Andrei Kobyla

Who is Andrei Kobyla?

Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla was a progenitor of the Romanov dynasty of Russian tsars and many Russian noble families.

This boyar was documented in contemporary chronicles only once, in 1347, when he was sent by Grand Duke Simeon the Proud to Tver with the purpose of meeting Simeon's bride, who was a daughter of Alexander I of Tver. Neither his pedigree nor exact position at court are known, hence the speculation abounds.

Later generations assigned to Kobyla the most illustrious pedigrees. At first it was claimed that he came to Moscow from Prussia in 1341, where his father had been a famous rebel. In the late 17th century, a fictional line of his descent from Julius Caesar was published. It's likely that Kobyla's origins were less spectacular. Not only is Kobyla Russian for mare, but his relatives were also nicknamed after horses and other house animals, thus suggesting descent from one of the Ratshid royal equerries.

16th-century genealogies mention five of Andrei's sons: Simeon Zherebets, Alexander Yolka, Vasily Vantey, Gavrila Gavsha, and Fyodor Koshka.

This article incorporates material from the public domain 1906 Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary.