Unified State Exam
On what day is National Unity Day celebrated? How did National Unity Day appear on the calendar? The time of troubles begins

On what day is National Unity Day celebrated? How did National Unity Day appear on the calendar? The time of troubles begins

On November 4, Russia celebrates one of the main public holidays - Day of Military Glory - Day of National Unity. The glorious date of the expulsion of Polish invaders from the borders of the fatherland by the people's militia goes back centuries, namely to the 17th century - the year 1612 (or, as they believed in those days - 7120 from the creation of the world).

It just so happened today that, despite the fairly widespread celebration of National Unity Day in Russia since 2005, which is carried out using, so to speak, state administrative resources, not every resident of our country has managed to become imbued with the historiographical nuances of that event. As sociological surveys in recent years show, only every fifth resident of Russia surveyed can reliably name the historical event that marked the beginning of a new holiday in our country. At the same time, about 40% (2015 survey) of respondents could not name not only the historical event, but also the exact name of the holiday. There were many options: from “independence day” to “anniversary of the revolution.”

Despite the fact that the holiday is called National Unity Day, in the 11 years since its appearance on the calendar, it has not become a day of real unity for Russians. Unfortunately. True, this does not mean at all that in Russia today there is “confusion and vacillation” instead of national unity.

But the holiday did not become a fully national holiday, perhaps because a certain category of Russians considers the chosen date an attempt to replace the celebration of the above-mentioned October Revolution. In this regard, peculiar complaints against the authorities arise, most often coming from the older generation of citizens of our country, who simply, by definition, have managed to get used to the fact that the main holiday of November is precisely the holiday of the next revolutionary anniversary. On the same basis, on the eve of November 4, a controversy arises every time, during which another category of Russians indicates their position - those citizens of the Russian Federation for whom November 7, as the day of the revolution, is a tragic date in the history of Russia. The latter accuse the former of reflecting on the day that finally buried the Russian Empire, the former accuse the latter of justifying the burial of the Soviet Union. Whether they are justified or not is a separate question, and attempts to answer it by the latter against the former leads to new ideological buttings, which can often be witnessed when reading comments on our information and analytical portal.

In general, we wanted the best, and it turned out... what happened. National Unity Day is on the calendar, but not all Russians know about its existence, although more than a decade has passed since the date was introduced into the holiday calendar.

Speaking about the National Unity Day, it should be noted that in 2014, a petition was published on the petition publication website to move the National Unity Day to March 18, a date that became epoch-making for the reunification of Crimea with Russia.

On the one hand, this date has actually recently become the starting point of unity and consolidation of society. But there are still certain pitfalls here. They in no way relate to Crimea and Crimean people. The fact is that if you treat the dates of public holidays frivolously, each time moving them, renaming them and changing them, the country will clearly not come closer to greater unity than what it has today. Today we are all becoming witnesses to all the “charms” of how holidays established at the state level decided to be sent into oblivion with one stroke of the pen into oblivion in neighboring Ukraine. And therefore, it is better to make attempts to seek the truth regarding the appropriateness of the date of the holiday in a civilized debate, rather than switching to state-level races, which we ourselves experienced in the 90s. They didn’t gallop, but they lost the country in which they were born, and that’s a fact.

National unity is essentially the basis for the development of Russia. You can talk as much as you like about the search for a national idea, the adoption or non-acceptance of laws on the Russian nation, but it is in unity and public consensus (regardless of ethnicity and religious affiliation) that everything that gives Russia the opportunity to move forward lies. Over the entire history of its existence, Russia has managed to accumulate colossal experience related to how representatives of various nationalities coexist in peace and harmony. At the same time, Russia has repeatedly faced external and internal attempts by certain forces to test this unity for strength. And often, as they say now, “partners” and internal “friends of Russia” succeeded. And it happened in those historical moments when the peoples inhabiting the country, and even separate groups of the same people, decided that “there are equal, and there are more equal”, that “there are strong, and there are stronger”, that there are those who “he feeds the whole country at his own expense, and the country underestimates him.”

Therefore, on this day I would like to wish all of us - citizens of the Great Country, including the leadership of the state - that we be able to listen and hear each other, realize that there are not only personal, but also public interests, live and create in peace and harmony . This may drive Russia’s external enemies (and there have always been plenty of them at all times) into hysterics, but that’s their problem and a completely different story.

And let’s build the unity of the peoples of the country not only once a year.

Happy holiday, Russia!

The holiday was established in December 2004 on the initiative of the Interreligious Council of Russia, consisting of leaders of the country's traditional faiths, as a national holiday uniting all the peoples of Russia.

This new national holiday was first celebrated on November 4, 2005, but its history begins much earlier - several centuries ago.

Story

The date of the holiday was not chosen by chance - historically, National Unity Day is associated with distant events of the early 17th century, when in 1612 Moscow was finally liberated from Polish invaders.

At the turn of the 16th-17th centuries, a series of tragic circumstances occurred in Russia, and this era went down in history as the Time of Troubles. Historians believe that the immediate cause of the Troubles was the end of the Rurik dynasty. The situation was also complicated by the extremely unfavorable internal economic situation and foreign invasion.

At the call of His Holiness Patriarch Hermogenes, who died at the hands of the Poles for his loyalty to Orthodoxy and canonized saints, the Russian people stood up in defense of their homeland.

The first militia was led by the Ryazan governor Prokopiy Lyapunov. But due to infighting between the nobles and the Cossacks, who killed the governor on false charges, the militia disintegrated.

Then in September 1611 in Nizhny Novgorod, the zemstvo elder Kuzma Minin appealed to people to raise funds and create a militia to liberate the country. The population of the city was subject to a special tax for organizing the militia. At Minin’s suggestion, Novgorod Prince Dmitry Pozharsky was invited to the post of chief governor.

Monument to Minin and Pozharsky in Moscow

Letters were sent from Novgorod to other cities calling for the collection of the militia. In addition to the townspeople and peasants, small and medium-sized nobles also gathered there. The main forces of the militia were formed in the cities and counties of the Volga region.

The program of the people's militia consisted of liberating Moscow from interventionists, refusing to recognize sovereigns of foreign origin on the Russian throne (which was the goal of the boyar nobility, who invited the Polish prince Vladislav to the kingdom), as well as the creation of a new government.

Under the banners of Minin and Pozharsky, a huge army gathered for that time, which in March 1612 set out from Nizhny Novgorod and headed to Yaroslavl, where a temporary “Council of the Whole Earth” was created - a government body in which the main role was played by townspeople and representatives of the minor service nobility .

Representatives of all classes and all peoples that make up the Russian state took part in the national militia to liberate the Russian land from foreign invaders.

With a copy of the miraculous icon of the Kazan Mother of God, revealed in 1579, the Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo militia managed to take Kitay-Gorod by storm on November 4, 1612 and expel the Poles from Moscow.

This victory served as a powerful impetus for the revival of the Russian state. And the icon became the subject of special veneration.

At the end of February 1613, the Zemsky Sobor, which included representatives of all classes of the country - the nobility, boyars, clergy, Cossacks, archers, black-growing peasants and delegates from many Russian cities, elected Mikhail Romanov, the first Russian Tsar from the Romanov dynasty, as Tsar.

The Zemsky Sobor of 1613 became the final victory over the Troubles, the triumph of Orthodoxy and national unity.

The confidence that it was thanks to the icon of the Kazan Mother of God that the victory was won was so deep that Prince Pozharsky, with his own money, specially built the Kazan Cathedral on the edge of Red Square.

In 1649, by decree of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the obligatory celebration of November 4 was established as a day of gratitude to the Blessed Virgin Mary for her help in liberating Russia from the Poles. The holiday was celebrated in Russia until the 1917 Revolution.

This day was included in the church calendar as the Celebration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in memory of the deliverance of Moscow and Russia from the Poles in 1612.

Thus, National Unity Day is essentially not a new holiday at all, but a return to an old tradition.

The essence of the holiday

This holiday no longer symbolizes victory, but the unity of the people, which made the defeat of the interventionists possible.

The holiday calls on people not only to remember the most important historical events, but also to remind the citizens of a multinational country about the importance of unity. It also serves as a reminder that only together can we cope with difficulties and overcome obstacles.

Representatives of 195 peoples and nationalities living on the territory of Russia belong to dozens of religious movements.

The main goal of the holiday, both pre-revolutionary and now, comes down to the unity of people of different religions, origins and status to achieve a common goal - stable civil peace, as well as respect for patriotism and courage, which was shown by the liberators of Moscow.

