Tatishchev biography. Statesman Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev

Obviously, there is some kind of life-giving, blessed force in a picturesque corner of the Moscow region, the village of Boldino, which gave refuge to many Russian husbands in the days of disgrace. Among them, Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev is a Russian statesman, historian, geographer, economist, and industrialist. Although his name is best known as the author of the first monumental work on the history of Russia.

Brief biography of Tatishchev

Vasily Nikitich was born on April 19, 1686 in the Pskov district, on his father’s estate. The Tatishchev family descended from the younger branch of the Smolensk princes, and were considered, although seedy, to be Rurikovichs. Starting from the age of seven, he served as a steward at the court of Tsar Ivan Alekseevich, co-ruler of Tsar Peter I. After enrolling in military service With the rank of lieutenant, he participates in the battle of Poltava.

From 1712 to 1716 he went to Germany to improve his education and studied engineering. Thanks to his trusting relationship with Jacob Bruce, he carries out his personal assignments and falls into the circle of nobles close to Peter I. After the end of the Northern War, he serves in St. Petersburg under the command of Bruce. In 1714, Tatishchev married Avdotya Vasilievna Andreevskaya.

Tatishchev - industrialist and economist

Tatishchev dreams of taking up cartography of Russian lands, but instead he is sent to the Siberian provinces to find convenient places for the construction of ore processing plants. Vasily Nikitich approached the appointment thoroughly and conscientiously. Thanks to him, the cities of Yekaterinburg and Perm were founded, and mail was organized between Vyatka and Kungur.

At the factories, he opened schools for teaching literacy and mining, drew up instructions for preserving forests, and paved a new road from the factory to the pier on Chusovaya. In his activities, he acted as a zealous statesman, which caused the displeasure of the owners of Siberia - the Demidovs.

In 1724, Peter sent Tatishchev to Sweden. For two years he studies new products in mining, finds a lapidary master, studies the work of the Stockholm port, the coin system, and becomes close to many scientists. Tatishchev returned to Russia with an extensive baggage of scientific and practical materials. In 1827 he was appointed a member of the coin commission.

Tatishchev historian

But in addition to his main activities in the public service, Tatishchev begins to do what his descendants will honor and remember him for. He begins to write a grandiose historical work, “Russian History.” This was the first time I wrote national history. This idea was prompted by his pursuit of geographical research. Tatishchev led a very active life.

During his public service, he had to visit many territories; he had a mentality that was not only inquisitive, but also scientific. I was always inclined to understand the task at hand thoroughly. Obviously close relations with Bruce, an associate of Tsar Peter, gave him the idea to systematize the available information about the history of Russia.

His work was first published during the reign of Catherine II. “Russian History”, in the form of presentation of the material, resembles a chronicle. A strict chronology of events from ancient times to 1577 is observed. The system of division by periods is used for the first time. The author's main idea is that for the good of Russian society, for economic and political prosperity, Russia needs autocracy. The author makes this conclusion by analyzing historical materials. Economic prosperity always coincided with autocracy.

• Tatishchev's merit is that he opened for national science, describing in his work such documentary evidence as “Russian Truth”, “Code of Law” of Ivan the Terrible, “Book of the Big Drawing”.
• Due to misunderstandings with Biron, he was deprived of his rank and awards. Literally before his death, a courier brought him to Boldino a decree for his forgiveness and the Order of Alexander Nevsky, which Tatishchev returned, saying that he was dying. The next day, July 15, 1750, Tatishchev passed away.

A special place in the development of noble historiography was played by the works Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev (father of Russian history). He came from an old noble family of the Pskov province (Ostrovsky district). WITH youth He was in Peter’s inner circle, then graduated from the Mikhailovsky Artillery School, then completed his studies in Germany, and then again was in public service in Peter’s circle. In 1706 he was commissioned to write a geography of Russia. Tatishchev took it on, but realized that it was impossible to write geography without knowledge of history. He did not have time to finish this work, as he was sent as an engineer to the Urals, where he proved himself to be an administrator and an excellent business executive - he developed mining charter. He was put at the head of the expedition to organize the Orenburg region, he is considered the founder Orenburg.

He soon found himself in disgrace (the period of Bironovism) - he was removed from business and exiled to an estate near Moscow, where he worked actively. He was appointed Governor General of Astrakhan(he showed himself to be a capable official - he established trade turnover with Persia). In 1741 - again in disgrace. More on public service didn't come back . He was engaged in writing historical works. He died in 1745. After his death, a fire broke out on his estate near Moscow, destroying a large number of manuscripts.

The contribution of Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev to historical science

His views: rationalist. The main engine of progress is enlightened mind: “all actions are from the mind or from stupidity.” He was pragmatist and practicalist(convinced the reader of the benefits of knowing history). In his political views he was supporter of strong monarchical power. He distinguished several types of states: democratic, aristocratic, monarchical. Thought it was suitable for Russia only monarchy, because only she is able to maintain her greatness. His main work – Russian history since ancient times(total 5 volumes, presentation completed beforeXVIcentury) – the work was sent to the Academy of Sciences (that’s why it was preserved). Many called this work "Tatishchevsky chronicle code"(in presenting the material, he followed the chronicles). The author's reasoning cannot be traced in the text itself (it is only in the notes). His main place is political history. Tatishchev's merit is that he paid attention and small peoples of Russia(rarely who did this) - Sarmatians, etc. He devoted a lot of space to auxiliary historical disciplines - ethnography, chronology. He is rightfully considered the founder of TYPES.

