Sofya Alekseevna (September 17 (27), 1657 - July 3 (14), 1704) - princess, daughter of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, in 1682-1689 regent under the younger brothers Peter and Ivan.
Princess Sofya Alekseevna was born in the family of Alexei Mikhailovich and his first wife, Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya.
BIOGRAPHY.
After the death of the childless Fyodor Alekseevich, his brothers, 16-year-old Ivan, physically weak and 10-year-old Peter (future Peter I), Patriarch Joachim and the boyars were both proclaimed kings. The Miloslavsky boyars, led by Sophia (Ivan's half-sister, but only Peter's half-sister by father) decided to challenge the royal dual power. In May 1682 they managed to inspire the Streltsy revolt. Sagittarius - "service people on the instrument" - were for a significant time one of the main military forces of the state. V late XVII v. their situation worsened, there were always reasons for dissatisfaction with the conditions of service, real riots among the soldiers.
Peter saw how the bearded archers smashed the supporters of his relatives - the Naryshkins. More than once later in Preobrazhensky near Moscow, where his mother was forced to leave, Peter recalled these events.
Sophia came to power, relying on her favorite Vasily Golitsyn and the archers. On September 15, 1682, she became regent for the young brothers Ivan and Peter.
PERSONAL QUALITIES.
Sophia was smart, domineering, ambitious, knew Polish, Latin, and even composed poetry. Voltaire said about her: “The ruler had a lot of intelligence, composed poetry, wrote and spoke well, combined many talents with a beautiful appearance; they were all overshadowed by her enormous ambition. Having no legal opportunity to ascend the throne, the princess nevertheless excessively craved power, which led to frequent conflicts, including with the people who supported her.
ACHIEVEMENTS.
At the beginning of July 1682, with skillful actions, she stopped the rebellion of the archers in Moscow (“Khovanshchina”). The rebels, trying to give a religious color to their speech, decided to involve the Old Believer apologist priest Nikita from the city of Suzdal, putting him forward for a spiritual dispute with the patriarch. The queen moved the "debate about faith" to the palace, to the Faceted Chamber, isolating Fr. Nikita from the crowd of people. Not having sufficient argumentation for the arguments of the Suzdal priest, Patriarch Joachim interrupted the dispute, declaring his opponent "an empty saint." The priest would later be executed. And the queen continued the fight against the “schism” now at the legislative level, adopting in 1685 the famous “12 Articles”, on the basis of which thousands of people guilty of the Old Believers were executed.
Concluded favorable for Russia " Eternal Peace» with Poland, the Nerchinsk Treaty with China. In 1687 and 1689, under the leadership of Vasily Golitsyn, campaigns were undertaken against Crimean Tatars but they were unsuccessful. The Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy was formed in 1687. On July 21, 1687, the first Russian embassy arrived in Paris.
DEPOSITION.
May 30, 1689 Peter I turned 17 years old. By this time, at the insistence of his mother, Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna, he married Evdokia Lopukhina, and, according to the concepts of that time, entered the age of majority. The elder Tsar Ivan was also married. Thus, there were no formal grounds for the regency of Sofya Alekseevna (the infancy of the kings), but she continued to hold the reins of government in her hands. Peter made attempts to insist on his rights, but to no avail: the archery chiefs and order dignitaries, who received their positions from the hands of Sophia, still carried out only her orders.
Between the Kremlin (the residence of Sophia) and Preobrazhensky, where Peter lived, an atmosphere of hostility and distrust was established. Each of the parties suspected the opposite of intending to resolve the confrontation by force, by bloody means.
On the night of August 7-8, several archers arrived in Preobrazhenskoye and reported to the tsar about the impending assassination attempt on him. Peter was very frightened and on horseback, accompanied by several bodyguards, he immediately rode off to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery.
On the morning of the next day, tsarinas Natalya and Evdokia went there under the escort of the entire amusing army, which by that time constituted an impressive military force capable of withstanding a long siege within the Trinity walls.
In Moscow, the news of the tsar's flight from Preobrazhensky made a stunning impression: everyone understood that civil strife was beginning, threatening great bloodshed. Sophia begged Patriarch Joachim to go to Trinity to persuade Peter to reconciliation, but the patriarch did not return to Moscow, preferring to stay with the tsar.
On August 27, a royal decree signed by Peter came from the Trinity, demanding all archery colonels to appear at the disposal of the king, accompanied by ordinary archers, 10 people from each regiment, for non-compliance - the death penalty. Sophia, for her part, forbade the archers to leave Moscow, also under pain of death.
Some archery chiefs and ordinary archers, having seized the moment, secretly ran across to the Trinity. Sophia felt that time was working against her, and decided to personally negotiate with her younger brother, for which she went to Trinity, accompanied by a small guard, but in the village of Vozdvizhensky she was detained by a streltsy detachment, and the steward I. Buturlin sent to meet her, and then the boyar, prince Troekurov announced to her that the tsar would not accept her, and if she tried to continue her journey to the Trinity, force would be applied to her. Sophia returned to Moscow with nothing.
This failure of Sophia became widely known, and the flight of archers, clerks and boyars from Moscow became more frequent. In the Trinity, they were sympathetically met by the boyar Prince B.A. Golitsyn is the former uncle of the tsar, who at that time became Peter's chief adviser, and manager at his headquarters. To the newly arrived high-ranking dignitaries and archery chiefs, he personally brought a cup and, on behalf of the king, thanked for faithful service. Ordinary archers were also given vodka and awards.
Peter in the Trinity led an exemplary life of the Moscow Tsar: he was present at all divine services, spent the remaining time in councils with members of the boyar duma and in conversations with church hierarchs, rested only with his family, wore Russian dress, did not accept the Germans, which was strikingly different from the way of life , which he led in Preobrazhensky, and which was disapprovingly perceived for the most part all strata of Russian society - noisy and scandalous feasts and fun, amusing activities, in which he often acted as a junior commander, and even an ordinary one, frequent visits to Kukuy, and, in particular, the fact that the tsar behaved with the Germans as with equal to themselves, while even the most noble and dignitary Russians, turning to him, according to etiquette, had to call themselves his slaves and serfs.
Sophia, meanwhile, was losing her supporters one by one: in early September, hired foreign infantry led by General P. Gordon, the most combat-ready part of the Russian army, left for Trinity. There she swore allegiance to the king, who personally came out to meet her. The highest dignitary of the government of Sophia, "the royal great seals and the guardian of the state's great embassy affairs", Prince V.V. Golitsyn went to his estate near Moscow, Medvedkovo, and retired from political struggle. Actively supported the ruler only the head of the Streltsy order F.L. Shaklovity, who tried by all means to keep the archers in Moscow.
A new decree came from the king - to seize (arrest) Shaklovity and deliver him to the Trinity in glands (in chains) for search (investigation) in the case of the attempt on the king, and everyone who supports Shaklovity will share his fate. The archers who remained in Moscow demanded that Sophia extradite Shaklovity. She initially refused, but was forced to give in. Shaklovity was taken to Trinity, confessed under torture and beheaded. One of the last to appear at Trinity was Prince V.V. Golitsyn, where he was not admitted to the king, and exiled with his family to Kargopol.
The ruler had no people left who were ready to risk their heads for her interests, and when Peter demanded that Sophia retire to the Novodevichy Convent, she had to obey. In the monastery, she was kept under guard.
During the Streltsy uprising of 1698, the archers, according to the investigation, intended to call her to the kingdom. After the suppression of the rebellion, Sophia was tonsured a nun under the name of Susanna.
She died in 1704. She was buried in the Smolensky Cathedral of the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow.
Princess Sophia in the Novodevichy Convent (V. Repin)
INTERESTING FACTS.
In the old believer skete of Sharpan there is the burial place of the schemist Praskovya (“the queen's grave”), surrounded by 12 unmarked graves. The Old Believers consider this Praskovya to be Tsarevna Sophia, who allegedly fled from the Novodevichy Convent with 12 archers.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Princess Sophia - the forbidden ruler
She became the first woman on the throne in the history of our country. And she paid for it with confinement in a monastery, a lonely death and a long oblivion. The chroniclers and rulers of Russia concealed the truth about her for many centuries. Therefore, only a few know what this one really was. great woman- Princess Sofya Alekseevna from the Romanov family.
Alexei Mikhailovich, the father of Princess Sophia, was nicknamed the Quietest. But it is unlikely that his palace in Kolomenskoye near Moscow, where Sophia was born in September 1657, could be called a quiet place. The tower of Alexei Mikhailovich became a real children's kingdom - during his reign it is difficult to find a year when the wife of the sovereign Marya Miloslavskaya would not have had a child. True, many of them died in infancy. Seven survived - five daughters and two sons, Fedor and Ivan.
On the grief of the father, the princes grew up frail and dim-witted, and their sisters - healthy and strong. But the fate of the princesses in the 17th century was unenviable. They could not even be married off - neither boyar children nor foreign princes were considered a suitable match for the royal daughters. They were to spend their entire lives under lock and key. As the German ambassador Sigismund Herberstein wrote, in Russia "a woman is considered honest only when she lives in a house locked up and does not go anywhere." Those who did not want to spend their whole lives in the terem, where men could only go once a year, on Easter, had only one alternative - a monastery.
Sophia grew strong, broad in the bone, impulsive in her movements. And at the same time, justifying her name - Sophia (Wisdom), she loved to read.
It was not customary to teach daughters in Russia - many princesses could hardly write their names. Their education was reduced to embroidery, a set of prayers and nursery tales. But the Quietest agreed to assign a teacher to the daughter - Simeon Polotsky, the largest scientist of his time and the first Russian professional poet.
Polotsky taught Sophia not only reading and writing, but also foreign languages. The princess especially liked history, so she knew about the Byzantine Empress Pulcheria, who beat her drunken husband alive into the coffin and began to rule on her own, and about the English Queen Elizabeth, who did not have a husband at all.
