A.S. Pushkin "Boris Godunov": description, characters, analysis of the work. Boris Godunov - short biography Boris Godunov short description

In the "stateless" time after the death of Ivan the Terrible, with the sick and weak Fedor, the boyars began an open struggle for power. The strongest of them was the former oprichnik Godunov. After the death of Theodore, Patriarch Job gathered for the election of a new sovereign. At this council, the council of the patriarch, and service people and the population of Moscow, gathered. The most likely candidates were two people: the tsar's brother-in-law Boris Fyodorovich Godunov and the cousin of Tsar Fyodor, the eldest son of Nikita Romanovich - Fyodor Nikitich Romanov.

The years of Boris Godunov's reign came at a difficult time in the history of the Russian state. This was the period from 1598 to 1605. In fact, the future tsar was in power already under the sick son of Ivan the Terrible - Fedor.

The reign of Boris Godunov began ambiguously. In February 1598, the Council offered the throne to Boris, but he refused. In order for him to agree, a religious procession was organized to the Maiden Convent, where Boris was staying with his sister. The future king was forced to agree to ascend the throne. Thus, the election of Godunov was popular. However, there was an opinion that he secretly resorted to threats and bribery in order to achieve this.

Boris was crowned king only on September 1, convinced of the strength of the people's election. The reign of Boris Godunov throughout its entire length was distinguished by extreme caution. He was afraid of attempts on his power, eliminated all boyars suspicious of him. His real rival was only Fedor Nikitich Romanov, as a result of which all the Romanovs were put on trial on charges of conspiracy against the sovereign. The boyars did not like the tsar, considering him the successor of Grozny with his persecution of the nobility.

The reign of Boris Godunov was a continuation of Fedor's policy, or rather what Godunov did under him. By all means, he sought to restore the people's well-being, violated in the era of Grozny. In foreign policy, he sought to avoid clashes, to refrain from new wars. He cared about the strengthening of justice, he wanted to be a good sovereign for the people. He really gave many benefits to the common people. Three years in a row, from 1601, there was a crop failure, which led to massive starvation deaths. Boris arranged a free distribution of bread to the hungry from the royal treasury, started large buildings in the capital to give people income.

The reign of Boris Godunov was accompanied by famine, robbery, but this was not his fault. However, this contributed to the growth of dissatisfaction with the king. The famine was followed by a second misfortune - a popular uprising for the self-proclaimed Tsarevich Dmitry. During this struggle, Boris Godunov died unexpectedly (1605).

Godunov attached great importance to European education. The king communicated with foreign specialists in the field of technology and medicine, willingly took them to the public service. He sent young people to foreign countries, planned to arrange Moscow schools in a foreign way. He formed a military detachment of Germans according to a foreign model. Under Godunov, the inclination of the Moscow government towards closer contacts with the enlightened West and the assimilation of European knowledge was clearly visible.

This is how the reign of Boris Godunov is briefly described by most historians. Many doubt how legally he got power, believing that his handiwork was the murder in Uglich of the youngest son of Grozny, Tsarevich Dmitry.

The fate of this ruler is shrouded in mystery and surrounded by a huge number of legends - one more terrible than the other. In fact, Tsar Boris was simply a man who was born not then or not there. On the other hand, the biography of Boris Godunov is proof that an intelligent and capable person, under certain circumstances, can rise very, very high.

Artistic oprichnik

Already in the period of his rise, Godunov was blamed for "artistry" and called contemptuously "Tatar". There were rumors that he comes from a representative of the Horde, who moved to Russia at the time. And objectively, this family did not belong to the top - Boris's father was a landowner of hardly average hands. The future king was born in 1552.

To the advancement of the relatively obscure young man contributed - joining the guardsmen, Godunov attracted attention and aroused the tsar's disposition. It is known that the cunning young boyar tried to stay away from reprisals against unwanted people and he succeeded. At the same time, with the main perpetrators of repression, he also managed to maintain good relationship and even married his daughter (and the marriage was successful).

The marriage of his sister Irina to Tsarevich Fedor also contributed to Godunov's nomination. Became the heir to his father after the death of his older brother Ivan (the one with whom Repin portrayed).

Eminence grise

With the death of Grozny, legends about Godunov's deceit and cruelty begin. He is even blamed for the death of the king (although, to put it mildly, he did not suffer from iron health and regularly used poisons “for homeopathic purposes”).

But the fact is that the 14 years of the reign of the weak-willed and not too smart (although very kind and pious) Fyodor Ioannovich were in fact the era of Godunov's reign. And the royal brother-in-law coped with his task well.

Already during the years of the official reign of Fyodor Godunov made peace with Sweden, began to establish ties with Western Europe, rebuild cities and fortresses, encourage improvement and education. What he could not do was provide Fedor with an heir. Moreover, the bloodiest "detective" with Godunov in the title role is connected precisely with this issue.

In 1591, 10-year-old Dmitry, the youngest son of Ivan the Terrible, who was considered the official heir to the childless Fyodor, died in Uglich. Official version the investigation read: an accident in an epileptic seizure. Unofficially, both contemporaries and some historians continue to accuse Godunov of contract killing.

