young Dmitri at Ouglitch that the great nobles looked for relief from
Godounof's tyranny. In 1591, this man sent hired assassins to Ouglitch
and the youngest son of Ivan was murdered. Some of the hirelings were
arrested by the people, and put to death. There was not even a doubt
as to the facts. But Godounof ordered an investigation by his own
friends; they declared that the young heir had committed suicide in a
fit of insanity, and that the people of Ouglitch had put innocent (p. 131)
men to death. The assassination of Dmitri's relatives, and the
depopulation of Ouglitch made further inquiry impossible.
Stephen Batory who had worsted Ivan the Terrible, died in 1586, and
the throne of Poland was once again vacant. Godounof tried hard to
have Feodor elected, but the Poles feared that the czar might attach
their kingdom to Moscow like a sleeve to a coat. Besides, the Roman
Catholic electors did not like the thought of having a king belonging
to the Greek Church; last of all, money counted in these elections,
and Godounof was a very saving man. The result was that the Prince of
Sweden was elected, and that war with Sweden broke out.
The Poles, fearing lest Sweden should grow too powerful, held aloof;
as a consequence, Russia gained back the towns which had been lost
under Ivan the Terrible. Godounof made an effort to bring about a war
between Poland and Sweden, but he only succeeded in arousing the
suspicion and dislike of both countries.
Feodor died in 1598; with him the house of Rurik, the old Norse
Viking, ceased to exist.
By trickery and knavery, Boris Godounof was elected czar by the
_douma_ or council of nobles, a body presided over by his friend the
Patriarch, and containing many of his partisans. The great nobles,
many of whom traced their descent to Rurik, objected to a czar, whom
they considered and called an upstart. But Boris displayed cruelty as
well as severity. Feodor, the eldest of the noble family of the
Romanofs, was forced to become a monk and his wife a nun. He took (p. 132)
the name of Philarete, and she that of Marfa.
Godounof did reign seven years, according to the wizard's prediction,
but it was a stormy time for Russia. A young adventurer named Gregory
Otrépief, pretended that he was the murdered Dmitri, and secured a
large following. The troops sent against him "had no hands to fight
but only feet to fly." At Godounof's death, in 1605, he confided his
son and heir to a favorite named Basmanof, who turned traitor, joined
the false Dmitri, and caused Godounof's widow and son to be murdered.
Otrépief, who lacked neither courage nor ability, was made czar, but
he reigned little over a month, when he, too, was murdered by a band
of nobles under the leadership of Chouïski. This man seized the throne
in 1606. The people in the country, owing to its vast extent and the
poor roads, heard of Otrépief's coronation, his death, and the
succession of Chouïski almost at the same time, and anarchy followed.
At the same time Russia was involved in a war with Poland, at the time
when a second false Dmitri made his appearance. The Cossacks and a
host of Polish adventurers joined him, and he laid siege to the
immensely wealthy Troïtsa monastery, where the monks defended
themselves for sixteen months, and he was forced to withdraw. Affairs
came to such a pass that the people of Moscow "humbly requested the
czar to abdicate, because he was not successful, and also because he
was to blame for the shedding of Christian blood." Chouïski was forced
to yield, and soon after entered a monastery as a monk.
Two candidates appeared for the vacant throne; the second false (p. 133)
Dmitri and Vladislas, the second son of Sigismund, King of Poland. The
douma, not fancying the idea that an impostor should rule over them,
invited the hetman of a Polish army to Moscow, to discuss the other
candidate. This hetman promised in name of the prince to maintain the
Greek Church and the privileges of the three orders, nobles, priests,
and people, and that the law-making power should be shared by the czar
and the douma; that no one should be executed without a trial, or
deprived of his dignity without good reason; and finally, that
Russians might go abroad to be educated if they so desired. Vladislas
was then elected czar on condition that he should enter the Greek
Church, and two envoys, one of them Philarete Romanof who had risen to
the rank of Metropolitan, left for the Polish camp at Smolensk to
complete the necessary arrangements. The douma invited the hetman to
occupy the kremlin with his shoulders. He did so, taking the late Czar
Chouïski and his two brothers as hostages.
