Misplaced Pages

#711288

151-594: The Vorontsov branch of the Velyaminovs reached a zenith of its power in the person of the boyar Feodor Vorontsov , who became de facto ruler of Russia during the minority of Ivan IV ("Ivan the Terrible", 1543). Three years later, he was accused of treason and beheaded. For the next two centuries, the family history is obscure. Under Empress Elizabeth (reigned 1741-1762), its fortunes soared once again, when Mikhail Illarionovich Vorontsov became Vice-Chancellor of

302-634: A tyrant came from politicised Western travel literature of the Renaissance era. Anti-Russian propaganda during the Livonian War portrayed Ivan as a sadistic and oriental despot. Vladimir Dal defines 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, including formidable , as well as awe-inspiring . Ivan Vasilyevich

453-546: A wider campaign . With Ivan's reserves in Pskov and Novgorod to guard against a possible Swedish invasion, the city fell on 30 August 1579. Báthory then appointed a close ally and powerful member of his court, Jan Zamoyski , to lead a force of 48,000, including 25,000 men from Lithuania, against the fortress of Velikie Luki which he went on to capture on 5 September 1580. Without further significant resistance, garrisons such as Sokol, Velizh, and Usvzat fell quickly. In 1581,

604-513: A "Russe" and highlighting his "German" descent from Rurik. Such genealogies served to elevate the position of the Russian monarch in the eyes of his subjects and other European powers, who were also creating mythological ancestors for themselves. Despite calamities triggered by the Great Fire of 1547 , the early part of Ivan's reign was one of peaceful reforms and modernization. Ivan revised

755-470: A Polish–Swedish force took the town and castle of Wenden in early 1578. Russian forces failed to retake the town in February, an attack followed by a Swedish offensive, targeting Pernau (Pärnu), Dorpat, and Novgorod among others. In September, Ivan responded by sending in an army of 18,000 men, who recaptured Oberpahlen (Põltsamaa) from Sweden and then marched on Wenden. Upon their arrival at Wenden,

906-477: A difficult position by 1579. The displaced refugees fleeing the war compounded the effects of the simultaneous drought, and the exacerbated war engendered epidemics causing much loss of life. Báthory then launched a series of offensives against Muscovy in the campaign seasons of 1579–81 to try to cut the Kingdom of Livonia from Muscovy. During his first offensive in 1579, he retook Polotsk with 22,000 men. During

1057-509: A few thousand Azaps and Akıncıs were sent to lay siege to Astrakhan and to begin the canal works while an Ottoman fleet besieged Azov . In early 1570, Ivan's ambassadors concluded a treaty at Constantinople that restored friendly relations between the sultan and the tsar. The envoys were directed to tell to the sultan: "My Tsar is not an enemy of the Moslem faith. His servant Sain Bulat rules

1208-710: A fifteen-year truce in which Livonia agreed not to enter into an alliance with Poland–Lithuania. On 22 January 1558, Ivan reacted with the invasion of Livonia. The Russians were seen by local peasants as liberators from the German control of Livonia. Many Livonian fortresses surrendered without resistance while Russian troops took Dorpat (Tartu) in May, Narva in July and laid siege to Reval (Tallinn). Reinforced by 1,200 Landsknechts , 100 gunners, and ammunition from Germany, Livonian forces successfully retook Wesenberg (Rakvere) along with

1359-661: A full peace arrangement, was to last ten years and was renewed twice, in 1591 and 1601. Báthory failed in his attempts to pressure Sweden into relinquishing its gains in Livonia, particularly Narva. Following a decision by John, the war with Russia ended when the Tsar concluded the Truce of Plussa ( Plyussa, Pljussa, Plusa ) with Sweden on 10 August 1583. Russia relinquished most of Ingria, leaving Narva and Ivangorod as well under Swedish control. Originally scheduled to last three years,

1510-601: A multitude of small campaigns, with sieges where musketmen played a key role in destroying wooden defences with effective artillery support. The Tsar's forces took important fortresses like Fellin (Viljandi), yet lacked the means to gain the major cities of Riga , Reval (Tallinn), or Pernau (Pärnu). The Livonian knights suffered a disastrous defeat by the Russians at the Battle of Ērģeme in August 1560. Some historians believe

1661-505: A new dimension of power that was intimately tied to religion. He was now a "divine" leader appointed to enact God's will, as "church texts described Old Testament kings as 'Tsars' and Christ as the Heavenly Tsar". The newly appointed title was then passed on from generation to generation, and "succeeding Muscovite rulers... benefited from the divine nature of the power of the Russian monarch... crystallized during Ivan's reign". Like

SECTION 10

#1732771910712

1812-569: A number of other fortresses. Although the Germans raided Russian territory, Dorpat (Tartu), Narva, and many lesser fortresses remained in Russian hands. The initial Russian advance was led by the Khan of Qasim Shahghali , with two other Tatar princes at the head of a force that included Russian boyars , Tatar, and Pomestnoe cavalry, as well as Cossacks , who at that time were mostly armed foot soldiers. Ivan gained further ground in campaigns during

1963-476: A payment by Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II . Maximilian failed to pay the promised compensation, however, and thereby lost his influence on Baltic affairs. The terms of the treaty regarding Livonia were ignored, and thus the Livonian War continued. From Ivan's point of view, the treaty enabled the powers involved to form an alliance against him, now that they were no longer fighting each other. During

2114-617: A payment of 200,000 zlotys . For a further 200,000 zloty payment, he appointed Hohenzollern George Frederick as administrator of Prussia and secured the latter's military support in the planned campaign against Russia. Báthory received only few soldiers from his Polish vassals and was forced to recruit mercenaries, primarily Poles, Hungarians , Bohemians , Germans , and Wallachians . A separate Szekler brigade fought in Livonia. Swedish King John III and Stephen Báthory allied against Ivan IV in December 1577, despite problems caused by

2265-591: A peace in the region. Magnus at once pursued his own interests, purchasing the Bishopric of Courland without Frederick's consent and trying to expand into Harrien – Wierland (Harju and Virumaa). This brought him into direct conflict with Eric. In 1561, Swedish forces arrived and the noble corporations of Harrien–Wierland and Jerwen (Järva) yielded to Sweden to form the Duchy of Estonia . Reval (Tallinn), similarly, accepted Swedish rule. Denmark-Norway dominated

2416-414: A vassal state of Poland–Lithuania. With weak support in Livonia, von Brandenburg had to largely rely on external allies. Among his few Livonian supporters was landmarschall Jasper von Munster , with whom he planned an April 1556 attack on his opponents that would involve military aid from both Sigismund and Albert. However, Sigismund hesitated over participation in the action, fearing that it would leave

2567-532: Is a legend that he was so impressed with the structure that he had the architect, Postnik Yakovlev , blinded so that he could never design anything as beautiful again. However, in reality Postnik Yakovlev went on to design more churches for Ivan and the walls of the Kazan Kremlin in the early 1560s as well as the chapel over Saint Basil's grave, which was added to Saint Basil's Cathedral in 1588, several years after Ivan's death. Although more than one architect

2718-413: Is a somewhat archaic translation. The Russian word grozny reflects the older English usage of terrible as in "inspiring fear or terror; dangerous; powerful" (i.e., similar to modern English terrifying or formidable ). It does not convey the more modern connotations of English terrible such as "defective" or "evil". According to Edward L. Keenan , Ivan the Terrible's image in popular culture as

2869-436: The oprichniki . Originally, it numbered 1000. The oprichniki were headed by Malyuta Skuratov . One known oprichnik was the German adventurer Heinrich von Staden . The oprichniki enjoyed social and economic privileges under the oprichnina . They owed their allegiance and status to Ivan, not heredity or local bonds. The first wave of persecutions targeted primarily the princely clans of Russia, notably

