1.
Mikhail Nesterov
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Mikhail Vasilyevich Nesterov was a Russian and Soviet painter, associated with the Peredvizhniki and Mir Iskusstva. He was one of the first exponents of Symbolist art in Russia and he was born to a strongly patriarchal merchant family. His father was a draper and haberdasher, but always had a strong interest in history, in 1879, he began to participate in the schools exhibitions. Two years later, he entered the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts and he was disappointed at the teaching there and returned to Moscow, only to find Perov on his deathbed, so he took lessons from Alexei Savrasov. After a brief stay in Ufa, where he met his wife, Maria, he returned to Moscow. While creating a series of paintings, he supported himself doing illustrations for magazines and books published by Alexei Stupin. In 1885, he was awarded the title Free Artist and married, the following year, his wife died after giving birth to his daughter, Olga. Several of his works from this period feature his wifes image and his first major success came with his painting, The Hermit which was shown at the seventeenth exhibition of the Peredvizhniki in 1889. It was purchased by Pavel Tretyakov and the money enabled Nesterov to take a trip to Austria, Germany, France. This series would include fifteen large canvases and occupy him for fifty years. In 1890, Adrian Prakhov, who was overseeing work at St Volodymyrs Cathedral, became familiar with Nesterovs paintings and invited him to participate in creating murals, after some hesitation, he agreed, then travelled to Rome and Istanbul to acquaint himself with Byzantine art. This project would take years to complete. Despite this, he undertook other religious commissions, in 1898, Grand Duke George Alexandrovich asked him to work at the Alexander Nevsky church in Abastumani. He spent six years there, off and on, creating 50 small murals and the iconostasis and he was apparently much more pleased with later work at the Marfo-Mariinsky Convent. He refused to work on the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Warsaw, in 1901, he wanted to deepen his spiritual appreciation of the monastic life, so he spent some time at the Solovetsky Monastery on the coast of the White Sea. He painted numerous works there and the influence of his visit could be seen in his canvases for many years after and he was also inspired by the novels of Pavel Ivanovich Melnikov, dealing with the lives of the Old Believers in the Volga Region. In 1902, he married Ekaterina Vasilyeva, whom he had met admiring his works at an exhibition, in 1905, after the Revolution began, he joined the Union of the Russian People, an extreme right-wing nationalist party that supported the Tsar. As a result, he was in danger after the October Revolution
2.
Pskov
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Pskov is a city and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located about 20 kilometers east from the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Pskov is one of the oldest cities in Russia, the name of the city, originally spelled Pleskov, may be loosely translated as of purling waters. Its earliest mention comes in 903, which records that Igor of Kiev married a local lady, Pskovians sometimes take this year as the citys foundation date, and in 2003 a great jubilee took place to celebrate Pskovs 1, 100th anniversary. The first prince of Pskov was Vladimir the Greats youngest son Sudislav, once imprisoned by his brother Yaroslav, he was not released until the latters death several decades later. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the town adhered politically to the Novgorod Republic, in 1241, it was taken by the Teutonic Knights, but Alexander Nevsky recaptured it several months later during a legendary campaign dramatized in Sergei Eisensteins 1938 movie Alexander Nevsky. Having fortified the town, Daumantas routed the Teutonic Knights at Rakvere and his remains and sword are preserved in the local kremlin, and the core of the citadel, erected by him, still bears the name of Dovmonts town. By the 14th century, the town functioned as the capital of a de facto sovereign republic and its most powerful force was the merchants who brought the town into the Hanseatic League. Pskovs independence was recognized by Novgorod in 1348. Several years later, the veche promulgated a law code, which was one of the sources of the all-Russian law code issued in 1497. For Russia, the Pskov Republic was a bridge towards Europe, for Europe, the importance of the city made it the subject of numerous sieges throughout its history. The Pskov Krom withstood twenty-six sieges in the 15th century alone, at one point, five stone walls ringed it, making the city practically impregnable. A local school of icon-painting flourished, and the masons were considered the best in Russia. Many peculiar features of Russian architecture were first introduced in Pskov, finally, in 1510, the city fell to Muscovite forces. The deportation of families to Moscow is a subject of Rimsky-Korsakovs opera Pskovityanka. As the second largest city of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, most famously, it withstood a prolonged siege by a 50, 000-strong Polish army during the final stage of the Livonian War. The king of Poland Stephen Báthory undertook some thirty-one attacks to storm the city, even after one of the city walls was broken, the Pskovians managed to fill the gap and repel the attack. Its amazing how the city reminds me of Paris, wrote one of the Frenchmen present at Báthorys siege, as a consequence, the citys importance and well-being declined dramatically, although it has served as a seat of separate Pskov Governorate since 1777. During World War I, Pskov became the center of much activity behind the lines, Pskov was also occupied by the Estonian army between 25 May 1919 and 28 August 1919 during the Estonian War of Independence when Bułak-Bałachowicz became the military administrator of Pskov
3.
