Chapter 17 Part 4

1. Chapter 17Part 4 Peter the Great

2. Peter the Great 1682-1725 • His sister, Sophia, was his first regent when he was very young • She plotted to have him killed and was found out • Peter had her banished to a monastery • His mother took over as regent until he was 22 • He was 7 feet tall and very strong • He was a poor loser at games, tests of skill

3. Peter the Great • Was fascinated with new technology of the West • Toured parts of Western Europe “in disguise” • Was a dock worker in the Netherlands • Was determined to westernize and modernize Russia…even culturally • The Beard Tax (was graduated based on ability to pay)

4. The Revolt of the Strelski 1698 • The Moscow Guard • Had successfully overthrown previous leaders • Attempted to keep Peter from the throne • The revolt was crushed • (any similarities to the Fronde in France?) • Louis XIV and Peter the Great…both considered the quintessential Absolutist of his region

5. Greatest Concern: Military Power • Each Russian village had annual quotas: warm bodies for the military…25 year commitment! • 75% of National Revenue went to the military • Army numbered 200,000+ men • AND an additional 100,000 special Cossack forces

6. The Military • Peter established Royal Military and Artillery Academies • All young male nobles were required to leave home and serve 5 years of compulsory education • Non-nobles had opportunities to rise within the ranks • Large navy (850 ships) built on the Baltic

7. The Great Northern War (with Sweden) 1700-1721 • Russia, Poland, Denmark, Saxony v. Sweden • Most important Battle: Battle of Poltava was a decisive Russian victory over Sweden • 1721 Treaty of Nystad: Russia gained Latvia and Estonia (Russia’s “Window on the West”) in the Baltic Sea

8. Industry • Peter imported western technicians and craftsmen to help build large factories in Russia • By 1725 Russia out-produced England in Iron Production (Sweden and German produced more) • Factories had industrial form of serfdom (factory workers bought and sold with the factory or not) But industrial serfs produced inferior goods

9. Created • State regulated monopolies • Similar to those in Western Europe

10. The Government • Became more efficient • The Tsar ruled by decree (absolutist) • Theoretically: the tsar owned all land in the state • The Nobles and peasants served the state • No representative assemblies • All landowners owed a lifetime of service to the state (either military or in the civil service or in the courts) • In return, the Boyars gained more control over the serfs

11. Table of Ranks • Educational standards for civil servants (most were nobles) • Peter tried to replace old Boyar nobility with new service-based nobility loyal to the tsar (like in the West) • Secret Police ruthlessly crushed all opponents of the state (tsar)

12. Taxation • Head tax on every male • Heavy taxes on sales and rent

13. The Church • Took control of the Church by making it a cabinet-level department: The Holy Synod in 1700 after the death of the Patriarch

14. St. Petersburg • Tried to create a city similar to Amsterdam • Built the Winter Palace there • By 1725 it was the largest city in Northern Europe • Population of 75,000 • St. Petersburg became the capital of Russia

15. The Winter Palace

16. St. Petersburg • Construction began in 1703 • Labor was conscripted (drafted) Peasants • Heavy death toll • Many Nobles were ordered to move there and build their homes according to Peter’s plans • Merchants and artisans also ordered to live in the city and to help build it

17. Peter’s Reforms • Modernized Russia • Had a more modern military and state bureaucracy • Peter began issuing explanations of his decrees to gain popular support

18. Peter the Great • Strangled his son with his bare hands