It is possible that when Sophia saw the changes taking place in royal palace, she gradually had a desire to imitate these brave women. In 1669, Maria Miloslavskaya died, and two years later Alexei Mikhailovich married twenty-year-old Natalya Naryshkina. A year later, she gave birth to a son, Peter, a strong and intelligent, real heir. Sophia immediately took a dislike to her stepmother, who was a little older than her. Naryshkina reciprocated her stepdaughter. Sophia spent more and more time in the library. Among the collection of books was a treatise by the Italian Machiavelli on how to win power. And it is unlikely that the inquisitive princess left this book unattended.
In 1676, Alexei Mikhailovich died suddenly. The new tsar, fifteen-year-old Fyodor, was constantly ill - they even brought him to his father's funeral on a stretcher. At court, a struggle for power immediately unfolded between the relatives of the wives of the Quietest - the Miloslavskys and the Naryshkins - in which Sophia was actively involved.
To begin with, she managed to escape from the tower, having received permission to be next to her sick brother. This gave the princess the opportunity to communicate with the boyars and governors. She knew how to say something pleasant to everyone, with everyone she found mutual language.
Mind, erudition and piety of Sophia amazed not only the inhabitants of the Kremlin, but also European ambassadors. Rumors about the virtues of the princess also penetrated the people: with her people tied their hopes for better life.
Tsar Fedor died in April 1682. Contrary to custom, Sophia attended his funeral and followed the coffin closer than all relatives. But Boyar Duma at the suggestion of the Naryshkins, she declared the son of Alexei Mikhailovich from his second wife, Peter, the king. The princess, however, was not going to put up with the elevation of her stepmother.
Sophia's ally was the forty-year-old Prince Vasily Golitsyn, heir to an old family and admirer of the West. Foreigners who came to Moscow were delighted with conversations with this smart and well-read nobleman, whose house "shone with splendor and taste." Under Fyodor, Golitsyn was close to the throne and conceived a broad program of reforms, but because of palace strife, his position was threatened. Another ally of Sophia was the 50,000-strong archery army, dissatisfied with the oppression of the authorities. According to rumors, the Naryshkins wanted to forbid the archers not only to trade duty-free, but also to live with their wives and children. In fact, this information was spread by Sophia's agents, who flatteringly called the archers "the royal support." All that was needed was a reason for rebellion, and he was quickly found. In May, supporters of Princess Sophia spread a rumor that the Naryshkins had killed the "real" Tsar Ivan. To the sound of the tocsin, the archers broke into the Kremlin. Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna brought the princes alive and unharmed to them. But this did not stop the blood-thirsty crowd. The Naryshkins, right before the eyes of Peter and Ivan, were thrown from the porch onto the archery peaks. Their supporters were searched all over the city and cut down with sabers, and the mutilated bodies were dragged through the streets with shouts of “Lubo!” They even killed a German doctor, who was found with a dried snake - they said that with the help of its poison he wanted to kill Tsarevich Ivan.
Sophia in these terrible days sat in her chambers and directed the actions of the rebels. She persuaded their leaders to go to the end, promising each archer ten rubles in case of success - huge money at that time. The frightened boyars declared both brothers kings, and Sophia became the ruler until they reach adulthood. For Ivan and Peter they made a double throne, which is now stored in the Armory. A window was made in the gilded back, through which the princess prompted the brothers of their “royal will”.
However, she not only advised, but also acted herself. Sophia personally met with the archers and announced that none of them would be punished for participating in the rebellion - if they immediately stopped rebelling and returned to service. Such a step required courage - by that time the archers no longer wanted to submit to anyone. For example, the head of the Streltsy order, Ivan Khovansky, argued that the princess would not even take a step without him. For which he paid - the royal servants lured him out of the capital and cut off his head. The archers were calmed down with cash handouts, and the most active were sent to distant garrisons.
After the suppression of the "Khovanshchina" Sophia had to face new threat. Schismatics gathered in Moscow and demanded the return of "ancient piety." The princess showed courage here too - she came to the militant Old Believers and entered into a discussion with their leader Nikita Pustosvyat. He was so embarrassed by her theological erudition that he agreed to lead the crowd of rebels away from the Kremlin. Soon he was captured and executed. Everyone was waiting for new repressions, but here, too, Sophia showed wisdom. She not only pardoned the rebels, but also mitigated punishments for other crimes after this - for example, wives who killed their husbands were no longer buried alive in the ground, but “only” beheaded. Russian women had another reason to thank Sophia: she freed them from seclusion, allowing them to attend all kinds of events.
According to the historian Vasily Klyuchevsky, the princess "came out of the tower and opened the doors of this tower for everyone."
Historians still write little about Sophia's seven-year reign, considering it a "dark period" before the brilliant era of Peter. But the facts prove otherwise. Despite your tough male character Sophia ruled with feminine gentleness and discretion. Even Prince Boris Kurakin, who often criticized her, admitted in his memoirs: “The reign of Princess Sofya Alekseevna began with all diligence and justice for everyone and to the pleasure of the people, so never wise government v Russian state did not have".
The princess intensified the fight against bribes and arbitrariness of officials, as well as denunciation, which has become a real scourge in Russia. She forbade accepting anonymous denunciations, and ordered the slanderers who filled the courtrooms to be whipped. Nor was she a fan of antiquity, a defender of the “patterned tower,” as her admirer Marina Tsvetaeva wrote. Continuing her father's policy, Sophia actively invited foreign specialists. The domestic education system also developed - in 1687, the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy, conceived by the teacher of the princess Simeon of Polotsk, was opened. There is evidence that the princess even thought of opening a school for girls.
