Aleksandr has used the Mongols to claim his throne, now he has live with them.

Hero? Collaborator? Both? In 2008, Russians voted him their greatest historical hero, but does his life justify the acclaim?

We return to the Northeast to cover the succession to Vsevolod Big Nest, the struggle for Novgorod, and the arrival of the Mongols.

After decades fighting for his birthright, Daniil must face a new enemy.

Roman Mstislavich had united Volhynia and Galicia, but his early death leaves his kingdom open to Rus and foreign pretenders. It will take his son, Daniil, years to recover.

Batu continues his campaign westwards. Despite winning his battles, circumstances force him to return to the Volga to consolidate his rule.

From the chroniclers seeing them as God’s punishment, to Tsarist historians trying to push them out of Russian history altogther, to Stalinists banning any mention of them other than as predatory parasites, this episodes looks at some of the ways Russian historians have struggled to come to grips with the Mongols.

Batu continues his western campaigns and brings about the end of Rus.