Ivan the IV and the Streltsy

When Ivan the IV crowned himself Tsar in 1547, he was sending a message to the world.  He was to be supreme ruler of all of Russia.  He was equating his power to that of Byzantine Ceasars.  Russians had no centralized leadership for hundreds of years, but the tide was slowly shifting towards autocratic rule.  Ivan the IV was the first Prince to take control, but in order to keep power he would need to make drastic changes within the countries domestic and military policies.  Some of his most influential policies came from his military, and the creation of the streltsy.  To combat the Kazan threat to the East, Ivan called for the construction of Svijajsk, a fortress town on the frontier of Kazan.  He initially recruited some soldiers to live at the settlement, and offered them identical coats, called kaftans.  They were paid 4-7 rubles a year (a high wage at this time), and given food from the state. They were also given an arquebus, a Bardiche, which was used to steady their guns, and supplies to make bullets.  These troops became the first streltsy.  All strelsty wore the same uniform, but different regiments would wear different colored hats and coats to easily distinguish themselves.  They were very effective against the cavalry hordes from the east, since they usually stayed in a fortress where the mobility of the horse did not help.  The fact that they were also armed with much more updated weapons, like firearms and cannons allowed them overcome the hordes.  They also used mobile protection known as gulyay gorod.  These were large wooden shields on wheels that offered protection from cavalry units and were highly mobile.  They cut holes in the wooden shields to shoot their muskets through.   Streltsy units were trained how to volley, or have the first line of men shoot, then step back to reload while the next line of troops steps forward.  The tactics used by the streltsy allowed them to dominate their opponents when they were first created.

 Gulyay-Gorod

 

The Stretlsy were the first official state run army, and helped prove the power of the autocracy.  The streltsy’s numbers quickly grew and by the late 17^th century they numbered 55,000.  The strelsty all wore identical uniforms and used similar weapons, but two factions quickly began to rise.  The guard in Moscow rose into a high social status, and enjoyed relative wealth and prestige.   These troops would also be used to perform firefighting and police duties, along with their formal guard duties. The strelsty stationed throughout the countryside, and fighting in wars were neglected, often not paid what they were entitled.  Ivan allowed them to trade or farm for part of the year to compensate for the lack of pay.  This had the immediate effect of causing troops who spent most of their time farming to lose their effectiveness on the battlefield.  It had the long term effect of distancing most streltsy troops from the rulers, which would have a significant effect when Peter the Great came to power.