reveal the corpse's face, and he was not allowed to touch the corpse, especially the corpse's face. If the eyes or mouth were not closed, only the closed relative or lama was allowed to close them.

According to very old tradition, the corpse had to be stripped to resemble the state of birth. The only person allowed to touch the corpse and prepare it for burial was the "jasu bari cu", the "undertaker", one of the male children of the deceased or a male relative who was born under the same sign in a 12-year cycle. “He had to put his hat back and fold his hat, collar and sleeves inward, his dean's seam had to be tucked into his belt. It was just as sinful for other people to wear clothes like this."

First, this man, the so-called "undertaker", had to run his hand along the shoulder blade so that the other men could not help him. It was forbidden for women to assist in this work or participate in the burial ceremony.

The male corpses were placed on the right side of the yurt, which is usually the female side, with their right hands under their heads. The female corpses were placed on the left side of the yurt, on the male side, with their left hands under their heads.

Mongolia believe that everything is reversed in the next world, which is why they place corpses on the side of the yurt corresponding to the opposite sex.

A few days before the dead body was "exorcised", the family of the deceased burned incense and oil lamps and watched the corpse. More detailed information about these days, about what happened and what the lamas did, can be found in articles, for example, by Pozneev, Heisig, Haslund, Sarkozy, Bartold and others.

In the days before the corpse was laid in the steppe, all the dogs in the neighboring gardens had to be “tied up to prevent them from falling on the body until the right time.”

When the time was right, the corpse was usually placed on a cart (tärgä) pulled by a horse or cow. The deceased from the family then followed the cart to the clan or family burial ground, which was an uninhabited area separate from the areas used by the nomads. These places were sacred and were visited only for funerals.

In other areas, especially Southern Mongolia, the corpse was placed on the back of a horse and, upon reaching the burial site, the horse was forced to gallop until the corpse was thrown off.

Some stones were placed next to the head to later identify the burial site. A fire was then made to sacrifice selected pieces of meat (lamb) and white dishes (cagaan idää).

Bringing the corpse into the steppe was intended for sacrifice to predatory animals. According to the Mongols, this is the last virtuous act a person can perform. This idea is much older than Lamaism and demonstrates a truly strong shamanic element of spiritual thought.

When animals such as vultures and wild dogs ate the body, they did not eat other animals that might live a little longer. When the animals ate the corpse very quickly, it meant that the soul was innocent and pure and had reached heaven, from where it could be reborn. When the spirit quickly placed a new body, the human world remained pure and pure.

This is why people had to re-examine the corpse after three days to check whether the soul had ascended to heaven. Other possible visits were 7, 14, 21 and 49 days after burial.

If anything remained of the corpse, it meant that the soul was not allowed into heaven, was still considered to be in the corpse, and therefore could not find a new body. This required the return of the lama to recite more prayers for the dead and show spiritual path to heaven.

Let's return to the burial ceremony itself:

The burial ceremony was to take place early in the morning on the day approved by the lama.

According to Mongolian tradition, it was not allowed to carry the body over the threshold of the yurt. When an old or sick person was expected to die, they brought him or her to a "dobun-gar" - a special yurt for dying or dead people - or tent.

The threshold was supposed to protect people and is therefore considered an obstacle to the spirit leaving the yurt to reach the next world.

Therefore, the Mongols had a special tradition of carrying corpses out of the yurt, and not through the threshold. They lifted the lattice section of the wall to the right of the yurt door and pulled the body out through the opening. If they lived in the house, they pulled the body out the window. If the windows were too high for this, as in modern buildings, they placed small branches, such as willows, on the threshold and carried the body over them. When they crossed the branches, they broke them so that the spirit could leave the house without any further obstacles.

The corpse was wrapped in white clothing, placed on a cart and - followed by relatives, neighbors and friends - carried to its final location.

Along the way the lama prayed. Upon reaching the "dropping" place, the "undertaker" and the lama lowered the corpse and laid it on the ground. The head was supposed to point to the north, where the Mongols envisioned the next world. This faith is much older than Lamaism and is known from ancient Mongolian and other Central Asian mythologies. According to this belief, the body was placed on his left side, with his left hand under his head, and this was right hand in front of the face, covering the eyes, nose and mouth. This is called the "lion position" (arslangyn chewlelt), which is considered a good omen. This all stems from the ancient belief that the right side of the body was black (bad or evil) and the left side was white (good or beneficial).

Another variation of the "lion position" placed the left hand under the face, the right hand under the back, and the legs bent at the knees. Sometimes the corpse was placed in a position similar to that of a child before birth.

In some places a stone was placed under the head of the corpse as a kind of pillow.

As I already said, the places of “throwback” were remote, uninhabited areas. The predatory animals of these areas are accustomed to these funeral rites. Haslund described it very vividly: "... birds of prey gathered above our heads in flocks that grew thicker and thicker, and wild dogs dared to approach a distance of several hundred yards, from where their tongues hung, they closely watched the progress of the preparations."

After handing over the corpses to the steppe, the funeral procession returned home. The funeral cart was not immediately returned to the village. He remained outside the ayl, capsized and only after seven days returned and used it again. The animal that pulled the cart was also unused for a week.

When the funeral procession returned home, it had to walk between two fires, burning directly opposite the entrance to the deceased's yurt. These fires were believed to bring in evil spirits from the procession participants and their animals.

If the fire bombardment was not carried out, the Mongols believed that epidemics and other misfortunes might occur.

This is a very short description funeral rite under the open sky of the Mongols.

The old traditions and Lamaistic religion have become very popular in Outer Mongolia over the past five years. I would say they have been revived. I don't know how ritual practices will develop in the future, but it is an important issue and one I intend to follow closely.

Haslund, H.: Mongolian Journey, London 1949, p. 172

Lessing, F. D.: Mongolian-English Dictionary, Bloomington 1973, p. 477

S. Püräwjaw: Mongol dax" sharyn shashny xuraanguï tüü, Ulaanbaatar 1987, p.30

Sárközi, A.: A Bon funeral rite in lamaist Mongolia, in: Synkretismus in den Religionen Zentralasiens, Wiesbaden 1987, p. 120

Lessing, F. D.: op. cit., 902

Mongolyn dsan aalyn tojm, Liaoning 1990, p. 324

Mongolyn yos zanshlyn ix taïlbar tol", Ulaanbaatar 1992, p. 460

Mongolyn zan aalyn toïm, op. cit., 327

Haslund, H.: op.cit., 167

Haslund, H.: op. cit., 173

I think that after this many questions should disappear.