Russian empire by the beginning of the 19th century, territory, population, socio-economic development of the country. Russian empire at the beginning of the 19th century
Lecture 11 Russian empire v late XIX- the beginning of the XX century. : search for ways to modernize Russian society(90s of XIX-1914)
Plan 1. Leading trends in world development at the turn of the XIX - XX centuries. 2. Political and socio-economic processes in the Russian Empire in the late XIX - early XX centuries. 3. Revolutionary upheavals of 1905-1907. and the third June monarchy (1907 -1914).
XX century - the century of the great achievements of mankind and global antagonisms This is the time: grandiose scientific discoveries; world wars; deep democratic transformations; brutal tyrannical regimes. ... The origins of the contradictions of the 20th century go back to the 18th-19th centuries. during the formation of industrial civilization, when, as a result of the industrial revolution, an industrial society came to replace the traditional agrarian society, where industry became the defining branch of the economy.
Types of modernization "Organic modernization" The epicenter of the 1st echelon of modernization is England - with subsequent spread to continental Europe and North America. "Progressive" model of development: the genesis of capitalism was carried out mainly on the basis of self-development from the initial accumulation of capital to the industrial revolution and factory production. "Inorganic modernization", the epicenter of the II echelon of modernization - Russia, a number of countries in Europe (Germany, Italy, Scandinavian states) and Asia (Japan). the decisive role in the processes of industrial development was played by the state.
The turn of the XIX-XX centuries. - new signs of an industrial society: The term "imperialism" is used by capitalism of free competition gradually began to acquire by modern researchers for the features of monopoly capitalism, entering into trends in the characteristics of the new imperialist stage of development. political life of the economic and leading industrial powers of the world, manifested in the late XIX - early XX century. Qualitative indicators of imperialist development: q high concentration of production and the formation of monopolies; q active implementation of the achievements of scientific and technological progress in production; q consolidation and monopolization of bank capital; q merger of banking capital with industrial capital and the formation of large financial and industrial groups; q export of capital and the formation of large transnational corporations; q strengthening of economic and political expansion; q struggle for the redistribution of spheres of influence and new territories between the most powerful states in the world.
The share of leading countries in world industrial production in the late 19th - early 20th centuries Years Germany France England USA Russia 1870 13, 2 10, 3 31, 8 23, 3 4, 0 18961913 16, 6 7, 1 19, 5 30, 1 5, 0 1913 15, 9 6, 4 14, 0 35, 8 5, 3
Russian Empire at the turn of the XIX - XX centuries. By the beginning of the XX century. The Russian Empire ranked 2nd in the world in terms of territory and population, second only to Great Britain along with the colonies.
Russian Empire at the turn of the XIX - XX centuries. q Territory - 22 million sq. km (17% of the entire earth's surface). q Administrative divisions - 81 provinces and 20 regions. q Population - according to the All-Russian census of 1897, 128.2 million people lived in Russia. , of which 57% were non-Russian peoples. By 1914 the population of Russia had increased to 182 million. q The political system is an absolute monarchy. q Major estates: nobility, clergy, urban inhabitants (city dwellers), rural inhabitants (peasants). q Economic condition - agrarian-industrial middle-developed country.
Russian Empire hereditary absolute monarchy "Basic laws of the Russian Empire" Article 1. "The All-Russian Emperor is an autocratic and unlimited monarch. To obey his supreme power is not only out of fear, but also out of conscience God himself commands. " q Concentration of the entire completeness of legislative and executive power in the hands of the emperor. q High degree of bureaucratization of public administration. q Complete absence of representative institutions of power, civil rights and freedoms. q Lack of legal political parties.
Nicholas II Alexandrovich (1868 -1918) - the last Russian emperor (1894 -1917) q He ascended the throne in 1894 after the death of his father, Alexander III. q Wife - Alexandra Feodorovna (Princess Alice of Hesse-Darmstadt). q Children: Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia, Alexey. q He considered the autocracy unshakable and saw in it the main condition for the prosperity of Russia. q On March 2, 1917, he signed the Manifesto on the abdication of the throne. q From March 8, 1917, by decree of the Provisional Government, he was kept under arrest, first in Tsarskoe Selo, and then in Tobolsk. q On July 17, 1918, he was shot with his family by the decision of the Ural Regional Council of Workers 'and Soldiers' Deputies and with the sanction of the leaders of Soviet Russia V. I. Lenin and Ya. V. Sverdlov. q In 2000, the royal family was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church.
The process of modernization is a determining factor in the social development of Russia at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Modernization is a gradual transition from a traditional agrarian society to an industrial society. q Industrialization - accelerated development of industry. q Urbanization - urban growth and urban population growth. q Democratization is the political reform of the government. q The dynamism of the social system is the destruction of social isolation. q Growth of educational and general cultural level of the population. q Secularization of public consciousness. All the leading powers have gone through a similar period of development.
Specificity of Russian modernization Reasons: specific features of historical development. Manifestations: q in the economy - multi-structure; q in the social sphere - the unequal position of the estates, the lack of land of the peasants, the unresolved labor issue, the dual position of the bourgeoisie (economic wealth and political powerlessness), national oppression; q in the political structure - the outdated system of state structure of the empire, the absence of representative bodies of power, civil rights and freedoms; q in the spiritual sphere - the preservation of traditional consciousness, low literacy of the population.
Alternatives to Russian modernization Conservative-conservative course (Nicholas II, VK Pleve) ▲ Growth of the material well-being of Russians, while respecting the social and economic interests of the nobility ▲ Preservation of the inviolability of the autocratic monarchy. Liberal reformist course (S. Yu. Witte, PD Svyatopolk-Mirsky) ▲ Accelerated industrial development ▲ Gradual, government-controlled, political reform of a bourgeois-liberal nature. Radical-revolutionary course (parties with a socialist orientation - RSDLP, AKP) ▲ Abolition of autocracy, transfer of power into the hands of the people. ▲ Building a new social society in Russia on the basis of people's self-government, public property and the elimination of the exploitation of man by man.
Witte Sergei Yulievich (1849 -1915) q Graduated from the Novorossiysk University in Odessa. q From 1889 - Director of the Railways Department of the Ministry of Finance. q Since 1892 - Minister of Finance. q Since 1903 - Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers. q From 1905 to 1906 - Chairman of the Council of Ministers. q He considered Alexander III to be the ideal emperor.
Reform activities of S. Yu. Witte The goal is to turn Russia into a leading industrial power q q q q Ways of implementation: state protectionism of industry; achieving financial stability by strengthening the Russian ruble through its gold backing (monetary reform of 1897); creation of transport infrastructure based on railway construction, including the Trans-Siberian Railway; attraction of foreign capital on the basis of state guarantees; agrarian reform with the aim of eliminating peasants' land shortage, free withdrawal of peasants from the community (1902-1905, "Special meeting on the peasant question"); development of working legislation (1897 -1903); preparation of the Manifesto on October 17, 1905
Pleve Vyacheslav Konstantinovich (1846 - 1904) q In 1867 he graduated from the Faculty of Law of the Imperial Moscow University. q From 1881 to 1884 - Director of the State Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. q Since 1885 - Deputy (Deputy) Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. q Since 1902, after the assassination of the Minister of Internal Affairs, DS Sipyagin, he was appointed to the post of Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. q Member of the Russian Assembly - the first monarchist organization. q In 1904 he was killed by the Socialist-Revolutionary E. S. Sazonov.
State course of VK Pleve: "Russia will be freed from the oppression of capital and the bourgeoisie and the struggle of estates" The goal is to preserve the traditional way of life in Russia (estates, religiosity, peasant community) due to the hopelessness of the development of capitalism in Russia. Ways of implementation: q Encouragement of labor entrepreneurship, harsh prosecution of the activities of financial swindlers, speculators, unscrupulous entrepreneurs; q introducing measures to restrict the exploitation of hired workers; support of the local nobility and the peasantry on the basis of strengthening state control over the activities of zemstvo institutions 1902 - banning zemstvos from collecting statistical information, 1903 - abolishing mutual responsibility for peasants; q active struggle against the revolutionary movement (police terror, shootings of demonstrations, punitive expeditions to areas of peasant unrest); q achieving social stability through strengthening administrative and police control.
Svyatopolk-Mirsky Petr Dmitrievich (1857 - 1914) q Graduated from the Corps of Pages, Nikolaev Academy of the General Staff. q Participated in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878. q In 1890 -1900 was the leader of the nobility of the Kharkov province, the governor in Penza and Yekaterinoslav. q In 1900, he became assistant (deputy) minister of the interior. q In 1904, after the assassination of VK Pleve, he was appointed Minister of the Interior. q On January 18, 1905, he was dismissed.
Reforms proposed by P. D. Svyatopolk-Mirsky The reform project: "On measures to improve the state order" was developed in November 1904. Purpose: with the help of liberal reforms to attract the bourgeois opposition to the side of the government and prevent a revolutionary outburst Content: q partial amnesty of political prisoners q weakening of censorship q inclusion of elected representatives from zemstvos and city dumas in the State Council
The Russo-Japanese War January 27, 1904 - August 23, 1905 VK Pleve "Russia needs a small victorious war!" "The cruiser" Varyag "and the gunboat" Koreets "in the battle of Chemulpo" (artist unknown) q The war between Russia and Japan for control over Manchuria and Korea. q One of the first wars of the 20th century. for the redistribution of spheres of influence. q The defeat of Russia in the Russo-Japanese War accelerated the first Russian revolution. q. Reasons for Russia's defeat: q underestimation of the enemy's military strength; qsuddenness of the first strike from Japan; q incompleteness of rearmament Russian army; q errors and incompetence of the command of the Russian troops.
