The Rurik dynasty or Rurikids (Ukrainian: Рю́риковичі, Russian: Рю́риковичи, IPA: [ˈrʲʉrʲɪkəvʲɪt͡ɕɪ]) was a dynasty founded by the Varangian^[1] prince Rurik, who established himself in Novgorod around the year 862 AD.^[2] The Rurikids were the ruling dynasty of Kievan Rus' (after 862), the successor principalities of Galicia-Volhynia (after 1199), Chernigov, Vladimir-Suzdal, and the Grand Duchy of Moscow, and the founders of the Tsardom of Russia.

They are one of Europe's oldest royal houses, with numerous existing cadet branches, and are regarded as the founders of Rus' and later Russia.

Origins[link]

The Rurikid dynasty was founded in 862 by Rurik, a Varangian prince. The apocryphal story tells of the Slavic tribes in the area calling on “‘the Varangians [i.e. Scandinavians], to the Rus' … The Chud, the Slovenes, the Krivichi and the Ves said “Our land is vast and abundant, but there is no order in it. Come and reign as princes and have authority over us!”’ Three brothers came with ‘their kin’ and ‘all the Rus’ in response to this invitation. Rurik set up rule in Novgorod, giving more provincial towns to his brothers. There is some ambiguity even in the Primary Chronicle about the specifics of the story, “hence their paradoxical statement ‘the people of Novgorod are of Varangian stock, for formerly they were Slovenes.’” However, archaeological evidence such as “Frankish swords, a sword chape and a tortoiseshell brooch” in the area suggest that there was, in fact, a Scandinavian population during the tenth century at the latest.^[3] The "Rurikid Dynasty DNA Project" of FamilyTreeDNA commercial genetic genealogy company reports that Y-DNA testing of the descendants of Rurikids suggests their non-slavic origin.^[4]

Evolution and end of the dynasty[link]

Rurik and his brothers founded a state that later historians called Kievan Rus'. By the middle of the twelfth century, Kievan Rus' had dissolved into independent principalities, each ruled by different branches of the Rurik dynasty.

“The Rurikid dynasty… attempted to impose on their highly diverse polity the integrative concept of russkaia zemlia (“the Rus’ land”) and the unifying notion of a “Rus’ people.” This sense of proto-nationalism is largely the product of historians in the modern era: “Kievan Rus’ was never really a unified polity. It was a loosely bound, ill-defined, and heterogeneous conglomeration of lands and cities inhabited by tribes and populous groups whose loyalties were primarily territorial.” This caused the Rurik dynasty to effectively dissolve into several sub-dynasties ruling smaller states in the 10th and 11th centuries. These were the Olgoviches of Severia who ruled in Chernigov, Yuryeviches who controlled Vladimir-Suzdal, and Romanoviches in Galicia-Volhynia.^[5]

The Olgoviches were the offsprings of Oleg I of Chernigov, who was a grandson of Yaroslav the Wise. They continued to rule until early 14th century when they were torn apart by the emerging Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Grand Duchy of Moscow.

The Romanoviches was the line of Roman the Great, they were eventually crowned kings and ruled until 1323. The last were two brothers, Andrew and Lev II, who ruled jointly and were slain trying to repel Mongol incursions. The Polish king, Władysław I the Elbow-high, in his letter to the Pope wrote with regret: "The two last Ruthenian kings, that had been firm shields for Poland from the Tatars, left this world and after their death Poland is directly under Tatar threat." Losing their leadership role, Rurikids, however, continued to play a vital role in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the later Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Most notably, the Ostrogski family held the title of Grand Hetman of Lithuania and strove to preserve the Ruthenian language and Eastern Orthodoxy in this part of Europe.

