1598-1613 - a period in Russian history called the Time of Troubles.

At the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries, Russia was experiencing a political and socio-economic crisis. The 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.

First period of turmoil characterized by the struggle for the throne of various pretenders. After the death of Ivan the Terrible, his son Fedor came to power, but he turned out to be unable to rule and was actually ruled by the brother of the king’s wife - Boris Godunov. Ultimately, his policies caused discontent among the popular masses.

The Troubles began with the appearance in Poland of False Dmitry (in reality Grigory Otrepiev), the allegedly miraculously surviving son of Ivan the Terrible. He won over a significant part of the Russian population to his side. In 1605, False Dmitry was supported by the governors, and then Moscow. And already in June he became the legitimate king. But he acted too independently, which caused discontent among the boyars; he also supported serfdom, which caused protest from the peasants. On May 17, 1606, False Dmitry I was killed and V.I. ascended the throne. Shuisky, with the condition of limiting power. Thus, the first stage of the turmoil was marked by the reign False Dmitry I(1605 - 1606)

Second period of troubles. In 1606, an uprising arose, the leader of which was I.I. Bolotnikov. The ranks of the militia included people from different walks of life: peasants, serfs, small and medium-sized feudal lords, servicemen, Cossacks and townspeople. They were defeated in the battle of Moscow. As a result, Bolotnikov was executed.

But dissatisfaction with the authorities continued. And soon appears False Dmitry II. In January 1608, his army headed towards 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 receiving salaries from both kings. Shuisky concluded an agreement with Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth began aggressive military operations. False Dmitry II fled to Kaluga.

Shuisky was tonsured a monk and taken to the Chudov Monastery. An interregnum began in Russia - 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 acquired a national character. In August 1612, the militia of K. Minin and D. Pozharsky reached Moscow. And already on October 26, the Polish garrison surrendered. Moscow was liberated. Time of Troubles ended.

Results of the Troubles 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 compared to European countries. It took decades to restore the economy.

13. Russia's entry into the era of modern times. The first Romanovs.

A deep crisis that has captured all areas of life Russian society at the beginning of the 17th century, spilled over into bloody conflicts and the struggle for independence.

Reasons:

1. The most severe crisis in the country, which is connected with the reign of Ivan the Terrible.
2. Lost western lands(Ivan - city, pit, Karelian).
3. Other states, Sweden, Poland, and England, actively intervene on land issues.
4. Social disagreements among different strata of society are intensifying (between the tsarist government and the boyars, boyars and nobles, feudal lords and peasants, feudal lords and the church).
5. Crisis in the dynasty.
6. Fyodor, the son of Ivan the Terrible, takes over the throne after the death of his father.
7. In Uglich, in 1591, Dmitry, the youngest son of Ivan the Terrible, dies under unknown circumstances.
8. In 1598, Fedor dies, the dynasty of the house of Kalita is ended.

The main stages of the turmoil:

1598 – 1605. The decisive figure of that time was Boris Godunov. He was famous as a cruel politician. At the beginning of the 17th century, three years of famine killed hundreds of thousands of people. Historians claim that about one third of the Russian population died at this time. For the first time, the state came to the aid of those in need. Boris Godunov gave orders to issue bread and cash benefits and to limit bread prices. These measures did not produce any results. There were massive uprisings across the country.

A man appears, a fugitive monk Grigory Otrepiev, who introduces himself as the rescued Tsarevich Dmitry. Received in history the name False Dmitry 1. He organized a detachment in Poland, and in 1604 crossed the border with Russia. The common people saw in him a liberator from serfdom. In 1605, Boris Godunov dies. In 1606, False Dmitry was killed.

The second stage 1606 - 1610. Tsar Vasily Shuisky, nominated by the boyars, comes to power. Ivan Bolotnikov rebelled against him. Excitement united various social groups(Cossacks, peasants, serfs, nobles), winning victories in Tula, Kaluga, Yelets, Kashira. When moving towards Moscow they were defeated and retreated to Tula. In October 1607, the rebellion was suppressed. Shuisky brutally dealt with the leader and together with him executed 6 thousand rebels.

In July 1607, another adventurer False Dmitry 2 appears. He gathers a detachment that approaches the village of Tushino. The confrontation between the “Tushinsky thief” and Vasily Shuisky lasted for two years. With the help of the Swedish king, the king managed to cope with the impostor. False Dmitry 2 was killed in Kaluga by his own accomplice.

In the summer of 1610, the Swedes attacked Moscow and defeated the tsar’s army. The people openly expressed dissatisfaction with the authorities and overthrew Shuisky from the throne. The seven-boyar system was established. Moscow was occupied by the Poles. The country was threatened with loss of independence.

