Format:
1 online resource (245 pages)
ISBN:
9781317894681
Series Statement:
Profiles in power
Content:
This is the first major re-assessment of Ivan the Terrible to be published in the West in the post-Soviet period. It breaks away from older stereotypes of the tsar - whether as 'crazed tyrant' and 'evil genius', on the one hand, or as a 'great and wise statesman', on the other - to provide a more balanced picture. It examines the ways in which Ivan's policies contributed to the creation of Russia's distinctive system of unlimited monarchical rule. Ivan is best remembered for his reign of terror, the book pays due attention to the horrors of his executions, tortures and repressions, especially in the period of the oprichnina (1565-72), when he mysteriously divided his realm into two parts, one of which was under the direct control of the tsar and his oprichniki (bodyguard). This work argues that the often gruesome forms assumed by the terror reflected not only Ivan's personal cruelty and sadism, but also his religious views about the divinely ordained right of the tsar to punish his treasonous subjects, just as sinners were punished in Hell. Primarily chronological in its organisation, the book focuses on three main aspects of Ivan's power: the territorial expansion of the state, the mythology, rituals and symbols of monarchy; and the development of the autocratic system of rule.
Content:
Cover -- Half Title -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Table of Contents -- List of illustrations -- Preface -- List of abbreviations -- Introduction -- 1 Ivan's Inheritance -- 2 The Young Ruler -- The minority of Ivan IV -- Coronation, marriage and the fall of the Glinskiis -- 3 The Conquest of Kazan' and Astrakhan' -- 4 Reformers and Reforms -- The reasons for reform -- Adashev and Sil'vestr -- The reforms of the 1550s -- 5 From Consensus to Conflict -- The 'boyar revolt' of 1553 -- The power of the Muscovite ruler -- The beginning of the Livonian War and the dismissal of Adashev and Sil'vestr -- On the eve of the oprichnina terror -- 6 The Introduction of the Oprichnina -- The tsar's departure from Moscow -- The decree on the oprichnina -- 'A strange institution': problems of interpretation -- 7 Repression and Resettlement -- The first victims -- Attempts to reach a compromise -- The rout of the zemshchina opposition -- The land resettlements -- 8 The Culmination of the Terror -- The devastation of Novgorod -- The executions in Moscow -- The abolition of the oprichnina -- 9 After the Oprichnina -- The 'grand princely rule' of Simeon Bekbulatovich -- The end of the Livonian War -- The last years of Ivan's reign -- The consequences of the oprichnina and post-oprichnina regimes -- Conclusion -- Chronology -- Glossary -- Select Bibliography -- Index.
Note:
Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources
Additional Edition:
ISBN 9780582099487
Additional Edition:
Erscheint auch als Druck-Ausgabe ISBN 9780582099487
Language:
English
Keywords:
Electronic books
URL:
https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/kxp/detail.action?docID=1733956
