After the period of the Seven Boyars and the expulsion of the Poles from Russian territory, the country needed a new king. In November 1612, Minin and Pozharsky sent letters to all corners of the country, calling on people to take part in the work of the Zemsky Sobor and elect the Tsar of Russia. In January, representatives were gathered in Moscow. In total, 700 people took part in the work of the Zemsky Sobor. The discussion went on for two months. Ultimately, Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov was recognized as the Tsar of Russia.

Tsar Mikhail Romanov was only 16 years old. His candidacy for the role of tsar suited many boyars, who hoped to rule the country taking advantage of the tsar’s young age. Thus, a new royal dynasty was founded in the country, which ruled the country until the October Revolution.

Guardianship of the young king was taken by his mother, Martha, who was proclaimed empress. Tsar Mikhail Romanov himself, coming to power, solemnly promised that he would rule the country with justice. He also promised to listen to the Zemsky Sobor and the Boyar Duma. This is how it happened until 1619. This year, Mikhail's father, Filaret, returned from captivity. From that moment on, Filaret began to practically rule the country. This continued until 1633, when Filaret died.

Domestic and foreign policy

The foreign policy followed by Tsar Mikhail Romanov was aimed at maintaining power and strengthening the country's international position. The main opponent of the young king was the Polish king. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth did not recognize Michael's rights to the throne, believing that the only legitimate ruler of Russia should be the Polish prince Wladyslaw. After the time of troubles in Rus', the Poles captured Smolensk, which remained under their control. In addition, the Polish king was preparing a new campaign against Russia in order to capture Moscow, which he had lost due to a popular uprising. War between Poland and Russia was brewing. The Poles needed Moscow, but the Russians wanted to return Smolensk. From the very first years of his reign, Tsar Mikhail Romanov began to gather an army for a possible war. In addition, he was looking for allies who could support Russia in the fight against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Such allies were found in Sweden and Turkey, who promised the Russians any help in the event of a war with the Poles.

The war against Poland began in June 1632. It was at this time that the Zemsky Sobor approved the decision to begin military operations against its western neighbor in order to return Smolensk. The reason for such events was the death of the Polish king Sigismund 3. A struggle for power began in Poland, which made the Russians’ chances of a successful campaign very high. Shein stood at the head of the Russian army. Russia's allies, who promised to provide any assistance, did not keep their words. As a result, the Russians were forced to be content with their own forces, and besieged Smolensk.

At this time, a new king was elected in Poland. It was Vladislav. The same one whom his father Sigismund 3 wanted to place on the Russian throne. He gathered an army of fifteen thousand people and lifted the siege of Smolensk. Neither Poland nor Russia had the strength to continue the war. As a result, in 1634 the parties signed a peace treaty. As a result of this agreement, Russia withdrew its troops from Smolensk, and Vladislav abandoned his plans to conquer Moscow. As a result, Tsar Mikhail Romanov was unable to return to Russia the lands lost during the Time of Troubles.

Tsar Mikhail Romanov died in 1645, leaving the Russian throne to his son Alexei.

Structure of the Romanov dynasty

Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. Born on July 12 (22), 1596 in Moscow - died on July 13 (23), 1645 in Moscow. The first Russian Tsar from the Romanov dynasty. Ruled from March 27 (April 6), 1613. Father of the Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich.

Father - Patriarch Filaret, in the world Fyodor Nikitich Romanov (Romanov-Yuryev) (1553-1633), church and political figure, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' (1619-1633). Cousin of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich.

Mother - Nun Martha, also known as the Great Elder Martha, in the world Ksenia Ioannovna Romanova (nee Shestova; died January 26 (February 5), 1631).

Mikhail Fedorovich was a cousin of Fyodor Ioannovich, the last Russian Tsar from the Moscow branch of the Rurik dynasty.

