BaronBaron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knight, but lower than a viscount or count. Often, barons hold their fief – their lands and income – directly from the monarch. Barons are less often the vassals of other nobles. In many kingdoms, they were entitled to wear a smaller form of a crown called a coronet.
TsarTsar (zɑːr,_sɑːr or tsɑːr), also spelled czar, tzar, or csar, was a title used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word caesar, which was intended to mean "emperor" in the European medieval sense of the term—a ruler with the same rank as a Roman emperor, holding it by the approval of another emperor or a supreme ecclesiastical official (the Pope or the Ecumenical Patriarch)—but was usually considered by Western Europeans to be equivalent to "king". It lends its name to a system of government, tsarist autocracy or tsarism.
Mongol invasion of EuropeFrom the 1220s into the 1240s, the Mongols conquered the Turkic states of Volga Bulgaria, Cumania and Iranian state of Alania, and various principalities in Eastern Europe. Following this, they began their invasion into Central Europe by launching a two-pronged invasion of then-fragmented Poland, culminating in the Battle of Legnica (9 April 1241), and the Kingdom of Hungary, culminating in the Battle of Mohi (11 April 1241).
PhanariotsPhanariots, Phanariotes, or Fanariots (Φαναριώτες, Fanarioți, Fenerliler) were members of prominent Greek families in Phanar (Φανάρι, modern Fener), the chief Greek quarter of Constantinople where the Ecumenical Patriarchate is located, who traditionally occupied four important positions in the Ottoman Empire: Voivode of Moldavia, Voivode of Wallachia, Grand Dragoman of the Porte and Grand Dragoman of the Fleet.
Russian nobilityThe Russian nobility (дворя́нство) arose in the Middle Ages. In 1914 it consisted of approximately 1,900,000 members (about 1.1% of the population) in the Russian Empire. Up until the February Revolution of 1917, the noble estates staffed most of the Russian government and possessed a Gentry assembly. The Russian word for nobility, dvorianstvo (), derives from Slavonic dvor (двор), meaning the court of a prince or duke (kniaz), and later, of the tsar or emperor. Here, dvor originally referred to servants at the estate of an aristocrat.
Veliky NovgorodVeliky Novgorod (Великий Новгород, vjɪˈljikjɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as Novgorod (Новгород), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the Volkhov River just downstream from its outflow from Lake Ilmen and is situated on the M10 federal highway connecting Moscow and Saint Petersburg. UNESCO recognized Novgorod as a World Heritage Site in 1992.
UradelUradel (ʔuːɐ̯ˈʔaːdl̩, German: "ancient nobility"; adjective uradelig or uradlig) is a genealogical term introduced in late 18th-century Germany to distinguish those families whose noble rank can be traced to the 14th century or earlier. The word stands opposed to Briefadel, a term used for titles of nobility created in the early modern period or modern history by letters patent. Since the earliest known such letters were issued in the 14th century, those knightly families in northern European nobility whose noble rank predates these are designated Uradel.
Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus'The Mongol Empire invaded and conquered Kievan Rus' in the mid-13th century, destroying numerous cities including the largest such as Kiev (50,000 inhabitants) and Chernigov (30,000 inhabitants). The Mongol siege and sack of Kiev in 1240 is generally held to mark the end of Kievan Rus'. Many other major Rus' principalities and urban centres in the northwest escaped destruction or suffered little to no damage from the Mongol invasion, including the Novgorod Republic, Pskov, Smolensk, Polotsk, Vitebsk, and probably Rostov and Uglich.
CraiovaCraiova (krəˈjoʊvə, also USkraɪˈoʊvə,_krɑːˈjɔːvɑː,_krɑːˈjoʊvɑː, kraˈjova), is the largest city to the south west of Romania and capital of Dolj County, situated near the east bank of the river Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximately equal distances from the Southern Carpathians (north) and the River Danube (south). Craiova is the chief commercial city west of Bucharest and the most important city of Oltenia.