Government
Ruled from 1855 to 1881, governing Russia as an autocracy. Tsars had absolute power
which was said to be ordained by God. All Russians had to obey the will of the tsar or suffer
punishment.
The 'tsar expected willing and total submission of his subjects:. This was a system based on
religious faith, and did not require the tsar to be made accountable to the people through
elections (or constitutional government.
• The tsar was obliged to act as a 'moral judge on behalf of God. He had a paternalistic duty
to protect his subjects and control their behaviour for the good of the nation as a whole. He
was supported in this role by the Russian Orthodox Church.
• Autocracy was viewed as a practical necessity. The Russian Empire was so vast and
diverse that it was better if one person had total control over imperial affairs. According to
supporters of the tsarist regime, such as Konstantin Pobedonostsev, a liberal democracy
and constitutional government would have been disastrous for Russia, as it would have led
to too many people demanding too many different policies.
•As the vast majority of the population were illiterate peasants, democracy would have
resulted in the governance of Russia by those who lacked 'the ability to reason'.
Although he displayed reformist tendencies, after an assassination attempt was made on
him in 1866, he adhered very strongly to the concept of autocracy.
Central Government Structure:
All organs of government were accountable to the tsar who selected them
The Imperial Council of State: nobles who give legal and financial advice to the tsar
Council of Ministers: discussed draft legislation (abandoned in 1882)
Committee of Ministers: initially 13 ministers in charge of a particular aspect of the
administration of Russian affairs but often didn’t communicate which led to problems
The Senate: acted as the Supreme Court in Russia
The Third Section: operated the Okhrana and strict censorship
The Bureaucracy: professionally educated but incompetent class of civil servants who ran
the law, civil administration and police, numbering around 114,000. Some were unpaid so
prone to corruption
The gov was financed through feudal dues and tax (90% from peasantry and workers)
Local government:
Before 1861, provinces were largely under the jurisdiction of noble landowners and village
issues were discussed by the mir. After the emancipation, the nobility ceased to play a
political role, and the management of local affairs was left in the hands of local police
constables appointed by the interior ministry. In 1864, Alexander II also introduced the
Zemstvo (Zemstva in plural) or regional council:
● An elected membership was voted in by a mixture of landowners, urban dwellers and
peasants. Electors were selected mainly by property qualification.
● Responsible for public education, public health, local economic development, road
building, provision of services such as water and fire prevention.
● In 1870, an urban equivalent was introduced called the Duma. The entry qualification
to this body was even tougher than for the Zemstva, and thus excluded the urban
proletariat.
, Judicial Changes
Problem:
No legal recognition of the serfs, court procedure was often over-complicated and
unfair (appointed by the tsar) & no lawyers. Unpaid judges prone to bribery
Reform 1864:
- Separation of judicial and administrative powers so cases could no longer last
multiple decades
- Trial by jury for all cases even for serfs
- the creation of a hierarchy of courts to cater for different types of case
- The introduction of full publicity in tribunals
- Simplification of court procedure
Effects:
- Less corruption and a sense of fairness that had been absent before the reforms-
paid judges and existence of a jury
- Still a shortage of trained lawyers
- Interference from the bureaucracy prevented it being applied universally
- Existence of peasant courts negated the fundamental principle of equality before the
law
Methods of repression and enforcement:
● The Third Section of the Imperial Chancellery: a form of secret police inherited by
Alexander II. In line with his reformist inclinations, Alexander II replaced the Third
Section with the softer Department of State Police (Okhrana) in 1880.
● The army: numbered around 1,400,000 men, most of whom were peasant conscripts
who had to serve for 25 years as part of their serf based obligation. The officers were
drawn from the nobility and led corruptly. At any point in time, the army could be used
to deal with internal law and order issues, as well as to engage in wars. The Crimean
War (1853-6) revealed a number of deficiencies in military provision. The dismal
military performance, coupled with the Emancipation Edict in 1861, led to important
military reforms
Censorship:
In 1865, censorship was relaxed, although the government retained the right to withdraw
publications of a 'dangerous orientation'. Government departments also published
newspapers (Ruskit) that provided information on official items.
The result was an increase in the circulation of newspapers, periodicals and books: 1836
books published by 1864 and in 1872 the first Russian translation of volume 1 of Marx's Das
Kapital was published
Propaganda:
The tsarist regime promoted the Romanovs through pamphleteering, portraits, photographs
and staged events
Opposition:
Ruled from 1855 to 1881, governing Russia as an autocracy. Tsars had absolute power
which was said to be ordained by God. All Russians had to obey the will of the tsar or suffer
punishment.