Eastern Orthodox Church
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The Eastern Orthodox Church teaches that it is the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church established by Jesus Christ in his Great Commission to the apostles. It practices what it understands to be the original Christian faith, the Eastern Orthodox Church is a communion of autocephalous churches, each typically governed by a Holy Synod. It teaches that all bishops are equal by virtue of their ordination, prior to the Council of Chalcedon in AD451, the Eastern Orthodox had also shared communion with the Oriental Orthodox churches, separating primarily over differences in Christology. Eastern Orthodoxy spread throughout the Roman and later Eastern Roman Empires and beyond, playing a prominent role in European, Near Eastern, Slavic, and some African cultures. As a result, the term Greek Orthodox has sometimes used to describe all of Eastern Orthodoxy in general. However, the appellation Greek was never in use and was gradually abandoned by the non-Greek-speaking Eastern Orthodox churches. Its most prominent episcopal see is Constantinople, there are also many in other parts of the world, formed through immigration, conversion and missionary activity. The official name of the Eastern Orthodox Church is the Orthodox Catholic Church and it is the name by which the church refers to itself in its liturgical or canonical texts, in official publications, and in official contexts or administrative documents. Orthodox teachers refer to the Church as Catholic and this name and longer variants containing Catholic are also recognized and referenced in other books and publications by secular or non-Orthodox writers. The common name of the Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, is a shortened practicality that helps to avoid confusions in casual use, for this reason, the eastern churches were sometimes identified as Greek, even before the great schism. After 1054, Greek Orthodox or Greek Catholic marked a church as being in communion with Constantinople and this identification with Greek, however, became increasingly confusing with time. Missionaries brought Orthodoxy to many regions without ethnic Greeks, where the Greek language was not spoken. Today, many of those same Roman churches remain, while a large number of Orthodox are not of Greek national origin. Eastern, then, indicates the element in the Churchs origin and development, while Orthodox indicates the faith. While the Church continues officially to call itself Catholic, for reasons of universality, the first known use of the phrase the catholic church occurred in a letter written about 110 AD from one Greek church to another. Quote of St Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans, Wheresoever the bishop shall appear, there let the people be, even as where Jesus may be, thus, almost from the very beginning, Christians referred to the Church as the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. The Orthodox Church claims that it is today the continuation and preservation of that same Church, a number of other Christian churches also make a similar claim, the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Assyrian Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. The Church of England separated from the Roman Catholic Church, not directly from the Orthodox Church, the depth of this meaning in the Orthodox Church is registered first in its use of the word Orthodox itself, a union of Greek orthos and doxa
4.
