Territory and population. In the second half of the 18th century. The territory of Russia expanded significantly, especially in the southern and western directions. Into the country by the end XVIII century included the Northern Black Sea region, the Azov region, Crimea, Right Bank Ukraine, the lands between the Dniester and the Bug, Belarus, Kurpendia and Lithuania. The population of Russia by the end of the century was 36 million people. The bulk of the population lived in rural areas: 54% of the peasants were privately owned and belonged to landowners, 40% of the peasants were state-owned and belonged to the treasury, the remaining 6% belonged to the palace department. By the end of the century, about 10% of the country's population lived in cities. By the beginning of the 19th century. There were 634 cities in Russia, although many of them remained rather administrative and power centers of rural areas.
Industry. In 1785, a special “Craft Regulations” was published, which was part of the “Charter of Grant to Cities”. At least five artisans of a certain specialty had to form a workshop, which elected its foreman. The government pursued the goal of turning urban artisans into one of the class groups of the then feudal society. Along with urban crafts, crafts were widely developed in fishing villages. Manufacture in the Ivanovo region grew out of the textile industry, which was carried out by the peasants of Count Sheremetev; Pavlovo on the Oka was famous for its metal products; Khokhloma region (now Nizhny Novgorod region) woodworking; Gzhel (in the Moscow region) ceramic products; Kimry leatherworking, etc.
From among the rich peasants, many of whom were serfs, the so-called “capitalist” peasants stood out. They opened their own enterprises, which they hired their fellow villagers. At the same time, such a “capitalist” peasant remained a serf of his landowner, paying him many thousands of rent. Only a few “capitalist” peasants were able to buy out their landowners and gain personal freedom.
The country experienced further growth in manufacturing production. In the middle of the 18th century. more than 600, and by the end of the century there were already more than 1200. There was still a large number of manufactories based on the serf-like exploitation of workers. In a number of industries in the second half of the 18th century. free labor was used. This especially applied to textile industry enterprises where otkhodnik peasants worked. Being serfs, they earned the necessary amount (rents) to pay their landowner. The relations of free hiring into which the factory owner and the serf entered into represented already capitalist relations of production.
In 1762 it was forbidden to buy serfs for factories. In the same year, the government stopped assigning peasants to enterprises. The civilian labor market began to take shape. By the end of the 18th century. there were more than 400 thousand hired workers in Russia. Manufactories, founded after 1762 by persons of non-noble origin, worked exclusively on civilian labor. In 1767, farming and monopolies in industry and trade were abolished. A further impetus to the development of crafts and industry was given by the decree of 1775, which allowed peasant industry. This led to an increase in the number of breeders from merchants and peasants investing their capital in industry.
So, the process of the formation of capitalist relations of production has become irreversible. However, we must always remember that the formation and further development of the capitalist structure took place in a country where serfdom dominated, which had a huge influence on the forms, paths and pace of the formation of capitalism.
Agriculture. Agriculture continued to be the leading sector of the Russian economy. There was an increase in serf relations in breadth and depth. They covered new territories and new categories of population.
In 1783 serfdom established itself in the Left Bank Ukraine, and in 1796, in the south of Ukraine (Novorossiya), in the Crimea and Ciscaucasia. After the Russian-Turkish wars and the peasant war of 1773-1775. The Zaporozhye Sich was liquidated. On the fertile but sparsely populated lands of New Russia (southern Ukraine, Black Sea region), the landowner could settle his peasants, receiving from the state from 1.5 to 12 thousand acres of land. Everyone received 60 acres of land, except for privately owned serfs, including foreign colonists, whom Catherine II began to attract to Russia with her manifestos back in 1762. Thus, large centers of settlement of foreign colonists emerged: in the Saratov black earth region - Germans, in Novorossiya - Greeks and Armenians. The development of the fertile lands of the center and the newly developed territories of the country opened the beginning of Russian grain exports abroad through the Black Sea ports of Kherson, Nikolaev, and Odessa.
In the second half of the 18th century. The regions were finally determined, corvée (working rent) and quitrent (cash or food rent) still prevailed. Corvee labor, which reached up to six days a week, was widespread in the black earth regions of the country. In non-chernozem regions, landowners transferred peasants to cash rent. Here, fishing activities and peasants leaving to earn money became widespread.
Throughout the country, the connection between landowners and peasant farms with the market expanded. In an effort to increase the production of grain for sale, landowners in corvee farms began to transfer peasants (from the 80s) to monthly labor. The allotment was taken away from the serf peasant, and he had to work for the landowner for a meager monthly allowance. The size of the monetary dues also increased: on average 5 times by the end of the century compared to the middle of the century. It was possible to earn money either by engaging in fishing or by going to work. The peasant increasingly lost contact with the land, which led to the destruction of the peasant economy.
Some landowners followed the path of rationalizing their farming. They sought to increase their income without touching the foundations of the serfdom system. Technical devices began to be used on their estates, multi-field crop rotation was introduced, and new crops were bred (sunflower, tobacco, and small potatoes). A large role in this was played by the “Free Economic Society for the Encouragement of Agriculture and House Construction in Russia,” founded in 1765 and lasting until 1917. In a number of farms, landowners began to build manufactories that used the labor of serfs.
Thus, the serf economy used forms and methods of labor organization that were unusual for it, which was one of the manifestations of the beginning of the decomposition of serf production relations.
Under Catherine II, legislative acts were adopted allowing us to say that serfdom had reached its peak. A serf was no longer much different from a slave.
A decree of 1765 allowed landowners to exile their peasants without trial or investigation to Siberia for hard labor, with these peasants counted as recruits. Peasant trade flourished. They could be lost at cards, innocently punished. Often the landowner enjoyed the “right of the first night.” According to the decree of 1763, the peasants themselves had to pay the costs associated with the suppression of their protests (if they were recognized as the instigators of the unrest). In 1767, a decree was issued prohibiting peasants from filing complaints with the Empress against their landowners.
Domestic and foreign trade. Specialization in various branches of economic activity has become even more noticeable. Bread of the Black Earth Center and Ukraine, wool, leather, fish of the Volga region, Ural iron, handicrafts of the Non-Black Earth Region, salt and fish of the North, flax and hemp of the Novgorod and Smolensk lands, furs of Siberia and the North were constantly exchanged at numerous auctions and fairs. They were located at the junction of economic regions and trade flows in Nizhny Novgorod, Orenburg, Irbit, Nezhin (Ukraine), Kursk, Arkhangelsk, etc. The abolition of internal customs duties since 1754 contributed to the development of the all-Russian market.
Russia conducted active foreign trade through the ports of the Baltic and Black Sea regions. It exported metal, the production of which it held a leading position in the world until the end of the 18th century, hemp, linen fabrics, sailing cloth, timber, and leather. From the end of the 18th century. grain began to be exported through the Black Sea ports. From foreign countries They imported sugar, cloth, metal products, silk, dyes, coffee, wine, fruit, and tea. The leading trading partner of our country in the second half of the 18th century. was England.
Strengthening the class system. Each category of the population (nobles, clergy, various categories townspeople, peasants, Cossacks, etc.) acquired class isolation, which was determined by the corresponding rights and privileges recorded in laws and decrees. Strengthening and imposing the class system in the 18th century. was one of the ways to keep power in the hands of the nobility. This happened on the eve of the Great french revolution, which took place under the slogan “freedom, equality and fraternity,” which meant the destruction of all class barriers.
Reforms of Catherine II. Catherine II attached a huge role to legislation. Already in the manifesto after accession to the throne, she stated: “We intend to inviolably preserve the landowners on their estates and possessions, and maintain the peasants in due obedience to them.”
In 1764, the hetmanate in Ukraine was abolished. The last hetman K.G. Razumovsky was dismissed and his place was taken by the Governor General. The autonomy of Ukraine was eliminated. The whole country, Catherine believed, should be governed according to the same principles.
