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Three stages of the formation of the Russian centralized state. Formation of the Russian centralized state. Occupation of Rus' leads to the rise of the church

The process of Russian education centralized state began in the second half of the 13th century and ended at the beginning of the 16th century.

Certain economic, social, political and spiritual prerequisites led to the formation of the Russian centralized state:

The main economic reason is the further development of feudal relations.

Features of the formation of the Russian centralized state:

1. The absence in Rus' of sufficient socio-economic prerequisites for the formation of a single state.

2. The leading role in the formation of the state is the foreign policy factor.

3. East style political activity.

Stages of political unification in Rus':

Stage 1- end of the XIII-first half of the XIV century - strengthening Moscow Principality and the beginning of the unification of Russian lands led by Moscow.

The Rise of Moscow

The first "senior prince" to receive the label from Batu, became Alexander Nevskiy. Alexander Nevsky skillfully pursued the policy of the Mongol-Tatars, especially in matters of collecting tribute, suppressing by force the actions of other appanage princes who were dissatisfied with his policies. Khan Batu also contributed in every possible way to strengthening the sole power of Alexander Nevsky as the sole Grand Duke of Rus' and protege Golden Horde .

After the death of Alexander Nevsky in 1263. The process of centralization of Russian lands went through:

Transformation of the label for the great reign from elective to hereditary and its gradual assignment to the descendants of Alexander Nevsky

The rise of Moscow, where the descendants of Alexander Nevsky reigned

The gradual expansion of Moscow, the inclusion of other appanage principalities in the Moscow Principality led by the descendants of Alexander Nevsky

Transformation of the appanage Moscow principality into Moscow State, dominating all the principalities of northeastern Rus'.

The first mentions of Moscow date back to 1147. The founder of Moscow is considered to be the Kyiv prince Yury Dolgoruky, who founded the city on the land of the boyar Kuchka.
In 1276 The son of Alexander Nevsky, the Moscow appanage prince Daniil Aleksanrovich, received from the Mongol-Tatars a label for the great reign and Moscow became one of the political centers.


Rise of the Moscow Principality

Moscow, which was a small point of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality before the Mongol-Tatar invasion, at the beginning of the 14th century. turns into an important political center of the time.

Reasons for the rise of Moscow:

1). Moscow occupied a geographically advantageous central position among the Russian lands.

2). Moscow was a center of developed crafts, agricultural production and trade.

3). Moscow turned out to be an important hub for land and waterways, serving both for trade and military operations.

4). The rise of Moscow is also explained by the purposeful, flexible policy of the Moscow princes, who managed to win over not only other Russian principalities, but also the church.

Moscow's position strengthened even more under the son of Daniil Alexandrovich and grandson of Alexander Nevsky - Ivan Danilovich, nicknamed Kalita. (money bag), which received the label for the great reign in 1325.

Ivan 1 Danilovich (Ivan Kalita) - grandson of Alexander Nevsky, who reigned in 1325-1340:

He was the best collector of tribute for the Golden Horde;

At the head of the Golden Horde army, he brutally suppressed the anti-Horde uprising in Tver, Moscow’s main rival for supremacy in Rus';

He earned the full trust of the Mongol-Tatar khans, who assisted him in every possible way in subjugating other appanage princes;

He obtained from the Mongol-Tatars the label for a great reign on the hereditary principle - for the branch of Alexander Nevsky of the Rurik dynasty (in fact, with the assistance of the Mongol-Tatars and under their authority, the formation of the ruling Russian dynasty began);

He went down in history as one of the first “gatherers of Russian lands” (he bought neighboring lands for money and increased the territory of the Moscow principality 5 times);

He received part of the lands (Kostroma) from the Mongol-Tatars for faithful service;

Convinced Metropolitan Peter of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1325. move from Tver to Moscow, as a result of which Moscow became the center of Russian Orthodoxy and the spiritual center of the Russian lands.

Stage 2- second half of the XIV-early XV centuries - successful development the process of unification and emergence of elements of a single state.

