Impact of Peter the Great on Russia: A World History Perspective Essay

This essay, written from the perspective of a 17th-century Russian peasant, examines the profound impact of Peter the Great's reforms on Russian society. The author, a commoner, details the hardships of serfdom and the lack of economic opportunity before Peter the Great's reign. The essay highlights the significance of Peter the Great's contributions, including the establishment of the Russian Empire, the creation of a modern army and navy, and the introduction of secularized schools. The author reflects on reforms such as land redistribution, social changes like the abolition of arranged marriages, and administrative overhauls. While acknowledging the positive changes and increased opportunities, the essay also touches on the negative aspects of Peter the Great's rule, such as increased taxes. The essay concludes with an appreciation for Peter the Great's leadership, despite its drawbacks, and emphasizes the transformation in the author's life and the overall improvement in the country.

Running head: WORLD HISTORY
World History
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1WORLD HISTORY
I am a common peasant of Russia in the 17th century. I am very much devoted to my
country but my financial condition is not so good because of the lack of reforms that the leaders
of our country have made. I owe to the Peter the Great for his contributions to the society and his
efforts have been very important for the financial growth of the entire society (Wirtschafter,
2015). In my opinion, he is one of those reformers who left a great influence on the lives of all
the common people in the society. His reforms for the country were extensive enough and he
helped all the people in the country so Russia could be established as one of the greatest
countries in the world.
The life of all our peasants was very problematic for a long period of time. We were
absorbed by the system to the fullest and we did not have any independence within our country.
This is why the practice of serfdom was getting more and more importance. I have heard from
my grandparents that the practice of serfdom existed from the 11th century AD. I have always
been against such type of feudalism as it does not help the economic situation to improve
(Wirtschafter, 2015). It was increasing amidst the Central and Eastern regions of Europe. Before
the arrival of the Peter the Great, I was a serf and I was completely bonded to my master. Rather,
I should say that I was a slave working for the system all through the day and we could not get
any percentage of the crops that we had planted in the fields. I was very ashamed of my
condition and most of my family members even thought of committing suicide because we did
not have any money.
This was the time when Peter the Great came to the scenario as the Tsar and provided us
with lots of opportunities so we could thrive better in our lives. This is the time when the official
Russian Empire had actually begun (Wirtschafter, 2015). Previously, we had very limited
options for earning through agriculture and production of crops. Most of the times, these right

2WORLD HISTORY
were taken away from us also. Amidst all these negative situations, Peter the Great appeared in
our great country and he took several steps that helped us a lot to get over these challenges. I
became a follower of this person and I came to know his actual name as well. His full name was
Pyotr Alekseyevich (Anderson, 2014). He was the first person in our great country of Russia
who came up to build up our army and naval forces in a way so it could match up with the
Western standards indeed. He created numerous secularized schools within the country also.
After some years of his leadership, we came to understand that we might belong to our master or
the Tsar but the land is definitely ours and we have every right to grow crops as take the surplus
crops at our homes.
When he took over the responsibilities of the country I was still not aware nor did I have
any idea of what was awaiting in front of us in the coming days. When the time went by, I was
amazed to see how he had planned for benefits for every poor serf like us all over the country
(Anderson, 2014). I must say in this regard that serfdom can only be run on the basis of the
agrarian economy. Therefore, it would be important to note that Peter the Great took several
steps to reform the scenario.
Earlier we had to work on the fields of our lords and give all our crops to landlord.
Therefore, it became almost inevitable that we did not get enough time so we could cultivate on
our lands. The lands of the lords were divided into the peasant of the North. We were freed of the
bondage from the curse of manorialism (Roberts, 2014). This system had been established and
continued from the High Middle Ages and Peter the Great was the first person in Russia who
gifted us with the freedom of joy.

3WORLD HISTORY
Apart from the land reforms in the country, Peter the Great had also exercised various
other social reforms in the country that helped us to thrive in the society with peace and
prosperity. He went on to stop the practice of arranged marriage within the society. This was a
basic norm in the society of Russian nobility (Zitser, 2018).
This practice was very much barbaric and he believed this kind of system could only lead
to the domestic violence within the country. He did everything for us that we could ever dream
of. Due to the decision of abandoning of the arrange marriage, I was at peace about the social
security of my daughter (Morfell, 2014). I was also very glad to know that Peter the Great was
attempting at revolutionizing the administrative sector in the country.
He wanted to get rid of the boyars in the country who always wanted to establish the
supremacy of the slavery practice in society. In the past years, our entire family had been treated
as slaves and out hands was tied (Moon, 2014). We were threatened to be put into the prison
whenever we spoke against the rigidity of the previous rulers.
This was the time when we got the opportunity to speak for ourselves. We could see the
new air of the European influence into our country. He was very much furious on the various
taxes and services by obligation that they had implemented. All these factors are indeed very
important for us so we can live according to our wish and help the entire country to grow
properly (Bushkovitch, 2016). I can compare the times of before and after the overtaking of the
empire by Peter the Great. He established the new state body name the Government Senate.
Through this government, all common people like us could seek the help of the government
through our officials. He did great for us so we could get over all the problems in our lives.

4WORLD HISTORY
However, I must bring out some negative implications about the ruling of Peter the Great
also. Though he was popular to a certain extent, it was inevitable that his leadership and
decisions had some backdrops. He had expanded his tax code and this had increased the burden
of tax paying for the entire working class (Itoga, 2014). I was a victim of this system also. We
had to pay heavy taxes and we had to go through the class divisions also. These problems were
really harmful for us as we were in deep worries (Bush, 2014). The advisers of Peter the Great
had pointed him out to abolish the serfdom.
Lastly, I would want to say that I have discussed various issues that I have faced during
the leadership of Peter the Great in our home country Russia in the 17th century. I would like to
say that the he was a very popular leader among all of us but some of his decisions were very
disturbing also (Daly, 2018). He had helped us to overcome several problems in our lives and he
made many moves that had helped us to get better recognition in the society. I became fond of
his leadership styles as he could identify the problems very easily and my life saw a complete
shift though I had to pay taxes as per the instructions of Peter the Great.

5WORLD HISTORY
References
Anderson, M. S. (2014). Peter the Great. Routledge.
Bush, M. L. (2014). Serfdom and slavery: studies in legal bondage. Routledge.
Bushkovitch, P. (2016). Peter the Great. Rowman & Littlefield.
Daly, J. (2018). Crime and Punishment in Russia: A Comparative History from Peter the Great
to Vladimir Putin. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Itoga, M. (2014). Russian Serfdom Conditions and Attempts to Reform (1801-1861).
Moon, D. (2014). The Abolition of Serfdom in Russia: 1762-1907. Routledge.
Morfell, W. R. (2014). THE SOCIAL CONDITION OF RUSSIA BEFORE AND AFTER THE
TIME OF PETER THE GREAT. Russia, China and Eurasia, 30(5/6), 675.
Roberts, G. H. (2014). Message on a bottle: packaging the Great Russian past. Consumption
Markets & Culture, 17(3), 295-313.
Wirtschafter, E. K. (2015). Social identity in imperial Russia. Northern Illinois University Press.
Zitser, E. A. (2018). The Transfigured Kingdom: Sacred Parody and Charismatic Authority at
the Court of Peter the Great. Cornell University Press.