A country of wonderful and dramatic history - this is what historians say about it. And indeed, over the XII centuries of its existence, it went through a lot - the search for religion, invasion, war, turmoil, palace coups, perestroika ... Each of these stages left a scar, first of all, on the life of the people ...
Below are the conventional names of the periods of the history of Russia :
- Ancient Russia, IX-XIII centuries. It is often called the period of Kievan Rus.
- Tatar-Mongol yoke, XIII-XV centuries.
- Moscow kingdom, XVI-XVI centuries.
- Russian Empire, XVIII - beginning of XX centuries.
- USSR, beginning - end of XX centuries.
- Since 1991, the period of the Russian Federation began, in which we now live.
And now about everything in more detail. We will analyze in detail, but briefly, the main periods of the history of Russia.
It all started like that ...
No, this is not the first period in the history of Russia, but only the prerequisites for it. So...
In the 6-7 centuries, from the vast plains of Eastern Europe, Slavic tribes moved to the Northern Black Sea coast. In the valleys of the Don and Dnieper. These were pagan farmers who worshiped the sun, lightning, and wind.
Gradually, cities also began to form: Kiev, Chernihiv, Novgorod, Yaroslavl. The tribal leaders and princes were engaged in the usual affairs of that period: they fought with their neighbors - nomadic tribes of the Pechenegs and Khazars, fought with each other and ruthlessly oppressed and plundered their subjects. Gradually, the level of strife and strife became more and more tangible, and the Novgorod elders turned to the Vikings - as the Slavs called the Scandinavian Vikings - with the words: “Our land is large and plentiful, but there is no order in it. Go reign and rule us. ”
3 Varangian princes took control: Sineus, Truvor and Rurik. The new princes founded, in fact, the state of Russia. And the Varangian-Slavic people who inhabited these lands began to be called Russian.
From this begins 1 period of the history of Russia.
Rurik Board
Rurik became the founder of the Rurik dynasty, which ruled in Russia for several centuries. He himself headed the newly minted state from 862 to 879.
After the death of Rurik for some time, power passed to the guardian of his son, Oleg. For the short years of rule (from 879 to 912) he managed to capture Kiev and make it the capital of Russia. Then the Russian state became known as Kievan Rus. This state was strengthened so much that Oleg’s squad captured Constantinople, the capital of Byzantium, or, as the Russians called it, Constantinople.
After Oleg’s death, Rurik’s son, Igor, did not dominate for a long time (from 912 to 945). He was killed by rebels from the unthinkable requisitions by the Drevlyans, a neighboring vassal tribe. Olga, the wife of Igor, cruelly avenged the drevlyans for the death of her husband. But in general, she was a very enlightened ruler. Olga sat on the throne from 945 to 957 and even converted to Christianity, for which she was subsequently ranked among the most revered saints.
New religion
Paganism no longer suited Kievan Rus, a rather strong and modern state. It was necessary to choose a monotheistic religion. And to Prince Vladimir of Kiev (980-1015), Olga’s grandson, 3 religions were presented to choose from:
- Christianity in Roman and Orthodox traditions.
- Islam.
- Judaism, which was professed by the rulers of the powerful Khazar kingdom at that time.
Prince Vladimir made a historic decision. He chose Orthodoxy - the religion of Byzantium. And this choice has become crucial for Russia for the entire time of its further history.
The baptism of Russia is one of the most significant events in the first period of Russian history: it began in 988 and was not easy. The most stubborn guardians of the pagan faith were mercilessly destroyed. Many had to be baptized, as they say, "by fire and sword." However, most of the population adopted a calmly new faith.
The reign of Vladimir in Russian history is considered a bright and joyful page - the best time of Kievan Rus.
New laws
After the death of Vladimir for some time, the throne was taken by his son Yaroslav (1019-1054), nicknamed, and not without reason, the Wise. He created the first code of laws, Russian Truth. He patronized scientists, architects and icon painters. He led a sound economic policy.
After Yaroslav, one after another, rulers became his sons and grandchildren, who were at enmity with each other. The country has broken up into many principalities.
Historians believe that Kievan Rus ceased to exist in the 12th century - from this moment begins the 2nd period of the history of Russia.
