The famous Uglich case was associated with the mysterious death of Dmitry Ioannovich - the son of Ivan the Terrible. This event became a prologue to the Time of Troubles in Russia of the XVII century.
Personality of Tsarevich Dmitry
To understand the essence of the Uglich case, one shouldlook at the pedigree of the last Rurik. Tsar John the Terrible had three sons - Ivan, Fyodor and Dmitry. The eldest was the heir and closest assistant to the monarch. But Ivan died from the hand of his father, who was in a fit of anger.
So Fedor became the heir.In 1584, Grozny died, and the title of king passed to his successor. However, Fedor did not have children. His only daughter died in infancy. This meant that the next tsar was to be the last son of Ivan the Terrible Dmitry. He was much younger than Fedor. After the death of his father, the boy received the title of specific Uglich prince.
Death in Uglich
May 15, 1591, Prince Dmitry died tragically.He was only 8 years old. His lifeless body with a cut throat was found in the Uglich Kremlin, where the child had a residence. The son of Grozny lived with his mother, Maria Nagaya. When Fyodor sent them to a specific princedom, he also assigned them to the court of the Moscow clerk Mikhail Bityagovsky. This grandee was supposed to perform supervisory functions and report suspicious events related to Dmitry to the capital.
Witnesses of the death of the prince was not.When the rumor of unhappiness spread through the city, a violent crowd of local residents rushed into the Kremlin and tore Bityagovsky away. In Uglich, people sent from Moscow were suspicious. Maria Nagaya believed that these henchmen were spying for Boris Godunov.
Suspicions of Godunov
Boris Godunov was the brother-in-law of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich.By origin, he belonged to the noble noble family. Godunov was able to rise thanks to Ivan the Terrible's good attitude towards him. His position became even more serious when Fyodor married Irina Godunova.
The king had no children, which exacerbated the issueinheritance. If Dmitry had not died at an early age, he would have become the next monarch. Now there was no heir. When Fyodor is close to death in seven years, he will hand over the throne to his brother-in-law. The king had a weak temper and health. He depended on Godunov and always listened to his opinion.
It is therefore not surprising that rumors circulated in Moscowthat Boris wants to become a legitimate heir. They knew about it in Uglich. In the capital, it was decided to organize a commission that would conduct a detailed investigation of the disaster. It was then that the authorities formulated the essence of the Uglich case. Fyodor wanted to divert suspicion from his brother-in-law, whom many accused of killing the prince.
Shuisky Commission
The commission sent to Uglich included the famousMoscow boyars who enjoyed the trust of the court. The head of the investigation was put Vasily Shuisky. Ironically, in fifteen years he will become king. In 1591, he went to Uglich. Boyar supervised the interrogation of more than 150 people, one way or another connected with the incident.
The investigation was complicated by the fact that immediately afteras Tsarevich Dmitri was found dead, riots broke out in the city. The first were interrogated by the townspeople and yard people who participated in the massacre of Bityagovsky. Shuisky understood the essence of the Uglich case and how important it was for the court. Therefore, the nobleman did not miss a single detail and not a single witness. That commission is also known for the fact that its investigation was the earliest in the history of Russia, whose protocol and materials have survived to our time in its original form. Thanks to this happy coincidence, modern historians have been able to restore the picture of what happened in Uglich in 1591.
The court's decision
After several weeks of work in Uglich commissionShuisky returned to Moscow. Boyarin presented a report on the investigation carried out personally to Tsar Fedor. Then came the court, which was presided over by Patriarch Job. Shuisky provided oral witness testimony that the people of Godunov, who were in Uglich, were not involved in the murder.
Maria Nagoy’s statement was also read there.She understood the essence of the Uglich case, but, nevertheless, despite the early accusations of Godunov, she abandoned her claims. She admitted that killing a crowd of local residents of Bityagovsky was a mistake. Nude asked for mercy for herself and her brothers.
By decision of the authorities, Maria was tonsured as a nun.Her relatives were exiled. The most active instigators of the riots in Uglich were executed. In Moscow, announced that the death of Dmitry was due to an accident. Name Godunov was formally free from suspicion.
The consequences of the Uglich case affected in 1605.Then, thanks to a military invasion, an impostor came to power, pretending to be a deceased prince. In history, he was remembered as a False Dmitry. A “re-investigation” was conducted. Shuisky again testified and completely changed them. Now in the attempted murder, Godunov, who had already been in the grave by this time, was accused. The same version was followed by the Romanovs. One way or another, but the repeated process did not help the impostor much. A false Dmitry was killed during a popular uprising in Moscow in 1606.
