Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov (Quiet) (March 19, 1629 - February 8, 1676) - the second Russian Tsar from the dynasty Romanovs (14 July 1645 - 29 January 1676).
Biography
Son Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov
and his second wife Evdokia
, born March 19, 1629. Until the age of five, the young Tsarevich Alexei remained in the care of the royal “mothers.” At the age of 14, the prince was solemnly “announced” to the people, and at the age of 16, having lost his father and mother, he ascended the Russian throne. In the first years of his reign, he was influenced by the ideas of religious and moral improvement of society, and actively supported members of the “Circle of Zealots of Piety.” The government of the country in the first period of his reign actually belonged to his relative and educator, boyar B.I. Morozov.
The character and hobbies of Alexei Mikhailovich
With the accession to the throne the king Alexei
came face to face with a number of issues that worried Russian life in the 17th century. Therefore, he initially submitted to the influence of his former uncle B. I. Morozova
. In this activity, the main features of his character were finally formed. The autocratic Russian Tsar had a gentle, good-natured character. The spiritual atmosphere in which Tsar Alexei lived, his upbringing, character and reading of church books developed religiosity in him. The royal good nature and humility were sometimes, however, replaced by short-term outbursts of anger. One day, the Tsar, who was being bled by a German “doctor,” ordered the boyars to try the same remedy. Rodion Streshnev did not agree. Tsar Alexei personally “humbled” the old man, but then did not know what gifts to appease him with.
In general, the king knew how to respond to other people's grief and joy. Few dark sides can be noted in the character of Tsar Alexei. He had a contemplative, passive rather than a practical, active nature. He stood at the crossroads between two directions, Old Russian and Western, tried them on in his worldview, but did not indulge in either one or the other with passionate energy. The king was not only smart, but also an educated man of his age. He read a lot, wrote letters, compiled the “Falconer's Way Code,” tried to write his memoirs about the Polish war, and practiced versification.
Secretary of the Danish Embassy Andrey Rode
, indicates that the sovereign was also involved in artillery. As he wrote in his diary: April 11, 1659, “Colonel (Bauman) also showed us a drawing of a cannon, which was invented by the Grand Duke himself (Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich).” Alexey Mikhailovich was very interested in the European press, which he became acquainted with through translations carried out in the Ambassadorial Prikaz. The tsar personally read one of the articles (that the British, who overthrew and executed their king, greatly regretted this) to the boyars at a meeting of the Duma. Since 1659, Alexey Mikhailovich tried to establish regular delivery of foreign newspapers to Russia. In 1665, for this purpose, the first regular postal line was organized, connecting Moscow with Riga, and through it with the pan-European postal system. The king showed great interest in various secret writing systems. The newly developed ciphers were used in diplomatic practice. The Secret Affairs Order contained drawings of Egyptian hieroglyphs based on the book by Egyptologist A. Kircher. The king's interests included astrology. Following the advice of his doctor Samuel Collins, he allowed himself to bleed based on the recommendations of medical astrology. Alexey Mikhailovich was so fascinated by the starry sky that in the early 1670s. he, through A.S. Matveev, who headed the Ambassadorial Prikaz, asked the Danish resident to get him a telescope. In the last years of his life, the tsar became interested in European music. On October 21, 1674, Alexey Mikhailovich arranged a feast for himself and his loved ones, which was accompanied by very unusual fun: “The Nemchins played argans, and they played surna, and they blew trumpets, and they played surkas, and they beat on krams and kettledrums. in everything."
Marriage and children
Alexey Mikhailovich
was the father of 16 children from two marriages. Three of his sons subsequently reigned. None of Alexei Mikhailovich's daughters married.
Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya (13 children)
:
Dmitry Alekseevich (1649 - October 6, 1649)
Evdokia (February 1650 - March 1712)
Marfa (August 1652 - July 1707)
Alexey (February 1654 - January 1670)
Anna (January 1655 - May 1659)
Sophia (September 1657 - July 1704)
Catherine (November 1658 - May 1718)
Maria (January 1660 - March 1723)
Fedor (May 1661 - April 1682)
Feodosia (May 1662 - December 1713)
Simeon (April 1665 - June 1669)
Ivan (August 1666 - January 1696)
Evdokia (February 1669 - February 1669)
Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina (3 children):
Peter (May 30, 1672 - January 28, 1725)
Natalia (August 1673 - June 1716)
Theodora (September 1674 - November 1678)
The style of government of Alexei Mikhailovich
The beginning of the 17th century was not very favorable for Russia. This is the period Troubles
And L
Zhedimitriev
. This is a period of sharp weakening of the state power of the country, over which there is a real threat of loss of state independence. The first king elected by the people, who marked the beginning of the reign of the Romanov dynasty, Mikhail, managed to stabilize the situation in the country. Since the beginning of the reign Alexey Romanov
Russia is gaining strength, gradually becoming one of the leading world powers, exerting a significant influence on the development of world civilization. The strengthening of Russia's power was facilitated by the wise policy of Alexei Romanov, who laid the foundations of the state system, which became the core of the country's further development for many years. It is thanks to the activities of Alexei Romanov that the breakthrough of Russia during the time of Peter I and the greatness of the reign of Catherine II became possible. The foundations of Russian statehood laid by the activities of Alexei Romanov, the understanding of the role of the state that is unique to Russia, were realized in the 18th and 19th centuries. And, paradoxical as it may sound, they are preserved, strengthened, and then turn out to be largely lost in the twentieth century.
The style of government of Alexei Romanov
can be described as “an iron fist in a kid glove.” Being by nature a fairly kind person, he remained in history as one of the most humane, humane and highly moral rulers as far as was possible in his time. But the strategic line to strengthen the power of the state, to transform Russia into a powerful world power, was carried out by him with an iron fist, despite any resistance. However, he tried to avoid unnecessary and unjustified sacrifices. Alexey was quite religious and spent a lot of time in prayer. It is difficult for us to fully appreciate the influence that religion had on the formation of his personality.
Tsar's reforms
Military reform.
In 1648, using the experience of creating regiments of a foreign system during the reign of his father, Alexei Mikhailovich began reforming the army. During the reform of 1648 - 1654, the best parts of the “old system” were strengthened and enlarged: the elite Moscow local cavalry of the Sovereign Regiment, the Moscow archers and gunners. The main direction of the reform was the massive creation of regiments of the new system: reitar, soldiers, dragoons and hussars. These regiments formed the backbone of the new army of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. To fulfill the goals of the reform, a large number of European military specialists were hired. This became possible due to the end of the Thirty Years' War, which created in Europe a colossal market for military professionals for those times.
Monetary reform
. In 1654 he ordered the minting of rubles from the thalers accumulated in the treasury. On one side there was an eagle depicted in a square (cartouche) and in ornaments, a date in letters and the inscription “ruble”. On the other side is the Tsar-rider on a galloping horse, in a circle there is an inscription: “By the grace of God, the great Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Duke Alexei Mikhailovich of all Great and Little Russia.” Due to the complexity of making stamps, it was not possible to re-mint all existing thalers. In 1655, thalers began to be stamped on one side with two stamps (a rectangular one with the date “1655” and a round kopeck stamp (a rider on a horse)). This coin was called “Efimok with a sign”. “Efimok with a sign” and its shares (half-efimok and quarter) were in circulation mainly in Ukraine. The copper fifty-kopeck coin was introduced into circulation. The inscription on the fifty-kopeck piece around the rider on a walking horse: “By the grace of God, Tsar and Grand Duke Alexei Mikhailovich of All Rus'.” On rubles and fifty kopecks there was a date in Slavic numbers (letters) translated as “summer 7162”, that is, according to chronology from the Creation of the World.
The collection of taxes was ordered to be made in silver, and payments from the treasury - in copper coins. Thus, the king quickly replenished the treasury with silver. However, peasants refused to sell grain, and merchants refused to sell goods for copper, which resulted in a copper riot. Subsequently, copper coins were withdrawn from circulation. Alexei Mikhailovich's coinage reform is considered unsuccessful.
Unrest in the country under the rule of Alexei Mikhailovich
The war with the Poland
how the government should have paid attention to new internal unrest, the Solovetsky indignation and rebellion Razin
. With the fall of Nikon, his main innovation was not destroyed: the correction of church books. Many priests and monasteries did not agree to accept these innovations. The Solovetsky Monastery offered especially stubborn resistance; besieged since 1668, it was taken by governor Meshcherinov on January 22, 1676; the rebels were hanged. At the same time, a Don Cossack rebelled in the south Stepan Razin
. Having robbed the caravan of Shorin's guest in 1667, Razin moved to Yaik, took the Yaitsky town, robbed Persian ships, but confessed to Astrakhan. In May 1670, he again went to the Volga, took Tsaritsyn, Black Yar, Astrakhan, Saratov, Samara and raised the Cheremis, Chuvash, Mordovians, Tatars, but was defeated by the prince near Simbirsk Yu. Baryatinsky
, fled to the Don and, extradited by Ataman Kornil Yakovlev, was executed in Moscow on June 6, 1671. Soon after Razin's execution, a war began with Turkey over Little Russia. Bryukhovetsky betrayed Moscow, but he himself was killed by Doroshenko’s followers. The latter became the hetman of both sides of the Dnieper, although he entrusted control of the left side to the assigned hetman Mnogohrishny. Mnogohrishny was elected hetman at the Glukhov Rada (in March 1669), again went over to the side of Moscow, but was overthrown by the elders and exiled to Siberia. In June 1672, Ivan Samoilovich was elected to his place. Meanwhile, the Turkish Sultan Mohammed IV, to whom Doroshenko succumbed, did not want to give up the left bank of Ukraine. A war began, in which the Polish king Jan Sobieski, who was the crown hetman, became famous. The war ended with a 20-year peace only in 1681.
Achievements of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov
From internal orders
under the king Alexey
The following can be highlighted: a ban on Belomest residents (monasteries and persons in state, military or civil service) to own black, taxable lands and industrial and commercial establishments (shops, etc.).
IN financially
several transformations were made: in 1646 and the following years, a census of tax households was completed with their adult and minor male population, an unsuccessful attempt was made above to introduce a new salt duty; by decree of April 30, 1653, it was forbidden to collect small customs duties (myt, travel duties and anniversary) or farm them out and was ordered to be included in the ruble duties collected at customs; At the beginning of 1656 (no later than March 3), due to a lack of funds, copper money was issued. Soon (from 1658) the copper ruble began to be valued at 10, 12, and in the 1660s even 20 and 25 times cheaper than the silver one; the resulting terrible high cost caused a popular rebellion ( Copper Riot
) July 25, 1662. The rebellion was pacified by the king's promise to punish the perpetrators and the expulsion of the Streltsy army against the rebels. By decree of June 19, 1667. It was ordered to begin building ships in the village of Dedinovo on the Oka. The built ship burned down in Astrakhan. In the field of legislation
: the Council Code was compiled and published and supplementing it in some respects: New Trade Charter of 1667, New Decree Articles on Robbery and Murder Cases of 1669, New Decree Articles on Estates of 1676, Military Regulations in 1649. Russia also united with Ukraine in 1654. Under Tsar Alexei, the colonization movement into Siberia continued. Nerchinsk (1658), Irkutsk (1659), Penza (1663), Selenginsk (1666) were founded.
1st September 1674
The king "announced" his son Fedora
to the people as heir to the throne, and on January 30, 1676, he died at the age of 47.
Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov (Quiet) (born March 17 (27), 1629 - died January 29 (February 8), 1676) Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Duke of All Rus' 1645 - 1676.
Childhood
Alexei Mikhailovich was born in 1629, he was the eldest son of the Tsar and his wife Evdokia Lukyanovna Streshneva.
From the age of five, young Tsarevich Alexei, under the supervision of B.I. Morozov began to learn to read and write using an ABC book, and then began reading books. At the age of 7 he began to learn writing, and at 9 – church singing. By the age of 12, the boy had compiled a small library of books that belonged to him. Mentioned among them are, among other things, the lexicon and grammar published in Lithuania, as well as Cosmography.
Among the items of the Tsarevich’s “children’s fun” are musical instruments, German maps and “printed sheets” (pictures). Thus, along with the previous educational means, innovations are also visible, made not without the direct influence of boyar B.I. Morozova.
Accession to the throne
After the death of his father, 16-year-old Alexei Mikhailovich on July 17, 1645 became the second king of. Upon his accession to the throne, he came face to face with a number of troubling questions that worried Russian life in the 17th century. Too little prepared to resolve such cases, he initially submitted to the influence of his former uncle Morozov. However, he soon began to make independent decisions.
Alexey Mikhailovich, as can be seen from his own letters and reviews from foreigners and Russian subjects, had a remarkably gentle, good-natured character; was, according to the clerk of the Ambassadorial Prikaz, Grigory Kotoshikhin, “much quiet,” for which he received the nickname Quiet.
Character of the king
The spiritual atmosphere in which the sovereign lived, his upbringing, character and reading of church books developed religiosity in him. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, during all fasts he did not drink or eat anything, and in general he zealously performed church rituals. The veneration of external ritual was also accompanied by an internal religious feeling, which developed Christian humility in Alexei Mikhailovich. “And to me, a sinner,” he writes, “the honor here is like dust.”
The royal good nature and humility at times, however, gave way to short-term outbursts of anger. Once the tsar, who was being bled by a German “doctor,” ordered the boyars to try the same remedy. R. Streshnev refused. Alexey Mikhailovich personally “humbled” the old man, but after that he did not know what gifts to appease him with.
In general, the sovereign knew how to respond to other people's grief and joy. His letters are remarkable in this regard. Few dark sides can be noted in the royal character. He had a contemplative, passive rather than a practical, active nature; stood at the crossroads between two directions, Old Russian and Western, reconciling them in his worldview, but did not indulge in either one or the other with passionate energy.
Alexey Mikhailovich and Nikon in front of the tomb of St. Philip
Marriage
Having decided to get married, Alexey Mikhailovich in 1647 chose the daughter of Raf Vsevolozhsky as his wife. However, I had to abandon my choice due to intrigues in which Morozov may have been involved. 1648 - the tsar married Marya Ilyinishna Miloslavskaya. Soon Morozov married her sister Anna. As a result, B.I. Morozov and his father-in-law I.D. Miloslavsky acquired primary importance at the royal court. From this marriage sons were born - the future tsars Fyodor Alekseevich and Ivan V and daughter Sophia.
Salt riot
However, by this time, the results of Morozov's poor internal management had already clearly emerged. 1646, February 7 - on his initiative, by royal decree and boyar verdict, a new duty on salt was established. It was approximately one and a half times higher than the market price of salt - one of the most important items of consumption for the entire population - and caused strong discontent among the people. Added to this were Miloslavsky’s abuses and rumors about the sovereign’s passion for foreign customs. All these reasons caused the Salt Riot in Moscow on June 2–4, 1648 and riots in other cities.
The new duty on salt was abolished that same year. Morozov continued to enjoy the royal favor, but no longer had primary importance in governing the state. Alexey Mikhailovich matured and no longer needed guardianship. He wrote in 1661 that “his word became fearful in the palace.”
Alexey Mikhailovich and Patriarch Nikon
Patriarch Nikon
But the king’s soft, sociable nature needed an adviser and friend. Bishop Nikon became such a “sobin’s” beloved friend. Being a metropolitan in Novgorod, where with his characteristic energy he pacified the rebels in March 1650, Nikon gained the trust of the tsar, was ordained patriarch on July 25, 1652, and began to exert direct influence on the affairs of the state.
1653, October 1 - The Zemsky Sobor in Moscow decided to admit Ukraine to Russia. As a consequence of this, on October 23 of the same year, Russia declared war on the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which oppressed the Ukrainians.
