The ideas of “non-covetousness” were also developed by the Trans-Volga elders (monks of the Trans-Volga monasteries) led by Nil Sorsky. They denounced the desire to appropriate the work of other people, love of money, gluttony, pride, vanity and other vices. They preached humility, contemplative life, and moral self-improvement. Monks, according to their teaching, must earn their living by their own labor, have no land or peasants, and renounce worldly vanity and money-grubbing. Joseph Volotsky spoke about something else: “The wealth of the Church is God’s wealth.”
The struggle between the Josephites and the non-possessors continued after the death of their leaders (Joseph died in 1525, Nile in 1508). The Josephites were headed by Metropolitan Daniel, the non-covetous people were led by the monk-prince Vassian Patrikeev Kosoy (princes Golitsyn, Kurakin, Khovansky, etc. came from the Patrikeev family). The second was joined by Maxim the Greek (Mikhail Trivolis), a learned monk from Mount Athos, who came to Moscow in 1518. They found support among the opposition boyars and paid for it: church councils of 1525 and 1531. they were condemned and they ended up in exile. Their denunciations against the church, and thereby the secular authorities, and mentions of the difficult situation of the peasants corresponded to the topical moods of Russian society.
Stories and legends report on the most important events of that era - the annexation of Novgorod the Great and other Russian lands to Moscow, Tsar Ivan the Terrible and his deeds, the struggle of Russia against foreign invaders (for example, "The Tale of the Battle of Molodin" 1572, "The Tale" of “the arrival of Stefan Batory to Pskov” in 1581, etc.).
In the 16th century, a galaxy of talented Igublists worked. F.I. Karpov, a very educated man (knew Latin, Greek, oriental languages), falconer of Vasily III, mourned the imperfection of society and secular power: “Nowadays there are strife everywhere, now they live from theft,” “I realized in what harmful and objectionable ways “Earthly power and the entire human race now walk with lame feet and blind eyes.” Rulers must, in his conviction, bring “the truth to the world, eradicate the evil ones who do not want to be cured and love God.”
In the middle of the century, many publicists passionately discussed the problems of autocracy and the structure of the state, the boyars and the situation of the peasants. I. S. Peresvetov is a supporter of strong tsarist power, its support for the “warriors”—nobles—and restrictions on the rights of the boyars; centralization of management. He wrote: “A king cannot be without a thunderstorm: like a horse under a king without a bridle, so is a kingdom without a thunderstorm.” He acts as a supporter of “truth” (“God does not love faith, but truth”), “books”, “wisdom”, an opponent of servility, bondage, “whose land is enslaved, in that land they create evil. There is great impoverishment for the whole kingdom.”
In the middle of the century, many publicists passionately discussed the problems of autocracy and the structure of the state, the boyars and the situation of the peasants. I. S. Peresvetov is a supporter of strong tsarist power, its support of the “warriors” - nobles and restrictions on the rights of the boyars; centralization of management. He wrote: “A king cannot be without a thunderstorm: like a horse under a king without a bridle, so is a kingdom without a thunderstorm.” He acts as a supporter of “truth” (“God does not love faith, but truth”), “books”, “wisdom”, an opponent of servility, bondage, “which enslaved the earth, in that land they create evil. there is great deprivation for the whole kingdom.”
Ermolai-Erasmus, a priest of one of the churches of the Moscow Kremlin, calls to alleviate the situation of the peasants, for, as he says: “The plowmen are most useful, their labors create the most important wealth.”
Sylvester, the archpriest of the Annunciation Cathedral in the same Kremlin, in his messages “Domostroy” (he owns the final edition of the monument) preaches rational management, obtaining “correct acquisition” (profit).
The second half of the century was marked by vivid, emotional correspondence between Tsar Grozny and the fugitive prince A.M. Kurbsky. The first of them also contains messages to many other persons, secular and spiritual; the second - “The History of the Grand Duke of Moscow” and other works. The tsar bases his judgments on the idea of the divinely ordained power of the autocrat, its unlimitedness: “We are free to reward our slaves (all subjects - V.B.), but we are free to execute.”
Kurbsky is an opponent of the “cruelty” of the tsar, who, according to him, should rule together with “wise advisers.” Being a follower of non-covetous people (he was a student of Maxim the Greek), the prince acts as an opponent of the Josephite clergy. Criticism of the oprichnina comes, along with Kurbsky, Korniliy, abbot of the Pskov-Pechersk Monastery, compiler of the Pskov chronicle of 1567, the authors of the story about the defeat of Novgorod by Tsar the Terrible in 1570, inserted into the Novgorod Chronicle,
In the 16th century large chronicle collections are compiled one after another - Vologda-Perm, Resurrection, Nikonov, etc. They include, in addition to the previous collections, stories, legends, and extensive documents. In the second half of the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the so-called Litsevoy chronicle was compiled (the 3rd Nikon Chronicle was decorated with almost 16 thousand miniature illustrations (“faces”, hence the name of the arch). It contains the history of Russia from ancient times to the mid-50s. XVI c. This grandiose monument, like others, affirms the ideas of the greatness of the Russian autocracy, its centralizing policy. These are the same ideas that form the basis of the “Book of Degrees" (1562-1563, author Athanasius, who came from the circle of Metropolitan Macarius), " Kazan History" ("Kazan Chronicler", mid-60s), Chetiy-Minea (a collection of the lives of Russian saints, arranged by month of the year).
At the end of the century, heavy in style “The Tale of the Honest Life of Tsar Fyodor” (author-Patriarch Job) and “The Life of Metropolitan Philip” appeared. The compilation of chronicles continues, although not as extensive as before.
Architecture. This era is characterized by a significant rise in the art of construction. At the turn of the XV-XVI centuries. The Kremlin ensemble in Moscow is being designed - walls and towers, cathedrals and the Chamber of Facets. They were built by Italian architects (Aristotle Fioravanti, Pietro Solari, Marco Ruffo, Aleviz Novy and others) and Russian masters (Vasily Dmitrievich Ermolin and others). They used the traditions of ancient Russian, primarily Vladimir-Suzdal, architecture, as well as the techniques of Italian architecture of the Renaissance.
