Among the many territories in Russia, Temutolokan (near today's Taman) on the coast of the Black Sea has always been the most special part. Both the location and the land are very special.
As early as the Vladimir era, Rus had built a stronghold here, controlled land, developed trade, strengthened its influence and control on Black Sea trade, and absorbed a large amount of trade benefits.
During the reign of Yaroslav's brother Mstislav, the Rus also defeated the local nomads and greatly expanded the jurisdiction of Temutolokan.
This land is the place where the two cultures of the steppe and the Ross are most closely integrated. The stone men left behind by unknown nomads look down at the earth, quietly watching the passage of time, and spending those years together with the wooden castle of the Ross.
The local Rus people also mastered the skill of riding like nomads, and were as flexible as nomads on their war horses. The nomads also used various tools of Rus, and some even worshiped the gods of Rus.
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Temutolokan is also a prosperous land. It can be said to be connected in all directions. The west is the colony of the Eastern Empire, the east and north are the grasslands and Rus. As for the south, it is the imperial capital and the Caucasus, as well as the core of the Islamic world further away.
Baghdad.
Businessmen from all walks of life gathered here and gathered a large amount of gold and silver. Therefore, the Russian Grand Dukes of all generations attached great importance to the control of this land. When Svyatoslav was still Chernigov, he was on this land
A lot of resources were invested and a monastery was built.
However, due to the fact that it is far away from the center of Rus, this is also an enclave of Rus. If you want to travel here, in addition to crossing the dangerous grassland, you can only take the Dnieper River and enter the Black Sea first, and then go here.
As long as the local ruler is willing, he can completely separate his kingdom with Temutolokan as the center, and it will become an independent kingdom.
This is what Yaroslav's brother Mstislav who expanded the territory of Temutolokan did. He rested and recuperated in Temutolokan, and then the king returned to fight against Yaroslav, and Yaroslav was finally defeated.
Mstislav was forced to give half of the Rus.
Now, it is occupied by the descendants of Yaroslavich. After their defeat in Rus, they retreated to the only land they still firmly controlled. The local independent position was enough for them to prepare here for a comeback.
Although the ethnic groups in this area are mixed, it is also filled with countless available sources of soldiers, whether they are nomads on the grasslands or mountain people in the Caucasus mountains. They are happy to come out to fight, and more importantly, plunder.
The Yaroslavichs who retreated here used the looting of Rus as bait to recruit many such barbaric people. It took them three full months, plus those who followed them loyally, to assemble an army.
Troops reaching a thousand.
It is said that they have also found some allies on the grassland. With the help of those allies, their strength will reach 3,000 or even 4,000, which will be enough to confront the Mayor of Chernigov in Rostislav.
From the bottom of their hearts, they don't want to lead these barbarians to plunder Rus, but the troops they have are too few. They can only recruit those barbarians and can only raise troops from the barbarians.
In the past, several Svyatoslavichs relied on their influence and had been operating in the Chernihiv area, but they were always unable to do much due to troop problems and could not defend the territory they regained.
, and also caused heavy casualties to the die-hards, and finally had no choice but to follow them and escape to Temutolokan.
But they also had merit, that is, they rescued Sviatoslavich's eldest brother Gleb, and now he leads the descendants of Yaroslavich.
Then they went out with this army. Their goal was very simple, which was to seize the border town of Murom, then use that place as the core to consolidate their positions, call on people to resist, and create riots in various parts of Southern Russia.
What Ross needs now is a flag of resistance. Only when this flag is erected can they call on everyone to join and fight against Rostislav.
Since someone went out to fight, someone must stay behind, and the two people who stayed behind were Oleg and Monomakh who worked together to kill Harald.
As the youngest Sviatoslavich, it was natural for Oleg to stay behind. As for Monomakh, the exiled prince of Pereyaslav was not optimistic about the war, so he took the initiative to stay behind.
The Svyatoslavichs also agreed to him. In their opinion, it was a good thing that Vsevolodovich did not take credit from them.
However, in terms of merit and contribution, this is very unfair, because it was Monomakh and Oleg who were the first to go to Temtoro and stabilize the land that was unstable due to the drastic changes in Rus.
But after all, they were too young, so after the elder Sviatoslavichs came back, they were deprived of power, but the two finally chose to accept it. Against this background, Yaroslavich
The sons cannot fight with each other.
The two people who stayed in Temutolokan were not idle. They collected supplies as much as possible, organized the existing troops at hand, and contacted as many other forces as possible. They were also very busy.
However, Oleg has always been very unhappy. He has been deploying spies and spies everywhere to explore the situation in the north. It seems that he is still setting up some conspiracy. Monomakh has tried to persuade him several times, but to no avail.
As for Monomach, he was busy traveling across the mountains and ridges to meet with Temutolokan and the leaders of nearby ethnic groups, talk to them heart-to-heart, understand their needs, and try to solve them as much as possible.
This made Monomacher win a lot of hearts, but he didn't expect these powers to help him. It was impossible for these people to send dozens of people when they encountered trouble. He just wanted to get to know these people and prepare for the future.
And prepare.
Monomach saw clearly, counterattack, huh, is it possible to counterattack in this situation? Can they fight against that powerful cousin by pulling some rotten fish and shrimps? Stop dreaming, let's manage this land well, for
Prepare for the next escape.
In Monomacher's heart, to a certain extent, he has no hope of returning to Ross - at least for ten years - so instead of paying attention to Ross, it is better to establish a good relationship with the powerful people around him. Next, they will
A new story begins in the South.
