The Morning of the Streltsy Execution

On Red Square, the Streltsy say farewell to their families before execution. Surikov addressed the repression following the 1698 revolt. He finished the painting in 1881, combining historical study with impressions of Moscow’s architecture. Individual encounters fill the square, turning state violence into the suffering of particular families.

A red-bearded Streltsy soldier in a white shirt turns his head right. A candle burns in his hand and his wrists are tied. Pale fabric distinguishes him from the surrounding dark clothing. His gaze crosses the square, linking the condemned group with the side occupied by the tsar.

Peter I sits on horseback beside the Kremlin wall. Distant though he is, his elevated silhouette remains distinct above pedestrians. The surrounding space is organised differently from the carts. This separation can be read as a distribution of power: one man observes from afar while many families endure the decision’s consequences.

A woman in patterned clothing holds her hands against her chest and watches a man being led away by a soldier. A small child stays beside her. Their bodily turns form a brief account of separation. Following who departs and who remains makes the event’s direction clear.

In the foreground, a woman sits directly on the ground with her face in her hands. A girl in a red headscarf faces us nearby. Different gestures prevent the crowd from sharing a uniform response. Surikov distributes attention between individuals, each present in a particular way at an event they cannot change.

St Basil’s domes are cut by the upper edge. Its walls rise behind the crowded carts, with the Kremlin extending to the right. Architecture establishes Moscow as the setting, but the painter brings it close to the figures. The square feels enclosed by anticipation despite being an open urban space.

Tretyakov acquired the painting in the year of completion. It was Surikov’s first large history painting shown publicly. The scene stops before the execution, making anticipation and farewell its substance. This pause allows a political conflict to be considered through people involved differently in its outcome.