The course of Russian politics sometimes depended on little predictable turns in the political elite of Moscow society, on complex relationships in the grand ducal family. The latter was due to special circumstances. In 1467, during the days when the Grand Duke was not in the capital, his first wife, the daughter of the Grand Duke of Tver, Maria Borisovna, died. Her death may not have been natural. A second marriage under such conditions was inevitable: the Grand Duke at that moment was not even 28 years old. In the literature, they argue on whose initiative the idea of marrying the Moscow sovereign to a representative of the imperial Byzantine family of the Paleologs arose. Zoya (in Russia her name was Sophia) was the niece of the last two emperors and the daughter of their brother, the Morean despot Thomas Palaiologos. She never lived in Constantinople, from 1465 she was in Rome. The exchange of embassies took place for several years, the final decision was made only in 1472. In November of the same year, she, along with the ambassador of Ivan III and the Pope, arrived in Moscow. In the temporary wooden building of the Assumption Cathedral (it was being rebuilt at that time), on November 12, the marriage of the Moscow sovereign with the Byzantine despina took place. The fact of a second marriage and the fact that a representative of the imperial family became the chosen one gave rise to many consequences, but even more myths.
Most of them tell about Sophia's exceptional influence on her husband in solving political issues. As early as the beginning of the 16th century. in the court environment there was a legend that it was the Grand Duchess who suggested to Ivan III how to remove the Horde ambassador from the Kremlin, which contributed to the elimination of dependence. The story has no basis in real sources. What we know for sure about Sophia (perhaps, minus a few recent years), shows the normal course of life of the grand-ducal family, where the functions of the wife were limited to the birth and upbringing of children (boys only up to a certain age), some economic issues. The text of Contarini, the Venetian ambassador to Ak-Koyunlu, who by special circumstances found himself in Moscow in the autumn of 1476, is indicative. He gets to see her only on the initiative and with the permission of the Grand Duke. In conversations with Ivan III, any influence of Sophia on her husband is not visible. Yes, and the reception itself Grand Duchess was purely protocol, the Venetian narrates in more detail and more interestedly about his conversations with the Grand Duke (Sophia was not present at them). Stand out at least somehow position, style of behavior of the Moscow Grand Duchess, it is unlikely that an observant diplomat would have missed such a detail. After all, he knows about the hostility of Prince Ivan Ivanovich to Sofya and that because of this, the prince is in disfavor with his father.
The Assumption Chronicle tells how in 1480 Sophia “ran” with her children to Beloozero, what violence her retinue did against the local population. Here she looks very unsightly, although it is clear that the decision to travel was not made by her. The chronicles speak in detail about the disgrace of the Grand Duke on her in 1483. When Ivan III wanted to give his daughter-in-law, the wife of his eldest son, the jewelry of his first wife, it turned out that Sophia gave away a significant part of them to her niece (she married Prince Vasily Vereisky and fled with him to Lithuania) and his brother. A new disgrace lay in wait for Sophia at the end of the 15th century, when hostility and contradictions in the grand ducal family escalated into a major political conflict.
His background is this. Sophia performed well main function- she bore Ivan III five sons and several daughters. Her firstborn was born on March 25, 1479. This fact, as well as the final subjugation of Novgorod and the completion of the construction of the Assumption Cathedral, marked the most important final events of the grand ducal chronicle in the edition of 1479. But Ivan Ivanovich was the co-ruler of the father, still formal, civil maturity (and for the great princes it came early) in 1471, when he was 13 years old, he already bore the title of grand duke. The sad experience of the former princely turmoil was taken into account.
After 1480, Ivan Ivanovich, who proved himself excellently in repelling the hordes of Akhmad on the Ugra, began to actually fulfill the functions of the grand duke-co-ruler under his father. Tver, after annexation, for a long time retained a special, semi-autonomous status, there was its own Boyar Duma, its own sovereign's court, its own palace department, a special organization military service. Some of these features of the Tver land survived until the middle of the 16th century. The own Grand Duke is recorded only twice. For the first time immediately after 1485, when Ivan Ivanovich combined the functions of the Grand Duke-co-ruler under his father and the Grand Duke of Tver. In this status, Prince Ivan Ivanovich died in March 1490.
On October 10, 1483, his son Dmitry was born. Sooner or later, Ivan III had to face the question of who would become the heir to the throne. In the 1990s, the situation remained tense. Dmitry was still small, while Vasily, who was four years older, "started" to public administration(in the same Tver), but was called only with a princely title.
Everything was resolved within a few years at the turn of the 16th century. Sophia and Vasily were the first to fall into disgrace. Prince Dmitry the grandson in February 1498 was solemnly crowned in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin from the hands of Ivan III (“with him and after himself”) by the Grand Duchy of Vladimir and Moscow. This was an act of outstanding significance, which was emphasized by the special rite of the Metropolitan's clergy (thus, in particular, Ivan III was called the Orthodox tsar and autocrat). The fundamental novelty was that the legitimacy of power Russian monarch henceforth was self-sufficient: her succession in a direct descending male line and divine sanction ensured her full sovereignty. Not without reason, back in 1488, Ivan III, in response to the proposal of the imperial ambassador N. von Poppel about the possible granting of a royal title to him from the emperor, answered: “We are the sovereigns of God on our land from the beginning from God.” In the preface to the new Paschalia, Metropolitan Zosima called Ivan III in 1492 an autocrat and compared him with the new Constantine, and called Moscow the new Konstantinov city. However, back in the autumn of 1480, Archbishop Vassian of Rostov, strengthening the spirit of courageous opposition to Ivan III Khan, addressed him as follows: "the great Christian king of the Russian countries."
This tradition of ecclesiastical texts, which emphasized not so much the political sovereignty of the Muscovite ruler (but also him) as his role as the defender of Orthodox Christianity, corresponds to diplomatic documentation. It was in it that the claims of the Moscow prince for international recognition of his state-political status should have been reflected first of all. Treaties with the Livonian Order, the Derpt Bishopric, the Hanseatic League, documentation on relations with the Empire and Hungary give a very clear picture. Firstly, the Moscow sovereign acquires the title of tsar (Kaiser in German), which is recognized, as a rule, by the authorized representatives of these countries. This wording also contains the all-Russian character of the title of the Moscow sovereign. It is difficult to say to what extent the rulers and authorities of the Western states understood that this, to a certain extent, formed the international legal basis for Moscow's claims to ancient Russian lands and cities within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Later, the Lithuanian Grand Dukes sometimes protested against this practice of conciliation. Naturally, Lithuanian politicians did not recognize such a title for the Grand Duke of Moscow. In diplomatic correspondence, they proved the illegitimacy of the titles of the Moscow monarch, mainly by the fact that until recently he was a khan's serf.
Years of life: 1440-1505. Reign: 1462-1505
Ivan III is the eldest son of the Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily II the Dark and Grand Duchess Maria Yaroslavna, daughter of the Serpukhov prince.
In the twelfth year of his life, Ivan was married to Maria Borisovna, princess of Tver, in the eighteenth year he already had a son, Ivan, nicknamed Young. In 1456, when Ivan was 16 years old, Vasily II the Dark appointed him as his co-ruler, and at the age of 22 he became the Grand Duke of Moscow.
