The process of formation of the Russian centralized state (second half of the 13th - early 16th centuries).
Modern historian N.S. Borisov noted that “the recognition of the policies of the Moscow princes at the end of the 13th - first half of the 14th centuries. an important (and even decisive) factor in Moscow’s success in the unification of Russian lands has long been a common place in historical works.” Another modern researcher A.A. Gorsky identified several mechanisms of Moscow “conceptions,” as in the Middle Ages the annexation of lands that were not originally the property of the clan was called. These mechanisms varied and were used depending on the situation. As a result of the vigorous activity of the Moscow princes, by the end of the first quarter of the 16th century, a new united state of the Eastern Slavs was formed with its capital in Moscow.
Background
The Moscow principality was not the only one that carried out “conceptions”. One way or another, representatives of many branches of the Rurikovich family sought to expand their territory and influence. After the collapse of the Kyiv state (1132), a significant number of lands passed from hand to hand, changing “fatherland” and “grandfatherland”. However, in pre-Mongol times, hunting for “tricks” did not become a widespread phenomenon, and changes in political geography did not occur often. Things were different starting from the second half of the 13th century, when the Mongol invasion and the subsequent establishment of dependence of the Russian lands on the Golden Horde led to the breakdown of many political traditions of the previous era.
Reasons for the rise of Moscow
Already in the works of historians of the 19th century, the reasons were set out as to why the Grand Dukes of Moscow managed to unite the Russian lands around their throne and, ultimately, create a single Russian state. Some historians agreed in their assessments, but some provisions of their constructions differed. A kind of summary of the thoughts of predecessors on such a fundamental issue for the history of the Fatherland was summed up by V.O. Klyuchevsky. His concept turned out to be extremely tenacious - to this day, the explanation of the reasons for the rise of Moscow expressed by Klyuchevsky is often read in educational and popular literature. The great historian wrote about the favorable economic and military-strategic position of the Moscow principality, the support of the aspirations of the Moscow princes from the Church, and also that the policies undertaken by the princes themselves were extremely calibrated and accurate, surpassing similar actions of their rivals.
Meanwhile, the sketchiness and ambiguity of Klyuchevsky’s constructions at the modern level of historical knowledge can hardly raise doubts. The objective process of the rise of Moscow, from the point of view of the reasons explaining why this particular city managed to become the new capital of the united state of the Eastern Slavs, can still be explained very relatively.
When discussing the unification of lands around Moscow, it is necessary to take into account the peculiarities of the political system in the North-East of Rus', in the former Vladimir-Suzdal land, in post-Mongol times. On the one hand, the Great Reign of Vladimir is taking shape here - a political entity that consisted of a number of territories and the disposal of which depended on the will of the ruling Horde khan. On the other hand, North-Eastern Rus' is fragmented into many separate possessions, princely “fatherlands” and “grandfathers”, the inheritance of which is an internal matter for the princes themselves (which did not cancel the possibility of sanctions from the Horde khans to assign territories to the new owners). Both the Great Reign of Vladimir and individual reigns could grow with new lands. Until the Vladimir throne was permanently assigned to the Moscow princes, the lands included in the Vladimir territorial complex fell into the temporary possession of the prince who received the khan's label. Thus, the individual lands that ultimately found themselves under Moscow rule at the stage of loss of independence could not initially have been subordinate to the Moscow princes. Thus, the Kostroma Principality, the first of those annexed in the post-Batu era, in 1277 was included in the Grand Duchy of Vladimir. Pereslavl-Zalessky, occupied after the death of the local prince Daniil Alexandrovich of Moscow (1276-1303) in 1302, after some time went in favor of the new Grand Duke of Vladimir, Mikhail Yaroslavich.
The first stage of unification of lands around Moscow
Probably the first city to become directly part of the Moscow Principality was Kolomna, the possession of which was the result of a struggle within the Ryazan Principality, in which the Moscow princes intervened. Historical literature gave different dates for this event. Apparently, it should be considered that Kolomna became part of Moscow between 1300-1306. Soon Kolomna occupies a special position within the principality, it is no coincidence that N.M. Karamzin called it “socialist” Moscow. In 1303, the Moscow army subjugated Mozhaisk. A notable milestone in the unification of lands around Moscow was the “purchase” of Ivan Kalita (1325-1340): Uglich, as well as the northern lands of Beloozero and Galich Mersky. “Purchases” should be understood as the acquisition of part or full ownership rights to the “patrimony”. This method was widely used by Moscow princes to expand their territories. Some lands were acquired gradually - the previous owners could retain remnants of sovereignty for a long time.
The second stage of unification of lands around Moscow
A huge political event for all of North-Eastern Rus' at the end of the 14th century was the establishment of the great reign of Vladimir under the Moscow princely house. Dmitry Donskoy (1359-1389), in his will, drawn up shortly before his death in 1389, transfers the right of ownership to his son Vasily (1389-1425): “And behold, I bless my son, Prince Vasily, with my fatherland as a great prince.” This step of Dmitry Donskoy, of course, reflected the increased political power of the Moscow princes, their real weight in the political system of North-Eastern Rus' at the end of the 14th century. However, it is also obvious that such an epoch-making change could not occur without approval in the Horde. Major Moscow success was consolidated in 1392 with the annexation of Nizhny Novgorod to the Moscow “fatherland”.
Feudal war. The final stage of unification of lands around Moscow: Vasily III, Ivan III
The collection of Moscow lands was suspended in the second quarter of the 15th century, when an internecine war (1425-1453) raged in the Moscow principality between Vasily II (1425-1462) and his uncle Yuri of Zvenigorod, which ended in the victory of the forces of centralization.
The final stage of the unification of Russian lands in the second half of the 15th - first third of the 16th centuries fulfilled the aspirations of Moscow rulers a hundredfold. This stage is associated with the names of the Grand Dukes Ivan III Vasilyevich (1462-1505) and Vasily III Ivanovich (1505-1533). Moving towards one goal - to concentrate in the hands of a kind of land in which they spoke Russian and professed Orthodoxy - these rulers used different methods of expanding Moscow's influence. One such method was the establishment of preliminary control, which could last for decades while maintaining the formal independence of the land. Examples include the stories of the subjugation of Pskov and Ryazan.
