The main reasons for the Time of Troubles are brief. Time of Troubles: chronology of events

Time of Troubles in Russia(turmoil) is an era of socio-political, economic and dynastic crisis. It was accompanied by popular uprisings, the rule of impostors, the destruction of state power, Polish-Swedish-Lithuanian intervention and the ruin of the country.

Inter-dynastic rule during the period of unrest: Boris Godunov 1598-1605, Fyodor Godunov 1605, False Dmitry 1 (Grigory Otrepiev) 1605-1606, Vasily Shuisky 1606-1610, Seven Boyars (F.I. Mstislavsky, I.M. Vorotynsky, A.V. Trubetskoy, A.V. Golitsyn, B.M. Lykov, I.N. Romanov, F.I.

Reasons for the troubled times:

The consequences of the ruin of the country during the oprichnina period

Aggravation of the social situation due to the processes of state enslavement of peasants

Dynasty crisis: suppression of the male branch of the ruling princely-royal Moscow house (end of the Rurik dynasty)

The crisis of power is the intensification of the struggle for supreme power among noble boyar families. The appearance of impostors

Poland's claims to Russian lands and throne

Famine 1601 - 1603 Deaths and surge in migration within the country

The main events of the Time of Troubles in Russia in the 17th century

The table of the Time of Troubles of the early 17th century in the Russian state contains the main dates, events and their significance for the state and people.

Consequences of the Time of Troubles (Troubles)

The Time of Troubles ended with people's militias against the interventionists in 1611 - 1612, the accession of the Romanov dynasty - the election of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov on February 21, 1613.

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A source of information: History in tables and diagrams./ Edition 2, St. Petersburg: 2013.

The Time of Troubles in Russia is a historical period that shook the state structure in its very foundations. It occurred at the end of the 16th – beginning of the 17th centuries.

Three periods of turmoil

The first period is called dynastic - at this stage, contenders fought for the Moscow throne until Vasily Shuisky ascended to it, although his reign is also included in this historical era. The second period was social, when various social classes fought among themselves, and foreign governments took advantage of this struggle. And the third - national - it continued until Mikhail Romanov ascended the Russian throne, and is closely connected with the struggle against foreign invaders. All these stages significantly influenced the further history of the state.

Board of Boris Godunov

In fact, this boyar began to rule Russia back in 1584, when the son of Ivan the Terrible, Fedor, completely incapable of state affairs, ascended the throne. But legally he was elected tsar only in 1598 after the death of Feodor. He was appointed by the Zemsky Sobor.

Rice. 1. Boris Godunov.

Despite the fact that Godunov, who took over the kingdom during a difficult period of social distress and the difficult position of Russia in the international arena, was a good statesman, he did not inherit the throne, which made his rights to the throne questionable.

The new tsar began and consistently continued a course of reforms aimed at improving the country's economy: merchants were exempt from paying taxes for two years, landowners for a year. But this did not make Russia’s internal affairs easier - crop failure and famine of 1601-1603. caused mass mortality and an increase in the price of bread of unprecedented proportions. And the people blamed Godunov for everything. With the appearance in Poland of the “legitimate” heir to the throne, who was allegedly Tsarevich Dmitry, the situation became even more complicated.

First period of turmoil

In fact, the beginning of the Time of Troubles in Russia was marked by the fact that False Dmitry entered Russia with a small detachment, which kept increasing against the backdrop of peasant riots. Quite quickly, the “prince” attracted the common people to his side, and after the death of Boris Godunov (1605) he was recognized by the boyars. Already on June 20, 1605, he entered Moscow and was installed as king, but could not retain the throne. On May 17, 1606, False Dmitry was killed, and Vasily Shuisky sat on the throne. The power of this sovereign was formally limited by the Council, but the situation in the country did not improve.

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Rice. 2. Vasily Shuisky.

