TASS figured out when and why November 4 became a holiday, what is the story behind this date and why such a name was chosen for it.
On November 4 (October 22, old style), 1612, the people's militia, led by the zemstvo headman Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, liberated Moscow from the Polish invaders.
With the expulsion of the Poles from the Kremlin, the long period of the Time of Troubles in Russia ended. A few months after the liberation of Moscow, the Zemsky Sobor, which included representatives of all the estates of the country: the nobility, boyars, clergy, Cossacks, archers, peasants and delegates from Russian cities, elected a new tsar - a representative of the Romanov dynasty, Mikhail Fedorovich.
After the death in 1598 of the last tsar from the Rurik dynasty, Fyodor Ioannovich and his younger brother Dmitry's throne was taken by the boyar Boris Godunov. However, for the nobility, his rights to supreme power were illegitimate. This was used by impostors who pretended to be the deceased Tsarevich Dmitry. A political crisis began in the country, called the Time of Troubles.
In 1609, the Polish king Sigismund III launched a military intervention against Russia. A significant part of the country was under the control of the Polish-Lithuanian detachments.
Power passed to the council of boyars (Seven Boyars), who swore allegiance to the Polish prince, the son of Sigismund. And Moscow was occupied by Polish troops.
In 1612, the people's militia, created in Nizhny Novgorod to liberate Russian lands from foreign invaders, stormed Kitai-Gorod and expelled the Polish troops.
Nizhny Novgorod zemstvo headman Kuzma Minin played a big role in the creation of the people's militia, appealing to the townspeople to repulse the enemy. A huge army gathered for those times - more than 10 thousand serving local people, peasants, Cossacks, archers and nobles. Along with the Russians, the militia included the Mari, Chuvash, Komi and other peoples of the Volga region and the North. Prince Dmitry Pozharsky of Novgorod was elected governor, and Minin became his assistant and treasurer.
In 1818, by decree of Emperor Alexander I, a monument to "Citizen Minin and Prince Pozharsky" by sculptor Ivan Martos was erected on Red Square - the first monument in Russian history not to a tsar or commander, but to folk heroes.
In 1613, Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich established the Day of the Cleansing of Moscow from Polish invaders.
In 1649, by decree of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the date was declared a church and state holiday. On this day, the Russian Orthodox Church honors the memory of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God "for the deliverance of Moscow and Russia from the invasion of the Poles in 1612."
According to legend, the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was sent from Kazan to Prince Dmitry Pozharsky and became the patroness of the people's militia. With her, the army entered Moscow.
Today on Red Square stands the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, consecrated in 1637 in memory of the heroes who liberated the capital.
In Soviet times, November 4 was not celebrated and was not a day off. November 7, the Day of the Great October Socialist Revolution, was considered a holiday. In 1996, the holiday was renamed the Day of Reconciliation and Accord.
In September 2004, the Interreligious Council of Russia proposed making November 4 a holiday and celebrating it as National Unity Day. The State Duma supported the initiative. This day became a day off instead of November 7, which received the status of a memorable date - the Day of the October Revolution of 1917.
One of the explanations for why such a name was chosen can be an explanatory note to the draft law on the introduction of a new holiday:
On November 4, 1612, the soldiers of the people's militia ... demonstrated an example of heroism and solidarity of the whole people, regardless of origin, religion and position in society
The Russians are preparing for the 13th time to celebrate one of the youngest Russian holidays - National Unity Day.
National Unity Day is a public holiday and a day off. In 2017, November 4 falls on Saturday, so the Russians were “reimbursed” for this day, adding Monday as a holiday.
Thus, in 2017, in connection with the Day of National Unity, the Russians will rest for three days in a row - from Saturday, November 4th to Monday, November 6th inclusive.
Note November 7, when the 100th anniversary of the October Revolution is celebrated, will be an ordinary working day. However, the communists have planned traditional celebrations for November 7th.
Holiday National Unity Day first appeared in the Russian calendar in 2005. date November 4 is largely conditional, and the holiday itself is celebrated in memory of the end of a difficult historical period, which in history has received the name of the Great Troubles, or the Time of Troubles. The end of the Time of Troubles was marked by the restoration of Russian statehood and the accession to the throne of the first tsar from the Romanov dynasty - 16-year-old Mikhail Romanov, whose descendants ruled Russia for 300 years.
The accession of Romanov was preceded by the events that took place in Moscow at the end of October (according to modern chronology - at the beginning of November) 1612. In those days, the people's militia from Nizhny Novgorod, formed by a simple city dweller Kuzma Minin and prince Dmitry Pozharsky, expelled Polish invaders from Moscow.
According to the generally accepted version, it was on November 4, according to the new style, that the militia drove the Poles out of Kitai-Gorod, where the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was solemnly brought. In memory of this event, Prince Pozharsky later laid a temple in Moscow.
Having lost Kitay-Gorod, the Polish garrison barricaded itself in the Kremlin, but as a result of negotiations, surrendered. And soon a Russian tsar appeared in Russia - he became a young Mikhail Romanov elected by the Zemsky Sobor. It is believed that this event was the actual end of the Time of Troubles.
More than three decades later - in 1649 - the son of Mikhail Romanov - Tsar Alexey Mikhailovich (Quiet) ordered to celebrate on October 22 (November 4 according to the modern calendar) the day of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, adding this holiday to the summer celebration of finding the shrine on July 21 (July 8 according to the old style).
On the Day of National Unity, dozens of festive events are traditionally held, including the autumn holidays for schoolchildren.
The main celebrations, as in previous years, will be held in the homeland of the militia of Minin and Pozharsky - In Nizhniy Novgorod.
In Moscow National Unity Day will be celebrated in 11 parks, each of which has prepared its own festive programs, which can be found on the website of the capital's mayor's office, choosing an event to your liking.
Gorky Park, Pobeda Park on Poklonnaya Gora, Sokolniki, Kuzminki and other metropolitan recreational areas prepared a special festive program. Festivals, historical excursions, fairs, sword competitions, karaoke, Russian folk fun, etc. await visitors.
In St. Petersburg on Palace Square from November 4 to 6, a unique evening show will be held - the Festival of Light, which this year is dedicated to the centenary of the 1917 revolution.
During the holidays with the anniversary show program in the Ice Palace will perform Evgeni Plushenko. A film festival will be held at the Avrora cinema Andrei Tarkovsky, and the Bolshoi Puppet Theater (BTK) will host an international festival of puppet theaters.
More information about the program of festive events in St. Petersburg can be found.
The November holidays are a great occasion to relax a little, especially since this year marks the centenary of the October Revolution (this day, alas, is no longer a day off). But there is also a "substitute" - National Unity Day.
National Unity Day is known to be marked November 4. But due to the fact that this year the holiday falls on Saturday, the day off for the Russians will be “compensated”. The rest day is moved from Saturday, November 4 to Monday, November 6. As a result, we have to rest for three days in a row - this is November 4 (Saturday), November 5 (Sunday) and November 6 (Monday).
National Unity Day is a holiday in honor of the end of the Troubles that occurred in Rus' after the death of Ivan the Terrible. Historians call the Time of Troubles, or the Time of Troubles, the period of Russian history from 1598 to 1613, which was accompanied by natural disasters, civil war, Russian-Polish and Russian-Swedish wars, as well as a severe state-political and socio-economic crisis.
The turmoil was actually overcome when, at the beginning of November (according to the new calculation), 1612, the Nizhny Novgorod militia led by Kuzma Minina And Dmitry Pozharsky stormed Kitai-Gorod, driving out the Polish garrison. In these anxious days, many different events took place in Moscow, it’s not a fact that the most important of them happened on November 4, but the tradition of celebrating National Unity Day on this day has already developed, after all, the holiday this year turns 12 years old.
Also on November 4, the feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God is celebrated, which is also associated with the liberation of Moscow and Russia from the Poles in 1612 - the leaders of the militia led their comrades-in-arms to storm, carrying this revered icon in front of the troops.
Read more about National Unity Day in the materials Federal News Agency.
