History of Polotsk and Northwest Russia

Polotsk is one of the most ancient cities of Belarus and Eastern Europe. The first chronicle mention in Russian sources about Polotsk dates back to 862. In the middle of the X century, the Polotsk principality arose. It occupied the territory in the basin of the Western Dvina, the upper Berezins and Neman. The Polotsk principality was virtually independent of the Old Russian state. This provoked numerous conflicts between the Polotsk and Kyiv princes. The principality also experienced pressure from the Lithuanians and crusaders. In the early 1240s, Lithuanians often found themselves on the princely throne, but the state remained independence. Since 1392, the lands of the former Polotsk destiny have become part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After the conclusion of the UNION, the city became part of the Commonwealth, and since 1772 - the Russian Empire. The book of the Professor of the Imperial Moscow University of Ivan Belyaev "The History of Polotsk, or North-Western Russia" was first published in 1872. The author examines in detail on extensive archival materials the formation of the Polotsk principality, the structure of power and the public structure, the relationship of Polotsk with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania