How Ivan The Terrible Was Progressive for Russia

Throughout history, there have been many rulers that were controversial, and Ivan The Terrible was no exception. Ivan IV, better known as Ivan the Terrible, was one of the most divisive rulers of Russia of all time. Historians still argue whether Ivan IV was progressive for the country or not. Many people agree that Ivan IV was a harsh and an insane ruler. However, Ivan IV’s rule progressed and benefitted Russia during his long 51-year reign. His many ideas and political decisions allowed Russia to become a strong and powerful empire in the succeeding centuries.

Ivan the Terrible, born Ivan IV Vasilyevich, was born in 1530 and died from a heart attack in 1584. He was the Grand Prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547. He was the first leader of Russia to adopt the title tsar of Russia in 1547 and was thus, the first Tsar of Russia from 1547 until his death in 1584. He got this title from “Caesar” as Tsar is derived from the Latin title from the Roman Emperor Caesar. He claimed that he was a ruler that got his power directly from God. This basically meant that he was the supreme and only ruler of Russia. He had about six to eight wives and eight children. However, only one son, Feodor I, was alive to rule after Ivan’s death.

Many people regard Ivan IV as one of the cruelest rulers Russia ever had and they are right in saying so as he has done terrible things. Due to the way he ruled, he received the nickname “Grozny”, which can be translated to “the terrible”, “the fearsome”, or “the menacing.” Haunted by his childhood, Ivan IV is generally regarded as an insincere, insane and a horrific ruler. However, one may argue that he was transformed into that type of ruler due to his horrific upbringing and childhood. Contrary to popular belief, Ivan was reportedly a “sensitive, intelligent boy” while growing up. His father, Vasili III of Russia died when Ivan was only three years old, making Ivan the Grand Prince of Muscovy officially. Since he was too young to take the throne, his mother ran as regent until her untimely death.

After the death of his father, the political situation in Moscow was unstable. Everyone had a claim to the throne including Vasili III’s brothers and due to this was very suspicious of other people taking her role. (Pushkareva 66) However his mother’s life was cut short due to mysterious and suspicious reasons, orphaning Ivan at only eight years old. Some historians believe that his mother was poisoned by the boyars. The boyars were members of the aristocracy which were next in rank to a prince. Boyars inherit their rankings from their family and generally not from their merit. A person could infer that the boyars might’ve poisoned her to garner power for themselves or their house.

Being orphaned, he was forced to be raised by the boyars that neglected him. He and his brother, Yuri of Uglich, oftentimes starved as a result of the neglect. Not only did the boyars treat him horribly growing up, but Ivan also suspected that the boyars killed his mother or had an involvement in it. The combination of his suspicion that the boyars killed his mother accompanied with being neglected by them solidified his hatred for the boyars. While growing up, historians suggest that he also tortured animals due to the way he was treated by the boyars. This tough upbringing lead to Ivan IV becoming paranoid of almost everyone which caused him to commit many atrocities including lashing out on his son Ivan Ivanovich and reportedly killing him and creating the secret police.

Although he committed many heinous acts, he also did numerous things that advanced Russia as a civilization. In the beginning of his reign, he was even revered as a hero. He was a strong figure that Russia needed at the time as the Mongols regularly invaded Russia, taking many slaves from Russia’s territory. In defense, Ivan was a firm leader that sought to conquer lands to create a massive Russian empire. He created the Streltsy, which were Russian firearm units, between 1545 and 1550 and armed them with long guns. The streltsy participated in military operations, performed general guard duty, and guarded buildings. Ivan was the first Russian ruler to introduce new Western technologies to Russia. The streltsy were traditionally recruited, and although it was eventually replaced and surpassed by Peter the Great’s Table of Ranks, it was a progressive military system for its time. This military infantry allowed Ivan IV to capture the Khanates of Khazan (De Madariaga). This conquest of the new land expanded the Russian lands greatly.

After the conquest of Khazan, Ivan continued his wars. He began the colonization of Siberia in 1580 and was able to defeat the Crimean Tatars, which put an end to the invasions from the Tatars. Although unsuccessful at defeating Denmark-Norway, Sweden, Lithuania, and Poland, he showed that the streltsy and his battle strategies were very effective. During the earlier parts of the Livonian War, Russia was able to capture many key areas such as Narva and Dorpat. However, near the end of the war, Poland and Lithuania formed a “political union” which created an even stronger Poland-Lithuanian front. (Livonian War) In addition, during the 1560s, there were internal conflicts due to the mysterious and sudden death of Ivan’s first and beloved wife, Anastasia Romanovna. Due to his grief, he suddenly left Moscow, intensifying the conflicts and weakening Russia’s front. Even though Ivan was not capable of winning the Livonian war and expanding Russia more through it, many argue that this fought war was progressive for Russia’s time.

