The Romanovs. The Real History of the Russian Dynasty. Episodes 1-4. Sta...

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In 1613 The Zemsky Sobor (the National Assembly) adopted a decision to invite Michael Fyodorovich Romanov to become tsar of Russia. This decision was announced in Red Square in front of numerous crowds of people: “Michael Fyodorovich shall be tsar and lord of Muscovy and all the Russian state.” In order to prevent disturbances, Michael Romanov had to take a terrible sin upon his soul – to execute a 3 year-old boy… 

The most vivid pages of Russian history and the establishment and consolidation of Russian state power are associated with the eighteen Russian Tsars of the House of Romanov which include such historic names as Peter the Great, Catherine the Great, Nicholas I and Alexanders I, II and III. The dynasty ended with the brutal assassination of the last Tsar, Nicholas II and his family by the Bolsheviks in Ekaterinburg in 1917.

The Romanov dynasty played a hugely important role in world history, and the series highlights the life stories and characters of the tsars, recounting their rise to power and their contribution to the dynasty, their merits and their faults, their achievements and mistakes, their victories and defeats in war.

The series also examines the Russian form of 'Caesarism' as a system of state administration - its advantages and drawbacks and how the Russian state changed under the Romanov's rule.

THE ROMANOVS is told in eight epic one-hour episodes using a unique combination of magnificent CGI animation and dramatic reconstruction with careful and accurate attention paid to each period.

Type: TV series

Genre: docudrama

Year of production: 2013

Duration: 8x52 minutes

Directed by: Maksim Bespalyi

Written by: Marina Bandilenko, Marina Ulybysheva

Director of photography: Ivan Barkhvart

Producers: Valeriy Babich, Vlad Ryashin, Sergey Titinkov, Konstantin Ernst

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[Music]

[Music]

quite honest trade customer that never seen so many nobles they were n boys

from the National Assembly in Moscow come to beg the great nun Martha to

allow her son to take his rightful place as the next Czar of Russia

[Music] Michael Romano is the only one who

hadn't stained his cocaine during the Time of Troubles he was their only hope

if he refused Aniki would return Russia they said

could not endure such grief again [Music]

[Music]

in 1598 is our Fyodor son of Ivan the Terrible died childless he was the last

of the Rurik dynasty rulers of Russia for more than 700 years his younger brother Dmitri had died

seven years earlier in suspicious circumstances the National Assembly

elected Boris Godunov as the next saw wood arrival soon emerged an imposter

claiming to be the last czars dead younger brother this so-called false dmitri seized the throne and married the

polish noblewoman Larina mashek within a year the false Dmitri was slain in a

palace coup and marina fled Moscow in exile she recognized a second false

dmitri as her husband and bore him a son even [Music]

Russia was leaderless and Sweden and Poland took advantage of her weakness attacking on two fronts Russia lost

Corellia Novgorod and Smolensk amid the anarchy and devastation only 10% of

Russian lands were still being farmed famine and fear stormed the land without

a strong legitimate ruler it seemed the Russian state would soon cease to exist

[Music] towards the end of the brutal winter of

1613 delegates of the country's National Assembly traveled to Moscow where they

would decide the fate of the motherland

[Music] the Zemke sabor or National Assembly was

Russia's Parliament of the 16th and 17th centuries brought together to advise on the most important political issues in

1613 the Assembly had about 1,000 delegates drawn from the nobility clergy

merchants and free townsman the decisive

vote was held on March 3rd after lengthy debate the sixteen-year-old Michael

Romanov was elected Tsar Michael's father was Fyodor Nikita - Romanov

cousin of Tsar Feodor the son of Ivan the Terrible this gave him a strong

claim to the throne when Boris Goodenough took the throne he saw

Michael's father as a potential threat and forced him to become a monk under the name of Phil aret Michael's mother

zenya became a nun taking the name Martha Villa retros to the rank of

Bishop was imprisoned by the poles while on a diplomatic mission his polish

captors didn't bother to inform him that his son had been made Tsar of Russia

[Music]

the people of Moscow meanwhile were informed at the National Assembly's decision through public announcements in

Red Square michael feodorovich Romanov it was declared was the new sovereign of

the Grand Duchy of Muscovy and Czar of all the Russia's

[Music] Michael had grown up amid the 15 year

anarchy known as the Time of Troubles when he was just four he was taken from his parents and sent to the country

later his mother came to take Michael back and together they went to live a quiet life in the apat EF monastery 200

miles northeast of Moscow [Music]

hoarse and exhausted ambassadors bearing the holy icon of Our Lady of sin Fyodor

spent hours persuading the Romanoff's to accept power

finally he consented [Music]

after many years of lawlessness and violence a new Tsar ascended to the

Russian throne michael feodorovich Romanov founder of the Romanov dynasty

by God's will Tsar and ruler of all Russia

[Music]

the coronation of czar Michael the first was held on July 22nd 1613

[Music]

chapter one Michael the first feodorovich there was no going back for

Michael Romanov he ascended the steps of the Cathedral of the Assumption the son of a noble and descended them as czar

the state he was to rule was on the verge of collapse

so the Youngs are followed his intuition and ruled not as an autocrat but in

consultation with his advisors on his initiative the National Assembly which

had formally met once every few years began to meet more regularly to offer him advice

despite the expectations of many Michael didn't become a puppet of the noble factions at court

he remained his own man biding his time when one Dutch visitor suggested that

Michael should take firm measures against his enemies he answered don't you know that our Russian bears never

hunt in the first year of life they only hunt when they are older Michael faced

three rival claimants to the throne to the north a Swedish King Carl Philip to

the west the Polish Prince Vlad Aswath and in the south a three year old even

son of marina Manisha and the second false dmitri the boys claim was upheld

by three thousand cossacks led by the adventurer even Zaretsky but their

followers soon deserted their cause and he and the boy were handed over to the tsar soldiers and brought to Moscow to

meet their fate the executions took

place in front of a huge crowd by the city's Surikov gate the Dutch traveller

Elias hitman remembered it for the rest of his life

zorroski was impaled on a stake then Dimitri's son was brought out the

snowstorm was blowing wet snow slapping the boy on the face he kept asking where

are you taking me those carrying the child kept him calm and brought him like a lamb to the

slaughter to the gallows poor boy was hanged as a thief the Tsar's enemies

could have used the boy to foment Civil War costing Russia back into the Time of Troubles Michael would take any measure

no matter how brutal to prevent that

anarchy had been avoided but war seemed inescapable Swedish troops were

besieging the scoff three hundred and sixty miles west of Moscow Michael ordered his diplomats to negotiate peace

at any price in 1617 the Treaty of stub off was signed and the city of Novgorod

and surrounding lands were returned to Russia the next threat was a Polish army

advancing on Moscow led by Prince Vlad Aswath in person the poles reached the

walls of the Kremlin itself the Citadel at the heart of the city

[Music] Russian spies learned that the poles were digging a mine under the power back

gate but the Tsar ignored the pleas of his advisers and refused to abandon the

city

weighing on his mind was not just the fate of the city but a personal dilemma polls still held his father prisoner

ichael knew if he left Moscow he would lose the throne if he lost the throne he

would never see his father again on

December 1st 1618 Poland and Russia signed the troops of Delina region from

the asthma teacher knock-off was returned but many issues remained unresolved Smolensk remained under

Polish control and Prince Vlad Aswath refused to renounce his claim to the

Russian throne [Music] but Russia was exhausted by war it

desperately needed peace a breathing space and time to rebuild however the

treaty was a personal triumph for Michael under its terms all prisoners taken during the Time of Troubles were

to be returned amongst them his father it was nine years since their

separation Michael had always looked up to his father and tried to emulate him now he

was finally to be reunited with this legendary figure the Metropolitan Bishop

Villa ret [Music]

the father could see that his son had become a real Tsar of Russia God's

chosen ruler ten days later the Tsar made his father patriarch of Moscow the

head of the Russian Orthodox Church from henceforth they would rule together as

father and son the influence of the

Tsar's mother the once all-powerful great nun Martha began to wane she no

longer had any say in affairs of state and had less and less access to her son

the Tsar was now in his twenties four grown man

accordingly it was announced that by God's will the great rulers are Michael had reached the age of adulthood and the

time had come for him to take a wife [Music] the Czar's mother had found a bride for

her son but Michael made his own decision years ago during his exile he

had fallen in love with masha clop of her the daughter of one of his Guardians and promised to marry only her

the Tsar's decision was announced that his bride-to-be was found rooms within

the palace the seljuq Hoff brothers relatives of the Tsar's mother were put

in charge of her safety but just before the wedding Masha suddenly fell dangerously ill the palace

was alive with rumor and suspicions the soldier coughs summoned the best foreign

doctors who announced that a terrible disease was devouring the royal bride from within and no cure was possible

[Music] people were soon whispering that the Tsar's mother was behind it because she

was opposed to the marriage [Music]

in any event masher eventually recovered only to be exiled to Siberia for

apparently concealing an illness from the Tsar's advices an investigation later concluded she'd been poisoned by

the salty coughs who were dismissed from court but the whole affair put Michael off any thought of marriage for many

years when czar Michael turned 28 his

relatives began to worry without an heir the future of the dynasty was in doubt once more his mother had a candidate

this time reluctantly Michael agreed to the match and was married to princess

maria dal kuru cava [Music] but four months later Maria fell sick

and died the cause never fully established after this latest disaster

Michael dismissed his mother from any involvement in his marital affairs and instead arranged for the traditional

election of a Russian royal bride the advice he received was to watch the

girls carefully from afar appraising their aged complexion eyes and hair look

for signs of injury or illness and ensure she's healthy in mind and kind by

nature the tradition of electing a Tsar's bride was essentially a beauty

contest involving thousands of candidates from noble families first

royal officials sorted applicants on the basis of their height the size of head and size of feet then senior nobles and

court doctors inspected the girls in the capital finally 10 to 20 of the most

beautiful girls were brought to the court where they were introduced to the Tsar in person when Michael announced

his decision his advisors were speechless he chose F dakea stretch neva

as his queen she hadn't even been in the contest she was the maid of one of the candidates and the daughter of a poor

nobleman from bitter experience Azhar decided to

handle all the arrangements himself the identity of his bride was kept a closely guarded secret and she was brought to

the palace just three days before the wedding [Music]

sir it'sa EV dakea the Russian Cinderella proved to be kind considerate

and loving she bore Michael ten children who only four survived infancy three

daughters and the son Alexei it was enough to ensure the dynasty would live

on [Music]

Michael and the land were at peace for a short while

[Music] Michael was determined to reclaim

Russian lands lost during the Time of Troubles it would mean war with Poland

first he reorganized the army introducing new weapons and equipment based on developments in Europe in

particular Michael learned from the Swedish army the strongest in Europe new regiments were formed with eight

companies of 200 men each had 120 musketeers and 80 pikemen new muskets

were bought which weighed four kilograms instead of six so they could be fired without her support

by 1632 10 new regiments had been formed with a strength of 17,000

[Music] it was one thing to create a new army it

was another to teach it how to win on the battlefield Russian forces were defeated outside Smolensk and after two

years of war both sides sought a settlement the 1634 Treaty of Hualien of

kur brought no territorial gains for Russia apart from the town of sip yes ceded by the Polish Lithuanian

Commonwealth Russia also paid an indemnity of 20,000 rubles in exchange

for which King wladis worth of Poland renounced his claim to the Russian throne Russia itself was gradually

becoming a more prosperous society thanks to Michael's efforts English and Dutch specialists came to Russia to

share their expertise they lived in the foreign districts of the big cities such

as Moscow's famous German quarter and invested capital in local enterprises

Russians refer to the Germans or often any foreigner as Nimitz from the Russian word nimoy meaning mute

because they couldn't speak Russian in the tenth year of his reign Czar

Michael invited English geologists to investigate iron and copper ore deposits in the Ural Mountains eight years later

the first state steelmaking plant was opened in the region

[Music] twelve years after that a Dutch entrepreneur built an armory at Tula 100

miles south of Moscow could still in operation today Russia soon began to

export arms to some of the most developed countries in Europe

[Music]

[Music]

the average wage at this time was 3 kopeks a day for which one could buy three chickens or 45 eggs or one and a

half kilos of salmon a sheepskin coat cost 50 kopecks for about 2 weeks wages

a pair of boots was 10 days wages while a cow cost 2 rubles for about 2 months

wages abroad Russian state was gaining

greater influence in 1625 Shah Abbas the ruler of Persia sought to win favor by

sending the patriarch of Russia a holy robe this sacred relic was believed to

be the one worn by Christ before his crucifixion later taken by one of the Roman soldiers present patriarch filler

at the Tsar's father ordained a week's fasting to mark its arrival before presenting the holy robe to the sick 67

people were said to have been miraculously cured in the first six months alone

[Music] robe itself was later placed in a

Cathedral within the Kremlin today a part of the robe can be seen in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in

Moscow after the barbarism of the Time

of Troubles the Romanov sought to nurture a cultural revival within Russia one of patriarch filler its first

degrees was to restore the czars once vast library now largely destroyed

scholars were sent to search for books in distant monasteries and to make copies of rare manuscripts and returned

with them to Moscow [Music]

just thirty years after the Time of Troubles Russia was back to the level of

prosperity she'd enjoyed before the state had slid into Anarchy trade and

productivity were on the rise people had enough to eat and felt safe it was an

age of economic and political stability

Tsar Michael had achieved the impossible and brought the Russian state back from

the brink

on July 12th 1645 Bazaar celebrated his 49th birthday that morning after church

Michael seemed to have a presentiment of his own approaching death he publicly

forgave all those who had ever insulted or sinned against him and ordered a general amnesty for all prisoners on

coming home the first Romanoff's are of russia said goodbye to his wife and son and died

peacefully later that day [Music]

Russia mourned its much-loved ruler for three days many thousands from all ranks

and walks of life came to pay their respects before his coffin services were

held in his honor in all the churches of the land alexei mikhaylovitch

michael's eldest son and heir was as young as his father had been when he ascended to the throne but the country

he inherited had been utterly transformed famine civil war and

destruction no longer stalked the land Russia was now stable and prosperous

[Music]

new ruler of this reinvigorated state tsar alexei was handsome intelligent

virile and devout ahead they great victories and bloody revolts remarkable

achievements and fatal mistakes alexei mikhaylovitch was destined to become one

of Russia's most controversial rulers [Music]