The Yuryeviches were founded by Yuriy Dolgorukiy, the founder of Moscow and spread vastly in the north-east. Beginning with the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the Muscovite branch used the title "Tsar of All Russia" and ruled over the Tsardom of Russia. The death in 1598 of Tsar Feodor I ended the rule of the Rurik dynasty. The unstable period known as the Time of Troubles succeeded Feodor's death and lasted until 1613. In that year, Mikhail I ascended the throne, founding the Romanov dynasty that would rule until 1762 and as Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov until the revolutions of 1917. One descendant of Rurik Grand Prince of Tver was Catherine the Great, who married Peter III, of the Romanov dynasty. Historian Vasily Tatishchev and filmmaker Jacques Tati were descended from Rurik.

Trade[link]

In the early days of the Rurikid dynasty, the Kievan Rus’ mainly traded with other tribes in northeastern Europe. “There was little need for complex social structures to carry out these exchanges in the forests north of the steppes. So long as the entrepreneurs operated in small numbers and kept to the north, they did not catch the attention of observers or writers.” The Rus’ also had strong trading ties to Byzantium, particularly in the early 900’s, as treaties in 911 and 944 indicate. These treaties deal with the treatment of runaway Byzantine slaves and limitations on the amounts of certain commodities such as silk that could be bought from Byzantium. The Rus’ used logs floated down the Dnieper river by Slavic tribes for the transport of goods, particularly slaves to Byzantium.^[6]

Skirmish with Byzantium[link]

One of the largest military accomplishments of the Rurikid dynasty was the attack on Byzantium in 960. Pilgrims of the Rus’ had been making the journey from Kiev to Constantinople for many years, and Constantine Porphyrogenitus believed that this gave them significant information about the arduous parts of the journey and where travelers were most at risk, as would be pertinent for an invasion. This route took travelers through domain of the Pechenegs, journeying mostly by river. In June 941, the Rus’ staged a naval ambush on Byzantine forces, making up for their smaller numbers with small, maneuverable boats. Interestingly, these boats were ill-equipped for the transportation of large quantities of treasure, suggesting that looting was not the goal. The raid was led, according to the Primary Chronicle, by a king called Igor. Three years later, the treaty of 944 stated that all ships approaching Byzantium must be preceded by a letter from the Rurikid prince stating the number of ships and assuring their peaceful intent. This not only indicates fear of another surprise attack, but an increased Kievan presence in the Black Sea.^[7]

Legacy[link]

Russian and Ukrainian historians have debated for many years about the legacy of the Rurikid dynasty. The Russian view, “resting largely on religious-ecclesiastical and historical-ideological claims and on political-juridical theories [was] formulated in Moscow between the 1330’s and the late 1850’s,” and views the Principality of Moscow as the sole heir to the Kievan Rus’ civilization. The Ukrainian nationalist view came into being somewhat later “between the 1840’s and the end of the 1930’s,” and views the Ukrainian descendants of the Rurikid dynasty as its only true successors. The Soviet theory “allotted equal rights to the Kievan inheritance to the Three Slavic Peoples, that is the Russians, the Ukrainians, and the Belorussians.”^[8]

Genetic studies of Rurikids[link]

According to the FamilyTreeDNA Rurikid Dynasty DNA Project, Rurik appears to have belonged to Y-DNA haplogroup N1c1, based on testing of his modern male line descendants.^[9] But while genetically related to the later Baltic Finnic peoples, the Rurikids do not possess the DYS390=24 mutation associated with the Finnic languages, theirs remaining the ancestral DYS390=23, with the Rurikid haplotype itself (all values considered) more closely associated with [North] Germanic speakers (Varangians).^[10]

Further genetic studies seem to indicate the existence of two major haplogroups among modern Rurikids: the descendants of Vladimir II Monomakh (Monomakhoviches) and some others are of N1c1 group (130 people or 68%), while the descendants of a junior prince from the branch of Oleg I of Chernigov (Olgoviches) and some others (total 45 peoples or 24%) are of R1a and R1b haplogroups typical for Slavic, Germanic and Celtic peoples.

