Chapter 1 Alexander II Tsar Liberator
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Main physical features of Russia and Russian society
-Tsarist Russia mid 19th century occupied a vast area across Europe and Asia about 1/6 of the world's total landmass.
-Its boundaries stretched 6000km from from west to the pacific ocean and 3000km from Baltic sea to the Black Sea.
-The northern part (tundra) is frozen most of the year and only supports scrub vegetation.
-South of the tundra is endless miles of forest a huge resource of wood but impenetrable in some areas.
-The steppes are open pains and grassland where the most fertile land for agriculture can be found, particularly the Black region .
-Far south there are deserts, Russian climate is has a huge impact on the people it has made agriculture difficult with unpredictable rainfall patterns and droughts that can ruin harvests.
-Its size and inhospitable geography created problems for rulers: communications poor, few roads except in big cities, most roads were hard earth which turned to mud and became impassable, rivers used instead, railways underdeveloped by 1850s.
-Moscow to St Petersburg railway built in 1851 so difficult to administer Empire from the centre.
-From 15th century Russians who lived in area around Moscow had conquered places surrounding them which led to Russian Empire.
-Large areas added in 19th century
-Vladivostok and eastern part of Pacific Ocean became part of Empire in 1859, Caucasus region secured in 1864, Central Asia including Turkestan conquered in 1860s=70s.
-The expansion brought over 100 different nationalities in Russian state.
-Russians formed half the population majority lived European part west of Ural mountains.
Diversity, culture, religion and language was vast.
-17th century given land by Tsar in return nobles would provide services to the Tsar such as officers in army or public officials in capital or provinces.
-This established a system of military officers and civil servants who supported the tsar.
-Nobles also given people to work the land and provide their masters with food and revenue. Known as Serfs and their position was slaves tied to the land.
-Nobility also had a role in administration and keeping order, Russia so large impossible for central authority to provide provide enough state officials. less officials in Russia than European countries so nobility filled it acting a judiciary running regions and local areas for the tsar.
- Variations in wealth, most wealthy are minority and owned lost of serfs. Count Sergei one of the richest owned 150k serfs. Most owned less than 100 so didn't generate income for lavish lifestyles. Some were poor.
as 19th century progressed many sold estates and moved to cities( St Petersburg)
-rich and powerful one took positions in gov and army.
Not conservative, active minority of nobles looking for reform esp in serfdom. Some thought they shouldn't pay taxes others though a more liberal, Westernised gov needed.
-Small group in mid-century due largely to the absence of industry on a large scale . -Merchants played an important part in in Russia's trade with rest of world, some were wealthy and influential. -There were entrepreneurs and businessmen but not until second part of 19th century that they became more dynamic force in society. -Most found in bureaucratic clerical roles in central and provincial government and running shops and stores.
-In mid 19th century over 90% population was peasants most who supported themselves farming. -Huge variation amongst them in Russia but divided into 2 groups:
Half were serfs tied to landowning nobility mainly found in central Russia and western provinces. Serfdom ensured nobles had labour and income. -couldn't leave without their permission. -required to provide labour 3 days a week or pay dues in cash or produce. variation in estates and regions. -in return they could use land for own use to grow food to eat or sell.
nobles acted as police judge, jury of serfs had no legal rights. -no rights as individuals could be sold, traded, forbidden to marry -7% acted as domestic servants so no land and not paid
Labour most common in Black earth regions as most fertile . some hired serfs to work in industry, some treated serfs well, others didn't
State peasants formed other half. Lived on estate owned by state , Church or Tsar. Paid rent to state for use of land and legally free but under state control and travel restrictions. Better off serfs, larger land, could also get work in factories.
-Run by peasants and meetings allowed discussion of issues.
-Provided security and support and ensured equitable distribution of land .
-But its members in important areas allocated land depending on size of household, shared in strips so no good or bad bits, some had periodic redistributions, on private estates Mir responsible for making serfs fulfil labour of payments.
-Allocation and redistribution inefficient, time wasted moving no incentive to improve strips.
-Arable decisions coordinated no scope for enterprising peasants to try different things.
-Could punish those who didn't conform, dominated by older peasants who resisted change.
Used 3 field rotation system with wheat, rye and oats and household plots with vegetables and domestic livestock.
-Typical Russian villages consisted of wooden huts and thatched roofs along unpaved street with most peasants poor and illiterate.
