The name of Ivan Susanin, who gave his life for the tsar, is known to many history buffs, but this folk hero is especially appreciated by the Kostroma people. In the glorious city on the Volga there is a monument to the martyr who died a terrible death to save the life of the monarch. We offer you to find out what Ivan Susanin is famous for, as well as get acquainted with some interesting facts from his life path.

Life information

Since the hero of our material was a serf before his feat, very little information about his childhood and life in general has been preserved - no one was interested in the fate of an ordinary forced person. Therefore, in the biography of Ivan Susanin there are more blank spots than verified facts. However, researchers believe that this brave man came from the village of Derevnishchi (another version is Derevenki), lived in the village of Domnino, Kostroma region (which now belongs to the Susaninsky district).

It is believed that Susanin was not an ordinary serf, but a headman in the estate, but this version is based on local tradition and has no evidence. There is also an opinion that the future folk hero lived at the boyar court and served as a clerk.

The next fact is that Ivan Susanin had a daughter, Antonida, who got married and gave birth to children. However, we have not reached any information about the peasant's wife, so the researchers assumed that he was married, but widowed early.

Historical setting

Speaking about what Ivan Susanin is famous for, one should characterize the historical situation that developed in Russia during the period of his life. It was a difficult time, the Troubles, the time of the fierce struggle for the throne on the one hand and the Polish-Lithuanian attacks on the other. At the beginning of the 17th century, the country was struck by a terrible famine, the autocratic throne was temporarily occupied by an impostor, then the throne went to Prince Vasily Shuisky, who was king for about 4 years. The former monarch was overthrown, captured by the Poles and ended his life far from his native land.

The boyars came to power, who tried to put a prince from Poland on the Russian throne. In these circumstances, the feat of Susanin acquires a new meaning - the peasant not only saved a particular young monarch, but also did not allow a Pole to be at the head of Russia.

Legend of the feat

What did Ivan Susanin do to immortalize his name forever? At the cost of his life, he saved Tsar Mikhail Romanov from the attack of the Polish-Lithuanian detachment. The young monarch and his mother in 1613 lived in their Kostroma patrimony in the village of Domnino, of which Susanin was the headman. The Polish invaders decided to get to the young king and kill him, but they needed a guide to show the way. This mission was to be fulfilled by the headman. Susanin managed to ask his son-in-law, Bogdan Sobinin, to warn Mikhail and advise him to hide behind the walls of the Ipatiev Monastery, this saved the king's life.

Death of a hero

Threats and bribery did not work. According to a popular legend, the brave peasant agreed, but led the enemy squad into an impassable swamp, the outsiders could not get out of there. Having exposed the deception, the Poles tortured the hero, but he did not give up and did not betray the Tsar's refuge. After that, the angry invaders brutally killed Ivan Susanin. Who was he, according to this concept? A true patriot who was martyred for the sake of Tsar Michael.

Another version of the feat

There is another legend that explains why Ivan Susanin is famous, more prosaic and therefore less popular. The bottom line is this: Tsar Michael, while in his estate in Domnino, accidentally found out that a Polish detachment was approaching him in order to capture him. The monarch hastily fled and, by chance, found himself in the house of Ivan Susanin. He fed the king and hid him so well that the arriving Poles could not find Mikhail even with the dogs. They tortured the peasant, forcing him to reveal the location of the king, but the hero remained loyal to the ruler and bravely accepted his death.

After the detachment left, Mikhail left his refuge and hid behind the walls of the Ipatiev Monastery.

Historical facts

We got acquainted with the legend about the heroism of Ivan Susanin. However, there is so little reliable information about this folk hero that some skeptics believe that in reality he did not exist. We offer you to find out some real historical information that has documentary evidence.

• Susanin entered the annals of history as a man who gave his life for the king. At the same time, the very formulation itself is questioned by some scientists, because if this man led the Poles into the impenetrable forests at the end of 1612 (and not in 1613, as is commonly believed), then young Michael was not yet a tsar.
• It is known for certain that the people's hero was not a simple peasant, but the patrimonial headman of the Romanovs.
• Susanin's patronymic has not survived, despite the fact that, according to tradition, the full name of Ivan Osipovich is attributed to him. We have not received data on the name of the hero's father in reality.
• Sources do not contain data on the name of Susanin's wife, but he had a daughter, Antonida, most likely the only descendant. Also known is the name of Antonida's spouse, Bogdan.

