Reforms of Peter 1: causes, results, pros and cons, significance, consequences. Positive and negative results of the reforms of Peter 1 briefly

The results of the reforms of Peter 1 - this is one of the most complex and controversial issues in domestic historical science. We can say that in historiography, directly opposite assessments of the activities of the first Russian emperor were established at one time. Some saw him as a transformer of Russia and believed that he owed the merit of including the state in the system of European powers (in particular, the representatives of the Westerners thought so), others, on the contrary, emphasized that his reforms broke the traditional foundations of life in Russian society and led to a partial the loss of their national identity (this view was held, in particular, by the authors of the philosophical current of the Slavophiles).

Board Overview

The results of the reforms of Peter 1 should be considered in the context of the peculiarities of his reign. These years turned out to be very difficult for the history of Russia, since it was a transition time. The emperor waged war for the country's access to the Baltic Sea and at the same time carried out the transformation of the entire socio-political system in the state. However, the minus of his activity was that he carried out his transformations with the expectation that these were temporary measures for governing the country during the war. However, later it turned out that these temporary measures were more durable than ever. But the ruler himself acted in a hurry, so the results of the reforms of Peter the Great turned out to be very controversial in the sense that they were often introduced in a hurry and by administrative methods, without taking into account the specifics of certain areas that underwent changes.

Essence of transformation

All measures of the new ruler were aimed at ensuring Russia victory during the Northern War with Sweden for access to the Baltic Sea. Therefore, all measures were aimed at improving public administration and management. But the king was also interested in the country being included in the system of European states, as he understood that access to the sea would inevitably lead to a change in the geopolitical position of the state. Therefore, he sought to somehow equalize the degree of development of the country with Western Europe. And the results of the reforms of Peter the Great in this area can be called controversial, at least historians and researchers disagree on their effectiveness. On the one hand, borrowing in administration, administration, and culture can be called an important step for the Europeanization of the state, but at the same time, their haste and even some disorder led to the fact that only a very narrow layer of nobles adopted the West European norms. The situation of the bulk of the population has not changed.

The Importance of Political Change

The results of the reforms of Peter 1 should be briefly described as follows: Russia gained access to the Baltic Sea, became an empire, and its ruler became emperor, it became part of European states and began to play a leading role in the international arena. The main result, of course, is that the country received a fundamentally new status, therefore it is not surprising that the tsar went on such cardinal and profound transformations, realizing that the state should develop in its own way, but he adhered to European standards. The first thing, of course, was the creation of a new bureaucratic system and relevant legislation.

In this direction, the results of the reforms of Peter 1 should be briefly noted as follows: in general, the emperor achieved his goal. He created such a management system that existed without fundamental changes until the February Revolution. This suggests that the ruler’s measures to transform the state machine were in place and were carried out at the right time. Of course, Russian reality made its own adjustments, which the emperor himself took into account and understood when he introduced his innovations into administration and administration.

Economic Transformation Results

The negative results of the reforms of Peter 1 also cannot be discounted. After all, the transformations were carried out due to the increased exploitation of the population, and in this case we are talking about all walks of life, from serfs to military noblemen. Undoubtedly, large military spending has led to serious economic and social problems. Nevertheless, the ruler took a number of measures to promote the development of the country's economy. So, he encouraged the development of industry, contributed to the development of factories, the development of mineral deposits. He encouraged trade and urban life, realizing that the export and import of goods largely depend on this.

However, all these measures had a flip side. The fact is that, while encouraging the development of trade, the emperor at the same time levied high taxes on merchants. Manufactories and factories were based on serfdom: whole villages were attributed to them, whose inhabitants were attached to production.

Social change

The reforms of Peter 1, the results, the consequences of which actually changed the appearance of the country, affected the social structure of Russian society in the second quarter of the 18th century. Most historians believe that under him the layers finally took shape largely due to the famous “Table of Ranks”, which consolidated the graduation of officials and military personnel. In addition, under him, the finalization of serfdom in Russia took place. At the same time, many researchers are not inclined to consider these changes fundamental, believing that they became a natural consequence of the previous stage of the country's development. Some note that only the elite of society touched the changes, and the rest of the population did not undergo any changes.

