The church vaults that collapsed under the refugees
Editorial contextWhen the Tatars broke through, the townspeople threw up a last ring of defences around the Church of the Mother of God (the Tithe Church, Kiev's first stone church, built by Prince Vladimir about 990). Next day, as people crowded onto the church and its vaults with their goods, the walls gave way under the weight, and the city fell. The chronicler credits the building to Rus princes and its ruin to the siege.
Next morning they came against them, and there was a great battle between them; and as the people ran up onto the church and onto the church vaults, with their goods, from the weight the church walls fell down with them, and so the city was taken by the warriors.
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Original wording
Наутрѣя же придоша на нѣ, и бысть брань межи ими велика; людемъ же узбѣгшимъ на церковь и на комары церковныя, и съ товары своими, отъ тягости повалишася съ ними стѣны церковныя, и пріятъ бысть градъ сице воими.
About Tatars (Mongols); the people of Kiev
Keep in mind
The church is not named in this sentence; the identification with the Tithe Church comes from the preceding line and from archaeology.
Kholm's church: carved heads, Roman glass, a floor like a mirror
Editorial contextThe chronicler describes Daniil's Church of St John in Kholm in unusual detail: vaults resting on four carved human heads, windows glazed with 'Roman' glass, a floor cast of copper and pure tin that shone like a mirror, and doors trimmed with white Galician and green Kholm stone, carved by 'a certain craftsman Avdei'. Nearby stood a tower on a stone base 15 ells high, built of hewn timber and whitewashed. The builders are Rus, and the materials are named.
vaults, with an arch from each corner, and their supports on four human heads carved by a certain craftsman; the windows adorned with Roman glass … its floor inside was cast of copper and pure tin, so that it shone like a mirror; its two doors were adorned with hewn stone, white Galician and green Kholm stone
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комары, съ каждого угла преводъ, и стоянье ихъ на четырехъ головахъ человѣцскихъ изваяно отъ нѣкоего хытреца; окна украшена стеклы Римьскими … внутрьній же ей помостъ бѣ слитъ отъ мѣди и отъ олова чиста, яко блещатися яко зерцалу; двери же ей двоя украшены каменьемъ Галичкымъ бѣлымъ и зеленымъ Холмъскымъ, тесанымъ
About Prince Daniil of Galicia and his craftsmen (one named Avdei)
Keep in mind
The chronicler writes that the church later burned; the description is of a building he knew.
Sorcery, Chinggis Khan's dreams and bowing to a bush
Editorial contextOn his way to Batu, Daniil passed through the camp of the commander Kuremsa and was horrified by Tatar religion as a Christian saw it: shamans' 'kudesy' (sorcery), the 'dreams' of 'Chigizakon' (Chinggis Khan), and visiting kings and princes being led around a bush to bow to the sun, the moon, the earth and the souls of their ancestors. At Batu's camp Sangur, a man in the service of Prince Yaroslav, told him that his 'brother' Yaroslav had bowed to the bush and he must do so too.
for he saw them possessed by the devil: their foul sorcerers' ravings and the dreams of Chigizakon, his foul blood-drinkings, his many witchcrafts; the kings and princes and nobles who came were led around a bush to bow to the sun and moon and earth, to the devil and to their fathers and grandfathers and mothers who have died and are in hell
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Original wording
видя бо обладаемы дьяволомъ: скверная ихъ кудешьская бляденья и Чигизаконова мечтанья, скверная его кровопитья, многыя его вольшбы; приходящія цари, и князи и велможѣ, солнцю и лунѣ и земли, дьяволу и умершимъ въ адѣ отцемъ ихъ и дѣдомъ и матеремъ, водяше около куста покланятися
About Tatars of Kuremsa and Batu; Prince Daniil of Galicia
Keep in mind
A hostile Christian description; the chronicler learned it from Daniil's party, not from Mongol informants.
'Drink our black milk, mare's kumiss'
Editorial contextInside Batu's tent Batu asked Daniil whether he drank 'black milk, our drink, mare's kumiss'. Daniil said he never had, but would if ordered. 'You are now one of us, a Tatar: drink our drink,' said Batu. Then Daniil went to pay respects to Batu's senior wife Barakchin, who sent him a cup of wine because, she said, he was not used to milk.
'Do you drink black milk, our drink, mare's kumiss?' He said: 'Until now I have not drunk it; now, since you order it, I drink.' And he said: 'You are already one of us, a Tatar; drink our drink.' And he drank and bowed, according to their custom
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Original wording
«пьеши ли черное молоко, наше питье, кобылій кумузъ?» Оному же рекшу: «доселѣ есмь не пилъ, нынѣ же ты велишь, пью.» Онъ же рче: «ты уже нашь же Татаринъ, пій наше питье.» Онъ же испивъ поклонися, по обычаю ихъ
About Batu; Prince Daniil of Galicia; Batu's wife Barakchin
'Worse than evil is Tatar honour'
Editorial contextThe chronicler breaks off to lament what homage meant: a great prince who ruled Kiev, Vladimir and Galich now knelt and was called a slave, and paid tribute in fear for his life. He adds that the Tatars had poisoned Grand Prince Iaroslav of Suzdal and knifed Mikhail of Chernigov for not bowing to the bush. Daniil stayed 25 days before he was sent home with his lands confirmed.
O, worse than evil is Tatar honour! Daniil Romanovich was a great prince, who ruled the Russian land, Kiev and Vladimir and Galich, with his brother, and other lands: now he sits on his knees and is called a slave, and they want tribute, he does not expect to live, and threats come.