Ivan Kalita's policy - winning the trust of the Mongols, strengthening the power of the Moscow prince, expanding the Moscow principality - was continued by the sons of Ivan Kalita:

Simeon Ivanovich ( Simeon the Proud) - 1340-1353

Ivan II Ivanovich ( Ivan Krasny) - 1353-1359

During the reign of Dmitry Donskoy (1359-1389), the balance of power in Rus' changed in favor of Moscow

This process was facilitated by the following:

In just two years, the impregnable white-stone Moscow Kremlin (1364) was built - the only stone fortress on the territory of north-eastern Rus';

Claims to all-Russian leadership defeated Nizhny Novgorod, Tver, the campaigns of the Lithuanian prince Olgerd are reflected;

For the first time, military clashes began between the Principality of Moscow and the Golden Horde - the battle on the river. Vozhe - 1378

The sharp change in relations between Russia and the Golden Horde had an external impetus:

In the 137s. hordes of nomads (including Tamerlane from Central Asia) began to attack the Golden Horde from the south, as a result of which Golden Horde weakened several times;

Within the Horde there was a leapfrog of khans, strife among the top of the Mongol-Tatars led to the collapse of the Golden Horde and the beginning of the formation of Tatar appanage principalities.

The grandson of Ivan Kalita, Moscow prince Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy, took advantage of the political situation that arose and became the first prince to try to overthrow the Mongol-Tatar yoke. In 1376 For the first time in history, he refused to pay tribute to the Horde, and in 1377. forced the newly created Kazan Khanate to pay tribute to the Moscow principality. To pacify Rus' in 1378. An army led by military leader Begich was sent from the Golden Horde. During the Battle of the Vozha River, the Russian army defeated Begich's army.

By 1380 situation in the Horde stabilized by the military leader Mamai, who established his dictatorship in the Horde. Wanting to curb the rebellious Rus', Mamai gathered an international army and together with it invaded Russian lands. In response, Dmitry Ivanovich created an all-Russian army, which included both the army of the Moscow principality and the troops of other principalities. For the first time in several centuries, Russian troops presented a united front. September 7-8, 1380 On the Kulikovo field in the upper reaches of the Don, a battle took place between the armies of Mamai and Dmitry.

Battle of Kulikovo showed the power and strength of Moscow as a political and economic center - the organizer of the struggle to overthrow the Golden Horde yoke and unify the Russian lands. Thanks to the Kulikovo victory, the size of the tribute was reduced. Residents from different Russian lands and cities came to the Kulikovo field - but they returned from the battle as the Russian people. Before his death, Dmitry Donskoy transferred the Great Reign of Vladimir to his son Vasily (1389-1425) in his will as the “fatherland” of the Moscow princes, without asking for the right to a label in the Horde. There was a merger of the Grand Duchy of Vladimir and Moscow.

As a result of the Battle of Kulikovo, Mamai’s army was defeated, and Rus', 140 years after Batu’s invasion, overthrew the Mongol-Tatar yoke for 2 years.
In 1382 the Mongol-Tatar yoke was restored. Khan Tokhtamysh, who overthrew Mamai and restored the unity of the Golden Horde, invaded Rus', burned Moscow and forced the Principality of Moscow to pay tribute again after a 5-year break.

Stage 3- second quarter of the 15th century: feudal war - 1431-1453. Civil war of the second quarter of the 15th century.

The feuds, called the feudal war of the second quarter of the 15th century, began after the death of Vasily I. By the end of the 14th century. In the Moscow principality, several appanage estates were formed, belonging to the sons of Dmitry Donskoy. The largest of them were Galitskoye and Zvenigorodskoye, which were received by the youngest son of Dmitry Donskoy, Yuri. After the death of the Grand Duke, Yuri, as the eldest in the princely family, began the struggle for the Grand Duke's throne with his nephew, Vasily II (1425-1462).

After the death of Yuri, the fight was continued by his sons - Vasily Kosoy and Dmitry Shemyaka. The feudal war ended with the victory of the forces of centralization. By the end of the reign of Vasily II, the possessions of the Moscow principality increased 30 times compared to the beginning of the 14th century. The Moscow Principality included Murom (1343), Nizhny Novgorod (1393) and a number of lands on the outskirts of Rus'.

