Peter the Great - Tsar of Russia (Part-2)
 |
| Tsar Alexis Mikhailovich |
Peter was a man of harsh and volatile temperament. Human life was of no consequence to him and models of justice he ignored at will. He did not spare even the woman he loved and flirted with and made them not only bend but break before him.
He had his first wife locked in a convent (monkery) and later she was ordered to take to the veil. He ordered his first mistress, Anna Ivanova Mons, into prison on learning that she had another lover. He had a short affair with one Marie Hamilton who later chose to mart Peter’s assistant, Ivan Orlov and gave birth to a child who died soon thereafter. Peter charged her of infanticide and sentenced her to death. Peter personally attended her execution.
When Peter was 25 years old, he declared that he had discovered a plot against his life. The conspirators aimed at the re-establishment of Sophia’s regency with Peter’s infant son on the throne. Peter let loose a reign of terror and put a number of his military officers through torture chambers and executed them.
As many as 1,700 men and women were charged with sedition. They were interrogated and mercilessly whipped which tore their flesh, their bones broken on the wheel and grilled on slow fire. Most of them, unable to bear the torture, made false confessions to the sedition charges. Then there were mass executions. Gallows and execution blocks were erected in the Red Square, around the convent in which Sophia was detained. Peter personally kept a record of executions in his diary: On September 30, 201 men were sent to gallows on October 11, 144: on October 12, 205; on October 13, 144; on October 17, 109; on October 18, 63; on October 19, 106; and on October 20 it was 2.
Three were hanged in front of the window of the convent
where Sophia was incarcerated and 197 around it. Some were mercilessly,
beheaded by an axe prolonging their agonies thus. The victims included church dignitaries.
After a short pause, another round of executions followed in
January 1699. More than a thousand men were done to death.
Sophia and her sister, Martha, were examined personally by
Peter. Both of them were ordered to take to the veil and while Sophia stayed in
the Moscow convent, Martha was banished to a remote convent.
 |
| Alexei Petrovich - Peter's Son |
The crazy man:
Peter was absolutely crazy about the Western culture. He
donned the Western dress and proceeded to cut off breads of court dignitaries
which they regarded as sacred and venerable by tradition. In this irreverent
act, he was assisted by his court jester, Turgenev.
Peter murders his own son:
Peter’s first wife Tsaritza Eudoxia Lopukhina gave birth to
Ivan’s first son, Alexei-15, in 1690, one year after their unhappy marriage. A
second son was born to her a year later who died almost immediately. Peter
spared no time for his son who grew up in the care of his mother, living in the
traditional Kremlin palace, until the age of nine. In 1698, Peter banished Eudoxia
to a remote convent.
After his mother’s imprisonment, Alexei Petrovich was
entrusted to the care of two foreign tutors, a German and a French, who taught
him the two languages with dexterity. Alexei was temperamentally a religious
man and he detested violence and war his father was fond of. Yet, he would not
disobey his father who assigned him various military missions. On 1711, he was
married to a German princess. Charlotte, whose sister Elizabeth was married to
the Crown Prince of the Roman Empire who later became Charles VI.
Alexei Petrovich was never happy with his father, and this
led him to heavy drinking. Peter never gave him enough money. Neither Peter
could forget that Alexei was his son born to a hated wife, nor Alexei could
forgive his father for deserting and incarcerating his mother. Alexei Petrovich,
under the influence of liquor, would at times give vent to his disapproval of
his father’s ways and policies. Peter’s agents always kept him informed about
his son’s views and he began to suspect Alexei as his potential rival and
leader of a revolt against him.
Alexei’s wife died in 1715 after giving birth to a son. This virtually sealed the fate of Alexei Petrovich. Peter had a legitimate grandson and he could now dispense with Alexei. He sent him a stern warning that the Tsar would disinherit him if he did nothing to overcome his utter incapacity and neglect of duties as the Tsarevich (Crown Prince).
Misfortune and adversity never come alone. Peter had legally taken his mistress, Catherine, as his wife. Just a day after his letter containing the warning was delivered to Alexei Petrovich, Catherine gave birth to a boy, who was named Peter after his father’s name. This made Alexei all the more surplus.
Alexei had a better knowledge of his father’s unaccountable and brutal ways and means. Therefore, he thought it best to admit the charges made by Peter against him and renounced his title to the throne of Russia. He begged to be allowed to live peacefully on his estates. But Peter thought this situation full with danger. He thought that an alive Alexei Petrovich was potential enemy of him.
Want to read the first part of this article... Click Here
Want to read the last part of this article... Click Here
Want to know more about crazy people... Click Here
No comments:
Post a Comment