Russia

Global Studies 9Mrs. Hart and Mrs. Bernier

Geography of Russia• Russia has three broad geographic zones with

different climates and resources. 1. Northern forests: poor soil, cold snowy climate, lumber, and fur bearing animals.

Geography 2. Mid-southern areas: fertile farm land and home of Russia’s first civilization. 3. Southern steppe: open, treeless, grassland, no natural barriers, good for grazing animals.

Early Peoples

The Slavs and Vikings were two of the earliest groups of people that settled in Russia. The Slavs lived in small villages, and had a simple government structure. The Vikings were conquerors who collected tribute.

City of Kiev Kiev was at the

center of a thriving trade network and was the site of the first Russian

state.

Byzantine Influences

Russian trade with the Byzantine Empire resulted in cultural diffusion. Two Greek monks, Cyril and Methodius, adapted the Greek alphabet and translated the Bible into Slavic languages. It became known as the Cyrillic alphabet.

Russian Orthodox Church

Byzantine Christianity spread to Russia, and soon the Russian Orthodox Church developed.

Russian rulers were the considered the head of the Church, and an educated class of priests appeared.

Mongol Conquest In the 1200s, a Mongol

leader known as Genghis Khan overran lands from China to Eastern Europe. Later his grandson would invade Russia and establish their capital on the Volga River. The Mongols would rule for the next 240 years.

Russia Under the Mongols Mongol emperors ruled with

absolute power. Later Russian rulers would continue this practice. Although the Mongols were Muslim, they tolerated the Russian Orthodox Church. They brought peace to the region and merchants benefited from new trade routes. Despite these achievements however, the Mongols cut Russia off from contacts with Western Europe at a time when Europeans were making rapid advances in arts and sciences.

Ivan the Great By 1380, Russian princes

who had increased their power, defeated the Mongols and made Moscow their capital. Between 1462-1505, a leader known as Ivan the great ruled, taking the title Czar. He limited the power of the landowning nobles and recovered territories from the Slavs.

Ivan the Terrible

Ivan the Terrible, like his grandfather increased royal power even more. A form of feudalism, tied serfs to the land. He trusted no one, used secret police to terrorize nobles, and even killed his own son in a fit of rage.

The Russian Monarchy

After disputes over succession, peasant uprisings, and foreign invasions, an assembly of clergy, nobles, and townsmen known as the zemsky sobor, chose a new czar name Michael Romanov. He established the Romanov dynasty which would rule Russia until 1917.Under the czars, Russia expanded its borders, and continued to rule as autocrats.