Nestor years of life. Nestor the Chronicler

Nestor the Chronicler

Rev. There was a time when Rev. Nestor was assigned all those places in the Tale of Bygone Years where it is spoken in the first person, and a fairly detailed biography was obtained: they indicated exactly the year and place of birth, the time of arrival and entry into the monastery, the year of death and general age (Miller, Schletser, Tatishchev, m Evgeniy, Archbishop Filaret, Makariy, Kubarev, Butkov, Archpriest Dimitry and many others). Now, when Nestor’s ownership of the Initial Chronicle is disputed, all these biographical details require significant restrictions. In any case, there is no doubt that Rev. Nestor was a monk of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery: he arrived here under Abbot Stephen, who received him, tonsured him and elevated him to the rank of deacon. At the ceremonial opening of the relics of St. Theodosius (1091) Nestor is one of the main characters. The great authority of Nestor among the brethren of the Pechersk monastery is indicated by the story of the Kiev-Pechersk Patericon about the exorcism of the demon from the monk Nikita the Recluse: here, along with such devotees of faith and piety as Abbot Nikon, Pimen the Postnik, Agapit Lechet, Gregory the Wonderworker, Isaac the Pechernik, Gregory, the creator of the canons, Onesiphorus the Seer, stands also Nestor, “like the chronicler who wrote,” then still a relatively young monk. About the time of canonization of St. Nothing definite can be said about Nestor. His name is not found either in the most ancient Monthly Words, or in the Prologues, or in the Fourth Menaions. In the Description of the icon painting of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra of the early XVIII century. a pictorial image of “Reverend Nestor the Deacon” is mentioned, etc. “Venerable Nestor the Chronicler,” but how far back the basis of this Description goes is a moot point.

We first find the Life of Nestor in the Slavic printed edition of the Kiev-Pechersk Patericon of 1661 (“a verbose tale,” Rightly Rev. Philaret rightly notes, “but poor in content”), from where it was borrowed from the Chetya-Minea of ​​St. Demetrius of Rostov.

The church service to him, as well as to the other “Reverend Father of Pechersk, whose relics rest incorruptibly in the near and far cave,” was compiled even later: its first printed edition dates back only to 1763. The relics of St. Nestor openly rests in Kyiv, in the Antoniev (nearby) caves. The Church blesses him as “the God-wise, foremost writer of the lives of the saints and a good zealot for them,” “the times and years of many miracles for the Church, the life and virtues of the first father who revealed to us in writing.” In the Iconographic Original about St. Nestore noted: “in the likeness of the gray hair, the brada of the Theologian, not forked, on the shoulders is a hood, in the right hand is a feather, and in the left is a book and rosary, monastic vestments.”

From the literary works of St. Nestor we know: 1) Reading about the life and destruction of the blessed passion-bearer Boris and Gleb, 2) The Life of our Rev. Father Theodosius, Abbot of Pechersk and 3) Chronicle. The most important work is the Life of Theodosius of Pechersk, compiled in the period between 1077 and 1088: it alone can provide some support in judgments about Nestor as a writer. Enjoying great popularity in ancient Russian writing, the Life of St. Theodosius has a rather complex literary history, which can be traced with a more or less attentive attitude to the various editions of Kiev -Pechersk Patericon, in which this Life has long occupied a very prominent and honorable place.As a literary work, Nestorov’s Life has significant merits and clearly speaks of the author’s great reading and outstanding education: good language (consistent Church Slavonic style), sensible and in places an entertaining presentation, relatively little of that “good talk” and “weaving of words” that later (Northern Russian) lives so abound. The oldest copy of the Life of Theodosius has come down to us in the so-called Assumption Collection of the 12th century. According to this manuscript, now kept in Moscow. Synod. bibliography, Life was published three times: by Bodyansky ("Readings in General History and others." 1858, III), A. Popov ("Readings in General History and Others." 1879, I) and A. A. Shakhmatov and P. A. Lavrov ("Readings in General History and others." 1899 and ed.: Collection of the 12th century Moscow. Assumption Cathedral. Issue 1).

