Tsarist Autocracy

Tsarist Autocracy Leadership

Let's fast forward a couple of centuries to examine the contrasting leadership styles of two influential tsars amid a period of immense change. It was during the latter half of the nineteenth century that the authority of the tsar came under real scrutiny. How would the monarchy react?

Alexander II (1855 - 1881): The Reformer

Alexander II ascended to the throne in 1855, just before the Russian defeat in the Crimean War. He inherited a country in desperate need of modernisation, as the Western Powers demonstrated their superiority during the conflict.

Fig. 2 - Artist's depiction of a scene from the Siege of Sevastopol (1854-5) where Russian forces were defeated by the British and French

Furious at their military embarrassment, this introspection led to a series of radical changes, the most important of which would be to address the complicated issue of serfdom.

On 3 March 1861, Alexander II unveiled the Emancipation Manifesto, a decree that freed serfs from their owners and gave them the right to own property. At this point, 38% of all Russians were serfs. They had grown restless of their enforced position and were a barrier to economic growth. Although it is easy to cast Alexander II as a reformer who wanted to help his subjects, this move was pragmatic.

The Emancipation of the Serfs backfired because land owners exploited peasants, selling them property and precipitating immense debt. This continued to enrage those who had opposed the tsarist regime.

Alexander II's desire for modern Russia led to him transforming the railway system to allow the wide distribution of grain. Mass migration from rural areas to cities also took place during his reign. Politically, censorship (usually associated with autocratic regimes) was not present in the time of Alexander II. The release of political prisoners, allowance of free media discourse, and creation of zemstvo to help people at a localised level all seemed to point to a positive future.

Autocratic Rule of Tsar

Alexander II's demise led to a period of repressive measures, ushered in by his son.

Alexander III (1881 - 1894): The Oppressor

Alexander III wasted no time in introducing a new, more autocratic method of governance. Even though his father's murderer had died in the blast, he rounded up 150 members of the People's Will, subjecting them to public execution.

Seeking a return to traditional ideals, he committed to undoing much of his father's reforms, giving the nobles more power by using Lord Captains, who could override the zemstvo, to manage peasant communities.

A by-product of the tenets of Russification was the antisemitic scapegoating of the 5 million Jewish people who lived in Russia.

With stringent adherence to the Russian Orthodox Church a priority, a series of pogroms erupted between 1881 and 1884. There was a precedent for this under previous Russian leadership but the police always quashed the riots in the early stages. This time, they were slow to react and even turned a blind eye at times, suggesting that the tsar himself may have been responsible.

A total of 259 pogroms occurred during this period of antisemitism, a dark hour in Russian history characterised by damage to Jewish property, rape, and murder.

Tsarist Autocracy Russia 1905

The extreme measures of Alexander III certainly went some way to silencing his opposition. However, by 1905, under the stewardship of Tsar Nicholas II, tensions were at their boiling point, heightened again by military failures.

The Russo-Japanese War was a catastrophe and a humiliation for Russians. It helped precipitate another period of radical change, just as the Crimean War had when Alexander II was tsar.

1905 Revolution

1905 was a tumultuous moment for Russia, acting as a dress rehearsal for the end of tsarist autocracy. Let's examine the key events that defined this year.

As a means of halting any further dissent, Nicholas II unveiled a new proposal on 6 August 1905, which would become known as the October Manifesto: the creation of a State Duma.

The Duma seemed to herald a constitutional monarchy and suggested the ability of Nicholas II to relinquish his autocracy. The opposite became a reality, with the Duma completely neutered by the Fundamental Laws in 1906 which gave Nicolas II the power to appoint and dissolve it.

The tsar had quelled the revolutionary zeal across his empire - or so he thought! In reality, the events of 1905 served only to heighten Nicolas' belief in an institution that had always kept their opposition at arm's length.

Fig. 4 - Nicholas II in 1915 with two war generals

Tsarist Autocracy Collapse in 1917

By 1917, faith in the tsarist regime had w.o.r.n. out. Let's unpack the factors that ultimately led to its demise.

A combination of these factors led to open rebellions in February 1917. After the tsar's troops joined 200,000 protestors in Petrograd, he sensed the game was up. Representatives from the Duma met him aboard his train and accepted his abdication on 2 March 1917.

The final death knell for tsarist autocracy was the disobedience of the army. Finally, even Nicholas had to admit that he had no control.

On 15 March 1917 Nicholas II agreed to a provisional government, and by the end of the year, Russia would be in the midst of a Civil War. 300 years of autocracy vanished and in 1918, revolutionary forces executed the entire Romanov family, wiping the slate clean for a new historical chapter without a monarch. By October 1917, the communist Bolsheviks had taken power, and Tsarist autocracy was well and truly a thing of Russian past.