The Holy Blessed Prince Mikhail of Tverskoy was born in 1272 after the death of his father, Grand Duke Yaroslav Yaroslavich, the brother of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky. During a trip to the Horde, Prince Yaroslav fell ill and, having taken monastic vows with the name Afanasy, died. Mikhail's mother, Ksenia, raised in her son an ardent love for God. Michael was raised and studied under the guidance of the Novgorod Archbishop (probably Clement). In the reign of Tver he replaced his older brother Svyatoslav. In 1285, he built a stone church in honor of the Transfiguration of the Savior on the site of the wooden church of Cosmas and Damian. After the death of Grand Duke Andrei Alexandrovich (+ 1305), Mikhail, by right of seniority, received a label in the Horde for the grand-ducal throne, but Moscow Prince Yuri Danilovich did not obey him, himself seeking the grand-ducal power. Often visiting the Golden Horde with the new Khan Uzbek, who converted to Mohammedanism and was distinguished by cruelty and fanaticism, Yuri managed to please the khan, married his sister Konchak and became the Grand Duke. But he did not calm down and started a new internecine war with Tver. Yuri's army included Tatar detachments sent by Uzbek led by Kavgady. However, the Tverites, led by the holy Prince Michael, completely defeated Yuri on December 22, 1317. Many prisoners were captured, including Kavgady, whom Saint Michael released, and the wife of the Moscow prince Konchak, but she unexpectedly died in Tver. Prince Yuri slandered Saint Prince Michael before the khan, accusing him of poisoning Konchaka. The Khan became angry, threatening to ruin Mikhail’s princely estate, and demanded that he come to him for an answer. Not wanting to shed the blood of Russian soldiers in an unequal struggle with the khan, Saint Michael humbly went to the Horde, realizing that this threatened him with death. He said goodbye to his family and Tver residents, and took the blessing for martyrdom from his spiritual father, Abbot John. “Father,” said the saint, “I cared a lot about the peace of Christians, but, due to my sins, I could not stop civil strife. Now bless me if I have to shed my blood for them, if only they could rest a little, and the Lord would forgive me my sins ".
In the Horde, an unjust trial was held over the holy prince, which found him guilty of disobedience to the khan and sentenced him to death. Saint Michael was put in a heavy wooden block and taken into custody. In captivity, Saint Michael, as was his custom, constantly read the Psalter and thanked the Lord for the suffering sent to him. He asked not to leave him in the upcoming torment. Since the hands of the holy sufferer were chained in a block, a boy sat in front of him and turned the pages of the Psalter. The holy prince-prisoner wandered with the Horde for a long time, enduring beatings and bullying. They suggested that he flee, but the saint courageously answered: “In all my life I have never run from enemies, and if I alone am saved, and my people remain in trouble, what glory is that to me? No, the will of the Lord be done.” By the grace of God, he was not deprived of Christian consolation: he was visited by Orthodox priests, abbots Alexander and Mark, and every week he confessed and received the Holy Mysteries of Christ, receiving Christian parting words just before his death. At the instigation of Prince Yuri and Kavgady, who was taking revenge on the holy prince for his defeat, murderers burst into the camp where the prisoner was kept. They brutally beat the martyr, trampling him underfoot, until one of them stabbed Saint Michael with a knife (+ 1318). The naked body of the holy martyr was thrown into desecration, then it was covered with clothes and placed on a large board tied to a cart. At night, two watchmen were assigned to guard the body, but they were overcome by fear and ran away. The next morning his body was not found on the board. That same night, many, not only Orthodox Christians, but also Tatars, saw how two bright clouds illuminated the place where the body of the martyr lay and, although many predatory animals prowled the steppe, not one of them touched him. In the morning everyone said: “Prince Mikhail is a saint, innocently killed.” From the Horde the body of the holy prince was transported to Moscow, where he was buried in the Church of the Savior on Bor in the Kremlin. Only a year later, in 1319, did Tver learn about the fate of their prince. At the request of his wife, Princess Anna (October 2), and at the request of the people of Tver, the relics of St. Michael of Tver were transferred to his hometown and on September 6, 1320, were placed in the church he himself had built in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Local celebrations of the holy noble prince began soon after the transfer of his relics to Tver, and at the Council of 1549 a church-wide glorification of the saint took place. On November 24, 1632, the incorruptible relics of St. Michael were found. The holy prince often provided gracious assistance to the Russian land. In 1606, the Poles and Lithuanians who were besieging Tver repeatedly saw a wondrous horseman riding out of the city on a white horse with a sword in his hands and putting them to flight.
Seeing the icon of St. Michael, they swore to Tver Archbishop Theoktist that the horseman who appeared was St. Michael.
