A complete course of lectures on Russian history. Sergei Platonov - complete course of lectures on Russian history

S. F. Platonov Textbook of Russian history

§1. Subject of Russian history course

Russian state, in which we live, dates back to the 9th century. according to R. Chr. The Russian tribes that formed this state existed even earlier. At the beginning of their historical life, they occupied only the region of the river. The Dnieper with its tributaries, the region of Lake Ilmen with its rivers, as well as the upper reaches of the Western Dvina and Volga lying between the Dnieper and Ilmen. To the number Russian tribes , which formed one of the branches of the great Slavic tribe, belonged to: clearing - on the middle Dnieper, northerners - on the river Desna, Drevlyans And Dregovichi - on the river Pripyat, Radimichi - on the river Sauger, Krivichi - on the upper reaches of the Dnieper, Volga and Western Dvina, Slovenia - not Lake Ilmen. There was at first very little mutual communication between these tribes; The outlying tribes had even less closeness to them: Vyatichi - on the river Okay, Volynians, Buzhans, Dulebovs - on the Western Bug, Croats - near the Carpathian mountains, Tivertsev And streets - on the river The Dniester and the Black Sea (it is not even known exactly about the Tivertsy and Ulichs whether they can be considered Slavs).

The main content of a course in Russian history should be a narrative about how the single Russian people gradually formed from the named individual tribes and how they occupied the vast space on which they now live; how the state was formed among the Russian Slavs and what changes took place in Russian state and social life until it took on our modern form Russian Empire. The story about this is naturally divided into three parts. The first outlines the history of the original Kyiv state, which united all the small tribes around one capital - Kyiv. The second outlines the history of those states (Novgorod, Lithuanian-Russian and Moscow) that were formed in Rus' after the collapse of the Kievan state. The third, finally, sets out the history of the Russian Empire, which united all the lands inhabited by Russian people at different times.

But before starting the story about the beginning of the Russian state, it is necessary to become familiar with how the tribes of the Russian Slavs lived before the emergence of their state order. Since these tribes were not the first and only “inhabitants” of our country, it is necessary to find out who lived here before the Slavs and who the Slavs found in their neighborhood when they settled on the Dnieper and Ilmen. Since the area occupied here by the Russian Slavs influences their economy and life, it is necessary to become familiar with the character of the country in which the Russian state arose, and with the peculiarities of the original life of the Russian Slavs. When we know the situation in which our distant ancestors had to live, we will more clearly understand the reasons for the emergence of their state and better imagine the features of their social and state structure.

§2. The oldest population of European Russia

Throughout the entire space of European Russia, and mainly in the south, near the Black Sea, there are enough “antiquities”, that is, monuments left over from ancient population Russia in the form of individual burial mounds (mounds) and entire cemeteries (burial grounds), ruins of cities and fortifications (“fortifications”), various items household items (dishes, coins, precious jewelry). The science of these antiquities (archaeology) has managed to determine which nationalities belong to certain antiquities. The oldest of them and the most remarkable are monuments Greek And Scythian . From the history of ancient Hellas it is known that on the northern shores of the Black Sea (or the Euxine Pontus, as the Greeks called it) many Greek colonies arose, mainly at the mouths of big rivers and with convenient sea bays. The most famous of these colonies are: Olvia at the mouth of the river Buga, Chersonesos (in Old Russian Korsun) in the vicinity of present-day Sevastopol, Panticapaeum on the site of present-day Kerch, Phanagoria on the Taman Peninsula, Tanais at the mouth of the river Don. Colonizing sea coast, the ancient Greeks usually did not move away from seashore inland, but preferred to attract natives to their coastal markets. On the Black Sea shores it was the same: the named cities did not extend their possessions into the mainland, but nevertheless subjugated local residents their cultural influence and attracted them to a lively trade exchange. From the native "barbarians" whom the Greeks called Scythians , they purchased local products, mainly bread and fish, and sent them to Hellas; and in return they sold Greek-made items to the natives (fabrics, wine, oil, luxury goods).