Stage 4- second half of the 15th - beginning of the 16th century: the formation of a single centralized state.

The Russian centralized state developed in the northeastern and northwestern lands of Kievan Rus, its southern and southwestern lands were included in Poland, Lithuania, and Hungary. Its formation was accelerated by the need to fight external dangers, especially the Golden Horde, and subsequently the Kazan, Crimean, Siberian, Astrakhan, Kazan khanates, Lithuania and Poland. The Mongol-Tatar invasion and the Golden Horde yoke slowed down the socio-economic development of Russian lands. The formation of a single state in Russia took place under complete domination traditional way the economy of Russia is on a feudal basis. The completion of the process of unifying the Russian lands around Moscow into a centralized state occurred during the reign of Ivan III (1462-1505) and Vasily III (1505-1533).
1. Ivan III (1462-1505)

Blind Father Vasily II early made his son Ivan III co-ruler of the state. Ivan III was the first to accept the title of “Sovereign of All Rus'”. Under him, the double-headed eagle became the emblem of our state. Under him, the red brick Moscow Kremlin, which has survived to this day, was erected. Under him, the Golden Horde yoke was finally overthrown. Under him in 1497 The first Code of Law was created, and national governing bodies of the country began to be formed. Under him, in the newly built Palace of Facets, ambassadors were received not from neighboring Russian principalities, but from the Pope, the German Emperor, and the Polish King. Under him, the term Russia began to be used in relation to our state.

Ivan III, relying on the power of Moscow, it was possible to complete the unification of northeastern Rus' almost bloodlessly. In 1468, the Yaroslavl principality was finally annexed, whose princes became service princes of Ivan III. In 1472, the annexation of Perm the Great began. Vasily II the Dark bought half of the Rostov principality, and in 1474 Ivan III acquired the remaining part. Finally, Tver, surrounded by Moscow lands, passed to Moscow in 1485 after its boyars took the oath of allegiance to Ivan III. In 1489, the Vyatka land, which was important in commercial terms, became part of the state. In Novgorod in 1410, a reform of the posadnik administration took place: the oligarchic power of the boyars strengthened.

Vasily the Dark in 1456. established that the prince is the highest court in Novgorod (Yazhelbitsky peace). Fearing the loss of their privileges in the event of subordination to Moscow, part of the Novgorod boyars, led by the mayor Martha Boretskaya, entered into an agreement on the vassal dependence of Novgorod on Lithuania. Having learned about the agreement between the boyars and Lithuania, Ivan III took decisive measures to subjugate Novgorod. Novgorod was finally annexed to Moscow seven years later, in 1478. The veche bell was taken from the city to Moscow. The annexation of the Novgorod, Vyatka and Perm lands with the non-Russian peoples of the north and northeast living here to Moscow expanded the multinational composition of the Russian state.

The Moscow state was gaining strength and international authority. Ivan III married Sophia Paleolog, niece last emperor Byzantium. Therefore, the young Moscow state was declared the political and spiritual successor of Byzantium.

This was expressed both in the slogan: “Moscow is the third Rome” and in the borrowing of Byzantine symbols and symbols of power:

The coat of arms of Byzantium - a double-headed eagle was taken as the coat of arms of the newly formed Russian (Moscow) state

Gradually, a new name for the country was borrowed from Byzantium - Russia.

Russian Byzantine symbols of power such as the scepter and cap of Monomakh.

Vasily III(1505-1533) annexed to Moscow:

Pskov 1510;

Grand Duchy of Ryazan 1517;

Principalities of Starodub and Novgorod - Seversk 1517-1523;

Smolensk 1514

Vasily III actually completed the unification of Great Russia and turned the Principality of Moscow into a national state.

The Russian centralized state developed in XIV–XVI centuries

Groups of prerequisites for the formation of a Russian centralized state.

