Morals of Rus' in the 16th century. Culture and life of Russia in the 16th century. Education and science in Rus' in the 16th century

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

RUSSIAN FEDERATION

ROSTOV STATE ECONOMIC UNIVERSITY

Faculty of Law

ABSTRACT

course: “National History”

topic: “Life of the Russian peopleXVI–XVIIcenturies"

Completed by: 1st year student, group No. 611 full-time training

Tokhtamysheva Natalia Alekseevna

Rostov-on-Don 2002

XVI- XVIIcenturies.

XVIcentury.

XVIIcentury.

Literature.

1. Social and political situation in Russia inXVI- XVIIcenturies.

To understand the origins of the conditions and reasons that determine the way of life, way of life and culture of the Russian people, it is necessary to consider the socio-political situation in Russia at that time.

By the middle of the 16th century, Rus', having overcome feudal fragmentation, turned into a single Moscow state, which became one of the largest states in Europe.

Despite the vastness of its territory, the Moscow state in the middle of the 16th century. It had a relatively small population, no more than 6-7 million people (for comparison: France at the same time had 17-18 million people). Of the Russian cities, only Moscow and Novgorod the Great had several tens of thousands of inhabitants; the share of the urban population did not exceed 2% of the total population of the country. The vast majority of Russian people lived in small (several households) villages spread across the vast expanses of the Central Russian Plain.

Thus, unlike the West, where the formation of centralized states (in France, England) went parallel to the formation of a single national market and, as it were, crowned its formation, in Rus' the formation of a single centralized state occurred before the formation of a single all-Russian market. And this acceleration was explained by the need for the military and political unification of Russian lands in order to free themselves from foreign enslavement and achieve their independence.

Another feature of the formation of the Russian centralized state in comparison with Western European states was that from the very beginning it arose as a multinational state.

The lag of Rus' in its development, primarily economic, was explained by several unfavorable historical conditions for it. Firstly, as a result of the disastrous Mongol-Tatar invasion, material assets accumulated over centuries were destroyed, most Russian cities were burned, and most of the country’s population died or was taken captive and sold on slave markets. It took more than a century just to restore the population that existed before the invasion of Batu Khan. Rus' lost its national independence for more than two and a half centuries and fell under the rule of foreign conquerors. Secondly, the lag was explained by the fact that the Moscow state was cut off from world trade routes, especially sea routes. Neighboring powers, especially in the west (Livonian Order, Grand Duchy of Lithuania) practically carried out an economic blockade of the Moscow state, preventing its participation in economic and cultural cooperation with European powers. The lack of economic and cultural exchange, isolation within its narrow internal market concealed the danger of growing lag behind European states, which was fraught with the possibility of becoming a semi-colony and losing its national independence.

The Grand Duchy of Vladimir and other Russian principalities on the Central Russian Plain became part of the Golden Horde for almost 250 years. And the territory of the Western Russian principalities (the former Kyiv state, Galicia-Volyn Rus, Smolensk, Chernigov, Turovo-Pinsk, Polotsk lands), although they were not included in the Golden Horde, were extremely weakened and depopulated.

The Principality of Lithuania, which arose at the beginning of the 14th century, took advantage of the vacuum of power and authority that arose as a result of the Tatar pogrom. It began to rapidly expand, incorporating Western Russian and Southern Russian lands. In the middle of the 16th century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a vast state stretching from the shores of the Baltic Sea in the north to the Dnieper rapids in the south. However, it was very loose and fragile. In addition to social contradictions, it was torn by national contradictions (the overwhelming majority of the population were Slavs), as well as religious ones. The Lithuanians were Catholics (like the Poles), and the Slavs were Orthodox. Although many of the local Slavic feudal lords became Catholic, the bulk of the Slavic peasantry staunchly defended their original Orthodox faith. Realizing the weakness of the Lithuanian statehood, the Lithuanian lords and gentry sought outside support and found it in Poland. Already from the 14th century, attempts were made to unite the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with Poland. However, this unification ended only with the conclusion of the Union of Lublin in 1569, as a result of which the united Polish-Lithuanian state of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was formed.

Polish lords and gentry rushed to the territory of Ukraine and Belarus, seizing lands inhabited by local peasants, and often expelling local Ukrainian landowners from their possessions. Large Ukrainian magnates, such as Adam Kisel, Vishnevetsky and others, and part of the gentry converted to Catholicism, adopted the Polish language and culture, and renounced their people. The movement to the East of Polish colonization was actively supported by the Vatican. In turn, the forced imposition of Catholicism was supposed to contribute to the spiritual enslavement of the local Ukrainian and Belarusian population. Since the overwhelming mass of it resisted and steadfastly adhered to the Orthodox faith in 1596, the Union of Brest was concluded. The meaning of the establishment of the Uniate Church was that, while maintaining the usual architecture of temples, icons and worship, Old Slavonic language(and not in Latin, as in Catholicism), to subordinate this new church to the Vatican, and not to the Moscow Patriarchate (Orthodox Church). The Vatican had special hopes for the Uniate Church in promoting Catholicism. IN early XVII V. Pope Urban VIII wrote in his message to the Uniates: “Oh my Rusyns! Through you I hope to reach the East...” However, the Uniate Church spread mainly in the west of Ukraine. The bulk of the Ukrainian population, and above all the peasantry, still adhered to Orthodoxy.

Almost 300 years of separate existence, the influence of other languages ​​and cultures (Tatar in Great Russia), Lithuanian and Polish in Belarus and Ukraine, led to the isolation and formation of three special nationalities: Great Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian. But the unity of origin, the common roots of ancient Russian culture, the common Orthodox faith with a common center - the Moscow Metropolis, and then, from 1589, the Patriarchate - played a decisive role in the desire for the unity of these peoples.

With the formation of the Moscow centralized state, this craving intensified and the struggle for unification began, which lasted about 200 years. In the 16th century, Novgorod-Seversky, Bryansk, Orsha, and Toropets became part of the Moscow state. A long struggle began for Smolensk, which changed hands several times.

The struggle for the reunification of three fraternal peoples into a single statehood proceeded with varying degrees of success. Taking advantage of the severe economic and political crisis that arose as a result of the loss of the long Livonian War, the oprichnina of Ivan the Terrible and the unprecedented crop failure and famine of 1603, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth put forward the impostor False Dmitry, who seized the Russian throne in 1605 with the support of the Polish and Lithuanian gentry and gentry. After his death, the interventionists nominated new impostors. Thus, it was the interventionists who initiated the civil war in Rus' (“Time of Troubles”), which lasted until 1613, when the highest representative body, the Zemsky Sobor, which assumed supreme power in the country, elected Mikhail Romanov to the kingdom. During this civil war an open attempt was made to re-establish foreign domination in Rus'. At the same time, this was an attempt to “break through” to the East, to the territory of the Moscow State of Catholicism. It was not for nothing that the impostor False Dmitry was so actively supported by the Vatican.

However, the Russian people found the strength, rising in a single patriotic impulse, to nominate from their midst such national heroes as the Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo elder Kuzma Minin and the governor Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, organize a nationwide militia, defeat and throw out foreign invaders from the country. At the same time as the interventionists, their servants from the state political elite were thrown out, who organized the boyar government (“seven boyars”), for the sake of protecting their narrow selfish interests, they called the Polish prince Vladislav to the Russian throne and were even ready to give the Russian crown to the Polish king Sigismund III. The largest role in preserving independence, national identity and restoring Russian statehood was played by the Orthodox Church and its then head, Patriarch Hermogenes, who set an example of perseverance and self-sacrifice in the name of his beliefs.

2.Culture and life of the Russian people inXVIcentury.

By the beginning of the 16th century, Christianity played a decisive role in influencing the culture and life of the Russian people. It played a positive role in overcoming the harsh morals, ignorance and wild customs of ancient Russian society. In particular, the norms of Christian morality had a huge impact on family life, marriage, and raising children. Is it true. theology then adhered to a dualistic view of the division of the sexes - into two opposite principles - “good” and “evil”. The latter was personified in a woman, determining her position in society and family.

