The Russian word known as "tsar" came to us from the Latin language from the word "caesar". The same word, only in a different sound, that is, "Caesar", became for the German "Kaiser", which also denoted the ruler.

The very first tsar in Russia came to power unexpectedly. There were princes before him. Ivan the Third Vasilyevich became the first king. He came out of the Rurik dynasty. It was he who was the first prince, the Grand Duke of the Varangians. Ivan was also read as John. Thus it was possible to unite oneself with the Apostle John in the Christian and Slavonic language. After all, it turns out for the people that then God himself made him king.

The church, in addition to a different sounding of the name, gave it a different name. Now the tsar was an autocrat, from where the autocracy originated. That is how the Byzantine emperor sounded in a Slavic country. While Turkey ruled Byzantium, there was no imperial house. When it was possible to return it to Russia, Ivan the Third began to consider himself the successor who ascended the throne after the emperor of Byzantium.

The king marries a girl named Sophia Palaiologos, who is the niece of Constantine Palaiologos, who is the last Byzantine emperor. Sophia is considered the heiress of the fallen imperial family. It is thanks to this marriage that John the Third manages to share with her the right to inherit over Byzantium.

When Sophia appears in the Kremlin of Moscow, the princess manages to change the routine of the life of the entire princely court. We are even talking about Moscow itself. John the Third himself also publishes the idea of ​​changing everything that is in Moscow. Since he also doesn’t like anything that is there. Therefore, upon arrival of the young, Byzantine masters and artists are called to the capital, who begin not only to build, but also to paint churches in their own way. They also built stone chambers where not only kings, but also boyars could live. At this time, the Faceted Chamber appears. But our ancestors, unlike us, thought that it was harmful to live in a house made of stone. Therefore, although stone houses were built, only feasts and balls were held there, while people continued to live in wooden houses.

Now Moscow was Tsaregrad. This is how Constantinople was called, which was the capital of Byzantium, and was a Turkish city. The life of the nobles who served at the court was also now conducted according to Byzantine laws. There were even moments when the queen and the king had to go to the table, how they should do it, how others should behave. For example, it was accepted that when the king or queen enters or leaves the table, then everyone else should stand. When the Grand Duke became king, his gait also changed. Now she was more solemn, more leisurely, more majestic.

True, the fact that John called himself king did not mean at all that he became one. Indeed, until the middle of the 15th century, Ancient Russia called kings not only of the Byzantine emperors, but also of the khans of the Golden Horde. When can a tsar appear in Russia? When he ceases to be a subject of the Khan. And this was difficult to achieve. True, after all, Russia was able to throw off this yoke, so now she could rightfully call her rulers kings. Now no one, no Tatar, under whose yoke Russia had been for so many centuries, could demand tribute from the Russian princes.

When the 15th century ended, the seals used by Ivan the Third began to fasten political treaties, as well as various other important political documents, and the coat of arms on the seal is presented in the form of a double-headed eagle, which was previously the Byzantine imperial coat of arms.

True, Ivan the Third is not truly the king of Russia. After all, although it began to be called that, not everything was so smooth. Only after some time, the princes began to rightfully be called kings, who began to rule Russia. Only then were they able to pass this title from father to son, that is, by inheritance.

In fact, Ivan the Fourth the Terrible, who was the grandson of Ivan the Third, became the first Russian tsar. This happened when he was officially proclaimed such a title, and since 1547 it became known throughout the world that Ivan the Terrible is the king of all Russia.

It was Ivan the Fourth the Terrible who entered the history books as the first tsar of the then-famous mighty power of all Russia. Prior to this, the rulers were officially called princes. At the same time, this king served as the most formidable, which is why he was named so, as well as a dramatic figure in the whole world.

He was born in 1530 from the noble noblewoman Elena Glinskaya. It is said that she was a descendant of Genghis Khan. Grandmother was Sophia Paleolog, as we have already said, the niece of the Byzantine emperor. Ivan's father died when he was only three years old. At the age of eight, he loses his mother. This is what influenced the formation of the character of the young king. He acted like a smart politician, a strong and cruel ruler. When he turns eighteen, he becomes the first tsar in Russia.

