Peter the Great and his reforms. Peter's reform in education

The table "Reforms of Peter 1" briefly outlines the features of the transformational activities of the first emperor of Russia. With its help, one can concisely, concisely and clearly outline the main directions of his steps to change all spheres of life in Russian society in the first quarter of the 18th century. Perhaps this is the best way for middle-level students to learn this difficult and rather voluminous material, which is very important for analyzing and correctly understanding the features of the historical process in our country in the following centuries.

Features of the emperor's activities

One of the most complex, difficult and at the same time interesting topics is the "Reforms of Peter 1". Briefly, a table on this topic demonstrates all the data necessary for schoolchildren.

In the introductory lesson, it should immediately be noted that the activities of Pyotr Alekseevich affected all sectors of society and determined the further history of the country. This is the uniqueness of the era of his reign. However, he was a very practical man and innovated based on specific needs.

This can be clearly demonstrated with a more detailed coverage of the topic "Reforms of Peter 1". Briefly, the table on the problem posed clearly shows the wide scope with which the emperor acted. It seemed that he managed to have a hand in everything: he reorganized the army, the authorities made significant changes to the social structure, the economic sphere, diplomacy, and, finally, contributed to the spread of Western European culture and way of life among the Russian nobility.

Transformations in the army

At the middle level, it is very important that schoolchildren learn the basic facts of the topic "Peter 1's Reforms". Briefly, a table on this problem helps students to familiarize themselves with the data and systematize the accumulated material. Almost all of his reign, the emperor waged war with Sweden for access to the Baltic Sea. The need for strong and powerful troops arose with particular urgency at the very beginning of his reign. Therefore, the new ruler immediately began to reorganize the army.

One of the most interesting sections in the topic under study is the "Military reforms of Peter 1". Briefly, the table can be depicted as follows.

The Importance of Military Innovation

It can be seen from it that the steps of the emperor were dictated by the specific needs of his contemporary time, however, many of his innovations continued to exist for a very long time. The main goal of the reforms was to create a permanent and regular army. The fact is that earlier there was a so-called local system of recruiting troops: i.e. the landowner appeared at the reviews along with several servants who were also supposed to serve with him.

However, by the beginning of the 18th century, this principle had become obsolete. By this time, serfdom had finally taken shape, and the state began to recruit soldiers from the peasants. Another very important measure was the creation of professional military schools for the training of officers and commanders.

Transformations of power structures

Practice shows that one of the most difficult topics is "Peter 1's political reforms." Briefly, the table on this issue clearly demonstrates how deep the transformational activity of the emperor was in the governing bodies. He completely changed the central and local administration. Instead, which had previously performed advisory functions under the king, he created the Senate on the model of Western European countries. Instead of orders, colleges were created, each of which performed a specific function in management. Their activities were strictly controlled by the Prosecutor General. In addition, a special secret fiscal body was created to control the bureaucracy.

New administrative division

No less complex is the topic and “State reforms of Peter 1. Briefly, the table on this issue reflects the cardinal changes that have taken place in the organization of local government. Provinces were created, which were in charge of the affairs of a certain area. The provinces were divided into provinces, and those, in turn, into counties. Such a structure was very convenient for management and met the challenges of the time in question. At the head of the provinces was the governor, and at the head of the provinces and counties - the governor.

Changes in industry and commerce

Of particular difficulty is often the study of the topic “Economic reforms of Peter 1. Briefly, the table on this issue reflects the complexity and ambiguity of the emperor’s activities in relation to merchants and merchants, who, on the one hand, sought to create the most favorable conditions for the development of the country’s economy, but at the same time acted almost feudal methods, which could not contribute to the development of market relations in our country. Peter Alekseevich was not as effective as the transformation in other areas. At the same time, this was the first experience in the development of trade according to the Western European model.

Transformations in the social structure

The theme “Social reforms of Peter 1” seems to be simpler. A brief table on this issue clearly demonstrates the fundamental changes that have occurred in Russian society of the studied time. Unlike his predecessors, the emperor introduced the principle of distinction in the military and state spheres, depending not on tribal affiliation, but on personal merit. His famous "Table of Ranks" introduced a new principle of service. From now on, a person, in order to get a promotion or rank, had to achieve any success.

It was under Peter that the social structure of society was finally formalized. The main support of the autocracy was the nobility, which replaced the tribal aristocracy. The emperor's successors also relied on this estate, which indicates the effectiveness of the measures taken.

The study of this problem can be completed by summarizing the results. What was the significance of the reforms of Peter the Great in the history of Russia? A table, a summary on a given topic, can serve as an effective means of summing up. Regarding social transformations, it should be noted that the measures of the ruler corresponded to the demands of his time, when the principle of parochialism was outdated, and the country needed new personnel who would have the necessary qualities to fulfill the new tasks that the country faced in connection with the Northern War and Russia's entry into the international arena.

The role of the transformational activity of the emperor

The topic “Basic reforms of Peter 1”, a table, a summary of which is an important component in the study of the history of Russia in the first quarter of the 18th century, should be divided into several lessons so that schoolchildren have the opportunity to properly consolidate the material. At the final lesson, it is necessary to summarize the material covered and to indicate what role the transformations of the first emperor played in the future fate of Russia.