3020-550: The oprichnina and disbanded his oprichniki . In September or October 1575, Ivan proclaimed Simeon Bekbulatovich , his statesman of Tatar origin, the new grand prince of all Russia. Simeon reigned as a figurehead leader for about a year. According to the English envoy Giles Fletcher the Elder , Simeon acted on Ivan's instructions to confiscate all of the lands that belonged to monasteries, and Ivan pretended to disagree with

3171-476: The oprichniki . The later years of Ivan's reign were marked by the massacre of Novgorod by the oprichniki and the burning of Moscow by the Tatars . Ivan also pursued cultural improvements, such as importing the first printing press to Russia, and began several processes that would continue for centuries, including deepening connections with other European states, particularly England , fighting wars against

SECTION 20

#1732771910712

3322-551: The oprichnina and Tatar raids, the prolonged war and overpopulation caused a severe social and economic crisis in the second half of Ivan's reign. The 1560s brought to Russia hardships that led to a dramatic change in Ivan's policies. Russia was devastated by a combination of drought, famine, unsuccessful wars against the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , Tatar invasions and the sea-trading blockade carried out by

3473-552: The Archbishopric of Riga and the city of Riga . Together with Riga, the cities of Dorpat (Tartu) and Reval (Tallinn), along with the knightly estates, enjoyed privileges enabling them to act almost independently. The only common institutions of the Livonian estates were the regularly held common assemblies known as Landtags . As well as a divided political administration, there were also persistent rivalries between

3624-634: The Assembly of the Land ) to discuss the issues at stake. Within the Assembly, the church's representative stressed the need to "keep" Riga (though it had not yet been conquered), while the Boyars were less keen on an overall peace with Lithuania, noting the danger posed by a joint Polish-Lithuanian state. Talks were then halted and hostilities resumed upon the return of the ambassadors to Lithuania. In 1569,

3775-619: The Baltic ports owned by Livonia. Russia remained isolated from sea trade. Ivan established close ties with the Kingdom of England . Russian–English relations can be traced to 1551, when the Muscovy Company was formed by Richard Chancellor , Sebastian Cabot , Sir Hugh Willoughby and several London merchants. In 1553, Chancellor sailed to the White Sea and continued overland to Moscow, where he visited Ivan's court. Ivan opened up

3926-710: The Battle of Lode by the village of Koluvere . The Russian advance concluded with the sacking of Weissenstein (Paide) in 1573, where, after its capture, the occupying forces roasted some of the leaders of the Swedish garrison alive, including the commander. This triggered a retaliatory campaign by John centred on Wesenberg, to which the army departed in November 1573 with Klas Åkesson Tott in overall command and Pontus de la Gardie as field commander. There were also Russian raids into Finland, including one as far as Helsingfors (Helsinki) in 1572. A two-year truce on this front

4077-453: The Battle of Sarikamish (December 1914 to January 1915) during the early months of World War I . Ivan IV Ivan IV Vasilyevich ( Russian : Иван IV Васильевич ; 25 August 1530 – 28 March [ O.S. 18 March] 1584), commonly known as Ivan the Terrible , was Grand Prince of Moscow and all Russia from 1533 to 1547, and the first Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia from 1547 until his death in 1584. Ivan's reign

4228-702: The Dano-Norwegian Realm , the Kingdom of Sweden , and the Union (later Commonwealth ) of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland . From 1558 to 1578, Russia dominated the region with early military successes at Dorpat (Tartu) and Narva . The Russian dissolution of the Livonian Confederation brought Poland–Lithuania into the conflict, and Sweden and Denmark-Norway intervened between 1559 and 1561. Swedish Estonia

4379-522: The Grand Duchy of Lithuania ), claimed descent both from Orthodox Hungarian nobles and the Mongol ruler Mamai (1335–1380). Born on 25 August, he received the name Ivan in honor of St.  John the Baptist , the day of whose beheading falls on 29 August. In some texts of that era, it is also occasionally mentioned with the names Titus and Smaragd, in accordance with the tradition of polyonymy among

4530-705: The Habsburgs and other monarchs in Europe, the first Russian tsars adopted mythological genealogies that connected them to Ancient Rome . In The Tale of the Princes of Vladimir , their lineage is traced to Rurik , the first prince of Novgorod in northern Russia, while a certain Prus, an alleged brother of Augustus who ruled what would become Prussia , is mentioned as a direct ancestor of Rurik. Ivan IV often mentioned his apparent kinship with Augustus, claiming not to be

4681-699: The Kazan Khanate repeatedly raided northeastern Russia. In the 1530s, the Crimean khan formed an offensive alliance with Safa Giray of Kazan , his relative. When Safa Giray invaded Russia in December 1540, the Russians used Qasim Tatars to contain him. After his advance was stalled near Murom, Safa Giray was forced to withdraw to his own borders. The reverses undermined Safa Giray's authority in Kazan. A pro-Russian party, represented by Shahgali , gained enough popular support to make several attempts to take over

Vorontsov - Misplaced Pages Continue

4832-575: The Kiev Voivodeship exposed to a pending Russian attack. When von Fürstenberg learned of the plan, he led a force into the archbishopric of Riga and in June 1556 captured the main strongholds of Kokenhusen and Ronneburg . Jasper von Munster fled to Lithuania, but von Brandenburg and Christoph von Mecklenburg were captured and detained at Adsel and Treiden . This resulted in a diplomatic mission to petition for their release being dispatched by

4983-409: The Kingdom of Livonia in 1570. Magnus defected from Ivan IV during the same year, having started to appropriate castles without consulting the Tsar. When Kokenhusen (Koknese) submitted to Magnus to avoid fighting Ivan IV's army, the Tsar sacked the town and executed its German commanders. The campaign then focussed on Wenden ( Cēsis , Võnnu), "the heart of Livonia", which as the former capital of

5134-538: The Oka River , which defined the border. The following year, Devlet launched another raid on Moscow, now with a numerous horde, reinforced by Turkish janissaries equipped with firearms and cannons. The Russian army, led by Prince Mikhail Vorotynsky , was half the size but was experienced and supported by streltsy , equipped with modern firearms and gulyay-gorods . In addition, it was no longer divided into two parts (the oprichnina and zemsky ), unlike during

5285-481: The Ottoman Empire , and the conquest of Siberia . Contemporary sources present disparate accounts of Ivan's complex personality. He was described as intelligent and devout, but also prone to paranoia, rage, and episodic outbreaks of mental instability that worsened with age. Historians generally believe that in a fit of anger, he murdered his eldest son and heir, Ivan Ivanovich ; he might also have caused

5436-740: The Pomeranian dukes , the Danish King, Emperor Ferdinand I , and the estates of the Holy Roman Empire . A cross-party meeting in Lübeck to resolve the conflict was scheduled for 1 April 1557, but was cancelled due to quarrels between Sigismund and the Danish envoys. Sigismund used the killing of his envoy Lancki by the landmeister's son as an excuse to invade the southern portion of Livonia with an army of around 80,000. He forced

5587-538: The River Dvina , troubled the Lithuanians, since much of their trade depended on safe passage through it and they had already built fortifications to protect it. Ivan expanded his demands in July, calling for Ösel in addition to Dorpat (Tartu) and Narva. No agreement was forthcoming and a ten-day break was taken in negotiations, during which time various Russian meetings were held (including the zemsky sobor ,

5738-852: The Rurikids . Baptized in the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius by Abbot Joasaph (Skripitsyn), two elders of the Joseph-Volokolamsk Monastery were elected as recipients—the monk Cassian Bossoy and the hegumen Daniel. Tradition says that in honor of the birth of Ivan, the Church of the Ascension was built in Kolomenskoye . When Ivan was three years old, his father died from an abscess and inflammation on his leg that developed into blood poisoning . The closest contenders to