Family tree (Rurik through Vladimir)[link]

Main line (from Vladimir to Yaroslav)[link]

Vladimir's Czech wives[link]

Vladimir's other wives[link]

Yuryevichi (Yuri the Long-Arm)[link]

The following image shows the descent of the leading, or historically most powerful branch of the Rurikids, the descendants of Vladimir II Monomakh through his sixth son Yuri Dolgorukiy:

File:Ruriks.jpg

Princely families of Rurik stock[link]

from princes of

• Starodub: Gagarin , Golibesovsky, Gundorov, Kovrov, Krivoborsky, Lyalovsky, Nebogaty, Neuchkin, Ossipovsky, Paletsky, Pozharsky, Romodanovsky, Ryapolovsky, Tatev, Tulupov and Khilkoff.
• Polotsk: Vitebsky, Izyaslavsky, Drutsky, Minsky and Polotsky.
• Peremyshly: Galitsky and Peremyshlsky.
• Chernigov: Baryatinsky , Belevsky , Volkonsky , Vorotynsky , Gorensky , Gorchakov , Dolgorukov , Yeletsky, Zvenigorodsky-Ryumin , Zvenigorodsky-Barashev , Zvenigorodsky-Spyachy , Zvenigorodsky-Shestov , Zvenigorodsky-Zventsov , Zvenigorodsky-Tokmakov , Zvenigorodsky-Nozdrevaty, Karachevsky, Kashin , Klubkov-Massalski, Kozelsky, Koltsov-Massalski , Koninsky, Kurlyatev , Litvinv-Massalski , Lykov , Massalski, Machevsky, Mezetsky, Obolensky, Nogtev-Obolensky, Strigin-Obolensky, Yaroslavov-Obolensky, Nagiye-Obolensky, Telepnev-Obolensky, Ovchinin-Telepnev-Obolensky, Obolensky-Cherny, Obolensky-Bely, Obolensky-Zoloty, Obolensky-Serebryany, Odoevsky, Ogiński, Ossovitsky, Peremyshlsky (Peremyshl of Kaluga), Peninsky, Puzyna, Repnin, Repnin-Volkonsky , Svyatopolk-Chetvertinsky , Spashsky, Torussky, Trostensky, Turenin, Tufyakin , Khotetovsky , Shchepin-Obolensky and Shcherbatov.
• Ryazan: Muromsky and Pronsky.
• Halych: Babichev, Bakrinovsky, Lutsky, Ostrogski, Skajnowski, Volynsky and Zaslawski.
• Drutsk: Drutsky, Drutsky-Ozeretsky, Drutskoy-Sokolinsky, Konoplia-Sokolinsky, Drutsky-Gorsky, Drutsky-Liubetsky , Drutsky-Podberezsky, and Putyatin.
• Smolensk: Vyazemsky, Berezuisky, Dashkov, Zhizhemsky, Kozlovsky, Korkodinov, Kropotkin, Porkhovsky, Rzhevsky, Selekhovsky, Solomeretsky and Fominsky.
• Yaroslavl: Alabyshev, Alenkin, Belsky, Velikogagin, Golygin, Dulov, Deyev, Zhirovy-Zasekin, Zaozersky, Zasekin, Zubaty, Kubensky, Kurbsky, L'vov, Molozhsky, Mortkin, Okhlyabinin, Penkov, Prozorovsky, Sandyrevsky, Siseev, Sitsky, Sontsov, Sontsov-Zasekin, Sudsky, Temnosiny, Troekurov, Ukhorsky, Ushaty, Skulimowski, Khvorostinin, Yukhotsky, Shamin, Shastunov, Shakhovskoy, Shekhonsky, Shumorovsky and Shchetinin.
• Rostov: Bakhteyarov-Rostovsky, Brity-Rostovsky, Buinosov-Rostovsky, Bychkov-Rostovsky, Gvozdev-Rostovsky, Golenitsin-Rostovsky, Goluby-Rostovsky, Kasatkin-Rostovsky, Katyrev-Rostovsky, Lastkin-Rostovsky, Lobanov-Rostovsky, Priimkov-Rostovsky, Puzhbolsky-Rostovsky, Temkin-Rostovsky, Khokholkov-Rostovsky, Shchepin-Rostovsky and Yanov-Rostovsky.
• Beloozero: Andomsky, Beloselsky, Belosselsky-Belozersky, Vadbolsky, Dyabrinsky, Kargolomsky, Kemsky, Sugorsky, Ukhtomsky and Sheleshpansky.
• Suzdal: Barbashin, Brukhaty-Shuisky, Glazaty-Shuisky, Gorbaty-Shuisky, Kirdyapin-Shuisky, Nizhegorodsky, Nogtev-Suzdalsky, Skopin-Shuisky and Shuisky.
• Moscow: Borovsky, Busovsky, Vereisky, Volotsky, Galitsky (Galich of Merya), Mozhaisky, Uglitsky and Shemyakin.
• Tver: Dorogobuzhsky, Kashinsky, Mikulinsky, Telyatevsky , Kholmsky and Chernyatinsky.

