Boyarynya Morozova: the story of a rebellious schismatic. Life and death of the noblewoman Morozova Boyarina Morozova for which she was convicted
The split changed not only the church, but also the fate of the disgraced noblewoman
In 1911, the emperor gave permission to dismantle the archive of the Secret Order of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. In addition to the usual papers and denunciations for such organizations, a large amount of documents relating to the church schism was discovered, and in particular, the case of the disgraced Theodosius Morozova. Her correspondence with Archpriest Avvakum, reports on the inquiry, a census of property alienated in favor of the state after the exile of the noblewoman to Borovsk. Among the heap of half-decayed papers, one was found, which was immediately reported to the authorities. The reaction followed immediately: to suspend the analysis of documents until the highest order, to classify the archive. The letter, which so alarmed the ruling dynasty, concerned the personal life of Alexei Mikhailovich, who entered Russian history under the name Quiet.
Not allowed, lady
On the night of November 1-2, 1675, it snowed. The walls of the deep, three meters deep pits were covered with frost. The women sitting in the pit did not speak for several days, they did not even have the strength to pray. After Evdokia's death in September, they were fed worse and less every day, and they answered their requests for bread: if they are righteous, then God will give!
One of the captives stirred, and the second, unable to turn her head, squinted her eyes in her direction.
I'll die today, Masha...
The one whose name was Masha did not answer, she only looked away.
And it’s true, we don’t live with you, but we suffer ...
The woman began to cry. In the emaciated and broken old woman, few would recognize the stately beauty Feodosia Morozova.
She was forty-three years old.
She survived everyone ... Glebushka died, Dunyasha died, and now Vanechka is gone ...
Morozova's son died before his aunt, but the mother was told about this only now, when she was exhausted.
Suddenly Morozova started up and, having taken strength from somewhere, got to her feet and shouted somewhere upwards, where the guards should have been:
Hey up there! Have mercy! Give me a ball!
Masha hissed something accusingly, but from above they answered:
Not allowed, mistress, I'm afraid.
Then give me some bread! - Morozova did not let up, and in her demand one could hear the last determination.
Not allowed.
Good, child ... - the old woman drooped and somehow suddenly went limp. “Blessed be our God, so merciful. Then go to the river and wash my shirt... I was going to die, but I need to die clean...
Morozov said the last words so quietly that even Danilova, who was nearby, could not make out them. But the guard heard, and soon a wooden pole with an iron hook at the end fell down, to which Morozova attached her tough shirt, which had not been changed for several months.
Artistic bride
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was left without parents early, and when he ascended the throne at the age of sixteen, his tutor, his father's friend Boris Morozov, turned out to be closest to him. The brother of Boris Ivanovich Gleb was the uncle of the younger brother of Alexei Mikhailovich - Ivan and the royal governor in Novgorod, Kazan, accompanied the king on military campaigns. Both brothers were quite close to the Russian throne and were not going to leave it. In addition, the Morozov family was more well-born than the Romanovs, and who knows how far their ambitions extended.
True, when the tsar's brother died, Gleb's influence decreased, but even then Boris found a way to return to his previous positions. Not only did he pick up a bride from the poor for Alexei Mikhailovich so that they would not compete, but he himself married the queen's sister, Anna Miloslavskaya. Gleb was advised as a wife by the daughter of the boyar Procopius Sokovnin, who was close to Alexei Mikhailovich, Feodosia. Although the Sokovnins did not shine with a pedigree, Procopius took part in embassy affairs and for some time was even the governor of Kaluga.
The wedding of Gleb Morozov and Feodosia Sokovnina took place in 1649. She did not differ in special splendor, since the groom had already been married once, he had recently been widowed, not enough time had passed so that the first marriage could be forgotten. But in order to demonstrate the seventeen-year-old beauty being introduced into the boyar house, the festivities lasted more than a week. One day, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich also visited the Morozovs ...
golden carriage
Surprisingly, having dressed in a wet shirt brought by a guard, Feodosia Prokopyevna felt happy. Soon her torment would end, and she felt the time ooze, bringing her meeting with the Lord closer. Morozova crossed herself.
Are you ready? Danilova croaked from her corner.
Yes, Masha, I'm getting ready.
And what are you happy about?
The friend coughed, and Morozova thought she laughed. She bent down to the icy earthen floor and tried to enter into her habitual and so easily flying off from the tongue prayer. But in my head, one after another, scenes of a past and, it seemed, long-forgotten life arose.
Parents married Theodosius, as usual, without asking. The time has come, and a better game than Morozov could not even be imagined. In addition, by profitably marrying off the eldest daughter, one could count on good prospects for the younger children - the daughter of Evdokia and the sons of Fyodor and Alexei. Theodosia herself did not know love before marriage, and at first sight she appreciated generosity in the groom.
The boyar arrived in a gilded carriage drawn by a dozen thoroughbred horses, accompanied by more than a hundred servants. This alone made an impression - the Sokovnins at best harnessed two horses, and in the whole house there were no more than a dozen servants. The groom's fur coat, trimmed with sable skins and lined with ermine, completely made Theodosius believe that marriage promises to turn into an endless fairy tale.
Only Aunt Matryona, who had taken root with the Sokovnins even before the birth of Theodosius, after the marriage was arranged, went gloomy and now and then fell on her knees in front of the icons.
Carried away by the pre-wedding fuss, the parents did not pay attention to Matryona's quirks, but Fedenka, as the youngest daughter was affectionately called in the family, was worried:
What's wrong with you, auntie? Do you hear trouble?
Matryona frowned and averted her eyes. The girl hugged her and repeated:
Speak, don't worry! Today I feel so good that I will help you, and I will remain for myself.
The host crossed herself and whispered:
It's not me, the old one, who needs help, I'm worried about you, Fedenka! The white angel will turn out to be a demon, the black man will strengthen faith!
