Most history textbooks offer approximately the same definition of absolutism. This political system was formed in most European countries of the XVII-XVIII centuries. It is characterized by the sole power of the monarch, which is not limited by any state institution.
The main features of absolutism
The modern definition of absolutism was formulated in the middle of the XIX century. This term replaced the expression "old order", which described the French state system before the Great Revolution.
The Bourbon monarchy was one of the main pillars of absolutism. With the strengthening of royal power, there was a rejection of estate-representative bodies (General States). Autocrats ceased to consult with deputies and look back at public opinion during the adoption of important decisions.
King and Parliament in England
Similarly, absolutism took shape in England. Medieval feudalism did not allow the state to effectively use its own resources and opportunities. The formation of absolutism in England was complicated by the conflict with parliament. This meeting of deputies had a long history.
The Stuart dynasty in the 17th century tried to belittle the importance of parliament. Because of this, in 1640-1660. the country was shaken by civil war. The bourgeoisie and most of the peasantry came out against the king. On the side of the monarchy were nobles (barons and other large landowners). The English king Charles I was defeated and was eventually executed in 1649.
After 50 years, the United Kingdom was formed. In this federation - England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland - the parliament was opposed to the monarchy. With the help of a representative body, businessmen and ordinary residents of cities were able to defend their interests. Thanks to the established relative freedom, the economic recovery began. Great Britain became the main maritime power in the world, controlling colonies scattered throughout the world.
The English educators of the 18th century gave their definition of absolutism. For them, he became a symbol of the bygone era of the Stuarts and Tudors, during which the monarchs unsuccessfully tried to replace the whole state with their own personality.
Strengthening Tsarist Power in Russia
The Russian age of absolutism began during the reign of Peter the Great. However, the prerequisites of this phenomenon were traced back to his father, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. When the Romanov dynasty came to power, the boyar Duma and Zemsky Sobor played an important role in public life. It was these institutions that helped rebuild the country after the Troubles.
Alexey initiated the process of abandoning the previous system. The changes were reflected in the main document of his era - the Council Code. Thanks to this code of laws, the title “Russian rulers” was supplemented by “autocrat”. The wording was not changed by chance. It was Alexei Mikhailovich who stopped convening Zemsky Sobor. The last time this happened in 1653, when it was decided to reunite Russia and left-bank Ukraine after a successful war with Poland.
In the tsarist era, the place of ministries was occupied by orders, each of which covered one or another sphere of state activity. In the second half of the XVII century, most of these institutions came under the sole control of the autocrat. In addition, Alexei Mikhailovich instituted an order of secret affairs. He was in charge of the most important state affairs, as well as receiving petitions. In 1682, a reform was carried out that abolished the system of localism, according to which key posts in the country were distributed among the boyars according to their belonging to a noble family. Now appointments depended directly on the will of the king.
The struggle of the state and the church
The policy of absolutism pursued by Alexei Mikhailovich ran into serious resistance from the Orthodox Church, which wanted to intervene in state affairs. The main opponent of the autocrat was Patriarch Nikon. He proposed making the church independent of the executive branch, and delegating some powers to it. Nikon argued that the patriarch, in his words, was the viceroy of God on earth.
The apogee of the power of the patriarch was to receive the title of "great sovereign." In fact, this put him on an equal footing with the king. However, Nikon's triumph was short-lived. In 1667, the church cathedral deprived him of his dignity and sent him into exile. Since then, there has not been anyone who could challenge the autocracy’s power.
Peter I and the autocracy
Under the son of Alexei Peter the Great, the power of the monarch was further strengthened. The old boyar clans were repressed after the events when the Moscow aristocracy tried to overthrow the tsar and put his older sister Sophia on the throne. At the same time, due to the outbreak of the Northern War in the Baltic, Peter launched great reforms that encompassed all aspects of the state’s activities.
In order to make them more effective, the autocrat completely concentrated power in his hands. He established colleges, introduced a ranking card, created heavy industry in the Urals from scratch, and made Russia a more European country. All these changes would be too tough for him if he were opposed by conservative boyars. Aristocrats were put in place and temporarily turned into ordinary officials who made their small contribution to Russia's successes in foreign and domestic politics. The tsar’s struggle with the conservatism of the elite sometimes took on anecdotal forms - which is only worth the episode with the cutting of beards and the banning of old caftans!
Peter came to absolutism, because this system gave him the necessary powers for a comprehensive reform of the country. He also made the church part of the state machine by establishing the Synod and abolishing the patriarchate, thereby depriving the clergy of the opportunity to declare themselves as an alternative source of power in Russia.