In addition to this work, he wrote a number of works:

1) "Historical, geographical and political lexicon"(dictionary experience, sent to the Academy of Sciences, where it has not been published for more than 40 years)

2) "Acts of Peter the Great"

The Academy of Sciences (1725) also contributed to the development of science, but mainly foreign scientists (Germans) worked there. Many initially did not even know Russian - they wrote their works based on information from foreign sources and non-Russian authors. Their works were grossly distorted in a political sense.

The year of the 250th anniversary of the great historian Karamzin also marks the full birthday of his predecessor Tatishchev, about which modern historians, as in Karamzin’s time, argue fiercely until they become hoarse.

Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev was born 330 years ago, on April 29, 1686. Participant in the Battle of Poltava and younger contemporary of the first Russian Emperor, he was definitely one of the “chicks of Petrov’s nest” mentioned by Pushkin. And at the same time, its turbulent time, when the very difficult reign of Peter the Great was replaced by a motley and changeable “era” palace coups", managed to get ahead. For he found himself in many of his hobbies, and in the writing of history, too, along with the reign, which he, having died in 1750, did not see - with the time of Catherine II, an exceptionally enlightened empress.

And it is not for nothing that his “Russian History from Ancient Times” began to appear in print precisely in the years of Catherine, starting in 1768. The ideas of an enlightened reorganization of the world permeate Tatishchev’s entire biography, and from there his passionate interest in the past, which manifested itself already in 1710, when a young artilleryman in the vicinity of Korosten inspected the hill known as “Igor’s grave”; According to legend, it was there that the Kiev prince, who fell at the hands of the Drevlyans, was buried.

Vasily Nikitich began his passion for history on the advice of the famous Jacob Bruce at the end of the 1710s, but he took up his favorite work closely and systematically only after finding himself in disgrace 5 years before his death, in 1745. In his Boldino estate near Moscow, “Tatishchev was considered to be on trial, and a soldier of the Senate company was constantly standing at his door” - these are the conditions in which, as described by the historian Konstantin Bestuzhev-Ryumin, the founder of the scientific study of our history wrote so well.

Like many other discoverers, Tatishchev had many things not only “for the first time and again,” but also at the junction of eras and research styles. He had no predecessors at all, and it is not at all surprising that for many years he cherished history as favorite hobby, which he can do even with his truly workaholic efficiency only in fits and starts.

This statesman was known to his contemporaries only for his rather high positions: he managed to be the head of mining factories in the Urals, and the governor of the Orenburg region, and the governor of Astrakhan.

So was Tatishchev really a scientist-historian? The caustic Klyuchevsky called him a “practical businessman” who became “the first collector of materials for full history Russia." That is, Vasily Nikitich was stuck with Vasily Osipovich somewhere in the dressing room scientific history, but didn’t get into the steam room. In fact, all the signs of the erudition of Tatishchev’s studies are beyond doubt: the study of the past from sources, and good knowledge foreign languages, which he owned in the amount of ten, and the first work for Russian historians in foreign libraries and archives - this is exactly what our polyglot did during his official trip to Sweden in 1724-1726, after which he was the first to call Rus' Gardariki, and Novgorod - Holmgard .

And to Peter the Great in Danzig in 1716, he was able to explain very convincingly that the local magistrate was disingenuous, trying to “divorce” the tsar for a huge sum of 50 thousand rubles at that time and pass off a certain painting there as “The Last Judgment” as a work by the very enlightener of the Slavs Methodius.

Finally, Tatishchev very convincingly explained why history is a real full-fledged science, in contrast to “star casting,” that is, astrology, or “hand reading,” or palmistry. And this science is fundamentally deeply moral: “history is nothing other than the recollection of past deeds and adventures, good and evil, therefore everything that we have learned and remember before ancient or recent times through hearing, seeing or feeling is the very real story“, which teaches us either from our own or from other people’s deeds to be diligent about good and to beware of evil.”

The first Russian writer of scientific history knew very well what professional skills that persist to this day should look like. What is required of a “historical writer” is “reading and a solid memory, and also a clear mind,” but also knowledge of “all philosophy.” The historian is not only obliged to write from sources, but also to be able to select them, “so that just as a builder can distinguish good from unfit materials, rotten from healthy, so the writer of history must diligently examine so that fables are not mistaken for the truth and what is written is not mistaken for the real thing.” .

One must always treat the works of predecessors with partiality, because “even about the best ancient writer it is not unnecessary to know scientific criticism.” It is especially worth condemning the falsifiers of history, and you don’t need to look for them for a long time, they live nearby: “The Poles, boasting about themselves in antiquity and courage, are not ashamed to make up fables, and at the same time they do not skimp on involving others in this.”

But all these Tatishchev arguments are from the field of theory, but did he himself follow these principles in “Russian History”? This is where the reasons for heated discussions lie. If we try to start reading Tatishchev from the very beginning, we will find part one of his work, outlining our history before Rurik. The narrative, to be sure, is legendary; to put it more critically, those same fables. True, this was the European science of that time: Tatishchev’s acquaintance, the secretary of the Swedish College of Antiquities, Bjerner, convinced him that “the Russians had already appeared around the 5th century.” Is it worth blaming our first historian for not bringing this date, which is pleasing to the eye, up to date?

The main debate about Tatishchev comes from his sources: some historians see that he used chronicle news that has not reached us and is therefore valuable to mother history. Others, starting with Karamzin, believe that Vasily Nikitich introduced texts he himself composed into his “consolidated chronicle”; Some of his critics even think that he was such a skilled master of such falsifications that he deserves the honorary title of “historian of the modern, conceptual, innovative.”

