Discussing the formation of the posadnik system in Rus’

The paper discusses the problem of the time of formation of the posadnik system, i. e. the government through prince’s governor-generals in Russian towns (modern political anthropology considers it to be the evidence of the transition to the state level of political development). The information of “De administrando imperio” by Constantine Porphyrogenitus (ch. 9, the 940s) about Russian “fortresses” is compared with the data of the Rus’-Byzantine treaty of 944 and with the information of the Primary Code and the Primary Chronicle (Povest’ vremennykh let). The conclusion is: all the centres which Constantine names (Novgorod, Smolensk, Lyubech, Chernigov, Vyshgorod and Vitichev among them) were governed not by Slavic princes or independent of Kiev Varangian chiefs, but by posadniks of the Kievan Prince. These towns accumulated the tribute from the neighbouring pre-state communities (“Slavinii”, to use the Byzantine term). So, under Igor’ the posadnik system appears already rather developed one (its elements can be considered to have appeared under Rurik and Oleg, though there are no trustworthy data about posadniks of those princes). In the mid-tenth century the governing through posadniks on the territory subject to Russian princes (along the trade route “from the Varangians to the Greeks”) combined with the elements of the so-called “complex chiefdom”, i. e. the existence of “Slavinii” which were subject to their own princes and which only paid the tribute. By the late tenth century the posadnik system extended to the whole territory which acknowledged the authority of the Kievan Prince. At the same time the structure of the allocation of princes-posadniks under Vladimir Svyatoslavich develops the one of the tenth century and transforms it under the conditions of considerable expansion of the territory subject to the Russian princes. Vladimir set his sons on the newly annexed lands, both in the former “Slavinii” (Polotsk – the Krivichs, Turov – the Dregovichs, Murom – the Muroma, T’mutorokan’ near the Azov sea). Among the towns for a long time subject to the Kievan princes Vladimirovichs were only sent to Novgorod and Smolensk being the centres farthest from Kiev. The territory along the middle part of the Dnieper, with Chernigov, Lyubech, Vyshgorod and Vitichev, was subject to Vladimir. Posadniks-boyars governed there.