Speaking of dates, one often comes across a common misconception related to the conversion of dates from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian (from the "old style" to the "new"). A significant part of people believe that this difference is always 13 days. In fact, everything is much more complicated and the difference between calendars changes from century to century.
First of all, it is necessary to explain what the appearance of different calendars is connected with. The fact is that the Earth makes a complete revolution around the Sun not in 365 or 366 days, but in 365 days 5 hours 48 minutes 45.19 seconds (data for the 2000s).
In the Julian calendar, introduced in 45 AD. and spread throughout Europe, incl. (through Byzantium) - and to Russia, the duration of the year is 365 days and 6 hours. The "extra" 6 hours make up 1 day - February 29, which is added once every 4 years.
In this way, Julian calendar inaccurate, and over time this inaccuracy became apparent when calculating Christian holidays, first of all, Easter, which should be celebrated on the first Sunday after the spring equinox.
This problem was brought to the attention Catholic Church, and from 1582 was introduced Gregorian calendar. On October 5, 1582, Pope Gregory XIII issued a bull ordering that October 5 be counted as 15. Thus, the difference between the calendars in the 16th century was 10 days.
The Gregorian calendar is based on the following principles:
- Just like the Julian calendar, every fourth year is a leap year.
- Years that are multiples of 400 (for example, 1600 and 2000) are also leap years.
- The exception is years that are multiples of 100 and not multiples of 400 (for example, 1700, 1800, and 1900): they are not leap years.
Thus, the discrepancy between the Julian and Gregorian calendar as follows:
| XVI century | 10 |
| XVII century | 10 |
| 18th century | 11 |
| 19th century | 12 |
| 20th century | 13 |
| 21st century | 13 |
| 22nd century | 14 |
| 23rd century | 15 |
| 24th century | 16 |
| 25th century | 16 |
| 26th century | 17 |
In Russia, the Gregorian calendar was introduced by a decree of the Council of People's Commissars of January 24, 1918. After January 31, 1918, February 14 came.
Thus, most of the time, according to which a genealogy can be compiled (XVII - early XX centuries), the Julian calendar was in force in Russia, and all dates require recalculation in accordance with the table above. For example, the 150th anniversary of the abolition of serfdom (manifesto of February 19, 1861) is March 3, 2011.
Currently, the Julian calendar continues to be used by some local Orthodox churches, including the Russian Orthodox Church. A significant part of the Orthodox churches (for example, Greek) adopted the New Julian calendar, which calculates leap years according to a slightly more complex model. However, until the 29th century, there will be no discrepancies between the Gregorian and New Julian calendars.
As in other Christian countries, since the end of the 10th century, the Julian calendar was used in Russia, based on observations of the apparent movement of the Sun across the sky. He was brought into Ancient Rome Gaius Julius Caesar in 46 BC e.
The calendar was developed by the Alexandrian astronomer Sosigenes based on the calendar ancient egypt. When Russia adopted Christianity in the 10th century, the Julian calendar came along with it. However, the average length of a year in the Julian calendar is 365 days and 6 hours (that is, there are 365 days in a year, and an extra day is added every fourth year). While the duration of the astronomical solar year is 365 days 5 hours 48 minutes and 46 seconds. That is, the Julian year was longer than the astronomical one by 11 minutes 14 seconds and, therefore, lagged behind the real change of years.
By 1582, the difference between the Julian calendar and the real change of years was already 10 days.
This led to a reform of the calendar, which was carried out in 1582 by a special commission created by Pope Gregory XIII. The difference was eliminated when, after October 4, 1582, it was ordered to count not 5, but immediately October 15. After the name of the pope, the new, reformed calendar became known as the Gregorian.
In this calendar, unlike the Julian, the final year of the century, if it is not divisible by 400, is not a leap year. Thus, the Gregorian calendar has 3 leap years less every four hundred years than the Julian. The Gregorian calendar retained the names of the months of the Julian calendar, the extra day in a leap year is February 29, and the beginning of the year is January 1.
The transition of the countries of the world to the Gregorian calendar was a long one. First, the reform took place in Catholic countries (Spain, the Italian states, the Commonwealth, a little later in France, etc.), then in Protestant ones (in Prussia in 1610, in all German states by 1700, in Denmark in 1700, in Great Britain in 1752, in Sweden in 1753). And only in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the Gregorian calendar was adopted in some Asian (in Japan in 1873, China in 1911, Turkey in 1925) and Orthodox (in Bulgaria in 1916, in Serbia in 1919, in Greece in 1924 year) states.
In the RSFSR, the transition to the Gregorian calendar was carried out according to the decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR "On the introduction of the Western European calendar in the Russian Republic" dated February 6, 1918 (January 26, old style).
