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Considerably influenced by his
western-educated wife Sophia, Ivan III decided to bring his country out of the
"Shades of dusk," as Karamzin put it and move it closer to European
culture. Moscow opened its doors, and many Italians and Greeks, masters of
various professions came to Russia with Sophia. Special attention was paid to
The embellishment of the Kremlin, and construction begun on a series of
magnificent churches and palaces and, of course, he new Kremlin walls, making
it one of he most fortified cities in the world. With time the Kremlin turned
into a superb architectural ensemble, destined to become the center not only of
a large city but also of a vast empire. Ivan obviously wanted to make Moscow a
beautiful capital, and probably harbored thoughts that it might one day
become" new Constantinople, " and match the importance of his new,
powerful state.
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