In the first half of the century, fortifications were built in Nizhny Novgorod, Tula, Zaraysk, and Kolomna. The wall of China Town (1530s) and the Novodevichy Convent (1525) appeared in the capital.
In church architecture, a tent-type temple, modeled on wooden churches (“for woodwork”), is becoming widespread. The most outstanding example of this style is the Church of the Ascension in the village of Kolomenskoye (1532), built to commemorate the birth of Ivan the Terrible. A contemporary chronicler could not contain the feeling of admiration, writing down the news of this architectural miracle in his work: “Velma is wonderful in height and beauty, and lightness, such as has never been seen before in Rus'.”
I.S. Peresvetov
The Legend of Magmet-Saltan
Mid-16th century
King Magmet-Saltan of Tours himself was a wise philosopher in his books on Tours, but he read Greek books, and writing word for word in Turka, other great wisdom came from King Magmet. Yes, he said this to his Seites, and Pashas, and Molns, and Abyzas: “Great wisdom is written about the blessed Tsar Constantine. You yourself are wise philosophers, but look into your wise books, as he writes about the great Tsar Constantine: he was born the source of military wisdom; it is written: from his sword all the sunflowers could not be preserved. Yes, he remained young in his father’s kingdom, three years old; and from malice and from an unclean meeting, from tears and from the blood of the human race, its nobles grew rich, and they broke the righteous judgment, and innocently condemned them with bribes. Yes, the same innocent blood and tears went like a pillar to the Lord God to heaven with great complaint. The Tsar's nobles, before the Tsar's age, grew rich from the unclean assembly. At the age of the princess, the king began to sober up from his youth and began to come to great military wisdom and to his royal birth. And his nobles, seeing that the king comes to great wisdom and to his royal birth, may he not dismount from his military horse, and wise philosophers in all countries write about him: from his sword the whole sunflower cannot be preserved, and the nobles They said: “We will have a vain life from him, but our wealth will be merry with others.” And the speech of Magmet-Saltan, the king of Tours, by his wise philosopher: “You see, just as they are rich, they are also lazy, and they beset Tsar Constantine with hostility and caught him with their great cunning and wily, devilish charms, his wisdom and happiness were tamed, and the sword they brought him down as a king by their charming enmities, and his sword was high above all his enemies, and they contrived their heresy.” And the speech of Magmet-Saltan, the king of Tours, with his wise philosopher: “You see, God does not like cunning and pride and laziness, the Lord God opposes this, and punishes him with his holy insatiable anger? Do you see that God gave us such a great king and according to the scriptures of a wise innate military source about Greek pride and deceit? And their enmities angered God, who assailed such a wise king with their enmities and caught him with their cunning and tamed his army. And I tell you about this, as your wise philosopher: take care of me in everything, so that we don’t anger God in anything.”
In the summer of 6960, the first Tsar Magmet-Saltan of Tours ordered all income from the entire kingdom to go to his treasury, and in no city did he give governorship to his nobles so that they would not be deceived, they would not be judged by untruth, and he condemned his nobles from the treasury own, royal, who deserves what. And he gave judgment to the whole kingdom, and ordered the judgment to be put into his treasury so that the judges would not be tempted and would not judge unrighteously. Yes, he ordered the judges: “Do not make friends with untruth, do not anger God, but adhere to the truth, which God loves.” Yes, he sent his judges through the city, pasha faithful and kadys and shiboshis and amini, and ordered them to judge directly. And Magmet-Saltan recites: “My beloved, faithful brothers, judge directly and give God heartfelt joy.”
Yes, for a little while, King Magmet searched his judges, how they judge, and they were accused of malice before the king, that they judge by promise. And the king did not blame them for this, he only ordered them to be stripped alive. Yes, he said: “If they have grown again in body, otherwise they will surrender to the guilt.” And he ordered their skins to be made, and he ordered them to be stuffed with paper, and he ordered them to be written on their skins: “Without such a storm it is impossible to bring them into the kingdom of righteousness.” Truth is God’s heartfelt joy: to keep the truth in your kingdom, and to bring the truth into the king’s kingdom, otherwise you will not spare your beloved, you have found the culprit. But it is not possible for a king to be without a thunderstorm; like a horse under a king without a bridle, so is a kingdom without a thunderstorm.
The king said: “It is impossible for the king to hold the kingdom without a thunderstorm. For Tsar Constantine gave his nobles free rein and made their hearts happy; They rejoiced about this and judged untruthfully and awarded both plaintiffs, according to their faith, according to Christian kisses, the right and the wrong; and both are wrong, both the plaintiff and the defendant, - one seeks with his own efforts, and the other forbids everything: neither beat nor robbed you; without searching his suit, they will both kiss the cross, betray God, and themselves perish from God forever. And for those who do not remember the truth in their hearts, otherwise they anger God, otherwise eternal torment is prepared for them. And with those unjust judges, the Greeks fell into heresy in everything, and in kissing the cross they did not commit sin, they angered God in everything.”
And King Magmet understood from his great wisdom that there is such a judgment as a great sin and they anger God. And he gave one of the lots the kiss of the cross; kiss the cross, aiming a fiery arrow against the heart and a crossbow against the throat, and stand as long as such death is against, until the ten orders of his spiritual father speak the Gospel parables: do not lie, do not steal, do not listen to lies, honor your father and mother, love your neighbor like himself. That is, the king gave the Greek, by lot, the kiss of the cross: if the fiery arrow does not kill him, and the crossbow does not fire at him, then he will kiss the cross and take his own, which was his judgment. And the Turk gave him a sharp sword, bowed his throat and drank, and pointed the sword. And he ordered his lightning to be in that place and to punish them according to his faith of Tours with the same Greek custom: if there is a sword, he will not lower his throat, but will not destroy his throat, and he will finish his speech, and the devil drinks through the sword, and his he will take what his judgment was - that is, God's judgment. And he judged the fields for them in his kingdom without the kiss of the cross: they were taken naked into prison, cut with razors, and they would put one razor in a secret place, and whoever found it was right - that is, God’s judgment: he would take what was his, on what his judgment was. , but the guilty one is free to release him alive from prison, he is free to stab him to death.
Literacy, education and enlightenment.