Third stage. 1611-1613. Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Hermogenes made an appeal to the people, urging them to liberate Moscow. The first movement, led by Prokopiy Lyapunov, fell apart and the leader was killed. The second was headed by the zemstvo elder Minin and Prince Pozharsky, who in August 1612 approached captured Moscow. The Polish invaders found themselves without food. In October Russia was liberated.

Results:

The country suffered great losses. More than one-third of the population died during the Troubles.
- Russia was in a position of economic catastrophe.
- Large losses of territory ( Chernigov land, Smolenskaya, Novgorod-Severskaya, Baltic states).
- A new Romanov dynasty has come to power.

Romanov Dynasty:

In January 1613 Zemsky Sobor Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov is elected. He was 16 years old then. He and his famous descendants had the honor of solving 3 important problems for Russia:
- restoration of territories.
- restoration of state power.
- economic recovery.

Late XVI and beginning of XVII centuries were marked in Russian history by troubles. Having started at the top, it quickly went down, captured all layers of Moscow society and brought the state to the brink of destruction. The Troubles lasted for more than a quarter of a century - from the death of Ivan the Terrible until the election of Mikhail Fedorovich to the kingdom (1584-1613). The duration and intensity of the turmoil clearly indicate that it did not come from outside and not by chance, that its roots were hidden deep in the state organism. But at the same time, the Time of Troubles amazes with its obscurity and uncertainty. This is not political revolution, since it did not begin in the name of a new political ideal and did not lead to it, although the existence of political motives in turmoil; this is not a social revolution, since, again, the unrest did not arise from social movement, although in its further development the aspirations of some sections of society for social change were intertwined with it. “Our turmoil is the fermentation of a sick state organism, striving to get out of those contradictions to which the previous course of history led it and which could not be resolved in a peaceful, ordinary way.” All previous hypotheses about the origin of the turmoil, despite the fact that each of them contains some truth, must be abandoned as not completely solving the problem. There were two main contradictions that caused the Time of Troubles. The first of them was political, which can be defined in the words of Professor Klyuchevsky: “The Moscow sovereign, whom the course of history led to democratic sovereignty, had to act through a very aristocratic administration”; both of these forces, which grew together thanks to the state unification of Rus' and worked together on it, were imbued with mutual distrust and enmity. The second contradiction can be called social: the Moscow government was forced to strain all its forces to better organize the highest defense of the state and “under the pressure of these higher needs, sacrifice the interests of the industrial and agricultural classes, whose labor served as the basis national economy, the interests of service landowners", the consequence of which was the mass exodus of the tax-paying population from the centers to the outskirts, which intensified with the expansion of state territory suitable for agriculture. The first contradiction was the result of the collection of appanages by Moscow. The annexation of appanages did not have the character of a violent, exterminatory war. The Moscow government left the appanage in the management of his former prince and was content with the fact that the latter recognized the power of the Moscow sovereign, became his servant. The power of the Moscow sovereign, as Klyuchevsky put it, did not take the place of the appanage princes, but above them; “the new state order was a new layer of relations and institutions, which lay on top of what was acting before, without destroying it, but only assigning new responsibilities to it, pointing out new tasks to it." The new princely boyars, having pushed aside the ancient Moscow boyars, took first place in the degree of their pedigree seniority, accepting only very few of the Moscow boyars into their environment on equal terms with themselves. Thus, around the Moscow sovereign there was formed vicious circle prince-boyars, who became the pinnacle of his administration, his main council in governing the country. The authorities previously ruled the state individually and in parts, but now they began to rule the entire earth, occupying positions according to the seniority of their breed. The Moscow government recognized this right for them, even supported it, contributed to its development in the form of localism, and thereby fell into the above-mentioned contradiction. The power of the Moscow sovereigns arose on the basis of patrimonial rights. The Grand Duke of Moscow was the owner of his inheritance; all the inhabitants of his territory were his “slaves.” The entire previous course of history led to the development of this view of territory and population. Recognition of the rights of the boyars Grand Duke betrayed his ancient traditions, which in reality he could not replace with others. Ivan the Terrible was the first to understand this contradiction. The Moscow boyars were strong mainly because of their family land holdings. Ivan the Terrible planned to carry out a complete mobilization of boyar land ownership, taking away from the boyars their ancestral appanage nests, giving them other lands in return in order to break their connection with the land and deprive them of their former significance. The boyars were defeated; it was replaced by the lower court layer. Simple boyar families, like the Godunovs and Zakharyins, seized primacy at court. The surviving remnants of the boyars became embittered and prepared for unrest. On the other hand, the 16th century. was an era of external wars that ended with the acquisition of vast spaces in the east, southeast and west. To conquer them and to consolidate new acquisitions, a huge number of military forces were required, which the government recruited from everywhere, in difficult cases not disdaining the services of slaves. The service class in the Moscow state received, in the form of a salary, land on the estate - and land without workers had no value. The land, which was far from the borders of military defense, also did not matter, since a serving person could not serve with it. Therefore, the government was forced to transfer a huge expanse of land in the central and southern parts of the state into service hands. The palace and black peasant volosts lost their independence and came under the control of service people. The previous division into volosts inevitably had to be destroyed with small changes. The process of "possession" of lands is exacerbated by the above-mentioned mobilization of lands, which was the result of persecution against the boyars. Mass evictions ruined the economy of service people, but even more ruined the tax collectors. The mass relocation of the peasantry to the outskirts begins. At the same time, a huge area of ​​Zaoksk black soil is being opened up for resettlement for the peasantry. The government itself, taking care of strengthening the newly acquired borders, supports resettlement to the outskirts. As a result, by the end of the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the eviction took on the character of a general flight, intensified by shortages, epidemics, and Tatar raids. Most of the service lands remain “empty”; a sharp economic crisis ensues. The peasants lost the right of independent land ownership, with the placement of service people on their lands; the townspeople population found themselves forced out of the southern towns and cities occupied military force: former trading places take on the character of military-administrative settlements. The townspeople are running. In this economic crisis There is a struggle for workers. The stronger ones win - the boyars and the church. The suffering elements remain the service class and, even more so, the peasant element, which not only lost the right to free land use, but, with the help of indentured servitude, loans and the newly emerged institution of old-timers (see), begins to lose personal freedom, to approach the serfs. In this struggle, enmity grows between individual classes - between the large owner-boyars and the church, on the one hand, and the service class, on the other. The oppressive population harbors hatred for the classes that oppress them and, irritated by state dispositions, are ready for open rebellion; it runs to the Cossacks, who have long separated their interests from the interests of the state. Only the north, where the land remained in the hands of the black volosts, remains calm during the advancing state “ruin.”