5889-1078: The Stroganov merchant family the patent for colonising "the abundant region along the Kama River", and, in 1574, lands over the Ural Mountains along the rivers Tura and Tobol . The family also received permission to build forts along the Ob River and the Irtysh River . Around 1577, the Stroganovs engaged the Cossack leader Yermak Timofeyevich to protect their lands from attacks of the Siberian Khan Kuchum . In 1580, Yermak started his conquest of Siberia. With some 540 Cossacks , he started to penetrate territories that were tributary to Kuchum. Yermak pressured and persuaded

6040-613: The Treaty of Dorpat , whereby Russia recognised Sweden's right to Reval (Tallinn) and other castles, and Sweden accepted Russia's patrimony over the rest of Livonia. A seven-year truce was signed between Russia and Sweden in 1565. Eric XIV of Sweden was overthrown in 1568 after he killed several nobles in the Sture Murders ( Sturemorden ) of 1567, and was replaced by his half-brother John III . Both Russia and Sweden had other problems and were keen to avoid an expensive escalation of

6191-523: The Treaty of Lublin unified Poland and Lithuania into the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . The Duchy of Livonia , tied to Lithuania in real union since the Union of Grodno in 1566, came under Polish–Lithuanian joint sovereignty . In June 1570 a three-year truce was signed with Russia. Sigismund II, the Commonwealth's first King, died in 1572 leaving the Polish throne with no clear successor for

Vorontsov - Misplaced Pages Continue

6342-462: The Treaty of Mozhaysk , respecting each other's claims in Livonia and maintaining amicable relations. In 1564, Sweden and Russia concluded a seven-years truce. Both Ivan IV and Eric XIV showed signs of mental disorder , with Ivan IV turning against part of the Tsardom's nobility and people with the oprichina that began in 1565, leaving Russia in a state of political chaos and civil war. When

6493-404: The Treaty of Stettin . Primarily fought in western and southern Scandinavia , the war involved important naval battles fought in the Baltic . When Danish-held Varberg surrendered to Swedish forces in 1565, 150 Danish mercenaries escaped the subsequent massacre of the garrison by defecting to Sweden. Among them was Pontus de la Gardie , who thereafter became an important Swedish commander in

6644-615: The Truce of Plussa , with Sweden gaining most of Ingria and northern Livonia while retaining the Duchy of Estonia. By the mid-16th century, economically prosperous Old Livonia had become a region organised into the decentralised and religiously divided Livonian Confederation . Its territories consisted of the Livonian branch of the Teutonic Order , the prince-bishoprics of Dorpat (Tartu), Ösel–Wiek , as well as Courland ,

6795-620: The Tsardom of Russia had become Livonia's eastern neighbour and grown stronger after annexing the khanates of Kazan (1552) and Astrakhan (1556). The conflict between Russia and the Western powers was exacerbated by Russia's isolation from sea trade. The new Ivangorod port – built in 1550 during the reign of Tsar Ivan IV on the eastern shore of the Narva River – was considered unsatisfactory on account of its shallow waters. Thereafter

6946-500: The 1561 Treaty of Vilnius, later modified by the 1617 Formula regiminis and Statuta Curlandiæ , which granted indigenous nobles additional rights at the duke's expense. North of the Düna, Báthory reduced the privileges Sigismund had granted the Duchy of Livonia , regarding the regained territories as the spoils of war. Riga's privileges had already been reduced by the Treaty of Drohiczyn in 1581. Polish gradually replaced German as

7097-591: The 1571 defeat. On 27 July, the horde broke through the defensive line along the Oka River and moved towards Moscow. The Russian troops did not have time to intercept it, but the regiment of Prince Khvorostinin vigorously attacked the Tatars from the rear. The Khan stopped only 30 km from Moscow and brought down his entire army back on the Russians, who managed to take up defense near the village of Molodi . After several days of heavy fighting, Mikhail Vorotynsky with

7248-730: The Archbishop of Riga and the Landmeister of the Order for hegemony. A schism had existed within the Order since the Reformation had spread to Livonia in the 1520s, although the transformation of the country into a Lutheran region was a gradual process, resisted by part of the Order that to a varying degree remained sympathetic to Roman Catholicism . As war approached, Livonia had a weak administration subject to internal rivalries, lacked any powerful defences or outside support, and

7399-792: The Baltic, and Sweden wished to challenge this by gaining territory on the Eastern side of the Baltic. Doing so would help Sweden control the West's trade with Russia. This helped to precipitate the Northern Seven Years' War since in 1561, Frederick II had already protested against Swedish presence in Reval (Tallinn), claiming historical rights relating to Danish Estonia . When Eric XIV's forces seized Pernau (Pärnu) in June 1562, his diplomats tried to arrange Swedish protection for Riga, which brought him into conflict with Sigismund. Sigismund maintained close relations with Eric XIV's brother, John, Duke of Finland (later John III), and in October 1562 John married Sigismund's sister, Catherine , thereby preventing her marrying Ivan IV. While Eric XIV had approved

7550-485: The Baltic, known contemporaneously as the dominium maris baltici . While the initial war years were characterised by intensive fighting, a period of low-intensity warfare began in 1562 and lasted until 1570 when fighting once more intensified. Denmark, Sweden, and to some extent Poland–Lithuania were occupied with the Nordic Seven Years' War (1563–1570) taking place in the Western Baltic, but Livonia remained strategically important. In 1562, Denmark and Russia concluded

7701-448: The Danish acquisition of Hapsal, Leal, and Lode. Danish influence in Livonia ceased, as Frederick accepted deals with Sweden and Poland to end nominal Danish involvement. Swedish forces were besieged in Reval (Tallinn) and central Livonia raided as far as Dünaburg (Daugavpils), formally under Polish–Lithuanian control since the 1561 Treaty of Vilnius . The conquered territories submitted to Ivan or his vassal, Magnus, declared monarch of

SECTION 50

#1732771910712

7852-454: The Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Kettler became the first Duke of Courland, in doing so converting to Lutheranism. Included in the treaty was the Privilegium Sigismundi Augusti by which Sigismund guaranteed the Livonian estates privileges including religious freedom with respect to the Augsburg Confession , the Indygenat , and continuation of the traditional German administration. The terms regarding religious freedom forbade any regulation of

8003-402: The Kazan throne. In 1545, Ivan mounted an expedition to the River Volga to show his support for the pro-Russian party. In 1551, the tsar sent his envoy to the Nogai Horde , and they promised to maintain neutrality during the impending war. The Ar begs and Udmurts submitted to Russian authority as well. In 1551, the wooden fort of Sviyazhsk was transported down the Volga from Uglich all

8154-472: The Khanate of Kassimov; Prince Kaibula in Yuriev, Ibak in Suroshsk, and the Nogai Princes in Romanov.” In 1558, Ivan launched the Livonian War in an attempt to gain access to the Baltic Sea and its major trade routes. The war ultimately proved unsuccessful and stretched on for 24 years, engaging the Kingdom of Sweden , the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Teutonic Knights of Livonia. The prolonged war had nearly destroyed

8305-402: The Livonian Order was not only of strategic importance, but also symbolic of Livonia itself. In 1576, the Transylvanian prince Stephen Báthory became King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania after a contested election to the joint Polish–Lithuanian throne with the Habsburg Emperor Maximilian II . Both Báthory's fiancée Anna Jagiellon and Maximilian II had been proclaimed elected to

