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CHRONICLE OF THE RUSSIAN TSARS
The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers of Imperial Russia David Warnes 
This new Chronicle documents
the lives of tsars famous and infamous in a lively series of biographical
portraits stretching from the late fifteenth to the early twentieth
centuries. Discover the facts behind the reputations of rulers 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 is remembered for her interest in the Enlightenment
and for her colorful private life; and the last tsar, Nicholas II, vainly
endeavoring to cope in a period of devastating change. Here too are
the less familiar but equally intriguing personalities who occupied
Russia's imperial throne: the pious but feeble Feodor I, the warm-hearted
and irascible Alexei Mikhailovich, and the Empress Anna, with her taste
for cruel practical jokes.
Chronicle of the Russian Tsars also introduces the key debates of Russian history. How did a small principality centered on Moscow develop into a vast empire stretching from the Baltic to the Pacific? What part did the Orthodox Church play in the rise of tsarism? Why did Russia develop political and social institutions so different from those of the West? With its comprehensive timelines, data files, quotations, and stunning illustrations, Chronicle of the Russian Tsars is at once an absorbing narrative history and an essential work of reference that brings to life a powerful empire and distinctive civilization whose impact on the history of Europe and the world is immeasurable. David Warnes is the author of Russia: A Modern History. The history of Russia has been his principal enthusiasm since his final year at Jesus College, Cambridge, and he has been a frequent visitor to that country since the early 1980s, escorting study tours of its historic sites. His firsthand experience of the latest turbulent episode of Russian history—the demise of Communism and the stuggle to adapt to free-enterprise capitalism—has deepened his wide-ranging understanding of Russian society and culture.
ISBN 0-500-05093-7
· 7 7/8" x 10 1/4"
· 316 illustrations · 244 pages · HISTORY
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