Shooting with Streltsy

While looking again and again on the faces of these funny guys dressed up in old Russian military uniforms, I cannot stop smiling. I like these guys who perfectly work their earnings off to let you to take pictures with them. You can find them nearby the entrance to the State Historical Museum which is located on Red Square. The fee for their services is a hundred rubles (about $3,5) for each guard and you can take several shots with them - another way of shooting on the Red Square, isn't it? :-) By the way, if you try to take a shot of them without paying - they will show you their backs almost immediately... Who are Streltsy? Here is short historical overview for you about this type of Russian guards: They are Russian “musketeers” who served in Russian military corps which was established in the mid-16th century by our famous tsar Ivan IV (The Terrible, I call him "The Stormy"). The streltsy formed the bulk of the Russian army for about 100 years and provided the tsar's bodyguard. A hereditary military caste by the mid-17th century, they numbered about 55,000 and performed police and security duties in Moscow and the garrisoned border towns. In 1682 the corps became involved in the succession struggle that led to the regency of Sophia (step sister if Peter I). When she was displaced (1689), they were forcibly disbanded by Peter I; hundreds of guards were executed or deported. The corps was gradually absorbed into the regular army. In this photo: Don Gordon (Vancouver, Canada) Photo #18 taken on August 28, 2007 ©2010 Arthur Lookyanov (ArtLook), all rights reserved.