Brief Chronicle of the Russo-Japanese War q January-December 1904. A surprise attack by the Japanese fleet on the Russian cruiser Varyag and the gunboat Koreets. Heroic Defense Russian troops of Port Arthur. q August 1904 The defeat of the Russian troops at Liaoyang (Manchuria). q February 1905 Japanese victory at Mukden. The death of the 1st Russian Pacific squadron while trying to break through to Vladivostok. q May 1905 Tsushima naval battle. Defeat of the 2nd and 3rd Pacific squadrons of Russia. August 23 (September 5) 1905 signing of a peace treaty in Portsmouth (USA). Portsmouth Peace Treaty between Russia and Japan Russia recognized Korea as a sphere of influence of Japan and ceded to Japan: q South Sakhalin, q rights to the Liaodong Peninsula with the cities of Port Arthur and Dalny, q part of the South Caucasus Railway from Port Arthur to Kuanchengzi.
Causes of the 1905-1907 revolution The systemic crisis was provoked by the contradiction between the socio-economic development of an industrial type (capitalist relations) and the political system of a traditional society (absolute monarchy). ... q Remnants of feudal land tenure - landlord economy and peasants' land shortages. q The desire of the bourgeoisie to participate in government. q Preservation of the absolute monarchy as an attribute of feudal society, the need to restructure the political system. q Labor and national issues.
The main political forces of the revolution of 1905-1907 Three political camps in the revolution Government camp Liberal bourgeois camp Preservation of the absolute monarchy A constitutional monarchy Revolutionary Democratic Camp Democratic Republic
Periodization of the first Russian revolution January 9, 1905 - June 3, 1907 Stage I - the upward development of the revolution - January-September 1905. q Bloody Sunday January 9, 1905 - the shooting of a peaceful demonstration in St. Petersburg. q Growth of the workers ', peasants', social movement. q Unrest in the army and navy. "January 9, 1905 on Vasilievsky Island." Artist V. Makovsky
Periodization of the first Russian revolution January 9, 1905 - June 3, 1907 Stage II - the culmination of the revolution - October-December 1905 q All-Russian October political strike. q Manifesto of October 17, 1905 q December armed uprising in Moscow.
Periodization of the first Russian revolution January 9, 1905 - June 3, 1907 q q q Stage III - decline of the revolution - January 1906-June 1907 Tightening government measures in the fight against revolutionary actions. The gradual fading of the protests. Growth in the number of political parties and the revitalization of their activities on a legal basis. Elections to the 1st and 2nd State Dumas. P. A. Stolypin's bills on reforming the agrarian sector of the economy. Formation of a new political system - the "Duma" ("June third") monarchy. June 3, 1907 - "the third June coup d'etat", the dissolution of the II State Duma and the adoption of a new electoral law
Manifesto "On the improvement of state order" dated October 17, 1905. Contents q Granting political rights and freedoms to Russian citizens. q Establishment of the State Duma - a legislative advisory representative body of power. Draft prepared by S. Yu. Witte and signed by Nicholas II Significance q Limitation of the autocratic power of the emperor. q Formation of legal political parties in Russia. q The beginning of the formation of Russian parliamentarism, the activities of the State Duma of an elected representative body of power.
I State Duma April 27 - July 8, 1906 "Reception in the St. George Hall of the Winter Palace on the occasion of the opening of the First State Duma on April 27, 1906" (artist V. V. Polyakov)
I State Duma April 27 - July 8, 1906 Chairman - Cadet S. A. Muromtsev The majority of deputy seats (43%) were held by the Cadets. The main issue is the agrarian one. Worked for 72 days. Dismissed for failure to "calm the people."
Second State Duma February 20 - June 2, 1907 Chairman - Cadet S. A. Golovin The majority of the deputy seats were held by the revolutionary democratic parties (43%) and the Cadets (19%). The main issues are agrarian, educational reform, taxation, political freedoms. Dissolved on charges of 55 deputies of conspiracy against the royal family.
The new electoral law of June 3, 1907. Purpose: to ensure representation in the State Duma of political forces loyal to the official government, the representation decreased: q from peasants (90% of voters) by 2 times - only 22% of electors had the right to elect instead of 42%; q from workers - the number of electors decreased by 2 times (from 4% to 2%); q the number of places from Poland, the Caucasus and Asian Russia (non-Russian peoples of Transbaikalia, peoples of Central Asia), Astrakhan and Stavropol provinces decreased by 3 times; q ensured the privileges of landowners (0.2% of voters) - 50% of electors; q military personnel, students under 25, women did not have the right to vote. Thus, in 1907, the number of voters included only 13% of the country's population, the number of members of the State Duma decreased from 524 to 442.
"Third June" monarchy or "Duma" monarchy (1907 -1914) The political system that took shape in Russia after the revolution of 1905 -1907. , and lasted until the beginning of the First World War Characteristic features q A certain limitation of the power of the emperor by the activities of the Russian parliament q Activities of the Russian parliament - the State Council (upper house) and the State Duma (lower house) q The formation of a multi-party system q Reform activities of P. A. Stolypin
Stolypin Petr Arkadievich (1862 -1911) q. A native of an old noble family, a large landowner. q Graduated from the Natural Sciences Department of the Physics and Mathematics Faculty of St. Petersburg University. q 1902 - Governor of Grodno province. q 1903 - Governor of the Saratov province. q From April 1906 - Minister of the Interior, then - Chairman of the Council of Ministers. Implemented large-scale reforms. q September 1, 1911 was killed by the terrorist D. Bogrov in Kiev.
AF Koni: "Having repeatedly betrayed Stolypin and putting him in a defenseless position in relation to obvious and secret enemies, the" adored monarch "did not find it possible to be at the funeral of the murdered man, but he found an opportunity to terminate the case of connivance of the murderers." On September 1, 1911 at the Kiev Opera House during the intermission of the play "The Tale of Tsar Saltan" P. A. Stolypin was mortally wounded by D. G. Bogrov. He died on September 5, 1911. He was buried in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. On September 9, Bogrov appeared before the Kiev district military court and on September 12, by the verdict of the court, he was hanged.
Reform activity of P. A. Stolypin P. A. Stolypin: "You need great upheavals, we need Great Russia!" ... Agrarian reform. q Introduce freedom of religion. q Establishment of civil equality. q Expansion of labor legislation. q Local government reform. q Introduce universal primary education, improve the material security of the people's teaching. q Reform of higher and secondary schools. q Police reform. q
Agrarian reform of P. A. Stolypin Purpose: creation of a class of peasants - owners - the pillars of stability in the Russian Empire. The program was designed for 20 years with "external and internal tranquility." Contents q On November 9, 1906, a decree was issued “On Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Current Law Concerning Peasant Land Tenure and Land Use”. q June 14, 1910 "Law on Amendments and Supplements to Certain Decrees on Peasant Land Ownership". q Peasants received the right to leave the community with the assignment of communal land to their personal property. q Abolished redemption payments. q The land shortage of the peasants was overcome: v. Part of the state, appanage and land purchased from the landowners was transferred to the Peasant Bank for sale. v A resettlement policy was carried out to the eastern outskirts.
Agrarian reform P. A. Stolypin: “It is necessary to give a capable, hardworking peasant the opportunity to strengthen the fruits of his labors and make them an inalienable property. »Results q 1907 -1914 the community left 28% of households - 2.5 million peasant farms. q 3.3 million people (of which 0.5 million returned) moved beyond the Urals. q The yield increased by 20%. q Sown area increased by 10%. q The export of grain increased by 30%, the marketability of peasant farms increased. q In 1916, peasants sowed (on their own and leased land) 89.3% of the land and owned 94% of farm animals. The landlord economy has lost its economic significance. P. A. Stolypin's reforms were not supported by either the official authorities or society.
III State Duma November 1, 1907 - June 9, 1912 Chairmen N. A. Khomyakov A. I. Guchkov M. V. Rodzianko The Octobrists - the party of large landowners and industrialists - had 154 deputies and controlled the work of the entire Duma. Two majorities were formed: the Right-Octobrist and the Octobrist-Cadet. The main questions are: q budget, q agrarian reform, q reforming the army, q politics on the "national outskirts".
IV State Duma November 15, 1912 - February 27, 1917 Chairman - M. V. Rodzianko q During the First World War, formed the Progressive Bloc and turned into a political opposition to the official government, which became the most important reason for the February Revolution of 1917. q October 6 1917 The Provisional Government dissolved the State Duma in connection with the preparation of the elections. The Constituent Assembly.
Features of the Russian multiparty system q Political parties in Russia emerged much later than in Europe and the United States. q In Russia, for a long time, there were no legal opportunities for party political activities... q The initiator of the creation of parties, regardless of their social orientation, was the Russian intelligentsia. q Socialist parties were the first to form. q The official authorities refused to conduct a constructive dialogue with the State Duma and parties, recognizing only monarchist parties.
Political parties of Russia During the period of the first Russian revolution in Russia there were about 100 parties and 25 unions, organizations and trends. The largest parties represented three main political trends Monarchist (Black Hundred) parties Union of the Russian people Bourgeois-liberal parties Revolutionary democratic parties Union October 17 (Octobrists) Russian Social Democratic Labor Party Constitutional Democratic Party (Cadets) Paria of Socialists Revolutionaries (SRs) Bolsheviks Mensheviks
Conclusions Ø In the late XIX - early XX centuries. in Russia, attempts were made to accelerate economic modernization and political reforms. Ø However, the official authorities were unable to use the possibilities of the June 3 political system to organize the effective activity of the State Duma as a mechanism for dialogue with society and the opposition, which inevitably created the basis for social instability and new revolutionary outbursts. Ø All the obvious and latent contradictions of Russian society were aggravated during the First World War.
Chapter 1. Russian Empire at the end of the XIX - beginning of the XX century
§ 1. Challenges of the industrial world
Features of the development of Russia in the late XIX - early XX century. Russia embarked on the path of modern industrial growth two generations later than France and Germany, a generation later than Italy, and approximately simultaneously with Japan. By the end of the XIX century. the most developed countries of Europe have already completed the transition from a traditional, basically agrarian society to an industrial one, the most important components of which are a market economy, a rule of law and a multi-party system. Industrialization process in the 19th century can be considered a pan-European phenomenon, which had its own leaders and its outsiders. The Great French Revolution and the Napoleonic regime created the conditions for rapid economic development in most of Europe. In England, which became the first industrial power in the world, an unprecedented acceleration of industrial progress began in the last decades of the 18th century. By the end of the Napoleonic Wars, Great Britain was already the undisputed world industrial leader, accounting for about a quarter of the world's total industrial output. With its industrial leadership and its status as a leading maritime power, it has also established itself as a leader in world trade. The UK accounted for about a third of world trade, more than double that of its main rivals. Great Britain retained its dominant position in both industry and trade throughout the 19th century. Although the model of industrialization in France was different from that in England, the results were also impressive. French scientists and inventors had leadership in a number of industries, including hydropower (turbine construction and power generation), steel smelting (open blast furnace) and aluminum, automotive, and at the beginning of the 20th century. - aircraft construction. At the turn of the XX century. new leaders of industrial development appear - the United States, and then Germany. By the beginning of the XX century. the development of world civilization has accelerated dramatically: advances in science and technology have changed the face of the advanced countries of Europe and North America and the quality of life of millions of people. Thanks to continuous growth in production per capita, these countries have achieved unprecedented levels of prosperity. Positive demographic changes (a decrease in mortality and a stabilization of the birth rate) liberate industrialized countries from the problems associated with overpopulation and the establishment of wages at the minimum level that ensures only subsistence. Fueled by completely new, democratic impulses, the outlines of civil society appear, which gain public space in the next XX century. One of the most important features of capitalist development (which in science also has another name - modern economic growth), which began in the first decades of the 19th century. in the most developed countries of Europe and America - the emergence of new technologies, the use of scientific achievements. This can explain the sustainable long-term nature of economic growth. So, in the period between 1820 and 1913. average growth rates of labor productivity in leading European countries ah were 7 times higher than in the previous century. Over the same period, the per capita gross domestic product (GDP) in them has more than tripled, and the share of those employed in agriculture has decreased by 2/3. Thanks to this jump, by the beginning of the XX century. economic development is acquiring new distinctive features and new dynamics. The volume of world trade increased 30 times, the global economy and the global financial system began to form.
Despite the differences, the countries of the first echelon of modernization had many common features, and most importantly, a sharp reduction in the role of agriculture in an industrial society, which distinguished them from countries that had not yet made the transition to an industrial society. The growing efficiency of agriculture in industrialized countries provided a real opportunity to feed the non-agricultural population. By the beginning of the XX century. a significant part of the population of industrialized countries was already employed in industry. Due to the development of large-scale production, the population is concentrated in large cities, and urbanization occurs. The use of machines and new sources of energy makes it possible to create new products that are continuously flowing to the market. This is another difference between an industrial society and a traditional one: the emergence of a large number of people employed in the service sector.
It is no less important that in industrial societies the socio-political structure was based on the equality of all citizens before the law. The complexity of societies of this type made it necessary for the general literacy of the population, the development of the media.
The huge Russian Empire by the middle of the 19th century. remained an agricultural country. The overwhelming majority of the population (over 85%) lived in rural areas and was employed in agriculture. There was only one railway in the country, St. Petersburg - Moscow. Only 500 thousand people worked in factories and plants, or less than 2% of the able-bodied population. Russia produced 850 times less coal than England, and 15-25 times less oil than the United States.
Russia's lagging behind was due to both objective and subjective factors. Throughout the XIX century. the territory of Russia expanded by about 40%, the Caucasus, Central Asia and Finland became part of the empire (although in 1867 Russia had to sell Alaska to the United States). Only the European territory of Russia was almost 5 times larger than the territory of France and more than 10 times that of Germany. In terms of population, Russia was in one of the first places in Europe. In 1858, 74 million people lived within its new borders. By 1897, when the first All-Russian census was held, the population had grown to 125.7 million people (excluding Finland).
The huge territory of the state, the multinational, multi-confessional composition of the population gave rise to problems of effective governance, which the states of Western Europe practically did not face. The development of the colonized lands required a lot of effort and money. Harsh climate and diversity natural environment also had a negative impact on the rate of renewal of the country. Not the least role in Russia's lag behind European countries was played by the later transition to free land ownership by peasants. Serfdom in Russia existed much longer than in other European countries. Due to the dominance of serfdom until 1861, most of the industry in Russia developed on the basis of the forced labor of serfs in large factories.
In the middle of the XIX century. signs of industrialization in Russia are becoming noticeable: the number of industrial workers increases from 100 thousand at the beginning of the century to more than 590 thousand people on the eve of the liberation of the peasants. The general inefficiency of management, and first of all the understanding by Alexander II (emperor in 1855-1881) that the military power of the country directly depends on the development of the economy, forced the government to finally abolish serfdom. Its abolition in Russia occurred about half a century after most European countries did it. According to experts, these 50-60 years is the minimum distance between Russia and Europe in economic development at the turn of the 20th century.
The conservation of feudal institutions made the country uncompetitive in the new historical conditions. Some influential Western politicians saw Russia as a "threat to civilization" and were ready by all means to help weaken its power and influence.
"The beginning of the era of great reforms." The defeat in the Crimean War (1853-1856) quite clearly showed the world not only the serious lag of the Russian Empire behind Europe, but also exposed the exhaustion of the potential with which feudal-serf Russia entered the ranks of the great powers. The Crimean War paved the way for a series of reforms, the most significant of which was the abolition of serfdom. From February 1861, a period of transformations began in Russia, which was later called the era of the Great Reforms. The Manifesto on the abolition of serfdom, signed by Alexander II on February 19, 1861, permanently eliminated the legal belonging of the peasants to the landlord. They were awarded the title of free rural inhabitants. The peasants received personal freedom without ransom; the right to freely dispose of their property; freedom of movement and could henceforth marry without the consent of the landlord; to conclude all kinds of property and civil transactions on its own behalf; open trade and industrial enterprises; pass to other classes. Thus, the law opened up certain opportunities for peasant entrepreneurship, facilitated the withdrawal of peasants to work. The law on the abolition of serfdom was the result of a compromise of various forces, for this reason, it did not fully satisfy any of the parties concerned. The autocratic government, responding to the challenges of the time, undertook to lead the country to capitalism, which was deeply alien to it. Therefore, she chose the slowest path, made the maximum concessions to the landlords, who were always considered the main support of the tsar and the autocratic bureaucracy.
The landowners retained the right to all the land they owned, although they were obliged to provide the peasants with land near the peasant farmstead for permanent use, as well as a field allotment. The peasants were given the right to buy out the estate (the land on which the yard stood) and, by agreement with the landowner, a field allotment. In fact, the peasants received allotments not for ownership, but for use until the full redemption of the land from the landowner. For the use of the land received, the peasants had to either work out its value on the land of the landowner (corvee), or pay the quitrent (money or food). For this reason, the right of peasants to choose, proclaimed in the Manifesto, was practically impracticable. economic activity... Most of the peasants did not have the funds to pay the landlord the entire amount due, so the state paid for them. This money was considered debt. The peasants had to pay off their land debts in small annual payments, called redemption payments. It was assumed that the final settlement of the peasants for the land will be completed within 49 years. Peasants who were not able to immediately redeem the land became temporarily liable. In practice, the payment of the redemption payments has been delayed for many years. By 1907, when the redemption payments were finally completely canceled, the peasants paid out over 1.5 billion rubles, which ultimately far exceeded the average market price of allotments.
In accordance with the law, peasants were to receive from 3 to 12 dessiatines of land (1 dessiatine equals 1.096 hectares), depending on its location. The landowners, under any pretext, tried to cut off the surplus land from the peasant allotments; in the most fertile black earth provinces, the peasants lost up to 30-40% of the land in the form of “pieces”.
Nevertheless, the abolition of serfdom was a huge step forward, contributing to the development of new capitalist relations in the country, but the path chosen by the authorities to eliminate serfdom turned out to be the most burdensome for the peasants - they did not receive real freedom. The landlords continued to hold in their hands the levers of financial influence on the peasants. For the Russian peasantry, the land was a source of subsistence, so the peasants were unhappy that they received the land for a ransom, which had to be paid for many years. After the reform, the land was not their private property. It could not be sold, bequeathed or inherited. At the same time, the peasants had no right to refuse to buy out the land. The main thing is that after the reform, the peasants remained at the mercy of the agricultural community that existed in the village. The peasant did not have the right to freely, without the consent of the community, leave for the city, enter a factory. For centuries, the community protected the peasants and determined their entire life, it was effective with traditional, unchanging methods of farming. The community retained mutual responsibility: it was financially responsible for collecting taxes from each of its members, sent recruits to the army, and built churches and schools. In the new historical conditions, the communal form of land use turned out to be a brake on the path of progress, restraining the process of property differentiation of the peasants, destroying the incentives for the growth of their labor productivity.
