Semiboyarshchina in troubled times briefly. Semiboyarshchina: salvation of the state or treason? The mood in the Boyar Duma, Moscow society and in the provinces

The Seven Boyars is...
"Seven boyars" - "seventh boyars", Russian government, formed after the overthrow of Tsar Vasily Shuisky in July 1610 and formally existed until the election of Tsar Mikhail Romanov to the throne. Boyar rule did not give the country either peace or stability. Moreover, it transferred power to the Polish interventionists and let them into Moscow. Eliminated by the militia of Minin and Pozharsky.
Interregnum
After Vasily Shuisky was overthrown and tonsured a monk, an interregnum began in Russia. False Dmitry 2 was not recognized in the capital, but people were afraid to choose a new king from among themselves. No one wanted to listen to Patriarch Hermogenes, who said that it was necessary to immediately elect either Prince Vasily Golitsyn or Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov as king (this is the first mention of Philaret's son about being elected king!). However, in Moscow it was decided to rule jointly - by a council of seven boyars. At the Arbat Gate, a meeting of all the "ranks" of the state was held - representatives of the nobility and nobility. They, after approving the overthrow of Shuisky, asked the members of the Boyar Duma, “to welcome, accept Moscow State until God gives us a sovereign for the Muscovite kingdom.
The composition of the Seven Boyars included
- Prince Fyodor Ivanovich Mstislavsky
- Prince Ivan Mikhailovich Vorotynsky
- Prince Andrei Vasilievich Troubetzkoy
- Prince Andrei Vasilyevich Golitsyn
- Prince Boris Mikhailovich Lykov-Obolensky
Boyar Ivan Nikitich Romanov
Boyarin Fedor Ivanovich Sheremetev
Prince Mstislavsky became the head of the Seven Boyars.

Treaty with the Poles
But everything was clear that such a form of government in Russia was short-lived, and Tushin's idea of ​​​​inviting Prince Vladislav began to win more and more adherents. The Seven Boyars, meeting public opinion, concluded on August 17, 1610 with the commander of the Polish king Sigismund II, hetman Zolkiewski, an agreement on calling the son of the king, 15-year-old prince Vladislav, to the Russian throne. The boyars wanted Vladislav to convert to Orthodoxy, marry a Russian, and lift the siege of Smolensk.
Zholkiewski did not promise all this, but he undertook to send a representative Russian embassy to the king for negotiations. For seven weeks, Muscovites swore allegiance to Tsar Vladislav in the Kremlin. The oath became a genuine expression of the will of the people: 8-12 thousand Muscovites entered the Assumption Cathedral a day, took an oath of allegiance to Tsar Vladislav, kissed the cross and the Gospel. And so 300 thousand people passed through the Kremlin! Meanwhile, the Kremlin itself and other important Moscow centers began to be occupied by regular Polish troops. Soon, Moscow was essentially occupied by the Polish army. This happened on September 20-21, 1610.
Hetman Zholkiewski began to demand that the former Tsar Shuisky and his brothers be handed over to him, which the Seven Boyars did without regret. Even the monk Shuisky, with his influence, money and connections, did not cease to be dangerous for the boyars who seized power. 1610, September - crowds of Muscovites poured into the streets of the capital to see the last exit of Tsar Vasily. Few people then felt a sense of national humiliation, seeing how in a wretched chariot, following the Polish horsemen in sparkling armor, they carried the captive Russian tsar, dressed in a worn monastic cassock. On the contrary, the people even thanked the Hetman Zholkiewski, who was prancing among the Russian boyars, for "delivering" them from the malicious Shuisky.

A huge (more than 1 thousand people) embassy went to the king's camp near Smolensk, expecting to soon return to the capital with the new sovereign. But nothing good came of this idea. Negotiations in Sigismund's camp stalled. As it turned out, the king considers the state of things in a completely different way than Zholkievsky, that Sigismund is against the fact that his son would convert to Orthodoxy and does not want to let him go to Moscow. Moreover, Sigismund himself decided to become the Russian Tsar (Zhigimont Ivanovich), to unite Poland, Lithuania and Russia under his rule.
Why were the boyars in such a hurry to swear an oath to Vladislav, why did they bind hundreds of thousands of people with sacred oaths, obliging them to obey an unknown sovereign? They, as often happens in history, took care of themselves first. IN Time of Troubles interregnum, the boyars most of all feared the capricious mob of Moscow and False Dmitry 2, who, inspired by the defeat of the Russian army near Klushino, made a rush to the capital. At any time, he could break into Moscow and "sit down on the kingdom" - the impostor in the capital would have found many supporters. In a word, the Seven Boyars could not delay. The Polish forces, on the other hand, seemed to the boyars a reliable shield against the robbers of the Tushinsky thief and the unfaithful Moscow mob. After the Poles agreed in principle to the election of Vladislav, all other problems seemed to the boyars not so important and easily resolved at a personal meeting with Sigismund II.
Now the Russian ambassadors found themselves in a terrible situation: they could not agree to the proclamation of Sigismund II as the Russian Tsar, but they could not leave shamefully with nothing. The negotiations went on with raised voices, and after that it turned out that the ambassadors, like former king Vasily, - captives of the Poles ...