Second period of troubles

It is characterized by performances by different social strata, but primarily by peasants led by Ivan Bolotnikov. His army advanced quite successfully across the country, but on June 30, 1606, it was defeated, and Bolotnikov himself was soon executed. The wave of uprisings has subsided slightly, thanks in part to the efforts of Vasily Shuisky to stabilize the situation. But in general, his efforts did not bring results - soon a second Ldezhmitry appeared, who received the nickname “Tushino thief”. He opposed Shuisky in January 1608, and already in July 1609, the boyars who served both Shuisky and False Dmitry swore allegiance to the Polish prince Vladislav and forcibly tonsured their sovereign into monks. On June 20, 1609, the Poles entered Moscow. In December 1610, False Dmitry was killed, and the struggle for the throne continued.

Third period of troubles

The death of False Dmitry was a turning point - the Poles no longer had an actual excuse to be on Russian territory. They become interventionists, to fight whom the first and second militia gather.

The first militia, which went to Moscow in April 1611, did not achieve much success, as it was disunited. But the second, created on the initiative of Kuzma Minin and headed by Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, achieved success. These heroes liberated Moscow - this happened on October 26, 1612, when the Polish garrison capitulated. The actions of the people are the answer to the question of why Russia survived the Time of Troubles.

Rice. 3. Minin and Pozharsky.

It was necessary to look for a new king, whose candidacy would suit all layers of society. This was Mikhail Romanov - on February 21, 1613, he was elected by the Zemsky Sobor. The time of troubles is over.

Chronology of events of the Troubles

The following table gives an idea of ​​the main events that took place during the Troubles. They are arranged chronologically by date.

What have we learned?

From an article on history for grade 10, we learned briefly about the Time of Troubles, looked at the most important thing - what events took place during this period and what historical figures influenced the course of history. We learned that in the 17th century, the Time of Troubles ended with the ascension to the throne of the compromise Tsar Mikhail Romanov.

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Time of Troubles or Troubles- period in history Russia from 1598 to 1613, marked by natural disasters, Polish-Swedish intervention, severe state-political and socio-economic crisis

The time of troubles was caused by a number of reasons and factors. Historians highlight the following:

P first reason turmoil - dynastic crisis. The last member of the Rurik dynasty has died.

The second reason- class contradictions. The boyars sought power, the peasants were dissatisfied with their position (they were forbidden to move to other estates, they were tied to the land).

Third reason- economic devastation. The country's economy was not doing well. In addition, every now and then there were crop failures in Russia. The peasants blamed the ruler for everything and periodically staged uprisings and supported the False Dmitrievs.

All this prevented the reign of any one new dynasty and worsened the already terrible situation.

The essence of the Troubles:

Stage 1 of the Time of Troubles began with a dynastic crisis caused by the murder of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible of his eldest son Ivan. The 2nd stage of the Time of Troubles is associated with the split of the country in 1609: in Muscovy there were formed two kings, two Boyar Dumas, two patriarchs (Hermogenes in Moscow and Filaret in Tushino), territories recognizing the power of False Dmitry II, and territories remaining loyal to Shuisky. Stage 3 of the Troubles is associated with the desire to overcome the conciliatory position of the Seven Boyars, who had no real power and were unable to force Vladislav (son of Sigismund) to fulfill the terms of the agreement and accept Orthodoxy. The combination of these events led to the appearance of adventurers and impostors on the Russian throne, claims to the throne from Cossacks, runaway peasants and slaves (which manifested itself in Bolotnikov’s peasant war). The consequence of the Time of Troubles were changes in the system of government of the country. The weakening of the boyars, the rise of the nobility who received estates and the possibility of legislatively assigning peasants to them resulted in the gradual evolution of Russia towards absolutism.

Results of the turmoil:

The Zemsky Sobor in February 1613 elected 16-year-old Mikhail Romanov (1613–1645) as tsar. In 1617, the Stolbovo Peace Treaty was concluded with Sweden. Russia returned the Novgorod lands, the Swedes retained the shores of the Gulf of Finland, the Neva lands, Ivangorod, Yam, Koporye, Oreshek, and Karela. In 1618, the Deulin truce with Poland was concluded, according to which the Smolensk, Chernigov, Novgorod Seversky lands, Sebezh went to Poland.

