(3) The "reforming ers" 1855-65 and 1866-81

Political control
1. Local administration (zemstvas)
  1. In 1859, whilst discussing the terms of emancipation, nobles from the Tver province went too far in Alexander's eyes. They called for an independent judiciary, some form of local government independent of the bureaucracy, and an elected body to deal with economic affairs
    1. Their spokesman, Unkovsky, was promptly sent into exile.
  2. In 1862, 13 nobles from Tver called for an elected and classless national assembly. They were imprisoned in St Petersburg
  3. The decree establishing the zemstva was duly published in January 1864
    1. The zemstva were local elected councils
    2. The zemstva were given responsibility for public education, public health, local economic development, road building and provision of service such as water and fire prevention
  4. This failure shows the dichotomy which existed between the desire for reform and the equally strong desire to maintain autocratic control
  5. Alexander wanted reform, he wanted to devolve some power from the centre, but he also wished to remain in firm control and to maintain stability
    1. The Zemtva were two-tiered: district (uezd) and provincial (gubernia).
    2. Local taxation continued to favour the nobility rather than the peasantry, but by virtue of their local knowledge, the zemstva did improve local administration in the areas in which they were allowed to operate
  6. In 1870, a Municipal Statute set up a similar system in the towns. A town council (duma) was elected by Russian male property holders over the age of 25. They too were given responsibility for public health, provision of services, roads, public education and local trade and industry
2. Military
  1. The Crimean War had shown all too clearly the shortcomings of the military system. Despite the fact that the army consumed almost 1/3 of the government income, it had failed to defeat inferior numbers of foreign troops on Russian territory
  2. The command structure and the administration were inflexible and inefficient. Punishment was often severe and barbaric. The period of service for conscripts was 25 years
    1. To make matters worse the parade ground was normally given greater priority than the ability to fight
  3. In 1861 the Tsar appointed Miliutin as Minister of War, with the explicit task of reforming the military, Miliutin took a Liberal stance
  4. He enjoyed the enthusiastic support of Grand Duke Constantine, the Minister of the Marine. This imperial support often helped him through turbulent waters.
  5. In 1862, regional commands were set up in four areas. The aim was to improve efficiency by decentralising administration and supply. In 1864, six further regional commands were established. In 1863 the more extreme forms of corporal punishment were ended and the Military code was revised
  6. He set up special army schools which were open to all. This was a significant step forward, and by 1871 12% of the army schools students were not from the nobility
  7. However, the striking success of the Prussian army against the French in 1870-1 gave Miliutin the lever he needed.
  8. In 1874, the Manifesto and Statute on Universal Military Service was published. It become law in 1875 Liability to military service and conscription was extended to all classes. All males upon reaching 21 years of age had to register. One quarter of these were chosen to serve
    1. Service was limited to 15 years, of which normally only about 7 years would be spent on active service
  9. University graduates, for example, only had to serve 6 months with the colours. Even those with merely a primary education had to serve only four years. Though these reductions in service obviously favoured the educated, it was still a major step forward in social as well as military terms
  10. It treated all Russians equally, excepting the reference to education. Yet geat improvements were made, and their effects could clearly be seen in improved performance of the army in the Russo-Turkish War of 1878
Social control
1. Education
  1. The Tsar appointed Golvonin as Minister of Education. He was a close colleague of Grand Duke Constantine, he was a liberal reformer
  2. It was decided to develop primary education in the villages. The task was soon handed over to the Zemstva and duma later
  3. Between 1861 and 1881 the number of primary and secondary schools increased fourfold. In 1862 new schools were placed under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of education rather than under the control of the Church
  4. The University Regulations of 1863 were Golvonin's most famous contribution to the education system, although perhaps they were of no greater impact than his work with primary and secondary schools.They allowed a freedom of expression which had certainly not been seen for 50 years. The universities were given virtual autonomy in administrative matters and, although the curriculum was prescribed by the Ministry, much greater freedom was allowed in terms of presentation and treatment.