Closer to the truth are the third group, to which Academician D.S. belonged. Likhachev, who believe that historical research in the 18th century was characterized by a literary component. The historian strictly could not distinguish between the testimony of sources and his own opinion; he could provide inaccurate references and confuse reconstructions with facts. Is this why Tatishchev preferred to call himself not a historiographer, but rather a “historical writer”?

But no matter how the discussions about Tatishchev, which are still relevant to this day, continue, his figure as a pioneer in Russian history is beyond doubt, just as his words about the relevance of historical science: “No person, no settlement, industry, science, nor any government, much less one person on his own, without knowledge of it can be perfect, wise and useful.”

Currently V.N. Tatishchev is known primarily as a historian, the founder of Russian historical science. Indeed, research on Russian history was the main calling of his soul, and in this area he scientific activity turned out to be the most fruitful.

Its main result is the extensive work “Russian History from the Most Ancient Times,” which became the foundation of Russian historical science. But in addition to Russian history, Tatishchev studied a number of other sciences: mathematics, geography, geology, economics, politics, philosophy, philology, pedagogy. He also studied law. And in all of these sciences, including jurisprudence, Tatishchev achieved significant results. He discovered handwritten texts of such monuments of Russian law as Russian Truth and Code of Laws of 1550. His comments to them were the first attempt to scientific research. He was the first to collect texts of Russian laws for the purpose of their scientific study. This is evidenced by the very name of the set of Russian legislative monuments he compiled in 1738 - “Collection of ancient Russian laws, collected and somewhat interpreted by Privy Councilor Vasily Tatischev for the benefit of all the wise.” In his works, Tatishchev often addressed problems of justice and legality; he expressed many deep thoughts about law and laws, about lawmaking, and about the essence of jurisprudence. He considered the study of law to be the most important element in the education of a civil servant. Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev is the founder of not only Russian historical science, but also Russian scientific jurisprudence.

In the history of Russia of the 18th century V.N. Tatishchev also entered as a prominent statesman and talented manager. IN. Klyuchevsky wrote about him: “An artilleryman, a mining engineer and a prominent administrator, almost all his life he stood in the flow of the most urgent needs, the living current interests of the time - and this practical businessman became a historiographer, Russian history was among these urgent needs and current interests of the time; not the fruit of the idle curiosity of a patriot or an armchair scientist, but the urgent need of a business man. In this way, Tatishchev is doubly interesting, not only as the first collector of materials for the complete history of Russia, but also as a typical example of educated Russian people of Peter the Great's school"* (1).

Vasily Tatishchev was born on April 19, 1686 * (2) in the family of a small-scale Pskov nobleman Nikita Alekseevich Tatishchev. His mother Fetinya Tatishcheva belonged to the noble family of the Arshenevskys, which was started by Nikolai Arshenevsky, a native of the Principality of Lithuania, who went into Russian service in 1654. His father was a representative of a noble family, which, according to the “Genealogical Book of Russian and Expatriate Princes and Nobles,” compiled in 1682-1687, was a branch of the Smolensk princes. In Chapter 22 of the said book, dedicated to the Tatishchevs, it was reported: “By the decree of the Great Sovereigns, Tsars and Grand Dukes Ivan Alekseevich, Peter Alekseevich and the Great Sovereigns, Blessed Princesses and Grand Duchesses Sofia Alekseevna, all the Great and Lesser and White Autocrats of Russia, a generation was written in this Book Tatishchevs according to their painting, according to the Zabolotsky fairy tale.

And according to their painting: Prince Glebov has a son, Svyatoslavich of Smolensk, Prince Dmitry has a son, Prince Ivan Shah. Prince Ivan Shah has children: Yurya, Fedor, and Semyon Solomersky. Yury has a son, Vasily Tatishch"*(3).

In the “Alphabetical list of those surnames about which genealogical lists have been submitted to the Order” it was said about the Tatishchevs that they “descended from the Smolensk princes. They received the name from those who went to Lithuania and served there, being called Solomersimi, as upon departure to Russia was already known as Solomers* (4). After one of them had a son, Vasily Tatishch, who, being the governor in Novgorod, and having heard about the treason, secretly wrote about it to the sovereign, and having caught the boss, sent him to him; and therefore he was named Tatishchev. Still, they, their descendants and the giver of the genealogy were not written as princes.” Based on such facts, the historian Sergei Spiridonovich Tatishchev (1846-1906) compiled the book “The Tatishchev Family. 1400-1900. Historical and Genealogical Research,” published in St. Petersburg in 1900. Meanwhile, the information recorded in the “Genealogical Book of Princes and Nobles of Russia and Traveling” was received from representatives of families and was based in a number of cases on legends, the reliability of which was questionable. The message that Vasily Yuryevich Tatishch held the position of governor in Novgorod refers to such cases. The Novgorod governor with a similar name is not mentioned in any historical document. And there could not have been a grand-ducal governor in Novgorod at the time in which this event was supposed to have taken place (the end of the 14th century).

It is known that the pedigree list submitted by the Tatishchevs to the Discharge Order in 1682 was recognized as false by representatives of the princely families of the Dashkovs and Kropotkins, whose origins from the Smolensk princes were never subject to any doubt. The question of including her in the official genealogical book was resolved only after the Tatishchevs recorded their descent from those princes of Smolensk who allegedly went to Lithuania and began to be called “Solomersky”.