In conditions of mass unrest among the monastery peasants, Catherine in 1764 carried out the secularization of church property, announced by Peter III. The staffing and payment of clergy were established. The former monastery peasants (there were about 1 million male souls) came under the power of the state. They began to be called economic, since the College of Economy was created to manage them.
In 1765, the country began land surveying: the boundaries of land holdings were determined on the ground and their legal consolidation. It was intended to streamline land ownership and stop land disputes. But the biggest event of Catherine II was the convening of a Commission to draft a new Code.
Stacked commission. Pursuing the goal of establishing “peace and tranquility” in the country and strengthening her position on the throne, Catherine II convened a special Commission in Moscow in 1767 to draw up a new set of laws Russian Empire to replace the outdated “Cathedral Code” of 1649. 572 deputies representing the nobility, government agencies, peasants and Cossacks took part in the work of the Code Commission. Serf peasants, who made up approximately half of the country's population, did not participate in the work of the Commission. The leading role in it was played by noble deputies (approximately 45%).
At the suggestion of Catherine II, the deputies submitted approximately 1,600 orders from the localities to the commission, “in order to better understand the needs and sensitive shortcomings of the people.” As a guiding document for the 1767 Commission, the Empress prepared the “Nakaz”, a theoretical justification for the policy enlightened absolutism. “The Mandate” was a complete work in which the need for a strong autocratic government in Russia and the class structure of Russian society was proven. Catherine II declared the goal of autocracy to be the welfare of all subjects. Freedom of citizens, or, as Catherine II called it, liberty “is the right to do what the laws allow.” Thus, the equality of people was understood as the right of each class to have the rights granted to it: for the nobles their own institutions, for the serfs - their own. It was necessary to issue laws such that, “on the one hand, they would avert the abuses of slavery, and on the other hand, they would prevent the dangers that could arise from there.” Catherine II believed that laws were created to educate citizens. Only a court can find a person guilty, the “Order” stated. Albeit in a class interpretation, the concept of the presumption of innocence was introduced into Russian legislation.
At the fifth meeting, the empress was given the title “Great, Wise Mother of the Fatherland,” which meant the final recognition of Catherine II by the Russian nobility.
Unexpectedly for Catherine and her entourage, the peasant issue turned out to be at the center of the discussion. Some deputies, nobles G. Korobin and Y. Kozelsky, peasants I. Chuprov and I. Zherebtsov, Cossack A. Aleinikov, and single-palace A. Maslov, criticized certain aspects of serfdom. For example, A. Maslov proposed transferring serfs to a special collegium, which would pay the landowner's salary from peasant taxes. This would actually mean the liberation of the peasants from the power of the landowners. A number of deputies spoke in favor of clear regulation of peasant duties. The majority of deputies defended serfdom and demanded the expansion of their class rights, privileges, and group interests.
The work of the Commission lasted more than a year. Under the pretext of starting a war with Turkey, “violating peace and silence,” it was dissolved in 1768 for an indefinite period, without drawing up a new code. Created alongside the Big One general meeting private commissions dealing with specific laws existed until the death of Catherine II.
From the speeches and orders of the deputies, Catherine II was able to form a fairly clear idea of the positions of various groups of the country's population. The “Order” of Catherine II and the materials of the Legislative Commission largely predetermined the empress’s legislative practice. The ideas of the “Nakaz” can be traced both in the “Institution on the Provinces” and in the “Charter Letters” to the nobility and cities, adopted after the suppression of the Peasant War under the leadership of E.I. Pugacheva.
In the specific conditions of Russia in the second half of the 18th century. Catherine II made an attempt to modernize the country, create a legitimate autocratic monarchy, relying on the then level of knowledge about nature and society.
Letters granted to the nobility and cities. On April 21, 1785, on the birthday of Catherine II, Letters of Grant to the nobility and cities were simultaneously issued. It is known that Catherine II also prepared a draft Charter for state (state) peasants, but it was not published due to fears of noble discontent.
By issuing two charters, Catherine II regulated legislation on the morals and responsibilities of the estates. In accordance with the “Charter on the rights, liberties and advantages of the noble Russian nobility”, they were exempted from compulsory service, personal taxes, and corporal punishment. The estates were declared the full property of the landowners, who, in addition, had the right to establish their own factories and factories. Nobles could only sue their peers and, without a noble court, could not be deprived of noble honor, life and property. The nobles of the province and district constituted the provincial and district corporations of the nobility, respectively, and elected their leaders, as well as local government officials. Provincial and district noble assemblies had the right to make representations to the government about their needs. The charter granted to the nobility consolidated and legally formalized the power of the nobility in Russia. The ruling class was given the name "noble".
The “Certificate of Rights and Benefits to the Cities of the Russian Empire” determined the rights and responsibilities of the urban population and the management system in cities. All townspeople were registered in the City Book of Philistines and formed a “city society.” It was announced that “the townspeople or real city dwellers are those who have a house or other building, or place, or land in that city.”
The urban population was divided into six categories. The first of them included the nobles and clergy living in the city; the second included merchants, divided into three guilds; in the third - guild artisans; the fourth category consisted of foreigners permanently living in the city; the fifth - eminent townspeople, who included persons with higher education and capitalists. The sixth are the townspeople who lived by crafts or work. Residents of the city elected a self-government body every three years - the General City Duma, the mayor and judges. The general city duma elected executive agency- a six-vote Duma, which included one representative from each category of the urban population. The City Duma decided on matters related to landscaping, public education, compliance with trade rules, etc. only with the knowledge of the mayor appointed by the government.
The charter placed all six categories of the urban population under state control. Real power in the city was in the hands of the mayor, the deanery and the governor.
Catherine II made an attempt to modernize the country, create a legitimate autocratic monarchy, relying on the then level of knowledge about nature and society.
Paul I. Catherine II's successor to the throne was her son Paul I (1796-1801). Under Paul I, a course was established towards strengthening absolutism, maximum centralization of the state apparatus, and strengthening the personal power of the monarch. He equated autocracy with personal despotism. In 1797, Paul issued the “Institution on the Imperial Family,” according to which Peter’s decree on succession to the throne was canceled. From now on, the throne was to pass strictly through the male line from father to son, and in the absence of sons, to the eldest of the brothers. To maintain the imperial house, a department of “departments” was formed, which managed the lands that belonged to the imperial family and the peasants who lived on them. The order of service for nobles was tightened, and the effect of the Letter of Grant to the nobility was limited. Discipline was tightened in the army and the state, everyday life subjects are also subject to strict regulation. Prussian order was imposed in the army. In 1797, the Manifesto on the three-day corvee was published. He forbade landowners from using peasants for field work on Sundays, recommending that corvée be limited to three days a week.
Paul's continued stay in power was fraught with loss of political stability for the country. The emperor’s foreign policy also did not meet the interests of Russia. On March 12, 1801, with the participation of the heir to the throne, the future Emperor Alexander I, the last palace coup in the history of Russia was carried out. Paul I was killed in the Mikhailovsky Castle in St. Petersburg.
In the 70-80s pp. XVIII century Russia was inferior in level of development to advanced European states, but new relations of production were already being formed in the feudal economy of the country. Agriculture remained the main branch of the economy, which expanded during this period, primarily due to the development of lands in the south, in the Middle and Lower Volga region, Siberia, the southern part of the black earth center, Sloboda and Southern Ukraine, and Ciscaucasia. The basis of agriculture, as before, was Trypillia. The agricultural level was low and routine. More than 90% of the country's population were peasants, mostly landowners.
In the XVIII century. Noble land ownership grew: 800 thousand so-called revision souls were distributed to landowners, serfdom strengthened and duties grew. However, capitalist production relations gradually penetrated into agriculture: the peasants were transferred to cash rent, labor, and manufactories arose that belonged to the peasants.
The main obstacle to the development of agriculture was the dominance of serfdom.