[Applause] chapter 2 Alexi the first Mikhaylovich

the young czar was not overawed by his new responsibilities it was a role he

prepared for since early childhood his education had begun at the age of six

after learning the alphabet he was taught to read using stories from the Bible the Prince's household included 20

stewards six teachers and 18 musicians as well as bodyguards acrobats and

jesters when Alexei was seven he was given a set of miniature weapons an arc

of us a bow and arrows swords armor made in Germany and musical instruments maps

and engravings from Western Europe alexis chief Tudor was a nobleman named

Boris Morozov he encouraged his pupil to broaden his outlook and introduced him

to Western culture many Europeans were invited to the Tsar's court including

interpreters diplomats and scholars

Alexie's personal doctor an Englishman named Samuel Collins admired his patient

greatly the Emperor is handsome and strongly built

he has fair hair and doesn't shave his beard he is tall with noble bearing he

can be cruel when angry but he is mostly kind and gentle he has an excellent

memory and is devout one could name him among the most kind and wise rulers but

for the cloud of advisors and Noble men who surround him and turn his good intentions to evil during the first

years of his reign Alexei pursued many passions much of his time was spent

visiting remote monasteries to perform acts of worship he also collected rare

and exotic birds captain elk farm had experimented with new agricultural techniques he tried to

grow melons almonds cotton and grapes but without doubt his greatest love was

hunting with his Falcons

the Czar owned no fewer than 3000 Vulcanus each of which it was said he

knew by name his household included 100 Falconer Zaveri drank paid between 6 and

60 rubles a year not including bonuses all were members of the Department of

secret Affairs which handled the czars amusements and private business the head

falconer avinasi Matus King was a Lexie's close friend the upkeep of the

muse and hunting stables cost the Treasury 75 thousand rubles a year equivalent about 10 million dollars

today on the road the Tsar's hunting party was more than half a mile long

first came 300 stewards mounted on richly decorated horses three abreast

they were followed by 300 Guardsmen in crimson caftans five abreast in five

hundred armored cavalry three abreast next came forty parade horses in

ornately decorated harnesses followed by the reserved carriage horses and finally

bazaar himself in his English carriage accompanied by courtiers and hangers on no more than a few dozen

young Alexei was enjoying himself in a manner worthy of us are he left affairs

of state to his tutor Boris Morozov but the nobles jealous of Morozov

influence Birds the Czar to marry since a married man had no need of a tutor but

Morozov was not to be so easily at manoeuvered when the Tsar expressed his

desire to marry the greatest beauties were brought to him from across Russia

he picked his favorite but when she was brought to him a second time in court clothes

Morozov instructed the servant to tie her headscarf so tightly that the girl quickly fainted it was declared that the

girl had fainting sickness to conceal this from the Tsar was a crime her father was exiled to Siberia and her

family fell from favour [Music] marah's off an elderly widower then

asked the Tsar to help him pick his own bride and introduced him to the mere /ca sisters Alexei fell in love with the

eldest sister Maria and married her while Marisol married Anna young enough

to be his granddaughter so strengthening further his ties to Alexei

[Music] Alexia's family life proved a source of

great joy to him Maria was five years his senior which he proved a perfect

match and ideals the Ritzer they lived together for 20 years and had 13

children as ours gentle manners earned

him the nickname the most quiet but his

reign itself would prove anything but the clouds of war and revolt were

gathering On June 1st 1648 Alexei and

his court were returning to Moscow from the Trinity sand Sergius monastery when the procession reached the city gates

they found the way blocked by a huge crowd the people of the city had come to

present a petition to the tsar complaining of the excesses of his bureaucrats but the Tsar refused to

speak to them his guards drove them away and arrested the ringleaders

the next day the Czar was returning from another monastery when he was again met by a huge crowd they pushed his guards

aside broke through to the Czar's coach and seize control of the horses the 19

year old alexei was face to face with his subjects for the first time despite

being surrounded by an angry mob he remained calm he listened to their complaints and promised to stamp out

government corruption and to dismiss all bribe takers and embezzlers from office

top of their list with the Tsar's old tutor Boris mazzaroth

[Music] in the course of two years

Morozov had amassed a huge personal fortune and made himself the second richest person in Russia as chief

treasurer of the state he reduced spending by slashing the wages of all bureaucrats forcing many to accept

bribes simply to survive he appointed friends and allies to offices of state

but only after they paid him an enormous bribe but Mehra's offs most dangerous

policy had been to raise the tax on salt salt was the universal food preservative

when its price rose fourfold everyone was affected and the poorest were threatened with starvation the events

that followed were reported in all the courts of Europe one account was left by a Dutch traveler to Russia thought to be

a spy

a crowd of people forced their way into the palace court-yard the guard sided with the people and burst into Mara

sophs house they trampled everything underfoot through his belongings from the windows and ransacked the place

taking all they could they shouted furiously this is our blood marah's off

himself escaped into one of his Majesty's chambers and hid there

there were revolts across Russia boost yog and self you got skin the north to Kursk in the south Tsar was

under siege in his own palace pregnant Tsar Ritzer nearly miscarried

she gave birth five months later but their first child died within the year

[Music] to appease the people Tsar ordered the

execution of many corrupt officials but not Maris off Alexei would not sacrifice

his beloved tutor and instead exiled him to a monastery 300 miles north of Moscow

in response to the salt riots the National Assembly was urgently convened within the Kremlin it advised the Tsar

that only a comprehensive new legal code could restore order a special commission

was established in which the Tsar himself took an active role the result

was a sabor Nicola genja a legal code that sought to consolidate all the state's existing laws into a single

document for the first time it would prove a cornerstone of Russian law for centuries to come

codes 25 chapters and nearly thousand articles were copied and glued together

into a single role 309 metres long after its approval 1,200 copies were printed

and one sent to every major city the code entrenched the privileges of the

nobility who became the only people legally allowed to own serfs the status

of these peasants was made permanent and hereditary the suborn Yahoo lasagna was enforced for almost 200 years from 1649

until 1832 [Music] when the rioting finally abated Boris

Morozov quietly returned from exile but his place as a Lexi's closest advisor

had been taken by another the 43 year old Abbot of Nova Spassky monastery nikan nikan made a great impression on

the devout Tsar soon he was ordained metropolitan Bishop of nagaraj three

years later alexei appointed him patriarch head of the entire Russian Orthodox Church with

the Tsar's backing the new patriarch began a large-scale reform of the Russian Church he can't believe that

over the last four centuries the rituals and beliefs of his native church had become riddled with corruption and abuse

and were increasingly at odds with the rites performed by the Greek Orthodox Church the morality and conduct of

Russian priests and monks had also been called into question [Music]

the cones reforms were intended to bring the Russian church back into line with its own early practices and those of the

Greek Orthodox Church Russians were now to cross themselves using three fingers

and not two they were told how many times to bow during services what musical instruments could be played in

church and how to correctly spell the name Jesus Christ for a deeply

conservative church such reforms were no small matter they led to sharp divisions

within the church so-called old believers denounced them as heresy and continued to practice the old forms of

worship in secret but ultimately it was their leader arch priest a bakhoum who

would be burnt as a heretic nakhon

support grew steadily until by the end of Alexie's reign his course had become impossible to resist

diehard opponents remained but many more embrace the practical benefits of his

reforms such as restoring discipline among the clergy and promoting education

[Music] Czar Alexi had supported Nikon's reforms

but the patriarchy began to overreach himself becoming involved in every aspect of government from politics to

diplomacy and the conduct of military campaigns meanwhile the patriarchs

enemies at court spread rumors to undermine him relations between the head of the church and the head of state

reached a new low when tsar alexei failed to attend the patriarch service at the Cathedral of the Assumption it

could mean only one thing patriarch Nikon had fallen from favor and could no longer count on the Tsar's

support [Music]

yiquan left for the new jerusalem monastery a day's journey from Moscow where he planned to await the Tsar's

apology but it never came instead czar appointed

a new patriarch

in 1666 a great synod was held in Moscow attended by the most senior priests of

the Greek and Russian Orthodox Church the synod dismissed patriarch Nikon from his post but at the same time

excommunicated his great adversary arch priest avec une and upheld nikon's entire program of church reform

marah's off and now nikon work on tsar alexei this passion of youth lover of

falconry loving husband and father would now rule alone for the first time little

did he know he was about to face one of the most turbulent periods in all of Russian history the first threat would

come from the south and the Cossack renegade Stefan rosin rosin was a

Cossack chief or at a man from the dawn region he had a long record of insurrection and banditry along the

Volga River and around the Caspian Sea but in 1670 he aimed at nothing less

than the creation of a new free state for the cossacks after he seized the towns of Zarate's in and choked asked

thousands rallied to his cause government troops were eventually able to stamp out the rebellion and razzin

was betrayed to the authorities by his Cossack rivals he was brought to Moscow and executed even while he struggled

with church reform and Cossack rebellion tsar alexei faced war against the old enemy poland since the time of troubles

commonwealth of poland and lithuania had occupied former russian lands including

the important city of Smolensk [Music] while the Tsar was away with the army

the dreaded news arrived that plague had broken out in Moscow the Czar's family

and court were hurriedly evacuated to the monastery of Trinity Lavra of sin Sergius and the capital was quarantined

by the 1670s Moscow was one of the largest cities in Europe before the

epidemic its population was around 300 thousand which made it about the same size as Paris Naples had a population of

270,000 London and Amsterdam about 200,000 Venice and Antwerp about a hundred and

fifty thousand Rome Genoa and Prague 100,000 in five months the plague

claimed 150,000 lives about half the population of Moscow bodies piled up in

the streets but the army still had to be paid and the Treasury was in

plague-ravaged Moscow if the epidemic spread to the troops it would be a disaster so the Tsar came up

with the idea of literally laundering the money he ordered the silver coins to

be washed with soap and lye for they were distributed to the troops plague

never reached the army the war with Poland lasted 13 years

Russians managed to win back some territory on their western border but an empty treasury forced the Czar to seek

an armistice in the truce of Andrews off

Russia won back Smolensk genic off and other lands lost more than 50 years ago

in the Time of Troubles eastern Ukraine also became part of the Russian state to

refill his Treasury tsar alexei decided to reform the currency because of the

country's shortage of gold and silver he introduced a copper coin but the same value as a silver coin wages were now

paid out in copper while taxes were still gathered in silver the copper coins soon began to lose much of their

value but the Tsar's mints continued to produce them within five years in Moscow

a single silver ruble was worth 12 or even 15 copper rubles

at the end of July 1662 when the Czar was at his palace at calamansi a few

miles outside Moscow posters appeared in the city calling those responsible for

minting copper coins thieves and traitors people of Moscow traveled to

calamansi Oya to see the Tsar when he left church he was surrounded by a huge angry crowd but Alexei kept his

composure he promised the people that the issue would be resolved he even swore an oath to it the crowd began to

disperse bazaars guards led him away but more protesters kept arriving from

Moscow angrier and shouting insults at the Tsar for a while alexei listened to

their jeers in silence troops were already moving into position when the

Tsar saw that they encircled the crowd gave the order the slaughter began

[Applause] 2,500 people were killed at calamansi

Oya in just a few hours the revolt was suppressed but the copper coinage had to

be withdrawn the state even offered compensation at five kopecks or 5% to

the ruble czars agents interrogated and tortured suspects for months to find out

who had been behind the riots 150 were hanged about 1000 were sent into exile

with the letter be branded on their faces a boon Tov sheikh rebel czar

Ritzer was pregnant during the copper riot as she'd been 14 years before during the salt riot it was said the

shock took its toll on her later when the Surratt's are died in childbirth the baby girl died just five days later

[Music]

after the revolt tsar alexei became deeply suspicious he created a special

section of the department of secret affairs that combined the functions of counterintelligence secret police of

censorship and the prison it oversaw the work of all other state departments and

was based not with them in the kremlin and at its own headquarters a few streets away at Lubyanka torture was

used routinely during its interrogations it also relied on a large network of

paid informers including state bureaucrats shopkeepers and innkeepers

[Music] the Tsar had his own office within the

department from where he increasingly handled all affairs of state the

department of secret Affairs also continued to run the Tsar's household and entertainments and produce the day

reports first weather reports in Russian history by the end of his reign Alexei

had surrounded himself with flatterers and yes-men who competed with each other to sing the

praises of their glorious monarch his public appearances became increasingly formal and magnificent with new

ceremonies devised in detail by the xyp [Music] Czar recently widowed seemed set on the

path towards aging despotism and ever-increasing isolation but an

encounter one evening as he dined at the house of his friend Artem on matveyev turned everything on its head as per

custom czars first cup was presented by the hosts young ward the 19 year old

Natalia nourish kana czar was instantly captivated by her beauty and became

determined to make her his wife but proper protocol had to be observed

the selection of a new royal bride was announced and 74 women of great beauty

were brought to Moscow for the Tsar's appraisal only one of them knew the result had already been decided

[Music] Natalia Naru Chicana had won the SARS

heart the selection was a mere formality [Music]

wedding took place in the Kremlin in the Cathedral of the Assumption on February 1st 1671 a year and a half later the

