Transformations in the domestic policy of Catherine II briefly. The domestic policy of Catherine II is brief and clear - the most important thing

Chronology

• 1764 Decree on the secularization of church lands.
• 1765 Decree allowing landowners to exile serfs to hard labor.
• 1768 - 1774 I Russian-Turkish War.
• 1772, 1793, 1795 Three partitions of Poland between Russia, Austria and Prussia.
• 1773 - 1775 Uprising led by Emelyan Pugachev.
• 1774 Signing of the Kuchuk-Kaynajir peace treaty between Russia and Turkey.
• 1775 Provincial reform.
• 1785 Charters granted to the nobility and cities.
• 1787 - 1791 II Russian-Turkish War.
• 1796 - 1801 Reign of Paul I.

"Enlightened absolutism" of Catherine II

“Have the courage to use your mind,” - this is how the German philosopher Immanuel Kant defined the mentality of the era, which was called the Age of Enlightenment. In the second half of the 18th century. in connection with the general economic recovery in ruling circles European countries There is a growing awareness of the need to modernize the economic and political system. This pan-European phenomenon is traditionally called Enlightened absolutism. Without essentially changing state forms absolute monarchy, within the framework of these forms, monarchs carried out reforms in various sectors.

The ideas of the French enlighteners Rousseau, Montesquieu, Voltaire, Diderot highlighted society, a specific person, his personal prosperity, which was a reflection of the emerging ideology of a new class - the bourgeoisie. Rousseau proposed to create Democratic state, in which everyone could take part in management. Voltaire actively preached humanity and justice, insisted on the abolition of medieval forms of legal proceedings. Diderot called for the abolition of class privileges and the liberation of the peasants.

Catherine II became acquainted with the works of French educators while she was still a princess. Having ascended the throne, she made an attempt to implement these ideas on Russian soil. Keyword it became “law” for her.

In 1767, Catherine convened a special commission in Moscow to draw up a new set of laws Russian Empire to replace the outdated Council Code of 1649. 572 deputies, representing the nobility, clergy, government agencies, peasants and Cossacks, took part in the work of the Code Commission. Serf peasants, who made up half of the country's population, did not participate in the work of the commission.

Catherine prepared a special “Instruction” for the Commission to draft a new Code - a theoretical justification for the policy of enlightened absolutism. “The Mandate” consisted of 20 chapters and 655 articles, of which Catherine borrowed 294 from Montesquieu. “I only own the arrangement of the material, and here and there a line or another,” she wrote to Frederick II. The main provision of this document was the justification of the autocratic form of government and serfdom, and the features of enlightenment were visible in the creation of courts, separated from administrative institutions, and the recognition of the rights of people to do what the laws allow. Articles that protected society from despotism and the arbitrariness of the monarch deserve a positive assessment. Institutions were given the right to draw the attention of the sovereign to the fact that “such and such a decree is contrary to the Code, that it is harmful, obscure, and that it cannot be carried out according to it.” Articles that defined economic policy government, which included concern for the construction of new cities, the development of trade, industry and agriculture. The commission, having worked for just over a year, was dissolved under the pretext of starting a war with Turkey, but mainly because Catherine, having learned the positions various groups population, considered the task completed, although not a single law was adopted.

The nobility remained the main social support of the autocracy in Russia. It opposed the huge mass of the peasantry and the weak third estate. The autocracy was strong and relied on the army and the bureaucratic apparatus to carry out its policies.

It is important to emphasize that, in contrast to the overt pro-noble and pro-serfdom policy of the autocracy of the previous period, the policy of “enlightened absolutism” was carried out in new forms.

In February 1764, the secularization of church land ownership was carried out, as a result, more than a million souls of peasants were taken away from the church, and a special board was created to manage them - the College of Economics. Much former church land was transferred to the nobles in the form of grants.