22. Muscovite Rus' of the 17th century: economics, politics, urban and rural uprisings

Economy. Agriculture continued to be the basis of the economy of Muscovite Rus'. Agricultural technology remained virtually unchanged for centuries, and labor remained unproductive. The increase in yields was achieved through extensive methods - mainly through the development of new lands. The economy remained predominantly natural: the bulk of the products were produced “for oneself.” Not only food, but also clothing, shoes, and household items were mostly produced on the peasant farm itself.

However, during this period the geography of agriculture changed noticeably. The cessation of the Crimean raids made it possible to fearlessly develop the territories of the modern Central Black Earth region, where the yield was twice as high as in the old arable areas.

The growth of territory and differences in natural conditions gave rise to economic specialization in different regions of the country. Thus, the Black Earth Center and the Middle Volga region produced commercial grain, while the North, Siberia and the Don consumed imported grain.

Much more widely than in agriculture, new phenomena spread in industry. Its main form remained craft. However, the nature of craft production in the 17th century. changed. Craftsmen increasingly worked not to order, but for the market. This type of craft is called small-scale production. Its spread was caused by the growth of economic specialization in various regions of the country. For example, Pomorie specialized in wood products, the Volga region - in leather processing, Pskov, Novgorod and Smolensk - in linen. Salt making (North) and iron production (Tula-Kashira region) were the first to acquire a small-scale commercial character, since these crafts depended on the availability of raw materials and could not develop everywhere.

In the 17th century Along with craft workshops, large enterprises began to appear. Some of them were built on the basis of division of labor and can be classified as manufactories.

The first Russian manufactories appeared in metallurgy. In 1636, A. Vinius, a native of Holland, founded an ironworks that produced cannons and cannonballs on government orders, and also produced household items for the market.

Manufacturing production, based on wage labor, is no longer a phenomenon of the feudal, but of the bourgeois order. The emergence of manufactories testified to the emergence of capitalist elements in the Russian economy.

The number of manufactories operating in Russia by the end of the 17th century was very small and did not exceed two dozen. Along with hired workers, forced laborers also worked in manufactories - convicts, palace artisans, and assigned peasants. Most of the manufactories were weakly connected to the market.

Based on the growing specialization of small-scale crafts (and partly agriculture), the formation of an all-Russian market began. If in the 16th century and earlier trade was carried out mainly within one district, now trade relations began to be established throughout the country. The most important trading center was Moscow. Extensive trade transactions were carried out at fairs. The largest of them were Makaryevskaya near Nizhny Novgorod and Irbitskaya in the Urals.

Urban and rural uprisings

The 17th century (especially the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich) went down in Russian history as a “rebellious time.” Indeed, the middle - second half of the century is the era of large and small uprisings of the peasantry, the urban lower classes, and service people, thus reacting to the policy of absolutization of power and enslavement.

History of urban uprisings opens the "salt riot" of 1648. in Moscow. Various segments of the capital’s population took part in it: townspeople, archers, nobles, dissatisfied with the pro-boyar policy of the government of B.I. Morozova. The reason for the speech was the dispersal by the archers of a delegation of Muscovites who were trying to submit a petition to the tsar at the arbitrariness of the administrative officials, who, in their opinion, were guilty of introducing a tax on salt. Pogroms of influential dignitaries began. The Duma clerk Nazariy Chistoy was killed, the head of the Zemsky Prikaz, Leonty Pleshcheev, was given over to the crowd, and the okolnichy P.T. was executed in front of the people. Trachaniotov. The Tsar managed to save only his “uncle” Morozov, urgently sending him into exile to the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. The uprising was suppressed by the archers, to whom the government was forced to give increased salaries.

The uprising in Moscow received a wide response - a wave of movements in the summer of 1648 covered many cities: Kozlov, Sol Vychegodskaya, Kursk, Ustyug Velikiy, etc. In total, in 1648-1650. There were 21 uprisings. The most significant of them were in Pskov and Novgorod. They were caused by a sharp increase in bread prices as a result of the government's commitment to supply grain to Sweden. In both cities, power passed into the hands of zemstvo elders. The Novgorod uprising was suppressed by an army led by Prince Khovansky. Pskov put up successful armed resistance to government troops during a three-month siege of the city (June-August 1650). The zemstvo hut, headed by Gavriil Demidov, became the absolute owner of the city, distributing bread and property confiscated from the rich among the townspeople. At an emergency Zemsky Sobor, the composition of the delegation was approved to persuade the Pskovites. Resistance ended after all participants in the uprising were forgiven.

