«Совет всея земли» при 1-ом Ополчении: история одного фантома

Canadian-American Slavic Studies. 2022. Vol. 56. No. 4. P. 479–497.

Liseitsev D. V.

A special place in the works devoted to the history of the Time of Troubles and the Assemblies of the Land of the Muscovite state is assigned to the “Council of the Entire Land.” Many scholars believe that the “Council of the Entire Land” was formed in the camp of the First National Militia (pervaia opolcheniia). Some researchers suppose that it was an Assembly of the Land, while others believe that it was a provisional govern- ment. Such conclusions were based on a limited range of sources. The only evidence for these views cited are the separate charters issued by the government of the First National Militia. But to study the history of political structures, it is necessary to draw upon as wide a range of sources as possible. The analysis of the documents compiled in the chancellery of the First National Militia (about 200 acts) allows us to state that the verbal formula “Council of the Entire Land” was used to denote the declared unanimity in the ranks of the Militia. Thus, the author concludes that there is no reason at all to believe that there was an Assembly of the Land or a provisional government called the “Council of the Entire Land” in the camp of the First National Militia.

Keywords: XVII century, the Time of Troubles, narodnoe opolchenie (people’s militia)

Publication based on the results of: Westernization as a descriptive model of modern Russian history: Critique and exploration of alternatives (2022)