Life under the yoke
At this time in the territory of Mongolia, Siberia and Northern China, a powerful warlike state was formed, led by the outstanding commander Genghis Khan. From the nomadic tribes of the Mongols and Tatars, he created an army with strict organization, iron discipline and armed with hitherto unknown siege equipment. In a death wave, this army swept across the expanses of Asia and moved towards Europe. Despite the desperate resistance of some Russian princes, the Mongol-Tatar hordes captured the entire space of Ancient Russia, spreading death, smoke, fire, violence everywhere. However, the Tatar-Mongol conquerors retained the power of loyal princes and did not persecute the Orthodox Church, which remained the guardian of culture and the main unifying factor for the Russian people.
Gradually, a balance of power and interests was established among the Tatar-Mongol invaders and Russian principalities. The second period in the development of Russian history lasted about two centuries.
Liberation victories
Prince of Novgorod Alexander Nevsky (1252-1264), being in vassal dependence on the conquerors and continuing to pay tribute to them, managed to defeat the troops of the Knightly Catholic Order twice - on the banks of the Neva and on the ice of Lake Peipsi.
Prince Alexander Nevsky (Prince of Novgorod, Grand Duke of Kiev, Grand Duke of Vladimir, commander of the Holy Russian Orthodox Church) was then ranked as a saint and became a symbol of the victory of the Orthodox Russian army over the Catholic knightly orders. It is considered one of the patron saints of Russia.
The new capital of Kievan Rus
And so, at first the small principality of Moscow, inconspicuous at first (initially the inheritance of the Grand Duchy of Vladimir) under the control of smart and prudent rulers, gradually becomes the center of attraction of the rest of the Russian lands. In general, from the day of its foundation, the Moscow state has been constantly expanding for many centuries, joining more and more new lands. And do you know what period of Russian history this time belongs to? By the Moscow kingdom of the 16th - 16th centuries, which had grown so strong over the years that the grandson of the first Moscow Prince Ivan Kalita - Prince Dmitry (1359-1389) - managed to gather an army of many thousands and move him towards a detachment of Tatars led by the commander Mamay.
The battle on the banks of the Don - on the Kulikovo field - turned into a terrible massacre. And ended with the victory of the Russian rati. And although for many years after that, Russia paid tribute to the Tatar conqueror and was in vassal dependence on them, the victory on the Kulikovo field had a deep historical significance. She showed the increased power of Russia and the ability to defeat the enemy in open battle.
But in general, over the course of 2 centuries the yoke - as the Tatar-Mongol occupation was called afterwards - Russia has largely lost various ties with the West. As if frozen on a historical path.
So the eternal pendulum in Russian history "East - West" swung towards the East.
Liberty!
In the XV century, Ivan III (1462-1505) became the Moscow Prince, nicknamed by the contemporaries the Great. Under him, Russia stopped paying tribute to the Tatar conquerors. The reign of Ivan the Great was a happy time for Russia.
He married the niece of the last Byzantine emperor Sofya Paleolog and received a double-headed eagle as the state emblem of Russia. Under him, relations were established with Europe. Foreign architects and builders came to Russia. In particular, Italian masters, who, together with Russian architects, rebuilt the Russian Kremlin.
Under him, the idea of ​​the Russian state finally appeared. It was confirmed by historical reality, and also reflected in the minds of the country's citizens, who began to understand that their country is Russia. And this is not only a Russian country, but also, after the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, the center of universal Orthodoxy.
The bloody time of Ivan the Terrible
The years of the reign of Ivan IV (1533-1584), who ascended the throne in 1547, became one of the most controversial and bloody pages in the history of Russia. The king carried out the necessary reforms:
- Has issued a new code of laws (Codex of 1550).
- Streamlined the tax system.
- Created a well-trained streltsy army.
As a result of successful wars, Kazan, Astrakhan, and then the Siberian kingdom were annexed to Russia. But he went down in world history as Ivan the Terrible - a bloody tyrant, distinguished by extreme cruelty. The atmosphere of palace intrigues, murders and treachery, combined with deviations in the psyche (this is the point of view of historians) made the king, as is often the case with tyrants, obsessed with the persecution mania. Enemies and traitors seemed to be everywhere, and he executed these subjects, and for the most part, imaginary enemies, in the most sophisticated ways.
Ivan the Terrible created a personal army - the so-called guardsmen. These were young people dressed in all black and infinitely loyal to the king. During the day, they chopped down the heads of the enemies of the Tsars, terrifying the people, and at night they feasted in close company with Ivan the Terrible. The victims of the guardsmen were primarily boyar families - the descendants of many ancient clans. The cruelty of the formidable king knew no bounds. The whole country, covered in blood, lived in constant fear. In a fit of fierce anger, the king killed his eldest son with the blow of a staff.
