In the history of the ancestors of the rulers of the Russian state, there are many dark moments, rigged facts and frankly far-fetched biographies. The origin of Andrei Kobyla is no exception. But in order to understand the vicissitudes of all these palace secrets and intrigues, first you need to find out who this person is and what is his fate in history. Let's take a closer look at these questions.
Who is this man and why does the story remember him?
Andrey Ivanovich Kobyla, who lived in the first half of the 14th century, is of fundamental importance for the history of the Russian state: he is the first historically confirmed ancestor of the last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II Romanov, that is, the founder of the dynasty.
Unfortunately, the exact dates of his life are unknown, there is only an assumption that he died after 1347. Also, historians do not know how he really looked, because in reliable historical archives he is mentioned only once: as a confidant of Semyon the Proud, the Grand Duke of Russia, who later began to be called onchurch manners by Simeon.
Who were A. Kobyly's ancestors?
so good for a representative of the royal dynasty. It is worth considering each story in more detail to form your own opinion on this matter.
So, consider the version that Stepan Kolychev (Russian King of Arms, a descendant of Kobyla) presented to the court in order to strengthen the high origin of the Romanov family. Stepan Andreevich claimed that Kobyla is the son of Glanda Kambila, the Grand Duke of Prussia (although some historians believe that Andrei Kobyla and Glanda Kambila are the same person, and the name was changed into the Russian manner). The historian claims that in ancient times, when many years of wars exhausted many families morally and financially, Glanda Divonovich and her family moved to Russia in 1283 and entered the service of the son of Alexander Nevsky, changing his name to a simple "Ivan".
Mistake out?
If you know the peculiarity of the formation of Russian surnames in antiquity, then it is immediately clear that the pedigree coming from the Prussian king does not have stable ground. In the Middle Ages in Russia, it was customary to give surnames to children not after their father. If we recall that the brother of Andrey Kobyly had the nickname Shevlyaga (Shevlyuga), which means "decrepit horse, nag", and Andrey himself has one ofsons had the surname Stallion, then the idea is evoked of what connection the original Russian words have with the Prussian ancestry. After all, centuries-old traditions could not cross out everything in one fell swoop.
Thus, the second version of the origin of Andrei Kobyla becomes more plausible: she claims that his ancestors are Muscovites who once moved to the Novgorod lands. Moreover, some researchers of ancient chronicles claim that the ancestors of Kobyla lived on Prusskaya Street, which is why historians became confused, who, having seen the phrase “.. came from Prus..” in the annals, considered that this was Prussia.
But if you carefully consider the family coat of arms of the Sheremetyevs, one of the descendants of Kobyla, you can see the image of two crosses, over which a crown rises. This is how the traditional symbol of Gdansk looked like, which, according to legend, was the birthplace of Andrei Kobyla. The coat of arms was slightly transformed over time, but the main image remained unchanged, so the well-born boyars proved their involvement in an ancient family that originated from the Prussian kings. At the same time, some historians argue that in fact this coat of arms was created no earlier than the 17th century, which means it cannot be a symbol of the Kobyly family.
The second version of the origin of the genus
A more reliable genealogy of the Romanov ancestor Andrey Kobyla looks like this:
- Andrei's father is Iakinf the Great, who served Andrei Gorodetsky, one of the sons of Alexander Nevsky.
- Andrey's grandfather - Gavriil Oleksich, the hero of the great Neva battle, whoin turn, was the son of Oleksa Gorislav, who took monastic vows in his declining years under the name Varlaam.
At the same time, there are many inaccuracies in the annals, sometimes confusions so much that sometimes it seems that the name of Andrei Kobyla means another person who has a very similar biography and relatives. For example, some archives mention that Fyodor Shevlyuga (Sviblo) and Ivan Khromoy are Andrei's brothers, while other sources indicate that these are his children. Where the truth is is unknown.
Scions: Ancestors of Noble Families
According to the official version, Andrei Kobyla had five children - all sons, although some historians argue that girls were often not mentioned in the archives, since it was the successors of the clan and surname that were valued:
- Fyodor Koshka, the most famous of the brothers (although the youngest). It is his line of descendants that will lead to Nikolai Romanov, the last of the Russian tsars. He was close to Dmitry Donskoy, was very much appreciated for his amazing diplomatic qualities, remarkable mind and at the same time calm disposition.
