The reign of Basil 3 is brief. Foreign and domestic policy of Basil III

Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily Ivanovich III (1505 - 1533, born in 1479) is most famous for the fact that during his reign the gathering of the fragmented appanages of North-Eastern Russia into a single state was completed. Under Vasily III, the veche city of Pskov (1510) and the last specific principalities - Ryazan (1517) and Chernigov-Seversky (1517-1523) were annexed to Moscow. Vasily continued the internal and foreign policy his father, Ivan III, whom he resembled with a stern, autocratic character. Of the two main then church parties in the first years of his reign, the predominance belonged to the non-possessors, but then it passed to the Josephites, whom Basil III supported until his death.

Basil III. Miniature from the Royal titular book

The former, purely service-minded composition of the Moscow boyars, as the Russian North-East unified, was replenished with recent specific princes, people much more influential and pretentious. In this regard, Vasily treated the boyars with suspicion and distrust, consulting with him only for show, and even then rarely. He conducted the most important affairs not with the help of the boyars, but with the help of humble clerks and nobles (like his close butler Shigona Podzhogin). Vasily treated such rootless nominees rudely and unceremoniously (clerk Dolmatov paid with imprisonment for refusing to go to the embassy, ​​and Bersen-Beklemishev was executed for contradicting the Grand Duke). During the reign Basil III the conflict between the grand ducal power and the boyars began to gradually intensify, which, during the reign of his son, Ivan the Terrible, led to the horrors of the oprichnina. But Vasily behaved with the boyars still very reserved. Neither of noble representatives of the boyar class was not executed under him. For the most part, Vasily limited himself to taking oaths from the boyars (Shuisky, Belsky, Vorotynsky, Mstislavsky) that they would not leave for Lithuania. Only Prince Vasily Kholmsky fell into disgrace with him (for what, it is not known).

Unification of Moscow Rus under Ivan III and Vasily III

But to close relatives, capable of challenging his power by dynastic kinship, Vasily treated with the usual severity of his predecessors. Vasily's rival, his nephew Dmitry Ivanovich (grandson of Ivan III from his eldest son, Ivan), died in prison. For his brothers, Yuri and Andrei, Vasily III established strict supervision. Andrei was allowed to marry only when Vasily III himself became the father of two children. Vasily's brothers hated his favorites and the new order.

Not wanting to transfer the throne to either Yuri or Andrei, Vasily, after a long childless marriage, divorced his first wife, the barren Solomonia Saburova, and married (1526) Elena Vasilievna Glinskaya, niece of the famous Western Russian nobleman Mikhail Glinsky. From her, his sons Ivan (in 1530, the future Ivan the Terrible) and Yuri (1533) were born. Solomonia Saburova was imprisoned in the Suzdal Intercession Monastery, and the opponents of divorce also suffered (Metropolitan Varlaam, as well as the leaders of the non-possessors Vassian Kosoy Patrikeyev and the renowned Byzantine scientist Maxim Grek).

Solomonia Saburova. Painting by P. Mineeva

Foreign policy of Basil III

After the death of his son-in-law, the Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander (1506), Vasily decided to take advantage of the turmoil that arose among the noblest pans of Lithuania. Between them stood out education, military glory, wealth and land holdings, Mikhail Glinsky, who was insulted by Alexander's brother and successor, Sigismund. Mikhail Glinsky, in response, went to the service of Vasily III. This circumstance, as well as the mistreatment in Lithuania of Vasily's sister (Alexander's wife) Elena, who died in 1513, as was suspected of poisoning, caused a war between Lithuania and Moscow. During it, Glinsky lost all his former Lithuanian possessions, in return for which he received Medyn and Maloyaroslavets from Vasily. The union of Sigismund with the Crimean Khan Mengli-Girey caused in 1512 the second war of Vasily III with Lithuania. On August 1, 1514, with the assistance of Glinsky, Vasily took Smolensk from the Lithuanians, but on September 8 of the same year, the commander of Sigismund, Prince Ostrozhsky, inflicted a heavy defeat on the Moscow army at Orsha. However, according to the truce of 1522, concluded with the mediation of the ambassador of the German emperor Maximilian I, Herberstein, Smolensk remained with Moscow.

