Princess Zoya paleolog. What Sophia Paleolog did with Muscovite Russia

The year of birth is approximately 1455.
Year of death - 1503
In 1472, an event occurred in the life of Moscow Prince John III that forced all European states to look with curiosity at little-known and distant “barbarian” Russia.

Having learned about John's widowhood, Pope Paul II offered him the hand of the Byzantine princess Zoe through the ambassador. After the ruin of their fatherland, the family of the Byzantine kings Palaiologos settled in Rome, where they enjoyed universal respect and patronage of the Pope.

To interest the Grand Duke, the papal legate described how decisively the princess refused two suitors - the French king and the Duke of Milan - because of her reluctance to change the Orthodox faith to the Catholic one. In fact, as contemporaries believed, the suitors for Zoya’s hand abandoned her themselves after learning about her excessive plumpness and lack of a dowry. Precious time passed, there were still no suitors, and Zoya most likely faced an unenviable fate: a monastery.

Reconstruction based on the skull of S. A. Nikitin, 1994

John was delighted at the honor offered to him, and together with his mother, the clergy and the boyars, he decided that such a bride had been sent to him from God himself. After all, in Rus' the nobility and extensive family ties of the future wife were highly valued. After a while, a portrait of the bride was brought to John III from Italy - she caught his eye.

Presentation of the portrait of Sophia Paleologus to Ivan III

Unfortunately, Zoya's portrait has not survived. It is only known that with a height of about 156 cm, she was considered the most voluptuous reigning person in Europe - however, already at the end of her life. But, according to Italian historians, Zoya had amazingly beautiful big eyes and skin of incomparable whiteness. Many noted her affectionate manner with guests and her ability to do needlework.

“Sources that describe in some detail the circumstances of the marriage of Sophia Paleologus and Ivan III, report almost nothing about the intentions of the bride herself: did she want to become the wife of a widower who already had an heir to the throne, and go to a distant and little-known northern country where she had no no friends or acquaintances? - notes historian Lyudmila Morozova. - All negotiations about marriage took place behind the bride’s back. No one even bothered to describe to her the appearance of the Moscow prince, the features of his character, etc. They got by with only a few phrases about how he is “a great prince, and his land is in the Orthodox Christian faith.”

Those around the princess apparently believed that she, as a dowry-less and orphan, did not have to choose...

Presentation of the dowry to Sofia Paleolog

It is likely that life in Rome was joyless for Zoe... No one wanted to take into account the interests of this girl, who had become a dumb toy in the hands of Catholic politicians. Apparently, the princess was so tired of their intrigues that she was ready to go anywhere, as long as she was away from Rome.”

SOFIA PALEOLOGIST ARRIVAL IN MOSCOW
Ivan Anatolyevich Kovalenko

On January 17, 1472, ambassadors were sent for the bride. They were received with great honors in Rome, and on June 1 the princess in the church of St. Petra was betrothed to the Russian sovereign - he was represented at the ceremony by the chief ambassador. So Zoya went to Moscow, about which she knew almost nothing, to her thirty-year-old husband. “Faithful” people had already managed to whisper to her that John had a sweetheart in Moscow. Or not even one...

F. Bronnikov. Meeting of the Greek princess Sophia Paleologus. Photo from a pictorial sketch from the Bronnikov archive. Shadrinsky Museum of Local Lore named after. V.P. Biryukova

The journey lasted six months. Zoya was greeted everywhere as an empress, giving her due honors. Early in the morning of November 12, Zoya, named Sophia in Orthodoxy, entered Moscow. The Metropolitan was waiting for her in the church and, having received his blessing, she went to John’s mother and there she saw her groom for the first time. The Grand Duke - tall and thin, with a beautiful noble face - liked the Greek princess. The wedding was also celebrated on the same day.

Wedding of Ivan III and Sophia Paleolog.

From time immemorial, the Byzantine emperor was considered the main defender of all Eastern Christianity. Now, when Byzantium was enslaved by the Turks, the Grand Duke of Moscow became such a defender: with the hand of Sophia, he, as it were, inherited the rights of the Palaiologos. And he even adopted the coat of arms of the Eastern Roman Empire - the double-headed eagle. From that time on, all seals, which were attached to cords on cords, began to depict a double-headed eagle on one side, and on the other, the ancient Moscow coat of arms - St. George the Victorious on a horse, slaying a dragon.

Double-headed eagle on the regalia of Sophia Paleologus 1472

The day after the wedding, Cardinal Anthony, who arrived in the bride’s retinue, began negotiations on the union of churches - the purpose for which, as historians note, Sophia’s marriage was mainly conceived. But the cardinal's embassy ended in nothing, and he soon left without a meal. And Zoya, as N.I. Kostomarov noted, “during her life she deserved the reproach and censure of the Pope and his supporters, who were very mistaken in her, hoping through her to introduce the Florentine Union into Moscow Rus'.”

F. Bronnikov. Meeting of the Greek princess Sophia Paleologus. Drawing option. Paper, pencil, ink, pen. Shadrinsky Museum of Local Lore named after. V.P. Biryukova

Sophia brought with her to Russia the brilliance and charm of the imperial name. Until recently, the Grand Duke traveled to the Horde, bowed to the khan and his nobles, as his ancestors had bowed for two centuries. But when Sophia entered the grand-ducal court, Ivan Vasilyevich spoke to the khan in a completely different way.

John III overthrows the Tatar yoke, tearing up the Khan's charter and ordering the death of the ambassadors
Shustov Nikolay Semenovich

The chronicles report: it was Sophia who insisted that the Grand Duke not go out on foot, as was customary before her, to meet the Horde ambassadors, so that he would not bow to the ground to them, would not bring a cup of kumis and would not listen to the Khan’s letter on his knees. She sought to attract cultural figures and doctors from Italy to the Moscow Principality. It was under her that the construction of remarkable architectural monuments began. She personally gave audiences to strangers and had her own circle of diplomats.

Meeting Sophia Paleolog
Ivan Anatolyevich Kovalenko

Grand Duchess Sophia had three daughters. She and her husband were really looking forward to their son, and God finally listened to their fervent prayers: in 1478 (according to other sources - in 1479) their son Vasily was born.

Meeting the princess
Fedor Bronnikov

The son of the Grand Duke from his first wife, John the Young, immediately took hostility to his stepmother, often was rude to her and did not show due respect. The Grand Duke hastened to marry his son and removed him from the court, then again brought him closer to himself and declared him heir to the throne. John the Young was already taking an active part in the affairs of the government, when suddenly he suddenly fell ill from some unknown disease like leprosy and died in 1490.

Wedding train.
In the carriage - Sophia Paleolog
with "girlfriends"

The question was raised of who should inherit the throne: the son of John the Young, Demetrius, or Vasily, the son of Sophia. The boyars, who were hostile to the arrogant Sophia, took the side of the former. They accused Vasily and his mother of having evil plans against the Grand Duke and incited the Grand Duke in such a way that he alienated his son, lost interest in Sophia, and most importantly, solemnly crowned his grandson Dimitri to the great reign. It is known that during this period the Grand Duchess lost two children one after another, who were born premature... As historians say, on the very day of the coronation the sovereign seemed sad - it was noticeable that he was sad about his wife, with whom he had lived happily for twenty-five years, about his son , whose birth always seemed to him to be a special favor of fate...

Embroidered shroud 1498. In the lower left corner is Sophia Paleologus. Her clothes are decorated with a round tablion, a brown circle on a yellow background - a sign of royal dignity. Click to see larger image.

A year passed, the machinations of the boyars, thanks to the efforts of Sophia, were revealed, and they paid severely for their machinations. Vasily was declared heir to the throne, and Sophia again regained the favor of John.

Death of Sophia Paleologue. Copy of a miniature from the front chronicle of the second half of the 16th century.

Sophia died in 1503 (according to other sources, in 1504), mourned by her husband and children. The chronicles do not contain any information about the reasons for her death. She did not have a chance to see her grandson - the future Ivan the Terrible. Her husband, John III, survived her only by a year...

Plaster copy of the skull of Ivan the Terrible
with the main contours of the skull superimposed on it
(lighter) Sophia Paleolog.

Text by E. N. Oboymina and O. V. Tatkova

They say that every city, founded in ancient times or in the Middle Ages, has its own secret name. According to legend, only a few people could know him. The city's secret name contained its DNA. Having learned the “password” of the city, the enemy could easily take possession of it.

"Secret Name"

According to the ancient town-planning tradition, at the beginning the secret name of the city was born, then the corresponding place was found, the “heart of the city,” which symbolized the Tree of the World. Moreover, it is not necessary that the navel of the city should be located in the “geometric” center of the future city. The city is almost like Koshchei’s: “...his death is at the end of a needle, that needle is in an egg, that egg is in a duck, that duck is in a hare, that hare is in a chest, and the chest stands on a tall oak tree, and Koschey protects that tree like his own eye "

Interestingly, ancient and medieval city planners always left clues. A love of puzzles distinguished many professional guilds. The Masons alone are worth something. Before the profanation of heraldry during the Enlightenment, the role of these rebuses was played by the coats of arms of cities. But this is in Europe. In Russia, until the 17th century, there was no tradition at all of encrypting the essence of the city, its secret name, in a coat of arms or some other symbol. For example, St. George the Victorious migrated to the coat of arms of Moscow from the seals of the great Moscow princes, and even earlier - from the seals of the Tver Principality. It had nothing to do with the city.

"Heart of the City"

In Rus', the starting point for the construction of a city was a temple. It was the axis of any settlement. In Moscow, this function was performed by the Assumption Cathedral for centuries. In turn, according to Byzantine tradition, the temple was to be built on the relics of the saint. In this case, the relics were usually placed under the altar (sometimes also on one of the sides of the altar or at the entrance to the temple). It was the relics that constituted the “heart of the city.” The name of the saint, apparently, was that very “secret name.” In other words, if the “founding stone” of Moscow was St. Basil’s Cathedral, then the “secret name” of the city would be “Vasiliev” or “Vasiliev-grad”.

However, we do not know whose relics lie at the base of the Assumption Cathedral. There is not a single mention of this in the chronicles. Probably the name of the saint was kept secret.

At the end of the 12th century, a wooden church stood on the site of the current Assumption Cathedral in the Kremlin. A hundred years later, Moscow Prince Daniil Alexandrovich built the first Assumption Cathedral on this site. However, for unknown reasons, 25 years later Ivan Kalita builds a new cathedral on this site. Interestingly, the temple was built on the model of St. George's Cathedral in Yuryev-Polsky. It's not entirely clear why? St. George's Cathedral can hardly be called a masterpiece of ancient Russian architecture. So there was something else?

Perestroika

The model temple in Yuryev-Polsky was built in 1234 by Prince Svyatoslav Vsevolodovich on the site on the foundation of the white stone Church of St. George, which was built in 1152 when the city was founded by Yuri Dolgoruky. Apparently, some special attention was paid to this place. And the construction of the same temple in Moscow, perhaps, should have emphasized some kind of continuity.

The Assumption Cathedral in Moscow stood for less than 150 years, and then Ivan III suddenly decided to rebuild it. The formal reason is the dilapidation of the structure. Although one and a half hundred years is not God knows how long for a stone temple. The temple was dismantled, and in its place in 1472 the construction of a new cathedral began. However, on May 20, 1474, an earthquake occurred in Moscow. The unfinished cathedral received serious damage, and Ivan decides to dismantle the remains and start building a new temple. Architects from Pskov are invited for construction, but for mysterious reasons they categorically refuse construction.

Aristotle Fioravanti

Then Ivan III, at the insistence of his second wife Sophia Palaeologus, sends emissaries to Italy, who were supposed to bring the Italian architect and engineer Aristotle Fioravanti to the capital. By the way, in his homeland he was called the “new Archimedes.” This looks absolutely fantastic, since for the first time in the history of Rus', a Catholic architect is invited to build an Orthodox church, the main church of the Moscow state!

From the point of view of the then tradition, he was a heretic. Why an Italian was invited, who had never seen a single Orthodox church, remains a mystery. Maybe because not a single Russian architect wanted to deal with this project.

Construction of the temple under the leadership of Aristotle Fioravanti began in 1475 and ended in 1479. Interestingly, the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir was chosen as a model. Historians explain that Ivan III wanted to show the continuity of the Moscow state from the former “capital city” of Vladimir. But this again does not look very convincing, since in the second half of the 15th century, Vladimir’s former authority could hardly have any image significance.

Perhaps this was connected with the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God, which in 1395 was transported from the Vladimir Assumption Cathedral to the Moscow Assumption Cathedral, built by Ivan Kalita. However, history has not preserved direct indications of this.

One of the hypotheses why Russian architects did not get down to business, and an Italian architect was invited, is connected with the personality of the second wife of John III, the Byzantine Sophia Palaeologus. Let's talk about this in a little more detail.

Sophia and the "Latin Faith"

As you know, Pope Paul II actively promoted the Greek princess as a wife to Ivan III. In 1465, her father, Thomas Palaiologos, moved her with his other children to Rome. The family settled at the court of Pope Sixtus IV.

A few days after their arrival, Thomas died, having converted to Catholicism before his death. History has not left us information that Sophia converted to the “Latin faith,” but it is unlikely that the Palaiologans could remain Orthodox while living at the court of the Pope. In other words, Ivan III most likely wooed a Catholic woman. Moreover, not a single chronicle reports that Sofia converted to Orthodoxy before the wedding. The wedding took place in November 1472. In theory, it was supposed to take place in the Assumption Cathedral. However, shortly before this, the temple was dismantled to its foundation in order to begin new construction. This looks very strange, since about a year before this it was known about the upcoming wedding. It is also surprising that the wedding took place in a wooden church specially built near the Assumption Cathedral, which was demolished immediately after the ceremony. Why another Kremlin cathedral was not chosen remains a mystery.

Her personality has always worried historians, and opinions about her varied to the contrary: some considered her a witch, others idolized her and called her a saint. Several years ago, director Alexey Andrianov presented his interpretation of the phenomenon of the Grand Duchess in the serial film “Sofia,” which was broadcast on the Rossiya 1 TV channel. We'll figure out what's true and what's in it.

The film novel “Sofia”, which has made its presence known on the wide screen, stands out from other historical domestic films. It covers a distant era that had not even been filmed before: the events in the film are dedicated to the beginning of the formation of Russian statehood, in particular the marriage of the Great Moscow Prince Ivan III with the last heir to the Byzantine throne.

