M. Krom M.

THE IDEA OF SOVEREIGNTY IN THE POLITICAL DISCOURSE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY MUSCOVITE RUS

Authors

M. Krom M.

Keywords:

sovereignty, political discourse, history of concepts, the Grand Principal-ity of Moscow, the Metropolitan see, Ivan III, patrimony, state.

Abstract

The paper traces the main phases in the formation of the sovereignty idea as it evolved in the Muscovite political discourse of the 15th century. Special attention is paid to the supporters of this idea and to the systems of argumentation they used. It becomes clear that, prior to the end of the 1450s, the key role in the elaboration of the concept of sovereignty of the Grand Principality of Moscow had belonged the church hierarchs and, above all, to the Metropolitans. As for their arguments, there prevailed words and images related to the idea of empire, like the “tsar” or the “autocrat”. Simultaneously, a concept of “gospodarstvo” meaning an independent polity was borrowed from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with the mediation of the Metropolitan’s office. In the last quarter of the 15th century, the key role in the elaboration of the state sovereignty doctrine passed to Ivan III. Under his auspices, the idea of the grand princely patrimony moved to the fore of the political discourse.

THE IDEA OF SOVEREIGNTY IN THE POLITICAL DISCOURSE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY MUSCOVITE RUS