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Russia Engages the World, 1453-1825
1453 Through the Reign of Ivan the Terrible (1533-1584) The Time of Troubles to the First Romanovs (1598-1682) Peter the Great and His Legacy (1682-1762) The Age of Catherine the Great (1762-1801) The Reign of Emperor Alexander I (1801-1825)

This chronology is not comprehensive but rather provides reference points for the history presented in Russia Engages the World, 1453–1825.

From the Fall of Constantinople (1453) through the Reign of Ivan the Terrible (1533–1584)

The Time of Troubles to the First Romanovs (1598–1682)

Peter the Great and his Legacy (1682–1762)

The Age of Catherine the Great (1762–1801)

The Reign of Emperor Alexander I (1801–1825)

The Rulers of Russia, 1425–1823

Russia's Globalization: A Key

Events marked Russia Symbol are specific to Muscovy/Russia's internal development. 
Those marked World Symbol are important world historical or cultural events.
Engagement Symbol indicates specific points of sociocultural or military engagement between Muscovy/Russia and foreign powers or individuals.


1453  World Symbol Ottomans capture Constantinople, ending the Byzantine Empire.
1453–55  World Symbol Johannes Gutenberg produces the first book printed in the west using moveable type.
1472  Engagement Symbol Muscovite Grand Prince Ivan III (r. 1425–62) marries Zoe (Sophia) Palaeologue, niece of the last Byzantine emperor.
1488  World Symbol Bartolomeu Dias reaches the Cape of Good Hope and opens sea route to India.
1492 World Symbol Christopher Columbus reaches the Caribbean on behalf of the Kingdom of Castile, setting the stage for Europe's colonial expansion and exploitation in Africa and the Americas.
1502  World Symbol Shah Ismail establishes the Safavid dynasty, the first indigenous Persian state since the 11th century.
1505 Russia Symbol Vasilii III (r. 1505–33) becomes Grand Prince of Moscow.
1517 World Symbol Martin Luther's challenge to Catholic Church practices touches off the Protestant Reformation, a process that splintered centuries of religious unity in western, central, and southern Europe.
1520 World Symbol Süleyman I, “the Magnificent” (r. 1520–66), becomes Ottoman Sultan.
1529  World Symbol First Ottoman siege of Vienna; a second siege will be undertaken in 1683.
1533 Russia Symbol Ivan IV, "the Terrible" (r. 1547–84), becomes Grand Prince of Moscow. In 1547, he proclaims himself "Tsar of Muscovy."
1552 Engagement Symbol The northern sea route to Russia is opened by the Englishman Richard Chancellor.
1556 World Symbol The reign of Akbar I, “the Great” (r. 1556–1605) of India begins; it will represent the apogee of the Mughal Empire, centered at Delhi.
1558–59 Engagement Symbol The English merchant Anthony Jenkinson carries out missions to Persia and Central Asia as a personal envoy for Tsar Ivan IV.
1564 Engagement Symbol The first dated book in Moscow is printed by Ivan Fedorov.
1577 Engagement Symbol Russia establishes commercial ties with Holland.
1584 Russia Symbol Fedor I (r. 1584–98) becomes the last of the Rurikid dynasty, which has ruled Muscovy since 862.