Of course, the boyar could organize such a thing, and no one at that time would have found it unacceptable. But in the family of Ivan the Terrible, epilepsy was indeed encountered (there is a version that the Terrible Tsar also had it). In addition, Dmitry was a son from the 7th marriage, that is, illegal from the point of view of church law. The successor from it was doubtful. And even more so, it is not clear why Godunov, if he eliminated Dmitry, did not quickly get rid of Fedor as well. The tsar "healed" until 1598.

Tsar Boris Fedorovich

The decision of the Zemsky Sobor in 1598 approved the existing fact. The election to the kingdom simply confirmed that Boris Godunov is the ruler of Russia. The procedure was perfectly legal according to the ideas of the time.

Boris fought against the boyar opposition, but did not abuse executions - his enemies were exiled, imprisoned and tonsured as monks, but usually they were left alive.

But in 1601, famine began (the reason was abnormal climatic deviations), and a comet also appeared. The people (instigated by the discontented boyars) immediately considered this " God's punishment for the murdered prince, ”although he was not at all interested in the prince before that. As always, on time, at the same time he appeared (Poland, claiming Russian lands, made a fuss).

Russia had the potential to resist both the external enemy and the Time of Troubles. But in April 1605 Tsar Boris suddenly died. Descriptions by contemporaries suggest a hypertensive crisis or stroke after an excessive meal. The king had been ill for some time and did not eat dietary. But versions of poisoning and suicide in a fit of "repentance" and despair appeared immediately.

The real "God's punishment" turned out to be "miraculously saved Tsarevich Dmitry" (then worked out by Poland in two copies). His "advent" marked the collapse of all Godunov's reasonable undertakings and the continuation of Russia's backwardness from its neighbors.

boyar, brother-in-law of Tsar Fyodor I Ioannovich, in 1587-1598 the actual ruler of the state, since February 17, 1598 - the Russian Tsar

Boris Godunov

short biography

Boris Fyodorovich Godunov(1552 - April 23, 1605) - boyar, brother-in-law of Tsar Fedor I Ioannovich, in 1587-1598 the actual ruler of the state, from February 27, 1598 - the Russian Tsar.

Origin

According to legend, the Godunovs descended from the Tatar prince Chet, who came to Russia during the time of Ivan Kalita. This legend is recorded in the annals of the beginning of the 17th century. According to the sovereign genealogy of 1555, the Godunovs descended from Dmitry Zern. Godunov's ancestors were boyars at the Moscow court. Boris Godunov was born in 1552. His father, Fyodor Ivanovich Godunov, nicknamed Krivoy, was a middle-class landowner in the Vyazemsky district.

The English traveler describes his appearance in this way:

As for the person of Tsar Boris, he was a tall and portly man, with his representativeness involuntarily reminding of the obligatory obedience to his power for all; with black, although sparse hair, with regular features, he had a point-blank staring look and a strong physique.

Birth. early years

Boris Godunov was born in 1552, shortly before the conquest of Kazan, in the family of a medium-sized Vyazma landowner Fyodor Ivanovich Godunov. Almost nothing is known about Father Fyodor, except for the nickname "Crooked", which gives us an idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthe physical appearance of Father Boris. Boris's father Fyodor and his brother Dmitry, in addition to family estates near Vyazma, from which they carried local service to the sovereign, also owned a small estate in Kostroma.

After the death of the father of the Vyazma landowner Fyodor Krivoy (1569), Boris was taken into his family by his uncle Dmitry Godunov. During the years of the oprichnina, Vyazma, in which the possessions of Dmitry Godunov were located, passed to the oprichnina possessions. The ignoble Dmitry Godunov was enlisted in the oprichnina corps and soon received the high rank of head of the Bed Order at court.

nomination

The promotion of Boris Godunov begins in the 1570s. In 1570 he became a guardsman, and in 1571 he was a friend at the wedding of Tsar Ivan the Terrible with Marfa Sobakina. In the same year, Boris himself married Maria Grigoryevna Skuratova-Belskaya, daughter of Malyuta Skuratov. In 1578, Boris Godunov became a master. Two years after the marriage of his second son Fyodor to Godunov's sister Irina, Ivan the Terrible bestowed the title of boyar on Boris. Godunovs slowly but surely climbed the hierarchical ladder: in the late 1570s - early 1580s. they won several local cases at once.

Godunov was smart and cautious, trying to stay in the background for the time being. In the last year of the tsar's life, Boris Godunov gained great influence at court. Together with B. Ya. Belsky, he became one of the close people of Ivan the Terrible.

The role of Godunov in the history of the death of the tsar is not entirely clear. On March 18 (28), 1584, Grozny, according to D. Gorsei, was "strangled." It is possible that a conspiracy was drawn up against the king. In any case, it was Godunov and Belsky who were next to the tsar in the last minutes of his life, and from the porch they announced to the people about the death of the sovereign.

Fyodor Ioannovich ascended the throne. The new tsar was not able to govern the country and needed a smart adviser, so a regency council of four people was created: Bogdan Belsky, Nikita Romanovich Yuryev (Romanov), princes Ivan Fedorovich Mstislavsky and Ivan Petrovich Shuisky.

