. A thousand years of Russian history. al unit, the Russkaya Zemlya or Russian Land. It was Kiev, however, taken from Askold and Dir byOleg, which gradually gained the ascendancy over all theother town-provinces, and to which was accorded thename of mother of Russian towns. Here the first phasesof Russian political development were passed through. Four of the princes of Kiev left their mark on south-western Russia during the first four centuries of Russianliistory. The first of these was the valorous Oleg, a true hero,of whom the bards sang, whose rule is said to have extendedfrom Ladoga to Ki
. A thousand years of Russian history. al unit, the Russkaya Zemlya or Russian Land. It was Kiev, however, taken from Askold and Dir byOleg, which gradually gained the ascendancy over all theother town-provinces, and to which was accorded thename of mother of Russian towns. Here the first phasesof Russian political development were passed through. Four of the princes of Kiev left their mark on south-western Russia during the first four centuries of Russianliistory. The first of these was the valorous Oleg, a true hero,of whom the bards sang, whose rule is said to have extendedfrom Ladoga to Kiev, and who became renowned for hisexpeditions against Byzantium, on the gates of which he issupposed to have hung his shield as a sign of his achievement. The second was Sunny Vladimir (980-1015), whosereign is immortalised in the epics and legends of that heroictime. Having accepted Christianity in 988, Vladimir decidedto make it the national religion, and caused all his peopleto be baptised en masse in the rivers. His choice of the. FROM RURIK TO ANDREI BOGOLYUBSKI 11 Greek form of Christianity was the natural result of tradeintercourse with Byzantium. The prince having thusadopted the Eastern form of worship, Kiev became spirituallyand intellectually a colony of that great city, and in her turncame to occupy a leading position in Russia as a centre ofculture, in addition to exercising poUtical supremacy overother Russian cities. During the tenth and eleventh centuries the importanceof Kiev increased in more than one direction, but it wasespecially as a trading centre that she attracted merchants,who came from afar to attend the eight fairs held thereannually. Greeks, Germans, and Arabs visited her, and intheir writings give glowing accounts of her twelve market-places, her numerous churches, her riches and glory. It was during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise (1015-1054)that Kiev had her golden age, when she reached the zenithof her power and culture, when her princes attaine
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookpublisherlondo, bookyear1915
