He was the second son ofIvan III by his second wifeSophia Paleologue. Following on the ambitions of his father, Vasili annexedPskov andRyazan – the last remaining autonomous Russian territories – and captured the city ofSmolensk fromLithuania.[3] He also strengthened Russian influence inKazan and theVolga region. Several nobles were exiled, sentenced, or executed for criticizing his policies.
Vasili was the second son ofIvan III of Russia. Following the death of Ivan's eldest son,Ivan Molodoy, the young Ivan's son,Dmitry Ivanovich, becameheir presumptive in 1490 and was later made grand prince and co-ruler in 1498 after a conspiracy against Dmitry by Vasili's supporters was uncovered and foiled.[4] However, on 21 March 1499, Vasili was forgiven by his father and he was bestowed the title of grand prince ofNovgorod andPskov.[5] In March 1501, Vasili was given theBeloozero principality, and the following year, Dmitry and his supporters fell out of favor with Ivan.[5] On 11 April 1502, Dmitry and his motherElena of Moldavia were arrested and placed under house arrest.[5] Three days later, Ivan III named Vasili as his successor:[6][5]
In the year 7010 [1502], on April 14, a Thursday, the feast day of our Father among the saints St. Martin, Pope of Rome, Grand Prince Ivan Vasil'evich of All Russia showed favor upon [pozhaloval] his son Vasilii, and blessed him and seated him on the grand princely throne [na velikoe kniazhenie] of Vladimir and Moscow and of all Russia, Autocrat.[5]
According toSigismund von Herberstein, a diplomat who visited Russia in 1517, some 1,500 noble girls were brought together in the summer of 1505 for abride-show.[6] Vasili choseSolomonia Saburova and the two were married on 4 September 1505.[6] The custom was introduced by Vasili's motherSofia Paleologue, who herself was of Byzantine royalty, though she died before the wedding could take place.[6] Vasili himself was a cultured man and proud of his imperial descent; he may have known the Greek language.[7]
Fragment of the iconVasili the Great and Grand Prince Vasili III, 16th century,State Historical Museum
Vasily III believed that nothing should limit the power of the Grand Prince. He enjoyed the active support of the church in the fight against the feudal boyar opposition, harshly dealing with all those who were dissatisfied. In 1521,Metropolitan bishopVarlaam was exiled due to his refusal to participate in Vasily's fight against PrinceVasili Ivanovich Shemyachich, princesRurikovichVasily Vasilyevich Shuisky andIvan Vorotynsky were expelled.Diplomat and statesmanIvan Bersen-Beklemishev was executed in 1525 due to criticism of Vasily's policies, namely due to open rejection of Greek novelty, which came to Rus' with Sophia Paleologus.
During the reign of Vasily III, the landed nobility increased, the authorities actively limited the immunity and privileges of the boyars – the state followed the path of centralization. However, the despotic features of government, which were fully manifested already under his father Ivan III and grandfatherVasily the Dark, only intensified even more in the era of Vasily.
In church politics, Vasily, during his marriage to Solomonia, supported non-covetous people, and after his divorce from her and a quarrel because of this, both with his adviser, the monk Vassian, and with other people of the church and secular, he began to supportJosephites, who supported him.Maxim the Greek,Vassian Patrikeev and othernon-possessors were sentenced at church councils, some to death, some to imprisonment in monasteries due to fault-finding and slander against them.
During the reign of Vasily III, the “Code on Patrimonies” and the “Charter on Slobodas” were created (they are known from indirect sources, since the documents themselves have not been preserved).[8] According toSigismund von Herberstein, the power that Vasily had over his subjects, he surpassed all the monarchs of the world.[9] On the front side of his seal there was the inscription: “Great Sovereign Basil, by the grace of God, king and lordof all Rus.” On the reverse side it read: “Vladimir, Moscow, Novgorod, Pskov and Tver, and Yugorsk, and Perm, and many lands of the Sovereign.”
The reign of Vasily is the era of the construction boom in Rus', which began during the reign of his father. TheCathedral of the Archangel was erected in the Moscow Kremlin, and theChurch of the Ascension of the Lord was built in Kolomenskoye. Stone fortifications are being built inTula,Nizhny Novgorod,Kolomna and other cities. New settlements, forts, and fortresses are founded.