Even as a youth, Ivan participated in campaigns against the Tatars (1448, 1454, 1459), had seen a lot, and by the time he ascended the throne in 1462, Ivan III had an already established character, was ready to make important government decisions. He had a cold, judicious mind, a strong temper, an iron will, and was distinguished by a special lust for power. By nature, Ivan III was secretive, cautious, and did not rush to the intended goal quickly, but waited for an opportunity, chose the time, moving towards it with measured steps.
Outwardly, Ivan was handsome, thin, tall and slightly round-shouldered, for which he received the nickname "Humpback".
Ivan III marked the beginning of his reign by issuing gold coins, on which the names of Grand Duke Ivan III and his son Ivan the Young, heir to the throne, were minted.
The first wife of Ivan III died early, and the Grand Duke entered into a second marriage with the niece of the last Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI, Zoya (Sophia) Paleolog. Their wedding took place in Moscow on November 12, 1472. She immediately joined in political activity actively helping her husband. Under Sophia, he became more severe and cruel, demanding and power-hungry, demanded complete obedience and punished disobedience, for which Ivan III was the first of the Tsars to be called the Terrible.
In 1490, the son of Ivan III from his first marriage, Ivan Molodoy, unexpectedly died. From him there was a son Dmitry. The question arose before the Grand Duke, who should inherit the throne: son Vasily from Sophia or grandson Dmitry.
Soon a conspiracy against Dmitry was uncovered, the organizers of which were executed, and Vasily was taken into custody. February 4, 1498 Ivan III crowned his grandson to the kingdom. This was the first coronation in Rus'.
In January 1499, a conspiracy against Sophia and Vasily was uncovered. Ivan III lost interest in his grandson and reconciled with his wife and son. In 1502, the tsar placed Dmitry in disgrace, and Vasily was declared the Grand Duke of All Rus'.
The great sovereign decided to marry Vasily to a Danish princess, but the Danish king declined the offer. Fearing not to have time to find a foreign bride before his death, Ivan III chose Solomonia, the daughter of an insignificant Russian dignitary. The marriage took place on September 4, 1505, and on October 27 of the same year, Ivan III the Great died.
Domestic policy of Ivan III
The cherished goal of Ivan III's activity was to collect lands around Moscow, to put an end to the remnants of specific disunity for the sake of creating a single state. The wife of Ivan III, Sophia Paleolog, strongly supported her husband's desire to expand the Muscovite state and strengthen autocratic power.
For a century and a half, Moscow extorted tribute from Novgorod, took away land and almost brought the Novgorodians to their knees, for which they hated Moscow. Realizing that Ivan III Vasilievich finally wants to subjugate the Novgorodians, they freed themselves from the oath to the Grand Duke and formed a society for the salvation of Novgorod, headed by Marfa Boretskaya, the widow of the mayor.
Novgorod concluded an agreement with Casimir, the King of Poland and the Grand Duke of Lithuania, according to which Novgorod passes under his supreme power, but at the same time retains some independence and the right to the Orthodox faith, and Casimir undertakes to protect Novgorod from the encroachments of the Moscow prince.
Twice Ivan III Vasilyevich sent ambassadors to Novgorod with good wishes to come to their senses and enter the lands of Moscow, the Metropolitan of Moscow tried to convince the Novgorodians to "correct", but all in vain. Ivan III had to make a trip to Novgorod (1471), as a result of which the Novgorodians were defeated first on the Ilmen River, and then Shelon, Casimir did not come to the rescue.
In 1477, Ivan III Vasilyevich demanded from Novgorod the full recognition of him as his master, which caused a new rebellion, which was suppressed. On January 13, 1478, Veliky Novgorod completely submitted to the authority of the Moscow sovereign. In order to finally pacify Novgorod, Ivan III replaced the Novgorod archbishop Theophilus in 1479, moved unreliable Novgorodians to Moscow lands, and settled Muscovites and other residents on their lands.
With the help of diplomacy and force, Ivan III Vasilyevich subjugated other specific principalities: Yaroslavl (1463), Rostov (1474), Tver (1485), Vyatka lands (1489). Ivan married his sister Anna to a Ryazan prince, thus securing the right to interfere in the affairs of Ryazan, and later inherited the city from his nephews.
Ivan acted inhumanly with his brothers, taking away their inheritances and depriving them of the right to any participation in state affairs. So, Andrei Bolshoy and his sons were arrested and imprisoned.
Foreign policy of Ivan III.
During the reign of Ivan III in 1502, the Golden Horde ceased to exist.
Moscow and Lithuania often fought over the Russian lands under Lithuania and Poland. As the power of the great sovereign of Moscow increased, more and more Russian princes with their lands passed from Lithuania to Moscow.
After Casimir's death, Lithuania and Poland were again divided between his sons, Alexander and Albrecht, respectively. Grand Duke Lithuanian Alexander married the daughter of Ivan III Elena. Relations between son-in-law and father-in-law worsened, and in 1500 Ivan III declared war on Lithuania, which was successful for Rus': parts of the Smolensk, Novgorod-Seversky and Chernigov principalities were conquered. In 1503, a truce agreement was signed for 6 years. Ivan III Vasilyevich rejected the offer of eternal peace until Smolensk and Kyiv were returned.
As a result of the war of 1501-1503. the great sovereign of Moscow forced the Livonian Order to pay tribute (for the city of Yuryev).
Ivan III Vasilyevich during his reign made several attempts to subdue the Kazan kingdom. In 1470, Moscow and Kazan made peace, and in 1487 Ivan III took Kazan and enthroned Khan Mahmet-Amin, who had been a faithful novice of the Moscow prince for 17 years.
Reforms of Ivan III
Under Ivan III, the design of the title of "Grand Duke of All Rus'" began, and in some documents he calls himself the king.
For internal order in the country, Ivan III in 1497 developed a Code of Civil Laws (Sudebnik). The chief judge was the Grand Duke, highest institution became the Boyar Duma. Mandatory and local government systems appeared.
The adoption of the Code of Laws by Ivan III became a prerequisite for the establishment of serfdom in Rus'. The law limited the exit of peasants and gave them the right to transfer from one owner to another once a year (St. George's Day).
The results of the reign of Ivan III
Under Ivan III, the territory of Rus' expanded significantly, Moscow became the center of the Russian centralized state.
The era of Ivan III was marked by the final liberation of Rus' from the Tatar-Mongol yoke.
During the reign of Ivan III, the Assumption and Annunciation Cathedrals, the Palace of Facets, the Church of the Deposition of the Robe were built.
By nature, cautious and prudent, he avoided too bold actions in politics, achieving major goals not immediately, but in several successive steps. This tactic was most clearly manifested when Novgorod and Tver were annexed to Moscow. Novgorod, which became closely dependent on Moscow even under the Yazhelbitsky Treaty of 1456, concluded under the father of Ivan III, tried to regain its former independence. Among the Novgorod merchants, a strong party of Lithuanian friends was formed, headed by the influential Boretsky family. In 1470, this party invited the Orthodox Lithuanian magnate Mikhail Olelkovich to reign in Novgorod. Soon, the Novgorodians concluded an agreement with the King of Poland and the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Casimir, on the transfer under his authority - instead of Moscow.
Upon learning of this, Ivan III moved to Novgorod with a large army. The hopes of the Novgorodians for Casimir's help were not justified. July 14, 1471 Moscow governor Daniil Kholmsky defeated the Novgorod militia on the Shelon River. Muscovites defeated another enemy army on the Dvina. Novgorod was forced to break the alliance with Lithuania and give an obligation not to renew it in the future, to pay Ivan III large"payback" (15 and a half thousand rubles) and give him some areas. Even under the Yazhelbitsky Treaty of 1456, the court of the Moscow prince was recognized as the supreme authority for all Novgorod lawsuits. Taking advantage of this, Ivan III arrived in Novgorod in 1475 and tried court cases here. Then the complaints of the Novgorodians began to be accepted in Moscow.
Clashes continued between the Moscow and Lithuanian parties in Novgorod. The first one was supported mainly by the common people, and the second one by the merchant nobility. Seeing that the situation remained unsettled, Ivan III secretly prepared to finally destroy the autonomy of Novgorod. In 1477, the Novgorod ambassadors who arrived in Moscow (apparently supporters of the Moscow party) called Ivan III not “master”, as usual, but “Sovereign”. Ivan saw in this a request to accept the possessions of Novgorod under full Moscow power. The Novgorod government began to claim that it did not give its ambassadors the authority to ask for this. Ivan III in response accused the Novgorodians of causing dishonor. In October 1477 the Grand Duke reopened the campaign against Novgorod and put it under siege. The inhabitants did not have the strength to defend themselves; in addition, a significant part of them stood for Moscow. On January 15, 1478, Novgorodians swore allegiance to Ivan III, agreeing to no longer gather for their violent veche and to transfer the powers of the Novgorod government to the grand ducal governors. The leaders of the Lithuanian party were captured and sent to Moscow prisons.
In 1479, the supporters of the Boretskys, who remained at liberty, at the instigation of King Casimir, tried to raise an uprising in Novgorod. But it was suppressed, its leaders were executed, Archbishop Theophilus of Novgorod was deposed. More than 1000 wealthy families Ivan III evicted from Novgorod to other places, replacing them with Muscovites. Similar evictions were then repeated more than once, especially widely - in 1488, when 7,000 wealthy citizens were transferred from Novgorod. In 1489 Ivan III also destroyed the autonomy of Vyatka. Of the veche cities, only Pskov has retained its independence so far.
Marfa Posadnitsa (Boretskaya). Destruction of the Novgorod veche. Artist K. Lebedev, 1889)
Completion of the unification of Russian lands under Ivan III - briefly
The composition of the immediate possessions of Moscow under Ivan III included the destinies of most of the neighboring princes. In 1463, the princes of Yaroslavl voluntarily agreed to this, and in 1474, the princes of Rostov. In exchange for the loss of specific independence, the rulers who lost their independence were enrolled in the Moscow boyars. Tver remained the largest of the principalities neighboring Moscow. In 1484, its owner, Mikhail Borisovich, following the example of Novgorod, entered into an alliance with Casimir of Lithuania and married his granddaughter. Ivan III opened the war against Tver. Having won a victory in it, at first he was content with the consent of Mikhail Borisovich to break the alliance with Kazimir. But the prince of Tver soon re-established ties with Lithuania, and in the fall of 1485, after a short siege of Tver, Ivan III finally deposed Michael and annexed his appanage to Moscow possessions. In the same year, Vereya passed to Moscow according to the will of the local prince.
Within the Moscow principality itself, there were also inheritances of the brothers of Ivan III. When one of them, the childless Yuri Dmitrovsky, died in 1472, Ivan appropriated the entire land remaining after him, without dividing it, contrary to custom, with other brothers. The Grand Duke did not give his relatives anything from the regions of the conquered Novgorod either. The frustrated brothers of Ivan, princes Boris Volotsky and Andrei Uglitsky (Andrey Bolshoy), tried to support the Novgorod uprising of 1479, sought help from Lithuania, but during the Tatar invasion of 1480 they reconciled with their brother. However, mutual suspicion has not disappeared far. In 1491, Ivan III arrested Andrei Uglitsky for refusing to take part in a campaign against the Tatars. Three years later, Andrei died in captivity, and his lot was annexed to Moscow. The new rule of inseparable inheritance of escheated destinies by one Grand Duke was firmly established by the end of the reign of Ivan III.
Unification of North-Eastern Rus' by Moscow 1300-1462
Wars of Ivan III with Lithuania
Many princes eastern border The Grand Duchy of Lithuania has long gravitated towards Moscow. At the beginning of the reign of Ivan III, the princes Vorotynsky, Belsky and some others switched from Lithuanian service to Moscow. An increase in the number of such crossings led to the Russian-Lithuanian war of 1487-1494 (according to another dating - 1492-1494). As a result, most of the Verkhovsky principalities(with the cities of Belev, Odoev, Kozelsk, Novosil, Vyazma). At the end of the war, Grand Duke Alexander of Lithuania married the daughter of Ivan III, Elena, in an attempt to establish not only peaceful, but also allied relations between Moscow and Lithuania. But this marriage did not give the desired result. In 1499, a new Russo-Lithuanian war broke out, marked by a major victory for the troops of Ivan III on the Vedrosha River. According to the peace treaty of 1503 that ended this war, Muscovites received Seversky principalities with the cities of Chernigov, Starodub, Novgorod-Seversky and Putivl.
The fall of the Tatar yoke - briefly
Under Ivan III, Moscow Rus' was finally freed from the Tatar yoke. Already from the middle of the 15th century, Moscow sent tribute to the disintegrated Golden Horde only from time to time and in small amounts. During the first war between Ivan III and Novgorod, Khan of the Golden Horde Akhmat, at the instigation of Casimir of Poland, set off (1472) on a campaign against Moscow, but took only Aleksin and retreated from the Oka, behind which a powerful Moscow army gathered. In 1480, Akhmat again went to Rus'. The governors of Ivan III met the Tatars on the Ugra River. All autumn, two hostile armies stood on its opposite banks, not daring to attack each other. With the onset of cold weather in November, Akhmat retreated, and attempts to once again impose tribute on Moscow from the Golden Horde ceased.
Even before that, Ivan III himself launched an offensive against the fragments of the Golden Horde. At the end of 1467-1469, the Russian armies made several campaigns against Kazan and forced the local khan Ibrahim to recognize himself as a Moscow assistant. After the death of Ibrahim, the Moscow rati by force approved one of his sons, Mohammed-Amin (1487), in Kazan, as a ruler dependent on Moscow. In 1496, Muhammad-Amin was overthrown by the Kazanians, but soon they recognized the power of Tsarevich Abdyl-Letif appointed by Ivan III, and then (1502) again Muhammad-Amin. Although shortly before the death of Ivan III, Amen broke away from Moscow (1505), killed Russian merchants and attacked Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan's dependence on Rus' was soon restored by the new Grand Duke Vasily III. Khan Crimean Tatars Mengli Giray was an ally of Ivan III against the Golden Horde (whose possessions were then limited to the Lower Volga region) and Lithuania. With the assistance of Mengli Giray, Moscow began to send embassies to Turkey.