Newser Ritzer gave birth to a son the boy would be known to history as Peter

the Great

in his newfound joy tsar alexei decided to realize a long cherished dream to

build russia's first professional theater the theater was built in the

village of preobrazhenskaya on the outskirts of Moscow aster you and Gregory from the city's German quarter

was invited to write its first play entitled the comedy of artaxerxes based

on the story of Esther from the Bible all parts were played by students from the Lutheran School the first

performance took place on October 30th 1670 to play lasted an exhausting 10

hours tsar Ritzer and princesses watched from behind a screen that hid them from

sight soon five more plays had been staged all based on stories from the Bible as well

as the first ballet Orpheus tsar alexei

was filled with a new zest for life and a horror of growing old he started to

study medical textbooks and to use herbs to mix his own potions he would listen

attentively to his doctors and became obsessed with bloodletting which was believed to restore the balance of the

body's humors necessary for good health he strongly recommended the practice for

all his courtiers it was said he sometimes let his favourite falcon make the incision as the bird

in January 1676 Alexi caught a cold which he decided to treat himself but

his health deteriorated rapidly and within a week his condition was without hope

On January 29th Bazar received the last rites and blessed his eldest son

Theodore as his heir and the next Czar of Russia [Music]

he died the following night aged 46

[Music]

alexei romanov weathered many storms leave behind a state that was rich

strong and stable his successors would build upon his legacy carrying on the

work of reform and modernization none more so than his youngest son Peter the

Great whose achievements would eclipse those of his father Alexei died in the

prime of his life with many great ambitions unfulfilled the country felt

bereaved as though it had lost a father

heir to this mighty Russian state feodor alexeyevitch wasn't even able to attend

his father's funeral unaided his ill health meant he had to be carried to the cathedral on a special litter looking at

the sickly face beneath the Czar's fur hat some whispered a warning prepare

yourselves soon the nobles will be back in charge and another Time of Troubles will be

upon us [Music]

year was 1674 in the private theater of tsar alexei taylor of the byzantine

princess bulk area was being retold long

ago she had been the elder sister of a byzantine emperor seven-year-old boy

given to daydreaming [Music] so she ruled in place of her little

brother and proved to be wise and fair [Music]

the tale delighted its royal audience but one teenage Princess Sofia was

spellbound this was her own dream brought to life on stage she had no idea

where and how far that dream would lead her

[Music]

few years later when Zara Lexi's eldest surviving son took the throne as feared

or the third house of Romanov seemed secure and stable the succession was not

in dispute Lexy himself had named and blessed the door as his successor from

his deathbed there was one thing though

that worried the people the young Tsar had had to be carried to his coronation

in a litter he could barely walk on his own

as feared or ascended the throne many had called openly hinted that the young

czar was not long for this world chapter 1 Theodore the third

Alekseyevich heard or had suffered from chronic scurvy since childhood it led to

anemia the blood disorder that left him profoundly weak it also caused his limbs

to swell and led to the abnormal development of his bones and cartilage scurvy is caused by an acute deficiency

of vitamin C in the 17th century it was common during Wars or long sea voyages

first Romanoff's however seemed to have had a rare hereditary form of the disease because of his ill health

Theodore was forced to spend much of his time indoors unable to take part in games or sport instead he developed an

interest in the sciences his tutor was a philosopher and poet Simeon polotsk II

and Fyodor was extremely well educated for his time young czar excelled in theology

philosophy rhetoric and poetry he spoke fluent polish and read avi and in the

original Latin Theodore owned a large

music library sang well and was a talented composer but his greatest

passion was for horse breeding when

Theodore was only three he was not given a toy horse like most other three-year-olds but a real horse because

he was the son of a Tsar

little boy was in or for the rest of his

life he would be obsessed with everything to do with horses he adores

parents hoped that riding would improve the princes health but instead their

worst nightmare came true one of his father's friends we are noble art Amnon

Madhvi F witnessed the accident and he was 13 Fyodor decided to travel to the

countryside like sledge along with his eyes and sisters he was given a hot

tempered horse to pull the sledge which he mounted there were so many people in

the sledge that the horse couldn't move it it reared threw the rider off and he

fell under the sledge he ran over feodor alexeyevitch with all its weight and

crushed his chest Fyodor survived Japan

to his woes he suffered chest and back pain for the rest of his life

Theodore was an enthusiastic follower of the latest European trends he wanted to

be a reformer to sweep away all that was outdated and backward in Russia and bring in all the latest fashion and

innovations from the West but his illness left him effectively sidelined a

virtual prisoner in his own palace control of government fell into the

hands of the Tsar's uncle even with a Slav ski at his family his rival Artem

on map EF brilliant diplomat and sworn enemy of the Miller Slav ski clan was

sent into exile under the Youngs our power once more lay with the boy our

Nobles milah Slav ski dismissed the Department of secret Affairs and the Department of

accounting format instruments of royal government he himself took over two key

government departments the great Treasury which controlled state finance and the Department of ambassador's in

charge of foreign policy as well as other minor departments other departments were distributed amongst his

friends and relatives some of whom held up to half a dozen different government posts in just a few years a number of

government departments increased from 42 to 60 the total number of bureaucrats

rose from 882 to 2762 this new bloated

administration was riddled with corrupt and lazy officials many of whom owed their place at the Miller /ki family

it was love at first sight on Palm

Sunday during the celebration of Christ's entry into Jerusalem a solemn procession bearing icons and a crucifix

crossed Red Square and entered the Kremlin Cathedral amid the crowd one

girl caught the eye of the 18 year olds our she stood out less for her beauty

and for her proud and noble bearing Tsar was captivated

the girl was found her name was Agatha a guru shets Kea the daughter of a petty

nobleman who now lived with her uncle in Moscow Theodora instructed the uncle to

keep his niece safe and not allow her to marry without his permission

but the Tsar's choice of bride did not suit them in a /e family they wanted him

to marry a girl from their own family not the daughter of some even call foraged provincial noble fifty years

later the historian Vasily tatischeff investigated the facts and reported even

- laughs Sookie slandered agafia in front of the Tsar blaming the both she and her mother were known to be guilty

of several obscene acts but the girl found out about this unjust accusation

and when questioned by officials declared that no one should be in any doubt as to her honour and swore to it

on her life [Music]

reassured by this news Czar decided to pay a secret visit to his chosen one he took a trip through

the hills outside Moscow so on his way back he could pass by Agra FIA's house as if by accident

Pekka fears relatives told the girl to stand in the window and for the first

time their eyes met [Music]

Theodore took the first independent decision of his life the scheming and

deceitful even Milla /ki was dismissed from court he was no longer welcome in

the Tsar's presence to respect tradition

a formal presentation of Bridal candidates was arranged for the Czar but

everyone knew the name of the winner before the contest even began tsar

candidates and the organizers but it was unthinkable to overlook the ancient

custom theodore now 19 and married was

at last recognized as having reached his majority and assumed the full authority of the tsar now he would take control of

his own fate and push forward his own ideas on how russia should be governed

[Music] his first act was to summon all the nobles of the realm the most senior

nobles the boyars his advisers the oconee chief and the members of the

council they were to meet at one o'clock to begin the work of reform beginning with

taxation the supporters are standing

army a variety of small taxes were replaced with a single new tax every

household was now expected to pay 90 kopeks per year the equivalent of 72

kilograms of grain or 26 kilograms of beef because of the acute shortage of

cash the Tsar sold the rights to collect this tax to tax farmers helping to

quickly replenish the Treasury by 1680 state revenues totaled more than 1.2

million roubles customs and excise duties accounted for 53 percent of

revenue direct taxation raised 44 percent and other minor taxes accounted

for the remainder next came a population census completed in 1678 it identified

5.6 million people living in russia with this only included taxpayers in the Heartland regions

if non taxpayers were added plus those in new settlements on the fringes of Russia and across Siberia as well as the

Cossacks the total population was approximately 12 million this made

Russia one of the world's most populated countries and largest in terms of territory by the end of the Romanov

dynasty in 1917 this population had grown Eightfold to 103 million

next was boundary reform existing boundaries were checked and new ones established settling disputes over land

ownership and fixing the boundaries of private estates royal estates and church

lands next army reform most settle parts

of Russia were divided into nine new military districts from now on every regiment was tied to one of these

districts or stationed there and did its recruiting there 20 years later this

system would be the basis for even more sweeping reforms by Theodore's younger brother eater the great that helped

fight injustice the court of petitions was reopened a person of any rank or position could file a complaint to the

chamber of judgment and to the Czar personally when Fyodor heard that some

petitions compared the zart of God he was indignant he said that it was indecent to write such words and that if

anybody dared to write again in that style he would not regard their petition with favor

Tsar Feodor also reformed the Penal Code and abolished a range of barbaric punishments including the cutting off of

hands feet and fingers prisoners who would have received these punishments were now sent to Siberia instead where

they helped to settle and develop the vast empty lands that lay beyond the Ural Mountains Moscow a city built of

wood used to be destroyed by fire about once every generation in the reign of Tsar Feodor large parts of the city were

rebuilt in stone for the first time the State Treasury offered 10-year interest-free loans to pay for the work

bazar would personally visit the site of fires to see the loans issued most of

these medieval mortgages were never repaid but they helped to build 10,000

new houses creating a new city of stone finally the system of precedence by

which the boy our Nobles could inherit government posts by virtue of rank alone was abolished from now on appointments

would be based on merit and the Tsar's judgment those as it was put whom the

great sovereign indicates tsar solemnly

burned the great books of rank which catalogued the pedigree and precedence of all russia's noble families in a

great bonfire in the courtyard of his palace desire had ushered in a new age in which

good government took precedence over the boyars ancient privileges

Tsar Feodor was a man in a hurry he introduced polish fashion at court some

courtiers even began to shave their beards encouraged the founding of

Russia's first university based on European lines he built a fortress it is ium to guard

the southern border against Tatar raids and opened the first state arms houses

in Russian history he began work on reforming the courts sometimes it seemed

his illness had deserted him but it never entirely left him

Fyodor knew it was a race against time and there was much work to be done war

in the south against the Ottoman Turks and Crimean Tatars proved costly it was

a conflict that might have been avoided with the help of ottoman matveyev czars most experienced diplomats but for

now he remained in exile in 1677 a

100,000 strong crimean Turkish army invaded Ukraine it was met by a russian

ukrainian army with a strength of 57,000 men despite being outnumbered almost two

to one they managed to repel the Turkish invader the following year a Turkish army

200,000 strong was defeated by a Russian army of 120,000 the Russian generals

were unable to capitalize on these victories in 1681 the Treaty of

Manchester I was signed between Russia the Ottoman Empire and Crimean Khanate

eastern Ukraine and the city of Kiev remained in Russian hands Anitra river

became the new border with the ottomans while a buffer zone was created between the Nitra and boog river the war had

exhausted the Tsar but with peace his health began to improve what's more his

beloved Queen his Tsar Itza was pregnant with their first child baby was expected

that summer but their happiness was not to last

there were complications with the birth AG afiyah died three days later on July

14 1681 infant son outlived his mother by just

six days Theodore was thrown into despair his always frail health now

began to deteriorate with alarming speed [Music]

fyodor knew he needed an air to ensure a peaceful succession when the time came

and seven months later he married again this time his bride was a 14 year old

girl named Martha apraxia Theodore did not even have the strength to stand

during the wedding ceremony just ten weeks later he was dead at the age of 20

his final decline was so rapid he didn't have time to leave instructions about

his succession

Theodore had the potential to become Russia's first enlightened monarch to

lead Russia into the main current of European civilization he had everything

that was required education determination character

everything except health Tsar Feodor the

third ruled Russia for just five years but in that time he created the basis for one of the strongest armies in the

world introduced a system of social welfare reduced taxation expanded the

borders of his realm transformed Moscow from a city of wood into a city of stone and laid the foundations of a secular

system of education he approved the foundation of Russia's first university but died before he could sign the

Charter Theodore's death paved the way

for a power struggle between two boyer families Mila slovsky's relatives of

Zara Lexi's first wife later it's a Maria and the nourish King's family of

Alexis second wife Natalia [Music]

milah slovsky's candidate for Tsar was Maria's son Prince even a 15 year old

boy half blind and disabled the nourish kin supported Natalia's son Peter healthy and clever but only 10 years old

an hour after Theodore's death the boy asked Council with the support of patriarch yogi declared Prince Peter to

be the new Tsar of Russia his mother's family the nourish Kings seemed to have

won the day for those at court it meant one boy our

family was out and another was in but for one person expelled the ruin of all

their dreams

chapter 2 Sofia alekseevna

Safiya alekseevna aspired to what most young women aspire to freedom happiness

laughs but her fate was not that of any ordinary woman she was a Russian

princess daughter of tsar alexei sister of the lake Fyodor in 1680 to nine

princesses lived in the Tsar's palace they were color Tatyana Autopia Martha

Sofia yekaterina Maria feodosia and Natalya none were permitted to marry

no Russian man was of sufficient rank and foreigners did not share their Orthodox faith princesses spent their

lives in their chambers in strict isolation from outsiders they only left

the palace for church or other important ceremonies in their carriages they sat behind closed curtains and if they went

anywhere on foot they were shielded from public gaze by drapes held up by their attendants

they're only amusements were the swings of the palace park in summer sledging in winter and performances by the court

musicians their lives were devoted to family worship and decorum princesses

finish their education at the age of 10 they were told to read and write arithmetic and theology

Sophia begged her father to let her continue to study alongside her brother Fyodor their teacher Simeon Polotsk II

remembered her as curious and clever and that she studied philosophy theology rhetoric polish and Latin she read

widely and even wrote her own plays

Sophia's heroine was poked area a 5th century Byzantine princess who'd ruled

as regent for her younger brother it was once Safina dream for herself her

brother Sofia door had occasionally listened to her advice but no more

his death gave Sophia a long-awaited chance Sofia was counting on her

disabled brother even becoming Tsar then she could become the Russian pool

carrier and rule for him as regent but the nourish kins were about to thwart this plan by placing Peter not

even on the throne so Sofia decided to intervene her plan centered on the

Streltsy musketeer units that were the core of the Russian standing army there

were twenty six regiments twenty-two and a half thousand men stationed in Moscow their privileges included not having to

pay taxes and being allowed to carry out private business when not on active service a private soldier was paid

between three and five rubles a month equivalent to between six hundred and one thousand US dollars today an officer

was paid four times as much between fifteen to twenty rubles a month while a colonel weigh between 30 and 60 rubles

some unscrupulous Colonels dipped into their soldiers wages to augment their own pay

Streltsy wages were paid irregularly and late officers not only skimmed off some

of their soldiers pay they sometimes made them work like serfs on their own estates streltsy had been pushed to

breaking point situation princess Sofia plan to use to her advantage

meanwhile the nourish king's most able supporter artem on matveyev had just

returned to moscow from exile this news persuaded Saphir to act without delay her supporters told the Streltsy that

the marushin said poison tsar feodor and strangled his son prince even at the

insistence of patriarch yo Keem princes even and Peter both perfectly well was

shown to the public but the Streltsy were out for blood they broke into the

palace looking for the nourish kings and their supporters Prince even hid in a

corner while Prince Peter clung to Ottoman matveyev Streltsy pushed the

young Prince aside and dragged matveyev away a servant of the patriarch witnessed the

revolt and later described the scene Ottoman matveyev was hacked to pieces

boy a uri dul guru cough was dragged behind the gates and stabbed to death

next day his body was also cut into pieces the Streltsy ransacked the

treasury and entered the Tsar's chambers with weapons looking for boy our Nobles to kill they smashed down a door to the

patriarchs chambers and threw his steward from the window where he hanged from the end of a rope