In reality, the Tatishchev family was an ordinary noble family, whose representatives occupied a position no higher than average in the hierarchy of service people of the Russian state. In "Russian History" V.N. Tatishchev under the date 6889 (1381) says that the Grand Duke sent to the Horde to Khan Tokhtamysh “his ambassadors Tolbugu and Moshkiy of October on the 29th day with many gifts. The Rostov ambassador Vasily Tatischa also went with them” * (5). In the 40s of the 15th century, Vasily Yuryevich Tatishcha was a landowner in Dmitrovsky district: He is mentioned as a hearing officer (witness) in one of the deeds of sale. In the 60s of the 16th century, among the possessions of the Simonovsky Monastery was the village of Vasilyevskoye-Tatishchevo, which, judging by the name, previously belonged to Vasily Tatishchev and his descendants.

During the oprichnina, Ignatiy Petrovich Tatishchev (?-1604) played a prominent role in Ivan IV’s entourage. His name appears in the list of guardsmen of the formidable Tsar * (6), compiled in 1573 and opening with the words: “On the 20th day of the summer of March 7081, the Tsar and Grand Duke Ivan Vasilyevich of all Rus' marked the boyars, and the okolnichy, and the clerk, both nobles and officials receive their salaries according to the salary" * (7). In this list, among the guardsmen who were assigned a salary of 80 rubles, “Ignatei Petrov son Tatishchev” is mentioned * (8). In the Livonian campaign of 7085 (1577), he was the commander of the left-hand regiment and in this capacity besieged the city of Golbin. During the campaign against Nevel, Ignatius Petrovich Tatishchev was the second commander of the advanced regiment and one of the chiefs of the guard in the royal camp * (9). He subsequently became the sovereign's treasurer. His son, Mikhail Ignatievich Tatishchev, was a nurseryman at the end of the 16th century and a Duma nobleman, actively participated in the events of the Time of Troubles at the beginning of the 17th century, for which he paid: in 1609 he was killed in Novgorod by a crowd that suspected him of treason against Tsar Vasily Shuisky.

The grandfather of Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev - Alexey Stepanovich Tatishchev - since 1647 he held the position of steward at the court of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, and in 1659 he was appointed to the place of governor in Yaroslavl. He left a small estate in Dmitrovsky district as an inheritance to his daughter Natalya, and an estate to his eldest son Fedor. Nikita, as the youngest son, did not inherit either a patrimony or an estate from his father: he therefore had to live for several years only on the salary for his service in the court rank of tenant. In 1689-1690 he held the position of governor in Bezhetsky Verkh.

In the early 80s of the 17th century, Nikita Alekseevich managed to receive 300 chety (150 acres * (10)) of land from the inherited property of a deceased relative - the Pskov landowner Vasily Petrovich Tatishchev. The estate that came into the possession of Nikita Alekseevich Tatishchev was located not far from Pskov. Vasily Tatishchev was born here and spent several years of his childhood and adolescence. He received, like his brothers Ivan * (11) with Nikifor * (12) and sister Praskovya * (13), a good education at home. In 1693, at the age of seven, Vasily was taken into service at the royal court as steward of Praskovya Fedorovna, the wife of Ivan Alekseevich. Born Saltykova, she was his distant relative. The boy's court service continued until the death of Tsar John in 1696. After this, Vasily returned to his father’s estate.

Reading books even in childhood became his passion and at the same time the main means of improving knowledge in various sciences. At the age of thirteen he attended in order to acquire knowledge about Russian justice trials held in Pskov. In a number of biographies of V.N. Tatishchev says that he studied at the Moscow “artillery and engineering school” at the beginning of the 18th century, but no documents confirming this fact are provided.

At the beginning of 1704, seventeen-year-old Vasily Tatishchev passed the exam and was enrolled (along with his twenty-year-old brother Ivan) as an ordinary cavalryman in the Preobrazhensky Dragoon Regiment * (14). His baptism of fire was the battle of Narva in August 1704.

In 1706, Vasily Tatishchev was promoted to lieutenant. In this rank, he took part in the Battle of Poltava, which took place on June 27, 1709: “That day was happy for me,” Vasily Nikitich later recalled, “when on the Poltava Field I was wounded next to the sovereign, who himself was in charge of everything under cannonballs and bullets, and when, as usual, he kissed me on the forehead, congratulating the wounded for the Fatherland."

In 1712-1716, captain-lieutenant Tatishchev traveled to Germany several times “to supervise military procedures there.” Having spent a total of two and a half years in the cities of Prussia and Saxony, the young officer acquired knowledge in engineering and artillery sciences, and became acquainted with the latest works of Western European scientists in the fields of geometry, geology, geography, philosophy, and history. He bought here many books on all these sciences * (15) and upon returning to Russia, he continued to improve his education with their help.

In the spring of 1716 V.N. Tatishchev was assigned to the artillery, but he did not have to serve for a long time as an artilleryman. Tsar Peter sent him to Gdansk in 1717, instructing him to negotiate with the city leadership on the transfer to Russia as an indemnity*(16) of an ancient icon, which was said to be painted by the creator of the Cyrillic alphabet, Saint Methodius. The city magistrate refused to include the relic in the indemnity, but Vasily Nikitich did not insist on fulfilling the demands of the Russian Tsar. Having examined the icon, he easily established that it was a fake, having nothing in common with the shrine, and was able to easily prove this to Peter I. This trip allowed him to replenish his library with Freitag’s book “Military Architecture” published in 1665 in Amsterdam and printed in Jena in 1717 “Course of Mathematics” by I. Rashub.

