Vita Ansgarii, Nestor’s Chronicle and Russian History

© Johansson Inger E, Gothenburg November 2014

From:
Johansson Inger E, Källorna till svenskt 800-tal i europeiskt perspektiv,
en kritisk granskning av Lars Gahrns avhandling Sveariket i Källor och historieskrivning, D-essay (Master essay) Tema Historia Linköpings Universitet 1995

* Johansson Inger E, articles presented in science groups on net from 1995-2010

Also
* part of Sveriges okända rysk-ukrainska historia, Norah4you 2014/08/29 and
* Rysk-Ortodoxa kyrkans historia, Norah4history page

Below please find origin source lists.

Sweden’s unknown Russian-Ukrainian HISTORY

In Sweden and elsewhere the Russian Nestors Chronicle been discussed as if there didn’t exist proof of the story told. That’s not the case. While Rurik, the first Rus ruler, isn’t named in the contemporary Vita Ansgarii, written by (E)rimbert in late 860’s AD all events, lot of the disputes in area Staraja Ladoga-Novgorod-Baltic are there for everyone to read.

Not only do we have one, but two contemporary sources. While Vita Ansgarii tells us almost all about the background, which btw goes back to Migration Age if fully told, the other wellknown source Phoistos (birth year uncertain – d 897 AD) in his Epistles regarding the early Christians among Rus.
(In Migration Age there are several with events sources telling about Ostrogoths as Arian Christian believers. Ostrogoths who can be followed from the island in Northern Ocean travelling down to Eastern Europe via Weissel over Hungarian soil down to Donau to the Black Sea or via ”Large Volga and Dnjepr”

Phoistos was abbot of Maximine Order. Phoistos worked close to the East Roman Emperor and with the support by the Emperor Phoistos in writings stood up against the Roman Church (the wordbattle goes back to Nicea) and Phoistos thus was excommunicated by the Pope three times.
Not only did this nation give up it’s former unfatihfulness for the faith och Christ, but so did even the ”Rhos” source: Phoistos epistles.

Phoistos short notes regarding the Swedish Rhos are confirmed by:
* Johan Zonara Paralipomen (~ 1118) who tells that the baptist of Rhos princes took place during the days of Phoistos.
* Nicetas Paphlagonitus, Vita Ignatii (Migne op cit Vol 105 p 516)
* Emperor Constantine Porophyrogenitus, in his biography for Emperor Basil the Macedonian, tells that the Patriarch of Bysans, Ignatius, sent a bishop to the Rhos/Rus in the days of Phoistos.

Nestor’s Chronicle and Rimbert’s Vita Ansgarii
The Nestor’s Chronicle’s stories about how Russia was formed in 861 AD, is second by Rimberts’ Vita Ansgarii chapter XXXII on forward. Same history told up to 867 AD when Rimberts’ work was published. Among the information presented in the Nestor’s Chronicle is the formation of Kievan Rus in the south from Rurik’s days and his descendants’ .
In Vita Ansgarii it’s told about the background history of events and fights taking place around 860 AD within today’s Russia to the Baltic. The true story starts with Hermaneric and the procedure used by leading Ostrogoths from today’s Swedish territory to collect tax for selling early steal swords produced among others in ”Järnstad” and ”Kallerstad” Östergötland Sweden during Pre-Historic Age using blasting technique. (The full story about that doesn’t fall within this article’s limits)

Swedish and Scandinavian impact in Pre-Historic and Early Russia
During their travell southward in Eastern Europe the Ostrogoths called for Plogh-tax. In Arabic and Greek sources written before 555 AD and from 650 AD written mostly by Arabic Geographers and Greek Fathers of the Ortodox Church it’s said to have been: at least 1 squarrel fur for each grown up man. If the tax wasn’t paid the leaders of the Ostrogoths passing by took the leaders of each village/town as slaves. Selling them, the slaves, within the East Roman Empire.
This was by no means the oldest ‘Swedish’ involvement in the now troubled Ukrainian region. Not the last either.

