Suddenly finding himself a Viking pirate turned world leader, Rurik ruled over Novgorod and Kiev for fifteen years. He built his realm, now known as “Kievan Rus,” into the powerful empire that would eventually become Russia. After Rurik’s death in 879, his warrior cousin Oleg served as regent for Rurik’s four-year-old son, Igor. Igor would eventually take over as ruler, but we’ll hear a little more about how that turned out when we get to Saint Olga of Kiev in chapter 14.
Rurik’s descendants would conquer even more territory, move their capital to Kiev, and expand Russia from the Baltic to the Black Sea. They dominated the country as iron-fisted tyrants for seven hundred years—a dynasty of all-powerful tsars that lasted until one of them, named Ivan the Terrible, accidentally killed his only son and heir in 1581. It is said that every tsar in history carried with him the same scepter Rurik used to rule over the Novgorodians in 862.
Now, there’s a legacy you can be proud of.
RUNES
The Vikings used a sixteen-letter runic alphabet known as futhark, which is the noise it makes if you read the first couple of letters together. Said to be given to the people by the Norse god Odin, the Norse runes were believed to possess powerful magical capabilities. Warriors would carve words on their blades to give them extra powers or write them on their hands to heal wounds. Pregnant women would carve them on their beds to help with childbirth, and sick people would wear necklaces bearing runes to help cure diseases. Since most Vikings were illiterate, special scribes known as runemasters were responsible for writing the runes, usually by chiseling them into stones or wood with a stick and a hammer.
Viking runic alphabet
Rune stone in Stockholm, Sweden
