Many people are probably familiar with the common phrase about “boys with bloody eyes.” Yes, it was Godunov who was credited with killing another contender for the throne - Tsarevich Dmitry, who was brought up in the Moscow region. His whole fault was that from an early age he showed in himself the traits of his formidable father. This is how D. Fletcher, an English traveler who wrote the book “On the Russian State,” dated 1591, writes about this.
Photo: ru.wikipedia.org
“The Tsar’s younger brother, a child of six or seven years old (as was said before), is kept in a remote place from Moscow, under the supervision of his mother and relatives from the Nagikh house, but (as is heard) his life is in danger from the attempts of those who extend their views on possessing the throne in the event of the king's childless death. The nurse, who had tasted some dish before him (as I heard), died suddenly. The Russians confirm that he is definitely the son of Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich by the fact that in his young years all the qualities of his father begin to be revealed in him. He (they say) takes pleasure in watching sheep and livestock in general being killed, in seeing a throat cut while blood flows from it (whereas children are usually afraid of this), and in beating geese and chickens with a stick until they They won’t die.”
Did Godunov need such an opponent? Very doubtful. After all, the older the prince became, the more problems there would be with him. By the way, the official investigation into the death of the prince, which followed on May 15, 1591, came to the conclusion that Dmitry, who suffered from epilepsy, accidentally ran into his own knife during a seizure. How can one not recall the dark joke about a man who slipped on an orange peel? And so 12 times! Rumor attributed the murder to “Boriska”.
But let's return to Fyodor Ioannovich. He was a quiet, good-natured king who almost always smiled, so it was impossible to understand that this was a cheerful disposition or, as people say, laughter for no reason is a sign of a fool. But Fyodor was very affectionate, quiet, merciful and pious. He spent most of the day in church, and for entertainment he liked to watch fist fights, fun of jesters and fun with bears. If anyone came to the tsar with some request or proposal, he sent him to Godunov.
The king was short, squat, puffy, had an unsteady gait, and was lazy in character. But the people loved him very much precisely for his piety.
One of the main tasks that Godunov faced was to prevent a son from being born in the marriage of Fyodor and Irina. And for the sake of this, Fyodor Ioannovich was constantly hammered into it that too frequent intimate communication with his wife is a sin, that thereby he worsens his future, etc. It was none other than Godunov who ensured that the Tsar and Tsarina did not even have a common bedroom, but a bed they separated only a few times a year before Lent.
With such an “active” married life, Irina even managed to get pregnant one day and gave birth to a daughter. But a bad seed does not produce a good tribe - the baby died barely reaching the age of one. After this, the marital relationship itself came to naught. The “kind” brother-in-law could only rub his hands with joy...
For some reason, numerous fasts and daily prayers for many hours did not improve the king’s health. He gradually withered away, and at the end of 1597 he finally fell ill to rest in God on January 20 (new style).
And again, this death, as usual, was attributed to Boris Godunov, who took the throne after the death of Fyodor Ioannovich. But, as they say, there was no evidence base in those days. And only not so long ago scientists decided to examine the remains of Fedor. Imagine their amazement when they discovered... arsenic in the bones of the skeleton! That is, the king was slowly and surely poisoned.
However, it was not for nothing that Alexander Nevsky used to say in his time: “Whoever comes to us with his sword will die by the sword!” Boris was not destined to reign for long. On April 13, 1605, the king seemed cheerful and healthy, he ate a lot and with appetite. Then he climbed the tower, from which he often overlooked Moscow. But he soon returned, saying that he felt faint. While the doctor was walking, blood began to flow from Boris’s ears and nose. And then the agony began. There is a sign of poisoning with heavy metal salts. And the throne did not bring joy to Boris’s son, Fyodor. Already on June 10, less than two months later, an angry crowd of Muscovites, incited by False Dmitry, killed both Fedor and his mother. But the guy was only 17 years old...
Judge not, and you will not be judged!