The traditional form of government in Russia is the monarchy. Once part of this large country was part of Kievan Rus: the main cities (Moscow, Vladimir, Veliky Novgorod, Smolensk, Ryazan) were founded by princes, descendants of the semi-legendary Rurik. Hence the first ruling dynasty is called the Rurikovich. But they bore the title of princes, the tsars of Russia appeared much later.

Kievan Rus period

Initially, the ruler of Kyiv was considered the Grand Duke of all Russia. The specific princes paid tribute to him, obeyed him, put up squads during the military campaign. Later, when the period of feudal fragmentation began (eleventh-fifteenth centuries), there was no single state. But all the same, it was the throne of Kyiv that was most desired by everyone, although it lost its former influence. The invasion of the Mongol-Tatar army and the creation of the Golden Horde by Batu deepened the isolation of each principality: separate countries began to form on their territory - Ukraine, Belarus and Russia. On the modern Russian territory, the cities of Vladimir and Novgorod were the most influential (it did not suffer at all from the invasion of nomads).

History of the Tsars of Russia

Vladimir Prince Ivan Kalita, with the support of the great Khan Uzbek (with whom he had good relations), moved the political and ecclesiastical capital to Moscow. Over time, Moscow united other Russian lands near their city: the Novgorod and Pskov republics became part of a single state. It was then that the tsars of Russia appeared - for the first time such a title began to be worn. Although there is a legend that the royal regalia were transferred to the rulers of this land much earlier. It is believed that the 1st Tsar of Russia is Vladimir Monomakh, who was crowned according to Byzantine customs.

Ivan the Terrible - the first autocrat in Russia

So, the first tsars of Russia appeared with the coming to power of Ivan the Terrible (1530-1584). He was the son of Vasily III and Elena Glinskaya. Having become the prince of Moscow very early, he began to introduce reforms, encouraged self-government at the local level. However, he abolished the Chosen Rada and began to rule personally. The reign of the monarch was very strict, and even dictatorial. The defeat of Novgorod, the excesses in Tver, Klin and Torzhok, the oprichnina, protracted wars led to a socio-political crisis. But the international influence of the new kingdom also increased, its borders expanded.

Passage of the Russian throne

With the death of Ivan the Terrible's son, Fyodor the First, the Godunov family reigned on the throne. Boris Godunov, during the life of Fyodor the First, had a great influence on the tsar (his sister Irina Fedorovna was the wife of the monarch) and actually ruled the country. But the son of Boris - Fedor II was unable to keep power in his hands. A troubled time began, and for some time the country was ruled by False Dmitry, Vasily Shuisky, the Seven Boyars and the Zemsky Council. Then the Romanovs reigned on the throne.

The great dynasty of tsars of Russia - the Romanovs

The beginning of a new royal dynasty was laid by Mikhail Fedorovich, who was elected to the throne by the Zemsky Sobor. This ends the historical period called the Time of Troubles. The House of Romanovs are the descendants of the great tsar who ruled in Russia until 1917 and the overthrow of the monarchy in the country.

It looked like Mikhail Fedorovich from an old Russian noble family, who bore the name Romanovs from the middle of the sixteenth century. Its ancestor is considered to be a certain Andrey Ivanovich Kobyla, whose father came to Russia either from Lithuania, or from Prussia. It is believed that he came from Novgorod. Five sons of Andrei Kobyla founded seventeen noble families. The representative of the family - Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina - was the wife of Ivan IV the Terrible, to whom the newly-minted monarch was a great-nephew.

The tsars of Russia from the house of the Romanovs stopped the Troubles in the country, which earned them the love and respect of the common people. Mikhail Fedorovich was young and inexperienced during his election to the throne. At first, the great old woman Martha helped him rule, and therefore the Orthodox Church significantly strengthened its positions. The reign of the first tsar from the Romanov dynasty is characterized by the beginning of progress. The first newspaper appeared in the country (it was published by clerks especially for the monarch), international relations were strengthened, factories (iron-smelting, iron-making and weapons) were built and operated, foreign specialists were attracted. Centralized power is being consolidated, new territories are joining Russia. The wife gave Mikhail Fedorovich ten children, one of whom inherited the throne.