The life of the Tver prince Mikhail Yaroslavich (1271-1318), killed in the Horde on the orders of Khan Uzbek, was created, as V.A. Kuchkin believes, by his confessor Alexander, abbot of the Tver Otroch monastery, shortly after the death of the prince. Alexander accompanied the prince to the Horde and was an eyewitness to the events that took place there. The book is written in the traditional hagiographic canon: it opens with a rhetorical discussion about the “crown of many colors” with which the martyrs are adorned; this fragment turns out to be borrowed from the translated life of Coint. What follows is an account of the history of Christianity and its spread in Rus'; this motive is believed to have arisen under the influence of Nestor’s Reading about Boris and Gleb (see Lives of Boris and Gleb). In presenting the events themselves, the hagiographer reveals his excellent knowledge of them (which confirms the idea of the authorship of Alexander, who was with Michael in the Horde), but gives everything that happens a typically hagiographic assessment. Mikhail appears in J. as possessing all Christian virtues: his mother raised him “in the fear of God and taught him the holy books and all wisdom,” the actions of Mikhail’s enemies are guided by the devil, and the prince of Tver himself is constantly guided in his actions by highly moral Christian motives. So, deciding to go to the Horde, where one of his sons, “strong... in mind,” Mikhail, “filled with humility,” is already located, says: “If I deviate anywhere, then (the people) of my homeland will all be captured and exterminated, and after that, I too will accept death, so it’s better for me now to lay down my soul for many souls,” and at the same time recalls the feat of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki. In the Horde, being in the position of an honorary prisoner, over whom the threat of reprisals constantly hung, Mikhail, “as he was accustomed from his youth, never changed his rule, sang Davydov’s psalms at night,” and since he left Vladimir, he fasted and did not sleep. nights, and prayed incessantly, etc. The prayers of the saint themselves are given in Zh., the hagiographer who composed them demonstrates his skill as a church rhetorician. Before his death, Mikhail, as befits a saint, takes communion, repents and confesses to his spiritual father and sings psalms all the time when his fate is being decided by the khan. He rejects his companions' offers to escape and faces death with humility and dignity. “And he received an unfading crown from the hand of the Lord, which he desired.” Miracles occur over the body of the saint: “two clouds of light overshadowed the body of the blessed one all night, parting and joining together again, and shining like the sun.” Those who saw the sign understood that the prince was a saint and that he was killed without guilt, and the clouds signified the descent of angels to him. J. is one of the best examples of biographies of the holy prince-martyrs. Publisher: OkhotnikovaV I. Extensive edition of the Tale of Mikhail Tverskoy // Old Russian book literature: Based on materials from the Pushkin House // Coll. scientific works - L., 1985-P. 16.- 27. Lit.: Serebryansky. Princely Lives, -S. 250-257; Kuchkin V. A. Stories about Mikhail Tverskoy.-M., 1974; Konyavskaya E. L. Life of Mikhail Yaroslavich Tverskoy // Dictionary of scribes - Vol. 1 - P. 166-168 O. V. Tvorogov
In the historical martyrology, the Russian great princes are given different epithets: Wise, Damned, Great, Brave... Next to the name of Mikhail Yaroslavich Tverskoy there is the epithet “Saint”.
The reign of Mikhail Yaroslavich is a special page in Tver history. Under him, the Tver principality became, perhaps, the most powerful in Rus'.
Mikhail Yaroslavich Tverskoy was born after the death of his father (1271). He was the third son of Yaroslav Yaroslavich.
From a young age, Mikhail took control of the principality of Tver, and, of course, during his childhood, the principality was ruled by his mother, Princess Ksenia, and the boyars.
Michael was a true son of the Orthodox Church, a strict guardian of its statutes.
The reign of Mikhail Yaroslavich cannot be called calm. In 1285, the Lithuanians attacked the Tver and Novgorod regions and conquered the region that belonged to the Tver ruler Simeon. Muscovites, Zubchanians, Novotori, and Dmitrovites helped the young prince to repel the attack of the Lithuanians, because the Lithuanian army could easily invade neighboring lands.
And in 1288, Mikhail Tverskoy had to face the Grand Duke Dmitry of Moscow. The young ruler of Tver did not want to submit to the prince who was sitting on the grand-ducal throne. Dmitry went to war against the rebellious. As a result, Mikhail managed to come to an agreement with Dmitry and still recognized his seniority.
The first trip of Mikhail Yaroslavich to the Horde to Prince Tokhta dates back to 1293 - apparently, for a label for the reign of Vladimir.
Meanwhile, Mikhail Yaroslavich sought an alliance with Novgorod. Apparently, the desire was mutual. In 1295, the parties entered into an agreement, with the Tver prince announcing that he was obligated to help Novgorod in case of offense from anyone, and the Novgorodians promised Mikhail support if he “had a hardship” from a Tatar or someone else.
Mikhail Tverskoy tried to fulfill his promises. It is known that he wanted to help Novgorod in the fight against the Swedes. However, the Swedes were beaten at Landskrona even without the participation of the Tver prince.