Trade brought the Greeks closer to the natives so much that mixed so-called “Hellenic-Scythian” settlements were formed, and even a significant state called Bosporus (on behalf of the Cimmerian Bosporus Strait) arose in Panticapaeum. Under the rule of the Bosporan kings, some Greek coastal cities and native tribes who lived by the sea from the Crimea to the foothills of the Caucasus united. The Bosporan kingdom and the cities of Chersonesus and Olbia achieved significant prosperity and left behind a number of remarkable monuments. Excavations undertaken in Kerch (on the site of the ancient Panticapaeum), in Chersonesos and Olbia, discovered the remains of city fortifications and streets, individual dwellings and temples (pagan and later Christian times). In the burial crypts of these cities (as well as in the steppe mounds) many objects of Greek art, sometimes of high artistic value, were discovered. Gold jewelry of the finest workmanship and luxurious vases obtained from these excavations constitute the best collection in the world, in terms of artistic value and number of objects, of the Imperial Hermitage in Petrograd. Along with typical items of Athenian work (for example, painted vases with drawings on Greek themes), this collection contains items made by Greek craftsmen in a local style, apparently commissioned by local “barbarians.” Thus, the golden scabbard made for a Scythian sword, which was not similar to Greek swords, was decorated with purely Greek ornaments to the taste of the Greek master. Metal or clay vases made according to Greek models were sometimes supplied with drawings not of a Greek nature, but of a Scythian, “barbarian” one: they depicted figures of natives and scenes from Scythian life. Two such vases are world famous. One of them, golden, was dug from a crypt in the Kul-Oba mound near the city of Kerch; the other, silver, ended up in a large mound near the town of Nikopol on the lower Dnieper near the Chertomlyka river. Both vases artistically represent entire groups of Scythians in their national clothing and weapons. Thus, Greek art here served the tastes of the local “barbarians.”

This circumstance is important for us because we get the opportunity to directly get acquainted with appearance those Scythians with whom the Greeks dealt Black Sea coast. In the superbly sculptured or painted figures of Scythian warriors and riders by Greek masters, we clearly distinguish the features of the Aryan tribe and, most likely, its Iranian branch. From the descriptions of Scythian life left by Greek writers, and from Scythian burials excavated by archaeologists, the same conclusion can be drawn. The Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BC), talking about the Scythians, divides them into many tribes and distinguishes between nomads and farmers. He places the former closer to the sea - in the steppes, and the latter further north - approximately on the middle reaches of the Dnieper. Agriculture was so developed among some Scythian tribes that they traded grain, delivering it in huge quantities to Greek cities for shipment to Hellas. It is known, for example, that Attica received half of the amount of bread it needed from the Scythians through the Bosporan kingdom. The Greeks more or less knew those Scythians who traded with the Greeks and those who roamed close to the sea, and therefore Herodotus gives interesting and thorough information about them. The same tribes that lived in the depths of what is now Russia were not known to the Greeks, and in Herodotus we read fabulous stories about them that are impossible to believe.

It would be appropriate to begin our studies of Russian history by defining what exactly should be understood by the words historical knowledge, historical science. Having understood how history is understood in general, we will understand what we should understand by the history of one particular people, and we will consciously begin to study Russian history.

History existed in ancient times, although at that time it was not considered a science. Familiarity with the ancient historians, Herodotus and Thucydides, for example, will show you that the Greeks were right in their own way in classifying history as an area of art. By history they understood an artistic account of memorable events and persons. The task of the historian was to convey to listeners and readers, along with aesthetic pleasure, a number of moral edifications. Art also pursued the same goals.

With this view of history as an artistic story about memorable events, ancient historians adhered to the corresponding methods of presentation. In their narration they strived for truth and accuracy, but they did not have a strict objective measure of truth. The deeply truthful Herodotus, for example, has many fables (about Egypt, about the Scythians, etc.); he believes in some, because he does not know the limits of the natural, while others, even without believing in them, he includes in his story, because they seduce him with their artistic interest. Not only that, but the ancient historian, true to his artistic goals, considered it possible to decorate the narrative with conscious fiction. Thucydides, whose veracity we do not doubt, puts into the mouths of his heroes speeches composed by himself, but he considers himself right due to the fact that he correctly conveys in a fictitious form the actual intentions and thoughts of historical persons.