Civil uprising. Liberation of Moscow
The new government let the Polish army into Moscow, hoping that False Dmitry would not come here like that. From that time on, the whole essence of the Seven Boyars was reduced to playing the role of puppets in the hands of the King of Poland, who began to pursue a policy pleasing to him through his protege, the commandant of Moscow, Alexander Gonsevsky. The boyars were deprived of real power and became, in fact, hostages. It is in such a pitiful role that it is customary to see the answer to the question: “What is the Seven Boyars?”
After all real power passed from the hands of the boyars to the Polish governor, he, having received the rank of boyar, began to uncontrollably run the state. At his own will, he began to take away lands and estates from those Russians who remained faithful to their patriotic duty, and transferred them to the Poles, who were part of his inner circle. This caused a wave of indignation in the state. It is believed that at that time the Seven Boyars also changed their attitude towards the Poles.
Soon False Dmitry 2 was killed by traitors. The enemy was defeated, but this did not save the boyar government from the problem. The Polish army settled in Moscow firmly settled down and did not intend to leave.
The authorities and the people were against the Catholic king. The people's militia began to gather, but as a result, everything ended in complete failure - the militias were defeated by the Poles. More successful was the Second Militia. Under the leadership of Prince Pozharsky and zemstvo elder Minin. They correctly decided that in addition to the will to defeat the Polish army, the militias needed material support.
The people were ordered to give up a third of their property under pain of complete confiscation. So, the militias received good funding, more and more volunteers joined their ranks. Soon strength militia exceeded 10,000. They approached Moscow and began a siege of the Polish invaders.
The Polish garrison was doomed, but was not going to surrender to the last. After several months of siege, the militias were able to win - Kitay-gorod and the Kremlin were captured by storm, the Poles were captured and killed. Moscow was liberated. 1613, February 21 - the boyars chose a new ruler - Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. This was the end of the period that entered the history of Russia as the Seven Boyars. The years of the reign of the seven boyars are rightly considered one of the most difficult for the entire period of the Time of Troubles. Upon their completion, the country entered a new historical era.

They created a transitional government, the purpose of which was to prepare the election of a new tsar to replace the deposed Vasily Shuisky. However, the peculiarities of the Time of Troubles, against which the events unfolded, demanded immediate decisions from them.

A country in a state of severe crisis

The political and economic situation in Russia by the beginning of 1610 was very difficult. The war with the Commonwealth proceeded extremely unfavorably for her, in addition, the army of another impostor who claimed to be the heir to the throne, False Dmitry II, came close to Moscow. He went down in history under the nickname Tushinsky thief - at the location of his camp in the village of Tushino near Moscow.

The situation was aggravated by the consequences of the uprising that swept through Russia shortly before, led by Ivan Bolotnikov, as well as the attack of the Nagai and Crimean Tatars. All this led to the extreme impoverishment of the people and the inevitable social tension in such cases. The next defeat of the tsarist troops in the battle with the Poles served as an impetus for popular unrest and the deposition of Tsar Vasily Shuisky.

Education of the Seven Boyars

Ahead was the election of a new autocrat, and in order to prepare this most important act in the life of the state, as well as to govern the country during the transition period, a provisional government was formed, which included seven of the most well-born and influential members of the Boyar Duma. Among them were the princes F. I. Mstislavsky, I. M. Vorotynsky, A. V. Trubetskoy, A. V. Golitsyn, as well as the boyars B. M. Lykov-Obolensky, I. N. Romanov and F. I. Sheremetev .

So, on the wave of Polish intervention and domestic problems, the Seven Boyars was formed. The years of government of this body of power, headed by Prince Fyodor Mikhailovich Mstislavsky, ended with the accession to the throne of the first tsar from the House of Romanov, Mikhail Fedorovich, and the end of the Time of Troubles. But this was preceded by a difficult and long period.