At Smolensk a difficulty occurred: the King of Poland wanted the
Russian throne for himself. He also asked the envoys to cede Smolensk
to Poland; they refused, and in turn asked that Vladislas should leave
at once for Moscow. The king refused his consent, and began to use
money. He found many Russian traitors willing to accept it, but the
envoys remained firm.
Soon after this, the second false Dmitri died, and the people began to
show an interest in the dispute with Sigismund. Leading men at Moscow
and Smolensk wrote to the provinces, begging their friends not to
recognize the King of Poland as czar. Men-at-arms gathered, and (p. 134)
when an army of them drew near Moscow, the Poles fortified the
Kremlin. At this time a quarrel arose between the Polish troops and
the people, and some 7,000 persons were killed. The Russians made a
stand in the suburbs, when the Poles set fire to the city, and the
greater part of Moscow was burned.
Sigismund ordered the arrest of the two envoys who were taken to
Marienburg in Prussia under escort. Smolensk fell soon after into his
hands, and the king returned to Warsaw which he entered in triumph
with the last Czar Chouïski a prisoner in his train. By this time the
Russians were aroused; 100,000 men-at-arms gathered at Moscow and
besieged the Poles in the Kremlin. Meanwhile Sweden had declared war,
giving as reason the election of Vladislas, and had captured the ports
on the Baltic. The monks of Troïtsa, whose heroic defense against the
second false Dmitri had made the convent famous, sent letters to all
the Russian cities bidding them fight for their country and religion.
When this letter was read in public at Nishni Novgorod, a butcher,
Kouzma Minine spoke up: "If we wish to save the Muscovite Empire," he
said, "we must spare neither our lands nor our goods; let us sell our
houses and put our wives and children out to service; let us seek a
man who will fight for the national faith, and march under his
banner." He set the example by giving one-third of all he possessed,
and others followed. Those who refused to contribute were compelled to
do so. Minine was elected treasurer; he accepted on condition that his
orders should be obeyed without delay. Believing that the leadership
should be given to a noble, Minine went to Prince Pojarski who (p. 135)
lived in the neighborhood. Pojarski accepted the command, and ordered
three days of fasting and prayer. The streltsi were equipped as well
as the men-at-arms; but the services of Cossacks and foreign
mercenaries were refused.
An army was collected and marched toward Moscow, with bishops and
monks carrying holy eikons at the head; at Iaroslaf they were
reënforced by other troops. They laid siege to the Kremlin; an attempt
to relieve the fortress by the Poles was defeated. At last the
garrison was forced to surrender. Among the Russian prisoners who
regained their liberty was a fifteen-year-old boy, Michael Romanof,
the son of Philarete and Marfa.
Sigismund was on the way to reënforce the garrison, but hearing of its
surrender, he fell back. An assembly was convoked to elect a czar. It
was composed of delegates of the clergy, the nobles, the men-at-arms,
the merchants, towns, and districts. There was much bickering, but all
were agreed that no alien should be presented. When the name of
Michael Romanof was called, it was received with enthusiasm, and he
was declared elected. (1613.) The delegates remembered the relation
between his family and Ivan the Terrible, and the services rendered by
his father, the Metropolitan Philarete. There is a story that the King
of Poland, when he heard of Michael's election, tried to kidnap him at
Kostroma, and that a peasant guide led the party astray on a dark
night. When the Poles discovered it, he was struck dead. This is the
subject of a famous opera "A Life for the Czar."
Russia's efforts to resume intercourse with Europe, which during the
Tartar yoke had been suspended, were continued under Godounof. He (p. 136)
sent an ambassador to Queen Elizabeth with a letter, in which he
says:--"I have learned that the Queen had furnished help to the Turks
against the Emperor of Germany. We are astonished at it, as to act
thus is not proper for Christian sovereigns; and you, our well-beloved
sister, you ought not in the future to enter into relationships of
friendship with Mussulman princes, nor to help them in any way,
whether with men or money; but on the contrary should desire and
insist that all the great Christian potentates should have a good
understanding, union, and strong friendship, and unite against the
Mussulmans, till the hand of the Christian rise and that of the
Mussulman is abased." Judging from Elizabeth's character, it is likely
that she shrugged her shoulders as she read this sermon. During the
period of Russia's internal troubles, and owing to the vacancy of the
throne, the relations with Europe were again suspended.
