History Lessons I
Russian History Part 1
Much has been written about Putin’s take on Russian history but much, also, has been omitted.
A good place to begin the discussion is a standard narrative:
“The Valdai hills… some 200 miles north-west of Moscow, are nowhere more than a thousand feet above sea-level. Yet they are the source of such major rivers as the western Dvina, flowing into the Baltic, the Dnieper flowing into the Black Sea; and the Volga, the greatest of all, which empties into the Caspian. These rivers and their tributaries linked the territory they watered to the countries beyond the seas. Portages connected one system with the next. It was at strategic points on these interlocking routes that the first Slav towns developed – Kiev, Novgorod, Polotsk, Chernigov, Smolensk…”
“…This was the world in which the Slavs made their appearance in about the sixth century…”
“Those tribes of the eastern Slavs who settled along the waterways of the middle Dnieper and the northern lakes were rapidly drawn into the trading networks of the area. Their closest neighbours, and also their conquerors, were the Khazars, a people of Turkic origin who had become converted to Judaism.”
“The Khazar Khaganate had the rough shape of a triangle. Its base ran from the Caspian Sea to the sea of Azov; the two sides rested on the Volga and the lower Don. Originally nomads, the Khazars had later become agriculturists and traders. They were advantageously situated to become a centre for transit trade between the rich Arab caliphate to the east and commercial Europe to the north-west…”
“One of the chief characteristics of the early Slavs was the large number of towns to which their trading activity gave rise. The number has been variously estimated at between 300 and 600. To the Varangian traders of Scandinavia and the Baltic, the Slav territories were known as ‘gaardariki’ – kingdom of the towns.”
“This extreme decentralization was countered in the ninth century by a process of consolidation as each town attempted to seize the territory contiguous to it and dependent on it. The result was incessant strife…it was in these circumstances that the ancient chronicle records the invitation of the Varangians to restore order in the Slav lands: ‘Our land is great and rich but there is no order in it. Come, then, to rule as princes over us.’”
“In 862, great Novgorod, on the river Volkhov, one of the most important Slav towns, fell to Rurik, the Varangian chieftain…his successor, Oleg, led a campaign southwards down the river route to Byzantium. He took Smolensk and Lyubech, and Kiev in 882, which he fortified and made his capital.”[1]
Thus, according to the standard narrative Kiev is at the heart of what was to become Russia. This however has recently been challenged.
Orlando Figes takes up the story:
“Kievan Rus emerged as the Khazar state declined. The growing military power of the Rus enabled them to free themselves from paying taxes to the (Khazar) khaganate; it also allowed them to assume the latter’s role as the protector of the northern borders of Byzantium, a role which brought them rich rewards in the form of trade concessions in Constantinople, the Byzantine capital.”[2]
“Establishing their power-base in Kiev entailed two important changes for the Rus. First there was a shift in focus from long-distance trade to the business of collecting tribute, from which they had seen the Khazars thrive. Lands once controlled by the khaganate were now taxed by Kiev, which built forts and towns to protect its domination of the western steppe. Secondly, the main flow of trade moved from the Volga and Muslim world to the Dnieper and Byzantium…”[3]
“Through trade and diplomacy pagan Rus was drawn into the Christian civilization of the Byzantine Empire…”[4]
Interestingly, Figes asks the questions:
“How does the period of Kievan Rus connect with the rest of Russian history? Is there any meaningful sense in which modern Russia can lay claim to it as the foundation of its nationhood, as Putin did at the unveiling of the monument to the grand prince Vladimir?”[5]
Most startling of all is his “revisionist” conclusion:
“…it is absurd to claim that Kievan Rus was the birthplace of modern Russia or the Ukrainian state.”[6]
Calling into question the standard narrative has two major implications. Firstly, it implies that Russia has no claim to Kiev or any parts of the Ukraine and secondly: Kiev has a right to more Russian territory than it already has; indeed, a case could be made that Ukraine ought to control most of Russia and not the other way around.
Whether the “revisionism” of Figes (his book was published in 2022) intends it or not, his narrative plays into the hands of those who would wish to exploit the Ukraine and use it against Russia.
It could also be argued that the reason by Zelenksy is so vital to the “Ukraine project” is that he’s both Russian and Ukrainian, having been brought up in the former. It could also be maintained that the fact that he is a Jew, and thus a “descendent” of the Khazars, plays a critical role in this project.