The measures taken by the ruler brought our country to the European arena and brought it into the ranks of the leading European states. The topic “The main reforms of Peter 1”, a table, a summary clearly shows how the country reached the world level of development, having received access to the sea and becoming one of the main members of the European concert of powers.

The Northern War with Sweden required metal and gunpowder for cannons, cloth and silk for uniforms, timber and canvas for the fleet. This prompted Peter to come to grips with industry and trade, although his concerns about the economic development of Russia and the elimination of its technical backwardness were due not only to military needs.

In the Russian economy in the first quarter of the XVIII century. there was a leap, equal in its significance and in its consequences to the Stalinist industrialization of the 30s. A feature of this economic upsurge was the strengthening of the role of the state in all spheres of the economy. If in the XVII century. in Russia there were only 30 manufactories, by the end of the reign of Peter there were about 100. Whole industries appeared - mining, metallurgical, textile. If in the XVII century. Russia bought metal from Sweden, then by the end of Peter's reign, she exported it. And in the middle of the XVIII century. our country came out on top in the world in metal production, surpassing even England.

By decree of Peter I, the development of minerals began. In a short time, a whole metallurgical complex was created in the Urals, Nevyansk, Alapatevsky, Nizhny Tagil, Uktus plants were built.

In the time of Peter the Great, metallurgical plants were built in Lipetsk and Petrozavodsk, and weapons plants were built in Tula and Sestroretsk. A silver-smelting plant was built in distant Nerchinsk.

All factories were built at the expense of the state budget, since Russian merchants and entrepreneurs did not have the necessary capital. In Petrine Russia there was no freedom of enterprise. The entire development of industry was regulated and controlled by the state, state bodies: the berg collegium and the manufactory collegium. They issued permits for the construction of industrial enterprises, they set prices for their products. They exercised judicial and administrative power over entrepreneurs and working people, i.e. The main and leading role in the formation and development of Russian industry was played not by entrepreneurs, but by officials-bureaucrats.

In the era of Peter the Great, many manufactories appeared that produced cloth, sailcloth, gauze, rope, hats - everything necessary for the army and navy. For the development of the textile industry, wool, flax, and hemp were required. Decree of Peter 1715. ordered to plant hemp and flax in all provinces, and in the old flax-growing regions to double the area under them. Peter I took care of the development of sheep breeding, of improving the breeds of sheep, since the army needed sheepskin coats. The development of sheep breeding accelerated especially noticeably in Ukraine, where large sheep breeding farms were created with thoroughbred sheep exported from Spain and Saxony. According to the decrees of Peter, stud farms began to be created, since the cavalry needed horses. Peter took care of the protection of the forests, especially the ship ones, necessary for the fleet.

Labor in factories and manufactories was predominantly serf labor, as there were not enough civilian employees. Decree of Peter 1721. allowed the owners of entire villages to buy serfs. The decree legalized serf labor in industry and stopped the process of formation of the Russian bourgeoisie that had begun.

The further development of domestic trade was facilitated by the construction of canals: the Vyshnevolotsky, the Mariana system and others. With the conquest of access to the Baltic Sea, foreign trade also expanded. But the development of free trade was hindered by the state monopoly on tobacco, bread, salt, timber, flax, leather, etc. The state monopoly was profitable for the treasury, but ruinous for the people. Thus, the introduction of a monopoly on salt doubled the price of salt, and on tobacco - 8 times.

Like entrepreneurs, Russian merchants also suffered from state regulation and control. The government of Peter I forced them to create companies, to move to St. Petersburg, which was under construction. Merchants were told which goods could be traded in which port, at what prices they could sell goods to the state, and so on.

So, the economic reforms of Peter I, despite the fact that they were carried out on a feudal basis, gave a sick impetus to the development of productive forces. As a result, their Russia became a strong European state, largely overcoming its technical and economic backwardness.

Administrative reforms

The old system of governing Russia through the Boyar Duma and orders did not correspond to the new tasks. She did not provide the army with food and weapons, did not collect taxes from the population in full. Orders often duplicated each other, creating confusion in management and slowness in decision-making. The old system of managing counties from the center did not provide an effective fight against the flight of the peasants, and could not prevent the Bulavinsky and Astrakhan uprisings.

The first step in the reorganization of the country's governance system was the restructuring of local authorities. In 1708 the whole country was divided into 8 provinces: Moscow, Ingermanland, Smolensk, Kiev. Azov, Kazan, Arkhangelsk and Siberian. Governors appointed by the tsar were at the head of the provinces. All executive and judicial power was concentrated in their hands. The governor was also the commander-in-chief of the troops stationed on the territory entrusted to him. The provinces were divided into 50 provinces, and the provinces were divided into counties. At the head of counties and provinces were governors. The reform of local government met the needs of strengthening the autocracy and contributed to the further growth and strengthening of the bureaucracy.

