by John Pennington
From Collins World
History
At the end of the 9th Century, Russia emerged as
a geographical and political unit. But the word ‘Russian’, which is often used
to refer to its population, is somewhat misleading and the reality is somewhat
more complex.
Slav peoples had occupied the vast area of land spreading from
the Baltic to the Black Sea and from the Bub to the Oka. There is clear
evidence of settlements along the coastal regions of the Black Sea going back
to the 4th Century. The Slavs mixed with older populations of
Iranian origin (the Scythians and Samartians), who, living from agriculture and
from animal husbandry, had taken up a sedentary existence and reached a high
level of civilisation. In the north, settlements followed later. Slav tribes
settled in the region around Novgorod and along the upper reaches of the
Dnieper River around the 7th Century. These were nomadic peoples and
made their living as hunters and gatherers. Their mode of life was similar to
that of the Finno-Ugric peoples who were their near neighbours to the north
east of the Volga. But these small autonomous groups with their local leaders
remained separate from the Finns and the Balts, essentially because of their
language, which also laid the foundation of their own unity. Between the 8th
and 9th Centuries urban centres sprang up along the rivers (which
were the only means of communication), the first of these being Novgorod. Very
early on, the area around Novgorod was occupied by Scandinavian peoples, no
doubt coming from Sweden. In the 9th Century, the arrival of the
Vikings added to these peaceful settlements. The rivers criss-crossing Russia
gave the Scandinavians more direct access than was possible by sea, both to the
Arab countries, along the River Volga and the Don and to Byzantium. Coming down
the Lovat from the Dneiper, the Scandinavian warrior traders (Varangians)
reached the Black Sea then Constantinople, where their goods and services were
paid for in gold. They brought with them slaves as well as furs, wax and honey
levied from the Slavs on their route. The first Russian leaders were drawn from
these bands of adventurers. By forming alliances or by force of arms, they
subjugated the Slav tribes who lived along the commercial routes, founded
cities and carved out vast properties for themselves. In the 10th
Century, Kiev, which was an ancient city, occupying a key position on the ‘road
from the Varangarians to the Greeks’, fell into the hands of the Rurikid
princes, the first royal line for whom there exists documentary evidence. These
princes subjugated Novgorod and put their families in control of neighbouring
towns. Very quickly they became integrated into the Slav population. To reach
the markets in Constantinople, which they first attempted to win over by force,
the Russian princes concluded treaties of alliance and trade with Byzantium. In
order to negotiate successfully with emperors, they had to demonstrate their
own unity and organise themselves according to some definite hierarchical
order. This is emphasised, after the conversion of the Russians to
Christianity, by their ecclesiastical structure. Directly subordinate to the
Patriarch of Constantinople, Kiev became the metropolitan centre of ‘all of
Russia’. The political image of Russian unity was sustained by a religious
ideal, which was much called upon in times of crisis. The culture of Kievan Rus
which was at its heights in the 11th and 12th Centuries,
owed its first literary works and first monuments to the clerics and artists of
Byzantium. After the destruction of Kiev by the Mongols in 1240, the Russian
principalities to the north were to invoke this cultural and spiritual heritage
as a way of consolidating their own hegemonic position.
From Wikipedia
The Primary Chronicle was a history of the Rus from 850 to
1110, written in Kiev in 1113 and considered to be the fundamental source for
the history of the Eastern Slavs.
Rus was the name given to Norsemen who came from over the
sea who eventually came under the leadership of Rurik. The name Rus came from
the Old Norse for ‘people who row’. They were also known as Varangians. They
first settled at Aldiega (Lagoda) in 750 (near St Petersburg).
The Varangians forced tribute out of the local Slavs and Finns
in 859 to the extent they themselves were forced out. Chaos then reigned and
the Varangians were invited back as princes to stabilise the region.
Rurik was elected ruler of Novgorod in 862. His relative Oleg
captured Kiev in 882 and founded Kievan Rus. His family subdued all the local
Slav tribes to become part of Kieven Rus. They also destroyed the Khazars,
attacked Byzantium and Persia. They were the ruling dynasty until 1240 and the
Mongol invasions.
The Varangians were warrior traders, who traded along the
major rivers, and the Black Sea. They first appeared in Constantinople in 820, having come from the rivers of the
north. The Byzantines perceived them as different from Slavs, being tall, fair
and ruddy, warlike in manner and dress. The Rus-Byzantine Treaties of 907 and
945 gives Norse names to most of the signatories on the Rus side.
Over the next couple of centuries, the Varangians became
assimilated into the Eastern Slav population.
In the 10th and 11th Centuries, Kievan
Rus became one of the most prosperous states in Europe. The rules of Vladimir
the Great (980 – 1015) and Yaroslav the Wise (1019 – 1054) constitute the
Golden Age of Kiev and the acceptance of Orthodox Christianity from Byzantium.
Moscow only began to be important after the Mongol influence
had gone in the 14th Century.
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