The limited power of the boyars

In order to understand what the Semiboyarshchina is and how wide its powers were, one should take into account the situation that had developed around Moscow by that time. It is known from documentary sources that to the west of it, in the immediate vicinity of the city outposts, there were Poles led by Hetman Zhelkovsky, and in the southeast, in Kolomenskoye, the army of False Dmitry, reinforced by the Lithuanian detachment of Sapieha, was located. Thus, for the entire time of the Seven Boyars, her power did not extend beyond the capital.

Forced collusion with the Poles

The question of what is the Seven Boyars in the history of Russia, as a rule, has never caused discussions. Usually the members of this government body were assigned the role of national traitors, and here's the thing. For them personally, the main threat was not the Poles, with whom it was possible to negotiate if desired, but the impostor detachments, which had many supporters among the Moscow common people. In the event of the victory of the Tushinsky thief, the boyars would definitely not have demolished their heads.

This prompted them to negotiate with Hetman Zhelkovsky and sign an agreement according to which Vladislav Vaza, the son of the Polish king, was to become the Russian tsar. The Lithuanians who supported the impostor, led by Sapieha, also agreed to swear allegiance to the Polish prince, thus losing a real opportunity to seize power in Moscow.

Hostages of their own decisions

However, in order to have greater guarantees of personal safety, the boyars secretly opened the Kremlin gates on the night of September 21, 1610 and let the invaders into the capital. From that moment on, the whole essence of the Seven Boyars was reduced to playing the role of puppets in the hands of the Polish king, who pursued a political line pleasing to him through his protege, Moscow commandant Alexander Gonsevsky. The boyars were deprived of real power and became, in essence, hostages. It is in this miserable role of theirs that it is customary to see the answer to the question: "What is the Seven Boyars?"

Although the treaty infringed on the national interests of the Russian people and was offensive to them, it did not talk about Russia's accession to the Commonwealth, but stipulated the preservation of Orthodoxy throughout its territory. He himself was, according to the agreement, obliged to convert from the Catholic faith to Orthodoxy.

The arbitrariness that caused national indignation

After all real power passed from the hands of the transitional government to the Polish governor, he, having received the rank of boyar, began to run the country uncontrollably. At his own discretion, Vladislav took away lands and estates from those Russians who remained faithful to their patriotic duty, and gave them away to the Poles who made up his inner circle. This caused a wave of indignation in the country. It is believed that during this period, the Seven Boyars changed their attitude towards the Poles.

During the Time of Troubles, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church A true patriot of his Fatherland, he, with the support of the boyars, sent letters throughout Russia in which he called for the creation of a militia and armed struggle against the invaders. Despite the fact that, by order of the Polish governor, he was imprisoned in the dungeon of the Chudov Monastery, where he soon died of starvation, his messages became the impetus that resulted in the appearance of the regiments of Minin and Pozharsky under the walls of Moscow.

End of the period of the Seven Boyars

The election to the throne of the tsar that followed in 1613 was the end of the period that entered the history of Russia as the Seven Boyars. The years of rule of seven representatives of the highest Moscow nobility are rightly considered one of the most difficult for the entire period of the Time of Troubles. Upon their completion, the country entered a new historical era.

Speaking about the origin of the term itself, one should mention the relatively late appearance of the word Seven Boyars. During the Time of Troubles and over the next two centuries, the members of this government structure were called "seven boyars". The expression used now is first encountered only in 1813 in the story of A. A. Bestuzhev-Marlinsky.

IN Russian history and earlier there were periods when, in the absence of the tsar, power was concentrated in the hands of boyar commissions. This happened mainly when the sovereign went to war or a long pilgrimage. It was then that it became a tradition to create these provisional government bodies of seven people. The Russian historian of the 17th century, official G.K. Kotoshikhin writes about this in detail in his writings.

Attempts to rethink the events of the past

It should be noted that in last years the question of what is the Seven Boyars and what is its role in Russian history received a slightly different coverage. If in Soviet period Since the actions of this temporary authority were unequivocally regarded as a betrayal, in the post-perestroika period, publications appeared in which conspiracy with the Poles is seen as the only reasonable diplomatic move aimed at saving the country from the bloody chaos that is inevitable in the event of the victory of False Dmitry II.

Today, being outside of ideological stereotypes, researchers have the opportunity to give a more objective assessment of the historical realities of the past centuries, among which the Seven Boyars occupy an important place. The years separating us from that era did not erase the negative aspects of its activities from the people's memory, but they also allowed them to be given a deeper understanding.

The name accepted by historians of the transitional government of the seven boyars in 1610-1613.

