Ivan the Terrible: Tsar, Tyrant, and Legacy of Fear

Introduction: The Meaning of 'Terrible'

Ivan IV — known to history as Ivan the Terrible — deserves the moniker attached to his name, though not necessarily in the modern sense of the word. Certainly, Ivan did terrible things both in his position as the first true tsar of Russia and as the leader of a family. Nevertheless, the translation of the Russian word Groznyi into English by modern standards is not entirely accurate. In Russian during Ivan's time, Groznyi meant something closer to "formidable" or "fearsome."^[1] Through his political and social actions, a nation — and the wider world — had every reason to view Ivan as both formidable and fearsome.

The baby destined to become Ivan IV was born to Tsar Vasily III and his second wife, Elena Glinskaia. Vasily III was considerably older than Ivan's mother, and by the time Ivan was born, he was desperate for a son to serve as the future tsar of Russia. Vasily's first wife, Solomonia, had never produced a child of either sex.^[2] After years of marriage, Vasily pursued a controversial divorce and remarriage. He received permission from the Metropolitan Daniel in Russia, but also sought approval from the Greek Patriarch, who may have inadvertently cursed the unborn Ivan. The Patriarch wrote to Vasily: "If you contract a second marriage, you will have a wicked son; your states will be prey to terror and tears; rivers of blood will flow; the heads of the mighty will fall; your cities will be devoured by flames."^[3]

Early Life, Regency, and the Road to Power

Nevertheless, Vasily remarried, and Ivan was born five years after the wedding on August 25, 1530. His entrance into the world was followed by the birth of a second son, Iuri, on October 30, 1532, who was deaf and mute.^[4] Vasily was ecstatic at Ivan's birth. Thunder and lightning were said to have accompanied the moment, which was interpreted as a good omen for his future.^[5] Others were less optimistic. The Tatar Khan of Kazan commented to visiting Russian boyars: "A sovereign has been born to you and he already has two teeth. With one, he will devour us; but with the other, he will devour you!"^[6] The Khan could not have known how soon Ivan would rise to power.

Just a few months after Iuri's birth, Vasily died in February 1533 following a hunting injury. Wisely anticipating the problems that would arise with an heir only three years old, Vasily established a Regency Council of seven members to govern until Ivan was old enough to rule on his own.^[7] The nation that the young Ivan inherited had fairly recently pushed the Mongol Horde back to the east. Through the work of Vasily and his father, Ivan III, the principality of Moscow had expanded through the annexation of the northeastern principality of Rus.^[8] Ivan's father and grandfather had done much to secure his inheritance and assure the integrity of Muscovy by increasing its territory, creating an effective administrative system, and converting the former warriors of the region into loyal servants of the monarchy.^[9]

Ivan's future seemed assured; however, many difficult years would ensue before he reached a position of real power. The regency period was long and turbulent as various factions battled for influence. Ivan's primary guardian, Mikhail Glinski — an uncle to Ivan's mother — was arrested just a year after Vasily's death.^[10] Ivan fell victim to the resulting power struggle and suffered greatly as a child. This suffering was compounded by the death of Elena Glinskaia in 1538. Ivan later documented his childhood, and his accounts are confirmed in other chronicles of the period. He claims that he and his brother were ignored, ill-fed, and disrespected by the boyars.^[11]

Despite the mistreatment and intrigues of the court, Ivan had the freedom to roam his future kingdom, which he often did while hunting. Much like his mother, he also frequented monasteries, where he engaged in religious discussion with monks. He acquired much of his knowledge through contact with these individuals and others who lived within the palace walls. Ivan was said to be quick and highly intelligent, reading, writing, and discussing ideas extensively.^[12]

All of this prepared him for the daunting task of being the future tsar. Before he took power himself, Ivan had the opportunity to observe the struggle between the various clans as they vied for control. The predominant ones were the Shuiskiis, the Belskiis, and the Vorontsovs. Despite their conflicts with one another, these families were careful not to allow the power of the monarchy to decline; they simply wanted to share in it. Surprisingly, they had the best interest of the monarchy at heart. These families — and Elena before her death — were responsible for initiating some reforms and instituting positive changes, such as standardizing currency and improving fortifications.^[13]

