The Solovetsky Uprising, which took place from 1668 to 1676, is today one of the most remarkable events in Russian history. The uprising was organized by monks who refused the innovations of Patriarch Nikon.
Solovetsky Uprising: Reasons
To begin with, it is worth noting that the Solovetsky monastery in the early 17th century turned into an important military facility in connection with the Russian-Swedish war. After all, all his buildings were perfectly fortified, which allowed to protect the land from the invasion of enemies. In addition, each person who lived in or near the monastery was armed and well trained to defend himself from attack. By the way, at that time the population was 425 people. And in case of a siege by the Swedish troops, the monastery kept a huge amount of edible reserves.
The first dissatisfaction of the clergy was caused by the reform of Patriarch Nikon, who condemned the Old Believers. In 1636, a whole batch of new worship books corrected according to the reform was sent to the Solovetsky Monastery. But the monks, without even looking at the books, sealed from the chests and sent for storage to the armory. This was the first expression of dissatisfaction with government.
It is also worth recalling that the beginning of the 17th century was accompanied by constant mass uprisings against the government and innovations. It was a turbulent time, when even the smallest changes could develop into a real rebellion. And the Solovetsky uprising was no exception to the general laws. Some historians have tried to put up the revolt of the monks as the resistance of ignorant churchmen and adherents of the old faith.
Solovetsky uprising and hostilities
In fact, not only the monks of the Solovetsky Monastery participated in the rebellion. They were joined by fugitive soldiers, disgruntled peasants, as well as associates of Stepan Razin. After such a replenishment, the uprising has already acquired a certain political significance.
It is worth noting that the first few years almost no military operations were undertaken. The king hoped for a peaceful solution to such a sensitive issue. For example, government troops moved to the Solovetsky Islands only in the summer. For several months they tried, albeit unsuccessfully, to block the connection of the rebellious monks with the mainland. As soon as the cold came , the troops moved to Sumy prison. Interestingly, most of the archers simply went home. This relatively peaceful situation was maintained until 1674.
It was in 1674 that the government found out that Kozhevnikov, Sarafanov and other Razin brothers in arms were hiding behind the walls of the monastery. Since then, real attacks began, which were accompanied by victims. The government allowed active hostilities, including shelling of the monastery walls.
And in December 1675, the monks decided not to pray for the king again. Not all the rebels liked this “innovation”, so some of them had to be temporarily imprisoned in a monastery prison.
Solovetsky Uprising: Results
Despite the constant, round-the-clock siege, undermining and shelling, government forces were not able to penetrate the walls of the monastery. In January 1677, the rebel left the Theoktist, who immediately went to the royal troops. It was he who advised how to quietly get inside the monastery.
On the night of February 1, fifty archers quietly penetrated through a small secret hole (a window for carrying water) into the monastery's drying room. Then the soldiers opened the gates and let the rest of the troops.
In the courtyard, 30 rebels tried to repulse the attack, but to no avail - the battle was unequal. It is interesting that by this day there were practically no monks left behind the walls of the monastery - some of them left the house without permission, and some were expelled. Several clergymen were imprisoned at the monastery - they were released by government troops.
Thus, the Solovetsky uprising ceased. As a result, about 30 rebels were executed, the rest were sent to prisons.