A series of decrees of the 60s crowned the feudal legislation, which turned the serfs into people completely defenseless from the arbitrariness of the landowners, obliged to meekly obey their will. In 1765, a decree was issued in favor of the serf owners, providing for the assignment to the nobles of all lands seized by them from various categories peasants According to the Decree of January 17, 1765, the landowner could send the peasant not only to exile, but also to hard labor. In August 1767, Catherine II issued the most feudal decree in the entire history of serfdom. This decree declared any complaint from a peasant against a landowner to be a grave state crime. Legally, the landowners were deprived of only one right - to deprive their serfs of life.

In Catherine’s “enlightened age,” trade among peasants reached enormous proportions. The decrees adopted during these years testified to the deep development of serfdom. But serfdom It also developed in breadth, including new categories of the population within its sphere of influence. The decree of May 3, 1783 prohibited the peasants of Left Bank Ukraine from changing from one owner to another. This decree of the tsarist government legally formalized serfdom in the Left Bank and Sloboda Ukraine.

A manifestation of “enlightened absolutism” was the empress’s attempt to form public opinion through journalism. In 1769, she began to publish the satirical magazine “All sorts of things,” where human vices and superstitions were criticized, and opened a printing house at Moscow University, headed by N.I. Novikov is a Russian educator, publicist and writer. Pushkin called him “one of those who spread the first rays of enlightenment.” He made available to a wide circle readers of the works of W. Shakespeare, J.B. Moliere, M. Cervantes, works of French enlighteners, Russian historians. Novikov published many magazines, where, for the first time in Russia, criticism of serfdom was voiced. Thus, it was in the age of Catherine, on the one hand serfdom reached its apogee, and on the other hand, a protest arose against it not only from the oppressed class (the peasant war led by E. Pugachev), but also from the emerging Russian intelligentsia.

Foreign policy of Catherine II

Illustration 29. Russian Empire in the second half of the 18th century. (European part)

• Firstly, territorial - this is the task of promoting the southern border of the state (Black Sea, Crimea, Sea of ​​Azov, Caucasus Range).
• Secondly, the national one is the reunification of the Belarusian and Ukrainian lands that were part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with Russia.

After the Seven Years' War, one of Russia's main opponents in the international arena became France, which sought to create the so-called “Eastern Barrier”, consisting of Sweden, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Ottoman Empire. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth is becoming an arena for clashes between these states.

In the context of an aggravated situation, Russia managed to conclude an alliance with Prussia. Catherine II preferred to have a complete Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, while Frederick II strives for its territorial division.

The Ottoman Empire, which closely followed the events in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops from there. In 1768 she declared war on Russia. During the first years of the war, Turkish troops were forced to abandon Khotyn, Iasi, Bucharest, Izmail and other fortresses in the Danube theater of operations.

The first occurred on June 25-26, 1770, when the Russian squadron, having circumnavigated Europe, arrived in the Mediterranean Sea and won a brilliant victory near Chesma. A month later, the talented commander P.A. Rumyantsev inflicted a serious defeat on the Turks at the Battle of Kagul. The hostilities did not stop there.

France continued to push the Ottoman Empire into war with Russia. On the other hand, Austria supported Turkey, pursuing its own goals in this war - to conquer part of the Danube principalities that were in the hands of Russian troops. Under the current conditions, the Russian government was forced to agree to the division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Convention of 1772 formalized the first section of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth: Austria captured Galicia, Pomerania, as well as part of Greater Poland, went to Prussia. Russia received part of Eastern Belarus.

Now Türkiye in 1772 agreed to conduct peace negotiations. The main point of disagreement in these negotiations was the question of the fate of Crimea - the Ottoman Empire refused to grant it independence, while Russia insisted on it. Hostilities resumed. Russian troops under the command of A.V. Suvorov in June 1774 managed to defeat the Turkish troops at Kozludzha, this forced the enemy to resume negotiations.

On July 10, 1774, negotiations in the Bulgarian village of Kuchuk-Kainardzhi ended with the signing of a peace treaty. Through this world, Kerch, Yenikale, and also Kabarda passed to Russia. At the same time, she received the right to build a military navy on the Black Sea, its merchant ships could pass through the straits without hindrance. This is how I ended Russian-Turkish war(1768 - 1774).

