2. Alexander II

Question 1

Alex II

Tutored by…

Answer 1

Mikail Spernsky (reformer)
Vasily Zhukovsky (romantic poet)
= leading him to be far more liberal than father

Question 2

Characteristics which showed him as ‘weak’

Answer 2

• Admitted to one of tutors in 1829 that he wished he hadn’t been born into it.
• “not strong character’
• More emphathetic and liberal.
• Travelled Russia and witnesssed backwardsness - 1837 visited 300 provances.

Question 3

Emancipation of the Serfs

The Russian peasant

Answer 3

• 85% pop, 50% serfs.
• Rapid pop growth not matched with rapid productivity.
• “head of our domestic problems which we must tackle stands…the question of serfdom.” - Samarin, prominent Slavophile.

Question 4

Emancipation of the Serfs

State peasants

Answer 4

Degrees of freedom, 1937 - able to own land

Question 5

Emancipation of the Serfs

Serf’s life

Answer 5

• Lived dominated by Mir.
• Only action not avalible to owners = murder.
  1. Obrok - paid rent and very mistreated.
  2. Barishina paid in labour

Question 6

Emancipation of the Serfs

Emancipation edict 1861

Answer 6

• Right of bondage forever abolished.
• Only applied to privately owned - state serfs freed 1866.
• Freed serfs to pay repemption payments, felt cheated.
• Landowners recieved compensation - nobility felt cheated as they lost land.
• 15% remained temporarily obligated until 1881.

Question 7

Emancipation of the Serfs

Concequences for Tsar

Answer 7

• People critical of his actions, calls for a contitution.
• 647 peasant riots 1st 4 months of ‘61.

Question 8

Emancipation of the serfs

Other concequences

Answer 8

• Nobility demanded political power in return for loss of serfs.
• 1861 - 1/4 farmers not self-efficient, 1900 - 1/2.
• 51 mil freed.
• Great origin for rev/opp groups.
• Landowners 115K to 107k.
• Land owned 200mil - 144mil acres.

Question 9

Military reforms 1869-81

Reforms

Answer 9

• Conscription compolsory and reduced 25 to 15 years (plus 10 reserve).
• Abolished military colonies.
• Bettermed care.
• Military colleges = better training, punishments less servere.

Question 10

Military reforms 1869-81

Effects

Answer 10

• Army = smaller and better trained.
• More money saved by gov.
• Quality of training improved.

Question 11

Military reforms 1869-81

Limitations

Answer 11

• Opposed by nobility.
• Many didn’t want complusory service.
• Still relied on peasants = training ineffective.
• slow process of introducing new weapons.

Question 12

Military reforms 1869-81

Motives

Answer 12

• Crimean war loss.
• Took up 1/3 gov expenditure + 45% spending.
• Poorly trained and unsucsessful.

Question 13

Local gov reforms 1964

Motives

Answer 13

• Governers had no defined role.
• Lack of co-ordination (only 100,000 docs issued anually)
• Few personal staff to admin whole country.
• 50 occasions of peasant unrest each year.

Question 14

Local gov reforms 1964

Reforms

Answer 14

• Zemstva established.
• to be elected by nobels
• town dwellers and peasant councils had general responsiblities for health, education, and infastructure.

Question 15

Local gov reforms 1964

Effects

Answer 15

• Zemstva brought improvements to roads, healthcare, schools + developed transport.
• Nobels and councils gained political experience and many wanted to see if could be taken to national level.
• Members of professional third level began to make demands for social reform and living conditions.

Question 16

Local gov reforms 1964

Limitations

Answer 16

• Zemstva introduced limited provances + slow to get going.
• Dominated by nobility who didn’t take responsibility seriously.
• Results were patchy.
• Local marshalls and gov vetod some decisions .
• Peasants didn’t really appreciate.

Question 17

Financial and econ reforms

Reforms

Answer 17

• State bank founded 1866.
• Savings bank 1869.
• Systematic overhaul of national finances achieved 1862.
• Industrial growth significant.
• serfs freed = more incentive to work, promoted industry.
• 1860-1890 = annual coal production growth 1200%.
• Gov rev grew drastically .
• Tax collecting no longer carried out by private farmers but became regular national buracracy issue. No income tax but tax on products.

Question 18

Education reforms

Motives

Answer 18

Alex II recorgnised modern state required more educated population after serfdom abolished.

Question 19

Education reforms

Education decree

Answer 19

1863
provided establishments for 2 free primary schools and Zemstva ran schools.

Question 20

Education reforms

Effects

Answer 20

• Increase in primary and secondary, alllowed peasants tp have new, higher aspirations.
• more acsess to higher education.
• secondary schools for woman.
• primary for all.
• mutual aid groups formed and communal kitchens and libaries.

Question 21

Education reforms

limitations

Answer 21

• not all children achieved full education.
• only 30% literate after the reform.
• only 2% of pop attended uni
• intelligensia critisiced - made them view education as dangerous.

Question 22

Judicial reforms 1864

Motives

Answer 22

• system took years
• most judges had no training and illiterate.
• courts relied on bribary, word of noble over peasant + man over woman.
• onlt relied on written evidence which wasn’t challeneged.
• police had great power.

Question 23

Judicial reforms 1864

reforms

Answer 23

• simplified with fewer courts.
• judges paid good salaries - more independant.
• courts open to public.
• jury trials introduced for more serious criminal cases.
• more modern.

Question 24

Judicial reforms 1864

effects

Answer 24

• fairer trials
• less corruption
• worked quicker
• costs nothing to appear in them.
• created a legal challenge, political authority - freedom of lawyers + juries independant.

Question 25

Judicial reforms 1864

Limitations

Answer 25

• separate coruts for peasants - largely outside mainstream system.
• church coruts remained outside system + military courts.
• buracracy still intervened.
• mainly impacte large cities.

Question 26

Censorship 1870

motive

Answer 26

to give people more freedom + allow people to form own opinions + be informed.

Question 27

Censorship 1870

reforms

Answer 27

• newspapers and periodical no longer had to submit to prior censorship.
• could now discuss gov policy + jury trials.

Question 28

Censorship 1870

effects

Answer 28

• created more relaxed atmosphere - led to huge growth in published books.
• more public opinion.
• some editors reported allowed social issues - enabled informed public.

Question 29

Censorship 1870

limitations

Answer 29

• some became overly radical and were shit down
• bans implimented on certain topics