The 'tsar expected willing and total submission of his subjects:. This was a system based on
religious faith, and did not require the tsar to be made accountable to the people through
elections (or constitutional government.
• The tsar was obliged to act as a 'moral judge on behalf of God. He had a paternalistic duty
to protect his subjects and control their behaviour for the good of the nation as a whole. He
was supported in this role by the Russian Orthodox Church.
• Autocracy was viewed as a practical necessity. The Russian Empire was so vast and
diverse that it was better if one person had total control over imperial affairs. According to
supporters of the tsarist regime, such as Konstantin Pobedonostsev, a liberal democracy
and constitutional government would have been disastrous for Russia, as it would have led
to too many people demanding too many different policies.
•As the vast majority of the population were illiterate peasants, democracy would have
resulted in the governance of Russia by those who lacked 'the ability to reason'.
Although he displayed reformist tendencies, after an assassination attempt was made on
him in 1866, he adhered very strongly to the concept of autocracy.
Central Government Structure:
All organs of government were accountable to the tsar who selected them
The Imperial Council of State: nobles who give legal and financial advice to the tsar
Council of Ministers: discussed draft legislation (abandoned in 1882)
Committee of Ministers: initially 13 ministers in charge of a particular aspect of the
administration of Russian affairs but often didn’t communicate which led to problems
The Senate: acted as the Supreme Court in Russia
The Third Section: operated the Okhrana and strict censorship
The Bureaucracy: professionally educated but incompetent class of civil servants who ran
the law, civil administration and police, numbering around 114,000. Some were unpaid so
prone to corruption
The gov was financed through feudal dues and tax (90% from peasantry and workers)
Local government:
Before 1861, provinces were largely under the jurisdiction of noble landowners and village
issues were discussed by the mir. After the emancipation, the nobility ceased to play a
political role, and the management of local affairs was left in the hands of local police
constables appointed by the interior ministry. In 1864, Alexander II also introduced the
Zemstvo (Zemstva in plural) or regional council:
● An elected membership was voted in by a mixture of landowners, urban dwellers and
peasants. Electors were selected mainly by property qualification.
● Responsible for public education, public health, local economic development, road
building, provision of services such as water and fire prevention.
● In 1870, an urban equivalent was introduced called the Duma. The entry qualification
to this body was even tougher than for the Zemstva, and thus excluded the urban
proletariat.
, Judicial Changes
Problem:
No legal recognition of the serfs, court procedure was often over-complicated and
unfair (appointed by the tsar) & no lawyers. Unpaid judges prone to bribery
Reform 1864:
- Separation of judicial and administrative powers so cases could no longer last
multiple decades
- Trial by jury for all cases even for serfs
- the creation of a hierarchy of courts to cater for different types of case
- The introduction of full publicity in tribunals
- Simplification of court procedure
Effects:
- Less corruption and a sense of fairness that had been absent before the reforms-
paid judges and existence of a jury
- Still a shortage of trained lawyers
- Interference from the bureaucracy prevented it being applied universally
- Existence of peasant courts negated the fundamental principle of equality before the
law
Methods of repression and enforcement:
● The Third Section of the Imperial Chancellery: a form of secret police inherited by
Alexander II. In line with his reformist inclinations, Alexander II replaced the Third
Section with the softer Department of State Police (Okhrana) in 1880.
● The army: numbered around 1,400,000 men, most of whom were peasant conscripts
who had to serve for 25 years as part of their serf based obligation. The officers were
drawn from the nobility and led corruptly. At any point in time, the army could be used
to deal with internal law and order issues, as well as to engage in wars. The Crimean
War (1853-6) revealed a number of deficiencies in military provision. The dismal
military performance, coupled with the Emancipation Edict in 1861, led to important
military reforms
Censorship:
In 1865, censorship was relaxed, although the government retained the right to withdraw
publications of a 'dangerous orientation'. Government departments also published
newspapers (Ruskit) that provided information on official items.
The result was an increase in the circulation of newspapers, periodicals and books: 1836
books published by 1864 and in 1872 the first Russian translation of volume 1 of Marx's Das
Kapital was published
Propaganda:
The tsarist regime promoted the Romanovs through pamphleteering, portraits, photographs
and staged events
Opposition:
