280 years ago, on the night of December 6, 1741, under the arches of the barracks of the Life Guards of the Preobrazhensky Regiment, the words sounded: “Guys, you know whose daughter I am. They want to imprison me in a monastery. Follow me!»
Thus began and very soon ended the next palace coup of the XVIII century. The coup was bloodless, which greatly contributed to the subsequent softening of morals. The initiator of the coup was given a vow, if successful, not to execute anyone with death. The word was kept. The nominal imperial Decree of May 17, 1744 actually abolished the death penalty in Russia.
This Decree was signed by the Empress Elizabeth. The Emperor’s daughter Peter the Great, which, in fact, she insisted on in her appeal to the Life Guards. She spent twenty years and one month on the Russian throne. It is believed that this very formulation — «spent on the throne— — describes the reign of Elizabeth most correctly.
Many Russian historians flatly deny Peter’s daughter any noticeable abilities to manage a huge empire. Let’s say Nikolay Karamzin in his “Notes on ancient and new Russia” he claimed: “A French doctor and several drunken grenadiers elevated daughter Petrova to the throne of the greatest empire in the world with exclamations: “Death to foreigners! Honor to the Russians!The first days of this reign were marked by the insolence of the glorious label company, the laying of a blue ribbon on the Little Russian singer and the disaster of our state benefactors.Osterman and Minich whose fault was the opinion that Elizabeth, idle, voluptuous, could not manage the state well… In general, Elizabeth’s reign was not famous for any brilliant deeds of the state mind.
A representative of the next generation of historians, Vasily Klyuchevsky, Elizabeth’s personality and the results of her reign are about the same. Perhaps a little more condescending: “Lazy and capricious, she was afraid of any serious thought, having an aversion to any business activity. The map of Europe lay in front of her at her disposal, but she looked at it so rarely that for the rest of her life she was sure of the possibilitytravel to England by land. Russian Russian lady Elizabeth was smart and kind, but disorderly and wayward of the XVIII century., which according to the Russian custom, many scolded during her lifetime and, also according to the Russian custom, everyone mourned for death. Since the reign of Princess Sophia, life has never been so easy in Russia, and no reign has left such a pleasant memory in itself.
It is not surprising that as a result, the most capacious characteristic of Elizabeth’s reign is still considered by many to be a stanza from a wonderful humorous poetic treatise .Alexey Konstantinovich Tolstoy “The history of the Russian state from Gostomysl to Timashev”;:
The merry Queen
Was Elizabeth:
Sings and has fun,
There is just no order.
It’s time to take stock. What’s not there? Order, «business thoughts », «serious studies », and, most importantly, «brilliant deeds of the state mind ». And what is there? A wardrobe of fifteen thousand dresses, a passion for balls and masquerades, multi-day hunts and all kinds of entertainment. And also a monstrous budget deficit, which is believed to have been caused by reckless spending in pursuit of luxury and pleasure.
For some mysterious reason, even the most intelligent and astute people seriously believe that the “brilliant deeds of the mind of the state” must necessarily be accompanied by bloodshed. In fact, who is a successful sovereign? The one who leads large-scale and, preferably, successful wars, joins new territories, puts enemies to shame and thereby exalts his Fatherland.
No doubt, it’s all necessary. Moreover, this is indeed a necessary condition for the glorification of the Fatherland. Necessary — yes. But is it sufficient?
And here it is necessary to think carefully. In the time of Elizabeth, Russia joined the conditional club of the Great Powers of Europe. But this greatness was second-rate. Yes, a strong army. Yes, the fleet. Yes, an enviable and reliable trading partner. And what else is there in this mysterious northern country? What can Russia boast of? Writers? Musicians? Composers? Scientists? Artists? Playwrights? Philosophers?
The times when our country will surprise and amaze the whole world with names Tolstoy, Tchaikovsky, Mendeleev, Levitan, Chekhov and Berdyaev they will come again. In about a hundred and fifty years.
And in Elizabeth’s time, in this regard, Russia was a desert where there was nothing at all. However, as you know, a big road begins with a small step. It was under Elizabeth, or rather, at her whim, that Russia embarked on this path. What reasons the “merry queen” was guided by is not so important. Even the motivation «I want it to be no worse than people» also deserves attention. Because the steps, if you look closely, were made and not so small.
The University was founded. The Academy of Arts was founded. An architectural school is being created, which marked the beginning of architectural education in Russia. The Imperial Theater was established.
All these are — things to grow. They require large investments, punch a hole in the budget here and now, and you have to wait for a very, very long time for returns. But with the right approach, the result will justify everything, even the wildest expectations.
The foundations of Russia’s future cultural greatness were laid just under Elizabeth. And it’s time to finally get used to making a mental correction about the “brilliant deeds of the state mind”. Because investments in science and culture are no less important than in the army and industry.