Origin Prior to the emergence of Kievan Rus' in the 9th century, most of the area north of the
Black Sea was primarily populated by
eastern Slavic tribes. In the northern region around
Novgorod were the
Ilmen Slavs and neighboring
Krivichi, who occupied territories surrounding the headwaters of the
West Dvina,
Dnieper and
Volga rivers. To their north, in the
Ladoga and
Karelia regions, were the
Chud: various
Baltic Finnic peoples. In the south, in the area around Kiev, were the
Poliane, the
Drevliane to the west of the Dnieper, and the
Severiane to the east. To their north and east were the
Vyatichi, and to their south was forested land settled by Slav farmers, giving way to
steppelands populated by nomadic herdsmen. Some of the East Slavic tribes belonged to the
Luka-Raikovetska culture, while others to the
Volyntsevo culture. More recently, in the context of resurgent nationalism in post-Soviet states, Anglophone scholarship has analyzed renewed efforts to use this debate to create ethno-nationalist foundation stories, with governments sometimes directly involved in the project. Conferences and publications questioning the Norse origins of the Rus' have been supported directly by state policy in some cases, and the resultant foundation myths have been included in some school textbooks in Russia. While Varangians were Norse traders and
Vikings, many Russian and Ukrainian nationalist historians argue that the Rus' were themselves Slavs. Normanist theories focus on the earliest written source for the
East Slavs, the
Primary Chronicle, which was produced in the 12th century. Nationalist accounts on the other hand have suggested that the Rus' were present before the arrival of the Varangians, noting that only a handful of Scandinavian words can be found in Russian and that Scandinavian names in the early chronicles were soon replaced by Slavic names. Nevertheless, the close connection between the Rus' and the Norse is confirmed both by extensive Scandinavian settlement in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine and by Slavic influences in the Swedish language. Though the debate over the origin of the Rus' remains politically charged, there is broad agreement that if the proto-Rus' were indeed originally Norse, they were quickly
nativized, adopting Slavic languages and other cultural practices. This position, roughly representing a scholarly consensus (at least outside nationalist historiography), was summarized by the historian, F. Donald Logan, "in 839, the Rus were
Swedes; in 1043 the Rus were
Slavs".
Ahmad ibn Fadlan, an Arab traveler during the 10th century, provided one of the earliest written descriptions of the Rus': "They are as tall as a
date palm, blond and ruddy, so that they do not need to wear a tunic nor a cloak; rather the men among them wear garments that only cover half of his body and leaves one of his hands free."
Liutprand of Cremona, who was twice an envoy to the
Byzantine court (949 and 968), identifies the "Russi" with the
Norse ("the Russi, whom we call Norsemen by another name") but explains the name as a Greek term referring to their physical traits ("A certain people made up of a part of the Norse, whom the Greeks call [...] the Russi on account of their physical features, we designate as Norsemen because of the location of their origin.").
Leo the Deacon, a 10th-century Byzantine historian and chronicler, refers to the Rus' as "
Scythians" and notes that they tended to adopt Greek rituals and customs.
Calling of the Varangians '' by
Viktor Vasnetsov:
Rurik and his brothers
Sineus and Truvor arrive at the lands of the
Ilmen Slavs. According to the
Primary Chronicle, the territories of the East Slavs in the 9th century were divided between the Varangians and the Khazars. The Varangians are first mentioned imposing tribute on the northern tribes in 859. In 862, various tribes rebelled against the Varangians, driving them "back beyond the sea and, refusing them further tribute, set out to govern themselves". Modern scholars find this an unlikely series of events, probably made up by the 12th-century Orthodox priests who authored the
Chronicle as an explanation how the Vikings managed to conquer the lands along the Varangian route so easily, as well as to support the legitimacy of the Rurikid dynasty. The three brothers—
Rurik,
Sineus and Truvor—supposedly established themselves in Novgorod,
Beloozero and
Izborsk, respectively. Two of the brothers died, and Rurik became the sole ruler of the territory and progenitor of the
Rurik dynasty. A short time later, two of Rurik's men,
Askold and Dir, asked him for permission to go to
Tsargrad (
Constantinople). On their way south, they came upon "a small city on a hill", Kiev, which was a tributary of the Khazars at the time, stayed there and "established their dominion over the country of the
Polyanians." The Rus' turned back before attacking the city itself, due either to a storm dispersing their boats, the return of the Emperor, or in a later account, due to a miracle after a ceremonial appeal by the Patriarch and the Emperor to the Virgin. The attack was the first encounter between the Rus' and Byzantines and led the Patriarch to send missionaries north to engage and attempt to convert the Rus' and the Slavs.
