The rebellious age: the causes of popular movements.

The rebellious age is a period of time in the history of Russia, namely in the 17th century, when various uprisings and wars took place, which entailed great consequences and went down in history under different names. "", Peasant revolt, peasant wars of Bolotnikov and Razin, as well as the uprising of 1682.

Causes of the rebellious age

Any rebellion has its own prerequisites, reasons that made people start uprisings or rebellion. The rebellious age had one main reason - the ruler Boris Morozov. He had a great influence on Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, whom he brought up from childhood. There are several main reasons for the uprisings of the people:

• Big taxes
• In addition to unbearable taxes, emergency taxes were sometimes introduced.
• All new categories of residents were classified as draft population
• Abuse of power and unwillingness to listen to the people
• The emergence of the townsman draft class.

All this was the cause of popular riots. People could no longer tolerate the abuse of power not only by the king, but also by his entourage. Sooner or later the people had to explode and it happened.

Events of the rebellious age

During the rebellious age, there were several uprisings and riots of the people. In 1648, the “Salt Riot” began, its cause was an increase in the tax on salt, which was unbearable for people, the greed of the Moscow ruling elite led to the Moscow uprising. The townspeople, peasants and archers smashed the houses of the Moscow nobility and demanded the extradition of Morozov. As a result, at the direction of the people, most of the boyars were executed. But that was only the beginning.

In 1650, the price of bread jumped sharply, due to the fact that he left for Sweden, as a payment for defectors from the regions that Russia had captured. And finally, July 25, 1662 was marked by a "copper riot", as a sign of the immoderate production of copper coins. Counterfeits appeared, copper money depreciated sharply, and people began to starve. Copper money ceased to be printed in 1663.

In 1661-1667, a peasant uprising began under the leadership of . The uprising was directed against the boyars and those close to the king. It was a bloody clash, as a result of which Stepan Razin was caught and executed. But this only strengthened the desire of the people to fight for their interests.

The Streltsy revolt of 1682 was the crown of the rebellious age. Its reasons are not exactly clarified, but presumably this is an abuse of power by the Streltsy military leaders. The result of the Streltsy rebellion was the actual reign of Sofya Alekseevna for 7 years.

The results of the rebellious age

Mismanagement of the country and ignoring the will and desires of the people. The result of the rebellious age was inconclusiveness. Despite all the uprisings and confrontations, the voice of the villagers was not heard, taxes continued and the people were ignored. The abuse of power only expanded and intensified, everyone was eager for more powers, no one kept the law that they did not like.

The 17th century for Russia is the most turbulent time in its entire history. It received a well-deserved name - the Rebellious Age. The largest popular revolt was, of course, the uprising led by Stepan Razin, but the performances of the archers were no less significant. Tens of thousands of killed and executed - such is the Russian XVII century. What are the 5 main riots of the Rebellious Age?

In 1670, the Russian people responded unequivocally to the final enslavement of the peasants, the restriction of the freedom of the Cossacks and the increase in taxes during the reign of the second Romanov. Then an uprising of peasants and Cossacks began under the leadership of Stepan Razin.

The goals of the rebels: the abolition of serfdom and the destruction of the nobles

There is no extradition from Don

By the middle of the 17th century, a huge number of fugitive peasants had accumulated on the Don, where the rule “no extradition from the Don” was in force. The Cossacks who lived here earlier were called "domovity". They received a salary from the king, ran their own household, and could engage in trade. The mass exodus of peasants from the central regions of Russia led to the creation of a new layer - the "young, stupid" Cossacks, that is, the naked.

The backbone of the uprising were the peasants who fled from serfdom

Zipun hike. Preparing for war

In the 1660s, famine began on the Don. Then one of the future leaders of the uprising, Vasily Us, appeared. Together with the detachments of the bare, he went to Moscow, robbing the estates, but, frightened by the troops sent to meet him, he returned to the Don. Many of the Cossacks who walked with Us then went with Razin on the so-called Campaign for zipuns 1667-1669, which is now attributed to the first stage of the uprising, although the campaign was more of a preparation. The main achievement of the Razintsy during this period was the campaign in Persia, the defeat of the Persians and good booty: weapons and valuables. The Cossacks returned to Russia through Astrakhan. The local governor did not want to fight the Cossacks and let them through, forcing them to leave only heavy guns.

