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A brief description of the Novgorod Veche of the Vasnets. Novgorod Veche. History of the Novgorod Republic. Brief description and functions of the veche

The text is given according to the edition: Kovalenko G.M., Smirnov V.G. Legends and mysteries of the land of Novgorod. — M.: Veche, 2007.

In the report of the Riga merchants from Novgorod dated November 10, 1331, it is said that a fight broke out between the Germans and the Russians in Novgorod, while one Russian was killed. In order to resolve the conflict, the Germans came into contact with the thousandth (hertoghe), the posadnik (borchgreue), the governor (namestnik), the Council of Lords (heren van Nogarden) and 300 golden belts (guldene gordele). The conflict ended with the alleged killer being returned to the Germans (his sword was covered in blood), and they paid 100 coins to the city and 20 coins to officials. Who were these people, called "golden belts"?

IN. Klyuchevsky believed that 300 golden belts were the entire ruling nobility of the city: from street elders to boyars who did not sit in the Council of Masters. Academician V.L. disagrees with the great Russian historian. Yanin, who believes that 300 golden belts are the Novgorod veche, at which the owners of 300-400 estates gathered. As evidence, Valentin Lavrentievich cites the limited size of the veche area, which would not accommodate a large number of people. The Danish historian Knud Rasmussen devoted a special study to this problem, in which he proves that the veche and the 300 golden belts are different authorities, since each of them put forward different requirements for the Germans. So, there is no definite answer. And not only on this question. Although many books and articles have been written about the famous Novgorod veche, scholars continue to argue about its real role in the life of the Novgorod state.

Was the veche an organ of popular rule or an obedient puppet in the hands of several noble families? Where did the veche meet? Who and how many took part in it? And even such a seemingly minor detail: whether the participants of veche meetings were sitting or standing, also remains the subject of heated discussions. Without claiming to be the ultimate truth, let us briefly recall the history of the issue. The word "veche" probably comes from the verb "broadcast". Vecha also existed in other Russian cities. But only in Novgorod did these spontaneous people's assemblies, preserved from the tribal system, gradually begin to acquire the significance of the supreme body of the whole state. Although the veche did not have clear regulations and met as needed, over the years veche traditions have developed that are firmly entrenched in the minds of Novgorodians. Scholars are still arguing about the location of the veche square, but, according to the majority, the city veche gathered next to Yaroslav's court near St. Nicholas Cathedral.

All free citizens, regardless of rank and status, had the right to participate in the veche. This right was a matter of legitimate pride for the citizens of the Novgorod Republic. Every Novgorodian could convene a veche. To do this, it was enough to ring the veche bell, whose voice was easily distinguished by a sensitive Novgorod ear in the choir of other bells. However, no one abused this right, since the unauthorized convocation of a veche on an unworthy occasion threatened the culprit with severe punishment. In the middle of the veche square there was a platform, on which speakers climbed. The platform was called "degree", probably from here came the name "state posadnik", that is, the posadnik who led the people's assembly. The city veche adopted laws, invited the prince or expelled him, decided the issue of war and peace, tried the most important crimes related to deprivation of life and confiscation of property, and elected the posadnik. In modern terms, the veche combined two branches of power at once - the legislative and the judiciary.

The decisions of the veche were called a verdict, all of them were recorded by the veche clerk, who then sealed the document with a lead seal. The verdict was determined by ear, by the strength of the cries. When opinions differed, consensus was reached with fists and stakes. Unlike modern democracies, when an elected official gets out of control of voters until the next election, the veche could expel a bad manager at any time. Often, removal from power was accompanied by beatings, confiscation of property, and for some corrupt officials, their career ended with a fall from the Volkhov Bridge. Doesn't this explain the almost exemplary state of Novgorod's urban economy? Comparative cleanliness and tidiness of Novgorod compared favorably with European cities drowning in sewage, including Paris and London.