Then Mikhail had disagreements with Ivan Pereyaslavsky, which could not be resolved at the general princely congress in Dmitrov (1301). And soon a long and stubborn struggle between Tver and Moscow begins.
In 1304, Grand Duke Andrei Alexandrovich died and Mikhail should have become Grand Duke of Vladimir by seniority, but Moscow Prince Yuri also went to the Horde to seek the great reign, despite the prohibition of Metropolitan Maxim. Since Mikhail gave a large ransom to the Tatars, he received a label for a great reign. Returning to Rus', wanting to weaken Moscow, he went against it, but could not take it and made peace with Yuri.
Mikhail’s relations with Novgorod, where he reigned for about 14 years, were no less tense. The Novgorodians had not encountered such a strong prince for a long time, who constantly oppressed them. But they themselves were not going to give in.
Having failed to capture Moscow, Mikhail Yaroslavich planned a campaign against Nizhny Novgorod. In 1311, Mikhail sent a powerful army to Nizhny Novgorod under the command of his son Dmitry, but Metropolitan Peter “did not bless him with the table” and Dmitry, having dismissed the army, returned home without any success. This fact had almost decisive significance for the entire subsequent history of Tver. If Mikhail Yaroslavich had taken possession of Nizhny Novgorod, he could always have influence on Moscow through the mouth of the Oka, but Metropolitan Peter prevented this, too, and later moved his see to Moscow.
In 1315, Mikhail, together with the Tatars, defeated the Novgorod region, defeated the Novgorodians in the battle of Torzhok, took a ransom from them and forced them to conclude a treaty that was difficult for the Novgorodians. After this, the Novgorodians entered into an alliance with Moscow, together with the Moscow prince Yuri, they traveled to the Horde, supplied him with money and helped the Moscow prince in every possible way. After Mikhail Yaroslavich was recognized as the Grand Duke of Vladimir by the Tatars, Moscow Prince Yuri managed to gain the favor of the then Uzbek Khan. Yuri married the sister of Khan Uzbek Konchak and arrived in Kostroma with his wife and the khan's ambassador Kavgady. The ambassador had the khan's order to announce to the Grand Duke of Tver that the label for the great reign was taken away from him and transferred to Prince Yuri. In addition, the khan gave Yuri a detachment of fifty thousand Tatar troops to establish him on the throne.
Wanting to protect his inheritance from the Tatar defeat, Mikhail went out to meet him with an army and sent to Yuri: “Brother, the king gave you a great reign, dominate him, but do not enter my region, be content with yours.” In response to this, Yuri began to burn the cities and villages of the Tver region.
Then Prince Mikhail opposed them and met with Yuri at Bortenev (this was December 22, 1317). The Tver army put the enemy to flight. Kavgady, together with Yuri’s wife Konchaka, were captured.
Later, Yuri and Kavgadiy were released from captivity. Yuri went to the Horde and began to complain about Mikhail Tverskoy, even accusing him of poisoning his wife, who died in Tver while in captivity.
Mikhail Yaroslavich was demanded to join the Horde. To go under such accusations meant to go to certain death. But Mikhail quite consciously decided to lay down his soul for his homeland.
Mikhail Yaroslavich was executed because, after a long period of pacification of the Horde, he decided on open armed resistance and forced the Horde cavalry to flee the battlefield, dispelling the myth of its invincibility.
We must pay tribute to his courage and bow our heads before his suffering. For 25 whole days, Mikhail was tortured in the Horde, not only physically, but also morally.
It was important for the Horde to publicly, in front of the whole world, humiliate the “Grand Duke of All Rus'”, trample on his dignity in order to intimidate and prevent further resistance.
Date of publication or update 11/01/2017
The life of Saint Michael of Tverskoy, the first Grand Duke of All Rus'.
In the first half of the 13th century, a great disaster befell the Russian land. By God's permission, the Tatars attacked her, burned many cities and villages, and mercilessly beat thousands of people. Many were taken captive into bitter slavery, and the people were subjected to heavy tribute. The great external disasters were accompanied by no less internal unrest. The princes disputed each other's right to the grand-ducal throne; going to the Horde to bow to the khans, they often slandered one another and plotted against each other.
During this bleakly difficult time, the holy Prince Mikhail Yaroslavich Tverskoy lived in a godly manner. His parents led a pious life and walked according to the commandments of God. His father, Prince Yaroslav Yaroslavich, after the death of his brother, Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky, occupied the grand-ducal throne for seven years.
Holy Prince Mikhail Yaroslavich was born after the death of his father. His mother, the pious Princess Ksenia, raised her son in the spirit of the holy faith and carefully taught him to read and write. The young prince was piously disposed: he loved to read Divine books, avoided children's games and merry gatherings, and diligently attended the temple of God. Often, secretly from everyone, in the silence of the night, he offered up his fervent prayers to the Lord. He did not like luxurious dishes, he led a temperate and pious life, decorating his soul with the flowers of virtues. Thus Saint Michael acquired the fear of God - the beginning of all wisdom. He treated the poor and needy with special love and gave them generous alms. Those who suffered troubles boldly went to their prince, knowing that he would find help and intercession; whoever suffered misfortunes and sorrows received from him a word of consolation and approval. The prince's holy life was instructive for everyone, and everyone revered him for his piety and concern for people.