Stepan Razin throws the Persian princess into the Volga

Peasants' War

The uprising itself against the tsarist troops and the nobility began in 1670 with the capture of Tsaritsyn (now Volgograd). The Cossacks surrounded the city, which began to feel a lack of water, and the cattle of the inhabitants began to starve without grass. Gradually, dissatisfaction with the nobility and the governor ripened in the city, and a revolt was prepared.

Tsaritsyn was taken almost without a fight - the locals helped

The governor of the city, Timofey Turgenev, decided to try to negotiate with the Cossacks, so that the residents could at least take water from the Volga. He sent the townspeople for negotiations, who ... coordinated their actions and the beginning of a riot with the Cossacks. As a result, Tsaritsyn was taken practically without a fight: many archers and townspeople went over to the side of the Cossacks, and all the nobility were killed or drowned.

Capture of Astrakhan by the Razintsy, engraving of the 17th century

Executions of oppressor nobles

In the following months, the Razintsy win victory after victory. A detachment of archers of Ivan Lopatin was killed, the survivors were taken prisoner and made rowers. Then Kamyshin was taken and not without the help of local residents. Streltsov, nobles and the governor were executed, the locals were ordered to pack their things and leave the city. Then Kamyshin was looted and burned. Next, an important point on the Volga - Astrakhan. There, the archers were supportive of Razin and angry at the authorities, who delayed the payment of salaries. The Astrakhan fleet sent against Razin went over to his side. When the Cossacks attacked Astrakhan, an uprising of archers and the poor broke out in the city. It is known what happened to the nobles and the governor.

Streltsy massively went over to the side of the rebels

Every slave is now a free man

After these victories, the Middle Volga region went over to the side of Razin and his Cossacks: Saratov, Samara, Penza, as well as the Chuvash, Mari, Tatars and Mordovians. This was largely facilitated by the fact that Stepan Razin declared every peasant who went over to his side a free man. Near Samara, Razin announced that Patriarch Nikon and Tsarevich Alexei Alekseevich were coming with him. This further increased the influx of the poor into its ranks.

Razin made every peasant a free man

Razin's campaign on the Volga was accompanied by mass uprisings of serfs in this newly enslaved area. Here, local leaders came to the fore, one of whom was the fugitive nun Alyona Arzamasskaya.

B. M. Kustodiev. "Stepan Razin"

inglorious end

In September 1670, the Razintsy besieged Simbirsk, but could not take it. Government troops headed by Prince Yu. A. Dolgorukov moved to Razin. A month after the start of the siege, the tsarist troops defeated the rebels, and the seriously wounded Razin was taken to the Don by his associates. Fearing reprisals, the Cossack elite, led by the military ataman Kornil Yakovlev, handed over Razin to the authorities. In June 1671 he was quartered in Moscow; his brother Frol was allegedly executed on the same day. Despite the death of their leader, the rebels continued to fight. So, the Razintsy held Arkhangelsk until November 1671, and individual foci did not go out for a long time.

Razin was betrayed by his own chieftains

Bestial cruelty of the nobility

It is noteworthy with what bitterness the massacres of the rebels were carried out. More than 11,000 people were executed in Arzamas alone. The Cossack leaders were quartered, and the already mentioned Alyona Arzamasskaya was completely burned alive.

The reasons for the defeat of the rebels are simple to the point of banality: spontaneity and low organization, the fragmentation of the actions of the peasants and a poor understanding of their own tasks and ultimate goals, in addition to the abolition of serfdom.

In the 1660s, Alexei Mikhailovich ordered the issue of copper money, which should have become equal in value to silver. As a result, the distribution of coppers throughout the country depreciated the money. The result was the Copper Riot of 1662.

An angry mob stormed into the king's residence

Almost all the ignorant strata of the urban population rebelled: artisans, small traders, peasants and the poor. They refused to accept copper money and ransacked the yards of those who were involved in minting copper coins. The crowd broke into the village of Kolomenskoye, the residence of the king at that time. Frightened, the king went out to the people and promised to condemn the "traitors". And at that very time, an army was coming from Moscow to the tsar to help. The rebellion was suppressed, but copper money was also withdrawn from circulation.