On May 31 (June 10), 1584, on the day of the coronation of the tsar, Boris Godunov was showered with favors: he received the rank of equerry, the title of a close great boyar and governor of the Kazan and Astrakhan kingdoms. However, this did not mean that Godunov had sole power - at the court there was a stubborn struggle between the boyar groups of the Godunovs, Romanovs, Shuiskys, Mstislavskys. In 1584, B. Belsky was accused of treason and exiled; in next year Nikita Yuriev died, and the aged Prince Mstislavsky was forcibly tonsured a monk. Subsequently, the hero of the defense of Pskov, IP Shuisky, also fell into disgrace. In fact, since 1585, 13 out of 14 years of the reign of Fyodor Ioannovich, Boris Godunov ruled Russia.

Head of government under Tsar Fedor

The activities of Godunov's board were aimed at the comprehensive strengthening of statehood. Thanks to his efforts, in 1589 the first Russian patriarch was elected, which was the Moscow Metropolitan Job. The establishment of the patriarchate testified to the increased prestige of Russia. The domestic policy of the Godunov government was dominated by common sense and prudence. Unprecedented construction of cities and fortifications unfolded.

Boris Godunov patronized talented builders and architects. Church and city ​​building. On the initiative of Godunov, the construction of fortresses began in the Wild Field - the steppe outskirts of Russia. In 1585 the Voronezh fortress was built, in 1586 - Livny. To ensure the safety of the waterway from Kazan to Astrakhan, cities were built on the Volga - Samara (1586), Tsaritsyn (1589), Saratov (1590). In 1592 the city of Yelets was restored. On the Donets in 1596 the city of Belgorod was built, to the south in 1600 Tsarev-Borisov was built. The settlement and development of the lands deserted during the yoke south of Ryazan (the territory of the present Lipetsk region). The city of Tomsk was founded in Siberia in 1604.

In the period from 1596 to 1602, one of the most grandiose architectural structures of pre-Petrine Russia was built - the Smolensk fortress wall, which later became known as the "stone necklace of the Russian Land." The fortress was built on the initiative of Godunov to protect the western borders of Russia from Poland.

Under him, unheard-of innovations entered the life of Moscow, for example, a water pipe was built in the Kremlin, through which water rose with powerful pumps from the Moscow River through the dungeon to the Konyushenny yard. New fortifications were also built. In 1584-91, under the guidance of the architect Fyodor Savelyev, nicknamed the Horse, walls were erected white city 9 km long (they encircled the area enclosed within the modern Boulevard Ring). The walls and 29 towers of the White City were made of limestone, lined with bricks and plastered. In 1592, on the site of the modern Garden Ring, another line of fortifications was built, a wooden and earthen one, nicknamed the “Skorodom” for the speed of construction.

In the summer of 1591, the Crimean Khan Kazy-Girey with a 1500-strong army approached Moscow, however, being at the walls of a new powerful fortress and under the guns of numerous guns, he did not dare to storm it. In small skirmishes with the Russians, the Khan's detachments were constantly defeated; this forced him to retreat, abandoning the convoy. On the way to the south, to the Crimean steppes, the Khan's army suffered heavy losses from the Russian regiments pursuing him. For the victory over Kazy-Girey, Boris Godunov received the greatest reward of all the participants in this campaign (although it was not he who was the main governor, but Prince Fyodor Mstislavsky): three cities in the Vazh land and the title of servant, which was considered more honorable than the boyar.

Godunov sought to alleviate the situation of the townspeople. By his decision, merchants and artisans who lived in "white" settlements (privately owned, paying taxes to large feudal lords) were included in the population of "black" settlements (paying tax - "tax" - to the state). At the same time, the size of the “tax” levied on the settlement as a whole was left the same, and the share of an individual citizen in it decreased.

The economic crisis of the 1570s - early 1580s forced the establishment of serfdom. On November 24 (December 4), 1597, a decree on “lesson years” was issued, according to which peasants who had fled from their masters “up to this ... year in five years” were subject to investigation, trial and return “back to where someone lived.” The decree did not apply to those who fled six years ago and earlier, they were not returned to their former owners.

In foreign policy, Godunov proved himself to be a talented diplomat. On May 18 (28), 1595, a peace treaty was concluded in Tyavzin (near Ivangorod), which ended the Russian-Swedish war of 1590-1595. Godunov managed to take advantage of the difficult internal political situation in Sweden, and the Russian kingdom, according to the agreement, received Ivangorod, Yam, Koporye and Korela. Thus, Russia regained all the lands transferred to Sweden following the unsuccessful Livonian War.

Death of Tsarevich Dmitry

The heir to the throne during the life of Tsar Fedor was his younger brother Dmitry, the son of the seventh wife of Ivan the Terrible. On May 15 (25), 1591, the prince, under unclear circumstances, died in specific city Uglich. The official investigation was conducted by the boyar Vasily Shuisky. Trying to please Godunov, he reduced the causes of what happened to the "neglect" of the Nagikh boyars, as a result of which Dmitry accidentally stabbed himself with a knife while playing with his peers. The prince, according to rumors, was sick with an "epilepsy" disease (epilepsy).

