FOURTH MARRIAGE: ABOUT THE FAMILY LIFE OF PRINCE SEMEN SHAKHOVSKY

The article deals with the circumstances of the private life of Prince Semyon Shakhovsky, an outstanding writer, poet, publicist, religious figure of the first half of the 17th century. It is known that Semyon Shakhovskoy was married four times, contrary to the prohibitions of the Russian Orthodox Church. The fourth marriage caused his conflict with Patriarch Filaret, after which the writer went into exile in Tobolsk. However, he was soon forgiven and returned to Moscow to work for the patriarch. In his ―Home Notes‖, the prince, recalling life, omitted this episode and hid the fact of the fourth marriage. However, rumors that the fourth marriage was officially annulled by the patriarch were strong. In 1662, the son of Semyon Shakhovsky, Fyodor, began a lawsuit with his relatives. They accused him of being illegitimate and asked him to deprive his father of his land holdings. The investigation ultimately failed to find evidence that Prince Shakhovskoy was officially divorced. The author concludes that the refusal to divorce the fourth wife and the justification of this act are evidence of the departure of medieval traditions into the past.