Russia in the first half of the XIXth century

1. Russia in the first half of the XIXth century

2.

The reign of Emperor Alexander I
On the night of March 11-12, 1801, when Emperor Paul I was killed as a result of a conspiracy, the
question of the accession to the Russian throne of his eldest son Alexander Pavlovich was resolved.
He was privy to the plot. Hopes were pinned on the new monarch to carry out liberal reforms and
soften the regime of personal power.
Emperor Alexander I was brought up under the supervision of his grandmother, Catherine II. He was
familiar with the ideas of the enlighteners - Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau. However, Alexander
Pavlovich never separated the idea of equality and freedom from autocracy. This half-heartedness
became a feature of both the transformations and the reign of Emperor Alexander I. His very first
manifestos testified to the adoption of a new political course. It proclaimed the desire to rule
according to the laws of Catherine II, remove restrictions on trade with England, contained the
announcement of amnesty and the reinstatement of persons repressed under Paul I.
All work related to the liberalization of life was concentrated in the so-called. The secret committee,
which brought together friends and associates of the young emperor - P.A. Stroganov, V.P.
Kochubei, A. Chartorysky and N.N. Novosiltsev - adherents of constitutionalism. The committee
existed until 1805. It was mainly engaged in preparing a program for the emancipation of the
peasants from serfdom and reforming the state system. The result of this activity was the law of
December 12, 1801, which allowed state peasants, bourgeois and merchants to acquire
unpopulated land, and the decree of February 20, 1803 "On free farmers", which gave the
landowners the right, at their desire, to release the peasants at will land for ransom.

3.

A serious reform was the reorganization of the highest and central bodies of state power. Ministries
were established in the country: the military, land forces, finance and public education, the State
Treasury and the Committee of Ministers, which received a single structure and were based on the
principle of one-man command. Since 1810, in accordance with the project of a prominent statesman
of those years M.M. Speransky, the State Council began to operate. However, Speransky could not
carry out a consistent principle of separation of powers. The State Council has turned from an
intermediate body into a legislative chamber appointed from above. The reforms of the early 19th
century did not affect the foundations of autocratic power in the Russian Empire.
In the reign of Alexander I, the Kingdom of Poland, annexed to Russia, was granted a constitution. The
constitutional act was also presented to the Bessarabian region. Finland, which also became part of
Russia, received its legislative body - the Seim - and a constitutional structure. Thus, constitutional rule
already existed in part of the territory of the Russian Empire, which inspired hopes for its spread
throughout the country. In 1818, the development of the "Charter of the Russian Empire" even began,
but this document never saw the light of day.
In 1822 the emperor lost interest in state affairs, work on reforms was curtailed, and among the advisers
of Alexander I stood out the figure of a new temporary worker - A.A. Arakcheev, who became the first
person in the state after the emperor and ruled as an all-powerful favorite. The consequences of the
reform activities of Alexander I and his advisers were insignificant. The unexpected death of the
emperor in 1825 at the age of 48 was the reason for an open speech on the part of the most
advanced part of Russian society, the so-called Decembrists, against the foundations of autocracy.

4.

Patriotic War of 1812
During the reign of Alexander I, there was a terrible test for the whole of Russia - the war of liberation
against Napoleonic aggression. The war was caused by the desire of the French bourgeoisie for world
domination, a sharp exacerbation of Russian-French economic and political contradictions in
connection with the wars of conquest of Napoleon I, Russia's refusal to participate in the continental
blockade of Great Britain. The agreement between Russia and Napoleonic France, concluded in the
city of Tilsit in 1807, was of a temporary nature. This was understood both in St. Petersburg and in Paris,
although many dignitaries of the two countries were in favor of maintaining peace. However, the
contradictions between the states continued to accumulate, which led to an open conflict on June 12
(24), 1812, about 500 thousand Napoleonic soldiers crossed the Neman River and invaded Russia.
Napoleon rejected Alexander I's proposal for a peaceful solution to the conflict if he withdraws his
troops. This is how the Patriotic War began, so called because not only the regular army fought against
the French, but almost the entire population of the country in the militia and partisan detachments.
The Russian army consisted of 220 thousand people, and it was divided into three parts. The first army under the command of General M.B. Barclay de Tolly - was in Lithuania, the second - General Prince
P.I.Bagration - in Belarus, and the third army - General A.P. Tormasov - in Ukraine. Napoleon's plan was
extremely simple and consisted in routing the Russian armies piece by piece with powerful blows.
The Russian armies retreated to the east in parallel directions, retaining their strength and exhausting
the enemy in rearguard battles. On August 2 (14), the armies of Barclay de Tolly and Bagration joined
up in the Smolensk region. Here, in a difficult two-day battle, the French troops lost 20 thousand soldiers
and officers, the Russians - up to 6 thousand people.

