Alexander II, Alexander III and Key Developments

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGk3AmS6wCY

●1.3 - Alex II & Alex III, attitudes & imposition of autocracy, key developments

Alexander II As A Reactionary

Reasons - assassination attempts

• Reactionaries feared spread of Western ideas

• National/ethnic minorities ruin Russian strength

Education

• Dmitry Tolstoy - Minister of Education

• Tight control on education - eradicate growth of liberal ideas

• Orthodox Church regained control over education

• Literature, Science, Modern Language and History - out

• Maths, Latin, Greek and Divinity encouraged

• Censorship tightened.

• Teacher-training colleges set up - increase tsarist control

• Reluctantly accepted lectures to women at Moscow Uni

Police, law and control

• Pyotr Shuvalov - head of the Third Section

• Strengthened the Police

• Stepped up persecution of national/ethnic minorities

• Searches and arrests increased

• 1879 - governor-generals established; could prosecute in military court and exile political offenders

• Open ‘show trials’ - deter people from revolutionary activity

The Loris-Melikov Constitution

• 1870s - Russo-Turk war, famine, industrial recession

• Further attempts on Tsar’s life

• Accepted that widening democratic consultation would stop the unrest

• Mikhail Loris-Melikov - Minister for Internal Affairs; released political prisoners, relaxed censorship, removed salt-tax and lifted restrictions on the Zemstva.

• Third section abolished…