{"product_id":"a-bride-for-the-tsar-russell-e-martin-9780875804484","title":"A Bride for the Tsar: Bride-Shows and Marriage Politics in Early Modern Russia","description":"\u003cp\u003eFrom 1505 to 1689, Russia's tsars chose their wives through an elaborate ritual: the bride-show. The realm's most beautiful young maidens--provided they hailed from the aristocracy--gathered in Moscow, where the tsar's trusted boyars reviewed their medical histories, evaluated their spiritual qualities, noted their physical appearances, and confirmed their virtue. Those who passed muster were presented to the tsar, who inspected the candidates one by one--usually without speaking to any of them--and chose one to be immediately escorted to the Kremlin to prepare for her wedding and new life as the tsar's consort.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAlongside accounts of sordid boyar plots against brides, the multiple marriages of Ivan the Terrible, and the fascinating spectacle of the bride-show ritual, \u003ci\u003eA Bride for the Tsar\u003c\/i\u003e offers an analysis of the show's role in the complex politics of royal marriage in early modern Russia. Russell E. Martin argues that the nature of the rituals surrounding the selection of a bride for the tsar tells us much about the extent of his power, revealing it to be limited and collaborative, not autocratic. Extracting the bride-show from relative obscurity, Martin persuasively establishes it as an essential element of the tsarist political system.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Russell E. Martin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0875804489\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780875804484\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Northern Illinois University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/15\/2012\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 394\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.60lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.20h x 6.40w x 1.30d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChronicle of Higher Education\u003c\/i\u003e 07\/06\/2012 pg. 17\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2013","brand":"Russell E. Martin","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":44063454888191,"sku":"9780875804484","price":54.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_057941d5-f3f9-41a2-a1e5-ef020be8f026.jpg?v=1685389650","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/a-bride-for-the-tsar-russell-e-martin-9780875804484","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}