Kievan Rus' cont'd

During his reign, Vladimir the Great, saw the need for alliances with foreign civilizations. He attained an alliance with the Byzantine Empire by promptly converting the Kievan Rus' to Greek Orthodoxy and marrying Princess Anna of Byzantium. This of course was a purely political mover, and Vladimir's choice reverberates in the largest cultural aspects of Russian culture today. source

St Sophia Cathedral in Kiev, today one of the most significant examples of Kiev architecture, and has been a symbol of Russian power through much political strife. Building began in 1037, under the orders of Yaroslav I the Wise, who had depictions of himself and the royal family illustrated on the inside. Many Greek Orthodox churches were erected on the direct orders of Kiev leaders; religion and politics were very closely entwined in Kievan Rus' society. source