Peter the Great
By: Erica Revello
Peter the Great's Personality
- Peter the Great's personality ranged from the cruelest person to the most selfless person.
- When he ruled Russia he used terror for absolute power.
- He was willing to do anything for his country and the people in it.
- He was also very smart and confident as a leader.
Peter the Great's Accomplishments
- He improved education, by setting up academies for the study of mathematics, science, and engineering.
- He improved waterways and canals, developed mining and textile manufacturing, and backed new trading companies.
- He created the largest army in Europe at that time, built a world-class navy, and extended Russian borders to the west and south.
- Peter died in 1725, but during his reign he expanded Russian territory, gained ports on the Baltic Sea, and created a large army.
Peter the Great's Policies
- After returning from the West, Peter said boys have to shave their beards.
- He also forced them to replace their old-fashioned robes with Western clothes.
- To end separating upper-class women and men, he held parties where women and men had to dance together. Russian nobles opposed this, but they had to do it.
- He passed laws ensuring that nobles retained control over their lands, including the serfs on those lands.
Fun Facts about Peter the Great's Reign
- Peter was 10 years old when he took the throne in 1682, but didn't take control of the government until 1689.
- St. Petersburg became a great symbol of Peter’s effort to create modern Russia.
- In 1725, Peter's reign was over because he died.