Peter I was an impostor who stole and imprisoned a real Russian tsar. It is to this conclusion came the researchers biography of the ruler.
The history of any country knows at least a few hoaxes with false representatives of the ruling dynasties. Similar conspiracies with the substitution of representatives of the ruling dynasty or concealment of the fact of their death were beneficial to the "gray cardinals" - behind-the-scenes political players, who had a huge influence on the rulers or dreamed of finding it. In the history of tsarist Russia, the most obvious substitution for the tsar is the twin of Peter I, who successfully ruled the country for many years. From historical information it is not difficult to make a list of direct proofs of such a substitution.
1. Return of Menshikov
In 1697-1698, Peter led a diplomatic mission called the Great Embassy, departed from Russia to Western Europe. Together with him 20 noblemen and 35 commoners participated in it, only Alexander Menshikov remained alive. All the others were killed under unclear circumstances, about which Peter I refused to speak with the approximate and clergymen until the end of the day. All these people knew the tsar well in person and could confirm that another person returned to Russia instead of him.
2. Wonderful transformation during the trip
The dead supporters of the king would indeed be hard to convince that the impostor and their former ruler are one person. As proof of the version of the substitution, you can compare two portraits made before the departure of Peter I and immediately after his return to his homeland. He left the country as a man who looked 25-26 years old, with a wart under his left eye and a round face. Peter I was a growth above the average and fairly dense complexion.
On a trip with him, a strange transformation happened: his growth "stretched" to 2 meters 4 centimeters, he sharply lost weight and "changed" the shape of the face. The man in the portrait, who was absent from home for only a year, at least 40 years in appearance. After his arrival, many foreigners began to openly say:
"Our King!"
3. Refusal of family and war with sister
Of course, those who replaced Peter I were hampered by his relatives, who could recognize the impostor at the first meeting. The sister of the tsar, Sophia Alekseevna, had the experience of governing the country and immediately realized that Europe had sent a replacement to her brother in order to have influence over such a large country. Sophia led the Streltsy rebellion, since in the ranks of the streltsi there were many like-minded people who had time to talk with the substitute tsar and personally make sure that he was not like Peter I. The rebellion was suppressed, Princess Sophia was sent to a monastery, and to every person who decided to speak openly about pseudo-king, appointed physical punishment and arrest.
No less cruelly did the new Peter and his wife do what he pretended to be. Evdokia Lopukhina was perhaps the only person whom the tsar trusted as to himself. During the Great Embassy, he almost daily corresponded with her, but then the communication ceased. Instead of loving husband, Yevdokia saw a brutal impostor who immediately after her arrival sent her to a monastery and did not give any of her numerous requests to reveal the reasons for such an act. Peter I did not even listen to the clergy, which had previously had a strong influence on him and was against imprisonment of Evdokia.
4. Poor memory of the face
Sophia Sophia and the archers are not the only ones who have not been recognized by the king who returned home. He could not remember the faces of other relatives and teachers, constantly mixed up in names and did not remember a single detail of the "past life". His associates Lefort and Gordon, and then several other influential persons, who persistently sought communication with the tsar, were killed under strange circumstances immediately after their arrival. It is also curious that the Tsar "forgot" after arriving about the location of the library of Ivan the Terrible, although the coordinates of its location were transferred strictly from the Tsar to the Tsar.
5. The prisoner in an iron mask
Immediately after the departure of Peter I from Europe, a prisoner appears in Bastille prison, whose real name was known only to King Louis XIV. The supervisors called him Michael, which is a reference to the Russian name of Peter Mikhailov, which the king imagined himself on trips when he wanted to remain unrecognized. "Iron Mask" he was called among the people, although the mask, which he was doomed to wear until his death, was velvet. Voltaire wrote that he knows about who the prisoner is, but "like a real Frenchman," he must remain silent. The appearance and composition of the prisoner were ideally suited to the appearance of Peter I before leaving for Europe. Here's what you can find in the records of the prison governor about the mysterious prisoner:
"He was tall, held with dignity, he was ordered to treat him as a man of noble birth."
And it's all. He died in 1703, after the destruction of the body, the room was thoroughly searched, and all traces of his life were destroyed.
6. Sharp change of style of clothes
Since childhood, the Tsar loved Old Russian clothes. He wore traditional Russian caftans even on the hottest days, proud of his origins and in every possible way emphasizing it. A latinite returned to Russia from Europe, forbidding him to sew Russian clothes for himself, and never again worn traditional royal apparels, despite the persuasions of boyars and confessors. Until his death, the pseudo-Peter wore exclusively European clothes.
7. Hatred of everything Russian
Unexpectedly, Peter I hated not only the Russian style of clothes, but everything that was connected with the homeland. He began to speak poorly and understand Russian, which caused confusion among the boyars on advice and secular receptions. The Tsar claimed that during the year of his life in Europe he forgot how to write in Russian, decided to abandon the observance of the posts in spite of the former piety and could not remember anything about all the sciences that he was taught as a representative of the Russian nobility. But he acquired the skills of a simple artisan, considered even offensive to the tsar.
8. Strange illness
The king's doctor could not believe his eyes when, after returning from a long trip, the ruler began to suffer from regular attacks of chronic tropical fever. She could catch it, traveling through the southern seas, which Peter I never saw. The great embassy traveled by the northern sea route, so the possibility of infection was excluded.
9. A new combat system
If earlier the king was making plans for foot conquests and horse battles, Europe changed his approach to the very process of warfare. Never seen sea battles, Peter demonstrated an excellent experience of boarding battles on the water, which surprised all military knowledge. His combat skills, according to written information, had features that you can acquire by fighting on ships for many years. For the former Peter I it was physically impossible: his childhood and youth passed on the earth, which did not have access to the seas.
10. The death of Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich
Tsarevich Alexei Petrovich, the eldest son of Peter and Evdokia Lopukhina, ceased to be interesting to the false ruler when his own son appeared. New Peter I began to force Alexei to take tonsure, showing discontent with one fact of his being at the court - a son, in which he had never before had a soul. Alexei Petrovich fled to Poland, from which he planned to go to the Bastille (obviously, to get out his real father) on some personal matters. Supporters of the pseudo-Peter intercepted him on the road and promised that on his return he would take the throne with their support. After coming to Russia, the Tsarevich was interrogated by Peter I and killed.