In industry, manufactories were formed by expanding small-scale commodity production and subordinating small commodity producers to buyers. Depending on the form of ownership, there were noble, merchant and peasant manufactories.
at the end of the century, Russia took first place in Europe in the production and export of metallurgical products. Shipbuilding was an important industry. Shipyards operated in St. Petersburg, Arkhangelsk, Voronezh, and Kazan. The centers of light industry were Moscow and St. Petersburg. Some branches of light industry were formed in areas with a sufficient amount of raw materials: linen and sailing manufactories were created in Yaroslavl, near Kaluga, Kostroma, Voronezh, Kazan, Putivl, and the Vladimir province became the center of textile weaving. At the end of the century there were more than 2 thousand manufactories in Russia.
Overall volume foreign trade increased 5 times, with exports exceeding imports. Russia traded grain, iron, timber, furs, and bought sugar, silk, paints, etc.
In the second half of the 18th century. In all spheres of economic life in Russia, not only quantitative, but also qualitative changes occurred, associated with the decomposition of serfdom and the formation of capitalist production relations, the development of commodity-money relations and the destruction of the natural economy.
Despite the fairly dynamic development of the Russian economy, its situation was not brilliant. An inefficient economic system, the increasing extravagance of the imperial court, embezzlement of officials, excessive expenses for maintaining the army, constant unrest among peasants and workers and other factors led to the financial bankruptcy of Russia. The state treasury was empty, and foreign lenders refused new loans. This was one of the reasons for the palace coup of 1762.
Emperor Peter ///(1728-1762) (Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, grandson of Peter I and Charles XII) was a peculiar person and pursued contradictory domestic and foreign policies. In 1742, Empress Elizaveta Petrovna officially proclaimed him heir to the Russian throne, and from the age of 14, Karl Ulrich (real name of Peter III) lived in Russia under the supervision of the empress and his teacher, a professor. Russian Academy Sciences Y. Shtellina. However, they were unable to educate him in the spirit of respect for Russia, its customs and traditions. Peter III remained a lifelong adherent of his idol - the Prussian king Frederick the Great and his system of government.
Empress Elizabeth did not like Peter III and tried to prevent him from governing the state. Peter III also did not have a good relationship with his wife, Ekaterina Alekseevna. The future emperor's disdain for everything Russian even forced Elizabeth to develop a plan for transferring the Russian throne to her grandson, Paul. However, after the death of the Empress in December 1761, the Russian crown automatically passed to Peter III.
The short period of the reign of Peter III was marked by a number of important reforms in domestic policy, which to a certain extent can be considered an attempt to modernize Russia and a radical revolution in foreign policy. First of all, the emperor issued decrees that showed a certain influence of legislation introduced in Prussia. In January 1762, a decree on religious tolerance was issued. Representatives of various religious denominations, primarily schismatics, were no longer persecuted by the government; they were allowed to settle compactly in Siberia and engage in agriculture.
In February 1762, a royal decree was issued on the liquidation of the Secret Chancellery and a manifesto on the freedom of the nobility. From now on, nobles were exempt from compulsory military and civil service. The manifesto was intended to attract the nobility to economic activities on their estates. In March, the emperor initiated a decree on the secularization of church and monastic estates.
However, these generally progressive measures of the emperor encountered discontent among the upper strata of Russian society. The decree on religious tolerance and the secularization of church landholdings was considered anti-Orthodox. The manifesto on the freedom of the nobility hurt the interests of the aristocrats, the middle and petty nobility. The first saw in the public service a source of enrichment and sought only their own inviolability and the prohibition of confiscation of their property. For the impoverished nobility, military service was the only source of livelihood and opportunity to make a career. In addition, Peter III reorganized the army according to the Prussian model, introduced drill and strict discipline, dissolved the privileged part of the guard, which further alienated the nobility.
However, most of all, Russian society was outraged by the pro-German foreign policy of Peter III. Russia participated in the Seven Years' War (1756-1763); the Russian army achieved significant success in the fight against the Prussian army of Frederick the Great: in 1760, together with the Austrians, it entered Berlin. East Prussia was declared a Russian possession, and its population began to take an oath of allegiance to the Russian crown. Immediately after ascending the throne, the new emperor ordered the troops of General Chernyshev’s corps to go over to Frederick’s side and turn their arms against their former allies, the Austrians. Soon negotiations with the king about peace began and the Russian emperor invited Frederick to draw up the terms of this treaty himself. It was signed on April 24, 1762. Russia returned all conquered territories to Prussia and pledged to sign a defensive alliance. Peter III was preparing for war with Denmark in order to tear away the Duchy of Schleswig from it and annex it to his homeland - the Duchy of Holstein (Holstein). A Russian corps under General P. Rumyantsev was even sent to Pomerania. Russia's foreign policy was actually led by the ambassador of the Prussian king, Baron Goltz.
On June 28, 1762, guards officers carried out a palace coup and elevated the wife of Peter III, Ekaterina Alekseevna, to the Russian throne, who ruled under the name of Catherine II (1762 - 1796).
Catherine II Alekseevna (Sofia-Frederica-Augusta) (1729 - 1796) - Russian empress, wife of Emperor Peter III; after the coup of 1762 ruled autocratically. During her reign, the absolute monarchy was strengthened, the class privileges of the nobility were formed, the oppression of the peasant masses intensified (Pugachev's uprising of 1773-1775pp.), an active foreign policy was pursued aimed at protecting Russia from Turkish-Crimean aggression and the threat of Sweden in the Baltic, neutralizing Austria and Prussia for account of a forced concession in resolving the issue of Poland, active opposition from England (overt support was provided for the American Revolution and the new state - the USA). As a result of the Russian-Turkish wars (1768-1774,1787-1791) and three sections of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1772, 1793,1795), the Russian Empire captured most of the Ukrainian lands (except for Galicia, Bukovina and Transcarpathia). Catherine II pursued a policy aimed at the final elimination of the autonomy of Ukraine: in 1764 the hetmanate was abolished, in 1765. The Cossack regiments in Slobozhanshchina were disbanded in 1775. The Zaporozhye Sich was finally destroyed in 1782. In the Hetmanate, the regimental and centenary administration was liquidated and a division into 3 governorships was introduced; in 1788, the Cossack regiments on the Left Bank were disbanded and serfdom was legally introduced. In 1785, with a “charter granted to the nobility,” Catherine II legislated the rights and privileges of the Russian nobility and equated the Ukrainian Cossack elders with them, assigning land holdings to them. There was intensive development of the economy (industry, trade). In the field of culture and education, the reign of Catherine II was reflected in the attempt to create an education system, the development of literature, art and architecture, and the subsequent Russification of the non-Russian outskirts of the empire.
On June 29, Peter III abdicated the throne and was exiled to the present day. Ropsha, near St. Petersburg. A few days later the former emperor was killed. The new empress came to power with the help of the nobility, and therefore her entire domestic and foreign policy was aimed at satisfying its interests.
Second half of the 18th century. was characterized by the further development of absolutism in the Russian Empire. The internal policy of the Russian autocracy of this period was called the policy of enlightened absolutism.
Relying on the nobility, Catherine II cared about strengthening the autocracy and preserving the inviolability of the feudal-serf system. The pinnacle of noble privileges was the manifesto “On the granting of liberty and freedom to the entire Russian nobility.” The nobility was exempted from compulsory public service, and the inviolability of their property was legally established. This manifesto extended the title of nobility to the German barons of the Baltic states, Ukrainian Cossack elders, etc.
Catherine II also issued a decree dividing the Senate into six departments with various functions, which weakened its influence as a government body, and created a personal office - “Her Majesty’s Cabinet”, concentrating all executive power in its hands. A reform of local government bodies was carried out (all local power was concentrated with the governor), and in Central Russia and Left Bank Ukraine - the secularization of monastic lands. The most striking embodiment of the policy of enlightened absolutism was the convening of the Legislative Commission (a meeting of representatives of the estates), one of the tasks of which was to replace the outdated Code of 1649.