Reforms of the 1860-1870s and their consequences. The abolition of serfdom radically changed the entire character of social life in Russia. To adapt the political system of Russia to the new capitalist relations in the economy, the authorities had to first of all create new, all-class administrative structures. In January 1864 g. Alexander II approved the Statute on Zemstvo Institutions. The meaning of the establishment of zemstvos was to involve new layers of free people in the administration. According to this provision, persons of all classes who owned land or other immovable property within the counties, as well as rural peasant societies were granted the right to participate in the affairs of economic management through elected vowels (i.e., having the right to vote) who were part of the county and provincial zemstvo meetings convened several times a year. However, the number of vowels from each of the three ranks (landowners, urban societies, and rural societies) was not the same: the nobles had the advantage. For day-to-day activities, county and provincial zemstvo boards were elected. Zemstvos took care of all local needs: construction and maintenance of roads, food supply for the population, education, medical care. Six years later, in 1870 g., the system of elective all-estates self-government was extended to cities. In accordance with the "City Regulations", the City Duma, elected for a period of 4 years according to the property qualification, was introduced. The creation of a system of local self-government had a positive effect on the solution of many economic and other issues. The most important step along the path of renewal was the reform of the judicial system. In November 1864, the tsar approved a new Judicial Charter, according to which a unified system of judicial institutions was created in Russia in accordance with the most modern world standards. Proceeding from the principle of the equality of all subjects of the empire before the law, an unclassified public court with the participation of a jury and the institution of attorneys at law (lawyers) were introduced. TO 1870 g. new courts were created in almost all provinces of the country.
The growing economic and military power of the leading Western European countries forced the authorities to take a number of measures to reform the military sphere. The main goal of the program outlined by Minister of War D.A. January 1st 1874 g. a decree was signed on the introduction of universal military service. Since 1874, all young people who have reached the age of 21 began to be called up to serve military service. At the same time, the service life was reduced by half, depending on the level of education: in the army - up to 6 years, in the navy - 7 years, and some categories of the population, for example, teachers, were not drafted into the army at all. In accordance with the objectives of the reform, cadet schools and military schools were opened in the country, and recruits from the peasants began to be taught not only military affairs, but also literacy.
In order to liberalize the spiritual sphere, Alexander II carried out an educational reform. New higher educational institutions were opened, a network of primary public schools was developed. In 1863, the University Charter was approved, which again provided higher educational institutions with wide autonomy: the election of rectors and deans, and the obligatory wearing of uniforms by students was abolished. In 1864, a new School Charter was approved, according to which, along with the classical gymnasiums that gave the right to enter universities, real schools were introduced in the country, preparing students for admission to higher technical institutions. Censorship was limited, and hundreds of new newspapers and magazines appeared in the country.
The “great reforms” carried out in Russia since the early 1860s did not solve all the tasks facing the authorities. In Russia, educated representatives of the ruling elite became the bearers of new aspirations. For this reason, the reform of the country came from the top, which determined its peculiarities. The reforms undoubtedly accelerated the country's economic development, emancipated private initiative, removed some vestiges and eliminated deformations. Socio-political modernization carried out "from above" only limited the autocratic order, but did not lead to the creation of constitutional institutions. Legislatively, the autocratic power was not regulated in any way. The great reforms did not touch upon the issues of either the rule of law or civil society; in their course, the mechanisms of civil consolidation of society were not developed, many class differences remained.
Post-reform Russia. The assassination of Emperor Alexander II on March 1, 1881 by radical members of the anti-autocratic organization Narodnaya Volya did not lead to the abolition of autocracy. On the same day, his son Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov became the emperor of Russia. Still Tsarevich Alexander III(Emperor 1881-1894) believed that the liberal reforms carried out by his father weaken the autocratic power of the tsar. Fearing an escalation of the revolutionary movement, the son rejected his father's reformist course. The economic situation in the country was difficult. The war with Turkey demanded huge expenses. In 1881, Russia's public debt exceeded 1.5 billion rubles with an annual income of 653 million rubles. Hunger in the Volga region and inflation exacerbated the situation.
Despite the fact that Russia retained many features of its cultural appearance and social structure inherent only to it, the second half of the 19th century. became a time of accelerated and noticeable cultural and civilizational transformation. From an agrarian country with low-productivity agricultural production by the end of the 19th century. Russia began to turn into an agrarian-industrial country. The strongest impetus to this movement was given by the fundamental restructuring of the entire socio-economic system, which began with the abolition of serfdom in 1861.
Thanks to the reforms carried out, an industrial revolution took place in the country. The number of steam engines has tripled, their combined capacity has quadrupled, and the number of merchant ships has increased 10 times. New industries, large enterprises with thousands of workers - all this became a characteristic feature of post-reform Russia, as did the formation of a wide layer of hired workers and the developing bourgeoisie. The social appearance of the country was changing. However, this process was slow. Wage laborers were still strongly associated with the countryside, and the middle class was small and poorly organized.
And yet, from that time on, a slow but steady process of transformation of the economic and social organization of the life of the empire began. The rigid administrative-estate system gave way to more flexible forms of social relations. Private initiative was liberated, elected bodies of local self-government were introduced, legal proceedings were democratized, archaic restrictions and prohibitions in publishing, in the field of stage, musical and visual arts were abolished. In the remote from the center of the desert, during the lifetime of one generation, vast industrial and industrial zones, such as Donbass and Baku, arose. The successes of civilizational modernization most expressively took on visible outlines in the form of the capital of the empire - St. Petersburg.
At the same time, the government launched a program for the construction of railways relying on foreign capital and technology, and also reorganized the banking system to introduce Western financial technologies. The fruits of this new policy were seen in the mid-1880s. and during the "big leap" in industrial production in the 1890s, when industrial output grew at an average rate of 8% per year, which surpassed the highest growth rates ever achieved in the West.
The most dynamic developing industry was cotton production, mainly in the Moscow region, the second most important was the production of beet sugar in Ukraine. At the end of the XIX century. large modern textile factories are being built in Russia, as well as a number of metallurgical and machine-building plants. In St. Petersburg and near St. Petersburg, the giants of the metallurgical industry are growing - the Putilovsky and Obukhovsky plants, the Nevsky shipbuilding and the Izhora plants. Such enterprises are also being created in the Russian part of Poland.
Much of the credit for this breakthrough belonged to the program of railway construction, especially the construction of the state Trans-Siberian Railway, which began in 1891. The total length of Russian railway lines by 1905 was over 62 thousand km. The expansion of mining and the construction of new metallurgical plants was also given the green light. The latter were often created by foreign entrepreneurs and with the help of foreign capital. In the 1880s. French entrepreneurs obtained permission from the tsarist government to build a railway connecting Donbass (coal deposits) and Krivoy Rog (iron ore deposits), and also built blast furnaces in both areas, thus creating the world's first metallurgical plant operating on supplies raw materials from remote deposits. In 1899, there were already 17 factories in the south of Russia (before 1887 there were only two), equipped with the latest European technology. Coal and pig iron production skyrocketed (while in the 1870s domestic pig iron production satisfied only 40% of demand, in the 1890s it served three quarters of the significantly increased consumption).
By this time, Russia had accumulated significant economic and intellectual capital, which allowed the country to achieve certain success. By the beginning of the XX century. Russia had good gross economic performance: in terms of gross industrial production, it ranked fifth in the world after the United States, Germany, Great Britain and France. The country had a significant textile industry, especially cotton and linen, as well as a developed heavy industry - the production of coal, iron, steel. Russia in the last few years of the XIX century. even ranked first in the world in oil production.
These indicators, however, cannot serve as an unambiguous assessment of Russia's economic strength. Compared with the countries of Western Europe, the standard of living of the bulk of the population, especially the peasants, was catastrophically low. The production of basic industrial products per capita lagged an order of magnitude behind the level of the leading industrial countries: for coal by 20-50 times, metal by 7-10 times. Thus, the Russian Empire entered the 20th century without solving the problems associated with lagging behind the West.
§ 2. The beginning of modern economic growth
New goals and objectives of socio-economic development. Russia at the beginning of the XX century. was at an early stage of industrialization. Raw materials predominated in the export structure: timber, flax, furs, oil. Bread accounted for almost 50% of export operations. At the turn of the XX century. Russia annually supplied abroad up to 500 million grain. Moreover, if for all the post-reform years the total volume of exports increased almost 3 times, then the export of grain - 5.5 times. Compared to the pre-reform era, the Russian economy developed rapidly, but a certain brake on the development of market relations was the underdevelopment of the market infrastructure (the absence of commercial banks, the difficulty of obtaining loans, the dominance of state capital in the credit system, low standards of business ethics), as well as the presence of state institutions that did not compatible with the market economy. Profitable government orders tied Russian entrepreneurs to the autocracy, pushed them into an alliance with the landowners. The Russian economy continued to be multi-structured. Subsistence farming coexisted with semi-feudal landlord, small-scale peasant farming, private capitalist farming, and state (state) farming. At the same time, having embarked on the path of creating a market later than the leading European countries, Russia made extensive use of their experience in organizing production. Foreign capital played an important role in the creation of the first Russian monopoly associations. The Nobel brothers and the Rothschild company created a cartel in oil industry Russia.
