Causes of the Time of Troubles:
dynastic crisis. The end of the Rurik dynasty.
The emerging lag behind Russia from the West leads to the emergence of a large number of supporters of development along the Western path. Poland is called as a role model, which by this time is turning into an aristocratic republic (“the Commonwealth” is “republic” in Polish). The Polish king is elected by the Sejm. Boris Godunov is also becoming a moderate "Westernizer".
Growing public dissatisfaction with the authorities.
1598-1613 - a period in the history of Russia, called the Time of Troubles.
At the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries, Russia was going through a political and socio-economic crisis. Livonian War and the Tatar invasion, as well as the oprichnina of Ivan the Terrible, contributed to the intensification of the crisis and the growth of discontent. This was the reason for the beginning of the Time of Troubles in Russia.
The first period of turmoil characterized by the struggle for the throne of various applicants. After the death of Ivan the Terrible, his son Fedor came to power, but he was unable to rule and was actually ruled by the brother of the tsar's wife, Boris Godunov. Ultimately, his policies aroused the discontent of the masses.
The turmoil began with the appearance in Poland of False Dmitry (in reality, Grigory Otrepyev), who allegedly miraculously survived the son of Ivan the Terrible. He lured a significant part of the Russian population to his side. In 1605, False Dmitry was supported by the governors, and then by Moscow. And already in June he became the legitimate king. But he acted too independently, which caused discontent of the boyars, he also supported serfdom, which caused a protest of the peasants. On May 17, 1606, False Dmitry I was killed and V.I. Shuisky, with the condition of limiting power. Thus, the first stage of the Troubles was marked by the reign of False Dmitry I (1605 - 1606)
The second period of turmoil. In 1606, an uprising broke out, led by I.I. Bolotnikov. The ranks of the rebels included people from different strata of society: peasants, serfs, small and medium-sized feudal lords, servicemen, Cossacks and townspeople. In the battle of Moscow they were defeated. As a result, Bolotnikov was executed.
But dissatisfaction with the authorities continued. And soon False Dmitry II appears. In January 1608, his army headed for Moscow. By June, False Dmitry II entered the village of Tushino near Moscow, where he settled. In Russia, 2 capitals were formed: boyars, merchants, officials worked on 2 fronts, sometimes even received salaries from both kings. Shuisky concluded an agreement with Sweden and the Commonwealth began aggressive hostilities. False Dmitry II fled to Kaluga.
Shuisky was tonsured a monk and taken to the Chudov Monastery. In Russia, an interregnum began - the Seven Boyars (a council of 7 boyars). The Boyar Duma made a deal with the Polish interventionists and on August 17, 1610, Moscow swore allegiance to the Polish king Vladislav. At the end of 1610, False Dmitry II was killed, but the struggle for the throne did not end there.
So, the second stage was marked by the uprising of I.I. Bolotnikov (1606 - 1607), the reign of Vasily Shuisky (1606 - 1610), the appearance of False Dmitry II, as well as the Seven Boyars (1610).
Third Period of Troubles characterized by the fight against foreign invaders. After the death of False Dmitry II, the Russians united against the Poles. The war took on a national character. In August 1612, the militia of K. Minin and D. Pozharsky reached Moscow. And on October 26, the Polish garrison surrendered. Moscow was liberated. The troubled times are over.
The results of the turmoil were depressing: the country was in a terrible situation, the treasury was ruined, trade and crafts were in decline. The consequences of the Troubles for Russia were expressed in its backwardness in comparison with European countries. It took decades to restore the economy.
AT 1613 year after the liberation of Moscow from the Polish garrison, was convened Zemsky the cathedral.
It was one of the most exemplary cathedrals on the principle that it had a huge number of participants who were represented in it in the entire history of the existence of Muscovite Russia. Representatives of the clergy, the boyars (in an extremely weakened composition), the nobility, merchants, urban townspeople and state peasants sat at the cathedral. But the most powerful group was the Cossacks. It, as an estate, became especially stronger during the Time of Troubles, when its composition was significantly replenished with representatives of the city Cossacks. These included those townspeople who, during the Time of Troubles, abandoned their main occupations, formed militias, organized themselves in the manner of Cossack detachments and never returned to their previous profession. It was they who decided that now it was time to act, that is, it was necessary to plant not the throne of a weak ruler who could quickly organize a strong administration and army and, of course, fulfill certain requirements: a general amnesty and classifying them to the nobility and endowing them with estates. Many of them also demanded money for the service rendered - the liberation of Moscow. As a result, before the first meeting of the cathedral, several candidates were nominated: from the Cossacks - Romanov, from the nobles - Pozharsky, from part of the clergy and boyars - Mstislavsky. As for the merchants, artisans and peasants, they were an undecided mass. The outcome was decided before the meeting began. On the night before the opening of the cathedral, the Cossacks blocked the residences of Pozharsky and Mstislavsky and, under threat of arms, forced them to renounce their claims to the throne. No one expected such actions, however, the nobles did not want to give up and demanded several weeks of council meetings until a compromise was found. This estate took care of the preservation of the estates received during the Troubles, and the final approval of the hereditary nature of their possessions. The Cossacks agreed to following conditions: the top of the Don Cossacks received the nobility and the right to autonomous control of their circle and the elected chieftain (he was supposed to exercise military and civil power in this territory), and the policemen would receive money. Amnesty will be received by the one who swears allegiance to the king. As a result of this agreement, Mikhail Romanov was elected tsar, the boyars