5.

The war was clearly taking on a protracted nature, the Russian army continued its retreat, leading the
enemy into the interior of the country. At the end of August 1812, instead of Minister of War M.B. Barclay
de Tolly, a student and associate of A.V.Suvorov M.I.Kutuzov was appointed commander-in-chief.
Alexander I, who disliked him, was forced to take into account the patriotic sentiments of the Russian
people and the army, general discontent with the retreat tactics chosen by Barclay de Tolly. Kutuzov
decided to give a general battle to the French army near the village of Borodino, 124 km west of
Moscow. On August 26 (September 7), the battle began. The Russian army was faced with the task of
exhausting the enemy, undermining its combat power and morale, and in case of success - to
undertake a counteroffensive itself. Kutuzov chose a very good position for the Russian troops. The right
flank was defended by a natural obstacle - the Koloch River, and the left - by artificial earth fortifications
- by flashes occupied by the troops of Bagration. In the center were located the troops of General N.N.
Raevsky, as well as artillery positions. Napoleon's plan provided for a breakthrough of the defense of the
Russian troops in the area of Bagrationovskie flashes and the encirclement of Kutuzov's army, and when it
was pressed against the river, it was completely destroyed. Eight attacks were made by the French
against the flushes, but they could not completely capture them. They only managed to advance
slightly in the center, destroying Rayevsky's batteries. In the midst of the battle in the central direction, the
Russian cavalry made a daring raid behind enemy lines, which sowed panic in the ranks of the attackers.
Napoleon did not dare to deploy his main reserve, the old guard, to turn the tide of the battle. The battle
of Borodino ended late in the evening, and the troops retreated to their previously occupied positions.
Thus, the battle was a political and moral victory for the Russian army. 1 (13) September in Fili, at a
meeting of the command staff, Kutuzov decided to leave Moscow in order to keep the army.
Napoleonic troops entered Moscow and stayed there until October 1812.

6.

In the meantime, Kutuzov carried out his plan called the "Tarutino maneuver", thanks to which
Napoleon lost the ability to track the locations of the Russians. In the village of Tarutino, Kutuzov's
army was replenished by 120 thousand people, significantly strengthened its artillery and cavalry. In
addition, it actually closed the way for the French troops to Tula, where the main weapons arsenals
and food depots were located. During its stay in Moscow, the French army was demoralized by
hunger, looting, and fires that engulfed the city. In the hope of replenishing his arsenals and food
supplies, Napoleon was forced to withdraw his army from Moscow. On the way to Maloyaroslavets
on October 12 (24), Napoleon's army suffered a serious defeat and began to retreat from Russia
along the Smolensk road, already devastated by the French themselves. At the final stage of the
war, the tactics of the Russian army consisted in the parallel pursuit of the enemy. Russian troops,
without engaging in battle with Napoleon, destroyed his retreating army in parts. The French also
suffered from the winter frosts, for which they were not ready, since Napoleon hoped to end the
war before the cold weather. The war of 1812 culminated in the battle at the Berezina River, which
ended in the defeat of Napoleon's army.
On December 25, 1812, in St. Petersburg, Emperor Alexander I promulgated a manifesto, which said
that the Patriotic War of the Russian people against the French invaders ended in complete victory
and the expulsion of the enemy.
The Russian army took part in the overseas campaigns of 1813-1814, during which, together with the
Prussian, Swedish, British and Austrian armies, finished off the enemy in Germany and France. The
campaign of 1813 ended with the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig. After the capture of
Paris by the allied forces in the spring of 1814, Napoleon I abdicated the throne.

7.

Decembrist movement
The first quarter of the 19th century in the history of Russia was the period of the formation of the
revolutionary movement and its ideology. After the overseas campaigns of the Russian army,
advanced ideas began to penetrate into the Russian Empire. The first secret revolutionary organizations
of the nobility appeared. Most of them were military - officers of the guard. The first secret political
society was founded in 1816 in St. Petersburg under the name "Union of Salvation", which was renamed
the following year into the "Society of True and Faithful Sons of the Fatherland." Its members were the
future Decembrists AI Muravyov, MI Muravyov-Apostol, PI Pestel, SP Trubetskoy and others. The goal they
set for themselves was a constitution, representation, and the elimination of serfdom. However, this
society was still small in number and could not fulfill the tasks that it set for itself.
In 1818, on the basis of this self-liquidating society, a new one was created - the Union of Welfare. It was
already a more numerous secret organization, numbering more than 200 people. It was organized by
F.N. Glinka, F.P. Tolstoy, M.I.Muraviev-Apostol. The organization was ramified: its cells were created in
Moscow, St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Tambov, in the south of the country. The goals of the society
remained the same - the introduction of representative government, the elimination of autocracy and
serfdom. Members of the Union saw the way to achieve their goal in the propagation of their views and
proposals sent to the government. However, they never heard a response.