The calendar problem in Russia has been discussed more than once. In 1899, a Commission on the reform of the calendar in Russia worked at the Astronomical Society, which included Dmitry Mendeleev and the historian Vasily Bolotov. The Commission proposed to modernize the Julian calendar.
“Taking into account: 1) that in 1830 the request of the Imperial Academy of Sciences to introduce the Gregorian calendar in Russia was rejected by Emperor Nicholas I and 2) that the Orthodox states and the entire Orthodox population of East and West rejected the attempts of representatives of Catholicism to introduce the Gregorian calendar in Russia, the Commission unanimously decided to reject all proposals for the introduction of the Gregorian calendar in Russia and, not embarrassed by the choice of reform, to settle on one that would combine the idea of truth and possible accuracy, both scientific and historical, in relation to the Christian chronology in Russia, ”read resolution of the Commission on the reform of the calendar in Russia of 1900.
Such a long use of the Julian calendar in Russia was due to the position of the Orthodox Church, which had a negative attitude towards the Gregorian calendar.
After the church was separated from the state in the RSFSR, the binding of the civil calendar to the church lost its relevance.
The difference in calendars created inconvenience in relations with Europe, which was the reason for the adoption of the decree "in order to establish in Russia the same time calculation with almost all cultural peoples."
The question of reform was raised in the autumn of 1917. One of the projects under consideration proposed a gradual transition from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian, discarding every year by day. But, since the difference between the calendars by that time was 13 days, the transition would take 13 years. Therefore, Lenin supported the option of a one-time transition to a new style. The church refused to switch to the new style.
“The first day after January 31 of this year is not considered February 1, but February 14, the second day is considered the 15th, etc.,” the first paragraph of the decree read. The remaining paragraphs indicated how new deadlines for the fulfillment of any obligations should be calculated and on what dates citizens would be able to receive their salaries.
The date change has created confusion over the celebration of Christmas. Before the transition to the Gregorian calendar in Russia, Christmas was celebrated on December 25, but now it has moved to January 7. As a result of these changes, in 1918 there was no Christmas in Russia at all. In 1917, the last Christmas was celebrated, which fell on December 25th. And the next time the Orthodox holiday was celebrated on January 7, 1919.
January 13 is the last day of the year in the Julian calendar. With what we congratulate you! It's time to deal with the causes of temporary cretinism, which for centuries "sick" the inhabitants of Russia.
How it all began
The ancient Roman Julian calendar was introduced in Rome as a result of a reform initiated by Julius Caesar in 46 BC. V Kievan Rus The Julian calendar appeared during the time of Vladimir Svyatoslavovich almost immediately with the beginning of the introduction of Christianity. Thus, in The Tale of Bygone Years, the Julian calendar is used with the Roman names of the months and the Byzantine era. The chronology was from the Creation of the world, taking 5508 BC as a basis. - Byzantine version of this date. And the beginning of the new year was decided to be calculated from March 1 - in accordance with the ancient Slavic calendar.
dual calendar
To put it mildly, the people did not experience obvious delight from the innovation, managing to live according to two calendars. Preserved enough wooden samples folk calendars, on which one can find the simultaneous notation church holidays according to the Julian calendar, and local events based on the pagan folk calendar.
The Julian calendar was used primarily in cases where it was necessary to find out the date of church holidays.
The old calendar, based on lunar phases, the solar cycle and the change of seasons, reported on the dates of vital matters, first of all, on the beginning or completion of field work. V modern life preserved, for example, such pagan holidays as Shrovetide, associated with lunar cycle, or "solar" celebrations - Kolyada and Kupala.
Trying is torture
For almost 500 years, Russia tried to live according to the Julian calendar. In addition to a large number of discrepancies, the confusion that arose in the annals was also a problem: the Russian chroniclers relied on dating according to the Slavic calendar, while the invited Greeks used the dates of the new calendar.
No prohibitions of the old calendar, up to the execution of its especially zealous adherents, helped.
Reigning Grand Duke Moscow Ivan III tried to "settle" discrepancies. In the Summer of 7000 from the Creation of the World, that is, in 1492, Moscow church cathedral approved the postponement of the beginning of the year from March 1 to September 1 (a decision that is still in effect in the Russian Orthodox Church).
The shortest year
Another attempt to transform the chronology was made by Peter I. By his decree of 1699, he moved the beginning of the year from September 1 to January 1. Thus, the year 1699 lasted only 4 months: September, October, November and December. The year has been shortened Soviet power, which on January 24, 1918 corrected the error of the Julian calendar of 13 days, introducing the Gregorian calendar, according to which Catholic Europe has lived since 1582. After January 31, 1918, it was not February 1, but immediately February 14.
