Reforms

• Emancipation Act (1861):

  • Landowners got to decide which land went to peasants and which they kept
  • Serfs had to pay redemption payments to landowners
  • Peasants restricted by the Mir
  • Tightened control over the peasants?
• 1864: Zemstva formed
• 1863: Universities became self-governing bodies
• Judicial system reformed, trial by jury introduced, creation of bar system (1864)
• Military service was extended to all classes, inhumane punishments were abolished, military colleges set up (1874)
• Education reforms (1864):

  • number of available school places rose, especially in more isolated places
  • number of pupils in secondary education doubled from 1855-1865
• Elected town councils introduced (1870). Railway mania years saw a substantial government investment in railway construction (1870-3)
• Censorship relaxed (1865)