Michael of Russia
Encyclopedia
Mikhail I Fyodorovich Romanov (Russian
: Михаи́л Фёдорович Рома́нов) Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov (12 July 1596 – 12 July 1645) was the first Russia
n Tsar of the house of Romanov
. He was the son of Feodor Nikitich Romanov (later known as Patriarch Filaret
) and Xenia (later known as "the great nun" Martha). His reign marked the end of the Time of Troubles
.
of Russia by a national assembly
on 21 February 1613, but the delegates of the council did not discover the young Tsar and his mother at the Ipatiev Monastery
near Kostroma
until 24 March. 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. The weeping boyars solemnly declared that if he persisted in his refusal, they would hold him responsible to God for the destruction of Russia
. Michael eventually consented to accept the throne.
Michael's election and accession to the throne form the basis of the Ivan Susanin
legend, which Russian composer Mikhail Glinka
dramatized in his opera A Life for the Tsar
.
In so dilapidated a condition was the capital at this time that Michael had to wait for several weeks at the Troitsa monastery
, 75 miles (120.7 km) off, before decent accommodation could be provided for him at Moscow
. He was crowned on 22 July 1613. The first task of the new tsar was to clear the land of the countries occupying it. Sweden
and Poland
were then dealt with respectively by the peace of Stolbovo (17 February 1617) and the Truce of Deulino
(1 December 1618). The most important result of the Truce of Deulino was the return from exile of the tsar's father, who henceforth took over the government till his death in October 1633, Michael occupying quite a subordinate position.
Tsar Michael suffered from a progressing 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
relatives of his mother. He was married twice, first to Princess Maria Vladimirovna Dolgorukova in 1624, who died four months after the marriage the next year, and then in 1626 to Eudoxia Streshneva
(1608–1645), who brought him 10 children. Michael's failure to wed his daughter Irene of Russia with Count Valdemar Christian of Schleswig-Holstein
, a morganatic
son of King Christian IV of Denmark
, in consequence of the refusal of the latter to accept Orthodoxy
, so deeply afflicted him as to contribute to bringing about his death on 12 July 1645.
es) were Posolsky Prikaz ("Foreign Office") and Razryadny Prikaz (a Duma
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 dyak
(professional clerks).
The first head of the Posolsky Prikaz under Michael was Pyotr Tretyakov until his death in 1618; he conducted policy of allying with Sweden against Poland. The next one, Ivan Gramotin had a reputation of a Poloniphile; this appointment was necessary to bring forth Filaret's release from captivity. In mid-20s Filaret began preparations for war with Poland; Gramotin fell in his disfavour and was fired and exiled in 1626. The same fate was shared by Efim Telepnev in 1630 and Fedor Likhachov in 1631 - they too tried to soothe Filaret's belligerent approach. Ivan Gryazev, appointed in 1632, was promoted from second ranks of bureaucracy to fulfill Filaret's orders. After Filaret's and Gryazev's deaths the post was once again assumed by Gramotin in 1634, and after the latter's retirement in 1635, by Likhachov, with general course on pacification.
Razryadny Prikaz was first headed by Sydavny Vasilyev; Filaret replaced him by his fellow in captivity Tomilo Lugovskoy, but the latter somehow caused Filaret's anger and was exiled. In 1623 Fedor Likhachov was made head of Prikaz till his shift to Posolsky Prikaz, and in 1630 Razryad was given to Ivan Gavrenev, an outstanding administrator who took up this post for 30 years.
Three other strategic offices were Streletsky Prikaz (in charge of streltsy
regiments who served as Moscow garrison), Treasury (Prikaz bolshoy kazny), and Aptekarsky Prikaz ("Pharmacy office", in fact 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
(Filaret's nephew), who proved to be an able and competent administrator and was a de facto prime minister till his death in 1642. Fedor Sheremetev
who had succeeded to all Cherkassky's posts was a rather weak figure; the real power was in the hands of a court marshal, Alexey Lvov
.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Михаи́л Фёдорович Рома́нов) Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov (12 July 1596 – 12 July 1645) was the first Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Tsar of the house of Romanov
Romanov
The House of Romanov was the second and last imperial dynasty to rule over Russia, reigning from 1613 until the February Revolution abolished the crown in 1917...
. He was the son of Feodor Nikitich Romanov (later known as Patriarch Filaret
Patriarch Filaret (Feodor Romanov)
Feodor Nikitich Romanov was a Russian boyar who after temporary disgrace rose to become patriarch of Moscow as Filaret , and became de-facto ruler of Russia during the reign of his son, Mikhail Feodorovich.- Life :...
