National Unity Day is celebrated on November 4. Speaking about this date, it is worth recalling such names as Minin, Pozharsky. It was these people who led the Moscow militia, which saved Moscow from the Poles.
Interesting facts related to this holiday will tell a lot about the history of the country, they should be known for sure.
When did you start celebrating National Unity Day?
The holiday became a state holiday in 2005 when a corresponding decree was issued. However, he was noted earlier. And the decrees on its holding also came out at earlier dates - for example, in 1649 Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich issued a decree to mark the memorable date of 1612, October 22, according to the old style, as the day Moscow was liberated from the Polish princes. On this day, it was supposed to pray to the Virgin, to worship the Kazan icon of the Mother of God. The holiday was to remain relevant for all cities. The holiday was celebrated on this day until the calendar was changed to a modern one, which people use today. When the new calendar was introduced, the date moved to November 4. It is on this day that the holiday is celebrated to this day.
The history of the holiday - interesting facts
Minin and Pozharsky led the militia in 1611-1612, during the extremely difficult period for the country, when there was an open offensive by the Polish army and the country's intervention. The enemy could not be organized to repulse, it was necessary to centralize the liberation movements.Dmitry Mikhailovich Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin succeeded. They organized resistance to the enemy, collecting a second militia. The first fell apart due to strife between Cossacks and nobles. Pozharsky managed to participate in the first militia.
Minin turned out to be a person like Jeanne Dark, because he saw in his dreams Sergius of Radonezh, who urged him to begin the liberation of the Russian lands. The unifying virgin of France also had inspirational dreams, only with the archangel Michael.
The militia that defeated the invaders was not popular. In fact, it was mainly about mercenaries, because the soldiers were paid money. Kuzma Minin, being a village headman in Novgorod, turned to the townspeople, indicating the need to raise money, and each family had to surrender a fifth of their fortune to the treasury. According to other sources, rented up to a third of tangible property. As a result, they managed to hire warriors who received from 30 to 50 rubles a year.
The liberation of Russia from the interventionists ended the period of the Time of Troubles, an extremely difficult era, when robbery and confusion reigned. The events of this period led to the throne of the Romanovs, the last royal dynasty that ruled Russia.
The militia took Moscow by storm, the enemies were knocked out. Surviving the battle, the Poles appeared before the court, as well as representatives of the nobility, who let them into the city. Many boyars were pardoned, Minin and Pozharsky argued for the forgiveness of these people.
The first time the holiday was celebrated as a victory, then the tradition arose to celebrate it annually, supported by the royal decree.
Monuments in honor of National Unity Day
There is a monument in honor of Minin and Pozharsky in Moscow, it can be seen on Red Square. But he is not the only one. There is also a similar monument in Veliky Novgorod. His project was created by M.O. Mikeshin, the monument was built in 1862, when the millennium of Russia was celebrated. This monument depicts not only Minin and Pozharsky, but also other people known for their exploits.
The Moscow monument was opened in 1818, it was originally supposed to be installed in Nizhny Novgorod, but in the end it ended up in the capital, near the St. Basil's Cathedral. In Novgorod put an obelisk. It is located at the Eternal Flame, not far from the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin. The decision to install the monument in Moscow was made by Nicholas I, he liked this sculpture created by Martos so much.
Nearly 200 years later, Nizhny Novgorod nevertheless received his sculpture as originally intended. On November 4, 2005, in the process of celebrating National Unity Day, a monument to Minin and Pozharsky was unveiled in this city, which was an exact but reduced copy of Moscow. Created by Zurab Tsereteli. They erected this monument exactly at the place where Minin made his speech, near the Church of St. John the Baptist.
Opera Minin and Pozharsky
In honor of the feat of heroes, an opera was written, which was broadcast on the radio in 1938. But not everyone knows that Bulgakov himself took part in its creation. Minin's words were written by him, and it was not an easy job. The work was repeatedly criticized by the party leadership, it had to be redone repeatedly.This did not stop her from becoming popular, successfully competing with the opera about Susanin, which was a huge success in those same years. It is also worth noting that one of the songs of this opera, sounding on behalf of the people's militia, was regularly performed in the difficult years of World War II. The call to fight for Moscow, sounding in it, turned out to be very relevant.
In 2011, a new opera was written, and Boris Sazonov, a composer from Nizhny Novgorod, worked on it. The audience praised the new work.
Are there any official sources?
We managed to learn about the events of those days mainly from the annals. Researchers would be happy to read any personal documents of Minin and Pozharsky, however such days were not found. It was possible to find only the signatures of both heroes, which appear under some papers. Minin is mentioned in the papers from the moment the fundraising began. These people could not be illiterate, so the documents probably simply were not preserved. But it is possible that someday they will be able to find the papers of these people.
Today, the Day of National Unity is a national holiday, it is celebrated annually on November 4. This is a day off; it takes place with festivities in which everyone can participate.