go downhill and merge with the defeated nobility, and the clergy generally begin to lose autonomy (become under the control of state administration). Part of the Don Cossacks who took part in freedom movement, after the election of Mikhail went home, others remained in Moscow. They formed the basis of the government armed forces. In addition to the Don Cossacks, there were detachments of service Cossacks, who during the Time of Troubles were very imbued with the independent spirit of the Donetsk people. The Cossacks had their own military organization and did not consider themselves integral part regular army. Separate groups of them, scattered throughout the country, did not want to obey the orders of even their own seniors in rank. When supplies were depleted, they robbed the population, which was very much like robbery. In a letter to the Stroganovs dated May 25, 1613, the bishops accurately described the situation (not only regarding the Cossacks, but also about the military in general), saying that when they do not receive a salary, they either go home or willy-nilly rob. However, in addition to these forced robbers, there were many real robbers among the Cossacks. But now Romanov himself had to agree to one more condition: to share power with the Zemsky Sobor. Now it is a permanent institution that met almost without interruption throughout the reign of Mikhail Romanov. All important decisions were developed with the participation of the Council and signed as follows: by royal decree and by zemstvo verdict. The cathedral became the supreme body legislature, without which the king could not adopt a single law and amend the legislation. The cathedral shared with the king and executive power. The reason for this is that after the Time of Troubles it was impossible to immediately restore order and law without relying on the structures that were developed during the Time of Troubles. Thus, the power of the new government was forced to be based not on force, but on popular support, primarily to restore order in the country. The Boyar Duma remained a part of the Zemsky Sobor, the highest body of government and central administration, but at the same time, some changes took place in the very composition of the Boyar Duma: the Boyar Party was discredited, its representatives were removed from the Boyar Duma. Minin and Pozharsky, Cherkassky took the first roles in the Boyar Duma, and most of the posts were okolnichi and duma nobles. nobleman - Minin. He acted in close contact with Pozharsky, he was appointed chief treasurer and ruler of Muscovy. After the death of Minin in 1616, the Boyar Duma underwent some changes. Several relatives of the tsar were introduced into its composition, who assigned the boyar title and position, but initially this did not affect the balance of power in the Duma. But gradually, with the fall of the positions of Trubetskoy and Pozharsky, the Romanov clan brought the Duma under its control. The range of issues considered by the Duma as a matter of priority was determined: Issues of liquidation of the remnants of uncontrolled armed formations Destruction of Zarutsky and Mniszek Restoration of the national economy To resolve the first two issues, it was necessary to establish contact with the Cossacks. At this time, the Cossacks formed the basis of the government armed forces, in contrast to the nobility, whose position was undermined during the Time of Troubles. The Cossacks had their own military organization, they were not considered an integral part of the regular army, they did not obey anyone, and separate groups that were scattered throughout the country only knew one thing - robbery. As a result, the Zemsky Sobor charged them with high treason. A special role in the elimination of uncontrolled Cossacks was played by local city authorities. They obeyed the verdict of the Zemsky Sobor, and the bandits were caught and executed. This is how the armed opposition to the new regime was liquidated.
Zemsky Sobor in 1613. Election to the Russian throne of a tsar from the Romanov dynasty
In January 1613, the Zemsky Sobor met in Moscow, at which the issue of electing a new tsar was decided. We can say that he was in some way, the Constituent Assembly of that era. After 30 long debates, the choice fell on Mikhail Romanov. The most important criterion was the fact that he was the great-nephew of the first wife of Ivan the Terrible, Anastasia Romanovna. Played a role and the young age of Michael. At the time of his election, he was only 16 years old. Some boyars believed that, using his young age, they would rule behind his back. In July 1613, the wedding of Mikhail Romanov to the kingdom took place. The young monarch got an extremely ruined kingdom. Bandit gangs and Polish detachments raged in many parts of the country. In the autumn of 1614, Sweden launched military operations against Russia. However, they soon ended, and in 1617 peace was signed between Russia and Sweden. However, according to the articles of the Stolbovsky peace, the Baltic coast remained with Sweden. A year later, Moscow diplomats signed the Deulino truce with Poland. The Poles left Smolensk and other lands behind them, but returned noble Russian captives from captivity, among whom was the father of the tsar, Metropolitan Filaret. An important feature initial stage Mikhail's reign was the continuous work of the Zemsky Sobor, which from 1613 to 1622, for 10 years, made decisions and determined the most important directions of state policy. The subject of special concern of the Moscow government was the improvement of the general welfare. To this end, measures were taken to provide service people with local lands and peasants. During this period, further enslavement of the peasantry took place. There was a process of development and streamlining of the tax and financial systems. During the time of Mikhail Romanov, manufactory production received an impulse. Mikhail Fedorovich himself patronized the construction of gunpowder mills, greenery production and saltpeter breweries. He regularly ordered miners, metallurgists, gunsmiths, watchmakers, jewelers and other specialists from abroad. Under him, three ironworks, large for those times, were built near Tula. With the help of foreigners, weapons and iron foundries were built in the Urals. During the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich, the territory of the country increased significantly due to the peaceful development of the sparsely populated regions of the North, Eastern Siberia and Far East.
