Why the turn towards order?
After 1812-15 Alexander I was at the height of his fame, but he had changed. He had seen how revolutions in France ended in war. He grew religious and suspicious of new ideas. Revolts in Spain, Italy and Greece in the early 1820s and a mutiny in his own Semyonovsky Guards regiment (1820) made him more afraid. His new aim was to keep things as they were. Such a policy is called conservative. Poland, though, kept a constitution under his rule from 1815.
Arakcheyev and the military settlements
Count Aleksey Arakcheyev was the tsar's strict helper. He led the military settlements, started around 1810 and widened after 1816. Soldiers and their families lived in model villages, farmed land and drilled under officers. The goal was to make the army cheaper to keep. But life was hard, with the same rules for work, clothes, even the cut of a beard. There were revolts in some places (the biggest at Chuguev in 1819), and they were put down harshly. The word "Arakcheyevshchina" came to mean harsh, narrow rule.
Schools, books and secret societies
From about 1817 education was mixed with religion in a combined Ministry of Spiritual Affairs and Education. Officials such as Magnitsky (Kazan) and Runich (St Petersburg) cleaned universities of professors who taught "dangerous" ideas, and censorship became strict. In 1822 the tsar banned secret societies and Masonic lodges, and officers had to sign that they were not members.
Who were the Decembrists and what did they want?
The Decembrists were mostly young nobles and army officers, such as Pestel, Ryleyev, the Muravyov brothers and Trubetskoy. They had seen free life in Europe in 1813-14 and felt shame about serfdom at home. They formed secret groups: the Union of Salvation (1816), the Union of Welfare (1818), and from 1821-22 two main groups.
- Northern Society (St Petersburg): Nikita Muravyov, Ryleyev, Trubetskoy. Plan: a constitutional monarchy with a federal state, end of serfdom, peasants get their own house and a small plot.
- Southern Society (Ukraine): Pavel Pestel. Plan, Russkaya Pravda: a republic, equal rights, serfdom ended, and half of the land shared for all. Pestel also wanted a strong central power for a time.
14 (26) December 1825: Senate Square
Alexander I died in November 1825 in Taganrog, with no child. His brother Konstantin had earlier given up his rights, but this was not public, and many people were first told to swear to Konstantin. Then the younger brother Nicholas took the oath on 14 December (old style). The Northern Society used the confusion. About 3,000 soldiers marched to Senate Square in St Petersburg and shouted for "Konstantin and a constitution". Their chosen leader, Prince Trubetskoy, did not come. Government troops of over 9,000 men surrounded the square. A shot by Kakhovsky killed Governor Miloradovich. In the evening cannons fired and the revolt ended. In January 1826 a smaller rising by the Chernigov Regiment in the south was also crushed.
Punishment and meaning
About 120 people were tried. Five leaders (Pestel, Ryleyev, Sergey Muravyov-Apostol, Bestuzhev-Ryumin and Kakhovsky) were hanged in July 1826. Many others were sent to Siberia, and some wives followed their husbands. Nicholas I became a strict ruler.
Why did it fail? There were too few people, the plan was weak, the leader did not come, and the common people and most soldiers were not part of it. Why does it matter? It was the first open attempt in Russia to get a constitution and end serfdom. It shaped later thinkers and protesters, and it was remembered as the start of the revolutionary movement.
Try it: North or South?
- In 3D: in the last step, press each topic and note one way the two plans differ.
- Debate: half of the class is the North and half the South. Argue whether Russia needs a king with a constitution or no king.
- Predict then check: before step 4 loads, guess which side has more soldiers. Then check the numbers.
Key formulas and definitions
- Conservative turn: after 1815, Alexander I favours order over reform
- Military settlements: soldiers farm and drill, led by Arakcheyev
- Secret societies banned: 1822
- Northern Society: constitutional monarchy; Southern Society (Pestel): republic
- Senate Square: 14 (26) December 1825; about 3,000 rebels against 9,000+ troops
- Five leaders executed: July 1826
Worked examples
1. Give two features of the conservative turn after 1815.
Feature 1: military settlements under Arakcheyev with harsh rules. Feature 2: close watch on universities and strict censorship; secret societies were banned in 1822.
2. How were the aims of Pestel and Nikita Muravyov different?
Step 1: Muravyov wanted a constitutional monarchy: a tsar remains but is bound by a constitution. Step 2: Pestel wanted a republic: no tsar at all. Step 3: Pestel also wanted to share half of the land for all, while Muravyov wanted peasants to get only a small plot.
3. 3,000 rebels faced 9,000 government troops. What was the ratio of troops to rebels?
9,000 / 3,000 = 3. So there were at least 3 government soldiers for every rebel. With the rebels' leader absent, the result was clear.
4. Give two reasons why the Decembrist revolt failed.
Reason 1: too few people and no support from the wider public or most of the army. Reason 2: weak plan; the chosen leader did not appear and the rebels just stood in the square. The government also had far more troops.
Common mistakes
- Thinking the Decembrists rose against Alexander I. They rose just after his death, against the oath to Nicholas.
- Saying the Decembrists were peasants or workers. They were mostly young nobles and officers.
- Mixing the plans: the North wanted a constitutional monarchy, the South (Pestel) a republic.
- Writing that December rising is 14 December in our calendar. It is 14 December old style, 26 December new style.