At the end of his life, Ivan IV had three sons. The eldest, Ivan Ivanovich, unlike his sick father, was full of strength and energy. He showed himself to be brave on the battlefield and a smart statesman. Intrigues at court whispered to the king that the heir was loved by the people, that all the haters of the king hoped for his coming to power. This irritated the king even more. Quarrels often broke out between father and son. Ivan IV interfered in his son's personal life, insulted his wife and once beat her. The heir stood up for his wife’s honor and tried to grab his father’s hands. Then he dealt his son a fatal blow with a heavy iron-bound staff. After some time, Ivan Ivanovich died. Thus, the king himself cut off the Rurik dynasty in the bud. His next son, the sickly and pious Fyodor (1557-1598), had no children. And another son, young Dmitry (1582-1591), was born from the seventh wife of the tsar, noblewoman Maria Nagaya, and had few rights to the throne. Based on the above, we conclude that the king himself created a crisis of power in the state and the preconditions for future fights for the throne. The king did not survive his murdered son by much. At the beginning of 1584, his health deteriorated and his body began to swell. There were rumors in Moscow that Ivan IV's favorites, Velsky and Godunov, were harassing the Tsar with poison. Ivan the Terrible invited Boris Godunov, who was with him, to play chess. The Tsar and Godunov sat down at the table. There was no one nearby. Godunov was left alone with the sick king. Suddenly there was a scream. When the palace servants ran into the chamber, the king lay lifeless on the floor. After the death of Ivan IV, the royal throne passed to his 27-year-old son Fedor. He was a quiet and God-fearing man. He hated cruelty and violence, preferred to spend time in prayer, reading books, and talking with learned monks, but the trouble was that he entrusted many matters to the boyars, his father’s favorites, primarily Velsky and Godunov. But these were people who came to the fore under Grozny in oprichnina executions, murders, and dark palace intrigues. Immediately after the death of the monarch, behind the back of the quiet Fedor, a fierce struggle for power began between the favorites and various boyar groups. The assertive, energetic, intelligent and merciless Boris Godunov gained an increasing advantage in this struggle. He took advantage of the fact that his sister was the king’s wife and quickly pushed aside his rivals. Quite soon, Godunov achieved the removal of Velsky from affairs. The little Tsarevich Dmitry also posed a danger to the almighty boyar. After all, someone might have thought that the weak and unhealthy Fyodor could be replaced with little Dmitry. And this would mean that Godunov’s influence could come to an end. Finally, after the death of the sickly Fyodor, Dmitry could officially ascend to the throne. Dmitry and his mother were sent from Moscow to Uglich, which, according to the old tradition, was given to him as an inheritance. Godunov continued to push other noble boyars away from the throne. The Shuisky brothers were sent into exile, and the hero of the defense of Pskov, Ivan Shuisky, was killed in exile. Then it was the turn of the Romanov boyars, relatives of the first Russian Tsarina Anastasia Romanova. Godunov also placed his man in the highest church position. In 1589, the patriarchate was established in Russia. Godunov’s protege Job became the first Russian patriarch. The reign of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich saw further enslavement of the Russian peasantry and a deterioration in the position of slaves. Now the regime of “reserved years”, a ban on peasant crossings, which was in force in some counties, has spread throughout the country. In 1597, the government of Fyodor Godunov introduced “scheduled summers.” If previously a peasant who had fled to new lands was searched for indefinitely and could be returned to the owner at any time, now the search period was set at five years. If the peasant was not found during this time, he remained to live in a new place. But the situation of the slaves has become much worse. Now they could not free themselves from the owner if they went into servitude for a debt and were ready to pay it back. They became slaves forever. Whereas previously a person voluntarily became a slave for his master and could free himself at the first opportunity, now after six months of service he remained a slave forever. Rumor linked all these laws with the name of Boris Godunov, who was increasingly hated by the people. In addition, he was credited with another terrible sin - the murder of the young Tsarevich Dmitry, who died under mysterious circumstances in 1591. He was found with his throat cut in his own yard in Uglich. I didn’t see what happened to the prince. When people came running to hear the nanny’s cry, he was already dead. A crowd of townspeople dealt with the people responsible for guarding Dmitry, but Godunov brutally suppressed the uprising. He sent a special commission to Uglich, which, having examined all the circumstances of the prince’s death, came to the conclusion that Dmitry stabbed himself to death while playing “knives.” Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich died on January 7, 1598. The Rurik dynasty ceased to exist in Russia. Queen Irina soon became a nun. The Russian throne was vacant
The Rurikovich family played a huge role in the development and formation of the Russian state. During their reign, the influence of the grand ducal power in Rus' increased. For almost seven and a half centuries, the Rurik dynasty not only created, but preserved and strengthened Rus'. All the foundations that were laid in the initial period of the Rurikovich rule were completed. Their legacy was enhanced. The result of this was the existence of a strong independent state, capable of withstanding the most difficult conditions. Rus' turned into Russia, and the Grand Duke of Moscow became the Sovereign of All Rus'. Autocracy became, as it were, a necessary property of Russia, its only state charter until the twentieth century.