Vasily III, in his policy towards other principalities, continued his father’s policy ofgathering of the Russian lands. He focused much of his reign on consolidating the territorial gains achieved by Ivan. Vasiliannexed the last remainingautonomous provinces in Russia: the republic ofPskov in 1510 and the principality ofRyazan in 1521.[10][11]
In 1509, while in Veliky Novgorod, Vasily ordered the Pskov mayor and other representatives of the city, including all the petitioners who were dissatisfied with them, to gather with him. Upon arriving at his place at the beginning of 1510 on the feast ofEpiphany, the Pskovites were accused of distrust of the Grand Duke, and their governors were executed. The Pskovites were forced to ask Vasily to accept themselves into his patrimony. Vasily ordered to cancel the meeting. At the lastveche in the history of thePskov Republic, it was decided not to resist and to fulfill Vasily’s demands. On January 13, the veche bell was removed and, with tears, sent first to theSnetogorsky Monastery, and then to Moscow. On January 24, Vasily arrived in Pskov and treated him in the same way as his father did with theNovgorod Republic in 1478. 300 of the most noble families of the city were resettled to Moscow lands, and their villages were given to Moscowservice class people.
It was the turn of Ryazan, which had long been in Moscow’s sphere of influence. In 1517, Vasily summoned to Moscow the Ryazan princeIvan V Ivanovich, who was trying to enter into an alliance with theCrimean Khan, and ordered him to be put into custody (later Ivan was tonsured a monk and imprisoned in a monastery, and took his inheritance for himself in 1521.[12] After Ryazan, theStarodub Principality was annexed in 1523. ThePrincipality of Novgorod-Seversk also united with Moscow, its princeVasili Ivanovich Shemyachich followed the example of the Prince of Ryazan, he was imprisoned in Moscow.
In 1508, Vasily, taking advantage of the turmoil in theGrand Duchy of Lithuania following the death of the Lithuanian princeAlexander Jagiellon, put forward his candidacy for the throne ofGediminas. In 1508, the rebellious Lithuanian boyarMichael Glinski was received very warmly in Moscow. Thewar with Lithuania led to a rather favorable peace for the Moscow prince in 1509, under which the Lithuanians recognized his father's conquests.
Vasili also took advantage of the difficult position ofSigismund I the Old in theKingdom of Poland. In 1512, anew war withLithuania began.[13] On December 19, Vasily, Yuri Ivanovich, and Dmitry Zhilka set out on campaign.Principality of Smolensk, the great eastern fortress of Lithuania was besieged, chiefly through the aid of the rebel Lithuanian princeMichael Glinski, who provided him with artillery and engineers.
On June 14, Vasily set out on campaign again, but, having sent his commanders to Smolensk, he himself remained in Borovsk, awaiting further action. Smolensk was again besieged, and its governor, Yuri Sologub, was defeated in the open. Only then did Vasily personally return to his troops. But this siege was also unsuccessful: the besieged managed to rebuild what had been destroyed. Having devastated the city's environs, Vasily ordered a retreat and the Russian army returned to Moscow in March 1513.[14]
On July 8, 1514, the army led by the Grand Duke marched on Smolensk for the third time; this time, Vasily was accompanied by his brothers Yuri and Semyon. A newsiege began on July 29.[15] The artillery, commanded by the gunner Stefan, inflicted heavy losses on the besieged. That same day, Sologub and the city's clergy came to Vasily and agreed to surrender the city. On July 31, the residents of Smolensk swore allegiance to the Grand Duke, and Vasily entered the city on August, 1.[16]
The capture of Smolensk, the result of the three Siege of Smolensk campaigns, became Vasily III's greatest military success in the western direction during his entire reign. The loss of Smolensk was an important injury inflicted by Russia on Lithuania in the course of theLithuanian–Muscovite War (1512–1522) and only the exigencies of Sigismund compelled him to acquiesce in its surrender (1522).[16] Soon, the Lithuanian fortresses ofMstislav,Krichev andDubrovno were also captured.