-Harvests suffered greatly in climate and in famine many died of starvation.
-The closest factory was were spinning mills in St Petersburg.
-There were iron ore mines in the Urals but iron industry was technically backwards .
Most other industry carried out in peasant cottages e.g handicrafts or weaving or in small scale cottages.
-The working conditions were appalling, in smaller enterprises workers and families sleep on workbenches in filthy surroundings.
-Hours long and workers formed small proportion of population.
-Russian not experienced reformation or renaissance although divisions in mainstream and old church arose.
-They believed in true faith "Holy Russia".
-Intimately bound up in Autocracy since Tsar was god's lieutenant on earth.
-70% of population was members and Church staffed 100k clerics played a significant role in society and exerted huge influence over peasants.
-Priests lived in villages alongside peasants and religious observance played a role in peasant life .
-Church was means for illiterate peasants to gain information, details of emancipation read out in Church.
-Autocrat can rule without constraints.
-Tsar had imperial council mode of noble advisors and cabinet of ministers who ran various gov departments. responsible to him alone Tsar was pivot at centre of the system.
-Huge bureaucracy of civil servants and officials who ran the empire. . Top ranks dominated by nobles.
-in 1850s/60s an elite bureaucratic officials was developing alongside professional civil service. Some had liberal tendencies for reforming Russia.
Lower ranks badly paid and culture of corruption. This with arbitrary decision making means undermined respect for authorities
-Third section was secret police to root out people causing trouble . System of surveillance with extensive network of agents.
-strict censorship on newspapers to stop spread of dangerous ideas.
-Those against that regime faced foul punishments execution and flogging imprisonment or exile
-Large scale disturbances suppressed by army it was an oppressive regime.
-Most officers from noble backgrounds, ordinary soldiers from conscripts for villages who required to serve for 25 years.
-The gov kept the for so long because worried they would use their training to promote discontent.
-soldiers were completely subservient to officers and had few rights.
-Pat was poor and most soldiers grew there own food.
-Army crucial to survival of regimes required to defend Russia's borders but to suppress internal disturbances and revolts.
-this was important as officials and police spread thinly over huge expanse so loyalty of army was paramount.
-The Cossacks came from the Don area of Russia and incorporated into the army in 19th century. They were fiercely loyal to the tsar and trusted to act against Russians in the empire if needed, hey were feared as they were brutal and ruthless.
-1814 Alexander I had dominated the Congress of Vienna which produced a settlement after 20 yeas of war. Maintaining great status was high priority therefore a defeat in the Crimean War (1853-56) was a huge shock to regime esp as it had been fighting its own territory.
-Highlighted Russia's poor communications and inability to deploy resources effectively. No railway south of Moscow so troops armaments' and supplied moved across muddy roads.
-Army rifles and artillery outclassed by British and French
-Questions about efficiency of the army and leadership.
-Fought on Crimean peninsula between Russia and Brittan, France, Sardinia and Ottoman empire. Dispute ober Christian sited as they thought Russia tried to move in on weak ottoman empire.
-At heart more of an autocratic than his father but brought up by people imbued with liberalism as understood at the time he exhibited a mix of despotic and revolutionary ideas. -He assume power in 1855 and well prepared for his role as tsar up to his accession. -his father Nicholas I instilled the value of duty and obedience . -Enjoyed military life with a well rounded education . Often felt inadequate and couldn't live up to his father. -Historian Saunders says he wasn't bright, not a strong character and not god a making decisions. -In 1837 with his tutor Zhukovsky he toured 29 Russian provinces to placed no other imperial family had visited inc Siberia where he encountered Russian exiles.
Build a future bond with tsar and his people which was an enormous success. -First tsar to believe that gaining approval of the people was important part of his autocratic rule. 1839 toured European where he gained knowledge of western ideas and traditions. -Met and married German princess Marie of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1841 and had 8 children. -Seemed more optimistic than tight control of his father, humane perspective and more sensitive. -Father believed he should have a personal hand in all aspects of gov number of committees and councils giving him workings of the state. -Alex wished to see himself amongst Western monarchs and knew Russia needed to become part of modern world and change institutions.
Firm believe in autocracy and a conservative who intended to preserve what was left of an old system. -Drove reform process an appointed more enlightened officials .
-As far as Alexander and his advisors were concerned modern statehood and serfdom were incompatible.
-It is better to abolish serfdom from above then wait for a time it starts to abolish itself from below.
