Ivan Susanin - folk hero, a symbol of "peasant" devotion to the king. For four centuries, his name and the legend of the miraculous rescue of the first sovereign of the Romanov family have become part of folklore.
How did you know?
The story of the feat of Ivan Susanin before early XIX passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. The general public learned about it only in 1812, thanks to the publication of the story of the writer Sergei Nikolaevich Glinka in the Russky Vestnik magazine.
Later, it was on this publication that the play "Ivan Susanin" and the famous opera by Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka "A Life for the Tsar" were based. Glinka told the story about Ivan Susanin like this.
In 1613, the expulsion of the Poles from Moscow, their gangs looted in the interior regions of Russia. In February of the same year, the Zemsky Sobor in Moscow proclaimed Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov tsar, and, moreover, in absentia.
But Mikhail Fedorovich himself at that time was in his estate in the Kostroma region, and one of the Polish gangs decided to destroy him. But where to look for him, the Poles did not know.
Arriving in the village of Domnino, they met the peasant Ivan Susanin and decided to ask him where the newly elected tsar was. But Susanin, realizing that the Poles want to destroy the young sovereign, not only did not tell the truth, but also led them in the opposite direction. On the way, he went into his hut and quietly sent his little son to the king to warn him of the danger. Leading the Poles into an impenetrable thicket, Ivan Susanin said:
"Villains! Here is my head; do with me what you will; whom you are looking for, you will not get it!
After that, the Poles hacked the hero to death with sabers, but they themselves could not get out of the thicket and the king was saved.
son-in-law
The story of Ivan Susanin after 200 years has acquired new details of a literary nature. Naturally, Ivan Susanin's dying words were invented by Glinka himself. He also added many details to the story about Susanin "for the sake of words." But what exactly were the details? What do we really know about Ivan Susanin?
Something can be assumed. For example, that Susanin was a widower and he had a daughter who succeeded him.
In the royal charter given on November 30, 1619 (a unique and earliest source about the existence of a Kostroma peasant), Bogdan Sabinin, son-in-law of Ivan Susanin, is granted half of the village with “whitewashing” from all taxes and duties “for service to us and for blood, and for patience ... ".
There is no doubt that such a document could only be a recognition of the great merits of the family to the king.
Susanin's relatives
Some assumptions that Susanin's mother's name was Susanna, and he himself was a village headman, are more likely speculation. But Susanin's patronymic - Osipovich, was invented by historians already in the 19th century and is not confirmed by any documents.
However, the very fact that the tsar descended to a simple peasant and twice more from Moscow confirmed the privileges that exempted him from taxes, in 1633 and 1691 deserves attention.
In Glinka's story, in comparison with the text of the diploma, there are two main fictional plots. The first is the son of Susanin. As we know, Antonida's daughter succeeded him (including royal privileges), which was possible only in the absence of male offspring. But after all, the son could have died earlier? Studies show (Velizhev, Lavrinovich) that this is not the case.
Back in 1731, the descendants of Susanin made an attempt to introduce another relative into the story about the salvation of the king - the future husband of Antonida. He was allegedly sent by Susanin to warn the king of the danger.
However, this fiction was not believed and the petition (which was aimed at obtaining wider benefits) was not approved. Thus, both the son and son-in-law of Susanin did not exist and were added to the legend about the salvation of the king later. The same can be said about the fact that Susanin led the Poles into the thickets (or swamps). In the documents of the 17th century, it is only known that Susanin did not give out the location of the king, and a romantic episode with remote places was added later.
Ivan Susanin and DNA
In the early 2000s, several reports appeared in the press about the discovery of the grave of Ivan Susanin. Archaeologists based their hypothesis on the fact that on several skeletons found in the results of excavations near the village of Domnino, traces of cold weapons, possibly sabers, were found.
However, they proceeded from the hypothesis that Susanin was buried, which also still needed to be proven.
Forensic doctors who studied the found remains, although they noted many similarities in the anthropometric structure of the found skeletons and Susanin's descendants in 8-15 generations, evaded the unambiguous identification of the most probable skeleton.
