The Time of Troubles at the beginning of the 17th century became a serious test of strength for the Muscovite state: the Polish-Swedish intervention was aimed at its division, and to prevent this, the people organized the first militia in 1611. However, serious contradictions soon emerged between its leaders, which led to the disintegration of the first national formation in the history of Russia.

Time of Troubles

In 1598, with the death of Fyodor Ivanovich, the Rurik dynasty that ruled the Russian lands from time immemorial was suppressed. The new tsar as a result of long intrigues was Boris Godunov (1598-1605), the brother-in-law of the late tsar. He came from the artistic boyars, but despite this, he managed to rise to the pinnacle of power and had every opportunity to become the founder of a new dynasty. A dark story from the past prevented this: in 1591 in Uglich, the youngest son of Ivan the Terrible, Dmitry, died under mysterious circumstances. Rumors immediately spread that Godunov was involved in this. The death of Dmitry allowed the emergence of the phenomenon of imposture, which largely provoked the Troubles in the Russian state.

False Dmitry

The first impostor was the fugitive monk of the Chudov Monastery, Grigory Otrepiev. In 1605, Godunov died suddenly, and with the support of Polish troops, Otrepiev managed to take the throne. But his defiant behavior turned all sections of society against the new king, and as a result of the conspiracy he was killed. Boyar Vasily Shuisky (1606-1610), a representative of the lateral branch of the Rurikovichs, became the new king. He was not popular, did not possess significant powers, and during his reign Russia gradually covered civil War... The strongest blow to his power was struck by the appearance of a new miraculously escaped Tsarevich Dmitry, who occupied the village of Tushino near Moscow. Realizing that anarchy in the Muscovite kingdom was becoming widespread, Poland and Sweden found the moment convenient for an open invasion, ostensibly to support the legitimate tsar.

Intervention

Open interference of these two countries in Russian affairs began after the deposition of Shuisky. Former kingdespite resistance, he was tonsured a monk. The boyars swore an oath of loyalty to the Polish, but made it a condition for his conversion to Orthodoxy. During the interregnum, a committee of seven representatives of the most noble families was elected, which went down in history as the Seven Boyars. Sigismund in every possible way dragged out negotiations on the Orthodox baptism of his son and, possibly, planned to become the Tsar of Moscow himself. The formal recognition of Vladislav's power allowed the Poles to rule in Moscow. They didn't need False Dmitry II anymore. In December 1610 he was killed.

The first zemstvo militia would not have been possible if not for the activities of the highest hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church. Seeing the chaos that gripped the Muscovy, as well as understanding the desire of the Poles to turn Russia into one of the provinces of their state, he began to spread appeals, the essence of which was to repel the invaders. The Patriarch spoke about this in sermons and during services. Gradually, the idea of \u200b\u200bthe militia stuck in the minds of both the upper strata of society and the lower classes.

The Poles put up all sorts of obstacles to the activities of the patriarch. He was forcibly removed from the throne and imprisoned in the Miracle Monastery, where he died of starvation in 1612.

Organization of the people's militia

The patriarchal letters made the greatest impression in Ryazan. Local voivode Prokopiy Lyapunov announced a fundraiser for organizing the militia. Soon he was joined by former supporters of False Dmitry II, led by Prince Trubetskoy and the Cossack ataman Zarutsky. The official goal of the first militia in 1611 was a march on Moscow and its liberation from the Poles.

In a fairly short time, Lyapunov managed to assemble a significant army. In addition to purely Ryazan formations and Tushino detachments, regiments from Vladimir, Murom, Yaroslavl, Suzdal and other cities joined the militia. The support of the citizens of Nizhny Novgorod was especially significant. The importance of this city and its arsenal were so great that Lyapunov sent his representatives there to ask for support. At the same time, the terms of the campaign against Moscow were agreed.

The beginning of hostilities

As already mentioned, the Poles mainly counted on the unrest that was growing in the Russian state. The emergence of a patriotic spirit popular formation was not part of their plans. That is why the interventionists tried to destroy this idea in the bud by invading Ryazan lands. Lyapunov was besieged in Pronsk, but the regiments of Prince Dmitry Pozharsky managed to free the Ryazan governor.

