Muscovy

The Grand Duchy of Muscovy is a state that existed in Eastern Europe during Brazilian's Varna series, and one of the contenders who attempted to unify the former Kyivan Rus'.
== The Great Russian War ==
Centred around the city of Moscow, the Grand Duchy begins as a puppet of the Golden Horde until 1475, when they joined Ryazan and Pskov in betraying their oppressor. The three were only able to do this since the Golden Horde was already on the decline, and the previous year a Lithuanian invasion began the Great Russian War, bringing the Mongols that much closer to collapse. Hence, the Russian states began their rebellion. The main Muscovite force reached Nizhny Novgorod in mere days, journeying beyond as far as the Volga river in early 1476, before following it downstream during 1477. They were headed towards the Golden Horde's capital Sarai, where they joined their allies. Other Muscovite armies secured the territories between the Voronezh and Volga rivers. 1478 began with the Golden Horde's surrender, and the subsequent Treaty of Azov, which saw Muscovy gaining independence and annexing Nizhny Novgorod, and Pskov becoming a Muscovite vassal.
== The Second Russian War ==
In January 1524, Muscovy decided to try their hand at uniting Russia. When they annexed Pskov, the Novgorod Republic noticed and responded, as Muscovy had expected, and the negotiations that followed broke down into the Second Russian War. Muscovite troops from Tver and Pskov quickly linked up and besieged Novgorod, as another Muscovite army began invading Novgorod's eastern territories. They saw some success until the late spring of 1525, when Ryazan launched a surprise invasion of Muscovy from the south. Muscovy initially routed the Ryazani offensive, and attacked the few troops at Kolomna, but they soon realised it was a decoy, and that the main army of Ryazan had captured Nizhny Novgorod. Shortly afterwards, the siege of (Veliky) Novgorod was broken. Muscovy was pushed back to Tver and Pskov, and it was at Pskov that the Muscovite First Army collapsed under pressure from Novgorod's forces. Novgorod suddenly brought troops to Rzhev through Lithuania, after having gained military access, and the armies of Novgorod and Ryazan met in the city of Moscow, where they signed a treaty to divide the Grand Duchy.
Category:Varna Countries