On this day in history: Ivan the Terrible crowned Tsar, 1547

Born in August 1530, Ivan became the Grand Prince of Moscow at the age of three following the death of his father, Vasili III. Initially, his mother Elena Glinskaya acted as regent, but she too died (possibly from poisoning) when Ivan was only eight years old. Members of the aristocratic Shuisky family took over as regents until Ivan became old enough to take the reigns of power in 1544.

On 16th January 1547, he became Ivan IV when he had himself crowned Tsar of all Russia with the Monomakh's Cap at the Cathedral of the Dormition, Moscow. In the early part of his reign, Ivan embarked on the process of modernising the state. He reformed the legal code, created an assembly of the three estates of the realm called the Zemsky Sobor and a council of nobles, established a standing army, opened new trade routes and ordered the construction of St Basil's Cathedral to commemorate his conquest of the Khanates of Kazan.

Ivan was also capable of violent outbursts, possibly due to mental illness. These may explain why he became known as 'Ivan the Terrible' - a translation of his Russian nickname, Ivan Grozny, which some suggest may be better translated as 'Ivan the Fearsome'. He ordered the assassinations of a number of nobles who he suspected were plotting against him, including Philip II, Metropolitan of Moscow, and Prince Alexander Gorbatyi-Shuisky.

In a fit of anger Ivan killed his son and chosen heir the Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich. The young Tsarevich had witnessed the Massacre of Novgorod, where his father had ordered the killing of thousands of denizens of the city. The Oprichniki, a repressive force created by Ivan, carried out the massacre as well as being responsible for the murder of thousands of suspected opponents of the Tsar and for conscripting peasants for the disastrous Livonian War.

Ivan died on 18th March 1584, probably while playing chess with one of his advisers Bogdan Belsky. Following the opening of his tomb in the 1960s, scientists discovered that his body contained large amounts of mercury, suggesting that he had been poisoned. Ivan was succeeded by his pious but reputedly mentally deficient son Feodor I who died childless, thus ending the Rurik dynasty.

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Foundation of Saint Petersburg: 27th May 1703
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On this day in history: Only spaceflight of Buran, 1988

In 1974 engineers of the Soviet Union began work on the Buran ("Blizzard") project, which was a response to NASA's Space Shuttle programme. The Russian engineers favoured a design for a lighter reusable spacecraft where the entire body of the craft created lift, but the military leadership demanded that they copy the delta-wing design of the American Shuttle. Six years later, construction commenced on the spacecraft, with the first full-scale prototype reaching completion in 1984 and the first of the two completed production vehicles appearing in 1986.

As with the NASA design, in order to achieve space flight the Buran needed an external source of thrust that would be jettisoned when no longer needed. Buran employed an Energia rocket supplemented by four smaller liquid-fuel Zenit booster rockets, unlike the Shuttle, which uses two solid-fuel booster rockets connected to a fuel tank. The Energia made a successful test-launch in May 1987, paving the way for an unmanned test-flight of Buran.

At 3am local time on 15th November 1988 orbiter OK-1.01 lifted off from the launch pad at Baikonur Cosmodrome. The space flight lasted 206 minutes, during which Buran orbited the Earth twice before making a successful automatic landing on a runway back at Baikonur despite of a powerful cross-wind. Nevertheless, the success of the test flight was not enough to save the project, which was mothballed due to lack of funds and the shifting political situation in the Soviet Union before President Bosis Yeltsin officially cancelled the project in 1993.

Related posts
First man-made object to reach the Moon, 14th September 1959
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On this day in history: Stanislav Petrov averted a nuclear war, 1983

At a little past midnight on 26th September, 1983, the computers of the Soviet early warning system, code-named Oko, reported an incoming intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launched from the mainland of the United States. In the Oko command centre located in the Serpukhov-15 bunker near Moscow, the computer screens went red and a piercing alarm sounded. Following the doctrine of mutual assured destruction, both superpowers employed the strategy of immediate counter attack on detection of incoming ICBMs.

The duty officer in the Serpukhov-15 bunker that night was Lieutenant Colonel Stanislav Petrov. Petrov decided that the alarm was a computer error. He reasoned that if the United States had initiated a first strike then they would have launched hundreds of missiles in order to prevent a Soviet counter-strike.

A short time later the system detected another missile launch, closely followed by three more. In spite of having no means to confirm his suspicions, Petrov concluded that each detection was a computer malfunction. Consequently, he did not inform his superiors who probably would have ordered a retaliatory launch of Soviet ICBMs.

