Archeological evidence suggests lively trading relationships with the Northern Caucasus and with peoples of the Black Sea coast.
[4] The principality often became involved in conflicts with neighboring Chernigov and Vladimir; by the time of the Mongol invasion their relationships were relatively peaceful.
[citation needed] As a border principality, Ryazan became one of the first Rus' polities conquered by Batu Khan (a military leader of the Mongol forces) who led a united army of various nomadic steppe peoples.
[citation needed] This military tale survived in several sixteenth and the seventeenth century redactions and is thought to be a part of a miscellany that was composed and revised by the clergy of the Church of St. Nikholas of Zaraisk.
[6] Originally, The Tale of Batu's Capture of Ryazan was a part of a cycle dedicated to the icon of St Nicholas of Zarazsk.
The subject matter of transferring sacred objects (crosses, icons, relics) was very common in medieval literature.
[7] As is known from earlier redactions, this first tale located the icon of Saint Nicholas precisely in a banquet room of the church of St. James in the city of Korsun (Chersoneses).
The tale about this wonder-working icon was filled with wondrous interventions of St. Nicholas who directed Eustathius around the dangerous Polovtsian lands to the Russian principality of Ryazan.
Likhachev explains this part as an earlier type of the story that traditionally interpreted every event as foreshadowing upcoming catastrophes, Ryazan's destruction being the divine retribution "казнию божиею".
The icon's name “икона чудотворца Николы Заразская” is specifically associated with the location of the death of Fedor's wife and son.
Likhachev suggests a link to a name of a village settlement nearby Zaraisk called Aponichishi (Апоничищи).
[5][page needed] The tale proper begins as a chronicle-like entry: “Within twelve years after bringing the miraculous icon of St. Nicholas from Kherson, the godless Emperor Batu invaded the Russian land with a great multitude of his Tatar warriors and set up a camp of the river Voronezh in the vicinity of the principality of Riazan.”[a] Then a betrayal of Riazan by its neighbors is narrated.
His lust fueled by storied about Prince Fedor's beautiful wife of Byzantine noble blood, Batu demands for himself concubines from Riazan's ruling families.
A small detachment led by Evpaty Kolovrat hurries to Riazan from Chernigov (where it was at the time of the battle with Batu).
Engaging in an uneven battle, Evpaty Kolovrat manages to significantly undermine the Tartar army, exhibiting extreme heroism, inhuman strength, and endurance.
Furthermore, the chronicle of Ryazan that survived in Novgorod’s copy does not mention any names but still gives details about the invasions that were faithfully repeated in the Tale.
The episode about Evpaty the Fearless in particular has a number of folkloric characteristics like use of hyperbole (the hero seemed endowed with supernatural strength able to fight hundreds of Batu’s warriors by himself.
The ending of the Tale gives some further hints about the date of its creation: Prince Igor returns to restore the city, and peace descends on the region.