National Unity Day is an occasion for all citizens of the country to realize and feel like one people.

How to celebrate

The first Day of National Unity was solemnly celebrated in 2005 - Nizhny Novgorod became the main center of the festive events. The main event of the holiday was the opening of the monument to Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky.

This year they plan to celebrate National Unity Day as magnificently as in previous years. The most grandiose events are planned in Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod, where the militia of Minin and Pozharsky originated.

A large, multimillion-dollar procession through the city and laying flowers at the memorial to Minin and Pozharsky are planned.

On National Unity Day, festive events of a patriotic nature, processions, celebrations, fairs, exhibitions and so on are held. All major parks in Moscow have prepared a large entertainment program for National Unity Day.

The Kremlin will host a ceremony to present the Presidential Prize for strengthening the unity of the Russian nation and the “We are United” concert.

Solemn concerts, fireworks, and mass festivities will be held throughout the country.

The material was prepared on the basis of open sources.

TASS DOSSIER /Svetlana Shvedova/. National Unity Day November 4 is a public holiday established by Federal Law of December 29, 2004 in memory of the liberation of Moscow by the people's militia from Polish invaders in 1612. It has been celebrated since 2005 and is a non-working day.

The date November 4 (October 22, O.S.) 1612 falls on the so-called Time of Troubles in Russia - the period from 1584 (the death of Ivan the Terrible) to 1613 (the coronation of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov).

After the death of Ivan the Terrible and his two heirs - his brother Fyodor Ioannovich and his youngest son Dmitry - Boris Godunov took the throne in 1598. In 1604, the troops of False Dmitry I invaded Russia from the territory of Poland, posing as the escaped Tsarevich Dmitry. After the death of Godunov, in 1605, False Dmitry took the royal throne. A year later, he was killed during a conspiracy led by Prince Vasily Shuisky, who was subsequently crowned king. In 1610, power passed to the council of boyars led by Prince Fyodor Mstislavsky ("seven boyars"), who swore allegiance to the Polish prince Vladislav. Moscow was occupied by Polish troops under the leadership of Hetman Stanislav Zolkiewski.

In 1611, a people's militia was created in Nizhny Novgorod, led by Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, whose forces liberated Kitay-gorod on November 4 (October 22, old style), 1612 and then the Poles were expelled from Moscow.

In 1613, the first tsar from the Romanov dynasty, Mikhail Fedorovich, elected by the Zemsky Sobor, established a day for the cleansing of Moscow from Polish invaders, which began to be celebrated on November 4 (October 22, old style).

In 1649, by decree of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, this date was declared an Orthodox public holiday (celebrated until 1917). The day was included in the church calendar as a celebration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God.

In 1818, by decree of Emperor Alexander I, a monument to “Citizen Minin and Prince Pozharsky” by the sculptor Ivan Martos was erected on Red Square.

In September 2004, the Interreligious Council of Russia proposed making November 4 a holiday and celebrating it as National Unity Day.

On November 23 of the same year, a bill was submitted to the State Duma (authors Valery Bogomolov, Oleg Eremeev from United Russia and Vladimir Zhirinovsky from the Liberal Democratic Party) on amendments to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The document provided, in particular, for the abolition of the holiday on November 7 (since 1918 - the Day of the Great October Socialist Revolution; since 1996 - the Day of Reconciliation and Accord; a day off), as well as the introduction of a new holiday on November 4.

In Russian society, the appearance of a new date - National Unity Day - was perceived ambiguously. In particular, the Communists opposed it: thus, the leader of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation Gennady Zyuganov called the proposal to celebrate November 4 an ignorance of history, since, in his words, “Moscow was liberated from the Poles on November 8.”

Some media also expressed opinions that November 4, as the day of the liberation of Moscow, does not have accurate historical confirmation. The words of Russian historians were cited as an example. Thus, Sergei Solovyov (1820-1879) wrote: “On October 22, the Cossacks launched an attack and took Kitay-Gorod. The Poles held out in the Kremlin for another month.” According to the research of Nikolai Kostomarov (1817-1885), the Poles “opened the Kremlin gates” on October 24, and the “deliverance of Moscow” was announced only on December 21.