During the wars of 1654–1658. Alexey Mikhailovich was often absent from the capital; therefore, he was far from Nikon and did not restrain the patriarch’s lust for power with his presence. Returning from military campaigns, he began to feel burdened by his influence. Nikon's enemies took advantage of the tsar's cooling towards him and began to disrespect the patriarch. The proud soul of the archpastor could not bear the insult. 1658, July 10 - he renounced his rank and left for the New Jerusalem Resurrection Monastery he founded. The king, however, did not soon decide to end this matter. Only in 1666, at a Church Council chaired by the Patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch, Nikon was deprived of his bishopric and imprisoned in the Belozersky Ferapontov Monastery.
During military campaigns, Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov visited Western cities - Vitebsk, Polotsk, Mogilev, Kovno, Grodno, Vilno. There I got acquainted with a way of life similar to the European one. Returning to Moscow, the sovereign made changes in the court environment. Wallpaper (gold leather) and furniture based on German and Polish designs appeared inside the palace. The lives of ordinary townspeople gradually changed.
Zemsky Sobor
Church schism
After the removal of Nikon, his main innovations were not destroyed - correction of church books and changes in some religious rituals (form of church bows, baptism with three fingers, use of icons only in Greek writing for worship). Many of the priests and monasteries did not agree to accept these innovations. They began to call themselves Old Believers, and the official Russian Orthodox Church began to call them schismatics. 1666, May 13 - in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, one of the leaders of the Old Believers was anathematized.
Internal unrest
Particularly stubborn resistance was provided by the Solovetsky Monastery; Besieged by government troops since 1668, it was captured by Voivode Meshcherinov on January 22, 1676, and the rebels were hanged.
Meanwhile, in the south, the Don Cossacks rebelled. Having robbed the caravan of Shorin's guest in 1667, Razin moved to Yaik, took the Yaitsky town, robbed Persian ships, but confessed to Astrakhan. In May 1670, he again went to the Volga, took Tsaritsyn, Cherny Yar, Astrakhan, Saratov, Samara and raised the Cheremis, Chuvash, Mordovians, and Tatars to revolt. Razin's army near Simbirsk was defeated by Prince Yu. Baryatinsky. Razin fled to the Don and, extradited there by Ataman Kornil Yakovlev, was executed in Moscow on May 27, 1671.
Soon after the execution of Razin, a war began with Turkey over Little Russia. The war ended with 20 years of peace only in 1681.
Results of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich
Among the internal orders under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the founding of new central institutions (orders) is remarkable: Secret Affairs (no later than 1658), Khlebny (no later than 1663), Reitarsky (from 1651), Accounting Affairs, engaged in checking the parish, expenses and cash balances (since 1657), Little Russian (since 1649), Lithuanian (1656–1667), Monastic (1648–1677)
Financially, several changes have also been made. In 1646 and subsequent years, a census of tax households was carried out with their adult and minor male population. By decree of April 30, 1654, it was forbidden to collect small customs duties (myt, road duties and anniversary) or farm them out.
Due to a shortage of funds, copper money was issued in large numbers. Since the 1660s, the copper ruble began to be valued 20–25 times cheaper than the silver one. As a result, the terrible high prices caused a popular revolt on July 25, 1662, called the Copper Riot. The rebellion was pacified by the expulsion of the Streltsy army against the rebellious people.
By decree of June 19, 1667, it was ordered to begin the construction of ships in the village of Dedinovo on the Oka.
In the field of legislation, the Council Code was compiled and published - a set of laws of the Russian state (printed for the first time on May 7–20, 1649). It was supplemented in some respects by the New Trade Charter of 1667, New Decree Articles on Robbery and Murder Cases of 1669, New Decree Articles on Estates of 1676.
During the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov, the colonization movement into Siberia continued. The following people became famous in this regard: A. Bulygin, O. Stepanov, E. Khabarov and others. The cities of Nerchinsk (1658), Irkutsk (1659), Selenginsk (1666) were founded.
Last years of reign. Death
In the last years of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich, A.S. especially rose to prominence at the royal court. Matveev. 2 years after the death of M.I. The Miloslavsky sovereign married Matveev's relative, Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina (January 22, 1671). From this marriage, Alexei Mikhailovich had a son - the future emperor.
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov died on January 29, 1676 and was buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.
The second Russian Tsar from the Romanov dynasty (1645-1676).
According to the New Chronicler, he was born on March 17 (27), 1629. Some sources and researchers believe the date of his birth to be other numbers, for example, March 19 or 10, and the entry of the “New Chronicler” is explained as an attempt to combine chronologically the name day and the birthday of the prince, named in honor of the Monk Alexy, a man of God, a miracle worker, whose memory is Orthodox the church actually celebrates on March 17 (Julian calendar). He died on the night of January 29 to 30 (February 8 to 9), 1676 in Moscow.
Personality of the king
Ascended to the throne after the death of his father, the king Mikhail Fedorovich which occurred on the night of July 13 (23), 1645 in Moscow. On the one hand, he received power by right of inheritance, having been declared heir to the throne at the age of 14; on the other hand, he, like his father, was elected to the kingdom by the Zemsky Sobor. At the same time, the young tsar did not undertake any obligations, which, according to contemporary G. Kotoshikhin, “were not asked of him, because they understood him to be much quiet.” He remained in the Russian historical tradition under the nickname “The Quietest”. It reflected some features of his character and behavior, largely due to his religiosity and strict adherence to Orthodox rituals and rules. This was influenced by both the upbringing received in childhood under the care of the royal “mothers”, and early learning to read and write from the age of 5 using an ABC book, compiled by order of his own grandfather - the patriarch himself Filareta, and liturgical books, church singing and prayers. He personally distributed alms in prisons and almshouses and fed the poor. Showing attention to the petitioners, according to legend, he ordered a box for requests addressed to the Tsar to be installed in the village of Kolomenskoye at his country residence.