Sviatoslav I of Kiev
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He also conquered numerous East Slavic tribes, defeated the Alans and attacked the Volga Bulgars, and at times was allied with the Pechenegs and Magyars. His decade-long reign over the Kievan Rus was marked by expansion into the Volga River valley, the Pontic steppe. By the end of his life, Sviatoslav carved out for himself the largest state in Europe. In contrast with his mothers conversion to Christianity, Sviatoslav remained a pagan all of his life. The Primary Chronicle records Sviatoslav as the first ruler of the Kievan Rus with a name of Slavic origin, the name Sviatoslav, however, is not recorded in other medieval Slavic countries. Nevertheless, Sveinald is the Old East Norse cognate with the Slavic form as attested in the Old East Norse patronymic of Sviatoslavs son Vladimir and this patronymic naming convention continues in Icelandic and in East Slavic languages. Even in Rus, it was attested only among the members of the house of Rurik, as were the names of Sviatoslavs immediate successors, Vladimir, Yaroslav, and Mstislav. Some scholars see the name of Sviatoslav, composed of the Slavic roots for holy and glory, as an artificial derivation combining the names of his predecessors Oleg, virtually nothing is known about Sviatoslavs childhood and youth, which he spent reigning in Novgorod. Sviatoslavs father, Igor, was killed by the Drevlians around 945, Sviatoslav was tutored by a Varangian named Asmud. The tradition of employing Varangian tutors for the sons of ruling princes survived well into the 11th century, Sviatoslav appears to have had little patience for administration. His life was spent with his druzhina in permanent warfare against neighboring states, nor did he have a tent, rather spreading out a horse-blanket under him and setting his saddle under his head, and all his retinue did likewise. Sviatoslavs appearance has been described very clearly by Leo the Deacon, following Deacons memories, Sviatoslav was a blue-eyed male of average height but of stalwart build, much more sturdy than Tzimiskes. He shaved his head and his beard but wore a bushy mustache. He preferred to dress in white, and it was noted that his garments were much cleaner than those of his men and he wore a single large gold earring bearing a carbuncle and two pearls. Sviatoslavs mother, Olga, converted to Eastern Orthodox Christianity at the court of Byzantine Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus in 957, however, Sviatoslav remained a pagan all of his life. In the treaty of 971 between Sviatoslav and the Byzantine emperor John I Tzimiskes, the Rus are swearing by Perun, according to the Primary Chronicle, he believed that his warriors would lose respect for him and mock him if he became a Christian. The allegiance of his warriors was of paramount importance in his conquest of an empire that stretched from the Volga to the Danube, very little is known of Sviatoslavs family life. It is possible that he was not the son of his parents
5.
Vladimir the Great
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Vladimir Sviatoslavich the Great or Volodymyr was a prince of Novgorod, grand prince of Kiev, and ruler of Kievan Rus from 980 to 1015. Vladimirs father was prince Sviatoslav of the Rurik dynasty, in Sweden, with the help from his relative Ladejarl Håkon Sigurdsson, ruler of Norway, he assembled a Varangian army and reconquered Novgorod from Yaropolk. Originally a follower of Slavic paganism, Vladimir converted to Christianity in 988, born in 958, Vladimir was the natural son and youngest son of Sviatoslav I of Kiev by his housekeeper Malusha. Malusha is described in the Norse sagas as a prophetess who lived to the age of 100 and was brought from her cave to the palace to predict the future, malushas brother Dobrynya was Vladimirs tutor and most trusted advisor. His place of birth is identified by different authors either as Budyatychi or Budnik, transferring his capital to Pereyaslavets in 969, Sviatoslav designated Vladimir ruler of Novgorod the Great but gave Kiev to his legitimate son Yaropolk. After Sviatoslavs death at the hands of the Pechenegs in 972, in 977, Vladimir fled to his kinsman Haakon Sigurdsson, ruler of Norway, collecting as many Norse warriors as he could to assist him to recover Novgorod. On his return the next year, he marched against Yaropolk, on his way to Kiev he sent ambassadors to Rogvolod, prince of Polotsk, to sue for the hand of his daughter Rogneda. The high-born princess refused to affiance herself to the son of a bondswoman, so Vladimir attacked Polotsk, slew Rogvolod, Vladimir continued to expand his territories beyond his fathers extensive domain. Although Christianity spread in the region under Olegs rule, Vladimir had remained a pagan, taking eight hundred concubines. He may have attempted to reform Slavic paganism by establishing the thunder-god, Perun, open abuse of the deities that most people in Rus revered triggered widespread indignation. A mob killed the Christian Fyodor and his son Ioann, immediately after the murder of Fyodor and Ioann, early medieval Rus saw persecutions against Christians, many of whom escaped or concealed their belief. However, Prince Vladimir mused over the incident long after, the result is described by the chronicler Nestor. Of the Muslim Bulgarians of the Volga the envoys reported there is no gladness among them, only sorrow and he also reported that Islam was undesirable due to its taboo against alcoholic beverages and pork. Vladimir remarked on the occasion, Drinking is the joy of all Rus and we cannot exist without that pleasure. His emissaries also visited Roman Catholic and Orthodox missionaries, ultimately Vladimir settled on Eastern Orthodox Christianity. If Vladimir was impressed by this account of his envoys, he was more attracted by the political gains of the Byzantine alliance. In 988, having taken the town of Chersonesos in Crimea, he negotiated for the hand of emperor Basil IIs sister. Never before had a Byzantine imperial princess, and one born in the purple at that, married a barbarian, as offers of French kings
6.