Petrov was proven to be correct, the error had been caused by an alignment of sunlight on high-altitude clouds and the elliptical orbit of the detection satellites. Although he initially received praise from his superiors, Petrov was later subject to intense questioning and received a reprimand for not following procedure. They reassigned him to a less sensitive position, from which he took early retirement. In 2004, the Association of World Citizens presented Petrov with its World Citizen Award, and two years later they presented him with a second award at the United Nations in New York City during a meeting held in his honour.

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On this day in history: First man-made object to reach the Moon, 1959

After their successes in putting the first man-made object into space the scientists of the Soviet space programme set their sights on a more remote target. Between September 1958 and June 1959 the Soviet Union launched a series of rockets carrying probes that they hoped would reach the Moon. All of the first three attempts failed to leave the Earth's atmosphere and while fourth probe, Luna 1, was successfully launched it missed the Moon by about 6,000km and became the first man-made object to enter orbit around the Sun. During the fifth attempt, the guidance systems of the R-7 rocket failed and the mission was aborted.

Early in the morning on 12th September 1959, a R-7 Semyorka rocket launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan carrying the lunar probe. This probe, called Luna 2, successfully separated from the third stage of the rocket and both headed off towards the Moon. Along the way it confirmed the presence of the solar wind, which was first detected by Luna 1. The next day Luna 2 expelled a bright cloud of sodium gas to aid the scientists in tracking its progress and so that they could observe the behaviour of gases in space.

At a little after 10pm UTC, on 14th September the scientists stopped receiving transmissions from Luna 2 indicating that it had impacted with the Moon. The probe landed somewhere in the Palus Putredinus ('Marsh of Decay'). Before crashing instruments on Luna 2 demonstrated that, unlike the Earth, the Moon had no radiation belts nor a significant magnetic field.

The Luna programme continued until 1976 by which time NASA had successfully made manned missions to the Moon, something the Soviets never achieved. To read more visit the Zarya site, which includes web-pages dedicated to the Luna missions.

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On this day in history: AK-47 entered production, 1947

On 6th July 1947, the most iconic weapon of the second half of the twentieth century entered production at the Izhevsk Mechanical Works. The Kalashnikov AK-47 7.62 mm automatic assault rifle takes its name from its creator Mikhail Kalashnikov and the year of its design. Originally designed for the Red Army, who introduced it in 1949, the AK-47 has appeared as many variants in Russia and from other countries, which have made it under license up to the present-day.

Worldwide, more AK-47s have been produced then any other comparable rifle. Its durability and ease of use mean it became the ubiquitous weapon of civil wars, revolutionary struggles and insurgencies around the world. Revolutionaries have adopted it as a quintessential symbol of liberation through armed struggle, as seen in the flags of Mozambique and Hezbollah.

To learn more about this iconic weapon and its designer see the AK site.

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On this day in history: First woman in space, 1963

Immediately after the Soviet Union's success in putting the first man into space in 1961, the head of cosmonaut training on the Russian space programme, Nikolai Kamanin, suggested to his superiors that it was their patriotic duty to again beat the Americans by being the first to put a woman into space. Chief Designer Korolev agreed and in October 1961 the search began for likeable woman who was an avowed Communist with experience of parachuting - piloting skills were not required as the Vostok spacecraft flew automatically. Five women received the call to train as cosmonauts, including Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova, a textile worker and daughter of a war hero.

The five women began the exhaustive period of training and testing: centrifuge rides; isolation tests; rocket theory; parachute jumps; piloting jet fighters, physical exercise; and, weightless flights. In spite of being the least qualified - the other four had received higher education, and included engineers and test pilots - Tereshkova faired better in front of the Communist selection board than the other finalist, Valentina Ponomareva, who had excelled in all the other tests. Since the flight was essentially a propaganda exercise, Korolev nominated Tereshkova, and Premier Krushchev - who had the final say - agreed.

On the morning of 16th June 1963, Vostok 6 launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan with the call sign "Seagull". While in space Tereshkova kept a log and took photographs, while the ground staff monitored her physical condition. Controversy surrounds the flight: some reports claimed that she became emotionally distraught, and she certainly vomited during the flight; however, the flight lasted longer than initially intended leaving her nothing to do with no support from the ground staff; she claimed that rather than the weightlessness it was the poor food she had been given that made her sick; and - as was later confirmed - she noticed that there had been an error in the automatic orientation of the capsule, which the ground crew confirmed and corrected.

