Peter the Great

Peter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich (Russian: Пётр Алексе́евич, Пётр I, Pyotr I, or Пётр Вели́кий, Pyotr Velikiy) (9 June [O.S. 30 May] 1672 – 8 February [O.S. 28 January] 1725) ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from 7 May [O.S. 27 April] 1682 until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother. Through a number of successful wars he expanded the Tsardom into a much larger empire that became a major European power. He led a cultural revolution that replaced some of the traditionalist and medieval social and political system with one that was modern, scientific, Europe-oriented, and based on The Enlightenment.^[1]

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter the Great