Political struggle in Russia at the end of the seventeenth century. The struggle of court factions for power

COURTY GROUPS STRUGGLE FOR POWER.

TOPIC 30. RUSSIA AT THE END OF THE 17TH CENTURY

THE BEGINNING OF THE REIGN OF PETER I (6 hours).

1. Successors of Alexei Mikhailovich. The reign of Princess Sophia.

2. The struggle of court factions for power.

3. Beginning of the reign of Peter I.

REQUIRED READINGS

1. Anisimov E.V. The time of Peter's reforms. – L., 1989.

2. Bagger H. Reforms of Peter the Great. – M., 1985.

3. Buganov V.I. Peter the Great and his time. – M., 1989.

4. Pavlenko N.I. Peter the Great. – M., 1990.

ADDITIONAL LITERATURE

1. Anisimov E.V. State reforms and autocracy of Peter the Great in the first quarter of the 18th century. – St. Petersburg, 1997.

2. Anderson M.S. Peter the Great. – Rostov-on-Don, 1997.

3. Kamensky A.B. Russian Empire in the 18th century: Traditions and modernization. – M., 1999.

4. Kafengauz B.B. Russia under Peter I. – M., 1955.

5. Pavlenko N.I. Peter the First. – M., 1976.

1. The last quarter of a century is the reign of the children of Alexei Mikhailovich - Tsars Fyodor, Ivan, Peter and his daughter - regent Sophia, their assistants and employees. The most colorless of the royal children, due to poor health, was Ivan Alekseevich, the most gifted were the princess and especially the youngest son of the late monarch. The eldest son Fedor had some qualities valuable for a ruler, but did not have time to demonstrate them to the proper extent, since he reigned for a short time and died young.

He was born on May 30, 1661, and became king before reaching the age of 15 - on January 29, 1676. He is the son of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich from his first wife, Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya. With his accession to power, the Miloslavskys and their supporters came to power. The Naryshkins, relatives of Tsar Alexei’s second wife, Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina, mother of Peter I, lost her.

Among the educators and teachers of the young prince was the famous educator, theologian, scientist Simeon of Polotsk, from the Belarusians. Fyodor Alekseevich, in addition to literacy and other things, studied Latin and Polish. The king was not in good health. His youth and timidity in business stimulated the struggle of court groups for power and influence. In the 70s, the government of Tsar Feodor had to resolve complex issues in the field of foreign policy related to Ukrainian affairs, relations with Poland, Turkey and Crimea.

Under him, reforms were undertaken in the field of internal management. Thus, a general population census was conducted throughout the state (1678). Then they carried out tax reform (1679-1681). The government took measures to streamline patrimonial and local land ownership and trade of foreign merchants in Russia. All government fees and local government matters were concentrated in the hands of the governor (1679). Localism was abolished (1682) In the field of military administration and military structure, some reforms were prepared and carried out by a special commission headed by the boyar VV. Golitsyn. Related orders were united under the leadership of one chief; In this way, some centralization of control was achieved.

Under Tsar Fedor, measures were taken to eradicate the schism (Church Council of 1681, etc.). With him, the idea of ​​​​establishing an Academy was expressed. This is how the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy was founded in 1687. Books of church and secular content were published.

Fyodor Alekseevich was first married to Agafya Semenovna Grushetskaya, a girl probably of Polish origin. The wedding took place on July 18, 1680. July 11, 1681 ᴦ. she bore him a son, Ilya, but died three days later; on July 20, the prince died. With his second marriage, Fyodor Alekseevich married Marfa Matveevna Apraksina; The wedding took place on February 15, 1682, two and a half months before the death of the king, who did not live one month before the age of 21.

His death served as a signal for a strong uprising in Moscow, during which Ivan and Peter Alekseevich were proclaimed kings, with Sofya Alekseevna as their regent. In reality, the state was ruled in 1682-1689. government of Sophia - Golitsyn.

Princess Sophia was less than 25 years old at the time of her proclamation as regent (born September 17, 1657). She is the daughter of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich from his first marriage. She received a good education at court for that time, studied with educators Simeon of Polotsk, Sylvester Medvedev, Karion Istomin. Contemporaries note the princess’s intelligence, ambition, and energy.

After the death of her brother the Tsar and the May uprising in Moscow, Sophia led the court party of the Miloslavskys and their supporters who came to power. She directed the actions of the new government, headed by Prince VV. Golitsyn. Skillfully and consistently, she mastered the situation in the capital; with the help of the noble army gathered around Moscow, she forced the rebels to capitulate in the autumn of the same year.

Sophia and her government continued the policies of their predecessors. They organized two campaigns against the Crimea (1687, 1689) and inflicted several defeats on the Khan's troops. The positions of Turkey were weakened, which carried out military operations against Russia’s allies in the anti-Turkish “Holy League” - Austria, Poland, Venice. An “Eternal Peace” (1686) was concluded with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which finally assigned Left Bank Ukraine and Kyiv to Moscow. Negotiations with China over disputed lands in the Amur region ended with the conclusion (after the fall of Sophia) of the Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689).

In domestic policy, measures were taken to increase land ownership, rights and privileges of the nobles, strengthen serfdom (search for fugitives), and persecute schismatics.

2. In August 1689 ᴦ. Sophia's government fell. Peter 1 imprisoned her in a cell at the Novodevichy Convent. Nine years later, the rebel Moscow archers predicted that, if their cause was successful, she would become the ruler of the state. The defeat of the uprising and the subsequent “Streltsky search” meant for Sophia an even greater deterioration of her already difficult situation - she was tonsured a nun under the name of Susanna in the same monastery in which she lived until her death (July 3, 1704). Golitsyn found himself in distant exile. An outstanding statesman, reformer, one of the predecessors of Peter 1, he found himself in a camp hostile to him.

Golitsyn was born in 1643 ᴦ., descended from the Gediminovich people, descendants of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Gediminas, who switched to Russian service at the end of the 14th century. In childhood and youth, the prince received a good education - from his home teachers he learned not only reading and writing, but also “free wisdom”; he was a bookish man, well-read in theology, history, philosophy, astronomy, and medicine. He read and spoke fluent Greek and Latin, Polish and German. The prince collected a large library. Since 1658 ᴦ. His service at court began - as steward of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. Like a number of other figures, his contemporaries, the prince was a supporter of contacts with foreign culture, its representatives within the country and abroad, and transformations in Russia itself.

With the accession of Fyodor Alekseevich (January 1676 ᴦ.), his rise began. He becomes a boyar, carries out emergency orders of the government in Ukraine, and contributes to the removal of P.D. Doroshenko, the hetman of the Right Bank, a supporter of Turkey, and the occupation of Chigirin - his stakes. During the Russian-Turkish war of 1677-1678. heads the corps as part of the GG army. Romodanovsky, who fought for Chigirin. Upon returning from the second Chigirin campaign, the prince headed the Vladimir court order. He harbors plans for reform; his ideas are fair taxation of peasants, a regular army, primarily from the nobles, a just court. The country carried out a general description of lands, households (1678-1679), tax reform (1679-1681), military district reform (1680) - several more were added to the border districts. The number of noble militia was reduced from 37.5 thousand (1651) to 16 thousand; The regiments of the new system were increased (up to 80% of the size of the Russian army): reitar - from 1.5 to 30.5 thousand; There were 61 thousand soldiers. There were 55 thousand archers. Other reforms were being carried out - a company system was introduced in the army (1681). In January 1682 ᴦ. They abolished the “hostile localism”, which was very harmful in official appointments. Golitsyn actively participated in these measures.

As the head of Russian foreign policy, he negotiated with foreign ambassadors, delved into all the details of the international situation, relations with warlike neighbors - Turkey and Crimea, Poland and Sweden. He managed to extend the Peace of Kardis (1661) with Sweden and, after long and difficult negotiations, concluded an “Eternal Peace” with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Golitsyn invites hundreds of specialists from abroad to Russia, and they subsequently take part in carrying out Peter’s reforms. In the Crimean campaigns of 1687 and 1689. Golitsyn was commander-in-chief.

With the fall of Sophia and the Naryshkins coming to power, he found himself in exile in the north, he was deprived of his ranks and property. There he died (1713).

Undoubtedly, the most outstanding of the many children of Tsar Alexei was the youngest of his sons, Peter, the future first Emperor of All Russia. He was born on May 30, 1672. When he was less than four years old, he lost his father. Together with the new Tsar Fedor, as mentioned above, the Miloslavskys and their relatives, relatives and supporters became at the helm of power. Mother Petra Natalya Kirillovna, boyar A.S. Matveev, her tutor and the de facto head of the government until the end of January 1676, their supporters were forced to retreat into the shadows. Matveev ended up in exile.

The younger prince and his mother still lived in the Kremlin. Tsar Fedor took care of Peter, his godson, and under the supervision of his older brother, N.M. was appointed his teacher. Zotov - clerk from the Order of the Great Treasury. The prince learned with him reading and writing, the Book of Hours and the Psalter, the Gospel and the Apostle. They read books together with books (pictures, drawings), incl. chronicles and chronographs.

After the death of Tsar Feodor (April 27, 1682 ᴦ.) and the proclamation of 10-year-old Peter as tsar, formidable events followed - an uprising in Moscow (mid-May), the proclamation of Ivan Alekseevich as the first tsar, Peter became the second tsar, Sophia became their regent. Her actual rule of the state lasted seven years. These years are the time of honorable exile of Queen Natalia and her son Peter in the village of Preobrazhenskoye. True, the second tsar was sometimes present in the Kremlin at receptions of foreign ambassadors and other solemn ceremonies.