The fate was to be decided by DNA analysis of the bones, but the study did not give any reliable positive results.
Ivan Susanin of the 20th century
Nevertheless, one can hardly doubt now that the feat of Ivan Susanin was invented. Documented examples of such acts are well known in Russian history.
The most famous is the feat of the peasant Matvey Kuzmin in the winter of 1942. In the area of his village in the Pskov region, a battalion of the German 1st mountain rifle division wanted to make a round of the positions of the Soviet troops. The Germans chose 83-year-old Matvey Kuzmin as their guide. However, he, having volunteered to lead the detachment, quietly sent his 11-year-old grandson Sergei (this was no longer an invention of later narrators) to the location of the Soviet troops and transmitted through him the time and place of the ambush.
At the agreed time, Matvey Kuzmin led the Germans to the positions of Soviet machine gunners. This story was transmitted by the Soviet Information Bureau, and Matvey Kuzmin was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
At the same time, Matvey Kuzmin himself hardly knew about Ivan Susanin - the Pskov hunter was probably illiterate. Well, if you knew, then this is also not surprising. In Russia, as well as later in the USSR, the feat of Ivan Susanin was widely used in mass propaganda. Glinka's opera A Life for the Tsar changed its name to Ivan Susanin; writers, artists, and poets addressed the patriotic image of the Kostroma peasant throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. We know very little about the real Ivan Susanin, but more than about any other peasant of that time. His existence is documented, he even performed a feat with his silence and did not betray the young Mikhail Romanov, who was hunted by the Poles.
State budgetary educational institution
Bashkir Cadet Corps of the Volga Federal District
named after the Hero of Russia A.V. Dostovalova
District Open Conference
cadet corps of Volga Federal District
"Go ahead, you are talented"
Section: Cultural heritage
Project-research on this topic:
Opera "Ivan Susanin" in cultural heritage Russia
Fulfilled
7th grade cadet
GBOU BKK Volga Federal District im. A.V. Dostavalova
Krasnov Ilya
Supervisor
music teacher L.N. Astafieva
Ishimbay, 2017
Content
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………….2
Section 1…………………………………………………………………………...2
1.1. Images of the defenders of the Fatherland in various types art…………...2
1.2. Images of defenders of the Fatherland in the works of Russian composers……3
1.3. M.I. Glinka, opera "Ivan Susanin"…………………………………………4
Section 2. Practical part………………………………………………………5
Conclusions …………………………………………………………………………...8
References ……………………………………………………………...8
Introduction
The image of the defender of the Fatherland is one of the main images of art. Scrolling through the heroic pages of the history of our country, we see that the feat, valor and glory of the defenders of the Fatherland are reflected in various forms of art. And all of them real people who, for sure, having been born, did not know that their way of life, their exploits for the Glory of the Fatherland will brightly and truthfully serve as an example of valor, honor, true love for their land, that love that, if necessary, leads to a feat glorified for centuries . All of the above provesrelevance of our work – heroes are not born, heroes are made. Who is he - the defender of the Fatherland? What is displayed in works of art, in particular, in musical art ispurpose our work.
Our goal will be achieved by solving the followingtasks: get acquainted with works of art in which the hero is a simple person who deeply loves his land, ready to sacrifice himself for the sake of his family, the freedom of the Fatherland. Show how musical art create and convey the image of a national hero.
object our research project was the image of a folk hero in a piece of music, andsubject – main character operas by M.I. Glinka "Ivan Susanin".
During the research project, we got acquainted with works from the field of fine arts, music, cinema, literature, used Internet resources. In our opinion, research project will be interesting a wide range readers.
Section 1. The image of the defender of the Fatherland in various types of art
1.1. A lot of works have been created in various types of art (literature, painting, music, folk art, cinema, theater) about exploits, about valor, about the glory of the defenders of the Fatherland. They glorify the greatness and beauty, strength and power, nobility, kindness and spiritual wealth of a person who, at the cost of their lives, their example, their greatness of spirit, were ready to stand up and protect their native land.