A bill to amend Art. 112 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation was adopted by the Duma on December 24, 2004, approved by the Federation Council on December 27, and signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 29, 2004. On the same day, the President signed amendments to the Federal Law “On Days of Military Glory and Memorable Dates in Russia.” According to documents, November 4 became a public holiday - National Unity Day. November 7 received the status of a memorable date - the Day of the October Revolution of 1917 (Federal Law of July 21, 2005).

Traditionally, on National Unity Day in the Kremlin, the President of the Russian Federation presents state awards to outstanding figures of science and art, as well as foreign citizens for their great contribution to strengthening friendship and developing cultural ties with Russia.

Rallies organized by political parties and social movements are taking place in Russian cities. Representatives of nationalist organizations annually hold processions on this day known as the “Russian March”. The first such actions in the history of new Russia took place in Moscow and St. Petersburg on November 4, 2005.

This year it is planned to hold about 500 socio-political, cultural, entertainment and sporting events in Russia. -0dp.

On October 22 (November 1 according to the Gregorian calendar), 1612, militia fighters led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky took Kitay-gorod by storm, the garrison of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth retreated to the Kremlin. Prince Pozharsky entered Kitai-Gorod with the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and vowed to build a temple in memory of this victory. On October 26 (November 5 according to the Gregorian calendar), the command of the interventionist garrison signed a capitulation, releasing the Moscow boyars and other nobles from the Kremlin at the same time. The next day (October 27) the garrison surrendered. At the end of February 1613, the Zemsky Sobor elected Mikhail Romanov, the first Russian Tsar from the Romanov dynasty, as the new Tsar.

In 1649, by decree of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the day of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, October 22 (according to the Julian calendar), was declared a public holiday, which was celebrated for three centuries until 1917.

According to the Orthodox church calendar, this day marks the “Celebration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (in memory of the deliverance of Moscow and Russia from the Poles in 1612),” which falls on October 22 according to the Julian calendar. Due to the increase in the differences between the Julian and Gregorian calendars over the past centuries, this day has shifted to November 4th. It is this date - October 22 according to the Julian calendar, or November 4 according to the Gregorian calendar - that was chosen as the day of the public holiday.

History of the holiday

The immediate reason for the introduction of the new holiday was the government's planned cancellation of the celebration of November 7, which in people's minds is associated with the anniversary of the October Revolution of 1917.

The idea to make November 4 a holiday as National Unity Day was expressed by the Interreligious Council of Russia in September 2004.

It was supported by the Duma Committee on Labor and Social Policy and thus acquired the status of a Duma initiative.

On September 29, 2004, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Alexy publicly supported the Duma’s initiative to establish a celebration on November 4. “This day reminds us how in 1612 Russians of different faiths and nationalities overcame division, overcame a formidable enemy and led the country to a stable civil peace,” said Patriarch Alexy.

On October 4, the same initiative was publicly supported by the first deputy. Head of the United Russia faction Valery Bogomolov. In an interview with RIA Novosti, he stated that “in 1612, Russia was freed from the Polish invaders, and the ‘times of unrest’ ended.”

On October 28, 2004, in Saratov on Teatralnaya Square, on the initiative of the Public Chamber of the region and the Youth Parliament of the region, an 8,000-strong rally of youth and representatives of public organizations was held in support of the course of reforms carried out by the President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin. The speeches voiced support for the initiative to establish the celebration of November 4 as the Day of National Unity, which was included in the Address of the rally participants to the President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin.

On November 23, 2004, a bill was submitted to the Duma for consideration of amendments to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation: canceling the celebration of November 7 - the anniversary of the October Revolution and December 12 - Constitution Day, increasing the New Year holidays from 2 to 5 days, as well as introducing a new holiday on November 4. The authors of the bill are Valery Bogomolov, Oleg Eremeev (United Russia) and Vladimir Zhirinovsky (LDPR).

On the same day, members of the Presidium of the Interreligious Council of Russia appealed to the Chairman of the State Duma, Boris Gryzlov, with a request to consider the Council’s statement on establishing the date November 4 as a holiday. The Council supported the initiative to introduce a new holiday. The corresponding appeal, along with the text of the statement, was distributed in the Duma in connection with the consideration in the first reading of amendments to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation related to the revision of holiday dates.