The key proof that Ivan Susanin really existed is a personal letter from the monarch, in which the hero's son-in-law, Bogdan, and his descendants are exempt from taxes. Also, by the will of the tsar, half of the village was granted to Antonida's wife. If we assume that the feat is nothing more than a legend, then it becomes incomprehensible why the tsar would bestow such unprecedented favors on an ordinary peasant.

Controversial points

We learned what Ivan Susanin is famous for, but there are a lot of blank spots in his biography. The very facts of the heroic deed of this patriot also cause controversy:

• The place of death of the hero is unknown. So, some researchers believe that the Poles, enraged by the deception, brutally tortured the unfortunate peasant and then killed him in the forest. This version, as more interesting, was used by writers and poets in literary works and therefore is more common. However, other historians believe that the folk hero was killed near the village of Isupovo.
• The death of the Poles in the swamp. It is generally accepted that Ivan Susanin led the enemy detachment into an impassable swamp, where his plan was exposed, he himself was brutally tortured and killed. And the invaders could not get out of the swamp and died themselves. However, this fact is called into question by archaeological finds.
• Age. It is customary to depict Susanin as a deep old man with long gray hair. In fact, his age was hardly more than 40 years old. Most likely, Antonida at the time of the feat had reached the age of 16.
• Saved the king from what? Not all historians are sure that if captured by the Polish invaders, Mikhail would have been killed. The opinion was expressed that the imprisoned monarch would force Russia to be more compliant and surrender.

Despite these disagreements, the Romanov dynasty further highly appreciated the feat of Ivan Susanin:

• Nicholas the First ordered to call the main square of the city of Kostroma Susaninskaya (this name has survived to this day). Also in the city on the Volga, a majestic monument to the national hero was erected.
• After the charter of 1619, for two hundred years, the descendants of Susanin received letters of commendation from subsequent monarchs confirming their privileges.

The legend about Ivan Susanin and his feat is widely popular, musical and literary works are dedicated to this man, many streets of Russian cities bear his name. There is a museum of the heroic deed of this patriot; ships and an ice drift were also named in his honor.

The meaning of the feat

Speaking about what Ivan Susanin is famous for, it is necessary to indicate the following points:

• After the people's hero saved the tsar, the Romanov dynasty reigned in Russia, ending the Time of Troubles, which was difficult for the country and its people. A certain stability appeared, still weak and ghostly, but the monarch, God's chosen one, was on the throne, instilling in people the hope that life would improve.
• The very accession of Michael is associated with patriotism, a simple peasant gave his life for this monarch, his sacrifice was disinterested, so the young tsar immediately earned a special attitude towards himself.

Ivan Susanin is a significant figure, this peasant managed not only to save the tsar, but also to demonstrate to the enemy the power of Russian patriotism.