On February 17, 1611, the main part of the Nizhny Novgorod regiments advanced to Moscow, simultaneously joining with other formations. March 19 The first militia was already at the walls of Moscow. Upon learning of this, the inhabitants of the capital raised an uprising against the power of the Poles. This did not allow the invaders to immediately engage in battle with the militia, and some of their regiments were able to penetrate into Moscow. Prince Pozharsky was able to break through to Sretenka and drive the Poles to Kitai-Gorod. During this operation, he was seriously injured. The actions of other detachments were no less successful. Realizing that it would not be possible to cope with the militias by force, the Poles set fire to Moscow.

Arrival of new troops and discord

On March 24, Cossack detachments headed by Ataman Prosovetsky approach the walls of Moscow. At their disposal were siege weapons and "gulyai-gorod" - small mobile fortresses, made, as a rule, from ordinary carts. Three days later, the main forces of the militia, led by Lyapunov, appeared at the walls of the capital. By the beginning of April, there were just over a hundred thousand people near Moscow.

The first people's militia in 1611 could not become a single organization. The leaders of individual detachments, Cossack chieftains, and governors could not agree among themselves. Formally, a collegial governing body was created - the Council of the Whole Land. In fact, this semblance of the familiar Boyar Duma led endless arguments about who would lead the first militia. In 1611, full awareness of the need for joint action against the interventionists had not yet occurred.

Organizational registration of the militia

Local disputes and the struggle for power led to the fact that such significant forces gathered near Moscow were virtually inactive. At the beginning of April, shelling of the capital's towers was still carried out, but soon they stopped too.

The militia leaders managed to come to a shaky agreement. The council of the whole land was headed by Lyapunov, Zarutsky and Trubetskoy. After a while, the "Verdict" was adopted, according to which a control system was established both in the militia and on the lands under its control. This document repeated the structure of government institutions that existed even before the dynastic crisis and related events. In particular, the entire land controlled by the Council was introduced. Among the most important are Razryadny, Zemsky and Local.

The collapse of the First Militia

Separation supreme power between the three leaders of the militia was a compromise step. Since the powers of one were limited to the powers of the other two leaders of the Council of the Whole Land, a struggle for sole power would inevitably begin between them. Thus, the leaders of the first militia in 1611 quickly forgot about the reasons for its formation.

The Polish invaders understood this very well. Having made sure that it was precisely because of internal contradictions that the militia was not able to start an assault on Moscow, the invaders tried with all their might to prevent an end to the internal struggle in it. For this purpose, falsified documents were sent to the Zarutsky Cossacks, from which it followed that Lyapunov intended to disband their regiments. Believing the insinuations, the Cossacks summoned Lyapunov to their gathering and hacked him to death. The consequence of this was the withdrawal of the noble regiments from Moscow.

From that moment on, the first militia actually ceases to exist. Only the Cossack detachments remained at the walls of the capital, commanded by Zarutsky and Trubetskoy. This situation continued until the approach of the forces of the second militia, assembled by Prince Pozharsky and the Nizhny Novgorod merchant

The Council of the Whole Land continued to formally remain the supreme authority in the territories beyond the control of the Poles. However, the absence of a single leader led to the emergence of a new impostor. On March 2, the Council swore allegiance to False Dmitry III. Subsequently, this made it possible not to listen to his opinion for years.

The meaning of the militia

Despite the lack of practical use, the activities of the First Militia meant a lot for the further struggle against the Poles and Swedes. For the first time, the ability of the people to organize themselves in a critical situation was demonstrated. The very idea of \u200b\u200bthe people's militia was taken up and developed by one of its most prominent participants - Prince Pozharsky. When creating a new popular formation, he took into account the mistakes of the past. In particular, the new association did not consider it necessary to cooperate with people from Tushino, whose participation, by and large, led the First Militia to collapse. On the other hand, the existence of such a powerful opposition in the country to the plans of the Polish gentry forced the Polish king to seriously think about further prospects for intervention. Thus, the psychological effect is the main result of the first militia in 1611.

