On April 27, 1682, after 6 years of reign, Tsar Fedor Alekseevich died (read about Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich). As soon as the bell announced the death of Fedor, the boyars gathered in the Kremlin to discuss which of the two brothers, Ivan Alekseevich or Pyotr Alekseevich, they would choose. Ivan’s dementia was known to everyone, so they decided to elect Peter, the people also shouted for Peter. Patriarch Joachim, the Naryshkins and their supporters went to Peter, who was in the mansion near the body of Fyodor, named him king and enthroned him.
It was hard for Peter’s sister Sofya Alekseevna to accept this (reign of Sofia Alekseevna). The situation could only be corrected through rebellion. And for this purpose, flammable material was found - these were archers. The Streltsy, of whom there were more than 20 thousand in Moscow, had long shown discontent and waywardness. They were dissatisfied with their bosses, who tormented them with annoying (intense, hard) work. They didn't get paid for the second year. But they were not allowed to trade in the city, since the Germans who lived in Moscow took over all trade. The archers thirsted for change, they wanted rebellion.
The Miloslavskys decided to take advantage of this, inciting additional archers. They started a rumor among the allied archers that the Naryshkins supposedly strangled the feeble-minded Ivan. The archers flared up and rushed to the Kremlin with shouts, along the way they climbed into the boyars' houses, robbed them, and killed them. Peter's mother (Natalya Kirillovna) was frightened; she did not know what to do. Then the patriarch suggested that they go out onto the porch and show them the whole Ivan. Which they did, but the crowd did not calm down, it was thirsty for blood. They killed right there, on the porch, boyars close to the Naryshkins - Artamon Matveev and Mikhail Dolgorukov. And then they began to shout: “We want both kings, Ivan and Peter, we want Sophia, we want Sophia for the kingdom.”
Peter I Alekseevich the Great (June 9, 1672 - February 8, 1725)
Mutiny of the Streltsy in 1682. Alexey Korzukhin.
Afterwards, elected officials from the Streltsy regiments came to the palace and demanded that Princess Sofya Alekseevna take over control of the state due to the minority of her brothers. Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna was supposed to leave the courtyard with her son Peter to a palace near Moscow in the village of Preobrazhenskoye.
Peter's childhood. Amusing troops.
All free time Peter accompanied the amusing troops. Peter dressed and armed his amusing army in a foreign style. And in 1686, 14-year-old Peter started artillery with his amusing troops. Gunsmith Fyodor Zommer showed the Tsar grenade and firearms work. 16 guns were delivered from the Pushkarsky order. He ran away from Preobrazhenskoe almost before dawn, without even throwing a piece of bread into his mouth. He could spend days, no matter rain or heat, night or morning, with his troops shooting wooden cannonballs from cannons, beating drums, walking through nearby villages, representing enemies there.
In Preobrazhenskoye, opposite the palace, on the banks of the Yauza River, an “amusing town” was built. During the construction of the fortress, Peter himself worked, helping to cut logs and install cannons. The fortress itself was named Preschburg, probably after the famous at that time Austrian fortress Preschburg, which he heard about from Captain Sommer. At the same time, in 1686, the first amusing ships appeared near Preshburg on the Yauza. During these years, Peter became interested in sciences that were related to military affairs. Under the guidance of the Dutchman Timmerman, he studied arithmetic, geometry, and military sciences.
One day, walking with Timmerman through the village of Izmailovo, Peter entered the Linen Yard, in the barn of which he found an English boat (a small single-masted ship). In 1688, he instructed the Dutchman Brandt to repair, arm and equip this boat, and then lower it to the Yauza River. However, the Yauza turned out to be not deep and cramped for the ship, so Peter went to Pereslavl-Zalessky, to Lake Pleshcheevo, where he founded the first shipyard for the construction of amusing ships.
Peter's marriage.
More and more foreigners at the court of Tsar Peter came from the German Settlement. All this led to the fact that the inquisitive king became a frequent visitor to the settlement, where he soon turned out to be a great admirer of foreign life. Peter tried tobacco for the first time, lighting a German pipe, and began attending German parties with dancing and drinking, where he met his main associate and friend Franz Lefort. And later, with the assistance of Lefort, he met Anna Mons, who was Peter’s favorite for more than 10 years.
At this time, Peter’s mother could not find a place for herself, worrying that Peter was spending all his time either in an amusing war or in a German settlement. Then Natalya Kirillovna decided to marry him, thinking that this would bring him to his senses. And she decided to marry him to Evdokia Lopukhina, the daughter of a okolnik, who she liked.
Peter did not contradict his mother, and on January 27, 1689, the wedding of the future tsar took place. But as his mother did not hope, this did not bring Peter to his senses. Less than a month later, Peter left his wife and went for a long time to Lake Pleshcheyevo, where he was engaged in his amusing courts. From this marriage, Peter had two sons - the eldest Alexei and the younger Alexander, who died in infancy.
The overthrow of Sophia and the accession of Peter.
Peter's activity greatly worried Princess Sophia, who understood that with the onset of her brother's coming of age, she would have to give up power. On July 8, 1689, on the feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, the first public conflict occurred between the matured Peter and Sophia. The Moscow Metropolitan brought the image of the Kazan Lady to Ivan, but he said: “I won’t convey it...”, then Sophia predatorily grabbed the image, but Peter said: give it back... give it back the icon... this is not a woman’s business. Sophia ignored Peter and carried the image herself.
Soon rumors began to reach Peter that his sister wanted to assassinate him in order to become the sole queen. And on August 8, 1689 this was confirmed; several archers arrived in Preobrazhenskoye and reported to Peter about the impending attempt on his life. He, frightened, jumped on his horse in only his shirt and rushed to Trinity. Peter decided to act and began sending out letters, which ordered him to go to the Tsar without delay for a great state matter. Sophia, for her part, forbade the archers to leave Moscow on pain of death, but everything was useless - all the highest ranks went to the Trinity. Sophia's power was steadily crumbling. Even Sophia’s faithful favorite, Vasily Golitsyn, after an unsuccessful campaign against the Tatars, went to his Medvedkovo estate near Moscow and withdrew from the political struggle. The ruler had no adherents left who were ready to risk their lives for the sake of her interests, and when Peter demanded that Sophia retire to the Holy Spirit nunnery in Putivl, she had no choice but to obey. Soon Peter transferred her to the Novodevichy Convent. So Peter overthrew his half-sister and took the Russian throne.
Princess Sofya Alekseevna in the Novodevichy Convent. Painting by Ilya Repin
Azov campaigns of Peter I.
The priority of Peter I in the first years of his reign was to continue the war with Ottoman Empire and Crimea. Peter I decided, instead of campaigning on the Crimea, to strike at the Turkish fortress of Azov, located at the confluence of the Don River into the Sea of Azov.
The first Azov campaign, which began in the spring of 1695, ended unsuccessfully due to the lack of a fleet and the unwillingness of the Russian army to operate far from supply bases. However, already in the fall of 1695, preparations for a new campaign began. Construction of the Russian flotilla began in Voronezh. Behind a short time A fleet of different ships was built, led by the 36-gun ship Apostle Peter. In May 1696, a 40,000-strong Russian army under the command of Generalissimo Shein again besieged Azov, blocking the fortress from the sea. Peter I himself took part in the siege with the rank of captain. Without waiting for the assault, on July 19, 1696, the fortress surrendered. Thus, Russia's access to the southern seas was opened.
The result of the Azov campaigns was the capture of the Azov fortress, and the construction of the Taganrog fortress began. However, to gain access to the Black Sea through Kerch Strait Peter failed: he remained under the control of the Ottoman Empire. Strength for a war with Turkey, as well as a full-fledged navy, Russia hasn’t had one yet.
Peter in Europe.