The chronicle of the times of the Romanovs blames Boris Godunov for the murder, because Dmitry was the direct heir to the throne and prevented Boris from advancing to him. Isaac Massa gives the same version. However, Godunov's participation in the conspiracy to kill the tsarevich has not been proven. In 1829, the historian MP Pogodin was the first to take the risk of defending Boris's innocence. The original of the criminal case of the Shuisky Commission, discovered in the archives, became the decisive argument in the dispute. He convinced many historians of the 20th century (S. F. Platonov, R. G. Skrynnikov) that the true cause of the death of Ivan the Terrible's son was still an accident. However, this issue remained debatable, and opinions are expressed about the meaninglessness of the death of the tsarevich for Godunov (in particular, indicating the illegality of the son from the seventh marriage in the eyes of the church, which means that his rights to the throne are doubtful), and about Boris’s direct interest in his death (for example , because of the hypothetical revenge of Dmitry, in the event of accession to the throne, for his deportation to reign in Uglich).

Godunov on the throne

On January 7 (17), 1598, Fedor Ivanovich died, and the male line of the Moscow branch of the Rurik dynasty was cut short. Isaac Massa writes: I am firmly convinced that Boris hastened his death with the assistance and at the request of his wife, who wanted to become queen as soon as possible, and many Muscovites shared my opinion". The only close heir to the throne was the second cousin of the deceased, who was tonsured a nun, Maria Staritskaya (1560-1611).

After attempts to appoint the widow of the deceased Tsar Irina, Boris's sister, as the ruling queen, on February 17 (27), 1598, the Zemsky Sobor (taking into account, among other things, Irina's "recommendation") elected Fyodor's brother-in-law, Boris Godunov, as king, and swore allegiance to him. On September 1 (11), 1598, Boris was married to the kingdom. A close property, which was typical for that time, outweighed the distant relationship of possible contenders for the throne. No less important was the fact that Godunov had long actually ruled the country on behalf of Fedor and was not going to let go of power after his death.

The reign of Boris was marked by the beginning of Russia's rapprochement with the West. Before there was no sovereign in Russia who would have been so kind to foreigners as Godunov. He began to invite foreigners to serve. In 1604, he sent the roundabout M.I. Tatishchev to Georgia in order to marry his daughter to the local prince.

The contacts of the Muscovite state with Europe, which began to actively develop even in the time of Ivan III, practically ceased under Ivan the Terrible. In the reign of Boris, relations with foreign countries revived again. Merchants, doctors, industrialists, military men, scientists went to Moscow. They received positions, good salaries, land with peasants. Tsar Boris had an intention to open a university in Moscow, but this was prevented by the conservative clergy, who feared that along with knowledge, all sorts of heresies would come to Russia. European culture has penetrated Russian everyday life. This applied to clothing, housing, social ceremonies, and even things like shaving beards. Boris sent Russian people to study abroad, but they, as a rule, did not want to return to their homeland; however, Peter the Great also had problems with this. We can also note other common aspects in the policy of these two rulers of Russia, who are separated by more than 100 years: rapprochement with Europe, the transfer of Western culture to Russian soil.

Repression

The first tsar not from Rurikovich (except for such figurehead as Simeon Bekbulatovich), Godunov could not help but feel the precariousness of his position. In his suspiciousness, he was a little inferior to Grozny. Having ascended the throne, he began to settle personal scores with the boyars. According to a contemporary, " he blossomed, like a date, with the leaves of virtue, and if the thorn of envious malice had not darkened the color of his virtue, he could have become like the ancient kings. From slanderers, he vainly accepted in rage against the innocent, and therefore brought upon himself the indignation of the officials of the entire Russian land: from here many evil evils rose up against him and his beauty suddenly deposed the flourishing kingdom».

At first, this suspicion was already manifested in the oath record, but later it came to disgrace and denunciations. Princes Mstislavsky and V.I. Shuisky, who, due to the nobility of the family, could have claims to the throne, Boris did not allow them to marry. Since 1600, the suspicion of the king has increased markedly. Perhaps the news of Margeret is not without probability that already at that time dark rumors had spread that Dimitri was alive. The first victim of Boris' suspicion was Bogdan Belsky, who was commissioned by the tsar to build Tsarev-Borisov. According to the denunciation of Belsky's generosity to military people and careless words: “ Boris is the tsar in Moscow, and I am in Borisov”, - Belsky was summoned to Moscow, subjected to various insults and exiled to one of the remote cities.

The serf of Prince Shestunov denounced his master. The denunciation was not worthy of attention. Nevertheless, the scammer was told the tsar's word of honor in the square and announced that the tsar, for his service and zeal, would grant him an estate and orders him to serve in the children of the boyars. In 1601, the boyars Romanovs and their relatives suffered under a false denunciation. The eldest of the Romanov brothers, Theodore Nikitich, was exiled to the Siya Monastery and tonsured under the name Filaret; his wife, tonsured under the name of Martha, was exiled to the Tolvuisky Zaonezhsky churchyard, and their young son Michael (the future king) to Beloozero. Godunov's persecution aroused sympathy among the people for his victims. So the peasants of the Tolvui churchyard secretly helped the nun Martha and "visited" for her the news about Filaret.

