The analysis of sources for the period 1730-1740, done in the work, allows us to identify the reasons for the emergence of a stable negative assessment of Anna's reign. The main reason is the stereotype of "Bironism", which began to take shape as early as the Elizabethan reign, and then was fixed in the popular literature of the first half of the 19th century. Having penetrated widely into the mass historical consciousness, it could not but be reflected in the works of Russian historians. Other reasons include the state public consciousness Russia in the second half of the 19th century and in the Soviet era.
As for the modern assessment of the period 1730-40s, the belief prevails here that Anna's reign became a time of long-awaited stability, after a series of " palace coups"and Peter's upheavals. A number of serious measures were taken in social sphere, in the field of regulation of industry and trade, management, etc. Anna's government chose a fairly clear political course aimed at strengthening the reforms carried out by Peter the Great, maintaining Russia's foreign policy positions.
It should be excluded from the characteristics of the period of the 1730s. the term "German dominance". After comparing two points of view on the role of the German factor in Russian politics, it becomes clear the injustice of such a definition of the activities of many talented foreigners in the service of Russian Empire. Among them were not only statesmen, but also people of science and art, who left their unique mark on history. Russian culture. It should also not be forgotten that it was in this "dark era" that cadet corps, the first opera was staged. This can be attributed to the trends of the time, however, the fact that Anna's government took into account these trends is a considerable merit of it, this indicates a desire for development based on the experience of more developed countries Europe. Of course, against the backdrop of such striking phenomena in Russian history as the reforms of Peter the Great and the "enlightened absolutism" of Catherine II, the ten-year reign of Anna Ioannovna looks more than inexpressive, for this reason, until now, all those stamps that were easy to create, but so difficult to destroy everything still exist in national historiography. Is it possible to compare such rulers as Anna and Catherine? Such statesmen like Menshikov and Biron? Perhaps this is the task of the historian, to see the significant where at first glance it is not. When comparing traditional and contemporary estimates the reign of Anna 1, it is easy to see the advantages of the latter. Logical and justified conclusions in it are based on a much wider range of sources on the problem, in contrast to the traditional position, the conclusions of which were often drawn only from indirect sources.
The question of Annin's reign remains open, because. it is still very poorly studied, not enough attention is paid to the personalities of the leading statesmen of that era, who are at the head of government controlled, such as Minikh, Osterman, Cherkassky, Volynsky, etc. a number of issues related to both domestic and foreign policy are not covered. Historians use not quite enough sources on the problem.
There are already some hints of a rethink political activity Anna Ioannovna in particular in the studies of Kurukin and Kamensky. Even earlier, the image of Anna Ioannovna was revised by Karnovich. But in percentage such works are still too few to make any generalizations.
After a study on the problem, we come to the conclusion that despite the fact that Anna Ioannovna was a mediocre ruler and poorly versed in politics, nevertheless, thanks to the successfully created government, which included such talented and knowledgeable people as Minich, Osterman and others, Russia throughout the decade of her reign has been developing and strengthening in conditions of internal political stability.
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Romanovs |
Praskovya Fedorovna |
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Friedrich Wilhelm (Duke of Courland) |
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Accession to the throne
Board of Anna Ioannovna
Russian wars
Bironovshchina
Appearance and character
End of reign
Footprint in art
Literature
Filmography
Interesting Facts
(Anna Ivanovna; January 28 (February 7), 1693 - October 17 (28), 1740) - Russian Empress from the Romanov dynasty.
The second daughter of Tsar Ivan V (brother and co-ruler of Tsar Peter I) from Praskovya Feodorovna. She was married in 1710 to Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Courland; widowed 4 months after the wedding, she remained in Courland. After the death of Peter II, in 1730 she was invited to the Russian throne by the Supreme Privy Council as a monarch with limited powers, but took all power, dispersing the Supreme Council.
The time of her reign was later called Bironism named after her favorite Biron.
Early biography
From 1682, the brothers Peter I and Ivan V reigned on the Russian throne, until in 1696 the eldest but sickly Tsar Ivan V died. In January 1684, Ivan (or John) married Praskovya Feodorovna Saltykova, who gave birth to the sovereign 5 daughters, of whom only three survived. The eldest daughter Catherine later married Duke Karl-Leopold, and her grandson did not stay long Russian emperor under the name of Ivan VI. The middle daughter Anna was born in 1693 and until the age of 15 she lived in the village of Izmailovo near Moscow with her mother Praskovya Fedorovna.