The cautious diplomacy of Sophia and Golitsyn brought success in foreign policy. Poland agreed to an "eternal peace", which legalized the annexation of Ukrainian lands to Russia. The Treaty of Nerchinsk was signed with China, which recognized the interests of the Russians on the distant banks of the Amur. Envoys from the French, Austrian, and Turkish courts appeared in Moscow. One of them, de Neuville, wrote about Sophia: "As far as her camp is wide, short and rude, her mind is so subtle, sharp and political." Almost all contemporaries agreed with this.
Elsewhere in his Notes on Russia, de Neuville spoke of the appearance of the princess even less flatteringly: “She is terribly fat, her head is the size of a pot, facial hair, lupus on her legs, and she is at least forty years old.” But Sophia was then barely thirty. One could attribute this to the hostility of an arrogant foreigner to the "Russian barbarians", but it must be admitted that the princess really was ugly.
Therefore, a number of historians believe that her alliance with Golitsyn was purely political. Perhaps - but not for Sophia. Judging by her letters, the princess was really in love: “But to me, my light, there is no faith that you will return to us; then I will understand faith when I see you in my arms... My light, father, my hope, hello for many years! Great would that day be for me, when you, my soul, will come to me.
No, Sophia loved Golitsyn with all her heart. It's hard to say how he felt about her. A subtle connoisseur of beauty could hardly have been captivated by this woman, who had faded ahead of time, even if she was smart and strong-willed. In addition, the prince was happy with his second wife Evdokia Streshneva, who bore him four children. But he did not want to part with Sophia either, so as not to lose his position as head of the Ambassadorial Order - in fact, the first minister.
The situation became more complicated when the princess in love demanded that he divorce his wife. Golitsyn was at a crossroads. According to the same de Neuville, the prince "could not decide to remove his wife, firstly, as a noble man, and secondly, as a husband who has large estates behind her." Finally Golitsyn began to yield, and loving wife agreed to go to the monastery, so as not to ruin her husband's career.
Rumors about a future marriage leaked into the Moscow "high society" and caused general condemnation. They even said that the princess with her favorite wanted to destroy Ivan and Peter, establish a new dynasty and convert to the “Latin faith”, that is, Catholicism - many were suspicious of their sympathy for the West. Then Sophia decided to send her lover on a campaign against Crimean Khanate. Returning as a winner, he could win the sympathy of society and the hand of the ruler. This decision became fatal. The first campaign of 1687 was unsuccessful - the Tatars set fire to the steppe, poisoned the wells, and the army, suffering from hunger and thirst, had to retreat.
The second campaign in the spring of 1689 ended in the same failure. This time, the 100,000-strong Russian army reached Perekop, stood there for two weeks, and returned empty-handed. Golitsyn was blamed for everything, who allegedly received Crimean Khan two chests of gold coins, and those turned out to be counterfeit.
This is probably a lie - it's just that the diplomat turned out to be a worthless commander. Under these conditions, Sophia decided that it was better for Vasily Golitsyn to leave the capital for a while. But feelings again turned out to be stronger than royal duty. She did not want to part with her beloved again. Sophia tried to turn the failure of the Crimean campaign into a victory by ordering prayers in honor of Golitsyn to be served in all churches.
Young Tsar Peter of his sympathies older sister did not share. He refused to accept Golitsyn, who returned from the campaign - "the serf did his service worthless." Soon, Peter was to come of age and become a full-fledged monarch. In this case, the life of Golitsyn - and Sophia - would be in danger. However, the soft, indecisive prince refused to go on extreme measures. Another favorite of hers came to the aid of the princess - the devious Fyodor Shaklovity, the new commander of the archers. He repeatedly offered Sophia to lime the "old bear" - that is, Natalya Kirillovna, "and if the son begins to intercede, then he has nothing to let go." The princess did not dare to shed her brother's blood, but she appreciated Shaklovity's fidelity. Soon he not only spent the day, but also spent the night in her chambers. Golitsyn endured - perhaps even secretly rejoiced at a respite in a boring novel.
The denouement came in August 1689. In the meantime, both sides were saving up strength. Peter trained his “amusing regiments” in Preobrazhenskoye, which by that time had become a real army. Sophia and her supporters persuaded the archers to rise again against the Naryshkins. At the same time, sophisticated provocations were used: some relative of Shaklovity, dressed as Uncle Pyotr Lev Naryshkin, drove around the city and beat the archers, shouting: “It was you who decided my relatives, dogs!”
However, at first all efforts were fruitless. The last rebellion did not improve the position of the archers too much, and the reign of Sophia and Golitsyn did not please - neither campaigns, nor military booty. Only when rumors began to come from Preobrazhensky that the "amusing" ones were going to the Kremlin, the archers began to prepare for defense.
