1. The first "senior prince" to receive a label from Batu was Alexander Nevsky. Despite his merits in the past, Alexander Nevsky skillfully pursued the policy of the Mongol-Tatars, especially in matters of collecting tribute, suppressing by force the speeches of other specific princes who were dissatisfied with his policies and the new system of power. At the same time, Batu, until his death in 1255, in every possible way contributed to the strengthening of the sole power of Alexander Nevsky as the sole Grand Duke of Russia and protege of the Golden Horde.
2. After the death of Alexander Nevsky in 1263, the process of centralization of Russian lands proceeded in the following way:
- the transformation of the label for a great reign from elective to hereditary and its gradual assignment to the descendants of Alexander Nevsky;
- the rise of Moscow, where the descendants of Alexander Nevsky reigned;
- the gradual expansion of Moscow, the inclusion in the Moscow principality, headed by the descendants of Alexander Nevsky, other specific principalities;
- the transformation of the specific Moscow principality into Moscow state, dominating over all the principalities of northeastern Russia.
The first mention of Moscow dates back to 1147. The Kyiv prince Yuri Dolgoruky is considered the founder of Moscow, who founded the city on the land of the boyar Kuchka.
In 1276, the son of Alexander Nevsky, the Moscow appanage prince Daniil Alexandrovich, received a label from the Mongol-Tatars for a great reign, and Moscow became one of the political centers.
The position of Moscow was further strengthened under the son of Daniil Alexandrovich and the grandson of Alexander Nevsky, Ivan Danilovich, nicknamed Kalita (“money bag”), who received a label for the great reign in 1325. Ivan I Danilovich (Ivan Kalita) is the grandson of Alexander Nevsky, who ruled in 1325 - 1340:
- was the best tribute collector for the Golden Horde;
- at the head of the Moscow-Tatar army, he brutally suppressed the anti-Horde uprising in the city of Tver - Moscow's main rival for primacy in Russia;
- earned the full confidence of the Mongol-Tatar khans, who in every possible way assisted him in subordinating other specific princes;
- he achieved from the Mongol-Tatars the fixing of the label for a great reign on the hereditary principle - behind the branch of Alexander Nevsky of the Rurik dynasty (in fact, with the assistance of the Mongol-Tatars and under their rule, the formation of the ruling Russian dynasty began);
- went down in history as one of the first "collectors of Russian lands" (he bought neighboring lands for money and increased the territory of the Moscow principality by 5 times);
- part of the land (Kostroma) received from the Mongol-Tatars for faithful service;
- convinced the Metropolitan of the Russian Orthodox Church Peter in 1325 to move from Tver to Moscow, as a result of which Moscow became the center of Russian Orthodoxy and the spiritual center of Russian lands.
The policy of Ivan I Kalita - winning the trust of the Mongols, strengthening the power of the Moscow prince, expanding the Moscow principality, was continued by the sons of Ivan Kalita:
- Simeon Ivanovich (Simeon the Proud) - 1340 - 1353;
- Ivan II Ivanovich (Ivan the Red) - 1353 - 1359
In the second half of the XIV century. in northeastern Russia, the tendency to unite the lands intensified. The center of the association was the Moscow principality, separated from Vladimir-Suzdal in the 12th century.
The reasons.
The role of unifying factors was played by: the weakening and collapse of the Golden Horde, the development of economic ties and trade, the formation of new cities and the strengthening of the social stratum of the nobility. In the Moscow principality, a system developed local relations: the nobles received land from the Grand Duke for their service and for the duration of their service. This made them dependent on the prince and strengthened his power. Also the reason for the merger was struggle for national independence.
Features of the formation of the Russian centralized state:
Speaking of "centralization" one should keep in mind two processes: the unification of Russian lands around a new center - Moscow and the creation of a centralized state apparatus, a new power structure in the Muscovite state.
The state was formed in the northeastern and northwestern lands of the former Kievan Rus; From the 13th century Moscow princes and the church begin to carry out a wide colonization of the Trans-Volga territories, new monasteries, fortresses and cities are formed, the local population is conquered.
The formation of the state took place in a very short time, which was associated with the presence of an external danger in the face of the Golden Horde; the internal structure of the state was fragile; the state at any moment could break up into separate principalities;
the creation of the state took place on a feudal basis; in Russia, a feudal society began to form: serfdom, estates, etc.; in Western Europe, the formation of states took place on a capitalist basis, and bourgeois society began to take shape there.
Features of the process of state centralization and boiled down to the following: Byzantine and Eastern influence led to strong despotic tendencies in the structure and politics of power; the main support of autocratic power was not the union of cities with the nobility, but the local nobility; centralization was accompanied by the enslavement of the peasantry and the strengthening of class differentiation.
The formation of the Russian centralized state took place in several stages:
Stage 1. Rise of Moscow(late XIII - early XIV centuries). By the end of the XIII century. the old cities of Rostov, Suzdal, Vladimir are losing their former importance. The new cities of Moscow and Tver are rising.
The rise of Tver began after the death of Alexander Nevsky (1263). During the last decades of the thirteenth century Tver acts as a political center and organizer of the struggle against Lithuania and the Tatars and tried to subjugate the most important political centers: Novgorod, Kostroma, Pereyaslavl, Nizhny Novgorod. But this desire ran into strong resistance from other principalities, and above all from Moscow.
The beginning of the rise of Moscow is associated with the name of the youngest son of Alexander Nevsky - Daniel (1276 - 1303). Daniil got a small village of Moscow. For three years, the territory of Daniel's possession has tripled: Kolomna and Pereyaslavl have joined Moscow. Moscow became a principality.
His son Yuri (1303 - 1325). joined the Tver prince in the struggle for the throne of Vladimir. A long and stubborn struggle for the title of Grand Duke began. Yuri's brother Ivan Danilovich, nicknamed Kalita, in 1327 in Tver, Ivan Kalita went to Tver with an army and crushed the uprising. In gratitude, in 1327 the Tatars gave him a label for the Great reign.
Stage 2. Moscow - the center of the fight against the Mongol-Tatars(second half of the 14th - first half of the 15th centuries). The strengthening of Moscow continued under the children of Ivan Kalita - Simeon Proud (1340-1353) and Ivan II the Red (1353-1359). Under the reign of Prince Dmitry Donskoy, on September 8, 1380, the Battle of Kulikovo took place. Tatar army Khan Mamai was defeated.
Stage 3. Completion of the formation of the Russian centralized state (end of the 15th - beginning of the 16th centuries). The unification of Russian lands was completed under the great-grandson of Dmitry Donskoy Ivan III (1462 - 1505) and Vasily III (1505 - 1533). Ivan III annexed the entire North-East of Russia to Moscow: in 1463 - the Yaroslavl principality, in 1474 - Rostov. After several campaigns in 1478, the independence of Novgorod was finally abolished.
Under Ivan III, one of the major events Russian history - the Mongol-Tatar yoke was thrown off (in 1480 after standing on the Ugra River).
