USSR

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=__//**I. Beginnings of Czarist Government**//__= //This section explains how the Czarist government was established in 1400-1670. It ONLY addresses the Czar and how the Czar's political leadership was maintained.//

> = = = = =**//__II. Peter the Great (18th century)__//**=
 * In the 1400's, the princes in Moscow were taking Russian land to increase population and wealth while they were in power. The most prince who had the most success doing this was Ivan III, who would later lay down the foundation for a Russian national state.
 * The Russian leaders became a powerful and autocratic ruler- a CZAR. He crushed the power of the rival princes and landowners.
 * In 1533 the first czar was Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible). He expanded territory and most importantly violently maintained at least some control of the nobles.
 * Ivan IV strengthened the position of the monarch, ruthlessly made nobles serve him, created new code of laws, made first feudal representative body in Russia, curbed influence of clergy, introduced local self management in rural areas.
 * 1589- Russian Orthodox church becomes independent from other churches.
 * 1605-1613: Times of Troubles in Russia, as fake rulers claim the throne, revolts by landowners and peasants, and Poland Invading Russia.
 * 1613- **Micheal Romanov becomes czar and creates dynasty that lasts until 1917**. They established peace, taxed peasants (serfs), tradesmen and craftsmen greatly. Leading to revolts in 1648 (Salt Riot),Copper Riot in 1662, and the Moscow Uprising in 1682
 * Cossacks were the rebels in South Russia, inciting serf uprisings and replacing local governments with Cossack rule. They were crushed by czarist forces in 1670.
 * Before Modernization Russia had little trade, weak army, and frozen sea ports. Then Peter the Great Changed all that...
 * **Peter the Great** was possibly the moist influential person in Russian History.

//a. Domestic policies of Westernization//

 * His main goal was to Westernize Russia. He was amazed at French technology and Western ideas.
 * He fell in love with modern Western society when he took a tour of the West early in his life incognito.
 * On this trip he visited Amsterdam (Commercial center of Europe)
 * He was viscous in westernizing Russia. He only cared about forcing Russians to adopt Western culture.
 * He forced the nobles to shave their beards because that was the western culture.(broke religious customs of past, i.e. beard=wisdom)
 * He made people wear Western Clothing and
 * He also set agriculture laws in place to model the West (e.g. planting of potatoes, which made people sick).
 * Peter built educational institutes for engineering and science. He also changed Russian to be more compatible with French (modern).
 * In order to speed up the process of westernizing, Peter imposed harsh taxes on the serfs and created monopolies.
 * With this new money Peter the Great created an absolutist government (to copy Centralized European Bureaucracies)
 * To Keep nobles happy, he created **Table of Ranks** which awarded them with power for obedience.

//b. Search for warm water port//
[The importance of a warm water port was to create trade (Peter idealized the trade of the Dutch)] Although semi-barbaric and radical, Peter the Great was able to Westernize and get a warm water port, which allowed Russia to be a formidable and modern country in the future.
 * To accomplish this he expanded the army by drafting serfs and creating Russia's 1st navy.
 * He used this army & an alliance with the Polish-Lithuania commonwealth to defeat Sweden
 * This war is known as the **Great Northern War**
 * The Great northern war finally gave Peter a pathway to the Baltic sea. (A worm water port!)
 * St. Petersburg was the **"window to the West"**and became the new Capital. It replaced Moscow in 1703.
 * This replacement marked the shift from the cultural hearth of Moscow to the modern St. Petersburg.
 * This also shows his barbaric dedication because thousands died in the building of the city which was in dangerous marshland.
 * His dedication was so great that he brought many designers, architects, scientists, and specialists
 * He further modernized the government by replacing the Boyar Duma with a 9 member congress and created new districts within Russia.
 * This new senate was primarily assigned to collect more taxes.
 * Tax revenues tripled during the time he was the Czar.

Great summary **Video** on Peter the Great:

media type="youtube" key="yyLJ2aiKUOw" height="315" width="420" align="center"

= = =__III.Russian Civil War__=

timeline
www.xtimeline.com/timeline/Russian-Civil-War