Tereshkova's ordeal did not end until she safely returned to earth. After ejecting out of the capsule during its final descent (as all cosmonauts did) she noticed that she was parachuting towards lake that was to large for her to swim to the edge of in her state of exhaustion. Fortunately the wind blew her back over dry land. Nevertheless, from a propaganda point of view the mission was a complete success. Tereshkova's flight had a longer duration than all the American space-flights, thus far, put together. She was also significantly younger than all the NASA astronauts. The Soviet hierarchy quashed any attempts to discredit her, whether based in fact or chauvinism.

After the flight, Tereshkova married another cosmonaut, Andrian Nikolayev (an event which was again used for propaganda purposes leading some to think it had been contrived by the Soviet leadership), graduated as a engineer, and became a prominent politician and international representative of the USSR.

To read a biography of Valentina Tereshkova see the Encyclopedia Astronautica site.

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On this day in history: Foundation of Saint Petersburg, 1703

For the first twenty years of the eighteenth century Russia and Sweden fought a war for supremacy over the Baltic Sea. On 1st May 1703, the forces of the Russian Tsar, Peter the Great, captured Nyenskans, a Swedish fortress that protected the mouth of the Neva river on the coast of the Gulf of Finland. To further protect this strategically important location, Peter decided to build a fortress city further down the river at Zayachii ostrov (Hare Island).

Work on the Peter and Paul Fortress started a few weeks later, on 27th May 1703. Initially comprising six bastions constructed of earth and timber it was later replaced by a stone building. This citadel never saw military action, but rather became the centre of the city of St. Petersburg - named after the apostle Peter.

The Tsar conscripted serfs from across Russia to work on the city, which quickly grew around Trinity Square on the right bank of the Neva. The city was the centrepiece of Peter's modernisation programme and as such he made it his capital in 1712, an honour the city enjoyed for over two hundred years, except for one four-year period (1728-32) when Peter II made Moscow his capital.

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On this day in history: Ivan the Terrible crowned Tsar, 1547

Born in August 1530, Ivan became the Grand Prince of Moscow at the age of three following the death of his father, Vasili III. Initially, his mother Elena Glinskaya acted as regent, but she too died (possibly from poisoning) when Ivan was only eight years old. Members of the aristocratic Shuisky family took over as regents until Ivan became old enough to take the reigns of power in 1544.

On 16th January 1547, he became Ivan IV when he had himself crowned Tsar of all Russia with the Monomakh's Cap at the Cathedral of the Dormition, Moscow. In the early part of his reign, Ivan embarked on the process of modernising the state. He reformed the legal code, created an assembly of the three estates of the realm called the Zemsky Sobor and a council of nobles, established a standing army, opened new trade routes and ordered the construction of St Basil's Cathedral to commemorate his conquest of the Khanates of Kazan.

Ivan was also capable of violent outbursts, possibly due to mental illness. These may explain why he became known as 'Ivan the Terrible' - a translation of his Russian nickname, Ivan Grozny, which some suggest may be better translated as 'Ivan the Fearsome'. He ordered the assassinations of a number of nobles who he suspected were plotting against him, including Philip II, Metropolitan of Moscow, and Prince Alexander Gorbatyi-Shuisky.

In a fit of anger Ivan killed his son and chosen heir the Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich. The young Tsarevich had witnessed the Massacre of Novgorod, where his father had ordered the killing of thousands of denizens of the city. The Oprichniki, a repressive force created by Ivan, carried out the massacre as well as being responsible for the murder of thousands of suspected opponents of the Tsar and for conscripting peasants for the disastrous Livonian War.

Ivan died on 18th March 1584, probably while playing chess with one of his advisers Bogdan Belsky. Following the opening of his tomb in the 1960s, scientists discovered that his body contained large amounts of mercury, suggesting that he had been poisoned. Ivan was succeeded by his pious but reputedly mentally deficient son Feodor I who died childless, thus ending the Rurik dynasty.

Related posts
Scottish monarch crowned King of England: 25th July 1603
Restoration of the Portuguese monarchy: 1st December 1640
Foundation of Saint Petersburg: 27th May 1703
Coronation of William IV: 8th September 1831
Coronation of George I, King of the Hellenes: 30th October 1863

On this day in history: Only spaceflight of Buran, 1988

In 1974 engineers of the Soviet Union began work on the Buran ("Blizzard") project, which was a response to NASA's Space Shuttle programme. The Russian engineers favoured a design for a lighter reusable spacecraft where the entire body of the craft created lift, but the military leadership demanded that they copy the delta-wing design of the American Shuttle. Six years later, construction commenced on the spacecraft, with the first full-scale prototype reaching completion in 1984 and the first of the two completed production vehicles appearing in 1986.