However, the Turks already in 1775 violated the terms of the treaty and arbitrarily proclaimed their protege Devlet-Girey Khan of the Crimea. In response, the Russian government sent troops into Crimea and confirmed its candidate, Shagin-Girey, on the khan’s throne. The rivalry between the two powers in the struggle for Crimea ended with the promulgation in April 1783 of Catherine II’s decree on the inclusion of Crimea into Russia.

Among other Russian foreign policy steps of that period, the Georgievsky Tract should be highlighted. In 1783, an agreement was concluded with Eastern Georgia, which went down in history under the name “Treaty of St. George”, which strengthened the position of the peoples of Transcaucasia in the fight against the Iranian and Ottoman yoke.

The Ottoman Empire, although it recognized the annexation of Crimea to Russia, was intensively preparing for war with it. She was supported by England, Prussia, and France. At the end of July 1787, the Sultan's court demanded the right to Georgia and Crimea, and then began military operations with an attack on the Kinburn fortress, but this attempt was repulsed by Suvorov.

In the defeat of the Ottoman army and navy, great credit goes to the outstanding Russian commander Suvorov, who was at the head of the army, and the extraordinary talent of naval commander F.F. Ushakova.

1790 was marked by two outstanding victories. At the end of August, a naval victory was won over the Turkish fleet. To others important event During this period there was an assault and capture of the Izmail fortress. This powerful fortress with a garrison of 35 thousand people and 265 guns was considered inaccessible. On December 2, A.V. appeared near Izmail. Suvorov, at dawn on December 11, the assault began, and the fortress was taken by Russian troops.

These victories of the Russian troops forced Turkey to end the war, and at the end of December 1791 to conclude a peace treaty, which confirmed the annexation of Crimea to Russia and the establishment of a protectorate over Georgia. Thus ended the Second Russian-Turkish War (1787 - 1791).

Poland continues to occupy a large place in Russian foreign policy these years. In the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth itself, some magnates and gentry turned to Russia for help. At their call, Russian and Prussian troops were brought into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and conditions were created for its new division.

In January 1793, a Russian-Prussian treaty was concluded, according to which Polish lands (Gdansk, Torun, Poznan) went to Prussia, and Russia was reunited with Right Bank Ukraine and the central part of Belarus, from which the Minsk province was later formed - the second partition of Poland occurred.

The second partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth caused the rise of a national liberation movement led by General Tadeusz Kosciuszko. In the fall of 1794, Russian troops under the command of A.V. Suvorov entered Warsaw. The uprising was suppressed, and Kosciuszko himself was captured.

In 1795, the third partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took place, putting an end to its existence. The agreement was signed in October 1795, Austria sent its troops to Sandomierz, Lublin and Chelmin, and Prussia to Krakow. The western part of Belarus, Western Volyn, Lithuania and the Duchy of Courland went to Russia. The last king of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth abdicated the throne and lived in Russia until his death in 1798.

The reunification of Belarus and Western Ukraine, ethnically close to the Russian peoples, with Russia contributed to the mutual enrichment of their cultures.

Paul I

The reign of Paul I (1796 - 1801) is called “unenlightened absolutism” by some historians, “military-police dictatorship” by others, and the reign of a “romantic emperor” by others. Having become emperor, the son of Catherine II tried to strengthen the regime by strengthening discipline and power in order to exclude all manifestations of liberalism and freethinking in Russia. Characteristics he was harsh, hot-tempered, unbalanced. He tightened the order of service for the nobles, limited the validity of the Letter of Grant to the nobility, and introduced Prussian order in the army, which inevitably caused discontent among the upper class Russian society. On March 12, 1801, with the participation of the heir to the throne, the future Emperor Alexander I, the last in history was committed palace coup. Pavel was killed in the Mikhailovsky Castle in St. Petersburg.

Catherine II – All-Russian Empress, who ruled the state from 1762 to 1796. The era of her reign was a strengthening of serfdom tendencies, a comprehensive expansion of the privileges of the nobility, active transformative activity and an active foreign policy aimed at implementing and completing certain plans.

