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Name: Mikhail Romanov (Mikhail Fedorovich)

Age: 49 years old

Activity: the first Russian Tsar from the Romanov dynasty

Marital status: was married

Mikhail Romanov: biography

Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov is one of the rulers of Rus', who ascended the throne in 1613. Mikhail Romanov is the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty, which later gave the country many sovereigns, including the opener of the window to Europe, who stopped the seven-year war of her husband, who abolished serfdom and many others. Although in fairness it should be said that not all of the reigning Romanov family tree were descendants of Mikhail Fedorovich by blood.

The future Tsar Mikhail Romanov, whose biography dates back to 1596, was born into the family of boyar Fyodor Nikitich and his wife Ksenia Ivanovna. It was the father who was a relatively close relative of the last tsar from the Rurik dynasty, Fyodor Ioannovich. But since Romanov Sr., by coincidence, took the spiritual path and turned into Patriarch Filaret, there was no longer any talk of succession to the throne of the Romanov branch through him.

The following circumstances contributed to this. During the reign of Boris Godunov, a denunciation was written against the Romanov family, which “convicted” Nikita Romanov, the grandfather of the future Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, of witchcraft and the desire to kill Godunov and his family. What followed was the immediate arrest of all males, forced universal tonsure as monks and exile to Siberia, where almost all family members died. When he ascended the throne, he ordered pardon for the exiled boyars, including the Romanovs. By that time, only Patriarch Filaret with his wife and son, as well as his brother Ivan Nikitich, were able to return.

The further biography of Mikhail Romanov was briefly connected with the town of Kliny, which now belongs to the Vladimir region. When the Seven Boyars came to power in Russia, the family lived in Moscow for a couple of years, and later, during the Russian-Polish War of the Time of Troubles, they took refuge from persecution by Polish-Lithuanian troops in the Ipatiev Monastery in Kostroma.

Kingdom of Mikhail Romanov

The election of Mikhail Romanov to the throne became possible thanks to the unification of the Moscow common people with the Great Russian Cossacks. The nobility was going to give the throne to the King of England and Scotland, James I, but this did not suit the Cossacks. The fact is that they, not without reason, feared that foreign rulers would take away their territories and, in addition, reduce the size of their grain allowance. As a result, the Zemsky Sobor chose as heir to the throne the closest relative of the last Russian Tsar, who turned out to be 16-year-old Mikhail Romanov.

It should be noted that neither he nor his mother were initially happy about the idea of ​​Moscow reign, realizing what a heavy burden it was. But the ambassadors briefly explained to Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov why his consent was so important, and the young man left for the capital. Along the way, he stopped in all major cities, for example, Nizhny Novgorod, Yaroslavl, Suzdal, Rostov. In Moscow, he went straight through Red Square to the Kremlin and was solemnly greeted by overjoyed people at the Spassky Gate. After the coronation, or as they said then, the crowning of the kingdom, the royal dynasty of Mikhail Romanov began, which ruled Russia for the next three hundred years and brought it to the ranks of the great powers of the world.

Since the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov began when he was only 16 years old, there is no need to talk about any experience of the tsar. Moreover, he was not raised with an eye to government and, according to rumors, the young king could barely read. Therefore, in the first years of Mikhail Romanov, politics depended more on the decisions of the Zemsky Sobor. When his father, Patriarch Filaret, returned to Moscow, he became an actual, although not obvious, co-ruler, suggesting, directing and influencing the policies of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. State charters of that time were written on behalf of the tsar and the patriarch.

Mikhail Romanov's foreign policy was aimed at ending ruinous wars with Western countries. He stopped the bloodshed with Swedish and Polish troops, although at the cost of losing some territory, including access to the Baltic Sea. Actually, because of these territories, many years later Peter I will participate in the Northern War. Mikhail Romanov's domestic policy was also aimed at stabilizing life and centralizing power. He managed to bring harmony to secular and spiritual society, restore agriculture and trade, destroyed during the Time of Troubles, establish the country's first factories, and transform the tax system depending on the size of land.

It is also worth noting such innovations as the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty, such as the first census of the population and their property carried out in the country, which made it possible to stabilize the tax system, as well as the state’s encouragement of the development of creative talents. Tsar Mikhail Romanov ordered the employment of the artist John Deters and instructed him to teach painting to capable Russian students.

In general, the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov was characterized by an improvement in the position of Russia. By the end of his reign, the consequences of the Time of Troubles were eliminated and conditions were created for the future prosperity of Russia. By the way, it was under Mikhail Fedorovich that the German Settlement appeared in Moscow, which would play such an important role in the reforms of Peter I the Great.

Personal life

When Tsar Mikhail Romanov turned 20, a bride show was held, because if he had not given the state an heir, unrest and unrest could have begun again. It is interesting that these shows were initially a fiction - the mother had already chosen a future wife from the noble Saltykov family for the autocrat. But Mikhail Fedorovich confused her plans - he chose his own bride. She turned out to be the hawthorn Maria Khlopova, but the girl was not destined to become a queen. The angry Saltykovs began to secretly poison the girl’s food, and due to the symptoms of the disease that appeared, she was recognized as an unsuitable candidate. However, the tsar discovered the boyars’ intrigue and exiled the Saltykov family.

But Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov was too gentle in character to insist on a wedding with Maria Khlopova. He wooed foreign brides. Although they agreed to the marriage, but only on condition of maintaining the Catholic faith, which turned out to be unacceptable for Rus'. As a result, the noble princess Maria Dolgorukaya became the wife of Mikhail Romanov. However, literally a few days after the wedding, she fell ill and soon died. The people called this death a punishment for insulting Maria Khlopova, and historians do not rule out a new poisoning.

