Introduction

The extremely powerful and influential Russian state was an autocracy. From the death of Peter the Great to about 1825, the members of Russia's educated elite remained basically loyal to the system created by the first Emperor. After 1825 the situation changed, and there developed among the upper classes widespread and vociferous opposition to the very principles of the Russian polity. Many of the opponents of the regime advocated extensive changes aimed at creating a new society as well as another political system. Muscovy had evolved a pattern of institutional and political life that clearly distinguished it from both Eastern and Western European medieval traditions and practices. Russia never became a Standestaat, and the imperial government prevented the creation of a dynamic and flexible Rechtsstaat. In spite of all efforts and improvements, the imperial regime could not withstand the stress of modernization and contact with the West.