Moscovy

The Grand Principality of Moscow, or Muscovy, known as the Principality of Moscow until 1389, was a late medieval Russian monarchy. Its capital was the city of Moscow. Originally established as a minor principality in the 13th century, the grand principality was transformed into a centralized Russian state in the late 15th century.

Moscow became a separate principality when Daniel (), the youngest son of Alexander Nevsky, received the city and surrounding area as an appanage. By the end of the 13th century, Moscow had become one of the leading principalities within the Vladimir grand principality, alongside Tver. A struggle between the princes of Moscow and Tver began after Mikhail of Tver became grand prince in 1304. Yury () contested the title and was later made grand prince in 1318 by the khan of the Golden Horde, who held suzerainty over the princes. However, Yury lost the title four years later.

Ivan I () regained the title of grand prince and was able to collect tribute for the khan from other Russian princes, which increased Moscow's wealth. The seat of the Russian Orthodox Church was also moved from Vladimir to Moscow, establishing it as the spiritual center of Russian Orthodoxy. Ivan I defeated Tver and secured the grand princely title for his sons, Simeon () and Ivan II (). After Ivan II's death, the title was temporarily lost until Dmitry () regained it and elevated Moscow to a grand principality. He also inflicted a milestone defeat on the Tatars in 1380, which greatly increased Moscow's prestige.

As the Golden Horde declined, its hegemony was increasingly challenged. Vasily I () expanded his principality, but was ultimately forced to resume paying tribute due to Tatar raids. Vasily II () consolidated his control of Moscow after a civil war and his reign saw the Russian Church declare autocephaly. Ivan III () absorbed nearly all of the Russian states and laid the foundations for a centralized state. His reign marks the end of the appanage period and the beginning of a new period in Russian history known as ''Muscovite Russia''. His defeat of the Tatars in 1480 also traditionally marks the end of Tatar suzerainty. Vasily III () completed the annexation of the remaining appanages, and his son Ivan IV () was crowned as the first Russian tsar in 1547, thereby formally establishing the Tsardom of Russia.

Name

The English names ''Moscow'' and ''Muscovy'', for the city, the principality, and the river, are derived from post-classical Latin , , and ultimately from the Old Russian fully vocalized accusative form . Moscow is first mentioned under the year 1147 in the locative case (''na Moskvě''). The modern Russian form, ''Moskva'', first appears in the 14th century.

The oldest endonyms used in documents were ''Rus'' () and the "Russian land" (). The 14th-century ''Zadonshchina'', which belongs to the Kulikovo cycle of works, stresses the unity of the Russian princes and describes the principalities of Moscow, Novgorod, and others as being part of the "Russian land". A new form of the name became common by the 15th century; the vernacular ''Rus'' was transformed into ''Ros(s)iya'' or ''Rus(s)iya'', and borrowed from or . In the 1480s, the scribes Ivan Cherny and Mikhail Medovartsev mention Russia under the name ''Rosia'' (), and Medovartsev also mentions the sceptre "of Russian lordship" ().

In the 14th century, the grand princes of Moscow began to style themselves as the rulers of ''all Russia''. During his consolidation of territories, Ivan III adopted the title of sovereign (''gosudar'') of all Russia. After rejecting Mongol suzerainty, he also styled himself as autocrat (''samoderzhets''). In his foreign correspondence, he adopted the title of tsar and rejected the offer of kingship by the Holy Roman Emperor; however, it would not be until 1547 that the title of tsar became official with the coronation of his grandson, Ivan IV. Ivan III also laid claim to the legacy of Kievan Rus', which led to conflicts with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The Russian state was later also known in Western Europe as ''Muscovy'' under Polish–Lithuanian influence, and the use of both names persisted until the early 18th century.

History

Origins

Moscow is first mentioned in chronicles under the year 1147, as part of the principality of Rostov-Suzdal. The importance of Moscow greatly increased during the second half of the 12th century, and it was converted into a fortified ''gorod'' (stronghold) in the 1150s. On the death of Vsevolod III in 1212, Moscow appears to have been passed to his son Yury, who succeeded his father as the grand prince of Vladimir. During the Mongol invasions of 1237–1238, Moscow was sacked following the destruction of Ryazan. The city is not mentioned again until the late 13th century.

