(Great reforms) - reforms carried out in the 60-70s of the 19th century in the Russian Empire by Emperor Alexander 2 and affecting almost all spheres of state life.

Prerequisites and reasons for the reforms of Alexander II

Russia, longer than any other state, remained a country with a feudal system and serfdom. By the middle of the 19th century, this type of state finally outlived its usefulness, and the conflict, which had been brewing since the 18th century, reached its peak. It was necessary to urgently change how state structure and, mainly, the economic system.

With the development of technology and the emergence of industrial technology, the need for manual labor more and more disappeared, but the landowners still actively used the labor of the peasants, imposing huge taxes on them. As a result, the peasantry was ruined everywhere, widespread strikes and hunger strikes began, which led to a significant decline in the serf economy and the income of the landlords. The state, in turn, also received less profit from the ruined landowners, and the treasury suffered. This situation did not suit either side.

The developing industry also suffered, since due to the widespread enslavement of the peasants, there was not enough free labor that could service the machines in factories.

In 1859-1861, peasant riots and revolutionary sentiments reached their peak. The situation was also aggravated by the lost Crimean War, which finally undermined the confidence of citizens in the tsar and the government, which showed its complete failure, both economically and militarily. In such an atmosphere, talks began about the need to abolish serfdom and new reforms that would help the country get out of the crisis.

Emperor Alexander II, who came to the throne in 1855, at one of his speeches before the nobility declared the need for the speedy elimination of serfdom from above (by decree of the sovereign), otherwise it would happen from below (revolution).

The era of great reforms began.

Major reforms of Alexander II

Among the main political reforms Alexander 2 can be called:

• Peasant Reform (1861);
• Financial reform (1863);
• Education reform (1863);
• Zemskaya reform (1864);
• Judicial reform (1864);
• Reform of state self-government (1870);
• Military reform (1874);

The essence of all the reforms of Alexander II was the restructuring of society and the management system and the formation of a new type of state. One of the most important reforms can be called the abolition of serfdom in 1861. The reform was being prepared for several years and, despite the resistance of the nobility and the bourgeoisie, was nevertheless carried out. As a result of the peasant reform, all peasants were freed from serfdom - along with personal freedom, they also received a small piece of land completely free of charge, on which they could live and work. In addition, a peasant could buy an arable land for himself for a small amount - this contributed a lot of money to the state treasury. In addition, the peasants received a number of civil rights: they could make purchase and sale transactions, they could open trade and industrial enterprises, apply for a transition to another class. They were also freed from administrative and legal dependence on their former landowners.

Another reform of Alexander II is the reform of the press. In the Empire, such a concept as publicity and freedom of the press (relative) appeared, newspapers could discuss events carried out by the government and even criticize individual ministers, however, without affecting the emperor. Also, the “iron curtain” was removed, and people could leave the country more freely.

The judicial system has also changed. The old type of court was replaced by a new one, which proclaimed the principle of unity for all estates and the principle of publicity and openness. A jury trial appeared, which allowed the judiciary to separate from the executive branch and make more independent decisions.

Zemsky and city reforms formed open bodies local government, courts, local governments appeared in cities - this greatly simplified the process of city self-government.

The military reform involved replacing the Petrine system of recruits with universal military service. This allowed the creation of a larger army that could be mobilized in as soon as possible as needed. The level of military education has also increased due to the growth of military schools and academies.

Along with the development of military academies, others began to appear. schools... Through educational reform general level education of society began to grow rapidly.

The results and consequences of the reforms of Alexander II

Political and financial reforms conducted by Alexander II are called great for a reason. Thanks to them, the foundation was laid for the formation of a new type of society in the Russian Empire - an industrial society of the capitalist type. The state became more democratic, citizens began to have more equal rights not dependent on the estate, as well as the possibility of a fair and open trial. The press became freer, allowing citizens to discuss and condemn government decisions.

The emancipation of peasants and reforms in the economy allowed the country to overcome the crisis and create all conditions for further successful growth, taking into account the new economic realities.

In general, the country has gone through significant changes that have helped it embark on a new path of development, more successful and modern.