A unique composition in the mural painting of theCathedral of the Archangel: The dying Vasily III lies on his bed, to the left of him is his sonIvan, receiving a blessing from his father; near the bed, wearing a crown symbolizing the rights of the regency, sitsElena Glinskaya with her sonYuri in her arms. The composition expresses the idea of the ideal death of the monarch[17]
But Glinsky, to whom the Polish chronicles attributed the success of the third campaign, entered into negotiations with King Sigismund I. He hoped to receive Smolensk as a fiefdom from Vasily III, but the sovereign decided otherwise. The conspiracy was soon exposed, and Glinsky himself was imprisoned in Moscow. Some time later, the Russian army, commanded by Ivan Chelyadinov,suffered a heavy defeat at Orsha, but the Lithuanians were never able to recapture Smolensk.[18] The conspiracy was soon exposed, and Glinsky himself was imprisoned in Moscow.[19] In 1522, a treaty was signed that called for a five-year truce, no prisoner exchange, and for Moscow to retain control of Smolensk.[20] The truce was subsequently extended to 1534.[21]
Vasili saw some success against theCrimean Khanate. Although in 1519 his armies were defeated along the Oka River and he was obliged to buy off the Crimean khan,Mehmed I Giray, under the very walls of Moscow, towards the end of his reign he established Russian influence on theVolga. In 1531–32 he placed the pretenderCangali khan on the throne ofKhanate of Kazan.[16]
The Muscovite army was defeated on the Oka River and forced to retreat. The Tatars approached the walls ofMoscow. Vasily himself, meanwhile, left the capital forVolokolamsk to gather an army. Mehmed Giray had no intention of taking the city: having devastated the surrounding area, he turned back south, fearing the Astrakhan people and the army Vasily had assembled.
However, he extracted from Vasily III a treaty formalising his status as a loyal tributary and vassal of the Crimean Khanate. On the way back, having besiegedPereyaslavl-Ryazansky, defended by the voivodeKhabar Simsky, the khan began to demand the surrender of the city on the basis of this charter. But, having asked the Tatar ambassadors to come to his headquarters with this written commitment, Ivan Vasilyevich Obrazets-Dobrynsky (this was Khabar’s family name) kept the letter and dispersed the Tatar army with cannons.
In 1521, Vasili received an emissary of the neighboring IranianSafavid Empire, sent by ShahIsmail I whose ambitions were to construct an Irano-Russian alliance against the common enemy, theOttoman Empire.[22] In 1522, Moscow again expected the Crimeans; Vasily and his army even stood on the Oka. The Khan never arrived, but the danger from the steppe had not passed.
In 1523, following another massacre of Russian merchants in Kazan, Vasily declared a new campaign. Having devastated the khanate, on his return journey he founded the city of Vasilsursk on the Sura (a tributary of theVolga), which was intended to become a new, secure trading post with the Kazan Tatars. In 1524, PrinceIvan Belsky led the 150,000-strong Russian army against the Tatar capital. After that, the third campaign against Kazan, Sahib Giray, a Crimean ally, was overthrown, and Safa Giray was proclaimed khan in his place.
In 1527, Islam I Giray's attack on Moscow was repelled. Russian troops took up defensive positions 20 km from theOka River. The siege of Moscow and Kolomna lasted five days, after which the Muscovite army crossed the Oka River and routed the Crimean army at the Osetr River. Another steppe invasion was repelled. In 1531, at the request of the people of Kazan, the Kasimov princeDzhan-Ali Khan was proclaimed khan, but he did not last long - after the death of Vasily, he was overthrown by the local nobility.
Unlike his son,Ivan IV, Vasili did not officially hold the title oftsar within Russia; however, externally, such as in diplomatic documents produced by and for theHoly Roman Empire, he would alternatively be called tsar, grand prince, or, as byMaximilian I,kayser.[23] In this naming custom, as well as in using thedouble-headed eagle of theByzantine Empire, Vasili continued practices begun by his father and predecessor,Ivan III.[24]
The seal and the introduction of Byzantine ceremonies and court etiquette seem to have been inspired by Vasili's motherSophia Paleologue.[25] Like his father, Vasili fought for recognition of the equality of the titles of tsar and emperor by other European monarchs.[26] He achieved some success in 1514, when theHoly Roman Emperor implicitly recognized the Russians' insistence to be treated as an equal, whether this was by accident or by design.[27] The letter by Maximilian I was later used byPeter the Great (r. 1682–1725) when he proclaimed himself asimperator of Russia.[27]
The Church of Ascension was built by Vasili III to commemorate the birth of his heir.
