The young king set himself strategic goals: free access to the sea for the country, development of trade. They could be carried out only as a result of victory in the war. And the army’s ability to successfully conduct a battle at that time directly depended on the level of the state economy, and first of all on the development of such industries as metallurgy, textile and cloth business.
Therefore, the economic reforms of Peter 1 at the very beginning of the 18th century were aimed at accelerated construction of metallurgical plants. Almost all of them specialized in the manufacture of cores, guns and other weapons. New factories were added and added to old ones. And their value was not in the quality of the metal, but in the fact that they were at a short distance from the battles. Of great importance for the Russian economy, for the development of monetary affairs was the construction of factories in the Urals, especially the foundation of a large silver mining plant. At the same time, shipyards were built in large cities of the country, where a huge number of workers worked. Many factories were built by private individuals, without attracting government money. The economic reforms of Peter 1, associated with the creation of metallurgical production, allowed the country to make a significant leap in development in just twenty-five years. In connection with the increase in the size of the tsarist army, the need for the development of a textile manufactory, mainly engaged in the manufacture of canvas for sails, cloth for soldier's clothes, increased.
The next economic reform of Peter 1 concerned the creation of craft workshop production. Despite the fact that in Western Europe this phenomenon had already become archaic, it allowed the Russian state to control the quality of products produced by each artisan. From now on, the master had to put his own brand on the product. In addition, the creation of workshops contributed to the spread of apprenticeship practices.
The economic reforms of Peter 1, of course, could not but affect trade within the country. She continued to consist of several levels. The lowest of them was represented by county and rural auctions, which once every seven days brought together peasants and small merchants. And the highest - bulk purchases made by large merchants. The customs network continued to operate within the country, the size of the annual amounts received in them testified to the active movement of products. The construction of canals, which combined the waterways of several rivers, led to even greater development of trade.
An undoubted role in improving the economy of the state was played by the reforms of Peter the Great regarding foreign trade. The almost unique Arkhangelsk port with a large turnover was replaced by ports of other cities: St. Petersburg, Astrakhan, Riga, Narva, Vyborg, Revel.
The economic reforms of Peter 1 had the best effect on the revenues of the state treasury. The name of goods that only she had the right to trade increased significantly. To fish glue, potash, caviar, tar and rhubarb hemp, tar, cowhide, salt, chalk, yuft, tobacco, fish oil and other goods were added. Merchants could buy back from the treasury the right to sell the goods listed, then they became monopolists. Sometimes the king himself distributed such monopolies.
Peter 1 tried to act in the interests of domestic producers, young entrepreneurs. To this end, he issued decrees that prohibited the import of any type of product into the country. For example, as soon as the Ryumins built a needle factory, Peter 1 issued a decree banning the import of metal needles into Russia. The culmination of such activity of the tsar was the establishment in 1724 of the Customs Tariff, which prohibited the import into the country of even high-quality goods if domestic production satisfied domestic demand.