Russia, the Kievan Rus, and the Mongols: Crash Course World History #20

In which John Green teaches you how Russia evolved from a loose amalgamation of medieval principalities known as the Kievan Rus into the thriving democracy we know today. As you can imagine, there were a few bumps along the road. It turns out that our old friends the Mongols had quite a lot to do with unifying Russia. In yet another example of how surprisingly organized nomadic raiders can be, the Mongols brought the Kievan Rus together under a single leadership and concentrated power in Moscow. This set the stage for the various Ivans (the Great and the Terrible) to throw off the yoke and form a pan-Russian nation ruled by an autocratic leader. More than 500 years later, we still have autocratic leadership in Russia. All this, plus a rundown of some of our favorite atrocities of Ivan the Terrible, and a visit from Putin!

Chapters:
Introduction 00:00
The Kievan Rus 0:44
Trade in 11th-century Kiev (Kyiv) 1:28
Leadership & Government in Kiev (Kyiv) 2:15
Mongol Rule and the Era of Appanage Russia 2:50
The Mongols' Influence on Russia 3:19
How did Moscow become so prominent? 4:29
An Open Letter to Basil and Basil 6:11
Ivan the Great (Ivan III) Expands Moscow's Power 6:58
Ivan the Terrible (Ivan IV) 7:45
Credits 10:10

Want to find Crash Course elsewhere on the internet?

[abcbyuman]

I wonder if that guy is tired of being dragged behind the mongol on a horse

[mosquitobight]

They should do a Crash Course about the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. That was a pretty neat and unique state while it lasted. Also underrated for its historic importance.

[roimko]

I'm pure Mongolian and studying history makes me love my country much more from historical perspective. Isn't it stunning that Mongols survived for centuries, fighting. Mongolia is sandwiched between two great nations, Russian and China. Still Mongolia preserved its culture, nomadic lifestyle, language, independency and much more successfully. 

[dlo]

10 yrs later and the Putin jokes hit just as hard.

[arwakhnissi]

watching this literally one hour before my history exam, wish me luck, i hate my life. cheers

[TheJodofe]

The truth about the founding of Kiev is actually a combination of both theories. Kiev already existed before the Vikings arrived, but it was only a small, unimportant town. Only after the Vikings made it into their capital did Kiev grow into a large and important city.
Also, this is not really a theory as much as historical fact since the history of Kiev is very well documented.

[pokemongirl]

No one was able to conquer Russia in the winter, except...wait for it...the Mongols. (MONGOLTAGE)

[ranshibuki]

* waits for a whole playlist of The History of the Mongols *

[bigzingus]

BLESS YOU JOHN GREEN I GOT A 3 ON MY AP WORLD HISTORY TEST AND I WAS BOUNCING AROUND THE HOUSE IN JOY AND I FORGOT TO COMMENT THIS SO THANKS BRO

[Didact]

I know I'm a year late but I gotta say, as a senior college student using this as a quick brush up on my Russian His. course, this is fantastic! I blazed through ~80 pages of early Russian history starting with the Kiev Rus yesterday, and this was a resource I'm really thankful for to double-check my understanding. And to think my high school teacher would show us these sometimes in class. Thanks John Green!

[KaiserLouisPhilipV]

I was really hoping for more about the Polish-Russian relations and conflicts, which from my experience are also INSANELY complicated and yet REALLY interesting.

[archvermin]

7:41 "I'm just kidding Putin, you'd never rig an election!" Doubly ironic in retrospect

[ja-vishaara]

The Latin word for 'slave' is actually 'servus'. The word 'Slav' comes from 'слава' which means 'glory' in Serbian and 'fame' in Russian.

[kzteligo]

Do you, westerners, know that Stalin was not ethnically Russian? He was a Georgian, from country called Georgia. P.s. His real last name is Dzhugashvili

[Ikketton]

The sad thing is, he didn't lie about translating "Moneybags". That is what the name means.

[uptown_rider]

The founders of Kiev were Viking, they just adopted the customs and language of the Slavs. It wouldn’t have been vice-versa

[chloekirk]

I'm rewatching the world History series, because I FREAKING LOVE IT!

[Vienershmaken]

I’m happy to report all these jokes about Putin being a despot have aged like a fine wine as of October 2022.

[alexhunt]

“...it makes it difficult to mispronounce things, which is my thing...”

Five seconds later...

“Kiev-ee-an Russ” 0:47

[videoprikoly]

Stereotypes about Russia:
Vodka,
Hat with ear flaps,
Telogreyka,
AK 47,
Balalaika,
Matryoshka,
Zhiguli,
Communism,
Birches,
Brown bear,
Severe winter.