Upon learning of this, seventeen-year-old Peter was frightened - he well remembered the horrors of the first rebellion. In the middle of the night, leaving his mother and pregnant wife, Peter, in one shirt, rode on horseback to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. There he was taken under protection by Patriarch Joachim, who did not like Sophia for her pro-Western sympathies (if only he knew what Peter himself would do in Russia later). Gradually, supporters of the Naryshkins, as well as "amusing" with guns and squeakers, gathered in the Lavra.
And while Sophia and Golitsyn sat idly by, Peter lured more and more new adherents to his side. Two regiments of archers with unfolded banners arrived at the Lavra and swore allegiance to the tsar.
Sophia tried to keep the rest of the archers, telling them: "If you go to the Trinity, your wives and children will remain here." But neither threats nor generous promises worked - regiment after regiment went to Peter. The archers who remained in Moscow demanded that the princess hand over Shaklovity to them, and immediately executed their commander. The next day, the boyar Troekurov came to Sofya with a royal order: to renounce power and depart for the Novodevichy Convent for eternal residence. Vasily Golitsyn and his family were exiled to far northern Kargopol, where he died in 1714. Before he left, the princess was able to transfer money to her beloved and last letter, but she was no longer destined to see the prince. Sophia did not have the right to leave the monastery, but continued to live like a king, surrounded by a large retinue. starve her younger brother obviously didn't mean to. Sophia was sent daily great amount food: fish, pies, bagels, even beer and vodka.
Gradually, all dissatisfied with the innovations of Peter rallied around her. Including archers, whom the tsar forced to change the metropolitan freedom for a dangerous service in the border cities.
The role of liaison between them and Sophia was played by her sisters - Martha and Maria. Through them, the princess passed letters to the archers with requests to come to the monastery with weapons in their hands in order to free her, and then go to Moscow together. It seemed to Sophia that the power of Peter was about to fall, and she would be able to enter the Kremlin as a full-fledged queen.
In the summer of 1698, when the tsar was traveling around Europe, the archers rebelled under the slogan "Sophia for the kingdom!" They did not act too decisively, and even before the arrival of Peter the rebellion was crushed.
Returning, the king first of all went to the cell to his sister, whom he had not seen for nine long years. There was nothing left of the former round-faced boy in him - the king looked more like a formidable demon in a German caftan.
Maybe at that moment Sophia regretted that she did not hold on tighter to power. Those descendants also regretted this, who did not believe the chroniclers who slandered the princess. Who knows - perhaps its cautious transformations would have achieved their goal without inflicting such enormous damage on Russia as the bloody reforms of Peter the Great?
For a long time, the brother demanded that Sophia give him the instigators of the rebellion, but she was silent. In the end, Peter left - and never again visited his sister.
And in Moscow, meanwhile, the massacre was in full swing. On Red Square they chopped off the heads of archers, and the tsar himself willingly participated in the bloody fun. In the Novodevichy Convent, the rebels were hung on the battlements of the walls so that Sophia could see the death of her supporters.
The prisoner was now guarded by soldiers day and night. Guests were rarely allowed to visit her, and there was no one to go - the sisters Marfa and Maria, after the suppression of the rebellion, were sent to other monasteries. So we don't know how we got through last years Sophia. Perhaps she trusted her cherished thoughts to paper, but not a single line survived from her notes. Peter knew well the power of the printed word and made sure that only one version of events reached the descendants - his own.
Chernitsa Susanna - this was the name the princess took when she was tonsured a nun - she died on July 4, 1704. The story of her life was first forgotten, and then became a legend. For Voltaire, Sophia was a “beautiful but unfortunate princess of the Muscovites”, for Alexei Tolstoy she was a vicious opponent of reforms, for Marina Tsvetaeva she was a fabulous Tsar Maiden. Her portraits have not been preserved either. No one today knows the true face of the princess, who in a cruel male age tried to rule with feminine gentleness and wisdom - but she could not.
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The elder sister of one of the most famous Russian monarchs, Peter the Great, Sophia, having carried out an insidious undertaking, actually got the royal throne. But as soon as the brother matured, he remembered this to her and "forced him to respect himself."
Ugly but smart
The Russian princesses had, in general, an unenviable fate. They were not taught to read and write, because there was no need to marry such girls (it was not supposed to give for courtiers, and marriages with the offspring of European eminent families were forbidden because it was necessary to accept Catholicism). As soon as the princess grew up, she was sent to be tonsured in a monastery: according to the established tradition, the Russian throne was inherited through the male line.
Sofya Alekseevna managed to break this tradition. Firstly, by the age of 10, the girl learned to read and write and mastered foreign languages, which the father, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, did not resist. On the contrary, he even encouraged such a craving for education. Sophia was interested in science, she knew history well.
Judging by the memoirs of contemporaries, Sophia was not a beauty - short and fat, with a disproportionate huge head and a mustache under your nose. But from childhood she was distinguished by a subtle, sharp and "political" mind. When Father Alexei Mikhailovich reposed and Sophia’s ailing brother, 15-year-old Fyodor, ascended the throne, the sister, looking after her brother, at the same time struck up relations with the boyars, knew how and on what court intrigues were built.