1. Economic background: by the beginning of the 14th century. In Rus', after the Tatar-Mongol invasion, economic life was gradually revived and developed, which became the economic basis for the struggle for unification and independence. Cities were also restored, residents returned to their homes, cultivated the land, engaged in crafts, and established trade relations. Novgorod contributed a lot to this.

2. Social preconditions: by the end of the 14th century. The economic situation in Rus' has already completely stabilized. Against this background, late feudal characteristics develop, and the dependence of peasants on large landowners increases. At the same time, peasant resistance also increases, which reveals the need for a strong centralized government.

3. Political background, which in turn are divided into internal and foreign policy:

1) internal: in the XIV–XVI centuries. The power of the Moscow Principality increases and expands significantly. Its princes build a state apparatus to strengthen their power;

2) foreign policy: the main foreign policy task of Rus' was the need to overthrow the Tatar-Mongol yoke, which hindered the development of the Russian state. The restoration of the independence of Rus' required universal unification against a single enemy: the Mongols from the south, Lithuania and the Swedes from the west.

One of the political prerequisites for the formation of a unified Russian state was union Orthodox Church and the Catholic Western Church, signed by the Byzantine-Constantinople patriarch. Russia became the only Orthodox state that simultaneously united all the principalities of Rus'.

The unification of Rus' took place around Moscow.

The reasons for the rise of Moscow are:

1) favorable geographical and economic position;

2) Moscow was independent in foreign policy, it did not gravitate towards either Lithuania or the Horde, therefore it became the center of the national liberation struggle;

3) support for Moscow from the largest Russian cities (Kostroma, Nizhny Novgorod, etc.);

4) Moscow is the center of Orthodoxy in Rus';

5) the absence of internal hostility among the princes of the Moscow house.

Features of the association:

1) the unification of Russian lands did not take place under the conditions of late feudalism, as in Europe, but under the conditions of its heyday;

2) the basis for unification in Rus' was the union of Moscow princes, and in Europe - the urban bourgeoisie;

3) Rus' united initially for political reasons, and then for economic ones, while European states united primarily for economic reasons.


The unification of Russian lands took place under the leadership of the Prince of Moscow. He was the first to become Tsar of All Rus'. IN 1478 After the unification of Novgorod and Moscow, Rus' was finally freed from the yoke. In 1485, Tver, Ryazan, etc. joined the Moscow state.

Now the appanage princes were controlled by proteges from Moscow. The Moscow prince becomes the highest judge, he considers especially important cases.

The Principality of Moscow creates for the first time new class nobles(service people), they were soldiers of the Grand Duke who were awarded land on the terms of service.

Overcoming feudal fragmentation and the creation of centralized states is a natural process of development of feudalism, which was based primarily on socio-economic factors:

the growth of feudal land ownership and the inclusion of the feudal economy in trade relations;

the emergence of new and strengthening of old cities - centers of trade and craft;

expansion of economic ties and commodity-money relations.

Changes in the socio-economic order inevitably led to more intensive exploitation of the peasants and their enslavement. The intensification of the class struggle required the ruling classes to carry out political reforms that could help strengthen their power.

The strengthening of economic ties, as well as the intensification of the Class struggle, required the organization of administration, courts, and collection of taxes; and new ones: the creation of roads, postal services, etc. A politically important point in the process of centralization could be the need for protection from external enemies.

The process of creating a Russian neutralized state is in many ways identical to the general patterns historical development feudal state, but it also had its own characteristics.

The prerequisites for the elimination of feudal fragmentation in Rus' were outlined in the 13th century, especially in the northeast, in the Vladimir principality. However, further development of Russian lands was interrupted Mongol conquest, which caused great damage to the Russian people and significantly slowed down their progress. Only in the 14th century did the Russian principalities begin to gradually revive: agricultural production was restored, cities were rebuilt, new trade and craft centers emerged, and economic ties were strengthened. Great importance acquired Moscow, the Moscow Principality, territory . which was constantly (since the 111th century) expanding.

The process of formation of a unified Russian state was expressed, firstly, in unification of territories previously independent states-principals into one - the Moscow Grand Duchy; and secondly, in changing the very nature of statehood, in transformation political organization society.

