The leading man of Novgorod and its posadnik for ten years.
With the prince he judges, leads the town's government and its embassies, and when the prince is absent he is in effect the ruler. In the winter of 1196 the town sent him with Boris Zhiroslavich and the sotsky Mikifor to ask Vsevolod for a son as prince; Vsevolod kept him, Ivanko and Foma as hostages and carried them on his campaign against Chernigov, and he came home only in the winter of 1197-98, after two years. In 1199 Vsevolod summoned him with the archbishop and the leading men to come for his son; after Martirii's death on the road he went to Vsevolod with Mikhalko, received Sviatoslav, and Vsevolod sent the boy to Novgorod 'after taking counsel with the posadnik'.
He is Vsevolod's partner in Novgorod on 1 January 1200, and the strongest man in the town.
Who he is
- Name
- Miroshka (Miroslav) Nezdinich
- Title
- posadnik of Novgorod
- Since
- 1189: 'that year the posadnik's office was taken from Mikhal and given to Miroshka Nezdinich' (chronicle under 6697)
- Born
- not pinned
- Family
- Son of Nezda. Brother of Vnezd Nezdinich, who built a church of the Holy Image in 1191. Son Dmitr Miroshkinich, posadnik in 1205-1207. The chronicle's 'young Luka Miroshkin', killed fighting the Lithuanians in 1200, may be of his household.
- Confidence
- high
Novgorod chronicle under 6697, 6704-6707, 6711, 6713.
Overlord
Elected by the town; answers to the veche.
What it holds
- the posadnik's office and court
- his family's courts in Novgorod and estates in its land (not recorded)
How it was acquired
Chosen in 1189 in place of Mikhalko Stepanich.
Allies and rivals
Allied now with Vsevolod and the new prince. Rival: Mikhalko Stepanich and the Mikhalkovichi, who will take the office at his death.
How things stand that morning
In office; led the embassy that brought Sviatoslav.
Wealth
Boyar estates, a share of the town's revenues and the fur trade; no figures.
Military
Commands with the prince; his own retinue.
Threats
- The rival boyar house of Mikhalko Stepanich.
- Age: he dies in 1203.
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
- 1203 (after this year)Dies after taking the monk's habit at St George's; Mikhalko Stepanich becomes posadnik.Depends on: His health. Stopped by: Nothing in play.
- 1207 (after this year)The veche rises against his son Dmitr and plunders the Miroshkinichi's courts and villages.Depends on: Dmitr's rule as posadnik (from 1205). Stopped by: A different succession.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Named repeatedly in the chronicle for these years.
On the map: An office in the town: not drawn as land.
Primary sources for Novgorod
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- The Chronicle of Novgorod (kept year by year; the Synodal manuscript written in the 13th and 14th centuries). Novgorod's own record, kept at St Sophia. Read online
- The Laurentian Chronicle (the Suzdal continuation kept in the late 12th and 13th centuries; manuscript 1377). The court record of Vsevolod III of Vladimir. Read online
- The Livonian Chronicle of Henry, Henry of Livonia (1225 to 1227). The chief source for the Baltic mission. Read online
- The birch-bark letters (11th to 15th centuries). Excavated letters and notes on birch bark, dated by the layer they lie in. Read online
- The law of the Gotlanders; The saga of the Gotlanders (Guta lag about 1220, Guta saga about 1220 to 1275; manuscript of about 1350). The law and the short history of the self-governing island. Read online
Sources and studies
- The Chronicle of Novgorod 1016-1471 (Novgorod First Chronicle), tr. R. Michell and N. Forbes (1914): entries for 1164-1215 read through the archive.org full-text search (scan pp. 76-106)
- Wikipedia (en): Posadnik
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.