XVI--MICHAEL FEODOROVITCH OR MICHAEL, THE SON OF THEODORE, THE FIRST
ROMANOF. (p. 137)
Fifteen years of anarchy left Russia in disorder. The boyards had done
as they pleased since there was no one to control them. The peasants
who asked for nothing but a simple existence, had seen their crops
trampled under foot, and their homes laid in ruins. It needed a strong
hand to restore order; more than could be expected from a
fifteen-year-old boy, who had neither the iron will of Ivan the
Terrible, nor the advantage of having grown up with the conviction
that he was the Master. Besides, although his election had been
regular, the Don Cossacks and others refused to recognize him as the
czar. On the other hand, the patriots stood by him. But the conditions
were such that a foreigner in Moscow wrote at the time: "Oh that God
would open the eyes of the czar as He opened those of Ivan, otherwise
Muscovy is lost!"
There was no money in the treasury, and the men-at-arms demanded pay
because they received no revenues from their ruined estates. The czar
and the clergy wrote to the Russian towns begging them for money and
for troops to help the government, and a generous response was (p. 138)
made. The people of the provinces, anxious to see law and order
restored, rose in favor of the czar, and Astrakhan sent a rebel chief
to prison. He was shortly afterwards tried and executed.
While the people were thus aiding the government, no time was lost in
dealing with the foreign enemy. In 1614, Michael sent envoys to
Holland to request help in men and money. The Dutch gave a small sum,
regretting that they could do no more as they had just ended a war
that had lasted forty-one years (1568-1609); they promised that they
would persuade Sweden to come to an understanding with Russia. Another
embassy went to James I of England, who was told that the Poles had
murdered British merchants and plundered their warehouses. This was a
falsehood, because the envoys knew that the outrage had been committed
by Cossacks and a Russian mob, but they hoped that the king would not
know it. James did not, and advanced 20,000 rubles. After this British
merchants demanded concessions and privileges in Russia, but as they
asked too much, they received nothing. Sweden, urged by England and
Holland, concluded with Russia the Peace of Stolbovo in 1617. Sweden
received an indemnity of 20,000 rubles, and surrendered Novgorod and
other towns.
The war with Poland was then continued more vigorously, and in 1618 a
truce of fourteen years and six months was arranged. It was understood
that this was temporary, because the King of Poland still claimed the
throne of Russia, and refused to recognize Michael. But the prisoners
were released and Philarete, the czar's father, returned to Moscow, where
his presence was soon felt by the nobles. The most independent (p. 140)
were arrested and sent into exile. So long as Philarete assisted his
son, there was no disorder.
[Illustration: Michael Feodorovitch]
In 1618, the great struggle between Protestant and Roman Catholic
Europe began and Sweden, which was to take such a glorious part in it,
sought Russia's aid. Gustavus wrote to Michael telling him that if the
Catholic league should prevail, the Greek Church would be in danger.
"When your neighbor's house is on fire," he wrote, "you must bring
water and try to extinguish it, to guarantee your own safety. May your
Czarian Majesty help your neighbors to protect yourself." Sound as the
advice was, Russia had enough to do at home. Sultan Osman of Turkey
offered an alliance against Poland, when Michael convoked the Estates.
The deputies beat their foreheads, and implored the czar "to hold
himself firm for the holy churches of God, for his czarian honor, and
for their own country against the enemy. The men-at-arms were ready to
fight, and the merchants to give money." The war was postponed when
news arrived that the Turks had been defeated.
Sigismund of Poland died in 1632, and his son Vladislas was elected.
The following year Philarete died, and the nobles, released from his
stern supervision, resumed their former behavior. The war between the
two neighbors recommenced, but did not last long. When a new truce was
concluded Michael's title as czar was recognized by Vladislas.
It was entirely the fault of the Polish nobles that Poland lost
Lithuania or White Russia. The only excuse that can be offered, is the
spirit of religious persecution which was rampant all over Europe (p. 141)
in the seventeenth century. It was the ceaseless effort of the Poles
to force the Lithuanians from the Greek into the Roman Church that
drove them into the arms of Russia; but it was not until after the
death of Michael, in 1645, that the consequences of this short-sighted
policy were to show.