At the same time, he was active and lively, loved hunting and even wrote a treatise, “The Code of the Falconer’s Path,” personally participated in hostilities and endured the difficulties of camp life, and could flare up and show his anger. His education went beyond the traditional old Russian framework. The Tsar tried his hand at versification, conducted active personal and business correspondence, subscribed to newspapers from abroad and even read out interesting information from them at meetings of the Boyar Duma, for the first time organized postal communication with the countries of Western Europe, at times wore German dress, introduced individual European innovations into everyday life, organized theatrical performances at court, invented new guns, and was interested in astrology and astronomy. He fit well into the general portrait of the Romanovs as champions of the modernization of the country and builders of new imperial orders, not only due to objective circumstances, but also due to personal inclinations, which, however, did not look excessive and provocative for adherents of former traditions.
The role of Alexei Mikhailovich
IN. Klyuchevsky did not speak as warmly about any of the Russian rulers as he did about him: “Tsar Alexei was the kindest man, a glorious Russian soul. I am ready to see in him the best man of ancient Rus'.” However, despite the nickname and character traits characteristic of a generally good-natured person, the time of his reign in the internal life of the country is characterized as a “rebellious age,” and in the field of foreign policy it was a period of continuous military conflicts. Taking into account these most difficult conditions, it is necessary to recognize the role of Alexei Mikhailovich in the formation of the Russian state as no less significant than that of his grandfather, the Patriarch Philareta, father Mikhail Fedorovich or son PetraI. His contribution to the strengthening of the Russian state, to the creation of its power and greatness is great, just as his contribution to the treasury of experience of the emerging imperial management practice of Russia is invaluable.
Governing body
The young tsar's mother, Evdokia Lukyanovna, nee Streshneva, died on August 18, 1645, having outlived her husband by only a month. Left an orphan and lacking public administration skills, Alexey Mikhailovich initially entrusted the burden of power and responsibility to his “uncle” educator B.I. Morozov. However, he failed to manage the country. The authorities were stricken with corruption, arbitrariness and injustice reigned in them. This was the reason for the uprising in Moscow in June 1648, which was echoed by protests against the local administration in provincial cities, especially in the southern border fortresses, in the North and in Siberia: Kozlov, Kursk, Totma, Kaygorodka, Solvychegodsk, Narym, Tomsk and others.
The activity of the population of the outskirts was understandable; it was there that the governors and other administrators were the most uncontrolled and especially oppressed the residents. Referring to the 17th century foreign traveler A. Olearius, in the historical tradition this uprising is often called the “salt riot.” However, in reality, fiscal issues, including tax increases and salt prices, did not play a leading role in its course. Saving Morozov, against whom the rebels had directed their anger, the tsar handed over some other officials to be killed. After the end of the rebellion, Morozov, sent to the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, was returned to Moscow, but no longer played the previous leading role in the government. The tsar and his new inner circle took into account the lessons of the social explosion not only in the short term, but also in the strategic perspective. The commission consisting of N.I. Odoevsky, F.F. Volkonsky, S.V. Prozorovsky was tasked with developing a new set of laws and judicial rules. The results of their work were discussed, edited and approved at the Zemsky Sobor in 1649 in the form. Over time, its norms were supplemented by such important and voluminous legislative acts as the New Trade Charter of 1657, New Decree Articles on Robbery and Murder Cases of 1669, New Decree Articles on Estates of 1676. They served the purposes of expanding trade and protecting the interests of Russian merchants, strengthening local land ownership and law and order in general.
It was not possible to avoid new internal conflicts by changing legislation. In 1650, urban uprisings broke out in Novgorod and Pskov, in the liquidation of which the Novgorod Metropolitan, together with the secular authorities, actively participated Nikon, who in 1652, at the insistence of the tsar, was installed as Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. In 1653-1655, he carried out a church reform, which concerned mainly the ritual side of worship. However, disagreement with it became the banner of not only religious opponents or those who did not accept modernization changes, but also political opponents of Alexei Mikhailovich, all dissatisfied with his social policy, especially the final attachment of peasants to landowners and townspeople to their place of residence. Although in 1658 Nikon, due to a conflict with the tsar, actually lost church power, and in 1667 he was officially deposed from the patriarchal rank, his reforms were not canceled. The schism in the church deepened, the Old Believers were persecuted, fled to the outskirts and outside the country. Some of them were ready to accept martyrdom, others - to provide armed resistance. From 1668 to 1676, opponents of church reform defended the Solovetsky Monastery from the tsarist troops who besieged it, but were defeated and executed. Speeches with direct social and political demands did not stop.