After the death of Ivan IV, his weak-willed and indecisive son Fedor ascended the throne (reign of 1584-1598). In fact, the country was ruled by Boris Godunov, a boyar, a close adviser to the last Russian tsars from the Rurik dynasty, which was suppressed with the death of Fedor.
Since 1598, Boris Godunov, who ascended the throne at the end of the 16th century, became the official king in Russia. He ruled rightly until 1605 and tried to reform life in Russia and strengthen statehood. This was a historic chance for Russia to make a decisive breakthrough in its development. But reformers in Russia have never been loved ...
Invasion of liars
There were various rumors among the people, sometimes the most incredible. Some of them concerned the youngest son of Ivan the Terrible, who died in infancy from an accident, Dmitry. The Poles, who had long dreamed of capturing part of the Russian lands and expanding their influence in the east, decided to take advantage of this. A man appeared in Poland, posing as a miracle of the surviving Tsarevich Dmitry. On his way from Poland to Moscow, False Dmitry received glee and support from a people dissatisfied with Godunov’s rule. The so-called Time of Troubles began. The time of anarchy and lawlessness, which was almost worse than the time of the despotism of Ivan the Terrible.
Moscow was flooded with Poles, who finally outraged the people. Not sitting on the throne for a year, False Dmitry was overthrown and executed.
The king was declared the representative of the famous boyar clan Vasily Shuisky (1606-1610) - and immediately the country was swept by a peasant uprising.
The weak power of the new king gave rise to many pretenders to the throne, supported by various forces. Cossack detachments came to Moscow to protect the country's borders, and joined in the struggle for power.
Poles, Kazakhs, Swedes - whoever tried to establish their control over Muscovy. The patience of the Russian people finally burst. He was able to rally in the face of an external and internal threat. The elder of Nizhny Novgorod Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky convened a militia. Moved from Novgorod to Moscow. They expelled all the interventionists. This time was the final for the period of the history of Russia, known as the “Moscow State”.
Romanovs, to the start!
A new Russian Tsar Michael was elected from the clan of the Romanov boyars (1613-1645). Thus a new dynasty of Russian monarchs was born, and a new period in the history of Russia began. However, we have not reached the empire yet ... After all, it was under Peter I. In the meantime ...
During the reign of Mikhail Romanov and his son, Tsar Alexei (1645-1676), the Russian people received a peaceful respite. In the last third of the 17th century, Russia achieved political stability, a certain economic well-being, and even expanded its borders.
In order to survive and take its place in the world, Russia in the 17th century needed urgent modernization. As if obeying the call of history, a man appeared who can be safely called a genius - it was Tsar Peter I (1682-1725). He set the goal of his life to promote Russia among the leading European powers.
But back to a few years ago. After the death of his father, Tsar Alexei, Sister Sophia sat on the throne, the main support of which was the squad of archers. A kind of guard that defended traditional foundations.
Peter dealt with them very harshly and even chopped off the heads of the archers on Red Square near the Moscow Kremlin. In the fight against the conservative, clinging to old traditions boyar opposition, he did not spare even his own son Alexei, sending him to be executed. However, Peter was cruel only to those who were an obstacle to the execution of his super-idea - to put Russia among the leading European countries.
He completely changed life in the country:
- I went to Europe with a large retinue, which forced me to study craft, engineering, economics, and mores.
- He sent the sons of the nobles to study in Europe.
- He ordered the beards to shave the boyars, I will give them to wear low-cut dresses and hold balls according to the European model. The elite of society - the ruling class - has completely changed, even externally. The social history of Russia during the empire was incredibly saturated.
- True, under a false name himself, for some time he worked as a carpenter in order to master shipbuilding.
- With the help of young merchants, he created a new industry providing the army with weapons.
- He waged wars with the Swedes, Turks, again with the Swedes in order to annex new territories, and most importantly, provide the country with access to the sea. Indeed, until now, the Russian state did not have its ports in the Black or Baltic Seas.
Moreover, on the Baltic coast, in wild places, where there were only forests and swamps, he built a new capital of the Russian Empire - the city of St. Petersburg, which was for Russia a “window to Europe”.
Peter occupies a special place in Russian history. He left behind a completely new country. History itself is now divided into 2 periods: pre-Petrine Russia and post-Petrine Russia.
Palace coups
After the death of Peter in 1725, the so-called era of palace coups in the history of Russia begins. The periods of the reign of emperors are limited by the time acceptable to the guard.