Upon returning from Gdansk to St. Petersburg, Tatishchev was appointed to serve under Yakov Vilimovich Bruce (1670-1735). Together with him, the plenipotentiary ambassador of Russia, he attended the Åland Congress - negotiations on peace terms that took place from May 1718 to October 1719 on the island of Åland.

In 1719 Y.V. Bruce suggested that Peter I begin work on compiling a detailed geography of Russia. He named Tatishchev as the most capable performer of such work * (17). The Emperor agreed with this reasonable proposal. Geographical research led Tatishchev to study Russian history. Having begun to collect information concerning the geography of Russia, he, in his words, “saw that it was impossible to begin and produce it from an ancient state without sufficient ancient history and a new one without perfect knowledge of all the circumstances, because it was first necessary to know about the name, what language it was, what it means and from what reason it happened. In addition, one must know what kind of people lived in that region from ancient times, how far the borders extended at which time, who the rulers were, when and by what occasion it was brought to Russia. This required a thorough Russian ancient history. .."*(18). Therefore, Tatishchev began to find and study chronicle sources. The first of them was in his hands chronicle Nestor, a list of which was in the library of Peter I.

Russian history classes, collecting and studying historical documents became from that time the main business of V.N. Tatishcheva. And Vasily Nikitich under no circumstances forgot about him.

The personal Decree of Peter I, announced in the Senate, dated December 12, 1718, provided for the creation of the Berg and Manufacture Collegium, under the jurisdiction of which were given “mining factories and all other crafts and handicrafts and factories thereof and reproduction, as well as artillery” *( 19). Head Tatishchev Ya.V. Bruce was appointed its president. Vasily Nikitich remained at his disposal. By decree of December 10, 1719, the Berg College was created as an independent government agency in charge of mining * (20). In the spring of 1720, the Berg College sent Tatishchev to the Urals with the task “to build factories and smelt silver and copper from ores in the Siberian province, Kungur and other places where convenient places were found.” Vasily Nikitich stayed in this region for a year and a half, during which he managed to study the basics of mining, get acquainted with the state of the local mining industry, develop and partially implement measures to improve it and build new plants, collect a collection of minerals, and open it at the Alapaevsk plant primary school for teaching reading and writing and a school where arithmetic, geometry, and mining were taught. He moved the Uktuk plant to the Iset River, “later this place became in the middle of all the factories,” and thereby founded a new settlement, which he named in honor of the wife of Peter I, Catherine Ekaterininsky. This settlement marked the beginning of the city of Yekaterinburg.

Staying in the Urals allowed Tatishchev to discover and acquire a large number of old books and documents. His most valuable acquisition was a copy of the Nestor Chronicle, which was very different in content from the one in the sovereign library.

Tatishchev’s activities in the Urals, which fully corresponded to state interests, ran counter to the private interests of local entrepreneur Akinfiy Nikitich Demidov (1678-1745), owner of more than two dozen mining factories. At that time, his father Nikita Demidovich Demidov (1656-1725) was still alive, enjoying special favor from Tsar Peter. Building a fleet and arming an army required a lot of copper and iron. The Demidov factories produced most of the metal, of the highest quality in all of Europe and at very low prices * (21). Peter repeatedly personally addressed letters to the Demidovs * (22) and allowed them to write directly to himself. In addition, the Demidovs enjoyed special patronage from dignitaries close to the sovereign - primarily A.D. Menshikov. All this allowed them to establish orders in their industrial empire that did not correspond to the legislation of the Russian Empire, and not to obey officials representing state power in the Urals.

Under these conditions, the measures taken by Tatishchev to revive the work of existing state-owned factories and build new ones, his attempts to limit the arbitrariness of Demidov, to force the factory owner to pay the legal fees to the treasury could not but give rise to a conflict between them. Akinfiy Nikitich used everything he was capable of in the fight against Vasily Nikitich: slander, threats, blackmail, bribery, but did not achieve success. Nikita Demidov himself, who was the official owner of the mining factories under his management, came to the Urals to help his son. Trying to settle the conflict peacefully, he offered Tatishchev a fairly large sum of money, but he did not accept the bribe. Then the Demidovs decided to turn to Peter I for help.

In the spring of 1722, Nikita Demidovich had a conversation with the sovereign, during which he complained about Tatishchev’s actions in the Urals. Vasily Nikitich had just arrived in St. Petersburg on business at that time, and Peter I considered it necessary to listen to him too. Realizing that the conflict between Tatishchev and the Demidovs was not simple and very harmful in its consequences for the development of the Ural mining industry, the tsar decided to transfer control of state-owned copper and iron plants to the commandant and head of the Olonets mining plants, a Dutchman by birth, Major General Vilim Ivanovich (Georg Wilhelm) Gennin (1676-1750), instructing him at the same time to understand the essence of this conflict.

In May 1722 V.I. Gennin went to the Urals with the sovereign’s instruction dated April 29, 1722, in which he was instructed to “correct the factories in everything and bring them into good condition and reproduction,” and also “to find out between Demidov and Tatishchev, also about the whole Tatishchev case, without enticing anyone for whom, and write about it to the Senate, also to the Berg College and to Us" * (23).

Vasily Nikitich also went to the Urals in July, and an order from the Berg Collegium was sent after him: “Captain Tatishchev should be in Siberia during the search with Demidov from Major General Gennin, and from the mining authorities... he should not be there until the end of that case.” ".

