Studying the history of your home country is very important for understanding its present. For example, you need to know the history of your native land. There are various versions of the point at which the countdown of Russian history can begin.
The resettlement of Slavic tribes on the territory of the modern European part of Russia began during the Great Migration of Peoples and was generally completed by the 7th century AD. The appearance of settlements on the site of the first Russian cities - Kiev and Novgorod - also belongs to this time. However, statehood as such did not yet exist. Krivichi, Vyatichi and a number of other peoples formed a union of tribes, remaining generally quite independent.
According to the "Tale of Bygone Years", the oldest Russian annals dating back to the XII century, in 862 the Slavic tribes, tired of internecine conflicts, decided to call on the Varangians to establish princely power. Prince Rurik arrived with his brothers and a retinue and established his power in Novgorod. However, this post leaves a lot of questions. And the main one is whether statehood already existed on the territory of Russia before the appearance of the Varangians. Historians have no consensus on this score, but the most common point of view is that the vocation of the Varangians became only an element in the creation of the Russian state, and various prerequisites for this appeared earlier.
It is still unknown who the summoned Varangians were. Back in the 18th century, the theory arose that they were Normans. Most modern historians adhere to this version. However, there are those who believe that Rurik and his squad were still representatives of the Slavic tribes.
Rurik himself ruled only a small area around Novgorod. The unification of the Slavic territories began under Oleg, who became the ruler after the death of Rurik. The origin of Oleg also remains controversial, but it is known that he was not the direct heir of Rurik. In 882, Oleg made a trip to Kiev, capturing the lands lying on his way. He moved the capital of the state to the captured city. From this period, one can begin the countdown of the history of Kievan Rus - a state formation, which later gave rise to Muscovite Rus, the Russian kingdom and the Russian Empire.