The Romanov family belongs to the ancient families of the Moscow boyars. The first representative of this family known from the chronicles, Andrei Ivanovich, who had the nickname Mare, in 1347 was in the service of the Great Prince of Vladimir and Moscow Simeon Ivanovich the Proud. Under the Romanovs they fell into disgrace. In 1600, a search began following a denunciation of the nobleman Bertenev, who served as treasurer for Alexander Romanov, the uncle of the future tsar. Bertenev reported that the Romanovs kept magic roots in their treasury, intending to “spoil” (kill with witchcraft) the royal family. From the diary of the Polish embassy it follows that a detachment of royal archers carried out an armed attack on the Romanov compound. On October 26 (November 5), 1600, the Romanov brothers were arrested. Nikita Romanovich's sons - Fyodor, Alexander, Mikhail, Ivan and Vasily - were tonsured as monks and exiled to Siberia in 1601, where most of them died.

Michael was born on the day of St. Michael Malein, in whose honor he was baptized. Also, according to tradition, he was named in honor of his uncle - Mikhail Nikitich Romanov.

Secular painting began in Russia: according to the sovereign's decree, on July 26 (August 5), 1643, a resident of Rugodiv, master John Deters, was hired to serve in the Armory, who taught painting to Russian students.

Death of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov:

Tsar Michael was not in good health from birth. Already in 1627, at the age of 30, Mikhail Fedorovich “mourned his legs” so much that sometimes, in his own words, he was “carried to and from the cart in chairs.”

He died on July 13 (23), 1645 from a water disease of unknown origin at the age of 49 years. According to the doctors who treated the Moscow sovereign, his illness came from “sitting too much,” from cold drinking and melancholy, “that is, sadness.” Mikhail Fedorovich was buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.

In 1851, a monument to Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich and the peasant Ivan Susanin was erected in Kostroma. The project was prepared by V.I. Demut-Malinovsky. During Soviet times, the monument was destroyed; only a granite pedestal remained, which was installed in the central square of the city in a “lying” position. On the eve of the 400th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty in 2013, the former mayor of Kostroma installed a modernized version of the monument to Mikhail Fedorovich in the courtyard of his house.

The image of Mikhail Fedorovich in the cinema:

1913 - Accession of the House of Romanov - actress Sofya Goslavskaya in the role of Mikhail Fedorovich;
1913 - Tercentenary of the reign of the House of Romanov - actor Mikhail Chekhov in the role of Mikhail Fedorovich;
2013 - The Romanovs - in the role of Mikhail Fedorovich, actor Andrei Shibarshin

The Zemsky Sobor, convened in January 1613 (there were representatives from 50 cities and the clergy), immediately decided that a non-Christian should not be elected to the throne. Many worthy people claimed the throne. However, out of everyone, they chose 16-year-old Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, who was not even in Moscow at that moment. But the former Tush residents and Cossacks stood up for him especially zealously and even aggressively. The participants of the Zemsky Sobor were afraid of the latter - everyone knew the irrepressible power of the Cossack freemen. Another candidate for king, one of the leaders of the Militia, Prince D.T. Trubetskoy, tried to please the Cossacks and gain their support. He threw abundant feasts, but received nothing but ridicule from them in return. The Cossacks, who boldly walked around Moscow in armed crowds, looked at Mikhail as the son of the “Tushino patriarch” Filaret, who was close to them, believing that he would be obedient to their leaders. However, Mikhail suited many others as well - Russian society longed for peace, certainty and mercy. Everyone remembered that Mikhail came from the family of the first wife of Ivan the Terrible, Anastasia, “Golubitsa,” revered for her kindness.

The zemstvo people made the decision to elect Mikhail on February 7, and on February 21, 1613, after a solemn procession through the Kremlin and a prayer service in the Assumption Cathedral, Mikhail was officially elected to the throne. For Trubetskoy, the victory of Mikhail’s party turned out to be a terrible blow. As a contemporary writes, he turned black with grief and fell ill for 3 months. Of course, the crown for Trubetskoy was lost forever. The Council sent a deputation to Kostroma, to Mikhail. Those sent on behalf of the whole earth called the young man to the kingdom.

By the time the deputation arrived in Kostroma, Mikhail and his mother, nun Martha, lived in the Ipatiev Monastery. This ancient monastery was founded in 1330, when the noble Tatar Chet camped near Kostroma. At night he saw the Mother of God. Chet immediately converted to Orthodoxy, and on the site of the miraculous appearance of the Mother of God he founded a monastery called Ipatievsky Trinity. This Tatar Chet, who became Zakhar in Orthodoxy, was the ancestor of Boris Godunov. It was here, on April 14, 1613, that the Moscow delegation met with Martha and her son Mikhail.

