Dmitry Mikhailovich Pozharsky - Russian hero of the people's militia, prince, boyar, politician, liberator of Moscow from the Polish invaders. He was just and generous, generous and honest. In difficult, troubled times for the motherland, he stood up for the defense of the fatherland. His firmness of spirit, determination and intransigence towards traitors to the motherland, one can only envy.
The family of Prince Dmitry Pozharsky has its roots in the founder of Moscow, Yuri Dolgorukov. He is a descendant of Vasily Andreevich, who was a native of the Starodub princes, who in turn were direct descendants of Prince Vladimirsky, the son of Yuri Dolgorukov.
Childhood[]
The exact place of birth of Dmitry Pozharsky is not known, but there is an assumption that he was born in the estate of Bersenev, Klin county, which was part of his mother's dowry. Prince Pozharsky was born on the first of November 1578. Dmitry's father was Mikhail Fedorovich Pozharsky, a descendant of the Rurikovich family, the prince's mother was a noble family of the Beklemishevs. Her name was Maria Fyodorovna. The local lands of the Pozharsky princes were confiscated by Tsar Ivan the Terrible by that time, in favor of the Oprichnina, since the Pozharsky family fell into disgrace.
Four children were born in the princely family. The eldest Daria, the second was given the name Kozma at baptism, but in the world they were called Dmitry and the younger sons Vasily and Yuri. Historians are sure that mother Maria Feodorovna was an educated woman, which was rare for that time, there is an assumption that she taught her children to read and write from early childhood. There are historical documents on the property, written by nine-year-old Dmitry, after the death of a parent. Including the house, the inheritance of my grandfather, who was in Moscow, on Sretenskaya Street. The basement part of this building has been preserved to this day, this is Lubyanka 14.
Service to tsars and fatherland[]
After the death of her husband, Maria Fyodorovna moved with her children to Moscow. And she began the service of the boyar with Boris Godunov's daughter. Over time, the enterprising boyar becomes an influential person at court. And Dmitry, already at the age of fifteen, in 1593, began palace service with the rank of "lawyer with a dress." Repeatedly, mother and son fell into disgrace, but in 1602, during the reign of Boris Godunov, he was promoted to stolnik.
During his service to the fatherland, Prince Pozharsky had to observe the change of power more than once. The period of service fell on a troubled and difficult time for Russia. Kings were replaced on the royal throne, and power passed from hand to hand.
Dmitry Pozharsky continued his service at the court under False Dmitry I and Vasily IV Shuisky, to whom he swore allegiance. The number of False Dmitrievs grew, Poles and Lithuanians plundered towns and villages. Discontent grew among the peasants, and it often turned into riots. Pozharsky was appointed regimental commander in the fight against False Dmitry II.
He took part in the suppression of one such uprising, led by Ivan Bolotnikov. The oath of allegiance given to Shuisky did not allow him to participate in the coup that the Moscow boyars were plotting. And later, for his excellent and faithful service, Vasily Shuisky returned to him the estate that had previously belonged to his ancestors. And in 1610 Dmitry Pozharsky received a new title — voivode in the city of Zaraysk, in the Ryazan district.
Residents of Zaraysk, following the example of Kashira and Kolomna, persuaded the prince to swear an oath to the impostor, but he stubbornly refused to recognize the False Dmitry II. And he explained to the common people that he knew only one tsar, and that tsar Vasily Shuisky. The prince was faithful to his oath. In the future, his conviction had a beneficial effect on people's minds. Both Kolomna and Kashira remained loyal to Vasily Shuisky.
Later, he rejected the offer of the Boyar Duma to take part in the enthronement of the Polish prince Vladislav. The Ryazan voivode Prokopy Lyapunov was also in solidarity with his opinion. And Prince Dmitry Pozharsky takes part in the First militia, against the Polish-Lithuanian invaders in Moscow.
Liberation of Moscow[]
Patriarch Hermogenes, imprisoned in the Chudov Monastery, wrote a letter in which he appealed to the Russian people with calls to expel foreign invaders from the Kremlin. This call was supported by Archimandrite Dionysius of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, residents of Nizhny Novgorod. It was the Nizhny Novgorod residents who sent their ambassadors to Prince Pozharsky with a request to lead the militia. Pozharsky, together with the zemstvo elder Kuzma Minin, took part in the formation of the Second Militia, and later headed it. In 1612, the militia included warriors of Kostroma, Ryazan, Vladimir, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan. Along the way, they liberated Yaroslavl. And at the end of August, they came to Moscow and entered into a confrontation with the Poles and Lithuanians. They fought with the troops of the Lithuanian Hetman Khodkevich. Military operations ended on October 22 in the old style, in a new way on November 4, 1612, the liberation of Moscow.
Dmitry Mikhailovich Pozharsky was also a member of the Zemsky Sobor, and he offered to choose a tsar from the relatives of Rurikovich, the son of Ivan the Terrible. He was a cousin of Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov. In 1613, by the decree of the Zemsky Sobor, he was elected the new tsar. On the certificate confirming the election, Pozharsky's signature is in tenth place. At the wedding of Michael Romanov to the kingdom, Prince Dmitry Pozharsky held the "power". This spoke of his high position and the gratitude of the tsar for the fact that during the time of troubles, he firmly stood for the right cause, and united Russia in the fight against the enemy. For his exploits, he was awarded the rank of boyar, and he was granted fiefdoms with estates. The prince continued his military service under Mikhail Romanov. He was engaged in tax collection, was a diplomat, and then headed the Judgment Order.
Death[]
Dmitry Mikhailovich died on April 30, 1642, at the age of 64. The exact cause of death could not be determined. He was buried in the ancestral tomb of the Spaso-Euphemia Monastery in the city of Suzdal. In 1765-1766, the ancestral tomb of the Pozharskys was destroyed due to its dilapidation.
This happened because of the suppression of the family of princes. In 1851, the archaeologist Count Uvarov found a crypt and tombs. Later in 1885, a marble mausoleum was built over them. But in 1933 it was dismantled again, now by order of the Soviet authorities. The next archaeological excavations, which took place in 2008, showed that the tomb of the Grand Duke Pozharsky somehow miraculously survived. And in 2009, the marble mausoleum was restored.