1825.
Victory over Napoleon had confirmed Russia's status as a world power.
But there was discontent within Russia amongst intellectuals and army officers, some of whom
had formed secret societies, to plot the overthrow of Russia's autocratic system.
When Emperor Alexander was succeeded not, as expected, by his brother Constantine, but
by a younger brother, Nicholas, one of these secret societies used the confusion to launch
a military coup.
But the Decembrist Revolt, as it became known, was defeated by loyalist troops, and the ringleaders
were hanged.
Others were sent into 'internal exile' in Siberia.
This was to become a common sentence for criminals and political prisoners in Tsarist Russia.
Nicholas went on to adopt an official doctrine of 'Orthodoxy, Autocracy, and Nationality'
– the state was to rest on the pillars of church, Tsar, and the Russian national spirit
- a clear rejection of the values of European liberalism.
In the Caucasus, border clashes with Persia led to a war which ended in complete Russian
victory.
The Treaty of Turkmenchay forced Persia to cede all its territories in the region to
Russia, and pay a large indemnity.
Russian support for Greece in its War of Independence against the Ottomans, led to war between Russia
and the Ottoman Empire.
Russian victory brought further gains in the Black Sea region.
A Polish revolt, led by young army officers, was crushed by Russian troops.
Alexander Pushkin, Russia's greatest poet, was shot in a duel, and two days later died
from his wounds.
Nicholas sent troops to help put down a Hungarian revolt against Austrian rule.
The Emperor's willingness to help suppress liberal revolts won him the nickname, 'the
Gendarme', or policeman, of Europe.
Russia's first major railway was opened, connecting St.Petersburg and Moscow.
Alexander Herzen, a leading intellectual critic of Russia's autocracy, emigrated to London,
where he continued to call for reform in his homeland.
He'd later be described as 'the father of Russian socialism'.
The Ottoman Empire, now known as 'the sick man of Europe', reacted to further Russian
provocations by declaring war.
The Russian Black Sea Fleet inflicted a crushing defeat on the Turks at the Battle of Sinope.
But Britain and France - alarmed at Russia's southern expansion, and potential control
of Constantinople – declared war on Russia.
The Allies landed troops in Crimea and besieged the naval base of Sevastopol, which fell after
a gruelling, year-long siege.
In the Baltic, British and French warships blockaded the Russian capital, St.Petersburg.
Russia was forced to sign a humiliating peace, withdraw its forces from the Black Sea, and
put on hold plans for further southern expansion.
Nicholas I was succeeded by his son, Alexander II.
The Crimean War had exposed Russia's weakness – the country lagged far behind its European
rivals in industry, infrastructure and military power.
So Alexander, unlike his father, decided to embrace reform.
The most obvious sign of Russia's backwardness was serfdom.
According to the 1857 census, more than a third of Russians were serfs, forced to work
their masters' land, with few rights, restrictions on movement, and their status passed down
to their children.
They were slaves in all but name.
In 1861, Alexander II abolished serfdom in Russia.
He was hailed as 'The Liberator'.
But in reality, most former-serfs remained trapped in servitude and poverty.
Alexander's reforms would continue, with the creation of the zemstva - provincial assemblies
with authority over local affairs, including education and social welfare.
In the Far East, Russia forced territorial concessions from a weakened China, leading
to the founding of Vladivostok, Russia's major Pacific port.
Another uprising by Poles and Lithuanians against Russian rule was once more crushed
by the Russian army.
In the Caucasus, Russia's long and brutal war against local tribes came to an end, with
their leaders swearing oaths of loyalty to the Tsar.
In Central Asia, the Russian Empire was gradually expanding southwards.
Russian armies defeated the Emirate of Bukhara, and the Khanate of Khiva, and by the 1880s,
Russia had conquered most of what was then called Turkestan – today, the countries
of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.
Imperial rivalry in Central Asia between Russia and Britain led to 'the Great Game' – a
19th century version of the Cold War.
Centred on Afghanistan, diplomats and spies on both sides tried to win local support,
extend their own influence, and limit the expansion of their rival - while avoiding
direct military confrontation.
Russia decided to sell Alaska to America for 7.2 million dollars.
Many Americans thought it was a waste of money – gold and oil were only discovered there
much later.
Leo Tolstoy's 'War & Peace' was published, still regarded as one of the world's greatest
works of literature.
The late 19th century was a cultural golden age for Russia: a period of literary greats,
and outstanding composers.
Russia, in support of nationalist revolts in the Balkans against Ottoman rule, went
to war with the Ottoman Empire once more.
Russian troops crossed the Danube... then, with Bulgarian help, fought to secure the
vital Shipka Pass.
Then they launched a bloody, five-month siege of Plevna, in Bulgaria.
Russia and her allies finally won victory, with their troops threatening Constantinople
itself.
But at the Congress of Berlin, Russia bowed to international pressure, and accepted limited
gains, in a settlement that also led to independence for Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, and later,
Bulgaria.
Meanwhile, within Russia, radical political groups were increasingly frustrated by Alexander
II's limited reforms.
There were several failed attempts to assassinate the Emperor.
But as he prepared to approve new constitutional reforms, he was killed in St.Petersburg by
a bomb thrown by members of the People's Will – one of the world's first modern terrorist
groups.
This act of violence would lead only to a new era of repression.
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