Michael I (
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
: Михаил Фёдорович Романов, ''Mikhaíl Fyódorovich Románov'') () became the first Russian
tsar
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...
of the
House of Romanov
The House of Romanov (also transcribed Romanoff; rus, Романовы, Románovy, rɐˈmanəvɨ) was the reigning imperial house of Russia from 1613 to 1917. They achieved prominence after the Tsarina, Anastasia Romanova, was married to th ...
after the
Zemskiy Sobor
The Zemsky Sobor ( rus, зе́мский собо́р, p=ˈzʲemskʲɪj sɐˈbor, t=assembly of the land) was a parliament of the Tsardom of Russia's estates of the realm active during the 16th and 17th centuries.
The assembly represented Russi ...
of 1613 elected him to rule the
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia or Tsardom of Rus' also externally referenced as the Tsardom of Muscovy, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of Tsar by Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter I i ...
.
He was the son of
Feodor Nikitich Romanov
Feodor Nikitich Romanov (russian: Фео́дор Ники́тич Рома́нов, ; 1553 – 1 October 1633) was a Russian boyar who after temporary disgrace rose to become patriarch of Moscow as Filaret (russian: Филаре́т, ), and bec ...
(later known as Patriarch Filaret) and of Xenia Shestova (later known as "the ''great nun''" Martha). He was also a first cousin once removed of the last
Rurikid
The Rurik dynasty ( be, Ру́рыкавічы, Rúrykavichy; russian: Рю́риковичи, Ryúrikovichi, ; uk, Рю́риковичі, Riúrykovychi, ; literally "sons/scions of Rurik"), also known as the Rurikid dynasty or Rurikids, was ...
Tsar
Feodor I
Fyodor I Ivanovich (russian: Фёдор I Иванович) or Feodor I Ioannovich (russian: Феодор I Иоаннович; 31 May 1557 – 17 January (NS) 1598), also known as Feodor the Bellringer (russian: Феодор Звонарь), ...
through his great-aunt
Anastasia Romanovna
Anastasia Romanovna Zakharyina-Yurieva (1530 – 7 August 1560) was the first spouse of the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible and the first Russian Tsaritsa. She was the mother of Feodor I, the last lineal Rurikid Tsar of Russia and the great-a ...
, who was the mother of Feodor I, and through marriage, a great-nephew in-law with Tsar
Ivan IV
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
of Russia. His accession marked the end of the
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles (russian: Смутное время, ), or Smuta (russian: Смута), was a period of political crisis during the Tsardom of Russia which began in 1598 with the death of Fyodor I (Fyodor Ivanovich, the last of the Rurik dy ...
. During his reign, Russia
conquered most of Siberia with the help of the
Cossack
The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...
s and the
Stroganov family
The Stroganovs or Strogonovs (russian: link=no, Стро́гановы, Стро́гоновы), French spelling: Stroganoff, were a family of highly successful Russian merchants, industrialists, landowners, and statesmen. From the time of Iva ...
. Russia had extended from the vicinity of the
Ural Mountains
The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western ...
to the
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
by the end of Michael's reign.
Life and reign
Michael's grandfather,
Nikita
Nikita may refer to:
* Nikita (given name)
* Nikita, Crimea, a town in Crimea
* Nikita the Tanner, a character in East Slavic folklore
Film and television
*''Little Nikita'', a 1988 film
* ''La Femme Nikita'' (film), also known as ''Nikita'', a 19 ...
, was brother to the first Russian Tsaritsa Anastasia and a central advisor to
Ivan the Terrible
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
. As a young boy, Michael and his mother had been exiled to
Beloozero
Belozersk (russian: Белозе́рск), known as Beloozero (russian: Белоозеро, label=none) until 1777, is a town and the administrative center of Belozersky District in Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the southern bank of Lake Be ...
in 1600. This was a result of the recently elected Tsar
Boris Godunov
Borís Fyodorovich Godunóv (; russian: Борис Фёдорович Годунов; 1552 ) ruled the Tsardom of Russia as ''de facto'' regent from c. 1585 to 1598 and then as the first non-Rurikid tsar from 1598 to 1605. After the end of his ...
