Yaroslavl stands on the cape where the Kotorosl meets the Volga.
Tradition makes Yaroslav the Wise its founder early in the eleventh century; it is first named in the chronicle for 1071, when pagan priests raised the starving people of the district and Yan Vyshatich put them down. It is the Volga landing of the Rostov land, from which boats go down to Gorodets and Bulgar and up towards Uglich and Novgorod. In 1200 it is a Rostov land town under Vsevolod's governor, without a prince; it becomes Konstantin's in 1207 and the seat of his son Vsevolod's principality from 1218 (later).
Its first stone church (Konstantin's Dormition, 1215) and the first record of the Transfiguration monastery (1216) are later.
Who holds it
- Name
- Grand Prince Vsevolod III, through his governor (posadnik), not named for 1200
- Title
- lord of the town
- Since
- 1176
- Born
- not applicable
- Family
- not applicable
- Confidence
- medium
Laurentian Chronicle as summarised in the standard accounts; en.wikipedia
Lord in 1200
Grand Prince Vsevolod III, through his governor, not named for 1200. It passes with Rostov to Konstantin in 1207 (later).
How things stand that morning
Vsevolod's town; quiet on 1 January 1200.
Charter
None: Rus' towns had no charters. Custom and the prince's word governed.
Council
Not recorded.
Communities
No foreign community recorded; Bulgar traders likely pass on the Volga.
Fairs and markets
Not recorded.
Militia
The town host under the prince's commanders.
Walls and castle
A wooden town (rubleny gorod) with earth ramparts on the cape between the Volga and the Kotorosl.
Trade and crafts
The Volga trade between Bulgar, Rostov and Novgorod; fishing; crafts.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Founding legend and the 1071 rising are recorded; little for 1200.
Primary sources for Vladimir-Suzdal
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 Hypatian Chronicle (the Kievan Chronicle compiled about 1200 at the Vydubichi monastery; the Galician-Volhynian Chronicle in the 13th century). The southern record. 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 birch-bark letters (11th to 15th centuries). Excavated letters and notes on birch bark, dated by the layer they lie in. Read online
- The Tale of Igor's Campaign (about 1187 to 1200 (disputed)). A poem on Igor Sviatoslavich's defeat by the Polovtsians in 1185 that addresses the princes of the day by name: Vsevolod of Vladimir, Rurik and David Rostislavich, Yaroslav of Galich, Roman of Volhynia and the Olgovichi of Chernigov, of whom Igor himself was prince from 1198. Read online
Sources and studies
- The Laurentian (Suzdal) Chronicle, PSRL vol. 1, entries for 1176-1212, cited from the researcher's knowledge of the standard accounts (not fetched in this run: ru.wikipedia, fmg.ac and the archive.org texts would not load)
- S. Franklin and J. Shepard, The Emergence of Rus 750-1200 (1996); J. Martin, Medieval Russia 980-1584 (2007); J. Fennell, The Crisis of Medieval Russia 1200-1304 (1983): standard accounts, cited from the researcher's knowledge
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.