E. Napp Nationalism in Russia and Turkey In this lesson, students will be able to define the following terms: Autocrats Emancipation of Serfs Russification Pogroms “Sick Man of Europe”

E. Napp Although the middle class was gaining power in Western Europe, the Tsars (Czars) of Russia continued to rule as autocrats or absolute rulers.

E. Napp Through the use of secret police and censorship, they repressed new ideas and attempts at political and social reform.

E. Napp Most Russians were illiterate serfs. Serfs were bound to the land. They lived in poverty. Serfdom still existed in Russia.

E. Napp After Russia’s defeat in the Crimean War ( ) by Britain and France, Tsar Alexander II listened to reformers and emancipated the serfs in 1861.

E. Napp However, Tsar Alexander II was assassinated shortly afterwards. Hopes for future reforms ended. Later Tsars opposed all change to the social order.

E. Napp The Russian government also adopted a policy of Russification.

E. Napp Under Russification, all non-Russian people living in the Russian empire were forced to adopt the Russian language, culture, and Russian Orthodox faith.

E. Napp Jews in Russia faced state organized riots known as pogroms. Pogroms were violent attacks on Jews in Russia. They were encouraged by the Russian government.

E. Napp Nationalism also accelerated the decline of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire was crumbling and referred to as the “Sick Man of Europe” due to its weakened state.

E. Napp There were many reasons for the decline of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Turks had failed to keep pace with Western technology and science.

E. Napp Serbs, Greeks, and Romanians gained independence from the Ottomans in the early 19 th century. Nationalism encouraged self-determination.

E. Napp Russian Orthodox Christians waged a series of wars against the Ottoman Turks. The Ottomans lost important territories in Austria and Russia.

E. Napp Questions for Reflection: Why were many Russian tsars autocrats? Who emancipated Russia’s serfs and what happened to him? How did Russification affect the Russian empire? What were pogroms? Why was the Ottoman Empire called the “sick man of Europe”?