For a long time, the Russian peoples had a large family uniting relatives along the direct and lateral lines. The distinctive features of a large peasant family were collective farming and consumption, common ownership of property by two or more independent married couples. Among the urban (posad) population, families were smaller and usually consisted of two generations of parents and children. The families of feudal lords were, as a rule, small, so the son of a feudal lord, having reached the age of 15, had to serve the sovereign and could receive both his own separate local salary and a granted estate. This contributed to early marriages and the formation of independent small families.

With the introduction of Christianity, marriages began to be formalized through a church wedding ceremony. But the traditional Christian wedding ceremony (“fun”) was preserved in Rus' for about six to seven centuries. Church rules did not stipulate any obstacles to marriage, except for one: the “possession” of the bride or groom. But in real life, the restrictions were quite strict, primarily in social terms, which were regulated by customs. The law did not formally prohibit a feudal lord from marrying a peasant woman, but in fact this happened very rarely, since the feudal class was a closed corporation where marriages were encouraged not just with people in their own circle, but with peers. A free man could marry a serf, but had to obtain permission from the master and pay a certain amount as agreed. Thus, both in ancient times and in the cities, marriages, basically, could only take place within one class-estate.

Divorce was very difficult. Already in the early Middle Ages, divorce (“dissolution”) was permitted only in exceptional cases. At the same time, the rights of the spouses were unequal. A husband could divorce his wife if she cheated, and communication with strangers outside the home without the permission of the spouse was equated to betrayal. In the late Middle Ages (from the 16th century), divorce was permitted with the condition that one of the spouses was tonsured a monk.

The Orthodox Church allowed one person to marry no more than three times. The solemn wedding ceremony was usually performed only during the first marriage. A fourth marriage was strictly prohibited.

A newborn child had to be baptized in church on the eighth day after baptism in the name of the saint of that day. The rite of baptism was considered by the church to be a basic, vital rite. The unbaptized had no rights, not even the right to burial. The church forbade burying a child who died unbaptized in a cemetery. The next rite - "tonsuring" - was carried out a year after baptism. On this day, the godfather or godmother (godparents) cut a lock of the child’s hair and gave a ruble. After the tonsures, they celebrated the name day, that is, the day of the saint in whose honor the person was named (later it became known as the “day of the angel”), and the birthday. The Tsar's name day was considered an official public holiday.

All sources indicate that in the Middle Ages the role of its head was extremely great. He represented the family as a whole in all its external functions. Only he had the right to vote at meetings of residents, in the city council, and later in meetings of Konchan and Sloboda organizations. Within the family, the power of the head was practically unlimited. He controlled the property and destinies of each of its members. This even applied to the personal lives of children, whom he could marry off or marry against their will. The Church condemned him only if he drove them to suicide. The orders of the head of the family had to be carried out unquestioningly. He could apply any punishment, even physical. - an encyclopedia of Russian life of the 16th century - directly indicated that the owner should beat his wife and children for educational purposes. For disobedience to parents, the church threatened with excommunication.

In-house family life was relatively closed for a long time. However, ordinary women - peasant women, townspeople - did not lead a reclusive lifestyle at all. Testimonies from foreigners about the seclusion of Russian women in the chambers relate, as a rule, to the life of the feudal nobility and eminent merchants. They were rarely allowed even to go to church.

There is little information left about the daily routine of people in the Middle Ages. The working day in the family began early. Ordinary people had two obligatory meals - lunch and dinner. At noon, production activity was interrupted. After lunch, according to the old Russian habit, there was a long rest and sleep (which greatly amazed foreigners). then work began again until dinner. With the end of daylight, everyone went to bed.

The relative isolation of domestic life was diversified by receptions of guests, as well as festive ceremonies, which were held mainly during church holidays. One of the main religious processions was held for Epiphany - January 6th Art. Art. On this day, the patriarch blessed the water of the Moscow River, and the population of the city performed the Jordan ritual (washing with holy water). On holidays, street performances were also organized. Traveling artists, buffoons, are known back in Ancient Rus'. In addition to playing the harp, pipes, and songs, the buffoons' performances included acrobatic performances and competitions with predatory animals. The buffoon troupe usually included an organ grinder, a gayer (acrobat), and a puppeteer.

Holidays, as a rule, were accompanied by public feasts - fraternities. However, popular ideas about the supposedly unrestrained drunkenness of Russians are clearly exaggerated. Only during the 5-6 major church holidays was the population allowed to brew beer, and taverns were a state monopoly. The maintenance of private taverns was strictly persecuted.

Social life also included games and fun - both military and peaceful, for example, the capture of a snowy city, wrestling and fist fights, small towns, leapfrog, etc. . Among gambling games, dice became widespread, and from the 16th century, cards, brought from the West. The favorite pastime of kings and nobles was hunting.

Thus, although the life of a Russian person in the Middle Ages, although it was relatively monotonous, was far from being limited to the production and socio-political spheres, it included many aspects of everyday life, to which historians do not always pay due attention

In historical literature at the turn of the 15th - 16th centuries. rationalistic views on historical events are established. Some of them are explained by causal relationships caused by the activities of people themselves. Authors historical works(for example, the end of the 15th century) sought to establish the idea of ​​​​the exclusivity of the autocratic power of the Russian sovereigns as the successors of Kievan Rus and Byzantium. Similar ideas were expressed in chronographs - summary reviews of general history, in which Russia was considered as the last link in the chain of world-historical monarchies.

It was not only the historical ones that expanded. but also the geographical knowledge of people of the Middle Ages. In connection with the complication of administrative management of the growing territory of the Russian state, the first geographical maps ("drawings") began to be drawn up. This was also facilitated by the development of Russian trade and diplomatic ties. Russian navigators made a great contribution to geographical discoveries in the North. By the beginning of the 16th century, they had explored the White, Icy (Barents) and Kara Seas, discovered many northern lands - the islands of Medvezhiy, Novaya Zemlya, Kolguev, Vygach, etc. The Russian Pomors were the first to penetrate the Arctic Ocean, created the first handwritten maps of the explored northern seas and islands. They were among the first to explore the Northern Sea Route around the Scandinavian Peninsula.

Some progress has been observed in the field of technical and natural scientific knowledge. Russian craftsmen learned to make quite complex mathematical calculations when constructing buildings and were familiar with the properties of basic building materials. Blocks and other construction mechanisms were used in the construction of buildings. To extract salt solutions, deep drilling and laying of pipes were used, through which the liquid was distilled using a piston pump. In military affairs, the casting of copper cannons was mastered, and battering and throwing weapons became widespread.

In the 17th century, the role of the church in influencing the culture and life of the Russian people intensified. At the same time, state power penetrated more and more into the affairs of the church.

The purpose of penetration of state power into church affairs was to be served by church reform. The tsar wanted to obtain the sanction of the church for state reforms and at the same time take measures to subordinate the church and limit its privileges and lands necessary to provide for the energetically created army of the nobility.

All-Russian church reform was carried out at the Stoglav Cathedral, named after the collection of its decrees, which consisted of one hundred chapters ("Stoglav").

In the works of the Stoglavy Council, issues of internal church order were brought to the fore, primarily related to the life and everyday life of the lower clergy, with the performance of church services by them. The flagrant vices of the clergy, the careless performance of church rituals, moreover, devoid of any uniformity - all of this aroused a negative attitude among the people towards the ministers of the church and gave rise to freethinking.

In order to stop these dangerous phenomena for the church, it was recommended to strengthen control over the lower clergy. For this purpose, a special institution of archpriests was created (the archpriest is the main priest among the priests of a given church), appointed “by royal command and with the blessing of the saint, as well as priestly elders and tenth priests.” All of them were obliged to tirelessly ensure that ordinary priests and deacons regularly performed divine services, “stood with fear and trembling” in churches, and read the Gospels, Zolotoust, and the lives of the saints.

