Alexander Nevskiy

Alexander Nevsky wasRussia's "knight in shining armour." His reputation as a man of exceptional valour and surpassing virtue inspired a visit by a German commander who told his people when he returned: "I went through many countries and saw many people, but I have never met such a king among kings, nor such a prince among princes." The Russians called him their "prince without sin." He was born in 1220 in the state of Vladimir. He was the son of Prince Yaroslav II, grand prince of Vladimir and a member of the Rurik Dynasty . Vladimir was a once flourishing city state of social, cultural and spiritual achievements - but it had been weakened by quarrelling princes and attacks of warring tribes. In the early 1220’s it came under attack from the fierce Tatars, under the leadership of Ghengis Khan. Fortunately, the Mongol Horde's primary interest in conquest was financial gain, and although it imposed a heavy tax on its subjects, they were left to govern themselves and retained their traditions and religion intact. Nevertheless, the yoke of foreign sovereignty was burdensome; individual princes were reduced to acting as feudal landlords for their Mongol lords, and any thoughts of national unity were stifled. A strong leader was needed if the land of Rus was to have any hope of healing internal strife, of throwing off the Tatar yoke, and establishing its identity as a nation state. Alexander was taken to Novogrod,as a young child, where he witnessed firsthand the baneful effect of internal dissension as his father struggled with the proudly independent spirited boyars. Like most noble youths of his time he had barely learned to walk before he was lifted into the saddle. Training in the martial arts was combined with an education based upon the Scriptures. Under the influence of his mother, who was popularly called "the Holy Queen" on account of her piety and charitable deeds, the young prince developed a profound spiritual life. He engrossed himself for hours in reading the Old and New Testaments. He was still an adolescent when in 1236 his father became Grand Prince of Kiev (a position of primacy among the princes), leaving Alexander as Prince of Novgorod. The unruly citizenry was gradually won over by the uncommon wisdom and youthful charm of its new ruler. Meanwhile, the Tatars were moving north; they overran Ryazan, Moscow and the Russian capital of that time, Vladimir. They were prevented from reaching Novgorod only by the surrounding marshes. But the city was spared this disaster only to face a greater threat, this time from the west. Encouraged by the Roman Pope who desired the conversion of Russia to Catholicism, the Swedes and Germans took advantage of Russia's weakened state and prepared to attack. As a staunch Orthodox Christian, Alexander recognised that conquest from the west would deal a mortal blow at the very heart of Russia—the Orthodox Church, a fate incomparably worse than political subjugation by the Tatars. In 1210, well armed Swedish troops moved onto Novgorod territory. Preparing his men to repel the invaders, Alexander encouraged them with his now famous affirmation: "God is not in might but in Truth. 'Some trust in princes and some in horses, but we will call upon the Lord our God.'" The Russian forces, their Prince in the lead, met with success after a fierce battle on the shores of the Neva. The Teutonic Knights remained a dangerous enemy. In a lightning-quick campaign in 1241 Saint Alexander recaptured the ancient Russian fortress of Kopor'e, expelling the knights. But in 1242 the Germans succeeded capturing Pskov. The enemy boasted of "subjecting all the Slavic nation." Alexander, having set forth in a winter campaign, liberated Pskov and in spring of the year 1242 gave the Teutonic Order a decisive battle (as portrayed so vividly in Eisenstein’s 1938 film). On the ice of Lake Chud both armies clashed on 5 April 1242. The Teutons were completely destroyed in the terrible slaughter that followed and it was said as though the frozen lake were in motion and not visibly ice, since it was covered by blood. Victories followed against the Livonian Germans and the Lithuanians. The Russian north-east, devastated by the Tatars, looked with hope upon the young warrior prince. His fame reached the ears of the Mongol lord, Khan Batu, who desired to see this Russian hero. It was a perilous honor. Before being presented to the Khan, the Russian princes- whose authority depended on his approval -were required to fulfil certain pagan traditions such as walking through fire, bowing down to the shadows of deceased khans and so on. Alexander refused to consent to such idolatry and prepared himself to accept the death penalty (which Prince Michael of Chernigov had paid under similar circumstances). Arriving in the Golden Horde' s capital at the mouth of the Volga, Alexander at once confessed his Christian convictions: "O King," he said, bowing before the Khan, "I bow before you because God has favoured you with authority, but I shall not bow before any created thing. I serve the One God. Him alone do I honor and Him alone do I worship." Khan Batu was so impressed by the courage and handsome demeanour of the young prince that to everyone's amazement he accepted his refusal and received him with due honour. Gaining the respect of the Khan was a triumph for Alexander, but it did not insure peace. The remaining course of his life as Grand Prince of Russia was spent in securing its western borders against persistent German campaigns, in subduing the Novgorodians' defiant opposition to the Khan's poll tax and in diplomatically placating the Khan’s anger which flared intermittently in response to indiscretions committed by the lesser princes. Although it was 200 years before Russia was free of Tatar control, Alexander’s skill and self-sacrificing devotion which he brought to the Herculean task set before him as ruler, and his commitment to the preservation of Orthodoxy at the core of a growing national consciousness, made him a hero of both historic and spiritual dimensions. He died on 14th November 1263 at a monastery in Gorodets, as he was returning from one of his exhausting journeys to the Khan. Metropoltian Kirill, the spiritual father and companion in the service of the holy prince, said in the funeral eulogy: "Know, my child, that already the sun has set for the Suzdal' land. There will not be a greater such prince in the Russian land." Alexander’s body was returned to Vladimir, the journey lasted nine days, and the body remained undecayed. On 23rd November he was buried at the Nativity Monastery in Vladimir. Alexander managed to maintain the Russian way of life, religious freedom and averted much potential bloodshed. For these reasons, the Russian Orthodox Church canonised him in 1547. His feast days are November 23rd and August 30th. In 1725 Empress Catherine I formed the Order of Alexander Nevsky as an award for superior military service. The Order was re-established by the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet, in 1942, to honour Soviet Commanders in WWII In the early 1700's, Tsar Peter the Great established the Alexander Nevsky Lavra {monastery} in St. Petersburg to honor of the saint. This is the home of the city's central church, the Holy Trinity Cathedral. Such notables as Dostoevsky, Tchaikovsky and Mussorgsky are buried in the monastery cemetery. It is here that St Alexander’s relics rest to this day.