The Tale of Igor's Campaign

Translation: Nikolay Alekseevich Zabolotsky

“Lay of Igor’s Campaign” (full title: “The Lay of Igor’s Campaign, of Igor, the son of Sviatoslav, the grandson of Olgov, Old Rus. The Lay of plъk Igorев, Igor, son of Svyatoslav, grandson of Olgov”) is the best-known monument of Old Russian literature. The plot is based on the ill-fated campaign of 1185 by the Russian princes against the Polovtsians, undertaken by the Novgorod-Seversk prince Igor Svyatoslavich. Most scholars date the “Lay” to the end of the 12th century, soon after the events described (often to 1185 itself, less often 1–2 years later).

Filled with motifs of Slavic folk poetry and pagan mythology, in its artistic language the “Lay” sharply stands out against the background of Old Russian literature and ranks among the greatest achievements of European medieval epic. In the history of the monument’s study, the version that the “Lay” is a forgery from the late 18th century (a skeptical view) provoked significant controversy; today, this view is generally rejected by the scholarly community.