895 years ago, on May 19, 1125, one of the most famous princes of Kievan Rus, Vladimir Svyatoslavich Monomakh, passed away. He proved himself as a wise ruler, first governing the Smolensk principality, then Chernigov and Pereyaslav, and ascended to the Kievan throne only at the age of 60.

Vladimir Monomakh was the son of the Grand Prince of Kiev Svyatoslav Yaroslavich and a Byzantine princess, whose name history has not preserved. Due to his Byzantine heritage on his mother's side, he received the nickname Monomakh and ordered to depict himself on coins in the image of the archon of all the land of Rus, which was a tradition of the Byzantine Empire.

Vladimir Svyatoslavich participated not only in internecine wars but also in campaigns against the Czechs and nomads. He fought several times against the Polovtsians and in 1103 gathered a united Russian army, which inflicted serious defeats on them twice.

Upon becoming the Grand Prince, Monomakh suppressed a rebellion in Kiev and implemented reforms that improved the lives of ordinary people. In 1116, he undertook a campaign to Byzantium, justifying it by the supposed return of the throne to the allegedly surviving Leo Diogenes, but the war yielded no results, and the troops returned.

In addition to military affairs, Monomakh established the tradition of dynastic marriages among the Rurikids and engaged in literature. He wrote at least four works, the most famous of which is "The Instruction of Vladimir Monomakh."

The Grand Prince of Kiev Vladimir Monomakh died on May 19, 1125, in Kiev. In our time, many books have been written about him, and he is depicted in paintings, including those by Viktor Vasnetsov. Monuments to Vladimir Monomakh have been erected in Russia and Ukraine, and commemorative coins and stamps featuring his image have been issued.