Civil uprising. Second militia

Second people's (Nizhny Novgorod) militia, second zemstvo militia- the militia, which arose in September 1611 in Nizhny Novgorod to fight the Polish invaders. It continued to actively form on its way from Nizhny Novgorod to Moscow, mainly in Yaroslavl in April - July 1612. It consisted of detachments of townspeople, peasants of the central and northern regions of Russia, non-Russian peoples of the Volga region. The leaders are Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky. In August 1612, with part of the forces remaining near Moscow from the First Militia, he defeated the Polish army near Moscow, and in October 1612, completely liberated the capital.

Prerequisites for the creation of the second militia

The initiative to organize the Second People's Militia came from the handicraft and trade people of Nizhny Novgorod, an important economic and administrative center on the Middle Volga. At that time, about 150 thousand males lived in the Nizhny Novgorod district, there were up to 30 thousand households in 600 villages. In Nizhny itself, there were about 3.5 thousand male residents, of which about 2.0 ÷ 2.5 thousand townspeople.

The disastrous situation in the Nizhny Novgorod region

Nizhny Novgorod, in terms of its strategic position, economic and political significance, was one of the key points of the eastern and southeastern regions of Russia. In the conditions of the weakening of the central government, the rulership of the interventionists, this city became the initiator of a nationwide patriotic movement that swept the Upper and Middle Volga regions and neighboring regions of the country. It should be noted that the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod joined the liberation struggle several years before the formation of the second militia.

After the murder of False Dmitry I in May 1606 and the accession of Vasily Shuisky, new rumors began to circulate in Russia about the imminent arrival of the second impostor, who allegedly escaped False Dmitry I. At the end of 1606, large gangs appeared in the Nizhny Novgorod district and adjacent districts, which were engaged in robberies and atrocities. : villages, villages were burned, robbed the inhabitants and forcibly drove them to their camps. This so-called "freeman" in the winter of 1607 occupied Alatyr, drowning the Alatyr governor Saburov in the Sura river, and Arzamas, setting up his base in it.

Upon learning of the plight in the Nizhny Novgorod region, Tsar Vasily Shuisky sent his governors with troops to liberate Arzamas and other cities occupied by the rebels. One of them, Prince I.M. Vorotynsky, defeated the rebel detachments near Arzamas, took the city and cleared the areas adjacent to Arzamas from the congregations of freemen.

With the arrival of False Dmitry II on the Russian land, the quieted freemen again intensified, especially since a part of the boyars of the Moscow and district nobility and the children of the boyars went over to the side of the new impostor. The Mordovians, Chuvashs and Cheremis rebelled. Many cities also sided with the impostor and tried to persuade Nizhny Novgorod to do so. But Nizhniy stood firmly on the side of Tsar Shuisky and did not betray his oath. Moreover, when at the end of 1608 the inhabitants of the city of Balakhna, having betrayed their oath to Tsar Shuisky, attacked Nizhny Novgorod (December 2), the governor A.S. Balakhna. The leaders of the rebels Timofey Taskaev, Kukhtin, Surovtsev, Redrikov, Luka Blue, Semyon Dolgiy, Ivan Gridenkov and the traitor, the Balakhna voivode Golenishchev, were captured and hanged. Alyabyev, barely having time to return to Nizhny, again entered into a fight with a new detachment of rebels who attacked the city on December 5. Having defeated this detachment, he then took possession of Vorsma's nest of rebels, burned it (see Battle of Vorsma) and again defeated the rebels at the Pavlovsky prison, taking many prisoners.

In early January 1609, Nizhny was attacked by the troops of False Dmitry II under the command of the governor of Prince S. Yu. Vyazemsky and Timofey Lazarev. Vyazemsky sent a letter to the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod, in which he wrote that if the city did not surrender, then all the townspeople would be exterminated, and the city would be burned to the ground. The citizens of Nizhny Novgorod did not give an answer, but decided to make a sortie, despite the fact that Vyazemsky had more troops. Thanks to the suddenness of the attack, the troops of Vyazemsky and Lazarev were defeated, and they themselves were taken prisoner and sentenced to be hanged. Then Alyabyev freed Murom from the rebels, where he remained as the Tsar's governor, and Vladimir. Alyabyev's successes had important consequences, as they instilled in people the belief in a successful struggle against the Pretender and foreign invaders. A number of cities, counties and volosts abandoned the Pretender and began to unite in the struggle for the liberation of Russia.

Collapse of the First Militia

The upsurge of the national liberation movement in 1611 resulted in the creation of the first people's militia, its actions and the March uprising of Muscovites, led by the governor of Zaraysk, Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Pozharsky. The failure of the first militia did not weaken this rise, but, on the contrary, strengthened it. Many of the early militias already had experience fighting invaders. The inhabitants of cities, counties and volosts that did not submit to impostors and interventionists also had this experience. And it is no coincidence, in connection with the above, that it is Nizhny Novgorod that becomes the stronghold of the further national liberation struggle of the Russian people for their independence and the outpost of the creation of the second people's militia.

In the summer of 1611, confusion reigned in the country. In Moscow, all affairs were carried out by the Poles, and the boyars - the rulers from the "Seven Boyars", sent letters to cities, districts and volosts with appeals to swear an oath to the Polish prince Vladislav. Patriarch Hermogenes, being imprisoned, advocated the unification of the country's liberation forces, punishing not to obey the orders of the commanders of the Moscow Region Cossack regiments of Prince DT Trubetskoy and Ataman I. M. Zarutsky. Archimandrite of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery Dionysius, on the contrary, called on everyone to unite around Trubetskoy and Zarutsky. It was at this time in Nizhny Novgorod that a new upsurge of the patriotic movement arose, which already had its own tradition and again found support in the townspeople and service people and the local peasantry. A powerful impetus to this popular movement was the diploma of Patriarch Hermogenes, received by the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod on August 25, 1611. The fearless old man from the dungeon of the Chudov Monastery appealed to the people of Nizhny Novgorod to stand up for the holy cause of liberating Russia from foreign invaders.