[Music] the Streltsy revolt traumatized young

Peter he would neither forget nor forgive [Music]

the massacre lasted for three days the victims included prominent nourishing

supporters including two of Prince Peters uncles - government ministers

czars personal doctor at about 100 others May 19th

Streltsy demanded outstanding wages totaling 240 thousand rubles May 23rd

they presented a new ultimatum to Prince's Yvonne and Peter should sit on the throne together finally on May 29th

they made their final demand Princess Sofia was to become regent until Peter

was of age Russia had its princess Bulgaria

sophia was playing with fire just six

weeks before peter had been proclaimed tsar and the Streltsy had sworn allegiance to him now they had butchered

his close relatives and handed power to her princess had used armed men to clear

her path to power she wasn't the last to do so in Russia which he went down in

history as the first the new Princess

Regent realized her position was extremely precarious and moved quickly to shore up her support first she

ordered the payment of all outstanding debts to the Streltsy even melting down some of the Tsar's silverware to meet

the cost then Sofia gave all the key

posts to her allies the ambassador's department which handled foreign affairs was given to her favorite can foresee

legal it's in streltsy Reiter cavalry and great treasury department's

effectively control of the army as well as state finances were given to count even kovarsky nicknamed the windbag

levansky a veteran general and favorite of the Streltsy soon realized that his new position gave him almost unlimited

power the temptation he could not resist so began the Kovan chena the bloody

summer of 1680 - when power in Moscow resided with kovarsky and his Streltsy

troops the Russian capital had been occupied by its own army Princess Sophia

had unleashed a dangerous power struggle that threatened to topple Russia into anarchy thankfully the Streltsy were not

the only military force in Russia now she would turn to the nobles

[Music] on the day of the Feast of the Transfiguration Princess Regent Saphir

left the kremlin under the guise of visiting the Donskoy monastery just across the Moscow River but instead she

left the city and made for the monastery of Trinity st. sergius where she planned to take refuge from the safety of the

monastery Sofia sent letters across the land condemning this new strut see revolt and summoning all the oil Nobles

to her aid by the end of the 17th century the nobleman's army or militia

totalled fourteen and a half thousand men this amounted to ten percent of the army these men had received their lands

in exchange for military service each year they were expected to turn out for review mounted on their own horse

equipped with their own arms and accompanied by several armed serfs they

were obligated to join the army on campaign whenever required main part of

the army 77,000 men or 50 percent the so called regiments of the new order these

were writer Dragoon and hasar cavalry units made up mostly of foreign mercenaries the troops now in revolt the

Streltsy Musketeers made up 35 percent of the army [Music]

time was running out focus on ski his arrogant behavior had made him many

powerful enemies the princess Regents

agents caught him in a tavern and brought him to their mistress outside Moscow [Music]

he was pushed to his knees before the princess Regent read his crimes of treason and mutiny and beheaded his

position as head of the Streltsy department we'll go to Fyodor Shukla Vitti Sophia's new favorite

the Streltsy revolt was over Princess Regent returned to Moscow and took

residence in the Kremlin with Tsar even while Peter regarded as the juniors are

moved to the palace of preobrazhenskaya

a villager preobrazhenskaya covered an area 22 dirtiness or 24 hectares a

wooden Palace had been built there 20 years earlier and was the furthest royal residence from the Kremlin Moscow's

foreign quarter lay between the Kremlin and the palace at preobrazhenskaya the

young Tsar Peter devoted himself to wargames forming the local boys into so-called toy regiments they would one

day grow up to become a famous preobrazhensky guards regiments fragile

balance was achieved with tsar peter and his mother living at their country palace and Sophia and Tsar Ivan living

in the Kremlin a double throne was made for the joint rulers with a small window

at the back during audiences with foreign ambassadors advisers whispered to the young Tsar's through the window

telling them what to say Peter was clever but still young while it was much

harder for his half-brother even like many of the children from Zara Lexi's first marriage even suffered from poor

health possibly linked to scurvy leaving him weak and lethargic he also had some

form of intellectual disability and was almost blind these severe health issues

left him with little enthusiasm or interest in governing the state so

Princess Regent Sophia ruled with the help of her favorite and lover Vasily galitsin who now bore the grand title

guardian of the Tsar's Great Seal and the state's great ambassadorial affairs

with Sophia's backing galitsin worked out a breath-taking program of reform that was a hundred and fifty years ahead

of its time it's starting point was the abolition of serfdom but such radical

ideas were impossible to realize at that time any attempt to free the serfs would

have triggered a wholesale revolt of the nobles contemporaries called Vasily

galitsin the great he favored western-style reforms spoke five

languages fluently was a superb diplomat and had a great breadth of knowledge

what's more he was said to be the most handsome man in Moscow sophia was

completely in love with him and wrote to him almost every day in her letters she

told him how she prayed for his good health and urged him not to exhaust himself with endless work her gratitude

she wrote was impossible to express without him none of her achievements

would have been possible galitsin urged Sophia to continue her brother

Theodore's reforms but she never fully grasped the need for such changes what's

more she faced stubborn opposition from the boy our Nobles [Music]

nevertheless it was Sofia who opened Russia's first Institute of higher education the Slavonic Greek Latin

Academy based on the Institute founded by Fyodor his first professors were two

Greek brothers both of them renowned scholars a degree took 12 years the main

disciplines were Greek Latin grammar rhetoric philosophy and theology the

Academy was situated in the buildings of the Zionist Spassky monastery today it

is the site of the Russian State University for the Humanities the Academy later spawned the Lomonosov

Moscow State University the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Moscow theological Academy in 1686 negotiations

began with Russia's Western neighbor the polish-lithuanian Commonwealth galitsin

led a series of long and grueling discussions which eventually led to the signing of a treaty of eternal peace in

Moscow this bound the kingdoms of Princess regent Sophia and Qingyuan

sobieski an alliance and was to prove the crowning achievement of Russian foreign policy in the 17th century

Russia's gains included the regions around Smolensk and China cough as well

as parts of eastern Ukraine and the cities of Zaporozhye and Kiev the Treaty of eternal peace

contained one additional clause Russia was to join the holy League military

alliance against the Turkish Ottoman Empire this obliged Russia to go to war against the Crimean Khanate

an ottoman ally but galitsin was not in favor of war and

wanted to delay as long as possible

despite his misgivings Saphir placed galitsin in charge of the army for the forthcoming campaign she dreamed of

great victories that would unite Russia behind her and cover her beloved galitsin in glory no sooner had he left

for the front and Sofia began to write to him in her letters she called

galitsin by his pet name vasenka and worried endlessly about his safety it was only when she embraced him

with her own arms she wrote that she would no peace again in May 1687 a

100,000 strong Russian army joined forces with Don and Zaporozhye cossacks

and advanced towards the Isthmus of Perico

they found the fields had all been burnt leaving no food for the horses some said

it was the Cossacks not the enemy who burnt the land in fear of Russia's growing power campaign was cut short the

next year an even bigger Russian army advanced South Wars only battle was fought on May 15th after

which the Tatars retreated and the Russians advanced America when the news

reached Sophia in Moscow she was ecstatic her letters back to galitsin overflowed with love and adulation and

longing for the day they would be reunited [Music]

they're litsen however could advance no further in fact he was already on his

way back to Moscow the scorched earth tactics of his enemy had starved his army of food and water leading to the

loss of half his men even though there had been no major battles the campaign

was in fact a complete disaster

ghal it's ins role in this catastrophic defeat would not be forgotten later when

he was sent into exile one of the main charges against him would be his ruinous handling of the

Crimean campaign

[Music] on the eve of the day back he suffered

the worst blow of all the betrayal of his beloved [Music]

while colet's him was away fighting Sophia had fallen for another man the

cynical and scheming Fyodor Shak levity to flatter Sophia he had brought the

famous Ukrainian artist Alexander Terrace image to Moscow to paint her portrait he depicted the princess

wearing a regal crown sceptre in hand and behind her a double-headed eagle

[Music] Sofia adored it she ordered the portrait

to be engraved in copper so Coffey's could be printed and sent to all the courts of Europe by now Sofia was

styling herself by the grace of God a great sovereign lady the pious tsarevna

great princess Sofia alekseevna autocrat of the great little and the white

Russia's at state ceremonies and ambassadorial receptions she no longer

felt the need to stand at a respectful distance behind the Tsar's throne it was

said her inspiration was the English Queen Elizabeth the first

as soon as our even turned 18 Sophia arranged his marriage to the 20 year old

Roscoe via saltykova Sophia was counting on the birth of a male heir to cement

the Millis laughs key branch of the Romanov dynasty in power rival Naru shin

branch had of course had the same idea Peter was not quite 17 when his mother

the Dowager Sorensen Natalya married him off to the 19 year old year takia la

pagina she was neither clever nor educated but healthy the outcome of

these marriages would shape the future of the Romanov dynasty for generations to come [Music]

Yvonne inpress kavya had five daughters but only three survived infancy

yekaterina Anna Empress Kavya and her later became Empress of Russia the

Catarina's daughter anna leopoldovna who came region for the young even the sixth but he was the last male of the

Romanoff Millis laughs keyline Peter and Yaya Kia had three sons but only the

eldest Alexei built his son became Emperor Peter the second but he was the

last mayor of the romanovna Ruskin line on May 30th 1689 tsar peter came of age

Sophia was now supposed to step down as regent but she had no intention of

giving up power instead Sackler VT began spreading false rumors amongst the

Streltsy regiments claiming that the nourish Kings planned to assassinate Sophia and Tsar even and send the

Streltsy away to garrison remote fortresses

the Streltsy were unhappy but would not risk open revolt then chat levity let it

be known that those who joined his conspiracy would be paid two rubles for each private 10 for each officer 100 for

each colonel plus the right to plunder the houses of their victims Moscow was

on a knife edge on the night of August 7th loyal streltsy officers arrived at

peter's palace they told him that check Levite II was planning to use the Streltsy to murder Peter and his family

he's our reacted with horror and outrage before fleeing to safety he wrote a

letter to even his brother and joint ruler our sister Princess Sofia runs our

country as she wills bandits like Chantal of VT and his friends plan to murder us and our mothers now brothers

are we shall rule our country on our own since we are both men our sister has

nothing more to do it it is shameful czar to be men to have someone else rule in our place

that evening princess Sofia received a report that Peters Palace said preobrazhenskaya was empty

Tsar Peter his mother pregnant wife and entire court had left for the monastery

of Trinity sent Sergius his so-called toy regiments now composed of young men

followed him there together with one loyal Streltsy regiment

rumors began to fly around Moscow everyone was on edge but quickly the

mood began to turn against Sofia August

13th Sofia sent an emissary to Peter foyer even throw you off the young Tsar would

not negotiate August 16th booyah Peter preserve ski visited the

monastery with the same result August 20th Sofia begged patriarch yo Akeem to visit

Peter he went but did not return he stayed with Peter boyars officials and

even Streltsy began to flock to Peter's rival court August 27th Sofia left to

negotiate with her brother in person she realized that she shouldn't that her humiliation would likely be in vain but

she could not simply sit and wait six

miles from the monastery near the spot where she had had the Streltsy leader kovarsky executed seven years before he

was meant by Toria cooled off her own emissary from just two weeks ago he

handed her Peter's order to turn back [Music]

August 31st Sofia returned to the Kremlin where she gathered the Streltsy

in the square she told them that Peters advisors sought to divide them by

inventing plots against Peters life but that she was confident of their loyalty to her her speech made little impact

only loyal Schack levity remained by her side September 4th foreign regiments

under General Gordon went over to Peters side September 6 streltsy arrests in

feodosia cavite and took him to Peter for sentencing

[Music] September 7th a Sealy galitsin came to

see Peter the Czar refused to meet him and sent him into exile September 8th

the title of Tsarevna royal princess was officially stripped from Sofia September

9th Troy Haku Roth informs a fear of the Tsar's well she was to enter the monastery of Nova Davichi and remain

there for the rest of her life September 12th shack Lafitte II was

beheaded by the main road and side the Trinity monastry October 16th czars

Court boyars and army returned to Moscow and Peter the first took up the reins of

government his elder brother even the fifth remained joint ruler taking part

in ceremonies and his strength allowed but his health continued to decline soon

even found it difficult to walk and was almost completely blind he died seven

years later on February the 8th 1696 aged just 29 Princess Sophia lived under

guard in a tower of the Nova deechi monastery she received food from the Tsar's table as well as an allowance of

two thousand six hundred rubles a year the same as the other royal princesses a small staff of servants lived with her

an old nanny few Clark's and nine maids

for nine years Sophia lived quietly in the monastery reflecting on her years of power and the

fate of her two lovers one executed the other exile to the north but she also

continued to intrigue exchanging secret letters with her supporters

from June 16 98 Peter was in Holland learning to build ships in the back home

poor treatment led 4000 streltsy to kill their officers and march on Moscow

intending to restore Saphir to the throne they were met by government

troops the preobrazhenskiy regiment seminoff ski regiment the LeFort off regiment the foreign regiment under

general gordon and the nobles militia under general Shan the Streltsy were

defeated at New Jerusalem 30 miles from Moscow and reprisals began general Shan

conducted the initial investigation he had a hundred and thirty struts he hanged 140 whipped and sent into exile

and 1960 banished to remote regions but

in August Peter returned to Moscow and renewed the investigation he had another

2000 strout's he executed and 600 more flogged and branded streltsy corpses

were hung from the walls of the Kremlin and Sophia's residence the Nova Davichi monastery Streltsy property was

plundered and even the 16 regiments that didn't take part in the revolt were disbanded