Strengthening of the Grand Duke's power under Ivan III - briefly
The Byzantine princess inspired Ivan III with higher ideas about his power. Moscow adopted the Byzantine coat of arms (double-headed eagle) and many solemn forms of the Byzantine imperial ceremonial. The Grand Duke began to magnify himself more than before in front of the boyars surrounding him. They began to show hostility towards Sophia Paleolog. From Maria Tverskaya, Ivan had a son, Ivan the Young, who died in 1490. Following the death of Ivan the Young, the question arose of who would inherit the Moscow throne: the son Vasily born to Sophia from the Grand Duke or the son Dmitry left by Ivan the Young. Two parties formed at the court: most of the noble boyars stood for the rights of Dmitry, and less influential courtiers and officials supported Vasily.
This conflict was combined with strife in the church, where the free-thinking heresy of the Judaizers then came out. Dmitry's mother, the Moldavian princess Elena, supported the heretics, while Sophia Paleolog and her supporters were hostile to them. In December 1497, Ivan III arrested his son Vasily, suspecting his supporters of an attempt on Dmitry. February 4, 1498 Dmitry was married for the first time in Russia not for a great reign, but for a kingdom as heir to the throne. But the very next year, Dmitry's party, led by the boyars Patrikeev and Ryapolovsky, was crushed. Not the least reason for this was her connection with the Judaizers. April 14, 1502 Ivan III declared Vasily his heir.
Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. Built under Ivan III
Under Ivan III, the first remarkable Moscow legal monument was compiled - Sudebnik 1497, which, however, no longer concerned legislative norms but the rules of the judiciary. After marrying Sophia, Ivan made great efforts to decorate Moscow, which had now become the main city of the entire Orthodox world. Skilful builders were summoned from Italy to Russia ( Aristotle Fioravanti and others), who erected in Moscow a new, surviving to this day Assumption Cathedral, the Faceted Chamber, the new walls of the Kremlin.
Dossier: father, Ivan III Vasilyevich
Ivan Vasilyevich, the future Grand Duke and Sovereign of All Rus', was born on January 22, 1440, in the midst of the war for the great reign between his father Vasily II Vasilyevich of Moscow and the son of Yuri Dmitrievich Zvenigorodsky (d. 1434) Dmitry Shemyaka. Just in the same 1440, Shemyaka's brother, Dmitry Krasny, died, and only two contenders for power remained.
A few years later, in 1446, Ivan's father Vasily II will be captured by his enemy, blinded, after which he will receive the nickname Dark. However, he will not accept defeat and will begin to create an anti-Shemyakin coalition. And although the boy grew up in the prince's chamber, far from these shocks and troubles, who knows how he caught the anxieties and fears of adults, how he comprehended accidentally overheard conversations and how he experienced the blindness of his father?
In 1447, seven-year-old Ivan Vasilievich for the first time felt like a pawn in a big political game: this year he was engaged to his daughter Prince of Tver Maria Borisovna, thereby enlisting, if not the support, then at least the neutrality of the mighty Tver. The wedding will take place later, in 1452, when the groom is 12 years old (the bride was even younger).
In this regard, the fates of Sophia and the future Ivan III were a bit similar: both learned from an early age that representatives of the imperial and grand ducal families are not the masters of their lives and their fates are nothing more than a bargaining chip in the plans of the powerful. Maybe that's why both then with such force and sought to become these very " the mighty of the world this, the creators of their future?
An early marriage did not benefit Maria Tverskaya. She died in 1467. She left only one son, Ivan, born February 15, 1458. It was Ivan the Young who was considered the heir to the throne and the support of Ivan III. We see him next to the sovereign in many political actions since the end of the 1470s.
In the following lines, it is hardly possible to describe all the deeds of Ivan III, who ascended the throne of Moscow on March 28, 1462. Many volumes have been written about this. But it is still necessary to sketch about them in order to make the historical atmosphere in which the future Vasily III grew up more understandable. According to the will of Vasily II, Ivan III received more than half of the country's territory, including such major centers, as Moscow, Vladimir, Nizhny Novgorod, Suzdal, etc. The remaining possessions were distributed among his four brothers: Yuri, Andrei Bolshoi, Boris and Andrei Menshii. Thus, the fighter for the centralization of the state - Vasily II the Dark - with his last will actually revived the specific system.
In this, Ivan III saw the threat of a new internecine war. Therefore, he decided to conquer as many principalities and lands of Rus' as possible under his power. Initially, the mechanism for collecting territories was the absorption of the weaker ones by the stronger Moscow principality. That is, Ivan III, as it were, was building his huge personal fiefdom. However, the changes in the political system that accompanied this process turned out to be so serious that in their course a fundamentally new entity arose - a single Russian state.
The scale and speed of collecting lands is impressive. Around 1464, the Principality of Yaroslavl was annexed, in 1471-1478 - Veliky Novgorod, in 1472 - Perm, in 1474 - Rostov, in 1485 - Tver, in 1489 - Vyatka, in 1500 - Yugra land (Pechora-Ural region, inhabited by Khanty, Mansi, Nenets and Samoyeds). In 1503, after the victory in the Russo-Lithuanian war, the Seversky lands were ceded to Russia. In total, during the reign of Ivan III, the territory subject to him increased more than six times (from 430 thousand square kilometers to 2800 thousand).
It is necessary to pay attention to two features of the process of unification of Russian lands under the rule of Moscow. First, it was largely violent. There were no queues from the lands wishing to voluntarily become part of the state of all Rus'. The policy of the center was tough, not without reason about the Moscow Kalitichi dynasty, the Rogozhsky chronicler, in relation to earlier events of the XIV century, wrote: the Moscow princes, “... hoping for their great strength, the Russian princes began to bring to their will, and those who did not obey their will, they began to indulge in evil."
But this anger in most cases concerned the elites. Local princely families and the regional service aristocracy associated with them, who had to find their place in the new, all-Russian hierarchy, suffered from joining Moscow. In order to avoid resistance, Moscow widely practiced “withdrawal”, that is, the forced relocation of representatives of the local elite with their families to another place. Thus, corporate and service ties were destroyed and the aristocracy became harmless.
The ordinary population - peasants, townsmen and small service people - in most cases were little affected by these changes (if they did not fall under punitive actions of intimidation, which, however, were few). Tax collectors and military commanders changed, but life and occupations remained the same. Therefore, Moscow's unifying policy did not meet with serious resistance: the local elites were unable to raise their population to fight against "aggression".
Against this background, only one action stands out sharply, accompanied by a serious conflict with the population - the annexation of Veliky Novgorod (1471-1478). Here the second feature of the unification process was clearly manifested. It can be described as tragedy of misunderstanding. The historical truth - the creation of a united Rus', a strong state capable of protecting the freedom of the Russian people in the face of any enemies - was for Moscow. But bricks into the majestic building of "All Rus'" were supposed to lay down regional cultures, lands, peoples with their freedoms. And where the political consciousness of the population was more developed - as, for example, in the Novgorod Republic with its veche traditions - "they did not want to go to Moscow", they did not understand why they had to give up their private, Novgorod, in the name of the triumph of the whole - but someone else's , Moscow.
