The reforms of Peter 1 are very brief with meaning. Administrative reforms of Peter I the Great

Page 30, Key questions before paragraph

What did Peter the Great change in the Russian state? How did contemporaries and descendants assess the essence and significance of his reforms?

Peter the Great changed the entire way of life in the Russian state: the economy, social sphere, the government system, the judicial system, the army, the life of high society. Contemporaries and descendants treated his reforms and still treat them very differently. Supporters assess the reforms positively, they believe that he “awakened” Russia, despite the violent nature of the reforms, they became the basis for the future successful development of Russia, placing it among the leading European powers. Opponents say that the forced transfer of the country to the rails of European development deprived Russia of its originality, its own path of historical development. In addition, they believe that the transition to mainstream European model development was achieved at a very high cost and sacrifice.

Page 38, questions for the document

1. Determine who and what people this document is addressed to. What is the purpose of its publication?

This document is addressed to people of different classes, not excluding serfs. The purpose of its publication: to attract active, enterprising people to the development of industry (manufacturing), to explore and establish the extraction of iron ore and the production of goods from metals, especially weapons.

2. What role is assigned to the initiative of individuals in the Berg Privilege, and what role to the state?

Individual people - looking for useful ores, building factories

State (Berg-privilege officers) - permission to build factories, financing the construction of factories.

3. Name the names of historical figures who actively took advantage of the opportunities provided by the Berg privilege.

Nikita Demidov and his family

Page 38. Questions after the paragraph

2. Present in the form of diagrams:

A) the structure of central government bodies established by Peter I

B) the system he established for dividing the country’s territory

3. Explain what the meaning of the transition from house tax to poll tax was. What consequences did this change have for the tax-paying population?

The introduction of the poll tax streamlined and tightened class policy, a system of clear control over the population emerged, and tax revenue to the treasury increased. When collecting taxes (taxes) from the courtyard, they collected much less than from each male soul.

The consequences for the tax-paying population were rather negative, the economic burden on each household (family) increased, even serfs paid the poll tax, as well as some non-Russian peoples, previously free from taxes.

4. Conduct a role-playing discussion on the topic “The class policy of Peter I.” Express the characteristics of the tsar’s actions in relation to individual classes (nobles, clergy, peasants, merchants) on behalf of representatives of these classes. Support your opinions with facts.

I am pleased with the actions of the tsar in relation to the nobility; he issued a decree on single inheritance. Now not only the patrimony, but also the estate is inherited by the eldest son.

And I am the youngest son, the inheritance is not given to me, I must earn money in the service of the sovereign. For faithful service and awards and honors. The serfs remain the property of the nobles, but factories must be built and the peasants must be assigned there. However, if you don’t want to build factories, don’t build them, live as before, just serve the Fatherland and the sovereign faithfully.

Priests:

The life of the church under Tsar Peter is not sweet, he does not observe ancient customs, he oppresses the clergy, he removed the bells from churches, melted them down for cannons, and then completely destroyed the power of the patriarch, he says: “There cannot be two kings in a state.” And instead of the patriarchate, the Holy Synod was established, the head of which, the Chief Prosecutor, he himself appoints. He subjugated everyone to his will. No wonder the churchmen call him the Antichrist.

And Archbishop Feofan Prokopovich supports Peter, in his sermons he praises his victories both in the country and abroad in the wars with the Swedes. “Everything is for the benefit of Russia and the Russian people,” says Feofan.

Peasants:

Peasant life is not easy, but under Tsar Peter it became very difficult. Taxes from the courtyard were replaced by taxes from the male soul (poll taxes). A man will die, but his entire family will still have to pay for him until there is another audit. And also duties and other taxes. Factories began to be built, and whoever works at them, again, we are peasants. We are torn away from the land, from our family, and assigned to factories. The wages at the factories are small, there is not enough to feed the family, and the work is hard. However, artisans are paid well, with honor and respect. And how St. Petersburg was built, so many peasant souls perished at that construction site.

Our father, Tsar Peter, is a benefactor. Trade developed under him, privileges were given to all merchants and craftsmen, and loans were given to open factories and manufactories, and trade by sea was improved, and customs duties for us Russian merchants were reduced, and for foreign merchants increased. Canals were also built under Peter to help trade.

5. Tell us about the development of manufacturing production in Russia in the first quarter of the 18th century. What contributed to this?

Manufactories appeared in textile production. The first was in Moscow - Khamovny Dvor, where canvas for sails was produced. Then Tannery, Cloth and other “yards” appeared - industrial enterprises. Glass, hosiery, hat and other manufactories were built. This was facilitated by the following circumstances: wars for access to the sea; to wage wars, a fleet was needed, which was intensively built and there was a need for the production of sails, uniforms for the army, etc.

6. Explain what protectionist policies are. How did Peter I conduct it?

The policy of protectionism is to encourage the sale of Russian raw materials and products to other countries and limit the influx of goods from abroad. In 1724, a Customs Tariff was introduced, under which duties on exports were reduced and duties on imports were increased. Particularly high duties were imposed on goods that could compete in the market with domestic products. It has become profitable to buy Russian products rather than foreign ones. In 1726, Russian exports were twice as high as imports.

7*. What do you think gave historians the basis to claim that Peter I made the Russian nobility a truly service class?

The basis for historians’ assertion that Peter I made the Russian nobility a truly service class was the publication of a decree on single inheritance. In accordance with this decree, only the eldest son inherited the patrimony or estate. All other sons had to serve in the civil service and receive a salary, i.e. earn a living.