The Council unified church rites. He officially legitimized, under penalty of anathema, the double-fingered sign of the cross and the “great hallelujah.” By the way, these decisions were later referred to by the Old Believers to justify their adherence to antiquity.

The sale of church positions, bribery, false denunciations, and extortion became so widespread in church circles that the Council of the Hundred Heads was forced to adopt a number of resolutions that somewhat limited the arbitrariness of both the highest hierarchs in relation to the ordinary clergy, and the latter in relation to the laity. From now on, taxes from churches were to be collected not by foremen who abused their position, but by zemstvo elders and tenth priests appointed in rural areas.

The listed measures and partial concessions could not, however, in any way defuse the tense situation in the country and in the church itself. The reform envisaged by the Stoglavy Council did not set as its task a deep transformation of the church structure, but only sought to strengthen it by eliminating the most blatant abuses.

With its resolutions, the Stoglavy Council tried to impose the stamp of churchliness on the entire life of the people. Under pain of royal and church punishment, it was forbidden to read the so-called “renounced” and heretical books, that is, books that then made up almost all secular literature. The Church was ordered to interfere in the everyday life of people - to turn them away from barbering, from chess, from playing musical instruments, etc., to persecute buffoons, these carriers of folk culture alien to the church.

The time of Grozny is a time of great changes in the field of culture. One of the most significant achievements of the 16th century was printing. The first printing house appeared in Moscow in 1553, and soon books of church content were printed here. The earliest printed books include the Lenten Triodion, published around 1553, and the two Gospels, printed in the 50s. 16th century.

In 1563, the organization of the “sovereign Printing House” was entrusted to an outstanding figure in the field of book printing in Russia. Together with his assistant Peter Mstislavets, on March 1, 1564, he published the book “Apostle”, and the following year “The Book of Hours”. We also associate the name of Ivan Fedorov with the appearance in 1574 in Lvov of the first edition of the Russian Primer.

Under the influence of the church, such a unique work as “Domostroy” was created, which was already noted above, the final edition of which belonged to the archpriest. "Domostroy" is a code of morals and everyday rules intended for the wealthy strata of the urban population. It is permeated with sermons of humility and unquestioning submission to authorities, and in the family - obedience to the householder.

For the increased needs of the Russian state, literate people were needed. At the Council of the Stoglavy, convened in 1551, the question of taking measures to spread education among the population was raised. The clergy were offered to open schools to teach children to read and write. Children were educated, as a rule, in monasteries. In addition, home schooling was common among rich people.

One of the major historical works of this time is the Litseva (i.e., illustrated) chronicle collection: it consisted of 20 thousand pages and 10 thousand beautifully executed miniatures, giving a visual representation of various aspects of Russian life. This code was compiled in the 50-60s of the 16th century with the participation of the Tsar, Alexei and.

The achievements in the field of architecture were especially significant in the late 15th and 16th centuries. In 1553-54, the Church of John the Baptist was built in the village of Dyakovo (not far from the village of Kolomenskoye), exceptional in the originality of its decorative decoration and architectural design. An unsurpassed masterpiece of Russian architecture is the Church of the Intercession on the Moat (St. Basil's Church), erected in 1561. This cathedral was built to commemorate the conquest of Kazan.

3. Culture, life and social thought inXVIIcentury.

The culture and life of the Russian people in the 17th century experienced a qualitative transformation, expressed in three main trends: “worldliness,” the penetration of Western influence, and ideological split.

The first two trends were to a significant extent interconnected, the third was rather a consequence of them. At the same time, both “worldization” and “Europeanization” were accompanied by the movement of social development towards a split.

Indeed, the 17th century was an endless chain of unrest and riots. And the roots of the unrest were not so much in the economic and political planes, but, apparently, in the socio-psychological sphere. Throughout the century, there was a breakdown in social consciousness, familiar life and everyday life, and the country was pushed towards a change in the type of civilization. The unrest was a reflection of the spiritual discomfort of entire sections of the population.

In the 17th century, Russia established constant communication with Western Europe, established very close trade and diplomatic relations with it, and used European achievements in science, technology, and culture.

Until a certain time, this was precisely communication; there was no talk of any kind of imitation. Russia developed completely independently, the assimilation of Western European experience proceeded naturally, without extremes, within the framework of calm attention to the achievements of others.

Rus' has never suffered from the disease of national isolation. Until the mid-15th century, there was intense exchange between Russians and Greeks, Bulgarians, and Serbs. The eastern and southern Slavs had a common literature, writing, and literary (Church Slavonic) language, which, by the way, was also used by the Moldovans and Wallachians. Western European influence penetrated into Rus' through a kind of filter of Byzantine culture. In the second half of the 15th century, as a result of Ottoman aggression, Byzantium fell, the southern Slavs lost their state independence and complete religious freedom. The conditions for cultural exchange between Russia and the outside world have changed significantly.

Economic stabilization in Russia, the development of commodity-money relations, the intensive formation of the all-Russian market throughout the 17th century - all this objectively required turning to the technical achievements of the West. The government did not make a problem out of borrowing European technological and economic experience.

The events of the Time of Troubles and the role of foreigners in them were too fresh in people’s memories. The search for economic and political solutions based on real possibilities was characteristic of the government . The results of this search were quite successful in military affairs, diplomacy, construction state roads etc.

The situation in Muscovite Rus' after the Time of Troubles was in many respects better than the situation in Europe. The 17th century for Europe was the time of the bloody Thirty Years' War, which brought ruin, hunger and extinction to the people (the result of the war, for example, in Germany was a reduction in the population from 10 to 4 million people).

There was a flow of immigrants to Russia from Holland, the German principalities, and other countries. Emigrants were attracted by the huge land fund. The life of the Russian population during the reign of the first Romanovs became measured and relatively orderly, and the wealth of forests, meadows and lakes made it quite satisfying. The Moscow of that time - golden-domed, with Byzantine pomp, brisk trade and cheerful holidays - amazed the imagination of Europeans. Many settlers voluntarily converted to Orthodoxy and took Russian names.

Some emigrants did not want to break with habits and customs. on the Yauza River near Moscow became a corner of Western Europe in the very heart of Muscovy." Many foreign novelties - from theatrical performances to culinary dishes - aroused interest among the Moscow nobility. Some influential nobles from the royal circle - Naryshkin, Matveev - became supporters of the spread of European customs, their homes arranged in an overseas manner, wore Western dress, shaved beards.At the same time, Naryshkin, as well as prominent figures of the 80s of the 17th century Vasily Golitsyn, Golovin were patriotic people and the blind worship of everything Western and the complete rejection of Russian life, so inherent, were alien to them. such ardent Westerners of the beginning of the century as False Dmitry I, a prince who declared: “In Moscow, the people are stupid,” and also a clerk of the Ambassadorial Prikaz, who refused to fulfill his demands and fled to Lithuania in 1664, and then to Sweden. There he wrote commissioned by the Swedish government, his essay about Russia.

Such statesmen as the head of the Ambassadorial Prikaz and the closest adviser to Tsar Alexei believed that much, but not everything, should be remade in the Western style.

Ordyn-Nashchokin, saying, “A good person is not ashamed to learn from strangers,” stood for the preservation of Russian original culture: “Land dress... is not for us, and ours is not for them.”

In Russia, the 17th century, compared to the previous one, was also marked by an increase in literacy among various segments of the population: among landowners, about 65% were literate, merchants - 96%, townspeople - about 40%, peasants - 15%. Literacy was greatly promoted by the transfer of printing from expensive parchment to cheaper paper. The Council Code was published in a circulation of 2,000 copies, unprecedented for Europe at that time. Primers, alphabets, grammars and other books were printed educational literature. Handwritten traditions have also been preserved. Since 1621, the Ambassadorial Prikaz compiled "Courants" - the first newspaper in the form of handwritten reports on events in the world. Handwritten literature continued to prevail in Siberia and the North.