Thus, the desire for accuracy and truth in history was to some extent limited by the desire for artistry and entertainment, not to mention other conditions that prevented historians from successfully distinguishing truth from fable. Despite this, the desire for accurate knowledge already in ancient times required pragmatism from the historian. Already in Herodotus we see a manifestation of this pragmatism, that is, the desire to connect facts with a causal connection, not only to tell them, but also to explain their origin from the past.

So, at first, history is defined as an artistic and pragmatic story about memorable events and persons.

Views of history that demanded from it, in addition to artistic impressions, practical applicability, also go back to ancient times. Even the ancients said that history is the teacher of life (magistra vitae). Such a presentation was expected from historians past life humanity, which would explain the events of the present and the tasks of the future, would serve practical guide For public figures and a moral school for other people. This view of history was held in full force in the Middle Ages and has survived to our times; on the one hand, he directly brought history closer to moral philosophy, on the other, he turned history into a “tablet of revelations and rules” of a practical nature. One writer of the 17th century. (De Rocoles) said that “history fulfills the duties inherent in moral philosophy, and even in a certain respect can be preferable to it, since, giving the same rules, it also adds examples to them.” On the first page of Karamzin’s “History of the Russian State” you will find an expression of the idea that history must be known in order “to establish order, to reconcile the benefits of people and to give them the happiness possible on earth.”

With the development of Western European philosophical thought, new definitions of historical science began to emerge. In an effort to explain the essence and meaning of human life, thinkers turned to the study of history either in order to find in it a solution to their problem, or in order to confirm their abstract constructions with historical data. In accordance with various philosophical systems, the goals and meaning of history itself were determined in one way or another. Here are some of these definitions: Bossuet (1627-1704) and Laurent (1810-1887) understood history as a depiction of those world events in which the paths of Providence, guiding human life for your own purposes. The Italian Vico (1668-1744) considered the task of history, as a science, to depict those identical conditions that all peoples are destined to experience. The famous philosopher Hegel (1770-1831) saw in history an image of the process by which the “absolute spirit” achieved its self-knowledge (Hegel explained the entire world life as the development of this “absolute spirit”). It would not be a mistake to say that all these philosophies demand essentially the same thing from history: history should depict not all the facts of the past life of mankind, but only the main ones, revealing its general meaning.

This view was a step forward in the development of historical thought - a simple story about the past in general, or a random set of facts from different times and places to prove an edifying thought was no longer satisfactory. There was a desire to unite the presentation with a guiding idea, to systematize historical material. However, philosophical history is rightly reproached for taking the guiding ideas of historical presentation outside of history and systematizing facts arbitrarily. As a result, history did not become an independent science, but became a servant of philosophy.

History became a science only at the beginning of the 19th century, when idealism developed from Germany, in contrast to French rationalism: in contrast to French cosmopolitanism, the ideas of nationalism spread, national antiquity was actively studied, and the conviction began to dominate that the life of human societies occurs naturally, in such a natural order. sequence, which cannot be broken or changed either by chance or by the efforts of individuals. From this point of view, the main interest in history began to be the study of non-random external phenomena and not the activities of outstanding personalities, but the study of social life at different stages of its development. History began to be understood as the science of the laws of the historical life of human societies.

This definition has been formulated differently by historians and thinkers. The famous Guizot (1787-1874), for example, understood history as the doctrine of world and national civilization (understanding civilization in the sense of the development of civil society). The philosopher Schelling (1775-1854) considered national history a means of understanding the “national spirit.” From here arose the widespread definition of history as the path to national self-awareness. Further attempts were made to understand history as a science that should reveal the general laws of development public life outside of their application to famous place, time and people. But these attempts, in essence, assigned history the tasks of another science - sociology. History is a science that studies specific facts in the conditions of time and place, and main goal it is recognized as a systematic depiction of the development and changes in the life of individual historical societies and all humanity.

