Principality of Galicia-Volhynia: Map & History

History

The Principality of Volhynia may have emerged as early as the late 10th century, with Vsevolod, a son of Vladimir I of Kiev, mentioned as a prince of the city of Volodymyr. Igor Yaroslavich reportedly briefly reigned as the prince of Volodymyr in the 1050s. Iaroslav Sviatopolkovich (r. 1100–1118) was the only prince in Kievan Rus' to oppose Vladimir II Monomakh's reign on the grounds of agnatic seniority, but after Vladimir ousted him in 1118, his Monomakhovichi descendants established a local dynastic branch. Roman Mstislavich, the great-great-grandson of Monomakh, inherited the throne of Volhynia in 1170.

The Principality of Galicia was formed in the years 1124–1144 by Vladimirko Volodarovich's unification of the principalities of Zvenyhorod, Peremyshl, and Terebovlia.

Economy and culture

The economy of Galicia–Volhynia was predominantly a subsistence economy. It was based on agriculture, which was based on self-sufficient lands: the dvoryshche (Ukrainian: дворище). These were rural agricultural communities, owned and run by a group of related families (remnants of the earlier clan system), comparable to the zadrugas amongst the South Slavs. These economic units had their own arable land, hayfields, meadows, forests, foraging grounds and fish lakes. The main agricultural crops were oats and rye, less so wheat and barley. In addition, animal husbandry was developed, primarily horse breeding, as well as sheep breeding and pig breeding. Important components of the economy were foraging: animal hunting, honey hunting, and fishing.