In the development of the turmoil in the Moscow state, researchers usually distinguish three periods: dynastic, during which there was a struggle for the Moscow throne between various contenders (until May 19, 1606); social - the time of class struggle in the Moscow state, complicated by the intervention of foreign states in Russian affairs (until July 1610); national - the fight against foreign elements and the choice of a national sovereign (until February 21, 1613).

First period of Troubles

The last minutes of False Dmitry's life. Painting by K. Wenig, 1879

Now the old boyar party found itself at the head of the board, which chose V. Shuisky as king. “The boyar-princely reaction in Moscow” (the expression of S. F. Platonov), having mastered the political position, elevated its most noble leader to the kingdom. The election of V. Shuisky to the throne took place without the advice of the whole earth. The Shuisky brothers, V.V. Golitsyn with his brothers, Iv. S. Kurakin and I.M. Vorotynsky, having agreed among themselves, brought Prince Vasily Shuisky to the execution site and from there proclaimed him tsar. It was natural to expect that the people would be against the “shouted out” tsar and that the secondary boyars (Romanovs, Nagiye, Belsky, M.G. Saltykov, etc.), which gradually began to recover from Boris’s disgrace, would also turn out to be against him.

Second period of Troubles

After his election to the throne, he considered it necessary to explain to the people why he was chosen and not someone else. He motivates the reason for his election by his origin from Rurik; in other words, it sets forth the principle that the seniority of the “breed” gives the right to seniority of power. This is the principle of the ancient boyars (see Localism). Restoring the old boyar traditions, Shuisky had to formally confirm the rights of the boyars and, if possible, ensure them. He did this in his kissing cross recording, which undoubtedly had the character of a limitation royal power. The Tsar admitted that he was not free to execute his slaves, that is, he abandoned the principle that Ivan the Terrible so sharply put forward and then accepted by Godunov. The entry satisfied the boyar princes, and even then not all of them, but it could not satisfy the minor boyars, minor service people and the mass of the population. The turmoil continued. Vasily Shuisky immediately sent followers of False Dmitry - Belsky, Saltykov and others - to different cities; he wanted to get along with the Romanovs, Nagiys and other representatives of the minor boyars, but several dark events occurred that indicate that he did not succeed. V. Shuisky thought about elevating Filaret, who had been elevated to the rank of metropolitan by an impostor, to the patriarchal table, but circumstances showed him that it was impossible to rely on Filaret and the Romanovs. He also failed to unite the oligarchic circle of boyar princes: part of it disintegrated, part of it became hostile to the tsar. Shuisky hurried to be crowned king, without even waiting for the patriarch: he was crowned by Metropolitan Isidore of Novgorod, without the usual pomp. To dispel rumors that Tsarevich Dmitry was alive, Shuisky came up with the idea of ​​a solemn transfer to Moscow of the relics of the Tsarevich, canonized by the church; He also resorted to official journalism. But everything was against him: anonymous letters were scattered around Moscow that Dmitry was alive and would soon return, and Moscow was worried. On May 25, Shuisky had to calm down the mob, which was raised against him, as they said then, by P.N. Sheremetev.