In response to the empress's call to take part in the creation of new legislation, the deputies brought with them thousands of orders from their voters, during the discussion of which sharp contradictions between the classes were revealed. The nobles demanded an expansion of their privileges, an increase in landownership at the expense of peasant plots, tougher punishment of peasants for misconduct, and the like. The merchants sought freedom of enterprise, protection from the state from competition from foreign manufacturers, permission to buy serfs for factories, and the like. Peasant deputies asked to reduce onerous duties and introduce a single poll tax, to allow them to engage in crafts, trade and entrepreneurial activity. Some deputies raised the issue of the need to abolish serfdom, which forced Catherine II to stop the work of the Commission and complete the formation of the class system in Russia.
First of all, the peasants finally lost their personal freedom and became completely dependent on the landowners, becoming their private property. The Empress spread serfdom in two ways: she gave peasants to the nobles for faithful service (during her reign she distributed 400 thousand people to state peasants) and through legislative acts. By decree of 1763, peasants were forbidden to leave their landowners without special permission. In the same year, a new legislative act was issued, by which peasants were subjected to corporal punishment for disobedience to the landowners and were required to cover the losses they caused to the landowners. U1765r. landowners received the right to exile rebellious peasants to hard labor in Siberia without trial. Two years later, a new imperial decree prohibited peasants from filing complaints against landowners with government agencies. In this way, the landowners gradually transformed from landowners to owners of people and police stewards of their peasants.
In the XVIII century. The Peasant War of 1773-1775 broke out. led by Emelyan Pugachev. It began as a protest against the strengthening of serfdom and the restriction (of the Cossacks) of freedoms.
Emelyan Pugachev (1744-1775) - Don Cossack, leader of the Peasant War of 1773-1775, in which he acted under the name of Emperor Peter III. Participant in the Seven Years' War, campaigns under the command of A. Suvorov in Poland, the Russian-Turkish War of 1768 - 1774. For bravery he received the first Cossack officer rank of cornet. In 1771 he was elected ataman of Terek Cossack army. He was repeatedly arrested for participating in anti-government protests. U1773r. organized the Cossack uprising, which grew into the Peasant War.
The war covered a vast territory - the Southern and Middle Urals, Western Siberia, Bashkiria), Perm region, Prikamye, Volga region and Don. Peasants, Cossacks, townspeople, and “working people” (workers of private and state-owned factories and factories) took an active part in it. During the war, thousands of peasants and nobles died, the economy of these regions was ruined and paralyzed.
The war began in the Urals from the performances of the Yaitsko Cossacks. From the beginning of the 18th century. they were in public service and defended the southern and eastern borders of Russia, were on government pay and enjoyed the right to elect their atamans and elders. The basis of their economic activity was fishing, hunting and cattle breeding. However, gradually the foreman and atamans took possession of the best fishing areas, hayfields and pastures, administered cash payments and forced the Cossacks to work on their farms.
The abuses of the Cossack elders and the government decree on the participation of the Cossacks in the war with Turkey caused Cossack unrest, which was suppressed by government troops. In 1772, regular army units occupied the Yaitsky town and arrested 86 of the most active and rebellious Cossacks, while others took refuge in distant farmsteads.
at the end of 1772 V. Pugachev arrived on Yaik. He declared himself Emperor Peter III, who did not die and was able to escape, and enlisted the support of the Cossacks in the fight for their rights. In 1773, the “Tsar-Father” addressed the people with a manifesto, in which he promised the peasants land and freedom, and the Cossacks money and food support. Pugachev's troops were constantly growing. In the fall, the rebels defeated small army detachments and surrounded the Orenburg fortress. At the end of the year, the uprising covered the entire Orenburg region, the Southern Urals and the Trans-Urals. The Bashkirs, led by Salavat Yulaev, rose up in rebellion. their troops captured several fortresses and approached the Ufa metropolitan area. Peasants and workers of Ural factories joined Pugachev. At the beginning of 1774, the rebel army numbered almost 30 thousand people and 100 cannons. It was divided into main detachments. The general leadership of the uprising was carried out by the Military Collegium, headed by A. Pugachev.
It was sent against the rebels regular army under the command of General A. Bibikov, which defeated the rebels near Orenburg, forcing them to lift the siege of the fortress. Soon the rebel detachments near Ufa and in the battle near the Sakmarsky town were defeated. Here the troops of General D. Golitsyn captured 1,500 people, among whom were the leaders of the rebels. Pugachev with a detachment of 500 people was forced to flee to the Urals.
In the Southern Urals, new rebel detachments joined Pugachev and in May 1774 they numbered 5 thousand people. In May - June, the peasant army captured the strong fortresses of Troitskaya and Osa and went to Kazan. It grew to 20 thousand people, but was poorly armed. On July 12, Pugachev captured Kazan, which was burned during the assault. Soon the rebels were defeated by government troops and O. Pugachev with the remnants of his army went to Nizhny Novgorod. However, as they moved away from Bashkiria, the rebel army was abandoned by the Bashkir cavalry, and the remoteness of the Ural factories deprived it of guns. Ultimately, in the summer of 1774, Russia signed peace with Turkey and a large regular army was equipped against the rebels (eight infantry regiments, eight cavalry regiments, five Cossack regiments, etc.) led by A. Suvorov.
On the right bank of the Volga, Pugachev decided to go to Moscow not through the well-fortified Nizhny Novgorod, but through Saratov. On August 6, the rebels captured the city and brutally dealt with its defenders - dozens of nobles were drowned in the Volga. Pursued by government troops, the rebel army went to Tsaritsyn. Pugachev hoped that when he captured the city, he would enlist the support of the Don Cossacks, spend the winter in the Kuban and in the spring make a new campaign against Moscow. On August 24, near Tsaritsyn, a decisive battle rebels with government troops, in which Pugachev suffered a final defeat. He lost 2 thousand people killed, and 6 thousand rebels were captured. With a detachment of 160 Cossacks, Pugachev tried to break through to the Caspian Sea, but the Cossacks came to an agreement and handed him over to government officials. On January 10, 1775, Pugachev was executed on Bolotnaya Square in Moscow.
The consequence of the war was the centralization of government and the strengthening of the nobility - the support of the autocracy. In 1775, an administrative reform was carried out, according to which Russia was divided into 50 provinces, which in turn were divided into counties. In the provinces, power belonged to the governor, and in the districts county towns- police captain and mayor. Financial management was centralized and class courts were created. In 1785, the so-called Letters of Grant to the nobility and cities were issued. The nobles were allowed to create their own corporate bodies (noble assemblies), according to which the peasants were legally assigned with their real estate. The nobles were exempt from taxes, duties, corporal punishment, the obligation to perform military and public service And so on. In cities, city councils and police and economic bodies were created, and citizens were divided into six categories according to property qualifications. New imperial decrees further strengthened serfdom: in 1783, the peasants of Left Bank Ukraine were finally prohibited from moving without permission to other places of residence. In 1792, the government restored the right of landless peasants to sell at auction for landlord debts.
Internal policy of tsarism at the end of the 18th century. characterized by the desire to strengthen the dominance of the nobility and the elite of the merchant class. Frightened by the fall of absolutism in France and peasant uprisings, the new Russian autocrat Paul I (1796-1801) made attempts to overcome internal political contradictions with the help of a military-bureaucratic dictatorship. During the four years of his reign, more than 2,000 legislative acts were issued, most of which were aimed at strengthening the absolute power of the monarch and the state apparatus. The nobility lost its liberties guaranteed by the acts of Catherine II; the right of self-government was taken away from cities; censorship was introduced and private printing houses were closed; subjects of the Russian Empire were prohibited from traveling abroad and importing foreign books; The Russian army was reorganized, in which new regulations were introduced and the system of command and control was modernized. At the same time, the position of the Orthodox clergy improved; state peasants received self-government; freedom of religion was introduced in the country; The compulsory work of a serf for a landowner was limited to three days a week, and the landowner could be punished for cruel treatment of peasants and the like. The metropolitan nobility, corrupted by privileges even during the reign of Catherine II, opposed the despotism of Paul I. It carried out a new coup d'etat and Pavel I was killed. His son Alexander became the new emperor of Russia.