Literature of the 17th century is largely freed from religious content. We no longer find in it various kinds of “walks” to holy places, holy teachings, even writings like. Even if individual authors began their work as religious writers, the majority of their work was represented by literature of secular content. So written out for the translation of the Bible from Greek into Russian (we note in passing that such a need was caused by the fact that the ancient Russian hierarchs, who raised a dispute over the spelling of the name Jesus, because of how many times to say “hallelujah”, did not have at their disposal even the correct text of the Bible and for centuries managed well without it) from the Kiev Pechersk Lavra, monks E. Slavinetsky and S. Satanovsky not only coped with their main task, but also went much further. By order of the Moscow Tsar, they translated “The Book of Medical Anatomy”, “Citizenship and Teaching Children’s Morals”, “On the Royal City” - a collection of all sorts of things, compiled from Greek and Latin writers in all branches of the then circle of knowledge from theology and philosophy to mineralogy and medicine .

Hundreds of other essays were written. Books containing various scientific and practical information began to be published. Natural scientific knowledge was accumulated, manuals on mathematics, chemistry, astronomy, geography, medicine, agriculture. Interest in history increased: the events of the beginning of the century, the establishment of a new dynasty at the head of the state, required comprehension. Numerous historical stories appeared in which the material presented served to draw lessons for the future.

The most famous historical works of that period are “The Legend” by Avramy Palitsyn, “Vremennik” by clerk I. Timofeev, “Words” by Prince. , "Tale" book. . Official version the events of the Time of Troubles are contained in the “New Chronicler” of 1630, written by order of Patriarch Philaret. In 1667, the first printed historical work, “Synopsis” (i.e., review), was published, which outlined the history of Rus' from ancient times. The "State Book" was published - a systematized history of the Moscow state, the "Royal Book" - an eleven-volume history and illustrated history of the world, "Azbukovnik" - a kind of encyclopedic dictionary.

The work of Archpriest Avvakum is folk-accusatory and at the same time autobiographical. “The Life of Archpriest Avvakum, written by himself,” with captivating frankness tells about the ordeals of a long-suffering man who devoted his entire life to the struggle for the ideals of the Orthodox faith. The leader of the schism was an exceptionally talented writer for his time. The language of his works is surprisingly simple and at the same time expressive and dynamic. “Archpriest Avvakum,” L. Tolstoy would later write, “burst into Russian literature like a storm.”

In 1661, the monk Samuil Petrovsky-Sitnianovich came from Polotsk to Moscow. He becomes a teacher of the royal children, the author of odes to the glory of the royal family, original plays in Russian “The Comedy Parable of the Prodigal Son”, “Tsar Novochudnezzar”. This is how Russia found its first poet and playwright .

Literature.

1. Taratonenkov G.Ya. History of Russia from ancient times to the second half of the 19th century. M.1998

2. A course of lectures on the history of the fatherland. Ed. prof. B.V. Lichman, Ekaterinburg: Ural.gos.tekh. univ. 1995

The appearance of the vestibule as a protective vestibule in front of the entrance to the hut, as well as the fact that now the firebox of the hut was facing inside the hut. The appearance of the vestibule as a protective vestibule in front of the entrance to the hut, as well as the fact that now the firebox of the hut was facing inside the hut - all this greatly improved the housing , made it warmer. The appearance of the canopy even at the end of the 16th century became typical for peasant households not in all regions of Russia (In the northern regions)

Drawing a conclusion about the dwellings of peasants, we can say that the 16th century was the time when buildings for livestock became widespread. They were erected separately, each under its own roof. In the northern regions, already at this time, one can notice a tendency towards two-story buildings of such buildings (a stable, a moss forest, and on them a hay barn, that is, a hay barn), which later led to the formation of huge two-story household courtyards (at the bottom - stables and pens for livestock, at the top - a shed, a barn where hay and equipment are stored, a cage is also placed here).

The basis of nutrition was grain crops - rye, wheat, oats, millet. Bread and pies were baked from rye (everyday) and wheat (on holidays) flour. Kissels were made from oats. A lot of vegetables were eaten - cabbage, carrots, beets, radishes, cucumbers, turnips

On holidays, meat dishes were prepared in small quantities. The most common product on the table was fish; wealthy peasants had garden trees that gave them apples, plums, cherries, and pears. In the northern regions of the country, peasants collected cranberries, lingonberries, and blueberries; in the central regions - strawberries. Mushrooms and hazelnuts were also used as food.

The Orthodox Church allowed one person to marry no more than three times. (A fourth marriage was strictly prohibited) The solemn wedding ceremony was usually performed only during the first marriage. Weddings were celebrated, as a rule, in the fall and winter - when there was no agricultural work. Divorce was very difficult. The husband could divorce his wife if she cheated, and communication with strangers outside the home without the permission of the spouse was considered cheating.

The working day in the family began early. Ordinary people had two obligatory meals - lunch and dinner. At noon, production activity was interrupted. After lunch, according to the old Russian habit, there was a long rest and sleep (which greatly amazed foreigners). then work began again until dinner. With the end of daylight, everyone went to bed.

After the Christmas holiday, an amazing time begins - Christmas time, the girls were going to tell fortunes. And on the street there was a cheerful commotion - the children were walking around singing carols. Christmastide After baptism, the fun died down, but not for long. Before Lent there is a great holiday: Broad Maslenitsa! It has been customary to celebrate the farewell of winter since pagan times. In Great Broad, the main dish on the table is golden pancakes: a symbol of the sun. Maslenitsa

Characterized by an increase in the literacy rate of 15% of peasants; Primers, ABCs, grammars and other educational literature were printed. Handwritten traditions have also been preserved. “White stoves” appeared instead of “chicken stoves” (peasants had “chicken stoves” until the 19th century) In the 17th century, Western European experience was being adopted. From the 17th century, marriages had to be blessed by the church. Dissolution was carried out only with the condition that one of the spouses was tonsured a monk. The appearance of metal utensils (samovar) Literature of the 17th century was largely freed from religious content. You no longer find in it various kinds of “trips” to holy places, holy teachings, even works like “Domostroy”

In the difficult conditions of the Middle Ages, the culture of the 16th-17th centuries. has achieved great success in various fields. There has been an increase in literacy among various segments of the population. Primers, ABCs, grammars and other educational literature were printed. Books containing various scientific and practical information began to be published. Natural science knowledge was accumulated, manuals on mathematics, chemistry, astronomy, geography, medicine, and agriculture were published. Interest in history increased. New genres are appearing in Russian literature: satirical tales, biographies, poetry, and foreign literature is being translated. In architecture, there is a departure from strict church rules, the traditions of ancient Russian architecture are being revived: zakomari, arcature belt, stone carving. Iconography continued to be the main type of painting. For the first time in Russian painting, the portrait genre appears.

The church had a huge influence on the development of culture in the 16th century. But also, along with church dogmas and teachings, pagan traditions played a significant role, which had not yet had time to assimilate into the life of Russian society and played a significant role in everyday life.

Development of literature

In the 16th century, the folklore genre of literature began to develop even more. The culture of society includes historical songs that glorify significant events for the people or outstanding personalities.

A significant breakthrough in the development of literature can also be considered the emergence of journalism as literary genre. Writers in their works begin to express between the lines their opinions about the political system of Russia, about what mistakes the tsars make in governing the state.

In the middle of the 16th century, a journalistic work was created “ Conversation of the Valaam Elders", in which the author opposes the invasion of church politics into secular life.

The traditions of the chronicle are replacing historical and literary works. An alternative to " Messages from Vladimir Monomakh to children"becomes the work of the monk Sylvester" Domostroy": the author gives advice on how to properly raise children and treat your wife, and how to run a household.

Education and science in Rus' in the 16th century

In the 16th century, the literacy rate of the Russian population, regardless of social status, was approximately 15%. Moreover, the children of peasants were significantly more educated than the children of urban residents.