In 1662, the so-called copper riot, caused by the protracted Russian-Polish war and the financial crisis. Monetary reform (minting depreciated copper money) led to a sharp drop in the exchange rate of the ruble, which primarily affected the soldiers and archers who received cash salaries, as well as artisans and small traders. On July 25, “thieves’ letters” were scattered around the city with an appeal to the action. The excited crowd moved to seek justice in Kolomenskoye, where the tsar was. In Moscow itself, the rebels destroyed the courtyards of boyars and rich merchants. While the tsar was persuading the crowd, rifle regiments loyal to the government approached Kolomensky. As a result of the brutal massacre, several hundred people died, and 18 were publicly hanged. The "Copper Riot" forced the government to abandon the issue of copper coins. But back in the fall of 1662, the Streltsy tax on bread was doubled. This put the townsfolk population in a particularly difficult situation, since they practically did not engage in agriculture. Mass flights to the Don began - people fled from the suburbs, peasants fled.

The uprising of Stepan Razin:

In 1667, Stepan Razin stood at the head of the people, who recruited a detachment from poor Cossacks, runaway peasants, and offended archers. He came up with the idea because he wanted to distribute the spoils to the poor, give bread to the hungry, and clothes to the naked. People came to Razin from everywhere: both from the Volga and from the Don. The detachment grew to 2000 people.

On the Volga, the rebels captured a caravan, the Cossacks replenished their supply of weapons and food. With new strength, the leader moved on. There were clashes with government troops. In all battles he showed courage. Many people were added to the Cossacks. Battles took place in various cities of Persia, where they went to free Russian prisoners. The Razins defeated the Persian Shah, but they had significant losses.

The southern governors reported Razin’s independence and his plans for trouble, which alarmed the government. In 1670, a messenger from Tsar Evdokimov came to the leader, whom the Cossacks drowned. The rebel army grows to 7,000 and advances to Tsaritsyn, capturing it, as well as Astrakhan, Samara and Saratov. Near Simbirsk, the seriously wounded Razin is defeated and then executed in Moscow.

During the 17th century, there were many popular uprisings, the cause of which lay in government policies. The authorities saw the residents only as a source of income, which caused discontent among the lower masses

The year 1598 for Rus' was marked by the beginning of the Time of Troubles. The prerequisite for this was the end of the Rurik dynasty. The last representative of this family, Fyodor Ioannovich, died. A few years earlier, in 1591, the youngest son of Tsar Ivan the Terrible, Dmitry, died in the city of Uglich. He was a child and left no heirs to the throne. A brief summary of the events of the time period known as the Time of Troubles is presented in the article.

Key dates of the Time of Troubles

• 1598 - death of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich and the reign of Boris Godunov;
• 1605 - death of Boris Godunov and accession of False Dmitry I;
• 1606 - boyar Vasily Shuisky becomes king;
• 1607 - False Dmitry II begins to rule in Tushino. The period of dual power;
• 1610 - the overthrow of Shuisky and the establishment of the power of the “Seven Boyars”;
• 1611 - the first people's militia gathers under the leadership of Prokopiy Lyapunov;
• 1612 - the militia of Minin and Pozharsky gathers, which liberates the country from the power of the Poles and Swedes;
• 1613 - the beginning of the Romanov dynasty.

The beginning of the Troubles and its causes

In 1598, Boris Godunov became Tsar of Russia. This man had a significant influence on political life in the country during the life of Ivan the Terrible. He was very close to the king. His daughter Irina was married to Ivan the Terrible's son, Fedor.

There is an assumption that Godunov and his allies were involved in the death of Ivan IV. This was described in the memoirs of the English diplomat Jerome Horsey. Godunov, along with his ally Bogdan Belsky, was next to Ivan the Terrible in the last minutes of the Tsar’s life. And it was they who told their subjects the sad news. Later, people began to say that the sovereign was strangled.

Important! Much was done by the rulers themselves in order to lead the country to a crisis of power. Even Tsar Ivan III brutally killed the princes of his family, the Rurikovichs, at his own request, not sparing even those close to him. This line of behavior was continued by his children and grandchildren.