The role of Kuzma Minin in organizing the second militia

An outstanding role in organizing this movement was played by the Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo headman Kuzma Minin, who was elected to this position in early September 1611. According to historians, Minin began his famous calls for a liberation struggle first among the townspeople, who warmly supported him. Then he was supported by the city council of Nizhny Novgorod, governors, clergy and service people. By decision of the city council, a general meeting of Nizhny Novgorod residents was appointed. Residents of the city gathered at the bell ringing in the Kremlin, in the Transfiguration Cathedral. First, a service took place, after which Archpriest Savva delivered a sermon, and then Minin addressed the people with an appeal to stand up for the liberation of the Russian state from foreign enemies. Not limiting themselves to voluntary contributions, the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod accepted the “verdict” of the entire city that all residents of the city and the district “for the construction of military men” must give part of their property without fail. Minin was instructed to lead the collection of funds and their distribution among the warriors of the future militia.

The commander of the second militia, Prince Pozharsky

The "elected man" Kuzma Minin, in his appeal, raised the question of choosing the commander of the future militia. At the next gathering, Nizhny Novgorod residents decided to ask Prince Pozharsky to lead the militia, whose family estate was located in the Nizhny Novgorod district 60 km from Nizhny Novgorod to the west, where he was healing his wounds after being seriously wounded on March 20, 1611 in Moscow. The prince, in all his qualities, was suitable for the role of a militia commander. He was a noble family - Rurikovich in the twentieth generation. In 1608, being a regimental commander, he smashed the congregations of the Tushino impostor near Kolomna; in 1609 he defeated the gangs of ataman Salkov; in 1610, during the dissatisfaction of the Ryazan governor Prokopiy Lyapunov with the tsar of Shuisky, he retained the city of Zaraysk in loyalty to the tsar; in March 1611 he valiantly fought the enemies of the Fatherland in Moscow and was seriously wounded. The people of Nizhny Novgorod were also impressed by such features of the prince as honesty, disinterestedness, fairness in making decisions, decisiveness, balance and thoughtfulness of their actions. The people of Nizhniy Novgorod went to see him “many times so that I could go to Nizhniy for the Zemstvo Council,” as the prince himself said. According to the etiquette of the time, Pozharsky refused for a long time to offer from Nizhny Novgorod residents. And only when a delegation from Nizhny Novgorod, headed by Archimandrite of the Ascension-Pechersky Monastery Theodosius, came to him, then Pozharsky agreed to lead the militia, but with one condition that Minin was in charge of all economic affairs in the militia, who was awarded the title of “ an elected person by the whole earth. "

The beginning of the organization of the second militia

Pozharsky arrived in Nizhny Novgorod on October 28, 1611 and immediately, together with Minin, began organizing the militia. There were about 750 soldiers in the Nizhny Novgorod garrison. Then they invited servicemen from Smolensk from Arzamas, who were expelled from Smolensk after its occupation by the Poles. The residents of Vyazma and Dorogobuzh, who also joined the militia, found themselves in a similar situation. The militia immediately grew to three thousand people. All the militias received good support: the servicemen of the first article were given a salary of 50 rubles a year, the second article - 45 rubles, the third - 40 rubles, but there was no salary less than 30 rubles a year. The fact that the militia had a permanent monetary allowance attracted new servicemen from all the surrounding regions to the militia. Kolomentians, Ryazanians, Cossacks and archers came from Ukrainian cities, etc.

Good organization, especially the collection and distribution of funds, the establishment of your own office, the establishment of contacts with many cities and regions, their involvement in the affairs of the militia - all this led to the fact that, unlike the First Militia, in the Second, from the very beginning, the unity of goals and actions was established. Pozharsky and Minin continued to collect the treasury and warriors, turn to different cities for help, sent them letters with appeals: “... to be for all of us, Orthodox Christians, in love and in union and do not create the former internecine relations, and the Moscow state from our enemies ... to cleanse unremittingly until his death, and robberies and taxes to Orthodox Christianity are by no means repaired, and by their own tyranny the sovereign should not rob the Moscow state without advice ”(a letter from Nizhny Novgorod to Vologda and Salt Vychegodskaya in early December 1611). The authorities of the Second Militia actually began to carry out the functions of a government opposing the Moscow “seven-boyars” and independent from the authorities of the Moscow region “camps” led by DT Trubetskoy and II Zarutsky. The original militia government formed during the winter of 1611-1612. as the "Council of All the Earth". It included the leaders of the militia, members of the city council of Nizhny Novgorod, representatives of other cities. Finally, it took shape when the second militia was in Yaroslavl and after the "cleansing" of Moscow from the Poles.

The government of the Second Militia had to act in a difficult situation. Not only the interventionists and their henchmen looked at him with apprehension, but also the Moscow "seven-boyars" and the leaders of the Cossack freemen, Zarutsky and Trubetskoy. All of them posed various obstacles to Pozharsky and Minin. But they, in spite of everything, strengthened their position with their organized work. Relying on all strata of society, especially the district nobility and townspeople, they put things in order in the cities and districts of the north and north-east, receiving in return new militias and the treasury. The detachments of the princes DP Lopaty-Pozharsky and RP Pozharsky, sent by him in time, occupied Yaroslavl and Suzdal, not allowing the detachments of the Prosovetsky brothers there.

