Boyarynya Martha Boretsky: interesting facts

Aristocrat Martha Boretsky became the last posadnik of Novgorod. She led the struggle of the townspeople against the Moscow prince Ivan III, who still subdued the ancient republic and made it part of the united Russian state.

Personality of Martha

Posadnitsa Martha Boretsky was born from a boyar family. Her date of birth is not known exactly, the information about children's and teenage years is also not preserved. She got into the annals as the wife of the Novgorod posadnik Isaak Boretsky, from whom he received the surname. The husband died in the second half of the fifties of the XV century (the last information about him dates back to 1456). He left his wife a lot of money and land. All these resources allowed Martha to become one of the most influential figures in the social life of Novgorod.

In history, this woman is known as a "posadnitsa", but Boretskaya never formally had such a title. It was only a mocking nickname given to her by Muscovites, who hated her as a principled enemy. Nevertheless, it can be precisely said that Martha was de facto ruler of Veliky Novgorod from 1471 to 1478. This was the last days of the republic's independence, when it fought against Moscow for its sovereignty.

Fame in Novgorod

For the first time, Marfa Boretskaya declared herself as an important political figure when in 1470 elections were held for a local archbishop. She supported Pimen (and tried to defend his candidacy with the help of gold), but eventually he was chosen protégé of Moscow - Theophilus. In addition, the new archbishop was to be initiated in the capital of Ivan III, and not in Kiev, as it always was before.

Martha could not forgive such insult, and from that moment began to establish contacts with the Lithuanian party in Novgorod. This political movement favored the rapprochement of the city with the Grand Duke of Vilnius, and not the Moscow ruler. Such a position was contrary to the conditions that were agreed upon during the signing of the Jalilbeck Peace Treaty.

This paper was signed in 1456 (even under the father of Ivan III - Vasily the Dark). The treaty established the dependence of Novgorod on Moscow with the formal preservation of old institutions and orders (veche, the title of posadnik, etc.). The conditions have been executed very poorly for many years. It was a compromise between the powerful influence of Moscow on all Russian lands and the old republican system of Novgorod.

A supporter of Poland

Marfa Boretskaya decided to go against the established order. It was she who led the boyar opposition against Ivan III and sought support from the Polish king Casimir IV (Poland and Lithuania existed within the framework of the concluded union). Martha, with her own money, sent an embassy to a foreign monarch, asking him to accept Novgorod as an autonomy in his possessions. The conditions were agreed upon, and the governor-Mikhail Olelkovic arrived in the city. These events infuriated Ivan III. In 1471 he declared war on Novgorod.

Preparing for war

Before sending the army north, Ivan tried to resolve the conflict through diplomacy. He turned to the help of an authoritative mediator in the person of the Church. Moscow Metropolitan went to Novgorod, where he reproached his residents and Marfa for the betrayal of Moscow. He also urged to abandon the union with the Catholic state. Such an act could be regarded as a departure from Orthodoxy.

What is Marfa Boretskaya famous for? Its intransigence. She refused to make concessions to the enemy. Learning of this, Ivan III declared a crusade against Catholic domination in Orthodox Novgorod. Such a slogan allowed him to gather many supporters, including Pskovites, Ustyuzhans and Vyatichs, who in another situation could refuse Moscow for help. The army went on a campaign even in spite of the fact that the Polish governor Mikhail Olelkovich left the banks of the Volkhov and left for Kiev.

The characteristic of Marfa Boretsky was also that she did not give up her hands in times of terrible danger. In Novgorod, an army was also assembled. His organization did not pass without Martha. In addition, her son Dmitry, then a formal posadnik, himself was in the army.

Battle of Shelons

The Moscow army under the leadership of the famous governor Daniil Kholmsky and Fedor Pestry captured and burned an important fortress Rusu. After this success the squad stopped to wait for reinforcements from Pskov. At the same time, additional Moscow regiments joined the Tver detachment and also headed north.

The Novgorod army included 40 thousand people. It went towards Pskov, so as not to let his army unite with Kholmsky. The Moscow governor guessed about the plans of the enemy and moved against him. July 14, 1471 Kholmsky suddenly attacked the attack on the not expecting him Novgorod army. The battle is known in historiography as the Shelons battle (by the name of the river). Kholmskii had under his own name half as many people as the Novgorodians, but his stunning blow determined the outcome of the confrontation.

Thousands of Novgorodians were killed. Martha's son, Dmitry Boretsky, was captured and soon executed for treason. The defeat made the fate of Novgorod inevitable.

The Korostinsky world

Soon the Korostinsky peace was concluded (August 11, 1471). According to his conditions, Novgorod was getting even more dependent on Moscow. Thus, his government was to obey the Grand Duke in matters of foreign policy. This was an important innovation, as it deprived the Novgorodians of the opportunity to have any diplomatic contacts with Poland and Lithuania. Also, the Grand Duke of Moscow was now subordinated to the city court. In addition, the church of Novgorod became an integral part of a single metropolis. The main body of local self-government - Veche - could no longer make decisions independently. All his letters were assured by the Grand Duke, and Moscow seals were put on paper.

Nevertheless, Novgorod retained the decorative features of the old order, when the republic was still dominant here. The Grand Duke did not touch Martha, she stayed at home. Moscow's huge concessions did not change its plans. She still dreamed of getting rid of dependence on Ivan III. But for a time between the parties reigned a fragile peace.

Abolition of Novgorod independence

In Moscow, they knew that Boyar Novgorod's top leadership and personally Marfa Boretskaya were plotting against Ivan. Posadnitsa continued to try to establish contacts with Kazimir, despite the execution of her own son and defeat in the war. Ivan Vasilyevich for a while shut his eyes to what is happening in the north, as he had many other concerns - for example, difficult relations with the Tatars.

However, in 1478 the prince finally freed himself from other worries and decided to end the Novgorod freemen. Moscow troops came to the city. At the same time, there was no organized serious resistance. According to the order of Ivan III, the noblewoman Marfa Boretsky was deprived of all her lands and was to go to Nizhny Novgorod and become a nun in the monastery there. The main symbols of Novgorod's freedom were destroyed: the veche was canceled, the veche bell was taken away. In addition, Ivan expelled from the city all the boyars, who were suspected of rejecting his authority. Most of them were settled in Moscow - closer to the Kremlin, where their influence was reduced to nothing. In Novgorod, however, people loyal to Ivan Vasilievich left who occupied the main posts and could peacefully make it part of the united Russian state.

The fate of Marfa

Martha Boretskaya, whose biography ended as a politician, really ended up in a monastery. In the tonsure, she took the name of Mary. The former aristocrat died in 1503 in Zachatiev's monastery, which since the XIX century became known as the Cross Exaltation. The image of Martha Boretskaya immediately became an integral part of Russian folklore. Chroniclers often compared this woman to other important political figures of the weaker sex - Elijah Eudoxia and Herodiara.