Relationships between Moscow and Novgorod in the 15th century are becoming more and more irreconcilable every year. The annalistic assessment of the campaign of Grand Duke Vasily II against Novgorod in 1456 is indicative. The governors of the Grand Duke of Moscow, who found themselves in the face of the superior forces of the Novgorodians, say to themselves: “... we will die with them for the truth of our sovereign, and for their betrayal". That is, the concepts of “truth” (it belongs to Moscow) and “treason” to the interests of Moscow (it is committed by Novgorodians) are contrasted.
It is clear that in the city on the Volkhov they looked at the situation diametrically opposite, from the point of view of protecting their rights and freedoms - but this was the tragedy of not understanding that the assessments were opposite and irreconcilable and consensus was possible only through the extermination or at least the subjugation of one of the sides. The Moscow chronicler, describing the defeat of Novgorod, depicts its inhabitants lamenting that they were punished "for their betrayal of the Grand Duke." That is, Novgorod's freedom-loving motives were simply not considered and perceived in Moscow: what kind of struggle for freedom is there? - it was the devil who beguiled them, and only defeat made them sober up and repent.
The assessments and selection of facts that are given about the events of 1471 in the Moscow chronicle are indicative. The Moscow chronicler calls the supporters of Novgorodian independence “…traitors taught by the devil, deceivers worse than demons.” He draws attention to the arrival in Novgorod of the Lithuanian prince Mikhail Olelkovich, the son of the Kyiv prince Alexander Vladimirovich, a descendant of the famous Olgerd - here he is, an undoubted sign of impending treason! The chronicler depicts the clashes in November 1470 at the Novgorod veche of the “pro-Moscow” and “pro-Lithuanian” “parties” as a triumph of the traitors’ perfidy: the “Lithuanians” won, who hired special people who stabbed their opponents with awls - “shilniks” in a stampede. People in the stampede screamed in pain, while others thought that they were shouting for the decisions that the traitors needed.
On June 6, 1471, the campaign of Moscow troops began under the command of D. D. Kholmsky and F. D. Khromy against rebellious Novgorod. Soon two more groups came forward - under the command of Striga-Obolensky and Ivan III himself. The forces of the Tver principality also moved against Novgorod. Russa was taken and burned, the ship's army of Novgorodians was defeated on Lake Ilmen. The governors ordered the captive Novgorodians to "cut their noses, ears and lips."
This cruel act, if it actually took place, shows the semantic context in which the Muscovites assessed the behavior of the Novgorodians. The Bible says: “Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will stir up against you your lovers, from whom your soul has turned away, and I will bring them against you from all sides ... beautiful youths, governors and city governors, dignitaries and eminent ones, all skilful riders. And they will come against you with weapons, with horses and chariots, and with a multitude of people, and will surround you with armor, with shields and helmets, and I will give you to them for judgment, and they will judge you with their judgment. And I will turn my jealousy against you, and they will deal violently with you: they will cut off your nose and ears, and the rest of yours will fall by the sword; they will take your sons and your daughters, and your rest will be consumed by fire; And they will take off your garments, and take your garments. And I will put an end to your wantonness and your wandering... For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will deliver you into the hands of those whom you hate, into the hands of those from whom your soul has turned away. And they will deal cruelly with you, and they will take from you everything acquired by labors ... This will be done to you for your fornication with the peoples, whom you have defiled yourself with idols ”( Ezek. 23:22–30).
The prophet Ezekiel spoke here about Jerusalem, which, for its sins, primarily the sin of unfaithfulness to God, was overthrown and subjected to invasion by foreigners. That is, in the eyes of Moscow, Novgorod was a "traitor of the faith", which is simply obliged for its sin, for the desecration of the purity of Orthodoxy by contacts with Catholic Lithuania, to be subject to shameful violence and plunder. Muscovites, performing a terrible rite on the banks of the Shelon River and cutting off the noses and ears of Novgorodians, felt like performers God's judgment. We do not know what the Novgorodians felt and thought, but it is unlikely that they felt themselves and their city as a biblical harlot who deserved Heavenly punishment ... The Moscow chronicler further writes that, as a sign of contempt for the traitors, Muscovites did not take their armor, as required medieval tradition, but they threw defiled weapons into the water. Novgorodians, who came to the banks of the Shelon to defend their freedom, were perceived as carriers of dirt and sin.
The tragedy of misunderstanding - in other words it is difficult to call it. And the era of Father Vasily, Ivan III, was saturated with such tragedies. Probably, it was impossible otherwise - great states are always built with iron and blood. The state of all Rus' of Ivan III is still a relatively mild option compared to the bloody scenarios of the unification of England in the War of the Scarlet and White Roses or the Burgundian Wars in France (1) . But Novgorodians (and others) did not feel any better about it.
Territorial growth was accompanied by the creation of an all-Russian administrative apparatus, an all-Russian Sudebnik (1497), state symbols (a double-headed eagle, first mentioned in 1497). was successful and foreign policy: Russia in 1480 overthrew Tatar yoke, won two wars with Lithuania (1487-1494 and 1500-1503), one war with the Livonian Order (1500-1503). In 1487, Kazan fell under the protectorate of Russia. It was under Ivan III that permanent diplomatic relations between Russia as a single sovereign state and European powers were established: in 1491 - with the Holy Roman Empire, in 1493 - with Denmark, in 1496 - with Turkey, etc.
Moreover, the Grand Duke used dynastic marriages as a political tool: in 1483, Ivan the Young married Elena Voloshanka, daughter of the Moldavian ruler Stefan. Thus, a political union was concluded between Russia and Moldova, to which Hungary joined. That is, Ivan III entered the international arena as the creator and participant of European military-political coalitions.
What were the character traits, personality traits of this person? Among the main ones, I would name the mind and the ability to make decisions quickly, focusing on the situation. Ivan III was not at all a brave man - according to some sources, in 1480, when he heard about the approach of the Tatar army of Khan Akhmat, he wanted to flee from Moscow, but the boyars, townspeople and the church clearly explained to him that he would have to fight, there was no turning back. Ivan III realized that allowing himself to be cowardly would be much worse than taking a risk and speaking out against the Tatars with weapons in their hands - in 1480, the Moscow prince who had fled from the enemy simply would not have had a future. Ivan III was able to understand this, overcome his fear, reject the sly advice of the "money-lovers" who whispered to the prince that the Tatars could not be defeated - he spoke out and won. This episode very clearly characterizes Ivan Vasilyevich and gives an answer to the question of why he could become the "sovereign of all Rus'." Because in critical situations he was able to quickly make the right decision and give up personal feelings and emotions in the name of national tasks.
Ivan III was a very tough politician - it is not for nothing that the nickname "Terrible" was first recorded as referring specifically to this ruler. He could show firmness of character and even vindictiveness (he never forgave Metropolitan Philip for his hostility towards Sophia Palaiologos). He was distinguished by a broad outlook, insight and foresight, pride and at the same time flexibility. However, he was not alien to emotions - at the end of his life he had a stroke due to a fit of anger during a discussion with the monks of a trifling land dispute. He took the illness as a sign from above, began to repent of sins, to forgive the disgraced (which complicated the political situation in the country and caused considerable annoyance to his son, Grand Duke Vasily III).
