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Who was the co-ruler of Peter 1. Tsar Peter the first was not Russian

Peter I Alekseevich


Coronation:
	Sofya Alekseevna (1682 - 1689)
Co-ruler:	Ivan V (1682 - 1696)
Predecessor:	Fedor III Alekseevich
Successor:	Title abolished

Successor:	Catherine I
Religion:	Orthodoxy
Birth:

Buried:	Peter and Paul Cathedral, St. Petersburg
Dynasty:	Romanovs
	Alexey Mikhailovich
	Natalya Kirillovna
	1) Evdokia Lopukhina 2) Ekaterina Alekseevna
	(from 1) Alexey Petrovich (from 2) Anna Petrovna Elizaveta Petrovna Peter (died in childhood) Natalya (died in childhood) the rest died in infancy
Autograph:
Awards::

Peter's first marriage

Accession of Peter I

Azov campaigns. 1695-1696

Grand Embassy. 1697-1698

Russia's movement to the east

Caspian campaign 1722-1723

Transformations of Peter I

Personality of Peter I

Appearance Petra

Family of Peter I

Succession to the throne

Offspring of Peter I

Death of Peter

Performance evaluation and criticism

Monuments

In honor of Peter I

Peter I in art

In literature

In cinema

Peter I on money

Criticism and assessment of Peter I

Peter I the Great (Pyotr Alekseevich; May 30 (June 9), 1672 - January 28 (February 8), 1725) - Tsar of Moscow from the Romanov dynasty (since 1682) and the first All-Russian Emperor (since 1721). In Russian historiography he is considered one of the most outstanding statesmen who determined the direction of Russia's development in the 18th century.

Peter was proclaimed tsar in 1682 at the age of 10, and began to rule independently in 1689. WITH youth Showing interest in science and foreign lifestyles, Peter was the first of the Russian tsars to make a long trip to the countries of Western Europe. Upon returning from it in 1698, Peter launched large-scale reforms of the Russian state and social structure. One of Peter's main achievements was the significant expansion of Russian territories in the Baltic region after the victory in the Great Northern War, which allowed him to take the title of first emperor of the Russian Empire in 1721. Four years later, Emperor Peter I died, but the state he created continued to expand rapidly throughout the 18th century.

The early years of Peter. 1672-1689

Peter was born on the night of May 30 (June 9), 1672 in the Terem Palace of the Kremlin (in 7235 according to the then-accepted chronology “from the creation of the world”).

The father, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, had numerous offspring: Peter was the 14th child, but the first from his second wife, Tsarina Natalya Naryshkina. On June 29, on the day of Saints Peter and Paul, the prince was baptized in the Miracle Monastery (according to other sources, in the Church of Gregory of Neocaesarea, in Derbitsy, by Archpriest Andrei Savinov) and named Peter.

After spending a year with the queen, he was given to nannies to raise. In the 4th year of Peter’s life, in 1676, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich died. The prince's guardian was his half-brother, godfather and new king Fedor Alekseevich. Deacon N.M. Zotov taught Peter to read and write from 1676 to 1680.

The death of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and the accession of his eldest son Fyodor (from Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna, née Miloslavskaya) pushed Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna and her relatives, the Naryshkins, into the background. Queen Natalya was forced to go to the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow.

Streletsky riot of 1682 and the rise to power of Sofia Alekseevna

On April 27 (May 7), 1682, after 6 years of gentle rule, the liberal and sickly Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich died. The question arose of who should inherit the throne: the older, sickly and feeble-minded Ivan, according to custom, or the young Peter. Having secured the support of Patriarch Joachim, the Naryshkins and their supporters enthroned Peter on April 27 (May 7), 1682. In fact, the Naryshkin clan came to power and Artamon Matveev, summoned from exile, was declared the “great guardian.” It was difficult for supporters of Ivan Alekseevich to support their candidate, who could not reign due to extremely poor health. The organizers of the actual palace coup announced a version about the hand-written transfer of the “scepter” by the dying Feodor Alekseevich to his younger brother Peter, but no reliable evidence of this was presented.

The Miloslavskys, relatives of Tsarevich Ivan and Princess Sophia through their mother, saw in the proclamation of Peter as tsar an infringement of their interests. The Streltsy, of whom there were more than 20 thousand in Moscow, had long shown discontent and waywardness; and, apparently incited by the Miloslavskys, on May 15 (25), 1682, they came out openly: shouting that the Naryshkins had strangled Tsarevich Ivan, they moved towards the Kremlin. Natalya Kirillovna, hoping to calm the rioters, together with the patriarch and boyars, led Peter and his brother to the Red Porch.

However, the uprising was not over. In the first hours, the boyars Artamon Matveev and Mikhail Dolgoruky were killed, then other supporters of Queen Natalia, including her two brothers Naryshkin.

On May 26, elected officials from the Streltsy regiments came to the palace and demanded that the elder Ivan be recognized as the first tsar, and the younger Peter as the second. Fearing a repetition of the pogrom, the boyars agreed, and Patriarch Joachim immediately performed a solemn prayer service in the Assumption Cathedral for the health of the two named kings; and on June 25 he crowned them kings.

On May 29, the archers insisted that Princess Sofya Alekseevna take over control of the state due to the minor age of her brothers. Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna was supposed to, together with her son - the second Tsar - retire from the court to a palace near Moscow in the village of Preobrazhenskoye. In the Kremlin Armory, a two-seat throne for young kings with a small window in the back was preserved, through which Princess Sophia and her entourage told them how to behave and what to say during palace ceremonies.

Preobrazhenskoe and amusing shelves

All free time Peter spent time away from the palace - in the villages of Vorobyovo and Preobrazhenskoye. Every year his interest in military affairs increased. Peter dressed and armed his “amusing” army, which consisted of peers from boyhood games. In 1685, his “amusing” ones, dressed in foreign caftans, marched in regimental formation through Moscow from Preobrazhenskoye to the village of Vorobyovo to the beat of drums. Peter himself served as a drummer.

In 1686, 14-year-old Peter started artillery with his “amusing” ones. Gunsmith Fedor Sommer showed the king grenades and firearms. 16 guns were delivered from the Pushkarsky order. To control the heavy guns, the tsar took from the Stable Prikaz adult servants who were keen on military affairs, who were dressed in foreign-style uniforms and designated as amusing gunners. The first to put on a foreign uniform Sergey Bukhvostov. Subsequently, Peter ordered a bronze bust of this the first Russian soldier, as he called Bukhvostov. The amusing regiment began to be called Preobrazhensky, after its quartering place - the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow.

In Preobrazhenskoye, opposite the palace, on the banks of the Yauza, an “amusing town” was built. During the construction of the fortress, Peter himself worked actively, helping to cut logs and install cannons. The “Most Joking, Most Drunken and Extraordinary Council”, created by Peter, was also stationed here - a parody of Orthodox Church. The fortress itself was named Preshburg, probably named after the then famous Austrian fortress of Presburg (now Bratislava - the capital of Slovakia), which he heard about from Captain Sommer. At the same time, in 1686, the first amusing ships appeared near Preshburg on the Yauza - a large shnyak and a plow with boats. During these years, Peter became interested in all the sciences that were related to military affairs. Under the leadership of the Dutchman Timmerman he studied arithmetic, geometry, and military sciences.

One day, walking with Timmerman through the village of Izmailovo, Peter entered the Linen Yard, in the barn of which he found an English boot. In 1688 he entrusted the Dutchman Carsten Brandt repair, arm and equip this boat, and then lower it to the Yauza.

However, the Yauza and Prosyanoy Pond turned out to be too small for the ship, so Peter went to Pereslavl-Zalessky, to Lake Pleshcheevo, where he founded the first shipyard for the construction of ships. There were already two “Amusing” regiments: Semenovsky, located in the village of Semenovskoye, was added to Preobrazhensky. Preshburg already looked like a real fortress. For commanding regiments and studying military science knowledgeable and experienced people were needed. But there were no such people among the Russian courtiers. This is how Peter appeared in the German settlement.

Peter's first marriage

The German settlement was the closest “neighbor” of the village of Preobrazhenskoye, and Peter had been keeping an eye on its curious life for a long time. More and more foreigners at the court of Tsar Peter, such as Franz Timmerman And Karsten Brandt, came from the German settlement. All this imperceptibly led to the fact that the tsar became a frequent visitor to the settlement, where he soon turned out to be a great admirer of relaxed foreign life. Peter lit a German pipe, began attending German parties with dancing and drinking, met Patrick Gordon, Franz Yakovlevich Lefort - Peter's future associates, and started an affair with Anna Mons. Peter's mother strictly opposed this. In order to bring her 17-year-old son to reason, Natalya Kirillovna decided to marry him to Evdokia Lopukhina, the daughter of a okolnichy.

Peter did not contradict his mother, and on January 27, 1689, the wedding of the “junior” tsar took place. However, less than a month later, Peter left his wife and went to Lake Pleshcheyevo for several days. From this marriage, Peter had two sons: the eldest, Alexei, was heir to the throne until 1718, the youngest, Alexander, died in infancy.

Accession of Peter I

Peter's activity greatly worried Princess Sophia, who understood that with the coming of age of her half-brother, she would have to give up power. At one time, supporters of the princess hatched a coronation plan, but Patriarch Joachim was categorically against it.

Hiking Crimean Tatars, carried out in 1687 and 1689 by the princess’s favorite V.V. Golitsyn, were not very successful, but were presented as major and generously rewarded victories, which caused discontent among many.

On July 8, 1689, on the feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, the first public conflict occurred between the matured Peter and the Ruler. On that day, according to custom, a religious procession was held from the Kremlin to the Kazan Cathedral. At the end of the mass, Peter approached his sister and announced that she should not dare to go along with the men in the procession. Sophia accepted the challenge: she took the image of the Most Holy Theotokos in her hands and went to get the crosses and banners. Unprepared for such an outcome, Peter left the move.

On August 7, 1689, unexpectedly for everyone, a decisive event occurred. On this day, Princess Sophia ordered the chief of the archers, Fyodor Shaklovity, to send more of his people to the Kremlin, as if to escort them to the Donskoy Monastery on a pilgrimage. At the same time, a rumor spread about a letter with the news that Tsar Peter at night decided to occupy the Kremlin with his “amusing” ones, kill the princess, Tsar Ivan’s brother, and seize power. Shaklovity gathered the Streltsy regiments to march in a “great assembly” to Preobrazhenskoye and beat all of Peter’s supporters for their intention to kill Princess Sophia. Then they sent three horsemen to observe what was happening in Preobrazhenskoe with the task of immediately reporting if Tsar Peter went anywhere alone or with regiments.