A specific feature of the market development in Russia was a high degree of concentration of production and work force: eight largest sugar refineries concentrated at the beginning of the XX century. in their hands 30% of all sugar factories in the country, the five largest oil companies - 17% of all oil production. As a result, the bulk of workers began to concentrate on large enterprises with a staff of over a thousand people. In 1902, over 50% of all workers in Russia worked at such enterprises. Before the revolution of 1905-1907. there were over 30 monopolies in the country, including such large syndicates as Prodamet, Nail, and Prodvagon. The autocratic government contributed to the growth of the number of monopolies, pursuing a policy of protectionism, protecting Russian capital from foreign competition. At the end of the XIX century. duties on many imported goods were significantly increased, including on cast iron they were increased 10 times, on rails - 4.5 times. The policy of protectionism allowed the growing Russian industry to withstand competition from the developed countries of the West, but it led to an increase in economic dependence on foreign capital. Western entrepreneurs, deprived of the opportunity to import manufactured goods into Russia, strove to expand the export of capital. By 1900, foreign investment accounted for 45% of the total share capital in the country. Profitable government orders pushed Russian entrepreneurs into a direct alliance with the landlord class, and doomed the Russian bourgeoisie to political impotence.
Entering the new century, the country had to solve in the shortest possible time a set of problems related to all the main spheres of public life: in the political sphere - to use the achievements of democracy, on the basis of the constitution, laws to open access to the management of public affairs to all segments of the population, in the economic sphere - to implement industrialization of all industries, turn the village into a source of capital, food and raw materials necessary for the industrialization and urbanization of the country, in the sphere of national relations - to prevent the split of the empire along ethnic lines, satisfying the interests of peoples in the field of self-determination, contributing to the rise of national culture and self-awareness, in the sphere of external economic relations - from a supplier of raw materials and food to turn into an equal partner in industrial production, in the sphere of religion and the church - to end the relationship of dependence between the autocratic state and the church, to enrich the philosophy, work ethic of Orthodoxy, taking into account the mouth bourgeois relations in the country, in the field of defense - to modernize the army, to ensure its combat effectiveness through the use of advanced means and theories of warfare.
Little time was allotted for the solution of these priority tasks, because the world was on the verge of an unprecedented war in terms of scope and consequences, the collapse of empires, and the redistribution of colonies; economic, scientific, technical and ideological expansion. In the face of fierce competition in the international arena, Russia, without gaining a foothold in the ranks of the great powers, could be thrown far back.
Land issue. The positive shifts in the economy have also affected the agrarian sector, albeit to a lesser extent. Feudal noble land ownership was already weakened, but the private sector was not yet strong. Out of 395 million dessiatines in the European part of Russia in 1905, communal allotments amounted to 138 million dessiatines, treasury land - 154 million, and private - only 101 million (approximately 25.8%), half of which belonged to peasants, and the other to landowners. A characteristic feature of private land tenure was its latifundal character: in the hands of about 28 thousand owners were concentrated three quarters of all proprietary land, on average about 2.3 thousand dessiatins. for everyone. At the same time, 102 families owned estates of over 50 thousand dessiatins. each one. For this reason, their owners leased land and land.
Formally, leaving the community was possible after 1861, but by the beginning of 1906 only 145 thousand households had left the community. The harvest of the main food crops, as well as their yield, grew slowly. Per capita income was no more than half of the corresponding figures for France and Germany. Due to the use of primitive technologies and a lack of capital, labor productivity in Russian agriculture was extremely low.
Equalizing communal psychology was one of the main factors behind the low level of productivity and income of the peasants. The average German peasant farm at that time had half the area under crops, but 2.5 times more yield than in the more fertile Russian Black Earth Region. Milk yields were also very different. Another reason for the low yield of basic food crops is the domination of backward field cultivation systems in the Russian countryside, the use of primitive agricultural tools: wooden plows and harrows. Despite the fact that the import of agricultural machinery increased from 1892 to 1905 at least 4 times, more than 50% of the peasants of the agricultural regions of Russia did not have improved implements. The landlords' households were much better equipped.
Nevertheless, the rate of growth of bread production in Russia was higher than the rate of population growth. Compared to the post-reform period, the average annual grain yield increased by the beginning of the century from 26.8 million tons to 43.9 million tons, and potatoes from 2.6 million tons to 12.6 million tons. Accordingly, over a quarter of a century, the mass of marketable grain increased more than twice, the volume of grain exports - 7.5 times. By the volume of gross grain products, Russia by the beginning of the XX century. was among the world leaders. True, Russia won fame as a world grain exporter due to the malnutrition of its own population, as well as the relative smallness of the urban population. Russian peasants ate mainly plant foods (bread, potatoes, cereals), less often fish and dairy products, and even less often meat. In general, the calorie content of food did not correspond to the energy expended by the peasants. In the event of frequent crop failures, the peasants had to starve. In the 1880s. after the abolition of the poll tax and the lowering of the redemption payments, the material situation of the peasants improved, but the agricultural crisis in Europe affected Russia as well, and the prices of bread fell. In 1891-1892 severe drought and poor harvest covered 16 provinces of the Volga and Chernozem regions. About 375 thousand people died of hunger. Failure of various scales also occurred in 1896–1897, 1899, 1901, 1905–1906, 1908, 1911.
At the beginning of the XX century. due to the steady expansion of the domestic market, more than half of the marketable grain was already used for domestic consumption.
Domestic agriculture covered a significant part of the needs of the manufacturing industry for raw materials. Only the textile and partly woolen industries felt the need for import supplies of raw materials.
At the same time, the presence of many survivals of serfdom seriously hampered the development of the Russian countryside. Huge amounts of redemption payments (the former landlord peasants paid by the end of 1905 instead of the initial 900 million rubles - more than 1.5 billion, the same amount instead of the initial 650 million rubles the peasants paid for state land) were pumped out of the village and did not go to development of its productive forces.
Already from the beginning of the 1880s. more and more clearly the signs of growing crisis phenomena were showing up, causing an increase in social tension in the countryside. The capitalist restructuring of landlord economies proceeded extremely slowly. Only a few landlord estates were centers of cultural influence on the countryside. The peasants were still a subordinate class. The basis of agricultural production was small-scale family peasant farms, which at the beginning of the century provided 80% of grain, the overwhelming part of flax and potatoes. Only sugar beets were grown on relatively large landlord farms.
In the old-developed regions of Russia there was a significant agrarian overpopulation: about a third of the village was, in fact, "extra hands".
The growth of the landowning population (up to 86 million by 1900), while maintaining the same size of land allotments, led to a decrease in the share of peasant land per capita. Compared to the norms of Western countries, the Russian peasant could not be called land-poor, as was commonly believed in Russia, but under the existing system of land use, even with land wealth, the peasant starved. One of the reasons for this is the low yield of peasant fields. By 1900, it was only 39 poods (5.9 centners per hectare).
The government constantly dealt with agricultural issues. In 1883-1886. the shower tax was canceled, in 1882 the "Peasant Land Bank" was established, which issued loans to peasants for the purchase of land. But the effectiveness of the measures taken was insufficient. The peasantry constantly did not collect the taxes required of it, in 1894, 1896 and 1899. the government provided benefits to the peasants, fully or partially forgiving arrears. The sum of all direct fees (government, zemstvo, secular and insurance) from peasant allotment lands in 1899 amounted to 184 million rubles. However, these taxes were not paid by the peasants, although they were not excessive. In 1900, the amount of arrears was 119 million rubles. Social tension in the countryside at the beginning of XX. pours out into real peasant uprisings, which became the harbingers of the impending revolution.
New economic policy of the authorities. Reforms S. Yu. Witte. In the early 90s. XIX century. in Russia, an unprecedented industrial upsurge began. Along with a favorable economic situation, it was caused by the new economic policy of the authorities.
The conductor of the new government course was the outstanding Russian reformer Count Sergei Yulievich Witte (1849–1915). For 11 years he served as a key finance minister. Witte was a supporter of the comprehensive modernization of the national economy of Russia and at the same time remained on conservative political positions. Many of the reform ideas that were put into practice in those years were born and developed long before Witte headed the Russian reform movement. By the beginning of the XX century. the positive potential of the reforms of 1861 was partially exhausted and partially emasculated by conservative circles after the assassination of Alexander II in 1881. As a matter of urgency, the authorities had to solve a number of priority tasks: to stabilize the ruble, develop communication routes, and find new sales markets for domestic products.
A serious problem by the end of the 19th century. becomes land scarcity. Last but not least, it was associated with the population explosion that began in the country after the abolition of serfdom. A decrease in mortality while maintaining a high birth rate led to a rapid increase in the population, and this becomes by the beginning of the 20th century. a headache for the authorities, as a vicious circle of excess of working hands is formed. Low incomes of the majority of the population made Russian market low-capacity and hindered the development of industry. Following the Minister of Finance N. H. Bunge Witte began to develop the idea of continuing the agrarian reform and the elimination of the community. At that time in the Russian countryside, an equalizing-repartitional community prevailed, carrying out a redistribution of communal lands every 10–12 years. Threats of redistribution, as well as stripedness, deprived the peasants of incentives to develop the economy. This is the most important reason why Witte from "a Slavophilist supporter of the community has turned into its staunch opponent." In the free peasant "I", liberated private interest, Witte saw an inexhaustible source of development of the productive forces of the countryside. He managed to pass a law limiting the role of mutual responsibility in the community. In the future, Witte planned to gradually transfer the peasants from communal to household and farm households.