-Nicholas I admitted serfdom was an evil palpable and obvious to all.
-enlightened nobles and liberals had come to accept it was wrong to own someone like a possession .
-They were affected by writers like Turgenev who had drawn attention to the plight of the serf and the need to improve conditions of peasants.
-Radical intelligentsia was growing who were opposed to serfdom.
-Majority of nobles didn't accept the position and thought it would damage the Russian state and their own livelihoods.
-Serious peasant revolts in the past an disturbances had been increasing since 1840s, AII had been unsettled by 1848 revolutions in Europe.
-Also worried the fact the army mainly made up of peasants so difficult for the gov to contain a major peasant uprising.
-Significant spike in disturbances between 1857-59 so tsar ordered weekly reports of peasantry mood from Dec 1857.
-Other historians believe the scale of peasant unrest was exaggerated especially as main sources of data are unreliable.
-Some nobles feared that major reform would provoke serious revolt as peasants may see it as a sign of weakness or disappointed by it.
-Compulsory enlisted for periods of 25 years or 15 for good character and given their freedom at the end.
-Military reformers thought Russia needed a small better trained army with a reserve like European countries, this entailed shorter conscriptions for peasants before the reserve.
-This would mean thousands of of freed serfs with military training released back to villages a risky proposition.
-This meant military reform could only be carried out if serfdom abolished.
-However would they remain loyal if nothing done to improve their conditions and accommodate their aspirations.
-Expressed by Nicholas Milyutin the Minister of Internal Affairs.
-Some believed that free labour was more productive than forced labour and forced labour impoverished the population and stopped the growth of domestic demand which was essential for economic growth.
-Free labour market needed where peasants could move around to where they could be most productive whether in agriculture or Industry.
-Disagreement about whether economic motives were a decisive factor to abolish serfdom as poor transport system prevented economic development but after emancipation restricted movement o peasants with internal passports so not a gov priority.
-whether serfs should be freed with or without land, how much land given to each household, how it would be paid for, how much compensation would be given to landowners , whether nobility should retain judicial and economic control over former serfs.
-Editing commission created in 1859 created 22 statutes and AII declared it was to satisfy serfs and landowners alike.
-Serfdom was abolished and serfs legally free they could marry, travel, vote and trade.
-Peasants given land with their freedom allowed to keep houses .
-Had to make annual payments for land they were buying, redemption payments over 49 years.
-Peasants still under control of the Mir(wose power strengthened) and nobility continue to police them.
-Landowners compensated for their loss of land in gov bonds but not loss of serf.
-1866 state peasants given the right to buy land as former serfs
-Huge variation between regions and final transfer took a long time.
-2 year transitional period where they remained serfs but legally free so not sold to work out which land is to be given to peasants.
-Most peasants received less land than they worked on and supply of affordable good quality land limited many received poor land hard to maintain and profit off.
-In Black earth region allocation was less than average so difficult to make ends meet most peasants worked as hired labour on nobles remaining land.
-Landowners received above market value for land handed over to peasants so peasants were paying more for it.
-Landowner allowed to decide which part of their holdings to hand over so kept the best for themselves. Landowners received 2/3 and peasants 1/3.
-Power of Mir strengthened for admin reasons and to keep order in the countryside, made responsible to collect redemption payments and if peasant left land given to them.
-Aim was to stop freed peasants moving by issuing internal passports to stop disorder (now tied to Mir not landowner).
-Over 1000 disturbances during 1861 one involving 10k peasants army brought in to restore order on over 300 estates however it diminished quickly and they got on with the emancipation process.
-Nobles disgruntled because they felt they hadn't been compensated for the loss of rights over serfs.
-Small minority wanted gentry representatives to form national commission to prevent this happening again some liberal members wanted elected reps assembled. Lots of criticism from gentry
-.Much of money paid to nobles paid of debts and if they couldn't afford hired labour moved to towns or rented land to peasants or lived in cities as absentee landlords.
-Some sold up later and landholdings fell 87->50 mill from 1862-1905.
-Radical intelligentsia reacted badly to the terms and thought it protected nobility and betrayed peasants this led to growth of opposition to regime.
-Some go-ahead peasants started buying land of poorer neighbours, renting land from nobles and hiring labour. Known as kulaks.
-Underlying problem the tsar didn't want to offend, damage, destroy the ruling class on whom the regime's survival depended on.