Abrahamy Palitsyn, a participant in the embassy, ​​said that the tsar’s mother did not agree for a long time to let her son become king, and she can be understood: although the country was in a terrible situation, Martha, knowing the fate of Mikhail’s predecessors, was very worried about the future of her foolish 16-year-old son. But the deputation begged Marfa Ivanovna so fervently that she finally gave her consent. And on May 2, 1613, Mikhail Fedorovich entered Moscow, and on July 11 he was crowned king.

At first, the young king did not rule independently. The Boyar Duma decided everything for him; behind him stood his relatives who received prominent positions at court; The role of the mother, the “Great Elder” Martha, a strong-willed and stern woman, was also great. She became the abbess of the Kremlin Ascension Monastery. Everyone was waiting for the return of the Tsar’s father, Patriarch Filaret, who was languishing in Polish captivity. But this did not happen soon.

In the winter of 1613, at the time of his election to the kingdom, Mikhail and his mother were in the Romanov family estate near Galich. The Poles, having learned about the election of Mikhail Romanov as king, decided to forestall the envoys of the Zemsky Sobor and capture the young man. The Romanov serf boyar Ivan Susanin, having become the guide of a detachment of Poles who were going to “break” Mikhail’s estate, led the enemies into the forest thicket and thereby destroyed them, but he himself died from their sabers. So Susanin, at the cost of his life, saved for Russia the future tsar, the founder of the dynasty.

Tsar Michael and Patriarch Filaret – father and son in power

In 1618, Prince Vladislav, still laying claim to the Russian throne, again approached Moscow and settled in Tushino. Then the Poles fought their way to Arbat, but were stopped there by Russian regiments. After this, in the village of Deulino near the Trinity-Sergius Monastery on December 1, 1618, Russian and Polish diplomats concluded a truce. And already on June 1, 1619, according to him, an exchange of prisoners took place near Vyazma. Among the people who returned from captivity was the tsar’s father, Patriarch Filaret. They gave him a ceremonial welcome. At Presnya, Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, kneeling, greeted his father, who also knelt before his son, the Tsar.

Patriarch Filaret, a strong and strong-willed man, lived a difficult life full of contradictions. More than once he was in danger - at the court of the half-mad Ivan the Terrible, in the cell of the monastery, where Godunov imprisoned him in 1600, during the time of Shuisky. In 1606, Tsar Vasily, yielding to the opinion of the boyars, agreed to the election of Filaret as patriarch. Then, accusing him of spreading rumors about the rescue of “Tsar Dmitry” from Moscow, he refused to support him.

In October 1608, Filaret was in Rostov and during the capture of the Rostov Kremlin by the troops of the Tushino thief, he was with the city’s defenders in the main cathedral, inspiring them to resist. When the situation of the besieged became hopeless, Filaret came out to meet the besiegers of the cathedral with bread and salt, but the Tushins grabbed him, threw him into a simple cart and took him as a prisoner to their “thieves’ capital.” There he was received by False Dmitry II and made patriarch. Later, during the flight of the Tushins, Filaret was captured by people loyal to Shuisky. He was left in Moscow, but deprived of the patriarchate. Then Filaret actively intrigued against Shuisky, and then openly advocated his overthrow. During the Seven Boyars, Filaret went with a delegation to Sigismund’s camp near Smolensk, where the Poles declared him a prisoner and took him to Poland. The captivity dragged on for 8 years.

From the return of 70-year-old Filaret until his death in 1634, a dual power of father and son (“ruled inseparably”) was established in the country. Philaret was again elected patriarch, and he bore the royal title of “Great Sovereign.” Like a monarch, Filaret received foreign ambassadors and was in charge of the most important state affairs. He had plenty of experience in these matters. Patriarch Filaret ruled prudently, in all government endeavors he sought to achieve the support of Zemsky Councils, which met frequently.
With the help of the “watch,” or census, he carried out the first census of lands after the devastation (“Moscow devastation”) and sought to provide the nobles with estates. It is important that Filaret recognized as legitimate the possessions of those nobles who, during the Time of Troubles, “flying over”, received lands from Shuisky, and from False Dmitry, and from Vladislav, and from other rulers. This reasonable policy calmed society, as did the successful fight against Cossack freemen and robberies.