And in the midst of such busyness, a bad news came, that is, their brothers suffered a defeat in Murom, and the Mayor of Rostislav Chernigov, Jan, defeated them and the invited allies.
But fortunately, everything is fine with Svyatoslavich and his friends. They are all still alive and are currently on their way back to Temutorokan.
This army did not even reach the walls of Murom before it was defeated in an ambush by Jan Vishaditch. None of the Svyatoslavichs could stand up to this powerful general, but only one
The entire army collapsed when the wave struck.
The nomadic cavalry and mountain people who came for plunder were not reliable at all. They ran away as soon as the attack started and did not want to fight.
As for the nomads, these guys slipped away even faster. They even robbed Sviatoslavich's baggage train and made a lot of money.
When they received the news, Monomakh and Oleg were not surprised at all. Failure was just a matter of time, even if there were not those wolves attracted by wealth. The gap in strength was really too big, so big that it was shocking.
Somewhat desperate.
Under such circumstances, the two cousins who stayed behind naturally had to welcome the team returning from the defeat, and at the same time they had to appease Temutolokan, who was uneasy because of the defeat.
It's a pity that for some unknown reason, the army that was supposed to return at the originally scheduled time did not arrive for a long time, leaving them waiting for several more days and making several trips in vain.
But today, their return has been confirmed. The scouts saw the arrival of the distant army on the tower, and the two naturally led their team to greet the brothers who had returned from defeat.
"Oleg, you don't look happy to have your brothers back."
Under the wooden fortress of Temutolokan, Monomach looked at his cousin.
Temutolokan is a typical Ross wood fort, but it is surrounded by various felt tents. The people of this land were influenced by the nomads and gradually developed the same customs and habits as them.
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The port of Temutolokan is quite prosperous, with ships from all over the Black Sea, and many residents such as Greeks and Armenians. However, these residents have united themselves to form an autonomous government that is opposite to the princely government.
organize.
Most of these residents came here to watch the fun.
The local nobles also have a strong nomadic style, and many local noble warriors even wear the iron mask of the nomads. When they stand with the nobles and soldiers who have fled from the Russian mainland, they are very conspicuous.
Many of them do have the blood of Caucasian mountain people and surrounding nomads. These frontier warriors fight against each other, but they also marry each other - of course, the so-called marriage often refers to snatching each other's daughters to give to their sons or as wives for themselves.
——They can be said to be the most mixed-race aristocratic group in Rus.
This has also led to the centrifugal force of these people. Kiev has become a story in the distance. They really have no interest in Kiev. It is also very difficult for Ross to control here. Many times, the rulers of Kiev have to put their own
A son is placed here.
The local noble warriors did not take part in Svyatoslavich's adventure because they were not interested in distant battles. What those guys talked about about defeating Rostislav sounded really unreliable.
These nobles don't care about Kiev in the distance at all, because it sounds too illusory. In comparison, they should care more about their own territory.
In comparison, they were willing to follow Monomach. Due to his long-term activities on the border, Monomach had a strong reputation among the grassland peoples. Moreover, he was gentle and rational. No matter how you looked at it, you should follow this person instead of those people.
A kid who talks about rejuvenating the country.
"You are right, Monomach, I am indeed unhappy." Oleg said in a voice that only the two of them could hear, "We are obviously smarter people, but they rely on age to suppress us. Look,
Look at what they did, this defeat buried all the contacts our father had accumulated in this area."
Since they worked together to defeat and kill Harald, the relationship between the two has improved to a higher level. Now many people think that they are more like a pair of biological brothers, which is why Oleg said these words.
"Don't be so disrespectful to Gleb and the others. They are your brothers after all, and he was just too impatient. Gleb is a smart man, but it's a pity that his emotions dominate his thinking now, making him so irrational.
As for burying connections... this is not necessarily the case. Many people are just unwilling to take risks. As long as the decision is reasonable, they will still follow..."
Monomacher stroked his chin and said. During this period, he has been visiting guests nearby to understand the situation in the area. Now he knows everything well and knows how to deal with it.
At present, he has initially summarized a draft of how to act. Now that Svyatoslavich and his friends have just returned from defeat, he just wants to give them this plan.
If it were before, they would definitely not accept Monomach's plan, but now that they are defeated... Monomach thinks that everyone can still reach a unified opinion.
"The team is coming!"
Those with sharp eyes saw the return of the defeated army. Soon, a team of about fifty people appeared in front of everyone. Judging from their armor from a distance, these people were followers of the exiled princes.
Even from such a distance, Monomach could see that their armor was in tatters and their morale was low.
"I have long said that none of those temporary strong men and scum recruited are reliable. Look, they are basically gone."
Oleg complained, but Monomakh said nothing. He also gave Oleg a look, telling him to calm down and stop talking. And for some reason, he felt that something was wrong with this team, which made him alert.
, and even put his hand on the hilt of the sword. Only in this way can he feel at ease.
However, as the team approached, the expressions of the two people became subtle, because they saw three horses without riders in front of the team, and three soldiers were leading them dejectedly.
The two of course understood what this meant, and when the team arrived in front of them, Yevgeny, the captain of Chernigov's personal soldiers, knelt in front of Oleg and Monomakh.
"Master Vladimir, Master Oleg, I'm sorry, but the three Sviatoslavichs all died... in the north."
It was like this, everyone could see the meaning, and the atmosphere became very awkward. No one dared to do anything, and no one knew what to do.