Famous story, connected with the allegedly "last love interest" of Peter the Great, Maria Dmitrievna Kantemir (1700-1757) and her pregnancy by the emperor, which ended in a miscarriage provoked by the physician of Empress Catherine Georgy Polikala (from 1704 to 1711, who served as P.A. Tolstoy in Constantinople) is based on very shaky documentary grounds and looks more like a semblance of an adventure novel.
The only evidence that such a fascination with the sovereign and its consequences took place in reality is based on a document dated June 8, 1722, a report by the French ambassador to Russia Jacques de Campredon (de Campredon; 1672 - 1749) to Cardinal Dubois. Reporting on the beginning of the Persian campaign, the ambassador mentioned rumors spreading in St. Petersburg about the pregnancy of Maria Cantemir from Emperor Peter: “The Queen is frightened by the new inclination of the Monarch to the daughter of the Wallachian ruler [Dmitry Konstantinovich Cantemir].
She, they say (on pretend), has been pregnant for several months, but her father is a very dexterous, intelligent and nosy person. The Tsarina is afraid that the Tsar, if this girl gives birth to a son, would not yield to the convictions of the Wallachian prince and divorce his wife in order to marry his mistress, who gave the throne a male heir. This fear is not without foundation, and there have been similar examples. "
If you trust this rather cautious message from Campredon, who, by the way, was staying in St.Petersburg all this time and was in personal correspondence with D.K. Cantemir, it is difficult to explain the desire of the "crafty" Moldovan prince to find support in the execution of his will from Catherine, that is, the obvious enemy of his daughter and his "insidious plans." Indeed, the exacerbation of D.K. Cantemir (tabes, - diabetes) during the Persian campaign, led to the fact that on September 28 he wrote a will in the name of Empress Catherine I.
Supposed portrait of Maria Cantemir. Hood .: I.N. Nikitin, 1710s - 1720s Collection of the New Jerusalem Museum.
It is interesting that the adherents of the adventure novel preferred not to pay attention to another letter from the same Jacques de Campredon, sent by him a year after the events described, on July 13, 1723, to the name of the French king: “They are already talking about a trip to Moscow next winter. They even say that the coronation of the Queen will take place there, that the king will introduce her to the reign and establish the order of succession to the throne. It is true that the influence of the Queen is increasing every day and that only for the sake of her pleasure the Tsar keeps away, in the village, the Moldovan ruler, whose daughter, it seemed at one time, attracted the attention of the Monarch. "
Just at the time of writing this letter, Prince Kantemir with his family, with prolonged stops caused by his illness, was moving from Astrakhan in the direction of Moscow. De Campredon, without hiding that, based both of his messages on rumors and speculations widespread at the court, who returned to St.Petersburg from Moscow immediately after the emperor's departure for Persian campaign... Therefore, the records of the family biographer, I. Ilyinsky, who was personally present at D.K. Kantemir in Derbent and who was a direct witness of the reunification of the Kantemir family in Astrakhan on October 9, 1722.
Dmitry Konstantinovich Kantemir - Maria's father.
In some publications, an additional source of information about these events indicates a note attributed to the "Cesar diplomatic agent", that is, the Austrian ambassador, apparently S.-V. Kinsky, which was first published in the historical and geographical magazine "Shop new history and geography "in 1777:" But among all the tsarist mistresses, no one was as dangerous for the tsarina as the young princess Kantemir, whom the tsar loved especially ardently in comparison with others, and Tolstoy in this love acted as a mediator, who later enjoyed mercy king and queen, and for the king's convenience he was going to marry this lady and give her his name, wishing to tactfully distract the queen's attention from this love.
But the tsar did not want to be content with such a turn of affairs, wanting to marry this young princess himself, so great was his love, however, he could not dare to go against his tsarina, the first Russian Katerina, with his children, because he was afraid of the Spiritual College, which could completely prevent this; but since the betrayal was mutual, permission for his marriage to Princess Cantemir as a second-order wife (Gemahlin Secundi) could be obtained after the birth of her son (because she was just then pregnant).
At the same time, the king undertook a campaign in Persia, as a result of which Princess Kantemir lost his attention, and it was after the time of her unsuccessful childbirth in Astrakhan that she had a miscarriage that she fell into oblivion, and the queen, in spite of everything, accompanied the king everywhere, again won the victory. " The numerous coincidences of this note with the reports of de Capredon cause surprise, which indirectly may indicate that rumors about Mary's pregnancy were transmitted to the French envoy from the Austrian ambassador.
But let us briefly return to the legend most fully reflected in the article by L.N. Maikova: “While this expedition was going on, in Astrakhan, in the sovereign's fish yard, where a room was allocated for the Kantemirov family, a dark matter prepared from afar was accomplished. Princess Maria prematurely gave birth to a premature baby. There is news that these births were artificially accelerated by measures taken by Polikala, the doctor of the Kantemirov family, who was also at the Tsaritsyn court, while the actions of Polikala were directed by none other than a friend of Prince Dimitri P.A.Tolstoy.
It was not the first time for him to play a dual role: bringing the princess closer to Peter, he at the same time wanted to be pleasing to Catherine; the unfortunate princess turned out to be his victim, a fragile toy in his hard hands. Now Peter's wife could be at peace; the danger she feared was eliminated, and Tolstoy could count on Catherine's gratitude / ...
In Astrakhan, among the family, the prince was greeted with sad news: he found his daughter seriously ill.
There is reason to believe that the circumstances surrounding her illness remained unclear for him; on at least, Polikala's doctor continued to be with him. But the very outcome of the princess's pregnancy destroyed all the prince's secret plans and hopes, and this was quite enough to completely destroy his health. " In his reasoning, the researcher relied on the above anonymous and published 70 years after the events, "anecdote" about Princess Maria Cantemir as a "wife of the second rank", continuing with the words: "... she [M.D. Kantemir - approx. AP] was pregnant; if she gives birth to a son, he [Peter I - approx. AP] will have to declare him heir to the throne.