End of the Troubles, royal weddings

Gradually, life in Russia returned to normal. The Cossack detachments, which so annoyed the authorities, either dispersed after receiving land, or they were defeated in battle by government troops. After the death of False Dmitry II, Ivan Zarutsky became friends with Marina Mnishek. He sent letters throughout the country demanding that he swear allegiance to Marina’s young son, Tsarevich Ivan Dmitrievich. At the end of 1613, in a bloody battle near Voronezh, Zarutsky’s army was defeated, and the ataman, along with Marina and Ivan, fled to Astrakhan. Having captured the city and killed the governor, he wanted to rouse the Nogai Tatars and Volga Cossacks against Russia, and ask for help from the Persian Shah and the Turkish Sultan. Here the government acted immediately - the archers suddenly besieged Astrakhan. Taken by surprise by the arrival of the Moscow regiments, the Cossacks acted in accordance with their ancestral customs. In exchange for pardon, they captured and handed over Zarutsky, Marina and Ivan to the authorities. Zarutsky was impaled, and 4-year-old Ivan was hanged in Moscow. Marina died in prison from illness and melancholy.

Having become in power, Filaret wanted to strengthen the position of the new dynasty with the successful marriage of Mikhail. At first, he looked for a bride for his son abroad. Russian diplomats failed to woo the niece of the Danish king Christian, as well as the relative of the Swedish king Gustav II Adolf. The mandatory conversion of the bride to Orthodoxy did not suit the Lutheran kings.

Then they turned to Russian beauties. Marya Khlopova was a bride for a long time. Usually there was a struggle around the choice of a bride - after all, the queen’s relatives flew very high. Therefore, it is not surprising that Marya, who once overate sweets and suffered from stomach pain, was slandered before the king, saying that she was terminally ill. Mikhail immediately renounced his bride. Of the many girls, he chose Marya Dolgorukaya, but a year later the young queen died - someone poisoned her. Finally, in 1626, Mikhail had a magnificent wedding with Evdokia Lukyanovna Streshneva, a beautiful but humble noble daughter, who became the mother of 10 of his children.

Line UMK I. L. Andreeva, O. V. Volobueva. History (6-10)

Russian history

How did Mikhail Romanov end up on the Russian throne?

On July 21, 1613, in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, Michael’s crowning ceremony took place, marking the founding of the new ruling dynasty of the Romanovs. The ceremony, which took place in the Assumption Cathedral in the Kremlin, was carried out completely out of order. The reasons for this lay in the Time of Troubles, which disrupted all plans: Patriarch Filaret (by coincidence, the father of the future king), was captured by the Poles, the second head of the Church after him, Metropolitan Isidore, was in territory occupied by the Swedes. As a result, the wedding was performed by Metropolitan Ephraim, the third hierarch of the Russian Church, while the other heads gave their blessing.

So, how did it happen that Mikhail ended up on the Russian throne?

Events in the Tushino camp

On March 12, 1610, Russian troops solemnly entered Moscow under the leadership of the talented and young commander M. V. Skopin-Shuisky, the Tsar’s nephew. There was a chance of completely defeating the forces of the impostor, and then liberating the country from the troops of Sigismund III. However, on the eve of the Russian troops setting out on a campaign (April 1610), Skopin-Shuisky was poisoned at a feast and died two weeks later.

Alas, already on June 24, 1610, the Russians were completely defeated by Polish troops. At the beginning of July 1610, the troops of Zholkiewski approached Moscow from the west, and the troops of False Dmitry II again approached from the south. In this situation, on July 17, 1610, through the efforts of Zakhary Lyapunov (brother of the rebellious Ryazan nobleman P. P. Lyapunov) and his supporters, Shuisky was overthrown and on July 19, he was forcibly tonsured a monk (in order to prevent him from becoming king again in the future). Patriarch Hermogenes did not recognize this tonsure.