Crimean Tatar archer

In addition to Lithuania, the main concern of the reign of Vasily III was Tatar relations, especially Crimean ones. Having submitted to powerful Turkey at the end of the 15th century, Crimea began to receive strong support from it. The raids of the Crimean Tatars more and more disturbed the Muscovite state (raid on the Oka in 1507, on the Ryazan Ukraine in 1516, on the Tula Ukraine in 1518, the siege of Moscow in 1521). Russia and Lithuania alternately taunted the Crimean robbers and involved them in their mutual squabbles. The strengthened Crimean khans tried to subjugate Kazan and Astrakhan in order to restore the former Golden Horde - from the Upper Volga region and the Urals to the Black and Caspian Seas. Vasily III strongly opposed the annexation of Kazan to the Crimea, which in 1521 led to the most dangerous raid of the Tatars on Russia immediately from the south and east. However, Kazan, torn apart by internal strife, was more and more subordinate to Moscow (the siege of Kazan in 1506, peace with its khan, Mohammed-Amin in 1507, the appointment from Moscow as the Kazan king Shah-Ali (Shigalei) in 1519. and Dzhan-Ali in 1524, the construction by Vasily on the border with the Kazan possessions of the powerful fortress of Vasilsursk in 1524, etc.). By this constant pressure on Kazan, Vasily also anticipated the accomplishments of Ivan the Terrible. In 1523, the Crimean Khan Mohammed Giray captured Astrakhan, but was soon killed there by the Nogais.

Domestic politics

Vasily III strengthened the local militia following the example of Novgorod, where in early XVI in. 1,400 boyar children served in the militia. The annexation of Novgorod and Pskov and the confiscation of the boyar estates ensured the leading place of state property in the land tenure system. In 1520, the Ryazan principality was finally annexed. The treasury could allocate land large groups service people. The distribution of estates did not equalize the aristocracy and the ordinary nobility. The nobility received estates in addition to fiefdoms.

AT churches the flow of non-possessors was preserved - Vassian Patrikeyev in the first half of the 16th century. Together with his father, Prince Patrikeev, he was tonsured a monk in 1499 for resisting annexation to Moscow and sent to the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. In 1508 he was returned from exile and approached

Basil III. Criticized monasticism and acquisitiveness of monasteries. In general, he did not protest against church land ownership, but believed that monasteries should not use land for enrichment, land ownership to save the starving. I especially did not like that the monasteries dispose of the lands granted to them by the princes (this was supported by the nobility). These views were shared by Maxim Grek, who arrived in Russia in 1518 to correct and translate liturgical books. More than 100 works by Maxim the Greek: about the plight of the monastic peasants, denounced the monks, about the decline in the morals of the clergy (the pursuit of wealth, usury). Like the Osiflyans, he wrote about the divine origin of royal power. He insisted on the need for a union of the church with the royal power. The king must follow the norms of Christian morality (for the patriarchal structure of the state) and rule together with wise advisers. For the attack on Kazan and the strengthening of the borders (reflected in his messages to Vasily III and Ivan IV). His ideas were revered by Prince Kurbsky.

Osiflyan under Vasily III was headed by Metropolitan Daniel. In 1525, he achieved the exile of Maximus the Greek to a monastery, and in 1531 both Vassian and Maximus were condemned at a church council. Both are exiled. Vassian died in Volokolamsk m-re, and Maxim the Greek was released only after the accession of Ivan IV.

Foreign policy of Basil III

A kind of dual power was established in Pskov. The prince sent from Moscow ruled the city together with the veche. Often conflicts. Vasily III began to prepare the conquest of Pskov. In the autumn of 1509 he arrived in Novgorod on his own. The Pskovites sent posadniks and boyars to Novgorod, who complained about the violence of the Moscow authorities (boyar Repnya-Obolensky). Petitioners were arrested, and unrest began in Pskov. They demanded that the veche remove the veche bell. Abolish elective offices and accept 2 governors in the city. On January 13, 1510, the veche bell was dropped. Arriving in Pskov, Vasily III announced that the boyars and merchants should leave the city due to complaints. 300 families were evicted. The confiscated estates were distributed to Moscow service people. In an average city in Pskov, 1,500 households were evicted, and Novgorod landowners were moved there.

