Alexis of Russia

• 1. Accession And Early Governance

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  On the 12th of July 1645, Tsar Michael died in Moscow. His sixteen-year-old son Alexei Mikhailovich ascended to the throne that same day. The young tsar was placed under the care of Boris Morozov, a shrewd boyar who had been his tutor since childhood. Morozov quickly consolidated power within the court. He pursued a peaceful foreign policy and secured a truce with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Domestically, he aimed to limit the privileges of foreign traders and abolish expensive court offices. On the 17th of January 1648, Morozov arranged the marriage of the tsar to Maria Miloslavskaya. Ten days later, Morozov married her sister Anna. Both women were daughters of Ilya Danilovich Miloslavsky. However, Morozov's decision to triple the tax burden caused widespread discontent. Arrears for the two years preceding 1648 were demanded from the populace. In May 1648, Muscovites rose up against his faction in what became known as the Salt Riot. The young Tsar was compelled to dismiss Morozov's allies and exile him to the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. Four months later, Morozov secretly returned to Moscow to regain some of his power.

• 2. Military Expansion And Foreign Wars

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  In 1653, Alexis attempted to annex parts of White Russia and Little Russia. A national assembly met at Moscow on the 1st of October 1653 to sanction the war. By April 1654, the army was blessed by Nikon, who had been elected patriarch in 1652. The campaign of 1654 saw scores of towns fall into Russian hands, including the important fortress of Smolensk. Ukrainian hetman Bogdan Khmelnitsky appealed to Tsar Alexis for protection from the Poles. The Treaty of Pereyaslav brought about Russian dominance over the Cossack Hetmanate in left-bank Ukraine. In the summer of 1655, Charles X of Sweden invaded Poland. This event became known as the Deluge. Russians quickly appropriated nearly everything not already occupied by the Swedes. However, Alexis quarreled with the king of Sweden over the apportionment of spoils. At the end of May 1656, Alexis declared war on Sweden. Dorpat was taken, but countless men were lost before Riga. The Peace of Kardis on the 2nd of July 1661 forced Russia to retrocede all her conquests. The Polish war dragged on for six years longer. It concluded by the Truce of Andrusovo on the 11th of February 1667. According to this truce, Polotsk and Polish Livonia were restored to Poland. Yet Smolensk and Kiev remained in Russian hands along with the whole eastern bank of the Dnieper river.

• 3. Domestic Unrest And Social Riots

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  By the 1660s, wars with Poland and Sweden strained the Russian economy. To increase government revenue, the government began minting large numbers of copper coins in 1654. This led to a severe financial crisis and devaluation of the ruble. Angry Moscow residents revolted in the Copper Riot of 1662. The uprising was put down violently. In 1669, Cossacks along the Don erupted in rebellion. Stenka Razin, a disaffected Don Cossack, had captured Astrakhan from 1670 to 1671. He seized multiple towns along the Volga river. The turning point came during his failed siege of Simbirsk in October 1670. Razin was finally captured on the Don in April 1671. He was drawn and quartered in Moscow. Earlier rebellions also occurred after the Salt Riot. Alexis faced uprisings in Pskov and Great Novgorod in 1650. He put down the Novgorod rebellion quickly but could not subdue Pskov without promising amnesty. These events demonstrated deep social tensions across the realm.

• 4. Religious Schism And Church Reform

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  In 1653, Patriarch Nikon established reforms to align Russian Orthodox practices with Greek counterparts. The church mandated the use of three fingers instead of two for making the sign of the cross. This caused significant dissent among the community. Alexis supported Nikon until 1658 when Nikon abandoned his post due to a personal insult. The seat of the patriarch remained vacant thereafter. In 1666, the tsar convened the Great Moscow Synod. It included Patriarch Macarius III Ibn al-Za'im and Patriarch Paisius of Alexandria. The synod agreed to formally depose Nikon. They decided to excommunicate all who opposed the reforms. Opponents broke away to form the Old Believers movement. Avvakum led many of these believers. He had his wife and children buried alive before him while he was exiled. Several old believers fled to the monastery of Solovki which revolted in the Solovetsky Monastery uprising. The monastery was besieged for seven years until the 22nd of January 1676. This siege ended just days before Alexis's death on the 8th of February 1676.

• 5. Legal Codification And State Building

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  Popular discontent from the Salt Riot contributed to the issuance of a new legal code in 1649. This document was called the Sobornoye Ulozheniye. It strengthened bonds between autocracy and the lower nobility. Alexis became the first tsar to sign laws on his own authority. The code helped stabilize the realm after years of unrest. It also provided a framework for future governance. In 1667, a new state seal was introduced. Three crowns appeared above an eagle symbolizing Astrakhan, Kazan, and Siberia. Sets of three columns at the borders represented Great, White, and Little Russia. A decree stated that the eagle holding sceptre and orb signified imperial majesty. These territorial acquisitions allowed Alexis to claim the title tsar of all the Russias. Afanasy Ordin-Nashchokin served as chancellor until 1670. He was superseded by Artamon Matveyev whose influence prevailed until the end of Alexis's reign.

• 6. Personal Life And Dynastic Legacy

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  Alexis married Maria Miloslavskaya in January 1648. They had thirteen children over twenty-one years of marriage. She died only weeks after her thirteenth childbirth. Four sons survived her but two died within six months including Alexei, the crown prince who was fifteen. His second marriage occurred on the 1st of February 1671 to Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina. Their son Peter I later became known as Peter the Great. Peter ruled from 1672 to 1725 and became the first Emperor of Russia. Another daughter Sofia became regent for her brothers from 1682 to 1689. Ivan V co-ruled with his younger half-brother Peter before dying in 1696. Fyodor III succeeded his father as Tsar of Russia but died childless in 1682. The succession crisis following Alexis's death in 1676 left the throne vulnerable. His letters were published by Pyotr Bartenev in 1856. D.S. Mirsky assessed them as sufficient to call him the most attractive Russian monarch. He acquired the moniker Tishayshy meaning most quiet or peaceful.