Brodnici

The Brodnici (Russian: Бродники, Brodniki) were a tribe of uncertain origin vassal to either Galicia or the Cumans.

Etymology

In some opinions, the name, as used by foreign chronicles, means a person in charge of a ford (water crossing) in Romanian and Slavic language (cf. Slavic brodŭ, Romanian brod - "ford"). The probable reason for the name is that the territory of the Brodniks constituted the link between the mountain passes in the Carpathians and the mouths of the Danube, having a major economical importance, assuring the access to the Genovese colonies.[1] According to other opinions, their name is related to Slavic бродить ("to wander"), probably referring to the nomadic way of life of this population.[2]

Territory

The territory of Brodnici consisted of the southwestern part of today's Republic of Moldova, the southern part of today's Vrancea and Galaţi counties of Romania, the southern part of Ukraine Budjak and probably the coastline between the Dniester and the Dnieper.[2]

Ethnicity

Attempts have been made to associate them to better known neighbouring populations, different authors classifying them as Romanians,[3][4] Slavic,[2] Iranian, or a mixed ethnic stock (Romanian-Jassic;[5] Romanian-Slavic,[2] or Turko-Slavic).[6]

Some authors have identified them with the "Bordinians" mentioned by Byzantine chronicler Niketas Choniates as a branch of "Tauroscythians,"[7] a term apparently applying to the Rus people in order to distinguish them from the Cumans/Polovtsians and from Vlachs.[8]

History

Berladnici

According to V. Spinei, written sources exclude their existence in the 12th-century Romanian territory subordinate to the Principality of Halych.[9] The Ipatiev Chronicle mentions the 1159 war between Prince Yaroslav of Halych and his cousin Ivan Berladnic, and that the latter fled "the Cumans in towns near the Danube. And allied with him many Cumans and Berladnici being over 6000 people".[10] In 1161, The Berladnici captured the port of Oles at the mouth of the Dnieper river, which caused severe damage to Rus merchants. They were occupied mainly with fishing, hunting, and crafting. They practiced robbery, often working alongside Cumans in raids against Rus cities. Berladnici nobility consisted of landowners and knyazes refugees who tried to create a Danube country.[11]

13th century

In 1216 they were in the service of the knyaz of Suzdal.

In 1222, the Hungarian king Andrew II gave the "Burzenland" to the Teutonic Knights, delimiting it by the land of the Brodnici. A Papal bull of Pope Honorius III confirmed the charter in the same year; however, in the copy approved by the Vatican, "Brodnicorum" was replaced by "Blacorum" (i.e., "Vlachs" in Latin). While some historians believe that this shows that the terms were equivalent, others claim that this was just an error.[2] The latter base their claim on the fact that the two terms were used together in several Hungarian documents, very unusual if referring to the same population.

The Novgorod First Chronicle says that in 1223 the Brodnici took part in the Battle of Kalka on the side of Mongols ("Tatars").[12]

When speaking about Brodniks, the Chronicle mentions voivode Ploskynya who deceived knyaz Mstislav Romanovich and delivered him to "Tatars". Some researchers conclude that Ploskynya was the Brodniks commander. According to some researchers, the Chronicle should be interpreted as "And there Brodniks were with Tatars, and their Voivod Ploskyna [...]." However other disagree, considering that the source should be translated as "And there Brodniks were with Tatars, and Voivod Ploskyna, [...]." After this date, they disappeared from Russian sources.

In August 1227 Pope Gregory IX wrote a letter to the bishop of Esztergom instructing him to convert to Christianity "in Cumania et Bordinia terra illis vicina".

A November 11, 1250 letter of king Béla IV of Hungary to Pope Innocent IV says that Tatars imposed tribute onto the countries neighboring with his kingdom: "que ex parte Orientis cum regno nostro conterminantur, sicut Ruscia, Cumania, Brodnici, Bulgaria".[8]

Notes

  1. ↑ Binder Pál: "Antecedente şi consecinţe sud-transilvănene ale formării voievodatului Munteniei (sec. XIII-XIV.) II.",
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Victor Spinei, Moldavia in the 11th–14th centuries, Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România 1986.
  3. ↑ G. Popa Lisseanu, Brodnicii, vol. XII, Tipografia Bucovina, Bucuresti, 1938
  4. ↑ A. Boldur, Istoria Basarabiei, Editura Victor Frunza, Bucuresti 1992
  5. ↑ O. B. Bubenok, Iasy i brodniki v stepiakh Vostochnoi Evropy (VI-nachalo XIII v.), Kiev, 1997.
  6. ↑ Lev Gumilev's opinion; e.g., in his "Discovery of Khazaria"
  7. ↑ cf. "Taurida" and "Scythians"
  8. 1 2 I.O. Knyazky, "Rus and the Steppe", Князький И.О. Русь и степь. - Moscow: Российский научный фонд, 1996., Ch. 5, Polovtsians (Russian)
  9. ↑ V. Spinei, Moldova in secolele XI-XIV, AND ENCYCLOPEDIA Scientific Publishing, Bucharest, 1982, p. 144
  10. ↑ Cronică Ipatievskaia, p. 497.
  11. ↑ Мохов Н. А. Молдавия эпохи феодализма. - Кишинёв: Картя Молдовеняскэ, 1964 - С. 82-84.
  12. ↑ Novgorod Chronice, years 1219-1232

References

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