Michael was succeeded by his son, who ascended the throne as Alexis
Michaelovitch. He was better educated than his father had been and
resembled him in good nature. He had been taught by a tutor named
Morozof, who during thirty years exerted a great influence over his
pupil. When Alexis married into the Miloslavski family, its members
secured the most influential positions, according to well-established
custom. Morozof did not oppose them; instead he courted and married
the czarina's sister, and thus became the czar's brother-in-law.
The wars in which Russia was engaged and the necessity of maintaining
a large and well-equipped army, together with the increasing expenses
of the Court, and above all, the dishonest practices of the officials
rendered the burden of taxation so unbearable, that several revolts
broke out. In 1648, the people of Moscow rose and demanded the
surrender of a judge and another officer, both of whom were
notoriously corrupt; the two men were promptly murdered. Then the
popular fury turned upon Morozof, who would have suffered the same
fate, had not the czar helped him to escape. The government was
helpless. In some places, such as Pskof, Novgorod, and elsewhere, the
streltsi joined the people, and Russia was for some time at the mercy
of an enemy.
It was fortunate for Russia that just at that time, Poland had (p. 142)
serious trouble at home. A Cossack, owner of a large estate, educated
and brave, was ill-treated and imprisoned by a Polish landowner; and
his little son was publicly whipped. He went to Warsaw and laid his
complaint before the king. Vladislas told him plainly that the nobles
were beyond his control; then, pointing to his sword, he asked if the
Cossack could not help himself. The Cossack took the hint, went home,
and when the Polish landowners tried to arrest him, he fled to the
Khan of the Crimea, interested him in his cause and returned at the
head of a Mussulman army. Lithuania rose in rebellion against Poland;
the governors and nobles, and especially the priests of the Catholic
Church, were hunted down, and those of the Greek Church took revenge
for recent injuries and insults.
Vladislas died, and the Diet elected his brother John Casimir. He
tried to reduce the very serious rebellion by promises, but there was
too deep a hatred between the two churches. Meanwhile order had been
restored in Russia, when the people of Lithuania wrote to the czar
begging him to take them under his protection. Alexis convoked the
Estates, told them that he had been insulted by Poland, and that the
Poles were persecuting the members of the Greek Church. They declared
in favor of war, and a boyard was sent to Kief to receive the oath of
allegiance. The people were willing provided their liberties would be
respected. This the czar promised. He declared that the privileges of
the Assembly and of the towns would be maintained, that only natives
would be employed in the administration and in taxation.
Poland was now sorely pressed. Charles X of Sweden invaded the (p. 143)
kingdom and took two of its capitals. The Cossack and Lithuanians
entered it from the south, and the Czar Alexis at the head of his own
army attacked it on the east. He maintained strict discipline so that
the Polish Governors said, "Moscow makes war in quite a new way, and
conquers the people by the clemency and good-nature of the czar." The
towns of White Russia opened their gates to his army, and Smolensk
surrendered after a five weeks' siege. The Swedes captured Warsaw, the
last capital of the misruled kingdom.
It was the jealousy of its enemies that saved Poland this time. Alexis
entered into a truce and attacked Sweden. This war was carried on from
1656 until 1661, and ended by the peace of Cardis whereby neither
country gained any advantage. The Poles, seeing the danger they had
incurred, rallied, and once again war broke out with Russia. It was
carried on with various success until both countries were exhausted.
In 1661, a thirteen years' truce was concluded, whereby Russia
restored Lithuania, but kept Little Russia on the left bank of the
Dnieper, together with Kief and Smolensk.
In 1668, a revolt was organized by the Metropolitan of Kief, who
preferred the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Constantinople to that
of Moscow. As a result, Little Russia was subject to all the horrors
of war, but the Russian power prevailed in the end. Then the Cossacks
of the Don broke out, and until 1671 the territory between that river
and the Volga suffered terribly.
Alexis' reign was remarkable for the introduction of so-called
"reforms" in the Church, which were confined wholly to ceremonies (p. 144)
and externals. The czar supported the "reformer" Nicon, and those who
did not agree with him were called _religious madmen_ and suffered
persecution. The monasteries near Archangel rebelled and troops were
sent against them; but it was eight months before the sturdy monks
capitulated.
Alexis continued his father's efforts to reëstablish intercourse with
Western Europe. But the West was only recovering from the terrible
Thirty Years' War, so that little interest was shown.
