Technological and scientific achievements of the Aztecs. The ancient civilization of the Aztecs, ten facts from the life of the tribe. The most important and significant achievements of the Aztecs

With the death of Ivan IV the Terrible in 1584, and in 1598, his last surviving son, Fyodor I, the Moscow branch of the ancient royal family of Rurikovich ceased. Distant descendants of the Rurikovichs, impostors and foreigners began to lay claim to the throne; their reign did not last long. And in 1613, Mikhail Fedorovich from the Zakharyev family (a distant branch of the Rurikovichs) ascended the throne. Mikhail’s father also changed his surname Zakharyev and became Romanov. This is how the tsar from the Romanov family, Mikhail Fedorovich, appeared.

Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov

Mikhail Fedorovich was elected to the throne by the Russian nobility in March 1613, he was 16 years old. He reigned until his death in July 1645. Romanov's predecessor was Prince Vladislav IV of Lithuania.

While Mikhail was a minor, the country was ruled by the mother of the young tsar, and from 1619 the reign continued with his father, Patriarch Philaret, who returned from captivity.

Important events during the reign of Mikhail Fedorovich:

1617 – the Russian-Swedish war ended.
1621 – the first Russian newspaper was published.
1632 - the first iron foundries and weapons manufacturing opened in Tula.
1631-34 - old troops were transformed into new ones, like foreign ones.
1632-34 - war with Poland, and ending it on unfavorable terms.

Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, son of Mikhail Fedorovich

The years of the reign of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, nicknamed the Quietest, 1645-1676.

Events in the country during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich:

1648 – end of the war with the Roman Empire, which lasted 30 years.
1648-54 - reform in the army according to the Russian model.
1654-67 - Russian-Polish war.
1667 - uprising of the Don Cossacks led by Stepan Razin.

Tsar Feodor III Alekseevich

The son of Alexei Mikhailovich, Tsarevich Fedor, took the throne at the age of 15, after the death of his father. He was in poor health and died at age 20. The years of his reign were 1676-1682.

Events that occurred during the reign of Feodor III Alekseevich:

1678 – population census.
1676-81 - a war with the Ottoman Empire, its result was the acquisition by Russia of Kyiv and Left Bank Ukraine.

Tsar Ivan V, Queen Sophia and All-Russian Emperor Peter I

When Fedor III died, the reins of government passed to two young brothers: 16-year-old Ivan V and 10-year-old Peter I from the second wife of Alexei Mikhailovich.

Years of reign Ivan V are considered 1682-96, but due to poor health he almost did not rule the country, until 1689 he actually ruled the country Queen Sophia, elder sister Ivan V, and when Peter I turned 17 years old, he began to rule the country himself, and sent Sophia to a monastery. Under Sofya, the war with the Ottoman Empire continued, there were repeated Russian campaigns against the Turkish Crimea and the Azov fortress, which were unsuccessful.

Significant dates in the country during the reign of Peter I, who became the Great:

1696 - campaign against the Azov fortress, its capture, and the beginning of construction of the new southern port of Taganrog.
1699 - the first Russian large ship launched.
1700 - peace was concluded with the Turks, and Azov was recognized by Russia.
1700 - the beginning of the war with Sweden, which lasted 21 years. The result of the war was the expansion of the borders of the Russian state, the annexation of the Baltic states, part of Karelia, and access to the Baltic Sea.
Since 1702, petitions have indicated the surnames of peasants instead of nicknames.
1710-13 – Ottoman Empire declares war on Russia, Azov was lost.
1716 - campaign in the east of Russia and the founding of Omsk.
Since 1721, Russia began to be called the Great Russian Empire, and the Tsar became the Emperor.
1722-23 - march to the Caspian Sea and annexation of lands there.

Under Peter I, new metallurgical, gunpowder, glass, and linen factories were opened in Moscow, Tula, and the Urals, requiring workers who were recruited from peasant families by force.

Empress Catherine I, second wife of Peter I, Emperor Peter II

Catherine I, a Lutheran from a Baltic family, was left an orphan early, converted to Orthodoxy, and was baptized by Catherine, ruled the country from 1725-27, but in fact, Field Marshal Menshikov was in charge of everything. Catherine I died at the age of 43, having contracted pneumonia, and bequeathed the Russian throne to the grandson of Peter I.

Emperor Peter II- the son of Tsarevich Alexei and Princess of Brunswick, ascended the throne at the age of 11, died at the age of 14, contracting smallpox. Reign 1727-1730.

Empress Anna Ioannovna, Emperor John IV Antonovich

Anna Ioannovna, the daughter of Ivan V, who was married to the Duke of Courland and was widowed, was invited to rule by the Russian nobles.

During the reign of Anna Ioannovna (1730-40), her favorite Biron was in charge of everything, and this period of time is called Bironovism:

In 1730, a hidden office began to work, exiling more than 20 thousand people to Siberia and Kamchatka.
All the high positions were occupied by the Germans.
In 1736, the campaign of Russian troops under the command of Minikh to Perekop, the capture of Bakhchisarai, the Azov fortress.
1737 – capture of Ochakov.
1736-38 - The Khanate in Crimea was defeated.

Having fallen ill and feeling imminent death, Anna Ioannovna bequeathed the Russian throne to the grandson of her sister Catherine of Mecklenburg, the newly born baby John IV Antonovich, under the rule of Biron.

Emperor, John IV Antonovich was considered 1 year (1740-1741), then Elizaveta Petrovna, daughter of Peter I, overthrew him, and he spent his entire life (23 years) in solitary prison, where he was killed by the guards of Catherine II.