The girl did not understand, but nodded in agreement.
Don't go, girl, get married! You will lose your son, you will put your faith under a test, you will be left all alone, and they will bury you in the icy ground!
What are you saying, Matryonushka?!
Fedenka was seriously frightened, she began to cross herself, but the old woman did not let up:
I'm telling the truth, but you don't believe me! Not every gingerbread is sweet inside!
Suddenly, the host stopped and ran out of the room, and Feodosia, wiping her tears, noticed her mother entering.
What's happened?
The eldest Sokovnina was a strict woman and did not tolerate girlish weaknesses.
Yes, I rejoice, mother!
And if you rejoice, then go get ready! The wedding has already been scheduled.
Feodosia Morozova soon forgot about the prediction of the hanger-on and remembered it only when it began to come true.
royal offspring
The wedding was celebrated in Zyuzin, the Morozov estate near Moscow. Contemporaries admired the splendor of the palace - the high vaults of the halls, built in compliance with Russian traditions, were whimsically complemented only by the type-setting parquet that came into fashion in Europe. Peacocks proudly paced the winter garden, and a separate room was set aside for the owner's hunting trophies.
On the third day, the young tsar and the tsarina came to Zyuzino.
Seeing him, Theodosius felt a previously unknown feeling. A blue-eyed lad with flaxen hair in a brightly embroidered caftan struck her with his beauty, and Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna seemed like a gray bird, shriveled from frost, which, by some misunderstanding, ended up in the Garden of Eden.
Alexei Mikhailovich also noticed the young noblewoman, she was brought closer to the court, and a year later the Morozovs had a son, Ivan.
Rumors that Theodosia did not walk up her son from her husband appeared in Moscow the day after his birth. The fact is that among the gossips they have long said that the Morozov brothers, in the pursuit of wealth, lost their masculine power - both the elder Boris and the younger Gleb married a second time, but neither one nor the other had children before Ivan. When the boy grew up a little, his resemblance to the second Romanov ceased to be a secret.
In 1662, at first the childless Boris Ivanovich Morozov died almost simultaneously, and a little later, Gleb Ivanovich. The twelve-year-old Ivan turned out to be the heir to all Morozov's wealth, but until the age of his son, his mother, Feodosia Prokopyevna Morozova, was declared the manager of the estates. Her influence at court, which had been considerable before, grew many times over. And gossip and rumors about the ongoing connection with the tsar were now reinforced by the fact that without his consent, the largest capital in Russia could not be concentrated in one hand. As a rule, in order to avoid this (too much wealth contained a danger to power), the state of a childless brother was rejected in favor of the state.
Only the queen continued to believe in the pure relationship of her husband and best friend. In addition, Alexei Mikhailovich's frequent visits to the Morozovs were easily explained by his royal concern for Ivan, who was left without a father, and his interest in Theodosius as a companion. Even Boris Ivanovich Morozov publicly admired the intelligence and education of his daughter-in-law and considered it shameless to discuss state affairs with her. What can we say about the young tsar, who was suddenly left without his best advisers, while riot after riot took place in Rus'?
three-fingered
Although Alexei Mikhailovich was nicknamed the Quietest, his reign was one of the most turbulent in Rus'. The enslavement of peasants began under Ivan the Terrible, and the Code of 1649 finally approved it. Of course, riots began: the peasants refused to obey the landlords, went to the north, where the tsarist governors could not get them, the most freedom-loving ones united in gangs and raided the landowners' estates. Never before had there been so many arsons in the country, and the atrocities of the rebels were reminiscent of the Tatar-Mongol invasion. At the same time, both at the court, which brutally suppressed the uprising, and among the fugitive peasants, they were sure that they were doing a charitable deed. And about the death of Patriarch Joseph, respected in Rus', they said: either “the landowners poisoned him, because he stood up for the peasants,” or “the patriarch could not bear the disrespect of the common people of his masters.”
Aleksey Mikhailovich well imagined that in order to pacify the people, a strong man, capable of reforming the amorphous church, which had not yet provided proper assistance to the authorities, should become the new patriarch. It was then that he remembered the Metropolitan Nikon of Novgorod.
Nikon (before monasticism - Nikita Minov) came from the peasants of the Nizhny Novgorod province. Having become a priest, he came to Moscow and, while serving in one of the Moscow churches, caught the eye of the young tsar. He liked him - young, stately, his eyes are burning. An energy emanated from Nikon, which had not been seen at court for a long time, and Alexei Mikhailovich, despite the timid resistance of the old patriarch, appointed the young priest Metropolitan of Novgorod.
When a messenger rushed to Novgorod with a royal request to take the place of the deceased patriarch, Nikon did not give consent, but went to Moscow. He was well aware that the appointment of a relatively young man as a patriarch would be perceived ambiguously by the people and the royal entourage. Only when Alexei Mikhailovich, with a large crowd of people in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin, begging to accept the patriarchate, bowed at the feet of the metropolitan, Nikon (again in public), having demanded a promise from the tsar not to interfere in church affairs, gave his consent.
The sick lust for power of the new patriarch manifested itself rather quickly. Yes, he did not hide his desire to build an Orthodox church following the example of the Catholic one, where the power of the pope was indisputable, including for monarchs. At first, such changes suited Alexei Mikhailovich quite well - he needed the support of a strong church.
The first step of the new patriarch was the convergence of the traditional Russian and Greek rites. However, the change in liturgical books and church life that began under Nikon was perceived by most parishioners as an insult to traditions. From time immemorial, in Rus' they overshadowed themselves with two fingers - Nikon introduced three fingers, Russians during worship used to follow the movement of the sun - Nikon tried to introduce the Greek custom of walking opposite, in Rus' they revered an eight-pointed cross - Nikon insisted on a four-pointed ...