Noble families of Rurik stock[link]

who do not use or lost their princely titles, from princes of

• Chernigov: Satin.
• Smolensk: Aladyin, Bezsonov, Bokeev, Burukhin, Vnukov, Vsevolozhsky, Gubastov, Danilov, Dmitriev, Dmitriev-Mamonov, Dobrynsky, Yeropkin, Zabolotsky, Ivanov, Karpov-Dalmatov, Kisleevsky, Knutov, Korobyin, Molody, Monastyrev, Mussorgsky, Netshin, Polev, Rezanov, Rzhevsky, Rozhestvensky, Sapogov, Solomin, Sudakov, Tatishchev, Tolbuzin, Travin, Tsyplyatev and Shukalovsky.
• Galich (Galich of Merya): Berezin, Ivin, Ilyin, Lyapunov, Ossinin.
• Belozersk, Kurtsov, Funikov.
• Ryazan: Ovtsyn, Lykov, Zhulyebin, Bulgakov, Denysyev, Nazarov, Izmailov, Zamyatin, Zlobin, Velyaminov, Fedorov.
• Rostov: Krasnov.
• Tver: Agryenev.

Gallery[link]

• 

  Gagarin family / Khilkoff Coat of Arms

• 

  The Obolensky – Repnin coat of arms is composed of the emblems of Kiev and Chernigov.

• 

  Coat of arms of the Gorchakov family

• 

  Ostrogski Coat of Arms

See also[link]

• Rulers of Kievan Rus’
• Shum Gora
• Vikings
• Uí Ímair (House of Ivar), contemporary Norse dynasty powerful in the Anglo-Celtic Isles
• Grand Prince of Tver
• Knyaz

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rurik Dynasty

• Genealogy of the Rurik dynasty from Genealogy.eu
• Genealogical chart of Dukes of Kiev

Rurik
Prince of Novgorod
Rurik in the Tsarsky Titulyarnik, 1672
Reign	864–879
Buried	?
Predecessor	New creation
Successor	Oleg
Offspring	Igor
Dynasty	Rurik Dynasty
Religious beliefs	Paganism

Rurik or Riurik (Russian: Рюрик, Old East Norse: Rørik, meaning "famous ruler"; ca 830 – ca 879) was a Varangian chieftain who gained control of Ladoga in 862, built the Holmgard settlement near Novgorod, and founded the Rurik Dynasty which ruled Russia until the 17th century.

Name[link]

Riurik is the Slavic rendering of the same Germanic name as the modern English Roderick, or Spanish and Portuguese Rodrigo. In old Germanic languages it had forms such as Hrodric (Old High German) and Hroðricus (Old English). In Old Norse, Hrœrekr (Norway, Iceland) and Hrørīkr or Rørik (Denmark, Sweden), from which Riurik is derived. The name also appears in Beowulf as Hrēðrīk[1].

History[link]

A monument celebrating the millennium of Rurik's arrival to Novgorod.

There is a debate over how Rurik came to control Ladoga and Novgorod. The only information about him is contained in the 12th-century Russian Primary Chronicle, which states that Chuds, Slavs, Merias, Veses and Krivichs "…drove the Varangians back beyond the sea, refused to pay them tribute, and set out to govern themselves". Afterwards the tribes started fighting each other and decided to invite Rurik to reestablish order.