In April 1708, the royal relatives, including Anna Ioannovna, moved to St. Petersburg.
In 1710, Peter I, wishing to strengthen the influence of Russia in the Baltic states, married Anna to the young Duke of Courland Friedrich-Wilhelm, the nephew of the Prussian king. The wedding took place on October 31 in St. Petersburg, in the palace of Prince Menshikov, and after that the couple spent time in feasts in northern capital Russia. Barely having left Petersburg at the beginning of 1711 for his possessions, Friedrich-Wilhelm died, as was suspected, due to immoderate excesses at feasts.
At the request of Peter I, Anna began to live in Mitava (now Western part Latvia), under the control of the Russian representative P. M. Bestuzhev-Ryumin. He ruled the duchy, and for a long time was also Anna's lover. Anna agreed to marry Moritz of Saxony in 1726, but under the influence of Menshikov, who had views of the Duchy of Courland, the marriage was upset. From about that time, a man entered Anna's life who retained a huge influence on her until her death.
In 1718, the 28-year-old Courland nobleman Ernest-Johann Buren entered the office of the Dowager Duchess, who later appropriated the French ducal name of Biron. He was never Anna's groom, as patriotic writers sometimes claimed, he soon became the manager of one of the estates, and in 1727 he completely replaced Bestuzhev.
It was rumored that Biron's youngest son Karl Ernst (born October 11, 1728) was actually his son by Anna. There is no direct evidence of this, but there is indirect evidence: when Anna Ioannovna left Mitava for Moscow in January 1730, she took this baby with her, although Biron himself and his family remained in Courland.
Accession to the throne
After the death of Peter II at 1 o'clock in the morning on January 19 (30), 1730, the highest governing body, Supreme secret council, began to deliberate about the new sovereign. The future of Russia was determined by 7 people: Chancellor Golovkin, 4 representatives of the Dolgoruky family and two Golitsyns. Vice Chancellor Osterman avoided discussion.
The question was not easy - there were no direct descendants of the Romanov dynasty in the male line.
The members of the Council talked about the following candidates: Princess Elizabeth (daughter of Peter I), Tsaritsa-grandmother Lopukhina (1st wife of Peter I), Duke of Holstein (was married to the daughter of Peter I Anna), Princess Dolgoruky (was betrothed to Peter II). Catherine I in her will called Elizabeth the heir to the throne in the event of the death of Peter II childless, but this was not remembered. Elizabeth scared away the old nobles with her youth and unpredictability, and the well-born nobility generally did not like the children of Peter I from the former maid and foreigner Ekaterina Alekseevna.
Then, at the suggestion of Prince Golitsyn, they decided to turn to the senior line of Tsar Ivan Alekseevich, who until 1696 was a nominal co-ruler with Peter I.
Having rejected the married eldest daughter of Tsar Ivan Alekseevich, Catherine, 8 members of the Council elected him to the kingdom by 8 o'clock in the morning on January 19 (30). youngest daughter Anna Ioannovna, who had lived in Courland for 19 years and did not have favorites and parties in Russia, which means that she suited everyone. Anna seemed to the nobles obedient and manageable, not prone to despotism. Taking advantage of the situation, the leaders decided to limit the autocratic power in their favor, demanding that Anna sign certain conditions, so-called " Conditions". According to " conditions"real power in Russia passed to the Supreme Privy Council, and the role of the monarch was reduced to representative functions.
On January 28 (February 8), 1730, Anna signed " Conditions”, according to which, without the Supreme Privy Council, she could not declare war or make peace, introduce new taxes and taxes, spend the treasury at her discretion, promote to higher ranks than a colonel, grant estates, deprive a nobleman of life and property without trial, marry, appoint an heir to the throne.
On February 15 (26), 1730, Anna Ioannovna solemnly entered Moscow, where the troops and the highest officials of the state swore allegiance to the empress in the Assumption Cathedral. In the new form of the oath, some of the former expressions that meant autocracy were excluded, but there were no expressions that would mean new form reign, and, most importantly, no mention was made of the rights of the Supreme Privy Council and the conditions confirmed by the Empress. The change consisted in the fact that they swore allegiance to the empress and the fatherland.