Interesting facts about Ivan Susanin About Ivan Susanin heard, of course, every resident of our country. And, perhaps, only Chapaev and Stirlitz can compare with Susanin in the number of anecdotes. And who is Ivan Susanin really? Here are just a few stories, legends, myths about the fate of this amazing person. According to the official version, Ivan Susanin, a village headman (and not a serf peasant) from the Kostroma province, in 1613 led a Polish detachment looking for a new Tsar Mikhail Romanov into impassable swamps, where the conquerors died, and Susanin himself was brutally killed. To understand what the young tsar was doing in a remote village, let's go back to history. In 1605, Tsar Boris Godunov died, and the throne was taken by a succession of one-day rulers, Fyodor Godunov, False Dmitry I, Vasily Shuisky ... a period of "Time of Troubles" began in the country. After famine, a series of uprisings and lost battles, a period called the seven-boyars began, since everything in the country ended, even the sovereigns. At this critical moment, the Zemsky Sobor (a meeting of representatives of cities) was convened and the first representative of the Romanov family, Mikhail Romanov, was elected to reign. Previously, the Romanovs who were in disgrace at that time lived in the patrimonial village of Domnina, where the headman Ivan Susanin was. So why did the Poles need a Russian Tsar? Everything is simple - at that time, the Russian troops were drained of blood by the war with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the young Russian tsar could become enemies as an excellent bargaining chip in the negotiations for surrender. Since then, the Romanovs have in every possible way glorified the patriot-peasant who, at the cost of his own life, saved the young Mikhail Romanov. Nicholas the First did his best in the 19th century. It was during the years of his reign that the main square of Kostroma was named Susaninskaya, and a monument to the legendary hero was erected on the koltoraya. By the way, shortly after the death of Susanin, his relatives reminded the tsar of their existence. The hero's son-in-law Bogdan Sobinin appealed to Tsar Mikhail, with a request not to bypass the descendants of Susanin with royal favor. In 1619, Sobinin received the village of Dominino in the Kostroma district into his possession. Mikhail exempted him from all taxes: "For his service to us and for the blood, and for the patience of his father-in-law Ivan Susanin." The royal charter of November 30, 1619: “By the grace of God, we, the Great Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Duke Mikhailo Fedorovich, autocrat of all Russia, according to our royal mercy, and on the advice and request of our mother, Empress, the great elder nun Martha Ivanovna, have granted esma of the Kostroma district, our village Domnina, the peasant Bogdashka Sobinin, for service to us and for the blood, and for the patience of his father-in-law Ivan Susanin: how we, the great sovereign, the tsar and the great prince Mikhailo Fedorovich of all Russia in the past 121 (that is, in 1613 from the birth of Christ! ) were in Kostroma, and at that time Polish and Lithuanian people came to the Kostroma district, and his father-in-law, Bogdashkov, Ivan Susanin at that time, the Lithuanian people seized him and tortured him with great, immeasurable torture and tortured him where at that time we, the great sovereign, tsar and grand duke Mikhailo Fyodorovich of all Russia were, and he is Ivan, knowing about us, the great sovereign, where we were at that time, suffering from those Polish and Lithuanian people unmeasured torture, about us, the great sovereign, the Polish and he did not tell the Lithuanian people where we were at that time, but the Polish and Lithuanian people tortured him to death. And we, the Great Sovereign, the Tsar and Grand Duke Mikhailo Fyodorovich of All Russia, granted him, Bogdashka, for his father-in-law Ivan Susanin to serve us and for blood in the Kostroma district of our palace village Domnina half of the village of Derevnishchi, on which he, Bogdashka, now lives, a quarter and a half of the land was ordered to whitewash the half-village from that half-village, with a quarter and a half to whitewash on it, on Bogdashka, and on his children, and on our grandchildren, and on our great-grandchildren, no taxes and feed, and carts, and all sorts of planned dining and grain supplies , and in the city crafts, and in the bridge-building, and in other things, they were not ordered to pay any impeccable tax from them; They told them to whitewash that half of the village in everything, both their children and grandchildren, and the whole family motionless. And it will be that our village Domnino, in which there will be a monastery and in return, that half of the village of Villages, they did not order to give one and a half quarters of land to which monastery with that village, they ordered him, Bogdashka Sobinin, and his children and grandchildren, according to our royal salary, to own him. , and to their generation for ever and ever. This is our royal certificate of gratitude given in Moscow in the summer of 7128 (from the Nativity of Christ - 1619) November 30th day ”. Interestingly, for another 200 years, the hero's descendants were issued letters of honor confirming their benefits, based on the model of the royal charter of 1619. Little is known about the biography of Ivan Susanin himself. No one can even say how old the hero was at the time of his feat. As a rule, Susanin is portrayed as such a gray-haired old man, although there is information that Susanin's daughter Antonida was at that time 16 years old, and Ivan Osipovich himself, according to some historians, was 35-40 years old. For many years, researchers have been interested in the question: where was that ruinous place where Susanin led his enemies, and was his grave preserved? Although, finding the grave of Susanin is an almost impossible task, because, according to legend, he died along with the Poles. Nevertheless, at the beginning of our century in the Kostroma region there was a purposeful search for the remains of the savior of the royal dynasty. Historians, archaeologists, and criminologists conducted a grandiose study: 360 remains were found and studied in the area of ​​the village of Isupovo, not the place of the alleged death of the national hero. A comparative analysis of the DNA of Susanin's descendants with the finds of the 17th century was carried out. It may seem surprising, but the members of this expedition are sure that Susanin was buried there. Forensic analysis of the remains of one of the men confirms this. It is interesting that not only streets and squares in our country bear the name of Susanin. For example, in St. Petersburg the name of the legendary hero is a store of ... navigators.

