WI: Tsarevich Ilya Fyodorovich becomes Tsar?

Tsarevich Ilya (Elijah) was the only child of Tsar Feodor III of Russia, but for unknown reasons he died after just ten days. Supposing his father dies on schedule, how different might things be if Ilya survived and became Tsar?
 
Aunt Sofia is probably regent as OTL, other than that i'm not sure what would happen. Maybe Peter's family tries to overthrow Ilya.
 
Aunt Sofia is probably regent as OTL, other than that i'm not sure what would happen. Maybe Peter's family tries to overthrow Ilya.

The Naryshkins have a very wobbly claim to overyhrow Ilya. Ivan Alexeïevich they attempted to bypass because of his ailments. If Ilya's healthy enough to survive, there's possibly no contention from the Naryshkins for now. Although Ilya's stepmother might be a surrogate mother for the young tsar, even if Sofia leaves the terem as OTL.
 
I don't think there would be a problem with his succession provided he was healthy and expected to live into adulthood. Of the other alternatives, Ivan was too frail and Peter was still only a boy of 10. I think the Miloslavsky's were an ambitious family who would have done everything possible to ensure Ilya's smooth succession and his aunt Sophia - who I believe did provide quite a bit of support to Fyodor during his reign - would have made sure that his son was secure on the throne and probably would have tried to act as regent during his minority.

What's really interesting is what would have happened to Russia's progression to a more western orientated state if Ilya had been Tsar. I think Fyodor wanted Russia to become a more European state and Ilya might well have tried to continue his father's work as he became older - though whether he would have made the sweeping reforms Peter the Great made is debatable.
 
I don't think there would be a problem with his succession provided he was healthy and expected to live into adulthood. Of the other alternatives, Ivan was too frail and Peter was still only a boy of 10. I think the Miloslavsky's were an ambitious family who would have done everything possible to ensure Ilya's smooth succession and his aunt Sophia - who I believe did provide quite a bit of support to Fyodor during his reign - would have made sure that his son was secure on the throne and probably would have tried to act as regent during his minority.

What's really interesting is what would have happened to Russia's progression to a more western orientated state if Ilya had been Tsar. I think Fyodor wanted Russia to become a more European state and Ilya might well have tried to continue his father's work as he became older - though whether he would have made the sweeping reforms Peter the Great made is debatable.

Sophia did initially support Feodor, but her influence waned as he got closer to death. What's to stop Sophia from doing to Ilya what she did to her brother Ivan, or what Empress Elizabeth did to Ivan VI?

I'd like to think Ilya would have continued his father's reforms, but he just as easily could not have. Richard II of England, for example, did not want to be like his father and grandfather and hated being compared to them. And then there's Peter the Great's son, Alexei.

As for who Ilya might marry, I've searched and I can't find a single Russian noblewoman who was born on, just before or just after 1681. The only foreign choices I found were Hedwig Sophia of Sweden, Archduchesses Maria Elisabeth and Maria Anna of Austria, and Sophia Hedwig of Denmark.
 
As for who Ilya might marry, I've searched and I can't find a single Russian noblewoman who was born on, just before or just after 1681. The only foreign choices I found were Hedwig Sophia of Sweden, Archduchesses Maria Elisabeth and Maria Anna of Austria, and Sophia Hedwig of Denmark.
Russia wasn't exactly on great terms with Sweden so, in my honest opinion, Hedwig Sophia is out of the question. I am not sure about relations between Austria and Russia during the time period so I can't comment on the archduchesses.

I wouldn't necessarily limit it to before 1681 or a couple years after though. Since I don't have access to my computer at the moment or my books at home, it will be some time before I can come up with an alternative or two.
 
As for "Reformist vs Conservator" - that depends on upbringing. Remember that the Naryshkins were the CONSERVATIVE party of the Russian court at the moment. If Sophia (and Vasily Golitsyn) keep the control of government, the boy will be likely raised by "progressives", though he may turn out to be quite apathetic (there were no notable representatives of Grushetski family, and if the boy takes after his mother...).

As for Russian girls for future Ilya I to marry - well, there is Maria Kurakina (born circa 1680, died in 1740), her brother Boris Kurakin is a godson of Feodor III, and the Kurakins are pretty influental/modernist family, being Princes.
 