The growing boy-tsar was busy with something else - with his “amusing little boys” (falconers, falconers and others left over from his father, who loved hunting), studying all kinds of mathematical sciences, various weapons, maneuvers and fortifications, building ships and storming fortresses in the vicinity of Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky.

3. The events of the “Shaklovity conspiracy” (beginning of August 1689) ended with Peter’s complete victory over the “disgraceful person” - Sophia, and her imprisonment in the Novodevichy Convent. Power was again in the hands of Naryshkin’s “party”. True, along with Peter, Ivan Alekseevich also remained tsar (until his death in 1696). Due to poor health and dementia, he did not interfere in business. Peter was not very interested in government. As before, he continued the “Mars fun”, now on a much larger scale (tens of thousands of soldiers and archers). He attracted foreign specialists to his service, gathered hundreds, thousands of people around him, including future generals, admirals, etc. The mid-90s became a time of practical testing of Peter’s achievements and ambitious aspirations during the years of “Mars fun”. The two Azov campaigns (1695-1696), despite the initial failure, led to success - Azov, a Turkish fortress that blocked the exit from the Don to the Azov and Black Seas, passed to Russia. And the next year the famous “Great Embassy” of Peter I (1697-1698) began - the young tsar and his assistants, employees from Russians and foreigners, devoted their stay in Western Europe to studying its experience in shipbuilding and navigation, organizing factories and factories, crafts and arts . The first, most inquisitive student was Pyotr Mikhailov - that’s what, according to his desire, the tsar was called during the embassy. Incognito did not mislead anyone, and at European courts they watched with curiosity and expectation, sometimes condescendingly and arrogantly, the Muscovite, a barbarian from a distant, vast and rich country.

“I am in the rank of those who teach and I demand that I teach” - this motto, worthy and noble, was fully realized by the Russian monarch during his trips to European countries. Both he and his comrades learned a lot from what they saw and heard, which they later tried to apply in their own life at Vshchina. True, it was not possible to obtain help in the war between Russia and Turkey, even from its allies in the anti-Turkish “Holy League,” primarily from Austria. In Western Europe, a new balance of power was emerging; in connection with the approaching War of the Spanish Succession, new political combinations and alliances of powers were being conceived. The interests of Russia, in connection with its plans in the Black Sea region, were not really taken into account.

Without finishing the embassy (the trip to Venice, which was an ally in the Holy League, did not take place), Peter, who received news from Moscow about the Streltsy uprising, quickly returned to the capital. There he began with the exotic trimming of the beards of the Old Testament Moscow boyars, the introduction of elegant, more comfortable European dress. The terrible “Streltsy search” for the participants in the uprising, which was suppressed before the monarch’s return to Russia, left a grave impression on contemporaries and descendants. Wild rampant torture, many ^Vni executed, incl. hands of the royal person and their closest associates - this was the result of the bacchanalia, organized by a person who was unable and did not want to understand the true, justified reasons for the performance of the archers.

At the same time, Peter’s first reforms began to restructure government administration - replacing the Boyar Duma with a “conflict of ministers,” the abolition of some orders and the introduction of others, their general reduction, restructuring of the administration of cities, their trade and craft population. In some ways he continued what his predecessors had started, in some ways anticipating future, but more ambitious, transformations.

Realizing that his diplomatic and military plans in the south are not feasible, he turns his attention to the north.
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In the Baltic, Rus' had long-standing interests. The Russian state was pushed away from it by the Swedish and Livonian rulers. The Northern War began, in which Peter showed all his extraordinary, outstanding abilities as a statesman, commander, naval commander, and diplomat.

A year after the conclusion of the “Eternal Peace,” Russia, in fulfillment of its duties under the “Holy League,” began a war with the Crimean Khanate, a Turkish vassal and longtime enemy of Russia. The 50,000-strong army was led by Prince V.V. Golitsyn. In May 1687 ᴦ. she approached the river.
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Horse Waters. Soon, at the river.
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Samara, it was joined by the 50,000-strong army of Hetman I. Samoilovich. A detachment of G. Kasogov sailed along the Dnieper on ships to the Kizi-Kermen fortress. The Don Cossacks of Ataman F. Minaev also took part in the campaign.

The situation seemed to be favorable - the Turks could not provide assistance to Crimea, since they were at war with Austria, Poland and Venice. But Golitsyn’s troops found themselves in a very difficult situation. It was a hot summer. There was a shortage of water, food, and fodder. The Crimeans also burned out the steppe from Konskie Vody to Perekop. There were no battles, but losses grew - both people and horses could not stand it. I had to retreat. A year and a half later, a new campaign began in the spring. We made preparations - collecting money and warriors. On the river
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The Novobogoroditsk fortress was built in Samara to close the path to Crimean invasions of Ukraine.

By that time, the position of the Ottoman Empire had greatly weakened. Russia's allies in the Holy League defeated Turkish troops in Hungary, Dalmatia, and Morea. Belgrade fell under the blows of the Austrian army. In Turkey itself, outraged troops overthrew Sultan Mohammed IV.

In February 1689 ᴦ. Russian-Ukrainian army V.V. Golitsyna (112 thousand people) again moved across the steppes to Perekop. Khan fielded an army of 250,000. In mid-May, fierce battles began, the defeated Crimeans retreated. But the heat began again, and the hardships of the first campaign resumed. After unsuccessful negotiations with the khan, who proposed an agreement on the terms of the Bakhchisarai Peace of 1681 ᴦ. (Golitsyn did not agree with them), the Russian command began to withdraw troops.

Both campaigns did not bring any apparent success. Russian-Ukrainian military forces approached Crimea, but were unable to enter the peninsula. The losses were considerable. Nevertheless, the significance of the campaigns, and not a small one, is that for the first time in two centuries (after the overthrow of the Horde yoke) Russia undertook two large uprisings against the Crimean Khanate. The Crimeans experienced feelings of fear and the bitterness of defeat. Their military forces could not provide assistance to the failed Turkey.

Austria and Venice received help from Russia and were able to use it well. Russia demonstrated its increased military power. It is characteristic that in Istanbul, which received news of the approach of large Russian-Ukrainian armies to the Crimea and Turkish possessions in the Northern Black Sea region, panic arose more than once: “The Russians are coming!”

In Moscow, they tried, especially the regent Sophia, to portray both campaigns as great victories, which they were not.

Tsar Peter Alekseevich did not even want to once accept Golitsyn, who had returned from a campaign. But, despite his extreme dislike for his sister and her gallant chancellor, after their overthrow, he continued the same policy in a southern direction. True, I made some changes to it.

Peter was planning a campaign not directly against the Crimea, across the endless steppes, but somewhat to the left, along the Don, to its mouth - the Turkish fortress of Azov. The tsar was pushed towards him, among other circumstances, by the persistent demands of Austria and Poland.

January 20, 1695 ᴦ. A decree was announced to all service people: to gather for a campaign to the Crimea under the command of boyar B.P. Sheremetev. His army moved along the Dnieper to its lower reaches. The future field marshal captured four Turkish fortresses on the Dnieper, destroyed two of them, and left Russian garrisons in the other two.

The main events unfolded to the east, on the Don. 31 thousand people, selected Russian regiments, were allocated for the campaign to Azov. Part of the troops - Golovin and Lefort - by water (along the Moscow River, Oka, Volga, Don), the other - Gordon's army - approached Azov by land on June 29. Its siege lasted three months and did not bring laurels to Russian weapons. The reasons for this were the absence of a single commander (Golovin, Gordon and Lefort were at enmity with each other, and therefore the troops acted at different times) and a fleet (the Turks brought reinforcements and food by sea without interference).

The actions of the Russian artillery lacked power and strength. They organized two assaults - on August 5 and at the end of September, but were not successful. The besiegers suffered heavy losses. Poor preparation of the campaign, haste in the assaults, hindsight and inability in a number of cases (with the fleet, mine digging, command and control) forced Peter to give the order to retreat at the beginning of October. “Campaign for the non-capture of Azov” - this is how the tsar himself called the first campaign. He took immediate measures: he entrusted all ground forces to the commander, Generalissimo A.S. Neck-well; the future fleet - to Admiral Lefort, a native of the glorious land-based Switzerland. Peter set up shipyards in Voronezh and surrounding areas. By the beginning of April, 23 galleys, 2 ships, 4 fire ships and 1,300 plows had been manufactured. Up to 40 thousand soldiers and archers were deployed to Voronezh. On May 3, ships with troops headed along the Don to Azov. Here help was waiting for them - the Don and Zaporozhye Cossacks. Having renewed them, they began the bombardment of Azov. Around the city, 12 thousand people erected an earthen rampart higher than the fortress walls. A Russian flotilla operated on the Don - first, Cossacks on small ships destroyed Turkish ships unloading near the walls of the fortress; then the Russian squadron went to sea and did not allow Turkish ships with infantry, food and equipment to reach the besieged fortress. The Turkish garrison capitulated. On June 19, the Russians entered the destroyed fortress. Azov became a base, a stronghold of Russia on the southern borders.

COURTY GROUPS STRUGGLE FOR POWER. - concept and types. Classification and features of the category "FIGHT OF COURTY GROUPS FOR POWER." 2017, 2018.

The Time of Troubles is a designation for the period in Russian history from 1598 to 1613, marked by frequent changes of government, impostors, popular uprisings, Polish-Swedish intervention, natural disasters, severe political, economic, state and social crises.

Tsar Ivan the Terrible left two sons: Fedor from his first wife and Dmitry, who was in Uglich. After the death of the tsar, the eldest son Fedor reigned on the throne. According to various estimates of those years and later, the new tsar was not able to cope with state affairs. From the first steps of his accession, he fell under the influence of powerful boyar clans, who fought among themselves for primacy. In 1591, Tsarevich Dmitry died in Uglich. Seven years later, in 1598, Tsar Fedor also died. With the death of Fedor, the dynasty of the Rurik princes, which ruled Russia for 700 years, ended. Rus' had to elect a new king, with whose arrival a new reigning house was installed on the throne - the Romanov dynasty. However, before the accession of the Romanovs, Russia had to go through difficult trials associated with the years of the Time of Troubles.

After the death of Ivan the Terrible and his sons, the struggle for power intensified even more. As a result of internal strife associated with many difficulties of this period, Boris Godunov, the brother of Tsar Feodor’s wife, became the de facto ruler of the state. After the death of Tsar Fyodor, Boris Godunov was elected Tsar by the Zemsky Sobor. For the first time in Rus' there appeared a tsar who did not receive the throne by inheritance.

Board of Boris Godunov: pursued a moral policy; began the construction of cities to open jobs, the first water supply system appeared; for the first time 100 years before Peter 1, he began to take smart children abroad for education; introduced the patriarchate; in 1601 he returned St. George's Day; in 1603 a serf court was created.

Boris Godunov was a talented politician, but he was unlucky. The famine of 1601-1603, caused by prolonged crop failures, caused enormous damage to the country's economy. It also led to an outflow of population from the central regions to the outskirts, where self-governing communities of the so-called free Cossacks began to emerge. Famine led to uprisings. In 1603, a major uprising of slaves began, covering a large territory and becoming the prologue to the peasant war.

The aggravation of the internal political situation led, in turn, to a sharp decline in Godunov’s prestige not only among the masses, but also among the feudal lords. In these difficult conditions, False Dmitry I appeared in Rus'. An impostor appeared in Poland, posing as Tsarevich Dmitry, who had died long ago in Uglich. The impostor's agents vigorously disseminated in Rus' the version of his miraculous salvation from the hands of assassins sent by Godunov, and proved the legality of his right to his father's throne. This news led to confusion and confusion in all layers of society, in each of which there were many dissatisfied with the rule of Tsar Boris.

On April 13, 1605, Tsar Boris died. Boris's sixteen-year-old son, Tsarevich Fyodor, was unable to retain power in his hands. By order of the impostor, he was killed along with his mother, Queen Maria.

False Dmitry I found himself on the Russian throne not without the knowledge of his Polish patrons. He played a certain role in the history of Rus' of that period. Taking advantage of the current situation in Rus', its disunity and instability, False Dmitry with a small Polish-Lithuanian detachment crossed the Dnieper near Chernigov. By posing as the son of Ivan the Terrible, he managed to win over a huge mass of the Russian population, who believed him. False Dmitry's forces grew rapidly, cities opened their gates to him, peasants and townspeople joined his troops. False Dmitry moved on the wave of the outbreak of the peasant war. After the death of Boris Godunov, the governors began to go over to the side of False Dmitry, and Moscow also went over, where he solemnly entered on June 20, 1605.

It turned out to be easier to achieve access to the throne than to stay on it. To strengthen his position, False Dmitry confirmed serfdom legislation. And yet, soon everyone was dissatisfied with the rule of False Dmitry: peasants, feudal lords and the Orthodox clergy. As a result, on May 17, 1606, False Dmitry and some of his associates were killed.

The overthrow of False Dmitry I and the rise to power of Vasily IV Shuisky did not lead to normalization of the situation in the country. The peasantry did not stop fighting against the yoke of serfdom. In the summer of 1606, the masses had a leader - Ivan Isaevich Bolotnikov. The forces gathered under the banner of Bolotnikov were a complex conglomerate, consisting of different layers. There were Cossacks, peasants, slaves, and townspeople here. There were also many service people, small and medium-sized feudal lords here. In July 1606, Bolotnikov's troops set out on a campaign against Moscow. In the Battle of Moscow, Bolotnikov's troops were defeated and were forced to retreat to Tula. On July 30, the siege of the city began, and after three months the Bolotnikovites capitulated, and Bolotnikov himself was soon executed. With the suppression of this uprising, the peasant war did not stop. However, the peasant movement began to decline. At the same time, the government of Vasily Shuisky sought to stabilize the situation in the country. But both service people and peasants were still dissatisfied with the government’s policies. The reasons for the discontent were different. The nobles felt Shuisky's inability to stop the peasant war, but the peasants did not accept his serfdom policy.

Meanwhile, a new impostor appeared in Starodub, declaring himself the escaped “Tsar Dmitry.” According to many historians, False Dmitry II was a protege of the Polish king Sigismund III, although not everyone supports this version. The bulk of the armed forces of False Dmitry II were Polish nobles and Cossacks.

In January 1608 he moved to Moscow. Having defeated Shuisky's troops in several battles, by the beginning of June False Dmitry II reached the village of Tushina near Moscow, where he settled in camp.

In February 1609, the Shuisky government entered into an agreement with Sweden, counting on assistance in the war with the “Tushino thief” and his Polish troops. Under this agreement, Russia gave Sweden the Karelian volost in the North, which was a serious political mistake. This gave Sigismund III a reason to switch to open intervention. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth began military operations against Russia. Polish troops left Tushino. False Dmitry II, who was there, fled to Kaluga, where he was killed in December 1610.

Meanwhile, the peasant war continued in the country, which was now waged by numerous Cossack detachments. The Moscow boyars decided to turn to the Polish king Sigismund for help. An agreement was concluded on the calling of Prince Vladislav to the Russian throne. As a result, Polish royal troops entered Moscow.

Sweden also launched aggressive actions. Swedish troops occupied a large part of northern Russia and were preparing to capture Novgorod. Russia faced a direct threat of losing its independence. However, the aggressive plans of the aggressors caused popular indignation.

In mid-July, Swedish troops captured Novgorod, then besieged Pskov, where the power of their emissaries was established.

In this situation, the desire for liberation from foreign oppression was clearly expressed by one of the leaders of the Nizhny Novgorod settlement, Kuzma Minin, who in the fall of 1611 made a call to create a militia to liberate Moscow. Dmitry Pozharsky was elected head of the militia.

In August 1612, the militia of Minin and Pozharsky entered Moscow and forced the Polish garrison in the Kremlin to capitulate. Moscow was liberated, but the final elimination of the consequences of the intervention was still ahead. Interventionists and Cossack detachments continued to scour the country. They encountered popular resistance everywhere, sometimes escalating into guerrilla warfare. In a cruel and severe struggle, the Russian people defended the independence of their homeland.

In 1613, Mikhail Romanov was elected to the throne, which marked the end of the Time of Troubles period and the emergence of a new ruling dynasty.

The reigns of B. Godunov, False Dmitry 1, V. Shuisky are considered successful - 1) all 3 kings did not start wars. 2) After the death of B. Godunov, no changes were made to his reforms. 3) B. Godunov, False Dmitry 1, V. Shuisky were elected kings at the Zemsky Sobor (this was the norm of a legal democratic state).

“At the same time, Sophia, realizing that time was approaching the end, that power should be given to Peter, and not wanting this, did not dare to take any drastic measures to strengthen herself on the throne. She really wanted to go from being a ruler to becoming an “autocrat,” in other words, to be crowned king.”

S. F. Platonov

● Sofya Alekseevna

● V. V. Golitsyn

1. Streltsy revolt of 1682. The accession of Peter doomed the “party” of the Miloslavskys and their supporters to second roles. But many were not happy with this fate. The sister of the bypassed Tsarevich Ivan, Tsarevna Sofya Alekseevna (1682-1689), was especially dissatisfied.

Contemporaries noted her extraordinary nature. Ugly, angular, Sophia was no match for her stepmother - Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna, in the caustic expression of one of her contemporaries, “light-minded.” Sophia was educated, insightful, and most importantly, capable of action. Contrary to tradition, which doomed the princess to a prison or monastery existence, Sophia dared to fight for power and even dream of reigning.

Sofya Alekseevna. Unknown artist

Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna with Tsarevich Peter on the Red Porch. Artist V. K. Demidov

Sophia and her supporters took advantage of the discontent of the Streltsy, associated with the deterioration of their position and the abuses of the Streltsy colonels. The streltsy unrest began even before the death of Tsar Fedor. The Naryshkins, once in power, did not attach much importance to them. But Sophia took advantage of the situation.

Rumors were spread among the Streltsy that Tsarevich Ivan was illegally deprived of the throne, that the Naryshkins, together with the traitor boyars, wanted to exterminate Ivan. The Sagittarius quickly realized that restoring “justice” would improve their situation. Less than two weeks after the election of Peter as Tsar, the Miloslavskys’ agitation bore fruitful fruit—the Streltsy revolt. On May 15, 1682, the rebellious archers moved to the Kremlin. Peter's supporters tried to “comfort” the uprising: they brought Ivan alive and unharmed to the Red Porch of the palace, and with him Tsar Peter and Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna. Together with the royal family, boyar A.S. Matveev, who had returned from exile a few days later, came out onto the porch, whose appearance was supposed to greatly strengthen the position of the inexperienced Naryshkins. But it was already too late. The reprisal against the “traitors” began. The first to be thrown onto the Streltsy spears was A.S. Matveev. Boyar M. Dolgoruky, who headed the Streletsky Prikaz, died. Several more people from the Naryshkin “clan” were torn to pieces. Sagittarius did not miss the opportunity to get even with their enemies. The governor, Prince G. Romadanovsky, commander of the Russian army near Chigirin, was killed. He was reminded that during the battles he “did not take care of the archers.”