From November 4 to November 20, a rather unusual exhibition “My History. Rurikovich". The organizers promise 3D reconstructions of ancient cities and battles. For the opening of the exhibition, RR collected several strange facts related to the dynasty
The last king
Contrary to popular belief, the last Rurikovich on the Russian throne was not the childless and weak-willed son of Ivan the Terrible, Fyodor Ioannovich. The last Rurikovich to head the country was Vasily Shuisky, who ruled in 1606-1610. The Poles defeated him, and he died in captivity. After this, Russia was ruled by the Romanovs, whose entire connection with the Rurikovichs was based on the fact that Fyodor Ioannovich was the cousin of Mikhail Romanov, the first tsar of the new dynasty.
Revenge of the Rurikovichs
However, the Rurikovichs had another brief period of triumph - the Prime Minister of Russia from March to July 1917 was Prince Georgy Lvov, a representative of one of the branches of the Rurikovichs. After the abdication of Emperor Nicholas II, he became Minister of Internal Affairs and Minister-Chairman of the Provisional Government. In the summer, after the failure of the Russian offensive in Galicia and the attempted Bolshevik uprising in Petrograd, Lvov resigned. The Rurikovichs took revenge over the Romanovs, but were no longer able to reap the benefits of victory.
Better than England, but worse than Japan
The Rurikovichs ruled for 748 years - from 862 to 1610. This is not such a bad result, but the Bourbons ruled France for only 259 years, and then with interruptions during the Revolution and the First Empire. True, the Bourbons are just a junior branch of the ancient Capetian dynasty, which has ruled France since 987. But the result of the Rurikovichs is clearly better than that of the English monarchs, where dynasties change approximately once every century. The Japanese imperial house is considered the oldest dynasty in the world, whose ancestry goes back directly to the Sun Goddess. The founder of the Jimmu dynasty ruled from the 7th century BC. However, the first more or less reliable information about imperial power concerns only the 5th century AD, which, however, is also not bad.
Exile Bell
The story of the last healthy descendant of Ivan the Terrible, the young Tsarevich Dmitry, is known: in 1591 he died in Uglich under extremely suspicious circumstances. 14 years later, the Troubles followed, however, the first victims followed immediately - as a result of the investigation of the incident, two hundred residents of Uglich were executed. The most unusual victim was the bell, which notified the townspeople of the death of the prince. He was punished according to all the rules: he was flogged, his tongue was pulled out and he was sent to Tobolsk. This exile was the longest in the history of Russia - the bell spent three hundred years there. Only in 1892 did Alexander III agree to amnesty the bell, and the bell was returned back to Uglich, where anyone can now see it.
Historians call the first dynasty of Russian princes and tsars the Rurikovichs. They did not have a surname, but the dynasty received its name after its legendary founder, the Novgorod prince Rurik, who died in 879.
Glazunov Ilya Sergeevich. Gostomysl's grandchildren are Rurik, Truvor and Sineus.
The earliest (12th century) and most detailed ancient Russian chronicle, “The Tale of Bygone Years,” tells the following about Rurik’s calling:
"Rurik's Calling". Unknown author.
“There are 6370 per year (862 according to modern chronology). They drove the Varangians overseas, and did not give them tribute, and began to control themselves, and there was no truth among them, and generation after generation rose up, and they had strife, and began to fight with each other. And they said to themselves: “Let’s look for a prince who would rule over us and judge us by right.” And they went overseas to the Varangians, to Rus'. Those Varangians were called Rus, just as others are called Swedes, and some Normans and Angles, and still others Gotlanders, so are these. The Chud, the Slovenians, the Krivichi and all said to the Russians: “Our land is great and abundant, but there is no order in it.
"Rurik's Calling".