Ivan Susanin was a peasant who lived in the Kostroma district. In he is known as the man who saved Tsar Romanov) from the Polish invaders. To date, there is no reliable information about the personality of this. According to historical chronicles, Susanin served as a headman in the village of Domnino, Kostroma district. A detachment of Polish interventionists asked Ivan Osipovich to bring them to his village, where Tsar Mikhail Romanov was staying. For this, Susanin was entitled to a reward. Instead, the future hero brought the Poles into the city. After some wanderings, the interventionists guessed that the man decided to destroy them. After prolonged torture of the peasant, they realized that he would not show the road leading to the village. The Poles killed Susanin. But the murderers themselves soon died in the forest swamps. Today the name of this noble man is immortalized. And the proof of the hero's existence is a certificate given to his son-in-law. And also the remains of a person found near Kostroma, which, most likely, belonged to Susanin. Well, now we will take a closer look at what Ivan Susanin is famous for and study some facts of his biography.

Life time of Ivan Susanin

Before proceeding directly to the very feat and personality of Ivan Osipovich Susanin, I would like to acquaint the reader with the period of time in which the great martyr lived. So, it was in the first half of the 17th century. In the early 1600s, unprecedented class, natural and religious cataclysms gripped Russia. It was during this period that the famous Holodomor of 1601-1603, the seizure of the throne by an impostor, the coming to power of Vasily Shuisky, the Polish invasion of 1609, as well as the militia of 1611 and many other incidents take place.

A great mountain crept up to where, in fact, and inhabited which leaves many blank spots. The episodes that characterize that time include: the destruction of Kostroma in 1608-1609 by False Dmitry II, an attack on the Ipatiev Monastery, the defeat of Kineshma by Polish troops and other bloody events.

Whether the events described above, namely anxiety, internecine troubles and the invasion of enemies, had an attitude towards Susanin and his relatives, or until some time bypassed their clan, is unknown. But this whole era is the time when Ivan Susanin lived. And the war came to the very house of the hero when, it seemed, it was already over.

Susanin's personality

Ivan Susanin, whose biography contains very little known facts, is still an interesting person. Little is known to us about the existence of this person. We only know that Ivan had a daughter with an unusual name for our time - Antonida. The peasant Bogdan Sabinin became her husband. Susanin had two grandchildren - Konstantin and Daniel, but it is not known exactly when they were born.

There is also no information about the wife of Ivan Osipovich. Historians are inclined to believe that at the time the peasant performed the feat, she was no longer alive. And since during the same period Antonida was 16 years old, scientists, when asked how old Ivan Susanin was when he took the Poles into the forest, answer that he was in adulthood. That is, it is about 32-40 years old.

When everything was happening

Today, many people know what Ivan Susanin is famous for, and what a feat he accomplished. But as to what year and what time everything happened, there are several versions. Opinion one: the event took place in the late autumn of 1612. The following information is provided to support this date. Some legends say that Ivan hid the tsar in the pit of a recently burned barn. The story also tells that as if the hero also covered the pit with charred boards. But this theory was denied by most researchers. If this is still true, and the old legends do not lie, then it was really in the fall, since the barns were drowned and burned exactly at this time of the year.

Or maybe the last winter month of 1613 after all?

In the minds of ordinary people, thanks to the numerous paintings, literary works and the opera of M.I. Glinka, the image of Ivan Susanin, who led the Poles through the forest with snowdrifts, was firmly entrenched. And this is the generally accepted version. Therefore, there is reason to believe that the feat was accomplished somewhere in the second part of February or the first half of March. At this time, the Poles were sent, who were to kill Tsar Mikhail in order to destroy the stabilization of Russia and to further fight for the right to become the head of the Russian throne.

