Tsar Peter the Great single-handedly modernised Russia!

Tsar Peter the Great (1672-1725) ruled alone from 1694. Although Rus­sia was huge, its navy was weak at a time when European powers like Britain and the Dutch were exploring and colonising the globe, and ex­p­and­ing their bor­­ders. So to learn from European nations’ suc­cess­es, Peter spent 1697-8 travel­l­ing in Europe in a Grand Embassy.

Peter The Great 

by Jean-Marc Nattier, c1717 

Hermitage

This am­b­itious young man travelled to Western Europe sev­er­al times on his grand tour. Peter chose to travel incog­nito, calling himself Sg­t Pyotr Mikhaylov. None­the­less excited rumours of his visit spread from town to town: 6’6 tall, brilliant and half civilised.

His Grand Embassy consisted of 250 high-ranking am­b­ass­ad­ors and their staff, and he was able to blend in and spend time learn­ing about Europe first­ hand. He spent four months working at a ship yard for the Dutch East India Co., where he studied Netherland’s modern ship-building in­novations. Then he went to Brit­ain to further study ship­building, work­ing in the Royal Navy’s dock yard at Deptford, visiting factories, ars­enals, schools and mus­eums. The trip took 2 years altog­ether, vis­iting heads of state, coll­ect­ions of natural cur­iosities and theatres, and throwing wild parties.

Back home in 1698, Peter wanted to modernise Russian society based on Western European models, so Rus­sia could compete with the European superpowers. He played a cruc­ial role in chang­ing its economy, government, culture and religious aff­airs. He revised Russia’s cal­en­d­ar, introd­uc­ed changes to Russian writing, and comp­l­etely mod­ern­ised the military. And he wanted to westernise the next gen­­erat­ion of Rus­sians by marry­ing his family into other European roy­al­ty. 

Russia’s Europeanised city started when St Pet­ersburg became an el­egant and modernised capital. Building the NW sector of Amsterdam’s canals started in 1613 and finished in 1625. Decades later, Peter used Amster­d­am’s canal ring as inspiration for St Petersburg’s own system. Thus the canal system was a visible mark of the special relationship between the Netherlands and Russia.

Peter also reinvented Russian culture. He was an infl­uent­ial patron of the arts who founded the country’s first public museum. Fine paint­ings, jew­ellery and armour from the tsar’s collect­ions are still on display. Tsar Peter I certainly did change Russia forever. 

Pectoral Cross

commissioned and displayed by Peter the Great

The clearest implementation of social modernis­ation was via in­t­roducing western dress to court. The Tsar ordered his subj­ec­ts to re­place their long Russian overcoats with French jackets. Mannequins, set outside the Moscow city gates and in St Petersburg streets, pub­lic­ly dis­played the new fash­ions. Tail­ors who con­tinued to sell Russian styles risked steep fines, and pedestrians in an old-fashioned robe could have it shortened by the Tsar’s fashion police!

The Tsar also req­uired courtiers, state officials and the military to shave their beards, like the modern Western Europ­eans he’d met on his tour. Peter dram­atically begun the shaving practice at a New Year’s Eve reception, held in his honour. In attend­ance were his Army Com­mander and 2nd-in-command, and many aides and diplom­ats. Sudd­enly the crowd’s mood went from happy boozing to horror as Peter personally waved a huge bar­ber’s razor!

Peter the Great gaily cutting a Boyar's beard

jstor

The Tsar empowered pol­ice to forc­ibly and publicly shave those who re­fused to shave their faces. English visitor to Russia Capt John Perry said the Russians submitted only upon the Terror of having their beards forcibly pulled. Some men kept the torn out facial hair to put it in their coffin, so that they could give an excuse to St Nicholas in Heaven!! Note the teach­ings of the Russian Orth­odox Church, which consid­ered uncut facial hair a show of piety. To shave a beard was an anti-Christian sin.

In 1698, the Tsar established a beard tax, as Britain’s King Henry VII did. So what was the reason behind the tax? To back up his shav­ing command! Al­though his new tax wasn’t specifically to raise mon­ey, the state would indeed collect more taxes IF any person opted to keep his beard. The State Dept ordered that for nobility, military off­icers & merchants, the beard tax was 100 rubles per year. Those who paid the tax were given a tok­en of proof, silver for nobility.

A beard token, proof of paying the Russian beard tax
1705, Wiki

To the religious, the beard tax was a shocking scandal. Rumours circ­ulated that Peter was not the real Tsar but a sacrilegious fake, in­stalled by Russ­ia’s enemies. Fin­al­ly the Russian streltsy/fire­arm infantry initiated an open revolt in Astrakhan in 1705, honouring Ch­rist­ian­ity. The revolt was crushed and hundreds of rebels were killed

The Tsar also brawled with the Church by organising a Club for his drinking mates. They “played” at being cardinals and bish­ops, and performed mock cere­m­onies, com­p­lete with drunkenness and endless feasts! This blas­phemous entertain­ment posed another relig­ious dilemma for Orthodox society.

Historian VM Zhivov said by challenging the Church’s power, Peter presented him­self as a semi-divine figure, above soc­iety. The emperor commanded divine pow­er, and society had the choice of either accepting his sup­eriority, or reject­ing it as a satanic en­t­erprise. The Tsar did indeed wield the power of life and death. The punishments for rebels’ in­ability to assimilate European practices, were nasty.

Map of Russia under Peter the Great

Note the expansion of Russian lands along the Baltic 

Weapons and warfare

 Most importantly Russia was able to expand, drawing on the newly in­d­ependent Nether­lands for his inspir­at­ion, and become one of the most pow­erful coun­tries in the eastern hemis­phere. To improve his nation’s position, Peter the Great sought to gain more ocean outlets, the goal being to make Russia a great maritime power. The map showed the vital Baltic Sea region taken by Russia by 1721.

Read Cultural Reforms in Peter I’s System of Transform­at­ions, by V.M Zhivov