Come reign and rule over us." And three brothers were chosen with their clans, and they took all of Rus' with them, and they came and the eldest, Rurik, sat in Novgorod, and the other, Sineus, in Beloozero, and the third, Truvor, in Izborsk. And from those Varangians the Russian land was nicknamed. Novgorodians are those people from the Varangian family, and before they were Slovenians. Two years later, Sineus and his brother Truvor died. And Rurik alone took over all power and began to distribute cities to his husbands—Polotsk to one, Rostov to another, Beloozero to another. The Varangians in these cities are the Nakhodniki, and the indigenous population in Novgorod is the Slovene, in Polotsk the Krivichi, in Rostov the Merya, in Beloozero the whole population, in Murom the Muroma, and Rurik ruled over them all.”
Rurik. Grand Duke of Novgorod in 862-879. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Old Russian chronicles began to be compiled 200 years after the death of Rurik and a century after the baptism of Rus' (the appearance of writing) on the basis of some oral traditions, Byzantine chronicles and a few existing documents. Therefore, in historiography there have been different points of view on the chronicle version of the calling of the Varangians. In the 18th - first half of the 19th centuries, the prevailing theory was about the Scandinavian or Finnish origin of Prince Rurik, and later the hypothesis about his West Slavic (Pomeranian) origin developed.
However, a more reliable historical figure, and therefore the ancestor of the dynasty, is the Grand Duke of Kiev Igor, whom the chronicle considers to be the son of Rurik.
Igor I (Igor the Ancient) 877-945. Grand Duke of Kyiv in 912-945.
The Rurik dynasty ruled the Russian Empire for over 700 years. The Rurikovichs ruled Kievan Rus, and then, when it collapsed in the 12th century, large and small Russian principalities. And after the unification of all Russian lands around Moscow, the Grand Dukes of Moscow from the Rurik family stood at the head of the state. The descendants of the former appanage princes lost their possessions and formed the highest layer of the Russian aristocracy, but they retained the title “prince”.
Svyatoslav I Igorevich the Conqueror. 942-972 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 966-972.
Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Vladimir I Svyatoslavich (Vladimir Krasno Solnyshko) 960-1015. Grand Duke of Kyiv in 980-1015. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Yaroslav I Vladimirovich (Yaroslav the Wise) 978-1054. Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1019-1054. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Vsevolod I Yaroslavich. 1030-1093 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1078-1093.
Vladimir II Vsevolodovich (Vladimir Monomakh) 1053-1025. Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1113-1125. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Mstislav I Vladimirovich (Mstislav the Great) 1076-1132. Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1125-1132. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Yaropolk II Vladimirovich. 1082-1139 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1132-1139.
Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Vsevolod II Olgovich. ?-1146 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1139-1146.
Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Igor II Olgovich. ?-1147 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1146.
Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Yuri I Vladimirovich (Yuri Dolgoruky). 1090-1157 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1149-1151 and 1155-1157. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Vsevolod III Yurievich (Vsevolod the Big Nest). 1154-1212 Grand Duke of Vladimir in 1176-1212. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Yaroslav II Vsevolodovich. 1191-1246 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1236-1238. Grand Duke of Vladimir in 1238-1246. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Alexander I Yaroslavich (Alexander Nevsky). 1220-1263 Grand Duke of Kyiv in 1249-1252. Grand Duke of Vladimir in 1252-1263. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Daniil Alexandrovich. 1265-1303 Grand Duke of Moscow in 1276-1303.
Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Ivan I Danilovich (Ivan Kalita). ?-1340 Grand Duke of Moscow in 1325-1340. Grand Duke of Vladimir in 1338-1340. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Ivan II Ivanovich (Ivan the Red). 1326-1359 Grand Duke of Moscow and Vladimir in 1353-1359. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Dmitry III Ivanovich (Dmitry Donskoy). 1350-1389 Grand Duke of Moscow in 1359-1389. Grand Duke of Vladimir in 1362-1389. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Vasily I Dmitrievich. 1371-1425 Grand Duke of Moscow in 1389-1425. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Vasily II Vasilievich (Vasily the Dark). 1415-1462 Grand Duke of Moscow in 1425-1446 and 1447-1462. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Ivan III Vasilievich. 1440-1505 Grand Duke of Moscow in 1462-1505. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Vasily III Ivanovich. 1479-1533 Grand Duke of Moscow in 1505-1533. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
Ivan IV Vasilievich (Ivan the Terrible) 1530-1584. Grand Duke of Moscow in 1533-1584. Russian Tsar in 1547-1584. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
In 1547, the Grand Duke of Moscow Ivan IV was crowned king in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin and took the title “Tsar of All Rus'”. The last representative of the Rurik dynasty on the Russian throne was Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, who died childless in 1598.