Monasteries remained, as before, centers of literacy and education. In them and in churches, there were libraries of handwritten, and later printed, books, sometimes very significant (for example, in the Solovetsky, Trinity-Sergius, Joseph-Volokolamsk, Kirillo-Belozersky, Rostov and other monasteries, in the Novgorod St. Sophia Cathedral, etc. .).The teachers were monks and clerks.
Boyars and nobles put their signatures on many acts; to a lesser extent - peasants and townspeople.
We first learned the alphabet, then the Book of Hours (prayers, liturgical texts according to church service hours), writing, and the Psalter (psalms of King David). This is where the teaching usually ended. Those who were richer managed to continue it - the “Apostle” and the Gospel were next in line. Mathematical wisdom was limited to counting to a thousand and beyond, addition and subtraction, and less often multiplication and division.
Texts and numbers were taught by heart and out loud, in the common school room, and therefore it was filled with noise and discord. For negligence, the teacher, in accordance with custom, could and should have “crushed the ribs” and “increased the wounds” of his students. The “soul-saving” rod also served the same purpose - instilling “book wisdom”
Under Ivan IV, Fyodor Ivanovich and Boris Godunov, some young people were sent to Constantinople to study Greek and grammar. "Parobki" traveled with similar purposes to European countries.
Some noble people collected libraries of handwritten books in their homes. Tsar Ivan the Terrible (Liberea) had a large collection of such books. According to legend, the library originally belonged to the Byzantine emperors and was collected over many centuries. The last of the emperors who owned a library is called Constantine XI. After the fall of Constantinople, the book collection was taken to Rome, and then moved to Moscow as the dowry of the Byzantine princess Sophia Paleologus, who was married to the Moscow prince Ivan III. It is alleged that the son of Ivan III, Vasily III, attracted the famous scientist Maxim the Greek to translate the books of Liberea.
It is unknown where his library went. Maybe she is walled up in the Kremlin dungeons.
TYPOGRAPHY
The advent of printing was a turning point for enlightenment. Even under Ivan III, Bartholomew Gotan, the pioneer printer from Lübeck, tried to print books in Russia. But the first experiment was not a success. On April 1, 1564, Ivan Fedorov published the Apostle. This was followed by the Book of Hours and other books. Two years later, Fedorov moved to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and died in Lvov in 1583.
Scientific knowledge.
The elements of scientific knowledge, which multiplied from century to century, were of an applied nature. Thus, the need for accurate accounting of lands and calculation of taxes on them gave rise to a complex system of plow writing - the same amount of money was taken from a plow, that is, from a certain amount of land, which varied among different classes.
Knowledge in the field of physics and technology was required by foundry masters in the manufacture of cannons, arquebuses, including rifled guns, created in Russia. The same applies to the construction of buildings, stone and wooden, sometimes very high, up to 50-60 m; in this matter one cannot do without accurate calculations, knowledge of construction statics, and technology.
Literature. Historical and political thought.
There has been a noticeable upsurge in this area. In chronicles, stories and legends, ideas of the greatness of the grand ducal and tsarist power and the global role of Russia are developed. As it is said in the “Chronograph” (review of world history) in 1512, after the Turks conquered Byzantium and other “kingdoms”, which they “put into desolation and subjugated under their rule,” “our Russian land ... grows and grows younger and rises."
“Tales of the Kingdom of Babylon” with their idea of the succession of power of the Byzantine emperors from the rulers of Babylon on Russian soil is complemented by the version about the transfer of Monomakh’s cap, porphyry and scepter by the Byzantine Emperor Leo to the Grand Duke of Kyiv Vladimir Monomakh: “... and to this day that Monomakh’s cap is in the Russian state , in the God-protected reigning city of Moscow."
"The Tale of the Princes of Vladimir" from the beginning of the 16th century. deduces the genealogy of Moscow rulers from Augustus, Caesar of Rome. This is how the autocracy and sovereignty of power of the Russian monarchs were exalted. This was used in subsequent journalism and in political practice. “The Royal Place” of Ivan the Terrible, for example, on one of the shutters has a carving with a story about the sending of Monomakh’s cap from Byzantium. And the Terrible himself, in a letter to the Swedish king, stated without a shadow of a doubt: “We are related to Augustus Caesar.”
Stories and legends tell about the most important events of that era - the annexation of Novgorod the Great and other Russian lands to Moscow, Tsar Ivan the Terrible and his deeds, Russia’s struggle with foreign invaders (for example, “The Tale of the Battle of Molodin” 1572, “The Tale of the Coming of Stefan Batory to Pskov" in 1581, etc.).
PERSONALITY. Publicists.
I'll start with Maxim the Greek (canonized)
Maxim Grek (real name and surname - Mikhail Trivolis).
Some of the works of Maxim the Greek: “The Beginning of Greek and Russian Literacy”, “Preface about the alphabet, reksha about the alphabet”, “Conversation about learning to read and write...”, “Telling literate degrees”, etc. Knowledgeable people highly revered grammar, it , it is said in the ABC Book of the late 16th century, “the basis and sole of all free tricks.”
I.S PERESVETOV
In the middle of the century, many publicists sharply and passionately discussed the problems of autocracy and the structure of the state, the boyars and the situation of the peasants. I. S. Peresvetov is a supporter of strong tsarist power, its support for the “warriors” - the nobles, and the restriction of the rights of the boyars, the centralization of government. He wrote: “A king cannot be without a thunderstorm: like a horse under a king without a bridle, so is a kingdom without a thunderstorm.” He is a supporter of “truth” (“God does not love faith, but truth”), “books”, “wisdom”, an opponent of servility, bondage, “in which the land is enslaved, evil is being done in that land... the whole kingdom is experiencing great impoverishment.” His program of government reforms coincided to a large extent with the policies of the Elected Rada. However, the assertion that “truth” is higher than “faith,” as well as his condemnation of all “enslavement” could not be approved by Ivan IV. He spoke out against the existence of servitude and servitude. He attached great importance to books and philosophical “wisdom”, which should guide the monarch when carrying out reforms.
YERMOLAI-ERAZM (Ermolai the Pregreshny) - Russian writer and publicist of the 16th century, author of the story about Peter and Fevronia of Murom.
the priest of one of the churches of the Moscow Kremlin, calls to alleviate the situation of the peasants, because, as he says: “The plowmen are most useful, their labors create the most important wealth.”
