How could the “Tsar Liberator” be killed by his own people?
What were his motivations for making these reforms?
- Came to power at time of social unrest and economic pressure: Russia had just been defeated by France and Britain in the Crimean War, inadequate agricultural system
- First step toward modernization was liberalizing the serfs. Despite the emancipation, there was still inequality: serfs had to pay rent to the state and they were legally bound to the commune. Many still lived in poverty. Between 1861 and 1917 the population doubled. Overpopulation resulted in more peasant poverty.
- Climatic conditions also affected growing seasons, and only 11% of Russia’s land was farmable.
- After the emancipation of the serfs, many nobles also went into debt because they spent the same amount of money despite their lower income, and they were forced to sell land.
- The second reform completed by Alex II was the introduction of juries and the creation of elected assemblies, or zemstvos. Although these were mainly controlled by nobles, it showed a movement away from the absolute authority of the Tsar.
- Alex II also created reforms to increase industrial production: set up state-run industries, invited entrepreneurs to build factories in Russia. This also provided cheap labor to serfs.
- Also expanded and modernized the railroad, creating job opportunities for peasants. This resulted in an increase of grain exports that were then reinvested to more industrialization.
- The “populist” group in Russia opposed industrialization: said it destroyed rural peasant communities by forcing people into the cities. Wanted to maintain traditional peasant’s group ethic because they believed it represented Russia’s future. This led to revolutions, including The People’s Will, who assassinated Alex II.
- When Alex III took power, he stopped political activity in Russia and enacted counter-reforms. This included the Russification policy.
Active History Questions 2) Alexander II: An Introduction: The Assassination of Alexander II 1. The final paragraph is the most interesting for historians. a) What praise for Alexander is provided in the source People couldn’t understand how they a terrorist group could assassinate a Tsar which did so much for Russia, a Tsar that made Russia undergo such revolution. Met his death by a revolutionist. Was born an autocrat but his violence was mitigated by his education and had a strong passion. b) What criticisms of Alexander are made in the source? Had a rather complex personality, he lacked the courage of statesman. Meaning that he wasn’t very experienced in the art of government and lacked the wisdom to publicly address the public dealing with governmental issues. 2. Historians must always be careful to question their witnesses. a) Content: Is the writer trying to inform (Objective) or persuade (subjective)? Explain your answer by referring to the tone of the source Kropotkin is trying to persuade us readers to believe in what Alexander the II was. He seems to highly defend his decisions and acts. Kropotkin seems to be telling the story from what he witnessed and I think that he is being a bit biased since it surely seems as though he highly supports the acts of Alexander the II. b) Provenance: Find out a little about Peter Kropotkin. To what extent is he an unbiased witness? Kropotkin was born in 1842 and died in 1921, he was a zoologist, activist, philosopher, economist, writer, scientist and was one of the worlds foremost anarchocommunists. He was one for communist and believed that Alexander II was trying to revolutionize Russia towards that state of government. He wrote several books that touched the subject of communism and a famous intellectual in Russia. I believe that he was rather biased because he was trying to move Russia into a communist government and thus was trying to support Alexander II revolutionary ideas and believed that Russia was heading more towards a communist government. 4)
Answer
Justification
Should the serfs be freed from the feudal obligation?
Yes, because unhappiness of the serfs could lead to a revolt against the government.
The serfs made up approximately ¾ of the population, and they lived in horrible conditions.
Should the serfs be given land?
Yes, because the government will be able to make money off of this land through “redemption taxes.”
After the emancipation many peasants were in debt to the government because these taxes were more than they were making off the productivity of the land.
How (if at all) should the nobility be compensated for the losses given the poverty of the country?
Yes, because it would be very bad for the Tsar to lose support of the wealthy nobility class- Alexander II has been continually making reforms to keep them happy, such as promoting liberalism.
In reality, the emancipation of the serfs was helpful to the landowning noble class because it relieved them of the responsibility.
How was society to be kept under control once the peasants were set free of the obligations?
A small local government (mir) should be created to control the peasants, which restricted travel and freedom of enterprise.
This is justified because if the peasants gained too much power, there would not be as much of a social class division, which would not be beneficial to the Tsar.
How long should the nobility be given to carry out the terms of emancipation?
The nobility should have some time before they release the serfs.
This way the government not lose as much support from the noble class, and at the same time the serfs will know they would soon be free to prevent any kind of rebellion.
