Domestic policy of Alexander 1 2. Alexander I, domestic and foreign policy

This war began at the initiative of Iran. His army numbered 140,000 cavalry and 60,000 infantry, but it was poorly armed and equipped. The Russian Caucasian army was initially led by General I.V. Gudovich. In a short time, his troops managed to conquer the Ganja, Sheki, Karabakh, Shirvan, Quba and Baku khanates. However, after the unsuccessful assault on the city of Erivan (Yerevan) in 1808, General A.P. Tormasov was appointed commander. He won several more victories.

In 1810. Persians and Turks made an alliance against Russia, which, however, did not help them much. In 1812. Russian troops of General P. S. Kotlyarevsky, consisting of 2 thousand people, attacked the 10 thousandth Persian army led by Crown Prince Abbas Mirza and put it to flight, after which they occupied Arkevan and Lankaran. October 24, 1813. was signed Gulistan peace treaty. The Shah of Iran recognized the territories of Georgia, Dagestan, Shirvan, Mingrelia, Imeretia, Abkhazia and Guria for Russia. He was forced to conclude a military alliance with Russia and grant her the right to free navigation in the Caspian. The result of the war was a serious expansion and strengthening of the southern borders of Russia.

Rupture of the Russian-French alliance.

Alexander unsuccessfully demanded that Napoleon refuse to support the intentions of the Poles to annex the lands of Lithuania, Belarus and Ukraine to the Duchy of Warsaw. Finally in February 1811 Napoleon dealt another blow to his " dear ally"- annexed the Duchy of Oldenburg in Germany to France, the crown prince of which was married to Alexander's sister Catherine. In April 1811, the Franco-Russian alliance was broken. Both countries began intensive preparations for an inevitable war.

Patriotic War of 1812 (briefly)

The cause of the war was the violation by Russia and France of the terms of the Tilsit Treaty. Russia actually abandoned the blockade of England, accepting ships with English goods under neutral flags in its ports. France annexed the Duchy of Oldenburg, and Napoleon considered Alexander's demand for the withdrawal of French troops from Prussia and the Duchy of Warsaw insulting. A military clash between the two great powers was becoming inevitable.

June 12, 1812. Napoleon at the head of a 600,000-strong army, crossing the river. Neman, invaded Russia. With an army of about 240 thousand people, the Russian troops were forced to retreat before the French armada. On August 3, the 1st and 2nd Russian armies joined forces near Smolensk, and a battle was fought. Napoleon failed to win a complete victory. In August, M.I. was appointed commander-in-chief. Kutuzov. Kutuzov decided to give battle near the village of Borodino. A good position was chosen for the troops. The right flank was defended by the Koloch River, the left was defended by earthen fortifications - flushes, they were defended by the troops of P.I.Bagration. In the center stood the troops of General N.N. Raevsky and artillery. Their positions were closed by Shevardinsky redoubt.

Napoleon intended to break through the Russian formation from the left flank, and then direct all efforts to the center and press Kutuzov's army to the river. He directed the fire of 400 guns at Bagration's flashes. The French launched 8 attacks, which began at 5 o'clock in the morning, suffering huge losses in them. Only by 4 o'clock in the afternoon did the French manage to advance in the center, temporarily capturing Raevsky's batteries. In the midst of the battle, a desperate raid behind French lines was made by the lancers of the 1st Cavalry Corps F.P. Uvarova and the Cossacks of Ataman M.I. Platov. This held back the attacking impulse of the French.

The battle ended late in the evening. The troops suffered huge losses: the French - 58 thousand people, the Russians - 44 thousand.

September 1, 1812. At a meeting in Fili, Kutuzov decides to leave Moscow. The retreat was necessary for the preservation of the army and the further struggle for the independence of the Fatherland.

Napoleon entered Moscow on September 2 and stayed there until October 7, 1812, awaiting peace proposals. During this time, most of the city was destroyed by fires. Bonaparte's attempts to make peace with Alexander I were unsuccessful.

Leaving Moscow in October, Napoleon tried to go to Kaluga and spend the winter in a province not devastated by the war. On October 12, near Maloyaroslavets, Napoleon's army was defeated and began to retreat along the devastated Smolensk road, driven by frost and hunger. Pursuing the retreating French, the Russian troops destroyed their formations in parts. The final defeat of Napoleon's army took place in the battle near the river. Berezina November 14-16. Only 30 thousand French soldiers were able to leave Russia. On December 25, Alexander I issued a manifesto on the victorious end of Patriotic War.

Nicholas I

Emperor Nicholas 1 was born on June 25 (July 6), 1796. He was the third son of Paul 1 and Maria Feodorovna. He received a good education, but did not recognize the humanities. He was versed in the art of war and fortification. He was good at engineering. However, despite this, the king was not loved in the army. Cruel corporal punishment and coldness led to the fact that the nickname of Nicholas 1, Nikolai Palkin, was fixed among the soldiers.

Alexandra Fedorovna- wife of Nicholas 1, possessing amazing beauty, - became the mother of the future Emperor Alexander 2.

Nicholas 1 ascended the throne after the death of his elder brother Alexander 1. Constantine, the second pretender to the throne, renounced his rights during the life of his elder brother. Nicholas 1 did not know about this and at first swore allegiance to Constantine. This short period would later be called the Interregnum. Although the manifesto on the accession to the throne of Nicholas 1 was issued on December 13 (25), 1825, legally the reign of Nicholas 1 began on November 19 (December 1). And the very first day was overshadowed by the Decembrist uprising on Senate Square, which was suppressed, and the leaders were executed in 1826. But Tsar Nicholas 1 saw the need to reform the social system. He decided to give the country clear laws, while relying on bureaucracy, since trust in the nobility was undermined.

Domestic politics Nicholas 1 was distinguished by extreme conservatism. The slightest manifestations of free thought were suppressed. He defended autocracy with all his might. The secret office under the leadership of Benckendorff was engaged in political investigation.

The reforms of Nicholas 1 were limited. Legislation has been streamlined. Under the leadership of Speransky, the publication of the Complete Collection of Laws of the Russian Empire began. Kiselev carried out a reform of the management of state peasants. Peasants were allotted land when they moved to uninhabited areas, first-aid posts were built in the villages, and innovations in agricultural technology were introduced. In 1839 - 1843. a financial reform was also carried out, which established the ratio between the silver ruble and banknotes. But the question of serfdom remained unresolved.

The foreign policy of Nicholas 1 pursued the same goals as the domestic policy. During the reign of Nicholas 1, Russia fought the revolution not only within the country, but also outside it.

Nicholas 1 died on March 2 (February 18), 1855 in St. Petersburg, and his son, Alexander 2, ascended the throne.

Brief biography of Alexander 2

The domestic policy of Alexander 2 was strikingly different from the policy of Nicholas 1 and was marked by many reforms. The most important of them was the peasant reform of Alexander 2, according to which in 1861, on February 19, serfdom was abolished. This reform created an urgent need to further change many Russian institutions and entailed the implementation of Alexander 2 bourgeois reforms.

In 1864. Zemstvo reform was carried out by decree of Alexander II. Its goal was to create a system of local self-government, for which the institute of the county zemstvo was established.

In 1870. the city reform was carried out, which had a positive effect on the development of industry and cities. City dumas and councils were established, which were representative bodies of power.

The judicial reform of Alexander 2, carried out in 1864, was marked by the introduction of European legal norms, but some features of the previously existing judicial system were retained, for example, a special court for officials.

The military reform of Alexander 2. Its result is universal military service, as well as army organization close to European standards.

In the course of the financial reform of Alexander II, the State Bank was created, and official accounting was born.

The foreign policy of Alexander 2 was very successful. During his reign, Russia regained its military power, which had been shaken under Nicholas 1.

The great reforms of Alexander II were interrupted by his death. March 1, 1881 On that day, Tsar Alexander II intended to sign Loris-Melikov's large-scale economic and administrative reform project. The assassination attempt on Alexander 2, committed by the People's Will Grinevitsky, led to his severe injury and the death of the emperor.

Alexander 3 - the policy of counter-reforms (briefly)

April 29, 1881 - Manifesto, in which the emperor declared his will to preserve the foundations of autocracy and thereby eliminated the hopes of the democrats to transform the regime into a constitutional monarchy.

Alexander III replaced liberal figures in the government with hardliners. The concept of counter-reforms was developed by its main ideologist KN Pobedonostsev.

To strengthen the autocratic system, the system of zemstvo self-government was subjected to changes. In the hands of the zemstvo chiefs, the judicial and administrative powers were combined. They had unlimited power over the peasants.

Published in 1890 The "Regulations on Zemstvo Institutions" strengthened the role of the nobility in Zemstvo institutions and the administration's control over them. The representation of landowners in zemstvos increased significantly by introducing a high property qualification.

In 1881. published "Regulations on measures for conservation state security and public peace”, which granted numerous repressive rights to the local administration (declare a state of emergency, deport without trial, bring to court martial, close educational institutions). This law was used until the reforms of 1917 and became a tool for fighting the revolutionary and liberal movement.

In 1892. A new “City regulation” was issued, which infringed on the independence of city governments. The government included them in common system government agencies, thereby putting under control.

Alexander 3 by law of 1893 forbade the sale and pledge of peasant lands, nullifying all the successes of previous years.

In 1884. Alexander undertook a university counter-reform, the purpose of which was to educate an intelligentsia obedient to the authorities. The new university charter severely limited the autonomy of universities, placing them under the control of trustees.

Under Alexander 3, the development of factory legislation began, which restrained the initiative of the owners of the enterprise and excluded the possibility of workers fighting for their rights.

The results of the counter-reforms of Alexander 3 are contradictory: the country managed to achieve an industrial boom, refrain from participating in wars, but at the same time social unrest and tension intensified.

Emperor Nicholas 2 (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov)

Nicholas 2 (May 18, 1868 - July 17, 1918) - the last Russian emperor, son of Alexander III.

May 26, 1896. The coronation of Nicholas II and his wife took place. On holidays, a terrible event takes place, called "Khodynki", as a result of which 1282 people died in a stampede.

During the reign of Nicholas 2, Russia experienced a rapid economic recovery. The agricultural sector is strengthening - the country becomes the main exporter of agricultural products in Europe, a stable gold currency is introduced. The industry was actively developing: cities grew, enterprises and railways were built. Nicholas 2 was a reformer, he introduced a standardized day for workers, provided them with insurance, and carried out reforms in the army and navy. The emperor supported the development of culture and science in Russia.

But, despite significant improvements in the country, there were popular unrest. In January 1905, the first Russian revolution took place, the impetus for which was Bloody Sunday. As a result, on October 17, 1905, a manifesto "On the improvement of the state order" was adopted. It talked about civil liberties. A parliament was created, which included the State Duma and the State Council. On June 3 (16), 1907, the “Third of June coup” took place, which changed the rules for elections to the Duma.

In 1914, the First World War began, as a result of which the situation inside the country worsened. Failures in battles undermined the authority of Tsar Nicholas 2. In February 1917, an uprising broke out in Petrograd, which reached grandiose proportions. On March 2, 1917, fearing mass bloodshed, Nicholas 2 signed the act of abdication.

On March 9, 1917, the provisional government arrested the entire Romanov family and sent them to Tsarskoye Selo. In August they were transported to Tobolsk, and in April 1918 to last place destination - Yekaterinburg. On the night of July 16-17, the Romanovs were taken to basement, read out the death sentence and executed the execution. After a thorough investigation, it was determined that none of the royal family failed to escape.

Russia in World War I

The First World War was a consequence of the contradictions that arose between the states of the Triple Alliance (Germany, Italy, Austria-Hungary) and the Entente (Russia, England, France). At the heart of these contradictions was the conflict between England and Germany, including economic, naval and colonial claims. There were disputes between France and Germany over the regions of Alsace and Lorraine taken from France, as well as Germany's claims to French colonies in Africa.

The reason for the start of the war was the murder in Sarajevo on June 25, 1914 of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife. August 19, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia.

Military operations in Europe were divided into two fronts: Western (in France and Belgium) and Eastern - Russian. Russian troops operated on the North-Western Front (East Prussia, the Baltic states, Poland) and the South-Western (Western Ukraine, Transcarpathia). Russia entered the war without having had time to complete the rearmament of its troops.

Successful operations were carried out against German troops near Warsaw and Lodz.

Autumn 1914. Turkey took the side of the Triple Alliance. The opening of the Caucasian front greatly complicated the position of Russia. The troops began to experience an acute need for ammunition, the situation was complicated by the helplessness of the allies.

In 1915. Germany, having concentrated the main forces on the Eastern Front, carried out a spring-summer offensive, as a result of which Russia lost all the gains of 1914 and partly the territories of Poland, the Baltic States, Ukraine and Western Belarus.

Germany transferred its main forces to the Western Front, where it began active fighting near the fortress of Verdun.

Two offensive attempts - in Galicia and Belarus ended in defeat. The Germans managed to capture the city of Riga and the Moonsund archipelago.

October 26, 1917. The 2nd All-Russian Congress of Soviets adopted the Decree on Peace, in which all the belligerents were asked to start peace negotiations. On November 14, Germany agreed to conduct negotiations, which began on November 20, 1917 in Brest-Litovsk.