Rise of Moscow and processes
The reign of the first Romanovs
Period of Troubles
Muscovy in the 16th century. Ivan the Terrible.
The rise of Moscow and the processes of centralization of Russian lands
Lecture 3. Muscovy
Give a description of the features of the development of individual ancient Russian territories of the era of disintegration.
Describe the role of the Varangian factor in the formation of Kievan Rus.
3. What is the specificity of the formation social groups ancient Russian society?
4. What are the causes and consequences of the collapse of Kievan Rus?
6. What are historical implications invasion of the Mongol-Tatars in Russia?
7. How can one characterize the role of Western states in the events of Russian history in the 13th-14th centuries?
8. What were the prerequisites for the creation united state on the territory of North-Eastern Russia?
Reasons for the rise of Moscow. Among the numerous destinies of northeastern Russia, the largest were the Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod, Rostov, Ryazan, Tver and Yaroslavl principalities. Their rulers, even in the absence of a label for the reign of Vladimir, had the title of grand dukes. By the beginning of the XIV century. the Tver princes owned the label.
Moscow, first mentioned in the annals of 1147 (during the reign of Yuri Dolgoruky in the Rostov-Suzdal principality), for a long time remained a small border town, and quite late found its own prince - the founder of the dynasty. This happened in the 1270s, when the youngest son of Alexander Nevsky, Daniel (1276-1303), was established on the throne. The principality was insignificant in size, and the Muscovite prince had no political weight among the Rurikids. His descendants could not claim the great reign of Vladimir. This was the fate of representatives of the senior lines of the offspring of Yaroslav Vsevolodovich - from the Tver and Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod dynasties.
However, in the XIV century. The Moscow principality entered the struggle for possession of the label, and defeated Tver. The Tver principality had a favorable geographical position. Numerous trade routes far from the Horde passed here, and the population flocked to these territories in search of a quiet life. It was in Tver that stone construction began for the first time in the north-east of Russia after the invasion of Batu. This indicates a fairly large economic potential of the principality. The Tver dynasty had authority among other princes. But these factors turned out to be insignificant in the fierce confrontation with Moscow. The decisive role here was played by the policy of the Moscow princes, who often acted in opposition to established norms, but thoughtfully and aggressively.
Activities of the first Moscow princes. Even Daniil Alexandrovich of Moscow managed to increase the territory of the principality by capturing Kolomna (it became the second most important city) and annexing the Principality of Pereyaslavl. The entire course of the Moskva River was in the possession of Muscovites. The increased resources, to which the captured Mozhaisk was added, allowed Yuri Danilovich (1303-1325) to join the fight against Tver. He spent several years in the Horde and married the sister of Khan Uzbek. According to historians, Yuri Danilovich received a label for the Grand Duchy of Vladimir by slandering Mikhail Yaroslavich of Tver, whom the Horde executed.
Ivan I Danilovich, nicknamed Kalita (1325-1340), took advantage of the precedent set by his brother. In 1327, at the head of the Horde detachment, Kalita suppressed a popular uprising in Tver and, having won the favor of Khan Uzbek, received a label for the great reign of Vladimir. Khan entrusted him with the collection of the Horde exit from all Russian lands. The possession of significant material resources (especially from Veliky Novgorod) allowed Ivan Danilovich to actively buy up land, increasing his own principality and expanding his influence in other people's possessions.
Strengthening the position of the Moscow principality was facilitated by the flexible policy of its rulers towards the church. It led to the fact that in 1328 the metropolitan moved to Moscow, making the city his residence. So Moscow turned into spiritual center northeastern Russia.
Thanks to the authority and trust of Ivan Kalita from Khan Uzbek, the Russian lands were not subjected to devastating Horde raids. The Moscow principality got the opportunity to accumulate strength for future battles. However, their prospects loomed not only in the East, but also in the West - in relations with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia. Here in 1316 Gediminas came to power. He actively annexed the ancient Russian lands, helped Tver in the fight against Moscow, tried to extend his influence to Veliky Novgorod and Pskov. But Gediminas did not enter into an open conflict with Moscow, since Lithuania was conducting military operations against the Livonian Order. Under the son of Gediminas, Grand Duke Olgerd (1341-1377), the situation changed. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia intensified its expansion to the east, becoming dangerous enemy Moscow.
After the death of Ivan Kalita, his father's policy was continued by Simeon Ivanovich, nicknamed the Proud (1340-1353), who was also supported by the Horde. Olgerd's attempt to create a Lithuanian-Horde alliance against Moscow failed. The Moscow principality, free from Tatar raids, gradually gained strength, demonstrated solidarity, the absence of strife and fragmentation into numerous destinies. In 1359, the nephew of Simeon the Proud, Prince Dmitry Ivanovich (1359-1389), was on the Moscow throne. The rise of Moscow ended the first stage of the centralization of the Russian state.
Moscow, Horde and Lithuania. At the time of coming to power, nine-year-old Dmitry could not independently carry out his functions. On his behalf, decisions were made by Metropolitan Alexy and the most prominent boyars. This situation seemed advantageous to the enemies of Moscow, and they tried to take advantage of it. The label for the great reign of Vladimir began to be challenged by the people of Tver and Suzdal. Olgerd of Lithuania, having defeated the Horde forces in 1363 at the Blue Waters, was ready to help the prince of Tver. But all subsequent claims of Tver, with the support of Lithuania, were thwarted by a series of bright victories of Prince Dmitry Ivanovich over his competitors (in 1368, 1370, 1372). After that, the Tver prince was forced to renounce his claims to the reign of Vladimir, and recognized himself as subordinate to Moscow.
The apparent strengthening of the Moscow principality caused the alarm of the temnik Mamai, who seized power in the Horde - by that time already weakened by twenty years of internecine struggle. In the decisive battle on the Kulikovo field On September 8, 1380, Prince Dmitry Ivanovich, together with his allies (Russian squads and Mamai's Horde competitors), defeated Mamai's army, whose allies were the Lithuanian prince Jagiello and Dmitry's Russian competitors. The soldiers of Prince Dmitry, nicknamed since then Donskoy, were blessed for battle by the famous ascetic and founder of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery - Sergius of Radonezh (1314-1392). It was also an act of spiritual recognition of Moscow as the center of all Russian lands.
However, Moscow, weakened by huge losses on the Kulikovo field, could not defend itself against the invasion of the Horde Khan Tokhtamysh in 1382. During the invasion, approx. 24 thousand Muscovites. The payment of tribute was again resumed. Golden Horde could still show its strength, but the laws of decay were inexorably operating in it, leading to the weakening of the once powerful state. The Moscow principality, having consolidated its moral and political authority, on the contrary, was gaining strength. Dying, Dmitry Donskoy bequeathed to his eldest son Vasily Vladimir principality as a fatherland, as one's own possession.
