The year was one thousand five hundred and sixty-five. One of the noblest princes, Prince Silver, moves from Lithuania to home. He spent the last five years in Lithuania. He was given a royal decree and Nikita Romanovich was obliged to fulfill it, but he could not sign a peace treaty between the two warring states, so he went home in a rather puzzled state.

Nikita Romanovich, passing by the village of Medvedovka, notices that thieves have attacked her. Nikita Romanovich, together with his soldiers, decided to help the village and seized the violators of the order. They soon learned that they were not robbers, but state collectors of the oprichnina. Prince Romanovich is greatly disappointed in civil servants and in their atrocities, he leaves for the provincial headman with indignation and claims to his subordinates.

Prince Nikita soon rode on, on the way he came across a sorcerer, and decided to stay in his hut for the night. The sorcerer and Prince Nikita Romanovich spend the whole evening talking. The sorcerer said that he was going to marry a girl, but she left for another, cheating on him, and is already living with him having got married.

Prince Vyazemsky tried in every possible way to look after Elena Dmitrievna, but she had no time for him, since she had recently buried all her loved ones. She loved Nikita Romanovich, but he lived for a long time in another country and there was no news from him. The girl had nothing to do and it was time to get married. She faced the choice of the importunate Vyazemsky or Morozov. Elena Dmitrievna preferred Morozov, and since Vyazemsky was close to the tsar, Tsar Ivan the Terrible disliked Morozov only based on stories from Vyazemsky.

Nikita Romanovich arrives in the capital and visits Morozov. He tells where Ivan the Terrible is now, they discuss the atrocities of the sovereign's assistants and the outrages that are taking place in the country. Morozov warns Nikita Romanovich not to come to Ivan the Terrible at such an inopportune moment, but Nikita declares that he is not a coward and, after talking a little with Elena Dmitrievna, goes to the tsar.

At this moment, Vyazemsky persuades Tsar Ivan the Terrible to nullify Morozov's marriage to Elena and force the girl to marry him. Elena considers Vyazemsky a rather disgusting person, and remains with Morozov, despite her love for Nikita Romanovich Serebryany.

The tsar is greatly outraged by the behavior of Nikita Romanovich in relation to the guardsmen and wants to execute him, but his close friend Skuratov asks for forgiveness and mercy for his comrade.

Prince Vyazemsky, despite the refusal of the girl, steals her. Morozov is trying to ask the tsar to reason with his subject Vyazemsky so that he would let his wife go. The king decides that he is tired of them all, and executes both his spouse and the kidnapper.

Elena Dmitriena decides that it is she who is to blame for the death of her husband and collects things for the monastery. The girl believes that the only way the Lord will forgive her for her guilt.

Prince Serebryany offers to be her husband, but she refuses. The king sends the prince to war and on it he dies.

To write the novel "Prince Silver" A. K. Tolstoy prompted interest in historical songs about the times of Ivan IV. The writer dreamed of telling in his work about the harsh times of the "terrible" tsar, when the silent Russian people were forced to endure all the horrors of the oprichnina. It became possible to start work on the novel only after the death of Nicholas I. According to the writer, the next tyrant king would certainly see a parallel drawn between himself and Ivan IV. Tolstoy might have paid too dearly for his "liberties."

While working on the book, the writer used the monograph by A. V. Tereshchenko “The Life of the Russian People” and the book by N. M. Karamzin, which was popular in those years, “The History of the Russian State”. Before the novel was published, the author read it in the Winter Palace. The Empress liked the book very much. Maria Alexandrovna presented the writer with a golden keychain in the form of a miniature book.

Summer 1565. Prince Nikita Romanovich Silver returns from Lithuania. After spending 5 years in a foreign country, the prince was never able to cope with the task assigned to him - the signing of peace between the two states. Passing by the village of Medvedevka, Serebryany witnesses how a gang of robbers attacked a small settlement. After the prince's squad tied up the "dashing people", it turned out that these were the royal guardsmen. Serebryany does not believe that the king's servants are in front of him and sends them to the provincial headman, accompanied by his soldiers.

The prince goes on. On the way, he stopped to wait at the sorcerer's. Here Nikita Romanovich learns that his beloved Elena Dmitrievna is married. When the girl was orphaned, there was no one to protect her from the persistent harassment of Prince Athanasius Vyazemsky. Elena Dmitrievna loved Serebryany and gave him her word to become his wife. However, Nikita Romanovich spent too long in Lithuania. To escape from an annoying boyfriend, Elena married the boyar Morozov. Since Vyazemsky enjoyed the favor of Ivan the Terrible, Morozov becomes disgraced.

Silver returns to Moscow and goes to Morozov. The boyar tells the prince that the tsar has moved to Alexander's settlement, and meanwhile the tsar's servants, the guardsmen, are committing arbitrariness in the city. Boyarin is sure that Serebryany should not go to Ivan the Terrible. But the prince does not want to hide from the sovereign. Having explained with Elena, Nikita Romanovich leaves.

The Tsar gives permission to Vyazemsky to take Elena away. Upon learning that Serebryany had dealt with the guardsmen in Medvedevka, Ivan the Terrible wants to execute the prince. But Maxim Skuratov stands up for Nikita Romanovich. Subsequently, Prince Serebryany is entangled in a whole network of court intrigues. He is repeatedly threatened with death by enemy hands or the death penalty. Vyazemsky still managed to kidnap Elena Dmitrievna. Morozov turns to the king in the hope that he will restore justice. As a result, both the boyar and the prince find themselves in disgrace: Ivan the Terrible ordered the execution of both. Elena goes to the monastery, refusing to link her fate with Nikita Romanovich. Silver asks the king to appoint him to the service. Many years later, Ivan the Terrible learns that the brave prince died while fulfilling his duty to the fatherland.

The young prince is the embodiment of courage and honor. Nikita Romanovich puts the interests of his homeland above his own. Due to openness and honesty, Silver has many enemies, the most dangerous of which is the king. Loyalty to his sovereign and feeling do not leave the prince for a long time even in the most dangerous situations. Despite the fact that Nikita Romanovich sees the obvious injustice of Ivan the Terrible towards some subjects, he dutifully obeys all the orders of his master, is ready to suffer the punishment he did not deserve, and does not try to escape from prison when such an opportunity arises.

Elena Dmitrievna

The wife of the old boyar Morozov can be compared with Pushkin's Tatyana Larina. Elena remains faithful to her unloved husband. She refuses her happiness even after the death of Morozov, believing that her husband's blood is between her and Nikita Romanovich, which means that there will be no family well-being. Elena blames herself for not being able to love the man she was married to. According to the noblewoman Morozova, only a complete rejection of female happiness can atone for her guilt.

Prince Vyazemsky

Afanasy Ivanovich Vyazemsky was able to achieve a lot in life: to become the head of the guardsmen and get the favor of Ivan the Terrible. Only in the personal life of the prince did not expect success. Elena Dmitrievna is the only woman he would like to marry. But her beloved hated him so much that she preferred to marry an old boyar, if only not to get Vyazemsky. However, the prince refuses to accept defeat. He goes to the sorcerer to get a love remedy from him. Elena's hatred does not stop Afanasy Ivanovich, and he decides to kidnap. So without having achieved reciprocity from his beloved, having lost the favor of the king, Vyazemsky ingloriously dies.

Ivan groznyj

Ivan IV became one of the most controversial figures not only in the novel, but also in Russian history. The tyrannical king combined monstrous cruelty and boundless piety. Winning the king's favor is as easy as hatred. Being extremely suspicious, the tyrant sees enemies at every turn.