A truce was concluded, Germany put forward demands, which the delegation headed by L. Trotsky rejected and left Brest-Litovsk. To this, the German troops responded with an offensive along the entire front. On February 18, the new Soviet delegation signed a peace treaty with Germany on even more difficult terms.

Russia lost Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, part of Belarus. The military presence of Soviet troops in the Baltic states, Finland, and Ukraine was excluded.

Russia undertook to demobilize the army, transfer the ships of the Black Sea Fleet to Germany, and pay a monetary contribution.

February Revolution of 1917 (briefly)

The difficult economic situation pushed the government to involve the bourgeoisie in managing the economy. Numerous committees and bourgeois unions appeared, the purpose of which was to provide assistance to the victims of the war. Military-industrial committees dealt with issues of defense, fuel, transport, food, etc.

At the beginning of 1917. the level of the strike movement has reached critical point. In January-February 1917, 676,000 workers went on strike, presenting mainly (95% of the strikes) political demands. The growth of the workers' and peasants' movement showed the "unwillingness of the lower classes to live in the old way."

February 14, 1917 A demonstration took place near the Taurida Palace demanding that the deputies of the State Duma create a "government of people's salvation". At the same time, the Bolsheviks, calling on the workers to a one-day general strike, led 90,000 people out onto the streets of Petrograd. The revolutionary explosion was facilitated by the introduction of bread cards, which caused its rise in price and panic among the population. On February 22, Nicholas II left for Mogilev, where his Headquarters was located. On February 23, the Vyborg and Petrograd sides went on strike, pogroms of bakeries and bakeries began in the city.

The success of the revolution began to depend on which side the Petrograd garrison would take. On the morning of February 26, the soldiers of the Volynsky, Preobrazhensky and Lithuanian regiments joined the rebels, they captured the armory and arsenal.

Political prisoners held in the Kresty prison were released. By the end of the day, most of the units of the Petrograd garrison went over to the side of the rebels.

The corps under the command of N.I. Ivanov, sent to suppress the demonstrators, was disarmed on the outskirts of the city. Without waiting for support and realizing the futility of resistance, on February 28, all other troops, led by the commander of the military district, General S.S. Khabalov, surrendered.

The rebels have established control over the most important objects in the city.

On the morning of February 27, members of the "working group" at the Central Military Industrial Committee announced the creation of a "Provisional Executive Committee of Soviets of Workers' Deputies" and called for the election of representatives to the Soviet.

Nicholas II from Headquarters tried to break through to Tsarskoye Selo. In a situation of a developing revolutionary crisis, the emperor was forced to sign a manifesto on abdication for himself and his young son Alexei in favor of his brother, Mikhail Alekseevich Romanov. However, Michael refused the throne, stating that the issue of power should be decided by the Constituent Assembly.

October Revolution of 1917 in Russia

The Great October Socialist Revolution took place on October 25-26, 1917. This is one of the greatest events in the history of Russia, as a result of which there were cardinal changes in the position of all classes of society.

The October Revolution began as a result of a number of good reasons:

• In 1914-1918. Russia was involved in the First World War, the situation at the front was not the best, there was no sensible leader, the army suffered heavy losses. In industry, the growth of military products prevailed over consumer products, which led to an increase in prices and caused discontent among the masses. The soldiers and peasants wanted peace, and the bourgeoisie, who profited from the supply of military equipment, longed for the continuation of hostilities.
• national conflicts.
• The intensity of the class struggle. The peasants, who for centuries dreamed of getting rid of the oppression of the landowners and kulaks and taking possession of the land, were ready for decisive action.
• The fall of the authority of the Provisional Government, which was unable to solve the problems of society.
• The Bolsheviks had a strong authoritative leader V.I. Lenin, who promised the people to solve all social problems.
• The prevalence of socialist ideas in society.

The Bolshevik Party achieved tremendous influence over the masses. In October, there were already 400,000 people on their side. On October 16, 1917, the Military Revolutionary Committee was created, which began preparations for an armed uprising. During the revolution, by October 25, 1917, all the key points in the city were occupied by the Bolsheviks, led by V.I. Lenin. They're taking over the Winter palace and arrest the provisional government.

On October 26, the Decree on Peace and Land was adopted. At the congress, a Soviet government was formed, called the "Soviet people's commissars", which included: Lenin himself (chairman), L.D. Trotsky (People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs), I.V. Stalin (People's Commissar for National Affairs). The “Declaration of the Rights of the Peoples of Russia” was introduced, which stated that all people have equal rights to freedom and development, there is no longer a nation of masters and a nation of oppressed.

As a result of the October Revolution, the Bolsheviks won, and the dictatorship of the proletariat was established. Class society was liquidated, the landlords' land was transferred into the hands of the peasants, and industrial facilities: factories, plants, mines - into the hands of the workers.

Civil War and intervention (briefly)

The civil war began in October 1917 and ended with the defeat of the White Army in the Far East in the autumn of 1922. During this time, various social classes and groups on the territory of Russia resolved the contradictions that arose between them by armed methods.

The main reasons for the start of the civil war include:

The discrepancy between the goals of the transformation of society and the methods for achieving them,

Refusal to create a coalition government,

dispersal of the Constituent Assembly,

Nationalization of land and industry,

Elimination of commodity-money relations,

The establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat,

Creation of a one-party system,

The danger of the revolution spreading to other countries,

Economic losses of the Western powers during regime change in Russia.

Spring 1918. English, American and French troops landed in Murmansk and Arkhangelsk. The Japanese invaded the Far East, the British and Americans landed in Vladivostok - intervention began.

May 25 there was an uprising of the 45,000th Czechoslovak corps, which was transferred to Vladivostok for further shipment to France. A well-armed and well-equipped corps stretched from the Volga to the Urals. Under the conditions of decayed Russian army, he became the only real force at that time.

November-December 1918 English troops landed in Batumi and Novorossiysk, the French occupied Odessa. In these critical conditions, the Bolsheviks managed to create a combat-ready army by mobilizing people and resources and attracting military specialists from the tsarist army.

By the autumn of 1918. The Red Army liberated the cities of Samara, Simbirsk, Kazan and Tsaritsyn.

The revolution in Germany had a significant impact on the course of the civil war. Recognizing its defeat in the First World War, Germany agreed to annul the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and withdrew its troops from the territory of Ukraine, Belarus and the Baltic states.

The Entente began to withdraw its troops, providing only material assistance to the Whites.

By April 1919. The Red Army managed to stop the troops of General A.V. Kolchak. Driven into the depths of Siberia, they were defeated by the beginning of 1920.

Summer 1919. General Denikin, having captured Ukraine, moved to Moscow and approached Tula. The troops of the first cavalry under the command of M.V. Frunze and Latvian riflemen. In the spring of 1920, near Novorossiysk, the "Reds" defeated the Whites.

In the north of the country against the Soviets led fighting troops of General N.N. Yudenich. In the spring and autumn of 1919 they made two unsuccessful attempts to capture Petrograd.

In April 1920. the conflict between Soviet Russia and Poland began. In May 1920, the Poles captured Kyiv. The troops of the Western and Southwestern fronts launched an offensive, but failed to achieve a final victory.

Realizing the impossibility of continuing the war, in March 1921 the parties signed a peace treaty.

The war ended with the defeat of General P.N. Wrangel, who led the remnants of Denikin's troops in the Crimea. In 1920, the Far Eastern Republic was formed, by 1922 it was finally liberated from the Japanese.

Formation of the USSR (briefly)

In 1918, the "Declaration of the Rights of the Working and Exploited People" was adopted, proclaiming the principle of the future structure of the country. Its federal basis, as a free union of republics, assumed the right of nations to self-determination. Following this, the Soviet government recognized the independence of Finland and the statehood of Poland.

The collapse of the Russian Empire and the imperialist war led to the establishment Soviet power throughout Russia.

Proclaimed in 1918. The RSFSR occupied 92% of the entire territory and was the largest of all Soviet republics, where more than 100 peoples and nationalities lived. It partly included the territories of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan. In fact, until 1922, the Far Eastern Republic functioned in its likeness.

From 1920 to 1921. units of the Red Army occupied these states without visible resistance and established the laws of the RSFSR there. The Sovietization of Belarus passed easily.

In Ukraine, it was not without a struggle with the pro-Kiev course. The process of establishing Soviet power in the Central Asian Soviet People's Republics - Bukhara and Khorezm - was going on heavily. Detachments of the local armed opposition continued to resist there.

Most of the communist leaders of the republics were worried about the existence of "Great Russian chauvinism", so that the unification of the republics into a single whole would not become the creation of a new empire. This problem was perceived especially painfully in Georgia and Ukraine.

The unity and rigidity of the repressive bodies served as powerful factors in the unification of the republics.

The commission of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee was engaged in the development of the principles of the national state structure. Autonomous, federal and confederal options for building a single state were considered.

The plan for the declared autonomous entry of the Soviet republics into the RSFSR was proposed by the People's Commissar for Nationalities, Stalin. However, the commission accepted Lenin's proposal for a union federal state. He gave future republics formal sovereignty.

Lenin clearly understood that a single party and a single repressive system were a sure guarantee of the integrity of the state. Lenin's project could attract other peoples to the union, and not scare them away, as Stalin's version.

December 30, 1922. At the First Congress of Soviets, the formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was proclaimed. The Congress adopted the Declaration and the Treaty.

The Central Executive Committee (CEC) was elected as the supreme legislative body, which consisted of two chambers: the Union Council and the Council of Nationalities.

January 31, 1924. The II All-Union Congress of Soviets adopted the first Constitution of the USSR, which stipulated the principles of the Declaration and the Treaty.

The foreign policy of the USSR was quite active. Progress has been made in relations with the countries of the capitalist camp. An agreement on economic cooperation was signed with France (1966). The Treaty on the Limitation of Strategic Nuclear Arms (SALT-1) is concluded. The 1975 Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) played an important role in relieving international tension. The USSR maintained and strengthened ties with developing countries.

The 1980s were a time of radical change and restructuring in the USSR. It led to problems in the social sphere and social production, the impending crisis in the economy of the USSR, caused by a devastating arms race for the country. The course towards the democratization of public life and publicity was announced by M.S. Gorbachev.

But perestroika could not prevent the collapse of the USSR.

Among the main reasons for the collapse of the USSR are the following:

• The actual destruction of the philosophy of communism, the spirit of which was lost first by the ruling elite of the country, and then by all its citizens.
• The imbalance in the development of industry in the USSR - as in the pre-war years, the main attention was paid to heavy industry, as well as defense and energy. The development of light industry and the level of production of consumer goods were clearly insufficient.
• The ideological failure also played its role. Life behind the Iron Curtain seemed beautiful and free to most Soviet people. And such benefits as free education and medicine, housing and social guarantees were taken for granted, people did not know how to appreciate them.
• Prices in the USSR, relatively low, were artificially "frozen", but there was a problem of shortage of many goods, often also artificial.
• The Soviet man was completely controlled by the system.
• Many experts say that one of the reasons for the fall of the USSR was a sharp drop in oil prices and the prohibition of religions.

The Baltic republics (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia) were the first to secede from the USSR.

After the collapse of the USSR, Russia declared itself the heir to a great empire. The 1990s turned into a severe crisis for the country in all spheres. The production crisis led to the actual destruction of many industries, the contradictions between the legislative and executive authorities - to a crisis situation in the political sphere.

THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR

At dawn on June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union. On the German side were Romania, Hungary, Italy and Finland. In accordance with the Barbarossa plan developed in 1940, Germany planned to enter the Arkhangelsk-Volga-Astrakhan line as soon as possible. It was a setting for a blitzkrieg - a lightning war. Thus began the Great Patriotic War.

The main periods of the Great Patriotic War. The first period (June 22, 1941 - November 18, 1942) from the beginning of the war to the start of the Soviet offensive near Stalingrad. It was the most difficult period for the USSR, called the Battle of Stalingrad.

Having created a multiple superiority in people and military equipment in the main directions of the offensive, the German army has achieved significant success. By the end of November 1941, the Soviet troops, having retreated under the blows of superior enemy forces to Leningrad, Moscow, Rostov-on-Don, left the enemy a vast territory, lost about 5 million people killed, missing and captured, most of the tanks and aircraft .

The second period (November 19, 1942 - the end of 1943) - a radical turning point in the war. Having exhausted and bled the enemy in defensive battles, on November 19, 1942, Soviet troops launched a counteroffensive, surrounding 22 fascist divisions near Stalingrad, numbering more than 300 thousand people. On February 2, 1943, this grouping was liquidated. At the same time, enemy troops were expelled from the North Caucasus. By the summer of 1943, the Soviet-German front had stabilized.

The third period (the end of 1943 - May 8, 1945) is the final period of the Great Patriotic War. In 1944, the Soviet economy reached its highest boom ever during the war. Industry, transport, and agriculture developed successfully. War production grew especially rapidly.

1944 was marked by the victories of the Soviet Armed Forces. The entire territory of the USSR was completely liberated from the fascist invaders. The Soviet Union came to the aid of the peoples of Europe - Soviet army liberated Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, fought its way to Norway. Romania and Bulgaria declared war on Germany. Finland left the war.

During the winter offensive of 1945, the Soviet Army pushed the enemy back more than 500 km. Poland, Hungary and Austria, the eastern part of Czechoslovakia were almost completely liberated. The Soviet Army reached the Oder. On April 25, 1945, a historic meeting of Soviet troops with American and British troops took place on the Elbe, in the Torgau region.

The fighting in Berlin was exceptionally fierce and stubborn. On April 30, the banner of Victory was hoisted over the Reichstag. On May 8, the act of unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany was signed. May 9 - became Victory Day.

Development of the USSR in 1945-1953

The main task of the post-war period was the restoration of the destroyed economy. In March 1946, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted a plan for the reconstruction and restoration of the national economy.

The demilitarization of the economy and the modernization of the military-industrial complex began. Heavy industry was declared a priority area, mainly engineering, metallurgy, and the fuel and energy complex.

By 1948, production reached pre-war levels thanks to the heroic labor of the Soviet people, the free labor of Gulag prisoners, the redistribution of funds in favor of heavy industry, the transfer of funds from the agricultural sector and light industry, the attraction of funds from German reparations, and strict economic planning.

In 1945, the gross agricultural output of the USSR was 60% of the pre-war level. The government tried to bring the industry out of the crisis by punitive measures.

In 1947, a mandatory minimum of workdays was established, the law “For encroachment on collective farm and state property” was tightened, the tax on livestock maintenance was increased, which led to its mass slaughter.

The areas of individual allotments of collective farmers have been reduced. Reduced wages in kind. Collective farmers were denied passports, which limited their freedom. At the same time, farms were enlarged and control over them was tightened.

These reforms were not successful, and only by the 1950s did they manage to reach the pre-war level of agricultural production.

Abolished in 1945 State Committee Defense. The work of public and political organizations has been resumed

In 1946, the Council of People's Commissars was transformed into the Council of Ministers, and the people's commissariats into ministries.

Since 1946, the drafting of a new Constitution of the USSR began. In 1947, the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks submitted the question “On the project new program VKP(b)".

There have been changes in science and culture. Compulsory seven-year education was introduced in 1952, evening schools were opened. The Academy of Arts and the Academy of Sciences with its branches in the republics were formed. Postgraduate courses are open in many universities. Television began to broadcast regularly.

In 1948, the persecution of "cosmopolitans" began. Bans were imposed on contacts and marriages with foreigners. A wave of anti-Semitism swept across the country.

Khrushchev's foreign and domestic policy

Khrushchev's activities played a significant role in organizing mass repressions, both in Moscow and in Ukraine. During the Great Patriotic War, Khrushchev was a member of the military councils of the fronts, and by 1943 he had received the rank of lieutenant general. Also, Khrushchev led the partisan movement behind the front line.

One of the most famous post-war initiatives was the strengthening of the collective farms, which contributed to the reduction of bureaucracy. In the autumn of 1953, Khrushchev took the highest party position. The reign of Khrushchev began with the announcement of a large-scale project for the development of virgin lands. The purpose of the development of virgin lands was to increase the volume of grain harvested in the country.

Khrushchev's domestic policy was marked by the rehabilitation of the victims political repression, improving the standard of living of the population of the USSR. Also, he made an attempt to modernize the party system.

Changed under Khrushchev foreign policy. Thus, among the theses put forward by him at the 20th Congress of the CPSU, there was also the thesis that the war between socialism and capitalism is by no means inevitable. Khrushchev's speech at the 20th Congress contained rather harsh criticism of Stalin's activities, the personality cult, and political repressions. It was perceived ambiguously by the leaders of other countries. Soon published in the USA English translation this speech. But the citizens of the USSR were able to get acquainted with it only in the 2nd half of the 80s.

In 1957 a conspiracy was created against Khrushchev, which was not crowned with success. As a result, the conspirators, which included Molotov, Kaganovich and Malenkov, were dismissed by the decision of the Plenum of the Central Committee.

Brief biography of Brezhnev

During the Great Patriotic War, Brezhnev L.I. served as head of the Southern Front, and received the rank of major general in 1943. At the end of hostilities, Brezhnev successfully builds political career. He consistently works as secretary of the regional committee of Ukraine and Moldova. Since 1952, he has become a member of the Presidium of the Central Committee, and after Khrushchev came to power, he is appointed secretary communist party Kazakhstan.

By 1957, Brezhnev returned to the Presidium and after 3 years held the position of Chairman of the Presidium. During the Brezhnev years, the country refuses to implement the ideas of the previous leader, Khrushchev. Since 1965, Brezhnev's slow and outwardly more modest reforms began, the goal of which was to build "developed socialism." Enterprises are gaining greater independence than in previous years, and the standard of living of the population is gradually improving, which is especially noticeable in the villages. However, already by the beginning of the 1970s, stagnation appeared in the economy.

In international relations, Khrushchev's course is maintained, and dialogue with the West continues. The agreements on disarmament in Europe, enshrined in the Helsinki Accords, are also important. Tension in international relations reappears only after the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan.

Brief biography of Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeevich

Party career Gorbachev M.S. turned out to be successful. BUT high yields in the Stavropol region they created a good reputation for him. In an effort to introduce more rational methods of agricultural labor, Gorbachev publishes articles in the regional and central press. As secretary of the Central Committee, he deals with the problems of the country's agriculture.

Gorbachev came to power in 1985. Later, he held other high posts in the USSR. Gorbachev's rule was marked by serious political reforms designed to put an end to stagnation. The most famous were such actions of the country's leadership as the introduction of cost accounting, acceleration, money exchange. The famous dry law of Gorbachev caused a sharp rejection of almost all citizens of the Union. Unfortunately, the decree "On strengthening the fight against drunkenness" had an absolutely opposite effect. Most of the liquor stores were closed. However, the practice of home brewing has spread almost everywhere. There was also fake vodka. Prohibition was repealed in 1987 for economic reasons. However, fake vodka remained.

Gorbachev's perestroika was marked by a weakening of censorship and, at the same time, a deterioration in the standard of living of Soviet citizens. This happened due to ill-conceived domestic policy. Contributed to the growth of tension in society and ethnic conflicts in Georgia, Baku, Nagorno-Karabakh, etc. The Baltic republics already during this period headed for secession from the Union.

Gorbachev's foreign policy, the so-called "policy of new thinking", contributed to the detente of the difficult international situation and the end of the Cold War.

In 1989, Mikhail Sergeevich Gorbachev took the post of Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, and in 1990 he became the first and only president of the USSR.

In 1990, M. Gorbachev received the Nobel Peace Prize as a person who did a lot to ease international tension. But the country at that time was already in a deep crisis.

As a result August coup In 1991, organized by the former supporters of Gorbachev, the USSR ceased to exist. Gorbachev resigned after signing Belavezha Accords. Subsequently, he continued his social activities, headed the Green Cross and Gorbachev Foundation organizations.

RUSSIA DURING B.N. YELTSIN

June 12, 1991 B.N. Yeltsin was elected President of the Russian Federation. After his election, the main slogans of B. Yeltsin were the fight against the privileges of the nomenklatura and the independence of Russia from the USSR.

July 10, 1991 Boris Yeltsin took an oath of allegiance to the people of Russia and the Russian Constitution, and took office as President of the RSFSR.

In August 1991, the confrontation between Yeltsin and the putschists began, which led to a proposal to ban the activities of the Communist Party, and on August 19, Boris Yeltsin delivered a famous speech from a tank, in which he read out a decree on the illegitimate activities of the GKChP. The coup is defeated, the activities of the CPSU are completely banned.

In December 1991, the USSR officially ceased to exist.

December 25, 1991 B.N. Yeltsin received full presidential power in Russia in connection with the resignation of the President of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev and the actual collapse of the USSR.

1992 - 1993 - a new stage in the construction of the Russian state - privatization has begun, economic reform is being carried out.

In September-October 1993, a confrontation between Boris Yeltsin and the Supreme Soviet began, which led to the dissolution of parliament. Unrest in Moscow, which peaked on October 3-4, supporters of the Supreme Soviet seized the television center, the situation was brought under control only with the help of tanks.

In 1994, the 1st Chechen War, which led to a huge number of casualties both among the civilian population and among the military, as well as among law enforcement officers.

May 1996 Boris Yeltsin forced to sign an order in Khasavyurt on the withdrawal of troops from Chechnya, which theoretically means the end of the first Chechen war.

In 1998 and 1999 in Russia, as a result of unsuccessful economic policy, a default occurs, then a government crisis.

On December 31, 1999, in a New Year's address to the people of Russia, B. Yeltsin announced his early resignation. Prime Minister V.V. Putin, who provides Yeltsin and his family with guarantees of complete security.

1. Domestic policy during the reign of Alexander 1.

Russia officially entered the 19th century on January 1, 1801 under the banner of Emperor Paul I. The country was preparing for war with England. A curfew began on the streets of the capital after 9 o'clock. Paul I issued a decree on the arrest of 1043 sailors of English ships detained in Russian ports. Trade has stalled.

The nobility wanted neither this war nor this reign. After a long period of Catherine's freedoms - arrests, demotions, exile. The usual luxurious life was replaced by a harsh and gloomy time, which was not brightened up by the Pavlovsk parade grounds. Under Paul I, the peasantry received some relief, the soldiers were drilled, but treated kindly, and the aristocracy was more heavily taxed. For any infraction of a nobleman, deprivation of the title and Siberian exile could await.

For the Russian aristocracy, the new 19th century began on the night of March 11-12, 1801. Emperor Paul 1 was killed. The last palace coup in Russia took place with the knowledge of the heirs to the throne, Alexander and Constantine. The conspirators were headed by the Governor-General of St. Petersburg Palen, Prince Zubov and General Bennigsen. They, trying to return the times of Catherine II, broke into the Mikhailovsky Castle and killed Paul I. Although the princes knew about the plot and blessed him, the news of the murder of their father shocked them. It seemed to them that it was possible to achieve the voluntary abdication of Paul I, that the conspirators hastily resorted to such an extreme measure as murder. However, murder, as one of the main options, was included in the plans of the conspiracy. And the heirs to the throne knew about it. In the early morning of March 12, Count Palen called out to the frightened Alexander Pavlovich: “Your Majesty, go to reign.” So the new century for Russia began with a new government. Alexander I (1801-1825) came to the throne. “I will never be able to get used to the idea of ​​reigning despotic,” he says at first. The very first days of the reign were marked by major events in the life of the country. Thousands of people exiled under Paul I were returned, thousands were restored to their legal rights, corporal punishment for nobles, merchants and clergy was immediately abolished. Society enthusiastically accepted the changes that took place by decree of the new ruler.

The young emperor was a supporter of changes in all spheres of public life, administration, economy, and culture. At the same time, he was guided by the ideas of the Enlightenment - the principles of freedom, legal equality and universal education. At the same time, he was committed to the gradual resolution of social issues in order to avoid social upheavals. This was especially true of the problem of serfdom, which not only hindered the economic development of Russia, but also compromised the country in front of Western Europe. However, the majority of the nobles, being representatives of the ruling stratum and the support of the autocracy, did not want to hear about the voluntary weakening or destruction of its privileges. Therefore, the government could not at that time even raise the question of the abolition of serfdom.

Under his control, the new emperor took the country, which in the first half of the XIX century. occupied a vast territory in Eastern Europe, Asia and North America (Alaska). Its size reached 18 million square meters. km, the population was 74 million people. The territory of Russia was rich in natural resources: forests, rivers, arable land, minerals. In fact, there was everything necessary for rapid economic development.

The feudal system, preserved intact, only held back the growth of productive forces and the development of capitalist relations.

First of all, this manifested itself in the deceleration of the technical development of the country. In connection with the worldwide increase in demand for agricultural products, Russian landlords increased the lord's plowing to the detriment of peasant land ownership. With such an extensive increase in production, serf labor was still used, since it was cheaper than new machines. The intensification of agriculture occurred mainly due to increased exploitation of the serfs, which also led to stagnation in the productive forces and low productivity. In heavy industry, the labor of the sessional peasants was preserved. This was also explained by its cheapness compared to new technology. The use of forced labor led to the stagnation of production. Serf working people did not want to acquire the necessary skills, often breaking and spoiling the mechanisms entrusted to them. In the first half of the XIX century. The Urals, with its old possession and ascribed manufactories, lost its leading economic position for many years. In this regard, Russia was lagging behind the developed countries in terms of iron smelting (3.5 times behind England). A similar situation was observed in other industries.

Objective economic reasons demanded, if not a global, then a gradual destruction of serfdom. Alexander I in the first years of his reign took the second path. In 1801, the purchase of uninhabited lands by persons of non-noble origin, including free peasants, was allowed. Thus, the monopoly of the nobility on land ownership was abolished and the beginning was laid for the gradual equalization of the rights of the peasants with other estates.

The abolition of the land monopoly was confirmed in 1803 in the decree on "free cultivators", which allowed the landowners to release peasants into the wild with land for a ransom. This decree was the largest measure in an attempt to solve the peasant problem. However, he had little effect on the feudal system, since for the first half of XIX in. only 1.5% of the serfs were freed.