From kings to emperors. Peter the Great

In the eighteenth century he transformed his kingdom into an empire. Therefore, in history, all the names of the tsars of Russia who ruled after him were already used with the title of emperor.

A great reformer and an outstanding politician, he did a lot for the prosperity of Russia. The board began with a fierce struggle for the throne: his father, Alexei Mikhailovich, had a very numerous offspring. At first he ruled together with his brother Ivan and the regent, but their relationship did not work out. Having eliminated other contenders for the throne, Peter began to rule the state alone. Then he launched military campaigns to ensure Russia's access to the sea, built the first fleet, reorganized the army, acquiring foreign specialists. If the great tsars of Russia did not pay due attention to the education of their subjects before, then Emperor Peter the Great personally sent the nobles to study abroad, brutally suppressing dissidents. He remade his country according to the European model, as he traveled a lot and saw how people live there.

Nikolai Romanov - the last tsar

The last Russian emperor was Nicholas II. He received a good education and a very strict upbringing. His father, Alexander the Third, was demanding: from his sons, he expected not so much obedience as reason, a strong faith in God, a desire to work, he especially did not put up with denunciations of children against each other. The future ruler served in the Preobrazhensky Regiment, so he knew well what the army and military affairs were. During his reign, the country was actively developing: the economy, industry, agriculture reached their peak. The last tsar of Russia actively participated in international politics, carried out a reform in the country, reducing the term of service in the army. But he also conducted his own military campaigns.

The fall of the monarchy in Russia. October Revolution

In February 1917, unrest began in Russia, in particular in the capital. The country at that time took part in the First World War. Wanting to end the contradictions at home, the emperor, while at the front, abdicated in favor of his young son, and a few days later he did the same on behalf of Tsarevich Alexei, entrusting his brother to rule. But Grand Duke Mikhail also refused such an honor: the rebellious Bolsheviks were already putting pressure on him. Upon returning to his homeland, the last tsar of Russia was arrested along with his family and sent into exile. On the night of July 17-18 of the same 1917, the royal family, along with the servants, who did not want to leave their sovereigns, was shot. All representatives of the Romanov dynasty who remained in the country were also destroyed. Some managed to emigrate to Great Britain, France, America, and their descendants still live there.

Will there be a revival of the monarchy in Russia

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, many began to talk about the revival of the monarchy in Russia. On the site of the execution of the royal family - where the Ipatiev house in Yekaterinburg used to stand (the death sentence was carried out in the basement of the building), a temple was built dedicated to the memory of the innocently killed. In August 2000, the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church canonized all of them as saints, approving the Fourth of July as their memorial day. But many believers do not agree with this: voluntary renunciation of the throne is considered a sin, since priests blessed the kingdom.

In 2005, the descendants of Russian autocrats held a council in Madrid. After that, they sent a demand to the General Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation to rehabilitate the Romanovs' house. However, they were not recognized as victims of political repression due to lack of official data. This is a criminal offense, not a political one. But representatives of the Russian imperial house do not agree with this and continue to appeal the verdict, hoping for the restoration of historical justice.

But whether a monarchy is needed in modern Russia is a question for the people. History will put everything in its place. In the meantime, people honor the memory of members of the royal family who were brutally shot during the Red Terror and pray for their souls.

He lived a great and tragic life. Everyone knows his name, but the real events are often hidden or distorted by ill-wishers and not very honest historians. The name of the first Russian Tsar is Ivan IV Vasilyevich (Grozny).

Since ancient times, the highest title of the ruler in Russia was considered "prince". After the unification of the Russian principalities under the rule of Kyiv, the title of "Grand Duke" became the highest rank of the ruler.

The title "king" was worn by the Byzantine emperor in Constantinople. In 1453, Constantinople fell under the blows of the Turks, and shortly before that, Greek Orthodoxy concluded the Union of Florence with Catholic Rome. In this regard, the last Greek metropolitan was expelled from the Moscow cathedra, which proclaimed itself independent from Byzantium. The new metropolitans were chosen from natural hares.