Rus' was going through a difficult time at that time: princes often rose up against each other, and often the right one had to defend his rights with weapons.
Before ascending the throne, Saint Michael, according to the custom of that time, went to the Horde to bow to the khan. The Grand Duke's throne was then occupied by the sons of Alexander Nevsky, Andrei and Dimitri. There were often strife between the brothers. Prince Andrei brought the Tatars, who took 14 cities, including Vladimir and Moscow, greatly devastated the country and were about to go to Tver.
The people of Tver were greatly saddened by the fact that the prince was not with them. But they kissed the cross that they would fight the enemy from behind the city walls to the last extreme and would never surrender. Many people came running from other principalities to Tver, who were also ready to fight the enemy. And at this very time Saint Michael was returning from the Horde. With the greatest joy, the people of Tver heard the news of the return of their prince; they came out to meet him with a procession of the cross. But the Tatars, having learned about the arrival of St. Michael, did not go to Tver.
The chronicler tells that Saint Prince Michael was tall, strong and courageous. The boyars and people loved him. He diligently read Divine books, diligently donated to churches, and revered the monastic and priestly ranks. He did not tolerate drunkenness and was always distinguished by abstinence. He desired monastic or martyrdom, and the Lord destined him to die a martyr.
When Grand Duke Andrei Alexandrovich died. Prince Mikhail Yaroslavich of Tver has now become the eldest in the family; The boyars of the deceased Grand Duke also went into his service. But his cousin, the Moscow prince Georgy Daniilovich, began to challenge his rights of eldership, although he was not the eldest in the princely family. According to the custom of that time, the new Grand Duke Mikhail had to go to the Horde to receive a label for the Grand Duke of Vladimir. The Prince of Moscow also went there. When he passed through Vladimir, the holy Metropolitan Maxim, foreseeing the beginning of strife, with a prayer forbade the Moscow prince to go to the Horde and seek grand-ducal power. “I guarantee you,” said Saint Maxim, “by Princess Xenia, the mother of Prince Michael, that you will receive from Grand Duke Michael any city you want.” George answered the saint: “Although I am going to the Horde, I will not seek the Grand Duke’s table: I am going there on my own business.”
He went to the Horde and met there with the Tver prince. The Tatar Murzas were very selfish. Wanting to receive more gifts, they told Prince George: “If you give more gifts than Prince Mikhail of Tverskoy, we will give you a great reign.”
Such speeches greatly embarrassed the Moscow prince, and he began to seek grand-ducal power. A great discord began between the princes. George tried as best he could to win the khan over to his side; he gave great gifts to the Horde. Saint Michael was also forced to spend a lot of money that was collected from the poor people, and there was great hardship in the Russian land. The discord between the princes intensified. However, the grand-ducal power remained with Mikhail Tverskoy. Saint Michael made peace with the Moscow prince, but there was still no agreement between them: the struggle between Moscow and Tver continued. Meanwhile, the young Khan Uzbek took the throne in the Horde.
Saint Michael had to go to bow to the new khan in order to receive from him a new label (khan's charter) for the great reign. And this time the grand-ducal throne remained with him. After that, the noble prince returned to Rus'. The Prince of Moscow, about whose grievances Saint Michael complained to Khan, was summoned to the Horde and stayed there for about three years. George, through the khan's nobles, used all means to win the khan over to his side; he managed to become close to the khan's family, even became related to the khan by marrying his sister Konchaka (baptized in holy Agathia). Khan Uzbek now gave the label to the grand-ducal throne to his son-in-law, Prince George. Together with him, the khan sent his ambassadors to Rus', and at their head was Kavgady, one of his close nobles. Saint Michael meekly renounced his grand-ducal dignity; he sent to say to George: “Brother, if the khan gave you a great reign, then I yield to you. Princes, just be content with what you have and don’t interfere with my inheritance.”
But Grand Duke George did not want to reconcile with Holy Prince Michael. Gathering a large army, together with the bloodthirsty Kavgadiy, he attacked the Tver region, burning cities and villages. Enemies took husbands and wives and subjected them to various tortures, abuses and death. Having devastated the Tver principality on one side of the Volga, they were preparing to attack its other part, the Trans-Volga region. Grieving over the disasters of the Russian land, the pious Prince Mikhail called the Tver bishop and boyars and said to them: “Didn’t I give in to my relative? I endured everything, thinking that this trouble would soon end. Now I see that Prince George is looking for my head. I am not guilty of anything before him; if guilty, tell me of what?”