Foreign policy and unprecedented military activity of Russia in the second half of the 18th century. was inspired by the desire of the nobility to seize new territories and markets - to take possession of the Crimea, reach the Sea of Azov and the Caucasus Range, and annex Right Bank Ukraine and Belarus to Russia. This inevitably led to a collision with Ottoman Empire and Poland, so it was necessary to find powerful allies. In 1764, Russia signed an alliance treaty with Prussia. Both countries guaranteed the integrity of the Polish constitution and the return of the so-called religious dissidents (that is, those who did not belong to the Catholic faith) of their rights. Austria, dissatisfied with the interference of Russia and Prussia in Polish affairs, decided to split the Russian-Prussian alliance and began to push Turkey towards war with Russia.
In Right Bank Ukraine, the Haidamak uprising broke out - Koliivshchyna. The Gaydamaks hoped for support from the Russian government, which sent regular troops to Ukraine. To fight the Haidamaks and Russians, the Polish gentry created the Bar Confederation in 1768, which turned to Turkey for help. The Porte government was in no hurry to bind itself to any obligations with the 8 Poles. At the same time, Haidamak troops attacked the border town of Balta on Turkish territory. This became the reason for Turkey to demand from Russia that the Haidamaks be punished and compensated for losses. Russian troops suppressed the Haydamak uprising, but this did not satisfy Turkey. In October 1768, he was arrested in Istanbul Russian Ambassador and both countries began to prepare for war.
The main theater of the Russian-Turkish war of 1768-1774. became the territory between the Bug and Dniester rivers. The Russian army approached the Turkish fortress of Khotyn, where it defeated the 80-strong Turkish army, besieged the fortress and captured it by storm in September. The Turkish army left Moldova, part of Wallachia and retreated to the Danube. The following year, the 1st Russian Army under the command of General A. Rumyantsev set out from Khotin to the south and in the summer defeated the Turkish-Tatar troops in the Ryabaya Mogila tract, on the Larga River. The main forces of the Turkish army (150 thousand people) took a position on the city of Cahul. On July 21, 1770, the Russian army of A. Rumyantsev defeated the Turks, who lost 20 thousand people. The Russian fleet made the transition from Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean and on June 26 destroyed the Turkish squadrons in Chesme Bay.
Russia and Türkiye began negotiations and soon signed a truce. However, after the intervention of Austria, Prussia and France, who were preoccupied with Russian victories, hostilities resumed. In the campaign of 1773, Russian troops inflicted several defeats on the Turkish army. The decisive year was 1774. In June, the division of General 0. Suvorov completely defeated the 40,000-strong Turkish corps in Battle of Kozludzhi Turkey asked for peace.
According to the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi Peace of 1774, Russia received a large territory in the Lower Dnieper and Bug region, Crimea and Kuban became independent from Turkey. Porta was forced to pay Russia 4.5 million rubles as compensation for war losses.
In April 1783, Catherine II issued a manifesto in which she stated that Crimea, the Taman Peninsula and “the entire Kuban side were accepted under the All-Russian power.” In the summer of the same year, the construction of the Sevastopol metro station, the base of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, began in Crimea. In order to strengthen the position in Transcaucasia, which was subject to constant attacks from Turkey and Persia, Russia signed the Treaty of Georgievsk with Eastern Georgia in 1783. The Georgian king Irakli II, like the Crimean Khan, recognized himself as a vassal of Russia.
Preparing for an inevitable war with Turkey, Russia entered into an alliance with Austria, agreeing to its seizure of the Danube lands up to and including the Adriatic Sea, Vakhalia, Serbia, Bosnia, etc.
In August 1787, Turkey gave Russia an ultimatum: return Crimea, abandon the treaty with Georgia and previous Russian-Turkish treaties. On August 12, Türkiye declared war on Rosa. The international situation for Russia was unfavorable - its relations with Sweden worsened (the following year it began military operations against Russia), Prussia and England took an anti-Russian position.
The start of the war was unsuccessful for Russia. In September 1787, during a strong storm near Cape Kaliakra, the Russian Black Sea squadron perished. The following year, the army of Field Marshal G. Potemkin surrounded the Ochakov fortress and was able to capture it only at the end of the year. In 1789, the Russian army acted together with the Austrians. From the very beginning, the Turks had the initiative. In July they tried to split the Allied armies near Focsani, but failed. In the autumn, Russian troops of 0. Suvorov and the Austrian army of Prince Coburg defeated the main Turkish forces in the battle on the Rimnik River. In 1790, Russia's ally Austria withdrew from the war and, through the mediation of England and Prussia, began peace negotiations with Turkey. However, even under such conditions, Russian troops captured the Turkish fortresses of Kiliya, Tulcea and Isakcha in the lower reaches of the Danube and surrounded the Izmail fortress. The Russian Black Sea squadron of Admiral F. Ushakov defeated the Turkish fleet in the Kerch Strait and near Tendra Island. Turkey's situation became hopeless after Russian troops under the command of A. Suvorov stormed the Izmail fortress on December 11, 1790.
After the Peace of Jassy in 1791, the entire northern coast of the Black Sea was assigned to Russia. The new border between Russia and Turkey was supposed to pass in the southwest along the river. Dniester. Türkiye renounced its claims to Crimea and Georgia.
Relations between Russia and Sweden were tense throughout the 18th century. The Swedish king Gustav III dreamed of returning the territories in the Baltic states lost at the beginning of the century during the Northern War (1700-1725). Russia has repeatedly joined Sweden's opponents. Thus, in 1764, the head of the Russian foreign policy department G. Panin came up with the idea of an alliance of Prussia, Russia and Denmark against Austria and France. It was planned to involve Sweden as a “passive” member of the union. This political combination was seen in Stockholm as an attempt by Russia to strengthen its influence in Northern Europe. The successes of the Russians in the fight against the Turkish Empire worried the monarchs of Europe, and England and Prussia began to push Sweden towards war with Russia.
Sweden delivered an ultimatum to Russia demanding the return of all territories that belonged to Sweden before the Northern War, to abandon Crimean peninsula, disarm the Russian fleet in the Baltic. This led to Russian-Swedish war 1788-1790 On June 21, 1788, Swedish troops numbering up to 40 thousand people crossed the Russian border and began shelling the Russian garrison of the Neishlot fortress in Finland. The main forces of the Russian army were fighting in the South against the Turkish army, so only a 20,000-strong corps was deployed against the Swedes. However, the main events of the war took place at sea.
The first battle between naval squadrons of the warring states took place in July 1788 near the island of Gogland. Having lost one ship, the Swedes were forced to retreat to Sveaborg Bay. In August of the following year, the Russian rowing flotilla in the Gulf of Finland defeated the Swedish fleet. The sea communications that provided the Swedish land army were blocked. The Russian army drove the Swedes out of Finland. In the summer of 1790, the Swedes finally managed to defeat the Russian fleet, but this did not change the general balance of forces in the theater of war, which was unfavorable for Sweden. In August 1790, the Verel Peace Treaty was signed in Finland, which restored the pre-war borders between both states.