Muscovite Russia, unlike Byzantium, was united, expanded and strengthened by the efforts of the great princes, including the father of Ivan IV, and then by himself. The great Moscow princes began to call themselves "sovereigns of all Russia" and gradually accustom foreign diplomats and their subjects to the idea that their state is not a backyard, but the center of a true Christian world, not subject to apostate unions. The idea of ​​Moscow as the third Rome, which is the heir of the non-Uniate Byzantium, both in politics and in faith, appears and strengthens in the mind, about the special purpose of Russia.

In addition to all of the above, the title "Grand Duke" in Europe was perceived as "prince" or "duke" and, accordingly, as a vassal or subordinate of the emperor.

The title "king" put the "sovereign of all Russia" on the same level with the only emperor at that time - the emperor of the Roman Empire, to whom all European kings nominally obeyed.

They crowned Ivan IV in 1547, at the age of 17. The boyar elite, who ruled the country at that time, hoped that the tsar would remain a puppet in their hands and an official sign of the state.

The official recognition by Europe of the royal title for the Moscow sovereign occurred in 1561, when the eastern patriarch Joasaph confirmed it with his letter. Some states, for example, England and Sweden, recognized the title of the Russian Tsar before the Patriarch.

Truth and slander

The events of the life of the first crowned Russian Tsar for many hundreds of years were subjected to frankly slanderous insinuations by enemies, traitors and those who wrote official history. One of their main postulates is that "all the undertakings of the king ended in failure." However, among the significant reforms of Ivan IV, the indisputable, and further developed, are:

Contrary to popular belief, Ivan the Terrible left behind a more developed country than he inherited. The ruin of the country is due to another boyar turmoil that occurred after the death of the king.

Most of the "knowledge" about history people get from school textbooks, feature films, books and media, which without a twinge of conscience repeat established myths. Here are some of them about Ivan the Terrible:

far from unambiguous, as well as the time in which he lived. Power is a burden to be borne, and the better this is done, the more opposition there will be. This happened to Ivan IV when he "modernized" the country. So it is with his legacy over the centuries, when his deeds are slinged in the mud.

Ivan IV was the first to take the title of Russian Tsar. After reading this article, you will find out how this happened, as well as what marked his reign. Ivan the Terrible - Grand Duke (from 1533), and from 1547 - the first Russian Tsar. This is the son of Vasily III. He began to rule from the end of the 40s with the participation of the Chosen One. Ivan IV was the first Russian Tsar from 1547 to 1584, until his death.

Briefly about the reign of Ivan the Terrible

It was under Ivan that the convocation of the Zemsky Sobors began, and the Sudebnik of 1550 was also compiled. He carried out reforms of the court and administration (Zemskaya, Gubnaya and other reforms). In 1565, the oprichnina was introduced in the state.

Also, the first Russian tsar in 1553 established trade relations with England, under him the first printing house was created in Moscow. Ivan IV conquered the Astrakhan (1556) and Kazan (1552) khanates. The Livonian War was fought in 1558-1583 for access to the Baltic Sea. In 1581, the first Russian tsar began the annexation of Siberia. Mass executions and disgrace were accompanied by the internal policy of Ivan IV, as well as increased enslavement of the peasants.

Origin of Ivan IV

The future tsar was born in 1530, on August 25, near Moscow (in the village of Kolomenskoye). He was the eldest son of Vasily III, Grand Duke of Moscow, and Elena Glinskaya. Ivan descended on the paternal side from the Rurik dynasty (its Moscow branch), and on the maternal side - from Mamai, who was considered the ancestor of the Glinsky, Lithuanian princes. Sophia Palaiologos, paternal grandmother, belonged to the family of Byzantine emperors. According to legend, in honor of the birth of Ivan in Kolomenskoye, the Church of the Ascension was laid.

Childhood years of the future king

A three-year-old boy after the death of his father remained in the care of his mother. She died in 1538. At this time, Ivan was only 8 years old. He grew up in an atmosphere of struggle for power between the Belsky and Shuisky families, who were at war with each other, in the atmosphere of palace coups.