8*. What new has appeared in Russia with the widespread use of manufactories? Who was the owner of the factories? Who worked for them? How did Russian manufactories differ from Western European manufactories of that time?

With the widespread spread of manufactories, many new things appeared: goods that had not been produced before, a layer of working people was formed who received payment for their work. The owners of manufactories were mainly the state, but there were also private owners from merchants and even from former serfs. There were few free people who could work in factories. Therefore, state peasants were “assigned” to manufactories and factories; they were called assigned peasants. In 1721, enterprises were allowed to buy serfs. They became the property of the plant. Such peasants were called possessions (from the Latin posessio - possession).

Russian manufactories differed from Western European manufactories of that time in that in Europe people free from land worked in manufactories. These are ruined peasants driven off the land, the poorest artisans who have lost their workshops. In Russia, peasant labor was used to work in factories.

All government activities Peter I can be conditionally divided into two periods: 1695-1715 and 1715-1725.

The peculiarity of the first stage was haste and not always thought out, which was explained by the conduct of the Northern War. The reforms were aimed primarily at raising funds for the war, were carried out by force and often did not lead to the desired result. In addition to government reforms, at the first stage, extensive reforms were carried out with the aim of modernizing the way of life.

In the second period, the reforms were more lightning-fast and ill-conceived and aimed at interior design states.

In general, Peter's reforms were aimed at strengthening the Russian state and introducing the ruling stratum to Western European culture while simultaneously strengthening the absolute monarchy. By the end of the reign of Peter the Great, a powerful Russian Empire was created, headed by an emperor who had absolute power. During the reforms, the technical and economic lag of Russia from a number of other European countries was overcome, access to Baltic Sea, transformations have been carried out in all spheres of life of Russian society. At the same time, the popular forces were extremely exhausted, the bureaucratic apparatus grew, and the preconditions were created (Decree on Succession to the Throne) for a crisis of supreme power, which led to the era of “palace coups.”

Public Administration Reforms

At first, Peter I did not have a clear program of reforms in the field government. The emergence of a new government institution or a change in the administrative-territorial management of the country was dictated by the conduct of wars, which required significant financial resources and mobilization of the population. The system of power inherited by Peter I did not allow raising enough funds to reorganize and increase the army, build a fleet, build fortresses and St. Petersburg.

From the first years of Peter's reign, there was a tendency to reduce the role of the ineffective Boyar Duma in government. In 1699, under the king, the Near Chancellery, or Consilium (Council) of Ministers, consisting of 8 proxies who managed individual orders. This was the prototype of the future Governing Senate, formed on February 22, 1711. The last mention of the Boyar Duma dates back to 1704. A certain mode of work was established in the Consilium: each minister had special powers, reports and minutes of meetings appeared. In 1711, instead of the Boyar Duma and the Council that replaced it, the Senate was established. Peter formulated the main task of the Senate this way: “ Look at all state expenses, and set aside unnecessary, and especially wasteful ones. How can it be possible to collect money, since money is the artery of war.»

Created by Peter for the current administration of the state during the tsar’s absence (at that time the tsar was setting off on the Prut campaign), the Senate, consisting of 9 people, turned from a temporary to a permanent highest government institution, which was enshrined in the Decree of 1722. He controlled justice, was in charge of trade, fees and expenses of the state, monitored the orderly performance of military service by the nobles, and the functions of the Rank and Ambassadorial orders were transferred to him.

Decisions in the Senate were made collegially, on general meeting and were supported by the signatures of all members of the highest government agency. If one of the 9 senators refused to sign the decision, the decision was considered invalid. Thus, Peter I delegated part of his powers to the Senate, but at the same time imposed personal responsibility on its members.

Simultaneously with the Senate, the position of fiscals appeared. The duty of the chief fiscal under the Senate and the fiscals in the provinces was to secretly supervise the activities of institutions: cases of violation of decrees and abuses were identified and reported to the Senate and the Tsar. Since 1715, the work of the Senate was supervised by the Auditor General, who in 1718 was renamed Chief Secretary. Since 1722, control over the Senate has been exercised by the Prosecutor General and Chief Prosecutor, to whom the prosecutors of all other institutions were subordinate. No decision of the Senate was valid without the consent and signature of the Prosecutor General. The Prosecutor General and his deputy Chief Prosecutor reported directly to the sovereign.

The Senate, as a government, could make decisions, but required an administrative apparatus to carry them out. In 1717-1721 a reform was carried out executive bodies management, as a result of which the system of orders with their vague functions was replaced, according to the Swedish model, by 11 boards - the predecessors of future ministries. In contrast to orders, the functions and spheres of activity of each board were strictly demarcated, and relations within the board itself were built on the principle of collegiality of decisions. The following were introduced:

• Collegium of foreign (foreign) affairs.
• Military Collegium - recruitment, armament, equipment and training of the ground army.
• Admiralty Collegium - naval affairs, fleet.
• Kamor Collegium - collection of state revenues.
• The State Board of Directors was in charge of state expenditures,
• The Audit Board controls the collection and expenditure of government funds.
• Commerce Board - issues of shipping, customs and foreign trade.
• Berg College - mining and metallurgy.
• Manufactory Collegium - light industry.
• The College of Justice was in charge of issues of civil proceedings (the Serfdom Office operated under it: it registered various acts - bills of sale, the sale of estates, spiritual wills, debt obligations).
• The Spiritual College - managed church affairs (later the Holy Governing Synod).