But Catherine escaped such disfavor as a result of two rather happy events... Suddenly there is a need for an expedition to Persia. The tsar's ministers, wishing to show their ebullient activity, were in a hurry to prepare for the campaign and hastened him [Tsar - approx. AP] departure, which made him abandon all love adventures and all court intrigues. At the same time, Kantemir had a miscarriage in Astrakhan; it ended with her losing her place at the side of the Emperor, and Catherine, who accompanied her husband in Persia and bravely endured the hardships of the trip and the deadly hot climate, regained the grace of Peter. "
The participation of P.A. Tolstoy in these events as a supporter of the interests of the Kantemir family led to the emergence of the "conspiracy" theory of L.N. Maikov about his ambivalent participation in these events, despite the fact that further biography this undoubtedly outstanding personality testifies to Tolstoy's personal adherence to the precepts of Peter and his selfless loyalty to Catherine after the death of the emperor.
The hope expressed in the father's will for what is still possible, according to D.K. Kantemir, the marriage of his daughter Maria with I.G. Dolgorukov, L.N. Maikov was inclined to interpret it as a cunning intrigue invented by a deeply sick, emaciated man on the verge of death, designed to make it clear to the empress, "... that Peter's closeness to his daughter remained a secret for him."
Finally, the final design of gossip about the proximity of the emperor and Maria Cantemir in the genre of an adventure novel belongs to the pen of the Polish historian, writer and publicist Kazimir Feliksovich Waliszewski (1849 - 1935), according to which, “... the love affair with Maria Cantemir had been dragging on for several years and seemed close to a denouement, fatal for Catherine. Both women accompanied the king during the campaign. But Maria was forced to stay in Astrakhan, as she was pregnant. This further strengthened her adherents in victory.
After the death of little Peter Petrovich, Catherine no longer had a son, whom Peter could make his heir. It was assumed that if, upon the return of the tsar from the campaign, Cantemir presented him with a son, then Peter would not hesitate to get rid of the second wife in the same way that he freed himself from the first. According to Scherer [the alleged author of anonymous anecdotes published in 1792 - approx. AP], Catherine's friends found a way to get rid of the danger: when he returned, Peter found his mistress seriously ill after a premature birth; they even feared for her life. "
It is curious that none of the authors who held the opinion that the described adventurous circumstances took place in reality, for some reason, does not directly indicate under what circumstances Maria lost her child: whether it was a miscarriage provoked by a long journey, a sharp change in climate, or illness, whether the baby died as a result of unsuccessful childbirth, or, nevertheless, lived for several days, having received holy baptism. Ignoring the numerous natural factors that could lead to this sad event, with persistent allegations of the poisoning of the princess sent by the doctor, also reduces the credibility of the authenticity of this story.
The reason for doubt is the fact that the researchers of this dark history not only refrain from specifying the date of this event, but also evaded any temporary clarifications, as for example, it happened during the campaign (July 18 - October 9, 1722) or already after D.K. Kantemir to Astrakhan. In addition, some of the authors completely mistakenly associate this event even with the death of Princess Maria Cantemir, ignoring the published later correspondence between Mary and her brother Antiochus in 1734-1744.
According to Bayer, the physician of the Empress Georgy Polikala, who took part in the campaign, was assigned to Kantemir at the direction of Peter I back in Derbent and arrived in Astrakhan with the prince, which means he could not participate in the "insidious intrigue" with the poisoning of one of the princesses Kantemir until D.K. Cantemir to Astrakhan.
Anastasia Kantemir, nee Trubetskaya - stepmother of Maria Kantemir.
It should be especially noted that none of the supporters of the "adventurous version" paid attention either to the pregnancy of the stepmother Maria, the Highness Princess Anastasia Kantemir, which took place just during the events described, or to the death of her child in Astrakhan at the end of November of the same 1722, information about which was published by Bayer back in 1783.
Such a rather strange "selectivity" in the interpretation of sources, coupled with a "doubling of events", seems to be a reason to doubt that both the stepmother and, who was her age, who had the same surname, the stepdaughter at about the same time, being in the same place, at the fish yard in Astrakhan, they had the same fate associated with the loss of their babies-sons. Meanwhile, a direct participant in the events, I.I. Ilyinsky, who was in charge of receiving letters for D.K. Kantemira, who communicated with him every day, and reflected in detail in his journal the history of the family, does not mention a word about pregnancy, miscarriage, or the illness of either Maria or Anastasia Kantemir, mentioning, nevertheless, about the first unsuccessful childbirth of the princess Anastasia.
One way or another, the only thing that should be considered reliable is that vague rumors about the pregnancy of one of the princesses Kantemir, nevertheless, were worn in the highest St. Petersburg society, one way or another, reaching the ears of de Capredon and Kinsky, who could not or did not find it necessary to find out and tell more accurate information. On the other hand, reliable information about possible meetings of Princess Mary with the sovereign is exhausted by the few mentions of Peter I's visits to the house of the Cantemirs in St. Petersburg and meetings of the family with the emperor during the days of the protracted celebration of the Peace of Nishtad, which Maria could have attended.
It seems that the absence of any more definite data on this, with the high attention of contemporaries and researchers to the daily routine of the sovereign, makes this story even more doubtful. On the other hand, the jealousy of His Serene Highness Prince D.K. Kantemir to his wife Anastasia, aggravated during the period of her frequent, almost regular meetings, which took place at the same time with her childhood friend, the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, was noted in the diary of Berhholz, and, of course, was not a secret for society together with “ strange behavior»Of the Wallachian princess on April 14, 1722 (that is, 7 - 8 months before the birth) at a dinner party with the Austrian ambassador, Count Kinsky - the alleged author of one of the two main sources concerning this confusing story.
http://trojza.blogspot.md/2015/01/i.html
National history.