The economic situation required urgent action. Obligations assumed by the government for redemption payments to landlords, abundant financing of industry and construction from the treasury, high costs on the maintenance of the army and navy led the Russian economy to a serious financial crisis. At the turn of the century, few of the serious politicians doubted the need for deep socio-economic and political transformations that could relieve social tension and bring Russia to the ranks of the most developed countries in the world. In the regular discussion that has flared up about the ways of the country's development, the main issue is the issue of priorities in economic policy.
S. Yu. Witte's plan can be called industrialization plan... It provided for the accelerated industrial development of the country for two five years. The creation of their own industry was, according to Witte, not only a fundamental economic, but also a political task. Improvement of agriculture in Russia is impossible without the development of industry. Therefore, whatever efforts this may require, it is necessary to work out and unswervingly adhere to a course for the priority development of industry. The purpose of Witte's new course was to catch up with the industrially developed countries, to take strong positions in trade with the East, and to ensure an active foreign trade balance. Until the mid-1880s. Witte looked at the future of Russia through the eyes of a convinced Slavophile and opposed the breakdown of the "primordially Russian system." However, over time, in order to achieve the set goals, he completely rebuilt the budget of the Russian Empire on a new basis, carried out a credit reform, rightly hoping to accelerate the pace of industrial development of the country.
Throughout the 19th century. Russia experienced the greatest difficulties in monetary circulation: the wars that led to the release of paper money, deprived the Russian ruble of the necessary stability and caused serious damage to Russian credit on the international market. By the beginning of the 90s. the financial system of the Russian Empire was completely upset - the exchange rate of paper money was constantly declining, gold and silver money practically went out of circulation.
The constant fluctuations in the value of the ruble came to an end with the introduction in 1897 of the gold standard. The monetary reform as a whole was well conceived and implemented. The fact remains that with the introduction of the gold ruble, the country forgot about the existence of the recently "damned" issue of the instability of Russian money. In terms of gold reserves, Russia has bypassed France and England. All credit tickets were freely exchanged for gold coins. The State Bank issued them in a quantity strictly limited by the actual needs of circulation. Confidence in the Russian ruble, extremely low throughout the 19th century, in the years leading up to the outbreak of World War II, was fully restored. Witte's actions contributed to the explosive growth of Russian industry. To solve the problem of investments required to create a modern industry, Witte attracted foreign capital in the amount of 3 billion gold rubles. At least 2 billion rubles were invested in railway construction alone. The railway network was doubled in a short time. Railroad construction contributed to the rapid growth of the domestic metallurgical and coal industries. Pig iron production increased almost 3.5 times, coal mining 4.1 times, and the sugar industry flourished. Having built the Siberian and East China railways, Witte opened up vast areas of Manchuria for colonization and economic development.
In his transformations, Witte often encountered passivity and even resistance from the tsar and his entourage, who considered him a "republican." Radicals and revolutionaries, on the contrary, hated him "for supporting the autocracy." The reformer did not find a common language with the liberals either. The reactionaries, who hated Witte, turned out to be right, all his activities inevitably led to the liquidation of the autocracy. Thanks to the "Witte industrialization", new social forces are gaining strength in the country.
Having begun his state activity as a sincere and staunch supporter of unlimited autocracy, he ended it with the author of the Manifesto of October 17, 1905, which limited the monarchy in Russia.
§ 3. Russian society in the conditions of forced modernization
Factors of social instability. Due to the accelerated modernization, the transition of Russian society from traditional to modern at the beginning of the XX century. was accompanied by extreme contradictions and conflicts in its development. The new forms of relations in society did not "fit" well with the way of life of the overwhelming majority of the empire's population. The industrialization of the country was carried out at the cost of increasing "peasant poverty". The example of Western Europe and distant America undermines the previously unshakable authority of the absolutist monarchy in the eyes of the educated urban elite. The influence of socialist ideas on politically active youth is strong, the possibility of participation of which in legal public politics is limited.
Russia entered the 20th century with a very young population. According to the first All-Russian census of 1897, about half of the country's 129.1 million inhabitants were under 20 years of age. The accelerated growth of the population and the predominance of youth in its composition created a powerful reserve of workers, but at the same time this circumstance, due to the tendency of young people to rebel, is becoming one of the most important factors in the instability of Russian society. At the beginning of the century, due to the low purchasing power of the population, industry entered the stage of an overproduction crisis. Entrepreneurs' incomes fell. They shifted their economic difficulties onto the shoulders of the workers, whose number from the end of the 19th century. grew. The length of the working day, limited by the law of 1897 to 11.5 hours, reached 12-14 hours, real wages fell as a result of rising prices; for the slightest offense, the administration mercilessly fined. The living conditions were extremely difficult. Discontent grew among the workers, the situation was getting out of the control of entrepreneurs. Mass political protests of workers in 1901-1902. took place in St. Petersburg, Kharkov and a number of other large cities of the empire. Under these conditions, the government took the political initiative.
Another important factor of instability is the multinational composition of the Russian Empire. At the turn of the new century, about 200 large and small nations lived in the country, different in language, religion, level of civilizational development. The Russian state, unlike other imperial powers, failed to reliably integrate ethnic minorities into the economic and political space of the empire. Formally, there were practically no ethnic legal restrictions in Russian legislation. The Russian people, who constituted 44.3% of the population (55.7 million people), did not stand out among the population of the empire in terms of their economic and cultural level. Moreover, some non-Russian ethnic groups even enjoyed some advantages over the Russians, especially in the area of taxation and conscription. Poland, Finland, Bessarabia, the Baltic States enjoyed a very broad autonomy. More than 40% of hereditary nobles were of non-Russian origin. The big Russian bourgeoisie was multinational in composition. However, responsible government posts could only be held by persons of the Orthodox faith. The Orthodox Church enjoyed the patronage of the autocratic government. The heterogeneity of the religious environment created the basis for the ideologization and politicization of ethnic self-awareness. In the Volga region, Jadidism is acquiring political overtones. The unrest among the Armenian population of the Caucasus in 1903 was provoked by the decree on the transfer of the property of the Armenian Gregorian Church to the jurisdiction of the authorities.
Nicholas II continued his father's tough policy on the national question. This policy found expression in the denationalization of schools, bans on the publication of newspapers, magazines and books in the native language, restrictions on access to higher and secondary educational institutions. Attempts to forcibly Christianize the peoples of the Volga region were resumed, and discrimination against Jews continued. In 1899, a manifesto was issued limiting the rights of the Finnish Sejm. Finnish-language paperwork was prohibited. Despite the fact that the requirements of a single legal and linguistic space were dictated by objective modernization processes, the tendency towards rough administrative centralization and Russification of ethnic minorities strengthens their striving for national equality, the free fulfillment of their religious and folk customs, and participation in the country's political life. As a result, at the turn of the XX century. there is an increase in ethnic and interethnic conflicts, and national movements are becoming an important catalyst for the imminent political crisis.
Urbanization and work issue. At the end of the XIX century. about 15 million people lived in the cities of Russia. Small towns with a population of less than 50 thousand people prevailed. There were only 17 large cities in the country: two millionaire cities, Petersburg and Moscow, and five more that crossed the 100-thousandth line, all in the European part. For the vast territory of the Russian Empire, this was extremely small. Only the largest cities, by virtue of their inherent qualities, are capable of being genuine engines of social progress.
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Lecture 2. The Russian Empire at the end of the XIX-beginning of the XX century.
Lecture 2 Russianempire at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century
Socio-economic
position
Political development
Empires (1894-1913)
The first general census of the population of the Russian Empire in 1897
First general censuspopulation of the Russian
Administrative division - 97 provinces.
empire
1897 g.
Census registered in the Russian Empire
125 640 021 inhabitants. By 1913 - 165 million people.
16 828 395 people (13.4%) lived in cities.
Largest cities: St. Petersburg - 1.26 million, Moscow -
1 million, Warsaw - 0.68 million.
The literacy rate was 21.1%, and among men
it was significantly higher than among women (29.3% and
13.1%, respectively).
By religion: Orthodox - 69.3%, Muslim
11.1%, Catholics 9.1% and Jews 4.2%.
Estates: peasantry - 77.5%, bourgeoisie - 10.7%,
foreigners - 6.6%, Cossacks - 2.3%, nobles - 1.5%,
clergy - 0.5%, honorary citizens - 0.3%,
merchants - 0.2%, others - 0.4%.
Nationalities of Russia (1907-1917) IPZ P.P. Kamensky
The estate structure of society
NobilityClergy
Guild merchants
Bourgeoisie
Peasants
One-family palaces
Cossacks
Class structure of society
Bourgeoisie - 1.5 million peopleProletariat - 2.7 million people By 1913 -
18 million people
The intelligentsia as a special layer in
social structure of society -
725 thousand people
Important:
At the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. social divisionsociety was an intertwining
estate and class structures. Took shape
groups of contradictions: nobility-bourgeoisie,
bourgeoisie-workers, power-people,
the intelligentsia is the people, the intelligentsia is
power. National problems.
The problem of social mobility.
Marginalization. Urbanization. Social
mobility.