Previously, the Life of St. Theodosius of Pechersk Nestor compiled (shortly after 1079) a reading about the life and death of Boris and Gleb, which stands completely independently of other hagiological monuments dedicated to Sts. Boris and Gleb. In historical and literary terms, Reading is lower than Life: it contains more commonplaces and details that are not directly related to the matter, more colorlessness and stereotypes in the characteristics; a noticeable disdain for proper names and chronological dates, as not adding edification; lack of historical and everyday material in the content. These shortcomings are explained partly by the author’s inexperience of the novice Nestor, and partly by the fact that the very subject of the second essay was much more interesting and closer to our author, as a monk of the Pechersk Monastery, than the subject of the first. The oldest list of Nestorov's Readings about Boris and Gleb dates back to the first half of the 14th century: this is the so-called Sylvester Collection of the Moscow Printing Library. According to this list, the Readings were published three times: by Bodyansky ("Readings in General History and Others." 1859, I), Sreznevsky ("Tales of St. Boris and Gleb." St. Petersburg, 1860) and Abramovich (in " Monuments of Old Russian Literature". Issue 2). The Reading was not very famous, as can be seen from the fact that it has come down to us in a relatively limited number of copies and did not influence other similar monuments.

As for the attitude of Rev. Nestor to the Primary Chronicle, then all the diversity of opinions on this issue can be reduced to three categories. 1) Nestor owns the entire so-called “Tale of Bygone Years”, which has survived, however, as most supporters of this opinion, led by Tatishchev and Schletser, claim, not in its original form, but significantly altered and distorted by insertions, omissions and errors of later copyists and editors. 2) Nestor in the Tale of Times. years, only those articles that directly relate to the history of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery can belong. Thus, the question of the Nestor Chronicle is separated from the question of the Tale of Times. years in the sense that the Nestor Chronicle should not be identified with the Tale, as one of its constituent parts. 3) Finally, Nestor, author of the Life of St. Theodosius of Pechersk and Readings about St. Boris and Gleb, and Nestor the Chronicler - have nothing in common with each other except the name (P. S. Kazansky, Golubinsky, A. I. Sobolevsky). In modern historical science, all the rights of citizenship have been gained by viewing the Primary Chronicle as a collection of the most diverse historical and literary material, something like a historical anthology. Expressed back in 1820 by Stroev, this opinion was fully confirmed by the scientific observations of Solovyov, Sreznevsky, Sukhomlinov, Belyaev, Kostomarov, Bestuzhev-Ryumin, Klyuchevsky, A. A. Shakhmatov, E. N. Shchepkin, M. S. Grushevsky, S. F. Platonova and others. The most typical exponents of this view of the Primary Chronicle are Kostomarov, Bestuzhev-Ryumin and A. A. Shakhmatov. In the chronicle known as the Tale of Times. years, included a whole series of articles and notes relating specifically to the history of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery, in short - the Pechersk Chronicle. In the matter of compiling this Pechersk Chronicle, the Rev. took close part. Nestor: the “chronicler” associated with his name (in the Pechersk Patericon) is nothing more than the chronicle of the Pechersk monastery for the second half of the 11th century. This is the only possible solution to the long-standing question about the relationship of Nestor, the compiler of the Life of Theodosius and the Reading about Boris and Gleb, to our Primary Chronicle. To completely ignore the testimony of the Pechersk Patericon or to distinguish between Nestor’s two contemporaries: the younger, deacon, author of lives, and the older, chronicler, we have neither historical nor literary right. Based on the historical and literary data that science currently has, one can think that the supposed Nestor Chronicle included: The legend that for the sake of the Pechersk Monastery it was called; A word about the first monks of Pechersk; A word on the transfer of the relics of St. Feodosia; a few small notes, e.g. about the prophecy of St. Theodosius and the inclusion of his name in the synodik, about the burial of Yaneva, etc. The sources for studying the Nestor Chronicle are the Tale of Times. years (cf. Laurentian and Ipatiev lists, Nikon vault, Chronicle of Pereyaslavl of Suzdal, etc.) and the Kiev Pechersk Patericon. In the Tale of Times. years The legend about the beginning of the Pechersk monastery is read under the year 1051, the Word about the first monks of the Pechersk - under 1074, and about the transfer of the relics of St. Feodosia - under 1091. As for the Pechersk Patericon, the greatest interest when studying the Nestor Chronicle is represented by the so-called Cassian editions of this monument, especially the second Cassian version, compiled in 1462 “by order of the humble Cassian, the guide of the Pechersk.”

