Ivan IV, the sixteenth-century Russian tsar notorious for his reign of terror, became an unlikely national hero in the Soviet Union during the 1940s. This book traces the development of Ivan's positive image, placing it in the context of Stalin's campaign for patriotism. In addition to historians' images of Ivan, the author examines literary and artistic representations, including Sergei Eisenstein's famous film, banned for its depiction of the tsar which was interpreted as an allegorical criticism of Stalin.

This is the first scholarly account by a Western historian of the Time of Troubles, the period of civil war and foreign invasion in early-seventeenth-century Russia. The author focuses on the various pretenders or royal imposters who appeared at this time; she traces their careers and offers explanations for their success. Her analysis of the phenomenon of pretense illuminates popular perceptions of the monarchy in early modern Russia, and demonstrates how social protest could take the form of support for imposters claiming to be the "true tsar."

Ivan the Terrible has long been a controversial figure. Some historians regard him as a crazed and evil tyrant; while others (especially Soviet scholars of the Stalin period) have viewed him as a progressive and far-sighted statesman. The folklore about Ivan has played an important part in these debates. Was Ivan's depiction in folklore favourable or hostile? And how far can it be regarded as evidence of contemporary popular attitudes towards the tsar? In this unusual and far-ranging study, Maureen Perrie discusses the nature of Ivan's image in Russian folklore; its historical basis; its...

This is the first scholarly account by a Western historian of the Time of Troubles, the period of civil war and foreign invasion in early-seventeenth-century Russia. The author focuses on the various pretenders or royal imposters who appeared at this time; she traces their careers and offers explanations for their success. Her analysis of the phenomenon of pretense illuminates popular perceptions of the monarchy in early modern Russia, and demonstrates how social protest could take the form of support for imposters claiming to be the "true tsar."

Ivan IV Vasiljevich the Terrible was Grand Prince (since 1533), the first Russian Tsar (since 1547), the son of Vasili III. He conquered Kazan Khan (1552) and Astrakhan Khan (1556). He introduced the oprichnina in 1565 - a hand-picked group of terrorists who raped and killed anyone Iran did not like. His home policy was accompanied with dreadful repressions and stong enslaving of peasants. Beyond Russia, he took part in the Livonian War (1558-1583) and established commercial connections with England. Crucially, he joined Siberia to the Russian State.

The Socialist-Revolutionary (SR) party gained an overall majority in the election to the Russian Constituent Assembly, which was dissolved by the Bolsheviks in January 1918. The SRs derived the bulk of their electoral support from the peasantry, and the gulf between the predominantly urban Bolshevik party and the rural masses was to create immense problems for the Soviet government in the 1920s, culminating in the horrors of forced collectivization. The SRs offered an alternative vision of the Russian peasant's path to socialism. They were closer to the peasantry than any other revolutionary...

This first volume of the Cambridge History of Russia covers the period from early ('Kievan') Rus' to the start of Peter the Great's reign in 1689. It surveys the development of Russia through the Mongol invasions to the expansion of the Muscovite state in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and deals with political, social, economic and cultural issues under the Riurikid and early Romanov rulers. The volume is organised on a primarily chronological basis, but a number of general themes are also addressed, including the bases of political legitimacy; law and society; the interactions of...

This work presents eleven studies in the field of Russian/Soviet economic and social history, which have been specially commissioned as a tribute to Professor R.W. Davies. Each chapter highlights a particular area of controversy, and illuminates the process of policy formation in this critical period of Soviet development. Together they provide an overview of the period 1917-1953.