Following the local administration, the central administration was also reformed. In 1711 By decree of Peter the Senate was created - the highest government institution that replaced the Boyar Duma. The Boyar Duma was a numerous, cumbersome body. At the end of the XVII century. its composition reached 120 people, although in fact 1/3 or even 1/6 of the Duma members participated in the work. The most aristocratic boyars were included in the Duma.

The composition of the Senate was limited to 9 members, they were appointed by the king. At the same time, not a noble, aristocratic origin was taken into account, but exclusively the business qualities of the applicants and their personal devotion to Peter. A member of the Senate was an official and could lose his rank at any time. The Senate was in charge of justice, treasury, trade, taxes. He supervised the work of colleges and governors. Decision-making by the Senate was carried out collegially, by a majority of votes. Under the Senate, an office was immediately created with numerous departments-offices, which testified to the strengthening of bureaucratic methods of management.

Simultaneously with the organization of the Senate, the institution of fiscals was introduced in the country (fiscal - informer, earpiece, spy). Their duty was to secretly supervise the activities of government agencies.

Fiscals controlled government spending and revenues, the work of the judiciary. They were required to report all cases of violation of laws by government officials. Crime prevention was not part of their job. Fiscals enjoyed a far from flattering reputation in all segments of the population.

In 1717-1722. collegiums replaced the old orders. Unlike orders, they established a collective, joint principle for considering and resolving all issues.

Each collegium consisted of a presence and an office. The presence included the president of the board, the vice president, 4 advisers and 4 assessors. The office did not resolve any issues. Scribes worked there, they rewrote documents. Each collegium was in charge of a certain branch of government throughout the country. The collegiate system was based on a high degree of centralization of management.

At first, 9 collegiums were created. The military collegium, headed by A.D. Menshikov, was in charge of all issues related to the army: its formation, training, supply, uniforms, weapons, etc.

The Admiralty Board headed by F.M. Apraksin in the same way solved all issues related to the fleet. The Collegium of Foreign Affairs replaced the Posolsky Prikaz. Financial issues were decided by 3 boards: the board of chambers of the state office board and the revision board. The Collegium of Commerce was in charge of trade, light industry - the Manufactory Collegium, and mining and metallurgical industry - the Berg Collegium. Later, 3 more colleges were created: the patrimonial, the Synod (Spiritual College) and the College of Justice. Peter I introduced the passport system and police protection.

As a result of Peter's administrative transformations in Russia, the formation of an absolute monarchy was completed. The king got the opportunity to unlimitedly and uncontrollably govern the country with the help of officials completely dependent on him. The most important features of absolutism include the bureaucratization of the administrative apparatus and its centralization.

Church reform

Peter I abolished the patriarchate (established in 1589 by B. Godunov) and completely subordinated the church to the state. The patriarch in Russia had exceptionally great authority and was largely independent of the tsar. Peter I after the death of Patriarch Andrian in 1700 did not allow the election of a successor to him. The monarch-emperor was declared the head of the church, and the management of church affairs was entrusted to officials who sat in the Theological College (Synod). The complete dependence of the Synod on the state was expressed not only in the salaries received, but also in the oath taken by its members. Police functions were also assigned to the clergy: they were allowed to neglect the secret confession and report to the authorities about acts plotted against them. All believers were required to go to confession twice a year. Those who did not do this voluntarily were forced to do so: they sent policemen and opened a criminal case.

Peter's church reform meant the enslavement of the Russian Orthodox Church by the autocracy. It was a crude submission to the spiritual authority of the secular. As a result of the church reform, the spiritual guidelines of the nation were largely lost. In the nineteenth century a type of “searching” intellectual appeared who lost the faith of his fathers and tried to quench his spiritual thirst from foreign sources (Freemasonry, Kantianism, etc.)

Classes and estates under Peter I

Peter not only kept the fortress system intact, but also significantly strengthened it. The main classes of society were consolidated through the merger of individual small estate groups. The peasantry was divided into 2 groups - serfs and state. Serfs were counted among the serfs. The government obliged the state peasants to pay 40 kopecks in excess of the poll tax to the treasury. dues. This meant the inclusion of state peasants in the sphere of feudal exploitation.

Peter I replaced the household tax with a poll tax, which made it possible to significantly increase taxes. The response of the peasants to such a policy of parya was an exodus and uprisings, in particular Bulavinsky and Astrakhan.

Posad people were divided into merchants and artisans. Merchants were divided into guilds, artisans were united in workshops. Under Peter I, the Chief and city magistrates were established - state institutions, through which merchants and artisans were subordinate to the state. The nobility underwent the most changes. All groups of service people were united in this class: boyars, roundabouts, duma nobles, duma clerks, stewards, solicitors, Moscow nobles, elected nobles, nobles and boyar children. By decree of 1714. about the same inheritance, the estates were equated with estates. The nobles were obliged from a young age to enter the military service and serve for life. Peter obliged the nobles to study, illiterate nobles were forbidden to marry, the educational institutions created by Peter resembled barracks, and the students were recruits.

The contingent of students was often recruited forcibly. Often, young nobles were sent to study abroad, often to the cries of their parents. But as a reward for good service, the nobles received land with peasants, new titles (barons and counts), orders and medals, and power.