M., BDT, t. 2.1996
ANTEMIR Maria Dmitrievna (29.4.1700, Iasi - 9.9.1757, Moscow), princess. Daughter of the Moldavian ruler DK Cantemir and Cassandra Cantacuzin. In infancy, she was brought to Istanbul (Constantinople), where her father lived. Her teacher was the Greek A. Kandoidi, the secret informant of the Russian ambassador in Istanbul P.A.Tolstoy. Studied ancient Greek, Latin, Italian languages, the basics of mathematics, astronomy, rhetoric, philosophy, was fond of ancient and Western European literature and history, drawing, music. At the end of 1710, she returned with her family to Yassy, after the Prut campaign in 1711 she lived in Ukraine, from 1713 in Moscow and the Black Gryaz estate near Moscow. She studied Russian and Slavic literacy with the writer P.I. Ilyinsky. In her father's house she met Tsar Peter I. After moving to St. Petersburg (1720), she took part in assemblies and masquerades. Trying to avoid tiresome amusements, she incurred the discontent of the tsar and the related investigation, which was conducted by P.I. Yaguzhinsky and Dr. L.L. Blumentrost. Received in the parental home of Peter I, A. D. Menshikov, F. M. Apraksin, French ambassador J. Campredon (6.11.1721). She maintained friendly relations with Tolstoy, Prussian, Austrian and other diplomats. In the winter of 1721/22 she became close to Peter I, which was not hindered by her father, who dreamed of becoming related with the emperor and with his help free Moldova from the Ottoman yoke. She accompanied Peter I on the Persian campaign of 1722-1723; Cantemir's unsuccessful childbirth occurred in Astrakhan; the death of a newborn boy ruined the plans of the Kantemirs, they left for the Oryol estate Dmitrovka, where the ruler soon died. According to her father's will, Kantemir inherited her mother's jewelry worth 10 thousand rubles. Kantemir's connection with Peter I was renewed when Catherine I was carried away by the chamberlain V. Mons. After the death of the king, Cantemir fell seriously ill, made a will in favor of the brothers, making her brother Antiochus her executor. After her recovery she lived in St. Petersburg, but withdrew from the life of the court. Under Peter II she moved to Moscow, where her brothers served. She enjoyed the location of Peter the Great's sister Natalia. In 1727 she married her brother Konstantin and Princess M.D. Golitsyna. In connection with the participation of Antiochus' brother in the enthronement of Anna Ioannovna (1730), she was appointed maid of honor of the Imperial court, lived in Moscow in own home on Pokrovka. At the beginning of 1732 she was busy in St. Petersburg about obtaining new estates, visited Anna Ioannovna, Elizaveta Petrovna, E. I. Biron, A. I. Osterman, A. I. Ushakov. She rejected the marriage proposal of the Georgian Tsarevich A. Bakarovich. In Moscow, she led a social life, communicating with the families of the Cherkassky, Trubetskoy, Saltykov, Stroganovs. During the coronation in Moscow, Elizabeth Petrovna was present at the celebrations and managed to win over Doctor I. Lestok, M. I. Vorontsov. She was in correspondence with her brother Antiochus, which, in addition to family matters, contains a number of historical information about the accession of Ivan IV Antonovich and the reign of Anna Leopoldovna, the arrest and exile of the Smolensk governor A.A. father (1744).
Part one
CHAPTER ONE
The sun, as always in the morning hours, hit the glass of the second tier of windows located high above the first tier. At first it tickled the lips, bright, crimson, then ran up higher, illuminating a straight Greek nose that had not yet taken an adult form, then slid to a smooth white forehead, and only then gently walked under the bridge of the nose, going through thick dark eyelashes. And, finally, it stopped with its sharp beam on the eyelids, already slightly startled by his touch.
The mist under the eyelids dissipated, the eyelashes trembled, the lips parted in a slight smile. Maria almost opened her eyes, bright, green, but the sun forced her eyes to close, and she again went into the darkness of sleep. But the shadows of her colorful vision, which had just become dense and sharp, turned pale, and the shadows, inspired by sleep, disappeared and dissolved into nothingness. She pulled out a slender, dark-skinned hand from under a thick silk blanket, and threw back the edge of the bedspread. Sleep left her, and the sun again called for the bustle of the day, games and fun.
Maria rolled to the edge of the mattress, laid directly on the floor and barely covered with a silk blanket, straightened her slender legs, straightening the edge of the crumpled blanket, and finally opened her eyes to meet the dazzling whiteness of the sun's rays.
As always in the morning, she immediately ran to the high windows, which were covered with inclined planks to hide the interior of the room from immodest glances, and looked down through the strips placed between the planks. The sight never tired of surprising her.
The blue haze of the sea, the endless smooth surface lost in the distance, somewhere out there endlessly connecting with the sky, the same blue and smoky, again and again seemed to her just an overturned sky, and she felt as if she were rising above this floor covered with fluffy carpets , and over these boards, blocking the direct rays of the sun, as if tiny wings fluttered behind their backs, clumsily and timidly trying to flap and carry her there, into this endless blue.
But the gaze fell on the feluccas scattered across the blue infinity, on the sailboats moored by the dirty dark piers, on the pointed red and wavy roofs of neighboring houses and palaces, on the spots of green gardens, on the dark edges of the mountains, not yet lit, but already gray far beyond city.
And the wings disappeared, the feeling of lightness disappeared, and the little childish thoughts returned to what ended last night and should have begun now, this day. The earthly firmament chained her tiny legs, her hands held on to the window, and her gaze turned away from the endless blue, hardened and walked in passing throughout the harem room - the female half of the house where she lived, where she still slept on a thick pillow of a mattress thrown right on the floor her sister Smaragda, only two years younger than her, and in open door there was a wicker willow basket with a very tiny younger brother which appeared just a few months ago.
Maria sighed as an adult. She was the eldest in the family, the very first among the children, and she received only chores and worries ...
She did not even hear her mother, a beautiful tall and stately Greek woman Cassandra, came up to her, put her hand on her shoulder and said sadly:
Today you will become the owner of one of the keys of this house ...
Maria looked up inquiringly at her mother.
In her mother's palm lay a very small key, so graceful that Maria did not even see the black cord threaded through his ear. Cassandra easily threw the string around the girl's neck, and the key hung with a tangible weight on her neck.
Maria touched the key with her fingers warm from sleep. He was handsome, exquisitely intertwined with silver threads, but next to a tiny gold cross on his chest he seemed clumsy and rough.