Time of Alexei Mikhailovich (1645-1676) 31 In July 1645 Tsar Mikhail died. Contemporaries testify that in connection with this, the Zemsky Sobor was convened, which elected his son Alexei Mikhailovich to the throne and swore allegiance to him. This period is characterized by the influence of constantly operating factors that decisively determined the nature and direction of Russian history. - The country continued to overcome the consequences of troubled times. - Heavy military confrontation with Poland, Sweden and Turkey, requiring significant resources and forces of the nation. - Development and strengthening of economic and cultural contacts with the West. Strengthening the influence of European civilization. - The continued territorial expansion of the state and the development of vast undeveloped regions of Siberia, the Far East and the South of Russia. The first years of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich became a time of serious social collisions and upheavals. During this period, a tax reform was carried out. The procedure for collecting payments and carrying out duties has been changed. Instead of the former, land-based principle of tax collection, they began to be collected according to the cash amount of peasants in estates and estates, which relieved the nobles of the need to pay for empty plots and increased the taxation of large land holdings. In 1646 - 1648. a household inventory of peasants and beans was carried out. The strengthening of tax oppression by the state led to social conflict and exacerbation of the class struggle. The reasons for this should also be sought in the growing role of the prikaz bureaucracy. In the middle of the XVII century. the country was shaken by the “salt riot”, urban uprisings, the “copper riot” and, finally, a powerful uprising led by S.T. Razin. No wonder contemporaries called the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich a “rebellious age.” An important moment in the legal development of Russian society in the period under review was the development and adoption at the Zemsky Sobor in 1649 of the most important legal document of that era - the Cathedral Code. The significance of the new legal document was that all classes of society were subordinated to the interests of the state. With the help of the Code, the state "seated", - in the words of V.O. Klyuchevsky, - social classes according to tightly locked class cells. In the Code, the desire of the state to gather all the available forces of the nation and subjugate them to itself found legal expression. The code enserfed a significant layer, the so-called "owning peasants." The fortress also housed the service class, which was obliged to serve the state. During this period, Russia waged heavy wars with Poland and Sweden. The raids of the Crimean khans posed a great danger to her. During the period under review, Russia maintained active trade and economic relations with the states of Northern Europe. The city of Arkhangelsk then played an important role in this trade.
The cathedral elected Mikhail Romanov to reign, marking the beginning of a new dynasty.
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Zemsky Sobors were convened in Russia repeatedly over a century and a half - from the middle of the 16th to the end of the 17th century (they were finally abolished by Peter I). However, in all other cases, they played the role of an advisory body under the current monarch and, in fact, did not limit his absolute power. The Zemsky Sobor of 1613 was convened in the conditions of a dynastic crisis. His main task was to elect and legitimize a new dynasty on the Russian throne.
The dynastic crisis in Russia erupted in 1598 after the death of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. At the time of his death, Fedor remained the only son of Tsar Ivan the Terrible. Two other sons were killed: the eldest, John Ioannovich, died in 1581, presumably at the hands of his father; the younger, Dmitry Ioannovich, in 1591 in Uglich under unclear circumstances. Fedor had no children of his own. After his death, the throne passed to the wife of the king, Irina, then to her brother Boris Godunov. After the death of Boris in 1605, the following ruled successively:
After the overthrow of Vasily Shuisky from the throne as a result of the uprising on July 17 (27), the power in Moscow passed to the interim boyar government (see Seven Boyars). In August 1610, part of the population of Moscow swore allegiance to Prince Vladislav, the son of the Polish king and Grand Duke of Lithuania Sigismund III. In September, the army of the Commonwealth entered the Kremlin. The actual power of the Moscow government in 1610-1612 was minimal. Anarchy reigned in the country, the northwestern lands (including Novgorod) were occupied Swedish troops. In Tushino near Moscow, the Tushino camp of another impostor, False Dmitry II, continued to function (False Dmitry II himself was killed in Kaluga in December 1610). To liberate Moscow from the invaders, the First People's Militia (under the leadership of Prokopiy Lyapunov, Ivan Zarutsky and Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy), and then the Second People's Militia under the leadership of Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, were successively assembled. In August 1612, the Second Militia, with part of the forces remaining near Moscow from the First Militia, defeated the army of the Commonwealth, and in October completely liberated the capital.
According to the point of view officially recognized during the era of the Romanovs (and later rooted in Soviet historiography), the council voluntarily, expressing the opinion of the majority of the inhabitants of Russia, decided to elect Romanov, in accordance with the opinion of the majority. This point of view was developed by the historian N. A. Lavrovsky, who, having studied the reports of sources, built the following scheme of events. Initially, the participants of the council decided not to choose the king from Lithuania and Sweden "with their children and Marinka with her son, as well as all foreign sovereigns", but "to choose from Moscow and Russian families." Then the participants of the council began to discuss the question of whom to elect "from the Russian clans" and decided "to elect a tsar from the tribe of the righteous ... Feodor Ivanovich of All Russia of blessed memory" - his nephew Mikhail Romanov. This description of the work of the Cathedral was repeated many times, until the beginning of the twentieth century. This position was held, in particular, by the largest Russian historians XVIII-XX centuries: N. M. Karamzin, S. M. Solovyov, N. I. Kostomarov, V. N. Tatishchev and others.
“There was then no one dearer to the Russian people than the Romanov family. For a long time he was in the love of the people. There was a good memory of the first wife of Ivan Vasilyevich, Anastasia, whom the people for her virtues revered almost as a saint. They remembered and did not forget her good brother Nikita Romanovich and condoled with his children, whom Boris Godunov tortured and overworked. They respected Metropolitan Philaret, the former boyar Fyodor Nikitich, who was a prisoner in Poland and seemed like a true Russian martyr for a just cause.