Christianity
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Christianity is a Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, who serves as the focal point for the religion. It is the worlds largest religion, with over 2.4 billion followers, or 33% of the global population, Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the savior of humanity whose coming as the Messiah was prophesied in the Old Testament. Christian theology is summarized in creeds such as the Apostles Creed and his incarnation, earthly ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection are often referred to as the gospel, meaning good news. The term gospel also refers to accounts of Jesuss life and teaching, four of which—Matthew, Mark, Luke. Christianity is an Abrahamic religion that began as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the mid-1st century, following the Age of Discovery, Christianity spread to the Americas, Australasia, sub-Saharan Africa, and the rest of the world through missionary work and colonization. Christianity has played a prominent role in the shaping of Western civilization, throughout its history, Christianity has weathered schisms and theological disputes that have resulted in many distinct churches and denominations. Worldwide, the three largest branches of Christianity are the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the denominations of Protestantism. There are many important differences of interpretation and opinion of the Bible, concise doctrinal statements or confessions of religious beliefs are known as creeds. They began as baptismal formulae and were expanded during the Christological controversies of the 4th and 5th centuries to become statements of faith. Many evangelical Protestants reject creeds as definitive statements of faith, even agreeing with some or all of the substance of the creeds. The Baptists have been non-creedal in that they have not sought to establish binding authoritative confessions of faith on one another. Also rejecting creeds are groups with roots in the Restoration Movement, such as the Christian Church, the Evangelical Christian Church in Canada, the Apostles Creed is the most widely accepted statement of the articles of Christian faith. It is also used by Presbyterians, Methodists, and Congregationalists and this particular creed was developed between the 2nd and 9th centuries. Its central doctrines are those of the Trinity and God the Creator, each of the doctrines found in this creed can be traced to statements current in the apostolic period. The creed was used as a summary of Christian doctrine for baptismal candidates in the churches of Rome. Most Christians accept the use of creeds, and subscribe to at least one of the mentioned above. The central tenet of Christianity is the belief in Jesus as the Son of God, Christians believe that Jesus, as the Messiah, was anointed by God as savior of humanity, and hold that Jesus coming was the fulfillment of messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. The Christian concept of the Messiah differs significantly from the contemporary Jewish concept, Jesus, having become fully human, suffered the pains and temptations of a mortal man, but did not sin
7.
Vasily Surikov
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Vasily Ivanovich Surikov was a Russian Realist history painter. Many of his works have become familiar to the public through their use as illustrations. He was born to an old Don Cossack family that had settled in Siberia and his father was a Collegiate Registrar, a civil service rank that often served as postmasters. In 1854, as a result of his father being reassigned, the moved to the village of Sukhobuzimskoye. In 1859, his father died of tuberculosis so the family returned to Krasnoyarsk and were forced to rent the second floor of their house to make ends meet and he began drawing while attending the district school and was encouraged by the local art teacher. His first formal work dates from 1862, but his family could not afford to continue his education and he became a clerk in a government office. This brought him contact with Pavel Zamyatin, the Governor of Yenisei, who was able to find him a patron, Pyotr Kuznetsov. After a year there, he was allowed to audit classes at the Academy, from 1869 to 1875, he studied with Pavel Chistyakov, Bogdan Willewalde and Pyotr Shamshin, winning several medals. His great attention to composition earned him a nickname, The Composer, in 1875, he graduated with the title of Artist, first degree. In 1877, he received a commission to paint murals at the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, unable to afford a house, he lived in rented apartments and hotels and visited Krasnoyarsk whenever possible. In 1878, he married Elisabeth Charais, a French woman who was descended from the Decembrist, Pyotr Svistunov, after that, he chose to remain in Moscow and began the series of historical paintings that would establish his reputation, starting with The Morning of the Streltsy Execution. In 1881, he had his first exhibition with the Peredvizhniki, in 1883, Menshikov in Berezov was bought by Pavel Tretyakov for a sum that allowed him to take a European tour. In 1887, he added portraits to his repertoire, beginning one of his mother. In 1888, his wife died and he returned to Krasnoyarsk with his daughters and this was followed by a visit to his ancestral home in Siberia. There, on the Ob River, he made sketches for one of his most familiar works and this brought him a full membership in the Imperial Academy. In 1897, he visited Switzerland and painted Suvorov Crossing the Alps, in 1907, he left the Peredvizhniki and joined the Union of Russian Artists. Three years later, he visited Spain, together with his son-in-law and that same year, he and the architect, Leonid Chernishyov, opened an art school. Four years later, he made a stay in Krasnoyarsk
8.