Foundation of the Kievan state According to the
Primary Chronicle, Rurik led the Rus' until his death around 879, bequeathing his kingdom to his kinsman,
Oleg, as regent for his young son,
Igor. It then says that Oleg captured
Smolensk and later Kiev in 882. He killed Askold and Dir and made Kiev the new capital. Oleg set about consolidating his power over the surrounding region and the riverways north to Novgorod, imposing tribute on the East Slav tribes. Although the
Primary Chronicle states that Oleg transferred his capital to Kiev, this account differs from what most Latin and Greek sources report for the next century, in which Kiev is still presented as only an outpost. In 883, he conquered the
Drevlians, imposing a fur tribute on them. By 885 he had subjugated the Poliane, Severiane, Vyatichi, and
Radimichs, forbidding them to pay further tribute to the Khazars. Oleg continued to develop and expand a network of Rus' forts in Slavic lands, begun by Rurik in the north. The new Kievan state prospered due to its abundant supply of furs, beeswax, honey and slaves for export, and because it controlled three main trade routes of
Eastern Europe. In the north, Novgorod served as a commercial link between the Baltic Sea and the
Volga trade route to the lands of the
Volga Bulgars, the Khazars, and across the
Caspian Sea as far as
Baghdad, providing access to markets and products from Central Asia and the Middle East. Trade from the Baltic also moved south on a network of rivers and short portages along the Dnieper known as the "
route from the Varangians to the Greeks," continuing to the Black Sea and on to Constantinople. Kiev was a central outpost along the Dnieper route and a hub with the east–west overland
trade route between the Khazars and the Germanic lands of Central Europe. and may have been a staging post for
Radhanite Jewish traders between Western Europe, Itil and China. These commercial connections enriched Rus' merchants and princes, funding military forces and the construction of churches, palaces, fortifications, and further towns. Demand for luxury goods fostered the production of expensive jewelry and religious wares, allowing their export, and an advanced credit and money-lending system may have also been in place. trading and frequently
allying with the
Byzantine Empire against Persians and Arabs. In the late 8th century, the collapse of the
Göktürk Khaganate led the
Magyars and the
Pechenegs to migrate west from Central Asia into the
steppe region, leading to military conflict, disruption of trade, and instability within the Khazar Khaganate. The Rus' and Slavs had earlier allied with the Khazars against Arab raids on the Caucasus, but they increasingly worked against them to secure control of the
trade routes. (red), the "
route from the Varangians to the Greeks" (purple) and other trade routes of the 8th–11th centuries (orange) The Byzantine Empire was able to take advantage of the turmoil to expand its political influence and commercial relationships, first with the Khazars and later with the Rus' and other steppe groups. The Byzantines established the
Theme of
Cherson, formally known as Klimata, in the Crimea in the 830s to defend against raids by the Rus' and to protect vital grain shipments supplying Constantinople. Cherson also served as a key diplomatic link with the Khazars and others on the steppe, and it became the centre of Black Sea commerce. The Byzantines also helped the Khazars build a fortress at
Sarkel on the Don river to protect their northwest frontier against incursions by the Turkic migrants and the Rus', and to control caravan trade routes and the portage between the Don and Volga rivers. The expansion of the Rus' put further military and economic pressure on the Khazars, depriving them of territory, tributaries and trade. In around 890, Oleg waged an indecisive war in the lands of the lower
Dniester and Dnieper rivers with the
Tivertsi and the
Ulichs, who were likely acting as vassals of the Magyars, blocking Rus' access to the Black Sea. In 894, the Magyars and Pechenegs were drawn into
the wars between the Byzantines and the
Bulgarian Empire. The Byzantines arranged for the Magyars to attack Bulgarian territory from the north, and Bulgaria in turn persuaded the Pechenegs to attack the Magyars from their rear. Boxed in, the Magyars were forced to migrate further west across the
Carpathian Mountains into the Hungarian plain, depriving the Khazars of an important ally and a buffer from the Rus'. As the 10th century progressed, the Khazars were no longer able to command tribute from the Volga Bulgars, and their relationship with the Byzantines deteriorated, as Byzantium increasingly allied with the Pechenegs against them. The Pechenegs were thus secure to raid the lands of the Khazars from their base between the Volga and
