Mikhail Fedorovich Romanov

Born July 12 (22), 1596, in Moscow; died there July 13 (23), 1645. First Russian tsar of the Romanov dynasty.

Mikhail Romanov was the son of the boyar Fedor Nikitich Romanov, who later became patriarch under the name of Philaret. Mikhail was also a distant relative of Tsar Fedor Ivanovich. On Feb. 21, 1613, Mikhail Romanov was elected to the throne on the initiative of the boyars and with the approval of the Zemskii Sobor (National Assembly), which had convened after the expulsion of the Polish invaders from Moscow. His relatives were active in the administration of the country. From 1619 to 1633, his father, Patriarch Philaret, ruled and officially bore the title Great Sovereign.

During Mikhail’s reign the Stolbovo Peace Treaty of 1617 and the Deulino Armistice of 1618 were concluded. According to the latter agreement there was an exchange of prisoners with hostile countries, and Mikhail’s father, Philaret, returned to Russia. The war of 1632–34 against Poland eliminated many of the negative consequences of earlier treaties. Under Mikhail abatis lines (zasechnye cherty) were built against the Crimean Tatars, and the colonization of Siberia continued.