Great Famine

The reign of Boris began successfully, but a series of disgrace gave rise to despondency, and soon a real disaster broke out. In 1601, there were long rains, and then early frosts broke out and, according to a contemporary, “ beat the scum strong all the work of human affairs in the fields". The next year, the crop failure was repeated. A famine began in the country, which lasted three years. The price of bread has increased 100 times. Feeling that faith in him as a sovereign was disappearing, Boris forbade selling bread more than a certain limit, even resorting to the persecution of those who raised prices, but did not achieve success. In an effort to help the starving, he spared no expense, widely distributing money to the poor. But bread became more expensive, and money lost its value. Boris ordered the royal barns to be opened for the starving. However, even their supplies were not enough for all the hungry, especially since, having learned about the distribution, people from all over the country reached out to Moscow, leaving the meager supplies that they still had at home. People began to think that this was God's punishment, that the reign of Boris Godunov was illegal and not blessed by God.

In 1601-1602. Godunov even went to the temporary restoration of St. George's Day. True, he did not allow the exit, but only the export of the peasants. The nobles thus saved their estates from final desolation and ruin. The permission given by the Godunovs concerned only small service people, it did not extend to the lands of members of the Boyar Duma and the clergy. But even this step did little to strengthen the king's position. Popular riots swept across the country.

Mass starvation and dissatisfaction with the establishment of "lesson years" caused a major uprising led by Khlopok (1602-1603), in which peasants, serfs and Cossacks took part. The insurrectionary movement covered about 20 districts of central Russia and the south of the country. The rebels united in large detachments that advanced towards Moscow. Against them, Boris Godunov sent an army under the command of I.F. Basmanov. In September 1603, in a fierce battle near Moscow, the rebel army of Khlopok was defeated. Basmanov died in battle, and Khlopok himself was seriously wounded, captured and executed.

However, Isaac Massa reports that " ... there were more grain reserves in the country than all the inhabitants could eat it in four years ... noble gentlemen, as well as in all monasteries and many rich people, barns were full of bread, part of it had already rotted from long-term lying, and they did not want to sell it; and by the will of God the king was so blinded, despite the fact that he could order whatever he wanted, he did not command in the strictest way that everyone should sell their bread».

Appearance of an impostor

Rumors began to circulate throughout the country that the "born sovereign", Tsarevich Dmitry, was alive. Godunov was frightened by the threat looming over him. Detractors spoke unflatteringly about Godunov - "worker". At the beginning of 1604, a letter from a foreigner from Narva was intercepted, in which it was announced that Dmitry, who had miraculously escaped, was with the Cossacks, and great misfortunes would soon befall the Moscow land.

October 16 (26), 1604 False Dmitry I with a handful of Poles and Cossacks moved to Moscow. Even the curses of the Moscow Patriarch did not cool the enthusiasm of the people on the path of "Tsarevich Dmitry". However, in January 1605, the government troops sent by Godunov at the battle of Dobrynich defeated the impostor, who, with the few remnants of his army, was forced to leave for Putivl.

Death and offspring

The situation for Godunov was complicated due to his state of health. As early as 1599, there are references to his illnesses, and the king was often unwell in the 1600s. April 13, 1605 Boris Godunov seemed cheerful and healthy, he ate a lot and with appetite. Then he climbed the tower, from which he often surveyed Moscow. Soon he came down from there, saying that he felt faint. They called the doctor, but the king felt worse: blood began to flow from his ears and nose. The king lost his senses and soon died at the age of 53.

The death of Tsar Boris happened quite suddenly and, moreover, under very strange circumstances. Some two hours after dinner, when, as usual, the doctors present at the same time had already retired, leaving the king, in their opinion, in good health, which was evidenced by his good appetite at dinner, the sovereign generally liked to eat well and heartily, although now it is permissible to think that in this he even went to excess - he suddenly not only felt ill, but also felt pains in his stomach, so that, going to his bedchamber, he himself went to bed and ordered the doctors to be called (who had already managed to disperse ). But before they came to the call, the king died, having lost his tongue before his death. Shortly before his death, he, at his own request, with the greatest haste, was tonsured a monastic rank, with a new name given to him.

There were rumors that Godunov poisoned himself in a fit of despair. According to another version, he was poisoned by his political opponents; the version of natural death is more likely, since Godunov had often been ill before. He was buried in the Kremlin Archangel Cathedral.

The son of Boris, Fyodor, became king, an educated and extremely intelligent young man. Soon there was a rebellion in Moscow, provoked by False Dmitry. Tsar Fedor and his mother were killed, leaving only Boris's daughter Xenia alive. The bleak fate of the impostor's concubine awaited her. It was officially announced that Tsar Fyodor and his mother were poisoned. Their bodies were exposed. Then Boris's coffin was taken out of the Archangel Cathedral and reburied in the Varsonofevsky Monastery near Lubyanka. His family was also buried there: without a funeral service, like suicides.

Under Tsar Vasily Shuisky, the remains of Boris, his wife and son were transferred to the Trinity Monastery and buried in a sitting position at the northwestern corner of the Assumption Cathedral. On July 30 (August 9), 1622, Xenia (monastic Olga) was buried in the same place. In 1782, a tomb was built over the tombs.