Don rivers, allowing them to expand to the west. Relations between the Rus' and Pechenegs were complex, as the groups alternately formed alliances with and against one another. The Pechenegs were nomads roaming the steppe raising livestock which they traded with the Rus' for agricultural goods and other products. The lucrative Rus' trade with the Byzantine Empire had to pass through Pecheneg-controlled territory, so the need for generally peaceful relations was essential. Nevertheless, while the
Primary Chronicle reports the Pechenegs entering Rus' territory in 915 and then making peace, they were waging war with one another again in 920. Pechenegs are reported assisting the Rus' in later campaigns against the Byzantines, yet allied with the Byzantines against the Rus' at other times.
Rus'–Byzantine relations After the Rus' attack on Constantinople in 860, the Byzantine
Patriarch Photius sent missionaries north to convert the Rus' and the Slavs to Christianity. Prince
Rastislav of Moravia had requested the Emperor to provide teachers to interpret the holy scriptures, so in 863 the brothers
Cyril and Methodius were sent as missionaries, due to their knowledge of the Slavonic language. The Slavs had no written language, so the brothers devised the
Glagolitic alphabet, later replaced by
Cyrillic (developed in the
First Bulgarian Empire) and standardized the language of the Slavs, later known as
Old Church Slavonic. They translated portions of the Bible and drafted the first Slavic civil code and other documents, and the language and texts spread throughout Slavic territories, including Kievan Rus'. The mission of Cyril and Methodius served both evangelical and diplomatic purposes, spreading Byzantine cultural influence in support of imperial foreign policy. In 867 the Patriarch announced that the Rus' had accepted a bishop, and in 874 he speaks of an "Archbishop of the Rus'." Relations between the Rus' and Byzantines became more complex after Oleg took control over Kiev, reflecting commercial, cultural, and military concerns. The wealth and income of the Rus' depended heavily upon trade with Byzantium.
Constantine Porphyrogenitus described the annual course of the princes of Kiev, collecting tribute from client tribes, assembling the product into a flotilla of hundreds of boats, conducting them down the Dnieper to the Black Sea, and sailing to the estuary of the Dniester, the Danube delta, and on to Constantinople. On their return trip they would carry silk fabrics, spices, wine, and fruit. The importance of this trade relationship led to military action when disputes arose. The
Primary Chronicle reports that the Rus'
attacked Constantinople again in 907, probably to secure trade access. The Chronicle glorifies the military prowess and shrewdness of Oleg, an account imbued with legendary detail. Byzantine sources do not mention the attack, but a pair of treaties in
907 and
911 set forth a trade agreement with the Rus', the terms suggesting pressure on the Byzantines, who granted the Rus' quarters and supplies for their merchants and tax-free trading privileges in Constantinople. The
Chronicle provides a mythic tale of Oleg's death. A sorcerer prophesies that the death of the
prince would be associated with a certain horse. Oleg has the horse sequestered, and it later dies. Oleg goes to visit the horse and stands over the carcass, gloating that he had outlived the threat, when a snake strikes him from among the bones, and he soon becomes ill and dies. The
Chronicle reports that
Prince Igor succeeded Oleg in 913, and after some brief conflicts with the Drevlians and the Pechenegs, a period of peace ensued for over twenty years. 's avenge to the Drevlians,
Radziwiłł Chronicle In 941, Igor led another
major Rus' attack on Constantinople, probably over trading rights again. A navy of 10,000 vessels, including Pecheneg allies, landed on the
Bithynian coast and devastated the Asiatic shore of the Bosphorus. The attack was well timed, perhaps due to intelligence, as the Byzantine fleet was occupied with the Arabs in the Mediterranean, and the bulk of its army was stationed in the east. The Rus' burned towns, churches and monasteries, butchering the people and amassing booty. The emperor arranged for a small group of retired ships to be outfitted with
Greek fire throwers and sent them out to meet the Rus', luring them into surrounding the contingent before unleashing the Greek fire.