The bishop and boyars, shedding tears, answered the prince in one voice: “You are right, our prince, in everything. You showed such humility in front of your nephew, and for this they want to devastate the entire principality. Go against them, sir, and we are ready to lay down our heads for you.”
Saint Michael replied: “Brothers! You know what is said in the Holy Gospel: No one has greater love than he who lays down his life for his friends (John 15:13). Now we have to give our lives for many people captured and beaten by enemies.
Saint Prince Michael gathered his regiments and courageously went out to meet the enemy. The enemies met forty miles from Tver (December 22, 1317, near the village of Bortenev). A great battle took place. The army of the Moscow prince could not stand it and hastily fled. Prince Mikhail pursued the enemies, and countless warriors, beaten and crushed by horses, dotted the battlefield; they lay like sheaves in a field during the harvest. Grand Duke George fled with the rest of the army (to Torzhok, and from there to Veliky Novgorod). His wife Konchaka-Agafia, many princes and Tatars were taken prisoner by the victors. The armor of Saint Michael himself was all cut off, but there was not a single wound on his body. With great joy, Saint Michael returned to Tver and warmly thanked the Lord, His Most Pure Mother and Saint Archangel Michael for the given victory.
Seeing the defeat of George, Kavgady the next day after the battle came to Tver and asked for peace. Saint Michael received him with honor, believing their flattering speeches, generously presented Kavgady and his retinue and released him with honor.
Meanwhile, Grand Duke George gathered a new army and with it again moved towards Tver. Saint Michael did not want to shed Christian blood in vain again; the princes made peace.
At this time, the wife of the Grand Duke, the khan’s sister, died in Tver. There was a rumor that the Grand Duchess had been poisoned in Tver. The Moscow prince and Kavgadiy agreed to act together. They hastened to the Horde. They wrote many false testimonies against Saint Michael, as if, having collected a lot of tribute from the cities, the prince wanted to flee to the Germans, but did not want to go to the khan, that in general he did not obey the khan’s authority. Then the holy prince sent his 12-year-old son Constantine to the Horde, probably as a hostage. An angry Uzbek ordered Prince Konstantin Mikhailovich to be placed in custody and starved to death, but his advisers told the khan that if he killed his son like this, his father would never come to the Horde. Konstantin was released.
Kavgady did not want the Tver prince to come to the Horde and be able to justify himself. Therefore, he began to persuade the khan that he should quickly send an army to Prince Mikhail. But in August 1318, the noble prince Mikhail went to the khan, taking a blessing from his spiritual father (abbot John). “Father,” said the holy prince, “I cared a lot about helping Christians, but for my sins they have to endure many hardships because of our strife. Now bless me, father: perhaps I will have to shed my blood for the Orthodox people.”
The holy prince said goodbye to his loved ones on the banks of the Nerl River. Saint Michael was accompanied by his wife, Princess Anna, and his son, Prince Vasily. Here the holy prince said goodbye to them forever. The princess cried inconsolably, anticipating trouble and saying goodbye to her husband. And Saint Michael took with him two other sons - Demetrius and Alexander. In Vladimir they were met by the Khan's ambassador Akhmyl. “Hurry to the Horde,” he said to Saint Michael, “the khan is waiting for you; If you don’t show up in a month, the king has decided to go to war against your region. Kavgady slandered you to the khan that you would not come to him.”
Then the boyars began to dissuade the prince from going to the khan: “Here is your son in the Horde, send another.” His sons also told him: “Beloved parent, don’t go to the Horde yourself, it’s better to send one of us; after all, they slandered you before the khan. Wait until his anger passes.”
But Saint Michael answered firmly: “Know, my dear children, the khan does not demand you, but me; he wants my head. If I avoid going to the khan, then my homeland will be devastated and many Christians will be killed, and then I myself will not escape death; Isn’t it better now to lay down my life for many?”
Preparing for death, the prince wrote a will, distributed the cities of his principality among his sons and said goodbye to them. The children cried, releasing their father to the Horde to certain death, and could hardly part with him. Saint Michael sent his children to Tver and went to the khan with the boyars. According to custom, the prince generously gave gifts to the khan, his wives and associates. At first, Khan treated Mikhail quite mercifully. He even gave the prince a bailiff to protect him from insults. Saint Michael spent a month and a half in the Horde. But the evil Kavgady did not stop slandering him. Finally, the Uzbek said to his nobles: “What did you say to me about Prince Mikhail? Dispassionately judge him with Prince George and tell him which of them is to blame; I will reward the right one, and put the guilty one to death.”
The trial of Saint Michael was unjust. The judges brought charges against the prince: “You were proud and did not submit to the khan, you shamed his ambassador and fought with him; he beat many Tatars and did not give tribute to the khan; was planning to flee to the Germans with the treasury; sent the treasury to the pope; killed the wife of Prince George.”
