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103-632: In 1578, King Stefan Batory created the Crown Tribunal to reduce the enormous pressure on the royal court. That placed much of the monarch's juridical power in the hands of the elected deputies of the szlachta (nobility) and further strengthened that class. In 1581, the Crown Tribunal was joined by a counterpart in Lithuania, the Lithuanian Tribunal ( Trybunał Litewski ). The tribunal consisted of 27 secular deputies elected from

206-543: A princely or ducal ruler. Bathory also pledged several bribes, including 200,000 florins and ransoms for Polish captives taken by the Tatars . After a heated discussion, it was decided that Anna Jagiellon , sister of the former King Sigismund II Augustus , should be elected 'king' and marry Stephen Báthory. In January 1576 Báthory passed the mantle of voivode of Transylvania to his brother Christopher Báthory and departed for Poland. On 1 May 1576 Báthory married Anna and

309-595: A twenty-five-year war against the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , Sweden, and Denmark. Despite first successes, Ivan's army was pushed back, and the nation failed to secure a coveted position on the Baltic Sea. Hoping to make profit from Russia's concentration on Livonian affairs, Devlet I Giray of Crimea , accompanied by as many as 120,000 horsemen, repeatedly devastated the Moscow region , until

412-565: A boyar, Vasily Shuysky , was proclaimed tsar in 1606. In his attempt to retain the throne, Shuysky allied himself with the Swedes, unleashing the Ingrian War with Sweden. False Dmitry II , allied with the Poles, appeared under the walls of Moscow and set up a mock court in the village of Tushino . In 1609, Poland intervened into Russian affairs officially , captured Shuisky , and occupied

515-576: A broad view of what had been a rarely visited and poorly reported state. In the 1630s, the Russian Tsardom was visited by Adam Olearius , whose lively and well-informed writings were soon translated into all the major languages of Europe. Further information about Russia was circulated by English and Dutch merchants . One of them, Richard Chancellor , sailed to the White Sea in 1553 and continued overland to Moscow. Upon his return to England,

618-526: A ceremony was held in the Vilnius Cathedral during which bishop Merkelis Giedraitis presented Báthory a decorated sword and a hat adorned with pearls (both were sanctified by Pope Gregory XIII himself), while this ceremony manifested the sovereignty of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and had the meaning of elevation of the new Grand Duke of Lithuania , this way ignoring the stipulations of

721-509: A conflict with each other, which provided Russia with the opportunity to make peace with Sweden in 1617. The Polish–Muscovite War was ended with the Truce of Deulino in 1618, restoring temporarily Polish and Lithuanian rule over some territories, including Smolensk , lost by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1509. The early Romanovs were weak rulers. Under Mikhail, state affairs were in

824-558: A decade of terror in Russia that culminated in the Massacre of Novgorod (1570). As a result of the policies of the oprichnina , Ivan broke the economic and political power of the leading boyar families, thereby destroying precisely those persons who had built up Russia and were the most capable of administering it. Trade diminished, and peasants, faced with mounting taxes and threats of violence, began to leave Russia. Efforts to curtail

927-422: A detailed description of L'Empire de Russie of the early 17th century that was presented to King Henry IV , stated that foreigners make "a mistake when they call them Muscovites and not Russians. When they are asked what nation they are, they respond 'Russac', which means 'Russians', and when they are asked what place they are from, the answer is Moscow, Vologda , Ryasan and other cities". The closest analogue of

1030-560: A hostility toward his advisers, the government, and the boyars . Historians have not determined whether policy differences, personal animosities, or mental imbalance caused his wrath. In 1565, he divided Russia into two parts: his private domain (or oprichnina ) and the public realm (or zemshchina ). For his private domain, Ivan chose some of the most prosperous and important districts of Russia. In these areas, Ivan's agents attacked boyars, merchants, and even common people, summarily executing some and confiscating land and possessions. Thus began

1133-574: A new law code, revamped the military, and reorganized local government. These reforms undoubtedly were intended to strengthen the state in the face of continuous warfare. The key documents prepared by the so-called Select Council of advisors and promulgated during this period are as follows: Muscovy remained a fairly unknown society in Western Europe until Baron Sigismund von Herberstein published his Rerum Moscoviticarum Commentarii (literally Notes on Muscovite Affairs ) in 1549. This provided

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1236-470: A period of social struggle and civil war, the Time of Troubles ( Smutnoye vremya , 1598–1613). Ivan IV was succeeded by his son Feodor , who was uninterested in ruling and possibly mentally deficient. Actual power went to Feodor's brother-in-law, the boyar Boris Godunov (who is credited with abolishing Yuri's Day , the only time of the year when serfs were free to move from one landowner to another). Perhaps

1339-454: A result, False Dmitriy I entered Moscow and was crowned tsar that year, following the murder of Tsar Feodor II , Godunov's son. Subsequently, Russia entered a period of continuous chaos, known as The Time of Troubles (Смутное Время). Despite the Tsar's persecution of the boyars, the townspeople's dissatisfaction, and the gradual enserfment of the peasantry, efforts at restricting the power of

