Putin marks 1,000 years since death of St. Vladimir the Great

MOSCOW, July 29 (UPI) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin marked 1,000 years since the death of St. Prince Vladimir the Great, credited with bringing Christianity to the country during the Middle Ages, in a gala Tuesday attended by 400 guests.

The main ceremonial prayer at Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior was shown live on state TV channels.

Vladimir Sviatoslavich the Great was the prince of Novgorod, the grand prince of Kiev and ruler of Kievan Rus from 980 to July 15, 1015. His father was prince Sviatoslav of the Rurik Dynasty.

St. Vladimir was noted for expanding education, judicial institutions and giving aid to the poor. His memory has been immortalized through Russian folk ballads.

Both Ukraine and Russia have strong Orthodox traditions.

In December, Putin compared Crimea's spiritual holiness as akin to "the Temple Mount in Jerusalem for followers of Islam and Judaism," largely since Prince Vladimir was baptized there.

Russians, like Putin, celebrate Vladimir the Great as the man who converted the country to Christianity, but some Ukrainians feel this is an attempt to steal their history, BBC News reported.

In Ukraine, President Petro Poroshenko and his wife attended a ceremony at St. Volodymyr's Church in Kiev also to honor St. Vladimir the Great.