- The story mentions Vasily Ivantey in passing, he was not very popular, had only one son, Grigory, who had no children.
- Alexander Elka is Andrey's second son. Such dynasties as the Neplyuevs, Sukhovo-Kobylins and Kolychevs originated from him, the previously mentioned King of Arms Stepan Andreyevich Kolychev is one of them.
- Another son of Andrei Kobyla - Semyon Zherebets was the firstborn, perhaps that is why he inherited the peculiarity of the surname, although not without a scribe's mistake. He had three sons, from whom the surnames cameLodygins, Konovnitsyns, Gorbunovs, as well as Exemplary and Kokarevs.
- Gavriil Gavsha, according to historical data, had only two sons: history is silent about Boris, and Andrei had four sons, one of whom founded the Boborykin family. One of the descendants of this family was the founder of the city of Tver - this is Roman Boborykin.
For an example, it is worth adding that the surnames of the brothers were written in this way: Koshka-Kobylin, Elko-Kobylin, etc. In total, the children of Andrey Kobyla gave birth to seventeen surnames, many of which remained "the cream of society" for many centuries.
Is the opinion of historians reliable?
If we remember that in the ancient chronicles there was only one mention of the personality of Andrei Kobyla, it becomes unclear why historians decided that he was of a noble family. This is indicated by the very fact of the record: the aforementioned ancestor of the Romanovs and Alexei Bosovolokov had the honor of being the personal escort of Maria Alexandrovna, the daughter of the Prince of Tver, who was prophesied as a wife to Semyon the Proud, Prince of Moscow. Naturally, people who had the highest confidence in the prince were selected for such a mission, which suggests that Kobyla was practically his right hand.
Known ancestors of the Romanov family
The genus of Andrey Kobyla is rich not only in royal descendants, his family tree has several no less interesting personalities worth mentioning:
Count Pyotr Petrovich Konovnitsyn, in the title of general, heroically fought at Mount Vatutina, in the famous Battle of Borodino (he commanded afterwounding Bagration by the second army), as well as in the battle of Leipzig. He leads his family from the Seeds of the Stallion, or rather, his son Grigory
- Metropolitan Philip (1507-1569) is known for openly speaking out against Ivan the Terrible and his savagery over the people and individuals, for which he was murdered in cold blood by Malyuta Skuratov. The Metropolitan, who had the name Fyodor Kolychev from the family, leads his family from Alexander Elka.
- Pyotr Dmitrievich Boborykin (1836-1921), a descendant of Gavriil Gavsha and an outstanding writer, is known to writers for his novel Kitai-Gorod.
- One of the most famous of the family is Alexander Lodygin, who invented the incandescent lamp in 1872.
How did the surname Kobyla transform into the Romanovs?
For people who are not closely connected with the intricacies of the origin of surnames in Russia, it may not be very clear how one surname turned into a completely different one, because in the modern world it is passed from father to son and so on. But if you remember that the surname was determined by the question “who will you be?”, Then naturally the Kobylins are the children of Andrei Kobyla. In turn, his grandchildren answered this question based on their father's nickname, and if the direct ancestor of the Romanovs is Fyodor Koshka, then the answer was: "Cat's son, Ivan."
The next generation was called more complicated: Zakharyins-Koshkins, but the next one dropped the hated "animal" surname and from the fourth generation they began to be called Zakharyins-Yurievs. Starting with Roman Yuryevich, the surname again undergoeschanges, becoming the Zakharyins-Romanovs and from the next generation - just the Romanovs. Then the surname ceased to change, because the ancient custom was no longer valid.
The last of the Romanovs
The latest representatives of the genus of Andrei Kobyla are the Romanov couple, or rather Nicholas II, the last tsar of the Russian state, who was shot by the Bolsheviks in 1918 along with his family at the age of 50. Although it can be added that his son, Alexei Nikolaevich, is in fact the last of the Romanovs, since he was born later, but given that he was shot at the same time as his father, the fact becomes irrelevant.
Who knows how long the race of Andrey Kobyla would have lasted, if not for this atrocious crime against man? How many more outstanding people would this ancient dynasty give to the world?