Peter's supporters among the archers sent two like-minded people to Preobrazhenskoye. After the report, Peter with a small retinue galloped in alarm to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. The consequence of the horrors of the Streltsy demonstrations was Peter's illness: with strong excitement, he began to have convulsive facial movements. On August 8, both queens, Natalya and Evdokia, arrived at the monastery, followed by “amusing” regiments with artillery. On August 16, a letter came from Peter, ordering commanders and 10 privates from all regiments to be sent to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery. Princess Sophia strictly forbade the fulfillment of this command on pain death penalty, and a letter was sent to Tsar Peter informing him that it was impossible to fulfill his request.

On August 27, a new letter from Tsar Peter arrived - all regiments should go to Trinity. Most of the troops obeyed the legitimate king, and Princess Sophia had to admit defeat. She herself went to the Trinity Monastery, but in the village of Vozdvizhenskoye she was met by Peter’s envoys with orders to return to Moscow. Soon Sophia was imprisoned in the Novodevichy Convent under strict supervision.

On October 7, Fyodor Shaklovity was captured and then executed. The elder brother, Tsar Ivan (or John), met Peter at the Assumption Cathedral and actually gave him all power. Since 1689, he did not take part in the reign, although until his death on January 29 (February 8), 1696, he continued to be a co-tsar. At first, Peter himself took little part in the board, giving powers to the Naryshkin family.

The beginning of Russian expansion. 1690-1699

Azov campaigns. 1695-1696

The priority of Peter I in the first years of autocracy was the continuation of the war with Crimea. Since the 16th century, Muscovite Rus' has been fighting the Crimean and Nogai Tatars for possession of the vast coastal lands of the Black and Azov Seas. During this struggle, Russia faced Ottoman Empire, patronizing the Tatars. One of the stronghold military points on these lands was the Turkish fortress of Azov, located at the confluence of the Don River into the Sea of Azov.

The first Azov campaign, which began in the spring of 1695, ended unsuccessfully in September of the same year due to the lack of a fleet and the unwillingness of the Russian army to operate far from supply bases. However, already in the fall. In 1695-96, preparations began for a new campaign. The construction of a Russian rowing flotilla began in Voronezh. Behind a short time a flotilla was built from different ships led by the 36-gun ship "Apostle Peter". In May 1696, a 40,000-strong Russian army under the command of Generalissimo Shein again besieged Azov, only this time the Russian flotilla blocked the fortress from the sea. Peter I took part in the siege with the rank of captain on a galley. Without waiting for the assault, on July 19, 1696, the fortress surrendered. Thus, Russia's first access to the southern seas was opened.

The result of the Azov campaigns was the capture of the Azov fortress, the beginning of construction of the port of Taganrog, the possibility of an attack on the Crimean peninsula from the sea, which significantly secured the southern borders of Russia. However, Peter failed to gain access to the Black Sea through the Kerch Strait: he remained under the control of the Ottoman Empire. Strength for a war with Turkey, as well as a full-fledged navy, Russia hasn’t had one yet.

To finance the construction of the fleet, new types of taxes were introduced: landowners were united into so-called kumpanstvos of 10 thousand households, each of which had to build a ship with their own money. At this time, the first signs of dissatisfaction with Peter's activities appear. The conspiracy of Tsikler, who was trying to organize a Streltsy uprising, was uncovered. In the summer of 1699, the first large Russian ship “Fortress” (46-gun) took the Russian ambassador to Constantinople for peace negotiations. The very existence of such a ship persuaded the Sultan to conclude peace in July 1700, which left the Azov fortress behind Russia.

During the construction of the fleet and the reorganization of the army, Peter was forced to rely on foreign specialists. Having completed the Azov campaigns, he decides to send young nobles to study abroad, and soon he himself sets off on his first trip to Europe.

Grand Embassy. 1697-1698

In March 1697, the Grand Embassy was sent to Western Europe through Livonia, the main purpose of which was to find allies against the Ottoman Empire. Admiral General F. Ya. Lefort, General F. A. Golovin, and Head of the Ambassadorial Prikaz P. B. Voznitsyn were appointed great ambassadors plenipotentiary. In total, up to 250 people entered the embassy, among whom, under the name of the sergeant of the Preobrazhensky Regiment Peter Mikhailov, was Tsar Peter I himself. For the first time, a Russian Tsar undertook a trip outside the borders of his state.

Peter visited Riga, Koenigsberg, Brandenburg, Holland, England, Austria, and a visit to Venice and the Pope was planned.

The embassy recruited several hundred shipbuilding specialists to Russia and purchased military and other equipment.

In addition to negotiations, Peter devoted a lot of time to studying shipbuilding, military affairs and other sciences. Peter worked as a carpenter at the shipyards of the East India Company, and with the participation of the Tsar, the ship “Peter and Paul” was built. In England, he visited a foundry, an arsenal, parliament, Oxford University, the Greenwich Observatory and the Mint, of which Isaac Newton was the caretaker at that time.

Grand Embassy main goal did not achieve: it was not possible to create a coalition against the Ottoman Empire due to the preparation of a number of European powers for the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-14). However, thanks to this war, favorable conditions developed for Russia’s struggle for the Baltic. Thus, a reorientation took place foreign policy Russia from south direction to the north.

Return. Crucial years for Russia 1698-1700

In July 1698, the Grand Embassy was interrupted by news of a new Streltsy rebellion in Moscow, which was suppressed even before Peter’s arrival. Upon the tsar’s arrival in Moscow (August 25), a search and inquiry began, the result of which was the one-time execution of about 800 archers (except for those executed during the suppression of the riot), and subsequently several thousand more until the spring of 1699.

Princess Sophia was tonsured as a nun under the name of Susanna and sent to the Novodevichy Convent, where she spent the rest of her life. The same fate befell Peter’s unloved wife, Evdokia Lopukhina, who was forcibly sent to the Suzdal monastery even against the will of the clergy.

During his 15 months in Europe, Peter saw a lot and learned a lot. After the return of the king on August 25, 1698, his transformative activities began, first aimed at changing external signs that distinguish the Old Slavic way of life from the Western European one. In the Preobrazhensky Palace, Peter suddenly began to cut the beards of nobles and already on August 29, 1698, the famous decree “On wearing German dress, on shaving beards and mustaches, on schismatics walking in the attire specified for them” was issued, which prohibited the wearing of beards from September 1.

The new year 7208 according to the Russian-Byzantine calendar (“from the creation of the world”) became the 1700th year according to the Julian calendar. Peter also introduced the celebration on January 1 of the New Year, and not on the day of the autumn equinox, as was celebrated before. His special decree stated:

Creation of the Russian Empire. 1700-1724

Northern War with Sweden (1700-1721)

After returning from the Great Embassy, the tsar began to prepare for a war with Sweden for access to the Baltic Sea. In 1699, the Northern Alliance was created against the Swedish king Charles XII, which, in addition to Russia, included Denmark, Saxony and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, led by the Saxon elector and the Polish king Augustus II. Driving force The union was the desire of Augustus II to take Livonia from Sweden, for help he promised Russia the return of lands that previously belonged to the Russians (Ingria and Karelia).

To enter the war, Russia had to make peace with the Ottoman Empire. After reaching a truce with the Turkish Sultan for a period of 30 years, Russia declared war on Sweden on August 19, 1700, under the pretext of revenge for the insult shown to Tsar Peter in Riga.

Charles XII's plan was to defeat his opponents one by one with a series of fast landing operations. Soon after the bombing of Copenhagen, Denmark withdrew from the war on August 8, 1700, even before Russia entered it. Augustus II's attempts to capture Riga ended unsuccessfully.

The attempt to capture the Narva fortress ended with the defeat of the Russian army. On November 30, 1700 (New Style), Charles XII with 8,500 soldiers attacked the camp of Russian troops and completely defeated the 35,000-strong fragile Russian army. Peter I himself left the troops for Novgorod 2 days before. Considering that Russia was sufficiently weakened, Charles XII went to Livonia to direct all his forces against what he thought was his main enemy - Augustus II.

However, Peter, hastily reorganizing the army along European lines, resumed hostilities. Already in 1702 (October 11 (22)), Russia captured the Noteburg fortress (renamed Shlisselburg), and in the spring of 1703, the Nyenschanz fortress at the mouth of the Neva. Here, on May 16 (27), 1703, the construction of St. Petersburg began, and on the island of Kotlin the base of the Russian fleet was located - the Kronshlot fortress (later Kronstadt). The exit to the Baltic Sea was breached. In 1704, Narva and Dorpat were taken, Russia was firmly entrenched in the Eastern Baltic. Peter I’s offer to make peace was refused.

After the deposition of Augustus II in 1706 and his replacement by the Polish king Stanislav Leszczynski, Charles XII began his fatal campaign against Russia. Having captured Minsk and Mogilev, the king did not dare to go to Smolensk. Having secured the support of the Little Russian hetman Ivan Mazepa, Charles moved his troops south for food reasons and with the intention of strengthening the army with Mazepa’s supporters. On September 28, 1708, near the village of Lesnoy, Levengaupt's Swedish corps, which was marching to join the army of Charles XII from Livonia, was defeated by the Russian army under the command of Menshikov. The Swedish army lost reinforcements and a convoy with military supplies. Peter later celebrated the anniversary of this battle as a turning point in the Northern War.

In the Battle of Poltava on June 27, 1709, the army of Charles XII was completely defeated, the Swedish king with a handful of soldiers fled to Turkish possessions.

In 1710, Türkiye intervened in the war. After the defeat in the Prut campaign of 1711, Russia returned Azov to Turkey and destroyed Taganrog, but due to this it was possible to conclude another truce with the Turks.

Peter again focused on the war with the Swedes; in 1713, the Swedes were defeated in Pomerania and lost all their possessions in continental Europe. However, thanks to Sweden's dominance at sea, the Northern War dragged on. The Baltic Fleet was just being created by Russia, but managed to win its first victory in the Battle of Gangut in the summer of 1714. In 1716, Peter led a united fleet from Russia, England, Denmark and Holland, but due to disagreements in the Allied camp, it was not possible to organize an attack on Sweden.

