Philosophers
90-574: 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 the upheavals of the transition from
180-595: 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
270-565: 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
360-576: 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,
450-509: 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
540-781: A connotation of dictatorial powers and style, fitting since "autocrat" was an official title of the Russian Emperor (informally referred to as 'the tsar'). Similarly, Speaker of the House Thomas Brackett Reed was called "Czar Reed" for his dictatorial control of the House of Representatives in the 1880s and 1890s. In the United States and in the United Kingdom, the title "czar" is a colloquial term for certain high-level civil servants, such as
630-676: A czar in the US government typically refers to a sub-cabinet-level advisor within the executive branch. One of the earliest known usages of the term was for Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis , who was named commissioner of baseball , with broad powers to clean up the sport after it had been sullied by the Black Sox scandal of 1919. Giles Fletcher Giles Fletcher (also known as Giles Fletcher, The Younger ; 1586? – 1623 in Alderton , Suffolk )
720-558: 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
810-421: 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
900-537: A higher title than King, and yet they call David Czar , and our kings, Kirrols , probably from Carolus Quintus , whose history they have among them". The title tsar remained in common usage, and also officially as part of various titles signifying rule over various states absorbed by the Russian monarchy (such as the former Tatar khanates and the Georgian Orthodox kingdom). In the 18th century, tsar
990-560: 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
SECTION 10
#17328009694231080-691: A makeshift imperial coronation performed by the Patriarch of Constantinople in 913. After an attempt by the Byzantine Empire to revoke this major diplomatic concession and a decade of intensive warfare, the imperial title of the Bulgarian ruler was recognized by the Byzantine government in 924 and again at the formal conclusion of peace in 927. Since in Byzantine political theory there was place for only two emperors, Eastern and Western (as in
1170-574: 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
1260-470: 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
1350-454: 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
1440-577: 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
1530-536: Is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs . The term is derived from the Latin word caesar , which was intended to mean emperor in the European medieval sense of the term—a ruler with the same rank as a Roman emperor , holding it by the approval of another emperor or a supreme ecclesiastical official—but was usually considered by Western Europeans to be equivalent to "king". Tsar and its variants were
1620-653: 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
1710-530: The Caucasus , although Russia surrendered those gains after Peter's death in 1725. There was no single flag during the Tsardom. Instead, there were multiple flags: Tsar Works Tsar ( / z ɑːr , ( t ) s ɑːr / ; also spelled czar , tzar , or csar ; Bulgarian : цар , romanized : tsar ; Russian : царь , romanized : tsar' ; Serbian : цар , car )
1800-479: 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
1890-622: 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
SECTION 20
#17328009694231980-657: The Kabardinian lands and Armenian territories ; hereditary Ruler and Lord of the Cherkess and Mountain Princes and others; Lord of Turkestan , Heir of Norway , Duke of Schleswig-Holstein , Stormarn , Dithmarschen , Oldenburg ". Like many lofty titles, such as mogul , tsar or czar has been used in English as a metaphor for positions of high authority since 1866 (referring to U.S. President Andrew Johnson ), with
2070-650: 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
2160-526: 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
2250-765: 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
2340-611: 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
2430-462: 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
2520-522: The " drug czar " for the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (not to be confused with a drug baron ), "terrorism czar" for a presidential advisor on terrorism policy, "cybersecurity czar" for the highest-ranking Department of Homeland Security official on computer security and information security policy, and " war czar " to oversee the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan . More specifically,
2610-576: 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
2700-588: 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
2790-543: The Bulgarian as in the Greek vernacular, the meaning of the title had shifted (although Paisius ' Slavonic-Bulgarian History (1760–1762) had still distinguished between the two concepts). The title of tsar (Serbian car ) was used officially by two monarchs, the previous monarchial title being that of king ( kralj ). In 1345, Stefan Dušan began to style himself "Emperor of Serbs and Greeks" (the Greek renderings read " basileus and autokrator of Serbs and Romans"), and
Tsardom of Russia - Misplaced Pages Continue
