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.
name of the city that the first russian state centered around
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