During the reign of Vasily I (1389-1425), the expansion of the territory of the Muscovite state continued through the annexation of the Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod and Murom principalities. The princes of Tver no longer entered into an open struggle with Moscow. The horde, ruined in 1395 by the campaign of the Central Asian ruler Timur, was increasingly losing its influence. A secret raid on Moscow by Emir Edigey in 1408 testified to the fear of the Horde to meet the Russians in an open battle. Lithuania remained the most dangerous enemy of the Moscow principality.
Back in 1385, the Lithuanian prince Jagiello (1377-1392) entered into an alliance with the Polish state ( Union of Krevo), converted to Catholicism and married a Polish queen. Catholicism began to gradually spread in the principality of Lithuania, and the Orthodox population began to experience oppression. In 1392, Vytautas (1392-1430) became the prince of Lithuania, with whom Vasily I became related by marrying his daughter, Sophia. However, Vitovt continued to hatch plans for the seizure of Russian lands. Repeatedly he fought with Veliky Novgorod and Pskov, captured Smolensk, and dreamed of subjugating Moscow. But things did not come to an open armed conflict between Lithuania and Moscow. Repeatedly, the forces of the two sides opposed each other, but each time everything ended with a peace treaty. For political reasons, Vasily I even transferred his infant son under the care of Vitovt. And after the death of Vitovt in 1430, Moscow has already acquired the shape of the undisputed leader of the North-Eastern Russia. But the course of centralization processes was complicated by the outbreak of civil strife among the descendants of Ivan Kalita.
Dynastic War and its consequences. For almost a quarter of a century - from 1431 to 1453 - the war continued in the Moscow principality, caused by the clash of old appanage traditions and new trends. According to the will of Dmitry Donskoy, in the event of the death of the eldest of the sons, power passed to the next brother. But Vasily I, bypassing his brother - Yuri Dmitrievich Zvenigorodsky and Galitsky, handed over the throne to his ten-year-old son Vasily (1425-1462). However, the death of Vitovt, the powerful guardian of the young prince of Moscow, unleashed the hands of his competitors. In the course of fierce hostilities, Vasily II Vasilyevich - nicknamed Dark (he was blinded by enemies) repeatedly lost the throne of Moscow, but the support of the boyars and the clergy ensured his victory over dynastic rivals - uncle Yuri Dmitrievich and brothers - Vasily Yuryevich Kosy and Dmitry Yuryevich Shemyaka.
The result of the war was the strengthening of the power of the Moscow prince. Many Moscow princely destinies were liquidated, Veliky Novgorod and Pskov were brought to obedience. Relations with the Horde changed, as a result of the collapse of which the Kazan, Crimean Khanates, and the Nogai Horde stood out. Some Tatar princes went to serve in the Moscow principality, converted to Orthodoxy, and became service princes. On the territory subject to Moscow, the Tatar Kasimov "kingdom" arose, the task of which was to protect the border Moscow lands.
Relations between the church and the grand duke's power entered a new phase. In 1438-1439. in Italy, the Ferraro-Florence Council was held, which adopted the union (unification) between the Orthodox and catholic church. This was the means that Byzantium counted on in the struggle against the Ottoman Turks. But Moscow categorically rejected the union, and Metropolitan Isidore, who represented the Russian metropolis at the council, was imprisoned. In turn, the agreement with the Catholics undermined the influence of the Church of Constantinople. In 1448, the Council of Bishops in Moscow for the first time independently elected the Ryazan hierarch Jonah as metropolitan, whose candidacy was pleasing to the Grand Duke. The Moscow Metropolis became autocephalous, independent of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. And in 1453 Constantinople fell under the blows of the Ottoman Turks. The center of Orthodoxy was increasingly associated with Moscow, and the Moscow prince gradually acquired the status of the main Orthodox sovereign - the heir to the Byzantine emperors.
Thus, the prerequisites were created for a decisive step in the creation of a centralized Russian state, which was to be taken by the son of Vasily the Dark - Ivan III.
Formation of the Moscow state. The final stage of the centralization of Russian lands included: gathering the largest territories of northeastern Russia around one center; gaining independence from the Horde; domestic reforms. Only a strong state could resist competitors - the Principality of Lithuania, the Livonian Order, Sweden and the formations that arose on the ruins of the Golden Horde.
During the reign of Ivan III Vasilyevich (1462-1505), the possessions of the Moscow prince increased significantly. Yaroslavl (1463) and Rostov (1474) principalities were annexed to Moscow peacefully. As a result of hostilities 1471-1478. The Novgorod Republic was conquered. The armed forces were used during the subjugation of the Tver principality (1485). I had to wage war with Lithuania for the annexation of the Verkhovsky principalities (in the upper reaches of the Oka River). Vyatka land (1489), Great Perm (1472) and Yugra land (1500), where Finno-Ugric and other peoples lived, became part of the Moscow principality.
Pskov and the Ryazan principality, which had long fallen into the sphere of influence of Moscow, were annexed under Vasily III Ivanovich (1505-1533) in 1510 and 1521, respectively. And in 1514 Moscow annexed Smolensk.
While the Muscovite state was consistently strengthening, processes of disintegration continued on the territory of the Golden Horde. There were Siberian, Astrakhan, Kazakh, Uzbek khanates. An attempt to restore its former power was made by the khan of the Great Horde - Akhmat. He decided to bring to obedience the Russian ulus, which stopped paying tribute. However, the events of 1480, which went down in history under the name " standing on the river Ugra”, showed the illusory nature of this plan. Despite the difficult situation - the onslaught of the Livonian Order in the west, the performance of Lithuania as an ally of Akhmat, the internecine quarrel with the Grand Duke of Ivan III's brothers - the Muscovite state was able to emerge victorious, demonstrating its strength. Moscow was perceived by the population as an all-Russian center that solved the problem of people's liberation. Akhmat led his army from the banks of the river. Ugry, which was the fact of the end of the Horde's power over Russia. Thus, national sovereignty was acquired. A. in 1502, under the blows of the Crimean Khanate, the Great Horde was finally defeated.
The Moscow principality, after the fall of Byzantium, remained the only independent Orthodox state. In 1485, Ivan III took the title "Sovereign of All Russia". As a result of the build-up of political power, the tasks of both foreign and policy changed. Moscow is beginning to actively enter the international arena. More than two dozen European and Asian states are becoming Russia's diplomatic partners. Among the allies of Ivan III are the Crimean Khanate and the Kazan Khanate, where a protege of Moscow was placed on the throne. Connections are established with Ottoman Empire, Rome, Venice, Milan, Moldova, Hungary, Holy Roman Empire. Many Western specialists are invited to Moscow: doctors, architects, builders, jewelers, foundry workers, cannon craftsmen, and ore seekers. Roman diplomacy considered it possible to use the growing Russia in the fight against the Turkish threat.
In the restless Baltic region for Moscow, the threat came from the Livonian Order and Sweden. The old enemy of Moscow, the Principality of Lithuania, intended to create an anti-Russian coalition, and the fight against it diverted many forces. True, success accompanied Moscow, because due to national and confessional oppression, the Russian princes of Lithuania sought to come under the leadership of Ivan III. So, Novgorod-Seversky lands, the possessions of the princes of Starodubsky, Trubetskoy, Mosalsky, turned out to be part of Russia. The western border of Russia has advanced a hundred kilometers.