In 1654, Nikon assembled a church council, at which a decision was made to correct church books according to Greek and Old Slavic models. Several people, including Archpriest Avvakum, who later became famous, did not sign the decision, and two years later at the new cathedral they were cursed and sent into exile.
The common people perceived all these innovations unequivocally: the tsar needed a new church to finally consolidate serfdom. The courtiers hated Nikon for the influence he had gained over the young tsar. And only Theodosia Morozova dared to show her hostility to the patriarch.
Hungry pride
Frozen in a wet shirt, Theodosia still tried to focus on prayer, but her memories did not allow her to do so.
Chapped lips tried to form into a semblance of a smile: she did not immediately understand that the new patriarch was a black man, but she disliked Nikon from the first meeting. The one when Alyoshenka bowed at his feet. Nikon, all in black (among other things, he tried to instill asceticism in the churchmen), did not immediately give his consent, silently looked around the boyars surrounding the tsar with a victorious look and stopped him on her. What was he waiting for? Did you want Morozova to bow obediently and lower her eyes? But she felt offended for the humiliation of the king, and Theodosia measured the swaggering priest from head to toe. Since then, their struggle began, the struggle of two strong power-hungry people. From the outside it seemed that they were fighting for the purity of the church, but Morozova knew that they were fighting for the love of the tsar.
Black man
At the instigation of Nikon, all the forces of the state were thrown at the suppression of the Old Believers by the tsar. The schismatics fled from the towns and villages, and after them, archery teams were immediately sent, who burned the Old Believer sketes with children and the elderly in them.
But as soon as Nikon left Moscow at the head of the army, Morozova's influence on the tsar increased. Even Archpriest Avvakum, with whom Theodosia started a correspondence, asked her to humble the female flesh and pay more attention to raising her son.
Having once returned from the “crusade” to Moscow, Nikon, having learned that Alexei Mikhailovich was again in Zyuzin with the Morozovs, decided to teach the tsar a lesson: he announced that he was resigning from the rank of patriarch, and retired to the Resurrection Monastery founded by him. Nikon was sure that Alexei Mikhailovich would immediately come to him to persuade him to stay. However, this did not happen, and in 1658 the patriarchal throne was vacated. But only in November 1666 did a church council meet, which found Nikon guilty of insulting the tsar and falling into Latin dogmas. He was defrocked and exiled to the Belozersky Ferapontov Monastery. However, Nikon's reforms went so far that a return to the old rite was no longer possible.
But Morozova, who defeated the "black man", did not yet understand that the church schism would also pass in her fate.
royal wedding
When Nikon was sent into exile, the noblewoman Morozova was one of the most well-born and wealthy women in Russia. She was happy. She had a beloved son and a beloved person, the main enemy, who tried to separate her from the "white angel" Alyoshenka, was defeated, she was only thirty-three years old, and it seemed that life had prepared only joy ahead.
But in March 1669, Tsarina Maria Miloslavskaya, who had endured her husband's affection for her best friend, died, and soon the tsar's marriage to the young and pretty Natalya Naryshkina was announced. Morozov Alexei Mikhailovich made it clear that from now on their relationship cannot remain the same.
On January 22, 1671, the royal wedding took place. The “horse” (palace) noblewoman Morozova also had to take part in the complex wedding ritual. She did not appear, and Alexei Mikhailovich did not want to forgive her for this. True, as the chroniclers report, he said to the boyars around him: "It is hard for her to fight me - one of us will certainly win."
In order to deal with his former mistress, the king decided to recall her friendship with Avvakum and the rejection of the new rite, that is, what had amused him until now. To some extent, he even encouraged his girlfriend's strife, believing that her rivalry with Nikon was useful for the state.
On November 16, 1671, Archimandrite Joachim of the Chudov Monastery was instructed to arrest Morozov. She was taken to the courtyard of the Pskov Caves Monastery on the Arbat - it was bought by the Secret Order and used as a place of detention.
However, the king still did not give up hope for good relations with his long-term girlfriend. Trying to convert her to a new faith, the new patriarch talked with Morozova for a long time, tutors were assigned to his son Ivan by the tsar, and Morozova was informed about this. However, after the unexpected death of Vanechka, nothing could convince Theodosius of the good attitude of the king.
The prediction of Matryona's accustomer kept pounding in my head: "The white angel will turn out to be a demon, the black man will strengthen faith." Now she knew not only the “black man”, but the “white angel”, who turned out to be Satan.
A real angel
Half-dead Danilova tied a rope around her friend's body, and they pulled him up. But just before the manhole, it caught on something, Morozova's hand twitched, and it seemed to Danilova that she illuminated her with a cross.
From that day on, Masha refused to eat, every now and then she fell into oblivion, and exactly a month later, on December 1, she died.
On the same day, a messenger rode to Moscow with the news of Morozova's death. But when Alexei Mikhailovich was informed about this, it seemed to those around him that he did not even immediately remember who he was talking about.
Prince Urusov, whose wife, Morozova's sister Evdokia Prokopievna, had been tortured earlier, crossed himself and loudly, so that the future chronicler heard it, said:
Angel! A real angel! Absolutely no memory of evil!
True, the chronicler notes that it was not clear what kind of evil the prince had in mind - that which was caused to Alexei Mikhailovich, or that which he himself caused.
Boyar Morozova Feodosia Prokopievna (born May 21 (31), 1632 - November 2 (12), 1675) - the supreme palace noblewoman. She was arrested for adherence to the "old faith", exiled to the Pafnutyevo-Borovsky monastery and imprisoned in the monastery prison, where she died of starvation.
