Immediately after the battle at Yaroslav, the world around him reminded the Galicia-Volyn prince that he had special views of South-Western Russia and he would not allow him to solve all the main problems just like that. This battle became news that reached all near and distant rulers and brought that the Romanovichs and their state are already a great force. One such news flew to the Tatars. After the invasion of Batu, they had little contact with the Galicia-Volyn principality, did not impose tribute on it and did not establish any special relations, but then, deciding that such a sedentary neighbor was too dangerous, without unnecessary preludes demanded to give them Galich, meaning not only the city, but also the whole principality.
Daniel's reaction was such, for which he could already be called a brave man and a great ruler. Not wanting to lose his state, clearly realizing that he could be killed for the slightest miscalculation, he decided to go straight to the headquarters of Batu Khan and negotiate with him personally, preserving his father's inheritance at such a heavy price. The trip took quite a long time: having left his native country at the end of 1245, Daniel was able to return only in the spring of 1246. Before the khan he had to humiliate himself a lot, but the diplomatic and political talents of his eldest son Roman Mstislavich immediately showed themselves. He managed not only to defend Galich, but also to achieve recognition of him as the ruler of the united Galicia-Volyn state, having received the khan's label. In exchange, the Romanovichs became tributaries and vassals of the horde and, at the request of the khan, had to allocate troops for joint campaigns.
However, dependence on the Tatars heavily burdened the prince (mainly morally), and therefore, immediately after returning home, he began to hammer a strong alliance against them. The first to respond were the Hungarians, who yesterday were bitter enemies: Bela IV, who was impressed by Daniel's actions, decided to conclude an alliance with him and even marry his daughter Constance to Prince Lev, the heir to the Galician-Volyn principality. The wedding was played already in 1247. A few years later, a dynastic marriage and an alliance were concluded with Andrei Yaroslavich, Prince of Vladimir, who also wanted to free himself from the yoke of the Tatars. In the future, the camp of the anti-Mongol allies constantly changed, new countries appeared, and the old ones left the agreements.
An attempt to independently assemble a powerful alliance against the steppe dwellers failed: too many contradictions had accumulated in the past in the region, and each first of all pursued personal goals, not wanting to get rid of the "hegemon" in the person of the steppe dwellers, who constantly interfered with everyone. The days of theories about the balance of power in Europe have not yet arrived, and the Hungarians turned out to be the most reliable ally of the Romanovichs (with many reservations). Prince of Vladimir Andrei Yaroslavich was defeated by the Tatars during the "Nevruyeva rati" in 1252 and lost his title, being forced to flee to Sweden. Realizing this, Daniel decided to take a new bold, desperate step - to seek religious union with the Catholics, so that the Pope would call a crusade against the Tatars and the Galicia-Volyn principality would regain its full independence.
Catholics, union and the king of Russia
However, even without the anti-Horde coalition, there were enough reasons for concluding a union, and even more, they prevailed. Since the 20s of the XIII century, Rome began to gradually change the rhetoric towards Orthodoxy for more and more radical. Including because of this, the crusaders began to attack the Russian lands more and more actively, now developing their crusades not only against the pagans, but also against the eastern "heretics". The struggle for the city of Dorogochin was connected with this process; therefore Alexander Nevsky had to fight the Catholics on Lake Peipsi. Daniel absolutely did not like the prospect of one day facing the threat of an invasion of the united forces of the Catholic powers again, or maybe even becoming the goal of a crusade, so the way out was quick: to conclude a church union with Catholics, become part of the Catholic world and reduce the threat on the western borders.
There were other good reasons as well. First of all, the Pope could bestow the title of king, which in the future could give certain advantages in foreign policy, which Daniel loved and had many connections with Western Catholic "sworn friends". During the transition to Catholicism, the Romanovich state received a trump card in the form of Western support in the struggle against other Russian princes, which would have made it possible to claim hegemony and unification of all of Russia under its rule. Finally, speaking about the Uniate aspirations of the Romanovichs, as a rule, they forget that at the same time there were negotiations on the union of Rome and the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which was supposed to overcome the consequences of the Great Schism. In the event of the conclusion of such a union, the Russian princes and states that did not recognize it could become heretics already officially, therefore they had to act with an eye on what was happening in the Greek world, since Daniel, the son of a Byzantine princess, did it constantly and easily, having sufficient connections in Constantinople, and Nicaea.
The negotiations on the union were started back in 1246 by the papal legate Plano Carpini, who traveled to the Horde on a diplomatic mission, simultaneously securing relations with the closest rulers. This was followed by a constant correspondence between Daniel and Rome, which lasted until 1248. Of course, the Pope was interested in such a union, but the Russian prince was playing for time: on the one hand, he kept his finger on the pulse of the negotiations with the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and on the other, he expected the promised help against the Tatars, which never came. As a result, the negotiations were temporarily interrupted. They resumed in 1252, when a union was about to be concluded in Constantinople, Nevryuy defeated the main ally of the Romanovichs in Russia, and Daniel's relations with Beklyarbek Kuremsa became strained. As a result of these negotiations, at the turn of 1253 and 1254, the union was concluded, and Daniel was crowned in Dorogichin as the king of Russia. The Pope called on the Catholic rulers of Europe to crusade against the Tatars.