Ryazan voivode P.P. Lyapunov was one of the first to understand that the Poles are the main enemies of his Fatherland. He not only received information from Moscow from his acquaintances that the power in the capital was in the hands of the head of the Polish garrison A. Gonsevsky and his companions, who oppress the townspeople, but also learned a lot about the true plans of Sigismund from the letters of his brother Zakhari, who was under Smolensk as part of the Russian embassy. 3. Lyapunov pretended to agree to cooperate with the Poles, and began to often meet with them during feasts. After drinking alcoholic beverages, he deliberately provoked new acquaintances to frank conversations. From them he learned about the ideas of the Polish king.

Very soon Zakhari found out that Sigismund was not going to give a son to the Moscow throne, realizing that his young son would become an obedient toy in the hands of the boyars. The king intended first to finally tear away Smolensk from the Russian state, and then to add the state itself to his crown. Naturally, true patriots Russia could not be satisfied with such a prospect.

Prokopiy Petrovich, reflecting on the current situation, realized that it was necessary to contact the governors of other cities and jointly develop a plan to save the country from Polish oppression. The messengers with his letters went to Kaluga, where the remnants of the False Dmitry's army were still located, to Vladimir, Suzdal, Kostroma, Yaroslavl, Pereslavl-Zalessky, Tula, Romanov and other cities. Very soon, messages came from everywhere in which the city governors and locals expressed their readiness to act together, form squads and go to Moscow to cleanse it of the Poles.

The Moscow provisional government, in order to please Sigismund, also tried to lure the governor over to its side. In January 1611, Yu.N. was sent to Kaluga. Trubetskoy in order to bring residents to the oath of allegiance to Vladislav (officially he was considered the named king). But his relative D.T. Trubetskoy, the head of the local garrison, replied: "We will swear allegiance to the prince only when he is on the throne in Moscow." As a result, Yu.N. Trubetskoy had to flee in order not to end up in a Kaluga prison.

I.S. was sent from Moscow to Pereslavl-Zalessky with the same mission. Kurakin. But the local voivode I.V. Volynsky gave battle to the boyar's detachment and forced him to return to the capital with nothing. The attempt of the "seven-boyars" to arrest P.P. Lyapunov. They sent a detachment of Cossacks against him and were able to win over I. Sunbulov, one of the Ryazan governors, to their side. Procopius was besieged in Pronsk, but the Zaraisk governor D.M. Pozharsky and fought off the Cossacks. Not wanting to return to Moscow, they went south, where they engaged in looting. As a result, near Serpukhov and Kolomna, a calm situation developed for the collection of the militia.

Soon, P.P. Lyapunov was given letters from Muscovites and Smolyans to form the militia, which they secretly distributed throughout the cities. They told about the plight of ordinary townspeople, about violence by the Poles and their supporters, about the insidious plans of King Sigismund to seize the Russian state and eradicate Orthodoxy. In conclusion, the letters contained an appeal to all Russian people to unite and begin the struggle for their Faith and Fatherland.

The governors of the cities began to communicate with each other and negotiate joint actions against the Poles.

In January 1611 Lyapunov sent I.I. to Nizhny Novgorod. Birkin and clerk S. Pustoshin. To Kaluga to D.T. Trubetskoy was visited by his nephew Fyodor. From Kazan, two archers and a townsman were sent to Vyatka. The Perm governors sent two messengers to Veliky Ustyug. A clerk Z. Perfiryev and a townsman Poluekt went from Galich to Kostroma. A nobleman V. Nogin and a townsman P. Tarygin were sent from Yaroslavl to Vologda. From Vladimir to Suzdal to the Cossack ataman A. Prosovetsky "for advice" went E. Proskudin and several the best people from the posad. Procopius even sent his people to P. Sapega, who could not decide who to serve.