7 years as regent
The reign of Fedor III Alekseevich ended after 5 years. The twenty-year-old monarch died without an heir. A dynastic crisis arose - on the one hand, the Miloslavsky clan was busy for the accession of 16-year-old Ivan (his mother, the late Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna, was maiden name Miloslavskaya), on the other hand, the Naryshkins wanted to put 10-year-old Peter on the throne (widow of Alexei Mikhailovich, mother of Peter, had this surname before marriage. Outweighed by the Naryshkins, supported by Archpriest Joachim, it was he who publicly announced that the future ruler of Russia was Peter I.
Not wanting to put up with such a situation, Peter's sister Sophia, using for her own purposes the dissatisfaction of the archers that had ripened at that time (they allegedly delayed salaries), stirred up a riot. The tsarina was supported by the Miloslavskys and some of the prominent boyars, among whom were Vasily Golitsyn and Ivan Khovansky (that archery rebellion, obviously, that is why they began to call the Khovanshchina).
As a result, Sophia achieved the position of regent under Ivan and Peter. Her reign, during which the Miloslavskys received unlimited influence at court, lasted 7 years. All this time, Peter and his mother lived in the royal summer residence. When in 1689, at the instigation of his mother, he married Evdokia Lopukhina, Sophia's term of guardianship ended de jure - the heir to the throne received all the rights to take the royal throne.
There was power, but it didn’t indulge to its fullest
Sophia did not want to give up power under any circumstances. The archers were at first on her side, the closest boyar entourage, which received the reins of power from the hands of the regent, also stood behind Sophia. The situation was heating up, as both sides of the protracted confrontation suspected each other of intentions to unleash a bloody showdown to resolve the dispute.
In early August 1689, Peter was informed that an assassination attempt was being prepared on him. Frightened, Peter fled with several bodyguards to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. The next morning, the tsarevich's mother arrived at the monastery along with his wife Evdokia Lopukhina. They were accompanied by a funny regiment, quite impressive for those times. military force. There really smelled of bloody civil strife. Sophia sent Patriarch Joachim to the monastery for negotiations, but upon arrival at the monastery, against the will of the regent, he took and again declared Peter king.
Soon, Peter issued a decree and, already in his capacity as king, called on all the archery colonels to appear before him, otherwise he threatened with execution. Sophia, in turn, promised to kill everyone who decides to do this. Some still disobeyed, and went to an audience with Peter. Seeing that the matter was not going to work out, Sophia tried to talk to her brother herself, but the archers loyal to Peter did not let her in. Gradually, all the military and political forces went over to the side of the new tsar, except for the head of the streltsy order, Fyodor Shaklovity, who remained loyal to Sophia and kept the streltsy in Moscow. But Peter with the help faithful people eliminated him too. Shaklovsky was arrested, interrogated with prejudice and, after torture, beheaded.
Elimination and imprisonment
Having lost power, Sophia, on the orders of Peter I, retired first to the Svyatodukhovsky, and then to the Novodevichy Convent farther from Moscow, where she was in custody. There is a version that Sophia was related to the Streltsy uprising of 1698. However, it is unlikely that she could lead him from the monastic dungeons. The king at the time of the maturing of the rebellion of the archers was abroad. His guards complained about non-payment of salaries, part of the army deserted from the northwestern borders of Russia, where they served and went to Moscow "for the truth." Letters appeared, allegedly handed over by Sophia to the archers from the monastery and calling for an uprising.
The rebellion was suppressed by government troops, and the tsar, who returned from abroad, brutally dealt with the rebels. He also interrogated his entourage, relatives for involvement in the conspiracy. Including Sophia. She denied the accusations.
More Sofya Alekseevna did not declare anything about herself. She died in 1704. There is a legend that the rebellious sister of Peter I escaped from confinement with twelve archers. But no one has provided reliable evidence for this beautiful hypothesis.
She was educated at home. Her teacher was the preacher, writer and poet Simeon Polotsky. Sophia knew Latin and Polish well, wrote plays for the court theater, understood theological issues, and was fond of history.
The life of Sofya Alekseevna coincided with a cruel civil strife that broke out between the relatives of her deceased mother, the Miloslavskys, and her stepmother, the Naryshkins. During these years, after the death of Alexei Mikhailovich, Sophia's younger brother Fedor from Miloslavsky became the heir to the throne.
In 1682, with the death of Fyodor, Princess Sophia begins to take part in Russian politics, as she was not happy that the young Peter, the son of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and his second wife Natalia Naryshkina, was elected to the royal throne. After the Streltsy rebellion, in May 1682, the warring factions reached a compromise, and two kings, two half-brothers, Ivan V (son of Alexei Mikhailovich from his first marriage) and were on the throne. Sofya Alekseevna headed the government under both underage tsars.
Sophia ensured that her name was included in the official royal title "Great Sovereigns and the Great Empress Tsarevna and Grand Duchess Sofya Alekseevna." A few years later, her image was minted on coins, and since 1686 she already called herself an autocrat and in next year issued this title by special decree.
The policy of the reign of Princess Sophia largely contributed to the renewal public life. Industry and trade began to develop noticeably. The country began to produce velvet and satin. The Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy was opened. International relations are being established. Sophia began to reorganize the army along the European lines.