However, very soon the Romanovichs were disappointed. No one responded to the call for a crusade, and Kuremsa and then Burunday had to be dealt with on their own. The crusaders continued to put pressure on the northwestern outskirts of the Galicia-Volyn state. At the same time, Rome stepped up pressure on Daniel in order to carry out church reform as soon as possible and convert the worship to the Catholic rite. Of course, the freshly baked king of Russia, not being a fool, did not go for it, since the union was aimed at obtaining specific benefits, and without them it would lose all meaning. In addition, the almost completed negotiations of Rome with the Ecumenical Patriarchate soon broke down, as a result of which Daniel suddenly turned out to be an extreme and almost a traitor to the entire Orthodox world. Already in 1255, the union began to collapse, and in 1257 it actually ceased to exist after Pope Alexander IV called on to punish the "apostate" and gave them permission to conquer Russia to the Lithuanian Catholic king Mindovg.
The union of the Galicia-Volyn state with Rome lasted only 3 years, and in fact, even during its operation, did not lead to any special changes in the religious life of South-Western Russia, with the exception of the departure of the Metropolitan of Kiev and All Russia to the Vladimir-Suzdal principality. After its end, the political position of the Romanovichs even deteriorated somewhat, which forced them to replace the Horde policy and closer cooperation with the Tatars in order to secure at least part of their borders. The only real benefit was the coronation of Daniel as the king of Russia, which, according to the concepts of time, equated him in rights with all other monarchs of Europe and in the eyes of Europeans put the Romanovichs higher than any other branch of Rurikovich. It was also a relief that the Europeans were in no hurry to put much pressure on the Orthodox, and even with the most devout Catholics like the Teutonic Order after 1254, the Romanovichs always had fairly good relations. The threat of invasion by Christian brothers from the West quickly dissipated, which eliminated one of the reasons for the union. True, there was a fly in the ointment in this barrel of honey: as in 1245, such a significant strengthening of Russia did not go unnoticed in the Horde, and therefore the large-scale consequences of the acts committed were already approaching.
Frederick II the Warlike
In 1230, Frederick II von Babenberg became the Duke of Austria (at that time not that majestic and influential Austria, but just one of the major German duchies). He was only 20 years old, and a young romantic nature strove for the rosy dream of any medieval knight, namely, to become famous in the military field, while “bending down” as many people as possible and expanding their possessions. It should not be surprising that after this, Austria quarreled with all its neighbors, including the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, and waged constant wars, for which Frederick began to be called the Warlike. He fought especially a lot with the Hungarians (which did not prevent them from allying a couple of times). And if for some time the war with them was facilitated by the fact that the Arpads were "stuck" in the struggle for Galich, then after 1245, having refused to support the claims to the principality of Rostislav Mikhailovich, the Austrians and Hungarians had to face each other in full growth.
Daniel Galitsky had his own interest in Austrian affairs, which was not hindered even by the ongoing struggle for Galich. The reason was the same as that of his father: family ties with the princes of the Holy Roman Empire, namely with Frederick II, who was probably a second cousin to the Galician-Volyn prince. Apparently, certain contacts were established between them in the 1230s, which was especially important in light of the opposition of both rulers with Hungary. This was opposed by the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Frederick II, who followed the development of relations between Frederick and Daniel. When it came to the latter's entry into the war, the emperor decided to take the path of least resistance and damage and simply bought Daniel's neutrality for 500 silver marks and the royal crown. The latter, however, the Pope never legalized, and the future coronation of the king of Russia took place with different regalia. There is an opinion that Daniel initially did not plan to intervene in a distant and unnecessary war at that time, having knocked out a lot of money and a title from scratch by purely diplomatic means.
The main battle in the life of Frederick II von Babenberg took place on June 15, 1246 near the Leita River (Laita, Litava), which was located on the border between the two states. A large number of different myths and theories are associated with this battle. For example, there is a theory that Daniil Galitsky took part in the battle on the side of the Hungarians, but this is unlikely: he hardly had time that year to return from a trip to the Horde, gather an army, advance towards the Hungarians and fight the Austrians on their borders in June …In addition, relations with the Hungarians have not yet improved to the extent that it was a question of such support in the war. However, a certain number of Russian soldiers nevertheless participated in the battle: they were Rostislav Mikhailovich, the beloved son-in-law of the Hungarian king, and his supporters during the struggle for Galich, who remained loyal to their leader.
The descriptions of the battle in different chronicles differ. One of the most popular versions sounds like this: before the battle, the duke rode forward in front of his troops in order to push a fiery speech, but vile Russians suddenly attacked him from behind and killed him, at the same time crushing the formation of the Austrian knights. Even the murderer was indicated - "the king of Russia", by which Daniil Galitsky came to mind first, but, most likely, Rostislav Mikhailovich was meant. Everything would be fine, but the sudden covert attack of the Russian vanguard of the Hungarian army on Friedrich, standing next to his troops, who, in theory, saw everything that was happening in front, and this - in an open field, looks somehow strained. Some sources indicate the nature of the duke's mortal wound - a strong blow to the back, and therefore there are two versions of what could have actually happened. The first is based on the fact that there was no stab in the back, and the duke died in a fair fight, slain by some of the Russian soldiers, which is even mentioned in the Hungarian chronicles, since he was especially noted by King Bela IV. The second agrees with a dastardly stab in the back, but one of his own is indicated as the murderers, since not all of the Austrian nobility liked the incessant wars of recent years.