2880-422: The Bulgarian ruler Kaloyan and Pope Innocent III , Kaloyan—whose self-assumed Latin title was "Imperator Bulgarorum et Blachorum"—claims that the imperial crowns of Simeon I , his son Peter I , and Samuel were somehow derived from the papacy . The pope, however, only speaks of reges (kings) of Bulgaria in his replies, and eventually grants only that lesser title to Kaloyan, who nevertheless proceeds to thank
2970-657: 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 ,
3060-628: 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
3150-570: 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
3240-499: 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
3330-600: The Late Roman Empire ), the Bulgarian ruler was crowned basileus as "a spiritual son" of the Byzantine basileus . It has been hypothesized that Simeon's title was also recognized by a papal mission to Bulgaria in or shortly after 925, as a concession in exchange for a settlement in the Bulgarian- Croatian conflict or a possible attempt to return Bulgaria to union with Rome. Thus, in the later diplomatic correspondence conducted in 1199–1204 between
3420-478: 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
3510-466: The Latin title for the Roman emperors, caesar . The Greek equivalent of the Latin word imperator was the title autokrator . The term basileus was another term for the same position, but it was used differently depending on whether it was in a contemporary political context or in a historical or Biblical context. In 705 Emperor Justinian II named Tervel of Bulgaria "caesar" ( Greek : καῖσαρ ),
3600-824: 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
3690-532: 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
Tsardom of Russia - Misplaced Pages Continue
3780-698: 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
3870-505: The Russian emperor assumed the title "tsar of Poland". Among the indigenous peoples of Siberia and the Muslims of the Volga region , Central Asia and the Caucasus , the autocracy of the Russian Empire often became identified with the image of the "White Tsar" ( Russian : Белый царь ). By 1894, when Nicholas II ascended the throne, the full title of the Russian rulers was "By
3960-519: 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 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'
4050-403: 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
4140-417: 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
4230-404: 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
4320-406: 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
4410-444: 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
4500-490: 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
4590-401: The first foreigner to receive this title, but his descendants continued to use Bulgar title " Kanasubigi ". The sainted Boris I is sometimes retrospectively referred to as tsar, because at his time Bulgaria was converted to Christianity . However, the title "tsar" (and its Byzantine Greek equivalent basileus ) was actually adopted and used for the first time by his son Simeon I , following
SECTION 50
#17328009694234680-708: The grace of God Almighty, the Emperor and Supreme Autocrat of all the Russias, Tsar of Moscow, Kiev, Vladimir , Novgorod , Kazan , Astrakhan , Poland , Siberia , Tauric Chersonese, and Georgia , Lord of Pskov , Grand Duke of Smolensk , Lithuania , Volhynia , Podolia and Finland , Prince of Estonia , Livonia , Courland and Semigalia , Samogitia , Białystok , Karelia , Tver , Yugra , Perm , Vyatka , Bulgaria , and other territories; Lord and Grand Duke of Nizhny Novgorod , Chernigov ; Ruler of Ryazan , Polotsk , Rostov , Yaroslavl , Beloozero , Udoria , Obdoria , Kondia , Vitebsk , Mstislav , and all northern territories ; Ruler of Iveria , Kartalinia , and
4770-494: 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
4860-429: 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
4950-457: 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
5040-411: 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 the 16th century, it was known both as Russia and Muscovy. Such notable Englishmen as Giles Fletcher , author of
5130-425: 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
5220-399: 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
5310-451: 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
5400-685: 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
5490-412: 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
SECTION 60
#17328009694235580-485: 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
5670-424: 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
5760-411: 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
5850-401: The official titles in the First Bulgarian Empire (681–1018), Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396), the Kingdom of Bulgaria (1908–1946), the Serbian Empire (1346–1371), and the Tsardom of Russia (1547–1721). The first ruler to adopt the title tsar was Simeon I of Bulgaria . Simeon II , the last tsar of Bulgaria , is the last person to hold this title. The title tsar is derived from
5940-435: 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
6030-475: The patronage of the Puritan philanthropist Anne Townshend at or before 1623. His principal work has the full title Christ's Victorie and Triumph, in Heaven, in Earth, over and after Death , and consists of four cantos . The first canto, Christ's Victory in Heaven , represents a dispute in heaven between justice and mercy, using the facts of Christ's life on earth; the second, Christ's Victory on Earth , deals with an allegorical account of Christ's Temptation;