Peter abolished the former ranks, which depended to a large extent on the origin of service people. Published by him in 1722. The "Table of Ranks" divided the entire mass of civil servants into 14 ranks, i.e. ranks, according to which each soldier or civil official was supposed to move. Now, not aristocratic origin, but personal abilities, education and practical skills of a person were put in the first place. The “Table of Ranks” opened up access for representatives of the petty and middle nobility to the highest positions in the state, provided an opportunity to receive noble ranks to people from other classes: with the receipt of the 8th rank in the service, they became hereditary nobles. As a result, by the end of the Northern War, every fifth officer of the Peter's army was not a nobleman by birth.

The result of Peter's social policy was the strengthening of the influence of the state, which roughly subjugated the natural social and class processes.

Evaluation of the personality and activities of Peter.

Both the personality and the activity of Peter were met both by his contemporaries and by his descendants with contradictory and directly opposite assessments. Some of his contemporaries, who knew Peter closely and worked with him, praised him to the skies, calling him an "earthly god." Others, who did not know Peter personally, but felt the hardships he placed on the people, considered him a “world-eater” or an impostor, with whom the Germans replaced the real king during his travels abroad. The schismatics considered Peter the Antichrist.

In the 19th century "Westerners" sang enthusiastic praises to Peter, and "Slavophiles" blamed him for distorting Russian original principles and damaging the national character of Holy Rus'. According to the “Slavophile” K.S. Aksakov, Russia under Peter I strangely and forcibly leaves its native road and adjoins the western one. And the historian M.S. Solovyov, a "Westernizer", argued that Peter's transformations were natural and naturally followed from the historical development of Russia. Who is right?

Indeed, Peter I devoted his entire life to serving the state and the Russian people. He served as a soldier and a general, a sailor and an admiral, a ship's carpenter and a legislator. He led the development of industry, entering into the organizational and technical details of production. Serving himself, Peter demanded conscientious and diligent service to the Russian state from all his subordinates.

In public administration, he sought to introduce and strengthen the principle of legality. Peter introduced the form of an oath "of allegiance to the sovereign and the entire state" and constantly inspired his officials with the need to comply with the laws and take care of the interests of the state. He severely punished for bribes, embezzlement and abuse of office, up to the death penalty of such high officials as the Siberian governor Prince Gagarin and chief fiscal Nesterov.

Peter experienced many failures and disappointments, great were the sacrifices that he demanded from his people, but great were his achievements. He opened sea routes for Russia to communicate with other peoples and introduced her to the number of European countries. By creating a first-class army and navy, he made Russia a great power. He created a far from perfect, but still more useful apparatus of state administration than was the outdated, complex and intricate system of orders. By creating a mining and metallurgical industry, he turned Russia into an economically independent country. He laid the foundations of secular Russian culture, which bore fruit in the 19th century.

But Peter's transformations also had negative sides. The Europeanization he carried out was violent, hasty, poorly thought out, and therefore largely superficial. It tore off the nobility and bureaucracy from the masses, destroyed the religious, moral and social unity of the people that existed in pre-Petrine Rus'. The cumbersome bureaucratic apparatus created by Peter contributed to the consolidation and conservation of feudal-serf relations. The price of Peter's reforms was exorbitantly high: in carrying out them, the tsar did not consider either the sacrifices offered on the altar of the fatherland, or national traditions, or the memory of ancestors. At the cost of ruining the country, Russia was elevated to the rank of a European power.

Peter the Great is one of the most odious figures in Russian history. Having ascended the throne at a young age, he most severely changed the entire further course of the historical significance of the Russian state. Some historians call him a "great reformer", others call him a revolutionary.

The king, who later became emperor, is, without a doubt, a talented and outstanding person. He was a typical choleric, unrestrained and rude, completely subjugated to power. All the transformations of Peter the 1st were forcibly and cruelly planted throughout the entire territory of the Russian State, most of them were never completed.

The reforms, or the so-called transformations of Peter the Great, include an impressive list, these are:

• military;
• economic;
• church;
• political;
• administrative;
• cultural;
• social.

To put them into practice, the Russian Empire laid on the altar one third of its population. But let's not be so categorical, let's try to look deeper.

The transformations of Peter the Great in the military reform lie in the fact that he managed to create a combat-ready, well-armed army, able to successfully fight both external and internal enemies. He is also the initiator of the creation of the Russian fleet, although historians state the fact that most of the ships safely rotted in the shipyards, and the guns did not always hit the target.

Economic transformations of Peter the Great

Huge funds and manpower were required to conduct the Northern War, so manufactories, steel and copper smelters, and blast-furnace enterprises began to be intensively built. The unrestrained transformations of Peter the Great also began, which significantly influenced the Russian economy, this is, first of all, the development of the Urals, since this made it possible to be less dependent on foreign imports. Such serious economic changes, of course, gave the country a boost in industrial production, but due to the use of forced labor and slave labor, these enterprises were unproductive. The economic reforms of Peter the Great made poor people poor and turned them into virtual slaves.

State administrative reforms

This process marks the complete subordination of the supreme power, which occurred after the reorganization of the administrative apparatus.

