A cikin karni na 15, manyan sarakunan Moscow sun ci gaba da ƙarfafa ƙasar Rasha don ƙara yawan jama'arsu da wadatarsu. Mafi kyawun mai aiwatar da wannan tsari shi ne Ivan III, wanda ya kafa harsashin ginin ƙasar Rasha. Ivan ya yi gasa tare da abokin hamayyarsa mai ƙarfi na arewa maso yammacin, Grand Duchy na Lithuania, don iko da wasu daga cikin manyan masarautun Upper masu zaman kansu a cikin kogin Dnieper da Oka.Ta hanyar raunin wasu sarakuna, rikice-rikice na kan iyaka, da kuma dogon yaƙi da Jamhuriyar Novgorod, Ivan III ya sami damar haɗa Novgorod da Tver. A sakamakon haka, Grand Duchy na Moscow ya ninka sau uku a ƙarƙashin mulkinsa. A lokacin rikicin da yake yi da Pskov, wani malamin kirista mai suna Filofei (Philus na Pskov) ya rubuta wasiƙa zuwa ga Ivan III, tare da annabcin cewa masarautar Constantinople za ta zama masarautar Orthodox ta arewa maso yamma. Tambaya ta uku: Wanene ya ba da gudummawa ga faduwar Ivan III a matsayin sabon sarkin sarakuna na Roma da mutuwar
Filofei