MATVEY BASHKIN - representative of the reform movement, founder of the “Bashkin heresy”. He came from a boyar family and was one of the first in Rus' to speak out against servitude. He denied church rituals and icons and even the sacrament of confession.
THEODOSIY KOSOY, a runaway slave who became a monk, was even more determined (his teaching, called “slave”, preached the equality of people, he opposed the official church)
SYLVESTER
Russian church, political and literary figure of the 16th century, archpriest of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, one of the members and leaders of the Elected Rada.
Author DOMOSTROYA
a monument of Russian literature of the 16th century, which is a collection of rules, advice and instructions on all areas of human and family life, including social, family, economic and religious issues.
“Domostroy” consists of 64 chapters, grouped into the following main areas:
About the spiritual structure (How to believe)
About the structure of the world (How to honor the king)
On family organization (How to live with wives and children and household members)
On the management of a family farm (On the structure of a household)
Culinary group
Message and punishment from father to son
The last chapter is a message from Sylvester to his son Anfim.
The second half of the century was marked by vivid, emotional correspondence between Tsar Grozny and the fugitive prince A.M.
Kurbsky. The first of them also contains messages to many other persons, secular and spiritual; the second - “The History of the Grand Duke of Moscow” and other works. The tsar bases his judgments on the idea of the divinely ordained power of the autocrat, its unlimitedness: “We are free to reward our slaves (all subjects - V.B.), but we are free to execute.”Kurbsky, on the other hand, is an opponent of the “cruelty” of the tsar, who, according to him, should rule together with “wise advisers.” Being a follower of non-covetous people (he was a student of Maxim the Greek), the prince acts as an opponent of the Josephite clergy. Along with Kurbsky, the oprichnina was criticized by Korniliy, the abbot of the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery, the compiler of the Pskov chronicle of 1567, and the authors of the story about the defeat of Novgorod by Tsar the Terrible in 1570, inserted into the Novgorod Chronicle.
Chetiy-Minea (collection of the lives of Russian saints, arranged by month of the year).
Great work on collecting “holy books that are found in the Russian land” was undertaken in those years by the Novgorod Metropolitan Macarius (1528-1563). It is he who is credited with compiling a consolidated version of the Chetiy-Minei - the so-called Great Menaion-Chetiy, which now bears his name
Architecture.
In church architecture, a tent-type temple, modeled on wooden churches (“for woodwork”), is becoming widespread. The most outstanding example of this style is the Church of the Ascension in the village of Kolomenskoye (1532), built to commemorate the birth of Ivan the Terrible.
St. Basil's Cathedral (Pokrovsky Cathedral)
It was erected on the occasion of the capture of Kazan in 1552.
The temple was popularly called the Intercession on the Moat: the cathedral was built next to a deep moat that ran along the eastern wall of the Kremlin. Later, the holy fool St. Basil the Blessed was buried in one of the premises of the temple, thanks to whom the cathedral acquired its new name.
Legend!
The chronicle names the Russian architects Postnik and Barma as the authors of St. Basil's Cathedral. There is a legend according to which Ivan the Terrible, having seen the cathedral built according to their design, was so delighted with its beauty that he ordered the architects to be blinded so that they could not build a temple anywhere else equal in beauty to the Intercession Cathedral. Some modern historians offer a version according to which the architect of the temple was one person - Ivan Yakovlevich Barma, who was nicknamed the Faster because he kept a strict fast. As for the legend about the blinding of Barma and Postnik, its partial refutation can be served by the fact that the name of Postnik later appears in the chronicle in connection with the creation of other significant architectural structures.
The Novodevichy Convent was founded by Grand Duke Vasily III in 1524 in honor of the capture of Smolensk. The monastery was part of the southern defensive belt of Moscow.
The most famous nun is Princess Sophia.
In 1812, French troops attempted to blow up the monastery, but the nuns managed to defuse the charges.
MONUMENT 16th century
The Tsar Cannon is a medieval artillery gun (bombard), a monument to Russian artillery and foundry art, cast in bronze in 1586 by the Russian master A. Chokhov at the Cannon Yard
Painting.
In painting, the predominance of the Moscow school is increasing. Genre motifs are increasingly penetrating into icon painting, and there are elements of realism. This is even more typical for the second half of the 16th century.
Painting is becoming more and more a state matter. The Church, after the Council of the Hundred Heads in 1551, strengthens supervision over icon painters
At the end of the 16th century. The icons of the "Stroganov letter" become famous. They are distinguished by their miniature size, subtlety and elegance of drawing, decorativeness and festivity. Moscow masters Procopius Chirin, Istoma Savin and other “royal icon painters” worked in this manner. They often executed icons commissioned by eminent people the Stroganovs
Istoma Savin. Icon of Our Lady of Vladimir with eighteen hallmarks 1580
Turkish King Magmet-Saltan ( Mohammed II, Sultan of the Ottoman Porte (1430-1481), nicknamed the Conqueror. I. S. Peresvetov creates an idealized image of the Turkish Sultan, contaminating Mohammed II and Suleiman the Magnificent (1495--1566) - approx.) from his books on Turkish became a great philosopher, and when he read Greek books, translating them word for word into Turkish, King Magmet gained great wisdom. And he said this to his seyids, and pashas, and mullahs, and hafizs ( Seyid, seyid - an honorary title for a Muslim; The title of seid was often appropriated to themselves by representatives of different social strata. Pasha is the title of the highest civil and military dignitaries in the Ottoman Empire. Mullah is a clergyman. - approx.): “Written with great wisdom about the blessed king Constantine ( Constantine VIII Palaiologos, last Byzantine emperor (1449-1453) - approx.). You yourself are wise philosophers, so look in your wise books, as it is written there about the great Tsar Constantine: he was born - the source of military wisdom; and it is also written: nothing under the sun could hide from his sword. And he was small, three years old, when he remained in his kingdom after his father; His nobles grew rich from covetousness and dishonest acquisition, from tears and from the blood of the human race - they destroyed the righteous judgment and innocently condemned them for bribery. And these innocent blood and tears ascended in a pillar to the Lord God into heaven with great lamentation. And the royal nobles, until the king himself grew up, all grew rich from dishonest acquisitions. When the king matured, he began to understand more than in his youth, and began to achieve great wisdom, both in military and in his innate royal affairs. And his nobles, seeing that the king begins to achieve great wisdom and act according to his royal nature, so that he will be strong on his military horse, and wise philosophers in all countries are already writing about him: nothing under the sun can be protected from his sword, Then the nobles decided among themselves like this: “We will have a restless life from him, and others will enjoy our wealth.”