At the age of 17, Ivan came into his inheritance and was officially crowned on January 16, 1547, in a grand ceremony. The Metropolitan Makarii of Moscow conducted the ceremony at the Uspenskii Cathedral, conferring upon Ivan the titles of "Grand Duke of Vladimir, Novgorod, and Moscow and Tsar of All Russia."^[14] His coronation also included the title of "Grand Prince Ivan Vasil'evich, God-crowned Tsar and sovereign of all Great Russia."^[15] Ivan was the first monarch in Russia to use the title of Tsar of Russia.

As befitted a monarch, Ivan found it necessary to marry shortly after his coronation. On February 3, 1547, he married Anastasiya Romanovna, whose family had recently risen to prominence in Moscow. Ivan's predecessors had often chosen foreign brides, but Ivan selected a Russian noblewoman because he felt they would get on well together.^[16] As it turned out, he was correct: the two seemed to enjoy each other's company, frequently traveling together — mostly to monasteries — before the births of their children.^[17] The tsarina is said to have tried to temper her new husband's more unpleasant qualities, including violence, sadism, and scheming. Despite these traits, Ivan loved her deeply and did exercise more self-control in her presence.^[18]

The year of Ivan's coronation also brought a major event with significant political ramifications. On June 21, 1547, a devastating fire destroyed much of the wooden city of Moscow. This would have been problematic enough for the young monarch, but it was further complicated by the fire being blamed on Ivan's maternal grandmother, Anna Glinskaia, who was believed to be a witch. In reality, the fire served as an opportunity for rival powerful families — the Shuiskiis and the Romanovs — to move against the Glinskiis.^[19] Ivan's uncle was killed after being dragged from a church. Ivan managed to stop the violence from escalating further, but it was clear that the Glinskiis were finished as a court faction.^[20]

Coronation, Marriage, and Early Reforms

Despite these harrowing events, Ivan embarked on a series of domestic reforms almost immediately after taking power. Historians debate exactly how much of the government Ivan personally directed and how much real authority his circle of advisors — known as the Chosen Circle — exercised over the changes that were made. Either way, Ivan was tsar at the time, and the reforms were designed to benefit the monarchy and strengthen autocratic government.^[21] Ivan chose his supporters based on ability and personal affinity. The two most prominent figures from this period were Aleksei Adashev and a priest named Sylvester.

Adashev came from a prosperous but non-boyar family. He had traveled with his father and acquired knowledge of how other governments functioned, including the Ottoman Empire. He had also served as a personal guard to Ivan when both were young men. Adashev possessed the personality and skill to communicate and mediate between different groups, and Ivan relied on him heavily in establishing his reforms.^[22] Sylvester was a priest with a powerful influence over Ivan; he was able to persuade the young tsar to repent and confess. Ivan believed Sylvester to be a powerful religious figure capable of predicting certain events. Adashev and Sylvester were known to work closely together in their relationship to the tsar and in their contributions to the reform program.^[23]

Ivan began the reform process by bringing together the most powerful entities in Russia — the boyars and the Russian Orthodox Church. At a meeting of these two groups in February 1549, Ivan asked the boyars to "stop oppressing the lesser nobles and peasants as they had during his childhood."^[24] The boyars agreed, and this initiated many years of various councils being convened to discuss and evaluate issues in Russia. Sometimes even lower-ranking nobility were permitted to attend. When a greater variety of representatives was present, the assembly was called the zemskii sobor, or assembly of the land. This body held no real legislative power, but it was a vehicle through which Ivan's administration could gather broad support.^[25]

Ivan recognized that he needed the support of both the people and the church to accomplish his reforms. Consequently, one of his early and important initiatives involved changes to the church. With Ivan's blessing, the Stoglav Council made numerous revisions to church policy, ranging from forms of worship and church courts to monastic life and Christian practice for ordinary people. All of these new policies were compiled in a book called the Stoglav.^[26] Ivan was personally pious and saw the necessity of bringing the church into alignment with the broader changes he intended to make. Initiating reasonable reforms within the church set a positive tone for his other initiatives.