The city consisted of five ends (Plotnitsky, Slavensky, Lyudin, Zagorodsky and Nerevsky). All ends had their own vecha, which represented their interests at the general veche. City streets had their own street meetings. There was much less politics in the activities of the Konchan and Ulich veche meetings, they discussed those issues that are now commonly called "communal" - the condition of the pavements, the distribution of duties, settling disputes between neighbors, etc. But it was at this level that the foundations of local self-government, the root system of any democracy, were laid. To manage current affairs, the Konchan veche elected a headman. The headman ruled not alone, but with the assistance of the most eminent citizens who made up the Konchan council.

The power of the veche was not limited to the city limits. It extended over the vast lands of the republic, divided into pyatins and regions. They had their own small capitals: Pskov, Izborsk, Velikiye Luki, Staraya Russa, Ladoga, which had their own veche, but in common affairs they obeyed the verdict of the Novgorod veche. “Whatever the elders decide, the suburbs will become.” For five centuries, the role of the vecha has changed, and this institution of power itself has also changed. There were calm vechas that resolved routine issues, but there were also stormy vechas. Historians often compare the veche with a performance staged by a handful of Novgorod nobility. Of course, the boyars sought to control the people's assembly. But often a split arose in the elite itself, and then the elements of the people got out of control, passions splashed out, fists and stakes were used, and only the intervention of the clergy could stop the bloodshed. Veche tradition was not interrupted even after the annexation of Novgorod to Moscow. Although city councils no longer met, the townspeople still solved many “housing and communal” issues together. In this sense, street councils can be considered the forerunners of the modern system of local self-government.

By its origin, the Novgorod veche was a city meeting, completely homogeneous with the gatherings of other older cities of Russia. It could be assumed that the greater political scope allowed the Novgorod vech to take shape in more elaborate forms. However, in the stories of the ancient Novgorod chronicle, due to this spaciousness, the veche is only more noisy and arbitrary than anywhere else. Important gaps remained in its structure until the end of the liberty of the city. The veche was sometimes convened by the prince, more often by one of the main city dignitaries, posadnik or thousand. However, sometimes, especially during the struggle of the parties, the veche was also convened by private individuals. It was not a permanent institution, it was convened and held only when there was a need for it. There has never been a fixed time limit for its convening. Veche gathered at the ringing of the veche bell. The sound of this bell was well distinguished by the Novgorod ear from the ringing of church bells.

Novgorod Veche. Artist K. V. Lebedev

Veche usually took place on the square, called Yaroslav's yard. The usual veche place for the election of the Novgorod lord was the square near St. Sophia Cathedral, on the throne of which the electoral lots were laid. The veche was not a representative institution in its composition, it did not consist of deputies: anyone who considered himself a full-fledged citizen fled to the veche square. Veche usually consisted of citizens of one senior city; but sometimes residents of the younger cities of the earth appeared on it, however, only two, Ladoga and Pskov. These were either suburban deputies, who were sent to Novgorod when a question arose at the veche concerning one or another suburb, or random visitors to Novgorod from the suburbs, invited to the veche. In 1384, the townspeople of Orekhov and Korela arrived in Novgorod to complain about the feeder planted by the Novgorodians, the Lithuanian prince Patricius. Two vechas gathered, one for the prince, the other for the townspeople. It was, obviously, the appeal of the offended provincials for justice to the sovereign capital, and not their participation in the legislative or judicial power of the veche.

Questions to be discussed by the vecha were proposed to him with a degree by the prince or higher dignitaries, a sedate posadnik or a thousand. The Novgorod veche was in charge of the entire field of legislation, all issues of foreign policy and internal structure, as well as a court for political and other major crimes, combined with the most severe punishments, deprivation of life or confiscation of property and exile (the “flow and plunder” of Russian Truth). The veche decreed new laws, invited the prince or expelled him, elected and judged the main city dignitaries, sorted out their disputes with the prince, decided on the issue of war and peace, etc. The prince also took part in the legislative activity of the veche; but here, in the competence of both authorities, it is difficult to draw a separate line between lawful and actual relations. According to the treaties, the prince could not plot wars "without the Novgorod word"; but we do not meet the conditions for Novgorod not to plot a war without the prince's consent, although the external defense of the country was the main business of the Novgorod prince. According to the agreements, the prince could not distribute profitable positions, volosts and feeding, but in fact it happened that the veche gave feeding without the participation of the prince. In the same way, the prince could not take away positions “without fault”, and he was obliged to declare the guilt of an official at a meeting, which then carried out a disciplinary trial over the accused. But sometimes the roles of the accuser and the judge changed: the veche brought to trial before the prince an inconvenient regional feeder. According to the treaties, the prince could not, without a posadnik, issue letters confirming the rights of officials or private individuals; but often such letters came from the veche in addition to the prince and even without his name, and only by the decisive defeat of the Novgorod rati Vasily the Dark forced the Novgorodians in 1456 to abandon the "eternal letters".

