Tsar Mikhail Romanov NYPL, Slavic and Baltic Division

The first three Romanovs—Mikhail, Aleksei (r. 1645–76), and Fedor III (r. 1676–82)—returned Russia to normality and stability, but fissures were still evident in the state and society. The council of boyars, the Boyar Duma, grew in number as did their reputation for corruption and quarreling. The zemskii sobor ceased meeting by mid-century, but not before it approved the Law Code of 1649, which legalized serfdom. More than half the population now lived in bondage and could be bought, sold, and willed by their noble masters in perpetuity. A constant series of wars with Poland and Sweden in the century also sapped economic energy and resulted in excessive levies. In addition, the independent agricultural and military societies that arose in the borderlands resented any encroachments on their lives by the state.

	The Tsar Distributes Alms NYPL, Slavic and Baltic Division

In reaction to taxes, recruitment, centralization, and serfdom, a charismatic Cossack, Stepan Timofeevich Razin (d. 1671), led a massive revolt against the government and, with 200,000 supporters, attacked Moscow in 1670. The regular army defeated the poorly organized and equipped rebels, but similar peasant rebellions continued to beset the state.