In 1606, the capital city of Moscow reigned new king. He became Vasily Shuisky (1552-1612), who received the name Vasily IV Ioannovich at his coronation. In the capital and everywhere northern lands They recognized him with the greatest joy, since he had great connections among the merchants. But the south of the country categorically refused to obey the new king. In Chernigov, Prince Andrei Telyatevsky, who was whiling away his days in disgrace, spoke out against Shuisky. In Putivl, his comrade in misfortune, Prince Grigory Shakhovsky, behaved similarly. This nobility, which had fallen out of favor, placed its bet on Ivan Isaevich Bolotnikov.
The latter did not have a noble origin. He was considered a “yard man” of Prince Telyatevsky. In other words, he was a simple serf. It should be immediately noted that in Rus' serfs were divided into two categories. Some were forced people and did hard menial work. That is, in essence, they represented ordinary slaves and differed little from serfs.
Others performed completely different functions. They guarded their master, forced forced slaves to work, and performed punitive functions against the peasants. These were the boyar's trusted people. They did not have any freedoms and rights, compared to their master, but they ate deliciously, drank sweetly, wore luxurious caftans and rode excellent horses. It was precisely this cohort that Ivan Isaevich Bolotnikov belonged to.
History does not know how Ivan Isaevich ended up in the war zone with the Tatars. Apparently he accompanied Prince Telyatevsky when he realized his military ambitions. This did not bring glory to Bolotnikov. He was captured and sold to the Turks. For several years the poor fellow swung a heavy galley oar on a ship.
The Austrians saved him. They defeated Turkish ships and captured the galley where Ivan Isaevich was kept as a slave. Since he was a Christian, he received freedom. The courtyard man headed to his homeland through Poland, where he met with False Dmitry II (Tushinsky thief). Apparently Bolotnikov made a corresponding impression on the impostor, since he received from him letter of recommendation to the rebellious prince Grigory Shakhovsky.
More likely Tushino thief gave Ivan Isaevich his freedom and endowed him with unlimited powers, since, upon arriving in Putivl, he immediately took charge rebel army. It consisted mostly of noble militia. These people wanted ranks, money and fame, but Vasily Shuisky deprived them of these benefits, so the army ended up under the banner of Bolotnikov. This entire army moved towards Moscow in 1606.
Against the rebels Moscow government a strong army moved. But his fighting ardor was at a very low level. The nobles went home and left the governors alone. The entire Ryazan nobility, which was considered the elite, went over to Bolotnikov’s side. tsarist army. It was thanks to these people that Ivan Isaevich dared to storm Moscow. This was the only siege of the capital by rebels in the history of the Russian state. It lasted five weeks.
The “mother of Russian cities” was defended by a hastily assembled militia. It consisted mainly of peasants and merchants. Soon similar units, staffed by northern regions countries. At the beginning of December 1606, Bolotnikov’s army was completely defeated by the tsarist commanders. The peasant militia defeated the nobility. As a result, a split occurred in the troops of Ivan Isaevich. The Chernigov and Kursk nobles remained with him, and the Ryazan nobles and Cossacks broke away, abandoning their former leader to the mercy of fate.
The city of Tula gave refuge to the rebels. He was surrounded by tsarist troops, consisting of Tver, Kostroma, Yaroslavl peasants, merchants and small landowners. Bolotnikov held the defense from June to October 1607. In the end, on the eve of cold weather, the royal governors blocked the Upa River, and its waters poured into the streets of the city. The residents surrendered to the mercy of the victors, and Ivan Isaevich was shackled.
They wanted to take him to Moscow to publicly execute him in front of thousands of people, but the main rebel behaved very defiantly. He insulted the winners in every possible way, shouted at them, promised to protect them in bearskins and set dogs on them. This overflowed the patience of the royal commanders. Bolotnikov was drowned. Together with him, many of his comrades, who had pure noble blood flowing in their veins, went to the bottom.
