A Flood of Modernization
Peter the Great introduced secular education. He paid special attention to the sciences, recruited foreign experts and technicians, and brought them to Russia to teach his subjects. Peter modernized the Russian army along western lines, and created a strong navy. He also brought the reactionary Orthodox Church under tighter governmental control, and organized Russia into more rational territorial and administrative divisions. Peter’s greatest territorial ambition was to secure access to the sea for his mostly landlocked realm. He expanded along the Baltic, and seized Finland, Latvia, and Estonia. That got him into a major war with Sweden, then one of Europe’s most powerful states.
Peter eventually crushed the Swedes at the Battle of Poltava in 1709. To consolidate his gains, he founded and built the city of Saint Petersburg on the Baltic, and made it his capital in lieu of Moscow. He also successfully warred against the Ottoman Turks, and thus secured access to the Black Sea. In 1721, Peter proclaimed Russia an empire, and had himself declared Emperor. His reforms were geared towards the westernization of Russia’s elites and professional classes, as he sought to develop industry and commerce, and create a gentrified bourgeoisie. However, as seen below, Peter’s reforms did not extend to the Russian masses.