In fact, by 1598, representatives of the aristocracy had become serfs and had no authority. Even the people did not recognize them. And this despite the fact that the princes were rich and high-ranking people.

The weakening of power, according to many historians, is the main cause of the Troubles. Godunov took advantage of this situation.

Since the heir Fyodor Ioannovich was weak-minded and could not independently rule the state, a regency council was assigned to him.

Boris Godunov was also a member of this body. As mentioned earlier, Fedor did not live long, and the reign soon passed to Boris himself.

These events led to Troubles in the country. The people refused to recognize the new ruler. The situation was aggravated by the beginning of the famine. The years 1601–1603 were lean. Oprichnina had a negative impact on life in Russia - the country was ruined. Hundreds of thousands of people died because they had nothing to eat.

Another reason was the long Livonian War and defeat in it. All this could lead to the rapid collapse of the once powerful state. Society said that everything that happened was a punishment from
higher powers for the sins of the new king.

Boris began to be accused of both the murder of Grozny and involvement in the death of his heirs. And Godunov was unable to correct this situation and calm the popular unrest.

During the Time of Troubles, individuals appeared who proclaimed themselves in the name of the late Tsarevich Dmitry.

In 1605, False Dmitry I tried to seize power in the country with the support of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Poles wanted the Smolensk and Seversk lands to return to them.

They were previously annexed to the Russian state by Ivan the Terrible. That is why the Polish invaders decided to take advantage of the difficult time for the Russian people. This is how the news appeared that Tsarevich Dmitry miraculously escaped death and now wants to regain his throne. In fact, the monk Grigory Otrepiev impersonated the prince.

Capture of Russian territory by Swedes and Poles

In 1605, Godunov died. The throne passed to his son, Fyodor Borisovich. At that moment he was only sixteen, and he could not maintain power without support. Came to the capital with his entourage False Dmitry I was proclaimed king.

At the same time, he decided to give the western lands of the state of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and married a girl of Catholic origin, Marina Mniszech.

But the reign of “Dmitry Ioannovich” did not last long. Boyar Vasily Shuisky gathered a conspiracy against the impostor, and he was killed in 1606.

The next king who ruled during the difficult Time of Troubles was Shuisky himself. Popular unrest did not subside, and the new ruler was unable to calm them. In 1606–1607, a bloody uprising broke out, led by Ivan Bolotnikov.

At the same time, False Dmitry II appears, in whom Marina Mnishek recognized her husband. The impostor was also supported by Polish-Lithuanian soldiers. Due to the fact that False Dmitry, together with his associates, stopped near the village of Tushino, he was nicknamed the “Tushino thief.”

Vasily Shuisky's main problem was that he did not have the support of the people. The Poles easily established power over a large Russian territory - east, north and west of Moscow. The time has come for dual power.

When the Poles went on the offensive, they captured many Russian cities - Yaroslavl, Vologda, Rostov the Great. For 16 months the Trinity-Sergius Monastery was under siege. Vasily Shuisky tried to cope with the invaders with the help of Sweden. A little later, the people’s militia also came to Shuisky’s aid. As a result, in the summer of 1609 the Poles were defeated. False Dmitry II fled to Kaluga, where he was killed.

At that time the Poles were at war with Sweden. And the fact that the Russian Tsar enlisted support from the Swedes led to a war between the Russian state and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Polish troops again approached Moscow.

They were led by Hetman Zolkiewski. The foreigners won the battle, and the people were completely disillusioned with Shuisky. In 1610, the king was overthrown and they began to decide who would come to power. The reign of the “Seven Boyars” began, and popular unrest did not subside.

Uniting the people

The Moscow boyars invited the heir of the Polish king Sigismund III, Vladislav, to replace the sovereign. The capital was actually given to the Poles. At that moment, it seemed that the Russian state had ceased to exist.

But the Russian people were against such a political turn. The country was devastated and practically destroyed, but it finally brought people together. Therefore, the course of the troubled period turned in the other direction:

• In Ryazan in 1611, a people's militia was formed under the leadership of the nobleman Prokopiy Lyapunov. In March, troops reached the capital and began its siege. However, this attempt to liberate the country failed.
• Despite the defeat, the people decide to get rid of the invaders at any cost. A new militia is formed in Nizhny Novgorod by Kuzma Minin. The leader is Prince Dmitry Pozharsky. Under his leadership, detachments from different Russian cities rallied. In March 1612, the troops moved towards Yaroslavl. Along the way, there were more and more people in the ranks of the militia.

Important! The militia of Minin and Pozharsky is the most important moment in history, when the further development of the state was determined by the people themselves.

All that he had, the common people donated for military service. The Russians fearlessly and of their own free will marched towards the capital to liberate it. There was no king over them, there was no power. But all classes at that moment united for a common goal.

The militia included representatives of all nationalities, villages, and cities. A new government was created in Yaroslavl - the “Council of All the Earth”. It included people from the townspeople, nobles, the Duma and the clergy.

In August 1612, the formidable liberation movement reached the capital, and on November 4 the Poles capitulated. Moscow was liberated by the forces of the people. The Troubles are over, but it is important not to forget the lessons and main dates of the Time of Troubles.

Letters were sent to all corners of the state stating that a Zemsky Sobor would be held. The people had to choose the king themselves. The cathedral opened in 1613.

This was the first time in the history of the Russian state that representatives of each class participated in the elections. A 16-year-old representative of the Romanov family, Mikhail Fedorovich, was elected Tsar. He was the son of the influential Patriarch Filaret and was a relative of Ivan the Terrible.

The end of the Time of Troubles is a very important event. The dynasty continued to exist. And at the same time, a new era began - the reign of the Romanov family. Representatives of the royal family ruled for more than three centuries, until February 1917.

What is Troubles in Rus'? In short, this is a crisis of power that led to ruin and could destroy the country. For fourteen years the country fell into decay.

In many counties, the size of agricultural land has decreased by twenty times. There were four times fewer peasants - a huge number of people simply died of hunger.

Russia lost Smolensk and could not regain this city for decades. Karelia was captured from the west and partly from the east by Sweden. Because of this, almost all Orthodox Christians - both Karelians and Russians - left the country.

Until 1617, the Swedes were also in Novgorod. The city was absolutely devastated. There are only a few hundred indigenous local residents left. In addition, access to the Gulf of Finland was lost. The state was greatly weakened. Such were the disappointing consequences of the Time of Troubles.

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Conclusion

The country's emergence from the Time of Troubles has been widely celebrated in Russia since 2004. November 4th is National Unity Day. This is the memory of those events when the country experienced the Time of Troubles, but the people, united, did not allow their Fatherland to be destroyed.

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Start Time of Troubles in Russia brought about a dynastic crisis. In 1598, the Rurik dynasty was interrupted - the childless son of Ivan the Terrible, the feeble-minded Fyodor Ioannovich, died. Earlier, in 1591, under unclear circumstances, Grozny’s youngest son, Dmitry, died in Uglich. Boris Godunov became the de facto ruler of the state.

In 1601-1603, Russia was hit by 3 consecutive lean years. The country's economy was affected by the consequences of the oprichnina, which led to the devastation of the lands. After a catastrophic defeat in the protracted Livonian War, the country found itself on the verge of collapse.

Boris Godunov, having come to power, was unable to overcome public unrest.

All of the above factors became the causes of the Time of Troubles in Russia at the beginning of the 17th century.

At this tense moment, impostors appear. False Dmitry I tried to pass himself off as the “resurrected” Tsarevich Dmitry. He relied on the support of the Poles, who dreamed of returning to their borders the Smolensk and Seversk lands, conquered from them by Ivan the Terrible.

In April 1605, Godunov died, and his 16-year-old son Fyodor Borisovich, who replaced him, was unable to retain power. The impostor Dmitry entered Moscow with his retinue and was crowned king in the Assumption Cathedral. False Dmitry agreed to give the western lands of Russia to the Poles. After marrying the Catholic Marina Mniszech, he proclaimed her queen. In May 1606, the new ruler was killed as a result of a conspiracy by the boyars led by Vasily Shuisky.