The march of the second militia

The second militia marched on Moscow from Nizhny Novgorod in late February - early March 1612 through Balakhna, Timonkino, Sitskoye, Yuryevets, Reshma, Kineshma, Kostroma, Yaroslavl. In Balakhna and Yuryevets, the militias were greeted with great honor. They received replenishment and a large treasury. In Reshma, Pozharsky learned about the oath of Pskov and the Cossack leaders Trubetskoy and Zarutsky to a new impostor, the fugitive monk Isidor. Kostroma voivode I.P. Sheremetev did not want to let the militia into the city. Having displaced Sheremetev and appointing a new governor in Kostroma, the militias entered Yaroslavl in early April 1612. Here the militia stood for four months, until the end of July 1612. In Yaroslavl, the composition of the government - the "Council of All Land" was finally determined. It also included representatives of noble princely families - the Dolgoruky, Kurakin, Buturlins, Sheremetevs, and others. The Council was headed by Pozharsky and Minin. Since Minin was illiterate, Pozharsky put his signature on the letters instead: “Prince Dmitriy Pozharskaya put his hand in Minin’s place in Kozmin as an elected man”. The diplomas were signed by all members of the "Council of All Land". And since at that time "localism" was strictly observed, Pozharsky's signature was in tenth place, and Minin - in fifteenth.

In Yaroslavl, the militia government continued to pacify cities and counties, liberate them from the Polish-Lithuanian detachments, from the Zarutsky Cossacks, depriving the latter of material and military assistance from the eastern, northeastern and northern regions. At the same time, it took diplomatic steps to neutralize Sweden, which had seized the Novgorod lands, through negotiations on the candidacy for the Russian throne of Karl-Philip, brother of the Swedish king Gustav-Adolf. At the same time, Prince Pozharsky held diplomatic negotiations with Joseph Gregory, the ambassador of the German emperor, about the emperor's assistance to the militia in the liberation of the country, He, in return, offered Pozharsky a cousin of the emperor, Maximilian, as Russian tsars. Subsequently, these two pretenders to the Russian throne were refused. "Standing" in Yaroslavl and the measures taken by the "Council of All Earth", by Minin and Pozharsky themselves, yielded results. The Second Militia was joined by a large number of towns and cities near Moscow with counties, Pomorie and Siberia. Government agencies functioned: the orders of Pomestny, Razryadny, Posolsky worked under the Council of All Land. Order was gradually established on an increasingly significant territory of the state. Gradually, with the help of militia units, she was cleared of the gangs of thieves. The militia army already numbered up to ten thousand warriors, well armed and trained. The militia authorities were also involved in day-to-day administrative and judicial work (appointing voivods, keeping rank books, analyzing complaints, petitions, etc.). All this gradually stabilized the situation in the country and led to a revival of economic activity.

At the beginning of the month, the militias received news of the advance towards Moscow of a 12,000-strong detachment of Hetman Khodkevich with a large baggage train. Pozharsky and Minin immediately sent detachments of M.S.Dmitriev and Lopaty-Pozharsky to the capital, which approached Moscow on July 24 and August 2, respectively. Upon learning of the arrival of the militia, Zarutsky with his Cossack detachment fled to Kolomna, and then to Astrakhan, since before that he had sent assassins to Prince Pozharsky, but the attempt failed, and Zarutsky's plans were revealed.

Speech from Yaroslavl

The second people's militia set out from Yaroslavl to Moscow on July 28, 1612. The first stop was six or seven miles from the city. The second, on July 29, 26 versts from Yaroslavl on Sheputsky-Yama, from where the militia army went further to Rostov the Great with Prince I.A. pray and bow to the parents' tombs. " Having caught up with the army in Rostov, Pozharsky made a stop for several days to collect the warriors who had arrived in the militia from different cities. On August 14, the militia arrived at the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, where they were joyfully greeted by the clergy. On August 18, after listening to a prayer service, the militia moved from the Trinity-Sergius Monastery to Moscow, not reaching which five miles, spent the night on the Yauza River. The next day, August 19, Prince D.T. Pozharsky did not accept his invitation, as he feared enmity from the Cossacks towards the militia, and stood up with his militia at the Arbat Gate, from where hetman Chodkevich was expected to attack. On August 20, Khodkevich was already on Poklonnaya Hill. Together with him came the detachments of the Hungarians and Little Russian Cossacks.

Liberation of Moscow

However, not all of Moscow was liberated from the invaders. There were still the Polish detachments of Colonels Struus and Budila, who settled in Kitai-Gorod and the Kremlin. The traitors to the boyars with their families also took refuge in the Kremlin. The future Russian sovereign Mikhail Romanov with his mother, nun Martha Ivanovna, was also in the Kremlin. Knowing that the besieged Poles were suffering a terrible famine, Pozharsky at the end of September 1612 sent them a letter in which he suggested that the Polish knighthood surrender. "Your heads and life will be saved to you," he wrote, "I will take this on my soul and ask the consent of all military people to do this." To which an arrogant and boastful response followed from the Polish colonels with a refusal to Pozharsky's offer.

On October 22, 1612, Kitai-Gorod was taken by an assault by Russian troops, but there were still Poles left in the Kremlin. Hunger there intensified to such an extent that boyar families and all civilians were driven out of the Kremlin, and the Poles themselves reached the point where they began to eat human flesh.

Historian Kazimierz Waliszewski wrote about Pozharsky's soldiers besieged by Pozharsky:

Pozharsky offered the besieged a free exit with banners and weapons, but without looted treasures. They preferred to eat prisoners and each other, but did not want to part with the money. Pozharsky with his regiment stood on the Stone Bridge at the Trinity Gate of the Kremlin to meet the boyar families and protect them from the Cossacks. On October 26, the Poles surrendered and left the Kremlin. Wake up and his regiment fell into the camp of Pozharsky, and everyone survived. Later they were deported to Nizhny Novgorod. The stream with the regiment fell to Trubetskoy, and all the Poles were exterminated by the Cossacks. On October 27, the solemn entrance to the Kremlin of the troops of the princes Pozharsky and Trubetskoy was appointed. When the troops gathered at the Execution Ground, Archimandrite of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery Dionysius performed a solemn prayer service in honor of the victory of the militia. After that, to the ringing of bells, the winners, accompanied by the people, entered the Kremlin with banners and banners.

