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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sviatoslav_I_of_KievSviatoslav I of Kiev [1] Игорєвичь ,
Russian: Святослав Игоревич,
Ukrainian: Святослав Ігорович,
Bulgarian: Светослав,
Greek: Σφενδοσθλάβος ) was a warrior prince of
Kievan Rus'. The son of
Igor of Kiev and
Olga, Sviatoslav is famous for his incessant campaigns in the east and south, which precipitated the collapse of two great powers of Eastern Europe—
Khazaria and the
First Bulgarian Empire; he also subdued the
Volga Bulgars, the
Alans, and numerous
East Slavic tribes, and at times was allied with the
Pechenegs and
Magyars. His decade-long reign over Rus' was marked by rapid expansion into the
Volga River valley, the
Pontic steppe and the
Balkans. By the end of his short life, Sviatoslav carved out for himself the largest state in
Europe, eventually moving his capital from
Kiev to
Pereyaslavets on the
Danube in 969. In contrast with his mother's conversion to
Christianity, Sviatoslav remained a staunch
pagan all of his life. Due to his abrupt death in combat, Sviatoslav's conquests, for the most part, were not consolidated into a functioning empire, while his failure to establish a stable succession led to civil war among his successors.