Feodor III

Feodor III continued the war with the Ottoman Empire over control of Ukraine. The conflict ended with the Treaty of Bakhchisarai in 1681, which established the Dnieper River as the border between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, ceding left-bank Ukraine to Russia.

Feodor III encouraged the adoption of Western European fashions, including shaving beards and wearing Polish-style clothing, at the Russian court. This was an early step in the Westernization of Russian elite culture, later expanded by Peter the Great.

Feodor III abolished the system of mestnichestvo, which determined noble rank and appointments based on ancestry rather than merit. This reform aimed to modernize the Russian state and military by allowing promotion based on ability, reducing the power of the old boyar aristocracy.

Feodor III approved the founding of the Slavic Greek Latin Academy in Moscow, the first higher education institution in Russia. It was intended to train officials and clergy in Greek, Latin, and Slavic languages, promoting learning and reducing the influence of foreign scholars.