The next major uprising in the capital was again caused by miscalculations in financial and fiscal policy and was called the “copper riot.” In 1654, the production of copper money began, which was cheaper than silver money in market value, but had the same denomination. To improve the state of the treasury, taxes were ordered to be collected in silver, and payments from the treasury - in copper. Gradually, this led to the paralysis of monetary circulation, the curtailment of trade and a drop in the living standards of the population. On July 25 (August 4), 1662, a rebellion began in Moscow. A crowd of dissatisfied people moved to the village of Kolomenskoye near Moscow, where the tsar was located. Taken by surprise, Alexey Mikhailovich retained his restraint and composure. Saving his relatives and associates, he personally entered into negotiations with the leaders of the rebels, even shook hands with them, hoping to remove them from the village and gain time until loyal troops arrived from Moscow. With their arrival, the riot was brutally suppressed. However, copper coins were soon withdrawn from circulation. The Cossack movement on the Volga and Caspian Sea under the leadership of Stepan Razin became even larger and more dangerous. Beginning in 1667 with the usual robberies of merchant caravans, coastal Persian and Russian settlements, it grew into a massive anti-government movement, which in Soviet times historians considered as the Peasants' War of 1670-1671. Significant territories and a number of cities along the Middle Volga with its tributaries and the Lower Yaik fell into the hands of the rebels. It was possible to stop the rebels and inflict a serious defeat on them only near Simbirsk. Razin fled to the Don, where he was captured by Cossacks from among his opponents, handed over to the tsarist governors and executed in Moscow on June 6 (16), 1671.
The suppression of Razin's uprising confirmed the benefit of the decision of the still young Alexei Mikhailovich to found Simbirsk, adopted in 1648. Strengthening the defense of the southeastern borders of the state and the protection of trade routes in the Volga region continued with the construction of Penza and Kungur in 1663. In 1667, a decree was adopted on the construction of naval warships in the European style in the village. Dedinovo on the Oka for sailing in the southern seas and in the Volga basin. The only ship “Eagle” was built, which was captured by the Razins in Astrakhan and burned. During the movement of Russian explorers to the east, they reached the Pacific Ocean and made their first voyage on the Sea of Okhotsk (V.D. Poyarkov in 1645), sailed across the entire Amur River and compiled its “drawing” map (E.P. Khabarov in 1649 -1653), opened the strait between Asia and America, sailing from the mouth of the Kolyma, which flows into the Arctic Ocean, to the mouth of the Anadyr, which flows into the Pacific Ocean (S.I. Dezhnev and F.A. Popov, 1648). The expansion of Russian possessions in Siberia and the Far East was marked by the construction of the fortified cities of Nerchinsk (1658), Irkutsk (1661), and Selenginsk (1666).
The main direction of foreign policy activity was Western. The turning point in the historical dispute with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth over the Smolensk land, seized by neighbors during the Time of Troubles, and for the reunification of Ukraine with Russia was marked in 1648, when a Cossack uprising broke out under the leadership of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, which grew into a war of liberation of the Ukrainian people. The Cossacks, realizing the impossibility of achieving independence on their own, more than once turned to Moscow with a request to accept citizenship of the same Russian sovereign, but a positive response threatened a difficult war with Poland and other powers, for which Russia was not ready. However, indecision threatened the suppression of the uprising and the loss of the opportunity to change the balance of power between the Polish-Lithuanian and Moscow states. Alexei Mikhailovich rejected the requests of the Cossacks until 1653, when a specially assembled Zemsky Sobor agreed to the reunification of Ukraine and, accordingly, to a war with Poland. As a result of the Russian-Polish war of 1654-1667, Kyiv with the adjacent lands along the right bank of the Dnieper, the Seversk land with Chernigov and Starodub, and the Smolensk land with Smolensk went to Russia.
During the war, Alexey Mikhailovich personally visited Vitebsk, Polotsk, Mogilev, Kovno (Kaunas), Grodno, Vilno (Vilnius), where he became acquainted with a new way of life for Russian people, which upon his return to Moscow led to some changes in the court environment and life . The situation in Ukraine remained difficult, since there was a struggle for power among the Cossack elders, the warring parties wavered not only between Moscow and Warsaw, but also resorted to the help of Turkey and Crimea. Sweden constantly intervened in the conflict. During the wars with its western and southern neighbors, moving with them from hostilities to negotiations and concluding alliances with one against the other, Russia managed to maintain its acquisitions in the Smolensk region, Seversk and Left Bank Ukraine. Alexei Mikhailovich himself did not live to see the conclusion of peace with Turkey and Crimea, which recognized the reunification of the Kiev region and the left bank of the Dnieper with Russia in 1681.
Constant wars that lasted for decades forced the tsar to continue the military reforms begun by his father Mikhail Fedorovich to rebuild the Russian army on a Western European model, although he also did not complete them. In anticipation of the approaching wars in 1648-1654, both the troops of the “old system” (local cavalry, archers and gunners) and the regiments of the “new system” were strengthened and replenished: reiters, soldiers, dragoons and hussars. The influx of foreign military specialists was facilitated by the end of the pan-European Thirty Years' War in 1648, which left many professional military men out of work and pushed them to switch to Russian service. Since 1652, military and civilian foreign, and therefore non-religious, specialists have been settled near Moscow in the German Settlement. Conceived as a means of isolation from foreign influence on the Russian people, the settlement became a significant conductor of modernization and Westernization in Russia, including in the fields of industry, healthcare, and education.
Along with the buildup of the armed forces, there was a strengthening of the state apparatus, which also had a dual character. On the one hand, there was a specialization of its mechanisms and institutions in order to adapt to the requirements of the time. On the other hand, all this was done within the framework of a cumbersome and archaic-looking order system, which came from the era of gathering Russian lands under the rule of Moscow. So, as the need arose, new orders arose: Secret Affairs - in fact, the personal office of the tsar (around 1658), Accounting Affairs - was engaged in checking the receipt, expenditure and balances of money (mentioned from 1657), Reitarsky (1651), Little Russian (mentioned from 1649 ), Monastyrsky (1648), etc. The Boyar Duma continued to function actively, for whose meetings the tsar always prepared very carefully. Zemsky councils, after 1653, according to most researchers, were no longer convened, although there were representative meetings that resembled cathedrals in terms of the composition of participants and functions. The Russian autocracy evolved towards not a parliamentary, but an absolute monarchy.
