Charity and State Support in Russia in the “Rebellious” 17th Century as an Existential Problem

The authors analyze the phenomenon of charity and state support in Russia in a very difficult 17th century. The beginning of the century was tragic for the country. Three years of famine put the population on the verge of extinction, which was described in detail by foreigners in the Russian service - J. Margeret, K. Bussov, and others. The article examines the measures taken by Tsar Boris Godunov to save the population: from selling cheap bread and distributing money to fighting speculation and confiscating food supplies. These measures saved many ordinary people, but did not keep Russia away from social and political chaos: turmoil, foreign intervention, and a change of dynasty. These events activated the potential of church and private charity, which acted as a kind of social shock absorbers in the conditions of political turbulence. With the restoration of a homeostatic balance in the socio-political system of Russia, which was de jure reflected in the Council Code of Tsar Alexey Mikhailovich (1649), there was a further development of charity. Along with the traditional Christian forms of charity: alms, feeding the population, ransoming prisoners, burial of the dead, etc., state structures were also created - the Palace Patriarchal and Pharmaceutical Prikazes. This was an objective necessity due to the weakening of the role of the zemstvo and church aid to the population, at least because of the decrease in the number of free peasants. So, in the 17th century, a statist trend in charity emerged, which was reflected in the project of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich, approved at the Church Council (1682). The project proposals were aimed at eradicating beggary and against poverty in general. This is evidenced by the project’s thesis about teaching sciences and crafts to poor children and helping them in life management. The authors noted the ideas and activities of Epiphanius Slavinetsky and Fyodor Rtishchev, who were innovators of charity. However, the innovative ideas and practices were fragmentarily implemented during the reign of Peter the Great.

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