This was the end of the cleansing of Moscow and the Moscow state from foreign invaders.

Historiography

The Nizhny Novgorod militia is traditionally an important element of Russian historiography. One of the most thorough studies is the work of P. G. Lyubomirov. The only work that describes in detail the initial period of the struggle of the Nizhny Novgorod people (1608-1609) is the fundamental work of S.F. Platonov on the history of the Troubles.

In fiction

The events of 1611-1612 are described in the popular historical novel by MN Zagoskin Yuri Miloslavsky, or Russians in 1612.

Memory

• On February 20, 1818, a monument to the leaders of the second people's militia - Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky - was unveiled in Moscow.
• On December 27, 2004, a state holiday was established in the Russian Federation - National Unity Day. The explanatory note to the draft law on the establishment of the holiday noted:

• On November 4, 2005, a monument to Minin and Pozharsky by Zurab Tsereteli was unveiled in Nizhny Novgorod - a reduced (by 5 cm) copy of the Moscow monument. It is installed under the walls of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, near the Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist. According to the conclusion of historians and experts, in 1611 Kuzma Minin from the porch of this church called on the people of Nizhny Novgorod to gather and equip the people's militia to defend Moscow from the Poles. The inscription on the Nizhny Novgorod monument is preserved, but without indicating the year.

The Second Militia of 1612 was led by the Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo headman Kuzma Minin, who invited Prince Pozharsky to lead the military operations. An important thing that Pozharsky and Minin were able to accomplish was the organization and rallying of all patriotic forces. In February 1612, the militia moved to Yaroslavl to occupy this important point, where many roads crossed. Yaroslavl was busy; the militia stood here for four months, because it was necessary to "build" not only the army, but also the "land." Pozharsky wanted to convene a "general zemstvo council" to discuss plans to combat the Polish-Lithuanian intervention and how "how can we not be stateless in the current evil time and choose a sovereign with all our land." For discussion, the candidacy of the Swedish prince Karl-Philip was also proposed, who "wants to be baptized into our Orthodox faith of the Greek law." However, the Zemstvo Council did not take place.

Meanwhile, the first militia had completely disintegrated. Ivan Zarutsky and his supporters went to Kolomna, and from there to Astrakhan. After them, several hundred more Cossacks left, but the bulk of them, led by Prince Trubetskoy, remained to hold the siege of Moscow.

In August 1612, the militia of Minin and Pozharsky entered Moscow and united with the remnants of the first militia. On August 22, Hetman Chodkevich tried to break through to help the besieged compatriots, but after three days of fighting he was forced to retreat with heavy losses.

On September 22, 1612, one of the bloodiest events of the Troubles takes place - the city of Vologda was taken by the Poles and Cherkasy (Cossacks), who destroyed almost all of its population, including the monks of the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery.

On October 22, 1612, the militia led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky took Kitai-Gorod by storm; the garrison of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth retreated to the Kremlin. Prince Pozharsky entered Kitai-Gorod with the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and vowed to build a temple in memory of this victory.

The Poles held out in the Kremlin for another month; to get rid of unnecessary mouths, they ordered the boyars and all Russian people to send their wives out of the Kremlin. The boyars strongly embarrassed and sent to Pozharsky Minin and all the military people with a request that they should come and receive their wives without shame. Pozharsky ordered to tell them to let their wives out without fear, and he himself went to receive them, received everyone honestly and took each one to his friend, ordering everyone to please them.

Driven to the extreme by hunger, the Poles finally entered into negotiations with the militia, demanding only one thing, so that their lives were spared, which was promised. First, the boyars were released - Fyodor Ivanovich Mstislavsky, Ivan Mikhailovich Vorotynsky, Ivan Nikitich Romanov with his nephew Mikhail Fedorovich and the mother of the latter, Martha Ivanovna, and all other Russian people. When the Cossacks saw that the boyars had gathered on the Kamenny Bridge, leading from the Kremlin through Neglinnaya, they wanted to rush at them, but were held back by Pozharsky's militia and forced to return to the encampments, after which the boyars were received with great honor. On the next day, the Poles surrendered too: Struz with their regiment went to Trubetskoy's Cossacks, who robbed and beat many prisoners; Budzilo with his regiment was taken to the warriors of Pozharsky, who did not touch a single Pole. The stream was interrogated, Andronov was tortured, how many of the royal treasures were lost, how much was left? They also found the ancient tsarist hats, which were given as a mortgage to the Sapezhins who remained in the Kremlin. On November 27, Trubetskoy's militia converged on the Church of the Kazan Mother of God behind the Intercession Gate, Pozharsky's militia - at the Church of John the Merciful on the Arbat and, taking crosses and icons, moved to Kitai-Gorod from two different sides, accompanied by all Moscow residents; the militias met at the Execution Ground, where the Trinity Archimandrite Dionysius began to serve a prayer service, and from the Frolovskie (Spasskie) Gates, from the Kremlin, another religious procession appeared: the Galasun (Arkhangelsk) Archbishop Arseny was walking along with the Kremlin clergy and carried the Vladimirskaya: screams and sobs were distributed the people who had already lost hope of ever seeing this image, dear for Muscovites and all Russians. After the prayer service, the army and the people moved to the Kremlin, and here joy gave way to sadness when they saw in what position the embittered Gentiles left the churches: everywhere there is impurity, images are cut, eyes are twisted, thrones are stripped; terrible food is prepared in vats - human corpses! Lunch and prayer service in the Assumption Cathedral ended a great popular celebration similar to which our fathers saw exactly two centuries later. "

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1. Definitions of Troubles

   Causes of the Troubles

   Board of False Dmitry

   Semboyarshina

   First militia

   Second militia

   The accession of the Romanovs

   End of intervention

RUSSIAN DISORDERS AND PEOPLE'S SECURITY.

1.1 Definitions of Troubles

The concept of "Troubles" came into historiography from the popular lexicon, meaning, first of all, anarchy and the extreme disorder of social life.

According to K. S. Aksakov and V. O. Klyuchevsky, the problem of the legitimacy of the supreme power was at the center of events. NI Kostomarov reduced the essence of the crisis to the political intervention of Poland and the intrigues of the Catholic Church. A similar view was expressed by the American historian J. Billington - he directly spoke of the Troubles as a religious war. IE Zabelin viewed the Troubles as a struggle between herd and national principles. The representative of the herd principle was the boyars, who sacrificed national interests for the sake of their own privileges. Such a thought was not alien to Klyuchevsky.

A significant block in the historiography of the Troubles is occupied by works, where it is presented as a powerful social conflict. S. F. Platonov saw several levels of this conflict: between the boyars and the nobility, between the landlords and the peasantry, etc. N. N. Firsov in 1927 spoke of the peasant revolution as a reaction to the development of commercial capital.

VB Kobrin defined the Time of Troubles as "the most complex interweaving of various contradictions - class and national, intraclass and interclass".

EndXvi- Xviiv. - the time of the Troubles, the most severe political, social, spiritual, moral crisis that gripped Russian society and put it on the brink of collapse.

1.2 Causes of the Troubles

The most significant causes of the Troubles are associated with the tragic consequences of the oprichnina and the Livonian War: the ruin of the economy, the growth of social tension, a dull ferment of almost all strata of the population. Russian historian S.F. Platonov found precise words to describe the mood that arose in the country: "There was not a single social group that was satisfied with the progress of affairs ... Everything was shaken ... everything lost its stability." The reign of Ivan the Terrible's son Fyodor Ioannovich (1584-1598) did not change the situation for the better: the tsar was sickly and weak, he could not contain the hostility of the boyar groups. The death in Uglich of the youngest son of Ivan the Terrible Dmitry in 1591 deprived the throne of the last legal heir from the Rurik dynasty. Fyodor Ioannovich, who died childless (1598), was its last representative. The Zemsky Sobor elected Boris Godunov (1598-1605) as tsar, who ruled vigorously and, according to historians, wisely. But he did not succeed in stopping the intrigues of the disgruntled boyars. Rumors of the tsar's involvement in the murder of Dmitry agitated the country. The most severe crop failure 1601-1603 and the famine that followed made the explosion of social discontent inevitable.

External reasons were added to the internal ones: the neighboring Rzeczpospolita was in a hurry to take advantage of Russia's growing weakness. The appearance in Poland of a young Galich nobleman, a monk of the Kremlin Chudov Monastery, Grigory Otrepiev, who declared himself "the miraculously saved Tsarevich Dmitry", was a real gift for King SigismundIIIand many tycoons. At the end of 1604, having converted to Catholicism, having achieved the tacit support of SigismundIIIHaving enlisted the help of the Polish tycoon Mnishek (whose daughter Marina was declared his bride), False Dmitry entered the southern regions of Russia. The turmoil began.

1.3 Board of False Dmitry

In the fall of 1604, False Dmitry invaded Russia, many cities in southern Russia go over to the side of the impostor, he is supported by Cossack detachments and thousands of disgruntled peasants. In April 1605, Boris Godunov suddenly dies, and the boyars do not recognize his son Fyodor as tsar; the army under the command of the tsarist governors Basmanov and the Golitsyn goes over to the side of False Dmitry, Fyodor and his mother are strangled. In June, the impostor becomes Tsar DmitryI... His future fate was predetermined: he could not fulfill the promises made to the Poles (to convert Russia to Catholicism, to give Poland significant territories). The boyars no longer needed Otrepiev. On May 17, 1606, the boyars, dissatisfied with the arrogance of the Poles, who had gathered for the wedding of False Dmitry and Marina Mnishek, and with the wedding itself, which presented the royal crown to a Catholic, the boyars revolt.

Muscovites, headed by the Shuisky boyars, killed more than 1,000 Poles. Marina Mnishek was saved by the boyars. She and her entourage were deported to Yaroslavl. False Dmitry, pursued by the rebels, jumped out of the window of the Kremlin palace and was killed. Three days later his corpse was burned, his ashes were put into a cannon, from which they fired in the direction from which the impostor had come.

The Zemsky Sobor elected the boyar Vasily Ivanovich Shuisky as the new tsar; Again rumors are creeping about a new miraculous rescue of Dmitry. In the summer of 1606, an uprising broke out in Putivl, which was joined by very different strata of the population - peasants, townspeople, archers, nobles. The uprising is led by a fugitive military servant Ivan Bolotnikov. The rebels reach Moscow, besiege it, but are defeated (one of the reasons is the transition to the side of the tsar of the nobles, led by the Ryazan governor Procopius Lyapunov). Bolotnikov with his loyal supporters retreated to Tula and for several months resisted the tsarist regiments. In the summer of 1607 the rebels surrendered, Bolotnikov was captured, exiled to Kargopol and killed there.

Confusion, meanwhile, is growing. A new impostor False Dmitry appearsII(there is no exact information about who he was), the surviving participants in the Bolotnikov uprising, the Cossacks led by Ivan Zarutsky, and Polish troops unite around him. Marina Mnishek also recognizes her husband as an impostor. Since June 1608 False DmitryIIsettles in the village of Tushino near Moscow (hence his nickname - "Tushinsky thief") and besieges Moscow. Troubles leads to the actual split of the country: two tsars, two boyar dumas, two patriarchs (Hermogenes in Moscow and Filaret in Tushino), territories that recognize the power of False DmitryII, and territories that remain loyal to Shuisky.

