Impact of war

Crimean War - Emancipation Edict

• Emancipation of the Serfs 1861 led to

  • Greater entrepreneurialism in agriculture

  • Less control by nobility

  • Movement of some rural labour to industry

  • Modernisation of the military

    • Peasants had less of an obligation to serve as conscripts in the army

    • Tsar could change recruiting, training and organisation

  • Social reforms that preserved authority of Tsar and nobility

  • Changes to governing

Crimean War - Economy

• Greater entrepreneurialism in agriculture

  • Selling surplus at markets without the permission of the Mir

• Increased urban workforce

Crimean War - Military

• Modernisation of the military

  • Peasants had less of an obligation to serve as conscripts in the army

  • Tsar could change recruiting, training and organisation

Crimean War - Zemstva

• Changes to governing of localities

  • Nobility’s landholdings and serfdom obligations reduced

  • Political role reduced

  • Introduction of Zemstva to integrate peasants

• Strengths

  • Elected members a mix of landowners, urban dwellers and peasants - based on property qualification

  • Could feed back regional issues to central government

• Weaknesses

  • Dominated by nobility and professional classes

  • Only located in Great Russia - not found in Poland, Baltics or the Caucasus

  • Still 37 provinces without a Zemstvo by 1917

Crimean War - Limitations

• No major change in ideology or central government

• Main aim to preserve autocracy - reforms from ‘above’ to prevent attempts from ‘below’

Russo-Japanese War

WWI