Opening the forgotten pages of history

In June 2006 the book “The Mystery of Theodoro principality” by Andrey Vasilyev and Mikhail Avtushenko from Sevastopol, was published by publishing house “Byblex”. In fact this is the first systematic research of the history of the Theodoro principality which existed in southwestern part of Crimea during the XIII-XV-th centuries. It should be interesting fact for citizens of Sevastopol that this little state which included the major part present Sevastopol of territory was the last fragment of the Byzantine Empire. It outlived the fall of Constantinople for twenty two years and was occupied by Turks in 1475 only.

The considerable part of research is devoted to the Theodoro role in diplomatic and cultural ties between Byzantium and Slavic states. Unknown to the Russian readers facts from hagiographies of middle age Crimean saints can be found in the book.

Some events of Russian history became the subject of authors’ original interpretation. Thus, Kulikovskaya battle, when the troops of Dmitriy Donskoy defeated the army of Mamay Khan, which is well-known to every Russian schoolchild, was scrutinized by the authors in the light of diplomatic activity of Byzantine monks-Hesychasts and common interests of Theodoro rulers of the Gavras dynasty connected with them.

It can be interesting to retrace the history of princes dynasty of Theodoro not only during Turkish invasion but to show its close connection with appearance and spreading of ideological conceptions “Byzantium after Byzantium” and “The Third Rome” which are actual in our days and draw the attention of political and religious leaders as far as culture experts and men of science until now.

The genre of the book is widely-spread in the years of Soviet historical journalism prosperity and almost forgotten in our days genre of popular science research. That is why it will be interesting both for specialists and wide readership.

Russian and Bulgarian by birth German culture expert and painter Haralampi Oroschakoff his impression about the book of two Sevastopol authors: “The book of Andrey Vasiliev and Mikhail Avtushenko is the complex research that is very important for historical self-identification of Slavic nations. Crimean principality Theodoro is the important link between Eastern-Romanian and Slavic states. The book provides an informative, interesting and historical educated voyage to one of the important heritage of our post-byzantine culture».

Source: “Sevastopolsky Bryz”.