Re: Kiev 980

--- In cybalist@egroups.com, "Adriana Kamenetsky" <adrianakusa@...>
wrote:

>
>
>
>
> > In 970 young prince Vladimir was sent to rule Novgorod

together with

> > his uncle Dobrinya. However, he ran from Novgorod in fear of his

older

> > brother Yaropolk who had just killed in Kiev their other brother

Oleg in

> > internecine war in 977. Vladimir went for help to the neighboring

Varyagi

> > Vikings) and returned back to Novgorod with their army in 980.
> > Together they captured Kiev, killed Yaropolk, and Vladimir

married

> > Yaropolk's bride - Rodnega. He became the Great Prince of Kiev.
> > The paganism could not create the necessary political or

moral unity

> in
> > the state. Vladimir decided to introduce the monotheistic

religion ( his

> > mother Olga was already Christian, baptized in Greece during one

of her

> > visits). He studied thoroughly Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

His choice

> > fell on Christianity; so, in 988, he went to Korsun'

(Khersones) where

> he
> > was baptized and got married to Anna. Upon his return, he

gathered all

> the
> > population of Kiev by the river Dnepr to be baptized in his

presence. All

> > idols were burnt or sunk.
> >
> > AK

Thank you very much for the information. It would seem the Dniepr
would have been impassable at least at Kiev in that situation.
It seems the Varyagi saw an interest in getting rid Yaropolk. Do you
know if Yaropolk did something to stop trafic on the Diepr?