The violence, intrigues and murders that surrounded him contributed to the development of cruelty, revenge and suspicion in the future king. Ivan had a tendency to torment others already in childhood, and his close associates approved of it.

Moscow uprising

In his youth, one of the most powerful impressions of the future tsar was the Moscow uprising, which took place in 1547, and the "great fire". After the murder of a relative of Ivan from the Glinsky family, the rebels came to the village of Vorobyevo. Here the Grand Duke took refuge. They demanded that the rest of the Glinskys be handed over to them.

It took a lot of effort to persuade the crowd to disperse, but they still managed to convince them that the Glinskys were not in Vorobyov. The danger had just passed, and now the future tsar ordered the arrest of the conspirators in order to execute them.

How did Ivan the Terrible become the first Russian tsar?

Already in his youth, Ivan's favorite idea was the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bautocratic power, not limited by anything. In the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin on January 16, 1547, the solemn wedding of Ivan IV, the Grand Duke, to the kingdom took place. Signs of royal dignity were assigned to him: the hat and barm of Monomakh, the cross of the Life-Giving Tree. Ivan Vasilievich, after the communion of the Holy Mysteries, was anointed with the world. So Ivan the Terrible became the first Russian tsar.

As you can see, the people did not participate in this decision. Ivan himself proclaimed himself king (of course, not without the support of the clergy). The first elected Russian tsar in the history of our country is Boris Godunov, who ruled a little later than Ivan. Zemsky Sobor in Moscow in 1598, February 17 (27), elected him to the kingdom.

What gave the royal title?

A fundamentally different position in relations with the states of Western Europe allowed him to take the royal title. The fact is that the grand ducal title in the west was translated as "prince", and sometimes as "great duke". However, "king" was either not translated at all, or was translated as "emperor". Thus, the Russian autocrat stood on a par with the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire itself, the only one in Europe.

Reforms aimed at the centralization of the state

Together with the Chosen Rada, since 1549, the first Russian tsar carried out a number of reforms that were aimed at centralizing the state. These are, first of all, Zemskaya and Gubnaya reforms. Changes in the army also began. The new Sudebnik was adopted in 1550. The first Zemsky Sobor was convened in 1549, and two years later - the Stoglavy Cathedral. It adopted "Stoglav", a collection of decisions regulating church life. Ivan IV in 1555-1556 canceled feeding, and also adopted the Code of Service.

Accession of new lands

The first Russian tsar in the history of Russia in 1550-51 personally participated in the Kazan campaigns. Kazan was conquered by him in 1552, and in 1556 - the Astrakhan Khanate. The Nogai and the Siberian Khan Yediger became dependent on the tsar.

Livonian War

Trade relations with England were established in 1553. Ivan IV in 1558 began the Livonian War, intending to get the coast of the Baltic Sea. Military operations initially developed successfully. By 1560, the army of the Livonian Order was completely defeated, and this Order itself ceased to exist.

In the meantime, significant changes took place in the internal situation of the state. The tsar broke with the Chosen Rada around 1560. He imposed various disgrace on its leaders. Adashev and Sylvester, according to some researchers, realizing that Russia did not promise success in the Livonian War, unsuccessfully tried to persuade the king to sign an agreement with the enemy. Russian troops captured Polotsk in 1563. It was in those days a large Lithuanian fortress. Ivan IV was especially proud of this victory, which was won after the dissolution of the Chosen Council. However, Russia already in 1564 began to suffer defeats. Ivan tried to find the guilty, executions and disgrace began.

The introduction of the oprichnina

The first Russian tsar in the history of Russia was more and more imbued with the idea of ​​establishing a personal dictatorship. He announced in 1565 the introduction of the oprichnina in the country. The state was divided from now on into 2 parts. Zemshchina began to be called territories that were not included in the oprichnina. Each oprichnik necessarily swore allegiance to the king. He pledged not to maintain relations with the Zemstvo.

Oprichniki were released by Ivan IV from legal liability. With their help, the tsar forcibly confiscated the estates of the boyars and transferred them to the possession of the noble guardsmen. Opals and executions were accompanied by robbery among the population and terror.

