We will read the new news about Daniel and Moscow in the annals only under 1293. This news also speaks of the princely strife, the result of which was the appearance in Northern Russia of the Tatar prince Duden (Tuden) and the destruction of 14 Russian cities.
Among them was Moscow, since this time Daniel supported the Grand Duke Dmitry Alexandrovich, who again provoked the khan’s anger.
The Tatars came to Moscow from Pereslavl-Zalessky «… and Moscow’s Daniil deceived» (that is, deceived), broke into Moscow and ruined it with the surrounding villages — «… and took all of Moscow, and volosts and villages.»
PRINCE OF DANIEL IN MOSCOW
In the words «… and the Moscow deceived Daniel» one can feel some surprise at the fact that even the experienced Daniel of Moscow was deceived. Soon after Dudeneeva’s rati, Dmitry died. Of the sons of Alexander Nevsky, only Andrei and Daniel survived. From that time on, the Moscow prince began to show great political activity.
In 1297, at the princely congress in Vladimir, in the presence of the khan’s ambassador, Daniel spoke together with the prince of Tver Mikhail Yaroslavich and the prince of Pereslavl Ivan Dmitrievich. He stood, as it were, at the head of the princely group that fought against Andrei Alexandrovich and his allies «… and the god of bloodshed saved the least for little, there was little battle, and having shared the reign, and dispersed to his own homeland.» Moscow with its prince Daniil Alexandrovich enters the rank of large Russian cities. The Moscow prince becomes a political figure, which immediately affects the alignment of the princely forces.
In 1301, the princes gathered again for a congress in Dmitrov. This time the chronicle mentions only 4 princes: the Grand Duke Andrey, the princes of Tver, Moscow and Pereslavl. Peace was made between them.
Only Ivan Dmitrievich Pereslavsky did not come to an agreement with Mikhail Tverskoy. Soon Ivan died and blessed Daniil of Moscow in Pereslavl to reign in his place, «… you love him more than any other.» So the possessions of the Moscow prince immediately expanded greatly. Together with Pereslavl, Dmitrov, who was of great commercial and strategic importance for Moscow, may have gone to the Moscow princes.
Somewhat earlier, Daniel went to war on the Ryazan land and fought near Ryazan itself (Pereyaslavl-Ryazan). Here he captured Prince Constantine of Ryazan by «some trick» and brought him to Moscow. The consequence of this campaign was the annexation of the Moscow principality of Kolomna, which lies at the confluence of the Moskva River into the Oka. Not only Moscow, but also Pereslavl and Kolomna were in the hands of the Moscow princes.
Daniel died on March 5, 1303 as «the grandson of Yaroslavl, the great-grandson of the great Vsevolod», the heir to the great princes of Vladimir. With his death, for Moscow, the period of modest existence as a secondary appanage city ended, the rise of Moscow began, first as the center of North-Eastern Russia, and then as the center of all of Russia.