It should be noted that in 2017, during the small "autumn holidays" associated with the celebration of the Day of National Unity, there will be not only mass processions dedicated to this holiday, but also religious processions in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God.
Events dedicated to the centenary of the October Revolution are also planned for the November weekend. Thus, a light show dedicated to the anniversary of the October armed uprising will take place on Palace Square in St. Petersburg.
The architectural ensemble of Palace Square will turn into a huge screen, which will show a show dedicated to the events that dramatically changed the history of Russia at intervals of 15 minutes every evening during the holidays. Entrance to the show is free.
On November 4, Russians celebrate National Unity Day. What are we celebrating? Unfortunately, the majority of citizens of the Russian Federation cannot give a clear answer to this question. The historical side of the holiday is little known. tells what is National Unity Day
Monument to Minin and Pozharsky in Moscow. Photo: travel.rambler.ru
On November 4 (October 22, old style), 1612, the people's militia, led by the zemstvo headman Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, liberated Moscow from the Polish invaders.
National Unity Day was established in memory of the events of November 4 (October 22, old style) 1612. At the end of the 16th century, the Rurik dynasty was interrupted: in 1598, the childless son of Ivan the Terrible Fedor Ioannovich died. The country was left virtually without control. The throne was taken by Boris Godunov - boyar, brother-in-law of Tsar Fedor I Ioannovich. However, for the nobility, Godunov's rights to supreme power were illegitimate. Then impostors began to appear on the horizon, posing as the deceased youngest son of Ivan the Grozdy Dmitry. The state experienced political and economic crises.
Ivan the Terrible (painting by V. Vasnetsov "Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible"), Fedor I Ioannovich (portrait from "The Tsar's Titular"), Boris Godunov In 1605, the first "resurrected" son of Ivan the Terrible appeared in Russia - the impostor False Dmitry I, who, with the support of the Cossacks and rebels, entered the capital with his retinue and was married to the kingdom in the Assumption Cathedral. The ruler did not last long on the throne - in 1606 he was killed by conspirators. But soon a new impostor appeared - False Dmitry II. He went on a campaign against Moscow with Polish-Lithuanian detachments, but he failed to capture the capital.
Painting by K.F. Lebedev “The entry of the troops of False Dmitry I into Moscow” (1890s) Meanwhile, in 1609, the Polish king Sigismund III invaded Russian lands, part of which was under the control of the Polish-Lithuanian troops. In the end, in 1611, the former Tsar Vasily Shuisky and his brothers took the oath to the Polish king, and the boyars let foreign troops into Moscow. In the winter of the same year, after the call of Patriarch Hermogenes to defend the Church and Fatherland, the First People's Militia was created. But the militias failed to liberate the capital from the invaders. A new militia was assembled.
Painting by Ernst Lissner "The Expulsion of Polish Interventions from the Moscow Kremlin in 1612" Nizhny Novgorod Zemstvo headman Kuzma Minin appealed to the townspeople to repulse the enemy.
“Orthodox people, let us want to help the Muscovite state, we will not spare our stomachs, but not only our stomachs - we will sell our yards, we will lay down our wives, children and we will beat with our foreheads so that someone becomes our boss. And what praise will be to all of us from the Russian land that such a great deed will happen from such a small city as ours.
Novgorod Prince Dmitry Pozharsky was invited to the post of chief governor of the Second People's Militia. The failure of the first militia did not frighten the people at all, but on the contrary. Thousands of people of various nationalities stood under the banner of Minin and Pozharsky and set off on a campaign against Moscow to drive out the Polish invaders. On November 4, 1612, the militia stormed Kitai-Gorod in Moscow and drove out the Polish troops.
According to legend, the army of the Second Militia entered Moscow with the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, which became the patroness of the war-liberators. The confidence that thanks to the icon it was possible to expel the Poles was so deep that Pozharsky built a temple in honor of the shrine, the Kazan Cathedral, on the edge of Red Square.
Painting by Mikhail Scotti "Minin and Pozharsky in Moscow" (1870)
With the expulsion of the Poles from Moscow, the period of the Time of Troubles, which lasted about 15 years, ended. In February 1613, Tsar Mikhail Romanov, the first representative of the Romanov dynasty, ascended the throne of Russia.
