Emancipation of the Serfs
Why did emancipation take place in Russia in 1861?The emancipation of the Serfs, the peasants owned by the nobility and the rich, was a question that plagued Tsars years before Alexander II granted the Emancipation Ukase in February 1861. In 1858 the serfs of private landowners comprised 22.8 million persons and for centuries had being providing, along with the state peasants, the backbone to Russia economy and comprised a large percentage of all the recruits in the Russian military. So why then, did both Alexander II and preceding him Nicholas I emphasise the need for reform and change to what was one of the longest running traditions, and would cause massive waves in an traditionally autocratic and reactionary kingdom? In March 1855 Alexander II succeeded his father, Nicholas I, who died during the Crimean War. Within a year of the new Tsar's accession Russia had been ominously defeated by British and French troops and the Russian military was in ruins. Russia's failure to compete with the European powers prompted Alexander (and for the fist time, the majority of influential people) to recognise the real need for change. Alexander publicly stated that the emancipation of the serfs was inevit
These medieval methods needed to be remedied, and the failure of Serfdom, not just for the Serfs but for the entire Russian economy was now finally recognised. Indeed, much of the positive climate for reform created by the intelligentsia assisted Alexander in his arguments for emancipation. So why, if for such a long period Serfdom had been recognised as 'evil', did it not come sooner?Fear of change and vested interests are key factors. The moral arguments against serfdom had been accepted for almost a century, not only by opposition intellectuals, but also by many serfowners and officials: the autocrats themselves, from Catherine to Nicholas I, paid at least lip service to them. Yet it is this final point that the emancipation of the serfs can be contributed too. With the rapid population growth, the limited amount of land for peasants to work on and the slow increase in productivity there often was not enough food, which led to a growing tide of unrest. However, the creation of a new group of 'enlightened bureaucrats' whose loyalty was to the state rather than to themselves played an important role in the framing of the legislation. They blamed local authorities and landowners for their problems, and their conditions were not severe enough (not in their minds anyway) to promote outright despair. In his famous speech of 30th March 1856, Alexander II told the marshals of the nobility of Moscow province that it was better for emancipation of the peasants came 'from above' rather than 'from below'. In these words the Tsar appeared to clearly indicate that the governments main motive in considering emancipation was its concern with peasant unrest directed against serfowners. In conclusion it becomes clear that there was no individual, but a combination of factors that prompted and eventually granted the emancipation of the serfs in 1861. The abdication of blame that the Tsar received from the peasants brings us finally to another major reason for the Emancipation, Alexander himself. The internal crisis resulting from the war brought to a head within the government all the pre-existing pressures for reform. Various explanations have been put forward for Alexander's momentous decision to free the peasants. There is considerable indirect evidence that motives of military efficiency played a major part in the Tsars course of action.
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Acceptance Essays