Annexation of Pskov land and Ryazan
The position of Pskov in the system of the Grand Duchy of Moscow was finally formed by the end of the 1460s: in April 1467, Pskov received the Moscow governor, Prince Fyodor Shuisky, and after March 1468, the Pskovites began to use a new seal in office work: “Seal of the Pskov vodchina of Grand Duke Ivan Vasilyevich” . From a union state, the Pskov land turned into a vassal of the Grand Duke. The liquidation of formal Pskov independence occurred in 1510 under Vasily III.
The history of the annexation of the Grand Duchy of Ryazan to Moscow became longer. Back in 1456, the dying Ryazan ruler Ivan Fedorovich “ordered his son Vasily” to the Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily the Dark. In 1464, Vasily Ivanovich, who lived for eight years in Moscow, was sent to Ryazan “to his fatherland, to his great reign,” and Ivan III’s sister Anna was given to him as his wife. Since then, Ryazan has been in line with Moscow politics. Only the strengthening of separatist sentiments in Ryazan, which increased significantly on the eve of the invasion of the Crimean Khan Muhammad-Girey to Rus' in 1521, pushed Vasily III to remove the last Grand Duke of Ryazan, Ivan Ivanovich, from power. Most likely, the “capture” of Ivan Ivanovich occurred in the winter of 1520/21.
Annexation of Yaroslavl lands and the Principality of Rostov
Among those who became dependent on Moscow in the 1460s were the Yaroslavl lands. From genealogies it is known that the childless Prince Alexander Fedorovich sold Yaroslavl to Ivan III. The governor, Ivan Vasilyevich Striga Obolensky, went to the annexed city, whose management methods were so tough that in one of the chronicles he was described as a “real devil.” And on March 23, 1464, Ivan III issued the first of the known charters for land “in my fatherland, the Grand Duke, in Yaroslavl.” However, until the death of Alexander Fedorovich in 1471, a kind of “dual power” existed in the principality. Apparently, Alexander Fedorovich retained some formal princely rights.
In those same years, the final subjugation of the Principality of Rostov took place. By the beginning of the reign of Ivan III, a significant part of the Rostov lands, including “half” of Rostov, was already in the power of the Grand Dukes of Moscow. According to the will of Vasily the Dark, these lands were transferred to his wife Maria Yaroslavna, who, having become a widow, settled directly in Rostov. In 1474, the Rostov princes Vladimir Andreevich and Ivan Ivanovich sold the Rostov “half” that remained in their possession to Ivan III.
Annexation of Novgorod land
The most significant success in creating a unified Russian state was the annexation of the Novgorod land to Moscow. The offensive Novgorod policy was characteristic already for the first years of the reign of Ivan III. He perceived Novgorod as his “fatherland” and “grandfather.” The reason for the offensive was the events that unfolded in Novgorod at the end of 1470: the struggle over the election of a new archbishop and the arrival in the city at the invitation of the veche of the Lithuanian prince Mikhail Alexandrovich. Moscow was afraid to allow Lithuania to increase its influence on Novgorod, and it was the “Lithuanian trace” that was seen behind these Novgorod events. In addition, the hesitation of the Novgorodians regarding the choice of the place of ordination of the new archbishop (Moscow or Lithuania) was regarded in Moscow as an attempt to betray Orthodoxy, since Moscow considered itself the guardian of the purity of Eastern Christianity.
In the spring of 1471, the so-called “Church and service council” is a new phenomenon in the political practice of the Grand Dukes of Moscow, responding to the desire to secure the broadest possible moral and political support from the population. Ivan III sent out invitations to participate to the bishops, “and to the princes, and to their boyars, and to the governors, and to their entire army.” The cathedral supported the Grand Duke in his desire to begin the fight against Novgorod. In May-June 1471, military men moved from Moscow in three directions to Novgorod. The decisive battle took place on July 14 on the river. Sheloni is 30 versts from Novgorod. The Novgorod army was completely defeated. The confrontation ended with the signing of a peace treaty in the town of Korostyny, under which the Novgorodians paid a significant indemnity, and the independence of Novgorod in both foreign and domestic politics was significantly limited.
The 1470s passed in Novgorod under the sign of a further increase in social contradictions. It was very beneficial for Ivan III when the “living and young” Novgorodians approached him with a petition for oppression by the boyars. At the end of 1475, Ivan III personally went to Novgorod and held a trial. Four boyars found guilty were sent to Moscow. The sovereign's decision not only increased the authority of the Grand Duke of Moscow in the eyes of ordinary Novgorodians and consolidated the subordinate status of Novgorod. The image of Ivan III as a fair judge turned out to be a successful political device. In the spring of 1477, crowds of citizens flocked from Novgorod to Moscow, wanting to receive satisfaction for the grievances inflicted on them. The Moscow chronicler noted that “this did not happen from the beginning, just as their land [Novgorod] became, ... before this Grand Duke Ivan Vasilyevich, but this brought them to that.” Anti-Moscow unrest in Novgorod itself led to a new military campaign. On September 30, 1477, Ivan III sent the Novgorodians a “folding letter” - a notice of the start of the war. By the end of November, Novgorod was tightly surrounded by Moscow troops. Negotiations continued for a month and a half, with the Novgorodians conceding one position after another. On January 13, 1478, the city was surrendered. Ivan III spent another whole month in Novgorod, swearing in its residents, punishing his most persistent opponents and liquidating the main veche institutions.
Annexation of the Grand Duchy of Tver
By the mid-1480s, it was the turn of the Grand Duchy of Tver. After the fall of Novgorod's independence, the Tver land found itself surrounded on almost all sides by territories belonging to Moscow. Only the southwestern borders of the principality bordered Lithuania. This created serious geopolitical inconveniences for Moscow: the Tver principality was strongly wedged deep into the Moscow principality and was increasingly inclined towards an alliance with the neighboring state of Lithuania. At the same time, Lithuania saw Tver not as an equal ally, but as an object of expansion. The first Moscow-Tver war began at the end of 1484. As in the history of Novgorod, the reason for the war was “treason”: the intention of Grand Duke Mikhail Borisovich to become related to the Grand Duke of Lithuania and King Casimir IV of Poland by marrying his granddaughter. The main goal of the war was reconnaissance in force - testing the forces of the Grand Duchy of Tver and Casimir's readiness to help Tver. The king, as in the case of Novgorod, chose not to interfere. This inspired Ivan III to take more decisive action. The Second Moscow-Tver War, which ended with the subjugation of Tver, began in August 1485. The campaign was given an all-Russian character. After several days of siege, the Grand Duke of Tver Mikhail Borisovich fled to Lithuania. The city surrendered on September 12. On the Tver table, Ivan III seated his eldest son and co-ruler Ivan the Young, who on his mother’s side came from a Tver princely family.