In 1721, the Patrimonial Collegium was formed - it was in charge of noble land ownership (land litigation, transactions for the purchase and sale of land and peasants, and the search for fugitives were considered).
In 1720, the Chief Magistrate was formed as a collegium to govern the city population.
In 1721, the Spiritual Collegium or Synod was established to consider the affairs of the church.
On February 28, 1720, the General Regulations introduced a uniform system of office work in the state apparatus for the entire country. According to the regulations, the board consisted of a president, 4-5 advisers and 4 assessors.
In addition, there were the Preobrazhensky Prikaz (political investigation), the Salt Office, the Copper Department, and the Land Survey Office.
The “first” collegiums were called the Military, Admiralty and Foreign Affairs.
There were two institutions with the rights of collegiums: the Synod and the Chief Magistrate.
The boards were subordinate to the Senate, and to them were the provincial, provincial and district administrations.

Regional reform

In 1708-1715 it was carried out regional reform in order to strengthen the vertical of power at the local level and better provide the army with supplies and recruits. In 1708, the country was divided into 8 provinces headed by governors vested with full judicial and administrative power: Moscow, Ingria (later St. Petersburg), Kiev, Smolensk, Azov, Kazan, Arkhangelsk and Siberian. The Moscow province provided more than a third of revenues to the treasury, followed by the Kazan province.

Governors were also in charge of the troops stationed on the territory of the province. In 1710, new administrative units appeared - shares, uniting 5,536 households. The first regional reform did not solve the set tasks, but only significantly increased the number of civil servants and the costs of their maintenance.

In 1719-1720, a second regional reform was carried out, eliminating shares. The provinces began to be divided into 50 provinces headed by governors, and the provinces into districts headed by zemstvo commissars appointed by the Chamber Board. Only military and judicial matters remained under the governor's jurisdiction.

As a result of reforms government controlled The establishment of an absolute monarchy, as well as the bureaucratic system on which the emperor relied, ended.

Control over the activities of civil servants

To monitor the implementation of local decisions and reduce endemic corruption, the position of fiscals was established in 1711, who were supposed to “secretly inspect, report and expose” all abuses of both high and low officials, pursue embezzlement, bribery, and accept denunciations from private individuals. . At the head of the fiscals was the chief fiscal, appointed by the king and subordinate to him. The chief fiscal was part of the Senate and maintained contact with subordinate fiscals through the fiscal desk of the Senate office. Denunciations were considered and reported monthly to the Senate by the Execution Chamber - a special judicial presence of four judges and two senators (existed in 1712-1719).

In 1719-1723 The fiscals were subordinate to the College of Justice, and with the establishment in January 1722, the positions of the Prosecutor General were supervised by him. Since 1723, the chief fiscal officer was the fiscal general, appointed by the sovereign, and his assistant was the chief fiscal, appointed by the Senate. In this regard, the fiscal service withdrew from the subordination of the Justice College and regained departmental independence. The vertical of fiscal control was brought to the city level.

Army and Navy reforms

Upon his accession to the kingdom, Peter received at his disposal a permanent Streltsy army, prone to anarchy and rebellion, unable to fight Western armies. The Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments, which grew out of the childhood fun of the young tsar, became the first regiments of the new Russian army, built with the help of foreigners according to the European model. Reforming the army and creating a steel fleet necessary conditions victories in the Northern War of 1700-1721.

In preparation for the war with Sweden, Peter ordered in 1699 to carry out a general recruitment and begin training soldiers according to the model established by the Preobrazhensky and Semyonovtsy. This first recruitment yielded 29 infantry regiments and two dragoons. In 1705, every 20 households had to put up one recruit, a single guy between 15 and 20 years old, for lifelong service. Subsequently, recruits began to be taken from a certain number male souls among the peasants. Recruitment into the navy, as into the army, was carried out from recruits.

If at first among the officers there were mainly foreign specialists, then after the start of the work of the navigation, artillery, and engineering schools, the growth of the army was satisfied by Russian officers from the noble class. In 1715, the Maritime Academy was opened in St. Petersburg. In 1716, the Military Regulations were published, which strictly defined the service, rights and responsibilities of the military.

As a result of the transformations, a strong regular army and a powerful Navy, which Russia simply did not have before. By the end of Peter's reign, the number of regular ground forces reached 210 thousand (of which 2,600 were in the guard, 41,550 in the cavalry, 75 thousand in the infantry, 74 thousand in the garrisons) and up to 110 thousand irregular troops. The fleet consisted of 48 battleships; galleys and other vessels 787; There were almost 30 thousand people on all ships.

Church reform

One of the transformations of Peter I was the reform of church administration that he carried out, aimed at eliminating the church jurisdiction autonomous from the state and subordinating the Russian hierarchy to the Emperor. In 1700, after the death of Patriarch Adrian, Peter I, instead of convening a council to elect a new patriarch, temporarily placed Metropolitan Stefan Yavorsky of Ryazan at the head of the clergy, who received the new title of Guardian of the Patriarchal Throne or “Exarch”.

To manage the property of the patriarchal and bishop's houses, as well as monasteries, including the peasants belonging to them (approximately 795 thousand), the Monastic Order was restored, headed by I. A. Musin-Pushkin, who again began to be in charge of the trial of the monastic peasants and control income from church and monastic landholdings.

In 1701, a series of decrees were issued to reform the management of church and monastic estates and the organization of monastic life. The most important were the decrees of January 24 and 31, 1701.