By the age of 30, Tsar Mikhail Romanov was not only single, but most importantly, childless. The bridesmaids were organized again, again the future queen was chosen behind the scenes in advance, and again Romanov showed self-will. He chose the daughter of a nobleman, Evdokia Streshneva, who was not even listed as a candidate and did not participate in the competition, but came as a servant of one of the girls. The wedding was very modest, the bride was protected from assassination with all possible forces, and when she showed that she was not interested in the politics of Mikhail Romanov, all the intriguers left the tsar’s wife behind.

The family life of Mikhail Fedorovich and Evdokia Lukyanovna was relatively happy. The couple became the founders of the Romanov dynasty and produced ten children, although six of them died in infancy. The future Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was the third child and first son of the ruling parents. Besides him, three daughters of Mikhail Romanov survived - Irina, Tatyana and Anna. Evdokia Streshneva herself, in addition to the main duty of the queen - the birth of heirs, was engaged in charity, helping churches and poor people, building temples and leading a pious life. She survived the royal husband by only one month.

Death

Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov was a sickly man from birth. Moreover, he had both physical and psychological ailments, for example, he was often in a state of depression, as they said then - “suffered from melancholy.” In addition, he moved very little, which is why he had problems with his legs. By the age of 30, the king could barely walk and was often carried out of his chambers by servants in their arms.

However, he lived quite a long time and died the day after his 49th birthday. Doctors named the official cause of death as water sickness, caused by constant sitting and drinking copious amounts of cold water. Mikhail Romanov was buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.

On February 21, 1613, at the Great Moscow Council there was collected, that is acquired The founder of the new Royal Dynasty is the young boyar Mikhail Feodorovich Romanov. The spiritual difference between the strong-willed "collective" election by the power of the majority and unanimously gaining the rightful Heir to the Throne through a conciliar test of God’s will is very significant, although in historiographical literature it is customary to speak specifically about the “election” of the Tsar by the Council. But the conciliar documents themselves testify only to unanimous, unanimous meeting- finding a new Sovereign and Dynasty. The same documents name Tsar Michael chosen one of God, and not only as a personal chosen one, but also according to the dignity of His Family, chosen by God.

According to genealogical legends, the Russian boyar Family of the Romanovs originates from the governor of the princely family, Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla, who originated “from Lithuania,” who arrived around the 1330s from Veliky Novgorod to serve at the Court of Grand Duke John Danilovich Kalita. In some genealogical records, Andrei Kobyla is indicated as having arrived “from Prus,” that is, from Prussia, or “from the Germans.” All these characteristics - from Lithuania, from Prussia or from the Germans do not contradict each other - they mean the same lands on the southeastern coast of the Varangian (Baltic) Sea.

Ancient Prussia, a vast region on the south-eastern coast of the Baltic, was conquered by the German Teutonic Order in the first quarter of the 13th century and forcibly Germanized. But part of the lands of East Prussia at the same time ended up in the possession of the Principality of Lithuania, whose statehood in turn was based on the Old Russian cultural tradition: until the first third of the 16th century, the written language of Lithuania was the Old Russian language, in which chronicles, legal and commercial records were written.

Since ancient times, these lands were inhabited by Japhetic Slavic and Baltic tribes, who lived in close cultural interaction. The surviving fragments of the ancient Prussian language indicate its closeness, on the one hand, to the Slavic language, on the other hand, to the Baltic dialects, which then included the unwritten Lithuanian language.

Since ancient times, Prusskaya Street has existed in Veliky Novgorod. Located at the Zagorodsky End, it originated from the Pokrovsky Gate of the Novgorod Detinets (the central part of the Kremlin), and this was a place of settlement not for visiting foreigners, but for native Orthodox Novgorodians. The first mention of Prusskaya Street in the history of Novgorod dates back to 1218, when during the rebellion of the Trade Side and the Nerevsky End, Lyudin End and the residents of Prusskaya Street supported the mayor Tverdislav. The name of the street appears in the Novgorod Chronicle under 1230. But archaeological research indicates that, as an urban structure, long before 1218, a street already existed in this place, possibly with the same name, because the mention of 1218 does not refer to the founding or name of this Prussian street. It’s just that the oldest mention of it that has reached us dates back to this year. Another mention in the Novgorod Chronicle dates back to 1230 - in connection with the Temple of the Twelve Apostles on Propastekh, near which Novgorodians who died of hunger in 1230 were massively buried. It is also significant that the year 1218 indicates a compact settlement of Orthodox Prussian Slavs in Novgorod even before the start of the seizure of East Prussia in 1225 by the Teutonic Order.

Many noble native Novgorod families had their origins “from Prus”. For example, there was a famous Prussian governor of Slavic origin, Mikhail Prushanin, who arrived in Veliky Novgorod with his squad at the beginning of the 13th century and then served the Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky. According to some legends, Mikhail Prushanin took part in the famous Battle of the Neva (1240); according to others, his son was a participant in the battle.

Mikhail Prushanin was the founder of the Russian noble and boyar families of the Shestovs, Morozovs, and Saltykovs. The mother of Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich Ksenia Ioannovna - Great Nun Martha, was the daughter of Ivan Vasilyevich Shestov.

According to family legend, Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla was one of the sons of the Prussian prince Divon Alexa (Bear) - a direct descendant of the Prussian Tsar Videvut, whose life dates back to the 4th century AD.

Prince Divon received Holy Baptism in Novgorod the Great with the name John. The famous Novgorodian, hero of the Battle of the Neva Gavrila Aleksich († 1241) according to legend was the brother of Prince Divon-John, perhaps not a brother, but a cousin or second cousin. Gavrilo Aleksich also became the founder of many noble Russian families - the Pushkins, Akinfovs, Chelyadins, Khromykh-Davydovs, Buturlins, Sviblovs, Kamenskys, Kuritsyns, Zamytskys, Chulkovs and others.