Vasily Shuisky took the royal throne, but he also could not cope with the seething country. Bloody unrest resulted in a people's war led by Ivan Bolotnikov in 1606-1607. A new impostor, False Dmitry II, has appeared. Marina Mnishek agreed to become his wife.

Polish-Lithuanian detachments set off with False Dmitry II on a campaign against Moscow. They stood up in the village of Tushino, after which the impostor received the nickname “Tushino thief.” Using discontent against Shuisky, False Dmitry in the summer and autumn of 1608 established control over significant territories east, north and west of Moscow. Thus, a significant part of the country fell under the rule of the impostor and his Polish-Lithuanian allies. Dual power was established in the country. In fact, in Russia there were two kings, two Boyar Dumas, two systems of orders.

A Polish army of 20,000 under the command of Prince Sapieha laid siege to the walls of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery for a long 16 months. The Poles also entered Rostov Veliky, Vologda, and Yaroslavl. Tsar Vasily Shuisky called on the Swedes to help in the fight against the Poles. In July 1609, Prince Sapieha was defeated. The outcome of the battle was decided by joining the Russian-Swedish militia units. The “Tushino thief” False Dmitry II fled to Kaluga, where he was killed.

The treaty between Russia and Sweden gave the Polish king, who was at war with Sweden, a reason to declare war on Russia. A Polish army led by Hetman Zholkiewski approached Moscow and defeated Shuiski's troops. The king finally lost the trust of his subjects and was overthrown from the throne in July 1610.

Fearing the expansion of newly flared peasant unrest, the Moscow boyars invited the son of the Polish king Sigismund III, Vladislav, to the throne, and surrendered Moscow to Polish troops. It seemed that Russia had ceased to exist as a country.

However, the “great devastation” of the Russian land caused a widespread upsurge of the patriotic movement in the country. In the winter of 1611, the first people's militia was created in Ryazan, headed by the Duma nobleman Prokopiy Lyapunov. In March, the militia approached Moscow and began a siege of the capital. But the attempt to take Moscow ended in failure.

And yet a force was found that saved the country from foreign enslavement. The entire Russian people rose up in armed struggle against the Polish-Swedish intervention. This time, the center of the movement was Nizhny Novgorod, led by its zemstvo elder Kuzma Minin. Prince Dmitry Pozharsky was invited to become the head of the militia. Detachments were approaching Nizhny Novgorod from all sides, and the militia was quickly increasing its ranks. In March 1612 it moved from Nizhny Novgorod to. Along the way, new units joined the militia. In Yaroslavl they created the “Council of the Whole Earth” - a government made up of representatives of the clergy and the Boyar Duma, nobles and townspeople.

After four months in Yaroslavl, the militia of Minin and Pozharsky, which by that time had become a formidable force, set out to liberate the capital. In August 1612 it reached Moscow, and on November 4 the Polish garrison capitulated. Moscow was liberated. The troubles are over.

After the liberation of Moscow, letters were sent across the country convening a Zemsky Sobor to elect a new tsar. The cathedral opened at the beginning of 1613. It was the most representative cathedral in the history of medieval Russia, the first all-class cathedral in Russia. Even representatives of the townspeople and some peasants were present at the Zemsky Sobor.

The council elected 16-year-old Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov as tsar. Young Mikhail received the throne from the hands of representatives of almost all classes of Russia.

It was taken into account that he was a relative of Ivan the Terrible, which created the appearance of a continuation of the previous dynasty of Russian princes and tsars. The fact that Mikhail was the son of an influential political and church figure, Patriarch Filaret, was also taken into account.

From this time on, the reign of the Romanov dynasty began in Russia, which lasted a little over three hundred years - until February 1917.

Consequences of the Time of Troubles

The Time of Troubles led to deep economic decline. The events of this period led to the devastation and impoverishment of the country. In many districts of the historical center of the state, the size of arable land decreased by 20 times, and the number of peasants by 4 times.

The consequence of the turmoil was that Russia lost part of its lands.

Smolensk was lost for many decades; Western and significant parts of eastern Karelia were captured by the Swedes. Almost the entire Orthodox population, both Russians and Karelians, left these territories, unable to accept national and religious oppression. The Swedes left Novgorod only in 1617; only a few hundred residents remained in the completely devastated city. Rus' has lost access to the Gulf of Finland.