Family life
Alexei Mikhailovich's family life consisted of two marriages, which were part of the courtiers' struggle for influence over him and, in turn, gave rise to future dynastic conflicts. The first of them with Maria Ilyinichna from the Miloslavsky family was concluded on January 16, 1648, when the Tsar was 18 years old. It was arranged by the former “uncle” teacher B.I. Morozov, who himself married the queen’s sister. In the tsar's first marriage, 5 sons and 8 daughters were born: Dmitry (1649-1651), Evdokia (1650-1712), Martha (1652-1707), Alexey (1654-1670), Anna (1655-1659), Sophia (1657- 1704), Catherine (1658-1718), Maria (1660-1723), Fedor (1661-1682), Feodosia (1662-1713), Simeon (1665-1669), John (1666-1696), Evdokia, who died in infancy in 1669. Of these, two boys became kings in the future Fedor Alekseevich And JohnVAlekseevich and their sister Tsarevna Sofya Alekseevna was the de facto ruler of Russia in 1682-1689. 2 years after the death of M.I. Miloslavskaya, which followed on March 4, 1669, Alexey Mikhailovich married Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina on January 22, 1671. This relative of his was wooed by the then elevated boyar A.S. Matveev. From his marriage to her, the king had three children: the future king and emperor PetraI(1672-1725), Natalia (1673-1716) and Theodora (1674-1678). With close people, Alexey Mikhailovich was gentle in behavior and actions, rarely gave vent to negative emotions, and in his family life he showed himself to be a loving husband and father. This attitude towards loved ones and children did not prevent future strife between them and confrontation in the struggle for power after the passing of the “Quiet” Tsar in 1676. Like his ancestors, Alexei Mikhailovich was buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.
The son of the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty, Mikhail Fedorovich, from his marriage to Evdokia Streshneva, was born on March 29 (19, according to other sources, 10 according to the old style) March 1629.
He was brought up under the supervision of the "uncle" boyar Boris Morozov. At the age of 11-12, the prince had his own children's library, among its books was a lexicon (a kind of encyclopedic dictionary), grammar, and cosmography. Alexei was distinguished by Orthodox piety: he strictly observed fasts and attended church services.
Alexei Mikhailovich began his reign at the age of 14, after being elected by the Zemsky Sobor.
In 1645, at the age of 16, having first lost his father, and soon his mother, Alexei Mikhailovich ascended the throne.
By nature, Alexey Mikhailovich was calm, reasonable, kind and compliant. In history, he retained the nickname “The Quietest.”
The first years of Alexei Mikhailovich's reign were marked by the convening of the Boyar Duma. The financial policy of the government of Alexei Mikhailovich was focused on increasing taxes and replenishing the treasury at their expense. The establishment of a high duty on salt in 1645 led to popular unrest - a salt riot in Moscow in 1648. The rebellious people demanded the “extradition” of boyar Boris Morozov. Alexei Mikhailovich managed to save his “uncle” and relative (Morozov was married to the queen’s sister) by sending him to the Kirillov Monastery. The duty on salt was abolished. The boyar Nikita Odoevsky was placed at the head of the government, who ordered an increase in the salaries of the troops (streltsy) who suppressed the uprising.
Under the leadership of princes Odoevsky, Fyodor Volkonsky and Semyon Prozorovsky, Alexei Mikhailovich signed the text of the Council Code at the beginning of 1649 - the new foundations of Russian legislation. The document affirmed the principle of a centralized state with the authoritarian power of the king.
The abolition of “lesson years” for searching for runaway peasants, enshrined in the Council Code, strengthened the position of the nobles. The position of the lower classes of the townspeople also changed significantly: all urban settlements were now “turned into taxes,” that is, they had to bear the full tax burden.
The response to these changes in the taxation system was the uprisings of 1650 in Pskov and Novgorod. Their suppression was led by the Novgorod Metropolitan Nikon, who had previously earned the tsar’s trust. Back in 1646, being the abbot of the Kozheezersky monastery, having come to Moscow to collect alms, he amazed Alexei Mikhailovich with his spirituality and extensive knowledge. The young tsar appointed him first as archimandrite of the Novo Spassky Monastery in Moscow, where the Romanov family burial vault was located, and then as metropolitan of Novgorod. In 1652 Nikon was ordained patriarch. In the 1650s x 1660s, church reform was carried out, which at first was led by Patriarch Nikon, which led to a split in the Russian Orthodox Church and the excommunication of the Old Believers. In 1658, as a result of a conflict with the Tsar, Nikon left the patriarchate. In 1666, on the initiative of Alexei Mikhailovich, a church council was convened, at which Nikon was deposed and sent into exile.
By order of Alexei Mikhailovich, state reform was carried out - new central orders (central government bodies) were established: Secret Affairs (1648), Monastyrsky (1648), Little Russian (1649), Reitarsky (1651), Accounting (1657), Lithuanian (1656) and Bread (1663). Under Alexei Mikhailovich, the first reform of the Russian army in the 17th century began - the introduction of hired “regiments of the new system.”