Major problems of national policy
The presence of several confessions (Islam,Buddhism, Catholicism, Lutheranism)
Russification policy regarding
Ukrainian, Belarusian, Polish and
other peoples - the growth of nationalism
Jewish question - "Pale of Settlement"
discrimination in various fields
activities
Difficult situation in Islamic areas
Empire
The turn of the XIX-XX centuries.
The transition from traditional toindustrial society
Overcoming sociocultural
backwardness
Democratizing political life
Attempt to form a civilian
societies
10. Features of the economic development of Russia
Peculiaritieseconomic development
Later transition to capitalism
Of Russia
Russia is a second tier country
modernization
Uneven development of the territory
Different levels of economic and
sociocultural development
numerous peoples of the empire
Preservation of autocracy, landlord
land tenure, national issues
11. Features of the economic development of Russia
Peculiaritieseconomic development
Fast pace of development, tight folding time
factory production. Low labor productivity.
Of Russia
The factory production system developed without
passing the previous stages of craft and manufacture.
Growth in industrial production in the 1860-1900s - 7
once.
The credit system is represented by large commercial
banks
Diverse economy
Russia is characterized not by export (China, Iran), but by import of capital
High concentration of production and labor
Monopolism
State interference in economic life
Weak inclusion of the agricultural sector in the modernization process
12. Reforms S.Yu. Witte
STRENGTHENING THE ROLESTATES IN
ECONOMY /
Strengthening private
entrepreneurship
1895 - wine
monopoly
1897- monetary reform
Protectionism policy
Attraction
foreign capital
Iron construction
roads
13. The turn of the XIX-XX centuries.
For the 1890s. put into operation 5.7 thousand newenterprises
Development of new industrial areas - Yuzhny
(coal and metallurgical) and Baku (oil).
1890s - industrial boom. Construction
Trans-Siberian Railway, CER.
1900-1903 - economic crisis. Closing 3 thous.
large and medium-sized enterprises.
Investing countries: France, England, Germany, Belgium
Monopolization of industrial production and
capital.
Industrial upsurge 1909-1913
14.
15.
16. Reforms of P.A. Stolypin
Destruction of the communityDecree of November 9, 1906
Reorganization
Peasant Bank
Buying landlords by them
land and resale them
into the hands of the peasantry
Relocation
peasants on the outskirts
Decree on courts-martial
17. Projects of reforms P.А. Stolypin
Peasant transformationrural municipality courts
National and Religious
equality
Introduction of volost zemstvos
Initial Law
schools (compulsory primary
training) (since 1912)
Workers' Insurance Act (1912)
18. State administration of Russia at the beginning of the XX century (until 1905).
The emperorState Council -
legislative body
Senate - body overseeing legality
action activities
government officials and institutions
Synod
Ministries. Cabinet of Ministers.
19. Autocracy and social life at the beginning of the XX century.
1901 Policewoman policysocialism "S.V. Zubatov. Creation
professional movement of workers,
pursuing economic goals.
The workers need a "king who is for us"
the king who “will introduce the eight-hour
working day, will increase wages
payment, will give all sorts of benefits. "
G. Gapon. "Collection of Russian factory workers of St. Petersburg"
1904 g.
20. Autocracy and social life at the beginning of the XX century.
Svyatopolk-Mirsky P.D.Minister of Internal
cases since August 1904
"Development of self-government
and the call of the elected
Petersburg for discussion
as the only
a remedy that can
enable Russia
develop correctly. "
Autumn 1904 - "autumn
Spring".
21. Liberal movement
Banquet campaign 1904“We consider it absolutely necessary that the entire
the state system was reorganized into
constitutional principles ... and that immediately
same, before the start of the electoral period was
a full and unconditional amnesty was announced for all
political and religious crimes ”.
Until the beginning of January 1905, 120
similar "banquets", which were attended by about 50
thousand people.
22. Political parties of Russia in n. XX century
23. "Bloody Sunday"
"The prestige of the king is herekilled is the meaning
of the day ". M. Gorky.
"The last days
have arrived. Brother
climbed brother ...
The king gave the order
shoot icons "
M. Voloshin
24. Repin I.E. October 17, 1905. (1907)
25. "Manifesto of October 17, 1905"
the population is given a civilfreedom "on the basis of real
inviolability of the person, freedom
conscience, words, meetings and unions "
for the elections to the State Duma
the general population is involved
all laws must be approved in
Duma, but "elected from the people"
provides the "opportunity
effective participation in the supervision of
regularity of actions "of the authorities.
26. Electoral law 11.12.1905
Four electoral curiae from landlords, urbanpopulation, peasants and workers. Have been disenfranchised
choice of women, soldiers, sailors, students,
landless peasants, laborers and some
"Foreigners". The system of representation in the Duma was
developed as follows: agricultural
the curia sent one elector from 2 thousand people,
urban - from 7 thousand, peasant - from 30 thousand,
worker - from 90 thousand people Government,
continued to hope that the peasantry would
support of the autocracy, provided him with 45% of all seats in
Duma. Members of the State Duma were elected for a term
for 5 years.
27.
28. Opening of the State Duma and the State Council on April 27, 1906.
29. State Duma of the Russian Empire
30. State Duma of the Russian Empire
Duma Opening hoursChairperson
I
April 27, 1906 -
July 8, 1906
Cadet S.A. Muromtsev
II
February 20, 1907 -
June 2, 1907
Cadet F.A. Golovin
III
November 1, 1907 -
June 9, 1912
Octobrists - N.A. Khomyakov (November
1907-March 1910),
A.I. Guchkov (March 1910-March 1911),
M.V. Rodzianko (March 1911-June 1912)
IV
November 15, 1912 -
February 25, 1917
Octobrist M.V. Rodzianko
31.
32. Literature
Ananich B.V., Ganelin R.Sh. SergeyYulievich Witte and his time. SPb:
Dmitry Bulanin, 1999.
Literature about S.Yu. Witte: url:
http://www.prometeus.nsc.ru/biblio/vitte/r
efer2.ssi
Zyryanov P. N. Pyotr Stolypin:
Political portrait. M., 1992.
The formation of the Russian Empire happened on October 22, 1721 according to the old style or on November 2. It was on this day that the last Russian Tsar, Peter the Great, declared himself Russian Emperor. This happened as one of the consequences of the Northern War, after which the Senate asked Peter 1 to accept the title of Emperor of the country. The state was named "Russian Empire". The city of St. Petersburg became its capital. For all the time the capital was moved to Moscow only for 2 years (from 1728 to 1730).
Territory of the Russian Empire
Considering the history of Russia of that era, it is necessary to remember that at the time of the formation of the empire, large territories were annexed to the country. This was made possible thanks to the successful foreign policy the country led by Peter 1. He created new story, a story that has returned Russia to the ranks of world leaders and powers to be reckoned with.
The territory of the Russian Empire was 21.8 million km2. It was the second largest country in the world. In the first place was the British Empire with its many colonies. Most of them have retained their status to this day. The first laws of the country divided its territory into 8 provinces, each of which was ruled by a governor. He had full local authority, including the judiciary. Later, Catherine II increased the number of provinces to 50. Of course, this was done not by annexing new lands, but by crushing them. This has significantly increased the state apparatus and has greatly reduced the effectiveness of local government in the country. We will talk about this in more detail in the corresponding article. It should be noted that at the time of the collapse of the Russian Empire, its territory consisted of 78 provinces. The largest cities in the country were:
- St. Petersburg.
- Moscow.
- Warsaw.
- Odessa.
- Lodz.
- Riga.
- Kiev.
- Kharkov.
- Tiflis.
- Tashkent.
The history of the Russian Empire is full of both bright and negative aspects... In this time period, which lasted less than two centuries, a huge number of fateful moments in the fate of our country were invested. It was during the period of the Russian Empire that the Patriotic War, campaigns in the Caucasus, campaigns in India, and European campaigns took place. The country has developed dynamically. The reforms affected absolutely all aspects of life. It was the history of the Russian Empire that gave our country great commanders, whose names are still on the lips not only in Russia, but throughout Europe - Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov and Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov. These illustrious generals have forever inscribed their names in the history of our country and covered Russian weapons with eternal glory.
Map
We present a map of the Russian Empire, a brief history of which we are considering, which shows the European part of the country with all the changes that took place in terms of territories over the years of the state's existence.
Population
By the end of the 18th century, the Russian Empire was largest country the world by area. Its scale was such that a messenger, who was sent to all corners of the country to report the death of Catherine II, arrived in Kamchatka 3 months later! And this despite the fact that the messenger rode almost 200 km daily.
Russia was also the most populous country. In 1800, about 40 million people lived in the Russian Empire, most of them in the European part of the country. A little less than 3 million lived beyond the Urals. National composition the country was variegated:
- East Slavs. Russians (Great Russians), Ukrainians (Little Russians), Belarusians. For a long time, almost until the very end of the Empire, it was considered a single people.
- Estonians, Latvians, Latvians and Germans lived in the Baltics.
- Finno-Ugric (Mordvinians, Karelians, Udmurts, etc.), Altai (Kalmyks) and Turkic (Bashkirs, Tatars, etc.) peoples.
- The peoples of Siberia and Of the Far East(Yakuts, Evens, Buryats, Chukchi, etc.).
In the course of the formation of the country, part of the Kazakhs and Jews who lived on the territory of Poland, who after its disintegration went to Russia, turned out to be its citizenship.