1442-588: A strong and independent Hungarian-Polish union under his rule. However, the unfavorable international situation did not allow him significantly to advance any of his plans in that area. In addition to Hungarian, he was well versed in Latin , and spoke Italian and German; he never learned the Polish language. In his personal life, he was described as rather frugal in his personal expenditures, with hunting and reading as his favorite pastimes. Before Báthory's election to

1545-673: Is "the darling of both the Polish public opinion and Polish historians". During the interwar period in the Second Polish Republic he was a cult figure, often compared - with the government's approval - to the contemporary dictator of Poland, Józef Piłsudski . After the Second World War , in the communist People's Republic of Poland , he became more of a controversial figure, with historians more ready to question his internal politics and attachment to Hungary. Nonetheless, his good image remained intact, reinforced by

1648-581: Is a somewhat archaic translation. The Russian word grozny reflects the older English usage of terrible as in "inspiring fear or terror; dangerous; powerful; formidable". It does not convey the more modern connotations of English terrible , such as "defective" or "evil". Vladimir Dal defined grozny specifically in archaic usage and as an epithet for tsars: "Courageous, magnificent, magisterial and keeping enemies in fear, but people in obedience". Other translations have also been suggested by modern scholars. Ivan IV became Grand Prince of Moscow in 1533 at

1751-646: The Academy of Vilnius , the third university in the Commonwealth, transforming what had been a Jesuit college into a major university. He founded several other Jesuit colleges, and was active in propagating Catholicism , while at the same time being respectful of the Commonwealth policy of religious tolerance , issuing a number of decrees offering protection to Polish Jews , and denouncing any religious violence . In external relations, Báthory sought peace through strong alliances. Though remaining distrustful of

1854-512: The Battle of Kerelőszentpál . On 12 December 1575, after an interregnum of roughly one and a half years, primate of Poland Jakub Uchański , representing a pro-Habsburg faction, declared Archduke Maximilian III as the new monarch. However, chancellor Jan Zamoyski , Piotr Zborowski and other opponents of Habsburgs argued against a Habsburg king, fearing the political power of a native Polish king. Zborowski in particular supported electing

1957-601: The Battle of Molodi put a stop to such northward incursions. But for decades to come, the southern borderland was annually pillaged by the Nogai Horde and the Crimean Khanate , who took local inhabitants with them as slaves. Tens of thousands of soldiers protected the Great Abatis Belt – a burden for a state whose social and economic development was stagnating. During the late 1550s, Ivan developed

2060-578: The Duchy of Livonia in exchange for regaining Velikiye Luki and Nevel . In 1584, Báthory allowed Zamoyski to execute Samuel Zborowski , whose death sentence for treason and murder had been pending for roughly a decade. This political conflict between Báthory and the Zborowski family , framed as the clash between the monarch and the nobility, would be a major recurring controversy in internal Polish politics for many years. In external politics, Báthory

2163-479: The Eastern Orthodox Church . The Sobornoye Ulozheniye , a comprehensive legal code introduced in 1649, illustrates the extent of state control over Russian society. By that time, the boyars had largely merged with the new elite, who were obligatory servitors of the state, to form a new nobility , the dvoryanstvo . The state required service from both the old and the new nobility, primarily in

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2266-678: The Holy Roman Emperor in Russia, used both Russia and Moscovia in his work on the Russian tsardom and noted: "The majority believes that Russia is a changed name of Roxolania . Muscovites ("Russians" in the German version) refute this, saying that their country was originally called Russia (Rosseia)". Pointing to the difference between Latin and Russian names, French captain Jacques Margeret , who served in Russia and left

2369-650: The Kremlin . A group of Russian boyars signed in 1610 a treaty of peace, recognising Ladislaus IV of Poland , son of Polish king Sigismund III Vasa , as tsar. In 1611, False Dmitry III appeared in the Swedish-occupied territories, but was soon apprehended and executed. The Polish presence led to a patriotic revival among the Russians, and a volunteer army, financed by the Stroganov merchants and blessed by

2472-527: The Muscovy Company was formed by himself, Sebastian Cabot , Sir Hugh Willoughby , and several London merchants. Ivan IV used these merchants to exchange letters with Elizabeth I . Despite the domestic turmoil of the 1530s and 1540s, Russia continued to wage wars and to expand. It grew from 2.8 to 5.4 million square kilometers from 1533 to 1584. Ivan defeated and annexed the Khanate of Kazan on

2575-718: The Treaty of Nerchinsk , Russia ceded its claims to the Amur Valley, but it gained access to the region east of Lake Baikal and the trade route to Beijing . Peace with China strengthened the initial breakthrough to the Pacific that had been made in the middle of the century. Peter the Great (1672–1725), who became ruler in his own right in 1696, brought the Tsardom of Russia, which had little prior contact with Western Europe, into

