Ivan the Terrible. When Basil III died in 1533 the throne went to his three-year-old son, Ivan IV, who later became known as “the Terrible." The government was run by a regency headed by the metropolitan and Ivan's mother. During Ivan's boyhood there was much conflict among the boyars over control of the government. In 1547, at the age of 17, Ivan was crowned czar, or tsar (from the Latin Caesar), the first ruler to be given that title.

Ivan was obsessed with suspicion and at times probably suffered from spells of insanity. He often engaged in irrational and sadistic acts, and killed his oldest son in one of his fits of rage.

To establish his absolute rule over Russia, Ivan made it his policy to destroy the power of the boyars. In 1565, Ivan divided Russia into two parts, the poorer of which was placed under a traditional style of administration in which the boyars were allowed to rule. The other—the stronghold of the most powerful boyars—was declared to be Ivan's personal domain, the Oprichnina. A personal army, the Oprichniki, roamed throughout his domain seizing estates in his name and murdering real or suspected enemies of the czar. This reign of terror reached a climax in 1570 with the massacre of thousands of people in Novgorod, where Ivan suspected a plot against him.

The formation of the Oprichnina helped to increase greatly the number of service nobility; for the confiscation of boyar estates made it possible for Ivan to reward many of his followers with land. In return for their land, members of the service nobility not only had to continue to serve the czar, but also had to keep peasants working the land.

In Russia the relationship of peasant to landlord was basically feudal. The peasant was required to supply a certain amount of labor and goods to a landlord in exchange for the use of land and equipment. The peasant was free to change masters, and did if he thought another landlord offered more. Some peasants who were too deeply in debt to leave managed to run away.

Many members of the service nobility owned less land and were poorer than the boyars; as a result, they had difficulty in keeping their peasants, who tended to desert them in hard times to work lands for wealthier lords. In support of their service nobility, Ivan and czars who followed passed laws that added restrictions on more and more of the peasantry. These restrictions, over a period of time, reduced a large part of Russia's peasantry to serfdom. Thus, at a time when serfdom was declining in western Europe it was being established in Russia.

Ivan conquered the khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan and gave Russia control of the lower Volga. He warred with Poland and Sweden in order to conquer Livonia on the Baltic Sea. He was successful at first, but later (1582) had to accept an unfavorable peace. In 1581 the Cossacks conquered the Tatar khanate of Sibir (Siberia). As a result Ivan was able to annex this territory to his domain. Trade was opened with the English by way of the White Sea in the far north. Printing was introduced into Russia.

Beginning in the 16th century, Russian fur traders, particularly the merchant Stroganov family, began expansion into Siberia.

When Ivan died in 1584 the throne went to his feebleminded son, Fyodor. Boris Godunov, a minor noble, outmaneuvered several powerful boyars to become regent and the real ruler of Russia. Acting in the name of Fyodor, Boris in 1597 issued a law requiring landowners to return runaways to their former masters. Meanwhile, in 1589 the metropolitan of the Eastern Orthodox Church at Moscow was made patriarch. This event marked Moscow's emergence as a new center of Orthodox Christianity.

When Fyodor died without an heir in 1598, the patriarch called a national council to elect a new czar. Boris Godunov was chosen, but he had a troubled reign. The boyars, dissatisfied with Boris as czar, were rebellious. The peasants, who were losing their freedom and sinking into serfdom, were ready to join any uprising.

The rumor spread that Dmitri, Ivan's youngest son, who had died in 1591, was still alive. In 1603, a young man appeared in Poland and claimed to be Dmitri. With Polish support he invaded Russia. This was the beginning of the period known as the “time of troubles." Godunov died in 1605 as he was preparing to meet the pretender's threat. The pretender succeeded Godunov as czar but was murdered the next year.

For the next several years Russia was beset by warring armies supporting various leaders who claimed the throne. During this period, Polish and Swedish troops invaded Russia, and Moscow came under Polish occupation. Ladislas, the son of the Polish king, was chosen czar, but he was deposed in 1612 when the Russians regained control of Moscow.