The unification of lands around Moscow and the Moscow Principality begins at the end of the 13th century. and ends at the end of the 15th century. - early 16th century At this time, the Novgorod Republic and Pskov, the Ryazan Principality, Smolensk and others were annexed to Moscow. Ivan III and his son Vasily III - the Grand Dukes of Moscow - began to call themselves “sovereigns of all Russia”.

As the unified state took shape, its character also changed. Determined in the second half of the 15th century. - early 16th century the processes of change in the political system were not completed, however, simultaneously with the unification of the lands of the Russian state. The political apparatus of the centralized state was fully formed only in the second half of the 16th century. At the end of the 15th century. The first code of law was adopted in 1497.


Introduction 2

1 Prerequisites and features of the formation of the Russian centralized state 4

2 Social order 7

3 Political system and development of law 10

Conclusion 16

List of sources used 17

Introduction

One of the first reasons for the formation of the Russian centralized state is the strengthening of economic ties between Russian lands. This process was caused by the general economic development of the country. First of all, agriculture developed strongly. The slash system and fallow land are being replaced by another method of cultivating the land - the arable system, which requires more advanced production tools. There is an increase in sown areas due to the development of new and previously abandoned lands. Surpluses appear, which contributes to the development of livestock farming, as well as trade, which begins to progress during this period. Crafts are developing, as agriculture needs more and more tools. There is a process of separation of craft from Agriculture, which entails the need for exchange between the peasant and the artisan, that is, between the city and the village. Everywhere there is not only an improvement in old technologies, but also the emergence of new ones. In ore production, there is a separation of mining and smelting of ore from its subsequent processing. In the leather industry, in addition to shoemakers, such professions as belt makers, bag makers, chebotari, and bridle makers appear. In the 14th century, water wheels and water mills became widespread in Rus', and parchment began to be actively replaced by paper.

All this urgently required the unification of Russian lands, that is, the creation of a centralized state. A large part of the population was interested in this, and, above all, the nobility, merchants and artisans.

Another prerequisite for the unification of Russian lands was the intensification of the class struggle. During this period, the exploitation of the peasantry by feudal lords intensified. The process of enslaving the peasants begins. Feudal lords strive to secure peasants in their fiefdoms and estates not only economically, but also legally. All this contributes to the resistance of the peasants. They kill feudal lords, rob and set fire to their estates, and sometimes simply run away to lands free from the landowners.

The feudal lords were faced with the task of taming the peasantry and completing their enslavement. This task could only be solved by a powerful centralized state, capable of fulfilling the main function of the exploiting state - suppressing the resistance of the exploited masses.

The two reasons listed above played, of course, an important role in the process of unification of the Russian lands, but there was also a third factor that accelerated the centralization of the Russian state, the threat of an external attack, which forced the Russian lands to gather into one powerful fist. The main external enemies during this period were the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Golden Horde. But only after the individual principalities began to unite around Moscow did the defeat of the Mongol-Tatars on the Kulikovo Field become possible. And when Ivan III united almost all Russian lands, the Tatar yoke was finally overthrown. Moscow and other princes, Novgorod and Pskov fought with Lithuania 17 times. Lithuania constantly attacked the Novgorod and Pskov lands, which also contributed to the unification of these principalities with the Moscow one. The struggle for the annexation of the western and southwestern lands of Ancient Rus' to the Moscow state led to the protracted Lithuanian-Moscow war of 1487-1494. According to the treaty of 1494, Moscow received the Vyazemsky principality and territory in the upper Oka basin.

The broad masses of the people were interested in the formation of a single centralized state, because only it could cope with the external enemy. 1

1 Prerequisites and features of the formation of the Russian centralized state

From the beginning of the 14th century. The fragmentation of Russian principalities ceases, giving way to their unification. The creation of the Russian centralized state was caused primarily by the strengthening of economic ties between Russian lands, which was a consequence of the general economic development of the country.

