Galeotti, Mark/Pinto, Angel G. (Illustr.) Siege of Kazan 1552

Ivan the Terrible Breaks the Kazan Khanate

The Khanate of Kazan, one of the largest Turkish successor states to the Mongol Golden Horde, had been a thorn in Moscow's side for generations, raiding its territories to steal slaves and commit acts of plunder. The newly crowned Ivan IV, who would later become known as Ivan the Terrible, was determined to put an end to this threat once and for all. In 1552, he led a huge army against Kazan, consisting of the Streltsy (musketeers), Russia's first standing army, as well as a massive artillery and engineer corps, including an English expert in siege technology. Kazan was eventually taken and placed directly under Moscow's control, making it a truly multi-ethnic empire. The next four years saw a bitter guerrilla war against the Russians, but they were determined to continue their advance southwards they conquered the Khanate of Astrakhan and pushed eastwards as far as Siberia, laying the foundations for the rapid expansion of the Russian Empire under Ivan's Romanov successors. In this account of Russian history, historian Mark Galeotti examines the great land and river offensive that led to the fall of Kazan by the army of Ivan the Terrible. With colourful battle scenes, detailed 2D maps and 3D diagrams, this book shows how this siege marked the rise of Moscow and ultimately contributed to the emergence of the modern Russian state.