Vasily I Dmitriyevich ( rus, Василий I Дмитриевич, Vasiliy I Dmitriyevich; 30 December 137127 February 1425) was the Grand Prince of Moscow ( r. 1389–1425), heir of Dmitry Donskoy (r. 1359–1389). He ruled as a

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as Ulug Ulus, 'Great State' in Turkic, was originally a Mongols, Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the fr ...

vassal between 1389 and 1395, and again in 1412–1425. The raid on the

Volga The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...

n regions in 1395 by the Turco-Mongol

Emir Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...

Timur Timur ; chg, ''Aqsaq Temür'', 'Timur the Lame') or as ''Sahib-i-Qiran'' ( 'Lord of the Auspicious Conjunction'), his epithet. ( chg, ''Temür'', 'Iron'; 9 April 133617–19 February 1405), later Timūr Gurkānī ( chg, ''Temür Kür ...

resulted in a state of anarchy for the Golden Horde and the independence of Moscow. In 1412, Vasily reinstated himself as a vassal of the Horde. He had entered an alliance with the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...

in 1392 and married the only daughter of

Vytautas the Great Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...

Sophia Sophia means "wisdom" in Greek. It may refer to: *Sophia (wisdom) *Sophia (Gnosticism) *Sophia (given name) Places *Niulakita or Sophia, an island of Tuvalu *Sophia, Georgetown, a ward of Georgetown, Guyana *Sophia, North Carolina, an unincorpor ...

, though the alliance turned out to be fragile, and they waged war against each other in 1406–1408.

Family and early life

Vasily was the oldest son of Dmitry Donskoy and Grand Princess Eudoxia, daughter of Grand Prince

Dmitry Konstantinovich Dmitri Konstantinovich of Suzdal (russian: Дми́трий Константи́нович Су́здальский) (1323–1383) was a powerful Prince of Suzdal and Nizhny Novgorod who dominated Russian politics during the minority of his so ...

Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ), colloquially shortened to Nizhny, from the 13th to the 17th century Novgorod of the Lower Land, formerly known as Gork ...

Reign

While still a young man, Vasily, who was the eldest son of Grand Prince Dmitry Donskoy (ruled Moscow 1359–89), travelled to the Tatar khan Tokhtamysh (1383) to obtain the Khan's patent for his father to rule the Russian lands as the grand prince of Vladimir. Diplomatically overcoming the challenge of the prince of Tver, who also sought the patent, Vasily succeeded in his mission. But he was subsequently kept at Tokhtamysh's court as a hostage until 1386 when, taking advantage of Tokhtamysh's conflict with his suzerain Timur Lenk ( Tamerlane), he escaped and returned to Moscow. Vasily I continued the process of unification of the Russian lands: in 1392, he annexed the principalities of

and

Murom Murom ( rus, Муром, p=ˈmurəm; Old Norse: ''Moramar'') is a historical city in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which sprawls along the left bank of the Oka River. Population: History In the 9th century AD, the city marked the easternmost settle ...

. Nizhny Novgorod was given to Vasily by the Khan of the Golden Horde in exchange for the help Moscow had given against one of his rivals. In 1397–1398

Kaluga Kaluga ( rus, Калу́га, p=kɐˈɫuɡə), a city and the administrative center of Kaluga Oblast in Russia, stands on the Oka River southwest of Moscow. Population: Kaluga's most famous resident, the space travel pioneer Konstantin Tsiol ...

Vologda Vologda ( rus, Вологда, p=ˈvoləɡdə) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the river Vologda (river), Vologda within the watershed of the Northern Dvina. ...

, Veliki Ustyug and the lands of the

Komi peoples The Komi ( kv, комияс, ' also ', also called Komi-Zyryans or Zyryans, are an indigenous Permian ethnic group whose homeland is in the northeast of European Russia around the basins of the Vychegda, Pechora and Kama rivers. They mostly ...

were annexed. To prevent Russia from being attacked by the

, Vasily I entered into an alliance with the

in 1392 and married

Sophia of Lithuania Sophia of Lithuania (1371–1453), also known as Sofia Vitovtovna, was a Grand Princess consort of Muscovy by marriage to Vasili I of Russia. She was regent of Muscovy during the minority of her son from 1425 to 1434. Life She was the daughter ...

, the only daughter of

. The alliance turned out to be fragile, and they waged war against each other in 1406–1408. Vytautas had positioned himself as an "All-Russian" unifier and attacked Novgorod and Pskov, clashing with his son-on-law Vasily but later making peace. This peace allowed Vytautas to strike against the Teutonic order at the

Battle of Grunwald The Battle of Grunwald, Battle of Žalgiris or First Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410 during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respec ...

. However, the terms of the

Union of Horodlo Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

negotiated by Polish King Jogaila, which discriminated against Orthodox Christians, caused Lithuania to lose its influence over the Russian states. Mongol emir

raided the Slavic lands in 1395; he ruined the

n regions but did not penetrate as far as

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. Timur's raid was of service to the Russian prince as it damaged the

, which for the next twelve years was in a state of anarchy. During the whole of this time no tribute was paid to the

khan Khan may refer to: *Khan (inn), from Persian, a caravanserai or resting-place for a travelling caravan *Khan (surname), including a list of people with the name *Khan (title), a royal title for a ruler in Mongol and Turkic languages and used by ...

Olug Moxammat Ulugh Muhammad (1405–1445; ; tt-Cyrl, Олуг Мөхәммәт, translit=Oluğ Möxəmmət; written as Ulanus by orientalists) was a medieval Tatar statesman, Gengisid, Khan of the Golden Horde (before 1436), ruler of Crimea (1437), and the ...

