Russian army before Peter. Prince H

(1661-1728) - Count, Admiral General, President of the Admiralty Board, member of the Supreme Privy Council, one of the closest associates of Peter 1. Brother of Queen Martha, wife of Tsar Fedor Alekseevich. Since 1682, the steward of Peter 1, a participant in the creation of a “amusing” army. In 1693-96. Dvina governor and governor of Arkhangelsk. From 1700 ch. early Admiralty order and the Governor of Azov. From 1708 he successfully commanded a corps operating in Ingermanland, and then in Finland. Managed Estonia, Ingermanland and Karelia. From 1714 he commanded a galley flotilla, which distinguished itself at Gangut. Since 1718, President of the Admiralty College. During the Persian campaign of 1722-1723. commanded the Caspian flotilla, in 1723-1726. -Baltic Fleet. Enjoyed the great confidence of Peter 1. Since 1726, a member of the Supreme Privy Council, a supporter of A.D. Menshikov.

F.M. Apraksin
Engraving by I.Bernigerot (?)
Mid 18th century

GOLOVIN FEDOR ALEKSEEVICH (1650-1706). From an old noble family, count, the first holder of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. Diplomat. In 1689, he concluded the Nerchinsk Treaty with China. From 1691 - Siberian governor. In 1697-1698. second ambassador of the "Grand Embassy" in Western Europe. During the period of the first reforms and changes in the foreign policy course, Fyodor Alekseevich Golovin became the closest collaborator of Peter I. In 1699 he was Admiral General, later Field Marshal General. In 1700-1706. President of the Posolsky Prikaz and at the same time was in charge of the Yamsky Prikaz and the Armory, Gold and Silver Chambers.

Count Golovin actively participated in the creation of the Russian fleet, in negotiations on the conclusion of agreements with Saxony and Denmark (1699).

Introduced stamp duty in Russia. He took part in the organization of the Russian regular army. During Golovin's chancellorship, a system of permanent Russian representatives abroad was created. Under the leadership of F.A. Golovin, the Russian-Turkish border was determined in the Kuban and in the Dnieper region

F.A.Golovin

LEFORT FRANZ YAKOVLEVICH (1656-1699) - Russian military leader, admiral (1695). A native of Switzerland, from a merchant family. He began service in the French and Dutch armies. In 1675 he came to Russia and in 1678 he entered military service with the rank of captain. Participated in the Russian-Turkish war of 1676-1681. and the Crimean campaigns of 1687 and 1689. In 1689 he became close to Peter I, which contributed to Lefort's rapid career. In 1690 he was promoted to major general, in 1691 to lieutenant general. During the Azov campaigns of 1695-1696. commanded the Russian fleet. Together with F.A. Golovin and P.B. Voznitsyn headed the Great Embassy - the Russian diplomatic mission to Western Europe.

F.Ya.Lefort
Engraving by P. Schenk, 1698

MAKAROV ALEXEY VASILIEVICH (1674-1750) - A native of the township environment. His life was not dynamic. He did not bathe in the rays of glory, did not give battles, did not conduct diplomatic negotiations, did not build ships and did not command them. But A.V. Makarov made a significant contribution to the victories of Russian weapons on the battlefields of the Northern War, and to the successful actions of Russian diplomacy, and to the construction of a regular army and navy, and to innovations cultural life country. It is difficult to overestimate the contribution he made to the creation of a domestic industry. Thus, he participated in all the transformational undertakings of the king. He was obliged to do this by his position: he was the cabinet secretary of Peter I and, therefore, was involved in drafting decrees, in correspondence with agents and ambassadors of the tsar abroad, in compiling reports and sending tsar orders to the theater of operations, in checking how the will of the king was carried out. Makarov had influence on Peter I, especially in matters domestic policy. In 1725 he supported the accession of Catherine I; under Peter II, in connection with the liquidation of the cabinet (the personal office of the tsar), he became president of the collegium of chambers.

Portrait of A.V. Makarov

MENSHIKOV ALEXANDER DANILOVICH (1673-1729) - Statesman and military leader, Count (1702), Most Serene Prince (1707), President of the Military Collegium, Generalissimo (1727). The son of a court groom. Since 1686, the batman of Peter I. None of the subsequent Russian temporary workers "had such power, and did not rise to such a dizzying height and ... no one's fall was so deep and tragic." (B.G. Porozovskaya). He accompanied Peter I in the Azov campaigns of 1695-1696, in the Great Embassy in 1697-1698. Supervised the construction of St. Petersburg, Kronstadt, shipyards on the river. Neva and Svir. During the Northern War (1700-1721) he commanded a large force of infantry and cavalry. He won a number of victories over the Swedes. In the Battle of Poltava in 1709, commanding the left flank, he defeated the corps of General Ross, which predetermined the victory of the Russian troops. In 1709-1713. commanded Russian troops in Poland, Courland, Pomerania and Holstein. Since 1714 he managed the lands conquered from the Swedes, which became part of the Russian state (the Baltic states, the Izhora land). During the departures of Peter I, he headed the administration of the country.

A.D. Menshikov

TOLSTOY PETER ANDREEVICH (1645-1729) – Russian statesman, diplomat, count (1724). The son of a roundabout. After the removal of Sofya Alekseevna from power, he showed restraint, patience and understanding that the only way to improve his affairs lay through gaining the confidence of the king. Participated in the second Azov campaign (1696). Then, at the age of 52, being a grandfather, he asked the king for permission to go as a volunteer to Italy to study maritime affairs (1697-1698). He knew that a desire to study naval science would endear him to the king.

From 1714 he was a senator. In 1716-1717. accompanied Peter I on a trip to Europe. He achieved the return of Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich from abroad, in 1718 he headed the investigation into his case and became one of the closest confidants of the tsar. In 1718-1726. managed the secret office. In 1725, he contributed to the enthronement of Catherine I. Since February 1726, he was a member of the Supreme Privy Council. Divorced from A.D. Menshikov on the issue of succession to the throne, in April 1727 he was arrested and exiled with his son Ivan.

Portrait of P.A. Tolstoy, 1719
I.G.Tannauer

SHEREMETEV BORIS PETROVICH (1652-1719) - Count (1706), Russian military leader and diplomat, Field Marshal General (1701). From 1671 he served at court. Since 1681, the Tambov governor, commanded the troops operating against Crimean Tatars, from 1682 boyar. In 1686, he participated in the negotiations and conclusion of the "Eternal Peace" with the Commonwealth and the union treaty with Austria. From the end of 1687 he commanded troops in Belgorod covering the southern border, participated in the Crimean campaigns. After taking power by Peter I (1689), he became his associate. During the Azov campaigns of 1695-1696. commanded troops on the Dnieper in operations against the Crimean Tatars. In 1697-1699. carried out diplomatic missions in Poland, Austria, Italy and on about. Malta. During the Northern War of 1700-1721. showed himself as a capable, but extremely cautious and somewhat slow military leader. In the Battle of Narva in 1700 he commanded the noble cavalry, in 1701-1705. troops in Livonia, where he won victories at Erestfer (1701), Hummelshof (1702), captured Koporye (1703) and Derpt (1704). He led the suppression of the Astrakhan uprising of 1705-1706. In 1708, at command posts in the main forces of the army, in the battle of Poltava in 1709, he commanded the troops of the center of battle order. In 1710, troops under the command of B.P. Sheremetev captured Riga. In 1711 he led the main forces of the army in the Prut campaign. In 1712-1713. commanded the southern observation army on the Turkish border, in 1715-1717. corps in Pomerania and Mecklenburg.

Portrait of B.P. Sheremetev, 1729 I.N. Nikitin

The sixth book in the series "The Great Generals of Russia", prepared by the Russian Military Historical Society (RVIO) and " Komsomolskaya Pravda in collaboration with leading Russian historians talks about the commanders of Peter I. Namely: Sheremetev Boris Petrovich, Bour Rodion Khristianovich, Repnin Nikita Ivanovich, Golitsyn Mikhail Mikhailovich and others.

COMMANDERS OF PETER I
Sheremetev Boris Petrovich
Apraksin Fedor Matveevich
Bour Rodion Khristianovich
Repnin Nikita Ivanovich
Bruce Yakov Willimovich
Menshikov Alexander Danilovich
Golitsyn Mikhail Mikhailovich

Sheremetev Boris Petrovich

Battles and victories

An outstanding Russian commander during the Northern War, diplomat, the first Russian Field Marshal (1701). In 1706 he was also the first to be elevated to count Russian Empire dignity.

In the people's memory, Sheremetev remained one of the main heroes of that era.

Soldiers' songs, where he appears exclusively as a positive character, can serve as evidence.

Many glorious pages from the time of the reign of Emperor Peter the Great (1682-1725) are associated with the name of Sheremetev. The first general field marshal in the history of Russia (1701), count (1706), holder of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, one of the richest landowners, he always, by virtue of his character, remained in a special position with the tsar and his entourage. His views on what was happening often did not coincide with the position of the king and his young associates. He seemed to them a man from the distant past, with whom the supporters of the modernization of Russia according to the Western model fought so fiercely. They, the "thin" ones, did not understand the motivation of this blue-eyed, overweight and unhurried man. However, it was he who was needed by the king in the most difficult years of the Great Northern War.

The Sheremetev family was connected with the reigning dynasty by blood ties. The family of Boris Petrovich was one of the influential boyar families and even had common ancestors with the reigning Romanov dynasty.

By the standards mid-seventeenth century, his closest relatives were very educated people and did not shy away, communicating with foreigners, taking everything positive from them. Boris Petrovich's father, Pyotr Vasilyevich Bolshoi, in 1666–1668, being a Kiev governor, defended the right to exist for the Kiev-Mohyla Academy. Unlike his contemporaries, the governor shaved his beard, which was a terrible nonsense, and wore a Polish dress. However, he was not touched because of his military and administrative talents.

Born on April 25, 1652, Pyotr Vasilievich assigned his son to study at the Kiev-Mohyla Academy. There Boris learned to speak Polish, Latin, got an idea of Greek and learned a lot that was unknown to the vast majority of his compatriots. Already in early youth, Boris Petrovich became addicted to reading books and by the end of his life he had collected a large and well-organized library. Boyarin understood perfectly well that Russia needed progressive reforms, and supported the young Tsar Peter.

However, he began his "sovereign service" in the traditional Moscow style, being at the age of 13 granted to the room steward.

B. P. Sheremetev

The military career of the young nobleman began only in the reign of Fyodor Alekseevich (1676–1682). The tsar appointed him as an assistant to his father, who commanded one of the "regiments" in the Russian-Turkish war (1676-1681). In 1679, he already acted as a "comrade" (deputy) governor in the "big regiment" of Prince Cherkassky. And just two years later, he headed the newly formed Tambov city category, which, in comparison with modern structure armed forces can be equated with the command of a military district.

In 1682, in connection with the accession to the throne of the new tsars Peter and Ivan, he was granted the title of boyar. The ruler, Princess Sofya Alekseevna, and her favorite, Prince Vasily Vasilyevich Golitsyn, remembered Boris Petrovich in 1685. The Russian government was in difficult negotiations with the Commonwealth on the conclusion. "Eternal Peace". This is where it took someone who knew European etiquette and foreign languages boyar. His diplomatic mission was extremely successful. After lengthy negotiations, they finally managed to conclude an "Eternal Peace" with Poland and achieve legal recognition of the fact that Moscow conquered Kiev 20 years ago. Then, after only a few months, Sheremetev already unanimously headed the embassy sent to Warsaw to ratify the treaty and clarify the details of the anti-Ottoman alliance being created. From there, then I had to call on Vienna, which was also preparing to continue the fight against the Turks.

The diplomatic path better matched the military one with the inclinations and talents of the intelligent but cautious Boris Petrovich. However, masterful Fate decided otherwise and led him through life by no means the most convenient road. Upon returning from Europe to Moscow, the boyar again had to put on a military uniform, which he no longer took off until his death.

"In the infantry, Field Marshal Sheremetev can rightly be called the first Russian, from an ancient noble family, tall, with soft features and in all respects similar to a big general"

Swede Ehrenmalm, opponent of Sheremetev

Boris Petrovich commanded the regiments of his Belgorod rank during the unsuccessful second Crimean campaign (1689). His detached position in relation to the events in Moscow in the summer of 1689, when Peter I came to power, played a bad joke on him. The boyar was taken under "suspicion". There was no disgrace, but until 1696 Boris Petrovich would remain on the border with the Crimean Khanate, commanding his "rank".

During the first Azov campaign in 1695, Sheremetev led the army against the Turkish fortresses on the Dnieper. Boris Petrovich turned out to be more successful than the tsar and his associates. In the campaign of 1695, the Russian-Ukrainian army took three fortresses from the Turks (July 30 - Kyzy-Kermen, August 1 - Eski-Tavan, August 3 - Aslan-Kermen). The name of Sheremetev became known throughout Europe. At the same time, Azov was never taken. Allied help was needed. In the summer of 1696, Azov fell, but this success showed that a further war with the Ottoman Empire was possible only with the combined efforts of all countries participating in the "Holy League".

Trying to please the tsar, Boris Petrovich of his own free will and at his own expense went on a trip to Europe. The Boyarin left Moscow three months after Peter himself left for the West and traveled for more than a year and a half, from July 1697 to February 1699, spending 20,500 rubles on this - a huge amount at that time. The true, so to speak, human price of such a sacrifice becomes clear from the description given to Sheremetev by the famous Soviet researcher of the epoch of the 18th century, Nikolai Pavlenko: stealing, then so moderately that the size of the stolen did not cause envy among others. But Sheremetev knew how to beg. He did not miss the opportunity to remind the tsar of his "poverty", and his acquisitions were the fruit of royal awards: he did not seem to buy estates ... "

Having passed through Poland, Sheremetev again visited Vienna. Then he went to Italy, visited Rome, Venice, Sicily, and finally reached Malta (having received audiences during the trip with the Polish king and the Elector of Saxony Augustus, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold, Pope Innocent XII, Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo III) . In La Valletta, he was even knighted in the Order of Malta.

Not a single Russian could boast of such a European "train". The very next day after his return, at a feast at Lefort, dressed in a German dress with a Maltese cross on his chest, Sheremetev boldly introduced himself to the tsar and was treated with delight by him.

However, the mercy was short-lived. The suspicious "Herr Peter", according to the "boyar list" soon published, again ordered Boris Petrovich to go away from Moscow and be "near the city of Arkhangelsk." They remembered him again only a year later, with the outbreak of the Northern War (1700–1721). The war began in August with the march of the main forces of the Russian army to Narva. Boyar Sheremetev was appointed commander of the "local cavalry" (equestrian noble militia). In the Narva campaign of 1700, the Sheremetev detachment acted extremely unsuccessfully.

Battles and victories

“Peter attracts our attention first of all as a diplomat, as a warrior, as an organizer of the victory,” Academician E. Tarle said about him. Peter the Great created a new regular Russian army and navy, defeated the Swedes and "cut a window" to Europe. From the reign of Peter begins a new - imperial - period of our history.

The entire course of the 21-year war with Sweden was determined by the will and instructions of Tsar Peter. All campaigns and battles took place with his detailed instructions and under his guiding hand. And often - with his direct participation.

Pyotr Alekseevich Romanov, who entered the world history as Emperor Peter I the Great (1682-1725), was born on May 30, 1672 in Moscow in the family of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich (1645-1676) and his second wife Natalia Kirillovna Naryshkina. The death of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and the accession of his eldest son Fyodor (from Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna, nee Miloslavskaya) pushed Tsarina Natalya Kirillovna and her relatives, the Naryshkins, into the background. Tsarina Natalya was forced to go to the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow.

Young Peter had to fight for his right to be the autocrat of Russia. On his way there was a hostile court group, and at first he had to share the kingdom with his half-brother Ivan. The imperious and vain princess Sophia, who took care of the young princes (also Peter's half-sister), herself dreamed of the royal crown. So the young and fragile Peter, before achieving his goal, had to learn early lies, deceit, betrayal and slander and go through a series of intrigues, conspiracies and riots that were most dangerous for his life.

Hence his suspiciousness, distrust and suspicion of others, hence his recurring epileptic seizures from time to time - the result of a fright experienced in childhood. Therefore, distrust of his subjects, who could fail, fail to obey orders, betray or deceive, was simply in Peter's blood. Therefore, he had to control everything, if possible, take everything upon himself and do everything himself.

He is extremely cautious, he calculates his steps forward and tries to foresee the dangers that threaten him from everywhere and take appropriate measures. Peter practically did not receive any education (Nikita Zotov taught him to read and write), and the tsar had to acquire all his knowledge after ascending the throne and in the process of leading the country.

The people gathered on the road and waited for the leader.

Characteristics of pre-Petrine Russia by the historian S.M. Solovyov

The hobbies of the lad Peter were of a constructive nature: his lively mind was interested in military, naval, cannon and weapons business, he tried to delve into various technical inventions, was interested in science, but the main difference between the Russian tsar and all his contemporaries was, in our opinion, in motivation his activities. The main goal of Peter I was to bring Russia out of centuries of backwardness and to introduce it to the achievements of European progress, science and culture and to introduce it on an equal footing into the so-called. European concert.

There is nothing surprising in the fact that the king made a bet on foreigners. To command regiments and study military science We needed knowledgeable and experienced people. But among the Russian courtiers there were none. The German settlement, which was so close to his palace in Preobrazhensky, was Europe in miniature for young Peter. Since 1683, the Swiss Franz Lefort, the Holsteiner Theodor von Sommer, the Scot Patrick Gordon, the Dutchmen Franz Timmerman and Karsten Brandt have been in his entourage. With their help, "amusing" regiments were created - Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky, which later became the imperial guard, bombardment company, the amusing fortress of Preshburg was built.

Then, in 1686, the first amusing ships appeared near Preshburg on the Yauza - a large shnyak and a plow with boats. During these years, Peter became interested in all the sciences that were associated with military affairs. Under the guidance of the Dutchman Timmerman, he studied arithmetic, geometry, and military sciences. Having discovered a boat in a barn shed in Izmailovo, the sovereign was carried away by the idea of ​​​​creating a regular fleet. Soon, on Lake Pleshcheyevo, near the city of Pereyaslavl-Zalessky, a shipyard was founded and a “funny fleet” began to be built.

Communicating with foreigners, the king became a great admirer of the laid-back foreign life. Peter lit a German pipe, began attending German parties with dancing and drinking, and began an affair with Anna Mons. Peter's mother strongly opposed this. In order to reason with her 17-year-old son, Natalya Kirillovna decided to marry him to Evdokia Lopukhina, the daughter of the okolnichi. Peter did not contradict his mother, but he did not love his wife. Their marriage ended with the tonsure of Empress Evdokia as a nun and her exile to a monastery in 1698.

In 1689, Peter, as a result of a confrontation with his sister Sophia, became an independent ruler, imprisoning her in a monastery.

The priority of Peter I in the first years of autocracy was the continuation of the war with the Ottoman Empire and the Crimea. He decided instead of campaigns against the Crimea, undertaken during the reign of Princess Sophia, to strike at the Turkish fortress of Azov, located at the confluence of the Don River into the Sea of ​​Azov.

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

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

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

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

As part of the Great Embassy (1697-1698), which had the goal of finding allies to continue the war with the Ottoman Empire, the tsar traveled incognito under the name of Peter Mikhailov.

Peter I with the sign of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called on a blue St. Andrew's ribbon and a star on his chest
Artist J.-M. Natya. 1717

Peter studied artillery in Brandenburg, built ships at Dutch and English shipyards, visited mines, factories, government agencies, met with the monarchs of European countries. For the first time, the Russian tsar undertook a journey outside the borders of his state. The embassy recruited several hundred shipbuilding specialists to Russia and purchased military and other equipment.

He was primarily interested in the technical achievements of Western countries, and not in the legal system. Having visited the English parliament incognito, where the speeches of the deputies before King William III were translated for him, the tsar said: “It’s fun to hear when the sons of the patronymic tell the king clearly the truth, this should be learned from the British.”

And yet, Peter was an adherent of absolutism, considered himself the anointed of God and vigilantly monitored the observance of his royal privileges. He was a man who early "saw through" life from its negative side, but also early matured from the consciousness of the state burden.

The English historian J. Macaulay Trevenyan (1876-1962), comparing Tsar Peter with King Charles, wrote that "Peter, for all his savagery, was a statesman, while Charles XII was just a warrior and, moreover, not wise."

Peter himself put it this way:

Which one great hero who fights for his own glory, and not for the defense of the fatherland, wanting to be the benefactor of the universe!

Julius Caesar, in his opinion, was a more reasonable leader, and the followers of Alexander the Great, who "wanted to be a giant of the whole world", were waiting for "unfortunate success." And his catchphrase: "Brother Charles always dreams of being Alexander, but I am not Darius."

The Grand Embassy did not achieve its main goal: it was not possible to create a coalition against the Ottoman Empire due to the preparation of a number of European powers for the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714). However, thanks to this war, favorable conditions were created for Russia's struggle for the Baltic. Thus, there was a reorientation of Russia's foreign policy from the south to the north.

After returning from the Grand Embassy, ​​the tsar began to prepare for a war with Sweden for access to the Baltic Sea. In 1699, the Northern Alliance was created against the Swedish king Charles XII, which, in addition to Russia, included Denmark-Norway, Saxony, and, since 1704, the Commonwealth, headed by the Saxon elector and the Polish king Augustus II. The driving force behind the union was the desire of August II to take away Livonia from Sweden, Frederick IV of Denmark - Schleswig and Skane. For help, they promised Russia the return of lands that previously belonged to the Russians (Ingermanland and Karelia). No one then suspected that the Great Northern War (1700-1721) would last for twenty-one years.

Two giant figures towered in the first quarter of the 18th century, obscuring all the acting characters of both the Northern War and Europe in general - the Russian reformer Tsar Peter I and the Swedish warrior king Charles XII. Each of them in their own country and in their field left an indelible mark in the minds of their descendants, although not always a grateful memory.

Fate brought them into a cruel and uncompromising confrontation, from which one emerged victorious and lived to the unanimous and universal reverence and recognition of his subjects, and the second found his premature and dramatic death, either from an enemy bullet, or as a result of an insidious conspiracy, providing his subjects with a pretext for fierce and still ongoing disputes regarding their deeds and personality.

Peter I demonstrated in the confrontation with Charles XII the genuine art of a talented and cautious (but far from cowardly, as Charles XII mistakenly believed) strategist. It seems to us that the king already at an early stage unraveled the explosive and carried away character of the king, who was ready to put everything at stake for the sake of a fleeting victory and satisfaction of his vanity (a vivid example of this is the assault on the insignificant fortress of Veprik), and countered it with cautious maneuvering, far-sightedness and cold calculation. “The search for a general battle is very dangerous, because in one hour the whole thing can be refuted,” he instructs the diplomatic representatives of Baron J.R. who were in Poland. Patkul and Prince G.F. Dolgorukov.

Peter cherishes his army and constantly reminds his generals to be careful in contacts with the Swedish army. “From the enemy to be in fear and to have every caution and send for the sake of conducting frequent parties and having truly found out about the enemy’s condition and his strength and asking God for help, repair the enemy as far as possible,” he teaches the quite experienced General Rodion Bour in 1707 d. “Non-fear harms a person everywhere,” he never tires of repeating on the eve of Poltava.

At the same time, he correctly and boldly recommends to his generals not to sit behind the walls of fortresses, because sooner or later any fortress surrenders or is taken by storm, and therefore it is necessary to seek meetings with the enemy in open battle: “True, the fortress rebuffs the enemy, but the Europeans not for long. Victory will be decided by the art of war and the courage of the commanders and the fearlessness of the soldiers ... It is convenient to sit behind the wall against the Asians.

Peter is a talented diplomat, his policy towards all European powers was balanced and cautious. There is no hint of adventurism in his diplomacy. He knew, for example, that Augustus II was an unreliable ally who deceived him at every turn, but Peter understood that he had no other allies. And he needed August, on the one hand, to distract the Swedes from the invasion of Russia longer, and on the other, as a counterbalance to Stanislav Leshchinsky, the henchman of Charles XII, in order to have at least part of the Poles on his side. After Poltava, he worked hard and hard to recreate the destroyed anti-Swedish coalition and achieved success. He also skillfully played on the interest of Holland and England in trade relations with Russia and significantly neutralized the hostility of these countries to his plans.

And one more thing: Peter was constantly learning, especially from Karl and in general from the Swedish army and state. The Narva of 1700 served him as a great lesson. Peter looked at the war as a school for the people, in which teachers (Swedes) gave hard lessons to Russians, and they severely beat them for a poorly learned lesson, but then the students must study more diligently until they start beating their teachers.

The result of his far-reaching conclusions was the creation of a modern combat-ready army and navy. At the same time, suppressing his pride, he was ready to admit his mistakes, as, for example, he did after the unsuccessful Prut campaign: “Now I am in the same condition as my brother Karl was at Poltava. I made the same mistake as he did: I entered the enemy's land without taking the necessary measures to maintain my army.

Peter was a very gifted military leader. Of course, his military abilities were discovered after Narva. Gaining experience, he became more and more convinced that it was dangerous to blindly rely on foreign generals - what a mercenary like Field Marshal de Croix cost him near Narva! In the future, he increasingly began to take upon himself the adoption of the most important decisions relying on the advice and recommendations of their associates. After Narva, almost the entire course of the war was determined by the will and instructions of Tsar Peter, and all major campaigns and battles did not take place without his knowledge, detailed instructions and guiding hand.

As the most striking evidence of Peter's talent as a commander, one can cite his idea of ​​building 10 redoubts in the forefield of the Poltava battle, which played an almost decisive role in the defeat of the Swedish army. And his idea of ​​​​artillery as a particularly important type of weapon? It was thanks to him that powerful artillery appeared in the Russian army, which was given exclusively great importance and during the sieges of fortresses, and in field and naval battles. Recall what a big role artillery played in the battle of Poltava, in which the Swedish army was forced to oppose the Russians with only a few guns, and even those without charges.

Of course, the invited foreigners greatly contributed to Peter's victories, but all or almost all military tasks were solved by the tsar himself and only by him. Turenne, as he said, over time he had his own, Russians - only there was not a single Sully!

The enumeration of Peter's military merits could be continued. Peter understood very well: if he died in battle, his whole work would be lost. Nevertheless, we recall that the tsar, already during the capture of Shlisselburg and Noteburg, was nearby, in the same ranks, with the besiegers of these fortresses. Near Poltava, he was ahead of his regiments, repulsing the attack of Levenhaupt's infantrymen, and in the battle they shot his hat. What about Lesnaya, Nyuenschantz, Narva (1704), Gangut (1714)? Was he not there at the head or in front of the troops? Peter took a direct part in naval battles.

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

On August 30 (September 10), 1721, the Peace of Nystadt was concluded between Russia and Sweden, which ended the 21-year war. Russia received access to the Baltic Sea, annexed the territory of Ingria, part of Karelia, Estonia and Livonia. Russia became a great European power, in commemoration of which, on October 22 (November 2), 1721, Peter, at the request of the senators, took the title of Father of the Fatherland, Emperor of All Russia.

Compared with Charles XII, with the legacy of Peter the Great in Russia, the situation is still more or less unambiguous. With only rare exceptions, he is criticized for carrying out his reforms too quickly and mercilessly, goading and spurring Russia like a driven horse, paying no attention to either human losses or material and moral costs. Now it is easy to say that the introduction of the country to European values ​​could have been carried out more deliberately, systematically and gradually, without the use of violence. But the question is: did Peter have such an opportunity? And would Russia not have slipped to the margins of world development and become an easy prey for its European neighbors, if it were not for Peter with his accelerated and costly reforms?

You are fighting not for Peter, but for the state handed over to Peter. And about Peter, know that life is not dear to him, if only Russia lived, her glory, honor and prosperity!

The famous appeal of Peter to the soldiers in front of Poltava

Peter I, who constantly pushed his ideas to his assistants and ministers, was not truly understood by any of his contemporaries. The king was doomed to loneliness - such is always the lot of people of genius. And he was outraged and unbalanced.

Peter reformed government controlled, reforms were carried out in the army, a navy was created, a reform of church administration was carried out, aimed at eliminating church jurisdiction autonomous from the state and subordinating the Russian church hierarchy to the Emperor. Financial reform was also carried out, measures were taken to develop industry and trade.

Seculars began to appear schools translations of many books into Russian, the first Russian newspaper was founded. Success in the service of Peter made the nobles dependent on education.

Peter was clearly aware of the need for enlightenment, and took a number of decisive measures to this end. On January 14, 1700, a school of mathematical and navigational sciences was opened in Moscow. In 1701-1721. artillery, engineering and medical school in Moscow, engineering school and Marine Academy Petersburg, mining schools at the Olonets and Ural factories. In 1705, the first gymnasium in Russia was opened. The goals of mass education were to be served by the digital schools created by decree of 1714 in provincial cities, called upon "to teach children of all ranks to read and write, numbers and geometry." It was supposed to create two such schools in each province, where education was supposed to be free. For soldiers' children, garrison schools were opened, for the training of priests, starting from 1721, a network of theological schools was created. Peter's decrees introduced compulsory education for nobles and clergy, but a similar measure for the urban population met with fierce resistance and was canceled. Peter's attempt to create an all-estate primary school failed (the creation of a network of schools ceased after his death, most of the digital schools under his successors were redeveloped into class schools for the training of the clergy), but nevertheless, during his reign, the foundations were laid for the spread of education in Russia.

Peter created new printing houses, in which for 1700-1725. 1312 book titles were printed (twice as many as in the entire previous history of Russian book printing). Thanks to the rise of printing, paper consumption increased from 4,000 to 8,000 sheets at the end of the 17th century to 50,000 sheets in 1719.

There have been changes in the Russian language, which included 4.5 thousand new words borrowed from European languages.

In 1724, Peter approved the charter of the Academy of Sciences being organized (opened in 1725 after his death).

Of particular importance was the construction of stone St. Petersburg, in which foreign architects took part and which was carried out according to the plan developed by the tsar. He created a new urban environment with previously unfamiliar forms of life and pastime (theatre, masquerades).

The reforms carried out by Peter I affected not only politics, economics, but also art. Peter invited foreign artists to Russia and at the same time sent talented young people to study "arts" abroad. In the second quarter of the XVIII century. "Peter's pensioners" began to return to Russia, bringing with them a new artistic experience and acquired skill.

Peter tried to change the position of women in Russian society. He by special decrees (1700, 1702 and 1724) forbade forced extradition and marriage. Legislative prescriptions 1696-1704 about public festivities introduced the obligation to participate in the celebrations and festivities of all Russians, including "female".

From the "old" in the structure of the nobility under Peter, the former serfdom of the service class remained unchanged through the personal service of each service person to the state. But in this enslavement, its form has somewhat changed. Now they were required to serve in regular regiments and in the navy, as well as in civil service in all those administrative and judicial institutions that were transformed from the old ones and arose anew. The decree on uniform inheritance of 1714 regulated the legal status of the nobility and secured the legal merger of such forms of land ownership as an estate and an estate.

Portrait of Peter I
Artist P. Delaroche. 1838

From the reign of Peter I, the peasants began to be divided into serfs (landlords), monastic and state peasants. All three categories were recorded in the revision tales and subjected to a poll tax. Since 1724, the owner's peasants could leave their villages to work and for other needs only with the written permission of the master, witnessed by the zemstvo commissar and the colonel of the regiment that was stationed in the area. Thus, the landowner's power over the personality of the peasants received even more opportunities to increase, taking both the personality and property of the privately owned peasant into their unaccountable disposal. From that time on, this new state of the rural worker received the name of the "serf" or "revisionist" soul.

In general, Peter's reforms were aimed at strengthening the state and familiarizing the elite with European culture while strengthening absolutism. In the course of the reforms, Russia's technical and economic backwardness from a number of other European states was overcome, access to the Baltic Sea was won, and transformations were carried out in many areas of Russian society. Gradually, among the nobility, a different system of values, worldview, aesthetic ideas took shape, which was fundamentally different from the values ​​and worldview of most representatives of other estates. At the same time, the people's forces were extremely exhausted, the preconditions were created (Decree on the succession to the throne of 1722) for the crisis of the supreme power, which led to the "epoch of palace coups". The decree of 1722 violated the usual way of succession to the throne, but Peter did not have time to appoint an heir before his death.

V last years reign, Peter was very ill. In the summer of 1724, his illness intensified, in September he felt better, but after a while the attacks became more painful. (An autopsy after death showed the following: “a sharp narrowing in the region of the back of the urethra, hardening of the neck of the bladder and anton fire.” Death followed from inflammation of the bladder, which turned into gangrene due to urinary retention).

In October, Peter went to inspect the Ladoga Canal, against the advice of his life physician Blumentrost. From Olonets, Peter traveled to Staraya Russa and in November went to St. Petersburg by water. At Lakhta, he had to, standing waist-deep in water, rescue a boat with soldiers that had run aground. The attacks of the disease intensified, but Peter, not paying attention to them, continued to deal with state affairs. On January 17, 1725, he had such a bad time that he ordered a camp church to be built in the room next to his bedroom, and on January 22 he confessed. The strength began to leave the patient, he no longer screamed, as before, from severe pain, but only moaned.

At the beginning of the sixth hour in the morning on January 28 (February 8), 1725, Peter the Great died in his Winter Palace near the Winter Canal. He was buried in the Cathedral of the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. The palace, cathedral, fortress and city were built by him.

BESPALOV A.V., Doctor of History, Professor

Literature

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Buganov V.I., Buganov A.V. Generals of the 18th century M., 1992

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Borisov V.E., Baltiyskiy A.A., Noskov A.A. Battle of Poltava 1709-June 27, 1909. St. Petersburg, 1909

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Gordenev M.Yu. Maritime traditions and solemn ceremonies of the Russian Imperial Navy. M., 2007

Golikov I.I. Acts of Peter the Great, the wise reformer of Russia, collected from reliable sources and arranged by years. T. 1-12. M., 1788-1789

Golikov I.I. Supplement to the Acts of Peter the Great. T. 1-18. M., 1790-1797

Epifanov P. The beginning of the organization of the Russian regular army of Peter I (1699-1705). scholarly notes Moscow State University. Issue. 87. History of the USSR, 1946

Epifanov P.P. Russia in the Northern War. Questions of history. No. 6, 7. 1971

History of the Northern War 1700-1721. Rostunov I.I., Avdeev V.A., Osipova M.N., Sokolov Yu.F. Moscow: Nauka, 1987

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History of Sweden. Ya. Mellin, A.V. Johansson, S. Hedeberg. M., 2002

History of Norway. M., 1980

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Kan A.S. Sweden and Russia in the past and present. M., 1999

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Tarle E.V. Russian fleet and foreign policy Peter I. St. Petersburg, 1994

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Proceedings of the RVIO. T. III. SPb., 1909

Ustryalov N.G. History of the reign of Peter the Great. T. 1-4. SPb., 1863

Theodosi D. Life and glorious deeds of Peter the Great ... T. 1. St. Petersburg, 1774

Tsar Peter and King Charles. Two rulers and their peoples. M., 1999

Shafirov P.P. Reasoning, what are the legitimate reasons for e.v. Peter the Great to start a war against King Charles XII of Sweden in 1700 had ... SPb., 1717

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Englund P. Poltava. The story of the death of one army. M., 1995

Internet

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He was on the throne, the Russian army fought almost continuously. In fact, all resources, financial, material and human, were focused on achieving the next military tasks. The army needed not only guns, cannons, ships, food and much more. The army needed good soldiers and good commanders.

In any case, no worse than the Swedish, French, Polish, Turkish and other armies. At first, the tsar invited foreigners to Russian service, but the payment for the services of mercenaries cost the treasury a pretty penny. Under Peter I, the formation of the Russian military school, Russian military art, and the traditions of the regular Russian army began.

One of the leading commanders of the Russian army during the Northern War was Boris Petrovich Sheremetev (1652-1719). A representative of an ancient and noble family at the age of 13 became a room attendant, and at 30 he received the rank of boyar. He began military service in Belgorod and Sevsk, where the troops under his leadership blocked the way for the Crimeans to the southern Russian districts. During the Azov campaigns (1695-1696), Sheremetev's troops operated in the lower reaches of the Dnieper. Near Narva, Sheremetev, together with everyone else, drank the bitter cup of defeat.

On a sad day on November 19, 1700, the Swedes beat the Russians in parts. During the retreat across the Narva River, more than a thousand people from noble cavalry under the command of Sheremetev, they simply drowned, and the commander himself fled from the battlefield. Charles XII believed that the Muscovites were finished, and he redeployed the main forces to Poland to fight the army of the Polish and Saxon king Augustus II. A “small war” began in the Baltic theater, in which the Russians gradually began to gain the upper hand. Already on December 27, 1701, a little over a year after the defeat near Narva, 17 thousand people under the command of Sheremetev unexpectedly attacked the Swedes who were celebrating Christmas.

Half of Schlippsnbach's 7,000th corps remained. In Moscow, bells rang for joy, cannons were fired, everyone was treated to wine, beer and honey. Swedish banners and standards were posted on the towers of the Kremlin. For the victory at Ersstfer, B.P. Sheremetev received the rank of field marshal and, just established. Other battles followed. In some (the capture of Noteburg on October 11, 1702, the fall of Nienschanz on April 22, 1703), Peter I himself took command of Sheremetev's troops.

In 1706, Boris Petrovich crushed the uprising in Astrakhan, receiving two thousand peasant households from the tsar. In 1707-1709. he participated in the strategic encirclement of Charles XII in the Ukraine. During Battle of Poltava Sheremetev was considered the commander-in-chief, and the tsar, in the event of his death, laid on him all responsibility for the outcome of the battle. In the list of those awarded for the Poltava victory, the name of Sheremetev was first. In 1708, Riga and the fortress of Dinamunde surrendered to Sheremetev. By the end of 1710, troops led by Sheremetev and Apraksin liberated the coast from Narva to Riga and the Karelian Isthmus from the Swedes. After the unsuccessful Prug campaign in the summer of 1711, the field marshal stood with the army in Ukraine. In 1714, Sheremetev's troops took part in a campaign in Pomerania to help the Danish and Polish troops.

The fate of Nikita Ivanovich Repnin (1668-1726), a representative of the ancient princely family of Obolensky, is indicative. The son of a boyar and a butler, he, in the rank of a sleeping bag, entered the retinue of young Peter. At the age of 17 he became a lieutenant of an amusing company. Participated in the Azov campaign and the suppression of the performances of archers. In 1699-1700. he formed regiments of soldiers, served as governor of Novgorod, and was engaged in putting in order the fortifications of Novgorod, Pskov, Pechora and Gdov. The troops under the leadership of Repnin participated in the "small war" on the territory of Ingermanland and the Baltic states. Since 1705, Repnin's troops were based in Grodno, Kovno, Vilna. In December 1707, Charles XII launched an offensive against Grodno and Novogrudok. Repnin was instructed to hold back the onslaught of the Swedish troops. The position taken on the Babich River was unsuccessful, and the troops were poorly prepared for battle. On the morning of July 3, 1708, the Swedes crossed the river, bypassed Repnin's troops, in which panic began, losses: iuu killed, 600 wounded, 10 guns and various equipment.

The Russian army had worse and worse failures, but the tsar became angry at the "irregularity" in the conduct of battle, at the "old custom", at "bezstroitsa, barbaric vile cry and Cossack customs." Repnin's regiments were included in different divisions, and he himself was demoted to the soldiers (instead of execution). "Golovchinskaya opportunity" almost crossed out the life of the general. But Peter had not so many experienced military leaders. Already under Lesnaya (September 1708), Repnin commanded a regiment, in October - a division. During the Battle of Poltava for the command of infantry regiments, the prince received the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called and lands with villages. In 1710, Repnin was the first to enter Riga and became governor-general here. Before the Prut in 1711. Repnin's army did not reach. In 1713 Repnin took Friedrichstadt and Stettin in Pomerania. The representative of another noble princely family, descending from the Grand Duke of Lithuania Gediminas, was Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn (1675-1730). He was 20 years younger than Sheremetev and was distinguished by his determination, initiative and personal courage. For Misha Golitsyn, military service began at the age of 12, when he became the drummer of the Semyonovsky regiment among the “funny little girls”. In 1694 he was an ensign. A year later, for the courage shown in the first Azov campaign, he became a lieutenant. Participated in the battle with the archery regiments near the Novorusalimsky monastery.

In 1700, Golitsyn, in the rank of captain of the guard, was wounded through the leg near Narva. In 1701 he received the ranks of major and lieutenant colonel. During the assault on Noteburg on October 12, 1702, Peter ordered the assault columns to retreat. Then Golitsyn ordered the boats to be pushed away from the banks of the Neva, so that the soldiers would not think of retreating. And he answered the tsar’s messenger: “Tell the sovereign that now I do not belong to Peter, but to God.” After a thirteen-hour battle, Noteburg was taken. Prince Golitsyn received the rank of Colonel of the Life Guards, 300 souls of peasants and 3 thousand rubles.

And entered as a model of fearlessness! The prince stormed Nyenschantz (1703), Narva (1704), Mitava (1705), participated in the defense of Grodno, became a major general (1706), defeated the Swedes near Dobry (August 1708). For participation in the Battle of Lesnaya (September 28, 1708), the brave Golitsyn received a royal portrait, showered with diamonds, the rank of lieutenant general and, interceding before the tsar for Repnin, who had recently been demoted to the soldiers, received another 800 peasant households. At the head of the guard, Golitsyn participated in the Battle of Poltava (1709), and in 1710 - in the capture of Vyborg.

In 1712-1713. Golitsyn was busy with the formation and supply of troops, was the right hand of Admiral General F. M. Apraksin. Together with other military leaders, he developed and implemented the rules of the marching service, the organization of camps, guard duty, sabotage, and the actions of the galley fleet. In February 1714, at the head of 8,000 soldiers, he defeated the 8,000th corps of the Swedish general Armfeld near the village of Nappola near the city of Vaza. After skillful maneuvers and deadly Russian fire, more than 5 thousand Swedes and Finns fell in battle, more than 500 with banners and artillery were captured, the rest fled. The prince became general-in-chief. In July 1714, M. M. Golitsyn participated in the famous Gangug battle. On July 27, 1720, at the Battle of Grengam Island, he commanded a squadron of 61 galleys and 29 boats. With the help of military cunning, four frigates, 104 guns were captured, 37 and 500 sailors were taken prisoner. The winner received a sword and cane studded with diamonds.

On the territory of Finland, Prince Golitsyn resolutely suppressed the atrocities of the troops, did not interfere in the internal affairs of the Finns. During Peter's campaign in Persia, Golitsyn remained on the appointment of the king for the chief commander in St. Petersburg, then commanded the Russian and Little Russian troops in Ukraine. Peter the Great called him "a direct son of the Fatherland." After the death of the emperor, Catherine I promoted M. M. Golitsyn to field marshal general. Under Peter II, he became president of the Military Collegium (Minister of War), a senator and a member of the Supreme Privy Council. Together with the "supervisors" he tried to limit the autocratic power during the accession of Anna Ivanovna. For participation in the "invention of the leaders" he fell into disgrace and was removed from the court. He died only 55 years old on December 10, 1730. Brilliant military leaders rarely made successful politicians.

Peter the Great is known to every Russian as the great reformer who ruled the country from 1689 to 1725. His reforms, carried out in the first quarter of the eighteenth century, according to historians, moved the country two to five centuries forward. For example, M. Shcherbatov believed that without Peter, Russia would have traveled such a path in two hundred years, and Karamzin believed that the tsar had done in twenty-five years what others would not have done in six centuries. At the same time, it is worth noting that neither one nor the other historian had much sympathy for the reign of Peter the Great, but they could not deny him the significance of the reforms carried out and the giant leap in the development of the country.

The king himself formed his retinue

The autocrat, who sat on the Russian throne, was known for his versatile development, which left a significant imprint on what the associates of Peter 1 were like. To please the tsar, one had to be a gifted, intelligent, hard-working person, like the ruler himself. And Peter the Great, it must be said, was lucky to have comrades-in-arms, whom he skillfully chose among the most diverse segments of the population and used their talents for the benefit of Russian state.

Among the comrades-in-arms of the autocrat were people from courtyards

Some associates of Peter 1, whose list is significant, grew up with the tsar together from an early age. It is known that Alexander Danilovich Menshikov came from a simple family and worked as a pastry maker in his youth, when he accidentally met the then young tsar. Peter liked the lively boy, and Aleksashka (as he was then called) became a soldier in an amusing company and the orderly of the heir to the throne. In 1697, Menshikov was sent abroad to study shipbuilding, where he was inseparable from the tsar. During these years, the boy showed the qualities that the king was looking for in his favorites. He was devoted, zealous, observant. He well adopted the rational way of thinking of his master, had a high capacity for work and did things with full dedication. Menshikov proved himself excellently as the governor of Shlisselburg and military commander during the operation near Noteburg.

Former pie-maker Menshikov successfully commanded regiments

The closest associate of Peter 1 showed himself excellently in other fields as well. It is known that it was he who organized the search for ores for the Baltic Plant, when it was necessary to cast guns. In 1703, together with Peter Menshikov, he developed a plan to clear the mouth of the Neva from the enemy. In 1704, Alexander Danilovich carried out a brilliant operation to capture Narva, and by this time he was no longer a servant, but a comrade and colleague of the great Russian emperor. His merits were noted by the autocrat in 1706, when the former pastry maker received the title of Prince of the Holy Roman Empire. The great prince now, however, remained the same temperamental, assertive, adventurous person and personally participated in some battles. For example, near Perevolognaya, his dragoons captured 16.2 thousand enemy people.

Alexander Menshikov, an associate of Peter 1, actively participated in the development of the northern capital, and in 1712 he commanded Russian troops in Pomerania, where he won another victory. After that, the favorite of the king did not participate in military operations due to unhealthy lungs. In the civil service, he proved to be no less effective, performing the duties of the governor of the capital lands, senator and president of the Military Collegium. In addition, Menshikov carried out numerous personal assignments of the autocrat, including in relation to the children of the king.

An old Russian tradition: everyone steals!

The favorite, who, according to some sources, was illiterate until the end of his days, which did not differ from the rest of the associates of Peter 1, participated in the investigation and personally compiled a list of people who signed the death sentence for the prince. After such cases, Menshikov became especially close with Peter, who did not punish him significantly for embezzlement (the total amount stolen was gigantic - 1,581,519 rubles). Under Peter the Second, Menshikov fell into disgrace, was stripped of all ranks and titles, and sent to Ranienburg, then to Berezov, where he died in 1729, outliving his king by four years. But before that, from 1725 to 1727, during the reign of Catherine, the wife of the deceased tsar, he was in fact the uncrowned ruler of the richest empire of that time.

From Lithuanian swineherds to the Senate

What other characters do historians attribute to the associates of Peter 1? This list can begin with Prince Romodanovsky. You can also include Prince M. Golitsyn, Counts Golovins, Prince Y. Dolgoruky, Baron P. P. Shafirov, Baron Osterman, B. K. Minikh, Tatishchev, Neplyuev, Lefort, Gordon, T. Streshnev, A. Makarov, Ya. V. Bruce, P. M. Apraksin, B. Sheremetiev, P. Tolstoy. Peter the Great recruited people he liked everywhere and included them in his team. For example, it is believed that the chief of police of St. Petersburg, Devier, was a cabin boy on a Portuguese ship, Yaguzhinsky, as some facts indicate, before the heyday of his career as prosecutor general of the Senate, was a swineherd in Lithuania. Kurbatov, the inventor of stamped paper and vice-governor of Arkhangelsk, came out of the yard people and so on. And all this "motley" company, which was made up of associates of Peter 1, took away the powers of the old boyar nobility.

Conflicts between noble and rootless assistants to the king took place

Although among the assistants of the great autocrat there were people with more than an outstanding pedigree. For example, Boris Petrovich Sheremetev was of a noble family, served as a stolnik, received a boyar title and worked in an embassy under her overthrow, he was forgotten for many years. However, during the Azov campaigns, the tsar needed Sheremetev's talent as a military commander, and Boris Petrovich justified the hopes placed on him. After that, Sheremetev perfectly fulfilled the diplomatic mission in Austria and the Commonwealth and pretty much liked the tsar for his good and fast learning Western manners in dress and behavior.

Many associates of Peter 1 participated in the military campaigns of their king. This fate did not bypass B. Sheremetev either. His talent as a commander showed up in 1701, when he defeated the Swedes with a grouping of 21,000 people, while the Russians lost only nine soldiers dead. In 1702, Sheremetev captured Eastern Livonia, in 1703 he took the Oreshek fortress, and that was the end of his victories and proximity to the tsar, since Peter considered Sheremetev too slow, too prudent, but recognizing that he would not send soldiers to death in vain. Sheremetev, as a born aristocrat, was disgusted by the simple behavior of the tsar and the company of the rest, unborn favorites. Therefore, the relationship between the tsar and the field marshal was somewhat official.

A descendant of the English kings in the service of Peter the Great

Special love among the Russian nobility, and among ordinary people, and among foreigners from the royal environment, an associate of Peter 1 who arrived from Scotland deserved it. Gordon Patrick (in Russia - Peter Ivanovich) was not of a simple family, since in a straight line his genes went back to the King of England, Charles II. He graduated from the Datzig Brausbor College, served in the Swedish troops, was captured by the Poles, from where, noticed by the ambassador in Warsaw Leontiev, he was transferred to serve in Russia, where he showed himself well in the army and received the rank of lieutenant general, was appointed to an administrative position in Kiev.

Then Gordon incurred displeasure and was demoted, but later reinstated in rank and appointed commander of the Butyrsky regiment. In 1687, young Peter the Great held a review of this army unit and was imbued with sympathy for a foreigner, which strengthened in 1689, during the events that led to the removal of Princess Sophia from government. After the Trinity campaign, the general, an associate of Peter 1, Patrick Gordon, became the autocrat's teacher in military affairs. He does not give him a complete theoretical education, but conducts many conversations, supported by practical actions. In 1695-1696. Gordon takes part in the siege of Azov, in 1696, with his help, the uprising of the archers is suppressed. This respected man in his time died in 1699, without having found major reforms in Russian army. It should be noted that the ranks of Field Marshal under Peter were held by such of his associates as Y. V. Bruce, B. K. Minikh, and B. P. Sheremetev.

He founded the area of ​​modern Moscow

The admiral, an associate of Peter 1, died, like Gordon, in 1699, at the age of 43. He came from a wealthy family and was born in Geneva. He arrived in Russia in 1675, as here he was promised the rank of captain. Lefort's successful career was facilitated by his marriage to the cousin of P. Gordon's first wife. He participated in the wars with the Tatars in Little Russian Ukraine, in both during the reign of Sophia he enjoyed the favor of Prince Golitsyn. Since 1690, Lefort, as a charming man, of a sharp mind, distinguished by courage, was noticed by Peter the Great and became his good friend, promoting him into the Russian environment. European culture. In Moscow, he founded Lefortovo Sloboda, accompanied the tsar on trips to the White Sea, Lake Pereyaslavskoe. He also participated in the idea of ​​the Great Embassy from Russia to the European powers, which he headed.

never was an ally of Peter the Great

Some inhabitants believe that the associate of Peter 1, Potemkin Grigory Aleksandrovich, made a great contribution to the development of the Russian state. One can argue about the role of Potemkin in this process for a long time, but it must be taken into account that he could not be an ally of Peter the Great in his deeds, since he was born in 1739, fourteen years after the death of the great autocrat. Therefore, Potemkin's activity falls on the period of the reign of Catherine II, whose favorite was this statesman.