“We believe that the day of the tragic division of Russia - November 7 - did not become a day of reconciliation and agreement,” the appeal says. Members of the Interreligious Council of Russia believe that the events that followed “led to the death of millions of our fellow citizens, while the liberation of Moscow from foreign invaders in 1612 united the people and stopped the fratricidal bloodshed.”

At the Duma meeting, the bill was adopted in the first reading. The communists opposed it.

On December 27, 2004, the draft was adopted in the third reading and became law. 327 deputies voted in favor, 104 (all communists) voted against, two abstained.

Attitude to the holiday

The reaction of the press and media to the introduction of the new holiday was mixed. The introduction of the holiday was interpreted as a deliberately unsuccessful attempt to replace the popular November 7th. However, at the same time, the holiday was also characterized as “uniting peoples.”

On the eve of the first celebration of National Unity Day, a sociological survey was conducted in 46 regions of the country. 33% of respondents believed that November 4 was celebrated as the Day of Accord and Reconciliation in Russia, 8% were going to celebrate the Day of National Unity, and 5% - “Day of Liberation from the Polish-Lithuanian Interventionists.” The same poll showed that the majority of Russians (63%) had a negative attitude towards the November 7 cancellation.

Even more interesting are the results of the 2009 survey. The question was formulated as follows: “What kind of holiday is celebrated in Russia on November 4?” More than 30% of respondents found it difficult to answer. 45% responded that they would celebrate National Unity Day, and 6% said that November 4 is the day of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. Just over 10% of the population believes that in November the country celebrates the anniversary of the October Revolution.

On November 1, the leader of the Yabloko party, Grigory Yavlinsky, stated that he supported the abolition of the November 7 celebration, since, according to him, this was a justification for the violent seizure of power, and supported the celebration of November 4 as the “Day of National Unity.” He called this holiday “the day of civil society,” since, according to him, it was civil society that for the only time became the main force in eliminating the Troubles.

At the same time, in many cities of Russia the holiday began to invariably take place against the backdrop of rallies and processions of various patriotic and nationalist movements, which causes a negative attitude from the liberal media and politicians.

Left-wing political movements criticized “National Unity Day” as a holiday trying to reconcile the poor and the rich, the oppressed and the oppressors. The Union of Revolutionary Socialists issued a leaflet against this holiday, in which it proclaimed the slogan “no unity with the bourgeoisie.”

Since 2005, on the fourth day of November, Russia has celebrated National Unity Day. The holiday, albeit with a distinct “political” connotation, reminds us of an important date in the country’s history: the salvation of Russia from the complete loss of independence in 1612.

The authorities of the new Russia do not favor the main communist holiday - November 7, which marks the anniversary of the October Socialist Revolution of 1917. Therefore (no matter what officials say) in 2004, the State Duma of the Russian Federation changed the law “On Days of Military Glory”. As a result, a new holiday appeared - National Unity Day. The explanatory note to the draft law noted:

“On November 4, 1612, soldiers of the people’s militia under the leadership of Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky took Kitay-Gorod by storm, liberating Moscow from Polish invaders and demonstrating an example of heroism and unity of the entire people, regardless of origin, religion and position in society.”

To consolidate its significance, it was given a day off, which previously “belonged” to November 7th. The new holiday was first celebrated in 2005, i.e. exactly 10 years ago.

By the way, they did a nice thing on November 7 - now this day officially marks the anniversary of the famous Parade on Red Square in November 1941. Then the parade seemed to have been started in honor of the 24th anniversary of the same October Revolution, but contemporaries remembered it more for another reason - a demonstration of military power in Moscow, which was besieged by the Nazis and outright lost the first months of the Great Patriotic War. However, let's return to the November 4 holiday - it's time to see why our legislators chose this date.

The time of troubles begins

At the end of the 16th century, Russia entered one of the most unstable periods in its history. In 1598, the last tsar from the Rurik dynasty, Fyodor Ioannovich, died, leaving no heirs. The country was devastated - the countless aggressive campaigns of Ivan IV the Terrible had an effect, and the Livonian War was especially difficult for Russia. Historians wrote that ordinary people in those years were mortally tired - both from wars and from the authorities, which, after the cruel oprichnina, they simply stopped respecting. A serious factor of instability was crop failure, which provoked a terrible famine of 1601-1603, which killed up to 0.5 million people.

