2. CULTURAL & POLITICAL
INFLUENCES on RUSSIA
Slavic, Viking, European and
Central Asian cultural
influences
Parts of Asian Russia had
converted to Islam
4. Early Russia & Mongol Invasion
In the 600s-1200s, feudal warlords
were loosely organized into what
was called Kievan Rus.
The Mongols invaded and Russia
became part of the Mongol Empire
from the 1200s to 1400s.
5.
6. 1240-1480 Mongol Rule
After the Mongols
withdrew (or were
they defeated?), a
kingdom centered
around Moscow
had begun.
7. Russia 1450 - 1690
The first TSARS (or
Czars) worked to:
gain power over the
boyars (nobles)
Improve their military
8.
9. Russia 1450 – 1600s
Conflicts over the rule of Russia
between powerful boyar
families led to a series of civil
wars and outside invasions.
10. The Romanovs
The Romanov Dynasty began in 1613,
when Russian independence was
restored (lasting to 1914).
11. The power of the Tsars increased
– toward ABSOLUTISM
Councils of Russian nobles were
eliminated
Trained bureaucrats came from the
“lower classes”
The secret police & the Tsar’s special
forces suppressed rebellion.
12.
13. Russia became one of the
great land empires 1500s-
1800.
Russian armies took control of
new territories.
“Pioneers” expanded Russian
territorial control
14. The Russian Empire,
like Euro Maritime Empires, . . .
Expanded for profit, to spread
Christianity, and gain power.
Had a powerful military with gunpowder
weapons
Demanded tax (tribute or yasak) from
conquered peoples (furs)
Oversaw the development of new
territories through settlers
15. The Russian Empire,
UNLIKE Euro Maritime Empires,
was NOT a distinct European state
before it built its empire
conquered some regions for “security”
conquered regions “close” to their
heartland
absorbed conquered people or
“Russified” them
Was less intense in its efforts at
converting natives to Christianity.
16. Russian interaction with . . .
Ottoman Empire, Eastern
Europe, and Central Asia
Russian war victories led to
territorial gains (especially
Poland and around the Caspian
sea)
China – mutual agreement on
boundaries
17. Russian interaction with . . .
• Western Europe – Westerners
carried on much of the trade in
Russia, Western styles from
architecture to the military were
mimicked in Russia, but Russia
remained politically isolated from
Western Europe.
18. New Openness to the West
1689-1725 Tsar Peter the Great
Forced
Westernization
Modernized the
army, built a navy,
and continued
expansion
Instituted an
educational system
and offered freedom
for women.
20. Allowed mobility in government based upon
merit
Built St. Petersburg as a new capital
Organized and modernized trade and
commerce.
21.
22.
23.
24. Reform, then Repression:
1762-1796 Catherine the Great
(Tsarina)
Continued expansion
and westernization
Was initially open to
social reforms as an
“Enlightened Despot”
The French Revolution
& rebellion at home
caused her to become
more oppressive
25. However,
Russia remained a traditional
agricultural society.
Nobles continued to control the
lower classes.
– Serfdom was expanded and rural
peasants suffered
– Little freedom was offered to the
lower classes
Social unrest and revolt was
common