The arrival in Moscow in 1508 of Mikhail Glinsky from Lithuania contributed to the outbreak of hostilities, which ended with the capture of Smolensk. In the Russian state, the Glinskys, like the Gediminovichs before, became serving princes. In 1512-1513. twice unsuccessfully besieged Smolensk. Since 1514, he again began the offensive with the active participation of Glinsky. Honorable terms of delivery offered. The deputation of Smolensk announced the transfer to the citizenship of Moscow. The charter of 1514 granted the Smolensk boyars their estates and privileges. Citizens were exempted from a tax of 100 rubles. Lithuanian treasury. On July 30, the gates of the fortress were opened to the Moscow governors. The inhabitants of Smolensk were rewritten and sworn in, the soldiers were rewarded and released to Poland. But then Mikhail Glinsky, who had left by the time the city was taken to Lithuania, started a turmoil, and the charter became invalid (he began to negotiate with King Sigismund about the return of Smolensk). He was imprisoned until 1526, when Vasily III married his niece Elena Vasilievna Glinskaya.

The capture of Smolensk led to active actions of the Lithuanian troops, which ended in victory near Orsha, but the Lithuanians could not develop further military success. The border between Russia and Lithuania, established after this campaign, existed almost unchanged until the end of the 16th century. In 1522, a truce was concluded between Russia and Lithuania for 6 years, later it was confirmed. Before Livonian War relations were reduced to frontier conflicts, robberies of merchants, requests for guarantees for messengers passing through Lithuania. In the 30s. 16th century Lithuanians tried to recapture Smolensk. New in the 30-40s of the XVI century. - departures to Lithuania of disgraced Moscow princes and boyars, as well as heretics, which was associated with the struggle of groups at the court of the young Ivan IV. At this time, the east becomes the main direction of politics.

In 1515, Khan Mengli Giray died, with whom stable relations developed. Relations with his successor Mohammed Giray are hostile. In 1521, Sahib-Girey, brother of Mohammed-Girey, who had come from the Crimea, was placed on the throne in Kazan. This summer, Khan Mohammed Giray broke through to Moscow from the Crimea. His warriors drank honey from the royal cellars of the village of Vorobyov. Vasily left the capital, but the Crimean army quickly retreated to Ryazan, having learned about the approach of the Novgorod and Pskov regiments. The Crimeans sought the restoration of tribute. On August 12 they left for the steppes. But a few weeks later, Mohammed Giray was killed by the Nogais, and no tribute was paid. Until 1533, Russian-Crimean relations were relatively calm, then worsened. The main requirement of Crimea is Moscow's refusal to fight for Kazan.

Basil III Ivanovich in baptism Gabriel, in monasticism Varlaam (born March 25, 1479 - death December 3, 1533) - Grand Duke Vladimir and Moscow (1505-1533), Sovereign of All Russia. Parents: father John III Vasilyevich the Great, mother Byzantine princess Sophia Paleolog. Children: from first marriage: George (presumably); from the second marriage: and Yuri.

Vasily 3 short biography (article review)

The son of John III from his marriage to Sophia Paleolog, Vasily the Third was distinguished by pride and impregnability, punished the descendants of appanage princes and boyars subject to him, who dared to rebuke him. He is "the last collector of the Russian land." After joining the last appanages (Pskov, the northern principality), he completely destroyed the appanage system. He fought twice with Lithuania, on the teaching of the Lithuanian nobleman Mikhail Glinsky, who entered his service, and, finally, in 1514, he was able to take Smolensk from the Lithuanians. The war with Kazan and the Crimea was difficult for Vasily, but ended in the punishment of Kazan: Trade was diverted from there to the Makariev fair, which was subsequently transferred to Nizhny. Vasily divorced his wife Solomonia Saburova and married a princess, which even more aroused the boyars dissatisfied with him. From this marriage, Vasily had a son, Ivan IV the Terrible.

Biography of Basil III

The beginning of the reign. Bride's Choice

The new Grand Duke of Moscow, Vasily III Ivanovich, began his reign by resolving the “throne issue” with his nephew Dmitry. Immediately after the death of his father, he ordered that he be shackled “in iron” and put in a “cramped chamber”, where he died after 3 years. Now the king had no "legitimate" opponents in the rivalry for the throne of the grand duke.