2678-683: The Turks . Some time after 1553, Báthory was captured by the Turks, and after Ferdinand I refused to pay his ransom, joined the opposing side, supporting John II Sigismund Zápolya in his struggle for power in the Eastern Hungarian Kingdom . As Zápolya's supporter, Báthory acted both as a feudal lord, military commander and a diplomat. During one of his trips to Vienna he was put under house arrest for two years. During this time he fell out of favor at Zápolya's court, and his position

2781-700: The Union of Lublin . The Báthory's ceremony of 29 May 1580 coincided with the nobles of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (e.g. Mikołaj "the Red" Radziwiłł , Eustachy Wołłowicz , Jan Karol Chodkiewicz , Konstanty Ostrogski ) initial demands before the Union of Lubin to have a separate declaration act of the Grand Duke of Lithuania in Vilnius. With Lithuania secure, the other major region refusing to recognize his election

2884-907: The Vilnius University (then known as the Stefan Batory University) and several units in the Polish Army from 1919 to 1939. His name was borne by two 20th-century passenger ships of the Polish Merchant Navy , the MS Batory and TSS Stefan Batory . In modern Poland, he is the namesake of the Batory Steelmill , a nongovernmental Stefan Batory Foundation , the Polish 9th Armored Cavalry Brigade , and numerous Polish streets and schools. One of

2987-462: The boyar faction controlling the throne. In the 17th century, the bureaucracy expanded dramatically. The number of government departments ( prikazy ; sing., prikaz ) increased from twenty-two in 1613 to eighty by mid-century. Although the departments often had overlapping and conflicting jurisdictions , the central government, through provincial governors, was able to control and regulate all social groups, as well as trade, manufacturing, and even

3090-427: The coronation document, by Constantinople Patriarch Jeremiah II , and in numerous official texts. The formula in manuscripts "to all his state of Great Russia" later replaced those found in other manuscripts – "to all the Russian realm" ( vo vse Rossisskoe tsarstvo ); the former is more typical of the 17th century, when the usage of the term " Great Russia " ( Velikaya Rossiya ) became widely established. By

3193-870: The magnates from the Sejm . Several minor reforms had little effect until the tribunals were finally subject to a major reform by the Great Sejm of 1788-1792. However, those reforms, along with the Tribunals themselves, were soon annulled in the aftermath of the Partitions of Poland . Crown Treasury courts were created in 1613 ( Trybunał Skarbowy Koronny, Trybunał Skarbowy Litewski ). The wages for all judges were decided at Sejm meetings. Stefan Batory Stephen Báthory ( Hungarian : Báthory István ; Polish : Stefan Batory ; Lithuanian : Steponas Batoras ; 27 September 1533 – 12 December 1586)

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3296-804: The upheavals of the transition from the Rurik to the Romanov dynasties, wars with the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , Sweden , and the Ottoman Empire , and the Russian conquest of Siberia , to the reign of Peter the Great, who took power in 1689 and transformed the tsardom into an empire. During the Great Northern War , he implemented substantial reforms and proclaimed the Russian Empire after victory over Sweden in 1721. While

3399-595: The 16th century, it was known both as Russia and Muscovy. Such notable Englishmen as Giles Fletcher , author of the book Of the Russe Common Wealth (1591), and Samuel Collins , author of The Present State of Russia (1668), both of whom visited Russia, were familiar with the term Russia and used it in their works. So did numerous other authors, including John Milton , who wrote A brief history of Moscovia and of other less-known countries lying eastward of Russia , published posthumously, starting it with

3502-577: The 16th century, the Russian ruler had emerged as a powerful, autocratic figure, a Tsar . By assuming that title, the sovereign of Moscow tried to emphasize that he was a major ruler or emperor ( tsar ( царь ) represents the Slavic adaptation of the Roman Imperial title/name Caesar ) on a par with the Byzantine emperor . Indeed, after Ivan III married Sophia Palaiologina , the niece of

3605-620: The 17th century, the form Rossiya replaced Rus' to describe the extent of the tsar's imperial authority in chiny , with Feodor III using the term "Great Russian Tsardom" ( Velikorossisskoe tsarstvie ) to denote an imperial and absolutist state, subordinating both Russian and non-Russian territories. The old name Rus' was replaced in official documents, though the names Rus ' and Russian land were still common and synonymous to it. The Russian state partly remained referred to as Moscovia (English: Muscovy ) throughout Europe, predominantly in its Catholic part, though this Latin term

3708-528: The 17th century. In the southwest, it claimed the Wild Fields (modern day Eastern Ukraine and South-Western Russia), which had been under Polish–Lithuanian rule and sought assistance from Russia to leave the rule of the Commonwealth. The Zaporozhian Cossacks , warriors organized in military formations, lived in the frontier areas bordering Poland, the Crimean Tatar lands. Although part of them

3811-508: The Commonwealth in a series of decisive campaigns taking Polotsk in 1579 and Velikiye Luki in 1580. In 1581, Stephen penetrated once again into Russia and, on 22 August, laid siege to the city of Pskov . While the city held, on 13 December 1581 Ivan the Terrible began negotiations that concluded with the Truce of Jam Zapolski on 15 January 1582. The treaty was favorable to the Commonwealth, as Ivan ceded Polatsk , Veliz and most of