Loris-Melikov's reforms

A number of attempts on the life of the royal family, especially the explosion of Khalturin in the Winter Palace (1880), testified to a significant increase in revolutionary movement, with which the liberal began to unite. Recognizing the incompleteness of some of his previous transformations, Alexander II decided to entrust their further development to General Loris-Melikov. He put forward plans for a number of reforms regarding the position of the peasants, the tax system, freedom of the press, and abolished the III branch (political police). Loris-Melikov even intended to involve the elected people's representatives in the preliminary discussion of the most important bills, which would introduce elements of constitutionalism into the Russian statehood. You can read about this minister's program in the articles on our website: Loris-Melikov and his projects, Loris-Melikov's reforms - briefly, Loris-Melikov's "Constitution" - briefly. The government abandoned these projects after the assassination of Alexander II by the Narodnaya Volya on March 1, 1881.

In politics, as in all social life, not going forward means being thrown back.

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich

Alexander 2 went down in history as a reformer. During his reign, significant changes took place in Russia, the main one of which concerns the solution of the peasant question. In 1861, Alexander II canceled serfdom... Such a cardinal step was overdue for a long time, but its implementation was associated with a lot of difficulties. The abolition of serfdom required the emperor to carry out other reforms that were supposed to return Russia to a leading position in the world arena. The country has accumulated a huge number of problems that have not been solved since the era of Alexander 1 and Nicholas 1. The new emperor had to place great emphasis on solving these problems, spending in many respects liberal reforms, since the previous path of conservatism did not lead to positive consequences.

The main reasons for reforming Russia

Alexander II came to power in 1855, and he immediately faced an acute problem in carrying out reforms in almost all spheres of state life. The main reasons for the reforms of the era of Alexander II are as follows:

1. Defeat in Crimean war.
2. The growing discontent of the people.
3. Loss of economic competition to Western countries.
4. The progressive entourage of the emperor.

Most of the transformations were carried out in the period 1860 - 1870. They went down in history under the name "liberal reforms of Alexander II". Today the word "liberal" often frightens people, but in fact it was in this era that the basic principles of the functioning of the state were laid, which existed until the end of the existence of the Russian Empire. It is also important to understand here that even though the previous era was called “the apogee of autocracy,” it was flattery. Nicholas 1 drank in victory in Patriotic War, and seeming domination over European countries. He was afraid to make significant changes in Russia. Therefore, the country actually reached a dead end, and his son Alexander II was forced to solve the gigantic problems of the Empire.

What reforms have been carried out

We have already said that major reform Alexander II is the abolition of serfdom. It was this transformation that put the country in front of the need to modernize all other areas. In short, the main changes were as follows.

Financial reform 1860 - 1864... A state bank, zemstvo and commercial banks were created. Banks' activities were mainly aimed at supporting industry. IN Last year For the implementation of reforms, control bodies are created, independent of local government bodies, to audit the financial performance of government bodies.

Zemsky reform of 1864... With its help, the task of attracting the broad masses of the population to solve everyday problems was solved. Elected bodies of zemstvo and local self-government were created.

Judicial reform of 1864... After the reform, the court became more "legal". Under Alexander II, the jury was first introduced, publicity, the ability to bring any person to trial regardless of his position, the independence of the court from local administrations, corporal punishment was abolished, and much more.

Education reform of 1864... This reform completely changed the system that Nicholas I tried to build, who sought to delimit the population from knowledge. Alexander II promoted the principle of public education, which would be accessible to all classes. For this, new primary schools and gymnasiums were opened. In particular, it was in the Alexander era that the discovery begins women's gymnasiums and women are admitted to public service.

Censorship reform of 1865... These changes absolutely supported the previous course. As before, control over everything that was published was carried out, since the activities of a revolutionary nature in Russia were very actively promoted.

Urban reform of 1870... Mainly focused on urban beautification, market development, health care, education, establishment sanitary standards etc. Reforms were introduced in 509 out of 1130 cities in Russia. The reform was not applied to cities located in Poland, Finland and Central Asia.

Military reform of 1874... Mainly aimed at modernizing weapons, developing the fleet and training personnel... As a result Russian army again became one of the leading in the world.