Liutprand of Cremona wrote that "the Rus', seeing the flames, jumped overboard, preferring water to fire. Some sank, weighed down by the weight of their breastplates and helmets; others caught fire." Those captured were beheaded. The ploy dispelled the Rus' fleet, but their attacks continued into the hinterland as far as
Nicomedia, with many atrocities reported as victims were crucified and set up for use as targets. At last a Byzantine army arrived from the Balkans to drive the Rus' back, and a naval contingent reportedly destroyed much of the Rus' fleet on its return voyage (possibly an exaggeration since the Rus' soon mounted another attack). The outcome indicates increased military might by Byzantium since 911, suggesting a shift in the balance of power. Igor returned to Kiev keen for revenge. He assembled a large force of warriors from among neighboring Slavs and Pecheneg allies, and sent for reinforcements of Varangians from "beyond the sea". In 944, the Rus' force advanced again on the Greeks, by land and sea, and a Byzantine force from Cherson responded. The Emperor sent gifts and offered tribute in lieu of war, and the Rus' accepted. Envoys were sent between the Rus', the Byzantines, and the Bulgarians in 945, and a
peace treaty was completed. The agreement again focused on trade, but this time with terms less favorable to the Rus', including stringent regulations on the conduct of Rus' merchants in Cherson and Constantinople and specific punishments for violations of the law. The Byzantines may have been motivated to enter the treaty out of concern of a prolonged alliance of the Rus', Pechenegs, and Bulgarians against them, though the more favorable terms further suggest a shift in power.
Sviatoslav '', meeting between
John Tzimiskes and Sviatoslav Following the death of
Igor in 945, his wife
Olga ruled as
regent in Kiev until their son
Sviatoslav reached maturity (c. 963). His decade-long reign over Kievan Rus' was marked by rapid expansion through the conquest of the Khazars of the
Pontic steppe and the
invasion of the Balkans. By the end of his short life, Sviatoslav carved out for himself the largest state in Europe, eventually moving his capital from Kiev to
Pereyaslavets on the
Danube in 969. In contrast with his mother's conversion to
Christianity, Sviatoslav, like his
druzhina, remained a staunch
pagan. Due to his abrupt death in an ambush in 972, Sviatoslav's conquests, for the most part, were not consolidated into a functioning empire, while his failure to establish a stable succession led to a
fratricidal feud among his sons, which resulted in two of his three sons being killed.
