In Russian history, there are several cases when those who rebelled against the tsarist government covered themselves with a desire to protect the rights of the "real" sovereign or his legitimate heir. One example of such a falsification is the announcement by Stepan Razin that Nechai is in his camp - Tsarevich Alexei Alekseevich, whose biography is presented below.
Parents
Aleksey Alekseevich was the grandson of the first Russian Tsar from the Romanov family and the second male child in the family of his parents. His mother was Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya, who was distinguished by exceptional piety and was known as a great philanthropist. The boy's father, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, who was one of the most educated people of his time and to a large extent gravitated towards Westernism, also had a kind and complaisant character.
The couple had 13 children in total, including 5 sons. After the death of Tsarina Maria, Alexei Petrovich married a second time. In the second marriage withNatalya Naryshkina had a son, later known as Tsar Peter the Great, and two daughters.
Interestingly, despite the fact that father and son bore the name Alexei, their name days were not celebrated on the same day, as they had different heavenly patrons.
Childhood
Aleksey Alekseevich was born in 1654. 2 years after his birth, he was declared the heir to the throne, since his older brother Dimitri died a few years before his birth.
Among others, the boy was educated by Simeon Polotsky, who is considered one of the most prominent representatives of Russian poetry before the era of Trediakovsky. He taught the prince and his younger brother Fyodor Latin and Polish. In addition, Alexey Alekseevich also studied arithmetic, Slavic grammar and philosophy. The father was kind to the heir and especially for him from abroad ordered illustrated books and all sorts of "children's fun". According to contemporaries, the prince had a good memory, was inquisitive and proved to be a diligent student.
Youth
According to the laws of that time, during the absence of his father in the capital, Alexei Alekseevich was considered the temporary ruler of the state, and official letters were signed on his behalf.
As a teenager, he preferred to spend most of his time reading. Among his favorite books were "Lexicon" and "Grammar", brought from Lithuania, as well as a well-known scientific work"Cosmography". One of the most famous Westerners at the Russian court, boyar Artamon Matveev, who often staged theatrical performances, had a great influence on Alexei Alekseevich. He always invited the prince to them, to whom the queen and princesses often joined. In addition, Matveev introduced Alexei Alekseevich to educated foreigners living in Moscow or coming there on business.
Matchmaking
During the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich, it was customary to marry young people at a fairly early age. The heir to the throne was no exception. Moreover, not only the father, but also the Polish queen de alt with the issue of arranging his personal life. The wife of Jan the Second Casimir was going to marry her niece to him and in every possible way contributed to this marriage. The union of the Russian prince with the Polish princess seemed attractive to her relatives, because after the death of the heir to the throne of the Commonwe alth in 1951, Alexei Alekseevich was considered a good contender for this title. In addition, the ambassadors who came to Moscow to find out the attitude of the royal family to such a marriage union were absolutely fascinated by the young man and delighted with his welcoming speech, which he read in their native language, which he was fluent in.
Her plans were not destined to come true, since after the death of Tsaritsa Maria, Alexei Mikhailovich himself began to claim the girl's hand. He ordered the boyar Matveev to tell the Poles that the tsarevich was still young, and the Orthodox faith was far from the Roman one.
Aleksey Alekseevich: death
Being sixteen years old, the heir to the throne suddenly died. This was not preceded by any illness, so various rumors spread among the people. The young man was buried in the Archangel Cathedral. The funeral service was conducted by Patriarch Joasaph II, as well as the eastern patriarchs who were in the capital at that time. Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was inconsolable, as he had high hopes for his son, who, among other things, enjoyed the love of the people, spoke several foreign languages and could become a wise and just ruler in the future.
Aleksey Alekseevich - Tsarevich Nechai
Almost 20 years after the death of the heir to the Russian throne, Stenka, Razin decided to use his name to legitimize his rebellion. His people started a rumor that Alexei Alekseevich was alive and he althy in their ranks (the biography of the Tsarevich is briefly presented above). Since, according to them, he appeared unexpectedly in their camp, they called him Nechai. Soon this nickname became a battle cry with which the Razintsy began to attack the people of the king.
Many peasants, and even more so merchants and service people, would hardly have joined Ataman Stenka if they had not thought that he was fighting for a charitable cause - the return of the throne to the prince, who was declared dead and illegally bypassed, putting his brother on the throne.
The authorities in the capital quickly realized the danger of the appearance of an impostor, so even for the pronunciation of the word “nechai” alone, they were ordered to be taken to prison.
Andrey Kambulatovich
It is known for certain about three people who in different years pretended to be such a famous person as Tsarevich Alexei Alekseevich (see photo of the most famous portrait of the heir to the Russian throne, see above). First of all, his role was played by Prince Andrei, who is the son of the Kabardian Murza Prince Kambulat Pshimakhovich Cherkassky. He was baptized as a child, spoke good Russian and had an aristocratic manner. During the capture of Astrakhan, the young man was captured, and Razin decided to use him to support the legend of Prince Nechai. He ordered to upholster one of the plows with red velvet and gave it to the "heir to the throne" for personal use. There are several versions about the further fate of Andrei Kambulatovich. It is only known for certain that after a while he disappeared, and Razin had to look for another "prince".
Maxim Osipov
Since the uprising was already in full swing, and the power of the rebels grew every day, they decided that now Nechai would be one of their most courageous and cruel leaders. The choice fell on Maxim Osipov. Under the guise of Tsarevich Alexei, he captured the cities of Alatyr, Temnikov, Kurmysh, Yadrin and Lyskov. There is a known case when his army, shouting “Nechay!” attacked the Makaryevsky Zheltovodsky Monastery, but failed to destroy the monastery.
After the failure, Osipov retreated to Murashkino, where new crowds of Mordovians, Tatars and Chuvashs poured towards him. The false prince even decided to go with the army to Nizhny Novgorod, where the local mob called him. However, a messenger arrived from Stepan Razin with an orderto come to his aid to Simbirsk.
Ivan Kleopin
It is also known about another impostor who declared himself Alexei II. The name of this man is Ivan Kleopin, and he showed up in 1671. It is known that the impostor was born around 1648 in the local village of Zasapinye, Novgorod district.
At the age of 15-16, he was drafted into the noble militia and sent to Dinaburg, on the border with the Commonwe alth. In the autumn of 1666, he returned home, according to one version, due to bouts of insanity. In 1671, Ivan announced to his family that he was Alexei Alekseevich (the photo with the portrait of the impostor was not preserved), and fled into the forest. Then he tried to move to the Commonwe alth, but was detained, questioned and tortured. Although it was proved that Ivan was crazy, he was executed as a warning to all others who wanted to impersonate members of the royal family.
Now you know who Alexey Alekseevich was. Interesting facts from his biography are almost unknown to the general public, but they allow historians to better understand what life was like at the Russian court in the second half of the 17th century.
