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Vasili III

Type Figure Region Russia Time 1479–1533 Also known as Vasili III Ivanovich

Grand Prince of Moscow (1505–1533), son of Ivan III, who continued his father's unification policy: seized Smolensk in 1514, strengthened the Lithuan…

Timeline

  1. 1479–1505Moscow · RussiaSon of Ivan III and Sophia Palaiologina, trained in rule at court; succeeded smoothly after his father's death in 1505, initially assisted by his mother and senior ministers, gradually establishing personal authority.
  2. 1505–1533Moscow · RussiaFought repeated wars with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during his reign, capturing Smolensk in 1514; promoted administrative centralization and curtailed independent princes; married Lithuanian noblewoman Helena Glinskaya in 1526, fathering the future tsar Ivan IV; health declined in later years, and after his death in 1533 the young Ivan IV succeeded him.

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