Seven Boyars

The balance of forces in the capital in July - August 1610 was as follows. Patriarch Hermogenes and his supporters opposed both the impostor and any foreigner on the Russian throne. Possible candidates were Prince V.V. Golitsyn or 14-year-old Mikhail Romanov, son of Metropolitan Philaret (former Patriarch of Tushino). This is how the name M.F. was heard for the first time. Romanova. Most of the boyars, led by Mstislavsky, nobles and merchants were in favor of inviting Prince Vladislav. They, firstly, did not want to have any of the boyars as king, remembering the unsuccessful experience of the reign of Godunov and Shuisky, secondly, they hoped to receive additional benefits and benefits from Vladislav, and thirdly, they feared ruin when the impostor ascended the throne. The lower classes of the city sought to place False Dmitry II on the throne.

On August 17, 1610, the Moscow government concluded an agreement with Hetman Zholkiewski on the terms of inviting the Polish prince Vladislav to the Russian throne. Sigismund III, under the pretext of unrest in Russia, did not let his son go to Moscow. In the capital, Hetman A. Gonsevsky gave orders on his behalf. The Polish king, possessing significant military strength, did not want to fulfill the conditions of the Russian side and decided to annex the Moscow state to his crown, depriving it of political independence. The boyar government was unable to prevent these plans, and a Polish garrison was brought into the capital.

Liberation from Polish-Lithuanian invaders

You can read more about this episode in the material: "".

In the second half of November, letters were sent to many cities with a request to send them to the capital by December 6 “ for state and zemstvo affairs"ten good people. Among them could be abbots of monasteries, archpriests, townspeople, and even black-growing peasants. They all had to be " reasonable and consistent", capable of " talk about state affairs freely and fearlessly, without any cunning».

Who did they want to choose as king?

It was proposed to place some foreign prince on the Moscow throne, but the majority of the council participants resolutely declared that they were categorically against the Gentiles “because of their untruth and crime on the cross.” They also objected to Marina Mnishek and the son of False Dmitry II Ivan - they called them “the thieves’ queen” and “the little crow.”

Why did the Romanovs have an advantage? Kinship issues

Voters expressed their decision as follows:

« We came to the general idea of ​​electing a relative of the righteous and great sovereign, the Tsar and Grand Duke, blessed in memory Fyodor Ivanovich of all Russia, so that it would be eternally and permanently the same as under him, the great sovereign, the Russian kingdom shone before all states like the sun and expanded on all sides, and many surrounding sovereigns became subject to him, the sovereign, in allegiance and obedience, and there was no blood or war under him, the sovereign - all of us under his royal power lived in peace and prosperity».

It can be assumed that most of the participants in the cathedral had never seen Michael, who was distinguished by his modesty and quiet disposition, and had not heard anything about him before. Since childhood, he had to experience many adversities. In 1601, at the age of four, he was separated from his parents and, together with his sister Tatyana, was sent to Belozersk prison. Only a year later, the emaciated and ragged prisoners were transferred to the village of Klin, Yuryevsky district, where they were allowed to live with their mother. Real liberation occurred only after the accession of False Dmitry I. In the summer of 1605, the Romanovs returned to the capital, to their boyar house on Varvarka. Filaret, by the will of the impostor, became the Metropolitan of Rostov, Ivan Nikitich received the rank of boyar, and Mikhail, due to his young age, was enlisted as a steward. The future tsar had to go through new tests during the Time of Troubles. In 1611 - 1612, towards the end of the siege of Kitai-Gorod and the Kremlin by militias, Mikhail and his mother had no food at all, so they even had to eat grass and tree bark. The elder sister Tatyana could not survive all this and died in 1611 at the age of 18. Mikhail miraculously survived, but his health was severely damaged. Due to scurvy, he gradually developed a disease in his legs.
Among the close relatives of the Romanovs were the princes Shuisky, Vorotynsky, Sitsky, Troekurov, Shestunov, Lykov, Cherkassky, Repnin, as well as the boyars Godunov, Morozov, Saltykov, Kolychev. All together they formed a powerful coalition at the sovereign’s court and were not averse to placing their protege on the throne.