N. I. Kostomarov
The cathedral opened on January 16. The opening was preceded by a three-day fast, the purpose of which was cleansing from the sins of unrest. Moscow was almost completely destroyed and devastated, so they settled, regardless of origin, where they could. Everyone converged in the Assumption Cathedral day after day. The interests of the Romanovs at the cathedral were defended by the boyar Fyodor Sheremetev. Being a relative of the Romanovs, however, he himself could not claim the throne, since, like some other candidates, he was part of the Seven Boyars.
One of the first decisions of the council was the refusal to consider the candidacies of Vladislav and Karl Philip, as well as Marina Mnishek:
“... But the Lithuanian and Sviatian king and their children, for their many lies, and no other people should be robbed of the Moscow state, and Marinka and her son should not be wanted”
S. F. Platonov
But even after such a decision, the Romanovs were still opposed by many strong candidates. Of course, they all had certain shortcomings (see above). However, the Romanovs also had an important drawback - in comparison with the old Russian families, they clearly did not shine with their origin. The first historically reliable ancestor of the Romanovs is traditionally considered the Moscow boyar Andrei Kobyla, who came from a Prussian princely family.
According to the official version, the election of the Romanovs became possible due to the fact that the candidacy of Mikhail Romanov turned out to be a compromise in many respects:
“Let's choose Misha Romanov! - boyar Fyodor Sheremetyev campaigned without hiding his intentions. “He is young and will be familiar to us!” ... The desire to have a "common" inexperienced monarch is the goal pursued by highly experienced and cunning Moscow politicians, supporters of Mikhail (A. Ya. Degtyarev)
More consistently [ ] sets out the reasons for the election of Mikhail Romanov to the kingdom of Lev Gumilyov:
“The Cossacks were in favor of Mikhail, since his father, who was friends with the Tushins, was not an enemy to the Cossacks. The boyars remembered that the father of the applicant was from a noble boyar family and, moreover, a cousin of Fyodor Ioannovich, the last tsar from the family of Ivan Kalita. The hierarchs of the church spoke out in support of Romanov, since his father was a monk, and in the rank of metropolitan, and for the nobles the Romanovs were good, as opponents of the oprichnina.
According to a number of historians, the decision of the council was not completely voluntary. The first vote on Mikhail's candidacy took place on 4 (7?) February. The result of the vote deceived Sheremetev's expectations:
“When the majority was sufficiently prepared by Sheremetyev’s concerns, a preliminary vote was scheduled for February 4. The result, undoubtedly, deceived expectations, therefore, referring to the absence of many voters, they decided to postpone the decisive vote for two weeks ... The leaders themselves, obviously, needed a delay in order to better prepare public opinion... "(K. Valishevsky)
Indeed, the decisive vote was scheduled for February 21 (March 3). The council, however, made another decision, objectionable to Sheremetev: he demanded that Mikhail Romanov, like all other candidates, immediately appear at the council. Sheremetev in every possible way prevented the implementation of this decision, motivating his position with security considerations. Indeed, some evidence indicates that the life of the pretender to the throne was in danger. According to legend, a special detachment of troops from the Commonwealth was sent to the village of Domnino, where Mikhail Fedorovich was hiding, to kill him, but the Domnino peasant Ivan Susanin led the enemies into impenetrable swamps and saved the life of the future tsar. Critics of the official version offer another explanation:
February 20, 1613. On the porch of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, cellar of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra Avraamy Palitsyn read out the decision of the Zemsky Sobor "On the election of the boyar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov to the royal throne." (“The book on the election of the Tsar and Grand Duke Mikhail Fedorovich to the kingdom”, 1672-1673)
Some evidence points to possible cause such a change. On February 10, 1613, two merchants arrived in Novgorod, reporting the following:
“The Russian Cossacks, who are in Moscow, wished for a boyar named Prince Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov as a grand duke. But the boyars were completely against it and rejected it at the Council, which was recently convened in Moscow. (L.V. Cherepnin)
And here is the testimony of the peasant Fyodor Bobyrkin, who also arrived in Novgorod, dated July 16 (26), five days after the coronation:
Moscow simple people and the Cossacks own will and without the general consent of other zemstvo ranks, they chose the Grand Duke of Fedorov's son, Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, who is now in Moscow. Zemstvo officials and boyars do not respect him.” (L.V. Cherepnin)
The Lithuanian commander Leo Sapieha reported the results of the elections to the captive Filaret, the father of the newly elected monarch:
“They put your son on the Muscovite state, only Don Cossacks.” (S. F. Platonov)
Here is a story written by another eyewitness to the events.