Detailed information about how the First Militia was formed is given by the letter of the Yaroslavl people in Kazan from early March 1611

“... all Orthodox peasants decided to rebel against the Poles and die, if necessary. Smolensk inmates, archbishop and boyar M.B. Shein. On Ryazan P.P. Lyapunov from the cities beyond the rivers for the Orthodox faith have become and from the cities they are exiled. In Yaroslavl - with the voivode I.I. Volynsky, in Vologda - with the head of I. Tolstoy, 500 people turned and joined. From near Novgorod (Nizhny) Astrakhan archer Timofey Sharov made an outfit, cannon supplies, 5 drags, 6 regimental squeaks, 2 thousand copies. On Thursday, the first shipment to Pereslavl. There they were greeted with images, given food, on March 1 - Volynsky (II Volynsky - governor of Yaroslavl), near Rostov. They were firmly entrenched in Yaroslavl. From Ryazan Prokopiy Petrovich from Ryazan and the north. From Murom, the okolnichy prince Vasily Fedorovich Mosalsky, from Nizhny - the governor Prince Alexander Andreevich Repnin, from Suzdal and Vladimir - Artemy Izmailov and Andrei Prosovetsky, from Pskov - Volga Cossacks (former associates of False Dmitry II), from Vologda and Fyodoria - from Vologda and Pomorie , from Romanov - voivode Vasily Romanovich Pronsky and prince Fyodor Kozlovsky, from Galich - voivode Peter Ivanovich Mansurov, from Kostroma - prince Fyodor Ivanovich Volkonsky. On March 7, military men (Yaroslavl) came out with a plank outfit and a wagon train. " (Ancient state documents collected in the Perm province by V. Verkhniy. SPb., 1821. C. XXIV.)

At that time in Moscow there was a very alarming situation. Some members of the embassy arrived from near Smolensk with the news that the king agreed to give a son to the kingdom on the condition of surrendering Smolensk. Therefore, the boyars should write to the Smolensk governor M. B. Shein and demand that he surrender the city to the Poles. They should also send a letter to Filaret and V. Golitsyn so that they would not be stubborn and rely on the will of the king in everything.

Most of the members of Semboyarshchina agreed to draw up and sign such letters. Only those in custody I.M. were categorically against this. Vorotynsky and A.B. Golitsyn, but the boyars decided to do without them. The main thing for them was to receive the blessing and signature of Patriarch Hermogenes, who in the absence of the king was considered the head of the country. In addition, they wanted the pastor to write to P.P. Lyapunov and forbade him to gather the militia and go with him to Moscow.

In the New Chronicler, the conversation of the boyars led by M.G. Saltykov is described in full detail.

“The Lithuanian people and Moscow traitors, Mikhailo Saltykov and his comrades, seeing the Moscow people meeting for the Orthodox Christian faith, start telling the boyars to write to the king and send the king's forehead to beat the king's forehead, so that he would give his son to the state, and“ we are at your will we lay down "... Boyars have written such letters and applied and went to Patriarch Hermogenes ... He is a great sovereign, a champion of the Orthodox Christian faith, standing in firmness, like an invincible pillar, and, having told them," I will write letters to the king on that and I will put my hand, and by authority I will command everyone to put my hands, and I will bless you to write; the king will give his son to the Moscow state and baptize into the Orthodox faith and will lead the Lithuanian people out of Moscow; ... and there will be such letters of writing that in all of us there is a positive for the royal will and an ambassador about that, beat the king with his forehead and put himself on his will, and then it has become known that we should kiss the cross to the king himself, and not to the king's daughter. And I'm not just such letters that I put my hands on, and I do not bless you to write, but I curse, who will teach such letters to write; and I will write to Prokofy Lyapunov: the prince will be against the Moscow state and be baptized in the Orthodox Christian faith, I bless him to serve, but the prince will not be baptized into the Orthodox faith and will not take Lithuania out of the Moscow state, and I bless them and allow them, who kissed the king's cross , go under the Moscow state and die for everyone for the Orthodox Christian faith. " The same traitor, the villain, Mikhailo Saltykov, began to righteously dishonor and bark, and took out a knife, and at least cut it. But he should not be afraid against his knife, and speak to him with a great voice, overshadowing the sign of the cross, and speech: “This is the sign of the cross against your cursed knife; May you be damned in this world and in the future. " (PSRL.Vol. 14.P. 106.)

From the very beginning of 1611, there is a movement that finally brought the state out of ruin. It arose in the county, township and volost worlds (communities) of the North, accustomed to independence and self-government. These communities, which received uyezd and zemstvo institutions of the 16th century, a wider organization and involvement in the tasks of the government, built their own way of life, developed their internal relations and even in charge of defense from enemies, keeping Cossacks and tributary people, whom they recruited among themselves, under very soft leadership and the influence of the central government.