Ancient epics have survived to this day, in which heroes call for a feat for the glory of the Fatherland, raise the spirit of the people in difficult years for the country, and instill courage in people. Such heroes can unite everyone living in Russia, everyone who loves their country.For example, the famous hero Ilya Muromets, in whose image great physical strength is combined with even greater inner strength and greatness of his spirit, unwillingness to kill, but only to protect and protect the Russian land. Ilya Muromets not only epic hero. This is a real Russian man who defended Russia from the Tatars. In 1643, Ilya Muromets was canonized. The Russian army considered and still considers him their patron.In 1998, on the territory of one of the military units in the Moscow region, a wonderful church was erected and consecrated in the name of St. Ilya Muromets.The image of the Russian epic hero captured in fine arts. The artist V.M. Vasnetsov painted a picture, which he called simply and briefly “Heroes”.
In our time, the epic image of Ilya Muromets still attracts attention. I would like to believe that at the same time, the living face of a person who sincerely devoted his whole life and all his exploits to the glory of the Fatherland will not dissolve behind the type of an invincible warrior.
In ancient Russian art, the protectors of the Russian land were personified by the princes Boris and Gleb, Alexander Nevsky. In the visual arts, the images of folk heroes, outstanding commanders are reflected in the work of artists V. Vasnetsov, N. Roerich, M. Vrubel.
We are very pleased that modern Russian cinema also complements the image of the defender of the fatherland through the screening of films that instill a sense of respect for the heroic past of our people. After watching such films as "We are from the future" directed by A. Malyukov, "Stalingrad" by F. Bondarchuk, "Match", " Brest Fortress» A. Cotta, etc. …
1.2. Russian composers also constantly turn in their work to the theme of defending the Motherland. Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin, in his small-scale work, devoted Special attention epic images that are most vividly embodied in the opera "Prince Igor".
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky - the operas "Boris Godunov" and "Khovanshchina", the musical language of which has a bright national character and its features are close to peasant songs.
In the work of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky are reflected eternal theme the struggle between good and evil, the search for the meaning of life, the comprehension of complex inner world personalities, poetic images of Russian nature and bright pictures folk life. His work is deeply national: he created a gallery of wonderful images of Russian people, captured pictures of his native nature, sang the heroic past of Russia.
The creative heritage of Sergei Sergeevich Prokofievmultifaceted: the cantata "Alexander Nevsky", a musical drama based on the plot of L. Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace". Among actors of the opera, the image of Kutuzov stands out, whose aria sounds like a symbol of the immortality of the Motherland: “Majestic, in the sun, mother of Russian cities, you spread out before us, Moscow” becomes in the future the theme of the motherland, illuminated by unfading light, the theme of rejoicing and victory over the enemy.
1.3. Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka created a national opera - Ivan Susanin, the main idea of which was love for the fatherland and the inseparable connection between the personal fates of the heroes and the fate of the whole people. Domestic heroic-tragic work - such a characteristic was given to his opera by M.I. Glinka. The Russian people in this work is far from the last place, Glinka made this mass image active in the historical events of the mentioned opera. It is due to this decision that the performance turned out to be epic in scope, since it contains massive choral scenes. Individual heroes and their destinies are represented by an inextricable link with the fate of their homeland. Massive musical illustrations of the life of Russian people, their way of life, and the natural beauties of the motherland are perfectly intertwined in the work, revealing the many-sided characters of the characters.
Not all court society was able to accept and understand the image of the protagonist Ivan Susanin, and the music that personified him. The composer's idea was to combine Russian melody and songs with European harmonies and compositions. Not all musicians were able to perceive such a union at once, but no one denied the significance of this work.
It is worth noting that the first written opera "Ivan Susanin" belongs to Katerin Kavos. The play premiered in 1815. The libretto was composed by Alexander Shakhovsky. The work turned out to be "" - this is the French style, where the musical and recitative, sociable part occupies the same number of places in the work. At the end of Kavos' version, Ivan Susanin remains alive.