As with the NASA design, in order to achieve space flight the Buran needed an external source of thrust that would be jettisoned when no longer needed. Buran employed an Energia rocket supplemented by four smaller liquid-fuel Zenit booster rockets, unlike the Shuttle, which uses two solid-fuel booster rockets connected to a fuel tank. The Energia made a successful test-launch in May 1987, paving the way for an unmanned test-flight of Buran.

At 3am local time on 15th November 1988 orbiter OK-1.01 lifted off from the launch pad at Baikonur Cosmodrome. The space flight lasted 206 minutes, during which Buran orbited the Earth twice before making a successful automatic landing on a runway back at Baikonur despite of a powerful cross-wind. Nevertheless, the success of the test flight was not enough to save the project, which was mothballed due to lack of funds and the shifting political situation in the Soviet Union before President Bosis Yeltsin officially cancelled the project in 1993.

Related posts
First man-made object to reach the Moon, 14th September 1959
First woman in space: 16th June 1963

On this day in history: Stanislav Petrov averted a nuclear war, 1983

At a little past midnight on 26th September, 1983, the computers of the Soviet early warning system, code-named Oko, reported an incoming intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launched from the mainland of the United States. In the Oko command centre located in the Serpukhov-15 bunker near Moscow, the computer screens went red and a piercing alarm sounded. Following the doctrine of mutual assured destruction, both superpowers employed the strategy of immediate counter attack on detection of incoming ICBMs.

The duty officer in the Serpukhov-15 bunker that night was Lieutenant Colonel Stanislav Petrov. Petrov decided that the alarm was a computer error. He reasoned that if the United States had initiated a first strike then they would have launched hundreds of missiles in order to prevent a Soviet counter-strike.

A short time later the system detected another missile launch, closely followed by three more. In spite of having no means to confirm his suspicions, Petrov concluded that each detection was a computer malfunction. Consequently, he did not inform his superiors who probably would have ordered a retaliatory launch of Soviet ICBMs.

Petrov was proven to be correct, the error had been caused by an alignment of sunlight on high-altitude clouds and the elliptical orbit of the detection satellites. Although he initially received praise from his superiors, Petrov was later subject to intense questioning and received a reprimand for not following procedure. They reassigned him to a less sensitive position, from which he took early retirement. In 2004, the Association of World Citizens presented Petrov with its World Citizen Award, and two years later they presented him with a second award at the United Nations in New York City during a meeting held in his honour.

Related posts
Rosenbergs executed: 19th June 1953
Nuclear Disarmament logo designed: 21st February 1958
First French nuclear test: 13th February 1960
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty signed: 1st July 1968

On this day in history: First man-made object to reach the Moon, 1959

After their successes in putting the first man-made object into space the scientists of the Soviet space programme set their sights on a more remote target. Between September 1958 and June 1959 the Soviet Union launched a series of rockets carrying probes that they hoped would reach the Moon. All of the first three attempts failed to leave the Earth's atmosphere and while fourth probe, Luna 1, was successfully launched it missed the Moon by about 6,000km and became the first man-made object to enter orbit around the Sun. During the fifth attempt, the guidance systems of the R-7 rocket failed and the mission was aborted.

Early in the morning on 12th September 1959, a R-7 Semyorka rocket launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan carrying the lunar probe. This probe, called Luna 2, successfully separated from the third stage of the rocket and both headed off towards the Moon. Along the way it confirmed the presence of the solar wind, which was first detected by Luna 1. The next day Luna 2 expelled a bright cloud of sodium gas to aid the scientists in tracking its progress and so that they could observe the behaviour of gases in space.

At a little after 10pm UTC, on 14th September the scientists stopped receiving transmissions from Luna 2 indicating that it had impacted with the Moon. The probe landed somewhere in the Palus Putredinus ('Marsh of Decay'). Before crashing instruments on Luna 2 demonstrated that, unlike the Earth, the Moon had no radiation belts nor a significant magnetic field.

The Luna programme continued until 1976 by which time NASA had successfully made manned missions to the Moon, something the Soviets never achieved. To read more visit the Zarya site, which includes web-pages dedicated to the Luna missions.

Related posts
First woman in space: 16th June 1963
Launch of Apollo 13: 11th April 1970
Only spaceflight of Buran: 15th November, 1988