by James Millar
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abraham, Richard. (1987). Alexander Kerensky: The First Love of the Revolution. New York: Columbia University Press. Rabinowitch, Alexander. (1976). The Bolsheviks Come to Power: The Revolution of 1917 in Petrograd. New York: Norton. Rosenberg, William G. (1975). Liberals in the Russian Revolution: The Constitutional Democratic Party, 1917-1921. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Wade, Rex A. (1969). The Russian Search for Peace, February-October 1917. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
DANIEL ORLOVSKY
1241
PRUSSIA, RELATIONS WITH
PRUSSIA, RELATIONS WITH
Tracing Russia’s relations with Prussia is complicated by the fact that Prussia only slowly took shape as a nation. A reasonable starting point is during the reign of Peter the Great and the Great Northern War fought with Sweden for supremacy in northern Europe. King Frederick I sympathized with the Russians but could not afford financially to open hostilities; he moreover was distracted by the wars to his west involving most of Europe against Louis XIV of France. In 1714, Prussia felt compelled to enter the Northern War when Charles XII of Sweden attacked the fortress of Stralsund on Prussia’s border. At the end of the war, Prussia, with Russia’s blessings, acquired both banks of the lower Oder River and the first-class port city of Stettin.
In the latter half of the eighteenth century, however, relations deteriorated considerably. Frederick II embarked on a major war with Austria for Silesia. The Russian Empress, Elizabeth, sided with Austria and her armies inflicted severe defeats on Prussia in 1758-1759. Upon her death in 1762, Peter III ascended to the throne and as a great admirer of Frederick, withdrew Russia from the war. Partly as a result of this move, Peter was soon assassinated and replaced by Catherine the Great. Catherine and Frederick, with the collusion of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, were able to agree on taking territory from the extraordinarily weak state of Poland. The result was that by 1795, Poland ceased to exist to the aggrandizement of the three powers. Henceforth, Russia and Prussia would have a mutual interest in the suppression of the Poles.
The Napoleonic wars drew Russia and Prussia closer, both being the victims of Bonaparte’s ambitions. When Prussia signed an alliance with Napoleon in 1812, King Frederick William III assured Emperor Alexander I, that, if war came, Prussia’s participation would be purely nominal. The next year, Russia, Prussia, Austria, and Britain pledged not to conclude a separate peace with France. At the Congress of Vienna, Russia and Prussia supported their respective claims to Poland and Saxony, something that provoked an alliance of Britain, Austria, and France. The crisis passed when Russia accepted about half of Poland and Prussia took two-fifths of Saxony. One of the most important consequences of the Napoleonic wars was a conviction on the part of the Prussians that they owed their national survival to Russia. The Polish issue flared again in 1830, this time in revolution. After some negotiations, Emperor Nicholas I launched a full-scale invasion. The Poles appealed without success for Austrian aid but they knew there was no point looking to Prussia. As Russian arms triumphed, Poles who fled into Prussia were disarmed and returned to Russian forces.
At the same time the “eastern question,” that is, the fate of the Ottoman Empire in Europe, became central to Russian foreign policy. This led eventually to the Crimean War but Prussia played little role in the initial stages of the affair. Nicholas went so far in 1833 as to inform the Prussians that they need not concern themselves with Near Eastern matters.
However, the revolutions of 1848 strained the relations between Berlin and St. Petersburg. Nicholas was the ultimate supporter of legitimacy and he was irritated when King Frederick William IV retained the constitution he had accepted, Nicholas believed, under duress. Nicholas also disliked his brother-in-law’s sympathy for the national aspirations of German liberals. The animosity came to a head in 1848 over the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. These two states rebelled against Danish rule and sought admission into the German confederation. Prussia sent its army to drive out the Danes and Nicholas saw this as an affront to the order established by the Congress of Vienna. He threatened war if Prussia did not speedily withdraw its troops. By 1850, the matter was settled and the Danes enjoyed a complete victory. Even worse, Nicholas and Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria forced Prussia to drop its proposal for a Prussian-led union of the German peoples.
The Crimean War did much to ease this antagonism. Of all the powers, Prussia was the only one who did not actively fight or criticize the Russians. On the other hand, all but Austria went to war with Russia. If conflict should flare between Prussia and Austria, the former could reasonably assume Russia’s position would not be a repeat of 1850. Such was the thinking of Prussia’s new minister president, Otto von Bismarck. While serving as Prussia’s ambassador to St. Petersburg, Bismarck went out of his way to ingratiate himself with his hosts. In 1863, the year after Bismarck came to power in Berlin, he actively cooperated with the Russians in repressing yet another Polish uprising.
When he provoked war with Austria in 1866, he did not even need to consult the Russians beforehand so certain he was of their support.
1242
PSKOV JUDICIAL CHARTER
In 1868, two years before Bismarck completed the unification of Germany through a war with France, he ensured himself of Russian support. Specifically, Alexander II promised that if Prussia and France went to war, he would mobilize 100,000 men on the Austrian border to ensure that Vienna could not intervene on the side of France. Thus Russia played an important role in the Prussian-led unification of Germany. And Russia would pay a high price for this in 1914-1918. See also: GERMANY, RELATIONS WITH; GREAT NORTHERN WAR; POLAND; SEVEN YEARS’ WAR; VIENNA, CONGRESS OF; WORLD WAR I
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Albrecht-Carrie, Rene. (1958). A Diplomatic History of Europe since the Congress of Vienna. New York: Harper. Bridge, F. R., and Bullen, Roger. (1980). The Great Powers and the European States System: 1815-1914. New York: Longman. Fay, Sidney. (1937). The Rise of Brandenburg-Prussia to 1786. New York: Holt. Florinsky, Michael. (1953-55). Russia: A History and an Interpretation. 2 Vols. New York: Macmillan. Pflanze, Otto. (1990). Bismarck and the Development of Germany, Vol. 1: The Period of Unification, 1815-1871. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Schroeder, Paul. (1994). The Transformation of European Politics, 1763-1848. New York: Oxford University Press. Taylor, A. J. P. (1971). The Struggle for Mastery in Europe, 1848-1918. New York: Oxford University Press.
HUGH PHILLIPS
heavily on an uprising of the Balkan Christians in Wallachia and Moldavia to redress the numerical imbalance. However, Wallachian support did not materialize, leaving the Russian armies without crucial supplies and reinforcements.
The fighting raged from July 9-11. The Russian situation quickly became critical because Peter had earlier sent the Russian cavalry to the Ottoman rear for the purpose of capturing or destroying Ottoman supplies. The outnumbered Russian infantry made a stand at Stanelishte on the banks of the Pruth without cavalry support. The Russians were completely surrounded by the larger Turkish force. Short of food and water, and with no possibility of breaking through the encircling Ottoman forces, the Russians opened negotiations.
The Treaty of Pruth was signed July 12, 1711, between Russia and the Ottoman Empire. The treaty dictated that Russia give up the fortresses of Azov and Tagonrog, lose its permanent ambassador in the Ottoman Empire, and dismantle both its forts on the lower Dnieper and its Black Sea fleet. In addition, Russian troops were to leave Poland and King Charles XII of Sweden would be permitted to return to Sweden without Russian interference. In return, the defeated Russian army received the right to retreat unhindered to Russian territory. The effect of this treaty was to nullify the military gains Peter had accrued against the Ottoman Empire throughout his reign. See also: PETER I; TURKEY, RELATIONS WITH
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Massie, Robert K. (1980). Peter the Great His Life and World. New York: Ballantine.
JEAN K. BERGE
R
PRUTH RIVER, CAMPAIGN AND TREATY OF
The Campaign of Pruth River was the Russian response to a declaration of war by the Ottoman Empire in November 1710. By June 1711, the Russian army under the command of Field Marshal Count Boris Sheremetev and Tsar Peter the Great arrived at the Pruth River in Ottoman territory. The Russians had about 38,000 infantry and 14,000 cavalry. The Ottoman forces, led by Grand Vizier Baltadji Mehmed Pasha, numbered about 120,000 infantry and 80,000 cavalry. Peter was counting
PSKOV JUDICIAL CHARTER
The Pskov Judicial Charter consists of 120 articles. The preamble states that the Charter was copied from charters of Grand Prince Alexander and Prince Constantine. Most scholars believe the Charter dates back to Alexander Mikhailovich of Tver’ (prince of Pskov between 1327 and 1337). Later additions were made by Alexander of Rostov (governed sporadically between 1410 and 1434) and Constantine Dmitrievich (served three times as
1243
PSKOV JUDICIAL CHARTER
prince between 1407 and 1414) with further redactions made in 1462 and 1474-1475. The Charter notes that the provisions were blessed by the priests of the five cathedrals in a meeting of the assembly (veche) in 1397, but the fifth cathedral was not founded until 1462. In 1397 Novgorod and Pskov concluded an “eternal peace,” and it is possible that a redaction was made to formalize Pskov’s independence, which existed de facto since 1348. Article 108 stipulates that only the veche may make changes in the Charter.
Princes played important roles in judicial proceedings, particularly for theft, and received judicial fines for such crimes as murder. The prince, mayor (posadnik), and Novgorodian archbishop all had independent courts. The prince and the mayor had to hold joint courts in the prince’s quarters and not in the veche. The Charter consistently admonishes the courts to kiss the cross, judge justly, protect the innocent, and condemn the guilty. Mayors, before leaving office, must conclude all litigation on their docket.
The Charter provides for the death penalty for robbery within the central fortress, stealing horses, treason, or arson. Execution is also mandated for the third offense of theft within the posad, the area outside the fortress. The Council of Lords (gospoda), the highest administrative and judicial body, decided conflicts over land and forests, and could direct litigants to settle their dispute by duel (trial by combat). Duels were utilized for a wide variety of cases and could end in the death of one of the parties. The old and the weak, the clergy, and women could hire substitutes to fight a man, but duels were permitted between women. Duels were also common in later Muscovite law, despite the opposition of the Church to such practice.
Written and physical evidence and eyewitness testimony were important, as was the kissing of the cross and the giving of oaths, which carried great weight in judicial proceedings. In property disputes, four or five witnesses might be called to testify, but absent such corroborating witnesses, the taking of an oath was sufficient to exonerate a defendant.
The Charter offered certain protections to craftsmen, the poor, and women. A master craftsman had the right to sue for unpaid wages. Even indentured laborers (singular, zakupen) and herdsmen could sue for their property or grain before the Council of Lords. A widow whose husband died without leaving a last will had the usufruct of the property, unless she remarried. Women could inherit property and leave behind their own wills. The Charter enjoined children to feed their parents, or forfeit their rights to an inheritance.
The Charter gives particular attention to tenant farmers (izorniki), who could contest the claims of their lords over loans. Lords were required to produce as many as four or five witnesses to support their claims. Tenant farmers, gardeners, and fishermen could not leave their villages except on St. Philip’s Fast (November 14), a provision that anticipated the limitations imposed on peasant movement in the Muscovite Law Code (sudebnik) of 1497. Conflicts over tenant farmers who left their villages legally, or lords who terminated their contracts with a farmer, were resolved by each receiving one-half of the harvest. Lords could recover their loans by seizing the property of tenant farmers who fled illegally. The Charter also provided for inheritance rights of tenant farmers, while it protected a lord’s right to recover his loans.
The Charter outlines the duties of bailiffs and their fee schedules. Court procedure required only the two litigants to appear in court to speak for themselves. Women and children, along with monks, nuns, the elderly, and the deaf could have spokesmen. Mayors in particular were forbidden from supporting claimants in court.
The Charter also carefully delineates procedures concerning suits over loans, collateral guarantees, and interest payments, all of which reflect the commercial character of the city. It allowed master craftsmen to sue their apprentices over the cost of their training. Creditors and debtors retained their rights to sue one another over their agreements. Many of these cases would appear before the Council of Lords. There are also provisions regulating brawls that broke out at feasts. Each fraternity (bratchina), an association perhaps of craftsmen, had jurisdiction over its own members. See also: NOVGOROD JUDICIAL CHARTER; NOVGOROD THE GREAT; POSADNIK
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Kaiser, Daniel, tr. and ed. (1992). The Laws of Russia, Series 1, Vol. 1: The Laws of Rus’, Tenth to Fifteenth Centuries. Salt Lake City, UT: Charles Schlacks, Jr. Vernadsky, George. (1969). Medieval Russian Laws. New York: Norton.