Ivan ruled alongside his “informal government” called the “Elected Rada” or the Chosen Council from 1549-1560 in the early part of his reign. (Ygerov 1) This period was known for its peaceful reforms and modernization. His rule with his informal government came two years after his marriage with Anastasia. Historians agree that the period that Anastasia was married with Ivan “…coincided with the period of Ivan’s major reforms.” (Pushkareva 72) It seems that his marriage with Anastasia influenced his progressiveness and ideas of reform during these years. The Elected Rada consisted of young aristocrats and clergy.

They created many reforms, gave more power to the tsars, and attempted to limit the strength of the boyars. Some reforms that Ivan instituted included “reformed tax collection, statutory law and church reform” (Ygerov 1). In 1550, they created more detailed laws that replaced the old ones and Russia’s “central administration” was also changed into departments (Andreyev). His primary foreign goal was to defeat the tartars and gain more land to create a more unified Russia. Many of the changes he implemented during this time positively impacted Russia in the upcoming centuries as these changes created a more centralized Russian state. However, in 1560, he dismissed the informal government and decided to rule on his own.

As mentioned in the previous paragraphs, in 1560, Anastasia Romanovna died from a mysterious illness. The death of his wife was a traumatic event for Ivan and had an extreme negative impact on his reign. Ivan suspected that his wife died from being poisoned. Upon later investigation with modern science, he was right to suspect that his wife was indeed poisoned as researchers found that she was poisoned with mercury. After her death, many of the horrific things that Ivan is infamous for happened. Anastasia was one of the few people that he could trust, and with her death, Ivan had an emotional breakdown and became very paranoid of everyone. He was desperate for people he could trust. Anastasia’s death impacted his mental health, his hatred for the boyars grew even more as he suspected like his mother’s death, the boyars were the cause of his wife’s death.

After a sudden leave from Moscow, he returned with the founding of the Oprichnina. The Oprichnina was the secret police that he created, and many characterize them as a cult akin to the United States Ku Klux Klan. They “…spread terror throughout Russia.” (Pushkareva 72) With the secret police, he pursued the boyars and quickly began to prosecute, torture, terrorize and even kill many of the boyars and their supporters that he suspected for treason. The Oprichnina had too much power given to them from Ivan, and with their power, they abused it. The Oprichnina exploited peasants by stealing from them, extorting, and killing them. Although nothing can excuse these horrific acts committed by Ivan and his secret police, the boyars had indeed treated Ivan horribly growing up and Ivan had every right to be suspicious of them.

Although he created the Oprichnina, he eventually dissolved them in 1572 after he realized they could not defend Moscow and were bad for Russia and its citizens. Some thought he might’ve gotten a sense of clarity and was done doing horrifying things. However, in 1581, Ivan the Terrible had one of his most infamous violent episodes during his reign. According to legend, Ivan the Terrible’s oldest son, Ivan Ivanovich was reportedly killed by his father. Ivan Ivanovich’s pregnant wife was apparently attacked by Ivan IV which caused his wife to have a miscarriage. Ivan Ivanovich confronted his father, but his father got angry and hit him on the head with a staff which accidentally killed the young Ivan. This event which depicts the dying Ivan held by his father was featured in the famous drawing by Ilya Repin.

People generally remember the negatives a person does before the positives. Ivan the Terrible is not an exception to this statement. Ivan the Terrible perpetrated terrible atrocities throughout his reign as mentioned throughout my essay. Thus, many people would automatically jump to conclusions that Ivan IV hurt the country and did nothing that progressed the country. However, even though he carried out those atrocities, there is no denying the facts that he progressed Russia especially during the earlier part of his rule prior to the death of his wife. Also, many argue that Ivan’s legacy has been distorted throughout history.

Ivan IV’s life could be characterized as objectively hard. Being orphaned at the age of eight, he was raised by boyars who thought more about themselves than the kids they were supposed to take care of. The life of a “sensitive, intelligent” young boy was transformed into a life of violence and paranoia. Throughout his reign, Ivan witnessed many wars at a young age which scarred him psychologically and undoubtedly lead to him having mental illness. Ivan the Terrible is an example of a man that on one hand committed atrocious acts, crimes, and violence.

On the other hand, he reformed Russia politically, socially, and militarily. He founded the Streltsy and was able to defeat the Crimean Tatars and the Khanates of Kazan. This seized the raids committed by the Tatars during a time where Russia was vulnerable. He was also a strong leader at a time where the country was very politically unstable. Even with his mental illness, he was still able to be a progressive leader for its time. Russia without Ivan the Terrible wouldn’t be the same Russia it is today.