Rurik remained in power until his death in 879. His successors (the Rurik Dynasty), however, moved the capital to Kiev and founded the state of Kievan Rus, which persisted until 1240, the time of Mongol invasion. A number of extant princely families are patrilineally descended from Rurik, although the last Rurikid to rule Russia, Vasily IV, died in 1612.

Grave[link]

There is a large 9th-century funerary barrow in Novgorod Oblast, reminiscent of the mounds at Old Uppsala which is called Shum Gora. Intricately defended against looting, it remains to be excavated. The local inhabitants refer to it as Rurik's Grave.

Disputed origin[link]

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2012)

Even though some historians emphasize folklore roots for the Rurik legend and consequently dismiss Rurik as a legendary figure, there is a controversy about his ethnic origins in Eastern Europe.^{[citation needed]}

According to the Primary Chronicle Rurik was one of the Rus, a Varangian tribe likened by the chronicler to Danes, Swedes, English and Gotlanders. In the 20th century, archaeologists partly corroborated the chronicle's version of events. It was discovered that the settlement of Ladoga, whose foundation has been ascribed to Rurik, was actually established in the mid-9th century, although doubt is now cast on this by the dendrochronological evidence that Ladoga existed by the mid-8th century. Earthenware, household utensils, and types of buildings from the period of Rurik's foundation correspond to patterns then prevalent in Jutland.

Rurik and his brothers Truvor and Sineus arrive in Ladoga.

Some Slavic historians argue that the account of Rurik's invitation was borrowed by a pro-Scandinavian chronicler from a hypothetical Norse document. For instance, the Primary Chronicle states that Rurik arrived to Slavic lands with two brothers, Sineus and Truvor, and sent them to rule the towns of Beloozero and Izborsk, respectively. Instead of connecting Sineus to Signjotr and Truvor to Torvald, they suggest that the chronicler read a hypothetical Scandinavian document and misinterpreted the Norse words 'sine hus' (their houses) and 'tru voring' (with loyal guard) as the names of Rurik's brothers: Sineus and Truvor.

There is another theory that Rurik, on account of common intermarriages between Varangians and Slavic women, was of mixed Slavic-Varangian descent. This theory is based on the information of the first modern historian of Russia, Vasily Tatishchev (a Rurikid himself), who claimed that Rurik was of Wendish extraction. He went so far as to name his wife, Ufanda of Norway (Endvinda? Alfrind?); mother, Umila; his maternal grandfather, Gostomysl; and a cousin, Vadim. Those who assume good faith on Tatishchev's part point out that he based his account on the lost Ioachim Chronicle.

Hrörek of Dorestad[link]

Rorik of Dorestad, as conceived by H. W. Koekkoek.

The only Hrörek described in Western chronicles was Rorik of Dorestad, a konung from the royal Scylding house of Haithabu. Since the 19th century, there have been attempts to identify him with the Viking prince Rurik of Russian chronicles.^[1]

Roerik of Dorestad was born about 810/820 to Ali Anulo, 9th King of Haithabu. Frankish chroniclers mention that he received lands in Friesland from the Emperor Louis I. This was not enough for him, and he started to plunder neighbouring lands: he took Dorestad in 850, captured Haithabu in 857 and looted Bremen in 859. The Emperor was enraged and stripped him of all his possessions in 860. After that Roerik disappears from the Western sources for a considerable period of time. And at that very moment, in 862, the Russian Rurik arrives in the Eastern Baltic, builds the fortress of Ladoga and later moves to Novgorod.

Roerik of Dorestad reappeared in Frankish chronicles in 870, when his Friesland demesne was returned to him by Charles the Bald; in 882 he is already mentioned as dead. The Russian chronicle places the death of Rurik of Novgorod at 879. According to Western sources, the ruler of Friesland was converted to Christianity by the Franks. This may have parallels with the Christianization of the Rus', as reported by Patriarch Photius in 867.