Fedor I Ivanovich. 1557-1598 Russian Tsar in 1584-1598. Portrait from the Tsar's title book. 1672
But this does not mean that this is the end of the Rurik family. Only its youngest branch, the Moscow branch, was suppressed. But the male offspring of other Rurikovichs (former appanage princes) by that time had already acquired surnames: Baryatinsky, Volkonsky, Gorchakov, Dolgorukov, Obolensky, Odoevsky, Repnin, Shuisky, Shcherbatov, etc.
The beginning of the Rurik dynasty is associated with the calling of the Varangians - three brothers: Rurik, Sineus and Truvor to rule Rus' (862). It was from Prince Rurik that the Rurik family descended. They were the first dynasty of princes and kings to reign in Rus'.
Before their arrival, the power of the people (tribes) operated in the Russian lands, inter-tribal wars began, and it was decided to call in an outside prince to rule them.
Despite the fact that Rurik is considered the founder of the clan, historians call the founder of the Rurik dynasty the Kyiv prince Igor, Rurik’s son.
The rulers of the Rurik dynasty ruled the Russian state for more than 700 years.
Reign of the Rurik dynasty
During the reign of the first princes from the Rurik family (Oleg Rurikovich, Igor Rurikovich, Olga - the wife of Prince Igor and his son Svyatoslav), the formation of a unified state began:
1) Prince Oleg - in 882 the city of Kyiv became the capital of Kievan Rus;
2) Prince Igor - in 944, Rus' concluded the first peace treaty with Byzantium;
3) Princess Olga - in 945, the introduction of quitrents (a fixed amount of tribute) and in 947 the administrative-territorial division of the Novgorod land;
4) Prince Svyatoslav - in 969 a system of governorship was introduced, in 963 the subordination of the Tmutarakan principality of Rus'.
The reign of Vladimir 1 and Yaroslav the Wise (late 10th - first half of the 11th century) is considered the heyday of the state:
1) Vladimir the Holy - in 988, the Baptism of Rus' (acceptance of the Orthodox faith) - an event that positively influenced the further development of the state;
2) Yaroslav the Wise - Rus' freed itself from the raids of nomadic tribes for almost 25 years and became a European power.
During the reign of the Yaroslavichs and Vladimir Monomakh (second half of the 11th century - second half of the 12th century), the beginning of feudal fragmentation was laid in 1097 at the Lyubech Congress of Princes.
In the second half of the 12th and until the mid-13th centuries, Rus' was ruled by: Yuri Dolgoruky, Andrei Bogolyubsky and Vsevolod the Big Nest. At this time, the Vladimir-Suzdal Principality was formed.
From the mid-13th to the end of the 14th centuries, the Tatar-Mangol yoke settled in the northwestern and northeastern Russian lands (the beginning of the Golden Horde period). They captured many cities and destroyed Kyiv in 1240. The defeat of the Tatar-Mangols took place in 1380 at the Battle of Kulikovo.
During the reign of Ivan Kalita, Moscow became the center of all Russian lands.
Under Dmitry Donskoy, the first stone Kremlin was built in Moscow.
Under Vasily 2, all small fiefs within the Moscow principality were liquidated and the grand-ducal power was strengthened.
During the reign of Ivan 3, Vasily 3 and Ivan the Terrible, the formation of the Moscow centralized state and an estate-representative monarchy began.
The end of the reign of Ivan the Terrible is associated with the onset of the “Time of Troubles,” one of the many reasons for which was the suppression of the Rurik dynasty.
The last king of the Rurik dynasty was the son of Ivan the Terrible - Fyodor Ivanovich Rurikovich. Because Tsar Fedor had no children, and his brother Dmitry was killed, and the Rurik family tree ended with Fedor. After the death of Fedor, Boris Godunov became the Tsar of Moscow and All Rus'.