The monastery of Petschenga

by J. A. Friis

CHAPTER VII.

THE DESTRUCTION OF THE MONASTERY ON CHRISTMAS EVE, 1589.[1]

There was war between John III. of Sweden and the Czar, Theodore Ivanovitsch, and though an amnesty had been agreed upon for four years—from 1585 to 1590—there were during that time slight skirmishes between the people who lived along the coast of Karelen, and the Finns, of Swedish Finland. Early in 1589 the Karelens had, in this irregular manner, made an incursion into Finland, in the direction of Kajana. In revenge for this attack, the Swedish Finns, not long afterwards, made an incursion into Karelen. It is recorded that ‘they came in boats over the river Kovda, seven hundred strong, and invaded and burnt the Karelen towns of Kovda, Umba, Keret, and other places along the coast. After this they made their way southwards in Kemste Volost, and plundered all the habitations. Thence they retraced their steps across the river Kem.’

The inhabitants of Solowetski retaliated, and with a troop of thirteen hundred men made another incursion into Finland, plundering several towns within the Finnish territory.

The Finns, on their part, revenged themselves ‘about Christmastide’ by making another invasion; not, however, this time eastwards towards Karelen, but northwards to the less defended coast of Russian Lapland, to Enare, Peisen, [[72]]Petschenga, Orafjord, and Kola. The troops, whose numbers have not been recorded, marched from the district of Kajana, and it is probable that they first reached Enare, or, as it is called in the old documents, ‘Innier.’ Here they slew, among others, ‘Tykum Thudesen, who yielded tribute to Denmark, Sweden, and Russia,’ and who, from his name, we judge must have been a Norwegian. From Enare they probably went along the Pasvig river, or through its valley to Pasvig, or Klosterfjord, where Boris and Glebs Chapel had been built by the monks of Petschenga. Here they put to death ‘four men, three boys, and one woman.’ Among the boys Mikel Ottesen is mentioned, who was probably a Norwegian, and the woman, who was named Oditte Andrisdatter, was also in all probability a Norwegian woman. It is noteworthy that in this case they spared the chapel, as it is still in existence, but usually they burnt both the churches and the houses. From Peisen they went by sea to Bomeni, or Bumandsfjord, on Fiskerö. They easily obtained boats at Pasvigfjord, where the monks had a shipyard. The number of those who were killed at Bomeni, and the property belonging to the monks which they destroyed, is not known. ‘There was nobody there,’ the letter from Vardö states, ‘when the magistrate arrived’ after Christmas to collect the usual tax, or, as it was called, the ‘Nordfjeldskat.’ From Bomeni they went to Petschengafjord. At the mouth of the fjord, at Warehouse Bay, or, as the Vardö letter calls it, ‘at Wickits,’ was the monks’ shipyard. Here they set fire to the houses, and burnt all the boats which they did not require. At the head of the bay was St. Mary’s Church. This they also set on fire, after having plundered the treasures which they found in it. From thence they crossed the river to the monastery itself.

They reached it on the day before Christmas, 1589, during the night, and while the office of Nocturns was being recited in the church, and at the very time when Ambrose was about to take the vows. Most of the monks were assembled in the church. A great many of the work-people also were there, for everyone wanted to be present when a man who was so highly esteemed by them all was to take his final vows. Fifteen of the monks appear to have been absent from the monastery when it was attacked, and thus they escaped death. Probably the monks who were at the monastery had received intelligence [[73]]of the ravages of the hostile troops, and had done what was possible by way of defending themselves, but evidently they had not anticipated an attack quite so soon.

The solemn consecration had begun, and at ten o’clock at night Ambrose entered the outer church. There he took off the ordinary clothes which he had been wearing, and stood with only his hair-shirt on him, without stockings, shoes, girdle, and with his head uncovered. This was an indication that he had now completely renounced everything in the world. Then the assembled brothers approached him, each one bearing a lighted taper in his hand as a symbol of the Gospel approaching the penitent soul. He then joined in with their voices, and sang the hymn:

‘Lord, receive me in thy Fatherly embrace.’

At the entrance of the chancel the president of the monastery met him ‘as a father at the threshold of his house,’ and delivered a charge to him, in which he adjured him ‘to open his heart, and to give heed to the voice of the Lord, which now was calling on him to take His easy yoke upon him. He must not forget that while with joy and trembling he made his vows, the Saviour Himself, and the Mother of God, and all the host of heaven, would hear each word he spoke, and that those words would resound again before him, at the resurrection at the last day.’