Vasily ascended the Moscow throne at the age of 26. Having shown himself to be a skillful politician in the future, he was preparing for the role of autocrat in the Russian state even under his father. It was not in vain that he refused a bride from among foreign princesses and for the first time the bridegrooms for Russian brides were arranged at the Grand Duke's palace. 1505, summer - 1500 noble girls were brought to the bride.

A special boyar commission, after a careful selection, presented ten most worthy contenders to the heir to the throne in all respects. Vasily chose Salomoniya, the daughter of the boyar Yuri Saburov. This marriage would be unsuccessful - the royal couple had no children, and, first of all, no son-heir. In the first half of the 1920s, the problem of an heir for the grand ducal couple escalated to the limit. In the absence of an heir to the throne, Prince Yuri automatically became the main contender for the kingdom. With him, Vasily developed hostile relations. Known fact that the specific prince himself and his entourage were under the watchful eye of informants. The transfer to Yuri of the supreme power in the state generally promised a large-scale shake-up in the ruling elite of Russia.

According to the strictness of the observed tradition, the second marriage Orthodox Christian in Russia was possible only in two cases: death or voluntary departure to the monastery of the first wife. The sovereign's wife was in good health and, contrary to the official report, was not at all going to voluntarily go to the monastery. Opal to Salomon and forced tonsure at the end of November 1525 completed this act family drama, which for a long time split the Russian educated society.

Grand Duke Vasily III Ivanovich hunting

Foreign policy

Vasily the Third continued his father's policy of creating a unified Russian state, “followed the same rules in foreign and domestic policy; showed modesty in the actions of the monarchical government, but knew how to command; he loved the benefits of peace, not fearing war and not missing an opportunity for acquisitions important for sovereign power; he was less famous for military happiness, more for cunning dangerous for enemies; did not humiliate Russia, even exalted it ... ”(N. M. Karamzin).

At the very beginning of his reign, in 1506, he undertook an unsuccessful campaign against the Kazan Khan, which ended in the flight of the Russian army. This beginning greatly inspired King Alexander of Lithuania, who, relying on the youth and inexperience of Basil III, offered him peace on the condition of returning the lands conquered by John III. A rather stern and brief answer was given to such a proposal - the Russian tsar owns only his own lands. But, in the letter sent to Alexander on accession to the throne, Vasily rejected the complaints of the Lithuanian boyars against the Russians as unfair, and reminded of the inadmissibility of the inclination of Elena (the wife of Alexander and the sister of Vasily III) and other Christians living in Lithuania to Catholicism.

Alexander realized that a young but strong king had ascended the throne. When Alexander died in August 1506, Vasily tried to offer himself as king of Lithuania and Poland in order to end the confrontation with Russia. However, Alexander's brother Sigismund, who did not want peace with Russia, ascended the throne. Out of annoyance, the sovereign tried to recapture Smolensk, but after several battles there were no winners, and a peace was concluded according to which all the lands conquered under John III remained behind Russia and Russia promised not to encroach on Smolensk and Kyiv. As a result of this peace treaty, the Glinsky brothers first appeared in Russia - noble Lithuanian nobles who had a conflict with Sigismund and who came under the protection of the Russian Tsar.

By 1509, foreign relations were settled: letters were received from a longtime friend and ally of Russia - the Crimean Khan Mengli-Girey, which confirmed the invariance of his attitude towards Russia; a 14-year peace treaty was concluded with Livonia, with the exchange of prisoners and the resumption: the security of movement in both powers and trade on the same mutually beneficial terms. It was also important that, according to this treaty, the Germans broke off allied relations with Poland.

Domestic politics

Tsar Vasily believed that nothing should limit the power of the Grand Duke. He enjoyed the active support of the Church in the fight against the feudal boyar opposition, harshly cracking down on those who expressed discontent.

Now Vasily the Third could take up internal politics. He turned his attention to Pskov, proudly bearing the name of "brother Novgorod." On the example of Novgorod, the sovereign knew where boyar liberty could lead, and therefore he wanted, without leading to a rebellion, to conquer the city of his power. The reason for this was the refusal of the landowners to pay tribute, everyone quarreled and the governor had no choice but to turn to the court of the Grand Duke.