House of Romanov
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The Romanovs achieved prominence as boyars of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, later the Tsardom of Russia. In 1613, following years of interregnum, the zemsky sobor offered the Russian crown to Mikhail Romanov and he acceded to the throne as Michael I, becoming the first Tsar of Russia from the House of Romanov. His grandson Peter I established the Russian Empire and transformed the country into a continental power through a series of wars, the direct male line of the Romanovs came to an end when Elizabeth of Russia died in 1762. After an era of crisis, the House of Holstein-Gottorp, a cadet branch of the House of Oldenburg which reigned in Denmark, ascended the throne in 1762 with Peter III. All rulers from the middle of the 18th century to the revolution of 1917 were descended from that branch, though officially known as the House of Romanov, these descendants of the Romanov and Oldenburg dynasties are sometimes referred to as Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov. In early 1917 the Romanov dynasty had 65 members,18 of whom were killed by the Bolsheviks, the remaining 47 members went into exile abroad. In 1924, Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, the senior, surviving male-line descendant of Alexander II of Russia by primogeniture, since 1991, the succession to the former Russian throne has been in dispute, largely due to disagreements over the validity of dynasts marriages. Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia claims to hold the title of empress in pretense with her child, George Mikhailovich. There is also a rival non-Romanov claim put forth by Prince Karl Emich of the House of Leiningen supported by the Monarchist Party, according to the Almanach de Gotha, the name of Russias ruling dynasty from the time of Peter III was Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov. However, the name Romanov and House of Romanov were often used in references to the Russian imperial family. The coat of arms of the Romanov boyars was included in legislation on the imperial dynasty, after the February Revolution all members of the imperial family were given the surname Romanov by special decree of the Provisional Government of Russia. Their earliest common ancestor is one Andrei Kobyla, attested around 1347 as a boyar in the service of Semyon I of Moscow, later generations assigned to Kobyla an illustrious pedigree. An 18th-century genealogy claimed that he was the son of the Prussian prince Glanda Kambila, indeed, one of the leaders of the Old Prussian rebellion of 1260–1274 against the Teutonic order was named Glande. His actual origin may have been less spectacular, not only is Kobyla Russian for mare, some of his relatives also had as nicknames the terms for horses and other domestic animals, thus suggesting descent from one of the royal equerries. One of Kobylas sons, Feodor, a member of the boyar Duma of Dmitri Donskoi, was nicknamed Koshka and his descendants took the surname Koshkin, then changed it to Zakharin, which family later split into two branches, Zakharin-Yakovlev and Zakharin-Yuriev. During the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the family became known as Yakovlev. The family fortunes soared when Romans daughter, Anastasia Zakharyina, married Ivan IV, since her husband had assumed the title of tsar, which literally means Caesar, on 16 January 1547, she was crowned the very first tsaritsa of Russia. Her mysterious death in 1560 changed Ivans character for the worse, suspecting the boyars of having poisoned his beloved, Tsar Ivan started a reign of terror against them
9.
