manasecret
08-22-2008, 03:44 PM
This is a series from KnowledgeNews.net. KnowledgeNews sends out an email a day on something in history, typically in reference to the latest world events. If you like this series, I recommend signing up. I think it's $39 for a lifetime membership now, and I think a cheaper one for an annual fee.
Just to note, I am in no way affiliated with KnowledgeNews, I'm just doing a little CYA for myself. I decided to post these since I found them interesting.
Now, on to Part 1 of series.
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A Trip To Russia
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f294/barneyis666/a1733.jpg
Russia's long history looms large
Before there were Russians--or Ukrainians or Belarusians--there were East Slavs, the ethnic ancestors of them all. And before Russia, there was Kievan Rus, the Golden Horde, Muscovy, and Ivans both great and terrible.
Kievan Roots
The East Slavs' first major state, Kievan Rus, emerged in the 9th century and was centered in Kiev, Ukraine's current capital. Kievan Rus flourished for more than 200 years, thanks to its control over a lucrative trade route between the Baltic and Black Seas. The trade route connected Kiev with Constantinople, ancient capital of the Byzantine Empire and center of Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
At least part of the credit for founding Kievan Rus goes to Scandinavian Vikings, whom the locals called "Varangians" or "Rus" ("Russia" means "land of the Rus"). The Vikings arrived in the area during the 9th century, apparently looking to trade, and a less-than-centralized region soon became more centralized. Scholars argue about whether Scandinavians or Slavs were more important to Kievan Rus's development, but they agree that the medieval state reached its zenith around the turn of the 11th century.
In 988, Kiev's Grand Prince Vladimir converted to Orthodox Christianity and established Orthodoxy as the state religion. Soon Byzantine churches were cropping up across the region, and Byzantine cultural influences were taking root. Vladimir's successor, Yaroslav the Wise, presided over a cultural golden age. He built the famous Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Kiev and promulgated the first East Slavic legal code, the Rus'ka Pravda ("Justice of Rus").
Rise of the Golden Horde
When he died, Yaroslav the Wise (rather unwisely) divided up his territory among his heirs. A plethora of principalities were soon warring with one another, and the Rus's region became less than centralized again. In its weakened state, Kievan Rus was no match for the Mongol armies that swept across eastern Europe in the 13th century.
In 1240, Mongols under Batu Khan, Genghis Khan's grandson, destroyed Kiev--the final, fatal blow to Kievan Rus. Batu set up his own capital hundreds of miles away, at Sarai, not far from the Caspian Sea. There he founded the so-called "Golden Horde" khanate, which enjoyed near-complete autonomy within the Mongol Empire. For more than 200 years, the Golden Horde ruled Russia, often indirectly, with local princes and tax collectors paying tribute to the khans.
Despite traditional claims to the contrary, the years of Mongol rule were not universally bad. On the down side, Kievan Rus never recovered, and the East Slavs split into three distinct groups: the so-called "White Russians" (Belarusians), "Little Russians" (Ukrainians), and "Great Russians" (Russians). On the up side, new states began to take off--among them, the principality of Muscovy, centered in the little town of Moscow.
Making Muscovy
When the Mongols arrived in Kievan Rus, Moscow wasn't much more than a backwoods trading post. Over the next few centuries, a series of skilled and ambitious princes made it the center of the most powerful state in the region. First was Daniel Aleksandrovich, the youngest son of a local prince and war hero, who founded the principality of Muscovy in 1301. Following his father's lead, Daniel worked out a deal with the khans to serve as their vassal.
Daniel's son, Ivan I (a.k.a. "Ivan Money Bags"), also worked closely with the Mongols. He put Muscovy in a position of regional superiority by collecting tribute from other Russian princes on the khan's behalf. He also convinced the local head of the Orthodox church to move to Moscow in 1327.
Over the next 150 years, the principality's power expanded. Meanwhile, the Golden Horde began to weaken. Finally, in 1480, the Muscovite prince Ivan III (a.k.a. "Ivan the Great") stopped paying tribute and gained full sovereignty over most ethnically Russian lands. The Golden Horde disintegrated. As it did, Ivan III was increasingly called "czar"--though the word wasn't part of a Russian ruler's official title until Ivan IV (a.k.a. "Ivan the Terrible") adopted it in 1547.
The Russians had previously used "czar," which derives from "caesar," to describe both khans and Byzantine emperors. But Constantinople had collapsed in 1453, leaving Muscovy as the world's only independent Orthodox state. When the mighty khan crumbled, too, Muscovy's monarchs began to see themselves in grand terms--not only as rulers of "the whole Rus," but also as rightful heirs to the Byzantine caesars and defenders of Orthodoxy. Over the next four centuries, they and their successors built an empire that, at one point, covered nearly a sixth of the land on Earth.
