Alexander Griboyedov. Mind and heart are out of tune. Part 8. The great emptiness of the plot
Griboyedov immediately refused formal membership in the Society. Alexander Sergeevich “had a practical experience of government activity, which Ryleev and his friends never dreamed of. First of all, he tried to find out the plan of the revolutionaries. He was absent …
Part 1. Family
Part 2. Cornet of a non-shiny regiment
Part 3. College of Foreign Affairs
Part 4. Music and diplomacy
Part 5. Secretary of a traveling mission
Part 6. To Moscow, to Moscow
Part 7. 25 fools for one sane
Having settled with Odoevsky, Griboyedov found himself in the center of one of the secret societies, which he had heard about in the Caucasus. The current government in St. Petersburg was abused by everyone who was carried away by pseudo-liberalism, national uprisings and revolutions that swept across Europe. Thoughts about the reorganization of the structure of the Russian government, ripening in the heads of the liberal and idle Russian elite, were inspired in secret societies.
Griboyedov immediately refused formal membership in the Society. Alexander Sergeevich “had a practical experience of government activity, which Ryleev and his friends never dreamed of. First of all, he tried to find out the plan of the revolutionaries. He was not there "(Ekaterina Tsimbaeva." Griboyedov ")
Both at the initial stage and on the eve of December 14, 1825, the Decembrists did not have a unity of views. Discussions about overthrowing the government in secret organizations lasted for years. In the ranks of the Decembrists, consistency was also lacking because many of them belonged to various Masonic lodges, behind which were foreign intelligence services. Some residents instilled the idea of republicanism in the heads of the gentlemen of the Pestels, Trubetskoy, ant-apostles, snout, the idea of a constitutional monarchy.
For slogans about freedom and the overthrow of the tsar, who until recently was called "Blessed", the future Decembrists forgot about the Russian people. Even if they mentioned the abolition of serfdom, they did not think about what to do with the Russian people freed from the landowners. All the passion of political talkers was reduced to the destruction of the existing regime of the tyrant. Lord Decembrists did not know that they were acting according to the theory of "controlled chaos".
I told them they were fools
Naturally, Griboyedov himself wanted changes in Russia, but not by the methods of bloody coups, but by reasonable economic actions. He did not dream of reforms, they are being prepared for a long time, they are launched slowly, receiving powerful resistance from opponents along the way. One of the "peaceful" reconstruction projects was considered by him in the "Notes on the establishment of the Russian-Transcaucasian company", where the people remained not a slave and serf, but became free, thanks to their participation in the labor process.
Alexander Sergeevich very accurately caught the signs of the Russian mentality, about which Yuri Burlan says the following at the lectures on system-vector psychology: “The peculiarity of the Russian mentality lies in the collectivist principle. Community psychology helped the peoples of Russia to survive in the most difficult conditions of drought, crop failures, floods and wars."
After listening to such empty discussions in St. Petersburg, Alexander Griboyedov was disappointed and extremely surprised when he heard from the rebel projectors that his immediate superior, General Yermolov, would leave the border guard with Persia and move his troops to St. Petersburg in support of the rebels. Those who clung to this dream, inspired by the talkative conspirators Yakubovich, who returned from the Caucasus, clearly did not imagine the scale of all the responsibility and the action itself to move troops from south to north. On Russian off-road it would take several months. In addition, Alexander, knowing Ermolov, did not doubt his neutrality. “One hundred ensigns want to change the entire state life of Russia … I told them that they are fools,” Griboyedov will give his harsh assessment of the events on Senate Square.
Alexander Sergeevich Griboyedov, for all his demonstration of sound superiority, visual disdain of the progressist, erudite and liberal, remained the one who understood the danger of the situation and the possible consequences of the uprising better than others.
Conspiracy suspected
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Empire, 1271 people were killed at the first bloody Maidan in Russia, organized by the nobles on December 14, 1825 on Senate Square in St. Petersburg. Subsequent victims were those who organized and were involved in this coup.
Alexander was by that time in the Caucasus. By the agreement of one of the famous Decembrists, Griboyedov was arrested and escorted to St. Petersburg. The investigation lasted four months, with the result that the charges were dropped. The diplomat returned to the Caucasus at Yermolov's headquarters and took up his official duties.
In Georgia, he learned that Persia was again preparing for a war with Russia, the prerequisites for which the old general did not notice. In the absence of Griboyedov, the sole head of the Russian diplomatic mission, Mazarevich, was engaged in intelligence and monitoring the behavior of the Persians. He did not warn Yermolov about the gathering of troops by the Persians to the border with Russia.
As it turned out later, after the death of Alexander Griboyedov, Mazarevich had long worked for another intelligence service. The archetypal skin nature of the diplomat could not stand the temptation. He took bribes from the Persians, giving deliberately false and confusing information to Ermolov about the superiority of the Persian army.
Thus, the indecisive Yermolov, as a result of hostilities, lost all of the Eastern Transcaucasia in a month.
Carte blanche: "what he says is sacred"
Ermolov was dismissed, and the place of the Commander-in-Chief in the Caucasus was taken by a relative of Griboyedov, General Paskevich - a brave, skin-like ambitious warrior, far from politics and diplomacy.
The new protege fully trusted Alexander Sergeevich. Paskevich, relying on Alexander in everything, played one game with him. Without interfering in his affairs, but only following his instructions, he gave Griboyedov a carte blanche - a credential certifying that the diplomat was acting on behalf of the Commander-in-Chief: "What he says is sacred."
Griboyedov's agents in Tehran intercepted all the correspondence between the British and the Persian nobles and sent copies to him. Thus, the diplomat could follow the course of the Shah's game with the British and make his moves. He managed to spread rumors about the advance of the Russian army to Tehran with the intention of overthrowing the Shah. Paskevich confirmed the rumors by stationing troops in the suburbs of Tehran.
Now a different kind of war
Griboyedov, well-read and educated in matters of British colonial tactics, proposed to adopt the British experience and move on to the "politics of influence." Having well learned the lessons taught by the subjects of Great Britain, he realized that the Russians in the Caucasus did not need to quarrel with the khans and local princes, but should have turned them into allies.
Alexander Griboyedov, who was much ahead of his time in matters of diplomacy and information warfare, even proposed to form a "fifth column" in Tehran and Tabriz. For this, it was only necessary to identify all those dissatisfied with the rule of the shah and his son and help them. The main argument put forward by Alexander was that an information war and preliminary explanatory work with the local population would save the Russian army's strength and soldiers.
Nicholas I, who did not understand anything about politics and even less about intelligence, was against any attempts to conduct pro-Russian propaganda among local princes and tribal leaders and urged them to always act "legitimately".
For Griboyedov, this "legitimacy" caused fits of laughter. It turned out that the seizure of territories in the course of the war with losses on both sides is legal, but attracting the population to its side by bloodless means, by means of the distribution of proclamations, is not.
“Wai-wai! Turkmanchay! *"
* Persian expression suggesting a ruinous deal.
The natural mind of a statesman, anal meticulousness to details, the skinny grasp of an organizer and a lawyer, sound forecasting of the future of Russia - all these are the strengths of Alexander Griboyedov.
The British who stood behind the Persians tried by any means to disrupt the negotiations between the Russians and the Iranians, but were forced to agree to surrender. British diplomats rushed to save the situation, advising Griboyedov to moderate imperial ambitions and reduce territorial, political and economic demands on the Persians.
Thanks to the efforts and perseverance of Griboyedov, with the strongest resistance of the British, the famous Turkmanchay peace treaty was signed between Persia and Russia on conditions extremely favorable for Russia.
The conclusion of the Turkmanchay Treaty was a historic event that announced the end of the last war in the history of Russian-Iranian relations. The Russian borders, expanded in 1828, resulting from the high professionalism in diplomatic activity of Griboyedov, remained until 1991. They were destroyed after the signing of the treacherous "Belovezhskaya Agreement", which meant the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Turkmanchay treatise, from beginning to end created and implemented by A. S. Griboyedov, made significant changes in British foreign policy. Britain did not forgive the Russian diplomat for this. By signing the peace treaty, he signed his own sentence.
Plenipotentiary Minister
Griboyedov was traveling to Russia not as a petty vacationer official, not suspected of a conspiracy, but as an envoy of peace. Emperor Nicholas I was looking forward to hearing about the triumphant end of the war.
Alexander rode slowly, without servility, not being like a zealous official, indulging his skinny ambitions of a winner and getting special pleasure from it. After such a diplomatic success, Alexander Sergeevich dreamed of resignation. He was going to do what he loved so much - literature. Busy with business correspondence and peace negotiations, he gave up creativity.
Driving through Moscow, Alexander visited Begichev and shared with him his intention to leave the service, go to the countryside and devote himself to literature. Stepan, seeing the confusion of his friend's spirit, confirmed that he was ready to receive him at his place even for the rest of his life.
The capital of March greeted Griboyedov with melted snow and mud; from the Peter and Paul Fortress came the roar of two hundred volleys, announcing the arrival of the Messenger of the World to Petersburg.
At a grand reception held on the occasion of the end of the war, Alexander, according to a previously agreed protocol, handed over to the emperor a copy of the Turkmanchay peace treatise. For a moment it even seemed to him that Nicholas I realized the true significance of the victory won not over a weak eastern state, but over the most influential international adversary of Russia - Great Britain.
Nicholas I was on fire and did not skimp on awards. They did not remember Ermolov's merits. Griboyedov asked to present himself only to a monetary reward, but received the rank of state councilor, "Anna II degree" with diamonds around her neck, which he immediately pledged, and sent part of the money to his mother.
After two weeks of continuous celebrations and solemn receptions, Griboyedov retired, citing ill health. Meanwhile, Count Nesselrode was preparing for him a new appointment to the post of plenipotentiary minister of Russia in Persia. This greatly worried the British residents in Tehran and Tabriz.
Even in St. Petersburg, British intelligence did not lose sight of the diplomat. In Kronstadt on a walk with A. S. Pushkin Griboyedov was openly threatened by the English captain John Campbell, who said that Alexander would not be forgiven for the Turkmanchay world. This is how the last attempt was made to weaken the determination of the plenipotentiary minister in defending Russia's interests in Persia.
You can learn more about why such a developed and realized person as Griboyedov, a patriot of Russia and a bearer of the heroic urethral mentality, could not be affected by any threats, you can learn in more detail at the training on System-Vector Psychology by Yuri Burlan. Registration for free online lectures at the link:
Read more …