Rurikid dynasty[link]

The Rurikid dynasty went on to rule the Kievan Rus', and ultimately the Tsardom of Russia until 1598. Numerous noble Russian and Ruthenian families claim a male-line descent from Rurik, and via Anne of Kiev, wife of Henry I of France, Rurikid ancestry can also be argued for numerous Western European lineages.

Genetic investigation[link]

According to the FamilyTreeDNA Rurikid Dynasty DNA Project, Rurik appears to have belonged to Y-DNA haplogroup N1c1, based on testing of his modern male line descendants.^[2] But while genetically related to the later Baltic Finnic peoples, the Rurikids do not possess the DYS390=24 mutation associated with the Finnic languages, theirs remaining the ancestral DYS390=23, with the Rurikid haplotype itself (all values considered) more closely associated with Northern Germanic language speakers (Varangians).^[3]

References[link]

lez:Рюрик

Prince Alexander Sergeevich Obolensky (Russian: Александр Сергеевич Оболенский; 17 February 1916 — 29 March 1940) was a Russian Rurikid prince and an international rugby union footballer who played for England. He was popularly known simply as "The Prince" by many sports fans.

Biography[link]

A member of the Rurik Dynasty,^[1] he was born in Petrograd (now Saint Petersburg) on 17 February 1916 and was the son of Prince Serge Obolensky, an officer in the Czar's Imperial Horse Guards, and his wife Princess Lubov' (née Naryshkina). Their name derived from the Russian town of Obolensk. They fled Russia after the Russian Revolution of 1917, settling in Muswell Hill, London.

Obolensky was educated at The Ashe boys' preparatory school, Etwall, and Trent College, Long Eaton, both in Derbyshire, before going to Brasenose College, Oxford in Michaelmas 1934, where he held a College Exhibition and studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics. He gained a Fourth Class degree in 1938. At Oxford he earned two rugby blues representing Oxford University RFC as a wing/three-quarter. Having previously played for Chesterfield RUFC whilst still at school, he played for Leicester Football Club between 1934 and 1939, as well as Rosslyn Park F.C.. His selection for England caused a stir because he was not a British citizen, but he gained British Citizenship in 1936.

On 4 January 1936 he scored two tries on his England debut in a 13-0 victory over the All Blacks, the first time England had beaten New Zealand. Aided by Pathé News footage of the game, his name has entered into legend, since the first try, beating several All Blacks in a run of three-quarters of the length of the field, was widely regarded as the greatest try of the time, and one of the greatest tries ever scored by England.^[2]

Prince Obolensky only won a further three caps for England later that year (against Wales on 18 January, Ireland on 8 February and Scotland on 21 March), and scored no further tries. He was selected as a member of the touring party for the 1936 British Lions tour to Argentina. He also played seven games for the "invitation only" Barbarian F.C. between 1937 and 1939, scoring 3 tries.

By August 1939, Obolensky was already serving as an A/P/O with 615 Squadron, Auxiliary Air Force, stationed at Kenley; and, on the outbreak of World War II in 1939, he joined the Royal Air Force's 504 Squadron. On 29 March 1940, a day after being recalled to the England squad to play Wales,^[1] Pilot Officer Obolensky was killed during training when his Hawker Hurricane Mark 1 crashed on Martlesham Heath, Suffolk. His aircraft, reference number L1946, dropped into a ravine at the end of the runway during landing, breaking his neck. He was 24.^[3] He is buried in Ipswich's New Cemetery.

Legacy[link]

• An annual lecture on rugby, the Obolensky Lecture, is held in his honour, whilst Twickenham Stadium has a suite named Obolensky's.^[1]

• In February 2008 a project was launched in Ipswich to erect a permanent memorial, resulting in a £50,000 statue being unveiled on 18 February 2009^[1] by his niece, Princess Alexandra Obolensky.^[4] The statue by Harry Gray stands in Cromwell Square in Ipswich.^[5]

• A building named after him at his former school, Trent College

• An annual award, the Prince Obolensky Award, presented by the Prince Obolensky Association at Rosslyn Park F.C.