In 1945, the tomb of the Godunovs was opened by the anthropologist M. M. Gerasimov, but the burial was previously disturbed by robbers - the bones and contents of the coffins were mixed, the skulls were not preserved, and the faces of the representatives of the Godunov dynasty were impossible to restore using anthropological reconstruction.

Boris Godunov was born in 1552 into a famous boyar family. He had Tatar roots. Boris's father was a small landowner in the Moscow region, near the city of Vyazma. In 1569, the young man's father died, and Boris moved to his uncle Dmitry, who became a guardsman. He served on the Bed Order. He was also followed by a young nephew, Boris Godunov. A brief biography of his rise included a marriage union with the daughter of Malyuta Skuratov, the country's main guardsman.

Approximate Grozny

Boris met Tsar Ivan the Terrible, with whom he developed a trusting relationship, despite the fastidious nature of the ruler. He decided to marry his youngest son Fyodor to Boris's sister Irina. After the death of the heir to the throne, Ivan, this status passed to the younger brother.

But until the last years of the tsar, Boris continued to behave cautiously at court. Together with Bogdan Belsky, he became the main confidant of Ivan the Terrible. Sir Jerome Horsey, who was the English ambassador, wrote that between the two of them there were feelings of a son and a father. When the tsar was dying, Boris Godunov was also next to him. A brief biography of the boyar received a new twist. Now he became the brother-in-law of Tsar Fedor.

brother-in-law of the king

The last Rurikovich was distinguished by poor health and mild character. He had no administrative or managerial talents. He was not prepared at all for the role of the ruler of a great power. Therefore, a council of four boyars (including Godunov) was created, which gave advice to the sovereign and dealt with political issues himself. Immediately, those close to him began to plot against each other in order to get rid of competitors and get closer to the king. Various groups, including on a family basis, slandered the enemies, who ended up in dungeons and were subjected to repression.

Very quickly, Boris Godunov became the only adviser and confidant of the tsar. A brief biography of the king's brother-in-law during this period includes organizing the election of the first patriarch. This was important step aimed at strengthening church and state. After the fall of Byzantium, Russia had no reference points in Orthodoxy. Greek high priests stopped coming to the country. Therefore, it was decided that the Russian Metropolitan Job would become the first patriarch.

Talented Regent

Next, Boris had to face the devastation that persisted in the country after the unprecedented repressions of Ivan the Terrible and the existence of the oprichnina. First of all, cities began to be built. After the Tatar khanates of Kazan and Astrakhan were captured, the Volga needed numerous fortresses to protect it from nomads. Therefore, Samara, Saratov and Tsaritsyn appeared. Construction was also carried out on other frontiers of the large kingdom of Livna). More recently, Yermak with the Cossacks conquered western Siberia, and now colonists and enterprising people went there en masse. This is how Tomsk appeared. Boris Godunov patronized all this creation. A brief biography of the stableman included numerous expenditures on urban planning.

Another important problem was economic ruin. The lands were not plowed, crops gave little production. AT last years Terrible, cases of famine became frequent. The policy of Boris Godunov in this direction was that the process of enslaving the peasants, who became the property of the landowners, was launched. This made it possible to quickly create large and stable farms that bring a harvest. In 1597, a decree was signed on lesson years - a period during which runaway peasants were caught and punished by the authorities. Then it was a gap of six years.

Foreign policy

Despite the fact that Fedor formally ruled, all important decisions were made by his brother-in-law with the tsar's complete non-resistance. This is evidenced by the foreign policy of Boris Godunov. In 1591, the Crimean invasion took place. He even approached Moscow, but, faced with a new, recently rebuilt line of fortifications, he retreated. His huge wagon train did not allow him to develop great speed. The army, including Godunov, overtook the Tatars and destroyed them. After returning to the capital, it was Boris who was showered with royal mercy, although Fyodor Mstislavsky acted as the main governor.

Another important campaign was the war with Sweden. After the failure of Ivan the Terrible in Livonia, territories in the Baltic were taken away from Russia. Therefore, Fedor and Boris wanted to take revenge. They succeeded thanks to the coordinated actions of the troops. In 1593, a peace treaty was signed, according to which Russia received Ivangorod, Koporye and other territories lost under Grozny. accompanied by success.

Death of Tsarevich Dmitry

In 1591, Fyodor's younger brother Dmitry tragically died. If the king had no heirs, then this child would have received the throne. He lived in Uglich, where he died under unclear circumstances. In order to find out the cause of the death of the heir, a commission was sent from Moscow, headed by the boyar Vasily Shuisky. He wanted to please Godunov and said that the boy died due to the negligence and negligence of his mentors when he played with a knife. Later, when Boris came to power, many began to accuse him of plotting and killing Dmitry. At first they were just rumors, but in the end it was they who caused the fall of the king.

Crowning the kingdom and repression

Fedor was in poor health. Therefore, his death in 1598 did not surprise anyone. But the question of the heir was acute. The king had daughters, but they died in infancy. The situation became unique, since before that the Rurikovich always had heirs in a straight line. The decisive vote was the king's wife Irina, who offered power to her brother.