But one way or another, no one will ever know the truth about the exact date of the feat. After all, the incredibly large number of important details remains a mystery. And those that were saved are most likely misinterpreted. We are aware of what Ivan Susanin is famous for. And let everything else remain a myth.

Death of Susanin in the Village

Several historical chronicles, which describe how Ivan Susanin hid Romanov in a pit in the village of Derevnishche, also mention that in the same village of Ivan Osipovich, the Poles were tortured and then killed. But this theory is not supported by any documents. This version was not supported by almost anyone who studied the life of the famous hero.

The most common version of death

The following theory regarding the death of a hero is the most famous and most supported by historians. According to her, Ivan Susanin, whose feat is described above, died in the Isupov swamp. And the image of the color that grew on the blood of the hero is considered incredibly poetic. The second name of the swamp sounds like "Clean", because it was washed by the suffering blood of Ivan Osipovich. But all this is just folklore speculation. But be that as it may, it is the swamp that is the main scene of the entire Susanin feat. The peasant led the Poles through the bog, luring them into the very depths of the forest, away from the village they needed.

But along with this, many questions arise. If Ivan Susanin (the history of the feat is described above) really died in the swamp, then did all the Poles die after his death? Or only some of them have sunk into oblivion? Who, then, told that the peasant was no longer alive? There is no mention of the death of the Poles in any documents that historians have managed to find. But there is an opinion that the real (and not folklore) hero Ivan died not in a swamp, but in some other place.

Death in the village of Isupovo

The third version regarding the death of Ivan says that he died not in a swamp, but in the village of Isupovo. This is evidenced by the document in which the great-grandson of Susanin (Sobinin I.L.) asks the Empress Anna Ioannovna to confirm the privileges given to the descendants of Ivan Susanin. According to this petition, it was in the indicated village that Ivan Osipovich was overtaken by his death. If you believe this legend, then the death of their fellow countryman was seen by the inhabitants of Isupovo. Then it turns out that they brought bad news to the village of Domnino, and perhaps they delivered the body of the deceased there.

This version is the only theory that has documentary evidence. She is considered the most real. In addition, the great-grandson, who was not so distant in time from his great-grandfather, could not help but know what Ivan Susanin is famous for, and where he died. Many historians also share this hypothesis.

Where is Ivan Osipovich Susanin buried

A natural question will be where the grave of the Russian hero is. If you believe the legend that he died in the village of Isupovo, and not in the swamp of the same name, then burial should be mandatory. It is assumed that the body of the deceased was buried in the cemetery near the Resurrection Church, which was a parish church for residents of the villages of Derevnishche and Domnino. But there is no solid and multiple evidence for this fact.

It is impossible not to mention the fact that a little later after the burial, Ivan's body was reburied in the Ipatiev Monastery. This is also the version that has no hard evidence. And it was rejected by almost all researchers of Susanin's feat.

Of course, every inhabitant of our country has heard about Ivan Susanin. And, perhaps, only Chapaev and Stirlitz can compare with Susanin in the number of anecdotes. And who is Ivan Susanin really? Here are just a few stories, legends, myths about the fate of this amazing person.

According to the official version, Ivan Susanin, a village headman (and not a serf peasant) from the Kostroma province, in 1613 led a Polish detachment looking for a new Tsar Mikhail Romanov into impassable swamps, where the conquerors died, and Susanin himself was brutally killed.

To understand what the young tsar was doing in a remote village, let's go back to history. In 1605, Tsar Boris Godunov died, and the throne was taken by a succession of one-day rulers, Fyodor Godunov, False Dmitry I, Vasily Shuisky ... a period of "Time of Troubles" began in the country. After famine, a series of uprisings and lost battles, a period called the seven-boyars began, since everything in the country ended, even the sovereigns. At this critical moment, the Zemsky Sobor (a meeting of representatives of cities) was convened and the first representative of the Romanov family, Mikhail Romanov, was elected to reign. Previously, the Romanovs who were in disgrace at that time lived in the patrimonial village of Domnina, where the headman Ivan Susanin was.

