Boleslaw the Brave captures Kiev

August 14, 1018

The Polish king marched across the steppe to install his son-in-law Svyatopolk on the Rus throne. He crossed the Western Bug by personally striking the river with his sword. Kievan townspeople greeted him with bread and salt, then slaughtered his garrison within weeks and drove the Poles home. The expedition marked the high watermark of Piast ambition in the east, never to be equaled.