In 1721, Peter approved the Spiritual Regulations, the drafting of which was entrusted to the Pskov bishop, the Tsar's close Little Russian Feofan Prokopovich. As a result, a radical reform of the church took place, eliminating the autonomy of the clergy and completely subordinating it to the state.

In Russia, the patriarchate was abolished and the Theological College was established, soon renamed the Holy Synod, which was recognized by the Eastern patriarchs as equal in honor to the patriarch. All members of the Synod were appointed by the Emperor and took an oath of allegiance to him upon taking office.

War time stimulated the removal of valuables from monastery storages. Peter did not go for the complete secularization of church and monastic properties, which was carried out much later, at the beginning of the reign of Catherine II.

Religious politics

The era of Peter was marked by a trend towards greater religious tolerance. Peter terminated the “12 Articles” adopted by Sophia, according to which Old Believers who refused to renounce the “schism” were subject to burning at the stake. The “schismatics” were allowed to profess their faith, subject to recognition of the existing public order and paying taxes in double size. Complete freedom of faith was granted to foreigners coming to Russia, and restrictions on communication between Orthodox Christians and Christians of other faiths were lifted (in particular, interfaith marriages were allowed).

Financial reform

Azov campaigns, and then the Northern War of 1700-1721 required huge funds, the collection of which was aimed at financial reforms.

At the first stage, it all came down to finding new sources of funds. To the traditional customs and tavern levies were added fees and benefits from the monopolization of the sale of certain goods (salt, alcohol, tar, bristles, etc.), indirect taxes (bath, fish, horse taxes, tax on oak coffins, etc.) , mandatory use of stamp paper, minting coins of lesser weight (damage).

In 1704, Peter carried out a monetary reform, as a result of which the main monetary unit became not money, but a penny. From now on it began to be equal not to ½ money, but to 2 money, and this word first appeared on coins. At the same time, the fiat ruble, which had been a conventional monetary unit since the 15th century, equated to 68 grams of pure silver and used as a standard in exchange transactions, was also abolished. The most important measure during the financial reform was the introduction of a poll tax instead of the previously existing household taxation. In 1710, a “household” census was carried out, which showed a decrease in the number of households. One of the reasons for this decrease was that, in order to reduce taxes, several households were surrounded by one fence and one gate was made (this was considered one yard during the census). Due to these shortcomings, it was decided to switch to the poll tax. In 1718-1724, a repeat census was carried out in parallel with the population audit (revision of the census), which began in 1722. According to this audit, there were 5,967,313 people in taxable status.

Based on the data obtained, the government divided the amount of money needed to maintain the army and navy by the population.

As a result, the size of the per capita tax was determined: the serfs of the landowners paid the state 74 kopecks, state peasants - 1 ruble 14 kopecks (since they did not pay quitrent), the urban population - 1 ruble 20 kopecks. Only men were subject to tax, regardless of age. The nobility, clergy, as well as soldiers and Cossacks were exempt from the poll tax. The soul was countable - between audits, the dead were not excluded from the tax lists, newborns were not included, as a result, the tax burden was distributed unevenly.

As a result of the tax reform, the size of the treasury was significantly increased by extending the tax burden not only to the peasantry, but also to their landowners. If in 1710 incomes extended to 3,134,000 rubles; then in 1725 there were 10,186,707 rubles. (according to foreign sources - up to 7,859,833 rubles).

Transformations in industry and trade

Having realized Russia's technical backwardness during the Grand Embassy, ​​Peter could not ignore the problem of reform Russian industry. One of the main problems was the lack of qualified craftsmen. The Tsar solved this problem by attracting foreigners to the Russian service for favorable conditions, sending Russian nobles to study in Western Europe. Manufacturers received great privileges: they were exempt from military service with their children and craftsmen, they were subject only to the court of the Manufacture Collegium, they were freed from taxes and internal duties, they could import the tools and materials they needed from abroad duty-free, their houses were freed from military billets.

The first silver smelter in Russia was built near Nerchinsk in Siberia in 1704. IN next year he gave the first silver.

Significant measures have been taken for geological exploration of mineral resources in Russia. Previously Russian state in terms of raw materials, it was completely dependent on foreign countries, primarily Sweden (iron was brought from there), however, after the discovery of deposits of iron ore and other minerals in the Urals, the need for purchasing iron disappeared. In the Urals, in 1723, the largest ironworks in Russia was founded, from which the city of Yekaterinburg developed. Under Peter, Nevyansk, Kamensk-Uralsky, and Nizhny Tagil were founded. Weapons factories (cannon yards, arsenals) appeared in the Olonetsky region, Sestroretsk and Tula, gunpowder factories - in St. Petersburg and near Moscow, leather and textile industries developed - in Moscow, Yaroslavl, Kazan and on the Left Bank of Ukraine, which was determined by the need for the production of equipment and uniforms for Russian troops, silk spinning, paper production, cement production, a sugar factory and a trellis factory appeared.

In 1719, the “Berg Privilege” was issued, according to which everyone was given the right to search, smelt, cook and clean metals and minerals everywhere, subject to payment of a “mining tax” of 1/10 of the cost of production and 32 shares in favor of the owner of that land where ore deposits were found. For hiding ore and attempting to interfere with mining, the owner was threatened with confiscation of land, corporal punishment, and even the death penalty"due to fault."

The main problem in Russian manufactories of that time was the shortage work force. The problem was solved by violent measures: entire villages and villages were assigned to manufactories, whose peasants worked off their taxes to the state in manufactories (such peasants would be called assigned), criminals and beggars were sent to factories. In 1721, a decree followed, which allowed “merchant people” to buy villages, the peasants of which could be resettled in manufactories (such peasants would be called possessions).