Consequences of the reforms

The reforms of Alexander II had the following consequences for Russia:

• Prospects have been created for building a capitalist model of the economy. The level of state regulation of the economy was reduced in the country, and a free labor market was created. However, industry was not 100% ready to embrace the capitalist model. This took longer.
• The foundations for the formation of civil society have been laid. The population received more civil rights and freedoms. This applies to all spheres of activity, from education to real freedoms of movement and work.
• Strengthening the opposition movement. The bulk of the reforms of Alexander II were liberal, so the liberal movements, which were numbered by Nicholas the First, began to gain strength again. It was in this era that the key aspects were laid that led to the events of 1917.

Defeat in the Crimean War as a justification for reforms

Russia lost the Crimean War for several reasons:

• Lack of communication. Russia is a huge country and it is very difficult to move an army around it. Nicholas 1 to solve this problem began construction railroad, but this project was not implemented due to commonplace corruption. The money intended for the construction of a railway connecting Moscow and the Black Sea region was simply torn apart.
• Disagreement in the army. The soldiers and officers did not understand each other. Between them there was a whole gap, both class and educational. The situation was aggravated by the fact that Nicholas 1 demanded severe punishment of the soldiers for any offense. It is from here that the nickname of the Emperor among the soldiers comes - "Nikolai Palkin".
• Military-technical lag behind Western countries.

Today, many historians say that the scale of the defeat in the Crimean War was simply gigantic, and this is the main factor indicating that Russia needed reforms. This idea is supported and supported, including in Western countries... After the capture of Sevastopol, all European publications wrote that in Russia the autocracy had outlived its usefulness, and the country needed changes. But the main problem was different. In 1812 Russia won great victory... This victory created an absolute illusion among the emperors that the Russian army was invincible. And so the Crimean War dispelled this illusion, western armies demonstrate their superiority in technical terms. All this led to the fact that officials, who pay great attention to opinion from abroad, adopted a complex of national inferiority and began to try to transmit it to the entire population.

But the truth is that the scale of defeat in war is grossly overestimated. Of course, the war was lost, but this does not mean that Alexander II ruled a weak Empire. It must be remembered that in the Crimean War, Russia was opposed by the best and most developed countries of Europe at that time. And despite this, England and its other allies still recall with horror this war and the valor of Russian soldiers.

1861 year. Best known as the abolition of serfdom in Russia. The serfs were given freedom. Everything they had (houses, livestock, etc.) became their personal property. They also received the right to local self-government, which was carried out through elections. The landowners retained their lands, but were obliged to lease allotments from them to the peasants. The "rent" was corvee or quitrent. Farmers could buy out the land, for this purpose the state gave them a loan for 49 and a half years. The peasants received freedom, but did not receive land.

The ransom terms were extremely unprofitable and drove the farmers into a new bondage. A wave of peasant uprisings swept across the country. However, over time, the freedom of the former serfs took on real shape, especially for the hardworking and enterprising. The reform of 1861 was a turning point, the line between two eras - feudalism and capitalism, creating conditions for the establishment of capitalism as the dominant formation. The personal emancipation of the peasants eliminated the landlords' monopoly on the exploitation of peasant labor, and contributed to a more rapid growth of the labor market for developing capitalism, both in industry and in agriculture.

Education reform. 1863-1864. The reforms of the public education of Alexander II (otherwise called educational), affected primarily universities (the university charter gave them greater independence in internal affairs), gymnasiums (their charter provided the opportunity to receive secondary education for all segments of the population Russian Empire regardless of class and religion) and primary schools(the regulation on elementary public schools entrusted the state, the clergy, and city and zemstvo councils with the basic literacy of the population).

The results and significance of the education reforms of Alexander II cannot be overestimated: in less than a decade after their implementation, the number of schools in Russia increased to almost 20 thousand, and the number of students in universities increased by one and a half times. The level of literacy among the people has increased significantly.

Zemskaya reform. 1864 Zemstvo and uyezd institutions were introduced: assemblies and councils. They have become elements of local government. These were elected bodies. Moreover, all estates took part in the voting (albeit to varying degrees). Meetings, usually convened annually, gave orders by the boards. The administrations carried out them and reported. Their staff consisted of six people and dealt with economic needs: they were in charge of local education and medicine, they contributed to the development of trade in their areas, Agriculture, industry, etc.

