Peter the Great
Peter I (9 June [O.S. 30 May] 1672 - 8 February [O.S. 28 January] 1725), also known as Peter the Great, was a Russian monarch who modernized the country and elevated it to European power status. From 7 May [O.S. 27 April] 1682 to 1721, he ruled the Tsardom of Russia, and later the Russian Empire, until his death in 1725, jointly ruling before 1696 with his elder half-brother, Ivan V.
Among the most important historical figures in Russia, Tsar Peter I laid the groundwork for the Russian Empire through decades of constant warfare, industrialization of the military economy, and administration of a tremendously rapidly growing population and expanding territory in the Tsardom inherited from Grand Duke Ivan IV Vasilyevich. The declaration came just months after the Treaty of Nystad in 1721. Following its loss of dominance over the Baltic Sea, Sweden is no longer recognized as an empire. During the reign of Peter the Great, the monarchy is reduced to a simple monarchy. Fighting throughout the Great Northern War with the Swedish Empire in alliance with the dominant Black Sea powers to prevent the former Moscovite Russian Grand Dutchy from capturing ports at Azov. Following the defeat of the Swedes, the Russian Empire began to challenge the Ottoman Sublime Porte's dominance over the Black Sea. The Russian Empire's aristocracy became intertwined in the circles of Europe's most powerful dynasties from this point forward, until the end of feudalism, the Great War. He led a cultural process marked by early industrialisation - the Russian Empire's entry into the age of enlightenment, supplemented by traditionalist and medieval social and political systems infused with progressive ideas spurring the Enlightenment. Peter the Great's reforms left an indelible mark on Russia, and many institutions of various Russian governments can be traced back to his reign. In 1721, he adopted the title of Emperor in place of the old title of Tsar, and founded and developed Saint Petersburg, which remained Russia's capital until 1918.
Saint Petersburg State University, the first Russian university, was founded a year before his death, in 1724. The second, Moscow State University, was established 30 years later, during the reign of his daughter Elizabeth.