The evil Kavgady was not only a judge, but also an accuser and a false witness against the saint: he rejected all the justifications of Saint Michael and brought false accusations against the valiant prince and acquitted his supporters. After the trial, biased judges informed the khan that Saint Michael was guilty and deserved death. After the sentence was sentenced, seven guards tied up the prince and plundered his clothes; They drove all his boyars and servants away from him.
So the saint was left alone in the hands of the godless. Only one consolation remained for him - prayer, and the blessed passion-bearer, without harboring anger towards his enemies, began to sing inspired psalms. The next day, the Tatars placed a heavy log on the saint’s neck to increase the saint’s torment.
At that time, the khan went hunting to the banks of the Terek. According to custom, the entire Horde had to accompany him. Bring Saint Michael as well. This movement was painful for the holy sufferer. On its neck lay a heavy log; every night the saint’s hands were enclosed in the same deck. Only one thing consoled him: the abbot, the priests and his son Constantine were allowed to see him. Saint Michael spent the entire time of his journey in fasting; every week he confessed and partook of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.
The evil Kavgady did not leave the prisoner even now, but tried to increase his suffering. In order to abuse Saint Michael, he ordered him to be taken to the market, where there were a lot of people. Here he ordered the holy prince to kneel in front of him and mocked him.
A diverse crowd of idle spectators came running and looked with curiosity at the one who had previously sat on the grand-ducal throne in honor and glory, and now suffered reproach in chains.
From that time on, there were always tears in the eyes of the sufferer of Christ, for he foresaw his imminent death.
For twenty-six days the holy sufferer had been languishing. More than once the servants suggested to him: “Our lord, Grand Duke, we already have guides and horses ready for you. Run to the mountains and save your life.” But the holy prince firmly answered them: “I have never run away from my enemies before, and I will not do this now. If I alone am saved, and my boyars and servants remain here in trouble, then what honor will I have for this? I can't do this. May the Lord's will be done!”
On the day of his departure to the Lord (November 22), early in the morning Saint Michael ordered matins and the Divine Liturgy to be performed. With heartfelt attention, shedding tears, the holy prince listened to the Divine service.
The noble prince confessed and partook of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. He was preparing for death because that night he had a dream that informed him of his death. After the liturgy, the prince said goodbye to the clergy who were with him. Then he called his son, Prince Constantine, to his place. Saint Michael gave him the last instruction about how he should maintain the Orthodox faith, honor the churches of God, and do good to the strange and the poor.
Suddenly a princely youth runs into the tent; he was pale and said in a frightened voice: “Sovereign, Kavgady and George are coming with many people and straight to your tent.” Then the blessed sufferer meekly remarked: “I know why they are coming - to kill me.” Then he sent his son Constantine under the protection of the khan's wife.
Kavgady and Georgiy stopped at the market, not far from the tent of St. Michael, and dismounted. From here they sent assassins to the holy prince. Like wild animals, the killers jumped into the tent and dispersed all the prince's servants. The saint was standing in prayer at that time. Grabbing the saint by the block, the murderers hit him against the wall, so that the wall of the tent broke through. The prince rose to his feet. Then the fierce murderers attacked him in a crowd, trampled on him, beat him mercilessly; then one of them, Romantsev, grabbed a knife, struck the holy prince in the side with it, turned the knife several times in the wound, and finally cut out his heart. Thus the sufferer of Christ gave his holy soul into the hands of the Lord.
A crowd of Tatars and Russians who were in the Horde attacked the tent of the murdered prince and plundered it. The holy and honorable body of the martyr was thrown and lay without any cover, for the murderers tore off the robe from the holy prince.
Seeing the prince’s naked body, Kavgady reproachfully said to George: “Isn’t he your elder brother, just like your father? Why does his body lie uncovered, abandoned to everyone’s desecration? Take him and take him to your land, bury him according to your custom.”
Prince George ordered his servants to cover the saint’s naked body, and one of them covered it with his outer clothing. Then the prince ordered the body to be placed on a large board, and the board to be lifted onto a cart and tied tightly.
The holy body of Prince Michael, by order of George, was taken to the Adezh River (which means grief). At night two watchmen were assigned to guard him. But great fear fell upon them and they ran away from the cart where the body of the holy martyr lay. Early in the morning they returned to their place, and saw a wondrous miracle: the body was lying separately, with a wound to the ground. The saint's right hand was placed under his face, and his left was near the wound. The surprising thing is that many predatory animals prowled the steppe, and not one of them dared to touch the holy remains of the martyr.
That same night, many of the Christians and non-believers saw how two clouds overshadowed the place where the honorable body of the murdered prince was located. They came together, then diverged, and shone like the sun.
The merchants who knew Saint Michael wanted to cover his body with expensive fabrics and place it in the holy temple. However, the boyars of Prince George did not allow them to do this; They placed him in a stable and assigned a guard. But God glorified the relics of His saint in a wondrous way: many of the inhabitants at night saw that over that place a pillar of fire rose from the ground to heaven. Others saw a rainbow that bent over the stable and light horsemen who rushed in the air above the chariot.