On December 1, 1722, Vilim Gennin met with Nikita Demidov and demanded that he put in writing all the complaints against Captain Tatishchev. When he began to refuse to do this, claiming that he wanted to make peace with Tatishchev, the general told him that without the will of His Majesty he could not accept the world petition, since he was not sent to make peace, but to carry out a search. If Demidov refuses to file a complaint, then “everyone will think that he is guilty” and “he brought a complaint against Tatishchev in vain.” As a result, Nikita Demidov was forced to state the accusations against Tatishchev in a letter. All of them, as it turned out, boiled down to the fact that, by order of Tatishchev, roadblocks were built that prevented the transportation of products from Demidov's factories, and part of the pier built by Demidov on the Chusovaya River (on the territory of the treasury's land holdings) was taken away. These actions of Tatishchev, which violated the interests of the Demidov breeders, were completely legal. At the end of 1722, the Berg College received a written complaint from Nikita Demidov, and thus an official basis arose for conducting investigative actions * (24).

Having carefully examined the current situation in the mining industry of the Urals and collected information about Tatishchev’s activities, General Gennin returned to St. Petersburg in February 1723 and submitted a report to the sovereign, in which he described the essence of the conflict between Tatishchev and Akinfiy Demidov in the following words: “Demidov is a stubborn man... "Until now, no one dared to utter a word to him, and he turned here as he wanted. He is not very pleased that Your Majesty's factories will begin to bloom here, so that he could sell more of his iron, and set the price as he wanted, and the free workers all went to his factories, and not to yours. And after his arrival, Tatishchev began to add, or try, to build Your Majesty’s factories again, and wanted, according to the Mining privilege, to cut down forests and demarcate ore deposits decently, and he (Demidov. - V.T.) was also annoyed and did not want to see the one who pointed it out to him. And although before this, before Tatishchev, Your Majesty there were factories, the commissars who were in charge of them were idle a lot, and there was almost no fruit from the factories, and the men from the spoiled Gagarin commissars *(25) went bankrupt, and Demidov was not insanity from them, and they could not resist him, and Demidov did what he wanted, and he liked the tea that was in the factories Your Majesty had little work to do, and they became desolate. Tatishchev seemed most proud to him, but the old man did not like to live with such a neighbor, and was looking for a way to survive from his frontier, since he could not buy Tatishchev with money, so that Your Majesty would not have factories.”

The general reported all this, knowing well how much Tsar Peter was well disposed towards the Demidovs. Therefore, I tried to avert any suspicion of partiality towards the person I was justifying. “I represent this Tatishchev,” he declared, “without partiality, not out of love or any intrigue, or for the sake of anyone’s request; I myself don’t like his Kalmyk face, but seeing him in that matter he is very right and is smart about the construction of factories, prudent and diligent." At the end of his report, General Gennin asked the sovereign: “Perhaps, do not have any anger towards him, Tatishchev, and bring him out of sadness, and order him here (in the Urals - V.T.) to be chief director or chief adviser.”

In the first half of July 1723, the Senate, having considered Demidov’s complaint against Tatishchev and the circumstances of the conflict between them, described in the report of Vidim de Gennin, completely acquitted Tatishchev. The senators made a decision with Nikita Demidov for the fact that “he did not beat his forehead about his offense against Tatishchev in front of the proper court, but, despising the decrees, dared His Majesty to trouble him with a verbal request in an unjust matter, instead of punishment, take a fine of 30,000 rubles” * (26 ). In addition, the Senate charged the manufacturer with the obligation to compensate Tatishchev for all losses that he suffered during the investigation, paying 6,000 rubles in his favor.

In December 1723, Tatishchev arrived from the Urals to St. Petersburg to present V.I.’s projects to the emperor. Gennin on improving the mining industry. Peter I received Tatishchev in January 1724, the sovereign was very friendly and talked with him for a long time about the sciences, about the development of education in Russia, about the establishment of the Academy of Sciences.

In June 1724, Tatishchev was appointed by Senate decree to the position of adviser to the Berg College, but he did not have to go to the Urals. Peter I decided to send a capable official to Sweden with instructions to “watch and become aware of the political state, obvious actions and hidden intentions of this state” and at the same time study the Swedish organization of mining and coinage, the work of manufactories, and look for and hire skilled craftsmen to serve in Russia *( 27). In November 1724, Tatishchev left St. Petersburg again.

For the first two months of his stay in Sweden, Vasily Nikitich was ill, but when he recovered, news arrived of the death of the sovereign. Catherine I, who ascended the throne, did not recall Tatishchev from Sweden, and he decided, no matter what, to fulfill the instructions assigned to him by Peter I. Tatishchev inspected Swedish mining plants and mines, obtained drawings and plans according to which they were organized, and agreed with local engineers and craftsmen to send young people from Russia to them for training.

At the same time, he continued his historical research: he collected materials on ancient Russian history in Sweden, bought foreign books * (28) and manuscripts, talked with various Swedish scientists, eliciting from them the scientific information necessary for organizing the mining industry.

Upon returning to Russia in early May 1726, V.N. Tatishchev was reinstated as an adviser to the Berg Collegium, but Y.V., who favored him. Bruce was no longer in this department: he turned out to be displeasing to Menshikov, who managed the affairs of the state on behalf of Empress Catherine I, and was dismissed from the post of president. The atmosphere that developed inside the Berg College after Bruce left was unpleasant for Tatishchev. But, fortunately, he did not have to serve here for long. On February 14, 1727, Empress Catherine I signed a decree sending Tatishchev to serve at the Moscow Mint. On March 7, 1727, the Moscow Mint Office was established to manage the mints. It was headed by Moscow Governor A.L. Pleshcheev. Along with I.A., he was included in the office. and P.I. Musin-Pushkin and V.N. Tatishchev.