The reprisals frightened the boyars and Patriarch Joachim, and they accepted the demands of the Streltsy, who were actually backed by Princess Sophia and her supporters. As a result, both brothers were proclaimed kings - the elder Ivan and the younger Peter. Before the kings came of age, Sophia became the ruler (regent).

This was followed by the satisfaction of the “modest” demands of the rebels themselves: punishment of the colonels, a public petition to the archers for the riot and murders. Moreover, the archers were recognized as saviors who “brought the sovereign traitors out of the kingdom,” for which they should now be called “outdoor infantry.” Behind this was not just a change in the “sign”: “outdoor infantry” could not be sent to war or to other cities for service.

1. What were the reasons for the Streltsy riot of 1682?

2. Why were the demands of the archers satisfied?

2. “Khovanshchina”. Sophia understood that her power was fragile. She was afraid not so much of the Naryshkin “party” - after the death of its leaders, Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna was in complete confusion. Sophia was afraid of the Streltsy, who terrorized everyone with the threat of rebellion and demanded new rewards. The new head of the Streletsky Prikaz, Prince I. A. Khovansky, popular among the Streltsy Old Believers, also played his own game. It was his name that gave the name to the period that followed the May uprising until the autumn of 1682 - “Khovanshchina”.

Khovansky gave free rein to the already daring Streltsy army. The willfulness of the archers very soon turned the courtiers, nobles and townspeople against them. Everyone wanted stability and order. Under the pretext of pilgrimage, Sophia took the king brothers away from the Kremlin, and then announced the gathering of a noble militia. The Sagittarius were accused of disobedience. In September, I. A. Khovansky and his son were lured out of Moscow by deception. They were captured and after a short trial, which was more like a massacre, they were executed. The archers were seriously frightened, opened their arsenals and, rolling out cannons on the walls, sat down under siege. Their disobedience to the kings and ruler was obvious. However, they were not ready to fight seriously. The surrender of the archers followed, their repentance, punishment and forgiveness. The archers from the “outdoor infantry” again turned into an ordinary army. “Khovanshchina” is over.

1. Why were the events of the summer of 1682 called “Khovanshchina”?

2. What are the results of this period?

3. Regency of Sophia. Being spiritually close to her brother Fyodor, Sophia was ready to continue his transformation. Her like-minded person and favorite was the boyar Prince V.V. Golitsyn, one of the most educated people of his time, a “Westernizer.” He actively participated in the reforms of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich. Under Sofya, Golitsyn headed the government, having the opportunity to implement his transformative plans. However, circumstances turned against the reformers and they accomplished little.

The most significant of Sophia's achievements was the opening in 1687 of the first higher educational institution in Moscow - the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy. With this, Sophia realized the plans conceived by Fyodor Alekseevich. However, this was done with great deviations. The fact is that Patriarch Joachim did not want to hear about the dominance of the Latin language in the academy. If for Simeon of Polotsk, who developed the first charter of the academy, Latin was the language of science, then for the patriarch it was the language of the Catholic faith. In the new version, teaching was dominated by the Greek language, which was unpopular in Western European universities. In addition, the academy lost its autonomy and found itself under the control of church authorities, who determined the content of training and the composition of teachers. Sophia, who needed the support of the church, did not dare to quarrel with the stern traditionalist Joachim.

The ruler's moderation is explained by the fact that she had no time for reforms. All seven years of her stay at the top of the ruling pyramid were marked by an ongoing struggle for power. After all, the legitimacy of the princess’s power was exhausted with every day Peter I grew up. Sophia was looking for new reasons, convincing for her subjects, to remain in power forever. All her efforts went into this.

One of the ways to strengthen the ruler’s power was to be a successful foreign policy. In 1686, an “eternal peace” was concluded, according to which Poland “forever” recognized Russia’s rights to Left Bank Ukraine and Kyiv. Thus, one of the most cherished goals of the policy of the Moscow sovereigns was achieved. In the same year, the ruler arbitrarily added to her title the title of “autocrat”, which was not due to her.

“Eternal peace” was very expensive; in return, Russia had to break the recently signed Treaty of Bakhchisarai with Turkey and Crimea and join the anti-Turkish alliance that consisted of the Austrian Empire, Venice and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Fulfilling allied obligations, Prince V.V. Golitsyn in 1687 and 1689 went with the army to the Crimea. Loud victories, according to the plan of the ruler’s supporters, were supposed to persuade her subjects to support her. But the campaigns did not bring visible success, although they reduced the military activity of the Turkish Sultan and the Crimean Khan. In Moscow, not without the efforts of the Naryshkins, the Crimean campaigns were presented as completely unsuccessful.

Prince Vasily Golitsyn with an award medal

Princess Sophia in the Novodevichy Convent. Artist I. E. Repin

As Peter grew older, the ruler's power weakened. But Sophia did not want to give in. She even tried to organize her wedding to the kingdom in order to rule “together with the great sovereigns.” However, attempts to persuade the archers to talk about the accession of the daughter of Alexei Mikhailovich did not bring success. The Sagittarius remembered how the ruler repaid them during the Khovanshchina period.

With Peter's marriage in 1689 to Evdokia Lopukhina, the last grounds for the regency disappeared. According to the ideas of people of that time, marriage indicated full adulthood. Sophia failed to provide new arguments in defense of her power. The number of her supporters was dwindling every day.

The denouement came in August - September 1689. Having received news of the intention of the archers, as if by the intention of the ruler, to go on a campaign to Preobrazhenskoye - the residence of the young king, the mortally frightened Peter fled to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. "War" was declared. It quickly became clear that the patriarch, court and army did not intend to support the ruler. The princess was forced to seek peace. But Peter did not need reconciliation, but his sister’s surrender. Her closest associates were captured. Prince V.V. Golitsyn was sent into exile. Sophia herself turned, according to Peter’s definition, into a “shameful person” and was escorted to the Novodevichy Convent under a strong guard. From now on, her name was no longer mentioned along with the names of her brothers. Peter's half-brother, Tsar Ivan, who was incapable of ruling, actually found himself on the sidelines.

1. Why did Princess Sophia strive for power? What policies and policy reforms were expected to strengthen its position?

2. What was the significance of “eternal peace” with Poland for Russia?

4. Russia on the eve of Peter’s time. Already during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich, changes began that turned the 17th century into the last century of the Russian Middle Ages. Under Fyodor Alekseevich, a period of moderate reforms began, without a decisive break with the past, with an orientation towards Polish Catholic culture. Peter I carried out an even more radical version of reforms. If you try to find a symbol that would most fully express the changes that took place under him, then it would probably be the monument to Peter on Senate Square in St. Petersburg. The image of a rearing Russia! The changes were so dramatic that many publicists and historians called the tsar a “revolutionary on the throne.”

Such a bold definition suggests that the reformer tsar broke with the past and created a new Russia “out of nothing.” Meanwhile, this is a deep misconception. It can be said with confidence that there was no gap in historical development, that the 17th century. prepared the reforms so much that they simply would not have happened. In fact, in the economic field of the 17th century. created material conditions for the start of reforms. The growth of crafts, the specialization of regions, and the development of small-scale production served as the basis for a new stage in the development of production - manufacturing. When opening manufactories and shipyards, the tsar could not do without foreign specialists, but Russian people born in the 17th century worked for them.

In the political sphere, the main instrument of change was absolute power, capable of mobilizing human and material resources to achieve goals. But this absolute power would be transferred to Peter from his father and older brother, establishing itself in the second half of the 17th century.

While in Europe, Peter admired the achievements of free workers. But he could not even think about the liberation of the serfs. The mobilization resource of serfdom, which was finally established in the 17th century, was fully used in the process of transformation.

From the Middle Ages, Peter also inherited that “human material” that turned out to be most suitable for the most difficult transformations that crushed all segments of the population.

Finally, in the previous century, the fear of novelty, which previously paralyzed the entire society, was overcome, if not by all, then by part of the power elite. The latter realized the danger of falling behind Western European countries, which had long since entered the Modern Age. Thus, the 17th century is not just in time, but also in essence, the eve of Peter’s reforms.

1. What became the main weapon in the struggle for power?

2. How are the reforms of Peter I and the previous period related to each other?

Questions and tasks

1. Read the epigraph (p. 213), answer the questions and complete the task.

1) What events of the late 17th century? Are we talking about the statement of the historian S. F. Platonov? 2) Think about what measures Princess Sophia could have taken to strengthen her own power. 3) Do you agree with the historian’s opinion? Justify your answer.

2. What new features appeared in the activities of monarchs after the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich?

3. Why did the struggle for power intensify in 1682? Who took part in this fight?

4. Compare the Streltsy riots of 1682 and 1689. Why did Princess Sophia lose the struggle for power?

5. Match the dates indicated on the time tape with the following events:

1) Crimean campaigns of V.V. Golitsyn; 2) “eternal peace” with Poland;

3) Streltsy revolt, the beginning of Sophia’s reign; 4) accession of Peter I.

6. Choose the answer to the main question of the lesson. Explain your choice.

Is it possible to say that the political struggle at the end of the 17th century. was caused only by the desire of Princess Sophia to strengthen her power?

A. Princess Sophia took advantage of the Streltsy uprising to gain power under the young Tsars Peter and Ivan. Having become regent, she began to govern the state on her own.

B. The uprisings of the Streltsy contributed to the completion of the struggle for power, the establishment of the regency of Sophia and the implementation of a number of important reforms and military campaigns that strengthened the position of Russia.

B. Political struggle at the end of the 17th century. weakened autocratic power and strengthened the position of the boyars.

OPINION OF A HISTORIAN

About Prince V.V. Golitsyn

The youngest of Peter's predecessors was Prince V.V. Golitsyn, and he moved away from reality much further than his elders. Still a young man, he was already a prominent figure in the government circle under Tsar Fyodor and became one of the most influential people under Princess Sophia...