Historians note the strange love of the "terrible" king for repentance. As a child, little Ivan brutally killed animals, and then went to church and sincerely repented. In the novel, the tsar appears to the reader as an adult. But childhood habits remained in him. Around the residence of the king are all sorts of instruments of execution. At the same time, Ivan the Terrible sees the images of people killed on his orders, the king is tormented by his conscience.

Despite all his shortcomings, the tyrant tsar has respect for Nikita Romanovich. Prince Silver is not afraid to say what he thinks, remaining submissive. Ivan the Terrible even destroys Vyazemsky, whom he once loved, but repeatedly forgives Serebryany.

Analysis of the work

According to the author himself, his main goal is to describe to the reader the atmosphere of a bygone era. It is not Tolstoy's task to create a historical sketch with reliable details. The author considers only the characters of people and human relations, which have changed little since the time of Ivan the Terrible.

Portrait of Ivan the Terrible
The novel does not mention Tolstoy's desire to denigrate the stern tsar. On the contrary, it is not the king, but the subjects who are worthy of blame. On behalf of Ivan the Terrible, many crimes were committed that the tsar did not even know about.

One of these atrocities occurred in the village of Medvedevka. The service as a guardsman gave limitless opportunities to lovers of violence and arbitrariness, which was used by the most ignoble people of the state. Subjects always dream of a just ruler, while they themselves are rarely merciful towards each other.

Perhaps the author was in vain afraid of the wrath of Nicholas I. The strict tsar was no less suspicious than his predecessor, who lived in the 16th century. Nevertheless, Nicholas I was far from being a stupid person and would hardly have seen sedition in Tolstoy's novel.

In a huge double-height chamber, between patterned painted pillars, there were long tables in three rows. There were ten tables in each row, with twenty cutlery on each table. For the king, prince and closest favorites there were special tables at the end of the chamber. Long benches covered with brocade and velvet were prepared for the guests; the sovereign - high carved chairs, decorated with pearl and diamond tassels. Two lions replaced the legs of the chairs, and the back was formed by a two-headed eagle with raised wings, gilded and painted. In the middle of the chamber stood a huge quadrangular table with an oak plank top. The thick boards were strong, the turned pillars on which the table rested were strong; they had to maintain a whole mountain of silver and gold dishes. There were also cast basins, which four people could hardly lift by the patterned handles, and heavy ladles, and goblets studded with pearls, and dishes of various sizes with chased patterns. There were also carnelian charms, and mugs of strofocamil eggs, and turya horns set in gold. And between the dishes and ladles stood strange-looking golden goblets, representing bears, lions, roosters, peacocks, cranes, unicorns, and strofokamils. And all these heavy dishes, courts, ladles, charms, scoops, animals and birds were piled up in a wedge-shaped building, the end of which rested almost on the very ceiling.

A brilliant crowd of courtiers entered the chamber decorously and settled down on the benches. On the tables at that time, except for salt shakers, pepper shakers and vinegar, there were no utensils, and from the dishes there were only dishes of cold meat in vegetable oil, pickles, plums and sour milk in wooden bowls.

The guardsmen sat down, but did not start dinner, waiting for the sovereign. Soon the stewards entered the chamber in pairs and stood at the royal chairs; behind the stolniks were the butler and the kravchiy.

Finally the trumpets blared, the palace bells rang out, and the tsar himself, Ivan Vasilyevich, entered at a slow pace.

He was tall, lean and broad-shouldered. His long brocade garment, speckled with patterns, was bordered along the slit and around the hem with pearls and expensive stones. The precious pearl necklace was decorated with enamel images of the savior, the Mother of God, apostles and prophets. A large patterned cross hung around his neck on a golden chain. The high heels of the red morocco boots were braced with silver braces. Nikita Romanovich saw a terrible change in John. The correct face was still beautiful; but the features became sharper, the aquiline nose became somehow steeper, the eyes burned with a gloomy fire, and wrinkles appeared on the brow that had not been there before. What struck the prince the most was the sparse hair in his beard and mustache. John was thirty-five years of age; but he seemed to be well over forty. The expression on his face completely changed. This is how a building changes after a fire. The mansions are still standing, but the decorations have fallen, the gloomy windows look with an ominous look, and evil has settled in the empty chambers.

With all that, when John looked graciously, his look was still attractive. His smile charmed even those who knew him well and abhorred his atrocities. With such a happy appearance, John combined an extraordinary gift of words. It happened that virtuous people, listening to the king, became convinced of the need for his terrible measures and believed, while he spoke, the justice of his executions.

When John appeared, everyone stood up and bowed low to him. The king slowly walked between the rows of tables to his place, stopped and, looking around the assembly, bowed in all directions; then he read a long prayer aloud, crossed himself, blessed the meal, and sank into an armchair. All but the kravchey and six stolniks followed his example.

Many servants, in violet-colored velvet caftans with gold embroidery, stood before the sovereign, bowed to his waist, and two in a row went for food. Soon they returned, carrying two hundred roasted swans on golden platters.

This started lunch.

Serebryany had to sit not far from the royal table, along with the zemstvo boyars, that is, with those who did not belong to the oprichnina, but, due to their high rank, this time they were honored to dine with the sovereign. Serebryany knew some of them before his departure for Lithuania. He could see from his seat both the king himself and all those who were at his table. Nikita Romanovich felt sad when he compared John, who had been abandoned by him five years ago, with John, now sitting in the circle of new favorites.

Nikita Romanovich addressed a question to his neighbor, one of those with whom he had known before.

“Who is this youth that sits at the right hand of the king, so pale and cloudy?”

“This is Tsarevich Ioann Ioannovich,” answered the boyar and, looking around, added in a whisper:

- Lord have mercy on us! He did not become a grandfather, but a father, and his heart was filled with ferocity not from youth; We will not enjoy his reign!

“And this young black-eyed one at the end of the table, with such a friendly face?” I know his features, but I can't remember where I saw him?

- You saw him, prince, five years ago, bellowing at the court of the sovereign; only he has gone far since then and will go far still; this is Boris Fyodorovich Godunov, the Tsar's favorite adviser. Do you see,” the boyar continued, lowering his voice, “you see next to him this broad-shouldered, red-haired man who does not look at anyone, but takes away the swan for himself, frowning his eyebrows? Do you know who it is? This is Grigory Lukyanovich Skuratov-Belsky, nicknamed Malyuta. He is both a friend, and a shoulder-shoulder, and an executioner of sovereigns. Here, in the monastery, he was made, God forgive me, a paraclesiarch. It seems that the sovereign does not take a step without him; but say only the word Boris Fedorych, it will turn out not according to Malyutin, but according to Borisov! And over there, this young, like a red maiden, who decorates the tsar with wine, this is Fyodor Alekseich Basmanov.

- This? Silver asked, recognizing the effeminate youth whose appearance struck him in the royal court, and an unexpected joke almost cost him his life.

- He is. How the king loves him; it seems that he cannot live without him; and if something happens, who will be asked for advice? Not with him, but with Boris!

“Yes,” said Serebryany, peering at Godunov, “now I remember him. Didn't he go to the royal garden?