First, Empress for 2 years (1725-1727) became Catherine I Alekseevna - the wife of Peter. Then the power for 3 years (1727-1730) passed to the grandson of Peter - Peter II Alekseevich. And then for 10 years (1730-1740) the guards put on the throne the niece of Peter - Anna Ioannovna. In fact, this period was ruled by the country, its favorite - the cruel Ernst Biron.
After the death of Anna for a short time (1740-1741), the baby Ivan VI Antonovich was declared emperor, the regency of which was carried out by his mother Anna Leopoldovna - the niece of Anna Ioannovna. The guard successfully overthrew her and seized the throne of Peter's daughter, Elizabeth (1741-1761), who had no children. After her death, the throne passed to his nephew, Peter III Fedorovich (1761-1702). He married the German princess Sophia Augustus Frederick of Anhalt-Cerbt, who received the name Catherine in Russia. In the end, the guards overthrew Peter III, and Catherine was seated on the throne.
As a result, 75 rulers were replaced in Russia 75 years after Peter.
The Golden Age of the Russian Empire
The reign of Catherine II is called the Golden Age. With her, Russia continued the path outlined by Peter — the country fought both in the West and in the South. A series of Russian-Turkish wars as a result annexed Crimea and the Northern Black Sea region to Russia, opening the way to the warm waters of the Mediterranean Sea.
After several partitions of Poland, Russia became part of: Lithuania, Belarus, western regions of Ukraine.
Following the Moscow University, opened even under Elizabeth, thanks to Catherine the Great and several metropolitan schools appear in St. Petersburg.
Catherine II was liberal. She called her subjects not slaves, but free people. True, the peasant uprising (1773-1775) led by Stepan Pugachev frightened the empress so much that she curtailed her liberal projects. In particular, a new code of laws.
Catherine, considering the son of Paul (1796-1801) not a very smart young man, during her reign did not even close him to the throne. Therefore, having seized upon the authorities, he began to eradicate all “freethinking”. He introduced strict censorship, forbade Russian citizens to study abroad, and foreigners could freely enter Russia. He broke off diplomatic relations with England and sent 40 regiments of Don Cossacks to conquer India. At the same time, they had no maps, no action plan. As a result of the conspiracy in which Pavel’s son Alexander participated, he was overthrown and killed.
The new emperor was Alexander I (1801-1825). He began rule with the abolition of his father's decrees. Returned from exile innocent victims. And in general he was determined to carry out various liberal reforms. Under him, for the first time, imperial Russia begins to wage a defensive war against France.
Not far from Moscow, near the village of Borodino (1812), the famous battle took place, as a result of which neither side was able to win a decisive victory.
Emperor Nicholas I Pavlovich (1825-1855) struggled hard with the ideas of change that entered the country. Over the 30 years of his reign, he created an ideal, absolute monarchy. Authoritarian thinking has affected foreign policy. Starting another Russian-Turkish war, Nicholas was faced with the opposition of the European powers. Connected by allied obligations with Turkey, with the Ottoman Empire, England and France moved their troops to the Black Sea, as a result of which they inflicted a humiliating defeat on Russia. This dragged Russia into another crisis.
Nicholas I was succeeded by his son Alexander II (1855-1881). His rule was connected with the abolition of serfdom in the country (1861). This event has become one of the most important in the social history of Russia during the empire. That is why Alexander II went down in history as the “Tsar Liberator”.
The new monarch actively implemented reforms:
However, to some they seemed too serious, and to others - not enough. The king was caught in the crossfire of conservatives and liberals. In 1881, as a result of an assassination attempt on the banks of the Catherine Canal, he was killed.
The threats of terrorism forced Alexander III (1881-1894) to settle away from St. Petersburg, in the well-guarded Gatchina Palace. His reign can be described as a victory of conservatism - reforms stopped, the action of some liberal laws was limited.
On the eve of the USSR
The change of the 19th and 20th centuries is a transitional time between the main periods in the history of Russia. Empire will be replaced by Union ... Soon ...
Perhaps the most unhappy Russian Tsar was the son of Alexander III - Nicholas II (1894-1917). He was burdened by the fact that he was born an heir. He was frightened by the prospect of becoming emperor.
Society longed for change, and after a lost war with Japan in the Far East, the first working revolt happened, which turned into a revolution. The uprising was crushed. The frightened king went to extremes.
An uneducated, poor and hungry country for the most part in 1914 enters the war on the side of England and France with Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The soldiers — yesterday's peasants — did not understand what they were fighting for. Plus, the poor equipment of the army, discontent, hunger did their job - they gave rise to an uprising in St. Petersburg.
