The time has come to really evaluate an event important for the history of Russia - the Decembrist uprising. In 1826, the leaders of the rebellion were executed on the territory of the Peter and Paul Fortress. Immediately after that, Emperor Nicholas I created a new division of the Secret Chancellery, whose duties included the fight against the conspiratorial network of secret organizations, like a spider web that envelops Russia. There is evidence that Emperor Alexander I was a member of one of these organizations. Little of. Emperor Alexander I knew about the conspiracy of the highest officers of the Russian army, who came out to Senate Square in December! So what could actually be behind the performance of the Decembrists?
The creation of all kinds of secret societies in Russia fell on the period of the 18-19 centuries. Most often, they were of a Masonic character and devoted all their work to conducting liberal educational activities. So in 1812 the young N. Muravyov created a circle called "Chok", whose members dreamed of creating a republic on the island of Sakhalin.
After the victory over Napoleon, numerous secret officers' associations arose. Of interest is the establishment in 1812 by generals M. A. Dmitriev-Momonov and M. F. Orlov "Order of Russian Knights", since this organization, perhaps, was directly related to the Decembrist uprising.
In the 19th century, in almost all European states, with the exception of England, the activities of Masonic lodges were prohibited. In Russia, Masonic lodges were banned in 1822. But preparations for the conspiracy had already begun.
The "Order of the Russian Knights" had a structure similar to a Masonic lodge: it was divided into a higher "internal order" and a lower "external order".
The use of the Masonic approach in the activities of the Order of Russian Knights had several goals: firstly, it made it possible to take advantage of the positive experience of secret societies in Europe, secondly, belonging to Freemasonry made it possible to interact with such secret European societies, and thirdly, it made it possible to position oneself in Russia as a Russian analogue of the all-powerful Order of the Templars. It should be noted that the 19th century Freemasonry is characterized by the fact that organizations began to set clear political goals for themselves, promoting not only liberal, but also conservative ideas.
The "Russian knights" put forward liberal ideas: the abolition of serfdom, the abolition of censorship in printing, the promotion of titles of nobility to those who open large enterprises in Siberia, the improvement of the upkeep of the army, the possibility of filing a complaint against the provincial authorities, the strengthening of trade ties with China, Japan, etc. … But, at the same time, the Order of the Russian Knights demanded the fulfillment of tasks usual for the conspirators: removal of foreigners from power, the destruction of the Jesuit order, the incorporation of the Polish kingdom into the Russian provinces, the annexation of Serbia, Hungary and other Slavic peoples to the Russian Empire, the liberation of Europe from the Turks.
Many Decembrists officially quit the Masonic lodges, considering their activities too moderate. It would be wrong to romanticize the Decembrists. There is evidence that they often deliberately lie. They easily went to deception and forgery - and all for the sake of achieving their political goals. For example, one of the leaders of the December uprising, Pestel, did not believe that there were forbidden things for him. He was convinced that the end justifies any means (later, this will be called a revolutionary necessity). But such selectivity did not correspond to the logic of the Masons, although Pestel himself had the 5th degree of initiation in the Sphinx lodge.
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The control of the Russian government over the activities of the Freemasons has always been strong, since it was believed that the lodges could be used to organize coups. And this statement was confirmed by the fact that in the case of the Decembrists, an investigation was conducted against 83 Freemasons. Interestingly, according to the records of Count Boalcot, about 10 thousand names were registered in 12 St. Petersburg Masonic lodges, most of which were officers. And not all of them were opponents of the current government.
Countess S. Toll expressed an interesting idea that the Freemasons participating in the investigation, and then the trial of the Decembrists, tried with all their might to hide the most important leaders of the conspiracy, and to punish only those who failed to fulfill the task properly. So, Pestel, being a representative of the highest world Masonic elite, could not, or maybe did not want to fulfill exactly the instructions given to him, dreaming about the royal crown himself. He promised a lot to his comrades-in-arms in the lodge, but did nothing. Therefore, Pestel was subjected to capital punishment. By the way, according to the law of the Freemasons, a member of the Masonic lodge, guilty of not fulfilling orders, is deprived of all means of protection. Today, quite seriously, the assumption is being considered that the Decembrists-Masons were judged by their older brothers, most likely, the judges were those leaders,who planned the December putsch. As a result of court decisions, five people were executed. Recall that the symbol of the Masons is a five-pointed star. Therefore, the execution, in fact, looked like a ritual sacrifice, to which the secular state power had nothing to do. Perhaps this is just one of the versions of events.
