Yuri II (, also transcribed as Iuri), also known as George II of Vladimir, or Georgy II Vsevolodovich (26 November 11884 March 1238), was the fourth Grand Prince of Vladimir (1212–1216, 1218–1238) who presided over the Principality of Vladimir-Suzdal at the time of the Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus'.
The third son of Vsevolod III and Maria Shvarnovna, Yuri II was the founder of Nizhny Novgorod and is venerated as a saint in the Russian Orthodox Church.
Early life
Yuri was born in Suzdal on 26 November 1188. On 28 July 1192, he undertook the knightly tonsure in Suzdal, a rite of passage that marked him as a warrior, and was placed on a horse for the first time.
He first distinguished himself in battles against the Principality of Ryazan in 1207. In the winter of 1208–1209, he campaigned against Torzhok alongside his brother Konstantin, and in early 1209 he fought against Ryazan forces that had attacked the outskirts of Moscow. In 1211, Yuri married Agafia, daughter of Vsevolod Svyatoslavich Chermny, Prince of Chernigov. The wedding took place in Vladimir's Cathedral of the Dormition.
In 1211, Yuri's father Vsevolod the Big Nest chose him to inherit the throne of Vladimir, bypassing the traditional rights of his eldest son, Konstantin. Vsevolod convened a council of boyars and clergy to legitimize his decision.
The foundation of Nizhny Novgorod led to conflicts with the neighbouring Mordvins. Vladimir's forces launched campaigns against them in 1226, 1228, 1229, and 1232, suppressing opposition to Vladimir's expansion.
Yuri also intervened in the affairs of other Rus' principalities and the Baltics. When the Mongols first approached in 1223, he sent a detachment under his nephew Vasilko to aid the southern princes, but it arrived in Chernigov too late to participate in the disastrous Battle of the Kalka River. A subsequent conflict with Novgorod in 1224, however, cost the Rus' their last stronghold in the Baltics, Yuryev (Tartu), which was captured by the Germans.
Mongol invasion and death
In the winter of 1237, the Mongol army led by Batu Khan invaded the Principality of Ryazan. The princes of Ryazan appealed to Yuri for aid, but he was hesitant to commit his forces. According to some chronicles, he treated the Mongol envoys who arrived in Vladimir with disdain. He sent his son Vsevolod with a force to assist Ryazan, but it was too late. After Ryazan was destroyed on 16 December, Batu's army advanced towards Kolomna. Yuri's army, led by his son Vsevolod and the voivode Yeremey Glebovich, was soundly defeated at the Battle of Kolomna. Vsevolod fled to Vladimir, while Glebovich was killed.
Yuri himself was killed on 4 March 1238, in the Battle of the Sit River, when the Mongol commander Burundai surprised and defeated the army of Vladimir-Suzdal. Bishop Kirill of Rostov later found Yuri's decapitated body on the battlefield and brought it to Rostov for burial. His head was later found and reunited with his body. In 1239, his brother and successor, Yaroslav II, solemnly transferred his remains to the Dormition Cathedral in Vladimir. Other historians note that even a united Rus' might have struggled against the Mongol military machine, which conquered numerous powerful states in the 13th century.
Yuri was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1645 as a Right-believing Prince. His relics were found to be incorrupt, and he is venerated on 4 February (O.S.) / 17 February (N.S.).