Duel of Peresvet with Chelubei, painting by Viktor Vasnetsov (1914)[1]

Alexander or Aleksandr Peresvet (Russian: Александр Пересвет; died 8 September 1380) was a Russian Orthodox monk who fought in single combat with the Tatar champion Temir-Mirza,[lower-alpha 1][2] known in most Russian sources as Chelubei,[lower-alpha 2][1] at the opening of the Battle of Kulikovo on 8 September 1380.[3] The two men killed each other.[4]

Life

Peresvet is believed to have hailed from the Bryansk area,[5][6] and to have taken the monastic habit at the Monastery of Saints Boris and Gleb in Rostov. He moved to the monastery in Pereslavl-Zalessky, in the service of Dmitry Donskoy.[7] He later moved to the Trinity Lavra where he became a follower of Sergius of Radonezh. Alexander and his friend Rodion Oslyabya joined the Russian troops set out to fight the Tatars under the leadership of Mamai.

The battle of Kulikovo was opened by single combat between the two champions. The Russian champion was Alexander Peresvet. The champion of the Golden Horde was Temir-Mirza. The champions killed each other in the first charge. According to a Russian legend, Peresvet did not fall from the saddle, while Temir-Mirza did.

Peresvet's body, together with that of his brother-in-arms Rodion Oslyabya, was brought to Moscow. The two men were buried at the 15th-century Theotokos Church in Simonov Monastery.

Commemoration

MV Alexander Peresvet carrying the holy relics of Venerable Macarius stops in Kstovo, on its way from Nizhny Novgorod to Makaryev Monastery

Notes

  1. ↑ Russian: Темир-Мирза; also spelled Temir-Murza
  2. ↑ Russian: Челубей, romanized: Chelubey; also Chelibey (Челибей) and Chalabay (Чалабай)

References

  1. 1 2 Parppei, Kati M. J. (5 January 2017). The Battle of Kulikovo Refought: "The First National Feat". BRILL. p. 205. ISBN 978-90-04-33794-7.
  2. ↑ Thomas, David; Chesworth, John A. (17 August 2015). Christian-Muslim Relations. A Bibliographical History. Volume 7 Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa and South America (1500-1600): Volume 7. Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa and South America (1500-1600). BRILL. p. 279. ISBN 978-90-04-29848-4.
  3. ↑ Howorth, Henry Hoyle (1 January 2008). History of the Mongols from the 9th to the 19th Century: The So-Called Tartars of Russia and Central Asia. Cosimo, Inc. p. 215. ISBN 978-1-60520-134-4.
  4. ↑ "Alexander Peresvet and Temir-Murza Once Again Duel on Kulikovo Field". russkiymir.ru. Retrieved 2021-09-19.
  5. ↑ Galeotti, Mark (19 February 2019). Kulikovo 1380: The Battle that Made Russia. Bloomsbury USA. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-4728-3121-7.
  6. ↑ Parppei, Kati M. J. (5 January 2017). The Battle of Kulikovo Refought: "The First National Feat". BRILL. p. 51. ISBN 978-90-04-33794-7.
  7. ↑ Isoaho, Mari (1 June 2006). The Image of Aleksandr Nevskiy in Medieval Russia: Warrior and Saint. BRILL. p. 260. ISBN 978-90-474-0949-6.

Bibliography

  • Титов А. А. Предание о ростовских князьях. М., 1885
  • Описание Свято-Димитриевского монастыря в г. Скопине. Издательство Свято-Димитриевского монастыря, 2000.
  • Рязанские епархиальные ведомости. 1891, No. 2, 3.
  • Лошиц Ю. М. Дмитрий Донской., М., 1996
  • Розанов Н. П. История церкви Рождества Пресвятые Богородицы на Старом Симонове в Москве. К её пятисотолетию (1370—1870). М., 1870
  • Благословение преподобного Сергия. Под редакцией В.Силовьева. Изд.совет РПЦ, 2005 ISBN 5-94625-127-9
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