The characterization of Boris Godunov spoke in his favor. As Fedor's regent, he gained a wealth of experience in public administration. Power in the view of the people of that time was bestowed from God. Godunov was not part of the ruling dynasty from birth. Therefore, many considered him only the first among equals in

This situation could not but affect Boris, who developed He became suspicious. Many close associates began to take advantage of this situation and slander the enemies. So, for example, it happened with the Romanovs. The head of the family, Fyodor Nikitich, was sent to a monastery after he was accused of organizing a conspiracy against the tsar. Some were simply removed from the yard.

Famine and peasant uprisings

And, nevertheless, squabbling at the top of power did not concern the bulk of the population - the peasants. "From below" there was no resistance to the fact that Boris Godunov was in power. The tragedy broke out a few years after the crowning of the kingdom. In 1601, a mass famine began throughout the country. For several seasons, the weather was cold, which killed most of the crop. Modern research say that the reason for this was the volcanic eruption in South America and the ensuing accumulation of ash in the atmosphere. One way or another, but the cold was in Europe. Boris is not to blame for this, but the peasants were superstitious, and the famine led to an increase in social tension.

The landlords, who could not feed the serfs attached to them, let them go. Those had no choice but to rob on the roads in order to somehow find food and means of life. Some landowners hid their grain to survive troubled times. When the peasants found out about this, pogroms began. Thus the famous uprising of Khlopok flared up, when a huge band of embittered beggars went to the army against Moscow. It was defeated, but this did not add to the popularity of power. Tsar Boris Godunov ordered an investigation into the causes of the incident. He also tried to help the hungry. In Moscow, barns with bread were opened. However, generosity led to the fact that tramps from all over the country headed for the capital. Soon the bins were empty.

Appearance of an impostor

After these events, the characterization of Boris Godunov in the eyes of his contemporaries was spoiled. Meanwhile, in the west of the country, rumors swept that Ivan the Terrible's son Dmitry was alive and was already on his way to Moscow to expel Godunov and restore the legitimate dynasty. This impostor turned out to be Grigory Otrepyev. It was a fugitive monk who moved to Poland. With the help of local nobles, he conceived an intrigue - to pretend to be dead Dmitry and seize power in Russia. He managed to meet with the Polish king Sigismund. The nobleman Yuri Mnishek gave him money and an army. Also, the Cossacks of the Zaporozhian Sich first joined Otrepiev.

Side forces

The life of Boris Godunov at this time was difficult. Revolts raged in his country. Hungry and embittered peasants happily marched under the banner of False Dmitry.

However, the impostor failed to effectively organize his campaign. The detachments crossed the Russian border in October, when the rains and cold had already begun. This was due to delays and delays in Poland. Another tactical failure of False Dmitry was the refusal of the Crimean Khan to invade Moscow. In Poland, they hoped that the Russian tsar would be between two fires, which would make it difficult for him to organize a defense. However, Kazy-Girey did not dare to go with the army to Moscow. Another drawback of the squad of False Dmitry was the lack of artillery.

But there were mistakes that Boris Godunov also made. The tragedy was that he did not take the news of some impostor seriously. In the meantime, he did not sit idly by, but organized an effective campaign, the center of which was Oster Castle.

Defeat of False Dmitry

The pretender's army was divided into two parts. In the first were the Cossacks, who openly walked along the roads. The second army, in which False Dmitry himself was, went through the forests. Moravsk and Chernigov were the first to fall without a fight. But Novgorod-Seversky did not want to surrender, and the local boyar Pyotr Basmanov organized the defense, having received reinforcements from neighboring cities. The first battle of this war took place there, in which the impostor won. Boris Godunov was amazed by this news. Then he sent the voivode Fyodor Mstislavsky to the west.

During this time, Kursk, Kromy, Rylsk and Sevsk were in the hands of the "prince". Mstislavsky met him near the village of Dobrynichi on January 21, 1605. 20 thousand tsarist soldiers attacked 23 thousand supporters of False Dmitry. Success was behind the Moscow army. The impostor fled to Putivl. It seemed to be the final victory.

Death

But suddenly the death of Boris Godunov occurred. On April 13, the 53-year-old king felt dizzy after a meal and quickly died. Recently, he was sick a lot due to heavy loads. But it is still not known exactly what was the reason for this departure from life. Some researchers believe that Godunov either poisoned himself out of despair, or one of the courtiers planted poison on him.

Finding this out is now not possible also due to the fact that the remains of the king were reburied several times. The fact is that after his death, his son Fedor received the throne. But he was overthrown by False Dmitry and killed (just like his mother). This ended the reign of the Godunov dynasty. The Time of Troubles began, during which numerous groups and even Poles claimed power. But in the end, Mikhail Romanov, the son of Fyodor Nikitich, who was sent to the monastery by Boris Godunov, became king. History has finally judged the opponents.

Boris Fedorovich was born in 1552 in the family of Fyodor Ivanovich Godunov, in the Vyazemsky district. The Godunovs were middle-class landowners and additionally carried out local service to the sovereign, owned a small estate in Kostroma.

A new life began with Boris Godunov after the death of his father. In 1569 he began to live with the family of his uncle, Dmitry Godunov. The lands in the Vyazma region, owned by Dmitry Godunov, went to the oprichnina possessions, and the not very noble Dmitry Godunov oriented himself and entered the oprichnina corps. Here he very quickly rose to the high rank of head of the Bed Order.