8456-482: The Livonian War. Livonia was also affected by the naval campaign of Danish admiral Peder Munk , who bombarded Swedish Reval (Tallinn) from sea in July 1569. The Treaty of Stettin made Denmark the supreme and dominating power in Northern Europe , yet failed to restore the Kalmar Union . Unfavourable conditions for Sweden led to a series of conflicts that only ended with the Great Northern War in 1720. Sweden agreed to turn over her possessions in Livonia in return for

8607-410: The Livonian population did not convert en masse , while the Livonian estates in Poland–Lithuania were alienated. In 1590, the Russo-Swedish truce of Plussa expired and fighting resumed while the ensuing Russo-Swedish War of 1590–5 ended with the Treaty of Teusina (Tyavzino, Tyavzin), under which Sweden had to cede Ingria and Kexholm to Russia. The Swedish–Polish alliance began to crumble when

8758-436: The Moscow government to gain a foothold on the Middle Volga kept provoking uprisings of local peoples, which was suppressed only with great difficulty. In 1557, the First Cheremis War ended, and the Bashkirs accepted Ivan's authority. In campaigns in 1554 and 1556, Russian troops conquered the Astrakhan Khanate at the mouths of the Volga River, and the new Astrakhan fortress was built in 1558 by Ivan Vyrodkov to replace

8909-403: The Order required passive Russian support, and was quick to threaten use of military force if necessary. He aimed to establish a corridor between the Baltic and the new territories on the Caspian Sea , because if Russia were to engage in open conflict with major western powers, it would need imports of more sophisticated weaponry. The Polish King and Lithuanian Grand Duke Sigismund II Augustus

9060-427: The Ottoman Empire .) Khan Devlet I Giray of Crimea repeatedly raided the Moscow region. In 1571, the 40,000-strong Crimean and Turkish army launched a large-scale raid. The ongoing Livonian War left Moscow with a garrison of only 6,000 troops, which could not even delay the Tatar approach. Unresisted, Devlet devastated unprotected towns and villages around Moscow and caused the Fire of Moscow . Historians have estimated

9211-429: The Polish King and Grand Duke of Lithuania Sigismund III , who as son of John III of Sweden (died 1592) and Catherine Jagellonica, was the successor to the Swedish throne, met with resistance from a faction led by his uncle, Charles of Södermanland (later Charles IX), who claimed regency in Sweden for himself. Sweden descended into a civil war in 1597, followed by the 1598–1599 war against Sigismund , which ended with

SECTION 60

#1732771910712

9362-428: The Print Yard being burned in an arson attack. The first Russian printers, Ivan Fedorov and Pyotr Mstislavets , were forced to flee from Moscow to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . Nevertheless, the printing of books resumed from 1568 onwards, with Andronik Timofeevich Nevezha and his son Ivan now heading the Print Yard. Ivan had Saint Basil's Cathedral constructed in Moscow to commemorate the seizure of Kazan . There

9513-423: The Protestant order by religious or secular authorities. Some members of the Lithuanian nobility opposed the growing Polish–Lithuanian union and offered the Lithuanian crown to Ivan IV. The Tsar publicly advertised this option, either because he took the offer seriously, or because he needed time to strengthen his Livonian troops. Throughout 1561, a Russo-Lithuanian truce (with a scheduled expiration date of 1562)

9664-522: The Russian Empire. The Vorontsov Palace in Saint Petersburg , designed by Rastrelli , remains a monument to his power. During the reign of Peter III of Russia (January to July, 1762), Mikhail Vorontsov was the most powerful man in Russia, as his niece Elizaveta Vorontsova became the Emperor's mistress. Peter's wife Catherine , alarmed by her husband's plans to divorce her and marry Elizaveta Vorontsova, deposed her husband, with great help from her bosom friend, Yekaterina Romanovna Vorontsova-Dashkova ,

9815-614: The Russian army laid siege to the town, but was met by a relief force of around 6,000 German, Polish, and Swedish soldiers. In the ensuing Battle of Wenden , Russian casualties were severe with armaments and horses captured, leaving Ivan IV with his first serious defeat in Livonia. Báthory accelerated the formation of the hussars , a new well-organised cavalry troop that replaced the feudal levy. Similarly, he improved an already effective artillery system and recruited cossacks . Báthory gathered 56,000 troops, 30,000 of them from Lithuania, for his first assault on Russia at Polotsk, as part of

9966-437: The Russian nobility were split over the timing of the invasion of Livonia. Eric XIV , the new King of Sweden, turned down Kettler's requests for assistance, along with a similar request from Poland. Kettler turned to Sigismund for help. The weakened Livonian Order was dissolved by the second Treaty of Vilnius in 1561. Its lands were secularised as the Duchy of Livonia and Duchy of Courland and Semigallia and assigned to

10117-429: The Russo-Lithuanian truce expired in 1562, Ivan IV rejected Sigismund's offer of an extension. The Tsar had used the period of the truce to build up his forces in Livonia, and he invaded Lithuania. His army raided Vitebsk and, after a series of border clashes, took Polotsk in 1563. Lithuanian victories came at the Battle of Ula in 1564 and at Czasniki (Chashniki) in 1567, a period of intermittent conflict between

10268-436: The Russo-Swedish truce was later extended until 1590. During the negotiations, Sweden made vast demands for Russian territory, including Novgorod. Whilst these conditions were probably only for the purposes of negotiation, they may have reflected Swedish aspirations of territory in the region. The post-war Duchy of Courland and Semigallia south of the Düna (Daugava) river experienced a period of political stability based on

10419-418: The Swedes were also to be moved to Moscow, this occurred at the same time Ivan and his oprichniki were on their way to launch an assault on Novgorod in northern Russia. In an act of vengeance against the perceived treason of the local Orthodox church in Novgorod, Ivan's forces launched an attack on the city, where 2,000–15,000 people were killed. On his return to Moscow in May 1570, Ivan refused to meet

10570-658: The Swedes, the Poles and the Hanseatic League . His first wife, Anastasia Romanovna, died in 1560, which was suspected to be a poisoning. The personal tragedy deeply hurt Ivan and is thought to have affected his personality, if not his mental health. At the same time one of Ivan's advisors, Prince Andrey Kurbsky, defected to the Lithuanians, took command of the Lithuanian troops and devastated the Russian region of Velikiye Luki . This series of treacherous acts made Ivan paranoically suspicious of nobility. On 3 December 1564 Ivan left Moscow for Aleksandrova Sloboda , where he sent two letters in which he announced his abdication because of

10721-531: The Swedish party, and with the signing of a three-year truce in June 1570 with the Commonwealth he no longer feared war with Poland–Lithuania. Russia considered the delivery of Catherine to be a precondition of any deal, and the Swedes agreed to meet in Novgorod to discuss the matter. According to Juusten, at the meeting the Russians demanded the Swedes to abandon their claim to Reval (Tallinn), provide two or three hundred cavalry when required, pay 10,000 thaler in direct compensation, surrender Finnish silver mines near

10872-493: The Terrible with a message that proclaimed Yermak-conquered Siberia to be part of Russia to the dismay of the Stroganovs, who had planned to keep Siberia for themselves. Ivan agreed to reinforce the Cossacks with his streltsy, but the detachment sent to Siberia died of starvation without any benefit. The Cossacks were defeated by the local peoples, Yermak died and the survivors immediately left Siberia. Only in 1586, two years after

11023-534: The Turks, Ivan sent in 1558 a delegation to Egypt Eyalet by Archdeacon Gennady, who, however, died in Constantinople before he could reach Egypt. From then on, the embassy was headed by Smolensk merchant Vasily Poznyakov, whose delegation visited Alexandria, Cairo and Sinai; brought the patriarch a fur coat and an icon sent by Ivan and left an interesting account of his two-and-a-half years of travels. Ivan