The authorities, represented by the new monarch, former boyar Boris Godunov, did not sit idly by. People flocked to Moscow in droves, where they were given bread and money from state reserves. But Godunov’s kindness played against him - the chaos only intensified due to the peasant gangs formed in the capital (they included serfs and servants expelled from noble estates due to the landowner’s lack of money and work).

The Time of Troubles began due to the spread of rumors that the legitimate heir to the throne - Tsarevich Dmitry Ivanovich from the Rurik dynasty - was still alive and not dead, as was commonly believed before. But the rumors were spread by an impostor who went down in history under the name “ False Dmitry" Having enlisted the support of Polish aristocrats and converted to Catholicism, in 1604 he gathered an army and set off on a campaign against Moscow. What helped him win was not so much his own talents as the failures of the authorities - the betrayal of governor Basmanov and the death of Godunov. On June 20, 1605, Moscow greeted False Dmitry with jubilation. But the boyars and ordinary Muscovites quickly realized that the new tsar was very focused on Poland. The last straw was the arrival of False Dmitry's Polish accomplices in the capital - on May 16, 1606, an uprising broke out, during which the impostor was killed. The country was headed by the representative of the “Suzdal” branch of Rurikovich, the noble boyar Vasily Shuisky.

However, it did not become calmer. The first two years of the new government were seriously threatened by the rebel Cossacks, peasants and mercenaries of Ivan Bolotnikov - there was a time when the rebels, angry with the boyar arbitrariness, stood near Moscow. In 1607, a new impostor appeared - False Dmitry II (also known as the “Tushinsky thief”) - a year later, seven significant Russian cities were under his rule, including Yaroslavl, Vladimir and Kostroma. In the same year, the Nogai Horde and the Crimean Tatars decided to raid Russian lands for the first time in many years.

Together with False Dmitry II, Polish troops came to Rus' (until unofficially). Even for the interventionists, they behaved, to put it mildly, defiantly - they plundered cities (even those that voluntarily agreed to the rule of the new “tsar”), imposed excessive taxes on the local population and “fed” in them. A national liberation movement arose, and it was supported by the authorities - Russia concluded the Vyborg Treaty with Sweden, according to which, in exchange for the Korelsky district, it received a 15,000-strong detachment of mercenaries. Together with them, the talented Russian commander, a relative of the legitimate Tsar, Mikhail Skopin-Shuisky, inflicted several sensitive defeats on the invaders.

But here Russia was unlucky again. Tsar Shuisky and his brother Dmitry, frightened by the popularity of Skopin-Shuisky, poisoned the young military leader (otherwise the power would be taken away!). And then, as luck would have it, the Polish king Sigismund III declared war on his neighbor, exhausted by internal problems, and besieged the powerful fortress of Smolensk. But in the battle of July 4, 1610 at Klushino, the Russian troops, led by the incompetent Dmitry, were defeated by the Poles due to the betrayal of German mercenaries. Having learned about the successes of the Polish army, False Dmitry II came to Moscow from the south.

In the capital itself there was already a new government - the boyars lost the last remnants of trust in the “boyar tsar” Shuisky and overthrew him. As a result, a council of seven boyars came to power, which went down in history as the Seven Boyars. The new rulers immediately decided who would become their king - the choice fell on the Polish prince Vladislav.

But here the people had already opposed - no one wanted a Catholic ruler. People decided that it was better to have “their” False Dmitry than Vladislav. One after another, even those cities that had previously fought desperately against him began to swear allegiance to the impostor. The Seven Boyars were afraid of False Dmitry II and took an unheard of step - they allowed Polish-Lithuanian troops into Moscow. The impostor fled to Kaluga. The people were on his side - people really didn’t like the way the Polish interventionists behaved in the country. The self-proclaimed Rurikovich really began to fight the Poles - he liberated several cities and defeated the army of the Polish hetman Sapieha. But on December 11, 1610, he quarreled with the Tatar guards and was killed. It became clear that no one except the Russians themselves would save the country.

People's militias

There were two of them. The first was headed by the Ryazan nobleman Prokopiy Lyapunov. His power was recognized by former supporters of False Dmitry II: Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy, Grigory Shakhovskoy, and the Cossacks of Ivan Zarutsky. The Poles knew about the conspiracy and were nervous: as a result, they mistook a domestic quarrel in the market for the beginning of an uprising and massacred thousands of Muscovites. In China Town alone, the number of victims reached seven thousand...