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О злѣе зла честь Татарьская! Данилови Романовичю князю бывшу велику, обладавшу Рускою землею, Кыевомъ и Володимеромъ и Галичемъ, со братомъ си инѣми странами: нынѣ сѣдить на колѣну и холопомъ называеться, и дани хотять, живота не чаеть и грозы приходять.
About Batu's Horde; Prince Daniil of Galicia
Keep in mind
The poisoning of Iaroslav is the chronicler's claim (Carpini reports a similar suspicion); it is not proven.
A prisoner names Batu's generals, and Guyuk
Editorial contextDuring the siege of Kiev the defenders captured a Tatar named Tovrul, who told them who was in Batu's army. The list matches Batu's Chinggisid relatives and generals known from Persian and Mongol sources. The chronicler adds that Guyuk turned back on hearing of the Great Khan's death and became khan himself, though (he believed) not of the khan's family but his first general.
They captured among them a Tatar named Tovrul, and he told them all their strength; these were his brothers, strong commanders: Urdiui, Baidar, Biriui, Kaidan, Bechak and Mengu and Kiuiuk (who returned on learning of the khan's death and became khan, though not of his family, but he was his first commander), Sebediai the Bogatur and Burundai the Bagatyr
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Яша же въ нихъ Татарина, именемъ Товрулъ, и тъ исповѣда имъ всю силу ихъ; се бяху братья его силный воеводы: Урдюй, Байдаръ, Бирюй, Кайданъ, Бечакъ и Меньгу и Кююкъ (иже вратися увѣдавъ смерть канову и бысть каномъ, не отъ роду же его, но бѣ воевода его перьвый), Себѣдяй Богатуръ и Бурунъдай Багатырь
About Batu's commanders: Urdiui (Orda), Baidar, Biriui, Kaidan, Bechak, Mengu (Mongke), Kiuiuk (Guyuk), Subutai, Burundai
Keep in mind
Guyuk was in fact a grandson of Chinggis Khan; the chronicler's remark about his descent is mistaken.
'Godless Moabites, called Tatars'
Editorial contextThe Galician chronicler opens the Kalka story with an 'unheard-of army': godless Moabites 'called Tatars' who fell on the Polovtsian land. Even the greatest Cuman chief could not stand against them. After the rout the Tatars 'went back to their vezhi', the steppe word for nomad tent camps. The biblical name Moabites shows how the chronicler fitted a new enemy into scripture.
There came an unheard-of army: the godless Moabites, called Tatars, came onto the Polovtsian land. The Polovtsy made a stand, but Iurii Konchakovich, who was greatest of all the Polovtsy, could not stand against their face; he fled, and many were killed, as far as the river Dnieper, and the Tatars turned back and went to their tent camps.
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Приде неслыханая рать: безбожніи Моавитяне, рекомыи Татарове, придоша на землю Половецькую. Половцемь же ставшимъ, Юрьгій Кончаковичь бѣ болійше всихъ Половець, не може стати противу лицо ихъ; бѣгающи же ему, и мнози избьени быша, до рѣкы Днѣпра, Татарове же возвратишася, идоша въ вѣжа своя.
About Tatars (Mongols); Polovtsy (Cumans)
Keep in mind
Written decades after 1223; the date 6732 was added by a later copyist.
Telebuga lost in the mountains: a hundred thousand dead
Editorial contextReturning from a raid on Hungary, Nogai went by Brasov, while Telebuga tried to cross the mountains. A three-day crossing became fifty days of wandering. Famine set in, the soldiers began to eat people and then to die, and 'eyewitnesses said' a hundred thousand perished. Telebuga came out on foot with his wife and a single mare. The chronicler presents it as God's punishment.
Telebuga went across the Mountain; what should have been crossed in three days, he wandered for 50 days lost in the mountains, led by the wrath of God. And there was a great famine among them; and they began to eat people, and then began themselves to die, and a countless multitude of them died; eyewitnesses said this: the dead were a hundred thousand.
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Телебуга поиде поперекъ Гору; што бяшеть переити треими деньми, и ходи по 50 дній блудя въ горахъ, водимъ гнѣвомъ Божіимъ. И бысть въ нихъ голодъ великъ; и начаша люде ѣсти, потомъ же начаша и сами измирати, и умре ихъ бесчисленое множьство; самовидци же тако рекоша: умершихъ бысть сто тысячь.
About Golden Horde army of Nogai and Telebuga
Keep in mind
The figure of 100,000 is hearsay attributed to eyewitnesses; the cannibalism report is part of the same account.
The wind that turned the catapult stones back
Editorial contextWhen Kuremsa's Tatars attacked the unfortified town of Lutsk in a winter flood, the townsmen cut the bridge. Kuremsa set up siege engines, but, says the chronicler, God, St John and St Nicholas worked a miracle: the wind blew the stones back onto the Tatars, and then the sling of the engine broke. The Tatars went back to their camp in the steppe.
But God worked a miracle, and St John and St Nicholas: there was such a wind that when the engine threw, the wind turned the stone back upon them; and again, as they hurled hard, by the power of God their sling broke, and having achieved nothing they went back to their camps, that is, to the steppe.
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Original wording
Богъ же чюдо створи, и святый Иванъ, и святый Никола, вѣтру же таку бывшу, яко порокомъ вергшу вѣтръ же обращаше камень на нѣ, пакы же мечющимъ на нѣ крѣпко изломися, Божіею силою, пракъ ихъ, и не успѣвше ничтоже вратишася во станы своя, рекше въ поле.
About Tatars of the commander Kuremsa
Keep in mind
Told as a miracle; the wind may have been real, the saints' part is the chronicler's reading.