And Magmet-Saltan, the Turkish king, said to his wise philosophers: “You see that since they are rich, they are also lazy, and they entangled Tsar Constantine with betrayals and ensnared him with their great cunning and intrigues, with devilish temptations they diminished his wisdom and happiness, and they humiliated his royal sword with their false betrayals, but his sword was high above all his enemies, and they lied with their heresy.” And Magmet-Saltan, the Turkish king, said to his wise philosophers: “Do you see that the god of lies does not like pride and laziness, the Lord God is at enmity with such people, and executes them with his holy insatiable anger? Do you also see how, because of Greek pride and deceit, God gave us victory over such a great king and, as it is written about him, a natural source of military wisdom? It was their betrayals that angered their god, that they entangled such a wise king with their betrayals and caught him with their cunning and belittled his valor. I tell you this, my wise philosophers: beware of me in everything, so that we do not anger God in anything.”
B 6961 ( 1453 - approx.) year the Turkish king Magmet-saltan commanded ( In 1453, Constantinople, after a 53-day siege, was taken by the troops of Mohammed II, and Byzantium came under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. - approx.) from the whole kingdom to collect all the income into his treasury, and did not appoint any of his nobles as governors in any city, so that they would not be seduced by bribes and would not judge unjustly, but allocated to his nobles from his royal treasury, to each according to his deserts. And he appointed judges throughout the kingdom, and ordered judicial fees to be collected into his treasury, so that the judges would not be tempted and would not judge unjustly. And he ordered the judges: “Do not make friends with untruth, lest you anger God, but stick to the truth, God loves it.” And he sent his judges to the cities - the faithful pashas, and the Qadis, and the Shubas, and the Amins - and commanded them to judge honestly. This is what Magmet-Saltan told them: “My beloved, faithful brothers, judge honestly, by doing this you will bring God’s heartfelt joy.”
And some time later, King Magmet checked his judges, how they judged, and reported to the king about their extortion, that they were judging for bribes. Then the king did not blame them, he only ordered them to be skinned from the living. And he said this: “If their bodies grow back again, then that guilt will be forgiven them.” And he ordered their skins to be tanned, and he ordered them to be stuffed with cotton wool, and he ordered them to be written on their skins: “Without such a thunderstorm, it is impossible to introduce truth into the kingdom.” Truth is the joy of God’s heart, so you should strengthen the truth in your kingdom. And to introduce the truth to the king in his kingdom means not to spare his beloved, finding him guilty. It is impossible for a king to rule without a thunderstorm, just as if a horse under the king were without a bridle, so it is impossible for a kingdom to rule without a thunderstorm.
And the king said: “It is impossible for a king to rule the kingdom without a thunderstorm. Tsar Constantine gave his nobles free rein and made their hearts happy; They rejoiced at this and judged unjustly; both plaintiffs, according to their Christian faith, were awarded the cross to kiss, both the right and the wrong. But both of them told a lie, both the plaintiff and the defendant - one, adding to their losses, is looking for compensation, the other is denying everything: he didn’t beat, and didn’t rob. So, without investigating the matter, they give both of them the cross to kiss, and they betray God and themselves will perish from God forever. Those who do not remember the truth in their hearts anger God, and eternal torment is prepared for them. So, because of those unrighteous judges, the Greeks fell into heresy in everything, and they did not commit a false oath on the cross, they angered God in everything.”
And King Magmet understood from his great wisdom that such a judgment is a great sin and angers God. And he arranged a test of God's will before the kiss on the cross. The one to whom the cross was kissed was pointed at the heart with a firearm and a crossbow against the throat and held under such threat of death until his spiritual father spoke the Gospel parables ten times: do not lie, do not steal, bear false witness, honor your father and mother, love your neighbor as yourself. This is how the king showed the Greeks the test of God's will before the kiss of the cross: if the plaintiff is not killed by fiery shooting and the crossbow does not shoot an arrow at him, then he will kiss the cross and take what he wanted from the trial. And he gave the Turks a test of God’s will with the help of a sharp sword: he ordered the plaintiff to bow his neck and drink the shert, and the sword was suspended above him. And he told his mullahs to be in that place and instruct them in their Turkish faith, as the Greeks did: if the sword does not fall on him and does not hit his neck, and he completes his speech, then under the sword the shert drinks and takes his own, what he wanted from the court. This is how God's judgment was carried out. And he awarded the field in his kingdom without kissing the cross: he ordered both litigants to go naked into prison to cut themselves with razors, and they would put one razor in a secret place, and whoever found it would be right according to God’s judgment. Then he will take what he wanted from the trial, and he wants to release the guilty person before him alive from prison, but if he wants, he will stab him to death.
Magmet gained a lot of wisdom if he introduced great truth into his kingdom and showed examples of terrible punishments, so that people would not indulge their weaknesses in anything and would not anger God. And King Magmet took that wisdom from Greek books, where it is said what kind of Greeks should be. Magmet-Saltan introduced just justice in his kingdom, and brought out lies, and thereby brought God heartfelt joy, and said this: “God loves the truth most of all. It is impossible for a king to rule a kingdom without a threat, but Tsar Constantine gave his nobles free rein and made their hearts happy, they rejoiced at this and dishonestly acquired wealth, grew rich, and the land and kingdom cried and swam in troubles. And the Lord God was angry with King Constantine and his nobles and with the entire kingdom of Greece with the insatiable anger of his saints because they disdained the truth and did not know that God loves the truth most of all. And aren’t you leading me towards this, so that God will be angry, and so that I too will perish along with you?”