The uprising of Ivan Isaevich Bolotnikov in 1606-1607 was nothing more than another attempt by the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to establish a puppet regime in the Moscow state. This was not possible due to the patriotism of the ordinary Russian people. The peasants and merchants provided full support to Vasily Shuisky, and the next enemy expansion failed in disgrace. But the enemies of the Moscow state did not rest on this. Time of Troubles moved into a new stage, and the Tushinsky thief entered the political scene.
The article was written by Vladimir Chernov
The meaning of IVAN ISAEVICH BOLOTNIKOV in the Brief Biographical Encyclopedia
BOLOTNIKOV IVAN ISAEVICH
Bolotnikov, Ivan Isaevich, is a figure in the Time of Troubles, the time of Shuisky. Bolotnikov was a slave of Prince Telyatevsky, as a child he was captured by the Tatars, sold to the Turks, worked on Turkish galleys, and upon release ended up in Venice. Returning to his homeland through Poland, he appeared in Sambir to Molchanov, who pretended to be the escaped Tsar Demetrius. Molchanov sent Bolotnikov with a letter to the Putivl governor, Prince Shakhovsky. The latter entrusted him with a detachment of 12,000 people. With them, Bolotnikov went to the Komarnitsa volost and spread the rumor everywhere that he himself had seen Dimitri, who appointed him chief governor. Vasily Shuisky sent a detachment against Bolotnikov under the command of Prince Yuri Trubetskoy, but the latter, having met Bolotnikov near Kromy, retreated. This served as a signal for the uprising of many cities, which sent auxiliary detachments to Bolotnikov; serfs and peasants, hearing Bolotnikov's call, almost everywhere rose up against their masters and joined his detachment. The Mordovians were also indignant, hoping to free themselves from Moscow power. In addition, the militia of Istoma Pashkov joined Bolotnikov, and the Lyapunovs - Zakhar and Prokopiy - and a detachment of freemen who came from Lithuania also joined him. Bolotnikov headed towards the capital. The cities that stood in the way all recognized the authority of the chief governor, Demetrius; Only in Kolomna did they dare to resist, and this led to the complete looting of the city. 50 versts from Moscow, near the village of Troitsky, Bolotnikov was met by the Moscow army under the command of Mstislavsky, who, without entering into battle, barely escaped Bolotnikov’s persecution. On October 22, 1606, Bolotnikov stopped in the village of Kolomenskoye, seven miles from Moscow. Here he built a prison and began to send messages throughout Moscow and different cities letters, inciting the people against the rich and noble and calling on everyone to kiss the cross to the rightful sovereign Dimitri Ivanovich. Bolotnikov's militia increased here even more; from it stood out separate gangs, mostly slaves, who, with their raids and robberies, kept the capital in state of siege. But then a split occurred in Bolotnikov’s army: on one side stood the nobles and boyars’ children, on the other there were serfs, Cossacks and generally small nameless people. The latter were headed by Bolotnikov, and the leaders of the former were Istoma Pashkov and the Lyapunov brothers. Disagreements arose between the leaders, and their result was the defection of first the Lyapunovs and then Istoma Pashkov to Shuisky’s side. Shuisky, meanwhile, had actively set about strengthening Moscow from the very appearance of Bolotnikov, now began to receive reinforcements from the cities that had come over to his side, which sent militias of nobles and boyar children to him. A series of successful attacks on Bolotnikov’s prison forces the latter to flee from Moscow. Bolotnikov settled in Kaluga; strengthened it, gathered up to 10,000 fugitives and prepared for defense. The detachments sent here by Shuisky (the largest under the command of Mstislavsky) besieged the city from all sides, carried out frequent attacks, defeated the militia under the command of Prince Masalsky that came to the aid of Bolotnikov, but Bolotnikov’s energy remained unshakable; Only one thing confused him: the named Demetrius did not appear. Then a new impostor appeared among the Terek and Volga Cossacks, taking on the name of Tsarevich Peter, supposedly the son of Fyodor Ioannovich, replaced