Federal agency by education
State educational institution higher vocational education
“Petrozavodsk State University”
Kola branch
Department of History and Pedagogy
Discipline "Domestic History"
PETER I . PERSONALITY, ERA, RULE
Test
1st year students
(group BAiA-2/08-3)
correspondence form training
specialty 060500 -
Accounting, analysis and audit
Kozlova Victoria Grigorievna
Teacher -
Art. Rev. Yu.P. Tretyakov
Introduction…….…….……………………………………..……………..…………………..… 3
1. The personality of Peter I and the struggle for power…………..………………………………………… 4
2. The beginning of transformations. Grand Embassy…………………………………………… 7
3. Northern War and military reforms……………………………………………………… 10
4. Economic reforms of Peter I. Bulavin’s uprising………………….……………… 14
5. Administrative changes…………….………………………………………. 17
6. Culture under Peter the Great………..……………………………………………………… 20
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………… 22
List of sources used……………...…………………………………………… 24
Introduction
As long as the sun shines and the earth turns, there will be spring drops and the flood of awakened rivers. As long as Russia is alive, the debate about Peter the Great, begun by his contemporaries, will not cease. Streltsy and Peter's guards, Old Believers and synodal officials, the old boyars and the new nobility - all of them, accordingly, will look in Peter either for the “anarchist tsar” or for the father of the fatherland. Then these disputes will be continued and deepened by Westerners and Slavophiles, “statists” and anarchists, monarchists and socialists... Moreover, each side is right in its own way, but the rights are one-sided, half relative to the truth. The truth lies in the inconsistency of the tsar himself and his reforms, the ambiguity of his work, the combination of good and evil, state good and people's suffering.
Peter's time has been relatively well studied by Russian historians. There is hardly any topic in Russian history of the 18th century that has been better covered. Conflicting assessments of the personality and actions of Peter the Great attracted the attention of historiographers.
1. The personality of Peter I and the struggle for power
Peter I (05/30/1672 – 01/28/1725) - Tsar since 1682, Emperor since 1721.
In the history of the Russian state, Peter I played a key role. His reign is considered a kind of border between the Muscovite kingdom and the Russian Empire. The boundary clearly demarcates the forms state power: from Ivan III - to Peter I and from Peter I - to Soviet Russia.
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov (1645-1676) had 13 children from his first wife, Maria Ilyinichna Miloslavskaya. But while the daughters grew up strong and healthy, the sons grew up frail and sickly. During the life of the king, three of his sons died in early age, the eldest son Fedor could not move his swollen legs, and the other son Ivan was “poor in mind” and blind.
Having become a widower, 42-year-old Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich married again and took as his wife the young, healthy Natalya Naryshkina, who on May 30, 1672 gave birth to his son Peter. Peter was three and a half years old when Tsar Alexei suddenly fell ill and died. The throne was taken by Fyodor Alekseevich (1676-1682). Having reigned for 6 years, the sickly Fedor died, leaving neither offspring nor memory of himself among his contemporaries and subsequent generations. The successor was to be Ivan, Peter's elder brother, but the Consecrated Cathedral and the Boyar Duma opposed the weak-minded heir. The situation was complicated by the fact that after the death of Alexei Mikhailovich, the relatives of his first wife - the Miloslavskys - became masters of the situation, removing from the court those close to the widow-tsarina Natalya Naryshkina. The prospect of Peter's accession did not suit the Miloslavskys, and they decided to take advantage of the discontent of the archers, who complained about the delay in their salaries. The Miloslavskys and Peter's sister Princess Sophia managed to direct the Streltsy rebellion in a direction favorable to themselves - against the Naryshkins. Some of the Naryshkins were killed, others were exiled.
As a result of the Streltsy rebellion, Ivan was declared the first tsar, Peter the second, and their elder sister Sophia became regent for the young tsars. During the reign of Sophia, Peter and his mother lived mainly in the villages of Kolomenskoye, Preobrazhenskoye, and Semenovskoye near Moscow. At the age of three, Peter began to learn to read and write from clerk Nikita Zotov. Peter did not receive a systematic education (in his mature years he wrote with grammatical errors). When Peter turned 17, Tsarina Natalya decided to marry her son and thus get rid of Sophia’s guardianship. Peter's wife was Evdokia Lopukhina. But normal married life things never worked out for them. After their marriage, the hostility between Sophia and Peter intensified. Sophia again tried to use the Streltsy for her own purposes, but a new Streltsy rebellion in August 1689 was suppressed. Sophia, under the name of sister Susanna, was exiled to the Novodevichy Convent, where she lived for 14 years until her death in 1704.
Formally, Peter began to rule together with Ivan, but the sick Ivan did not take any part in state affairs - with the exception of official ceremonies. Young Peter was absorbed in military amusements, and current state affairs were decided by princes Boris Alekseevich Golitsyn, Fyodor Yuryevich Romodanovsky and Tsarina Natalya. Peter, although he felt indomitable energy, did not yet imagine the role that he had to play in the history of Russia.
Russia at the end of the 17th century: huge territory and “otherness” of Russia Western countries immediately caught the eye of foreigners who visited Russia. To many of them, including foreigners, associates of Peter, Patrick Gordon, Franz Lefort, the Moscow state seemed backward and even “semi-savage.” This lag was due to a number of reasons. It took many years to overcome the devastation caused by the Troubles of the early 17th century, when many areas of the country were devastated. But devastating wars were not the only and not the main reason for this lag. The decisive influence on the development of the country was exerted by its natural-geographical and social conditions, climate severity, small (compared to developed countries) population, isolation from trade routes. Surrounded by strong enemies Russian state was forced to direct all forces to defense needs. Hence the tendency towards the transformation of all classes into servants of the state, towards the formation and strengthening of serfdom.
In addition to internal ones, there were also external factors: Russia’s lack of access to the seas made connections with developed European countries difficult. Two seas - the Black and the Baltic - were closed to external relations Ottoman Empire and Sweden. The only sea gate of Russia remained Arkhangelsk, a port on the White Sea, but it was covered with ice for most of the year, and the route here from Western Europe was twice as long as to the Baltic.
To carry out transformations, an impulse, a push was needed. Experience national history indicates that almost all epochal perestroikas in Russia began from above. The greatness of Peter lies in the fact that, although through torture and batogs, he forced the inhabitants of “barbaric Muscovy” to adopt from Europe the principles European culture. Instead of the barbaric Muscovite kingdom, Peter in the shortest possible time created, according to the high standards of the then Europe, the Russian Empire.
Peter was a figure of enormous historical proportions, a complex and highly contradictory figure. He was smart, inquisitive, hardworking, energetic. Without receiving a proper education, he nevertheless had extensive knowledge in a wide variety of areas of science, technology, crafts, and military art. There is no doubt that everything he did was aimed, in the opinion of Peter himself, for the benefit of Russia, and not for him, the Tsar, personally. But many of Peter’s personal qualities were determined by the nature of the harsh era in which he lived, and largely determined his cruelty, suspicion, lust for power, etc. It is very significant that Peter liked being compared to Ivan the Terrible. In achieving his goals, he did not disdain to use any means, he was not just cruel to people (personally, for example, he cut off the heads of archers in 1689), he generally looked at a person as a tool, a material for creating what he intended for the good empires. During Peter's reign, taxes in the country tripled and the population decreased by 15%. Peter did not hesitate to use the most sophisticated methods of the Middle Ages: torture, surveillance, encouraging denunciations. He was convinced that in the name of state “benefit” moral standards could be neglected.
So, at the turn of the XVII-XVIII centuries. Russia was on the verge of transformation. These transformations could occur in different forms and lead to different results. The personality of the reformer played a huge role in the choice of forms of development.
The name of Peter is associated with the transformation of Russia into an empire, a Eurasian military power.
2. The beginning of transformation. Grand Embassy
Peter's reforms - the main nerve, the leading axis of Russian history of the 18th century, originate in the 17th century. Almost all historians of Peter agree on this indisputable fact, but in different ways, however, “periodizing” the beginning of the transformations. Thus, A.G. Brickner in the “history of Peter the Great” is inclined to open an account of them after the tsar’s trip to Western Europe in 1697 - 1698, where, in his opinion, the reform plan itself arose and the necessary information to start them. But already S. M. Solovyov in “History of Russia” and then “Public Readings about Peter the Great” showed that the situation was exactly the opposite: the very idea of the Great Embassy arose as a result and in line with the ongoing transformations: foreign specialists and Russian shipbuilders were required for creation of a fleet. S. M. Solovyov, and behind him the modern researcher N.I. Pavlenko consider the Azov campaigns of 1695 - 1696 to be the starting point of the transformations. As N.I. Pavlenko notes, although these campaigns were directed against a traditional enemy, they were accompanied by a number of unconventional features: the use of a fleet, which ensured victory and the capture of Azov.
Thus, according to the historian, these campaigns outgrew the role of purely military campaigns, they served as the starting point for reforms, “they entailed the construction of the Voronezh fleet, caused initial measures to create regular army. Both innovations required huge financial costs. Hence the urban reform and the beginning of the inventive activity of profit-makers. A new form of reward for military valor was also introduced - Peter established the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. From the listed innovations it’s a stone’s throw to transformations in the field of culture, especially the spread of education in order to provide the army and navy with qualified specialists.” (N.I. Pavlenko “Peter the Great”).
Describing these first reforms, the author dwells, first of all, on the creation of the fleet. The very idea of creating a fleet in a land country with almost complete absence traditions of shipbuilding, and most importantly, money in the treasury, was extremely bold, denouncing in the tsar “a man of extraordinary energy and a broad outlook, who did not think about immediate benefits and looked to the distant future.”