Empress Elizaveta Petrovna

Elizaveta Petrovna - daughter of Peter and Catherine the First, ruled Russia 1741-61, until her death.

During her reign the following happened:

In 1740-43 - the beginning of the development of part of the lands of present-day Kazakhstan.
1744 – the number increased throughout the country primary schools for rich children, gymnasiums, the opening of Moscow University took place.
1744-47 – population census for the second time.
1754 – internal restrictions were lifted from traders customs duties, introduced under Biron; trade revived, the first banks opened.
Under Elizaveta Petrovna it was canceled the death penalty, but punishment of peasants and soldiers with rods was encouraged.
1756-63 - Russian participation in the Seven Years' War for the colonies, declaration of war between Germany and Russia, with a short-lived victory for the Russians, and the capture of military warehouses in Berlin.

Emperor Peter III, Empress Catherine II

After Elizabeth Petrovna, the throne was occupied by Peter III, grandson of Peter I from his daughter Anna, who was married in Germany. The Lutheran Charles, invited to reign, converted to Orthodoxy and was baptized by Peter. He did not rule the country for long, only 1 year (1761-62), but was overthrown and killed by supporters of his wife, Catherine II.

Catherine II, called Great, Lutheran from Prussia, after baptism - Catherine, reigned 1762-96. She was married at the age of 16 to the heir to the Russian throne, Peter III, who was 17 years old.

Dates remembered for centuries during the reign of Catherine II:

The territory of Russia was divided into provinces.
Education was given great importance.
The borders of the state increased, lands along the Black Sea coast, New Russia, the Azov region, lands of modern Belarus, and the Baltic states were annexed.
The population in Russia has become about 7 million, and 90% of them are serfs.
1762-64 - a manifesto was published, which listed a number of benefits for settlers to free lands, and this is how German and Greek settlements appeared in the Volga region, in Ukraine.
1764 – The Smolensk Institute for rich young ladies was opened.
1768 - new hospitals opened and vaccinations against smallpox began.
1773-75 - a peasant uprising led by Emelyan Pugachev, which swept the Volga region and part of Siberia. The uprising was suppressed, and the rights of the peasants deteriorated even further.

Emperor Paul I

Paul I, the son of Catherine the Great and Peter III, took the throne after the death of his mother, when he was 42 years old. Ruled the country 1796-1801. He immediately began to break the rules established by his mother.

1797 - decree prohibiting women from ruling; now the crown could only be passed on from father to son.
In the same year - a manifesto on the work of peasants in corvée for 3 days a week (previously there were more days).
Prices for bread and salt have decreased.
Uniforms were introduced into the army according to the Prussian model, and an overcoat appeared.

Paul I and the daughter of Frederick II, Princess Sophia, baptized in Orthodoxy by Maria Feodorovna, had 10 children.

There were several attempts on Paul I's life, and in one of them he was killed while sleeping.

Emperor Alexander I – eldest son of Paul I

Alexander I, nicknamed the Blessed, took the Russian throne after the death of his father, he was 24 years old, ruled Russia 1801-25, from the first days he conducted state affairs, as under Catherine II.

Memorable dates that occurred during the reign of Alexander I:

The beginning of military reform, consisting of military settlements and self-sufficiency with everything necessary.
1808-09 - war with Sweden, its result was the lands Åland Islands and Finland, which passed to Russia.
1806-12 - war with the Turks.
1804-13 - Persian War.
1812 Patriotic War with France, and Russian victory.
The following lands were annexed to Russia: part of the Caucasus, Bessarabia, part of Poland.

The emperor died in Taganrog under unclear circumstances, bequeathing the Russian throne to his younger brother Nicholas.

Emperor Nicholas I is the ninth child of Paul I

Nicholas I became the ruler of the state at the age of 29, reigning 1825-55.

Memorable dates during the reign of Nicholas I:

1825 – Decembrist uprising and its brutal suppression.
1826-28 - war with Persia and annexation of eastern Armenia to the Russian lands.
1828-29 – a war with Turkey for the free movement of the Russian fleet in the southern seas.
1830-31 - an uprising on Polish lands belonging to Russia.
1837 – the first railway track to Tsarskoye Selo was built.
1851 – a railway line from St. Petersburg to Moscow was built.
1853-56 – The Crimean War, and the death of the sovereign from a cold.

Emperor Alexander II - eldest son of Nicholas I

Alexander II, popularly nicknamed the Liberator, was placed on the throne after the death of his father, at the age of 37, his reign was 1855-81. Alexander II took over the empty state treasury after the unsuccessful Crimean War, and began his reign by promoting peace between Russia and the powers his predecessors had fought and reforms.

Under Alexander II the following events took place:

1857 – military settlements were liquidated.
1861 – serfdom was abolished.
1867 - Alaska is sold to the United States.
New lands of the present day were annexed to Russian lands Central Asia and the Far East.

And although the sovereign had liberal views on ruling the country, dissatisfaction with him grew, and in 1878-81. Several attempts were made on his life, the last one proving fatal.

Emperor Alexander III - second son of Alexander II

Alexander III received the Russian throne after the death of his father, at the age of 36, ruled the country in 1881-94, due to the fact that there was no war during his reign, he was called the Peacemaker. Alexander III from the very beginning tightened the liberal policies that had been under his father.

1887 - an unsuccessful attempt by revolutionaries on the life of the sovereign, among whom was Alexander Ulyanov (the revolutionaries were hanged).
Under Alexander III, industrial development was observed at a rapid pace (production of iron, steel, coal and oil production).

Alexander III died in Livadia, while being treated with his entire family, from kidney disease (nephritis) at the age of 49.

Emperor Nicholas II - eldest son of Alexander III

Nicholas II was elected to the Russian throne after the death of his father, he was 26 years old, reigned 1894-1917.

His reign was marked by:

Unprecedented economic growth
Two revolutions (1905-07, 1917)
Expansion of territory in the Far East
Japanese War

As a result of the last revolution, the Romanov dynasty was overthrown from the throne, and the entire family of Nicholas II was sent into exile to Tobolsk, and in 1918 they were shot in Yekaterinburg. In 2000, all the executed members of the emperor's family were canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church.

The Romanov dynasty ruled Russia for just over 300 years. The descendants of the Romanovs still live abroad; there are about 200 of them, recognized and with titles.

Video: Royal family newsreel

The Romanovs, whose dynasty dates back to the sixteenth century, were simply an old noble family. But after the marriage concluded between Ivan the Terrible and a representative of the Romanov family, Anastasia Zakharyina, they became close to the royal court. And after establishing kinship with the Moscow Rurikovichs, the Romanovs themselves began to lay claim to the royal throne.

The history of the Russian dynasty of emperors began after the chosen grandnephew of Ivan the Terrible’s wife, Mikhail Fedorovich, began to rule the country. His descendants stood at the head of Russia until October 1917.

Background

The ancestor of some noble families, including the Romanovs, is called Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla, whose father, as records show, Divonovich Glanda-Kambila, who received the baptismal name Ivan, appeared in Russia in the last decade of the fourteenth century. He came from Lithuania.

Despite this, a certain category of historians suggests that the beginning of the Romanov dynasty (in short - the House of Romanov) comes from Novgorod. Andrei Ivanovich had five sons. Their names were Semyon Stallion and Alexander Elka, Vasily Ivantai and Gavriil Gavsha, as well as Fyodor Koshka. They were the founders of as many as seventeen noble houses in Rus'. In the first generation, Andrei Ivanovich and his first four sons were called Kobylins, Fyodor Andreevich and his son Ivan were called Koshkins, and the latter’s son, Zakhary, was called Koshkin-Zakharyin.

Origin of the surname

Descendants soon discarded the first part - the Koshkins. And for some time now they began to be written only under the name Zakharyina. From the sixth generation, the second half was added to it - the Yuryevs.

Accordingly, the offspring of Peter and Vasily Yakovlevich were called the Yakovlevs, Roman - the okolnichy and the governor - Zakharyin-Romanov. It is with the children of the latter that the famous Romanov dynasty began. The reign of this family began in 1613.

Kings

The Romanov dynasty managed to install five of its representatives on the royal throne. The first of them was the great-nephew of Anastasia, the wife of Ivan the Terrible. Mikhail Fedorovich is the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty, he was raised to the throne by the Zemsky Sobor. But, since he was young and inexperienced, the country was actually ruled by Elder Martha and her relatives. After him, the kings of the Romanov dynasty were few in number. These are his son Alexei and three grandsons - Fyodor and Peter I. It was in the latter, in 1721, that the Romanov royal dynasty ended.

Emperors

When Peter Alekseevich ascended the throne, a completely different era began for the family. The Romanovs, whose dynasty's history as emperors began in 1721, gave Russia thirteen rulers. Of these, only three were representatives by blood.

After the first emperor of the House of Romanov, the throne was inherited as an autocratic empress by his legal wife Catherine I, whose origins are still hotly debated by historians. After her death, power passed to Peter Alekseevich’s grandson from his first marriage, Peter the Second.

Due to infighting and intrigue, his grandfather's line of succession to the throne was frozen. And after him, imperial power and regalia were transferred to the daughter of Emperor Peter the Great’s elder brother, Ivan V, while after Anna Ioannovna, her son from the Duke of Brunswick ascended to the Russian throne. His name was Ivan VI Antonovich. He became the only representative of the Mecklenburg-Romanov dynasty to occupy the throne. He was overthrown by his own aunt, “Petrov’s daughter,” Empress Elizabeth. She was unmarried and childless. That is why the Romanov dynasty, whose reign table is very impressive, in the direct male line ended precisely there.

Introduction to history

The accession of this family to the throne occurred under strange circumstances, surrounded by numerous strange deaths. The Romanov dynasty, photos of whose representatives are in any history textbook, is directly related to the Russian chronicle. She stands out for her unfailing patriotism. Together with the people, they went through difficult times, slowly lifting the country out of poverty and misery - the results of constant wars, namely the Romanovs.

The history of the Russian dynasty is literally saturated with bloody events and secrets. Each of its representatives, although they respected the interests of their subjects, was at the same time distinguished by cruelty.

First ruler

The year the Romanov dynasty began was very turbulent. The state did not have a legal ruler. Mainly due to the excellent reputation of Anastasia Zakharyina and her brother Nikita, the Romanov family was respected by everyone.

Russia was tormented by wars with Sweden and practically never-ending internecine strife. At the beginning of February 1613, in Velikiy, abandoned by foreign invaders along with a pile of dirt and garbage, the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty, the young and inexperienced prince Mikhail Fedorovich, was proclaimed. And it was this sixteen-year-old son who marked the beginning of the reign of the Romanov dynasty. He secured a reign for a full thirty-two years.

It is with him that the Romanov dynasty begins, the genealogy table of which is studied at school. In 1645, Mikhail was replaced by his son Alexei. The latter also ruled for quite a long time - more than three decades. After him, the succession to the throne was associated with some difficulties.

From 1676, Russia was ruled for six years by Mikhail's grandson, Fedor, named after his great-grandfather. After his death, the reign of the Romanov dynasty was worthily continued by Peter I and Ivan V, his brothers. For almost fifteen years they exercised dual power, although virtually all government of the country was taken into their own hands by their sister Sophia, who was known as a very power-hungry woman. Historians say that to hide this circumstance, a special double throne with a hole was ordered. And it was through him that Sophia gave instructions to her brothers in a whisper.

Peter the Great

And although the beginning of the reign of the Romanov dynasty is associated with Fedorovich, nevertheless, almost everyone knows one of its representatives. This is a man of whom both the entire Russian people and the Romanovs themselves can be proud. The history of the Russian dynasty of emperors, the history of the Russian people, the history of Russia are inextricably linked with the name of Peter the Great - the commander and founder of the regular army and navy, and in general - a man with very progressive views on life.

Possessing purposefulness, strong will and great capacity for work, Peter I, like, indeed, the entire Romanov dynasty, with a few exceptions, photos of whose representatives are in all history textbooks, studied a lot throughout his life. But he paid special attention to military and naval affairs. During his first trip abroad in 1697-1698, Peter took a course in artillery science in the city of Konigsberg, then worked for six months at the Amsterdam shipyards as a simple carpenter, and studied the theory of shipbuilding in England.

This was not only the most remarkable personality of his era, the Romanovs could be proud of him: the history of the Russian dynasty did not know a more intelligent and inquisitive person. His whole appearance, according to his contemporaries, testified to this.

Peter the Great was invariably interested in everything that somehow affected his plans: both in terms of government or commerce, and in education. His curiosity extended to almost everything. He did not neglect even the smallest details, if they could later be useful in some way.

The life's work of Pyotr Romanov was the rise of his state and its strengthening military force. It was he who became the founder of the regular fleet and army, continuing the reforms of his father, Alexei Mikhailovich.

State reforms under Peter's rule turned Russia into a strong state that acquired sea ports, developed foreign trade and a well-established administrative management system.

And although the reign of the Romanov dynasty began almost six decades earlier, not a single representative of it managed to achieve what Peter the Great achieved. He not only established himself as an excellent diplomat, but also created the anti-Swedish Northern Alliance. In history, the name of the first emperor is associated with the main stage in the development of Russia and its emergence as a great power.

At the same time, Peter was a very tough person. When he seized power at the age of seventeen, he did not fail to hide his sister Sophia in a distant monastery. One of the most famous representatives of the Romanov dynasty, Peter, better known as the Great, was considered a rather heartless emperor, who set himself the goal of reorganizing his little-civilized country in a Western manner.

However, despite such advanced ideas, he was considered a capricious tyrant, quite comparable to his cruel predecessor - Ivan the Terrible, the husband of his great-grandmother Anastasia Romanova.

Some researchers reject the great significance of Peter's perestroikas and, in general, the policies of the emperor during his reign. Peter, they believe, was in a hurry to achieve his goals, so he took the shortest route, sometimes even using obviously clumsy methods. And this was precisely the reason that after his untimely death, the Russian empire quickly returned to the state from which the reformer Peter Romanov tried to bring it out.

It is impossible to radically change your people in one fell swoop, even by building a new capital for them, shaving the boyars’ beards and ordering them to gather for political rallies.

Nevertheless, the policies of the Romanovs, and in particular the administrative reforms that Peter introduced, meant quite a lot for the country.

New branch

After the marriage of Anna (the second daughter of Peter the Great and Catherine) with the nephew of the Swedish king, the beginning of the Romanov dynasty was laid, which actually passed into the Holstein-Gottorp family. At the same time, according to the agreement, the son born from this marriage, and he became Peter III, still remained a member of this royal House.

Thus, according to genealogical rules, the imperial family began to be called Holstein-Gottorp-Romanovsky, which was reflected not only on their family coat of arms, but also on the coat of arms of Russia. From this time on, the throne was passed on in a straight line, without any intricacies. This happened thanks to a decree issued by Paul. It spoke of succession to the throne through the direct male line.

After Paul, the country was ruled by Alexander I, his eldest son, who was childless. His second descendant, Prince Konstantin Pavlovich, renounced the throne, which, in fact, became one of the reasons for the Decembrist uprising. The next emperor was his third son, Nicholas I. In general, since the time of Catherine the Great, all heirs to the throne began to bear the title of crown prince.

After Nicholas I, the throne passed to his eldest son, Alexander II. At the age of twenty-one, Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich died of tuberculosis. Therefore, the next was the second son - Emperor Alexander III, who was succeeded by his eldest son and the last Russian ruler - Nicholas II. Thus, since the beginning of the Romanov-Holstein-Gottorp dynasty, eight emperors have come from this branch, including Catherine the Great.

Nineteenth century

IN XIX century The imperial family grew and expanded greatly. Special laws were even adopted that regulated the rights and obligations of each family member. The material aspects of their existence were also discussed. A new title was even introduced - Prince of the Imperial Blood. He assumed too distant a descendant of the ruler.

From the time when the Romanov dynasty began until the beginning of the nineteenth century, the Imperial House began to include four branches in the female line:

Holstein-Gottorp;
Leuchtenberg - descended from the daughter of Nicholas I, Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna, and the Duke of Leuchtenberg;
Oldenburg - from the marriage of the daughter of Emperor Paul with the Duke of Oldenburg;
Mecklenburg - originating from the marriage of Princess Catherine Mikhailovna and the Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.

Revolution and the Imperial House

From the moment the Romanov dynasty began, the history of this family is full of death and bloodshed. No wonder the last of the family - Nicholas II - was nicknamed the Bloody. It must be said that the emperor himself was not at all distinguished by a cruel disposition.

The reign of the last Russian monarch was marked by rapid economic growth of the country. At the same time, there was an increase in social and political contradictions within Russia. All this led to the beginning of the revolutionary movement and ultimately to the uprising of 1905-1907, and then to the February Revolution.

The Emperor of All Russia and the Tsar of Poland, as well as the Grand Duke of Finland - the last Russian emperor from the Romanov dynasty - ascended the throne in 1894. Nicholas II is described by his contemporaries as a gentle and highly educated, sincerely devoted to the country, but at the same time a very stubborn person.

Apparently, this was the reason for the persistent rejection of the advice of experienced dignitaries in matters of government, which, in fact, led to fatal mistakes in the Romanovs’ policies. The sovereign’s amazingly devoted love for his own wife, who in some historical documents is even called a mentally unstable person, became the reason for discrediting the royal family. Her power was called into question as the only true one.

This was explained by the fact that the wife of the last Russian emperor had a fairly strong say in many aspects of government. At the same time, she did not miss a single opportunity to take advantage of this, while many high-ranking persons were in no way satisfied with this. Most of them considered the last reigning Romanov a fatalist, while others were of the opinion that he was simply completely indifferent to the suffering of his people.

End of reign

The bloody year of 1917 was the final year for the shaky power of this autocrat. It all started with the First World War and the ineffectiveness of the policies of Nicholas II during this difficult period for Russia.

Antagonists of the Romanov family argue that during this period the last autocrat simply could not or did not manage to implement the necessary political or social reforms in time. The February Revolution forced the last emperor to abdicate the throne. As a result, Nicholas II and his family were taken under House arrest in his palace in Tsarskoye Selo.

In the mid-nineteenth century, the Romanovs ruled more than a sixth of the planet. It was a self-sufficient, independent state that concentrated the greatest wealth in Europe. It was a huge era that ended with the execution of the royal family, the last of the Romanovs: Nicholas II with Alexandra and their five children. It happened in a basement in Yekaterinburg on the night of July 17, 1918.

The Romanovs today

By the beginning of 1917, the Russian Imperial House numbered sixty-five representatives, of which thirty-two belonged to its male half. Eighteen people were shot by the Bolsheviks between 1918 and 1919. This happened in St. Petersburg, Alapaevsk and, of course, in Yekaterinburg. The remaining forty-seven people escaped. As a result, they found themselves in exile, mainly in the United States and France.

Despite this, a significant part of the dynasty still hoped for more than ten years for the collapse of Soviet power and the restoration of the Russian monarchy. When Olga Konstantinovna - the Grand Duchess - became regent of Greece in December 1920, she began to accept many refugees from Russia in this country who were simply going to wait it out and return home. However, this did not happen.

Nevertheless, the House of Romanov still had weight for a long time. Moreover, in 1942, two representatives of the House were even offered the throne of Montenegro. An Association was even created, which included all living members of the dynasty.

In Russia in the 17th - early 20th centuries, monarchs from the Romanov clan (family), who succeeded each other on the throne by right of inheritance, as well as members of their families.

A synonym is the concept House of Romanov- the corresponding Russian equivalent, which was also used and continues to be used in the historical and socio-political tradition. Both terms have only become widespread since 1913, when the dynasty's 300th anniversary was celebrated. Formally, the Russian tsars and emperors who belonged to this family did not have a surname and never officially indicated it.

The generic name of the ancestors of this dynasty, known in history since the 14th century and descending from Andrei Ivanovich Kobyla, who served the Moscow Grand Duke Simeon the Proud, changed several times in accordance with the nicknames and names of famous representatives of this boyar family. IN different time they were called Koshkins, Zakharyins, Yuryevs. At the end of the 16th century, the nickname of the Romanovs was established for them, named after Roman Yuryevich Zakharyin-Koshkin (d. 1543), the great-grandfather of the first tsar from this dynasty Mikhail Fedorovich, who was elected to the kingdom by the Zemsky Sobor on February 21 (March 3), 1613 and accepted the royal crown on July 11 (21), 1613. Until the beginning of the 18th century, representatives of the dynasty were titled kings, then emperors. In the conditions of the outbreak of the revolution, the last representative of the dynasty NikolayII On March 2 (15), 1917, he abdicated the throne for himself and his son-heir, Tsarevich Alexei, in favor of his brother, Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich. He, in turn, on March 3 (16) refused to take the throne until the decision of the future Constituent Assembly. The question of the fate of the throne and who will occupy it was not raised in a practical sense.

The Romanov dynasty fell along with the Russian monarchy, passing between two of the biggest upheavals in history. Russian history. If its beginning marked the end of the Time of Troubles at the beginning of the 17th century, then its end was associated with the Great Russian Revolution of 1917. For 304 years, the Romanovs were the bearers of supreme power in Russia. It was an entire era, the main content of which was the modernization of the country, the transformation of the Moscow state into an empire and a great world power, the evolution of a representative monarchy into an absolute one, and then into a constitutional one. For the main part of this path, the supreme power in the person of the monarchs from the House of Romanov remained the leader of the modernization processes and the initiator of the corresponding transformations, enjoying broad support from various social groups. However, at the end of its history, the Romanov monarchy lost not only the initiative in the processes taking place in the country, but also control over them. None of the opposing forces contesting the various options further development Russia did not consider it necessary to save the dynasty or rely on it. It can be said that the Romanov dynasty fulfilled its historical mission in the past of our country, and that it has exhausted its capabilities and has outlived its usefulness. Both statements will be true depending on their meaningful context.

Nineteen representatives of the House of Romanov succeeded each other on the Russian throne, and three rulers also came from it, who were formally not monarchs, but regents and co-rulers. They were connected to each other not always by blood, but always by family ties, self-identification and awareness of belonging to the royal family. Dynasty is not an ethnic or genetic concept, except, of course, in special cases of medical and forensic examination to identify specific individuals from their remains. Attempts to determine belonging to it by the degree of biological relationship and national origin, which some amateur and professional historians often do, are meaningless from the point of view of social and humanitarian knowledge. A dynasty is like a relay team, the members of which, replacing each other, transfer the burden of power and the reins of government according to certain complex rules. Birth in the royal family, marital fidelity to the mother, etc. are the most important, but not the only and mandatory conditions. There was no change from the Romanov dynasty to a certain Holstein-Gottorp, Holstein-Gottorp-Romanov or other dynasty in the second half of the 18th century. Even the indirect degree of kinship of individual rulers (Catherine I, Ivan VI, Peter III, Catherine II) with their predecessors did not prevent them from being considered successors of the family of Mikhail Fedorovich, and only in this capacity could they ascend to the Russian throne. Also, rumors about the “true” non-royal parents (even if they were faithful) could not prevent those who were confident in their descent from the “royal seed”, who were perceived as such by the bulk of their subjects (Peter I, Paul I), from occupying the throne.

From the standpoint of religion, the royal family is endowed with special sacredness. In any case, even without accepting the providentialist approach, the dynasty should be understood as an ideological construction, whatever the emotional attitude towards it, no matter how it correlates with the political preferences of the historian. The dynasty also has a legal basis, which in Russia was finally formed at the end of the 18th century in the form of legislation on the imperial house. However, with the change political system As a result of the abolition of the monarchy, legal norms relating to the imperial house lost their force and meaning. The disputes that still occur about the dynastic rights and dynastic affiliation of certain descendants of the Romanov royal family, their “rights” to the throne or the order of “succession to the throne” currently have no real content and are, perhaps, a game of personal ambitions in genealogical incidents. If it is possible to extend the history of the Romanov dynasty after the abdication of the throne, then only until the martyrdom of the former Emperor Nicholas II and his family in the basement of the Ipatiev house in Yekaterinburg on the night of July 16-17, 1918, or, in extreme cases, until death on October 13 1928 of the last reigning person - the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, wife of Emperor Alexander III and mother of Nicholas II.

The history of the dynasty is far from an ordinary family chronicle and not even just a family saga. Mysterious coincidences may not be given mystical significance, but it is difficult to ignore them. Mikhail Fedorovich received news of his election to the throne in the Ipatiev Monastery, and the execution of Nikolai Alexandrovich took place in the Ipatiev House. The beginning of the dynasty and its collapse occur in the month of March with a difference of several days. On March 14 (24), 1613, the still completely inexperienced teenager Mikhail Romanov fearlessly agreed to accept the royal title, and on March 2-3 (March 15-16), 1917, seemingly wise and mature men, who from childhood had been prepared for the highest positions in the state, absolved themselves of responsibility for the fate of the country, signing a death warrant for themselves and their loved ones. The names of the first of the Romanovs called to the kingdom, who accepted this challenge, and the last, who, without hesitation, renounced it, are the same.

A list of kings and emperors from the Romanov Dynasty and their reigning spouses (morganatic marriages are not taken into account), as well as the actual rulers of the country from among the members of this family who did not formally occupy the throne, is given below. The controversy of some dates and discrepancies in names are omitted; if necessary, this is discussed in articles dedicated to specifically indicated persons.

1. Mikhail Fedorovich(1596-1645), king in 1613-1645. Queen spouses: Maria Vladimirovna, born. Dolgorukova (d. 1625) in 1624-1625, Evdokia Lukyanovna, born. Streshnev (1608-1645) in 1626-1645.

2. Filaret(1554 or 1555 - 1633, in the world Fyodor Nikitich Romanov), patriarch and “great sovereign”, father and co-ruler of Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich in 1619-1633. The wife (from 1585 until tonsure in 1601) and mother of the Tsar - Ksenia Ivanovna (in monasticism - nun Martha), born. Shestov (1560-1631).

3. Alexey Mikhailovich(1629-1676), king in 1645-1676. Queen Consorts: Maria Ilyinichna, born. Miloslavskaya (1624-1669) in 1648-1669, Natalya Kirillovna, born. Naryshkin (1651-1694) in 1671-1676.

4. Fedor Alekseevich(1661-1682), king in 1676-1682. Queen Consorts: Agafya Semyonovna, born. Grushetskaya (1663-1681) in 1680-1681, Marfa Matveevna, born. Apraksin (1664-1715) in 1682.

5. Sofya Alekseevna(1657-1704), princess, ruler-regent under the young brothers Ivan and Peter Alekseevich in 1682-1689.

6. IvanVAlexeyevich(1666-1696), king in 1682-1696. Queen Consort: Praskovya Fedorovna, born. Grushetskaya (1664-1723) in 1684-1696.

7. PeterIAlexeyevich(1672-1725), Tsar from 1682, Emperor from 1721. Spouses: Queen Evdokia Fedorovna (in monastic life - nun Elena), born. Lopukhina (1669-1731) in 1689-1698 (before being tonsured into a monastery), Empress Ekaterina Alekseevna, born. Marta Skavronskaya (1684-1727) in 1712-1725.

8. CatherineIAlekseevna, born Marta Skavronskaya (1684-1727), widow of Peter I Alekseevich, empress in 1725-1727.

9. PeterIIAlexeyevich(1715-1730), grandson of Peter I Alekseevich, son of Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich (1690-1718), emperor in 1727-1730.

10. Anna Ivanovna(1684-1727), daughter of Ivan V Alekseevich, empress in 1730-1740. Spouse: Frederick William, Duke of Courland (1692-1711) in 1710-1711.

12. IvanVIAntonovich(1740-1764), great-grandson of Ivan V Alekseevich, emperor in 1740-1741.

13. Anna Leopoldovna(1718-1746), granddaughter of Ivan V Alekseevich and ruler-regent for his young son - Emperor Ivan VI Antonovich in 1740-1741. Spouse: Anton-Ulrich of Brunswick-Bevern-Lüneburg (1714-1776) in 1739-1746.

14. Elizaveta Petrovna(1709-1761), daughter of Peter I Alekseevich, empress in 1741-1761.

15. Peter III Fedorovich(1728-1762), before converting to Orthodoxy - Karl-Peter-Ulrich, grandson of Peter I Alekseevich, son of Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp (1700-1739), emperor in 1761-1762. Spouse: Empress Ekaterina Alekseevna, born. Sophia-Frederica-Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg (1729-1796) in the years 1745-1762.

16. CatherineIIAlekseevna(1729-1796), born. Sophia Frederica Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg, empress from 1762 to 1796. Spouse: Emperor Peter III Fedorovich (1728-1762) in 1745-1762.

17. Pavel I Petrovich ( 1754-1801), son of Emperor Peter III Fedorovich and Empress Catherine II Alekseevna, emperor in 1796-1801. Spouses: Tsesarevna Natalya Alekseevna (1755-1776), born. Augusta Wilhelmina of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1773-1776; Empress Maria Feodorovna (1759-1828), born. Sophia-Dorothea-Augusta-Louise of Württemberg in the years 1776-1801.

18.Alexander I Pavlovich ( 1777-1825), emperor in 1801-1825. Spouse: Empress Elizaveta Alekseevna, born. Louise Maria Augusta of Baden-Durlach (1779-1826) in the years 1793-1825.

19. Nikolay I Pavlovich ( 1796-1855), emperor in 1825-1855. Spouse: Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, born. Frederica-Louise-Charlotte-Wilhelmina of Prussia (1798-1860) in the years 1817-1855.

20. Alexander II Nikolaevich(1818-1881), emperor in 1855-1881. Spouse: Empress Maria Alexandrovna, born. Maximilian-Wilhelmina-Augusta-Sophia-Maria of Hesse-Darmstadt (1824-1880) in the years 1841-1880.

21. Alexander III Alexandrovich(1845-1894), emperor in 1881-1894. Spouse: Empress Maria Feodorovna, born. Maria Sophia Frederica Dagmara of Denmark (1847-1928) in the years 1866-1894.

22.Nikolay II Alexandrovich ( 1868-1918), Emperor 1894-1917. Spouse: Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, born. Alice-Victoria-Elena-Louise-Beatrice of Hesse-Darmstadt (1872-1918) in the years 1894-1918.

All the tsars who came from the Romanov family, as well as Emperor Peter II, were buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. All the emperors of this dynasty, starting with Peter I, were buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. The exception is the mentioned Peter II, and the burial place of Nicholas II remains in question. Based on the conclusion of a government commission, the remains of the last tsar of the Romanov dynasty and his family were discovered near Yekaterinburg and were reburied in 1998 in the Catherine Chapel Peter and Paul Cathedral in the Peter and Paul Fortress. The Orthodox Church questions these conclusions, believing that all the remains of the executed members of the imperial family were completely destroyed in the Ganina Yama tract in the vicinity of Yekaterinburg. The funeral service for those reburied in the Catherine's chapel was performed according to the church rite provided for the deceased, whose names remained unknown.

Romanovs- an old Russian noble family (which bore such a surname from the middle of the 16th century), and then a dynasty of Russian tsars and emperors.

Why did the historical choice fall on the Romanov family? Where did they come from and what were they like by the time they came to power?

Genealogical roots of the Romanov family (XII - XIV centuries)

The boyar is considered the ancestor of the Romanovs and a number of other noble families Andrey Ivanovich Kobyla (†1347), who was in the service of the Grand Duke of Vladimir and Moscow Semyon Ivanovich Proud (eldest son of Grand Duke Ivan Kalita).

The dark origin of the Mare gave freedom for pedigree fantasies. According to family tradition, the ancestors of the Romanovs “left for Rus' from Lithuania” or “from Prussia” at the beginning of the 14th century. However, many historians believe that the Romanovs came from Novgorod.

They wrote that his father Kambila Divonovic Gland was the prince of Zhmud and fled from Prussia under the pressure of the German crusaders. It is quite possible that Kambila, remade in the Russian style into Kobyla, having suffered defeat in his homeland, went to serve the Grand Duke Dmitry Alexandrovich, the son of Alexander Nevsky. According to legend, he was baptized in 1287 under the name Ivan - after all, the Prussians were pagans - and his son received the name Andrei at baptism.

Glanda, through the efforts of genealogists, traced his family back to someone Ratshi(Radsha, Christian name Stefan) - a native of Prussia, according to others, a Novgorodian, a servant of Vsevolod Olgovich, and maybe Mstislav the Great; according to another version of Serbian origin.

The name is also known from the geneological chainAlexa(Christian name Gorislav), in monasticism St. Varlaam. Khutynsky, died in 1215 or 1243.

No matter how interesting the legend may be, the real relationship of the Romanovs is observed only with Andrei Kobyla.

Andrey Ivanovich Kobyla had five sons: Semyon Stallion, Alexander Yolka, Vasily Ivantai, Gabriel Gavsha and Fyodor Koshka, who were the founders of 17 Russian noble houses. The Sheremetevs, Kolychevs, Yakovlevs, Sukhovo-Kobylins and other families known in Russian history are traditionally considered to be of the same origin as the Romanovs (from the legendary Kambila).