“The boyars played for time at the cathedral, trying to resolve the issue of the tsar “secretly” from the Cossacks and waiting for their departure from Moscow. But they not only did not leave, but behaved more actively. Once, having consulted with "the entire Cossack army", they sent up to five hundred people to the Krutitsy Metropolitan. Forcibly, having broken down the gate, they broke into his courtyard and demanded with “rude words”: “Give us, Metropolitan, the Tsar of the Sovereign to Russia, whom we should bow to and serve and ask for a salary, die to a smooth death!” (Romanovs , Historical portraits, edited by E. V. Leonova)
The frightened metropolitan fled to the boyars. They hurriedly called everyone to the cathedral. The Cossack chieftains repeated their demand. The boyars presented them with a list of eight boyars - the most, in their opinion, worthy candidates. The list did not include the name of Romanov! Then one of the Cossack chieftains spoke:
“Princes and boyars and all Moscow nobles! Not by the will of God, but by autocracy and by your own will, you elect an autocrat. But by the will of God and with the blessing ... of the Grand Duke Fyodor Ioannovich of All Russia, with his blessed memory, to whom, sovereign, bless his royal staff and reign in Russia, Prince Fyodor Nikitich Romanov. And that one is now full in Lithuania. And from a good root and branch, good and honor is his son, Prince Mikhailo Fedorovich. May it be fitting, according to the will of God, in the reigning city of Moscow and all Russia, may there be a tsar sovereign and Grand Duke Mikhailo Fedorovich of All Russia…” (ibid.)
On March 2, an embassy was sent to Mikhail Romanov and his mother, who was in Kostroma, on behalf of the Zemsky Sobor, under the leadership of Ryazan Archbishop Theodoret Troitsky. The embassy included archimandrites of Chudov, Novospassky, Simonov monasteries, boyars F.I. Sheremetyev, V.I. Bakhteyarov-Rostovskaya, boyar children, clerks, elected from cities (Palace ranks. T. 1. SPb., 1850. Stbl .17-18). The purpose of the embassy is to notify Michael of his election to the throne and hand him the conciliar oath. According to the official version, Michael was frightened and flatly refused to reign, so the ambassadors had to use all their eloquence to convince the future king to accept the crown. Critics of the "Romanov" concept express doubts about the sincerity of the refusal and note that the conciliar oath has no historical value:
Of the year. (Palace ranks. T. 1. St. Petersburg, 1850. Stbl. 95).
As part of the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the dynasty Russian tsars Romanovs in the Zaonezhsky village of Tolvuya on April 18, an interschool scientific and practical conference was held, as reported in the April issue of the Kizhi newspaper. Today, continuing the series of publications dedicated to the anniversary date, we begin to acquaint readers with the best materials conference participants.
The election of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov to the kingdom, according to the traditional point of view, put an end to the Time of Troubles and gave rise to the Romanov dynasty. People of that time believed (and not without reason) that in order to be sure of the future, one sovereign was needed, who would be a symbol of power. Therefore, the election of a new king concerned everyone and everyone.
The leadership of the Zemsky militia began preparing the electoral Zemsky Sobor immediately after the liberation of Moscow. A king was to be chosen. Zemsky Sobor correct composition consisted of the Boyar Duma, the Consecrated Cathedral and representatives of the province. Some Russian lands could send only 10-15 people. Moscow was destroyed, and the only building that could accommodate everyone was the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin. The number of those gathered could be from 700 to 1500 people.
At the very beginning of 1613, elected representatives from all over the Russian land began to gather in Moscow. It was the first indisputably all-class Zemsky Sobor with the participation of townspeople and even rural inhabitants.
Representatives of the clergy, the boyars (in an extremely weakened composition), the nobility, merchants, urban townspeople and state peasants sat at the cathedral. But the most powerful group was the Cossacks. As an estate, it became especially strong during the Time of Troubles, when its composition was significantly replenished with representatives of the city Cossacks. These included those townspeople who, during the Time of Troubles, abandoned their main occupations, formed militias, organized themselves in the manner of Cossack detachments and never returned to their previous profession.
The Zemsky Sobor began its work on January 6, 1613, on the Epiphany of the Lord. The first three days were dedicated to fasting and prayer. On the fourth day, the decision to elect foreign representatives to the Russian throne - the Polish and Swedish princes - was annulled, and the candidacy of the son of Marina Mnishek and False Dmitry II was also rejected. Following this, a list of eight Moscow boyars was announced, from which the tsar was to be elected.
The leaders of the Zemsky militia, apparently, had no doubt that the former members of the Seven Boyars - both those who served foreigners (Prince Fyodor Mstislavsky, Ivan Romanov) and those who refused to cooperate with them (Prince Ivan Vorotynsky, Fyodor Sheremetiev) - would be rejected by the members of the Zemsky Sobor, and made no mistake in their calculations. They were probably confident that in the current situation, militia candidates would receive significant advantages. In order not to scatter forces, it was decided to organize an action in support of the main candidate from the militias - Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy.
But none of the candidates proposed by the council won the necessary majority of votes, and the plan for the tsar's election, thought out to the smallest detail, failed. Immediately, new contenders for the throne began to appear and be rejected at the cathedral: Mikhail Romanov, Prince Dmitry Cherkassky, Prince Ivan Golitsyn, Prince Ivan Shuisky-Pugovka.
The course of the work of the cathedral was clearly out of control of its organizers. According to the established practice, under these conditions, the decision on the issue of the royal election inevitably had to be brought to the streets of Moscow, where the influence of the Cossack circle was strong. The winners - the Cossack-noble militia - could not agree for a long time: all candidates were swept aside. The nobles did not want to see Dmitry Trubetskoy on the throne, for although he was a prince, he commanded the Cossacks. The Cossacks did not want to have Prince Dmitry Pozharsky as a sovereign: after all, he was the leader of the noble militia. But there was another candidate - a quiet and completely colorless person, sixteen-year-old Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov.