A little excursion: Zoya (that’s what the girl was named at birth) was proposed as a wife to Ivan III at the age of 14. Pope Sixtus IV himself really hoped for this marriage (he hoped to strengthen Catholicism in Russian lands through marriage). Negotiations lasted a total of 3 years and were ultimately crowned with success: at the age of 17, Zoya was engaged in absentia in the Vatican and sent along with her retinue on a journey through Russian lands, which only after inspecting the territories ended with her arrival in the capital. The Pope’s plan, by the way, completely fell apart when the newly minted Byzantine princess was baptized in a short time and received the name Sophia.

The film, of course, does not reflect all historical vicissitudes. In 10 hour-long episodes, the creators tried to contain, in their opinion, the most important of what happened in Rus' at the turn of the 15th-16th centuries. It was during this period that, thanks to Ivan III, Rus' finally freed itself from the Tatar-Mongol yoke, the prince began to unite the territories, which ultimately led to the formation of a solid, strong state.

The fateful time became so in many ways thanks to Sofia Paleolog. She, educated and culturally enlightened, did not become a mute addition to the prince, capable only of procreating the family and the princely surname, as was the custom in that distant time. The Grand Duchess had her own opinion on everything and could always voice it, and her husband invariably rated it highly. According to historians, it was probably Sofia who put into Ivan III’s head the idea of ​​uniting the lands under a single center. The princess saw unprecedented power in Rus', believed in its great goal, and, according to the hypothesis of historians, the famous phrase “Moscow is the third Rome” belongs to her.

The niece of the last emperor of Byzantium, Sophia also “gave” Moscow the coat of arms of her dynasty - that same double-headed eagle. It was inherited by the capital as an integral part of its dowry (along with the book library, which later became part of the heritage of the great library of Ivan the Terrible). The Assumption and Annunciation Cathedrals were designed and created thanks to the Italian Alberti Fioravanti, whom Sofia personally invited to Moscow. In addition, the princess summoned artists and architects from Western Europe to ennoble the capital: they built palaces and erected new churches. It was then that Moscow was decorated with the Kremlin towers, the Terem Palace and the Archangel Cathedral.

Of course, we cannot know what the marriage of Sofia and Ivan III really was like; unfortunately, we can only guess about this (we only know that, according to various hypotheses, they had 9 or 12 children). A serial film is, first of all, an artistic perception and understanding of their relationship; it is, in its own way, the author’s interpretation of the princess’s fate. In the film novel, the love line is brought to the fore, and all other historical vicissitudes seem to be an accompanying background. Of course, the creators do not promise absolute authenticity; it was important for them to make a sensual picture that people will believe in, whose characters they will sympathize with, and who will sincerely worry about their fate in the series.

Portrait of Sofia Paleolog

Still from a photo shoot of the main characters of the film “Sofia”, Maria Andreeva in the image of her heroine

However, the filmmakers paid enormous attention to everything regarding details. In this regard, it is possible and necessary to learn about history in a film: historically accurate sets were created specifically for filming (the decoration of the prince’s palace, the secret offices of the Vatican, even the smallest household items of the era), costumes (of which more than 1000 were made, mostly by hand). For the filming of “Sofia,” consultants and experts were hired so that even the most fastidious and attentive viewer would not have any questions about the film.

In the film novel, Sofia is a beauty. Actress Maria Andreeva - the star of the popular Spiritless - at not quite 30, on the screen (at the date of filming) she really looks 17. But historians have confirmed that in fact Paleologue was not a beauty. However, ideals change not only over centuries, even over decades, and therefore it is difficult for us to talk about it. But the fact that she suffered from excess weight (according to her contemporaries, even critically) cannot be omitted. However, the same historians confirm that Sofia was indeed a very smart and educated woman for her time. Her contemporaries also understood this, and some of them, either out of envy or because of their own ignorance, were sure that Paleologue could only become so smart thanks to connections with dark forces and the devil himself (based on this controversial hypothesis, one federal TV channel even directed the film “The Witch of All Rus'”).

However, in reality Ivan III was also unprepossessing: short, hunchbacked and not distinguished by beauty. But the filmmakers obviously decided that such a character would not evoke a response in the souls of the audience, so the actor for this role was selected from among the country’s main heartthrobs, Evgeniy Tsyganov.

Apparently, the director wanted to please the eye of the fastidious viewer first of all. In addition, for him, the viewer craving spectacle, they created an atmosphere of real historical action: large-scale battles, massacres, natural disasters, betrayal and court intrigue, and in the center - a beautiful love story of Sophia Palaeologus and Ivan III. The viewer can only stock up on popcorn and enjoy the beauty of a well-filmed romantic story.

Photo: Getty Images, stills from the serial film

More

The last flower of Byzantium
10 facts about the Russian Tsarina Sophia Paleolog / World History

How the Byzantine princess deceived the Pope, and what she changed in the life of Russia. More about Third Rome

"Sofia". Still from the series

1. Sofia Paleolog was the daughter of the despot of Morea (now the Peloponnese Peninsula) Thomas Palaiologos and niece of the last emperor of the Byzantine Empire Constantine XI.

