Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov: Domestic and Foreign Policy of the Tsar

Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was the son of the firstthe Moscow ruler of the Romanov family Mikhail Fedorovich and his wife Evdokia Lukyanovna. He ascended the throne in 1645 after the death of his father. Throughout his life, Mikhail Fedorovich managed to make 10 children (Irina, Pelageya, Alexei, Anna, Marfa, Ivan, Sofia, Tatyana, Evdokia and Vasily). Despite the large genus, the nine heirs of the king died in childhood. By the time of Mikhail Fyodorovich's death, his only son, Alexei, was the sole successor to the throne.

The education and character of the ruler

Biography of Tsar Alexis Mikhailovich Romanovindicates that he was born in 1629. Up to the age of five he was cared for by the royal "mothers", and when he grew up, his boyar Boris Morozov took up his education. The king was given an excellent education: he knew the letter, knew several foreign languages, understood theology, philosophy and legislation. Having ascended to the Moscow throne at the age of 16, the young tsar independently read all the documents and petitions, personally composed and signed decrees. His education and broad outlook allowed Alexei Mikhailovich to achieve tangible successes in the government.

For 31 years the country was headed by Alexey MikhailovichRomanov (1645-1676). For his love of God and meekness, he was nicknamed the Tishayshim among the people. But it is difficult to name the period of the reign of the king calm. At that time, Russia was shaken by popular riots, political, economic and religious crises. The difficult situation inside the state was further exacerbated by the prolonged war with the neighboring Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. But how difficult the situation would be, Alexei Mikhailovich always managed to restore order and pacify the indignant people.

Salt riot

Very young began to reign on the Moscow throneAlexey Mikhailovich Romanov. Domestic and foreign policy at the beginning of his reign was concentrated in the hands of Boyar Morozov. With him, taxes were increased in the country, corruption and arbitrariness increased. The last straw of the patience of the indignant people was the introduction in 1646 of a tax on salt, which led to a rise in the price of many food products. Especially this reform hit the peasants and merchants pocket. The dissatisfaction of the people with the policy of Morozov and the inaction of Alexei Mikhailovich led to the Salt Revolt (1848), as a result of which the city of China was burnt, the houses of the most hated boyars were destroyed. The people managed to achieve their goal: Alexei Mikhailovich pushed the boyar Morozov away from power and sent him into exile.

The adoption of the Cathedral Code and trade statutes

After the Salt Riot, it became clear,that serious reforms are needed in the country. The internal policy of Alexei Mikhailovich in this period was aimed at strengthening the nobility and limiting the rights of the peasants. By 1649 the Collective Code was developed and put into effect - a collection of laws regulating various spheres of state life. In this document, for the first time, a division of law into branches has been outlined (state, criminal, family, civil).

Alexei Mikhailovich devoted much effort to strengtheningeconomy of the state. His policy was aimed at protecting the domestic market from foreign competitors. The king supported the construction of manufactories. In 1653, Torgoviy was adopted, and in 1667 - the Novotrade Charter. These documents limited foreign trade within the country and contributed to the development of the domestic economy.

Popular uprisings

The common people were not satisfied with the reforms thatconducted by Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov. The internal and foreign policy pursued by the tsar led to the need for a monetary reform in 1662: gold and silver coins could not cover all the commodity turnover in the country, so a decision was made to stamp copper pennies. Because of uncontrolled release of small cents in the country, strong inflation and a rise in the price of goods began. The people, angered by the activities of the sovereign, rose to the Copper Riot, which was brutally suppressed by the tsarist troops.

Popular unrest associated with discontentpolicy of Alexei Mikhailovich, has repeatedly arisen during his reign. In 1670-1671, the Peasant War broke out in the country, headed by Stepan Razin. Like most popular uprisings, she was stifled, and her leader was quartered.

Religious conflict

Under Alexey Mikhailovich, a conflict arose with the RussianOrthodox Church, which initiated its split. The reason for this was the attempts of Patriarch Nikon to subordinate secular power to spiritual. The activity of the priest led to the fact that in 1666 he was deprived of his dignity and sent to Ferapontov Belozersky Monastery, but this did not save the Church from further schism.

Wars with neighboring powers

The Russian state has expanded significantly inits borders, when Alexey Mikhailovich Romanov became the king. Domestic and foreign policy were closely intertwined with him, as he waged wars with neighboring states, and this caused a shortage of funds and discontent of the masses. The result of a long war with the Commonwealth was the reunification of Russia with Ukraine in 1554, as well as the accession of Chernigov, Smolensk and other Russian cities to it. In 1556-1558, Aleksei Mikhailovich fought with the Swedes for access to the Baltic Sea, but the results of this confrontation were not as brilliant as in the south-west direction. Also during the reign of the second king from the Romanov dynasty, Russia managed to join part of Siberia and the Far East.

During his life, Alexei Mikhailovich was married twice(for the first time at Maria Miloslavskaya, in the second - at Natalia Naryshkina). He gave birth to 16 children from two wives, five of whom died in childhood. None of the king’s daughters was destined to marry, and his three sons (Fyodor, Ivan and Peter I) subsequently alternately headed the Russian throne. In 1676, Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov died a little before his 47th birthday. Domestic and foreign policy of the king was continued by his sons, thanks to which the Russian state became even stronger and more powerful.