, in 1598, falsely accusing his father, Feodor, of treason. This may have been partly because Feodor had married Ksenia Shestova against Boris's wishes.
Election
Michael was eventually chosen for the throne of Muscovy due to his father's martyr-like captivity in Polish detention, as the patriotic mood swept the Russian elite since the expulsion of the Poles during the Time of Troubles. Michael's youth also contributed to his election as he was seen easy to be manipulated. On 21 February 1613, 700 delegates reached a consensus for Michael to be chosen as a compromise candidate as
Tsar
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...
of Russia by the
Zemsky Sobor of 1613
The Zemsky Sobor of 1613 was a meeting of representatives of various lands and estates of the Russian State, held for the election of a new king to the throne. It was opened on 16 January 1613 in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremli ...
.
The delegates of the council did not discover the young Tsar and his mother at the
Ipatiev Monastery
The Ipatiev Monastery (), sometimes translated into English as Hypatian Monastery, is a male monastery situated on the bank of the Kostroma River just opposite the city of Kostroma. It was founded around 1330 by a Tatar convert, Prince Chet, who ...
near
Kostroma
Kostroma ( rus, Кострома́, p=kəstrɐˈma) is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian cities, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Volga and Kostroma. Popu ...
until 24 March. He had been chosen after several other options had been removed, including Polish prince
Vladislav
Vladislav ( be, Уладзіслаў (', '); pl, Władysław (disambiguation), Władysław, ; Russian language, Russian, Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, Bulgarian language, Bulgarian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, sh-Cyrl, Владислав ...
, Austrian Archduke
Maximilian III and the Swedish prince
Carl Philip Carl may refer to:
*Carl, Georgia, city in USA
*Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
*Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name
*Carl², a TV series
* "Carl", an episode of tel ...
.
Initially, Martha protested, believing and stating that her son was too young and tender for so difficult an office, and in such a troublesome time.
According to Dunning, "The sixteen-year-old boy did not impress the boyars at all; he was poorly educated and not particularly intelligent. Nonetheless, those great lords consoled themselves with the knowledge that
Trubetskoi would not become tsar and that Mikhail's ambitious and highly intelligent father, Filaret, was still in Polish captivity. One of the boyars allegedly said at the time, 'Let us have Misha Romanov for he is young and not yet wise; he will suit our purposes.' In fact, under the strong influence of reactionary boyars, even in preparation for his coronation, the deeply conservative new tsar revealed his true feelings about his subjects by snubbing many patriots simply because they were commoners." The tsar's family relationship with
False Dmitry I
False Dmitry I ( rus, Лжедмитрий I, Lzhedmitriy I) (or Pseudo-Demetrius I) reigned as the Tsar of Russia from 10 June 1605 until his death on 17 May 1606 under the name of Dmitriy Ivanovich ( rus, Дмитрий Иванович). A ...
,
False Dmitry II
False Dmitry II ( rus, Лжедмитрий II, Lzhedmitrii II; died ), historically known as Pseudo-Demetrius II and also called "тушинский вор" ("rebel/criminal of Tushino"), was the second of three pretenders to the Russian throne w ...
, and
Prince Wladyslaw was covered up, even the two years Mikhail spent in the Polish-occupied Kremlin with his collaborator uncle
Ivan Romanov
Ivan Nikitich Romanov, ''Russian'' Иван Никитич Романов (156? – 16 July 1640) was the uncle of Tsar Michael I, first Romanov Tsar of Russia.
Background
Ivan was the seventh child and second surviving son of Nikita Roman ...
.
