Peter the Great

Peter the Great: Reformer or Revolutionary? Peter the Great, or Peter I, was a man who introduced sweeping changes in Russia during his reign, some that were great for his country, and others that lead to misfortune. Even though he changed many things, historians have argued over whether he was a reformer or revolutionary for many ages past his death. It is more accurate to call him a reformer than a revolutionary, as Peter did introduce changes, but most of them were copied or based off other systems of government, but the public in Russia at the time considered him a revolutionary because they believed he was changing everything to how he saw fit, and because of their ignorance towards the west’s continued advancements. Peter the Great was a reformer through and through. Peter wanted Russia to become westernized, he wanted it to catch up to the advancements of the countries in the west, and believed that by copying many of their unique cultural and political viewpoints, Russia could become as successful as them, or even greater. He insisted that his nobles dressed and remain clean shaven to imitate the west, and for their wives to accompany them so that women would be more prominent in russian politics. This is reform, he is introducing change, but it is based off of something else. Peter also created the Table of Ranks in 1722, to draw the nobles power away from their lineage and make power come from participation in the military or government. This was not unlike other countries in the west, like Austria or Prussia, who were also taking power away from nobles. Again, Peter is only reforming the way things are done, not cultivating an entire new way of doing things. Peter also sent many noblemen's sons to the west to learn new technical skills and bring them back to Russia. In this way he was essentially just taking the skills from the west instead of making them in Russia. While using these new skillful citizens, he constructed new schools and