Their common ancestor, the Prussian Tsar Videvut, and his brother Prince Bruten arrived along the Vistula or Neman on the Baltic coast and founded under their leadership an ancient Kingdom, which they named, apparently, after their ancestor Prus - Prussia.

The name “Prusius” is repeatedly found in the famous dynasty of Thracian Kings, who reigned from the 5th to the 1st centuries BC. in Bithynia (Asia Minor) and the Balkans. And in the name of the Prince Brutus ena, the brother of Tsar Videvut, the name “Prus” also sounds distantly. In Latin, "Prussia" is written as "Borussia" or "Prutenia". In turn, “The Tale of St. Spyridon-Sava” and “The Tale of the Princes of Vladimir” indicate the origin of the Grand Duke Rurik of Novgorod from Prince Prus, the brother of Emperor Augustus. Roman history does not know such a sibling with Octavian Augustus, but the twinning, say, legal twinning of the Emperor Augustus himself or his predecessor, the first consul Julius Caesar, with one of the descendants of the Bithynian Kings, who bore the name Prusius, could well have been, which is what has been reported to us news from ancient Russian legend. This indicates that, according to such genealogical legends, both the ancestors of the Grand Duke Rurik of Novgorod and the ancestors of the boyar Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla could have a common ancestor of Tsarist origin.

Similar legends about common and common roots in antiquity can be traced for most of the Royal European Dynasties; they are well known to specialists in August genealogies. It is impossible to prove the documentary historical authenticity of such legends on the basis of strict written sources. But at the same time, history is not mathematics or classical physics, although the vast majority of historical material operates with fairly accurate chronological data and documented facts. Pointing out the understandable instability of such genealogical legends, the written recording of which occurred only in the XIV-XVIII centuries, genuine historical science should not immediately reject them. On the contrary, it must testify to them and carefully preserve what the ancestral memory of our ancestors preserved and passed on from mouth to mouth for many, many centuries, otherwise what is called “scientifically” will be rejected human memory.

The very fact that Andrei Ioannovich Kobyla, who arrived from Veliky Novgorod to Moscow at the Court of the Moscow Grand Dukes John Kalita and Simeon Ioannovich the Proud, was boyar, indicates that this man at that time was famous for his nobility and noble origin. The boyar rank was the highest state rank in the hierarchy of that time, then at the same time under the Grand Duke the number of boyars rarely exceeded 5-6 people; such a high rank simply would not have been awarded to some unknown, clever upstart in those days. Only really noble man Boyar Andrei Kobyla could have been sent in 1347 by the matchmaker of the Grand Duke of Vladimir and Moscow Simeon Ioannovich the Proud to the Court of Tver Prince Vsevolod Alexandrovich for his bride Princess Maria Alexandrovna. Moreover, that marriage contract was associated with the most important diplomatic mission, as a result of which Prince Vsevolod Alexandrovich Tverskoy had to renounce the khan's label for the Tver inheritance and return to the Reign in the Hill near Tver, transferring the Tver Reign to Prince Vasily Mikhailovich Kashinsky. Such difficult issues of dynastic marriages and changes of appanage could not be entrusted to people of nobility, not versed in the intricacies of grand-ducal diplomacy.

The very concept of “knowing” does not mean widespread fame, as many now believe. The Old Russian concept of “to know” denotes the bearers of special, hereditary knowledge about the wisdom of the Supreme Power, knowledge that was not taught anywhere, but was passed on only from older generations to younger ones from generation to generation. Noble people were descendants of the bearers of the Supreme Power. The nobility are the keepers of the most ancient power traditions, representatives of noble families themselves were a living legend, a living tradition, which, due to the secret nature of that knowledge, was not recorded in detail in writing, but this special knowledge was highly valued by those around them, putting noble people in a special position in ancient society.

The ancient Prussians, under the leadership of Tsar Videvut and Prince Bruten, developed the cult of the sacred white horse, known among the Baltic Slavs since ancient times, and the cult of the sacred oak in the village of Romov, the name of which may indicate the archaic memory of Apennine Rome (Roma). The symbolism of these cults was displayed on the coat of arms of Prussia, which depicted Videvut and Bruten themselves, a white horse, and an oak tree. According to Moscow genealogies, it is known that A.I. Kobyla had five sons - Semyon Zherebets, Alexander Yolka, Vasily Ivantey, Gavriil Gavsha and Fyodor Koshka. In addition, the noble Novgorod families of the Sukhovo-Kobylins and Kobylins are known, whose origins Novgorod and Tver genealogists associate with A.I. Kobyla.

Semyon Zherebets became the founder of Russian noble families - Zherebtsovs, Lodygins, Konovnitsyns, Kokorevs, Obraztsovs. The Kolychevs, Neplyuevs and Boborykins descend from Alexander Yolka. From Fyodor Koshka - Koshkins, Romanovs, Sheremetevs, Yakovlevs, Golyaevs, Bezzubtsevs and others.

“Horse” theme in the nicknames Mare, Stallion, in the surnames - Kobylins, Zherebtsovs, Konovnitsyns, toponym - Kobylye Settlement near Lake Peipsi not far from the site of the Battle of the Ice (1242), which, by the way, in 1556 was given to Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible for feeding alone from the Sukhovo-Kobylins, but according to written sources it has been known with this name since the middle of the 15th century (the city of Kobyla) - all this may indicate the ancestral memory of the “totem” white horse of the Prussian Tsar Videvut. And the sacred oak from Romov is present on almost all the coats of arms of the above-mentioned noble families, which trace their origins to Andrei Kobyla.

