The last post established the basic framework for our exploration of Russia’s history by dividing four centuries, from roughly 1600 through 2000, into two broad periods based on the governing authority (see timeline below). The first period (1613–1917) was a time of tsarist rule (blue), specifically the Romanov dynasty of Russian tsars; the second period (1917–1991) saw the ascendance of socialist power and the formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (red).
Now that we have a working framework in place, we are ready to add pertinent details, albeit without becoming lost in the weeds of minutiae. We will organize those details by filling out the timeline we already have—with one change: for our own visual ease, we will rotate the timeline 90 degrees so we can add meaningful labels to each new subdivision. In other words, instead of the timeline moving from left to right, it will now go from top (1613) to bottom (1991).
We will not reproduce the entire timeline each time but will focus on a significant section within each post. Our real focus will begin with Catherine II, the Great, who ruled from 1762 to 1796 and under whom the first Mennonites settled in Russia, but the following example on 1600–1750 shows well how we will proceed.
A traditional approach would simply list the earliest Romanov tsars in order and offer a comment or two about each.
We will not reproduce the entire timeline each time but will focus on a significant section within each post. Our real focus will begin with Catherine II, the Great, who ruled from 1762 to 1796 and under whom the first Mennonites settled in Russia, but the following example on 1600–1750 shows well how we will proceed.
Michael I, 1613–1645
Alexis, 1645–1676
Feodor III, 1676–1682
Peter I (the Great) and Ivan V, 1682–1696
Peter II, 1696–1725
Catherine I, 1724–1727
Peter II, 1727–1730
Anna, 1730–1740
Ivan VI, 1740–1741
Elizabeth, 1741–1762
Peter III, 1762
Alexis, 1645–1676
Feodor III, 1676–1682
Peter I (the Great) and Ivan V, 1682–1696
Peter II, 1696–1725
Catherine I, 1724–1727
Peter II, 1727–1730
Anna, 1730–1740
Ivan VI, 1740–1741
Elizabeth, 1741–1762
Peter III, 1762
As useful as that might be for preparing to take an exam on Russian history, it really does us little good, since most of these tsars are of little interest for Mennonites in general or Bullers in particular. (If you do wish to learn more about these tsars, see the excellent Star Media series on the Romanovs, available on Youtube here.) For this century and a half, only Michael I and Peter I, aka Peter the Great, merit our notice.
Michael I, 1613–1645
The first Romanov tsar’s full name was Mikhail Fyodorovich Romanov; similar to the practice seen in our own and other Mennonite families, Michael’s middle name was based on his father first name: Feodor. Although Michael came from a high-ranking and powerful family, he was the first Romanov to rule as tsar over all Russia.
The word tsar (alternative spellings are tzar, czar, and csar), interestingly, is derived from the Latin word caesar. Various Slavic rulers adopted the title tsar to claim, by implication if not directly, that their status was the same as the Roman emperors of old. Of course, the title did not change the reality on the ground: although Michael greatly expanded Russia’s territory, his realm was in no sense an empire at this time.
To put Michael’s reign in perspective for Bullers, our family obviously had nothing to do with Russia or with Michael. The earliest ancestor known to us, George Buller, husband of Dina Thoms, lived in Poland and died about 1718 at an old age; if he lived to age seventy, he would have been born in 1648, that is, after Michael’s reign. I mention this only for perspective: the Romanov dynasty began when our ancestors still lived along the Vistula in Poland. Our family would not come into contact with Russia or its rulers until the Romanovs had been in power for two centuries.
Peter I (the Great), 1682–1725
We might write a great deal about Peter the Great, for example, of his joint rule with his half-brother Ivan V (1682–1696), of his determination to build a Russian navy, of his extensive tours of Europe to develop both political and personal relationships with the rulers of that region, of his founding of Saint Petersburg (named after him, of course), or even of his crowning of his second wife, Catherine I (not Catherine the Great), as empress and co-ruler in 1724. However, for our purposes only a few significant observations need to be made.
First, it was under Peter that Russia became recognized as an empire. As note above, Tsar Michael I expanded Russia’s borders greatly, even to encompass Siberia. However, Peter fought wars both on the north (Finland, Sweden) and the south (Ottoman Empire) and established Russia as a force to be respected, if not feared, leading to a proclamation in 1721 that declared him to be Emperor of All Russia. From this time on Russia itself was considered an empire and its tsar regarded as both tsar and emperor. Thus when our family and other Mennonites emigrated to Russia, they were entering the Russian Empire, one of the great powers of that time.
