Rus Against the European Yoke: From Alexander Nevsky to Ivan the Terrible

European aggression against Russia began not yesterday—not under Hitler and Napoleon—this conflict of civilizations is soon to be 1000 years old. A “Crusade to the East” was proclaimed by German military-monastic orders as early as the beginning of the 13th century. The Order of the Swordsmen was succeeded by the Teutonic and Livonian orders; knights with red crosses on their cloaks were replaced by knights with black crosses—and the war had no end. Lake Peipus, Dorpat (Derpt), Rakovor, Narva, Pskov, Novgorod—fierce battles along the northwestern borders raged for 350 years. How did Rus withstand between two fires—against the East and the West? Who was the most terrible enemy of the Russian Land— the crusaders, the Horde, or Novgorod’s “democracy,” which prevented the princes from putting an end to the German threat once and for all? And what price must be paid to stop the European “Drang nach Osten”? In this book you will find exhaustive information about all the wars of Rus against the crusaders—from Vladimir of Pskov and Alexander Nevsky to Ivan the Terrible.