Ancient Rus' and the Black Sea region in the 13th-15th centuries: Results of new archival studies

摘要

The early 13th century saw a shift in world history. In 1204, Constantinople fell victim to crusaders, and the once great empire of “Romans” temporarily ceased to exist. At this time, the Black Sea ceased to be a closed, internal basin of Byzantium; the vector of the geopolitical orientation of Russian principalities shifted; and already in 1237–1242, they were conquered by Tatars–Mongols and included in the orbit of the new great empire and its western ulus, the Golden Horde. With the destruction of cities and burning down of the wooden buildings, many written records were lost forever. Individual manuscripts survived, while documental complexes, except for those in Northwestern Rus’ with writings on birch bark were gone for good. Surprisingly, however, it is possible to reconstruct to some extent the economic, political, and even religious realities of Southern Rus’ and its relations with the West and the East owing to a special phenomenon—the Italian colonization of the Black Sea Region.