Everyone is playing!
Fearing to be once again misunderstood, Peter I made an attempt to "disguise" the introduction of a new chronology with grandiose festivities.
It was ordered to decorate the “Reigning City” “from trees and branches of pine, spruce and juniper” and organize “fiery fun”: launching “rockets, whoever has how much happens” and firing from cannons, muskets and “other small guns”.
On New Year's Eve, the king personally gave the signal for the start of the celebrations. In addition to spectacles, Peter offered the people "various meals and vats of wine and beer" - a treat was organized in front of the palace and at the three triumphal gates. According to the tsar's decree, honest people walked for a week, and when they came to their senses after noisy undertakings, "a rather significant murmur arose" in Moscow. Many wondered: "How could the king change the solar current?"
Many of those who were firmly convinced that "God created the light in the month of September" still lived according to the old reckoning.
Peter decided not to captivate the people, making a reservation in the decree: “And if anyone wants to write both those years, from the creation of the world and from the birth of Christ, in a row freely.”
old style
Today, according to the Julian calendar, only four Orthodox churches live: Russian, Jerusalem, Georgian and Serbian. An attempt to replace the calendar was made by Patriarch Tikhon on October 15, 1923.
True, the “new style” lived in the Church for only 24 days, since already on November 8, 1923, the patriarch ordered “the universal and mandatory introduction of the new style into church use is temporarily postponed.”
Modern Orthodox church calendar(Paschalia) consists of two parts: a fixed Monthly Word associated with the solar cycle, and a mobile Paschalia based on Lunar calendar. The Julian calendar, which diverges from the Gregorian in 13 days, forms the basis of the fixed part - it includes non-passing Orthodox holidays and days of remembrance of saints. Paschalia determines the date of Easter, which changes annually, and with it the transitional holidays that depend on it.
In Europe, starting in 1582, the reformed (Gregorian) calendar gradually spread. The Gregorian calendar gives a much more accurate approximation of the tropical year. For the first time, the Gregorian calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in Catholic countries on October 4, 1582 to replace the previous one: the next day after Thursday, October 4, was Friday, October 15.
The Gregorian calendar ("new style") is a system of time calculation based on the cyclic revolution of the Earth around the Sun. The duration of the year is taken equal to 365.2425 days. The Gregorian calendar contains 97 by 400 years.
The difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendars
At the time of the introduction of the Gregorian calendar, the difference between it and the Julian calendar was 10 days. However, this difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendars gradually increases over time due to the difference in the rules for determining leap years. Therefore, when determining which date of the “new calendar” falls on this or that date of the “old calendar”, it is necessary to take into account the century in which the event took place. For example, if in the XIV century this difference was 8 days, then in the XX century it was already 13 days.
From here follows the distribution of leap years:
- a year whose number is a multiple of 400 is a leap year;
- the remaining years, the number of which is a multiple of 100, are non-leap years;
- the rest of the years, the number of which is a multiple of 4, are leap years.
Thus, 1600 and 2000 were leap years, but 1700, 1800 and 1900 were not leap years. Nor will 2100 be a leap year. An error of one day compared to the year of the equinoxes in the Gregorian calendar will accumulate in about 10 thousand years (in the Julian - in about 128 years).
Time of approval of the Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar, adopted in most countries of the world, was not immediately put into use:
1582
- Italy, Spain, Portugal, Poland, France, Lorraine, Holland, Luxembourg;
1583
- Austria (part), Bavaria, Tyrol.
1584
- Austria (part), Switzerland, Silesia, Westphalia.
1587
- Hungary.
1610
- Prussia.
1700
- Protestant German states, Denmark.
1752
- Great Britain.
1753
- Sweden, Finland.
1873
- Japan.
1911
- China.
1916
- Bulgaria.
1918
- Soviet Russia.
1919
- Serbia, Romania.
1927
- Turkey.
1928
- Egypt.
1929
- Greece.
Gregorian calendar in Russia
As you know, until February 1918, Russia, like most Orthodox countries, lived according to the Julian calendar. " New style"chronology appeared in Russia since January 1918, when the Soviet People's Commissars replaced the traditional Julian calendar with the Gregorian. As stated in the Decree of the Council of People's Commissars, this decision was made "in order to establish in Russia the same time calculation with almost all cultural peoples." In accordance with the decree, the terms of all obligations were considered to have come 13 days later. Until July 1, 1918, a kind of transitional period was established, when it was allowed to use the old style chronology. But at the same time, the order of writing old and new dates was clearly established in the document: it was necessary to write “after the date of each day according to the new calendar, in brackets the number according to the calendar that was still in force”.