Golitsyn was an ardent admirer of the West, for which he renounced many cherished traditions of Russian antiquity. In his vast Moscow house, which foreigners considered one of the most magnificent in Europe, everything was arranged in a European manner: in the large halls, the partitions between the windows were filled with large mirrors, paintings, portraits of Russian and foreign sovereigns and German geographical maps in gilded frames hung on the walls. ; the planetary system was painted on the ceilings; many clocks and an artistic thermometer completed the decoration of the rooms... With his assistance, the Moscow Treaty of Perpetual Peace with Poland took place in 1686, according to which the Moscow state took part in the coalition struggle with Turkey in alliance with Poland, the German Empire and Venice and this formally entered into the concert of European powers, for which Poland forever claimed Kiev and other Moscow acquisitions, temporarily ceded under the Andrusovo Truce, for Moscow.

From the “Course of Russian History” by V. O. Klyuchevsky

1. What was the education and views of V.V. Golitsyn?

2. What directions of the prince’s policy and why does the author highlight?

After the death of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, 14-year-old Fyodor Alekseevich (1676-1682) was elevated to the throne - his son from his first wife - M.M. Miloslavskaya, who came from an old boyar family. In addition to Fyodor, they also had a son, Ivan, and six daughters, the eldest of whom was Sophia. From his second marriage to N.K. Naryshkina, the tsar had a son, Peter, and a daughter.

In the 70-80s, there was a continuous struggle for power between the court groups of the Miloslavskys and Naryshkins. The first was headed by the energetic and power-hungry Princess Sophia, the second was headed by Peter's mother, Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna.

In connection with the death of the childless Fedor, the question arose about his successor. Legally, Ivan should have inherited, but due to illness he was incapable of ruling. Then the choice fell on Peter. He did not suit the Miloslavskys, and they, taking advantage of the discontent of the archers, raised them against the Naryshkins.

During the uprising on May 15-17, 1682, the archers killed a number of their supporters - L.K. Naryshkina, A.S. Matveev and others - and demanded that both Ivan and Peter be proclaimed kings, and due to their youth, government of the country was given into the hands of Princess Sophia

The relationship between Sophia and the growing Peter grew worse. Supported by his “amusing” regiments and even archers, Peter achieved the imprisonment of Sophia, who was left without military force, in the Novodevichy Convent. In the fall of 1689, the Naryshkins came to power in the person of Peter.

Streltsy revolt of 1682 (Moscow Troubles, Khovanshchina) - a revolt of the Moscow Streltsy, as a result of which power was transferred to Princess Sofya Alekseevna.

Sagittarius - a permanent army in the Moscow state; the exact time of their origin is unknown, but the archers received the correct structure under Ivan the Terrible. Some of the archers lived in Moscow as the sovereign’s guards (up to 5 thousand); Most of them were garrisons in outlying cities. the archers were recruited from “free people” who were not taxed and did not serve; their service was lifelong and hereditary.

Azov campaigns of 1695 and 1696 - Russian military campaigns against the Ottoman Empire; were undertaken by Peter I at the beginning of his reign and ended with the capture of the Turkish fortress of Azov. They can be considered the first significant accomplishment of the young king. These military campaigns were the first step towards solving one of the main tasks facing Russia at that time - gaining access to the sea.

First Azov campaign 1695

In the winter and spring of 1695, transport ships were built on the Don: plows, sea boats and rafts to deliver troops, ammunition, artillery and food for the campaign to Azov. During the campaign, Peter combined the duties of the first bombardier and the de facto leader of the entire campaign.

On the Dnieper, the Russian army recaptured three fortresses from the Turks and at the end of June the main forces besieged Azov. Two assault attempts were made, but the fortress could not be taken.

Second Azov campaign 1695

Throughout the winter of 1696, the Russian army prepared for the second campaign. In January, large-scale construction of ships began at the shipyards of Voronezh and Preobrazhenskoye. The galleys built in Preobrazhenskoye were dismantled and transported to Voronezh, where they were reassembled and launched on the Don. Over 25 thousand peasants and townspeople were mobilized from the immediate surroundings to build the fleet. Craftsmen from Austria were invited to build the ships. 2 large ships, 23 galleys and more than 1300 plows, barques and small ships were built

The highest decree was issued, according to which slaves who joined the army received freedom. The land army doubled in size, reaching 70,000 men. It also included Ukrainian and Don Cossacks and Kalmyk cavalry. On May 16, Russian troops again besieged Azov. On July 19, after prolonged artillery shelling, the Azov garrison surrendered. To hold Azov it was necessary to strengthen the fleet.

The Grand Embassy is Russia's diplomatic mission to Western Europe in 1697-1698.

The embassy had to complete several important tasks:

Enlist the support of European countries in the fight against the Ottoman Empire and the Crimean Khanate;

Thanks to the support of European powers, obtain the northern coast of the Black Sea;

Raise the prestige of Russia in Europe with reports of victory in the Azov campaigns;

Invite foreign specialists into Russian service, order and purchase military materials and weapons;

The Tsar's acquaintance with the life and customs of European countries.

However, its practical result was the creation of preconditions for organizing a coalition against Sweden.

The following were appointed as Grand Plenipotentiary Ambassadors:

Lefort Franz Yakovlevich - Admiral General, Novgorod Governor;

Golovin Fedor Alekseevich - general and military commissioner, Siberian governor;

Voznitsyn Prokofy Bogdanovich - Duma clerk, Belevsky governor.

With them there were more than 20 nobles and up to 35 volunteers, among whom was the sergeant of the Preobrazhensky regiment Pyotr Mikhailov - Tsar Peter I himself.

According to the order of the king, the embassy was sent to Austria, Saxony, Brandenburg, Holland, England, Venice and the Pope. The embassy's route went through Riga and Koenigsberg to Holland and England, from England the embassy returned back to Holland, and then it visited Vienna; The embassy did not reach Venice.

Northern Alliance 1699-1700 - concluded between Russia, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Denmark and Saxony against Sweden as a result of the Russian diplomatic mission to Europe (Grand Embassy). In particular, a Russian-Polish treaty was concluded.

The first foundations of the Northern Alliance were laid by the secret Ravsky agreement of Peter I with the Polish king and Saxon elector Augustus II in 1698.

Arriving in Moscow, Peter began negotiations in deep secrecy with the Danish envoy. The negotiations ended with the conclusion of an agreement between Russia and Denmark, according to which in the event of an attack on one of the contracting states, the other must come to the rescue no later than three months. Before this, on September 14, 1699, in Dresden, an alliance treaty directed against Sweden was also concluded between Augustus II and Frederick IV.

Progress of history: 19th century

Continuation of the development of the Russian Empire (“the golden age of Russian culture”).

The struggle between modernization and conservative tendencies.

Overthrow of Paul I, 1801 Exclusion of women from succession to the throne

Pamvel I (Pamvel Petromvich; September 20 (October 1) 1754, Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna, St. Petersburg - March 12 (24), 1801, Mikhailovsky Castle, St. Petersburg) - All-Russian Emperor from November 6 (17), 1796, from the imperial Romanov family, Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov dynasty, son of Peter III Fedorovich and Catherine II Alekseevna.

Pavel I Petrovich (October 1, 1754--March 23, 1801) - Emperor of Russia (1796--1801) from the Romanov dynasty, son of Catherine II and Peter III.

Paul I was brutally beaten and strangled by officers in his own bedroom on the night of March 12, 1801 in the Mikhailovsky Castle. The conspiracy involved A.V. Argamakov, N.P. Panin, vice-chancellor, L.L. Bennigsen, commander of the Izyum Light Horse Regiment, P.A. Zubov (Catherine’s favorite), Palen, Governor General of St. Petersburg, commanders of the guards regiments: Semenovsky - N.I. Depreradovich, Kavalergardsky - F.P. Uvarov, Preobrazhensky - P.A. Talyzin, and according to some sources - the emperor's aide-de-camp, Count Pavel Vasilyevich Golenishchev-Kutuzov, immediately after the coup he was appointed commander of the Cavalry Regiment. Paul I was brutally beaten and strangled by officers in his own bedroom on the night of March 12, 1801 in the Mikhailovsky Castle. The conspiracy involved A.V. Argamakov, N.P. Panin, vice-chancellor, L.L. Bennigsen, commander of the Izyum Light Horse Regiment, P.A. Zubov (Catherine’s favorite), Palen, Governor General of St. Petersburg, commanders of the guards regiments: Semenovsky - N.I. Depreradovich, Kavalergardsky - F.P. Uvarov, Preobrazhensky - P.A. Talyzin, and according to some sources - the emperor's aide-de-camp, Count Pavel Vasilyevich Golenishchev-Kutuzov, immediately after the coup he was appointed commander of the Cavalry Regiment.

Discontent with the “mad” emperor reached its peak on the night of March 12, 1801. The conspirators broke into Mikhailovsky Castle and killed Pavel. The conspiracy was headed by the Governor of St. Petersburg, Count Peter Palen. Among the killers were the Zubov brothers (Platon Zubov was the last favorite of Catherine II).

Paul’s eldest son Alexander, who was once very close to his father, but in recent years was sharply critical of his rule, also played an important role in the conspiracy. But twenty-three-year-old Alexander did not imagine that he would have to pay so dearly for a change of government, and fell into complete despair. Then Count Palen said to him: “Enough with childishness, go reign!”

Paul's most important act was the abolition of Peter's decree on succession to the throne. From now on, the throne passed from the sovereign to his eldest son. At the same time, the “Institution on the Imperial Family” was adopted, which determined the order of maintenance of the members of the reigning family.

