For almost one thousand years, the remarkable city of Vladimir has stood on the banks of the Klyazma River. The pages of its history are replete with significant events and individuals. But perhaps the most important chapter tells the story of when Vladimir was the beating heart of the Russian Northeast. This era began in the middle of the 12th century, and lasted for more than two hundred fifty years, during which time the city was led by a number of rulers – the Grand Princes of Vladimir. Each of these princes left his indelible mark – in white stone and golden cupolas, in the stories told by the chronicles, and in the history of the Russian nation, which, were it not for the watershed era known as Vladimirian Rus, would have taken another path completely.