boyar rule

Vyacheslav Valentinovich Shaposhnik doctor of History, professor, Institute of History (Mendeleevskaya linia, 5, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 199034)
v.shaposhnik@spbu.ru

Shaposhnik V. V. Events of the 30–40s 16th century in the «Royal speeches» at Stoglavy Assembly, Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2024, vol. 13, pp. 254–267.

doi: 10.24412/2308-0698-2024-13-254-267

Language: Russian

The article examines the question of how the events of boyar rule (30–40s of the 16th century) were reflected in the «royal speeches» at the Stoglavy Council, held in 1551. In his speeches to the participants of the Council, Ivan IV mentioned many of the most important incidents that happened after the death of his father, Grand Duke Vasily III: the reign of Grand Duchess Elena Glinskaya, the arrest and death of appanage princes, the Moscow fires of 1547 and others. The young monarch, recalling the events of his childhood and youth, called boyar self-will as the cause of all troubles. However, in the spirit of «reconciliation» between various groups of the elite, achieved in the late 1540s, accusations against the boyars sound relatively mild, and specific names of «troublemakers» are not mentioned. The «royal speeches» at the Stoglavy Assembly can be compared with how the events of the 30s and 40s were discussed. Here can be Grozny’s accusations against the boyars his First Message to Andrei Kurbsky. They are directly called «traitors». In any case, Ivan IV’s negative attitude towards the boyars did not undergo major changes throughout his life. In a number of cases, tsarist accusations against the Russian elite of the 30–40s are hardly entirely fair. In general, the state apparatus continued to function throughout the period of boyar rule, despite the negative phenomena caused by the situation of political instability.
The study was supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation № 22-18-00151 «The Changes in the Composition and Image of the Ruling Elite of the Russian State during the Turning Periods of Russian History in the XVI-XVII centuries (Boyars rule, Oprichnina, Time of Troubles, Reigns of Alexey Mikhailovich, FedorAlexeevich, the Regency of Princess Sophia)».

Key words: Ivan IV, Stoglav Assembly, boyar rule, Elena Glinskaya, appanage princes, elite

URL: https://rcs-almanac.ru/shaposhnik-2024-en/

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Vyacheslav Valentinovich Shaposhnik Doctor of History, professor, the Institute of History, Saint-Petersburg State University (Mendeleevskaya linia, 5, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, 199034)
v.shaposhnik@spbu.ru

Shaposhnik V. V. Metropolitan Macarius during the period of boyar rule (1542–1547), Religiya. Tserkov’. Obshchestvo. Issledovaniya i publikatsii po teologii i religii [Religion. Church. Society: Research and publications in the field of theology and religious studies], Saint-Petersburg, 2022, vol. 11, pp. 174–193.

doi: 10.24412/2308-0698-2022-11-174-193

Language: Russian

The article deals with the first years of Metropolitan Makariy’s primacy, which fell on the period of Boyar rule (1542–1547). The author’s attention is focused on his participation in political events. It has been assumed in academic studies that the appointment of the Archbishop of Novgorod Macarius as a metropolitan was associated with his proximity to one of the boyar groups — the princes of Shuiskiy. However, an appeal to the sources allows us to conclude that the main reason for the election of Macarius was his active work as Archbishop of Veliky Novgorod and the respect he enjoyed in the Russian Church. Some researchers consider that the metropolitan was a leader of the forces advocating against of boyar rule. However, availible to us sources do not allow making such unambiguous conclusions. Macarius strove to maintain a neutral position in the court struggle, which allowed him to keep his position. In the events of the summer of 1547 (the Moscow uprise and the removal of the Glinskiy princes from power), the metropolitan also did not play a significant role. He was neither an opponent of the Glinskiy princes, nor their supporter, but remained neutral. At the same time, Macarius used the traditional right to mourn for the disgraced and participated in the meetings of the Boyar Duma. During this period, he made the greatest contribution to the preparation and conduct of the Ivan IV coronation in January 1547. It seems that the position chosen by the metropolitan — conscious noninterference in political events — was the most correct.

Key words: Metropolitan Macarius, boyar rule, Ivan IV, coronation, Moscow uprise

URL: //rcs-almanac.ru/en/en-shaposhnik-2022/