Moscow's claims to a worthy role in world politics were determined not least by the idea of Russian succession from Byzantium. The second wife of Ivan III was the niece of the last emperor of Constantinople - Sophia Paleolog. Probably, not without her influence, a ceremonial was established in Moscow, demonstrating the special position of the sovereign-autocrat, free in making his decisions. The genealogy of the Moscow Rurikovich was erected to the ancient Roman emperor Augustus. Imperial ambitions were expressed in the work "The Legend of the Princes of Vladimir". Russian state adopted the Byzantine coat of arms - in the form of a double-headed eagle, and in Moscow the grandiose construction of the Kremlin according to the plan of Aristotle Fiorovanti and temples, designed to prove the greatness of the "Third Rome", unfolded. This idea - about Moscow as the "Third Rome" - sounded at the beginning of the 16th century. in the message of the Pskov elder Philotheus Vasily III. According to this idea, the Muscovite state is assigned a special historical mission: being the center of the true Christian faith, it must be responsible for the fate of the entire Orthodox world.
Internal transformations. The new lands included in the Moscow Principality retained their features for a long time. But the logic of the centralization process required the introduction of uniform standards of life throughout the country. This concerned central and local government, tax and legal systems, and the spiritual sphere. In 1497, the first all-Russian Sudebnik. It was mainly devoted to the issues of judiciary. It also introduced the norm of a single term for the transition of privately owned peasants from one owner to another. The transition was allowed in the fall, a week before St. George's day(November 14) and a week after St. George's Day, subject to payment of the elderly (tax). This measure was relevant in the context of the development of the local system.
The annexation of new territories to Moscow, and the policy of confiscations from the local nobility and the church (especially in the Novgorod possessions) allowed Ivan III to concentrate in his hands III large public land fund. These lands were distributed on the estate to the nobles for their service. This is how the formation of the service class, directly dependent on the sovereign, went on. It included serfs of the prince, landowners of the former specific princes, impoverished patrimonials from princely and boyar families. Moreover, votchinniks could simultaneously have both votchinas and estates located in different parts of the country.
These noble landlords made up the noble militia, which replaced the former princely squads. The Muscovite state now had a strong, well-armed army, designed to repel external aggression. But it needed land provision, and this involved further growth territories and processing them by dependent peasants. Therefore, the strong power of the sovereign, who granted estates, seemed to be the ideal of the service nobility.
The highest position in the social hierarchy was occupied by the descendants of the specific princes - representatives of the Rurik family. They ended up in the service of the Moscow ruler, they were "charmed". A new meaning of the word "boyar" has been added, meaning "rank". The boyars, along with the roundabouts, sat in the Boyar Duma - an advisory body under the sovereign. The old Moscow boyars were pushed aside from power. Princes and boyars formed the core the sovereign's court from which all military and civil service appointments were made. Seniority was determined by the origin and official significance of the genus.
The most important central authorities the authorities were the Grand Palace and the Treasury. Here the order system and branch management in the state apparatus were born. Over time in orders the leading role will be played by clerks - people from various social strata. The local government of the country, which was divided into counties, volosts and camps, was represented by governors and volosts. Their activities were carried out with the help of staff, which they brought with them. All the service people of the Moscow sovereign turned to him in official documents according to the formula: "Behold, your serf."
The growing autocratic power was supported by the Church. But among the clergy there was no unity on the issue of owning monasteries land areas. Some of the church leaders, the followers of Joseph Volotsky - the Josephites, considered it necessary to provide the monasteries with landed property for the possibility of active social activity. Their ideal was the union of church and state. Others, followers of the Trans-Volga elder Nil Sorsky - non-possessors - expressed an opinion about the detachment of monks from worldly concerns, increasing the moral authority of the clergy, free from land ownership. Ivan III accepted at first the point of view of the nonpossessors, which was in his interests.
However, at the church council of 1503, the Josephites won. The church managed to defend its right to own land. Grand Duke was forced to accept, and supported the followers of Joseph Volotsky. The Josephites put forward the thesis about the divine origin of the great princely power. The union of the autocratic state and the Orthodox Church became even closer.
The processes of centralization continued in the 16th century, by the beginning of which the name “Russia” was increasingly assigned to the Muscovite state.
In the XIII-XIV centuries, the prerequisites for the formation of a Russian centralized state were formed - economic and political. The starting point in the development of the feudal economy was fast development Agriculture development of abandoned lands. It has become extremely important in more new, more advanced tools, which led to the separation of crafts from agriculture, and hence the growth of cities. There is a process of exchange in the form of trade between the artisan and the farmer, ᴛ.ᴇ. between city and countryside.
The division of labor between individual regions of the country required the political unification of the Russian lands. Nobles, merchants, artisans were especially interested in this. The strengthening of economic ties was one of the reasons for the formation of a single Russian state. AT given period the exploitation of the peasants intensifies, which leads to an aggravation of the class struggle. The feudal lords strive to legally subjugate the peasants to themselves, to secure them for their property. Only a centralized state can perform such a function. The threat of attack from outside accelerated the process of centralization of the Russian state, because. all sections of society were interested in the struggle against an external enemy.
In the process of formation of a unified Russian state, three stages can be distinguished.
Back in the XII century, there was a tendency to unite the lands under the rule of one prince in the Vladimir-Suzdal principality.
- The first stage (the end of the 13th century) is the rise of Moscow, the beginning of unification. Moscow becomes the main contender to be considered the center of Russian lands.
- The second stage (1389-1462) - the fight against the Mongols-Tatars. Strengthening Moscow.
- The third stage (1462-1505) is the completion of the formation of a unified Russian state. The Mongol-Tatar yoke was overthrown, the process of the unification of Russia was completed.
Unlike countries Western Europe the formation of the Russian centralized state had its own characteristics:
- The unification took place against the background of late feudalism, and not flourishing, as in Europe;
- The unification of the Russian lands was led by the princes of Moscow, and in Europe by the urban bourgeoisie;
- First of all, Russia was united according to political reasons, and then by economic ones, while for European countries economic reasons were the main ones.
The first king of all Russia and the highest judge was Ivan IV Vasilyevich the Terrible, son Vasily 3. The specific princes were now under the control of proteges from Moscow.
The young centralized state in the XVI century. became known as Russia. The country entered new stage of its development.
Formation of the Russian centralized state
The period from the end of the XIII to the XV century inclusive was very difficult in the life of Russia. The Tatar-Mongol yoke threw Russia back and caused it to lag behind the countries of Western Europe, leaving it for a long time a feudal country. But the development of the country, slowed down by the invasion, continued: Russia rose to its feet.
Agriculture developed most rapidly in the area between the Oka and the Volga, where the influx of population increased, the plowing of land grew, forests were cut down, cattle breeding and crafts developed.
