diff --git a/wp-includes/vars.php b/wp-includes/vars.php
index 0cb1142318..8058084f19 100644
--- a/wp-includes/vars.php
+++ b/wp-includes/vars.php
@@ -1,9 +1,7 @@
 <?php
 
 /* This file sets various arrays and variables for use in WordPress */
-
-# WordPress version
-$wp_version = '1.0.1';
+require(ABSPATH . 'wp-includes/version.php');
 
 # BBcode search and replace arrays
 $wp_bbcode['in'] = array(
diff --git a/wp-includes/version.php b/wp-includes/version.php
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..d7ed178f62
--- /dev/null
+++ b/wp-includes/version.php
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+<?php
+
+// This just holds the version number, in a seperate file so we can bump it without cluttering the CVS
+
+$wp_version = '1.1-alpha';
+
+?>
\ No newline at end of file