The eldest son of Andrei Kobyla Semyon, by nickname Stallion, became the founder of the Blues, Lodygins, Konovnitsyns, Oblyazevs, Obraztsovs and Kokorevs.

Second son Alexander Yolka, gave birth to the Kolychevs, Sukhovo-Kobylins, Sterbeevs, Khludnevs and Neplyuevs.

Third son Vasily Ivantey, died childless, and the fourth - Gabriel Gavsha- laid the foundation for only one family - the Bobarykins.

Younger son, Fyodor Koshka (†1393), was a boyar under Dmitry Donskoy and Vasily I; left six children (including one daughter). From him came the families of the Koshkins, Zakharyins, Yakovlevs, Lyatskys (or Lyatskys), Yuryev-Romanovs, Bezzubtsevs and Sheremetevs.

The eldest son of Fyodor Koshka Ivan Fedorovich Koshkin (†1427) served as a governor under Vasily I and Vasily II, and his grandson,Zakhary Ivanovich Koshkin (†1461), was a boyar under Vasily II.

The children of Zakhary Ivanovich Koshkin became the Koshkins-Zakharyins, and the grandchildren simply became the Zakharyins. From Yuri Zakharyevich came the Zakharyins-Yuryevs, and from his brother Yakov - the Zakharyins-Yakovlevs.

It should be noted that numerous descendants of Andrei Kobyla married princely and boyar daughters. Their daughters were also in considerable demand among noble families. As a result, over a couple of centuries they became related to almost the entire aristocracy.

Rise of the Romanov family

Tsarina Anastasia - the first wife of Ivan the Terrible

The rise of the Romanov family occurred after the marriage in 1547 of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible to Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina-Yuryeva, who bore him a son - the future heir to the throne and the last of the Rurikovich family, Fyodor Ioannovich. Under Fyodor Ioannovich, the Romanovs took a prominent position at court.

Brother of Queen Anastasia Nikita Romanovich (†1586)

Brother of Queen Anastasia Nikita Romanovich Romanov (†1586) is considered the founder of the dynasty - his descendants were already called the Romanovs.

Nikita Romanovich himself was an influential Moscow boyar, an active participant in the Livonian War and diplomatic negotiations. Of course, surviving at the court of Ivan the Terrible was a pretty scary thing. And Nikita not only survived, but steadily rose to the top, and after the sudden death of the sovereign (1584), he entered the nearby Duma of his nephew, Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, along with Mstislavsky, Shuisky, Belsky and Godunov. But soon Nikita Romanovich shared his power with Boris Godunov and took monastic vows under the name Nifont. Died peacefully in 1586. He was buried in the family tomb in the Moscow Novospassky Monastery.

Nikita Romanovich had 6 sons, but only two went down in history: the eldest - Fedor Nikitich(later Patriarch Filaret and father of the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty) and Ivan Nikitich, which was part of the Seven Boyars.

Fyodor Nikitich Romanov (Patriarch Filaret)

Boyarin Fyodor Nikitich (1554-1633) the first of the family to bear the surname “Romanov”. Being a cousin of Tsar Feodor Ioannovich (son of Ivan IV the Terrible), he was considered a rival of Boris Godunov in the struggle for power after the death of Feodor Ioannovich in 1598. He married for love a poor girl from an ancient Kostroma family, Ksenia Ivanovna Shestova, and lived with her in perfect harmony, giving birth to five sons and a daughter.

The years of the reign of Fyodor Ivanovich (1584-1598) were the happiest in the life of the future patriarch. Unencumbered by the responsibilities of government and secret intrigues, not consumed by ambition, like Boris Godunov or the sad, envious Vasily Shuisky, he lived for his own pleasure, while simultaneously laying the foundation for an even greater rise of the Romanov family. Over the years, the rapid rise of Romanov began to concern Godunov more and more. Fyodor Nikitich continued to play the role of a carefree young man who took his position for granted, but he was too close to the throne, which sooner or later was bound to be empty.

With the coming to power of Boris Godunov, together with the other Romanovs, he fell into disgrace and was exiled in 1600 to the Anthony-Siysky Monastery, located 160 km from Arkhangelsk. His brothers, Alexander, Mikhail, Ivan and Vasily were tonsured as monks and exiled to Siberia, where most of them died. In 1601, he and his wife Ksenia Ivanovna Shestova were forcibly tonsured monks under the names “Filaret” and “Martha,” which should have deprived them of their rights to the throne. But, False Dmitry I, who appeared on the Russian throne (who before his accession was Grishka Otrepyev’s slave to the Romanovs), wishing to actually prove his relationship with the Romanov family, in 1605 returned Philaret from exile and elevated him to the rank of Metropolitan of Rostov. And False Dmitry II, at whose Tushino headquarters Filaret was, promoted him to patriarch. True, Filaret presented himself as a “captive” of an impostor and did not insist on his patriarchal rank...

In 1613, the Zemsky Sobor elected Philaret’s son to reign. Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. His mother, nun Martha, blessed him for the kingdom with the Feodorovskaya Icon of the Mother of God, and from that moment on, the icon became one of the shrines of the House of Romanov. And in 1619, the former boyar Fyodor Nikitich, with the light hand of his son, Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, became the “official” Patriarch Filaret. But by nature he was a secular man and had little understanding of church and theological matters. Being the parent of the sovereign, he was officially his co-ruler until the end of his life. He used the title “Great Sovereign” and a completely unusual combination of the monastic name “Filaret” with the patronymic “Nikitich”; actually led Moscow politics.

The further fate of the Romanovs is the history of Russia.

It might be useful to read: