The
Christianization of Kievan Rus' took place in several stages. In early 867,
Patriarch Photius of Constantinople announced to other Orthodox patriarchs that the
Rus', baptised by his bishop, took to Christianity with particular enthusiasm. Photius's attempts at Christianizing the country seem to have entailed no lasting consequences, since the
Primary Chronicle and other Slavonic sources describe the tenth-century Rus' as firmly entrenched in paganism. Following the Primary Chronicle, the definitive
Christianization of
Kievan Rus' dates from the year 988 (the year is disputed), when
Vladimir the Great was baptized in
Chersonesus and proceeded to baptize his family and people in
Kiev. The latter events are traditionally referred to as
baptism of Rus' (, ) in Russian and Ukrainian literature.