Children were educated in private schools attached to churches and monasteries. However, the most important science remained church literacy; it pushed arithmetic and grammar into the background.

The most important breakthrough in science and education was the beginning of printing. The first printing houses opened in Russia. The first printed books were the Holy Scriptures and the Apostle.

Thanks to the professionalism of the father of Russian book printing, Ivan Fedorov, books were not only printed, but also significantly edited: he made his exact translations of the Bible and other books into Russian.

Unfortunately, printing did not make books more accessible to ordinary people, since mostly literature was printed for church ministers. Many secular books were still copied by hand.

Life and culture of the Russian population in the 16th century

The life of the Russian population in the 16th century depended primarily on material well-being. The food at that time was quite simple, but varied: pancakes, loaves, jelly, vegetables and cereals.

Relatively inexpensive for those times, meat was salted in oak tubs and kept for future use. Also especially loved were fish dishes, which were consumed in all possible variations: salted, dried and dried.

Drinks were represented by non-alcoholic fruit drinks and compotes. Low-alcohol drinks were very similar in taste to modern beer; they were made based on honey and hops.

In the 16th century, fasts were strictly observed; in addition to the main four fasts, people refused fasting food on Wednesdays and Fridays.

Family relationships

Family relationships were built on the basis of complete subordination to the head of the family. For disobedience of the wife or children, corporal punishment was a common practice of that time. Corporal punishment was even applied to boyars' wives and children.

Young people got married mainly at the will of their parents. This was especially common among the boyars, who tried to increase their wealth and strengthen their positions in society through marriages of their children. Peasant youth were given the right to choose their own future spouse.

Noticeable changes are taking place in the cultural life of Russia. Local cultural traditions are gradually becoming a thing of the past, giving way to all-Russian trends. “Overview Horizon” phenomena public life among cultural figures is expanding. And, naturally, there are more opportunities, monetary, political and psychological, within the framework of a large state. The motives of patriotism and national pride express themselves even more powerfully and resoundingly. At the same time, along with gains, there were also losses - the mighty breath of the creators of the era of the Battle of Kulikovo (A. Rublev and F. Grek, chronicles and legends about the fight against the Horde) disappeared; the growing and deadening influence of autocratic tyranny and the extremes of serfdom, oprichnina terror was affecting on the cultural environment of Russian society. The culture of that era develops in contradictions and struggles.

Folklore of the late 15th - 16th centuries . Records of oral and poetic folk art from this time have not survived. But some literary works, documents, for example Stoglav, cathedral messages, etc., mention folk songs and games.

The events of that glorious era were reflected in fairy tales. So, in “The Tale of Borma-Yaryzhka” its hero, a simple Russian man, obtains signs of royal dignity for Tsar Ivan the Terrible in Babylon-city. A similar plot developed in , but it talks about regalia for the Byzantine emperor. The Russian fairy tale remakes this plot, adapts it "for myself", some of its variants connect the receipt of regalia by the king with the capture of Kazan.

Other tales glorify the intelligence and resourcefulness of people from the people ( “Smart Boy Judge”, “Fire Serpent”, “Wise Maiden” etc.), some fairy tales were included in “The Tale of Peter and Fevronia”(about a peasant girl who became the prince’s wife).

Proverbs and songs, sayings and riddles, words and teachings reflected living folk speech, accurate and sharp. These are, for example, the proverbs that he wrote in his message to the elders of the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery: “The king favors, but the huntsman does not favor”, “give freedom to the king, the foreigner and the huntsman”.

In the second half of the century, a large number of fairy tales idealize the image of Ivan the Terrible as a fighter against the boyars, “peasant” king, protector of the poor, fair judge, etc. The genre of historical song flourishes. In them, the people glorify the capture of Kazan, especially the heroes of the assault - the gunners. Ermak, in the eyes of singers and people, is an ideal Cossack hero. In the song about Kostryuk-Mastryuk, a simple Russian, “hillbilly villager”, defeats the visiting boaster Prince Kostryuk in single combat. The image of the latter reflected the real features of the tsar's brother-in-law, his wife's brother, Prince Dmitry Mamstrukovich Cherkassky. The people, on the one hand, praise the Tsar for his military exploits and reprisals against the boyars; on the other hand, he notes his cruel temper; in general, he supports the defense of a united Russia - "Moscow kingdom", “Stone Moscow” How “the middle of the Russian kingdom”.

The people are proud of their strong creativity; his sons - peasants and artisans - begin to realize that they are not only faceless "people of God", but also real people with earthly worries, joys and sorrows.

Education. Monasteries remained, as before, centers of literacy and education. In them and in the churches, especially at the metropolitan and episcopal courts, there were libraries of handwritten and later printed books, sometimes very significant (for example, in the Solovetsky, Trinity-Sergius, Joseph-Volokolamsk, Kirillo-Belozersky, Rostov and other monasteries, in Novgorod St. Sophia Cathedral, etc.).

“Masters of Literacy” appear in cities and villages. Children and adults studied with them. Famous spiritual figures Zosima Solovetsky and Alexander Svirsky studied in the Obonezh villages, Anthony of Siysky - in a village near the White Sea, Simeon, Archbishop of Novgorod - in his native village near Moscow, etc. The teachers were monks and clerks. Boyars and nobles put their signatures on many acts; to a lesser extent - peasants and townspeople.

We first learned the alphabet, then the Book of Hours (prayers, liturgical texts according to church service hours), writing, and the Psalter (psalms of King David). This is where the teaching usually ended. Those who were richer managed to continue it - next in line were "Apostle", Gospel. Mathematical wisdom was limited to counting to a thousand and beyond, addition and subtraction, and less often multiplication and division.

Texts and numbers were taught by heart and out loud, in the common school room, and therefore it was filled with noise and discord. For negligence, the teacher, in accordance with custom, could and should “crush ribs”, “increase wounds” to his students. The same goal - suggestion “book wisdom”- served and “soul-saving” rod. But even then they speak and write with encouragement about didaskals - teachers who “I want your teaching, so that he is cunning and intelligent in mind, and sensible, and not a rude person”.

But obviously in real life there were, depending on the circumstances and the character of the teachers, both. It is not for nothing that Domostroy includes teachings that exclude each other: “don’t be weak in beating the baby”, “When teaching children, love them and take care of them”. IN “Bees”, collections of moralizing content, you can find common sense thoughts about raising children and educators: “Let the teacher conquer the student with his character, not with his words”.

Grammar manuals appeared - the works of Maxim the Greek: “The beginning of Greek and Russian literacy”, “Preface about the alphabet, reksha about the alphabet”, “Conversation about learning to read and write...”, “Telling a literate degree” etc. Knowledgeable people highly revered grammar, it is said in “Azbukovnik” end of the 16th century, “the base and sole of all free tricks”.

In this century, the first manual on arithmetic appears - “The book, a recommendation in Greek is Arithmetic, and in German is Algorism, and in Russian is digital counting wisdom”. According to a simple number system ( "small number") studied units, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands (darkness), hundreds of thousands (legions), millions (leodras), according to a complex system ( “Great Slovenian number”) - millions (also - darkness), trillions (also - legions), trillions of trillions (also - leodry, another name - septillions), ravens (leodry leodry - a number of 49 digits). Fractions (known back in the 11th century) were also studied at this time; the numerator was called "top number", denominator - “in number”.

Under Ivan IV, Fyodor Ivanovich, some young people were sent to Constantinople to study Greek and grammar. “Parochkas” traveled with similar goals to European countries.

Some noble people collected libraries of handwritten books in their homes. Tsar Ivan the Terrible had a large collection of such books. It is unknown where his library went. Maybe she is walled up in the Kremlin dungeons. Or the books included in it were later distributed to other libraries, for example, the metropolitan library, later the patriarchal library, and others.