In 1804, the “Regulations on the Livland peasants” were published, according to which their sale without land was prohibited, duties were fixed, the peasants received the right to trade transactions with their land plots. This decree was then extended to Estonia. In 1816-1819. serfdom was abolished in the Baltic States: the peasants received personal rights, including the right to own personal property. However, all the land remained with the landowners.

The capitalization of the economy, that is, efficient manufactory and factory production, is possible only with the use of free labor. Residents of cities, state peasants and quitrent serfs, who went to work with the permission of their masters, became hired workers. The use of civilian labor (especially in light industry) gradually increased and increased in the first half of the 19th century. 14 times. However, the preservation of serfdom hindered the formation of a free labor market, which was necessary for the growth of production. It caused a shortage of hired workers, since potential workers from the peasantry did not have the right to free movement. In addition, in enterprises with hired labor, a significant part was the work of quitrent peasants. This made hired labor in Russia very expensive, since dues were necessarily included in the salary.

The preservation of serfdom also hampered the market development of the country, since both the estates and the state peasants were dominated by subsistence farming. In addition, serfs could not buy or sell anything on their own behalf, since they did not have civil rights and were considered property themselves. The development of the market was held back by the low purchasing power of the population, the miserable existence of a significant part of it. The main buyers could only be the nobility, merchants and part of the townspeople. The development of bourgeois relations was also hampered by the communal system, which prevented the education of a possessive psychology among the peasants. Social stratification and, in general, the bourgeoisification of the peasantry were restrained.

At the same time, in Russia, the developments that began in the second half of the 18th century continued to develop. objective processes leading to the formation of capitalism (decomposition of natural economy, development of capitalist industry and commodity-money relations). New conditions demanded new reforms. Projects of radical reforms (“Statutes”) were associated with the name of M.M. Speransky, a statesman, who in 1807-1812. Alexander instructed to prepare a plan for reforming the country.

Speransky prepared decrees on free entry into and exit from Russia, on the permission to import books and musical notes into the country, on the destruction of a secret expedition, on the permission of private printing houses, on the formation of a medical business, and on the reform of the post office. In the plan of the general political reform, Speransky made proposals for the introduction of political legislation, laws defining property rights, financial and credit, judicial, tax and other legislation.

Alexander I was a supporter of "enlightened absolutism" and sought to reform the state, while maintaining autocracy, which caused the half-heartedness and inconsistency of his reforms.

In 1802, a ministerial reform was carried out, prepared by a private committee formed from among the emperor's young friends. In place of the boards that had existed since the time of Peter I and did not justify themselves because of the mutual responsibility and irresponsibility that arose as a result of the collegial principle of leadership, new bodies of central executive power were formed - ministries. The ministries were structured on the basis of the principle of unity of command and were headed by ministers. From the heads of ministries formed the Committee of Ministers, which was led directly by the emperor. Alexander I tried to surround himself with experienced and popular people in the country. Thus, the first Minister of Justice in the history of Russia was the remarkable Russian poet and statesman, Prosecutor General G.R. Derzhavin. But in this position, he, holding "very justice", served for one year. It soon became clear that the emperor had lost interest in him. “You serve very zealously,” the tsar explained to Derzhavin the reason for his resignation.

The ministerial reform contributed to the centralization of power and the bureaucratization of administration. At the same time, however, the Pavlovian style - management through two or three proxies - dominated under Alexander I, despite the existence of the Committee of Ministers. At first, management was carried out through a triumvirate of young friends, or "figures", as they were then called in the capital salons of Czartorysky, Novosiltsev and Stroganov, then in 1807-1812. on the civil side through Speransky, on the military side - through Arakcheev, and after the Patriotic War of 1812 - all without exception through Arakcheev.

In 1807-1812. Alexander instructed the author of the general concept of reforming Russia, M.M. Speransky. The latter, proceeding in his projects from the idea of ​​separation of powers approved by the emperor, proposed the creation of a central legislative body elected by the population - the State Duma, the executive power to be concentrated in the ministries, the highest judicial power - in the Senate, while retaining the emperor's control and executive functions. At the same time, he considered it necessary to create a State Council, a legislative body that would become a link between the emperor and the bodies of central and local government.

Only a part of Speransky's projects was implemented. On January 1, 1810, the State Council began its work - the highest legislative and advisory body under the tsar. The State Council was an appointed body, which consisted of ministers and other senior dignitaries. In 1811 the number of ministries was increased, their work was improved, functions and powers were divided. However, plans for more radical reforms met with fierce resistance from the nobility. This was especially pronounced after Speransky introduced a duty on luxury goods imported into Russia, reduced the staff of ministries, approved examinations for officials and taxed noble estates. Those in power could not forgive Speransky for this, and by that time the tsar had changed a lot. Under pressure public opinion(denunciations against Speransky rained down regularly) Alexander I refused to continue the reforms. Speransky was exiled.

The second half of the reign of Alexander I (from 1815 to 1825) was marked by the onset of reaction, the main conductor of which was the tsar's favorite A.A. Arakcheev, who occupied the most important positions in the state apparatus and took a reactionary position. Arakcheev was still an associate of Paul I from the Gatchina period, i.e. before the beginning of the reign of Pavel Petrovich, but made a dizzying political career under Alexander Pavlovich, becoming the figure No. 2 in the country.

The most ugly manifestation of the new policy (“Arakcheevshchina”) was the creation of military settlements, which began to be actively introduced from 1816 and were aimed at forming a trained reserve and reducing government spending on the maintenance of the army. In 1825, a third of the army was transferred to military settlements. A new estate was created - military settlers, forced to combine military service and agriculture. Cruel oppression and drill dominated the territory of military settlements. The whole life of the peasant and his family was strictly regulated. Severe corporal punishments were relied upon for the slightest infractions. All this provoked the resistance of the peasants, who were supported by the advanced part of society.

Education reforms . (If enough time). Until the beginning of the XIX century. Russia did not have a unified system of education. Entry into the military or civil service required a noble origin, rather than special training. But in the context of the gradual involvement of Russia in world trade, and then the industrial revolution that began, the need for specialists became more and more acute. Therefore, one of the most important reforms of the XIX century. There was an education reform.

The main goal of the reform during the reign of Alexander I was the renewal and expansion of curricula in order to create a successive system of education in all types of educational institutions. In 1803, according to the "Regulations on the organization of educational institutions", 6 educational districts headed by trustees and 4 categories of educational institutions were created in European Russia - parish and district schools (elementary school), gymnasiums in provincial cities ( high school), universities ( graduate School). Thus, a unified education system was created. In 1804, the universities received autonomy (the right to choose a rector and deans, to independently resolve organizational issues). In addition to existing universities, new ones were opened. There were closed special educational institutions for the nobility - Tsarskoye Selo, Yaroslavl, Nezhinsky lyceums.

The most famous was the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum. On August 12, 1810, Alexander I signed the project of M. Speransky on the creation of this closed educational institution twenty miles from the capital. October 19 next year thirty twelve-year-old boys sat at the desks of the lyceum. They could be considered both schoolchildren and students at the same time, because. after graduating from the lyceum, it was no longer necessary to study at any other educational institution. Those who sat down at their desks on this significant day for the further history of Russia will later become brilliant diplomats and officers, navigators and writers, major officials and Decembrists. Such names as A. Gorchakov, A. Delvig, V. Kuchelbecker, F. Matyushkin, I. Pushchin left a glorious mark in the history of the Russian state. The future greatest poet of Russia A. Pushkin also studied in the same class.

In 1801, the eldest son of Paul I, Alexander I Pavlovich, ascended the Russian throne. He was the favorite grandson of Catherine II, and, bypassing the son of Pavel Petrovich, Catherine II prepared him for the throne. The education and upbringing of Alexander took place under the personal control of the powerful empress. A brilliant staff of teachers was selected, which included well-known Russian and foreign professors. Catherine II entrusted the moral education of the heir to the well-known Swiss politician, "republican" F. S. de La Harpe. He was a well-known liberal in Europe, an opponent of slavery. True, the Swiss politician had no idea either about the country to which he was invited, or about the Russian people in general. He tried to instill the lofty ideals of freedom, equality and fraternity for 11 years, while in France after the revolution of 1789 the implementation of these ideas led to the execution of the French king Louis XVI and cruel revolutionary terror, and the very western society already started to move away from these principles. One of the main results of such upbringing was that F.S. de La Harpe shook the confidence of Alexander Pavlovich - the future monarch - in his right to absolute power. Alexander Pavlovich began to believe that the autocracy of the Russian emperor should be limited by the constitution. In 1793, when Alexander was not even 16 years old, Catherine II married him to the 14-year-old Princess Louise of Baden, named Elizaveta Alekseevna in Orthodoxy.
On March 12, 1801, 24-year-old Alexander Pavlovich ascended the throne after the assassination of Paul I by conspirators. The manifesto of Alexander I of March 12, 1801 announced that Emperor Paul I had suddenly died of apoplexy. Petersburg society enthusiastically received Alexander I. And to many then the young Russian emperor seemed to be the chosen one of Fate - "...well, everything is for him: appearance, and mind, and a powerful empire, and a beautiful wife ...". Alexander I was determined to carry out liberal transformations in the country: to give society a constitution, to abolish serfdom.

liberal initiatives. Alexander I began to rule with the abolition of the decrees of Paul I regarding the nobility. 10 thousand officers and officials dismissed by Pavel for bribes were reinstated in the service, the validity of the "Charters of Letters" to the nobility and cities was confirmed, the Secret Expedition (the center of political investigation) was abolished, the free travel of Russians abroad was allowed, the import of any books, torture was prohibited.
In the first years of his reign, the young emperor relied on a small circle of friends that had developed even before the beginning of his reign, which included P.A. Stroganov, A. Czartorysky, N.N. Novosiltsev, V.P. Kochubey. This environment of Alexander I began to be called "Unspoken Committee". Its members were young, tried to keep up with the spirit of the times, but had no experience in those state affairs that they discussed and decided to reform.
The new emperor began to carry out reforms in the field of central administration, the peasant question and education.

Public administration reforms. In 1802-1811. ministerial reform. Instead of boards, 11 ministries were introduced. In contrast to the collegiums in the ministry, affairs were decided solely by the minister, responsible only to the emperor. A Committee of Ministers was established for the joint discussion of general matters by the Ministers. The Senate was given the right to control the created ministries and became the country's highest judicial body.
The ministerial reform contributed to the improvement of the central administrative apparatus.
Alexander I considered the introduction of a constitution in the country, i.e. limiting their absolute power, good. But he realized that it was impossible to introduce a constitution in Russia while maintaining serfdom. And he decided to prepare society for the introduction of the constitution. To this end, he decided to reorganize the entire system of power and administration in Russia according to Western European models.
At the end of 1808, Alexander I entrusted the development of a comprehensive state reform to one of the most capable officials, his secretary of state - MM. Speransky . MM. Speransky came from the family of a poor rural priest, but thanks to his extraordinary diligence, broad outlook, and education, he made a brilliant career. In addition, M.M. Speransky was known in metropolitan circles as an ardent admirer of the French Emperor Napoleon I.
In October 1809 M.M. Speransky presented to the tsar a draft state reform called "Introduction to the code of state laws". (See textbook material) M.M. Speransky created a coherent system of local and central institutions on the principle of "separation of powers" - legislative, executive, judicial. New approach M.M. Speransky to the problem of the formation of new authorities was that the actions of the authorities, both central and local, should be brought under the control of society. The judiciary must be independent of other branches of government. The executive branch must be accountable to the legislative branch. Electiveness was introduced in the judiciary and executive bodies four steps - at the level of the volost, county, province, empire. Participation in management should be granted to persons who possessed a certain property qualification. Artisans, domestic servants, serfs did not participate in the elections, but enjoyed civil rights. The State Duma, reflecting the "opinion of the people", was to become the highest representative body of society under state power. Under the emperor, the State Council was created, which prepared and discussed bills.
MM. Speransky believed that Europeanized state institutions would prepare new people who would learn how to manage power in the interests of the whole society.
The plans of M.M. Speransky caused sharp resistance from the highest dignitaries. Renowned historian N.M. Karamzin in 1811 he submitted to the tsar a note "On Ancient and New Russia". N.M. Karamzin argued that government in Russia must be unconditionally autocratic. The constitution is appropriate where there is a civil society, order, literacy, good morals. In Russia, it's all about the people. There will be people in leading positions spiritually at their best, the state will prosper, they will wallow in vices, no constitution will make people better.
Alexander I had to choose between M.M. Speransky and N.M. Karamzin. By this time, Russian-French relations had deteriorated. And the project of reforms by M.M. Speransky was rejected. In 1810, a legislative advisory Council of State was only established. (See textbook material) It included all the ministers, as well as officials appointed by the emperor. In March 1812 M.M. Speransky was arrested and exiled to Nizhny Novgorod.
In subsequent years, the reformist sentiments of Alexander I were reflected in the introduction of a constitution in the Kingdom of Poland. According to the Congress of Vienna 1814 - 1815. Russia included the lands of Central Poland. From these lands, the Kingdom of Poland was formed as part of Russia. In November 1815, Alexander I signed the constitution of the Kingdom of Poland. Poland began to enjoy the widest autonomy. The emperor of Russia was considered the head of the Kingdom of Poland. Higher legislature belonged to the Sejm of Poland and the Council of State. The right to vote was limited by the property qualification. Freedom of the press and the individual was proclaimed, Catholicism was declared the state religion, but equality was also granted to other religions.
At the opening of the Sejm in March 1818 in Warsaw, Alexander I delivered a speech in which he declared that he intended to "extend the constitutional order in Poland to all the countries entrusted to my care."
In 1818, Alexander I instructed the Minister of Justice N.N. Novosiltsev to prepare a constitutional draft for Russia, which was called the Charter of the Russian Empire. It used the principles of the Polish constitution. The main point of the project proclaimed the sovereignty of the imperial power. In addition, the creation of a bicameral parliament was proclaimed. The right to introduce laws into parliament belonged to the king. The project also intended to provide the Russians with freedom of speech, religion, equality of all before the law. According to the Charter, a federal structure of the state was envisaged. But this project was not carried out.