During these years, the Eternal Peace was concluded with Poland, as a result of which the Left-Bank Ukraine, Kiev and Smolensk were assigned to Russia. The Nerchinsk Treaty (1689) was concluded with China. The war began with Turkey and the Crimean Khanate.
In 1689, relations between Sophia and the boyar-noble group supporting Peter I escalated to the extreme. As a result, the party of Peter I won the final victory, and royal biography Sophia is over. All supporters of the princess lost real power, her name was excluded from the royal title. Sofya Alekseevna herself goes without tonsure to the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, where she rewrites church books and writes a lot.
During the Streltsy uprising of 1698, Sophia repeated her attempt to get into power. In her letters to the archers, she asked to support her and oppose the king. The uprising was brutally suppressed. Sofya Alekseevna was tonsured a nun under the name of Susanna and lived for another seven years.
Something incredible happened in Russia at the end of the 17th century: in a country where house-building traditions were very strong, and women led mostly reclusive lives, Princess Sofya Alekseevna began to manage all the affairs of the state. It happened so unexpectedly and at the same time naturally that the Russians began to take it for granted. Until some time, Princess Sofya Alekseevna, whose biography is so unusual, did not cause indignation in anyone. However, after several years, when she had to transfer the reins of government into the hands of Peter I, people were surprised: how did it happen that they revered the empress, who was just a woman. Undoubtedly, outstanding personality was Princess Sophia. Her photo and biography will give you some idea of her.
Sophia's life in seclusion
It all started with death. However, after his death, Princess Sophia (reigned 1682-1689) did not immediately realize that she had become free. The daughter of the autocrat sat as a recluse in the tower for 19 years with her sisters. She went to church only accompanied and sometimes attended with her father performances arranged by Artamon Matveev. The princess, brought up according to house building, was also one of the best students of Simeon of Polotsk, famous educator. She was fluent in Polish, read Greek and in Latin. Repeatedly this woman surprised her surroundings by composing a tragedy that was immediately played out in the family circle. And sometimes Sophia wrote poetry. The princess is so good at artistic creativity that even the famous writer and historian Karamzin noted this. He wrote that the talent of the princess allowed her to compare with the best writers.
Chance to get out
In 1676, with the accession of her brother Sophia, the latter suddenly realized that there was a chance to finally leave the tower. Her brother became seriously ill, and at that time Sophia was often next to him. The princess often visited Fedor's chambers, communicated with clerks and boyars, sat in the Duma, delved into the essence of governing the country.
The autocrat died in 1682, and a dynastic crisis arose in the state. Pretenders for the throne were not fit for such a responsible post. The heirs were the son of Natalia Naryshkina, the young Peter and the weak-minded Ivan, whom Maria Miloslavskaya gave birth to Alexei Mikhailovich. These two parties - the Naryshkins and the Miloslavskys - fought among themselves.
The election of Peter as sovereign
Tsar, according to tradition, was to be Ivan. However, this would entail the need for guardianship for the duration of his reign. Sophia hoped so. The princess was disappointed when 10-year-old Peter was elected sovereign. Sophia could only congratulate her stepbrother on this. It was difficult for her now to challenge the legitimacy of his accession.
Revolt of archers and the reign of Sophia
However, Sophia had nothing to lose. The decisive and independent princess could not but take advantage of the situation that had developed in her favor. Sophia used the archery regiments for her purpose. The princess persuaded them to revolt, as a result of which John and Peter officially began to reign. And Sophia was entrusted with the government of the state.
However, the joy of this victory could be premature. These days Sophia's power seemed illusory. The archers, led by Prince Khovansky, had too real power. Under a plausible pretext, Sophia lured Khovansky from the capital to the village of Vozdvizhenskoye. Here the chief was accused of high treason and executed. The army, therefore, was without a leader. Tsarevna Sofya Alekseevna immediately threw out a cry, mobilizing the noble militia to protect the legitimate government. The archers were in a state of shock, they did not know what to do. At first, they planned to give battle to the ruler and the boyars, but they caught on in time and capitulated. Sophia now dictated her will to the archers. Thus began the 7-year regency of Princess Sofya Alekseevna.
commutation of sentences
Sophia's favorite, Prince Vasily Golitsyn (pictured above), became head of government. He was a talented diplomat. Close and long communication with him made Sophia a staunch supporter of mitigation of punishments and education. By the way, later rumors spread about the existence of a carnal connection between them. However, neither the correspondence with the favorite of the princess, nor the evidence relating to the time of her reign, confirm this.
However, the influence of Golitsyn on Sophia, of course, was great. In particular, a decree was issued according to which creditors were forbidden to take debtors-husbands without their wives to work off the debt. In addition, it was forbidden to collect debts from orphans and widows if there was no estate left after the death of their fathers and husbands. From now on, "outrageous words" were not executed. Severe punishment was replaced by a link and a whip. Previously, a woman who cheated on her husband was buried up to the neck in the ground alive. Now, such a painful death was replaced by an easier one - the traitor was threatened with beheading.