Evidence has been preserved of the decisive influence of the Cossacks on the verdict of the Zemsky Sobor. On April 13, 1613, Swedish scouts reported from Moscow that the Cossacks had elected M. F. Romanov against the will of the boyars, forcing Trubetskoy and Pozharsky to agree to this candidacy after the siege of their yards. Jacques Margeret in 1613, in a letter to the English king James I, urging him to intervene, wrote that the Cossacks chose "this child" to manipulate him, and that most of Russian society would gladly meet the English army, because they lived in constant fear of Cossacks. The serf of the Novgorod nobleman F. Bobarykin, who fled to Novgorod from Moscow in June 1613, claimed that the tsar was chosen by "Moscow ordinary people and Cossacks" without general consent. Finally, the so-called "Chronograph" Obolensky second half of XVII in. mentions that the “glorious Don ataman” spoke out for the election of Mikhail Romanov at the cathedral.
Of course, the supporters of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov were not only Cossacks. He was supported by an influential boyar group and a certain part of the nobility. The data of the Report on Estates and Estates of 1613, which recorded land grants made immediately after the election of the tsar, make it possible to identify the most active members of the Romanov entourage. In the first weeks of his reign, Mikhail Fedorovich granted estates in Vologda, Galich and Beloozero to an extensive "group of comrades": Sheremetevs, Golovins, Saltykovs, Prince Lobanov-Rostovsky, Prince Golitsyn, Prince Troekurov, Prince Pronsky, Prince Khilkov, Prince Yegupov-Cherkassky, Prince Lvov -Saltykov, Prince Mezetsky, Tatishchev, Trakhaniotov, Pleshcheev, Volynsky, Nagih, princes Repnin, Sumin, Tyumen, Zvenigorodsky, Shcherbatov, Dmitriev, Selunsky, Shekhovsky, Begichev.
It is noteworthy that the uncle of the tsar, the boyar Ivan Nikitich Romanov, who was one of the main assistants to the head of the Seven Boyars, Prince Mstislavsky, was not among those granted initial period the work of the cathedral, along with other seventh boyars, stayed on a pilgrimage.
So, by February 25, elections were held and Mikhail Romanov was proclaimed the Russian Tsar. On the frontal place, the Cossack army swore allegiance to the new tsar. The legality of the vote itself has never been questioned. It is curious that V.O. Klyuchevsky later very accurately remarked about the elections: "We wanted to choose not the most capable, but the most convenient."
Letters announcing the election of Mikhail Romanov as tsar were sent to all parts of the country.
A special embassy was sent to Mikhail Romanov: ambassadors from the Zemsky Sobor, headed by the Archbishop of Ryazan Theodoret, the cellarer of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery Avraamy Palitsyn and the boyar Fyodor Ivanovich Sheremetev.
Actually, Romanov still had to be found, since the Cathedral did not have exact information about the place of his stay, so the embassy was ordered to go to "Yaroslavl or where he, sovereign, will be."
Mikhail and his mother were first in the family estate near Kostroma, where, according to legend, he was miraculously saved from the Poles through the efforts of Ivan Susanin, and then in the Ipatiev Monastery.
The embassy reached Kostroma by the evening of March 13th. The next day at the head procession it went to ask Michael to take over the kingdom. In reality, it was not him who had to ask, but his mother, nun Marfa, who then for several more years (until Filaret returned from Poland) made decisions for her son. A report from the embassy to Moscow has been preserved about how Mikhail was persuaded to accept the kingdom and with what doubts he made this decision.
On March 14, 1613, Russia had a legally elected tsar. Subsequent events showed that the choice was not the worst. And it’s even good that for many years Mikhail was only a nominal ruler, and the real power was in the hands of people with great life experience - first his mother, and then his father, Patriarch Filaret, who, upon his return from captivity, was officially proclaimed co-ruler of the king.
The gradual overcoming of the consequences of the Time of Troubles, the marriage of Michael and the birth of the heir to the throne created the conviction in the country that the new dynasty would be for a long time. And so it happened: the Romanov dynasty reigned for more than 300 years.
The election of the sovereign took place, and this was the beginning of calming the country. Mikhail Romanov had strong rivals, events unfolded unpredictably, and his chances of becoming Tsar were slim. However, the very election of Michael to the kingdom can hardly be regarded as an accident. His candidacy was announced by the boyars, then the Cossacks spoke for him, the clergy also supported him - thus, we can talk about the popular election of Mikhail Romanov to the Russian throne.
What did the other participants in the Zemsky Sobor get?
The nobility took care of the preservation of the estates received during the Time of Troubles, and the final approval of the hereditary nature of their possessions.
The Cossacks agreed to the following conditions: the top of the Don Cossacks received the nobility and the right to autonomous control of their circle and the elected ataman (he was supposed to exercise military and civil power in this territory), and the policemen received money. The amnesty was received by the one who swore allegiance to the king. Some of the Don Cossacks who took part in the liberation movement went home after the election of Mikhail, others remained in Moscow. They formed the basis of the government armed forces. In addition to the Don Cossacks, there were detachments of service Cossacks, who during the Time of Troubles were very imbued with the independent spirit of the Donetsk people. The Cossacks had their own military organization and did not consider themselves part of the regular army. Separate groups of them, scattered throughout the country, did not want to obey the orders of even their own seniors in rank. When supplies were depleted, they robbed the population, which was very much like robbery.
But now Romanov himself had to agree to one more condition: to share power with the Zemsky Sobor. Now the Zemsky Sobor has become a permanent institution, meeting almost without interruption throughout the reign of Mikhail Romanov. All important decisions were developed with the participation of the Council and signed as follows: "according to the royal decree and the zemstvo verdict." The cathedral became the highest body of legislative power, without which the king could not adopt a single law and amend the legislation.