Foreign policy goals of Catherine II

The Empress pursued two main foreign policy goals:

• strengthening the influence of the state in the international arena;
• expansion of territory.

These goals were quite achievable in the geopolitical conditions of the second half of the 19th century century. Russia's main rivals at this time were: Great Britain, France, Prussia in the West and the Ottoman Empire in the East. The Empress adhered to a policy of “armed neutrality and alliances,” concluding profitable alliances and terminating them when necessary. The Empress never followed in the footsteps of anyone else's foreign policy, always trying to follow an independent course.

The main directions of Catherine II's foreign policy

Objectives of Catherine II's foreign policy (briefly)

The main foreign policy objectives are those requiring a solution were:

• conclusion of final peace with Prussia (after the Seven Years' War)
• maintaining the positions of the Russian Empire in the Baltic;
• solution of the Polish question (preservation or division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth);
• expansion of the territories of the Russian Empire in the South (annexation of Crimea, territories of the Black Sea region and the North Caucasus);
• exit and complete consolidation of the Russian navy in the Black Sea;
• creation of the Northern System, an alliance against Austria and France.

The main directions of Catherine II's foreign policy

Thus, the main directions of foreign policy were:

• western direction (Western Europe);
• eastern direction (Ottoman Empire, Georgia, Persia)

Some historians also highlight

• the northwestern direction of foreign policy, that is, relations with Sweden and the situation in the Baltic;
• Balkan direction, bearing in mind the famous Greek project.

Implementation of foreign policy goals and objectives

The implementation of foreign policy goals and objectives can be presented in the form of the following tables.

Table. "Western direction of Catherine II's foreign policy"

Attention! Historians suggest that the formation of the Anti-French coalition was undertaken by the empress, as they say, “to divert attention.” She did not want Austria and Prussia to pay close attention to the Polish question.

Second anti-French coalition

Table. "Northwestern direction of foreign policy"

Table. "Balkan direction of foreign policy"

The Balkans are becoming a target close attention Russian rulers starting with Catherine II. Catherine, like her allies in Austria, sought to limit the influence of the Ottoman Empire in Europe. To do this, it was necessary to deprive her of strategic territories in the region of Wallachia, Moldova and Bessarabia.

Attention! The Empress had been planning the Greek Project even before the birth of her second grandson, Constantine (hence the choice of name).

He was not implemented because of:

• changes in Austria's plans;
• independent conquest by the Russian Empire of most of the Turkish possessions in the Balkans.

Greek project of Catherine II

Table. “Eastern direction of Catherine II’s foreign policy”

The eastern direction of Catherine II's foreign policy was a priority. She understood the need to consolidate Russia in the Black Sea, and also understood that it was necessary to weaken the position of the Ottoman Empire in this region.

Attention! The successes of the state in the East were associated primarily with the activities outstanding commanders and naval commanders, “Catherine’s eagles”: Rumyantsev, Orlov, Ushakov, Potemkin and Suvorov. These generals and admirals raised the prestige of the Russian army and Russian weapons to unattainable heights.

It should be noted that a number of Catherine’s contemporaries, including the famous commander Frederick of Prussia, believed that the successes of her generals in the East were simply a consequence of the weakening of the Ottoman Empire, the disintegration of its army and navy. But, even if this is so, no power except Russia could boast of such achievements.

Russo-Persian War

Results of the foreign policy of Catherine II in the second half of the 18th century

All foreign policy goals and objectives Ekaterina executed with brilliance:

• The Russian Empire gained a foothold in the Black and Azov Seas;
• confirmed and secured the northwestern border, strengthened the Baltic;
• expanded territorial possessions in the West after three partitions of Poland, returning all the lands of Black Rus';
• expanded its possessions in the south, annexing the Crimean Peninsula;
• weakened the Ottoman Empire;
• gained a foothold in the North Caucasus, expanding its influence in this region (traditionally British);
• Having created the Northern System, it strengthened its position in the international diplomatic field.