What view does Karamzin have of the peasants? Karazmin does not trust the peasants, and thinks they are much less civilized than the typical noble Russian citizen. He feels that by emancipating the serfs, the peasants would become evil and eventually corrupt Russian government and society. He also feels that societal roles will change: it would take away the “supervisory authority” of the hereditary nobles, eventually leading to a collapse in government. Why does he think serfdom should be preserved? Like stated above, Karamzin feels that the emancipation of the serfs will result in a dramatic change in social structure that will weaken the Russian government. 5) Events in the Emancipation Task 1: Positives Upon becoming Tsar, Alexander II immediately made it clear that he intended to follow a reforming path. For example, he made reforms to stop army conscription, released terrorist, made travel easier, allowed censorship, and encouraged more public debate, specifically about the emancipation of serfs.
Negatives Nevertheless, by the time of the Edict of Emancipation (1861) there were already worrying signs that these reforms would not be as radical as was originally hoped, such as the widespread ideas that serfs should not be granted land, and Panin’s actions to make the transferring of land slower and more expensive for the serfs.
Task 2: Phase 1 1861-63
Alexander II expresses Russia’s need for fundamental changes in the Moscow Speech
The Emancipation of 1861 occurred, and serfs were granted civil liberties and rights.
The wealth and living standard for the serfs did not improve, because the government implemented redemption taxes for land.
Peasants remained bounded to the mir, which restricted travel and investment opportunity.
In response to the reform, many of the land-owning nobility sold land, therefore undermining land interests and the role of nobility in the local government. This lessened the effect of the Tsar, and resulted in a new system of reforms.
Phase 2 Starts 1863 • Georgia’s emancipation was postponed until 1864 • Georgians and there land owners were on better terms then the nobles from Russia • Serfs owned by the state (imperial properties) were emancipated in 1866 • But were given a bigger pot of land
Phase 3 No fixed date • The reforms of the serfs weren’t concluded until 1900. • A tax was created that urged all serfs to pay land owners for their allocation in a series of redemption payments. • Redemption payments were cancelled in 1907
ALEXANDER II
Key Questions: How could the “Tsar Liberator” be killed by his own people? What were his motivations for making these reforms?
- Came to power at time of social unrest and economic pressure: Russia had just been defeated by France and Britain in the Crimean War, inadequate agricultural system - First step toward modernization was liberalizing the serfs. Despite the emancipation, there was still inequality: serfs had to pay rent to the state and they were legally bound to the commune. Many still lived in poverty. Between 1861 and 1917 the population doubled. Overpopulation resulted in more peasant poverty. - Climatic conditions also affected growing seasons, and only 11% of Russia’s land was farmable. - After the emancipation of the serfs, many nobles also went into debt because they spent the same amount of money despite their lower income, and they were forced to sell land. - The second reform completed by Alex II was the introduction of juries and the creation of elected assemblies, or zemstvos. Although these were mainly controlled by nobles, it showed a movement away from the absolute authority of the Tsar. - Alex II also created reforms to increase industrial production: set up state-run industries, invited entrepreneurs to build factories in Russia. This also provided cheap labor to serfs. - Also expanded and modernized the railroad, creating job opportunities for peasants. This resulted in an increase of grain exports that were then reinvested to more industrialization. - The “populist” group in Russia opposed industrialization: said it destroyed rural peasant communities by forcing people into the cities. Wanted to maintain traditional peasant’s group ethic because they believed it represented Russia’s future. This led to revolutions, including The People’s Will, who assassinated Alex II. - When Alex III took power, he stopped political activity in Russia and enacted counter-reforms. This included the Russification policy.
EDUCATION REFORMS } General reforms-creation of schools and gov. institutions, movements by citizens } Change in curriculum- religion and morality vs. science and medicine } Effects on social classes- rural schools were more influenced by community and zemstvas, whereas urban schools were heavily influenced by the state and urbanization ideas } Press- relaxed by Ministry of Interior, promotion of censorship and public opinion } Universities- studies abroad, ability to teach Western ideas, promoted social equality } Governmental intervention- approval of textbooks and publications, “inspectors,” restrictions on anti-Russian ideas, patriotism RESULTS } Increase in literacy rates } “Classical” and “Realistic” schools } Financial social division because of University fees } Promotion of gender and social equality } Increase in gov. reliance on press } Populist movements } Effected the policies of Alexander III- “Russification” Policy
LEGAL REFORMS Jury Trials } Reforms began in November 1864 } Before Legal Reforms ◦ Chances of poor justice was non-existent ◦ No juries or lawyers in court ◦ Police influenced judges } After reforms ◦ Juries, in criminal courts ◦ Hierarchy of courts ◦ Senate Justice } Cases Were Slow ◦ Some cases took 4 years to conclude } Prisons Filled Quickly ◦ Over 150,000 exiled to Siberia ◦ Travelled by foot } Political affects ◦ Political prisoners were kept in solitary confinement } Conditions ◦ Judges were well paid ◦ Less likely to be bribed } Influences ◦ Courts where open to the public ◦ Court contained freedom of expression } Jobs ◦ Many created due to law ◦ Intelligentsiafound new interest and jobs
How could the “Tsar Liberator” be killed by his own people?
