One thing that had changed in Russia from when Alexander had come into power in 1881 was that there was increased repression regarding politics. The Statue of State Security was introduced which brought government-controlled courts into the country and could now put on trial political opponents and they could also be arrested too without the need of a jury. This shows change as a lot harsher punishments were introduced that could be imposed on opponents of the government such as being sent to and exiled in Siberia and being hunted down by the Okhrana – Russia’s secret police. Although there was repression of political opponents before Alexander III’s reign, the punishment wasn’t as harsh and the violence that was encouraged by extremist groups was a lot more widespread and happened regularly compared to when Alexander III had introduced the Statue of State Security where attacks were something that didn’t happen as often. Therefore, it contributes to the idea that Russia was unrecognisable in 1894 compared with 1881.…
1: Russian society between 1815 and 1860 was full of reforms and a shifting government, all which led up to Alexander II who was responsible for many reforms.…
Alexander ll became Tsar in 1855 after succeeding Tsar Nicholas l and was regarded as a “liberator” throughout his time as Tsar, until an attempted assassination attempt on him in 1866 were he turned more reactionary. Alexander ll was assassinated in March 1881, he was not radical and believed in a slow and progressive change, due to this he gathered much opposition to him and was eventually killed by The Peoples Will, and this kicked off ‘the era of great reforms’ [5].…
Huge changes came to Russia when the tsar Alexander II came to power. His reforms freed the serfs and industrialized the nation’s economy. In the past, Russian serfs were tied to the land and worked on the land for the land owners and received no pay. While they were permitted to have farms of their own, serfs had to work the lord’s land whenever called upon, even during times of harvest when their own crops need harvesting or tending. Due to Alexander II’s reforms, these serfs were freed. Once these serfs were freed, they either went into the city to look for work or out to the country to find land. Many also fled to surrounding societies to escape the Russian hardships of being a serf. Russian labor was also changed through Industrialization, also influenced by Alexander II’s reforms. Factories and railroads expanded and industries like coal, steel, and petroleum boomed. Serfs who were emancipated found easy work in factories that were booming. With new industries creating new jobs and plenty of freed serfs to take them, the Russian labor system greatly changed between 1750 and 1914.…
The Animosity towards Jews developed into a dominant power in the European government. Several individuals assumed the Jews were the reason for all troubles in their republics. For instance, when anarchists assassinated Czar Alexander II of Russia, they assumed…
Many of the opposition fled to other European countries where they continued to plot against the Tsar. This shows how Alexander lll had caused Russia to go back in progress politically by exiling all of their possible contenders. This allowed the Tsar to have much more control over Russia much like before Alexander ll reign. The persecution of Jews caused many to join radical parties and organisations. This shows us how there was not even the slightest bit of democracy within Russia, and how Alexander lll had caused Russia to go back in progress. Another major problem in Russia was the growing population of peasants. This caused famines within Russia in 1892 and 1893. This famine was a cause of many peasants death which shows how Russia did not have the money or resources to keep up with their growing population. This showed a lack in progress as they could not even support their country’s people with…
After the war in 1856 Nicholas's son Alexander II decided to move Russia toward modern needs and social changes. Alexander believed that his reforms would allow Russia to compete with western Europe for world power. The first of Alexander's reform was an official order for freeing the serfs in 1861. However, putting an end to serfdom only went halfway. Instead of individual peasants, peasant communities were given about half the farmland in the country, nobles kept the other half and the government paid the wealthy people for their land. However, each peasant community had 49 years to pay the government for the land it had received. Therefore, while the serfs were legally free the money that was owed still tied them to the land. Political and…
An aspect of the Soviet Union that changed between 1801 and 1939 was the shift of the government from a czar ruled totalitarian government to a more distributed communist government. In March of 1801, Paul I was killed and his son Alexander I of Russia was appointed the ruler. Czar Alexander I was not too harsh of a leader. He led a government that was not too strict upon its people unlike his father. But this changed when the next czar came into power, Nicholas I in 1825. Anybody who was leading or supporting the Decembrist Revolt was executed. Nicholas I undid everything that Alexander I did. He censored media, ran secret police, and exiled 150,000 people. Alexander II was the next one in power who was extremely different from Nicholas I. He freed the serfs but did not let them leave. But he did allot power to the people by creating local councils called Zemstvos to give them control of their land and women the right to vote. Alexander III went back into a strict totalitarian government, censoring media and deploying secret police. Alexander III also wanted all Russian minorities to speak Russian and convert to Russian Orthodox. Russian Jews were specifically targeted; they had to live in ghettos and eventually many Jews fled to the United States. The last of the czars in this time period, Nicholas II, came into power in 1894. A decade after his appointment, over three thousand workers grouped outside the czar’s palace asking for reforms. The czar was not home, but he still did not approve the order to fire at the protestors. In order to bring back his name, he enabled a national assembly called Duma that would allow the people of Russia to elect. As one of his reforms, he gave more land to…