We do not know the details of the family life of Ivan III. It is only clear that it was not easy and to a very large extent obeyed the principle of political expediency. The first victims of this principle were the brothers of Ivan III, whose specific rights and land holdings were severely curtailed. In 1486, the brothers officially recognized Ivan III as their lord and sovereign of all Rus'. This did not help them much: in 1491, Andrei Bolshoi was arrested, who died two years later in prison in chains. Relations with Sophia Paleologus were not cloudless either: there is a known case when the Grand Duke placed her in disgrace, and ordered the “women” close to her to be drowned in the Moscow River (more on this will be discussed below). But the biggest problem at the end of his life, when relations with his brothers were more or less settled (mainly as a result of the death of the latter), for Ivan III was the following: what to do with his own children?
DESCENDANTS OF IVAN III VASILIEVICH
At the beginning of the XVI century. the offspring of Dmitry Donskoy greatly thinned out. After the death of Ivan III, his sons survived: Vasily and his brothers Andrei, Yuri, Simeon, Dmitry Zhilka, as well as the grandson from his eldest son, Dmitry, who would die in prison in 1509. Only Andrei, Prince Staritsky, had son Vladimir, the rest of the brothers of Vasily III were childless. The cousins of Vasily III - Ivan and Dmitry, the sons of Andrei Vasilyevich Bolshoi, were imprisoned.
Vasily's serious rivals were his brothers Andrei Staritsky and Yuri, Prince Dmitrovsky. After the death of Vasily III, both brothers opposed the young heirs - Ivan and Yuri, but Yuri Dmitrovsky soon (in August 1536) died.
Vasily III Ivanovich(1478-1533). The eldest son of Ivan III from Sophia Paleolog. After a short disgrace, in 1499 Ivan returned his position to him, and Vasily was declared heir to the throne. In August 1505, the prince married boyar daughter Solomonia Saburova, chosen from ten contenders as a result of grandiose brides, which brought 500 brides. The wedding took place on September 4, and in October Ivan III died, and Vasily became the Grand Duke of All Rus'. According to his father's will, he got 66 cities, while his brothers - only 30. Yuri received Dmitrov and Ruza, Dmitry - Uglich, Semyon - Kaluga, but all of them were actually completely dependent on the Grand Duke.
In 1510, the Pskov land lost its last remnants of independence. The reason for the complete subjugation of Pskov was the dissatisfaction of the Pskovites with the Grand Duke's governor - Prince Ivan Mikhailovich Repney-Obolensky. In the autumn of 1509, Vasily III was in Novgorod. The Pskov delegation came to him with a complaint about Repnya, and Repnya himself with his claims against the Pskovites. Sources describe the situation itself and the positions of the warring parties in different ways, but the fact remains that Vasily demanded complete obedience from the Pskovites. This should be confirmed by such a ritual act as the removal of the veche bell - a symbol of Pskov's independence. January 24, 1510 Vasily arrived in Pskov and expressed his will; about 300 families were expelled from Pskov: posadniks, boyars, merchants - all those in whom the Grand Duke saw champions of Pskov liberties.
important event was the return of the Russian state of Smolensk. This was preceded by a sharp deterioration in relations with Lithuania: it became known in Moscow that the Polish king Sigismund was inciting the Crimean Khan to raid Rus'; in the fall of 1512, he imprisoned Elena Ivanovna - the widow of Alexander Kazimirovich (brother of Sigismund), sister of Vasily III. The Smolensk operation was difficult: Vasily sent his regiments to Smolensk three times, and only in the summer of 1514, after a fierce shelling and a decisive assault, the fortress fell. On August 1, the Grand Duke solemnly entered the city.
Vasily was no less worried about the eastern and southern borders. He constantly fought for Russian influence in Kazan, striving to install friendly khans on the Kazan throne, played a complex diplomatic game with the Crimean Khanate, which at that time was perhaps the main source of danger. Rus' experienced a severe test in 1521, when the Crimean Khan Mohammed Giray invaded the central regions of the country with a huge army. Russian barriers on the Oka were broken through at Serpukhov and Kashira, the governors were killed or captured. According to some reports, the Tatars reached the village of Vorobyov near Moscow. Vasily left the capital and was forced to give the khan a letter with the promise of "tribute and exit." However, this letter was obtained by cunning and destroyed by the Ryazan governor - Prince I.V. Khabar. The Tatars returned home with a huge crowd. This raid by Muhammad Giray was, fortunately, the only enemy invasion during the reign of Basil.
Vasily was also worried about internal affairs. He sought to prevent the strengthening and even more confrontation of his younger brothers, he was especially afraid of Yuri. Vasily was also worried about the absence of an heir: Solomonia was barren. In 1525, after considerable hesitation, overcoming the resistance of some church hierarchs, Vasily decided on a divorce; Solomonia was forcibly tonsured a nun. Two months later, the Grand Duke married the young beauty Elena Glinskaya. His choice was probably influenced not only by the fact that Elena was distinguished by "the beauty of her face and the goodness of her age", but also by the generosity of the family: the Glinskys descended from the khans of the Great Horde. Elena's uncle - Mikhail Lvovich Glinsky was the most influential magnate and political rival of King Sigismund.
Vasily died in 1533. In September, having prayed at the Trinity-Sergius Monastery in the days of the memory of Sergius of Radonezh, he went to Volok Lamsky to hunt. But an unexpected illness forced an interruption in the fun; “If he had a small sore on his left side, on the stem (thigh) ... from a pinhead.” So unpretentiously began the disease, which brought the Grand Duke to the grave, despite the efforts of doctors. The dying prince was most worried about the fate of the throne: he declared his son Ivan, who at that time was only three years old, to be his heir, and appointed boyars D. F. Belsky and M. L. Glinsky as regents. On December 3, Vasily died. Describing him, A. A. Zimin wrote: “He was a cautious and sober politician. A man of the Renaissance, Vasily combined an ardent interest in knowledge with the Machiavellianism of an ambitious ruler ... His foreign policy is distinguished by thoughtfulness and purposefulness, the ability to use the international situation to carry out military actions ”(Zimin A. A. Russia on the threshold of a new time. M., 1972. S. 419-421). After the last Ryazan prince Ivan Ivanovich was arrested in Moscow in 1520 and the Ryazan principality became part of the Russian state, Vasily could already rightly be considered the Grand Duke of "All Rus'" - with feudal fragmentation it was over. Vasily left a vast and powerful state to his young heir.
Source: The Tale of the Pskov Capture // PLDR: The end of the XV - the first half of the XVI century. pp. 364-375; The Tale of the Illness and Death of Vasily III // PLDR: The Middle of the 16th Century. pp. 18-47.
Lit .: Zimin A. A. Russia on the threshold of a new time. M., 1972.
Ivan IV Vasilyevich(1530-1584). Ivan the Terrible - one of the most prominent statesmen pre-Petrine Rus'. The most extensive literature is devoted to his reign, therefore we recall only the main milestones of his life.