Fyodor Andreevich Koshka († 1407) was also a Moscow boyar; during the campaign of Grand Duke Dimitri Ioannovich on the Kulikovo Field in 1380, boyar Fyodor Andreevich Koshka-Kobylin was entrusted with guarding Moscow. His eldest son Ivan Fedorovich Koshkin-Kobylin (†1427) was also very close to Grand Duke Dimitri Donskoy (he is mentioned as such in the will of Prince Dimitri), and then became a boyar with Grand Duke Vasily I Dmitrievich († 1425) and even with the then young Grand Duke Vasily II Vasilyevich (1415-1462). His youngest son Zakhary Ivanovich Koshkin-Kobylin († 1461) also occupied a high boyar position at the Court of Grand Duke Vasily II Vasilyevich.

It should be noted that the boyar rank was never literally hereditary, although it was assigned only to the most noble people of the state; the boyar rank was necessarily earned through personal exploits and merits to the Sovereign, although family ties along the female line were also of considerable importance. The service from generation to generation of the descendants of boyar Andrei Kobyla to the Moscow Sovereigns in such high ranks meant the presence of high personal merits among representatives of this noble family. Unfortunately, no information has been preserved about the spouses of these four generations of statesmen, starting from Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla to Zakhary Ivanovich Koshkin. But there is no doubt that some of these marriages were concluded with representatives of the highest Moscow aristocracy, most of whom at that time were either direct, albeit distant descendants of the Grand Duke Rurik, or their closest relatives. This is precisely what can additionally explain the stability of the boyar status of the Kobylin-Koshkin family, when the degree of “competition” with the direct Rurikovichs could be mitigated precisely by family ties.

Under Grand Duke John III Vasilyevich, Yuri Zakharyevich Zakharyin-Koshkin († 1504) became a governor, participated in the battle on the Ugra in 1480, in the campaign against Veliky Novgorod (1480) and Kazan in 1485, from 1488 he became the Grand Duke's Viceroy in Veliky Novgorod , where he eradicated the heresy of the Judaizers, and received the rank of boyar in 1493. The wife of Yuri Zakharyevich Koshkin was the daughter of the Grand Duke's boyar Ivan Borisovich Tuchkov. I.B. Tuchkov was not a representative of the Moscow aristocracy, but came from a Novgorod boyar family and entered the service of the Grand Duke of Moscow John III Vasilyevich. In 1477, already as a grand-ducal boyar, he carried out an important military-diplomatic mission to annex Veliky Novgorod to Moscow. Apparently, these “Novgorod” family ties can explain why the Moscow governor Yuri Zakharyevich Zakharyin-Koshkin became governor of Novgorod in 1488. Boyar Yuri Zakharyevich had six sons, the names of five of them are Ivan, Grigory, Vasily, Mikhail, Roman and daughter Anna. Mikhail Yuryevich (†1538) earned the boyar title in 1521, Grigory Yuryevich (†1558) became a boyar in 1543.

Apparently, the youngest of the brothers, Roman Yuryevich Zakharyin-Yuryev (†1543), rose “only” to the rank of okolnichy and governor. But the rank of okolnichy - second after the boyar, was extremely high in the Old Russian hierarchy; the number of okolnichy in the government of the Grand Duke usually did not exceed three or four. The very fact that his siblings were boyars testifies to the continued high status of the family in this generation. Roman Yuryevich is mentioned in the categories of 1533 and 1538, he was married twice, the second of his wives was named Ulyana (†1579), presumably nee Karpova, children: Dolmat (†1545), Daniil (†1571), Nikita, Anna, Anastasia. Daniil Romanovich Zakharin-Yuryev became a boyar in 1548.

Anna Romanovna married Prince Vasily Andreevich Sitsky (†1578) from the Yaroslavl branch of the Rurikovichs. And the youngest daughter, the beautiful Anastasia Romanovna (†1560), became the first Russian Tsarina in 1547 - the Wife of the young Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible. She bore the Tsar six children, three Tsarevichs - Dimitri, John and Theodore, and three daughters - Anna, Maria and Evdokia. Tsarevich Dimitri was carelessly drowned in infancy, and three Daughters of the Russian Tsarina did not survive infancy.

Perhaps the most famous boyar of the direct descendants of Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla was his great-great-great-great-grandson Nikita Romanovich Zakharyin-Yuryev (†1586; before his death, he took monastic vows with the name Nifont). He was one of the closest associates, advisers of Tsar John and educator of Tsarevichs John and Theodore. He became a okolnichy in 1558, a boyar in 1562. The fame of Nikita Romanovich’s nobility of character and valor was so widespread that people composed songs about him that were sung centuries later.

Nikita Romanovich was married twice. His first wife was Varvara Ivanovna, née Khovrina (†1552). The Khovrins came from the ancient Crimean Gothic princely family of the Gavras (in Tatar: Khovra). From his first marriage, Nikita Romanovich had two daughters - Anna Nikitichna (†1585), who married Prince Ivan Fedorovich Troekurov (from the Rurikovichs) and Euphemia (†1602), who married a close relative of Prince Ivan Vasilyevich Sitsky.

After the death of Varvara Ivanovna in 1552, Nikita Romanovich married a second time to Evdokia Alexandrovna, nee Princess Gorbata-Shuiskaya from the Rurik Family, from the Monomakhovichs through the line of the Suzdal Princes. Eleven more children of Nikita Romanovich are known from this marriage - the elder Fedor (in monasticism Filaret; †1633), Martha (†1610) - the wife of the Kabardian prince Boris Keibulatovich Chekrassky, Lev (†1595), Mikhail (†1602), Alexander (†1602 ), Nikifor (†1601), Ivan nicknamed Kasha (†1640), Ulyana (†1565), Irina (†1639) - the wife of the okolnichy Ivan Ivanovich Godunov (†1610), Anastasia (†1655) - the wife of the groom Boris Mikhailovich Lykov -Obolensky (†1646) and, finally, Vasily (†1602).