Historical reference

The cities and regions of the North, which were not affected by the development of service land tenure, were free from a sharp class division of the population. There was no strong division between rich and poor, so they were a socially cohesive force. The prosperous and energetic population of the Pomor towns awakened to the struggle against the reorganization of the land and the defense of the state, as soon as it faced an inspiration from the gangs of thieves of the Tushino thief.

That is, these forces were patriotic, but one must remember that in the history of idealism there is very little. Despite the fact that there were many sincerely Orthodox and patriotic people among these people, it was absolutely clear that the Poles' dominance in Moscow, the weakening of state power - leads them to material losses, breaks their trade. That is, they had not only a national-class, but also a material interest to kick the Poles out of Moscow, and so that Moscow had a strong Central government. Strictly speaking, the first wave of this movement emerged back in 1609, and Skopin-Shuisky could objectively become its leader. But in 1609 the situation was still too complicated. But in 1610 the situation changed.

First Zemsky Militia

The so-called first Zemsky militia emerged. It was led by the Lipunov brothers (Procopius and Zakhar), as well as Ivan Zarutsky, who was once behind Tushintsev, and Prince Dmitry Timofeevich Trubetskoy (the so-called triumvirate). All these were adventurers, but this is a normal feature for the Time of Troubles in Russia. It is these people who come to the fore during the Time of Troubles.

At this time, the Poles are in the Kremlin. In March 1611, the first militia led by the triumvirate began to storm Moscow in order to drive the Poles out of there. It was not possible to take the city, but the blockade of the Kremlin continued. The Poles have reached the level of corpse-eating. Why it has become very organized. If a person dies in one company, only representatives of that company eat him. It was really horrible.

But the Poles held out. By the way, during this uprising, the Poles set fire to the city, and almost all of Moscow burned down. And here begins the conflict between the Cossacks and the nobles, because the Lipunovs were the leaders of the noble part, and Zarutsky and especially Trubetskoy were the Cossacks. The Poles used it. They planted a letter according to which Lipunov was supposedly going to enter into some kind of agreement with the Poles. The Cossacks believed this and killed Lipunov. After Lipunov's death, the nobility left, and the Cossacks were left alone. Meanwhile, another Tsarevich Dmitry appeared in Pskov. True, everyone knew that this was not Dmitry, but Sidorko from the locals. But Trubetskoy recognized him. In some areas, they kissed the cross to Marina Mnishek and her son, whom the official authorities called "Vorenk", that is, the son of a thief. It was believed that he was the son of False Dmitry 2, but in fact he was the son of Ivan Zarutsky. Under these conditions, a new stage of the Zemsky movement began in the province.

Second Zemsky Militia

A second Zemstvo militia emerged, led by Kuzma Minin, who at first simply raised funds and was equipped primarily with infantry, but a military leader was needed. The military leader was Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Pozharsky, who came from the princes of Starodubsky. That is, he was a descendant of Vsevolod the Big Nest. And he had more than serious reasons to sit on the Russian throne.

Actually, the second militia went to Moscow under the coat of arms of Prince Pozharsky. Another thing is that Pozharsky did not manage to become a Russian Tsar, and the Romanovs then did everything to slander him and never pay attention to the fact that the coat of arms of Pozharsky was the coat of arms of the second militia. That is, the second militia went in order to put Pozharsky on the throne. But this was not part of the plans of the Romanovs. The movement, led by the second militia, covered the entire Volga region and all this army came to Yaroslavl, where they remained for 4 months. Alternative governing bodies were created in Yaroslavl. Here funds were collected, and the Council of All Earth was convened. This Council became a provisional government. Temporary orders were instituted. An embassy from Novgorod arrived in Yaroslavl, which offered to call the Swedish prince Karl Philip to the kingdom. Sly merchants in Yaroslavl did not refuse anything or anyone. They were just playing for time with vague promises.