“Yes, prince. He was definitely at the sadak. It seems that the position is not noble, how can you show yourself here? Only happened once, they started shooting from a bow on a hunt. And there was the khan's ambassador Devlet-Murza. Whoever shoots an arrow will put it into a Tatar hat, which they put on a pole, a hundred feet from the royal headquarters. It was already after dinner, and many ladles had already passed around the table. So Ivan Vasilyevich got up, and he said: “Give me my bow, and I’ll hit no worse than a Tatar!” And the Tatar was delighted: “Get in, the tank-king! - he says, - my thousand horses herd went, and what did yours go? - that is, in our opinion, what do you put your mortgage in? "The city of Ryazan is coming!" - said the king and repeated: "Give me my bow!" Boris rushed to the hitching post, where the horse with the sadak was standing, jumped into the saddle, we only see the horse beating under him, rearing up, but suddenly, as he starts off, biting the bit, he disappeared with Boris. A quarter of an hour later, Boris returned, and the quiver and bow were torn, the bow in half, the arrows were all scattered, Boris himself with a broken head. He jumped off the horse, and at the feet of the king: “I’m sorry, sovereign, I couldn’t hold the horse, I didn’t keep your saadak!” And the king, you see, meanwhile the hops have already begun to come out. “Well, he says, don’t be more for you, ignoramus, with my saadak, but I won’t shoot from someone else’s bow!” From that day on, Boris went uphill, but look, prince, where else will he go! And what kind of person is this,” continued the boyar, looking at Godunov, “never pokes his head forward, but is always there; he never speaks straight, never contradicts the tsar, goes to himself in a roundabout way, is not involved in any bloody deed, is not involved in anyone's execution. All around his blood is gushing, but he is clean and white as a baby, he is not even inscribed in the oprichnina. That one over there,” he continued, pointing to the man with an unkind smile, “that’s Alexei Basmanov, Fyodor’s father, and there, at a distance, Vasily Gryaznoy, and over there Father Levkiy, the Archimandrite of Chudov; God forgive him, he is not a church pastor, a saint of worldly passions!

Silver listened with curiosity and sorrow.

“Tell me, boyar,” he asked, “who is this tall, curly-haired man, about thirty, with black eyes?” Now he drained the fourth cup, one after another, and what cups! He is healthy to drink, there is nothing to say, only wine does not seem to please him. Look how he frowned, and his eyes are burning like lightning. What, is he crazy? Look how the tablecloth flogged with a belt!

- This, prince, you, it would seem, should know; this one was one of ours. True, he has changed since then, as, to all the boyars, to shame, he went to the guardsmen! This is Prince Afanasy Ivanovich Vyazemsky. He will be farther away from all of them, just do not take out his head! As the sweetheart swayed to his heart, he became not himself. And he does not see anything, and does not hear, and he talks to himself alone, as if insane, and in the presence of the king he keeps such speeches that the Hindu is afraid. But so far he's gotten away with everything; pity his sovereign. And they say, out of love and into the guardsmen, he fit in.

And the boyar bent down to Serebryany, probably wanting to tell him more about Vyazemsky, but at that time the steward approached them and said, putting a roast dish in front of Serebryany:

- Nikita! The great sovereign favors you with a dish from his table.

The prince stood up and, following custom, bowed low to the king. Then everyone who was at the same table with the prince also stood up and bowed to Silver, as a token of congratulations on the royal mercy. Silver had to thank everyone with a special bow.

Meanwhile, the steward returned to the king and said to him, bowing from the waist:

- Great sovereign! Nikita-sta accepted the dish, beats with his forehead!

When the swans had been eaten, the servants left the chamber in pairs and returned with three hundred roasted peacocks, whose loose tails swayed over each dish, in the form of a fan. The peacocks were followed by kulebyaki, kurniki, meat and cheese pies, pancakes of all possible kinds, crooked pies and pancakes. While the guests were eating, the servants carried ladles and goblets with honey: cherry, juniper and wild cherry. Others served various foreign wines: Romanea, Rhenish and Musketeel. Special stewards went back and forth between the rows to look and speak at the tables.

Opposite Serebryany sat an old boyar, on whom the tsar, as they said, held anger. The boyar foresaw trouble for himself, but did not know what kind and calmly expected his fate. To the surprise of everyone, the handsome Fyodor Basmanov offered him a cup of wine from his hands.

- Vasily-su! - said Basmanov, - the great sovereign favors you with a cup!

The old man got up, bowed to John and drank the wine, and Basmanov, returning to the king, reported to him:

- Vasily-su drank the cup, beats with his forehead!

Everyone stood up and bowed to the old man; they expected for themselves and his bow, but the boyar stood motionless. His breath hitched, he was trembling all over. Suddenly his eyes were filled with blood, his face turned blue, and he fell to the ground.

- The boyar is drunk, - said Ivan Vasilievich, - take him out! - A whisper ran through the meeting, and the zemstvo boyars looked at each other and lowered their eyes into their plates, not daring to utter a word.

Silver shuddered. Until recently, he did not believe the stories about the cruelty of John, but now he himself became a witness to his terrible revenge.

“Does the same fate await me?” he thought. Meanwhile, the old man was carried out, and the dinner continued as if nothing had happened. The harp sounded, the bells honked, the courtiers spoke loudly and laughed. The servants, who were in velvet clothes, now appeared all in brocade dolmans. This change of dress was one of the luxuries of royal dinners. At first, various jellies were placed on the tables; then cranes with a spicy potion, pickled roosters with inbir, boneless hens and ducks with cucumbers. Then they brought different stews and three kinds of fish soup: white chicken, black chicken and saffron chicken. Behind the ear they served hazel grouse with plums, geese with millet and black grouse with saffron.

The conversations were getting louder, the laughter was more frequent, the heads were spinning. Serebryany, peering into the faces of the guardsmen, saw a young man at a distant table, who had saved him from a bear a few hours before. The prince asked his neighbors about him, but none of the zemstvos knew him. The young guardsman, leaning on the table and putting his head in his hands, sat in thought and did not participate in the general fun. The prince was about to address a passing servant with a question, but suddenly he heard behind him:

- Nikita! The great sovereign favors you with a cup!

Silver winced. Fyodor Basmanov stood behind him with an impudent grin and handed him a cup.

Without a moment's hesitation, the prince bowed to the king and drained the cup to a drop. Everyone looked at him with curiosity, he himself expected imminent death and was surprised that he did not feel the effects of the poison. Instead of shivering and cold, a wholesome warmth ran through his veins and dispersed the involuntary pallor from his face. The drink sent by the king was an old and clean bastre. It became clear to Serebryany that the tsar either let go of his guilt, or did not yet know about the offense of the oprichnina.

For more than four hours the fun continued, and the table was only half a table. The royal cooks distinguished themselves on this day. They have never been so successful with lemon kali, twirled kidneys and crucian carp with lamb. Giant fish caught in the Studen Sea and sent to Sloboda from the Solovetsky Monastery aroused special surprise. They were brought alive, in huge barrels; the journey lasted several weeks. These fish barely fit on the silver and gold basins, which were brought into the dining room by several people at once. The intricate art of the cooks showed itself here in full splendor. The sturgeons and chevrigas were so incised, so planted on the dishes, that they looked like roosters with outstretched wings, like winged snakes with open mouths. The hares in noodles were also good and tasty, and the guests, no matter how loaded they were, did not miss either the quails with garlic sauce, or the larks with onions and saffron. But now, at the sign of the stewards, they removed salt, pepper and vinegar from the tables and removed all the meat and fish dishes. The servants went out two abreast and returned in new attire. They replaced brocade dolmans with summer kuntush made of white axamite with silver embroidery and sable trim. These clothes were even more beautiful and richer than the first two. Thus cleaned, they brought into the chamber a sugar kremlin, five pounds in weight, and placed it on the royal table. This Kremlin was cast very skillfully. The battlements and towers, and even the men on foot and on horseback, were meticulously finished. Similar kremlins, but only smaller, no more than three pounds, decorated other tables. Following the kremlin, about a hundred gilded and painted trees were brought in, on which, instead of fruits, hung gingerbread, gingerbread, and sweet pies. At the same time, lions, eagles, and all kinds of birds made of sugar appeared on the tables. Heaps of apples, berries and walnuts towered between cities and birds. But no one touched the fruits, everyone was full. Some were finishing their cups of Romanea, more out of decency than thirst, others were dozing, leaning on the table; many were lying under the benches, all without exception unbuckled themselves and unbuttoned their caftans. The temper of each was outlined more clearly.