So why did the Poles need a Russian Tsar? Everything is simple - at that time, the Russian troops were drained of blood by the war with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the young Russian tsar could become enemies as an excellent bargaining chip in the negotiations for surrender.

Since then, the Romanovs have in every possible way glorified the patriot-peasant who, at the cost of his own life, saved the young Mikhail Romanov.

Nicholas the First did his best in the 19th century. It was during the years of his reign that the main square of Kostroma was named Susaninskaya, and a monument to the legendary hero was erected on the koltoraya.

By the way, shortly after the death of Susanin, his relatives reminded the tsar of their existence. The hero's son-in-law Bogdan Sobinin appealed to Tsar Mikhail, with a request not to bypass the descendants of Susanin with royal favor. In 1619, Sobinin received the village of Dominino in the Kostroma district into his possession. Mikhail exempted him from all taxes: "For his service to us and for the blood, and for the patience of his father-in-law Ivan Susanin."

“By the grace of God, we, the Great Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Duke Mikhailo Fyodorovich, autocrat of all Russia, according to our royal mercy, and on the advice and request of our mother, the Empress, the great elder nun Martha Ivanovna, granted Esma of the Kostroma district, our village Domnina, peasant Bogdashka Sobinin, for service to us and for the blood, and for the patience of his father-in-law Ivan Susanin: how we, the great sovereign, the tsar and the grand duke Mikhailo Fedorovich of all Russia in the past 121 (that is, in 1613 from the birth of Christ!) were in Kostroma, and at that time Polish and Lithuanian people came to the Kostroma district, and his father-in-law, Bogdashkov, Ivan Susanin at that time, the Lithuanian people seized and tortured him with great, immeasurable torture and tortured him where in those days we, the great the sovereign, the tsar and the grand duke Mikhailo Fedorovich of all Russia were, and he is Ivan, knowing about us, the great sovereign, where we were at that time, suffering from those Polish and Lithuanian people unmeasured torture, about us, the great sovereign, the Polish and Lithuanian He did not tell people where we were at that time, but the Polish and Lithuanian people tortured him to death.

And we, the Great Sovereign, the Tsar and Grand Duke Mikhailo Fyodorovich of All Russia, granted him, Bogdashka, for his father-in-law Ivan Susanin to serve us and for blood in the Kostroma district of our palace village Domnina half of the village of Derevnishchi, on which he, Bogdashka, now lives, a quarter and a half of the land was ordered to whitewash the half-village from that half-village, with a quarter and a half to whitewash on it, on Bogdashka, and on his children, and on our grandchildren, and on our great-grandchildren, no taxes and feed, and carts, and all sorts of planned dining and grain supplies , and in the city crafts, and in the bridge-building, and in other things, they were not ordered to pay any impeccable tax from them; They told them to whitewash that half of the village in everything, both their children and grandchildren, and the whole family motionless. And it will be that our village Domnino, in which there will be a monastery and in return, that half of the village of Villages, they did not order to give one and a half quarters of land to which monastery with that village, they ordered him, Bogdashka Sobinin, and his children and grandchildren, according to our royal salary, to own him. , and to their generation for ever and ever. This is our royal certificate of gratitude given in Moscow in the summer of 7128 (from the Nativity of Christ - 1619) November 30th day ”.

Interestingly, for another 200 years, the hero's descendants were issued letters of honor confirming their benefits, based on the model of the royal charter of 1619.

Little is known about the biography of Ivan Susanin himself. No one can even say how old the hero was at the time of his feat. As a rule, Susanin is portrayed as such a gray-haired old man, although there is information that Susanin's daughter Antonida was at that time 16 years old, and Ivan Osipovich himself, according to some historians, was 35-40 years old.

For many years, researchers have been interested in the question: where was that ruinous place where Susanin led his enemies, and was his grave preserved? Although, finding the grave of Susanin is an almost impossible task, because, according to legend, he died along with the Poles. Nevertheless, at the beginning of our century in the Kostroma region there was a purposeful search for the remains of the savior of the royal dynasty.

