The reign of Boris Godunov is of particular interest, because he was the first Tsar of Russia who did not belong to the Rurikovich dynasty. His fate is largely contradictory. Having taken the country on take-off after a decade of rest from the oprichnina Ivan the Terrible, the new ruler had every opportunity not only to help the country finally recover, but also to create a new dynasty. However, he failed. This was served by a whole range of reasons, which will be discussed below.
Accession to the throne
Boris Godunov belonged to the boyar clan, who served at the Moscow court for many years. However, the rise of a young man was served not so much by the nobility of the surname as by his own abilities of survival at the court of Ivan the Terrible. In the years of the oprichnina, he married the daughter of Malyuta Skuratov - the closest close king. Thanks to this, he entered the circle of the monarch.
After the death of Ivan the Terrible in 1584, his son Fedor, who was distinguished by poor health and the lack of ability of a leader, should have ascended the throne. For this reason, a regency council was created, which included the most famous boyars of the country. Very soon, all of them lost their posts because of the struggle for power that was going on at the court.
Since 1585, Boris was virtually the sole ruler of the country, being the brother-in-law of an official autocrat. Fedor died 13 years later, leaving no direct heirs. For this reason, his closest relative was anointed to the kingdom. Nevertheless, the internal and foreign policies of Boris Godunov should be considered in the years of his regency.
Urban planning
By the end of the 16th century, power from Moscow extended to thousands of unpopulated kilometers. The reason for this was the submission of the Kazan, Astrakhan and Siberian Khanates. Boris Godunov’s domestic policy could not ignore such an important issue as the settlement of new territories.
Urban development took the largest scale on the Volga. Here, new fortresses were necessary to ensure the safety of the waterway. Samara, Saratov and Tsaritsyn (the future Volgograd) appeared. Settlement of lands located south of the Oka River and previously suffering from Tatar raids began. Yelets was restored, the cities of Voronezh and Belgorod were built. Rare expeditions went to Siberia, where Cossacks rebuilt Tomsk to gain a foothold in new territories. At the same time, existing cities were strengthened. So, in Moscow a new wall was erected.
Relations with other states
Boris Godunov’s domestic and foreign policy was aimed at proving the legitimacy of his rule. This was also served by constant contacts with Europe, with the help of which the new ruler tried to establish himself as an open and wise diplomat. Even under Fedor, thanks to his brother-in-law, he managed to end the war with Sweden. The peace treaty, signed near Ivangorod, allowed Russia to return the Baltic lands lost even after the unsuccessful Livonian War.
The foreign policy of Boris Godunov, the table of which can be depicted in the form of numerous links, characterized him as a visionary ruler who understands the backwardness of his country. After receiving the throne, the new king filled his court with foreigners. Nobles, doctors, engineers, and, in general, experts in various sciences gathered in Moscow. A century before Peter the Great, his predecessor began sending compatriots to Europe for training.
The British were especially favored by the monarch. With them, he signed monopoly trade agreements in the White Sea. To exchange goods, Arkhangelsk was built.
In relations with the most problematic neighbors - the Poles - the policy of Boris Godunov, in short, was aimed at maintaining peace. Another threat - the Crimean Tatars - was successfully restrained. In 1591, their army approached Moscow, but was defeated.
Dynastic problem
For the new king it was extremely important to ensure his dynasty a reliable future and procreation. This was served by Boris Godunov’s domestic / foreign policy. If his son Fedor was still too young for a wedding, then daughter Ksenia was just the perfect bride. A groom for her was found in Denmark. They became the brother of King Christian IV John. He even arrived in Moscow, but died there suddenly. Sudden death gives the right to assume that the groom was poisoned, but so far no exact evidence has been found.
After that, the monarch intended to tie his children in marriage with representatives of noble English families, but the death of Queen Elizabeth in 1603 prevented this intention.
Repression
The precarious situation of the dynasty was aggravated by the suspicious character of the king. Boris Godunov’s domestic policy was notable for its intolerance of competitors claiming power. And if at first the sovereign treated his associates with sympathy, then in the last years of his reign at the court denunciation flourished. Typical reasons for opal were complaints from servants and fabricated evidence.
Many famous boyar families, including the Romanovs, were affected. The cousin of the late Fedor Ivanovich Fedor Nikitich was forcibly tonsured a monk. Later he will be the father of the first tsar from the Romanov dynasty - Mikhail Fedorovich, and will also accept the rank of patriarch.
Pressure on close associates became one of the reasons for the discontent of the people by the new autocrat. His behavior more and more resembled the habits of Ivan the Terrible, who was distinguished by paranoia and mania of persecution.
Hunger and attempts to combat it
The situation worsened in 1601, when most of the crop died in the country due to bad weather. The famine lasted several years. Despite the fact that this disaster did not begin through the fault of the king, the superstitious masses regarded the incident as a heavenly punishment for the illegal usurpation of the throne. The internal and foreign policies of Boris Godunov began to depend on the mood of the lower classes.
Trying to save the situation, the sovereign ordered to freeze the price of bread. Another measure was the restoration of St. George's Day, in which the peasants could change their landowner. However, these efforts were in vain. The standard of living of the population continued to decline, and riots began in the peasant as well as Cossack environment. The most famous in this series is the Cotton Rise, which brought together common people about 20 counties of central Russia. A motley crowd reached Moscow and was defeated by the tsarist army. However, this did not change the country's position for the better.
The appearance of an impostor
The above events became only prerequisites for the disaster that overtook Godunov. During the last months of the reign, Boris Godunov’s domestic / foreign policy was subordinated to unrest, led by impostor Grigory Otrepyev, posing as the son of Ivan the Terrible who died in childhood.
Despite the incredible lie, False Dmitry gathered around him a large number of supporters. The backbone of his troops were the Cossacks of the western counties. The impostor pretended to be the last Rurikovich, which means he had a formal right to the throne. His army marched triumphantly towards Moscow, but was defeated at the battle of Dobrynichy in the modern Bryansk region. Nevertheless, the impostor managed to escape to Putivl, where he again gathered the army.
The fate of the dynasty and characteristics of government
Against the backdrop of these events, Boris Fedorovich suddenly died in Moscow. His son Fedor did not rule for long and was killed after the throne was able to capture False Dmitry. The Godunov dynasty stopped, and in the country began the Troubles. For this reason, Boris Godunov’s domestic and foreign policies are often criticized as the cause of subsequent disasters.
Nevertheless, this point of view is not entirely objective. The policy of Boris Godunov, briefly, was balanced and correct. However, the former boyar was ruined by suspicion and banal failure, since it was under him that hunger raged for several years in the country, without which the Troubles and leaps on the throne would certainly not have happened.
The foreign policy of Boris Godunov deserves special praise. Briefly, it is recorded in the annals of that time. They capture numerous contacts with European powers and a successful confrontation with the Crimean Tatars.