The problem of access to the main sea routes remained unresolved, and Russia’s allies (in 1697, Russia, Austria and Venice entered into an anti-Ottoman alliance) were curtailing military operations. In order to revive the coalition and expand its composition, the “Grand Embassy” was sent abroad in 1697. It also included young “valantirs” who volunteered to study maritime affairs abroad. Among them, under the name of “sergeant Peter Mikhailov,” was the tsar. It was not possible to breathe new life into the anti-Ottoman coalition. The war with Turkey was ending, and the European powers began to prepare for the division of the vast possessions of the fading Spanish Habsburg dynasty (1700 - 1713 the “War of the Spanish Succession” raged on the continent). However, the “Great Embassy” played a significant role in the fate of Russia. Peter became acquainted with European life and received important lessons in diplomacy, as well as navigation and shipbuilding. 672 foreign specialists were hired - officers, sailors, shipbuilders, doctors, etc. Finally, a meeting on the way back with the Polish king and the Saxon Elector Augustus II, in fact, marked the beginning of a new, now anti-Swedish Northern Alliance. In 1699 it was concluded by Russia, Saxony and Denmark. In the summer of 1698, the embassy was interrupted by news received from Moscow about the mutiny of the archers.
The creation of the fleet was followed by the replacement of the noble cavalry and unreliable archers with a regular army. In fact, the consciousness of the regular army began in childhood with the creation of the Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments. But purely legally the beginning standing army laid down decrees of November 8 and 17, 1699, where the sources for the formation of new regiments were determined. The first were “hunting people” from among personally free subjects of various ranks, who served for a high salary - 11 rubles per year. As a result, 2 9 infantry and 2 dragoon regiments with a total strength of 32,000 people were formed, with foreign officers at their head.
The newly created regular army required uniforms and ammunition. The government sought the funds necessary for this by increasing indirect taxes.
On January 23, 1700, Peter promulgated a decree introducing stamp or eagle paper in Russia “to replenish his, the great sovereign’s, treasury.” From now on, all private acts had to be drawn up not on ordinary paper, but exclusively on eagled paper.
According to the decree of January 30, 1699, an elected board was established in the center - the Chamber of Burmisters, which was responsible for collecting direct and indirect taxes in all cities and had the right to trial the townspeople.
The year 1699 was marked by two important events. In late autumn, in Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow, the Northern Alliance was concluded in deep secrecy between Russia and the Saxon Elector Augustus II against Sweden.
Further transformations already continued in the next century, in the context of the outbreak of the Northern War.
3. Northern War and military reforms
The need to fight a war against a well-trained Swedish army prompted further changes in the military sphere.
In 1705, the government began recruiting directly from the peasant population (previously, according to the decrees of 1699, troops were formed by recruiting “hunters” and “dacha people”).
The recruitment system turned out to be stable and quite effective, existing without changes for 170 years - until 1874. E.V. Anisimov in his book “The Time of Peter’s Reforms” explains such stability by the fact that the recruitment system fully met the characteristics of social and economic structure countries. " Recruitment duty and serfdom are two sides of the same coin. On the army, where the nobleman is an officer, and yesterday’s peasant is a soldier, the serfdom system left its indelible imprint, despite the fundamental difference between the estate and the regiment.” (p. 104). The fate of the recruits who became lifelong soldiers was difficult. There was resistance among the people to the recruitment drives.
Convinced of the impossibility of gaining access to the southern seas and, at the same time, of the reality of the struggle for the Baltic coast, Peter, immediately after receiving news of a truce with Turkey on August 8, 1700, declared war on Sweden and besieged Narva (Russia’s allies had already fought with Sweden.) However, the Swedish king Charles HP, who, despite his eighteen years, managed to establish himself as a brilliant commander, forced the Danes to sign peace and in November 1700 unexpectedly appeared near Narva. His army, numbering up to 12 thousand people, defeated the 34 thousand-strong Russian army, capturing all its artillery, many generals and officers. But, having underestimated Peter, Karl HP made a fatal mistake: he did not go to Moscow, but moved to Poland, against Augustus II, whom he considered a more serious opponent.
Analyzing the defeat near Narva, Peter noted in his “Journal”: “art is below form,” that is, the extremely unsatisfactory state of combat training and the art of conducting military operations.
Russian troops were not used to fighting in the field, preferring to sit behind the walls of fortresses or in fortified camps. Thus, the initiative was given to the enemy. This was the case near Narva, when, knowing about the approach of the Swedes, the troops did not leave the fortifications.
Peter understood the depravity of such a concept. “The main goal of military operations,” Anisimov writes, “is not the capture of enemy fortresses, but the defeat of the enemy army in direct, fleeting contact - battle, battle.” In accordance with the new strategic principles, the concept of training troops for combat operations was changed. The previous reviews once a year and rare shootings are being replaced by constant training focused on active combat operations. There is a combination of individual and group training in techniques and various formations in battle. There is also clear control of the battle on the part of the officers.
Peter launched vigorous activity to train new troops, recreate artillery (mining copper for cannons, he did not stop even before removing church bells), extensive construction of metallurgical, weapons, cloth and other manufactories.
Already in the summer of 1701, the attack of Swedish ships on Arkhangelsk was successfully repulsed, and on December 29, Russian troops under the command of B.P. Sheremetev defeated the Swedes for the first time near Erestfer. From that time on, the relatively weak forces left by Charles HP in the Baltic States began to suffer defeat after defeat. In 1702, the Noteburg fortress, located at the source of the Neva, was taken. In 1703, with the capture of the Nyenschanz fortress, the entire Neva again became Russian. In May of this year, St. Petersburg was founded on its swampy, wooded shores, which 10 years later became the capital of Russia and its largest port.
For the defeats in the Baltics, Karl HP took revenge in Poland. Saxon and Russian troops failed here and in 1706 Augustus II was forced to renounce the Polish crown and alliance with Peter. Russia was left without allies, its situation became dangerous. Although the Russian army was approximately twice as large as the Swedish army, the latter had excellent combat training and was at the zenith of its glory. In December 1707, Karl launched an offensive against the troops of Peter I. He occupied Grodno, Mogilev and waited for Levenhaupt's 16,000-strong corps, which was carrying supplies desperately needed by the Swedes (the Russian army used scorched earth tactics). But without waiting, the king moved to Ukraine, where he hoped to improve the supply of the army and find an ally in the person of Hetman Mazepa. Meanwhile, on September 28, 1708, near the village of Lesnoy, Russian troops defeated Levengaupt’s corps and captured a huge convoy.
In Ukraine, after joining Russia, there was continuous fermentation: if the lower strata of the population as a whole welcomed the fall of Polish rule, then the upper strata - the Cossack elders - were pro-Polish, they were attracted by the autocracy of the gentry. After Bohdan Khmelnitsky, almost all the hetmans of Ukraine, not even excluding his son, were opponents of joining Russia and, as a rule, did not remain in power for long. Against this background, Mazepa seemed to be an exception, and Peter did not believe the denunciations received against him.
However, on October 29, 1708, Mazepa and 4 thousand Cossacks unexpectedly joined the Swedish troops. In response, the Russian army under the command of Peter I’s closest ally, A.D. Menshikova defeated Mazepa's capital Baturin. The Ukrainians themselves began to fight the Swedes. Soon a new hetman was elected, and the clergy anathematized the traitor Mazepa.
On June 27, 1709, Russian troops won general battle near Poltava, completely defeating the Swedish army. As a result, the Swedes lost more than 28 thousand people killed and captured. The battle was the turning point of the war. The power of the Swedish army was undermined, and Europe was thrown into shock. At first, European newspapers, unable to imagine a different outcome of the battle, began to habitually extol the next victory of the Northern Lion over the Russian Bear. But when the true results of the battle became known, it immediately changed the international situation. In 1709, the Northern Union was recreated (Prussia joined it in 1714). In 1710, Russian troops captured Riga, Vyborg, Revel and other Baltic cities.
Russia's triumphal march was interrupted by Turkey. In the autumn of 1710, incited by Sweden and England, she declared war on Russia. Peter moved troops to Moldavia, but near the Prut River they were surrounded by a Turkish-Tatar army, more than three times larger than the Russian one. On July 9, 1711, Russian troops managed to repel the attack, inflicting heavy losses on the Turks. The next day the Janissaries refused to go into battle. In turn, Russian troops suffered from lack of water and food. As a result, on July 12, the Prussian Treaty was signed, according to which Azov was returned to Turkey. Russia pledged to demolish the fortifications of Taganrog, not to interfere in the affairs of Poland and not to support the Don and Zaporozhye Cossacks. However, all of Russia's conquests in the Baltic states were preserved.
Meanwhile, the war with Sweden continued. Peter's proposals for peace, which he began to put forward immediately after Poltava, were rejected. In 1713 - 1715 the Russian army captured Finland, and in 1714 it was defeated for the first time major victory over the Swedish fleet at Cape Gangut. In another theater of war - in the Swedish province of Pomerania (southern Baltic) the war was sluggish. However, in 1717 Russian and allied troops nevertheless ousted Sweden from Germany. More decisive actions were hampered by contradictions within the anti-Swedish coalition. In 1717 they led to the collapse of this union.
Peace negotiations with Sweden that began in 1718 were interrupted after the death of Charles HP. England incited Sweden to continue the war and set other countries against Russia. In 1719, Austria, Saxony and Hanover created an anti-Russian coalition. Only new victories of the Russian fleet near the islands of Ezel and Grengam, as well as three landings in Sweden in 1719 - 1721. forced the latter to sign on August 30, 1721 Nystadt Peace. According to it, Russia retained the lands it conquered, with the exception of Finland. The “Window to Europe” was opened. Russia has become one of the most powerful powers on the continent.
4. Economic reforms of Peter I. Bulavin’s uprising
The Northern War required metal and gunpowder for cannons, cloth and silk for uniforms, timber and canvas for the fleet. All this prompted the king to become closely involved in industry and trade. But the inheritance Peter received from his “quiet” father seemed to leave no hope of quickly catching up with the rest of Europe. The huge country had a population of only 13 million people, i.e. on average 4 people per square mile. City dwellers made up 3% of the total population. Moreover, even among this small urban population, not everyone was engaged in trade and craft.
True, in the 17th century we see the beginning of the formation of specialization in individual areas and the associated revival of trade and the growth of the merchant class, the emergence of the first manufactories. But in general, most of Russia lives in a subsistence economy.