2. At birth, Sofia was named Zoey. She was born two years after Constantinople was captured by the Ottomans in 1453 and the Byzantine Empire ceased to exist. Five years later, Morea was also captured. Zoe's family was forced to flee, finding refuge in Rome. To receive the support of the Pope, Thomas Palaiologos converted to Catholicism with his family. With a change of faith, Zoya became Sophia.

3. Paleolog was appointed as Sofia’s immediate guardian Cardinal Vissarion of Nicaea, a supporter of union, that is, the unification of Catholics and Orthodox Christians under the authority of the Pope. Sofia's fate was supposed to be decided through a profitable marriage. In 1466 she was offered as a bride to the Cypriot King Jacques II de Lusignan, but he refused. In 1467 she was offered as a wife Prince Caracciolo, a noble Italian rich man. The prince expressed his consent, after which the solemn betrothal took place.

4. Sofia’s fate changed dramatically after it became known that Grand Duke of Moscow Ivan III widowed and looking for a new wife. Vissarion of Nicea decided that if Sophia Paleologus became the wife of Ivan III, the Russian lands could be subordinated to the influence of the Pope.

Sofia Paleolog. Reconstruction based on the skull of S. Nikitin

5. On June 1, 1472, in the Basilica of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Rome, the betrothal of Ivan III and Sophia Paleologus took place in absentia. The Deputy Grand Duke was Russian Ambassador Ivan Fryazin. The wife was present as guests Ruler of Florence Lorenzo the Magnificent Clarice Orsini and Queen Katarina of Bosnia.

6. Representatives of the Pope were silent about Sophia Paleologue’s conversion to Catholicism during marriage negotiations. But they, too, were in for a surprise - immediately after crossing the Russian border, Sofia announced to Vissarion of Nicaea, who was accompanying her, that she was returning to Orthodoxy and would not perform Catholic rites. In fact, this was the end of the attempt to implement the union project in Russia.

7. The wedding of Ivan III and Sofia Paleologus in Russia took place on November 12, 1472. Their marriage lasted 30 years, Sofia gave birth to 12 children to her husband, but the first four were girls. Born in March 1479, the boy, named Vasily, later became the Grand Duke of Moscow Vasily III.

8. At the end of the 15th century, a fierce struggle for the rights to succession to the throne unfolded in Moscow. The official heir was considered the son of Ivan III from his first marriage Ivan Molodoy, who even had the status of co-ruler. However, with the birth of her son Vasily, Sophia Paleologus became involved in the struggle for his rights to the throne. The Moscow elite split into two warring parties. Both fell into disgrace, but in the end, victory went to the supporters of Sofia Paleologus and her son.

9. Under Sofia Paleolog, the practice of inviting foreign specialists to Russia became widespread: architects, jewelers, coinmakers, gunsmiths, doctors. For the construction of the Assumption Cathedral, he was invited from Italy architect Aristotle Fioravanti. Other buildings on the Kremlin territory were also rebuilt. White stone was actively used at the construction site, which is why the expression “white stone Moscow”, which has survived for centuries, appeared.

10. In the Trinity-Sergius Monastery there is a silk shroud sewn by the hands of Sophia in 1498; her name is embroidered on the shroud, and she calls herself not the Grand Duchess of Moscow, but “the princess of Tsaregorod.” At her suggestion, Russian rulers began, first unofficially and then officially, to call themselves tsars. In 1514, in an agreement with Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I Sophia's son Vasily III was named Emperor of the Rus for the first time in the history of Rus'. This certificate is then used Peter I as proof of his rights to be coronated as emperor.

The wedding of Ivan III with Sophia Paleologus in 1472. Engraving from the 19th century.

Sofia Paleolog
How a Byzantine princess built a new empire in Russia

The niece of the last ruler of Byzantium, having survived the collapse of one empire, decided to revive it in a new place. Mother of the Third Rome

At the end of the 15th century, in the Russian lands united around Moscow, the concept began to emerge, according to which the Russian state was the legal successor of the Byzantine Empire. Several decades later, the thesis “Moscow is the Third Rome” will become a symbol of the state ideology of the Russian state.

A major role in the formation of a new ideology and in the changes that were taking place within Russia at that time was destined to be played by a woman whose name was heard by almost everyone who has ever come into contact with Russian history. Sofia Paleolog, the wife of Grand Duke Ivan III, contributed to the development of Russian architecture, medicine, culture and many other areas of life.

There is another view of her, according to which she was the “Russian Catherine de Medici,” whose machinations set the development of Russia on a completely different path and brought confusion into the life of the state.

The truth, as usual, is somewhere in the middle. Sofia Paleologus did not choose Russia - Russia chose her, a girl from the last dynasty of Byzantine emperors, as a wife for the Grand Duke of Moscow.

Thomas Paleologus, Sophia's father

Byzantine orphan at the papal court

Zoe Paleologina, daughter of the despot (this is the title of the position) of Morea Thomas Paleologus, was born in a tragic time. In 1453, the Byzantine Empire, the heir of Ancient Rome, collapsed under the blows of the Ottomans after a thousand years of existence. The symbol of the death of the empire was the fall of Constantinople, in which Emperor Constantine XI, the brother of Thomas Palaiologos and Zoe’s uncle, died.

