In 1341,
Özbeg Khan died and
Konstantin of Suzdal took advantage of the situation by occupying
Nizhny Novgorod and
Gorodets. He may have received the right from the khan of the
Golden Horde, possibly
Jani Beg, to the title of
grand prince of Nizhny Novgorod and Gorodets. The
Rogozh Chronicle is the only source to mention this, and it says he "sat in Nizhny Novgorod [and] Gorodets upon the grand-princely throne". This may explain why
Simeon of Moscow did not use military force to reverse Konstantin's gains. After Jani Beg established himself as khan in 1342, Simeon was able to persuade the
boyars of Nizhny Novgorod and Gorodets to transfer their allegiance to him; however, Jani Beg confirmed Konstantin's ownership of the eastern
Volga district. In 1347, the principality received its own
bishop.
Metropolitan Theognostus appointed Nafanail as the bishop of
Suzdal, and presumably Gorodets and Nizhny Novgorod as well. The
Rogozh Chronicle also mentions Konstantin establishing new buildings. According to the historian
John L. I. Fennell, Jani Beg likely altered his policy from that of his father due to the weakened state of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania following the death of
Gediminas. Simeon of Moscow was able to restore Muscovite dominance in
Novgorod, and as a result, Jani Beg was unwilling to strengthen Moscow through the re-acquisition of the eastern Volga district. By 1353, Moscow had been weakened by the deaths of Simeon and his sons, his brother Andrey, as well as the metropolitan, all from the
Black Death. Simeon was succeeded by his brother
Ivan, who lost control of Novgorod and faced increasing opposition. Konstantin of Suzdal enjoyed the backing of Novgorod, which sent ambassadors "requesting that the grand principality be given to Prince Konstantin of Suzdal'". However, Jani Beg granted the patent for the throne of the
Grand Principality of Vladimir to Ivan due to Konstantin's dynastic ties to Lithuania. Despite this, in 1355, Konstantin drew up a treaty of friendship with Moscow; he died the same year, "having honourably defended his patrimony against princes stronger than himself". Konstantin's son
Andrey also drew up a treaty with Ivan the following year and recognized him as his "elder brother", or feudal superior. Following the death of Ivan in 1359,
Dmitry of Suzdal renewed Nizhny Novgorod's claim to the grand princely title, but after a period of negotiations, Khan
Murad recognized
Dmitry of Moscow as grand prince in 1362.
Metropolitan Alexius also sought the approval of
Mamai's protégé,
Abdallāh, to further strengthen Dmitry of Moscow's claim. In response, Murad withdrew his recognition of Dmitry of Moscow and instead recognized Dmitry of Suzdal as grand prince. After the Muscovite army demonstrated a show of force, Dmitry of Suzdal abandoned his claim to the title, and in 1364, he signed a treaty of friendship with Moscow. Two years later, he arranged for his daughter to marry Dmitry of Moscow. The settlement of
Kurmysh was founded in 1372 when its establishment on the
Sura River was ordered. It was the easternmost Russian settlement for almost two centuries and it helped to consolidate Russian influence in the
Volga region. As a result, it bore the brunt of attacks from the east. The princes of Nizhny Novgorod were able to achieve a series of victories over individual detachments of the Golden Horde in the 1370s, but they suffered a crushing defeat in 1377 at the
battle on Pyana River. The Russian troops were crushed by
Arab Shah, leading to Nizhny Novgorod being plundered and occupied until 1378. Following the death of Dmitry in 1383,
Boris ascended to the throne of Nizhny Novgorod, while Dmitry's son Semyon received Suzdal and his brother
Vasily was granted Gorodets. In 1388, they besieged Nizhny Novgorod with the support of Muscovite forces due to dissatisfaction with the distribution of territories. A peace treaty was concluded five days later. According to one interpretation of the terms, Vasily became the grand prince of Nizhny Novgorod while Boris received Gorodets. According to another interpretation, Boris continued to occupy the grand princely throne but ceded almost the entirety of Nizhny Novgorod
volost to his nephews. In 1391, Boris returned to his principality after receiving the patent for the throne from the khan; however,
Vasily I of Moscow was able to purchase the charter for the entire principality from
Tokhtamysh and the boyars of Nizhny Novgorod betrayed Boris by opening the city's gates to Muscovite forces in 1392, after which Nizhny Novgorod lost its independence. Despite the annexation, the territories of the principality were not fully incorporated into the Moscow grand principality until the mid-15th century. Vasily I re-incorporated Nizhny Novgorod into the grand principality and restored direct ecclesiastical control to the metropolitan. From 1393 to 1394, Boris may have retained his former title, but instead became a service prince. Throughout the first half of the 15th century, there were several attempts by representatives of the Suzdal branch of
Rurikids to restore the independence of Nizhny Novgorod. During
Edigu's raid in 1408, independence was briefly re-established and Boris's son Daniil sat on the throne from 1409 until 1415, when Muscovite forces regained control over Nizhny Novgorod and expelled Daniil. The independence of Nizhny Novgorod was restored one final time in 1445 by
Ulugh Muhammad during the Muscovite civil war. However, the following year,
Dmitry Shemyaka brought it to an end. == List of princes ==