The uprising led by Pugachev 1773-1775 is the largest peasant uprising in Russian history. Some scholars call it an ordinary popular revolt, others call it a real civil war. We can say that the Pugachev uprising looked different at different stages, as evidenced by the issued manifestos and decrees. And this is not surprising, because over time, the composition of the participants has changed, and therefore the goal.
At the initial stage, the uprising of
Emelyan Pugachev was aimed at restoring the privileges of the Cossacks. The peasants who participated in it demanded freedom from the landowners. Already in 1774 the July Manifesto came out, in which the main attention is paid to just the peasants, who were to be exempted from all taxes and endowed with land. The nobles were proclaimed the main outrages of the empire. It was at this time that the Pugachev uprising acquired a vivid anti-serfdom and anti-state character, but it still lacked any constructive content, which is why many historians call it an ordinary rebellion.
Pugachev declared himself the resurrected king Peter III and called on the Cossacks to his service. He managed to assemble an army, which in its combat capability could well compete with the government. Beginning on September 17 with the speech of the Cossack detachment, the uprising swept over a huge territory: the Urals, the Lower and Middle Volga and the Orenburg Territory. After a short period of time, Bashkirs, Tatars, and Kazakhs decided to join the Cossacks. Of course, the factory workers and landowners' peasants from the provinces in which the hostilities took place usually welcomed Pugachev with joy and joined his army. After the seizure of factories in the Urals, the army of rebels moved to Kazan, but was defeated by Michelson's troops. It seemed that the Pugachev uprising was over, but in reality everything turned out completely wrong. Having replenished his forces on the right bank of the Volga, Pugachev turned south in the hope of raising the Don Cossacks. But these plans were not destined to come true, and Pugachev’s rebellion was finally crushed by Michelson’s troops. In January 1775, the instigator was executed in Moscow. In his last hours, Pugachev, according to eyewitnesses, behaved courageously and with dignity.
During the years 1773-1775 there were many peasant riots. For disobedience to the peasants, the landowners were severely punished, but the unrest did not stop. To suppress them, the government created a special punitive detachment, which was given the authority to judge and punish the peasants at their own discretion.
Count Panin, who ordered every three hundredth person to hang, was especially notable for the brutality of measures to eradicate riots. It should be noted that even without his orders, blood poured in, and often they beat both the right and the guilty with whips. Only with the help of cruelty was the Pugachev rebellion crushed, and the
abolition of serfdom in Russia was postponed for another 100 years.