3914-654: The Commonwealth. He was also remembered, more trivially, for his Hungarian-style cap and saber ( szabla batorówka ). His later resurgence in Polish memory and historiography can be traced to the 19th-century era of partitions of Poland when the Polish state lost its independence. He was remembered for his military triumphs and praised as an effective ruler by many, including John Baptist Albertrandi , Jerzy Samuel Bandtkie , Michał Bobrzyński , Józef Szujski and others. Though some historians like Tadeusz Korzon , Joachim Lelewel and Jędrzej Moraczewski remained more reserved, in 1887, Wincenty Zakrzewski noted that Báthory

4017-657: The Cossack Academy in Kiev , Russia gained links to Polish and Central European influences and to the wider Orthodox world. Although the Zaporozhian Cossack link induced creativity in many areas, it also weakened traditional Russian religious practices and culture. The Russian Orthodox Church discovered that its isolation from Constantinople had caused variations to appear between their liturgical books and practices. The Russian Orthodox patriarch, Nikon ,

4120-628: The Grand Duke Ivan IV was crowned Tsar and thus was recognized – at least by the Russian Orthodox Church – as Emperor. Notably, the hegumen Philotheus of Pskov claimed in 1510 that after Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453, the Russian tsar remained the only legitimate Orthodox ruler, and that Moscow was the Third Rome , becoming the final lineal successor to Rome and Constantinople ; these were

4223-607: The Habsburgs, he maintained the tradition of good relations that the Commonwealth enjoyed with its Western neighbor and confirmed past treaties between the Commonwealth and Holy Roman Empire with diplomatic missions received by Maximilian's successor, Rudolf II . The troublesome south-eastern border with the Ottoman Empire was temporarily quelled by truces signed in July 1577 and April 1579. The Sejm of January 1578 gathered in Warsaw

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4326-570: The Hetmanate ( Cossack Hetmanate ) as a participating party of the agreement ended the war in 1667. Cossacks considered it as a Moscow betrayal. As a result, it split Cossack territory along the Dnieper River , reuniting the western sector (or Right-bank Ukraine ) with Poland and leaving the eastern sector ( Left-bank Ukraine ) self-governing under the sovereignty of the tsar. However, the self-government did not last long and Cossack territory

4429-499: The Kremlin in Moscow, prompting many to accept Tsarist autocracy as a necessary means to restoring order and unity in Russia. The Time of Troubles included a civil war in which a struggle over the throne was complicated by the machinations of rival boyar factions, the intervention of regional powers Poland and Sweden, and intense popular discontent, led by Ivan Bolotnikov . False Dmitriy I and his Polish garrison were overthrown, and

4532-481: The Latin term Moscovia in Russia was "Tsardom of Moscow", or "Moscow Tsardom" ( Московское царство , Moskovskoye tsarstvo ), which was used along with the name "Russia", sometimes in one sentence, as in the name of the 17th century Russian work On the Great and Glorious Russian Moscow State ( О великом и славном Российском Московском государстве , O velikom i slavnom Rossiyskom Moskovskom gosudarstve ). By

4635-824: The Ob River to the Yenisey River , then on to the Lena River and the coast of the Pacific Ocean. In 1648, Cossack Semyon Dezhnyov opened the passage between America and Asia. By the middle of the 17th century, Russians had reached the Amur River and the outskirts of the Chinese Empire . After a period of Sino-Russian border conflicts with the Qing dynasty , Russia made peace with China in 1689. By

4738-403: The Orthodox Church, was formed in Nizhny Novgorod and, led by Prince Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin , drove the Poles out of the Kremlin. In 1613, a zemsky Sobor proclaimed the boyar Mikhail Romanov as tsar, beginning the 300-year reign of the Romanov family. The immediate task of the new dynasty was to restore order. However, Russia's major enemies, Poland and Sweden, were engaged in

4841-454: The Poles convinced the Tartars to switch sides, the Zaporozhian Cossacks needed military help to maintain their position. In 1648, the Hetman (leader) of the Zaporozhian Host , Bohdan Khmelnytsky , offered to ally with the Russian tsar , Aleksey I . Aleksey's acceptance of this offer, which was ratified in the Treaty of Pereyaslav in 1654, led to a protracted war between Poland and Russia . The Truce of Andrusovo , which did not involve

4944-403: The Tsar were only halfhearted. Finding no institutional alternative to the autocracy, discontented Russians rallied behind various pretenders to the throne. During that period, the goal of political activity was to gain influence over the sitting autocrat or to place one's own candidate on the throne. The boyars fought among themselves, the lower classes revolted blindly, and foreign armies occupied

5047-417: The West opened as international trade increased and more foreigners came to Russia. The Tsar's court was interested in the West's more advanced technology, particularly when military applications were involved. By the end of the 17th century, Little Russian, Polish, and West European penetration had weakened the Russian cultural synthesis – at least among the elite – and had prepared