Merope, - called Cassandra, and a slave, a slave, also a Greek woman, already sounded heavily in her shoulders and stomach, slipped through the door.
Kantemir Maria Dmitrievna (Kantemirova Marya) (29.4.1700, Yassy - 9.9.1757, Moscow), princess. Daughter of the Moldavian ruler D.K. Kantemir and Cassandra Kantakuzin.
In infancy, she was brought to Istanbul (Constantinople), where her father lived. Her teacher was the Greek A. Kandoidi, the secret informant of the Russian ambassador to Istanbul P.A. Tolstoy. She studied ancient Greek, Latin, Italian languages, the basics of mathematics, astronomy, rhetoric, philosophy, was fond of ancient and Western European literature and history, drawing, music.
At the end of 1710 she returned with her family to Yassy, after the Prut campaign in 1711 she lived in Ukraine, from 1713 in Moscow and the estate near Moscow "Black mud". She studied Russian and Slavic literacy with the writer I.I. Ilyinsky. She met Tsar Peter I at her father's house. After moving to St. Petersburg (1720), she took part in assemblies and masquerades. Trying to avoid tiresome amusements, she incurred the discontent of the tsar and the related investigation, which was conducted by P.I. Yaguzhinsky and doctor L.L. Blumentrost. Received in the parental home of Peter I, A.D. Menshikov, F.M. Apraksin, French ambassador J. Campredon (6.11.1721). She maintained friendly relations with Tolstoy, Prussian, Austrian and other diplomats.
In the winter of 1721/22 she became close to Peter I, which was not hindered by her father, who dreamed of becoming related to the emperor and with his help liberate Moldova from the Ottoman yoke. She accompanied Peter I on the Persian campaign of 1722-1723, in Astrakhan the unsuccessful birth of Maria Cantemir took place; the death of a newborn boy ruined the plans of the Kantemirs, they left for the Oryol estate Dmitrovka, where the ruler soon died. According to her father's will, Maria Kantemir inherited her mother's jewelry worth 10 thousand rubles.
Mary's connection with Peter I was renewed when Catherine I became carried away by the chamberlain V. Mons. After the death of the king, Cantemir fell seriously ill, made a will in favor of the brothers, making her brother Antiochus her executor. After recovering, she lived in St. Petersburg, but withdrew from the life of the court.
Under Peter II she moved to Moscow, where her brothers served. She enjoyed the location of Peter the Great's sister Natalia. In 1727 she married her brother Constantine and Princess M.D. Golitsyn. In connection with the participation of Maria's brother Antiochus in the enthronement of Anna Ivanovna (1730), she was appointed maid of honor of the imperial court, lived in Moscow in her own house on Pokrovka.
At the beginning of 1732 she was busy in St. Petersburg about obtaining new estates, visited Anna Ivanovna, Elizaveta Petrovna, E.I. Biron, A.I. Osterman, A.I. Ushakov. She rejected the marriage proposal of the Georgian Tsarevich A. Bakarovich. In Moscow, she led a social life, communicating with the families of the Cherkassky, Trubetskoy, Saltykov, Stroganovs. During the coronation in Moscow of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, she was present at the celebrations and managed to win over Doctor I. Lestok, M.I. Vorontsov. She was in correspondence with her brother Antiochus, which, in addition to family matters, contains a number of historical information about the accession of Ivan VI Antonovich and the reign of Anna Leopoldovna, the arrest and exile of the Smolensk governor A.A. Cherkassky, a casting in the Kremlin of the Tsar Bell, the fire of Moscow in 1737.
At her own expense, she transported the body of Antiochus' brother from Paris to Moscow and buried him next to her father (1744).
Used materials of the book: Sukhareva O.V. Who was who in Russia from Peter I to Paul I, Moscow, 2005
Maria Cantemir - Moldavian princess, the first favorite of the royal court, the last love of Peter the Great, in whose palm he was burned magic sign Tamerlane - three rings connected together.
She was born in Turkey. Her teacher was a Greek black monk Asdi Kandaidi. He instilled in Mary a love of books. He opened for her a secret library full of mysticism of Khan Temir, Tamerlane.
She read a lot and for a long time. And one day in one of the books she finds an old faded note in a language she does not understand. A few words and a picture - a little girl drawn with ink, like two drops of water similar to Maria. She told the teacher: "This is a message from Tamerlane to me."
She was a little girl when she and her teacher were sitting at the window late in the evening, doing astronomy, looking through a telescope, studying the stars, when suddenly a star fell from the sky. “This is a secret sign,” said Kandaidi.
Maria secretly leaves at night to look for a fallen star. They had been looking for her for three days. All the servants were raised to their feet. They began to despair.
Kandaidi locked himself in his cell, praying continuously for three days and three nights.
On the morning of the third day, Mary was found sleeping over books in the library. Where have you been? - asked her father, Dmitry Kantemir.
She won't answer. Just give him left hand, will show in the palm of your hand a terrible burn, the trace of which will remain for life in the form of three rings connected together. This is the sign of Tamerlane. Then the girl will tell her father that she held the star of Tamerlane in her hand.
It happened on April 9, just the very day when Tamerlane was born, Aksak-Timur, the Iron Lame, Lame Timur, as he was called.
Maria did not crawl out of Tamerlane's library for days. She talked to him in her sleep. She wrote letters to him.
There were lights in the night sky full moon.
One day, Kandaidi's teacher heard her talking to herself in a language unknown to him. What language is this? The teacher asked. Maria came to her senses and answered: "This is Turkic"
The teacher became curious about how Maria knows the Turkic language. Maria looked at Kandaidi in such a way that he was frightened. Maria spoke in Persian. She said that in vain he then turned his troops south. “It was necessary to continue the conquest of Russia. I was already one step away from Moscow. " Kandaidi realized that the spirit of Tamerlane had infiltrated Mary.
Tamerlane, having conquered Yelets, did not go to Moscow. It happened on the very day when Muscovites met the image Vladimir icon Of the Most Holy Theotokos.