At this time, Zarutsky and Trubetskoy declared Minim and Pozharsky rebels. In addition, a conflict occurs between Trubetskoy and Zarutsky himself. Zarutskiy takes Marina Mnishek and leaves first to Kaluga, and then to the south. In 1614 he will be captured on Yaik and impaled, and his son will be hanged. That is, the reign of the Romanovs began with the murder of a child. And this is the historical symmetry ... When they say that they feel sorry for Tsarevich Alexei, who was shot by the Bolsheviks in 1918, they forget that there is some kind of historical symmetry in this. The Romanovs began their reign with the murder of a child, because this child, the son of Marina Mnishek, was kissed by many of the cross, as a possible heir to the throne. And it came back like a boomerang of history after many, many years. Marina herself was either drowned or strangled, but she also disappears in 1614.

Expulsion of Poles from Moscow

But back to current events. Trubetskoy remained in Moscow, who sent hired assassins to Minin and Pozharsky so that they killed at least Pozharsky. Nothing came of this, and in August 1612 the militia led by Minin and Pozharsky approached Moscow. In Moscow, the situation is as follows: Poles are in the Kremlin, Trubetskoy and his Cossacks are also in Moscow (but not in the Kremlin). Minin and Pozharsky come to Moscow, but Hetman Khodkevich comes to the rescue of the Poles. Hetman Khodkevich and the militia of Minin and Pozharsky meet near the Crimean ford (where the Crimean bridge is now). Then there was no bridge there was a ford. And now they are facing each other. On August 22, the first battle took place (it was more reconnaissance), and on August 24 the main battle unfolded. The Russian cavalry could not withstand the blow, but the Nizhny Novgorod infantry saved the day.

The Poles began to rebuild for the next attack, and Pozharsky explained to Minin that the militias could not withstand a second blow. Then Pozharsky turned to Trubetskoy for help. But Trubetskoy refused, because the Cossacks strongly hated everyone who had or could have at least a slightly better financial situation. And then Minin cheated ... The battle began, success began to lean towards the Poles, and then Minin decided the matter. He sent a Trubetskoy messenger to the Cossacks with a promise that if the Cossacks would help and strike at the flank, then the entire train of Khodkevich would be theirs. For the Cossacks, this decided everything (the baggage train is a sacred cause). The Cossacks attacked the flank, Hetman Chodkevich was defeated and as a result the Cossacks entered Russian history with a wagon train. Looking ahead, the Cossacks are in a cart and will leave Russian history.

First militia

The third stage of the Troubles is associated with the desire to overcome the conciliatory position of the Seven Boyars, which had no real power and failed to force Vladislav to comply with the terms of the agreement, to accept Orthodoxy. Increasingly wider strata of the population opposed the current state of affairs. In order to stop the fermentation in October 1610, Gonsevsky arrested a number of representatives of prominent boyar families. On November 30, Patriarch Hermogenes, who was also taken under strict arrest, made an appeal to fight the interventionists. Moscow found itself in fact on martial law.

The country has matured the idea of \u200b\u200ba national militia to liberate Moscow from the invaders. In February-March 1611, the 1st Militia of Lyapunov and Prince Trubetskoy, as well as the Cossacks of Ataman Zarutsky, approached the walls of Moscow. The decisive battle, in which Muscovites and one of the militia commanders, Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Pozharsky, took part, took place on March 19. However, it was not possible to liberate the city: on the advice of Dmitry Molchanov, the Poles set fire to the city and thereby stopped the uprising of Muscovites. Nevertheless, the districts of the White City remained in the hands of the militias, and the Poles, who controlled only the Kremlin and Kitay-Gorod, were isolated. But even in the camp of the militia there were internal contradictions, which resulted in armed clashes, in one of which, on July 22, 1611, Prokopy Lyapunov was killed by the Cossacks, and the militia began to fall apart.

In the same year crimean Tatarswithout encountering resistance, they ravage the Ryazan region. After a long siege, Smolensk was captured by the Poles, and the Swedes, having left the role of "allies", ravaged the northern Russian cities.