He sent his truthful judges to those cities, threatening them with his royal wrath, and gave them judicial books so that they could justify and accuse them. And he established a court in each city in a special chamber and without duties, and sent pashas, and qadis, and shubushes, and amines, that is, royal judges for each city, to each of his cities and to his entire kingdom. And he ordered his warriors to be judged with great severity and punished with death, and not to collect duties in order not to tempt the judges to judge unjustly. And the pashas had to judge the warriors; whoever has how many troops in his regiment, he judges him, since he knows his army. And they judge truthfully, under pain of the great royal thunderstorm, without duties and without bribes, and their sentence is carried out without delay.
The king arranged the court so wisely that he brought heartfelt joy to himself and his army and brought joy to his entire army. From year to year he endowed them with his royal salary from his treasury, each according to his deserts. His treasury was countless, filled by God for his great truth, for the fact that from all his kingdom: from cities, and from volosts, and from estates, and from estates, he ordered to collect all income into his royal treasury at all times. And he also allocated his salary from the treasury to those collectors who collect income for the royal treasury, and later checked the collectors to see whether they were collecting on the king’s orders, so that his kingdom would not become impoverished. But his royal army never dismounts and never lets go of their weapons. He always gladdens the hearts of his warriors with his royal salary, and contentment, and with his royal speech. And he said this to his entire army: “Don’t be burdened by service, brothers, because without service we cannot live on earth. If the king blunders even in a small way, then his greatness will decrease, or his kingdom will become impoverished and will go to another king due to the king’s negligence. Just as what is in heaven is similar to what is on earth, so what is earthly is like what is heavenly: the angels of God, the heavenly forces, do not let go of flaming weapons from their hands for a moment, at every moment they guard and protect the human race coming from Adam, and all but these heavenly powers are not burdened by service.” So the Turkish king Magmet-Saltan strengthened the heart of his army, and all his warriors praised the king’s speech and said: “This is how we do God’s will. After all, God loves the army, and whoever of us is killed in battle will be counted, we wash away all sins with our blood. The Lord takes our souls under His holy hand, and the heavenly heights are filled with such pure warriors.”
The Turkish king wisely arranged it, every day he keeps 40 thousand Janissaries with him, skilled shooters with firearms, and gives them a salary and allowance for every day. And for this reason, he keeps them near him, so that an enemy does not come to his land, and commit treason, and does not fall into sin. After all, the madman plots against the king, having become quite strong and proud, and wants to become a king, but he will not achieve this, and he himself will perish forever from his sin, and there will be no kingdom without a king. This is what the king protects his land from. And his other people are faithful to him and loved by him, loving the king, faithfully serving him, the sovereign, for his royal salary. The king is wise, who gladdens the hearts of warriors; he is strong and famous for his warriors. And he ordered his plowmen and nobles to stand in front of every enemy, in the first regiments, so that they would stand firmly against the enemy, and young people who were not so powerful would not be afraid, but looking at them, they would also be brave against their enemies. . The Turkish king's warriors with great wisdom and knowledge oppose the enemy to play the mortal game. And a great thunderstorm awaits the coward on this order of the Turkish king: “And whoever does not want to honestly die at the game of death with my enemy for my sovereign’s great salary, just as brave young men die playing the game of death with my enemies, will still die here from my sovereign’s disgrace, and even he and his children will lose honor, and will be glorified as a warrior who fights backwards.”
This is what the Turkish king Magmet-saltan decreed and bequeathed to other kings after himself, and this has been observed from then until the present time: he granted all people throughout his kingdom the right to serve with his nobles of his own free will, whoever wants. And he forbade enslaving them and turning them into slaves, so that everyone would serve voluntarily. And he said this to his nobles: “There is one god above us, and we are his servants. King Pharaoh once enslaved the Israelites, and God was angry with him with his holy, unquenchable anger and drowned him in the Red Sea.” And he ordered the books to be brought to him, complete and reportable, and ordered them to be burned in the fire. And for the Polonyanniks he set deadlines, for whom to be in slavery until which time - seven years to work, and the deadline - nine years. And if someone bought someone at a high price and if after nine years he still keeps him, and the populian lodges a complaint against him, then such a person will be disgraced by the king and the death penalty: do not do what God does not like, fear God, so as not to anger him in anything, remember the royal prohibition and observe it.
And Tsar Magmet-Saltan copied all this wisdom from Christian books; according to these books, the Christian Tsar should fulfill God’s will. And Magmet-Saltan said this: “In a kingdom where people are enslaved, in that kingdom people are not brave and courageous in battle against the enemy. After all, if a person is enslaved, then he is not afraid of shame and does not gain honor for himself, but reasons like this: “Whether I am a hero or not, however, I will still remain the sovereign’s slave, and I will have no other name.” And in the kingdom of Constantine under Tsar Konstantin Ivanovich ( I. S. Peresvetov has in mind the last Byzantine emperor Constantine, but his father was Manuel Palaeologus, which emphasizes the collective nature of the image of Constantine, as well as the image of Magmet-Saltan. - approx.) even his nobles, the best people, were enslaved into captivity. All of them were, although on horses and in armor, but not fighters against the enemy. It was pleasant to look at his nobles, but the regiments did not stand strong in battle against the enemy and ran away from the battle, and passed on their horror to other regiments, and were seduced by the service of other kings. Having thought about this, King Magmet began to give such people free rein and took them into his army - so those that the royal nobles had in captivity became the best people of this king. After all, as soon as they became free and royal people, each began to stand firmly against the enemy, and to destroy the enemy’s regiments, and to play the mortal game, to the honor of winning for himself. And the king said: “With this I pleased God and accomplished God’s will, did what God loves, and with this I added brave young men to my army.” The Turkish king has three hundred thousand people against his enemies who are trained and brave, and all of them are happy at heart from the royal salary and contentment, and when they have to go to war, they go calmly. They have bargaining three times a day: in the morning, at noon, and in the evening, and the price for everything is set, how much to pay for what, and they buy everything by weight. And they appoint guests, trading people, to organize these auctions and to go around the cities with an army with everything. If anyone needs to buy something, he must pay the price and then take it. If anyone does not pay the price that has been established, then he is put to death, so that even the best will not be spared. And if someone deceives: he does not give as much as it is weighed, or he takes the wrong price, higher than according to the royal charter by which the king set the price, then such a person is subject to the death penalty for violating the royal prohibition.