The advent of printing was a turning point for enlightenment. Even under Ivan III, Bartholomew Gotan, the pioneer printer from Lübeck, tried to print books in Russia. But the first experiment was not a success. More than half a century later, in the mid-50s. XVI century, the first books of the so-called “deadlock seal”(did not indicate the place and year of publication) appeared in Moscow. It was then that Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich opened a printing house. 10 years later, on April 1, 1564, Ivan Fedorov published in it "Apostle". Then followed “Book of Hours” and others, books. Two years later, Fedorov moved to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and died in Lvov in 1583. Here he continued his favorite work. Among other books “Drukar Moskovitin”(Moscow printer), as he was called in Ukraine, published the first printed Russian Primer “for the benefit of the Russian people,” as he wrote in the afterword.

In Moscow, books were published by employees and followers of Ivan Fedorov (Andronik Nevezha and others); In total, about 20 books of theological content appeared. A big step forward has been made in the matter of education and enlightenment.

Scientific knowledge. The elements of scientific knowledge, which multiplied from century to century, were of an applied nature. Thus, the need for accurate accounting of lands and calculation of taxes on them gave rise to a complex system of plow writing - the same amount of money was taken from a plow, that is, from a certain amount of land, which varied among different classes.

Gennady, Archbishop of Novgorod, Metropolitan Zosima in Moscow and their assistants at the end of the 15th century. They compiled special Easter tables indicating the dates of Easter and other holidays by year. Later, Agathon, priest of the St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod, prepared the manuscript of the work “The circle is peaceful”, which continued Gennadiev's tables. In the middle of the 16th century, Ermolai-Erasmus, the author, did the same “Sighted Easter”. Translated works “Sixwing”, "Cosmography" made it possible to calculate lunar phases, eclipses of the Sun and Moon.

Knowledge in the field of physics and technology was required by foundry masters in the manufacture of cannons, arquebuses, including rifled guns, created in Russia. The same thing applies to the construction of buildings, stone and wooden, sometimes very high, up to 50 - 60 m; in this matter one cannot do without accurate calculations, knowledge of construction statics, and technology.

Salt making and potash production, medicinal and icon painting required knowledge from applied chemistry and medicine, and they are reflected in prescription manuscripts, herbalists (herbs, their healing properties, preparation of medicines from them).

Geographical knowledge can be studied from documents of that time - scribes and land surveyors, from ambassadorial and discharge books; according to maps ( “drawings”) and unsubscribes service people, chronicles and descriptions of travelers, Russians and foreigners.

Historical knowledge is reflected in chronicles and chronographs, stories and legends; knowledge about the language - in various dictionaries ( “Speeches of Greek Subtlety”, “Interpretation of the Polovtsian language”, “Here Tatar language” , dictionary of Slavic words, etc.).

In the second half of the 16th century. the specified applied knowledge is multiplied and complicated. For example, the construction of the Intercession Cathedral (St. Basil's Cathedral) on Red Square in Moscow, a very complex structure, could not have been done without theoretical information in mechanics and mathematics. The same thing happened with the casting of powerful cannons that accompanied the Russian armies on campaigns to Kazan, Livonia, etc.

In the second half of the 16th - early 17th centuries. detailed manuals on salt making have appeared ( “Painting how to start making a new pipe in a new place”), on scribal affairs (1556), article “About laying out the earth, how to lay out the earth”(calculating the area of ​​squares, straight lines and triangles, parallelograms, trapezoids).

IN “walking” the authors described the countries they visited; such, for example, was the journey of the ambassador and merchant Vasily Poznyakov, who visited Constantinople and Mount Athos, Jerusalem and Egypt (1558-1561). And even earlier, in 1525, diplomat and translator Dmitry Gerasimov, in a conversation with Pavel Joviy Povokomsky, said: China and India can be reached not only by the warm southern seas, but also by the Arctic Ocean. He described the conversation in his treatise on Russia, and they learned about it in Western Europe. There, as if under the influence of these messages, they equipped an expedition, the participant of which R. Chancellor ended up in Russia. Ivan the Terrible promised a reward to whoever found “sea route to China and India”.

Russian literatureXV - XVI centuries . Historical and political thought. There has been a noticeable upsurge in this area. In chronicles, stories and legends, ideas of the greatness of the grand ducal and tsarist power and the global role of Russia are developed. As stated in “Chronograph”(review of world history) 1512, after the conquest of Byzantium and others by the Turks "kingdoms" which they are in “put desolation and subjugate under your power”, “our Russian land... is growing and growing younger and rising”.

“Tales of the Kingdom of Babylon” with their idea of ​​​​the succession of power of the Byzantine emperors from the rulers of Babylon on Russian soil, they are complemented by the version of the transfer of Monomakh’s cap, porphyry and scepter by the Byzantine emperor Leo to the Grand Duke of Kyiv Vladimir Monomakh: “...and to this day that Monomakhov’s hat is in the Russian state, in the God-protected reigning city of Moscow”.

“The Tale of the Princes of Vladimir” beginning of the 16th century deduces the genealogy of Moscow rulers from Augustus, Caesar of Rome. This is how the autocracy and sovereignty of power of the Russian monarchs were exalted. This was used in subsequent journalism and in political practice. “Royal place” Ivan the Terrible, for example, on one of the shutters there is a carving with a story about the sending of Monomakh’s cap from Byzantium. And Grozny himself, in a letter to the Swedish king, stated without a shadow of a doubt: “We are related to Augustus Caesar”.

The same or similar ideas are developed in the letters of Philotheus, abbot of the Pskov Eleazar Monastery, to Vasily III, in “Tales of the White Cowl”, “Tales of the Beginning of Moscow”, chronicle vaults of the 16th century.

In the writings of heretical freethinkers at the turn of the 15th - 16th centuries ( “heresy of the Judaizers”), especially their left, radical wing, denied the main tenets of Christian doctrine - the trinity of God, the virgin birth, communion, the need for icons, the very institution of the church. Heretics criticized bribery and other vices of the spiritual brethren. The more moderate wing claimed only free-thinking in literature and scientific research.

The humanistic, rationalistic ideas of the heretics, their criticism of church and monastic land ownership, and acquisitions initially aroused sympathy even from Grand Duke Ivan III. But in the end, the church orthodoxy, led by Joseph Sanin, prevailed! the abbot of the Joseph-Volokolamsk monastery, whom the grand-ducal authorities considered a better support for themselves than the heretics. A church council in 1504 condemned the latter, and some of them were executed.

Ideas “non-covetousness” It was also developed by the Trans-Volga elders (monks of the Trans-Volga monasteries) led by Nil Sorsky. They denounced the desire to appropriate the work of other people, love of money, gluttony, pride, vanity and other vices. They preached humility, contemplative life, and moral self-improvement. Monks, according to their teaching, must earn their living by their own labor, have no land or peasants, and renounce worldly vanity and money-grubbing. Joseph Volotsky spoke about something else: “The Church’s wealth is God’s wealth”.

The struggle between the Josephites and the non-possessors continued after the death of their leaders (Joseph died in 1525, Neil in 1508). The Josephites were headed by Metropolitan Daniel, the non-covetous people were led by the monk-prince Vassian Patrikeev Kosoy (princes Golitsyn, Kurakin, Khovansky, etc. came from the Patrikeev family). The second was joined by Maxim the Greek (Mikhail Trivolis), a learned monk from Mount Athos, who came to Moscow in 1518. They found support among the opposition boyars and paid for it: church councils of 1525 and 1531. they were condemned and they ended up in exile. Their denunciations against the church, and thereby the secular authorities, and mentions of the difficult situation of the peasants responded to the topical moods of Russian society.

Stories and legends tell about the most important events of that era - the annexation of Novgorod the Great and other Russian lands to Moscow, Tsar Ivan the Terrible and his deeds, the struggle of Russia against foreign invaders (for example, “The Tale of the Battle of Molodin” 1572 “The Tale of the Passage of Stefan Batory to Pskov” in 1581, etc.).

