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Russian principality
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The Principality of Ryazan, later known as the Grand Principality of Ryazan, was a Russian principality from 1129 to 1521. Its capital was the city of Ryazan, now known as Old Ryazan, which was destroyed in 1237 during the Mongol invasions. The capital was moved to Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, later renamed Ryazan.
Initially a part of the Principality of Murom, it fully split off from the Principality of Chernigov by 1129 as Murom-Ryazan. Murom was taken by Moscow in 1392, while Ryazan later became dependent on Moscow and was formally taken over by Vasili in 1521, and incorporated into the centralized Russian state. It maintained its formal independence longer than any other Russian principality.
Initially a part of the Principality of Chernigov, Murom-Ryazan became a separate principality under the reign of Yaroslav Sviatoslavich after he was ousted from Chernigov by Vsevolod Olgovich, which remained in possession of his descendants after he died in 1129.
The political centre of the principality was later moved to Ryazan. By the end of the 12th century, the principality waged wars with the neighbouring Grand Duchy of Vladimir. In the course of that stand-off, the city of Ryazan was burned twice in a span of twenty years from 1186 to 1208. In 1217, there was a culmination point in the history of Ryazan when during the civil war inside the Duchy six leaders of the state were killed by Gleb Vladimirovich who later defected to the Cumans. Around that time the duchy came under significant influence of Vladimir-Suzdal which was a factor in the fight of Ryazan to resume its sovereignty. In 1217, Gleb Vladimirovich with the support of Cumans tried to take Ryazan back out of the influence of the neighboring northern principality of Vladimir, but he was defeated by another Ryazan prince Ingvar Igorevich who in turn became a sole ruler of the state.
In December 1237, the duchy became the first of all other former states of Kievan Rus' to suffer from the Mongol invasion. The duchy was completely overrun, with almost the whole princely family killed, the capital destroyed and later moved to the present-day location of Ryazan, located 40 miles north from the original site of the capital today known as Ryazan Staraya (Old Ryazan). In 1238, some of the armed forces of Ryazan withdrew to unite with the Vladimir-Suzdal army and meet with the forces of Batu Khan near Kolomna.
In 1301 Prince Daniel of Moscow took Ryazan due to the boyars' betrayal and imprisoned Prince Konstantin Romanovich. In 1305 Daniel's son Prince Yury of Moscow ordered his death. The two next successors of Konstantin were killed by the Golden Horde. In 1371, the Muscovites defeated prince Oleg II Ivanovich of Ryazan in the Battle of Skornishchevo. He was exiled for six months before returning to his throne. In 1380, Oleg II did not take part in the Battle of Kulikovo, although he was an ally of Mamai.
During almost all its history, the Ryazan Principality conflicted with its provincial Pronsk Principality until Ryazan completely annexed Pronsk in 1483 during the regency of Anna of Ryazan.
In 1520, Grand Prince Vasili III of Russia captured and imprisoned in Moscow the last Grand Prince of Ryazan Ivan V because of his relations with the Crimean Khan Mehmed I Giray. In 1521, Prince Ivan Ivanovich fled into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After that, in 1521, the Ryazan Principality was merged with Muscovy.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Principality of Ryazan”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.