SEDOV P.V. “Indomitable to His Kin”: Gavrila Grigorievich Pushkin and His Descendants in the 17th Century
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.15688/jvolsu4.2026.1.22
Pavel V. Sedov,
Doctor of Sciences (History), Leading Researcher, Saint Petersburg Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Petrozavodskaya St, 7, 197110 Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation,
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https://orcid.org/0009-0009-1622-0108
Abstract. Introduction. The article deals with the history of the Pushkin family during the Time of Troubles, especially its outstanding representative, Gavrila Grigorievich, who was one of the first to go over to the side of False Dmitry I. By order of the impostor, he participated in the overthrow of the royal Godunov family and the murder of Tsar Feodor Godunov and his mother. Methods and materials. This article utilizes genealogical, anthropological, and memorial approaches. Biographical data on members of the Pushkin family in the 17th century is clarified, particularly regarding the family of Gavrila Grigorievich Pushkin: his children and grandchildren. A significant continuity in the commemoration of Gavrila Grigorievich, who was condemned by the cathedral during the Time of Troubles, is established. Records on early printed books uncovered by the author revealed that G.G. Pushkin’s descendants, for three generations, deposited liturgical books in their patrimonial churches for the perpetual remembrance of their father and grandfather. Analysis and results. Even before False Dmitry entered Moscow, Patriarch Job anathematized his supporters, which was lifted from all subjects after the impostor’s death. However, the memory of Gavrila Grigorievich’s betrayal and his direct participation in the massacre of the royal family was alive, and contemporaries reminded Pushkin of this in local conflicts. After the Time of Troubles, Gavrila Grigorievich went blind and retired from the court to his patrimony and, together with his son Grigory, tried to whitewash his actions in the troubled years in a private discharge book. Before his death, concerned about the salvation of his soul, he made contributions to monasteries. His children and grandchildren continued the memorial practice. The author discovered this family tradition based on the records of Pushkin’s direct descendants in early printed books, which they put into their patrimonial churches for decades. This fact can be compared with the tradition in the family of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin: the Pushkin family kept a sacred relic – a piece of the Lord’s Robe, passed on to the eldest son with the obligation of an annual service in its honor. According to the testimony of the poet’s descendants, he and his father invariably followed this covenant.
Key words: Time of Troubles of the early 17th century, Pushkin family, A.S. Pushkin, False Dmitry I, memorial practice, genealogy.
Citation. Sedov P.V. “Indomitable to His Kin”: Gavrila Grigorievich Pushkin and His Descendants in the 17th Century. Vestnik Volgogradskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya 4. Istoriya. Regionovedenie. Mezhdunarodnye otnosheniya [Science Journal of Volgograd State University. History. Area Studies. International Relations], 2026, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 254-263. (in Russian). DOI: https://doi.org/10.15688/jvolsu4.2026.1.22
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