area was known for its dense woods, of which very little remains today. Local authorities and archaeologists, however, believe that the town had existed as early as 985 as a fortified settlement on the right bank of the Desna River.

Bryansk remained poorly attested until the 1237-1242 Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus'. It was the northernmost of the Severian cities in the possession of the Olgovichi