, though vast sums of money were collected in the Moscow treasury for military purposes. In 1408 Edigu burnt

, Gorodets, Rostov, and many other towns but failed to take

, though he had still burnt it. In 1412, however, Vasily found it necessary to pay the long-deferred visit of submission to the Horde. The growing influence of Moscow abroad was underlined by the fact that Vasily married his daughter Anna to Emperor

John VIII Palaeologus John VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( gr, Ἰωάννης Παλαιολόγος, Iōánnēs Palaiológos; 18 December 1392 – 31 October 1448) was the penultimate Byzantine emperor, ruling from 1425 to 1448. Biography John VIII was ...

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion ( grc, Βυζάντιον) was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' cont ...

Domestic policy

During his reign,

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a wa ...

landownership kept growing. With the growth of princely authority in Moscow, the judicial powers of landowners were partially diminished and transferred to Vasily's deputies and heads of

volost Volost ( rus, во́лость, p=ˈvoləsʲtʲ; ) was a traditional administrative subdivision in Eastern Europe. In earlier East Slavic history, ''volost'' was a name for the territory ruled by the knyaz, a principality; either as an absolute ...

s. Russian (East Slavic) chronicles speak of a monk,

Lazar the Serb Lazar ( sr, Лазар, russian: Лазарь), also known as Lazar the Serb or Lazar the Hilandarian (fl. 1404), was a Serbian Orthodox monk-scribe and horologist who invented and built the first known mechanical public clock in Russia in 1404. ...

, newly arrived from Serbia, inventing and building a clock on a tower in the Grand Prince's palace in Moscow behind the Cathedral of the Annunciation at the request of Vasily I, in 1404. It was the first ever

mechanical clock A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...

in Russia, and also the country's first public clock. It was among the first ten such advanced clocks in Europe, and was regarded as a technical miracle at the time. The most important ecclesiastical event of the reign was the elevation of the

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

Gregory Tsamblak Gregory Tsamblak or Grigorij Camblak ( bg, Григорий Цамблак, sr-Cyr, Григорије Цамблак; c. 1365–1420) was a Bulgarian writer and cleric. He was the pretended Metropolitan of Lithuania between 1413 and 1420. A Bulga ...

, to the metropolitan see of Kiev by

Vytautas Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...

, grand-duke of Lithuania; the immediate political consequence of which was the weakening of the hold of Moscow on the south-western Russian states.

Marriage and children

Vasily married

, a daughter of

and his wife,

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...

. They had nine known children, five boys (of which only one survived to mature adulthood) and four girls: *

Anna of Moscow Anna Vasilievna of Moscow (1393 – August 1417) was a Byzantine Empress consort by marriage to John VIII Palaiologos. She died while her husband was still the junior co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. Family She was a daughter of Vasily I of M ...

(1393 – August 1417), wife of John VIII Palaiologos, died of

bubonic plague Bubonic plague is one of three types of plague caused by the plague bacterium (''Yersinia pestis''). One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and vomiting, as well a ...

*Yury Vasilievich (30 March 1395 – 30 November 1400) *Ivan Vasilievich (15 January 1397 – 20 July 1417), died on the way from Kolomna to

as a result of " pestilence", just six months after marrying the daughter of Prince Ivan Vladimirovich of

Pronsk Pronsk (russian: Пронск) is the name of several inhabited localities in Ryazan Oblast, Russia. ;Urban localities *Pronsk, Pronsky District, Ryazan Oblast, a work settlement in Pronsky District ;Rural localities * Pronsk, Ukholovsky Distri ...

and receiving the inheritance of

*Anastasia Vasilievna (d. 1470), wife of Vladymir Alexander, Prince of

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

. Her husband was a son of Vladymir, Prince of Kiev. His paternal grandparents were

Algirdas Algirdas ( be, Альгерд, Alhierd, uk, Ольгерд, Ольґерд, Olherd, Olgerd, pl, Olgierd; – May 1377) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania. He ruled the Lithuanians and Ruthenians from 1345 to 1377. With the help of his bro ...

and Maria of Vitebsk. *Daniil Vasilievich (6 December 1400 – May 1402), died of pestilence *Vasilisa Vasilievna, wife of Alexander Ivanovich "Brukhaty", Prince of

Suzdal Suzdal ( rus, Суздаль, p=ˈsuzdəlʲ) is a town that serves as the administrative center of Suzdalsky District in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which is located on the Kamenka River, north of the city of Vladimir. Vladimir is the admin ...

, and Alexander Daniilovich "Vzmetenj", Prince of Suzdal. *Simeon Vasilievich (13 January – 7 April 1405), died of pestilence *Maria Vasilievna, wife of Yuri Patrikievich. Her husband was a son of Patrikas, Prince of Starodub, and his wife, Helena. His paternal grandfather was Narimantas. * Vasily II of Moscow (10 March 1415 – 27 March 1462) Sophia also suffered many miscarriages: * A miscarriage of a daughter in the 4th month of pregnancy (19 December 1391). * A miscarriage of a daughter in the 6th month of pregnancy (16 August 1392). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (22 January 1394). * A miscarriage of a son in the 4th and a half-month of pregnancy (17 January 1396). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (4 December 1398). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (30 January 1399). * A miscarriage in the 1st month of pregnancy (30 March 1401). * A miscarriage of a son in the 5th and a half-month of pregnancy (11 January 1403). * A miscarriage of a son in the 4th and a half-month of pregnancy (20 March 1406). * A miscarriage in 1410. * A miscarriage in 1412. * A miscarriage in 1414. * A miscarriage in 1416. * A miscarriage in 1418. * A miscarriage in 1420.

References

External links