The epoch of the palace coups in Russia in the 18th century презентация

century

by Valeria Dyugaeva

1725 to 1762. It was a period of Russian history between the reign of Peter the Great and Catherine the Great defined by rulers overthrowing each other from the throne with the help of elite palace guard. It is said to be one of the most difficult periods for the Russian throne.

Great implemented a number of sweeping reforms in Russia. One of them was changing the order of succession to the throne. The time-honored order of primogeniture was dropped by Peter's regulation in 1722. From that moment on, a monarch could choose a successor out of his children. The reform was an unheard-of novelty and immediately proved scandalous. Aside from that, it gave rise to a series of palace coups which lasted until Catherine the Great.
After the death of his first-born Aleksey Romanov who, by the old order, was to succeed Peter the Great on the throne, none of the options of the new replacement for the ruler of Russian Empire seemed acceptable. Peter struggled to make a decision, but died before he did, never having to put the innovation he introduced to the test.
 

tradition, according to which the throne passed only to direct successors of the tsar, Peter himself prepared a crisis of power.
After the death of Peter the Great there were a lot of direct and indirect successors who claimed the Russian throne.
The interests of the nobility and the generic nobility were fully showed up.The Guards had an active position, and the Guards was really the driving force of the coups. At that time the Guard was deciding who should be on the throne.

the Great's second wife Catherine I on the throne. With the help of Aleksandr Menshikov, leader of the palace guards, she gained the throne, becoming the first woman to rule Imperial Russia. However, due to her poor health, Menshikov did most of the ruling. Moreover, she always was far from state affairs.
She died two years after gaining the throne.

Catherine I, 1725 -1727

Peter the Great, her successor. He was only 11 when he became a ruler in 1727 and stayed on the throne only for 3 years with Menshikov behind him as a regent. Menshikov fell ill and died shortly, and Andrey Osterman and Aleksey Dolgoruky (Menshikov’s rivals at court) replaced him. Peter II died young, without naming a successor.

Peter II, 1727-1730

the Great, the daughter of his brother, Ivan V. She was invited to rule the Russian Empire upon Peter II's death, by the Supreme Secret Council – a group of influential court aristocracy. They deemed her a puppet monarch, while the power remained in the Council's hands. However, with the support of the loyal nobility, Anna soon gained full power and dismissed the Council, installing herself on the Russian throne for the next decade, known in the Russian history as “bironovshchina” after the name of Anna's favorite Biron.

Anna Ioannovna, 1730-1740

Brunswick, Ivan VI, as her successor and Biron as his regent.  However, Biron was soon replaced as the ruler’s regent.  The regime did not last.

Ivan VI, 1740-1741

Ivan VI and his mother, Anna Leopoldovna

rather easy for Elizaveta, being Peter the Great’s only remaining daughter. “You know whose daughter I am, so be loyal to me as you were to my father!” she would say. She received support of the Preobrazhensky regiment and with no resistance seized power, putting those in the way in prisons, including the young Ivan and his new regent Anna Leopoldovna. She chose Peter the III, grandson of Peter the Great to be her successor.

Elizaveta Petrovna, 1741-1762

Oath of the Preobrazhensky regiment to Empress Elizabeth. F. Moskovitin.

bloodless palace revolutions in history was the deposition of Peter III, son of Elizaveta Petrovna, a pro-Prussian and a very unpopular Emperor who only stayed on the throne for 6 months. He was overthrown by his own wife, then Empress-to-be Catherine the Great; she justified her act by claiming Peter was guilty of not respecting the Russian relics.
Peter's crucial mistake was still adhering to the Prussian order, especially in the military, while Russia was basically at war with the country, the fact of which greatly annoyed the army in particular. The army's support was the major reason for Catherine's success in the coup. When Peter III found out his throne was taken, he attempted to talk to Catherine but was met by the army. He had nothing left to do but to sign his resignation from the throne and leave.

Peter III, ruled for six months in 1762

June 28, 1762 , the day of the coup.
Catherine on the balcony of the Winter Palace, welcomed by the Guard and the people.

the state a considerable unrest and somewhat weakened it.
Palace coups did not carry with them changes in the political and social spheres.
The nobles fought among themselves for the right to power. As a result 6 rulers were replaced during 37 years.
However:
Strengthening of the autocracy, strengthening the position of the army, which the future rulers and the Russian nobility relied on.

After the end of this turbulent period, the country enters a period of peaceful life, the long reign of Catherine II.