On the day of his coronation, April 5, 1797, he issued the most significant decree on succession to the throne during his reign, “The Establishment of the Imperial Family.” This decree abolished Peter I's law on succession to the throne "Truth of the Will of Monarchs" and established a "natural" right of inheritance. For the first time in Russian history, Paul I established a firm and unshakable order of succession to the throne. From now on, only a descendant of the ruler in the male line could take the throne. A woman could only be a regent (temporary ruler) for a young heir. Women received the throne only if there were no more male representatives of the dynasty. The “Establishment” also determined the composition of the imperial family and the hierarchical seniority of its members. The “institution” was changed and clarified by Alexander III in 1886 and existed until 1917.

Birth of Peter 1

The sounds of the large bell of the Assumption Cathedral in the Kremlin broke the morning silence of the capital. The gospel was picked up by hundreds of bells of Moscow churches and monasteries. The cheerful ringing and solemn prayers continued all day on May 30, 1672 - this is how, according to tradition, the addition of a family to the royal family was celebrated. The holiday was called the state's worldwide joy.

The father of the newborn, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, had special reasons to rejoice at the appearance of another son. The Tsar's first wife, Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya, bore him many children. But, amazingly, the daughters grew up strong and healthy, and the sons grew frail and sickly. Of the five, three died young. The eldest, Fyodor, turned 10 years old in 1672, but he could not move his swollen legs, doctors were constantly fussing around him, and grandmothers - home-grown doctors - did not come out of his chambers and bedchamber. Doctors of those times believed that he suffered from “scorbutic disease.” The second son, the blind Ivan, was also not in good health. Although he was in his sixth year, he had difficulty expressing himself, was tongue-tied and lagged behind his peers in development. His father didn’t have high hopes for him either.

The widowed 42-year-old Tsar married again, taking as his wife the young, healthy Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina. At the age of 21, she gave birth to his son, who was named Peter.

The birth of Peter was accompanied by the usual ritual: the tsar sent to announce his state joy to the patriarch, then to members of the Boyar Duma and rich merchants. In accordance with custom, the queen's father, her relatives and people close to her were promoted in rank. A month later, on June 30, the home table was held in the Faceted Chamber. The invited nobility and high clergy were treated to sweet dishes: a huge cake with the image of the state coat of arms and sugar products. On the table stood a sugar loaf weighing two and a half pounds, painted with patterns, and an eagle, a swan, a parrot, a dove and even a model of the Kremlin were cast from sugar. Guests presented gifts to the newborn - crystal mugs and cups, gold glasses, rings, crosses.

Education of Peter 1

Peter was brought up according to a long-established custom. Until he was five years old, he was under the supervision of numerous women - a midwife and nurse, a mother and other servants. “And to raise a prince or princesses,” a contemporary testifies, “they choose from wives of all ranks a wife who is good and pure, and sweet with milk, and healthy.” Peter was not weaned for a long time, so he had two nurses.

The prince's chambers were filled with toys: wooden horses, drums, cannons, musical instruments made to special order, bows, arrows, and bells. Together with his father and mother, accompanied by a large retinue, Peter made leisurely trips to monasteries, as well as to residences near Moscow - Izmailovskoye and Preobrazhenskoye, where the tsar enjoyed falconry. Three-year-old Peter had a small carriage painted gold, in which he was seated during ceremonial trips. The carriage was harnessed to tiny horses, and it was accompanied by foot and horse dwarfs. Peers of the same age were assigned to the princes for games, but the dwarves were also certainly present in the nursery - they amused the princes with their absurd antics and antics.

Peter was not four years old when his father, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, unexpectedly fell ill and died. The death of his father caused great changes not so much in the life of the little prince, but in the position of his mother. Fedor ascended the throne in 1676. More precisely, he was carried out in the arms of the boyars, declared tsar and immediately swore allegiance to him.

The tense relationship between the stepmother and the numerous offspring from the first wife of Tsar Miloslavskaya, previously softened by the head of the family, now, unchecked by anyone, quickly spilled out. People close to Alexei Mikhailovich's second wife, Tsarina Natalya Naryshkina, were removed from the court, and first of all, her tutor, boyar Artamon Sergeevich Matveev, the first minister in the previous government and the tsarina's closest adviser after the death of her husband. He was first sent into honorable exile in Verkhoturye, and then imprisoned in Pustozersk. The disgrace also affected the closest relatives of Queen Natalia - her older brother Ivan Kirillovich was also expelled from Moscow. Key positions in the government were occupied by the Miloslavskys.

At the end of April 1682, at the age of 20, the sickly Fedor died, leaving no offspring. His successor could be either Ivan or Peter. Behind both minor princes stood groups that rushed into the fight as soon as Fyodor passed away. Ivan’s candidacy was supported by all the relatives of Tsar Alexei’s first wife, led by the boyar Ivan Mikhailovich Miloslavsky. The soul of this group was Princess Sophia - an intelligent, powerful and very energetic woman who secretly dreamed of a crown herself. On Peter's side were the Naryshkins, among whom there was not a single significant figure.

Proclamation of Peter 1 as Tsar

Formally, the priority right to the throne belonged to Ivan, since he was the eldest of the heirs. However, at the proposal of the patriarch, supported by some boyars, ten-year-old Peter was proclaimed tsar. According to custom, his mother, Tsarina Natalya, became regent. According to a contemporary, she was a woman “of a kind temperament, benevolent, but she was neither diligent nor skilled in business and had an easy mind.”

This contemporary, to whose testimony we will often refer, was Prince Boris Ivanovich Kurakin. Kurakin began his career in the military field, he commanded the Semenovsky Guards Regiment in the battle of Poltava. Poor health forced him to join the diplomatic service.

Kurakin generally approved of Peter’s activities, but with some reservations: the arrogant aristocrat was alien to the tsar’s behavior, and he was also critical of his, so to speak, democracy.

In his declining years, Kurakin began writing the history of the reign of Letra. This work, which remained unfinished, is notable for the fact that it contains sharp, sometimes devastating characteristics of his contemporaries. The author of these characteristics shows intelligence, subtle observation and boundless skepticism.

Queen Natalya, inexperienced in political intrigue, together with her incompetent relatives, was unable to take power into her own hands and organize a sufficiently authoritative government. Boyar Matveev was urgently summoned from exile, on whose advice the queen decided to rely. While he was getting to the capital from Pustozersk, the Naryshkins’ opponents, the Miloslavskys and Sophia, in the apt expression of the historian S.M. Solovyov, were “boiling up a conspiracy,” using the Streltsy army as an armed support in the fight against their opponents. Let us note that the interests of the Miloslavskys and Naryshkins were alien to the archers, just as, indeed, the interests of the archers were alien to both.

Under Alexei Mikhailovich, the archers were in the position of palace guard, enjoyed a number of significant privileges and systematically received handouts from the tsar. Under his son, they lost these privileges (exemption from city services, the right to duty-free trade). Moreover, the burden of service increased, and the income received from trade and trade, which was a significant help to their meager salary, was reduced. The discontent of the archers was aggravated by the complete arbitrariness of their commanders. The colonels appropriated the Streltsy's salary, subjected the Streltsy to cruel torture for the slightest offense, and widely used them for personal services. The muted murmur of the archers could at any moment develop into active protest.

Revolt of the Streltsy in 1682

On April 30, 1682, that is, three days after the death of Tsar Fedor, the archers came to the palace demanding that unwanted commanders be handed over to them for execution. Tsarina Natalya, taken by surprise, satisfied the ultimatum, 16 commanders of the Streltsy regiments were removed from office and whipped. Subsequently, the Miloslavskys managed to direct the wrath of the archers against their political opponents. A rumor spread through the Streltsy regiments, coming from the Miloslavskys and Sophia, that the Naryshkins had “harassed,” that is, killed, Tsarevich Ivan. The archers were given a list of boyars who were to be exterminated.

On May 15, at the call of the alarm bell, the rifle regiments, with drums beating and banners deployed, moved towards the Kremlin. Confident that Tsarevich Ivan was no longer alive, the archers prepared to carry out the plan suggested by Sophia and the Miloslavskys. The rumor, however, turned out to be false. The boyars, the clergy and Tsarina Natalya with her brothers Ivan and Peter came out onto the porch. This is how Peter’s first meeting with the archers took place: an angry crowd was raging below, and ten-year-old Peter stood on the porch, frightened and, of course, not understanding the significance of the events that were taking place.

The archers, discovering that they had been deceived, calmed down for a while, but then demanded reprisals against the “traitor boyars.” They threw Prince Mikhail Yuryevich Dolgoruky from the porch onto the spears of their comrades. Boyar Matveev was also killed. In addition to several boyars and Duma clerks, the archers chopped up Ivan and. Afanasy Kirillovich Naryshkin, and their father Kirill was forced to become a monk. The corpses of the dead were dragged along the ground, saying: “Behold the boyar Artemon Sergeevich! Behold the boyar Romodanavsky! Behold Dolgoruky! Behold the Duma member is coming, give way!”

The executions shocked young Peter. Grief fell primarily on the shoulders of the mother, but in the children's consciousness the events of May 15-17 were also imprinted for life.

Having devastated the ranks of the Naryshkin supporters, the archers demanded that both brothers reign, and a few days later they supplemented this demand with a new one - that the rule of the state under the minor kings be handed over to Princess Sophia.

