Russian Empire
By: Nathan Sims
Question 1
She brought enlightened, educated Europeans into the government. She was fascinated by their philosophies and encouraged the people to teach her as well as many others.
Question 2
Russia had poor relations with Poland and Lithuania(who were virtually united at the time) as the two nations resented each other for political and religious reasons. Poland tried to keep dominion over Ukraine and keep many of its citizens as slaves, but the Ukrainians didn't comply with the religion of Poland and allied with Russian to ultimately bring down Poland and slowly annex its territories into the Russian empire. The empire pushed into the Balkans and succeeded at creating quality relations with them.
Question 3
Russia's society changed dramatically as the empire expanded to new regions. They formed new relations which lead to conflict and strengthened trade relations. Changes within the government also made the empire more efficient as a whole.
Question 4
The empire developed productive and active trade with many European nations, however, much of the wealth came from powerful land owners and from the multitudes of aristocrats. Agriculture also became a bigger industry and ultimately led to population increases.
Question 5
The Russian Orthodox Church had disputes with those who wanted to make reforms to religion. Ultimately the reformists got their way and the Orthodox Church became one with the tsarist government.
Reflection
Do you believe there are any political similarities between Russian leaders from this period of time, (1462-1774) and Russian leaders today? If so, please explain.
I believe there aren't many similarities at all. This is because the world today is widely different from the time of the early Russian empire. Over time the world has changed and countries/empires and their leaders must adapt. Due to this there are likely few similarities between Russian empire leaders and current Russian leaders.