THE ENTRY OF RUSSIA INTO THE EUROPEAN POLITICAL ARENA

 

Russia became a “wholly new factor in European politics”

 

Russia had long been isolated from the rest of Europe

-          No warm-water ports (ports free from ice 12 months of the year)

-          Sweden controlled the Baltic Sea & the Ottoman Empire controlled the Black Sea

-          Main western port was Archangel on the White Sea (ice bound for much of year)

 

Russia engaged in little trade, but did have a large reserve of natural and human resources

 

Birth of the Romanov Dynasty

 

1613 – Russian nobles elect 17-year old Michael Romanov (r. 1613-1654) as czar

à Romanov dynasty would rule Russia until 1917

 

Romanov and his successors would bring some stability & centralization to Russia, but country would remain weak & poor

 

Boyars (old Russian nobility) still controlled Russian bureaucracy (government apparatus)

 

1670-71 Peasants and Cossacks (horsemen of the steppes) revolt

à Barely suppressed

 

Streltsy (guards of Moscow garrison) presented constant threat of mutiny

 

 Peter the Great

 

1682 – Peter (r. 1682-1725) ascends Russian throne as co-ruler w/ half brother Ivan V (Ivan was ill and would die in 1696)

à He had become czar with the support of the streltsy

 

1689 – Followers of Peter overthrow his sister Sophia, who had ruled in her brothers’ name as regent

 

Peter became determined to …

-          Increase power of czar by weakening boyars and streltsy

-          Increase Russian military power

 

1697 – Peter visits Western Europe in disguise to inspect industries, shipyards, etc.

 

Peter became determined to westernize Russia (i.e. make it more like western Europe) in order to make it a great military power

à His main goals were to …

-          Bring the boyars and streltsy under control

-          Achieve secular control of the Church

-          Reorganize the internal administration in Russia

-          Develop the economy

 

Taming the Boyars and Streltsy

-          Required nobles to shave beards and shorten their sleeves so that they would look more like Western Europeans

-          1722 – Table of Ranks published equating person’s social position w/ their rank in the bureaucracy and army à A Russian noble’s social standing thus depended on how well they served the central state

-          Russian nobility would never become completely loyal to the state

 

-          1698 – Streltsy rebel against Peter while he was touring Europe

à Peter brutally suppressed the rebellion, executing almost 1,200 rebels

 

Achieving Secular Control of the Church

-          Russian Orthodox Church had long opposed Western ideas (religious and secular)

-          In the mid-17^th century Patriarch Nikon began introducing reforms into the Church, changing church texts and rituals

à Many Russians (Old Believers) bitterly resented and resisted these changes, and thousands even committed suicide in protest

 

-          1721 – Peter abolished the position of patriarch and established a synod headed by a layman (non-clergyman) to run the Church

à “The most radical policy of Peter’s reign”

 

Reorganizing Domestic Administration

-          Peter adopted Swedish system of “colleges” to run government more efficiently

à Composed of several people and not headed by a single minister

à Responsible for tax collection, foreign relations, war, & economic affairs

-          1711: 9-member senate created to run the Moscow government when tsar was away w/ army

 

Developing the Economy & Waging War

-          Peter encouraged economic development to increase Russia’s military strength

-          Encouraged development of iron industry in Ural Mountains

à Russia would become the largest iron producer in Europe

-          Sent young Russians abroad to learn Western European technologies and organizational methods

-          Encouraged craftsmen from Western Europe to move to Russia

-          Peter wanted a warm-water port that would enable Russia to trade more easily w/ West and have more involvement in affairs of Europe

-          1696 Russia captured Azov on the Black Sea from the Ottoman Empire (forced to return it in 1711)

-          1700 Russia invades Swedish territories on the Baltic Sea

-          1709 Battle of Potalva – Russia decisively defeats Sweden

-          1721 Peace of Nystad ends Great Northern War

à Russia receives Estonia, Livonia, and part of Finland, securing warm-water ports and permanent influence on the affairs of Europe

-          1703 Peter established new capital city of St. Petersburg on the Gulf of Finland

- Moved court to St. Petersburg

- City symbolized Russia’s new western orientation

 

Peter’s Successor

-          1718 Peter’s son Alexis dies mysteriously after being arrested for treason

-          1725 Peter dies without naming a successor

-          “Peter had laid the foundations of a modern Russia, but he failed to lay the foundations of a stable state.”