Fight against the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
In parallel with the annexation of independent Russian lands, Ivan III and Vasily III began to fight the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, about 90% of whose territory was Russian lands. At the end of the 14th - beginning of the 16th centuries, the Chernigov and Bryansk lands and Smolensk were conquered from Lithuania.
Results
The vigorous activity of the Moscow princes led to the fact that already in the first third of the 16th century the young Moscow state became the largest in Europe. It will stretch from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Donetsk steppes in the south; from the Gulf of Finland, Lake Peipsi, the upper reaches of the Western Dvina and Dnieper in the west to the Urals and Ob in the east. The vast territories over which the power of the sovereign of “All Rus'” would extend were not identical in their natural conditions. However, in general they were characterized by an abundance of forests. The presence of a large number of forests also affected the soil conditions, which were not good. Low soil fertility coupled with harsh climatic conditions resulted in low and variable yields. The situation was aggravated by the inevitable predominance of archaic farming systems in those natural and climatic conditions - cuttings, fallows. Although three-field farming existed, it occupied an insignificant place in the overall structure of agriculture, often combined with archaic systems. The vastness of the territory did not provide the state with sufficient natural resources, the need for which was constantly increasing. Iron ore was predominantly low-quality, mined from the surface layers. There were few reserves of precious and non-ferrous metals needed for coinage and military affairs. The limited economic capabilities of the Moscow princes further forced them to strive to expand their territories in persistent attempts to discover resources. This is how a characteristic feature of the Russian socio-political structure was laid - low population density. Presumably, it was 5-7 times lower than in Europe as a whole. As a result, the implementation of the most important government tasks was complicated: effective management and tax collection. The low population density hampered trade and the spread of various technical improvements and contributed to the preservation of archaic social relations. These circumstances left their mark on the entire political system and the nature of the relationship between the monarch and his subjects, largely determining the nature of political and social psychology in Russia.
In the Middle Ages, the concept of “state” was embodied in the personality of the ruler, who was at the same time the owner of his principality. The unity of the state was maintained thanks to the personal devotion to the ruler of a rather thin ruling layer. Therefore, in the central administration of the Moscow principality, a special role was played by the princely “court,” which consisted of administrative departments of economic origin. From the Moscow “court,” which gradually lost its economic properties, a bureaucratic central apparatus of power grew over time. In the depths of the “court” the layer of officials gradually increased; groups of employees - clerks - appeared who were responsible for the most important branches of management. The boyars of the annexed lands began to be introduced into the “yard”. The advisory body under the prince, consisting of those close to him, the Boyar Duma, turned into a permanent supreme council, the composition of which was appointed by the Grand Duke. The Duma included representatives of princely lines that had lost their independence (Rostov, Yaroslavl, Tver princes). Gradually, the “boyars” became court officials, and the Boyar Duma itself turned out to be an important mechanism for uniting the political elite: the princes, who had lost local power, acquired it in the center, albeit in the rank of servicemen.
The growth of the territory of the Moscow Principality occurred much faster than the organization of internal life on a new basis. The country needed a new army, a system of administration and legal proceedings. Traditional socio-political institutions, which were still fully adequate for their tasks in the first half of the 15th century, turned out to be insufficient in the second half of the century. The state also needed to create a unified financial system. The most important task was the unification of taxation. To this end, economic surveys have been undertaken in the country since the end of the 15th century. Their results were consolidated in the so-called. scribe books, which served as the basis for taxation of land - soshnoe letter. The oldest scribal books have been preserved for the Novgorod land. The tax privileges of secular and church landowners were also an obstacle to the coordinated operation of the mechanism of a single state. The Grand Duke's government sought to limit them.
The unification of Russian lands by Moscow led to the gradual merging of numerous local cultural traditions into a single all-Russian one. The process of convergence of artistic traditions was reflected in literature, architecture, icon painting, monumental painting, etc. The differences in dialects were leveled out in the language. The most important manifestation of the emerging unity was the formation of a common Russian ethnic identity. It was in the territories collected by the Grand Dukes of Moscow that the Great Russian ethnic group was established. Of course, all of these processes were not instantaneous. Such epochal changes could not happen suddenly and continued into the 16th century, and sometimes much longer.
THE BEGINNING OF THE UNIFICATION OF RUSSIAN LANDS
The struggle to overthrow the Golden Horde yoke began in the XIII-XV centuries. main national task. The restoration of the country's economy and its further development created the prerequisites for the unification of Russian lands. The question was being resolved - around which center the Russian lands would unite.
First of all, Tver and Moscow laid claim to leadership. The Tver principality as an independent inheritance arose in 1247, when it was received by the younger brother of Alexander Nevsky, Yaroslav Yaroslavich. After the death of Alexander Nevsky, Yaroslav became Grand Duke (1263-1272). The Tver principality was then the strongest in Rus'. But he was not destined to lead the unification process. At the end of the XIII - beginning of the XIV century. The Principality of Moscow is rapidly rising.
The rise of Moscow. Moscow, which before the Mongol-Tatar invasion was a small border point of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality, at the beginning of the 14th century. turns into an important political center of the time. What were the reasons for the rise of Moscow?
Moscow occupied a geographically advantageous central position among the Russian lands. From the south and east it was protected from the Horde invasions by the Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod and Ryazan principalities, from the north-west by the Tver principality and Veliky Novgorod. The forests surrounding Moscow were impassable for the Mongol-Tatar cavalry. All this caused an influx of population to the lands of the Moscow Principality. Moscow was a center of developed crafts, agricultural production and trade. It turned out to be an important junction of land and water routes, serving both trade and military operations. Through the Moscow River and the Oka River, the Moscow Principality had access to the Volga, and through the tributaries of the Volga and the system of portages it was connected with the Novgorod lands. The rise of Moscow is also explained by the purposeful, flexible policy of the Moscow princes, who managed to win over not only other Russian principalities, but also the church.