Feudal landownership developed. The princes and boyars were large owners of the land, there was a struggle for land and the enslavement of the peasants. Handicraft production grew in the cities, especially in Moscow, Novgorod, Pskov and other cities of northeastern Russia, protected by dense forests and a dense network of rivers and lakes.
The rise of the economy, the development of cities, trade led to increased communication between the Russian lands, to their unification, which was also dictated by the struggle against external enemies, primarily against the Mongol-Tatars. For a successful struggle, a single state with strong power was required.
At the end of the 15th century, the concept of "Russia" (and before that - "Rus") appeared, uniting the Russian lands
The formation of the Russian centralized state was a long process that continued until the middle of the 16th century. Its territory consisted of the lands of Vladimir-Suzdal, Novgorod, Smolensk, Muromo-Ryazan principalities. And from the end of the XII century. there was a stubborn struggle for supremacy in these lands. Since XIII, the Moscow principality also entered this struggle. It was Moscow that became the center of the collection of Russian lands. In addition to Moscow, the real contenders for this role were Tver, Ryazan, Novgorod. However, already during the reign of Ivan Kalita (1325-1340), the importance of the young Moscow principality increased immeasurably.
The main reasons for the rise of Moscow were: its relative remoteness from the Golden Horde; patronage of the Horde khans; the intersection of trade routes in North-Eastern Russia, etc. However, there were two main prerequisites: the transformation of Moscow into the center of the struggle for liberation from the Horde domination and the transfer to Moscow under Ivan Kalita of the center of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Moscow took over the organization of the struggle against the yoke of the Mongol-Tatars. At the first stage of this struggle and the gathering of Russian lands by Moscow from the formation of the Moscow principality to the beginning of the reign of Ivan Kalita and his sons, the foundations of the economic and political power of the principality were laid. At the second stage (during the reign of Dmitry Donskoy and his son Vasily I), a rather successful military confrontation between Russia and the Horde began. by the most major battles of this period were the battles on the Vozha River (1378) and on the Kulikovo field (1380). At the same time, the territory of the Muscovite state is expanding significantly, and the international authority of the Moscow princes is growing.
Along with the military and political processes that took place in the Russian lands during the XIV-XV centuries. and continued until the middle XVI century, significant socio-economic processes took place in them, which largely determined the nature, pace and features of the formation of the Russian centralized state. The essence of these processes lies in the fact that, firstly, the catastrophic consequences of the Mongol-Tatar invasion and the 240th anniversary of the Golden Horde yoke delayed the economic development of the Russian lands. This contributed to the conservation feudal fragmentation; secondly, this historical period can be characterized as a whole as a period of formation and strengthening of feudal-serf relations that determined the system of the feudal hierarchy, political system and management. The presence in Russia of huge land and human resources also contributed to the offensive development of feudalism in depth and breadth; third; political centralization in Russia was to significantly determine the beginning of the process of overcoming the economic disunity of the country and was accelerated by the struggle for social independence.
An important prerequisite for the unification of the Russian lands was a toast of social forces interested in eliminating feudal fragmentation and creating a single Russian state in the context of an economic boom, growth community development labor, expressed in the allocation of handicrafts from agriculture, in the development of trade.
One of these social forces was primarily the townspeople, since feudal fragmentation was a significant obstacle to the development of handicrafts and trade. The fact is that the numerous political partitions between the principalities with their outposts and trade duties made it much more difficult for the exchange and free distribution of goods. Feudal strife sharply undermined the economy of cities.
The main forces of the feudal lords were also interested in the creation of the Russian state. For the Moscow boyars, for example, the growth of the political power of the Moscow principality and the expansion of its territory meant the growth of its own power. The middle and small feudal lords, who were entirely dependent on the Grand Duke, were even more interested and fought for a single Russian state. The unifying tendencies were also supported by the Russian Church, which sought to consolidate its privileges throughout the country.
The tendencies towards overcoming the feudal fragmentation of Russia, which emerged in the 14th century, corresponded to the forward movement historical development, since the political unification of Russia was a necessary prerequisite for its further economic growth and the achievement of state independence.
A major role in the conditions of the Moscow principality, in the gathering of Russian lands around Moscow, was played by the Moscow prince Ivan Kalita - a tough and cunning, intelligent and stubborn ruler in achieving his goals. He used for this purpose the help of the Golden Horde, for which he collected a huge tribute from the population. He accumulated great wealth, for which he received the nickname "Kalita" (purse, "money bag"), and he used this wealth to acquire land in foreign principalities and possessions, for which he was nicknamed "collector of Russian lands." Under Ivan Kalita, Moscow became the residence of the Metropolitan of "All Russia", which was of great importance, since the church enjoyed great influence. The position of Kalita contributed to the fact that the foundation was laid for the political and economic power of Moscow and the economic rise of Russia began.
At the third stage (1425-1462), the main goal of the struggle was the desire to seize power in the growing weight in the Muscovite state. The final stage in the struggle was the reign of Ivan III (1462-1505 and Basil III(1505-1533), when the main Russian principalities were united under the rule of Moscow. A unified code of laws was adopted, bodies were created government controlled established economic orders, etc.
the Principality of Tver was annexed to the Moscow principality, in 1489 - the Vyatka land, in 1510 - the Pskov Republic, in 1521 - the Ryazan principality.
Under Ivan III, Moscow refused to pay tribute to the Horde, and the punitive campaign of Khan Akhmat was repulsed by the Russian army. So in 1480 the yoke of the Golden Horde ended.
The Russian state from the very beginning was formed as a multinational one.
With the unification of the lands, the task of creating centralized system management: the importance of the Boyar Duma increased (it became a permanent supreme body with the Grand Duke). At the end of the 15th century, the first order appeared as a central institution; in 1497, the Code of Laws was compiled - a collection of laws that played a large role in the centralization of state administration. He initiated the creation of a nationwide system of serfdom.
The formation of the Russian centralized state was a natural and progressive process and was of great historical significance. It contributed to the liberation of Russia from the Horde yoke. The formation of the political center strengthened the position of the state in international arena. On the Russian lands, the formation of a single economic space began. The national economy and culture began to develop faster, local isolation disappeared; better ensured the security of the country; the influence of the church expanded.
Awareness of the Russian people as a single whole now formed the basis of the spiritual life of the inhabitants of various regions of the state.
Moscow princes began to be called "the states of all Russia" and to transfer power in the state by inheritance.
Thus was formed the largest country in Europe. From the end of the 15th century, its new name, Russia, began to be widely used. This meant that at the turn of the 15th-16th centuries a single Russian state was formed. But his education went only to a part of the ancient Russian lands, the part that consisted of principalities that became dependent on the Golden Horde. The process of uniting these lands around Moscow was at the same time a process of gradual, gradual liberation (struggle for independence) from the oppression of the Golden Horde. And the formation of a unified Russian state was based not so much on economic and cultural ties, but on the military power of the unifying force - the Grand Duchy of Moscow.
