Reform & Reaction, 1855-1881

The motives for reform
1. Economic
  1. Peasants would be more productive when paid
  2. Serfdom was a handicap for industrialisation. It kept the internal market low and limited capital accumalation
  3. Hard for serfs to make a surplus, so productivity remained stagnant
  4. Debt of 54 million roubles
2. A2's views
  1. Accepted change
  2. Was not a liberal, wanted to maintain autocracy
  3. Believed in his duty to enhance Russia
3. Crimean War
  1. Military & admin weaknesses highlighted
  2. Questions raised by the intelligenstia
4. Political
  1. A lot of civil unrest; 300 peasant uprisings
  2. N1 kept strict authoritarian regime; unable to control social and political parties
The impact of reforms
1. Military reforms
  1. Smaller, professional, efficient, less expensive
  2. Reduced heavy expenditure; literacy rates improved; army heirarchy was fairer
  3. Problems of supply and leadership; victory against Turkey took longer, defeat from Japan
2. Local government reforms
  1. Zemstva: valuable addition, local men who understood locality, liberal minded members, forum for debate over government, limited peasant representation, not representative. No control over state or local taxes & Tsar could always overthrow decisions
3. Judicial reforms
  1. Trial by Jury
  2. Proceedings were public
  3. Much fairer & less corrupt
4. Educational reforms
  1. Responsbility went to the Zemstvas from the Church of schooling responsibility
  2. Increase in basic literacy & numeracy
5. Censorship reforms
  1. Growth in books, journals and newspapers
  2. Foreign publications allowed
6. Economic reforms
  1. Industry initiatives in mining and cotton
  2. There was industrial development and agricultural boom; economy still remained comparatively weak
Extent of reaction before 1881
1. Education
  1. An educated populace would be a rebellious one
  2. Zemstva's powers reduced; Church's increased
  3. Liberal subjects replaced with traditional
  4. Extra-curricular activities banned
  5. Students forced abroad for liberal studyingat university
2. Extent of reaction
  1. In 1880, his son died, wife died, grew aloof and withdrew from the public
  2. The reforms weakened the Church and nobility; state had to be 'purged of foreign influences'
3. Police & Law courts
  1. Strengthened police force; Third Section
  2. Open show trials failed
  3. Political crimes moved from civil to military courts
4. Ethnic Minorities
  1. Russification began in 1863; hostile attitude towards Jews, Poles and Finns (not an official policy)
  2. Searches and arrests increased
  3. Louis-Melikov; released political prisoners, relaxed censorship, abolished Third Section, created the Okhrana
  4. Louis-Melikov's constitution: to meet demands of the Zemstva of a national assembly, A2 died that mornign in 1881
Significance of opposition
1. Land & Liberty
  1. The People's Will: advocated violent methods, wanted the Tsar removed, bombed A2, assassinated govt. officials
  2. Black Partition: produced radical works, ties with students, wanted to work peacefully, spread socialist propaganda, weakened by arrests, attracted to Marxism later
2. Populism
  1. Attempted to go to the people; unsuccessful, peasants v loyal to Tsar
  2. Chaikovsky Circle, smuggled books
  3. Aimed to win the peasantry
3. Marxism
  1. Karl Marx, Das Kapital, Buknin provided a translation
  2. Provided a basis for later groups
4. Intelligentsia
  1. Relatively tiny, but grew
  2. Determined to change outdated views
  3. Zemstva provided a forum for debate
  4. 1862, Young Russia released,

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Reform & Reaction, 1855-1881

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