The cathedral shared with the king and executive power. The reason for this is that after the Time of Troubles it was impossible to immediately restore order and law without relying on the structures that were developed during the Time of Troubles.
Thus, the power of the new government was forced to be based not on force, but on popular support, primarily to restore order in the country.
The Boyar Duma remained part of the Zemsky Sobor, the highest body of government and central administration, but at the same time, some changes took place in the very composition of the Boyar Duma:
The first composition of the new Duma included: 2 boyars, 5 rounders, 7 duma nobles, 4 duma clerks, and the Duma nobleman Minin was the most influential person in it. The range of issues considered by the Duma as a matter of priority was determined: issues of liquidating the remnants of the uncontrolled Cossacks; the destruction of Zarutsky and Mnishek; restoration of the national economy.
To resolve the first two issues, it was necessary to establish contact with the Cossacks. At this time, the Cossacks formed the basis of the government armed forces, in contrast to the nobility, whose position was undermined during the Time of Troubles. The Cossacks had their own military organization, they were not considered an integral part of the regular army, they did not obey anyone, and separate groups that were scattered throughout the country knew only one thing - robbery.
As a result, the Zemsky Sobor charged them with high treason. A special role in the elimination of uncontrolled Cossacks was played by local city authorities. They obeyed the verdict of the Zemsky Sobor, and the bandits were caught and executed. I. Zarutsky, M. Mniszek and her three-year-old son, "Vorenok Ivashka", were executed.
This is how the armed opposition to the new regime was liquidated.
Assuming the throne, the new king did not conclude any agreement with his subjects. This meant that the tsarist power again became unlimited, autocratic, as under the Rurik dynasty. But after the storms of the Time of Troubles, the country needed a strong one-man power for peace to come.
Thus began the three-hundred-year service of the Romanov dynasty for the benefit of Russia.
In preparing the material, the following literature was used: “The Romanovs. 300 years of service to Russia”, M.: ed. Bely Gorod, comp. Astakhov A.Yu.; I. Tyumentsev “Misha is young in mind, he didn’t reach ...”, Rodina magazine, No. 11, 2006; Klyuchevsky V.O. "Works", M., 1990
Maxim KASHEVAROV, 7th grade Tolvui secondary school
Zemsky Sobor of 1613- a constitutional assembly of representatives of various lands and estates of the Moscow kingdom, drawn up for the election of a new tsar to the throne. It was opened on January 7, 1613 in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. On February 21 (March 3), 1613, the cathedral elected Mikhail Romanov as king, marking the beginning of a new dynasty.
Zemsky Sobors were convened in Russia repeatedly over a century and a half - from the middle of the 16th to the end of the 17th century (finally abolished by Peter I). However, in all other cases, they played the role of an advisory body under the current monarch and, in fact, did not limit his absolute power. The Zemsky Sobor of 1613 was convened in the conditions of a dynastic crisis. His main task was to elect and legitimize a new dynasty on the Russian throne.
The dynastic crisis in Russia erupted in 1598 after the death of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. At the time of his death, Fedor remained the only son of Tsar Ivan the Terrible. Two other sons were killed: the eldest, John Ioannovich, died in 1581 at the hands of his father; the younger, Dmitry Ioannovich, in 1591 in Uglich under unclear circumstances. Fedor had no children of his own. After his death, the throne passed to the wife of the king, Irina, then to her brother Boris Godunov. After the death of Boris in 1605, they successively ruled:
After the overthrow of Vasily Shuisky from the throne as a result of the uprising on July 27, 1610, power in Moscow passed to the provisional boyar government (see Seven Boyars). In August 1610, part of the population of Moscow swore allegiance to Prince Vladislav, son of the Polish King Sigismund III. In September, the Polish army entered the Kremlin. The actual power of the Moscow government in 1610-1612 was minimal. Anarchy reigned in the country, the northwestern lands (including Novgorod) were occupied by Swedish troops. In Tushino near Moscow, the Tushino camp of another impostor, False Dmitry II, continued to function (False Dmitry II himself was killed in Kaluga in December 1610). To liberate Moscow from the Polish army, the First civil uprising(under the leadership of Prokopy Lyapunov, Ivan Zarutsky and Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy), and then the Second People's Militia under the leadership of Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky. In August 1612, the Second Militia, with part of the forces remaining near Moscow from the First Militia, defeated Polish army, and in October completely liberated the capital.
October 26, 1612 in Moscow, deprived of support from the main forces of Hetman Khodkevich, the Polish garrison capitulated. After the liberation of the capital, it became necessary to choose a new sovereign. Letters were sent from Moscow to many Russian cities on behalf of the liberators of Moscow - Pozharsky and Trubetskoy. Information came about the documents sent to Sol Vychegodskaya, Pskov, Novgorod, Uglich. These letters, dated mid-November 1612, ordered representatives of each city to arrive in Moscow before December 6th. However, the elected for a long time gathered from the distant ends of the still seething Russia. Some lands (for example, Tverskaya) were devastated and burned completely. Someone sent 10-15 people, someone just one representative. The opening date of the meetings of the Zemsky Sobor was postponed from December 6 to January 6. In dilapidated Moscow, the only building left that can accommodate all the elected ones is the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. According to various estimates, the number of those gathered varies from 700 to 1500 people.