11174-656: The Vorontsov-Dashkov surname to her cousin, who formed a junior branch of the Vorontsov family with the distinct Vorontsov-Dashkov surname. Its most notable representative, Count Illarion Ivanovich Vorontsov-Dashkov (1837–1916), served as Minister of Imperial Properties (1881–1897) and as the General Governor of the Caucasus in 1905–1915. He was officially in charge of the victorious Russian forces in

11325-479: The White Sea and the port of Arkhangelsk to the company and granted it privilege of trading throughout his reign without paying the standard customs fees. With the use of English merchants, Ivan engaged in a long correspondence with Elizabeth I of England . While the queen focused on commerce, Ivan was more interested in a military alliance. Ivan even proposed to her once, and during his troubled relations with

11476-687: The administrative language and the establishment of voivodeships reduced the Baltic German administration. The local clergy and the Jesuits in Livonia embraced the Counter-Reformation in a process assisted by Báthory, who gave the Roman Catholic Church revenues and estates confiscated from Protestants as well as initiating a largely unsuccessful recruitment campaign for Catholic colonists. Despite these measures,

11627-502: The advantages of a growing navy and proximity to the Livonian ports across the narrow Gulf of Finland . Before the Livonian War, Sweden had sought expansion into Livonia, but the intervention of the Russian tsar temporarily stalled these efforts through the Russo-Swedish War of 1554–1557 , which culminated in the 1557 Treaty of Novgorod . Through its absorption of the principalities of Novgorod (1478) and Pskov (1510),

11778-739: The age of 16, Ivan was crowned at the Cathedral of the Dormition in the Moscow Kremlin . The metropolitan placed on Ivan the signs of royal dignity: the Cross of the Life-Giving Tree , barmas, and the cap of Monomakh ; Ivan Vasilyevich was anointed with myrrh , and then the metropolitan blessed the tsar. He was the first Russian monarch to be crowned the tsar of all Russia , partly imitating his grandfather, Ivan III. Until then,

11929-572: The age of 16. In the early years of his reign, Ivan ruled with the group of reformers known as the Chosen Council and established the Zemsky Sobor , a new assembly convened by the tsar. He also revised the legal code and introduced reforms, including elements of local self-government, as well as establishing the first Russian standing army, the streltsy . Ivan conquered the khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan , and significantly expanded

12080-493: The alleged embezzlement and treason of the aristocracy and the clergy. The boyar court was unable to rule in Ivan's absence and feared the wrath of the Muscovite citizens. A boyar envoy departed for Aleksandrova Sloboda to beg Ivan to return to the throne. Ivan agreed to return on condition of being granted absolute power. He demanded the right to condemn and execute traitors and confiscate their estates without interference from

12231-480: The border with Russia, and allow the Tsar to style himself "Lord of Sweden". The Swedish party left following an ultimatum from Ivan that Sweden should cede its territory in Livonia or there would be war. Juusten was left behind while John rejected Ivan's demands, and war broke out anew. Quarrels between Denmark-Norway and Sweden led to the Northern Seven Years' War in 1563, which ended in 1570 with

12382-410: The boyar council or church. Ivan decreed the creation of the oprichnina . The oprichnina was a separate territory within the borders of Russia, mostly in the territory of the former Novgorod Republic in the north. Ivan held exclusive power over the territory. The Boyar Council ruled the zemshchina ('land'), the second division of the state. Ivan also recruited a personal guard known as

12533-616: The boyars, he even asked her for a guarantee to be granted asylum in England if his rule was jeopardised. Elizabeth agreed on the condition that he provide for himself during his potential stay. Ivan corresponded with overseas Orthodox leaders. In response to a letter of Patriarch Joachim of Alexandria asking him for financial assistance for the Saint Catherine's Monastery , in the Sinai Peninsula , which had suffered by

12684-494: The boyars. There followed brutal reprisals and assassinations, including those of Metropolitan Philip and Prince Alexander Gorbatyi-Shuisky . Ivan ordered in 1553 the establishment of the Moscow Print Yard , and the first printing press was introduced to Russia. Several religious books in Russian were printed during the 1550s and 1560s. The new technology provoked discontent among traditional scribes, which led to

12835-410: The brother of Fredrick II and a former ally of Ivan, died in 1583, Poland invaded his territories in the Duchy of Courland , and Frederick II decided to sell his rights of inheritance. Except for the island of Saaremaa , Denmark had left Livonia by 1585. In the later years of Ivan's reign, the southern borders of Muscovy were disturbed by Crimean Tatars, mainly to capture slaves. (See also Slavery in

12986-487: The capture of Riga in 1621 and expelled Polish–Lithuanian forces from most of Livonia, where the dominion of Swedish Livonia was created. Swedish forces then advanced through Royal Prussia and Poland–Lithuania accepted Swedish gains in Livonia in the 1629 Treaty of Altmark . The Danish province of Øsel was ceded to Sweden under the 1645 Treaty of Brömsebro , which ended the Torstenson War , one theatre of

13137-499: The castles of Hapsal , Leal , and Lode as security, but when he failed to pay they were sold to Denmark. Meanwhile, efforts by Magnus to besiege Swedish-controlled Reval (Tallinn) were faltering, with support from neither Ivan nor Magnus' brother, Frederick II of Denmark forthcoming. Ivan's attention was focused elsewhere, while Frederick's reluctance perhaps stemmed from a new spirit of Swedish–Danish unity that made him unwilling to invade Livonia on behalf of Magnus, whose state

13288-540: The city of Dorpat (Tartu) to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, while Polotsk would remain under Commonwealth control. Any captured Swedish territory—specifically Narva—could be retained by the Russians and Velike Luki would be returned from Báthory's control to Russia. Possevino made a half-hearted attempt to get John III's wishes taken into consideration, but this was vetoed by the Tsar, probably in collusion with Báthory. The armistice, which fell short of

13439-527: The city. The oprichniki burned and pillaged Novgorod and the surrounding villages and the city has never regained its former prominence. Casualty figures vary greatly from different sources. The First Pskov Chronicle estimates the number of victims at 60,000. According to the Third Novgorod Chronicle, the massacre lasted for five weeks. The massacre of Novgorod consisted of men, women and children who were tied to sleighs and run into

13590-615: The competing parties in Livonia to reconcile at his camp in Pozvol in September 1557. There they signed the Treaty of Pozvol , which created a mutual defensive and offensive alliance, with its primary target Russia, and provoked the Livonian War. Ivan IV regarded the Livonian Confederation 's approach to the Polish–Lithuanian union for protection under the Treaty of Pozvol as casus belli . In 1554 Livonia and Russia had signed

13741-558: The conquest of Kazan, the Siberian khan Yadegar and the Nogai Horde , under Khan Ismail, pledged their allegiance to Ivan in the hope that he would help them against their opponents. However, Yadegar failed to gather the full sum of tribute that he proposed to the tsar and so Ivan did nothing to save his inefficient vassal. In 1563, Yadegar was overthrown and killed by Khan Kuchum , who denied any tribute to Moscow. In 1558, Ivan gave

13892-609: The creation of a higher, more powerful noble class. Only the archbishopric of Riga successfully overcame resistance of the lesser nobles. Wilhelm von Brandenburg was appointed as Archbishop of Riga and Christoph von Mecklenburg as his Coadjutor , with the help of his brother Albert (Albrecht) of Brandenburg–Ansbach , the former Prussian Hochmeister who had secularised the southern Teutonic Order state and in 1525 established himself as duke in Prussia . Wilhelm and Christoph were to pursue Albert's interests in Livonia, among which

14043-454: The death of Ivan, would the Russians manage to gain a foothold in Siberia by founding the city of Tyumen . Livonian War Cession of: Russo-Lithuanian War Swedish stage Báthory's campaign The Livonian War (1558–1583) was fought for control of Old Livonia (in the territory of present-day Estonia and Latvia ). The Tsardom of Russia faced a varying coalition of