As Russia's Baltic Fleet strengthened, Sweden felt the danger of an invasion of its lands. In 1718, peace negotiations began, interrupted by the sudden death of Charles XII. The Swedish queen Ulrika Eleonora resumed the war, hoping for help from England. The devastating Russian landings on the Swedish coast in 1720 prompted Sweden to resume negotiations. On August 30 (September 10), 1721, the Peace of Nystad was concluded between Russia and Sweden, ending the 21-year war. Russia gained access to the Baltic Sea, annexed the territory of Ingria, part of Karelia, Estland and Livonia. Russia became a great European power, in commemoration of which on October 22 (November 2), 1721, Peter, at the request of senators, accepted the title Father of the Fatherland, Emperor of All Russia, Peter the Great:

... we thought, from the example of the ancients, especially the Roman and Greek peoples, to take the boldness, on the day of the celebration and announcement of what they concluded in. V. through the labors of all Russia only glorious and prosperous world, after reading the treatise thereof in the church, in accordance with our all-submissive gratitude for the depletion of this world, bring our petition to you publicly, so that you deign to accept from us, as from your faithful subjects, in thanksgiving the title of Father of the Fatherland, Emperor of All Russia, Peter the Great, as usual from the Roman Senate, for the noble deeds of the emperors, such titles were publicly presented to them as a gift and signed on statues for memory for eternal generations.

Russo-Turkish War 1710-1713

After the defeat in the Battle of Poltava, the Swedish king Charles XII took refuge in the possessions of the Ottoman Empire, the city of Bendery. Peter I concluded an agreement with Turkey on the expulsion of Charles XII from Turkish territory, but then the Swedish king was allowed to stay and pose a threat southern border Russia with the help of part of the Ukrainian Cossacks and Crimean Tatars. Seeking the expulsion of Charles XII, Peter I began to threaten war with Turkey, but in response, on November 20, 1710, the Sultan himself declared war on Russia. The real cause of the war was the capture of Azov by Russian troops in 1696 and the appearance of the Russian fleet in the Sea of Azov.

The war on Turkey's part was limited to the winter raid of the Crimean Tatars, vassals of the Ottoman Empire, on Ukraine. Russia waged a war on 3 fronts: troops made campaigns against the Tatars in the Crimea and Kuban, Peter I himself, relying on the help of the rulers of Wallachia and Moldavia, decided to make a deep campaign to the Danube, where he hoped to raise the Christian vassals of the Ottoman Empire to fight the Turks.

On March 6 (17), 1711, Peter I left Moscow for the troops with his faithful friend Ekaterina Alekseevna, whom he ordered to be considered his wife and queen (even before the official wedding, which took place in 1712). The army crossed the border of Moldova in June 1711, but already on July 20, 1711, 190 thousand Turks and Crimean Tatars pressed the 38 thousand Russian army to the right bank of the Prut River, completely surrounding it. In a seemingly hopeless situation, Peter managed to conclude the Prut Peace Treaty with the Grand Vizier, according to which the army and the Tsar himself escaped capture, but in return Russia gave Azov to Turkey and lost access to the Sea of Azov.

There had been no hostilities since August 1711, although during the process of agreeing on the final treaty, Turkey threatened several times to resume the war. Only in June 1713 was the Treaty of Andrianople concluded, which generally confirmed the terms of the Prut Agreement. Russia received the opportunity to continue the Northern War without a 2nd front, although it lost the gains of the Azov campaigns.

Russia's movement to the east

Russia's expansion to the east under Peter I did not stop. In 1714, Buchholz's expedition south of the Irtysh founded Omsk, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Semipalatinsk and other fortresses. In 1716-17, a detachment of Bekovich-Cherkassky was sent to Central Asia with the goal of persuading the Khiva Khan to become a citizen and to scout out the route to India. However, the Russian detachment was destroyed by the khan. During the reign of Peter I, Kamchatka was annexed to Russia. Peter planned an expedition across the Pacific Ocean to America (intending to establish Russian colonies there), but did not have time to carry out his plans.

Caspian campaign 1722-1723

Peter's largest foreign policy event after the Northern War was the Caspian (or Persian) campaign in 1722-1724. The conditions for the campaign were created as a result of Persian civil strife and the actual collapse of the once powerful state.

On June 18, 1722, after the son of the Persian Shah Tokhmas Mirza asked for help, a 22,000-strong Russian detachment sailed from Astrakhan along the Caspian Sea. In August, Derbent surrendered, after which the Russians returned to Astrakhan due to problems with supplies. The following year, 1723, the western shore of the Caspian Sea with the fortresses of Baku, Rasht, and Astrabad was conquered. Further progress was stopped by the threat of the Ottoman Empire entering the war, which captured western and central Transcaucasia.

On September 12, 1723, the Treaty of St. Petersburg was concluded with Persia, according to which the western and southern coasts of the Caspian Sea with the cities of Derbent and Baku and the provinces of Gilan, Mazandaran and Astrabad were included in the Russian Empire. Russia and Persia also concluded a defensive alliance against Turkey, which, however, turned out to be ineffective.

According to the Treaty of Istanbul (Constantinople) of June 12, 1724, Turkey recognized all Russian acquisitions in the western part of the Caspian Sea and renounced further claims to Persia. The junction of the borders between Russia, Turkey and Persia was established at the confluence of the Araks and Kura rivers. Troubles continued in Persia, and Turkey challenged the provisions of the Treaty of Istanbul before the border was clearly established.

It should be noted that soon after the death of Peter, these possessions were lost due to high losses of garrisons from disease, and, in the opinion of Tsarina Anna Ioannovna, the lack of prospects for the region.

Russian Empire under Peter I

After the victory in the Northern War and the conclusion of the Peace of Nystadt in September 1721, the Senate and Synod decided to present Peter with the title of Emperor of All Russia with the following wording: “ as usual, from the Roman Senate, for the noble deeds of emperors, such titles were publicly presented to them as a gift and signed on statutes for memory for eternal generations.»

On October 22 (November 2), 1721, Peter I accepted the title, not just an honorary one, but indicating a new role for Russia in international affairs. Prussia and Holland immediately recognized the new title of the Russian Tsar, Sweden in 1723, Turkey in 1739, England and Austria in 1742, France and Spain in 1745, and finally Poland in 1764.

Secretary of the Prussian embassy in Russia in 1717-33, I.-G. Fokkerodt, at the request of Voltaire, who was working on the history of Peter's reign, wrote memoirs about Russia under Peter. Fokkerodt tried to estimate the population of the Russian Empire by the end of the reign of Peter I. According to his information, the number of people in the tax-paying class was 5 million 198 thousand people, from which the number of peasants and townspeople, including women, was estimated at approximately 10 million. Many souls were hidden by the landowners, The repeated audit increased the number of tax-paying souls to almost 6 million people. There were up to 500 thousand Russian nobles and families; officials up to 200 thousand and clergy with families up to 300 thousand souls.

The inhabitants of the conquered regions, who were not subject to universal taxes, were estimated to number from 500 to 600 thousand souls. Cossacks with families in Ukraine, on the Don and Yaik and in border cities were considered to number from 700 to 800 thousand souls. The number of Siberian peoples was unknown, but Fokkerodt put it up to a million people.

Thus, the population of the Russian Empire amounted to up to 15 million subjects and was second in Europe only to France (about 20 million).

Transformations of Peter I

All of Peter’s state activities can be conditionally divided into two periods: 1695-1715 and 1715-1725.

The peculiarity of the first stage was haste and not always thought out, which was explained by the conduct of the Northern War. The reforms were aimed primarily at raising funds for the Northern War, were carried out by force and often did not lead to the desired result. In addition to government reforms, at the first stage, extensive reforms were carried out to change the cultural way of life.

Peter was carried out currency reform, as a result of which the account began to be kept in rubles and kopecks. The pre-reform silver kopek (Novgorodka) continued to be minted until 1718 for the outskirts. The copper kopeck came into circulation in 1704, at the same time the silver ruble began to be minted. The reform itself began in 1700, when copper half-polushka (1/8 kopeck), half-ruble (1/4 kopeck), denga (1/2 kopeck) were put into circulation, and since 1701, silver ten money (five kopecks), ten kopecks (ten kopecks), half-fifty (25 kopecks) and half. Accounting for money and altyns (3 kopecks) was prohibited. Under Peter, the first screw press appeared. During the reign, the weight and fineness of coins were reduced several times, which led to the rapid development of counterfeiting. In 1723, copper five kopecks ("cross" nickel) were introduced into circulation. It had several degrees of protection (smooth field, special alignment of the sides), but counterfeits began to be minted not in a homemade way, but in foreign mints. Cross nickels were subsequently confiscated to be re-coined into kopecks (under Elizabeth). Gold chervonets began to be minted according to the European model; later they were abandoned in favor of a gold coin of two rubles. Peter I planned to introduce a copper ruble payment based on the Swedish model in 1725, but these payments were implemented only by Catherine I.

In the second period, reforms were more systematic and aimed at the internal development of the state.

In general, Peter's reforms were aimed at strengthening the Russian state and introducing the ruling stratum to European culture while simultaneously strengthening the absolute monarchy. By the end of the reign of Peter the Great, a powerful Russian Empire was created, headed by an emperor who had absolute power. During the reforms, the technical and economic lag of Russia from European countries was overcome, access to the Baltic Sea was won, and transformations were carried out in all spheres of life of Russian society. At the same time, the popular forces were extremely exhausted, the bureaucratic apparatus grew, and the preconditions were created (Decree on Succession to the Throne) for a crisis of supreme power, which led to the era of “ palace coups».

Personality of Peter I

Peter's appearance

Even as a child, Peter amazed people with the beauty and liveliness of his face and figure. Due to his height - 200 cm (6 ft 7 in) - he stood out a whole head in the crowd. At the same time, with such a large height, he wore size 38 shoes.

Those around were frightened by very strong convulsive twitching of the face, especially in moments of anger and emotional excitement. Contemporaries attributed these convulsive movements to childhood shock during the Streltsy riots or an attempt to poison Princess Sophia.

