| The Great Reform in 1861 was a turning point in Russian history.The Tsar government abolished the serfdom from top to bottom and actively carried out the industrial revolution.With the deepening of the country’s modernization,the first agricultural problem to be solved became the weakness of the late imperial economy.Many chronic diseases left by the reform of serfdom have seriously restricted agricultural production.The conservative measures implemented by the government have not completely solved the problem,but caused agricultural crisis.This paper is divided into four chapters on the basis of studying and analyzing a large number of materials and documents in both Chinese and foreign languages,and comprehensively discusses the causes and consequences of the agricultural crisis in late imperial Russia by using multidisciplinary analysis methods.The first chapter analyzes the background of the Russian agricultural crisis.After the reform of the serfdom in 1861,the feudal production relations were retained in most rural areas,and the peasants did not gain real personal freedom.In the long run,they still had to be bound by the state,village communities and landlords.In 1881,Alexander III ascended the throne and began to implement the conservative agricultural policy.The situation of farmers was even more difficult.At the same time,the government spared no effort to carry out the industrial revolution.The funds needed for industrialization came from the land ransom and exorbitant taxes paid by farmers for many years.Behind the remarkable achievements of industry is the oppression and exploitation of the vast number of farmers.The direct impact of the industrial and agricultural scissors difference is the wealth of the country and the poverty of the people.The end of the 19 th century coincided with the outbreak of the world agricultural crisis.The decline in international food prices led to a sharp decline in export grain profits,a reduction in the income of Russian agricultural producers and a deepening of poverty.The second chapter discusses the manifestation of agricultural crisis.After the reform,Russia tried to follow the German agricultural model and take the "Prussian road" to establish employment relations in the field of production.However,it backfired,and the agricultural transformation fell into difficulties,which affected the grain production.From 1881 to 1917,although Russia’s total grain output and export continued to increase,the per capita grain output and consumption level declined year by year.Poor harvests occur frequently in rural areas,and the development of animal husbandry tends to stagnate due to feed shortage,and the per capita share of livestock is decreasing year by year.Multiple factors have reduced the income of the agricultural population,a large number of small and mediumsized landlords have gone bankrupt,and the income of the majority of farmers is difficult to maintain.The third chapter analyzes the czar government’s policy to deal with the agricultural crisis.From government officials to experts and scholars,around alleviating the contradiction between people and land and increasing capital investment,they put forward solutions such as issuing loans,migrating to the Far East,purchasing advanced agricultural machinery and equipment,and improving the level of modernization.However,due to the lack of funds and the obstruction of conservative officials in the later stage,the above plans failed to fundamentally solve the problem.The fourth chapter discusses the impact of the agricultural crisis.The dilemma of agricultural development has affected Russia’s industrialization and urbanization.Until the October Revolution,most farmers still had to bear heavy labor and had not yet got rid of feudal obligations,and social contradictions were further intensified.The rising peasant uprisings all over the country targeted the czar government,and the traditional idea of loyalty to the emperor in rural areas declined,accelerating the collapse of the Romanov dynasty. |
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