The first prince of Moscow was Daniel (), the youngest son of Aleksandr Nevsky, and he was given Moscow as an ''otchina'', where he established a local branch of Rurikid princes. Until 1271, the principality was ruled by the governors of Daniel's uncle Yaroslav. Daniel himself is first mentioned under the year 1282 as taking part in a feudal war between his two older brothers. The 16th-century '' Book of Royal Degrees'' says that Daniel was given Moscow on his father's death in 1263. The size of the original territory of the Moscow principality is not known, but it likely encompassed the basin of the upper Moskva River, stretching approximately between the eastern influx of the Gzhelka and the western influx of the Ruza. The northeast of the territory consisted of the basin of the upper Klyazma.

By the turn of the century, Moscow was one of the leading principalities within Vladimir-Suzdal. Daniel defeated Ryazan in 1301, after which Kolomna and Serpukhov were incorporated into the Moscow principality. Pereyaslavl was also temporarily annexed to Moscow, and after Daniel's death, his sons seized Mozhaysk in 1304. At this point, the territory of the principality had increased almost three-fold and included the entire Moskva River along with its tributaries, allowing Moscow to become self-sufficient. Its southern border included a large stretch of the Oka, from Serpukhov to the east of Kolomna, which gave it some protection from Tatar incursions. To the east, there was a dense forest zone which functioned as a natural barrier. Moscow also had access to the northern areas of Ryazan and direct access to Vladimir. It was also provided with a river network that facilitated trade.

Yury

Yury () began his reign with a struggle against Tver for succession to the grand principality. According to traditional succession practices, the throne was to be passed to Andrey's eldest cousin, Mikhail of Tver. As Daniel had died before he could become grand prince, his descendants were barred from the title. Yury decided to contest Mikhail's claim to the title, but ultimately the decision went to Toqta, the khan of the Golden Horde, who held suzerainty over the principalities and later confirmed Mikhail as the grand prince in 1305. In 1306, Yury established his authority over Ryazan with support from the khan as part of the Tatars' strategy to adjust the balance of power in the conflict between Moscow and Tver. Mikhail of Tver attempted to consolidate his power, and was confirmed as the prince of Novgorod in 1307, but Yury retained control of Pereyaslavl and was able to gain control of Nizhny Novgorod. Mikhail marched against Moscow in 1308, but the Muscovites were able to stand their ground. Mikhail also failed to win the support of the church, and when he launched an expedition to Nizhny Novgorod, his army was stopped by Metropolitan Peter in Vladimir.

After Toqta died in 1312, Mikhail visited Sarai to renew his patent and pay respects to the new khan, Özbeg, staying there for two years. In his absence, the Novgorodians launched a revolt against Mikhail's governors and sent an appeal to Yury, who was confirmed as their prince in 1315. However, Mikhail was able to convince the khan to summon Yury and remove him from the political scene. Mikhail was able to establish his authority in Novgorod once again, but in 1317, Yury returned with a patent for the grand princely title, a Tatar army, and a Tatar wife, who was the sister of the khan. Kavgady, the chief representative of the khan, sent his ambassadors to Tver to scare Mikhail into submission, but Mikhail's army proceeded to defeat Yury's army in December 1317. In early 1318, the two parties met on the Volga for another battle, but they reached an agreement. Kavgady and Yury laid their accusations against Mikhail and a formal trial took place at the end of the year. Mikhail was executed at the Horde and Yury was made the grand prince.

Little is known about Yury's reign as grand prince, but relations between Moscow and Tver soon improved and a treaty was concluded in 1319 between Yury and Dmitry of Tver. However, in 1321, a representative of the khan instructed Yury to march on Tver. The two forces met on the Volga and a battle was narrowly avoided. In the treaty, Dmitry agreed to refrain from making himself the grand prince and he paid the tribute owed to the Tatars. Yury was then summoned to Novgorod, and instead of proceeding to Sarai with the tribute, he led the defense of the republic against Swedish forces. As a result, Dmitry went to Sarai and received the patent for the grand princely title in 1322. Yury was then summoned by Özbeg, and on his way to Sarai, Dmitry's brother Aleksandr robbed him in the Rzhev area and forced him to flee to Pskov. Yury finally visited Sarai in 1325 to face the consequences, but Dmitry of Tver murdered him as revenge for the death of his father. The following year, the khan ordered his execution.

Ivan I

Ivan I