Pskov is Novgorod's greatest subject town but acts as a community of its own: the Pskovians fight the Estonians on their own (they ambushed seven boatloads of coastal Chud in 1190) and their men march under Novgorod's prince (to Yuryev in 1191-92 and to Lake Kasplya in 1198-99).
In 1192 Prince Yaroslav came to Pskov on St Peter's day with a few Novgorodians, sat there, and sent his court with the Pskovians to burn Medvezhya Golova (Otepää). No prince of Pskov's own is recorded in these years, and no posadnik is named: Pskov is not held apart from Novgorod on 1 January 1200.
Who he is
- Title
- posadnik of Pskov
- Confidence
- low
The Novgorod chronicle names no Pskov prince or posadnik for 1193-1210: Miroslav was made posadnik in Pskov in 1132; Yaroslav Vladimirovich sat in Pskov himself in the summer of 1192; the next prince of Pskov named is Volodimir (Vladimir Mstislavich), at Luki in 1211 and driven out by the Pskovians before 1213.
Overlord
Novgorod and its prince.
What it holds
How it was acquired
The posadnik of Pskov was once sent from Novgorod (1132); how he is chosen in 1200 is not pinned.
Allies and rivals
Rivals of the Estonians of Ugandi and of the Lithuanians.
How things stand that morning
Under Novgorod and its prince; no prince of its own.
Wealth
Pskov's trade on the Velikaya and Lake Peipus, fishing, flax; no figures.
Military
The Pskov host and boats on the lake.
Threats
- Estonian and Lithuanian raids (the whole Chud land attacked Pskov in the 1170s; the Pskovians suffered at Lithuanian hands in the 1180s).
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Pskov's own chronicles are late for this period; the Novgorod chronicle shows Pskov's men acting but names no officers.
On the map: Pskov's land is drawn with the town record and the realm.
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): Pskov Republic
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.