1.4 Seven Boyars

The successes of the Tushenians forced Shuisky in February 1609 to conclude a treaty with Sweden, hostile to Poland. In exchange for the Russian fortress Korela, the tsar receives military aid, the Russian-Swedish army liberates a number of cities in the north of the country. But the participation of the Swedish corps in the Russian events gives the Polish king SigismundIIIa reason to start an open intervention: in the fall of 1609, Polish troops besieged Smolensk. Meanwhile, the actions of the Tushino people (the siege of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, robberies, looting) deprive False DmitryIIsupport of the population. The pretender flees from Tushino, and the Tushin people who left him conclude a treaty with the Polish king at the beginning of 1610 on the election of the prince's eldest son Vladislav to the Russian throne. The Poles, having inflicted a crushing defeat on the tsarist army near the village of Klushino, are rapidly approaching Moscow. In July 1610, the boyars forced Vasily Shuisky to renounce the throne and announced that power was passing to a government of seven boyars - the Seven Boyars.

Seven Boyars in August 1610 signs with SigismundIIIan agreement on the election of Vladislav as tsar on condition that he accepts Orthodoxy. In September, Polish troops enter Moscow.

The turmoil has not been overcome. The Seven Boyars has no real power, Vladislav refuses to comply with the terms of the agreement and accept Orthodoxy. Patriotic sentiments are growing, and calls for an end to strife and the restoration of unity are growing. The center of gravity for patriotic forces is the Moscow patriarch Hermogenes, who calls for a fight against the invaders.

1.5 First Militia

In 1611, the First Militia was created. It is attended by the noble detachments of P. Lyapunov, the Cossacks D. Trubetskoy and I. Zarutsky, former residents of Tushino. A temporary body of power, the "Council of All the Earth", was established. In February of the same year, the militia moved to Moscow. It was headed by the Council of All the Earth. The leading role in the militia was played by the Cossacks under the leadership of Ataman I. Zarutsky and Prince D.T. Trubetskoy and the nobles, headed by P.P. Lyapunov. The militia managed to capture the White City, but the Poles kept Kitay-Gorod and the Kremlin.

The siege of Moscow dragged on. In the camp of the besiegers, contradictions grew between the nobles and the Cossacks. Adopted on June 30, 1611 on the initiative of Lyapunov, "The Verdict of the Whole Land" forbade the appointment of Cossacks to positions in the management system and demanded that fugitive peasants and slaves be returned to the owners. This aroused the indignation of the Cossacks. Lyapunov was killed. In response, the nobles left the militia, and it disintegrated.

Smolensk fell on June 3, 1611. Sigismund announced that not Vladislav, but he himself would become the Russian tsar. This meant that Russia would be included in the Rzeczpospolita. In July, the Swedes captured Novgorod and the adjacent lands.

1.6 Second Militia

In the fall of 1611, at the call of the Nizhny Novgorod merchant headman K.M. Minin, the formation of the Second Militia began. The leading role in it was played by the townspeople. The military leader was Prince D.M. Pozharsky. Minin and Pozharsky headed the Council of the Whole Earth. Funds for arming the militia were obtained through voluntary donations from the population and the mandatory taxation of a fifth of the property. Yaroslavl became the center for the formation of the new militia.

In August 1612, the Second Militia united with the remnants of the First Militia, still besieging Moscow. At the end of August, the militias did not allow the Polish hetman Y.K. to break through to Moscow. Khodkevich, who went to the aid of the garrison with a large baggage train. At the end of October, Moscow was liberated.

1.7 The accession of the Romanovs.

In January 1613, in order to elect a new tsar, the Zemsky Sobor was convened, at which the question of choosing a new Russian tsar was raised. The Polish prince Vladislav, the son of the Swedish king Karl-Philip, the son of False Dmitry, were proposed as candidates for the Russian throne.IIand Marina Mnishek Ivan, nicknamed "Vorenk", as well as representatives of the largest boyar families.

Out of many candidates, the Cathedral chooses Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov, the 16-year-old grand-nephew of the first wife of Ivan the Terrible, Anastasia Romanova, a representative of an old boyar family popular among various strata of the population, with whom hopes of a return to order, peace and antiquity are pinned. An embassy was sent to the Ipatiev Monastery near Kostroma, where Mikhail was at that time with his mother. Mikhail arrived in Moscow, on July 11, he was married to the kingdom. Soon, his father, Patriarch Filaret, who "owned all the affairs of the royal and military," took the leading place in governing the country. Power was restored in the form of an autocratic monarchy. The leaders of the struggle against the interventionists received modest appointments. D.M. Pozharsky was sent by the governor to Mozhaisk, and K. Minin became the Duma governor.

1. End of intervention

The government of Mikhail Fedorovich was faced with the most difficult task - the elimination of the consequences of the intervention. The detachments of the Cossacks that roamed the country and did not recognize the new tsar posed a great danger to him. Among them, the most formidable was Ivan Zarutsky, to whom Marina Mnishek moved with her son. The Yaik Cossacks handed over I. Zarutsky to the Moscow government in 1614. I. Zarutsky and "Voronok" were hanged, and Marina Mnishek was imprisoned in Kolomna, where she probably died soon after.

The Swedes were another danger. After several military clashes, and then negotiations in 1617, the Stolbovo Peace was concluded (in the village of Stolbovo, not far from Tikhvin). Sweden returned Novgorod land to Russia, but held onto the Baltic coast and received monetary compensation. After the Stolbovo Peace, King Gustav-Adolph said that now “Russia is not a dangerous neighbor ... it is separated from Sweden by swamps, fortresses, and it will be difficult for Russians to cross this“ trickle ”(the Neva River).