While I might leave the subject of Ilya Fyodorovich's reign to a future short ATL (and I do agree with a marriage to Maria Kurakina), I do wonder if Ivan and Peter would still marry Praskovia Saltykova and Eudoxia Lopukhina respectfully. Two fates I can see for Ivan are either being forced into a monastary or being kept around the court and treated the way Caligula treated Claudius. As for Peter, I still believe that he or his mother, depending on his age, would try to take the position of co-ruler or sole ruler. If not him, Sofia.

As for the Westernisation of Russia, the general concensus from other threads seems to be that, under Feodor III, it would have taken inspiration from Poland instead of the German states. I think that Russia would have benefitted mainly from Western technology, just not all the Western ideas that Peter adopted IOTL, such as wearing Western military uniforms in the freezing Russian landscape.

Finally, the POD is only a year before the decisive Battle of Vienna. Who's to say it would go the same way as IOTL?
 
As for who Ilya might marry, I've searched and I can't find a single Russian noblewoman who was born on, just before or just after 1681. The only foreign choices I found were Hedwig Sophia of Sweden, Archduchesses Maria Elisabeth and Maria Anna of Austria, and Sophia Hedwig of Denmark.

What about Wilhelmina Charlotte Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach, commonly know as Caroline of Ansbach, was 1 March 1683.

Her father, Margrave John Frederick of Brandenburg-Ansbach, belonged to a branch of the House of Hohenzollern and was the ruler of a small German state, the Principality of Ansbach.

Caroline was orphaned at a young age and moved to the enlightened court of her guardians, King Frederick I and Queen Sophia Charlotte of Prussia. At the Prussian court, her previously limited education was widened, and she adopted the liberal outlook possessed by Sophia Charlotte, who became her good friend and whose views influenced Caroline all her life.

As a young woman, Caroline was much sought-after as a bride. After rejecting the suit of the nominal King of Spain, Archduke Charles of Austria, she married George Augustus, the third-in-line to the British throne and heir apparent to the Electorate of Hanover. They had eight children, seven of whom grew to adulthood.
 
Caroline of Ansbash? Unlikely she'll convert.

In fact, the consequences of Ilya surviving the birth mean that his father will live a bit longer, in OTL he pretty much lost the will to live after death of both his wife AND his son. So, 1682 may become "the year nothing of importance happens", and with surviving heir the Miloslavski clan will lose their positions in favor of the relatives of Feodor's wife and second wife (providing he still marries Marfa Apraxina).
One of consequences of stable 1682 will be a small scale purge of Streltsy, who have became too Janissari-like. In fact with a stable father-to-son succession the tradition of palace guards setting the rulers may not even be stable in Russia.

As for Peter, he was groomed to be a military commander. Providing the stepfamily of Ilya has a good deal of influence (Marfa Apraxina was a nobody, while her brothers were genuinely good statesmen), he MAY be allowed to marry, but not until Ilya is married with a heir of his own (so he'll marry circa 1698-1700, and likely a woman of his own choise). Ivan will likely stay single (in Apollinis & Dianae TL he entered the dynastic marriage with Georgian princess, depending how the wars on Caucasus go, the same girl may end up married to Ivan or Peter), unless something life-threatening happens to Ilya in 1680ies-early 1690ies, forcing the marriage of Ivan in order to produce a spare to the throne.
 
Tsaritsa Karolina Ivanovna​
(Каролина Ива́новаhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_Ivanova#cite_note-2/ Formerly Caroline of Ansbach)​
Her father, Margrave John Frederick of Brandenburg-Ansbach, belonged to a branch of the House of Hohenzollern and was the ruler of a small German state, the Principality of Ansbach.

Caroline was orphaned at a young age and moved to the enlightened court of her guardians, King Frederick I and Queen Sophia Charlotte of Prussia. At the Prussian court, her previously limited education was widened, and she adopted the liberal outlook possessed by Sophia Charlotte, who became her good friend and whose views influenced Caroline all her life.

As a young woman, Caroline was much sought-after as a bride. After rejecting the suit of the nominal King of Spain, Archduke Charles of Austria, when, Tsar Ilya Fyodorovich, visited Prussia to give his condolences, he was said "to have been taken away incomparable beauty and mental attributes.

Caroline converted to Russian Orthodox in 21st February 1805 and adopted the name Karolina Ivanovna, with many believing she would refuse similar to Archduke Charles of Austria in 1704, as she would not convert from Lutheranism to Catholicism. In a diary entry, she wrote two remarks which historians believe is the reason why she had converted:
1- When her adopted mother, Queen Sophia Charlotte of Prussia died on a visit to her native Hanover, Caroline was devastated, writing, "The calamity has overwhelmed me with grief and sickness, and it is only the hope that I may soon follow her that consoles me."
2- She could not see a major difference between the Russian Orthodox and Lutheranism, where as Catholicism, was still miles apart.