In order to keep Azov from the Turks and Tatars, a powerful fleet was needed. And the ships were built by foreigners, since the Russians had no experience. Therefore, Peter decided to send people to Europe (to the countries of Holland, England, etc.) to study naval art. And soon he himself joined them, leaving the management of the country to Romodanovsky. 250 people went with the king.
Peter went under a fictitious name so that no one would guess that he was the Russian Tsar. He visited Holland, England, Austria, the cities of Riga, Brandenburg, Königsberg. He personally studied the construction of ships, went to autopsy corpses, studied anatomy, the structure of various plants and factories, and much more. The British said that there was nothing that Peter would not want to know or study.
Peter was about to go to Venice when he received news of the impending conspiracy of his sister Sophia and the archers. Peter urgently returned to Moscow. The horrors of the Streltsy uprising in childhood forced him to brutally deal with the rebels. More than a thousand people were executed, and Sophia was tonsured as a nun (she was assigned heavy security).
Portrait of Peter I in the clothes of a Dutch sailor (during his stay in Europe)
Transformations of Peter I.
After returning from Europe, Peter I began reforms in the army, a navy was created, and a reform of church administration was carried out. Financial reform was also carried out, measures were taken to develop industry and trade (by the end of the reign of Peter I there were already 233 factories). Some of the transformations are:
- forced to wear European clothes and shave their beards (fines were introduced for those who refused to shave).
- Set the New Year to start on January 1st, not September 1st. On the New Year I decided to set coniferous trees, launch rockets, fire cannons.
- Weddings were now only at the request of husband and wife, and not with whomever the parents wanted.
- All forests were described and it was forbidden to cut down “centuries-old” trees, and there was a death penalty for cutting down in nature reserves.
- January 14, 1701 A school of mathematical and navigational sciences was opened in Moscow. Subsequently, artillery, engineering and medical schools were opened. Compulsory education for nobles and clergy was introduced.
- The construction of wooden houses in Moscow was prohibited.
- On December 30, 1701, Peter issued a decree that ordered that full names be written in documents instead of derogatory half-names (Ivashka, Senka, etc.), that one should not fall on one’s knees before the Tsar, and that in winter, in the cold, one should not take off one’s hat in front of the house in which the Tsar is located. .
- New printing houses were created. Books were published and cartography was carried out. In 1702 The first press newspaper Kuranta was published.
- In 1703 St. Petersburg was founded. But the construction of St. Petersburg was mainly carried out by working people. They cut down forests, filled in swamps, built embankments... In 1704, up to 40 thousand serf landowners and state peasants were called to St. Petersburg from various provinces. Many died from such hard work, many ran away. Peter I ordered to take family members of the fugitives - fathers, mothers, wives, children - and keep them in prison until the fugitives were found.
- In 1718 Assemblies were introduced - a new image of a noble ball, a celebration where people now communicated, danced, and did not just sit and drink.
North War.
Having concluded the “Northern Alliance” with Denmark and Poland, Peter began to prepare for a war with Sweden for access to the Baltic Sea. On August 19, 1700, war was declared on Sweden, led by Charles XII. Denmark, without waiting for help from Russia, began its own military operations against Sweden. But Charles XII “showed his teeth”; he landed 15 thousand infantry in the rear of the Danish army, and he himself with a huge fleet appeared in front of the forts of Copenhagen and demanded the surrender of the city. The frightened Christian had no choice but to begin negotiations with Sweden, which ended with the conclusion of a peace treaty and withdrawal from the Northern Alliance. And there wasn’t much help from Poland either, since King Augustus only asked Peter to send money, weapons, and cannons to rouse people to war. Peter had no choice but to start waging war with Sweden himself.
In 1700, Peter and his army invaded Sweden and besieged the Narva fortress. But due to bad weather, convoys with food, gunpowder and other important things were stuck in the Novgorod area, which did not allow them to fully launch an attack on Narva. The bread is all moldy, there’s not much food, people are all exhausted. Moreover, Charles XII, having landed in Pernov and turning towards Riga, pushed back the troops of King Augustus and moved towards the Russian army. Everyone understood that they would not have time to take the Narva fortress and would have to take the fight to the Swedes.
On November 19, 1700, a battle between Russian troops and the Swedes took place. Charles XII prevailed in this battle. The Russian officers had no choice but to ask for peace; there was no point in fighting anymore, people did not listen to orders, they were scared, they did not understand why and for whom they were fighting on this cold land. Having broken down for the sake of honor, the Swedes agreed to let everything go Russian army with banners and weapons, but without guns and supplies, and they kept all the Russian generals and officers as collateral. Considering that Russia no longer posed a threat, Charles XII decided to direct all his forces against the Polish king Augustus II. Augustus got scared and fled from Warsaw, Charles entered the capital of Poland without a fight.
However, Peter did not abandon this idea, but leaving Sheremetyev’s advanced detachments so that they would instill fear and terror in the Swedes, he set out to gather a stronger, more trained army, while simultaneously carrying out military reforms to strengthen the army.
To begin with, Peter decided to take the ancient fortress of Noteburg (the Oreshek fortress). On the morning of September 26, 1702 vanguard The Preobrazhensky Regiment, numbering 400 people, approached the fortress and began a firefight. At this time, the Russians dragged 50 ships from Lake Ladoga to the Neva and took a fortification on the other side of the Neva. Then a bloody assault began, which ended successfully for the Russians. The old Russian city, formerly called Oreshk, returned to Russian hands and was renamed Shlisselburg (key city).
Assault on the Noteburg fortress on October 22, 1702. Peter I is depicted in the center. A. E. Kotzebue, 1846
In the spring of 1703, the Nyenschanz fortress at the mouth of the Neva was taken. And here, in 1703, the construction of St. Petersburg began, and on the island of Kotlin the base of the Russian fleet was located - the Kronshlot fortress (later Kronstadt). Access to the Baltic Sea was open. In 1704, after the capture of Dorpat and Narva, Russia gained a foothold in the Eastern Baltic.
After the overthrow of Augustus II in 1706 and his replacement by the Polish king Stanislav Leszczynski, Charles XII began his fatal campaign against Russia. Having secured the support of the Little Russian hetman Ivan Mazepa (whom Peter trusted and whom Mazepa betrayed), Charles moved his troops south.
In the battle of the village of Lesnoy on October 9, 1708, Peter personally led Menshikov’s first corps and defeated the Swedish corps of General Levengaupt, who was marching to join the army of Charles XII from Livonia. The Swedish army lost reinforcements and a convoy with military supplies. This was a turning point in the Northern War.
In the next battle near Poltava there was largest battle between Russian troops and the Swedish army. The battle took place on the morning of July 8, 1709, 6 versts from the city of Poltava, in which the army of Charles XII was completely defeated. Peter personally commanded on the battlefield, and they even shot through his hat. Charles fled, and Peter held a great feast that same day. After this battle, access to the Baltic Sea was finally secured.
Peter I in the Battle of Poltava. L. Caravaque, 1718
After the defeat in the Battle of Poltava, the Swedish king Charles XII took refuge in the possessions of the Ottoman Empire, the city of Bendery. French historian Georges Udard called the escape of Charles XII an "irreparable mistake" of Peter. Peter I concluded an agreement with Turkey on the expulsion of Charles XII from Turkish territory, but the mood at the Sultan’s court changed - the Swedish king was allowed to stay and create a threat to the southern border of Russia with the help of part of the Ukrainian Cossacks and Crimean Tatars. Seeking the expulsion of Charles XII, Peter I began to threaten war with Turkey, but in response, on November 20, 1710, Sultan Ahmed III himself declared war on Russia.
Only after a while did Peter begin to demand that the Turkish Sultan hand over Charles to him, otherwise Peter I threatened him with war. But the Sultan himself had already declared war on Russia. Although the real reason for the war was that the Sultan wanted to regain Azov and remove the Russian fleet from the Sea of Azov.