by a daughter who soon died; he was already approaching Putivl, and it was then that Prince Shakhovskoy decided to use him to support the uprising. He sent him to Tula, and then moved himself. He sent a detachment under the command of Prince Telyatevsky to Bolotnikov’s rescue. The latter defeated the royal governors, the princes of Tatev and Cherkassy, near Kaluga, on Pchelka (May 2). Then Bolotnikov made a sortie from Kaluga and headed to Tula, where Shakhovskoy and Peter were already there. On June 30, Tsar Vasily Shuisky approached Tula with a large army (about 100 thousand people). The siege of Tula began, lasting a little over three months. At the suggestion of the Murom boyar's son Kravkov, Tula was flooded with the dam of the Upa, where famine occurred. Negotiations for surrender began. The Tsar promised Bolotnikov and Shakhovsky mercy, and on October 10, 1607, boyar Kolychev occupied Tula. Bolotnikov appeared before Shuisky, took off his saber, laid it in front of the Tsar, hit him with his forehead to the ground and made an oath promise to serve the Tsar faithfully until the grave, if he, in accordance with his kiss, did not order him to be killed. After interrogation, Bolotnikov and other leaders of the rebellion were put in prison in Kargopol. Here, Bolotnikov’s eyes were first gouged out and then drowned.
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Former slave of boyar A.A. Telyatevsky, who fled from him to the steppe to the Cossacks. He was captured by the Tatars during their raid on Rus'. Sold by them into slavery in Turkey, where he worked on the galleys. One of the galleys in which he was located was captured at sea by the Italians. Ended up in Venice. He was freed from captivity and returned to Russia through Poland. In Poland I heard about “ miraculous salvation» False Dmitry I (who had already died by that time) and the appearance of a new impostor in Sambir - also Tsarevich Dmitry. A certain Mikhail Molchanov called himself this name. Bolotnikov arrived to him, received money from him and a letter to the Putivl governor, Prince G.P. Shakhovsky, who was in opposition central government(the contents of the letter are unknown) and in 1606 he arrived in Putivl.
With the help of G.P. Shakhovsky (an opponent of Tsar Vasily Shuisky), he organized a detachment (about 12,000 people) of slaves, runaway peasants and Cossacks, to whom he promised to “beat guests and all merchant people and rob their bellies,” promising them on behalf of the survivor king's forgiveness and tax breaks. The squad grew quickly. Not only peasants and serfs began to join him, but also some archers, service people, and even princes and nobles who were dissatisfied with the rule of Tsar V.I. Shuisky. Behind a short time the uprising spread huge territory. The goal of the rebels was to overthrow Shuisky and transfer power to “Tsar Dimitri,” which Bolotnikov called for in his letters. Bolotnikov spread the rumor everywhere that he himself had seen “Tsar Dimitri,” who appointed him chief governor. Vasily Shuisky sent a detachment against Bolotnikov under the leadership of Prince Yu. Trubetskoy, but the latter, having met Bolotnikov near Kromy, retreated. This served as a signal for the uprising of many cities, which began to send auxiliary detachments to Bolotnikov.
Bolotnikov himself took part in battles and was distinguished by his courage. 50 versts from Moscow, near the village of Troitsky, Bolotnikov was met by the Moscow army under the command of Mstislavsky. However, Mstislavsky, having never entered into battle, escaped. The path to the capital was open.
On October 22, 1606, Bolotnikov stopped in the village of Kolomenskoye, seven miles from Moscow. His army by that time numbered about 100 thousand people. In Kolomenskoye, Bolotnikov built a prison and began sending out letters throughout Moscow and various cities calling on everyone to “kiss the cross to the rightful sovereign Dimitri Ivanovich.” He managed to form special flying squads, which the frightened boyars of the capital called “gangs”, since with their raids they essentially kept the capital in a state of siege for 2 months. Fearing the strengthening of the rebel’s position, Vasily Shuisky ordered the expulsion of militias of nobles and boyar children to Moscow.