Changes in the peasant question. At the very beginning of his reign, Alexander I took measures to alleviate the situation of the peasants. In 1801, it was allowed to buy and sell uninhabited lands to merchants, petty bourgeois, and state peasants. In 1803, a decree was issued "On free cultivators", (See textbook material), according to which the landlords, by mutual agreement with the peasants, received the right to release the peasants with land for a ransom. The peasants, liberated by decree of 1803, were transferred to a special class of "free cultivators". Now they had their own land and carried duties only in favor of the state. But during the entire reign of Alexander I, less than 0.5% of the serfs passed into the category of "free cultivators". In 1804 - 1805. in the Ostsee region (Latvia, Lithuania), peasants - householders received personal freedom, but for the allotments of landowners' land provided to them they had to bear the former duties - corvée and dues.
In 1816, Alexander I approved a decree on the complete abolition of serfdom in Estonia, while maintaining land for the landowners. In 1818-1819. the same laws were adopted in relation to the peasants of Courland and Livonia.
the project for the liberation of the peasants, the emperor instructed to draw up A.A. Arakcheev , who fulfilled the order in 1818. According to the project, the tsar had to allocate 5 million rubles annually to buy out the estates of landowners who would agree to make such a decision. But the project of A.A. Arakcheev was not carried out. In the last years of the reign of Alexander I, the rights of the landlords were expanded and their power over the peasants was strengthened. In 1822, the landowners again received the right to exile their peasants without trial to a settlement in Siberia. The peasant question was no longer discussed during the life of Alexander I.
The transformations in the peasant question undertaken by Alexander I did not encroach on the rights and privileges of the landlords, but were serious concessions to the development of capitalist relations in the country.

Reform in the field of education. In 1802, for the first time in the history of Russia, a ministry of public education was created. From now on, the enlightenment of the people became the concern of the state. In 1803, a new regulation on the organization of educational institutions was issued.

• All educational institutions were divided into 4 levels:
• universities.
• provincial schools or gymnasiums;
• county schools;
• rural parochial schools;

The education system was based on the principles of classlessness, free of charge at the lower levels, and the continuity of curricula. All these types of educational institutions, according to the plan, were supposed to constitute a complete system of public education.
Prior to that, only one university operated in Russia - Moscow, opened in 1755. During the reign of Alexander I, five more were opened - in Dorpat (Tallinn), Vilna (Vilnius), St. Petersburg, Kharkov, Kazan. In 1804, the university charter was adopted. Universities received broad autonomy: the right to choose a rector, professors, and independently decide administrative and financial matters.
In 1804, the most liberal in the nineteenth century was adopted. censorship statute. (See textbook material)
The reign of Alexander was characterized by the widest religious tolerance. Alexander I himself was indifferent to Orthodoxy. Evidence of this indifference was the appointment in 1803 of Freemason A.N. Golitsyn was the chief procurator of the Holy Synod.

military settlements. Patriotic War of 1812-1814 caused great damage to the country's economy. The financial system of the state was upset.
Under these conditions, the government decided to reduce the cost of maintaining the army through a special form of recruiting and maintaining the army - military settlements . The idea of ​​military settlements belonged to Emperor Alexander I. Even before the Patriotic War of 1812, he was carried away by the Prussian experience, where at that time the soldier who was in the service did not leave his native places, remained connected with the land, worked on it and cost the treasury cheaply. Alexander I tried to transfer the Prussian experience of self-sufficiency of the army to Russian soil.
The development of the project of military settlements was entrusted to General A.A. Arakcheev, who was then appointed chief commander of the military settlements. The first military settlements were created in 1808, they began to be created en masse in 1815-1816. Military settlements began to be set up on the lands of state-owned peasants in the Mogilev, Novgorod, Petersburg, and Kharkov provinces. At public expense, the same type, symmetrically located houses were built. Regiments of soldiers along with their families were settled in them. The local state peasants were "militaryized". The wives of soldiers and peasants also became villagers. The state took upon itself the maintenance and preparation for the service of the children of military settlers. Upon reaching the age of 7, the boys were enrolled in the cantonist battalions, and from the age of 18 they became active for 25 years. Upon reaching the age of 45, military settlers were transferred to the category of "disabled". They had to simultaneously engage in agriculture and military service. They were also given loans, provided horses, cattle, machinery, seeds. Daily life in military settlements was strictly regulated, for the slightest infractions the peasants were subjected to corporal punishment, contacts with outside world were strictly prohibited. By 1825, already 1/3 of the soldiers were transferred to the category of military settlers.
Military settlements performed the task of saving military expenses: from 1825 to 1850. 50 million rubles were saved, but the very idea of ​​military settlements did not take root in society. Breaking the Russian peasant way of life in the Prussian manner caused discontent among the settlers. The situation of military settlers was perceived by society as "enslavement", "St. George's Day". Peasants and soldiers began to protest against military settlements, sometimes they openly developed into riots. In 1817, a major uprising took place in Novgorod among the schismatics, who were transferred to the position of military settlers; in 1819 - in Chuguev. As a result of the suppression of the Chuguev rebellion, 70 people were spotted with gauntlets. In 1831, during the reign of Nicholas I, military settlements began to be gradually abolished, and in 1857 they were completely liquidated.
Curtailment of reforms. In the 1920s, it became obvious that the reforms were bringing positive changes, but one of their results was an increase in tension in society. Opposition moods began to spread, rumors began to reach Alexander I about the emergence of revolutionary organizations that aimed to overthrow the monarchy.
At the same time, important changes were taking place in his religious outlook. His soul suddenly reached for Orthodoxy. The emperor was arranged several meetings with the well-known Orthodox monk Photius in St. Petersburg. And Alexander I was shocked: he discovered Orthodoxy for himself. Previously, he believed that all currents of Christianity are true and have a right to exist. Everyone can profess the course of Christianity that he likes. Therefore, representatives of various currents of Christianity and sects that preached the denial of Orthodoxy, the church and church rites, received wide support from the highest circles in Russia. Now Alexander I came to the conclusion that for Russia the true faith is paternal (Orthodoxy). Russia must be Orthodox. Woe to Russia if the tsar in it is not Orthodox. Alexander I felt like a stranger in his country. The isolation of Alexander I from Orthodoxy became the cause of his personal drama.
In the 20s. in domestic politics, Alexander I moved further and further away from the liberal ideas of his youth. In 1817, the Ministry of Spiritual Affairs and Public Education was created. It concentrated in its hands control over education, upbringing and religious life society. In 1821, a number of professors at Moscow and St. Petersburg universities were put on trial for propagating revolutionary ideas. In 1822, Alexander I banned the activities of all Masonic lodges.
Then Alexander I realized that his policy aimed at the liberalization of society had failed. Inside the country, in society, in the army opposition moods were ripening. Peasant riots, Masonic circles, secret societies of noble youth - all this worried Alexander I. In addition, constant remorse about indirect involvement in the death of his father turned into a painful sensation towards the end of his life. Alexander I more and more he began to move away from public affairs. The only speaker to him on all issues was A.A. Arakcheev. The shock was for him a terrible flood in 1824 in St. Petersburg. The same flood was in the year of his birth - 1777. Alexander I decided that in this way fate outlined his life path.
There was also no happiness in family life. He and Elizaveta Alekseevna lived their lives separately from each other. Two of their daughters died young. Alexander I had no more heirs. Both felt deeply unhappy: at the end of their lives - no children, no successful reign. But both suddenly discovered each other. Now they spent all the time together and still could not talk enough. The emperor and empress began to live the life of private people and traveled a lot. In October 1825, during one of these trips to Taganrog, Alexander I caught a cold. Less than a month later, he suddenly died. His sudden death gave rise to many rumors. There were legends that the tsar, tired of power, went to distant Siberia and became the elder Fyodor Kuzmich.
A year after the death of Alexander I, Elizaveta Alekseevna died.

Foreign policy. The main directions in foreign policy were western and eastern.
1. East direction. In the 90s. 18th century Russia's position in Transcaucasia and the Caucasus began to strengthen. But by this time, the Caucasus and Transcaucasia were already the sphere of influence of Turkey and Iran. Seeing Russia's offensive in the Caucasus, Turkey and Iran stepped up their expansion into Georgia. They made literally devastating raids on Georgia. The small Georgian people needed a strong patron. Georgia at that time was going through a period feudal fragmentation and was divided into five principalities. By this time Kakheti and Kartaliniya united in Eastern Georgia, Imereti, Mengrelia, Guria - Western Georgia. In 1783 Eastern Georgia came under the patronage of Russia. Since 1798, the ruler of Kartli - the Kakhetian kingdom was George XII Bagrationi . Being near death and having no strength to fight the aggression of Iran, George XII turned to Russia with a request to take Eastern Georgia into the citizenship of the Russian state and liquidate the Georgian throne so that it would not be a source of contention between the Georgians. In 1801, Eastern Georgia became part of Russia, the Georgian throne was liquidated, and the administration of Eastern Georgia passed to the royal governor. In 1803 - 1804. on the same terms, the principalities of Western Georgia became part of the Russian Empire. But for Russia, this meant war with Turkey and Iran.

• Russian-Iranian war (1804 - 1813). The Persian Shah presented Russia with an ultimatum on the withdrawal of Russian troops from Transcaucasia and began military operations against Georgia. The Russian government rejected the ultimatum. England and France sided with the Shah. A war broke out between Russia and Iran. In general, it was successful for Russia. In 1813 was signed Gulistan peace treaty . (See textbook material) Russia defended Georgia and annexed a number of khanates that made up Northern Azerbaijan: Haji, Karabakh, Tekin, Shirvan, Derbent, Cuban, Baku, Talysh. Dagestan and Abkhazia were also annexed. Russia received the exclusive right to have its own fleet in the Caspian. Thus, Georgia and Northern Azerbaijan became part of Russia.
• Russian-Turkish war (1806 - 1812). The reason for it was the removal of the rulers by the Turkish Sultan Moldova and Wallachia (contrary to the Iasi peace treaty of 1791) and the appointment of proteges of Napoleon Bonaparte in their place. The Russian army won a number of successful victories on land (taking the fortresses of Bendery, Ackerman, Galati, Bucharest) and at sea (Admiral D.N. Senyavin defeated the Turkish fleet in the Dardanelles and Athos battles in 1807). In 1812, the Turks were forced to conclude Bucharest Peace Treaty . Departed to Russia Bessarabia , a number of regions of Transcaucasia, the privileges of the Christian peoples of the Ottoman Empire - Moldavia, Wallachia and Serbia for autonomous control, as well as the right of Russia to patronize all Christians - subjects of Turkey, were confirmed.

2. The Western direction of foreign policy was a priority. In 1789, the monarchy was overthrown in France and republican rule was established. European states led by England start a war against republican France. The French army defeated the first (1781), then the second (1798) anti-French coalition . In 1799, the young General Napoleon Bonaparte committed in France coup d'état and actually became the ruler of France. In 1804, having laid on himself the crown of the emperor of the French Republic, Napoleon decided to conquer Europe, and then the whole world. Napoleon needed a war. After the execution, on the orders of Napoleon, of a member of the French royal family, the Duke of Enghien, all monarchist Europe took up arms against him. In 1805, at Austerlitz, Napoleon defeated the third anti-French coalition of European states, which already included Russia. Europe has never seen such a debacle. In 1807, in a series of battles near Preussisch-Eylau and Friedland, the fourth anti-Napoleonic coalition was defeated. All of Europe was at the feet of Napoleon. Only island England and Russia remained. In 1807, Alexander I and Napoleon met to conclude a peace treaty. Alexander I was forced to sign Peace of Tilsit with France, according to which Russia was supposed to join the economic blockade of England, which was disadvantageous for her, and on the border with Russia, Napoleon created the Duchy of Warsaw as a springboard for aggression against Russia. A temporary truce between France and Russia lasted until the summer of 1812. Back in 1810, Napoleon declared: "In five years I will be the master of the world. Only Russia remains, but I will crush it."

