Social movement during the reign of Nicholas 1: the history of Russia

The first half of the nineteenth century became a kind of epoch of the maturation of the Russian social movement. At this time the country was ruled by Nicholas I (1825-1855). In this period the positions of the most popular political camps are concretely concretized. A monarchical theory is being formed, and a liberal movement also appears. The circle of leaders of revolutionary positions is substantially expanding.

Public movement during the reign of Nicholas 1 said goodbye to the philosophy of fashion education as the basis of ideology. Hegelianism and Schellingism come first. Of course, these German theories were applied taking into account the peculiarities of the Russian state and mentality. Revolutionaries not only mastered utopian socialism, which came from Europe, but also put forward their own idea of communality. The government's indifference to these new trends and the struggle of the ruling circles with the freedom of manifesting living thought became the catalyst that freed dangerous and very powerful forces.

Social movement during the reign of Nicholas 1 and social life

Like any trend of philosophical and political thought, free-thinking in Russia was characterized by certain features peculiar only to this period of time. Public movement during the reign of Nicholas I developed under an authoritarian and extremely harsh regime, which stopped any attempts to express their opinion. The movement took place under the significant influence of the Decembrists. The idea of the first noble revolutionaries and their bitter, tragic experience, on the one hand, disappointed, and on the other - inspired to find new ways to improve the philosophical spirit.

Begins to come to the realization that it is necessary to involve the broad masses of the population, including peasants, because the main goal of all trends was the equality of all classes. Public movement during the reign of Nicholas 1 was started mainly by noblemen, but later it was joined by raznochintsy. In these years, completely new currents were formed. They are Slavophiles, Westerners and Narodniks. The theory of official nationality became very popular . All these concepts fit into the norms and principles of liberalism, conservatism, socialism and nationalism.

Since the opportunity to express their opinions was absent, the social movement in the epoch of the reign of Nicholas I acquired basically the form of circles. People secretly made arrangements about the place and time of the meeting, and to pass to the society it was required to name one or another password that was constantly changing. Much more important than in previous eras, acquired painting, art and literary criticism. It was at this time that a clear interconnection of power and culture was observed.

The German philosophers Hegel, Fichte and Schelling had a tremendous influence on public opinion. They became the progenitors of many political trends in Russia.

Features of public life in the 30-50-ies of the nineteenth century

If we consider this period, it should be noted that after the events of December 14, 1825, the strength of the intelligentsia was extremely weakened. After the brutal massacre of the Decembrists, the social movement in Russia under Nicholas I practically ceased. The whole color of the Russian intelligentsia was either defeated, or sent to Siberia. Only after ten years began to appear the first university circles, in which the young generation was grouped. It was then that Schelling became more popular.

Causes of social movements

Like any social movement, this direction had its own good reasons. They are the reluctance of the authorities to recognize that time has changed and it is no longer possible to stand still, as well as strict censorship and suppression of any resistance, even expressed peacefully.

Basic directions of movements

The defeat of the Decembrists and the introduction of the regime of repression led only to a temporary lull. Public movement during the reign of Nicholas 1 even more revived a few years later. The centers for the development of philosophical thought were St. Petersburg and Moscow salons, circles of officials and officers, as well as higher educational institutions, Moscow University in the first place. More and more popular are such magazines as "Moskvityanin" and "Herald of Europe". The social movement during the reign of Nicholas I had three clearly expressed and divided branches. This is conservatism, liberalism and radicalism.

Conservative direction

Public movement during the reign of Nicholas 1 was associated with the development of several political and social trends. Conservatism in our country was based on the theory of autocracy and the need for strict government. The importance of serfdom was also stressed. These ideas arose in the 16th and 17th centuries and reached their apogee in the early 19th century. The conservatism acquired a special sound when, in the West, absolutism was almost finished. Thus, Karamzin wrote that the autocracy must be unshakable.

This current became very widespread after the massacre of the Decembrists.
In order to give conservatism ideological status, Earl Ushakov (Minister of Education) has developed a theory of official nationality. In it, autocracy was recognized as the only possible and correct form of government in Russia. Serfdom was considered a blessing both for the people and for the state as a whole. From all this there was a logical conclusion that no changes and transformations are needed. This theory caused sharp criticism among the intelligentsia. The most ardent oppositionists were P. Chaadayev, N. Nadezhdin and others.

The liberal direction

In the period between the 30th and 40th years of the 19th century a new trend was born, which became the opposite of conservatism. Liberalism was conditionally divided into two camps: Slavophiles and Westerners. The ideologists of the first direction were I. and K. Aksakov, A. Khomyakov, J. Samarin and others. Among the leading Westernizers, there are such outstanding lawyers and philosophers as V. Botkin, P. Annenkov, K. Kavelin.
Both these directions united the desire to see Russia as modern and civilized in the circle of European countries. Representatives of these movements considered it necessary to abolish serfdom and the allocation of small tracts of land to the peasants, the introduction of a constitutional monarchy and freedom of speech. Fearing reprisals, both Westerners and Slavophiles hoped that the state itself will carry out these reforms.

Features of the two trends of liberalism

Of course, there were differences in these directions. Thus, the Slavophiles attached undue importance to the identity of the Russian people. They considered the pre-Petrine foundations to be an ideal form of government. Then Zemsky Sobor delivered to the Emperor the will of the people, and between the landlords and peasants there were clearly established relations. The Slavophiles believed that the spirit of collectivism is inherent in nature to Russian people, whereas in the West individualism reigns. They fought against general idolatry before the European tendencies.

The public movement under Nicholas I was represented by Westerners, who, on the contrary, believed that it was necessary to adopt the advanced experience of developed countries. They criticized the Slavophils, arguing that Russia is lagging behind Europe in many ways and must catch up with its leaps and bounds. The only true way of enlightenment they considered universal education.

Revolutionary movement

Small circles arose in Moscow, where, unlike the northern capital, espionage, censorship and denunciations were not so developed. Their members supported the ideas of the Decembrists and deeply experienced the massacre of them. They distributed freedom-loving pamphlets and cartoons. So, on the day of the coronation of Nicholas representatives of the circle of the Cretan brothers scattered leaflets on Red Square calling people to freedom. The activists of this organization were imprisoned for 10 years, and then forced to serve in military service.

Petrashevsky

In the 40s of the 19th century the social movement was marked by a significant revival. Again, political circles began to emerge. By the name of one of their leaders, Butashevich-Petrashevsky, and this trend was named. Among the circles were such outstanding personalities as F. Dostoyevsky, M. Saltykov-Shchedrin, etc. Petrashevtsy condemned absolutism and advocated the development of democracy.

The circle was opened in 1849, more than 120 people were involved in the investigation, 21 of them were sentenced to be shot.