What is known about Feodosia Prokopyevna
The appearance of the noblewoman Morozova in the national memory is connected with the painting of V. Surikov, beloved by the people. Even the writer V. Garshin, having seen the artist’s canvas 100 years ago at the exhibition, predicted that descendants would not be able to “imagine Feodosia Prokopyevna otherwise than as she is depicted in the picture.” It is difficult for a contemporary to be impartial, but we understand that Garshin, as it turned out, was a good prophet. Many people imagine the noblewoman Morozova as a stern, elderly woman, as in a picture, who fanatically threw up her hand in two fingers. Well, Surikov knew history well and, in the main, did not go against the truth, but the details of fiction were necessary for him for the sake of symbolic generalizations.
Boyarynya Morozova was not old - look at the dates of her life. The noblewoman was arrested 4 years before her death, then she was not even forty, but the people’s memory could capture the martyr for the idea only as a lived, wise and alien to any frivolity.
Why did the glory of the noblewoman Morozova cross the centuries? Why, among the thousands of sufferers for the faith, this particular woman was destined to become a symbol of the struggle of the schismatics against the "Nikonians"?
On the canvas of the artist, Feodosia Prokopievna addresses the Moscow crowd, to common people - to a wanderer with a staff, to an old beggar woman, to a holy fool, to all those who actually represented the social stratum of fighters against new rites. However, Morozova was not an ordinary disobedient. The Chudov Monastery, where she was taken, was in the Kremlin. It is not known whether Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich watched from the palace passages, how he saw off the people to his favorite, how she proclaimed an anathema to the "wicked", but there is no doubt that the thought of Morozova haunted him, did not give him rest.
Rod Morozov
The boyar was too close to the throne, she knew the king too well, and besides this, the Morozov family was one of the most noble. There were less than ten such high-ranking families in Russia, at least the Romanovs, to whom Alexei Mikhailovich belonged, had no more rights to the throne than any of the Morozovs. One can guess to what extent the tsar felt uncomfortable when he ordered the arrest of the noblewoman. However, there were other things to worry about as well.
The Morozov brothers, Boris and Gleb, were relatives of the Tsar's father Mikhail, and in their youth they served as sleeping bags for the elder Romanov, this was an exceptional position at court. When, in 1645, 17-year-old Alexei was crowned the throne, Boris Morozov became his closest adviser. It was the boyar who chose the wife of Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya for the sovereign and played the first role at the wedding - he was with the sovereign "in his father's place." After 10 days, Boris Morozov, a widower and an elderly man, married the second marriage to the tsarina's sister Anna and became the tsar's brother-in-law.
From his exceptional position, he was able to extract everything he could. And if the possession of 300 peasant households was considered a good fortune for a gentleman of that era, then Morozov had more than 7,000 of them. Unheard of wealth!
The career of Gleb Ivanovich, a very ordinary person, completely depended on the success of his brother. The younger Morozov married the unborn 17-year-old beauty Feodosia Sokovnina, who was very friendly with the queen. Boris Ivanovich died without heirs, and all his vast fortune went to his younger brother, who also soon died, making his widow and boy Ivan Glebovich the richest people in the Russian state.
The life of the noblewoman Morozova
Boyar Morozova was surrounded not only by wealth, but by luxury. Contemporaries recalled that she rode out in a gilded carriage, which was driven by 6-12 best horses, and 300 servants ran behind. In the Morozov estate of Zyuzino, a huge garden was laid out, where peacocks walked. Considering all this - Morozova's successful marriage, a luxurious life, personal friendship with the royal family - one can understand Archpriest Avvakum, who saw something absolutely exceptional in the fact that Feodosia Prokopievna renounced "earthly glory". The boyar in reality became an ardent opponent of church reforms. The temperament of a public figure raged in her, and she was fully able to realize herself, defending the old faith.
The house of a rich and influential noblewoman turned into the headquarters of opponents of innovations, critics of making corrections to church books, the leader of the schismatics, Archpriest Avvakum, came here, lived for a long time, receiving shelter and protection. For days on end, Morozova received wanderers, holy fools, priests expelled from monasteries, creating a kind of opposition party to the royal court. The noblewoman herself and her own sister, Princess Evdokia Urusova, were blindly devoted to Habakkuk and listened to the fiery preacher in everything.
But it would be wrong to assume that the noblewoman Morozova was a fanatic and a "blue stocking". Even Avvakum noticed that she had a cheerful and affable character. When her old husband died, she was only 30 years old. The widow "tormented" the body with a hair shirt, but the hair shirt did not always help to pacify the flesh. Avvakum in letters advised his pupil to gouge out her eyes in order to get rid of the temptation of love.
The archpriest also accused the noblewoman of stinginess in relation to their common cause, but, most likely, it was not just stinginess, but the prudence of the hostess. Morozova selflessly loved her only son Ivan and wanted to give him all the wealth of Morozova safe and sound. The letters of the noblewoman to the disgraced archpriest, in addition to discussions about faith, are filled with purely female complaints about her people, discussions about a suitable bride for her son. In a word, Feodosia Prokopievna, possessing an enviable strength of character, had completely human weaknesses, which, of course, makes her asceticism even more significant.
The boyar, being a close friend of the sovereign's wife, had a strong influence on her. Maria Ilyinichna, of course, did not oppose her husband's reforms of the church, but with her soul she nevertheless sympathized with the rites of her parents and listened to the whispers of Theodosia Prokopievna. Alexei Mikhailovich hardly liked this, but the tsar, who loved his wife, did not allow attacks against the noblewoman, although the latter became more and more intolerant of innovations and openly supported the tsar's enemies.
1669 - the queen died. For another two years, Alexei Mikhailovich was afraid to touch the rebellious noblewoman. As you can see, grief over the untimely departed wife affected, but most of all the sovereign was wary of the indignations of the old boyar families, who could see in the encroachment on Feodosia Prokopievna a precedent for reprisals against high-ranking families. In the meantime, Morozoav took the tonsure and began to be called the nun Theodora, which, of course, increased her fanaticism and "standing for the faith." And when in 1671 the tsar, finally consoled, played a wedding with Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina, the boyar Morozova did not want to come to the palace, citing illness, which Alexei Mikhailovich considered an insult and neglect.
Arrest
It was then that the sovereign remembered all past grievances to the boyar Morozova; apparently, the fact that the tsar, like a mere mortal, did not like the girlfriend of his beloved wife and, like any man, was jealous of her, also had an effect. The autocrat brought down on the recalcitrant noblewoman all his despotic power.
On the night of November 14, 1671, Morozov was escorted in chains to the Chudov Monastery, where they began to persuade her to take communion according to the new rite, but the old woman Theodora answered firmly: “I won’t take communion!” After being tortured, she and her sister were sent away from Moscow to the Pechersky Monastery. There, the content of the prisoners was relatively tolerable. At least the noblewoman could keep in touch with her friends. Servants could visit her, bring food and clothes.
Archpriest Avvakum continued to convey instructions to his spiritual daughter. And she just needed warm, compassionate support - her only, dearly beloved son died at the boyar's. The grief was also increased by the fact that she could not say goodbye to him, and what was it like for her, the nun Theodora, to find out that her son was communed and buried according to new "impious" rites.
The new Patriarch Pitirim of Novgorod, who sympathized with the supporters of Avvakum, turned to the autocrat with a request to release Morozova and her sister. In addition to considerations of humanity, there was also a share of political intent in this proposal: the imprisonment of the noblewoman, firm in her faith, her sister and their friend Maria Danilova made a strong impression on the Russian people, and their release would rather attract to a new rite than intimidation. But the sovereign, not cruel by nature, this time turned out to be adamant. Again, the version suggests itself that some personal resentment against Morozova burned him, and perhaps he felt embarrassed in front of Feodosia Prokopyevna because of his marriage to the young beauty Naryshkina and wanted to forget about the past. However, what to guess? ..
Death of the noblewoman
After considering the circumstances of the execution of the hated noblewoman, Alexei Mikhailovich decided that the prisoners should not be burned at the stake, because “death is red in the world,” but ordered the Old Believers to be starved to death by throwing them into the cold pit of the Borovsky Monastery. All the property of the noblewoman Morozova was confiscated, her brothers were first exiled, and then they were also executed.
The drama of Morozova's last days defies description. Poor women, driven to despair by hunger, asked the jailers for at least a piece of bread, but were refused. Princess Urusova was the first to die on September 11, followed by Feodosia Prokopyevna on November 1 from exhaustion. Before her death, she found the strength to ask the jailer to wash her shirt in the river so that, according to Russian custom, she would die in a clean shirt. Maria Danilova suffered the longest, for another whole month.
The once great Morozov family ceased to exist.
In 1911, the emperor gave permission to dismantle the archive of the Secret Order of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. In addition to the usual papers and denunciations for such organizations, a large amount of documents relating to the church schism was discovered, and in particular, the case of the disgraced Theodosius Morozova. Her correspondence with Archpriest Avvakum, reports on the inquiry, a census of property alienated in favor of the state after the exile of the noblewoman to Borovsk. Among the heap of half-decayed papers, one was found, which was immediately reported to the authorities. The reaction followed immediately: to suspend the analysis of documents until the highest order, to classify the archive. The letter, which so alarmed the ruling dynasty, concerned the personal life of Alexei Mikhailovich, who entered Russian history under the name Quiet.
Not allowed, lady
On the night of November 1-2, 1675, it snowed. The walls of the deep, three meters deep pits were covered with frost. The women sitting in the pit did not speak for several days, they did not even have the strength to pray. After Evdokia's death in September, they were fed worse and less every day, and they answered their requests for bread: if they are righteous, then God will give!
One of the captives stirred, and the second, unable to turn her head, squinted her eyes in her direction.
I'll die today, Masha...
The one whose name was Masha did not answer, she only looked away.
And it’s true, we don’t live with you, but we suffer ...
The woman began to cry. In the emaciated and broken old woman, few would recognize the stately beauty Feodosia Morozova.
She was forty-three years old.
She survived everyone ... Glebushka died, Dunyasha died, and now Vanechka is gone ...
Best of the day
Morozova's son died before his aunt, but the mother was told about this only now, when she was exhausted.
Suddenly Morozova started up and, having taken strength from somewhere, got to her feet and shouted somewhere upwards, where the guards should have been:
Hey up there! Have mercy! Give me a ball!
Masha hissed something accusingly, but from above they answered:
Not allowed, mistress, I'm afraid.
Then give me some bread! - Morozova did not let up, and her last determination was heard in this demand.
Not allowed.
Good, child ... - the old woman drooped and somehow suddenly went limp. - Blessed be our God, so merciful. Then go down to the river and wash my shirt... I was going to die, but I need to die clean...
Morozov said the last words so quietly that even Danilova, who was nearby, could not make out them. But the guard heard, and soon a wooden pole with an iron hook at the end fell down, to which Morozova attached her tough shirt, which had not been changed for several months.
Artistic bride
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was left without parents early, and when he ascended the throne at the age of sixteen, his tutor, his father's friend Boris Morozov, turned out to be closest to him. The brother of Boris Ivanovich Gleb was the uncle of the younger brother of Alexei Mikhailovich - Ivan and the royal governor in Novgorod, Kazan, accompanied the king on military campaigns. Both brothers were quite close to the Russian throne and were not going to leave it. In addition, the Morozov family was more well-born than the Romanovs, and who knows how far their ambitions extended.
True, when the tsar's brother died, Gleb's influence decreased, but even then Boris found a way to return to his previous positions. Not only did he pick up a bride from the poor for Alexei Mikhailovich so that they would not compete, but he himself married the queen's sister, Anna Miloslavskaya. Gleb was advised as a wife by the daughter of the boyar Procopius Sokovnin, who was close to Alexei Mikhailovich, Feodosia. Although the Sokovnins did not shine with a pedigree, Procopius took part in embassy affairs and for some time was even the governor of Kaluga.
The wedding of Gleb Morozov and Feodosia Sokovnina took place in 1649. She did not differ in special splendor, since the groom had already been married once, he had recently been widowed, not enough time had passed so that the first marriage could be forgotten. But in order to demonstrate the seventeen-year-old beauty being introduced into the boyar house, the festivities lasted more than a week. One day, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich also visited the Morozovs...
golden carriage
Surprisingly, having dressed in a wet shirt brought by a guard, Feodosia Prokopyevna felt happy. Soon her torment would end, and she felt the time ooze, bringing her meeting with the Lord closer. Morozova crossed herself.
Are you ready? Danilova croaked from her corner.
Yes, Masha, I'm getting ready.
And what are you happy about?
The friend coughed, and Morozova thought she laughed. She bent down to the icy earthen floor and tried to enter into her habitual and so easily flying off from the tongue prayer. But in my head, one after another, scenes of a past and, it seemed, long-forgotten life arose.
Parents married Theodosius, as usual, without asking. The time has come, and a better game than Morozov could not even be imagined. In addition, having profitably married off the eldest daughter, one could count on good prospects for younger children - the daughter of Evdokia and the sons of Fedor and Alexei. Theodosia herself did not know love before marriage, and at first sight she appreciated generosity in the groom.
The boyar arrived in a gilded carriage drawn by a dozen thoroughbred horses, accompanied by more than a hundred servants. This alone made an impression - the Sokovnins at best harnessed two horses, and in the whole house there were no more than a dozen servants. The groom's fur coat, trimmed with sable skins and lined with ermine, completely made Theodosius believe that marriage promises to turn into an endless fairy tale.
Only Aunt Matryona, who had taken root with the Sokovnins even before the birth of Theodosius, after the marriage was arranged, went gloomy and now and then fell on her knees in front of the icons.
Carried away by the pre-wedding fuss, the parents did not pay attention to Matryona's quirks, but Fedenka, as the youngest daughter was affectionately called in the family, was worried:
What's wrong with you, auntie? Do you hear trouble?
Matryona frowned and averted her eyes. The girl hugged her and repeated:
Speak, don't worry! Today I feel so good that I will help you, and I will remain for myself.
The host crossed herself and whispered:
It's not me, the old one, who needs help, I'm worried about you, Fedenka! The white angel will turn out to be a demon, the black man will strengthen faith!
The girl did not understand, but nodded in agreement.
Don't go, girl, get married! You will lose your son, you will put your faith under a test, you will be left all alone, and they will bury you in the icy ground!
What are you saying, Matryonushka?!
Fedenka was seriously frightened, she began to cross herself, but the old woman did not let up:
I'm telling the truth, but you don't believe me! Not every gingerbread is sweet inside!
Suddenly, the host stopped and ran out of the room, and Feodosia, wiping her tears, noticed her mother entering.
What's happened?
The eldest Sokovnina was a strict woman and did not tolerate girlish weaknesses.
Yes, I rejoice, mother!
And if you rejoice, then go get ready! The wedding has already been scheduled.
Feodosia Morozova soon forgot about the prediction of the hanger-on and remembered it only when it began to come true.
royal offspring
The wedding was celebrated in Zyuzin, the Morozov estate near Moscow. Contemporaries admired the splendor of the palace - the high vaults of the halls, built in compliance with Russian traditions, were whimsically complemented only by the type-setting parquet that came into fashion in Europe. Peacocks proudly paced the winter garden, and a separate room was set aside for the owner's hunting trophies.
On the third day, the young tsar and the tsarina came to Zyuzino.
Seeing him, Theodosius felt a previously unknown feeling. A blue-eyed lad with flaxen hair in a brightly embroidered caftan struck her with his beauty, and Tsarina Maria Ilyinichna seemed like a gray bird, shriveled from frost, which, by some misunderstanding, ended up in the Garden of Eden.
Alexei Mikhailovich also noticed the young noblewoman, she was brought closer to the court, and a year later the Morozovs had a son, Ivan.
Rumors that Theodosia did not walk up her son from her husband appeared in Moscow the day after his birth. The fact is that among the gossips they have long said that the Morozov brothers, in the pursuit of wealth, lost their masculine power - both the elder Boris and the younger Gleb married a second time, but neither one nor the other had children before Ivan. When the boy grew up a little, his resemblance to the second Romanov ceased to be a secret.
In 1662, almost simultaneously, the childless Boris Ivanovich Morozov died almost simultaneously, and a little later, Gleb Ivanovich. The twelve-year-old Ivan turned out to be the heir to all Morozov's wealth, but until the age of his son, his mother, Feodosia Prokopievna Morozova, was declared the manager of the estates. Her influence at court, which had been considerable before, grew many times over. And gossip and rumors about the ongoing connection with the tsar were now reinforced by the fact that without his consent, the largest capital in Russia could not be concentrated in one hand. As a rule, in order to avoid this (too much wealth contained a danger to power), the state of a childless brother was rejected in favor of the state.
Only the queen continued to believe in the pure relationship of her husband and best friend. In addition, Alexei Mikhailovich's frequent visits to the Morozovs were easily explained by his royal concern for Ivan, who was left without a father, and his interest in Theodosius as a companion. Even Boris Ivanovich Morozov publicly admired the intelligence and education of his daughter-in-law and considered it shameless to discuss state affairs with her. What can we say about the young tsar, who was suddenly left without his best advisers, while riot after riot took place in Rus'?
three-fingered
Although Alexei Mikhailovich was nicknamed the Quietest, his reign was one of the most turbulent in Rus'. The enslavement of peasants began under Ivan the Terrible, and the Code of 1649 finally approved it. Of course, riots began: the peasants refused to obey the landlords, went to the north, where the tsarist governors could not get them, the most freedom-loving ones united in gangs and raided the landowners' estates. Never before had there been so many arsons in the country, and the atrocities of the rebels were reminiscent of the Tatar-Mongol invasion. At the same time, both at the court, which brutally suppressed the uprising, and among the fugitive peasants, they were sure that they were doing a charitable deed. And about the death of Patriarch Joseph, respected in Rus', they said: either “the landowners poisoned him, because he stood up for the peasants,” or “the patriarch could not bear the disrespect of the common people of his masters.”
Aleksey Mikhailovich well imagined that in order to pacify the people, a strong man, capable of reforming the amorphous church, which had not yet provided proper assistance to the authorities, should become the new patriarch. It was then that he remembered the Metropolitan Nikon of Novgorod.
Nikon (before monasticism - Nikita Minov) came from the peasants of the Nizhny Novgorod province. Having become a priest, he came to Moscow and, while serving in one of the Moscow churches, caught the eye of the young tsar. He liked him - young, stately, his eyes are burning. An energy emanated from Nikon, which had not been seen at court for a long time, and Alexei Mikhailovich, despite the timid resistance of the old patriarch, appointed the young priest Metropolitan of Novgorod.
When a messenger rushed to Novgorod with a royal request to take the place of the deceased patriarch, Nikon did not give consent, but went to Moscow. He was well aware that the appointment of a relatively young man as a patriarch would be perceived ambiguously by the people and the royal entourage. Only when Alexei Mikhailovich, with a large crowd of people in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin, begging to accept the patriarchate, bowed at the feet of the metropolitan, Nikon (again in public), having demanded a promise from the tsar not to interfere in church affairs, gave his consent.
The sick lust for power of the new patriarch manifested itself rather quickly. Yes, he did not hide his desire to build an Orthodox church following the example of the Catholic one, where the power of the pope was indisputable, including for monarchs. At first, such changes suited Alexei Mikhailovich quite well - he needed the support of a strong church.
The first step of the new patriarch was the convergence of the traditional Russian and Greek rites. However, the change in liturgical books and church life that began under Nikon was perceived by most parishioners as an insult to traditions. From time immemorial, in Rus' they overshadowed themselves with two fingers - Nikon introduced three fingers, Russians used to follow the movement of the sun during worship - Nikon tried to introduce the Greek custom of walking opposite, in Rus' they revered an eight-pointed cross - Nikon insisted on a four-pointed ...
In 1654, Nikon assembled a church council, at which it was decided to correct church books according to Greek and Old Slavic models. Several people, including Archpriest Avvakum, who later became famous, did not sign the decision, and two years later at the new cathedral they were cursed and sent into exile.
The common people perceived all these innovations unequivocally: the tsar needed a new church to finally consolidate serfdom. The courtiers hated Nikon for the influence he had gained over the young tsar. And only Theodosia Morozova dared to show her hostility to the patriarch.
Hungry pride
Frozen in a wet shirt, Theodosia still tried to focus on prayer, but her memories did not allow her to do so.
Chapped lips tried to form into a semblance of a smile: she did not immediately understand that the new patriarch was a black man, but she disliked Nikon from the first meeting. The one when Alyoshenka bowed at his feet. Nikon, all in black (among other things, he tried to instill asceticism in the churchmen), did not immediately give his consent, silently looked around the boyars surrounding the tsar with a victorious look and stopped him on her. What was he waiting for? Did you want Morozova to bow obediently and lower her eyes? But she felt offended for the humiliation of the king, and Theodosia measured the swaggering priest from head to toe. Since then, their struggle began, the struggle of two strong power-hungry people. From the side it seemed that they were fighting for the purity of the church, but Morozova knew that they were fighting for the love of the tsar.
Black man
At the instigation of Nikon, all the forces of the state were thrown into the suppression of the Old Believers by the tsar. The schismatics fled from cities and villages, and after them archery teams were immediately sent, who burned the Old Believer sketes with children and the elderly in them.
But as soon as Nikon left Moscow at the head of the army, Morozova's influence on the tsar increased. Even Archpriest Avvakum, with whom Theodosia started a correspondence, asked her to humble the female flesh and pay more attention to raising her son.
Having once returned from the “crusade” to Moscow, Nikon, having learned that Alexei Mikhailovich was again in Zyuzin with the Morozovs, decided to teach the tsar a lesson: he announced that he was resigning from the rank of patriarch, and retired to the Resurrection Monastery founded by him. Nikon was sure that Alexei Mikhailovich would immediately come to him to persuade him to stay. However, this did not happen, and in 1658 the patriarchal throne became vacant. But only in November 1666 did a church council meet, which found Nikon guilty of insulting the tsar and falling into Latin dogmas. He was defrocked and exiled to the Belozersky Ferapontov Monastery. However, Nikon's reforms went so far that a return to the old rite was no longer possible.
But Morozova, who defeated the "black man", did not yet understand that the church schism would also pass in her fate.
royal wedding
When Nikon was sent into exile, the noblewoman Morozova was one of the most well-born and wealthy women in Russia. She was happy. She had a beloved son and a beloved person, the main enemy, who tried to separate her from the "white angel" Alyoshenka, was defeated, she was only thirty-three years old, and it seemed that life had prepared only joy ahead.
But in March 1669, Tsarina Maria Miloslavskaya, who had endured her husband's affection for her best friend, died, and soon the tsar's marriage to the young and pretty Natalya Naryshkina was announced. Morozov Alexei Mikhailovich made it clear that from now on their relationship cannot remain the same.
On January 22, 1671, the royal wedding took place. The “horse” (palace) noblewoman Morozova also had to take part in the complex wedding ritual. She did not appear, and Alexei Mikhailovich did not want to forgive her for this. True, as the chroniclers report, he said to the boyars around him: "It is hard for her to fight me - one of us will certainly win."
In order to deal with his former mistress, the king decided to recall her friendship with Avvakum and the rejection of the new rite, that is, what had amused him until now. To some extent, he even encouraged his girlfriend's strife, believing that her rivalry with Nikon was useful for the state.
On November 16, 1671, Archimandrite Joachim of the Chudov Monastery was instructed to arrest Morozov. She was taken to the courtyard of the Pskov Caves Monastery on the Arbat - it was bought by the Secret Order and used as a place of detention.
However, the king still did not give up hope for good relations with his long-term girlfriend. Trying to convert her to a new faith, the new patriarch talked with Morozova for a long time, tutors were assigned to his son Ivan by the tsar, and Morozova was informed about this. However, after the unexpected death of Vanechka, nothing could convince Theodosius of the good attitude of the king.
The prediction of Matryona's accustomer kept pounding in my head: "The white angel will turn out to be a demon, the black man will strengthen faith." Now she knew not only the “black man”, but the “white angel”, who turned out to be Satan.
A real angel
Half-dead Danilova tied a rope around her friend's body, and they pulled him up. But just before the manhole, it caught on something, Morozova's hand twitched, and it seemed to Danilova that she illuminated her with a cross.
From that day on, Masha refused to eat, every now and then she fell into oblivion, and exactly a month later, on December 1, she died.
On the same day, a messenger rode to Moscow with the news of Morozova's death. But when Alexei Mikhailovich was informed about this, it seemed to those around him that he did not even immediately remember who he was talking about.
Prince Urusov, whose wife, Morozova's sister Evdokia Prokopievna, had been tortured earlier, crossed himself and loudly, so that the future chronicler heard it, said:
Angel! A real angel! Absolutely no memory of evil!
True, the chronicler notes that it was not clear what kind of evil the prince had in mind - that which was caused to Alexei Mikhailovich, or that which he himself caused.
One of the most tragic stories of the split of the Russian church is connected with Borovsk - the death of the noblewoman Feodosia Prokopievna Morozova.
We all remember Surikov's picture - Feodosia Morozov, clad in iron, is being taken through Moscow, and she raises two fingers, as a sign that she has not renounced the old faith, does not accept the reforms of Patriarch Nikon, and is ready to go to martyrdom.
In reality, it wasn't quite like that. Morozova and her sister Evdokia Urusova were taken through Moscow, but only she could not raise her hand, because she was chained to stone blocks so that her arms were stretched down. Surikov could not help but know this, but apparently he needed to show the unbending strength of this woman.
Below we see a modern house, on the site of which there was the grave of Feodosia Morozova and Evdokia Urusova, approximately at the corner of the building closest to us.
In 1936, the Bolshevik comrades ravaged this grave, and in its place they built a district committee of the party. The grave was opened, the remains were removed from it, and few people know where they are now. Apparently, the Old Believers keep it a secret.
Right next to it is the building of the former Borovskaya gymnasium, built on the site of the prison, in which these two persistent women were kept.
Feodosia Morozova and Evdokia Urusova were brought to this prison in the winter of 1673 after monstrous torture. They arrived here as living great martyrs, and the people of Borovets greeted them as saints.
Although they were kept in prison, people came to them with their families, asked for blessings, brought food, prayed with them, and the high authorities considered that they were not kept strictly enough.
After that, the sufferers were transferred to the pit to die of starvation. They died in it. This is a heartbreaking episode, because they sat in the pit for a very long time. Apparently, people still found a way to throw them some food.
Evdokia Urusova died before her sister, when she was informed that her husband had renounced her, and, together with the children, had adopted a new faith, and the children had forgotten her. Feodosia Prokopyevna survived her by a month and a half. She was 44 years old.
A legend has been preserved, as the noblewoman Morozova, already dying, begged the guard to throw her at least a ball, at least a cucumber, at least an apple. And the guard answered: "I'm sorry, mother, I can't, I'm afraid." When the women, already dead, were removed from the pit, they were completely gray-haired and looked like skeletons.
In 2005, a chapel in memory of the noblewoman Morozova was erected in Borovsk. It was built for 4 years only on public donations. Below, at the base of the chapel, is the tombstone of Morozova and Urusova, which was once placed on their grave by their brothers. But it's impossible to get to it.
When you think about the history of the schism of the Russian Church, about the Nikonian reforms, about the fierce resistance of Morozova's co-religionists, you always wonder, what did Nikon propose?
But apparently they resisted not so much the reforms themselves, but rather the methods by which Nikon carried them out. He ordered, he did not consult with anyone, did not explain anything to anyone, but acted, and did it very cruelly.
It should be noted that a similar reform in Little Russia was fairly painless. And we have horror and darkness. Well, I hope the Lord understands. He sees better.
IN AND. Surikov. Boyar Morozova
Feodosia Prokopievna Morozova (1632-1675) - an activist of the Old Believers, an associate of Archpriest Avvakum. Thanks to the painting, Surikov became known simply as the noblewoman Morozova.
The first sketches for "Boyarina Morozova" date back to 1881. The final version, measuring 3.04 by 5.86 m, was completed by Surikov in 1887. Contemporaries said about the painting that Surikov recreated "genuine antiquity, as if he was an eyewitness to it."
The artist gave violent features to the image of the noblewoman: a hand raised in two-fingered addition, a bloodless fanatical face reflect what Habakkuk said about her: "You throw yourself at the enemy, like a lion."
The painting depicts "the shame of following the noblewoman Feodosya Prokopievna Morozova for interrogation to the Kremlin for her adherence to a split in the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich." Some characters in the picture are curious, some are mocking, but most of the people look at her with reverence and bow to her. Among the crowd, Surikov also depicted himself as a wanderer with a staff, standing in deep thought.