Alexander Nevsky bequeathed Moscow to his youngest son Daniil. Under him, it became the capital of the principality, perhaps the most seedy and unenviable in Rus'. At the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries, its territory expanded noticeably: it included Kolomna (1300) and Mozhaisk (1303) with their lands captured by the regiments of Daniil and his son Yuri. Upon the death of Prince Ivan Dmitrievich, the childless grandson of Nevsky, the Pereyaslav Principality passes to Moscow.
And Yuri Danilovich of Moscow in the first quarter of the 14th century. is already fighting for the Vladimir throne with his cousin Mikhail Yaroslavich of Tver. He received the khan's label in 1304. Yuri opposes Mikhail and, having married the sister of the Horde khan, becomes the Grand Duke of Vladimir (1318). The struggle for power is not over - after the execution in the Horde of the Tver prince Mikhail, who defeated a large Tatar detachment, his son Dmitry achieves his goal: he kills Yuri of Moscow in the Horde (1325). But Dmitry also dies in the Horde.
All these years, according to the chronicles, “confusion” reigned in Rus' - cities and villages were robbed and burned by the Horde and their own Russian troops. Finally, Alexander Mikhailovich, brother of Dmitry, executed in the Horde, became the Grand Duke of Vladimir; Moscow Grand Duke - Ivan Danilovich, brother of the also executed Moscow ruler.
In 1327, an uprising broke out in Tver against the Horde Baskak Chol Khan. It began at a trade - the Tatar took a horse from the local deacon, and he called on his fellow countrymen for help. People came running, the alarm sounded. Having gathered at the assembly, the Tver residents made a decision about the uprising. They came from all sides They rushed at the rapists and oppressors, killing many. Chol Khan and his entourage took refuge in the princely palace, but it was set on fire along with the Horde. The few survivors fled to the Horde.
Ivan Danilovich immediately hurried to Khan Uzbek. Having returned with the Tatar army, he walked through the Tver places with fire and sword. Alexander Mikhailovich fled to Pskov, then to Lithuania the Moscow prince received Novgorod and Kostroma as a reward. Vladimir, Nizhny Novgorod and Gorodets were handed over by the Khan to Alexander Vasilyevich, Prince of Suzdal; Only after his death in 1332 did Ivan finally receive a label for the reign of Vladimir.
Having become the ruler “over all Russian land,” Ivan Danilovich diligently expanded his land holdings - he bought them, seized them. In the Horde he behaved humbly and flatteringly, and did not skimp on gifts to khans and khans, princes and murzas. He collected and transported tributes and taxes from all over Rus' to the Horde, mercilessly extorted them from his subjects, and suppressed any attempt at protest. Part of what was collected ended up in his Kremlin basements. Starting with him, the label for the reign of Vladimir was received, with short exceptions, by Moscow rulers. They headed the Moscow-Vladimir Principality, one of the most extensive states in Eastern Europe.
It was under Ivan Danilovich that the metropolitan see moved from Vladimir to Moscow - this is how its power and political influence increased. Moscow became essentially the ecclesiastical capital of Rus'. The Horde Khan, thanks to the “humble wisdom” of Ivan Danilovich, became, as it were, an instrument for strengthening Moscow. The princes of Rostov, Galicia, Belozersk, and Uglich submitted to Ivan. Horde raids and pogroms stopped in Rus', the time had come for “great silence.” The prince himself, as the legend says, was nicknamed Kalita - he walked everywhere with a purse (kalita) on his belt, giving to the poor and wretched “Christians” rested “from great languor, many hardships and violence of the Tatars."
Under the sons of Ivan Kalita - Semyon (1340-1353), who received the nickname "Proud" for his arrogant attitude towards other princes, and Ivan the Red (1353-1359) - the Moscow principality included the Dmitrov, Kostroma, Starodub lands and the Kaluga region.
Dmitry Donskoy. Dmitry Ivanovich (1359-1389) received the throne as a nine-year-old child. The struggle for the Grand Duke's Vladimir table broke out again. The Horde began to openly support Moscow's opponents.
A unique symbol of the success and strength of the Moscow Principality was the construction in just two years of the impregnable white stone Kremlin of Moscow (1367) - the only stone fortress in the territory of north-eastern Rus'. All this allowed Moscow to repel the claim to all-Russian leadership of Nizhny Novgorod, Tver, and repel the campaigns of the Lithuanian prince Olgerd.
The balance of power in Rus' changed in favor of Moscow. In the Horde itself, a period of “great turmoil” began (50-60s of the 14th century) - a weakening of central power and the struggle for the khan’s throne. Rus' and the Horde seemed to be “testing” each other. In 1377 on the river. Drunken (near Nizhny Novgorod) the Moscow army was crushed by the Horde. However, the Tatars were unable to consolidate their success. In 1378, the army of Murza Begich was defeated by Dmitry on the river. Vozha (Ryazan land). This battle was a prelude to the Battle of Kulikovo.
Battle of Kulikovo. In 1380, the temnik (head of the tumen) Mamai, who came to power in the Horde after several years of internecine hostility, tried to restore the shaken dominance of the Golden Horde over the Russian lands. Having concluded an alliance with the Lithuanian prince Jagiel, Mamai led his troops to Rus'. Princely squads and militias from most Russian lands gathered in Kolomna, from where they moved towards the Tatars, trying to forestall the enemy. Dmitry proved himself to be a talented commander, making an unconventional decision for that time to cross the Don and meet the enemy on the territory that Mamai considered his own. At the same time, Dmitry set a goal to prevent Mamai from connecting with Jagiel before the start of the battle.
The troops met on the Kulikovo field at the confluence of the Nepryadva River with the Don. The morning of the battle - September 8, 1380 - turned out to be foggy. The fog cleared only by 11 o'clock in the morning. The battle began with a duel between the Russian hero Peresvet and the Tatar warrior Chelubey. At the beginning of the battle, the Tatars almost completely destroyed the leading Russian regiment and wedged themselves into the ranks of a large regiment stationed in the center. Mamai was already triumphant, believing that he had won. However, there followed an unexpected strike for the Horde from the flank of a Russian ambush regiment led by governor Dmitry Bobrok-Volynets and Prince Vladimir Serpukhovsky. This blow decided the outcome of the battle by three o'clock in the afternoon. The Tatars fled in panic from the Kulikovo field. For personal courage in battle and military leadership, Dmitry received the nickname Donskoy.