The king hardly ate at all. During the course of the table, he reasoned a lot, joked and spoke graciously with his roundabouts. His face did not change at the end of the meal. The same could be said about Godunov. Boris Fyodorovich, it seemed, did not refuse either a tasty dish or his brother's strong wine; he was cheerful, occupied the king and his favorites with his intelligent conversation, but he never forgot himself. Boris's features now showed, as at the beginning of the dinner, a mixture of perspicacity, deliberate humility and self-confidence. Casting a quick glance over the crowd of drunken and sleepy courtiers, young Godunov smiled inconspicuously, and contempt flashed across his face.

Prince John drank a lot, ate little, was silent, listened, and suddenly interrupted the speaker with an immodest or offensive joke. Malyuta Skuratov suffered the most from him, although Grigory Lukyanovich did not look like a person capable of enduring ridicule. His appearance struck terror into the most untimid. His forehead was low and compressed, his hair began almost above the eyebrows; the cheekbones and jaws, on the contrary, were disproportionately developed, the skull, narrow in front, passed without any gradualness into some kind of wide cauldron towards the back of the head, and behind the ears there were such bulges that the ears seemed sunken. Eyes of an indefinite color did not look directly at anyone, but it was terrifying for anyone who accidentally met their dull look. It seemed that no generous feeling, no thought, emerging from the circle of animal impulses, could penetrate this narrow brain, covered with a thick skull and thick bristles. There was something inexorable and hopeless in the expression of that face. Looking at Malyuta, it was felt that any effort to find a human side in him would be in vain. And truly, he morally secluded himself from all people, lived in the midst of them apart, renounced all friendship, all friendly relations, ceased to be a man and made himself a royal dog, ready to tear indiscriminately anyone against whom John would not take it into his head to set her. .

The only bright side of Malyuta seemed to be his ardent love for his son, the young Maxim Skuratov; but it was the love of a wild beast, an unconscious love, although it reached the point of self-sacrifice. It was aggravated by the piety of Malyuta. Coming from a low class, being a man poor, he was tormented by envy at the sight of brilliance and nobility and wanted, at least, to exalt his offspring, starting with his son. The thought that Maxim, whom he loved all the more because he did not know any other kindred affection, would always stand in the eyes of the people below those proud boyars whom he, Malyuta, had executed by the dozens, infuriated him. He tried with gold to achieve honors inaccessible to him by birth, and with pure pleasure indulged in murders: he took revenge on the hated boyars, enriched themselves with their booty, and, rising in royal mercy, thought to elevate his beloved son. But regardless of these calculations, blood was for him a need and a pleasure. He committed many murders with his own hands, and the chronicles say that sometimes, after executions, he cut dead bodies with an ax with his own hands and threw them to the dogs to eat. To complete the outline of this person, it must be added that, despite his mental limitations, he, like a predatory beast, was extremely cunning, in battle he was distinguished by desperate courage, in relations with others he was suspicious, like any slave who fell into an undeserved honor. , and that no one knew how to remember insults like Malyuta Grigory Lukyanovich Skuratov-Belsky.

Such was the man over whom the tsarevich mocked so imprudently.

A special case gave John Ioannovich a reason for ridicule. Malyuta, tormented by envy and piety, has long molested the boyars; but the tsar, who sometimes respected customs, did not want to humiliate the supreme Russian rank in the person of his petty pet, and left his intrigues unattended. Skuratov decided to remind John of himself. On that very day, when the tsar came out of the bedchamber, he beat him with his forehead, counted all his merits and asked for a boyar cap as a reward. John listened to him patiently, laughed and called him a dog. Now, at the table, the prince reminded Malyuta of his unsuccessful petition. The tsarevich would not have reminded of her if he had known Grigory Lukyanovich in short!

Malyuta was silent and grew paler. The king noticed with displeasure the hostile relationship between Malyuta and his son. To change the conversation, he turned to Vyazemsky.

“Athanasius,” he said half-affectionately, half-mockingly, “how long have you been squirming!” I don't recognize my good oprichnik! Al completely seized you love - a fierce snake?

“Vyazemsky is not an oprichnik,” the prince remarked. He sighs like a fair maiden. You would, sir, father, order him to put on a sundress and shave his beard, like Fedka Basmanov, or you would order him to sing with the harpist. Gusli something to him, I tea, will be more convenient than a saber!

- Tsarevich! - Vyazemsky cried, - if you were five years old and you were not the son of sovereigns, I would call you for dishonor to Moscow on Troitskaya Square, we would measure ourselves with you, and God himself would judge who owns the saber, who play the harp!

- Afonka! the king said sternly. Don't forget who you're talking to!

“Well, father, Mr. Ivan Vasilievich,” Vyazemsky replied boldly, “if I am guilty before you, order me to cut off my head, and I won’t let the prince discredit myself.”

- No, - said, softening, Ivan Vasilyevich, who forgave Vyazemsky his antics for his youth, - it’s too early for Athos to chop off his head! May he still serve in the royal service. I’ll tell you, Afonya, it’s better to tell a fairy tale that blind Filka told me last night:

“In the glorious Rostov, in the red city, lived a good fellow, Alyosha Popovich. He fell in love with a young princess more than life, I don’t remember her name. Only she, the princess, was married to old Tugarin Zmievich, and no matter how hard Alyosha Popovich fought, he only received refusals from her. “I don’t love you, good fellow; I love one husband, my dear, old Zmievich.” - "Good, - said Alyosha, - you will love me too, white swan!" He took twelve of his good servants, broke into Zmievich's tower and took away his young wife. “To fulfill you, good fellow,” said the wife, “that he knew how to love me, he knew how to get me with a sword; and for that I love you more than life, more than the world, more than the old filthy husband of my Zmievich!

- And what, Afonya, - the tsar added, looking intently at Vyazemsky, - how will the fairy tale of the blind Filka seem to you?

Vyazemsky listened eagerly to the words of Ivan Vasilyevich. They sunk into his soul, like sparks in sheaves of rams, passion burned in his chest, his eyes blazed with fire.

“Athanasius,” the tsar continued, “I’m going to pray in Suzdal these days, and you go to Moscow to the boyar Druzhina Morozov, ask him about his health, say that I sent you to remove my disgrace from him ... Yes, take it,” he added he is significant - take with you, for honor, more guardsmen!

Serebryany saw from his seat how Vyazemsky's face changed and how wild joy flashed across his features, but he did not hear what was being discussed between the prince and Ivan Vasilyevich.

If only Nikita Romanovich had guessed what Vyazemsky was happy about, he would have forgotten the closeness to the sovereign, would have torn off a sharp saber from the wall and cut Vyazemsky's violent head. Nikita Romanovich would have ruined his own little head, but this time the ringing harp, the palace bells and the voice of the guardsmen saved him, he did not know what Vyazemsky was happy about.

Finally John stood up. All the courtiers rustled like bees disturbed in a hive. Whoever could, got to his feet, and everyone in turn began to approach the king, to receive from him dried plums, which he endowed the brethren from his own hands.

At this time, an oprichnik, who was not among the feasters, made his way through the crowd, and began to whisper something in the ear of Malyuta Skuratov. Malyuta flared up, and fury showed on his face. She did not hide from the watchful eye of the king. John demanded an explanation.

- Sovereign! cried Malyuta, “an unheard-of thing! Treason, rebellion on your royal favor!

At the word "treason" the king turned pale and his eyes sparkled.

