Simeon Bekbulatovich: biography, years of life, photo, date of reign, reforms

Tsar Ivan the Terrible was known not only for his great reforms that allowed Russia to take its rightful place among the strongest powers of the time, but also by eccentricities that caused no less horror than the mass executions because of its unpredictability. One of such acts of the king was the reign of Simeon Bekbulatovich. The date of his birth is unknown. At the same time, a lot of documentary, often contradictory, evidence of his so-called rule remained.

Simeon Bekbulatovich: biography (young years)

Little is known about the childhood of a man who later, even if briefly, took the Russian throne. Sain-Bulat Khan was the son of Bek-Bulat - the direct descendant of Genghis Khan and the Sultan of Nogai Horde. His grandfather Ahmet was the last ruler of the Golden Horde, who continued to keep in political dependence the Moscow princes.

Ivan the Fourth invited Bek-Bulat together with his son to his service. The old prince was betrayed to Grozny and proved himself to be a good warrior, so after his death, he caressed Sain-Bulat.

By order of the Tsar, the young tsarevich married a girl from the famous boyar family - Maria Andreevna Kleopina-Kutuzova. He and so in his position stood above the Russian nobility, since he was from the genus Chingizidov, and marriage with a Russian aristocrat only strengthened his position.

The reign of Kasimov

At the then existing practice, Russian rulers often granted the invited Tatar princes to inherit entire cities. Therefore, nobody was surprised when in the late 60s Simeon Bekbulatovich was appointed khan to Kasimov, at the same time he received the title "servant of the sovereigns", whereas even the most aristocratic boyars were called only "serfs of Ivan the Terrible."

During the reign of Kasimov, Simeon Bekbulatovich took part in the Livonian War, as well as in the campaigns on Paide, Oreshek and Kolyvan. Then, at the insistence of Ivan the Terrible, he was baptized and took the name of Simeon. By that time Bekbulatovich was a widower and married again to the newly lost husband of Princess Anastasia Cherkasskaya.

Thanks to this marriage, Simeon Bekbulatovich - Tsar Kasimovsky - was related to the royal family, as the blood of Sophia Paleologus flowed in the veins of his second wife .

In marriage, the couple had three sons and three daughters.

Why did the transfer of power take place?

Until now, the reason why Ivan the Terrible put such an inconspicuous personage as Simeon Bekbulatovich at the head of the state remains a subject for discussion among historians.

There are many versions. According to the most widespread Ivan the Terrible, an omen was made about the imminent death of the ruler of all Russia, therefore, putting another person on the throne, he hoped to deceive fate. There is also an opinion that he wanted to retire to the shadows in order to reveal his hidden enemies. Some historians have also advanced the hypothesis that in this way the tsar wanted to divert the discontent of the people, who hardly recovered from the horrors that he had to endure during the period of the oprichnina, by "transferring arrows" to an incoming prince.

On the throne of the Russian state

Be that as it may, in 1575 Ivan the Terrible ordered to crown the kingdom of Simeon Bekbulatovich, who received the title "Grand Duke of All Russia". He himself and his family moved from the Kremlin to Petrovka. At the same time the country was formally divided, having allocated Ivan Moskovsky, as the "former" ruler of the country decided to be called from now on, a small destiny. There he started his own thought, in which the Godunovs, the Nagy and the Belsk were running.

In total, the new sovereign reigned for 11 months. During this time, according to the testimony of foreign ambassadors, he took away from the monasteries and churches all the charters awarded to her for centuries, and destroyed. In addition, formally on the orders of Simeon, and in fact, with the orders of Ivan the Terrible, some courtiers were executed, who were approached by them after the oprichnina, but did not live up to their expectations. Thus, another "sweep" was conducted in the upper echelon of power.

Simeon Bekbulatovich and his reforms were not unequivocally received by contemporaries, however, the troubles, which Ivan the Terrible feared, did not happen.