The defeat of Moscow by Tokhtamysh. After the defeat, Mamai fled to Kafa (Feodosia), where he was killed. Khan Tokhtamysh seized power over the Horde. The struggle between Moscow and the Horde is not over yet. In 1382, using the help of the Ryazan prince Oleg Ivanovich, who pointed out the fords across the Oka River, Tokhtamysh and his horde suddenly attacked Moscow. Even before the Tatar campaign, Dmitry left the capital to the north to gather a new militia. The population of the city organized the defense of Moscow, rebelling against the boyars who rushed out of the capital in panic. The Muscovites managed to repel two enemy assaults, using for the first time in battle the so-called mattresses (forged iron cannons of Russian production).
Realizing that the city could not be taken by storm and fearing the approach of Dmitry Donskoy with his army, Tokhtamysh told the Muscovites that he had come to fight not against them, but against Prince Dmitry, and promised not to plunder the city. Having broken into Moscow by deception, Tokhtamysh subjected it to a brutal defeat. Moscow was again obliged to pay tribute to the khan.
The meaning of the Kulikovo victory. Despite the defeat in 1382, the Russian people, after the Battle of Kulikovo, believed in their imminent liberation from the Tatars. The Golden Horde suffered its first major defeat on the Kulikovo Field. The Battle of Kulikovo showed the power and strength of Moscow as a political and economic center - the organizer of the struggle to overthrow the Golden Horde yoke and unify the Russian lands. Thanks to the Kulikovo victory, the size of the tribute was reduced. The Horde finally recognized the political supremacy of Moscow among the rest of the Russian lands. The defeat of the Horde in the Battle of Kulikovo significantly weakened their power. Residents from different Russian lands and cities came to the Kulikovo field - but they returned from the battle as the Russian people.
Having lived only less than four decades, Dmitry Ivanovich did a lot for Rus'. From boyhood until the end of his days, he was constantly on campaigns, worries, and troubles. We had to fight with the Horde, and with Lithuania, and with Russian rivals for power and political primacy. The prince also settled church affairs - he tried, however unsuccessfully, to make his protégé from Kolomna Mityai a metropolitan (metropolitans in Rus' were approved by the Patriarch of Constantinople).
A life full of worries and anxieties did not become long-lasting for the prince, who was also distinguished by his corpulence and plumpness. But, ending his short earthly journey, Dmitry of Moscow left a greatly strengthened Rus' - the Moscow-Vladimir Grand Duchy, covenants for the future. Dying, he transfers, without asking the consent of the khan, to his son Vasily (1389-1425) the Great Reign of Vladimir as his fatherland; expresses the hope that “God will change the Horde,” that is, he will free Rus' from the Horde yoke.
Timur's campaign. In 1395, the Central Asian ruler Timur - the “great lame man”, who made 25 campaigns, conquered Central Asia, Siberia, Persia, Baghdad, Damascus, India, Turkey, defeated the Golden Horde and marched on Moscow. Vasily I gathered a militia in Kolomna to repel the enemy. The intercessor of Rus' - the icon of Our Lady of Vladimir - was brought from Vladimir to Moscow. When the icon was already near Moscow, Timur abandoned the campaign against Rus' and, after a two-week stop in the Yelets region, turned south. The legend connected the miracle of the capital's deliverance with the intercession of the Mother of God.
Feudal war of the second quarter of the 15th century. (1431-1453). The feuds, called the feudal war of the second quarter of the 15th century, began after the death of Vasily I. By the end of the 14th century. Several appanage estates were formed in the Moscow principality, which belonged to the sons of Dmitry Donskoy. The largest of them were Galitskoye and Zvenigorodskoye, which were received by the youngest son of Dmitry Donskoy, Yuri. He, according to Dmitry’s will, was to inherit the grand-ducal throne after his brother Vasily I. However, the will was written when Vasily I did not yet have children. Vasily I handed over the throne to his son, ten-year-old Vasily II.
After the death of Grand Duke Yuri, as the eldest in the princely family, he began to fight for the Grand Duke's throne with his nephew, Vasily II (1425-1462). After the death of Yuri, the fight was continued by his sons - Vasily Kosoy and Dmitry Shemyaka. If at first this clash of princes could still be explained by the “ancient right” of inheritance from brother to brother, i.e. to the eldest in the family, then after the death of Yuri in 1434 it represented a clash of supporters and opponents of state centralization. The Moscow prince advocated political centralization, the Galich prince represented the forces of feudal separatism.
The fight followed all the “rules of the Middle Ages,” i.e. blinding, poisoning, deception, and conspiracies were used. Twice Yuri captured Moscow, but could not hold on to it. Opponents of centralization achieved their greatest success under Dmitry Shemyak, who was the Moscow Grand Duke for a short time.
Only after the Moscow boyars and the church finally sided with Vasily Vasilyevich II the Dark (blinded by his political opponents, like Vasily Kosoy, hence the nicknames “Kosoy”, “Dark”), Shemyaka fled to Novgorod, where he died. The feudal war ended with the victory of the forces of centralization. By the end of the reign of Vasily II, the possessions of the Moscow principality increased 30 times compared to the beginning of the 14th century. The Principality of Moscow included Murom (1343), Nizhny Novgorod (1393) and a number of lands on the outskirts of Rus'.
Rus' and the Union of Florence. The strength of the grand ducal power is evidenced by the refusal of Vasily II to recognize the union (union) between the Catholic and Orthodox churches under the leadership of the pope, concluded in Florence in 1439. The pope imposed this union on Rus' under the pretext of saving the Byzantine Empire from conquest by the Ottomans. Metropolitan of Rus', Greek Isidore, who supported the union, was deposed. In his place, Ryazan Bishop Jonah was elected, whose candidacy was proposed by Vasily P. This marked the beginning of the independence of the Russian Church from the Patriarch of Constantinople. And after the capture of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453, the choice of the head of the Russian church was determined in Moscow.
Summing up the development of Rus' in the first two centuries after the Mongol devastation, it can be argued that as a result of the heroic creative and military work of the Russian people during the 14th and first half of the 15th centuries. conditions were created for the creation of a unified state and the overthrow of the Golden Horde yoke. The struggle for the great reign was already underway, as the feudal war of the second quarter of the 15th century showed, not between individual principalities, but within the Moscow princely house. The Orthodox Church actively supported the struggle for the unity of Russian lands. The process of formation of the Russian state with its capital in Moscow became irreversible.