Miller. About the first Russian chronicler, Rev. Nestor, about his chronicle and about its successors - in “Monthly Compositions,” 1755, April, 299-324; Russian Historical Library, part I. St. Petersburg, 1757, 1-XII ("The Life of St. Nestor, the writer of this chronicle"); Schletzer. Nestor. I, § 1-2; Tatishchev. History of Russia. 1768 Book. Part I, 51-56; Timkovsky. A brief study about the Patericon by St. Nestor, the Russian chronicler - in the first part of "Notes and Works. General History and Ancient Russia." Dictionary of historical about spiritual writers who were in Russia. rank. T. II (1827), 83-95; Filaret. Russian saints. Chern. 1865; Part III, 254-263: Macarius. History of Russian. churches, vol. II; Kubarev. Nestor, the first writer of Ros. history - in "Russian Historical Collection", book. IV; Butkov. Defense Nestor. letop. St. Petersburg, 1840; P. S. Kazansky "Vremennik" I, III, X, XIII and "Fatherland Notes" 1851, vol. LXXIV; Pogodin. Nestor's life of St. Feodosia - in the IX volume "Izvestia. I. Ak. Sciences in the Department of Language and Words."; him. Studies, lectures and notes, vols. I and IV; Sreznevsky. Ancient biography Russian princes - in Izvestia, vol. II and Readings about ancient times. p. letop. St. Petersburg, 1862; Sukhomzlinov. About dr.-r. chronicle, as a literary monument. St. Petersburg, 1856; Kostomarov. Lectures in Russian. stories. St. Petersburg, 1862; Bestuzhev-Ryumin. About the composition of the Russian letop. until the end of the 14th century. St. Petersburg, 1868; Golubinsky. Histor. Russian churches, vol. 1-1; Dimitri. Months of Saints. Vol. II, pp. 189-193; Shakhmatov. A few words about Nestor’s Life of St. Feodosia - in Izvestia II Department. I. Ak. N., vol. I; him. Kiev-Pechersk Patericon and Pechersk Chronicle. ibid., vol. II; him. Life of Anthony and Pechersk Letop. - in "Journal Min. Nar. Ave." 1898; him. Research about the ancient Russian letop. vaults St. Petersburg, 1908; E. N. Shchepkin. Zur Nestorfrage - in "Arch. für slav. Phil." XIX; St. Srkulj. Die Entstehung d. ält. rus. sogen. Nestorchronik. Pozega. 1896; D. I. Abramovich. On the question of the sources of Nestor's Life, St. Theodosius of Pechersk - in Izvestia Dep. rus. language and words. I. Ak. N., vol. III; him. On the issue of the volume and nature of literature. activities of Nestor Letop. - in Volume II of Proceedings XI Archaeol. Congress; him. A study of the Kiev-Pechersk Patericon as a historical and literary work. monument. St. Petersburg, 1902; M. Grushevsky. History of Ukraine-Rus. Vol. I. Lev., 1904; Klyuchevsky. Russian course stories. Part I; S. F. Platonov. Lectures in Russian. ist. V. I; V. S. Ikonnikov. Russian experience historiography, vol. II, book. 2; E. V. Petukhov. Russian literature. T.I. Yuryev, 1911; N. D. Chechulin. Engraved portraits of Nestor the Chronicler - in the Collection of articles dedicated to S. F. Platonov. St. Petersburg, 1911.

D. I. Abramovich.

(Polovtsov)

Large biographical encyclopedia. 2009 .

See what “Nestor the Chronicler” is in other dictionaries:

Nestor Reconstruction based on the skull of S.A. Nikitina ... Wikipedia

Nestor the Chronicler, author of "The Tale of Bygone Years" (statue by M. Antokolsky) Nestor is an ancient Russian writer, hagiographer of the late 11th - early 12th centuries, monk of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery. Author of the lives of princes Boris and Gleb, Theodosius of Pechersk.... ... Wikipedia

NESTOR, ancient Russian writer, chronicler of the 11th beginning. 12th century, monk of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery. Author of the lives (see LIVES OF THE SAINTS) of princes Boris and Gleb, Theodosius of Pechersk (see THEODOSIY of Pechersk). Traditionally considered one of the greatest historians... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Nestor the Chronicler- Reverend, born in the 50s. XI century in Kyiv, at the age of 17 he entered the Kiev Pechersk Monastery. He was a novice of St. Feodosia (Memory 3 (16) May, 14 (27) August). He received tonsure from Abbot Stephen, successor of Theodosius. Purity of life, prayer and... ... Orthodoxy. Dictionary-reference book