The struggle of the two parties in relation to the new state structure continued. The leaders sought to convince Anna to confirm their new powers. Supporters of the autocracy (A.I. Osterman, Feofan Prokopovich, P.I. Yaguzhinsky, A.D. Kantemir) and wide circles of the nobility wanted to revise the “Conditions” signed in Mitau. The ferment arose primarily from dissatisfaction with the strengthening of a narrow group of members of the Supreme Privy Council.
February 25 (March 7) 1730 large group nobility (according to different information from 150 to 800), among whom there were many guards officers, appeared at the palace and submitted a petition to Anna Ioannovna. The petition expressed a request to the empress, together with the nobility, to reconsider a form of government that would be pleasing to all the people. Anna hesitated, but her sister Ekaterina Ioannovna decisively forced the Empress to sign the petition. Representatives of the nobility conferred for a short time and at 4 pm filed a new petition, in which they asked the empress to accept full autocracy, and to destroy the clauses of the “Conditions”.
When Anna asked the bewildered leaders for their approval of the new conditions, they only nodded their heads in agreement. As a contemporary notes: It is their happiness that they did not move then; if they showed even the slightest disapproval of the verdict of the nobility, the guardsmen would have thrown them out the window." In the presence of the nobility, Anna Ioannovna tore Conditions and his letter of acceptance.
On March 1 (12), 1730, the people for the second time swore an oath to Empress Anna Ioannovna on the terms of complete autocracy.
Board of Anna Ioannovna
Anna Ioannovna herself was not very interested state affairs, leaving the business to his favorite Biron and the main leaders: Chancellor Golovkin, Prince Cherkassky, Osterman for foreign affairs and Field Marshal Munnich for military affairs.
Domestic politics
Having come to power, Anna dissolved the Supreme Privy Council, replacing it the following year with a cabinet of ministers, which included A. I. Osterman, G. I. Golovkin, A. M. Cherkassky. For the first year of her reign, Anna tried to attend the meetings of the Cabinet accurately, but then she completely lost interest in business and already in 1732 she was here only twice. Gradually, the Cabinet acquired new functions, including the right to issue laws and decrees, which made it very similar to the Supreme Council.
During the reign of Anna, the decree on single inheritance was canceled (1731), the Gentry Cadet Corps was established (1731), and the service of the nobles was limited to 25 years. Anna's inner circle consisted of foreigners (E. I. Biron, K. G. Levenwolde, B. X. Minich, P. P. Lassi).
In 1738, the number of subjects of Anna Ioannovna, residents of the Russian Empire, was almost 11 million people.
Russian wars
B.X. Minich, who commanded the army, began the restructuring of the army in the European manner. The Prussian training system was introduced, the soldiers were dressed in German uniforms, ordered to wear curls and braids, and use powder.
According to Minich's designs, fortifications were built in Vyborg and Shlisselburg, defensive lines along the southern and southeastern borders.
New guards regiments- Izmailovsky and Horse Guards.
Foreign policy in general, continued the traditions of Peter I.
In the 1730s, the War of the Polish Succession began. In 1733, King August II died and kinglessness began in the country. France managed to install its protege - Stanislov Leshchinsky. For Russia, this could become a serious problem, since France would create a bloc of states along the borders of Russia, consisting of the Commonwealth, Sweden and Ottoman Empire. Therefore, when Augustus II's son Augustus III turned to Russia, Austria and Prussia with a "Declaration of the Benevolent", in which he asked to protect the Polish "form of government" from French intervention, this gave rise to war (1733-1735).
The French fleet was defeated in Gdansk (Danzig). Leshchinsky fled on a French ship. August III became king of Poland.
French diplomacy during the war, in order to weaken the efforts of Russia in the West, tried to ignite the Russian-Turkish conflict. But negotiations with the Turks did not give the desired results, since the Port was at war with Iran. However, in 1735, the war with Turkey nevertheless began because of 20,000 soldiers who were heading to the Caucasus and violated the borders. Tatar troops. Russian diplomacy, aware of the aggressive intentions of the Porte, tried to enlist the friendly support of Iran. For this purpose, Iran was transferred in 1735 to the former Iranian possessions along the western and south coast Caspian Sea, having concluded the Ganja Treaty. When it became known in Istanbul about the treatise in Transcaucasia, Crimean Tatars, to conquer the lands transferred to Iran.