Novgorod Veche. Artist S. S. Rubtsov

At the meeting, by its very composition, there could be neither a correct discussion of the issue, nor a correct vote. The decision was drawn up by eye, it is better to say by ear, rather by the strength of the cries than by the majority of votes. When the veche was divided into parties, the verdict was worked out by force, through a fight: the side that prevailed was recognized by the majority. It was a peculiar form of the field, the judgment of God, just as the throwing of those condemned by the veche sentence from the Volkhov bridge was a relic of the ancient ordeal by water. Sometimes the whole city was "torn apart" between the fighting parties, and then two meetings took place simultaneously, one at the usual place, on the Trade side, the other on the Sofia side; but these were already rebellious internecine gatherings, and not normal vechas. It happened more than once, the strife ended with the fact that both vechas, moving against each other, converged on the large Volkhov bridge and started a massacre if the clergy did not manage to separate the opponents in time. This significance of the Volkhov bridge as an eyewitness to urban strife was expressed in poetic form in a legend included in some Russian chronicles and in the notes of a foreigner who visited Russia at the beginning of the 16th century, Baron Herberstein. According to his story, when the Novgorodians under St. Vladimir threw the idol of Perun into the Volkhov, an angry god, having reached the bridge, threw a stick at him with the words: “Here you, Novgorodians, from me as a keepsake.” Since then, at the appointed time, Novgorodians converge with sticks on the Volkhov bridge and begin to fight like mad.

Based on lectures by V. O. Klyuchevsky

Sukhorukov A.V., Moscow State University, Faculty of Economics

The system of Novgorod administration was based on a compromise between the people and the nobility, the mob and the boyars. The veche was a visible symbol and the main power institution of this compromise. As a result of this duality of its nature, we cannot give a clear and well-defined definition of veche. This is a state authority and a people's assembly, and a political institution - the owner of almost supreme power, and a place where the highest form of anarchy was actually legalized - a brawl, and a spokesman for the interests of the aristocracy (boyars) as the true leadership of the city on the Volkhov, and an instrument of genuine democracy . Such ambiguity of the veche, its organization and activities, gave rise to many disputes, thanks to which now we can rightly say: we know practically nothing definite about the veche.

All the highest magistrates were elected at the veche - the direct leadership of the Novgorod Republic, due to which the increased interest in this institution of state power in Novgorod is quite understandable. However, in the Novgorod chronicles, this term sometimes denotes polar opposite institutions - citywide meetings that decide the most important state issues, and meetings of finished and convicted, and gatherings during a military campaign, and gatherings of conspirators in the yards. The liberty with which the chronicler endows the most diverse gatherings with the name “veche” most likely indicates that in Ancient Novgorod almost any crowded assembly was called a veche, and, along with the citywide veche, the central governing body, there was a whole hierarchy people's assemblies - in accordance with the territorial division of the city.

Let us dwell on the origin of the term “veche”. It is already quite traditionally considered that “veche” in translation from Old Slavonic means “council”. And, indeed, the veche is the heir to tribal gatherings of the chiefdom. Gradually, the tribal gathering as an organ of power continues to almost disappear, and its functions are reduced to almost purely deliberative. It was precisely this situation that apparently existed at the time of the birth of the veche institution of power, and continued later, despite a sharp change in orientation, as a tradition.