Reverend, monk of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery; genus. in 1056; At the age of 17 he came to the monastery, was tonsured a monk, and then ordained a deacon. In 1091 he was entrusted with the discovery of the relics of St. Theodosius. Died around 1114. Other information about him... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron

(memory September 28/October 11 (Cathedral of the Reverend Fathers of the Kiev Caves in the Near Caves (St. Anthony) reposing), October 27/November 9)

The Monk Nestor the Chronicler was born in the 50s of the 11th century in Kyiv, and at the age of 17 he entered the Kiev Caves Monastery. He was a novice of St. Theodosius. He received tonsure from Abbot Stephen, successor of Theodosius. With purity of life, prayer and obedience, the young ascetic soon surpassed even the famous Pechersk elders. He was ordained a hierodeacon.

His high spiritual life is indicated by the fact that he, along with other reverend fathers, participated in the exorcism of the demon from Nikita the Recluse, later the Novgorod saint (January 31), who was seduced into Jewish wisdom. The Monk Nestor is the compiler of the original history of our Fatherland, or chronicle, where he sets out, year by year, the legend about the beginning of the Russian land and the subsequent events of its history until the year 1100. In addition, he wrote the life of the holy princes Boris and Gleb, “The Legend of the First Pechersk Ascetics” and so on. Nestor reached a ripe old age and died peacefully around 1114.

The history of the country's cultural development can be symbolically represented by a list of the names of its great men. One of such symbolic names in Rus' has always been the name of Nestor the Chronicler.

At the age of 17, he came to the newly founded Kiev-Pechersk Monastery. Soon from his pen came a masterpiece of ancient Russian hagiography - “The Tale of Boris and Gleb,” the life of the first (at the time of canonization) Russian saints.

Nestor can be called the first church historian to provide a theological substantiation of Russian history. It was he who compiled the famous chronicle - “The Tale of Bygone Years”. This work became his spiritual testament.

Thanks to this chronicle, our contemporaries learned about the creation of the Slavic charter, the first Christian church built in Rus', about Princess Olga - the first Russian saint, about the Baptism of Rus'.

On the first pages of his famous work, Nestor wrote: “Behold the tales of bygone years, where the Russian Land came from...”. Thus, the main purpose of creating the chronicle for the Reverend was to describe the formation of the Russian state. And until his death, he painstakingly and tirelessly devoted all his strength to his chosen service.

It is not easy to bear on your shoulders the service of a chronicler, who is entrusted with great responsibility before history and descendants. When you need to become an objective eyewitness, tell the truth, without confusing the facts, without expressing your opinion, but only conveying the story of the events as they actually happened. Along with the ascetic life of the saint, this service revealed the feat that Nestor humbly performed for the glory of God.

Venerable Nestor the Chronicler- and very significant historical.

In the historical tragedy of A.S. Pushkin "" the elder monk Pimen, bending over the manuscript in the light of a lamp in his cell in the Miracle Monastery of the Moscow Kremlin, says:

One more, last saying -
And my chronicle is finished.

While working on his tragedy, Pushkin wrote:

“In him (in Pimen) I collected the features that captivated me in our old chronicles.”

Meanwhile, Pimen has a specific historical prototype - the Rev. Nestor the Chronicler. He lived at the beginning of the 12th century, was a famous monk and became one of the famous Orthodox saints. He really was a chronicler - that is, he scrupulously recorded historical events that he witnessed, which he knew about from stories and other texts. This was very important work.

Nowadays, not a single historical event goes unnoticed by television, newspapers, or radio commentators. You can go, for example, to the Public Library of St. Petersburg - there is a separate magazine room where, at your request and application, the servants will bring a file of old newspapers from a century ago. Open any number and living history will speak to you... In historical archives you can find printed texts from two or three centuries ago.

Before the invention of printing, the most important documents of the time were manuscripts. Chronicles, usually written by monks, tell about the life of ancient Rus'. The chronicler Nestor was one of them. It was he who described the tragic story of two saints and spoke in his manuscripts about the life of another famous saint - Theodosius of Pechersk.

The Tale of Bygone Years is the main work of the life of the Venerable Nestor the Chronicler

The main work of the life of the Monk Nestor was the compilation of the so-called chronicle. This manuscript is named after its first lines: “Behold the tales of the past years, from where the Russian land came...”. The phrase “temporary years,” which is unusual for modern ears, should simply mean “past years.” In other words, we are talking about a chronological presentation of important events.

Historians believe that work on the Tale was completed around 1113. In this voluminous work, Nestor the Chronicler outlined the history of Rus' known to him, as well as the history of the Russian Orthodox Church, including a description of the preparation of Rus' for baptism. “The Tale” sets out legends about the origin of the Slavs, their settlement along the Dnieper and around Lake Ilmen. It tells about the clash with the enemies - the Khazars, about the calling of Rurik to rule the Novgorod Slavs. When Nestor began work, he was already almost sixty years old. A year after the end of the Tale, he finished his earthly journey.

The significance of Nestor’s work is enormous. For all prominent Russian historians, he remained a very important source of information about the life of the ancient Russians. It is no coincidence that Nestor the Chronicler is often called the “father of Russian history.”

This is exactly what is written on the silver tablet above the relics of the elder, resting in the caves of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra.

He was not the first monk to write historical chronicles. Nestor had predecessors who also chronicled important events. Nestor also used documents from the princely archive. It was in his presentation that historians became aware of the texts of Russian-Byzantine treaties concluded in the 10th century. The historical merit of the Monk Nestor is that he collected a lot of information and wrote it down in the form of a solid work.

A great expert on ancient Russian history, Academician Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev, wrote about the work of St. Nestor:

“The chronicler sees Rus' as if from a great height. He strives to lead a narrative about the entire Russian land, easily moving from a presentation of an event in one principality to a presentation of an event in another - at the opposite end of the Russian land. The chronicler constantly transfers his story from Novgorod to Kyiv, from Smolensk to Vladimir, etc. This happens not only because the chronicler combined in his narration sources of different geographical origins, but also because it was precisely such a “broad” story that answered aesthetic ideas of his time."

NESTOR THE CHILNICIER

Introduction

Nemstor (c. 1056 - 1114) - Old Russian chronicler, hagiographer of the late 11th - early 12th centuries, monk of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery.

Traditionally considered one of the authors of the “Tale of Bygone Years”, which, along with the “Czech Chronicle” by Cozma of Prague and the “Chronicle and Acts of the Princes or Rulers of the Polish” by Gall Anonymous, is of fundamental importance for Slavic culture.

The text of the “Tale of Bygone Years” as part of the Ipatiev Chronicle begins with an unnamed mention of its author - the monk of the Pechersk Monastery, and in the message of another Pechersk monk, Polycarp, to Archimandrite Akindinus, dating from the 13th century, Nestor is directly indicated as the author of the Initial Chronicle. The same thing is said in the “Life of St. Anthony,” compiled somewhat later and based on oral monastic traditions.

From the Tale of Bygone Years itself it is known that at the end of the 11th century. Nestor lived in the Pechersk monastery: talking about the Polovtsian raid on the Pechersk monastery in 1096, he says: “... and when we came to the Pechersk monastery, we who were in our cells rested after matins.” It is also known that the chronicler was still alive in 1106: in this year, he writes, the good old man Ian died, “from him I heard many words that were written in these chronicles.” There is no more reliable information about him.

It is believed that Nestor also wrote “Reading about the life and destruction of Boris and Gleb” and “The Life of Theodosius of Pechersk”.

Canonized (Reverend Nestor the Chronicler) in the Russian Orthodox Church; memory - July 27 according to the Julian calendar. The relics rest in the Near (Antonie) caves of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra.

1. Biography and beginning of life in the monastery of St. Nestor the Chronicler was born in the 50s of the 11th century in Kyiv. As a young man he came to Rev. Theodosius and became a novice. The future chronicler's successor, Rev., was tonsured. Theodosius, Abbot Stefan. According to the Greek church rule, those entering the monastery remain on probation for three years, and those ordained as a deacon must be at least 25 years old. And Rev. Theodosius established: do not rush to tonsure the applicant as a monk, but order him to wear his own clothes until he becomes familiar with the monastic rites. After this, dress him in black clothes and test him with obedience, and then clothe him in a monastic robe. So for blessed Nestor, the three-year trial ended already under the Venerable. Stephen, under whom he was awarded the rank of deacon, not earlier than 1078.