By 1526 when he was 47 years old, Vasili had been married toSolomonia Saburova for over 20 years with no heir to his throne being produced. Conscious of her husband's disappointment, Solomonia tried to remedy this by consulting sorcerers and going on pilgrimages. When this proved unsuccessful, Vasili consulted the boyars, announcing that he did not trust his two brothers to handle Russia's affairs and forbade them to marry anyone.[citation needed]
The boyars suggested that he take a new wife. A divorce due to wife sterility was unlawful, so he falsely accused her of witchcraft, and despite much opposition from the clergy, he divorced his barren wife, exiled her to a monastery, exiled the opposed clergy and soon married PrincessElena Glinskaya, the daughter of a Serbian princess and niece of his friendMichael Glinski.[28] Not many of the boyars approved of his choice, as Elena was of Catholic upbringing.
Vasili was so smitten that he defied Russian social norms and trimmed his beard to appear younger. After three days of matrimonial festivity, the couple consummated their marriage, though initially it appeared that Elena was as sterile as Solomonia. The Russian nobility began to suspect this was a sign of God's disapproval of the marriage. However, to the great joy of Vasili and the populace, the new tsaritsa gave birth to a son, who would succeed him asIvan IV. Three years later, a second son,Yuri, was born.[29]
Vasily III had three brothers:Yuri (born in 1480), Simeon (born in 1487) and Andrei (born in 1490), as well as five sisters: Elena (born and died in 1474), Feodosiya (born and died in 1475), another Elena (born 1476), another Feodosiya (born 1485) and Eudoxia (born 1492).[29]
Whilst out hunting on horseback near Volokolamsk, Vasili felt a great pain in his right hip, the result of anabscess. He was transported to the village of Kolp, where he was visited by two German doctors who were unable to stop the infection with conventional remedies. Believing that his time was short, Vasili requested to be returned to Moscow, where he was kept in the Saint Joseph Cathedral along the way. By 25 November 1533, Vasili reached Moscow and asked to be made amonk before dying. Taking on the name Varlaam, Vasili died at midnight, 3 December 1533.[29]
Latin version of the Russian-Teutonic Treaty of 1517, where Vasily III is named Emperor and Sovereignof All Rus' (Imperator ac dominator tocius Russie)
After 1514, the full title used by Vasili in his foreign correspondence was:
By the Grace of God, the Tsar and Sovereign of All Russia and the Grand Prince of Vladimir, Moscow, Novgorod, Pskov, Smolensk, Tver, Yugorsk, Perm, Vyatka and Bulgar, and others, the Sovereign and Grand Prince of Novgorod of the Lower Land, and Chernigov, and Ryazan, Volotsk, Rzhev, Belyov, Rostov, Yaroslavl, Beloozero, Udoria, Obdoria and Kondia.[2]
Unlike his son, he did not officially accept the title of "Tsar", for which he received praise from the abbot of the Novgorod Khutyn Monastery, Theodosius: "In everything he showed us an example of the sovereign, for the sake of humility he did not call himself a tsar."[30] In the treaty with EmperorMaximilian I in 1514, for the first time in the history of Rus' he was called at the interstate level the emperor ("Kaiser") of the Rus’.[31]
Vasili was the subject of the operaNeprigozhaya by composerElla Adayevskaya. In the TV series "Ivan the Terrible" (2009, dir.Andrey Eshpai), the role of Vasili III was played byVladislav Vetrov. In TV series "Sophia" (2016), the role of Vasily III as a child was played by Anatoly Naumov.
^Bushkovitch 2011, pp. 37, 47, "Smolensk was the last ethnographically Russian land outside the rule of Moscow, and in addition its conquest provided the state with a major fortress far to the west of Moscow".
^Herberstein S. (2008). A. L. Khoroshkevich (ed.).Notes on Muscovy (in Russian). Vol. 1. M: Monuments of Historical Thought. p. 89.ISBN978-5-88451-242-9.Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved11 May 2024.
^Bain, Robert Nisbet (1911). "Ivan s.v. Ivan III.".Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press: Cambridge University Press. pp. 87–91.
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