) and Xenia (later known as "the great nun" Martha). His reign marked the end of the Time of Troubles
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles was a period of Russian history comprising the years of interregnum between the death of the last Russian Tsar of the Rurik Dynasty, Feodor Ivanovich, in 1598, and the establishment of the Romanov Dynasty in 1613. In 1601-1603, Russia suffered a famine that killed one-third...
.
Life and reign
Michael was unanimously elected TsarTsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
of Russia by a national assembly
Zemsky Sobor
The zemsky sobor was the first Russian parliament of the feudal Estates type, in the 16th and 17th centuries. The term roughly means assembly of the land. It could be summoned either by tsar, or patriarch, or the Boyar Duma...
on 21 February 1613, but the delegates of the council did not discover the young Tsar and his mother at the Ipatiev Monastery
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...
near Kostroma
Kostroma
Kostroma is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian towns, it is located at the confluence of the Volga and Kostroma Rivers...
until 24 March. 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. The weeping boyars solemnly declared that if he persisted in his refusal, they would hold him responsible to God for the destruction of Russia
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia was the name of the centralized Russian state from Ivan IV's assumption of the title of Tsar in 1547 till Peter the Great's foundation of the Russian Empire in 1721.From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 a year...
. Michael eventually consented to accept the throne.
Michael's election and accession to the throne form the basis of the Ivan Susanin
Ivan Susanin
Ivan Susanin was a Russian folk hero and martyr of the early 17th century's Time of Troubles.-Evidence:In 1619, a certain Bogdan Sobinin from Domnino village near Kostroma received from Tsar Mikhail one half of Derevischi village. According to the extant royal charter, these lands were granted...
legend, which Russian composer Mikhail Glinka
Mikhail Glinka
Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka , was the first Russian composer to gain wide recognition within his own country, and is often regarded as the father of Russian classical music...
dramatized in his opera A Life for the Tsar
A Life for the Tsar
A Life for the Tsar , as it is known in English, although its original name was Ivan Susanin is a "patriotic-heroic tragic opera" in four acts with an epilogue by Mikhail Glinka. The original Russian libretto, based on historical events, was written by Nestor Kukolnik, Georgy Fyodorovich Rozen,...
.
In so dilapidated a condition was the capital at this time that Michael had to wait for several weeks at the Troitsa monastery
Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra
The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius is the most important Russian monastery and the spiritual centre of the Russian Orthodox Church. The monastery is situated in the town of Sergiyev Posad, about 70 km to the north-east from Moscow by the road leading to Yaroslavl, and currently is home to...
, 75 miles (120.7 km) off, before decent accommodation could be provided for him at Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. He was crowned on 22 July 1613. The first task of the new tsar was to clear the land of the countries occupying it. Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
were then dealt with respectively by the peace of Stolbovo (17 February 1617) and the Truce of Deulino
Truce of Deulino
Truce of Deulino was signed on 11 December 1618 and took effect on 4 January 1619. It concluded the Polish–Muscovite War between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Tsardom of Russia....
(1 December 1618). The most important result of the Truce of Deulino was the return from exile of the tsar's father, who henceforth took over the government till his death in October 1633, Michael occupying quite a subordinate position.
Tsar Michael suffered from a progressing 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
Saltykov
Saltykov was a Russian noble family. Notable members of the family include:* Alexander Saltykov** Alexander Mikhailovich Saltykov , a Russian writer and translator** Prince Alexander Nikolayevich Saltykov , a Russian statesman...
relatives of his mother. He was married twice, first to Princess Maria Vladimirovna Dolgorukova in 1624, who died four months after the marriage the next year, and then in 1626 to Eudoxia Streshneva
Eudoxia Streshneva
Eudoxia Streshnyova was the second wife of Tsar Mikhail. She was a daughter of a nobleman Lukyan Stepanovich Streshnyov from Mozhaysk, who died in 1630, and his wife Anna Konstantinovna Volkonskaya.- Biography :...
(1608–1645), who brought him 10 children. Michael's failure to wed his daughter Irene of Russia with Count Valdemar Christian of Schleswig-Holstein
Valdemar Christian of Schleswig-Holstein
Valdemar Christian of Schleswig-Holstein was the son of king Christian IV of Denmark and his morganatic spouse Kirsten Munk...
, a morganatic
Morganatic marriage
In the context of European royalty, a morganatic marriage is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which prevents the passage of the husband's titles and privileges to the wife and any children born of the marriage...
son of King Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV was the king of Denmark-Norway from 1588 until his death. With a reign of more than 59 years, he is the longest-reigning monarch of Denmark, and he is frequently remembered as one of the most popular, ambitious and proactive Danish kings, having initiated many reforms and projects...