It could also be claimed that the fact that the Rothschilds, who are extremely influential in the UK, see themselves as Khazars, explains the passionate and intense interest of the UK in the Ukraine and explains why the British are willing to risk World War Three over the issue. This is most probably what the late, great Gonzalo Lira meant when he spoke of ancient rivalries and hatreds. The Rus destroyed the Khazar Khaganate and it’s perfectly conceivable that those Jews who regard themselves as Khazars (the majority (including the majority of Israelis) don’t understand this fact) hate Russia for it.
The interesting question, which someone ought to ask Victoria Nuland is whether she regards herself as a Khazar and whether this is the root cause of her hatred for Russia. The same question ought to be posed to the Rothschilds.
The question that ought to be posed to Zelensky is whether, when he talks of the Ukraine becoming like Israel, he really means: Ukraine will become a second Israel. That is: he is exterminating the population of the Ukraine in order to make space for the Israelis, once Israel itself collapses, as it will inevitably do.
Is the Ukraine set to become the new “Khazar Khaganate”? This is one of many questions people ought to be asking.
It’s also interesting, of course, to quote Putin himself:
“The year of the establishment of the Russian state is considered to be 862…when the townspeople of Novgorod invited a Varangian Prince, Rurik, from Scandinavia to reign. In 1862, Russia celebrated the 1000th anniversary of its statehood. And in Novgorod there is a memorial dedicated to the 1000 anniversary of the country. In 882 Rurik’s successor, Prince Oleg (who was actually playing the role of regent for Rurik’s young son (because Rurik had died)) came to Kiev. He ousted two brothers who apparently had once been members of Rurik’s followers. So, Russia began to develop with two centers of power: Kiev and Novgorod.”
“The next very significant date in the history of Russia was 988, this was the baptism of Russia when Prince Vladimir, the great grandson of Rurik, baptized Russia and adopted Orthodoxy, or Eastern Christianity. From this time, the centralized Russian state began to strengthen. Why? Because of the single territory. Integrated economic ties. One and the same language.”
“And after the baptism of Russia, the same faith and rule of the Prince, the centralized Russian state began to take shape. Back in the Middle Ages, Prince Yaroslav the Wise introduced the order of succession to a throne. But after he passed away, it became complicated for various reasons. The throne was passed not directly from father to eldest son, but from the prince who had passed away to his brother. Then to his sons in different lines. All this led to the fragmentation and the end of Rus as a single state. There was nothing special about it. The same was happening then in Europe.”
“…the fragmented Russian state became an easy prey to the empire created earlier by Genghis Khan. His successors, namely Batu Khan plundered and ruined nearly all the cities. The southern part, including Kiev, by the way, and some other cities, simply lost independence. While northern cities preserved some of their sovereignty. They had to pay tribute to the horde, but they managed to preserve some part of their sovereignty…”
“…then a unified Russian state began to take shape with its center in Moscow. The southern part of Russian lands, including Kiev began to gradually gravitate towards another magnet, the center that was emerging in Europe. This was the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and it was even called the Lithuanian Russian Duchy because Russians were a significant part of this population. They spoke the old Russian language and were Orthodox. But then there was a unification, the union of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland. A few years later. Another union was signed, but this time already in the religious sphere, some of the Orthodox priests became subordinate to the Pope. Thus, these lands became part of the Polish-Lithuanian state.”
“During a number of decades, the Poles engaged in the colonization of this part of the population. They introduced a language there, tried to entrench the idea that this population was not exactly Russian, that because they lived on the fringe, they were Ukrainians.”
“Originally the word Ukrainian meant that the person was living on the outskirts of the state, along the fringes, or was engaged in a border patrol service. It didn’t mean any particular ethnic group. So, the Poles were trying to, in every possible way, colonize this part of the Russian lands and actually treated it rather harshly, not to say cruelly. All that led to the fact that this part of the Russian lands began to struggle for their rights. They wrote letters to Warsaw demanding that their rights be observed and people be commissioned here, including to Kiev.”[7]
[1] pp.11-15 The Making of Modern Russia, Lionel Kochan and Richard Abraham
[2] pp.22-23 The Story of Russia, Orlando Figes
[3] p.23 Ibid
[4] p.23 Ibid
[5] p.32 Ibid
[6] p.33 Ibid
Nuland has resigned, effective in a few weeks!!! Glory Hallelujah!
Newland's father in law was a Lithanian of Jewish faith with name of Kagan who's mother emigrated to USA after death of his father. Interesting surname.