If the king stands strong against his enemy, plays a mortal game and destroys the enemy’s regiments, and faithfully serves the king, even if he is of humble birth, then he will elevate him, and give him a noble name, and add a lot of salary to him - all for the purpose of to strengthen the hearts of his warriors. The current king of Turkey, Arnaut Pasha from the Arnaut land, was a field warrior, but became famous for his ability to stand strong against an enemy and lead regiments, and Karaman Pasha from the Karaman land was also a field warrior, but they were exalted for their great wisdom, for the fact that they know how to serve the king and stand strong against the enemy. And the king did not look at what kind of father they were, but for their wisdom the king bestowed a noble name on them so that others would also try to serve the king. This is what the king said to all his army, both small and great: “Brothers, we are all children of Adam; Whoever serves me faithfully and stands strong against the enemy will be my best.” This is what the king said to his army to strengthen the heart, so that in the future everyone would strive to gain honor and a glorious name. The king, he said, not only rewards with his salary, but can also punish menacingly: “Whoever does not want to die a glorious death, playing a mortal game with an enemy, will still die from my royal disgrace, from the death penalty, and he himself and his children will lose honor his".
If the king himself does not go against the enemy, then he sends a wise pasha in his place and commands all pashas to obey and honor him as the king himself. And all the warriors in his army are divided between foremen and centurions, and those centurions among thousands, so that in his regiments there will be no theft and robbery, and gambling, and drunkenness, and if they find anything - a horse, or an argamak, or linen, or whatever it is, they will take it or take it to the big pasha’s tent, and the one who has lost something will find it at the big pasha’s tent, and he will pay the reward according to the royal charter as much as for what loss is due. If there is theft in the army, or robbery, or something else, or if the loss is not taken to the tent or is not taken away, then for such criminals, thieves and robbers, a strict royal search is carried out through foremen, centurions and thousanders. If a foreman hides a criminal in his ten, then this foreman, along with the criminal, will be executed by death so that crimes do not multiply. In prison, only suspects are kept there until the end of the royal search. And throughout the cities he has the same foremen and centurions and thousanders stationed to fight criminals, thieves, robbers, and slanderers, and they are immediately executed by death. And if the foreman hides a criminal in his ten, and then he is found during a search in a hundred, then he will be sentenced to the same death penalty.
And Tsar Constantine’s nobles, because of their covetousness and dishonest acquisitions, so tried the cases of thieves, robbers, and slanderers in the court chamber that they angered God with all this, with their unjust judgments, from the tears and blood of the Christian family they became rich, they were judged by slander According to the robbers, whoever was rich was to blame. So innocently because of them, right people died and suffered martyrdom. But thieves and robbers were released for a ransom, acquired dishonestly, in all matters they were seduced by bribes and angered God. Magmet-Saltan drew this wisdom and a model of righteous judgment from Christian books and said this: “Why were you deceived by small things, acquired dishonestly and lost the path to the kingdom of heaven, angering God in everything? If someone had collected a great mountain of gold through dishonest acquisition, then the Lord would take terrible revenge on such a person even to the ninth generation. And if you acquire it dishonestly, then how can you then answer to God?”
Magmet-Saltan wrote down secretly, for himself: “This is how a Christian king should be, with all the truth to bring heartfelt joy to God and stand firmly for the Christian faith.” He himself thought a lot about this with great wisdom, wanted to accept the Christian faith with heartfelt joy and praised the Christian faith: “There is no other such great faith with God as the Christian faith. Whoever goes to convert the infidels to the faith and spread the Christian faith, and even if his army is defeated somewhere, then it means that it was God’s will, and those who fell are new martyrs of God, who suffered for the Christian faith like the ancient martyrs, their souls to God they rise into their hands, the heavenly heights are filled with such pure warriors, they are equal to angels and adorned with golden crowns from God.”
The Greeks retreated from all this, and lost the truth, and angered God with unquenchable anger, and handed over the Christian faith to the infidels for desecration. And now, since the time of Mohammed’s conquest, and to this day, the Greeks are proud only of the sovereign kingdom of the blessed Russian Tsar. But there is no other free kingdom that professes the Christian Greek law, and, trusting in God, they pin their hopes for the spread of the Christian faith on that Russian kingdom of the blessed Russian Tsar, they are proud of him, the free Tsar and Grand Duke of All Rus' Ivan Vasilyevich ( Ivan IV the Terrible (1530-1584) - approx.).
If there is a dispute with Catholics, doctors of the Catholic faith reproach the Greeks: “The Lord God was angry with you, the Greeks, with the insatiable anger of his saints, just as he once was with the Jews, and gave you to the Turkish king in captivity for your pride and untruth. See how the Lord God is at enmity with the proud, he is angry for untruth, but truth is God’s heartfelt joy and an adornment to faith.” They reject all this and proudly answer them: “We have a free kingdom and a free king, the noble sovereign, Prince of All Rus' Ivan Vasilyevich, and that kingdom has been granted great divine mercy and the banner of God, and holy new wonderworkers, similar to the ancient ones, appear there, “God’s mercy also comes from them, just like from the ancients.” And the Catholics answered them in this dispute: “It’s true. We happened to be in that kingdom to test the Christian faith - in fact, they are of the true Christian faith and God's mercy is great on that land. What can I say about them, about the holy wonderworkers? This is how God's mercy manifests itself. And if the Turkish truth were combined with that Christian faith, then they [the Greeks] would be worthy to talk with angels.” The Greeks answered: “And if only that Turkish truth and Christian faith were added, then the Turks would be worthy to talk with angels.”
(translation by S. A. Eliseev)
The text is reproduced from the publication: All peoples are one. M. Young Guard, 1987
An outstanding writer-publicist and ideologist of the service nobility is Ivan Peresvetov. Arriving in Rus' from Lithuania in 1538, at the height of the boyar “autocracy,” he actively became involved in the political struggle: in “grievances” and “red tape,” he “exhausted” his entire “little family.”
Peresvetov repeatedly submitted petitions to the young Grand Duke, spoke with allegorical journalistic stories, proving the need for a autocratic form of government and the elimination of the boyars.
Resorting to historical parallels, he depicted significant shortcomings in the political life of Moscow and gave practical advice for eliminating them.
