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Veche ( rus, вече, véče, ˈvʲet͡ɕe; pl, wiec; uk, ві́че, víče, ; be, ве́ча, viéča, ; cu, вѣще, věšte) was a popular assembly in
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
Slavic countries. In
Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( rus, links=no, Великий Новгород, t=Great Newtown, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as just Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the ...
and 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 ...
, where the veche acquired great prominence, the veche was broadly similar to the Norse ''thing'' or the
Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland *Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri *Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia *Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports * Swiss Internation ...
Landsgemeinde.


Etymology

The word is inherited from Proto-Slavonic *''větje '', meaning 'council', 'counsel' or 'talk' (which is also represented in the word "
soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
", both ultimately deriving from Proto-Slavic verbal stem of *větiti 'to talk, speak'). There is a relation to "-vice" in "advice", and somewhat more distantly to Sanskrit "Veda", Germanic words like "wise" (English), "weten" (Dutch, "to know"), "witch" (Slavonic: ''věšt-ica'') and many others, which however come from a different Indo-European root. Likewise, there exists misinformation claiming that the
semantic Semantics (from grc, σημαντικός ''sēmantikós'', "significant") is the study of reference, meaning, or truth. The term can be used to refer to subfields of several distinct disciplines, including philosophy, linguistics and comput ...
derivation that yields the meaning of the word under consideration is parallel to that of ''
congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...
''. The contemporary words ''svedeniya'' (russian: сведения) and ''svidchennya'' ( uk, свідчення) both meaning "information" are cognates of this word.


Early Slavs

Procopius of Caesarea mentioned Slavic people gathering in popular assemblies already in the 6th century:
''But when the report was carried about and reached the entire nation, practically all the Antae assembled to discuss the situation, and they demanded that the matter be made a public one(...). For these nations, the Sclaveni and the Antae, are not ruled by one man, but they have lived from of old under a democracy, and consequently everything which involves their welfare, whether for good or ill, is referred to the people.''


Rus'

The East Slavic veche is thought to have originated in tribal assemblies of
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
, thus predating the Rus' state. The earliest mentions of ''veche'' in East European chronicles refer to examples in Belgorod (now Bilhorod-Kyivskyi) in 997,
Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( rus, links=no, Великий Новгород, t=Great Newtown, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as just Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the ...
in 1016, in
Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Ky ...
in 1068, 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 ...
in 1123. The assemblies discussed matters of war and peace, adopted laws, and called for and expelled rulers. In Kiev, the veche was summoned in front of the Cathedral of St Sophia. In Ukraine, the town ''viche'' was simply a gathering of community members to inform everybody of important events (''vich-na-vich'' - eye-to-eye) and come up with a collective planning for the near future.


Novgorod Republic

The veche was the highest
legislative A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...
and judicial authority in the Novgorod Republic until 1478, after the conquest of Novgorod by Grand Prince Ivan III. The traditional scholarship goes on to argue that a series of reforms in 1410 transformed the veche into something similar to the public assembly of
Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...
; it became the Commons or lower chamber of the parliament. An upper
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
-like
Council of Lords The Lithuanian Council of Lords ( be, Паны-Рада, lt, Ponų taryba) was the main permanent institution of central government in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania active in its capital city of Vilnius. It had originated from the advisory Council ...
(''sovet gospod'') was also created, with title membership for all former city magistrates ('' posadniks'' and '' tysyatskys''). Some sources indicate that veche membership may have become full-time, and parliament deputies were now called ''vechniks''. Some of the more recent scholars call this interpretation into question. The Novgorod assembly could be presumably summoned by anyone who rang the veche bell, although it is more likely that the common procedure was more complex. The whole population of the city—boyars, merchants, and common citizens—then gathered at Yaroslav's Court or in front of the Cathedral of Holy Wisdom (the latter called a ''Vladychnoe veche'' – "An Archbishop's Veche," since it was called in front of the cathedral). The veche bell was a symbol of republican sovereignty and independence and for this reason, Ivan III carted it off to
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 ...
when he took control of the city, to show that the old way of doing things was at an end. Separate assemblies could be held in the kontsy (boroughs or "ends") of Novgorod. Of all other towns of Novgorod Land, the chronicles only mention a veche in Torzhok, however possibly they existed in all other towns as well.