Zemstvos were subordinate to governors. Zemsky institutions were not introduced in all provinces. Zemstvos played a significant role in spreading literacy among the Russian peasantry. Zemstvo institutions contributed to the opening of many schools and hospitals in the countryside, thus raising the level of medical care for the peasants (for example, the number of doctors in zemstvo provinces from 1870 to 1910 increased 5 times).

Judicial reform. On November 20, 1864, the judicial statutes were introduced, which provided for the independence of judges and courts, independence and irremovability of judges, separation of prosecutors and judges, equality of all estates in Russia before the court. The judicial reform of Alexander II provided that the verdict could now be passed only by the court and established a jury trial, and also introduced the institution of the legal profession (then lawyers were called attorneys at law).

Also, the reform ensured the transparency of judicial proceedings. The judicial reform of 1964 was very progressive. She partially separated the court from the authorities and formed a system of judicial instances. This reform (albeit not much) reduced arbitrariness and made judicial decisions fairer.

City reform. 1870 The city reform of Alexander II introduced new elements of city self-government: electoral meetings, dumas (elected once every 4 years, suffrage was strongly limited by the amount of property) and councils (responsible for fire safety, landscaping, food, construction of public buildings (for example, marinas) etc.). Strongly reminiscent of the Zemstvo reform, adjusted for urban conditions and features. The result of the reform of the city management of Alexander II was the rapid development of cities, especially in the field of trade and industry, as well as the strengthening of the role of society in the process of city management.

However, it was not without its drawbacks. In connection with the introduction of the new order, small towns experienced significant difficulties, since, according to the law, most of the money went to the maintenance of government institutions (police, etc.). Some cities couldn't handle it. In general, the reform had a positive impact on the economic situation in Russia and made the economy less centralized.

Military reform. The main creator of the military reform of Alexander II was the Minister of War D.A.Milyutin. What was done: the army and the navy received more modern weapons, the reconstruction of military factories was carried out, the overwhelming number of corporal punishment in the army was canceled, the creation of the General Staff, the introduction of the military educational institutions, a significant reduction in the size of the army. But the main element of the military reform was the replacement of recruiting with universal military service.

As a result of the military reform of Alexander II, the Russian army was significantly reduced, but it received a huge reserve in case of war, consisting of men trained in military affairs, but living an ordinary peaceful life. In addition, the army was better armed and equipped compared to the pre-reform period. Of the shortcomings, it should be noted the weak organization of the rear.

Monetary reform. The founder of the reforms was V.A. Tatarinov. The reform began on May 22, 1862. From now on, all government departments had to annually draw up estimates in a specially established form and indicate in detail all items of expenditure in different paragraphs. In 1864-1868, all state revenues were concentrated in the cash offices of the state treasury, which was subordinate to the Ministry of Finance. In 1865, local bodies of state financial control - control chambers - were created.

In addition, there have been a number of changes in trade. The wine ransom was now replaced by the excise stamps that still exist today, and the same thing happened with tobacco in 1866. Local excise offices were created to regulate the sale of alcohol and tobacco and issue excise taxes. Taxation was divided into two parts - unreported fees (indirect taxes) and salary fees (direct taxes), the corresponding government bodies were created.

Thanks to the measures taken, the state financial system became more transparent and efficient - strict accounting of all funds was kept, money was not spent on unnecessary things, and officials were responsible for every ruble spent. This allowed the state to start getting out of the crisis and reduce Negative consequences from the emancipation of the peasants and other reforms.

Chronology

• 1855 - 1881 The reign of Alexander II Nikolaevich
• 1861, February 19 Abolition of serfdom in Russia
• 1864 Conducting judicial, rural and school reforms
• 1870 Implementation of urban reform
• 1874 military reform

Zemskaya reform (1864)

On January 1, 1864, Alexander II approved the "Regulations on provincial and district zemstvo institutions" - a legislative act that introduced zemstvo.