Princess Sofia was forced to take the veil under the name of Susanna boyars

close to her were interrogated and then banished a distant monasteries her allowance was slashed a staff changed

and security tightened the bodies of

three Streltsy hung by the window of her cell for five months

[Music]

once she had struck terror at court won the favor of any man she wanted held the

power to invoke and quell revolts waged Wars and concluded brilliant peace

treaties she dreamed of becoming a real ruler like the Byzantine princess

Bulgaria whose tale had captivated her as a child she had defied all the odds

to make her dream a reality becoming the first Russian princess to escape her secluded existence the first

to live life and wield power but in the end her downfall was complete for seven

years of rule she spent 15 years in a monastery cell

she died in 1704 aged 46 and was buried

in the cemetery of the novodevichy monastery by the time of her death great

changes were sweeping over the country she had once ruled changes that would transform Russia forever the history of

the old Russian state was at an end the history of a new Russian Empire was

beginning

[Music]

[Music]

Peter Tsar of Russia was exploring the boat sheds when he discovered a type of

boat he'd never seen before

he asked the bunt right who had built this remarkable craft he was told it was

an English boat its construction allowed it to sail into the wind as well as away

from it Peter was amazed

all his victories were to defy tradition expectation common sense and sometimes

even the laws of physics the spirit of his reign was summed up with the words

inscribed on his medals even the impossible is possible

Peter was 10 years old when he first came face-to-face with a violent mob

rebels from the Streltsy infantry regiments dragged away his friends and relatives and butchered them like cattle

the trauma caused Peter to suffer from convulsions for the rest of his life no

one could have guessed that this terrified boy would one day sweep away the old Russia and build a new one in

its place chapter 1 Peter the first Alekseyevich

Peter was the youngest son of tsar alexei the first and not expected to inherit the throne alexei died when

peter was just four and was succeeded by his eldest son theodore the third but

when Fyodor died just six years later the nobles decided ten-year old Peter would succeed him by passing the middle

brother fifteen year old even was severely disabled after a revolt by the

Streltsy regiments real power fell into the hands of their ambitious sister Sofia who ruled as Princess Regent

Peter and his mother the dowager's are Ritzer Natalia was sent to live on the Preobrazhensky estate on the outskirts

of Moscow there Peter formed all the boys his own age into a toy regiment for

his elaborate war games young Tsar was

obsessed with war not just with armies but navies too he took his toy regiment

to Lake Loschiavo 80 miles north of Moscow where they learned to build and sail boats and experiment with naval

tactics

[Music] ZAF heater was remarkable in many ways but most obviously in physical stature

at 6 foot 7 or 204 centimeters he towered nearly half a meter over most

of his contemporaries what's more his gigantic body had unusual proportions

he had very long arms with massive hands but small feet narrow shoulders and a

small head his face was handsome but

became contorted when he was worried or anxious the legacy of his childhood traumas with his life pita was filled

with inexhaustible energy he could barely stand still and was always looking for some exciting activity to

throw himself into unlike his older brothers who didn't get expert tutors he

didn't even finish his education and made spelling mistakes his entire life and his mother Tsaritsa Natalia received

her Restless son's letters from Lake Viejo they made her both laugh and cry

this is a letter for my dearest mother czar Itza and great Duchess Natalia

Carol Avila from her boy petrushka who is working constantly thanks to your

prayers were all well the lake is no longer covered with ice and all the

boats are being repaired we need rope though I beg you to send me

700 fathoms of rope and we'll be able to proceed

with that I ask for your blessing

Peter was fascinated by everything to do with craftsmanship by the age of 18 he

knew smithing carpentry wood turning and shoe making he'd studied military

science fortification and shipbuilding and learned German by speaking to men

from the foreign quarter this was an area of Moscow set aside for foreigners

established in 1652 when Peter's father Tsar Alexei ordered all non Orthodox

Christians to move to a new settlement outside the city the new foreign quarter

was built just outside the walls along the Yauza River it was self governed and

home to Europeans of all nationalities most were military men doctors or

craftsmen all seeking professional opportunities in Russia

the foreign quarter was just a few miles from Peter's palace at preobrazhenskaya

everyday he saw the spires of its Lutheran churches and heard the sounds of bustling activity from within its

walls unable to contain his curiosity any longer about how these Europeans

lived he decided to pay a visit he would

soon make himself at home [Music]

[Music]

the Swiss soldier Franz LeFort was an experienced officer handsome capable and

well-connected he was also a society host of some note and Tsar Peter became

a regular guest at his house France LeFort soon joined the Tsar's

inner circle becoming one of Peters most trusted friends and advisors he also introduced

Peter to his servant Alexander Menshikov destined to become another of the Tsar's

closest confidants and then there was an amongst the daughter of a dutch wine

merchant who soon became peter's lover Peter became a regular visitor to the

foreign Quarter learning to speak German and Dutch dancing with girls drinking wine and smoking his pipe naturally when

his mother found out she was horrified in the hope of encouraging him to settle

down she decided Peter should get married his bride was the 19 year old give Doki aloo

patina she seemed an ideal match Oh beautiful sensible and extremely pious but just

two months after the wedding the new husband left for Lake pleasure a vow

meanwhile unrest was brewing in Moscow Princess Regent Sofia was refusing to

relinquish power and her agents were trying to incite Streltsy troops to murder Peter and his family at

preobrazhenskaya when loyal Streltsy

officers arrived one hot August night to warn him of the plot against his life Peter lost his nerve he ran out into the

courtyard wearing only his nightshirt mounted a horse and rode off into the forest on his own the next morning it

emerged he'd ridden to the monastery of Trinity sent Sergius he sent word for his family his court and all boil troops

to join him there nobles and Generals

sick of Sophia's rule sided with Peter sophia was banished to a monastery and

peter took power [Music] his first challenge was war Russia had

recently agreed to join Poland and Austria as a member of the Holy League an alliance of Christian states fighting

the Muslim Ottoman Empire their ultimate goal was to capture the Ottoman capital Constantinople Sophia had waged two wars

against the Ottomans ally the Crimean Khanate in 1695 Peter

decided to attack the Ottomans themselves targeting the fortress of ass off which blocked Russia's access from

the Don River to the Sea of Azov Peter would fulfill his obligation to the Holy League while winning a strategic port

for Russia for the first time the

Russian army moved not by land but by river traveling down the Volga and Dawn

on specially constructed barges Peter himself held the rank of senior artillery officer and was the Army's

chief gunner at first it all seemed just a grander version of his wargames and

mock battles but not for long two attempts to storm the fortress were

repulsed and Peter was forced to order a retreat

all winter new vessels were built and launched from Voronezh in the dawn's upper reaches by spring of sixty ninety

six the first Russian fleet consisting of two large warships 23 all powered

galleys and one and a half thousand smaller vessels sailed down the dawn to as off the fortress was now besieged not

just from land but from sea as well

within a month this combined assault forced the Turks to surrender the fortress the Russians also won their

first naval victory defeating an ottoman fleet that attempted to break the siege

Peter returned to Moscow in triumph but he needed allies to continue his war

against the Ottoman Empire he formed a ground embassy to travel to Europe which

he would accompany himself traveling incognito under the name Peter mikhaylov

Peter appointed his head steward Fyodor Ramadan offski to take over his duties

in Moscow inferring on him jokingly the title Prince Caesar he was entrusted

with the care of the Tsar's family Czar it'sa yebda Kea and this six year old son Prince Alexei Peter's actions were

with that precedent the court was horrified but no one dared to object many years later the engineer and Rana

Tov described the reaction in his memoirs

who ever heard or read of a ruler who having taken the throne left behind his

crown and scepter entrusted rule to one of his nobles and left to wander through

strange lands it was completely unheard of but this is what happened in Russia

at last bazaar got to see the world that he had read and dreamed about since his youth Europe fascinated Peter not so

much the art or the music which rather bored him but everything to do with science technology and industry and he

wanted to try everything with his own hands in the netherlands peter mikhaylov

got a job as a carpenter in a shipyard to learn how the dutch build their ships

in england he also visited the docks to study shipbuilding foreigners didn't

know what to make of him this strange gangly Russian who wanted to go everywhere see everything and tried for

himself [Music] he was curious about everything how

whales were hunted how the sick were treated how paper was made wherever he

went he tried to persuade specialists to move to Russia to share their expertise with his people

some even agreed but Peters main goal to

find allies for his war against the Turks failed Europe's great powers were

too busy preparing for their own war to settle the issue of Spanish Succession no one had time for an alliance with

far-off Russia but in Poland Peter did

manage to find an ally to fight Sweden his northern rifle augustus king of the

Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth and elector of Saxony was said to be the strongest man in Europe when the two

rulers met they agreed to dine together one observer later recalled that when

King Augustus saw that a silver dish on the table wasn't clean he picked it up and rolled it into a tube with his bare

hands Tsar Peter thinking the Polish King was trying to intimidate him picked

up another silver plate and did exactly the same [Music]

the two rulers began picking up and bending all the dishes within reach as

they sat down laughing sarpy to joked brother Augustus we been silver fairly

but it will be much harder work to bend Swedish iron Peter hoped that a

victorious war against Sweden would allow Russia to reclaim former territories in the Baltic particularly

the Eastern Shore of the Gulf of Finland this would give Russia access to the Baltic and a sea route to Europe but

Peters festivities were interrupted by bad news from home in the summer of 1698

the Streltsy troops whose revolted so scarred him as a child rebelled once

more

[Music] rebel regiments were now marching on the

capital to Moscow they declared will destroy the foreign quarter and beat the

foreigners who reject our Orthodox faith from Moscow come hell or high water for

we have a higher purpose we will keep the Tsar out of Moscow and kill him for his faith in these foreigners

[Applause] Peter traveled 300 miles in four weeks

to reach Moscow but by the time he arrived his deputy Fyodor abaddon offski

had defeated the rebels and began dealing with the ringleaders a hundred

and thirty Streltsy were executed 150 more flogged and exiled to Siberia but

it was not enough for Peter he ordered new interrogations and more torture some of which he attended

personally a public mass execution was arranged in Moscow 800 Streltsy were

beheaded in Red Square hundreds more were hanged from the walls of the Kremlin Peter beheaded five rebels

himself noblemen and foreign diplomats witnessed the bloodbath around 2,000

strumsy were executed in total 800 flogged and sent to Siberia

strengths II was now a word that Peter equated only with anarchy and revolt

after the executions he decided to make some changes both in his own life and

his kingdom he forced his unloved wife

yebda kiya to become a nun and entrusted the care of their eight-year-old son Alexei to his sister Natalia Peter began

to live openly with his Dutch lover and Aman's the conservative Russian nobility

was shocked the Peter didn't care

then Peter made it compulsory for all nobles and townsman to shave their

beards off and wear european-style clothes the only people allowed to keep

their beards were peasants priests of the Orthodox Church and those who paid a hefty beard tax a beard permit costs 600

rubles a year for a nobleman worth about a hundred thousand dollars today and 30

rubles for a servant or five thousand dollars today Peter also forced his

court to adopt European customs wives and daughters had to wear European dresses everyone had to know how to

dance and make polite conversation courtiers had to brush their teeth every morning drink coffee

shun traditional Russian food like pickled cabbage and eat more Dutch dishes Peter reformed the calendar so

that years were no longer counted from the date of creation but from the birth of Christ like the rest of Europe

overnight yes 7208 became 1700 a new

year was moved from September the 1st to January the 1st in honor of the occasion

the Tsar instructed his people to decorate fir trees entertain their

children and go sledging adults he instructed were not to drink and fight

there were enough days of the year for that already

the first New Year festivities led to a huge fire that almost burned down Moscow

Peter was not concerned he didn't care much for old Moscow besides he was

preoccupied with preparations for his war against Sweden a secret alliance

with the polish king or Gustus a second and the King of Denmark and Norway Frederick the fourth had now been signed

both Kings looked on czar Peter as the junior partner their adversary was the

18-year old King Karl the 12th of Sweden a lover of hunting and parades who no

one took seriously in the spring of 1700

ruler of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth launched an offensive in the Baltic and laid siege to the Swedish

held city of Riga but for the King of Denmark the war quickly took a

disastrous turn when the Swedish fleet appeared unexpectedly outside Copenhagen

unable to defend his capital the Danish King was forced to make peace with Sweden soon Augustus was forced to

withdraw from Riga leaving Peter with his ill-trained forces to face the

greatest army in Europe alone

[Music] Russian troops were besieging nava on

the Baltic coast but they didn't have enough artillery to break down its walls after two weeks the main Swedish army

began to close in as it approached Peter appointed the Juke tu crois as

commander-in-chief and left for Novgorod

he was not there to see the outnumbered Swedish infantry attacked through the

blizzard and inflict a crushing defeat on the Russian army he didn't see the

surrender of his hired foreign officers or the moment his men cast their banners at the feet of the Swedish King Peter

had lost one army now he had to forge a new one [Music]

his military reforms would create Russia's first Regular Army a professional force made up of full-time

conscript soldiers military service was required from all nobles and peasants

were expected to send one man from every 20 households who served for life troops

were rigorously trained in drill while Peters toy regiment formed the basis for

two new elite units the prayer regen ski guards and seminoff ski guards soldiers

also received new weapons repairs and flintlock muskets instead of the old our

key buses in ten years the Russian army was expanded to a strength of two hundred thousand men supported by a

force of 100,000 Cossack cavalry Peter

had created the largest and most modern army in Russian history

after the catastrophe at Nava Peter needed to replenish the Treasury quickly he reduced the amount of silver in the

coins providing more cash in the short term but devaluing the currency driving

prices up he was pushing the country to the edge of another rebellion he was

making people dress up like heretics forcing them to cut off their beards and now forcing them to pay for his

disastrous war were rumors that bizarre

who'd returned from abroad was a different man the real Tsar it was said was in prison

far across the sea others openly called him the Antichrist Peter didn't care

instead he ordered church bells to be taken down and melted into cabin

ETA's draconian taxes were bleeding Russia dry and triggering riots and

revolts across the land but the money paid for two large warships the

beginning of the Russian Baltic Fleet and allowed him to open foundries in the Urals that was soon supplying the army

and navy with modern cannon the

introduction of modern artillery combined with the effect of reforms and spending increases soon brought results