A galaxy of talented publicists worked in the 16th century. F.I. Karpov, a very educated man (knew Latin, Greek, oriental languages), falconer Vasily III, mourned the imperfection of society and secular power: “Nowadays there is strife everywhere, now they live from theft,” “I realized in what harmful and objectionable ways, with lame legs, with blind eyes, the earthly power and the entire human race now walk.”. Rulers should, in his opinion, bring to the world “the truth, to eradicate the evil ones who do not want to be healed and love God”.

In the middle of the century, many publicists sharply and passionately discussed the problems of autocracy and the structure of the state, the boyars and the situation of the peasants. I. S. Peresvetov is a supporter of strong tsarist power and its support “warriors”—nobles and restrictions on the rights of boyars, centralization of control. He wrote: “A king cannot be without a thunderstorm: like a horse under a king without a bridle, so is a kingdom without a thunderstorm.”. He is a supporter "truth" (“God does not love faith, but truth”), “books”, "wisdom", opponent of servility, servitude, “Which land is enslaved, in that land evil is created... the whole kingdom suffers great poverty”.

Ermolai-Erasmus, a priest of one of the churches of the Moscow Kremlin, calls to alleviate the situation of the peasants, for, as he says: “The plowmen are most useful; through their labors the greatest wealth is created.”.

Sylvester, archpriest of the Annunciation Cathedral in the same Kremlin, in messages, “Domostroye”(he owns the final edition of the monument) preaches rational management, obtaining “correct acquisition”(arrived).

The second half of the century was marked by vivid, emotional correspondence between Tsar Grozny and the fugitive prince A. M. Kurbsky. The first of them also contains messages to many other persons, secular and spiritual; the second - “The story of the Grand Duke of Moscow” and other works. The king bases his judgments on the idea of ​​the divinely ordained power of the autocrat, its unlimited power: “We are free to grant favors to our slaves (all subjects - V.B.), but we are free to execute”.

Kurbsky is an opponent “fierceness” king, who, according to him, should rule together with "wise advisors". Being a follower of non-covetous people (he was a student of Maxim the Greek), the prince acts as an opponent of the Josephite clergy. Along with Kurbsky, the oprichnina was criticized by Korniliy, the abbot of the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery, the compiler of the Pskov chronicle of 1567, and the authors of the story about the defeat of Novgorod by Tsar the Terrible in 1570, inserted into the Novgorod Chronicle.

In the 16th century Large chronicle collections are compiled one after another - Vologda-Perm, Resurrection, Nikonov, etc. They include, in addition to the previous collections, stories, legends, and extensive documents. In the second half of the reign of Ivan the Terrible, the so-called Facial Vault was compiled - the Nikon Chronicle was decorated with almost 16 thousand miniature illustrations (“faces”, hence the name of the vault). It covers the history of Russia from ancient times to the mid-50s. XVI century This grandiose monument, like others, affirms the ideas of the greatness of the Russian autocracy and its centralizing policy. These are the same ideas that form the basis of the “Book of Degrees” (1562-1563, author - Athanasius, who came from the circle of Metropolitan Macarius), “Kazan History” (“Kazan Chronicler”, mid-60s), Chetiy-Menei (a collection of the lives of Russian saints, arranged by month of the year).

At the end of the century, heavyweight in style appeared “The Tale of the Honest Life of Tsar Fyodor”(author - Patriarch Job), “The Life of Metropolitan Philip”. The compilation of chronicles continues, although not as extensive as before.

Russian architectureXV - XVI centuries . This era is characterized by a significant rise in the art of construction. At the turn of the XV-XVI centuries. The Kremlin ensemble in Moscow is being designed - walls and towers, cathedrals and the Chamber of Facets. They were built by Italian architects (Aristotle Fioravanti, Pietro Solari, Marco Ruffo, Aleviz Novy and others) and Russian masters (Vasily Dmitrievich Ermolin and others). They used the traditions of ancient Russian, primarily Vladimir-Suzdal, architecture, as well as the techniques of Italian architecture of the Renaissance.

In the first half of the century, fortifications were built in Nizhny Novgorod, Tula, Zaraysk, and Kolomna. The wall of China Town (1530s) and the Novodevichy Convent (1525) appeared in the capital.

In church architecture, a tent-type temple is becoming widespread, modeled on wooden churches ( “for woodworking”). The most outstanding example of this style is the Church of the Ascension in the village of Kolomenskoye (1532), built to commemorate the birth of Ivan the Terrible. A contemporary chronicler could not contain his feelings of admiration, recording the news of this architectural miracle in his work: “Velma is wonderful in height and beauty and lightness, such as has never been seen before in Rus'”.

Throughout the century, wooden construction continues to predominate. In addition to the ubiquitous huts, mansions of rich people are being built, sometimes very complex in plan and bizarre in shape. These are the mansions of the Stroganovs, eminent merchants, in Solvychegodsk (1565).

In stone architecture, the Russian national style is clearly expressed in the nine tent-roofed buildings of St. Basil's Cathedral. It was erected on the occasion of the capture of Kazan in 1552.

They continue to build cathedrals and fortress walls in the monasteries of Solovetsky, Trinity-Sergius, etc. In Moscow, they surrounded the White City with a wall, within the modern Boulevard Ring.

Following the example of the Moscow Assumption Cathedral, the St. Sophia Cathedral was built in Vologda (1568-1570). And in Vyazemy, to the west of Moscow, on the estate of Boris Godunov, a majestic five-domed temple of the Holy Trinity appears; later they began to call him Preobrazhensky.

Extensive construction throughout Russia necessitated the emergence of a special institution - the Order of Stone Affairs (1580s). He organized construction work, very large in scale (calling workers from different cities, procuring building materials).

Russian paintingXV - XVI . At the turn of the XV - XVI centuries. in icon painting and fresco painting Dionysius and his sons and associates became famous. They own the icons of the Assumption Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin and the frescoes of the Ferapontov Monastery. They attract with their colorfulness, decorativeness, and lush solemnity. The icon painting of the Novgorod school is distinguished by greater laconicism and rigor.

In painting, the predominance of the Moscow school is increasing. Genre motifs are increasingly penetrating into icon painting, and there are elements of realism. This is even more typical for the second half of the 16th century.

Painting is becoming more and more a state matter. The Church, after the Council of the Hundred Heads in 1551, strengthens supervision over icon painters. Icon “Church Militant”(mid-16th century) in allegorical form glorifies the Russian army, the young autocrat. The paintings of the Golden Chamber in the Kremlin (1547-1552) are dedicated to historical events. For example, the frescoes of the Chamber of Facets, telling about Joseph the Beautiful, tell about.

At the end of the 16th century. icons gain fame “Stroganov letter”. They are distinguished by their miniature size, subtlety and elegance of drawing, decorativeness and festivity. Moscow masters Procopius Chirin, Istoma Savin and other “royal icon painters” worked in this manner. They often executed icons commissioned by eminent people the Stroganovs. Their own craftsmen from their former slaves in Solvychegodsk also worked for them. This school existed in the 17th century; many masters subsequently worked under its influence, including in the famous Palekh.

The desire for decorativeness and virtuosity, sophistication and pomp is characteristic of the painting of this era. There is, on the one hand, an increase in skill and technical perfection; on the other hand, the loss of depth, monumentality, and broad breathing of the paintings of A. Rublev and F. Grek.

Lifelate XV - XVI centuries . The extensive construction of temples and monasteries, palaces and towers aroused the desire to decorate them with products of applied art. The craftsmen of that time made frames for books and icons with amazing beauty and subtlety with filigree and basma embossing. From the end of the 15th century. the flowering of the art of enamel, forgotten in .

In church life, items with artistic embroidery were often used - hanging shrouds and grave covers, shrouds and "airs". They were usually made from silk, gold and silver, in “picturesque style”(a combination of multi-colored tones, dark and light, brightness and colorfulness).