In the second half of the 18th century. Russia actively intervened in the partitions of Poland, whose internal political situation was extremely difficult. Various noble political factions competed for power. Royal power was limited to the gentry's Sejm, where each gentry, using the right of “liberum veto” (I do not allow), could block the adoption of a decision unfavorable to him. Neighboring states - Austria, Prussia and Russia - decided to take advantage of the weakening of centralized power and the struggle of political groups. The reason for intervention in the internal affairs of Poland was the situation of religious dissidents (Orthodox, Protestants, etc.). Catholicism in Poland was the state religion, and representatives of other religious denominations were persecuted by the Catholic Church: churches were closed and priests were forbidden to perform religious rites, and forced Catholicization took place. Attempts by Russia and Prussia to mitigate religious oppression were resisted by magnates and gentry, who formed a wide variety of confederations and resorted to aggressive actions against dissidents.
The Confederation is a meeting of representatives of the gentry and the government, who were endowed with full power. Unlike the Sejm, decisions were made by majority vote.
In 1763, the Polish king August III died and a struggle began between noble factions who tried to elevate their pretenders to the throne. In the choice of the Polish king, the foreign policy factor played an important role: if the son of Augustus PI, the Saxon elector, was elected king, Poland would fall into the sphere of influence of Austria, which did not suit Russia and Prussia. The best candidate for Catherine II was Stanislav Poniatowski, who was nominated by the party led by the Czartoryski princes. Having supported its contender, Russia planned to seize part of the Polish lands and move the Russian border to the Western Dvina. The Prussian king Frederick the Great hoped to capture part of the northern Polish lands.
Having coordinated its actions with Prussia, Russia sent troops into Polish territory and helped S. Poniatowski gain the throne. In 1768, a Russian-Polish treaty was signed, which strengthened Russian influence in Poland, guaranteed political and religious rights to dissidents. The gentry, dissatisfied with this situation, created an anti-Russian confederation in Bar. Russian troops under the command of A. Suvorov were brought into Poland and defeated the Confederate troops. Fearing that Russia would be able to finally seize Polish lands, in 1770 Prussia captured Pomerania, and Austria captured Galicia. In 1772, in St. Petersburg, Russia, Austria and Prussia signed an agreement on the division of Poland. Russia captured Eastern Belarus and the Polish part of the Baltic states (Dvinsk and Daugavpils), Prussia - Pomerania and Poznan, Austria - Galicia. Poland lost more than 200 thousand square meters. km of territory.
Foreign intervention led to a patriotic upsurge in Poland, which forced the king to change his attitude towards an alliance with Russia. Poland concluded new union with Prussia, hoping with its help to carry out reforms and strengthen public administration. Taking advantage of the fact that Russia was at war with Turkey, Polish patriots developed a new constitution and adopted it at the Sejm in May 1791.
Dissatisfied with the reorientation foreign policy Poland, Russia supported the Polish party of supporters of the old government system led by Count F. Potocki and put forward a demand to the Polish government to abolish the Constitution of 1791, threatening to break diplomatic relations. In May 1792, a 100,000-strong Russian army entered Polish territory. Polish troops under the command of General T. Kosciuszko tried to stop them, but were defeated. Russian troops captured Warsaw, and the Prussian army captured the cities of Poznan, Torun and Danzig.
Tadeusz Kosciuszko (Kosciuszko) (1746-1817) - leader of the 1794 uprising in Poland, an outstanding political figure, general, organizer of the struggle of the Polish people for independence. He studied at the Warsaw Cadet School and studied engineering in Germany, Italy and France. Participant in the Revolutionary War North America(1775-1783). Brigadier General of the US Army. Author of the Polanetsky station wagon 1794 rub. on the liberation of Polish peasants from serfdom. Wounded, he was captured by the tsarist troops and imprisoned in the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. Released in 1796. Died in Switzerland.
In May 1793, Russia and Prussia announced the second partition of Poland. Right-bank Ukraine went to Russia. At the beginning of 1794, Polish patriots, led by T. Kosciuszko, rebelled against the Russians in Krakow. The rebels defeated the troops of A. Tormasov and drove the Russians out of Warsaw, the Uprising became nationwide. T. Kosciuszko’s general ideas about reducing corvee labor and the abolition of serfdom contributed to attracting peasants to the war of liberation. However, in the fall, the poorly armed rebels were defeated by the Russian troops of A. Suvorov, who again captured Warsaw. T. Kosciuszko was captured and imprisoned in St. Petersburg. King S. Poniatowski renounced the Polish throne.
As a result of the third partition of Poland in 1795, its independence was finally eliminated. Russia received Western Belarus,
Western Volyn, Lithuania and Courland, Austria - the Krakow, Sandomierz and Lublin regions, and Prussia - the remaining lands with Warsaw. As a result of the divisions of Poland, the territory of Russia expanded significantly - it became the largest empire in Europe.
In addition to the struggle for influence in Central Europe, the desire to resolve the Middle East issue, one of the important principles of the foreign policy of Tsarist Russia was the protective-monarchical principle. Russia severed diplomatic and economic ties with revolutionary France, organized a landing of troops in Italy, and contributed to the Italian and Swiss campaigns led by A. Suvorov against revolutionary France.
The reforms of Peter the Great strengthened the feudal-serf system in Russia, but at the same time they gave a great impetus to the development of an internal socio-economic crisis. The reforms of Peter I were the beginning of the process of decomposition of the feudal-serf system of the national economy, gave impetus to the formation and development of capitalist relations. Criticism of the evils of serfdom, and then the serf system itself, began.
The economic development of Russia in the mid-18th century reached its peak under conditions of feudal-serf relations. Feudalism, growing in depth and breadth, began to collapse from within. Commodity farming could not coexist with serfdom, and as a result, both landowners and serf peasants found themselves in contradictory relationships. What was needed was the material interest of the manufacturer, and it was inherent only in a free, free person.
The annexation of vast territories to Russia in the 18th century required their development. And serfdom was an obstacle to the rapid development of these territories.
The Russian bourgeoisie was constrained in its aspirations, at the same time it was generated by the socio-economic development of Russia and was dependent on the monarchy.
After the death of Peter I, a struggle for influence on power began between his followers and the old Russian nobility, also, by the way, followers of Peter. In a short period of time, there was a change in the faces of political figures.
After the death of Peter I, the favorite of his wife, Menshikov, emerged. In 1727 Catherine I dies and the grandson of Peter I, Peter II Alekseevich, ascends the throne. But he was only 14 years old and a Supreme Privy Council was created to govern the country (Menshikov, Prince Dolgoruky, etc.). But there was no unity within this council and a struggle ensued between Menshikov and Dolgoruky, the latter emerging victorious, but he did not have to take advantage of this, since in 1730. Peter II dies. The throne remains empty again.
At this time, the guards, dissatisfied with the policy of the Privy Council, carried out a coup, elevating to the throne the niece of Peter I, Anna Ioannovna, who lived in Jelgava (near Riga).
Anna Ioannovna was offered some conditions, which she signed, which stipulated that her power was limited in favor of the large Russian aristocracy (Privy Council). The nobles were unhappy and Anna Ioannovna dispersed the Privy Council, restoring the Senate. She ruled for 10 years.
The reign of Anna Ioannovna was characterized by mass terror against the Russian nobility (Dolgoruky, Golitsin and many others suffered). Biron rose to prominence at court, rising from groom to Chancellor of Russia.
Under Anna Ioannovna, a war was waged with Turkey.
The arbitrariness was unbearable and only after the death of Anna Ioannovna did peace come to Russia. Dying, Anna Ioannovna left a will, which stated that the Russian throne should pass into the hands of Ioann Antonovich, Anna Ioannovna’s nephew (grandson of Peter I and Charles CII, former enemies), at that time still an infant.
Naturally, his mother, Anna Leopoldovna and Regent Biron, ruled for him. But on November 25, 1741 a coup was carried out. Biron and Miniha were arrested and exiled. The coup was carried out by the guard, dissatisfied with the dominance of foreigners.
Elizabeth ascends the throne, declaring that the death penalty is abolished. This ban was in effect throughout the 25 years of her reign.
In 1755 Russian university opened.