At the end of March 1611, the First Militia approached Moscow. The militia took several districts of Moscow (White City, Zemlyanoy Gorod, part of Kitay-Gorod), and then elected a “provisional government” called the “Council of the Whole Land”, led by Lyapunov, Trubetskoy and Zarutsky. But at one of the military councils of the militia, the Cossacks rebelled and killed Lyapunov. The two remaining members of the council decided to keep the Kremlin with the Polish garrison entrenched in it under siege until the Second Militia arrived.

Problems followed one after another. After a long siege, the Poles took Smolensk, the Crimean Tatars ravaged the Ryazan region, the Swedes turned from allies into enemies - Novgorod fell under their onslaught. And in December, Pskov was captured by the third False Dmitry... Soon the entire north-west of Russia recognized the next impostor.

The second militia arose in September 1611 in Nizhny Novgorod. Its basis was made up of peasants from the northern and central regions of Russia, as well as city dwellers. It was headed by the Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo elder Kuzma Minin. He was supported first by the townspeople, and then by everyone else - service people (military) and governors, the clergy, the city council. At a general gathering of townspeople, Archpriest Savva delivered a sermon, and then Minin himself called on his fellow citizens to liberate the country from the occupiers. Inspired by his speech, the townspeople decided that every resident of Nizhny Novgorod and the district would transfer part of their property to the maintenance of the “military people”. Minin was entrusted with distributing income - trust in him was one hundred percent.

For military leadership, he invited Prince Pozharsky. It was difficult to think of a better candidate - the nobleman was Rurikovich, in 1608 he defeated the troops of False Dmitry II, remained faithful to the Moscow kings, and in March 1611 took part in the battle for Moscow, where he was seriously wounded. The people of Nizhny Novgorod also liked his personal qualities: the prince was an honest, disinterested, fair person, and he made thoughtful and rational decisions. A delegation from Nizhny Novgorod went to see Pozharsky, who was healing his wounds, on his estate 60 km away several times - but the prince, according to the etiquette of those times, invariably refused and agreed only when Archimandrite Theodosius came to him. There was only one condition - Pozharsky was ready to cooperate only with Kuzma Minin, whom he trusted unconditionally in economic matters.

Pozharsky arrived in Nizhny Novgorod at the end of October 1611. Quite quickly, he managed to increase the number of militias from 750 to 3,000 people - the ranks of the liberators were supplemented by servicemen from Smolensk, Vyazma and Dorogobuzh. They immediately began to be paid a salary - from 30 to 50 rubles a year. Having learned about this, Ryazan, Kolomna, Cossacks and archers from outlying cities began to join the militia.

Good organization of work (both with money and with people) quickly led to the fact that the Second Militia - more precisely, the Council of the Whole Land created by it - became a “center of power” along with the Moscow “Seven Boyars” and the Cossack freemen of Zarutsky and Trubetskoy. At the same time, the new leaders - unlike the leaders of the First Militia - clearly knew what they wanted from the very beginning. In a December letter addressed to the population of Vologda, they wrote that they wanted to end civil strife, cleanse the Moscow state of enemies and not commit arbitrariness.

The militia left Nizhny Novgorod at the end of February 1612. Having reached Reshma, Pozharsky learned that Pskov, Trubetskoy and Zarutsky had sworn allegiance to False Dmitry III (the fugitive monk Isidore was hiding under his name). As a result, it was decided to temporarily stop in Yaroslavl. The ancient city became the capital of the militia.

Here the militia stayed until July 1612. In Yaroslavl, the Council of the Whole Land was finally formed, it included representatives of noble families - the Dolgorukies, Kurakins, Buturlins, Sheremetevs, but it was still headed by Pozharsky and Minin. Kuzma was illiterate, so the prince “had a hand” in his behalf. To issue Council documents—letters—the signatures of all its members were required. It is characteristic that, due to the custom of localism that existed at that time, Pozharsky’s signature was only the 10th, and Minin’s was the 15th.