In the Pechersk monastery there were then many high men from whom one could learn spiritual perfection. The monastery then flourished with spiritual life. Blessed Nestor writes about it himself:

“When Stefan ruled the monastery and the blessed flock that Theodosius gathered, the Chernets shone like stars in Rus'. Some were strong teachers, others were steadfast in vigil or kneeling prayer; some fasted every other day and every other two days, others ate only bread and water, others - boiled potion, others - only raw. Everyone was in love: the younger ones submitted to the elders, not daring to speak in front of them and expressing complete submission and obedience; and the elders showed love to the younger ones, instructed and consoled them, like fathers of small children. If any brother fell into any sin, they consoled him and, out of great love, divided the penance of one into two or three. Such was mutual love, with strict abstinence! If a brother left the monastery, then all the brethren grieved for him, sent for him and called his brother to the monastery, then they went to the abbot, bowed and begged to accept their brother, and received him with great joy.”

Blessed Nestor, under the influence of such examples, under the guidance of such mentors, with his zeal for asceticism, hastily grew in spiritual life. How deeply his humility was, this is evident every time he touches on his personality in his writings. He does not call himself otherwise than the bad, unworthy, sinful Nestor, the least of all in the monastery of the Venerable Father Theodosius; or the accursed one, with a rude and unreasonable heart, the sinful Nestor. If he reminds others of the need for repentance, of the need to remember their relationship to God, then he hastens to turn to himself with reproach. Thus, having told about the victory of the Polovtsians, which followed on the eve of the memory of St. Boris and Gleb, he says: “there was weeping in the city, and not joy, for our sin... For the sake of our bliss, we were executed. Behold, I am a sinner and I sin much and often all the days.”

With the purity of his life, prayer and zeal, the young ascetic soon surpassed even the most famous Pechersk elders. And his high spiritual life is also indicated by the fact that he, along with other reverend fathers, participated in the exorcism of the demon from Nikita the recluse (later the Novgorod saint).

2. First works Being a monk in the Middle Ages did not at all mean being isolated from the world. The Studio Charter, which was introduced in Rus' (and in particular in the Pechersk Monastery), even obliged the monks to found libraries, educational institutions, hospitals, almshouses and other structures, the purpose of which was to satisfy all sorts of public needs..

His first works belong to the hagiographic genre. The story of the beginning of the Pechersk Monastery, the story of the Pechersk ascetics and “The Life of Theodosius of Pechersk” are distinguished by their vivid depiction of monastic life and vivid characteristics of the monks and laity. At the end of the 12th century. Nestor wrote “The Tale of the Life and Death of the Blessed Passion-Bearers Boris and Gleb,” where he condemned the war between the brothers and depicted a picture of their martyrdom. But his main work was “The Tale of Bygone Years” - the greatest monument of ancient Russian historical literature.

It is known that chronicle writing was one of the brightest manifestations of the literary heritage of Kievan Rus. We have a brilliant historiographical heritage, represented by a whole galaxy of outstanding names. And Nestor, without a doubt, takes first place among them. His name as the compiler of the “Tale” is named in the later Khlebnikov list of this work (XVI century). The “Kievo-Pechersk Patericon,” among the monks who lived in the Pechersk Monastery in the 11th century, names Nestor, “who was written by the chronicler.” This “chronicler” could only be “The Tale of Bygone Years.” The text preserves places where the chronicler speaks for himself. Analysis of such places allows us to attribute them specifically to Nestor.

Nestor’s chronicle begins with the words that give the name to the entire work: “Here is the tale of bygone years, where the Russian land came from, who began to reign first in Kyiv, and where the Russian land came from.” “The Tale” was created in accordance with the canons of world medieval historiography. It is based on the so-called Initial Summary, written around 1095 in the Pechersk Monastery, which began with a short story about the founding of Kyiv by the Polyan brothers Kiy, Shchek and Khoriv. The author prefaced this story with an extensive historical and geographical introduction, which describes the origin and ancient history of the Slavs and gives a picture of their settlement in the vast expanse of Europe.