Attention! While Ekaterina Alekseevna was on the throne, the gradual colonization of the northern territories began: the Aleutian Islands and Alaska (the geopolitical map of that period of time changed very quickly).

Results of foreign policy

Evaluation of the Empress's reign

Contemporaries and historians assessed the results of Catherine II's foreign policy differently. Thus, the division of Poland was perceived by some historians as a “barbaric action” that went against the principles of humanism and enlightenment that the empress preached. Historian V. O. Klyuchevsky said that Catherine created the preconditions for the strengthening of Prussia and Austria. Subsequently, the country had to fight with these large countries that directly bordered the Russian Empire.

Successors of the Empress, and, criticized the policy his mother and grandmother. The only constant direction over the next few decades remained anti-French. Although the same Paul, having conducted several successful military campaigns in Europe against Napoleon, sought an alliance with France against England.

Foreign policy Catherine II

Foreign policy of Catherine II

Conclusion

The foreign policy of Catherine II corresponded to the spirit of the Epoch. Almost all of her contemporaries, including Maria Theresa, Frederick of Prussia, Louis XVI, tried to strengthen the influence of their states and expand their territories through diplomatic intrigues and conspiracies.

The article briefly talks about the domestic and foreign policies of Catherine II. The reign of the “enlightened” empress was quite long and was reflected in the strengthening of the role of the nobility and the success of Russia in the international arena.

1. Introduction

Domestic policy Catherine II

• In the first years of her reign, Catherine II strove to realize her ideal - enlightened absolutism. She really believed in the creation of a reasonable political system, based on the principles of humanistic philosophy. For this purpose, the “Order” was developed - a program in which the most negative sides serfdom. In 1767, Catherine II convened a special election commission to discuss her “Order” and develop a new Council Code. The commission included representatives from all Russian estates. The work of the commission immediately revealed the narrow-class orientation of its representatives. The nobles defended their interests, which were in conflict with the growing merchant class. However, the main attacks and demands came from the peasantry. Encouraged by the opportunity to express their discontent, the peasants declared the intolerability of their situation and all the oppression they suffered from the nobles. They set a necessary condition for granting peasants the right to private property. The “enlightened” empress did not expect this and, under the pretext of the outbreak of war, stopped the work of the commission.
• The war with Turkey distracted Catherine II from the planned transformations, and the peasant uprising led by Pugachev frightened her and forced her to abandon all idealistic ideas about government structure. Catherine II begins to pursue a policy of centralizing power and strengthening the position of the nobility.
• Immediately after the suppression of the Pugachev uprising, the Zaporozhye Sich and Cossack self-government were liquidated. Russia was divided into provinces headed by governors. Governors-general were appointed to govern several provinces. The county became a small unit of territorial division. Nobles received the right of local self-government. They elected district and provincial leaders of the nobility.
• The most important document of Catherine II is the Charter of the Nobility (1785). Noble privileges acquired the force of law. The nobles became a closed class with the exclusive right of land ownership.
• At the same time, the Charter of Cities was adopted, according to which all citizens were divided into six categories that made up the city curiae. Once every three years, the townspeople elected members of the city duma and the mayor from among the six curiae. Wealthy merchants and nobles had an advantage. The Duma was an executive body and dealt with secondary issues of local government. Her power was completely limited by the governor.

Foreign policy of Catherine II

• The actions of Catherine II were aimed at resolving the Turkish and Polish issues. As a result of the war with Turkey 1768-1774. Russia received significant territories in the south and the Kerch fortress. The strengthening of Russia in the Turkish question caused the unification of Austria and Prussia in the Polish question, which demanded the division of Poland, which was torn apart by internal contradictions at that time. Under the influence of Austria and Prussia, Russia confirmed the conditions for the division of Poland. Part of the territory went to Russia, part to Austria.
• The strengthening of Russia's military power allowed it to unilaterally annex Crimea, which led to another war with Turkey (1787-1791). A series of outstanding victories of the Russian army consolidated the results of the war of 1768-1774, Crimea was recognized as Russian territory.
• Contradictions between Austria, Prussia and Russia regarding Poland grew. After peace was concluded with Turkey, Russia was able to transfer troops and take Warsaw. In 1793, the second partition of Poland took place, according to which Belarus and Right Bank Ukraine were transferred to Russia. Poland was limited to a small territory, as a result of which an uprising was raised under the leadership of T. Kosciuszko. Russian troops suppressed the uprising and in 1795 the third partition of Poland took place, destroying it as an independent state. Russia regained its original ancient Slavic lands.
• Thus, the internal policy of Catherine II was expressed in the final establishment of the nobility as the ruling class, and the external policy - in the expansion of territory and a significant increase in influence in the world.

