Ivan the Terrible

Ivan is born

Aug 25, 1530

Ivan IV Vasilyevich was born in 1530 on August 25 in Kolomenskoye, Moscow, Russia. His mother was Elena Glinskaya, who was an appointed Russian regent and the Grand Princess of Moscow (through marriage). Ivan's father was Vasili III of Russia, the Grand Prince of Moscow from 1503 until his death in 1533.

Queen Mary I restored Roman Catholicism in England

1533

England was under the control of King Henry VIII, who brought the country to rise in Protestantism. However, throughout this time Mary stayed loyal to her own catholic beliefs. After her father passed, her half brother Edward VI took the throne in 1547 (he was only 9 years old at the time). The Protestant and Catholic church grew to be further apart during Edward's rule. After the end of Edward VI's rule, Queen Mary I set out to restore Catholicism in England. (Trueman)

The Publication of Revolution of Heavenly Bodies

1543

Nicolaus Copernicus published the book by the name of the "Revolution of Heavenly Bodies" right before his death in 1543. In his book, Copernicus used experiments and diagrams to prove his theory that the sun was the center of the universe, and the earth revolved around it. At this time, most people believed that the Earth was the center of the universe and justified their claims with their religious beliefs and punished anyone who said otherwise. (Copernicus)

The Schmalkaldic War

1546

The Schmalkaldic War lasted from 1546 to 1547 in Germany. During this war, the troops of the Schmalkaldic league and of Charles V fought on the land of the Holy Roman Empire. (Grun 242). The league wanted to protect their rights of religion and beliefs, so they decided to confront Charles V. Charles V and his troops advanced the Schmalkaldic league and forced them to retreat on April 24, 1547. In the end, Charles V left victorious and took John Frederick, a leader of the league as a prisoner.

The Selected Council is appointed by Ivan

1547

In 1547, Ivan gathered and combined a group of men to serve as an informal advising body. The leaders of this advisory body would consist of the top two favorites, chosen by Ivan the Terrible. Ivan chose the two leaders of the council to be the priest Silvestr and Aleksey Adashev . Ivan was completely loyal to the council and even dedicated himself to the Selected Council by restraining himself and agreeing to do nothing without the permission of the council. (Hoxha)

Ivan is crowned czar of Muscovy and marries his first wife

Jan 16, 1547

Ivan IV started his reign as czar of Russia on January 16, 1547. He also marries his first wife, Anastasia Romanov, who he would eventually share six children with. He was only 16 years old when he was crowned as czar and married. Ivan’s mother and father had died by this time, which was why Ivan took leadership at such a young age. (Biography)

Ivan creates the Sudebnik of 1550

1550

Ivan IV along with the boyar class created a revision of the Subdenik of 1497, which was created by Ivan the Terrible's grandfather Ivan the Great. (Hoxha) The Sudebnik includes the specific punishments and penalties for crimes that were not included in the previous Sudebnik of 1497. This would ultimately strengthen the roles of the judicial branch and increase the rights of the people. (Revolvy)

The New Cathedral

1555

Ivan the Terrible originally had the idea to build eight separate churches, each individual church celebrating a separate feast day. But this didn't work, so instead, Ivan IV decided to change his plan. He sought out Postnik Yakovlev, a Russian architect, in order to form a modern church for the Russians. The blueprints for the St. Basil’s Cathedral had originated in 1555, and the actual building of the church lasted until after Ivan's death, in 1561. The church remains a Russian icon.

Ivan's first wife dies

Aug 7, 1560

Anastasia Romanov lost her life on August 7th of 1560. After the death of his first wife, Ivan IV fell into a deep depression and started to behave more erratically. This was a major depressive state in his life and the people of Russia were begging to become scared of the czar and worried about what he might do next. (Biography)

The Oprichnina

1565

Ivan the Terrible boldly blamed the boyars for the death of his wife, and he claimed that the boyars had plotted against him and his wife. He accused the boyars of secretly killing his wife by poisoning her. In return, Ivan the Terrible created a group called the Oprichnina to spy on the boyars and the citizens of Russia. This group of secret spies were to watch over the people and find anyone that they found skeptical. ("Ivan the Terrible")

Assembly of the Zemsky Sobor

1566

In 1566, Ivan IV called for a meeting with the assemblies, called the Zemsky Sobor. The meetings consisted of representatives from churches and monarch authorities, the boyar council, landowning classes, and urban freemen. During this meeting, Ivan IV and the assemblies discussed the topic of the Livonian war. Russia and Sweden had stirred up land disputes because of the region of land called Laviona, and their lack of contribution to a treaty which they had earlier made. (Hoxha)

Starvation in Russia

1570

Thousands of citizens died of starvation due to poor harvests and bad weather in 1570. Famine spread throughout Russia rapidly and the people were lacking the crops and harvests that they needed.(Rice 43) Food became more and more scarce throughout this period in time. Due to the lack of crops, the food prices kept rising making it harder for the lower classes, who were scavenging for food day to day. (Briscoe).

Boyar class is Terrorized

1572

The Oprichnina was created out of Ivan's despair of his wife's death and distrust within the boyar class. However, Ivan took the Oprichnina overboard when he started to order them to kill anyone who they disliked or found suspicious. He accused the boyar class of secretly poisoning his wife, which put a target on the backs of those who were in the boyar class and those who supported it. The Oprichina caused many executions and eventually became weaker and were disbanded. ("Ivan the Terrible")

Ivan the Terrible murders his son

Nov 15, 1581

Ivan the Terrible was caught in a state of depression after his wife Anastasia died. This was when he began to become violent to the people around him. In 1581, he beat his pregnant daughter in law, causing her to have a miscarriage. He then continued in this violent stage when he beat his son Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich until he eventually died due to his injuries. Around this time, the people of Russia began to see Ivan as a cruel and violent person. (Andreyev)

Finding of Roanoke

1584

Sir Walter Raleigh was an English explorer from the England who funded and expeditions to the New World. Queen Elizabeth I issued a charter for Raleigh's expeditions on March 15, 1584. The colonists returned back to England and reported their finding of the lost colony of Roanoke. In honor of the Virgin Queen, Raleigh named the territory Virginia and the colonists returned to what would be the first permanent colony in North America. Roanoke is now known as the "Lost Colony". (Website design)

Ivan the Terrible dies

Mar 18, 1584

Ivan the Terrible died due to a stroke on March 18th in 1584 at the age of 53. The terrible czar died quietly of a stroke while playing a game of chess against Bogdan Belsky. His death seemed to bring relief to the citizens of Russia. (Andreyev) Ivan the Terrible's death left his son Feodor I of Russia in power, yet unfortunately Feodor was unfit for this role and led Russia into what is called the Time of Troubles. This period lasted until Feodors death in 1598. (Seifi)