A major uprising of archers broke out in 1682 in Moscow and went down in history as Khovanshchina. The people were dissatisfied with the fact that the boyars seized power and put the young, ten-year-old Peter on the throne. A fair question arose, how would the younger brother rule instead of Ivan, the elder brother? As a result, Princess Sophia actually ruled.

The rebels were outraged that instead of the elder brother, the younger would be king

A stone monument was erected on Red Square - a monument to the victory of the rebels. Their representatives controlled the work of the Boyar Duma and orders. Streltsy and soldiers were sure that the class of servicemen on the instrument should be on a par with the nobility in the state. But they allowed themselves to be deceived, bribed with privileges. The uprising ended in peace with the government of Princess Sophia, who promised to observe justice and fairness in the country.

Having ascended the throne, the young Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich (reigned: 1645 - 1676) was faced with the fact that the treasury was constantly short of money. The government, led by the boyar Boris Morozov, proposed reforms to replenish the treasury. In particular, the “lesson years” were canceled (after which the runaway peasant became free), the “white” settlements (belonging to feudal lords and not taxed) were liquidated, but most importantly, indirect taxes were introduced. Including the tax on the import of salt.

The rebels killed the tsar's associates and plundered Morozov's yard

Salt was needed by people not so much as a seasoning, but as a preservative. Without it, it was impossible to prepare food for the winter: fish, vegetables, mushrooms, lard. And at the same time, thousands of pounds of fish rotted on the Volga without salt. Not only the poor were dissatisfied, but also merchants who suffered losses. The treasury was still not replenished.

As a result of general dissatisfaction with the current situation in 1648, the Salt Riot took place in Moscow. People close to the king were killed. The courtyard of the boyar Morozov, who was considered the main culprit of the increase in the tax on salt, was plundered. The king was afraid. He dismissed the boyar Morozov and exiled him. The revolt in the capital began to subside.

The reasons for the next streltsy rebellion are dissatisfaction with the conditions of insufficient salaries, isolation from families, and the appointment of foreign officers to senior military positions. However, the rebellion was not only economic and social, but also political in nature: according to many testimonies and testimonies, the archers planned to enthrone Princess Sophia, who was the regent for the young Peter and Ivan. The compromise government of Sofya Alekseevna suited the archers, who personified the interests of the city dwellers.

Peter I severely punished the archers, and tonsured Princess Sophia as a nun

With the beginning of the uprising, Peter I had to urgently return to Russia - the tsar was then in Europe with the Great Embassy. The tsar brutally dealt with the rebels - the young tsar had hatred for the archers from childhood, from the Khovanshchina itself. The rioters were hanged on the ramparts in Moscow, many were executed on the chopping blocks. Tsarevna Sofya Alekseevna Peter I considered the instigator of a riot. There was no direct evidence, but for him she personified all the past he hated. Sophia was forcibly forced to take a haircut as a nun. So from Princess Sophia of the Romanov family, she turned into the nun Susanna.

The treasury was always short of money. The government came up with new taxes. Salt is a product that everyone needs, and the government hoped to replenish the treasury by introducing a tax on it. Salt prices increased 3-4 times. Salt consumption in the country has decreased. But without it it was impossible to prepare food for the winter: pickle mushrooms, cabbage, lard, fish. Salted fish was the staple food in the cities. Thousands of pounds of fish without salt rotted on the Volga. Thus, not only the poor population turned out to be dissatisfied, but also the merchants, who suffered heavy losses. And the treasury was not replenished.

As a result of general discontent in 1648, a “salt riot” took place in Moscow. The people stormed the gates of the Kremlin. People close to the king were killed. The courtyard of the boyar Morozov, who was considered the main culprit of the increase in the tax on salt, was plundered. The king was afraid. He dismissed the boyar Morozov and exiled him. The revolt in the capital began to subside.

In 1648-1650. a wave of urban uprisings swept the country. The salt tax was abolished, but the people demanded to restore order in the state and curb the willfulness of officials. In England, at the same time, the rebels cut off the head of the king. In France, the "king-role-sun" was forced to flee from the insurgent Paris. And in Russia, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich convened a Zemsky Sobor and made peace with representatives of the estates. The Council in 1649 adopted the Code, bringing the laws in line with the new situation in the country.