6120-453: The period of Kievan Rus' never styled themselves as tsars. The first Russian ruler to openly break with the khan of the Golden Horde , Mikhail of Tver ( r. 1285–1318 ), assumed the title basileus ton Ros , as well as tsar . Following his assertion of independence from the khan in 1476, Ivan III , the grand prince of Moscow ( r. 1462–1505 ), adopted the title of sovereign of all Russia , and he later also started to use
6210-443: The pope for the "imperial title" conferred upon him. After Bulgaria's liberation from the Ottomans in 1878, its new monarchs were at first autonomous prince ( knyaz ). With the declaration of full independence, Ferdinand I of Bulgaria adopted the traditional title "tsar" in 1908 and it was used until the abolition of the monarchy in 1946. However, these titles were not generally perceived as equivalents of "emperor" any longer. In
6300-424: 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
6390-410: 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
6480-657: 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
6570-611: The succession and claimed the same titles as a dynast in Thessaly. After his death around 1370, he was succeeded in his claims by his son John Uroš , who retired to a monastery in about 1373. The title tsar was used once by church officials of Kievan Rus' in the naming of Yaroslav the Wise , the grand prince of Kiev ( r. 1019–1054 ). This may have related to Yaroslav's war against Byzantium and to his efforts to distance himself from Constantinople . However, other princes during
6660-467: The title of "tsar" is more honorable for Muscovites than "kaiser" or "king" exactly because it was God and not some earthly potentate who ordained to apply it to David, Solomon, and other kings of Israel. Samuel Collins , a court physician to Tsar Alexis in 1659–66, styled the latter "Great Emperor", commenting that "as for the word Czar , it has so near relation to Cesar ... that it may well be granted to signifie Emperor. The Russians would have it to be
6750-645: The title of tsar regularly in diplomatic relations with the West. From about 1480, he is designated as imperator in his Latin correspondence, as keyser in his correspondence with the Swedish regent, and as kejser in his correspondence with the Danish king, Teutonic Knights , and the Hanseatic League . Ivan's son Vasily III continued using these titles. Sigismund von Herberstein (1486–1566) observed that
6840-451: The titles of kaiser and imperator were attempts to render the Russian term tsar into German and Latin, respectively. The title-inflation related to Russia's growing ambitions to become an Orthodox " third Rome ", after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The monarch in Moscow was recognized as an emperor by Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I in 1514. However, the first Russian ruler to be formally crowned as tsar of all Russia
6930-502: 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
7020-527: 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
7110-571: 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
7200-539: 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
7290-765: 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 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
7380-522: Was Ivan IV ("the Terrible"), in 1547. Some foreign ambassadors—namely, Herberstein (in 1516 and 1525), Daniel Printz a Buchau (in 1576 and 1578) and Just Juel (in 1709)—indicated that the word "tsar" should not be translated as "emperor", because it is applied by Russians to David , Solomon and other Biblical kings, who are simple reges . On the other hand, Jacques Margeret , a bodyguard of False Demetrius I ( r. 1605–1606 ), argues that
7470-419: 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
7560-948: Was an English cleric and poet chiefly known for his long allegorical poem Christ's Victory and Triumph (1610). Fletcher was the younger son of Giles Fletcher the Elder (Ambassador to Russia of Elizabeth I and brother to Bishop Richard Fletcher of London, chaplain to Queen Elizabeth I), and the brother of the poet Phineas Fletcher , and cousin of the dramatist John Fletcher . Educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge , he remained in Cambridge after his ordination, becoming Reader in Greek Grammar in 1615 and Reader in Greek Language in 1618. In 1619 left to become rector of Alderton in Suffolk. Fletcher enjoyed
7650-461: Was crowned as such in Skopje on Easter (April 16) 1346 by the newly elevated Serbian patriarch, alongside the Bulgarian patriarch and archbishop of Ohrid. On the same occasion, he had his wife Helena of Bulgaria crowned as empress and his son associated in power as king. When Dušan died in 1355, his son Stefan Uroš V became the next emperor. The new emperor's uncle Simeon Uroš (Siniša) contested
7740-557: 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
7830-538: 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
7920-468: Was increasingly viewed as inferior to "emperor" or as highlighting the oriental side of the rank. Upon annexing Crimea in 1783, Catherine the Great adopted the hellenicized title "tsaritsa of Tauric Chersonesos ", rather than "tsaritsa of the Crimea". By 1815, when Russia annexed a large part of Poland, the title had clearly come to be interpreted in Russia as the equivalent of Polish król ("king"), and
8010-407: 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 was never used in Russia. The two names Russia and Moscovia appear to have co-existed as interchangeable during
8100-722: 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
#422577