5150-404: The age of three. The Shuysky and Belsky factions of the boyars competed for control of the regency until Ivan assumed the throne in 1547. Reflecting Moscow's new imperial claims, Ivan's coronation as Tsar was a ritual modeled after those of the Byzantine emperors. With the continuing assistance of a group of boyars, Ivan began his reign with a series of useful reforms. In the 1550s, he declared

5253-444: The church and the state. The chief opposition figure, the protopope Avvakum , was burned at the stake. The split afterwards became permanent, and many merchants and peasants joined the Old Believers. The tsar's court also felt the impact of Little Russia and the West. Kiev was a major transmitter of new ideas and insight through the famed scholarly academy that Metropolitan Mohyla founded there in 1631. Other more direct channels to

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5356-430: The city recognised Báthory as ruler of Poland and paid the sum of 200,000 zlotys in gold as compensation. Tying up the administration of the Commonwealth's northern provinces, in February 1578 he acknowledged George Frederick as the ruler of Duchy of Prussia , receiving his feudal tribute. After securing control over the Commonwealth, Báthory had a chance to devote himself to strengthening his authority, in which he

5459-491: The decision. Widespread crop failures caused the Russian famine of 1601–1603 , and during the ensuing discontent, a man emerged who claimed to be Tsarevich Demetrius , Ivan IV's son who had died in 1591. This pretender to the throne, who came to be known as False Dmitriy I , gained support in Poland and marched to Moscow, gathering followers among the boyars and other elements as he went. Historians speculate that Godunov would have weathered this crisis had he not died in 1605. As

5562-427: The districts of the town of Chorzów is named after him. Immediately after his death, he was not fondly remembered in the Commonwealth. Many nobles took his behavior in the Zborowski affair and his domestic policies as indicating an interest in curtailing the nobility's Golden Freedoms and establishing an absolute monarchy . His contemporaries were also rankled by his favoritism toward Hungarians over nationals of

5665-401: The first or second voting, but if there was no consensus, the third could was to be decided by a simple majority. The tribunals had many problems since their creation, as the judges rarely had any formal training and were basically politicians elected each year. With the progressive degradation of Polish political system in the early 18th century, the tribunals became as corrupt and dependent on

5768-494: The hands of the tsar's father, Filaret , who in 1619 became Patriarch of Moscow. Later, Mikhail's son Aleksey (r. 1645–1676) relied on a boyar, Boris Morozov , to run his government. Morozov abused his position by exploiting the populace, and in 1648 Aleksey dismissed him in the wake of the Salt Riot in Moscow. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain Smolensk from Poland in 1632, Russia made peace with Poland in 1634. Polish king Władysław IV Vasa , whose father and predecessor

5871-429: The immense human suffering that accompanied many of his projects, such as the construction of Saint Petersburg , led many pious Russians to believe that he was the Antichrist . The Great Northern War against Sweden consumed much of Peter's attention for years; however, the Swedes were eventually defeated, and peace was agreed to in 1721. Russia annexed the Baltic coast from Sweden and parts of Finland, which would become

5974-457: The land they farmed. Middle-class urban tradesmen and craftsmen were assessed taxes, and, like the serfs, they were forbidden to change residence. All segments of the population were subject to military levy and to special taxes. By chaining much of Russian society to specific domiciles, the legal code of 1649 curtailed movement and subordinated the people to the interests of the state. Under this code, increased state taxes and regulations altered

6077-425: The late Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI Palaiologos , in 1472, the Moscow court adopted Byzantine terms, rituals, titles, and emblems such as the double-headed eagle , which survives in the coat of arms of Russia . At first, the Byzantine term autokrator expressed only the literal meaning of an independent ruler, but in the reign of Ivan IV (1533–1584) it came to imply unlimited ( autocratic ) rule. In 1547

6180-399: The mainstream of European culture and politics. After suppressing numerous rebellions with considerable bloodshed, Peter embarked on an incognito tour of Western Europe . He became impressed with what he saw and was awakened. Peter began requiring the nobility to wear Western European clothing and shave off their beards, an action that the boyars protested bitterly. Arranged marriages among

6283-451: The middle Volga in 1552 and later the Astrakhan Khanate , where the Volga meets the Caspian Sea . These victories transformed Russia into a multiethnic and multiconfessional state, which it continues to be today. The tsar now controlled the entire Volga River and gained access to Central Asia. Expanding to the northwest toward the Baltic Sea proved to be much more difficult. In 1558, Ivan invaded Livonia , eventually involving himself in

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6386-685: The military because of permanent warfare on southern and western borders and attacks of nomads . In return, the nobility received land and peasants . In the preceding century, the state had gradually curtailed peasants' rights to move from one landlord to another; the 1649 code officially attached peasants to their home . The state fully sanctioned serfdom , and runaway peasants became state fugitives . Landlords had complete power over their peasants. Peasants living on state-owned land, however, were not considered serfs. They were organized into communes , which were responsible for taxes and other obligations. Like serfs, however, state peasants were attached to

