most commonly known as Peter the Great, was a monarch of Russia who modernised it and made it a European power. He ruled the Tsardom of Russia from 1682 to 1721 and subsequently the Russian Empire until his death in 1725, jointly ruling before 1696 with his elder half-brother, Ivan V.

Peter I created a regular army and navy, a white-blue-red flag, built new capital of Russia - St. Petersburg during the North war with Sweden (1700-1721), divided the country into districts and provinces. He spent 24 years of his reign in wars with Turkey, Sweden and Persia, and won for the country access to the Baltic, Azov, Caspian and Black Seas, and made Russia a significant player in the international arena.