In 1610, Moscow was captured by Polish forces under the command of King Sigismund III. This invasion was prompted by the end of the Rurik dynasty, leaving the throne open to numerous pretenders and beginning what is known in Russia as the "Time of Troubles." In this time of despair, the Polish King sought to take advantage of Russia's weakness and plant his dynasty on the throne. Historically, Sigismund's son Wladyslaw IV was nominated to be Tsar, but before long Sigismund would proclaim himself to be Tsar, something that his Orthodox Russian supporters would not tolerate. This decision would cost Sigismund and Poland the throne of Russia and lead the way to the rise of the Romanovs, not to mention an independent Russia.
After doing some digging, I found that there was a magnate family by the name of Ostrogski, who claimed that they were descended from the Rurik dynasty. While the last male of the dynasty, Janusz Ostrogski, was Catholic, his family had previously been Orthodox. If he were to be chosen by King Sigismund to be the ruler of Russia in 1610, he would have been more likely to stay in power than Wladyslaw or the King himself. This post is just to see if there would be any interest in the idea of Ostrogski Tsars and the butterfly effects that they would spawn. I am in no way an expert on this subject, but I think that this would be a fun alternate history to write. Thanks for any feedback,
Philistor