6489-416: The military realm. His signal achievement was his victorious campaign in Livonia against Russia in the middle part of his reign, in which he repulsed a Russian invasion of Commonwealth borderlands and secured a highly favorable treaty of peace (the Peace of Jam Zapolski ). Stephen Báthory was born on 27 September 1533 in the castle at Somlyó, also known as Szilágysomlyó (today's Șimleu Silvaniei ). He

6592-414: The mobility of the peasants by tying them to their land brought Russia closer to legal serfdom . In 1572, Ivan finally abandoned the practices of the oprichnina. According to a popular theory, the oprichnina was started by Ivan in order to mobilize resources for the wars and to quell opposition. Regardless of the reason, Ivan's domestic and foreign policies had a devastating effect on Russia and led to

6695-485: The most important event of Feodor's reign was the proclamation of the Patriarchate of Moscow in 1589. The creation of the patriarchate climaxed the evolution of a separate and totally independent Russian Orthodox Church . In 1598, Feodor died without an heir, ending the Rurik Dynasty. Boris Godunov then convened a Zemsky Sobor , a national assembly of boyars, church officials, and commoners, which proclaimed him tsar, although various boyar factions refused to recognize

6798-425: The name "Росиа" ( Rosia ), and Medovartsev also mentions the sceptre "of Russian lordship" ( Росийскаго господства , Rosiyskago gospodstva ). In the following century, the new forms co-existed with Rus' and appeared in an inscription on the western portal of the Transfiguration Cathedral of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery in Yaroslavl (1515), on the icon case of the Theotokos of Vladimir (1514), in

6901-435: The nobility ( szlachta ) annually during the sessions of the local parliaments ( sejmiks ) and 6 ecclesiastical deputies elected by their respective Chapters . The tribunal was headed by a Tribunal President ( prezydent for the Crown Tribunal, prezes for the Lithuanian Tribunal) and a Marshal ( marszałek trybunału ). The Marshal was chosen from and by the judges themselves, and the President dealt with ecclesiastic matters and

7004-411: The nobility were banned, and the Orthodox Church was brought under state control. Military academies were established to create a modern Western European-style army and officer corps. These changes did not win Peter many friends, and in fact caused great political division in the country. These, along with his notorious cruelties (such as the torture murder of his own son for plotting a rebellion) and

7107-440: The oldest endonyms of the Grand Duchy of Moscow used in its documents were "Rus'" ( Русь ) and the "Russian land" ( Русская земля , Russkaya zemlya ), a new form of its name in Russian became common by the 15th century. The vernacular Rus ' was transformed into Rus(s)iya or Ros(s)iya (based on the Greek name for Rus'). In the 1480s, Russian state scribes Ivan Cherny and Mikhail Medovartsev mention Russia under

7210-403: The painters who took him as a subject were Jan Matejko and Stanisław Wyspiański . A statue of Báthory by Giovanni Ferrari was raised in 1789 in Padua , Italy, sponsored by the last king of the Commonwealth, Stanisław August Poniatowski . Other monuments to him include one in the Łazienki Palace (1795 by André Lebrun ) and one in Sniatyn (1904, destroyed in 1939). He was a patron of

7313-486: The positive views of a popular Polish historian of that period, Paweł Jasienica . Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia , also known as the Tsardom of Moscow , was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of tsar by Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter the Great in 1721. From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew by an average of 35,000 square kilometres (14,000 sq mi) per year. The period includes

7416-536: The region and escaped serfs seeking free land. The unexpected uprising swept up the Volga River valley and even threatened Moscow. Tsarist troops finally defeated the rebels after they had occupied major cities along the Volga in an operation whose panache captured the imaginations of later generations of Russians. Razin was publicly tortured and executed. The Tsardom of Russia continued its territorial growth through

7519-499: The representatives of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania refused to recognize Báthory as a grand duke, and demanded concessions - that he return the estates of his wife Anne to the Lithuanian treasury, hold Sejm conventions in both Lithuania and Poland, and reserve the highest governmental official offices in Lithuania for Lithuanians. He accepted the conditions. In June Báthory was recognized as Grand Duke of Lithuania . On 29 May 1580

7622-659: The resulting civil war and drove Bekes out of Transylvania. He subsequently attempted to play the Ottomans and the Holy Roman Empire against one another in an attempt to strengthen the Transylvania position. In 1572, the throne of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , at the time the largest and one of the most populous states in Europe, was vacated when King Sigismund II Augustus died without heirs. The Sejm

7725-517: The resulting conflict, lasting for several years, became known as the Livonian War . By 1577, Ivan was in control of most of the disputed territory, but his conquest was short-lived. In 1578, Commonwealth forces scored a number of victories in Liviona and began pushing Ivan's forces back; this marked the turning point in the war . Báthory, together with his chancellor Zamoyski, led the army of

7828-535: The site of the new Russian capital, Saint Petersburg. The Russian victory in the Great Northern War marked a watershed in European politics, as it not only brought about the eclipse of Sweden as a great power , but also Russia's decisive emergence as a permanent European great power. The Russian colonization of Siberia also continued, and war with Persia brought about the acquisition of territory in