As a result, the last Russian tsar from the Romanov dynasty abdicates. We can say that from this moment begins the Soviet period in the history of Russia.
Soviet troubles
An interim government formed of representatives of different parties came to power. The war-weary population adopted revolutionary views. Representatives of extremist and terrorist organizations that had previously been underground returned from abroad.
One of these was the "Marxist Group of Bolshevik Communists" led by Vladimir Ulyanov (Lenin). They boldly seized power in St. Petersburg. They occupied, almost without firing a shot, the Winter Palace, where the interim government was located, and arrested its members.
Civil War
From 1917 to 1920, there was a civil war in the country. As a result, the Bolsheviks won. In 1920, they began to build a “society of happiness” in a country lying in ruins — communism. This ideology will become central to the Soviet period in the history of Russia.
Lenin takes a decisive step and introduces a new economic policy (NEP), which allowed the state to transform in a couple of years - there were products, clothes and even luxury goods. This annoyed the cardinal Bolsheviks.
After the death of Lenin in 1924, Joseph Dzhugashvili, better known under the pseudonym Stalin (1924-1953), seized power more and more decisively. He took control of the secret police of the Cheka. Started a series of high-profile trials against almost all the leaders of the Bolsheviks who led the revolution. Since 1929, it has completely controlled the country. Destroys kulaks, captures the earth and creates collective farms.
The Second World War II (1941-1945) fell on the Stalin era. This is one of the blackest pages of this period in the history of Russia.
As a result of a short struggle for power, after the liquidation of the Minister of State Security, Lavrenty Beria, in 1953 the pragmatist Nikita Khrushchev came to power. He was a controversial leader - he suggested sowing fields with corn, at a meeting of the UN Security Council he pounded his boots on the podium; however, the first satellite was launched during it, and cosmonaut Gagarin made the world's first flight into outer space. The first of the Soviet leaders visited America. Under him there was a "Khrushchev thaw" that allowed liberal views in art. He promised to destroy and bury America in the land, and he, in moments of enlightenment, decided to get rid of the dominance of the party nomenclature. For which he was removed from power by this very nomenclature in 1964.
The country’s reins were taken over by a group of conspirators led by Leonid Brezhnev (1964-1982). The years of his reign are usually called the era of stagnation. The confrontation with the West continued. The Cold War was either gaining momentum or declining. The economy was focused on the sale of commodities, which led to a crisis. Brezhnev died in 1982.
The government nominated him to replace the former head of the security service of the influential Yuri Andropov (1982-1984), and then, after his death, another elderly leader Konstantin Chernenko (1984-1985), who also soon died.
A younger ruler came to power - Mikhail Gorbachev (1985-1991), who energetically got down to business. He quickly changed the leadership of the party and state and began to carry out reforms. The so-called course on the restructuring of the public and state life of the country was announced.
Gorbachev's liberal reforms provoked dissatisfaction among conservative circles. In 1991, they decided to make a coup. However, the putsch was defeated, because the conspirators did not have any plan of action to change the country's life for the better. Nevertheless, the coup actually left the country without a government, which the emboldened heads of the national republics took advantage of - having seceded and gained independence from Russia.
The paradox is that Gorbachev, who returned with triumph to Moscow, remained the president of the disintegrated Union, and Boris Yeltsin (1991-1999) became the new president of Russia.
Our time - New time
Everything that has been happening in our country since 1991 is related to the period of the modern history of Russia.
And now back to Yeltsin ... The pluses of his politicians are attributed to the lack of confrontation with decaying republics and conservative political opposition. As well as a democratic style of government, freedom of speech. However, conservatives opposed. This led to the armed rebellion of 1993. Nevertheless, the first president managed to cope with the situation without repression.
When it seemed that everything bad was behind, a financial crisis erupted in the country, which ended in default - bankruptcy, loss of deposits in banks, shutdown of enterprises ... All this could lead to a new revolution. But history has its own plans.
Yeltsin appoints the former officer of the security committee Vladimir Putin (2000-2008, 2012 - today) as his successor. At first, Putin continued to pursue Yeltsin’s policies, but eventually began to show greater independence. It was he who settled the conflict in Chechnya.
In 2008, according to the constitution, Putin transferred powers to the newly elected president Dmitry Medvedev, and he himself took over as prime minister. However, in 2012, everything changed again ... Today, Vladimir Putin takes the post of president of the Russian Federation.
These are, to be brief, calm and exciting historical periods in the history of Russia.