Book miniatures depicted scenes from the Old and New Testaments, lives of saints, and events in Russian history. Illustrations of the Facial Chronicle and the collection of lives of the saints of Chetia-Minea are rightfully considered masterpieces of Russian miniature art. Illustrations in printed publications are characterized by splendor and decorativeness.

In the second half of the 16th century. outstanding examples of sewing came from the workshop of the princes Staritsky ( "Shroud" “Appearance of Our Lady to Sergius of Radonezh”). Ksenia Godunova, daughter of Tsar Boris, skillfully embroidered on Spanish and Venetian velvet.

All these products were prepared for wealthy people who had considerable funds and extensive premises for housing or church services.

Noble people lived in mansions, usually two-story, with various outbuildings, residential and economic, for themselves, servants, livestock and poultry. The houses were mostly wooden, but there were also stone ones. They are filled with cellars with dishes, silver and copper, tin and glass; chests with clothes, jewelry (rings, earrings, etc.). There were sometimes clocks on the walls. There were foreign fabrics, decorations, dishes, and clothing; oriental shoes, carpets, weapons. Even greater splendor is inherent in the royal palaces and courtyards.

The nobles even then began, in the Western style, to cut their hair short, shave or pluck their mustaches and beards.

The food was plentiful and varied. Spices were used for seasoning: pepper and saffron, cinnamon and cloves. We were familiar with lemons, raisins, almonds, rice and sugar.

Noble people had fun at feasts with buffoons, playing folk instruments, and dancing. No matter how the church persecuted “demonic games”, it was difficult to get them out. Got into bear baiting “horse races”, canine and falconry. At home they played dice and cards, checkers and chess.

Folk songs and church music satisfied another aspect of spiritual needs. In the 16th century Polyphonic church chants came from Novgorod to Moscow and other regions of Russia. Russian people also loved the ringing of bells. New instruments (organs, harpsichords, clavichords) and Western European music penetrated into the life of the nobility from abroad.

Ordinary nobles lived more modestly. The bulk of the population - peasants - lived in wooden huts, covered with straw or shingles; there were cages for property, sheds for livestock, and sheds. The huts were heated in black and illuminated with torches. In winter, small livestock and poultry were placed in them.

The furnishings in the hut were very sparse: wooden, roughly made tables and benches; clothes were stored in chests and boxes (for the poor, they hung them on poles leaning against the wall). In summer they wore clothes made of homemade canvas, in winter - from homespun cloth and lamb fur, on their feet - bast bast shoes, for those who were richer - boots. Utensils - wooden and clay: dishes and plates, ladles, ladles, bowls, cups, cups, wooden spoons and clay pots, occasionally - cauldrons and frying pans made of iron and copper.

Bread and pies, jelly, beer and kvass were made from grain and flour; They ate cabbage, fresh and pickled, carrots and cucumbers, beets and horseradish, radishes and turnips. Meat was on the table mainly on holidays. We ate a lot of fish, river and lake.

Similar to the peasants, but more prosperous, the townspeople lived in cities. The yard often consisted of an upper room standing on a hut, a hallway on a basement, a cage on a basement, a bathhouse; it is surrounded by a tyn with a gate that had a canopy. There were mica and “glassy” window. In the house, among other things, there were icons, sometimes richly decorated, a lot of dishes, including silver, and clothes, sometimes fur. The guests, large trading people, lived richly - stone chambers, a large amount of dishes, gold and silver, and other property.

Folk festivals with songs, dances, and buffoon performances gave working people the opportunity to take a break from work. Folk performers - singers, like all buffoons, were professionals. From them, peasants and townspeople heard historical and lyrical, satirical and ritual songs. The singing was accompanied by accompaniment on instruments: wind instruments - pipes and horns, nozzles and pipes, bagpipes, trumpets and surnas; strings - gusli, gudkah, balalaika; drums - tambourines and rattles.

Elements of theater and drama contained Christmas games, farewell to Maslenitsa, winter and summer. Their participants put on masks, staged costumes, mimic performances, dramatic performances, and staged riddles. In round dance songs and at weddings, a kind of performances were performed with a large number of characters, certain roles, and a strict ritual (matchmaking, marriage, bachelorette party, wedding, bread, etc.).

Buffoons gathered in troupes, sometimes very large, up to 60-100 people. Their art is the embryo of folk theater. They - actors and musicians, singers and dancers, acrobats and magicians - acted out comedy scenes, including with the people's favorite Petrushka. His humor and ingenuity, ridicule of the rich, confidence and inexhaustibility in inventions delighted his listeners.

There were also circus performances with a bear, goat and other animals. Buffoons walked all over Russia, as well as throughout Europe, right up to Italy. The authorities and especially the clergy persecuted buffoons. Harshly condemns them “Domostroy”: “Buffoons and their work, dancing and sniffling, always loving demonic songs... all together I will be in hell, and here I’ll be damned.”. But buffoonery, like other folk entertainments, continued to exist in spite of everything.

Here you can find information about the arrangement of the house, clothing and food of the peasants.

Knowledge of folk life, traditions, and customs gives us the opportunity to preserve historical memory, to find those roots that will nourish new generations of Russians.

A peasant dwelling is a courtyard where residential and outbuildings, a garden and a vegetable garden were built.

The roofs of the buildings were thatched or wooden, often wooden figures of heads were attached to the roofs different birds and animals.

The buildings themselves were made of wood, mainly pine and spruce. They literally chopped with an axe, but later saws also became known.

For the construction of even the largest buildings, no special foundation was built. But instead, supports were laid in the corners and middles of the walls - stumps, large boulders.

The main buildings of a peasant yard were: a hut and a cage, an upper room, tumbleweeds, a hay barn, a barn, and a shed. A hut is a common residential building. The upper room is a clean and bright building built above the lower one, and here they slept and received guests. The dumps and the hay barn were cold storerooms and served as living quarters in the summer.

The most important component of a peasant home was the Russian stove. They baked bread in it, cooked food, washed, and slept on the upper wall.

The main decoration of the house were images (icons). The icon was placed in the upper corner of the chambers and covered with a curtain - a dungeon.

Wall paintings and mirrors were banned by the Orthodox Church. Only small mirrors were brought from abroad and were components of the women's toilet.

In the household structure of the Russians, there was a noticeable custom of covering and covering everything. The floors were covered with carpets, matting, felt, benches and benches were covered with shelf covers, tables were covered with tablecloths.

The houses were illuminated with candles and torches.

The houses of poor and rich people had the same names and structures, differing only in size and degree of decoration.

The cut of the clothes was the same for both kings and peasants.

Men's shirts were white or red, they were sewn from linen and canvas fabric. The shirts were belted low with straps with a weak knot.

The clothes they wore at home were called zipun. It was a narrow, short white dress.

Women's clothing was similar to men's, only longer. The pilot wore a long shirt. It had a slit in the front that fastened with buttons all the way down to the throat.

All women wore earrings and headdresses.

The peasants' outerwear was a sheepskin coat. The sheepskin coats were altered for children.

For footwear, the peasants had bast shoes, shoes made of vine twigs and leather soles, which were tied to the feet with belts.

Peasant cuisine was Russian, national. The best cook was considered to be the one who knew how other housewives cooked. Changes in food were introduced quietly. The dishes were simple and not varied.

According to the Russian custom of sacredly maintaining fasts, the table was divided into two parts: fast and fast, and according to supplies, the dishes were divided into five: fish, meat, flour, dairy and vegetable.

Floury foods included rye bread - the head of the table, various pies, loaves, casseroles, rolls; for fish - fish soup, baked dishes; for meat - side dishes, quick soups, pates and many others.

The drinks were: vodka, wine, juices, fruit drinks, Berezovets, kvass, tea.

The sweets were natural: fresh fruits, fruits cooked in molasses.

I hope that my small contribution to the promotion of folk culture and way of life will partly contribute to the fact that this culture will be preserved, knowledge of it will strengthen the mind and soul of growing citizens and patriots of our Fatherland.