Industry development
The reign of Princess Sophia was also marked by a number of initiatives for the development of industry, the revival of trade with the West. This affected in particular the weaving industry. In our country, expensive fabrics began to be made: brocade, satin and velvet. Previously, they were imported from overseas. Foreign specialists began to be discharged from abroad in order to teach Russian masters.
Foundation of the academy, promotion of education and the arts
Sophia in 1687 opened the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy. The business of its creation was started during the reign of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich. After the Kiev scientists began to persecute the Patriarch Joachim, Golitsyn and Sophia took them under protection. The princess encouraged the construction of stone choirs in Moscow, the study of languages and various arts. Young people from noble families went abroad for training.
Successes in foreign policy
And in the area foreign policy progress has been noticeable. Russia concluded Eternal Peace with the Commonwealth. This power, according to the conditions presented by Golitsyn, recognized the transition to the Russian state of Kiev and the belonging of Russia to the Left-Bank Ukraine, Seversky and Smolensk lands. The Nerchinsk Treaty concluded with China became another important political event. At that time, Russian lands in Siberia bordered on this state.
Crimean campaigns
However, there were also failures that, in the end, brought in and led to the overthrow of Sophia and Golitsyn (his portrait is presented above). An experienced diplomat, the favorite of the princess was a gentle and indecisive person. He didn't see himself as a general at all. However, Sophia insisted that this man lead the Crimean campaign, which ended in failure. The army from the campaign carried out in 1687 returned back. They were prevented by the Tatars, who set fire to the steppe. However, Sophia staged even the inglorious return with all solemnity. She wanted to support Golitsyn. At that time, it was openly said about the favorite that he only killed people in vain by embarking on this adventure. And the second campaign was unsuccessful. It was undertaken two years later.
Sophia loses power
Until the kings grew up, the regency of Princess Sophia allowed her to decide everything on her own. government issues. During the reception of foreign ambassadors, the princess hid behind the throne and told the brothers how to behave. However, as time went on, Peter matured over the years of Sophia's reign. On May 30, 1689, he turned 17 years old. At the insistence of Natalya Kirillovna, his mother, he had already married Evdokia Lopukhina by this time and became an adult, according to the concepts of that time. In addition, Ivan, the elder tsar, was also married. That is, there were no formal grounds for continuing the regency. However, Sophia still held the reins of power in her hands. This led to conflicts with Peter.
The relationship between him and his sister became increasingly hostile. The princess was well aware that the balance of power would change from year to year not in her favor. In order to strengthen her own position, she made an attempt to marry the kingdom back in 1687. Fyodor Shaklovity, an approximate clerk of the princess, began agitation among the archers. However, they did not forget what happened to Prince Khovansky, and refused to support Sophia.
The first skirmish between the princess and Peter occurred when Sophia dared to participate with the kings in the procession of the cross. Peter was angry. He said that she was a woman, so she should leave immediately, as it was obscene for the fair sex to follow the crosses. However, Sophia decided to ignore her brother's rebuke. Then Peter himself left the ceremony. He inflicted a second insult on his sister by refusing to accept after Crimean campaign Prince Golitsyn.
An attempt to eliminate Peter
So, Sophia's wedding attempt failed. However, there was another way out - it was possible to eliminate Peter. Again the princess relied on the archers, but this time in vain. Someone started a provocative rumor, saying that Peter's amusing regiments were going to Moscow in order to kill Tsar Ivan and the ruler. Sophia called on the archers for protection. And Peter, in turn, heard rumors that an attack by "dirty bastards" was being prepared (this is what Peter called the archers). The tsar was not afraid of the threat, however, from childhood, the picture of 1682 remained in his mind, when the archers carried out a massacre against people close to him. Peter decided to take refuge in the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. After some time, amusing regiments also came here, and also, to the surprise of many, one regiment of archers, commanded by Sukharev.
Sophia was puzzled by Peter's flight. She wanted to reconcile with her brother, but her attempts were unsuccessful. Then Sophia decided to turn to the help of the patriarch. But he reminded her that she was just a ruler under sovereigns, and went to Peter. Supporters of Sophia became less and less. The boyars, who recently swore allegiance to her, somehow imperceptibly left the princess. And the archers arranged for Peter, who was going to Moscow, a repentant meeting. As a sign of humility, they laid their heads on the blocks by the road.
Confinement to a monastery, last hope
At the end of September 1689, 32-year-old Sophia was imprisoned by order of Peter in the Novodevichy Convent. However, in 1698 she had hope. Then Peter went to Europe, and the archery regiments, which were stationed far from the capital, moved to Moscow. They intended to return Sophia to the throne, and to "lime" the sovereign, who did not favor the archers, if he returned from abroad.
The execution of archers, the fate of Sophia
But the rebellion was put down. Descendants will remember for a long time the mass execution of archers. And Peter, who had not seen his sister for 9 years, came to her for the last explanation in the Novodevichy Convent. The involvement of the princess in the Streltsy rebellion was proved. Shortly thereafter, the former ruler was tonsured a nun by order of Peter. She was given the name Susanna. She no longer had any hope of the throne. Shortly before her death, she accepted the schema and returned her name. On July 3, 1704, Princess Sophia died, whose biography was so atypical for her time.