Nikita Romanovich's eldest son Fedor, born around 1554, became a boyar in the government of his cousin - Tsar Feodor Ioannovich - immediately after his father's death in 1586. Shortly before this, around 1585, Fyodor Nikitich married Ksenia Ivanovna, nee Shestova, one of the Kostroma nobles, whose father Ivan Vasilyevich Shestov was called up in 1550 as one of the Tsar's Thousand to serve in Moscow. Let me remind you that the Shestovs traced their ancestry back to the Novgorod boyar and governor of the early 13th century, Mikhail Prushanin. Fyodor Nikitich and Ksenia Ivanovna had six children, four of whom died in infancy: Tatyana (†1612) - wife of Prince Ivan Mikhailovich Katyrev-Rostovsky (†about 1640), Boris (†1592), Nikita (†1593), Mikhail ( †1645), Leo (†1597), Ivan (†1599).

In the royal service, boyar Fyodor Nikitich was successful, but far from being in the first positions: from 1586 he served as viceroy in Nizhny Novgorod, in 1590 he took part in a victorious campaign against Sweden, then in 1593-1594. he was the governor in Pskov, negotiated with the ambassador of Emperor Rudolf - Varkoch, in 1596 he was the governor of the Tsar's regiment of the right hand, from the 1590s several local cases came down to us concerning the boyar Theodore Nikitich Romanov, indicating his rather influential position among Moscow boyars, some of his younger brothers were members of the expanded composition of the Sovereign Duma.

Before his death, boyar Nikita Romanovich bequeathed to Boris Fedorovich Godunov the care of his children, and according to known documents, the guardianship of the tsar's brother-in-law and the first boyar - in fact, the ruler of Russia B.F. Godunov about the Nikitichs was quite sincere, and the Romanovs themselves considered themselves faithful allies of B.F. Godunov, this was also facilitated by family ties - Irina Nikitichna was the wife of I.I. Godunov. The sudden death of Tsar Theodore Ioannovich on January 7, 1598 did not change this situation in the relationship between B.F. Godunov and the Romanovs. Although the eldest son of Tsar John's brother-in-law, cousin Tsar Theodore, boyar Fedor Nikitich had a certain advantage of, if not closer, then more significant kinship over the brother-in-law of Tsar Theodore and brother Tsarina Irina Feodorovna (†1603) by the first boyar Boris Godunov, at the Great Moscow Council in January-March 1598, the question of other contenders for the Royal Throne besides the first boyar and ruler B.F. Godunov was not even raised. There is no clear unofficial evidence of the nomination of other candidates from the same period.

There are no such indications even in diplomatic reports from Russia for January-March 1598, in which foreign ambassadors tried to reflect any rumors about palace political intrigues. However, for the Western European legal consciousness of that time, the superiority of the rights of Fyodor Nikitich Romanov to the Royal Throne over the similar rights of B.F. Godunov was incomprehensible. They could rather see contenders among the direct Rurikovichs, primarily the Shuisky princes, or wanted to look for military reasons for interfering in the internal politics of Russia to impose claimants from the Dynasties of Europe, rather than compare the rights to the Throne of B.F. Godunov and F.N. Romanov.

One of the reports from the Polish ambassador in January or early February 1598 even contained a “forecast” that B.F. Godunov, in order to maintain his position in power, would suddenly announce that Tsarevich Dimitri Ioannovich Uglitsky was not actually killed on May 15 1591, and will place his man on the Throne under the guise of the son of Tsar John. This mysterious intrigue, developed by the Poles in a completely different way by 1604, indicates that at the end of February 1598, foreigners could not even foresee the real decision of the Great Moscow Council.

The decisive factor in the issue of succession to the Throne, obviously, was the position of St. Job, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', who believed that the brother of the Queen, in whose hands since 1586 were all the main reins of government of the state, who had established himself as an experienced and courageous politician, a large-scale organizer The Russian Land in urban planning, military, tax and economic affairs, like no one else, was able to bear the heavy Royal Cross. Of course, His Holiness the Patriarch well understood that the twelfth in honor of the boyar Fyodor Nikitich Romanov also had some inherited advantages, but his services in state building since 1584 were immeasurably less than the contribution to the prosperity of Russia and the Russian Orthodox Church by B.F. Godunov, who did a lot to establish the Patriarchate in Rus'. Perhaps such a firm position of the Patriarch, which led to the fact that the Council did not even discuss other contenders for the Throne in advance, will turn the spiritual-political compromise into a difficult state problem in the next two years.

At the Council of 1598, for the first time in the history of Russia, a terrible oath of allegiance to Tsar Boris and His Heirs was taken. Apparently, His Holiness the Patriarch, who was directly involved in the drafting of the text of the Council Oath and the formidable spiritual punishments that were imposed on possible violators of this oath, was confident that the Russian believers would not violate such a Council Oath. However, the secret opponents of the new Tsar, and perhaps opponents of peace itself in our Fatherland, who did not dare to raise their voices at the Council against the position of the Patriarch and the candidacy of B.F. Godunov, already in 1600 began to hatch a conspiracy or weave an even more subtle palace intrigue, imitating CONSPIRACY. As a sign for such an obvious conspiracy or an insidious mystification thereof, the villains chose the Nikitich Romanovs, and first of all the eldest of them, the boyar Fyodor Nikitich, as the heir to the Throne, according to Russian customs, was closer to the ladder of the heir to the Throne than Tsar Boris. Historians can only speculate who was the main organizer of this conspiracy or its imitation; no direct documents related to its investigation have survived. Only one thing is clear, that the Romanovs themselves in no way belonged to the initiators or organizers of the conspiracy, but they were still insidiously informed about this secret action, which drew them into the circle of those involved, into the circle of the guilty.

