Alexander II 1853- 1881

Question 1

1853

Answer 1

• Tsarist rule for 200 years
• Russia occupied 1/6 of the world’s total landmass
• Mid c19th = 90% of the population are serfs
• Less than 1% are nobility= mostly land owners or serf owners
• Lack of economic progress due the serfs = free labour more progressive than forced labour
• Crimean war starts

Question 2

1855

Answer 2

-Alexander II takes power = understood that Russia needed reform but was a conservative

Question 3

1856

Answer 3

• End of the Crimean war; showed Russian’s poor communication skills and resources= no railway south of Moscow. Army was unprepared and bad leadership led the driving force for reform. Showed the need for an industrial revolution= could’ve helped with buying better resources for the army
• Alexander II tells the nobility that it is better to ‘abolish serfdom from above’ = Stop uprisings from the serfs

Question 4

1861

Answer 4

• Emancipation of the serfs =Serfs are given land redemption payments of 49 years
• Radical intelligentsia felt that it protected the nobles too much
• Done due to the risk of revolt
• Serfs gained the right to vote, marry and travel
• Crimean War= showed that they needed trained individuals within the army, not serfs

Question 5

1862

Answer 5

• Army and Navvy reforms = universal conscription at 21 for all classes = more involvement from everyone and not just peasants/serfs
• Officer training improved= military colleges established admitted people who were non nobles
• However still a high number of nobility amongst officers = putting royal family members as officers despite being untrained

Question 6

1863

Answer 6

• Polish revolt= Poles wanted independence but the Tsar saw this as anti-Russian = gave Polish nobility’s land to others and exiled them to Siberia = showed how the tsar couldn’t control the population
• Education reforms= Primary and secondary classes open to all= More literate population allowed the lower classes to gain access to new ideological ideas

Question 7

1864

Answer 7

• Local government reforms; Zemstva formed meant that there was better health and education in communities (had local ambassadors), dominated by the nobility which they used for their own interests
• Judicial reforms; better judges = paid good salaries and couldn’t be removed from office, still separate court for peasants= showed the insignificant of their status.

Question 8

1865

Answer 8

• Censorship laws = relaxing of the system

- State of Russian bank formed

Question 9

1873

Answer 9

-The Narodnik ‘going to the people’ movement begins = involved middle classes dressing up as peasants and trying to enter peasant villages. Inspired by Peter Lavrov’s writings. Mostly failed as peasants didn’t want to join in.

Question 10

1877

Answer 10

-Russo- Turkish War= shows the weakness of the Russian gov and army

Question 11

1879

Answer 11

-Black partition and People’s Will form= People’s will take inspiration from Narodnik movement = separacted from Land and Liberty

Question 12

1880

Answer 12

-Third section abolished = forming of the Loris-Melakov commission suggesting reform = more civil liberties to peasants and zemstva help make laws

Question 13

1881

Answer 13

-Alexander II assassinated by People’s Will

Question 14

1866

Answer 14

-Assassination attempt on Alexander II=turns reactionary. Third section created= tightening on censorship and education= no modern subjects allowed to be taught= Alex II believed this is were revolutionary ideas stemmed from