- Sovereign, - continued Malyuta, - the other day I sent a detour around Moscow, so, sir, do the people of Moscow observe your royal decree? Suddenly, an unknown boyar with serfs attacked the bypassing people. Many were killed to death, and my groom was badly mutilated. He himself is here, standing outside the door, severely beaten! Would you like to call?

John glanced at the guardsmen and read anger and indignation on all their faces. Then his features took on an expression of some strange pleasure, and he said in a calm voice:

- Call!

Soon the crowd parted, and Matvey Khomyak entered the ward with his head bandaged.

The historical novel Prince Silver by Tolstoy was written in 1862 and published a year later in the literary magazine Russkiy Vestnik. The work is based on an important period of Russian history - the centralization of the power of the Moscow prince and its opposition to the boyars.

For reader's diary and preparation for the literature lesson, we recommend reading the online summary of the “Prince Silver” chapter by chapter. You can check your knowledge with the help of a special test on our website.

Main characters

Nikita Romanovich Serebryany- the prince, the royal governor, a brave, honest and straightforward young man.

Ivan IV the Terrible- Moscow tsar, despotic ruler.

Elena Dmitrievna- Beloved of Prince Serebryany, wife of the boyar Morozov.

Druzhina Andreevich Morozov- Moscow boyar, elderly husband of Elena Dmitrievna.

Other characters

Malyuta Skuratov- Favorite guardsman and assistant to Ivan the Terrible.

Maxim Skuratov- 17-year-old son of Malyuta, opponent of the oprichnina.

Fedor Basmanov Oprichnik, favorite of Ivan the Terrible.

Boris Fyodorovich Godunov- boyar confidant Ivan the Terrible.

Afanasy Ivanovich Vyazemsky- the head of the guardsmen, the favorite of the king.

ring- a brave ataman of robbers.

Kite- an old robber chieftain.

Mikheich- the stirrup of Prince Silver and his tutor.

Miller- local sorcerer and sorcerer.

Onufrevna- the old mother of Ivan the Terrible.

Foreword

Chapter 1. Guardsmen

In the summer of 1565, "the young boyar Prince Nikita Romanovich Serebryany" returns to his native village Medvedevka after a five-year stay in Lithuania, where he tried in vain to "sign peace for many years" with King Zhigimont.

Suddenly, guardsmen attack the village, whom the prince takes for robbers. He manages to repulse the attack, and from the locals he learns that the guardsmen are the “royal people”, whom the tsar himself allowed to “rob and rip off” the common people.

Chapter 2

The prince instructs his soldiers to take the captive oprichniki to the labial headman, and he, together with the stirrup Mikheech, keeps his way further. In the forest, they are already attacked by real robbers, but the prince and his companion are saved from certain death by Vanyukha Ring and Korshun - captives of the guardsmen, whom the prince set free.

Chapter 3

Prince Serebryany stops for the night at the miller's. At night, the head of the guardsmen, Prince Afanasy Vyazemsky, comes to the owner, who demands from the “sorcerer” a love potion for his sweetheart.

Chapter 4

The wife of the boyar Druzhina Andreevich Moroz was the first Moscow beauty - "twenty-year-old Elena Dmitrievna". The girl was forced to marry an old but kind boyar, because she was afraid of Prince Vyazemsky, persistent in his passion. Elena herself loved Prince Silver, and even promised to become his wife, but he stayed in Lithuania for a long time.

Chapter 5

Elena is sitting in the garden with the girls. Suddenly, a dashing horseman appears behind the palisade - Prince Silver. Noticing “a pearl kokoshnik on Elena’s head”, Nikita Romanovich turns pale - his beloved is married.

Chapter 6

Prince Serebryany enters Morozov's chambers. He "knew the prince as a child, but they had long lost sight of each other." Meanwhile, Elena Dmitrievna enters, but at the sight of her lover, she is unable to control herself, and her husband notices her excitement.

Boyarin tells the guest about denunciations, oprichnina and terrible executions. Upon learning that Serebryany is heading to Alexander's settlement to the tsar, Morozov dissuades him from this trip, which promises death to the young prince. However, Nikita Romanovich sets off.

Chapter 7

On the way to Sloboda, the prince observes a picture of terrible changes. In place of churches and luxurious choirs, there are now gallows and chopping blocks everywhere, poverty and robbery flourish, and there is absolutely no life for honest people from guardsmen.

At the royal court, Nikita becomes a victim of a bear, which, for fun, was set on him by the favorite of Ivan IV - the young Fyodor Basmanov. Young Maxim Skuratov, the son of Malyuta, saves the prince from certain death.

Before meeting with the king, Serebryany "prepared for everything and mentally read a prayer."

Chapter 8

Nikita Romanovich expects the tsar's wrath for tying up his guardsmen in his native village. However, he shows his mercy to the prince, because he does not yet know about his excesses.

At the table, Ivan the Terrible tells Vyazemsky a fairy tale, thereby hinting at his permission to take Elena by force from Morozov.

Chapter 9

Meanwhile, the tsar is informed about the events in Medvedevka. Having learned about the arbitrariness of Silver, the angry Ivan IV is going to immediately execute him. And only one guardsman - Maxim Skuratov - stands up for the prince. The Tsar calms down and, remembering that Nikita has always shown himself to be a "good servant", cancels the execution.

Chapter 10

Impressed by the act of Serebryany, who “smashed the tsarist guardsmen for murder and did not lock himself in front of the tsar in his right cause,” Maxim Skuratov decides to leave his father and go “wherever his eyes look.”

Chapter 11

The tsar's mother was still alive - Onufrevna, who was "almost ten years old". Due to her age and special position, she reproaches the king for his sins without fear. Ivan the Terrible sees before his eyes a "picture of future retribution" and is frightened of his fate. Raising all his servants out of bed, he goes to church to serve matins.

Chapter 12

The next morning, the king is ashamed of his nightly fears, and decides to "still punish traitors and put to death his villains, although there would be thousands of them."

Meanwhile, Malyuta, who is no longer able to endure the endless bullying from the cruel Prince John, decides to avenge him for all the insults. He slanders Ivan the Terrible about his son, and he orders to kill him during the hunt.

Chapter 13

A gang of robbers is gathering in the forest, among them are Kite and Ring. They accept into their ranks a man whose family was slaughtered by the guardsmen, and a young clumsy strong man Mitka, from whom the guardsmen "took the bride".

Chapter 14

In a conversation with Godunov, Serebryany does not understand how he, seeing all the injustice of the tsar's reign, does not tell him about it. To which Godunov replies that "it's good to stand for the truth, but one in the field is not a governor."

Mikheich comes running and tells that Malyuta and the guardsmen are taking the captive prince somewhere. Silver immediately gives chase. Having caught up with Malyuta, he gives him a slap in the face and enters the battle. Soon the robbers come to his aid. Together they manage to defeat the guardsmen and save the prince from death, but Malyuta manages to escape.

Chapter 15

Vyazemsky appears with his retinue in the Morozovs' house under a plausible pretext. Morozov arranges a feast. He suspects Elena of treason, but does not know exactly who his rival is. To confirm his guess, Morozov starts a "kissing ceremony". When the prince kissed Elena, "she trembled as if in a fever, her legs buckled under her."

Chapter 16

At the end of the feast, Morozov reproaches Elena for treason and reminds "of the punishment for adultery." Suddenly, Vyazemsky bursts into the bedchamber with faithful guardsmen and kidnaps Elena, and then sets fire to all the "roofs of human services." However, Serebryany manages to severely injure Vyazemsky, but he himself is captured by his guardsmen.

Chapter 17

Vyazemsky tirelessly rides all night long in order to have time to "transport Elena to his Ryazan patrimony." From the inflicted wounds, he loses consciousness and falls to the ground, and the horse carries the frightened Elena to the miller.