In fact, there are many contradictions and confusion in the history of the creation of Glinka's opera "Ivan Susanin". But judging by the facts, it turns out the following... When Mikhail Ivanovich traveled through the Italian and German cities, his thoughts were periodically occupied with the idea of creating a musical work in which the national spirit would be present. It was these ideas that prompted the composer to start working on the opera. During a trip abroad and studying there, he said that everything he composed for the Milan plays was alien to him, and he felt a certain insincerity in his Italian work. And all these thoughts and feelings inspired in him the idea that it was necessary to write Russian music.
Initially, when Glinka returned to Russia, he wanted to write an opera based on Vasily Zhukovsky's "Marina Grove", but rather quickly changed his mind, and in the end the opera "A Life for the Tsar" turned out. By the way, the idea of a historical opera was thrown to Mikhail Ivanovich by Zhukovsky himself.
The creation of the work proceeded quickly. In just 1.5 years the opera was ready (1835-1836). A Life for the Tsar consists of four acts (or seven scenes) with a final epilogue. The libretto of that time was written by Baron Georgy Rosen, despite the fact that he had a poor command of Russian. Later, the version of the libretto written by S. Gorodetsky was used in productions. When the work was completed and rehearsed, Mikhail Ivanovich expressed a desire to dedicate the opera to Nicholas the First. This initiation went very well! And in fact, simultaneously with this event, the name was changed from "Ivan Susanin" to "Life for the Tsar." "Ivan Susanin" deserves recognition as the first Russian national opera. It has become the property of Russian art on a global scale, as it is the first Russian opera to be recognized throughout the world. Despite the fact that several operatic works were written before Ivan Susanin, they did not receive such popularity. Perhaps because the composers who composed them did not lay so much sense for the Russian soul, and were not such great figures of art as Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka.
Section 2. Practical part.
The practical part of our project - research is connected with the drying of the opera "Ivan Susanin" and the definition of musical numbers through which we see the transformation of the feelings of the protagonist - from a simple Kostroma peasant to a man who laid his life on the altar of victory.
The opera begins with an overture, in which the main dramatic conflict between the Russians and the Polish gentry is conveyed by means of music. The themes that sound in the overture will then be used by the composer in various episodes of the opera. But already here, in the overture, the main idea of the opera is consistently developed - the idea of nationality, patriotism.
The overture is followed by a choral introduction - a prologue. This section of the opera shows the Russian people as the main driving force and at the same time expresses the main idea of the opera - the love of the Russian people for their homeland.
The action of the first act takes us to the streets of the village of Domnino, where Ivan Susanin lives with his family, he is shown as a loving father who wants to marry his daughter to a man she loves, but the capital besieged by Polish enemies darkens Susanin’s soul “What to guess about the wedding? There is no end to grief,” he sings. By this we see the image of a simple peasant, for whom thoughts of personal happiness are not seen without a common peace among the people, which confirms the connection of the hero with the people.
Personality
A folk hero, a peasant in the village of Domnino, 70 versts north of Kostroma (now the Susaninsky district of the Kostroma region). There is practically no reliable biographical data about Susanin. The main source of information is the Royal Charter of November 30, 1619. A serf of the Shestov nobles. According to some reports, he served as a patrimonial headman. By official version, in the winter of 1613 Ivan Susanin accomplished a feat. The royal charter dated November 30, 1619 testified that in the winter of 1613, Tsar Mikhail Romanov and his mother, nun Marfa, lived in the village of Domnino, where a Polish-Lithuanian detachment of about 60 people went to capture the young king. On the way, the Poles met I. Susanin, who was ordered to show the way. Susanin led the detachment in the opposite direction to the village of Isupov, and sent his son-in-law Bogdan Sablin to Domnino to warn of danger. Susanin led a detachment to the Isupovsky (Clean) swamp, for which he was tortured and killed. Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov and his mother took refuge in the Kostroma Ipatiev Monastery. In 1619, as a reward for the feat and salvation of the tsar, Susanin's son-in-law was granted half of the village with exemption from taxes. Daughter - Antonida. The descendants of Susanin repeatedly received new letters of commendation, confirmation letters and preferential decrees (1633, 1644, 1691, 1723, 1724, 1731, 1741, 1767) confirming their property rights.
