page_title: Vladimir the Great
section_title: Significance and legacy
hierarchical_section_title: Vladimir the Great / Significance and legacy
caption_attribution_description: Українська: Зразок гривні 2006-ого року випуску Русский: Одна гривна 2006 года выпуска. Español: Billete ucraniano de una Grivna de 2006. Retrato de Volodimir el grande
context_page_description: Vladimir Sviatoslavich, called the Great, was Prince of Novgorod, Grand Prince of Kiev, and ruler of Kievan Rus' from 980 to 1015.
  Vladimir's father was Prince Sviatoslav of the Rurik dynasty. After the death of his father in 972, Vladimir, who was then prince of Novgorod, was forced to flee to Scandinavia in 976 after his brother Yaropolk had murdered his other brother Oleg and conquered Rus'. In Sweden, with the help of his relative Ladejarl Håkon Sigurdsson, ruler of Norway, he assembled a Varangian army and reconquered Novgorod from Yaropolk. By 980, Vladimir had consolidated the Kievan realm from modern-day Belarus, Russia and Ukraine to the Baltic Sea and had solidified the frontiers against incursions of Bulgarians, Baltic tribes and Eastern nomads. Originally a follower of Slavic paganism, Vladimir converted to Christianity in 988 and Christianized the Kievan Rus'. He is thus also known as Saint Vladimir.
context_section_description: The Eastern Orthodox, Byzantine Rite Lutheran and Roman Catholic churches celebrate the feast day of St. Vladimir on 15/28 July.
  The town Volodymyr-Volynskyi in north-western Ukraine was founded by Vladimir and is named after him. The foundation of another town, Vladimir in Russia, is usually attributed to Vladimir Monomakh. However some researchers argue that it was also founded by Vladimir the Great.
  St Volodymyr's Cathedral, one of the largest cathedrals in Kiev, is dedicated to Vladimir the Great, as was originally the University of Kiev. The Imperial Russian Order of St. Vladimir and Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary in the United States are also named after him.
  The memory of Vladimir was also kept alive by innumerable Russian folk ballads and legends, which refer to him as Krasno Solnyshko (the Fair (or Red) Sun). The Varangian period of Eastern Slavic history ceases with Vladimir, and the Christian period begins.
  The appropriation of Kievan Rus' as part of national history has also been a topic of contention in Ukrainophile vs. Russophile schools of historiography since the Soviet era. Today, he is regarded as a symbol in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.
  All branches of the economy prospered under him. He minted coins and regulated foreign affairs with other countries, such as trade. Through trade he brought in Greek wines, Baghdad spices, and Arab horses to trade at the markets of Kiev.
caption: Vladimir the Great portrait on obverse ₴1 bill circa 2006
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