First came the Ostrogoths. First of first? There are those historians and archaeologists who thinks he can see the contacts around the Ukraine during the Migration Period as a back up contact from the island in the Northern Ocean to place Goths according to some linguists, historians and archaeologists may have had as their ancestral origin. Eastern parts of Southern Sweden had very close contacts with south-eastern Europe espessially via the Hungarian steppe-Danube-Black Sea . One of the more interesting proofs can be followed by the very local bargains (archaeological research) of weeds in their original form. Two weed distinguished: Below you can compare a schematic map of the weeds natural growing area their origin in the Black Sea coasts from Ukraine to Greece with Ostrogoths moving around Europe.

Start of undemocratic ruling in Russia
The undemocratic ruling of Russia is mentioned in Russian sources from around 1000 AD. Among them Grekov in Kievrus page 16 ff
”Oleg ordered that 12 grinas be given per rowlock in the 2000 vessels and then established payment be made for Rus gorods; firstly for Kiev, then for Chernigov, for Pereyaslavl, for Polotsk, for Rostov, for Lubech and other gorods, because the grand princes, who were under Oleg, sat in these gorods”.

Oleg of the Rurik Dynasty was the uncle of Vladimir Sviatoslavich the Great In Scandinavia also called Valdemar Sveinaldson, Sveinarson resp Svein’s son. Vladimir was born c 958 AD died 15 July 1015 in Berestove. Vladimir’s father in Russia called Sviatoslav was killed by his half-brother Yaropolk. Among other reasons for this was that the Rus Dynasty all but Yaropolk were believed in Christ.

Vladimirs Sviatoslavich the Greats’ son Jaroslav and Swedish King’s daughter,
impacts on Europe ….. but also on the first three dioceses under Gardar on North American soil from 1100 AD…

Jaroslav/Yaroslav the Wise, Grand Prince of Rus’ had Varjagian origin as well as that he was desendant to Rurik. Please bare in mind that Varjagian Dynasty and Rurik Dynasty wasn’t one and the same but they intermarried many times over which each other up to 1400’s. (That is an other story to be told later)

Jaroslav was born around 978 AD and died in said to have died in February 1054. But one have to remember that he died before his wife and that the Russian Ortodox Church and Western Christian Churches at that time didn’t mean same year when a year was given. (That’s complicated to explain but bare with me for now) Jaroslav was married to the Swedish King Olov Skötkonung’s daughter Ingegerd called in Swedish sources, Irina in Russian up to the time she after the death of Jaroslav became nun known as Anna. She was one if not the first Saint of Russian Ortodox Church.

Ingegerd had previously been engaged to the Norwegian King Olav Haraldson. (In this respect Snorre was right). Instead her sister Astrid married him. Ingegerd and her husband Grand Duke and Dutchess of Kiev helped Olav Haraldson when he had to flie Norway. The daughters of Irina (Ingegerd) and Jaroslav were married into several of the European Royal Families and even today almost all Royal Dynasties have roots leading back to them.

Olav Haraldson was one of the Norwegian Kings who helped to send Bishops to Iceland and Greenland. Under Gardar See later on, in 1100-1400 three dioceses were established in North America paying Tithes to the Papal Church. One of many documentations for this is mentioned in the pretext to Ivar Bardarsson’s: Det gamle Grønlands beskrivelse af Ívar Bárðarson (Ivar Bårdssön), ed. Finnur Jónsson København, 1930. as well as in Nicholas Bergthorsson in Leidarvisir och borgaskipan written in first half 1100’s. One copy was given to the Pope 1134) But that’s a long history not involving Russia more than from a Swedish-Rus view.

Sweden had rights to tax Russian cities up to Medieval Age
Anyhow up to the days of the Smolensk Treaty signed by Swedish Birger Jarl the Swedes continued to collect tax from more than 100 towns from the Baltic down via Volga, Dnjepr and other Russian rivers.

During all this time there were non Democratic Rulers and/or Local leaders in Russia. That was due to the Ortodox Christian belief (which during Medieval Age was the same in Western Church) that the Leading person of the Church, in Eastern Church the Patriarchs, were God’s representant on Earth and as such the only one who was allowed to determin which position a person belonged to and so on.