In 1613, in addition to Mikhail Romanov, both representatives of the local nobility and representatives of the ruling dynasties of neighboring countries claimed the Russian throne. Among the last candidates for the throne were:
Among the representatives of the local nobility, the following names stood out. As can be seen from the above list, they all had serious shortcomings in the eyes of voters.
In addition, the candidacy of Marina Mniszek and her son from marriage with False Dmitry II, nicknamed "Raven", was considered.
According to the point of view officially recognized during the era of the Romanovs (and later rooted in Soviet historiography), the council voluntarily, expressing the opinion of the majority of the inhabitants of Russia, decided to elect Romanov, in accordance with the opinion of the majority. This position is held, in particular, by the largest Russian historians of the 18th-20th centuries: N. M. Karamzin, S. M. Solovyov, N. I. Kostomarov, V. N. Tatishchev and others.
This concept is characterized by the denial of the desire of the Romanovs for power. At the same time, the negative assessment of the three previous rulers is obvious. Boris Godunov, False Dmitry I, Vasily Shuisky in the view of "novelists" look like negative characters.
However, some historians take a different view. The most radical of them believe that in February 1613 there was a coup, a seizure, a usurpation of power. Others believe that we are talking about not completely fair elections, which brought victory not to the most worthy, but to the most cunning candidate. Both parts of the "anti-Romanists" are unanimous in their opinion that the Romanovs did everything to achieve the throne, and that the events of the beginning of the 17th century should not be viewed as a turmoil that ended with the arrival of the Romanovs, but as a power struggle that ended with the victory of one of the competitors. According to the "anti-Romanists", the council created only the appearance of choice, in fact this opinion was not the opinion of the majority. And later, as a result of deliberate distortions and falsifications, the Romanovs managed to create a "myth" about the election of Mikhail Romanov to the kingdom.
"Anti-Romanists" point to the following factors that cast doubt on the legitimacy of the new king:
The cathedral opened on January 7th. The opening was preceded by a three-day fast in order to be cleansed from the sins of unrest. Moscow was almost completely destroyed and devastated, so they settled, regardless of origin, where they could. Everyone converged in the Assumption Cathedral day after day. The interests of the Romanovs at the cathedral were defended by the boyar Fyodor Sheremetev. Being a relative of the Romanovs, however, he himself could not claim the throne, since, like some other candidates, he was part of the Seven Boyars.
One of the first decisions of the council was the refusal to consider the candidacies of Vladislav and Karl Philip, as well as Marina Mnishek:
But even after such a decision, the Romanovs were still opposed by many strong candidates. Of course, they all had certain shortcomings (see above). However, the Romanovs also had an important drawback - in comparison with the old Russian families, they clearly did not shine with their origin. The first historically reliable ancestor of the Romanovs is traditionally considered the Moscow boyar Andrei Kobyla, who came from a Prussian princely family.
According to the official version, the election of the Romanovs became possible due to the fact that the candidacy of Mikhail Romanov turned out to be a compromise in many respects:
More consistently sets out the reasons for the election of Mikhail Romanov to the kingdom of Lev Gumilyov:
However, according to a number of historians, the decision of the council was not entirely voluntary. The first vote on Mikhail's candidacy took place on 4 (7?) February. The result of the vote deceived Sheremetev's expectations:
Indeed, the decisive vote was scheduled for February 21 (March 3), 1613. The council, however, made another decision, objectionable to Sheremetev: he demanded that Mikhail Romanov, like all other candidates, immediately appear at the council. Sheremetev in every possible way prevented the implementation of this decision, motivating his position with security considerations. Indeed, some evidence indicates that the life of the pretender to the throne was in danger. According to legend, a special Polish detachment was sent to the village of Domnino, where Mikhail Fedorovich was hiding, to kill him, but the Domnino peasant Ivan Susanin led the Poles into impenetrable swamps and saved the life of the future tsar. Critics of the official version offer another explanation:
The Council continued to insist, but later (tentatively February 17-18) changed its mind, allowing Mikhail Romanov to stay in Kostroma. And on February 21 (March 3), 1613, he elected Romanov to the kingdom.
Some evidence points to a possible reason for this change. On February 10, 1613, two merchants arrived in Novgorod, reporting the following:
And here is the testimony of the peasant Fyodor Bobyrkin, who also arrived in Novgorod, dated July 16, 1613 - five days after the coronation:
The Polish commander Lev Sapieha reported the results of the elections to the captive Filaret, the father of the newly elected monarch:
Here is a story written by another eyewitness to the events.
The frightened metropolitan fled to the boyars. They hurriedly called everyone to the cathedral. The Cossack atamans repeated their demand. The boyars presented them with a list of eight boyars - the most, in their opinion, worthy candidates. The list did not include the name of Romanov! Then one of the Cossack chieftains spoke:
A few days later, an embassy was sent to Kostroma, where Romanov lived with his mother, under the leadership of Archimandrite Theodoret Troitsky. The purpose of the embassy is to notify Michael of his election to the throne and to hand him the conciliar oath. According to the official version, Michael was frightened and flatly refused to reign, so the ambassadors had to use all their eloquence to convince the future king to accept the crown. Critics of the "Romanov" concept express doubts about the sincerity of the refusal and note that the conciliar oath has no historical value:
One way or another, Michael agreed to accept the throne and left for Moscow, where he arrived on May 2, 1613. The coronation in Moscow took place on July 11, 1613.
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