In troubled times and at the time of great upheavals, the Russian people put forward heroes from their midst, whose actions often influenced not only the course of history, but also subsequent culture. One of these heroes is considered Kostroma peasant Ivan Susanin, whose feat is immortalized in Russian history and culture.
Despite the textbook gloss applied by many generations of researchers to the image of Ivan Susanin, much in the history connected with it remains a mystery. There are several conflicting versions of events that took place in Kostroma forests. It is believed that the village headman Susanin saved Tsar Mikhail from the invading Poles, who was elected Zemsky Cathedral in 1613. The Poles attempted to capture the young sovereign who was hiding in Domnino.
Legend has it that Ivan Susanin, having learned about the approach of the enemy, reliably hid Mikhail Romanov, and himself volunteered to show the Polish detachment the road to the alleged location of the king. After a long and tiring transition, the enemies saw through the cunning plan of the conductor, who intentionally sent the detachment into an impassable swamp. It is believed that after the "unreasonable" torture, the Poles slaughtered Susanin, but they themselves could not get out of the damp and marsh terrain. Tsar Mikhail, meanwhile, safely hid from the enemy in the Ipatiev Monastery. This is the most common version related to the personality of Susanin and his act.
For several years no one recalled the feat of Ivan Susanin. Only after a written appeal from the hero’s relatives to the tsar with a description of his services to the autocrat, did the tsar give the descendants of Susanin an exemption from the tax burden. The next generations of the descendants of Susanin were repeatedly issued with appropriate letters to confirm privileges.
The official version of events has repeatedly been doubted by historians in the 19th century. Even then, researchers rightly noted obvious contradictions in the description of events and the lack of reliable data on the direction of the Polish detachment to Kostroma forests. However, after the installation of the monument to Susanin in the hero’s homeland from the highest command of the Russian tsar, the number of doubters declined - it became unsafe to refute the official version.
Today's historians are increasingly inclined to believe that in fact Ivan Susanin did not die at the hands of the Poles, but became a victim of one of the many thieves' gangs who hunted by robbery on forest roads. Relatives of the elder decided to use this fact to their advantage, distorting the events in the hope of the mercy of the mother of Tsar Mikhail, who personally knew Ivan Susanin. However, after so many years, it is almost impossible to confirm the authenticity of the official version or to refute it. Whether Susanin accepted the martyrdom for a young king or fell victim to the usual robbery - this question remains open.