The formation of major political centers in Rus' and the struggle between them for the great reign of Vladimir. Formation of the Tver and Moscow principalities. Ivan Kalita. Construction of the white stone Kremlin.
Dmitry Donskoy. The Battle of Kulikovo, its historical significance. Relations with Lithuania. Church and State. Sergius of Radonezh.
Merger of the Great Vladimir and Moscow principalities. Rus' and the Union of Florence. The internecine war of the second quarter of the 15th century, its significance for the process of unification of Russian lands.
The unification of Rus' is the process of creating a single centralized state under the control of Moscow and the Grand Duke. The unification of Rus' began in the 13th century. and ended only in the 16th.
The beginning of the unification of Rus'
The unification of Kievan Rus had several prerequisites. Until the beginning of the 13th century. Kievan Rus was not a single state, but a community of several disparate principalities, which were nominally subordinate to the authority of Kyiv and the Kyiv prince, but in fact were absolutely independent territories with their own laws and policies. Moreover, principalities and princes regularly fought with each other for territories and the right to political influence. As a result, Rus' was greatly weakened (both politically and militarily) and could not resist the constant attempts of other states to conquer the country's territories. Due to the lack of a unified army, it was under the influence of Lithuania and (the Mongol-Tatar yoke), lost its independence and was forced to pay tribute to the invaders. The economy was in decline, the country was in chaos, and the state was in desperate need of a new political system.
Features of the unification of Rus'
Constant internecine wars and the insolvency of power gradually led to the weakening of the power of Kyiv and the Kyiv prince. There was a need for the emergence of a new strong center. Several cities claimed the title of possible capital and center of the unification of Rus' - Moscow, Tver and Pereyaslavl.
The new capital city had to be far from the borders so that it would be difficult to conquer. Secondly, he had to have access to all major trade routes so that the economy could be established. Thirdly, the prince of the new capital had to be related to the ruling Vladimir dynasty. All these requirements were met by Moscow, which by that time was gaining strength and influence thanks to the skillful policies of its princes.
It was around Moscow and the Moscow Principality that the process of unification of Russian lands gradually began.
Stages of the unification of Rus'
The creation of a unified state took place in several stages. Many princes (Dmitry Donskoy, Ivan Kalita, etc.) had something to do with this.
In the 13th century. The process of unification of the lands that had just begun was interrupted by outrages and ruin on the part of the Golden Horde, which did not want Rus' to be a strong unified state, and therefore contributed in every possible way to civil strife and disunity. The already autonomous principalities began to be divided into even smaller territories, and constant separations of cities and lands occurred, accompanied by wars and ruin.
In the 14th century. Rus' came under the influence of the Principality of Lithuania, which gave impetus to the unification of some lands under the rule of the Grand Duke of Lithuania. As a result, in the 14th-15th centuries. Lithuania managed to subjugate the Kiev, Polotsk, Vitebsk, Goroden principalities, as well as Chernigov, Smolensk and Volyn. Although these territories lost their independence, they still represented some semblance of a single state. At the end of the century, Lithuania captured most of the Russian territories and came close to Moscow, which by that time had become the center of political power of the remaining principalities and lands. There was also a third center - the northeast, where the descendants of Vladimir still ruled, and the princes from Vladimir bore the title of grand dukes.
By the end of the 14th - beginning of the 15th century. new changes have occurred. Vladimir lost his power and completely submitted to Moscow (Moscow became the capital in 1389). Lithuania joined the Kingdom of Poland and after a series of Russian-Lithuanian wars lost a fairly large part of Russian territories, which began to gravitate towards Moscow.
The last stage of the unification of Rus' dates back to the end of the 15th - beginning of the 16th century, when Rus' finally became a single centralized state with its capital in Moscow and the Grand Duke of Moscow. Since then, new territories have been periodically annexed to the state.
The final stage of the unification of Rus' and results
The state, which had only recently become unified, needed a new ruler and improved governance policies. The old principles no longer worked, since they were unable to hold the principalities together, and so Rus' could again be consumed by civil strife.
Solved the problem. He introduced a new feudal system of government, as well as fiefdoms, which were much smaller than principalities. All this made it possible to avoid the unification of large territories and cities under the authority of one local manager. Power over Russia now completely belonged to the Grand Duke.
The main significance of the unification of Russian lands was that a new strong state was created, capable of defending its own independence and fighting invaders.
Prerequisites for the unification: 1. Restoration of the economy in the 14th century. The appearance of clean lands - lands freed from bushes and introduced into crop rotation; repairs - newly built villages with one or two courtyards. 2. Development of crafts and trade. 1382 - casting of cannons. 3. Liberation from the m-yoke.
Stages of unification: 1. 13 - first half of the 14th century - the beginning of the rise of Moscow 2. Second half of the 14th century - the first defeats of the Horde 3. First half of the 15th century - feudal wars 4. Second half of the 15th century - completion of the unification, liberation from the yoke .
Features of the unification: – All segments of the population are interested – Occurs around Moscow – In the context of the collapse of the Horde. The main struggle for power in the 14th century was between the Moscow and Tver principalities. Daniil of Moscow (1261 -1303) - the first Moscow prince. Annexed Kolomna in 1301, Pereyaslavl in 1302.
1293 - Dudenev's army: Moscow was taken by Tsarevich Tudan. 1303 -1325 - Yuri Danilovich. Married to a Polovtsian princess. Founded by Oreshek. Received a label for the reign of Vladimir. Killed by the Tver prince in the Horde. Ivan Kalita (1325 -1340). Confessor - Metropolitan Peter. Annexed Uglich, Galich, Beloozero.
1327 – uprising in Tver against Baskak Cholkhan. Deacon Dudko. The uprising was led by Prince Alexander of Tver. The Moscow prince Kalita suppresses the uprising. 1328 – Metropolitan Theognost moves to Moscow. Kalita was the first prince to collect tribute himself. A time of "great silence". For Tver he received Novgorod and Kostroma, a label for the great reign. Mt Khan - Uzbek. Oak Kremlin. 1337 - Trinity-Sergius Lavra.
Reasons for the rise of Moscow: - Relative security of the region - Fertile lands - Relocation of peasants and artisans to these lands - Moscow - the center of church life - Wise policy of the Moscow princes.
