The Russian Empire – Universal History

the russian empire it was inhabited by Slavic and Finnish tribes, dominated by the Mongolian Tatars until the 16th century. They were very backward peoples. But, at the beginning of the 16th century, Ivan the Terrible, head of the Principality of Moscow, managed to emancipate himself from the yoke of the Mongol Khans, founding the Russian state of Muscovy, whose capital was Moscow. Ivan was named “Czar” which meant Great King of the entire Russian Empire.
He ruled absolutely, by force of arms he expanded the Russian empire. On the death of Ivan the Terrible, internal struggles took place, until Tsar Miguel de Romanof was proclaimed, who began a dynasty that ruled until 1917, when the last monarch Nicholas II was executed. His advisor Rasputin, a dark and enigmatic character, is also remembered.

Origin of the Russian Empire

Those who gave rise to the Russian empire were two peoples: The Muscoviteswho founded the city of Moscow and Swedishthat under the command of the caudillo Rurik founded the small republic of novogorod. This possibly occurred in the 12th or 13th centuries.

Ivan “The Terrible” (1533 to 1584)

The country of Muscovites made rapid progress and conquered the Republic of Rurik. Then the Muscovites extended their domains to the Caspian Sea, defeating the Tatars who formed the “Golden Horde” and who had taken over that region. Since then Moscow was the capital and one of its most notable kings was Ivan IV the Terrible. The main facts of this legendary half King were:

1. He built the great Kremlin Palace in Moscow.
2. He drove the Golden Horde Tatars, who had been annihilated earlier by Ivan III, out of the Russian Empire and began the colonization of Siberia with the help of the Don Cossacks.
3. He had his political enemies executed and ruled bloodily, listening to the advice of Pope Silvestre. In a fit of anger he killed his own son.

Romanoff Dynasty

Years later (1613) the warrior leader michael romanoff, took possession of Moscow and took the title of ZAR, thus founding a dynasty. The most notable ruler of this family was Peter the Great.

Peter the Great, (1689-1725)

This Tsar of the Russian empire was a great ruler. From his youth he revealed a superior spirit. Since Russia needed a fleet and an army, Peter the Great did the following:
To get a fleet, he moved to the Netherlands and worked undercover as a carpenter in a shipyard. He learned a great deal about the art of sailing and then returned to Russia to personally direct the construction of numerous vessels. To get an army, he organized a battalion and enlisted himself as a soldier, living in common with his companions. He sometimes he played the drum. These two actions created a continental prestige for him. But the most outstanding fact of his reign was the war that he sustained against the King of Sweden Carlos XII.

The war against Charles XII

To ruin Sweden’s trade, a customs alliance was formed between Denmark, Poland, and Russia. Carlos XII, king of that country, who was a military man of genius conceptions and executions, attacked his three adversaries in an overwhelming manner; he first beat the danes, taking away their territories and making them sign a humiliating peace; then he beat the Poles, imprisoning its king Augustus II; and immediately faced Peter the Great. The Tsar of Russia had transformed his country, he had founded the city of St. Petersburg, and was on a magnificent war footing. Carlos XII invaded Russia amid the admiration of Europe, because everyone considered him invincible after his previous victories; more Peter the Great dealt him a complete defeat in the Battle of Pultawa(1709), the defeated being forced to take refuge in Turkey. With this action the war ended, and the great Tsar, amidst his general admiration, calmly set about ruling.

Cultural transformation and territorial expansion

It could be said that in the history of Russia there are two epochs: the one before the 17th century and the one after said century.
Actually, before the House of Romanoff ruled, Russia was a backward country. He lived in great isolation and was hardly aware of the advances in European culture.
But after Peter the Great there was a complete transformation in customs. The Slavic culture of the Russian peoples finally came into contact with Western Culture. Among other changes, the following are worth noting:

1. Irrigation channels were opened.
2. Numerous workshops and factories were founded
3. A Naval School, a School of Surgery and a School of Engineers were created.
4. created a aristocratic senate with legislative and judicial functions.
5. A military rank was created
6. created a Holy Synodthat is, a council of bishops in charge of religious affairs
7. The economic condition of the MUJIKS or peasants.

The most notable work of this transformation was the transfer of the capital to a place in the Baltic Sea, next to the Neva River, henceforth it was called Saint Petersburg, “City of Peter” in homage to the founding tsar. In this way, the Russian empire had greater maritime and land contact with the peoples of northern and central Europe.
The territorial expansion of the Russian empire obeyed a plan well studied by the tsar himself. She would be carried out in three directions:

1. To him Baltic Seaobtaining territory from the Swedes, after their defeat.
2. To him Black Seastripping the Turks of the territories they had seized from the Eastern Roman Empire.
3. Toward Poland whose distribution the Russian sovereigns longed for.

This great program of expansion of the Russian empire was carried out during the reigns of Peter the Great, his successors and, above all, Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great.

Catherine II (1762 to 1796)

She was a superior woman, without a doubt. But she was also a wicked woman.
In order to ascend to the throne, she led an uprising and had her husband, Czar Pedro III, assassinated, who was a depraved drunkard. Already occupying power, Catalina demonstrated great artistic and political capacity.

• In the field of art he founded the Russian AcademyCatherine the Great favored philosophical and artistic research and wrote beautiful comedies. She spoke German and French and corresponded with the greatest men in Europe. Voltaire called him for this “The Semiramis of the North”.
• In the political field, he established freedom of the press and religious tolerance in Russia; he had the Civil Code renewed and improved the lot of the serfs. Finally, he granted autonomy to the cities for the management of their income.
  But this brilliant government was marred by the foreign wars it waged.
  First, he started a Ignoble campaign against the Turks, in order to take away territories to restore the old Eastern Empire and put his grandson Constantine on the throne. And secondly, he took part in the shameful Delivery from Poland.