He quickly "realized what was the matter": recognizing Vyazemsky's horse, he realized who the girl was. He barely manages to hide Elena when horsemen with the wounded Vyazemsky appear near his house. The miller manages to stop the blood from the terrible wounds of the prince, and send uninvited guests to the inn.

Chapter 18

The next morning, Mikheich appears at the miller and asks him for advice on how to free Serebryany, who stood up for the truth. The miller shows him the way to the robber's lair, and hints at some kind of firebird, for which the "proceeds in half" will need to be divided.

Chapter 19

Having found the refuge of the robbers, Mikheich asks the Ring and the Korshun for help. Mitka joins them, and together they go to Sloboda - to rescue Silver from the dungeon.

Chapter 20

During the falconry, the king stumbles upon blind storytellers who manage to amuse the king. He orders them to go to the royal chambers and wait for his return, while he continues to hunt.

Chapter 21

When meeting with the king, Onufrevna says that the storytellers sent by him are very suspicious. It seems to her that "they are up to no good", and the king should be very careful with them.

Listening to the tales of the blind, Ivan the Terrible pretends to be asleep. The kite decides to take advantage of this and pick up the prison keys that lay near the king.

At this moment, the king opens his eyes and calls the guards. The guardsmen seize Korshun, but the Signet manages to escape. He hurries to the prison and takes the prince away by force.

Chapter 22

Maxim Skuratov, having left his father's house, comes to the monastery. He confesses and asks the Lord for forgiveness for his dislike for the king and disrespect for his own father.

Chapter 23

After a short stay in the monastery with the good abbot, Maxim sets off on his journey. His path lies through the forest, where he is soon attacked by robbers.

Chapter 24

The robbers, having learned that their favorite kite was in royal captivity, revolt. They demand that Ring hand over his chieftainship to Prince Serebryany, and he leads them to Sloboda for robbery.

Seeing the bound Maxim, the prince convinces the robbers to let the young man go, since he is "the same enemy of the oprichnina" as all of them. Instead of going to Sloboda, he convinces the villagers to go to the Tatars - to destroy the "basurman tribe".

Chapter 25

Ring shares with Silver his cunning plan on how to slaughter the Tatars. Knowing the resourcefulness of the robber leader, the prince "let him act according to his thoughts."

Chapter 26

Maxim thanks Prince Nikita for saving him and confesses his sincere sympathy for him. Before the battle with the Tatars, he asks the prince to fraternize "according to the ancient Christian custom", and the twin brothers exchange pectoral crosses.

Thanks to the cunning invention of the Ring, the robbers at first manage to lay down a lot of Tatars, but the forces are too unequal. Only thanks to the army of Fyodor Basmanov, who came to the rescue in time, is it possible to defeat the enemy. Maxim dies on the battlefield.

Chapter 27

In honor of the victory over the Tatars, Basmanov arranges a feast. He himself is "a strange mixture of cunning, arrogance, inexcusable debauchery and careless prowess." He is surprised to learn that Silver decides to return to the king and put himself at his mercy.

Chapter 28

With Serebryany, a part of the robbers also goes to Sloboda, while the rest, led by Ring and Mitka, decide to join Yermak.

Chapter 29

“With a week after the defeat of the Tatars,” the tsar receives Basmanov, who wants to appropriate only for himself all the laurels of the winner. Wanting to slander the royal favorite, Prince Vyazemsky, Basmanov accuses him of witchcraft.

Morozov comes to the tsar and asks to call Vyazemsky, and he agrees to a confrontation. Ivan the Terrible decides - let the opponents sue "are sued by the court of God" and fight in Sloboda in front of witnesses. Whoever loses will be executed.

Chapter 30

Fearing that the victory will be for Morozov, who is still strong and strong, Vyazemsky goes to the miller in order to make "his blows irresistible through sorcery."

Approaching the mill, he, unnoticed by anyone, finds Basmanov. He asks the miller for grass in order to enter "again into the royal mercy."

Having spoken the saber, at the request of Vyazemsky, the miller begins to tell fortunes and sees pictures of terrible executions.

Chapter 31

On the day of the duel, two opponents meet on the square - Vyazemsky and Morozov. Weakened by recent wounds, Vyazemsky falls off his horse and asks to be replaced by another warrior. This is against the rules, but Ivan the Terrible allows him to put Matvey Khomyak in his place. Morozov refuses to fight the mercenary. Mitka comes out of the crowd to "stand up for the truth." He refuses to fight on sabers and kills Hamster with a shaft.

Chapter 32

The tsar accuses Vyazemsky of witchcraft against himself. He orders the former pet to be thrown into prison and the miller brought to testify.

Chapter 33

During a terrible interrogation, Vyazemsky does not utter a single word "out of pride, out of contempt, or because life is disgusting to him." Basmanov is glad that his main rival was in disgrace. He still does not know that the miller, who was caught under torture, spoke about Basmanov's desire to "spoil the state's health."

Chapter 34

Morozov receives an invitation to come to the royal table, where Ivan the Terrible invites him to sit below Godunov. Morozov angrily refuses. Those present are waiting, "as the king's wrath will manifest itself."

The tsar orders Morozov to be put on a jester's caftan and thereby publicly humiliate him. On the legal rights of the jester, he expresses to his face everything that he thinks about him and the methods of his government.

Ivan the Terrible orders Morozov to be thrown into prison and "not to be tortured, so as not to die before the time."

Chapter 35

On the day of the general execution, “on a large trading square, inside Kitay-Gorod”, people gather, terrible torture instruments are built. The tsar presents to the public Morozov, Vyazemsky, Basmanov, the miller, Korshun - terrible criminals, "who wanted to betray the state to the enemies." All convicts are tortured and executed.

Chapter 36

Having horrified Moscow with cruel executions, “the tsar wanted to appear merciful and generous” and released all the condemned.

Meanwhile, Godunov appears Serebryany - "the opal of sovereigns, condemned to death." He has no choice but to announce to the king about the return of the disgraced prince.

Chapter 37

Nikita Romanovich explains to the tsar that he was taken away from prison against his will. He also talks about the victory over the Tatars and asks for mercy for the robbers, who now want to serve the king, but not in the ranks of the guardsmen.

Silver, despite the tempting offer of the king, also refuses to serve him among the guardsmen. Then Ivan the Terrible appoints him the governor of the guard regiment, in which all his robbers are assigned.

Chapter 38

Faithful Mikheich tells the prince how he found Elena Dmitrievna at the mill. The girl refused to go to Morozov's patrimony, and Mikheich, at her request, "left the convent in the hands of the abbess."

Upon learning of this, Serebryany asks the servant to ride at full speed to the monastery and beg Elena not to take tonsure before meeting him.

Chapter 39

The prince is already looking forward to a happy life next to his beloved, but the returned Mikheich reports that Elena Dmitrievna is no more, and “there is only sister Evdokia” - Elena managed to get a haircut as a nun.

In deep sadness, the prince goes to the monastery to say goodbye to Elena. His only consolation is "the realization that he fulfilled his duty in life", and did not commit a single meanness.

Chapter 40

After many years, Ivan the Terrible still continues to execute "the best, most famous citizens." However, his power is weakening: on the borders, the king is increasingly defeated, and only in the east his possessions are expanding thanks to the efforts of Yermak and Ivan Kolts, the former robber chieftain, nicknamed the Ring.

Godunov, who became the "brother-in-law of Tsarevich Fyodor", is gaining strength at court every year. But the unprecedented royal mercy did not give Godunov "neither arrogance nor arrogance."

Prince Serebryany seventeen years ago was "killed by the Tatars, and his entire squad perished with him."

