Alexander II, Tsar Reformer 1855

what motivated for reform?

• romantic poet tutor - Vasily Zhukovsky  

• travels around the empire

• party of St Petersburg progress 

• brother grand duke konstatin 

• aunt grand dutchess elena pavovna 

• other bureaucrats 

• more conservative than liberal - but increase of peasant uprising 

what were the Milyutin brothers?

Nikolai Alexander Milyutin - influential voice in ministry of internal affairs, favouring reform, responsible for drafting terms of emancipation edict, supported zemstvo

dimitry Alekseyevich Milyutin - trained in military academy reputation of a military scholar. analysed Russia defeat in Crimea war. minister of war 1861-1881

the contradictions behind alexanders views and intentions can be seen in his address to the Moscow nobility in 1856

• ‘ should come about from above, rather than below ‘

the emancipation Edict 1861

• tour of the countryside making pro-emancipation speeches to try to win noble support for emancipation

• initially applied only to the privately owned serfs, state serfs received their freedom in 1866

• freedom and an allotment of land

• landowners received compensation

• freed serfs were required to pay redemption payments to government over 49years, for their land and were to remain within the mir until payments have been made. 

• took 2 years - landlords kept the meadows, pasture etc.

• 15% remained ‘temporarily obligated ‘ until 1881

what were the responsibilities of the commune - mir ?

• distributing allotments, controlling the farming, collecting and paying the peasant taxes

• while volosts were established to supervise the mir

• from 1863 volosts ran their own courts replacing landlords jurisdiction over serfs

what were the results of the emancipation?

• some peasants - kulaks - did very well, they bough up extra land - can produce surplus grain for export. some sold up their allocations or obtained a passport to leave the mir - raised living standards by finding work in the industrialising cities. 

• many peasants felt cheated, the land allocations were rarely fair. mir had highly traditional institution - only 50% were capable of producing surplus 

• landowners lost their influence. newspapers wrote about their disappointment 

the military reform

1874-75

• conscription was made compulsory for all classes from age of 21, length of service reduced from 25 to 15 years of active service and 10 years in reserves 

• punishments were made less severe, system of military colonies was abandoned, better provisioning and medical care were established. 

• modern weaponry was introduced and new command structure was established. 

• military colleges were set up for better training

• literacy within the army was improved 

War against Türkiye 

1877-78

in supports of Balkan states fighting against Turkish rule. Russia concluded the treaty of San Stefano with Türkiye.

large Bulgaria under Russia protection - alarmed Britain and Austria-hungry forced Russia to accept the treaty of berlin in July 1978 which split up the new Bulgaria.

local government reform

1864-70

• zemstva was established.  were chosen through a system of electoral colleges with separate colleges for nobles, townspeople, church and peasants. however voting system was arranged in a way that allowed nobility to dominate. 

• 1870 this was extended to towns when elected town councils called dumas were set up 

what were powers and limitations of the zemstvo?

• improve public services - roads, schools, public health and prisons - 

• develop industrial projects 

• administer poor relief in times of hardship

• provincial governors continued to appoint officials 

• can overturn zemstvo decisions

• power very limited - no control over state and local taxes

they attracted intellectuals and doctors, teachers etc who to dismay of the regime, used meetings as an opportunity to debate political issues and criticise central government. 

judiciary reform

1864

• equality before the law - the accused was presumed innocent until proven guilty and could employ a lawyer to defend himself 

• criminal cases were heard before barristers and a jury. judges were appointed by the tsar and given improved training and pay

• local justices of the peace were elected every three years by the zemstva and were to be independent from political control 

• courts were open to the public and proceedings could be freely reported. - national trials were recorded in a government newspaper - Russian courier

limitations of the judiciary reforms

• articulate lawyers of the intellectuals to criticise the regime

• sometime acquitted the guilty because they sympathised with their plight

• trial by jury was never established in Poland 

• ecclesiastical and military courts were excluded from the reforms

• peasantry in the volost courts were still treated differently from those of higher status. 

education reforms

1863-64

• universities were given the opportunity to govern themselves and appoint their own staff. 

• responsibly of schooling went from the church to the zemtva 

• primary and secondary education was extended with ‘ modern schools ‘ for those who did not want the traditional classical education offered in a gimnaziya

• schools were open to all regardless of sex and class

censorship reform

1858-70

• restrictions on publishers were reduced. foreign publications were permitted with government approval. 

• press was allowed to print editorials with comment on government policy 

• the number of books published grew from 1020 in 1855 to 1836 in 1864 and 10,691 by 1894, a growth in critical writing bought a re-tightening of government control in the 1870s

other reforms 

• half-hearted attempt to eliminate church corruption 

• reform for the conditions of the jews and ethic minorities

• economic liberation

• although these reforms were reversed due 1863 polish rebellion 

alexnade II later years

• eldest son died + wife with tuberculosis 

• more conservative reactionary 

• replaced Golovin with Dimitri Tolstoy

Dimitri Tolstoy changes in education

• zemstva powers over education were reduced - church got the authority over rural schools

• brought back classical education - maths, greek

• abandoning modern aducation - natural science

• state teacher-training colleges set up

March 13th 1881

Alexanders death