Elizabeth surrounds herself with a group of advisers, including Shuvalov, Panin, Chernyshov and others.
Under Elizabeth, a 7-year war was fought against Prussia (Frederick II), which led to the victory of Russian weapons. Subsequently, Frederick II said that “it is not enough to kill a Russian soldier, he and the killed one must also be knocked down.”
The years of Elizabeth's reign were called the best years of Russia.
After Elizabeth, Peter III ascended the throne, whose reign was characterized by military dominance. Peter III abolished all restrictions for nobles. Under him, the peasants became like slaves. The landowner received the right to exile the peasant to Siberia for hard labor.
The activities of Peter III caused a storm of discontent and in June 1762. a coup d'état was carried out. Peter III was removed from power, and Catherine II the Great ascended the throne.
The distribution of state lands begins, serfdom spreads.
Catherine II, again using the nobility, carried out the secularization of church lands in 1764. All the lands belonging to churches and monasteries were confiscated and transferred to the College of Economics. Church peasants were transferred to quitrent (i.e., about 1,000,000 peasants received freedom); part of the land was transferred to landowners.
Catherine signed a decree on the ownership of the land belonging to them.
In 1767 A decree on the attachment of peasants was adopted. Peasants were forbidden to complain about their landowners. The complaint was regarded as a serious state crime. By decree of January 17, 1765 peasants could be sent to hard labor by their landowner. By decree of May 3, 1783 Ukrainian peasants were assigned to their landowners.
The domestic policy of Catherine II was aimed at strengthening serfdom. The Code of 1649 is already hopelessly outdated. In this regard, Catherine II convenes a commission to adopt new laws. As a reaction to Catherine's policies, numerous peasant unrest and uprisings began, which subsequently developed into a peasant war led by Emelyan Pugachev in 73-75. The uprising showed that government was not up to date.
After the suppression of the uprising, Catherine begins new reforms. In 1775 By decree of Catherine II, regional reforms were carried out. In Russia, provinces and districts were created, governors were appointed, noble supervision was created, noble corporate and class institutions were created, and the staff of officials, police and detectives was increased.
In the same 1775 A decree on freedom of enterprise and merchants was adopted. This decree led to the need for reforms in cities. The process of formalizing the privileges of the nobility and merchants ends with two charters to the right of the liberties and advantages of the Russian nobility and a charter granted to cities (1785). The first charter was aimed at consolidating the nobility, and the second met the interests of merchants. The purpose of issuing charters is to strengthen power, create new groups and layers on which the Russian monarchy could rely.
Catherine decides to strengthen censorship after the French Revolution. Novikov and Radishchev were arrested.
In 1796 Catherine II died and Paul I ascended the throne.
The character of the new emperor was largely contradictory. He did many things the opposite of his mother's. Paul demanded that the nobility return to their regiments.
After some time, by decree of April 5, 1797. it was approved that peasants should work for the landowner no more than 3 days a week, and prohibited the sale of peasants.
Paul broke off trade relations with England.
The highest nobility created a conspiracy against Paul, and on March 12, 1801. he was killed in Mikhailovsky Castle.
Russia's foreign policy in the 18th century was characterized by the struggle for access to the Black Sea; Azov was captured in 1736, Kabardino-Balkaria was completely annexed, and in 1731. Kazakhstan voluntarily joins Russia. During the 7-year war, Berlin and Koenigsberg were captured.
During the reign of Catherine II, Poland was divided three times, and Poland itself ceased to exist as an independent state.
During the reign of Paul I, great heroic deeds of Russian troops took place under the leadership of Suvorov.
In preparing this work, materials from the site www.studentu.ru were used
On July 29, 1762, another coup took place as a result of which Catherine II (1762-1796), Catherine proclaimed herself autocrat, and her husband deposed.
Development of crafts, manufactories, domestic and foreign trade in Russia in the 50s - 80s. XVIII century dictated the government's active economic policy. It was dictated by the interests of the nobility and partly large merchants and industrialists. The proclamation of freedom of trade and industrial activity contributed to the development of peasant trade and manufacturing, which undoubtedly was beneficial to the nobility, because “capitalist peasants” were serfs and paid large quitrents and were bought out for freedom for a lot of money. During the reign of Catherine II, 2/3 of the manufactories registered in the second half of the 90s were created. XVIII century
In the social sphere, the policy of Catherine II was called “enlightened absolutism.” “Enlightened absolutism” is a pan-European phenomenon that has formed a natural stage state development many European countries. This version of public policy arose under the influence of the ideas of the French Enlightenment. The main slogan of the Enlightenment was the achievement of the "kingdom of reason." Belief in the limitless powers of the human mind gave rise to ideas about the possibility of building a society on reasonable, fair principles. Many figures of the era pinned their hopes on an enlightened monarch who would be able to put their ideas into practice. The policy of "enlightened absolutism" in Russia was an attempt to prevent popular movements against the serfdom system and adapt the landowner economy to new bourgeois relations.
Under the influence of the ideas of the European Enlightenment, Catherine II decided to develop a new Code of Laws, which, while keeping autocracy and serfdom intact, would give grounds to talk about Russia as a rule-of-law state. For this purpose, in 1767, Catherine II convened the Legislative Commission in Moscow. Elections of deputies were class-based. The discussion of the peasant issue caused the greatest urgency at the commission meetings. Disputes over this issue became so protracted that the empress became disillusioned with the expediency of the commission's work and came to the conclusion of its dissolution. Under the pretext of war with Turkey in 1768, the commission was dissolved without drawing up a new Code.
The obvious tilt of the internal political course towards protecting the interests of the nobility (Charter to the nobility of 1785; Charter to the cities of 1785) led to the outbreak of the most bloody and brutal peasant war - the war led by Emelyan Pugachev (1773-1775), which demonstrated the presence of deep social contradictions in Russian society. The Pugachev uprising dealt a strong blow to the provincial administration. Catherine took steps to restore and improve local government, to give it stability. In 1775 she published the “Institution on the Provinces”. The new provincial administration relied on the nobility, which increased the empress's dependence on him.
There was an alliance of the most conservative elements of society against everyone else. He greatly slowed down the development of the commercial bourgeoisie and preserved the peasantry in silent and stagnant slavery, creating the social roots of the modernization crisis, which ultimately required considerable efforts to overcome. Thus, strict adherence to the principles of class society contradicted the modernization processes that had begun in the state.
Since the dissolution of the Statutory Commission, an important feature has emerged in Russian politics: from now on, periods of internal reforms will alternate with periods of active foreign policy. Reforms in Russia were, as it were, too frightening, while the sphere of foreign policy was a more relaxed and reliable field of activity for energetic supporters of enlightened absolutism.
The main directions of Russian foreign policy under Catherine II were southern, western and eastern. The most important foreign policy task facing Russia in the second half of the 18th century was the struggle for access to the Azov and Black Seas. For a long time, the Crimean Khanate posed a great danger to the southern borders of the empire. From there, with the support of Turkey, Tatar military raids were constantly carried out. At the end of the century, Catherine II fought two victorious wars with Turkey - in 1768-1774. and 1787-1791, as a result of which Russia received Crimea and access to the Black Sea. The port cities of Chersonesos, Odessa, and Sevastopol were created on its coast, which became the military base of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Russia's centuries-old task of strengthening its southern borders and gaining the opportunity for active foreign policy actions in the south has been solved.
Simultaneously with the events of the Russian-Turkish War, Europe was shocked by the events of the Great French Revolution. Revolutionary events turned out to be closely intertwined with the Polish question. Russia showed a very active position in its decision. As a result of three divisions of Poland (1772, 1793 and 1795) between Austria, Prussia and Russia, the latter took over Belarus, right-bank Ukraine, Lithuania, Courland, and part of Volyn. The unification of Belarusian and Ukrainian lands was a progressive act for the development of these peoples.
