Ivan the Terrible

"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."-- Provided by publisher "Although highly intelligent, well-read, and deeply religious, Ivan the Terrible (1530-1584) favored a life of unbridled licentiousness and bestial cruelty for much of his reign. Proclaimed tsar in 1547, Ivan led Russia to power, but the interminable wars led to opposition at home, where he mercilessly tortured, executed, and massacred those who defied him - including the entire populaces of many villages and cities. In his most notorious and horrifying act, suffering from increasing fits of rage and paranoia, Ivan murdered his own beloved son." "Based heavily on original Russian sources, and offering a chilling portrait of the brutal age in which he lived, Ivan the Terrible is a rich and revelatory biography of a ruthless monarch who invoked terror in his subjects and enemies alike."--BOOK JACKET Based heavily on original Russian sources, this biography of Czar Ivan IV examines the plots, massacres, and poisonings that earned Ivan his famous epithet.