A tysiatskii ( rus, тысяцкий, p=ˈtɨsʲɪt͡skʲɪj, " thousandman"), sometimes translated '' dux'' or '' herzog'', was a military leader in Kievan Rus' who commanded a people's volunteer army called a ''thousand'' ( rus, тысяча, tysyacha). In the Novgorod Republic, the tysyatskii evolved into a judicial or commercial official and was elected from

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...

s at a veche for a period of one year. In cities with no veche, tysyatskiis were appointed by the

knyaz , or ( Old Church Slavonic: Кнѧзь) is a historical Slavic title, used both as a royal and noble title in different times of history and different ancient Slavic lands. It is usually translated into English as prince or duke, dependi ...

or prince from among the noble boyars and could hand down their post to their sons. In the Novgorod Republic, tysyatskiis were considered representatives of ordinary people ( rus, чёрные люди, t=black people). Along with the role as military leaders, they were also supposed to supervise the city fortifications, convene veches, act as ambassadors and as judges in the commercial courts. Like the posadniks, the office was often held by one man for several years in a row and he was often succeeded by his son or another close relative, indicating that the office was held within clans and was not fully elective.See Valentin Ianin, ''Novgorodskie Posadniki'' (Moscow: Iazyki russkoi kul'tury, 2003). In the 14th century the former tysyatskiis maintained considerable political influence and privileges and were known as ''Old Tysyatskiis''. The earliest documented tysyatskii of Novgorod was Putyata. Dmitry Donskoy, Grand Prince of Moscow, abolished the post after the death of Vassilii Vassilievich Veliaminov in 1374, replacing it with

voyevoda Voivode (, also spelled ''voievod'', ''voevod'', ''voivoda'', ''vojvoda'' or ''wojewoda'') is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe since the Early Middle Ages. It primarily referred to the m ...

s and namestniks. The Novgorod tysyatskii was abolished when Ivan III conquered the city for

Muscovy Muscovy is an alternative name for the Grand Duchy of Moscow (1263–1547) and the Tsardom of Russia (1547–1721). It may also refer to: *Muscovy Company, an English trading company chartered in 1555 * Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') and Domes ...

in 1478, and the same happened in

Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=pskov-ru.ogg, p=pskof; see also names in other languages) is a city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, located about east of the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population ...

when Vasili III conquered it in 1510.

Notes

References

;Notes ;Sources * George Vernadsky. A History of Russia. (Yale University Press, 1969) ().

External links

Tysyatsky in Novgorod
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Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary The ''Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopaedic Dictionary'' (Russian: Энциклопедический словарь Брокгауза и Ефрона, abbr. ЭСБЕ, tr. ; 35 volumes, small; 86 volumes, large) is a comprehensive multi-volume ...

*{{in lang, ru}
Tysyatsky in Kiev and Moscow Rus
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Novgorod Republic Titles Military ranks of Russia Local government in Russia Military history of Kievan Rus' Kievan Rus' law