--Steve Sampson
-----------------------------------------------
Tune in tomorrow for Part 2 in the series.
KnowledgeNews.net (http://knowledgenews.net/index.shtml)
Just to note, I am in no way affiliated with KnowledgeNews, I'm just doing a little CYA for myself. I decided to post these since I found them interesting.
Now, on to Part 1 of series.
-----------------------------------------------
A Trip To Russia
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f294/barneyis666/a1733.jpg
Russia's long history looms large
Before there were Russians--or Ukrainians or Belarusians--there were East Slavs, the ethnic ancestors of them all. And before Russia, there was Kievan Rus, the Golden Horde, Muscovy, and Ivans both great and terrible.
Kievan Roots
The East Slavs' first major state, Kievan Rus, emerged in the 9th century and was centered in Kiev, Ukraine's current capital. Kievan Rus flourished for more than 200 years, thanks to its control over a lucrative trade route between the Baltic and Black Seas. The trade route connected Kiev with Constantinople, ancient capital of the Byzantine Empire and center of Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
At least part of the credit for founding Kievan Rus goes to Scandinavian Vikings, whom the locals called "Varangians" or "Rus" ("Russia" means "land of the Rus"). The Vikings arrived in the area during the 9th century, apparently looking to trade, and a less-than-centralized region soon became more centralized. Scholars argue about whether Scandinavians or Slavs were more important to Kievan Rus's development, but they agree that the medieval state reached its zenith around the turn of the 11th century.
In 988, Kiev's Grand Prince Vladimir converted to Orthodox Christianity and established Orthodoxy as the state religion. Soon Byzantine churches were cropping up across the region, and Byzantine cultural influences were taking root. Vladimir's successor, Yaroslav the Wise, presided over a cultural golden age. He built the famous Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Kiev and promulgated the first East Slavic legal code, the Rus'ka Pravda ("Justice of Rus").
Rise of the Golden Horde
When he died, Yaroslav the Wise (rather unwisely) divided up his territory among his heirs. A plethora of principalities were soon warring with one another, and the Rus's region became less than centralized again. In its weakened state, Kievan Rus was no match for the Mongol armies that swept across eastern Europe in the 13th century.
In 1240, Mongols under Batu Khan, Genghis Khan's grandson, destroyed Kiev--the final, fatal blow to Kievan Rus. Batu set up his own capital hundreds of miles away, at Sarai, not far from the Caspian Sea. There he founded the so-called "Golden Horde" khanate, which enjoyed near-complete autonomy within the Mongol Empire. For more than 200 years, the Golden Horde ruled Russia, often indirectly, with local princes and tax collectors paying tribute to the khans.
Despite traditional claims to the contrary, the years of Mongol rule were not universally bad. On the down side, Kievan Rus never recovered, and the East Slavs split into three distinct groups: the so-called "White Russians" (Belarusians), "Little Russians" (Ukrainians), and "Great Russians" (Russians). On the up side, new states began to take off--among them, the principality of Muscovy, centered in the little town of Moscow.
Making Muscovy
When the Mongols arrived in Kievan Rus, Moscow wasn't much more than a backwoods trading post. Over the next few centuries, a series of skilled and ambitious princes made it the center of the most powerful state in the region. First was Daniel Aleksandrovich, the youngest son of a local prince and war hero, who founded the principality of Muscovy in 1301. Following his father's lead, Daniel worked out a deal with the khans to serve as their vassal.
Daniel's son, Ivan I (a.k.a. "Ivan Money Bags"), also worked closely with the Mongols. He put Muscovy in a position of regional superiority by collecting tribute from other Russian princes on the khan's behalf. He also convinced the local head of the Orthodox church to move to Moscow in 1327.
Over the next 150 years, the principality's power expanded. Meanwhile, the Golden Horde began to weaken. Finally, in 1480, the Muscovite prince Ivan III (a.k.a. "Ivan the Great") stopped paying tribute and gained full sovereignty over most ethnically Russian lands. The Golden Horde disintegrated. As it did, Ivan III was increasingly called "czar"--though the word wasn't part of a Russian ruler's official title until Ivan IV (a.k.a. "Ivan the Terrible") adopted it in 1547.
The Russians had previously used "czar," which derives from "caesar," to describe both khans and Byzantine emperors. But Constantinople had collapsed in 1453, leaving Muscovy as the world's only independent Orthodox state. When the mighty khan crumbled, too, Muscovy's monarchs began to see themselves in grand terms--not only as rulers of "the whole Rus," but also as rightful heirs to the Byzantine caesars and defenders of Orthodoxy. Over the next four centuries, they and their successors built an empire that, at one point, covered nearly a sixth of the land on Earth.
--Steve Sampson
-----------------------------------------------
Tune in tomorrow for Part 2 in the series.
KnowledgeNews.net (http://knowledgenews.net/index.shtml)