Vsevolod IV of Kiev - Grand Prince of Kiev

Grand Prince of Kiev

During the winter of 1210, Vsevolod and all the Olgovichi sent Metropolitan Matfey to Vsevolod Yuryevich, who had been razing the towns of Ryazan, requesting peace. The chronicler states that they submitted to him in all matters; Vsevolod Yuryevich undoubtedly demanded that the Olgovichi relinquish control of Pereyaslav. After Vsevolod submitted in all matters, Vsevolod Yuryevich released his daughter (the wife of Mikhail Vsevolodovich of Pronsk). Nevertheless, Vsevolod Yuryevich kept the princes of Ryazan in chains and refused to forgive them.

In the following year (on April 10, 1211), Vsevolod Yuryevich’s son Yuri Vsevolodovich and Vsevolod’s daughter Agafia Vsevolodovna were married in the Cathedral of the Mother of God in Vladimir; Vsevolod attended with his court.

In September 1211, Daniil Romanovich attacked the Olgovichi in Halych and captured the towns ruled by them. The Galician boyars hanged three of Vsevolod’s relatives (Roman Igorovich, Svyatoslav Igorovich, and Rostislav Romanovich). If the information of a late chronicle is true, Roman and Svyatoslav’s wives and children were executed with them. Consequently, the Igorevichi were reduced to one family, that of Vladimir Igorevich. In appropriating the patrimonies of the two executed Igorevichi, Vsevolod increased his personal holdings.

The hangings in Halych were an unforgivable insult to the Olgovichi, and the ignominious murder of three of their princes called for unmitigated reprisals. At the beginning of 1212, Vsevolod waged war against the Rostislavichi. Surprisingly, he unleashed his wrath neither against the Galicians nor against Daniil Romanovich; instead, he accused the minor Rostislavichi ruling insignificant domains in the Kievan land of killing his relatives, and expelled them. In June 1212, the Rostislavichi launched a major offensive against Vsevolod to reclaim their lands. In addition to the troops that Mstislav Romanovich mustered from the Smolensk domains, Mstislav Mstislavich set out on June 8, with the Novgorodian militia. The attackers pillaged many districts belonging to the Olgovichi beginning with Rechitsa which shows that they came down the right bank of the Dnieper River.

Vsevolod and his relatives confronted the attackers at Vyshgorod; but the Rostislavichi occupied the town. As the Rostislavichi pillaged the towns of the Olgovichi on their march to Kiev, their slow approach allowed the beleaguered inhabitants to warn Vsevolod of the advancing enemy. Accordingly, he had time to summon reinforcements, but the easy victory of the Rostislavichi suggests that they still greatly outnumbered the Olgovichi.

Vsevolod fled from Kiev for the third time and sought safety in Chernigov. Although the Rostislavichi pursued him, they failed to capture the well-defended citadel. After some two weeks they succeeded only in setting fire to the outer town and in pillaging surrounding villages. As they passed their attack, Vsevolod died.

As the former prince of Chernigov he was interred inside the Holy Saviour Cathedral.