Download - Russia 1825-1894
Russia 1825-1894
Tsar Alexander I dies and Russia enters a period of turmoil.
1825
Harsher than Western European SerfdomDe facto slaveryBackwards system- no incentive for change or
increased production
Serfdom
Army officers returning from Western Europe fighting Napoleon had been exposed to Enlightenment ideas of the west.
Want a constitution for Russia“Constantine and Constitution”
Decembrists Revolt
Resists change- keeps absolutismKeeps serfdom to ensure the loyalty of the
Boyars (Russian Landlords)Limits education to help control the upper
classSets up secret police
Nicholas I
“Frees” the serfsSerfs own land communally in MirsPeasants still kept tied to the landSets up Zemstvos- Local councils with limited
powers
Alexander II
By the late 1800’s-• Many peasant riots• Educated Russians forced to meet and
discuss politics in secret• Nihilism- complete destruction needed
before rebuilding• Narodniki- narod (people)- students who
worked with peasants. Schooling and medical services. Practical and revolutionary.
Russians Want More Change!
Believed in Autocracy“Autocracy, Orthodoxy, Nationality”Discrimination against non-Russians, non-
Orthodox ChristiansPogroms
Alexander III