The Russian Empire Wood, p. 323-328

Timeline 988 – Kievan Rus adopts Christianity from Byzantines 1240 – Mongols conquer Kievan Rus and make it a tributary state (Khanate of the Golden Horde) 1480 – Mongols ousted, Russian princes re-assert control 1502-1917 – Russian Empire ruled by Tsars 1917 – Russian Revolution overthrows Tsars 1917-1992 – Soviet Union Timeline

The Ivans Ivan III (“Ivan the Great”) Refused to pay tribute to the Mongols Claimed he was establishing the “Third Rome” Ivan IV (“Ivan the Terrible”) Centralized power by taking away land from the boyars (nobles) Executes his son (the heir) and sets off the “Time of Trouble” Boyars select Mikhail Romanov as the new tsar – the Romanov family will rule Russia until 1917 The Ivans

1682-1724 “He looked to the West, saw the importance of controlling the oceans and seas, studied European methods of shipbuilding and engineering, applied all that his brilliant mind could put together, and pulled Russia by the bootstraps into its new role as an important player in global history.” (325) Peter the Great

Absolute ruler – continued centralizing power around the tsar Constantly threatened by the boyars, who did not like many of his reforms Peter the Great

Expanded Russia so that they could gain access to warm water ports – why? New capital on the shores of the Baltic Sea: St. Petersburg (often called his “Window on the West”) St. Petersburg

Peter’s Military Reforms Expanded the army by drafting peasants and increasing pay Trained troops in the use of cannons and firearms Built roads and bridges to improve transportation Built a navy from scratch after consulting with European experts Defeated Sweden in the Great Northern War – declared Russia an empire Peter’s Military Reforms

Peter’s Social Reforms Ordered boyars to dress like Europeans and shave their beards Noblewomen appeared at social events, like European ladies of fashion Decreed that young people should determine for themselves who to marry (instead of their parents) Secularized the monarchy Nobles had to send children abroad for school Started a newspaper and Academy of Sciences Peter’s Social Reforms

Peter’s Bureaucratic Reforms Encouraged industrial production More efficient tax collection Replaced boyars with government officials selected according to his new Table of Ranks (positions determined by merit, not birth) Eliminated many titles of nobility Peter’s Bureaucratic Reforms

Peter’s Limitations Took little interest in Enlightenment ideas – why? Did not see the need to build an international export-oriented economy; for Peter, economic development was only necessary to support a strong military Peter’s Limitations

Impact of Peter the Great Russia, which really should have been a backwater outpost forgotten by history, is on its way to becoming a modern, Western power. Eternal conflict for Russians: Slavic tradition vs. Westernization – Are they East or West? Impact of Peter the Great