In 1711 The Russian army led by Peter entered Moldavia for the war against the Ottoman Empire. But the Russian troops failed to defeat and Peter I and his generals decided to offer to the Turkish Sultan world. Under the terms of the peace treaty, Azov was lost, Taganrog was destroyed, and it was necessary to freely let the Swedish king into Sweden.
As soon as Charles returned to Sweden, he began to gather troops against Peter. Peter also focused on the war with the Swedes, and in 1713 the Swedes were defeated in Pomerania and lost all their possessions in Europe. However, thanks to Sweden's dominance at sea, the Northern War dragged on. In 1718 decided to start peace negotiations, but Charles XII unexpectedly died, and the Swedish queen Ulrika Eleonora ascended the throne. She resumed the war, hoping for help from England. But the devastating Russian landing on the Swedish coast in 1720 discouraged military action and pushed Sweden to resume negotiations. On September 10, 1721, the Peace of Nystad was concluded between Russia and Sweden, ending the 21-year war. Russia gained access to the Baltic Sea, annexed the territory of Ingria, part of Karelia, Estland and Livonia. Russia became a great European power, in commemoration of which on November 2, 1721, Peter, at the request of senators, accepted the title Father of the Fatherland, Emperor of All Russia, Peter the Great.
Persian campaign.
After the end of the Northern War, Peter I decided to make a campaign on the western coast of the Caspian Sea, and, having captured the Caspian Sea, build a trade route from Central Asia and India to Europe through Russia, which would be very useful for Russian merchants and for enrichment Russian Empire. The route was supposed to pass through the territory of India, Persia, from there to the Russian fort on the Kura River, then through Georgia to Astrakhan, from where it was planned to transport goods throughout the entire Russian Empire.
And there was a reason for this: on July 29, 1722, after the son of the Persian Shah Tokhmas Mirza asked for help, a 22,000-strong Russian detachment sailed from Astrakhan along the Caspian Sea. In August, the city of Derbent surrendered, but due to problems with provisions, the Russians returned to Astrakhan. The following year, 1723, the western shore of the Caspian Sea with the fortresses of Baku, Rasht, and Astrabad was conquered. Further progress was stopped by the threat of the Ottoman Empire entering the war, which captured western and central Transcaucasia.
On September 23, 1723, an agreement was concluded with Persia, according to which the western and southern coasts of the Caspian Sea with the cities of Derbent and Baku and the provinces of Gilan, Mazandaran and Astrabad were included in the Russian Empire.
True, soon, during the reign of Anna Ioannovna, these possessions were lost, since people in the garrisons died from diseases caused by the unusual climate, and Tsarina Anna Ioannovna considered this region unpromising.
Death of Peter the Great.
IN last years During his reign, Peter was very ill. In the summer of 1724, his illness intensified, but in September he felt better, although after a while the attacks intensified. In October, Peter went to inspect the Ladoga Canal. Near Lakhta (a region near St. Petersburg), he saw a boat (small ship) with soldiers running aground and rushed to help them. Peter spent a long time waist-deep in cold water, pulling out the bot. The attacks of the disease intensified, but Peter, not paying attention to them, continued to engage in government affairs. On January 28, 1725, he had such a bad time that he ordered a camp church to be erected in the room next to his bedroom. The patient’s strength began to leave him; he no longer screamed, as before, from severe pain, but only moaned.
On February 7, by his order, all those sentenced to death or hard labor (excluding murderers and those convicted of repeated robbery) were amnestied. On the same day, at the end of the second hour, Peter demanded paper, began to write, but the pen fell out of his hands, and only two words could be made out from what was written: “Give everything up...”. The Tsar then ordered his daughter Anna Petrovna to be called so that she could write under his dictation, but when she arrived, Peter had already fallen into oblivion.
At the beginning of six o'clock in the morning on February 8, 1725, Peter the Great died in terrible agony in his Winter Palace. He was buried in the cathedral Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.
I. N. Nikitin “Peter I on his deathbed”
On November 18, 1699, Peter I issued a decree “On the admission of all free people to the Great Sovereign Service as soldiers” and the first recruitment. Initially, they tried to build the army on a mixed basis (voluntary and forced), they began to enroll free people fit for military service. Those who wished to become soldiers were promised an annual salary of 11 rubles and “grain and feed supplies.” Initially, registration for the army took place in a soldiers' hut in the village of Preobrazhenskoye and was led by Avton Golovin. Then recruitment into the army began to take place not only in the capital, but also in Pskov, Novgorod, Smolensk, Belgorod and the Volga cities. The result of this decree was the formation of three infantry divisions, the commanders of which were appointed generals Golovin, Weide and Repnin. At the same time, the process of forming regular cavalry - dragoon regiments - was underway. Army recruits were armed and supported by the state. The 1699 recruitment was the first step towards a regular army recruitment system. The reform itself was completed during the Northern War.
Tsar Peter considered it his life's work to exalt Russian state and strengthening its military power. From the very beginning of his government activities, he paid great attention to military affairs. Researchers note that belligerence was undoubtedly an innate inclination of Pyotr Alekseevich. In his early youth, the prince was only interested in toys of a military nature. In the royal workshops, all kinds of children's things were made for the prince, with which little Peter amused himself and armed the children, “amusing children.” It must be said that such upbringing was traditional for Russian princes; from ancient times, the rulers of Rus' were warriors. The first military leader of the prince was the commander of one of the foreign soldier regiments - Menezius (Mikhail Skopin-Shuisky began to form regiments of the “foreign system” during the Time of Troubles, the second organization began in 1630).
After the Streletsky revolt in May 1682, the transfer of power into the hands of Princess Sophia, new living conditions for the young prince were created. Removed from the large court, removed from any participation in state affairs, freed from court etiquette, Peter received complete freedom. Living in the suburban villages of Vorobyovo and Preobrazhenskoye, the prince indulged almost exclusively in war games. The “amusing” ones gather around Peter - the children of the boyars, nobles who surrounded Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna, the children of the courtyard people. Peter indulged in the “fun of Mars” with them. Gradually, the “amusing” ones began to take on the appearance of a military unit.
In 1684, a fortress was built on the Yauza River, with towers, walls and a moat. "Presburg" will become a gathering point for the "amusing" ones. A whole town appears around it. At this time, the prince went through a real military school: he stood guard in any weather, built field fortifications together with everyone, was in the forefront in archery, musket shooting, javelin throwing, became familiar with the art of drumming, etc.
The absence of court rules allowed Pyotr Alekseevich to get closer to foreigners, which contributed to his military education. Among foreigners, the commander of the Butyrsky soldier regiment, General Patrick Gordon, had a special influence on the tsar. Scotsman Gordon has long sought happiness in various European countries, went through an excellent military school in the Swedish army, served in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. He took part in the fight against the Russians, but soon accepted the offer of the Russian diplomatic agent Leontyev and entered the Russian service as a major. He distinguished himself in the Chigirin campaigns, for military skills and valor he was awarded the rank of major general and appointed commander of the Butyrsky regiment. Having gone through practical combat school, Gordon had great knowledge in theory - artillery, fortification, and the structure of the armed forces of European countries. Wise with extensive combat experience, Gordon was a very useful adviser and leader for the young king. Friendly relations were established between them.
In addition, Genevan Franz Lefort had a great influence on Peter’s military training. He served in the French army from the age of 14 and gained combat experience in the wars with the Dutch. Lefort arrived in Russia at the suggestion of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and quickly mastered the Russian language and became familiar with the customs of Russia. Comprehensively educated, cheerful, sociable Lefort could not help but attract the attention of the tsar. He quickly took his place among the king's associates. The young tsar listened carefully to Lefort's stories about the life and customs of European countries, learned fencing, dancing, horse riding, and received Dutch lessons. There were other foreign officers who had a significant influence on Peter, but Gordon and Lefort were the most prominent figures.