, in consequence of the refusal of the latter to accept Orthodoxy
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
, so deeply afflicted him as to contribute to bringing about his death on 12 July 1645.
Michael's governments
The two most important politically government offices (prikazPrikaz
Prikaz was an administrative or judicial office in Muscovy and Russia of 15th-18th centuries. The term is usually translated as "ministry", "office" or "department". In modern Russian "prikaz" means administrative or military order...
es) were Posolsky Prikaz ("Foreign Office") and Razryadny Prikaz (a Duma
Duma
A Duma is any of various representative assemblies in modern Russia and Russian history. The State Duma in the Russian Empire and Russian Federation corresponds to the lower house of the parliament. Simply it is a form of Russian governmental institution, that was formed during the reign of the...
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 dyak
Dyak (clerk)
Dyak is a historical Russian bureaucratic occupation whose meaning varied over time and approximately corresponded to the notions of "chief clerk" or "chief of office department"....
(professional clerks).
The first head of the Posolsky Prikaz under Michael was Pyotr Tretyakov until his death in 1618; he conducted policy of allying with Sweden against Poland. The next one, Ivan Gramotin had a reputation of a Poloniphile; this appointment was necessary to bring forth Filaret's release from captivity. In mid-20s Filaret began preparations for war with Poland; Gramotin fell in his disfavour and was fired and exiled in 1626. The same fate was shared by Efim Telepnev in 1630 and Fedor Likhachov in 1631 - they too tried to soothe Filaret's belligerent approach. Ivan Gryazev, appointed in 1632, was promoted from second ranks of bureaucracy to fulfill Filaret's orders. After Filaret's and Gryazev's deaths the post was once again assumed by Gramotin in 1634, and after the latter's retirement in 1635, by Likhachov, with general course on pacification.
Razryadny Prikaz was first headed by Sydavny Vasilyev; Filaret replaced him by his fellow in captivity Tomilo Lugovskoy, but the latter somehow caused Filaret's anger and was exiled. In 1623 Fedor Likhachov was made head of Prikaz till his shift to Posolsky Prikaz, and in 1630 Razryad was given to Ivan Gavrenev, an outstanding administrator who took up this post for 30 years.
Three other strategic offices were Streletsky Prikaz (in charge of streltsy
Streltsy
Streltsy were the units of Russian guardsmen in the 16th - early 18th centuries, armed with firearms. They are also collectively known as Marksman Troops .- Origins and organization :...
regiments who served as Moscow garrison), Treasury (Prikaz bolshoy kazny), and Aptekarsky Prikaz ("Pharmacy office", in fact 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
Ivan Cherkassky
Prince Ivan Borisovich Cherkassky was a Russian statesman, for 20 years head of government under Tsar Mikhail, his cousin....
(Filaret's nephew), who proved to be an able and competent administrator and was a de facto prime minister till his death in 1642. Fedor Sheremetev
Fedor Sheremetev
Fedor Ivanovich Sheremetev was a Russian statesman in Tsar Mikhail's times, head of government in 1613-18 and 1642-46....
who had succeeded to all Cherkassky's posts was a rather weak figure; the real power was in the hands of a court marshal, Alexey Lvov
Alexey Lvov
Prince Alexey Mikhaylovich Lvov was a Russian court marshal for 20 years and one of the most influential members of Tsar Mikhail's government....
.
Issue
From his marriage to Eudoxia Streshneva, Michael fathered 10 children:| Name | Birth | Death |
|---|---|---|
| Tsarevna Irina | 22 April 1627 | 8 February 1679 |
| Tsarevna Pelagia | 20 April 1628 | 25 January 1629 |
| Alexei I of Russia | 9 May 1629 | 29 January 1676 |
| Tsarevna Anna | 14 July 1630 | 28 October 1692 |
| Tsarevna Marfa | 29 August 1631 | 21 September 1632 |
| Tsarevich Ivan | 1 June 1633 | 10 January 1639 |
| Tsarevna Sophia | 14 September 1634 | 23 April 1636 |
| Tsarevna Tatiana | 5 January 1636 | 23 August 1706 |
| Tsarevna Eudoxia | 10 February 1637 | 10 February 1637 |
| Tsarevich Vasili | 14 March 1639 | 25 March 1639 |
Ancestry
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 in DjVuDjVuDjVu is a computer file format designed primarily to store scanned documents, especially those containing a combination of text, line drawings, and photographs. It uses technologies such as image layer separation of text and background/images, progressive loading, arithmetic coding, and lossy...
and PDF formats.