Under these conditions, eliminating technical and economic backwardness is possible only through government intervention from above. Peter wanted to put trade and industry at the service of state interests rather than personal ones.
Realizing that Russia has huge reserves of minerals, the tsar decides to take up their development. Russian ore explorers discharged abroad also traveled throughout the country. “They searched and found silver ores, madder dye, coal, saltpeter, peat, etc.” (A.G. Brickner. History of Peter the Great). But especially important in the conditions of the Northern War was the search for iron ores. In a short time, an entire metallurgical complex is being created in the Urals. In the first decade, other plants were created in the Urals: Kamensky, Uktussky, Alpatyevsky, and at the same time metallurgical plants were built in Ustyuzhna and Beloozero. In five years, no less than 11 state-owned factories were founded, which produced so much needed by the country metal. At the same time, manufactories are being built in light industry. Back in 1696-1697, Khamovny Dvor was founded in Preobrazhenskoye for the production of canvas. In 1719, this was already a huge enterprise, employing over 1,200 people.
Simultaneously with its own industry, the state organized its own trade. This was achieved by introducing state monopolies, which were very profitable for the treasury, but ruinous for the people.
Some poorly thought-out administrative measures had a negative impact on trade. In 1713, Russian exports through Arkhangelsk were severely limited by Tsar's decree. From now on, goods were to be sent to St. Petersburg. Despite its greater geographical and climatic convenience, the new port was completely unsuited for trade (there were no trading warehouses and premises). Moreover, Peter wished with his will to create not only the main port of Russia, but also the St. Petersburg merchants. Several merchants and their families were forcibly relocated to the new capital. Forced resettlement was generally one of Peter’s favorite methods of solving economic problems. For the construction of St. Petersburg, 40 thousand peasants were mobilized, this contingent was constantly replenished with new unfortunates to replace those who died from hard work and malaria.
The impoverishment and decline of the once richest merchant firms, the devastation of cities, the flight of residents - this was the high price that Russian merchants and townspeople paid for the success of the Northern War, financing its expenses, losing their profits due to a strict monopoly policy and various restrictions that came into practice economic policy Peter from the beginning of the 18th century.
Russian peasants suffered no less hardships. They supplied the army with recruits, provided carts and horses, and carried out in-kind and monetary duties. It is not surprising that the flight of peasants and townspeople by entire families became characteristic feature Peter's time. Some of the fugitives became robbers, many found shelter on the Don. Ignoring the unwritten Cossack law “there is no extradition from the Don,” Peter sent a detective there in the summer to examine and remove the fugitives under escort. His troops committed a lot of violence and provoked resistance not only from yesterday’s peasants, but also from the indigenous Cossacks. On the night of October 9, Kondraty Bulavin surrounded the prince’s camp with two hundred people and killed everyone.
The uprising at the height of the Northern War, when fighting was taking place in Ukraine, was very dangerous. Peter, not without reason, feared the creation of a coalition of Swedes, Crimean Khan and Bulavin. To pacify the riot, a punitive detachment was sent under the command of V.V. Bulavin, the brother of the detective killed by Bulavin. In June 1708, the Cossacks approached Azov, where they were defeated. Naval artillery played a decisive role in their defeat.
As in the case of Razin, the uprising continued for some time after the death of the ataman: hostilities moved to the Volga, where the rebels managed to capture Tsaritsyn and capture Saratov. But by autumn the rebels were defeated. The resistance could not stop the reformer in his reforms.
However, Peter makes some adjustments to his economic policy. In 1717, he gave up monopolies on the sale of certain popular goods abroad. By decree of 1719, the sovereign determined that “there should be only two government goods: potash and tar.” These measures marked a new stage in trade and industrial policy: freedom of trade was actually proclaimed. At the same time as private trade, private entrepreneurship was also encouraged. The “Berg Privilege” of 1719 allowed all residents, regardless of social status, to find ores and establish factories. The found ore samples only had to be presented to the Bergkollegium, which was in charge of minerals, which, after checking their quality, transferred the deposit to the breeder.
The development of industry was in charge of the Manufactory Board. In the 1920s, a number of factories were transferred into private hands. Back in 1702, the Nevyansk Metallurgical Plant was transferred to Nikita Demidov, a former Tula blacksmith and gunsmith.
The customs tariff of 1724 also provided significant assistance to entrepreneurs. He set the level of duties on foreign goods depending on the presence or absence of domestic analogues in order to stimulate domestic producers.
By the end of the reign of Peter the Great, the domestic market received enough metal and the country began to export iron, more and more from year to year.
Labor in factories was serfdom. Freelance workers, according to the census of 1744-1745. constituted no more than 1.7% of their total number. This was facilitated by the decree of January 1721, which allowed factories to buy serfs.
Merchants also experienced the heavy hand of government regulation. The government bodies that weighed down on them were the Commerce Collegium and the Chief Magistrate. The government sought to force merchants to create companies. Companies did not attract Peter great opportunities, how much convenience for control and taxation. The decree on the establishment of companies contained the words characteristic of the Peter the Great era: “they will not want to, although in captivity,” to take merchants into companies. These voluntary-compulsory associations of merchants operated both in industry and trade.
These are the contradictory results of Peter the Great's economic reforms. Industrial growth and partial overcoming of technical backwardness from European countries were achieved by slowing down capitalist trends in the economy. Despite the economic successes of the first quarter XVIII century, Russia remained a country with a feudal economy, with a decisive predominance of agriculture over industry and the rural population over the urban.
5. Administrative changes
Since 1708, Peter began to rebuild the old authorities and administration and replace them with new ones. As a result, by the end of the first quarter of the 18th century. has developed next system authorities and management.
All legislative, executive, and judicial power was concentrated in the hands of Peter, who, after the end of the Northern War, received the title of emperor. In 1711 a new one was created supreme body executive and judicial power - the Senate, which also had significant legislative functions. It was fundamentally different from its predecessor, the Boyar Duma.
Council members were appointed by the emperor. In the exercise of executive power, the Senate issued decrees that had the force of law. In 1722, the Prosecutor General was appointed at the head of the Senate, who was entrusted with control over the activities of all government institutions. The Prosecutor General was supposed to serve as the “eye of the state.” He exercised this control through prosecutors appointed to all government agencies. In the first quarter of the 18th century. To the system of prosecutors, a system of fiscal officials was added, headed by the Oberfiscal. The duties of the fiscals included reporting on all abuses by institutions and officials that violated the “public interest.”
The order system that developed under Boyar Duma. Originated in different times orders (Posolsky, Streletsky, Local, Siberian, Kazan, Little Russian, etc.) differed greatly in their nature and functions. Orders and decrees of orders often contradicted each other, creating unimaginable confusion and delaying the resolution of urgent issues for a long time.
In place of the outdated system of orders in 1717-1718. 12 collegiums were created, each of which was in charge of a specific industry or area of government and was subordinate to the Senate. Three collegiums were considered the main ones: Foreign, Military and Admiralty. The competence of the Komerc, Manufactory and Berg collegiums included issues of trade and industry. Three boards were in charge of finances: the Kamerkollegiya - income, the State College - expenses, and the Revision Collegium controlled the receipt of income, the collection of taxes, duties, and the correctness of spending by institutions of the amounts allocated to them. The College of Justice was in charge of civil proceedings, and the Patrimonial College, established somewhat later, was in charge of noble land ownership. A Chief Magistrate was also created, in charge of the entire townsman population; The magistrates and town halls of all cities were subordinate to him. The collegiums received the right to issue decrees on those issues that were within their jurisdiction.
In addition to the boards, several offices, offices, departments, orders were created, the functions of which were also clearly delineated. Some of them, for example, the Heraldry Office, which was in charge of the service and promotion to the ranks of nobles; The Preobrazhensky Order and the Secret Chancellery, which were in charge of cases of state crimes, were subordinate to the Senate, others - the Coinage Department, the Salt Office, the Land Survey Office, etc. - were subordinate to one of the boards.
In 1708 - 1709 The restructuring of local authorities and administration began. The country was divided into 8 provinces, differing in territory and population. Thus, the Smolensk and Arkhangelsk provinces differed little in size from the modern regions, and the Moscow province covered the entire densely populated center, the territory of the modern Vladimir, Ivanovo, Kaluga, Tver, Kostroma, Moscow, Ryazan, Tula and Yaroslavl regions, where almost half of the total population lived countries. The provinces included St. Petersburg, Kiev, Kazan, Azov and Siberian.
At the head of the province was a governor appointed by the tsar, who concentrated executive and judicial power in his hands. Under the governor there was a provincial office. But the situation was complicated by the fact that the governor was subordinate not only to the emperor and the Senate, but also to all collegiums, whose orders and decrees often contradicted each other.
The provinces in 1719 were divided into provinces, the number of which was 50. The province was headed by a governor with an office attached to him. The provinces, in turn, were divided into counties with a governor and a county office. For some time during the reign of Peter, the district administration was replaced by an elected zemstvo commissar from local nobles or retired officers. Its functions were limited to collecting the poll tax, monitoring the execution of government duties, and detaining runaway peasants. The zemstvo commissar was subordinate to the provincial chancellery. In 1713, the local nobility was allowed to choose 8-12 Landrats (advisers from the nobles of the county) to assist the governor, and after the introduction of the poll tax, regimental districts were created. The military units stationed there supervised the collection of taxes and suppressed manifestations of discontent and anti-feudal protests. List of ranks on January 24, 1722, table of ranks, introduced new classification servant people. All the newly established positions - all with foreign names, Latin and German, except for a very few - are arranged according to the table in three parallel rows: military, civil and courtier, with each divided into 14 ranks, or classes. A similar ladder with 14 levels of ranks was introduced in the navy and court service. This founding act of the reformed Russian bureaucracy put the bureaucratic hierarchy, merit and length of service, in the place of the aristocratic hierarchy of breed, pedigree book. In one of the articles attached to the table, it is emphasized with emphasis that the nobility of the family in itself, without service, means nothing, does not create any position for a person, people of a noble breed are not given any position until they show merit to the sovereign and the fatherland.