14194-418: The death of Sigismund which meant that the issue of the substantial inheritance due to John's wife, Catherine, had not been resolved. Poland also claimed the whole of Livonia, without accepting Swedish rule of any part of it. The 120,000 daler lent in 1562 had still not been repaid, despite Sigismund's best intentions to settle it. By November, Lithuanian forces moving northward had captured Dünaburg while

14345-618: The decision. When the throne was returned to Ivan in September 1576 he returned some of the confiscated land and kept the rest. In 1547, Hans Schlitte, the agent of Ivan, recruited craftsmen in Germany for work in Russia. However, all of the craftsmen were arrested in Lübeck at the request of Poland and Livonia . The German merchant companies ignored the new port built by Ivan on the River Narva in 1550 and continued to deliver goods in

14496-426: The deposition of Sigismund by the Swedish riksdag . Local nobles turned to Charles for protection in 1600 when the conflict spread to Livonia, where Sigismund had tried to incorporate Swedish Estonia into the Duchy of Livonia. Charles then expelled the Polish forces from Estonia and invaded the Livonian duchy , starting a series of Polish–Swedish wars . At the same time, Russia was embroiled in civil war over

14647-525: The early 1570s, King John III of Sweden faced a Russian offensive on his positions in Estonia. Reval (Tallinn) withstood a Russian siege in 1570 and 1571, but several smaller towns were taken by Russian forces. On 23 January a Swedish army of 700 infantry and 600 cavalry under command of Clas Åkesson Tott (the Elder) clashed with a Russian and Tartar army of 16,000 men under the command of Khan Sain-Bulat at

14798-628: The economy, and the oprichnina had thoroughly disrupted the government. Meanwhile, the Union of Lublin had united the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Kingdom of Poland , and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth acquired an energetic leader, Stephen Báthory , who was supported by Russia's southern enemy, the Ottoman Empire. Ivan's realm was being squeezed by two of the time's great powers. After rejecting peace proposals from his enemies, Ivan had found himself in

14949-560: The estates of Livonia came under Polish–Lithuanian protection through the first Treaty of Vilnius . The Polish sejm refused to agree to the treaty, believing it to be a matter affecting only the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . In January 1560, Sigismund sent ambassador Martin Volodkov to the court of Ivan in Moscow in an attempt to stop the Russian cavalry rampaging through rural Livonia. Russian successes followed similar patterns featuring

15100-518: The fall of Wesenberg , a mercenary army hired by Sweden recaptured the strategic city of Narva. A target of John III's campaigns, since it could be attacked by both land and sea, the campaign made use of Sweden's considerable fleet but later arguments over formal control in the long term hampered any alliance with Poland. Following la Gardie's taking of the city, and in retaliation for previous Russian massacres, 7,000 Russians were killed according to Russow 's contemporary chronicle. The fall of Narva

15251-567: The first time since 1382 and thus began the first free election in Polish history. Some Lithuanian nobles, in an effort to retain Lithuanian autonomy, proposed a Russian candidate. Ivan, however, demanded the return of Kiev , an Orthodox coronation, and a hereditary monarchy in parallel to Russia's, with his son, Feodor , as King. The electorate rejected these demands and instead chose Henry of Valois ( Henryk Walezy ), brother of King Charles IX of France . In 1564, Sweden and Russia agreed

15402-637: The force besieged Pskov , a well-fortified and heavily defended fortress. However, financial support from the Polish parliament was dropping, and Báthory failed to lure Russian forces in Livonia out into open field before the onset of winter. Not realising that the Polish–Lithuanian advance was on the wane, Ivan signed the Truce of Jam Zapolski . The failure of the Swedish siege of Narva in 1579 led to Pontus de la Gardie 's appointment as commander-in-chief. The towns of Kexholm and Padise were taken by Swedish forces in 1580, then in 1581, concurrent with

15553-522: The freezing waters of the Volkhov River, which Ivan ordered on the basis of unproved accusations of treason. He then tortured its inhabitants and killed thousands in a pogrom. The archbishop was also hunted to death. Almost every day, 500 or 600 people were killed, some by drowning, but the official death toll named 1,500 of Novgorod's "big" people (nobility) and mentioned only about the same number of "smaller" people. Many modern researchers estimate

15704-540: The government. Following the defeat of Crimean and Nogai forces in 1572, oprichnina was wound down and with it the way Russian armies were formed also changed. Ivan IV had introduced a new strategy whereby he relied on tens of thousands of native troops, Cossacks and Tatars instead of a few thousand skilled troops and mercenaries, as was the practice of his adversaries. Ivan's campaign reached its height in 1576 when another 30,000 Russian soldiers crossed into Livonia in 1577 and devastated Danish areas in retaliation for

15855-484: The grim conditions of the epidemic, a famine and the ongoing Livonian War, Ivan grew suspicious that noblemen of the wealthy city of Novgorod were planning to defect and to place the city under the control of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. A Novgorod citizen, Petr Volynets, warned the tsar about the alleged conspiracy, which modern historians believe not to have been real. In 1570 Ivan ordered the oprichniki to raid

16006-500: The influential families of Suzdal. Ivan executed, exiled or forcibly tonsured prominent members of the boyar clans on questionable accusations of conspiracy. Among those who were executed were the Metropolitan Philip and the prominent warlord Alexander Gorbaty-Shuisky. In 1566 Ivan extended the oprichnina to eight central districts. Of the 12,000 nobles, 570 became oprichniki and the rest were expelled. Under

16157-517: The later Ingrian War , Charles' successor Gustavus Adolphus retook Ingria and Kexholm which were formally ceded to Sweden under the 1617 Treaty of Stolbovo along with the bulk of the Duchy of Livonia. In 1617, when Sweden had recovered from the Kalmar War with Denmark, several Livonian towns were captured, but only Pernau (Pärnu) remained under Swedish control after a Polish–Lithuanian counter-offensive . A second campaign then started with

16308-700: The law code, creating the Sudebnik of 1550 , founded a standing army (the streltsy ), established the Zemsky Sobor (the first Russian parliament of feudal estates) and the council of the nobles (known as the Chosen Council) and confirmed the position of the Church with the Council of the Hundred Chapters (Stoglavy Synod), which unified the rituals and ecclesiastical regulations of

16459-408: The main part of the army flanked the Tatars and dealt a sudden blow on 2 August, and Khvorostinin made a sortie from the fortifications. The Tatars were completely defeated and fled. The next year, Ivan, who had sat out in distant Novgorod during the battle, killed Mikhail Vorotynsky. During Ivan's reign, Russia started a large-scale exploration and colonization of Siberia . In 1555, shortly after

16610-481: The market with European mercenary fleets, most notably from the Dutch Seventeen Provinces and France. The Hanseatic vessels were no match for contemporary warships, and since the league was unable to maintain a large navy because of a declining share of trade, its Livonian members Riga , Reval (Tallinn), and trading partner Narva were left without suitable protection. The Danish navy,

16761-482: The marriage, he was upset when John lent Sigismund 120,000 dalers and received seven Livonian castles as security. This incident led to John's capture and imprisonment in August 1563 on Eric XIV's behalf, whereupon Sigismund allied with Denmark and Lübeck against Eric XIV in October the same year. The intervention of Denmark-Norway, Sweden, and Poland-Lithuania into Livonia began a period of struggle for control of

16912-489: The mighty boyars from the Shuisky and Belsky families. In a letter to Andrey Kurbsky , Ivan remembered, "My brother Iurii, of blessed memory, and me they brought up like vagrants and children of the poorest. What have I suffered for want of garments and food!" That account has been challenged by the historian Edward Keenan, who doubts the authenticity of the source in which the quotations are found. On 16 January 1547, at