Trade developed further. With the construction of St. Petersburg, the role of the country's main port passed from Arkhangelsk to the future capital. River canals were built.

In general, Peter’s policy in trade can be characterized as a policy of protectionism, which consists in supporting domestic production and the establishment of increased duties on imported products (this was consistent with the idea of ​​mercantilism). In 1724, a protective customs tariff was introduced - high duties on foreign goods that could be produced or were already produced by domestic enterprises.

Thus, under Peter, the foundation of Russian industry was laid, as a result of which in the middle of the 18th century Russia came out on top in the world in metal production. The number of factories and factories at the end of Peter's reign extended to 233.

Social politics

The main goal pursued by Peter I in social policy was the legal registration of class rights and obligations of each category of the population of Russia. As a result, a new structure of society emerged, in which the class character was more clearly formed. The rights of the nobility were expanded and the responsibilities of the nobility were defined, and, at the same time, the serfdom of the peasants was strengthened.

Nobility

Key milestones:

1. Decree on education of 1706: boyar children in mandatory must receive either primary school or home education.
2. Decree on estates of 1704: noble and boyar estates are not divided and are equated to each other.
3. Decree on sole inheritance of 1714: a landowner with sons could bequeath everything he owned real estate only one of them by choice. The rest were obliged to serve. The decree marked the final merger of the noble estate and the boyar estate, thereby finally erasing the difference between the two classes of feudal lords.
4. “Table of Ranks” 1721 (1722): division of military, civil and court service into 14 ranks. Upon reaching the eighth grade, any official or military man could receive the status hereditary nobility. Thus, a person’s career depended primarily not on his origin, but on his achievements in public service.
5. Decree on succession to the throne on February 5, 1722: due to the absence of an heir, Peter I decides to issue an order on succession to the throne, in which he reserves the right to appoint an heir for himself (coronation ceremony of Peter’s wife Ekaterina Alekseevna)

The place of the former boyars was taken by the “generals”, consisting of ranks of the first four classes of the “Table of Ranks”. Personal service mixed up representatives of the former family nobility with people raised by service.

Peter's legislative measures, without significantly expanding the class rights of the nobility, significantly changed its responsibilities. Military affairs, which in Moscow times was the duty of a narrow class of service people, is now becoming the duty of all segments of the population. The nobleman of Peter the Great's times still has the exclusive right of land ownership, but as a result of the decrees on single inheritance and audit, he is made responsible to the state for the tax service of his peasants. The nobility is obliged to study in preparation for service.

Peter destroyed the former isolation of the service class, opening access to the environment of the nobility to people of other classes through length of service through the Table of Ranks. On the other hand, with the law on single inheritance, he opened the way out of the nobility into merchants and clergy for those who wanted it. The nobility of Russia is becoming a military-bureaucratic class, whose rights are created and hereditarily determined by public service, and not by birth.

Peasantry

Peter's reforms changed the situation of the peasants. From different categories peasants who were not in serfdom from the landowners or the church (black-growing peasants of the north, non-Russian nationalities, etc.), a new unified category of state peasants was formed - personally free, but paying dues to the state. The opinion that this measure “destroyed the remnants of the free peasantry” is incorrect, since the population groups that made up the state peasants were not considered free in the pre-Petrine period - they were attached to the land (the Council Code of 1649) and could be granted by the tsar to private individuals and the church as serfs.

State peasants in the 18th century had the rights of personally free people (they could own property, act in court as one of the parties, elect representatives to class bodies, etc.), but were limited in movement and could be (until the beginning of the 19th century, when this category finally established as free people) were transferred by the monarch to the category of serfs.

Legislative acts concerning the serf peasantry themselves were of a contradictory nature. Thus, the intervention of landowners in the marriage of serfs was limited (decree of 1724), it was forbidden to present serfs as defendants in court and to hold them on the right for the debts of the owner. The rule was also confirmed that the estates of landowners who had ruined their peasants should be transferred into the custody of the estates, and the peasants were given the opportunity to enroll as soldiers, which freed them from serfdom (by a decree of Emperor Elizabeth on July 2, 1742, the peasants were deprived of this opportunity).

At the same time, measures against runaway peasants were significantly tightened, large masses of palace peasants were distributed to private individuals, and landowners were allowed to recruit serfs. The imposition of a capitation tax on serfs (that is, personal servants without land) led to the merging of serfs with serfs. Church peasants were subordinated to the monastic order and removed from the authority of the monasteries.

Under Peter, a new category of dependent farmers was created - peasants assigned to manufactories. In the 18th century, these peasants were called possession farmers. A decree of 1721 allowed nobles and merchant manufacturers to buy peasants to manufactories to work for them. The peasants bought for the factory were not considered the property of its owners, but were attached to production, so that the owner of the factory could neither sell nor mortgage the peasants separately from the manufacture. Possession peasants received a fixed salary and performed a fixed amount of work.

An important measure taken by Peter for the peasantry was the decree of May 11, 1721, which introduced the Lithuanian scythe into the practice of grain harvesting, instead of the sickle traditionally used in Russia. To spread this innovation, samples of “Lithuanian women” were sent throughout the provinces, along with instructors from German and Latvian peasants. Since the scythe provided tenfold labor savings during harvesting, this innovation became widespread in a short time and became part of ordinary peasant farming. Peter's other development measures Agriculture, included the distribution of new breeds of livestock among landowners - Dutch cows, merino sheep from Spain, and the creation of horse breeding plants. On the southern outskirts of the country, measures were taken to plant vineyards and mulberry plantations.