Novgorod uprising

The largest uprising in the capital broke out in 1682, and went down in history under the name Streltsy revolt, or Khovanshchina. People's dissatisfaction with the seizure of power by the boyars, who put 10-year-old Peter on the throne, was led by archers and "elected" (guards) soldiers of the Moscow garrison. The rebels dealt with those who oppressed the people with impunity, and held power in the capital for three months. The uprising also spread to other cities and garrisons of Russia.

A stone monument was erected on Red Square - a monument to the victory of the rebels. Their representatives controlled the work of the Boyar Duma and orders. Archers and soldiers were sure that the class of servicemen on the instrument should be on a par with the nobility in the state. But they allowed themselves to be deceived, bribed with privileges. The uprising ended in peace with the government of Princess Sophia, who promised to observe justice and fairness in the country. material from the site

Peter I had to interrupt his stay abroad as part of the Great Embassy and in 1698 urgently returned to Russia. A streltsy revolt began in the country. The king brutally dealt with its participants. The rioters were hanged on the ramparts in Moscow, many were executed on the chopping blocks. Tsarevna Sofya Alekseevna Peter I considered the instigator of a riot. There was no direct evidence, but for him she personified all the past he hated. Sophia was forcibly forced to take the veil as a monk. So from Princess Sophia of the Romanov family, she turned into the nun Susanna.

The more a person is able to respond to the historical and universal, the wider his nature, the richer his life and the more capable such a person is of progress and development.

F. M. Dostoevsky

The rebellious age is the name of the 17th century in Russian history. Most often it is said that the name of the century is associated with a large number of uprisings and riots at that time. But this is only one side of the coin. The other side lies in the rebellious display of the church and the estates of society.

The reasons

The reasons why the Rebellious Age became possible:

1. Increasing taxes. The state after the Time of Troubles tried by all means to attract money to the treasury.
2. Strengthening of serfdom and completion of the process of enslavement of peasants.
3. Wars. At this time, there were wars within the country (Trouble), as well as confrontation mainly with Poland and Sweden. The people are tired of the warriors who are known to drain society (demographically, financially).
4. Church split. Almost everything changed in the church way of life, so naturally ordinary people did not like it. The situation was aggravated by the fact that the authorities persecuted the Old Believers.

Popular uprisings

The 17th century is called "Rebellious" largely because of the popular movements (riots and uprisings), which arose with great regularity and were distinguished by their scope. In the Rebellious Age, there were 6 major uprisings (one is called the peasant war) and a huge number of small uprisings that cannot even be counted. The main popular movements of that era are presented in the table below.

Please note that the regular army was used to suppress most of the uprisings. And not small units, but the most combat ones. It is believed that if there are 2-3 major popular unrest in a century, then there is a problem in the country. In the 17th century in Russia there were 6 major riots and over a dozen smaller ones, and they all happened a little more than 20 years(1648-1671), which speaks of the critical point of popular patience, which was overcome at this time. Do not forget also that Russia, by the beginning of all these movements, had just overcome the Time of Troubles, which also overlaps with the 17th century.

Popular performances of the 17th century clearly show that the country needed changes. The old order had become obsolete, and something new was needed. As a result, at the beginning of the 18th century, the mood of Russian society and the desires of Peter 1 coincided - large-scale reforms began in Russia.

Uprising map

Map of popular uprisings in Russia in the 17th century.

International conflicts

One of the reasons for popular dissatisfaction with power and position in the country was wars. Russia in the 17th century waged the following international wars:

1. Russo-Swedish war (1656-1661)
2. Russian-Turkish war (1677-1681)

Church in the 17th century

Separately, it should be noted that the Rebellious Age refers not only to popular performances, but also to church life. There, too, a serious crisis was brewing, culminating in a church schism. It is also called the Nikon reform.

In fairness, it should be noted that the need for church reforms in Russia in the 17th century is objectively overdue. But the methods of their implementation left much to be desired. In a certain sense, Nikon was very similar to Peter 1. Nikon was remaking the Orthodox Church in the Greek way, and Peter was remaking Russia itself in the Dutch way. But the main thing that these people have in common is that they very easily broke with the past. And these breaks went with such an inflection that Russia recovered spiritually and physically for a very long time after Nikon and after Peter 1.

