1. Aim: Does Russia owe its heritage to the Byzantine Empire?
Do Now: What do you know about Russia? What do you want to know?
NY State Standards 2, 3
Common Core Standards RS 6, 9, WS 1

3. Carpathian Mountains in Eastern Europe
I Geography of Russia
A) Most of Russia is steppe (grassland) between the Carpathian Mountains in Eastern Europe and the Ural Mountains in Asia.
Carpathian Mountains in Eastern Europe
Ural Mountains in Asia

4. Geography of Russia Continued…
B) Russia’s most important river is the Volga. It flows through Moscow, and southward into the Caspian Sea. C) As the Baltic Sea freezes in winter, Russian monarchs have always looked south for a warm water port to allow seafaring year round.
Baltic Sea in Winter

5. Geography of Russia Continued…
D) Siberia is in northeastern Russia. Temperatures can dip to -50 degrees Celsius!
On the left was a Siberian gulog; prisoners were sent to work in the extreme cold under Stalin. On the right is Listvyanka.

6. II Early Russian Civilization
A)During the time of the Roman Empire, Slavs settled by the Baltic and Black Seas. Descendants of the Slavs live in many eastern European countries such as Croatia and Serbia. B) By the 800s CE the Norsemen came as well. The Norsemen were farmers and seafarers from Scandinavia (northern Europe). The Vikings were Norsemen who went on raids. The Vikings explored Greenland and North America.

8. Early Russian Civilization Continued…
C) Kiev, at the heart of Viking trade, became the center of the 1st Russian state. It was located between Constantinople and the Baltic Sea, allowing for contact with the Byzantine Empire

9. Novgorod, a Medieval Russian City

10. III The Byzantines Brought All This??
A) In the 9th century CE cultural diffusion with the Byzantines brought Eastern Orthodox Christianity, domes and the Greek alphabet (cyrillic) to Russia. B) Russians adapted the Byzantine dome, and developed their “onion domes”.
Hagia Sophia, a former Byzantine Church
Russian Onion Dome

11. IV Russia Under the Mongols
A) Batu, a grandson of Genghis Khan, led the Mongol army into Russia. The Mongols controlled Russia from s. B) Russian infrastructure (roads, buildings, etc) was destroyed, leaving Russia cut off from Western Europe for centuries!
The Mongols were nomads from north of China. Under Genghis Khan, they created one of the largest empires in history.

13. Summary Questions
How did Russia’s geography positively affect Russian civilization? How did it negatively affect Russian civilization?
Where and how did early Russian civilization begin? What was the impact of the Slavs and Vikings in Russia’s development?
How did the Byzantine Empire impact Russian civilization?
How did the Mongols impact Russian civilization?
Was early Russian civilization more similar or different from the Byzantine Empire? How do you know?

14. Key Vocabulary Baltic Sea Slavs Batu Steppe Byzantine Empire
Ural Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
Vikings
Cyrillic Alphabet
Volga River
Eastern Orthodox Christianity
Warm Water Port
Kiev
Mongols
Moscow
Norsemen
Onion Domes
Siberia