Peresvetov spoke about the detrimental influence on the fate of the state of the boyar form of government in “The Tale of Tsar Constantine.” He outlined his positive political program - a bold project of state reforms - in his journalistic pamphlet of 1547, “The Tale of Magmet-Saltan.”
The pamphlet is built on a transparent historical allegory: Emperor Constantine is contrasted with Magmet: Saltan. In the description of the reign of Tsar Constantine, who ascended the kingdom after the death of his father at three years of age, which the nobles of the Tsarev took advantage of, contemporaries recognized the events of the recent past: the childhood of Ivan the Terrible, the struggle for power of the boyars Belsky and Shuisky.
These nobles “before the age of the Tsar grew rich from the foamy assembly,” they destroyed the righteous court, condemned the innocent by “bribes,” and “became rich from tears and from the blood of the human race.”
The boyars, who “beset the wise king with their enmities and caught him with their cunning and tamed his army,” were the main reason for the death of Constantinople. It is the nobles, according to Peresvetov, who are the reason for the impoverishment and disorganization of the Russian state.
Peresvetov embodies his political ideal in the formidable autocratic wise ruler Magmet-Saltan. Peresvetov seems to be teaching a clear political lesson to young Ivan IV, who had just been crowned king and declared himself the Tsar of All Rus'.
Magmet-Saltan, relying on the wisdom of the “Greek books” and on his army, that is, the serving nobility, adamantly follows the motto: “It is not powerful for a king to hold without a thunderstorm... Although a little king will make a mistake and become humble, another kingdom will become impoverished and another the king will get it."
Saltan’s personal guard consists of 40,000 Janissaries, “so that his enemy does not appear in his land and commit treason and fall into sin.” Magmet understands that only “his army is strong and glorious,” and Ivan Peresvetov raises the question of the need to create a regular army with mandatory monetary reward for service.
He emphasizes that Magmet-Saltan notes the merits of his warriors - those who are much “against the enemy with games of death... But they don’t know what kind of father they are children. Whoever serves me faithfully and fiercely stands against the enemy will be my best,” declares Magmet-Saltan.
Here the point of view of a serving nobleman is clearly expressed, who wants to be awarded by the sovereign for faithful service, for his personal merits, and not for the merits of his family. It is for military valor that Magmet rewards warriors and even the one who “is from the least generation, and he raises him to majesty.”
Peresvetov believes that army control is best built with the help of tens, sots and thousand, which will strengthen the morale of the soldiers and make them a reliable support for the sovereign. In the pamphlet he anticipates the establishment of the oprichnina (after all, the oprichnina are a kind of devoted janissaries, the sovereign’s faithful dogs).
Peresvetov proposes to carry out a number of reforms in internal management: in the local apparatus, court, and state treasury.
He considers it necessary to destroy the “feeding” system, when the governor (voivode) collects taxes in his own favor, and proposes that all taxes from cities, townships, estates, and estates be collected into the sovereign’s treasury, and the collectors be paid a salary. Thus, the governor turns into a government official.
Administration in cities should be structured like a military one, which, according to Peresvetov, will make it possible to fight “dashing people.”
Magmet-Saltan acts as Peresvetov’s champion of truth and justice. He eradicates “untruth,” covetousness and bribery in the courts with the help of drastic and tough measures: he orders bribe-taking judges to be “torn off alive,” saying: “If they will grow back in body again, otherwise the guilt will be given to them.” And he orders their skin to be stuffed with paper and nailed in court with the inscription: “Without such thunderstorms of truth it is impossible to introduce into the kingdom.”
Peresvetov believes in the possibility of establishing a fair trial with the help of such “radical measures.” Magmet-Saltan seeks with equally drastic measures to eradicate theft and robbery in his kingdom: “But the Turkish king does not have a prison for the tsar and the robber; on the third day he will be executed by death so that the evil does not multiply.”
Peresvetov speaks out as an opponent of slavery, meaning by it enslaved servitude: “In which kingdom people are enslaved, and in that kingdom people are not brave and do not dare to fight against an enemy: an enslaved person is not afraid of shame, and does not gain honor for himself, no matter how strong or not strong, and speaks like this: however, if I am a slave, no other name will come to me.”
This position of the 16th century publicist is the prehistory of A. N. Radishchev’s “Conversation about the Son of the Fatherland.”
As A. A. Zimin notes, in his social religious and philosophical views, Peresvetov outgrows the boundaries of noble limitations. In his writings there are no traditional references to the authority of the “church fathers” or theological argumentation of theses.
He sharply criticizes monasticism and opposes the church hierarchy. His statements: “God does not love faith, but the truth,” and it is not God, but man who controls the destinies of the country—sounded heretical.
Peresvetov is characterized by a humanistic faith in the power of the human mind, in the power of conviction, in the power of words. This faith forces him to write petitions to the Tsar and journalistic pamphlets.
The ideal of the autocratic ruler Magmet-Saltan created by him is also associated with this humanistic faith. “Himself... a wise philosopher,” Magmet adds Greek books to the Turkish books, thanks to which “the king received other great wisdom.”
“This was how it was to be a Christian king, to have truth in everything and to stand firmly for the Christian faith,” Magmet-Saltan wrote “in secret to himself.” These words contain the ideological meaning of the “Tale.”
Peresvetov treats Magayet-Saltan apologetically and argues for the need for a “formidable” autocratic power; Only she alone is capable of establishing “right” order in the country and protecting it from external enemies.
Peresvetov does not explain the meaning of his allegory, as Maxim the Greek did. Peresvetov’s allegory is of a secular, historical nature. History, in his opinion, provides a clear political lesson for the present.
The technique of antithesis allowed him to clearly reveal the main political idea. Lively business conversation (without rhetorical embellishment), an abundance of aphorisms made this idea clear and extremely expressive.
As D.S. Likhachev noted, in noble journalism the pathos of transforming society is combined with the idea of the sovereign’s responsibility to his subjects for their well-being.
This effective nature of the noble worldview was best met by the forms of business writing, which began to actively penetrate literature, contributing to its enrichment.
The journalistic pamphlets of Ivan Peresvetov were the political program that was partially implemented by Ivan the Terrible.
Kuskov V.V. History of Old Russian Literature. - M., 1998