Announcement of the election of Michael as Tsar: details

The representative embassy went to the chosen one only on March 2. It was headed by Archbishop Theodoret and boyar F.I. Sheremetev. They had to inform Mikhail and his mother of the decision of the Zemsky Sobor, obtain their consent to “sit on the kingdom” and bring the chosen ones to Moscow.

Sources:

1. Morozova L.E. Election to the kingdom // Russian history. - 2013. - No. 1. - P. 40-45.
2. Danilov A.G. New phenomena in the organization of power in Russia during the Time of Troubles // Questions of history. - 2013. - No. 11. - P. 78-96.

Russia rarely remembers this tsar. Essentially, once every hundred years, when the anniversaries of the Romanov dynasty are celebrated.

So, on February 21 (as it is considered according to the new style - March 3), the Zemsky Sobor elects a new tsar - Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. The chosen one was sixteen years old. He had a chance to reign for a long time, like in a fairy tale - thirty years and three years. Those were difficult years of the re-strengthening of the Moscow state. That Holy Rus' that we know from folklore - with towers, temples, with solemn royal and boyar vestments - is precisely the era of the first Romanovs, Mikhail and Alexei. Moscow aesthetics has become classic and cherished for our country.

The magnificent vestments of Ivan the Terrible and Theodore Ioannovich were put on a beardless young man, somewhat confused...

The timidity and indecisiveness, so natural for a young man, turned out to be timely for political reality. During the years of overcoming the turmoil, the sovereign’s excessive ambitions would certainly have been detrimental. Sometimes you need to be able to grit your teeth and give in, holding back your pride and ambition. Rus' received a king who could not harm the state, which was recovering from the turmoil.

It is believed that in the first years of his reign, Mikhail Fedorovich was under the influence of his mother, the imperious nun Martha.

The tsar, indeed, surprisingly rarely showed willfulness, and compromises were, at first glance, easy for him. Historian Nikolai Kostomarov complained that there were no bright personalities around the young tsar - entirely limited ignoramuses. “Mikhail himself was by nature of a kind, but, it seems, melancholic disposition, not gifted with brilliant abilities, but not devoid of intelligence; but he did not receive any education and, as they say, upon ascending the throne, he barely knew how to read.” Well, Kostomarov’s optics are eternally derogatory towards Rus'. From his writings it is impossible to understand how such a barbaric state survived and strengthened?

But Tsar Michael began to rule in a desperate situation: the treasury was plundered, the cities were ruined. Why should taxes be collected? How to feed the army? The Council recognized the need for an emergency (in addition to taxes) collection of a fifth of money, and not even from income, but from each property in cities, and from counties - 120 rubles per plow. This burdensome maneuver for the people had to be repeated twice more during the years of Mikhail’s reign. And, although the people were slowly getting richer, each time less money came into the treasury. Apparently, wealthy people have become adept at hiding from this deadly tax.

The people's oath to Tsar Mikhail Romanov. Miniature from "The Book on the Election to the Tsar of the Great Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Duke Mikhail Fedorovich"

In 1620, the government sent out letters in which, under pain of severe punishment, it forbade governors and clerks to take bribes, and city and county residents to give them. Timely action!

The tsar tried in every possible way to support Russian business people and boldly introduced protective measures. But the Russian merchants became impoverished during the years of war: for large projects they had to invite foreigners. The Dutch merchant Vinius set up factories near Tula for casting cannons, cannonballs and making various other things from iron. The government strictly ensured that foreigners did not hide the secrets of their craftsmanship from Russians. At the same time, morals remained strict: for example, noses were cut for using tobacco - just like in our time. Under Tsar Michael, not only military men, not only craftsmen and factory workers were called from abroad: learned people were needed, and in 1639 the famous Holstein scientist Adam Olearius, an astronomer, geographer and geometer, was summoned to Moscow.

In his personal life, the young tsar considered it good to obey his mother - and in vain... This was tragically manifested in the story of his failed marriage with Maria Khlopova, whom Mikhail loved, but twice upset the wedding, succumbing to the intrigues of relatives. Martha found a more suitable bride for her son, as it seemed to her, Maria Dolgorukaya. But she fell mortally ill a week after the wedding - and this was seen as God’s punishment for the cruel insult inflicted on the innocent Khlopova...

