[Savage Beast]

How did the title Tsar get from Rome to Moscow? I've often wondered. I'm sure it went through Constantinople, but how did it get from there to Moscow?

Also, who ruled Russia before Ivan?

There are things that history books always seem to gloss over.

[IronJack]

Ivan "the Terrible" was actually Ivan IV, the son of Vasili III and grandson of Ivan the Great. Ivan IV was the first Russian ruler crowned with the title Czar of all the Russias, but there were several monarchs before him.

As to the migration of the title, I suspect it made its way into interior Europe through Italy, Austria, Germany, and hence to Russia. It only seems to have been adopted in those countries, not in France, Spain, or England.

The word itself derives from the Gothic kaisar, the title of the German emperor. I believe "Czar" was also used as the supreme title in other Slavic countries at various times.