The fate of Boris Godunov is also taking shape. First, he becomes a guardsman, and already in 1571 he is a friend at the tsar's wedding. In the same year, he became related to Malyuta Skuratov himself, marrying his daughter Maria Grigoryevna Skuratova-Belskaya. In 1578, Boris Godunov became a kravchim, and he was granted the title of boyar.

Boris Godunov was always distinguished by a cautious character, kept in the background, but gradually his role at court increased. Together with B. Ya. Belsky, he became especially close to the king.

Boris Godunov under Tsar Fedor

On March 28, 1584, Ivan the Terrible died, his third son, Fyodor Ioannovich, became his successor. Ivan Vasilyevich himself believed that Fedor was a bad state leader. The new king really did not have any inclinations to rule the country, he was in poor health and required constant help. Given these circumstances, a regency council of four people was created.

On the day of the wedding to the kingdom, May 31, 1584, the role of Boris Godunov under the young tsar increased significantly. He received the rank of equestrian, the title of a close boyar and governor of the Kazan and Astrakhan kingdoms. The struggle of boyar groups for power brought its results. Boris Godunov took the main place near the tsar. As a result, all the years of the reign of Fyodor Ioannovich, in fact, Boris Godunov ruled Russia.

Here it is necessary to take into account the family relations of Boris Godunov with the young tsar. His sister Irina was the wife of Fyodor Ioannovich.

Being in the shadow of the new tsar, Godunov did a lot to strengthen the statehood. It was thanks to his efforts that the first patriarch was elected. They became the Moscow Metropolitan Job.

It was a time when common sense and calculation were more taken into account in domestic politics. The country began large-scale construction of fortresses in the Wild Field. The safety of navigation on the Volga was strengthened. The first outpost of Russia appeared in Siberia - the city of Tomsk. The authorities began to treat builders and architects with great respect.

Moscow was turning into a powerful fortress. Additionally, towers and walls of the White City were erected around the city, and another line of defense was built on the site of the Garden Ring. Water supply appeared in the Moscow Kremlin. All this soon paid off. In the summer of 1591, the troops of the Crimean prince Giray were unable to storm the city, and already during the retreat they suffered heavy losses.

Today we know Boris Godunov as a talented diplomat. Thanks to his efforts, under a peace treaty that ended the Russo-Swedish War of 1590-1595, the lands lost as a result of the Livonian War returned to Russia.

Boris Godunov - Russian Tsar

In accordance with the law of succession to the throne, the main candidate for royal power during the life of Fedor was to be his younger brother Dmitry, the youngest son of Maria Nagoi, the seventh wife of Ivan the Terrible. But on May 15, 1591, tragic events took place in Uglich, as a result of which Tsarevich Dmitry died under unclear circumstances. It is customary to blame Boris Godunov for the murder of the young prince, since Dmitry stood in his way to power. But there is no clear evidence for this.

With the death of Fyodor Ioannovich, there are no other direct heirs of the Rurik dynasty. There were proposals to elect the widow of the deceased tsar, Irina, as queen, but they did not find general support, and as a result, the Zemsky Sobor settled on the candidacy of the tsar's brother-in-law, Boris Godunov. This took place on February 17, 1598. On September 1 of the same year, he was crowned king.

Boris Godunov continued his policy, which he began as the chief adviser to the tsar. They began to invite foreigners to the Russian service even more actively. In Moscow, overseas merchants, doctors, industrialists, military men, and scientists no longer surprised anyone. All of them received positions and salaries, land with peasants.

Godunov's attempt to create a university in Moscow failed. This was opposed by the clergy, who were more afraid of any heresies than knowledge. Elements of European culture more and more actively penetrated into the Russian state. First of all, this concerned clothing, housing, secular ceremonies. For the first time, sending Russian people to study in Europe began to be practiced.

Boris Godunov felt very well the precariousness of his position due to the fact that he was not a Rurikovich. Suspicion and incredulity pursued him everywhere. In this he was very much like Ivan the Terrible. Gradually, he began to settle scores with the boyars, whose sincerity he doubted.

And if the reign of Boris began quite successfully, then gradually a series of opals gave rise to despondency, and after a double crop failure, a real disaster erupted - famine began. Food prices have risen 100 times. Boris Godunov did his best to help the starving by arranging mass distributions of bread. But some problems gave rise to others.

The result of all the problems was a major uprising led by Khlopok (1602-1603), in which peasants, serfs and Cossacks took part. Unrest swept 20 districts, and, having united, the rebels moved to Moscow.

In a fierce battle near Moscow, the rebels were defeated. The commander of the troops, Basmanov, was killed in battle. Cotton was badly wounded and later executed.

A new problem for Boris Godunov was the spread of the rumor that Tsarevich Dmitry was alive. This rumor was actively coming from Poland, where, under the leadership of False Dmitry, forces began to prepare for a campaign against Moscow. All this worried Boris Godunov very much. In January 1605, government troops repulsed the first attack of the impostors, and they were forced to withdraw to Putivl, where they continued to gather forces.

Another problem was the state of health of Boris Godunov, complaints about which appeared already in 1599. It didn't get better over time. On April 13, 1605, the king became ill, he lost consciousness and soon died at the age of 53.