Heroization
Susanin's feat became a cult object in pre-revolutionary Russia. Paintings, drawings, sculptures, literary and musical works. The history of the feat of a patriotic peasant who gave his life for the tsar became especially in demand by official propaganda and public opinion during the suppression of the Polish uprising of 1830-1831. Since 1838, the central square of Kostroma was named Susaninskaya. The well-known historian, Professor N.I. Kostomarov, who considered the only reliable fact in the whole history of the death of Susanin from one of the robber detachments in the Time of Troubles. Critically spoke about the history of Susanin S.M. Solovyov. Susanin, among other historical figures, is depicted on the monument to M.O. Mikeshin "The Millennium of Russia" (1862) in Novgorod the Great.
Attitude in the Soviet and post-Soviet period
AT Soviet time in Kostroma, a monument to Susanin was destroyed (thrown off the pedestal in 1918, finally destroyed in 1934), and the hero himself was considered one of the royal servants, whose feat is mythologized. However, since the late 1930s the attitude towards Susanin changed - he became one of the national heroes, along with Minin and Pozharsky, Alexander Nevsky and Dmitry Donskoy. In 1939 on stage " Bolshoi Theater” the production of the opera by M.I. Glinka "Life for the Tsar", which was now called "Ivan Susanin". In the same year, the area where Susanin lived and the regional center were renamed in his honor. In Soviet times, the version that Susanin was just a patriotic hero, and his feat had nothing to do with saving the tsar, also spread. In 1967, a new monument Susanin with the inscription: "To Ivan Susanin - patriot of the Russian Land." In 1988 on the spot former village Anferovo was installed a memorial sign - a boulder with the inscription: "Ivan Susanin 1613". In 1992, the name Susaninskaya was returned to the central square of Kostroma. Interestingly, not far from the native village of Susanin, 12 versts, in the village of Molvitino, Osip Komissarov was born - the man who saved Emperor Alexander II from death. At least 58 people repeated the feat of Susanin. The most famous Hero of the Soviet Union Matvey Kuzmin.
Ivan Susanin was a peasant who lived in the Kostroma district. In he is known as the man who saved Tsar Romanov) from the Polish invaders. To date, there is no reliable information about the identity of this. According to historical chronicles, Susanin served as a headman in the village of Domnino, Kostroma district. A detachment of Polish interventionists asked Ivan Osipovich to bring them to his village, where Tsar Mikhail Romanov was staying. For this, Susanin was supposed to be rewarded. Instead, the future hero brought the Poles in. After some wandering, the invaders guessed that the man decided to destroy them. After prolonged torture of the peasant, they realized that he would not show the road leading to the village. The Poles killed Susanin. But the murderers themselves soon died in the forest swamps. Today, the name of this noble man is immortalized. And the proof of the existence of the hero is the letter presented to his son-in-law. As well as the human remains found near Kostroma, which, apparently, belonged to Susanin. Well, now let's take a closer look at what Ivan Susanin is famous for and study some facts of his biography.
The life of Ivan Susanin
Before proceeding directly to the feat and personality of Ivan Osipovich Susanin, I would like to acquaint the reader with the period of time in which the great martyr lived. So, it was in the first half of the XVII century. In the early 1600s, Russia was engulfed in unprecedented class, natural, and religious cataclysms. It was during this period that the well-known famine of 1601-1603, the seizure of the throne by an impostor, the coming to power of Vasily Shuisky, the Polish invasion of 1609, as well as the militia of 1611 and many other incidents take place.
A large mountain crept up to where, in fact, it lived which leaves many white spots. The episodes characterizing that time include: the destruction of Kostroma in 1608-1609 by False Dmitry II, the attack on the Ipatiev Monastery, the defeat of Kineshma by the Polish troops and other bloody events.
Whether the events described above, namely anxiety, internecine troubles and the invasion of enemies, had anything to do with Susanin and his relatives, or whether they bypassed their family for some time, is unknown. But this whole era is the time when Ivan Susanin lived. And the war approached the very house of the hero when, it seemed, it had already ended.
