Andrei, a boyar under Daniilo Romanovich in the 13th century.

(From Russkii Biograficheskii Slovar’, c. 1910, Vol. II, page 128-129.)

 

Andrei, boyar and member of the court of Prince Daniilo Romanovich of Galicia, killed by Tatars in 1255. — In 1225 Andrei traveled to Poland as Daniilo’s emissary. Iin 1227, during the campaign of the Romanovichs against Yaroslav Ingvarevich, he led the leading polk and besieged Lutsk, which surrendered on the following day. In 1241 he was sent to Peremyshl’ against Prince Konstantin, who along with the bishop of that city was instigating a revolt against Daniilo. Konstantin managed to flee from Peremyshl’, and Andrei returned to Daniilo after plundering the lord and his servants and taking prisoner the “famed singer Mitusa.” In 1245 Andrei roamed through Polish lands and laid waste to the region along the river San. Afterwards he was sent with Lev Danilovich, who was too young to wage war on his own, against Rostislav Mikhailovich at Peremyshl’. In a battle on the Sechpitsa river, Rostislav turned out the victor because one of the boyars accompanying Lev “turned his horse around in flight” at the most critical moment. In 1249 the Romanoviches went forth to save the town of Yaroslavl’, under siege by the same Rostislav. They sent Andrei ahead to encourage the besieged. The princes themselves hurried after Andrei, and Rostislav came to meet them. Andrei, though, wanted to take revenge for the previous defeat and he succeeded in intercepting Rostislav, “fought mightily,” and captured Filya, the commander of the Hungarian auxiliary troops. In 1251 Andrei took part in a Polish campaign even though he was ill, so that while fighting he “let his spear fall and was almost killed.” In 1254 he and Prince Lev fought in Silesia, and in the following year he went out with the same Lev to recover Bakota from the Tatar Milei who had taken her captive. Commanding the leading polk, Andrei took Milei prisoner. Tatar reinforcements came up and forced Lev to retreat, but Andrei fell into the hands of the Tatars and “was killed and his heart torn out.”

 

Sources: Polnoe sobranie russkikh letopisei, II, pages 165, 167, 180, 181, 183, 184, 186, 189, 191, and 192.

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Translated by Mark Conrad, 2006.