Yaroslav, Vladimir’s fourth son, was prince in Novgorod. This city had been paying Kief a yearly tax of two hundred grievens. The tax, paid at all times unwillingly, was refused altogether during Yaroslav’s rule. Vladimir had been preparing to punish his son, and force payment on Novgorod, when he died rather suddenly. Yaroslav, to defend Novgorod against his father, had brought in Varangians to help him. Those men, as is the [[20]]wont of such persons, grew insolent quickly and were offensive to Novgorod women. Certain people rose up and slew some of those warriors. Yaroslav, to defend his men, put to death the offenders. The very night after this deed, a message came to the prince from his sister, Predslava, in Kief, giving notice of the death of his father and of all that had happened in the city.
Next morning Yaroslav summoned the people of Novgorod, and with tears in his eyes made this speech to them: “If I could, I would raise up with gold those men who fell yesterday. My father is dead, and now Sviatopolk is master. He is killing my brothers. Give me help to meet Sviatopolk and avenge these murders.”
“Though some of our brothers are dead, we have men enough yet to stand up and fight for thee,” said the people of Novgorod.
Sviatopolk, taking all of his own warriors and many Petchenegs, hurried northward to strike down Yaroslav if possible. The two armies met near Lubetch, and Yaroslav gained a great victory.
Sviatopolk fled to Poland, where his wife’s father, Boleslav the Brave, was then sovereign, and Yaroslav marched into Kief, and began rule there. The Polish king took the part of his son-in-law, and after various efforts, in which Petchenegs of the steppe were on Sviatopolk’s side, and Henry of Germany on Yaroslav’s, Boleslav, adding to his own men German and Hungarian mercenaries, led in a great force against Kief, defeated Yaroslav, and the fratricide was in power again. The king now sent home one half of his army, but lingered behind with the rest of it, which was scattered about for subsistence in different towns and villages. Sviatopolk soon tired of his ally, and then the people on whom Boleslav’s warriors were quartered rose up and slew many of them. The Polish king left at last, bearing with him much treasure. On the way to his own lands, he took Galitch[5] as the price for ridding Kief of his presence. No sooner was Boleslav fairly at home, than a fierce northern storm rushed down upon Sviatopolk.
Expecting no good to their city from Sviatopolk the Accursed, who would surely exact the old tribute, the Novgorod people rallied round Yaroslav, and, hiring foreign troops, took the field themselves. Sviatopolk was beaten in the first battle, and fled to [[21]]the Petchenegs, from whom he obtained a large army. A second battle was fought and, as fate would have it, at the place where Boris had been slain. Three times the armies paused in the struggle, and three times they closed in mortal combat, but, before the sun went down, Yaroslav had become master of the field. This battle ruined Sviatopolk. He fled straightway toward the Polish boundary, and after miserable wanderings perished. It is unknown where death came to him, or in what manner.
Of Vladimir’s twelve sons, only three were now living, Yaroslav, Mystislav, and Sudislav. There was also a nephew, Bryacheslav. The throne of Kief came to Yaroslav without a rival, for since Bryacheslav’s father had never sat on the throne, his son could not hold it. Mystislav and Sudislav were younger brothers and were excluded till Yaroslav’s death, unless he should give place to them. Younger brothers, however, claimed equal shares in the common inheritance, but these were held back by Yaroslav. He kept for himself the shares of his brothers who were dead, and gave nothing to the survivors.
The youngest, Sudislav, took no action, but Mystislav came promptly from Tmutarakan with an army to ask for the share that belonged, as he thought, to him. While Yaroslav was absent in Novgorod, Mystislav appeared before Kief, but the people there closed the gates firmly against him. He went then to Chernigoff and took it. Yaroslav hired warriors immediately, and with them and those he already had set out to find and punish Mystislav.
The two brothers met at Listven, somewhat west of Chernigoff, where Mystislav made an attack. He forced the battle at night during a terrible thunder-storm, and, knowing his ground well, defeated Yaroslav, who fled to Novgorod.
Though Mystislav had won, he sought only that which he held to be his own, and which he had demanded at first; he would not take Kief from an elder brother. He sent this message to Yaroslav: “Remain in thy Kief. Give me what is east of the Dnieper.” On that basis they settled, and the following year Yaroslav entered Kief with a large army.