It should be borne in mind that for a country where the majority of the population were peasants who had just freed themselves from serfdom, the introduction of local governments was a significant step in the development of political culture. Elected by various estates of Russian society, zemstvo institutions were fundamentally different from corporate-estate organizations, such as noble gatherings... The serf-owners were outraged that on the bench in the zemstvo assembly “yesterday’s slave was sitting next to his recent master”. Indeed, various estates were represented in the zemstvos - nobles, officials, clergy, merchants, industrialists, bourgeois and peasants.

Members of the zemstvo assemblies were called vowels. The meeting was chaired by the leaders of the noble self-government - the leaders of the nobility. The assemblies were formed by executive bodies - county and provincial zemstvo boards. Zemstvos received the right to collect taxes for their needs and hire employees.

The sphere of activity of the new bodies of all-estate self-government was limited only to economic and cultural affairs: the maintenance of local communication routes, the care of medical care population, about public education, local trade and industry, national food, etc. New organs of all-class self-government were introduced only at the level of provinces and counties. There was no central zemstvo representation, and there was no small zemstvo unit in the volost. Contemporaries wittily called the zemstvo “a building without a foundation and a roof”. The slogan "crowning the building" has since become the main slogan of Russian liberals for 40 years - right up to the creation of the State Duma.

Urban reform (1870)

The entry of Russia on the path of capitalism was marked by the rapid development of cities, a change social structure their population, led to an increase in the role of cities as centers of economic, socio-political and cultural life of the country.

The city reform of 1870 created all-estates local self-government bodies. Administrative functions were no longer assigned to the entire urban society, but to its representative body - the Duma. Duma elections were held every four years. The number of members of the Duma - vowels - was quite significant: depending on the number of voters in the city - from 30 to 72 people. In the metropolitan Duma there were much more vowels: in Moscow - 180, in St. Petersburg - 252. At the meeting of the Duma, the executive body of public administration was elected - the council and the mayor, who was the chairman of both the executive and administrative bodies.

The right to vote was based on the bourgeois property qualification. Owners of immovable property taxed in favor of the city, as well as persons paying certain commercial and industrial fees to the city, received the right to participate in elections, regardless of class. The right to vote as legal entity also used by various departments, institutions, societies, companies, churches, monasteries. Only men over the age of 25 were allowed to take part in the voting in person. Women with the necessary electoral qualifications could participate in elections only through their proxies. In fact, hired workers, who in the overwhelming majority did not own real estate, as well as representatives of the educated part of the population, people of mental labor: engineers, doctors, teachers, officials, who mostly did not have their own houses, but rented apartments, were practically deprived of the right to vote.

The new public institutions were entrusted with the tasks of managing the municipal economy. They were in charge of a wide range of issues of urban economy and improvement: water supply, sewerage, street lighting, transport, landscaping, urban planning problems, etc. City councils were obliged to take care of the "public welfare": to assist in providing the population with food, to take measures against fires and other disasters, to promote the protection of "public health" (to arrange hospitals, to help the police in carrying out sanitary and hygienic measures), to take measures against begging, promote public education(establish schools, museums, etc.).

Judicial reform (1864)

Judicial charters November 20, 1864 decisively broke with the pre-reform judicial system and legal proceedings... The new court was built on an unclassified basis, the irremovability of judges, the independence of the court from the administration, publicity, orality and adversarial proceedings were proclaimed; when considering criminal cases in the district court, the participation of a jury was envisaged. It's all characteristic signs bourgeois court.

Magistrate's Court was created in counties and cities for the consideration of minor criminal cases. The Magistrate's Court had jurisdiction over cases, for the commission of which there was a punishment in the form of a reprimand, remark or suggestion, a fine of not more than 300 rubles, arrest for not more than three months or imprisonment for not more than a year.

When considering criminal cases in the district court, it was provided jury institute... It was introduced despite the resistance of the conservative forces and even the reluctance of Alexander II himself. They motivated their negative attitude to the idea of ​​jurors by the fact that the people had not yet matured to this, and such a trial would inevitably be "political in nature." According to the judicial statutes, a jury could be a citizen of Russia aged 25 to 70 years old, not under trial and investigation, not excluded from service by court and not subject to public condemnation for vices, not under guardianship, not suffering from mental illness, blindness, dumbness and lived in this district for at least two years. A relatively high property qualification was also required.