For what reasons, and with what effects, did the Tsar Alexander II Emancipate the Serfs?…
Alexander III was a huge supporter of Russian nationalism and he reversed many of the liberal approaches started by his father. Alexander III treated the Jews very differently that his father did and more like his grandfather Nicholas I. He encouraged the persecution of non-Russians and was particularly hard on the Jews. Russians at the time were extremely hostile towards the Jews because they were suspected of killed the previous Czar, Alexander II ("ALEXANDER III.ALEXANDROVICH, Emperor of Russia:."). In May 1882 Alexander III’s administration created the May Laws, which restricted the rights of the Jews in Russia. Jews were no longer allowed to live outside of their shtetls, they lost all their property outside of the shtetls, and were no longer allowed to do business on Shabbat (Friedman). This put the Jews in much harsher conditions than they were under Czar Alexander II because it cancelled all the things he had done for them ("Ece/ alexander-III."). During his years as the ruler of Russian Alexander III organized many pogroms against the Jews. Konstantin Pobyedonostsyev was an adviser to the Czar and he was appointed to deal with the Jew problem. As a solution, according to "Pogroms under Czar Alexander III.", “Pobyedonostsyev introduced wide-spread pogroms as a solution. His plan was to absorb one-third of the Jews into the Russian Orthodox Church, force one-third to emigrate and massacre the remaining one-third.” Although this plan was not achieved, it was still a very difficult time for the Jews and there were many pogroms in the 13 years Alexander III ruled. Jewish life at this time was particularly bad because Czar Alexander III hated the Jews. Attacks against the Jews would not have happened during the time of Alexander II’s more tolerant rule. This demonstrates how the level of tolerance of the leaders drastically influences the way the…
In 326 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered the Near East. After the conquest, Hellenism gradually spread in the area. It was the Alexander's intentional attempt to inculcate the Greek beliefs and culture in to minds of people throughout the world. According to the historians, Alexander the Great was the most arrogant king and warrior, who was in the view that Greek culture had the potential to influence any other culture in the world, and every nation could benefit from its universality.…
Catherine the Great was one of the greatest rulers Russia has ever had. While most of their rulers started wars and were focused on gaining land, she was more focused on improving the overall state of Russia. She was born in 1729 and died in 1796. At the age of 15, she was invited by Empress Elizabeth to meet and possibly marry the heir to the throne, Grand Duke Peter. However, the Duke was a very immature child.…
In accessing the actual "greatness" attributed to Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia during the European Enlightenment, one must look at all aspects of her rule. Her outgoing personality left her to be described as anything from "terrible" to "great". She could be deceptive yet honest, humorous yet firm, and light-hearted yet wise. Thus the Enlightenment would not have been a part of Russian history if not for the determination of Catherine the Great. Catherine the Great's exceptional character and illuminating visions brought Russia into the age of enlightenment.…
Revolts were frequent, 1467 of them since 1800. Nicholas I saw this and created nine secret committees to find a way to end serfdom. Alexander II was part of one of those committees. He was also there to be the acting Tsar when Nicholas I was away. Therefore Alexander II was the most prepared heir to the Tsar the empire has ever had. Alexander made a very good start in change when he became Tsar. He stopped all army recruitment, which meant it was no longer forced to enter the army, nor was it a punishment for crimes. Applying for military was completely voluntary. Alexander also released all of the Decembrists, who are people who tried to overthrow his father in 1825 and the Poles, who revolted in 1830. He also lifted restrictions for travelling, 26,000 passports were granted in 1859. Allowing people to travel to Western Europe and learning more about liberal culture and allowing Russia to catch up with the rest of…
By 1917, Russia was chaotic, the government had been thoroughly corrupted, strikes were rampant and all happening at once. The World War I had begun and Russia was having many casualties due to being ill - equipped against industrialized Germany, and amidst the countries it was the one to receive most damage. Due to the german attacks the Russian economy had been falling apart, and such a situation was only useful to the radicals, as they used it as an opportunity to join with the moderates among other forces, in order to overthrow the Czar and achieve their revolutionary goals. As time passed Russia’s situation only deteriorated, demonstrators and protestants took over the streets, the king’s armies killed many of them, but they still continued to attack full force. Then when an army took the protestants side, the tables flipped, Nicholas II, the Czar at the time was forced to abdicate his throne and so freed Russia of over four centuries of Czarist…