Mstislav III Glebovich (before 1215/1220 – after October 18, 1239) was a Rus' prince (a member of the

Rurik dynasty The Rurik dynasty ( be, Ру́рыкавічы, Rúrykavichy; russian: Рю́риковичи, Ryúrikovichi, ; uk, Рю́риковичі, Riúrykovychi, ; literally "sons/scions of Rurik"), also known as the Rurikid dynasty or Rurikids, was ...

). He was probably prince of Rylsk (1212–1239/1241) and of Chernigov (1235–1239/1241). During his reign, the

Tatars The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

(the Mongols) invaded and pillaged the towns of the Principality of Chernigov.

His life

Early life

He was the son of Prince Gleb Svyatoslavich of Chernigov and Anastasia Ryurikovna, a daughter of Grand Prince Ryurik Rostislavich of Kiev. His father died between 1215 and 1220. By 1225, Mstislav had already been second in

seniority Seniority is the state of being older or placed in a higher position of status relative to another individual, group, or organization. For example, one employee may be senior to another either by role or rank (such as a CEO vice a manager), or by ...

among the Olgovichi (the ruling dynasty of Chernigov), and therefore during the absence of his cousin, Mikhail Vsevolodovich, he commanded them. On April 6, 1231, he attended a ''snem'' (a meeting of some leading princes of Rus’ organized by Grand Prince

Vladimir III Rurikovich Vladimir may refer to: Names * Vladimir (name) for the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Slovenian spellings of a Slavic name * Uladzimir for the Belarusian version of the name * Volodymyr for the Uk ...

) in Kiev, but the reasons for convoking the council are not given. It appears that his domain probably lay west of the

Snov The Snov (; ) is a river in Bryansk Oblast in Russia and Chernihiv Oblast in Ukraine, right tributary of the Desna River (Dnieper basin). The length of the river is 253 km. The area of its drainage basin is 8,700 km2.Desna rivers.

Prince of Chernigov

Although the chronicles never tell us that he ruled

Chernihiv Chernihiv ( uk, Черні́гів, , russian: Черни́гов, ; pl, Czernihów, ; la, Czernihovia), is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, which serves as the administrative center of Chernihiv Oblast and Chernihiv Raion within ...

, but his seniority merited him that post. Moreover, the evidence that the onus of defending the town fell on his shoulders supports this. In the autumn of 1239, the Tatar horde advanced against Chernihiv along the northern shore of the river Seym. Presumably, the invaders captured

Hlukhiv Hlukhiv ( uk, Глу́хів, ) or Glukhov (russian: Глухов, translit=Glukhov) is a small historic town on the Esman River. It is a city of regional significance in the Sumy region of Ukraine. Hlukhiv is administratively incorporated as ...

Kursk Kursk ( rus, Курск, p=ˈkursk) is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym rivers. The area around Kursk was the site of a turning point in the Soviet–German stru ...

, Rylsk, and Putivl, and on reaching the river Desna, they advanced towards Chernihiv. When Mstislav heard that the Tatars were attacking the town, he came with his troops to confront them. The nomads used catapults that hurled stones the distance of a bowshot and a half. Mstislav barely escaped, but many of his men were killed. After Chernihiv fell on October 18, the Tatars pillaged the towns in the surrounding countryside. Before departing from Chernihiv, the Tatars sent messengers to Kiev proposing peace, and they were pacified, we are told, with Mstislav. The chronicler probably made only a passing reference to his capitulation in an effort to underplay the nature of his commitments. He must have submitted to

Batu Khan Batu Khan ( – 1255),, ''Bat haan'', tt-Cyrl, Бату хан; ; russian: хан Баты́й was a Mongol ruler and founder of the Golden Horde, a constituent of the Mongol Empire. Batu was a son of Jochi, thus a grandson of Genghis Kh ...

’s authority and agreed to campaign with him and to pay a

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more ...

in everything. In 1241, his cousin, Mikhail Vsevolodovich, who had returned from

Masovia Mazovia or Masovia ( pl, Mazowsze) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the unofficial capital and largest city. Throughout the centurie ...

when the Tatars invaded his lands, gave Chernihiv to his own son,

Rostislav Mikhailovich Rostislav Mikhailovich ( hu, Rosztyiszláv, Bulgarian and Russian: Ростислав Михайлович) (after 1210 / c. 1225 – 1262) was a Rus' prince (a member of the Rurik dynasty), and a dignitary in the Kingdom of Hungary. He was p ...

. Mikhail Vsevolodovich may have repudiated Mstislav because, contrary to his wishes, he had formed a pact with the enemy; or (although the chronicles fail to tell us) Mstislav may have died following his pact with the Tatars. The possibility of his demise is implied by the silence of the chronicles, which never mention him again.

Marriage and children

The name of his wife is not known.

Ancestors

Footnotes

Sources

*Dimnik, Martin: ''The Dynasty of Chernigov - 1146-1246''; Cambridge University Press, 2003, Cambridge; . {{end box 13th-century princes in Kievan Rus' Olgovichi family Princes of Chernigov Eastern Orthodox monarchs