Hey, it's Grace Beverly here, host of Working Hard, which is currently being sponsored by Compare the Market, where you can now get personalized car and home insurance deals delivered by Auto Sergei. I'm sure you're all familiar with Compare the Market. You know the meerkats who compare car and home insurance? Well, now they have a great bit of tech called Auto Sergay. And in a nutshell, he does the hard work for you when it comes to finding great home and car insurance deals. He scans for car and home insurance deals and delivers them ahead of your renewal. I absolutely need these types

of services to help me get my non-negotiables done efficiently so that I can focus my time

on things that are more important to me like my daily podcast walk or actually running my

businesses. Just make it simple with personalised deals delivered by Auto Sergei from Compare the Market.

Prices are generated from information you have provided.

Review before purchasing.

Thank you. A History of Europe. The Battle of Lake Papers, part four of five.

In medieval Russia, one city in particular stands out as distinctive, with its own unique culture, social order and proud history.

Every other major city was governed by Prince the dynasty of Rurik, who demanded an expected loyalty. But one city was governed instead by a mixture of local aristocrats, known as the Boyars, and also businessmen and merchants.

That city was Novgorod, also known as Veliky Novgorod, or Novgorod the Great.

To proclaim this northern city-state as an independent power,

or as some kind of republic like those in Italy, would be a clear exaggeration,

but it still would have a kernel of truth in it.

The city of Novgorod lay on the banks to the River Volkov, just north of Lake Ilmen,

ideally situated to take advantage of the busy trade routes, which criss-crossed the forests and rivers of the region.

The north-south route from the Baltic to the Black Sea, as well as west to central Europe Europe and east to the River Volga.

The land controlled by the state of Novgorod extended north of the Gulf of Finland,

the River Neva, the southern shores of Lake Ladoga, and the River Svira.

In the east it bordered the Principality of Siddharia and in the south, Smolensk and Polotsk. The western frontier bordered the principality of Siddaria and in the south Smolensk and Polotsk.

The western frontier bordered the Nava River and Lake Papers

in the area of the modern-day border between Russia and Estonia.

All this area was administered centrally from the city of Novgorod, with one exception, the city of Peskov.

...