Tsar Vasily Shuisky

A fire was breaking out on the southern outskirts of the state. As soon as the events of May 17 became known there, the Seversk land rose, and behind it the Trans-Oka, Ukrainian and Ryazan places; The movement moved to Vyatka, Perm, and captured Astrakhan. Unrest also broke out in Novgorod, Pskov and Tver. This movement, which embraced such a huge space, had a different character in different places, pursued different goals, but there is no doubt that it was dangerous for V. Shuisky. In the Seversk land the movement was social in nature and was directed against the boyars. Putivl became the center of the movement here, and the prince became the head of the movement. Grieg. Peter. Shakhovskoy and his “big governor” Bolotnikov. The movement raised by Shakhovsky and Bolotnikov was completely different from the previous one: before they fought for the trampled rights of Dmitry, which they believed in, now - for a new social ideal; Dmitry's name was only a pretext. Bolotnikov called the people to him, giving hope for social change. The original text of his appeals has not survived, but their content is indicated in the charter of Patriarch Hermogenes. Bolotnikov’s appeals, says Hermogenes, instill in the mob “all sorts of evil deeds for murder and robbery”, “they order the boyar slaves to beat their boyars and their wives, and estates, and estates they are promised; and they order the thieves and unnamed thieves to beat the guests and all merchants and plunder their bellies; and they call their thieves to themselves, and they want to give them boyarship and voivodeship, and deviousness, and clergy.” In the northern zone of Ukrainian and Ryazan cities, a serving nobility arose who did not want to put up with the boyar government of Shuisky. The Ryazan militia was headed by Grigory Sunbulov and the Lyapunov brothers, Prokopiy and Zakhar, and the Tula militia moved under the command of the boyar’s son Istoma Pashkov.

Meanwhile, Bolotnikov defeated royal governors and moved towards Moscow. On the way, he united with the noble militias, together with them he approached Moscow and stopped in the village of Kolomenskoye. Shuisky's position became extremely dangerous. Almost half of the state rose up against him, rebel forces were besieging Moscow, and he had no troops not only to pacify the rebellion, but even to defend Moscow. In addition, the rebels cut off access to bread, and famine emerged in Moscow. Among the besiegers, however, discord emerged: the nobility, on the one hand, slaves, fugitive peasants, on the other, could live peacefully only until they knew each other’s intentions. As soon as the nobility became acquainted with the goals of Bolotnikov and his army, they immediately recoiled from them. Sunbulov and Lyapunov, although they hated the established order in Moscow, preferred Shuisky and came to him to confess. Other nobles began to follow them. Then the militia from some cities arrived to help, and Shuisky was saved. Bolotnikov fled first to Serpukhov, then to Kaluga, from which he moved to Tula, where he settled down with the Cossack impostor False Peter. This new impostor appeared among the Terek Cossacks and pretended to be the son of Tsar Fedor, who in reality never existed. Its appearance dates back to the time of the first False Dmitry. Shakhovskoy came to Bolotnikov; they decided to lock themselves here and hide from Shuisky. The number of their troops exceeded 30,000 people. In the spring of 1607, Tsar Vasily decided to act energetically against the rebels; but the spring campaign was unsuccessful. Finally, in the summer, with a huge army, he personally went to Tula and besieged it, pacifying the rebel cities along the way and destroying the rebels: thousands of them put “prisoners in the water,” that is, they simply drowned them. A third of the state territory was given over to the troops for plunder and destruction. The siege of Tula dragged on; They managed to take it only when they came up with the idea of ​​setting it up on the river. Up the dam and flood the city. Shakhovsky was exiled to Lake Kubenskoye, Bolotnikov to Kargopol, where he was drowned, and False Peter was hanged. Shuisky triumphed, but not for long. Instead of going to pacify the northern cities, where the rebellion did not stop, he disbanded the troops and returned to Moscow to celebrate the victory. The social background of Bolotnikov’s movement did not escape Shuisky’s attention. This is proven by the fact that, through a series of resolutions, he decided to strengthen in place and subject to supervision that social stratum that discovered dissatisfaction with its position and sought to change it. By issuing such decrees, Shuisky recognized the existence of unrest, but, trying to defeat it through repression alone, he revealed a lack of understanding of the actual state of affairs.

