In fact, Vladimir’s decision showed that he recognised the strength of the Byzantine empire, his most powerful neighbour. Weighing the pros and cons of each, he decided to adopt Eastern Orthodoxy – reportedly in response to his envoys’ description of a monumental building, probably the church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (now Istanbul), a technological marvel comparable to today’s architectural wonders.

Having come to power through a complicated series of events (including killing a half-brother), he recognised the need to find a glue to hold his people together, and sent fact-finding missions to his neighbours to learn about Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and Islam.

By 987, he was ruling a Slavic people who followed pagan beliefs, worshipping at shrines to local deities. The example of Grand Prince Vladimir, ruler of the Kievan Rus’ – a realm spanning much of eastern Europe and stretching into modern Russia – makes the point particularly well. People then were like us today, and reacted in the same ways: some were frightened by unfamiliar things, while some were curious about new opportunities. The peoples of different regions were much more balanced in their technology and wealth, so in that sense it was much more like our world today than the world of five centuries later. Before the boom in European economic and political power beginning with the era of the Crusades, around 1100, the continent lagged far behind the Islamic world and China in terms of knowledge, influence and commerce. Also, whereas after 1500 power was concentrated in Europe, which was beginning to explore and exploit other regions, in 1000 there were multiple power centres around the planet. Then, merchants, who made and sold things, were among the wealthiest groups in society, and no stock market yet existed. This world was not capitalist in any sense that we understand today. Mass manufacturing was far more prevalent than we might imagine possible

Valerie hansen the year 1000