In the XIII-XV centuries, the main events that determined the development of the culture of the Russian lands were the Batu invasion and the establishment of Mongol-Tatar rule. The largest cultural monuments were destroyed or lost - cathedrals and monasteries, frescoes and mosaics, handicrafts. The craftsmen and craftsmen themselves were killed or driven into Horde slavery. The stone building has stopped.
The formation of the Russian people and a single state, the struggle for liberation from the Mongols, the creation common language became important factors in the development of the culture of Russian lands in the XIII-XV centuries.
The main topic of oral folk art began a struggle with the Horde domination. Legends about the battle on Kalka, about the devastation of Ryazan by Batu, about Yevpatiy Kolovrat, the exploits of Alexander Nevsky, the Battle of Kulikovo have survived or in a revised form have survived to this day. All of them made up the heroic epic epic. In the XIV century, epics and the power of their land were created. Appeared the new kind of oral folk art - a historical song that described in detail the events of which the author was a contemporary.
In works of literature, the theme of the fight against invaders was also central. At the end of the XIV century, the all-Russian chronicle was resumed.
From the end of the XIII century, the revival of stone construction began. It developed more actively in the lands least affected by the invasion. Novgorod became one of the centers of culture during these years, the architects of which built the Church of St. Nicholas and the Church of Fyodor Stratilat. These temples marked the emergence of a particular architectural style, characterized by a combination of simplicity and majesty. In Moscow, stone construction began in the time of Ivan Kalita, when the Assumption Cathedral was laid in the Kremlin, which became the cathedral (main) temple of Russia. At the same time, the Annunciation Cathedral and the Archangel Cathedral (the tomb of Moscow rulers) were created.
Russian culture, which suffered during the Mongol invasion, began its revival at the end of the 13th century. Literature, architecture and fine arts of that time were permeated with the idea of struggle for the overthrow of the Horde domination, the formation of the foundations of all-Russian culture.
The formation of the Russian state was an objective and natural process of further development of state forms on the territory of the East European Plain. The formation of Russian statehood had an important impact on the Mongol-Tatar invasion, which led, in particular, to changes in the authorities: the strengthening of monarchical, autocratic principles in the person of princes. Important reasons for the emergence and development of a new state form- a unified Russian state was economic and social changes, as well as a foreign policy factor: the need for constant defense from enemies. The chronological closeness of the formation of a single Russian state and centralized monarchies in Western Europe is often noted. Indeed, the formation of a single state in Russia, as in France and Spain, falls on the second half of the 15th century. However, in socio-economic terms, Russia was at an earlier stage of development. In Western Europe in the 15th century, seigneurial relations dominated, and the personal dependence of the peasants weakened. In Russia, however, state-feudal forms still prevailed, the relationship of personal dependence of the peasants on the feudal lords was only taking shape. Unlike Western Europe, where cities played an active role in political life, in Russia they were in a subordinate position in relation to the feudal nobility. Thus, in Russia there were no sufficient socio-economic prerequisites for the formation of a single state.
The leading role in its formation was played by a foreign policy factor - the need to confront the Horde and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Such a “leading” (in relation to socio-economic development) nature of the process determined the features of the developed by the end of the 15th - 16th centuries. states: strong monarchical power, rigid dependence of the ruling class on it, a high degree of exploitation of direct producers.
Decisive steps in the creation of a unified Russian state were made by the son of Vasily the Dark, Ivan III. Ivan stayed on the throne for 43 years. The blind father early made Ivan a co-ruler and Grand Duke, and he quickly gained worldly experience and a habit of business. Ivan, who began as one of the specific princes, became in his life the sovereign of a single nation.
By the mid-70s, the Yaroslavl and Rostov principalities were finally annexed to Moscow. After 7 years of diplomatic and military struggle in 1478
Formation of the Russian centralized state
Ivan III managed to subjugate the vast Novgorod Republic. At the same time, the veche was liquidated, the symbol of Novgorod freedom - veche bell was taken to Moscow. The confiscation of Novgorod lands, unprecedented in its scale, began. They were transferred into the possession of the servants of Ivan III. Finally, in 1485, as a result of a military campaign, the Tver principality was annexed to Moscow. From now on, the vast majority of the northeastern Russian lands were part of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Ivan III became known as the Sovereign of All Russia. In general, a single state was created and finally approved its independence.
Already in 1476, Ivan III refused to go to the Horde and send money. In 1480, the Nogai Horde separated from the Great Horde. At the end of the first quarter of the 15th century, the Crimean Khanate was formed, in the second quarter - the Khanates of Kazan, Astrakhan and Siberia. Horde Khan Akhmat moved to Russia. He entered into an alliance with the Lithuanian prince Casimir and gathered a 100,000-strong army. Ivan III hesitated for a long time, making a choice between an open struggle with the Mongols and accepting the humiliating terms of surrender proposed by Akhmat. But by the autumn of 1480, he managed to come to an agreement with his rebellious brothers, and even in the newly annexed Novgorod it became calmer. In early October, the rivals met on the banks of the Ugra River (a tributary of the Oka). Casimir did not appear on the battlefield, and Akhmat waited for him in vain. Meanwhile, early snow covered the grass, the cavalry became useless and the Tatars retreated. Khan Akhmat soon died in the Horde, and the Golden Horde finally ceased to exist. The 240-year-old Horde yoke fell.
The name "Russia" is the Greek, Byzantine name for Russia. It came into use in Muscovite Russia in the second half of the 15th century, when, after the fall of Constantinople and the liquidation of the Horde yoke, the Grand Duchy of Moscow, being the only independent Orthodox state, began to be regarded by its rulers as the ideological and political successor of the Byzantine Empire.
During the reign of the son of Ivan III - Vasily III Russian the state continued to grow rapidly. In 1510, the Pskov land became part of it, and in 1521, the Ryazan principality. As a result of the wars with Lithuania at the end of the 15th - the first quarter of the 16th centuries. Smolensk and partially Chernihiv lands were annexed. Thus, in the first third of the 16th century, Russian lands, which were not part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, were annexed to Moscow.
Byzantium had a significant influence on the formation of autocracy and the formation of Russian political ideology. In 1472, Ivan III married the niece of the last Byzantine emperor, Sophia Palaiologos. The double-headed eagle, a symbol widespread in Byzantium, becomes the state emblem of Russia. Even the appearance of the sovereign changed: in his hands appeared a scepter and an orb, on his head was a “cap of Monomakh”. The fall of Byzantium under the blows of the Ottoman Turks made Russia last stronghold Orthodoxy and contributed to a certain ideologization of the supreme state power. From the 16th century the idea of Moscow as a “third Rome” is spreading, in which religious and religious political motives. The Pskov monk Philotheus, in a letter to Vasily III, argued that the "first Rome" fell because of heresies, the "second" - because of the union with Catholicism, the "third", truly Christian Rome, stands, "and there will not be a fourth." Thus, the preservation of Orthodoxy was seen as essential condition national independence, state power, and the Russian sovereigns acted as the guardians of the faith.