On 22 August 1705, Caroline arrived in St. Petersburg for her wedding to Tsar Ilya Fyodorovich; they were married that evening in the palace chapel. By May of the following year, Caroline was pregnant, and her first child WI: Tsarevich Ivan Alexander, was born on 20 January 1707.

Tsar Ilya Fyodorovich of Russia (b.1681: d.1741) m. Karolina Ivanovna
(Caroline of Ansbach) (b.1683: d. 1737) (a)
1a) Tsarevich Ivan Alexander (b.1707) m. Grand Duchess Elizaveta Petrovna of Russia (b.1709) (a)​
 
Caroline of Ansbash? Unlikely she'll convert.

Agreed. If she wouldn't convert to Catholicism IOTL, there's less chance she'd convert to Russian Orthodoxy.

In fact, the consequences of Ilya surviving the birth mean that his father will live a bit longer, in OTL he pretty much lost the will to live after death of both his wife AND his son. So, 1682 may become "the year nothing of importance happens", and with surviving heir the Miloslavski clan will lose their positions in favor of the relatives of Feodor's wife and second wife (providing he still marries Marfa Apraxina).

Really? I always thought it was the disability/disease which had crippled Feodor since childhood that finished him off.

One of consequences of stable 1682 will be a small scale purge of Streltsy, who have became too Janissari-like. In fact with a stable father-to-son succession the tradition of palace guards setting the rulers may not even be stable in Russia.

Again, assuming Ilya survives his regency and Peter does not try to use the Strelsy himself.

As for Peter, he was groomed to be a military commander. Providing the stepfamily of Ilya has a good deal of influence (Marfa Apraxina was a nobody, while her brothers were genuinely good statesmen), he MAY be allowed to marry, but not until Ilya is married with a heir of his own (so he'll marry circa 1698-1700, and likely a woman of his own choise). Ivan will likely stay single (in Apollinis & Dianae TL he entered the dynastic marriage with Georgian princess, depending how the wars on Caucasus go, the same girl may end up married to Ivan or Peter), unless something life-threatening happens to Ilya in 1680ies-early 1690ies, forcing the marriage of Ivan in order to produce a spare to the throne.

The only plausible Georgian princess I could find for this time period was Princess Darejan/Darya of Imereti (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Darejan_of_Imereti), assuming she and her family still flee to Russia. She never married IOTL, though I could see Peter marrying her, if Feodor or Ilya decides to get involved in Georgian/Persian affairs.
 
Agreed. If she wouldn't convert to Catholicism IOTL, there's less chance she'd convert to Russian Orthodoxy.



Really? I always thought it was the disability/disease which had crippled Feodor since childhood that finished him off.



Again, assuming Ilya survives his regency and Peter does not try to use the Strelsy himself.



The only plausible Georgian princess I could find for this time period was Princess Darejan/Darya of Imereti (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Darejan_of_Imereti), assuming she and her family still flee to Russia. She never married IOTL, though I could see Peter marrying her, if Feodor or Ilya decides to get involved in Georgian/Persian affairs.

The disability was the major cause, but losing the will to life greatly contributed to the unwillingness to combat this, mental trauma in addition to physical ones. In more stable state he'll maybe live till circa 1685, but no longer than that.
The Naryshkins will be in interesting position, since stepmom of Ilya will be from family that was at least friendly to them. But "uncle trying to usurp nephew" lacked precedents in Russian history so far, especially when said nephew directly succeeded his father.
And I was thinking about Darya, used her in my TL.
 
The disability was the major cause, but losing the will to life greatly contributed to the unwillingness to combat this, mental trauma in addition to physical ones. In more stable state he'll maybe live till circa 1685, but no longer than that.
The Naryshkins will be in interesting position, since stepmom of Ilya will be from family that was at least friendly to them. But "uncle trying to usurp nephew" lacked precedents in Russian history so far, especially when said nephew directly succeeded his father.
And I was thinking about Darya, used her in my TL.

I've been reading quite a bit about Peter the Great lately, and given his personality, I do wonder if Ilya lives Peter would marry at all, or even want to. IOTL, he only married Eudoxia Lopukhina under pressure from his mother, and he married Catherine I probably to get some spares to the throne. ITTL, if Peter keeps up having affairs with ladies like Anna Mons, perhaps it could lead to an earlier version of the Pauline reforms?
 
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