Soon Peter began to move from fun and games to more serious matters. The Moscow regiments of Gordon and Lefort are adjacent to the “amusing” Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments. Peter, under the leadership of Gordon, acquires knowledge from the history of military art, and at the same time undergoes practical school, participating in the field training of his detachment. Conversations and lessons are combined with field exercises and maneuvers. Field maneuvers were held every year, starting from 1691 to 1694, and not only infantry, but also cavalry and artillery took part in them. The exercises ended with exemplary battles. One of these exercises is the Kozhukhov campaign of 1694 (took place in the vicinity of the village of Kozhukhov). The defending detachment consisted of troops of the old system - archers, and the attacking detachment was mixed, consisting of new troops and local cavalry. The attackers crossed the Moscow River and began to storm the fortifications that the archers had built. The training almost turned into a real battle, everyone was so carried away by this action.
During the Azov campaigns, Peter received extensive military practice. After the first unsuccessful campaign, the king energetically began building a river and sea flotilla. At the hastily constructed Voronezh shipyards, under the leadership of the sovereign, work was in full swing. By the spring of 1696, thirty large ships and about 1000 small ones had been built to transport troops, weapons and ammunition and were ready for the campaign. In May, ground forces and a flotilla moved down the Don. As a result, the Turkish fortress, blocked from sea and land, lasted only for two months. On July 19, 1696, Azov capitulated. The Azov campaigns became the first personal combat experience for Peter. They became the best evidence that to fight the Ottoman Empire on the Black Sea or Sweden on the Baltic Sea, Russia needs a fleet. Peter also realized that the rifle regiments and local cavalry were no longer a first-class instrument for the implementation of broad plans in the field of foreign policy.
Peter’s journey as part of the “great embassy” (the tsar went to foreign lands under the modest name of the “Preobrazhensky Regiment of Sergeant Peter Mikhailov”) was of great importance in the sense of his personal improvement in various sciences. During the trip, the king paid especially close attention to military and naval affairs. The Polish-Lithuanian troops in Courland did not impress him. In Konigsberg, “Peter Mikhailov” studied artillery, in Dutch shipyards - shipbuilding practice, in England - the theory of ship construction, in Austria - the organization of imperial troops. On the way back, the sovereign studied the organization of the Saxon army.
Upon returning to the Russian state, the Tsar immediately began to reorganize the armed forces. General Adam Weide became Peter's active assistant in building a regular army. Peter begins to destroy the Streltsy army, starting with the mass executions of participants in the Streltsy revolt of 1698, and the transfer of some of the Streltsy to “live” in county towns. Some of the archers were transferred to the position of soldiers, others were sent to remote cities to perform garrison service (city archers remained in some places almost until the end of the century). The sovereign intends to form 60 thousand infantry troops supported by the state.
On November 8 (18), 1699, the royal decree was promulgated on voluntary enrollment in regular soldier regiments “from all kinds of free people” and the first recruitment. “Willing” people (volunteers) were accepted with a salary of 11 rubles. per year on full state support. “Datochnye” people (recruits) were recruited from a certain number of households: one warrior from 100 peasants. In the village of Preobrazhenskoye, the Main Commission was established for the recruitment of recruits, the formation of regiments, their supply and training. Its leader was Golovin. Repnin received the task of recruiting people in the lower towns along the Volga. Recruitment began in December 1699. During the first recruitment, 32 thousand people were accepted; they were sent to form 27 infantry and 2 dragoon regiments.
The Russian army, before the defeat at Narva, received the following organization. The infantry regiment consisted of ten fusilier companies (from “fusee” - gun). In some regiments one company was a grenadier. The composition of the infantry regiment: three staff officers, 35 chief officers and 1,200 combatant lower ranks. The infantryman was armed with a 14-pound gun, a baguette (a dagger with a flat, less often faceted blade, used as a bayonet) and a sword. Some of the infantry were armed with pikes - pikemen. In addition, corporals, sergeants, corporals and non-combatant lower ranks were armed with pikes and halberds. The dragoon regiments consisted of about 1 thousand people. The cavalry regiment was also divided into 10 companies. The dragoons were armed with 12-pound rifles without bayonets, two pistols and a broadsword.
Back in 1698, General Weide drew up the first charter, the article, based on the German model. The main one for the infantry was a formation of six deployed ranks. Doubling of rows and ranks was allowed. Gun techniques were established for loading, shooting, saluting, carrying a gun during a campaign, etc. The cavalry initially did not have their own regulations; the dragoons were guided in their training by the infantry regulations. The main formation for the cavalry was a deployed formation in three ranks.
All formed regiments brought together the three highest tactical units - generalships (divisions). They were headed by: Avtonom Golovin, Adam Weide and Anikita Repnin. The commanders of the formations were initially foreigners who had previously commanded regiments of the “foreign system”. Foreigners also predominated among the officers. This was a mistake, since foreigners often rushed to take a profitable position, having neither the relevant experience nor the desire to fight and, if necessary, die for Russia. Therefore, the bosses tried to train Russians in order to quickly replace foreigners.
The newly formed military units were hastily trained and within three months they showed positive results in combat training. However, the process of creating a new army was only gaining momentum. A real army, ready to restrain and deliver powerful blows, will be formed during the Northern War. Within a few years, the Russian army will become stronger, tempered and surpass the first-class Swedish army in all main parameters.
The last Tsar of All Rus' and the first Emperor of Russia - Peter the First- a truly great figure. It is not for nothing that this king was called “The Great” by Peter. He sought not only to expand the borders of the Russian state, but also to make life in it similar to what he saw in Europe. He learned a lot himself and taught others.
Brief biography of Peter the Great
Peter the Great belonged to the Romanov family, he was born June 9, 1672. His father is the king Alexey Mikhailovich. His mother is the second wife of Alexei Mikhailovich, Natalia Naryshkina. Peter I was the first child from the tsar’s second marriage and the fourteenth.
IN 1976 Peter Alekseevich’s father died and his eldest son ascended the throne - Fedor Alekseevich. He was sickly and reigned for about 6 years.
The death of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and the accession of his eldest son Fyodor (from Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna, née Miloslavskaya) pushed Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna and her relatives, the Naryshkins, into the background.
Streletsky riot
After the death of Feodor III, the question arose: who should rule next? Peter's elder brother Ivan was a sickly child (he was also called weak-minded) and it was decided to place Peter on the throne.
However, the relatives of the first wife of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich did not like this - Miloslavsky. Having secured the support of 20 thousand archers who were dissatisfied at that time, the Miloslavskys staged a riot in 1682.
The consequence of this Streltsy revolt was the proclamation of Peter's sister, Sophia, as regent until Ivan and Peter grew up. Subsequently, Peter and Ivan were considered dual rulers of the Russian state until Ivan's death in 1686.
Queen Natalya was forced to go to the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow with Peter.
"Amusing" troops of Peter
In the villages Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky Peter was engaged in far from childish games - he formed from his peers "funny" troops and learned to fight. Foreign officers helped him master military literacy.
Subsequently, these two battalions were formed Semenovsky and Preobrazhensky regiments- the basis of Peter's guard.
Beginning of independent rule
In 1689 On the advice of his mother, Peter got married. The daughter of a Moscow boyar was chosen as his bride Evdokia Lopukhina. After his marriage, 17-year-old Peter was considered an adult and could lay claim to independent rule.
Suppression of the riot
Princess Sophia immediately realized the danger she was in danger of. Not wanting to lose power, she persuaded the archers oppose Peter. Young Peter managed to gather an army loyal to him, and together with him he moved to Moscow.