Such a task requires a lot to be successfully completed. In order to give a scientifically accurate and artistically integral picture of any era of national life or the complete history of a people, it is necessary: 1) to collect historical materials, 2) to investigate their reliability, 3) to accurately restore individual historical facts, 4) to indicate between them pragmatic connection and 5) reduce them into a general scientific overview or into an artistic picture. The ways in which historians achieve these particular goals are called scientific critical techniques. These techniques are being improved with the development of historical science, but so far neither these techniques nor the science of history itself have reached their full development. Historians have not yet collected and studied all the material subject to their knowledge, and this gives reason to say that history is a science that has not yet achieved the results that other, more accurate sciences have achieved. And, however, no one denies that history is a science with a broad future.

Sergei Fedorovich Platonov

Full course lectures on Russian history

Essay on Russian historiography

Review of sources of Russian history

PART ONE

Preliminary historical information Ancient history of our country Russian Slavs and their neighbors The original life of the Russian Slavs Kievan Rus Formation of the Kievan Principality General notes on the first times of the Kievan Principality Baptism of Russia Consequences of the adoption of Christianity by Russia Kievan Rus in the 11th-12th centuries Colonization of Suzdal-Vladimir Rus' The influence of the Tatar authorities on appanage Rus' Appanage life of Suzdal -Vladimir Rus' Novgorod Pskov Lithuania Principality of Moscow until the middle of the 15th century The time of Grand Duke Ivan III

PART TWO

The time of Ivan the Terrible The Moscow state before the Troubles Political contradiction in Moscow life of the 16th century Social contradiction in Moscow life of the 16th century Troubles in the Moscow State The first period of turmoil: the struggle for the Moscow throne The second period of turmoil: the destruction of state order The third period of turmoil: an attempt to restore order The time of Tsar Michael Fedorovich (1613-1645) The time of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich (1645-1676) The internal activities of the government of Alexei Mikhailovich Church affairs under Alexei Mikhailovich The cultural turning point under Alexei Mikhailovich The personality of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Main moments in the history of Southern and Western Rus' in the 16th-17th centuries The time of Tsar Fedor Alekseevich (1676-1682)

PART THREE

Views of science and Russian society on Peter the Great The situation of Moscow politics and life at the end of the 17th century The time of Peter the Great Childhood and adolescence of Peter (1672-1689) Years 1689-1699 Foreign policy Peter's since 1700 The internal activities of Peter since 1700 The attitude of contemporaries to the activities of Peter Family relationships Peter The historical significance of Peter's activities The time from the death of Peter the Great to the accession of Elizabeth to the throne (1725-1741) Palace events from 1725 to 1741 Administration and politics from 1725 to 1741 The time of Elizabeth Petrovna (1741-1761) Administration and politics of the time of Elizabeth Peter III and the coup of 1762 The time of Catherine II (1762-1796) The legislative activity of Catherine II The foreign policy of Catherine II The historical significance of the activities of Catherine II The time of Paul I (1796-1801) The time of Alexander I (1801-1825) The time of Nicholas I (1825-1855) Short review the time of Emperor Alexander II and the great reforms

These “Lectures” owe their first appearance in print to the energy and work of my students at the Military Law Academy, I. A. Blinov and R. R. von Raupach. They collected and put in order all those “lithographed notes” that were published by students in different years my teaching. Although some parts of these “notes” were compiled from the texts I submitted, however, in general, the first editions of the “Lectures” were not distinguished by either internal integrity or external decoration, representing a collection of educational notes of different times and different quality. Through the works of I. A. Blinov, the fourth edition of the Lectures acquired a much more serviceable appearance, and for the next editions the text of the Lectures was revised by me personally. In particular, in the eighth edition the revision affected mainly those parts of the book that are devoted to the history of the Moscow principality in the 14th-15th centuries. and the history of the reigns of Nicholas I and Alexander II. To strengthen the factual side of the presentation in these parts of the course, I used some excerpts from my “Textbook of Russian History” with appropriate changes to the text, just as in previous editions insertions were made from the same in the history section Kievan Rus until the 12th century. In addition, in the eighth edition the characteristics of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich were re-stated. The ninth edition has made the necessary, generally minor, corrections. The text has been revised for the tenth edition. Nevertheless, even in its present form, the Lectures are still far from the desired correctness. Live teaching and scientific work have a continuous influence on the lecturer, changing not only the details, but sometimes the very type of his presentation. In the "Lectures" you can see only the factual material on which the author's courses are usually based. Of course, there are still some oversights and errors in the printed transmission of this material; in the same way, the structure of presentation in the “Lectures” quite often does not correspond to the structure of oral presentation that I adhere to in last years. It is only with these reservations that I decide to publish this edition of the Lectures.

