Bryachislav Izyaslavich ( be, Брачыслаў Ізяславіч, russian: Брячислав Изяславич) (c. 997 – 1044) was the prince of Polotsk between 1001 and 1044. His name, possibly, may have been of something in approximation to Vratislav or Wroclaw. He was son of Izyaslav Vladimirovich. During his reign Polotsk was at war with Kiev and Novgorod. In 1015 he inherited the city of Lutsk after the death of his grandfather Vladimir I of Kiev. Bryachislav Izyaslavich was born in Polotsk. Either upon his father's death in 1001 or his minor brother Vseslav's in 1003, he inherited the Principality of Polotsk, himself being a child at this time (his grandparents married about 978). Under his rule, Polotsk attempted to distance itself from

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 ...

. Tensions were exacerbated by the fact that, under the East Slavic house law, since Izyaslav predeceased his father and never reigned in Kiev, his descendants from the House of Polotsk forfeited their dynastic rights to the Kievan throne being classified as

izgoi Izgoi is a term that is found in medieval Kievan Rus'. In primary documents, it indicated orphans who were protected by the church. In historiographic writing on the period, the term was meant as a prince in Kievan Rus' who was excluded from succe ...

(outcast). In 1020 Bryachislav managed to sack

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 ...

, but on his way back he was confronted by an army of his uncle,

Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav the Wise or Yaroslav I Vladimirovich; russian: Ярослав Мудрый, ; uk, Ярослав Мудрий; non, Jarizleifr Valdamarsson; la, Iaroslaus Sapiens () was the Grand Prince of Kiev from 1019 until his death. He was al ...

. Bryachislav suffered a defeat during the battle on the

Sudoma River The Sudoma (russian: Судома) is a left tributary of the Shelon, with its course located in Sudoma uplands in Dedovichsky and Bezhanitsky District of Pskov Oblast of Russia. The Sudoma is part of the Lake Ilmen drainage basin. The river has ...

and fled, leaving behind his Novgorodian prisoners and loot. Yaroslav chased him down and forced him to sign a peace agreement in 1021, granting him only two cities of Usvyat and Vitebsk. Despite this peace agreement, the hostilities between Bryachislav and Yaroslav continued for years. Eventually he extended the territory of his principality and established the city of

Braslaw Braslaw or Braslav ( be, Браслаў, Braslaŭ; russian: Браслав, Braslav) is a town in the Vitebsk Region of Belarus, an administrative center of the Braslaw District. History The town was first mentioned in 1065 as a castle in th ...

. The name of his spouse or consort is unknown and he had at least one son, Vseslav of Polotsk, who was the ancestor of all the following Polotsk princes and the only one of them to rule in Kiev. Bryachislav died in Polatsk in 1044.

The Saga of Eymund

The Saga of Eymund (written in the 13th century) draws a different picture in the relationship between Polotsk and Kiev. It states that after the victory over Sviatopolk Yaroslav demanded from Bryachislav to yield some of his territories. The last one refused and drew his troops to the border of his realm. To wage a war Yaroslav sent Ingegerd who was taken hostage by Bryachislav and acted as a mediator in the negotiations between Yaroslav and Bryachislav. The conditions of the mentioned negotiations were following: Bryachislav accepts

, Yaroslav was left with

while being recognized as the ''konung of Garðaríki'', while Eymund the mercenary was awarded Polotsk. After a short while Bryachislav died and Yaroslav attained all of his territories. Numerous historians (O.Senkovsky and M.Sverdlov) reason the fact of Bryachislav gaining the rights on Kiev and Eymund on Polotsk by both being appointed by the ''konung of Garðaríki''. 990s births 1044 deaths People from Polotsk Princes of Polotsk Izyaslavichi family (Polotsk) {{europe-noble-stub