Ivan IV of Russia was born near Moscow in 1530. Having crowned himself Tsar, Ivan transformed Russia from a medieval state to an empire by conquering such territories as Siberia, Astrakhan, and the Khanates of Kazan. Russia expanded immensely (nearly a billion acres) during his long reign and became the multiethnic state it is today. While known for his cruelty, Ivan is also revered in Russia for his might and strictness.
Ivan’s father was Vasili III of Russia who was the Grand Prince of Moscow until his death from blood poisoning in 1533. Ivan inherited his title at age three and his mother necessarily acted as regent, but she died when Ivan was eight of suspected poisoning. As a consequence, her role as regent to the young prince was passed to the boyars of the powerful Belsky and Shuisky families. Many historians believe that Ivan’s cruel treatment at the hands of boyars during his childhood contributed to his persecution of boyars during his later reign. In any case, Ivan had himself crowned tsar in 1547 at the age of sixteen.
Historians regard Ivan’s early reign as a period of reform and modernization. Ivan formed a standing army known as the Streltsy and made great changes to the law code. He also famously introduced self-government policies for some rural regions. In 1552 Ivan defeated the Kazan Khanate, an enemy of northeastern Russia, and brought the territory under Russian control. To commemorate this victory he ordered the construction of St. Basil’s Cathedral. With his annexation of Astrakhan in 1556, Russia became increasingly multiethnic as waves of nomadic Asians flocked to Europe.
Ivan married his first wife Anastasia Romanovna of Russia in 1547. She died in 1560 and Ivan believed she had been poisoned by boyars. Throughout the rest of his life he would marry another seven times. Ivan’s relations with this noble class of Russians continued to deteriorate during a period of ill health for the Tsar. When the boyars refused to swear allegiance to Ivan’s son in the event of his own death, Ivan ordered assassinations and persecution of boyars. Ivan also formed the Oprichnina, his personal police service, which reduced the boyars’ control of lands giving the tsar direct control himself.
At roughly the same time as the development of the Oprichnina in 1565, historians debate the state of Ivan’s mental faculties citing incidents of paranoia and violent behavior. Historians view the Oprichnina as the tsar’s way of getting rid of Russia’s hereditary nobility. Ivan’s later reign was also bogged down by war; the Livonian War stretched on for twenty-four years. During his later reign plague epidemics swept across the empire. In 1580 Ivan struck his son during an argument and the blow proved fatal. Ivan died in 1584 and was succeeded by his son Feodor. Although famous for his violent temper and brutal reign, he is revered for his expansion of Russia.