Things You May Not Know about “Kievan Rus”
How interesting and semi-mythic history informs fantasy fiction
Early Medieval Rus, a time period sometimes called “Kievan Rus,” is the historical setting for Raven Son, my epic fantasy series in inspired by Russian fairy tales. It is a time period shrouded in myth, making it a perfect setting for fantasy. Still, there is enough real history to ground that fantasy in gritty reality. I especially like to read about random historical bits that have gotten lost in the cracks. A lot of them are little stories in themselves. Here are some unexpected facts about that semi-mythical time.
I’m sure at least some of these bits will make it into my novels…
Unexpected facts about “Kievan Rus”
It turns out that “Kievan Rus” as such never existed. The name was a 19th century invention that corresponded to the nationalistic ideals of the Russian Empire and a movement known as “Russification”. It was intended to evoke an ancient past where different cities were all unified under a single “Grand Prince” of all Rus. Actually, the principalities were independent, divided, and constantly at war. Even though the title “Grand Prince” was coveted, it was little more than an honorific.
The unity of Russian lands as we know them happened centuries later.
Orthodox Churches with…Organs?
It turns out that Russia, the land known for the peal of bells, initially may have had organs, not bells in its churches. Only large churches in major cities had bells. However, it should be noted that the evidence for this is scanty. One of the only suggestions of this is a fresco in the ancient Cathedral of St. Sophia in Kiev that shows jesters playing on organs in church. (Admittedly, not the most reliable of proofs!)
What did early Russian princes look like?
There’s a definite “image” that Russian princes command in the imagination—tall, golden-haired, blue-eyed. Actually, that was probably not the case at all. Kiev and other principalities practiced political marriages from the very beginning. Not only Western European brides were chosen but also brides from the various nomadic Asian tribes who constantly harassed the Russian cities. So sometimes Russian princes looked distinctly un-European.
The Veche: a Democratic Assembly?
The Russian popular imagination has canonized the Veche, a democratic assembly of townspeople that elected rulers in some cities, especially Novgorod. In actual fact, there was little “democracy” about it. Most people in cities were not freemen and had no civic rights whatsoever. Most of the time, the democratic “Veche” was little more than a council of nobles.
A fantasy version of a folksy “Veche” occurs in book 3 of my series, The Heart of the World. It’s an exciting scene that provides an important thematic pivot for the novel. And it one of the most fun scenes I’ve ever had the privilege to write.
Slavery?
Yes, it’s a little known fact, but one of the major sources of profit in old Rus was slavery. Selling foreign prisoners of war into slavery was a common practice, but some princes even sold other Slavs into slavery. Slavic prisoners were especially coveted in Eastern slave markets. Arabic manuscripts of the tenth and eleventh centuries describe in vivid detail how Slavic slaves traveled from Rus into the Caliphate and the Mediterranean. It often happened that if you owed money to someone higher up on the food chain, he could legally sell you to slave traders. It may seem strange that a Christian nation sold slaves, but actually most cities in Rus remained pagan until at least the 12th century.
Kiev—the Third Rome
Before the Mongol invasions, Kiev was a wonder of the ancient world. It was larger than one square mile in size (massive for its time and place). There were hundreds of churches. It was the first city in Rus to have organized streets and quarters. It impressed European and Arabic visitors alike. Some Byzantines even compared it (obviously hyperbolizing) to Constantinople itself. But hardly anything remains from that glorious time, everything having been destroyed by the Mongols and later wars. Only the church of St. Sophia and a few reconstructed gates remain.
The Cyrillic alphabet was never really used
Well, that’s not quite true. The written language created by Sts. Cyrill and Methodius, which was the original “Cyrillic” alphabet (now called Glagolytic) never really took off. This alphabet was used as a code language, however, even after people had stopped using it as a written language. The first historical appearance of what is today called Cyrillic was a cryptic word (“gorushna”) on a clay urn. No one knows what that word means, even today.
Alcoholism is not a historically Russian trait
Drinking strong alcohol was not something that early Russians did at all. Even wine only appeared in general use after the Mongol invasions (13th century and on). In fact, Kiev didn’t even have breweries! Whatever “alcoholic” drinks were enjoyed—mead and kvass—rarely were stronger than 1% or 2% in alcohol content.
As for food, common people never ate some things we can’t live without—butter, sugar, even mustard. Even tea (a staple in Russian homes) wasn’t drunk. Instead, people boiled rosebay, something that’s still done in some places, a drink now called “Ivan-chai”. They ate a lot of meat—pigeon, rabbit, venison, and wild boar. Also, they ate plenty of cheese and sour cream.
Rus was baptized in… the twelfth century?
Well, Prince Vladimir did baptize Kiev and the surrounding areas in 988-9. However, it was largely a local event. Polotsk was only baptized in the 11th century. As for Rostov and Murom—they had a large population of pagan Finns—they were only baptized in the early 12th. A convincing proof of the slowness of Russian Christianization was the repeated revolts of pagan shamans that were supported by large chunks of the population (one in Suzdal in 1024, one in Novgorod in 1071).
Fascinating! Thank you for sharing :)