Second militia

The Second Militia of 1612 was led by the Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo headman Kuzma Minin, who invited Prince Pozharsky to lead the military operations. An important task that Pozharsky and Minin were able to accomplish was the organization and rallying of all patriotic forces. In February 1612, the militia moved to Yaroslavl to occupy this important point, where many roads crossed. Yaroslavl was busy; the militia stood here for four months, because it was necessary to "build" not only the army, but also the "land." Pozharsky wanted to convene a "general zemstvo council" to discuss plans for combating the Polish-Lithuanian intervention and how "how can we not be stateless in this evil time and choose a sovereign for us all over the land." The candidacy of the Swedish prince Karl-Philip, who “wants to be baptized into our Orthodox faith of the Greek law”, was also proposed for discussion. However, the Zemsky Council did not take place.

Meanwhile, the first militia had completely disintegrated. Ivan Zarutsky and his supporters went to Kolomna, and from there to Astrakhan. Several hundred more Cossacks left after them, but most of them, led by Prince Trubetskoy, remained to hold the siege of Moscow.

In August 1612, the militia of Minin and Pozharsky entered Moscow and united with the remnants of the first militia. On August 22, Hetman Chodkiewicz tried to break through to help the besieged compatriots, but after three days of fighting he was forced to retreat with heavy losses.

On September 22, 1612, one of the bloodiest events of the Troubles takes place - the city of Vologda was taken by the Poles and Cherkasy (Cossacks), who destroyed almost all of its population, including the monks of the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery.

On October 22, 1612, the militia under the leadership of Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky took Kitai-Gorod by storm; the garrison of the 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.

The Poles held out in the Kremlin for another month; to get rid of unnecessary mouths, they ordered the boyars and all Russian people to send their wives out of the Kremlin. The boyars strongly embarrassed and sent to Pozharsky Minin and all the military people with a request to be granted, accepted their wives without shame. Pozharsky ordered to tell them to let their wives out without fear, and he himself went to receive them, received everyone honestly and took each one to his friend, ordering everyone to please them.

Driven to extremes by hunger, the Poles finally entered into negotiations with the militia, demanding only one thing, that their lives be spared, which was promised. First, they released the boyars - Fyodor Ivanovich Mstislavsky, Ivan Mikhailovich Vorotynsky, Ivan Nikitich Romanov with his nephew Mikhail Fedorovich and the mother of the latter, Martha Ivanovna, and all other Russian people. When the Cossacks saw that the boyars had gathered on the Kamenny Bridge leading from the Kremlin through the Neglinnaya, they wanted to rush at them, but were held back by Pozharsky's militia and were forced to return to the camps, after which the boyars were received with great honor. On the next day, the Poles surrendered too: Strus with their regiment went to Trubetskoy's Cossacks, who robbed and beat many prisoners; Budzilo with his regiment was taken to the warriors of Pozharsky, who did not touch a single Pole. The stream was interrogated, Andronov was tortured, how many royal treasures were lost, how much was left? They also found the ancient tsarist hats, which were given as a mortgage to the Sapezhins who remained in the Kremlin. On November 27, Trubetskoy's militia converged on the Church of the Kazan Mother of God behind the Intercession Gate, Pozharsky's militia - to the Church of St. John the Merciful on the Arbat and, taking crosses and icons, moved to Kitai-Gorod from two different sides, accompanied by all Moscow residents; the militia converged at the Execution Ground, where the Trinity Archimandrite Dionysius began to serve a prayer service, and then from the Frolovsky (Spassky) Gate, from the Kremlin, another religious procession appeared: the Galasun (Arkhangelsk) Archbishop Arseny was walking with the Kremlin clergy and carried the Vladimirskaya: crying and sobbing the people who had already lost hope of ever seeing this image dear for Muscovites and all Russians. After the prayer service, the army and the people moved to the Kremlin, and here joy gave way to sadness when they saw in what position the embittered Gentiles left the churches: everywhere there is impurity, images are cut, eyes are twisted, thrones are stripped; terrible food is prepared in vats - human corpses! Lunch and prayer service in the Assumption Cathedral ended a great popular celebration similar to which our fathers saw exactly two centuries later. "

In the Time of Troubles, after the invasion of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth into the territory of Russia, the first militia was created. It was headed by a nobleman from the city of Ryazan, Prokopy Lyapunov, who went down in history along with Minin, Pozharsky, and many other defenders and guardians of the Russian land.