The Polish prince Vladislav, who sought to obtain the Russian throne, organized in 1617-1618. hike to Moscow. He reached the Arbat Gate of Moscow, but was repulsed. In the village of Deulino near the Trinity-Sergius Monastery in 1618, the Deulinskoe truce was concluded with the Commonwealth, for which the Smolensk and Chernigov lands remained. There was an exchange of prisoners. Vladislav did not renounce his claims to the Russian throne.

Thus, in the main, the territorial unity of Russia was restored, although part of the Russian lands remained in the Commonwealth and Sweden. These are the consequences of the events of the Troubles in the foreign policy of Russia. In the internal political life of the state, the role of the nobility and the top of the posad increased significantly.

During the Time of Troubles, in which all strata and estates of Russian society took part, the question of the very existence of the Russian state, of the choice of the path of development of the country, was decided. It was necessary to find ways for the survival of the people. Troubles settled primarily in the minds and souls of people. In the specific conditions of the beginningXviiv. the way out of the Troubles was found in the awareness of the regions and the center of the need for a strong statehood. The idea of ​​giving everything for the common good, and not looking for personal gain, won out in the minds of people.

After the Time of Troubles, a choice was made in favor of preserving the largest power in the east of Europe. In the specific geopolitical conditions of that time, the path of further development of Russia was chosen: autocracy as a form of political government, serfdom as the basis of the economy, Orthodoxy as an ideology, the class stratum as a social structure.

The long and difficult crisis was finally destroyed. According to many historians, the Troubles was the first civil war in the history of Russia.

It was very hard. The siege of Smolensk, which fell in June 1611, lasted for almost two years. The Polish troops who ended up in Moscow behaved like conquerors. Swedish mercenaries held Novgorod. Detachments of Tushin people "walked" around the country; robber bands appeared, which included both Russian "thieves" and Poles. They plundered the land, ravaged cities and monasteries.

The Boyar Duma did not enjoy authority and power, the boyars practically did not rule the country. Different parts of the state recognized different authorities: some - the Polish prince, others - the newly born baby Marina Mniszek as the legitimate son of Tsarevich Dmitry; the third - False Dmitry II.

The Russian kingdom was threatened with the loss of integrity and independence. The Troubles led to such a sad outcome. The question was: either the people "wake up" and defend their country themselves, or Russia will perish. Decisive and bold steps were needed. The dead-end political situation created by the selfishness of the Seven Boyars and the stubbornness of King Sigismund could not remain forever.

The initiative to create the militia was taken by the elected authorities of the cities. They began to send each other letters with an appeal to renounce the power of the "traitors" who had settled in the Kremlin. Only by standing up "with all the earth" could it be possible to liberate Moscow and legally, at the Zemsky Sobor, to elect a new tsar.

Initiating the rise of the people by the patriarch Hermogenes, the Zemsky Sobor was convened from serving people - the "Council of the Whole Earth". The first militia was led by the voivode Prokopiy Lyapunov, as well as Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy, Cossack ataman Ivan Zarutsky. The participants in the campaign pursued not only selfish goals. In their actions, patriotic sentiments are clearly visible: the desire to cleanse Moscow of invaders and to elevate an Orthodox tsar to the pre-table.

Composition of the First Militia

After the death of False Dmitry II, the Cossack ataman I.S.Zarutsky became his political heir, who proclaimed the newly born son of False Dmitry II and Marina Mnishek Ivan as tsar. Together with Prince D.T. Trubetskoy, Zarutskiy led his regiments to Moscow. Simultaneously with the former Tushins, detachments of the Ryazan nobles under the command of P.P. Lyapunov moved to Moscow.

From the beginning of 1611, detachments of the First Militia from different cities moved to the capital and in March 1611 approached Moscow.

The inhabitants of Moscow were burdened by the presence of foreigners. In March 1611, the townspeople of the capital revolted against the Poles. However, the Poles and their Russian henchmen managed to save the situation by starting a fire. Fires started in the city. Forgetting about the mutiny, the townspeople rushed to save their property. The raging fire destroyed most of the Moscow settlement, almost all of Moscow burned out. Material from the site

The army of Lyapunov, Trubetskoy and Zarutsky approached Moscow a few days after the fire. The militias entered the burning city. They managed to take possession of the White City. The Poles took refuge behind the walls of Kitai-Gorod and the Kremlin, which were not damaged by the fire. An attempt to take by storm the powerful city fortifications was repulsed by the besieged.

Soon, quarrels began in the camp of the militia, enmity broke out between the nobles and the Cossacks. It was skillfully fanned by the Poles and supporters of the Seven Boyars. The leader of the movement, Lyapunov, was summoned to the Cossack circle, suspected and accused of treason and killed by the Cossacks. After that, the dyads, who had lost their leader, dispersed to their homes. The militia ceased to exist as a single force. However, the Cossack troops continued to stand near Moskva and from time to time made attempts to storm it.

Thus, the First Militia fell apart, never freeing the capital from the Poles. The situation in the country has become almost hopeless.

The first popular militia is the collective name for the liberation movement against Moscow in 1611 (during the Time of Troubles) against foreign invaders under the leadership of Zarutsky, Lyapunov and Trubetskoy.

The militia was preceded by the extremely difficult situation in Russia at the beginning of the 17th century. The two-year, Norwegian occupation of Novgorod, the Polish government in Moscow, internal devastation, gangs of robberies of thieves inside the country - all this could not remain unpunished for such a long time. At the same time, the power in the person of the boyar duma was losing its authority. The country was practically in a state of anarchy. In different regions of the country, the power of the Polish king, and False Dmitry II, and his son, and local leaders of robber groups were recognized. In such anarchic conditions, rapid and radical steps were needed.

