Alexander III (How did he react?)

• Press censorship increased in 1882.
• Control over peasants increased by the appointment of land captains.
• Law making violation of contracts between landlords and tenants a criminal act.
• Increase in closed (secret) trials for political offences.
• The position of the Zemstvos was changed.
• The executive boards of local and regional coucils became government officials, becoming part of the state.
• The electorate was reduced e.g in elections to the moscow city council, voting rights were removed from 13,000 people leaving only 7,000 of the richer electors.

Thus the Tsar did not end the reforms of is father, but he did make sure that the would not evolve into more liberal changes.

The Okhrana became a much more important element in Russian life than ever before.

The bureaucracy, police and army were dedicated to enforcing religious, racial and national orthodoxy.

• The peasant Redemption Payments were reduced.
• A Peasant Land Bank was established in 1882.
• The Poll Tax was abolished in 1886 (a tax paid by all adults despite their income)
• Imposed official limits on working hours of Women and Children in factories in 1882

• Started in 1881 following Alexander II assassination
• Its aims were
  • Spying
  • Data Collection on political offenders
  • Infiltration of terrorist organisations
• Plain clothes detectives collected information.
• Specialist officers and undercover agents led terrorists into actions for which they were arrested.
• Branches in the Russian provinces and also abroad from 1883 to watch foreign exiles.
• Abolished after the February revolution in 1917.

Lenin set up his own secret political police, the Cheka