| Ivan II the Fair | |
|---|---|
 Portrait in theTsarskiy titulyarnik (1672) | |
| Prince of Moscow | |
| Reign | 27 April 1353 – 13 November 1359 |
| Predecessor | Simeon I |
| Successor | Dmitri I |
| Born | 30 March 1326 Moscow |
| Died | 13 November 1359(1359-11-13) (aged 33) Moscow |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | Fedosia of Bryansk Alexandra Velyaminova |
| Issue more... | Dmitri Donskoi |
| Dynasty | Rurik |
| Father | Ivan I of Moscow |
| Mother | Helena |
| Religion | Russian Orthodox |
Ivan II Ivanovich the Fair (Russian:Иван II Иванович Красный,romanized: Ivan II Ivanovich Krasnyy; 30 March 1326 – 13 November 1359) wasPrince of Moscow andGrand Prince of Vladimir from 1353 to 1359. Until that date, he had ruled the towns ofRuza andZvenigorod. He was the second son ofIvan Kalita, and succeeded his brotherSimeon the Proud, who died of theBlack Death.
Upon succeeding his brother and because of increased civil strife among theGolden Horde, Ivan briefly toyed with the idea of abandoning traditional Moscow allegiance to theMongols and allying himself withLithuania, a growing power in the west. This policy was quickly abandoned and Ivan asserted his allegiance to the Golden Horde.[1]
Contemporaries described Ivan as a pacific, apathetic ruler, who didn't flinch even whenAlgirdas of Lithuania captured his father-in-law's capital,Bryansk.[2] He also allowed Oleg ofRiazan to burn villages on his territory. However,Orthodox churchmen aided in consolidating the power of the Prince of Moscow. He received much aid from the capableMetropolitan Alexius. Like his brother, Ivan II was not as successful as his father or grandfather with regard to territorial expansion. Nevertheless, he was able to annex areas southwest ofMoscow, including the areas ofBorovsk, andVereya.
He is buried in theCathedral of the Archangel Michael inMoscow.
Ivan was born on 30 March 1326 inMoscow, the seventh child and third son ofIvan I of Moscow and his wife, Helena.
Ivan was married twice. In 1341, Ivan married his first wife Fedosia Dmitrievna ofBryansk. She was a daughter of Dmitry Romanovich, Prince of Bryansk. She died childless in autumn 1342.
Ivan remained a widower for three years. In 1345, Ivan married his second wife, Alexandra Vassilievna Velyaminova. She was a daughter of Vasily Velyaminov, amayor of Moscow. They had at least four children:
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Prince of Moscow 1353–1359 | Succeeded by |