17063-513: The miscarriage of the latter's unborn child. This left his younger son, the politically ineffectual Feodor Ivanovich , to inherit the throne, a man whose rule and subsequent childless death led directly to the end of the Rurik dynasty and the beginning of the Time of Troubles . The English word terrible is usually used to translate the Russian word grozny ( грозный ) in Ivan's epithet, but this

17214-513: The most powerful in the Baltic Sea, controlled the entrance to the Baltic Sea , collected requisite tolls , and held the strategically important Baltic Sea islands of Bornholm and Gotland . A long bar of Danish territories in the south and lack of sufficient year-round ice-free ports severely limited Sweden 's access to Baltic trade. Nevertheless, the country prospered due to exports of timber, iron, and most notably copper, coupled with

17365-446: The new political system the oprichniki were given large estates but, unlike the previous landlords, could not be held accountable for their actions. The men "took virtually all the peasants possessed, forcing them to pay 'in one year as much as [they] used to pay in ten. ' " This degree of oppression resulted in increasing cases of peasants fleeing, which in turn reduced overall production. The price of grain increased ten-fold. Ivan

17516-495: The number of casualties of the fire to be 10,000 to 80,000. To buy peace from Devlet Giray, Ivan was forced to relinquish his claims on Astrakhan for the Crimean Khanate, but the proposed transfer was only a diplomatic maneuver and was never actually completed. The defeat angered Ivan. Between 1571 and 1572, preparations were made upon his orders. In addition to Zasechnaya cherta , innovative fortifications were set beyond

17667-409: The number of victims to range from 2,000 to 3,000 since after the famine and epidemics of the 1560s the population of Novgorod most likely did not exceed 10,000–20,000. Many survivors were deported. The oprichnina did not live long after the sack of Novgorod. During the 1571–72 Russo-Crimean War the oprichniki failed to prove themselves worthy against a regular army. In 1572, Ivan abolished

17818-706: The old Tatar capital. The annexation of the Tatar khanates meant the conquest of vast territories, access to large markets and control of the entire length of the Volga River. The subjugation of the Muslim khanates turned Russia into an empire. After his conquest of Kazan, Ivan is said to have ordered the crescent, a symbol of Islam, to be placed underneath the Christian cross on the domes of Orthodox Christian churches. In 1568, Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha , who

17969-462: The party himself, forcing them to negotiate instead with the Governor of Novgorod. The Tsar requested that Swedish envoys should greet the governor as 'the brother of their king', but Juusten refused to do so. The Governor then ordered an attack on the Swedish party, that their clothes and money be taken, and that they be deprived of food and drink and be paraded naked through the streets. Although

18120-484: The rulers of Moscow were crowned as grand princes, but Ivan III assumed the title of sovereign of all Russia and used the title of tsar in his correspondence with other monarchs. Two weeks after his coronation, Ivan married his first wife, Anastasia Romanovna , a member of the Romanov family , who became the first Russian tsaritsa . By being crowned tsar, Ivan was sending a message to the world and to Russia that he

18271-403: The same throne in December 1575, three days apart; Maximilan's death in October 1576 prevented the conflict from escalating. Báthory, ambitious to expel Ivan IV from Livonia, was constrained by the opposition of Danzig (Gdansk), which resisted Báthory's accession with Danish support. The ensuing Danzig War of 1577 ended when Báthory conceded further autonomous rights to the city in return for

18422-624: The second, in 1580, he took Velikie Luki with a 29,000-strong force. Finally, he began the Siege of Pskov in 1581 with a 100,000-strong army. Narva , in Estonia , was reconquered by Sweden in 1581. Unlike Sweden and Poland, Frederick II of Denmark had trouble continuing the fight against Muscovy. He came to an agreement with John III of Sweden in 1580 to transfer the Danish titles of Livonia to John III. Muscovy recognised Polish–Lithuanian control of Livonia only in 1582. After Magnus von Lyffland ,

18573-476: The territory of Russia. After he had consolidated his power, Ivan rid himself of the advisers from the Chosen Council and triggered the Livonian War of 1558 to 1583, which ravaged Russia and resulted in failure to take control over Livonia and the loss of Ingria , but allowed him to establish greater autocratic control over the Russian nobility , which he violently purged using Russia's first political police,

18724-562: The throne, except for the young Ivan, were the younger brothers of Vasily. Of the six sons of Ivan III , only two remained: Andrey and Yuri . Ivan was proclaimed the grand prince at the request of his father. His mother Elena Glinskaya initially acted as regent, but died in 1538, when Ivan was eight years old; many believe that she was poisoned. The regency then alternated between several feuding boyar families that fought for control. According to his own letters, Ivan, along with his younger brother Yuri , often felt neglected and offended by

18875-485: The tide of the war with his successes between 1578 and 1581, including the joint Swedish–Polish–Lithuanian offensive at the Battle of Wenden . That was followed by an extended campaign through Russia , culminating in the long and difficult Siege of Pskov . Under the 1582 Truce of Jam Zapolski , which ended the war between Russia and Poland–Lithuania, Russia lost all of its former holdings in Livonia and Polotsk to Poland–Lithuania. The following year, Sweden and Russia signed

19026-482: The tsar demanded that the Livonian Confederation pay about 6,000 marks to keep the Bishopric of Dorpat , based on the claim that every adult male had paid Pskov one mark when it had been an independent state. The Livonians eventually promised to pay this sum to Ivan by 1557, but were sent from Moscow when they failed to do so, ending negotiations. Ivan continued to point out that the existence of

19177-500: The two sides. Ivan continued to gain ground among the towns and villages of central Livonia but was held at the coast by Lithuania. The defeats of Ula and Czasniki, along with the defection of Andrey Kurbsky , led Ivan IV to move his capital to the Alexandrov Kremlin while the perceived opposition against him was repressed by his oprichniki . A "grand" party of diplomats left Lithuania for Moscow in May 1566. Lithuania

19328-478: The vacant Russian throne (" Time of Troubles ") when none of the many claimants had prevailed. This conflict became intertwined with the Livonian campaigns when Swedish and Polish–Lithuanian forces intervened on opposite sides, the latter starting the Polish–Muscovite War . Charles IX's forces were expelled from Livonia after major setbacks at the battles of Kokenhausen(1601) and Kircholm (1605). During

19479-443: The various family-based tribes to change their loyalties and to become tributaries of Russia. Some agreed voluntarily because they were offered better terms than with Kuchum, but others were forced. He also established distant forts in the newly conquered lands. The campaign was successful, and the Cossacks managed to defeat the Siberian army in the Battle of Chuvash Cape , but Yermak still needed reinforcements. He sent an envoy to Ivan

19630-667: The war in Livonia. Ivan IV had requested the delivery of John's wife, the Polish-Lithuanian princess Catherine Jagellonica , to Russia, since he had competed with John to marry into the Lithuanian-Polish royal family. In July 1569 John sent a party to Russia, led by Paul Juusten , Bishop of Åbo , which arrived in Novgorod in September, following the arrival in Moscow of the ambassadors sent to Sweden in 1567 by Ivan to retrieve Catherine. Ivan refused to meet with

19781-454: The way to Kazan. It was used as the Russian place-of-arms during the decisive campaign of 1552. On 16 June 1552, Ivan led a strong Russian army towards Kazan. The last siege of the Tatar capital commenced on 30 August. Under the supervision of Prince Alexander Gorbaty-Shuisky, the Russians used battering rams, a siege tower, undermining, and 150 cannons. The Russians also had the advantage of efficient military engineers. The city's water supply