In essence, the veche is the formalization of the will of the boyars into the will of the people, that is, it was originally the basic element of the veche, and it itself was only a group of clientele of competing clans. One way or another, initially the participants in any tribal gathering - the prototype of the vecha - were grouped around those people who could most accurately express their interests and who could lead them with the greatest benefit for the cause. Gradually, this system took shape in a “dictate system introspectively reflected in the psyche” (V.M. Kaitukov), when any citizen - a participant in the assembly was subject to dictate - the so-called “will of the people”, in which he believed, and, quite realistically, will “ property of those in power”, on which his material well-being directly depended. Thus, the veche, in its essence, is the most reasonable compromise between the elite and the mob, when the mob naively believes that it rules, and this, in principle, limits its participation in state affairs, and the elite, relying on a clearly expressed (and created ) the will of the people, rules already, relying on it. Veche, having turned into a “zemstvo body of volost statehood” (A.E. Presnyakov), due to its special position, was the result of a synthesis (at least outwardly) of aristocracy and democracy, while it is obvious that only the boyar elite used real power.

Having determined the essence of the vecha, let's move on to the principles of its organization.

Veche gathered after the strikes of a special veche bell, which hung on a tower that stood on veche square - in front of St. Nicholas Cathedral, in Yaroslav's yard, on the Trade Side. Ordinary meetings gathered, as a rule, in front of St. Sophia Cathedral; true V.L. Yanin and M.Kh. Aleshkovsky believe that until the 15th century, legitimate people's assemblies gathered just on the square in front of the St. Sophia Cathedral. The question of the place for convening the veche can hardly be considered finally resolved, especially given the following fact: in 1218. followed by a week-long confrontation between two centuries - at Yaroslav's Court and at St. Sophia. The prince, the posadnik, the thousand, the lord, the townspeople had the right to convene the veche. There were fairly strict rules that limited the unbridledness of the participants in the veche and contributed to the effectiveness of the process of “legislative activity” (each street, each end acted as a whole at the veche). However, these rules were often violated, and the veche turned into an illegal people's assembly. Undoubtedly, the latter were much more than the former. The heyday of the veche institution of power coincided with the years of exacerbation of social antagonisms, where a fight was the most reliable tool for resolving any dispute. So, the veche was authorized to make decisions in the name of Veliky Novgorod, when it was attended by:

- posadnik and thousand; the bishop was never present (I.D. Belyaev), but his consent (blessing) was mandatory when solving the most important issues;

- representatives of all Novgorod ends;

- representatives of all social groups; the veche, which consisted of only black people, was not recognized as competent. These were the factors, the presence (absence of even one) of which determined the legitimacy (illegality) of the veche. I would like to note that once and for all the established order did not exist - much depended on specific circumstances.

I will also note one more facet of the problem of the veche - the way of making a decision on it. Elections not only of the highest state officials, but also of the Konchan and Ulich administration bodies, most likely, were held according to a kind of ballot papers, confirmation of which can be found in the results of archaeological excavations. For a decision to be made, it had to be approved by a majority vote. Sometimes force was used to force the veche to take the decision dictated by the strongest boyar group. So, for example, in 1218, the posadnik Tverdislav, relying at first on a minority - the inhabitants of Prusskaya Street and Lyudin end - managed to force the majority to recognize his authority with the help of weapons. At certain moments, when rather complex and important issues were being resolved, on the recommendation of the Lord, a group of people (“eternal hut”) was selected who watched over the fact that a really necessary decision was made. This “college” was headed by the “eternal clerk” - the position is most likely permanent - apparently - a kind of buffer between the Lord and the veche proper, the main conductor of its decisions in life (in practice).

The conclusion that there is sufficient order in the organization of the veche is contradicted, at first glance, by numerous information about the procedure for resolving disagreements at the veche by a fight. But even this, it would seem, the most anarchic element of the veche was subject to certain rules, similar to the rules of a judicial duel - a field.

