Russia Part 1

Russia Before Reform Sought to protect themselves from the contagiousness of the French Revolution Napoleons invasion of Russia in 1812 forced Russia to have new concerns about defense Conservatives wanted to move Russia toward isolation Many intellectuals however, remained fascinated with western culture and art

Some praised political freedom and educational and scientific advance Russia's ruling elite continued to welcome western artistic styles and took great pride in Russia's growing cultural respectability The “Decembrist Uprising” – inspired the new tsar - Nicholas I – to became more conservative Russia then became more conservative They did maintain their tradition of territorial expansion They had taken most of Poland and were still putting pressure on the Ottomans

Economic and Social Problems Its economic position did not keep up the pace with its diplomacy Russia continued to fall more and more behind the rest of Europe in technology and trade They had a few isolated factories Russian remained mostly agricultural and based on serf labor

There came an even wider gap between 1854 and 1856 when the Crimean War broke out Here, Nicholas I provoked a conflict with the Ottomans - and oddly, Europeans came to the aid of the sultan The loss of this war hurt Russia's morale Europeans had won this war not because of strategy but because of their industrial advantage This war convinced Russia to change

The first step was ending serfdom Only if the status of serfs changed could they industrialize The abolishment of serfdom came in 1861 The emancipation was pretty generous Serfs received freedom, some land, and a little money This emancipation helped bring change however, it did not spur the industrial revolution that Russia was looking for

Alexander II also introduced some new reforms Recruitment was extended in the military to include serfs Provided some state sponsored schools Literacy increased Women gained new positions Russian began to build extensive railroads in the 1870s This Trans-Siberian railroad connected Russia with the Pacific

Finally, modern factories were popping up Russia encouraged foreign investors to build factories with advanced technology in Russian cities such as Moscow, St. Petersburg, and several Polish cities By 1900, half of all Russian industry was foreign owned Russia became a huge debtor nation