There were legends that in the conquered Yelets, he fell in love with the captive princess, made her his beloved wife, she gave him drink, dissuaded him from going to Moscow, where her brothers served the prince. Tamerlane came to his senses only when he got into a trouble with the Arabs, during which two fingers on his hand were chopped off. After the battle, he realized that the princess from Yelets had screwed him up. And ordered to cut off her head. The second time he did not go on the offensive against Moscow. Although he dreamed all his life.
Maria also dreamed. She dreamed of seeing Peter the Great, about whom her teacher told her.
And at the full moon, transformations of consciousness began in her. The burn, in the form of three rings, began to hurt. Maria lost control of the situation. The spirit of Tamerlane woke up in her and demanded to conquer Moscow.
After these transformations, after the transmigration of souls, Mary was ill for a long time. She hated with all her heart the full moon, which brought her so much pain.
Tamerlane pulled her to Moscow. He asked, demanded, begged, ordered.
In a few years, Maria will find herself near Moscow, in Tsaritsyno, which Peter the Great will present with a broad hand to the already former ruler of Moldova - Maria's father - Dmitry Cantemir.
Tamerlane practically achieved his long-standing goal. He found himself a few kilometers from Moscow. But Mary was not enough. She wanted to conquer Petersburg. And she succeeded.
She coordinated all her actions with the stars. And she consulted with her teacher Kandaidi.
Only now she did not always obey the advice of the black monk - Kandaidi. After all, she had another adviser - Tamerlane.
After waiting for the right day, choosing the hour, she came to her father. And at the very beginning of the conversation, the soul of Tamerlane, who had always been an excellent diplomat, woke up in her again.
The black magic of the iron lame did its job. Dmitry Kantemir betrayed the Turks, signed a secret treaty with Peter and went over to the side of Russia. They sign a contract. (feathers - ink - seals)
Here Maria saw the Russian Tsar for the first time. Then a woman woke up in her. She fell in love with Peter dearly, sincerely and selflessly ...
This was the first internal conflict between the spirit of Tamerlane and Maria Cantemir, who, first of all, still remained a woman, not a politician. Tamerlane demanded the capture of Moscow. And Mary was drawn to Peter, to Petersburg.
From that day on, the internal confrontation of Mary began to tear her apart. She did not want what the spirit of Tamerlane wanted. She didn't want power at first. She wanted love.
Peter simply fell in love with the Moldavian princess. All the delights of the royal court were at her disposal. Everything was allowed to her. Even criticize the king.
Peter talked with Maria for a long time. I listened to her stories about astronomy, about the stars.
Secretly, Mary told Peter the story of the fact that she was holding the star of Tamerlane in her hand. At first he didn't believe it. She showed him her burned hand. And suddenly an Iron Lame man woke up in her - Tamerlane.
She fought the urge to grab the knife and thrust it into the king's chest. But her feminine essence resisted this desire. Would this bring Mary closer to the conquest of Moscow? Of course not. But she felt in herself the crazy bandit spirit of Khan Timur. Peter stands opposite Mary. She touches the knife on the table.
The full moon lit up the sky. In Mary in again the soul of Tamerlane woke up. It was necessary to take one step, plunge a knife into the chest and the deed would be done.
A step separated her from the murder of the emperor. But Peter is ahead, he kisses her palm, on which three rings of Tamerlane are burned out.
And Tamerlane dissolves in her. On this day, Mary first learns the sweetness of love. Peter, in the person of the Moldavian princess, will find a new favorite. And the spirit of Tamerlane will hide in anticipation. What will be next?
In a week, Maria will be in St. Petersburg. She will shine at balls, charm men but remain faithful only to her first lover - the emperor. (Here for the first time we declare Fedor Repnin)
Mary became a trendsetter. Everyone looked up to her. True, for two days a month she disappeared somewhere. She could not be found anywhere. This happened just on the days of the full moon, when Tamerlane woke up in Mary, raged, demanded to conquer Moscow, from which he turned his troops several centuries ago.
Peter was worried about Mary. I didn't know what to think, I was even jealous. He ordered secret intelligence to monitor Maria's actions. One of these scouts was Fyodor Repnin, the illegitimate son of Field Marshal Repnin. Fyodor watches over Maria, who speaks to herself in Persian.
Full moon again. That night Fyodor did not take his eyes off her. He was amazed at the beauty of Mary. She was lovely. Her bright red hair shone in the moonlight. Her black eyes excited the imagination. She the only time glanced at Repnin.
Everything turned upside down in his soul. He forgot about everything in the world, threw himself at her feet and began to confess his love.
Maria, in a Persian language unfamiliar to Fedor, said "no" and proudly raised her head and left.
Fyodor Repnin fell at the feet of Peter. He asked to be given another task. Maybe even more serious. He asked to be sent to his death. He screamed that devils had taken possession of his soul. Peter lit his pipe and said:
And he said: You're the only one I trust. Don't let her out of sight.
The spirit of Tamerlane raged inside her, asking for the immediate capture of Moscow. She could not find a place for herself. And a month later it became clear that Mary was pregnant.
To her misfortune, she told many a story about a fortune teller who predicted that she would have a boy and that there was a golden glow around his head.
The fortune-teller approaches Maria, takes her hand and is frightened. Maria asks her - what is it? The devil's mark is three rings.
The prediction was reported to Catherine.
One day Maria was visited by her old teacher Kandaidi. He was holding a jug of water in his hand and said that she had ceased to obey the stars. That she only listens to her heart. That the child she is expecting is an Asian demon. And damage is directed at her. Who? Maria asked. Your rival - the teacher answered. Maria felt that the empress was up to something against her. Kandaidi “I didn’t leave my cell for a whole year in order to speak to you this jug of water” He said that the child would die if he didn’t leave, if he didn’t hide from the curses in Moldova. The moon was full. “Tamerlane cannot die! He is immortal! " - shouted Maria. Maria grabs a jug of water, breaks it and drives the old teacher out. The teacher leaves.
Maria actually dreamed of becoming an empress. She hinted this to Peter. And he was waiting for the Moldavian princess to give birth.