Battle of Bolotnikov's troops with tsarist army. Painting by E. Lissner

By August 1607, when V. Shuisky was sitting near Tula, the second False Dmitry appeared in Starodub Seversky, whom the people very aptly dubbed the Thief. The Starodub residents believed in him and began to help him. Soon a team of Poles, Cossacks and all sorts of crooks formed around him. This was not the zemstvo squad that gathered around False Dmitry I: it was just a gang of “thieves” who did not believe in the royal origin of the new impostor and followed him in the hope of loot. The thief defeated the royal army and stopped near Moscow in the village of Tushino, where he founded his fortified camp. People flocked to him from everywhere, thirsting for easy money. The arrival of Lisovsky and Jan Sapieha especially strengthened the Thief.

S. Ivanov. Camp of False Dmitry II in Tushino

Shuisky's position was difficult. The South could not help him; he had no strength of his own. There remained hope in the north, which was comparatively calmer and suffered little from the turmoil. On the other hand, the Thief could not take Moscow. Both opponents were weak and could not defeat each other. The people became corrupted and forgot about duty and honor, serving alternately one or the other. In 1608, V. Shuisky sent his nephew Mikhail Vasilyevich Skopin-Shuisky (see) for help to the Swedes. The Russians ceded the city of Karel and the province to Sweden, abandoned views of Livonia and pledged an eternal alliance against Poland, for which they received an auxiliary detachment of 6 thousand people. Skopin moved from Novgorod to Moscow, clearing the north-west of the Tushins along the way. Sheremetev came from Astrakhan, suppressing the rebellion along the Volga. In Alexandrovskaya Sloboda they united and went to Moscow. By this time, Tushino ceased to exist. It happened this way: when Sigismund learned about Russia’s alliance with Sweden, he declared war on it and besieged Smolensk. Ambassadors were sent to Tushino to the Polish troops there demanding that they join the king. A split began among the Poles: some obeyed the king's orders, others did not. The Thief’s position had been difficult before: no one treated him on ceremony, they insulted him, almost beat him; now it has become unbearable. The thief decided to leave Tushino and fled to Kaluga. Around the Thief during his stay in Tushino, a court of Moscow people gathered who did not want to serve Shuisky. Among them were representatives of very high strata of the Moscow nobility, but the palace nobility - Metropolitan Filaret (Romanov), Prince. Trubetskoys, Saltykovs, Godunovs, etc.; there were also humble people who sought to curry favor, gain weight and importance in the state - Molchanov, Iv. Gramotin, Fedka Andronov, etc. Sigismund invited them to surrender under the authority of the king. Filaret and the Tushino boyars responded that the election of a tsar was not their job alone, that they could do nothing without the advice of the land. At the same time, they entered into an agreement between themselves and the Poles not to pester V. Shuisky and not to desire a king from “any other Moscow boyars” and began negotiations with Sigismund so that he would send his son Vladislav to the kingdom of Moscow. An embassy was sent from the Russian Tushins, headed by the Saltykovs, Prince. Rubets-Masalsky, Pleshcheevs, Khvorostin, Velyaminov - all great nobles - and several people of low origin. On February 4, 1610, they concluded an agreement with Sigismund, clarifying the aspirations of “rather mediocre nobility and well-established businessmen.” Its main points are as follows: 1) Vladislav is crowned king by the Orthodox patriarch; 2) Orthodoxy must continue to be revered: 3) the property and rights of all ranks remain inviolable; 4) the trial is carried out according to the old times; Vladislav shares legislative power with the boyars and the Zemsky Sobor; 5) execution can be carried out only by court and with the knowledge of the boyars; the property of the relatives of the perpetrator should not be subject to confiscation; 6) taxes are collected in the old way; the appointment of new ones is done with the consent of the boyars; 7) peasant migration is prohibited; 8) Vladislav is obliged not to demote people of high ranks innocently, but to promote those of lower rank according to their merits; travel to other countries for research is permitted; 9) the slaves remain in the same position. Analyzing this treaty, we find: 1) that it is national and strictly conservative, 2) that it protects most of all the interests of the service class, and 3) that it undoubtedly introduces some innovations; Particularly characteristic in this regard are paragraphs 5, 6 and 8. Meanwhile, Skopin-Shuisky triumphantly entered liberated Moscow on March 12, 1610.

Vereshchagin. Defenders of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra

Moscow rejoiced, welcoming the 24-year-old hero with great joy. Shuisky also rejoiced, hoping that the days of testing were over. But during these celebrations, Skopin suddenly died. There was a rumor that he had been poisoned. There is news that Lyapunov offered Skopin to “unseat” Vasily Shuisky and take the throne himself, but gives the right to seniority of power. This is the principle of the ancient boyars (see /p Skopin rejected this proposal. After the tsar found out about this, he lost interest in his nephew. In any case, Skopin’s death destroyed Shuisky’s connection with the people. The tsar’s brother Dimitri, completely a mediocre person. He set out to liberate Smolensk, but near the village of Klushina he was shamefully defeated by the Polish hetman Zholkiewski.