Instead of his closest associates and relatives, Tsar Boris saw in the Romanovs the main danger to himself and, more importantly, the main danger to peace in the Russian State. He was fully aware of what, now, after the terrible Council Oath of 1598, its violation threatens Russia and the Russian People. In order to exclude the very idea of ​​boyar Fyodor Nikitich Romanov pretending to the Throne, he ordered the forcible tonsure of his relative and his wife into monasticism and exiled the monk Philaret to the Anthony-Siysky Monastery in the Russian North. And the rest of the Nikitich Romanovs - Mikhail, Alexander, Nikifor, Ivan, Vasily were taken into custody and sent into exile, where they were kept in the harshest conditions, from which they died in 1601-1602. Only Ivan Nikitich survived. He was kept chained in the same pit with Vasily Nikitich. The death of the brothers caused a softening of the conditions of Ivan Nikitich's exile.

After the villainous ritual slaughter of the young Tsar Theodore Borisovich Godunov and his own Crowning of the Kingdom, False Dmitry I in 1605 returned from exile all the surviving Romanovs and their relatives, and the remains of the dead were also brought to Moscow and buried in the tomb of the Romanov boyars in the Novospassky Monastery. Monk Filaret (Fedor Nikitich Romanov) was ordained a monk and soon consecrated as Metropolitan of Rostov. And Ivan Nikitich Romanov was given the rank of boyar. Young Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov was returned to the care of his Mother, the Great Nun Martha. The Romanovs, who had suffered so much from their previous reign, accepted the benefits of the impostor, but did not show him any servility throughout the false reign that lasted less than a year. Placed on the Throne by the local Moscow Council in 1606, Tsar Vasily Ioannovich Shuisky contributed to the election of a new Patriarch - Metropolitan Hermogen of Kazan, who treated Metropolitan Philaret of Rostov with great respect, but Metropolitan Philaret did not arrive at the Moscow Council of Repentance in early 1607 with the participation of Patriarch Job, deposed by the False Dmitry. .

In 1608, traitorous Cossack and Polish-Lithuanian gangs besieged Rostov the Great, and although Metropolitan Philaret tried to organize a defense, Russian traitors opened the gates of the Metropolitan Court, Saint Philaret was captured and in a humiliating manner taken near Moscow to the Tushino camp of False Dmitry II. However, this impostor decided to give honor to his “relative” and even “elevated” St. Philaret to “patriarch.” Metropolitan Philaret did not recognize false rank, but he performed divine services in Tushino. In 1610, Metropolitan Filaret (Romanov) was recaptured from the Tushins and after the overthrow of Tsar Vasily Shuisky during the Seven Boyars, he became the closest associate of His Holiness Patriarch Hermogenes. In 1611, the Moscow government sent Metropolitan Philaret at the head of a large embassy to Smolensk for negotiations with the Polish King Sigismund III. The entire embassy was captured by the Poles, in which Metropolitan Filaret remained until 1619 - until the Truce of Deulino.

During the brief period of the “Seven Boyars,” the son of Metropolitan Philaret, young Mikhail Feodorovich, was elevated to the rank of boyar. The Poles, who captured Moscow and the Kremlin in 1611, kept Mikhail Feodorovich Romanov and his Mother under house arrest, from which he was released only on October 22, 1612 and after that, together with his Mother, he left for his Kostroma estate Domnino.

Thus, none of the Romanovs influenced the decision of the Great Moscow Council on February 21, 1613. More precisely, a participant in the council, brother of the Metropolitan and uncle of Mikhail Feodorovich, Ivan Nikitich Romanov was initially even against the nomination of his nephew as one of the candidates, speaking out: “...Mikhailo Fedorovich is still young...» According to researchers, at the very beginning of the Council, Ivan Nikitich supported the candidacy of the Swedish Prince Carl Philip. But when the Cossacks and representatives of the Militia began to reject any representatives of foreign dynasties, and the Don Cossacks and Russian provincial nobles nominated the young boyar Mikhail Feodorovich Romanov as the main candidate, naturally, his uncle agreed with this unanimous point of view.

The Great Council of 1613 took the terrible oath of allegiance stripped Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich and his supposed descendants. The new oath practically word for word, letter for letter, repeated the text of the Council Oath of 1598, but this time the strength of this council decision was enough for three centuries and four years.

This excursion into the area of ​​ancient legends and genealogies is necessary to better understand the way of thinking of our ancestors, who, in the cathedral debates in February 1613, found out which of the possible contenders for the All-Russian Throne should accept the Royal Cross for themselves and their descendants. The exceptional nobility of the origin of the Romanov Family was of paramount importance in this decision.

Illustrations:

1. Crowning of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov

2. The legendary coat of arms of the Prussians (from the chronicle of Johannes Mellmann, 1548) Arma Prutenorums - Shield (coat of arms) of Prussia

The Romanov dynasty was in power for just over 300 years, and during this time the face of the country completely changed. From a lagging state, constantly suffering due to fragmentation and internal dynastic crises, Russia turned into an abode of an enlightened intelligentsia. Each ruler from the Romanov dynasty paid attention to those issues that seemed most relevant and important to him. For example, Peter I tried to expand the territory of the country and make Russian cities similar to European ones, and Catherine II put her whole soul into promoting the ideas of enlightenment. Gradually, the authority of the ruling dynasty fell, which led to a tragic ending. The royal family was killed, and power passed to the communists for several decades.