As a result of the May events, the Naryshkins were killed, but Sophia, together with the Miloslavskys, acquired only a ghost of power, for the Streltsy, led by the new head of the Streletsky Prikaz, Prince Khovansky, turned out to be the masters of the situation in the capital. They dictated their will to Sophia and demanded that the Streltsy army be called the outbuilding infantry. They also categorically expressed their desire to have a “pillar” (obelisk) built in their honor on Red Square, on which their merits during the events of May 15-17 would be listed. The ruler tried to calm the archers by distributing money and promising rewards, but soon became convinced that those who provided her with power could deprive her of this power in the same bloody way as the coup of May 15-17 was carried out.

Sophia began to look for support for herself in wide circles of the nobility. On August 19, she and the kings left Moscow for the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. From there she turned to the nobles with a call to appear under the walls of the monastery. When the noble militia became so numerous that it turned into a formidable military force, Sophia summoned Prince Khovansky and, on the way to the monastery, ordered him to be captured and immediately executed.

Having learned about this, the archers initially decided to give battle to the nobles gathered at the monastery, but considered it more prudent to confess. The roles changed: it was not the archers who dictated Sophia’s will, but, on the contrary, Sophia presented the archers with an ultimatum demand to tear down the newly erected “pillar” on Red Square and not gather in Cossack circles.

The reign of Sophia and Prince Golitsyn

Sophia's seven-year reign began. The head of the government was Prince Vasily Vasilyevich Golitsyn, Sophia’s favorite, who stood out among his contemporaries for his erudition and knowledge of foreign languages. He “was a fair person and had a great mind and was loved by everyone” - this is how his admirer spoke of him. As the head of the Ambassadorial Prikaz, Golitsyn concluded an eternal peace with Poland in 1686. The agreement confirmed the accession of Kyiv to Russia. This was a major foreign policy success, which Sophia immediately took advantage of to strengthen her position: from 1687, Sophia’s name began to be mentioned in official documents along with the kings. However, other areas of the government’s foreign policy activities not only failed to consolidate the prestige of the princess achieved by the eternal peace, but caused obvious damage to it.

Russia, in return for the acquired Kyiv, pledged to join the anti-Turkish league consisting of Poland, Austria and Venice and carry out campaigns against the Crimean Tatars. The Allies assigned a auxiliary role to these campaigns: Russian troops were supposed to pin the Tatar cavalry to the Russian theater of military operations and thereby protect the Polish and Austrian lands from its devastating raids. The fight against the Crimeans also corresponded to the interests of Russia, whose southern districts were subject to their predatory invasions.

The first Crimean campaign led by Prince Golitsyn took place in 1687. The campaign was not popular among service people. Some of them came to the review in mourning dress and with black blankets on their horses, thereby expressing disbelief in the success of the matter. In May, a 100,000-strong army moved towards the Crimea. Without reaching it and without meeting the enemy on its way, the army, having suffered significant damage from lack of food and lack of water, returned back. Failure, however, did not prevent Golitsyn from sending a victorious report, the meaning of which was that the timid Tatars did not dare to engage in battle with the Russian army.

Two years later, in 1689, Golitsyn repeated the campaign. In order not to be exposed to the danger of steppe fires and not to lack water, the army went south in early spring. This time, however, skirmishes with the enemy took place, and the Tatars were driven away. In May, Golitsyn reached Perekop, but after standing for a day at its walls, he turned north. The second Crimean campaign, like the first, ended in vain. However, Sophia sent her favorite a tender letter: “How should you pay for such a necessary service, especially yours, my light, and labors? If you hadn’t worked so hard, no one would have done that.” In the spirit of the princess’s letter, an official letter to Golitsyn was drawn up, in which the tsars thanked the unlucky commander for his “many and diligent service”, for the fact that the Tatars “were defeated and driven out by our troops in their filthy dwellings”, that a “never unprecedented victory” was won ".

The loud words of the letter, as well as the solemn meeting of the participants in the campaign, were supposed to create the appearance of success. But the noise, deliberately whipped up by Sophia, deceived no one. There were even rumors in Moscow that Golitsyn “took two barrels of gold from the Tatars, standing at Perekop,” which, however, turned out to be only finely gilded copper money. A capable diplomat and gallant favorite turned out to be a worthless military leader.

Life of Peter 1 during the reign of Sophia

How did Peter's life proceed during these seven years? Together with his mother, Tsarina Natalya, he lived in the villages of Vorobyovo, Kakshshisky, and Preobrazhensky near Moscow. At court, Peter, like Ivan, was assigned a decorative role: he participated in church ceremonies, visited Moscow and country monasteries with the court, and attended receptions of foreign ambassadors. A double throne was made for the reigning brothers, behind which the ruler was hiding to tell them how to behave when receiving ambassadors. One of these techniques was described in 1683 by the secretary of the Swedish embassy. This is the first currently known characteristic of young Peter. “In the reception chamber, upholstered in Turkish carpets, on two silver chairs under icons, sat both kings in full royal attire, shining with precious stones. The elder brother, with his cap pulled down over his eyes, his eyes lowered to the ground, not seeing anyone, sat almost motionless; the younger brother looked on. on everyone; his face was open, beautiful, young blood played in him as soon as they addressed him with a speech.” Peter showed a keen interest in what was happening and was restless, which confused the sedate boyars. Eleven-year-old Peter looked like a 16-year-old boy in height and development. The author of the quoted lines managed to capture Peter’s character traits: mobility, childlike spontaneity, curiosity.

What did Peter do in the interval between the tedious solemn rituals, which did not happen very often? I learned to read and write. He received a very modest, if not meager, education.

Even when Peter was eight years old, boyar Rodion Matveyevich Streshnev was assigned to him as a teacher. From this time on, Peter apparently began to be taught to read and write. His teachers from 1683 were clerk Nikita Zotov and Afanasy Nesterov. Both teachers were not educated and erudite people. Peter's lively and receptive mind could absorb an abundance of various scientific wisdom, but the mentors' own knowledge was only enough to teach him to read, write, recite by heart some texts of liturgical books and provide fragmentary information on history and geography. During his years of study, Peter did not even take the course that was usually taught to princes in the 17th century.

Meanwhile, in his mature years, he showed deep knowledge of history, geography, artillery, fortification, and shipbuilding. He owes this to his own talent, tireless thirst for knowledge and willingness to always learn. However, the tsar was not able to fill all the gaps in his education - he was at odds with spelling until the end of his life and made mistakes from which a competent clerk was free.

Hobbies of Peter 1 in childhood

Most of the time Peter was left to his own devices. Three hobbies absorbed his energy.

From an early age he showed an affinity for crafts. The tools of a mason and carpenter, a carpenter and a blacksmith were delivered to him in Preobrazheaskoye. As an adult, Peter was fluent in at least a dozen crafts, and achieved particular virtuosity in working with an ax and on a lathe. His love for physical labor sharply distinguished Peter from his predecessors and successors. It is impossible to imagine that his pious father, the “quiet” Alexei Mikhailovich, freed from the magnificent royal attire, would wield a mason’s trowel or a blacksmith’s hammer.

Peter was even more fascinated by military affairs. The hobby grew out of his childhood fun. Over time, wooden cannons began to be replaced by military ones, and real sabers, protazans, halberds, squeaks and pistols appeared. The open spaces of Preobrazhensky allowed Peter to fire his favorite cannons and play war games with the participation of a significant number of peers. There, in 1686, a military town appeared with living quarters for Peter and amusing soldiers, barns for storing cannons and weapons. All these structures were surrounded by a wooden fence with towers and an earthen rampart. Amusing ones, at first intended for games, or, as they said then, fun, over the years they turned into a real military force. At the origins of the two schools - Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky, which would form the backbone of the future regular army, there were amusing battalions recruited from sleeping bags, grooms of the amusing stable, nobles, and falconers.

But nothing can compare with Peter’s passion for navigation and shipbuilding. According to the Tsar himself, the origins of this passion go back to the story of Prince Yakov Dolgoruky that he once had “an instrument that could be used to take distances or distances without reaching that month,” and to his acquaintance with an old boot, on which, as Peter was told, could sail against the wind.

The astrolabe was brought from France, and in the German settlement in Moscow, where foreign traders and craftsmen lived, there was a person who knew how to handle it. It turned out to be the Dutchman Franz Timmerman. There, in the German settlement, Peter found a navigator and shipbuilder who undertook to repair the boat, set the sails and teach how to control them. The first shipbuilding experiments were carried out on the Yauza River, a tributary of Moscow. Later, Peter recalled that on the narrow Yauza the boat kept hitting the banks. Then he moved it to Prosyannaya Pond, but there was not the necessary space here either. The search for big water led 16-year-old Peter to Lake Pereyaslavl, where he went under the pretext of a pilgrimage to the Trinity Monastery.

Marriage of Peter 1 with Evdokia Lopukhina

Peter was not 17 years old when his mother decided to marry him. An early marriage, according to Queen Natalya’s calculations, was supposed to significantly change the position of her son, and with him, herself. According to the custom of that time, a young man became an adult after marriage. Consequently, married Peter should no longer need the care of his sister Sophia; the time of his reign would come, he would move from Preobrazhensky to the chambers of the Kremlin.

In addition, by marrying, the mother hoped to settle her son down, tie him to the family hearth, and distract him from the German settlement and hobbies that were not characteristic of the tsar's office. With a hasty marriage, they finally tried to protect the interests of Peter’s descendants from the claims of the possible heirs of his co-ruler Ivan, who by this time was already a married man and was waiting for the addition of his family.

Tsarina Natalya herself found a bride for her son - the beautiful Evdokia Lopukhina, according to a contemporary, “a princess with a fair face, only an average mind and a dissimilar disposition to her husband.” The same contemporary noted that “there was a fair amount of love between them, but it only lasted for a year.” It is possible that the cooling between the spouses began even earlier, because a month after the wedding, Peter left Evdokia and went to Lake Pereyaslavl to engage in sea fun.