The uprising was brutally suppressed, the instigators were executed, they were hanged, whipped, and burned with a hot iron. Sophia was sent to Novodevichy Convent.
Capture of Azov
Since 1696, after the death of Tsar Ivan V, Peter became sole ruler of Russia. A year earlier, he turned his gaze to the map. Advisers, among them the beloved Swiss Lefort, suggested that Russia needs access to the sea, it needs to build a fleet, it needs to move south.
The Azov campaigns began. Peter himself took part in battles and gained combat experience. On the second attempt they captured Azov, in a convenient bay of the Azov Sea Peter founded the city Taganrog.
Trip to Europe
Peter went “incognito”, he was called volunteer Peter Mikhailov,
sometimes captain of the Preobrazhensky regiment.
In England Peter the Great studied maritime affairs, in Germany- artillery, in Holland worked as a simple carpenter. But he had to return to Moscow prematurely - information about a new mutiny of the Streltsy reached him. After the brutal massacre of the archers and executions, Peter began preparing for war with Sweden.
Peter's war with Sweden
On Russia's allies - Poland and Denmark- the young Swedish king began to attack CharlesXII, determined to conquer all of northern Europe. Peter I decided to enter the war against Sweden.
Battle of Narva
First battle of Narva in 1700 was unsuccessful for the Russian troops. Having a multiple advantage over the Swedish army, the Russians were unable to take the Narva fortress and had to retreat.
Decisive action
Having attacked Poland, Charles XII was stuck in the war for a long time. Taking advantage of the ensuing respite, Peter announced a recruitment drive. He issued a decree according to which money and bells from churches began to be collected for the war against Sweden melted down for cannons, strengthened old fortresses, erected new ones.
St. Petersburg – the new capital of Russia
Peter the First personally participated in a combat sortie with two regiments of soldiers against Swedish ships blocking the exit to the Baltic Sea. The attack was a success, the ships were captured, and access to the sea became free.
On the banks of the Neva, Peter ordered the construction of a fortress in honor of Saints Peter and Paul, which was later named Petropavlovskaya. It was around this fortress that the city was formed Saint Petersburg- the new capital of Russia.
Battle of Poltava
The news of Peter's successful foray on the Neva forced the Swedish king to move his troops to Russia. He chose the south, where he waited for help from Turk and where is Ukrainian Hetman Mazepa promised to give him Cossacks.
The Battle of Poltava, where the Swedes and Russians gathered their troops, didn't last long.
Charles XII left the Cossacks brought by Mazepa in the convoy; they were not sufficiently trained and equipped. The Turks never came. Numerical superiority in troops was on the side of the Russians. And no matter how hard the Swedes tried to break through the ranks of the Russian troops, no matter how they reorganized their regiments, they failed to turn the tide of the battle in their favor.
A cannonball hit Karl's stretcher, he lost consciousness, and panic began among the Swedes. After the victorious battle, Peter arranged a feast at which treated captured Swedish generals and thanked them for their science.
Internal reforms of Peter the Great
Peter the Great, in addition to wars with other states, was actively involved in reforms within the country. He demanded that the courtiers take off their caftans and put on European dress, that they shave their beards, and go to the balls arranged for them.
Important reforms of Peter
Instead of the Boyar Duma, he established Senate, who was involved in solving important government issues, introduced a special Table of ranks, which determined the classes of military and civilian officials.
Started operating in St. Petersburg Marine Academy, opened in Moscow math school. Under him, it began to be published in the country first Russian newspaper. For Peter there were no titles or awards. If he saw capable person, although of low origin, sent him to study abroad.
Opponents of reforms
To many Peter's innovations didn't like it- starting from the highest ranks, ending with serfs. The Church called him a heretic, schismatics called him the Antichrist, and sent all kinds of blasphemy against him.
The peasants found themselves completely dependent on the landowners and the state. Increased tax burden 1.5-2 times, for many it turned out to be unbearable. Major uprisings occurred in Astrakhan, on the Don, in Ukraine, and the Volga region.
The breaking of the old way of life caused a negative reaction among the nobles. Peter's son, his heir Alexei, became an opponent of reforms and went against his father. He was accused of conspiracy and in 1718 sentenced to death.
Last year of reign
In the last years of Peter's reign was very sick, he had kidney problems. In the summer of 1724, his illness intensified; in September he felt better, but after a while the attacks intensified.
On January 28, 1725, he had such a bad time that he ordered a camp church to be erected in the room next to his bedroom, and on February 2 he confessed. Strength began to leave the patient, he no longer screamed, as before, from severe pain, but only moaned.
On February 7, all those sentenced to death or hard labor (excluding murderers and those convicted of repeated robbery) were amnestied. That same day, at the end of the second hour, Peter demanded paper and began to write, but the pen fell out of his hands, and only two words could be made out from what was written: "Give it all...".
At the beginning of six o'clock in the morning February 8, 1725 Peter the Great “The Great” died in terrible agony in his Winter Palace near the Winter Canal along official version from pneumonia. He was buried in Cathedral of the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.
Peter I - the youngest son of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich from his second marriage to Natalya Naryshkina - was born on May 30, 1672. As a child, Peter was educated at home, from a young age he knew German, then studied Dutch, English and French. With the help of palace craftsmen (carpentry, turning, weapons, blacksmithing, etc.). The future emperor was physically strong, agile, inquisitive and capable, and had a good memory.
In April 1682, Peter was elevated to the throne after the death of a childless man, bypassing his elder half-brother Ivan. However, the sister of Peter and Ivan - and the relatives of Alexei Mikhailovich's first wife - the Miloslavskys used the Streltsy uprising in Moscow to palace coup. In May 1682, adherents and relatives of the Naryshkins were killed or exiled, Ivan was declared the “senior” tsar, and Peter was declared the “junior” tsar under the ruler Sophia.
Under Sophia, Peter lived in the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow. Here, from his peers, Peter formed “amusing regiments” - the future imperial guard. In those same years, the prince met the son of the court groom Alexander Menshikov, who later became " right hand"Emperor.
In the 2nd half of the 1680s, clashes began between Peter and Sofia Alekseevna, who strived for autocracy. In August 1689, having received news of Sophia’s preparation for a palace coup, Peter hastily left Preobrazhensky for the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, where troops loyal to him and his supporters arrived. Armed detachments of nobles, assembled by the messengers of Peter I, surrounded Moscow, Sophia was removed from power and imprisoned in the Novodevichy Convent, her associates were exiled or executed.
After the death of Ivan Alekseevich (1696), Peter I became the sole tsar.
Possessing a strong will, determination and great capacity for work, Peter I throughout his life expanded his knowledge and skills in various fields, devoting Special attention military and naval affairs. In 1689-1693, under the guidance of the Dutch master Timmerman and the Russian master Kartsev, Peter I learned to build ships on Lake Pereslavl. In 1697-1698, during his first trip abroad, he took a full course in artillery sciences in Konigsberg, worked as a carpenter for six months in the shipyards of Amsterdam (Holland), studying naval architecture and drawing plans, and completed a theoretical course in shipbuilding in England.
By order of Peter I, books, instruments, and weapons were purchased abroad, and foreign craftsmen and scientists were invited. Peter I met with Leibniz, Newton and other scientists, and in 1717 he was elected an honorary member of the Paris Academy of Sciences.
During his reign, Peter I carried out major reforms aimed at overcoming Russia's backwardness from the advanced countries of the West. Transformations affected all areas public life. Peter I expanded the ownership rights of landowners over the property and personality of serfs, replaced the household taxation of peasants with a capitation tax, issued a decree on possession peasants who were allowed to be acquired by the owners of manufactories, practiced the mass registration of state and tribute peasants to state-owned and private factories, the mobilization of peasants and townspeople into the army and for the construction of cities, fortresses, canals, etc. The Decree on Single Inheritance (1714) equalized estates and fiefdoms, giving their owners the right to transfer real estate one of his sons, and thereby secured noble ownership of the land. The Table of Ranks (1722) established the order of ranks in the military and civil service not by nobility, but by personal abilities and merits.
