In the Towns of the Upper Volga, It’s the
Early 1600s all Over Again
Russia’s Current Crises Remind Some of an
Earlier, Equally Chaotic era: the Time of Troubles
Burke, Justin. "In the Towns of the Upper Volga, It’s the Early 1600s all Over Again." Christian Science Monitor, 31 August 1993, 10-11.
Vera Ivanovna, a 75-year-old pensioner, gingerly puts down her
rickety cart, slowly sharpens her scythe, and then begins to feebly
swinging the tool in the knee-high grass.
Asked why she is cutting grass, she says it is part of her plan
to buy a goat as a hedge against the uncertain future. Russia’s
political and economic collapse has left citizens to fend for themselves
– regardless of their age.
"I hope to buy a goat next year, and if I do, I’ll
need hay. I can’t remain idle when I still have the strength
to do something," Vera explains, adding that she struggles
to survive on a meager pension of 13,000 rubles (about $13) per
"I don’t understand what’s happened to Russia,"
Vera says. "It’s as if we’re living through another
Time of Troubles."
Vera is not the only one in this sleepy town, as well as others
all along the Upper Volga River, comparing the present tumult to
the Time of Troubles – an era of political and social upheaval
in Russia during the early 17th century.
And the residents of Uglich should know a thing or two about the
Time of Troubles.
The town may be a provincial Volga backwater of wooden homes, where
traffic lights only flash yellow. But four centuries ago it was
the city where Dmitry, the last surviving son of Ivan the Terrible,
Dmitry’s death in 1591ended the Rurik line of Russia’s
rulers. Thus deprived of a natural line of succession, Russia plunged
into an extended power struggle culminating in the establishment
of the Romanov Dynasty in 1613.
The church of Dmitry on the Blood now stands on the supposed riverside
site of the nine-year-old’s murder. The assassination was
widely believed to be order by Boris Godunov, a political strongman
who wanted the throne for himself. Godunov eventually ascended to
the throne in 1598, but his reign lasted only seven years. Upon
Godunov’s death in 1605, an invading Polish army briefly occupied
Moscow, and a series of short-lived pretenders claiming to be Dmitry
ruled until stability was restored by the Romanovs.
"Right now it’s accurate to say that we are living
through another Time of Troubles. There’s no one in charge.
There’s a threat to our statehood. And no one knows how it
will end," says Antonia Mazerina director of the Ipatiev Monastery
museum in Kostroma, a provincial capital on the Volga about 200
miles northeast of Moscow. Mikhail Romanov was living in the monastery
in 1613 when he was elected the first Romanov czar by a gathering
of Russian nobles.
As in the 17th century, Russia’s present-day politicians
are struggling to agree on a course of national revival, having
several vastly disparate development models to choose from. One
of those revival blueprints, appealing to significant segments of
society, calls for the revival of Russia’s pre-communist culture.
And Mikhail Romanov’s descendents are trying to take the
lead in the rejuvenation of the traditional Russia that disappeared
after the Bolsheviks replaced the last Romanov czar, Nicholas II,
Since the collapse of communism, the Romanov "heirs to the
throne" have made several trips to Russia from their exile
homes in France and Spain, propagating the revival of traditional
In May, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, the head of the House
of Romanov and daughter of Nicholas’s second cousin, and her
12-year-old son Georgi Mikhailovich, toured Volga River cities.
In July they returned to Russia, visiting the Ural city of Yekaterinburg,
site of the assassination of Nicholas II and his family 75 years
At each stop Ms. Vladimirovna’s message was basically the
same: The restoration of a monarchy – along with the revival
of Russia’s traditions of a communal work ethic, belief in
the Russian Orthodox Church, and respect for authority – is
the best way to foster Russia’s renewal.
"Today a great path for our motherland is opening,"
the grand duchess said in Kostroma about the potential traditionalist
revival, speaking before a sparse crowd in strongly accented Russian.
She was in Kostroma for opening ceremonies of a May festival devoted
to Nicholas’s memory.
Several organizations inside Russia are promoting the idea of a
Romanov restoration, particularly the Russian Nobility Assembly,
which comprises the descendents of the ancien regime’s aristocrats.
The restoration effort centers around the rehabilitation of Nicholas
II. Under the Communists, information about his reign was suppressed
because the party wanted to build a new order. What little information
that was available emphasized his "Nicholas the Bloody"
image. Of late, however, the veil of secrecy has lifted, as museum
exhibits and other events portray the human side of the czar and
For example, a display at the Ipatiev Monastery museum features
love letters from Nicholas, written in English, to his German-born
fiancée, the future Empress Alexandra. "Your sweet
letter – Number 25 – made me so happy," "Niki"
wrote in one, commenting about "Alix’s" attempt
to write in Russian. "The Russian you used was perfect. I
showed Papa [Czar Alexander III] the envelope, and he was very pleased."
The examination of Nicholas’s reign is the first step in
the traditionalist revival, says Andrei Golitsin, head of the Nobility
Assembly. The more that is known about the past, he says, the more
readily the population will accept old Russian values.
"I’m convinced a great Russian is ahead – that
Russia will return to its historical roots," Mr. Golitsin
said at the Kostroma festival. "There may be troubles now,
but we hope that, as in the 17th century, they will pass."
Many segments of society – from the Cossacks and Orthodox
Church to ultra nationalists, neo-Nazi organizations – appear
to support the traditionalist revival. But few, apart from the Romanovs
and their small following, favor a restoration. And no major political
figure has come out strongly for constitutional monarchy. Even if
one were established, few think a Romanov would sit on the throne.
"She is not one of us," Ms. Mazerina, the Ipatiev museum
director, says of Vladimirovna. "She’s spent her entire
life abroad and has no understanding of our present situation, our
people, language, and history."
A more viable possibility, many say, is the reemergence of strong
authority – based on essentially the same values espoused
"A lot will depend on the personality of a potential ruler,"
Mazerina says. "The Romanovs don’t have a great personality
among them. Maybe there’s someone else who is a great personality,
only we don’t see that person yet."
Nikolai Vavilov and dog: Residents in Uglich, a sleepy Upper Volga
town, should know a thing or two about the Time of Troubles:
It was here that the 17th-century power struggle began.
Dmitry on the Blood Church: The Time of Troubles began when Czarist heir Dmitry
was murdered here in 1591.
Cutting hay for hard times: Vera Ivanova says she plans to buy a goat as hedge
against the future. Her $13-a-month pension offers too little
security as Russia faces economic collapse.
Berry season: Residents
in Kostroma, a city near Uglich, are cool to calls for a restoration
of the monarchy.
Mikhail Romanov was living at this monastery when he was elected
czar in 1913.
Reprinted with permission of the Christian Science