Despotate of Morea, a province of Byzantium ruled by Thomas Palaiologos, lasted until 1460. Zoe lived these years with her father and brothers in Mystras, the capital of Morea, a city located next to Ancient Sparta. After Sultan Mehmed II captured the Morea, Thomas Palaiologos went to the island of Corfu, and then to Rome, where he died.

Children from the royal family of the lost empire lived at the court of the Pope. Shortly before his death, Thomas Palaiologos converted to Catholicism to gain support. His children also became Catholics. After baptism according to the Roman rite, Zoya was named Sophia.

Vissarion of Nicaea

The 10-year-old girl, taken into the care of the papal court, had no opportunity to decide anything on her own. Cardinal Vissarion of Nicea, one of the authors of the union, which was supposed to unite Catholics and Orthodox Christians under the common authority of the Pope, was appointed her mentor.

They planned to arrange Sophia's fate through marriage. In 1466, she was offered as a bride to the Cypriot king Jacques II de Lusignan, but he refused. In 1467, she was offered as a wife to Prince Caracciolo, a noble Italian rich man. The prince expressed his consent, after which the solemn betrothal took place.

Bride on the “icon”

But Sophia was not destined to become the wife of an Italian. In Rome it became known that the Grand Duke of Moscow Ivan III was widowed. The Russian prince was young, only 27 years old at the time of the death of his first wife, and it was expected that he would soon look for a new wife.

Cardinal Vissarion of Nicea saw this as a chance to promote his idea of ​​Uniatism to Russian lands. From his submission in 1469 Pope Paul II sent a letter to Ivan III in which he proposed 14-year-old Sophia Paleologus as a bride. The letter referred to her as an “Orthodox Christian,” without mentioning her conversion to Catholicism.

Ivan III was not devoid of ambition, which his wife would later often play on. Having learned that the niece of the Byzantine emperor had been proposed as a bride, he agreed.

Victor Muizhel. “Ambassador Ivan Fryazin presents Ivan III with a portrait of his bride Sophia Paleolog”

Negotiations, however, had just begun - all the details needed to be discussed. The Russian ambassador, sent to Rome, returned with a gift that shocked both the groom and his entourage. In the chronicle, this fact was reflected with the words “bring the princess on the icon.”

The fact is that at that time secular painting did not exist in Russia at all, and the portrait of Sophia sent to Ivan III was perceived in Moscow as an “icon”.

Sophia Paleolog. Reconstruction based on the skull of S. Nikitin

However, having figured out what was what, the Moscow prince was pleased with the appearance of the bride. In historical literature there are various descriptions of Sophia Paleolog - from beauty to ugly. In the 1990s, studies were carried out on the remains of Ivan III’s wife, during which her appearance was restored. Sophia was a short woman (about 160 cm), inclined to be overweight, with strong-willed facial features that could be called, if not beautiful, then quite pretty. Be that as it may, Ivan III liked her.

Failure of Vissarion of Nicaea

The formalities were settled by the spring of 1472, when a new Russian embassy arrived in Rome, this time for the bride herself.

On June 1, 1472, an absentee betrothal took place in the Basilica of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. The deputy of the Grand Duke was the Russian ambassador Ivan Fryazin. The wife of the ruler of Florence, Lorenzo the Magnificent, Clarice Orsini, and Queen Katarina of Bosnia were present as guests. The father, in addition to gifts, gave the bride a dowry of 6 thousand ducats.

Sofia Paleologue enters Moscow. Miniature of the Facial Chronicle Code

On June 24, 1472, Sophia Paleologus's large convoy, together with the Russian ambassador, left Rome. The bride was accompanied by a Roman retinue led by Cardinal Vissarion of Nicaea.

We had to get to Moscow through Germany along the Baltic Sea, and then through the Baltic states, Pskov and Novgorod. Such a difficult route was caused by the fact that Russia once again began having political problems with Poland during this period.

From time immemorial, the Byzantines were famous for their cunning and deceit. Vissarion of Nicaea learned that Sophia Paleologus inherited these qualities in full soon after the bride’s train crossed the Russian border. The 17-year-old girl announced that from now on she would no longer perform Catholic rites, but would return to the faith of her ancestors, that is, to Orthodoxy. All the cardinal's ambitious plans collapsed. Attempts by Catholics to gain a foothold in Moscow and strengthen their influence failed.

On November 12, 1472, Sophia entered Moscow. Here, too, there were many who treated her with caution, seeing her as a “Roman agent.” According to some reports, Metropolitan Philip, dissatisfied with the bride, refused to hold the wedding ceremony, which is why the ceremony was performed by Kolomna Archpriest Hosea.

But, be that as it may, Sophia Paleolog became the wife of Ivan III.

Fedor Bronnikov. “Meeting of Princess Sofia Palaeologus by Pskov mayors and boyars at the mouth of the Embakh on Lake Peipsi”

How Sophia saved Russia from the yoke

Their marriage lasted 30 years, she bore her husband 12 children, of whom five sons and four daughters lived to adulthood. Judging by historical documents, the Grand Duke was attached to his wife and children, for which he even received reproaches from high-ranking church officials who believed that this was detrimental to state interests.