Meanwhile, Fyodor Repnin continued to follow Maria. He was torn between duty and passion. And I was already thinking about committing suicide. When suddenly Maria called him to her place.
Fyodor enters Mary. She gives him a kiss on the ring on her hand. Coquettishly looks at him. Fedor confesses his love to her, offers a hand and a heart. He persuades her to run away from Peter, go with him to England, where they can live comfortably and raise a child who is to be born. Maria offers Fedor a deal - she will go with him if he kills the empress. He agrees. At this moment, thunder rumbles. Lightning strikes a huge oak tree outside the window, which lights up. Maria begins to deliver prematurely.
The doctor, bribed by Catherine II, gave the Moldavian princess, instead of a drug, a decoction plotted to die. Therefore, Mary had a premature birth.
Legends circulated around the courtyard that Mary gave birth to a boy similar to Tamerlane, without two fingers. According to legend, during one skirmish, Timur lost two fingers on right hand... The baby died a few hours after giving birth. And she herself miraculously remains alive and the scar from the burn received in childhood disappears.
A black monk, the teacher of Kandaidi, came to the sick Mary, gave her a medicine, told her to take it. And he added that he would take care of her. Maria looked at the teacher gratefully. The teacher said that Tamerlane had left her. And this is for the best. He also said that a serious curse had been sent on Mary. He will try to deal with it. He knows how to do it.
Kandaidi gets to dead body the child, wraps him up in a blanket, carries him into the garden, buries him in the full moon. Thunder roars, thunderstorm. Maria opens her eyes wide and sinks unconscious.
Kandaidi enters into a mystical war with Catherine. The old teacher is better at black magic. Plus, he reads from the stars.
The Empress realizes that she will not be able to cope with the black monk with the help of magic. And she finds another way.
Kandaidi is locked up in a prison. And fed to rats.
After the death of the child, Mary does not leave her bedroom for months. But when she learns of the death of the teacher, she runs into the garden, raises her palms to the sky and asks for strength. Asks to send her another star.
But the sky is silent. After the death of the teacher, fate finally ceased to favor Mary. A month later, the mother dies in terrible agony. A month later, her father, whom she loved very much, dies.
Maria withdraws into herself, loses the ability to sleep. She continues to demand from Fyodor Repnin the death of Catherine. But he is indecisive.
The chain of misadventures ends fatal disease Emperor Peter.
Fyodor Repnin remembers Maria's promise to go abroad with him. And when Peter falls ill, he decides to go to the murder of Catherine.
Fyodor Repnin sneaks up to Catherine's chambers. Suddenly he hears a voice: "The Emperor is dead !!!"
Fedor is not stopped. And he bursts into Catherine's chambers to accomplish his plan.
Vanity and chaos begins around. But Fyodor Repnin is not stopped even by the death of Peter. He enters the empress's chambers with a bared blade. And he sees in front of him two armed guard officers. Catherine was ready for the fact that they would come to kill her.
Fedor wounds one opponent. He manages to slip away from the other. He runs away from pursuit.
Fyodor bursts into Maria's chambers. Asks her to get ready now. Run now or never. Maria decides to escape. They run. But they are overtaken on the outskirts of St. Petersburg. They beat me with sticks, drive them naked across the city back to the palace. Fyodor Repnin will be quartered the next day. Maria Katemir, like a witch, will have her red hair cut short and sent to her father's estate - in Tsaritsyno, near Moscow.
In the old days Tsaritsyno was called a cursed place. It was here that the Moldavian princess was exiled, the maid of honor of the court, the first socialite, the last love of Peter the Great - Maria Cantemir, whose spell broke with the birth of a dead child, who was called dead Tamerlane.
Here in Tsaritsyno, Maria no longer held out her palm to the stars, but asked the sky for one thing - the death of her hated rival, who destroyed her herself, the beloved Emperor Peter and the spirit of Tamerlane, Lame Timur.
And once in the night sky Mary saw a sign - the three rings of Tamerlane. She laughed out loud and fell unconscious. Catherine died soon after. But Mary did not get rid of the curse by this, but only made it worse.
Sleeplessness exhausted her completely. She wandered through the Tsaritsyn park all night long. She burned three rings on her palm. Tried to regain the spell.
Feeling the approach of death, Maria burned priceless documents, among which were her diaries, letters from her brother - the poet Antiochus Cantemir, Peter's notes and the most precious memory - a message from Tamerlane - a few words in Turkic and a portrait of a little girl drawn in ink.
Maria atoned for her sins, built a church in the village of Ulitkino, which was later renamed Maryino, gave icons and church utensils. Did this save her from Catherine's curse? Great question.
According to one version, Maria whispered on her deathbed: "I am coming to you, Peter." According to another version, she muttered something in Persian. And someone even heard the name of Tamerlane. Here at a depth of five meters under the temple Equal to the Apostles Mary Magdalene's remains are the remains of Princess Cantemir. Until the end of her life, she remained faithful to her first and only love - Emperor Peter the Great.
For the first time, little Maria met Peter during the epic with the Prut campaign and the flight of the family from Moldova to Russia. She was eleven then. Peter was captivated by Catherine. But after a few years of a quiet life near Moscow, Maria turned into one of the most beautiful state ladies imperial court... And at the end of the 20s of the 18th century, a mutual and passionate feeling flared up between the sovereign and the princess ...
The history of the Kantemir princes in Russia began with the ill-fated Prut campaign. Russia was forced to leave Wallachia (Moldavia), and the Wallachian sovereign Dmitry Kantemir and his family left along with the Peter's army. Then he had a daughter, Maria, and 5 sons (according to other sources, two daughters, both Maria, one of them died in 1720 at the age of 19).
According to legend, in 1721, love broke out between 49-year-old Peter I and 20-year-old Maria Cantemir. In May 1722, Tsar Peter left Moscow for Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan and Astrakhan, from where his Persian campaign began. He was accompanied by Maria and her father Dmitry Cantemir. A son is born to her from Peter, a new hope of the king for an heir. Recall that in 1719 his son Alexei died in prison, and the son born to Catherine in 1720 died in infancy.