8.

All this prompted the radical-minded members of the society to create two new secret organizations,
established in March 1825. One was founded in St. Petersburg and received the name "Northern
Society". Its creators were N.M. Muraviev and N.I. Turgenev. Another originated in Ukraine. This
"Southern Society" was headed by PI Pestel. Both societies were interconnected and were actually a
single organization. Each society had its own program document, the North - the "Constitution" of
N.M. Muraviev, and the South - "Russian Truth", written by P.I. Pestel. These documents expressed a
single goal - the destruction of autocracy and serfdom. However, the "Constitution" expressed the
liberal nature of the reforms - with a constitutional monarchy, restriction of electoral rights and the
preservation of landlord ownership, while "Russkaya Pravda" was radical, republican. She proclaimed
a presidential republic, confiscation of landlords' land and a combination of private and public forms
of ownership.

9.

The conspirators planned to make their coup in the summer of 1826 during army exercises. But
unexpectedly on November 19, 1825, Alexander I died, and this event prompted the conspirators to
take active actions ahead of schedule.
After the death of Alexander I, his brother Konstantin Pavlovich was to become the Russian emperor,
but even during the life of Alexander I, he abdicated in favor of his younger brother Nicholas. This
was not officially announced, so initially both the state apparatus and the army swore allegiance to
Constantine. But soon Constantine's renunciation of the throne was made public and a re-oath was
appointed. therefore
members of the "Northern Society" decided to speak out on December 14, 1825 with the
requirements laid down in their program, for which they intended to hold a demonstration of military
force at the Senate building. An important task was to prevent the senators from taking the oath to
Nikolai Pavlovich. Prince S.P. Trubetskoy was proclaimed the leader of the uprising.
On December 14, 1825, the first Moscow regiment came to Senate Square, led by members of the
Northern Society, brothers Bestuzhev and Shchepin-Rostovsky. However, the regiment stood alone for
a long time, the conspirators were inactive. The murder of the Governor-General of St. Petersburg
M.A. Miloradovich, who had left for the rebels, became fatal - the uprising could no longer end
peacefully. By mid-afternoon, a guards naval crew and a company of the Life Grenadier Regiment
nevertheless joined the rebels.

10.

Leaders continued to hesitate to take action. In addition, it turned out that the senators had
already sworn allegiance to Nicholas I and left the Senate. Therefore, there was no one to present
the "Manifesto", and Prince Trubetskoy never appeared on the square. Meanwhile, troops loyal to
the government began shelling the insurgents. The uprising was suppressed, and arrests began.
Members of the "Southern Society" tried to carry out an uprising in early January 1826 (the uprising of
the Chernigov regiment), but it was brutally suppressed by the authorities. Five leaders of the
uprising - P.I. Pestel, K.F. Ryleev, S.I.Muraviev-Apostol, M.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin and P.G. Kakhovsky were executed, the rest of its participants were exiled to hard labor in Siberia.
The uprising of the Decembrists was the first open protest in Russia, whose task was to radically
reorganize society.

11.

The reign of Nicholas I
In the history of Russia, the rule of Emperor Nicholas I is defined as the apogee of Russian
autocracy. The revolutionary upheavals that accompanied the accession to the throne of this
Russian emperor left their mark on all his activities. In the eyes of his contemporaries, he was
perceived as a strangler of freedom, freethinking, as an unlimited ruler-despot. The emperor
believed in the perniciousness of human freedom and the independence of society. In his opinion,
the prosperity of the country could be ensured only through strict order, by the strict fulfillment of
each subject of the Russian Empire by his duties, control and regulation of public life. Considering
that the question of welfare can be solved only from above, Nicholas I formed the "Committee on
December 6, 1826". The tasks of the committee included the preparation of draft laws for
transformations. The year 1826 also saw the transformation of "His Imperial Majesty's Own
Chancellery" into the most important body of state power and administration. The most important
tasks were assigned to its II and III branches. The II department was supposed to deal with the
codification of laws, and the III was to deal with the affairs of higher politics. To solve problems, it
received a corps of gendarmes under the command and, thus, control over all aspects of public
life. Almighty Count A.H. Benckendorf, who was close to the emperor, was placed at the head of
the III department.

12.