LAWRENCE N. LANGER
1244
PUGACHEV, EMELIAN IVANOVICH
PUBLIC OPINION STUDIES
Public opinion research had a long and checkered career in Soviet times, alternately encouraged then frowned upon from the 1950s through the 1980s. After the fall of the Communist Party and dissolution of the Soviet Union, attitudinal research began to play a much more important role in public life in Russia (as elsewhere in the former USSR). The Moscow-based All-Union Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM)-renamed the All-Russian Center under the same acronym-continued its existence, now as a quasi-state body. But the monopoly held mostly by VTsIOM and sociologists working at the Academy of Sciences (AN) had already been broken in the late 1980s with the establishment of new, private polling firms.
Among the first of these independent companies was Vox Populi (headed by Boris Grushin, formerly at VTsIOM); ROMIR (directed by Yelena Bashkirova, formerly a researcher at the AN’s Institute of Sociology [ISAN]); and CESSI (directed by Vladimir Andreyenkov, former chief of methodology at ISAN). The Center for Human Values-also staffed by former ISAN researchers-and Moscow State University also conduct public opinion research.
As public opinion studies became more important in the political and social life of the country, these companies had to evolve as well. Their practices changed to meet world standards. Sampling methodology, interviewing techniques, and data workup all rose in quality to satisfy the demands of both domestic and, increasingly, foreign clients. The number of primary and secondary sampling units, and sampling points, often tripled or quadrupled in order to provide greater variance. Interviewing through self-administered questionnaires-standard in Soviet times-gave way to face-to-face interviews in the homes or workplaces of respondents. Data entry and weighting improved substantially also.
Other offshoots of ISAN or VTsIOM, such as INDEM, headed by Georgy Satarov, and the Public Opinion Foundation (FOM), with Alexander Oslon in charge, played a second role. As Russian presidents Boris Yeltsin and especially Vladimir Putin increasingly took public opinion into account in deciding domestic policy, they turned to experts like Satarov, Grushin, and Oslon for counsel.
Public opinion research in Russia today takes many forms. Most common is the nationwide survey of adult Russians chosen by random sampling. A typical sample size is 1,500 to 2,000 adults, but some samples are larger. Other polls are of elites only, with much smaller samples drawn from political leaders (in the government or in parties) at the central and local level; state economic managers and private entrepreneurs; military officers; media figures; and members of the c
ultural and scientific intelligentsia. A third form of research involves (typically) 8 to 10 focus groups, in 3 to 5 cities; these small groups (usually of 8 to 12 people) of predetermined composition discuss in depth one or two important issues in an agenda set by the research firm and its client.
Many research firms disseminate their poll results widely-in newspapers or their own publications, through news agencies, and on television. Even more important, several have their own Web sites and put up current (and archived) poll results. Unfortunately, much information about sample sizes, dates of interviewing, and margins of sampling error are not usually given in popular citations of the research, severely limiting the usefulness of the findings. See also: DEMOCRATIZATION; ECONOMY, POST-SOVIET; GLASNOST
STEVEN A. GRANT
PUGACHEV, EMELIAN IVANOVICH
(c. 1742-1775), Russian cossack rebel and imperial impostor, leader of the Pugachevshchina.
Emelian Pugachev headed the mass uprising of 1773-1774 known as Pugachevshchina (loosely translated as “Pugachev’s Dark Deeds”). The bloodiest rebellion against central state authority and serfdom between 1618 and the Revolutions of 1905 and 1917, it disrupted an immense territory and momentarily threatened the Muscovite heartland. Thousands of individuals from disparate social groups and ethnicities challenged Catherine II’s legitimacy and aggravated international tension from prolonged Russo-Turkish hostilities. Many suspected upper-class, religious, or foreign inspiration behind the upheaval, widely reported by the European press. Particularly provocative was Pu-gachev’s impersonation of Peter III (1728-1762), which recalled Catherine’s usurpation of power.
The revolt originated among the Yaik (Ural) cossacks, a frontier “warrior democracy” that re1245