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In the sixteenth century, Ivan IV became the first ruler to take the title of czar, the Russian word for caesar. Ivan expanded the territories of Russia eastward. He was known as Ivan the Ter- rible because of his ruthless deeds, among them stab- bing his own son to death in a heated argument.
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When Ivan the Terrible dynasty came to an end a period of anarchy known as the Time of Troubles followed. This period did not end until the Zemsky Sobor, or national assembly, chose Michael Romanov as the new czar
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The Romanov dynasty lasted until 1917. One of its most prominent members was Peter the Great. Peter the Great became czar in 1689.
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A long and hard-fought war with Sweden enabled Peter to acquire the lands he sought. On a marshland on the Baltic in 1703, Peter began the construction of a new city, St. Petersburg, his window on the West. St. Petersburg was finished during Peter’s lifetime and remained the Russian capital until 1918.
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He was especially eager to borrow European technology. Only this kind of modernization could give him the army and navy he needed to make Russia a great power. Under Peter, Russia became a great military power. By his death in 1725, Russia was an important European state.
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The period of anarchy did not end until Zemsky Zobor chose Michael Romanov as the new czar. Their dynasty lasted until 1917
