A biography of the infamous czar.

“This significant biography of the 16th-century Russian czar…is likely to become the definitive work on Ivan for some time” (Publishers Weekly, starred review). One of the most important figures in Russian history, Ivan IV Vasilyevich has remained among the most neglected. The country’s first Tsar, he is notorious for pioneering a policy of unrestrained terror—and for killing his own son. In Ivan the Terrible, Russian historian Isabel de Madariaga presents the first comprehensive biography of Ivan from birth to death, shedding light on his policies, his marriages, his atrocities, and his disordered personality. Situating Ivan within the Russian political developments of the sixteenth century, de Madariaga also offers revealing comparisons with English, Spanish, and other European courts of the time. The biography includes a new account of the role of astrology and magic at Ivan’s court and provides fresh insights into his foreign policy. Addressing the controversies that have paralyzed western scholarship as well as the challenges of authentication—since much of Ivan’s archive was destroyed by fire in 1626—de Madariaga seeks to present Russia as viewed from within Russia rather than from abroad. The result is an enlightening work that captures the full tragedy of Ivan’s reign.

This definitive biography offers abundant details on the life of Russian Czar Ivan IV, including his violent moodswings and his callous cruelty.

Russia Engages the World, 1453-1825, an elegant new book created by a team of leading historians in collaboration with The New York Public Library, traces Russia's development from an insular, medieval, liturgical realm centered on Old Muscovy, into a modern, secular, world power embodied in cosmopolitan St. Petersburg. Featuring eight essays and 120 images from the Library's distinguished collections, it is both an engagingly written work and a striking visual object. Anyone interested in the dramatic history of Russia and its extraordinary artifacts will be captivated by this book. Before the late fifteenth century, Europeans knew virtually nothing about Muscovy, the core of what would become the "Russian Empire." The rare visitor--merchant, adventurer, diplomat--described an exotic, alien place. Then, under the powerful tsar Peter the Great, St. Petersburg became the architectural embodiment and principal site of a cultural revolution, and the port of entry for the Europeanization of Russia. From the reign of Peter to that of Catherine the Great, Russia sought increasing involvement in the scientific advancements and cultural trends of Europe. Yet Russia harbored a certain dualism when engaging the world outside its borders, identifying at times with Europe and at other times with its Asian neighbors. The essays are enhanced by images of rare Russian books, illuminated manuscripts, maps, engravings, watercolors, and woodcuts from the fifteenth to the nineteenth centuries, as well as the treasures of diverse minority cultures living in the territories of the Empire or acquired by Russian voyagers. These materials were also featured in an exhibition of the same name, mounted at The New York Public Library in the fall of 2003, to celebrate the tercentenary of St. Petersburg.

Ivan IV, the first Grand Duke of Moscow to take the title Czar, was one of the most violent and demented rulers in history. Both sadist and mystic, he claimed to be both the blood successor to Caesar Augustus and God¿s vicar on earth. Devoted associates and sworn enemies alike perished amid hideous tortures. Villages, towns and an entire city were obliterated; he even murdered his own son in a burst of fury. And yet, by conquering much of the territory that became 20th century Russia, he also forged an orderly empire out of the barbarous and disordered world into which he was born. Henri Troyat, the Prix Goncourt ¿winning biographer of Catherine the Great, Tolstoy, Turgenev and other giants of Russian history brings to life Russia¿s bloodiest czar creating the unforgettable portrait of a man driven mad with the delirium of his divine right to power.

Czar Ivan IV (1530-1584), the first Russian ruler to take the title czar, is known as one of the worst tyrants in history, but few people among the general public know how he got such an infamous reputation. Relying on extensive research based heavily on original Russian sources, this definitive biography depicts an incredibly complex man living in a time of simple, harsh realities. Robert Payne, the distinguished author of many historical and biographical works, and Russian scholar Nikita Romanoff, describe in vivid and lively detail Ivan's callous upbringing; the poisoning of his second wife and the murder of his son; his obsession with religion and sin; his predilection for mass murder, evidenced by his massacre of 30,000 citizens of Novgorod; yet his remarkable intelligence as a ruler, supporting the growth of trade and expanding Russia's borders.