During his visit to Europe, Peter I frightened sophisticated aristocrats with his rude manner of communication and simplicity of morals. Elector Sophia of Hanover wrote about Peter as follows:

Later, already in 1717, during Peter’s stay in Paris, the Duke of Saint-Simon wrote down his impression of Peter:

« He was very tall, well-built, rather thin, with a roundish face, high forehead, and beautiful eyebrows; his nose is quite short, but not too short, and somewhat thick towards the end; the lips are quite large, the complexion is reddish and dark, beautiful black eyes, large, lively, penetrating, beautifully shaped; the look is majestic and welcoming when he watches himself and restrains himself, otherwise he is stern and wild, with convulsions on the face that are not repeated often, but distort both the eyes and the whole face, frightening everyone present. The spasm usually lasted one moment, and then his gaze became strange, as if confused, then everything immediately took on its normal appearance. His whole appearance showed intelligence, reflection and greatness and was not without charm.»

Family of Peter I

For the first time, Peter married at the age of 17, at the insistence of his mother, to Evdokia Lopukhina in 1689. A year later, Tsarevich Alexei was born to them, who was raised by his mother in concepts alien to Peter’s reform activities. The remaining children of Peter and Evdokia died soon after birth. In 1698, Evdokia Lopukhina became involved in the Streltsy revolt, the purpose of which was to elevate her son to the kingdom, and was exiled to a monastery.

Alexei Petrovich, the official heir to the Russian throne, condemned his father’s reforms, and eventually fled to Vienna under the patronage of his wife’s relative (Charlotte of Brunswick), Emperor Charles VI, where he sought support in the overthrow of Peter I. In 1717, the weak-willed prince was persuaded to return home, where he was taken into custody. On June 24 (July 5), 1718, the Supreme Court, consisting of 127 people, sentenced Alexei to death, finding him guilty of treason.

On June 26 (July 7), 1718, the prince, without waiting for the sentence to be carried out, died in the Peter and Paul Fortress. The true cause of the death of Tsarevich Alexei has not yet been reliably established.

From his marriage to Princess Charlotte of Brunswick, Tsarevich Alexei left a son, Peter Alekseevich (1715-1730), who became Emperor Peter II in 1727, and a daughter, Natalya Alekseevna (1714-1728).

In 1703, Peter I met 19-year-old Katerina, whose maiden name was Marta Skavronskaya, captured by Russian troops as booty during the capture of the Swedish fortress of Marienburg. Peter took a former maid from the Baltic peasants from Alexander Menshikov and made her his mistress. In 1704, Katerina gives birth to her first child, named Peter, and the following year, Paul (both soon died). Even before her legal marriage to Peter, Katerina gave birth to daughters Anna (1708) and Elizabeth (1709). Elizabeth later became empress (reigned 1741-1761), and Anna's direct descendants ruled Russia after Elizabeth's death, from 1761 to 1917.

Katerina alone could cope with the king in his fits of anger; she knew how to calm Peter’s attacks of convulsive headaches with affection and patient attention. The sound of Katerina's voice calmed Peter; then she:

The official wedding of Peter I and Ekaterina Alekseevna took place on February 19, 1712, shortly after returning from the Prut campaign. In 1724 Peter crowned Catherine as empress and co-regent. Ekaterina Alekseevna bore her husband 11 children, but most of them died in childhood, except for Anna and Elizaveta.

After Peter's death in January 1725, Ekaterina Alekseevna, with the support of the serving nobility and guards regiments, became the first ruling Russian Empress Catherine I, but she did not rule for long and died in 1727, vacating the throne for Tsarevich Peter Alekseevich. The first wife of Peter the Great, Evdokia Lopukhina, outlived her lucky rival and died in 1731, having managed to see the reign of her grandson Peter Alekseevich.

Succession to the throne

In the last years of the reign of Peter the Great, the question of succession to the throne arose: who would take the throne after the death of the emperor. Tsarevich Pyotr Petrovich (1715-1719, son of Ekaterina Alekseevna), declared heir to the throne upon the abdication of Alexei Petrovich, died in childhood. The direct heir was the son of Tsarevich Alexei and Princess Charlotte, Pyotr Alekseevich. However, if you follow the custom and declare the son of the disgraced Alexei as the heir, then the hopes of opponents of the reforms to return to the old order were aroused, and on the other hand, fears arose among Peter’s comrades, who voted for the execution of Alexei.

On February 5 (16), 1722, Peter issued a Decree on Succession to the Throne (cancelled by Paul I 75 years later), in which he abolished the ancient custom of transferring the throne to direct descendants in the male line, but allowed the appointment of any worthy person as heir at the will of the monarch. The text of this important decree justified the need for this measure:

The decree was so unusual for Russian society that it had to be explained and consent was required from the subjects under oath. The schismatics were indignant: “He took a Swede for himself, and that queen will not give birth to children, and he made a decree to kiss the cross for the future sovereign, and they kiss the cross for the Swede. Of course, a Swede will reign.”

Peter Alekseevich was removed from the throne, but the question of succession to the throne remained open. Many believed that the throne would be taken by either Anna or Elizabeth, Peter’s daughter from his marriage to Ekaterina Alekseevna. But in 1724, Anna renounced any claims to the Russian throne after she became engaged to the Duke of Holstein, Karl Friedrich. If the throne had been taken by the youngest daughter Elizabeth, who was 15 years old (in 1724), then the Duke of Holstein would have ruled instead, who dreamed of returning the lands conquered by the Danes with the help of Russia.

Peter and his nieces, the daughters of his elder brother Ivan, were not satisfied: Anna of Courland, Ekaterina of Mecklenburg and Praskovya Ioannovna.

There was only one candidate left - Peter's wife, Empress Ekaterina Alekseevna. Peter needed a person who would continue the work he had started, his transformation. On May 7, 1724, Peter crowned Catherine empress and co-ruler, but a short time later he suspected her of adultery (the Mons affair). The decree of 1722 violated the usual structure of succession to the throne, but Peter did not have time to appoint an heir before his death.

Offspring of Peter I

	Date of Birth	Date of death	Notes
With Evdokia Lopukhina
Alexey Petrovich			He was considered the official heir to the throne before his arrest. He was married in 1711 to Princess Sophia Charlotte of Brunswick-Wolfenbittel, sister of Elizabeth, wife of Emperor Charles VI. Children: Natalya (1714-28) and Peter (1715-30), later Emperor Peter II.
Alexander Petrovich
With Ekaterina
Anna Petrovna			In 1725 she married the German Duke Karl Friedrich. She went to Kiel, where she gave birth to her son, Karl Peter Ulrich (later Russian Emperor Peter III).
Elizaveta Petrovna			Empress since 1741. In 1744 she entered into a secret marriage with A.G. Razumovsky, from whom, according to contemporaries, she gave birth to several children.
Natalya Petrovna
Margarita Petrovna
Pyotr Petrovich			He was considered the official heir to the crown from 1718 until his death.
Pavel Petrovich
Natalya Petrovna

In most history books, including some popular Internet resources, as a rule, a smaller number of children of Peter I are mentioned. This is due to the fact that they reached the age of maturity and left a certain mark on history, unlike other children who died in early childhood. According to other sources, Peter I had 14 children officially registered and mentioned on the family tree of the Romanov dynasty.

Death of Peter

In the last years of his reign, Peter was very ill (presumably kidney stones, uremia). In the summer of 1724, his illness intensified; in September he felt better, but after a while the attacks intensified. In October, Peter went to inspect the Ladoga Canal, contrary to the advice of his physician Blumentrost. From Olonets, Peter traveled to Staraya Russa and in November traveled by water to St. Petersburg. Near Lakhta, he had to stand waist-deep in water to save a boat with soldiers that had run aground. The attacks of the disease intensified, but Peter, not paying attention to them, continued to engage in government affairs. On January 17, 1725, he had such a bad time that he ordered a camp church to be erected in the room next to his bedroom, and on January 22 he confessed. The patient’s strength began to leave him; he no longer screamed, as before, from severe pain, but only moaned.

On January 27 (February 7), all those sentenced to death or hard labor (excluding murderers and those convicted of repeated robbery) were amnestied. That same day, at the end of the second hour, Peter demanded paper and began to write, but the pen fell out of his hands, and only two words could be made out from what was written: “Give everything...” The Tsar then ordered his daughter Anna Petrovna to be called so that she could write under his dictation, but when she arrived, Peter had already fallen into oblivion. The story about Peter’s words “Give up everything...” and the order to call Anna is known only from the notes of the Holstein Privy Councilor G. F. Bassevich; according to N.I. Pavlenko and V.P. Kozlov, it is a tendentious fiction aimed at hinting at the rights of Anna Petrovna, the wife of the Holstein Duke Karl Friedrich, to the Russian throne.

When it became obvious that the emperor was dying, the question arose as to who would take Peter's place. The Senate, the Synod and the generals - all institutions that did not have the formal right to control the fate of the throne, even before Peter's death, gathered on the night of January 27-28, 1725 to resolve the issue of Peter the Great's successor. Guards officers entered the meeting room, two guards regiments entered the square, and to the drumbeat of troops withdrawn by the party of Ekaterina Alekseevna and Menshikov, the Senate made a unanimous decision by 4 o'clock in the morning on January 28. By decision of the Senate, the throne was inherited by Peter's wife, Ekaterina Alekseevna, who became the first Russian empress on January 28 (February 8), 1725 under the name Catherine I.

At the beginning of six o'clock in the morning on January 28 (February 8), 1725, Peter the Great died. He was buried in the Cathedral of the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.

The famous court icon painter Simon Ushakov painted an image of the Life-Giving Trinity and the Apostle Peter on a cypress board. After the death of Peter I, this icon was installed above the imperial tombstone.

Performance evaluation and criticism

In a letter to the French ambassador to Russia, Louis XIV spoke of Peter in the following way: “This sovereign reveals his aspirations with concerns about preparing for military affairs and the discipline of his troops, about training and enlightening his people, about attracting foreign officers and all kinds of capable people. This course of action and the increase of power, which is the greatest in Europe, make him formidable to his neighbors and excite very thorough envy."

Moritz of Saxony called Peter greatest man of his century.

S. M. Solovyov spoke about Peter in enthusiastic tones, attributing to him all the successes of Russia as internal affairs, and in foreign policy, showed the organicity and historical preparedness of the reforms:

The historian believed that the emperor saw his main task in the internal transformation of Russia, and the Northern War with Sweden was only a means to this transformation. According to Solovyov:

P. N. Milyukov, in his works, develops the idea that the reforms carried out by Peter spontaneously, from case to case, under the pressure of specific circumstances, without any logic or plan, were “reforms without a reformer.” He also mentions that only “at the cost of ruining the country, Russia was elevated to the rank of a European power.” According to Miliukov, during the reign of Peter, the population of Russia within the borders of 1695 decreased due to incessant wars.