-Nobody satisfied, nobles the real beneficiaries didn't see it that way and peasant resentment over redemption payments didn't diminish.
-Peasants remained segregate class tied to commune and the effects of emancipation led to revolutions of 1905 and 1917.
1857= Committees set up to consider how to abolish serfdom. Provincial nobles elect committee to consider reform.
1857-9= Peasant disturbances on news of emancipation . Key decision in December that freed serfs would acquire land.
1859= Editing Commission established to draw uo statutes inc enlightened bureaucrats like Nicholas Milyutin.
1861= 19th Feb AII signed into law the proclamation and statutes abolishing serfdom. After he introduced other reforms to replace gentry's authority over peasants and build a more modern state closer to Western European countri
-Electoral system favoured nobles.
-Appointed professionals such as teachers and doctors.
1870-Extended to take in town councils.
-Independent, salaried judges
-Courts open to press and public
-Trial by jury for criminal cases. Evidence and witnesses could be challenged.
-JPs for smaller cases
-Separate peasant courts
-Military service reduced to 15 years, six active and nine in reserve
-Officer training overhauled, military colleges open to other classes, better education required.
-Re organisation of administration, 15 military districts
-Modern rifles and artillery
-Corporal punishment reduced
-Many more schools built, primary and secondary
-Secondary schools could focus on classical or modern subjects.
-Universities given much greater freedom over intake, curriculum and discipline
After 1866- Ministry of Education took some control of schools away from Zemstva
-Restriction and crackdown in universities
-Newspapers could report government policy and jury trials.
Reaction to reform policies
-In 1866 a former student who belonged to a new revolutionary group in Russia narrowly missed the Tsar with a pistol shot, this was the evidence needed for conservatives to show the product of reforms in education and censorship.
-They pressed him to reverse and halt the reforms and AII was tired of the criticism from all sides.
-Instead of contentment his reforms led to disruption and increasing demands he wasn’t prepared to meet, His reforms had given radicals a reason for dissident and to work against the autocracy.
-Also unsettled by the Polish revolt 1863 he decided to rein back some of his earlier measures and bring more reactionary policies.
-Liberal ministers lost influence in gov and some sacked. AII family with liberal leaning found it difficult to access the Tsar.
-Count Peter Shuvalov was made head of Third section which brought an air of fear and mistrust which permeated the court.
Tsar’s change in policy
-Shuvalov vetted appointments and made sure conservatives gained posts.
-Tightened up censorship and closed down some periodicals.
-Brought in tighter controls of students and their organisations.
-Made use of military courts to try more serious political cases as these were not open to reporting and likely to reach verdict the gov wanted.
-Increased the use of rule by decree.
-Ally was reactionary Minister of Education. Tolstoy, who believed revolution originated in schools and uni particularly the sciences.
-Ministry took greater control of primary schools reducing the role of the 1864 school boards dominated by liberal Zemstva reps.
-Classical subjects favoured over modern subjects, science withdrawn from some schools.
-Entry to uni restricted only those with classical education could go which favoured nobles who tended to do so,
-Crackdown in uni and disciplinary functions to the police. Students associated with revolutionary activity were expelled.
-Some reforms did go on local gov reforms extended to towns and cities in 1870 and military reform continued,
-Although reactionary still some measures of reform.
Opposition to the Tsarist regime
-Many radical intellectuals considered emancipation had betrayed the peasants and this kick-started the revolutionary movement.
-Much support came from students as the higher education reforms had created growing numbers in of students (poor background) who joined student circles and mutual aid groups discussing liberal and radical political ideas.
-Used books and articles made possible by the relaxation of censorship, many of these were critical of the Tsar.
-There was a growing intelligentsia who objected the treatment of the masses and hierarchical nature in society.
-A variety of groups appeared often with vague an dill defined aims, some wrote manifestos advocating revolution . The most notable of the early groups of 1860s was the radical Land and Liberty.
-Nihilists were the students determined to challenge conventional attitudes and values men grew hair and women cut it short to blur gender differences. They opposed tradition, authority hypocrisy in society. Turned to revolutionary activity.
—More restrictive and punitive policies followed after 1866 added to the ranks of the disenchanted intelligentsia, a wave of arrests followed the attempted assassination, hunting down of activists, crackdown on censorship esp in uni.
-Police activity inside uni and the banning of student co-operatives intensifies antagonism towards authorities.
