False Dmitriy

The generic name False Dmitriy (also Pseudo-Demetrius, Russian: Лжедмитрий, Lžedmitrij) refers to various pretenders to the Russian throne during the Time of Troubles (1598-1613) who passed themselves off as Tsarevich Dmitriy Ivanovich of Russia, the youngest son of Ivan the Terrible, after the real Dmitriy's death at the age of eight in 1591. Each of these impostors claimed to have miraculously escaped the assassination attempt that appeared to have claimed Dmitriy's life, and, in the case of II and III, also to have escaped the assassinations that subsequently targeted I and II.

Several people impersonated Dmitriy Ivanovich, most prominently:

• False Dmitriy I (1582–1606), who actually became Tsar of Russia and reigned from 1605–1606
• False Dmitriy II, active 1607–1610
• False Dmitriy III, active 1611–1612