Ryazan Region. History of “isolated lands” in the collection of the Presidential Library

Ryazan Region is the next destination of our tour around regions of Russia. This area, which has long been famous for its rich nature and old monasteries, is in the spotlight of the individual collection of the Presidential Library.

The present-day Ryazan Region is relatively young: it was founded in 1937, and on September 26 it is marking its 81st anniversary. However the history of this Russian region and its center - the city of Ryazan - goes back to the ancient times. A long time ago had it become the source for study. In the first half of 19th century the prominent historian of Ryazan - Tikhon Vozdvizhensky – dedicated several research works to his native land, which are available for study on the portal of the Presidential Library. He wrote the book “The Historical Survey of Ryazan Governorate” (1822), "so that all residents of Ryazan, of all classes, could benefit from the reading and enjoy it. And, finally, not to be idle in the spare time”.

This is what Vozdvizhensky wrote about the first records of Ryazan: "In the Russian early history, the Ryazan Principality was one of its oldest and well-known lands, both in respect of its size and population and courage of people, who had inhabited it. The capital of Ryazan princes was Tmutarakan, later known as Ryazan or Rezan ... Such a remarkable ancient city can be traced back in the Russian History to the summer of 1079. At that time Oleg was the Prince of Ryazan or Tmutarakan. That is why, he was apparently the one to have built this city. "

It is known that several Russian cities, including Astrakhan, are involved in a dispute over the semi-mythical name of Tmutarakan. Tikhon Vozdvizhensky presents such an argument in favor of the Ryazan principality: "In ancient times it reached the Caspian and Black Seas and bordered the Pechenegs and Polovtsy. Astrakhan might have been called Tmutarakan in ancient times, and made a part of Ryazan Principality ... "

As to the origin of the word "Ryazan", it is most likely to appear due to political views of local princes: for a long time they refused to join the Russian state headed by Kiev. This is the reason why Ryazan principality was called "isolated (cut off) land". Mikhail Kozhukhov, the presenter of "Our Geography" radio program series spotlights this fact. “Ryazan. Etymology of the Name” program is available on the portal of the Presidential Library.

Anyway, this all refers to the so-called Old Ryazan - the capital of the principality, which was burned in the 13th century during the Mongol invasion of the Batu Khan, and thus was called "Russian Troy". There is a museum on that site now. Modern Ryazan before the decree of Empress Catherine II of 1778 was called Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky.

When studying the nature of Ryazan Region, it is worth noting the following: for many centuries it had defined the life of the local population. Meshersky region, which is rich in forests, swamps, rivers and lakes, is particularly notable in this respect. “Life of Ryazan Meshera” (1928) - the guide to the exhibition, Ryazan Regional Museum, reads: "As to the economic way of life of this district, it is worth noting the existence of numerous crafts, and namely: carpentry, timber, shoemaking, felting, pottery etc. The landscape of the north of Meshera – lots of lakes located in the center of the district, also encouraged fishery; the elderly and the youth are the ones who are mainly involved in it".

Speaking about the inhabitants of the Ryazan Region, one cannot but highlight their military glory and valor. The rare book “Ryazan Noblemen Voluntary Corps during 1812–1814” (1912) by V. R. Apukhtin, which can be found on the portal of the Presidential Library, proves this. The author stated: "The Ryazan land, the south-east of the Moscow State, often suffered from invasions of the Tatar and Crimean hordes, and therefore the generations of the local higher servicemen grew stronger in battles with the enemy."

In the early 19th century Ryazan noblemen - volunteers bravely resisted the foreign invader. Apukhtin wrote: "In the hard time of the second half of 1812, when the multinational forces, led by the great commander Emperor Napoleon I, invaded Russia, the Ryazan nobility brilliantly proved that the spirit of their glorious ancestors was alive inside of them."

And after Napoleon was driven out of our country, Ryazan landlords took weapons and set out to liberate the cities of Europe from the French troops. German cities of Dresden and Hamburg were liberated by Ryazan citizens.

Superstition and ancient pagan rituals used to be a distinctive feature of Ryazan people for many centuries. In the middle of 19th century local authorities even announced a campaign to struggle with the leftover of the past. The book “The State of Ryazan Governorate in the half of 19th Century” (1895) by the historian A. D. Povalishin reads: "The report of 1848 confirms the existence of the same harmful customs and beliefs among common people as before. These are beliefs in witchcraft and spells, which help to recover from illnesses; in the art of healers to treat diseases with a variety of means: by drinking herbs and roots water, mostly harmless; muffling up sick people and warming them”.

The Ryazan governorate had a number of other problems to deal with -  poor roads and fires, according to Povalishin’s accounts. Because of the succession of poor harvests, "the government had to spend huge sums of money to feed the starving population”. And an unexpected outbreak of an epidemic called laziness was recognized as one of the most terrible troubles of that time.

Nevertheless, Ryazan people can hardly be called lazy. After all, many world-famous people were born and worked here: "the white general" M. D. Skobelev, poet S. A. Yesenin, the author of the anthem of the USSR and Russia, A. V. Alexandrov. Famous writer M. Ye. Saltykov-Schedrin was the vice-governor of Ryazan. The historian N. V. Drizen’s “Mikhail Yevgrafovich Saltykov in Ryazan” (1900), which is available on the portal of the Presidential Library, describes the great writer, who held this position: "He has an excellent memory, not a single trifle can escape his notice, especially if it concerns the universally wanted “government cake” (government property). M. Ye. was generally considered to be very strict as an administrator, although behind the severe appearance there was a very kind and soft heart”.

Finally, it is worth mentioning the architecture of Ryazan. Every year thousands of tourists and pilgrims come to see and worship the shrines of Solotcha Convent and Holy Assumption Vysha Convent. The latter was shot by the legendary Russian photographer, the pioneer of color photographs in our country, S. M. Prokudin-Gorskii, whose works are in the spotlight of a special collection of the Presidential Library.