| From an historic standpoint there is good reason that | | | | Rus', Kiev became the center of trade in Eurasia. |
| Scandinavian men are attracted to Russian ladies, | | | | |
| they are their distant relatives. | | | | Here come the Russians |
| | | | By the 10th century the Vikings have been in Russia |
| Vikings Had a Bad Image | | | | for nearly 200 years. When in 980 a Viking king, |
| When most people think of Vikings they have a picture | | | | Vladimir is proclaimed prince of all Russia, after his |
| of large men with blonde hair, who plunder, and sack | | | | capture of Kiev from a rival, these Vikings were now |
| peaceful villages. In reality, the Norsemen were mostly | | | | something different. They were Russians. |
| traders. Many chiefs would rather trade than fight. | | | | Sinner to Saint |
| They found the rivers of Eastern Europe, which flow | | | | Vladimir celebrated his new power with much wine, |
| north and south, great trade routes to travel between | | | | much song and many, many women. Some historians |
| the Baltic and Black Seas. | | | | say he bedded nearly 800 women. |
| | | | Eight years later knowing his kingdom needs an |
| The Rus | | | | identity, he sends emissaries to find the best religion in |
| In the 9th century, Viking tribes called the Rus | | | | the world. They report back that Greek Orthodox |
| established a trading center near Lake Ilmen close to | | | | Christianity is the best. So from that moment on, the |
| the headwaters of the Dvina, Dnieper and Volga rivers. | | | | Orthodox Church becomes as part of the Russian |
| All three rivers flow into major bodies of water-the | | | | identity. Vladimir is now regarded as a saint in the |
| Baltic Sea, the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. | | | | Russian Church. |
| Though not Slavs, the Rus did give Russia her name. | | | | |
| The Rus trade routes and establishment of towns | | | | Common Ancestors |
| along those routes laid the groundwork for the Russian | | | | Vladimir’s royal line rule continued down the |
| nation as we know it today. | | | | centuries. The great Russian Czars and leaders share |
| | | | a common history and blood line with England, Iceland, |
| Trade King | | | | Greenland and Northern Europe. Yes, the blood of |
| Oleg, a Viking chief, took the village of Kiev in 882 and | | | | hard-living, intelligent traders known as Vikings. |
| makes it his capital. In 911 he signs a trade treaty with | | | | With such a strong pedigree is it any wonder that |
| the Byzantine Empire. With gold, clothes, wine, fruits | | | | Russian ladies are attracted to their long, distant |
| from the Greeks; silver and horses from the Czechs | | | | cousins, the men of Denmark, Norway, Sweden and |
| and Hungarians; furs, wax, honey and slaves from the | | | | Finland? |