Alexey Mikhailovich paid special attention to the foreign policy of the state. A major achievement of Russian diplomacy during his reign was the reunification of Ukraine with Russia. On January 8, 1654, the Pereyaslav Rada approved.
In 1667, the 13-year war with Poland ended victoriously, and Smolensk, Kyiv and the entire left-bank Ukraine were returned to Russia. At the same time, Alexey Mikhailovich personally participated in many of the military campaigns, led diplomatic negotiations, and supervised the activities of Russian ambassadors.
In the east of the country, through the efforts of Russian pioneers Semyon Dezhnev and Vasily Poyarkov, the lands of Siberia were annexed to Russia. The cities of Nerchinsk (1656), Irkutsk (1659), Selenginsk (1666) were founded. Under Alexei Mikhailovich, the struggle for the security of the southern borders of Russia with the Turks and Tatars was successfully waged.
In economic policy, the government of Alexei Mikhailovich encouraged industrial activity and patronized domestic trade, protecting it from competition from foreign goods. These goals were served by the Customs (1663) and New Trade (1667) charters, which promoted the growth of foreign trade.
Miscalculations in financial policy - the issuance of copper money equal to silver, which devalued the ruble - caused discontent among the population, which grew into the Copper Riot in 1662. The revolt was suppressed by the Streltsy, and copper money was abolished. Soon after the Copper Riot, an uprising of those dissatisfied with church reforms broke out in the Solovetsky Monastery (1666). In the south of Russia, popular unrest arose under the leadership of the Don Cossack Stepan Razin (1670-1671).
Until her death, the tsar was an exemplary family man; they had 13 children, including the future tsars Fyodor and Ivan, as well as the princess ruler Sophia. After the death of Maria Miloslavskaya, Alexey Mikhailovich in 1671 married Natalya Naryshkina, a relative of the nobleman Artamon Matveev, who began to exert great influence on the monarch. The young wife bore the Tsar three children and, in particular, the future Emperor Peter I.
Alexei Mikhailovich died on February 8 (January 29, old style) 1676 at the age of 46 and was buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. According to testamentary documents of 1674, his eldest son from his marriage to Maria Miloslavskaya, Fyodor, was appointed heir to the throne.
The material was prepared based on information from open sources V
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov, like his father, took the throne at the age of sixteen. Throughout his childhood and youth, the future king was prepared for the kingdom. This was mainly done by B. Morozov, the Tsar’s tutor. This man subsequently had enormous influence on Alexei and could actually rule the state.
The reign of Alexei Mikhailovich began in 1645. However, very soon new uprisings began to occur in the country, which could weaken the royal power. It would be fair to note that the reasons for most of the uprisings were given by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov himself. So on June 1, 16448, a “salt riot” broke out in Moscow. Due to lack of money in the treasury, the tsar, through the head of the Zemsky Prikaz, Pleshcheev, introduced a new large tax on salt. The citizens were indignant, the uprising arose so strong that Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov was forced to hand Pleshcheev over to the people and expel his teacher, Morozov, from the country. Next was the Copper Riot. The country was in a difficult financial situation due to wars. Then the king decided to mint money not from silver, as was done before, but from copper. As a result, money actually depreciated fifteen times. Merchants refused to sell goods for new money. The army stopped receiving salaries. In July 1662, an uprising arose, which led to the king's house. There they were met by an armed army, which crushed the uprising and severely punished the rebels. Many participants in the uprising had their hands, feet, and tongues cut off. This was the verdict of the court. Despite this, the circulation of copper money was cancelled.
Tsar's reforms
In 1670, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov faced a new danger within the country. A powerful uprising broke out again in the country in the spring of that year, led by Stepan Razin. This uprising was suppressed by the end of 1671. Most of Razin's army was destroyed, and Stepan himself was arrested by tsarist troops near the town of Kagalnitsky.
Foreign policy
At this time, the liberation movement began on the territory of modern Ukraine. Ukrainians, led by Bohdan Khmelnytsky, fought with the Poles for independence. The forces were unequal, and in 1652 Khmelnitsky turned to the Russian Tsar to accept Ukraine into Russia. For more than a year, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov hesitated, realizing that accepting Ukraine would mean war with Poland. Khmelnitsky, seeing Moscow's hesitation, set a condition in 1653 that if Russia did not include Ukraine in the country in the near future, then Khmelnitsky would go to Turkey with the same proposal. The possible Russian-Turkish border in this regard seemed to be the worst possible option. On October 1, 1653, the Zemsky Council decided to annex Ukraine.
Immediately after these events began war with Poland. It lasted 15 years. Both of them achieved success alternately. At the very beginning of the war in Ukraine, Khmelnitsky died. Ivan Vyhovsky was elected as the new hetman, who declared his allegiance to Poland and sent a notification to the Polish king that Ukraine wished to reunite with Poland. Thus, Ukraine, because of which Russia became embroiled in a war with Poland, betrayed Russia. The Ukrainian people did not recognize Polish power. The war depleted Poland's resources. During these same years they fought against the Swedes and Turks. As a result, the Truce of Andrusovo was concluded in 1667. Russia returned Smolensk and the Northern Lands, as well as left-bank Ukraine.
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov organized many campaigns aimed at exploring Siberia and the Far East. As a result of these campaigns, as well as campaigns organized by Alexei’s successors, it was possible to expand the borders of the state to the shores of the Pacific Ocean.
In 1675, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov died.
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