Reign of Vladimir and Christianisation ,
Vladimir I of Kiev and
Izyaslav of Polotsk , in
St Volodymyr's Cathedral It is not clearly documented when the title of grand prince was first introduced, but the importance of the Kiev principality was recognized after the death of Sviatoslav I in 972 and
the ensuing struggle between
Vladimir and
Yaropolk. The region of Kiev dominated the region for the next two centuries. The grand prince (or grand duke) of Kiev controlled the lands around the city, and his formally subordinate relatives ruled the other cities and paid him tribute. The zenith of the state's power came during the reigns of Vladimir the Great () and Prince
Yaroslav I the Wise (). Both rulers continued the steady expansion of Kievan Rus' that had begun under Oleg. Vladimir had been
prince of Novgorod when his father Sviatoslav I died in 972, but fled to
Scandinavia in 977 after his half-brother Yaropolk killed his other half-brother Oleg. According to the
Primary Chronicle, Vladimir assembled a host of Varangian warriors, first subdued the
Principality of Polotsk and then defeated and killed Yaropolk, thus establishing his reign over the entire Kievan Rus' realm. Although sometimes solely attributed to Vladimir, the
Christianization of Kievan Rus' was a long and complicated process that began before the state's formation. As early as the 1st century AD,
Greeks in the Black Sea Colonies converted to Christianity, and the
Primary Chronicle even records the legend of
Andrew the Apostle's mission to these coastal settlements, as well as blessing the site of present-day Kyiv. The
Goths migrated to through the region in the 3rd century, adopting
Arian Christianity in the 4th century, leaving behind 4th- and 5th-century churches excavated in Crimea, although the
Hunnic invasion of the 370s halted Christianisation for several centuries. Some of the earliest Kievan princes and princesses such as
Askold and Dir and
Olga of Kiev reportedly converted to Christianity, but
Oleg,
Igor and
Sviatoslav remained pagans. The
Primary Chronicle records the legend that when Vladimir had decided to accept a new faith instead of traditional
Slavic paganism, he sent out some of his most valued advisors and warriors as emissaries to different parts of Europe. They visited the Christians of the
Latin Church, the
Jews, and the
Muslims before finally arriving in Constantinople. They rejected Islam because, among other things, it prohibited the consumption of alcohol, and Judaism because the god of the Jews had permitted his
chosen people to be deprived of their country. They found the ceremonies in the Roman church to be dull. But at Constantinople, they were so astounded by the beauty of the cathedral of
Hagia Sophia and the liturgical service held there that they made up their minds there and then about the faith they would like to follow. Upon their arrival home, they convinced Vladimir that the faith of the
Byzantine Rite was the best choice of all, upon which Vladimir made a journey to Constantinople and arranged to marry
Princess Anna, the sister of Byzantine emperor
Basil II. Historically, it is more likely that he adopted Byzantine Christianity in order to strengthen his diplomatic relations with Constantinople. Vladimir's choice of Eastern Christianity may have reflected his close personal ties with Constantinople, which dominated the Black Sea and hence trade on Kiev's most vital commercial route, the
Dnieper River. Following the
Great Schism of 1054, the Kievan church maintained communion with both Rome and Constantinople for some time, but along with most of the Eastern churches it eventually split to follow the Eastern Orthodox. That being said, unlike other parts of the Greek world, Kievan Rus' did not have a strong hostility to the Western world.
Reign of Yaroslav in 2018
Yaroslav, known as "the Wise", struggled for power with his brothers. A son of
Vladimir the Great, he was prince of Novgorod at the time of his father's death in 1015. Although he first established his rule over Kiev in 1019, he did not have uncontested rule of all of Kievan Rus' until 1036. Like Vladimir, Yaroslav was eager to improve relations with the rest of Europe, especially the Byzantine Empire. Yaroslav's granddaughter,
Eupraxia, the daughter of his son
Vsevolod I, was married to
Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor. Yaroslav also arranged marriages for his sister and three daughters to the kings of Poland, France, Hungary and Norway. Yaroslav promulgated the first law code of Kievan Rus', the
Russkaya Pravda; built
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev and
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod; patronized local clergy and
monasticism; and is said to have founded a school system. Yaroslav's sons developed the great
Kiev Pechersk Lavra (
monastery).
Succession issues In the centuries that followed the state's foundation,
Rurik's descendants shared power over Kievan Rus'. The means by which royal power was transferred from one Rurikid ruler to the next is unclear, however, historian
Paul Magocsi mentioned that 'Scholars have debated what the actual system of succession was or whether there was any system at all.' According to historian
Nancy Shields Kollmann, the
rota system was used with the princely succession moving from elder to younger brother and from uncle to nephew, as well as from father to son. Junior members of the dynasty usually began their official careers as rulers of a minor district, progressed to more lucrative principalities, and then competed for the coveted throne of Kiev. Whatever the case, according to professor Ivan Katchanovski 'no adequate system of succession to the Kievan throne was developed' after the death of
Yaroslav the Wise (), commencing a process of gradual disintegration. The unconventional power succession system fomented constant hatred and rivalry within the royal family.
