osen. He did not like
the people and fled; his place was filled by Stephen Batory, Governor
of Transsylvania, a young, capable, and energetic noble. Batory took
in his service a number of trained German and Hungarian soldiers, and
took Polotsk after a brave defense. He also captured several other
towns, but was repulsed at Pskof.

Ivan sought the mediation of Pope Gregory XIII, and a truce was
concluded in 1582; Ivan ceded Polotsk and all Livonia.

Ivan, in his manhood, was a man of violent temper. He was never seen
without an iron-tipped staff, which he used freely and recklessly upon
the people around him. Nobody, whatever his rank, was safe from
corporal punishment. He killed his eldest son Ivan with a blow, and
suffered from remorse ever afterward. He left a lasting impression
upon Russia by his reforms. He made a law whereby neither church nor
convents could acquire new lands. He was wonderfully well educated,
considering the neglect of his early youth, and tolerant of religious
opinions. A Presbyterian and a Lutheran church were built at Moscow
with his consent, but in deference to the opposition of the people,
they were removed to the suburbs. He was also the founder of the
_streltsi_ or national guard.

Ivan died in 1584, after a reign of forty-one years.

XIV--RUSSIA UNDER IVAN THE TERRIBLE. (p. 122)

The reign of Ivan the Terrible is remarkable, first, because it is the
beginning of Russia as we know it in our time; and also because it
occurred at a time when Great Britain was exploring the Atlantic, and
preparing the way for the wonderful expansion of the English-speaking
race, which culminated in the great North American Republic. It was
under this reign, in 1558, that Russia's invasion of Asia began, and
with it a movement eastward, which has not yet ceased.

It is interesting, therefore, to study the condition of the Russian
people at this important period. Although, as we have seen, the Tartar
yoke did not influence the people directly, because there was no
intercourse between victor and vanquished, the indirect influence was
great, owing to the adoption of Tartar habits or customs by the dukes
and nobles, during their visits to the khan. During this time
intercourse with Europe ceased; hence, in the 16th and 17th centuries,
Russia was more Asiatic than European, although the Russians hated the
victors. Who can say how much influence this has exerted upon Russia