Urban population

The social policy of Peter the Great concerning the urban population was aimed at ensuring the payment of the poll tax. For this purpose, the population was divided into two categories: regular (industrialists, merchants, craftsmen) and irregular citizens (all others). The difference between the urban regular citizen of the end of Peter's reign and the irregular one was that the regular citizen participated in city government by electing members of the magistrate, was enrolled in the guild and workshop, or bore a monetary obligation in the share that fell on him according to the social scheme.

In 1722, craft workshops based on Western European models appeared. The main purpose of their creation was to unite disparate craftsmen to produce products needed by the army. However, the guild structure did not take root in Rus'.

During the reign of Peter, the system of city management changed. The governors appointed by the king were replaced by elected City Magistrates, subordinate to the Chief Magistrate. These measures meant the emergence of city government.

Transformations in the sphere of culture

Peter I changed the beginning of the chronology from the so-called Byzantine era (“from the creation of Adam”) to “from the Nativity of Christ.” The year 7208 in the Byzantine era became 1700 AD. However, this reform did not affect Julian calendar as such - only the year numbers have changed.

After returning from the Great Embassy, ​​Peter I waged a struggle against the external manifestations of an outdated way of life (the ban on beards is most famous), but no less paid attention to introducing the nobility to education and secular Europeanized culture. Secular educational institutions began to appear, the first Russian newspaper was founded, and translations of many books into Russian appeared. Peter made success in service for the nobles dependent on education.

Under Peter in 1703 the first book appeared in Russian with Arabic numerals. Before that, numbers were designated by letters with titles (wavy lines). In 1710, Peter approved a new alphabet with a simplified style of letters (the Church Slavonic font remained for printing church literature), two letters “xi” and “psi” were excluded. Peter created new printing houses, in which 1,312 book titles were printed between 1700 and 1725 (twice as many as in the entire previous history of Russian book printing). Thanks to the rise of printing, paper consumption increased from 4-8 thousand sheets at the end of the 17th century to 50 thousand sheets in 1719. There have been changes in the Russian language, which included 4.5 thousand new words borrowed from European languages.

In 1724, Peter approved the charter of the organized Academy of Sciences (opened in 1725 after his death).

Special meaning there was the construction of stone Petersburg, in which foreign architects took part and which was carried out according to the plan developed by the tsar. He created a new urban environment with previously unfamiliar forms of life and pastime (theater, masquerades). The interior decoration of houses, lifestyle, food composition, etc. have changed.

By a special decree of the tsar in 1718, assemblies were introduced, representing a new form of communication between people in Russia. At the assemblies, the nobles danced and communicated freely, unlike previous feasts and feasts. Thus, noble women were able to join cultural leisure and public life for the first time.

The reforms carried out by Peter I affected not only politics, economics, but also art. Peter invited foreign artists to Russia and at the same time sent talented young people to study “art” abroad, mainly to Holland and Italy. In the second quarter of the 18th century. “Peter’s pensioners” began to return to Russia, bringing with them new artistic experience and acquired skills.

Gradually, a different system of values, worldview, and aesthetic ideas took shape in the ruling environment.

Education

Peter clearly recognized the need for enlightenment, and took a number of decisive measures to this end.

On January 14, 1700, a school of mathematical and navigational sciences was opened in Moscow. In 1701-1721, artillery, engineering and medical schools were opened in Moscow, an engineering school and a naval academy in St. Petersburg, and mining schools at the Olonets and Ural factories. In 1705, the first gymnasium in Russia was opened. The goals of mass education were to be served by digital schools created by decree of 1714 in provincial cities, designed to “ teach children of all ranks literacy, numbers and geometry" It was planned to create two such schools in each province, where education was to be free. Garrison schools were opened for soldiers' children, and a network of theological schools was created in 1721 to train priests.

According to the Hanoverian Weber, during the reign of Peter the Great, several thousand Russians were sent to study abroad.

Peter's decrees introduced compulsory education for nobles and clergy, but a similar measure for the urban population met fierce resistance and was cancelled. Peter's attempt to create an all-class primary school failed (the creation of a network of schools ceased after his death; most of the digital schools under his successors were repurposed as estate schools for training the clergy), but nevertheless, during his reign the foundations were laid for the spread of education in Russia.

> The article briefly describes the reforms of Peter I - the greatest transformations in the history of Russia. In general, the reforms played a positive role, accelerated the development of Russia, and directed it along the European path of development.
The reforms of Peter I have not yet received an unambiguous assessment in historiography. The debate revolves around two questions: whether the reforms were necessary and justified; were they natural during Russian history or were Peter's personal whim. The need for reforms is, in principle, recognized, but the methods by which they were carried out are condemned. Peter I acted like an oriental despot in achieving his goals. The cruelty and inexorability in the demands of Peter I is undeniable. However, the established traditions of Russian society most likely did not provide the opportunity to act differently. The conservatism that permeated the entire state showed stubborn resistance to all necessary transformations.

1. Introduction
2. Social reforms of Peter I
3. The significance of the reforms of Peter I
4. Video

Regarding the pattern of reforms, it should be said that they did not arise out of nowhere. The prerequisites and the first attempts to carry out reforms were made under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. The development of Russia really showed a lag behind the West. The actions of Peter I should not be considered overly revolutionary, since they were nevertheless caused by necessity. They became radical thanks to the very personality of Peter I - an ardent and immoderate man in his actions.