Peter I contributed to the rise of the country's productive forces, encouraged the development of domestic manufactories, communications, domestic and foreign trade.
The reforms of the state apparatus under Peter I were an important step towards the transformation of the Russian autocracy of the 17th century into the bureaucratic-noble monarchy of the 18th century with its bureaucracy and service classes. The place of the Boyar Duma was taken by the Senate (1711), instead of orders, collegiums were established (1718), the control apparatus was first represented by “fiscals” (1711), and then by prosecutors headed by the Prosecutor General. In place of the patriarchate, a Spiritual College, or Synod, was established, which was under the control of the government. Great importance had administrative reform. In 1708-1709, instead of counties, voivodeships and governorships, 8 (then 10) provinces headed by governors were established. In 1719, the provinces were divided into 47 provinces.
As a military leader, Peter I stands among the most educated and talented builders of the armed forces, generals and naval commanders in Russian and world history of the 18th century. His whole life's work was to strengthen Russia's military power and increase its role in the international arena. He had to continue the war with Turkey, which began in 1686, and wage a long-term struggle for Russia's access to the sea in the North and South. As a result of the Azov campaigns (1695-1696), Azov was occupied by Russian troops, and Russia fortified itself on the shores of the Sea of Azov. In the long Northern War (1700-1721), Russia, under the leadership of Peter I, achieved complete victory and gained access to the Baltic Sea, which gave it the opportunity to establish direct ties with Western countries. After the Persian campaign (1722-1723), the western coast of the Caspian Sea with the cities of Derbent and Baku went to Russia.
Under Peter I, for the first time in the history of Russia, permanent diplomatic missions and consulates were established abroad, and outdated forms of diplomatic relations and etiquette were abolished.
Peter I also carried out major reforms in the field of culture and education. A secular school appeared, and the clergy's monopoly on education was eliminated. Peter I founded the Pushkar School (1699), the School of Mathematical and Navigational Sciences (1701), and the Medical and Surgical School; The first Russian public theater was opened. In St. Petersburg, the Naval Academy (1715), engineering and artillery schools (1719), schools of translators at collegiums were established, the first Russian museum was opened - the Kunstkamera (1719) with a public library. In 1700, a new calendar was introduced with the beginning of the year on January 1 (instead of September 1) and chronology from the “Nativity of Christ”, and not from the “Creation of the World”.
By order of Peter I, various expeditions were carried out, including to Central Asia, to Far East, to Siberia, began the systematic study of the country's geography and cartography.
Peter I was married twice: to Evdokia Fedorovna Lopukhina and Marta Skavronskaya (later Empress Catherine I); had a son, Alexei, from his first marriage and daughters Anna and Elizabeth from his second (besides them, 8 children of Peter I died in early childhood).
Peter I died in 1725 and was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral of the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.
The material was prepared based on information from open sources
The beginning of Peter's glorious deeds . The time of Peter the Great, or, in other words, era of Peter's reforms, is the most important milestone in Russian history. Historians have long come to the conclusion that the reform program matured long before the start of the reign Peter I and they began under his grandfather and father - Tsars Mikhail and Alexei. Perestroika then affected many aspects of life. But Peter, who continued the work of his predecessors, went much further than them, invested in the transformation such energy and passion that they had never dreamed of. True, he did not begin the transformation in 1682, when he formally became king, and not in 1689, when he removed his rival sister Sophia from power. A few more years were spent on fun and games, growing up and learning.
Power ended up in 1689 in the hands of Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna, Peter’s mother, her relatives the Naryshkins and their advisers. This whole company, which included the Lopukhins, Peter’s relatives by his young wife, set out to rob the treasury and people. Behind them were other boyars, nobles, clerks, capital and local. It began, as Prince B.I. Kurakin later wrote, “The board is very dishonest”, “Great bribery and state theft”.
Peter and his "campaign" . Peter has his own “campaign” in the village of Preobrazhenskoye and the German settlement near Moscow, where he began to visit more and more often: generals and officers lived here, whom he attracted to his “amusing games”, various artisans. Among them are the Scotsman General Patrick Gordon, who proved himself to be a capable military leader during the Chigirin campaigns, and the cheerful Swiss Franz Lefort, who became people close to the Tsar and his assistants.
Of the Russians, Menshikov was closest to the Tsar, “Alexashka”, dexterous and helpful, ignorant (he didn’t really know how to sign his name), but devoted to his patron. Then came Apraksin, the future admiral, Golovin, the commander “funny”, Golovkin is the future chancellor. A special place was occupied by Prince Fyodor Yuryevich Romodanovsky - "Generalissimo Friedrich", amusing commander-in-chief of soldier regiments, King of Presburg, later - “prince Caesar”, whom Peter, also jokingly, called the king and reported to him in his affairs as a subject.
Peter the first organizes parades, war games, prepares and sets off fireworks, builds ships, tests new ships and guns, learns from engineers, artillerymen, mathematicians, carpenters, takes books from Gordon and other people, and orders them from abroad. And in between classes he feasts with his company either at Gordon or Lefort, or at Golitsyn or Naryshkin, his uncle.
In March 1690, Patriarch Joachim died. It was necessary to choose a new patriarch. Peter spoke out for Markel, Metropolitan of Pskov, an educated and intelligent man. But mother and her entourage opposed: after all, Markel spoke "barbaric languages"- Latin and French, was too learned and, on top of everything else, wore a very short beard... Peter yielded, and Metropolitan Adrian of Kazan, who satisfied the demands of the zealots of antiquity, was elected patriarch.
Fun games and serious matters . In Preobrazhenskoye and on Lake Pereyaslavl, Peter did everything his own way. He ordered, for example, to dress his soldiers in new uniforms. Lefort, in his presence, showed them military techniques and evolutions. The Tsar, himself in a foreign uniform, participated in executions, quickly learned to shoot rifles and cannons, dig trenches (trenches), build pontoons, lay mines and much more. Moreover, he decided to go through all the steps himself military service starting with the drummer.
During demonstration battles on land and maneuvers of the “fleet” on the water, cadres of soldiers and sailors, officers, generals and admirals were forged, and combat skills were practiced. Two small frigates and three yachts were built on Lake Pereyaslavl, and Peter himself built small rowing ships on the Moscow River. At the end of the summer of 1691, appearing on Lake Pereyaslavl, the tsar laid down the first Russian warship. It was to be built by Romodanovsky, who became an admiral by the will of the Tsar. Peter himself willingly participated in the construction. The ship was built and launched. But the size of the lake did not provide the necessary room for maneuver.
In 1693, the Tsar and his large retinue traveled to Arkhangelsk, at that time the only seaport in Russia. For the first time he sees the sea and real large ships - English, Dutch, German - standing in the roadstead. Peter examines everything with interest, asks about everything, thinks about the establishment of the Russian fleet, the expansion of trade. With Lefort's help, he orders big ship abroad, its equipment was entrusted to the Amsterdam burgomaster Witzen. The construction of two ships is also starting in Arkhangelsk. For the first time in his life, the Tsar sails on the sea - the White, northern, cold and gloomy.
In the fall he is back in Moscow. He's having a hard time with his mother's death. But life takes its toll, and in April 1694 Peter again goes to Arkhangelsk. Upon arrival at the port, to the joy of the king, a ready-made ship was waiting for him, which was launched on May 20. A month later, the second one was completed and launched on June 28. On July 21, a ship made to his order arrived from Holland. Twice, in May and August, first on the yacht “St. Peter”, then on ships, he sails the sea. Both times during a storm he is exposed to danger due to his inability to manage ships properly. At the end of all the trials and celebrations, another admiral appeared in the Russian fleet - Lefort, a representative of the glorious land-based Switzerland...
