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in modern-day Ukraine, and the political and geographic scope of the Kievan Rus grew until the 1237 invasion by the Mongols. Though reduced to a state of tribute, the center of Russian power again moved, this time to Moscow. This marked the beginning of the rule of the Muscovite princes; Ivan III (the Great) drove the Mongols fromRussian lands, further expanded territorial holdings, and established the first iteration of autocracy in Russia. After aperiodof political upheaval in theearly17thcentury,control of Russia shifted to the Romanov family, a tsarist dynasty that would rule for over 300years.Under the ruleof theRomanovs,autocratic rule tightened and a marked gulf developed between wealthy aristocrats and the peasant population. The feudal system of the European Middle Ages deeply took root in a country that remained politically and socially isolated from the rest of Europe for much of its history. Enlightenment ideals of the 18th century eventually led tsars like Peter the Great and Catherine the Great to institute social and land reforms and to establish early versions of parliaments that, at least nominally, represented the voice of the Russian people. Technologies, fashions, arts, and sciences that flourished inWest- ern Europe found their way to Russia under these rulers, though the tsars who ruled in this period also focused on the expansion of Russia’s military might and engaged in multiple invasions and conquests of areas of Eastern Europe.

Sculptures in Saint Petersburg pay tribute to the artists who took part in the construction of the city in the 18th and 19th centuries.

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