Tatishchev's stay in Moscow had a beneficial effect on his studies of Russian history. Here he met Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn, whose library contained many ancient handwritten books, including chronicles. After the arrest of the prince in 1737, most of them were stolen; the most valuable of them ended up in Biron’s library and disappeared forever. The circle of people with whom Tatishchev communicated in the late 20s included Antioch Cantemir, whose older brother was married to the daughter of D.M. Golitsyna, and Feofan Prokopovich. Vasily Nikitich discussed with them his philosophical works, as well as the chapters of “Russian History” he wrote at that time. During the Moscow period of his state activity, Tatishchev began to write the most significant of his philosophical works -

On April 19 (29 according to the new style), Vasily Tatishchev, industrialist and economist, author of one of the first major works on the history of Russia, was born.

Prince without title

The creation of a powerful Russian state is usually associated with the names of the rulers and their immediate associates. But the solution to this problem would have been impossible without the “sovereign’s people” - those who implemented grandiose plans for building an empire.

One of these people was Vasily Nikolaevich Tatishchev, who managed to succeed in strengthening economic potential countries, and in the study and description of the history of Russia since ancient times.

Reproduction of an engraving by A. Osipov depicting the Russian statesman Vasily Tatishchev

Vasily Tatishchev was born in April 1686 in the Pskov district, on the estate of his father Nikita Tatishchev.

The Tatishchev family traced its history back to the Rurikovichs, but then began to lose influence and even lost its princely title. Nikita Tatishchev, Vasily’s father, did not even have his own estate and acquired it only after the death of one of his relatives.

However, in 1693, seven-year-old Vasily and his ten-year-old older brother Ivan were accepted into service as the tsar's steward. The speech, however, was not about Tsar Peter, but about his brother and co-ruler Ivan, who had no real power.

Tsar Ivan died in 1696, and the Tatishchev brothers returned to their father's estate, where they stayed for the next 10 years.

Smart officer

They were not eager to serve again, but during the time of Peter I it was mandatory for nobles, and in 1706 the Tatishchevs were drafted into the Azov Dragoon Regiment.

The next six years passed in battles and battles. Vasily Tatishchev took part in the capture of Narva, in the legendary battle with the Swedes near Poltava, and in the Prut campaign, which was unsuccessful for the Russian army.

In 1712, far from young, especially by the standards of the 18th century, Vasily Tatishchev was sent abroad to study engineering and artillery. In addition, he becomes the confidant of Feldzeichmeister General Yakov Villimovich Bruce, carrying out his instructions abroad.

The patronage of Bruce, a man who was one of Peter I’s close associates, brings Tatishchev’s career to new level. In May 1716, he passed the exam and was promoted to lieutenant engineer of the artillery. In this capacity, he was involved in streamlining the artillery sector in the field army.

In the autumn of 1717, Tatishchev attracted the attention of Peter - the magistrate of Danzig, in payment of the indemnity imposed on the city, offered the painting “The Last Judgment”. The burgomaster assured that it was written by the enlightener of the Slavs, Methodius, and cost 100 thousand rubles.

Peter I, who loved rarities but was not prone to squandering, valued the painting at 50 thousand. But here Tatishchev intervened, declaring that the authorship of Methodius was more than doubtful, and the burgomaster was simply trying to “deceive” the king. The deal fell through, but Peter remembered the smart officer.

History with geography

In 1718, Tatishchev, as a close associate of Jacob Bruce, participated in the organization of the Åland Congress - negotiations between Russia and Sweden, which were supposed to put an end to the Northern War. Expectations from the negotiations did not materialize, the war dragged on for another couple of years, but Tatishchev himself again showed himself to be an excellent performer of important government assignments.

In the same 1718, Jacob Bruce was appointed head of the Berg College, a kind of ministry of industry and minerals of the Peter I era. The new head of the board, starting work, considered it necessary to draw up a detailed geographical map of Russia, without which the development of industry and mineral exploration would be very difficult.

The large-scale task was entrusted to Tatishchev, who, immersed in the topic, decided that geographical studies must be based on historical material. He took up the study of Russian history from ancient times. This work will be the beginning of the creation of the first fundamental work on Russian history, which Tatishchev will write until his death.

The main enemy of the Demidov clan

In Peter’s times, the number of tasks facing the country was enormous, and the number of people capable of effectively solving them was small. Therefore, Vasily Tatishchev in 1720 was cut off from geography and sent “to the Siberian province in Kungur and other places where convenient places were found, to build factories and smelt silver and copper from ores.”

These were harsh places, the central government was recognized here very conditionally, but Tatishchev was a timid man. Taking up the task of organizing state-owned factories, he created the Siberian Higher Mining Authority - the main governing body of state-owned enterprises in the region.

Tatishchev’s measures to move old factories and found new ones became the reason for the founding of two cities - Yekaterinburg and Perm.

View of the monument to the founders of the city of Yekaterinburg Vasily Tatishchev and Wilhelm de Genin on Labor Square in Yekaterinburg

Tatishchev was also actively involved in infrastructure issues - he established the functioning of the post office, was engaged in the construction of schools (both primary and for teaching mining), built roads and strengthened the rule of law.