Introduction

1. Domestic policy of Catherine II

1.1 Power reform

1.2 Economic, social and religious policies

2. Foreign policy during the reign of Catherine II

Conclusion

List of used literature

Introduction

The reign of Catherine II left a noticeable mark on the history of Russia. The policy of the Russian Empress was quite versatile and sometimes even contradictory. For example, her policy of enlightened absolutism, characteristic of many European countries of that era and which implied patronage of art, did not, however, prevent Catherine II from strengthening serfdom.

Catherine II, born Sophia Frederika Augusta of Anhalt-Zerbst, came from a poor German princely family. Catherine was a rather complex, extraordinary person. WITH early childhood She learned an everyday lesson - in order to have power, you need to be able to be cunning and pretend.

In 1745, Catherine II converted to the Orthodox faith and was married to the heir to the Russian throne, the future Peter III. Having arrived in Russia as a fifteen-year-old girl, Catherine perfectly mastered the Russian language, studied many Russian customs, and, of course, thereby achieved the ability to please the Russian people. The future Russian empress read a lot. She read a lot of books by French educators, ancient authors, special works on history and philosophy, and works by Russian writers. From them, Catherine II adopted the ideas of the enlighteners about the public good as the highest goal of a statesman, about the need to educate and educate his subjects, about the primacy of laws in society.

Soon after the accession of Peter III, unpopular among the nobility, Catherine overthrew her husband from the throne, relying on the guards regiments. In the first years of her reign, Catherine II intensely searched for ways to establish herself on the throne, while showing extreme caution. When deciding the fate of the favorites and mistresses of the previous reign, Catherine II showed generosity and condescension. As a result, many talented and useful people remained in their previous positions.

At the beginning of her reign, Catherine II continued to implement the policies outlined in the previous time. Some innovations the empress wore private character and did not give any reason to classify the reign of Catherine II as an outstanding phenomenon in Russian history.

It must be admitted that the circumstances under which Catherine began to reign were very difficult: finances were depleted, the army did not receive salaries, trade was in decline, for many of its industries were given over to a monopoly, the military department was plunged into debt, the clergy was dissatisfied with the taking away he has land.

1. Catherine's domestic policy II

1.1 Power reform

Catherine II declared herself the successor of Peter I. The main features of Catherine II's domestic policy were the strengthening of the autocracy, the strengthening of the bureaucratic apparatus, the centralization of the country and the unification of the management system.

On December 15, 1763, according to Panin’s project, the Senate was transformed. The Senate was divided into 6 departments, headed by chief prosecutors, and headed by the prosecutor general. Each department had certain powers. General powers The Senate was reduced, in particular, it lost legislative initiative and became a body for monitoring the activities of the state apparatus and the highest court. The center of legislative activity moved directly to Catherine and her office with secretaries of state.

During the reign of the Empress, an attempt was made to convene the Statutory Commission. The main goal of the commission's work was to clarify the people's needs in order to carry out comprehensive reforms.

More than 600 deputies took part in the commission, 33% of them were elected from the nobility, 36% from the townspeople, which also included nobles, 20% from the rural population (state peasants). The interests of the Orthodox clergy were represented by a deputy from the Synod. The first meeting of the Statutory Commission was held in the Faceted Chamber in Moscow, but due to the conservatism of the deputies, the Commission had to be dissolved.

On November 7, 1775, the “Institution for the management of the provinces of the All-Russian Empire” was adopted. Instead of a three-tier administrative division - province, province, district, a two-tier administrative division began to operate - province, district (which was based on the principle of the size of the tax-paying population).