Results of the Romanov reign

During the years of Romanov rule, the Russian monarchy experienced a heyday, several periods of painful reforms and a sudden decline. The Muscovite Kingdom, in which Mikhail Romanov was crowned king, in the 17th century annexed vast territories of Eastern Siberia and reached the border with China. At the beginning of the 18th century, Russia became an empire and became one of the most influential states in Europe. Russia's decisive role in the victories over France and Turkey further strengthened its position. But at the beginning of the twentieth century, the Russian Empire, like other empires, collapsed under the influence of the events of the First World War.

In 1917, Nicholas II abdicated the throne and was arrested by the Provisional Government. The monarchy in Russia was abolished. Another year and a half later, the last emperor and his entire family were shot by decision of the Soviet government. Nicholas's surviving distant relatives settled in different European countries. Today, representatives of two branches of the House of Romanov: the Kirillovichs and the Nikolaeviches - claim the right to be considered locums of the Russian throne.

Candidates

There were many contenders for the Russian throne. The two most unpopular candidates - the Polish prince Vladislav and the son of False Dmitry II - were “weeded out” immediately. The Swedish prince Karl Philip had more supporters, among them the leader of the zemstvo army, Prince Pozharsky. Why did the patriot of the Russian land choose a foreign prince? Perhaps the antipathy of the “artistic” Pozharsky towards domestic contenders - high-born boyars, who during the Time of Troubles more than once betrayed those to whom they swore allegiance, was reflected. He feared that the “boyar tsar” would sow the seeds of new unrest in Russia, as happened during the short reign of Vasily Shuisky. Therefore, Prince Dmitry stood for the calling of the “Varangian”, but most likely this was Pozharsky’s “maneuver”, since in the end only Russian contenders – high-born princes – took part in the struggle for the royal throne. The leader of the notorious “Seven Boyars” Fyodor Mstislavsky compromised himself by collaborating with the Poles, Ivan Vorotynsky renounced his claim to the throne, Vasily Golitsyn was in Polish captivity, the militia leaders Dmitry Trubetskoy and Dmitry Pozharsky were not distinguished by nobility. But the new king must unite the country divided by the Troubles. The question was: how to give preference to one clan so that a new round of boyar civil strife does not begin?

Mikhail Fedorovich did not pass the first round

The candidacy of the Romanovs as the main contenders did not arise by chance: Mikhail Romanov was the nephew of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. Mikhail's father, Patriarch Filaret, was respected among the clergy and Cossacks. Boyar Fyodor Sheremetyev actively campaigned in favor of the candidacy of Mikhail Fedorovich. He assured the obstinate boyars that Mikhail “is young and will be liked by us.” In other words, he will become their puppet. But the boyars did not allow themselves to be persuaded: in the preliminary voting, Mikhail Romanov’s candidacy did not receive the required number of votes.

No-show

When electing Romanov, a problem arose: the Council demanded that the young candidate come to Moscow. The Romanov party could not allow this: an inexperienced, timid, unskilled young man in intrigue would make an unfavorable impression on the Council delegates. Sheremetyev and his supporters had to show miracles of eloquence, proving how dangerous the path from the Kostroma village of Domnino, where Mikhail was, to Moscow was. Was it not then that the legend of the feat of Ivan Susanin, who saved the life of the future tsar, arose? After heated debates, the Romanovites managed to convince the Council to cancel the decision on Mikhail’s arrival.

Tightening

On February 7, 1613, the rather tired delegates announced a two-week break: “for a large strengthening, they postponed February from the 7th of February to the 21st.” Messengers were sent to the cities “to inquire into all sorts of people’s thoughts.” The voice of the people, of course, is the voice of God, but isn’t two weeks enough to monitor the public opinion of a large country? For example, it is not easy for a messenger to get to Siberia in two months. Most likely, the boyars were counting on the departure of Mikhail Romanov’s most active supporters, the Cossacks, from Moscow. The villagers, they say, will get bored of sitting idle in the city, and they will disperse. The Cossacks actually dispersed, so much so that the boyars didn’t think it was enough...

The role of Pozharsky

Let's return to Pozharsky and his lobbying of the Swedish pretender to the Russian throne. In the fall of 1612, militia captured a Swedish spy. Until January 1613, he languished in captivity, but shortly before the start of the Zemsky Sobor, Pozharsky freed the spy and sent him to Novgorod, occupied by the Swedes, with a letter to the commander Jacob Delagardie. In it, Pozharsky reports that both he himself and the majority of noble boyars want to see Karl Philip on the Russian throne. But, as subsequent events showed, Pozharsky misinformed the Swede. One of the first decisions of the Zemsky Sobor was that a foreigner should not be on the Russian throne; the sovereign should be elected “from Moscow families, God willing.” Was Pozharsky really so naive that he did not know the mood of the majority? Of course not. Prince Dmitry deliberately fooled Delagardie with “universal support” for the candidacy of Karl Philip in order to prevent Swedish interference in the election of the Tsar. The Russians had difficulty repelling the Polish onslaught; a campaign against Moscow by the Swedish army could also prove fatal. Pozharsky’s “cover operation” was successful: the Swedes did not budge. That is why, on February 20, Prince Dmitry, happily forgetting about the Swedish prince, suggested that the Zemsky Sobor elect a tsar from the Romanov family, and then put his signature on the conciliar document electing Mikhail Fedorovich. During the coronation of the new sovereign, Mikhail showed Pozharsky a high honor: the prince presented him with one of the symbols of power - the royal power. Modern political strategists can only envy such a competent PR move: the savior of the Fatherland hands over the power to the new tsar. Beautiful. Looking ahead, we note that until his death (1642) Pozharsky faithfully served Mikhail Fedorovich, taking advantage of his constant favor. It is unlikely that the tsar would have favored someone who wanted to see not him, but some Swedish prince on the Rurik throne.