A series of successful attacks on Bolotnikov’s prison forced the latter to flee Kolomenskoye. On December 2, 1606, Bolotnikov was defeated by Shuisky’s troops near the village of Kotly. From there he went to Kaluga, where he gathered “up to 10 thousand fugitives” (runaway peasants) and thoroughly fortified the city: he surrounded it with a fence and a double ditch.
Bolotnikov's energy as the leader of the rebels remained unshakable; he was only embarrassed by the fact that the named Demetrius did not come to his aid. Then among Terek Cossacks a new impostor appeared, Ileika Muromets, who took on the name of Tsarevich Peter (as if the son of Fyodor Ivanovich, replaced by his daughter). He went to Tula, and Bolotnikov moved his troops from Kaluga there in May 1607. Even at this stage of the movement, defectors from the tsarist troops still came over to his side, believing his promises: Bolotnikov generously “distributed” the estates of Shuisky’s confidants to his supporters.
The united armies of the rebels were besieged by tsarist troops in Tula on June 30, 1607. The city bravely held out for 3 months, and Bolotnikov hatched a plan for a new campaign. He hoped to capture Kolomna again and move to Moscow along the well-trodden Kolomna road. But this was not destined to come true.
According to the ingenious idea of one of the military advisers, V. Shuisky, part of Tula was flooded, damming the Upa River, and famine began among the rebels. Negotiations began on the surrender of the city. The Tsar promised Bolotnikov mercy, and on October 10, 1607, Bolotnikov opened the gates of the city, and he himself appeared before Shuisky. According to eyewitnesses, he took off his saber, placed it in front of the king, hit him with his forehead to the ground and made an oath promise to serve the king faithfully until the grave if he, in accordance with his kiss, did not order him to be killed. On October 18, the Tsar arrived in Moscow. Bolotnikov, as well as his associates, were also transported here. Immediately after the interrogation they were taken to prison in the city of Kargopol. Here Bolotnikov’s eyes were first gouged out and then drowned.
Soviet historiography turned the Cossacks and peasants of the troubled times who were engaged in robbery and violence into fighters for the people's happiness. It is not surprising that in the name of I.I. Bolotnikov Soviet time one of the Tver streets near the Doroshikha station was named. The trilogy of V.A. Zamyslov is dedicated to him Bitter bread. There is a historical painting by E.E. Lessner Start of the battle peasant army Bolotnikov with tsarist troops at Nizhnye Kotly near Moscow.
Lev Pushkarev
Leader of the uprising (1606-1607). A runaway slave, was in Turkish slavery. Organizer and leader rebel army V southern regions Russia, near Moscow, Kaluga, Tula. In October 1607 he was exiled to Kargopol, blinded and drowned.
Ivan Bolotnikov was the slave of Prince Telyatevsky. He fled from his Chernigov possessions to Don Cossacks. It is not known how much time Ivan spent among them, in what campaigns he took part, but in one of the battles with Crimean Tatars Bolotnikov was captured.
The Tatars sold Bolotnikov to Turkey, where he was a forced galley rower for several years. The youngest, strongest and hardiest prisoners were taken into the galley rowers. Bolotnikov was released German ships, intercepted the Turks at sea. He was brought to Venice. Here Bolotnikov first lived in a German trading compound located near the Rialto Bridge across the Grand Canal, communicated with its staff, and perhaps learned to speak German. Subsequently, Germans who then lived in Russia served in his rebel army.
Bolotnikov made his way home through Germany and Poland. The news of the second “rescue” of “Dmitry”, this time at the hands of the boyar-conspirators led by Prince Vasily Shuisky, who took advantage popular uprising in Moscow on May 17, 1606, against the Poles, in order to remove the impostor, they forced Bolotnikov to speed up his arrival in Poland.
Dmitry found refuge in the Sandomierz castle. K. Bussov depicts in his “Chronicle” Bolotnikov’s meeting with an unknown person, probably the favorite of False Dmitry I, Mikhail Molchanov, who managed to escape to Poland after the 1606 uprising in Moscow. After questioning Bolotnikov and making sure that he was dealing with an experienced warrior, “loyal to Tsar Dmitry,” the new impostor allegedly told him: “I can’t give you much now, here are 30 Ducats, a saber and a cloak. Be content with little this time. Go with this letter to Putivl to Prince Shakhovsky. He will give you enough money from my treasury and make you a commander and commander over several thousand soldiers. Instead of me, you will go further with them and, if God is merciful to you, you will try your luck against my perjured subjects. Tell me that you saw me and spoke to me here in Poland, that I am as you now see me with your own eyes, and that you received this letter from my own hands.”
With this letter, Bolotnikov headed to Putivl. Prince Shakhovskoy, seeing his desire to stand up for Dmitry and convinced of his knowledge of military affairs, entrusts him with a detachment of 12,000 people.
Bolotnikov goes to the Komarnitsa volost and announces to everyone that he himself saw Dmitry and Dmitry appointed him chief governor. Vasily Shuisky sent a detachment against him under the command of Prince Yuri Trubetskoy, but the latter, having met Bolotnikov’s forces, retreated. This served as a kind of signal for the uprising of cities, serfs and non-residents. City after city they proclaimed Dmitry Tsar and sent auxiliary detachments to Bolotnikov; serfs and peasants almost everywhere rose up against their masters and joined his detachment. The Mordovians were also indignant, hoping to free themselves from Moscow power, and together with slaves and peasants they recaptured several cities from Shuisky. In addition, Istoma Pashkov’s militia, a detachment of freemen who came from Lithuania, joined Bolotnikov.
Kromy, Mtsensk, Odoev, Aleksin, Kaluga - all these cities lay in the area of Bolotnikov’s offensive. Massacres were also reflected in the “Karamzin Chronograph”: “And in those Ukrainian, Polish and Seversk cities, people, due to the enemy’s obsession, boyars and governors and all sorts of people were beaten with various deaths, thrown from towers, and others were hanged by their nakedness and to the city walls they crucified them and executed them with many different deaths and robbed the subsistence people, and those they beat and called them traitors, but they seem to stand for Tsar Dmitry.” On the way to Moscow, Bolotnikov personally supervised the reprisals against landowners. Among those executed was the Tsar's emissary Afanasy Palchikov, who sowed doubts about the truth of Tsar Dmitry and his happy salvation during the May events of 1606. He, as a traitor, an enemy of “Tsar Dmitry,” was put on public display. Everyone could see with their own eyes what fate awaited anyone who dared to claim that “Tsar Dmitry” was not saved.
Advancing on Kaluga after the victory over Kromy, Bolotnikov discovered that it was occupied by the troops of Prince I. Shuisky, the king’s brother, sent to meet him from the capital. Then Bolotnikov entered into negotiations with the Kaluga townspeople. They went over to his side. The royal army was forced to hastily leave the city and give battle on September 23, 1606, under unfavorable conditions for itself.
When entering into negotiations with the Kaluga residents, Bolotnikov had to tell them his goals. On what conditions did the Kaluga residents open the gates to him? He generously rewarded his supporters by taking away goods, salt and bread from Moscow merchants.
Some of the confiscated property was at the disposal of Bolotnikov as the leader of the rebels. Thus, Bolotnikov skillfully used the contradictions between the Moscow merchants and local merchants. At the same time, he sought support from the entire townspeople of the city, including merchants with high incomes, elevating them above the alien Moscow merchants, which significantly affected their commercial interests. He also turned a blind eye to the seizure of the property of Moscow nobles by the Kaluga townspeople.
With a large army, the chief governor of the impostor Dmitry headed towards the capital. The cities standing in the way unanimously recognized his power. Only in Kolomna did they dare to resist, which led to the complete looting of the city.
Fifty versts from Moscow, near the village of Troitsky, Bolotnikov was met by the Moscow army under the command of Mstislavsky, who, having evaded battle, barely escaped persecution by the rebel. On October 22, 1606, Bolotnikov stopped in the village of Kolomenskoye, seven versts from Moscow. Here he built a fort, strengthening it with wood and a rampart, and began sending letters throughout Moscow and various cities, inciting the poor and lesser against the rich and noble and calling on them to kiss the cross to the rightful sovereign Dmitry Ivanovich.
Bolotnikov’s militia grew rapidly; separate gangs emerged from it, mainly from serfs, who, with their raids and robberies, kept the capital in a state of siege. Muscovites were already ready to submit to Bolotnikov, asking only to show them Tsarevich Dmitry, and even began negotiations with the governor on this matter. But Dmitry did not show up.
Some cities began to express doubt about Dmitry’s existence and went over to Shuisky’s side. In addition, a split occurred in Bolotnikov’s army itself: one camp consisted of nobles and boyar children, the other - serfs, Cossacks and other people. The latter were led by Ivan Bolotnikov, the former by Istoma Pashkov and the Lyapunov brothers. Disagreements arose between the leaders, as a result, first the Lyapunovs and then Istoma Pashkov went over to Shuisky’s side. Shuisky, meanwhile, thoroughly strengthened Moscow and now accepted into his army militias from cities that had gone over to his side.
Seeing that Shuisky’s military forces were increasing every hour, Bolotnikov decided to force events. He tried to storm the Simonov Monastery, but was repulsed with heavy losses. Shuisky invited him to surrender, promising high rank. But the rebel leader remained loyal to Dmitry the impostor and was determined to fight for his cause to the last possible opportunity. He answered Shuisky: “I kissed the cross for my sovereign Dmitry Ivanovich - to lay down my stomach for him. And I won’t break the kiss. I will serve my sovereign faithfully and will see you soon.” Having received such an answer, Vasily Shuisky decided to move from defense to attack. Bolotnikov was forced to leave the prison. Moscow military men pursued him to the village of Zaborya, where the governor loyal to Dmitry was able to strengthen himself again. However, this fortification also fell; part of the Cossacks, led by Ataman Bezzubtsev, went over to the side of Skopin-Shuisky, the head of the Moscow army. Bolotnikov fled. In Kaluga, he gathered up to 10,000 fugitives and prepared for defense.
The detachments sent here by Shuirkim (the largest under the command of Mstislavsky) surrounded the city from all sides, stormed several times, and defeated the militia under the command of Prince Masalsky who was rushing to help Bolotnikov. Bolotnikov successfully repelled enemy attacks and himself made successful forays. Neither numerous losses nor the lack of food supplies, especially sensitive at the end of winter, could force him to surrender, although he was promised complete forgiveness. The governor, however, was dissatisfied that Tsarevich Dmitry still did not appear, and soon disappeared completely.
Then a new impostor appeared among the Terek and Volga Cossacks, taking the name of Tsarevich Peter, allegedly the son of Fyodor Ivanovich, replaced by a daughter who soon died. He was already approaching Putivl. Prince Shakhovskoy decided to use his help. He sent False Peter to Tula, and then moved himself. He sent a detachment under the command of Prince Telyatevsky to help Bolotnikov. The latter defeated the royal governors Ta-tev and Cherkassky on May 2, near Kaluga, on Pchelva. Then Bolotnikov made a sortie and brought such fear to the besiegers that they all fled in fear, leaving the enemy with guns, convoys and supplies. After which the governor set out from Kaluga and headed to Tula, where Shakhovskoy and False Peter were already there.
On June 30, Tsar Vasily Shuisky himself approached Tula with a large army (about 100 thousand people). The siege has begun 
Tula, which lasted a little over three months. Neither the attacks of the besiegers nor the depletion of food supplies weakened the energy and firmness of Bolotnikov and his warriors. And it is unknown how much longer this siege would have lasted and how it would have ended, especially after disagreements arose between the royal commanders, if the “big cunning man” Meshok Kravkov had not appeared to Shuisky, who flooded Tula with the dam of the Upa.
According to one version, Bolotnikov and False Petr were handed over to Shuisky by the Tula people themselves. Another version is this.
The besieged began to suffer from hunger. Many rebels confessed to Shuisky, but the leaders continued to desperately resist and agreed to surrender only on the condition that they were granted forgiveness. “And if not,” they said, “we will hold on, even if we have to eat each other.” The Tsar promised them mercy, and on October 10, 1607, boyar Kolychev occupied Tula.
Bolotnikov appeared before Shuisky in full armor, took off his saber, placed it in front of the Tsar, hit him with his forehead to the ground and pronounced his oath to serve the Tsar faithfully until the grave, if he, in accordance with his kiss, did not order him to be killed. On October 18, the Tsar arrived in Moscow. Bolotnikov and other leaders of the rebellion were also brought here. After interrogation, they were sent to prison in Kargopol, where Bolotnikov’s eyes were gouged out and then drowned.
Bolotnikov Ivan Isaevich - a rebel from the time of Shuisky. He was the slave of Prince Telyatevsky, was captured by the Tatars as a child, was sold to the Turks, worked in chains on Turkish galleys and was released along with other prisoners, according to some news, by the Venetians, according to others, by the Germans, and upon release he was brought to Venice. He stayed here for some time and decided to return to his fatherland through Poland. Driving through it, he heard about the stay of Tsarevich Dimitry (Molchanov) in Sambir, came to him and, as a shrewd and enterprising man, was sent last with a letter to the Putivl governor, Prince. Shakhovsky. Seeing his desire to stand up for Dmitry and convinced of his knowledge of military affairs, Shakhovskoy entrusts him with a detachment of 12,000 people. With them, B. went to the Komarnitsa volost and announced to everyone: that he himself had seen Demetrius, and Demetrius named him chief governor. Vasily Shuisky sent a detachment against him under the command of Prince. Yuri Trubetskoy, but the latter, having met B-m near Kromy, retreated.
This served as a signal for the uprising of cities, serfs and foreigners. City after city they proclaimed Demetrius king and sent auxiliary detachments to B.; serfs and peasants, having heard B.'s call, almost everywhere rose up against their masters and joined his detachment. The Mordovians were also indignant, hoping to free themselves from Moscow power, and together with the slaves and peasants they forced some cities to fall away from Shuisky. In addition, the militia of Istoma Pashkov joined B., Zakhar and Prokopiy and a detachment of freemen who came from Lithuania stuck to him in Lyapunov. With such formidable and numerous forces, B. headed towards the capital. The cities that stood in the way all recognized the authority of the chief governor, Demetrius; Only in Kolomna did they dare to resist, and this led to the complete looting of the city. 50 versts from Moscow, near the village of Troitsky, B. was met by the Moscow army under the command of Mstislavsky, who, without entering into battle, barely escaped B.’s persecution. On October 22, 1606, B. stopped in the village of Kolomenskoye, seven versts from Moscow Here he built a fort, strengthening it with wood and a rampart, and began to send letters throughout Moscow and various cities, inciting the poor and lesser against the rich and noble and calling on everyone to kiss the cross to the rightful sovereign Dimitri Ivanovich.