Bias

Convinced that the political castling was successful, Grozny expressed "discontent" with the actions of Simeon and "was compelled" to again take the scepter to compensate for the evil, the damage that he inflicted on the church.

At least, the actions of Ivan the Fourth were presented to the people and nobility precisely in this vein. At the same time, the tsar allowed the restoration of the destroyed documents, but distributed them already in his own name, retaining and attaching to the state treasury part of the church lands. In addition, there were rumors that many church hierarchs had to pay considerable sums to return at least part of the property of their monasteries.

As reported to their governments by foreign ambassadors, the short-term Grand Duke Simeon Bekbulatovich (the date of accession to the throne is unknown, but scientists believe that it occurred in October 1576) allowed Ivan the Terrible painlessly to take away a significant part of the property from the church, and also show all dissatisfied that " Perhaps even worse governance. "

The reign

After removal from power, Simeon Bekbulatovich (photo below) received an order to depart for Tver, where he was allocated a new lot. At the same time he retained the title of Grand Duke, who was also with Ivan Vasilyevich. However, the latter at the same time in official documents was also called the king. Deprived of power, which to him already belonged only formally, Simeon Bekbulatovich became one of the largest landowners of the time. According to the surviving scribe book of his property, compiled around the year 1580, in Tver and Mikulinsky districts he had only arable land up to 13,500 dessiatins. In addition, he was endowed with special privileges, giving him the right to collect taxes and taxes in his favor, which was not allowed to the rest, even the most senior, serving people of the Moscow kingdom.

Further career

From the end of 1577 for 5 years Simeon Bekbulatovich took an active part in military operations directed against Poland. However, he could not achieve results in this field, since he did not possess the courage or talent of the commander.

After the death of Ivan the Terrible in 1588, Grand Duke Simeon managed to maintain his high position for some time. However, approaching the throne, Boris Godunov began in every way to set up the young Tsar Fedor the First against the Prince of Tver.

Opal

After becoming king, Godunov ordered the sworn boyars to swear that they would not take any action to transfer the throne to Simeon Bekbulatovich or his children. In addition, soon found an excuse for eliminating a dangerous challenger for power in the country: a close relative of Simeon Bekbulatovich - I. Mstislavsky - was implicated in one of the intrigues against the all-powerful tsarist brother-in-law, and after he was arrested, the former "ruler of all Russia" Befell opal. His estate and dignity were taken from him, but they were not exiled, allowing him to live in his former specific capital, Kushalin.

Godunov's fears were not groundless, as some of the boyars really plotted a plot to elevate the tsar to the throne, who already held the throne with the consent of Ivan the Terrible himself. Such conspiratorial figures of the time as Theodore Nikitich Romanov and Belsky took part in the plot. Their intrigue was upset, and Simeon himself, according to some reports, was blinded.

Monasticism

Simeon Bekbulatovich, who lost sight and fell into disgrace, began to seek solace in the Orthodox faith. He built temples and donated to monasteries. From these studies he had to refuse for a while at the accession of False Dimitry the First, who first invited him to Moscow and fondled. However, this situation did not last long, and the unfortunate was sentenced to an impostor for imprisonment in the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. There was even a document for his signature, prescribing the hegumen of the monastery to cut monks Simeon Bekbulatovich and write about it personally.

On April 3, 1616, the former king took the veil under the name of Stefan. From that moment Simeon Bekbulatovich, whose biography resembles an adventure novel, lived practically like a prisoner.

His situation worsened even more with Vasili Shuisky, who sent a monk to Solovki.

Bitter days of his Simeon, he is an monk Stefan, graduated in Moscow in 1616 and was buried in the Simonov monastery.

Now you know who Simeon Bekbulatovich was, whose years of life can only be called supposedly (1540s - 1616th). The reasons for the sharp turn in his fate, as a result of which he was on the Russian throne, are still the subject of discussion among historians and are unlikely to ever be established.