Sofya Alekseevna: how was the fate of the sister of Peter I, who did not want to put up with the fate of the silent princess

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

In the pre-Petrine era, the fate of girls born in the royal chambers was unenviable. The life of each of them developed according to the same scenario: childhood, youth, monastery. The princesses were not even taught to read and write. The daughter of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and sister of Peter I flatly refused to put up with this state of affairs. Princess Sophia … Thanks to her sharp mind and cunning, this woman became the de facto ruler in Russia for seven whole years.

Until the 18th century, the fate of the princesses was predetermined. According to their status, they were forbidden to marry courtiers, and the idea of marrying European monarchs was not allowed, since for the daughters of Russian rulers, the transition to Catholicism was impossible. That is why no one particularly burdened himself with teaching the princesses to read and write. Basically, their education was limited to the basics of needlework. After the girls were 20-25 years old, they were sent to monasteries. The exception was the daughter of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Sophia.

Sofya Alekseevna was one of the 16 children of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. The little princess was different from her sisters: she showed curiosity, refused to spend time in endless prayers, did not obey the nurses. To the surprise of the courtiers, her father not only did not get angry with his daughter for such disobedience, but, on the contrary, hired a teacher for her.

Already at the age of 10, Princess Sophia learned to read and write, mastered several foreign languages, was interested in history and sciences. As the princess grew older, rumors about her spread far beyond the borders of the country. Lifetime images of the princess have not survived, but according to contemporaries, Sophia could not be called a beauty. The Frenchman Foix de la Neuville described it as follows:

After the death of Aleksei Mikhailovich, the Russian throne was taken by his son Fedor Alekseevich. He was very painful, so the princess volunteered to look after her brother. In the intervals between caring for the king, Sophia made useful friendships with the boyars and understood the court intrigues. It was then that she met Prince Vasily Golitsyn.

Golitsyn had an excellent education, was known as a talented diplomat, and was well brought up. The princess, unwittingly, fell in love with the prince, who was also 14 years older than her. However, Golitsyn was considered an exemplary family man. The princess developed a relationship of trust with the prince.

When Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich died in 1682, the young Peter was elevated to the throne, and his mother, Natalia Naryshkina, was appointed regent. Princess Sophia did not want to put up with such a state of affairs, and with the support of Prince Golitsyn, she staged an archery riot, after which the newly-made tsar and his mother were overthrown. Literally a couple of weeks later, two brothers, Peter and Ivan, were put into reign, and Sophia was appointed regent.

The beginning of Sophia's reign was marked by a number of positive reforms. Foreign traders, teachers, and craftsmen were attracted to Russia. The Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy was opened. Under the princess, the punishment was mitigated a little. Now those accused of theft were not executed, but limited to chopping off their hands. The female husbands were not left to die in suffering, buried up to the chest, but immediately cut off their heads.

Time passed, and Peter grew up. Now he no longer obeyed his sister in everything. Mother Natalya Naryshkina constantly whispered to young Peter the story of how his sister managed to become the de facto head of state. In addition, everyone knew that Sophia's regency should end when Peter reached the age of majority or after his marriage. At the insistence of his mother, the tsar married at the age of 17, but Sophia did not even think to resign.

The situation escalated in early August 1689. Several archers came to Peter in the village of Preobrazhenskoye, informing him of a possible attempt on his life. The heir disappeared into the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. Gradually, all the boyars and rifle troops went over to his side.

Vasily Golitsyn prudently left for his estate. The only one who supported Sophia was her favorite - the head of the streltsy order Fyodor Shalkovity. Later he was beheaded, and Sofya Alekseevna was left all alone.

Peter I exiled her to the Novodevichy Convent and put in a guard. The woman continued to be honored and even fed from the royal kitchen. In 1698, the archers, dissatisfied with the reforms of Peter "replaced by the Germans", who was staying abroad at that time, again tried to elevate Sophia to the throne. The case ended with the king ordered to forcefully cut his sister in a nun.

Peter I, who took the throne, became famous for his cardinal reforms. But during the reign the king had both great undertakings and great failures.