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96-606: Selizharovo was first mentioned in 1504. In 1547 Tsar Ivan the Terrible gave it to the Simonov Monastery which was located in Moscow. In the course of the administrative reform carried out in 1708 by Peter the Great , the area was included into Ingermanlandia Governorate (since 1710 known as Saint Petersburg Governorate), and in 1727 Novgorod Governorate split off. In 1772, Ostashkov

192-622: 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

288-502: 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

384-442: 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 the title of "tsar" is more honorable for Muscovites than "kaiser" or "king" exactly because it

480-745: 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

576-608: 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 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

672-472: 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

768-501: 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

864-720: A large part of Poland, the title had clearly come to be interpreted in Russia as the equivalent of Polish król ("king"), and 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

960-490: 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 the period of Kievan Rus' never styled themselves as tsars. The first Russian ruler to openly break with

1056-498: 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

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1152-525: 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

1248-413: 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

1344-632: 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 the official titles in the First Bulgarian Empire (681–1018), Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396),

1440-420: Is served by infrequent passenger traffic. A paved road connecting Ostashkov and Rzhev runs through Selizharovo as well. There are also local roads with bus traffic originating from Selizharovo. Selizharovo contains four cultural heritage monuments of federal significance and additionally one object classified as cultural and historical heritage of local significance. The federally protected monuments include

1536-557: 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 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

1632-485: 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

1728-541: 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

1824-547: 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

1920-603: 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

2016-566: 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

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2112-687: 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

2208-536: 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

2304-785: 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

2400-600: 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 the Latin title for the Roman emperors, caesar . The Greek equivalent of the Latin word imperator

2496-533: 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

2592-474: 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

2688-813: 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

2784-610: The Russian nobility , which he violently purged using Russia's first political police, 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

2880-1029: 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

2976-514: 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,

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3072-582: 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

3168-516: 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 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

3264-556: 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

3360-894: 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

3456-714: 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

3552-578: 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

3648-428: 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

3744-443: The Resurrection Church in Selizharovo, two residential houses and a military cemetery. Selizharovo hosts a local museum, which has expositions on the history of the area. Ivan the Terrible 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

3840-409: The Russian monarchy (such as the former Tatar khanates and the Georgian Orthodox kingdom). In the 18th century, tsar 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

3936-509: 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 was Ivan IV ("the Terrible"), in 1547. Some foreign ambassadors—namely, Herberstein (in 1516 and 1525), Daniel Printz

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4032-658: 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

4128-437: 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

4224-418: 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

4320-426: 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 the titles of kaiser and imperator were attempts to render

4416-422: 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

4512-550: The abortive administrative reform by Nikita Khrushchev , Kirovsky and Penovsky Districts were merged into Ostashkovsky District . On January 12, 1965 Selizharovsky District (which occupied the area of Kirovsky District) was re-established. In 1990, Kalinin Oblast was renamed Tver Oblast. There are enterprises of timber and food industries. At Selizharovo, there is a 350-meter (1,150 ft) tall guyed TV mast, built in 1971. A railway line which connects Likhoslavl with Soblago via Torzhok and Kuvshinovo passes Selizharovo. It

4608-445: 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,

4704-436: 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

4800-410: 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

4896-433: 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

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4992-427: 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

5088-410: 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

5184-450: 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

5280-443: 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

5376-436: The death of Ivan, would the Russians manage to gain a foothold in Siberia by founding the city of Tyumen . Tsar Philosophers Works Tsar ( / z ɑːr , ( t ) s ɑːr / ; also spelled czar , tzar , or csar ; Bulgarian : цар , romanized :  tsar ; Russian : царь , romanized :  tsar' ; Serbian : цар , car ) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs . The term

5472-451: 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

5568-440: 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 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

5664-447: The districts were subordinated directly to the oblast. On January 29, 1935 Kalinin Oblast was established, and Selizharovsky District was transferred to Kalinin Oblast. In 1936, Selizharovsky District was renamed Kirovsky District. In 1937, Selizharovo was granted urban-type settlement status. During World War II, in 1941, Selizharovo was occupied by German troops between October 1941 and January 15, 1942. In February 1963, during

5760-480: 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

5856-408: The first Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia from 1547 until his death in 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. 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

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5952-467: The first Russian standing army, the streltsy . Ivan conquered the khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan , and significantly expanded 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

6048-460: 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

6144-424: 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

6240-455: 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 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

6336-429: 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

6432-404: 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 the title of tsar regularly in diplomatic relations with

6528-403: 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

6624-408: 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

6720-435: 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

6816-412: 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

6912-411: The monastery were merged into Selizharovsky Posad, which eventually was mentioned as Selizharovo. In 1916, the railway construction was completed. On 1 October 1929, governorates and uyezds were abolished, and Selizharovsky District with the administrative center in the selo of Selizharovo was established. It belonged to Rzhev Okrug of Western Oblast . On August 1, 1930 the okrugs were abolished, and

7008-446: 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

7104-488: 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

7200-409: 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

7296-585: 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

7392-479: 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

7488-664: 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 ,

7584-562: 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

7680-867: The throne, the full title of the Russian rulers was "By 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

7776-522: 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 was crowned as such in Skopje on Easter (April 16) 1346 by the newly elevated Serbian patriarch, alongside

7872-593: 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

7968-454: 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

8064-485: 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

8160-665: 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 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

8256-502: 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 the Bulgarian ruler Kaloyan and Pope Innocent III , Kaloyan—whose self-assumed Latin title was "Imperator Bulgarorum et Blachorum"—claims that

8352-423: 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

8448-448: 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

8544-550: Was granted town status, and Ostashkovsky Uyezd of Novgorod Governorate was established, with the seat in Ostashkov . Selizharovo was included in Ostashkovsky Uyezd. In 1775, Tver Viceroyalty was formed from the lands which previously belonged to Moscow and Novgorod Governorates, and the area was transferred to Tver Viceroyalty, which in 1796 was transformed to Tver Governorate . In 1862, settlements which formerly belonged to

8640-419: 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

8736-452: 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

8832-528: 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

8928-535: 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

9024-456: 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

9120-442: 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 ), the first foreigner to receive this title, but his descendants continued to use Bulgar title " Kanasubigi ". The sainted Boris I

9216-531: Was three years old. A group of reformers united around the young Ivan, crowning him as tsar in 1547 at 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

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