Ivan the Terrible

By s-adhond
  • Aug 25, 1530

    Ivan the Terrible's Birth

    Ivan the Terrible, full name Ivan Chetvyorty Vasilyevich, is born in Kolomenskoye, Russia.
  • Dec 4, 1533

    Father's Death + Proclamation of Ivan the Terrible

    Father's Death + Proclamation of Ivan the Terrible
    Immediately following his father’s death, Vasili III, the three-year-old Ivan was proclaimed grand prince of Moscow. Ivan's mother rules on his behalf.
  • Period: 1538 to 1547

    Power Struggle Between Boyars

    The void left by Ivan's parents are constantly fought over among the clans of the warrior cast, commonly referred to as "boyars". This causes both mental and emotional distress for Ivan in his childhood.
  • Apr 4, 1538

    Mother's Death

    Ivan's mother, Elena Glinskaya, dies (allegedly by poison), leaving an 8-year-old Ivan orphaned.
  • 1547

    Marriage

    Marriage
    Ivan marries Anastasia Romanova the same year he gets crowned as Tsar, all at the age of 16.
  • Jan 16, 1547

    Crowned Tsar

    Ivan is the first to be proclaimed tsar of Russia.
  • 1549

    Start of "Constructive Period"

    Ivan appoints a council of advisers, a consensus-building assembly who helped institute his reforms. During this period, he introduced self-government in rural regions, reformed tax collection, and instituted statutory law and church reform.
  • Mar 28, 1554

    Death of Son

    Death of Son
    In a fit of rage, Ivan the Terrible kills his son, Ivan Ivanovich, by beating him to death with a cane. This was done at a confrontation between Ivan the Terrible and his son, which was regarding Ivan's physical abuse of his daughter in law (Ivan Ivanovich's wife) and her eventual miscarriage. The tension from this encounter (and many more prior to this) manifested in one of Ivan's most devastating acts.
  • 1556

    Foreign Policies Instated

    Ivan institutes regulations on the obligations of the boyar class in service of the crown. In foreign policy, Ivan had two main goals: to resist the Mongol Golden Horde and to gain access to the Baltic Sea. Ivan aimed to conquer all remaining independent regions and create a larger, more centralized Russia.
  • 1560

    Wife's Death

    Wife's Death
    Ivan's first wife, Anastasia Romanova, tragically dies. This increases Ivan's suspicions of the boyars, and warps Ivan into an even more aggressive and irritable ruler.
  • Period: 1560 to

    Ivan's Reign of Terror

    Following the death of his wife, Ivan starts destroying and displacing the major boyar families in the region. This earned him the name "Grozny", meaning "formidable or sparking terror or fear".
  • 1565

    The Oprichnik

    The Oprichnik
    Ivan creates his own police force called the "Oprichnik". This force is used to track and kill anyone that Ivan deems an enemy

  • Obsession with Death

    With Ivan's health slowly declining, he makes the decision of investing in soothsayers and witches in hopes of rejuvenating his health and sustaining him.

  • Ivan the Terrible's Death

    Ivan dies from an apparent stroke, leaving his kingdom to Feodor, a leader who was deemed to be unfit by most.