Princes and rulers
Yaroslav the Wise
бл. 978–1054
- Grand Prince of Kyiv
The prince under whom Kyiv became one of Europe’s great cities: he built the “city of Yaroslav” with the Golden Gate and St Sophia’s Cathedral, where he lies buried.
Behold, I am leaving this world, my sons. Love one another, for you are brothers, of one father and one mother.
Biography
Yaroslav, son of Prince Volodymyr the Great, won the throne of Kyiv after a bitter succession war that broke out when his father died in 1015. He finally secured the city in 1019, defeating his brother Sviatopolk on the Alta river, and ruled here until his death in 1054 — more than three decades.
Under Yaroslav, Kyiv grew far beyond the old “city of Volodymyr”. Under the year 1037 the Primary Chronicle records: “Yaroslav founded the great city, in which stands the Golden Gate; he also founded the church of St Sophia.” New earth ramparts and ditches enclosed a vast area of the Upper Town, and its ceremonial entrance was the Golden Gate, crowned by the Church of the Annunciation. The monasteries of St George and St Irene, named after the patron saints of the prince and his wife, were founded at the same time.
The heart of the new city was St Sophia’s Cathedral, the seat of the metropolitans of Kyiv. Its 11th-century mosaics and frescoes — including a group portrait of Yaroslav’s family — survive to this day, and together with the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra the cathedral has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990. The chronicler says the prince “loved books” and gathered scribes and translators at St Sophia, creating one of the first libraries of Rus’.
His name is linked with the Ruska Pravda, the oldest written law code of Rus’. In 1051, at Yaroslav’s wish, a council of bishops installed Ilarion, a native of Rus’, as metropolitan in St Sophia. Through his children’s marriages Yaroslav became related to the royal houses of France, Norway, Hungary, Poland and Byzantium — hence his later nickname, “the father-in-law of Europe”.
The prince died in Vyshhorod and was buried in St Sophia in a marble sarcophagus that still stands in the cathedral. Yet when the sarcophagus was opened in 2009, Yaroslav’s own remains were not there — their fate is still a mystery.
Today Kyiv remembers him with a monument by the Golden Gate (1997, after a model by Ivan Kavaleridze), Yaroslaviv Val Street, which follows the line of his ramparts, and his portrait on the 2-hryvnia banknote.
Life timeline
- 1015 Father’s death After Volodymyr the Great dies, his sons begin fighting for Kyiv.
- 1019 Victory on the Alta Yaroslav defeats Sviatopolk and takes the throne of Kyiv for good.
- 1037 The “city of Yaroslav” According to the chronicle, the new ramparts with the Golden Gate and St Sophia’s are founded.
- 1051 A native metropolitan A council of bishops installs Ilarion — for the first time not a Greek — as metropolitan.
- 1054 Death Yaroslav dies in Vyshhorod and is buried in St Sophia’s.
- 1982 Golden Gate pavilion A protective reconstruction pavilion is built over the ruins of the gate.
- 1997 Monument A monument to Yaroslav the Wise is unveiled by the Golden Gate.
- 2009 The sarcophagus mystery When the sarcophagus is opened, the prince’s own remains are not found.
Key achievements
- City of Yaroslav New ramparts and the Golden Gate multiplied the fortified area of Kyiv.
- St Sophia’s The main church of Rus’, with 11th-century mosaics — now a UNESCO site.
- Ruska Pravda The oldest written law code of Rus’ is linked with his name.
- Learning Scribes and translators worked at St Sophia’s under his patronage.
Kyiv in their life
- Golden Gate (Volodymyrska St / Yaroslaviv Val) — the main entrance to the “city of Yaroslav”, founded in 1037; the ruins are protected by a pavilion built in 1982. More
- St Sophia’s Cathedral (24 Volodymyrska St) — built in Yaroslav’s reign; his marble sarcophagus stands inside.
- Yaroslaviv Val Street (“Yaroslav’s Rampart”) — runs along the line of the 11th-century earthworks.
- Monument to Yaroslav the Wise (Zolotovoritskyi Square, 1997) — the prince holds a model of St Sophia’s.
Places in our guide
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