Product Description

An introduction to the key debates of Russian history. How did a small principality develop into a vast empire? Why did Russia develop political and social institutions so different from those of the West, which led the country on such a different path in the 20th century? The book relates the facts behind the reputations of tsars such as Ivan the Terrible, whose reign of terror was unparalleled in Russian history until Stalin; Peter the Great, dynamic reformer and dedicated Westernizer; Catherine the Great, the determined young German princess who usurped power and became the archetypal enlightened autocrat; and the weak-willed Nicholas II, a devotee of divine right in a period of devastating change. Here too are the less familiar but equally intriguing personalities who occupied Russia's imperial throne: the territorially-ambitious Ivan III, the warm-hearted and irascible Alexei Mikhailovich, and the reactionary Nicholas I. The book contains timelines which provide at-a-glance guides to the length and decisive events of each reign. There are genealogical trees of the Romanovs and their predecessors, and datafiles for every tsar detailing lineage, wives and children, and place and cause of death. There are over 90 sidebars and special features ranging from the building of the Moscow Kremlin to the lovers of Catherine the Great. The illustrations include portraits of every tsar and key political player, art treasures, architecture, maps and plans.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #276406 in Books
• Published on: 1999-04-19
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

Customer Reviews

A Fantastic Book for an Introduction to Tsarism
I found this book to be clear, concise and straight forward. It deals with the lives of the occupants of Russia's imperial throne with an easily understandible style and tone, which is refreshing for a book on the Romanovs. Having said that at times the language is inclined to be clinical and rather too simplistic.

Although this book does deal with the sensational scandals which have often haunted the Imperial Throne, it does not get pulled into the more rediculous of these, such as the obsurd notion thar Catherine the Great slept with horses.

As with most of the books from this series, if you want a good general overview of the subject then this book is ideal but for a more indepth account a book such as "The Romanovs:Autocrats of All the Russias" by W.Bruce Lincoln would make this book appear childish.

Of all the books I have read from this series I enjoyed this one the most. The fact that there have only been a small amount of Tsars, in comparison to other subjects the series have covered works to this books advantage and means that briefness is not a too much of a problem here. I would heartily recomend this book to anyone with a curiousity for Russian Imperial history.

Well worth a place on the coffee table
A good general read, introducing the lineage and history of the Russian royal line. Beautiful pictures, time-lines and clear, informative text make this an ideal coffee table book for those interested in the broad sweep of Imperial Russia's history.

Russian Roulette


Following the Soviet Revolution of 1917 the Bolsheviks tried to persuade the British government to grant political asylum to the Tsar, Nicholas the Second and his family. This was turned down by George V who was advised such a course of action would discredit the monarchy in the eyes of the labour movement. Less than a year later the Romanov family were murdered at Ekaterinburg on orders from Moscow. Eighty years to the day on 17 July 1998 the remains of the family were re-buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral. Their memory had outlasted the Soviet Union.

The first Russian state emerged in the late ninth century and was based on Kiev. Its rulers were Scandinavian in origin although its population was Slavic. In the thirteen century the Tartars invaded and provided Russia with an autocracy which translated into Tsardom, although some historians attribute this to the influence of Kiev and Byzantium. In the centuries which followed Moscovy gradually assumed greater power with military victory over the Tartars.

The foundations of the Russian empire were laid by Ivan the Great (a member of the Rurikid family) who ruled from 1462 to 1505. The Tartars were defeated and by 1500 a number of princes who were subjects of the grand duke of Lithuania (a far larger dukedom than the current country with that name) transferred allegiance to Moscow on the grounds that they were being persecuted for their Orthodox faith. Such expansion required certainty of succession and it was characteristic that Tsars would dispose of wives who were unable to produce children, often to spend their days in nunneries sometimes to die violently. In 1503 Ivan abandoned plans to take over church lands leading to the integration of the Orthodox church and the Muscovite state which lasted until 1917.

This was to prove important in the rise of the Romanov dynasty. The Rurikid dynasty ended in 1598 and for sixteen years Russia endured a "Time of Troubles" when there were several claimants to the throne. The Romanov's were distantly related to the Rurikids and, although they could not claim direct ancestry, were sufficiently close to be offered the throne. They provided stability by means of a combination of carrot and stick with more stick than carrot. In 1649 Serfdom was finally established and, although Peter The Great was regarded as progressive (and at six foot seven who would argue with him!), he retained a ruthlessness which saw his son killed after being interrogated on his orders.

Tsarism reached its zenith between 1725 and 1825. Catherine who ruled from 1725 to 1727 "devoted herself mainly to the pleasures of the table and the bedroom and to indulging her desire for revenge". Her successors, especially Elizabeth, were castigated during Soviet rule as epitomising "the corruption of an imperial court whose luxuries depended on the exploitation of millions of serfs". Contemporaries described her as "disordered and wilful" and she had more dresses than Imelda Marcos had shoes. Yet she was opposed to the death penalty, spared the lives of political offenders, restricted political torture and abolished facial mutilation as a punishment for women.

The problem for the Tsars was balancing the various interests within the country while maintaining absolute control, often through a brutal internal police force. The last four Romanovs were faced with the same problem. The "empire could only be maintained by modernising the economy and administration but (this) involved the emergence of an educated class likely to question the existing system and to aspire to a role in government". Reforms were made. Alexander the Second emancipated the Serfs but was assassinated by members of the politically excluded middle class who belonged to The People's Will. Attempts to combine repression with reform alienated both conservatives and the liberal intelligentsia, leaving neither satisfied with the monarchy as it was. Revolutionary movements spread with the Bolsheviks' ruthlessness winning the day and the Romanovs paying the price.

This book is a wonderful introduction to Russian history. It names its sources and includes a superb range of pictures relating to the reign of the Tsars being written about. There are plenty of sidebars and inserts to explain particular issues or terms, genealogical relationships and observations from contemporaries who were serving foreign powers at the Russian court. There are over 200 illustrations and in depth biographical accounts of all the tsars. There's a useful bibliography for those who wish to read in greater depth. Having read this book, I'm sure many will.