In the fall, Peter, already in Moscow, was again in trouble - in its vicinity, near the village of Kozhukhovo, they were building a fortress with loopholes, surrounded by an earthen rampart and a ditch. Buturlin’s Streltsy army settled in, and Romodanovsky’s new regiments were engaged in the siege and assault. All methods of warfare were used, and a plan drawn up by Gordon and others was prepared in advance. The hostilities lasted three weeks, and up to 30 thousand people took part in them, 15 thousand on each side. There were killed and wounded.
Azov campaigns of Peter the Great . Back in Arkhangelsk, in conversations with Lefort and other “companies,” Peter discusses the issue of the sea, its extreme necessity for Russia.
...The Crimean campaigns have died down; Prince Vasily Golitsyn, who did not gain any particular glory in them, languished in exile. Peter, who sent him there, was planning a campaign in the same southern direction, but not directly against the Crimea, across the endless steppes, but somewhat to the left, along the Don, to its mouth - the Turkish fortress of Azov. The tsar was pushed to this, among other circumstances, by the persistent demands of Austria and Poland, Russia’s allies in the anti-Turkish Holy Alliance.
In January 1695, a decree was announced to all serving people: gather for a campaign to the Crimea under the command of boyar B.P. Sheremetev. His army moved along the Dnieper to the lower reaches. The future field marshal captured four Turkish fortresses on the Dnieper, destroyed two of them, and left Russian garrisons in the other two.
The main events unfolded to the east, on the Don. 31 thousand people, selected Russian regiments, were allocated for the campaign to Azov. The troops of Golovin and Lefort sailed along the Moscow River and Oka, Volga and Don. We reached Azov on June 29. Gordon's army also appeared, marching by land. It was very late - it was necessary to build bridges across rivers and overcome the hidden resistance of the archers.
The siege of Azov lasted three months and did not bring laurels to Russian weapons. Three commanders commanded the walls of the Turkish fortress; there was no single commander in the Russian army. All of them - Golovin, Gordon and Lefort - were at enmity with each other. The troops acted at different times. There was no Russian fleet during the siege of Azov, and the Turks delivered reinforcements and food by sea without interference. The actions of the Russian artillery lacked power and strength. They organized two assaults - in August and September, but were not successful. The besiegers suffered heavy losses. Peter gave the order to retreat in early October.
Peter does not give up from the first failure or defeat. He energetically takes immediate measures: he entrusts all ground forces to the commander, Generalissimo A.S. Shein; the fleet that still needed to be built - to Admiral Lefort.
The decree on the construction of the fleet was issued in January 1696. Peter set up shipyards in Voronezh and surrounding areas. The choice was not random. On the banks of the Don and Vorona, flat-bottomed boats have long been built. river boats- plows. Sea vessels were also built here during the Chigirin and Crimean campaigns. Good ship pines grew around Voronezh. They went ahead. In winter, Peter headed to Voronezh, watched the construction of ships for several months, and more than once took up an ax himself. 26 thousand carpenters were herded here.
Hard work, haste, winter cold, and fires interfered with construction. But, despite everything, things moved forward - by the beginning of April, ships began to be launched. And they made a lot of them: 23 galleys, 2 ships, 4 fire ships and 1300 plows. Troops were gathered here, near Voronezh - up to 40 thousand soldiers and archers.
At the end of May 1696, the Russian army arrived at its last year's trenches. Having updated them, they began the bombing of Azov. Day and night, 12 thousand people erected an earthen rampart in order to raise it higher than the fortress walls. The besieged tried to prevent Gordon from carrying out this plan, but they were repulsed.
The city was surrounded on all sides. A Russian flotilla operated on the river - at first the Cossacks on small ships destroyed Turkish ships, unloaded at the walls of the fortress, then the Russian squadron went out to sea, where heavy Turkish ships with infantry, food supplies, and equipment were located in the roadstead, and did not allow them to enter the mouth of the Don and go to the besieged fortress.
The Turkish garrison, seeing the hopelessness of the situation, capitulated. Azov became Russia's stronghold on the southern borders, a base for Peter's army.
Robert Ker Porter: "The Taking of Azov"
Grand Embassy. A decree soon followed - at the head of the Grand Embassy, Peter appointed Admiral General F. Ya. Lefort as a secular and courteous man, an expert in European customs, general and commissar F. A. Golovin, head of the Ambassadorial Prikaz, a subtle and experienced diplomat, a sensible and sociable person , finally, the Duma clerk P.B. Voznitsyn, also one of the leaders of the foreign policy department, a very thorough and impenetrable man of the old, bureaucratic schooling.
more than 250 persons; among them were “valantirov” (volunteers), including the sergeant of the Preobrazhensky regiment Pyotr Mikhailov—Tsar Pyotr Alekseevich, who decided to go incognito. Like other volunteers, he had to study shipbuilding and marine science in the West. In fact, from beginning to end he headed the embassy and directed its work in everything.
For the first time, the ruler of the Moscow state went to foreign countries. The official purpose of the embassy is to confirm the alliance directed against Turkey and Crimea.
The Tsar and the embassy visited Riga and Courland, the German principalities and the Netherlands, England and Austria. They became acquainted with European industry, in particular shipbuilding, museums, theaters, observatories and laboratories. More than 800 craftsmen of various specialties were hired to work in Russia.
Peter I's visit to Holland
Peter learned that his allies were negotiating peace with Turkey, and Russia had no choice but to come to terms with this. The anti-Turkish alliance was falling apart before our eyes, the European powers were preparing for war with each other for the Spanish inheritance.
Many things turned out to be very interesting and unexpected for Peter. So, he became familiar with the English parliamentary system. On April 2, 1698, he arrived at the Parliament building, but refused to attend its meeting - through a dormer window under the roof he listened to the debate at a joint meeting of the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The king seemed to be attracted by the fact that members of parliament freely express their opinions in the presence of the king: “It is fun to listen when subjects openly tell their sovereign the truth; This is what we need to learn from the English.” He also established the following rules at home, in his “campaign”: its members told the king what they thought, sometimes quite boldly. F. Yu. Romodanovsky, for example, in a letter to London reproached him for confusion on some matter and spoke quite cheerfully in connection with this about the “binge” of the tsar and his associates, in which, by the way, he was close to the truth. And later, when organizing the Senate and collegiums, Peter carried out in their work the principles of general, open discussion of all issues and matters, and decision-making.
But all this, of course, was very far from parliamentarism and democracy. Throughout his life, Peter as a ruler remained an absolute monarch, a despot, often cruel and merciless. Being, according to Klyuchevsky, “kind by nature as a man, Peter was rude as a king”.
Peter from the Netherlands goes to Dresden, from there to Vienna. Going to visit Venice. But a letter from Moscow from Prince Caesar ruins all plans: Romodanovsky writes about the uprising of four rifle regiments. The king hurried home.
Return to Moscow. Only after Krakow did Peter learn about the defeat of the rebel archers. We drove further slowly. In Rava Russkaya, Peter met with Augustus II, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland. I stayed here for a long time. In face-to-face conversations, both rulers, who became friends, formalized in words, sealing them with mutual oaths, an alliance against Sweden.
The political life of the capital moved to Preobrazhenskoye. The boyars flocked here. What they experienced at their first meeting with the king amazed both themselves and their contemporaries, long years who later told their children and grandchildren about what happened on that memorable day: receiving the boyars, Peter ordered scissors to be given to him and immediately used them - beards cut off by the tsar himself fell onto the floor. The most influential people experienced shock—Generalissimo A.S. Shein, Prince Caesar F.Yu. Romodanovsky and others.