S. F. Platonov was one of Peter’s apologists. In his book “Personality and Activity” he wrote the following:

N.I. Pavlenko believed that Peter’s transformations were a major step along the road to progress (albeit within the framework of feudalism). Outstanding Soviet historians largely agree with him: E.V. Tarle, N.N. Molchanov, V.I. Buganov, considering the reforms from the point of view of Marxist theory.

Voltaire wrote repeatedly about Peter. By the end of 1759 the first volume was published, and in April 1763 the second volume of “History of the Russian Empire under Peter the Great” was published. Voltaire defines the main value of Peter’s reforms as the progress that the Russians have achieved in 50 years; other nations cannot achieve this even in 500. Peter I, his reforms, and their significance became the object of dispute between Voltaire and Rousseau.

N. M. Karamzin, recognizing this sovereign as the Great, severely criticizes Peter for his excessive passion for foreign things, his desire to make Russia the Netherlands. The sharp change in the “old” way of life and national traditions undertaken by the emperor, according to the historian, is not always justified. As a result, Russian educated people "became citizens of the world, but ceased to be, in some cases, citizens of Russia."

V. O. Klyuchevsky gave a contradictory assessment of Peter’s transformations. “The reform (of Peter) itself came out of the urgent needs of the state and the people, instinctively felt by a powerful man with a sensitive mind and strong character, talents... The reform carried out by Peter the Great did not have as its direct goal to rebuild either the political, social, or moral order established in this state was not directed by the task of putting Russian life on Western European foundations that were unusual for it, introducing new borrowed principles into it, but was limited to the desire to arm the Russian state and people with ready-made Western European means, mental and material, and thereby put the state on a level with the conquered them by the situation in Europe... Started and led by the supreme power, the habitual leader of the people, it adopted the character and methods of a violent revolution, a kind of revolution. It was a revolution not in its goals and results, but only in its methods and in the impression it made on the minds and nerves of his contemporaries."

V. B. Kobrin argued that Peter did not change the most important thing in the country: serfdom. Feudal industry. Temporary improvements in the present doomed Russia to a crisis in the future.

According to R. Pipes, Kamensky, E.V. Anisimov, Peter’s reforms were extremely contradictory. Feudal methods and repression led to an overstrain of popular forces.

E.V. Anisimov believed that, despite the introduction of a number of innovations in all spheres of life of society and the state, the reforms led to the conservation of the autocratic serfdom system in Russia.

Extremely negative rating The personality of Peter and the results of his reforms were given by the thinker and publicist Ivan Solonevich. In his opinion, the result of Peter’s activities was the gap between the ruling elite and the people, the denationalization of the former. He accused Peter himself of cruelty, incompetence and tyranny.

A. M. Burovsky calls Peter I, following the Old Believers, “the Antichrist Tsar,” as well as a “possessed sadist” and a “bloody monster,” arguing that his activities ruined and bled Russia. According to him, everything good that is attributed to Peter was known long before him, and Russia before him was much more developed and free than after.

Memory

Monuments

Monuments were erected in honor of Peter the Great in different cities Russia and Europe. The very first and most famous is Bronze Horseman in St. Petersburg, created by the sculptor Etienne Maurice Falconet. Its production and construction took more than 10 years. The sculpture of Peter by B.K. Rastrelli was created earlier than the Bronze Horseman, but was installed in front of the Mikhailovsky Castle later.

In 1912, during the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Tula Arms Plant, a monument to Peter, as the founder of the plant, was unveiled on its territory. Subsequently, the monument was erected in front of the factory entrance.

The largest in size was installed in 1997 in Moscow on the Moskva River, sculptor Zurab Tsereteli.

In 2007, a monument was erected in Astrakhan on the Volga embankment, and in 2008 in Sochi.

May 20, 2009 at the Moscow City Children's Marine Center named after. Peter the Great" a bust of Peter I was installed as part of the "Walk of Russian Glory" project.

The name Peter is also associated with various natural objects. So until the end of the 20th century Stone Island In St. Petersburg, an oak tree was preserved, according to legend, planted personally by Peter. At the site of his last exploit near Lakhta there was also a pine tree with a memorial inscription. Now a new one has been planted in its place.

Orders

1698 - Order of the Garter (England) - the order was awarded to Peter during the Great Embassy for diplomatic reasons, but Peter refused the award.
1703 - Order of St. Andrew the First-Called (Russia) - for the capture of two Swedish ships at the mouth of the Neva.
1712 - Order of the White Eagle (Rzeczpospolita) - in response to the awarding of the King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Augustus II with the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called.
1713 - Order of the Elephant (Denmark) - for success in the Northern War.

In honor of Peter I

Order of Peter the Great - award in 3 degrees, established public organization Academy of Problems of Defense Security and Law and Order, which was liquidated by the Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation, because it issued fictitious awards that were consistent with official awards of orders and medals.

Peter I in art

In literature

Tolstoy A. N., “Peter the First (novel)” - the most famous novel about the life of Peter I, published in 1945.
Yuri Pavlovich German - “Young Russia” - novel
A. S. Pushkin made a deep study of the life of Peter and made Peter the Great the hero of his poems “Poltava” and “The Bronze Horseman”, as well as the novel “Arap of Peter the Great”.
Merezhkovsky D.S., “Peter and Alexey” - novel.
Anatoly Brusnikin - “The Ninth Savior”
Yuri Tynyanov’s story “The Wax Person” describes the last days of the life of Peter I and vividly characterizes the era and the emperor’s inner circle.
A. Volkov’s story “Two Brothers” describes the life of various layers of society under Peter and Peter’s attitude towards them.

In music

“Peter the Great” (Pierre le Grand, 1790) - opera by Andre Grétry
"The Youth of Peter the Great" (Das Petermännchen, 1794) - opera by Joseph Weigl
“The Carpenter Tsar, or The Dignity of a Woman” (1814) - singspiel by K. A. Lichtenstein
“Peter the Great, Tsar of Russia, or the Livonian Carpenter” (Pietro il Grande zar di tutte le Russie or Il falegname di Livonia, 1819) - opera by Gaetano Donizetti
“The Burgomaster of Saardam” (Il borgomastro di Saardam, 1827) - opera by Gaetano Donizetti
“The Tsar and the Carpenter” (Zar und Zimmermann, 1837) - operetta by Albert Lortzing
“Northern Star” (L"étoile du nord, 1854) - opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer
“Tobacco Captain” (1942) - operetta by V. V. Shcherbachev
“Peter I” (1975) - opera by Andrei Petrov

In addition, in 1937-1938, Mikhail Bulgakov and Boris Asafiev worked on the libretto of the opera Peter the Great, which remained an unrealized project (the libretto was published in 1988).

In cinema

Peter I is a character in dozens of feature films.

Peter I on money

Criticism and assessment of Peter I

In a letter to the French ambassador to Russia, Louis XIV spoke of Peter in the following way: “This sovereign reveals his aspirations with concerns about preparing for military affairs and the discipline of his troops, about training and enlightening his people, about attracting foreign officers and all kinds of capable people. This course of action and the increase in power, which is the greatest in Europe, make him formidable to his neighbors and excite very thorough envy."

Moritz of Saxony called Peter the greatest man of his century

August Strindberg described Peter as “The barbarian who civilized his Russia; he, who built cities, but did not want to live in them; he, who punished his wife with a whip and gave the woman wide freedom - his life was great, rich and useful in public terms, and in private terms such as it turned out.”

Westerners positively assessed Peter's reforms, thanks to which Russia became a great power and joined European civilization.

The famous historian S. M. Solovyov spoke about Peter in enthusiastic terms, attributing to him all the successes of Russia both in internal affairs and in foreign policy, showing the organicity and historical preparedness of the reforms:

The historian believed that the emperor saw his main task in the internal transformation of Russia, and the Northern War with Sweden was only a means to this transformation. According to Solovyov:

In addition, Platonov pays a lot of attention to Peter’s personality, highlighting him positive traits: energy, seriousness, natural intelligence and talents, the desire to figure everything out for yourself.

N.I. Pavlenko believed that Peter's transformations were a major step towards progress (albeit within the framework of feudalism). Outstanding Soviet historians largely agree with him: E.V. Tarle, N.N. Molchanov, V.I. Buganov, considering the reforms from the point of view of Marxist theory. Voltaire wrote repeatedly about Peter. By the end of 1759 the first volume was published, and in April 1763 the second volume of “History of the Russian Empire under Peter the Great” was published. Voltaire defines the main value of Peter’s reforms as the progress that the Russians achieved in 50 years; other nations cannot achieve this even in 500. Peter I, his reforms, and their significance became the object of dispute between Voltaire and Rousseau.

N. M. Karamzin, recognizing this sovereign as the Great, severely criticizes Peter for his excessive passion for foreign things, his desire to make Russia Holland. The sharp change in the “old” way of life and national traditions undertaken by the emperor, according to the historian, is not always justified. As a result, Russian educated people "became citizens of the world, but ceased to be, in some cases, citizens of Russia."

V. O. Klyuchevsky thought that Peter was making history, but did not understand it. To protect the Fatherland from enemies, he devastated it more than any enemy... After him, the state became stronger, and the people poorer. “All his transformative activities were guided by the thought of the necessity and omnipotence of imperious coercion; he hoped only to forcefully impose on the people the benefits they lacked. “Woe threatened those who, even secretly, even in drunkenness, would think: “Is the king leading us to good, and is it not in vain "Will these torments lead to the most evil torments for many hundreds of years? But thinking, even feeling anything other than submission was forbidden."

B.V. Kobrin argued that Peter did not change the most important thing in the country: serfdom. Feudal industry. Temporary improvements in the present doomed Russia to a crisis in the future.

According to R. Pipes, Kamensky, N.V. Anisimov, Peter’s reforms were extremely contradictory. Feudal methods and repression led to an overstrain of popular forces.

N.V. Anisimov believed that, despite the introduction of a number of innovations in all spheres of life of society and the state, the reforms led to the conservation of the autocratic serfdom system in Russia.