Novgorod pogrom

The Novgorod pogrom, which took place in January-February 1570, was a major event during the oprichnina. The reason for it was the suspicion that Novgorod intended to pass to Lithuania. Ivan IV personally led the campaign. On the way to Novgorod from Moscow, he plundered all the cities. In December 1569, during the campaign of Malyuta, Skuratov strangled Metropolitan Philip in the Tver monastery, who was trying to resist Ivan. It is believed that the number of victims in Novgorod, where no more than 30 thousand people lived at that time, amounted to 10-15 thousand. Historians claim that the tsar in 1572 abolished the oprichnina.

Invasion of Devlet Giray

In this, the invasion of Devlet Giray, the Crimean Khan, on Moscow, which took place in 1571, played a role. The oprichnina army was unable to stop him. Devlet-Girey burned down the settlements, the fire also spread to the Kremlin and Kitay-gorod.

The division of the state also had a detrimental effect on its economy. A huge amount of land was devastated and devastated.

reserved summers

In order to prevent the desolation of many estates, in 1581 the tsar introduced reserved summers in the country. It was a temporary ban on peasants leaving their owners on St. George's Day. This contributed to the establishment of serf relations in Russia. The Livonian War ended in complete failure for the state. Originally Russian lands were lost. Ivan the Terrible could see the objective results of his reign during his lifetime: the failure of all foreign and domestic political undertakings.

Repentance and fits of rage

The king from 1578 stopped executing. Almost at the same time, he ordered that commemorative lists (synodiks) of the executed be compiled, and then deposits be sent to the monasteries of the country for their commemoration. In the will drawn up in 1579, the tsar repented of his deed.

However, periods of prayer and repentance alternated with fits of rage. On November 9, 1582, during one of these attacks, in his country residence (Alexandrovskaya Sloboda), he accidentally killed Ivan Ivanovich, his son, hitting him in the temple with a staff with an iron tip.

The death of the heir plunged the tsar into despair, since Fyodor Ivanovich, his other son, was incapable of governing the state. Ivan sent a large contribution to the monastery in memory of Ivan's soul, he even thought about going to the monastery himself.

Wives and children of Ivan the Terrible

The exact number of wives of Ivan the Terrible is unknown. Probably the king was married 7 times. He had, apart from children who died in infancy, three sons.

Ivan from his first marriage had two sons, Fedor and Ivan, from Anastasia Zakharyina-Yuryeva. His second wife was Maria Temryukovna, daughter of a Kabardian prince. The third was Martha Sobakina, who died unexpectedly 3 weeks after the wedding. According to church rules, it was forbidden to marry more than three times. Therefore, in 1572, in May, a church council was convened in order to allow Ivan the Terrible the 4th marriage - with Anna Koltovskaya. However, she was tonsured a nun in the same year. In 1575, Anna Vasilchikova, who died in 1579, became the fifth wife of the tsar. Probably the sixth wife was Vasilisa Melentyeva. In the autumn of 1580, Ivan entered into his last marriage - with Maria Naga. In 1582, on November 19, Dmitry Ivanovich, the third son of the tsar, was born from her, who died in Uglich in 1591.

What else is remembered in the history of Ivan the Terrible?

The name of the first Russian tsar went down in history not only as the embodiment of tyranny. For his time, he was one of the most educated people, possessed theological erudition and a phenomenal memory. The first tsar on the Russian throne is the author of many messages (for example, to Kurbsky), the text and music of the service of the feast of Our Lady of Vladimir, as well as the canon to the Archangel Michael. Ivan IV contributed to the fact that book printing was organized in Moscow. Also during his reign, St. Basil's Cathedral was erected on Red Square.

Death of Ivan IV

In 1584, on March 27, at about three o'clock, Ivan the Terrible went to the bathhouse prepared for him. The first Russian monarch, who officially took the title of tsar, bathed with pleasure, he was amused by songs. Ivan the Terrible after the bath felt fresh. The king was seated on the bed, he was wearing a wide dressing gown over linen. Ivan ordered the chess to be brought in, and began to arrange them himself. He never managed to put the chess king in his place. And at this time Ivan fell.

