In your own view, what would a military Russia/England alliance of the 16th century bring to history?

Question

I was looking at an old history textbook and read a little significant part in a chapter about Russia. In the 16th century, Russia was surrounded by the powerful Swedes, Lithuanians, and Poles in the west, and by the Turks and Crimean Tatars in the south. It is significant that when Tsar Ivan IV (ruled from 1553 to 1584) proposed a military alliance and even suggested marriage to Queen Elizabeth I of England, the king of Poland hastily wrote to Elizabeth and begged her to reject the proposition. The Polish king wrote that "up to now, we could conquer him [Ivan The Terrible] only because he was a stranger to education and did not know the arts".

I'm now thinking of an alternate outcome based on the above information. What if Elizabeth actually accepted Ivan's alliance and marriage proposal? What would a Russo-English alliance bring to history? How long would the alliance last? How would this affect England, Russia, and the rest of the world?

Answer 1

that is a hard question and it is too hard to answer.

Answer 2

This is an interesting point to ponder - I suspect that they would have ended up with the 16th Century version of a commuter marriage. I doubt that modern history would have had a great impact, between the execution of Tsar Nicholas and his family in Russia and the abdication of Queen Elizabeth II's uncle.

Answer 3

The 16th Century in Great Britain is often referred to as the Golden Age of England. Henry VIII did away with the Catholic Churchs' political influence in England and his daughter, Elizabeth I maintained internal peace throughout her reign.
During this period, England claimed substantial territory in France. At the same time, Spain was flexing its colonial powers throughout the world, especially in the Americas and it had its' eye on Ireland as well. Remember, Scotland had remained Catholic as was Spain and France. Only the internall strife in France and their fear of Spanish invasion kept them aligned with England,
Now to the heart of your question. A military alliance between Russia and England would have had little influence on the interactions between England and Spain. Most of the warfare of that period between England and Spain was Naval in nature. Russia not only was without an Atlantic Navy, it also had no means by which to place troops anywhere where they would have benefited England. In reality, you have answered your own question with the comments that followed your question.

Answer 4

Maybe Queen Elizabeth thought it was a bad deal and Russia needed to be kept in place.

Answer 5

Russia, England, and China will come into the Church. (Prophecy of Blessed Anna Maria )..
2 - England leaving the Catholic Church in the 16th Century. ...