Ivan the Terrible

By s-ccantu
  • 1533

    Ivans father dies

  • 1538

    Ivans mother dies of poisining

    At Only 8 years old and orphaned by a murder; Ivan began to grow a deep distrust of people which would later influence his decisions as Tsar.
  • Jan 16, 1547

    Gains power as Tsar of all of Russia

    Gains power as Tsar of all of Russia
    This is the start of a prosperous yet tragic reign that was a major turning point in his life. His choice of being named Tsar also foreshadows the rest of his absolute rule and tied him to religion.
  • Jan 30, 1547

    Marries Anastasia Romanovna

    Marries Anastasia Romanovna
    she will later influence his political decisions
  • 1550

    The Sudebnik of 1550

    The Sudebnik of 1550
    This founded a standing army, or Streltsy, and established a parliament and a council.
  • 1553

    Ivan orders the Moscow Print Yard

    Ivan orders the Moscow Print Yard
    Allowed the Russian government to print religious texts in order to influence the peoples.
  • 1553

    The Muscovy Company

    The Muscovy Company
    After a the company voyaged to Moscow and talked with Ivan he allowed them to form a monopoly on Russo-English trade making the country more outgoing.
  • 1556

    The Oprichnina expands

    The Oprichnina expands
    During this time Ivan expanded his and the Oprichniki's power. The Oprichniki were a exclusive fighting force for Ivan and were not held accountable for their actions causing a large amount of pain for their peoples.
  • 1556

    Kazan campaigns

    He eventually annexed the country in 1556 and this marked his first military success.
  • 1558

    Correspondence with Orthodox leaders

    In order to further his religion he supported them both financially and militarily.
  • 1560

    Had St. Basil's Cathedral constructed

    Had St. Basil's Cathedral constructed
    Used it to further his religious cause.
  • 1560

    introduced movement laws

    introduced movement laws
    Ivan was the first Russian to introduce movement laws to the peasants and truly allowed Ivan to exercise his power.
  • 1560

    Death of Anastasia

    This was most commonly thought of to be a poisoning. This deeply hurt Ivan personally and made him incredibly suspicious of nobility.
  • 1564

    Ivan gains absolute power and creates the Oprichnina

    Ivan gains absolute power and creates the Oprichnina
    Ivan leaves and comes back to the throne upon the condition that he has absolute power. This leads to the creation of the Oprichnina
  • 1570

    The sack of Novgorod

    The sack of Novgorod
    During the plague Ivan grew suspicious that the nobles in Novgorod. He then ordered the Oprichniki to attack. This ended up lasting five weeks and killing thousands of civilians. This is seen as a massive flexing of Ivan's Political muscle.
  • 1581

    Killing of his eldest son

    Killing of his eldest son
    With age Ivan grew more erratic and during one of his outbursts he hit his son with his staff, in turn, killing him.