The chronicler depicted the history of the peoples neighboring Russia based on the Byzantine chronicle of George Amartol, and when writing the history of the Eastern Slavs he used folklore sources. He supplemented the dry and brief information about the first Russian princes, collected by his predecessors, with picturesque details borrowed from folk tales and squad songs, in particular, stories about how Oleg besieged Constantinople and died from his horse; how Olga avenged her husband’s death; how Svyatoslav went on campaigns; how the Kozhemyaka youth defeated the Pecheneg hero, etc. At the same time, Nestor was critical of his sources: he compared different versions of events, discarding those that seemed erroneous to him, and confirming the plausible ones. For example, he discarded the legend according to which Kiy was a simple carrier on the Dnieper, the version of the Kiev baptism of Vladimir, the so-called chronology of Jacob Mnich, etc.

The chronicle contains important documentary materials - the texts of agreements between princes Oleg, Igor and Svyatoslav with the Greeks, as well as documents from the grand ducal archive, which gave the author the opportunity to realistically depict the political history of Ancient Rus'. The Tale of Bygone Years contains such literary works as the “Teaching” of Vladimir Monomakh, the story of the blinding of Vasilko Terebovlyansky, as well as Byzantine and Western European written monuments. In 1107, Nestor visited the Vladimir-Volynsky and Zimnensky Svyatogorsky monasteries. The result of the trip was the almost complete inclusion of the Volyn Chronicle in the Tale of Bygone Years.

But the main thing in “The Tale” is that this work, being a chronological presentation of historical events in Rus', at the same time responded to the painful social problems of the author’s contemporary life. Nestor lived in difficult times, when feudal fragmentation began in Rus' and the princes plunged into internecine wars. Nestor witnessed the initial stage of this process. Grandiose strife took place before his eyes in 1078, 1096, 1097. The state gradually lost its former power; The Polovtsian hordes, taking advantage of his difficult situation, devastated the border lands. The author contrasts the selfishness and greed of the princes and boyars, their disregard for all-Russian interests with the idea of ​​East Slavic unity, calling on the people of Rus' to unite in the face of the threat of external danger and defend their land.

For residents of Kievan Rus at the beginning of the 12th century. “The Tale” was a book about modernity and contemporaries. A significant part of her characters were still alive and one way or another had to react to the content of the work. Some scientists accuse the author of the “Tale” of being an adherent of the Kyiv prince Svyatopolk Izyaslavich (1093−1113), pleasing his patron in every possible way and “molding” from historical facts only what he liked. This opinion is not unfounded, but Nestor should not be blamed. As is known, chronicle writing in Rus' was placed at the level of state affairs. And although chronicles, as a rule, were created in monasteries, they passed through the princely office, and more often the princes themselves acted as customers.

Nestor completed his outstanding work around 1113. The chronicle of events in the Tale was updated to 1110. Unfortunately, Nesterov’s edition of the Tale was not preserved in its original form. After the death of Svyatopolk Izyaslavich (1113), who took care of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery, Vladimir Monomakh ascended to the Kiev table. He came into conflict with the top of the monastery and transferred the chronicle to the Vydubitsky monastery founded by his father Vsevolod. In 1116, the Vydubitsky abbot Sylvester redid the final articles of the Tale, positively assessing the activities of Vladimir Monomakh, showing him as a wise prince, defender of the Russian land. This is how the second edition appeared. In 1118, the third edition was created, which has reached our time. The customer and, possibly, one of its authors was the son of Monomakh, Prince Mstislav. “The Tale of Bygone Years” has been preserved in many lists. The oldest of them are Lavrentievsky (1377) and Ipatievsky (beginning of the 15th century).

Nestor's main historical merit is that he created a historical and artistic work that had no analogues in European medieval historiography. Showed that our people have their own history that they can be proud of.

3. Death of Nestor monastery chronicle successor The Monk Nestor died around 1114, bequeathing to the Pechersk monks-chroniclers the continuation of their work. His successors in the chronicles were Abbot Sylvester, who gave a modern look to the “Tale of Bygone Years”, Abbot Moisei Vydubitsky, who extended it until 1200, and finally, Abbot Lavrenty, who in 1377 wrote the oldest copy that has come down to us, preserving the “Tale” of St. Nestor ( "Laurentian Chronicle"). The heir to the hagiographic tradition of the Pechersk ascetic was St. Simon, Bishop of Vladimir, rescuer of the “Kievo-Pechersk Patericon.” When talking about events related to the life of the holy saints of God, Saint Simon often refers, among other sources, to the Chronicles of St. Nestor.