What were his motivations for making these reforms?
- Came to power at time of social unrest and economic pressure: Russia had just been defeated by France and Britain in the Crimean War, inadequate agricultural system
- First step toward modernization was liberalizing the serfs. Despite the emancipation, there was still inequality: serfs had to pay rent to the state and they were legally bound to the commune. Many still lived in poverty. Between 1861 and 1917 the population doubled. Overpopulation resulted in more peasant poverty.
- Climatic conditions also affected growing seasons, and only 11% of Russia’s land was farmable.
- After the emancipation of the serfs, many nobles also went into debt because they spent the same amount of money despite their lower income, and they were forced to sell land.
- The second reform completed by Alex II was the introduction of juries and the creation of elected assemblies, or zemstvos. Although these were mainly controlled by nobles, it showed a movement away from the absolute authority of the Tsar.
- Alex II also created reforms to increase industrial production: set up state-run industries, invited entrepreneurs to build factories in Russia. This also provided cheap labor to serfs.
- Also expanded and modernized the railroad, creating job opportunities for peasants. This resulted in an increase of grain exports that were then reinvested to more industrialization.
- The “populist” group in Russia opposed industrialization: said it destroyed rural peasant communities by forcing people into the cities. Wanted to maintain traditional peasant’s group ethic because they believed it represented Russia’s future. This led to revolutions, including The People’s Will, who assassinated Alex II.
- When Alex III took power, he stopped political activity in Russia and enacted counter-reforms. This included the Russification policy.
Active History Questions
2) Alexander II: An Introduction:
The Assassination of Alexander II
1. The final paragraph is the most interesting for historians.
a) What praise for Alexander is provided in the source
People couldn’t understand how they a terrorist group could assassinate a Tsar which did so much for Russia, a Tsar that made Russia undergo such revolution. Met his death by a revolutionist. Was born an autocrat but his violence was mitigated by his education and had a strong passion.
b) What criticisms of Alexander are made in the source?
Had a rather complex personality, he lacked the courage of statesman. Meaning that he wasn’t very experienced in the art of government and lacked the wisdom to publicly address the public dealing with governmental issues.
2. Historians must always be careful to question their witnesses.
a) Content: Is the writer trying to inform (Objective) or persuade (subjective)? Explain your answer by referring to the tone of the source
Kropotkin is trying to persuade us readers to believe in what Alexander the II was. He seems to highly defend his decisions and acts. Kropotkin seems to be telling the story from what he witnessed and I think that he is being a bit biased since it surely seems as though he highly supports the acts of Alexander the II.
b) Provenance: Find out a little about Peter Kropotkin. To what extent is he an unbiased witness?
Kropotkin was born in 1842 and died in 1921, he was a zoologist, activist, philosopher, economist, writer, scientist and was one of the worlds foremost anarchocommunists. He was one for communist and believed that Alexander II was trying to revolutionize Russia towards that state of government. He wrote several books that touched the subject of communism and a famous intellectual in Russia. I believe that he was rather biased because he was trying to move Russia into a communist government and thus was trying to support Alexander II revolutionary ideas and believed that Russia was heading more towards a communist government.
4)
Karazmin does not trust the peasants, and thinks they are much less civilized than the typical noble Russian citizen. He feels that by emancipating the serfs, the peasants would become evil and eventually corrupt Russian government and society. He also feels that societal roles will change: it would take away the “supervisory authority” of the hereditary nobles, eventually leading to a collapse in government.
Why does he think serfdom should be preserved?
Like stated above, Karamzin feels that the emancipation of the serfs will result in a dramatic change in social structure that will weaken the Russian government.