The rebellious age almost completely changed the Russian church: customs, rituals, icons, books, and so on changed. Imagine how much it affected people. Even today, if the church decides to completely change its rites, this will lead to popular unrest. In the 17th century, when people were more pious, this caused an inevitable and inevitable reaction of the population.

Historians call the 17th century "rebellious" because of the many popular uprisings and riots that took place in this century. Popular uprisings engulfed huge masses of the tax-paying population. In addition, performances were not limited to the capital, but took place throughout Russia.

The most massive uprisings of the 17th century: 1. Salt riot in Moscow in 1648; 2. Bread riots in Pskov and Novgorod in 1550; 3. Copper riot in Moscow in 1662; 4. Cossack-peasant uprising led by Stepan Razin in 1667-1671.

The reasons for the popular uprisings were the enslavement of the peasants and the growth of their duties, the strengthening of the tax burden, an attempt to limit the Cossack liberties, the church schism and the persecution of the Old Believers. Urban unrest had a complex and ambiguous character. The main force of the uprisings were "black people" - the lower and middle strata of the population of cities. Inside the settlements, there was a struggle against the privileged commercial and industrial strata (guests, trading people of the living room and cloth hundreds), as well as the "best people" (the rich), who shifted the burden of taxes on the "middle" and "young" people. Streltsy often joined the poor peasants, who, by origin and type of economic activity, were closely connected with them. Cossacks also took an active part in the popular movements, dissatisfied with the government's attack on their liberties. With Nikon's church reform, the army of those who were dissatisfied and ready to fight the authorities was replenished by schismatics who endured severe persecution.

SALT riot , the movement of the lower and middle strata of the townspeople, urban artisans, archers and courtyards in June 1648 in Moscow, one of the largest urban uprisings of the mid-17th century. The uprising was caused by the dissatisfaction of the "hard" population with the policy of the government of B.I. Morozov and his closest associates L.S. Pleshcheev and P.T. Trakhaniotov. In order to replenish the state treasury, the government replaced various direct taxes with a single tax on salt, which caused its price to rise several times. The indignation of peasants and townspeople forced the government to cancel the new procedure for levying taxes, however, the previous arrears were collected by the authorities for the last three years at once

COPPER REVOLT (Moscow uprising of 1662), an anti-government protest of Muscovites on July 25, 1662, caused by the disruption of economic life during the years of the wars between Russia and Poland and Sweden, an increase in taxes, and the issuance of depreciated copper money. Since 1654, the production of large quantities of copper money began, equated to the cost of silver, which led to their depreciation, speculation with essentials, and the mass production of counterfeit copper money, in which the ruling elite also participated. A financial disaster broke out in the country. A few days before the uprising, people were talking about "thieves' sheets", which on the night of July 24-25 were pasted in certain areas of the city.

Peasant war led by Stepan Razin, The Peasant War of 1670-1671 or the uprising of Stepan Razin is a war in Russia between the troops of peasants and Cossacks with the tsarist troops. It ended with the defeat of the rebels.

The reasons: In Soviet historiography, the reasons indicate that the period of investigation of fugitive peasants became indefinite, excessive feudal oppression manifested itself. Another reason was the strengthening of centralized power, the introduction of the Council Code of 1649. It is possible that the direct cause of the war was the general weakening of the country's economy as a result of a protracted war with the Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire for Ukraine. The state tax is increasing. An epidemic of pestilence and mass famine begins.

background: The so-called Campaign for zipuns (1667-1669) is often attributed to the uprising of Stepan Razin - the campaign of the rebels "for prey". Razin's detachment blocked the Volgui and thereby blocked the most important economic artery of Russia. During this period, Razin's troops captured Russian and Persian merchant ships. Having received booty and captured the Yaitsky town, in the summer of 1669 Razin moved to the Kagalnitsky town, where he began to gather his troops. When enough people had gathered, Razin announced a campaign against Moscow.

Results: The scale of the massacre of the rebels was enormous, in some cities more than 11 thousand people were executed. In total, more than 100 thousand rebels were destroyed. Razintsy did not achieve their goal: the destruction of the noblesserfdom. But the uprising of Stepan Razin showed that Russian society was split. Reaching a compromise proved impossible.