Susanin's personality
Ivan Susanin, whose biography contains very little known facts, the personality is still interesting. Little is known of this man's existence. We only know that Ivan had a daughter with an unusual name for our time - Antonida. Her husband was the peasant Bogdan Sabinin. Susanin had two grandchildren - Konstantin and Daniel, but when they were born, it is not known exactly.
There is also no information about the wife of Ivan Osipovich. Historians are inclined to believe that at the time the peasant performed the feat, she was no longer alive. And since in the same period Antonida was 16 years old, scientists answer the question of how old Ivan Susanin was when he led the Poles into the forest, they answer that he was in adulthood. That is, it is about 32-40 years old.
When everything happened
Today, many people know what Ivan Susanin is famous for, and what a feat he accomplished. But there are several versions about the year and at what time everything happened. Opinion one: the event took place in the late autumn of 1612. As an argument in favor of this date, the following information is provided. In some legends in question that Ivan hid the tsar in a pit of recently burned barn. The story also tells that the hero also covered the pit with charred boards. But this theory was rejected by most researchers. If this is nevertheless true, and the old legends do not lie, then it really was autumn, since the barns were drowned and burned at this time of the year.
Or maybe the last winter month of 1613?
In the minds of ordinary people, thanks to numerous artistic canvases, literary works and the opera of Glinka M.I., the image of Ivan Susanin, who led the Poles in snowdrifts through the forest, was firmly entrenched. And this is the generally accepted version. Therefore, there is reason to believe that the feat was accomplished somewhere in the second part of February or the first half of March. At this time, the Poles were sent, who were to kill Tsar Michael, in order to destroy the stabilization of Russia and wage a further struggle for the right to become the head of the Russian throne.
But one way or another, no one will ever know the truth about the exact date of the feat. After all, an incredibly large number of important details remain a mystery. And those that managed to save, most likely, are interpreted incorrectly. What Ivan Susanin is famous for, we are aware. And let everything else remain a myth.
Susanin's death in the village
In several historical chronicles, which tells how Ivan Susanin hid Romanov in a pit in the village of Derevnische, it is also about the fact that in the same village Ivan Osipovich was tortured by the Poles, and then they took his life. But this theory is not supported by any documents. This version was not supported by almost anyone who studied the life of the famous hero.
The most common version of death
The following theory regarding the hero's death is the best known and most supported by historians. According to her, Ivan Susanin, whose feat is described above, died in the Isupovsky swamp. And the image of the color that grew on the blood of the hero is considered incredibly poetic. The second name of the swamp sounds like "Pure", for it is washed by the suffering blood of Ivan Osipovich. But all this is just folklore speculation. But be that as it may, it is the swamp that is the main scene of the entire Susanin feat. The peasant led the Poles through the bog, luring them into the very depths of the forest, away from the village they needed.
But along with this, many questions arise. If Ivan Susanin (the story of the feat is described above) really died in the swamp, then did all the Poles die after his death? Or only some of them have sunk into oblivion? Who in this case told that the peasant is no longer alive? There is no mention of the death of the Poles in any of the documents that historians have been able to find. But there is an opinion that the real (and not folklore) hero Ivan died not in a swamp, but in some other place.
Death in the village of Isupovo
The third version regarding the death of Ivan says that he died not in a swamp, but in the village of Isupovo. This is evidenced by a document in which the great-grandson of Susanin (Sobinin I. L.) asks the Empress Anna Ioannovna to confirm the benefits granted to the descendants of Ivan Susanin. According to this request, it was in the indicated village that Ivan Osipovich died. If you believe this legend, then the inhabitants of Isupovo saw the death of their fellow countryman. Then it turns out that they brought bad news to the village of Domnino, and perhaps they delivered the body of the deceased there.
This version is the only theory that has documented evidence. It is considered the most real. In addition, the great-grandson, who was not so distant in time from his great-grandfather, could not help but know what Ivan Susanin is famous for, and where he died. Many historians also share this hypothesis.
Where is buried Ivan Osipovich Susanin
A natural question would be where the grave of the Russian hero is located. If you believe the legend that he died in the village of Isupovo, and not in the swamp of the same name, then the burial should be mandatory. It is assumed that the body of the deceased was buried in the cemetery near the Church of the Resurrection, which was a parish church for residents of the villages of Derevnishche and Domnino. But this fact is not weighty and multiple evidence.