However, the overcentralization of power did not lead to positive results. The high authorities were
drowned in a sea of papers and lost control over the course of affairs on the ground, which led to
red tape and abuse. To solve the peasant question, ten secret committees were created,
replacing each other. However, the result of their activities was insignificant. The most important
measure in the peasant question can be considered the reform of the state village in 1837. The
state peasants were given self-government, put in order and control over them. Taxation and
land allotment were revised. In 1842, a decree was issued on obligated peasants, according to
which the landowner received the right to release the peasants to freedom with the provision of
land to them, but not for ownership, but for use. 1844 changed the position of peasants in the
western regions of the country. But this was done not with the aim of improving the situation of
the peasants, but in the interests of the authorities, striving trying to limit the influence of the local,
opposition-minded non-Russian nobility.

13.

With the penetration of capitalist relations into the country's economic life and the gradual
erosion of the estate system, changes in the social structure were also associated - the ranks
giving the nobility were increased, and a new class state was introduced for the growing
commercial and industrial strata - honorary citizenship.
Control over public life led to changes in the field of education. In 1828, a reform of lower and
secondary educational institutions was carried out. Education was of a class character, i.e.
school steps were separated from each other: primary and parish - for peasants, county - for
urban inhabitants, gymnasium - for nobles. In 1835, a new university charter was issued, which
reduced the autonomy of higher educational institutions.
The wave of European bourgeois revolutions in Europe in 1848-1849, which horrified Nicholas I,
led to the so-called. The "gloomy seven years", when censorship control was tightened to the
limit, the secret police raged. A shadow of despair loomed before the most progressive-minded
people. This last stage of the reign of Nicholas I was, in fact, already the agony of the system
that he created.

14.

Crimean War
The last years of the reign of Nicholas I passed against the background of complications in the
foreign policy situation in Russia associated with the aggravation of the Eastern question. The
conflict was caused by problems related to trade in the Middle East, for which Russia, France and
England fought. Turkey, in turn, was counting on revenge for the defeat in the wars with Russia.
Austria did not want to miss its chance, wishing to expand its sphere of influence over the Turkish
possessions in the Balkans.
The direct reason for the war was the old conflict between the Catholic and Orthodox churches
over the right to control the holy places for Christians in Palestine. Backed by France, Turkey has
refused to satisfy Russia's claims to the Orthodox Church's priority in this matter. In June 1853 Russia
broke off diplomatic relations with Turkey and occupied the Danube principalities. In response, the
Turkish Sultan declared war on Russia on October 4, 1853.
Turkey relied on the ongoing war in the North Caucasus and provided all kinds of assistance to the
mountaineers who rebelled against Russia, including carrying out landings of its fleet on the
Caucasian coast. In response to this, on November 18, 1853, the Russian flotilla under the command
of Admiral P.S. Nakhimov completely defeated the Turkish fleet on the roadstead of Sinop Bay. This
naval battle was the pretext for France and England to enter the war. In December 1853, a
combined British and French squadron entered the Black Sea, and in March 1854 a declaration of
war followed.

15.

The war that came to the south of Russia showed the complete backwardness of Russia, the weakness of
its industrial potential and the unpreparedness of the military command for war in the new conditions. The
Russian army was inferior in almost all respects - the number of steam ships, rifled weapons, artillery. Due
to the lack of railways, the situation with the supply of equipment, ammunition and food to the Russian
army was also bad. During the summer campaign of 1854, Russia managed to successfully resist the
enemy. In several battles, Turkish troops were defeated. The English and French fleets tried to attack
Russian positions in the Baltic, Black and White Seas and the Far East, but to no avail. In July 1854, Russia
had to accept the Austrian ultimatum and leave the Danube principalities. And from September 1854,
the main hostilities began in the Crimea.
The mistakes of the Russian command allowed the Allied landing to successfully land in the Crimea, and
on September 8, 1854, defeat the Russian troops at the Alma River and lay siege to Sevastopol. The
defense of Sevastopol under the leadership of admirals V.A.Kornilov, P.S.Nakhimov and V.I. Istomin lasted
349 days. Attempts by the Russian army under the command of Prince A.S. Menshikov to pull off part of
the besieging forces were unsuccessful. On August 27, 1855, French troops stormed the southern part of
Sevastopol and captured the dominant hill over the city - Malakhov Kurgan. Russian troops were forced
to leave the city. Since the forces of the fighting sides were exhausted, on March 18, 1856, a peace
treaty was signed in Paris, according to the terms of which the Black Sea was declared neutral, the
Russian fleet was reduced to a minimum and fortifications were destroyed. Turkey has also made similar
demands. However, since the exit from the Black Sea was in the hands of Turkey, such a decision seriously
threatened the security of Russia. In addition, Russia lost the mouth of the Danube and the southern part
of Bessarabia, and also lost the right to patronize Serbia, Moldavia and Wallachia. Thus, Russia ceded its
positions in the Middle East to France and England. Its prestige in the international arena has been
severely undermined.