The young tsar went to Novgorod in January 1510, where he received a large embassy of the Pskovites, which consisted of 70 noble boyars. The trial ended with the fact that all the Pskov boyars were put in custody, because the tsar was dissatisfied with their insolence against the governor and injustice against the people. In this connection, the sovereign demanded that the Pskovites abandon the veche and accept sovereign governors in all their cities.

The noble boyars, feeling guilty and not having the strength to resist the Grand Duke, wrote a letter to the people of Pskov, asking them to agree with the requirements of the Grand Duke. It was sad for the free Pskovites last time gather in the square to the sound of the veche bell. At this meeting, the sovereign's ambassadors were announced about their consent to submit to the royal will. Vasily III arrived in Pskov, put things in order there and planted new officials; took an oath of allegiance to all the inhabitants and laid the foundation of a new church of St. Xenia, the commemoration of this saint fell just on the day of the end of the liberty of the city of Pskov. Vasily sent 300 noble Pskovites to the capital and left home a month later. Following him, they soon brought the veche bell of the Pskovites.

By 1512, relations with the Crimean Khanate escalated. The clever and faithful Khan Mengli-Girey, who was a reliable ally of John III, became very old, decrepit, and his sons, the young princes Akhmat and Burnash-Girey, began to lead politics. Sigismund, who hated Russia even more than Alexander, was able to bribe the brave princes and incite them to campaign against Russia. In particular, Sigismund raged, having lost Smolensk in 1514, which had been under Lithuania for 110 years.

Sigismund regretted that he had released Mikhail Glinsky to Russia, who diligently served the new land, and began to demand the return of the Glinskys. Especially M. Glinsky tried during the capture of Smolensk, he hired skilled foreign warriors. Mikhail had the hope that out of gratitude for his merits, the sovereign would make him the sovereign prince of Smolensk. However, the Grand Duke did not love and did not believe Glinsky - once he changed, he would change the second time. In general, Vasily fought with inheritances. And so it happened: offended, Mikhail Glinsky went over to Sigismund, but fortunately, the governors quickly managed to catch him and, by order of the tsar, he was sent in chains to Moscow.

1515 - the Crimean Khan Mengli-Girey died, and his son Muhammad-Girey succeeded his throne, who, unfortunately, did not inherit many of the good qualities of his father. During his reign (until 1523), the Crimean army acted either on the side of Lithuania or Russia - it all depended on who paid the most.

The power of Russia of that era commanded respect various countries. Ambassadors from Constantinople brought a letter and a kind letter from the famous and terrible for all of Europe Turkish Sultan Soliman. Good diplomatic relations with him frightened the eternal enemies of Russia - Mukhhamet Giray and Sigismund. The latter, without even arguing about Smolensk, made peace for 5 years.

Solomonia Saburova. Painting by P. Mineeva

Unification of Russian lands

Such a respite gave the Grand Duke time and strength to fulfill his and his great father's long-standing intention - to finally destroy the inheritances. And he succeeded. The Ryazan appanage, ruled by the young Prince John, almost seceded from Russia, with the active participation of Khan Mukhkhamet. Imprisoned, Prince John fled to Lithuania, where he died, and the Ryazan principality, which had been separate and independent for 400 years, merged into the Russian state in 1521. There remained the Seversk principality, where Vasily Shemyakin, the grandson of the famous Dmitry Shemyaka, who stirred up power at the time, reigned. This Shemyakin, who looked so much like his grandfather, had long been suspected of being friends with Lithuania. 1523 - his correspondence with Sigismund was revealed, and this is already an open betrayal of the fatherland. Prince Vasily Shemyakin was thrown into prison, where he died.

Thus, the dream was realized to unite Russia, fragmented into specific principalities, into a single whole under the rule of one king.

1523 - the Russian city of Vasilsursk was founded on Kazan land, and this event marked the beginning of the decisive conquest of the Kazan kingdom. And although during the entire reign of Vasily III had to fight with the Tatars and repel their raids, in 1531 the Kazan Khan Enalei became a novice of the Russian Tsar, recognizing his authority.