Boris Chichibabin. Curse to Peter (1972)
Dmitry Merezhkovsky. Trilogy Christ and Antichrist. Peter and Alexey (novel).
Friedrich Gorenstein. Tsar Peter and Alexei(drama).
Alexey Tolstoy. Peter the First(novel).

Peter the Great was born on May 30 (June 9), 1672 in Moscow. In the biography of Peter 1, it is important to note that he was youngest son Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich from his second marriage to Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina. From the age of one he was raised by nannies. And after the death of his father, at the age of four, his half-brother and new Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich became Peter’s guardian.

From the age of 5, little Peter began to be taught the alphabet. The clerk N. M. Zotov gave him lessons. However, the future king received a weak education and was not literate.

Rise to power

In 1682, after the death of Fyodor Alekseevich, 10-year-old Peter and his brother Ivan were proclaimed kings. But in fact, their elder sister, Princess Sofya Alekseevna, took over the management.
At this time, Peter and his mother were forced to move away from the yard and move to the village of Preobrazhenskoye. Here Peter 1 developed an interest in military activities; he created “amusing” regiments, which later became the basis of the Russian army. He is interested in firearms and shipbuilding. He spends a lot of time in the German settlement, becomes a fan of European life, and makes friends.

In 1689, Sophia was removed from the throne, and power passed to Peter I, and the management of the country was entrusted to his mother and uncle L.K. Naryshkin.

Rule of the Tsar

Peter continued the war with Crimea and took the fortress of Azov. Further actions of Peter I were aimed at creating a powerful fleet. Peter I's foreign policy at that time was focused on finding allies in the war with the Ottoman Empire. For this purpose, Peter went to Europe.

At this time, the activities of Peter I consisted only of creating political unions. He studies shipbuilding, design, and culture of other countries. Returned to Russia after news of the Streltsy mutiny. As a result of the trip, he wanted to change Russia, for which several innovations were made. For example, chronology according to the Julian calendar was introduced.

To develop trade, access to the Baltic Sea was required. So the next stage of the reign of Peter I was the war with Sweden. Having made peace with Turkey, he captured the fortress of Noteburg and Nyenschanz. In May 1703, construction of St. Petersburg began. Next year, Narva and Dorpat were taken. In June 1709, Sweden was defeated in the Battle of Poltava. Soon after the death of Charles XII, peace was concluded between Russia and Sweden. New lands were annexed to Russia, and access to the Baltic Sea was gained.

Reforming Russia

In October 1721, the title of emperor was adopted in the biography of Peter the Great.

Also during his reign, Kamchatka was annexed and the shores of the Caspian Sea were conquered.

Peter I carried out military reform several times. It mainly concerned the collection of money for the maintenance of the army and navy. It was carried out, in short, by force.

Further reforms of Peter I accelerated the technical and economic development of Russia. He carried out church reform, financial reform, transformations in industry, culture, and trade. In education, he also carried out a number of reforms aimed at mass education: he opened many schools for children and the first gymnasium in Russia (1705).

Death and legacy

Before his death, Peter I was very ill, but continued to rule the state. Peter the Great died on January 28 (February 8), 1725 from inflammation Bladder. The throne passed to his wife, Empress Catherine I.

The strong personality of Peter I, who sought to change not only the state, but also the people, played vital role in the history of Russia.

Cities were named after the Great Emperor after his death.

Monuments to Peter I were erected not only in Russia, but also in many European countries Oh. One of the most famous is the Bronze Horseman in St. Petersburg.

The last Tsar of All Rus' and the first Emperor of Russia - Peter the First- a truly great figure. It is not for nothing that this king was called “The Great” by Peter. He sought not only to expand the borders of the Russian state, but also to make life in it similar to what he saw in Europe. He learned a lot himself and taught others.

Brief biography of Peter the Great

Peter the Great belonged to the Romanov family, he was born June 9, 1672. His father is the king Alexey Mikhailovich. His mother is the second wife of Alexei Mikhailovich, Natalia Naryshkina. Peter I was the first child from the tsar’s second marriage and the fourteenth.

IN 1976 Peter Alekseevich’s father died and his eldest son ascended the throne - Fedor Alekseevich. He was sickly and reigned for about 6 years.

Streletsky riot

After the death of Feodor III, the question arose: who should rule next? Peter's elder brother Ivan was a sickly child (he was also called weak-minded) and it was decided to place Peter on the throne.

However, the relatives of the first wife of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich did not like this - Miloslavsky. Having secured the support of 20 thousand archers who were dissatisfied at that time, the Miloslavskys staged a riot in 1682.

The consequence of this Streltsy revolt was the proclamation of Peter's sister, Sophia, as regent until Ivan and Peter grew up. Subsequently, Peter and Ivan were considered dual rulers of the Russian state until Ivan's death in 1686.

Queen Natalya was forced to go to the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow with Peter.

"Amusing" troops of Peter

In the villages Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky Peter was far from playing childish games - he formed from his peers "funny" troops and learned to fight. Foreign officers helped him master military literacy.

Subsequently, these two battalions were formed Semenovsky and Preobrazhensky regiments- the basis of Peter's guard.

Beginning of independent rule

In 1689 On the advice of his mother, Peter got married. The daughter of a Moscow boyar was chosen as his bride Evdokia Lopukhina. After his marriage, 17-year-old Peter was considered an adult and could lay claim to independent rule.

Suppression of the riot

Princess Sophia immediately realized the danger she was in danger of. Not wanting to lose power, she persuaded the archers oppose Peter. Young Peter managed to gather an army loyal to him, and together with him he moved to Moscow.

The uprising was brutally suppressed, the instigators were executed, they were hanged, whipped, and burned with a hot iron. Sophia was sent to Novodevichy Convent.

Capture of Azov

Since 1696, after the death of Tsar Ivan V, Peter became sole ruler of Russia. A year earlier, he turned his gaze to the map. Advisers, among them the beloved Swiss Lefort, suggested that Russia needs access to the sea, it needs to build a fleet, it needs to move south.

The Azov campaigns began. Peter himself took part in battles and gained combat experience. On the second attempt they captured Azov, in a convenient bay of the Azov Sea Peter founded the city Taganrog.

Trip to Europe

Peter went “incognito”, he was called volunteer Peter Mikhailov,
sometimes captain of the Preobrazhensky regiment.

In England Peter the Great studied maritime affairs, in Germany- artillery, in Holland worked as a simple carpenter. But he had to return to Moscow prematurely - information about a new mutiny of the Streltsy reached him. After the brutal massacre of the archers and executions, Peter began preparing for war with Sweden.

Peter's war with Sweden

On Russia's allies - Poland and Denmark- the young Swedish king began to attack CharlesXII, determined to conquer all of northern Europe. Peter I decided to enter the war against Sweden.

Battle of Narva

First battle of Narva in 1700 was unsuccessful for the Russian troops. Having a multiple advantage over the Swedish army, the Russians were unable to take the Narva fortress and had to retreat.

Decisive action

Having attacked Poland, Charles XII was stuck in the war for a long time. Taking advantage of the ensuing respite, Peter announced a recruitment drive. He issued a decree according to which money and bells from churches began to be collected for the war against Sweden melted down for cannons, strengthened old fortresses, erected new ones.

St. Petersburg – the new capital of Russia

Peter the First personally participated in a combat sortie with two regiments of soldiers against Swedish ships blocking the exit to the Baltic Sea. The attack was a success, the ships were captured, and access to the sea became free.

On the banks of the Neva, Peter ordered the construction of a fortress in honor of Saints Peter and Paul, which was later named Petropavlovskaya. It was around this fortress that the city was formed Saint Petersburg- the new capital of Russia.

Battle of Poltava

The news of Peter's successful foray on the Neva forced the Swedish king to move his troops to Russia. He chose the south, where he waited for help from Turk and where is Ukrainian Hetman Mazepa promised to give him Cossacks.

The Battle of Poltava, where the Swedes and Russians gathered their troops, didn't last long.

Charles XII left the Cossacks brought by Mazepa in the convoy; they were not sufficiently trained and equipped. The Turks never came. Numerical superiority in troops was on the side of the Russians. And no matter how hard the Swedes tried to break through the ranks of the Russian troops, no matter how they reorganized their regiments, they failed to turn the tide of the battle in their favor.

A cannonball hit Karl's stretcher, he lost consciousness, and panic began among the Swedes. After the victorious battle, Peter arranged a feast at which treated captured Swedish generals and thanked them for their science.

Internal reforms of Peter the Great

Peter the Great, in addition to wars with other states, was actively involved in reforms within the country. He demanded that the courtiers take off their caftans and put on European dress, that they shave their beards, and go to the balls arranged for them.

Important reforms of Peter

Instead of the Boyar Duma, he established Senate, who was involved in solving important government issues, introduced a special Table of ranks, which determined the classes of military and civilian officials.

Started operating in St. Petersburg Marine Academy, opened in Moscow math school. Under him, it began to be published in the country first Russian newspaper. For Peter there were no titles or awards. If he saw capable person, although of low origin, sent him to study abroad.

Opponents of reforms

To many Peter's innovations didn't like it- starting from the highest ranks, ending with serfs. The Church called him a heretic, schismatics called him the Antichrist, and sent all kinds of blasphemy against him.

The peasants found themselves completely dependent on the landowners and the state. Increased tax burden 1.5-2 times, for many it turned out to be unbearable. Major uprisings occurred in Astrakhan, on the Don, in Ukraine, and the Volga region.

The breaking of the old way of life caused a negative reaction among the nobles. Peter's son, his heir Alexei, became an opponent of reforms and went against his father. He was accused of conspiracy and in 1718 sentenced to death.

Last year of reign

In the last years of Peter's reign was very sick, he had kidney problems. In the summer of 1724, his illness intensified; in September he felt better, but after a while the attacks intensified.

On January 28, 1725, he had such a bad time that he ordered a camp church to be erected in the room next to his bedroom, and on February 2 he confessed. Strength began to leave the patient, he no longer screamed, as before, from severe pain, but only moaned.

On February 7, all those sentenced to death or hard labor (excluding murderers and those convicted of repeated robbery) were amnestied. That same day, at the end of the second hour, Peter demanded paper and began to write, but the pen fell out of his hands, and only two words could be made out from what was written: "Give it all...".

At the beginning of six o'clock in the morning February 8, 1725 Peter the Great “The Great” died in terrible agony in his Winter Palace near the Winter Canal along official version from pneumonia. He was buried in Cathedral of the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.