6. Culture under Peter the Great
The development of trade and industry, the creation of a regular army and navy, the formation of completely new structures of the bureaucratic apparatus of absolutism and other reforms in the country required a radical restructuring of the entire system of education, training large number qualified specialists. During Peter's time, a Medical School was opened, as well as engineering, shipbuilding, navigation, mining and craft schools. In the province, primary education was provided in three types of schools: 46 diocesan schools that trained clergy; 42 digital ones - for training local minor officials; in garrison schools - for teaching soldiers' children.
Secular education required a lot of new textbooks. F. P. Polikarpov, F. Prokopovich and others made a great contribution to the creation of new textbooks and teaching aids.
Simultaneously with the reform in the field of education, the publishing industry developed rapidly. In 1708, Peter introduced a new one instead of Church Slavonic civil font. New printing houses were created in Moscow and other cities.
The development of book printing led to the beginning of organized book trade, and a state library was opened. Large collections of books belonged to Prince D. M. Golitsin, Count B. P. Sheremetev, Count A. A. Metveev and others. In December 1702, the first periodical publication, the Vedomosti newspaper, began to be published.
The development of science and technology in the Petrine era was primarily based on the practical needs of the state. Great strides have been made in geodesy, hydrography, cartography, and in the study of subsoil and minerals.
The activities of Russian inventors were marked with great success, and a number of valuable studies on Russian history were written. On Peter's initiative, a start was made in collecting scientific collections in Russia. In 1719, the Kunstkamera was opened for public viewing, the collection of “rarities” of which served as the basis for the collections of future museums: the Hermitage, Artillery, Naval, etc.
During the Peter the Great era, urban planning underwent a transition to the regular development of cities, the creation of large architectural assemblies, mainly for civil rather than cultural purposes. The most striking example of this is the construction of St. Petersburg.
In the era of Peter 1, all traditional ideas about the everyday way of life of Russian society underwent a radical change. The Tsar, by order of command, introduced barbers, European clothing, and the mandatory wearing of uniforms for military and civil officials. The behavior of young nobles in society was regulated by Western European norms, set out in the translated book “The Honest Mirror of Youth.”
The patriarchal way of life gradually gave way to “secularism” and rationalism. In 1718, Peter 1 issued a decree on holding assemblies with the mandatory presence of women. Assemblies were held not only for fun and entertainment, but also for business meetings. Use in conversations was encouraged foreign words, mostly French.
Peter's reforms in the sphere of culture, life and morals were of a clearly political nature and were often introduced by violent methods. The interests of the state, which was built according to the strict plan of the monarch's will, were put at the forefront of these reforms. The purely external attributes of the Peter the Great era, manifested in the decretive introduction of European customs and morals, in isolation from the centuries-old traditions of Russian culture, were supposed to emphasize the fundamental differences of the Russian Empire created over a quarter of a century - a great state of the European type.
Conclusion
In terms of their scale and speed of carrying out the reforms of Peter I, they had no analogues not only in Russian, but also, at least, in European history. A powerful and contradictory imprint was left on them by the peculiarities of the country’s previous development, extreme foreign policy conditions and the personality of the tsar himself. Based on some trends that emerged in the 17th century, Peter I not only developed them, but, as it were, “spurred” the country, bringing it to a qualitatively higher level in a minimal historical period of time. In just a quarter of a century, and the 18th century, which was by no means as rapid as the 19th and even more so the 20th, he turned Russia into a powerful power, which in its industrial and military strength was not inferior to the most developed countries of that time . Peter introduced Russia to advanced achievements Western culture, achieved wide access to the Baltic Sea, which the Moscow sovereigns could not achieve starting from the 16th century. From its isolated, provincial position, the country not only stepped “on the threshold” of Europe, but also began to dominate the East and North of the continent.
The price for these radical changes was the further strengthening of serfdom, the temporary inhibition of the formation capitalist relations and severe tax pressure on the population. And yet, one can hardly agree with the well-known thesis of P.N. Milyukov that “at the cost of ruin, Russia was elevated to the rank of European powers,” and even more so with the recently revived provisions about the “historical unjustification” of Peter’s actions, which de “slowed down the progressive development of Russia to the greatest possible extent.” It was already noted above that, despite the enormous hardships of the reforms and the actual ruin of the masses of the rural and urban population, industry and trade under Peter I stepped far forward and even agriculture, despite the crisis generated by the Northern War, generally satisfied the increased domestic and export needs.
The key question for assessing Peter’s transformations is whether it was possible to solve pressing problems at lower costs, not by strengthening serfdom and autocracy, but by developing capitalist relations? The answer seems to be no. The country’s objective needs to overcome the extremely unfavorable international situation, in sea routes, necessary for the development of commodity-money relations, inevitably pushed towards war, and that, in turn, towards maximum centralization of power and mobilization of all resources. Hence the “state-serf” nature of many reforms and their radicalism. From the point of view internal conditions, Russian traditions serfdom, autocracy (which did not exist in Western Europe), the lack of formation of capitalist relations and their social “carriers” also made bourgeois development impossible. In addition, we should not forget that almost all of Europe, excluding Holland and England, in the 18th century. has not yet parted with feudalism, albeit much softer and predisposed to capitalist evolution than Russian.
Despite all the inconsistency of Peter’s personality and his transformations, in Russian history his figure has become a symbol of decisive reformism, the fruitfulness of using the achievements of the West and selfless service to the Russian state, not sparing either himself or others. Among the descendants, Peter I, practically the only one among the kings, rightfully retained the title of the Great, granted to him during his lifetime.
List of sources used
1. Anisimov, E. V. Peter the Great: the birth of an empire. History of the Fatherland: people, ideas, decisions. Essays on the history of Russia 9th - early 20th centuries. / E. V. Anisimov. – M.: Politizdat, 1991. – 220 p.
2. Anisimov, E. V. Time of Peter’s reforms / E. V. Anisimov. - L.: Lenizdat, 1989. – 495 p.
3. Anisimov, E. V. Russia in mid-18th century century. The struggle for the legacy of Peter / E. V. Anisimov - M.: Mysl, 1989. - 237 p.
4. Buganov, V.I. Peter the Great and his time / V.I. Buganov. M.: Nauka, 1989. – 187 p.
5. Pavlenko, N. I. Peter the Great / N. I. Pavlenko. M.: Mysl, 1994. – 592 p.
6. Solovyov, S. M. Public readings about Peter the Great. Readings and stories on the history of Russia / S. M. Solovyov. M.: Nauka, 1989. – 187 p.
M. Gorky called the novel “Peter the Great” “the first real historical novel in our literature.” Reflecting one of most interesting eras in the development of Russia - an era of radical disruption of patriarchal life and the struggle of the Russian people for their independence, the novel by A. N. Tolstoy will attract more than one generation of readers with its patriotism and high artistic skill.
The personality of Peter and his era excited the imagination of writers, artists, and composers of many generations. From Lomonosov to the present day, the theme of Peter has not left the pages of fiction. A. Pushkin, N. Nekrasov, L. Tolstoy, A. Blok addressed her. For over twenty years, this topic occupied Alexei Tolstoy: the story “The Day of Peter” was written in 1917, the last chapters of his historical novel “Peter the Great” - in 1945. The writer did not immediately manage to accomplish his plan - to deeply, truthfully and comprehensively depict the Peter the Great era, to show the nature of the great transformations.
It is characteristic that A. N. Tolstoy turned to the era of Peter the Great in 1917: in the distant past, he tried to find answers to the questions that tormented him about the fate of his homeland and people. Why did the writer turn to her? The time of transformative reforms, a radical break in patriarchal Rus', was perceived by him as something reminiscent of 1917. And only later, one of the best works of Soviet literature in historical topic became the novel "Peter the Great".
So, at the center of the story is Peter, the formation of his personality. However, the novel did not become just a masterfully written biography of Peter. Why? It was important for Tolstoy to show not only Peter as a great historical figure, but also the era that contributed to the formation of this figure. The formation of the personality of the first emperor and the depiction of the era in its historical movement determined the compositional features of the novel.
A. Tolstoy is not limited to depicting the life and activities of his hero, he creates a multifaceted composition, which gives the author the opportunity to show the life of the most diverse segments of the Russian population, the life of the masses. All classes and estates of Russian society are represented in the novel: peasants, soldiers, archers, artisans, boyars. Russia is shown in a stormy stream historical events, in a clash of social forces.
The wide coverage of events and the variety of characters created are amazing. The action is transferred from the poor peasant hut of Ivashka Brovkin to the noisy squares of old Moscow; from the room of the imperious princess Sophia - to the Red Porch in the Kremlin, where little Peter becomes an eyewitness to the brutal massacre of the archers with Matveev; from Natalya Kirillovna’s chambers in the Preobrazhensky Palace - to the German Settlement, from there to the steppes scorched by the southern sun, along which Golitsyn’s army is slowly moving; from the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, where Peter fled at night from the Preobrazhensky Palace - to Arkhangelsk, near Azov, abroad.
The first chapters of the novel depict a fierce struggle for power between two boyar groups - the Miloslavskys and the Naryshkins, representing the old, boyar, pre-Petrine Rus'. Neither group was interested in the state or the fate of the people. Tolstoy emphasizes this with almost identical remarks assessing the rule of one and the other. “And everything went as before. Nothing happened. Over Moscow, over the cities, over hundreds of districts... the sour century-old twilight - poverty, servility, idleness.” This is after the Miloslavskys’ victory. But then the Naryshkins won - “...they began to think and rule according to the old custom. There haven’t been any significant changes.”
Ordinary people also understand this: “Vasiliy Golitsyn and Boris are both a joy to them.” Tolstoy also shows that the people play a decisive role in those events that play out in the Kremlin. Only with his support do the Naryshkins manage to break the Miloslavskys. People's dissatisfaction with their situation is manifested in a number of crowd scenes.