Semyon Proud. 1340 -1353. Ivan 2 Red. 1353 -1359 -1389 - reign of Dmitry Donskoy. Mentor – Metropolitan Alexy. His life was described by Epiphanius the Wise. 1368, 1370 - Olgerd's campaign (1345 -1377) against Moscow. 1374 - congress in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky. The possibility of uniting in the fight against mt is being discussed. 1374 - Dmitry stops paying tribute to the Horde 1375 - Dmitry defeats the Tver prince Mikhail, a final document was signed, according to which Tver recognized itself as a vassal of Moscow and pledged to help it in the fight against the mt.
1377 - Moscow troops take the city of Bulgar, a Russian governor is installed, who controlled the trade route along the Volga. 1378 - defeat on the river. Drunk from mt. 1378 – battle on the river. Well, Khan’s commander Mamaia Begich has been defeated. The first major defeat of mt. 1380 – Battle of Kulikovo. Mamai's allies are the Lithuanian prince Jagiello, the Ryazan prince Oleg. Dmitry was given the blessing of S. Radonezh and two monks - Peresvet and Oslyabya. 1/3 of the army is an ambush regiment led by Prince Vladimir Andreevich of Serpukhov (nickname Brave) and governor Bobrok. Before the main battle there is a duel between Peresvet and Chelubey.
Reasons for the victory: Successful development of the economy Unification of Russian lands Strategic advantages Patriotism Help of the Orthodox Church Significance of the victory: The Horde suffered its first major defeat The role of Moscow as the organizer of the victory has increased The size of the tribute has been reduced.
1382 – Tokhtamysh’s campaign against Moscow, destruction. 1389 - before his death, Dmitry transfers power to his son Vasily without the permission of the Horde, the label is abolished. 1389 -1425 - reign of Vasily 1. Annexed Nizhny Novgorod, Murom, Gorodets. Annexed Nizhny Novgorod 1392. 1395 - campaign of Tamerlane (iron lame), destruction of Yelets. 1399 - Khan Edygei defeated Vasily 1 and Vytautas on the river. Vorskla. 1408 - Edygei's campaign against Moscow. 1425 -1462 - reign of Vasily 2 the Dark. Feudal wars. The main rival is Uncle Yuri Galitsky and his sons Vasily Kosoy and Dmitry Shemyaka.
After a scandal at a wedding over a golden belt between Sophia and Kosoy, 1433 - Kosoy and Shemyaka marched on Moscow. Yuri rules Moscow, but Muscovites begin to leave the city. Power goes to Vasily 2. 1433 – second campaign of the Galician princes. Vasily is defeated, Yuri is on the throne. After the death of Yuri, the main contender Kosoy, Vasily 2 and Shemyaka unite against him. 1439 - Metropolitan Isidore signed the Union of Florence on the union of the Catholic and Orthodox churches. Arrested, Bishop Ion becomes the new metropolitan.
1445 - Vasily 2 is captured by the ruler of Khan Ulu-Muhammad, founder of the Kazan Khanate. Shemyaka rules in Moscow. He gives power to Vasily when he returns from captivity, but lies in wait for him upon his return from pilgrimage and blinds him. He takes an oath from Vasily that he was worthy of death, and Shemyaka gave him life. Everyone, dissatisfied with Shemyaka's rule, flocks to Vologda. 1447 - Vasily II's campaign against Moscow. Seizure of power. New order of succession to the throne. 1448 - the first elections of the Russian metropolitan. And he. 1456 - Vasily II's campaign against Novgorod. Yazhelbitsky world. Novgorod paid indemnity.
Results of the feudal war: Ruin of the country Strengthening the power of the Horde Showed the need for unification Moscow became the recognized capital of Rus' The Church became an instrument of the Moscow dynasty. 1462 -1505 – reign of Ivan 3. Centralized state. Contemporary: French king Louis 11. 1467 - pestilence.
The main rival is Novgorod. Posadnitsa Marfa Boretskaya is negotiating with the Livonian Order, the Polish King Sigismund. Ivan 3 regarded this as political and religious treason. 1471 - defeat of the Novgorodians on the river. Shelon 1475 - arrival of Ivan 3 to Novgorod, trial of the boyars. 1477 - the veche bell was removed, posadnichestvo was cancelled. 1478 - the annexation of Novgorod to Moscow. Annexed Rostov 1474, Perm 1471, Vyatka 1489, Yaroslavl 1463. 1476 - payment of tribute to the Horde was stopped. 1480 - Khan Akhmat's campaign against Rus'. Standing on the Ugra. Confessor Vassian "Message to the Ugra". End of the mt yoke.
Reasons for Mt's retreat: - Mt's attempts to cross the river were stopped by Russian artillery - fatigue of the Mt troops, lack of food 1472 - marriage of Ivan 3 to Sophia Palaeologus. 1485 - Ivan 3 takes the title of Grand Duke of All Rus'. The appearance of the name Russia. Coat of arms. Ivan 3 Moscow army Boyar Duma (boyars, okolnichniki) (noble militia) Palace - prince's lands, court Treasury - taxes, foreign policy. Orders (secretaries, clerks) Governors. Localism is the principle of appointing people to positions depending on their birth. Feeding – the right to collect taxes in a certain territory
1485 - annexation of Tver 1497 - Law Code. -unified structure and management in the state -Yuriev Day - the right of peasants to transfer from one feudal lord to another a week before and after November 26th. Before leaving, you need to collect the harvest, pay dues and the elderly. The beginning of the enslavement of peasants. Elderly - payment for living on the land of the feudal lord.
Reasons for the formation of a centralized state: The need to combat the m-t Consolidation of lands around Moscow The growth of patrimonial and local land ownership The interest of the majority of segments of society in the unification Support from the church A single culture The formation of serfdom. All segments of the population, except the boyars, are interested in the formation of a centralized state.
Culture. Literature: 15th century. Zadonshchina. Sophony of Ryazan. Dedicated to the Battle of Kulikovo. An ode to the Russian princes who were able to unite and win. The legend of the Massacre of Mamayev. The story of the destruction of Moscow by Tokhtamysh. Sailing across 3 seas. Afanasy Nikitin. Description of India. 15th century Easter - special tables indicating the dates of church holidays by year. Under Vasily 3, Abbot Philotheus formulated the idea of “Moscow – the third Rome”. Moscow is the center of Orthodoxy. Heresy is a teaching directed against the official church. 14th century, heresy Strigolnichestvo. Novgorod-Pskov. - criticized the unworthy behavior of the clergy - condemned the appointment of clergy for pay - denied the church the right to be a mediator between God and people 15th century. Novgorod-Moscow heresy or Judaizers. - did not recognize the dogma of the trinity of the deity - denied the sacredness of icons - denied the need for church organization
The official church in relation to heretics: – Non-covetous. Neil Sorsky. Elder of the Trans-Volga monastery. Free interpretation of religious literature. The clergy must work against church land ownership. Polemics with heretics. - Josephites. Joseph Sanin (Volotsky). Hegumen of the Joseph-Volokolamsk Monastery. "Churches of Wealth - God's Brotherhood." Dealing with heretics.
Architecture. Under Dmitry Donskoy, the Kremlin becomes white-stone. 1366 -1367 - construction of the new Moscow Kremlin. 1475 - Assumption Cathedral. Fioravanti. Royal wedding, ceremonial services. Painted by Dionysius. 1484 - Annunciation Cathedral. Pskov masters. Begunets is a Pskov pattern made of inclined bricks. The home church of the prince and his family. 1484 - Church of the Deposition of the Robe. Pskov masters. Homely Metropolitan Church. 1487 - Chamber of Facets. Ruffo, Solari, Fryazin. For ceremonial receptions. 1505 - Archangel Cathedral. Aleviz New. Tomb of Russian princes. 1485 - the first Taynitskaya tower. 1491 - Spasskaya Tower. Ruffo. Solari. 1378 - Transfiguration of the Savior on Ilyin Street. 1397 - Ferapontov Monastery. 1427 - Spaso-Andronnikov Monastery.
Painting. 14th century Theophanes the Greek (1340 -1410) Contrast of colors. Blagoveshchensky cathedral. DeJesus. Ferapontov Monastery near Vologda. 14th century Andrei Rublev (1360 -1428) Trinity. Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir. Blagoveshchensky cathedral. 15th century Dionysius. Assumption Cathedral. Metropolitan Alexy with his life.
Many historians call the fragmentation of Russian lands one of the most important reasons that the Mongols established their order in the country so quickly and without problems. Rus' was weakened by internecine wars, the territory was divided between several princes, each of whom dreamed of getting the inheritance of his neighbor.
In such conditions, it was simply impossible to provide worthy resistance to the invader. However, from the beginning of the 14th century, the unification of Russian lands, which was most important for history, began, which is worth talking about in more detail.
Unification of Russian lands in the XIV-XV centuries: table
List of united lands | Who united the lands | Consequences of unification |
1. Polotsk, Vitebsk, Kiev, Turov-Pinsk principalities, as well as Smolensk, Volyn, Podolia | The lands were united around the capital of the strengthening Principality of Lithuania, Vilna. At that time, the Principality of Lithuania became more powerful every year, and it was this state that became a dangerous rival to Ancient Rus' in the rights to certain territories. | In the period from the mid-13th to the end of the 15th century, the Principality of Lithuania united a huge number of territories around Vilna, which caused the minimization of the power of the Golden Horde and its further fall. After the Smolensk Principality passed into Lithuanian possession, local princes began to openly declare their desire for the complete unification of Ancient Rus' under their influence. |
2. Annexed in the 14th century: Kolomna, Pereyaslavl-Zaletsky, Mozhaisk, Murom, Rostov | The lands were united under the control of the Moscow Principality, which, unexpectedly for all European and Asian states, began to recover and grow. | The unification of Russian lands under the auspices of Moscow helped strengthen the military power of the country, and led to the fact that Dmitry Donskoy was able to win the Battle of Kulikovo. The unification process also affected the improvement of the economic condition of the principalities. |
3. Annexed in the 15th century: Perm land, Komi lands, Yaroslavl principality, Dmitrov, Rostov principality, Tver principality, Vyatka land | The lands were united under the auspices of Moscow, which gradually imposed its style of government on all the princes through wars and raids. | The strengthening of the Moscow principality helped the state restore the centralization of power. In addition, already at the beginning of the 15th century, the Lithuanians were thinking about the complete seizure of Russian lands, and only the systematic rise of Moscow stopped the process of imposing a new hegemony from the outside. |
4. Annexation of Przemysl, Vyazemsky lands, Smolensk principality and Bryansk | The annexation took place after the conclusion of a peace treaty in 1494, as a consequence of the war lost by the Lithuanians with the Principality of Moscow | The Russian-Lithuanian War of 1487-1494 turned out to be very beneficial for Ancient Rus', since the prince managed to defeat the Lithuanian state, moving the Lithuanian border further from Novgorod. In addition, Ancient Rus' finally established itself as a strong and powerful enemy for other countries. |
4. Annexation of Novgorod in 1478 | Novgorod was annexed to the Moscow Principality, which meant the complete victory of centralized, royal power over the democratic system of the Novgorodians. | It is especially worth noting the significance of the annexation of Novgorod. The fact is that the city retained its independence to the end, continuing to defend the right to assembly and the democratic model of territorial management. The annexation of Novgorod testified to the final rise of Moscow and the establishment of a monarchical system in Ancient Rus'. |
The process of unification of Russian lands in the XIV-XV centuries: results and results
Ancient Rus' was in deep crisis throughout the 13th century, and only by the middle of the 14th century began to increase its power. The victory in the Battle of Kulikovo gave hope that the country would soon regain independence, but the events of 1382 stopped the natural centralization of the lands.
Already in the middle of the 14th century, Ancient Rus' found itself between a rock and a hard place: the Golden Horde fought for Russian lands to the last, and the Principality of Lithuania had already begun the process of seizing and unifying the country’s territories. At the beginning of the 15th century, only the sudden rise of the Moscow principality prevented the Lithuanians from completely capturing the country, establishing their own rules here.
The process of centralization of territories by Moscow was difficult, and it took several decades to complete the unification of lands. To take back their former territories, Ancient Rus' had to wage endless wars with the Lithuanians.
The situation was also difficult with some Russian lands. For example, Novgorod and Pskov fought desperately for independence and for their familiar democratic model of land management. However, in 1478, Novgorod was annexed to Moscow, but Pskov resisted until the 16th century.
A completely new stage of development awaited the country ahead. In a couple of centuries, Rus', ravaged by the Mongols and drained of blood, will turn into the powerful Russian Empire, the strongest player in the international arena.