Christian Russia in the Making gathers together twelve articles written by Andrzej Poppe between 1980 and 2003, two of which are here published in English for the first time. With this volume, Poppe offers the results of his ongoing studies of Rus' early statehood and conversion to Christianity, in the manner of an earlier collection published in 1982 (Andrzej Poppe, The Rise of Christian Russia. London: Variorum Reprints, 1982). The articles focus on three themes: the baptism of Rus' rulers and the Christianisation process; dynastic problems in the early history of Rus; and the appearance of religious objects with a curious history, such as the Magdeburg doors on St Sophia of Novgorod. Studying the early years of the Rus state is a difficult task, considering the lack of documentation from this period and, when documents exist, their late manuscript tradition. Poppe is aware of this problem, and navigates through these pitfalls with finesse to (re-)interpret the textual evidence related to, for instance, Olga's baptism (such as Constantine VII's De Ceremoniis and the Continuation of the Chronicle of Regino of Prm), Vladimir's decision to take Christianity (for instance in Ilarion's Sermon on Law and Grace and in the Memory and Eulogy of the Rus Prince Vladimir) and the martyrdoms of Boris and Gleb (in the Tale of the Passion of the Holy Martyrs Boris and Gleb), to only cite a few. These textual discussions may appear technical at times; they are inevitable in the study of Early Rus, however. Because a few articles presented in this volume are more than fifteen years old, some results have been surpassed or challenged by recent discoveries and studies. The author, though, does not hesitate to admit that fact (e.g. in the addendum to article II) or to respond to these challenges (e.g. in the addenda to article IX). The volume is complemented by a useful index of places, names and scholars.
With "The Rurikid Dynasty or Seven Hundred Years of Shaping Eastern Europe" (number I), the volume opens with an informative summary of the history of the Rurikid dynasty, from its founder Rurik to the accession of the Romanovs. While not particularly insightful, this overview is a useful reminder for the non-specialist. Among the twelve studies presented here, two are especially engaging, and I wish to pursue them. The first (number VII), "Losers on Earth, Winners from Heaven. The Assassinations of Boris and Gleb in the Making of Eleventh-Century Rus", represents the fruit of a scholarly career devoted in part to explain the murder by Sviatopolk of his two younger brothers after the death of Vladimir in 1015. The essay is organised around three issues: Vladimir's failed attempt to modify the line of succession in favour of his younger sons born to the Byzantine princess Anna Porphyrogenita; an intermediate period during which the names of the two brothers were seemingly forgotten by the members of the ruling family; and, finally, Boris and Gleb's accession to sainthood in 1072 and the rapid rise of their cult. The analysis of the sources describing the veneration of the two martyrs, all written around the time of the translation of their relics in 1072, reveals how this political event has been re-interpreted in a religious fashion, and how "the sacrifice of the princes symbolized Rus' transformation into a Christian country with clear ethical and religious goals" (166). This, in turn, testifies to Rus' recently acquired Christian mentality at the end of the eleventh century.
Close to this issue, the second article (number VIII), "The Sainthood of Vladimir the Great: Veneration-in-the-Making", examines how gradually Vladimir, who accepted baptism in 988, came to be venerated as a saint and, later, identified as isapostolos, or "performer of a work equal to the apostles" (51). In an original way, Poppe explores Vladimir's Christianity. This is a complex question since most of the sources related to this issue are greatly prejudiced in his favour (for instance the "Philosopher's Speech" in the Povest' vremennykh let) or against him (e.g. the Chronicle of Thietmar of Merseburg). Aspects of the discussion include "the decision to place the sarcophagi of Vladimir and Anna under the crossing of the Church of the Tithe" (10) and Vladimir's familiarity to Christianity from his youth. With the help of texts, onomastics and iconography, the study highlights how Vladimir's cult developed during the eleventh to thirteenth century, even though the ruler had not yet gained formal recognition as a saint. Although one should not look for any special ecclesiastical procedure of "canonisation", which did not exist in that time and place, this event should be situated between 1290 and 1311, according to Poppe. Such a "delay in the glorification of Vladimir" has been attributed to the overall reluctance of Constantinople to recognise local saints (51).
