Vladimir (St.) The Great of Kiev Grand Prince of Kiev [4680] ²⁴

  General Notes:

Vladimir (St.) the Great of Kiev, Grand Prince of Kiev
Acceded: 978

http://www.hull.ac.uk/php/cssbct/cgi-bin/gedlkup.php/n=royal?royal05600


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_the_Great
Vladimir, the Great
grand prince of Kievan Rus
The holy Vladimir the Great, grand prince of Kiev and equal of the apostles, in baptism named Basil.
Vladimir was the son of Svyatoslav, a Norman-Rus chieftain of the Rurik line, by one of his courtesans. He was born around 956 AD. Although Vladimir's grandmother, St. Olga, was already converted to the Orthodox faith, Svyatoslav rejected this faith and raised him as a pagan chieftain. Vladimir was given the ancient Russian capital of Novgorod as a fiefdom by his father. According to the customs of the day, his brothers were also given parcels of their father's empire to rule. War broke out between them, with one brother conquering the other. Vladimir fled Novgorod fearing the same fate. He later returned with an army, however, and recaptured Novgorod. He overcame his remaining brother and united Novgorod and Kiev. He took many wives, participated in the Slavic pagan rituals and festivals, and erected temples to Slavic gods.
The psychology of Vladimir's conversion is quite complex, but some general features can be noted. His grandmother's faith must have had a significant impact on Vladimir. In fact, some historians posit that Christianity, or at least Christian ideas and teachings, may have already been extant in Kiev at the time of Vladimir's reign, only not publicized for fear of persecution by the pagan populace. Additionally, the prospect of an alliance with the Byzantine empire by marriage must have been enticing.
It is also clear that Vladimir was dissatisfied with life as a barbarian and a pagan. The legends that he sent envoys to surrounding civilized regions to examine their religions probably have some firm kernel of truth at their core. They reported negatively of Islam and Judaism and Latin missionary efforts among the Germans. But after their experience of the divine liturgy in Constantinople's Great Church, Holy Wisdom, they said, "We did not know whether we were in heaven or on earth!" This tradition has become one of the most repeated in Orthodoxy, as it appropriately summarizes the first experience of the divine liturgy for many.
In any case, the conversion of Vladimir to the Orthodox faith must have been genuine, for the historical evidence relates a complete change of life and worldview \emdash what the Orthodox would call metania or repentance. After recieving envoys from Emperor Basil II in Constantinople, Vladimir was baptized and given the name Basil. He took Anna, the sister of the Byzantine emperor, as his wife and returned to Kiev. One tradition reports that he had fallen prey to a blindness which was miraculously healed upon his baptism. This story, along with its obvious similarity to the conversion of the apostle Paul, is alluded to in the troparion for Vladimir.
Once home in Kiev, he destroyed the old pagan idols, burning some, dragging some through the streets, and throwing many in the river Dnieper. He oversaw mass baptisms in this same river. He founded monasteries, schools, and implemented social programs unheard of in other regions of the time. He put away his pagan wives, and he is reported to have died with a prayer on his lips.
He was initially revered as a saint around the 13th century, and the first church built in his honor was in Novgorod.
http://www.kevinbasil.com/saints/vlad.html

Generation Four


St. Vladimir the Great, Grand Prince of Kiev
Born in 960
Acceded in 978
Died on July 15 1015 at Kiev
Vladimir was a pagan at the beginning of his reign, which was at first devoted to consolidating his territories into a unified Russian state. By the early 10th century, however, Kievan Rus had established close commercial and cultural ties with the Byzantine Empire, an Orthodox Christian state. He converted in 988 to Orthodox Christianity and made Orthodoxy the official religion of Kievan Rus. Vladimir's choice of Orthodox Christianity, rather than the Latin church (Roman Catholicism) or Islam, had an important influence on the future of Russia.
.....Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia 99. © 1993-1998 Microsoft Corporation.
Vladimir's choice between the Christian and Islamic faiths was said to have been heavily influenced by the fact that he enjoyed the consumption of alcoholic beverages. The Christian faith allowed for this and the Islamic faith did not. Hence, Validimir chose Christianity.
St. Vladimir married in 980 to Rogneda von Polotzk, a Nun and a daughter of Rognald of Polotzk. Rogneda died in 1002.
St. Vladimir and Rogneda the Nun had the following children:
Yaroslav I the Wise, Grand Prince of Kiev
Vissavald of Kiev
Iasaslav, Prince of Polotzk
Mtsislav, Grand Prince Tschernigow
Premislava
Sviataslav
Sudislav, Prince of Pskow
Wizeslau, Prince of Novgorod
St. Vladimir married after 1011 to Malfreda of Bohemia, a daughter of Kuno, Count of Ohningen, by Richilde who was a daughter of Otto I the Great, King of Germany.
St. Vladimir and Malfreda had a daughter:
Dobroniega who married in 1038 to King Casimir I, King of Poland.
http://www3.sympatico.ca/robert.sewell/kiev.html

http://www.friesian.com/russia.htm#kiev

Conversion to Christianity, 989

  Noted events in his life were:

• Acceded, 980-1015. http://www.friesian.com/russia.htm#kiev

Vladimir married Olava or Allogia [64237] [MRIN: 551618901].

Vladimir next married a widow of Yaropolk I [64238] [MRIN: 551618902].

Vladimir next married Rogneda Von Polotzk Nun [4681] [MRIN: 1365], daughter of Rognvald Von Polotzk [4694] and Unknown, in 980. (Rogneda Von Polotzk Nun [4681] died in 1002.)

Vladimir next married Malfreda of Bohemia [4693] [MRIN: 1368]. (Malfreda of Bohemia [4693] died in 1002.)

Vladimir next married Anna Porphyrogenita [4688] [MRIN: 1366], daughter of Romanus I Lecapenus Byzantine Emperor [5725] and Unknown, in 989. (Anna Porphyrogenita [4688] was born on 13 Mar 963 in Constantinople, Turkey and died in 1011.)

Vladimir next married Adelja [4692] [MRIN: 1367].

Vladimir next married Mistress [64239] [MRIN: 551618903].

Vladimir next married a granddaughter of Otto the Great [64445] [MRIN: 551619019].