The elected metropolitan council. Chosen Council of Ivan the Terrible

23-11-2017, 12:03 |

Reforms of the Elected Rada - the table of reforms of this body is quite extensive. To begin with, we should remember what kind of state institution this is and how it appeared in Russia. Everyone knows that the Elected Rada as a governing body was created under Ivan IV the Terrible. one of the few rulers of Russia who was on the throne for a very long time.

The elected Tsar's Rada was created to assist the sovereign in governance. And if you look at the events of this period, this body adopted a number of important government reforms. However, later, according to Ivan the Terrible, there was no longer a need for this political institution, and he eliminated it. Below, all Rada reforms will be presented in more detail in the table.

The reign of Ivan the Terrible before the creation of the Elected Rada

very often he said that he did not remember the time when he was not the ruler of Russia. And indeed it is. It is worth remembering that he ascended the throne as a little boy at the age of three. He became a Russian sovereign after the death of his father and ruled the country for 51 years. became a landmark event for many of his contemporaries. The activities of the Elected Rada relate precisely to the first half.

If we talk about Ivan’s personality, he was a man with a sharp mind, a brilliant memory, he had a lively nature, he was constantly striving for knowledge. All these traits began to appear from childhood. In addition, during the regency of his mother Elena Glinskaya and then the reign of the Bor Duma, he received an excellent education for that time.

After the death of his father, his wife Elena Glinskaya was regent for little Ivan; she managed to take power into her own hands, even though she was a woman. She turned out to be a very talented person, and also a skillful politician. Elena Glinskaya worthily continued the work of her husband Vasily, and carried out a number of reforms:

• Strengthening the defense of the Russian state (building fortresses);
• Currency reform - the introduction of a single coin for the entire territory of the country (the creation of the “Kopeyka”);
• Reform of units of weight, measures, volume - unification of measures;
• Lip reform - local elections of elders.

In 1538, the young queen unexpectedly dies. After the death of Elena, the Boyars from the Duma became regents over the little one. Contradictions constantly arose between them, which eventually resulted in open, violent conflicts. What Ivan also witnessed.

The exact cause of death became known thanks to modern methods of studying her remains. A lot of heavy metal and arsenic salts were found, which suggests that she was poisoned. By the way, the skull bones were well preserved, and this made it possible to reproduce her exact appearance. Scientific reconstruction of her facial features made it possible to claim that Helen was a very beautiful woman. In fact, with her beauty, she amazed the already middle-aged VasilyIII.

Elected Rada under Ivan the Terrible

In 1547, the young sovereign arrived and took control into his own hands. The royal title was not recognized abroad for a long time, until the conquest of the Astrakhan and Kazan khanates. Immediately after the wedding, the new tsar married Anastasia Zakharyeva-Yuryeva. Her family was the ancestor of the future Romanov family. He married for love.

After the fire, an uprising began in Moscow. There were rumors that the tsar's grandmother Anna Glinskaya, who was considered a witch, was to blame for this. This event showed that there are no forces in the country to suppress such social movements. Archpriest Sylvester warned that if he does not fulfill his duties, then just as Moscow is burning, so he and his family will die. From this moment on, a new stage in the reign begins.

Gradually, a new environment was taking shape, which was called the Chosen Rada; representatives of noble boyar families stayed under Ivan. But especially among them, the members of the Elected Rada stood out, who spoke out about the situation in the country and gave advice to the Tsar.

Composition of the Elected Rada:

1. Andrey Kurbsky;
2. Alexey Adashev;
3. Metropolitan Macarius;
4. Archpriest Sylvester;
5. Clerk Ivan Viskovaty.

The leaders of the Elected Rada were very educated people. In this regard, he had a good ability to select a great political team for himself. At the same time, the Elected Rada is not an official body; it is simply a group of figures close to the sovereign. The table below details all members of this environment.

Reforms of the Elected Rada under Ivan the Terrible table

In 1550 there was a surge of journalistic opuses. There are many petitions and simple proposals to improve the government system. Based on these materials, the Elected Rada is developing reforms. Many of the reform projects were subsequently implemented. The reforms of the Elected Rada begin.

The first major reform of the Chosen Rada under Ivan was a meeting of representatives of the estates in the Zemsky Sobor. This is the first body that was elected, and it was wider in composition than the Boyar Duma. The Council played the role of the highest legislative body. At the first meeting, new reforms and the possibility of creating a new code of Russian laws were discussed.

In 1550, the Elected Rada issued a new set of laws, which in history was called the Code of Laws of Ivan IV. In fact, there were no big differences between the codes of law (1497) and (1550). However, the structure of the latter was much more thoughtful.

Basic provisions of the Law Code:

• Provisions on combating corruption and arbitrariness;
• Confirmation of the right of peasants to move around November 26 (St. George's Day) from one territory to another;
• Increase in the elderly (payment by the peasant for moving to another territory);

After the discovery of the New World, the conquistadors brought a huge amount of precious metals to Europe. As a result, there was a sharp decline in the value of silver. This affected the purchasing power of all coins backed by silver, the same ones were in use in the Russian state. Silver came from Europe, and Rus' was forced to take the exchange rate into account. This is most likely due to the increase in the elderly population. Thus, they tried to somehow index the income of service people from the elderly.

Prikaznaya and other reforms of Ivan IV and the Elected Rada

The order reform attempted to create a whole series of governing bodies under the Tsar and the Boyar Duma. Orders, aka Huts, aka Palaces, were divided mainly into two types:

1. Permanent.
   • Branch huts - managed individual branches of government (Ambassador, discharge, etc.);
   • Territorial - governed individual territories (Novogorodsky, Tverskoy, etc.).
2. Temporary.

The head of the order was the judge, followed by his deputies, and then ordinary workers.

Later, the Elected Rada, in its heyday, also contributed to the spread of lip reform to all territories of the country. Governors were abolished; elders had to be elected everywhere.

Further, special attention was paid to military affairs. 1556 - Service Regulations. The essence of this reform of the Elected Rada as a whole regulated the ratio of the amount of land in an estate or patrimony with how servants should come to the sovereign's service. That is, they were ordered to arrive for service “on horseback, crowded and armed.”

In the 1550s, a new army was created - Streletsky. This was infantry, armed with new weapons - arquebuses and dressed in European style. They served by conscription, semi-regularly. The fact is that the state could not provide them with a decent income, so in their free time they could engage in other activities (trade, craft, etc.).

Table of reforms of all the Elected Rada

Thus, during the relatively short period of rule of the Elected Rada, it was possible to carry out a number of important reforms. These transformations made it possible to restore order in the country, replenish the treasury, and internal arbitrariness partially ceased. Russia has become a fairly stable state. Internal troubles have subsided, this has allowed us to begin to carry out active work. However, success did not unite the team, and by the 1560s the king had a new entourage.

The table of reforms of all the Elected Rada is presented below.

By the end of the 1540s, under the young ruler Ivan IV, a circle of figures was formed, to whom he entrusted the conduct of affairs in the state. Later, Andrei Kurbsky called the new government “The Chosen Rada.” Its most famous members were Adashev Alexey Fedorovich, confessor Sylvester, Mikhailovich - the head and several other noble princes.

Reforms of the Chosen Rada

The first steps towards reforms were meetings of nobles and governors. In 1549, the February Meeting took place, which became the first Zemsky Sobor. The main political strategy of the Elected Rada was the centralization of the Russian state according to the civilizational model of the West. A change in strategy required a set of reforms. The reforms of the Chosen Rada had an anti-boyar orientation. It relied on landowners, nobles, and townspeople, and therefore expressed exclusively their interests.

The elected council, whose reforms took place in 1549-1560, implemented changes in all spheres of society. The changes affected the administrative, church, legal, financial, tax and other systems.

Reforms of the Elected Rada in the legal and administrative systems

By decision of the Council of Reconciliation in 1549, a new set of laws was being prepared. The revised Code of Laws was established in 1550. The relationship between feudal lords and peasants has not changed; the same norms and laws have been preserved. At the same time, the power of local feeders was somewhat limited, and the process of forming orders was accelerated. Orders are the first functional governing bodies that were in charge of individual areas of government affairs (otherwise they were called chambers, courtyards, etc.). The most famous were the Petition, Streletsky, Posolsky and other orders.

At the same time, local government was centralized. Viceroyal administrations were replaced by an elected administration. These and other innovations strengthened the position of the nobles in society and united the provincial nobility into service towns.

Army reform

In the mid-50s of the 16th century, the “Code of Service” was adopted. A strict order of service was established. All landowners, regardless of the size of their holdings, became service people. The government organized and formed a detachment of archers to guard the king. As a result of military reforms, tens of thousands of soldiers now have weapons, equipment and food.

Church reforms of the Elected Rada

In 1551, Stoglav was adopted, in which one hundred chapter-articles were published on the answers of Ivan the Terrible about the structure of the church. Stoglav strengthened general discipline in the church and regulated life. The Tsar intended to confiscate the land from the church, but these intentions were not approved by the Elected Rada. The Church tried in every possible way to strengthen its authority, which was steadily declining in the eyes of the people.

Reforms of the Elected Council in the financial system

No administrative reforms could be carried out without restructuring the tax system. In 1550, a census of the entire population was carried out. Household taxation was replaced by land taxation. In the central territory, a tax unit called the “big plow” was introduced, its value varied depending on the position of the landowners. The payment of taxes by the population became increasingly centralized. The “feeding income” was replaced by a nationwide “feeding tax”.

In general, the reforms of the Chosen Rada under Ivan the Terrible were controversial. They were of a compromise nature. The reforms helped strengthen power and improve the position of the nobility. Their implementation was interrupted due to the resignation of the Elected Rada in 1560.

One of the secrets of Ivan the Terrible

The elected Rada is a concept that refers to the unofficial body of 1547-1560 under Ivan IV, which was the de facto state government. The reason for the emergence of this system was the awareness by the king and aristocrats of the urgent need for reforms in the state. The understanding of this was prompted by popular riots in Moscow in 1547, as a result of which the townspeople did not hesitate to kill

royal relatives. In the same year, a circle of people formed around the monarch - the Elected Rada, the purpose of which was to prepare and carry out reforms to restore order in the state, as well as develop the state apparatus, centralize power and take control of the situation in the country. This body included noble boyars, nobles, who then represented themselves as courtyard royal and boyar servants, clergy, and also, obviously, some government officials: Prince Kurbsky, confessor Sylvester, nobleman Adashev, Metropolitan Macarius, clerk Viskovaty and others. The full composition of this unofficial government is unknown to us. And the name comes from the later composition of Andrei Kurbsky in Polish during the flight.

The elected Rada and its reforms

Its main actions were the following:

Creation of a legal code that went down in history under the name “Code of Laws of 1550”.

The power of the tsarist administration was strengthened, and court fees were regulated. The same code of law establishes new types of orders: petition, local, robbery, printed and others.

Religious reform: unification of church canons in all Russian lands. Usury is prohibited among priests.

Military reform of 1556, in connection with which new regular troops were created - archers and gunners. A uniform order of service was established.

Local government reform in 1556.

The Chosen Rada and the Oprichnina

The reason for this unofficial fall was disagreements with the tsar over issues of centralization of power. If Ivan the Terrible intended to achieve this goal as quickly as possible, to accelerate the processes of absolutization of the monarchy, then the Elected Rada mainly advocated evolutionary changes regulated by reforms. This issue has become the most global controversy. The growing personal hostility of the government and the tsar also played a role here. Thus, the Elected Rada had disagreements with his first wife Anastasia Yuryeva, after whose quick death the tsar accused members of the government of driving her away from the world. All this prompted the fall of the Rada, the last reforms of which occurred in 1560. Five years after the elimination of this body, during the Livonian War, one of the prominent members of the former Elected Rada - Andrei Kurbsky - goes over to the side of the Poles. The reason that prompted the defector was the increasing centralization of power in the country and the opinion that the tsar was trampling on the ancient liberties of the boyars. In response, the tsar creates another, more obedient, in contrast to the Elected Rada, and a corps of guardsmen that meets his aspirations. Over the next few years, an unprecedented struggle began in the Moscow state to eliminate the boyar layer. Such actions had both a moral foundation and methods of physical violence.

circle of people close to Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible, in fact former unofficial. pr-vom in con. 40-50s 16th century Polish the term "I.r." (“Council of the Elect”) used in the book. A. Kurbsky in “The History of the Grand Duke of Moscow”. Massive anti-feud. movement in the city and countryside led in the late 40s. to the temporary unity of all groups of domination. class - boyars, church. feudal lords, nobles, in order to carry out changes that could weaken the people. discontent. Leadership position in the I. r. occupied by Duma nobleman A.F. Adashev and court priest Sylvester, as well as Metropolitan Macarius, Duma clerk I.M. Viskovaty, large feudal lords Prince A.M. Kurbsky and others. discussed government plans. reforms and external policies and managed their implementation. From I. r. the appointment of military commanders and leading officials of the center depended. and local government apparatus, decisions by many courts. and local affairs. The Petition Order, headed by Adashev, became important and directed the activities of other institutions. I.r. pursued a compromise policy of extending the rights and privileges of the boyars to the nobles, which, despite its inconsistency, was beneficial primarily to the nobility. The compromise nature of the policy of the I. r. especially manifested itself in the first stage (before 1553); later an offensive against the boyar aristocracy began. During the reign of I. r. The most important reforms were carried out in the center area. and local government and court (execution of orders, abolition of feedings, publication of the Code of Laws of 1550, etc.) and military. reforms (creation of the Streltsy army, limitation of localism in the army, publication of a service code). Ch. direction external politics I. r. initially it was eastern (the annexation of the Kazan and Astrakhan khanates), later - the struggle for the Baltic states. In the choice of east. external directions The ideologists of the nobility (I.S. Peresvetov), ​​the boyars (Kurbsky) and the Josephite clergy (Makariy) converged in politics. However, the compromise policy of the I. r. soon ceased to satisfy the nobles interested in more decisions. fight against economic and political privileges of large feudal lords. Some participants of the I. r. became close to the boyars - oppositionists who opposed the continuation of the Livonian War of 1558-83. This led to the fall of the I. r. in 1560. The question of the nature of the policy of the I. r. remains controversial. Most of the nobles and bourgeois. historians, following Ivan IV, considered I. r. conductor of princely-boyar policy. S.V. Bakhrushin, A.A. Zimin, S.O. Schmidt emphasize the compromise composition of the administration, especially before 1553, and note a certain inconsistency in the implementation of the policy of limiting the privileges of the boyar aristocracy. I. I. Smirnov believes it was made in the 50s. conductor of policies in the interests of the nobility, believing that the I. r., members of the swarm shared the views of Kurbsky, did not take such part in the state. management, as: it is usually attributed to. Lit.: Bakhrushin S.V., The elected council of Ivan the Terrible, in his book: Scientific. tr., vol. 2, M., 1954, p. 329-52; Smirnov I.I., Essays on politics. history of Rus. state 30-50s. XVI century, M.-L., 1958; Zimin A. A., Reforms of Ivan the Terrible, M., 1960; Schmidt S.O., Government. activities of A.F. Adashev, "Uch. zap. MSU", v. 167, 1954; his, Cathedrals of the mid-16th century, "ISSR", 1960, No. 4. S. O. Schmidt. Moscow.

“The Chosen Rada” is a term introduced by Prince A.M. Kurbsky to designate the circle of people who made up the informal government under Ivan the Terrible in 1549-1560. The term itself is found only in the work of Kurbsky, while Russian sources of that time do not give this circle of people any official name.

Creation

The formation of a select circle of people around the tsar occurs after the Moscow events of the summer of 1547: fire, and then the uprising of Muscovites. According to Kurbsky's version, during these events the king came to Archpriest Sylvester, and “threatened the king with a terrible curse from the Holy Scriptures,<...>to<...>stop his riots and moderate his violent temper.”

Compound

The composition of the “Elected Rada” is the subject of debate. Definitely, the priest of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin, the confessor of the Tsar Sylvester and a young figure from a not very noble family, A.F. Adashev, participated in the “Rada”.

On the other hand, some historians deny the existence of the Elected Rada as an institution led exclusively by the three above-mentioned persons.

Activity

The elected council lasted until 1560. She carried out transformations that were called reforms of the mid-16th century.

Reforms of the Chosen One:

First Zemsky Sobor 1549 - the body of class representation, ensuring the connection between the center and the localities, Ivan IV's speech from the front: condemnation of the wrong boyar rule, announcement of the need for reforms.

Code of Law 1550 - development of the provisions of the Code of Law of Ivan III, limitation of the power of governors and volosts, strengthening of control of the tsarist administration, a uniform amount of court fees, preservation of the right of peasants to cross on St. George’s Day.

Stoglavy Cathedral 1551 - unification of church rituals, recognition of all locally revered saints as all-Russian, establishment of a strict iconographic canon, demands for improving the morals of the clergy, prohibition of usury among priests.

Military reform 1556 - the Code of Service was adopted: restriction of localism for the period of military operations, in addition to the mounted local militia, organization of a standing army - archers, gunners, a unified order of military service.

Formation of the order system.

In 1556, a reform of local government was carried out.

The reforms of the Elected Rada outlined the path to strengthening and centralizing the state and contributed to the formation of an estate-representative state.

Fall of the Chosen Rada

Some historians see the reason for the tsar's disfavor in the fact that Ivan IV was dissatisfied with the disagreements of some members of the Rada with the late Anastasia Zakharyina-Yuryeva, the tsar's first wife. This is also confirmed by the fact that after the death of his second wife, Maria Temryukovna, Ivan the Terrible also carried out executions of those disliked by the queen and accused the boyars of “harassing” (poisoning) Maria.

In 1553, Ivan the Terrible fell ill. The illness was so severe that the question of transfer of power arose in the Boyar Duma. Ivan forced the boyars to swear allegiance to their infant son, Tsarevich Dmitry. But among the members of the Rada, the idea arose to transfer the Moscow throne to the Tsar’s cousin, Vladimir, Prince Staritsky. In particular, Sylvester noted that Vladimir’s quality is that he loves advisers. However, Ivan recovered from his illness, and the conflict, at first glance, was settled. But the king did not forget this story and later used it against Sylvester and Adashev.

The main contradiction was the radical difference in the views of the Tsar and the Rada on the issue of centralization of power in the state (the process of centralization is the process of concentrating state power). Ivan IV wanted to speed up this process. The elected Rada chose the path of gradual and painless reform.