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Ivan had a harsh early life as his regency was passed among the feuding nobility. Ivan and his brother often went hungry and were neglected which caused Ivan to develop a hatred and distrust for the nobility.
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Ivan's father dies and immediately after his death, Ivan who was three years old at the time was proclaimed grand prince of Moscow.
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Ivan won great victories, added lands to Russia, gave Russia a code of laws, and ruled justly.
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At the age of sixteen, Ivan was crowned as Russia's first Tsar. His claim to Tsar of all Russia was thought to be absurd as both Ivan's and Moscow's political power were non-existent. Despite his youth, Ivan proved to be a capable administrator as he rebuilt Moscow after a fire, introduced the first parliament, founded a standing army, known as the Streltzi, reformed the Church and stamped out many clerical cases of abuse.
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Began in 1560 after Anastasia had died. He accused the boyars of poisoning his wife and started seeing everyone as traitors which caused the oprichnina to be formed.
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Upon the death of Anastasia in 1560, Ivan IV went into a deep depression and his behavior became more erratic. He became paranoid causing the creation of his own police force that hunted down and killed anyone Ivan considered as traitors
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A state policy implemented by Tsar, Ivan the Terrible in Russia between 1565 and 1572. The policy included mass repression of the boyars (Russian aristocrats), including public executions and confiscation of their land and property. The reign of terror that Ivan initiated by the oprichnina proved far more dangerous to the stability of the country than the danger that it was designed to suppress.
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In 1570, Ivan personally led his oprichniki troops against Novgorod, in order to destroy the city and execute several thousand of its inhabitants.
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Ivan IV murdered St. Phillip II and began the massacre of great Novgorod. He thought the town was full of traitors and killed thousand of men, women, and children.
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Ended during 1572, when it was abolished as a result of the failure of the oprichnina regiments to defend Moscow from attack by the Crimean Tatars. The entire era of the oprichnina leaves a bloody imprint on Ivan’s reign, causing some doubts about his mental stability.
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Ivan committed an act that was both a personal tragedy and a national disaster. During a violent quarrel, he killed his oldest son.
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Ivan the Terrible beat his pregnant daughter in law, because he found her in her room with a small amount of clothing on. The beating caused a miscarriage.
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On March 18, 1584, Ivan the Terrible died from what appeared to be a stroke. He left the country without a strong ruler. His ill-prepared son Fyodor became the czar when Ivan died.