The reforms of Peter the Great hit the Russian Orthodox Church very painfully. Thanks to his reform activities, she was forced to completely come under the control of the state, which led to He abolished the patriarchy and replaced it with the Holy Synod, which lasted until 1917

The cultural transformations of Peter the Great manifested themselves in urban planning and architecture and were completely borrowed from Western examples. During the construction of St. Petersburg, only foreign architects took part, for whom the “a la russe” style was wild and not worthy of attention. Along with this, we must pay tribute to Peter for opening navigation, engineering and medical schools, in which noble children received a decent education. In 1719 the Kunstkamera opened its doors. Until that moment, Russian people did not know museums. The cultural transformations of Peter the Great contributed to the more powerful development of book printing. True, the translations of Western publications left much to be desired.

Under this ruler, Russia switched to a new chronology from Until this moment, our ancestors led him from the Creation of the world. The introduction of the civil alphabet and the creation of libraries were of great importance. In general, this period can be characterized as a time of incredible progress.

Public Administration Reform

Creation of the Near Office (or Council of Ministers) in 1699. It was transformed in 1711 into the Governing Senate. Establishment of 12 collegiums with a specific scope of activity and authority.

The system of state administration has become more perfect. The activities of most state bodies became regulated, the collegiums had a clearly defined area of ​​activity. Supervisory bodies were created.

Regional (provincial) reform

1708-1715 and 1719-1720.

At the first stage of the reform, Peter 1 divided Russia into 8 provinces: Moscow, Kyiv, Kazan, Ingermandland (later St. Petersburg), Arkhangelsk, Smolensk, Azov, Siberia. They were ruled by governors who were in charge of the troops located on the territory of the province, and also possessed full administrative and judicial power. At the second stage of the reform, the provinces were divided into 50 provinces ruled by governors, and those were divided into districts led by zemstvo commissars. The governors were stripped of their administrative power and were in charge of judicial and military matters.

There was a centralization of power. Local governments have almost completely lost influence.

Judicial reform

1697, 1719, 1722

Peter 1 formed new judicial bodies: the Senate, the Justic College, the Hofgerichts, and the lower courts. Judicial functions were also performed by all colleagues, except for Foreign. The judges were separated from the administration. The court of kissers (an analogue of the jury trial) was canceled, the principle of the inviolability of an unconvicted person was lost.

A large number of judicial bodies and persons who carried out judicial activities (the emperor himself, governors, governors, etc.) brought confusion and confusion to the proceedings, the introduction of the possibility of "knocking out" testimony under torture created grounds for abuse and bias. At the same time, the adversarial nature of the process was established and the need for the verdict to be based on specific articles of the law corresponding to the case under consideration.

Military reforms

The introduction of recruitment, the creation of the navy, the establishment of the Military Collegium, which was in charge of all military affairs. Introduction with the help of the "Table of Ranks" of military ranks, uniform for all of Russia. Creation of military-industrial enterprises, as well as military educational institutions. Introduction of army discipline and military regulations.

With his reforms, Peter 1 created a formidable regular army, numbering up to 212 thousand people by 1725, and a strong navy. Subdivisions were created in the army: regiments, brigades and divisions, in the navy - squadrons. Many military victories were won. These reforms (although ambiguously assessed by different historians) created a springboard for the further success of Russian weapons.

Church reform

1700-1701; 1721

After the death of Patriarch Adrian in 1700, the institution of the patriarchate was actually liquidated. In 1701, the management of church and monastery lands was reformed. Peter 1 restored the Monastic order, which controlled church revenues and the trial of the monastery peasants. In 1721, the Spiritual Regulations were adopted, which actually deprived the church of independence. To replace the patriarchate, the Holy Synod was created, whose members were subordinate to Peter 1, by whom they were appointed. Church property was often taken away and spent on the needs of the emperor.

The church reforms of Peter 1 led to the almost complete subordination of the clergy to secular power. In addition to the elimination of the patriarchate, many bishops and ordinary clergy were persecuted. The church could no longer pursue an independent spiritual policy and partly lost its authority in society.

Financial reforms

Almost the entire reign of Peter 1

The introduction of many new (including indirect) taxes, the monopolization of the sale of tar, alcohol, salt and other goods. Damage (reduction in weight) of the coin. Kopeck Stano Regional Reform

In 1708-1715, a regional reform was carried out in order to strengthen the vertical of power in the field and better provide the army with supplies and recruits. In 1708, the country was divided into 8 provinces headed by governors endowed with full judicial and administrative power: Moscow, Ingermandland (later St. Petersburg), Kiev, Smolensk, Azov, Kazan, Arkhangelsk and Siberia. The Moscow province gave more than a third of the proceeds to the treasury, followed by the Kazan province.

The governors were also in charge of the troops located on the territory of the province. In 1710, new administrative units appeared - shares, uniting 5536 households. The first regional reform did not solve the set tasks, but only significantly increased the number of civil servants and the cost of their maintenance.

In 1719-1720, the second regional reform was carried out, which eliminated the shares. The provinces began to be divided into 50 provinces headed by governors, and the provinces into districts headed by zemstvo commissars appointed by the Chamber Collegium. Only military and judicial matters remained under the jurisdiction of the governor.