They immediately ran: some for rose water, some for vodka, some for the clergy and doctors. Doctors came with drugs and began to rub him. The metropolitan also came and hastily performed the rite of tonsure, naming Ivan Jonah. However, the king was already lifeless. The people became agitated, a crowd rushed to the Kremlin. Boris Godunov ordered the gates to be closed.

The body of the first Russian Tsar was buried on the third day. He was buried in the Archangel Cathedral. The grave of the son he killed is next to his own.

So, the first Russian tsar was Ivan the Terrible. And after him, his son, Fedor Ivanovich, who suffered from dementia, began to rule. In fact, the government was carried out by the Board of Trustees. A struggle for power has begun, but this is a separate issue.

In his seventeenth year of life, on December 13, 1546, Ivan announced to the Metropolitan that he wanted to marry. The next day, the metropolitan served a prayer service in the Assumption Cathedral, invited all the boyars, even the disgraced ones, and went with everyone to the Grand Duke. Ivan told Macarius: “At first I thought to marry in foreign countries with some king or tsar; But then I left this thought, I don’t want to marry in foreign countries, because after my father and mother I remained small; if I bring myself a wife from a foreign land and we do not agree in morals, then there will be a bad life between us; therefore I want to marry in my state, whom God will bless according to your blessing. Metropolitan and boyars, says the chronicler; they wept with joy, seeing that the sovereign was so young, and meanwhile he did not consult with anyone.

But young Ivan immediately surprised them with yet another speech. “With the blessing of the metropolitan father and from your boyar council, I want to look for ancestral ranks before my marriage, as our forefathers, tsars and great princes, and our relative Vladimir Vsevolodovich Monomakh, sat down on the kingdom and on the great reign; and I also want to fulfill this rank to the kingdom, to sit on the great reign. The boyars were delighted, although - as can be seen from Kurbsky's letters - some were not very happy that the sixteen-year-old Grand Duke wished to accept the title that neither his father nor his grandfather dared to accept - the title of tsar. On January 16, 1547, a royal wedding was performed, similar to the wedding of Dmitry the grandson under Ivan III. Anastasia, the daughter of the late roundabout Roman Yuryevich Zakharyin-Koshkin, was chosen as the bride for the tsar. Contemporaries, depicting the properties of Anastasia, attribute to her all the feminine virtues for which they only found names in the Russian language: chastity, humility, piety, sensitivity, goodness, not to mention beauty, combined with a solid mind.

THE START WAS GOOD

BY GOD'S MERCY, KING

His Holiness Emperor Maximalian, due to many motives, especially at the insistence of the ambassadors of the Moscow sovereign, gave him the following title: Kazan and Astrakhan, our only friend and brother.

But he himself usually uses the following title in his letters sent to foreign sovereigns; this title all his subjects should keep in mind in the most careful way, as daily prayers: “By the grace of God, sovereign, tsar and grand prince Ivan Vasilyevich of all Russia, Vladimir, Moscow, Novgorod, tsar of Kazan, tsar of Astrakhan, sovereign of Pskov, grand prince of Smolensk , Tver, Yugorsk, Perm, Vyatka, Bulgar, Novgorod Nizhnyago, Chernigov, Ryazan, Polotsk, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Belozersky, Udorsky, Obdorsky, Kondinsky and all the Siberian and northern lands, from the beginning the hereditary sovereign of Livonia and many other countries. To this title he often adds the name of the monarch, which in Russian, which is very happy in composition, is very aptly translated by the word Samoderzetz, so to speak, who alone holds control. The motto of the Grand Duke John Vasilyevich was: "I am subject to no one, but only to Christ, the Son of God."