As a result of the events of the Time of Troubles, the greatly weakened Russian state found itself surrounded by strong enemies in the person of Poland and Sweden, and the Crimean Tatars became more active.

• The Time of Troubles began with a dynastic crisis. On January 6, 1598, Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich died, the last ruler from the family of Ivan Kalita who did not leave an heir. In the 10th – 14th centuries in Rus', such a dynastic crisis would have been resolved simply. The most noble prince Rurikovich, a vassal of the Moscow prince, would ascend the throne. Spain, France and other Western European countries would do the same. However, the princes Rurikovich and Gediminovich in the Moscow state for more than a hundred years ceased to be vassals and associates of the Grand Duke of Moscow, but became his slaves. Ivan III killed the famous Rurik princes in prisons without trial or investigation, even his loyal allies, to whom he owed not only the throne, but also his life. And his son, Prince Vasily, could already publicly allow himself to call the princes smerds and beat them with a whip. Ivan the Terrible staged a grandiose beating of the Russian aristocracy. The grandchildren and great-grandsons of the appanage princes, who were in favor under Vasily III and Ivan the Terrible, derogatorily distorted their names when signing letters. Fedor signed Fedka Dmitry - Dmitryashka or Mitka, Vasily - Vasko, etc. As a result, in 1598, these aristocrats in the eyes of all classes were serfs, albeit high-ranking and rich. This brought Boris Godunov, a completely illegitimate ruler, to power.

• False Dmitry I became in the past millennium the most successful and most famous impostor in the world and the first impostor in Russia.

• Medicine irrefutably proves that he was not the miraculously saved Tsarevich Dmitry. The prince suffered from epilepsy, and epilepsy never goes away on its own and cannot be treated even with modern means. But False Dmitry I never suffered from epileptic seizures, and he did not have the intelligence to imitate them. According to most historians, it was the fugitive monk Grigory Otrepiev.

• During his stay in Poland and the northern cities of Russia, False Dmitry never mentioned his mother Maria Nagaya, imprisoned in the Goritsky Resurrection Convent under the name of nun Martha. Having seized power in Moscow, he was forced, with the help of his “mother,” to prove that he was the miraculously saved Tsarevich Dmitry. Otrepiev knew about nun Marfa’s hatred of the Godunovs and therefore counted on her recognition. Suitably prepared, the queen rode out to meet her “son.” The meeting took place near the village of Taininskoye, 10 versts from Moscow. It was very well choreographed and took place on a field where several thousand people gathered. On the main road (Yaroslavskoye Highway), shedding tears, “mother” and “son” rushed into each other’s arms.

• The recognition and blessing of the impostor by Queen Mary (nun Martha) produced a huge propaganda effect. After the coronation, Otrepiev wanted to organize another such show - to solemnly destroy the grave of Tsarevich Dimitri in Uglich. The situation was comical - in Moscow, the son of Ivan the Terrible, Tsar Dimitri Ivanovich, reigns, and in Uglich, in the Transfiguration Cathedral, three hundred miles from Moscow, crowds of townspeople pray over the grave of the same Dimitri Ivanovich. It was quite logical to rebury the corpse of the boy lying in the Transfiguration Cathedral in some seedy cemetery corresponding to the status of the priest’s son, who was allegedly stabbed to death in Uglich. However, this idea was resolutely opposed by the same Martha, because we were talking about the grave of the real Dmitry, her only son.

• The militia of Minin and Pozharsky is unique in that it is the only example in Russian history when the fate of the country and state was decided by the people themselves, without the participation of the authorities as such. She then found herself completely bankrupt.

• The people donated their last pennies to armament and went to liberate the land and restore order in the capital. They didn’t go to fight for the Tsar - he was not there. The Ruriks are over, the Romanovs have not yet begun. All classes then united, all nationalities, villages, cities and metropolises.

• In September 2004, the Interregional Council of Russia took the initiative to celebrate November 4 at the state level as the day of the end of the Time of Troubles. The new “red day of the calendar” was not immediately and unambiguously accepted by Russian society.