33% done with Peter the Great: His Life and World

Though the chapter on the Streltsy uprising does an excellent job on putting the torture of the Streltsy in relation to the times, the sheer number of men tortured and killed cannot be denied. While Peter was dancing and reforming the beards of the Boyars at night, by day over a thousand men were burnt, whipped, branded, racked, and executed in public.

With his fleet completed, his power was unquestionable.