![Tsar Mikhail I -cropped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Tsar_Mikhail_I_-cropped.JPG)
Michael's election and accession to the throne form the basis of the
Ivan Susanin
Ivan Susanin ( rus, Иван Сусанин, p=ɪˈvan sʊˈsanʲɪn; died 1613) was a Russian national hero and martyr of the early-17th-century Time of Troubles. According to the popular legend, Polish troops seeking to kill Tsar Mikhail hire ...
legend, which Russian composer
Mikhail Glinka
Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka ( rus, link=no, Михаил Иванович Глинка, Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka., mʲɪxɐˈil ɪˈvanəvʲɪdʑ ˈɡlʲinkə, Ru-Mikhail-Ivanovich-Glinka.ogg; ) was the first Russian composer to gain wide recogni ...
dramatized in his opera ''
A Life for the Tsar
''A Life for the Tsar'' ( rus, "Жизнь за царя", italic=yes, Zhizn za tsarya ) is a "patriotic-heroic tragic opera" in four acts with an epilogue by Mikhail Glinka. During the Soviet era the opera was known under the name ''Ivan Susanin' ...
''.
In so dilapidated a condition was the capital at this time that Michael had to wait for several weeks at the
Troitsa monastery, off, before decent accommodation could be provided for him at
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
. He was crowned on 21 July 1613, on his seventeenth birthday. The first task of the new tsar was to clear the land of the countries occupying it.
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
and
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
were then dealt with respectively by the
peace of Stolbovo (17 February 1617) and the
Truce of Deulino
The Truce of Deulino (also known as Peace or Treaty of Dywilino) concluded the Polish–Muscovite War (1609–1618) between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Tsardom of Russia. It was signed on 11 December 1618 and took effect on 4 Jan ...
(1 December 1618).
The most important result of the Truce of Deulino was the return from Polish captivity of the Tsar's father, Patriarch Filaret. Filaret became the effective ruler of Russia until his death in 1633.
[
]
Reign
Michael's reign saw the greatest territorial expansion in Russian history. During his reign, the conquest of Siberia
The Russian conquest of Siberia took place in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, when the Khanate of Sibir became a loose political structure of vassalages that were being undermined by the activities of Russian explorers. Although outnumber ...
continued, largely accomplished by the Cossacks
The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...
and financed by the Stroganov merchant family
The Stroganovs or Strogonovs (russian: link=no, Стро́гановы, Стро́гоновы), French spelling: Stroganoff, were a family of highly successful Russian merchants, industrialists, landowners, and statesmen. From the time of Ivan ...
.
Tsar Michael suffered from a progressive
Progressive may refer to:
Politics
* Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform
** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context
* Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...
leg injury (a consequence of a horse accident early in his life), which resulted in his not being able to walk towards the end of his life. He was a gentle and pious prince who gave little trouble to anyone and effaced himself behind his counsellors. Sometimes they were relatively honest and capable men like his father; sometimes they were corrupted and bigoted, like the Saltykov
The House of Saltykov ( rus, Салтыков, p=səltɨˈkof) is the name of an old Russian noble family which can trace their ancestry back to 1240. In March 1730 the family was awarded with the title of Count in Russia, granted to them by Empre ...
relatives of his mother. He was married twice. He was married off to Princess Maria Vladimirovna Dolgorukova in 1624, but she became ill, and died in early 1625, only four months after the marriage. In 1626, he married Eudoxia Streshneva
Eudoxia Streshneva (, ''Yevdokiya Lukyanovna Streshneva''; 1608 – 18 August 1645) was the Tsaritsa of Russia as the second spouse of Tsar Michael of Russia.
Life
Eudoxia Streshneva was a daughter of the noble Lukyan Stepanovich Streshnev (d ...
(1608–1645), who bore him 10 children, of whom four reached adulthood: the future Tsar Alexis
Aleksey Mikhaylovich ( rus, Алексе́й Миха́йлович, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ; – ) was the Tsar of Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676. While finding success in foreign affairs, his reign saw several wars ...
and the Tsarevnas Irina
Irina (Cyrillic: Ирина) is a feminine given name of Ancient Greek origin, commonly borne by followers of the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is derived from Eirene (Ancient Greek: Εἰρήνη), an ancient Greek goddess, personification of pe ...