Russia could now wage war against Sweden as an equal victories followed with the

Russian army capturing the fortresses of notre berg mean chance nava and marian

blog on the eve of this last victory the Tsar

received bitter news his mistress Anna Mons who'd lived with him like a wife

for 10 years had been cheating on him the passion of their youth was long gone

but her betrayal was still painful to Peter

his loyal friend and associate Prince Menshikov helped desire to overcome his heartbreak by finding him a new mistress

the beautiful and charming Martis Gavron skier recently liberated

by Russian forces from the fortress city of Marienberg martyr turned out to be

the woman that Peter needed in his life two years later he brought her to preobrazhenskaya as his bride where she

converted to orthodoxy and took the name Catherine alexeyevna this kind and

gentle woman who had once served as a housemaid and remained illiterate all her life would bear Peter 11 children

and in time be crowned Empress of Russia for now the great northern war ground on

an hare island where the river neva flows into the Gulf of Finland the

Russians began to build a fort with six fast ian's named the Peter and Paul

Fortress it guarded the first Russian port on the Baltic Sea

this was destined to be the site of a new Russian capital st. Petersburg in

six months the first foreign ship would arrive at the port three years later the

first warships would be launched from the city's Admiralty shipyard peter's

dream of dominating the Baltic Sea was within reach

the construction of the Czar's new capital was beset with difficulties and needless to say hugely expensive first

the marshes had to be drained then numerous dams and dikes put in place to protect the land from flooding it took

20,000 logs to build just one dike today it would take 20 freight trains to

deliver this much timber each year

40,000 laborers arrived to help build the new city and for the first time the

czar authorized the use of thousands of Christmas as convict labour they were

formed into labor battalions working for up to 15 hours a day and even around-the-clock during the white nights

of summer in 15 years these brutal conditions would claim the lives of an

estimated 100,000 workers Europe paid little attention to Peters victories all

they saw was a greedy tsar of the Muscovites seizing a piece of boggy shoreline and

hurriedly settling in there they were much more interested in his enemy Carl

the 12th of Sweden waging war in the heart of Europe against the Polish King Augustus in 1706 Carl defeated August's

forced him to give up his throne and then turned on Russia two armies met on

June 27th 1709 four miles outside Poltava

[Music] both monarchs led their armies in person

in the eve of battle Carl addressed his troops he promised them that the next

day they'd eat at the table of the Tsar of Russia he's prepared many dishes for

us go where glory calls czar Peter also

spoke to his troops soldiers a time has come that will decide the fate of our

motherland do not think you are fighting for Peter you are fighting for the state

he is entrusted with for your families your motherland for our Orthodox Church

the Swedish army at Poltava had a strength of 8,000 infantry 8000 cavalry

and just four cannon the Russian army consisted of 25,000 infantry 9,000

cavalry and 73 cannon the battle raged for 10 hours and ended in a brilliant

victory for the Russian army Russian losses were 1,300 men killed and 3,300

wounded the Swedes suffered 8,000 casualties almost twice as many as the Russians

while 4,000 were taken prisoner and 17,000 more lost during the retreat the

Battle of Poltava ended 100 years of Swedish military dominance in Europe though Kyle remained a threat as long as

he still commanded a powerful navy the rest of Europe however was forced to recognize that Russia long regarded as

wild and backward was now a force to be reckoned with [Music]

Peter had turned his back on Moscow its onion domes winding streets and apple

orchards his favorite place in the whole world was now st. Petersburg Peter

described these boggy windswept islands as paradise he liked to oversee as much

of the work as possible himself including the construction of the summer palace inspired by the stately homes and

Gardens he'd visited in Europe everyday

Peter spent here was a happy one as he watched his new capital rise up around

him

the order that every cart entering the city had to bring three large stones with it

weighing not less than five pounds these were used to turn streets of mud into

the city's first paved roads Peter could

already see the great palaces wide boulevards parks and promenade that

would one day make this city the Venice of the north but Peters quest to

modernize Russia was far from complete everything had to change finances

bureaucracy laws there was no master plan it would be step by step as

dictated by necessity and the most pressing need was for money

ETA's tax reform centered on the creation of a poll tax to be paid once a

year by every male subject in the realm peasants had to pay seventy-four kopacz

about a hundred dollars today while those living in towns had to pay nearly double 1.2 roubles about $200 today

peasants in some parts of the country were now taxed for the first time including inhabitants of the far north

Siberia and the Volga region state revenue

tripled providing Peter with the money necessary for further reforms Peter saw

his work as a sacred duty and himself as the motherland's faithful servant he

expected the same from all his subjects regardless of rank from the grandest noble to the humblest peasant to ensure

the smooth running of the state he created the post of fiscal a secret Informer who sniffed out corruption

which was then punished brutally to deter others but bribe taking and

embezzlement remained endemic for every 100 rubles collected in state taxation scarcely 30 reached the state treasury

the greatest embezzler of all was the Tsar's close friend Prince Menshikov whose income almost equalled that of the

state Peter finally lost all patience declaring that if someone stole even

just enough money to buy himself a piece of rope that rope would be used to hang them Menshikov talked him down warning

that if he passed such a law he'd soon have no subjects left

PETA was involved in drawing up statutes and charters for many new bodies from

the Academy of Sciences to the Admiralty as well as issuing hundreds of decrees

czar legislated on almost every aspect of Russian life from the type of boot

polish used to the width of cloth that was produced profits of merchants the

proper way to construct stoves farming implements the correct form of wedding the treatment of the sick what sort of

coffin should be used to bury the dead and how many times a week a sauna should be heated and there were more each new

law stipulated the punishment for breaking it a fine for talking in church the death penalty for treason Peter it

was clear his subjects were like children who couldn't be trusted to run their lives without his supervision he

didn't ask their opinion of course nor did he ask the opinion of his son Alexei

whose life he also governed in every small detail Tsarevich Alexei was the

son of Peters first wife lived okiya who was banished to a convent when he was 8 he was raised instead by his aunt

Princess Natalya Peter tried to involve Alexei in affairs of state and took him

on campaign when he was just 12 boy showed early promise with an aptitude

for languages and mathematics with Peters bullying behavior caused Alexei

to fear and eventually loathe his own father and secretly wish him dead

[Music] the Tsar's enemies persuaded Alexi to

flee to Vienna he was signing his own death warrant Russian agents soon found

him and brought him back to face his father's judgment the prince was

terrified under torture he named all those he knew to be enemies of the Tsar

and renounced his right to inherit the throne he had fled it emerged because he

was convinced his father intended to have him killed the prince was

imprisoned in the peter and paul fortress On June 25th 1718 a court found

Alexi guilty of treason and sentenced him to death the next day the prince was

found dead in his cell the official

cause of death was an apoplectic fit the real cause cannot be proved what is

known is that the prince was cruelly tortured for days during his interrogation the day after his son's

death Peter celebrated the ninth anniversary of the Battle of Poltava those close to him could see his grief

I suffer for the entire motherland he

wrote my enemy's play vile tricks against me it's hard for people to

believe in my innocence as they know none of the facts but God sees the truth Peter could see

with brutal clarity how precarious his achievements were if he died everything

would collapse and the Tsar was not a well man the opinion of Peters doctor

the rent is bloomin trust was that his 44 year old patient suffered from chronic bronchitis inflammation of the

bowels chronic kidney disease kidney stones swollen liver and damaged nerves

Peter wasn't good at following diets or cutting down on alcohol instead he went

too sparse to take the local mineral water heater was now spurred on by a

sense of his own mortality first he needed to end the great northern war now

in its 20th year even after Carl the 12th fell in battle Sweden would not make peace and refused to recognize

Peters Baltic conquests Russia would first have to defeat Sweden's Navy in

1714 at gank at the Russian galleys won their first victory over the Swedes six

years later at brendham they captured four Swedish frigates Sweden then signed

an alliance with Britain and a joint Anglo Swedish squadron approached Russia's Baltic Fleet base at revel it

was then forced to withdraw in 1721 the war ended with the Treaty of

NICHD at Sweden recognize Russian ownership of ingria which became the province of st. Petersburg Livonia Baden

Latvia and southern Estonia estland now northern Estonia and part of Corellia

Russia had its Baltic Sea outlet and with it the status of a European power

[Music] rushon Senate asked Peter to accept the title father of the nation Peter the

Great Emperor of all Russia the moment marked the end of the

Russians Adam and the birth of the Russian Empire but what future for the

house of Romanov few of Peters children

has survived infancy his heir Peter died at the age of three he had two adult

daughters Anna and Elizabeth and a grandson little Peter the son of the

late czarevitch Alexei but Peter didn't want the boy to succeed him yet fearing

he would become the puppet of his enemies who would try to undo all his reforms Peter decided to change the

ancient customs of succession he issued a decree allowing a ruler to choose

their successor let the ruler be always free it said to choose to whom they will

give their inheritance in the spring of 1720 for at the Cathedral of the

Assumption in the Kremlin Peter solemnly crowned his wife Catherine as Empress

did it mean he intended to leave the throne to her za made no mention of the

matter soon after the coronation Peter learned

that Catherine had been unfaithful to him and that her lover was the brother of his former dutch mistress Anna Mons

it was a heavy blow Catherine was Peters

greatest love and closest companion she was the only one able to calm his

outbursts of rage the German diplomat count Henning Friedrich bazevich

witnessed such a scene more than once he

used to have fits caused by a dark thought entering his head that someone was trying to kill him these episodes

were a nightmare for those closest to him the newer fit was coming when his mouth started to shake they would immediately

send for the Empress she would start talking to him and the sound of her

voice calmed him down she used to make him sit down and would then take his

head in her hands brushing it gently it was like magic he'd fall asleep in a

matter of minutes so as not to disturb him she'd hold his head against her

chest and sit without moving for two or three hours after that he'd wake up

fresh and invigorated

Peter had never been a faithful husband on campaign he would bed the servants

and the soldiers wives had even established a set fee for their services one bucket per night nor did the ladies

of court escape desires attention in his father's day women were kept out of sight now instead of being treated like

slaves it was said they were worshipped like goddesses the many sudden changes

to Russian customs social norms and dress were soon being blamed for a

collapse in morality Czar himself set a terrible example his lovers included

Mary Hamilton a lady-in-waiting countess Abdul Chia Cherne Shova antis Maria

rumyantseva the Romanian countess maria Cantor Mia

Elizaveta scindia all of whom slept with Peter with the full knowledge of their

fathers or husbands Catherine had tolerated all of the

Czar's affairs and never reproached him for them with that was expected Peter

had Catherine's lover arrested and charged with accepting bribes to avoid public disgrace the investigation was

Swift he was found guilty in five days and dead in eight Peeta had his severed

head preserved in alcohol and placed in a jar then it was rumoured he delivered

this gruesome gift to Catherine's chambers in person Emperor and Empress

did not speak for nearly a year he neither dined nor slept together but in

the autumn of 1724 Peter's health suddenly got worse it continued to

ignore his doctor's advice now he would pay the price

On January the 16th Peter was too ill to leave his bed he called for the Empress

he talked for three hours all that time Catherine knelt beside him at last they made peace and forgave each

other the next day Peter was in excruciating pain but the doctors could

provide no relief his screams echoed through the palace Catherine did not

leave his bedside On January 22nd in between fits Peter confessed his sins five days later

he asked for a desk to write his will he didn't know that in the next room generals and Senators were discussing

the succession for many of them it was a matter of life and death

1/2 Dukes Dolgoruky Ellison and Rhett Neen were for the 10-year old Peter they

Prince Alexei son the other half knew men like menshikov

and Tolstoy who'd led the investigation against Prince Alexei feared his son would seek to avenge his father he

wanted the Empress to take the throne Peter wrote just two words give

everything and fainted at 4:00 a.m. the

Senate decided the throne must go to Catherine she was still at the Tsar's bedside at ten past five

he died in her arms

[Music]

[Music]

for the lowborn sir it sir to succeed her husband caused a stir but nothing to

do with Peters rain could shock the Russians anymore she would be Russia's second female ruler in 30 years and

there was great sympathy for Catherine her life was a fairy tale a housemaid

who'd captured the heart of a czar become his Queen and Empress

[Music]

chapter 2 Catherine the first alexeyevna [Music]

the Empress knew nothing about ruling estate she couldn't even read and write the

only thing she ever mastered was how to sign her own name but that was enough to authorize the founding of a Russian

Academy of Sciences as Peter had always dreamed and to authorize be to sparing

x' expedition to the far east on the

whole catherine left the governing to others and devoted herself to parties and drinking she drank ferociously with

many lovers and danced till dawn

a typical day for the Empress began when

she rose from bed at 4 o'clock in the afternoon she dined at 8 then took a

walk in the summer garden she usually went to bed around 10 o'clock the next

morning the court was dominated by the serene counter legs and ER daniela which

menshikov it was he who had first introduced catherine to peter then he

had put her on the throne now he held the reins of power he ruled through a

new body a supreme Privy Council formally its role was to advise the

Empress but in reality it ran the country [Music]