When Vasily died, Ivan was three years old; five years later, in 1538, Elena Glinskaya died. There are suggestions that Ivan's mother, who actively interfered in political life, was poisoned. The orphaned boy was a witness to the unattractive and cruel struggle of the groups that claimed the championship - Glinsky, Shuisky, Belsky. They paid no attention to the prince. Subsequently, Ivan recalled the neglect of his guardian (see below). During the next palace “hush”, the conspirators, led by Ivan Shuisky, broke into “the bed mansions at the wrong time, three hours before light”, frightening the thirteen-year-old Ivan a lot. A year later, Ivan's favorite, the boyar Vorontsov, was beaten right there in the palace, his clothes were torn off, kicked, and dragged from the entrance to the square. Only the intercession of Ivan saved his life, Vorontsov was exiled to Kostroma. In 1546, a crowd of disgruntled squeakers (warriors armed with squeakers) tried to break through with a petition to Ivan, who was going hunting; the protection of the Grand Duke detained them, several people died in the battle. Those accused of incitement to rebellion were executed, although, of course, regular temporary workers dealt with their rivals on behalf of Ivan.
In 1547 Ivan was crowned king. This was the official adoption of the new title, although Vasily III was already called the king in the documents. In the same year, Ivan married Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina, the daughter of a boyar. Some princely families regarded this marriage as a dishonor, for Ivan married "his slave."
The year 1547 was ominous: Moscow burned three times, and during the last, June fire, 25,000 households burned down and, according to the chronicler's estimates, 1,700 people died.
Starting from 1549, his like-minded people and assistants were grouped around Ivan, whom Andrei Kurbsky would later call the “Chosen Rada”. It was Alexei Adashev, a deceiver, Duma clerk Ivan Viskovaty, Metropolitan Macarius, priest Sylvester. The time of reforms aimed at strengthening the autocratic power of the tsar began.
In 1552, the Russian army, led by the tsar himself, besieged and took Kazan. The Kazan Khanate was liquidated. Kazan is included in Rus', the threat of Tatar raids from the east has passed forever.
The following year, Ivan fell seriously ill, and at some point his death was expected from hour to hour. The tsar demanded that the boyars swear allegiance to his son Dmitry (in the same year, the baby Dmitry would die). But he had a strong rival - Ivan's cousin, Prince Vladimir Andreevich Staritsky. The opinions of the boyars were divided, as the tsar later wrote, many of them “reeled like drunkards, decided that we were already in oblivion, and, forgetting our good deeds, and even more so, our souls and the oath ... decided to put our distant relative on the throne ". Ivan would remember these hesitations at his bedside later and take cruel revenge both on those who really hesitated in recognizing Dmitry as the heir, and on those whom it was beneficial for Ivan to declare his enemy.
In 1558, the war began in the Baltic states: Ivan intended to annex Livonia to Rus' and open the country's access to the Baltic Sea. The tsar hoped to rely on the local population, which received various benefits from the Russian state and was freed from the power of the German feudal lords. Although at first the Russians achieved significant success, it continued until the beginning of the 80s. the war brought nothing but huge casualties, depletion of the treasury and loss of authority. According to the agreements concluded with Poland and Sweden, Ivan not only lost Livonia, but even part of the original Russian lands: only a small section of the coast of the Gulf of Finland at the mouth of the Neva remained in the hands of the state.
In the early 1960s, the Chosen Rada disintegrated, and former associates of the tsar were sent to prison. Ivan's beloved wife, Anastasia, died, and the tsar married the Kabardian princess Temryuk, who received the name Maria at baptism.
A sharp turn in domestic politics the tsar was accomplished in 1565. Ivan unexpectedly leaves Moscow, explaining his departure with anger at his subjects for the fact that they “did many losses to people and emaciated his sovereign treasuries”, while the boyars and governors “received his sovereign lands for themselves and their friend and tribe ... handed out. True, the tsar announced in a letter sent to the merchants and all the "christianity of the city of Moscow" that he had "anger ... and no disgrace" against them. When a deputation sent from Moscow beat him with a brow, begging the tsar to return and do as he pleases, and “who will be traitors and villains to him, the sovereign, and his state, and over those in the stomach and in execution his sovereign will”, Ivan did not fail to take advantage obtained "permission". He announced the creation of the "oprichnina" - he allocated significant territories on which the employees of his royal court - the guardsmen, who made up the military corps of the king, received allotments.
At first there were 570 oprichiks, then their number grew to five thousand. Unheard-of terror is unleashed in the country: mass executions, expulsion from the cities of central Russia to the distant outskirts. The time of brutal reprisals lasted for several years. In 1565, an experienced voivode, the hero of the capture of Kazan - Prince A. B. Humpbacked with a fifteen-year-old son, devious P. P. Golovin, were executed, D. F. Shevyrev was impaled. In 1568, the boyar I.P. Fedorov-Chelyadnin, a man of impeccable reputation and great authority, was killed. Then 150 of his nobles and servants were executed. The boyars M. I. Kolychev, M. M. Lykov, A. I. Katyrev-Rostovsky were executed. In 1569, Maria Temryukovna died. Grozny accused his rival Vladimir Staritsky of being involved in her death and forced him to drink poison. In 1570, the guardsmen unleashed a bloody massacre in Klin, Torzhok, Tver, Novgorod, whose inhabitants were subjected to especially sophisticated abuse and torment. In Moscow, on July 25, about 120 convicts were executed on the square "near the Poganaya Puddle", and among them - just yesterday the most influential people: Treasurer Nikita Funikov and Chancellor Ivan Viskovaty.
In 1572, the oprichnina was abolished, and many guardsmen were themselves executed. Painfully suspicious, everywhere looking for conspirators, the king negotiated a possible departure to England. In 1575, Grozny unexpectedly transferred the royal title to the baptized Tatar Simeon, and began to call himself the “specific prince of Moscow”, derogatoryly calling himself “Ivashka”. With ostentatious humility, Ivan asks Simeon for this or that “mercy”, which the insignificant and absolutely non-authoritative Simeon, of course, does not dare to refuse him. Ivan re-forms the oprichnina army and unleashes new executions on the tormented country. A year later, Simeon was quietly dethroned and sent to reign in Tver, and Ivan regained his former title.
In 1581 Ivan the Terrible's eldest son died. By. according to contemporaries, the king watched with envy and anxiety the growing authority of his son and often quarreled with him. Once, going into his son's chambers, Grozny found his daughter-in-law - pregnant Elena - in her underwear. The king considered this a gross violation of decency and beat her with a staff; Ivan, who stood up for his wife, was also beaten. Elena the next night gave birth to a dead baby, and Ivan Ivanovich died a few days later: either from a nervous shock, or as a result of a wound in the head. The absurd death, in essence, the murder of his son shocked Grozny: he left the only heir - the feeble-minded Fyodor (Dmitry, the son of the last, seventh wife of Tsar Maria Nagoy, was not yet born).
In recent years, Grozny began to get sick often. He was tormented by bad forebodings, and he called on astrologers and sorceresses to find out his fate. According to the Englishman Jerome Horsey, who personally knew the king, the witches correctly predicted the day of his death. But Ivan, it would seem, did not even think of dying: he took a bath, ordered the chess table to be brought in and began to arrange the pieces himself, but suddenly he suddenly weakened, fell on his back and soon expired.