Be that as it may, Frederick II the Warrior fell on the battlefield. What's funny is that his troops still won a victory, but this did not promise anything good due to dynastic problems. The duke did not have male heirs, as well as male representatives of the Babenberg dynasty. According to the Privilegium Minus adopted by the emperors back in 1156, in the case of the suppression of the Babenbergs through the male line, the right to the duchy was transferred through the female line. Only two women survived: Margarita, Frederick's sister, and his niece, Gertrude. The latter has long been considered the official heiress and therefore was an enviable bride. Negotiations about her marriage went on for a long time, but only after the death of Frederick the Czech king Wenceslas I practically forced her to marry his son, Vladislav Moravsky. However, Gertrude herself seemed to love Vladislav and therefore did not mind. But here's the trouble: soon after the wedding, the new Duke of Austria died, which served as a prologue to a massive crisis of power in the duchy. A long struggle for the Austrian inheritance began, in which the Romanovichs and the Galicia-Volyn state were to play an important role …
War of Austrian Succession
Upon learning of the death of Vladislav, Emperor Frederick II von Hohenstaufen, in violation of the bearded law of 1156, declared the territory of the duchy an escheat fief, deciding to simply appropriate it for himself. Gertrude and her supporters were forced to flee to Hungary, fleeing the imperial troops. And, I must say, she had a lot of supporters: tired of the blockhead knights and the ever-warring dukes, the Austrian estates wanted peace and calm development. The Dowager Duchess could provide them with this, since by her nature she was an honest, calm and fair woman. The Pope supported her, and together with the Hungarian king, they returned Austria to the rule of the Babenbergs. Daniil Galitsky also took part in negotiations with Frederick II on the side of the Hungarians, who decided to boo and appeared at the meeting in a purple cloak, the "status" attribute of the Byzantine emperors. Somewhat shocked and bewildered, the negotiators asked the Galician-Volyn ruler to change his clothes, and the emperor even suggested his own, so that the prince would not distract them and morally suppress them by demonstrating such attributes …
In exchange for help from Rome, Gertrude agreed to marry the papal candidate - Hermann VI, Margrave of Baden. He died in 1250, leaving behind a son and daughter. All the years of his reign, he did not enjoy special support from the population, often entering into conflict with the estates. The people demanded a more adequate hubby … Rome again proposed its candidate, but he was so dubious that the duchess refused, thereby depriving herself of the support of the Pope.
Meanwhile, in the north, drastic changes were taking place. The king of the Czech Republic was Přemysl Otakar II - a nature like the same Frederick II the Warrior, only much more enthusiastic and fanatical in terms of military glory and "bending over" neighbors, but at the same time much more capable. Margarita von Babenberg (29 years older than him) as his wife, he invaded Austria in 1251 and forced the local nobility to recognize him as a duke. And here the "blow on the fan" went to the full: this outcome did not like any of the neighbors. Gertrude turned for help to the Hungarian king, Bela IV, and he turned to his friend and ally Daniel Galitsky.
Since the bride needed a husband, preferably as neutral as possible, so that the Austrian estates would accept him, eyes immediately fell on the sons of the Galician-Volyn prince. As a result, in 1252 Roman Danilovich and Gertrude von Babenberg got married. Shortly thereafter, the Hungarian and Russian armies expelled the Czechs from Austria and put a new duke and duchess there to rule. Of all the spouses of Gertrude, Roman, being a fairly balanced and adequate ruler, pleased the Austrian estates most of all, as a result of which he quickly received significant support, and the rather distant location of his father's estate made him much less of a hindrance to the local elites than the neighboring German princes … From the point of view of history, an extremely interesting situation developed: the Romanovichs-Rurikovichs had every chance to remain the dukes of Austria, and history would have followed a completely different path!
And then Pope Innocent IV, who had hesitated before, said his weighty word in favor of Přemysl Otakar II. The Austrians could not argue with this decision on their own, and the coalition that supported them began to collapse: the Hungarians began to slowly take over Styria, Daniil Romanovich was forced to throw all his forces against Kuremsa who attacked him, and the joint campaign with the Poles in the Czech Republic ended with dubious success … By the besieged troops of Přemysl Otakar II in the Gimberg castle near Vienna, Roman and Gertrude, realizing the futility of their struggle, decided to get out of the situation with the least losses. However, there is another version: the son of Daniel Galitsky was simply frightened. Roman fled home to his father; Gertrude with her newborn daughter gave herself up to the protection of the Hungarians and even received a part of Styria in the future. Their marriage was soon declared invalid. The participation of the Galicia-Volyn state in the struggle for Austria ended, and this struggle itself will continue until 1276, when the Habsburgs will take over the rich duchy.