Patriotic War of 1812 On the morning of June 12, 1812, the 500,000-strong "Great Army" of Napoleon Bonaparte crossed the Neman River and invaded Russia. When Alexander I found out about this, he immediately sent his adjutant General A.I. Balashova. To all the proposals of Alexander I about peace, Napoleon had only one answer - "no!". Napoleon Bonaparte hoped in a short campaign to defeat the Russian army, and then force Russia to join the orbit of French foreign policy.
The regular Russian army numbered more than 220 thousand people. It was divided into three parts, far apart from each other. The first army under the command M.B. Barclay de Tolly was in Lithuania, the second - General P.I. Bagration - in Belarus, the third - general A.P. Tormasova - in Ukraine. From the very beginning of the war, Emperor Alexander I adopted the most irreconcilable policy towards Napoleon. He showed personal courage and all this time was at the headquarters of the army of M.B. Barclay de Tolly.
In Russia, Napoleon Bonaparte expected to apply his usual tactics, with which he defeated the Western European armies in cramped Europe: the destruction of the Russian army in parts with lightning-fast, powerful blows. The French army quickly advanced deep into the territory of Russia, trying to deliver a crushing blow to the first army of M.B. Barclay de Tolly. The strategic situation required the speedy connection of the forces of the first and second Russian armies, which, for various reasons, was impossible to quickly accomplish. The superiority of the French army raised the question of the rapid replenishment of the Russian army. On July 6, 1812, Alexander I issued a manifesto calling for the creation of a people's militia. (See textbook material) This marked the beginning of the guerrilla war of the Russian people against Napoleon's army.
Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army M.B. Barclay de Tolly chose the right tactic in those circumstances - retreat. Near Smolensk, he managed to unite the first and second Russian armies and on August 2 give battle to the French. The battle near Smolensk lasted two days. In it, the French army lost 20 thousand officers and soldiers, and the Russian army lost 6 thousand.
The Russian army continued to retreat, the war began to take on a protracted character. This caused public discontent. M.B. Barclay de Tolly was accused of betrayal and aiding the French. They began to demand from Alexander I to put a Russian man at the head of the army. August 8 instead of M.B. Barclay de Tolly appointed Suvorov general as commander-in-chief M.I. Kutuzov . M.I. Kutuzov realized that Russia's allies against the French would be time and space. About the French, he said: "They themselves came, they themselves will leave." M.V. Kutuzov continued the tactics of the previous commander, but it seemed easier for the Russian troops to retreat with M.I. Kutuzov than with the "German Barclay". M.B. Barclay de Tolly accepted his resignation courageously, but worried about this for the rest of his life.
Nevertheless, on August 26, 1812, near the village of Borodino (124 km north of Moscow), M.I. Kutuzov decided to give a general battle to the French. The battlefield was chosen near the village of Borodino. For his troops M.V. Kutuzov chose the following disposition: on the left flank, the army of P.I. Bagration, covered with artificial earthen fortifications - flashes (later they were called Bagrationovskiye flashes). An earth mound was poured in the center, on which the artillery and troops of General N.N. Raevsky. The right flag was covered by the army of M.B. Barclay de Tolly. Napoleon adhered to offensive tactics. He intended to break through the Russian positions in the center, bypass the left flank, push the Russian troops back from the Old Smolensk road and clear the road to Moscow.
On August 26, at half past six in the morning, the French launched an offensive. Napoleon brought down the main blow on Bagration's flushes. Their assault continued without interruption for six hours. Around noon, the French took the flushes, but the left flank was not broken through. During the battle, both sides suffered heavy losses. General P.I. was mortally wounded. Bagration. The troops of the left flank retreated in an organized manner. After that, the French directed the main blow to the battery of General N.N. Raevsky. M.I. Kutuzov ordered the Cossacks of Ataman M.I. Platov and the cavalry corps of F.P. Uvarov to make a raid behind French lines in order to distract them from the attack on N.N. Raevsky. The French were forced to interrupt the offensive for 2 hours. At this time, fresh forces of Russian troops were brought up to the center. Battery of General N.N. Raevsky was captured by the French only by 16 pm. (See textbook material)
The battle did not end with the victory of the Russian troops, but nevertheless the offensive onslaught of the French dried up. Napoleon did not dare to bring into battle his last reserve - the imperial guard. Losses on both sides were huge. The French lost 58 thousand soldiers, 47 generals; Russian army - 40 thousand soldiers, 24 generals. Half of the Russian army was destroyed. In such a situation, it was risky to continue the battle the next day with the French. M.I. Kutuzov decided to save the army. The Russian army after Borodino began to retreat to Moscow. (See textbook material) On September 1, at the military council of the Russian army in the village of Fili, it was decided to leave Moscow. On the morning of September 2, 1812, the Russian army, together with the inhabitants, left Moscow.
By the evening of September 2, 1812, Napoleon's troops entered Moscow. Napoleon was accustomed to the servility of the West and waited a long time at the outpost for the Russians to bring him the keys to the city. But in the ancient Russian capital, a different meeting awaited the French. Moscow is on fire. Meanwhile, the Russian army was retreating from Moscow along the Ryazan road. M.I. Kutuzov was pursued by French troops under the command of I. Murat. Then the Russian troops made Tarutino maneuver - sharply changed the east direction to the south - went to the Kaluga road. This allowed the Russian troops to break away from the French. A camp was set up in Tarutino, where the troops were able to rest, replenished with fresh regular units, weapons and food supplies.
Over the next two months, all of Russia rebelled against Napoleon's troops: 300 thousand militia were put up and 100 million rubles were collected.
Napoleon Bonaparte himself was in Moscow at that time. During the month of his stay in an empty and hungry, burning in the fires of Moscow, his army was almost completely demoralized. Now the French emperor offered Alexander I to make peace. These days, Alexander I said significant words that "rather he will go with his people into the depths of the Asian steppes, grow a beard and eat potatoes, than make peace, as long as at least one armed enemy remains on Russian soil".
October 6, 1812 Napoleon left Moscow. French troops retreated west along the Kaluga road. The French army was still a force, but it was already doomed: it drew huge convoys with silver, furs, porcelain, silks. The Napoleonic army, once the best in Europe, has turned into an army of marauders. And that was her death. She melted before our eyes.
On October 12, a battle between Russian and French troops took place near the city of Maloyaroslavets. After that, Russian troops blocked the French retreat along the Kaluga road. The French were forced to turn onto the Smolensk road, along which they advanced on Moscow in August. In October - December 1812, the partisan movement in the country reached its highest level. M.I. became the organizer of the partisan movement. Kutuzov. Among the leaders of the partisan movement was a famous poet, hussar colonel D.V. Davydov . Partisan detachments were led by landowners, soldiers and peasants who had escaped from captivity. In the Moscow region, more than 5 thousand peasants fought in the detachment of the serf Gerasim Kurin. In the Smolensk province, Vasilisa Kozhina's detachment included women and teenagers. The patriotic upsurge in society was so great that even the gypsies went to join the partisans. The war of 1812 became truly popular.
Further, the tactics of the Russian army consisted in the parallel pursuit of the French army. The Russian army, without engaging in battles with Napoleon, destroyed his army in parts. The battle of November 14 - 17, 1812, when the French crossed the Berezina River, completed the defeat of the French army. Napoleon Bonaparte himself at that time handed over command of the miserable remnants of his army to I. Murat and secretly left for Paris to recruit new soldiers. Only 30,000 French soldiers crossed the Russian border.
On December 25, Alexander I issued a Manifesto, according to which the Patriotic War of 1812 was declared completed, and the Russian army began a foreign campaign to finally cleanse Europe of Napoleonic troops.
The Patriotic War of 1812 became a significant event in Russian history. The invasion of the Napoleonic troops caused a rapid growth of national identity. The War of Liberation of 1812 became the Patriotic War, because not only the regular army, but almost the entire population of the country fought against Napoleon's troops. Russian society again, as in the Time of Troubles, rallied to resist the invaders. 2 million people died in the war. Many western regions of the country were devastated by fires and robberies, the country's economy suffered significant damage, but Russia again defended its territorial integrity and independence. The unity of society, the patriotic impulse in the fight against the enemy made a huge impression on contemporaries and will forever remain in the memory of posterity. (See textbook material)

Liberation campaign of the Russian army (1813-1814). The best part of the French army was destroyed in Russia. But Napoleon still kept the whole of Europe in subjection. He assembled a new army, greatly outnumbering the forces acting against him, and left no hegemonic plans behind. To prevent a new aggression, it was necessary to transfer hostilities outside of Russia and achieve the complete surrender of Napoleon.
In January 1813, Russian troops entered the territory of Poland. Started foreign campaign of the Russian army . The entry of the Russian army into Europe served as a signal for a general uprising of the European peoples against the rule of Napoleon. A new anti-Napoleonic coalition of European states was concluded - consisting of Russia, England, Prussia, Austria and Sweden.
In October 1813, between the new army of Napoleon and the armies of the allies, a decisive battle near Leipzig , which went down in history as the "Battle of the Nations". More than half a million people participated in it from both sides. The French army was utterly defeated, but Napoleon himself was able to get out of the encirclement. In January 1814, the allied troops entered the territory of France. In March 1814, Russian Colonel M.F. Orlov accepted the surrender of Paris. Napoleon was exiled to the island of Elba in the Mediterranean. The old royal Bourbon dynasty returned to the French throne. The monarchy in France was restored. But Napoleon once again amazed the world. A year later, with a detachment of 1,100 people, he unexpectedly left Elba and went to Paris. Already at the first meeting with government troops, he, unarmed, went towards the soldiers: "Soldiers, do you recognize me? Who among you wants to shoot at his emperor? Shoot!" The French soldiers rushed to Napoleon and began to cry and hug him. For them, he was the personification of their honor and glory. Regiments, divisions, corps sent by the Bourbons against Napoleon were powerless. The army unconditionally went over to the side of Napoleon. Without firing a shot, Napoleon occupied Paris. But this time his reign lasted only 100 days. In June 1815 near the village waterloo in Belgium, he suffered a crushing defeat from the combined troops of England, Holland and Prussia. Napoleon was captured and this time exiled to Saint Helena off the west coast of Africa under the supervision of his worst enemies - the British.
For six long years he languished on an abandoned island in pacific ocean, deprived of the title of emperor, away from his beloved France, from his soldiers. Rejected by the whole world, the former great emperor reflected on his life path, on the reasons for his crushing defeat. In his memoirs, he wrote: "The biggest mistake in my life was the war against Russia". May 5, 1821 Napoleon Bonaparte died. In 1840, his ashes were transported from St. Helena and buried in Les Invalides (Pantheon of the great commanders of France) in Paris to the jubilant cries of thousands of French people. France received its emperor.

Congress of Vienna (September 1814 - June 1815). In September 1814, the congress of states participating in the war against Napoleon began its work in Vienna. Congress of Vienna was supposed to decide the fate of the post-war structure of Europe and satisfy the territorial claims of the victorious countries. 216 states took part in the work of the congress, but Russia, England, and Austria played the main role. The Russian delegation was represented by Alexander I. The Congress of Vienna eliminated the political changes and transformations that had taken place as a result of the French Revolution of 1789 and the Napoleonic Wars. France was returned to pre-revolutionary borders. The Congress of Vienna restored monarchical regimes in France, Italy, Spain and other states. According to the decisions of the Vienna Congress, Central Poland with Warsaw went to Russia. From the Polish and part of the Lithuanian lands, the Kingdom of Poland was formed as part of Russia. During the Napoleonic wars, serfdom was swept away in a number of Western European countries, but the victorious countries did not dare to restore it.

Holy Union. In September 1815, at the initiative of Alexander I, the monarchs of Russia, Austria and Prussia signed the Act of Education in Paris Holy Union . Then almost all European monarchs joined the Holy Alliance. Alexander I became the head of the Holy Alliance. In those days, the Russian emperor was the most popular person in Europe. Wherever he appeared - youthful, handsome, in the uniform of a cavalry guard regiment - he immediately became the center of attention. Kings and generals crowded into his waiting room, he was the most welcome guest at balls with the most august persons, in the salons of the first beauties of Europe ... The influence of Russia on European politics was prevailing.

• The purpose of the Holy Alliance was:
• support for the old monarchical regimes based on the principle of legitimism (recognition of the legitimacy of maintaining their power);
• struggle against revolutionary movements in Europe.

At the subsequent congresses of the Holy Alliance in Aachen (1818) and Troppau (1820), a decision was made that gave the right to interfere with the internal affairs of states by the members of the Holy Alliance in order to suppress revolutionary actions in them.
The significance of the Vienna system and the Holy Alliance was that in the next 10 - 15 years they ensured general peace and stability in Europe, exhausted by the Napoleonic wars. Then the Holy Alliance broke up.

Decembrist movement. During the foreign campaign of the Russian army, thousands of Russian noblemen visited Western Europe as winners. They not only smashed Napoleon's troops, but also paid attention to the daily life of the Western European peoples, to the political structure in their states. They are struck by the high level of individual freedom in France, democratic morals, freedom of speech. Then they returned to their homeland, where most of the peasants were serfs. And the contrast between the winners and the vanquished shocked the youth of the nobility. Some officers - nobles came to the conclusion that Western European society is more progressive than Russian. In their opinion, the reason for the backwardness of Russian society is autocracy and serfdom.
The reign of Alexander I is the time of the formation of the revolutionary ideology and the revolutionary movement. From 1811 to 1825 in Russia there were more than 30 revolutionary secret organizations of the nobility. Most of them were military officers.

At the end of 1824, the leaders of both societies agreed on a joint action in the summer of 1826.