Mikhail Vasilievich Skopin-Shuisky. Parsuna (portrait) 17th century

Zholkiewski cleverly took advantage of the victory: he quickly went to Moscow, capturing Russian cities along the way and bringing them to the oath to Vladislav. Vor also hurried to Moscow from Kaluga. When Moscow learned about the outcome of the battle of Klushino, “a great rebellion arose among all the people, fighting against the Tsar.” The approach of Zolkiewski and Vor accelerated the disaster. In the overthrow of Shuisky from the throne main role fell to the lot of the service class, headed by Zakhar Lyapunov. The palace nobility also took a significant part in this, including Filaret Nikitich. After several unsuccessful attempts, Shuisky’s opponents gathered at the Serpukhov Gate, declared themselves the council of the whole earth and “unseated” the king.

Third period of troubles

Moscow found itself without a government, and yet it needed it now more than ever: it was pressed by enemies on both sides. Everyone was aware of this, but did not know who to focus on. Lyapunov and the Ryazan servicemen wanted to install Prince Tsar. V. Golitsyna; Filaret, Saltykovs and other Tushins had other intentions; The highest nobility, headed by F.I. Mstislavsky and I.S. Kurakin, decided to wait. The board was transferred to the hands of the boyar duma, which consisted of 7 members. The “seven-numbered boyars” failed to take power into their own hands. They made an attempt to assemble a Zemsky Sobor, but it failed. Fear of the Thief, on whose side the mob was taking their side, forced them to let Zholkiewski into Moscow, but he entered only when Moscow agreed to the election of Vladislav. On August 27, Moscow swore allegiance to Vladislav. If the election of Vladislav was not carried out in the usual way, at a real Zemsky Sobor, then nevertheless the boyars did not decide to take this step alone, but gathered representatives from different layers of the state and formed something like a Zemsky Sobor, which was recognized as the council of the whole earth. After long negotiations, both parties accepted the previous agreement, with some changes: 1) Vladislav had to convert to Orthodoxy; 2) the clause on freedom to travel abroad for science was crossed out and 3) the article on the promotion of lesser people was destroyed. These changes show the influence of the clergy and boyars. The agreement on the election of Vladislav was sent to Sigismund with a great embassy consisting of almost 1000 persons: this included representatives of almost all classes. It is very likely that the embassy included most of the members of the “council of the whole earth” that elected Vladislav. The embassy was headed by Metropolitan Filaret and Prince V.P. Golitsyn. The embassy was not successful: Sigismund himself wanted to sit on the Moscow throne. When Zolkiewski realized that Sigismund's intention was unshakable, he left Moscow, realizing that the Russians would not come to terms with this. Sigismund hesitated, tried to intimidate the ambassadors, but they did not deviate from the agreement. Then he resorted to bribing some members, which he succeeded in: they left from near Smolensk to prepare the ground for the election of Sigismund, but those who remained were unshakable.

Hetman Stanislav Zholkiewski

At the same time, in Moscow, the “seven-numbered boyars” lost all meaning; power passed into the hands of the Poles and the newly formed government circle, which betrayed the Russian cause and betrayed Sigismund. This circle consisted of Iv. Mich. Saltykova, book. Yu. D. Khvorostinina, N. D. Velyaminova, M. A. Molchanova, Gramotina, Fedka Andronova and many others. etc. Thus, the first attempt of the Moscow people to restore power ended in complete failure: instead of an equal union with Poland, Rus' risked falling into complete subordination from it. The failed attempt put an end to the political significance of the boyars and the boyar duma forever. As soon as the Russians realized that they had made a mistake in choosing Vladislav, as soon as they saw that Sigismund was not lifting the siege of Smolensk and was deceiving them, national and religious feelings began to awaken. At the end of October 1610, ambassadors from near Smolensk sent a letter about the threatening turn of affairs; in Moscow itself, patriots revealed the truth to the people in anonymous letters. All eyes turned to Patriarch Hermogenes: he understood his task, but could not immediately take up its implementation. After the storming of Smolensk on November 21, the first serious clash between Hermogenes and Saltykov took place, who tried to persuade the patriarch to side with Sigismund; but Hermogenes still did not dare to call on the people to openly fight the Poles. The death of Vor and the disintegration of the embassy forced him to “command the blood to be bold” - and in the second half of December he began sending letters to the cities. This was discovered, and Hermogenes paid with imprisonment.