The Populists
-1870s a new group of revolutionaries (populists/narodnik’s), they believed in agrarian socialism based around the peasant commune.
-They thought the commune would provide the route to a good society without the need of capitalism and evil industrialisation( factories, mines and wage slavery, deindividuation cog in a machine).
-they decided to o to the people and spread their message and give up their current lives(many of them well to do intellectuals) possibly breaking with their families and going to villages to live amongst those with a different outlook.
-In many villages found incomprehension and suspicion from peasants and were rejected, some shared their views such as egalitarianism in landholding or young people.
-Village elders, local police and priests not keen on the strangers and several hundred were arrested for their good intentions.
-Trial of 50 and Trial of 193 in 1877 where some got long sentences but many acquitted as the court were impressed by there honesty and idealism and many came from noble/middle class families so not seen as dangerously subversive. Gov did and those acquitted were sent to Siberia.
Active women
-Women played a very active role in discussing social and political issues in the revolutionary movement more than in other countries.
-It was accepted in professional circles women should be well educated and more secondary schools opened up o girls (couldn’t take degrees) but monopolised higher education courses uni persuaded to put on.
-significant number not prepared to to put up with traditional roles and dependence in a family which had been customary.
-Wanted to attend medical schools and be independent, their self emancipation was part of the socialist ideal. many young women joined the going to people movement in the 1870s.
Revolutionaries re-group
-The going to the people movement had failed and peaceful persuasion didn’t seem to be the route to change and revolutions. Peasants were too conservative and the revs needed a different approach.
-Land and Liberty was reformed with a strong central organisation and a commitment to secrecy and discipline. Cells formed in villages and towns aiming to support demonstrations and actions against autocracy.
-Some were violent, killing informers or despotic officials and arranging escaped for imprisoned members.
-This caused a severe reaction from the authorities and political trials moved to military courts, this provoked a split in the movement in 1879 into 2 groups:
-Black partition led by George Plekhanov who wanted to promote revolution by peaceful agitation.
-The People’s Will who were determined to use terrorist violence to achieve their revolutionary aims, destruction of the state and land redistribution. Became focused on killing AII as a way to initiate revolution.
-26th August 1879 they condemned to death for crimes against the people and over the next 2 years made several unsuccessful assassination attempts until march 1881 when they managed to do so.
Development of Russian revolutionary thought
-Members of Russian intelligentsia were attracted to socialism as it was a science based doctrine.
-it took particular form around notion of egalitarian peasant commune and the worker’s artel (living and working together).
-It was believed the commune’s attributes of collective responsibility, communal welfare and co-operation at work prepared people for socialism and thought they could skip capitalism. Hoped it would take place after emancipation.
-What is to be don 1862 Chernyshevsky featured political activists who lead an ascetic life abstaining, eating moderately preparing for revolution which appealed to young revolutionaries like Lenin and encouraged the to set up groups of their own.
AII making more liberal concessions
-The last years of his reign were clouded by terrorism and gov official attacked and killed all over Russia.
-Attempts made to blow up royal train and explosion under the dining room in Winter Palace killed 10 guards.
-1880 Loris Melikov was given the job as head of special commission with extraordinary measures to restore order , in the same year 31k people put under police supervision.
The future AIII described this period as the most terrible and abominable years that Russia has ever experienced 1879-80.
-AII was unpopular with sections of the public who weren’t keen on unaltered repression. despite this many turned out in Feb 1880 on 25th anniversary of his accession.
-Loris Melikov now Ministry of Interior thought the regime needed steps to strengthen the people’s trust in gov and be responsive to their needs:
-abolish Third section and transfer its functions to Ministry of Interior and police instructing them to only take interest in genuinely dangerous people instead of thousands under surveillance.
-Proposed more civil rights of the peasants and help to make it easier for them to acquire land
-Proposed elected reps of the zemstva and larger town form part of a consultative body to make laws.
-although limited in scope first real step towards popular participation in national gov. AII gave preliminary approval but went no further as he was assassinated.
Key dates 1866-1881
1866:
-Karakov’s attempted assassination of Alexander II
1970:
-Town councils set up
1873:
-Narodnik going to the people movement begins.
1877:
-Trial of 50 and Trial of 193
1879:
-Black Partition and people’s will revolutionary group s take shape.
1880:
-Third Section abolished.
-Loris Melikov suggested reform
1881:
-Assassination of alexander II
Note 
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