Despite the fact that the December uprising did not happen so and earlier than the time planned by the conspirators, many documents of the Masons were promptly hidden or forwarded abroad.
Those Decembrists who were expelled to Siberia by a court decision did not remain without the help of local Masonic lodges. So in Irkutsk they were greeted with bread and salt, the conditions of detention of the exiles were simply royal. Freemasons paid the jailers for these conditions from the funds collected within the lodge. Their efforts led to the fact that the Decembrists themselves and their wives lived in fairly comfortable conditions. Despite the glorification of the Decembrists, there were also voices condemning the putsch. So Tyutchev wrote the following lines: "The people, abhorring treachery, will forget your names."
Today the secret of connection of the December putsch with the Jesuit order has been revealed. It turned out that most of the Decembrists convicted in the case studied with the Jesuits from childhood: some in the St. Petersburg boarding house of the Abbot Nicolas, others from the Jesuit tutors. By the way, Abbot Nicolas himself was a Freemason. Education in his boarding house was free of charge and children from the most noble Russian families studied there. Gradually, the boarding house entered the list of the most elite educational institutions in Russia, and the Jesuits got access to the best and noble Russian houses. The Jesuits achieved their goal - children from Orthodox families lost touch with the Russian faith, the language of their homeland (teaching only in French and Latin), and neglected their Russian roots.
The connection of the Jesuits with the Decembrists was confirmed by a historian in 1991 at a scientific seminar held on the island of Cyprus. It was publicly announced that the ideas with which the Decembrists came to Senate Square developed under the influence of the Jesuits. The Catholic church in Irkutsk was erected in the very first years of the development of Siberia, and the exiled Decembrists did not go unnoticed by the Jesuits.
And although in the 20s the Jesuit educational institutions in Russia were closed, they did their job - they brought up worthy students. Freemasons, liberalism, free life, debts, egalite, money, Russian America, lust for power, festive chatter, California riches, irrepressible ambitions, and then lying cries on St. Petersburg square "For the Constitution!", Blood and death.
The arrested soldiers and officers who participated in the mutiny were put in the cramped, damp cells of the Peter and Paul Fortress. Interrogations were conducted in the fortress and a criminal court was sitting. The investigation was conducted under the personal control of Nicholas I. The verdict was cruel - all the defendants were waiting for death. But the monarch showed mercy, some of the criminals were sent to exile in Siberia, some to hard labor, some to war. The fate of the soldiers turned out to be the most miserable, they turned out to be just pawns in a secret game. The officers who took them out to the square deceived the soldiers, saying that they were going to defend Constantine's right to inherit the Russian throne.
There are a lot of unclear things in the history of the December putsch. There is a version that the Decembrists were an external cover for a more complex plan - the accomplishment of a palace coup. And Governor-General Miloradovich tried to arrange it together with the senior officers of the Guard. The reason for such drastic actions on the part of the military officers was that they wanted to see their military comrade-in-arms, Constantine, and not Nicholas on the throne. But Constantine stubbornly refused the imperial crown. Miloradovich insisted. And then, unexpectedly, the Decembrists intervened in the alignment, entering the Senate Square.
Until now, a secret remains the fact that Prince S. Trubetskoy, who was the leader of the uprising, did not come to Senate Square, although the rebels were waiting for him for many hours. And the very unexpected exit of the Decembrists from the "underground" also raises many questions. After all, their organization was quite amorphous: well, they gathered for numerous meetings and sessions, expressed fantastic projects, but the meetings often ended in friendly parties. It is known that in the course of the investigation the role of the organization was changed, assigning clear goals and objectives to this ephemeral organization.
Perhaps many of the "strange" actions of Nicholas I, during the investigation of the putsch, are connected with the fact that he knew about the connection of Alexander I with the Decembrists. When Alexander I received a report from the secret service on the content of the conversations at secret meetings of the Decembrists, he said that he fully shared their delusions and illusions. It turns out that the inertness of the authorities in relation to the Decembrist conspirators is explained by the good attitude of the Russian emperor towards them. And although Miloradovich planned a palace coup, the unexpected death of Alexander I significantly accelerated events. Miloradovich's group provoked the Decembrists to enter Senate Square, and without their participation the rebellion would not have happened.
The consequences of the events of 1825 had the most dire consequences for Russia. For a long time, the authorities reacted negatively to any proposals to modernize the country and to carry out the necessary reforms. Alexander's bright era was replaced by decades of despondency, disappointment and hopelessness …
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