The legend of the fall
But legend has it that Ivan IV decided to marry Söyembikä upon completing his conquest of the Khanate of Kazan in 1552. Söyembikä sought a way out of the marriage by agreeing on condition that Ivan prove his worth by building a tower taller than she had ever seen. In one week's time - to Söyembikä's sorrow, one imagines - Ivan's men built the tower. Resigned, Söyembikä asked to climb it. And when she reached the top, she flung herself down rather than consent to marry the Orthodox tsar.