The Great Reforms of Alexander II (1861-1874)

Why reforms? The lesson of the Crimean War

Alexander II became tsar in 1855, in the middle of the Crimean War. The defeat (1856) showed that Russia lacked railways, modern weapons and a good army, and that serfdom held back the economy: serfs had no reason to work harder or move to factories. Educated people (see the lesson on Westernisers and Slavophiles) had also long asked for change. The tsar said it was better to end serfdom from above than to wait for it to end from below. His reforms of 1861-1874 are called the Great Reforms.

Abolition of serfdom (1861)

What happened. On 19 February (3 March in the modern calendar) 1861, Alexander II signed the Manifesto. Serfs, then about 22 million people on private estates, became free persons: they could marry freely, own property, sue in court and open a business. Later reforms freed the state peasants and other groups too.

Land and money. Landowners kept part of the land. Peasants got a "plot" (allotment). To get it, the state paid about 80 percent of its price to the landowner, and the peasants repaid the state in redemption payments over 49 years with interest. Until then they owed dues and labour as "temporarily obliged" peasants. In many black-soil areas peasants lost some of the land they used before ("cut-offs").

The commune. The village commune (mir) got the land and was responsible for taxes together. A peasant could not leave without its permission.

Results. It was a giant step: a free labour market grew and factories and railways expanded. But the peasants were poor, land was short and payments heavy, so many were unhappy. The payments ended only in 1907.

Zemstvo and city reforms (1864, 1870)

Zemstvo (1864). After serfdom ended, the nobles no longer ran the villages, so someone new was needed. Elected assemblies were created at district and province levels. Voters were grouped in three classes (landowners, townspeople and peasants), and the landowners got the most weight. The zemstvos built roads and bridges, ran primary schools, set up village doctors and hospitals and gave help in famines. They could not take part in national politics, and the governor watched them. Still, they gave Russians their first training in self-government.

City reform (1870). Cities got an elected city duma (council), an executive board and a mayor. The vote depended on tax paid, so wealthy citizens counted for more. The city councils looked after streets, water, schools, markets and health.

Judicial reform (1864)

The old courts were secret, slow and full of bribes. The new system (20 November 1864) was built on modern European ideas:

• Equality of all classes before the law (with a few exceptions, such as separate courts for the clergy, army and peasants' small cases).
• Independent judges who could not be fired easily.
• Open, spoken trials, so the public and press can attend.
• Lawyers (an independent bar) to defend, and a prosecutor to accuse.
• Jury of 12 citizens for serious criminal cases: they decide guilty or not guilty.
• Justices of the peace, elected, for small cases.

It is often called the most successful of the reforms. Cases against the state were later taken out of jury courts.

Military reform (1874)

War Minister Dmitry Milyutin remade the army after the Crimean lesson. Before, only peasants and townspeople were taken as recruits, for 25 years. In 1874 a law made all men (nobles too) liable from age 20, picked by lot. Service was cut to about 6 years in the army (plus time in the reserve), and shorter for educated men. Cruel punishments were limited, soldiers were taught to read, and military schools and new rifles and railway planning were brought in. This made a modern army of citizens.

Education and press

• Universities (1863): a new charter gave universities councils that elect the rector and run themselves.
• Schools (1864): primary schools were opened for all classes, run by the church and zemstvos. Gymnasiums were of two types: classical (Latin and Greek) and "real" (science and modern subjects).
• Women's education: higher courses for women opened in the 1870s.
• Press (1865): softer censorship rules, so books and journals were freer.

Results and limits

• Russia moved toward a modern society: free people, local self-government, equal courts, an army of citizens, more schools.
• The economy grew: railways, factories, banks.
• But the tsar kept full power: there was no national parliament. Peasant poverty and land hunger remained.
• Some radicals thought reforms were too small. The tsar was killed by revolutionaries on 1 March 1881 and his son Alexander III turned to "counter-reforms".

Try it: reform report card

1. In 3D: in the last step, pick each reform. Write "forward" or "missing" for the taller bar.
2. Role play: hold a class "court": a student is accused of breaking a rule. Choose a jury of 12 (or fewer), a lawyer and a judge. Compare with a secret trial: what is better?
3. Maths: if a plot cost 490 roubles and the state paid 80 percent, how much did the peasants owe? Spread over 49 years, how much a year (no interest)? (Answer: 98 roubles, 2 roubles a year.)

Key formulas and definitions

• Emancipation Manifesto: 19 Feb (3 Mar) 1861; redemption payments over 49 years
• Zemstvo law: 1864 (district and province councils)
• City reform: 1870 (city duma, mayor)
• Judicial reform: 1864 (equality, open trial, lawyers, jury of 12)
• Military reform: 1874 (all classes, by lot, about 6 years instead of 25)
• Universities charter 1863; primary schools 1864

Worked examples

Common mistakes

• Thinking peasants got land free in 1861. They paid for it over 49 years.
• Thinking the reforms made Russia a democracy. The tsar kept full power and had no parliament.
• Mixing up the zemstvo (1864, rural) and city reform (1870).
• Saying the military reform kept 25-year service. It cut it to about 6 years.