In the German settlement, the tsar met the daughter of a wine merchant, Anna Mons. One contemporary believed that this “girl was pretty and smart,” while another, on the contrary, found that she was “of mediocre sharpness and intelligence.” It’s hard to say which of them is right, but cheerful, loving, resourceful, always ready to joke, dance or support small talk, Anna Mons was the complete opposite of the Tsar’s wife - a limited beauty, depressing with her slavish obedience and blind adherence to antiquity. Peter preferred Mons and spent his free time in her company.

Several letters from Evdokia to Peter and not a single answer from the king have been preserved. In 1689, when Peter went to Lake Pereyaslavl, Evdokia addressed him with tender words: “Hello, my light, for many years. We ask for mercy, please, sir, come to us without hesitation. And I am alive by my mother’s mercy. Bridegroom your Dunka hits with her forehead." In another letter addressed to “my sweetheart,” “your fiancé Dunka,” who was not yet aware of the imminent breakup, asked permission to come to her husband on a date. Two letters from Evdokia date back to a later time - 1694, and the last of them is full of sadness and loneliness of a woman who is well aware that she has been abandoned for the sake of another. There is no longer an appeal to “sweetheart” in them, the wife does not hide her bitterness and cannot resist reproaches, calls herself “merciless”, complains that she does not receive “a single line” in response to her letters. The birth of a son in 1690, named Alexei, did not strengthen family ties.

Relations between Peter's court in Preobrazhenskoye and the official court in the Kremlin, correct in the first years of Sophia's reign, gradually, as Peter grew older, acquired a tinge of hostility. Both sides kept a watchful eye on each other's actions. In Preobrazhenskoe, the frequent appearances of the ruler Sophia in various ceremonies did not go unnoticed. On July 8, 1689, the ruler committed a defiant act - she dared to participate in the cathedral procession with the kings. The angry Peter told her that she, as a woman, should immediately leave, because it was indecent for her to follow the crosses. However, the princess ignored Peter’s reproach, and then he, in a state of extreme excitement, rushed off to Kolomenskoye, and from there to Preobrazhenskoye. Peter's entourage also caused dissatisfaction with the fact that the title of official acts mentioned the name of the ruler - "the blessed princess and Grand Duchess Sofia Alekseevna." Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna openly expressed indignation: “Why did she start writing together with the great sovereigns? We have people, and they will leave this business.”

If in Preobrazhenskoe these actions of Sophia were viewed as an attempt to gain popularity and ultimately carry out a government coup, then in the Kremlin similar fears were caused by the increase in the number of the amusing army and Peter’s constant worries about his weapons. Let us stipulate, however, that the surviving documents do not provide grounds for asserting that Peter’s lust for power awoke at this time and he showed the same interest in power as, say, in shipbuilding or military fun. At first, ambition had to be fueled, which is what the queen did, guided by advisers more experienced in political intrigue.

Sophia's attempt to organize a conspiracy against the Naryshkins

About Sophia, on the contrary, it cannot be said that she lacked a love of power. Having become accustomed to the position of ruler and accustomed to power, Sophia gradually prepared a palace coup in order to deprive Peter of his rights to the throne. The ruler instructed her second favorite, Fyodor Shaklovity, who led the Streletsky Prikaz, to find out how the Streltsy would react to her accession to the throne. Shaklovity invited loyal Streltsy commanders to a country residence hidden from prying eyes and, without further discussion, invited them to write a petition asking that Sophia be crowned king.

To most of the Streltsy commanders, Shaklovity’s proposal to repeat the events of the spring and summer of 1682 seemed risky. They rejected the offer, citing their inability to write petitions. “He won’t write a petition, it’s hard to write a petition,” Shaklovity persuaded and immediately took out the finished petition, supposedly drawn up on behalf of the entire population of the capital, not just the Streltsy. What if Peter does not agree to accept such a petition? “If he doesn’t listen,” answered Shaklovity, “grab the boyar Lev Kirillovich Naryshkin and Boris Alekseevich Golitsyn, then he will accept the petition.” Shaklovity’s hothead imagined that the implementation of the plan to remove Peter from power would not meet resistance. "And the patriarch and the boyars?" - asked the meticulous bosses. “It’s easy to change the patriarch, and the boyars are a fallen, frozen tree,” Shaklovity reassured.

Shaklovity failed to attract the Streltsy chiefs to the conspiracy: after talking, they parted ways. The coup had to be postponed, although some archers were ready for decisive action. One of the archers imagined the change of the patriarch like this: “I’ll go into the patriarch’s room and scream, and he won’t find a place for me out of fear.” - “We need to leave Queen Natalya the bear.” - “And her son will stand up for her!” - the interlocutor objected. “Why should he let him go? What happened?” - came the answer. The most determined of the archers suggested killing Peter by throwing a grenade at him or placing it in the sleigh. Others were going to kill during a fire - the king loved to participate in extinguishing fires.

Rumors spread among the archers about the Naryshkins’ intention to “lime” Tsar Ivan and ruler Sophia. Some new fighting techniques were also used: at night, clerk Matvey Shopshn rode through the streets of Moscow, accompanied by armed men, dressed in exactly the same white satin caftan that Lev Kirillovich Naryshkin wore. He grabbed the archers standing on guard and brutally beat them, saying: “You killed my brothers, and I will avenge the blood of my brothers on you.” One of Shoshin’s companions screamed: “Lev Kirillovich! Why beat him to death! Christian soul!” The victims were taken to the Streletsky Prikaz, and during interrogations there, misled by the masquerade, they showed that they had become victims of Lev Kirillovich Naryshkin. In a similar way, Sophia and her supporters tried to arouse the bitterness of the archers against the Naryshkins.

The last public clash between Peter and Sophia occurred in July 1689 and was associated with the celebration of Golitsyn’s return from the Crimean campaign. This campaign, as noted above, did not bring glory to either the military men or their commander. Nevertheless, Sophia did not skimp on rewards for dubious military exploits, thereby seeking to enlist the support of the archers in the impending clash with Peter.

Peter pointedly refused to participate in the magnificent celebrations. The leader of the campaign and other military leaders, having arrived in Preobrazhenskoye, were not even received by Peter. Sophia considered these actions a direct challenge to herself. She appeals to the archers: “Are we suitable for you? If we are suitable, you will stand for us, but if we are not suitable, we will leave the state.” With the last part of the phrase, Sophia emphasized the modesty of her intentions. In reality, in the Kremlin, as in Preobrazhensky, feverish preparations were underway for the denouement. As often happens in a tense environment full of anxiety and expectations, it happened completely unexpectedly.

On the night of August 7-8, the alarm was raised in the Kremlin, the archers took up their guns: someone started a rumor that the funny ones from Preobrazhenskoye were going to Moscow. Peter's supporters among the Moscow Streltsy, not understanding what was happening, believed that the Streltsy were preparing not for the defense of the Kremlin, but for a campaign to Preobrazhenskoye. Instantly they rushed to Peter's residence to warn him of the impending danger. The alarm turned out to be false, but the rumor nevertheless caused a chain reaction.

Peter was woken up to tell the news. You can imagine what thoughts flashed through Peter’s head and what he experienced in those short seconds. The events of seven years ago flashed by - an angry crowd of armed people, poles, halberds, pikes, on the tip of which they threw the Naryshkin supporters from the porch. The decision, caused by fear for life, was unexpected - to run away. He rushed in only his shirt into the nearest grove and in the silence of the night tried to catch the roar of the stomping of the moving archers. But it was quiet. He feverishly wondered where to run. They brought him clothes and a saddle, brought him a horse, and all night long, accompanied by three people, he rode to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, behind whose thick walls Sophia had taken refuge seven years ago.

In his mature years, Peter was a man of great courage, and many times found himself in deadly situations. But at the age of seventeen he left his wife and mother, abandoned close people and amusing soldiers to the mercy of fate, without thinking that the walls of the Trinity
The Sergius Lavra, protected by no one, could not have saved him. Exhausted by the long ride, Peter arrived at the monastery on the morning of August 8, threw himself on his bed and, shedding tears, told the archimandrite about what had happened, asking for protection.

The next day, amusing soldiers and archers of the Sukharev regiment arrived from Preobrazhensky to Peter, and his mother also arrived.

The Kremlin learned about Peter's escape only on August 9 - the whole day before Sophia, accompanied by the archers, had been on a pilgrimage. The news caused alarm, which they tried to hide with feigned calm: “He’s free to run wild,” said Shaklovity.

An attempt at reconciliation between Sophia and Peter 1

Sophia made several unsuccessful attempts at reconciliation. At first, she sent Patriarch Joachim to the Trinity to resolve the conflict, but he, sympathizing with Peter, remained with him. “I sent the patriarch,” Sophia shared the results of her unsuccessful venture with the archers, “in order to get along with my brother, but he, having visited him, lives there and does not go to Moscow.” Then she went to the monastery herself, but on the way she received a categorical order from her brother to return to the Kremlin.

The military forces that Sophia was counting on to rely on were melting every day. Together with Shaklovit, she could not keep the soldier and rifle regiments in obedience, who did not risk entering into an armed conflict with the troops supporting Peter. At his call, regiment commanders arrived at the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, led by soldiers and archers. There, the Streltsy chiefs informed the Tsar about a secret meeting convened by Shaklovity, about his attempt to carry out a palace coup. There was a demand to extradite Shaklovity.

Sophia's appeal to the archers remaining in Moscow and her call to defend their boss were unsuccessful. The ruler had to hand over the favorite, he was taken to the monastery on September 7, interrogated and tortured, and five days later executed along with his main accomplices.