The defeat of the troops of Vasily Shuisky from the Poles near Klushin (June 24 / July 4, 1610) finally undermined the shaky authority of the "boyar tsar", and a coup took place in Moscow upon news of this event. The nobles, led by Lyapunov, and the townspeople overthrew Vasily Shuisky from the throne and forcibly tonsured him a monk. A group of seven boyars led by Mstislavsky - "Seven Boyars" - became in charge of Moscow. One of her first decisions was not to elect representatives of Russian families as tsar. In fact, its power did not extend beyond Moscow: in the west of Moscow, in Khoroshevo, the Poles stood at the head of Zholkevsky, and in the southeast, in Kolomenskoye, False Dmitry II, who returned from Kaluga, with whom was the Polish detachment of Sapieha. The boyars were especially afraid of False Dmitry, because he had many supporters in Moscow and was at least more popular than them. As a result, it was decided to negotiate with the Poles and invite the Polish prince Vladislav to the throne on the terms of his conversion to Orthodoxy, as had already been agreed between Sigismund and the Tushino delegation. On August 17 (27), 1610, an appropriate agreement was signed between the boyars and the hetman Zholkevsky, and Moscow kissed the cross to Vladislav. However, fearing the Pretender, the boyars went further and on the night of September 21 let the Poles into the Kremlin, after which power actually passed to the commander of the Polish garrison Alexander Gonsevsky.

Composition

1. Prince Fyodor Ivanovich Mstislavsky (d. 1622).
2. Prince Ivan Mikhailovich Vorotynsky (d. 1627).
3. Prince Andrei Vasilyevich Trubetskoy (d. 1612).
4. Prince Andrei Vasilyevich Golitsyn (d. March 19 (31), 1611).
5. Prince Boris Mikhailovich Lykov-Obolensky (1576 - June 2, 1646).
6. Boyar Ivan Nikitich Romanov (d. October 23, 1640).
7. Boyarin Fedor Ivanovich Sheremetev (d. 1650).

The Seven Boyars is the reign of the boyars in troubled times.

Undesirable king

The beginning of the 17th century was a difficult time for Russia and was marked by a series of terrible events. The war began with the Commonwealth, from which Russia suffered defeat.

The Russian lands were engulfed by the uprising of Ivan Bolotnikov, and immediately after the uprising of False Dmitry II. Some areas were attacked by the Nogais - Crimean Tatars.

The authority of Tsar Vasily Shuisky was irrevocably undermined. The people were tired of his constant failures, the country was oppressed and plundered. In 1610, Vasily Shuisky was deposed from the throne and forced to be tonsured a monk. Power was seized by a group of conspirators, consisting of seven boyars.

Later, the new government extradited the former tsar to the Polish military, and he was sent into captivity, where he later died. Composition of the provisional government:

• prince Mstislavsky,
• Prince Vorotynsky,
• Prince Trubetskoy,
• Prince Golitsyn,
• Prince Lykov-Obolensky,
• boyar Romanov
• boyar Sheremetev.

Later historians called this phenomenon "seven boyars".

The power of the seven boyars

The new provisional government could not independently cope with the threats looming from all sides, both outside and inside the country. A new king had to be chosen. They did not see any candidates for tsars among the Russian representatives. It was decided to invite the son of the Polish king to the Russian throne Sigismund III- Vladislav.

The only condition for Vladislav was that he accept the Orthodox faith. At the same time, the powers of the boyars were preserved. Meanwhile, the uprising of False Dmitry II was rampant and was gaining strength more and more. Quite a large part of the people supported the impostor and was ready to take his side in the struggle for the throne.

The new government decided not to tempt fate, they let Polish troops into Moscow, hoping that False Dmitry would not dare to poke his head here. Soon False Dmitry II was killed by traitors. The enemy was defeated, but this did not save the interim government from problems. The Polish troops settled in Moscow firmly settled down and were not going to leave.

And the Polish king Sigismund had already proposed his candidacy for the throne and forbade Vladislav to accept the Orthodox faith.

Civil uprising. Liberation

The authorities and the people were against the Catholic king. The militia began to gather, but in the end it ended in complete failure - the militia troops were defeated by the Poles. The second militia was more successful. It was headed by Prince Pozharsky and Zemstvo headman Minin. They decided that in addition to the will to defeat the Poles, the militias needed material motivation.

The people were ordered to give up a third of their property under pain of complete confiscation. Thus, the militias had good funding, more and more volunteers joined their ranks. Soon the number of people's militia exceeded 10 thousand. They approached Moscow and began the siege of the Polish invaders.

The Poles were doomed, but did not give up to the last. After several months of siege, the militias won - they stormed Kitai-Gorod and the Kremlin, the Poles were captured and killed. Moscow was liberated. On February 21, 1613, the boyars chose a new ruler - the boyar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. The war with the Poles lasted until 1619.

Seven Boyars