Ukraine’s Swedish-Russian History
As mentioned above Jaroslav and Irina (Ingegerd/St.Anna) became rulers of the Kiev Rus. If we go back close to 100 years, then an Igor/Ingar/Inger/Ingvar/Yngvar belonging to same Swedish Rus Dynasty is found in lot’s of contemporary sources as one of the first Rus leaders who via Staraja Ladoga, Gorodische and Novgorod ended up as Grand Duke of Kiev.

One source is Khazarian Hebrew Documents of the tenth Century, edited Golb Norman and Pritsak Omeljan, London 1982h

Others who written:
* Ibn Isfandiyar, Tarikhe Tabaristan (unfortunately not written prior to 1216-73 which is uncertain) who wrote: ”This year [910 AD, IEJ comment] came 15 ships with’Rus’till Ábusgún the same way as they did on Sayyiud Has b Zayd’s time … .. took with him and stabbed to death many muslelmaner …. the following year they returned with greater forces.

* Sharaf al-Zaman Tahir Marvazî

* Gregori Abulfaraj, in Syrian Chronicle, written about 944 AD.

* Muslem Annals of Abulfeda
There are many more sources.

Summit Ukraine History in short
For the past 1100 years, Crimea belonged to Ukraine 60. Rus , Kiew-Rus, Rus-Swedes later called these Russians. Russians have lived in Crimea for at least 1100 years. Not to mention the fact that it’s documented that Gothic langugage, Rus-Swedish language and Russian language all were spoken in Ukraine BEFORE Ukraine got their own language formulazed. Russian been spoken in Ukraine also during the days of the Khazar Empire as well as during the Osman Emperie’s days.

Khazar Empire

Summit History of Russia in short

From the early days of what later became Russia, the country had two strong powers: The Russian-Ortodox church and the leader of Russia, changing from Grand Duke over Tsar to Communist Party’s leader over to Russian leaders after the fall of Sovjet Republik. Due to the strong power always hold by the Russian-Ortodox Church the rulers/leaders of Russia always been seen as ”chosen” by God. This is the major reason why today’s Russia is the first in Russian History to have some degree of Democraty. Not so much by our Western Definition but that’s been a hugh step forward from before 1989.

Sources:
Abulfeda, Muslem Annals
Antapodosis,transl. FA Wright, London 1930
Bárðarson Ívar, Det gamle Grønlands beskrivelse af Ívar Bárðarson, editor Finnur Jónsson København, 1930.
Bergthorsson Nicholas, Leidarvisir och borgaskipan
Gregori Abulfaraj, Syrian Chronicle
Ibn Isfandiyar, Annals
Ibn Miskawaih,The Eclipse of the Abbasid Caliphate, ed. Amedroz HF & Margoliuth PS, Oxford 1921.
Ipaty Annals
Khazarian Hebrew Documents of the tenth Century, edited Golb Norman and Pritsak Omeljan, London 1982
Lavrenty Annals
Moses Khorenatsí:, History of the Armenians,ed. transl. RW Thomson, London 1978
Nestors Chronicle
Nikonian Chronicle, vol 1 from the beginning to 1132, ed. Princeton 1984
Novgorod Chronicle
Paphlagonitus Nicetas, Vita Ignatii (Migne op cit Vol 105 p 516)
Constantine Porophyrogenitus, Vita Basilii
Phoistos, Epistles
Sharaf Al-Zaman Tahir, Marvazi on China, the Turks and India. transl V Minorsky, London 1942
Sturluson Snorri, Heimskringlan
Tarikhe Tabaristan
Zonara Johan, Annals

Works
Artsikhovsky AV, The archeological Study of Novgorod, ur Novgorod the Great, London 1967
Chadwick Norah, The Beginning of Russian History, Cambridge 1946
Grekov, Kievrus
Kirpichnikov Anatoly och Nazarenko Vladimir, For tidens Staraja Ladoga, i Vikingarnes Rusland – Staraja Ladoga og Novgorod
Sedov VV, Srednevekovaja Ladoga, Leningrad Nauka 1985
Tallgren Aarne Michael, Die Kupfer- und Bronzezeit Nord- und Ost Russland, Helsingfors 1911

Annons