The nickname of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov is Quiet. In some articles, his origin is explained by the gentle nature of the king, his ability to listen to the interlocutor, and never raise his voice. But more corrosive experts find another explanation. They repulse from the old postulate "silence and peace", which symbolized a prosperous state. Alexei Mikhailovich rightfully received this nickname, as he left his sons a strong country, which the neighbors were afraid of.
First Mentor of the Young King
The prosperity of the state was facilitated by the domestic and foreign policies of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov (1629-1676). The tenth Russian Tsar, the second
the ruler of Russia from the Romanov clan, whose reign was in the "rebel age", was at the head of state from 1645 to 1676. He ruled the country successfully. The 17th century was nicknamed "rebel." It is not difficult to imagine that a person "could not handle such a situation" in his hands would hardly be able to. That is, Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov carried out his rule rigidly, and was more than sharp on the tongue. He ascended the throne very early and was forced to rely on someone’s opinion in sovereign affairs. The adviser was unsuccessful - the greedy and wayward B. I. Morozov, who concentrated practically all power in his hands, managed to set all estates of Moscow against himself with exorbitant bribes and requisitions. And when he introduced an additional tax on essential goods, and salt began to cost two hryvnias per pound instead of five kopecks, in 1648 one of the largest urban uprisings broke out - the “salt riot”. The young tsar barely managed to save his brother-in-law
Boris Morozov, who was the largest state dignitary at that time and the actual culprit of the rebellion.
Annual riots
The historical portrait of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov can be continued by listing the popular uprisings that fell on the years of his reign. Echoes of the “salt riot” have reached other cities: Ustyug, Solvychegodsk and many others. However, the riots that broke out in 1650 in Novgorod and Pskov were much more powerful and serious than the above. The reason for the uprisings was the purchase of bread. He was needed to pay debts for the peasants who had fled to Russia from the territories that had left Sweden for the Stolbovetsky world (1617). Obviously, there were excesses on the ground, and the peasants decided that the traitor boyars, having conspired with foreigners, want to cause hunger in Russia. But all these shocks fade in front of the Cossack freemen, who grew into the Peasant War of 1670-1671 under the leadership of Stenka Razin. It is unlikely that the “Silent”, in the sense of timid, tsar could safely solve these problems of a social nature, and at the same time, quite decisive and, in a sense, reformist domestic and foreign policy of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov did not change.
The enviable successes of the last tsar of Moscow Russia
He carried out reforms within the country and waged successful wars beyond its borders. He was a wise politician, usually achieving his goal. Being the last tsar of Moscow Russia, he managed to return Russia to Smolensk, Seversky lands with Chernigov and Starodub, Western Russian lands, annex Ukraine, move deep into Siberia, founding new cities there - Nerchinsk, Irkutsk, Selenginsk. In 1647, Okhotsk was founded. And in the next 1648, S. Dezhnev opened the passage between Asia and America.
Copper riot
But popular unrest flared up with enviable regularity throughout the years of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov. So, in 1662, a rebellion broke out in Moscow, known as the Copper Riot. The tsarist government decided to introduce a new means of payment - copper money, which was equated with silver. But, paying salary in copper, the treasury demanded taxes in silver. In addition, copper money was well counterfeited, and counterfeit currency swept the capital. Money depreciated, essentials became inaccessible. A new rebellion broke out, which was once again successfully liquidated, as well as the uprisings that followed it in Bashkiria and Siberia (1663-1664).
Well-educated person and a great politician
It should be noted that The Silent was an excellent negotiator and knew how to negotiate, and not just hard suppress the uprisings. The ability to conduct a dialogue was explained by literacy, erudition, and well-read tsar.
He was the author of several works, was fluent in Russian, read petitions himself, and was the first ruler to personally sign orders and other papers. In addition, he knew several foreign languages and was familiar with all European literature, at his order foreign books began to be translated into Russian, and in general there was a rapprochement between Russian and Western cultures. Under him, the theater began to develop, and the post of Russia was established
Church schism
The foundations of everything that his son
Peter I became famous for were laid by Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov. Briefly, he can be described as a monarch who cares about the improvement of Russia, who has done a lot to ensure that a monolithic country with strong centralized and sole royal authority takes its rightful place among the great powers. Sometimes it took ugly forms, the most striking example of which could be Nikon's reforms, which led to a church schism and the emergence of Old Believers. This is one of the bloodiest pages not only during the years of the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov, but in the entire history of Russia. The main goal of the reforms was to bring the patriarchal church of Muscovite Russia and Byzantine, European and advanced in line. Some modern researchers believe that the whole idea was provoked by the Vatican, and Catherine II hated Nikon and believed that he dreamed of becoming the Russian Pope. Rejection of church innovations was great - one
Solovetsky seat (uprising in the Solovetsky monastery), which lasted 8 years, which is worth it.
Good foundation for further reforms
Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov wisely carried out his rule, and chose his assistants, guided, first of all, by their abilities, thus diluting the ranks of the clan aristocracy. This tradition was developed and brought to the absolute, marrying a commoner and making the first dignitary of the state a native of the people, his son Peter I. And the amusing troops of Peter the Great began Alexei Mikhailovich, giving his son a small but active cannon, which is now stored in the Artillery Museum in St. Petersburg. The reorganization of the army was also begun by the "Quietest" - he modernized and improved the archery regiments loyal to him. He did not shave the beards of the boyars, but greatly reduced their power.
Strengthening the monarchy
The historical portrait of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov can be supplemented with information that he secured his one-man rule by creating the Secret Affairs Order, which was only in his charge. He also controlled the central and local authorities personally. The abolition of Zemsky Sobors, consisting of representatives of all estates, except the peasant, and having considerable power, greatly strengthened the autocracy. And finally, Aleksei Mikhailovich published a new collection of laws - the Cathedral Code of 1649 (the first printed monument of Russian law), replacing it with Sudebnik, acting from 1550. Thus, serfdom was legalized. All these actions aimed at creating absolutism at that time were progressive steps that strengthened Russia. One can add the fact that he was the first to establish a state monopoly on vodka.
Latitude of state interests
From all of the above, we can conclude that the domestic and foreign policy of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov was thought out and successful. After the Time of Troubles, the goal of Russia's foreign policy is the return of lands lost in previous years, and the strengthening of borders, especially the southern ones. Silent lived for 49 years - a very short time.
Perhaps that is why the domestic and foreign policy of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov did not get its completion - not all the lands were returned, Russia did not get access to the seas, although he managed to grab a piece of the Baltic coast. Both the first shipyard and the first Russian military ship "Eagle" were built during the second tsar from the Romanov dynasty. He did a lot for the prosperity of Russia, which his son Peter I turned into a great empire.
The main result of the board
Over the 20 years of rule, this Russian Tsar has done a lot. He turned the estate-representative monarchy into an absolute. The years of his reign became critical between Moscow Russia and the Russian Empire. Such was the policy of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov. The table reflecting the entire era of the reign of this monarch is huge. A compressed table, in which only epoch-making events are reflected, looks like this:
Domestic policy | Foreign policy |
1. Discontinued Zemsky Cathedrals. 2. The lawsuit of 1550 was replaced by the Cathedral Code of 1649, according to which the peasants were forever assigned to the owners. (Serfdom) 3. The creation of the Secret Affairs Order, personally ruled by the king, which contributed to the strengthening of absolutism. | 1. The return of Russian lands, reunion with Ukraine. 2. The development of Siberia, the laying and construction of new cities. 3. Successful wars with Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, as a result of which the former refused to help the latter in the war with Russia, to which Smolensk and Western Russian lands were returned. |