The governor-general (viceroy) kept order in local centers; 2-3 provinces were subordinate to him. Each province was headed by a governor. Governors were appointed by the Senate. Finances in the province were handled by the Treasury Chamber, headed by the vice-governor. The provincial land surveyor was in charge of land management. The executive body of the governor was the provincial board, which exercised general supervision over the activities of institutions and officials. The Order of Public Charity was in charge of schools, hospitals and shelters, as well as class judicial institutions: the Upper Zemstvo Court for nobles, the Provincial Magistrate, which considered litigation between townspeople, and the Upper Justice for the trial of state peasants. The highest judicial bodies in the provinces were the criminal chamber and the civil chamber. The chambers judged all classes. The Senate becomes the highest judicial body in the country.

At the head of the district was a captain-mentor - the leader of the nobility, elected by him for three years. He was the executive body of the provincial government.

Since there were clearly not enough cities that were the centers of counties, Catherine II renamed many large rural settlements into cities, making them administrative centers. Thus, 216 new cities appeared. The population of the cities began to be called bourgeois and merchants.

Instead of a governor, a mayor was appointed at the head of the city, endowed with all rights and powers. Strict police control was introduced in cities. The city was divided into parts (districts) under the supervision of a private bailiff, and the parts were divided into quarters controlled by a quarterly overseer.

Carrying out provincial reform in Left Bank Ukraine in 1783-1785. led to a change in the regimental structure (former regiments and hundreds) to the administrative division common to the Russian Empire into provinces and districts, the final establishment of serfdom and the equalization of the rights of the Cossack elders with the Russian nobility. With the conclusion of the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi Treaty (1774), Russia gained access to the Black Sea and Crimea. Thus, there was no longer a need to maintain the special rights and management system of the Zaporozhye Cossacks, who served to protect the southern borders of Russia. At the same time, their traditional way of life often led to conflicts with the authorities. After repeated pogroms of Serbian settlers, as well as in connection with the Cossacks’ support for the Pugachev uprising, Catherine II ordered the disbandment of the Zaporozhye Sich, which was carried out by order of Grigory Potemkin to pacify the Zaporozhye Cossacks by General Peter Tekeli in June 1775.

In 1787, the Army of the Faithful Cossacks was created, which later became the Black Sea Cossack army, and in 1792 they were granted Kuban for eternal use, where the Cossacks moved, founding the city of Ekaterinodar.

As a result of common administrative reforms, aimed at strengthening the state, it was decided to annex the Kalmyk Khanate to the Russian Empire. By her decree of 1771, Catherine liquidated the Kalmyk Khanate, beginning the process of annexing the Kalmyk state, which previously had vassalage relations with the Russian state, to Russia. The affairs of the Kalmyks began to be supervised by a special Expedition of Kalmyk Affairs, established under the office of the Astrakhan governor. Under the rulers of the uluses, bailiffs were appointed from among Russian officials. In 1772, during the Expedition of Kalmyk Affairs, a Kalmyk court was established - Zargo, consisting of three members (one representative each from the three main uluses: Torgouts, Derbets and Khoshouts).

The territory of Estonia and Livonia as a result of the regional reform in 1782-1783. was divided into 2 provinces - Riga and Revel - with institutions that already existed in other provinces of Russia. The special Baltic order, which provided for more extensive rights of local nobles to work and the personality of the peasant than those of Russian landowners, was also eliminated.

Siberia was divided into three provinces: Tobolsk, Kolyvan and Irkutsk.

In an effort to create the most real guarantees of an “enlightened monarchy,” Catherine II began to work on granting letters to the nobility, cities, and state peasants. Charters to the nobility and cities received legal force in 1785. The charter to the nobility secured for each hereditary nobleman freedom from compulsory service. They were also exempt from state taxes, corporal punishment. They retained the right of ownership of movable and real estate, as well as the right to sue only by equals (i.e. nobles), to conduct trade.