Sophia never forgot about her origin and behaved as, in her opinion, the emperor’s niece should behave. Under her influence, the receptions of the Grand Duke, especially the receptions of ambassadors, were furnished with a complex and colorful ceremony, similar to the Byzantine one. Thanks to her, the Byzantine double-headed eagle migrated to Russian heraldry. Thanks to her influence, Grand Duke Ivan III began to call himself the “Russian Tsar.” With the son and grandson of Sophia Paleologus, this designation of the Russian ruler will become official.

Judging by the actions and deeds of Sophia, she, having lost her native Byzantium, seriously took up the task of building it in another Orthodox country. She was helped by her husband’s ambition, on which she successfully played.

When the Horde Khan Akhmat was preparing an invasion of Russian lands and in Moscow they were discussing the issue of the amount of tribute with which one could buy off misfortune, Sophia intervened in the matter. Bursting with tears, she began to reproach her husband for the fact that the country was still forced to pay tribute and that it was time to end this shameful situation. Ivan III was not a warlike man, but his wife’s reproaches touched him to the quick. He decided to gather an army and march towards Akhmat.

At the same time, the Grand Duke sent his wife and children first to Dmitrov, and then to Beloozero, fearing military failure.

But there was no failure - there was no battle on the Ugra River, where the troops of Akhmat and Ivan III met. After what is known as the “standing on the Ugra,” Akhmat retreated without a fight, and his dependence on the Horde ended completely.

Perestroika of the 15th century

Sophia inspired her husband that the sovereign of such a great power as he could not live in a capital with wooden churches and chambers. Under the influence of his wife, Ivan III began rebuilding the Kremlin. The architect Aristotle Fioravanti was invited from Italy to build the Assumption Cathedral. White stone was actively used at the construction site, which is why the expression “white stone Moscow”, which has survived for centuries, appeared.

Inviting foreign specialists in various fields has become a widespread phenomenon under Sophia Paleolog. The Italians and Greeks, who took up the positions of ambassadors under Ivan III, will begin to actively invite their fellow countrymen to Russia: architects, jewelers, coinmakers and gunsmiths. Among the visitors there were a large number of professional doctors.

Sophia arrived in Moscow with a large dowry, part of which was occupied by a library, which included Greek parchments, Latin chronographs, ancient Eastern manuscripts, including poems by Homer, works by Aristotle and Plato, and even books from the Library of Alexandria.

These books formed the basis of the legendary missing library of Ivan the Terrible, which enthusiasts are trying to search for to this day. Skeptics, however, believe that such a library did not actually exist.

Speaking about the hostile and wary attitude of the Russians towards Sophia, it must be said that they were embarrassed by her independent behavior and active interference in state affairs. Such behavior was uncharacteristic for Sophia’s predecessors as grand duchesses, and simply for Russian women.

Battle of the Heirs

By the time of Ivan III’s second marriage, he already had a son from his first wife, Ivan the Young, who was declared heir to the throne. But with the birth of Sophia’s children, tension began to increase. The Russian nobility split into two factions, one of which supported Ivan the Young, and the second - Sophia.

The relationship between the stepmother and stepson did not work out, so much so that Ivan III himself had to exhort his son to behave decently.

Ivan Molodoy was only three years younger than Sophia and had no respect for her, apparently considering his father’s new marriage a betrayal of his deceased mother.

In 1479, Sophia, who had previously given birth only to girls, gave birth to a son named Vasily. As a true representative of the Byzantine imperial family, she was ready to ensure the throne for her son at any cost.

By this time, Ivan the Young was already mentioned in Russian documents as his father’s co-ruler. And in 1483 the heir married daughter of the ruler of Moldavia, Stephen the Great, Elena Voloshanka.

The relationship between Sophia and Elena immediately became hostile. When in 1483 Elena gave birth to a son Dmitry, Vasily’s prospects for inheriting his father’s throne became completely illusory.

Female rivalry at the court of Ivan III was fierce. Both Elena and Sophia were eager to get rid of not only their competitor, but also her offspring.

In 1484, Ivan III decided to give his daughter-in-law a pearl dowry left over from his first wife. But then it turned out that Sophia had already given it to her relative. The Grand Duke, angry at his wife’s arbitrariness, forced her to return the gift, and the relative herself, along with her husband, had to flee from the Russian lands for fear of punishment.

Death and burial of Grand Duchess Sophia Paleologue

The loser loses everything

In 1490, the heir to the throne, Ivan the Young, fell ill with “ache in his legs.” He was called from Venice especially for his treatment. doctor Lebi Zhidovin, but he could not help, and on March 7, 1490, the heir died. The doctor was executed by order of Ivan III, and rumors circulated in Moscow that Ivan the Young died as a result of poisoning, which was the work of Sophia Paleologue.