The body of the martyr prince was brought to Moscow and buried in the Kremlin Spassky Monastery. The blessed Princess Anna did not know about the martyrdom of her husband. A year later, Prince George returned from the khan with a grand ducal label. He brought with him from the Horde the Tver boyars and Prince Konstantin Mikhailovich. Then in Tver they learned about the death of Saint Michael and about his burial in Moscow. Princess Anna and the children of the holy prince asked the prince of Moscow to transport the holy relics of the martyr to Tver. George barely gave his consent.
The holy relics of the blessed Prince Michael were transferred to Tver and buried in the cathedral church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ, which he built.
Through the prayers of the blessed Prince Michal of Tver, Lord Jesus Christ, our God, have mercy on us. Amen.
Source of material: http://www.sobor-udomlya.ru
Prince Mikhail Tverskoy was surrounded by legends even before his birth. Both the life and death of this man are mentioned both in historical chronicles and in the lives of saints. December 5th is the day of remembrance of this great martyr. And in the calendar there is a separate page entitled “Prince Mikhail Yaroslavich of Tverskoy.”
short biography
The birth of the prince was preceded by a beautiful legend about the meeting of his father, Prince Yaroslav Yaroslavich, with his mother Ksenia. According to legend, one day the prince was hunting not far from Tver, near the village. Edimonovo. He went into a church on the river bank and saw his warrior Gregory getting married to the beautiful Ksenia. The prince was so captivated by Ksenia’s beauty that he decided to marry her himself. The saddened Gregory became a monk and founded a monastery on the banks of the river. Tvertsy.
The newlyweds did not live happily for long. According to the traditions of that time, Yaroslav Yaroslavich went to the Golden Horde for a label to reign, and on the way back he fell ill and died. He never saw his son, who was born at the end of 1271.
First years of life
The Dowager Princess named her son Mikhail. After the death of the two eldest sons of Yaroslav Yaroslavich, it was he who became the hereditary ruler of the Tver Principality. He received confirmation of his right to reign at the age of 11, after the death of his uncle Svyatoslav. But in fact, power was concentrated in the hands of Princess Xenia and the boyars. When Mikhail was 15 years old, Lithuanian raids on Tver became more frequent. Thanks to the friendly policy of neighboring principalities, it was possible to consolidate efforts and push the invaders far to the west. After this, significant funds were allocated to strengthen Zubtsov, the extreme outpost of the Tver principality.
Mikhail Tverskoy did not forget about the strengthening of Orthodoxy in his native lands. On the advice of the Dowager Princess Xenia, the Church of the Transfiguration was built on the site of the ancient church of Cosmas and Damian.
The rich decoration of the temple was entirely paid for from the princely treasury. Much later, for his holiness and reverent attitude towards Orthodox values, the prince was included in the calendar and was called “the holy noble prince Mikhail of Tverskoy.”
First tests
The Tver principality in those days was formally considered independent of Moscow, but, thanks to close family ties, Mikhail Yaroslavich Tverskoy could lay claim to the grand-ducal throne. This circumstance was very unfavorable for the sons of Alexander Nevsky - Dmitry and Andrei, who for a long time disputed the Moscow throne. After Dmitry's short-term victory, Andrei gathered an army, won over the Tatars to his side, and in 1293 invaded Russian lands. The rebel prince took and plundered 14 cities, sparing neither Vladimir nor Moscow, after which he prepared to go to the Tver lands.
At this time, Mikhail Tverskoy was in the Horde, where he was very graciously received by the khan. In the absence of the prince, the Tver residents vowed to hold the defense until the last warrior. Large reinforcements came to Tver from other principalities that suffered as a result of Andrei's raid. Having learned about the impending danger, Mikhail Yaroslavich Tverskoy got ready to go home. On his way, the enemies set up an ambush, which the prince, thanks to a lucky chance, did not fall into. Having learned about Michael's return, they went out to meet him with a procession of the cross. But the Tatars, seeing that Mikhail had returned to Tver, refused to storm it. The city survived.
Marriage of Mikhail Tverskoy
According to the stories of chroniclers, Mikhail Tverskoy was tall, distinguished by abstinence and did not tolerate drunkenness. Both the boyars and ordinary people loved him. Many neighboring princes sought to become related to the ruler of the entire Tver land, wooing their daughters and sisters for the prince. In those days, people got married early, and Prince Mikhail Tverskoy, at the age of twenty-two, married Princess Anna. The girl was the natural daughter of Rostov Prince Dimitri. The marriage initially promised to be happy, but evil fate constantly tested the happiness of the newlyweds. Late at night in 1298, a strong fire started in the prince’s chambers. The young wife and Mikhail Tverskoy himself were miraculously saved. The prince's biography claims that after this incident he became very ill, and all his property was destroyed.
