The history of Russia has more than a thousand years, although even before the advent of the state, various tribes lived on its territory. The last ten-century period can be divided into several stages. All the rulers of Russia, from Rurik to Putin, are people who were the true sons and daughters of their eras.
The main historical stages of the development of Russia
Historians consider the most convenient classification:
- The rule of the Novgorod princes (862-882);
- The reign of the Great Kiev princes (882-1263 years);
- the rule of the princes in Vladimir (1157-1425);
- The Grand Duchy of Moscow (1283-1547);
- the period of kings and emperors (from 1547 to 1917);
- period of the USSR (1917 - 1991);
- board of presidents (1991- to the present).
This classification will tell a lot even to the reader, who is not strong in the history of the country. The characterization of the rulers of Russia of one period or another largely depends on the contemporary era. The core centers of the political life of Russia changed their location several times. Until 1547, princes ruled in Russia, then the period of state monarchization began, which tragically ended in 1917. Almost the entire 20th century was marked by the hegemony of the Communist Party, as well as the emergence of new independent states on the territory of the former USSR.
Chronology of the rulers of Russia from 862 to the beginning of the period of fragmentation (Novgorod and Great Kiev principality)
The results of studies of historical materials of this period allow us to trace the sequence of princes in power. It was also possible to establish the dates of the rule of all the rulers of Russia in the specified period. So:
- Rurik rules from 862 to 879;
- Prophetic Oleg was in power from 879 to 912;
- Igor was in the princely field for the next 33 years, was killed in 945;
- Olga, the Grand Duchess (945-964);
- the warrior prince Svyatoslav (the son of Igor and Olga) ruled 8 years before his death on the battlefield;
- Yaropolk Svyatoslavovich (972-980);
- Baptist of Russia Vladimir Krasnoy Solnyshko (980-1015);
- Yaroslav the Wise (1016-1054);
- from 1054 to 1068, Izyaslav Yaroslavovich was in power;
- from 1068 to 1078, the list of Russian rulers was replenished with several names at once (Vseslav Bryachislavovich, Izyaslav Yaroslavovich, Svyatoslav and Vsevolod Yaroslavovich, in 1078 Izyaslav Yaroslavovich ruled again)
- 1078 was marked by some stabilization in the political arena, until 1093 Vsevolod Yaroslavovich ruled;
- Svyatopolk Izyaslavovich was on the throne from 1093 to 1113 ;
- Vladimir, nicknamed Monomakh (1113-1125) - one of the best princes of Kievan Rus;
- further 7 years on the throne was the son of Monomakh Mstislav Vladimirovich;
- From 1132 to 1139, Yaropolk Vladimirovich had power.
All the rulers of Russia from Rurik to Putin, who lived and ruled during this period and up to the present, saw their main task in the country's prosperity and strengthening the country's role in the European arena. Another thing is that each of them went to the goal in their own way, sometimes in a completely different direction than their predecessors.
The period of fragmentation of Kievan Rus
During the feudal fragmentation of Russia, changes on the main princely throne were frequent. None of the princes left a serious mark in the history of Russia. By the middle of the XIII century, Kiev fell into absolute decline. It is worth mentioning only a few princes who ruled in the XII century. So, from 1139 to 1146, the Prince of Kiev was Vsevolod Olgovich. In 1146, Igor the Second was at the helm for two weeks, after which Izyaslav Mstislavovich ruled for three years. Until 1169, such people as Vyacheslav Rurikovich, Rostislav Smolensky, Izyaslav Chernigovsky, Yuri Dolgoruky, Izyaslav the Third managed to visit the princely throne.
Capital moves to Vladimir
The formation period of late feudalism in Russia was characterized by several manifestations:
- the weakening of Kiev princely power;
- the emergence of several centers of influence that competed with each other;
- increased influence of the feudal lords.
On the territory of Russia there were 2 of the largest centers of influence: Vladimir and Galich. Galich is the most important political center at that time (located on the territory of modern Western Ukraine). It seems interesting to study the list of Russian rulers who reigned in Vladimir. The importance of this period of history has yet to be appreciated by researchers. Of course, the Vladimir period in the development of Russia was not as long as the Kiev one, but it was after it that the formation of monarchist Russia began. Consider the dates of the reign of all the rulers of Russia of this time. In the early years of this stage of the development of Russia, the rulers changed quite often, there was no stability that would appear later. For more than 5 years, the following princes have been in power in Vladimir:
- Andrei (1169-1174);
- Vsevolod, son of Andrew (1176-1212);
- George Vsevolodovich (1218-1238);
- Yaroslav, son of Vsevolod (1238-1246);
- Alexander (Nevsky), the great commander (1252-1263);
- Yaroslav III (1263-1272);
- Dmitry I (1276-1283);
- Dmitry II (1284-1293);
- Andrey Gorodetsky (1293-1304);
- Michael the "Holy" of Tver (1305-1317).
All the rulers of Russia after the transfer of the capital to Moscow before the appearance of the first tsars
The transfer of the capital from Vladimir to Moscow chronologically coincides with the end of the period of feudal fragmentation of Russia and the strengthening of the main center of political influence. Most of the princes were on the throne longer than the rulers of the Vladimir period. So:
- Prince Ivan (1328-1340);
- Semen Ivanovich (1340-1353);
- Ivan the Red (1353-1359);
- Alexey Byakont (1359-1368);
- Dmitry (Donskoy), famous commander (1368-1389);
- Vasily Dmitrievich (1389-1425);
- Sofia Litovskaya (1425-1432);
- Vasily the Dark (1432-1462);
- Ivan III (1462-1505);
- Vasily Ivanovich (1505-1533);
- Elena Glinskaya (1533-1538);
The decade to 1548 in the history of Russia was a difficult period when the situation was such that the princely dynasty actually ended. There was a period of timelessness when boyar families were in power.
The reign of tsars in Russia: the beginning of the monarchy
Historians distinguish three chronological periods in the development of the Russian monarchy: before the accession to the throne of Peter the Great, the reign of Peter the Great and after it. The dates of the rule of all the rulers of Russia from 1548 to the end of the XVII century are as follows:
- Ivan Vasilievich Grozny (1548-1574);
- Semyon Kasimovsky (1574-1576);
- again Ivan the Terrible (1576-1584);
- Fedor (1584-1598).
Tsar Fedor had no heirs, so the Rurik dynasty was interrupted. The years 1598-1612 are one of the most difficult periods in the history of our homeland. Rulers were replaced almost every year. Since 1613, the Romanov dynasty ruled the country:
- Michael, the first representative of the Romanov dynasty (1613-1645);
- Alexei Mikhailovich, son of the first emperor (1645-1676);
- Fedor Alekseevich ascended the throne in 1676 and ruled for 6 years;
- Sophia, his sister, rules from 1682 to 1689.
In the XVII century in Russia, finally, stability came. The central authority has strengthened, reforms are gradually beginning, leading to the fact that Russia has grown territorially and strengthened, leading world powers began to reckon with it. The main merit in changing the face of the state belongs to the great Russian Tsar Peter I (1689-1725), who also became the first emperor.
Rulers of Russia after Peter
The reign of Peter the Great is the heyday of the Russian state, when the empire gained its own strong fleet and strengthened the army. All the rulers of Russia, from Rurik to Putin, understood the importance of the armed forces, but few were given the opportunity to realize the huge potential of the country. An important feature of that time was Russia's aggressive foreign policy, which manifested itself in the forcible annexation of new areas (Russian-Turkish wars, the Azov campaign).
The chronology of the rulers of Russia from 1725 to 1917 is as follows:
- Ekaterina Skavronskaya (1725-1727);
- Peter the Second (killed in 1730);
- Queen Anna (1730-1740);
- Ivan Antonovich (1740-1741);
- Elizaveta Petrovna (1741-1761);
- Peter Fedorovich (1761-1762);
- Catherine the Great (1762-1796);
- Pavel Petrovich (1796-1801);
- Alexander I (1801-1825);
- Nicholas I (1825-1855);
- Alexander II (1855 - 1881);
- Alexander III (1881-1894);
- Nicholas II - the last of the Romanovs, ruled until 1917.
This ends a huge period of development of the state, when the kings were in power. After the October Revolution, a new political order appears - the republic.
Russia during the USSR and after its collapse
The first few years after the revolution were difficult. Among the rulers of this period, we can distinguish Alexander Fedorovich Kerensky. After the legal registration of the USSR as a state, and until 1924, Vladimir Lenin led the country. Further, the chronology of the rulers of Russia looks like this:
- Dzhugashvili Joseph Vissarionovich (1924-1953);
- Nikita Khrushchev was the First Secretary of the Communist Party after the death of Stalin until 1964;
- Leonid Brezhnev (1964-1982);
- Yuri Andropov (1982-1984);
- Konstantin Chernenko, Secretary General of the CPSU (1984-1985);
- Mikhail Gorbachev, the first president of the USSR (1985-1991);
- Boris Yeltsin, head of independent Russia (1991-1999);
- Acting head of state Putin - President of Russia since 2000 (with a 4-year break when the state was led by Dmitry Medvedev)
Who are the rulers of Russia?
All the rulers of Russia from Rurik to Putin, who have been in power for the entire more than a thousand-year history of the state, are patriots who wished the flourishing of all the lands of a huge country. Most of the rulers were not random people in this difficult field and made every possible contribution to the development and formation of Russia. Of course, all the rulers of Russia wanted good and prosperity to their subjects: the main forces have always been directed at strengthening borders, expanding trade, and strengthening defense capabilities.