There is, however, no evidence of this. After the death of Ivan the Young, his son became the new heir, known in Russian historiography as Dmitry Ivanovich Vnuk.

Dmitry Vnuk was not officially declared the heir, and therefore Sophia Paleologus continued to try to achieve the throne for Vasily.

In 1497, a conspiracy by supporters of Vasily and Sophia was discovered. The angry Ivan III sent its participants to the chopping block, but did not touch his wife and son. However, they found themselves in disgrace, virtually under house arrest. On February 4, 1498, Dmitry Vnuk was officially proclaimed heir to the throne.

The fight, however, was not over. Soon, Sophia's party managed to achieve revenge - this time the supporters of Dmitry and Elena Voloshanka were handed over to the executioners. The denouement came on April 11, 1502. Ivan III considered the new charges of conspiracy against Dmitry Vnuk and his mother convincing, sending them under house arrest. A few days later, Vasily was proclaimed co-ruler of his father and heir to the throne, and Dmitry Vnuk and his mother were placed in prison.

Birth of an Empire

Sophia Paleologue, who actually elevated her son to the Russian throne, did not live to see this moment. She died on April 7, 1503 and was buried in a massive white-stone sarcophagus in the tomb of the Ascension Cathedral in the Kremlin next to her grave Maria Borisovna, the first wife of Ivan III.

The Grand Duke, widowed for the second time, outlived his beloved Sophia by two years, passing away in October 1505. Elena Voloshanka died in prison.

Vasily III, having ascended the throne, first of all tightened the conditions of detention for his competitor - Dmitry Vnuk was shackled in iron shackles and placed in a small cell. In 1509, a 25-year-old high-born prisoner died.

In 1514, in an agreement with the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I, Vasily III was named Emperor of the Rus for the first time in the history of Rus'. This letter is then used by Peter I as proof of his rights to coronation as emperor.

The efforts of Sophia Palaeologus, a proud Byzantine who set about building a new empire to replace the lost one, were not in vain.

Sofia Paleolog went from the last Byzantine princess to the Grand Duchess of Moscow. Thanks to her intelligence and cunning, she could influence the policies of Ivan III and won palace intrigues. Sophia also managed to place her son Vasily III on the throne.

Zoe Paleologue was born around 1440-1449. She was the daughter of Thomas Palaiologos, who was the brother of the last Byzantine emperor Constantine. The fate of the entire family after the death of the ruler turned out to be unenviable. Thomas Palaiologos fled to Corfu and then to Rome. After some time, the children followed him. The paleologians were patronized by Pope Paul II himself. The girl had to convert to Catholicism and change her name from Zoe to Sophia. She received an education appropriate to her status, without basking in luxury, but without poverty either.

Sophia became a pawn in the political game of the Pope. At first he wanted to give her as a wife to King James II of Cyprus, but he refused. The next contender for the girl's hand was Prince Caracciolo, but he did not live to see the wedding. When the wife of Prince Ivan III died in 1467, Sophia Paleologue was offered to him as his wife. The Pope kept silent about the fact that she was a Catholic, thereby wanting to expand the influence of the Vatican in Rus'. Negotiations for marriage continued for three years. Ivan III was seduced by the opportunity to have such an eminent person as his wife.

The betrothal in absentia took place on June 1, 1472, after which Sophia Paleologus went to Muscovy. Everywhere she was given all kinds of honors and celebrations were held. At the head of her cortege was a man who carried a Catholic cross. Having learned about this, Metropolitan Philip threatened to leave Moscow if the cross was brought into the city. Ivan III ordered that the Catholic symbol be taken away 15 versts from Moscow. Dad's plans failed, and Sophia returned to her faith again. The wedding took place on November 12, 1472 in the Assumption Cathedral.

At court, the newly-made Byzantine wife of the Grand Duke was not liked. Despite this, Sophia had a huge influence on her husband. The chronicles describe in detail how Paleologue persuaded Ivan III to free himself from the Mongol yoke.

Following the Byzantine model, Ivan III developed a complex judicial system. It was then for the first time that the Grand Duke began to call himself “the Tsar and Autocrat of All Rus'.” It is believed that the image of the double-headed eagle, which subsequently appeared on the coat of arms of Muscovy, was brought by Sophia Paleologus with her.

Sophia Paleolog and Ivan III had eleven children (five sons and six daughters). From his first marriage, the tsar had a son, Ivan the Young, the first contender for the throne. But he fell ill with gout and died. Another “obstacle” for Sophia’s children on the path to the throne was Ivan the Young’s son Dmitry. But he and his mother fell out of favor with the king and died in captivity. Some historians suggest that Paleologus was involved in the deaths of the direct heirs, but there is no direct evidence. Ivan III's successor was Sophia's son Vasily III.

The Byzantine princess and princess of Muscovy died on April 7, 1503. She was buried in a stone sarcophagus in the Ascension Monastery.

The marriage of Ivan III and Sophia Paleologue turned out to be successful politically and culturally. were able to leave a mark not only in the history of their country, but also to become beloved queens in a foreign land.