The starting point in the development of the feudal economy was the progress of agriculture. Agricultural production is characterized in this period by the increasing spread of the arable system, which is becoming the predominant method of land cultivation in the central regions of the country. The arable system is noticeably replacing the cutting system, which is widespread mainly in northern forest areas, and the fallow system, which is still dominant in the south.

The increasing need for agricultural implements necessitates the development of crafts. As a result, the process of separating crafts from agriculture goes deeper and deeper. The number of artisans who have stopped farming is increasing.

The separation of crafts from agriculture entails the need for exchange between the peasant and the artisan, i.e. between city and countryside. This exchange takes place in the form of trade, which intensifies accordingly during this period. Local markets are created on the basis of such exchange. The natural division of labor between individual regions of the country, due to their natural features, forms economic ties throughout Rus'. The development of foreign trade also contributed to the establishment of internal economic ties.

All this urgently required the political unification of the Russian lands, i.e. creation of a centralized state. Wide circles of Russian society, primarily the nobility, merchants and artisans, were interested in this.

Another prerequisite for the unification of the Russian lands was the intensification of the class struggle, the strengthening of the class resistance of the peasantry.

The rise of the economy and the opportunity to obtain an ever-increasing surplus product encourage the feudal lords to intensify the exploitation of the peasants. Moreover, the feudal lords strive not only economically, but also legally to secure the peasants in their estates and estates, to enslave them. Such a policy causes natural resistance from the peasantry, which takes on various forms. Peasants kill feudal lords, seize their property, and set fire to their estates. Such a fate often befalls not only secular, but also spiritual feudal lords - monasteries. Robbery directed against the masters was sometimes a form of class struggle. The flight of peasants, especially to the south, to lands free from landowners, is also taking on certain proportions.

In such conditions, the feudal class was faced with the task of keeping the peasantry in check and completing its enslavement. This task could only be solved by a powerful centralized state, capable of fulfilling the main function of the exploiting state - suppressing the resistance of the exploited masses.

These two reasons played a leading role in the unification of Rus'. Without them, the centralization process could not have achieved any significant success. At the same time, economic and social development countries in the XIV - XVI centuries. could not yet lead to the formation of a centralized state.

Although economic ties during this period achieved significant development, they were still not broad, deep and strong enough to bind the entire country together. This is one of the differences between the formation of the Russian centralized state and similar processes in Western Europe. There, centralized states were created in the course of the development of capitalist relations. In Rus' in the XIV - XVI centuries. There could still be no talk of the emergence of capitalism or bourgeois relations.

The same should be said about the development of class relations and class struggle. No matter how great its scope was in this period, this struggle did not acquire the forms that it had already in the West or at a later time in Russia (peasant wars under the leadership of Bolotnikov, Razin in the 17th century. Even at the beginning of the 16th century. characterized by a predominantly outwardly imperceptible, hidden accumulation of class contradictions.

The factor that accelerated the centralization of the Russian state was the threat of an external attack, which forced the Russian lands to unite in the face of a common enemy. It is characteristic that when the formation of the Russian centralized state began, the defeat of the Mongol-Tatars on the Kulikovo Field became possible. And when Ivan III managed to gather almost all the Russian lands and lead them against the enemy, the Tatar yoke was finally overthrown.

It is known that only a powerful centralized state can cope with an external enemy. Therefore, quite a wide mass of people were interested in its education.

The Russian centralized state was formed around Moscow, which was destined to eventually become the capital of a great power. This role of Moscow, a relatively young city, was determined primarily by its economic and geographical position. Moscow arose in the then center of Russian lands, due to which it was better protected from external enemies than other principalities. It stood at the crossroads of river and land trade routes.

Having emerged as a city in the 12th century, Moscow was not initially the center of a special principality. Only from time to time it was given as an inheritance to the younger sons of the Rostov-Suzdal princes. Only from the end of the 13th century. Moscow becomes the capital city of an independent principality with a permanent prince. The first such prince was the son of the famous hero of the Russian land Alexander Nevsky - Daniel. Under him at the end of the XIII - beginning of the XIV centuries. The unification of Russian lands began, successfully continued by his successors. Pursuing a line towards the unification of the Russian principalities, the Moscow princes bought up the lands of neighboring principalities, seized them at the opportunity by armed force, often using the Golden Horde for this, annexed them diplomatically, concluded treaties with weakened appanage princes, making them their vassals. The territory of the Moscow Principality also expanded due to the settlement of the Upper Trans-Volga region.

