Red Ruthenia


Red Ruthenia, also called Red Rus or Red Russia, is a term used since the Middle Ages for the south-western principalities of Kievan Rus', namely the Principality of Peremyshl and the Principality of Belz. It is closely related to the term Cherven Cities.
First mentioned by that name in a Polish chronicle of 1321, Red Ruthenia was the portion of Ruthenia incorporated into Poland by Casimir the Great during the 14th century. Following the Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus' in the 13th century, Red Ruthenia was contested by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Hungary and the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia. After the Galicia–Volhynia Wars, for about 400 years, most of Red Ruthenia became part of Poland as the Ruthenian Voivodeship.
Nowadays, the region comprises parts of western Ukraine and adjoining parts of south-eastern Poland. It has also sometimes included parts of Lesser Poland, Podolia, Right-bank Ukraine and Volhynia. Centred on Przemyśl and Belz, it has included major cities such as: Chełm, Zamość, Rzeszów, Krosno and Sanok, as well as Lviv and Ternopil.

Ethnography

The first known inhabitants of northern Red Ruthenia were Lendians and White Croats, while subgroups of Rusyns, such as Boykos and Lemkos, lived in the south.
Image:Markowa chata przyslupowa.jpg|thumb|Village of Markowa, about 150-200 km southeast of Kraków. Its 18th- and 19th-century Upper Lusatian houses evoked the mountains of Saxony.
Later Walddeutsche, Jews, Armenians and Poles also made up part of the population. According to Marcin Bielski, although Bolesław I Chrobry settled Germans in the region to defend the borders against Hungary and Kievan Rus' the settlers became farmers. Maciej Stryjkowski described German peasants near Rzeszów, Przemyśl, Sanok, and Jarosław as good farmers. Casimir the Great settled German citizens on the borders of Lesser Poland and Red Ruthenia to join the acquired territory with the rest of his kingdom. In determining the population of late medieval Poland, colonisation and Polish migration to Red Ruthenia, Spiš and Podlachia should be considered.
During the second half of the 14th century, the Vlachs arrived from the southeastern Carpathians and quickly settled across southern Red Ruthenia. Although during the 15th century the Ruthenians gained a foothold, it was not until the 16th century that the Wallachian population in the Bieszczady Mountains and the Lower Beskids was Ruthenized. From the 14th to the 16th centuries Red Ruthenia underwent rapid urbanization, resulting in over 200 new towns built on the German model.
A minority of ethnic Poles have lived since the beginning of the second Millennium in northern parts of Red Ruthenia. The exonym "Ruthenians" usually refers to members of the Rusyn and/or Ukrainian ethnicity.

History

1199 to 1772

During the early Middle Ages, the region was part of Kievan Rus' and, from 1199, the independent Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia.
In 1340, the Romanovichi house of princes of Galicia and Volhynia died out, causing the Galicia–Volhynia Wars . Casimir the Great of Poland managed to take control of Galicia in 1340, while the Grand Duchy of Lithuania obtained Volhynia. During his reign from 1333 to 1370, Casimir the Great founded several cities, urbanizing the rural province. Under Polish rule, 325 towns were founded from the 14th century to the second half of the 17th century, most during the 15th and 16th centuries.
In October 1372, Władysław Opolczyk was deposed as count palatine. Although he retained most of his castles and goods in Hungary, his political influence waned. As compensation, Opolczyk was made governor of Hungarian Galicia. In this new position, he contributed to the economic development of the territories entrusted to him. Although Opolczyk primarily resided in Lwów, at the end of his rule he spent more time in Halicz. The only serious conflict during his time as governor involved his approach to the Eastern Orthodox Church, which angered the local Catholic boyars.
The Polish name Ruś Czerwona came into use for the territory extending to the Dniester, centring on Przemyśl. The Polish region was divided into a number of voivodeships, and an era of German eastward migration and Polish settlement among the Ruthenians began. Armenians and Jews also migrated to the region. A number of castles were built at this time, and the cities of Stanisławów and Krystynopol were founded. Red Ruthenia consisted of three voivodeships: Ruthenia, whose capital was Lviv and provinces were Lviv, Halych, Sanok, Przemyśl and Chełm; Bełz, separating the provinces of Lviv and Przemyśl from the rest of the Ruthenian voivodeship; and Podolia, with its capital at Kamieniec Podolski. Since the reign of Władysław Jagiełło the Przemyśl Voivodeship was called the Ruthenian Voivodeship, centring on Lwów. The Ruthenian Voivodeship consisted of five regions: Lwów, Sanok, Halicz, Przemyśl, and Chełm. The town of Halych gave its name to Galicia.
;Ruthenian Voivodeship
  • Chełm Land, Chełm
  • * Chełm County,, Chełm
  • * Powiat of Ratno,, Ratno
  • Halych Land, Halicz
  • * Powiat of Halicz,, Halicz
  • * Kolomyja County,, Kołomyja
  • * Trembowla County,, Trembowla
  • Lwów Land, Lwów
  • * Powiat of Lwów,, Lwów
  • * Powiat of Żydaczów,, Żydaczów
  • Przemyśl Land, Przemyśl; Its area was 12,000 km2. and in the 17th century it was divided five smaller regions.
  • * Przemyśl County, Przemyśl
  • * Powiat of Sambor,, Sambor
  • * Powiat of Drohobycz,, Drohobycz
  • * Powiat of Stryj,, Stryj
  • Sanok Land, Sanok
  • * Sanok County, Sanok: Intensive settlement occurred from the 13th to 15th centuries in an area flanked by the Wisłok, San and Wisłoka Rivers. The Vlachs primarily engaged in agriculture; moving west, they established a number of villages during the 15th century. In Sanok Land were six Jewish communities, with synagogues and kahal organizations. Sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Jewish Communities were also autonomous in criminal law.
;Bełz Voivodeship
  • Belz County,, Bełz
  • Grabowiec County,, Grabowiec
  • Horodło County,, Horodło
  • Lubaczów County,, Lubaczów
  • Busk Land,, Busk
Ruthenia was subject to repeated Tatar and Ottoman Empire incursions during the 16th and 17th centuries and was impacted by the Khmelnytsky Uprising, the 1654–1667 Russo-Polish War and Swedish invasions during the Deluge ; the Swedes returned during the Great Northern War of the early 18th century.

1772 to 1918

Red Ruthenia was conquered by the Austrian Empire in 1772 during the First Partition of Poland, remaining part of the empire until 1918. Between World Wars I and II, it belonged to the Second Polish Republic. The region is currently split, with its western portion in southeastern Poland and its eastern portion in western Ukraine.

Largest cities

CityPopulation CountryAdministrative
1Lviv717,273