Women of the Rurik Dynasty: The Untold Story

Everyone knows the rulers from the Rurik dynasty: Svyatoslav the Brave, Yaroslav the Wise, Vladimir Monomakh, Andrei Bogolyubsky, Dmitry Donskoy, Ivan the Great, Ivan the Terrible. But the women of the ruling dynasty invariably remain in the shadows, the only exception being Princess Olga, who was a sovereign ruler at the dawn of the Rurik house's history. What was life like for the women of the ruling house - mothers, wives, sisters of the Rurikoviches - in the male-dominated world of medieval state politics, wars, and intrigues, bearing the difficult task of continuing the dynasty on their fragile shoulders?

In her new book, Marina Bandilenko, screenwriter of popular historical series and author of bestsellers in the "Dokudramas" series, presents readers with a "female perspective" on the medieval history of Russia – through the fates of the women of the Rurik dynasty. This is unique material that can only be accessed in book format.

Among the heroines are: the Swedish princess Ingegerd - wife of Yaroslav the Wise, and their daughter Anna, who became the queen of France; the English princess Gita of Wessex - wife of Vladimir Monomakh, and Princess Evdokia of Moscow, wife of Dmitry Donskoy; Princess Ulita Kuchkovna - wife of Andrei Bogolyubsky, and Princess Fevronia of Murom; Greek princess Sophia Palaiologina and the first Russian tsarina Anastasia. Their origins, characters, marital relationships, and involvement in state affairs varied greatly, but they were united by one thing: they were the guardians of the ruling house, in sorrow and in joy, in victories and defeats.