, Anna
Anna may refer to:
People Surname and given name
* Anna (name)
Mononym
* Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke
* Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773)
* Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century)
* Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221)
...
, and Tatyana
Tatiana (or Tatianna, also romanized as Tatyana, Tatjana, Tatijana, etc.) is a female name of Sabine-Roman origin that became widespread in Eastern Europe.
Variations
* be, Тацця́на, Tatsiana
* bg, Татяна, Tatyana
* germ ...
. Michael's failure to wed his eldest daughter, Irina, with Count Valdemar Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, a morganatic
Morganatic marriage, sometimes called a left-handed marriage, is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which in the context of royalty or other inherited title prevents the principal's position or privileges being passed to the spous ...
son of King Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
, in consequence of the refusal of the latter to accept Orthodoxy
Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churc ...
, so deeply afflicted him as to contribute to bringing about his death. Tsar Michael fell ill in April 1645, with scurvy
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, changes to hair, and bleeding ...
, dropsy
Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels tight, the area ma ...
, and probably depression. His doctors prescribed purgative
Laxatives, purgatives, or aperients are substances that loosen stools and increase bowel movements. They are used to treat and prevent constipation.
Laxatives vary as to how they work and the side effects they may have. Certain stimulant, lubri ...
s which did not improve his condition; and after fainting in church on 12 July, he died on 23 July 1645.
Michael's governments
The two government offices (prikaz
A prikaz (russian: прика́з, ''prikaz''; , plural: ) was an administrative, judicial, territorial, or executive office functioning on behalf of palace, civil, military, or church authorities in Muscovy and in Russia from the 15th to the 18 ...
es) that were most important politically were the Posolsky Prikaz
A prikaz (russian: прика́з, ''prikaz''; , plural: ) was an administrative, judicial, territorial, or executive office functioning on behalf of palace, civil, military, or church authorities in Muscovy and in Russia from the 15th to the 18 ...
("Foreign Office") and the Razryadny Prikaz
A prikaz (russian: прика́з, ''prikaz''; , plural: ) was an administrative, judicial, territorial, or executive office functioning on behalf of palace, civil, military, or church authorities in Muscovy and in Russia from the 15th to the 1 ...
(a Duma
A duma (russian: дума) is a Russian assembly with advisory or legislative functions.
The term ''boyar duma'' is used to refer to advisory councils in Russia from the 10th to 17th centuries. Starting in the 18th century, city dumas were for ...
chancellery and a personnel department for both central and provincial administration including military command). Those offices could be pivotal in struggles between boyar factions, so they were traditionally headed not by boyars but by dyaki (professional clerks).
The first head of the Posolsky Prikaz under Michael was Pyotr Tretyakov until his death in 1618; he conducted a policy of allying with Sweden against Poland. The next, Ivan Gramotin
Ivan Tarasyevich Gramotin () (died 1638) was a Russian diplomat and head of the ''Posolsky Prikaz'' (foreign ministry).
Ivan Gramotin was known to have been a very smart, well-read and eloquent person. He was one of the prominent figures during t ...
had a reputation for being a Polonophile
A Polonophile is an individual who respects and is fond of Poland's culture as well as Polish history, traditions and customs. The term defining this kind of attitude is Polonophilia. The antonym and opposite of Polonophilia is Polonophobia.
H ...
; this appointment was necessary to bring forth Filaret's release from captivity. In the mid-1620s Filaret began preparations for war with Poland; Gramotin fell into disfavour and was dismissed and exiled in 1626. The same fate was shared by Efim Telepnev in 1630 and Fedor Likhachov in 1631 – they too tried to mitigate Filaret's belligerent approach. Ivan Gryazev, appointed in 1632, was promoted from the second rank of the bureaucracy to carry out Filaret's orders. After the deaths of Filaret and Gryazev, the post was once again assumed by Gramotin in 1634, and after his retirement in 1635, by Likhachov, who undertook a general course of pacification.