Catherine didn't attend the council meetings she had no interest she

listened to its reports but for no more than half an hour any longer gave her a headache the Empress is dissolute

lifestyle soon led to serious health problems she put on weight and suffered

from kidney disease and a heightened pulse it was plain to see that Catherine

would not live much longer so menshikov began to plan for the future persuading the Empress to sign a

will by which Prince Peter would inherit the throne but only after he married

menshikov's daughter on May the 6th 1727 Catherine the first died she would be

remembered as a kind and marries a Ritzer and a loyal companion of Peter the Great

many had believed that without peter the great's iron will Russia would revert to

being a second-rate power on the margins of Europe but Peters reforms had created

an unstoppable momentum of their own

in st. Petersburg palaces were rising along the shores of the Baltic gardens

were planted and wide boulevards paved they were the first in Russia to be lit by oil lamps cannon-armed Russian

warships stood out at sea while Russia got its first printed newspaper via de

masti with a circulation of between two hundred and four thousand merchants

goods travelled from San Petersburg to Moscow along newly dug canals advanced

schools of artillery medicine and navigation were opened and the Academy of Science is established in the Urals

nine foundries produced seven million pounds of cast iron a year and two hundred thousand pounds of copper they

supplied Russia's new armaments industry turning out muskets and cannon for what

was now one of the largest most powerful armies in Europe

[Music] Peter had dragged Russia from the Middle

Ages into the modern world but his new state would now have to prove its

resilience and whether the storm of dynastic crisis and intrigue it would be

40 years before there was another Russian ruler to match Peter the Great

[Music]

the court of 18th century Imperial Russia was a place of etiquette and

excess stunning bores and carnivals jesters and fireworks

[Music] most popular dance was the quadrille in

which the dancers constantly changed their partners around these courtiers

spun a huge Russian Empire its rulers coming and going like partners in the

dance this was Russia's age of Palace

revolutions

[Music]

the year 1727 few years after the death of Peter the Great

Peter had forged an empire through iron will and firm rule without him it seemed

to have lost its purpose state revenue was collapsing ships stood unfinished in

the shipyards the army lacked vital equipment government bureaucracy was

riddled with corruption

supreme Privy Council ruled the state it consisted of a handful of nobles and

chiefly looked after their own interests and on the throne twelve-year-old boy

chapter 1 e 2 the second Alexeyevich e 2

the second was the son of Prince Alexei and the German princess Sophie Charlotte of brunswick-lüneburg making him the

grandson of Peter the Great his mother died soon after childbirth his father

when he was just 2 his older sister Natalia was his only close family Peter

seemed unlikely to inherit the throne as Peter the Great had two other sons Peter

and Paul but they both died in infancy making Peter the last male of the

Romanov dynasty glein Peter was born

into an environment devoid of love or affection his parents cared little for

each other while his father lived in terror of his grandfather Peter the Great

indifferent nursemaids gave him wine to stop him crying his tutors were not much

better he was taught some German and Latin but that was the extent of his learning even his Russian was bad

nevertheless by the age of seven he was well acquainted with the lavish entertainments of court

young Peter wasn't interested in the army the Navy or science only in having

fun it didn't worry those around him on the

contrary it served their interests they wanted a czar they could control a czar

who was in their pocket it was only a question of whose pocket he ended up in

when peter ii became emperor in 1727 he was immediately taken under the wing of

his serene highness alexander danilevich menshikov he'd been a close friend and

associate of Peter the Great and his widow empress catherine the first who was the most influential man in russia

[Music] shortly before Catherine's death

menshikov had persuaded the Empress to sign a will that made young Peter her

heir there was one condition on coming

of age Peter was to marry menshikov's daughter Maria then menshikov's control of the

young Tsar would be total of course no one asked for Peters opinion on any of

this [Music]

soon after his coronation the twelve-year-old Peter found himself engaged was 16 year old Maria Mancha

Cova the Emperor's bride received the title Imperial Highness and an annual

allowance of thirty four thousand rubles

peter ii found his fiancee deeply uninteresting in his letters he referred

to her as the stone statue or the porcelain doll meanwhile menshikov moved

the young Tsar into his own sand Petersburg palace to shield him from any unwanted external influence and assigned

him a governor Baron Andrei Ivanovich Osterman deputy minister of foreign affairs but the Emperor's studies didn't

last long Menshikov suddenly fell seriously ill and in his absence Peter fell in with a

young rake even dull guru cough who encouraged him to flee menshikov's stifling supervision tsar quickly fell

under the influence of dal guru cough and his powerful family who were bitter rivals of Menshikov with their

encouragement he and his governor baron Osterman moved out of menshikov's palace and into the peterhof palace he also

broke off his engagement to Maryam and she Cova soon a special commission found

Menshikov guilty of embezzling state funds he was stripped of all his titles

honours estates and property and sent with his family into internal exile in

Siberia dal-gu coughs with the wily baron

Osterman now held the reins of power the sovereign tsar peter was free to indulge

in his new favorite sport hunting unlike

his great-grandfather Alexei the first who loved falconry Peter the second hunted without any expertise or

knowledge it didn't matter to him how or what he hunted what mattered was riding

fast and making a lot of noise

all this would have been entirely natural for his age if it hadn't been for his constant drinking sprees nobody

cared about his health except his sister Natalia she was the only person who

truly loved the boy Emperor and tried to stop him drinking but aged just 14

she died of tuberculosis with no one to stop him Peter began regularly binge

drinking with his guards he was tall and well-developed for his age and women

were also made available to him Peter then fell in love with his aunt

Elizabeth daughter of Peter the Great

nobody was going to let Peter marry Elizabeth first of all the church prohibited marriages between such close

relatives second even dull guru cough had already chosen a bride for him his

sister Catherine thus way the Emperor's decision even provided proof that his

aunt Elizabeth was already in love with an officer of the guards a hot-headed

teenager felt that Elizabeth had betrayed him who made a point of turning his attention to Catherine Dahl guru

kava once more the Tsar found himself the pawn in other people's games

[Music]

while the court was absorbed in imperial love matches the vast Russian Empire was

left virtually leaderless state finances were in chaos the army was

disintegrating Russia's international standing was in freefall European

ambassadors reported on the situation in Russia it makes no sense to make an alliance at this time Tsar thinks only

about his own amusement these officials think only of how to ruin each other

everybody lives without a care it's unclear how such a vast state can

maintain itself without any support Russia's huge bureaucracy had been left

to fend for itself because the body that was supposed to wield power in Russia that effectively ceased to function the

Supreme Privy Council had been established by Katherine the first to help her rule the Empire or to be more

exact to rule it for her officially it was only supposed to advise the monarch

but in reality it was now governing russia during peter ii reign six Nobles

sat on the Supreme Council count gavrila golovkin the guillotines

Prince Dmitry and Prince Mikhail the dunkaroo coffs Prince Vasily Vladimirovich and Vasili lukitch and

Baron Osterman Peter now 14 years old

had no idea about the problems his country faced and the dagger drew coughs did everything to keep it that way

the father Prince Alexei using his son even to keep Peter distracted they

intended to make the Emperor their puppet and turn the clock back by undoing all peter the great's

modernizing reforms Peter had already agreed to stop new naval construction

persuaded it was a waste of money and moved the capital from San Petersburg back to Moscow where the hunting was far

superior only a few steps remained [Music]

in November 1728 the Emperor's engagement to even sister Princess

Catherine doll guru kava was announced [Music]

as Catherine arrived at the palace for the official engagement the carriage caught under a low gate in front of

guards and onlookers the gilded crown on the carriage roof was torn off and fell

into the gutter in the weeks leading up

to the wedding dal-gu Rokoff princes kept the emperor constantly entertained best he had time

to reconsider his decision On January 6th thirteen days before the

wedding Peter went to the traditional blessing of the Moscow River at the ceremony he

played the part of the chivalrous Knight standing on the footboard of Princess Catherine's carriage for hours in

freezing weather next day he had a burning fever then he

was diagnosed with smallpox [Music]

smallpox also known by its latin name very oliveira had been present in europe

at a low level for a thousand years but in the 18th century higher population

levels and the greater movement of people across the continent caused it to spread like wildfire smallpox victims

developed spots on their face and limbs and the rich both men and women wore

heavy makeup to mask the scars they left but it was more than just a cosmetic

issue smallpox was a killer in Europe the virus infected more than half the

population about 80 million people killing one in six

the Emperor's health had been ruined by a dissolute lifestyle his fever and

weakened immune system allowed the smallpox to progress quickly

in just one week it was clear Peter would not survive

[Music] dal-gu coughs were in despair

it looked as if all their efforts had been in vain their grand schemes come to

nothing as the Emperor Lay Dying LeFort

off palace stood empty and silent decorated for a wedding it would never

take place his dog Iruka friends meanwhile were desperately looking for a

way to cling to power they decided to make the emperor sign a will naming his

betrothed the Grand Duchess Catherine doll guru cava as his successor if they

had succeeded the ruling house of Russia would have passed from the house of Romanov to the house of dagger gucoff

but the emperor was not able to sign the will on January the 18th 1730 the eve of

his planned wedding he suddenly sat up and ordered his sledge to be harnessed I

want to go and see my sister he said they were his last words

he died the next day

the Supreme Privy Council reacted with indignation to the idea of handing the

throne to the dunkaroo coffs the Romanoff's were the ruling dynasty of russia if the male line was broken they

would turn to the female line the female line of the Romanoff's lived on through

the two daughters of Peter the Great Anna and Elizabeth they were also three daughters of even

the fifth Peters half-brother and joint ruler who died young they were Catherine

Anna and plus Kavya Anna had married the

Duke of Holstein in 1728 she bore him a son Karl Peter Ulrich but she died soon after

childbirth Catherine had married the Duke of Mecklenburg and had a

twelve-year-old daughter Elizabeth Catarina Cristina Anna was the widow of

the Duke of Courland and had no children Escoffier was

married to general dmitry heft mamonov council discussed the suitability of the

candidates long into the night finally at 6:00 a.m. they chose anna

duchess of Courland and daughter of Eve and the fifth widowed at the age of 17

she lived in Yale Java the Auriga she had no money and no allies in Moscow

blessed with neither great charm nor intellect the council believed they could soon bend her to their will to

avoid any surprises the council prepared a list of conditions which Anna would have to sign before sheet of the throne

according to these conditions the Empress would not have the right to declare war make treaties introduce new

taxes or spend state revenue make promotions above the rank of colonel

give out land sentence Nobles to death get married or appoint her successor all

these powers would reside in the Supreme Privy Council

the Empress would have control only over her own income and her palace guards

[Applause] [Music] on the morning of January 19 1730

the death of Peter the second was announced publicly at the same time a

delegation set off from Moscow to see Anna nine days later she signed the

conditions Russian autocracy had been abolished in its place oligarchy the

rule of an elite view Anna arrived in Moscow where she was greeted by her

guards the preobrazhenskiy regiment Anna declared that she was to be their chief

spoke privately with the officers she learned many interesting things from

these conversations she was told the people of Moscow were outraged by the conditions that had been imposed upon

her and that the Privy Council was despised by many of the nobles just days

ago anna had been an impoverished forgotten duchess in out-of-the-way courland now she was within a stone's

throw of becoming Empress of Russia she sensed her moment [Music]

she gathered her guards and senior Nobles in the palace hall and showed them what she thought of the conditions

[Music] chapter 2 Vanna

Ian Avner within a week the Supreme

Privy Council was dismissed within a month Prince Alexei dal guru Cove and

his son even were exiled to the Siberian town of berestov where their sworn enemy

Menshikov had died the year before the day after becoming Empress and are

demanded to see all the items confiscated from the famously wealthy menshikov she picked out jewelry for

herself worth twenty three thousand rubles 138 million today about four

million u.s. dollars she appointed a Russian architect of Italian parentage

Bartolomeo rest rally to build two new palaces for her a wooden winter palace

in the Kremlin and a stone summer palace on the yowser river to help her settle

in [Music] anas German Chamberlain and Spearin

followed his mistress to Moscow he was Anna's favorite and her lover the fact

that he was married with three children didn't concern her Anna herself was the secret mother of his youngest son

Karl amst which is why the boy was brought to Moscow [Music]

later they were joined by Byron's wife and elder sons together they formed

Russia's and Orthodox new imperial family the typical day fat Empress Anna

began at 8 a.m. when she took her coffee she worked between 9 and 10 receiving

ministers and signing decrees then she went riding with Viren and at noon she

had lunch with him his wife and children then she went to bed for an hour rest of

the day was solely for her own amusement

Anna found many unusual ways to entertain herself one of her favorite

was shooting crows this was why a loaded musket was left by each of the palace

windows the impressed did you just shoot

Birds she also hunted bears with a spear but there were also more sophisticated

entertainments at court Italian operas and theatres in Hanna's reign the first

Russian dance school was founded but

nothing delighted the Empress quite as much as watching her court jesters and dwarfs fighting jesters first appeared

in Russia in the reign of Ivan the Terrible a century later Alexei the first right to play chess against his

own jester an acrimonious Hunchback named alpha Tsar Peter the Great's

jesters included a former officer of the preobrazhenskiy regiment even Bela craf who advised the Tsar on serious issues

and a Jew who'd converted to Christianity yonder Costa who debated

theology with the Tsar the position of court jester flourished

during the reign of empress Anna now there were more than ever Ballack rep and Acosta were joined by

the Italian musician Pietro Petrillo and noblemen who'd been demoted to jesters Prince Nikita Falcon ski Prince Mikhail

galitsin and count Alexia practising a troupe of entertainers also featured 10

dwarves one kalmyk woman and two event women from Russia's easternmost regions

the Empress acquired a taste for exotic and spectacular parties lavish banquets

masquerades and fireworks the only thing she frowned on was drinking alcohol had

caused the early death of her young husband the Duke of Courland after he had tried to keep pace with Peter the

