Thursday, July 12, 2012

[July 12] Michael I, tsar of Russia


True Name: Mikhail I Fyodorovich (Михаил Фёдорович)
Parents: Feodor Nikitich, patriarch of Moscow, and Kseniya Shestova
Date of Birth: 12  July 1596
Royal House: Romanov
Spouse: (1) Maria, daughter of Vladimir Timofeyevich Dolgorukov and Maria Vasilievna Barbashina-Shuiskaya, then (2) Eudoxia, daughter of Lukyan Stephanovich Streshnyov and Anna Konstantinovna Volkonskaya
Predecessor: Vasili IV
Reign: 1613 – 1645
Summary: Michael had little claim to the troubled Russian throne. His aunt, Anastasia, was a wife of Ivan the Terrible thereby linking his family to theirs. Yet in 1600, Michael and his mother were exiles living in Beloozero. Michael's father, Feodor, was accused of treason in 1598 by the new Tsar Boris Godunov, an opportunist ruling in the wake of Ivan. This left the aspiring Romanov family on the run and on the offensive. The Time of Troubles lasted for fifteen years and during that time, one third of Russia died in a terrible famine. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth invaded Russia as well, and rival claimants and pretenders were flocking in droves to Moscow to try and claim the Russian throne. With Poland attempting to install its own monarch in Russia, the aristocracy decided to reassert itself and take control over the government. Michael, being related to the now-extinct Rurik line of Russian monarchs, was chosen as tsar by the Grand National Assembly. It was hoped that his ascension would end disputes and unify Russia, and it did.

It took Michael six years to remove all foreign presence of Russian soil. In the Treaty of Stolbovo in 1617, Sweden was removed, while the Truce of Deulino in 1618 removed Poland. With the second treaty, Michael's father Feodor was able to return to Russia and act as regent and counsellor to the new tsar. A leg injury from earlier in his life slowly grew worse during his reign until Michael reached a point where he could no longer walk. As he aged, he relegated increasing power to his counsellors. While many were trusted and good men, some were not and Michael constantly had to intervene in the government to remove corrupt officials. Michael was largely removed from government and trusted in strong advisors, most unaffiliated with the military. He worked hard to forge an alliance with Denmark in the years preceding his death. His wish was to wed his eldest daughter, Irene, to Valdemar Christian, an illegitimate son of King Christian IV of Denmark. However, when Valdemar arrived in Moscow, the Danish prince refused to convert to the Russian Orthodox faith and Michael had him imprisoned. Irene never married and it is thought that Michael died partially due to the regret over the failure of this alliance. In any case, Michael died in 1945 and was succeeded without contest but his eldest son, Alexis I.
Date of Death: 12 July 1645
Successor: Alexis

Other Monarchs Who Died Today:
  • Ashikaga Yoshinori, shogun of Japan (1441)
  • Richard Cromwell, lord protector of England (1712)

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