According to modern studies, the veche area was relatively small - no more than 1500 m2. In addition, the participants of the veche, most likely, did not stand, but sat on the benches, and only 400-500 people could fit in the square at that time. This figure is close to the message of the German sources of the XIV century that the supreme body of the Novgorod administration was called "300 golden belts". Just the same (400-500) was the number of boyar estates located in Novgorod. From this we can conclude that only major boyars took part in the veche - estate owners (V.L. Yanin, M.Kh. Aleshkovsky), to whom a certain number of the richest merchants were added in the 13th century. However, in this matter, the results of archaeological research do not coincide with the information of the chronicles, and therefore, most likely, the veche in Novgorod is a wide public meeting in which all Novgorodians who wish take part. In the end, if the size of the square was really small, then it can be assumed that people crowded in the adjacent streets and alleys and took part in the veche, moreover, the chronicle repeatedly testifies that the veche was just beginning on the square in front of Yaroslav's yard. Very often, the development of events was transferred to more spacious streets (squares), and sometimes to the bridge across the Volkhov ... Again, it cannot be assumed that if the entire free male population could participate in the veche, then they participated in it. Very often, the vast majority of the male population was simply busy. It is not for nothing that letters were written “from the boyars, from the living people, from merchants, from black people, from all of Novgorod.” Finally, even V.L. Yanin admits that initially the veche had a more democratic character, and its transformation into the council of "300 Golden Belts" occurred as a result of the fragmentation of the demos into streets, ends, etc. But just this thesis raises even greater doubts about the concept of “300 golden belts”. There was no point for the boyars themselves to “sit” in the veche, when one could simply acquire supporters who would seek to respect the interests of their masters, while maintaining the democratic spirit and legitimacy of the people’s assembly. Finally, the veche was the most important mechanism for smoothing out social contradictions. The very stay there gave the demos some hope for a “better life”.

The position of the veche was determined by the functions that it performed:

- the conclusion and termination of the contract with the prince; election and removal of posadniks, thousandths, lords, archimandrites; appointment of Novgorod posadniks, governors and governors in the provinces; control over the activities of the prince, posadniks, thousand, lords and other officials;

– Legislation (Novgorod Judicial Charter); establishment of duties of the population, control over their serving;

- foreign relations, declaration of war and conclusion of peace;

- Disposal of the landed property of Novgorod in economic and legal terms, granting land; establishing trade rules and incentives;

– control over judicial terms and execution of decisions; in cases that agitated the whole city, the direct examination of cases; provision of judicial benefits.

Bibliography

O.V. Martyshin. Volny Novgorod. Socio-political system and the law of the feudal republic. - M: Russian law, 1992.

Novgorod First Chronicle of the Senior and Junior Editions. - M-L: Publishing house of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1950.

A.V. Petrov. Intra-communal clashes in Novgorod in the middle and second half of the 14th century // Medieval and New Russia. Collection of scientific articles for the 60th anniversary of prof. AND I. Froyanova. - St. Petersburg, 1906.

M.N. Tikhomirov. Ancient Russian cities. - M: Gospolitizdat, 1956.

AND I. Froyanov, A.Yu. Dvornichenko. Cities - states of Ancient Russia. - L, 1988.

Prerequisites for the appearance

Story

In written sources, the Novgorod veche was first mentioned in 1016, when it was called by Yaroslav the Wise.

By the 15th century, the Novgorod veche had lost its democratic features due to the growing economic inequality among the people, degenerating into an oligarchy. The big landowners-boyars, by bribing the poor, created large parties for themselves at meetings and adopted those laws and decisions that were beneficial to them. On this basis, conflicts and unrest arose, which was one of the reasons for the fall of the Novgorod Republic, along with the strengthening of the Moscow principality.

Location

As a rule, townspeople gathered at a citywide assembly in a strictly defined place. In Novgorod and in Kyiv - at the St. Sophia Cathedrals.

In case of serious disagreement, some of the townspeople dissatisfied with the decision made, gathered in another place. In Novgorod, such an alternative veche was convened at Yaroslav's Court, on the Trade Side.

Etymology

Circle of questions

There is no unity among historians in assessing the powers of the veche. The reason for this is the instability of this legal institution. Often, the veche itself determined its competence, so it was different in different historical periods.