Cossacks

The Cossacks played a special role in the election of the Tsar. A curious story about this is contained in “The Tale of the Zemsky Sobor of 1613.” It turns out that on February 21, the boyars decided to choose a tsar by casting lots, but the reliance on “maybe”, in which any forgery is possible, seriously angered the Cossacks. Cossack speakers tore to pieces the boyars’ “tricks” and solemnly proclaimed: “By God’s will, in the reigning city of Moscow and all Russia, let there be a Tsar, Sovereign and Grand Duke Mikhailo Fedorovich!” This cry was immediately picked up by Romanov supporters, not only in the Cathedral, but also among the large crowd of people in the square. It was the Cossacks who cut the “Gordian knot”, achieving the election of Mikhail. The unknown author of the “Tale” (surely an eyewitness of what was happening) does not spare any color when describing the reaction of the boyars: “The boyars at that time were possessed with fear and trembling, shaking, and their faces were changing with blood, and not a single one could utter anything.” Only Mikhail’s uncle, Ivan Romanov, nicknamed Kasha, who for some reason did not want to see his nephew on the throne, tried to object: “Mikhailo Fedorovich is still young and not fully sane.” To which the Cossack wits objected: “But you, Ivan Nikitich, are an old man, full of reason... you will be a strong blow to him.” Mikhail did not forget his uncle’s assessment of his mental abilities and subsequently removed Ivan Kasha from all government affairs. The Cossack demarche came as a complete surprise to Dmitry Trubetskoy: “His face turned black, and he fell into illness, and lay for many days, without leaving his yard from the steep hill that the Cossacks depleted the treasury and their knowledge was flattering in words and deceit.” The prince can be understood: it was he, the leader of the Cossack militia, who counted on the support of his comrades, generously gave them “treasury” gifts - and suddenly they found themselves on Mikhail’s side. Perhaps the Romanov party paid more?

British recognition

On February 21 (March 3), 1613, the Zemsky Sobor made a historic decision: to elect Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov to the kingdom. The first country to recognize the new sovereign was England: in the same year, 1613, the embassy of John Metrick arrived in Moscow. Thus began the history of the second and last royal dynasty of Russia. It is significant that throughout his reign, Mikhail Fedorovich showed a special attitude towards the British. Thus, Mikhail Fedorovich restored relations with the British “Moscow Company” after the Time of Troubles, and although he curtailed the freedom of action of English merchants, he still put them on preferential terms not only with other foreigners, but also with representatives of Russian “big business”.

The Romanovs are a Russian boyar family that began its existence in the 16th century and gave rise to the great dynasty of Russian tsars and emperors who ruled until 1917.

For the first time, the surname “Romanov” was used by Fyodor Nikitich (Patriarch Filaret), who named himself so in honor of his grandfather Roman Yuryevich and father Nikita Romanovich Zakharyev, he is considered the first Romanov

The first royal representative of the dynasty was Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, the last was Nikolai 2 Alexandrovich Romanov.

In 1856, the coat of arms of the Romanov family was approved; it depicts a vulture holding a golden sword and a tarch, and at the edges there are eight cut off lion heads.

“House of Romanov” is a designation for the totality of all the descendants of the different branches of the Romanovs.

Since 1761, the descendants of the Romanovs in the female line reigned in Russia, and with the death of Nicholas 2 and his family, there were no direct heirs left who could lay claim to the throne. However, despite this, today there are dozens of descendants of the royal family living all over the world, of varying degrees of kinship, and all of them officially belong to the House of Romanov. The family tree of the modern Romanovs is very extensive and has many branches.

Background to the Romanov reign

There is no consensus among scientists about where the Romanov family came from. Today, two versions are widespread: according to one, the ancestors of the Romanovs arrived in Rus' from Prussia, and according to the other, from Novgorod.

In the 16th century, the Romanov family became close to the king and could lay claim to the throne. This happened thanks to the fact that Ivan the Terrible married Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina, and her entire family now became relatives of the sovereign. After the suppression of the Rurikovich family, the Romanovs (formerly the Zakharyevs) became the main contenders for the state throne.

In 1613, one of the Romanov representatives, Mikhail Fedorovich, was elected to the throne, which marked the beginning of the long reign of the Romanov dynasty in Russia.

Tsars from the Romanov dynasty

• Fedor Alekseevich;
• Ivan 5;

In 1721, Russia became an Empire, and all its rulers became emperors.

Emperors from the Romanov dynasty

The end of the Romanov dynasty and the last Romanov

Despite the fact that there were empresses in Russia, Paul 1 adopted a decree according to which the Russian throne could only be transferred to a boy - a direct descendant of the family. From this moment until the very end of the dynasty, Russia was ruled exclusively by men.

The last emperor was Nicholas 2. During his reign, the political situation in Russia became very tense. The Japanese War, as well as the First World War, greatly undermined the people's faith in the sovereign. As a result, in 1905, after the revolution, Nicholas signed a manifesto that gave the people extensive civil rights, but this did not help much either. In 1917, a new revolution broke out, as a result of which the tsar was overthrown. On the night of July 16-17, 1917, the entire royal family, including Nicholas's five children, was shot. Other relatives of Nicholas, who were in the royal residence in Tsarskoye Selo and other places, were also caught and killed. Only those who were abroad survived.

The Russian throne was left without a direct heir, and the political system in the country changed - the monarchy was overthrown, the Empire was destroyed.

Results of the Romanov reign

During the reign of the Romanov dynasty, Russia reached real prosperity. Rus' finally ceased to be a fragmented state, civil strife ended, and the country gradually began to gain military and economic power, which allowed it to defend its own independence and resist invaders.

Despite the difficulties that periodically occurred in the history of Russia, by the 19th century the country had turned into a huge, powerful Empire, which owned vast territories. In 1861, serfdom was completely abolished, and the country switched to a new type of economy and economy.