Uprising in Petersburg on December 14, 1825 After the unexpected death on October 19, 1825 in Taganrog of Alexander I, an interregnum arose in Russia. The Decembrists decided to take advantage of this. On December 14, 1825, on the day of the promulgation of the manifesto of the new emperor, the Decembrists called for an uprising. They intended to force the Senate to accept their Manifesto to the Russian People document and proclaim the transition to constitutional government.
Early in the morning, members of the "Northern Society" began agitation among the troops of St. Petersburg. Only by 11 o'clock on the Senate Square was it possible to withdraw the Life Guards of the Moscow Regiment. At one o'clock in the afternoon, sailors of the Guards naval crew and some other parts of the St. Petersburg garrison joined the rebels - a total of about 3 thousand people. It turned out that the swearing-in took place earlier than planned, the members of the Senate had already dispersed. In addition, the dictator of the uprising, S.P. Trubetskoy did not appear at the place of performance. The new Emperor Nicholas I began negotiations with the rebels. They were delayed by six o'clock in the evening and did not bring any results. But after the Decembrist P.G. Kakhovsky mortally wounded the governor-general of St. Petersburg Count M.A. Miloradovich, the tsar ordered to shoot at the rebels. Two or three canister shots dispersed the rebellious troops. By evening, the leaders of the uprising were arrested, and the Decembrists' uprising was suppressed. Head of the Southern Society P.I. By this time Pestel had been arrested and betrayed all the plans of the conspirators. However, on December 29, 1825, S.I. Muravyov-Apostol and M.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin raised an uprising of the Chernigov regiment in the south. On January 3, 1826, government troops suppressed this uprising as well.
The arrests of members of the society and the investigation began. In the case of the Decembrists, 579 people were involved, 289 people. were found guilty. Five people - P.I. Pestel, K.F. Ryleev, S.I. Muravyov-Apostol, M.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin and P.G. Kakhovsky were hanged. The rest, depending on the degree of guilt, were sent to hard labor, to a settlement in Siberia, demoted to soldiers, transferred to the Caucasus in the army. The Decembrists were pardoned only by the son of Nicholas I Alexander II after his coronation.

Evaluation of the activities of the Decembrists. There are various assessments of the activities of the Decembrists. In Soviet times, the point of view prevailed that the Decembrists were honest and noble people, that they policy provisions on the elimination of autocracy, the abolition of serfdom, the estate system, the creation of a republic - reflected the most pressing problems of the progressive development of Russia. The merit of the Decembrists is that they laid the foundation for that social movement, the struggle of which will lead to the fall of the autocracy and the abolition of the serf system. There is another point of view on the activities of the Decembrists. The Decembrist uprising is a utopian movement. The Decembrists' projects to introduce a republican form of government or even a constitutional monarchy into Russia were politically reckless. On the first day of the speech, the leaders of the movement did not go to Senate Square, which betrayed their comrades and the soldiers involved in the rebellion. The Decembrists were "terribly far from the people." They did not know their country, did not understand the peculiarities of the development of Russian society. They were looking for the problem of Russia's lagging behind not in the economy, but in the absence in Russia of the political and cultural ideas of Europe. The Decembrists did not take into account that the democratic institutions that have developed in Europe are the result of a long and peculiar European history.

The reign of Alexander I (1801 - 1825).

On the night of March 12, 1801, as a result of the last palace coup in the history of Russia, Emperor Paul I was killed by a group of conspirators. His son Alexander became the new emperor. In order to strengthen his personal authority, immediately upon accession to the throne, Alexander eliminated the laws most hated by the nobility introduced by Paul. He returned to the system of noble elections, announced an amnesty, returned the officers dismissed by Paul from the army, allowed free entry and exit from Russia, and the import of foreign books. These events, which created Alexander's popularity among the nobility, could not shake the foundations of the state. The main directions of the internal political activity of the government were: reforms to reorganize the state apparatus, the peasant question, the sphere of enlightenment and education. Since Russian society was divided into supporters and opponents of the reform processes, this time is characterized by the struggle of two social movements: conservative - protective (striving to preserve the existing order) and liberal (pinning hopes on reforms and softening the regime of the tsar's personal power). The reign of Alexander I (taking into account the predominance of one or another trend) can be divided into two stages. The first stage, (1801 - 1812), the time of the predominance of liberal tendencies in government policy; the second, (1815 - 1825) - a change in the political aspirations of tsarism towards conservatism, the departure of the king from power towards religiosity and mysticism. During this period, the omnipotent favorite of the king, A. Arakcheev, actually begins to rule the country.

In the first years of the reign of Alexander I, a number of transformations were made in the sphere of higher administration. In 1801, the Indispensable (permanent) council (an advisory body under the tsar) was created. The composition of the council was appointed by the emperor himself from among the highest officials. However, the ideas of reforms were mainly discussed in the so-called Secret Committee (1801-1803). It included representatives of the highest nobility - Count P. Stroganov, Count V. Kochubey, Polish Prince A Czartorysky, Count N. Novosiltsev. The committee was engaged in the preparation of a program for the liberation of peasants from serfdom and the reform of the state system.

Peasant question. The most difficult for Russia was the peasant question. Serfdom hindered the development of the country, but the nobility unanimously advocated its preservation. The decree of February 12, 1801 allowed merchants, burghers, and state peasants to acquire and sell land. He abolished the monopoly of the state and the nobility on the ownership of real estate, commoners received the right to buy uninhabited lands, thereby opening up some opportunities for the development of bourgeois relations in the bowels feudal system. The most significant was the decree "On free cultivators" (1803). The practical results of this decree were negligible (only 47 thousand peasants were able to buy their freedom by the end of the reign of Alexander I). The main reason was not only the unwillingness of the landowners to let their peasants go, but also the inability of the peasants to pay the appointed ransom. A number of decrees (1804-1805) limited serfdom in Latvia and Estonia (Livland and Estland provinces); decrees of 1809 - abolished the right of landowners to exile their peasants to Siberia for minor misconduct; allowed the peasants, with the consent of the landowners, to engage in trade, to take bills and contracts.

Reforms in the field of reorganization of the state structure included: ministerial and reform of the Senate. In 1802, a decree was issued on the rights of the Senate. The Senate was declared the supreme body of the empire, having the highest administrative, judicial and controlling power. In 1802, a Manifesto was issued on the replacement of the Petrine collegiums by ministries. The ministerial reform (1802-1811) began, which became the most important in the field of public administration. The introduction of the first ministries (military, maritime, finance, public education, foreign and internal affairs, justice, commerce, the imperial court and appanages) completed the process of a clear delineation of the functions of executive authorities, changed collegiality in management to autocracy. This led to further centralization of the state apparatus, to rapid growth layers of bureaucrats - officials who are entirely dependent on the mercy of the king. The subordination of ministers to the emperor contributed to the strengthening of absolutism. Thus, the introduction of ministries was carried out in the interests of autocratic power. A Committee of Ministers was established to coordinate the activities of the ministries. Ministers were introduced into the Senate. The functions, structure, principles of organization and the general procedure for the passage of affairs in the ministries were clearly demarcated. Both representatives of the older generation and the "young friends" of the tsar were appointed to the posts of ministers, which expressed the political unity of the noble circles. The Cabinet of Ministers coordinated the activities of the ministries and discussed common problems.

New projects of public administration reforms were presented by a prominent statesman - a liberal M. M. Speransky, who from 1807 became the tsar's chief adviser on all matters of administration and legislation. In 1808, the tsar entrusted him with the leadership of a commission for drafting laws. In 1809, M. M. Speransky presented Alexander with a draft of state reforms, which provided for a phased transition to a constitutional monarchy ("Introduction to the Code of State Laws"). He proposed to create an elected State Duma with the right to discuss legislative projects, introduce elected judicial instances and create a State Council (as a link between the emperor and the central and local government). Despite the fact that Speransky did not touch upon social problems and did not touch on the foundations of the serf system, his project was of progressive importance, as it contributed to the beginning of the constitutional process in Russia and the convergence of its political system with Western European political systems. However, this was not destined to come true. All feudal Russia opposed the liberal reforms. The king, who approved the plan of M. Speransky, did not dare to implement it. The only result of the planned reforms was the establishment of the Council of State (in 1810), which was given advisory functions in the development of the most important laws. March 17, 1812 Speransky was dismissed from service, accused of treason and exiled to Nizhny Novgorod under police supervision. Thus, the emperor completed his attempts to carry out global reforms. After the Patriotic War of 1812, in connection with the strengthening of the reactionary trend in the policy of Alexander I, the question of further reforms in the field of public administration was not raised.

The internal political course of the Russian autocracy of this period is connected with the European reaction. After the end of the war of 1812 and the military campaigns of 1813-1814. the situation in the country worsened. The state administrative apparatus was disorganized, finances were upset, money circulation was disrupted. Under these conditions, the policy of the autocracy acquired a more conservative character.

The emperor has not yet abandoned attempts to resolve the peasant question and implement constitutional ideas. The peasant reform in the Baltic, which began in 1804-1805. So, in 1816, a decree was issued on the liberation of the peasants in Estonia (without land). Having received personal freedom, the peasants found themselves completely dependent on the landowners. In 1817-1819. the peasants of Estonia and Latvia (Courland and Livonia) were liberated under the same conditions. In 1818-1819. projects were developed for the liberation of the peasants of Russia (with the maximum observance of the interests of the landowners). An influential dignitary, the right hand of the tsar, Count A. A. Arakcheev (Minister of War from 1808-1810, from 1810 - Director of the Department of Military Affairs of the State Council, from 1815 supervised the activities of the Committee of Ministers) proposed a project for the liberation of peasants from serfdom dependence, by buying them out from the landowners, followed by the allocation of land at the expense of the treasury. Minister of Finance D. A. Guryev considered it necessary to free the peasants on a contractual basis with the landowners, and introduce various forms of ownership gradually. Both projects were approved by the king, but not implemented.

In May 1815, the Kingdom of Poland, annexed to Russia, was granted a constitution (one of the most liberal constitutions of that time). This was the first step towards the introduction of constitutional government in Russia. Since 1819, on behalf of the emperor, work was carried out on the creation of a draft of the future Russian constitution (the authors of the project were N. N. Novosiltsev and P. A. Vyazemsky). Within a year, the document was completed ("State Statutory Charter for Russia"), but never saw the light of day.

From the beginning of the 20s. Alexander I finally parted with reformist liberal ideas, work on projects was curtailed, interest in state affairs was lost .. Among the dignitaries surrounding him, the figure of A. A. Arakcheev stood out, who became the actual ruler of the country. It was Arakcheev who made a decisive contribution to the continued bureaucratization of public administration. The dominance of the office and paperwork, the desire for petty guardianship and regulation - these are the most important components of the political system created by him. The most ugly manifestation of the established regime was the so-called military settlements.

Policy in the field of education and culture

At the beginning of the 19th century, Russia noticeably lagged behind the West in the field of education, enlightenment and literacy of the population. In 1801-1812. the liberal ideas that prevailed in the government also affected the sphere of education. In 1803, a new regulation on the organization of educational institutions was issued. The education system was based on the principles of classlessness of educational institutions, free education at its lower levels, and the continuity of curricula. The lowest level was one-year parish schools, the second - county schools, the third - gymnasiums in provincial cities, the highest - universities. From 1804, new universities began to open. They trained personnel for the civil service, teachers for gymnasiums and medical specialists. There were also privileged secondary educational institutions - lyceums (one of them was the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, established in 1811). In 1804 the first censorship charter was issued. It said that censorship was introduced "not to restrict the freedom to think and write, but solely to take decent measures against its abuse." After the Patriotic War of 1812, due to the strengthening of conservative tendencies, the policy of the government changed. The Ministry of Public Education has turned, in the words of N. M. Karamzin, into a "ministry of blackout." In 1816, it was headed by the chief prosecutor of the Synod, A. N. Golitsyn, who, in the fight against advanced ideas, put forward the creed of the Holy Union - "the gospel, religion, mysticism." Education began to be based on the Holy Scriptures, higher educational institutions were closed, in which sedition was discovered, severe censorship was introduced, it was forbidden to publish information about trials in newspapers, and to touch on issues of the country's domestic and foreign policy. The reaction intensified in the country.

The foreign policy of Alexander I contributed to the solution of the most important state tasks: it made it possible to protect state borders, expand the country's territory through new acquisitions, and increase the international prestige of the empire.

In the foreign policy of Russia 1801-1825. a number of stages can be distinguished:

1801-1812 (before World War II with Napoleon);

Patriotic War of 1812

1813 -1815 (the time of foreign campaigns of the Russian army, the completion of the defeat of Napoleonic France). The main directions of Russia's foreign policy in the first quarter of the nineteenth century. became: EASTERN - the purpose of which was to strengthen positions in the Transcaucasus, the Black Sea and the Balkans and Western (European) - suggesting the active participation of Russia in European affairs and anti-Napoleonic coalitions.

Western direction.

