Everyone who studies the history of the Eastern Slavs came across the term "polyudam". What is it? And how can this process be characterized? Read about it in our article.
Signs of Early Statehood
What do you think, polyudam in Ancient Russia - is that? Let's start dealing with this issue together. In the eighth century, strong tribal alliances were already formed on the land occupied by the tribes of the Eastern Slavs. They have long vied with each other for supremacy. As history has shown, a union of glades had a serious impact on other tribes. Over the years, they subjugated most of the Slavs.
Thus, we can observe the appearance of the first signs of an emerging state:
- one leader;
- court;
- law;
- army;
- tax collection system.
And we are now moving on to clarify what the definition of poly-human is. This is one way of collecting taxes from the tribes to the treasury of the Grand Duke. A similar system spread throughout all European states at the time of their inception, but due to national interests had different names. However, their essence remained the same - replenishment of the treasury of the prince. Now you know the meaning of the word "polyud".
The tax system of the Russian (Eastern) Slavs
As you guessed, taxes were also collected in Russia. In principle, requisitions, which were expressed in mandatory fees, were part of the structure of the state system. Due to the fact that the prince collected gold from people, he bore certain obligations to them. One of them was that he had to ensure peaceful life and peace for his subjects. In other words, he had to defend his tribes from foreign invaders. The patronage of each Rusich required funds.
So, for the Slav, Polyud in Ancient Russia is a farmer’s purchase or is it still a tax? The modern analogue of polyudia is income tax. Their difference lies only in volume and resources. For example, once a glade recaptured several Slavic tribes from the Khazars. For this, they levied them with fees in their favor. However, these requisitions were distinguished by humanity. Now the Slavs could pay not only gold, but food and a wide variety of artisans. Here is another definition of polyudam.
Hidden danger
Time is running out. Peasants grow crops and harvest. Artisans produce various products. Tribes trade among themselves. The squad guards the borders. The Grand Duke makes laws. Taxes are collected, the treasury is replenished, and the state is strengthened. However, the polyode system is far from perfect, but it has been used for a long time.
In the autumn, the prince, along with the squad, began collecting tribute. Polyud in Ancient Russia - this literally means walking in people, that is, walking in yards and collecting tax. The prince walked until he overtook all his possessions. This was another meaning of the word "polyudé."
The people, in addition to this tribute, paid a certain amount so that the prince could support the squad. Injustice reigned everywhere, and all because there was no specific amount of tax.
Igor's greed ruined
As it turned out, Polyud in Ancient Russia is not only a tax, but also the cause of the death of one of the princes. In one of these campaigns, Prince Igor shared the locality of the Drevlyans with his retinue and considered that the tax was insufficient. Together, they decided that they needed to pay them again. The team again invaded the territory of the Drevlyans and demanded a re-payment! Naturally, the Drevlyans were outraged. The result of the repeated requisition was the murder of the squad and the prince himself.
The death of the prince threatened the collapse of the state. But his wise and far-sighted wife, Princess Olga, quickly realized that this was a serious reason to change the tax system. So she decided to establish the exact amount for payments. Olga quickly and decisively calmed the agitated tribes, and also restored unity among the tribes in Russia.
Princess Reform
So, as already mentioned above, Olga began to reform the tax collection system. The first thing she did was set the exact amount. As practice has shown, this measure has allowed to avoid abuse, and the process of tax collection has become legal. The widow also understood that walking around people is a danger to the future Grand Duke, so the next decree approved the decision that the resources would be brought to a specific place indicated from the capital. So the phenomenon of a graveyard appeared in Russia. From there, the collected funds passed into the hands of representatives of princely power. Princess Olga not only simplified the tax system, but also made it safe for collectors.
Thus, the princess's reforms strengthened and rallied the state and tribes even more, and disputes and feuds about injustice began to recede into the past.
In other words, polyuds is a collection of taxes in the period of Ancient Russia. We see how Princess Olga's reforms were introduced on time. These measures did not allow the young state to fall apart into separate warring tribes.