The future sovereign of all Russia Ivan III was born in the family of the Grand Moscow Prince Vasily II and Grand Duchess Maria Yaroslavna on January 22, 1440. His older brother Yuri died in early childhood, so Ivan already in infancy became the main contender for the title of Grand Duke. According to historians, the nature of the future ruler was largely determined by the trials that he experienced in childhood, when his father waged a desperate struggle with the Galich-Mersky princely house and the Horde.

The path to power

Ivan and his younger brothers survived to adulthood by a miracle. Soon after their father Vasily II became a great prince, a coalition of specific princes led by his uncle - Prince of Galicia and Zvenigorod Yuri Dmitrievich (who belongs to the Galich-Mer House) rebelled against him. The fight went on with varying success. In total, Yuri Dmitrievich and his children managed to overthrow Vasily II from the throne at least four times, and each time with the help of military force or diplomacy he regained power.

In 1445, a small Russian detachment under the command of Vasily II was defeated by an army of Tatars near Suzdal. The Grand Duke himself was captured. In Moscow, which was expecting an enemy attack, at the same time there was a strong fire.

As a result of some agreements, about which historians are not reliably aware, the Horde released Vasily II. He returned to Moscow. The situation in the capital was difficult, the people grumbled due to the consequences of the fire and harsh winter. And Dmitry Shemyaka, the son of Prince Yuri Dmitrievich, who had already died by this time, spread rumors about the allegedly huge ransom that the great prince had promised for his freedom. In February 1446, Vasily II was captured by the conspirators in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra and delivered to Dmitry Shemyak. However, supporters of the legitimate Grand Duke managed to save 6-year-old Ivan and his 5-year-old brother, who accompanied his father during a visit to the monastery, while the rest of the family remained in Moscow.

  • Dmitry Shemyaka treats minors Ivan and Yuri in Moscow, with the help of Jonah, luring them into the city
  • © Wikimedia Commons

Soon after capture, Vasily II was blinded, which is why he later received the nickname Dark. Through mediation and under personal security guarantees from the bishop of Ryazan, Jonah, the rebels were able to ensure that the boyars who harbor the princes agreed to release them to their captive father - Dmitry wanted to drown Vasily's children, but Jonah did not let him do this. Under pressure from the boyars, Shemyaka gave the blinded Vasily an inheritance in faraway Vologda and released him there along with his sons.

But instead of Vologda, Basil II went to Tver. He agreed on an alliance with the Tver prince Boris and engaged to his daughter Ivan. Vasily began a successful war against Shemyaki and in February 1447 regained his throne, on which he remained until his death on March 27, 1462.

After his death, Ivan became the new Grand Duke. When he was still a teenager, his father left him at the head of a sentinel detachment in Vladimir. Later, the eldest son of the Grand Duke commanded the army during a successful campaign on the Ustyug fortress Kokshengu and operations against the Horde invading the Russian lands.

The rise of Moscow

Ivan III, who ascended to the throne, did not have to worry about trials like his father's.

“For another five years after the accession to the Moscow throne, Ivan, as far as one can judge from scarce sources, did not set himself the major historical tasks that would later glorify his time. Like the young Peter the Great, he looked closely at the world around him, studied it and outlined the points of application of his forces. During these years, Ivan carried out inconspicuous, but necessary work to strengthen the troops, improve control mechanisms, ”writes historian Nikolai Borisov in his book“ Ivan III ”.

In 1463, Ivan III began to carry out reforms conceived by his father to establish absolute control over the Principality of Yaroslavl. By 1471, it completely lost its independence.

In 1467, under unclear circumstances, Ivan's wife, Maria Borisovna, died. She was only about 25 years old. According to rumors, she could have been poisoned. However, who needed the death of a young woman far from politics is incomprehensible. She left a son, later known as Ivan Ivanovich Young.

“In the second half of the 60s of the XV century, Ivan III defines the primary task of his foreign policy: ensuring the security of the eastern border by establishing political control over the Kazan Khanate. The war with Kazan in 1467-1469 ended on the whole successfully for Muscovites, ”writes Nikolai Borisov.

As a result of the war, Kazan for a long time stopped raids on the lands of the Moscow principality. However, the problems with the resources that Ivan III felt during the hostilities, apparently, prompted him to think about the need for further centralization of Russian lands.

In 1471, Ivan III made a successful trip to Novgorod, forcing him to pay indemnity and guarantee the rejection of separate ties with Lithuania. But a few years later, a dispute arose again over the powers of the Grand Duke in Novgorod. Some of the townspeople were inclined to war, however, when the hostilities became a real prospect, the Novgorodians felt the precariousness of their situation and returned to negotiations, as a result of which, in 1477-1478, Novgorod renounced veche self-government and recognized the full power of Ivan III.

  • Lebedev, Claudius Vasilievich: Martha Posadnitsa. The destruction of Novgorod
  • © Wikimedia Commons

In the same period, in 1474, their lands were transferred to the treasury and the princes of Rostov became a servant of the nobility.

In connection with the activity of Ivan III aimed at centralizing the state, historiography is often called the collector of Russian lands.

The subject of world politics

Soon after the death of his first wife, Ivan III thought about remarriage. In 1469, Pope Paul II put forward the idea of ​​the Moscow prince getting married to the Byzantine princess Sofya Paleolog, the niece of the last emperor of Byzantium, Constantine XI, and the daughter of the despot Morea (Peloponnese peninsula) Thomas. After the fall of the Byzantine Empire, Thomas and his family fled to Rome and lived at the papal court. According to the leadership of the Catholic Church, the marriage of a widowed Orthodox prince to a princess brought up in Rome was to persuade Moscow to a union.