Russia 1608-1610

The situation in Russia during this period of time was extremely difficult. False Dmitry II appeared, who was supported by many cities of Russia, excluding Smolensk, Nizhny Novgorod, Kolomna, the cities of Siberia. Vasily Shuisky, frightened by this, invites the Swedes to fight the impostor. Together they managed to liberate a number of settlements, including Pskov, after which they were sent to defend the city of Novgorod. Due to non-payment of wages, the Swedes captured it and part of the territories.

After the death of False Dmitry II, he decided to use the situation in Russia to his advantage polish king Together with Lithuania in 1609 he entered the territory of Russia. If the impostor was recognized by many Russian cities and settlements, the Poles were accepted as invaders, although the hetmans of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth explained their invasion as assistance to the Russian Empire. The robbery and atrocities perpetrated by the occupiers were the motivation behind the creation of the first militia. It was headed by a Ryazan nobleman P.P. Lyapunov.

Deposition of Shuisky

In 1610, Polish-Lithuanian troops led by two hetmans, Zholkiewski and Sapieha, surrounded Moscow. They suggested that the boyars remove Shuisky, and put him in the kingdom, assuring them that he wants to accept Orthodoxy. Having displaced Shuisky, he was cut into a monk against his will and sent to a monastery. The boyars opened the gates of the Kremlin and let the Poles into the city.

Some of the boyars who sat in the Duma nominated Vladislav to the throne. His candidacy was supported by some of the townspeople. The Orthodox Church, represented by Patriarch Hermogenes, opposed it, and began to send messages to all parts of the country with calls to resist the invaders. It was at his call that the militia began to form.

Formation of the first militia

The atrocities of the Poles in the occupied territories provoked more and more people to revolt. The creation of the militia was initiated by service people - the nobles, who benefited from the centralized power. The loss of service and the destruction of estates forced them to take up arms. The peasants, robbed by the Poles, collected their belongings, livestock and went into the forests, where they organized detachments. It was difficult for the Poles to get provisions, fodder for horses, and find guides.

In many cities, detachments were formed that joined the first militia. It was headed at the very beginning by P.P. Lyapunov, but later the former associates of False Dmitry II, the Cossack detachments of the atamans of Prosovetsky and Zarutsky, as well as a number of princes and boyars, who subsequently played a negative role in the existence of the militia, joined him.

In Moscow, resistance was also created, in which the townspeople and service people, the children of the boyars, took part. Having learned about the organization of the militias, the Poles turned to the Ukrainian Cossacks, headed by Hetman Sagaidachny, who came to their aid.

First baptism

The formed first national militia was led by the small-scale nobleman Lyapunov, since his main backbone consisted of service people. The Sagaidachny Cossacks captured several cities, including Pronsk, which the first militia repulsed. The Cossacks laid siege to the city, but the Zaraisk voivode, Prince Pozharsky, hastened to help Lyapunov.

After the Cossacks laid siege to Zaraisk in revenge, but Pozharsky managed to force them to flee. A decision is made to attack Moscow. Lyapunov appeals to the people of Nizhny Novgorod to come to their aid in the struggle against the Commonwealth. He also sends his proclamations there

Hike to Moscow

In early March 1611, detachments of the first militia marched on Moscow, led by Lyapunov and Pozharsky. The Nizhny Novgorod militia has already approached there, united in Vladimir with the Cossack detachment of Prosovetsky, Masalsky and Izmailov. They laid siege to Moscow, where an uprising broke out. The Poles set fire to the houses of the townspeople. Moscow was on fire. Pozharsky with his detachment managed to penetrate the city. Poles and German mercenaries settled in Kitay-Gorod and the Kremlin.

The militias who besieged Moscow began to form the Zemsky Sobor. Here a great contradiction between the nobles and the Cossacks became clear. The Poles took advantage of this situation and began to act with a proven method - they planted a letter to Zarutsky, allegedly written by Lyapunov, in which it was said that he was plotting the murder of atamans. Having called the voivode to the Cossack circle at night, they hacked him to death. Most of the nobles left the camp. The Cossacks, led by Zarutsky and Trubetskoy, fled to Kolomna, and then to Astrakhan. The first militia broke up.