Judicial reform

Under Peter, the judicial system underwent radical changes. The functions of the Supreme Court were given to the Senate and the College of Justice. Below them were: provinces - hofgerichts or court courts of appeal in large cities, and provincial collegiate lower courts. The provincial courts conducted civil and criminal cases of all categories of peasants except for the monastic ones, as well as townspeople not included in the settlement. Since 1721, the magistrate conducted the court cases of the townspeople included in the settlement. In other cases, the so-called one-man court acted (cases were decided solely by a zemstvo or city judge). However, in 1722 the lower courts were replaced by provincial courts headed by the voivode

Church reform

One of the transformations of Peter I was the reform of church administration he carried out, aimed at eliminating church jurisdiction autonomous from the state and subordinating the Russian church hierarchy to the Emperor. In 1700, after the death of Patriarch Adrian, instead of convening a council to elect a new patriarch, Peter I temporarily appointed Metropolitan Stefan Yavorsky of Ryazan as the head of the clergy, who received the new title of Custodian of the Patriarchal Throne or "Exarch". including the peasants belonging to them (approximately 795 thousand), the Monastic order was restored, headed by I. A. Musin-Pushkin, who again became in charge of the court of the monastic peasants and controlled income from church and monastic land holdings. In 1701, a series of decrees was issued to reform the management of church and monastery possessions and the organization of monastic life; the most important were the decrees of January 24 and 31, 1701.

In 1721, Peter approved the Spiritual Regulations, the drafting of which was entrusted to the Pskov bishop, Feofan Prokopovich, an approximate tsar, Little Russian. As a result, a radical reform of the church took place, which eliminated the autonomy of the clergy and completely subordinated it to the state. In Russia, the patriarchate was abolished and the Spiritual College was established, soon renamed the Holy Synod, which was recognized by the Eastern patriarchs as equal in honor to the patriarch. All members of the Synod were appointed by the Emperor and took an oath of allegiance to him upon taking office. Wartime stimulated the removal of valuables from the monastic vaults. Peter did not go for the complete secularization of church and monastery possessions, which was carried out much later, at the beginning of his reign

Reforms of the army and navy

Army reform: in particular, the introduction of regiments of a new order, reformed according to a foreign model, was begun long before Peter I, even under Alexei I. However, the combat effectiveness of this army was low. Reforming the army and creating a fleet became necessary conditions for victory in the Northern War of 1700-1721 years.

We present to your attention a fragment of the chapter "Peter's historical transformation of Russia" from the monograph "Russian history. Teacher's textbook ».

The traditional model of the Muscovite kingdom, which Peter I inherited from his predecessors, was practically demolished under the pressure of the Petrine modernization process, leaving, perhaps, only its former basic basis - the feudal economic model. Peter I, however, thoroughly strengthened it and, paradoxically, combined it with elements of bourgeois relations. The contradictions that arose in the course of this process significantly reduced state stability, increasing the danger of a major civil war. The charismatic personality of Peter I, his passionate character as an absolute monarch, were combined with harsh, auto-subjective methods of resolving these contradictions.

Peter's reforms affected almost all spheres of life of the state and society: the economic system, the management system, social relations, and culture. Peter I, going on a radical break with the traditions of the past (with the Russian spiritual Orthodox cosmos), unambiguously determined for Russia the direction of its development along the path of Westernization, choosing as an object to follow the countries of the European Protestant circle, without at all bothering himself with the search for a new spiritual support their revolutionary transformations. His ideological paradigm was, in fact, a scion from Western European ideas of natural law (Hugo Grotius, Hobbes, Puffendorf).

But the main thing that Peter I did was to absolutize state power, freeing it from all religious and moral norms.

The goal of such a state is to achieve the “general good” on earth. Politicized by the authorities, this idea, which appeared in the ideology of Russian absolutism, was borrowed by Peter I from Lutheranism. The church, as part of the state ideological apparatus, must also obey this. In fact, this was an attempt to introduce in Russia the Protestant system of an absolute state, which was born of a historical process that was completely opposite to Russian history.

Western European history indicates the origins of this process. The dominant feature of the history of Western Europe was the constant rivalry between secular and spiritual authorities, popes and secular sovereigns for political leadership on the continent. This process gave rise to the Reformation and its offspring - Protestantism with many sects, from which, in fact, the political pluralism of Western European parliamentarism grew. At the head of the reform movements were secular monarchs within their state framework, who, naturally, subordinated the church to the state. Secular power became absolute, acquiring a huge bureaucratic apparatus. Peter I was an ardent admirer of such a mechanism of power. Thus, in the Russian history of power relations with Peter I, a sharp break occurred.

At one time, Joseph Volotsky included the tsar himself in the system of God's tax, in which “the tsar is under the law and only within the limits of the Law of God and commandments does he have his power. And it is not at all fitting to obey an unjust or “obstinate” king.” And then this church hierarch concluded: "A wicked king who does not care about his flock is not a king, but a tormentor."

On the contrary, Western absolutism, which was born in the struggle against the church, denies it any right to be the "conscience" of the state, compresses it into the narrow framework of "serving the spiritual." Moreover, absolutism itself determines these needs and how to serve them. Georgy Florovsky called Peter I the creator of the "police state", in which the role of the individual is narrowed down to a "cog" in the state machine, only necessary to meet "political and technical tasks and goals." The entire population of the Russian state, without exception, was attracted by Peter I to the state "tax". “The novelty of the Petrine reform, - G. Florovsky believes, - is not in Westernism, but in secularization. It was in this that Peter's reform was not only a turn, but also a coup, ”at the same time, “the well-being and self-determination of power is changing.

State power asserts itself in its self-pressure, asserts its sovereign self-sufficiency.

It is no coincidence that Nikolai Berdyaev compared Peter I with Lenin, the Petrine coup with the Bolshevik coup: “The same rudeness, violence, the imposition of known principles on the people from above, the same discontinuity in organic development, the denial of traditions, the same statism, the hypertrophy of the state, the same creation of a privileged bureaucratic layer, the same centralism, the same sharply and radically change the type of civilization.

Characteristic in this regard is the church reform of Peter I. In 1700. after the death of Patriarch Adrian, the election of a new patriarch was banned (Metropolitan Stefan Yavorsky became the patriarchal locum tenens), and in 1721. the patriarchate was abolished. Synodal reform of 1721 became a decisive step towards the victory of the state over the church. The patriarchate with local councils was liquidated.

Instead, the Holy Synod was created, established on the principle of colleges, membership in which was not permanent (the members of the Synod were appointed and dismissed by the emperor); to oversee the decisions of the Synod, the position of chief prosecutor from secular persons was introduced (as a rule, these were originally guards officers); although the Synod was officially recognized as equal to the patriarch (which was confirmed by all the ecumenical patriarchs), in reality it acted as an instrument for the imperial management of church affairs (as Senate-secular); The Synod did not have its own powers; the emperor entrusted the case for consideration. The members of the Synod swore an oath to the emperor, who was considered the supreme judge. This formula was abolished only in 1901. The "Spiritual Regulations" issued by Peter I explained the political and ideological reasons for the church reform.

Following discussions about the advantages of “conciliar spiritual government” over the power of a “single highest shepherd,” it was unequivocally said that the power of such a “pastor” is fraught with autocratic monarchs, as has happened more than once in history, starting from Justinian times in the Byzantine Empire and ending with the most recent “and we have former swings”, very similar to the theocratic claims of the popes. The author of the “Spiritual Regulations”, Archbishop F. Prokopovich, directly stated in the Regulations that the presence of a “spiritual ruler” along with the king gives the latter reason to “think” that he “is a second sovereign, equal to the autocrat”, even “greater”. But such an opinion is doubly dangerous: firstly, “insidious” people, including spiritual ones, can take advantage of it, and, secondly, it can allegedly give rise to hope among the people for “help to their rebellions” from a spiritual rank.

Measures aimed at destroying the canonical church hierarchy fit well into this scheme. Elimination of representatives of the church from participating in state affairs, including the exclusion of the patriarch from the Tsar's Duma; termination of the rights of "mourning" the patriarch, that is, the right to intercede for the disgraced and offended; interference of the tsar in the affairs of the patriarch (primarily in church appointments), undermining the authority of the church (creating “the most joking, extravagant and drunken cathedral”) and depriving it of part of its property.

Nevertheless, the period of the reign of Peter I became a time of fateful geopolitical territorial increments for Russia.

Finally, after many decades of unsuccessful wars for access to the Baltic coast, Russia, thanks to the victorious outcome of the Northern War (military operations against Sweden lasted 21 years), received a coveted access to the Baltic Sea, including the Baltic states. The geopolitical influence of Russia in the world after the victory in the Northern War increased dramatically. Russia becomes an empire with the status of a world power.

Russia in the time of Peter the Great built a new model for organizing its armed forces. The main organizational innovation was the creation of a regular army and navy. The economic and infrastructural arrangement of the Russian territory determined, as mentioned above, the preservation and strengthening of the fortress system. A powerful factor in this process was the total state intervention in all spheres of society, which led to increased centralization of power and bureaucratization of the entire management system.

State transformations of the system of government of the Russian state began even before the Northern War. Back in 1694. the award to the Duma ranks ceased, and in 1699. The Near Office was created. With the strengthening of absolutism, the Boyar Duma, as a narrow class body, lost its significance. Information about its meetings is interrupted in 1704. At first, the functions of the Duma began to be performed by the Council of Ministers - the council of heads of the most important government departments. And in 1711. The Council was replaced by the Senate, under which the positions of Chief Fiscal and Fiscals were introduced in order to covertly oversee the activities of the state apparatus. As the supreme governing body, the Senate concentrated in its hands the judicial, administrative, legislative and advisory functions, as well as the conduct of the affairs of collegiums and provinces.