The power of Catherine II
The era when absolutism in Europe reached its peak, fell on the second half of the XVIII century. In Russia, Catherine 2 ruled during this period. After several decades, when palace coups regularly took place in St. Petersburg, she managed to subjugate the rebellious elite and become the sole ruler of the country.
Features of absolutism in Russia consisted in the fact that power was based on the most faithful estate - the nobility. This privileged stratum of society in the reign of Catherine received a Charter. The document confirmed all the rights that the nobility had. In addition, his representatives were exempted from military service. Initially, the nobles received the title and land precisely for the years spent in the army. Now this rule is a thing of the past.
The nobles did not intervene in the political agenda dictated by the throne, but always acted as its defender in case of danger. One of these threats was the uprising led by Emelyan Pugachev in 1773-1775. The riot of the peasants showed the need for reforms, including changes related to serfdom.
Enlightened absolutism
The years of the reign of Catherine II (1762-1796) also occurred during the emergence of the bourgeoisie in Europe. These were people who achieved success in the capitalist field. Entrepreneurs demanded reform and civil liberties. Especially noticeable tension was in France. The Bourbon monarchy, like the Russian Empire, was an island of absolutism, where all important decisions were made only by the ruler.
At the same time, France became the birthplace of such great thinkers and philosophers as Voltaire, Montesquieu, Didro, etc. These writers and speakers became the founders of the ideas of the Age of Enlightenment. They were based on free thought and rationalism. In Europe, liberalism has become fashionable. Catherine 2 also knew about the idea of civil rights. She was German by origin, so she was closer to Europe than all her predecessors on the Russian throne. Later, the combination of liberal and conservative ideas of Catherine was called "enlightened absolutism."
Reform attempt
The most serious step of the empress on the path of changing Russia was the establishment of the Stated Commission. The officials and lawyers who were part of it had to develop a draft reform of domestic legislation, the basis of which was still the patriarchal “Council Code” of 1648. The work of the commission was placed by nobles who saw in the changes a threat to their own well-being. Catherine did not dare to conflict with the landowners. The constituted commission completed its work without achieving any actual transformation.
Pugachev Uprising in 1773-1775 seriously scared Catherine. After him, a period of reaction began, and the word “liberalism” turned into a synonym for the betrayal of the throne. The unlimited power of the monarch remained and existed throughout the XIX century. It was canceled after the 1905 revolution, when an analogue of the constitution and parliament appeared in Russia.
Old and new order
Conservative absolutism in Europe was hated by many as much as the oppressed peasants of the Russian provinces who supported Yemelyan Pugachev. In France, state dominance prevented the development of the bourgeoisie. The impoverishment of rural residents and periodic economic crises also did not bring Bourbon popularity.
In 1789, the Great French Revolution broke out. The then Parisian liberal magazines and satirists gave the most daring and critical definition of absolutism. Politicians called the old order the cause of all the country's ills - from the poverty of the peasantry to defeat in wars and the inefficiency of the army. The crisis of autocratic power came.
The French Revolution
The revolution began with the capture by the rebel townspeople of Paris of the famous Bastille prison. Soon, King Louis XVI agreed to a compromise and became a constitutional monarch, whose power was limited to representative bodies. However, his uncertain policy led to the fact that the monarch decided to flee to the faithful royalists. The king was captured at the border and put on trial, which sentenced him to death. In this, the fate of Louis is similar to the end of another monarch who tried to maintain the old order - Charles I of England.
The revolution in France continued for several more years and ended in 1799 when, after the coup d'état, the ambitious commander Napoleon Bonaparte came to power. Even before this, European countries in which absolutism was the basis of the political system declared war on Paris. Among them was Russia. Napoleon defeated all coalitions and even launched an intervention in Europe. In the end, he was defeated, the main reason for which was his failure in the Patriotic War of 1812.
The end of absolutism
With the advent of peace in Europe, the reaction triumphed. In many states, absolutism has re-established. A brief list of these countries included Russia, Austria-Hungary, Prussia. Throughout the 19th century, there were several more attempts by society to oppose autocratic power. The most noticeable was the pan-European revolution of 1848, when constitutional concessions were made in some countries. Nevertheless, absolutism finally sunk into oblivion after the First World War, when almost all the continental empires (Russian, Austrian, German and Ottoman) were destroyed.
The dismantling of the old system led to the consolidation of civil rights and freedoms - religion, voting, property, etc. The society received new levers for governing the state, the main of which were elections. Today, on the site of the former absolute monarchies, there are national states with a republican political system.