Divorce and marriage

Everything went well in the Russian state, but Vasily III did not have an heir for 20 years of marriage. And various boyar parties began to form for and against a divorce from the barren Saburova. The king needs an heir. 1525 - a divorce took place, and Solomonida Saburova was tonsured a nun, and in 1526 Tsar Vasily Ivanovich married Elena Vasilievna Glinskaya, the niece of the traitor Mikhail Glinsky, who in 1530 gave birth to the first son and heir to the throne, John IV (the Terrible ).

Elena Glinskaya - the second wife of Grand Duke Vasily III

Board results

The first signs of the prosperity of the Russian state were successfully developing trade. The largest centers in addition to Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Smolensk and Pskov became. The Grand Duke took care of the development of trade, which he constantly pointed out to his deputies. Handicrafts also developed. In many cities there were craft suburbs - settlements. The country provided itself, at that time, with everything necessary and was ready to export more goods than to import what it needed. The wealth of Russia, the abundance of arable land, forest land with precious furs, are unanimously noted by foreigners who visited Muscovy in
those years.

Under Vasily III, urban planning continues to develop, construction Orthodox churches. The Italian Fioravanti builds in Moscow, on the model of the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir, the Kremlin Assumption Cathedral, which becomes the main shrine of Moscow Russia. The cathedral will be an image for Russian masters of church work for many decades.

Under Vasily III, the construction of the Kremlin was completed - in 1515 a wall was erected along the Neglinnaya River. The Moscow Kremlin is turning into one of the best fortresses in Europe. Being the residence of the monarch, the Kremlin has become a symbol of the Russian state up to the present day.

Death

Vasily III always had enviable health and he was not seriously ill with anything, probably because it was so unexpected that an abscess on his leg led him to death 2 months later. He died on the night of December 3-4, 1533, having managed to give all orders for the state, transferring power to his 3-year-old son John, and guardianship of his mother, boyars and his brothers - to Andrei and Yuri; and before last breath managed to take the schema.

Vasily was called a kind and gentle sovereign, and therefore it is not surprising that his death was so sad for the people. All 27 years of his reign, the Grand Duke worked hard for the good and greatness of his state and was able to achieve a lot.

That night, for the history of the Russian state, "the last gatherer of the Russian land" passed away.

According to one of the legends, during the tonsure, Solomonia was pregnant, gave birth to a son, George, and handed him over "in safe hands", and it was announced to everyone that the newborn had died. Subsequently, this child will become the famous robber Kudeyar, who, with his gang, will rob rich carts. This legend was very interested in Ivan the Terrible. The hypothetical Kudeyar was his older half-brother, which means that he could claim the royal throne. This story is most likely a folk fiction.

For the second time, Vasily III married a Lithuanian, young Elena Glinskaya. Only 4 years later, Elena gave birth to her first child, Ivan Vasilyevich. According to legend, at the hour of the birth of a baby, a terrible thunderstorm seemed to break out. Thunder struck from a clear sky and shook the earth to its foundations. The Kazan khansha, having learned about the birth of the heir, told the Moscow messengers: “Your tsar was born, and he has two teeth: with one he will eat us (Tatars), and with the other you.”

There was a rumor that Ivan was an illegitimate son, but this is unlikely: an examination of the remains of Elena Glinskaya showed that she had red hair. As you know, Ivan was also red.

Vasily III was the first of the Russian tsars to shave off his chin hair. As the legend goes, he cut his beard to look younger in the eyes of his young wife. In a beardless state, he did not last long.

There are rulers who left a noticeable mark in the history of their country, and there are those who are in their shadow. The latter, no doubt, include Vasily 3, whose domestic and foreign policy, at first glance, did not tangible results. But was this sovereign such an insignificant person?

Descendant of the basileus

On a March night in 1479, the wife of Ivan the Third gave birth to a son. On April 4, the Archbishop of Rostov Vassian Rylo and the Trinity Abbot Paisius baptized the boy, giving him the name Vasily. The baby's mother, Sophia Palaiologos, came from the family of the deposed Byzantine emperor. Thanks to her ability to intrigue, maneuver and understand the intricacies of the interests of the grand ducal court, Vasily in October 1505 was able to take the throne of his father, becoming the sovereign of all Russia.