The second instance for the district courts was judicial chamber, which had departments. The chairman and its members were approved by the king on the proposal of the Minister of Justice. She served as an appellate court for civil and criminal cases tried in district courts without a jury.

The Senate was viewed as the supreme court of cassation and had criminal and civil cassation departments. Senators were appointed by the king on the proposal of the Minister of Justice.

The Prosecutor's Office was reorganized, it was included in the judicial department, headed by the Prosecutor General, who is also the Minister of Justice.

Court presidents, prosecutors and judicial investigators were required to have a higher legal education or solid legal practice. Judges and examining magistrates were irreplaceable, and high salaries were assigned to them in order to secure honest professionals in the judiciary.

The largest step in introducing the principles of bourgeois justice was the establishment of the institution of the legal profession.

On November 20, 1866, it was allowed "in all time-based publications to publish what is happening in the courts." Court reports reporting on Russian and foreign trials are becoming prominent in the press.

Military reforms (60s - 70s)

By revising military reform one should take into account its dependence not only on the socio-economic situation in the country, but also on the realities of the international situation in those years. Second half of the 19th century characterized by the formation of relatively stable military coalitions, which increased the threat of war and led to a rapid build-up of the military potential of all powers. Outlined in the middle of the XIX century. the decomposition of the Russian state system affected the state of the army. The unrest in the army was clearly revealed, there were cases of revolutionary uprisings, there was a decline in military discipline.

The first changes were made in the army in the late 50s - early 60s. Military settlements were finally abolished.

WITH 1862 A gradual reform of local military administration began on the basis of the creation of military districts. A new system of military command was created, eliminating excessive centralization and facilitating the rapid deployment of the army in the event of war. The reorganization of the War Ministry and the General Staff was carried out.

IN 1865 began to be held military judicial reform. Its foundations were based on the principles of publicity and adversarial nature of the military court, on the rejection of the vicious system of corporal punishment. Three courts have been established: regimental, military district and chief military courts, which duplicated the main links of the general judicial system Russia.

The development of the army largely depended on the availability of a well-trained officer corps. In the mid-60s, more than half of the officers had no education at all. It was necessary to solve two important issues: significantly improve the training of officers and open access to obtaining officer ranks not only for noblemen and non-commissioned officers, but also for representatives of other classes. For this purpose, military and cadet schools were created with a short training period - 2 years, in which persons who graduated from secondary educational institutions were admitted.

January 1, 1874 was charter approved about conscription... The entire male population over the age of 21 was subject to conscription. For the army, a 6-year term of active service and a 9-year stay in the reserve were mainly established (for the fleet - 7 and 3). Numerous benefits have been established. The only son of his parents, the only breadwinner in the family, some national minorities, etc. were exempted from active service. The new system made it possible to have a relatively small peacetime army and significant reserves in case of war.

The army has become modern - in structure, weapons, education.

Education reforms

The economic process and the further development of social life in Russia were seriously constrained by the low educational level of the population and the absence of a system for mass training of specialists. In 1864 a new provision was introduced about elementary public schools, according to which the education of the people was to be jointly dealt with by the state, church and society (zemstvos and cities). The same year was approved school charter, proclaiming the availability of secondary education for all classes and religions. Was adopted a year earlier university charter which returned autonomy to universities: the election of the rector, deans, professors was introduced; the university council received the right to independently decide all scientific, educational and administrative-financial issues. The results were not slow to show themselves: by 1870 there were 17,700 primary schools of all kinds, with about 600,000 students enrolled in them; the number of students at universities increased by 1.5 times. This was, of course, not enough, but incomparably more than in the pre-reform period.

Internal unity and liberal orientation of the whole complex of reforms 60s - 70s allowed Russia to take an important step towards bourgeois monarchy and introduce new legal principles into operation state machinery; gave an impetus to the formation of civil society, caused a social and cultural upsurge in the country. These are undoubted achievements and positive results of the reforms of Alexander II.