7931-708: The social discontent that had been simmering since the Time of Troubles. In the 1650s and 1660s, the number of peasant escapes increased dramatically. A favourite refuge was the Don River region, domain of the Don Cossacks . A major uprising occurred in the Volga region in 1670 and 1671. Stenka Razin , a Cossack who was from the Don River region, led a revolt that drew together wealthy Cossacks who were well established in

8034-481: The third elected king of Poland. He worked closely with chancellor Jan Zamoyski . The first years of his reign were focused on establishing power, defeating a fellow claimant to the throne, Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor , and quelling rebellions, most notably, the Danzig rebellion . He reigned only a decade, but is considered one of the most successful kings in Polish and Lithuanian history , particularly in

8137-511: The throne of the Commonwealth, Ivan the Terrible of Russia had begun encroaching on its sphere of interest in the northeast, eventually invading the Commonwealth borderlands in Livonia ; the conflict would grow to involve a number of nearby powers (outside Russia and Poland-Lithuania, also Sweden , the Kingdom of Livonia and Denmark-Norway ). Each of them was vying for control of Livonia, and

8240-554: The two centers of Christianity and of the Roman empires ( Western and Eastern ) of earlier periods. The "Third Rome" concept would resonate in the self-image of the Russian people in future centuries. The development of the Tsar's autocratic powers reached a peak during the reign of Ivan IV, and he gained the sobriquet "Grozny". The English word terrible is usually used to translate the Russian word grozny in Ivan's nickname, but this

8343-527: The way for an even more radical transformation. Russia's eastward expansion encountered little resistance. In 1581, the Stroganov merchant family, interested in the fur trade, hired a Cossack leader, Yermak Timofeyevich , to lead an expedition into western Siberia . Yermak defeated the Khanate of Sibir and claimed the territories west of the Ob and Irtysh Rivers for Russia. From such bases as Mangazeya , merchants, traders, and explorers pushed eastward from

8446-574: The western regions of Rus'. Due to the propaganda of the Commonwealth, as well as of the Jesuits , the term Moscovia was used instead of Russia in many parts of Europe where prior to the reign of Peter the Great there was a lack of direct knowledge of the country. In Northern Europe and at the court of the Holy Roman Empire , however, the country was known under its own name, Russia or Rossia . Sigismund von Herberstein , ambassador of

8549-540: The words: "The Empire of Moscovia, or as others call it, Russia...". According to prominent historians like Alexander Zimin and Anna Khoroshkevich, the continuous use of the term Moscovia was a result of traditional habit and the need to distinguish between the Muscovite and the Lithuanian part of Rus', as well as of the political interests of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , which competed with Moscow for

8652-597: The work by Maximus the Greek , the Russian Chronograph written by Dosifei Toporkov (died 1543 or 1544) in 1516–1522, and in other sources. On 16 January 1547, Ivan IV was crowned the tsar and grand prince of all Russia ( Царь и Великий князь всея Руси , Tsar i Velikiy knyaz vseya Rusi ), thereby proclaiming the Tsardom of Russia, or "the Great Russian Tsardom", as it was called in

8755-472: Was Prussia . Maximilian's sudden death improved Báthory's situation, but the city of Danzig (Gdańsk) still refused to recognize his election without significant concessions. The Hanseatic League city, bolstered by its immense wealth, fortifications, and the secret support of Maximilian, had supported the Emperor's election and decided not to recognize Báthory as the legitimate ruler. The resulting conflict

8858-419: Was Sigismund III Vasa , had been elected by Russian boyars as tsar of Russia during the Time of Troubles, renounced all claims to the title as a condition of the peace treaty. The autocracy survived the Time of Troubles and the rule of weak or corrupt tsars because of the strength of the government's central bureaucracy . Government functionaries continued to serve, regardless of the ruler's legitimacy or

8961-480: Was Voivode of Transylvania (1571–1576), Prince of Transylvania (1576–1586), King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (1576–1586). The son of Stephen VIII Báthory and a member of the Hungarian Báthory noble family, Báthory was a ruler of Transylvania in the 1570s, defeating another challenger for that title, Gáspár Bekes . In 1576 Báthory became the husband of Queen Anna Jagiellon and

9064-474: Was a high-ranking priest. Two main locations of the Crown Tribunal were Piotrków Trybunalski (for the lands of Greater Poland , held in autumn and winter) and Lublin (for the lands of Lesser Poland , in spring and summer). Until 1590, some sessions were held in Łuck , and from 1764, some were in Poznań . A session of the tribunal would last six months. Decisions were supposed to be taken by consensus in

9167-490: Was considering another war with Russia, but his plans were delayed due to the lack of support from the Sejm, which refused to pass the requested tax raises. Báthory's health had been declining for several years. He died on 12 December 1586. He had no legitimate children, though contemporary rumours suggested he might have had several illegitimate children. None of these rumours have been confirmed by modern historians. His death