The tsar returned from a campaign in Moscow in December 1722. The story of this love became known to the court and was reported by the Austrian envoy to the emperor. Considering the possible high appointment of Mary, in 1723 her father was awarded the title of prince of the Roman Empire, and she, as it were, received this title and could already become a wife worthy of the title to Tsar Peter.
But Maria's son also dies, along with him dies not only the hope of Peter, but also the hope of the Kantemirovs to return to Moldova with the Russian army ...
A still from Vladimir Bortko's film “Peter the First. Will".
The well-known story associated with the "last love interest" of Peter the Great, Maria Dmitrievna Kantemir (1700-1757) and her pregnancy by the emperor, which ended in a miscarriage provoked by the physician of Empress Catherine Georgy Polikala, is based on very shaky documentary grounds and looks more like an adventure novel ...
The only evidence that such a fascination with the sovereign and its consequences took place in reality is based on a document dated June 8, 1722, a report by the French ambassador to Russia Jacques de Campredon to Cardinal Dubois.
Informing about the beginning of the Persian campaign, the ambassador mentioned the rumors spread in St. Petersburg about the pregnancy of Maria Cantemir from Emperor Peter:
« The Tsarina is frightened by the new inclination of the Monarch to the daughter of the Wallachian ruler [Dmitry Konstantinovich Cantemir]. She, they say (on pretend), has been pregnant for several months, but her father is a very dexterous, intelligent and nosy person.
The Tsarina is afraid that the Tsar, if this girl gives birth to a son, would not yield to the convictions of the Wallachian prince and divorce his wife in order to marry his mistress, who gave the throne a male heir. This fear is not without reason, and there have been similar examples.».
If you trust this rather cautious message from Campredon, who, by the way, was staying in St.Petersburg all this time and was in personal correspondence with D.K. Cantemir, it is difficult to explain the desire of the "crafty" Moldovan prince to find support in the execution of his will from Catherine, that is, the obvious enemy of his daughter and his "insidious plans."
Indeed, the exacerbation of D.K. Cantemir (tabes, - diabetes) during the Persian campaign, led to the fact that on September 28 he wrote a will in the name of Empress Catherine I.
Supposed portrait of Maria Cantemir. Hood .: I.N. Nikitin, 1710s - 1720s
It is interesting that the supporters of the adventure novel preferred not to pay attention to another letter of the same Jacques de Campredon, sent by him a year after the events described, on July 13, 1723, addressed to the French king:
“They are already talking about a trip to Moscow next winter. They even say that the coronation of the Queen will take place there, that the king will introduce her to the reign and establish the order of succession to the throne.
It is true that the influence of the Queen is increasing every day and that only for the sake of her pleasure the Tsar keeps away, in the village, the Moldovan ruler, whose daughter, it seemed at one time, attracted the attention of the Monarch. "
Just at the time of writing this letter, Prince Kantemir with his family, with prolonged stops caused by his illness, was moving from Astrakhan in the direction of Moscow.
De Campredon, without hiding that, based both of his messages on rumors and speculation spread at the court, who returned to St. Petersburg from Moscow immediately after the emperor's departure for the Persian campaign. Therefore, the records of the family biographer, I. Ilyinsky, who was personally present at D.K. Kantemir in Derbent and who was a direct witness of the reunification of the Kantemir family in Astrakhan on October 9, 1722.
Dmitry Konstantinovich Kantemir - Maria's father.
In some publications, an additional source of information about these events indicates a note attributed to the "Cesar diplomatic agent", that is, the Austrian ambassador, apparently S.-V. Kinsky, which was first published in the historical and geographical magazine "Shop of New History and Geography" in 1777:
“But among all the tsarist mistresses, no one was as dangerous for the tsarina as the young princess Kantemir, whom the tsar loved especially ardently in comparison with others, and Tolstoy in this love acted as an intermediary, who later used the tsar's and tsarina's mercy and for tsar's convenience he was going to marry this lady himself and give her his name, wanting to tactfully distract the queen's attention from this love.
But the tsar did not want to be content with such a turn of affairs, wanting to marry this young princess himself, so great was his love, however, he could not dare to go against his tsarina, the first Russian Katerina, with his children, because he was afraid of the Spiritual College, which could completely prevent this; but since the betrayal was mutual, permission for his marriage to Princess Cantemir as a second-order wife (Gemahlin Secundi) could be obtained after the birth of her son (because she was just then pregnant).
At the same time, the king undertook a campaign in Persia, as a result of which Princess Kantemir lost his attention, and it was after she had a miscarriage during her unsuccessful birth in Astrakhan that she fell into oblivion, and the queen, despite everything, accompanied the king everywhere, won again. "
The numerous coincidences of this note with the reports of de Capredon cause surprise, which indirectly may indicate that rumors about Mary's pregnancy were transmitted to the French envoy from the Austrian ambassador.
But let us briefly return to the legend most fully reflected in the article by L.N. Maikova:
“While this expedition was going on, in Astrakhan, in the sovereign's fish yard, where a room was allocated for the Kantemirov family, a dark matter prepared from afar was accomplished. Princess Maria prematurely gave birth to a premature baby.
There is news that these births were artificially accelerated by measures taken by Polikala, the doctor of the Kantemirov family, who was also at the Tsaritsyn court, while the actions of Polikala were directed by none other than a friend of Prince Dimitri P.A.Tolstoy.
Portrait by Tannauer. Count Pyotr Andreevich Tolstoy - statesman and a diplomat, associate of Peter the Great, one of the leaders of his secret service.
It was not the first time for him to play a dual role: bringing the princess closer to Peter, he at the same time wanted to be pleasing to Catherine; the unfortunate princess turned out to be his victim, a fragile toy in his hard hands. Now su-pruga Petra could be at peace; the danger she feared was eliminated, and Tolstoy could count on Catherine's gratitude / ... /
In Astrakhan, among the family, the prince was greeted with sad news: he found his daughter seriously ill. There is reason to believe that the circumstances accompanying her illness remained unclear for him; at least Polikala's doctor continued to be with him. But the very outcome of the princess's pregnancy destroyed all the prince's secret plans and hopes, and this was quite enough to finally destroy his health. "
In his reasoning, the researcher relied on the above anonymous and published 70 years after the events, "anecdote" about Princess Maria Kantemir as a "wife of the second rank", continuing with the words:
“… She [M.D. Kantemir - approx. AP] was pregnant; if she gives birth to a son, he [Peter I - approx. AP] will have to declare him heir to the throne. But Catherine escaped such disfavor as a result of two rather happy events.
