Editing Primary Chronicle (section)

== Christian elements ==
[[File:Radzivill chronicle 123.jpg|alt=Radziwill Chronicle|thumb|398x398px|The baptism of Prince Vladimir I in Korsun in 988 (from the ''[[Radziwiłł Chronicle]]'']]
The ''Primary Chronicle'' is vibrant with Christian themes and biblical allusions, which are often said to reflect the text’s [[Monasticism|monastic]] authorship. Aleksandr Koptev remarks that the ''Chronicle'' belongs to the genre of [[Christian literature]].<ref>Koptev, Aleksandr. [[doi:10.1080/00806765.2010.530802.|“The Story of ‘Chazar Tribute’: A Scandinavian Ritual Trick in the Russian Primary Chronicle.”]] ''Scando-Slavica'' 56, no. 2 (December 2010): 212.</ref> In the introduction, the chronicler explores the biblical origin of the Slavic people, and traces their heritage back to Noah. On numerous occasions throughout the text, the chronicler discusses the pagan Slavs in a condescending manner, saying “for they were but pagans, and therefore ignorant.”{{sfn|Cross|Sherbowitz-Wetzor|1953|p=65}}{{npsn|date=May 2023}} Later in the ''Chronicle'', one of the most pivotal moments of the narrative is [[Vladimir the Great]]'s conversion to [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox Christianity]], which ignited extensive [[Christianization]] of [[Kievan Rus']].{{cn|date=September 2022}}

=== Biblical origin ===
The ''Primary Chronicle'' traces the history of the Slavic people all the way back to the times of [[Noah]], whose three sons inherited the Earth:

* '''[[Shem]]''' inherited the eastern region: [[Persia]], [[Bactria]], [[Syria]], [[Media (region)|Media]], [[Babylon]], [[Shem|Cordyna]], [[Assyria]], [[Mesopotamia]], [[Arabian Peninsula|Arabia]], [[Elymais]], [[India]], [[Coele-Syria|Coelesyria]], [[Commagene]], [[Phoenicia]].{{cn|date=September 2022}}
* '''[[Ham (son of Noah)|Ham]]''' inherited the southern region: [[Egypt]], [[Libya]], [[Numidia]], [[Massy (Biblical region)|Massy]]ris, [[Mauretania|Maurentania]], [[Cilicia]], [[Pamphylia]], [[Mysia]], [[Lycaonia]], [[Phrygia]], [[Camalaniugan|Camalia]], [[Lycia]]. [[Caria]], [[Lydia]], [[Moesia]], [[Troaș River|Troas]], [[Thessaly|Aeolia]], [[Bithynia]], [[Sardinia]], [[Crete]], [[Cyprus]].{{cn|date=September 2022}}
* '''[[Japheth]]''' gained north-western territories: [[Armenia]], [[Great Britain|Britain]], [[Illyria]], [[Dalmatia]], [[Ionia]], [[Macedonia (region)|Macedonia]], [[Media (region)|Media]], [[Paphlagonia]], [[Cappadocia]], [[Scythia]], and [[Thessaly]].{{cn|date=September 2022}}

The [[Varangians]], the [[Swedes]], the [[Normans]], the [[Rus' people|Rus]], and others were named as descendants of Japheth. In the very beginning, humanity was united into a single nation, but after the fall of the [[Tower of Babel]], the [[Slavic race]] was derived from the line of Japheth, “since they are the Noricians, who are identified with the Slavs.”{{sfn|Cross|Sherbowitz-Wetzor|1953|p=52}}{{npsn|date=May 2023}}

=== Korsun legend ===
{{Main|Conversion of Volodimer}}
According to the so-called "Korsun legend", presented in the ''Chronicle'' just preceding the [[conversion of Volodimer]], the Prince took possession of the Greek city of [[Chersonesos Taurica|Korsun]] ([[Chersonesus]]) in the [[Crimean peninsula|Crimean Peninsula]], in an attempt to gain certain benefits from [[Basil I|Emperor Basil]]. Following Vladimir's successful conquest of the city, he demanded that the Emperor's 'unwedded' sister be given up for marriage with him. Upon hearing the news from Korsun, emperor Basil responded that "It is not meet for Christians to be given in marriage to pagans. If you are baptized, you shall have her to wife, inherit the kingdom of God, and be our companion in faith."{{sfn|Cross|Sherbowitz-Wetzor|1953|p=112}}{{npsn|date=May 2023}} The legend concludes with Vladimir's embrace of Christianity at the [[Church of St. Basil (Korsun)|church of St. Basil]] in Korsun and his marriage to the Emperor's sister, [[Anna Porphyrogenita]].{{cn|date=September 2022}}

=== Archaeological findings ===
For centuries after the ''Chronicle’s'' creation, the legend's factuality was subject to extensive debate. Many historians, [[Antiquarian|antiquarians]], and archaeologists had attempted to determine the actual location of Vladimir's conversion by synthesizing textual evidence of the ''Chronicle'' with material evidence from Crimea. Their efforts became known in the realms of historical discipline as the “archaeology of the Korsun legend.”<ref name=":2">Mara Kozelsky. “Ruins into Relics: The Monument to Saint Vladimir on the Excavations of Chersonesos, 1827-57.” ''The Russian Review'', no. 4 (2004): 656-670.</ref> This search culminated under [[Archbishop]] Innokentii's diocesan administration (1848–57), when in the [[Chersonesus|ruins of Chersonesos]], archaeologists unearthed the foundations of three churches and determined that the one containing the richest findings was allegedly used for the baptism of the Kievan Prince.<ref>Romey, Kristin M., and Ludmila Grinenko. “Legacies of a Slavic Pompeii.” ''Archaeology'' 55, no. 6 (2002): 21.</ref> The unearthed material evidence proved sufficient to pinpoint the real location of the legend's events with reasonable accuracy.<ref name=":2" /> 

In the early 1860s, the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] began construction of [[Chersonesus Cathedral|The Saint Vladimir Cathedral in Chersonesos]], which has been destroyed on three separate occasions after first being erected and was renovated each time thereafter. The cathedral last faced destruction during the [[October Revolution]] and was not restored until the [[Dissolution of the Soviet Union|fall of the Soviet Union]]. It has been argued that by honoring Vladimir the Great and his contribution to the Eastern Orthodoxy, the cathedral serves the purpose of validating Russia's historical ties with the Crimean Peninsula, the accounts of which are preserved by the ''Chronicle''.<ref name=":2" />