What has been inherited

When characterizing the domestic and foreign policy of Vasily 3, it is necessary to take into account the situation in the Moscow principality at the time of his coming to power. Ivan III did not have time to complete the unification of the Russian lands begun in the 13th century. It has become the main focus state activity his son - Vasily 3.

The domestic and foreign policy of the Grand Duke, however, was built not only on the basis of this. As before, it was important for Russia to ensure reliable protection of its borders from Tatar raids, as well as to reform the administration, taking into account the newly annexed territories.

The first years of the reign of Vasily III cannot be called successful:

• in April 1506 the military campaign to Kazan ended in failure;
• in the summer of the same year, Vasily failed in the struggle for the Lithuanian throne;
• in July 1507, the Crimean Khanate, violating the peace agreements, attacked the Russian border.

Conquest of the Pskov Republic

First for real successful act Vasily 3's foreign and domestic policy was the annexation of Pskov in 1510. The reason for this was the complaints of the townspeople against Ivan Repnya, the Moscow Grand Duke's governor. Vasily invited the Pskov posadniks to come to Novgorod, where, on his orders, they were arrested. The clerk Dalmatov, sent to Pskov, who enjoyed the special confidence of Vasily 3, demanded on his behalf to abolish the people's council and submit to the Moscow prince, which was done. The Pskov boyars were deprived of their possessions, which Vasily III immediately distributed to his service people.

Accession of other lands

In 1514, after the Russo-Lithuanian War, Smolensk came under the authority of Moscow. However, Vasily III sought not only to annex new territories to the Moscow principality, but also to eradicate the remnants of the appanage system. So, during his reign, some destinies of the following princes ceased to exist:

• Volotsky Fyodor (in 1513).
• Kaluga Semyon (by 1518).
• Uglitsky Dmitry (by 1521).

Strengthening the borders

Vasily's relations with the Kazan and Crimean khanates were not stable. Therefore, with the support of small and medium-sized feudal lords, he pursued a policy of developing lands located south and east of Moscow. Vasily III began the construction of the notch line - defensive structures to repel the raids of the Crimean and Nogai Tatars.

They were a system of forest blockages (notches), ditches, strongholds, palisades and ramparts. The first defensive line was located in the area of ​​Tula, Ryazan and Kashira. Its construction was completed only in the second half of the 16th century.

Third Rome

The power of the Grand Duke, as the supreme ruler, was further strengthened under Vasily III. AT official documents he was called the king, and the title of autocrat acquired official status. The recognition of the divinity of the grand duke's power became widespread.

For example, at the beginning of the 16th century, Moscow began to be called the Third Rome. According to this religious theory, Russia, its Orthodox Church and the Russian people as a whole were assigned a special purpose. The theory belonged to the monk Philotheus, hegumen of the Eleazarov Monastery in Pskov.

He wrote that the basis of history is divine providence. The first Rome, in which Christianity was born, fell under the onslaught of the barbarians in the 5th century, the second Rome - Constantinople, was conquered by the Turks in 1453, only Russia remained - the defender of the true Orthodox faith. The concept of "Moscow - the Third Rome" substantiated the greatness of Russia as an independent in religious and politically states. Thus, the domestic and foreign policy of Vasily 3 Ivanovich received a solid religious justification.

Control system

C education united state the system of internal management has also changed. The Boyar Duma began to play the role of a permanent deliberative body under the supreme power. With the loss of sovereignty specific principalities their nobility could not always participate in council meetings. Only those whom Vasily 3 personally favored by the boyars had such a right. The Duma consisted of a small circle of people - the descendants of the great and specific princes who accepted the citizenship of Moscow. It included:

• boyars;
• devious;
• boyar children;
• duma nobles;
• later clerks.

The Boyar Duma was the body through which the domestic and foreign policy of Vasily 3 was carried out.

The relationship between the members of the Grand Duke's court was regulated by the local system. The position or rank depended on the nobility of the family or the former service. Because of this, conflicts often arose, for example, in the appointment of governors, ambassadors, heads of orders. Localism established a hierarchy of noble families, which guaranteed them a corresponding position at the court of the sovereign.