Russia's influence also grew in the east. Economic and cultural ties between Russia and Kazakhstan were strengthened, and the development of Siberia continued. In the first half of the 18th century. Russian travelers reach Alaska, and in 1784 the construction of permanent Russian settlements began on its territory.
After the death of Catherine II, the throne passed to her son, Paul I (1796-1801). Paul strove to further strengthen the autocracy, to individual power. The transformations of Paul I in the army, his desire to follow the military doctrine of the Prussian king Frederick II, caused serious rejection in the guard, which led to the last palace coup in the history of Russia. Paul 1 was killed by the conspirators. The Russian throne passed to his eldest son Alexander I (1801-1825).
Concluding our brief excursion into the events of the 17th – 18th centuries, we can highlight the following changes in the development of our country:
1. During this period for economic policy The state was characterized by a policy of mercantilism and protectionism. The development of elements of capitalism, however, was hampered by the deepening of serf relations and their penetration into the emerging industry, which led to Russia’s growing lag behind advanced countries Western Europe;
2. The social policy of the state was aimed at eliminating those social institutions that limited the absolutism of the tsarist power, as well as at creating new ones social strata and their unification;
3. State legal system of Russia in the 17th – 18th centuries. evolved from an estate-representative monarchy to absolutism. This was expressed in the creation of an extensive bureaucratic apparatus, a new service ideology, the concentration in the hands of the monarch of all legislative, executive and judicial powers, the absence of any bodies or legislative acts limiting his powers;
4. During the XVII – XVIII centuries. Significant changes are also taking place in the spiritual life of Russia. In the second half of the 17th - early 18th centuries. the church falls under the control of secular power and is deprived of part of its wealth as a result of the secularization of church land ownership. Internal church life is also complicated by the schism caused by the reforms of the mid-17th century.
This period also saw the formation of a new class secular culture and education, the penetration of Enlightenment ideas into Russia, the formation of various trends in socio-political life;
5. Throughout the XVII – XVIII centuries. Russia's territory is expanding significantly as a result of an active foreign policy. The tasks of breaking out of economic isolation and strengthening state borders were solved, which led to a change in the geopolitical position of Russia and the formalization of its imperial status.
However, despite the efforts of state power, Russia remained an agrarian country, entangled in serfdom (feudal) relations, with the absolute power of the monarch. This led to the strengthening of elements of unfreedom in public life, and the germs of civil society were harshly suppressed.
Thus, despite a certain success of modernization, Russia at the end of the 18th - early XIX centuries remained a traditional society.
additional literature
1. Anisimov, E.V. Time of Peter's reforms / E.V. Anisimov. - L.: Lenizdat, 1989.
2. Anisimov, E.V., Kamensky, A.B. Russia in the 17th – first half of the 19th century / E.V. Anisimov, A.B. Kamensky. - M.: MIROS, 1994.
3. Buganov, V.I. Peter the Great and his time / V.I. Buganov. - M.: Nauka, 1989.
4. Klyuchevsky, V.O. Historical portraits / V.O. Klyuchevsky. - M.: Pravda, 1990.
5. Pavlenko, N.I. Peter the Great / N.I. Pavlenko. - M.: Mysl, 1994.
6. The first Romanovs on the Russian throne / N.F. Demidova. - M.: Publishing house. Center IRI RAS, 1996.
7. Sorokin, Yu.A. Alexey Mikhailovich / Yu.A. Sorokin // Questions of history. - 1992. - No. 4, 5.
8. With a sword and a torch. Palace coups Russia 1725 – 1825 / Comp. M.A. Boytsov. - M.: Sovremennik, 1991.
WORKSHOP PLANS
Catherine's ideology and projectsII.
Catherine II adhered to the policy of “enlightened absolutism”, the main provisions of which were reflected in the “Order” to the Empress of the Statutory Commission (1767):
Creation of a new legislative code based on the principles of educational philosophy;
Abolition of outdated feudal institutions (some class privileges, subordination of the church to the state);
Carrying out peasant, judicial, educational reforms, easing censorship.
Most of these plans were not implemented.
Presentation page 9
Catherine's domestic policyII.
With the “Manifesto on Freedom for the Nobility” (1762) and the “Charter Granted to the Nobility” (1785), Catherine II secured the privileges of the nobility:
The nobles were exempt from taxes and duties.
Noble land ownership increased noticeably.
The exemption of the nobility from compulsory service (introduced by Peter III) was confirmed.
In 1775, the country was divided into 50 provinces instead of the previous 20. The population of the province ranged from 300 to 400 thousand people.
The secularization (confiscation) of church lands in favor of the state continued.
In 1787, a system of city schools was created (main and small public schools)
Presentation page 10
The uprising of E.I. Pugacheva (1773-1775)
In 1773, an uprising of the Yaik Cossacks (who lived in the area of the Yaik River) began, a peasant war led by E. I. Pugachev.
Pugachev proclaimed himself Emperor Peter III.
The peasant uprising covered the lands of the Yaitsk army, the Orenburg region, the Urals, the Kama region, Bashkortostan, part of Western Siberia, as well as the Middle and Lower Volga regions.
During the uprising, the Cossacks were joined by Bashkirs, Tatars, Kazakhs, Chuvashs, Mordovians, Ural factory workers and numerous serfs from all the provinces where hostilities took place.
Basic demands: abolition of serfdom, restoration of Cossack liberties in areas where Cossacks lived.
In 1775 the uprising was suppressed.
Presentation page 11
XVIIIcentury. Wars with Turkey.
Foreign policy objectives:
the struggle for access to the Black and Azov Seas;
liberation of the lands of Ukraine and Belarus from foreign domination and the unification of all Eastern Slavs in one state;
the fight against revolutionary France in connection with the Great French Revolution that began in 1789;
Presentation page 12
Russian foreign policy in the second halfXVIIIcentury. Partitions of Poland.
Together with Prussia and Austria, Russia participated in the division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Poland).
According to the first partition (1772) of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, part of eastern Belarus went to Russia.
According to the second section (1793) - Russia received the remaining part of eastern and central Belarus with Minsk, Volyn and Podolia.
According to the third partition (1795), western Belarus, western Volyn, Lithuania and Courland went to Russia.
Thus, almost all the lands of the Eastern Slavs who were part of Kievan Rus were united under Russian rule, with the exception of the Galician lands with Lvov (Galicia), which became part of Austria.
Presentation page 13
Russo-Turkish War 1768-1774
After a number of victories on land (under the leadership of P.A. Rumyantsev, V.M. Dolgorukov and A.V. Suvorov) and at sea (under the leadership of G.A. Spiridonov, A.G. Orlov and S.K. Greig ) the war was over.
According to the termsKuchuk-Kainardzhisky world(1774) Russia received:
access to the Black Sea;
the steppes of the Black Sea region - Novorossiya;
the right to have your own fleet in the Black Sea;
right of passage through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits;
Azov and Kerch, as well as Kuban and Kabarda passed to Russia;
The Crimean Khanate became independent from Turkey;
The Russian government received the right to act as a defender of the legitimate rights of the Christian peoples of the Ottoman Empire.
Russian-Turkish War 1787-1791 also ended in defeat for Turkey.
ByTreaty of Jassy:
Türkiye recognized Crimea as a possession of Russia;
the territory between the Bug and Dniester rivers became part of Russia;
Turkey recognized Russian patronage of Georgia, established by the Treaty of Georgievsk in 1783.
Presentation page 14
Paul's reformsI (1796-1801)
In 1796, Paul I (son of Catherine II and Peter III) came to power. During his 5 years in power, he carried out important reforms:
1. the law on succession to the throne, according to which the eldest son of the monarch became the heir to the throne,
2. limiting the work of peasants for the landowner to three days a week.
3. reduction of noble privileges and restoration of compulsory service of nobles.
The latter caused discontent among the nobility, and a conspiracy arose during which Paul I was killed.
Presentation page 16