Pskov Republic

The veche of Pskov Republic had legislative powers, it could appoint military commanders and hear ambassadors' reports. It also approved expenses such as grants to princes and payments to builders of walls, towers and bridges. Veche gathered in the court of the Trinity Cathedral, which held the archives of the veche and important private papers and state documents. The veche assembly included ''posadniks'' (mayors), "middle" and common people. The historians differ on the extent to which the veche was dominated by the elites, with some saying that the real power was in the hands of boyars and others considering veche a democratic institution. Conflicts were common and the confrontation between the veche and the posadniks in 1483-1484 led to the execution of one posadnik and to the confiscation of the property of three other posadniks who fled to Moscow. The veche functioned until 1510, when that city was taken over by Grand Prince Vasili III (1505–1533).


Poland

Veches, known in Poland as wiece, were convened even before the beginning of the Polish statehood in the Kingdom of Poland. Issues were first debated by the elders and leaders, and later presented to all the free men for a wider discussion. One of the major types of wiec was the one convened to choose a new ruler. There are legends of a 9th-century
election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operat ...
of the legendary founder of the
Piast dynasty The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great. Branch ...
,
Piast the Wheelwright Piast the Wheelwright ( 740/741? – 861 AD; Latin: ''Past Ckosisconis'', ''Pazt filius Chosisconisu''; Polish: ''Piast Chościskowic'', ''Piast Kołodziej'' , ''Piast Oracz'' or ''Piast'') was a semi-legendary figure in medieval Poland (9th cent ...
, and a similar election of his son, Siemowit, but sources for that time come from the later centuries and their validity is disputed by scholars. The election privilege was usually limited to the elites, which in the later times took the form of the most powerful nobles ( magnates,
prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. ...
s) or officials, and was heavily influenced by local traditions and strength of the ruler. By the 12th or 13th century, the ''wiec'' institution likewise limited its participation to high ranking nobles and officials. The nationwide gatherings of ''wiec'' officials in 1306 and 1310 can be seen as precursors of the Polish parliament (the General Sejm).


See also

* Zemsky Sobor (Russian parliament from the early modern period) *
Duma A duma (russian: дума) is a Russian assembly with advisory or legislative functions. The term ''boyar duma'' is used to refer to advisory councils in Russia from the 10th to 17th centuries. Starting in the 18th century, city dumas were f ...
*
Ting Ting may refer to: Politics and government * Thing (assembly) or ting, a historical Scandinavian governing assembly * Ting (administrative unit) (亭), an administrative unit in China during the Qin and Han Dynasties * Ting (廳,厅), an administ ...
in Scandinavia,
Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of ...
in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
,
Seimas The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas), or simply the Seimas (), is the unicameral parliament of Lithuania. The Seimas constitutes the legislative branch of government in Lithuania, enacting laws and amendm ...
in
Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
, Saeima in
Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
*
Rada The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the S ...
(later kind of popular assembly, then the parliament of
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
)


Notes

# See the Slavic
etymology Etymology () The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words ...
of the word and the corresponding references in the following entries of the Max Vasmer's Etymological dictionary: #* of the particular word
вече/veche
' , #* of the basic root
вѣт-
' , :and the possible further
Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Du ...
etymology of this root in the entry :*
*wAit- (-th-)
', :all of them presented online in the etymological databases o


References


Further reading

* Michael C. Paul, "The Iaroslavichi and the Novgorodian Veche: A Case Study on Princely Relations with the Veche," ''Russian History'' (2004). {{authority control Historical legislatures Popular assemblies Novgorod Republic Slavic culture Society of Kievan Rus' History of Poland during the Piast dynasty History of Ruthenia