Notes

  1. Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences V. L. Yanin. The origins of Novgorod statehood // Science and life, No. 1, 2005
  2. Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences V. L. Yanin. At the origins of Novgorod statehood, a conversation with the correspondent of "Knowledge is Power" Galina Belskaya. // Knowledge is power, № 5-6, 2000
  3. // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: In 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - St. Petersburg. , 1890-1907.
  4. V. V. Grebennikov, Yu. A. Dmitriev Chapter II. Legislative bodies of state power in Russia before October 1917 // Legislative bodies of Russia from the Novgorod Veche to the Federal Assembly: a difficult path from patriarchal tradition to civilization. - M .: "Manuscript", "TEIS", 1995. - S. 35. - 102 p. - 1 thousand, copies. - ISBN 978-5-860-40034-4
  5. Veche // Big School Encyclopedia "Russika". Russian history. IX - XVII centuries / Edited by V.P. Butromeev. - M .: Olma-Press, 2001. - S. 117. - 800 p. - 5 thousand, copies. - ISBN 5-224-00625-2
  6. Platonov S. F. Complete course of lectures on Russian history.
  7. Pchelov E.V. Moscow Rurik Dynasty // Monarchs of Russia. - M .: Olma-Press, 2003. - S. 263. - 668 p. - (Historical Library). - 10 thousand copies. - ISBN 5-224-04343-3
  8. Podvigina N. L.§ Novgorod Veche // Essays on the socio-economic and political history of Novgorod the Great in the XII-XIII centuries. / edited by Corr. Academy of Sciences of the USSR V. L. Yanina. - M .: Higher School, 1976. - S. 104. - 151 p. - 9 thousand copies.
  9. Yanin V.L. Novgorod posadniks. - 2nd edition, revised and enlarged. - M .: Languages ​​of Slavic culture, 2003. - S. 8. - 511 p. - (Studia historica). - ISBN 978-5-944-57106-9
  10. Rozhkov N. A. Russian History in Comparative Historical Illumination (Fundamentals of Social Dynamics). - 3rd ed. - M ., 1930. - T. 2. - S. 269.

Literature

  • Khalyavin N.V. Novgorod veche meetings in modern Russian historiography // Vestnik UdGU. Series "History". - Izhevsk:


Veche was the highest authority in the Novgorod land during the so-called period of the "Novgorod feudal republic". The Novgorod veche organ was multistage, since in addition to the city veche there were also collections of ends and streets. The nature of the Novgorod city council is still not clear. According to V. L. Yanin, the Novgorod city veche was an artificial formation that arose on the basis of the “Konchan” (from the word end - representatives of different parts of the city) representation, its emergence dates back to the time of the formation of an intertribal federation on the territory of Novgorod land. Yanin's opinion is based on archaeological excavations, the results of which lead most researchers to believe that Novgorod as a single city was formed only in the 11th century, and before that there were several scattered settlements, future city ends. Thus, primordially, the future city council served as a federation of these villages, but with their unification into a single city, it assumed the status of a city meeting. In the initial period, the gathering place of veche (veche square) was located in Detinets, on the square in front of St. Sophia Cathedral, later, after the prince's residence was moved outside the city, veche square moved to the Trade side, and veche meetings were held on Yaroslav's courtyard, in front of St. Nicholas Cathedral.