9270-460: Was crowned king of Poland and grand duke of Lithuania . After being chosen as king in the 1576 Polish–Lithuanian royal election , Báthory also began using the title of the prince of Transylvania . Báthory's position was at first extremely difficult, as there was still some opposition to his election. Emperor Maximilian, insisting on his earlier election, fostered internal opposition and prepared to enforce his claim by military action. At first

9373-622: Was determined to bring the Russian texts back into conformity with the Greek texts and practices of the time. But Nikon encountered opposition among the many Russians who viewed the corrections as improper foreign intrusions. When the Orthodox Church forced Nikon's reforms, a schism resulted in 1667. Those who did not accept the reforms came to be called the Old Believers ; they were officially pronounced heretics and were persecuted by

9476-538: Was eventually incorporated into the Russian Empire (after the Battle of Poltava ) during the 18th century. Russia's southwestern expansion, particularly its incorporation of the Wild Fields (modern day Eastern Ukraine), had unintended consequences . Most Little Russians were Orthodox, but their close contact with the Roman Catholic Polish also brought them Western intellectual currents. Through

9579-410: Was featured in the works of Jan Kochanowski , Mikołaj Sęp Szarzyński and many others. He became a recurring character in Polish poetry and literature and featured as a central figure in poems, novels and drama by Jakub Jasiński , Józef Ignacy Kraszewski , Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz , Henryk Rzewuski and others. He has been a subject of numerous paintings, both during his life and posthumously. Among

9682-540: Was followed by an interregnum of one year. Maximilian II's son, Archduke Maximilian III , was elected king but was contested by the Swedish Sigismund III Vasa , who defeated Maximilian at the Byczyna and succeeded as ruler of the Commonwealth. Báthory actively promoted his legend, sponsoring many works about his life and achievements, from historical treatises to poetry. In his lifetime, he

9785-523: Was given the power to elect a new king, and in the 1573 Polish–Lithuanian royal election chose Henry of France ; Henry soon ascended the French throne and forfeited the Polish-Lithuanian one by returning to France. Báthory decided to enter into the election; in the meantime he had to defeat another attempt by Bekes to challenge his authority in Transylvania, which he did by defeating Bekes at

9888-407: Was known as the Danzig rebellion . Most armed opposition collapsed when the prolonged Siege of Danzig by Báthory's forces was lifted as an agreement was reached. The Danzig army was utterly defeated in a field battle on 17 April 1577. However, since Báthory's armies were unable to take the city by force, a compromise was reached. In exchange for some of Danzig's demands being favorably reviewed,

9991-464: Was largely assumed by another Hungarian noble, Gáspár Bekes . Báthory briefly retired from politics, but he still wielded considerable influence and was seen as a possible successor to Zápolya. After Zápolya's death in 1571, the Transylvanian estates elected Báthory Voivode of Transylvania . Bekes, supported by the Habsburgs, disputed his election, but by 1573, Báthory emerged victorious in

10094-411: Was more concerned with the hereditary Hungarian throne. In exchange, the Sejm allowed him to raise taxes and push a number of reforms strengthening the military, including the establishment of the piechota wybraniecka , an infantry formation composed of peasants. Many of his projects aimed to modernize the Commonwealth army, reforming it in a model of Hungarian troops of Transylvania. He also founded

10197-414: Was never used in Russia. The two names Russia and Moscovia appear to have co-existed as interchangeable during the late 16th century and throughout the 17th century with different Western maps and sources using different names, so that the country was called "Russia, or Moscovia" ( Latin : Russia seu Moscovia ) or "Russia, popularly known as Moscovia" ( Latin : Russia vulgo Moscovia ). In England in

10300-457: Was persuaded to grant Báthory subsidies for the inevitable war against Muscovy . A number of his trusted advisers were Hungarian, and he remained interested in Hungarian politics. In his last years, Báthory, with Pope Gregory XVIII 's approval, made a plan with Antonio Possevino for the liberation of Ottoman Hungary by a well organized (mostly Polish) Christian army, and the creation of

10403-669: Was serving in the Polish army as Registered Cossacks , the Zaporozhian Cossacks remained fiercely independent and staged several rebellions against the Poles. In 1648, the peasants of what is now Eastern Ukraine joined the Cossacks in rebellion during the Khmelnytsky Uprising , because of the social and religious oppression they suffered under Polish rule. Initially, Cossacks were allied with Crimean Tatars , which had helped them to throw off Polish rule. Once

10506-471: Was supported by his chancellor Jan Zamoyski , who would soon become one of the king's most trusted advisers. Báthory reorganised the judiciary by the formation of legal tribunals (the Crown Tribunal in 1578 and the Lithuanian Tribunal in 1581). While this somewhat weakened the royal position, it was of little concern to Báthory, as the loss of power was not significant in the short term, and he

10609-536: Was the son of Stephen VIII Báthory (d. 1534) of the noble Hungarian Báthory family and his wife Catherine Telegdi . He had at least five siblings: two brothers and three sisters. Little is known about his childhood. Around 1549–1550, he briefly visited Italy and probably spent a few months attending lectures at the Padua University . Upon his return, he joined the army of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor , and took part in his military struggle against

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