Elena Glinskaya: reforms (table). Monetary reform of Elena Glinsky and its essence

Reforms of Elena Glinsky were carried out in conditions when the young united Russian state changed its way, abandoning the outdated orders of the period of fragmentation.

Personality of Elena Glinsky

In 1533, Grand Duke Vasily III suddenly died. His first wife was never able to give birth to a child. Therefore, very shortly before his death, he entered into his second marriage, despite the fact that this was contrary to church rules. Elena Glinskaya became his second wife. As in any monarchy, in the principality of Moscow, in the absence of an heir, the question of continuity of power arose sharply. Because of this, the personal life of the ruler became an invariable part of public life.

Elena gave birth to Vasily two sons - Ivan and Yuri. The eldest of them was born in 1530. At the time of his father's death, he was only three years old. Therefore, the Regency Council was assembled in Moscow, which included the boyars from various influential aristocratic families.

Board of Elena Glinsky

At the head of the state stood Elena Vasilievna Glinskaya - the mother of a young prince. She was young and full of strength. According to law and tradition, Elena had to transfer power to her son when he reached the age of majority (17 years).

However, the regent suddenly died in 1538 at the age of 30. There were rumors in Moscow that she was poisoned by the Shuisky boyars, who wanted to take over all the power in the council. One way or another, but the exact causes of death have not been elucidated. Power for another decade passed to the boyars. It was a period of unrest and outrage, which influenced the nature of the future king.

Nevertheless, in a short period of rule, Elena managed to implement many state reforms that were designed to improve life within the country.

The background of monetary reform

In 1535, an unprecedented transformation of the monetary system began, initiated by Elena Glinskaya. Reforms have been needed for several decades. Under Ivan III and Vasily III, the Principality of Moscow annexed many new sovereign territories (Novgorod Republic, Pskov, Ryazan Principality, etc.). Each region had its own currency. Rubles were distinguished by face value, coinage, share of precious metals, etc. While the individual princes were independent, each of them had its own mint and determined financial policy.

Now all the disparate Russian lands ended up in the jurisdiction of Moscow. But the mismatch of money led to the complication of inter-regional trade. Often, the parties to the transaction simply could not pay each other because of the inconsistency of their coins. This chaos could not remain without consequences. Throughout the country, counterfeiters were caught, who filled the market with base fakes. There were several methods of their work. One of the most popular was coin cutting. In the 30s, the amount of low-quality money became menacing. The execution of criminals did not help either.

The essence of change

The first step to correcting the financial situation was to be the ban on monetary regalia (the right to coinage) of former free possessions, on the territory of which mints existed. The essence of the monetary reform of Elena Glinsky is the unification of the entire monetary system.

At this time, the number of European merchants increased, who gladly went to trade in the markets of Muscovy. In the country there were many rare goods for Western buyers (furs, metals, etc.). But the growth of trade was hampered by the turmoil with fake coins inside the Moscow principality. The monetary reform of Elena Glinsky was supposed to rectify this situation.

Continued policy of Vasily III

Interestingly, measures to change monetary policy were discussed even under Basil III. The prince pursued an active foreign policy (he fought with Lithuania, Crimea, etc.). The cost of the army was reduced due to the intentional deterioration of the quality of coins, in which the proportion of precious metals decreased. But Basil III died prematurely. Therefore, the monetary reform of Elena Glinsky took place in unexpected circumstances. The princess successfully completed her task in a short time. This can only be explained by the fact that she was an active assistant in the affairs of Vasily when he was still alive. That is why Elena Glinskaya was aware of all the cases and the necessary measures. The turmoil inside the Boyar Duma and the Regency Council could not prevent the young ruler.

Reform

In February 1535, a decree on changes in monetary circulation was announced in Moscow. Firstly, all old coins that were minted up to that day became invalid (this applies to both low-grade counterfeits and coins of appropriate quality). Secondly, new money weighing a third of a gram was introduced. For the convenience of small settlements, they also began to mint coins twice as easily (0.17 grams). They were called halves. Then the word of Turkic origin “money” was officially fixed. Initially, it was distributed among the Tatars.

However, there were reservations that provided for the monetary reform of Elena Glinsky. In short, some exceptions were introduced for Veliky Novgorod. This city was the merchant capital of the principality. Traders from all over Europe came here. Therefore, for ease of calculation, Novgorod coins received their own weight (two-thirds of a gram). They depicted a horseman armed with a spear. Because of this, these coins became known as kopeks. Later, this word spread throughout Russia.

Effects

It is difficult to overestimate the benefits that the reforms of Elena Glinsky brought, which are very difficult to describe briefly. They helped the country move to a new stage of development. The single monetary system facilitated and accelerated trade. Rare goods began to appear in distant provinces. Food shortages have decreased. Merchants grew rich and invested their profits in new projects, raising the country's economy.

The quality of coins minted in Moscow has improved. Among European merchants, Russian money began to be respected . The country's foreign trade was activated, which allowed it to sell rare goods abroad, which gave a significant profit to the treasury. All this was facilitated by the reforms of Elena Glinsky. The table shows the main features of these transformations not only in financial, but also in other areas of society.

Lip reform

Princess Elena Glinskaya, whose reforms did not end with finances, also began to change the system of local self-government. Changing the borders of the state with her husband led to the fact that the old internal administrative division became ineffective. Because of this, the lip reform of Elena Glinsky began. It concerned local government. The adjective “labial” comes from the word “kill”. The reform also covered criminal proceedings in the provinces.

According to the princess's innovation, lip huts appeared in the country, in which labial elders worked. Such bodies should have begun work in each volost city. The laborer could conduct a trial of the robbers. This privilege was taken away from the feeders who appeared during the growth of the Moscow principality. The boyars who lived outside the capital, became not just governors. Sometimes their power was too dangerous for the political center.

Therefore, the transformation began in local government, initiated by Elena Glinskaya. Reforms also introduced new territorial districts (lips), which corresponded to the territory that was under the jurisdiction of the labial elders. This was a division under criminal jurisdiction. It did not abolish habitual volosts that corresponded to administrative boundaries. The reform began under Elena and continued under her son Ivan. In the XVI century, the borders of the lips and volosts coincided.

Change in local government

Wardens were selected from local boyars. They were controlled by the Duma, which met in the capital, as well as the Robbery order. This governing body was in charge of criminal cases of robbery, robbery, murder, as well as the work of prisons and executioners.

The separation of powers between the local administration and the judiciary allowed to increase the efficiency of their work. Also appeared the position of the labial kisser. He was elected from among the wealthy peasants and was supposed to help the headman in his work.

If the criminal case could not be considered in the labhouse, then it was sent to the Robbery order. All these innovations have been brewing for a long time, but they appeared exactly at the time when Elena Glinskaya ruled. Reforms made it easier for merchants and travelers to move on the roads. The new system came in handy for the improvement of the Volga lands, annexed during the reign of Ivan the Terrible (Kazan and Astrakhan Khanates).

Lip labs also helped the authorities fight anti-government protests among the peasantry. As mentioned above, reform was necessary not only to change local government, but also to combat feedings. The abandonment of this obsolete practice occurred a little later, when, under the successors of Elena, they began to update the zemstvo legislation. As a result, over time, appointed governors were replaced by elected ones who knew their parish better than appointees from Moscow.

Work of labial huts

The appearance of labial huts and the beginning of an organized fight against crime were the result of the realization that any violation of the law is not a private affair of the victim, but a blow to the stability of the state. After Elena Glinskaya, criminal norms were also updated in her son’s Law Code. Each labial headman received a staff of employees (kissers, tithes, etc.). Their number depended on the size of the bay and the number of residential yards within this territorial unit.

If before this, the feedmen were engaged only in an adversarial and indictment process, then the elders conducted search and investigative measures (for example, interviewing witnesses, searching for evidence, etc.). This was a new level of legal proceedings, which allowed to fight crime more effectively. Reforms of Elena Glinsky became an unprecedented impetus in this area of ​​society.