In the autumn of 1735, 40,000 the corps of General Leontiev, not reaching Perekop, turned back. In 1736, the troops crossed Perekop and occupied the capital of the Khanate Bakhchisaray, but fearing to be surrounded on the peninsula, Minikh, who commanded the troops, hastily left the Crimea. In the summer of 1736, the Azov fortress was successfully taken by the Russians. In 1737, they managed to take the fortress of Ochakov. In 1736-1738 the Crimean Khanate was defeated.
On the initiative of the Sultan's court in 1737, a congress was held in Nemirov on the global settlement of the conflict with the participation of Russians, Austrians and Ottomans. Negotiations did not lead to peace and hostilities resumed.
In 1739, Russian troops defeated the Ottomans near Stavuchany and captured the Khotyn fortress. But in the same year, the Austrians suffer one defeat after another and go to the conclusion of a separate peace with the Porte. In September 1739, a peace treaty was signed between Russia and the Porte. Under the Belgrade Treaty, Russia received Azov without the right to keep the fleet, a small territory on Right-Bank Ukraine; Big and Small Kabarda in the North. The Caucasus and a large area south of Azov were recognized as a "barrier between the two empires."
In 1731-1732, a protectorate was declared over the Kazakh Little Zhuz.
Bironovshchina
In 1730, the Office of Secret Investigation Affairs was established, replacing the Preobrazhensky Prikaz, destroyed under Peter II. AT short term she gained extraordinary strength and soon became a kind of symbol of the era. Anna was constantly afraid of conspiracies that threatened her rule, so the abuses of this department were enormous. An ambiguous word or a misunderstood gesture was often enough to end up in the dungeons, or even disappear without a trace, the call “Word and deed” was revived from “pre-Petrine times”. All those exiled under Anna to Siberia were considered to be over 20 thousand people, for the first time Kamchatka became a place of exile; more than 5 thousand of them were those of which no trace could be found, since they were often exiled without any record in the proper place and with the change of the names of the exiles, often the exiles themselves could not say anything about their past, since for a long time, under torture they were instilled with other people's names, for example: “I don’t remember Ivan’s relationship,” without even informing the Secret Chancellery about it. The executed were counted up to 1000 people, not including those who died during the investigation and executed secretly, of which there were many.
A special resonance in society was produced by the reprisals against the nobles: the princes Dolgoruky and the Cabinet Minister Volynsky. The former favorite of Peter II, Prince Ivan Dolgoruky, was broken on the wheel in November 1739; two other Dolgoruky were beheaded. The head of the family, Prince Alexei Grigoryevich Dolgoruky, had died earlier in exile in 1734. Volynsky was sentenced to impalement in the summer of 1740 for bad reviews about the empress, but then they cut out his tongue and simply cut off his head.
All abuses of power under Anna Ioannovna patriotic representatives Russian society in the 19th century they began to associate with the so-called dominance of the Germans at the Russian court, calling bironism. Archival materials and studies of historians do not confirm the role of Biron in the plundering of the treasury, executions and repressions, which was later attributed to him by writers in the 19th century.
Appearance and character
Judging by the surviving correspondence, Anna Ioannovna was classical type lady landowners. She loved to be aware of all the gossip, the personal life of her subjects, gathered around her a lot of jesters and talkers who amused her. In a letter to one person, she writes: You know our disposition, that we favor such people who would be forty years old and as talkative as that Novokshchenova". The Empress was superstitious, amused herself by shooting birds, and loved bright outfits. Public policy was determined by a narrow group of trusted persons, among whom there was a fierce struggle for the mercy of the empress.
The reign of Anna Ioannovna was marked by huge expenses for entertainment events, the costs of holding balls and maintaining the yard, ten times higher than the costs of maintaining the army and navy, under her for the first time an ice town with elephants appears at the entrance from whose trunks burning oil flows like a fountain, later during the clownish wedding of her court dwarf, the newlyweds spent their wedding night in an ice house.
