The Ukraine
To understand what is happening in Kiyv [Kiev] you need a little history. There are three major groups of Russians: the Great Russians, the White Russians, and the Little Russians that refer to themselves as Russians, Belorussians, and Ukrainians. They have their own countries now: Russia, Belarus, and the Ukraine.
They started off in the Ukraine, traditionally near the river Ros from which they derived their name. The first capital of the Russians was Kiyv, and the prince of Kiyv was the first among equals.
Then the Mongols showed up and destroyed Kiyv and made all the Russians a vassal people. The Horde’s hold on the area was finally broken by Johann the Great, the prince of Moscow, and the process of creating the Russian Empire was began when Johann’s grandson, Johann the Awesome, recaptured most of the area formerly in Russian control from the Baltic to the Black Sea. Johann the Awesome took the title of Caesar of all the Russias or Tsar. [In the West he is generally known as Ivan the Terrible.]
February 20, 2014 12 Comments
