Exploits of Alexander Nevsky are “the more famous and of people’s nature that they are devoid of egoism…”

On the eve of the 795th anniversary of the Grand Prince, Russian commander Alexander Nevsky, celebrated May 30, (1220-1263), the Presidential Library published on its website a compilation of rare books of the second half of the 19th century about one of the most venerated saints in Russia.

"Every nation has its cherished names that will never be forgotten, on the contrary - the further the historical life of the people is developing, the brighter, lighter becomes in the memory of posterity the moral character of those figures who, giving all their forces to serve their people, were able to do them significant favors," reads the electronic copy of M. Khitrov’s "The Holy Blessed Grand Prince Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky."

Services of the Prince to the Fatherland were so significant that the worship of Alexander Nevsky as a saint began immediately after his death. The book explains why the glory of the prince was so great during his lifetime. It describes the main battles won by him - the battle with the Swedes on the Neva River in 1240 and the Battle on the Ice with the German knights in 1242. Due to the victory over the Swedes, Alexander was given the nickname Nevsky.

All attempts to conquer, to oppress the Russians, Prince regarded as predatory and tried to persuade his army in an apparent moral superiority of the defenders of the Russian land of the enemy. "The God is not in power, but in truth!" – it is not accidental that these words are attributed to him since in the mouth of the great general they gain special power. Because everything that Prince Nevsky was doing, he did with faith in God and the supreme justice. "Under the influence of his pious mother, the holy Princess Theodosia, he was brought up in a deeply religious manner, says the book "The Holy Blessed Grand Prince Alexander Nevsky and the Holy Trinity Alexander Nevsky Lavra: in memory of the bicentenary of the monastery, 1713-1913" held by the Presidential Library. From a young age, by the will of Providence, St. Alexander found himself not under the parental peaceful roof deprived of everyday anxieties and worries, but in the middle of troubles in the then turbulent life."

Alexander Nevsky, who had never lost a battle in his life, showed talent of a commander and diplomat, having made peace with the most powerful enemy - the Golden Horde. The fact, which made particularly noticeable the strategic scope of the Prince: repulsing the enemies in the West, Alexander drove away the ambassadors of Pope Innocent IV, who offered Russia to adopt Catholicism in exchange for help in the fight against the Tartars. Owing to his unfathomable historical flair, he chose a temporary submission to the Horde, realizing that "the Mongol yoke brought slavery to the body but not the soul, while submission to Rome threatened to distort the very soul."

Understanding of this makes the victories of Prince Nevsky in the north-western borders of Russia even more significant, which is emphasized by Mikhail Khmyrov in his "Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky, the Grand Prince of Vladimir and All Rus." It was a bright page in the history of the struggle of Russian people for their national and political independence. The book also contains the author's profound remark about the features of the commander’s personality: "The exploits of Alexander are brighter, more famous and of people’s nature that they are devoid of egoism, which is, to a greater or lesser extent, characteristic of other historically remarkable Russian sovereigns."

After the death, Alexander Nevsky became the patron saint of his homeland. The Church canonized him as a saint. The reigning Northern capital had the rare fortune to store within it the relics of the Holy Prince. A monastery in St. Petersburg was named after Alexander Nevsky (in 1797 it received the status of Lavra).

"Prince Alexander Nevsky - a truly great worker of the Russian land, crowned with heavenly glory, summarizes N. Voskresensky in the electronic copy of "The Holy Blessed Grand Prince Alexander Nevsky." He worked a lot, notes an ancient chronicler of the Russian land, giving his life for the orthodox faith. No wonder all true sons of our country in the space of more than six centuries were filled with reverent feelings of reverence, as a sufferer for the Russian land. "

The presence of such strong national leaders as Alexander Nevsky allowed Russia to become one of the most powerful states in the world