The system of central and state governing bodies was formed by: the advisory Boyar Duma, which combined the highest legislative, military-administrative and judicial functions, and two executive body- The Sovereign's Palace and the Sovereign's Treasury. There was no clear distribution of managerial functions. Basically, the Palace was in charge of the sovereign's lands. The treasury was in charge mainly of the state press, finances and foreign policy. The Judicial Code of Ivan III contributed to the formation of the state apparatus, its centralization, it was adopted in 1497 and was the first set of Russian laws.
Gradually, the system of administrative-territorial division was also streamlined. Ivan III limited the rights of specific princes, and Vasily III reduced the number of appanages. By the end of the first third of the 16th century, there were only two of them left. Instead of the former independent principalities, counties appeared, ruled by the governors of the Grand Duke. Then the counties began to be subdivided into camps and volosts, which were headed by volosts. The governors and volostels received the territory in "feeding", i.e. took legal fees and part of the taxes collected in the territory. Feeding was a reward not for administrative activities, but for previous service in the army. Therefore, the governors had no incentives for active administrative work. Since they did not have experience in administrative work, they often delegated their powers to tiuns - assistants from serfs.
It should be emphasized that the Russian state from the very beginning of its existence demonstrated an unprecedented expansion of borders in terms of its scale and swiftness. With the accession to the throne of Ivan III and until the death of his son Vasily III, i.e. from 1462 to 1533, the territory of the state grew six and a half times - from 430,000 sq. kilometers to 2,800,000 sq. kilometers.
Thus, for all the chronological closeness of the periods of formation of centralized monarchies in Russia and Western Europe, the Russian state differed from the western ones in its colossal territory, which was constantly growing, multinationality and some features of the organization of power. These traits Russian state were determined not only by its geopolitical position, but also by the specifics of its creation. Let us recall that a single state was formed in our country mainly thanks to foreign policy factors, and not to new elements in socio-economic development. Therefore, Russian sovereigns, unlike Western European monarchs, relied not on cities, not on contradictions between the feudal lords and the third estate, but on the military-bureaucratic apparatus and, to some extent, on the patriotic and religious feelings of the people.
In all of Russian history, there is no event or process comparable in its significance to the formation of the Muscovite state at the turn of the 15th - 16th centuries. These half a century is a pivotal time in the fate of the Russian people. The conditions under which and how the formation of the Muscovite state proceeded for five centuries predetermined the social, political and cultural history of not only the Russian, but in many respects all the peoples of Eastern Europe.
Features of formation
Russian centralized state
The formation of the Russian centralized state chronologically coincides with the formation of monarchies in a number of Western European countries. However, the content of this process had its own specifics.
On the European continent, as a result of a sharp political and religious struggle, national-territorial states of a secular type were formed with a rational worldview and individual autonomy. This was due to the formation of civil society and the limitation of the rights of power by law. This trend was personified by England, France, Sweden. In the first half of the 17th century, the Holy Roman Empire, a stronghold of the medieval type of development, collapsed, turning into a conglomerate of independent states.
In the same period, a special, different from the pan-European, type of feudal society was formed in Russia with autocracy at the head, rigid dependence on the monarchical power of the ruling class, and a high degree of exploitation of the peasantry.
As Klyuchevsky notes, the unification of Russian lands around Moscow led to a radical change in the political significance of this city and the great Moscow princes. They, the recent rulers of one of the Russian principalities, found themselves at the head of the vastest state in Europe. The emergence of a single state created favorable conditions for the development of the national economy and for repelling external enemies. The inclusion of a number of non-Russian nationalities in the unified state created conditions for the growth of ties between these nationalities and a higher level of the economy and culture of Russia.
So, what influenced the creation of a centralized state in Russia? Let's consider some points:
¨ Geographical position
In comparison with Tver, the Moscow principality occupied a more advantageous central position in relation to other Russian lands. The river and land routes passing through its territory gave Moscow the importance of the most important junction of trade and other ties between the Russian lands.
Moscow became in the fourteenth century. a large trade and craft center. Moscow craftsmen gained fame as skillful masters of foundry, blacksmithing and jewelry. It was in Moscow that Russian artillery was born and received its baptism of fire. Trade relations of Moscow merchants stretched far beyond the borders of Russian lands. Covered from the north-west of Lithuania by the Principality of Tver, and from the east and south-east of the Golden Horde by other Russian lands, the Moscow principality was to a lesser extent subjected to sudden devastating raids of the Golden Horde. This allowed the Moscow princes to gather and accumulate strength, to gradually create superiority in material and human resources, in order to act as organizers and leaders of the unification process and the liberation struggle. The geographical position of the Moscow Principality predetermined its role as the ethnic core of the emerging Great Russian people. All this, combined with the purposeful and flexible policy of the Moscow princes in relations with the Golden Horde and other Russian lands, ultimately led to Moscow's victory for the role of leader and political center for the formation of a unified Russian state.
¨ Economic situation
From the beginning of the XIV century. the fragmentation of Russian lands stops, giving way to their unification. This was caused primarily by the strengthening of economic ties between the Russian lands, which was a consequence of the overall economic development of the country.
At this time, the intensive development of agriculture begins. But the rise was due not so much to the development of tools as to the expansion of sown areas due to the development of new and previously abandoned lands. An increase in the surplus product in agriculture makes it possible to develop animal husbandry, as well as to sell grain to the side. The growing need for agricultural implements determines the necessary development of handicrafts. As a result, the process of separation of handicraft from agriculture is going deeper and deeper. It entails the need for exchange between the peasant and the artisan, that is, between town and country. This exchange takes the form of trade, which in the given period is correspondingly intensified and entails the creation of local markets. The natural division of labor between individual regions of the country, due to their natural features, forms economic ties throughout Russia. The establishment of these ties also contributed to the development of foreign trade. All this urgently demanded the political unification of the Russian lands, that is, the creation of a centralized state.
¨ Political position
Another factor that led to the unification of the Russian lands was the intensification of the class struggle, the strengthening of the class resistance of the peasantry. The rise of the economy, the possibility of obtaining ever greater surplus product induce the feudal lords to intensify the exploitation of the peasants. Moreover, the feudal lords strive not only economically, but also legally to secure the peasants to their fiefdoms and estates, to enserf them.
Such a policy aroused the natural resistance of the peasantry, acquiring various forms. Peasants kill feudal lords, seize their property, set fire to estates. Such a fate often befalls not only secular, but also spiritual feudal lords - monasteries. Sometimes a battle directed against the masters also acted as a form of class struggle. The flight of peasants takes a certain scale, especially to the south, to lands free from landlords. Under such conditions, the feudal lords are faced with the task of keeping the peasantry in check and bringing serfdom to an end. This task could only be accomplished by a powerful centralized state capable of performing the main function of an exploiting state—the suppression of the resistance of the exploited masses.
