The Rise of Russia

• The first Russian state-centered around the city of Kiev around the 9th century
• in the 1230’s it was conquered by the
Mongols who ruled the region for the next
250 years
• it fell into disorder in the 15th century and fell under the influence on the state of
Moscow

• Different from the West
– Little commercial exchange
– BUT major factor in world relationships and balance of power
• Separate identity from the rest of Europe
– What do we allow to influence the identity????
– How we interact with the West
• Rise of the Absolute Monarchs

• stopped paying tribute to the
Mongols…therefore declared
Russian independence
• Freed much of Russia in 1462
• he began the policy called
“gathering the Russian land” and built Moscow into a large and powerful state
• Orthodox church affirmed that
Ivan was chosen by God and started calling Moscow the
“third Rome”
• Rurik Dynasty

• First Tsar
• Married Anastasia
Romanov
– Reign of terror
• Continued Russian expansion
• Wanted to control the
Russian nobles
– Boyars

• Ivan dies without an heir
– Causes problems
SHOCKER
• Poland and Sweden was also attacking
• Boyars fought over who would be in control
– They choose a young boy from the Romanov family

• Alexis
– Stopped the strengthening of the Nobles
– Gained power over the
Church
Michael
• Reestablished internal order and stopped the poles and the
Swedes
• Resumed expansion
– Got Kiev back from Poland
• Closest relative to Anastasia
• Reigns as an eastern monarch
– Kremlin: Fortified area

• Absolute Monarch
– Took more power
– Autocrat
• Make the culture and the economy more western
• Created a trained military
– Able to defeat the rivals
• Sweden was never to be world power again

• He used only what he thought would better
Russia
– Not a worldwide export economy
• The economy should support the military
– Revised tax system
– Began mining iron: more manufacturing
– Gave more power to women without actually changing gender relations
• His wife breaks the Terem
• Created a set of advisors he could control

• After Peter Dies and a question of heir: HAHAHA
– Peter’s Wife Catherine I
– Anna (Peter’s Daughter)
– Elizabeth (Peter’s
Daughter)
– Peter (Elizabeth’s Nephew)
AND Catherine II

• Wife of Peter III
– Takes control for herself with the help of peasant uprising
• German Princess and very smart
– Loved by the people
• Made people believe she was an Enlightened
Despot

• Wanted Enlightened ideas but also wanted to be a STRONG central monarch (absolute)
– Wrote to Voltaire
– Put on a show of being more western
– HOWEVER a great number of western ideas were able to get to Russia even if they were not used right away
• Divided Poland
– Very Important

• Peasant adventurers who were encouraged to move to newly acquired lands
– Russian Cowboys
• Not an ethnic group but an ideological group
• Horse people
• Fled the Russian empire
– Serfs and others wanting to escape
– Asian elements

Pugachev Rebellion
• Claimed to be the true tsar
– Promised to end serfdom, taxes, military conscription
• However, it was not a unified army
• Captured and executed

• During the Mongols the peasants were free farmers
• After the Mongols they needed to sell their land because of debts
• Russian government supported the nobility having serfs
– It was a way to control the masses and keep the nobles rich and happy
• Became more like slavery:
– Bought, sold, given, gambled
– Coursed labor