Civil strife
1304 was the date of death of Andrei Alexandrovich. The main contender for the throne was Mikhail Tverskoy as the eldest in the family. But his grandnephew, Grigory Danilovich, began to challenge his inheritance rights. According to the customs of that time, princes had to go to the Horde to receive a label to reign there. Anna begged her husband to give up the Grand Duke's label, but he acted in his own way.
At the same time as Mikhail, Gregory also went there. When the princes passed through Vladimir, they were met by the holy Metropolitan Maxim. He begged Gregory not to challenge Mikhail's rights. Maxim guaranteed that Gregory would receive any city from Michael if he accepted his seniority, but the Moscow prince claimed that he was going to the Horde on his own business and did not intend to lay claim to reign.
Meeting in the Horde
The two contenders met at the headquarters of the Tatar Khan, and their rivalry flared up with renewed vigor. The Turkish Murzas took advantage of the civil strife and promised a label to the one who brought the most gifts. Both George and Mikhail were forced to spend more and more, seeking the favor of the khan's representatives and recruiting supporters among those close to the khan. Such a policy devastated Mikhail’s treasury and placed a heavy burden on the forced people. In the end, he beat Gregory and received the coveted label.
The Great Controversy
In 1305, Mikhail returned to Russian lands and solemnly took the Moscow throne. But agreement with Gregory was never reached: the relatives fought with each other more than once, and the confrontation continued.
At the beginning of 1313, power in the Horde changed, and a young Tatar named Uzbek became khan. According to his religious beliefs, Uzbek was a Muslim and actively planted a new faith on Russian lands.
At the same time, Prince Gregory did not forget his resignation. Constantly being near the young khan, he gradually achieved his complete trust. Gregory even married the khan's sister Konchaka, who was given the name Agafya after baptism. Having become related to Uzbek, the Moscow prince won him over to his side and ensured that the grand-ducal label was rewritten in his name. And now it was Gregory who had to sit on the Moscow throne.
Invasion
Together with Gregory, the khan's envoys, led by Kavgadiy, who was part of the narrow circle of the most trusted persons of the ruler of the Horde, were to go to Rus'. Having learned about this, Mikhail Tverskoy meekly renounced the Moscow reign and returned to his native Tver principality.
But Gregory did not forget the insult and did not want to resolve the issue peacefully. Gathering a large army, he moved to Tver. On his way, he incinerated cities and villages, burned fields, killed and enslaved men, and gave women and girls to desecration. Having completely devastated the Tver lands on one side of the Volga, he accumulated forces for an invasion of the Trans-Volga territory. The scale of the disaster was so great that Mikhail Tverskoy gathered the boyars and the bishop and turned to them for advice. The bishop and boyars unanimously stood up for the defense of their native land and advised the prince to fight his treacherous nephew.
Battle of the village Borteneve
The opponents clashed at the end of December 1317 not far from Tver, in the small village of Bortenev. As a result of a bloody battle, the troops of the Moscow Prince were defeated and fled. George retreated to Torzhok, and from there fled to Veliky Novgorod. His wife Agafya-Konchaka, his brother Boris and many other fellow tribesmen were taken prisoner. With victory and great joy, Mikhail returned to his native Tver. His armor was cut, but he himself was not wounded. Mikhail served a prayer service in honor of his victory and brought generous gifts to the church. After the defeat, Gregory gathered a new army from Pskov and Novgorod, but bloodshed was avoided. The princes made peace.
It wasn't long before there was a new world. The wife of the Moscow prince Agafya, who was in the position of a noble captive in Tver, died unexpectedly. Rumors spread that she had been poisoned. George went to the Horde, and he managed to convince the khan of the violent death of his sister. As a guarantor of his innocence, Mikhail gave his son Konstantin hostage, but this did not help. An angry Uzbek ordered Mikhail to urgently report to the Horde.
Death of the Prince
With a heavy heart, Mikhail Tverskoy went to Uzbek Khan. He understood that, most likely, he would not return back. Arriving in the Horde, the prince, appearing before the khan, denied all accusations and requested a trial. The Uzbek did not dare to kill the prince himself and gave him to his assistant Kavgady. On November 22, 1318, after an unjust trial, Mikhail Tverskoy died in his own tent, torn to pieces by a crowd of ill-wishers led by Kavgady.
Mikhail's wife, Anna, begged George to give her husband's body for burial. The residents of Tver met the coffin with Mikhail's body on the banks of the Volga. The body of the Tver prince was buried in front of a large crowd of people in the Transfiguration Monastery.
Having accepted martyrdom, the prince defended his lands from the wrath of the Tatars and George. For his piety and defense of Orthodoxy, he was canonized. According to the Orthodox canon, Tverskoy became the patron saint of the Tver land. His icons are in the churches of Russian cities and villages, and he himself is considered the defender of the Russian land and the patron of the Orthodox. Monuments to Mikhail Tverskoy are located on his native land.
Currently, the most significant of them stands on Sovetskaya Square in the city of Tver.