¨ Ideology
The Russian Church was the bearer of the national Orthodox ideology, which played an important role in the formation of powerful Russia. To build an independent state and introduce foreigners into the fence christian church, Russian society needed to strengthen its moral strength. Sergius devoted his life to this. He is building a trinity temple, seeing in it a call to the unity of the Russian land, in the name of a higher reality. In a religious shell, heretical movements represented a peculiar form of protest. At a church council in 1490, the heretics were cursed and excommunicated.
In the very first years of his reign, Ivan Kalita gave Moscow a moral significance by transferring the metropolitan see from Vladimir to Moscow. Back in 1299, Metropolitan Maxim of Kyiv left Kyiv for Vladimir-on-Klyazma. The Metropolitan was supposed to visit the southern Russian dioceses from Vladimir from time to time.
The formation of a centralized state in Russia briefly
On these trips, he stopped at a crossroads in Moscow. Metropolitan Maxim was succeeded by Peter (1308). A close friendship began between Metropolitan Peter and Ivan Kalita. Together they laid the stone Cathedral of the Assumption in Moscow. While in Moscow, Metropolitan Peter lived in his diocesan town in the ancient courtyard of Prince Yuri Dolgoruky, from where he later moved to the place where the Assumption Cathedral was soon laid. In this town he died in 1326. Peter's successor Theognost no longer wanted to live in Vladimir and settled in the new metropolitan courtyard in Moscow.
personality factor
V. O. Klyuchevsky notes that all Moscow princes before Ivan III, like two drops of water, are similar to each other. Some individual features are noticeable in their activities. However, following the successive change of Moscow princes, one can catch only typical family features in their appearance.
The founder of the dynasty of Moscow princes was the youngest son of Alexander Nevsky, Daniel. Under him, the rapid growth of the Moscow principality began. In 1301, Daniil Alexandrovich seized Kolomna from the Ryazan princes, and in 1302, the Pereslavl principality passed to him, according to the will of a childless prince of Pereslavl, who was at enmity with Tver. In 1303, Mozhaisk, which was part of the Smolensk principality, was annexed, as a result of which the Moskva River, which was then an important trade route, turned out to be within the Moscow principality from source to mouth. In three years, the Moscow principality almost doubled, became one of the largest and strongest principalities in North-Eastern Russia, and the Moscow prince Yuri Daniilovich considered himself strong enough to join the struggle for the great reign of Vladimir.
Mikhail Yaroslavich of Tver, who in 1304 received a label for a great reign, strove for sovereign rule in "all Russia", subjugation by force of Novgorod and other Russian lands. He was supported by the church and its head, Metropolitan Maxim, who in 1299 transferred his residence from devastated Kyiv to Vladimir. Mikhail Yaroslavich's attempt to take away Pereslavl from Yuri Danii-lovich led to a protracted and bloody struggle between Tver and Moscow, in which the question was already being decided not so much about Pereslavl, but about political supremacy in Russia. In 1318, at the intrigues of Yuri Daniilovich, Mikhail Yaroslavich was killed in the Horde, and the label for the great reign was transferred to the Moscow prince. However, in 1325, Yuri Daniilovich was killed in the Horde by one of the sons of Mikhail Yaroslavich, who avenged the death of his father, and the label for a great reign again fell into the hands of the Tver princes.
During the reign of Kalita, the Moscow principality was finally defined as the largest and strongest in North-Eastern Russia. Since the time of Kalita, there has been a close alliance between the Moscow grand ducal authorities and the church, which played a large role in the formation of a centralized state. Kalita's ally, Metropolitan Peter, moved his residence from Vladimir to Moscow (1326), which became the church center of all Russia, which further strengthened the political positions of the Moscow princes.
In relations with the Horde, Kalita continued the line outlined by Alexander Nevsky of external observance of vassal obedience to the khans, regular payment of tribute in order not to give them reasons for new invasions of Russia, which almost completely stopped during his reign. “And then the silence was great for 40 years and the trash ceased to fight the Russian land and slaughter the Christians, and the Christians rested and calmed down from the great languor and many hardships, about the violence of the Tatars…”, wrote the chronicler, evaluating the reign of Kalita.
The Russian lands received the respite they needed to restore and boost the economy, to accumulate strength for the upcoming struggle to overthrow the yoke.
Rise of Moscow. The organizer of the unification of the Russian lands was the Moscow principality, which stood out from the southern inheritance of the Vladimir-Suzdal lands. The extraordinary rise of Moscow is associated both with its favorable geographical position and with the personal qualities of the Moscow princes who occupied the Moscow throne. Moscow was the center of the then Russian world, at the crossroads of three important roads, which allowed the city to become a junction of trade routes, an important center for the trade in bread.
The strengthening of the Moscow principality takes place under Prince Daniel Alexandrovich (1276 - 1303) - the youngest son of Alexander Nevsky - the founder of the dynasty of Moscow princes. Having captured Kolomna, Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, Mozhaisk, he almost doubled the possessions of the principality. As a result of the energetic activity of Prince Daniel, the Moscow principality became one of the largest in North-Eastern Russia.
In the rivalry for the throne of Vladimir between Tver, Ryazan, Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod, Moscow took the upper hand. By 1327, the label for the great reign belonged to the Tver prince Alexander Mikhailovich. Cholkhan was to exercise constant control over the Grand Duke and the collection of tribute. The arbitrariness and violence that the Horde of Cholkhan did caused an uprising of the Tverichans. Moscow Prince Ivan Kalita (1325-1340) took advantage of these events and took part in the suppression of the uprising. As a reward, the label for the great reign was transferred to the Moscow prince (1328). In addition to the label, Ivan Kalita (1325-1341) received the right to collect tribute - the "horde exit". The Basque system was finally abolished. The right to collect tribute from the Horde gave the Moscow prince huge advantages. Kalita managed to make the Principality of Moscow the strongest among others, subsequently Moscow became the beginning of the statehood of Russia, objectively contributed to the process of centralization and acquired the right to collect tribute from the Khan. Hiding part of the "exit", Kalita became significantly richer. Knowing how to get along with the Horde and enrich himself at the expense of others, Ivan I established his power over Uglich, Galich Kostroma and a number of other Russian lands.
The policy of Ivan Danilovich was continued by his heirs Semyon Proud (1340-1353), Ivan Krasny (1353-1359) and Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy (1359-1389). The largest event of the first stage of the unification of Russian lands (1301-1389) was the victory over the Mongols on the Kulikovo field (1380). The grandson of Ivan Kalita, Prince Dmitry, decided on an open confrontation with the Horde - and in this he was helped by the power that his predecessors had received at the cost of losses and humiliation. The largest victory over the Mongols inspired confidence in the liberation of Russia from the khan's power. The status of Moscow rose - it became the center of gathering Russian lands. And the Moscow prince, according to V.O. Klyuchevsky, acquired "the significance of the national leader of Northern Russia in the fight against external enemies."
At the second stage (1389-1462) there are internal strife between the descendants of the Moscow prince Dmitry Donskoy, which ended with the strengthening of Vasily II the Dark (1425-1462), created the prerequisites for overcoming specific fragmentation.
