Russia

Viking Games

The influence of the Vikings, some of whom served and fought in Russia and the Ukraine, led to the influx of Viking games such as running along the oars of longboats, axe-throwing, and forms of wrestling, as well as the banya, similar to bathhouses or saunas in other cultures. But play involving horses continued in southern Russia, especially with the invasion of the Mongols and their occupation of Russia from the early 13th century until the mid-16th century. Much of this survives in the culture of the Kalmyks and the Cossacks, although Kalmyks are now more commonly associated with camel-riding. The Cossacks are also remembered for their traditional style of dancing, which is used to entertain people, with boys and girls learning how to dance from a young age. In southern Russia, the influence from Central Asia has also seen many people play Backgammon, as well as the form of wrestling known as kurash. In the Arctic regions around Murmansk, at the Festival of the North, reindeer racing always attracts a large crowd.

The restoration of Russian independence under Ivan III “the Great” and his grandson Ivan IV “the Terrible” (reigned as Tsar 1547–84), led to the reestablishment of Christian rule, with Moscow emerging as the most powerful city. Ivan the Terrible helped open trade with the English and with other countries, and ideas from Russia reached the rest of Europe, as those from the rest of Europe gradually permeated through Russia. As a youth, Prince Ivan played Chess, and occupied his spare time outside in hunting, later becoming heavily involved in shows of prowess.

For the wealthy, elaborate toys were fashioned in Moscow, Novgorod, or other Russian cities or were imported from England and elsewhere. Peter, later Tsar Peter “the Great” (ruled 1682–1725), used coloring books and a giant globe and came to enjoy mechanical objects, his reign coinciding with many being imported from Western Europe. The move, by him, of the Russian capital to St. Petersburg in 1712 helped increase Russian trade with other parts of Europe, and 50 years later the court of Catherine II “the Great” was increasingly aware of Western Europe. The French King Louis XIV (reigned 1643–1715) wrote that “Russians play superb chess, and in comparison to them our players are like schoolboys.” Chess was played regularly at court from the time of Boris Godunov (reigned 1598–1605), with Catherine the Great herself taking part in a number of games against visiting figures of the Enlightenment.

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