The foundation of Moscow's power was laid under Daniel's second son, Ivan Kalita (1325-1340). Under him, the collection of Russian lands continued. Ivan Kalita managed to obtain from the Tatars a label for a great reign, and acquired the right to collect tribute for the Tatars from all or almost all Russian principalities that retained their independence. This situation was used by the Moscow princes in order to gradually subjugate these principalities. Thanks to the flexible foreign policy of the Moscow princes, they managed to ensure peace in Rus' for several decades. Moscow also became the center of the Orthodox Church in 1326. The metropolitan see was transferred to it from Vladimir. Expanding the territory of the Moscow state, the great princes turned their appanages into simple fiefdoms. Appanage princes ceased to be sovereigns in their appanages and were equated with boyars, that is, they became subjects of the Grand Duke of Moscow. They could no longer conduct independent domestic and foreign policies.

By the end of the 14th century. The Moscow principality became so strong that it was able to begin the struggle for liberation from the Mongol-Tatar yoke. The first crushing blows were dealt to the Horde, the most significant of which was the victory of Russian troops under the command of Prince Dmitry Donskoy on the Kulikovo Field. Under Ivan III, the unification of Russian lands entered its final phase. The most important lands were annexed to Moscow - Novgorod the Great, Tver, part of the Ryazan principality, Russian lands along the Desna. In 1480 After the famous “standing on the Ugra”, Rus' was finally freed from the Tatar yoke. The process of unification of Russian lands was completed at the beginning of the 16th century. Prince Vasily III annexed the second half of the Ryazan principality, Pskov, to Moscow, and liberated Smolensk from Lithuanian rule.

Having won the struggle for the great reign in Rus', the Moscow princes continued their efforts to unite the lands around Moscow. The reign of Ivan the 3rd (1462-1505) accelerated this process. In 1463, pursuing a unification policy, he annexed the Yaroslavl principality.

The Tver Principality and the Novgorod Republic offered active resistance to the unification. To maintain independence, the Novgorod boyars entered into an alliance with Lithuania and found themselves under the partial authority of the Lithuanian prince Casimir 4th.

In 1471, Ivan the 3rd led an army to Novgorod and in the battle on the river. Sheloni achieved victory. To completely conquer Novgorod, a second campaign was needed. In 1478, Ivan the 3rd finally conquered the city (after withstanding the siege) and deprived it of independence by abolishing the organs local government and the liquidation of symbols of independence (the Novgorod veche bell was taken to Moscow). With the fall of Novgorod, all of its vast territories came into the possession of Moscow.

In 1472 he was conquered Perm region. In 1474, the Rostov Principality was redeemed. In 1485, Ivan the 3rd, at the head of a large army, approached Tver and took the city in two days without losses, taking advantage of the betrayal of the Tver boyars. Grand Duke Mikhailo Borisovich fled to Lithuania.

Having annexed Tver, Ivan the 3rd created a unified state and began to title himself the sovereign of all Rus'.

In the middle of the 15th century. broke up into several independent khanates. Ivan the 3rd began to behave towards them as an independent sovereign. He stopped paying the ransom and created an alliance with the enemy of the Golden Horde - the Crimean Khan.

The Golden Horde Khan Akhmat tried to restore his power over Russia. In 1480, having concluded an alliance with the Grand Duke of Lithuania and the Polish King Casimir 4th, he led his troops to Moscow.

It all ended in a confrontation between Russian and Tatar troops on the river. Eel.

Without waiting for his allies, Akhmat did not dare to start a battle and in November 1480 was forced to retreat. This meant the final fall of the Mongol-Tatar yoke, which had weighed on Russia for more than two centuries.