Lady Jane Rondeau, wife of the English envoy to the Russian court, described Anna Ioannovna in 1733:
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She is almost my height, but somewhat fatter, with a slender figure, a swarthy, cheerful and pleasant face, black hair and blue eyes. In body movements he shows some kind of solemnity that will amaze you at first glance; but when she speaks, a smile plays on her lips, which is extremely pleasant. She talks a lot with everyone and with such tenderness that it seems as if you are talking to someone equal. However, she does not lose the dignity of a monarch for one minute; she seems to be very gracious and I think that she would be called pleasant and thin woman if she were a private individual. The sister of the Empress, the Duchess of Mecklenburg, has a gentle expression, a good physique, black hair and eyes, but is short, fat and cannot be called a beauty; cheerful disposition, and gifted with a satirical look. Both sisters speak only Russian and can understand German. |
The Spanish diplomat Duke de Liria is very delicate in his description of the Empress:
The duke was a good diplomat - he knew that in Russia the letters of foreign envoys are opened and read.
There is also a legend that in addition to Biron, she had a lover - Carl Vegele
End of reign
In 1732, Anna Ioannovna announced that the throne would be inherited by a male-line descendant of her niece Elizabeth-Catherine-Christina, daughter of Ekaterina Ioannovna, Duchess of Mecklenburg. Catherine, Native sister Anna Ioannovna, was married by Peter I to the Duke of Mecklenburg, Karl-Leopold, but in 1719 she left her husband for Russia with her one-year-old daughter. Anna Ioannovna followed her niece, who received the name Anna Leopoldovna after baptism into Orthodoxy, as if she were her own daughter, especially after the death of Ekaterina Ioannovna in 1733.
In July 1739, Anna Leopoldovna was married to the Duke of Brunswick Anton-Ulrich, and in August 1740 the couple had a son, John Antonovich.
On October 5 (16), 1740, Anna Ioannovna sat down to dine with Biron. Suddenly she became ill, she fell unconscious. The disease was recognized as dangerous. Meetings began among the higher dignitaries. The issue of succession to the throne was resolved long ago, the Empress named her two-month-old child, John Antonovich, her successor. It remained to decide who would be regent until he came of age, and Biron was able to collect votes in his favor.
On October 16 (27), the ailing Empress had a seizure, which foreshadowed an imminent death. Anna Ioannovna ordered to call Osterman and Biron. In their presence, she signed both papers - about the inheritance after her of Ivan Antonovich and about the regency of Biron.
At 9 pm on October 17 (28), 1740, Anna Ioannovna died at the age of 48. Doctors declared the cause of death gout in conjunction with stone disease. An autopsy revealed a kidney stone the size of a little finger, which was the main cause of death. She was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg.
Footprint in art
Literature
- V. Pikul "Word and deed"
- Anna Ioannovna - one of the main actors Valentin Pikul's novel Word and Deed.
- M. N. Volkonsky "Prince Nikita Fedorovich"
- I. I. Lazhechnikov. "Ice House"
- Coronation album of Anna Ioannovna
Filmography
- 1983 - Demidovs. 2 series. - Lydia Fedoseeva-Shukshina
- 2001 - Secrets of palace coups. Russia, XVIII century. Film 2. Testament of the Empress. - Nina Ruslanova
- 2001 - Secrets of palace coups. Russia, XVIII century. Film 5. The Emperor's Second Bride. - Nina Ruslanova
- 2003 - Secrets of palace coups. Russia, XVIII century. Film 6. Death of the young emperor. - Nina Ruslanova
- 2003 - Russian Empire. Series 3. Anna Ioannovna, Elizaveta Petrovna.
- 2008 - Secrets of palace coups. Russia, XVIII century. Film 7. Vivat, Anna! - Inna Churikova
- There is a legend according to which, shortly before her death, the Empress was seen talking to a woman very similar to Anna Ioannovna herself. The empress later stated that it was her death.
For Russian weapons, 1709 was full of glorious victories. Near Poltava, Peter the Great defeated the army - Russian troops successfully knocked them out of the territory of the Baltic states. In order to strengthen his influence in the conquered lands, he decided to marry off one of his many relatives to the Duke of Courland Friedrich Wilhelm.
The sovereign turned to his brother's widow Praskovya Fedorovna for advice: which of her daughters does she want to marry the prince? And since she terribly did not like the stranger-stranger, she chose her unloved seventeen-year-old daughter Anna. This was the future Empress Anna Ioannovna.