Russia's activity in this direction was dictated by the international situation that had developed in Europe as a result of the confrontation between the two leading capitalist powers - England and France. Almost all issues of foreign policy were resolved taking into account the increased superiority of France, which claimed political and economic dominance in Europe. In 1801-1812. Russia pursued a policy of maneuvering between France and England, turning into a kind of arbiter in European affairs. In 1801, allied treaties between Russia and these powers were signed, which made it possible to temporarily smooth out the confrontation that had arisen. Peace in Europe, established since 1802, was extremely short-lived. In May 1803, Napoleon declared war on England, and in 1804 he proclaimed himself French emperor and began to claim not only European, but also world domination. Russia abandoned its neutrality and became an active member of the anti-French coalitions (1805-1807). In April 1805 a third coalition was formed. It included: England, Russia, Austria, Sweden, the Kingdom of Naples. In the Battle of Austerlitz (December 1805), the Allies were defeated by the French army. The coalition broke up.

In 1806, a new, fourth coalition was created (England, Prussia, Sweden, Russia), but it did not last long. Napoleon took Berlin, Prussia capitulated. The Russian army lost the battle near Friedland (a territory in East Prussia, now the Kaliningrad region). In June 1807, this union also broke up. France and Russia signed the Treaty of Tilsit, under the terms of which Russia agreed to the creation of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw under the protectorate of France. This territory later became a springboard for the French attack on Russia. In addition, Russia was forced to join the continental blockade of England (not beneficial for her in economic terms). Russia's unwillingness to comply with the conditions of the continental blockade was a few years later one of the reasons for the Patriotic War of 1812. The conclusion of peace with France allowed Russia to intensify operations in the eastern and northern directions. Simultaneously with the peace treaty, an alliance was signed between Russia and France. Russia entered the war with England, but did not take part in hostilities against her. She was busy solving the Eastern question.

Eastern direction.

Active actions of Russia in the Middle East, on the one hand, were stimulated by the increased attention of the Western European powers to this region, on the other hand, they were conditioned by the desire of the authorities to develop the south of Russia and the desire to secure the southern borders. In addition, the peoples of Transcaucasia were subjected to constant, devastating raids from the Ottoman Empire and Iran and sought to obtain a reliable ally in the person of Russia. Back in 1801-1804, Eastern and Western Georgia (Mengria, Guria and Imeretia) became part of Russia. The administration of these territories began to be carried out by the royal governor. The expansion of Russia's possessions in Transcaucasia led to a clash with Iran and Turkey.

The Russian-Iranian war (1804-1813) began after Russia rejected the ultimatum of Persia on the withdrawal of Russian troops from Transcaucasia. The Peace of Gulistan (1813), which ended the war, gave Russia the right to keep a navy in the Caspian Sea. The lands of several Transcaucasian provinces and khanates were assigned to it. These events led to the end of the first stage of the accession of the Caucasus to Russia.

The Russian-Turkish war (1806-1812) was caused by the desire of Turkey to return the former possessions in the Northern Black Sea region and the Caucasus. In 1807, the Russian squadron (under command. D. I. Senyavin) defeated the Ottoman fleet. In 1811, the main forces of the Ottoman army on the Danube were defeated (commander of the Danube army - M. I. Kutuzov). In May 1812, the Treaty of Bucharest was signed. Russia ceded Moldova, which received the status of the Bessarabia region, Serbia was granted autonomy, the western part of Moldova beyond the river. The Prut remained with Turkey (Principality of Moldavia). In 1813, Turkish troops invaded Serbia. Turkey demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops from Georgia, Mingrelia, Abkhazia. In 1816, under pressure from Russia, the Turkish-Serbian peace treaty was concluded, according to which Turkey recognized the independence of Serbia. In 1822, Turkey again violated the Russian-Turkish agreement: it sent troops into Moldavia and Wallachia, closed the Black Sea straits for Russian merchant ships. England and France supported the Ottoman Empire. In February - April 1825, at the St. Petersburg Conference with the participation of Austria, Prussia, France and Russia, Russia proposed to grant autonomy to Greece, but was refused and began to prepare for a new war with Turkey, not relying on the resolution of the Greek issue by diplomatic means.

North direction.

In 1808-1809. Russo-Swedish war took place. Russia sought to establish control over the Gulf of Finland and the Gulf of Bothnia, to strengthen the security of St. Petersburg. In 1808, Russian troops entered the territory of Finland (Commander M. B. Barclay - de - Tolly). In September 1809 Peace of Friedrichsham was signed. Finland went to Russia. The Russian emperor received the title of Grand Duke of Finland. Russian-Swedish trade was restored. Thus, in 1801-1812, Russia could not achieve success in the West (in the fight against France), but won a number of victories in other foreign policy areas and expanded its territory through new acquisitions.

The foreign policy of Alexander I contributed to the solution of the most important state tasks: it made it possible to protect state borders and expand the country's territory through new territories, and increased the international prestige of the empire.

Patriotic War of 1812

The Patriotic War of 1812 should be singled out as a special stage in Russia's foreign policy activity. The war was caused by the aggravation of relations between Russia and France. The main reasons for the war were: Russia's participation in the continental blockade of England (by 1812, Russia had practically ceased to fulfill the conditions of the blockade); French hegemony in Europe as the main source of military danger. The nature of the war: On the part of France, the war was unfair, predatory in nature. For the Russian people - it became liberation, led to the participation of the broad masses of the people, having received the name - Patriotic.

In the battle at the river Berezina (November 14-16, 1812), Napoleon's army was defeated. On December 25, 1812, Alexander issued a Manifesto on the end of the war. Russia managed to defend its independence. Society felt the need for change even more acutely. The victory strengthened the authority of Russia and marked the beginning of the liberation of the peoples of Central and Western Europe from Napoleon. France was dealt a blow from which she could not recover.

Foreign campaigns of the Russian army (1813 - 14). On January 1 (13), the Russian army under the command of M. I. Kutuzov crossed the river. Neman and entered the Duchy of Warsaw in order to consolidate the victory. Russia's allies in the end of the fight against Napoleon were: Prussia. Austria and Sweden. On October 4-6 (16-18), 1813, a battle took place near the city of Leipzig, called the "Battle of the Nations". This battle was the culmination of the military campaign of 1813. The Allies won the battle and the war moved to French territory. On March 18 (30), 1814, the capital of France, Paris, capitulated. March 25 (April 4), 1814 - Napoleon abdicated.

First quarter of the 19th century became a period of formation in Russia of the revolutionary movement and its ideology. The first Russian revolutionaries were the Decembrists.

Their worldview was formed under the influence of Russian reality in the first quarter of the 19th century. The progressive part of the nobility expected Alexander I to continue the liberal transformations begun in the first years of his reign. However, the policy of the tsarist government after the Patriotic War of 1812 aroused their indignation (the creation of military settlements by A. Arakcheev, the reactionary policy in the field of education and culture, etc.). Acquaintance with the development of Western countries strengthened the desire of the nobility to put an end to the causes of Russia's backwardness. The main one is serfdom, which hindered the economic development of the country. Serfdom was perceived by the Decembrists as an insult to the national pride of the victorious people. The participation of the tsarist government in the suppression of revolutionary and national liberation movements in Europe also aroused indignation. At the same time, these movements served as an example, inspired to fight. Russian journalism and literature, Western European educational literature also influenced the views of the future Decembrists.

The first secret political society - the "Union of Salvation" - arose in St. Petersburg in February 1816. The society included A. N. Muravyov, S. I. and M. I. Muravyov-Apostol, S. P. Trubetskoy, I. D. Yakushkin, P. I. Pestel (28 people in total). Its members set as their goal the abolition of serfdom, the adoption of a constitution. However, the limited forces prompted the members of the "Union" to create a new, broader organization.

In 1818, the "Union of Welfare" was created in Moscow, numbering about 200 members and having a charter with an extensive program of action ("Green Book"). The work of the Union was led by the Indigenous Council, which had local councils in other cities. The goals of the organization remain the same. The Decembrists saw the ways to achieve them in the propaganda of their views, in preparing society (for 20 years) for a painless revolutionary upheaval by military forces. Disagreements between radical and moderate members of society, as well as the need to get rid of random people, led in January 1821 to the decision to dissolve the Welfare Union.

In March 1821, the Southern Society arose in Ukraine, headed by P. I. Pestel, at the same time in St. Petersburg, on the initiative of N. M. Muravyov, the Northern Society was founded. Both societies interacted with each other and saw themselves as part of the same organization. Each society had its program document. Northern - "Constitution" by N.M. Muravyov, and Southern - "Russian Truth", written by P.I. Pestel.

Russkaya Pravda expressed the revolutionary nature of the transformations. N. Muraviev's "Constitution" expressed the liberal nature of the transformation. With regard to the tactics of the struggle, the members of the societies held the same view: the revolt of the army against the government.

Since 1823, preparations began for the uprising, which was scheduled for the summer of 1826. However, the death of Alexander I in November 1825 prompted the conspirators to take action. On the day of taking the oath to Nicholas I, the members of the Northern Society decided to come forward with the demands of their program. On December 14, 1825, 3,000 rebels gathered on Senate Square. However, their plans fell apart. Nicholas, who knew about the conspiracy, took the oath of the Senate in advance.

S. P. Trubetskoy - the leader of the conspirators - did not appear on the square. Troops loyal to the government were drawn to Senate Square and began shelling the rebels. The speech was suppressed.

On December 29, the uprising of the Chernigov regiment began under the command of S. I. Muravyov-Apostol. However, on January 3, 1826, it was suppressed by government troops.

In the case of the Decembrists, 579 people were involved, 289 were found guilty. Five - Ryleev, Pestel, Kakhovsky, Bestuzhev-Ryumin, S. Muravyov-Apostol - were hanged, more than 120 people were exiled for various periods to Siberia for hard labor or settlement.

The main reasons for the defeat of the uprising were the inconsistency of actions and unpreparedness, the lack of active support in different sectors of society, the unpreparedness of society for radical transformations. However, this performance was the first open protest in Russia, which set as its task a radical reorganization of society.



The internal political activity of Alexander I (1801-1825) was controversial, especially before the war of 1812. He came to power as a result of a palace coup, after the assassination of his father Paul I. With a tough barracks policy, Paul caused sharp discontent among the nobility. The upper circles of the capital, who secured the throne for Alexander, would have wished for a more loyal tsar, who in no way offended noble privileges. Having become a monarch, Alexander 1 promised to rule "according to the law and heart" of Catherine II. Since childhood, forced to maneuver between his father and grandmother, he turned out to be a cunning and dodgy politician who knows how to find profitable compromises. The liberal influence on the king was exerted by his tutor, the writer La Harpe. The beginning of the reign was characterized by a certain desire for liberal reformism. However, these undertakings of Alexander in no way touched the foundations of the state - autocracy and serfdom.

Basic conversions

• 1. Public administration reforms
• 1) In 1803, he issued a decree “On free cultivators”, which allowed landowners to release serfs into the wild with allotment of land to them for a ransom. This aroused the discontent of the nobles, the decree was not widely used, although the government recognized the fundamental possibility of liberating the peasants, and legislatively determined the conditions for this liberation and the rights of the liberated. politics war Decembrist
• 2) Alexander created the Unofficial Committee for Reforms, which consisted of liberal-minded nobles and was nicknamed by the reactionaries the “Jacobin gang.” The unofficial committee worked for a year, but the only result was the creation of ministries instead of the old Petrine collegiums. to lead the branches of state administration.Ministers reported directly to the emperor.
• 3) The Senate became the highest judicial body of the empire. He also supervised the observance of the rule of law in the country and the activities of administrative bodies.
• 4) In 1810, the State Council was established, which was supposed to become the highest governing body, but turned out to be only an advisory body under the tsar. The decisions of the council were not valid without their approval by the monarch. It consisted of officials appointed by the emperor.

Public administration reforms led to further centralization of administration, bureaucratization, and strengthening of autocratic power.

2. Education policy

The policy in the field of education was distinguished by a progressive character: many secondary and higher educational institutions were opened, including universities (Kazan, Kharkov, St. Petersburg, Derpt) and lyceums close to them according to the program. For some time, Alexander was noticeably influenced by the reformer M. M. Speransky, the son of a village priest, who reached the high post of state secretary without patronage. But Speransky aroused acute dissatisfaction with the high-ranking nobility. Intrigues begin against him, and he is removed from business. Ultimately, apart from the establishment of ministries, no reforms were carried out. They were considered premature, in particular because of the difficult international situation. In Europe, the Napoleonic wars unfolded one after another.

• 3. Domestic policy after the Patriotic War of 1812
• 1) A “Holy Alliance” is created, uniting European monarchs to fight the revolutionary movement in Europe.
• 2) The regime of Arakcheevshchina was established in the country (a regime of unlimited police despotism and violence, the arbitrariness of the military named Arakcheev, a temporary minister)
• 3) Censorship has been introduced, progressive-minded people are being persecuted, religious consciousness is being implanted in education.
• 4) Serfdom increased. The most ugly manifestation of feudal feudal anger arises - military settlements. In them, the peasants had to serve their military service for life, while at the same time doing agriculture in order to feed their families. Their children automatically became soldiers. The life of military settlements proceeded in the conditions of cane discipline. But this aroused increased resistance; there were several uprisings of military settlers.

The policy of AI, first liberal, then reactionary, aimed at strengthening autocracy and serfdom, contributed to the activation of the noble revolutionary movement in Russia - Decembrism.