The main class in the country were peasants (about 90%). Other estates: philistine (4%), merchants (1%), and the remaining 5% of the population was distributed between the Cossacks, clergy and nobility. This is the classic structure of an agrarian society. Indeed, the main occupation of the Russian Empire was agriculture. It is no coincidence that all the indicators that lovers of the tsarist regime love to be so proud of today are associated with agriculture(we are talking about the import of grain and butter).
By the end of the 19th century, 128.9 million people lived in Russia, of which 16 million lived in cities, and the rest in villages.
Political system
The Russian Empire was autocratic in its form of government, where all the fullness of power was concentrated in the hands of one person - the emperor, who was often called, in the old manner, tsar. Peter 1 laid down in the laws of Russia precisely the unlimited power of the monarch, which ensured the autocracy. Simultaneously with the state, the autocrat actually ruled over the church.
An important point - after the reign of Paul 1, autocracy in Russia could no longer be called absolute. This happened due to the fact that Paul 1 issued a decree, according to which the system of transfer of the throne, established by Peter 1, was canceled. Peter Alekseevich Romanov, let me remind you, decided that the ruler himself determines his successor. Some historians today speak about the negative of this document, but this is precisely where the essence of autocracy is expressed - the ruler makes all decisions, including about his successor. After Paul 1, the system returned, in which the son inherits the throne after the father.
Rulers of the country
Below is a list of all the rulers of the Russian Empire during the period of its existence (1721-1917).
The emperor |
Years of reign |
|---|---|
| Peter 1 | 1721-1725 |
| Ekaterina 1 | 1725-1727 |
| Peter 2 | 1727-1730 |
| Anna Ioannovna | 1730-1740 |
| Ivan 6 | 1740-1741 |
| Elizabeth 1 | 1741-1762 |
| Peter 3 | 1762 |
| Ekaterina 2 | 1762-1796 |
| Paul 1 | 1796-1801 |
| Alexander 1 | 1801-1825 |
| Nikolay 1 | 1825-1855 |
| Alexander 2 | 1855-1881 |
| Alexander 3 | 1881-1894 |
| Nikolay 2 | 1894-1917 |
All the rulers were from the Romanov dynasty, and after the overthrow of Nicholas 2 and the murder of himself and his family by the Bolsheviks, the dynasty was interrupted, and the Russian Empire ceased to exist, changing the form of statehood in the USSR.
Key dates
During its existence, which is almost 200 years, the Russian Empire experienced many important moments and events that had an impact on the state and people.
- 1722 - Table of Ranks
- 1799 - Suvorov's foreign campaigns to Italy and Switzerland
- 1809 - Accession of Finland
- 1812 - World War II
- 1817-1864 - Caucasian War
- 1825 (December 14) - Decembrist uprising
- 1867 - Sale of Alaska
- 1881 (March 1) assassination of Alexander II
- 1905 (January 9) - Bloody Sunday
- 1914-1918 - World War I
- 1917 - February and October revolutions
Completion of the Empire
The history of the Russian Empire ended on September 1, 1917 according to the old style. It was on this day that the Republic was proclaimed. This was proclaimed by Kerensky, who, according to the law, did not have the right to do so, so the declaration of Russia as a republic can be safely called illegal. Only the Constituent Assembly had the authority for such a proclamation. The fall of the Russian Empire is closely connected with the history of its last emperor, Nicholas 2. This emperor possessed all the qualities of a worthy person, but had an indecisive character. It is because of this that the riots occurred in the country that cost Nicholas himself 2 lives, and the Russian Empire - existence. Nicholas II failed to harshly suppress the revolutionary and terrorist activities of the Bolsheviks in the country. There were also objective reasons for this. The main one is the First World War, in which the Russian Empire was involved and exhausted in it. The Russian Empire was replaced by a new type of state structure of the country - the USSR.
Estates system. During the reign of Alexander I, the nobles had the rights and privileges that were legally fixed under Catherine II in the "Charter to the Nobility" of 1785. (Its full name is "Certificate of Rights, Liberties and Advantages of the Noble Russian Nobility.")
The noble class was free from military service, from state taxes. Nobles could not be subjected to corporal punishment. Only a noble court could judge them. The nobles received the preemptive right to own land and serfs. They owned the wealth of the bowels of their estates. They had the right to engage in trade, open factories and plants. Their estates were not subject to confiscation.
The nobility united in societies, the affairs of which were in charge of the noble assembly, which elected the district and provincial leaders of the nobility.
All other estates did not have such rights.
At the beginning of the 19th century, the population in the empire reached almost 44 million people. The peasantry accounted for more than 80% of the total population, 15 million peasants were serfs.
Serfdom remained unchanged. Only about 0.5% of the peasantry were freed from serfdom by the decree on free farmers (1803).
The rest of the peasants were considered state ones, that is, they belonged to the state. In the north of Russia and Siberia, they constituted the bulk of the population. A kind of peasantry was the Cossacks, settled mainly in the Don, Kuban, in the lower reaches of the Volga, in the Urals, in Siberia and in the Far East.
Alexander I abandoned the practice that was widespread under his father and grandmother. He stopped giving out state peasants as a reward or gift to his entourage.
At the beginning of the 19th century, less than 7% of the population of the Russian Empire lived in cities. The largest of them was St. Petersburg, whose population in 1811 was 335 thousand people. The population of Moscow was 270 thousand people.
The cities remained the main points of trade and industry. Trade was concentrated in the hands of the merchant class, divided into three guilds. The most significant business was carried out by the merchants of the first guild. They were both subjects of the Russian Empire and foreigners.
Economic development. Fairs were large centers of trade operations, the most important of which, Makarievskaya, was located near the Makariev monastery near Nizhny Novgorod.
Favorable geographical position, convenient communication routes attracted here every year a large number of merchants from all parts of Russia and from abroad. At the beginning of the 19th century, there were more than three thousand state and private shops and warehouses at the Makaryevskaya fair.
In 1816, the bargaining was moved to Nizhny Novgorod. Until 1917, the Nizhny Novgorod fair remained the largest in Russia. It determined trading prices for a whole year ahead.
At the beginning of the 19th century, more than 60% of serfs paid their rent in money to their master. The quitrent system contributed to the proliferation of trades. After the end of agricultural work, the peasants either went to work in the cities, or made crafts at home.
Territorial specialization in the production of industrial goods gradually developed. In one place yarn was produced, in another - wooden or earthenware, in the third - furs, in the fourth - wheels. Particularly enterprising and capable managed to buy off the master, get out of serfdom, get free. Families of handicraftsmen and artisans gave birth to many large entrepreneurs - founders and owners of well-known Russian factory and factory firms.
The needs of economic development led to the expansion of the industrial sector of the economy. Although the persistence of serfdom and strict administrative control over public activities held back private initiative, the number of manufactories, factories and plants multiplied. Large landowners set up workshops and enterprises for the processing of agricultural products and the extraction of minerals on their estates. Most of these were small establishments where serfs worked.
Sculpture "Vodonoska"
The largest industrial enterprises belonged to the state (treasury). They were employed either by state peasants (assigned), or by free hired workers.
The textile industry developed most intensively at the beginning of the 19th century, primarily cotton production, which produced inexpensive products designed for wide demand. Various mechanisms have been widely used in this industry.
So, in the state-owned Aleksandrovskaya manufactory located near St. Petersburg, there were three steam engines. The production of products increased annually by 10-15%. In the 1810s, the manufactory produced more than half of all yarn in Russia. Civilian workers worked there.
In 1801 a foundry and a mechanical plant appeared in St. Petersburg. It was the largest machine-building production in Russia before the 1917 revolution, producing steam boilers and equipment for domestic factories and plants.
In Russian legislation, provisions appeared regulating new forms of entrepreneurial activity... On January 1, 1807, the Tsar's Manifesto "On the New Benefits, Differences, Advantages and New Methods for the Expansion and Strengthening of Trade Enterprises Given to the Merchants" was published.
He made it possible to establish companies and firms on the basis of the merger of capital of individuals. These companies could arise only with the permission of the supreme power (all charters of joint-stock companies were necessarily approved by the king). Their participants could now not acquire merchant certificates, not "be assigned to the guild."
In 1807, there were 5 joint-stock companies operating in Russia. The first, Diving Company, specialized in the transportation of passengers and cargo across the Gulf of Finland.
In the first quarter of the 19th century, 17 more companies began to operate, engaged in trade, insurance, and transportation. The joint-stock form of organization of capital and entrepreneurial activity was very promising, which made it possible to collect a significant total capital. Later, with the development of industry and trade, the joint-stock company became the most important element of the Russian economy. Several decades later, the number of operating companies was already measured in hundreds.
Questions and tasks
- The nobility was called the noble class. Explain why. By whom and when were the estate rights and privileges of the nobles confirmed? What were they?
- What new has the decree on free farmers brought into the life of Russia?
- Analyze the following facts:
- in the southern steppes and in the Volga region, regions for the production of marketable grain were formed;
- the use of machines began on landlord households;
- in 1818 Alexander I adopted a decree allowing all peasants, including serfs, to establish factories and plants;
- in 1815 steamships appeared in Russia.
Draw all the possible conclusions.
- What new forms of entrepreneurship appeared in Russia at the beginning of the 19th century?
- What is territorial specialization? How did its appearance testify to the development of the economy?
New rules for personal property tax
Features of the sale of an apartment with illegal redevelopment
Rules and procedure for the exam