B.'s militia increased here even more; From it, separate gangs stood out, mostly slaves, cat. with their raids and robberies they kept the capital in a state of siege. The Muscovites were ready to submit to B., asking him only to show them Dimitri, and even began negotiations with him on this matter. But Dimitri did not show up. B. several times turned to Shakhovsky with a request to send him to the army as soon as possible, pointing out to him the importance of his presence, but he hesitated. Some cities had already begun to express their doubts about the existence of Demetrius and went over to Shuisky’s side. In addition, in B.’s army itself there was a split: on one side stood the nobles and boyars’ children, on the other there were serfs, Cossacks and generally small nameless people. The head of the latter was B., and the leaders of the former were Istoma Pashkov and the Lyapunov brothers. Disagreements arose between the leaders and their result was the defection of first the Lyapunovs and then Istoma Pashkov to Shuisky’s side. Shuisky, meanwhile, who had actively set about strengthening Moscow from the very appearance of B., now began to receive reinforcements from the cities that had come over to his side, which sent militias of nobles and boyar children to him. Seeing that Shuisky’s military forces were increasing more and more, B. decided to act more energetically: an attack was made on the Simonov Monastery, but was repulsed with damage. But neither the loss of the army (from the attack and the constant departure of his people), nor Shuisky’s exhortations to surrender and promises to give him an important rank, broke B. Dimitri’s loyalty and the determination he had previously accepted to fight for his cause to the last opportunity. He answered Shuisky: “I kissed the cross to my sovereign Dimitri Ivanovich - to lay down my life for him. And I will not break the kiss. I will faithfully serve my sovereign and will see you soon.”
Having received such an answer, Shuisky decided to move from a defensive war to an offensive one; a series of successful attacks on B.'s prison forces the latter to flee from near Moscow. Moscow military men pursue him to the village. Zaborya, where the governor loyal to Demetrius managed to gain a foothold again; but the Zabor fortification also fell; part of the Cossacks, led by Ataman Bezzubtsev, was handed over to Skopin-Shuisky, the head of the Moscow army. B. fled further and finally settled in Kaluga; strengthened it, gathered up to 10,000 fugitives and prepared for defense. The detachments sent here by Shuisky (the largest under the command of Mstislavsky) besieged the city from all sides, carried out frequent attacks, and defeated the militia under the command of Prince who was coming to help B. Masalsky, but his courage and energy remained unshakable. He successfully repulsed their attacks and made successful forays himself; neither the loss of military men nor the lack of food supplies, especially severe towards the end of winter, forced him to surrender, although he was promised complete forgiveness; Only one thing confused him: the named Demetrius had not yet appeared, and soon disappeared completely. Then a new impostor appeared among the Terek and Volga Cossacks, taking on the name of Tsarevich Peter, supposedly the son of Fyodor Ioanovich, replaced by a daughter who soon died; he was already approaching Putivl, and then the prince. Shakhovskoy decided to use it to support the uprising. He sent him to Tula, and then moved himself. To B.'s rescue, he sent a detachment under the command of Prince. Telyatevsky. The latter defeated the royal governors, the princes of Tatev and Cherkassy, near Kaluga, on Pchelva (May 2). Then B. made a sortie and brought such fear to the besiegers that they all fled in embarrassment, leaving the enemy with guns, convoys and supplies. After that, he set out from Kaluga and headed to Tula, where Shakhovskoy and Peter were already there. On June 30, Tsar Vasily Ivanovich Shuisky himself approached Tula with a large army (about 100 thousand). The siege of Tula began, lasting a little more than 3 months. Neither the attacks of the besiegers, nor the depletion of supplies here weakened the energy and firmness of B. and his warriors. And it is unknown how much longer this siege would have continued and how it would have ended, especially in view of the disagreements that arose between the commanders royal army, if the “big cunning man” Sack of Kravkov had not come to Shuisky, who flooded Tula with the dam of the Upa. With the flood in Tula, hunger also increased; many rebels came in droves to Shuisky to confess, but the main villains continued to resist and agreed to surrender only when they were granted forgiveness. “And if not,” they said, “we’ll hold on, even if we have to eat each other.” The Tsar promised them mercy, and on October 10, 1607, boyar Kolychev occupied Tula. B. appeared before Shuisky in full armor, took off his saber, laid it in front of the king, hit him with his forehead to the ground and pronounced his oath promise to serve the king faithfully until the grave, if he, in accordance with his kiss, did not order him to be killed. On October 18, the Tsar arrived in Moscow. B. and other leaders of the rebellion were also transported here and, after interrogation, they were thrown into prison in Kargopol. Here first. B. had his eyes gouged out and then drowned.