Westernization Dbq Essay

The instant consequences to the emancipation of the serfs left Russia crippled, ironic, when alleged that it intended to advance Russia’s status. Many historians argue that despite abolishing serfdom, the means in which it was carried out didn’t coincide with reality. Subsequently, there were many riots which caused a rise of political groups such as Narodnik movement whose existence proves that Russian society was changing. Disorder spread with calls for change within Russia like In May 1862 where a number of pamphlets were issued including the radical Young Russia. Such propaganda aimed to gain support and create challenging individuals which would pressure the Tsar to make further changes. One could argue that as a result this led to the 1905 revolution and the end of Tsardom.

The last Tsar Nicholas II ascended the throne in 1894 and was faced with a country that was trying to free itself from its autocratic regime. The serfs had recently been emancipated, the industry and economy was just starting to develop and opposition to the Tsar was building up. Russia was still behind Europe in terms of the political regime, the social conditions and the economy. Nicholas II who was a weak and very influenced by his mother and his wife had to deal with Russia’s troubles during his reign. In order to ascertain how successfully Russia dealt with its problems by 1914, this essay will examine the October Manifesto and the split of the opposition, how the Tsar became more reactionary after the 1905 revolution, Stolypin’s

While taking the class of Early Modern European History there was two states that really stuck out and peaked my interest the most. They were the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe. If you compare and contrast both the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe during the 16th Century through the 18th Century, you will see that there are a number of similarities as well as differences when you look at the expansion of the states. You will also see many of these contrasts as well when you look in terms of each states military and commerce. Although the Ottoman Empire existed before the 16th century and continued to exist past the 18th century and in great decline until the early 20th century, when looking at the state as a whole the time

     During this same time Peter the Great sought to ¡°westernize¡± Russia. An autocratic tsar who had absoluter power, he did not wish to share it with his royal court. He moved the capital to St. Petersburg, and absorbed western intellectual and cultural trends. He forced all his nobles to cut of their beards, and instructed them to learn modern Western dances. Russia historically had an autocratic tsar like Peter, + the nobles have no political clout in the government. However, the nobles in Russia are huge landowners and had enormous powers over the serfs on their estates. This economic power, b/c serfs were almost like slaves, made them wealthy + prosperous. Thus, although Peter the Great rules without the input of anyone else, the nobles were westernized under his rule + enjoyed power over their serfs and economic gains.

The Ottoman Empire was successful because of its tolerance towards people’s beliefs and religions and having a highly skilled army.

As the rise of the west began, there were many factors playing into the dominance of the western part of the world. Many changes happened over the years and these changes impacted the whole world. Some of these changes are economic, cultural, and demographic. As the west began to improve and develop, these changes helped the west establish the main dominance in the world. Ultimately, the main cause of the rise of the west was the factors of economic, cultural changes, and demographic changes impacted the society.

Peter’s respect did not translate into friendship with Western Europe. These countries were his competitors, his rivals, and one could say that by modernizing Peter was really trying to beat them at their own game. He fought a long war against Sweden and with victory finally gained possession of ports on the Baltic that opened the way for greater trade with Western Europe.
Meanwhile, Peter continued Russia’s attempts to expand at the Ottoman Empire’s expense. His short war in 1710-11 was a failure, though, and nearly resulted in his own capture. In spite of this loss, it was obvious to Peter and the rest of Europe that the Ottoman Empire was in an irreversible decline. The Ottomans were quite a contrast to Europe: outdated in technology and military methods, politically unstable, and scarcely able to control their far-flung empire.

Next, Peter the Great reformed Russia by modernizing Russia’s military. Before he came to power, Russia’s army was amatuer and navy nearly nonexistent thanks to the lack of viable coastline. Since Russia lacked the knowledge and skill, he brought in foreign experts and encouraged his own soldiers to learn about shipbuilding in order to develop a strong navy (Doc 11). He established a standing army and abolished the Streltsi, bringing in European professionals to command the units. He acquired territory in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, went to war against the Ottoman Empire in order to access the Black Sea, and later defeated the Swedish army and establish the city of St. Petersburg on the Neva River; this was named Russia’s “window to Europe”.

Development in the West did not occur until later in American History. Although the West was seen as a large desert, the West quickly became the target behind the expansionist campaigns of the United States during the 18th century. Many settlers travelled to the West, dreaming of the idea of opportunities. Although factors such as Native Americans, motivations and railroads played a large role in shaping the West, their influence came about only as the result of the inherent economic potential of the region, as well as the incredibly diverse climate which outnumbered all else in the development in the West.

12.  In what ways was the Ottoman Empire important for Europe in the early modern era?

The Ottoman and Habsburg Empires were two well recognized empires of the 1400’s. They were conquerors with fairly large imperial goals. Though both of them were strong and formidable, they both had their own share of weaknesses. The Ottoman Empire was more than capable of holding their own on land, but when it came to the waters, the Habsburg held the upper hand. This come from the Habsburg looking to the seas for expansion. This is how they became advantageous across the sea.

In the article Apology of a Madman by Peter Chaadaev, who was the westernizers that believed that Russia's development depended upon the adoption of Western European technology and liberal government. The main idea was Russia skip a stage in development, it was still in its youth, it has room to grow and change and mature (lecture, 10/7). First he said Russia had no past, present or future and had contributed nothing to world culture (Chaadaev, 303-308). Later, Chaadaev was critical of Peter the Great's efforts to Westernize Russia, arguing that it had actually linked Russia with the West and the mainstream of history (Chaadaev, 308-314). So Russia ought to be moving toward the West.

For three centuries before the revolution, life in Russia was not peaceful. It was cold, hard, and bitter instead. “The end of serfdom was a major event in Russia; yet it just wasn 't enough.”, in 1861. Serfdom, under feudalism, is the the status of peasants in which they are bound to a lord, or master, works on their land, and can be sold like property. Despite serfs being given ‘freedom’, Russia was mostly ruled by the czar and nobles. The average person was, and stayed, poor. Therefore, World War I was not the main cause of the Russian revolution. This outdated feudal class structure, inability to modernize, lack of peace, and czars’ inept leaderships lead to the Russian Revolution.

Ottoman Turkey never developed extensive industry, though the lands it controlled had extensive natural resources. There were no universities or technical schools that could teach either the basic skills or the theoretical knowledge needed for an industrial revolution and a modern economy. Banks could not develop because of the Muslim prohibition on interest. Turkish guns and ships and railroads had to be purchased from France, Germany and Britain, who vied with each other for the lucrative trade. The Ottoman Empire did not produce much that could pay for these purchases and eventually went bankrupt, forcing its rulers to conclude disadvantageous terms with its European creditors.

A. J. Polyzoides, an honorary senior lecturer at Birmingham University, states: “The western world has adopted and developed their discoveries throughout the centuries.” (Polyzoides 1). As the Hellenistic society shifted away from the Classical ideals of perfectionism and idolization of the elites and gods in sculpture, artists began to be fixated on illustrating imperfection of a variety of individuals faced with the ruthless authenticity of their emotional struggles. Whereas, Classical architecture focused on dedicating massive structures to the gods to emphasize their divinity, but Hellenistic architecture used advanced technology to exemplify Alexander the Great’s magnificence. Thus, differences in the architecture can be seen in the sophisticated town of Alexandria with structures such as the lighthouse that show how Alexander the Great influenced town planning that was centralized on the creation of a superior city, likewise, The Altar at Pergamon expresses the loss of focus on the divine through unique sculptural techniques. Change can also be seen in the sculptures of The Boxer and The Old Market Woman as they are depicted to be imperfectly individualistic and in emotional distress.