Conclusion

In the work of Alexei Tolstoy, the psychology of a Russian person during the Middle Ages is surprisingly accurately and vividly shown. The writer is sure that no way or law will create a just society if people are not ready to sacrifice something for the sake of this justice.

After getting acquainted with brief retelling"Prince Silver" recommend reading the novel in full.

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Alexey Konstantinovich Tolstoy

"Prince Silver"

Beginning the narrative, the author declares that his main goal is to show the general character of the era, its customs, concepts, beliefs, and therefore he allowed deviations from history in detail, and concludes that his most important feeling was indignation: not so much with John as on a society that is not indignant at him.

In the summer of 1565, a young boyar, Prince Nikita Romanovich Serebryany, returning from Lithuania, where he spent five years in painstakingly signing a peace for many years and not succeeding in doing so because of the evasiveness of Lithuanian diplomats and his own straightforwardness, drives up to the village of Medvedevka and finds festive fun there . Suddenly guardsmen come running, chopping down the peasants, catching the girls and burning the village. The prince takes them for robbers, ties them up and whips them, despite the threats of their chief, Matvey Khomyak. Ordering his soldiers to take the robbers to the labial headman, he goes on with the stirrup Mikheich, two captives he recaptured from the guardsmen undertake to accompany him. In the forest, turning out to be robbers, they protect the prince and Mikheich from their own comrades, bring them to the miller for the night, and, saying one Vanyukha Ring, the other Kite, they leave. Prince Athanasius Vyazemsky arrives at the mill and, considering Melnikov’s guests sleeping, curses his unrequited love, demands love herbs, threatening the miller, forcing him to find out if he has a happy rival, and, having received a too definite answer, leaves in despair. His sweetheart Elena Dmitrievna, the daughter of the okolnichik Pleshcheev-Ochin, orphaned in order to avoid the harassment of Vyazemsky, found salvation in her marriage to the old boyar Druzhina Adreevich Morozov, although she had no disposition for him, loving Serebryany and even giving him a word - but Serebryany was in Lithuania. John, patronizing Vyazemsky, being angry with Morozov, dishonors him, offering to sit below Godunov at the feast, and, having received a refusal, declares him disgraced. Meanwhile, in Moscow, the returned Serebryany sees a lot of guardsmen, impudent, drunken and robbers, stubbornly calling themselves "tsar's servants." The blessed Vasya, whom he met, calls him a brother, also a holy fool, and predicts evil from the boyar Morozov. The prince goes to him, his old and parental friend. He sees Elena in the garden in a married kokoshnik. Morozov talks about the oprichnina, denunciations, executions, and the tsar's move to Aleksandrovskaya Sloboda, where, according to Morozov, Serebryany is going to certain death. But, not wanting to hide from his king, the prince leaves, having explained himself to Elena in the garden and suffering mentally.

Observing pictures of terrible changes along the way, the prince arrives at Sloboda, where he sees chopping blocks and gallows among luxurious chambers and churches. While Serebryany is waiting in the yard for permission to enter, young Fyodor Basmanov poisons him, for fun, with a bear. The unarmed prince is saved by Maxim Skuratov, the son of Malyuta. During the feast, the invited prince wonders if the tsar knows about Medvedevka, how he will show his anger, and marvels at the terrible environment of John. The king favors one of the prince's neighbors with a cup of wine, and he dies, poisoned. The prince is also favored, and he fearlessly drinks good, fortunately, wine. In the middle of a luxurious feast, the tsar tells Vyazemsky a fairy tale, in the allegory of which he sees his love story and guesses the tsar's permission to take Elena away. A crumpled Hamster appears, tells the incident in Medvedevka and points to Serebryany, who is being dragged to be executed, but Maxim Skuratov stands up for him, and the returned prince, having told about the atrocities of the Hamster in the village, is forgiven - until the next, however, guilt and swears not to hide from the king in case of his anger, but meekly await punishment. At night, Maxim Skuratov, talking with his father and not finding understanding, secretly runs away, and the king, frightened by the stories of his mother Onufrevna about the hellish hell and the thunderstorm that began, is visited by the images of those killed by him. Raising the guardsmen with the gospel, dressed in a monastic cassock, he serves matins. Tsarevich John, who took his worst features from his father, constantly ridicules Malyuta causes his revenge: Malyuta introduces him to the king as a conspirator, and he orders, having kidnapped the prince on a hunt, to kill and throw him to avert his eyes in the forest near Poganaya Puddle. A gang of robbers gathering there at that time, among which Ring and Korshun, accepts replenishment: a guy from near Moscow and the second, Mitka, a clumsy fool with truly heroic strength, from near Kolomna. The ring tells about his acquaintance, the Volga robber Ermak Timofeevich. The sentinels report the approach of guardsmen. Prince Serebryany in Sloboda talks with Godunov, not being able to understand the subtleties of his behavior: how, seeing the mistakes of the king, should he not tell him about it? Mikheich comes running, having seen the prince captured by Malyuta and Khomyak, and Silver rushes in pursuit.

Further, an old song is woven into the narrative, interpreting the same event. Having caught up with Malyuta, Silver gives him a slap in the face and enters into battle with the guardsmen, and the robbers come to the rescue. The guardsmen were beaten, the prince was safe, but Malyuta and Khomyak fled. Soon, Vyazemsky comes to Morozov with guardsmen, allegedly to announce that he has been removed from disgrace, but in fact to take Elena away. Silver, invited for the sake of such joy, also comes. Morozov, who heard his wife's love speeches in the garden, but did not see the interlocutor, believes that this is Vyazemsky or Silver, and starts a "kissing ceremony", believing that Elena's embarrassment will betray her. Silver penetrates his plan, but is not free to avoid the rite. Kissing Silver, Elena loses her senses. By evening, in Elena's bedchamber, Morozov reproaches her with treason, but Vyazemsky bursts in with his henchmen and takes her away, badly wounded by Serebryany, however. In the forest, weakened by his wounds, Vyazemsky loses consciousness, and the distraught horse brings Elena to the miller, and he, having guessed who she is, hides her, guided not so much by his heart as by calculation. Soon the guardsmen bring the bloodied Vyazemsky, the miller speaks blood to him, but, having frightened the guardsmen with all kinds of devilry, he turns them away from the night. The next day, Mikheich arrives, looking for a ring from Vanyukha sewn up for the prince, thrown into prison by guardsmen. The miller shows the way to the Ring, promising Mikheich upon his return some kind of firebird. After listening to Mikheich, Ring with Uncle Korshun and Mitka set off for Sloboda.

In prison, Malyuta and Godunov come to Serebryany to conduct an interrogation. Malyuta, insinuating and affectionate, having reveled in the disgust of the prince, wants to return the slap to him, but Godunov holds him back. The king, trying to distract himself from thoughts of Silver, goes hunting. There he is gyrfalcon Adragan, who distinguished himself at first, falls into a rage, crushes the falcons themselves and flies away; Trishka is equipped for the search with threats befitting the occasion. On the road, the king meets blind songwriters and, anticipating fun and bored with the old storytellers, orders them to come to their chambers. This is the Ring with the Kite. On the way to Sloboda, Korshun tells the story of his villainy, which has been depriving him of sleep for twenty years, and portends his imminent death. In the evening, Onufrevna warns the tsar that the new storytellers are suspicious, and, having posted guards at the door, he calls them. The ring, often interrupted by John, starts new songs and tales, and, having begun the story of the Pigeon Book, notices that the king has fallen asleep. At the head are the prison keys. However, the supposedly sleeping king calls for guards, who, having grabbed the Kite, misses the Ring. He, running away, stumbles upon Mitka, who opened the prison without any keys. The prince, whose execution is scheduled for the morning, refuses to run, remembering his oath to the king. He is taken away by force.