Banya (sauna)
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Banya or banja ) is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire, in the Russian language, the word banya may also refer to public bathhouse, most historically famous being the Sanduny. A mention of the banya is found in the Radzivill Chronicle in the story of Princess Olgas revenge for the murder of her husband, Prince Igor, the leader of the Drevlians had hopes of marrying the widow Olga and sent messengers to discuss the idea. When the Drevlians arrived, Olga commanded that a bath should be ready for them and said, Wash yourselves. The bath-house was heated and the unsuspecting Drevlians entered and began to wash themselves, men closed the bath-house behind them and Olga gave orders to set it on fire from the doors, so that the Drevlians were all burned to death. An early description of the banya comes from the East Slavic Primary Chronicle of 1113, wondrous to relate, said he, I saw the land of the Slavs, and while I was among them, I noticed their wooden bathhouses. They warm them to heat, then undress, and after anointing themselves with tallow, they take young reeds. They actually lash themselves so violently that they barely escape alive, then they drench themselves with cold water, and thus are revived. They think nothing of doing this every day, and actually inflict such voluntary torture on themselves and they make of the act not a mere washing but a veritable torment. The original bathhouses were detached, low-lying wooden structures dependent on a fire lit inside to provide heat, a stove in a corner is made of large round stones that, when heated, are lifted with iron rods and placed in a wooden tub. Once the fire is built, the bather then removes the fire, hence the soot and the term black bathhouses. Banya buildings can be large with a number of different bathing areas or simple wooden cabins like the traditional Finnish cottage saunas. Russian banyas usually have three rooms, a room, a washing room and an entrance room. The entrance room, called a predbannik or pre-bath, has pegs to hang clothing upon and benches to rest on. The washing room has a hot water tap, which uses water heated by the steam room stove and a vessel or tap for cold water to mix water of a comfortable temperature for washing. The heater has three compartments, a box that is fed from the entrance room, the rock chamber, which has a small hole to throw the water into. The top of the tank is usually closed to prevent vapour from infiltrating the banya. Water from a bucket by the stove is poured over the rocks in the stove
10.
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
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Otto I, traditionally known as Otto I the Great, was German king from 936 and emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda, Otto inherited the Duchy of Saxony and the kingship of the Germans upon his fathers death in 936. He continued his fathers work of unifying all German tribes into a single kingdom, through strategic marriages and personal appointments, Otto installed members of his family in the kingdoms most important duchies. This reduced the various dukes, who had previously been co-equals with the king, Otto transformed the Roman Catholic Church in Germany to strengthen royal authority and subjected its clergy to his personal control. After putting down a brief civil war among the duchies, Otto defeated the Magyars at the Battle of Lechfeld in 955. The victory against the pagan Magyars earned Otto a reputation as a savior of Christendom, by 961, Otto had conquered the Kingdom of Italy and extended his realms borders to the north, east, and south. The patronage of Otto and his immediate successors facilitated a so-called Ottonian Renaissance of arts, following the example of Charlemagnes coronation as Emperor of the Romans in 800, Otto was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 962 by Pope John XII in Rome. Ottos later years were marked by conflicts with the papacy and struggles to stabilize his rule over Italy, reigning from Rome, Otto sought to improve relations with the Byzantine Empire, which opposed his claim to emperorship and his realms further expansion to the south. To resolve this conflict, the Byzantine princess Theophanu married his son Otto II in April 972, Otto finally returned to Germany in August 972 and died at Memleben in May 973. Otto II succeeded him as Holy Roman Emperor, Otto was born on 23 November 912, the oldest son of the Duke of Saxony, Henry the Fowler and his second wife Matilda, the daughter of Dietrich of Ringelheim, a Saxon count in Westphalia. Otto had four siblings, Hedwig, Gerberga, Henry. On 23 December 918, Conrad I, King of East Francia and Duke of Franconia, although Conrad and Henry had been at odds with one another since 912, Henry had not openly opposed the king since 915. Furthermore, Conrads repeated battles with German dukes, most recently with Arnulf, Duke of Bavaria, after several months of hesitation, Eberhard and the other Frankish and Saxon nobles elected Henry as king at the Imperial Diet of Fritzlar in May 919. For the first time, a Saxon instead of a Frank reigned over the kingdom, Burchard II of Swabia soon swore fealty to the new king, but Arnulf of Bavaria did not recognize Henrys position. According to the Annales Iuvavenses, Arnulf was elected king by the Bavarians in opposition to Henry, in 921, Henry besieged Arnulfs residence at Ratisbon and forced him into submission. Arnulf had to accept Henrys sovereignty, Bavaria retained some autonomy, Otto first gained experience as a military commander when the German kingdom fought against Slavic tribes on its eastern border. While campaigning against the Slavs in 929, Ottos illegitimate son William, with Henrys dominion over the entire kingdom secured by 929, the king probably began to prepare his succession over the kingdom. No written evidence for his arrangements is extant, but during this time Otto is first called king in a document of the Abbey of Reichenau, while Henry consolidated power within Germany, he also prepared for an alliance with Anglo-Saxon England by finding a bride for Otto
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