Feodor Mikhailovich Rtishchev (russian: Фёдор Миха́йлович Рти́щев; April 16, 1625,

Chekalin Chekalin (russian: Чека́лин), formerly known as Likhvin () until 1945, is a town in Suvorovsky District of Tula Oblast, Russia, located on the left bank of the Oka River. Population: In 2010 it was the least populous inhabited locality ...

sky

uyezd An uezd (also spelled uyezd; rus, уе́зд, p=ʊˈjest), or povit in a Ukrainian context ( uk, повіт), or Kreis in Baltic-German context, was a type of administrative subdivision of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, the Russian Empire, and the ea ...

– July 1, 1673,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

) was a boyar and an intimate friend of

Alexis I of Russia Aleksey Mikhaylovich ( rus, Алексе́й Миха́йлович, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ; – ) was the Tsar of Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676. While finding success in foreign affairs, his reign saw several wars ...

who was renowned for his piety and alms-deeds.Rtishchev in the ''Russian Biographical Dictionary''
/ref> He was the founder of the so-called Andreevsky School. It was the first educational institution in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, founded as a court circle during the reign of

Alexei Mikhailovich Aleksey Mikhaylovich ( rus, Алексе́й Миха́йлович, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ; – ) was the Tsar of Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676. While finding success in foreign affairs, his reign saw several wars ...

. As Rtischev eschewed publicity, the true extent of his influence on the

Tsar Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East and South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" in the European medieval sense of the ter ...

's policies has been disputed by historians. It is thought that it was Rtischev who instigated the revision of service-books which led to the Great Schism of the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

. Some scholars also hold him responsible for the eventual downfall of

Patriarch Nikon Nikon ( ru , Ни́кон, Old Russian: ''Нїконъ''), born Nikita Minin (''Никита Минин''; 7 May 1605 – 17 August 1681) was the seventh Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' of the Russian Orthodox Church, serving officially from ...

. During the great

famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompani ...

Vologda Vologda ( rus, Вологда, p=ˈvoləɡdə) is a city and the administrative center of Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the river Vologda within the watershed of the Northern Dvina. Population: The city serves as a major transport hu ...

(1650), Rtischev sold much of his property, including clothes and house utensils, in order to raise funds for the famine-stricken city. He took care for all the wounded in the Russo-Polish wars, notwithstanding their nationality, and established several alms-houses in

. Remembered as the earliest patron of Russian education, Rtischev founded one of the first schools in Moscow, where he invited

Yepifany Slavinetsky Epifany Slavinetsky (russian: Епифа́ний Славине́цкий) (c. 1600 - November 19, 1675) was an ecclesiastical expert of the Russian Orthodox Church who helped Patriarch Nikon to revise ancient service-books. His actions precipitat ...

to instruct the students in

Greek language Greek ( el, label= Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy ( Calabria and Salento), southe ...

. Rtischev's school would later be transformed into the Slavic Greek Latin Academy. It is known that Rtischev survived several assassination attempts, and wrote a treatise on falconry.''Brockhaus and Efron Dictionary''
/ref> His biography was written by

Vasily Klyuchevsky Vasily Osipovich Klyuchevsky (russian: Василий Осипович Ключевский; in Voskresnskoye Village, Penza Governorate, Russia – , Moscow) was a leading Russian Imperial historian of the late imperial period. Also, he addres ...

. Fyodor was a relative of Ustinia Bogdanovna Rtishcheva and her daughter

Eudoxia Lopukhina Tsarina Eudoxia Fyodorovna Lopukhina ( rus, Евдоки́я Фёдоровна Лопухина́, Yevdokíya Fyodorovna Lopukhiná; in Moscow – in Moscow) was a Russian Tsaritsa as the first wife of Peter I of Russia, and the last ethnic ...

. Eudoxia was chosen by

Natalia Naryshkina Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina (russian: Ната́лья Кири́лловна Нары́шкина; 1 September 1651 – 4 February 1694) was the Tsaritsa of Russia from 1671–1676 as the second spouse of Tsar Alexis I of Russia, and reg ...

as the first

Tsarina Tsarina or tsaritsa (also spelled ''csarina'' or ''csaricsa'', ''tzarina'' or ''tzaritza'', or ''czarina'' or ''czaricza''; bg, царица, tsaritsa; sr, / ; russian: царица, tsaritsa) is the title of a female autocratic ruler (mon ...

for her son Peter I of Russia due to her relation to Fyodor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rtischev, Fyodor Tsardom of Russia people Russian philanthropists Russian Orthodox Christians from Russia Russian nobility 1626 births 1673 deaths 17th-century philanthropists