Negotiations on the terms of the marriage dragged on. As a result, Ivan and Sophia were married in Moscow only on November 22, 1472. Contrary to the expectations of Rome, his wife did not persuade the prince to a union, but, on the contrary, supported him in the struggle for the independence of Moscow from any external influence.

In the 1470s, Moscow had two new points of foreign policy tension. Around this time, Ivan III stopped paying tribute to the Big Horde. In addition, the Grand Duke of Moscow aggravated relations with neighboring Lithuania.

“Ivan III declared claims on the lands of the Rurikovich, which were then under the rule of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, but settled by the Slavs,” said Vadim Volobuev, senior researcher at the Institute of Slavic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, in an interview with RT.

In 1480, a serious threat loomed over Moscow. The authorities of the Great Horde agreed on an alliance with the Lithuanian Grand Duke Casimir. Through the territory of Lithuania, the Horde troops moved to the borders of the Moscow principality. At the same time, his younger brothers rebelled against Ivan III, dissatisfied with the restriction of their rights.

The Horde army stopped on the border river Ugra. The Grand Duke left Ivan Molodoy with the troops, and he himself brought Sophia out of Moscow with his youngest children and held successful negotiations with the brothers who agreed to support him. Returning to Ugra, Ivan III tried to negotiate with Khan Akhmat, but he began to put forward humiliating demands, and the Grand Duke decided to accept the battle.

When Ugra froze, he withdrew troops from the coast to more convenient defense positions. However, things did not go beyond a few hassles. The Khan's army was not ready for the winter war, and the Lithuanians did not send help. Therefore, the Horde moved back, plundering along the way the Lithuanian lands. Ivan III won with little blood and forever saved the Russian state from the need to pay tribute to the Horde.

  • The battle on the Ugra River, which put an end to the Horde yoke. Thumbnail from the front annalistic vault. XVI century
  • © encyclopedia.mil.ru

“The events of 1480 were the moment Russia gained independence and state sovereignty. Today, a number of historians believe that one of the dates associated with standing on the Ugra River can be timed to coincide with the celebration of Russian Independence Day, ”a professor in the Department of Political Science at Moscow State University said in an interview with RT. M.V. Lomonosov, Doctor of Historical Sciences Sergey Perevezentsev.

Against the backdrop of the conflict with the Big Horde, relations between Russia and Lithuania have become extremely heated. A number of Orthodox boyars left the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and came under the rule of Ivan III. At the same time, Ivan III entered into an alliance with Crimea, which, in dangerous moments for Moscow, raided the Lithuanian borders.

“In total, under Ivan III, with the exception of border clashes, there were three wars between Moscow and Lithuania: two declared and one undeclared. For Moscow, all three were successful. Lithuania has lost about a third of its controlled territories. At the same time, if classical medieval orders still reigned in Lithuania, then Ivan III was able to build an effective system of state governance, ”said Vadim Volobuev.

According to Sergei Perevezentsev, the reforms initiated by Ivan III were comprehensive.

“For the first time in history, he received the title of sovereign. A powerful cultural breakthrough came from its submission - on the basis of local traditions, a new Russian culture arose in symbiosis with European and Eastern influence. Under Ivan III, a complete translation of the Bible was first made in Russia. Thanks to his efforts, a modern and effective army by the standards of the late 15th century arose. At the same time, the production of fired brick began in Russia, which allowed us to switch to mass capital construction, ”the historian said.

At the end of the XV century, Ivan III continued the policy of "gathering land." Under the control of Moscow were the destinies of his brothers, Tver and Ryazan. Pskov retained partial independence, but he was a faithful ally of the Grand Duke.

In 1497, Ivan III introduced a single Judicial Code in all Russian lands, which made it possible to completely unify legislation throughout the state. The double-headed eagle first appeared on the grand prince's press, which later became the centuries-old coat of arms of Russia.

  • State Seal of Ivan III
  • © Wikimedia Commons

In the last years of the life of Ivan III, a fierce struggle for power developed between his heirs. On the one hand, it was attended by the son of Ivan Molodoy, the deceased under unknown circumstances, Dmitry and his mother Elena, and on the other, Grand Duchess Sofia and her son Vasily. Ivan III at first leaned towards Dmitry, but then the grandson fell into disgrace. The sovereign declared co-ruler and heir to Basil. On October 27, 1505, Ivan III died.

“Ivan III is actually the creator of the modern Russian state. Under him, Russia declared itself as a sovereign subject of world politics. The term “Russia” itself (at first with one “s.” - RT ) was introduced into official circulation under Ivan III. At the same time, Moscow recognized itself as the heir to the Byzantine Empire and the defender of Orthodoxy. Ivan III set the strategic task of collecting all the lands of Russia into a single state, the implementation of which took centuries. This is the greatest figure, but, unfortunately, by chance, underestimated by the descendants. The Battle of Kulikovo overshadowed the more important standing on the Ugra simply because there were not so many active military operations. And Ivan the Terrible attracted the attention of the world public to himself with his bright personal behavior and left his grandfather in the shade, although he deserves no less respect, ”summed up Sergey Perevezentsev.