His call, however, was heard. Prokopiy Lyapunov was the first to rise from the Ryazan land. He began to gather an army against the Poles and in January 1611 moved towards Moscow. Zemstvo squads came to Lyapunov from all sides; even the Tushino Cossacks went to the rescue of Moscow, under the command of Prince. D.T. Trubetskoy and Zarutsky. The Poles, after the battle with the residents of Moscow and the approaching zemstvo squads, locked themselves in the Kremlin and Kitai-Gorod. The position of the Polish detachment (about 3,000 people) was dangerous, especially since it had few supplies. Sigismund could not help him; he himself was unable to put an end to Smolensk. The Zemstvo and Cossack militias united and besieged the Kremlin, but discord immediately broke out between them. However, the army declared itself the council of the earth and began to rule the state, since there was no other government. Due to the increased discord between the zemstvos and the Cossacks, it was decided in June 1611 to draw up a general resolution. The sentence of the representatives of the Cossacks and service people, who formed the main core of the zemstvo army, was very extensive: it had to organize not only the army, but also the state. The highest power should belong to the entire army, which calls itself “the whole earth”; voivodes are only the executive bodies of this council, which reserves the right to remove them if they conduct business poorly. The court belongs to the voivodes, but they can execute only with the approval of the “council of the whole earth”, otherwise they face death. Then local affairs were settled very precisely and in detail. All awards from Vor and Sigismund are declared insignificant. “Old” Cossacks can receive estates and thus join the ranks of service people. Next are the decrees on the return of fugitive slaves, who called themselves Cossacks (new Cossacks), to their former masters; The self-will of the Cossacks was largely embarrassed. Finally, an administrative department was established on the Moscow model. From this verdict it is clear that the army gathered near Moscow considered itself a representative of the entire land and that the main role in the council belonged to the zemstvo service people, and not to the Cossacks. This sentence is also characteristic in that it testifies to the importance that the service class gradually acquired. But the predominance of service people did not last long; the Cossacks could not be in solidarity with them. The matter ended with the murder of Lyapunov and the flight of the zemshchina. The Russians' hopes for the militia were not justified: Moscow remained in the hands of the Poles, Smolensk by this time was taken by Sigismund, Novgorod by the Swedes; Cossacks settled around Moscow, robbed the people, committed outrages and prepared a new unrest, proclaiming the son of Marina, who lived in connection with Zarutsky, Russian Tsar.

The state was apparently dying; but a popular movement arose throughout the north and northeast of Rus'. This time it separated from the Cossacks and began to act independently. Hermogenes, with his letters, poured inspiration into the hearts of the Russians. Nizhny became the center of the movement. Kuzma Minin was placed at the head of the economic organization, and power over the army was handed over to Prince Pozharsky.

K. Makovsky. Minin's appeal on Nizhny Novgorod Square

January 19, 2018 | Category:

All the rulers of the Time of Troubles reigned for a fairly short time, which did not prevent them from becoming firmly entrenched in the people's memory. Their personalities are shrouded in contradictory facts, hypotheses and guesses, which attracts both professional researchers and ordinary history buffs. Let us consider in chronological order the monarchs who occupied the throne during the Time of Troubles.

Sergey Ivanov. Time of Troubles (painting, 1908)

Origin. Born into a noble family that had long served at the Moscow court. The founder of the Godunov dynasty is considered to be Murza Chet, originally from the Golden Horde. In general, the genealogical table of the named family is very interesting. Thus, marriage with the daughter of Malyuta Skuratov helped strengthen his position at court. As a result, by the age of 30 he was an influential boyar.

Coming to power. Godunov’s brilliant career under Fyodor Ivanovich helped him come to power. B was the actual master of the country. Moreover, his sister Irina was the king’s wife. Since the Rurik dynasty came to an end after the death of Fyodor Ivanovich, the Zemsky Sobor elected the brother-in-law of the late Tsar Boris Godunov to the throne.

Board. In short, having become the sole ruler, Godunov continued the policies of Ivan the Terrible, although he used less cruel methods. During his reign, the court finally acquired an bureaucratic character. Godunov managed to extend the truce with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and as a result of the war with Sweden, to return part of the territories lost during the Livonian War.

Under this tsar, the construction of Samara, Ufa, Saratov was underway, and the development of Siberia continued. The king was also involved in the improvement of the capital. Godunov sought to develop economic, cultural and trade relations with Western Europe.

Godunov's reign began successfully, but the harvest failed in 1601-1602. and the subsequent famine greatly undermined the authority of the reigning king. The country was gripped by unrest, and most importantly, a rumor appeared about the miraculously saved Tsarevich Dmitry, the son of Ivan the Terrible.

Dissatisfaction with external and domestic politics Shuisky ended with his removal from the throne as a result of a boyar conspiracy. This conspiracy subsequently led to the organization of such a governing body as. The last Rurikovich was forcibly tonsured a monk and handed over to the Poles. 2 years later, Vasily Shuisky died in prison.