Other studies are concerned with the conversion of rulers and the rise of Christianity in the land of the Rus. In "Once Again Concerning the Baptism of Olga, Archontissa of Rus" (number II), the author re- examines the evidence related to Olga's baptism. Paying special attention to the Ottonian data, Poppe re-interprets the context of Olga's visit to Constantinople in 957 and that of the German mission to Kiev in 959. The discovery of a palimpsest fragment of the De ceremoniis by M. Featherstone clearly questions the results of this article, originally published in 1992. Poppe's response in an addendum and his reappraisal of the issue show how debated the problem remains today (278a-279a). Two more essays focus on the primary sources that allude to the conversion of the Rus and its religious or political impact at the time. "How the Conversion of Rus Was Understood in the Eleventh Century" (number III) gathers evidence from Rus' neighbours, while "Two Concepts of the Conversion of Rus in Kievan Writings" (number IV) analyses the responses of the Rus themselves. It is striking to see the few, if not non-existent, reactions of the Byzantines to this event, which Poppe attributes to inherent rules of Byzantine courtly historiography. Vladimir's conversion is mentioned in Arabic, Armenian and Ottonian historical sources, however, where the event acquires a political significance. As one may expect, it figures prominently in Rus writings where, unsurprisingly, Vladimir is given the initiative for the occasion. "The Christianization and Ecclesiastical Structures of Kievan Rus to 1300" (number V) discusses the difficult question of the penetration of Christianity in the land of the Rus. Aspects of this study include the evidence for a Christian presence before Vladimir's conversion in 988; the elaboration of tales of Christianization, for instance the tradition of St Andrew's wanderings; and the institutionalization of Christianity through the gradual organisation of a Metropolitan See and bishoprics. Finally, "Leontios, Abbot of Patmos, Candidate for the Metropolitan See" (number VI) draws the portrayal of Leontios as an example of, usually little-known, bishops appointed by Byzantium to the See of Rus (2).
The use of the title of "Grand Prince" in Rus is the object of another set of studies, "Words that Serve the Authority. On the Title of Grand Prince in Kievan Rus" (number IX) and "On the Title of Grand Prince in the Tale of Ihor's Campaign" (number X). In them, Poppe analyses the references to Rus princely titles in Rus and Byzantine texts. The author cautions the use of princely terminology, found in documents composed early but preserved in fourteenth- and fifteenth-century manuscripts, as evidence for the usage of this titulature already in the eleventh century. This, in essence, is the warning given to Martin Dimnik in an addendum responding to an article published by the latter in 2004 (IX, pages 185a-189a). According to Poppe, there is no evidence for the use of this title in Rus before the end of the twelfth century.
The volume ends with the reprint of two articles devoted to intriguing religious objects such as the Magdeburg bronze doors of St Sophia in Novgord (number XI), or the "So-Called Chersonian Antiquities" (number XII). The first offers the curious history of these doors, originally cast in Magdeburg in the mid-twelfth century for the Cathedral of Plock (Poland), and of how they came to be mounted in Novgorod in the mid-fifteenth century. The second is an enquiry into the circumstances that prompted the Rus to call a few religious objects "Chersonian", for instance the miracle-working icon of St Nicolas Zarazskij, the Magdeburg doors of St Sophia of Novgorod, and shrines found between Novgorod and Moscow. In most cases, this qualification did not appear before the late fifteenth century and reveals an attempt to appear as a legitimate heir to Constantinople by providing these objects with a Greek origin.
Christian Russia in the Making will be welcomed by historians interested in medieval statehood formation and religious institutionalisation in Eastern Slavic history. While the volume appears repetitive and dated at times, a weakness inherent to a collection of re-printed articles, it assembles and makes readily accessible the more recent work of a prominent scholar of the political and religious environment of Early Rus.