An ideal ruler interacting with the Cumans: The interference of images (based on Georgian and Old Russian chronicles)

Abstract

Based on the material of Old Russian and Old Georgian chronicles, the article examines the key characteristics of the image of a ruler that interacts with the Cumans. On the one hand, the work traces how the perception of the Cumans by the medieval chronicler influences the image of a ruler connected with the Cuman milieu. Here the most diverse types of relations with the Cumans are taken into account, in particular, Cuman origin of the ruler, his matrimonial ties with these nomads, participation in temporary military alliances or, on the contrary, entry into armed confrontations with these steppe dwellers. On the other hand, the article pays attention to the way a complex construct “ideal ruler”, partially or fully embodied on the pages of the scrutinized medieval texts, is reflected in the system of views on the Cumans. The study considers to what extent the Cumans, as representatives of a world mostly alien for a medieval Christian author, fall under the influence of the image of an ideal ruler. The article argues that the pragmatics of a medieval chronicle, either focused on the figure of a perfect ruler or concentrated on the history of a particular dynasty, immobilizes the image of the Cumans in a positive, neutral or negative evaluation system.