Tsardom of Russia
Russia, 1547–1721. Draft, not yet reviewed
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 the Rurik to the Romanov dynasties, wars with the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Sweden, and the Ottoman Empire, and the Russian conquest of Siberia. In 1613, a zemsky Sobor proclaimed the boyar Mikhail Romanov as tsar, beginning the 300-year reign of the Romanov family.
Seat of power: Moscow
Rulers
Ivan the Terrible
Tsar of All Russia, 1547–1584
Ivan's reign 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. 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. Ivan conquered the khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan, bringing the entire length of the Volga River under Russian control.
Portrait of Ivan the Terrible: Shakko, CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Feodor I of Russia
Tsar of All Russia, 1584–1598
He took little interest in politics, and the country was effectively administered in his name by Boris Godunov, the brother of his beloved wife Irina. He died without surviving children and was succeeded by Godunov as tsar, marking the end of the rule of the Rurik dynasty and spurring Russia's descent into the catastrophic Time of Troubles.
Portrait of Feodor I of Russia: Shakko, CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Boris Godunov
Tsar of All Russia, 1598–1605
He was the de facto regent of Russia from 1585 to 1598 and then tsar from 1598 to 1605. After that, Godunov remained supreme in Russia and he corresponded with foreign princes as their equal. After the end of Feodor's reign, Russia descended into the Time of Troubles.
Portrait of Boris Godunov: Unknown author, Public domain, file
Irina Godunova
Tsar of All Russia, 1598–1598
As her husband died without surviving children, she was the de facto ruler of Russia until she retired to Novodevichy Convent nine days later. She remained the nominal ruler of Russia until her brother Boris Godunov was elected tsar in 1598.
Portrait of Irina Godunova: Sergey Nikitin, CC BY-SA 3.0, file
False Dmitriy I
Tsar of All Russia, 1605–1606
Dmitry ascended to the throne after the deposition of Tsar Feodor II and ruled for 11 months before he was assassinated in the 1606 Moscow Uprising and replaced with Vasili Shuisky. Dmitry was a pretender who impersonated Dmitry of Uglich, a son of Ivan the Terrible, and his reign formed part of the Time of Troubles.
Portrait of False Dmitriy I: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
Feodor II of Russia
Tsar of All Russia, 1605–1605
On the sudden death of Boris the sixteen-year-old was proclaimed tsar (13 April 1605). Though his father had taken the precaution to surround him with powerful friends, he lived from the first moment of his reign in an atmosphere of treachery.
Portrait of Feodor II of Russia: Неизвестный автор, CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Vasili IV of Russia
Tsar of All Russia, 1606–1610
His rule coincided with the Time of Troubles. He was the only member of House of Shuisky to become tsar and the last member of the Rurikid dynasty (Yurievichi branch) to rule as tsar.
Portrait of Vasili IV of Russia: Collective of Kremlin armory, Public domain, file
Władysław IV Vasa
Tsar of All Russia, 1610–1613
Władysław was elected as the tsar of Russia by the Seven Boyars in 1610, when the Polish army captured Moscow, but did not assume the throne because of his father's position and a popular uprising. Nevertheless, until 1634, he used the titular title of grand duke of Moscow.
Portrait of Władysław IV Vasa: Peter Paul Rubens, Public domain, file
Michael I of Russia
Tsar of All Russia, 1613–1645
He was the first tsar of the House of Romanov, which succeeded the House of Rurik following the Time of Troubles. His accession marked the end of the Time of Troubles. Cossacks made unprecedented advances in the conquest of Siberia, and Russian explorers had reached the Pacific Ocean (Sea of Okhotsk) by the end of Michael's reign.
Portrait of Michael I of Russia: Johann Heinrich Wedekind, Public domain, file
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Feodor III of Russia
Tsar of All Russia, 1676–1682
Despite poor health from childhood, he managed to pass reforms on improving meritocracy within the civil and military state administration as well as founding the Slavic Greek Latin Academy.
Portrait of Feodor III of Russia: Unknown artistUnknown artist, Public domain, file
Peter the Great
Tsar of All Russia, 1682–1721
Peter I, known by the epithet the Great, was the tsar of all Russia from 1682 to 1721, and the first emperor of Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. Much of Peter's reign was consumed by lengthy wars against the Ottoman and Swedish empires.
Portrait of Peter the Great: Attributed to Jean-Marc Nattier, Public domain, file
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Ivan V of Russia
Tsar of All Russia, 1682–1696
Ivan's reign was solely titular because he had serious physical and mental challenges.
Portrait of Ivan V of Russia: Attributed to Mikhail Choglokov, Public domain, file
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Culture
- It was built from 1555 to 1561 on orders from Ivan the Terrible and commemorates the capture of Kazan and Astrakhan.
- The cathedral has nine distinctive onion domes (each one corresponding to a different church) and is shaped like the flame of a bonfire rising into the sky.
- The cathedral foreshadowed the climax of Russian national architecture in the 17th century, and it is considered as a prime example of Russian Renaissance architecture.
Picture
Saint Basil's Cathedral is a Russian Orthodox church on Red Square in the historic centre of Moscow.
Image: Tsy1980, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.