Ivan the 3rd sought to further expand the state. In 1487, Kazan recognized its dependence on Moscow. By the end of the 15th century. The state includes territories in the northeast. Ivan the 3rd conquers a number of Belarusian and Ukrainian lands from Lithuania and Poland.

The unification policy was continued by the son of Ivan the 3rd, Vasily the 3rd. In 1503, having destroyed the Pskov feudal republic, he annexed Pskov. In 1514 he recaptured Smolensk from Lithuania. In 1517-1523 Vasily the 3rd took Chernigov and the Ryazan principality.

The process of formation of a single state involved significant internal socio-economic and political changes. This was expressed in the formation of a regime of class-representative monarchy, in which the autocracy is supported by various classes, primarily the nobility, townspeople and the top of the capital's boyars, interested in the creation of a state and the presence of a strong central government in it.

The years of the reign of Ivan the 3rd are characterized by changes in government bodies. becomes the supreme advisory body, institutions are created in charge of various spheres of state life, the first orders are issued, governors are involved in local administration and are supported at the expense of the territory they govern.

In 1497, a set of laws was published, the first code of the Russian state, which established unified system government controlled and regulated the activities of government bodies. The Code of Law set a deadline for peasant transitions (once a year, on St. George’s Day) and payment for the use of the yard. The law limited the freedom of peasants and tied them to the land.

During the reign of Ivan the 3rd and Vasily the 3rd (1505-1533), the process of unification of Russian lands was completed and the strengthening of Russian statehood continued.

The centralization of Russian lands included two processes:

1) the unification of Russian lands around a new center - Moscow;

2) creation of a centralized state apparatus and power structure in the Moscow state.

The system of suzerain-vassal relations has changed (princes become vassals of the Moscow prince), a system of feudal ranks and a hierarchy of court ranks are emerging; the principle of localism is formed (government positions are given depending on the candidate’s birthplace); a class of nobles was formed, the church became a serious political force, concentrating significant land holdings and determining the ideology of the state (the ideas of Moscow - the Third Rome, etc.).

The Russian centralized state emerged in the XIV-XVI centuries.

Prerequisites for the formation of a Russian centralized state:

    economic - the intensity of development of agricultural production, the growth of feudal land ownership and the inclusion of feudal economy in trade, the emergence of new cities - centers of trade and craft, the expansion of economic ties and commodity-money relations;

    social - the dependence of peasants on large landowners increases, and at the same time the resistance of peasants grows, the need for a strong centralized government is revealed;

    political:

1) internal - in the XIV-XVI centuries. the Moscow princes are building a state apparatus to strengthen their power, the power of the Moscow principality is significantly increasing and expanding;

2) foreign policy - the overthrow of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, which hindered the development of the Russian state and the restoration of the independence of Russia. This required a general unification against the Mongols from the south and the Lithuanians and Swedes from the west.

The unification of lands around Moscow and the Moscow Principality occurred from the end of the 13th to the beginning of the 16th century. Reasons for strengthening the role of Moscow:

  • successful economic and geographical location;
  • Moscow was isolated from foreign policy and became the center of the national liberation struggle;
  • it was supported by the largest Russian cities - Kostroma, Nizhny Novgorod;
  • Moscow was the center of Orthodoxy in Rus';
  • absence of internal struggle for the throne among the Moscow nobility.

Features of the unification of Russian lands into the Moscow Principality:

  • in Rus', unification took place during the heyday of feudalism, and in Europe - during its weakening;
  • the union of the Moscow princes served as the basis for unification into the Moscow state; in Europe, the bourgeoisie became this base for unification;
  • Initially, the reasons for the unification of Rus' were political reasons, while European states united for economic reasons.

The Moscow prince became the first Russian tsar, under whose leadership the unification of Russian lands took place. In 1478, after the unification of Novgorod and Moscow, Rus' was finally freed from the yoke. In 1485, a number of other lands joined the Moscow state - Tver, Ryazan, etc.

The appanage princes were controlled by proteges from Moscow. The Moscow prince becomes the highest judge and considers important cases.