FIRST PEOPLE IN RUSSIA

EARLY RUSSIAN TRIBES

• Originally home of the Slavs

– Agricultural tribe

• Cimmerians

– 1000-700 BC

• Scythians

– 700-200 BC

– Asian nomadic tribe

• Sarmatians

– 200 BC-200 AD

– Asian nomadic tribe

Scythian engraving

Sarmatian warriors

MORE INVADERS

• Goths – 200 AD-400 AD

• Huns– 400 AD-550 AD

• Avars – 550 AD-650 AD

MIGRATION OF THE SLAVS• West Slavs

– Migrated to Poland, eastern Germany, and Czechoslovakia

• South Slavs– Migrated to Bulgaria,

Greece, Montenegro, Albania, and Yugoslavia

• East Slavs– Stayed in their native region

and became ancestors of Russians and Ukrainians

ARRIVAL OF THE VIKINGS

• East Slavs benefited from contact with Greek city-states around Black Sea– Set up several city-states of their own to trade

with their neighbors• 700 AD• Byzantine Empire

• Prosperity attracted the attention of the Varangians (Vikings)– Would play important role in development of

Russian civilization during 9th and 10th centuries AD

VARANGIAN RUSSIA• Vikings began to use trade

links set up by East Slavs as their own trade route to Constantinople

• Not clear as to precisely how they became rulers of region

• Became upper class within East Slav city-states and dominated trade with Byzantine Empire

EMERGENCE OF THE RUSSIANS• Vikings gradually

became absorbed into East Slav population– Both groups began to

call themselves “Ros”

– By 1100, this mixture of Viking and East Slavic people had become the “Russians”

KIEV• Viking chieftain Rurik assumed

control of all city-states in region– Made capital in Novgorod

• Son Oleg transferred capital to Kiev– Took over some formerly

independent Slav tribes– Took title of “Prince”– Credited with the creation of

the Kievan State

Rurik

Oleg

KIEVAN STATE

• Stretched from Baltic Sea in the north, to Black Sea in the south, and from Nizhny Novgorod in east to Rumania in the west

GOLDEN AGE OF KIEV

• Indigenous culture, art, architecture, language, and law flourished

• Prince Vladimir– Adopted Byzantine

Christianity in 988 – Created Russian

Orthodox Church

RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

• Turned Russia away from Western Europe and influence of Roman Catholic Church

• Cyrillic Alphabet– Invented by St. Cyril

• The institution of a uniform religion, a uniform written language, and a united state headquarter in Kiev helped create idea of a separate Russian state and a sense of national identity.

APPANAGE RUSSIA• Prince Yaroslav divided state

into a number of principalities—one going to each son– 1036-1054 – Kiev itself was controlled by

his sons on a rotating basis– System quickly created

tension and acrimony among descendants and ultimately gave rise to “appanage” Russia

• Period where individual princes ruled pieces of old Kievan state and fought among themselves

MONGOL INVASION• Mongols (Tatars) invade Russia

in 1236 and, by 1242, had conquered all the appanage principalities

• Capital at Old Sarai and developed simple administrative system– Each Russian principality

paid an annual lump sum cash payment to Mongol ruler (khan)

– In exchange, Mongols allowed the various princes to maintain their positions and run their territories as they saw fit

KHANATE OF THE GOLDEN HORDE

• Mongols appoint one appanage prince to collect tribute for them– Called “Grand Prince”

• Disputes between princes were settled by the principals appearing at Old Sarai– Khan settles dispute– Awards winner, kills loser

• Russian politics took the form of various local princes jockeying and groveling for the support of the Mongol khan in order to advance their petty schemes