In his letter to king Henry, Saint Bruno of Querfurt gives an account of his missionary activity. Among other things, he writes about his expedition to Pechenegs and about his visit to the „lord of the Rus”. Although Bruno does not mention the name of the Russian prince, it is assumed he meant Vladimir the Great. This episode in Saint Bruno’s life is usually taken for granted and often summed up in one sentence: „Bruno stayed in Rus for over a month”. Did he really stay at Vladimir’s as a guest? Was it a voluntary visit or was Bruno brought by force? The present article is an attempt of a new interpretation of Bruno’s account. After analysing key words and comparing Bruno’s account with his way of relating other events, the author comes to the conclusion that – in a diplomatic way – Bruno confers to his reader the information that in Rus he underwent a kind of arrest – his freedom was restricted and he was „kept for one month against [his] will”.