What is the essence of the Uglich case and what were its consequences?

The famous Uglich affair was connected with the mysterious death of Dmitry Ioannovich - the son of Ivan the Terrible. This event became a prologue to the Time of Troubles in Russia in the 17th century.

The personality of the Tsarevich Dmitry

In order to understand the essence of the Uglich case, one should look at the genealogy of the last Rurikovichs. Tsar Ivan the Terrible had three sons - Ivan, Fedor and Dmitry. The elder was the heir and the closest aide to the monarch. But Ivan died at the hands of his own father, who was in a fit of anger.

So the heir became Fyodor. In 1584, Grozny died, and the title of king passed to his successor. However, Fedor had no children. His only daughter died in infancy. This meant that the next king was to be the last son of Ivan the Terrible Dmitry. He was much younger than Fedor. After the death of his father, the boy received the title of the specific Uglich prince.

Death in Uglich

May 15, 1591 Tsarevich Dmitry tragically died. He was only 8 years old. His lifeless body with a cut throat was found in the Uglich Kremlin, where the child had a residence. The son of Grozny lived with his mother Maria Naga. When Fyodor sent them to the appanage principality, he also attributed them to the court of the Moscow deacon Mikhail Bityagovsky. This grandee had to perform supervisory functions and report to the capital on suspicious events related to Dmitry.

There were no witnesses to the death of the prince. When a rumor spread through the city about the misfortune, a furious crowd of local residents burst into the Kremlin and tore Bityagovsky. Uglich was suspicious of people sent from Moscow. Maria Nagaya believed that these proteges were spying for Boris Godunov.

Suspicions of Godunov

Boris Godunov was the brother-in-law of Tsar Feodor Ivanovich. By origin, he belonged to an aristocratic noble family. Godunov was able to rise due to the good attitude of Ivan the Terrible to him. His position became even more serious when Fyodor married Irina Godunova.

The tsar had no children, which aggravated the issue of inheritance. If Dmitry did not die at an early age, he would become the next monarch. Now the heir was not. When seven years later, Fyodor will be close to death, he will give the throne to his brother-in-law. The king was notable for his weak character and health. He depended on Godunov and always listened to his opinion.

Therefore, it is not surprising that there were rumors in Moscow that Boris wanted to become a legitimate heir. They knew about this in Uglich. In the capital, it was decided to organize a commission that would conduct a detailed investigation of the disaster that had occurred. It was then that the government formulated what the essence of the Uglich case was. Fyodor wanted to divert suspicions from his brother-in-law, whom many accused of murdering the prince.

Shuisky Commission

The commission, sent to Uglich, included well-known Moscow boyars, who enjoyed the confidence of the court. The head of the investigation was Vasily Shuisky. Ironically, after fifteen years, he himself will become king. In 1591 he went to Uglich. Boyar led the interrogation of more than 150 people, somehow connected with what happened.

The investigation was complicated by the fact that right after the Tsarevich Dmitry was found dead, riots broke out in the city. The first to be questioned were the townspeople and yard people who took part in the massacre of Bityagovsky. Shuisky understood the essence of the Uglich case and how important it was for the court. Therefore, the nobleman did not miss a single detail and not a single witness. That commission is also known for the fact that its investigation became the earliest in the history of Russia, whose protocol and materials survived to the present day in its original form. Thanks to this happy coincidence, modern historians were able to reconstruct the picture of what happened in Uglich in 1591.

The court's decision

After several weeks of work in Uglich, Shuisky's commission returned to Moscow. Boyar presented a report on the investigation personally to Tsar Fedor. Then came the trial, presided over by Patriarch Job. Shuisky provided oral testimonies of eyewitnesses that the people of Godunov, who were in Uglich, were not involved in the murder.

There, the statement of Maria Nagoy was read out. She understood what the essence of the Uglich case was, but, nevertheless, despite early accusations of Godunov, she renounced her claims. She admitted that the massacre of the local residents of Bityagovsky was a mistake. Naked asked for mercy for herself and her brothers.

By decision of the authorities, Mary was tonsured into nuns. Her relatives were in exile. The most active instigators of the riots in Uglich were executed. In Moscow, it was announced that Dmitry died because of an accident. Godunov's name was formally relieved of suspicion.

The consequences of the Uglich affair were felt in 1605. Then an impostor came to power, thanks to a military invasion, who pretended to be the deceased tsarevich. In history he was remembered as False Dmitry. A "re-investigation" was carried out. Shuisky again testified and completely changed them. Now, in an attempted murder, Godunov was accused, who by that time was already in the grave. The same version was followed by the Romanovs. Anyway, but the repeated process did not help much the impostor. False Dmitry was killed during the popular uprising in Moscow in 1606.