OPPapers.com Essay Index >> History Other >> Russian Economy From Szar-Present
We have many free term papers and essays on Russian Economy From Szar-Present. We also have a wide variety of research papers and book reports available to you for free. You can browse our collection of term papers or use our search engine.
Russian Economy From Szar-Present The economy of Tsarist Russia was a mixture of different philosophies and influences that generally performed poorly. As a general
Submitted by emorrow on July 16, 2008
Category: History Other
Words: 843 | Pages: 4
Views: 60
Popularity Rank: 116,644
Average Member Grade: N/A (Add a Comment / Grade this Paper)
The economy of Tsarist Russia was a mixture of different philosophies and
influences that generally performed poorly. As a general rule, the Russian economy
lagged behind the leading nations by a generation or two. Approaching the First World
War, the Russian economy showed signs of promise, but these merely veiled the
underlying weaknesses. When the war exposed these weaknesses in the most brutal
fashion, Tsarist rule came to an end.
The Russian Empire began life essentially as a feudal state. The economy was largely
agrarian, with serfdom being commonplace, and this being the replacement in the early
19th century for slavery. The disparity of wealth was high. As other European nations
were entering the Industrial Revolution, Tsarist Russia was barely throwing off the
shackles of serfdom, in 1861.
However, they only replaced on set of economic shackles with another. The serfs were
forced to pay heavy taxes to their former landowners for what was often marginal land.
The result of this policy was the perpetuation of economic stagnation and vast income
disparity. It was not until the later part of the 19th century that Russia began to move into
the Industrial Revolution.
One of the country’s most significant infrastructure development projects was the Trans-
Siberian railroad, which opened up the east to economic development. However, the
costs to the Empire for the building of the line were high, and the expected benefits
failed to materialize in the timely fashion. Industrialization, however, had some to
European Russia by the time of Nicholas II’s ascension. As the economy slowly lurched
out of agrarianism, income disparity...
You must Login to view the entire paper.
If you are not a member yet, Sign Up for free!