The Razryadny Prikaz was first headed by Sydavny Vasilyev; Filaret replaced him with his fellow in captivity Tomilo Lugovskoy, but the latter somehow provoked Filaret's anger and was sent into exile. In 1623, Fedor Likhachov was appointed head of the prikaz until his move to the Posolsky Prikaz, and, in 1630, the Razryad was given to Ivan Gavrenev, an outstanding administrator who held this post for 30 years.
Three other key offices were the ''Streletsky Prikaz
Streltsy Department or Streletsky Prikaz (Стрелецкий приказ in Russian) was one of the main governmental bodies in Russia in 16th and 17th centuries.
The first reference to the Streltsy Department (SD) appears in 1571, but in the ...
'' (in charge of the streltsy
, image = 01 106 Book illustrations of Historical description of the clothes and weapons of Russian troops.jpg
, image_size =
, alt =
, caption =
, dates = 1550–1720
, disbanded =
, country = Tsardom of Russia
, allegiance = Streltsy D ...
, regiments who served as Moscow's garrison), the ''Prikaz bolshoy kazny'', minister of the treasury, and the ''Aptekarsky Prikaz The Aptekarsky Prikaz (''Pharmaceutical Ministry'' or ''Apothecary Ministry'') was an imperial Russian prikaz, organized in the second half of the sixteenth century, which nominally dealt with the health care of the Czar and his court, but which in ...
'' ("Pharmacy Office", a de facto ministry of health, most particularly the tsar's health). After Filaret's arrival, their former heads were sent away from Moscow, and all three given to Ivan Cherkassky Prince Ivan Borisovich Cherkassky (Rus. ''Ива́н Бори́сович Черка́сский''; c. 1580 – 4 April 1642) was a Russian statesman who served as the head of government for 20 years under his cousin Tsar Mikhail, the first Tsar of ...
(Filaret's nephew), who proved to be an able and competent administrator and was a de facto prime minister until his death in 1642. Fedor Sheremetev Fyodor Ivanovich Sheremetev (russian: Фёдор Ива́нович Шереме́тев, c. 1570–1650) was a Russian statesman in Tsar Mikhail's times, head of government in 1613–18 and 1642–46.
Life
Sheremetev descended from the same old ...
, who had succeeded to all of Cherkassky's posts was a rather weak figure; real power lay in the hands of a court marshal, Alexey Lvov
Prince Alexey Mikhaylovich Lvov (Russian ''Алексей Михайлович Львов'', 158?-1653 or 1654) was a Russian Court Marshal for 20 years, and one of the most influential members of Michael of Russia's government.
Lvov began his ...
.
Issue
From his marriage to Eudoxia Streshneva, Michael fathered 10 children:
See also
*Rulers of Russia family tree
The following is a family tree of the monarchs of Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationall ...
References
*
Notes
Further reading
* Belyaev Ivan D. (1846) (in Russian)
On the Russian army in the reign of Michael Feodorovich and after him, to the transformations made by Peter the Great
(О русском войске в царствование Михаила Феодоровича и после его, до преобразований, сделанных Петром Великим) at Runivers.ru
Runivers ( rus, Руниверс) is a site devoted to Russian culture and history. Runivers targets Russian speaking readers and those interested in Russian culture and history.
Runivers is an online library aimed to provide free access to aut ...
in DjVu
DjVu ( , like French "déjà vu") is a computer file format designed primarily to store scanned documents, especially those containing a combination of text, line drawings, indexed color images, and photographs. It uses technologies such as ima ...
and PDF
Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...
formats.
External links
Romanovs: The first film. Michael I, Alexis I
– Historical reconstruction "The Romanovs". StarMedia. Babich-Design (Russia, 2013)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Michael Of Russia
Michael 01 of Russia
Michael 01 of Russia
17th-century Russian monarchs
Russian tsars
House of Romanov
Eastern Orthodox monarchs
Russian people of the Polish–Muscovite War (1605–1618)