In 1619, Filaret (Fyodor) Romanov, the patriarch and “great sovereign,” returned to Rus' from Polish captivity. He became his son's co-ruler - and the revival of Rus' after the Troubles was largely the merit of Patriarch Filaret.

No matter how peace-loving young Mikhail was, Rus' waged wars incessantly. It was necessary to calm the Swedes, calm the raging Cossacks, and return Smolensk from the Poles.

First, troops under the leadership of D. M. Cherkassky were sent against the Poles, D. T. Trubetskoy went against the Swedes near Novgorod, and I. N. Odoevsky went south near Astrakhan, against Zarutsky. The main problem could not be solved: Smolensk remained in the power of the Poles.

Mikhail himself was not in the mood for military feats. But, like Tsar Theodore Ioannovich, he attended divine services every day, went on pilgrimages several times a year, toured monasteries, and participated in public church ceremonies.

The English king took on the role of mediator in negotiations between Russia and Sweden, and in February 1617 the Stolbovo Peace Treaty was signed. According to it, Russia lost the entire Baltic coast, for which there was a struggle throughout the entire 16th century, but received back the original Russian lands, including Novgorod, which was vital for the kingdom.

At the same time, when the British turned to Mikhail with a request for permission to travel through Russian territory to Persia for trade, he, after consulting with the merchants, refused... The British did not want to pay the duty: and the tsar had enough restraint to show inflexibility. Trade with Persia was of interest to both the French and the Dutch. The French ambassadors turned to Mikhail Fedorovich with the following proposal:

“The royal majesty is the ruler over the eastern country and over the Greek faith, and Louis, the king of France, is the ruler in the southern country, and when the king is in friendship and alliance with the king, then the royal enemies will lose much power; The German Emperor is at one with the Polish King - so the Tsar must be at one with the French King. The French king and royal majesty are glorious everywhere, there are no other such great and strong sovereigns, their subjects are obedient to them in everything, not like the English and the Brabantians; “They do whatever they want, they buy cheap goods from Spanish soil and sell them to the Russians at high prices, and the French will sell everything cheap.”

Despite these well-formulated promises, the boyars refused to allow Persian trade to the ambassador, noting that the French could buy Persian goods from Russian merchants.

The Dutch and Danish ambassadors received the same refusal. This was the policy of Tsar Michael.

The development of Siberia continued. In 1618, Russian people reached the Yenisei and founded the future Krasnoyarsk. In 1622, an archdiocese was established in Tobolsk, which was growing rich.

In 1637, the Cossacks, under the leadership of Ataman Mikhail Tatarinov, captured Azov, a strategically important Turkish fortress at the mouth of the Don. The Cossacks were initially only three thousand people with four falconets (a type of small-caliber cannon), while the Azov garrison numbered four thousand Janissaries, had powerful artillery, large supplies of food, gunpowder and other things necessary for long-term defense. After a two-month siege, the Cossacks, numbering a little more than three thousand, launched an attack and took the fortress by storm, completely destroying the Turkish garrison.

The Cossacks quickly settled in Azov, restored the buildings, organized the defense of the fortress, and sent ambassadors to Moscow to beat the Sovereign of All Rus' and ask Him to accept Azov-grad under His high hand.

But Moscow was in no hurry to rejoice: the capture of Azov inevitably led to war with Turkey, which at that time was the most powerful state in the world. “You, atamans and Cossacks, did not do this by deed, that you beat the Turkish ambassador with all the people without permission. Nowhere is it being done to beat ambassadors; although where there is war between sovereigns, even here the ambassadors do their job, and no one beats them. You took Azov without our royal command, and you didn’t send good atamans and Cossacks to us, who to really ask how things should go forward,” was the royal answer.

Undoubtedly, it was beneficial for Moscow to take possession of Azov: from here it was possible to keep the Crimean Tatars at bay, but the tsar did not want a war with the Sultan and hastened to send him a letter. It, by the way, said: “You, our brother, should not hold annoyance and dislike for us because the Cossacks killed your envoy and took Azov: they did this without our command, without permission, and we are not in any way for such thieves.” We stand, and we don’t want any quarrel for them, although order all their thieves to be beaten in one hour; Your Sultan Majesty and I want to be in strong brotherly friendship and love.”