But I had to come to terms with it, especially since the tsar did not limit himself to the first shake-up and stubbornly continued the war with beards. A few days later, at a feast at Shein, now beardless, the beards of his participants, who still had this old Russian decoration on their faces, were cut off by the royal jester. So Peter, in his usual manner, decisively and despotically broke with the old days in everyday life.
Ignoring the discontent of the boyars and clergy, Peter declared in his decrees that all subjects must shave their beards. The nobility reconciled relatively quickly and easily and parted with the beard. The common people responded with dull murmurs and resistance. Then the authorities announced that those who wish to wear beards must pay a tax: a rich merchant - 100 rubles a year (huge money at that time), nobles and officials -, townspeople - 30 rubles, peasants - a penny each when entering the city and leaving it. Only persons of clergy rank did not pay tax. In the end, the treasury won, and the staunch bearded men suffered.
All these days, busy with business or feasts, Peter delved into the circumstances of the uprising of the Streltsy in the summer of 1698. In his judgments, both before and now, he was mistaken in many ways, his eyes were clouded and his mind was clouded by the old and irreconcilable hatred of them and Sophia, the Miloslavskys.
All the archers, according to his conclusion, formed the camp of enemies of the transformations and innovations that Peter conceived and began to implement. He had nothing to do with the actual situation of the archers, their suffering and deprivation. Namely, they were the reasons for the uprising.
Peter learned that the archers of four regiments had moved from Velikie Luki to Moscow to beat the hated boyars and foreigners, plunder the boyars' houses, put Sophia in power or (if she did not agree) someone else, “good” to them, for example, one of the princesses, the 8-year-old son of Peter Tsarevich Alexei, Prince V.V. Golitsyn, boyar Prince M.Ya. Cherkassky, popular among the people.
The Boyar Duma decided to send several regiments against the archers. Not only nobles and soldiers were gathered under arms, but also retired soldiers, grooms, clerks, and minors. The army was led by Generalissimo A.S. Shein, General P. Gordon, and Lieutenant General I.M. Koltsov-Mosalsky. The warriors walked very quickly. On the evening of June 17, they approached the New Jerusalem Resurrection Monastery. After negotiations with the rebels and their convictions, the guns entered the conversation. In the battle, which was quite short, up to 15 archers were killed. The rest were caught and put under guard. During the search, Shein ordered to select from the mass of rebels “fucking breeders”. There were 254 such people. After interrogations, Shein ordered the hanging of 56 archers, including the main leaders, Tuma and others. Then, by decision of the boyars, 74 more people were hanged. The rest were sent to different cities and monasteries.
Peter did not hide his extreme dissatisfaction with the results of the search for Shein in the Resurrection Monastery. By order of the tsar, more than a thousand rebel archers were returned to Moscow. The infamous Streltsy manhunt began, which captured the imagination of contemporaries and descendants, leaving many Russian people with the gravest impression of cruelty, terrible, boundless.
After the search, which lasted until 1700, more than a thousand people ended their lives on the chopping block and gallows, others were exiled. Peter ordered the Moscow Streltsy regiments to be cashed out; the Streltsy, along with their families, were sent to different cities and there they were registered as townspeople (artisans, traders). This operation was popularly called “streltsy ruin”. The Tsar planned to disband all other rifle regiments. But the Northern War began, and soon new regiments were formed from former Moscow riflemen. They performed well in the Battle of Poltava and other operations. But gradually they were transferred to soldiers.
The Moscow Streltsy finally disappeared in 1713. Streltsy from other cities were disbanded only in the second quarter of the century, after Peter the Great.
Reform activities of Peter I. Peter did not limit himself to the fight against beards. The tsar's measures brought changes to the lives of the Russian people. This can be said, for example, about assemblies, teaching minors, and sometimes older people, politeness, the ability to get along in society, the introduction of short caftans of European cut instead of long-length and wide-sleeve dresses, and cloth, not luxurious ones, as before - brocade, velvet, silk.
Even more important had other innovations adopted in 1699— The beginning of shipbuilding and navigation, artillery and the construction of fortresses acutely raised the question of the need for engineers, technicians, craftsmen who knew mathematics, could read maps, and use tools. Army regiments required hospitals and thus medical personnel and knowledge of medical science. Of course, they hired foreign specialists for a lot of money. But Peter, who saw academies and universities, observatories and schools, and much more abroad, understood perfectly well that it was necessary to establish the same institutions and institutions in Russia.
In 1701, a professor at the University of Aberdeen, Henry Feraarson, invited from England, and two comrades began teaching mathematics at the Navigation School, located in the Sukharev Tower in Moscow. Other mathematical schools followed.
In 1699, a new printing house was opened in Moscow, in which they planned to print, in civilian type, books on artillery, mechanics, history, and astronomy. True, the first books published in Russian in 1699 were published in Amsterdam. Then they began to be printed in Moscow.
On December 19, 1699, Peter's decree announced that from now on in Russia, as in other European countries, chronology will be carried out not from the creation of the world, but from the birth of Jesus Christ. The next day a new decree ordered to begin New Year not from September 1, but from January 1.
A decree on March 10, 1699 established the Order of St. Apostle Andrew the First-Called. Surprising his compatriots, from that time Peter, unlike his predecessors on the Russian throne, personally signed acts of an international nature - charters, ratifications. The Tsar himself, behind closed doors, negotiates with foreign representatives in Moscow.
In January 1699, Peter promulgated a decree on urban reform. City government bodies were created - the Town Hall in Moscow and zemstvo huts in other cities. The purpose of the reform is to protect merchants from administrative red tape and ruin. The Town Hall and zemstvo huts were entrusted with the collection of customs duties and tavern revenues. From now on, this was not supposed to be done by the governors, but by elected people from among the merchants. The government, carrying out this reform, hoped to revive crafts, industry and trade.
The Boyar Duma remained the highest legislative and judicial body under Peter. It consisted of the highest Duma ranks - boyars, kravchis, okolnichys, Duma nobles, Duma clerks. In the early 1690s. there were 182 of them, and at the end of the century - 112. Old members of the Duma died, and almost no new appointments were made. The Boyar Duma, thus, died out naturally.
Not everyone was present at the Duma meetings, usually about 30 people: some were sent on errands around the country, others were simply not invited. Most importantly, she dealt with secondary issues. Important matters were considered and decided by the king. His personal decrees announced them. And in the Boyar Duma itself, innovations appeared, hitherto unprecedented: Prince F. Yu. Romodanovsky, who was not formally its member (he had the rank of steward), by the will of Peter, presided over the meetings of the Duma.
The orders continued to work. There were more than 40 of them. As before, the orders were combined. The association headed by the Ambassadorial Prikaz included, for example, the orders of the Great Russian, Little Russian, principalities of Smolensk, Novgorod, Galitsky, Vladimir, Ustyug. There were other groups of orders.
The Zemsky Prikaz, which was in charge of police functions in Moscow, was closed. They were handed over to the Streletsky Prikaz. It began to be called differently: the Order of Zemstvo Affairs.
Peter, on the one hand, did the same as his predecessors: he tried to somehow centralize, generalize, and simplify management. On the other hand, the tsar introduced new institutions, primarily in military administration, and this is understandable - the Northern War for access to the Baltic began. The total number of orders was reduced from 44 to 34.
Peter also turned his keen eye to the church: he demanded income reports from it, and forced it to build ships at its own expense. Patriarch Adrian died in 1700. The new patriarch, whom the believers were waiting for, was never appointed. Instead, a new position was introduced - locum tenens of the patriarchal throne, who had only the functions of a spiritual shepherd. And the property of the church went to the Monastery Prikaz. The proceeds from it went to the royal treasury. In fact, Peter carried out partial secularization.