Public Administration Reform

• The activities of Peter I were aimed at strengthening state power.
• His adoption of the title of emperor in 1721 became the apogee of this process and was reflected in Russian culture. The state apparatus inherited by Peter I was imperfect, embezzlement and bribery flourished.
• It cannot be said that Peter I managed to completely get rid of this traditional Russian scourge, but certain positive changes were observed in this area.
• In 1711, he established a new supreme body of power - the Governing Senate.
• The Senate was headed by the Prosecutor General. Under this body there was an institute of fiscals who controlled the actions of officials. After some time, control over the activities of the Senate itself was introduced.
• The old system of Orders, no longer meeting the requirements of the time, was replaced by collegiums.
• In 1718, 11 colleges were formed, dividing among themselves the main branches of government in the state.
• Russia was divided into 8 provinces headed by governors and 50 provinces headed by voivodes. Smaller territories were called districts.
• The state structure took on the form of a clearly organized mechanism, the management of which was strictly hierarchical and directly subordinate to the emperor.
• Power acquired a military-police character.
• The creation of an extensive network of state control was supposed, according to Peter I, to put an end to the abuses of officials. In fact, the country was permeated by the spirit of surveillance and espionage. Executions and harsh methods of punishment did not lead to significant results.
• The sprawling bureaucratic system was constantly failing.

Economic reforms of Peter I

• The Russian economy lagged significantly behind the West.
• Peter I decisively takes on the task of correcting this situation. Heavy and light industry is developing at a rapid pace by improving old plants and manufactories and opening new ones.
• The question of whether these processes were the beginning of capitalist relations in Russia is controversial. Instead of hired labor in Russia, serf labor was used.
• Peasants were bought up en masse and assigned to factories (possession peasants), which did not make them workers in the full sense of the word.
• Peter I adhered to a policy of protectionism, which consisted of supporting and marketing products of his own production.
• To provide finance for large-scale reforms, the emperor introduces a state monopoly on the production and sale of certain types of goods. The export monopoly was of particular importance.
• A new taxation system was introduced - the poll tax. A general census took place, which increased treasury revenues.

Social reforms of Peter I

• In the social field, the decree on single inheritance (1714) was of great importance.
• According to this decree, only the eldest heir had ownership rights.
• This consolidated the position of the nobility and stopped the fragmentation of landowners' lands. At the same time, the decree erased the differences between local and patrimonial land ownership.
• In 1722, a decree was issued that for a long time became the basic law of Russia in the field of public service ("Table of Ranks").
• In the civil, military service and navy, parallel 14 ranks or classes were introduced - a clear hierarchical system of positions.
• The first eight classes gave the right to hereditary nobility.
• Thus, the previous system of occupying senior positions based on the principle of origin and birth was completely eliminated.
• From now on, any person in public service could apply for the nobility.
• The “Table of Ranks” contributed to even greater bureaucratization government structure, however, it really opened ample opportunities for talented and capable people.
• There was a clear division of urban residents.
• According to the regulations of 1721, the “regular” (industrialists, merchants, small traders and artisans) and “irregular” (everyone else, “vile people”) population of cities was distinguished.

The significance of the reforms of Peter I

• The reforms of Peter I radically influenced all areas of life of the Russian state.
• Socially, the formation of the main classes has ended and consolidation has occurred.
• Russia became a centralized state with the absolute power of the emperor.
• Support for domestic industry and the use of the experience of Western countries have put Russia on a par with the leading powers.
• The country's foreign policy successes also increased its authority.
• The proclamation of Russia as an empire was a natural result of the activities of Peter I.

The need to achieve access to the Black and Baltic Seas for normal economic development (starting point). → For this, a strong army and navy were needed - this determined the military reforms. → To successfully conduct combat operations beyond the army and navy, it was necessary to have weapons and uniforms - this determined the economic reforms. → To wage war, additional sources of income were required - this determined the monetary and tax reforms. → To better collect taxes, it was necessary centralized system management and control system - this determines administrative reforms. → In order for management to become more efficient, it was necessary to increase the level of education of officials - this determined the reforms in the field of culture and education.

The goals of the reforms of Peter I (1682-1725) were to maximize the power of the tsar, increase the military power of the country, territorial expansion of the state and access to the sea. The most prominent associates of Peter I were A. D. Mentikov, G. I. Golovkin, F. M. Apraksin, P. I. Yaguzhinsky, P. P. Shafirov, F. Yu. Romodanovsky, Ya. Bruce.

Military reform. Recruitment was introduced, new regulations, equipment in the Western style were introduced, and a fleet was built. However, it is hardly true to talk about the creation of a regular army; it existed already from the middle of the 17th century, only its personnel composition changed as a result of the dissolution of the Streltsy regiments. The replacement of the noble cavalry with dragoon cavalry led to a decrease in the combat effectiveness of the cavalry.

Public administration reform. The Boyar Duma was replaced by the highest state body - the Senate (1711), designed, if necessary, to replace the tsar, orders - collegiums. The “Table of Ranks” was introduced, which provided for a system of ranks and the procedure for assigning them not by nobility, but in accordance with service indicators. Decree on the throneheritage allowed the king to appoint anyone as heir. The capital was moved to St. Petersburg in 1712. In 1721 Peter accepted the imperial title. Church reform. In 1721, the patriarchate was abolished, the church began to be governed by the Holy Synod and was deprived of part of its wealth. The priests were transferred to government salaries, their number was reduced, and some of them became landowner serfs.