Second, Peter was committed to westernizing Russia so that it was more European than Asian. This passion to learn European ways led Peter to spend eighteen months traveling through Europe, even working within a shipyard for four months to gain hands-on experience that he would later apply to the construction of a navy. Peter also sought to develop close relationships with many of Europe’s rulers, even to the extent that he sought to have members of his family marry into Europe’s royal families. Peter’s initial efforts to turn Russia’s gaze to the west, to Europe, no doubt explains to some degree how within the next half-century Russia came to be ruled by someone who was not a native of the land, someone who played a crucial role in the Mennonite migration to Russia.
We will return to that in the next post; for now we close by contextualizing our family with respect to the reign of Peter the Great. The Bullers remained in Poland throughout Peter’s rule, living within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth under the rule of Augustus II the Strong; our ancestors probably had no direct contact with Russia or its ruler during this time. George Buller died during the last decade of Peter’s reign; George and Dina’s three sons Hans, George, and Peter were raising their own families. Presumably their lives were largely localized, centered on the village Przechovka and the Mennonite church there.
Michael I, 1613–1645
The first Romanov tsar’s full name was Mikhail Fyodorovich Romanov; similar to the practice seen in our own and other Mennonite families, Michael’s middle name was based on his father first name: Feodor. Although Michael came from a high-ranking and powerful family, he was the first Romanov to rule as tsar over all Russia.
The word tsar (alternative spellings are tzar, czar, and csar), interestingly, is derived from the Latin word caesar. Various Slavic rulers adopted the title tsar to claim, by implication if not directly, that their status was the same as the Roman emperors of old. Of course, the title did not change the reality on the ground: although Michael greatly expanded Russia’s territory, his realm was in no sense an empire at this time.
To put Michael’s reign in perspective for Bullers, our family obviously had nothing to do with Russia or with Michael. The earliest ancestor known to us, George Buller, husband of Dina Thoms, lived in Poland and died about 1718 at an old age; if he lived to age seventy, he would have been born in 1648, that is, after Michael’s reign. I mention this only for perspective: the Romanov dynasty began when our ancestors still lived along the Vistula in Poland. Our family would not come into contact with Russia or its rulers until the Romanovs had been in power for two centuries.
Peter I (the Great), 1682–1725
We might write a great deal about Peter the Great, for example, of his joint rule with his half-brother Ivan V (1682–1696), of his determination to build a Russian navy, of his extensive tours of Europe to develop both political and personal relationships with the rulers of that region, of his founding of Saint Petersburg (named after him, of course), or even of his crowning of his second wife, Catherine I (not Catherine the Great), as empress and co-ruler in 1724. However, for our purposes only a few significant observations need to be made.
First, it was under Peter that Russia became recognized as an empire. As note above, Tsar Michael I expanded Russia’s borders greatly, even to encompass Siberia. However, Peter fought wars both on the north (Finland, Sweden) and the south (Ottoman Empire) and established Russia as a force to be respected, if not feared, leading to a proclamation in 1721 that declared him to be Emperor of All Russia. From this time on Russia itself was considered an empire and its tsar regarded as both tsar and emperor. Thus when our family and other Mennonites emigrated to Russia, they were entering the Russian Empire, one of the great powers of that time.
Second, Peter was committed to westernizing Russia so that it was more European than Asian. This passion to learn European ways led Peter to spend eighteen months traveling through Europe, even working within a shipyard for four months to gain hands-on experience that he would later apply to the construction of a navy. Peter also sought to develop close relationships with many of Europe’s rulers, even to the extent that he sought to have members of his family marry into Europe’s royal families. Peter’s initial efforts to turn Russia’s gaze to the west, to Europe, no doubt explains to some degree how within the next half-century Russia came to be ruled by someone who was not a native of the land, someone who played a crucial role in the Mennonite migration to Russia.
We will return to that in the next post; for now we close by contextualizing our family with respect to the reign of Peter the Great. The Bullers remained in Poland throughout Peter’s rule, living within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth under the rule of Augustus II the Strong; our ancestors probably had no direct contact with Russia or its ruler during this time. George Buller died during the last decade of Peter’s reign; George and Dina’s three sons Hans, George, and Peter were raising their own families. Presumably their lives were largely localized, centered on the village Przechovka and the Mennonite church there.
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