Great's drinking at their own wedding celebration the Empress created a ministerial

cabinet to handle the business of government it was the Supreme Privy Council in all but name

just with new faces only the wily Baron Osterman kept his place

becoming the elder statesman of Anna's government the Empress herself barely

followed affairs of state but beyond who now held the title Duke of courland took

an active role in cabinet business one cabinet minister Artemi velinski wrote

the Empress is a fool it's impossible to get any decision from her Duke beer on

as he pleases for opposing beer on velinski was charged with treason and

executed the very thought of a palace revolution terrified Anna she had peter

the great's daughter elizabeth watched to look for any hint of conspiracy and she reestablished the secret Chancellery

of investigations founded by Peter but abolished by his successor its role was

to sniff out any trace of political dissent its agents were everywhere and

were rightly feared any careless word particularly about the Empress could

lead to arrest and inevitably torture in

the course of Anna's 10-year reign secret Chancellery arrested and tortured about 28,000 suspects those 20,000 were

exiled to Siberia and Kamchatka 5000 went missing 2,000 died during torture

and more than 1,000 were executed

the Empress was suspicious of her guards too especially the preobrazhenskiy regiment they'd put her on the throne

they could depose her too so she created a second guards regiment his mile off

ski the new regiments officers were recruited from her native Duchy of

Courland and took over guard duty at the palace preobrazhenskiy regiment was sent

to fight the Turks at Belgrade in 1739

the treaty was signed to end the four-year conflict between Russia and the Ottoman Empire under its terms as

off and parts of Ukraine became part of Russia but Russian warships and merchant

ships were forbidden from sailing in the Sea of Azov all the black sea the war

cost the Russian army about 46,000 man only about six thousand or one in eight

of those men fell in battle the remaining 40,000 died from disease starvation and neglect Anna didn't

concern herself with these details she was glad the war was over but her main concern was moving the court from Moscow

back to San Petersburg in 1737 Moscow

had been devastated by a great fire the Kremlin you take her at the surrounding

white town part of the earth town almost all the modern city centre was burnt to

the ground at the time the great tsar bell had been standing in the kremlin foundry the scaffolding around it caught

fire when water was poured onto it a bell burst from the sudden temperature change

anas winter palace also burned down but six months later the Empress was

celebrating her birthday in a new Winter Palace built for her by Bartolomeo rest

rally in Saint Petersburg the state apartments consisted of more than 100

rooms all of them decorated in the most lavish style under Anna's reign

expenditure on the court reached 260 thousand rubles per year worth about 42

million dollars today running costs of Duke beer on stables were a hundred thousand rubles about 17 million dollars

while small-scale expenditures by the Empress totaled forty two and a half thousand rubles for seven million

dollars incredibly the Empress spent as much on jewelry as it cost to maintain

the Academy of Sciences about forty seven thousand rubles great million dollars just a tenth of that some was

spent on public education a measly four and a half thousand rubles

Anna's most decadent celebration was held for the wedding of two of her court jesters in a palace of ice

on Anna's whim the 53 year old Mikhail galitsin was to marry a 20 year old

kalmo girl named Abdul shibuya Nineveh the bill for the party came to 30,000

rubles a house of ice 17 metres long and

3 metres high was built between the Admiralty and the Winter Palace six ice

cannon and two mortars stood by the entrance by the gates there were ice

sculptures of elephants and dolphins while everything inside the house even the furniture was made of ice before the

wedding a masked procession passed through the city streets playing horns and Bal iliacus it included representatives from

across the Empire Ukrainians from the south and Nimitz from the far north

bride and groom traveled in a cage mounted on top of an elephant and after

the wedding were left in the bedroom of the Ice Palace [Music]

the French ambassador Marquis de Lucia tardy was one of the guests

only in this country is there such fun to be had the bride and groom were taken to an ice

house it was kept worn with straw the light that shone in through the ice from all sides was extraordinary all who saw

it were amazed one of the few not

enjoying themselves was the Empress's beautiful cousin Princess Elizabeth now

treated with open suspicion Princess Elizabeth was adored by the

gods she was godmother to their children and lent some of the money but most

importantly she was peter the great's daughter [Music]

her popularity had become a threat to Anna's plans for the succession Anna

wanted the throne to remain with her father's line at aviv and the fifth half-brother and joint ruler with peter

the great so anna announced that her heir would be the future son of her 14 year old niece

Elizabeth Katarina Kristina even though at the time she wasn't even married

Elizabeth took the name anna leopoldovna after converting to orthodoxy and a20

married the Duke of Brunswick Anton Ulrich someone to Russia for that purpose soon

the couple had a son yun Antonovich when

the new heir to the Russian throne was just two months old in prasanna fell seriously ill with kidney stones

[Music] inflammation and infection set in just

two weeks after the first symptoms on October 17 1740 Anna died

one of her last acts was to sign a decree appointing a region for the infant Emperor the Duke of Courland and

spear on [Music]

Russian people felt no great loss of the death of Empress Anna her reign would be

remembered for excess frivolity and cruelty nevertheless it was Anna who

pushed forward the development of San Petersburg many of its grandest and most famous buildings including the Peter and

Paul Cathedral the Admiralty with its high spire and the fountains of the Peterhof Palace were completed in the

1730's under the supervision of the Italian architects Rastrelli and Rosalie Italian musical theater made

its first appearance in Russia while the Academy of Sciences published a regular newspaper some Petersburg news as well

as the first Russian scientific journals

elsewhere the foundations of Russian literature were being laid by poets such as Tretyakov ski and the young Lomonosov

the Empress herself of course was interested only in much cruder forms of

entertainment she had neither the intellect energy nor charisma to be an effective ruler a position that after

all came to her almost by chance and within two weeks of her death all the

plans she had laid for her succession had collapsed like a house of cards

no one was satisfied by the appointment of Anna's lover and Spearin as regent to

the infant Emperor even the sixth and so the guards intervened again on the night

of November 9th 1740 Field Marshal Count von Munich and 80 Guardsmen burst into

the Winter Palace he sealed the exits and sent his adjutant to find beer on

[Music]

according to the adjutant's report Viren was sleeping soundly when they arrived when he was awoken he tried to hide

under the bed but the soldiers dragged him out he struck out in an effort to

break free but the soldiers answered his blows with musket butts he was then stripped naked and tied up

and carried to the guardhouse where he was loaded into the field marshals waiting carriage he was carried out past

the very rooms in which Anna's coffin was still lying by 6 a.m. the palace

coup was over Russia had a new Regent the infant emperor's mother the 21 year

old anna leopoldovna rumored to be even less intelligent than her aunt the late

Empress Anna was madly in love with a Saxon diplomat named Kent lino Russian

Nobles feared they had another biron on their hands when lino was given the post of grand Chamberlain he then briefly

returned to Saxony to settle his affairs at home but before he could return the

Russian throne changed hands once more Peter the Great's daughter Elizabeth had

finally made her move many people knew about the plot to put

Elizabeth on the throne who Diaz warned and are about it every day

she paid little attention until finally she decided to speak with Elizabeth

herself Elizabeth was her half cousin once-removed

and ten years her senior meeting warned

Elizabeth that she was suspected she had to act fast she summoned a few trusted

men donned a gilded breastplate over her parade uniform and went to the barracks

of the preobrazhenskiy regiment you remember whose daughter I am she cried

are you ready to die for me guards responded with loud cheers Elizabeth led

them to the Winter Palace where the guards also quickly switched their allegiance

she entered the bedroom of anna leopoldovna with the words sister it's time to get up then she went to the

nursery of the infant emperor Yvonne she ordered her men not to wake him

she took even in her arms kissed him and said you're not to blame little one

nobody knew what to do with him Elizabeth left the winter palace with

the child in her arms chapter three

Elizabeth Petrovna little even the sixth

became Russia's man in the iron mask almost all his short tragic life was

spent in closely guarded confinement first in ranan burg then in karma gory

and then in solitary confinement in the shlisselburg fortress where he was held as a prisoner with no name even spent

seven years in a cell with no natural light with only the Bible to read at the

age of 24 he was murdered by his guards during a failed rescue attempt his

parents spent the rest of their lives under guard in kama gory far to the north so that no one was ever tempted to

restore their family to the throne in

the aftermath of the palace revolution even the sixth fate was not yet known Elizabeth had many important decisions

to make first she announced that she would restore the laws and state bodies

established by her father Peter the Great the Senate resumed its work as a

legislative and judicial body the ministerial cabinet was dismissed

Elizabeth would learn to keep a close eye on all her advisors who ensure none

grew too powerful or dared challenge her authority during her magnificent

coronation Elizabeth became the first Russian monarch to place the crown upon her own head a moment rich in symbolism

[Music] foreigners who'd helped Elizabeth gain power hoping for special treatment were

disappointed the new Empress wasn't going to dance to anyone else's tune on

one occasion her agents intercepted a letter sent by her old friend the French ambassador Marquis de Chatard

II the smallest matters terrify her weakness and instability this is the

essence of all the Tsar it's as actions Markey was sent home within 24 hours

the Empress never forgot who'd really put her in power the guards now she

entrusted her life to them creating a special unit to act as her bodyguard

leap company was an elite unit made up of the 300 grenadiers and 64 officers

that had put Elizabeth on the throne these men could do virtually whatever

they liked were made for terrible guards often drinking on duty falling asleep

and even leaving their posts but the empress excused them anything she

herself was the unit's commanding officer its officers were her friends and closest allies including the

brothers Peter and Alexander Suvorov and her lover Alexei razumovsky Alexei

razumovsky held no political rank at all but if he'd wanted he could have become the most influential man in Russia

wielding power did not interest him he was good-natured and entirely without

ambition the Empress's happiness was his only concern the son of a Cossack farmer from

northern Ukraine he had a fine singing voice and was extremely handsome he

became Elizabeth's constant companion he was cheerful calm and dependable and

they were devoted to each other

Rosa maaske gave Elizabeth a taste for Ukrainian cuisine and her cooks prepared

borscht with garlic and dumplings for her almost every day

the Empress liked to eat well and had certain peculiar habits for example she

always had a radish with a glass of vodka ate something fatty late at night drank a lot of coffee a personal coffee

maker carl severs was obliged to follow her everywhere to make coffee for her

the Empress adored sweet things too confectioner's were hired from France

and Italy to create fantastic sculptures from sugar and sponge like her mother

Catherine the first Elizabeth was a night owl and stayed up long after the balls had finished and there was always

the lingering fear of a nighttime palace coup Elizabeth never slept in the same

room twice and her apartments were constantly being altered new doors and

windows were cut through the walls staircases were moved all measures to

create new escape routes and to confuse any potential conspirators

[Music] this deep fear was masked by a busy

schedule of court entertainments on mondays music for dancing on wednesdays

Italian music on Tuesdays and Fridays theatres Elizabeth loved balls and

masquerades and could happily dance through the night she liked to devise her own magical or comical themes for

instance making all the men come dressed as women the women as men all the guests

would be made to look ridiculous except Elizabeth herself whose shapely legs were universally admired the

Empress was a great beauty but hugely vain her courtiers were expected to pay

her endless compliments while ladies feared to dress too well in case they were thought to be competing with her to

ensure she was always the most magnificently attired Elizabeth would issue strict rules before a ball

stipulating certain colors or hairstyles that only she was permitted to wear the

Empress's wardrobe was reported to include no fewer than 15,000 dresses she

never wore a dress twice and sometimes changed several times in a single evening merchants importing expensive

textiles from abroad were obliged to bring them to the Empress first so she could select the finest fabrics for

herself [Music]

the Rococo style was the latest fashion in Europe which meant frilly shirts for

the men and for the women whalebone corsets to create tiny waists and huge

skirts supported by Kane who petticoats fantastically elaborate hairdos were all

the rage some of them 60 centimetres high and shaped to resemble fancy hats flower

beds or even ships and windmills small flasks of water holding live flowers

were sometimes tied into the hair at night it was recommended to cover such constructions with a night cap to

prevent lice from crawling in impress

Elizabeth also demanded palaces to equal anything in Austria or France this is

where the genius of Bartolomeo rest rally came in the son of a famous Italian sculptor Rastrelli moved to San

Petersburg as a teenager and his work soon found favor with the Empress Anna as senior court architect he was kept on

by Elizabeth and his projects became yet more daring and grand his designs

included the new Winter Palace Smolny Cathedral grand Peterhof Palace Anna

Saskia sello palace the cost was astronomical the Palisades asked his

hello alone cost 1.6 million rubles equivalent of about 270 million dollars

today this at a time when the Russian economy was crippled by corruption and a

currency crisis Russians uncertain of the future had begun to hoard more and

more currency every year the state increased coin production but they simply vanished into

the economy there were approximately 54 million coins in circulation but none of

them were circulating many industries such as the extremely lucrative salt

trade were state sanctioned monopolies run by influential officials and Friends

of the Empress like Peter Shuvalov corruption had reached extraordinary

levels almost all of elizabeth's ministers also received wages from foreign countries whose taking payments

from foreign governments included the Chancellor Alexei boss - Jeffrey omen and the Vice Chancellor me Carver on

Soph it was once said over and soft that he was on sale to the first bidder

the Empress needed foreign money - word spread that she was willing to sign

conventions for subsidies these unequal agreements Russia agreed to enter a war

on one side or another in exchange for cash payments Russia had become in

effect a state for hire one thing Elizabeth refused to sign was

any death warrant when she came to power she'd sworn that she'd have no one executed and was true to her word an

entire generation of noblemen grew up without fear of the scaffold slowly but

surely the Russian economy began to modernize the first banks opened offering loans at six percent per annum

industry was expanding rapidly Russia was producing two million pewds or

33,000 tons of cast iron a year half of which was sold overseas the Russian

population was rising five million and a quarter of a century

as she aged Elizabeth became increasingly worried about losing her looks she sought reassurance in the arms

of a court page 18 years her junior named Ivan Shuvalov her infatuation with

this handsome youth soon turned to love

a former favorite razumovsky quickly understood without scandal or acrimony

he quietly withdrew from court the new favorite was much like the old calm

gentle and good-natured and absolutely loyal to the Empress he asked for

neither money nor positions however unlike razumovsky Suvorov was highly

educated he corresponded with the French philosopher helvetius and was passionate

about improving the state of Russian education thanks to his influence

Elizabeth authorized the founding of the Russian Academy of Arts and Moscow University but the life of the Mary

Empress was not all balls and parties she had another passion foreign policy

[Music] in the 1740s the warlike King Frederick

of Prussia was seeking to expand his realm at the expense of his neighbors and to establish Prussia as a great

power most of the other European powers were determined to stop him and formed

themselves into an alliance driving

forces behind the Alliance were Maria Theresa Empress of Austria Elisabeth

Empress of Russia and Madame pompadour mistress of the King of France

Frederick famous for his low opinion of women was nevertheless an intellectual

and a wit who nicknamed the alliance against him League of the three petticoats the three women had led their

countries into one of the greatest conflicts in European history the Seven Years War Russia joined the fray in 1757

launching an attack on East Prussia after meeting the Russian army in battle

frederick declared to stop a Russian soldier you need two bullets one to kill

him another to bring him down following a decisive victory against the

Prussian army at kunis Dorf Russian forces took control of Eastern Prussia the following year 1760 Russian troops

briefly occupied Frederick's capital Berlin the war seemed to be virtually won but suddenly inexplicably military

operations were called to a halt [Music]

on Christmas Eve 1761 Elizabeth had a sudden sensation that she was dying all

her life the word death had terrified her but now she was perfectly calm

she made her confession till communion and bid farewell to relatives and

friends

she gave her last advice to her heir Peter feodorovich and his wife Catherine

he friends on Christmas Day she died

Elizabeth was laid in her coffin wearing a silver dress with lace sleeves golden

crown on her head beautiful and serene as she had been in her youth but those

at the funeral were fixated instead on a strange behavior of the new emperor Peter the third he either walked too

slowly or ran laughed or grimaced it was whispered that he'd already ordered

Russian troops out of Prussia and offered his idol King Frederick peace with no demands it didn't seem to matter

to him that thousands of Russian soldiers would have died in vain there

were soon doubts about the new Emperor's sanity and what he might do one thing

seemed certain the endless parties the glamour and frivolity of Elizabeth's court or a

thing of the past

but some already looked to Peter the Third's young wife Catherine and

wondered if that glorious age could not be reclaimed

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