Very quickly he made terrible enemies for himself in the person of father and son Demidov, entrepreneurs who until that moment had been monopolists of the mining business in the Urals and Siberia. The Demidovs saw state-owned factories as a threat to their business. Vasily Tatishchev, in turn, believed that the Demidovs were mired in abuses and were acting to the detriment of the state.

The Demidovs, using their connections, tried to remove Tatishchev. The matter came to an investigative audit, which completely exonerated the head of the state-owned factories.

Tatishchev's political plan

At the same time, the Demidov clan nevertheless achieved its goal - Vasily Tatishchev was transferred to St. Petersburg, from where he was later sent to Sweden for the needs of mining and to carry out diplomatic assignments. Tatishchev stayed there from December 1724 to April 1726, inspected factories and mines, collected many drawings and plans, hired a lapidary master who launched the lapidary business in Yekaterinburg, collected information about the trade of the Stockholm port and the Swedish coinage system, became acquainted with many local scientists.

Upon returning to Russia, he was appointed a member of the coin office, which was in charge of the mints of the empire.

While Tatishchev worked for the good of the Fatherland, political passions raged around him. When in 1730 the question arose about inviting Anna Ioannovna, whose power the Supreme Privy Council was trying to limit, to reign, Tatishchev proposed his own project of government.

He argued that Russia, as a vast country, is most suited to monarchical governance, and the idea of ​​“supreme rulers” should be rejected. But still, “to help,” the empress should have established a senate of 21 members and an assembly of 100 members, and elected to the highest places by ballot. Here, various measures were proposed to alleviate the situation of different classes of the population.

Tatishchev’s plan was not implemented, but Anna Ioannovna, who gained the upper hand over the “supreme leaders,” appreciated the help in this fight.

Conflict with Biron

True, the favor did not last long. A year later, Tatishchev had a big quarrel with the Empress’s favorite Biron, a great specialist in putting his hand into the state treasury. The vengeful Biron quickly concocted a bribe case, and Tatishchev found himself under investigation.

Only in 1734 were the charges against Tatishchev dropped, again sending him to the Urals to build new state-owned factories.

Over the next few years, Vasily Tatishchev increased the number of factories to 40, drew up a plan to double their number, was involved in drawing up the first instructions for surveyors, and devoted a lot of time to mineral exploration issues and the search for new mines.

Tatishchev insisted that private factories rob the treasury, their owners violate laws, acting to the detriment of the state. He widely used his right to interfere in the activities of state-owned enterprises.

Private owners began to write complaints to St. Petersburg. And, since they shared part of their income with the highest dignitaries of the empire, Tatishchev’s problems began again. In 1737, he was sent to the Orenburg expedition to finally pacify Bashkiria and control the Bashkirs.

Resignation

Having completed the task, he returned to St. Petersburg in 1739. Here he was awaiting a new trial on charges of abuse. Behind this process stood Biron, who this time achieved his goal - Vasily Tatishchev was imprisoned in the Peter and Paul Fortress, deprived of all ranks.

Soon Biron fell, and Tatishchev was released. This time he was appointed head of the Astrakhan province, where he was ordered to restore order.

Vasily Tatishchev understood that this task was not for him, that his knowledge and experience would be much more useful in the Urals.

But even the accession of Peter the Great’s daughter Elizaveta Petrovna did not change Tatishchev’s fate - he was left to serve in the Astrakhan province.

In 1745, Vasily Tatishchev was dismissed. He came to his village near Moscow, Boldino, where he began to devote all his time to writing a historical work.

"Russian History"

Tatishchev held the first public readings of his book, on which he had been working for almost two decades, in St. Petersburg in 1739. He was one of the first to study primary sources, chronicles and other materials related to ancient history Rus', analyzing and systematizing them.

Tatishchev did not have special education, but in his historical works, his vital attitude to scientific issues and the associated breadth of outlook are valuable. He was the first to discover and publish “Russian Truth” - a collection of legal norms of the Old Russian state from the time of Yaroslav the Wise, and he was the first to publish “The Code of Law of Ivan the Terrible”.

The work “Russian History,” or “Russian History from the most ancient times, collected and described by the late Privy Councilor and Astrakhan Governor Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev through tireless labor thirty years later,” consisted of four parts. Only the first and second parts, covering the period from pre-Rurik times to 1238, Tatishchev managed to finish. The third and fourth parts, which described Russian history up to 1558, as well as in fragments the period of the Time of Troubles, remained unfinished.

In addition, Tatishchev wrote the first edition of “Russian History” in a language stylized as the ancient Russian language of chronicles. Then, convinced that this style was rather inconvenient for readers, he began to write the edition in the language familiar to the 18th century.

The first edition of Russian History began only in 1768, almost two decades after the author’s death. The manuscript of the last, fourth part was found and published in the 1840s.

The complete academic edition of “Russian History” by Vasily Tatishchev, which included the first edition, previously unpublished, was published in 1962-1968.

Tatishchev even organized his own funeral

Organizational skills remained with Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev until the very last days. In the summer of 1750, 64-year-old Tatishchev felt very bad and realized that he had very little time to live. One day, going to church, he ordered the artisans to appear there with shovels. After the service, he, taking the priest with him, went to the cemetery, indicating where and how a grave should be dug for him. Having made sure that everything was done correctly, he asked the priest to come to his home the next day to perform all the dying rites.

On the same day, a messenger from St. Petersburg arrived to him, informing him that he had been called to the capital and awarded an order. Tatishchev sent the order back, asking him to convey that he was dying.