With the death of Vasily Shuisky, a period of one year began in Russia. Before the reign of the Romanovs, there was no generally recognized monarch in the country.

A difficult period in the history of our homeland began after the death of the last reigning Rurikovich - Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. The people could not imagine existence without a legitimate king, and the boyars were striving for power, trampling on the interests of the state. The reasons for the Time of Troubles (as it is commonly called) lie in a deep political crisis caused by the struggle between contenders for the royal throne. The situation was aggravated by a terrible crop failure and famine. Against the backdrop of a deep internal crisis, Russia became the target of foreign intervention.

Causes of the Time of Troubles and its three stages

The Time of Troubles can be divided into three stages, each of which is determined by the reasons that gave rise to it.

• The first is dynastic. It represents the struggle between contenders for the throne.
• The second is called social. This is a confrontation between different social classes of an economically weakened country. It led to the invasion of foreigners.
• And the third stage is national. It implies the struggle of the people against the invaders.

The end of the Time of Troubles is considered to be the accession to the throne of the young Tsar Mikhail Romanov. Let's look at each stage in more detail.

Beginning of the dynastic period

The reasons for the beginning of the Time of Troubles emerged when Boris Godunov, elected by the Zemsky Sobor, ascended to the Russian throne. An intelligent, far-sighted and energetic ruler, he did a lot to strengthen the country and raise the standard of living of Russians. But the terrible harvest failure of 1601-1603 was a disaster that brought down the country's economy. Hundreds of thousands died of hunger. Political opponents blamed Godunov for everything. Without the authority of a hereditary king, and being only elected, the ruler lost the respect and support of both the masses and the boyars.

The appearance of False Dmitry

The situation was aggravated by claims to the throne from the impostor False Dmitry. The real heir to the throne, Tsarevich Dmitry, died under unclear circumstances in Uglich. Godunov was blamed for his death without evidence, thereby completely undermining the foundations of his reign. Taking advantage of the circumstances, False Dmitry with detachments of Poles invaded the territory of Russia, and was even proclaimed tsar. But he reigned for only a year, and in 1606 he was killed. Boyar Vasily Shuisky ascended the throne. This did not bring any tangible normalization of the situation in the country.

Social period

The causes of the Time of Troubles in Russia also included an economic component. It was she who served as the reason for the involvement of the broadest public masses in the struggle, including the nobility, clerks and Cossacks. The events that took place were given a particularly acute character by mass popular uprisings, called peasant wars. The most large-scale among them was the uprising led by Bolotnikov. Having stirred up the entire central part of the country, it choked and was suppressed.

However, this did not stabilize the situation in the country. Shuisky's harsh serfdom policy caused discontent among the peasants. The upper strata of society accused him of being unable to govern the state. To top off the troubles, another impostor suddenly appeared, claiming to be the king - False Dmitry II. The country finally plunged into chaos, called the Time of Troubles. Causes, stages, consequences and driving forces this historical process have become the topic of many scientific research, which showed that Poland’s aggressive policy played an important role in the current situation.

Invasion of interventionists

Under the pretext of protecting the legitimate heir to the throne, which meant False Dmitry II, his troops invaded Russian territory. Having made another mistake, Shuisky turned to the Swedish king for help in the fight against the impostor. As a result, in addition to the Polish interventionists, Swedish ones also appeared on Russian soil.

Soon False Dmitry II, betrayed by the Poles, ended his days on the gallows, but the political causes of the Time of Troubles never found their solution. Shuisky was forcibly tonsured a monk by the boyars, and they themselves swore allegiance to the Polish prince Vladislav. It was a shameful act. The Swedes approached Novgorod closely and were preparing for the assault. The Duma, which betrayed its people, formed a body to govern the country, which was called the “Seven Boyars” based on the number of its members. Essentially, it was a government of traitors.

National period

But not only negative aspects Russian life revealed the Time of Troubles. Causes, stages, consequences, as well as further progress historical development countries were largely determined by the depth of national self-awareness. The people wanted only a legitimate ruler; this largely determined the features of the dynastic struggle of the first period of unrest.

The confrontation with economic and political chaos resulted in peasant wars. And finally, a wave of patriotism roused the people to fight the invaders. Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky became the leaders of the national liberation movement. In October 1612, the militia of thousands led by them forced the Polish garrison located in Moscow to capitulate.

In January of the following year, Mikhail Romanov was elected Tsar. This marked the beginning of a three-hundred-year dynasty. For a long time, the country experienced the difficult consequences of the hard years, but nevertheless, this event is considered to be the end of a historical period called the Time of Troubles, the causes, consequences and significance of which still require in-depth scientific analysis.