From about the fourth chapter of the first book, Tolstoy shows how the relationship between the matured Peter and Sophia is increasingly aggravated, which subsequently leads to the fall of the former ruler. Peter becomes an autocratic ruler and, with his characteristic determination, overcoming the resistance of the boyars, begins the fight against Byzantine Russia. “All of Russia resisted,” writes Tolstoy. Not only the boyars, but also the local nobility, the clergy, and the archers hated the speed and cruelty of the newly introduced: “There is no longer peace; and the tavern, they break everything, disturb everyone... They don’t live, they’re in a hurry... We’re rolling into the abyss...” The people also resisted: people fled to the forests, to the Don - this was the response to the hardships of life during the reign of Peter.
The first book ends with the brutal suppression of the Streltsy rebellion: “All winter there were tortures and executions... The whole country was gripped by horror. The old stuff was hidden in dark corners. Byzantine Rus' was ending. In the March wind, the ghosts of merchant ships could be seen beyond the Baltic coasts.”
The second book, in the words of Tolstoy himself, is “more monumental, more psychological,” it tells how the power moved from its place - it begins with an image of a “reluctantly” awakening Moscow, ends with a picture of St. Petersburg under construction. The struggle between old and new becomes decisive in the development of the action of the novel. Tolstoy shows in what difficult conditions young Russia emerges, what difficulties Peter had to overcome on the path of transformation.
In the second book, compared to the first, there are fewer historical events; the action is concentrated around the preparation for the Northern War, the “Narva embarrassment.” It describes the feverish activity to strengthen the defense, the construction of factories, the first successes in the war with the Swedes - the capture of Noteburg, access to the mouth of the Neva and the founding of a fortress city, which was destined to become the northern capital.
A significant place is devoted to psychological characteristics in this book. Each episode of private and public life helps to more clearly present one or another side of the era of Peter, his transformations (for example, a description of the life of the Buinosov, Brovkin and others families). Tolstoy shows how new things burst into everyday life and destroy old foundations. The progressive nature of Peter's reforms is emphasized by the author in depicting the general revitalization of the country, in the emergence around Peter of new people who keep up with the times and understand the needs of Russia. Among them are people from the people's environment: Menshikov, the Brovkin family, Fedosei Sklyaev, Vorobiev.
“Chicks of Petrov’s nest”, energetic people raised by Peter, are contrasted with the old Moscow boyars - Buinosov, Lykov and others, depicted by Tolstoy with irony. The boyars outwardly resigned themselves, but continued to hate Peter and his innovations.
In the second book with more greater strength the motive sounds social protest people, yes. Irritation is heard in the conversation in the tavern on Varvarka, and in the behavior of the men, in their unkind looks, in their shouts, in the open hatred of the peasants towards the landowners and boyars.
A. Tolstoy shows the silent protest seething among the people, which was to result in an uprising on the Don under the leadership of Bulavin. In order to live “by the will, and not by the decree of the sovereign,” people run into the forest. The schismatic movement is one of the forms of protest against the increased oppression during the reign of Peter. A fortress city was founded at the mouth of the Neva. The desired sea is now just a stone's throw from here; the transformation of the army began for a decisive victory over the Swedes and the return of the “original Russian lands” - Yuryev and Narva.
The third book of the novel is dedicated to the struggle for these cities. “The third book,” Tolstoy himself wrote, “is the most main part novel about Peter, it refers to the most interesting period of Peter’s life. It will show Peter's legislative activity, his innovation in the field of changes in the way of Russian life, the tsar's trips abroad, his entourage... The third part will give pictures not only of Russian life, but also of the West of that time - France, Poland, Holland. All the main tasks that I set when starting the novel will be realized in this part.”
The third book, like the second, begins with a description of Moscow. Not much time has passed, but before us is a different, renewed city. The second book shows a leisurely, largely inert life, and although everyone feels that big events are brewing, that life is becoming more anxious, nevertheless, it still flows as before. In the third book, Moscow appears different: drastic changes have occurred. Something new burst into life and changed its usual course. There are no more servants at the boyars’ yards, “the gates are tightly closed, the wide courtyard is quiet, the little people are taken to war, the boyars’ sons or sons-in-law are in the regiments as non-commissioned officers or sent overseas, the underage children are sent to schools.” One feels that life is moving to the new capital - St. Petersburg.
The third book also tells about the brilliant victories won by the Russians over the troops of Charles XII. It poses the problem of the cultural development of the country, the problem of forming a new intelligentsia. The image of young Russia, which won a difficult struggle, is especially vividly shown. However, in this book it does not weaken, but, on the contrary, resounds with new strength social conflict - the growth of contradictions between the imperial power and the people.
The book, unfortunately, remained unfinished. “A person,” wrote A. N. Tolstoy, “as well as a historical period of time, can only be understood dialectically - in movement, in struggle, in contradiction.” This is how he depicts the Petrine era - in movement, in the struggle of the new with the old. In Tolstoy’s novel, in every line of it one can feel the beating of the pulse of a large country, the forward movement of a people who with honor emerged from all the harsh trials, in creative work and in struggle gained glory for their Motherland.
The personality of Peter the Great stands apart in the history of Russia, since neither among his contemporaries, nor among his successors and descendants was there a person who could make such profound changes in the state, so infiltrate historical memory of the Russian people, becoming at the same time semi-legendary, but its most striking page. As a result of Peter's activities, Russia became an empire and took its place among the leading European powers.
Pyotr Alekseevich was born on June 9, 1672. His father was the Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov, and his mother Natalya Naryshkina was the Tsar’s second wife. At the age of 4, Peter lost his father, who died at 47. Nikita Zotov, who by the standards of Russia at that time was very educated, was involved in raising the prince. Peter was the youngest in the large family of Alexei Mikhailovich (13 children). In 1682, after the death of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich, the struggle between two boyar clans - the Miloslavskys (relatives of Alexei Mikhailovich's first wife) and the Naryshkins - intensified at court. The first believed that the sick Tsarevich Ivan should take the throne. The Naryshkins, like the patriarch, supported the candidacy of the healthy and fairly active 10-year-old Peter. As a result of the Streltsy unrest, the zero option was chosen: both princes became kings, and their elder sister, Sophia, was appointed regent under them.
At first, Peter had little interest in state affairs: he often visited the German Settlement, where he met his future comrades-in-arms Lefort and General Gordon. Most of Peter spent time in the villages of Semenovsky and Preobrazhensky near Moscow, where he created amusing regiments for entertainment, which later became the first guards regiments - Semenovsky and Preobrazhensky.
In 1689, a break occurs between Peter and Sophia. Peter demands that his sister be removed to the Novodevichy Convent, because by this time Peter and Ivan had already reached adulthood and had to rule independently. From 1689 to 1696, Peter I and Ivan V were co-rulers until the latter died.
Peter understood that Russia’s position did not allow it to fully implement its foreign policy plans, as well as to develop stably internally. It was necessary to gain access to the ice-free Black Sea in order to provide additional incentive to domestic trade and industry. That is why Peter continues the work begun by Sophia and intensifies the fight against Turkey within the framework of the Holy League, but instead of the traditional campaign in the Crimea, the young king throws all his energy to the south, near Azov, which he failed to take in 1695, but after construction in the winter of 1695 -1696 flotilla in Voronezh Azov was captured. Russia's further participation in the Holy League, however, began to lose its meaning - Europe was preparing for a war for Spanish inheritance, therefore, the fight against Turkey ceased to be a priority for the Austrian Habsburgs, and without the support of its allies, Russia could not resist the Ottomans.
In 1697-1698, Peter traveled incognito throughout Europe as part of the Great Embassy under the name of the bombardier Peter Mikhailov. Then he makes personal acquaintances with the monarchs of leading European countries. Abroad, Peter acquired extensive knowledge in navigation, artillery, and shipbuilding. After meeting with Augustus II, Elector of Saxony and Polish king, Peter decides to move the center of foreign policy activity from the south to the north and reach the shores of the Baltic Sea, which were to be conquered from Sweden, the most powerful state in the then Baltic.
In an effort to make the state more efficient, Peter I carried out reforms public administration(the Senate, collegiums, bodies of higher state control and political investigation were created, the church was subordinated to the state, the Spiritual Regulations were introduced, the country was divided into provinces, a new capital was built - St. Petersburg).
Understanding Russia's backwardness in industrial development from the leading European powers, Peter used their experience in a variety of fields - in manufacturing, trade, and culture. The sovereign paid great attention and even forcibly forced nobles and merchants to develop the knowledge and enterprises necessary for the country. This includes: the creation of manufactories, metallurgical, mining and other factories, shipyards, marinas, canals. Peter perfectly understood how important the country’s military successes were, so he personally led the army in the Azov campaigns of 1695-1696, took part in the development of strategic and tactical operations during the Northern War of 1700-1721, the Prut campaign of 1711, and the Persian campaign of 1722-23.
7 Comments
Valuev Anton Vadimovich
February 8 marks the Day of Russian Science, the founder of which was Peter I the Great, an outstanding statesman and public figure, The Tsar is a reformer, the creator of the Russian Empire. It was through his labors that the Academy of Sciences was established in St. Petersburg, in which outstanding representatives of domestic and foreign science worked for the benefit of Russia from generation to generation. Let me congratulate my colleagues on professional holiday and wish you interesting work, constantly improving your knowledge and experience, while always remaining true to your convictions, striving to enhance the centuries-old traditions of Russian science.
Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate historical sciences, professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences
By decree of Peter the Great, the Senate, the highest body of state executive power, was established in St. Petersburg. The Senate existed from 1711 to 1917. One of the most important and influential institutions in the system of secular government of the Russian Empire.
Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences
A turning point in the history of European social modernization - political system Russia is considered the Grand Embassy of the young sovereign Peter Alekseevich. During the Embassy, the future emperor saw Western Europe with his own eyes and appreciated its great potential. After returning home, the renewal process accelerated many times over. Diplomatic and trade developed rapidly economic relations, industrial production, science, culture and military affairs. In a sense, this was the real “window to Europe” that Tsar Peter opened for Russia.
Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences
The talent of a statesman is visible in his attitude to the development of the human factor, personality, and social potential of the country. And here Peter I did a lot to strengthen public relations, internal stability, and, ultimately, the position of the Russian Empire on the world stage. Personnel policy The Petrine era was based on two foundations: the talent of every person - regardless of his social origin- and his desire to be useful to the Fatherland. In 1714, Peter's Decree prohibited the promotion of nobles to the officer rank if they had not previously served ordinary soldiers. Six years later, in a new decree, Peter secured the right of every senior officer to receive a patent of nobility and transfer the title of nobility by inheritance. In practice, this meant that thanks to their talents and demonstrated real conditions Through courage and heroism, a person honestly earned the right to move to another, higher class. This was an important step in updating the class hierarchy of the Russian Empire.
Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences
May 18 is a doubly important date in the military history of our Fatherland. In 1703, at the mouth of the Neva, thirty Russian boats under the command of Peter I captured two Swedish military frigates, Astrild and Gedan, in a daring raid. This event is considered the beginning of the heroic history of the Baltic Fleet. A year later, to strengthen military positions in the Baltic, by order of Peter I, Kronshlot, the fort of Kronstadt, was founded. Three centuries have passed since then, and the Baltic Fleet and Kronstadt have always defended and are defending the interests of Russia. Ceremonial events on this day take place in St. Petersburg and Kronstadt, military cities sea glory Russia. Founder of the Russian Empire, Baltic Fleet, Vivat to Kronstadt!!!
Smart Ivan Mikhailovich
Nice, informative article. Although it is worth noting that aware of the pro-Western official history, “perfected” in the matter of distorting the Truth since the time of the first Westernized Romanovs, Peter Romanov looks like a benefactor of the Fatherland, the “father of the peoples” of Russia-Eurasia.
But the Russian people still have information that “the Germans replaced the Tsar” - either in childhood, or already in youth (A.A. Gordeev). And most likely, the truth is that Peter the Great was recruited by the Catholic Jesuits, who were tirelessly carrying out their work to implement the “Drang nach Osten” - “Onslaught on the East” (B.P. Kutuzov).
For “... it must be said that under Peter I, the colonialists no longer hesitated to “spend the human resources” of the country they had captured to their heart’s content - “in the era of Peter the Great” population decline
Muscovite Rus' constituted, according to estimates by various historians and researchers, approximately 20 to 40% of the total population.
However, the population of Muscovite Rus' was also declining due to the flight of the people from the despotism of the colonialists. And the people fled from them mainly to Tataria (see below).
In fact, it must be said that Peter Romanov began the “Europeanization” of Rus'-Muscovy with his family. First of all, he imprisoned his wife from an original Russian family, Evdokia Lopukhina, in a monastery - in prison, that is. She dared to object to the bullying of her husband and his Western European entourage against the Fatherland - thus, apparently, she greatly interfered with the “introduction of Western culture and progress.”)
But the girl Mons from a German settlement helped Peter in every possible way in that infiltration. Peter exchanged his Russian wife for her - a beauty and smart woman. And his son Alexei, since he also stubbornly refused to “Europeanize” with age, was put to death. But before that, Peter, using all the skills he had learned from Jesuit teachers, “led a search” for Alexei for a long time and persistently. That is, under torture he interrogated his son - why he opposes this “Europeanization”, and who are his accomplices in this “dark” and villainous, in the opinion of the “tsar-enlightenment”, business (7) .... "
(From the book "THE HERITAGE OF THE TATAR" (Moscow, Algorithm, 2012). Author G.R. Enikeev).
Also about all this and much more hidden from us from true history Fatherland read in the book “ Great Horde: friends, enemies and heirs. (Moscow-Tatar coalition: XIV–XVII centuries).”– (Moscow, Algorithm, 2011). The author is the same.
Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences
Russia owes many transformations to Peter the Great. Thus, it was according to his decree of December 15, 1699 that the Julian chronology was approved in Russia and Julian calendar. Since then, the New Year in our country began to be celebrated not from September 1, but from January 1. Under Peter the Great, many of the most important cultural attributes of this folk celebration were laid down - decorated fir trees, fireworks, New Year's carnivals and many other winter entertainments. On the eve of the New Year holidays, according to tradition, it is customary to take stock of the past year and hopefully make plans for the future. I would like to wish all colleagues and project participants a pleasant New Year’s Eve, more joy, family warmth, comfort, and happiness. May the New Year 2016 bring us new creative plans, successful and interesting ideas, may they definitely come true!
In this chapter we will characterize historical era Peter the Great and consider the main factors that influenced the formation of the personality of the future great reformer of Russia.
century became a century of large-scale reforms aimed at modernizing the Russian state and society. These reforms were started by Peter the Great and continued by his successors. The 18th century in Russia is also the time of the dominance of enlightenment ideology.
Socio-political views of Russian enlighteners of the second half of the XVIII V. Dmitry Sergeevich Anichkov (1733-1788), Semyon Efimovich Desnitsky (d. 1789), Ivan Andreevich Tretyakov (d. 1776), Alexey Yakovlevich Polenov (1738-1816), Yakov Pavlovich Kozelsky (c. 1728 - c. 1794), Denis Ivanovich Fonvizin (1745-1792), Pafnutiy Sergeevich Baturin (c. 1740-1803), Nikolai Ivanovich Novikov (1744-1818) were formed under the influence peasant uprising, headed by Pugachev. The enlighteners of Europe, in particular England and, of course, France, had a serious influence on the enlighteners.
Russian ideologists of enlightened absolutism primarily considered the issue of natural law and social contract. Polenov, Fonvizin, Novikov and many others from theory natural law drew “anti-feudal conclusions”, speaking out in defense of the serfs, argued for the need to educate the people, and advocated for legislation based on reasonable principles. Enlightenmentists considered the question of the stages of human development. For example, Desnitsky believed that humanity had already gone through four stages. The first is the stage of hunting and collecting finished products of nature, the second is cattle breeding, the third is agricultural and the fourth is commercial. He expressed the idea that private property does not exist forever - it was absent in the early stages. First, private ownership of movable and then real estate appeared. Those who concentrated wealth in their hands then became rulers.
Many Russian enlighteners also opposed serfdom and its religious-mystical ideology, which speaks in favor of the beginning in the second half of the 18th century. in Russia, the ideological struggle of the anti-serfdom trend. It is in the statements of Russian enlighteners of the 18th century that we find the beginnings of a future fierce struggle against serfdom and the feudal system.
The works of Novikov, Fonvizin and Desnitsky clearly demonstrated their commitment to a constitutional monarchy. At that time, anti-serfdom tendencies began to emerge, but their peculiarity was that they arose in a bourgeois environment. Russian enlighteners became the conductor of anti-serfdom ideas, then still new for that era.
Enlighteners also opposed the interference of the church in the affairs of science, schools, and secular authorities, and condemned religious persecution. In “The Mirror of Atheism”, as well as in the work “On the World, Its Beginning and Antiquity”, the teaching of the church about the creation of the world by God and divine providence were directly rejected, the teaching of theologians about the divine attributes was ridiculed, the existence of God was denied and it was argued that the world exists eternally, itself in itself, it develops according to its own laws.
The future Emperor Peter the Great was born on May 30, 1672 in Moscow. His father is Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, and his mother is Natalya Kirillovna Naryshkina. Natalya Kirillovna was the second wife of Alexei Mikhailovich, she was from the family of the Westerner A.S. Matveev, whose home decoration was exquisite and truly European. Consequently, once in the palace of Alexei Mikhailovich, she began to ennoble the surroundings with the same taste. And the future sovereign Peter I, from his very childhood, absorbed this truly European atmosphere, since he was surrounded by “overseas innovations” and “foreign things”, his “overseas toys” especially amused Peter: from the age of 2 he played with the music box, he had "dulcimers" and "large dulcimers" of German make, a clavichord with green copper strings.
Moreover, the court society of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was also keen on Western innovations. All this together undoubtedly influenced the formation of the future “modernizer” and reformer Peter the Great.
One of Peter's childhood hobbies was military science and various games related to military topics.
According to old Russian custom, the future emperor began studying at the age of five. Natalya Kirillovna wanted her son to be raised and studied by a teacher “meek, humble, leading the Divine Scripture.” Boyar-Old Believer Fyodor Prokofievich Sokovnin advised her to “a meek and humble husband, filled with all virtues, skilled in literacy and writing” Nikita Zotov, a clerk from the order of the Great Parish, the department of unpaid fees.
The future emperor really liked to study, it gave him real pleasure to look at books with pictures and listen to the stories of his teacher. Zotov devoted a lot of time to stories about Russian history, about Ivan the Terrible, Dmitry Donskoy and other great historical figures, therefore, Peter was already interested in the history of Russia from childhood, and subsequently he would do a lot to ensure that it was compiled fundamental textbook on Russian history.
In 1682, Tsar Fedor died, followed by turbulent events: Peter was proclaimed tsar, while no one took into account the interests of his older brother Ivan, Princess Sophia and the Miloslavskys also began a struggle for power, which resulted in the Streltsy rebellion, which followed in the country A period of dual power began, since Sophia was declared the ruler of the state, and schismatics also became more active. Peter, along with his mother and relatives, were exiled to the village of Preobrazhenskoye, the favorite village of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich near Moscow.
Peter also gathered around him a real regiment for his fun from young people from his sleeping bags and yard grooms, falconers and falconers, he formed two companies from them, which were then formed into two battalions of three hundred people each. They received the name amusing, and for their service they received a salary, and the title amusing became a special rank. The funny ones were dressed in dark green uniforms, had all the necessary soldier weapons, they were divided into staff officers, chief officers and non-commissioned officers.
In order to replenish his knowledge and military skills, Peter often turned to the German Settlement, which was inhabited by generals, colonels, and officers who were called from abroad by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich to command foreign-type Russian regiments. In 1684, Master Sommer introduced Peter to grenade shooting, and the officers took part in organizing the amusing army.