But even in the 13th century, in cases of confrontation between different parts of Novgorod, veche meetings could take place simultaneously on both the Sofia and the Trade Sides. However, in general, at least since the beginning of the 13th century, Novgorodians most often gather "in Yaroslavl's yard" in front of the Nikolo-Dvorishchensky temple (St. Nikola's cathedral status will receive already in the Moscow period). However, the specific topography and capacity of the veche area are still not known. Archaeological excavations carried out in 1930-40 at Yaroslav's Court did not give a definite result. In 1969, V. L. Yanin calculated the veche square on an unexplored area in front of the main (western) entrance to the St. Nicholas Cathedral by the method of elimination. The area itself thus had a very small capacity - in the first work, V. L. Yanin calls the figure 2000 m 2, in subsequent works - 1200-1500 m 2 and did not accommodate a nationwide, but a representative composition of several hundred participants, which, according to V. L. Yanina were boyars. True, in 1988, V. F. Andreev expressed his opinion about the nationwide nature of city gatherings and localized the veche in a more spacious place, as it seemed to him, to the south of St. Nicholas Cathedral. There is also a theory about the location of Veche Square to the north of St. Nicholas Cathedral. However, the most authoritative is the concept of V. L. Yanin, which even got into textbooks. The opinion about the aristocratic nature of the veche at the Yaroslov Dvorishche during the late republic (the second half of the 14th-15th centuries) is considered to be the most authoritative. However, the degeneration of the citywide veche organ actually happened earlier. Compiled from some of the "oldest" boyars, the famous "row" of 1264 convincingly suggests that the will of other free Novgorod classes - "lesser" ones - even at that time was sometimes officially not taken into account even on the basis of their direct participation in the city-wide veche meetings preceding "Yaroslali yard" nationwide Konchansky Veches. In a German source from 1331, the town council is called "300 golden belts". The work of the veche was carried out in the open air, which presupposed the publicity of the people's assembly. From written sources, including chronicles, it is known that there was a “degree” on Veche square - a tribune for posadniks and other leaders of the “republic” who held “magisterial” posts. The area was also equipped with benches.

The decisions of the veche were based on the principle of unanimity. The consent of the vast majority of those present was required for a decision to be made. However, it was far from always possible to reach such an agreement, at least not immediately. With an equal distribution of votes, there was often a physical struggle and repetition of meetings until an agreement was reached. For example, in Novgorod in 1218, after the battles of one end against the other, the veche on the same issue continued for a whole week, until "the brothers all agreed with one accord." The most significant issues of foreign and domestic policy of the Novgorod land were decided at the veche. Including there were cases of inviting and expelling princes, issues of war and peace, alliance with other states - all this was sometimes within the competence of the veche. Veche was engaged in legislation - it approved the Novgorod Judicial Charter. Veche meetings are at the same time one of the judicial instances of the Novgorod land (the court was usually invited, including for this purpose) of the Novgorod land: traitors and persons who committed other crimes against the state were often tried and executed at the veche. The usual type of execution of criminals was the overthrow of the guilty person from the Great Bridge to the Volkhov. The veche disposed of land allotments, if the land had not previously been transferred to the fatherland (see, for example, Narimunt and the Karelian principality). It issued letters of land ownership to various church corporations, as well as boyars and princes. At the veche, elections of officials took place: archbishops, posadniks, thousands.

Posadniks were elected at a veche from representatives of boyar families. In Novgorod, under the reform of Ontsifor Lukinich (1354), instead of one posadnik, six were introduced, who ruled for life (“old” posadniks), from among whom a “powerful” posadnik was elected annually. The reform of 1416-1417 tripled the number of posadniks, and "powerful" posadniks began to be elected for six months. In 1155, Yuri Dolgoruky expelled the "illegal" Metropolitan of Kiev Clement. At his request, Constantinople appointed a new metropolitan, Constantine I. For faithfulness in supporting his policy and for supporting Bishop Nifont during the Kiev schism, the Patriarch of Constantinople granted Novgorod autonomy in church affairs. Novgorodians began to elect bishops at their meeting from among the local clergy. So, in 1156, the Novgorodians for the first time independently elected Archbishop Arkady, and in 1228 they deposed Archbishop Arseny.

In addition to the citywide, there were Konchan and street veche meetings in Novgorod. If the city-wide representative veche was essentially an artificial formation that arose as a result of the creation of the Mezhkonchanskaya political federation, then the lower levels of the veche genetically date back to ancient popular assemblies, and the entire free population of the ends and streets could be their participants. It was they who were the most important means of organizing the internal political struggle of the boyars for power, since it was easier to inflame and direct the political passions of their representatives from all the estates of the end or the street to the right direction for the boyars.