Events and documents are dated with a double date in cases where it is required to specify the old and new styles. For example, for anniversaries, major events in all biographical works, and dates of events and historical documents international relations associated with countries where the Gregorian calendar was introduced earlier than in Russia.
Date according to the new style (Gregorian calendar)
The question of the difference in calendars does not belong to the realm of dogmatics. And therefore, the question is often asked about the expediency of preserving the old style by the majority of Orthodox. Really - is it really so important what day to celebrate? And the celebration of Christmas and other holidays on the same day by all Christians would resolve many issues related to both the celebration of the New Year and inter-confessional relations. Why is it still the old style?
First, a little history:
Julian calendar (old style).
In 46 B.C. Roman statesman and the general Julius Caesar reformed the Roman calendar, which by then was quite chaotic and complex. We are talking, of course, about the solar calendar, i.e. on the distribution of the solar year calendar days and months. Since the solar year is not divisible by an even number of days, the leap year system was adopted, which "catches up" with the length of the solar year.
The Julian year is 365 days and 6 hours long. But this value is greater than the solar (tropical year) by 11 minutes and 14 seconds. Therefore, for every 128 years, a whole day accumulated. Thus, the Julian calendar was not distinguished by great astronomical accuracy, but on the other hand, and this was the advantage of this calendar, it was distinguished by the simplicity and harmony of the system.
Gregorian calendar (new style).
So, in the "old" calendar, every 128 years, an "extra" day was accumulated. Consequently, astronomical dates (such as the days of the equinoxes) shifted. At the First Ecumenical Council, which took place in 325, it was decided that all the Local Churches should celebrate the day of Easter, the Resurrection of Christ, on the same day. The day of the spring equinox (which plays an important role in calculating the day of the celebration of Easter) then fell on March 21. But since every 128 years an error of one day accumulated, the real equinox began to occur earlier. In the 5th century, the moment of equinox came already on March 20, then on the 19th, 18th, and so on.
By the second half of the 16th century, the error was already ten days: according to the Julian calendar, the moment of the equinox should occur on March 21, but in reality it already occurred on March 11. That is why Pope Gregory XIII undertook a reform of the calendar in 1582. According to his instructions, the day after Thursday, October 4, was prescribed to be considered not October 5, but October 15. Thus, the day of the spring equinox returned to March 21, where it was during the First Ecumenical (Nicene) Council.
But the Gregorian calendar could not be absolutely accurate, since in principle it is impossible to accurately divide the solar year by the number of days. were needed additional measures, to prevent the calendar days from going forward, and the moment of the vernal equinox, respectively, back. For this, not only leap years were introduced, but also, a kind of non-leap centuries. It was decided that those centuries that are not divisible by 4 without a remainder will be simple, and not leap years, as is the case in the Julian calendar. Those. centuries 1700, 1800, 1900, 2100 and so on are simple, that is, in these years there is no insertion of an additional day in February. And so in these centuries, the Julian calendar goes one day ahead. It so happened that by our time there has accumulated a difference between the two calendars of 13 days, which will increase by another day in 2100.
Why does the Russian Orthodox Church live according to the "old style"?
Many chronographers, mathematicians and theologians (Prof. V.V. Bolotov, Prof. Glubokovsky, A.N. Zelinsky) did not approve of the introduction of a new calendar – “a true torment for chronographs”.
The transition to the Gregorian calendar will lead to the fact that in some years the Petrovsky fast will disappear from the calendar completely. The new style is significantly inferior to the Julian calendar in liturgical accuracy: after all, it is the Julian calendar that is consistent with the Alexandrian Paschalia. That is why in some local churches the services of the Paschal circle (Easter and the passing feasts) are celebrated in the old style, and fixed feasts in the new style. This is the so-called Greek style.
The calendar issue, first of all, is connected with the celebration of Easter. “Easter is calculated simultaneously in two cycles: solar and lunar. All calendars (Julian, New Julian, Gregorian) tell us only about the solar cycle. But the day of Easter is a holiday dating back to the Old Testament. A calendar Old Testament- lunar. Thus, the church Paschalia is not just a calendar, whatever it may be, but the calculation of a certain day according to rules that depend on both the solar and lunar cycles.
At the Moscow Meeting of 1948, an official decision was made regarding the calendar problem, according to which it is obligatory for the entire Orthodox world to celebrate the feast of Holy Pascha only according to the old (Julian) style, according to the Alexandrian Paschalia, and for fixed holidays, each autocephalous Church can use the existing in this Church calendar, and finally, clergy and laity must necessarily follow the calendar or the style of that local church within which they live.