S. Platonov

Introduction (concise presentation)

It would be appropriate to begin our studies of Russian history by defining what exactly should be understood by the words historical knowledge, historical science.

Having understood how history is understood in general, we will understand what we should understand by the history of one particular people, and we will consciously begin to study Russian history.

History existed in ancient times, although at that time it was not considered a science.

Familiarity with the ancient historians, Herodotus and Thucydides, for example, will show you that the Greeks were right in their own way in classifying history as an area of art. By history they understood an artistic account of memorable events and persons. The task of the historian was to convey to listeners and readers, along with aesthetic pleasure, a number of moral edifications. Art also pursued the same goals.

In particular, in the eighth edition the revision affected mainly those parts of the book that are devoted to the history of the Moscow principality in the 14th-15th centuries. and the history of the reigns of Nicholas I and Alexander II. To strengthen the factual side of the presentation in these parts of the course, I used some excerpts from my “Textbook of Russian History” with appropriate changes to the text, just as in previous editions insertions were made from the same in the section on the history of Kievan Rus before the 12th century. In addition, in the eighth edition the characteristics of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich were re-stated. The ninth edition has made the necessary, generally minor, corrections. The text has been revised for the tenth edition.

Nevertheless, even in its present form, the Lectures are still far from the desired correctness. Live teaching and scientific work have a continuous influence on the lecturer, changing not only the details, but sometimes the very type of his presentation. In the "Lectures" you can see only the factual material on which the author's courses are usually based. Of course, there are still some oversights and errors in the printed transmission of this material; Likewise, the structure of presentation in the “Lectures” quite often does not correspond to the structure of oral presentation that I have adhered to in recent years.

It is only with these reservations that I decide to publish this edition of the Lectures.

Sergei Fedorovich Platonov

Complete course of lectures on Russian history

Essay on Russian historiography

Review of sources of Russian history

PART ONE

Preliminary historical information The most ancient history of our country Russian Slavs and their neighbors The original life of the Russian Slavs Kievan Rus The formation of the Kievan Principality General notes about the first times of the Kievan Principality The Baptism of Rus The consequences of the adoption of Christianity by Russia Kievan Rus in the 11th-12th centuries Colonization of Suzdal-Vladimir Rus The influence of the Tatar government on appanage Rus' Appanage life of Suzdal-Vladimir Rus' Novgorod Pskov Lithuania Principality of Moscow until the middle of the 15th century Time of Grand Duke Ivan III

PART TWO

PART THREE

Views of science and Russian society on Peter the Great The situation of Moscow politics and life at the end of the 17th century The time of Peter the Great Childhood and adolescence of Peter (1672-1689) Years 1689-1699 Foreign policy of Peter since 1700 Internal activities of Peter since 1700 The attitude of contemporaries to the activities of Peter Family relations of Peter The historical significance of Peter's activities Time from the death of Peter the Great to the accession to the throne of Elizabeth (1725-1741) Palace events from 1725 to 1741 Administration and politics from 1725 to 1741 The time of Elizabeth Petrovna (1741-1761) Administration and politics of the time of Elizabeth Peter III and the coup of 1762 The time of Catherine II (1762-1796) The legislative activity of Catherine II The foreign policy of Catherine II The historical significance of the activities of Catherine II The time of Paul I (1796-1801) The time of Alexander I (1801-1825) The time of Nicholas I (1825-1855) ) Brief overview of the time of Emperor Alexander II and the great reforms

These “Lectures” owe their first appearance in print to the energy and work of my students at the Military Law Academy, I. A. Blinov and R. R. von Raupach. They collected and put in order all those “lithographed notes” that were published by students in different years of my teaching. Although some parts of these “notes” were compiled from the texts I submitted, however, in general, the first editions of the “Lectures” were not distinguished by either internal integrity or external decoration, representing a collection of educational notes of different times and different quality. Through the works of I. A. Blinov, the fourth edition of the Lectures acquired a much more serviceable appearance, and for the next editions the text of the Lectures was revised by me personally. In particular, in the eighth edition the revision affected mainly those parts of the book that are devoted to the history of the Moscow principality in the 14th-15th centuries. and the history of the reigns of Nicholas I and Alexander II. To strengthen the factual side of the presentation in these parts of the course, I used some excerpts from my “Textbook of Russian History” with appropriate changes to the text, just as in previous editions insertions were made from the same in the section on the history of Kievan Rus before the 12th century. In addition, in the eighth edition the characteristics of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich were re-stated. The ninth edition has made the necessary, generally minor, corrections. The text has been revised for the tenth edition. Nevertheless, even in its present form, the Lectures are still far from the desired correctness. Live teaching and scientific work have a continuous influence on the lecturer, changing not only the details, but sometimes the very type of his presentation. In the "Lectures" you can see only the factual material on which the author's courses are usually based. Of course, there are still some oversights and errors in the printed transmission of this material; Likewise, the structure of presentation in the “Lectures” quite often does not correspond to the structure of oral presentation that I have adhered to in recent years. It is only with these reservations that I decide to publish this edition of the Lectures.

S. Platonov

Introduction (concise presentation)

It would be appropriate to begin our studies of Russian history by defining what exactly should be understood by the words historical knowledge, historical science.

Having understood how history is understood in general, we will understand what we should understand by the history of one particular people, and we will consciously begin to study Russian history.

History existed in ancient times, although at that time it was not considered a science.

So, at first, history is defined as an artistic and pragmatic story about memorable events and persons.

Views of history that demanded from it, in addition to artistic impressions, practical applicability, also go back to ancient times.

Even the ancients said that history is the teacher of life (magistra vitae). Historians were expected to present such an account of the past life of mankind that would explain the events of the present and the tasks of the future, would serve as a practical guide for public figures and a moral school for other people.

This view of history was held in full force in the Middle Ages and has survived to our times; on the one hand, he directly brought history closer to moral philosophy, on the other, he turned history into a “tablet of revelations and rules” of a practical nature. One writer of the 17th century. (De Rocoles) said that “history fulfills the duties inherent in moral philosophy, and even in a certain respect can be preferable to it, since, giving the same rules, it also adds examples to them.” On the first page of Karamzin's "History of the Russian State" you will find an expression of the idea that history must be known in order "to establish order, to reconcile the benefits of people and to give them the happiness possible on earth."

With the development of Western European philosophical thought, new definitions of historical science began to emerge. In an effort to explain the essence and meaning of human life, thinkers turned to the study of history either in order to find in it a solution to their problem, or in order to confirm their abstract constructions with historical data. In accordance with various philosophical systems, the goals and meaning of history itself were determined in one way or another. Here are some of these definitions: Bossuet (1627-1704) and Laurent (1810-1887) understood history as a depiction of those world events in which the ways of Providence, guiding human life for its own purposes, were expressed with particular vividness. The Italian Vico (1668-1744) considered the task of history, as a science, to depict those identical conditions that all peoples are destined to experience. The famous philosopher Hegel (1770-1831) saw in history an image of the process by which the “absolute spirit” achieved its self-knowledge (Hegel explained the entire world life as the development of this “absolute spirit”). It would not be a mistake to say that all these philosophies demand essentially the same thing from history: history should depict not all the facts of the past life of mankind, but only the main ones, revealing its general meaning.

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