5) Events in the Emancipation
Task 1:
Positives
Upon becoming Tsar, Alexander II immediately made it clear that he intended to follow a reforming path. For example, he made reforms to stop army conscription, released terrorist, made travel easier, allowed censorship, and encouraged more public debate, specifically about the emancipation of serfs.
Negatives
Nevertheless, by the time of the Edict of Emancipation (1861) there were already worrying signs that these reforms would not be as radical as was originally hoped, such as the widespread ideas that serfs should not be granted land, and Panin’s actions to make the transferring of land slower and more expensive for the serfs.
Task 2:
Phase 1
1861-63
Phase 2
Starts 1863
• Georgia’s emancipation was postponed until 1864
• Georgians and there land owners were on better terms then the nobles from Russia
• Serfs owned by the state (imperial properties) were emancipated in 1866
• But were given a bigger pot of land
Phase 3
No fixed date
• The reforms of the serfs weren’t concluded until 1900.
• A tax was created that urged all serfs to pay land owners for their allocation in a series of redemption payments.
• Redemption payments were cancelled in 1907
ALEXANDER II
Key Questions:
How could the “Tsar Liberator” be killed by his own people?
What were his motivations for making these reforms?
- Came to power at time of social unrest and economic pressure: Russia had just been defeated by France and Britain in the Crimean War, inadequate agricultural system
- First step toward modernization was liberalizing the serfs. Despite the emancipation, there was still inequality: serfs had to pay rent to the state and they were legally bound to the commune. Many still lived in poverty. Between 1861 and 1917 the population doubled. Overpopulation resulted in more peasant poverty.
- Climatic conditions also affected growing seasons, and only 11% of Russia’s land was farmable.
- After the emancipation of the serfs, many nobles also went into debt because they spent the same amount of money despite their lower income, and they were forced to sell land.
- The second reform completed by Alex II was the introduction of juries and the creation of elected assemblies, or zemstvos. Although these were mainly controlled by nobles, it showed a movement away from the absolute authority of the Tsar.
- Alex II also created reforms to increase industrial production: set up state-run industries, invited entrepreneurs to build factories in Russia. This also provided cheap labor to serfs.
- Also expanded and modernized the railroad, creating job opportunities for peasants. This resulted in an increase of grain exports that were then reinvested to more industrialization.
- The “populist” group in Russia opposed industrialization: said it destroyed rural peasant communities by forcing people into the cities. Wanted to maintain traditional peasant’s group ethic because they believed it represented Russia’s future. This led to revolutions, including The People’s Will, who assassinated Alex II.
- When Alex III took power, he stopped political activity in Russia and enacted counter-reforms. This included the Russification policy.
Alexander II Reforms:
Local Govenrment & the army:
Economy:
http://prezi.com/nenqtxqxuk8w/how-alexander-iis-emancipation-of-the-serfs-affected-the-russian-economy/
EDUCATION REFORMS
} General reforms-creation of schools and gov. institutions, movements by citizens
} Change in curriculum- religion and morality vs. science and medicine
} Effects on social classes- rural schools were more influenced by community and zemstvas, whereas urban schools were heavily influenced by the state and urbanization ideas
} Press- relaxed by Ministry of Interior, promotion of
censorship and public opinion
} Universities- studies abroad, ability to teach Western ideas,
promoted social equality
} Governmental intervention- approval of textbooks and
publications,
“inspectors,” restrictions on anti-Russian ideas, patriotism
RESULTS
} Increase in literacy rates
} “Classical” and “Realistic” schools
} Financial social division because of University fees
} Promotion of gender and social equality
} Increase in gov. reliance on press
} Populist movements
} Effected the policies of Alexander III- “Russification” Policy
LEGAL REFORMS
Jury Trials
} Reforms began in November 1864
} Before Legal Reforms
◦ Chances of poor justice was non-existent
◦ No juries or lawyers in court
◦ Police influenced judges
} After reforms
◦ Juries, in criminal courts
◦ Hierarchy of courts
◦ Senate
Justice
} Cases Were Slow
◦ Some cases took 4 years to conclude
} Prisons Filled Quickly
◦ Over 150,000 exiled to Siberia
◦ Travelled by foot
} Political affects
◦ Political prisoners were kept in
solitary confinement
} Conditions
◦ Judges were well paid
◦ Less likely to be bribed
} Influences
◦ Courts where open to the public
◦ Court contained freedom of expression
} Jobs
◦ Many created due to law
◦ Intelligentsiafound new interest and jobs