One of the chief aims of Ivan's early reforms was to make government more efficient and less corrupt. The reforms initially targeted local governments that had operated under a system known as kormlenie. This system involved locally appointed governors who had the right to collect taxes and enriched themselves in the process. The system was corrupt, and much hardship and legal conflict resulted from it. Ivan's reforms reorganized local governments on the principle of self-governance: the central government would appoint local administrators — such as census takers and tax collectors — who would be compensated by the central government out of taxes fairly collected.^[27]

Additionally, Ivan wanted to strengthen the army in preparation for changes in his foreign policy. The process began by centralizing a large number of military men near Moscow. On October 3, 1550, a decree settled one thousand potential warriors on land near Moscow, where they could be easily called up for service by the tsar. The tsar's personal guards were also drawn from this select group.^[28] Another change concerned military recruitment more broadly. The army was drawn from what were called the service landholders. The reforms stipulated that "for every 135 acres of good, arable land one man on horseback, in full armor, must be provided, with a second horse for long campaigns."^[29] Other landholders were also obligated to provide a peasant soldier according to the same formula. These measures standardized the number of men available for military service and guaranteed a standing army.

All of these reforms required a better system for managing Russia's treasury. A careful census of the population and land was conducted in the 1550s, in which all land had to be registered. A complex system of tax collection from the self-governing units was established. Ultimately, the majority of the revenue flowed to Moscow, where it was managed by the newly created Taxation Secretaries and Taxation Chancelleries, which oversaw both revenues and expenditures.^[30]

Ivan's reforms ultimately helped strengthen and support his government by standardizing both civilian and military life. The increase in revenue flowing through the central government also enabled Ivan to pursue a more ambitious foreign policy. He now had the financial resources from taxation and the means through a stronger military to begin expanding Russia's borders. Ivan engaged in two primary military campaigns at this time — one highly successful, one a foreign policy disaster.

The successful campaign expanded Russia's power and influence to the east, against the Tatars. In 1545, Russia began a campaign to take over the Tatar-held regions of Kazan and Astrakhan. Various non-Tatar factions in that region sought Russian protection in 1546. Ivan saw this as the moment to strike and personally led a campaign into the region in the winter of 1547–48.^[31] This initial engagement did not prove entirely successful due to poor weather conditions. Ivan and his army reached Kazan but could not take or hold the city due to lack of supplies, and Ivan was forced to retreat temporarily.^[32] He did not have to wait long for a better opportunity. Ivan identified a weakness when the ruler of Kazan, Safa-Girei, died, leaving a two-year-old son as ruler. Although Ivan did not succeed in taking the city at that time, his forces constructed a fort at a strategically important location known as Sviyazhsk, establishing a Russian outpost within Kazan's territory.^[33]

With a Russian fort in the territory, many of the region's inhabitants pledged their allegiance to Russia, making it easier for Ivan and his army to advance on Kazan. After a vicious and bloody siege, Ivan's army was victorious on October 4, 1552. The rest of the region, including Astrakhan, came under Ivan's control over the following years. By 1557, Ivan's Muscovy had grown from a country into an empire, now in control of a vast region encompassing people of different ethnic backgrounds.^[34]

Conclusion: Ivan's Legacy

Although Ivan started out with improvements for Russia in mind and certainly possessed the intelligence and political acumen to accomplish great things, he allowed himself and his government to become mired in unwinnable conflicts such as the war with Poland over Livonia. He also suffered from a form of paranoia that negatively affected many of the decisions he made as tsar. Unfortunately, due to his deteriorating mental state, Ivan governed his country in a formidable and fearsome manner, inspiring complete awe — if not outright terror — among many of his subjects.