Around this time, Maxim Skuratov, wandering, comes to the monastery, asks to confess, is guilty of dislike for the sovereign, disrespect for his father and receives forgiveness. Soon he leaves, intending to repel the raids of the Tatars, and meets Tryphon with the captured Adragan. He asks him to bow to his mother and not to tell anyone about their meeting. Robbers capture Maxim in the forest. A good half of them rebel, dissatisfied with the loss of Korshun and the acquisition of Silver, and demand a trip to Sloboda for robbery - the prince is incited to that. The prince frees Maxim, takes charge of the villagers and convinces them to go not to Sloboda, but to the Tatars. The captive Tatar leads them to the camp. With a cunning invention of the Ring, they manage to crush the enemy at first, but the forces are too unequal, and only the appearance of Fyodor Basmanov with a motley army saves Silver's life. Maxim, with whom they fraternized, dies.

At a feast in Basmanov's tent, Serebryany reveals all the duplicity of Fyodor, a brave warrior, a crafty slanderer, an arrogant and low tsar's henchman. After the defeat of the Tatars, the band of robbers is divided in two: part goes into the forests, part, together with Serebryany, goes to Sloboda for royal forgiveness, and the Ring with Mitka, through the same Sloboda, to the Volga, to Yermak. In Sloboda, the jealous Basmanov slanders Vyazemsky and accuses him of witchcraft. Morozov appears, complaining about Vyazemsky. At a confrontation, he declares that Morozov himself attacked him, and Elena left of her own free will. The tsar, wishing the death of Morozov, appoints them the “judgment of God”: to fight in Sloboda with the condition that the vanquished will be executed. Vyazemsky, fearing that God would give victory to old Morozov, goes to the miller to speak a saber and finds, remaining invisible, there Basmanov, who came for grass with a tirlich to enter the royal favor. Having spoken the saber, the miller tells fortunes in order to find out, at the request of Vyazemsky, his fate, and sees pictures of terrible executions and his impending death. The day of the fight comes. Among the crowd are a ring with Mitka. Having ridden against Morozov, Vyazemsky falls from his horse, his former wounds open, and he tears off Melnikov's amulet, which should ensure victory over Morozov. He exposes instead of himself Matvey Khomyak. Morozov refuses to fight the hireling and looks for a replacement. Mitka is summoned, having recognized the kidnapper of the bride in Khomyak. He refuses the saber and kills Hamster with the shaft given to him for laughing.

Calling on Vyazemsky, the tsar shows him the amulet and accuses him of witchcraft against himself. In prison, Vyazemsky says that he saw her at the sorcerer Basmanov, who was plotting the death of John. Not waiting for the bad Basmanov, opening his amulet on his chest, the tsar plunges him into prison. Morozov, who was invited to the royal table, John offers again a place after Godunov, and after listening to his rebuke, he favors Morozov with a jester's caftan. The caftan is put on by force, and the boyar, as a jester, tells the tsar everything that he thinks about him, and warns what damage to the state, in his opinion, John's reign will turn out to be. The day of execution comes, terrible weapons grow on Red Square and people gather. Morozov, Vyazemsky, Basmanov, the father, whom he pointed out in torture, the miller, Korshun and many others were executed. The holy fool Vasya, who appeared among the crowd, reads to execute him too and incurs the royal wrath. The people do not allow the blessed to be killed.

After the executions, Prince Serebryany arrives in Sloboda with a detachment of villagers and at first comes to Godunov. He, partly shy of his relations with the royal opal, but noting that after the execution the king softened, announces the voluntary return of the prince and brings him. The prince says that he was taken out of prison against his will, talks about the battle with the Tatars and asks for mercy for the villagers, pronouncing them the right to serve where they indicate, but not in the oprichnina, among the "kromeshniks". He himself also refuses to fit into the oprichnina, the tsar appoints him governor at the guard regiment, in which he appoints his own robbers, and loses interest in him. The prince sends Mikheich to the monastery, where Elena has retired, in order to keep her from being tonsured, informing her of his imminent arrival. While the prince and the villagers swear allegiance to the tsar, Mikheich gallops to the monastery, where he delivered Elena from the miller. Thinking about the coming happiness, Serebryany goes after him, but Mikheich at the meeting reports that Elena has cut her hair. The prince goes to the monastery to say goodbye, and Elena, who has become sister Evdokia, declares that Morozov's blood is between them and they could not be happy. Having said goodbye, Serebryany with his detachment goes on patrol, and only the consciousness of the duty being performed and an unclouded conscience retains for him some kind of light in life.

Years pass, and many of Morozov's prophecies come true, John suffers defeats on his borders, and only in the east his possessions expand through the efforts of the squad of Yermak and Ivan the Ring. Having received gifts and a letter from the Stroganov merchants, they reach the Ob. An embassy from Yermakov comes to John. Ivan Koltso, who brought him, turns out to be a Ring, and by his companion Mitka, the tsar recognizes him and grants him forgiveness. As if wanting to appease the Ring, the king calls on his former comrade, Silver. But the governors answer that he died seventeen years ago. At the feast of Godunov, who has entered into great power, the Ring tells many wonderful things about the conquered Siberia, returning with a saddened heart to the deceased prince, drinking in his memory. Concluding the story, the author calls to forgive Tsar John his atrocities, for he is not the only one responsible for them, and notices that people like Morozov and Serebryany also often appeared and were able to stand in goodness among the evil that surrounded them and go the straight path.

Boyar Prince Nikita Romanovich Serebryany was returning from Lithuania in the summer of 1565 (he stayed there for 5 years, hoping to sign peace) and ended up at the festivities in the village of Medvedevka. He becomes a witness of how the guardsmen drove in, chopped up the men, caught the girls and burned the village. Mistaking them for robbers, the prince tied them up and whipped them. The prince's soldiers took the villains to the headman, and the prince was defended by robbers. During the night at the miller's, he sees how Prince Athanasius Vyazemsky came for love potions for the sweetheart Elena Dmitrievna, who specially married the old man Morozov so that Vyazemsky would not harass. She loves Prince Silver. In Moscow, the prince saw guardsmen who call themselves the tsar's servants. At his friend boyar Morozov, he saw Elena and learned about denunciations, executions and other atrocities in the country. The prince does not want to hide from the king.

The prince is afraid of the chopping block and the gallows in the settlements, he marvels at the tsar's robbery surroundings. Right during the feast, King John gives wine to one invited person and he dies of poison. Under Serebryany, the tsar allows Vyazemsky to take Elena away. The hamster remembered Prince Medvedevka and they were about to execute him, and Maxim Skuratov interceded. At night they run away, and John, during a thunderstorm, sees their dead souls.

Because of the ridicule, Malyuta took revenge on Tsarevich John, and he ended up with the guardsmen. Prince Serebryany repulsed the prince and went to rescue Elena, who was kidnapped by Vyazemsky. Because of the wounds, Vyazemsky lost consciousness, the horse brought Elena to the miller. Silver is pulled out of prison by Ring and Kite, after which the prince directs the wrath of the robbers to fight the Tatars. Deciding the share of Morozov and Vyazemsky, the king orders to fight. Whoever is defeated will die. Vyazemsky went to the miller to find out the share and sees the executions and his own death. The tsar saw an amulet on Vyazemsky and accused him of witchcraft, and Morozov makes a jester, after which the offended boyar expresses everything he thinks.

Morozov, Vyazemsky, Basmanov, the miller, Korshun and many others were executed. Prince Serebryany himself came and repented that he had been taken away by force, and told about the battle with the Tatars. The king appointed him governor and lost interest. Elena, realizing that Morozov's blood was between them and the prince, took the veil as a nun.