It is impossible not to mention the fact that a little later after the burial, Ivan's body was reburied in the Ipatiev Monastery. This is also a version that does not have hard evidence. And it was rejected by almost all researchers of Susanin's feat.
The feat of Ivan Susanin is a vivid example of love for the Motherland, the Fatherland.
Ivan Susanin as a historical figure is an example of a man from the people who personifies Russia.
Despite the fact that the very name of Ivan Susanin has become almost a household name for a Russian person in a situation where they deliberately or not intentionally indicate the wrong direction, not so much is known in more detail about the heroic deed of this person.
A few lines from a textbook on the history of Russia in the 17th century give little idea of the feat of a simple Russian peasant who gave his life according to the motto that only two centuries later Russian officers would formulate "For Faith, Tsar and Fatherland!".
Prehistory of the feat of Ivan Susanin
Ascension to the Russian throne was preceded by Time of Troubles. The country was on the brink of destruction. The absence of a legitimate king for a long time threatened with the loss of statehood. After death, the eternal enemies of the Russians, the Poles, wished not only to seize the nearby lands, but also to seize the Russian throne.
Several self-proclaimed False Dmitrys, who were encouraged and supported in every possible way by the Commonwealth, claimed the Russian throne. The capital and several large cities were in the hands of the enemy. It got to the point that most of the boyars agreed to put the Polish king on the Russian throne. But the Russian people decided to defend their state.
Under the leadership of Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky, civil uprising and in the autumn of 1612 the decisive event took place which ended the Polish intervention. On November 4, the Poles were finally expelled from Moscow.
The General Zemsky Sobor elected the sixteen-year-old boyar Mikhail Romanov as the new tsar. He was not in Moscow at that time. He fled from the Kremlin, captured by the interventionists, to his estate near Kostroma. It was the village of Domnino. It was in the woods.
His mother Marfa Ioannovna entrusted her son to the headman of the village Ivan Susanin and his son-in-law Bogdan Sobinin. She herself settled in the vicinity of the Makaryevo-Unzhensky monastery.
Life for the king
The Polish king Sigismund, who wanted the Russian throne for his own son, gave the order to find the chosen king before he was anointed to the kingdom. Capture or kill, whatever happens. The Poles had to watch out for the militias and they acted secretly. Knowing approximately where Mikhail Romanov was, they tried to find guides to get through swamps and swamps.
They seized the peasants that came across to them and by force elicited the place where they hid Mikhail Romanov. The headman of the village of Domnino, Ivan Susanin, sent his son-in-law to take the young tsar to a safer place, and he himself volunteered to be a guide for the Poles. For a long time he led them through the deaf forest paths and led to the impenetrable Isupov swamp. When it became clear to him that the Poles would not be able to organize a chase, he confessed that he had deliberately led them in the wrong direction.
feat Ivan Susanin photo
Enraged enemies hacked Ivan Susanin on the spot and tried to get out on their own. But time has already been lost. The envoys from the Zemsky Sobor were the first to meet Mikhail Romanov and Russia received a legally elected Russian Tsar. The time of unrest and lawlessness in Russia is over.
It is hard to imagine how the history of our state would have developed without the heroic deed of a simple Russian peasant who did not spare his life for the sake of saving hundreds of thousands of his compatriots. He saw what anarchy leads to, giving rise to confusion, strife and robbery.
The Romanov clan thanked the family of Ivan Susanin with a letter of commendation, which was received by his son-in-law Bogdan Sobinin in 1619. According to this letter, the offspring of the heroic peasant was exempted from duties. In addition, they were given an allotment of land.
But the most important thing is the human memory, which to this day keeps the name of Ivan Susanin - the savior of the life of the Russian tsar and in his person the Russian statehood. An interesting fact The opera by Mikhail Glinka, which tells about the exploits of Ivan Susanin, was originally called "Life for the Tsar", but after the overthrow of tsarism and the establishment of the power of the people, the opera received the second name "Ivan Susanin".