Culture

The reforms of Peter the Great, the reasons for which the results should be considered in the context of the general historical situation in the country in the second quarter of the 18th century, perhaps had the most noticeable impact on the cultural image of the state. Perhaps this is due to the fact that these changes were the most obvious. Moreover, the introduction of Western European customs and norms into traditional Russian life was too much different from the way of life that society used to lead over previous generations. The main goal of the emperor’s cultural policy was the desire not only to change clothes, the rules of behavior of the nobility, but to make European cultural institutions effective for Russian life and reality.

But the main results of the reforms of Peter the Great in this direction left much to be desired, at least in the first decades of his transformative activity. The main results affected already during the reign of his successors, especially under Catherine II. Under the emperor, the institutes and institutions he introduced were not as effective as he would have liked. He wanted the nobles to study, get a good education, because the country needed professional personnel to develop primarily industry and the economy. However, most nobles preferred to lead a familiar lifestyle, and only a few really accepted the king's reforms in this direction. Nevertheless, the so-called chicks of Petrov’s nest played a large role in the transformative activities of the ruler, and in many respects those who subsequently determined the cultural and educational policy of the successors of the ruler grew out of their generation.

Military sphere

The results and significance of the reforms of Peter the Great in the transformation of the army can hardly be overestimated. It was he who created that regular Russian army, which won so many brilliant victories in the 18th century. It was an army on the European model, which could successfully compete with the troops of other states. Instead of the old system, the emperor introduced a recruitment system for recruiting soldiers. This meant that a certain number of yards had to supply a certain number of soldiers to the army. This new system lasted quite a long time, until the second half of the 19th century, when during the reign of Alexander II it was replaced by a system of universal military service. The survivability of the military transformations of the king indicates that these measures at this stage of historical development corresponded to the tasks and needs of the country.

The importance of building a fleet

The results of the reforms of Peter the Great, the pros and cons of which, perhaps, can be divided equally, were especially vivid in the military sphere. In addition to creating an army, the emperor owes his merit in organizing a permanent regular navy, which brilliantly proved itself during the years of the Northern War with Sweden, when he won a number of major victories at sea. Thanks to the tsar’s transformative activities in this direction, Russia has become a world maritime power. Despite the fact that under the closest successors to the tsar, the construction of ships was suspended, nevertheless, already in the second half of the XVIII century, especially under Catherine II, the Russian fleet again brilliantly proved itself in a number of wars. The merit of the king lies in the fact that he took care of creating a fleet with a view to the future. He didn’t just build ships for immediate needs, but he precisely intended to make Russia a sea power, which he succeeded.

The role of diplomacy

The positive results of the reforms of Peter the Great are also in the fact that it was under him that Russia reached the level of international diplomacy, that is, began to play one of the leading roles in the international arena. Thanks to his rule, the country became a participant in the largest and most important international events, without a meeting there was not a single congress meeting. Under the emperor, a circle of people formed that laid the foundation for a galaxy of Russian diplomats who successfully represented our country in the international arena. This was all the more necessary, because in the period under consideration, as well as in the following decades, Russia participated in all the major wars of Europe, and almost all conflicts on the mainland affected its interests in one way or another. In this scenario, the need for experienced and European-educated diplomats was created. And we can confidently say that this diplomatic corps was created just during the reign of the emperor.

The problem of succession

The positive and negative results of the reforms of Peter 1 can perhaps be divided equally. The pluses have already been said above, but here it is necessary to mention one significant minus, which extremely deplorably affected the subsequent political development of the country. The fact is that in connection with the infamous case of Tsarevich Alexei, the Tsar issued a decree according to which the ruler himself had to appoint a successor. However, the emperor himself, while dying, did not have time to make wills, which subsequently led to the so-called palace coups, which negatively affected not only the country's internal political development, but also its position in the international arena. The constant change of rulers, the ups and downs of parties, supporters of one candidate or another, each time led to a change in the foreign policy and domestic political development course. And only Paul I at the end of the 18th century canceled this decree on succession to the throne, so that henceforth the eldest son of the reigning emperor became the heir to the Russian throne.

General conclusions

In conclusion, it should be said that there were probably more positive results than negative ones. The fact that most of his transformations survived for the next two centuries, and the successors considered it necessary to follow his course of government, suggests that the emperor's reformist activities met the country's needs. The results of the reforms of Peter 1, the table of which is presented below, prove that the king’s measures to modernize the country were profound, despite being dictated by military needs.

So, we can say that the transformative activity of the first Russian emperor as a whole corresponded to the needs of his time, as evidenced by the fact that his reforms continued in the following centuries.