Marfa the Mayoress

Dmitry Balashov’s writing career began with the novella “Mr. Great Novgorod” (1967)—a work by the philologist-rusist, folklorist, and historian, author of the famous cycle of historical novels “Moscow Rulers.” The scholar’s first literary attempt paved the way for a larger work: the novel “Marfa the Posadnitsa” (1972), which is also devoted to dramatic episodes in the history of the Novgorod Republic.

From the very first literary works, Dmitry Balashov’s mature style shows distinctive features: both the novella and the subsequent novel depict the life of Novgorodian society of those far-off centuries—its everyday and spiritual way of living—with extraordinary persuasiveness and authenticity. Populating the ancient republic with vivid characters—partly historical, partly fictional—Balashov turned not only the speech of his heroes, but also the author’s text itself into a masterful stylization of the language of ancient Russian literary monuments.

The plot of the novel “Marfa the Posadnitsa” takes the reader to 1471–1478, into the thick of conflict between the Novgorod Republic and the Grand Duchy of Moscow, which ended with the destruction of the veche system…