Historians, archaeologists, and criminologists conducted a grandiose study: 360 remains were found and studied in the area of ​​the village of Isupovo, not the place of the alleged death of the national hero. A comparative analysis of the DNA of Susanin's descendants with the finds of the 17th century was carried out. It may seem surprising, but the members of this expedition are sure that Susanin was buried there. Forensic analysis of the remains of one of the men confirms this.

It is interesting that not only streets and squares in our country bear the name of Susanin. For example, in St. Petersburg the name of the legendary hero is a store of ... navigators.

The name of the national hero Ivan Osipovich Susanin is known to any Russian child of the 3rd grade. Many do not know his biography, but they know that he led someone somewhere into an impenetrable jungle. Let us understand briefly the biography of this famous person and try to understand what is reality and what is fiction.

In contact with

I must say that not much is known about Ivan. He was born in the Kostroma region in the village of Derevenki. According to other sources, the place of birth is the village of Domnino, which was the fiefdom of the Shestov nobles. Who was I. Susanin during his lifetime is also not very clear. According to different sources, there are different views:

1. Generally accepted - a simple peasant;
2. Little accepted - village headman;
3. Little known - Ivan Osipovich acted as a clerk and lived at the court of the Shestov boyars.

They first learned about him in 1619 from the royal charter of Tsar Mikhail Romanov. From this letter we learn that in the fierce winter of 1612 a Polish-Lithuanian detachment of the Commonwealth appeared. The purpose of the detachment was to find the young Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov and destroy him. At this time, the tsar and his mother nun Martha lived in the village of Domnino.

A detachment of Poles and Lithuanians moved along the road to Domnino and met the peasant Ivan Susanin and his son-in-law Bogdan Sobinin. Susanin was ordered to show the way to the courtyard where the young king lives. The peasant reluctantly agreed and led the enemy in the other direction. As evidenced by the letter and legend, Ivan took them to the swamps in the impenetrable jungle. When the deception was revealed, the gentry tortured him and cut his body into small pieces. They could not get out of the wilds and froze in the swamps. Under the yoke of torture, Ivan Osipovich did not change his decision to destroy the enemy and did not indicate the right path.

History bears witness to that Susanin led the gentry, and Sobinin's son-in-law went to Domnino to warn the tsar. The king and his mother took refuge in a monastery. Judging by the fact that Sobinin's son-in-law is mentioned, it is determined that Susanin's age was approximately 35-40 years. According to other sources, he was an old man of advanced years.

In 1619, the tsar grants a letter to his son-in-law, Bogdan Sobinin, to administer half of the village and exemption from taxes. In the future, there were still salaries for Sobinin's widow and Susanin's descendants. Since then, the legend about the immortal feat of the Russian peasant Ivan Susanin has lived and passed from mouth to mouth.

The cult of Susanin in Tsarist Russia

In 1767, Catherine the Great traveled to Kostroma. After that, she mentions the feat that the hero performed and speaks of him as the savior of the Tsar and the entire Romanov family.

Until 1812, little was known about him. The fact is that this year the Russian writer S.N. Glinka wrote about Susanin as a national hero, about his feat, self-sacrifice in the name of the Tsar-Father and the Motherland. It was from this time that his name became the property of the entire public of tsarist Russia. He became a character in history textbooks, many operas, poems, and short stories.

In the reign of Nicholas I, the cult of the hero's personality intensified. It was a political bright image Tsarist Russia, who advocated the ideals of self-sacrifice for the sake of the tsar, autocracy. The image of a hero-peasant, a peasant-defender of the Russian land. In 1838, Nicholas I signed a decree to rename the main square of Kostroma to Susaninskaya Square. A monument to the hero was erected on it.

A completely different perception of the image of Susanin was at the beginning of the formation of the power of the Soviets. He was ranked not among the heroes, but among the royal saints. All monuments to the tsars were demolished by order of Lenin. In 1918 they began to demolish the monument in Kostroma. The square was renamed into Revolution Square. In 1934, the monument was completely demolished. But at the same time, the rehabilitation of the image of Susanin as a national hero who gave his life for his homeland began.

In 1967, a monument to Ivan was re-erected in Kostroma. The photo of the monument reveals the image of an ordinary peasant in long clothes. The inscription on the monument reads: "To Ivan Susanin - a patriot of the Russian land."