To the demand of the Turkish ambassadors to return Azov, Mikhail Fedorovich replied that the Cossacks, although they are Russian people, are free, do not obey him, and he has no power over them, and if the Sultan wants, then let him punish them as best he can. From June 24, 1641 to September 26, 1642, that is, the Turks besieged Azov for more than a year. Tens of thousands of Turks met their end near Azov. Exhausted from desperate attempts to defeat the Cossacks, they lifted the siege and went home.

At the Zemsky Sobor, elected people expressed their intention to accept Azov. But the final word remained with the political elite and, of course, with the autocrat.

And yet, Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, wanting to avoid war with Turkey, was forced to give up the glorious fortress. On April 30, 1642, the Tsar sent the Cossacks an order to leave Azov. They destroyed it to the ground, left no stone unturned and retreated with their heads held high. When the huge Turkish army came to take Azov from the Cossacks, they saw only piles of ruins. The Russian ambassadors sent to Constantinople were ordered to tell the Sultan: “You yourself truly know that the Don Cossacks have long been thieves, fugitive slaves, live on the Don, having escaped from the death penalty, do not obey the royal command in anything, and Azov was taken without the royal command “, the Tsar’s Majesty did not send them help, the Emperor will not stand forward for them and help them - he does not want any quarrel because of them.”

The autocrat went to great lengths to maintain balance in the country, so as not to plunge the kingdom into a bloody war. It is a pity that the country could not support the feat of the Cossacks, but in a strategic sense the tsar was not mistaken. And in the people's memory, the capture of Azov and the heroic “sitting” under siege remained as the most striking event of the times of Tsar Mikhail. Feat!

A new war with the Poles for Smolensk began in 1632 with success: twenty cities surrendered to the army led by Mikhail Shein. There were many foreign mercenaries in this army. But the Poles soon came to their senses and, with the help of the Crimean hordes, demoralized the Russian army. The army could not withstand the long siege: illnesses, desertions, and bloody squabbles began between officers, including foreign ones. The Poles managed to strike in the rear and destroy the convoys in Dorogobuzh...

In the end, Shein and the second governor Izmailov had their heads cut off: the unlucky commanders were accused of treason. At the new negotiations, the Poles remembered the long-standing oath of the Russian boyars to King Vladislav... Under the new agreement, the Poles renounced their claims to the Moscow throne. The war did not lead to anything: Rus' conquered only one city - Serpeisk. True, the regiments of the new formation performed well in combat operations - and their formation was continued.

They said about Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich: “He can’t do anything without the boyar council.” The events of the time of troubles led Rus' to the realization of a simple truth: it is impossible to rule the kingdom alone. It was Romanov who first tried to impose collective management. First of all, with the help of the boyars. But he did not forget about the nobles and merchants. And the Zemsky Sobor convened more than once... In a word, it tried to rely on its subjects, and not hold them in a clenched fist.

In his third marriage, the king found personal happiness and became the father of many children. The main event in his family life was the birth of an heir - his eldest son Alexei. The tsar's life took place in the atmosphere of the Old Russian court - a peculiarly sophisticated one.

In the palace there was an organ with a nightingale and a cuckoo singing in their own voices. Organist Ansu Lun was ordered to teach the Russian people how to make such “stirrups.” The Tsar was entertained by guslar players, violinists, and storytellers. He loved to visit the menagerie and the kennel yard, and took care of the gardens.

In April 1645, Mikhail Fedorovich became seriously ill. He was treated by foreign doctors. In June the patient felt better. It was June 12th, the day of remembrance of St. Michael Malein and the royal name day. The pious sovereign wanted to celebrate matins in the Annunciation Cathedral, but during the service he fainted, and he was carried in his arms to the bedchamber. The next night, “having realized his departure to God,” the king called the queen, his son Alexei, the patriarch and his fellow boyars. Having said goodbye to the queen, he blessed Tsarevich Alexei for the kingdom and, having received the holy mysteries, died quietly. He was buried, like almost all Moscow sovereigns, in the Kremlin Archangel Cathedral.