Alexis had married twice. From the first marriage he had two sons
Feodor and Ivan, and six daughters; by his second wife he had one son,
Peter, and two daughters. When he died, in 1676, he was succeeded by
his eldest son Feodor.
Feodor Alexievitch, the third czar of the Romanof family, reigned only
six years, from 1676 to 1682. It was under his reign that a truce for
twenty years with Turkey, restored peace to White Russia.
Hitherto Russia had suffered from the rivalry resulting from disputes
caused by precedence of birth; generals had lost battles, because they
refused to serve under men whom they looked upon as inferiors. At an
assembly of the higher clergy, it was resolved to burn the Book of
Rank, and the czar made a law that any one disputing about his rank,
should lose it as well as his property.
To protect the Greek Church from dividing into sects, an academy was
founded at Moscow where the Slav, Latin, and Greek languages were
taught.
XVII--EARLY YEARS OF PETER THE GREAT (PETER ALEXIEVITCH). (p. 145)
Feodor died childless, and should have been succeeded by his little
brother Ivan, but the child was of unsound mind. The other son of
Alexis, Peter, was the child of his last wife, and nine years old at
the time. The question about the succession was discussed in the
Council, and decided in Peter's favor, and his mother Natalia became
Regent. Among Peter's half sisters was one, Sophia, twenty-five years
old, who did not propose to submit to this decision. She took part in
Feodor's funeral, in defiance of the law which forbade women to appear
in public, and after it schemed and plotted to form a party in her
favor. A rumor was spread that the czarina's brother had seized the
throne and that Ivan had been murdered. The people of Moscow rose, and
the streltsi marched to the kremlin where the appearance of Natalia
with the two children made the mob hesitate. Unfortunately Prince
Dolgorouki addressed the men in violent language; they seized him on
their pikes and killed him. They then stabbed the czarina's foster
father, Matvéef, in her presence, and sacked the palace, murdering
many of its inmates. One of Natalia's brothers was thrown out of a
window and caught on the points of the lances of the streltsi who (p. 146)
were waiting below. Natalia's father and brother were taken from her;
Cyril, the father, was sent to a monastery and her brother Ivan was
tortured and cut to pieces, although the czarina went on her knees
begging for his life. The streltsi acted under authority from Sophia
when they committed these outrages. After this rioting had continued
seven days, the streltsi sent their commandant Khovanski to the douma,
to demand that there should be two czars, Ivan, with Peter as his
assistant. The douma did not fancy the idea,--but there were the
streltsi with their pikes, and they carried the day.
From this time it was Sophia who was the real czar. She reigned in
name of the two half-brothers, and showed herself in public, insisting
upon being present on every occasion. The Russians as a rule are not
fond of new fashions; they did not like this, and objected so strongly
that Sophia was forced to give way. Thereafter the two young czars sat
in public on the throne, but it was constructed in such a manner that
Sophia could hear and see without being visible.
She shocked every Russian by her manners until the streltsi began to
speak of her as "the scandalous person." They hated her when she
persecuted the _raskolnik_ or Old Believers, that is, the men who
objected to the reforms of Nicon. At last she thought that it was not
safe for her to remain at Moscow; she fled to the strong convent at
Troïtsa, taking with her the czarina and the two little tsars, and
there summoned the men-at-arms whom she could trust. Khovanski, the
commandant of the streltsi, was summoned before her; he was arrested
on the way, and put to death with his son. The streltsi were (p. 147)
considering another revolt, when they were seized with a panic;
instead of marching upon Troïtsa, they went there to beg her pardon.
Sophia forgave them, but their leaders were executed.
Sophia trusted the government to two favorites, Prince Galitsyne who
was at the head of Foreign Affairs, and Chaklovity whom she made
commandant of the streltsi. Galitsyne tried hard to form an alliance
among the Christian powers against the Turks and Tartars. His scheme
failed because Louis XIV of France kept the whole of Western Europe in
turmoil by his constant wars with the House of Austria, and the
Christian princes had to look after their own interests. He was more
fortunate in Poland where John Sobieski was king. A treaty of
"perpetual" peace was concluded between Russia and Poland at
Androussovo, in 1686, and an alliance was entered into against the
Turks.