In 1687, Peter began his studies under the guidance of the Dutchman Timmerman, from whom Peter studied arithmetic, geometry, artillery and fortification.
During this period, another important event occurred, which contributed to Peter’s passion for shipping and the fleet. Peter found an English boat in the village of Izmailovo in the barns of Nikita Ivanovich Romanov’s grandfather, which is considered the founder of the Russian fleet. It should be noted that even before this discovery, Peter showed interest in the fleet, since amusing ships were built in Preobrazhenskoye; Peter borrowed old ship models from the Armory Treasury. In addition, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich also wanted to establish a fleet, and this desire was passed on to his son, Peter I.
Peter became the sole tsar in 1696; the period of triarchy ended after the suppression of the palace coup.
We have reached many memories of contemporaries about Peter the Great, his appearance, habits, way of life, and daily routine.
A very interesting description of the sovereign’s appearance was given by the Italian singer F. Balatri, who lived in Russia from 1698 to 1701: “Tsar Peter Alekseevich was tall, rather thin than plump; his hair was thick, short, dark brown colors, large black eyes with long eyelashes, good shaped mouth, but lower lip a little spoiled, his face was dark, round, with good features; the expression on his face is beautiful, inspiring respect at first glance. Given his great height (204 cm), his legs seemed very thin to me, his head often moved convulsively to the right."
From childhood, the future emperor was distinguished by a good memory, perseverance, and a thirst for new knowledge, so he studied with pleasure and quickly mastered the wisdom of the sciences that interested him. Peter I knew German from childhood, and then he also studied Dutch, English and French languages. Throughout his life, this craving for new knowledge forced the sovereign to improve his skills; he especially considered it necessary to more carefully study military affairs and shipbuilding, therefore, in 1688 - 1693. under the guidance of Timmerman and the Russian master R. Kravtsov, he studied to build ships on Lake Pereyaslavl, and Peter also took a theoretical course in shipbuilding in England.
Thus, the physical strength of the emperor, his theoretical and practical knowledge accumulated from childhood, good command of foreign languages allowed the emperor to carry out vigorous and fruitful state domestic and foreign policy activities, since Peter could communicate equally well with European delegations and develop military plans and plans for state affairs. transformations, he could just as easily monitor how well the work was being done in shipyards and factories, since he knew the technology of manufacturing ships and weapons from the inside. Sometimes Peter I himself took part in the construction of ships, and he handled the ax and tools no worse than his workers.
The emperor was also unpretentious in his clothes. He dressed very simply, not attaching much importance to his appearance.
In his home life, the emperor had a conservative taste, was prone to asceticism, often walked in worn-out shoes and mended stockings, Peter I did not like spacious halls, and avoided lush royal palaces. Of course, the life of Peter I was not limited to work, he was a cheerful person by nature, he loved dancing, feasts, traveling, the emperor especially loved home holidays organized by nobles, merchants, craftsmen, because there Peter could feel confident, not driven into the framework of the palace and prim etiquette.
A few words about the character of the emperor. He was a difficult person to communicate with because of his excessive temper and rudeness. Peter loved to joke, but often these jokes became indecent and even cruel. Peter I especially valued honesty in people, so he could often forgive a guilty person if he openly admitted his mistake, since Peter rightly believed that all people are not without sin.
Peter could allow himself indecent and rude antics, it was not difficult for him to spit in the face of some braggart or hit a careless worker in a fit of anger; the emperor also did not stand on ceremony with ladies in society, forcing them at receptions to drink Russian vodka, to which he himself was accustomed. Palace entertainment under Peter I was of a difficult nature, due to the stamp of rudeness and uncouthness, some hysteria and nervousness.
The intense activity affected the health of Peter the Great. Having wasted time, not paying attention to the state of his health, Peter ultimately achieved that his illness became incurable. The emperor died on January 28, 1725.
The main merit of Peter the Great is that he managed to implement previously planned reforms and transformations that were necessary in the then prevailing domestic and foreign policy situation, and as a far-sighted politician, he was able to feel that the time for great changes had come. “Peter was a great master, who understood economic interests best of all, and was most sensitive to the sources of state wealth. His predecessors, the kings of the old and new dynasties, were similar masters; but they were masters - Sidneys, white-handed, accustomed to managing with the hands of others, and from Peter a mobile master came out - a laborer, a self-taught person, a king - a craftsman."
In 1697, Peter at the age of 25 went to Western Europe. The Emperor dreamed of this trip for a long time, since he was always surrounded by people who told him a lot and willingly about Western Europe, and besides, Peter studied foreign languages. With his trip he intended to begin a tradition of teaching European innovations.
Holland and England, as naval and industrial-technical centers, undoubtedly attracted the sovereign, so he wanted to get to know these countries better. Peter worked for a week at the shipyard in Saardam as a simple carpenter, inspecting factories, factories, sawmills, and fulling mills. However, the tsar did not limit himself to studying shipbuilding; he also listened to lectures by professor of anatomy Ruysch, was present during operations, in addition, Peter examined all kinds of rarities, sights, factories, factories, chambers of curiosities, educational homes, military and merchant ships. At the beginning of 1698, Peter I went to England to study naval architecture. Also in the laboratory in Oxford and Woolich, he observed how artillery shells were made.
However, events soon happened that forced Peter I to postpone his trip to Venice and return to Moscow. During Peter's stay abroad, a new Streltsy rebellion began in Moscow, which was soon suppressed. Having suppressed the Streltsy revolt, Peter began to implement his first transformations and reforms. From that moment on, his active, intense government activity began, which did not stop until the very end of his life.
Since 1699, the government has switched to a new recruitment system armed forces- recruiting recruits for permanent service in regular regiments, one person each from a certain number of peasant and township households, this important transformation was the first step towards increasing the country's defensive power.
As for foreign policy, Peter the Great initially had to end the war with Turkey, which began in 1686. As a result of the Azov campaigns of 1695-1696. Azov was occupied, and Russia reached the shores of the Sea of Azov. However, the priority issue was still the problem of access to the Baltic Sea and the return of Russian lands captured by Sweden at the beginning of the 17th century, since this could ensure the establishment of direct ties with the West.
As a far-sighted person and talented politician, Peter used his trip to Western Europe to take the first steps towards achieving his goal. In 1697-1698 Peter I, during a trip as part of the Great Embassy, prepared the creation of an anti-Swedish Northern Alliance, which was finally formalized in 1699. In 1700, the Treaty of Constantinople was concluded with Turkey, which allowed Peter I to focus on the fight against Sweden.
The Northern War of 1700-1721, in which Russia won a complete victory, contributed to Russia becoming one of the great European powers. And on December 22, 1721, the triumphant of the Northern War, Peter I the Great, was proclaimed emperor.
As for Peter’s personality, this war undoubtedly had a great influence on his formation as a commander and statesman. During the war, Peter I took on not only the responsibilities of a commander, he organized the rear of the army, recruited recruits, drew up military plans, took part in the construction of ships and military factories, and in the procurement of ammunition, provisions and military shells. By the end of the Northern War, Peter was an already formed talented commander and statesman; Peter I became the creator of the regular Russian army and the Russian navy and the founder of his own military school, which gave Russia such outstanding figures as P.A. Rumyantsev, A.V. Suvorov, F.F. Ushakov, M.I. Kutuzov. In my opinion, he gives a very accurate description of the personality of Peter I great historian IN. Klyuchevsky: “Peter was cast one-sidedly, but in relief, he came out heavy, but at the same time eternally mobile, cold, but every minute ready for noisy explosions - exactly like the cast iron cannon of his Petrozavodsk casting.”
During his reign, Peter the Great carried out major reforms aimed at overcoming Russia's lag behind the advanced countries of the West and using its enormous natural resources, while Peter did not set himself the task of destroying the feudal-serf system, and even, on the contrary, sought to strengthen it. This is the most important unresolved mystery; if Peter saw how they lived in the West, then why did he not strive to destroy the most important relic of past times? Apparently, Peter was not completely able to free his mind from old ideas about the role of the peasantry in the life of the state. Therefore, Peter I created a clear state structure based on the fact that the peasantry should serve the nobility, being in their ownership. In this case, the nobility must serve the monarch, for this the state fully provides for the nobility, and the monarch, in turn, relying on the nobility, serves the interests of the state as a whole. By decree of 1723, Peter I finally turned the peasants into " personal property nobleman - landowner."
Conclusions. The 18th century is the century of Enlightenment. The culture of the Enlightenment was greatly influenced by Enlightenment ideology. Its main provisions are as follows: the ideas of freedom, equality and liberty, the struggle for the triumph of justice through education and cultural uplift. These ideas seemed to anticipate the emergence of one of the great reformers of Russia - Peter the Great. The formation of the personality of Peter I was greatly influenced by the environment in which the future emperor grew up. The exquisite European environment created by his mother contributed to the early awakening in Peter I of interest in European countries. In the process of his training, the future emperor received basic knowledge, which he was able to subsequently improve.
The era of Pefa reforms covered the entire first quarter of the 18th century - from the establishment of the complete autocracy of Tsar Ilerpa I in 1689 until his death in 1725. Its main milestones were: 1) a trip to Arkhangelsk (1693-1694); 2) Azov campaigns (1695 - 1696); 3) "Great Embassy" (1696-1697); 4) Northern War (1700-1721); 5) foundation of St. Petersburg (1703); 6) victory at Poltava (1709); 7) Treaty of Nystad (1721); 8) proclamation of Russia as an empire (1721)
Since all the successes and problems of Russia in the 17th century! century were a consequence of the reforms of Negro the Great, then the special attention of historians has been focused on them, as well as on the personality of the king-reformer. Some credit him with the rapid growth of Russian industry, the creation of a regular army and navy, the establishment of trade, economic and cultural ties with Europe, the construction of a new capital, and the founding of schools. Academy of Sciences, publication of newspapers, adoption of a new calendar and, in general, changes in the life and way of life of almost all layers of Russian society. Changes in such a short period of time have never been seen anywhere in the world, giving the right to consider Peter I a “revolutionary on the throne.”