See also[link]

• List of England rugby union footballers killed in the World Wars

References[link]

External links[link]

• Obolensky Ipswich
• Russian Embassy press release re Ipswich memorial
• Alexander Obolensky at Commonwealth War Graves Commission
• Alexander Obolensky at Findagravewww.trentcollege.net
• Montage of England rugby tries on YouTube. Obelensky's two tries are the first featured.
• Photograph of Obolensky age about 13 at his preparatory school, and article about its discovery
• The Prince Obolensky Association at Rosslyn Park RFC
• Trent College

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2011)

Anastasia Romanovna
Statue of Anastasia Romanovna.
Tsaritsa consort of All Russia
Tenure	3 February 1547 – 7 August 1560
Spouse	Ivan IV of Russia
Issue
Tsarevna Anna Ivanovna Tsarevna Maria Ivanovna Tsarevich Dmitri Ivanovich Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich Tsarevna Eudoxia Ivanovna Tsarevich Feodor Ivanovich
Full name
Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina-Yurieva
House	House of Rurik House of Romanov
Father	Roman Yurievich Zakharyin-Yuriev
Mother	Uliana Ivanovna
Born	1530
Died	August 7th, 1560 (aged 29–30) Kolomenskoye
Burial	Ascension Convent, Kolomenskoye Archangel Cathedral, Kremlin (1929)
Religion	Eastern Orthodox

Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina-Yurieva (1530 – August 7, 1560) was the first wife of the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible and the first Russian tsaritsa. She was the daughter of Boyar Roman Yurievich Zakharyin-Yuriev, Okolnichi, who died on 16 February 1543, who gave his name to the Romanov Dynasty of Russian monarchs, and wife Uliana Ivanovna, who died in 1579.

She was selected as the best bride for Ivan from a large number of suitable mates, brought to the Kremlin specifically for the selection process. All the noble families throughout Russia were given an invitation to present their eligible daughters for this purpose (it is said that there were between 500 and 1500 girls to choose from). Anastasia and Ivan's marriage took place on 3 February 1547 at the Cathedral of the Annunciation. She gave birth to a total of six children (Anna, Maria, Dmitri, Ivan, Eudoxia, and Feodor).

It is widely believed that Anastasia had a moderating influence on Ivan's volatile character. In the summer of 1560, she fell ill to a lingering illness. In consequence to these events, Ivan suffered a severe emotional collapse suspecting that his wife had been a victim of malicious actions and had been poisoned by the Boyars. Although he had no evidence of such crimes, he had a number of them tortured and executed. He had already had a strong dislike for the Boyars due to their abusive actions toward him during his childhood.

Further examination of the bone remains of Anastasia in the late 20th century by archaeologists and forensics experts have been able to provide evidence that could actually sustain her husband's claim [1]. The high levels of mercury in her hair could be symptomatic of poisoning. However mercury was also used as a cure, and so this is disputed.

Anastasia's brother Nikita Romanovich was the father of Feodor, the first to take the surname Romanov. In other words, Feodor Romanov was the first cousin of the last Rurikid tsar, Feodor I. This connection with the derelict dynasty facilitated the election of Feodor's son Mikhail Romanov to the throne after the Time of Troubles.^[1]

Children[link]

1. Tsarevna Anna Ivanovna (10 August 1548–20 July 1550)
2. Tsarevna Maria Ivanovna (17 March 1551–young)
3. Tsarevich Dmitry Ivanovich (October 1552–26 June 1553)
4. Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich (28 March 1554–19 November 1582), heir of Ivan IV, murdered by his father
5. Tsarevna Eudoxia Ivanovna (26 February 1556–June 1558)
6. Tsar Feodor I of Russia (31 May 1557–6 January 1598), Ivan IV's successor

References[link]

Media related to Anastasia Romanovna at Wikimedia Commons