STAIRS WITH GOLDEN STEPS

Unlike Byzantium, in Russia, a rule was established according to which it is the representative of an exceptional family who becomes the anointed of God, the very origin of which is connected with the secret destinies of the whole world (the Ruriks were perceived as the last and only legitimate monarchical dynasty, the ancestor of which, Augustus, lived at the time of the incarnation of God and ruled in that era when "the Lord wrote himself into the Roman authorities," that is, he was entered in the census as a Roman subject). Since that time, the history of the indestructible Roman kingdom begins, which changed its place of residence several times, Muscovite Russia becomes its last receptacle on the eve of the Last Judgment. It is the sovereigns of this kingdom that will become those who will spiritually prepare their people for the “last times”, when the people of Russia, the New Israel, will be able to become citizens of Heavenly Jerusalem. This is evidenced, in particular, by the most important monument of the historical narrative of the Grozny era, the Book of Powers, which emphasized the soul-saving mission of the Moscow kingdom and its rulers: the history of the Rurik family was likened there to a staircase with golden steps (“golden degrees”) leading to heaven. “According to it, the dawn to God is not hindered, having established it for yourself and for those who are according to them.”

Therefore, Tsar Ivan said in 1577: "God gives power, he wants it." This meant a reminiscence from the book of the prophet Daniel, widespread in ancient Russian writing, who warned Tsar Belshazzar about inevitable retribution. But Ivan the Terrible cited these words to substantiate the idea of ​​the hereditary rights of Moscow sovereigns, which is confirmed by the context of the Second Epistle of Ivan IV to A.M. Kurbsky. The tsar accuses Archpriest Sylvester and other "enemies" of the throne of attempting to usurp power and notes that only born rulers can have the fullness of the God-given "autocracy".

GROZNY ABOUT TSAR AUTHORITY

How could you not understand this, that the ruler should neither be atrocious, nor silently humble himself? The apostle said: “Be merciful to some, distinguishing them, but save others with fear, pulling them out of the fire.” Do you see that the apostle commands to save by fear? Even in the days of the most pious kings, there are many instances of the most severe punishments. Do you, in your insane mind, believe that a king should always act the same, regardless of time and circumstances? Should robbers and thieves not be executed? But the cunning plans of these criminals are even more dangerous! Then all the kingdoms will fall apart from disorder and internecine strife. What should the ruler do, how not to disassemble the disagreements of his subjects?<...>

Is it “against reason” - to conform to circumstances and time? Remember the greatest of kings, Constantine: how he, for the sake of the kingdom, killed his son, born to him! And Prince Fyodor Rostislavich, your ancestor, how much blood he shed in Smolensk during Easter! But they are counted among the saints.<...>For kings should always be prudent: sometimes meek, sometimes cruel, the good - mercy and meekness, the evil - cruelty and torment, but if this is not the case, then he is not a king. The king is terrible not for good deeds, but for evil. If you want not to be afraid of power, then do good; but if you do evil, be afraid, for the king does not carry a sword in vain - to frighten the evildoers and encourage the virtuous. If you are good and righteous, then why, seeing how a fire flared up in the royal council, did not extinguish it, but kindled it even more? Where you should have destroyed the villainous plan with reasonable advice, there you sowed more tares. And the prophetic word came true on you: “You have kindled a fire and walk in the flame of your fire, which you kindled on yourselves.” Are you not like Judas the traitor? Just as he, for the sake of money, was furious with the lord of all and gave him to be killed, being among his disciples, and having fun with the Jews, so you, living with us, ate our bread and promised to serve us, but in your soul accumulated anger at us. So you kept the kiss of the cross to wish us well in everything without any cunning? What can be meaner than your insidious intent? As the wise one said: “There is no head worse than the head of a snake,” and there is no anger worse than yours.<...>

Do you really see pious beauty where the kingdom is in the hands of an ignorant priest and villainous traitors, and the king obeys them? And this, in your opinion, is “against reason and a leper conscience”, when the ignoramus is forced to remain silent, the villains are repulsed and the king appointed by God reigns? You will not find anywhere that the kingdom led by the priests is not ruined. What did you want - what happened to the Greeks, who destroyed the kingdom and surrendered to the Turks? Is this what you advise us? So let this doom fall on your head!<...>

Is it really a light when the priest and crafty slaves rule, while the tsar is a tsar only in name and honor, and in power is not at all better than a slave? And is it really darkness - when the king rules and owns the kingdom, and the slaves carry out orders? Why, then, is he called an autocrat, if he himself does not govern?<...>