In 1649, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov ordered to celebrate on November 4 (October 22, old style) the day of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, which helped save Moscow and Russia from the invasion of the Poles in 1612. The icon was also revered as the patroness of the Romanov dynasty.
In Soviet times, November 4 was not celebrated. November 7, the Day of the Great October Socialist Revolution, was considered a holiday.
In Russia, the holiday was established by the Federal Law "On the introduction of Article 1 of the Federal Law "On the days of military glory (victory days) of Russia", signed in December 2004 by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The establishment of the holiday was supported by the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Alexy.
Kazan Cathedral in Moscow, built by Dmitry Pozharsky. Photo smileplanet.ru One of the explanations for why November 4 is called the "Day of National Unity" is given in the explanatory note to the draft law on the introduction of a new holiday:
"November 4, 1612, the soldiers of the people's militia<…>demonstrated a model of heroism and solidarity of the whole people, regardless of origin, religion and position in society.
But, in fact, National Unity Day is not new holiday rather a return to an old tradition. Moreover, the church tradition of veneration of religious shrines. But almost no one cares about this, like the whole holiday as a whole. In 2013, the research center of the Superjob.ru portal found out that the majority of Russians (54%) perceive November 4 as just a “normal day off” and do not consider this day a holiday. The situation has not changed much: on November 3, 2017, VTsIOM published the results of a study, according to which Russians do not understand why there are three days off in November. Only 12% of respondents could remember the name of the holiday.
This does not mean that this holiday should not exist. Especially since it already exists. If the state does not conduct lengthy and educational PR campaigns, then November 4 has only one future - itwill be perceived as nothing more than an additional day off.
National Unity Day is quite a young holiday. They started talking about it in 2004, and already in 2005 they celebrated it for the first time, making it a public holiday and a non-working day. Many Russians perceive this date only as a day off, completely unaware of all its significance for the history of the Fatherland. We will tell you about the need to know the history of National Unity Day, hoping to raise this event in people's eyes, but before that, we will tell you about how many days off are expected in the Russian Federation on National Unity Day in 2017, and how many days we will rest on November 4th.
It should be noted that November 4, 2017 falls on a Saturday, which means that with a five-day working. week, this day is considered a holiday. For this reason, the celebration of National Unity Day is postponed to November 6th (Monday). This day is declared non-working. Thus, the Russians have the opportunity to celebrate this holiday with as many as three days off: from November 4 to November 6 (see), thanks to which you will have a great opportunity to participate in festive events.
The beginning of the seventeenth century brought many troubles and misfortunes to the Russian land. Against the backdrop of three lean years following one after another, which caused the death of hundreds of thousands of people, more serious events appeared: the heirs of the true Russian tsar were killed, and the Polish tsar began to claim their place, whose "messenger" in the Russian lands was False Dmitry first. For more than 13 years, the Time of Troubles took place on our land, when power passed from one to another. But while the rich shared power, they died simple people and their faith along with them. Russia was threatened with complete annihilation, the adoption of Catholicism and the transition under Polish leadership. 
Came to the defense of Russian lands Minin and Pozharsky who gathered the militia. Their army marched under the patronage of the icon of the Kazan Mother of God. With the help of faith in victory and fortitude, the Russians were able to drive the Polish invaders from the Russian lands.
The symbol of National Unity Day has become icon of the Kazan Mother of God. This holiday is perhaps the only one in the entire Russian calendar that combines state and religious interests.
Why was it decided in Russia to make National Unity Day a public holiday? We all know how strong and unshakable the power and will of the Russian people is. Thanks to the spiritual strength, the Russian people were able to raise their beloved Fatherland from their knees. During the Time of Troubles, the most patriotic re-education of Russians took place - people realized that unity and truth could overcome everything. United, the Russians are able to get rid of any enemy, heal themselves and their land. This holiday is dedicated to this - the unification of the entire Russian state, the call to the unshakable will of our man and faith in the purity of true thoughts.
