Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov: The King's Domestic and Foreign Policy

Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was the son of the first Moscow ruler of the Romanov family Mikhail Fedorovich and his wife Evdokia Lukyanovna. He ascended the throne in 1645 after the death of his father. Throughout his life Mikhail Fedorovich managed to make 10 children (Irina, Pelagia, Alexei, Anna, Marfa, Ivan, Sofia, Tatyana, Evdokia and Vasily). Despite the large genus, the nine heirs of the king died in childhood. By the time of Mikhail Fyodorovich's death, his son Aleksey was the only successor to the throne.

The education and character of the ruler

Biography of Tsar Alexis Mikhailovich Romanov indicates that he was born in 1629. Until the age of five he was cared for by the king's "mothers", and when he grew up, his boyar Boris Boris Morozov took up his education . The king was given an excellent education: he knew the letter, knew several foreign languages, understood theology, philosophy and legislation. Having ascended to the Moscow throne at the age of 16, the young tsar independently read all the documents and petitions, personally composed and signed decrees. Education and broad outlook allowed Alexei Mikhailovich to achieve tangible success in the government of the state.

For 31 years the country was headed by Aleksei Mikhailovich Romanov (1645-1676). For his love of God and meekness, he was nicknamed the Tishayshim among the people. But it is difficult to name the period of the reign of the king calm. At that time, Russia was shaken by popular riots, political, economic and religious crises. The difficult situation inside the state was further exacerbated by the protracted war with the neighboring Commonwealth. But how difficult the situation would be, Alexei Mikhailovich always managed to bring order and pacify the outraged people.

Salt riot

Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov became quite young in the Moscow throne . Domestic and foreign policy at the beginning of his reign was concentrated in the hands of Boyar Morozov. With him, taxes were increased in the country, corruption and arbitrariness increased. The last straw of the patience of the indignant people was the introduction in 1646 of a tax on salt, which led to a rise in the price of many food products. Especially this reform struck the peasants and merchants. The dissatisfaction of the people with the policy of Morozov and the inaction of Alexei Mikhailovich led to the Salt Revolt (1848), as a result of which the city was burned, the houses of the most hated boyars were destroyed. The people managed to achieve their goal: Alexei Mikhailovich pushed the boyar Morozov away from power and sent him into exile.

The adoption of the Cathedral Code and trade statutes

After the Salt Riot, it became clear that serious reforms are needed in the country. The internal policy of Alexei Mikhailovich in this period was aimed at strengthening the nobility and restricting the rights of the peasants. By 1649 the Collective Code was developed and put into effect - a collection of laws regulating various spheres of state life. In this document, for the first time, a division of law into branches has been outlined (state, criminal, family, civil).

Alexei Mikhailovich devoted much effort to strengthening the economy of the state. His policy was aimed at protecting the domestic market from foreign competitors. The king supported the construction of manufactories. In 1653, Torgoviy was adopted, and in 1667 - the Novotrade Charter. These documents limited foreign trade inside the country and contributed to the development of the domestic economy.

Popular uprisings

The ordinary people were not satisfied with the reforms that Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov was conducting. The internal and foreign policy pursued by the tsar led to the need for a monetary reform in 1662: gold and silver coins could not cover all the commodity turnover in the country, so a decision was made to stamp copper pennies. Due to the uncontrolled release of small kopecks, strong inflation and a rise in the price of goods began in the country. The people, outraged by the activities of the sovereign, rose to the Copper Riot, which was brutally suppressed by the tsarist troops.

The popular unrest connected with discontent with Aleksei Mikhailovich's policy, repeatedly appeared during his reign. In 1670-1671 the peasant war broke out in the country , which was headed by Stepan Razin. Like most popular uprisings, she was strangled, and her leader was quartered.

Religious conflict

Under Aleksei Mikhailovich, a conflict arose with the Russian Orthodox Church, which laid the foundation for its schism. The reason for this was the attempts of Patriarch Nikon to subordinate secular spiritual power. The activities of the cleric led to the fact that in 1666 he was deprived of his rank and sent to the Ferapontov Belozersky Monastery, but this did not save the Church from further division.

Wars with neighboring countries

The Russian state greatly expanded within its borders, when the tsar became Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov. Internal and foreign policy under him were closely intertwined, as he waged wars with neighboring states, and this caused a shortage of money and discontent among the masses. The result of a long war with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was the reunification in 1554 of Russia with Ukraine, as well as the annexation of Chernigov, Smolensk and other Russian cities. In 1556-1558, Alexei Mikhailovich fought with the Swedes for access to the Baltic Sea, but the outcome of this confrontation was not so brilliant as in the south-west direction. Also during the reign of the second tsar from the Romanov dynasty, Russia managed to annex part of Siberia and the Far East.

During his life Alexei Mikhailovich was twice married (for the first time on Maria Miloslavskaya, in the second - on Natalia Naryshkina). From two wives he had 16 children, five of whom died in childhood. None of the king's daughters were destined to get married, and three of his sons (Fedor, Ivan and Peter I) subsequently alternately headed the Russian throne. In 1676, shortly before 47, Alexei Romanov died. Domestic and foreign policy of the tsar was continued by his sons, thanks to which the Russian state became even stronger and more powerful.