<P> According to Russian historiography the first ruler to start uniting East Slavic lands into what has become known as Kievan Rus ' was Prince Oleg ( 882 -- 912 ) . He extended his control from Novgorod south along the Dnieper river valley to protect trade from Khazar incursions from the east , and he moved his capital to the more strategic Kiev . Sviatoslav I ( died 972 ) achieved the first major expansion of Kievan Rus ' territorial control , fighting a war of conquest against the Khazars . Vladimir the Great ( 980 -- 1015 ) introduced Christianity with his own baptism and , by decree , extended it to all inhabitants of Kiev and beyond . Kievan Rus ' reached its greatest extent under Yaroslav the Wise ( 1019 -- 1054 ) ; his sons assembled and issued its first written legal code , the Rus ' Justice , shortly after his death . </P>
<P> According to Russian historiography the first ruler to start uniting East Slavic lands into what has become known as Kievan Rus ' was Prince Oleg ( 882 -- 912 ) . He extended his control from Novgorod south along the Dnieper river valley to protect trade from Khazar incursions from the east , and he moved his capital to the more strategic Kiev . Sviatoslav I ( died 972 ) achieved the first major expansion of Kievan Rus ' territorial control , fighting a war of conquest against the Khazars . Vladimir the Great ( 980 -- 1015 ) introduced Christianity with his own baptism and , by decree , extended it to all inhabitants of Kiev and beyond . Kievan Rus ' reached its greatest extent under Yaroslav the Wise ( 1019 -- 1054 ) ; his sons assembled and issued its first written legal code , the Rus ' Justice , shortly after his death . </P>
name of the city that the first russian state centered around
name of the city that the first russian state centered around
Kiev
Kiev