Who first took Christianity: conjectures and hypotheses

According to the dogmas of the Christian church itself, the first people who converted to Christianity were Jews. As a religion, it originated in the I century in the territory of the modern state of Israel, which at that time was one of the provinces of the Western Roman Empire. By the fourth century, Christianity had spread throughout the entire territory of the empire, covering most of modern Western Europe, the Mediterranean, and penetrated the Transcaucasus. If we bear in mind who accepted the first Christianity at the level of state religion, then it was Armenia, where it happened under King Trdat III in 301. As a comparison, in the Roman Empire, Christianity received the status of state religion only in 382. The most important historical role in the adoption and dissemination of Christianity in Armenia was played by Gregory the Illuminator, who later became the Catholic high priests of this church. In his honor, the Armenian Apostolic Church is also officially referred to in some sources as Gregorian.

If the question is about who first took Christianity on Russian lands, then there is no consensus among historians until now. When investigating this issue, it should be assumed that among the Germanic and Slavic peoples this religion began to spread especially actively since the dissolution of the Roman Empire. Then, to the XIII-XIV centuries, it penetrates to the Finns and Balts.

The sources available to date give very contradictory information about who first adopted Christianity, referring to the personalities of the historical figure. This is a very important refinement, as it should be understood that the carrying out of such transformations in society, as the adoption of religion, especially at the state level, could not have occurred without the organizing role of the state.

Traditionally, the date of adoption of Christianity on the Russian lands is considered to be 988, when the prince of Kiev was Vladimir. Some researchers call another date - 990. The problem is further complicated by the fact that the question itself contains some incorrectness. What is meant by the given: "who first took Christianity"? A historical figure, a people or a group of peoples who live compactly in a certain territory ...

In order to remove the last two theses, one can state with certainty that the process of Christianization of the lands of the Russian state was a long and very complex, sometimes reversible, process. Therefore, it must be investigated with reference to the history of each people or nationality that lived in the Ancient Rus.

Actual, in the question of who first adopted Christianity in Russia, of course, remains the problem of personalities.

The most often cited "The Tale of Bygone Years" says that in 6496 (and this is exactly 988 in the new calendar), "... Jesus Christ, who loved him," enlightened her, and Vladimir Svyatoslavich was the prince of Kiev at this time. The adoption of Christianity by the classics of Russian history is also treated differently. They even used different terms to denote this event, obviously, each in its own way understanding it. Thus, V.N. Tatishchev in his works speaks of "the baptism of the Slavs and Russia," and N.M. Karamzin - about "the baptism of Rus." Therefore, the only approach that can be taken as a reducible approach to an answer is the search for a reliable historical figure, with the active participation of which this unique event took place.

Quite common is the view that baptism should be attributed to the fact that Christianity was adopted in Constantinople by Grandma Prince Vladimir in 969 (or 957). The basis is the mention of the presence in the suite of Olga, no one Gregory, on conjectures, the Christian confessor of the princess.

Even earlier dates and other personalities are called in connection with the study of the very history of Russian statehood. Thus, Western European and Baltic chronicles indicate that Christianity was accepted after the unsuccessful campaigns against Prince Constantinople of princes Askold and Dir, and this happened more than 100 years before Vladimir - between 842 and 867 years. In addition, in the registers of the Tsargradsky bishops of the late 9th century there are already records of the Russian diocese, which is listed under 60 - 61 numbers, and these registers are known to have been filled in strictly chronological order.

Thus, to date, the issue in the title of the article has only a hypothetical answer.