Childhood and youthful years of the future empress
Anna was born on January 28, 1693 in Moscow, in the family of her elder brother Peter the Great. She spent her childhood in Izmailovo with her mother and her sisters. As contemporaries noted, Anna Ioannovna was a closed, silent and uncommunicative child. FROM early years she was taught literacy, German and French. She learned to read and write, but the princess never mastered dances and secular manners.
Anna's wedding was celebrated on October 31, 1710 in the unfinished Petersburg Menshikov Palace. At the beginning next year Anna Ioannovna and the Duke of Courland left for the capital Mitava. But on the way, Wilhelm died unexpectedly. So the princess became a widow a couple of months after the wedding.
Years before Anne's reign
Peter the Great ordered Anna to remain ruling in Courland. Realizing that his not very smart relative would not be able to serve the interests of Russia in this duchy, he sent Pyotr Bestuzhev-Ryumin along with her. In 1726, when Bestuzhev-Ryumin was recalled from Courland, Ernst Johann Biron, a nobleman who had not studied at the University of Koenigsberg, appeared at Anna's court.
After the death of Peter the Great in the Russian Empire, something completely unheard of happened until then - a woman ascended the throne! Widow of Peter I, Empress Catherine. She ruled for almost two years. Shortly before her death, the Privy Council decided to choose the grandson of Peter the Great, Peter Alekseevich, as emperor. He came to the throne at the age of eleven, but died of smallpox at fourteen.
Conditions, or the Execution of Members of the Secret Society
The Supreme Privy Council decided to call Anna to the throne, while limiting her autocratic power. They compiled the "Conditions", where the conditions were formulated under which Anna Ioannovna was invited to take the throne. In accordance with this paper, without the permission of the Privy Council, she could not declare war on anyone, conclude peace agreements, command an army or guard, raise or impose taxes, and so on.
January 25, 1730 representatives secret society brought the "Conditions" to Metawa, and the duchess, agreeing to all restrictions, signed them. Soon the new Empress Anna Ioannovna arrived in Moscow. There, representatives of the metropolitan nobility filed a petition with requests not to accept the conditions, but to rule autocratically. And the Empress listened to them. She publicly tore up the document and disbanded the Supreme Privy Council. Its members were exiled and executed, and Anna was crowned in the Assumption Cathedral.
Anna Ioannovna: years of reign and the influence of a favorite favorite on politics
During the reign of Anna Ioannovna, a cabinet of ministers was created, in which leading role played one of the Vice-Chancellor Andrey Osterman. The favorite of the Empress did not interfere in politics. Although Anna Ioannovna reigned alone, the years of her reign in Russian historiography known as Bironovshchina.
In January 1732 imperial court moved to Petersburg. Here Anna, who had lived in Europe for a long time, felt more comfortable than in Moscow. Foreign policy during the reign of Anna Ioannovna was a continuation of the policy of Peter the Great: Russia is fighting for the Polish inheritance and entering the war with Turkey, during which Russian troops lost one hundred thousand people.
Merits of the Empress to the Russian State
What else did Anna Ioannovna do for Russia? The years of her reign were marked by the development of new territories. The state conquered the steppe between the Bug and the Dniester, but without the right to keep ships on the Black Sea. The great begins to work northern expedition, Siberia and the coast of the Northern Arctic Ocean and Kamchatka.
By decree of the Empress, one of the most grandiose construction projects in the history of the Russian Empire - the construction of a colossal system of fortifications along the southern and southeastern borders European Russia. This large-scale construction, which began during the reign of Anna Ioannovna, can be called the first cultural and social project Russian Empire in the Volga region. On the eastern borders In the European part of the empire, the Orenburg expedition operates, before which the government of Anna Ioannovna set numerous tasks.
Illness and death of the empress
While cannons rattled on the borders of the empire and soldiers and nobles died for the glory of the empress, the capital lived in luxury and entertainment. Anna's weakness was hunting. In the rooms of the Peterhof Palace there were always loaded guns, from which the Empress fired at flying birds. She loved to surround herself with court jesters.
But not only could Anna Ioannovna shoot and have fun, the years of her reign were connected with very serious state affairs. The empress ruled for ten years, and all these years Russia built, fought and expanded its borders. October 5, 1740 at dinner, the Empress lost consciousness and, having been ill for twelve days, died.