Changes in the economy. In 1724 it was introduced By-stuffy serve, levied on all men of the tax-paying classes, regardless of age, a mass of indirect taxes appeared (on coffins, beards, baths, etc.), ship taxes, etc. In general, taxes increased by about Zraza. Up to 180 manufactories were created, which marked the beginning of large-scale domestic industry. State monopolies were introduced on various goods, which, however, began to be abolished by the end of Peter’s reign. Canals and roads are being built, but many projects have not been implemented due to lack of funds.

Social reforms. Decree on unified inheritance(1714) equated estates to estates and prohibited their splitting during inheritance, so that those lordly sons who would not receive estates would go into the sovereign's service. Passports were introduced for peasants, serfs and slaves were actually equated, which marked the beginning of serfdom in its “classical”, most brutal form.

Reforms in the field of culture. Navigation, Engineering, Medical and other schools, the first public theater, the first publicly accessible newspaper “Vedomosti”, a museum (Kunstkamera), and the Academy of Sciences were created. Nobles are sent to study abroad. However, the educational level of the nobility increased noticeably only in the second half. XVIII century Western dress is introduced for nobles, beard shaving, smoking, and assemblies.

Results. Finally formed absolutism. Russia's military power grew: it began to play a prominent role in European politics. At the same time, the antagonism between the upper and lower classes seriously worsened, and serfdom began to take on slave forms. The tax pressure increased enormously, and the positive effect did not correspond to the invested funds. The bureaucratic apparatus has expanded enormously. The upper class merged into one noble class, which, however, continued to maintain its heterogeneity.

Consequences. Peter's reforms caused discontent among almost all segments of the population. In 1698, the archers, dissatisfied with the deteriorating conditions of service, rebelled and were subjected to fierce reprisals for their rebellion - more than 1,000 people were executed, and the archery regiments were disbanded. In 1705-1706 there was an uprising in Aster-honey, on the Don and the Volga region in 1707-1709. - uprising K. A. Bulavina, in 1705-1711 - in Bashkiria. IN different time Up to 60 counties rebelled.

In 1689, Peter I the Great established himself on the Russian throne, having gained the opportunity to make independent decisions, and not just be listed as tsar (from 1682). Descendants remembered him as a controversial and powerful man who started global transformations in the country. These historical reforms will be discussed in our article.

Conditions for change

Having gained true power, the king immediately began to govern the country. There are several main reasons for this:

• he inherited a state that was quite far behind the European powers in development;
• he understood that such large and poorly developed territories needed constant protection and the establishment of new economic and political ties.

In order to adequately support the army, it is necessary to raise the standard of living of the entire country, change foundations and strengthen power. This became the main goal and objectives of the reforms of Peter the Great.

Not everyone liked the innovations. Some segments of the population tried to resist the reforms of Peter the Great. The boyars and high clergy lost their special status, and a small group of nobles and merchants were afraid to deviate from old customs. But, due to the lack of sufficient support, they could not stop the changes, they only slowed down the process.

Rice. 1. The first Russian emperor Peter the Great.

The essence of the transformation

State reforms in Russia during the time of Peter I can be conditionally divided into two stages:

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• From 1696 to 1715: changes were carried out hastily, under pressure; were poorly thought out and often ineffective. The main activities of this period were aimed at obtaining resources for participation in the Northern War.
• From 1715 to 1725: the transformations were planned and were more successful.

In 1698, Peter the Great, having adopted the experience Western Europe, began to actively transform both the state and public spheres. For convenience, we will list the main changes point by point:

• Administrative : include public administration reform, regional (provincial), city. Creation of new authorities (Senate, 13 colleges, Holy Synod, Chief Magistrate); changing the territorial structure for more efficient tax collection;
• Judicial reform : also concerned the reorganization of power, but was highlighted separately, since its main task was to stop the influence of the administration on judges;
• Church reform : deprivation of the church's independence, submission to the will of the ruler;
• Military reform : creation of a fleet, a regular army, their full support;
• Financial : include monetary and tax reforms. The introduction of new monetary units, reducing the weight of coins, replacing the main tax with a capitation tax;
• Industrial and trade reforms : mining of minerals, creation of manufactories, use of serfs to reduce the cost of labor, state support of national production, reduction of imports, increase in exports;
• Social : class reforms (new duties for all classes), educational (compulsory initial training, creation of specialized schools), medical (creation of a state hospital and pharmacies, training of doctors). They also include educational reforms and changes in the field of science (the creation of the Academy of Sciences, printing houses, a public library, the publication of a newspaper), including metrology (the introduction of English units of measurement, the creation of standards);
• Cultural : new chronology and calendar (year starts on January 1), creation of a state theater, organization of “assemblies” (mandatory cultural events for nobles), restrictions on wearing beards, European requirements for clothing, permission to smoke.

The nobility was seriously indignant at the need to bring their appearance in line with European standards.

Rice. 2. Boyars under Peter II.

Consequences of reforms

It would be wrong to downplay the importance of the reorganizations carried out by Peter I. They contributed to the comprehensive development of the Russian state, which made it possible to make it an empire in 1721. But we should not forget that not all results were positive. The transformations led to the following results:

• Strengthening power with new state apparatus(strengthening autocracy);
• Building a fleet, improving the army, gaining access to the Baltic Sea (25 years of military service);
• Development of domestic industry (use of free labor of serfs);
• Improving conditions for the development of science and education (practically did not concern the common people);
• Spread of European culture (oppression of national traditions);
• Payment of a noble title for service merits (additional responsibilities for all segments of the population);
• Introduction of new taxes.

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