The Territories of the Russian Federation (10th edition)

摘要

The Russian Empire started before the British Empire, and lasted slightly longer. Ivan III consolidated the heartland of Muscovy, but it was Ivan IV ("the Terrible") who began the expansion into neighbouring non-Slavonic areas around 1550. The first expedition to cross the Urals into Siberia went in 1581, and from then onwards, year upon year, the empire steadily grew.