From Yaroslavl, the militia carried out military operations (against Polish-Lithuanian detachments and the Cossack freemen of Zarutsky, cutting off the latter from communications), and diplomatic negotiations - they decided to pacify the Swedes by cunning, offering the king’s brother the Russian throne, and asked the Holy Roman Empire for help in exchange for throne for the emperor's protege. Subsequently, both the Swede Karl Philip and the German Prince Maximilian were refused. At the same time, work was carried out to restore order in the controlled territory and recruit new militias. As a result, the number of the Second Militia grew to 10,000 well-armed, trained warriors.

The time to act has come in September (new style). The 12,000-strong detachment of the Polish hetman Chodkiewicz tried to release the Polish garrison locked in the Kremlin. On September 2, the first battle of the Moscow Battle took place: from 13 to 20 pm the cavalry detachments of Pozharsky and Khodkevich fought. Prince Trubetskoy, who seemed to support the Second Militia, behaved strangely: having asked Pozharskaya for 500 cavalry, he did not allow them to take part in the battle and support the militia. As a result, the hundreds of cavalry attached to the prince left him without permission and, together with part of Trubetskoy’s Cossacks, helped Pozharsky first push the Poles back to their original positions, and then push them back to the Donskoy Monastery.

On September 3, a new battle took place. Prince Trubetskoy again chose not to intervene in the battle, as a result of which the Poles occupied an important fortified point and captured a garrison of Cossacks. The intervention of the cellarer of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, Abraham Palitsyn, saved the militia from defeat - he promised Trubetskoy’s Cossacks that they would be paid a salary from the monastery treasury, and after that they nevertheless joined the militia.

The decisive battle took place on September 4. The militia fought with the Poles for 14 hours. During the battle, Kuzma Minin distinguished himself - his small cavalry detachment made a daring foray and sowed panic in Khodkevich’s camp. The scales tipped on the side of Pozharsky’s army - together with Trubetskoy’s Cossacks, he put the Poles to flight. The very next day, the hetman left Moscow with the remnants of his army.

The Polish garrison remained - two detachments of colonels Strus and Budyla, defending the Kitay-Gorod area and the Kremlin. Both the traitor boyars and the future Tsar Mikhail Romanov were in the citadel. After a month-long siege, Pozharsky invited his opponents to surrender and in return promised to save their lives, but the arrogant Poles responded with a categorical refusal. On November 4, according to the new style, the militia stormed Kitay-Gorod (we celebrate this date as National Unity Day), but the Kremlin remained under the control of the occupiers. Hunger reigned in the Polish camp - according to eyewitnesses, the interventionists descended to cannibalism. On November 5, they finally surrendered. Budila's troops were captured by Pozharsky, and the prince, as promised, spared their lives. Strus's detachment was captured by the Cossacks - and every last one of the Poles was slaughtered. On November 6, 1612, after a solemn prayer service, the troops of Prince Pozharsky entered the city to the ringing of bells with banners and banners. Moscow was liberated.

In January 1613, the first all-class Zemsky Sobor in history was held in Moscow - it was attended by representatives of all classes, including the peasantry. The candidacies of foreign contenders for the Russian throne - Polish Prince Vladislav, Swede Karl Philip and others - were rejected. The delegates were also not interested in the “crow” - the son of Marina Mnishek and False Dmitry II, Ivan. But none of the eight “Russian” candidates, including Pozharsky himself, found full support. As a result, those gathered voted for a “compromise” option - the son of the influential Patriarch Filaret, Mikhail Romanov. The election that marked the beginning of the new dynasty took place on February 7, 1613.

The Time of Troubles in Russia, however, is not over yet. The new tsar had to deal with the rebellious ataman Zarutsky, the Swedes and a 20,000-strong detachment of Poles who, together with the Zaporozhye Cossacks, besieged Moscow in 1618.

Until 1640, the hero of the Time of Troubles, Prince Pozharsky, faithfully served the Romanovs - Mikhail Fedorovich and Alexei Mikhailovich trusted him with the most important matters.

The results of the Troubles were difficult. The Moscow state lost access to the Baltic for more than 100 years, and the strategic fortress of Smolensk for several decades. The amount of plowed land decreased by 20 times, and the number of peasants capable of working on it decreased by 4 times. Many cities - for example, Veliky Novgorod - were completely destroyed. But the most important result was still a “plus” - Rus', in conditions of external aggression and internal turmoil, retained its independence.