Administrative division

During the reign of Vasily 3, the territory of the Moscow State was divided into:

• counties, the borders of which corresponded to the borders of the former specific principalities;
• parish.

The governors were the heads of the counties, and the volosts were the heads of the volosts, who received them for feeding. That is, the content of these officials fell on the shoulders of the local population.

Government

During the reign of Vasily 3, the domestic and foreign policy pursued by the Grand Duke required the establishment of new nationwide departments:

• the palace that was in charge of the lands of the Grand Duke;
• treasury involved in finance, levying taxes and customs duties.

The state seal and the archive were also kept in the treasury, whose employees were also in charge of embassy affairs. Later, such authorities emerged from this institution, such as orders, which were engaged in the management of certain areas public life.

Changes in land ownership

Now the Grand Duke was the supreme owner of all the lands, who granted them to his subjects. There was, in addition, boyar and patrimonial land tenure, it could be inherited, mortgaged or sold.

Local landownership was given by the Grand Duke in temporary conditional possession as a salary for bearing military service. It could not be sold, bequeathed or transferred to the monastery as a gift.

Results

At the end of 1533, the autocrat of the Grand Duchy of Moscow suddenly fell ill and died. The state was headed by his son, who went down in history under the name of Ivan the Terrible.

Briefly characterizing the domestic and foreign policy of Vasily 3, we can conclude that the Grand Duke pursued it quite successfully. He managed not only to complete the unification of the Russian lands, but also to a large extent to eradicate the remnants of the appanage system within the country.

Vasily Ivanovich was born on March 25, 1479. He was the first son of Ivan III from his second marriage, with Sofia Paleolog, who was a representative of the last Byzantine imperial dynasty.

However, Vasily did not claim the throne, since Ivan III had from his first marriage the eldest son, Ivan the Young, who, approximately eight years before the birth of Vasily, had already been declared co-ruler of Ivan III. In 1490, Ivan the Young died, and Vasily had a chance to claim a great reign. At court, a struggle broke out between two factions. One played for the son of Ivan the Young - Dmitry Vnuk, and the other for Vasily. As a result, Ivan III himself proclaimed Vasily "sovereign grand duke."

Basil's reignIII

Basil's reign lasted six years, and after Ivan III died in 1505, he became an independent sovereign.

Basil III continued the centralization policy of his father. In 1506, the Grand Duke's governor established himself in the Great Perm. In 1510, the formal independence of the Pskov land was abolished. In 1521, the Ryazan principality joined the Grand Duchy. The Grand Duke fought with the inheritances with the most different ways. Sometimes the inheritances were simply destroyed on purpose, sometimes the brothers were not allowed to marry, and therefore, to have legitimate heirs.

The local system was strengthened, which helped to ensure the combat effectiveness of the army and limit the independence of the aristocracy. The land was given to the nobles in conditional possession for the duration of the “princely service”.

Localism developed - a system of hierarchy, in which positions and titles were occupied exclusively in accordance with the nobleness of the prince or boyar.

The general strengthening of the state, political and ideological necessity gave impetus to the development of theories substantiating the special political rights of the Grand Dukes of Moscow.

Foreign policy

In 1514, Smolensk, one of the largest Russian-speaking centers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, was conquered. Campaigns to Smolensk were personally led by Vasily III, but the defeat of the Russian troops near Orsha for some time suspended the movement of Russian troops to the west.

Russian-Crimean relations remained tense. In 1521, the campaign of the Crimean Khan Mohammed Giray was sent to Moscow. The Crimean Tatars reached almost to Moscow. The country was heavily damaged. Vasily III had to concentrate his efforts on the defense of the southern borders, passing along the Oka River.

Vasily III began to deepen Russia's contacts with Orthodox peoples, conquered Ottoman Empire, including with Athos. Attempts were made to establish relations with the Holy Roman Empire and the papal curia against the Ottoman Empire.

Personal life

In 1505, Vasily III married Solomonia Saburova. For the first time, a representative of the boyar, and not the princely, family became the chosen one of the Grand Duke. For twenty years there were no children in this marriage, and Vasily III married a second time. The new wife of the sovereign was Elena Glinskaya, who came from the Lithuanian boyars. From this marriage, the future Tsar of All Russia was born.