There is hardly a person who has not heard of Monomakh's hat - a sacred relic of the Russian tsars. However, historians have found that its antiquity is greatly exaggerated.
Autocracy symbol
Monomakh's cap was crowned with the kingdom of Russian rulers starting with Ivan the Terrible. The last time it was used at the coronation of Peter I and his brother Ivan. True, Peter, as a junior co-ruler, had to be content with a copy - the original adorned Ivan's head.
But in 1721, Peter proclaimed the creation of the Russian Empire, and his successors sent the ancient relic to the Armory. Under Catherine II, an imperial crown was made, more suitable for the new status of the ruling dynasty. And Monomakh's cap has become a symbol of autocracy.
Before the 1917 revolution, Byzantine was considered the official version of the origin of the relic. According to this version, Emperor Constantine IX, nicknamed Monomakh, presented the cap to Prince Vladimir Vsevolodovich of Kiev. The prince's mother was a Byzantine princess, so he was a relative of Constantine.
Chronicles claim that Monomakh's hat came to Kiev in 1114. At this time, Byzantium was threatened from different sides by Persians and Arabs, and the gift was supposed to emphasize the friendly ties between the two great Orthodox powers. According to the chronicler, Constantine, with his gift, blessed the Kiev prince for autocratic rule, and at the same time called him Monomakh.
Then they forgot about the hat for a long time. But she was found in the grand ducal treasury under Vasily III. It was during his reign that the legend of the gifts of Constantine was documented.
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The find came in handy. After all, under Vasily III, the idea was born of the special significance of Moscow - the successor of Byzantium.
This version suited everyone until the end of the 19th century, when historians became interested in the personality of Konstantin Monomakh. They studied the chronicles of his reign and understood: when the Byzantine emperor died, Vladimir Vsevolodovich was at most two years old. Besides, they are not relatives. Constantine ascended the throne simply by marrying the imperial daughter.
The birth of a legend
Moreover, no traces of the fact that Vladimir Vsevolodovich was called Monomakh during his lifetime could not be found. This nickname appeared just under Vasily III - and precisely in connection with the legend of the tsar's cap. By the way, her style has nothing to do with Byzantium.
Byzantine emperors wore crowned crowns, sometimes decorated with gemstone pendants. And Monomakh's hat is round, with sable trim, gold plates and a pointed top. Such a headdress is more suitable for the Mongol khan.
It turns out that a certain "golden hat" is mentioned in the will of Ivan Kalita, dated 1328. This hat is a gift from Khan Uzbek for Moscow's help in suppressing the Tver uprising. At the same time, the Mongol tradition did not provide for the transfer of symbols of power to anyone other than the heirs. So it was just a beautiful and expensive trinket.
It turns out that the legend about the origin of the cap was invented by Vasily III. But why? The point, as always, is in the struggle for power.
Basil's position on the throne was not very strong. In 1498, Ivan III crowned the great reign and made his grandson Dmitry a co-regent. And the son Vasily was given control over Novgorod. But soon Ivan changed his mind: Dmitry fell into disgrace, and Vasily became the heir. After the death of his father, he sat on the throne. But there is no information about Vasily's wedding to the great reign.
This gave supporters of Dmitry the grandson a chance to challenge the legitimacy of his power. In addition, Vasily III could not wait for an heir for a long time. His son Ivan was born when his father was already over fifty.
In such a situation, a beautiful legend, reminiscent of the dynastic succession with the legendary ancient Russian princes (and through them - with Byzantium and Rome), was a real find. All that remained was to find evidence. The chronicles were once again corrected, and a beautiful and unusual headdress was found in the royal treasury. So the gift of Khan Uzbek became the cap of Monomakh.
Artem PROKUROROV