Familicide was frequently deployed to obtain power and can be traced particularly during the time of the Yaroslavichi (sons of Yaroslav), when the established succession system was skipped in the establishment of
Vladimir II Monomakh as the Grand Prince of Kiev (), in turn creating major squabbles between the
Olegovichi (sons of
Oleg I) from Chernigov, the
Monomakhovichi from Pereyaslavl, the
Izyaslavichi (sons of
Iziaslav) from
Turov–
Volhynia, and the
Polotsk Princes. The position of the grand prince of Kiev was weakened by the growing influence of regional clans.
Fragmentation and decline The rival
Principality of Polotsk was contesting the power of the Grand Prince by occupying Novgorod, while
Rostislav Vladimirovich was fighting for the Black Sea port of
Tmutarakan belonging to Chernigov. Three of Yaroslav's sons who first allied together found themselves fighting each other especially after their defeat to the Cuman forces in 1068 at the
Battle of the Alta River. The ruling Grand Prince Iziaslav fled to Poland asking for support and in a couple of years returned to establish the order. The affairs became even more complicated by the end of the 11th century driving the state into chaos and constant warfare. On the initiative of Vladimir II Monomakh in 1097 the
Council of Liubech of Kievan Rus' took place near Chernigov with the main intention to find an understanding among the fighting sides. By 1130, all descendants of
Vseslav the Seer had been exiled to the Byzantine Empire by
Mstislav the Great. The most fierce resistance to the Monomakhs was posed by the Olegovichi when the
izgoi Vsevolod II managed to become the Grand Prince of Kiev. The
Rostislavichi, who had initially established in the lands of
Galicia by 1189, were defeated by the Monomakh-Piast descendant
Roman the Great. The decline of Constantinople—a main trading partner of Kievan Rus'—played a significant role in the decline of the Kievan Rus'. The
trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks, along which the goods were moving from the Black Sea (mainly Byzantine) through
eastern Europe to the Baltic, was a cornerstone of Kievan wealth and prosperity. These trading routes became less important as the Byzantine Empire declined in power and Western Europe created new trade routes to Asia and the Near East. As people relied less on passing through the territories of Kievan Rus' for trade, the economy of Kievan Rus' suffered. The last ruler to maintain a united state was Mstislav the Great. After his death in 1132, Kievan Rus' fell into recession and a rapid decline, and Mstislav's successor
Yaropolk II of Kiev, instead of focusing on the external threat of the
Cumans, was embroiled in conflicts with the growing power of the
Novgorod Republic. In March 1169, a coalition of native princes led by Andrei Bogolyubsky of Vladimir
sacked Kiev. This changed the perception of Kiev and was evidence of the fragmentation of the Kievan Rus'. By the end of the 12th century, the Kievan state fragmented even further, into roughly twelve different principalities. , one of the successor states of Kievan Rus' The
Crusades brought a shift in European trade routes that accelerated the decline of Kievan Rus'. In 1204, the forces of the
Fourth Crusade sacked Constantinople, making the
Dnieper trade route marginal. On the southwestern periphery, Kievan Rus' was succeeded by the
Principality of Galicia-Volhynia. Later, as these territories, now part of modern central
Ukraine and
Belarus, fell to the
Gediminids, the powerful, largely Ruthenized
Grand Duchy of Lithuania drew heavily on the cultural and legal traditions of the Rus'. From 1398 until the
Union of Lublin in 1569, its full name was the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Ruthenia and Samogitia. On the north-eastern periphery of Kievan Rus', traditions were adapted in the
Vladimir-Suzdal principality that gradually gravitated towards Moscow. To the very north, the
Novgorod and
Pskov feudal republics were less autocratic than Vladimir-Suzdal-Moscow until they were absorbed by the
Grand Duchy of Moscow. Modern historians from Belarus, Russia and Ukraine alike consider Kievan Rus' the first period of their modern countries' histories. == Society ==