Ivan the Terrible undoubtedly strengthened autocratic power, eliminated the very possibility of feudal opposition, and improved the administration of the country. But we must not forget about the other side of his reign: bloody repressions, cruel executions, oprichnina terror. Experienced commanders, brilliant diplomats, and wise clerks perished in the bacchanalia of massacres. The sword of the oprichnina cut off, first of all, the heads of the most authoritative, influential, and intelligent. The intellectual potential of the country was immeasurably weakened. In the oprichnina pogroms, not only princes and boyars perished, but also tens of thousands of townspeople, peasants, and soldiers who were far from high politics. The country's economy was undermined, the central regions of Russia were devastated and devastated, through which a wave of oprichnina terror swept with the greatest fury. Such was the terrible legacy of Ivan the Terrible.
Ivan the Terrible was married seven times: to Anastasia Zakharyina-Romanova (in 1547), to Maria Temryukovna (in 1561), to Martha Sobakina (in 1571), Anna Koltovskaya (in 1572), Anna Vasilchikova and Vasilisa Melentyeva (in 1575) and Maria Nagoya (in 1580). From Anastasia, he had sons Ivan (d. 1581), Dmitry (d. 1553) and Fedor, from Maria Nagoy - Dmitry.
Source: Messages of Ivan the Terrible. M.; L., 1951; Correspondence between Ivan the Terrible and Andrei Kurbsky. M., 1978; Kazan history // PLDR: The middle of the XVI century. pp. 300-565; Correspondence of Andrei Kurbsky with Ivan the Terrible; Messages of Ivan the Terrible // PLDR: The second half of the 16th century. pp. 16-217; Andrei Kurbsky. The story of the Grand Duke of Moscow // Ibid. pp. 218-399; The story of the coming of Stefan Batory to the city of Pskov // Ibid. pp. 400-477.
Lit .: Zimin A. A. 1) Reforms of Ivan the Terrible: Essays on the socio-economic and political history of the middle of the 16th century. M., 1960; 2) Oprichnina of Ivan the Terrible. M., 1964; Skrynnikov R. G. Ivan the Terrible. M., 1975; Zimin A.A., Khoroshkevin A.L. Russia in the time of Ivan the Terrible. M., 1982; Kobrin V. Ivan the Terrible. M., 1989; Grekov I.B., Shakhmagonov F.F. World of history: Russian lands in the 16th century. M., 1990.
Fedor Ivanovich(1557-1589). Ivan the Terrible was succeeded by his son, weak in body and spirit. According to a contemporary, “he is heavy and inactive, but he always smiles, so that he almost laughs ... he is simple and weak-minded ... he has no inclination for war, is little capable of political affairs and is extremely superstitious. In addition to the fact that he prays at home, he usually goes on a pilgrimage every week to one of the nearby monasteries ”(D. Fletcher. On the Russian State. St. Petersburg, 1906. P. 122). Naturally, Fedor could not rule. State affairs were conducted by his brother-in-law - the brother of Tsarina Irina Boris Godunov, elevated by Fyodor during the coronation to the high rank of equerry.
During the reign of Fedor, the struggle of political groups again intensified. Representatives of the old aristocracy, pushed aside in the last years of Ivan the Terrible's reign by his favorites and temporary workers, again raised their heads. Boris Godunov was especially viciously attacked, but he managed to prevail in a complex political intrigue when the opposition, led by Metropolitan Dionysius and the influential Ivan Petrovich Shuisky, demanded that Fyodor divorce Irina, who was accused of infertility. Fyodor flatly refused, and Godunov removed Dionysius from the metropolitan throne. Accused of treason and exiled to Beloozero, Ivan Shuisky was tonsured a monk and soon died under strange circumstances. Fedor did not leave a will, which became a formal reason for the unrest that began after his death.
Source: Job. The Tale of the Life of Tsar Fedor Ivanovich // PLDR: The end of the XVI-beginning of the XVII century. pp. 74-129.
Lit .: Skrynnikov R. G. Boris Godunov. L., 1978.
Dmitry Ivanovich(1583-1591). The youngest son of Ivan IV from Maria Nagoya would hardly deserve mention if it were not for his unexpected death, which served as the basis for the appearance of impostors and gave rise to the legend of Boris Godunov's involvement in his death. A legend that has taken a firm place in national historiography. The investigations of recent years (in particular, the work of R. G. Skrynnikov) allow us to be skeptical about the version of the murder.
The circumstances of the death of the prince were clarified by a special commission, which included the prince and boyar Vasily Ivanovich Shuisky, Metropolitan Gelvasy, okolnichiy Kleshnin and Duma clerk Vyluzgin. It is worth noting that Shuisky was an enemy of Godunov and probably would not have justified him if he had found reason to suspect of involvement in the death of the heir to the throne. But the commission established that the death happened by accident: the prince was "amusing" in the palace courtyard (he lived in Uglich with his mother) playing "poke" (in "knives") with his peers. Dmitry had a seizure - the boy was an epileptic - and, having fallen, he ran into a knife with his throat. The version of the murder arose immediately: the prince's mother beat the nanny Vasilisa Volokhova and began to shout that the boy had been killed by Volokhov's son Osip. When the clerk of Uglich, Mikhail Bityagovsky, tried to prevent the massacre of the Volokhovs, the crowd, excited by the calls of the Nagi - Maria and her brother Mikhail - killed Bityagovsky, his son and nephew, and Osip Volokhov. They also tried to deceive the commission - they were presented with a knife smeared with chicken blood, with which Bityagovsky's nephew allegedly stabbed the prince. In reality, the fault lay only with the nannies and nurses, who did not have time to come to the aid of the boy who was struggling in a fit. After an investigation, Maria Naguya was tonsured a nun, and her brothers were imprisoned.
Lit .: Skrynnikov R. G. Boris Godunov. L., 1978. S. 67-84.
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From the book Reader on the history of the USSR. Volume1. author author unknown110. MESSAGE FROM Tsar Ivan IV Vasilievich the Terrible to Prince A.M. From the Livonian city of Wolmar, he sent the first message to the king, accusing him of
From the book Ivan III author Andreev Alexander RadievichIvan's contract letters Vasilyevich III Published according to the edition: Spiritual and contractual letters of the great and appanage princes of the XIV-XVI centuries. M 1949
From the book Ivan III author Andreev Alexander RadievichThe Novgorod story about the campaign of Ivan Vasilyevich III against Novgorod in 1471 Published according to the edition: Russian stories of the XV-XVI centuries. M, 1958. In the year 6979 (1471), the great prince Ivan Vasilyevich fell into anger at Veliky Novgorod, began to gather his army and began to send it to the Novgorod lands.
From the book Ivan III author Andreev Alexander RadievichSudebnik of Ivan Vasilyevich III of 1497 A translation into modern Russian is printed according to the edition: Sudebniks of the XV-XVI centuries. M, 1952. In September 1497, the Grand Duke of all Rus', Ivan Vasilyevich, with his children and with the boyars, established how to judge the boyars and okolnichi.1. Court
From the book Ivan III author Andreev Alexander RadievichSpiritual letter of Ivan Vasilyevich III Published according to the publication: Spiritual and contractual letters of the great and appanage princes of the XIV-XVI centuries. M, 1950. Spiritual letter (copy) of Grand Duke Ivan Vasilyevich: on the division, after his death, of all movable and immovable property to his children,
From the book Life and customs of tsarist Russia author Anishkin V. G. author Kireevsky Ivan Vasilievich From the book Volume 1. Philosophical and historical and journalistic works author Kireevsky Ivan Vasilievich