1.2 Economic, social and religious policies

The reign of Catherine II was characterized by the development of the economy and trade. By a decree of 1775, factories and industrial plants were recognized as property, the disposal of which does not require special permission from their superiors. In 1763, the free exchange of copper money for silver was prohibited, so as not to provoke the development of inflation. The development and revival of trade was facilitated by the emergence of new credit institutions (state bank and loan office) and the expansion of banking operations (acceptance of deposits for safekeeping was introduced in 1770). A state bank was established and the issue of paper money- banknotes.

Catherine 2 was truly a great ruler. The results of her reign are significant in all areas, although not equal in all.

Mother-serf

The economic course (unlike many other directions) in the domestic policy of Catherine II was distinguished by traditionalism. The empress did not accept the industrial revolution; Russia during her reign remained an agrarian state. The main producers were large landowner farms (the Prussian way of development), where serfs worked. Catherine distributed huge land holdings to the landowners and transferred peasants to them (more than 800 thousand). Russia was a major exporter of products Agriculture(its share in international trade increased in Catherine’s times), but the economy developed extensively.

Industrial production grew more slowly. It was facilitated by the decision to cancel permits for the ownership of “factories.” Metal production doubled during Catherine's years.

In the trade sphere, Catherine the Great pursued a free trade policy. Various monopolies were abolished and protectionist measures were curtailed. But the empress sought to protect the national currency. For this purpose, the exchange of copper for silver was regulated, and the Noble Bank (1770) and the Assignation Bank (1786) were created. Copper money from the reign of Catherine was distinguished by its enormous size - A.V. Suvorov, having received 5,000 rubles as a reward in copper 5-ruble notes, was forced to hire a dray cart to transport them.

Social sphere

In words, Catherine 2 was a supporter of the ideas of the Enlightenment, but in reality she acted as an absolutist. The “main nerve” of her state were the nobles, who never had as many privileges as during her reign. The pinnacle of Catherine’s “liberty of the nobility” is the Charter of 178.

The charter granted to the cities consolidated and expanded the rights of the philistines and merchants. Recruitment was abolished in the cities, 3 merchant guilds were introduced, and the rights and responsibilities of different segments of the urban population were clearly regulated.

The empress's religious policy demonstrated tolerance. Property Orthodox Church came under secular control. Worship services of other religions, construction of temples and religious educational institutions. It is noteworthy that Catherine gave refuge in Russia to the Jesuits expelled from all European states. But it almost certainly had to do with politics, since the Jesuits are unsurpassed masters of political intrigue.

National policies have actually disadvantaged... Russians. Other nationalities often received privileges. German nobles had more rights than Russians. The Tatars of Crimea and the majority of the peoples of Siberia never knew serfdom. Ukrainians and Poles paid a lower poll tax.

The Empress patronized art, education, and science.

Greatness of Russia

The foreign policy of Catherine II turned out to be very successful. Its goals can be formulated as follows: expansion of the empire, strengthening of international authority, border security, full support of monarchism.

The Empress has many external achievements to her name, sometimes morally and ideologically dubious, but successful in government terms.

1. Russia became an active participant in the three sections of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1772-1795), as a result of which it annexed right-bank Ukraine, a significant part of White Rus', and part of Poland.
2. The victorious wars with Turkey ensured the security of Russian borders in the south and ensured the annexation of Crimea, which immediately turned into an important military base.
3. In the Caucasus, the territory of modern Azerbaijan was annexed (spring 1796).
4. The colonization of Alaska began.
5. Russia supported American war for independence, becoming the initiator of the Declaration of Armed Neutrality (actually directed against English rule of the seas). The point here was not in the republic, but precisely in the seas. Russian ships were among the first to enter the ports of the newly-minted American States.
6. Russia acted as an ideologist and participant in anti-French coalitions directed against the Great french revolution. Within the framework of this policy, Suvorov’s Italian and Swiss campaigns took place. French royalist emigrants were welcomed in Russia.

It is important that Catherine knew how to act in the international arena both by force (the Potemkin-Suvorov army was distinguished by excellent combat capability) and through diplomatic channels.