PETER I ALEXEEVICH (THE GREAT)(05/30/1672-01/28/1725) - Tsar from 1682, first Russian Emperor from 1721.
Peter I was the youngest son of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich from his second marriage to N.K. Naryshkina.
At the end of April 1682, after the death of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich, ten-year-old Peter was declared tsar. After the Streltsy uprising in May 1682, during which several relatives of the young tsar died, two tsars ascended the throne at the same time - Peter and his older brother Ivan, the son of Alexei Mikhailovich from his first marriage to M. Miloslavskaya. But by the state in 1682-1689. in fact, it was their elder sister, Princess Sofya Alekseevna, who ruled. The Miloslavskys ruled the Kremlin and took young Peter and his mother from there to the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow. The young king devoted all his time to “military fun.” In Preobrazhenskoye and in the neighboring village of Semenovskoye, he created two “amusing” regiments. Later, the Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments became the first guards units in Russia.
Peter became friends with many foreigners who lived in the German settlement, not far from Preobrazhenskoye. Communicating with the Germans, British, French, Swedes, and Danes, Peter became more and more convinced that Russia was significantly behind Western Europe. He saw that in his homeland science, education, no strong army, there is no fleet. Huge in its territory Russian state had almost no impact on the life of Europe.
In January 1689, Peter’s wedding took place with Evdokia Lopukhina; in 1690, a son, Alexei Petrovich, was born into this marriage. In the summer of 1689, the archers began to prepare a new uprising against Peter I. The young tsar fled in fear to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, but it turned out that most of the troops went over to his side. The instigators of the uprising were executed, and Princess Sophia was removed from power. Peter and Ivan became independent rulers. The sickly Ivan took almost no part in state activities, and in 1696, after his death, Peter I became the sovereign tsar.
Peter received his first baptism of fire in the war with Turkey in 1695-1696. during the Azov campaigns. Then Azov, Turkey’s stronghold on the Black Sea, was taken. In a more convenient and deeper bay, Peter founded the new harbor of Taganrog.
In 1697-1698. With the Great Embassy, under the name of Peter Mikhailov, the Tsar visited Europe for the first time. He studied shipbuilding in Holland, met with the sovereigns of various European powers, and hired many specialists to serve in Russia.
In the summer of 1698, when Peter was in England, a new Streltsy uprising broke out. Peter urgently returned from abroad and brutally dealt with the archers. He and his associates personally cut off the heads of the archers.
Over time, Peter turned from a hot-tempered youth into a grown man. His height exceeded two meters. Constant physical labor further developed his natural strength, and he became a real strongman. Peter was an educated man. He had deep knowledge of history, geography, shipbuilding, fortification, and artillery. He loved to make things with his own hands. No wonder they called him “the carpenter king.” Already in his youth he knew up to fourteen crafts, and over the years he acquired a lot of technical knowledge.
Peter loved fun, jokes, feasts and feasts, which sometimes lasted for several days. In moments of thought, he preferred a quiet office and a pipe to tobacco. Even in mature age Peter remained very active, impetuous and restless. His companions could barely keep up with him, skipping. But the turbulent events of his life, the shocks of his childhood and youth, affected Peter’s health. At the age of twenty, his head began to shake, and during excitement, convulsions passed through his face. He often had nervous attacks and bouts of unjustified anger. In a good mood, Peter gave his favorites the richest gifts. But his mood could change dramatically in a few seconds. And then he became uncontrollable, he could not only scream, but also use his fists or a baton. Since the 1690s Peter began to carry out reforms in all areas of Russian life. He used the experience of Western European countries in the development of industry, trade, and culture. Peter emphasized that his main concern was “the benefit of the Fatherland.” His words spoken to the soldiers on the eve of the Poltava battle became famous: " The hour has come that will decide the fate of the Fatherland. And so you should not think that you are fighting for Peter, but for the state entrusted to Peter, for your family, for the Fatherland, for Orthodox faith and the church... And about Peter, know that life is not dear to him, if only Russia lived in bliss and glory, for your well-being".
Peter sought to create a new, powerful Russian Empire, which would become one of the strongest, richest and most enlightened states in Europe. In the 1st quarter XVIII century Peter changed the system of government: instead of the Boyar Duma, the Senate was created, in 1708-1715. provincial reform was carried out in 1718-1721. orders were replaced by collegiums. A regular army and navy were created, conscription and compulsory military service were introduced for nobles. By the end of Peter's reign, about a hundred plants and factories were operating, and Russia began to export industrial goods: iron, copper and linen. Peter cared about the development of culture and education: many educational institutions were opened, the civil alphabet was adopted, the Academy of Sciences was founded (1725), theaters appeared, new printing houses were equipped, in which more and more new books were printed. In 1703, the first Russian newspaper Vedomosti was published. Foreign specialists were invited from Europe: engineers, craftsmen, doctors, officers. Peter sent Russian youths abroad to study sciences and crafts. In 1722, the Table of Ranks was adopted - a legislative act that brought all government ranks into the system. The service has become the only way obtaining a government rank.
Since 1700, a new calendar was introduced in Russia from the Nativity of Christ and the celebration of the New Year on January 1, adopted in Western Europe. On May 16, 1703, on one of the islands at the mouth of the Neva River, Peter I founded the fortress of St. Petersburg. In 1712, St. Petersburg officially became the new capital of Russia.
Stone houses were built there, and the streets began to be paved with stones for the first time in Russia.
Peter began to pursue a policy of limiting church power, church properties were transferred to the state. Since 1701, property issues were removed from the jurisdiction of the church. In 1721, the power of the patriarch was replaced by the power of the Synod, a collegial body that headed the church administration. The Synod reported directly to the sovereign.
After the conclusion of peace with Turkey in 1700, in the field of foreign policy, Peter I considered the main task to be the fight with Sweden for access to the Baltic Sea. In the summer of 1700, Russia entered into the war, which became known as the Northern War. During the Northern War (1700-1721), Peter showed himself to be a talented commander and a wonderful strategist. He beat the Swedish army several times - the best in Europe at that time.
The king repeatedly demonstrated personal courage. On May 7, 1703, near the Nyenschanz fortress, Russian soldiers under his command in thirty boats captured two Swedish ships. For this feat, Peter was awarded the highest order in the Russian state - the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. On June 27, 1709, during the Battle of Poltava, the tsar personally led one of the battalions of the Novgorod regiment and did not allow the Swedish troops to break through. The Northern War ended with the signing of the Peace of Nystadt between Sweden and Russia. Russia retained all the Baltic lands it had conquered (Estonia, Livonia, Courland, Ingermanland) and the opportunity to have a fleet in the Baltic Sea. Victory in the Northern War turned Russia into a powerful power with borders from the Baltic to the Sea of Okhotsk. Now all European states had to reckon with it.
In 1710-1713 Russia took part in the war with Turkey. In 1711, Peter I led the Prut campaign, which ended in failure. Russia ceded the city of Azov to Turkey, and also promised to demolish the fortresses of Taganrog, Bogoroditsk and Kamenny Zaton. As a result of the Persian campaign of 1722-1723. Russia acquired land on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea.
On October 22, 1721, the Senate presented Peter I with the title of Emperor of All Russia, the title “Great” and “Father of the Fatherland.” Since then, all Russian sovereigns began to be called emperors, and Russia turned into the Russian Empire.
Petrine reforms had not only positive consequences. In the 1st quarter XVIII century A powerful bureaucratic system of state governance developed, subordinate only to the will of the king. For many years, the Russian state apparatus was dominated by foreigners, whom the tsar often trusted more than Russian subjects.
Peter's reforms and many years of war depleted the country's economy and placed a heavy burden on the working population of Russia. Peasants were forced to work more and more in corvee labor, and factory workers were permanently assigned to factories. Thousands of ordinary peasants and working people died from hunger, disease, under the whip of overseers at shipyards, during the construction of new fortresses and cities.
In 1718-1724. A tax reform was carried out, which increased the tax burden by 1.5-2 times. In addition, this reform led to even greater enslavement of the peasants. During the reign of Peter there were several major popular uprisings: in Astrakhan (1705-1706), on the Don, Slobodskaya Ukraine, the Volga region (1707-1708), in Bashkiria (1705-1711). The church policy of Peter I was also ambiguous. The complete subordination of the church to the state and the weakening of the role of the Orthodox clergy led to the destruction of traditional spiritual values. Peter's actions caused a negative reaction in the upper strata of Russian society. Peter sharply broke the usual way of life of the Russian people, especially the nobles. They had difficulty getting used to assemblies and refused to shave their beards or go to theaters. The tsar's son and heir, Alexei Petrovich, did not accept Peter's reforms. Accused of plotting against the tsar, in 1718 he was deprived of the throne and sentenced to death.
The tsar's first wife, Evdokia Lopukhina, was sent to a monastery. In 1703, the tsar’s wife became a simple peasant woman, Marta Skavronskaya, who took the name of Catherine in Orthodox baptism. But the official wedding took place only in 1712. Several children were born in this marriage, but the sons died in infancy, leaving two daughters alive - Anna (mother of the future Emperor Peter III) and Elizabeth, the future Empress Elizaveta Petrovna. In 1724, in the Assumption Cathedral, Peter I placed the imperial crown on the head of his wife.
In 1722, Peter I, who by that time had no male heirs, adopted a decree on succession to the throne: the heir was appointed at the will of the “ruling sovereign,” and the sovereign, having appointed an heir, could change his decision if he discovered that the heir did not justify hope. This decree laid the foundations for the palace coups of the 18th century. and became the reason for drawing up forged wills of sovereigns. In 1797, Paul I canceled the decree.
In the last months of his life, Peter was very ill and spent most of his time in bed. Before his death, the emperor did not have time to draw up a will and transfer power to his successor. On January 28, 1725, Peter I died as a result of illness. He was buried in Peter's Cathedral.

The personality of Peter the Great stands apart in the history of Russia, since neither among his contemporaries, nor among his successors and descendants was there a person who could make such profound changes in the state, so infiltrate the historical memory of the Russian people, becoming at the same time semi-legendary, but the most vivid her page. As a result of Peter's activities, Russia became an empire and took its place among the leading European powers.