19932-485: The whole country. He introduced local self-government to rural regions, mainly in northeastern Russia, populated by the state peasantry. In 1553 Ivan suffered a near-fatal illness and was thought not able to recover. While on his presumed deathbed Ivan had asked the boyars to swear an oath of allegiance to his eldest son, an infant at the time. Many boyars refused since they deemed the tsar's health too hopeless for him to survive. This angered Ivan and added to his distrust of

20083-543: The wife of Prince Dashkov and Elizaveta's own sister. Yekaterina Dashkova's brothers, Alexander and Semyon Romanovich , both became notable diplomats. The latter's son, Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov (1782–1856), became a prominent general who fostered the colonisation of New Russia and led the Russian army in the Caucasus . The Vorontsovs from this branch were inveterate Anglophiles and supported many English servants, painters, and architects. Yekaterina Romanovna Vorontsova-Dashkova bequeathed her vast possessions and

20234-526: The years 1559 and 1560. In January 1559, Russian forces again invaded Livonia. A six-month truce covering May to November was signed between Russia and Livonia while Russia fought in the Russo-Crimean Wars . Prompted by the Russian invasion, Livonia first unsuccessfully sought help from Emperor Ferdinand I , then turned to Poland–Lithuania. Landmeister von Fürstenburg fled to Poland–Lithuania to be replaced by Gotthard Kettler . In June 1559,

20385-520: Was a vassal of Russia. The siege was abandoned in March 1571, whereupon Swedish action in the Baltic escalated, with the passive backing of Sigismund, John's brother-in-law. At the same time Crimean Tatars devastated Russian territories and burned and looted Moscow during the Russo-Crimean Wars . Drought and epidemics had fatally affected the Russian economy while oprichnina had thoroughly disrupted

20536-423: Was associated with that name, it is believed that the principal architect is the same person. Other events of the period include the introduction of the first laws restricting the mobility of the peasants, which would eventually lead to serfdom and were instituted during the rule of the future Tsar Boris Godunov in 1597. (See also Serfdom in Russia .) The combination of bad harvests, devastation brought by

20687-448: Was blocked and the walls were breached. Kazan finally fell on 2 October, its fortifications were razed and much of the population massacred. Many Russian prisoners and slaves were released. Ivan celebrated his victory over Kazan by building several churches with oriental features, most famously Saint Basil's Cathedral on Red Square in Moscow. The fall of Kazan was only the beginning of a series of so-called " Cheremis wars". The attempts of

20838-417: Was characterised by Russia's transformation from a medieval state to a fledgling empire, but at an immense cost to its people and long-term economy. Ivan IV was the eldest son of Vasili III by his second wife Elena Glinskaya , and a grandson of Ivan III . He succeeded his father after his death, when he was three years old. A group of reformers united around the young Ivan, crowning him as tsar in 1547 at

20989-469: Was established despite constant invasion from Russia, and Frederick II of Denmark-Norway bought the old Bishopric of Ösel–Wiek , which he placed under the control of his brother Magnus of Holstein . Magnus attempted to expand his Livonian holdings to establish the Russian vassal state , the Kingdom of Livonia , which nominally existed until his defection in 1576. In 1576, Stephen Báthory became King of Poland as well as Grand Duke of Lithuania and turned

21140-450: Was followed by those of Ivangorod , Jama , and Koporye , leaving Sweden content with its gains in Livonia. Subsequent negotiations led by Jesuit papal legate Antonio Possevino resulted in the 1582 Truce of Jam Zapolski between Russia and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. This was a humiliation for the Tsar, in part because he requested the truce. Under the agreement Russia would surrender all areas in Livonia it still held and

21291-419: Was now the only supreme ruler of the country, and his will was not to be questioned. According to historian Janet Martin, the new title "symbolized an assumption of powers equivalent and parallel to those held by the former Byzantine caesar and the Tatar khan, both known in Russian sources as tsar. The political effect was to elevate Ivan's position". The new title not only secured the throne but also granted Ivan

21442-465: Was prepared to split Livonia with Russia, with a view to a joint offensive to drive Sweden from the area. However, this was seen as a sign of weakness by Russian diplomats, who instead suggested that Russia take the whole of Livonia, including Riga, through the ceding of Courland in southern Livonia and Polotsk on the Lithuanian–Russian border. The transfer of Riga, and the surrounding entrance to

21593-457: Was repentant after the death of his son and his actions with the oprichnina , and afterwards, he sent out lists compiling the deaths of his Christian victims killed by the system and asked monasteries to pray for every known one. Conditions under the oprichnina were worsened by the 1570 epidemic, a plague that killed 10,000 people in Novgorod and 600 to 1,000 daily in Moscow. During

21744-596: Was respected by both sides. In return for a loan and a guarantee of Danish protection, Bishop Johann von Münchhausen signed a treaty on 26 September 1559 giving Frederick II of Denmark-Norway the right to nominate the bishop of Ösel–Wiek , an act which amounted to the sale of these territories for 30,000 thalers . Frederick II nominated his brother, Duke Magnus of Holstein as bishop, who then took possession in April 1560. Lest Danish efforts create more insecurity for Sweden, Denmark-Norway made another attempt to mediate

21895-459: Was signed in 1575. John's counter-offensive stalled at the siege of Wesenberg in 1574, when German and Scottish units of the Swedish army turned against each other. This failure has also been blamed on the difficulties of fighting in the bitter winter conditions, particularly for the infantry. The war in Livonia was a great financial burden for Sweden, and by the end of 1573, Sweden's German mercenaries were owed 200,000 daler . John gave them

22046-484: Was surrounded by monarchies pursuing expansionist policies. Robert I. Frost notes of the volatile region: "Racked with internal bickering and threatened by the political machinations of its neighbours, Livonia was in no state to resist an attack." The Order's Landmeister and the Gebietigers , as well as the owners of Livonian estates, were all lesser nobles who guarded their privileges and influence by preventing

22197-573: Was the establishment of a hereditary Livonian duchy styled after the Prussian model. At the same time the Order agitated for its re-establishment (" Rekuperation ") in Prussia, opposed secularization, and creation of a hereditary duchy. By the time the Livonian War broke out, the Hanseatic League had already lost its monopoly on the profitable and prosperous Baltic Sea trade. While still involved and with increasing sales, it now shared

22348-541: Was the first ruler to begin cooperating with the free cossacks on a large scale. Relations were handled through the Posolsky Prikaz diplomatic department; Moscow sent them money and weapons, while tolerating their freedoms, to draw them into an alliance against the Tatars. The first evidence of cooperation surfaces in 1549 when Ivan ordered the Don Cossacks to attack Crimea. While Ivan was a child, armies of

22499-548: Was the first son of Vasili III by his second wife, Elena Glinskaya . Vasili's mother, Sophia Palaiologina , was a Byzantine princess of the Palaiologos family . She was a daughter of Thomas Palaiologos , the younger brother of the last Byzantine emperor, Constantine XI Palaiologos ( r.  1449–1453 ). Elena's mother was a Serbian princess and her father's family, the Tatar Glinski clan (nobles based in

22650-451: Was the real power in the administration of the Ottoman Empire under Sultan Selim , initiated the first encounter between the Ottoman Empire and its future northern rival. The results presaged the many disasters to come. A plan to unite the Volga and Don by a canal was detailed in Constantinople. In the summer of 1569, a large force under Kasim Pasha of 1,500 Janissaries , 2,000 Sipahis and

22801-563: Was wary of Russian expansionist aspirations. Expansion of Russia into Livonia would have meant not only a stronger political rival but also loss of lucrative trade routes. Therefore, Sigismund supported his cousin Wilhelm von Brandenburg , archbishop of Riga, in his conflicts with Wilhelm von Fürstenberg , the Livonian Order's landmeister . Sigismund hoped that Livonia, just like the Duchy of Prussia under Duke Albert , would become

#711288