  5. Scholarships were set up to support the best students. Fact-finding expeditions abroad were encouraged. The universities began to flourish in the new atmosphere of open enquiry
  6. An incident in 1866 prevented this atmosphere from continuing to develop unchecked. A former student of Kazan University attempted to assassinate the Tsar. This was the excuse Golvonin's opponents had sought
    1. A commission appointed to investigate the attempt attributed it to the growth of radical ideas fostered by the newly relaxed and liberal education policies
    2. Golvonin was replaced by the much more conservative Dmitri Tolstoy. Although Tolstoy restricted entry to the universities somewhat, and placed some disciplinary powers in the hands of the police rather than the university authorities, he did not seriously interfere with the foundation laid down by Golvonin. The universities continued to flourish until the end of Alexander's reign
  7. In 1871 he introduced a new " classical" curriculum into the Higher secondary schools. He also made it a condition of entry to the universities that students had graduated from a higher secondary school
  8. Though the intent of the reforms may have been repressive, the actual effect was not that severe
  9. Again, therefore, we see an uneasy balance being struck between progressive liberal initiatives and desire to maintain control of events. However he did not allow Tolstoy actually to undo Golvonin's work. But the Tsar did not want revolution
2. Legal system
  1. Judical reform introduced in 1864
  2. The Tsar stated "may justice and mercy reign in our courts!"
  3. To avoid bribery, salaries were set deliberately high. Trials became public, trial by jury was introduced and appeal courts were set up
  4. It was now expected that oral evidence would be presented and cross-examined in open court. There were two tiers to the system
  5. Justices of the peace were elected by district zemstva for a period of three years. Judges were nominated to the regular courts by the Tsar. Once they were appointed they were virtually guaranteed independence as it was very difficult to remove them
  6. Open and efficient courts needed trained lawyers and judges. The Tsar agreed to the setting up of an independent bar
    1. It was to prove the ideal breeding ground for reformers
3. Censorship
  1. Press laws were published in 1865: Freed from preliminary censorship are:
    1. In both capitals: All currently issued periodical publications, if their publishers shall themselves state this desire. All original writings of not less than 160 printed pages in length
    2. Everywhere: All government publications. All publications of academics, universities, and learned societies and institutions. All publications in the ancient classical languages and translations from those languages. Sketches, diagrams and maps
  2. Although the detested preliminary censorship was largely abolished, the statute retained teeth with which to work. It was not until the last few years of Alexander's reign that censorship really began to bite hard again, and even then it was not nearly as severe as it had been under Nicholas I
Economic Progress
1. Reutern was appointed Minister of Finance in 1862
2. In 1863 a system of excise duties replaced the medieval system of farming out licenses to sell certain goods, especially spirits, which were still a key source of revenue. He modernised and streamlined the fiscal organisation of the state
3. A great deal of effort was expended on estlished a railway network. When Alexander II came to the throne there were less than 700 miles of track laid. By 1881, there were over 14,000 miles of track
4. Much of the new railways system was designed to encourage grain exports, which were Russia's chief source of foreign revenue. This was a great success. In 1864, exports stood at approximately 26 million tons. By 1880 they had risen to 86 million tons.
5. By 1878 there were 278 municipal banks, 727 loan and savings associations, 566 joint-stock companies and 33 jointed-stock commercial banks
6. Russian industry had long suffered from the fact that it was very difficult to raise money for investment and expansion. This growth of the financial institutions did not solve the problem, but it did much to alleviate it.
7. Up to 1855 they were restricted to living in the border regions - "the pale of Settlement". It was realised that these restrictions meant that the Jews could not make a full contributions to the Russian economy
8. Perhaps the most important move, and certainly the most significant was the Policy on Jewish Artisans issued in 1865. This law abolished the "pale" for Jewish artisans
9. In general terms initial reactions were usually supportive. But the reaction of the intelligentsia was far from favourable. This was important because the intelligentsia were the opinion leaders of their day, and their views were beginning to count
Watts - "wanted reform, but... wished to remain in form control and maintain stability"
Mosse - "He was right in initiating long-overdue reforms" - "Not stern reactionary"

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(3) The "reforming ers" 1855-65 and 1866-81

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