Pyotr Alekseevich was born on June 9, 1672. His father was the Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov, and his mother Natalya Naryshkina was the Tsar’s second wife. At the age of 4, Peter lost his father, who died at 47. Nikita Zotov, who by the standards of Russia at that time was very educated, was involved in raising the prince. Peter was the youngest in the large family of Alexei Mikhailovich (13 children). In 1682, after the death of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich, the struggle between two boyar clans - the Miloslavskys (relatives of Alexei Mikhailovich's first wife) and the Naryshkins - intensified at court. The first believed that the sick Tsarevich Ivan should take the throne. The Naryshkins, like the patriarch, supported the candidacy of the healthy and fairly active 10-year-old Peter. As a result of the Streltsy unrest, the zero option was chosen: both princes became kings, and their elder sister, Sophia, was appointed regent under them.

At first, Peter had little interest in state affairs: he often visited the German Settlement, where he met his future comrades-in-arms Lefort and General Gordon. Most Peter spent time in the villages of Semenovskoye and Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow, where he created amusing shelves for entertainment, which later became the first guards regiments- Semenovsky and Preobrazhensky.

In 1689, a break occurs between Peter and Sophia. Peter demands that his sister be removed to the Novodevichy Convent, because by this time Peter and Ivan had already reached adulthood and had to rule independently. From 1689 to 1696, Peter I and Ivan V were co-rulers until the latter died.

Peter understood that Russia’s position did not allow it to fully implement its foreign policy plans, as well as to develop stably internally. It was necessary to gain access to the ice-free Black Sea in order to provide additional incentive to domestic trade and industry. That is why Peter continues the work begun by Sophia and intensifies the fight against Turkey within the framework of the Holy League, but instead of the traditional campaign in the Crimea, the young king throws all his energy to the south, near Azov, which could not be taken in 1695, but after construction in the winter of 1695 -1696 flotilla in Voronezh Azov was captured. Russia's further participation in the Holy League, however, began to lose its meaning - Europe was preparing for the War of the Spanish Succession, so the fight against Turkey ceased to be a priority for the Austrian Habsburgs, and without the support of its allies, Russia could not resist the Ottomans.

In 1697-1698, Peter traveled incognito throughout Europe as part of the Great Embassy under the name of the bombardier Peter Mikhailov. Then he makes personal acquaintances with the monarchs of leading European countries. Abroad, Peter acquired extensive knowledge in navigation, artillery, and shipbuilding. After a meeting with Augustus II, the Saxon elector and the Polish king, Peter decides to move the center of foreign policy activity from the south to the north and reach the shores of the Baltic Sea, which were to be conquered from Sweden, the most powerful state in the then Baltic.

In an effort to make the state more effective, Peter I carried out reforms of public administration (the Senate, collegiums, bodies of higher state control and political investigation were created, the church was subordinate to the state, the Spiritual Regulations were introduced, the country was divided into provinces, a new capital was built - St. Petersburg).

Understanding Russia's backwardness in industrial development from the leading European powers, Peter used their experience in a variety of areas - in manufacturing, trade, and culture. The sovereign paid great attention and even forcibly forced nobles and merchants to develop the knowledge and enterprises necessary for the country. This includes: the creation of manufactories, metallurgical, mining and other factories, shipyards, marinas, canals. Peter perfectly understood how important the country’s military successes were, so he personally led the army in the Azov campaigns of 1695-1696, took part in the development of strategic and tactical operations during the Northern War of 1700-1721, the Prut campaign of 1711, and the Persian campaign of 1722-23.

7 Comments

Valuev Anton Vadimovich

February 8 marks the Day of Russian Science, the founder of which was Peter I the Great, an outstanding statesman and public figure, the Tsar - reformer, creator Russian Empire. It was through his labors that the Academy of Sciences was established in St. Petersburg, in which outstanding representatives of domestic and foreign science worked for the benefit of Russia from generation to generation. Let me congratulate my colleagues on their professional holiday and wish them interesting work, constantly improving their knowledge and experience, while always remaining true to their convictions, striving to enhance the centuries-old traditions of Russian science.

Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences

By decree of Peter the Great, the Senate was established in St. Petersburg, supreme body state executive power. The Senate existed from 1711 to 1917. One of the most important and influential institutions in the secular system state power Russian Empire.

Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences

The Grand Embassy of the young sovereign Peter Alekseevich is considered a turning point in the history of European modernization of the socio-political system of Russia. During the Embassy, the future emperor saw Western Europe with his own eyes and appreciated its great potential. After returning home, the renewal process accelerated many times over. Diplomatic and trade and economic relations, industrial production, science, culture and military affairs developed rapidly. In a sense, this was the real “window to Europe” that Tsar Peter opened for Russia.

Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences

Talent statesman visible in its relation to the development of the human factor, personality, and social potential of the country. And here Peter I did a lot to strengthen and public relations, and internal stability, and, ultimately, the position of the Russian Empire on the world stage. The personnel policy of the Peter the Great era was based on two principles: the talent of each person - regardless of his social origin - and his desire to be useful to the Fatherland. In 1714, Peter's Decree prohibited the promotion of nobles to officer rank unless they had previously served as ordinary soldiers. Six years later, in a new decree, Peter secured the right of every senior officer to receive a patent of nobility and transfer the title of nobility by inheritance. In practice, this meant that thanks to their talents and demonstrated real conditions Through courage and heroism, a person honestly earned the right to move to another, higher class. This was an important step in updating the class hierarchy of the Russian Empire.

Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences

May 18 is a doubly important date in military history our Fatherland. In 1703, at the mouth of the Neva, thirty Russian boats under the command of Peter I captured two Swedish military frigates, Astrild and Gedan, in a daring raid. This event is considered the beginning of the heroic history of the Baltic Fleet. A year later, to strengthen military positions in the Baltic, by order of Peter I, Kronshlot, the fort of Kronstadt, was founded. Three centuries have passed since then, and the Baltic Fleet and Kronstadt have always protected and are protecting the interests of Russia. Solemn events on this day take place in St. Petersburg and Kronstadt, cities of Russian naval glory. Viva to the founder of the Russian Empire, the Baltic Fleet, Kronstadt!!!

Smart Ivan Mikhailovich

Nice, informative article. Although it is worth noting that in the course of pro-Western official history, which has been “improved” in distorting the Truth since the time of the first Westernized Romanovs, Peter Romanov looks like a benefactor of the Fatherland, the “father of the peoples” of Russia-Eurasia.
But the Russian people still have information that “the Germans replaced the Tsar” - either in childhood, or already in youth (A.A. Gordeev). And most likely, the truth is that Peter the Great was recruited by the Catholic Jesuits, who were tirelessly carrying out their work to implement the “Drang nach Osten” - “Onslaught on the East” (B.P. Kutuzov).
For “... it must be said that under Peter I, the colonialists no longer hesitated to “spend the human resources” of the country they had captured to their heart’s content - “in the era of Peter the Great” population decline
Muscovite Rus' constituted, according to estimates by various historians and researchers, approximately 20 to 40% of the total population.
However, the population of Muscovite Rus' was also declining due to the flight of the people from the despotism of the colonialists. And the people fled from them mainly to Tataria (see below).
In fact, it must be said that Peter Romanov began the “Europeanization” of Rus'-Muscovy with his family. First of all, he imprisoned his wife from an original Russian family, Evdokia Lopukhina, in a monastery - in prison, that is. She dared to object to the bullying of her husband and his Western European entourage against the Fatherland - thus, apparently, she greatly interfered with the “introduction of Western culture and progress.”)
But the girl Mons from a German settlement helped Peter in every possible way in that infiltration. Peter exchanged his Russian wife for her - a beauty and smart girl. And his son Alexei, since he also stubbornly refused to “Europeanize” with age, was put to death. But before that, Peter, using all the skills he had learned from the Jesuit teachers, “led a search” for Alexei for a long time and persistently. That is, under torture he interrogated his son - why he opposes this “Europeanization”, and who are his accomplices in this “dark” and villainous, in the opinion of the “tsar-enlightenment”, business (7) .... "

(From the book “THE HERITAGE OF THE TATAR” (Moscow, Algorithm, 2012). Author G.R. Enikeev).

Also about all this and much more hidden from us from true history Fatherland read in the book “ Great Horde: friends, enemies and heirs. (Moscow-Tatar coalition: XIV–XVII centuries).”– (Moscow, Algorithm, 2011). The author is the same.

Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences

Russia owes many transformations to Peter the Great. Thus, it was according to his decree of December 15, 1699 that the Julian chronology and the Julian calendar were approved in Russia. Since then, the New Year in our country began to be celebrated not from September 1, but from January 1. Under Peter the Great, many of the most important cultural attributes of this folk celebration were laid down - decorated fir trees, fireworks, New Year's carnivals and many other winter entertainments. On the eve of the New Year holidays, according to tradition, it is customary to take stock of the past year and hopefully make plans for the future. I would like to wish all colleagues and project participants a pleasant New Year’s Eve, more joy, family warmth, comfort, and happiness. May the New Year 2016 bring us new creative plans, successful and interesting ideas, may they definitely come true!

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Who was the co-ruler of Peter 1. Tsar Peter the first was not Russian

The early years of Peter. 1672-1689

Streletsky riot of 1682 and the rise to power of Sofia Alekseevna

Preobrazhenskoe and amusing shelves

Peter's first marriage

Accession of Peter I

The beginning of Russian expansion. 1690-1699

Azov campaigns. 1695-1696

Grand Embassy. 1697-1698

Return. Crucial years for Russia 1698-1700

Creation of the Russian Empire. 1700-1724

Northern War with Sweden (1700-1721)

Russo-Turkish War 1710-1713

Russia's movement to the east

Caspian campaign 1722-1723

Russian Empire under Peter I

Transformations of Peter I

Personality of Peter I

Peter's appearance

Family of Peter I

Succession to the throne

Offspring of Peter I

Death of Peter

Performance evaluation and criticism

Memory

Monuments

Orders

In honor of Peter I

Peter I in art

In literature

In music

In cinema

Peter I on money

Criticism and assessment of Peter I

Rise to power

Rule of the Tsar

Reforming Russia

Death and legacy

Brief biography of Peter the Great

Streletsky riot

"Amusing" troops of Peter

Beginning of independent rule

Suppression of the riot

Capture of Azov

Trip to Europe

Peter's war with Sweden

Battle of Narva

Decisive action

St. Petersburg – the new capital of Russia

Battle of Poltava

Internal reforms of Peter the Great

Important reforms of Peter

Opponents of reforms

Last year of reign

What else to read

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