The Monk Nestor was buried in the Near Caves of the Monk Anthony of Pechersk.

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On the way to monasticism

The Monk Nestor the Chronicler was from Kyiv. We know nothing about the exact date of birth or the details of his childhood and youth. There is reason to believe that Nestor was born in the 50s of the 11th century.

At the age of seventeen, Nestor, wanting to connect his life with monastic work, appeared to two blessed fathers: St. Anthony (the founder of Russian monasticism) and St. Theodosius. Understanding the ascetics as the righteous of God, he humbly asked them not to drive him away, but to allow him to remain with them in obedience.

At this time, Anthony lived in a secluded cave, in sacred silence, pleasing God with unceasing heartfelt prayer. Theodosius was busy setting up a monastic monastery. By the providence of God, Nestor remained with the reverend fathers.

Even before his initiation into monasticism, he showed them a readiness to live a strict monastic life. Despite his youth and numerous difficulties associated with the weakness of the flesh, Nestor showed his fathers firmness in his desire to follow the path of salvation.

Through them he was sanctified and enlightened as through two great lamps of God. He zealously and resignedly fulfilled the obediences assigned to him, learning humility, meekness, fasting, vigil, heartfelt prayer and free poverty. Having the most sincere respect and love for his mentors, he fulfilled every word without complaint, with joy and trust.

Angelic Ministry

After the blessed death of Anthony (1073) and Theodosius (1074), he himself seemed to have died to the world.

From the abbot of the Pechersk monastery, Venerable Stephen, Nestor received an angelic image, and soon he was elevated to the rank of hierodeacon.

The monks of the Pechersk Monastery were famous for many virtues. Wanting to imitate the Redeemer, they willingly performed the most difficult daily feats. Some ate only raw or boiled grass, some labored in prayer vigils, some in prostrations. All of them were united by the fact that they unanimously remained in faith, hope, love, as befits the brethren of the Orthodox monastery.

Having adopted an angelic image (double: as a monk and as a deacon), Nestor became like the disembodied heavenly servants: with even greater zeal he began to please God with obedience and prayer, and began to increase Christian virtues in himself. At the same time, he did not hypocritically consider himself a sinner unworthy of God's gifts.

Engaged in ascetic work and experiencing Divine goodness through experience, Nestor did not deny the importance of theoretical knowledge. He valued godly books as a treasury of Truth and allegorically compared them to rivers flooding the universe. It is believed that his special obedience was the compilation of chronicles.

So, in the 80s of the 11th century, he recorded the life of his spiritual teacher,. But perhaps the most outstanding creative work of Nestor the Chronicler was the history of the development of the Russian land. It is believed that he completed this work by 1112-1113.

In essence, it included a complex of various legends, processed and presented in the form of a single integral work. Historical facts are closely intertwined in it with the history of the development of the Church. The history of Rus' itself is presented here as an important and integral part of world history. The fundamentality and clarity of the work reveals the author as a man of great learning and faith.

In 1091, the brethren, moved by the Holy Spirit, gathered together, led by the abbot, for a council, where, after consulting, they decided to dig up the relics of St. Theodosius, previously buried in a cave, and solemnly transfer them to the Pechersk Church. According to the word of the abbot, Nestor, having prepared the necessary tools, chose assistants from the brethren and headed for the burial of the saint. They said prayers and began to dig. They dug alternately, evening and night; however, it was not possible to get to the honest relics. And only when the bell was struck, at that very moment Nestor suddenly realized that he had gotten to the bottom of the relics.

This event itself was accompanied by a miraculous sign: the brethren in the monastery saw pillars of fire. The relics were reverently transferred to the prepared place. Subsequently, Nestor witnessed other miracles and signs performed by the power of God through this shrine.

The deeds of the great Russian princes / and the venerable father of Pechersk, who wrote the lives and miracles, / his own, the God-Wise Nestor, for the sake of many virtues, the name of many of you / was written in heaven, acquired, // pray for us to be written in the Book of Animals.