Transcript Russian in 1815

Imperial Russia
Russian in 1815
Introduction
◼ 19th
century Russia- what made her
different?
◼ Often
seen as one of a number of
European states; as misleading as saying
Russia is part of western Europe today
◼ Geography,
social and political structures,
trade, industry and economy
Different from Europe
◼
Did not share the same intellectual traditions
(entrenched enlightenment ideals)
◼
Russian Orthodox Church
◼
No tradition of the Tsar ever sharing power with any
social group
◼
Russian alphabet
◼
Eastern/Asian cultural mix
◼
Size, held together only by the autocratic power of the
Tsar rather than by any natural bond between people
Russian Geography
Russian Geography
Russian Geography
Russia covered 1/6th of the total
surface of the world
◼ 1815-
◼ Diversity
of the regions and the diversity
of the climate placed severe limitations on
Russia’s development and growth
◼ Tundra
in the north, great forest zone, the
steppe and the semi-desert of Central
Asia
Russian Geography
◼
Eastern Siberia has the same latitude as
England but is impossible to cultivate
◼
Only in the steppes and southern forest zone
is there a ‘growing season’- very short
◼
The North of European Russia (the old
Russian state) has frozen ground for 8
months
◼
One harvest in three would not support the
population
Russian Geography
◼ Result
of these conditions- the peasantry
were poor – 1:3 (three grains gathered for
every one planted), Europe averaged 1:5
◼ Russian
peasants had very little surplus to
meet the needs of a bad year, to eat, to
sell or to feed animals in the winter
Russian Geography
◼ Western
Europe- growth of trade and
cities went hand in hand with
improvements in agriculture- incentive for
increased production
◼ In
Russia that incentive was lacking due
to the social structure…
Social Structure
◼ 96%-
rural population
◼ Social
unit was based on the extended
family group- 50 people or more
◼ Mir-
village commune- a concept more
than a term
◼ Mir-
made up of a number of smaller
families- fewer than 500 inhabitants
Peasants
•
- village communes - insufficient land to
support families
•
- low technology; inefficient farming
•
- bad diet - high mortality rate; vodka
•
- incessant labor
•
- superstitious, fatalistic, ignorant, and
illiterate
•
- therefore, Tsar viewed as “little Father”
Mir
◼ Heads
of families made decisionsnobility/landlords agreed with this
◼ Landlords
did not administrating- Mir did
all that
◼ Communal
nature suited the situationshort growing season demanded intense
coordinated activity
Peasants
◼
Serfs- privately owned- bought and sold (not the
same as slaves in America)
◼
State peasants- lived on land that was not owned
privately but owned by the state
◼
Both peasants were allowed to keep the profits of
their labour, above the demands of the landlord or
state
◼
But due to the harsh conditions and the
inefficiency of the system, prevented impossible
demands
Peasants
Serfdom existed in Russia until 1861- most of Europe
abolished serfs starting in the 13th century
Even Austria had abolished it by the late 1700s
In Russia it remained as a block to individual innovation
and enterprise
83% of Russian population were peasants
What of the rest? Productive and Unproductive members
of society (see handout)
Class Structure
- Meshchanin- middle class- a variety of poorer town dwellers such as
labourers, artisans and shopkeepers
- Movement between classes was possible theoretically but the lower down
you went the harder it was to move
- Raznochintsy- well educated, non noble, Russian Intelligentsia (no real
place)
- Everything was linked to the nature and form of the Russian autocracyeveryone had a place and station in life, and it was very difficult to alter that
place and situation
- natually this stifles ambition, enterprise and initiative
The Autocracy
◼Totally and willing submission of Russian subjects
◼- “Father figure”, “Little Father”, loved all his ‘children’- punish when
necessary and keep order
◼Protect the fatherland from external threats (therefore success is attributed
to the individual performance)
◼- Never shared power with any groups- and Russians believed this was
normal- sharing of power would lead to corruption and growth of privileged
groups (evil)
◼- Not even the biggest critics of the regimes never questioned the idea of
autocracy but rather focused on inefficient landlords and officials
The Autocracy
◼Hard to defend borders, with multiple nationalities requires strong centralized
leadership
◼Communication very (VERY) slow- therefore Tsar’s representatives often received
the blame- the Tsar was remote
◼Orthodox Church saw the Tsar as a divine emperor and supported him
◼Orthodox church were part of the autocracy- supported financially by the state and
chosen from the upper class- Main emphasis on ritual and the next world
◼Did not take an active part in politics (this world doesn’t matter)
◼The ‘opiate of the masses’- in Russia for sure
◼Bureaucratic nature of the autocracy (created by Peter the Great 1700s)
Trade, Industry and Economy
◼Russian economy was not backward or underdeveloped- it was slow developing and
minimally diversified
◼1800 Russian production was roughly the equivalent of England- by 1850 England
produced 12 times as much
◼Investment and modernization did not take place in Russia as it did elsewhereprotectionism, use of serf labour- no perceived need to change
◼Cotton industry was expansive (thanks to Napoleon) but it was never as intense as
England
◼The relative stagnation was due to the Russian state’s organization: traditional
markets, royal appointment monopolies, no competitive business
◼Money was scarce (lack of investment)
◼The freedom and infrastructure in Europe, which encouraged economic growth in
the West and America did not exist in Russia and there was no thrusting middle
class to push modernization forward