Others, on the contrary, blame him for undermining the former spiritual foundations of Russian society, uncritical perception of European norms of behavior and elements of Western culture that are alien to the Russian national character. They complain that even positive changes in the life of Russian society were achieved at too high a price: the ruin of the country and the physical exhaustion of its inhabitants. Recently, accusations against Peter the Great of imposing a military barracks regime and establishing his own cult of the “father of the fatherland” have become more original. That is, he is not a great reformer, but simply a “brilliant tyrant” and “ambitious”, thanks to whom, as the Russian historian N.M. sadly noted at one time. Karamzin, “...we have become citizens of the world but in some cases have ceased to be citizens of Russia.”
But almost all authors agree on one thing, that the reform process in Russia, despite its significant results, which made it the strongest power in Europe, was very contradictory, cost great sacrifices and was accompanied by a number of negative consequences for the further development of the country.
11taking into account the contradictory assessments of the reform activities of Negro the Great and, avoiding extreme judgments, we can agree with the point of view of E. Anisimov that the entire revolutionary spirit of Tsar Nef Alekseevich was of a clearly expressed conservative nature. After all, the transformation of all state institutions and structures of government did not destroy the most traditional foundations of Russian society - the autocratic system of government and serfdom, which in essence were the main levers in carrying out reforms. In addition, as a result of these reforms, the power of the ruler acquired a truly immense character, including the right of the emperor to appoint his own successor. And serfdom spread to the noble class, which was obliged to serve the state for life.
The personality of Peter I (1672-1725) rightfully belongs to the galaxy of prominent historical figures on a global scale. Many studies and works of art are devoted to the transformations associated with his name. Historians and writers have assessed the personality of Peter I and the significance of his reforms in different, sometimes even contradictory, ways.
/. Economic development of Russia during the reign of Peter 1.
New lands of the southern districts of the Volga region and Siberia were introduced into economic circulation. Thanks to government intervention, the acreage of industrial crops (flax, hemp, tobacco) expanded, new breeds of Merino sheep were planted (for the production of high-quality cloth), and horse breeding developed (for the needs of the cavalry).
However, the innovations did not affect the peasant economy. Its feudal, subsistence nature hampered the expansion of production and productivity growth.
Industry on the First Thursday of the 18th century. experienced the most significant changes in connection with the military needs of Russia and the active policy of the state, which managed to mobilize the country's natural and human resources. The development of a new industrial region began - the Urals, which soon became the center of domestic metallurgy. By the end of the reign of Peter the Great, Russia fully satisfied its needs for metal and, occupying 3rd place in the world in terms of its production, began selling abroad, where “Russian iron” was valued higher in quality than Swedish iron.
Light industry developed through the creation of manufactories that produced products for military needs and, to a much lesser extent, for the domestic market. The Khamovny yard in Moscow was turned into a large enterprise that produced canvas for the fleet. The Cloth Yard was also founded there. By 1718, Russia was freed from the need to import textile products. In total, about 200 manufactories were founded in the country.
The main feature of the Russian industrial industry was that it was created primarily at the expense of the treasury and for a long time was under direct state control, the forms and methods of which changed.
In the first decade of the 18th century. the state created and directly supervised manufactories. However, the increase in their number and the complexity of organizing management, and most importantly, the unprofitability of production, pushed the government to a new policy.
From the middle of the second decade, state-owned enterprises, primarily unprofitable ones, were transferred into private hands. Private enterprise was encouraged. The creation of merchant companies, providing them with loans and benefits strengthened the position of leading manufacturers, but did not mean the state’s self-removal from the industrial sphere. Control was maintained, for example, through a system of government orders. The activities of the enterprises were carefully monitored by the Berg and Manufactory Boards, which carried out periodic inspections.
The second feature of Russian industry was the use of serf food in factories. At the beginning of the century, people of different social status, including free and runaway peasants, worked at a few enterprises. With the growth of industry, factories experienced an acute shortage of workers. The solution to the problem was possible only through the use of forced labor. State peasants were involved in auxiliary work; entire villages were assigned to one or another plant and were required to perform their duties there for 2-3 months. And in 1721, Peter allowed manufacturers (among them the majority were not nobles) to buy serfs for factories, who later became known as possessions. They became the property not of the breeder but of the enterprise. In 1736, all free people working in factories were enslaved, forming the so-called category. "ever-given people."
The development of trade, as well as industry, was largely stimulated by the state, which was trying to increase revenues to the treasury. In domestic trade, fairs (Makaryevskaya, Svenskaya, Irbitskaya) continued to play a leading role in trade wholesale operations.
Increased importance foreign trade. Using forceful methods, the tsar began to transfer trade from Arkhangelsk (its turnover fell 12 times) to the Baltic Sea, which caused the dissolution of many merchant families. In addition, the development of foreign trade was hampered by the lack of its own merchant fleet, which brought a loss of 10 million rubles. per year.
In 1724, a customs protectionist tariff was introduced in Russia, designed to protect Russian industry from foreign
competition and promote an active trade balance. Low duties were introduced on exports to stimulate the sale of Russian goods on foreign markets. A high import duty was established if these products were produced in Russia, and low if they were not produced and were necessary for domestic industry (paints, wool, raw sugar, etc.)
The protectionist nature of the foreign trade policy of the government of Peter I ensured Russia's active trade balance - the export of goods in 1726 exceeded imports by 2 times.
During the reign of Peter I, the number of nobility increased sharply - 5 times. The government's policy was aimed at strengthening the ranks and uniting the Russian nobility.
The decree of 1714 on single inheritance acquired in this regard special meaning. He legally equalized estates and fiefdoms, declaring all estates belonging to nobles their hereditary property. At the same time, the law allowed its inheritance only by one of the sons, which was supposed to prevent the fragmentation of estates and the dispersion of the noble class. However, the main meaning of the law was to create among the bulk of the nobility a material interest in serving the state. Noble children, having no prospects of inheritance, were now forced to connect their well-being with education and service in the army, navy or bureaucracy.
The decree on single inheritance was accompanied by laws prohibiting the promotion of noblemen who had not served as privates in the guards regiments to officers, the marriage of noble “minors” who had not mastered the basics of mathematics, the purchase of estates by those who had not served anywhere, etc.
A special role in the organization and consolidation of the noble class was played by the adoption on January 24, 1722 of the “Table of Ranks” - a state law that determined the procedure for serving and establishing a hierarchy of service ranks. Now the principle of occupying a particular government position based on nobility was replaced by a bureaucratic one. Advancement up the career ladder depended on length of service, education, and, ultimately, on the personal abilities of the nobleman.
In three categories of service - civilian, military and palace - all positions were divided into 14 ranks - from the 1st highest, for example, chancellor in the civil service, to the 14th lowest - collegiate registrar. The "Table of Ranks" separated the official class from the lower bureaucracy. Under Peter, an official already from the 14th rank received personal, and from the 8th (collegiate assessor) - hereditary nobility. For the military, hereditary nobility was granted already from the 14th rank - the lowest officer rank of ensign. This made it possible for the most capable representatives of the “vile” classes to make their way up the social ladder, which strengthened the ranks of the nobility.
Thus, the government's policy, while somewhat infringing on the material rights of the nobility, mobilized it to serve the state and social class interests.
The main burden of modernization of the country, which was also taking place under extreme war conditions, was borne by the peasantry, who made up 92% of the Russian population. Tens of thousands of peasants, forcibly mobilized by the state, built shipyards, fortresses, factories, and erected a new capital in the swamps - St. Petersburg. Peasants also formed the main backbone of the Russian army. They were pressured by ever-increasing taxes, as well as state and lordly duties.
Since taxes were collected from each household, peasants and townspeople, in an effort to reduce the payment of taxes, often united and lived in one household with several families. The state, having conducted a population census since 1718, switched to per capita taxation. Since 1724, various taxes were replaced by a single poll tax (74 kopecks from a male landowner peasant and 1 ruble 14 kopecks from a townsman or state peasant).
As a result, the reforms led to an increase in the total volume of taxation by 2-3 times. The tax reform strengthened serfdom, spreading it to new layers of society - walking people and serfs, who previously could gain freedom after the death of the master. A by-product of the reform was the elimination of servitude. In the process of carrying out the reform, a new category of peasants was formed, called state peasants. It included the black-growing peasants of the North, the single-lords of the southern districts, and the Yasash people of the First Yuvolga region and Siberia. A passport system was created. A peasant who went to work further than 30 miles from his place of residence was required to have a passport - a document from the landowner indicating the period of return home. The passport system has made it possible to tighten the fight against the flight of Craigians. In addition, the fine for harboring a fugitive has increased to 100 rubles.
Thus, the government’s tax policy strengthened serfdom, led to the rapprochement of various layers of the peasantry, and increased its exploitation, especially by the state
The sharp deterioration in the situation of the masses, who bore the brunt of the reforms on their shoulders, led to various kinds of protests by the lower classes of society. The most common form of protest was the flight of peasants from under the yoke of state and landlord exploitation. By the end of the reign of Peter 1, 200 thousand fugitive souls were recorded. But periodically, discontent erupted in active, violent forms.
Results of socio-economic transformations of Peter I
As a result of the transformations, powerful industrial production, a strong army and navy were created, which allowed Russia to gain access to the sea, overcome isolation, reduce the gap with the advanced countries of Europe and become great power peace.
However, forced modernization and borrowing of technologies were carried out due to a sharp increase in archaic forms of exploitation of the people, who paid an extremely high price for the positive results of the reforms.
In addition to military and foreign policy successes, the imagination of contemporaries was struck by the gigantic construction projects in Russia at the beginning of the 18th century, which had no analogues in the history of other states of that time. An entire city was built - a new northern capital (St. Petersburg), other cities were founded, giant canals were dug. Of course, such major successes required colossal material sacrifices and human losses from Russia. However, thanks to Peter’s reforms, Russia in the first quarter of the 18th century, in terms of the level of its economic development, military power and the culture of the privileged strata of Russian society became equal to the advanced states of Europe and maintained this parity for a whole century.
