Rogneda of Polotsk (962–1002) is the Slavic name for Ragnheiðr, a Princess consort of Rus'. She was the daughter of

Ragnvald Ragnvald, Rögnvald or Rognvald or Rægnald is an Old Norse name (Old Norse ''Rǫgnvaldr'', modern Icelandic ''Rögnvaldur''; in Old English ''Regenweald'' and in Old Irish, Middle Irish ''Ragnall''). Notable people with the name include: * Ragnval ...

(Slavic:

Rogvolod Rogvolod (russian: Рогволод, translit=Rogvolod; be, Рагвалод, translit=Rahvałod; 920978) was the first chronicled prince of Polotsk (945–978). In the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', he is known as , probably a slavicized versio ...

) who came from

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

and established himself at Polotsk in the mid-10th century.

Life

It has been speculated that Rogneda belonged to the

Ynglings The Ynglings were a dynasty of kings, first in Sweden and later in Norway, primarily attested through the poem ''Ynglingatal''. The dynasty also appears as Scylfings (Old Norse ''Skilfingar'') in ''Beowulf''. When ''Beowulf'' and ''Ynglingatal'' ...

royal family of present day

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. According to the

Novgorod Fourth Chronicle The Novgorod Fourth Chronicle (Новгородская четвёртая летопись) is a Russian chronicle of 15th century. It is traditionally called "Fourth" according to the order of the modern publication of Novgorod chronicles, rather ...

, in or about 980, Vladimir the Great, on learning that she was betrothed to his half-brother

Yaropolk I of Kiev Yaropolk I Sviatoslavich (Old East Slavic: Ꙗрополкъ Свѧтославичъ, transliterated as ''Iaropolk Svyatoslavich''; Russian: ; Ukrainian: Ярополк I Святославич; 952 – 11 June 978) was a young and rather enig ...

, took Polotsk and forced Rogneda to marry him. Having raped Rogneda in the presence of her parents, he ordered them to be killed, along with two of Rogneda's brothers. Rogneda gave him several children. The four sons were

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 als ...

(though some accounts suggest he may have been the son of

Anna Porphyrogenita Anna Porphyrogenita ( grc-x-medieval, Ἄννα Πορφυρογεννήτη, translit=Anna Porphyrogennētē, rus, Анна Византийская, uk, Анна Порфірогенета; 13 March 963 – 1011) was a Grand Princess consort ...

), Vsevolod,

Mstislav of Chernigov Mstislav Vladimirovich (; ; ) was the earliest attested prince of Tmutarakan and Chernigov in Kievan Rus'. He was a younger son of Vladimir the Great, Grand Prince of Kiev. His father appointed him to rule Tmutarakan, an important fortress by th ...

, and Izyaslav of Polotsk. She also bore two daughters, one of whom is named by Nestor the Chronicler as Predslava (taken as a concubine of Boleslaus I of Poland, according to Gallus). A later chronicle tells a story, most likely taken from a Norse saga, of Rogneda plotting against Vladimir and asking her elder son, Izyaslav, to kill him. As was the Norse royal custom, she was sent with her elder son to govern the land of her parents, i.e. Polotsk. Izyaslav's line continued to rule Polotsk and the newly found town of

Izyaslavl Zaslawye or Zaslaŭje ( be, Засла́ўе, ; russian: Засла́вль; pl, Zasław; lt, Zaslavlis) is a historical town in the Minsk Region of Belarus, 20 kilometres northwest of Minsk. In 2009 its population was 14,400. History Accordin ...

, now called Zaslawye. After Vladimir converted to Christianity and took

Anna Porphyrogeneta Anna Porphyrogenita ( grc-x-medieval, Ἄννα Πορφυρογεννήτη, translit=Anna Porphyrogennētē, rus, Анна Византийская, uk, Анна Порфірогенета; 13 March 963 – 1011) was a Grand Princess consort ...

as his wife, he had to divorce all his previous wives, including Rogneda. After that, she entered the convent and took the name Anastasia.

Legacy

Around 1825

Kondraty Ryleev Kondraty Fyodorovich Ryleyev, also spelled Kondraty Feodorovich Ryleev (, September 29 (September 18 O.S.), 1795 – July 25 (July 13 O.S.), 1826) was a Russian poet, publisher, and a leader of the Decembrist Revolt, which attempted to overt ...

wrote a narrative poem entitled ''Rogneda''. This poem became a literary source for her portrayal in the nationalist Russian opera ''

Rogneda Rogneda of Polotsk (962–1002) is the Slavic name for Ragnheiðr, a Princess consort of Rus'. She was the daughter of Ragnvald (Slavic: Rogvolod) who came from Scandinavia and established himself at Polotsk in the mid-10th century. Life It ...

'' by Alexander Serov, which premiered in 1865.

Issue

By Vladimir the Great: # Izyaslav of Polotsk (born c. 979, Kiev), Prince of Polotsk (989–1001) #

(born no earlier than 983), Prince of Rostov (988–1010), Prince of Novgorod (1010–1034), Grand Prince of Kiev (1016–1018, 1019–1054). Possibly he was a son of Anna rather than Rogneda. Another interesting fact that he was younger than Sviatopolk according to the words of Boris in the ''

Tale of Bygone Years The ''Tale of Bygone Years'' ( orv, Повѣсть времѧньныхъ лѣтъ, translit=Pověstĭ vremęnĭnyxŭ lětŭ; ; ; ; ), often known in English as the ''Rus' Primary Chronicle'', the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', or simply the ...

'' and not as it was officially known. #

(born c. 983), Prince of

Tmutarakan Tmutarakan ( rus, Тмутарака́нь, p=tmʊtərɐˈkanʲ, ; uk, Тмуторокань, Tmutorokan) was a medieval Kievan Rus' principality and trading town that controlled the Cimmerian Bosporus, the passage from the Black Sea to the Sea ...

(990–1036), Prince of Chernigov (1024–1036), other sources claim him to be son of other mothers (Adela,

Malfrida Malfrida (died 1000) was probably the Bohemian wife of the grand prince of Kiev Vladimir I of Kiev. Primary Chronicle mentioned about a death of woman named ''Malfrida''. Russian historian Vasily Tatishchev supposed that Malfrida was a Bohemian wif ...

, or some other Bulgarian wife) # Predslava,

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...

of Bolesław I Chrobry according to

Gesta principum Polonorum The ''Gesta principum Polonorum'' (; "''Deeds of the Princes of the Poles''") is the oldest known medieval chronicle documenting the history of Poland from the legendary times until 1113. Written in Latin by an anonymous author, it was most lik ...

# Premislava (died 1015), some source state that she was a wife of the Duke Laszlo (Vladislav) "the Bald" of Arpadians # Mstislava, in 1018 was taken by Bolesław I Chrobry among the other daughters # Ariogia (?)

Life

Legacy

Issue

Sources

See also