The people's militia was not assembled in the capital. The elected authorities in the provinces were the first to not withstand the oppression. They wanted to break with the power of the "traitors" who had settled in the Kremlin. To do this, the rulers exchanged letters with each other, in which they discussed steps to organize and create a general army to liberate Moscow, and then at the Zemsky Sobor, according to all laws, elect the tsar.

The success in organizing the militia is associated with the name, which from the very beginning of the events of 1611 began to send a letter to Russian cities in which he called for an end to the plundering of the fatherland, abuse of churches and shrines, and the shedding of innocent Russian blood.

Ryazan was the first to respond to the letter, which responded very warmly to the letter of the patriarch and himself began to send the letter to the nearest cities with a request to join the struggle against. Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy did the same. Upon learning of the Ryazan uprising, the Pole called on the Little Russian Cossacks to ravage the cities around Ryazan. During the defense of Pronsk, Voivode Lyapunov was besieged, although he recaptured the city. The troops of Prince Pozharsky came to his aid, who managed to defeat the Cossacks who besieged Pronsk. Pozharsky himself went to Zaraysk, where the surviving Cossacks at night captured the Kremlin prison in Zaraysk, where the voivode Pozharsky was. But the prince managed to break them. The rest of the Cossack army fled.

Meanwhile, residents of Galich, Kostroma, Vologda, a number of Siberian and Volga provinces responded to letters. As a result, the First Militia was convened. The militia under the leadership of Lyapunov was significantly reinforced by the former adherents, "who over time ruined his enterprise. Among the militias were the Cossacks Prosovetsky and Zarutsky with their "Cossack freemen". the first zemstvo militia was led by prince Lyapunov.

The campaign to liberate Moscow

Throughout the winter of 1611, detachments of the First Militia were formed in different cities (Nizhny Novgorod, Vladimir, etc.). Already by March 1611, these regiments approached the capital and took the capital under siege.

The besieged seven thousandth Polish garrison was headed by Hetman Gonsevsky. The formed army consisted of 2 thousand German mercenaries. Seeing the regiments of compatriots arrived in time, Muscovites revolted against the invaders. In addition, the vanguard detachments of Kotlovsky, Pozharsky and Buturlin entered the city from the outer perimeter of the siege. Kotlovsky's detachment fought with the Poles on Zamoskvorechye, Pozharsky's detachment - on Sretenka, Buturlin's detachment - on the Yauzsky gate. Unfortunately, the internal uprising was thwarted by the Poles and their henchmen from among the Russian boyars.

Finding no other way out, the strangers started a fire. To do this, they appointed special companies, which were instructed to set fire to houses in different parts of the city. Seeing numerous fires in various parts of Moscow, the townspeople began to save their families and their property. The fire turned out to be uncontrollable and engulfed almost all of Moscow. Many churches were plundered in a general panic. Less than half of the Moscow settlement was preserved. But the goal was fulfilled: the insurgent townspeople forgot about their rebellion. During this uprising, according to modern historical data, about seven thousand residents of the capital were killed.

The first militia managed to reach Moscow and enter the capital only a few days after the fire. A combined army from different cities entered the burning city.

A counterattack of the First Militia, which was at the Lubyanka, was launched on March 20. In this attack, the Poles seriously wounded Prince Pozharsky. He was taken to the Trinity Monastery. But the invaders failed to seize Zamoskvorechye. They had to retreat to the Kremlin and Kitai-Gorod.

On March 24, an attempt was made to storm Moscow by the arriving Cossack detachment of Prosovetsky. However, he was counterattacked and was forced to retreat, suffering heavy losses (about 200 people). The Poles did not continue the attack of the Cossacks who had gone over to the defensive and remained in place and retreated to the capital.

The main 100-thousandth militia forces approached the capital only on March 27 and stopped at the Simonov Monastery. All militia forces were assembled on April 1. On April 6, militias attacked the defense towers of the White City, and on May 22 they stormed Kitay-Gorod. The militia recaptured the White City and laid siege to the Kremlin and Kitai-Gorod (which were not affected by the fire). The besieged Poles were able to repulse all attempts to storm these powerful fortifications.

The failure of the people's militia

Having risen near Moscow, the militia was engaged not in active assault actions, but in the restoration of central power. The militia included representatives of different classes. On the basis of the headquarters of the militia, a numerous Zemsky Sobor was convened, which included boyars, clerks, Tatar khans, princes, nobles, service people, officials, Cossacks and other estates.

The reasons for the defeat and disintegration remain controversial. The militia did not have the training and discipline. Therefore, soon in the camp, discord and enmity began between the Cossacks, who only sought to consolidate and increase their liberties, and the nobles, who sought to strengthen discipline and serfdom. Firewood was also thrown into the fire of discord by the Poles and adherents of the Seven Boyars, who sent to the Cossacks false letters, which mentioned the intention of the voivode Lyapunov to destroy the Cossacks as an estate. This played a role and led to the death of Lyapunov, whom the Cossacks accused of treason and executed in the Cossack circle. The nobles, without their commander, returned to their native estates and homes. The militia became decentralized and completely disintegrated. Only part of the Cossack army continued to camp under the capital and periodically storm the besieged foreigners.

Results of the First Militia

The date of the final collapse of the 1st militia can be considered July 28, 1612, when an active participant in hostilities, Ataman Zarutsky with his 3-thousandth Cossack detachment departed from Moscow, yielding primacy to the vanguard. In September 1612, the remaining detachments of Dmitry Timofeevich Trubetskoy became part. This is considered to be the end of the 1st militia.

The militia did not manage to free Moscow from the Poles. The situation in the state was catastrophic. The first militia led to nothing decisively. But nevertheless, it was the first attempt of Russian people from different estates and social groups to unite and self-organize. The nobles fought side by side with people of the military rank and the Cossacks. The militia was voluntary, and the military ranks were elective. As a result of the activities of the First Militia, traditions of self-organization of the people were laid to solve national political problems.