The reform of state bodies was based on the principles of cameralism - the doctrine of bureaucratic management, which assumed the functionality and collegiality of management, a clear regulation of the duties of officials and specialization of clerical work, uniformity of staff and salaries. In 1717-1721. there was a gradual replacement of 44 orders by 11 colleges headed by presidents. In 1718 The "Register of collegiums" was adopted, which determined their staffing tables. Created in 1720, they acted as collegiums. Chief magistrate and educated in 1721. Holy Synod. The order of consideration of cases in the colleges was developed by the General Regulations of the Collegia of 1720, according to which each collegium consisted of a president, vice president, four to five councilors and four assessors. Under the Senate, the position of Prosecutor General (P.I. Yaguzhinsky) was introduced, and in the boards - the positions of prosecutors for public supervision of the activities of the latter.

Regional reform of 1708-1710. formed the institute of governors-general and governors.

8 provinces were created and the governors replaced the abolished regional orders. By 1719 the structure of the regional administration has changed. Instead of the province, the main unit of administrative control was the province (50 provinces headed by governors). The provinces were preserved, but only the administration of the provincial city and the command of the troops remained in the power of the governor, and on other issues the governors communicated directly with the collegiums and the Senate.

Carried out in 1699-1700. the reform of city government led to the introduction of the posts of burgomasters, and in Moscow - to the creation of the Town Hall (Burmister Chamber), which performed the functions of the treasury. City self-government, not subject to governors in the field and orders in the center, was paid with a double salary fee (locally Zemstvo huts). Due to the resistance of cities to double taxation, the government abandoned this measure, but declared the reform mandatory in order to collect taxes without cost to the center. During the second urban reform, city magistrates were created.

A special place in the state apparatus was occupied by the Preobrazhensky Prikaz, created at the end of the 17th century. to manage the economic affairs of the royal residence and received the rights of political investigation (lasted until 1729). In 1717 Mayorsky search offices were formed, whose members, according to the Decree of 1721. changed monthly and submitted personally to the king. On the basis of these bodies in the course of the investigation into the case of Tsarevich Alexei in I7I8g. The Secret Chancellery was established, which, under Catherine II, passed the baton to the Secret Expedition of the Senate.

In the end, it is necessary to emphasize the fact that the entire new system of the state apparatus created by Peter I was completely copied by him from Swedish and Prussian models. It couldn't be otherwise. On the one hand, in the conditions of a long and difficult war, the tsar had no choice but to use the ready-made Western European model of state administration, which, in his opinion, worked ideally in the countries of the European Protestant area, and which, as it seemed to him, being introduced into a completely different the mental space of Russia, made it possible to give a worthy "response" to the "challenge" of Europe (to win the Northern War). On the other hand, the mentality of Peter I himself was initially, due to a combination of various circumstances, from his very childhood focused on adherence to Western European values ​​​​and ignoring Russian spiritual Orthodox traditions, to which his predecessors, his father Alexei Mikhailovich and his brother Fyodor Alekseevich, were so faithful.

In this regard, it is difficult to agree that the reforms of Peter the Great were the only possible path for the historical movement of the country and the antithesis of backwardness.

One of the considerations is that the state apparatus created by the emperor, at least, needed a serious reconstruction, testified to the extent of corruption, which corroded the body of state administration like rust. Indeed, corruption among the highest ranks reached such proportions that Peter I was forced to take extreme measures. The vice-governor of St. Petersburg Ya.N. .Volkonsky (manager of the Tula Arms Plant) and V.A. Apukhtin (Manager of the Mint). Incriminating materials were collected against General-Admiral F.M. Apraksin, Prince Ya.P. Dolgorukov, Commissioner for St. Petersburg buildings U.A. Sinyavin. A move was also made to the case of A.D. Menshikov, but he was forgiven thanks to the intercession of Ekaterina Alekseevna.

Thus, the administrative model developed under Peter I in the direction of its unification. With regard to different strata of the Russian population, this meant strict regulation, for example, the elimination of the Streltsy and Cossack freemen, the regulation of yasak relations with small ethnic groups of the Russian outskirts, etc. This led to a sharp polarization of social strata. Against the backdrop of the final enslavement of the peasant population, huge construction and the long Northern War, demographic indicators are deteriorating. The traditional model of natural reproduction of the population, characterized in the past by a high degree of fertility, in the time of Peter the Great began to fail due to the large decline in the male population. However, the situation improved later. According to the 1st revision of 1722. the population of the Russian state totaled 14 million. According to the second revision in 1742. was already 16 million.

The main innovations in the model of public administration were the emergence of new structures of higher and local power. Another direction of institutional change was linked to ecclesiastical and judicial reforms. As a result of administrative reforms in Russia, the creation of an absolute monarchy was completed. It was under Peter I that a huge expensive state apparatus was created: in 1704. military spending accounted for 40%, palace spending - 4.4%, diplomatic - 2.1%, church - 0.8%, education, medicine and mail - 0.5%, and the cost of the state apparatus - 37.2%. It can be considered that at this time the period of "service bureaucracy" was replaced by the time of "noble bureaucracy". In 1721 Peter I took the title of emperor with the name "Great", and in 1722. The Decree on Succession was published, which substantiated the right of the reigning person to appoint an heir at his discretion. In 1724, the forty-year-old wife of Peter I Catherine was officially awarded the crown.