Suddenly there is a need for an expedition to Persia. The tsar's ministers, wishing to show their ebullient activity, were in a hurry to prepare for the campaign and hastened him [Tsar - approx. AP] departure, which made him abandon all love adventures and all court intrigues.
At the same time, Kantemir had a miscarriage in Astrakhan; this ended with her losing her place near the Emperor, and Catherine, who accompanied her husband in Persia and bravely endured the hardships of the trip and the deadly hot climate, regained the mercy of Peter».
Peter I the Great.
The participation of P.A. Tolstoy in these events as a supporter of the interests of the Kantemir family led to the emergence of the "conspiracy" theory of L.N. Maikov about his dual participation in these events, despite the fact that the further biography of this undoubtedly outstanding personality testifies to Tolstoy's personal commitment to the precepts of Peter and his selfless loyalty to Catherine after the death of the emperor.
The hope expressed in the father's will for what is still possible, according to D.K. Kantemir, the marriage of his daughter Maria with I.G. Dolgorukov, L.N. Maikov was inclined to interpret it as a cunning intrigue, invented by a deeply sick, emaciated man on the verge of death, designed to make it clear to the empress, “... that Peter's closeness to his daughter remained a secret for him».
Finally, the final design of the gossip about the proximity of the emperor and Maria Cantemir in the genre of an adventure novel belongs to the pen of the Polish historian, writer and publicist Kazimir Feliksovich Waliszewski (1849 - 1935), according to whom:
“… When Peter in 1722 set off on a campaign against Persia, his love affair with Maria Cantemir had been dragging on for several years and seemed close to a denouement, fatal for Catherine.
Both women accompanied the king during the campaign. But Maria was forced to stay in Astrakhan, as she was pregnant. This further strengthened her adherents in victory. After the death of little Peter Petrovich, Catherine no longer had a son, whom Peter could make his heir.
It was assumed that if, upon the return of the tsar from the campaign, Cantemir presented him with a son, then Peter would not hesitate to get rid of the second wife in the same way that he freed himself from the first.
According to Scherer[the alleged author of anonymous anecdotes published in 1792 - approx. A.P.], Catherine's friends found a way to get rid of the danger: upon returning, Peter found his mistress seriously ill after a premature birth; even feared for her life».
Adolsky I-B.G. “Portrait of Catherine I with a little arapchon. 1725 g.
It is curious that none of the authors who held the opinion that the described adventurous circumstances took place in reality, for some reason, does not directly indicate under what circumstances Maria lost the child: whether it was a miscarriage provoked by a long journey, a sharp change in climate, or illness, whether the baby died as a result of unsuccessful childbirth, or, nevertheless, lived for several days, having received holy baptism.
Ignoring the numerous natural factors that could lead to this sad event, while persistent allegations of the poisoning of the princess sent by the doctor, also reduces confidence in the authenticity of this story.
The reason for doubt is the fact that the researchers of this dark history not only refrain from specifying the date of this event, but also evaded any temporary clarifications, as for example, it happened during the campaign (July 18 - October 9, 1722) or already after D.K. Cantemir to Astrakhan.
According to Bayer, the physician of the Empress Georgy Polikala, who took part in the campaign, was assigned to Kantemir at the direction of Peter I back in Derbent and arrived in Astrakhan with the prince, which means he could not participate in the "insidious intrigue" with the poisoning of one of the princesses Kantemir until D.K. Cantemir to Astrakhan.
It should be especially noted that none of the supporters of the "adventurous version" paid attention either to the pregnancy of the stepmother Maria, the Highness Princess Anastasia Kantemir, which took place just during the events described, or to the death of her child in Astrakhan at the end of November of the same 1722, information about which was published by Bayer back in 1783.
Anastasia Kantemir, nee Trubetskaya - stepmother of Maria Kantemir.
Such a rather strange "selectivity" in the interpretation of sources, coupled with a "doubling of events", seems to be a reason to doubt that both the stepmother and, who was her age, who had the same surname, the stepdaughter at about the same time, being in the same place, at the fish yard in Astrakhan, they had the same fate associated with the loss of their babies-sons.
Meanwhile, a direct participant in the events, I.I. Ilyinsky, who was in charge of receiving letters for D.K. Kantemira, who communicated with him every day, and reflected in detail in his journal the history of the family, does not mention a word about pregnancy, miscarriage, or the illness of either Maria or Anastasia Kantemir, mentioning, nevertheless, about the first unsuccessful childbirth of the princess Anastasia.
One way or another, the only thing that should be considered reliable is that vague rumors about the pregnancy of one of the princesses Kantemir, nevertheless, were worn in the highest St. Petersburg society, one way or another, reaching the ears of de Capredon and Kinsky, who could not or did not find it necessary to find out and tell more accurate information.
On the other hand, reliable information about possible meetings of Princess Mary with the sovereign is exhausted by the few mentions of Peter I's visits to the house of the Cantemirs in St. Petersburg and meetings of the family with the emperor during the days of the protracted celebration of the Peace of Nishtad, which Maria could have attended.
It seems that the absence of any more definite data on this, with the high attention of contemporaries and researchers to the daily routine of the sovereign, makes this story even more doubtful.
On the other hand, the jealousy of His Serene Highness Prince D.K. Kantemir to his wife Anastasia, aggravated during the period of her frequent, almost regular meetings, which took place at the same time with her childhood friend, the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, was noted in the diary of Berhholz, and, of course, was not a secret for society together with “ strange behavior "of the Wallachian princess on April 14, 1722 (that is, 7 - 8 months before the birth) at a dinner party with the Austrian ambassador, Count Kinsky, the alleged author of one of the two main sources concerning this confusing story.
