"The Romanovs:
Mistakes of a Great Dynasty" by Igor Shumeiko, summary Automatic translate

This book is a historical and journalistic investigation, published in 2013. It reexamines established views on Russian history. The author proposes judging the effectiveness of rulers by the objective results of military campaigns and state building. The causes of the monarchy’s collapse are divided into socioeconomic factors and the subjective weaknesses of the elite. The Romanov dynasty elevated the state from second-to-last place in Europe to a leading position. However, accumulated systemic contradictions triggered the catastrophe of 1917.

The paradoxes of the dynasty and the assessment of the enlighteners

The Peace of Westphalia of 1648 cemented Russia’s position as the penultimate power in Europe. By the Congress of Vienna in 1814, the empire had confidently taken first place. This leap required the greatest possible exertion of popular energy. The period from 1762 to 1861 became a time of "developed serfdom." The state granted freedom to the nobility. The peasants were effectively enslaved. Catherine II used this popular loan to win protracted wars, gain access to the Black Sea, and reunify the ancient Russian lands.

European thinkers assessed Russian reforms differently. The Frenchman Voltaire admired the empire’s military successes. Jean-Jacques Rousseau asserted, "Tsar Peter prevented the Russians from becoming what they could have been." Subsequently, Emperors Alexander I and Nicholas I committed grave foreign policy miscalculations. The monarchs expended enormous resources on saving their neighbors. Russia created the Holy Alliance. The empire forsook its own national interests for the sake of abstract ideals of preserving foreign European thrones.

The Era of Two Alexandrias

The balance began to be restored during the "Two Alexandrias" — the reigns of Alexander II and Alexander III. These monarchs made a historic effort to save the country. Alexander II implemented the necessary reforms, officially emancipating the serfs in 1861. Alexander III stabilized the situation. The empire achieved an unprecedented industrial boom. The country successfully overcame the consequences of serfdom. The policies of these two tsars resembled a complex surgical operation to save the nation.

Under Alexander III, labor productivity increased. Construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway began. Chemist Dmitri Mendeleev made a huge contribution to the economy. He developed smokeless gunpowder and designed state-owned factories. The monarchy returned to a pragmatic domestic policy. The state avoided destructive conflicts, concentrating its efforts on the development of domestic industry and advanced science. This era became a period of intense wealth accumulation.

Subjective reasons for the collapse

Public opinion at the end of the 19th century had undergone a severe decline. The Silver Age had arrived, dubbed the "Melchior Age" in the book because of its inherent falsehood and decadence. The intelligentsia had lost its sense of statecraft. The philosopher Vladimir Solovyov actively justified terrorists. He publicly called on Alexander III to forgive his father’s killers for the sake of Christian mercy. A crowd enthusiastically carried Vera Zasulich and lawyer Pyotr Alexandrov after the armed assassination attempt on St. Petersburg mayor Fyodor Trepov.

A fashion for hysterical terror and defeatism arose among the educated public. The intelligentsia openly desired the defeat of their own government in foreign wars. The philosopher Helena Blavatsky set the opposite example. Living abroad, she sincerely defended the interests of her homeland in the Anglo-American press. Blavatsky actively debated the enemies of the empire. The theosophist raised money for wounded Russian soldiers during the Russo-Turkish War.

Objective problems of the village

The abolition of serfdom did not eliminate agricultural overpopulation. The short Russian summer required intensive collective labor. The rushed, artel-style of work shaped the peasants’ peculiar political passivity. In winter, people earned their living through traditional crafts. The rapid development of the textile industry destroyed home-based handicrafts. The initiatives of the manufacturer Ludwig Knoop and the merchant Ivan Lyamin led to the mass production of cheap fabrics. Factory-made goods quickly displaced village goods. The peasants lost their winter income.

The population explosion rapidly exacerbated the land shortage. Millions of people found themselves surplus in the countryside. Social tensions soared. American historian Richard Pipes confirmed that the impoverishment of the village was a direct consequence of market reforms. Statesman Pyotr Stolypin attempted to destroy the commune. The politician wanted to move the surplus population to the cities. However, the reformers were repeatedly stopped by the bullets of radical revolutionaries. The agrarian question remained unresolved until the tragic revolution.

Military exam for the state

War serves as the ultimate judgment of political systems. Peter the Great’s reforms are often criticized for their cruelty and haste. Writers Ivan Solonevich and Andrei Burovsky idealize pre-Petrine Rus’, unfoundedly accusing the tsar of destroying national traditions. However, the old noble cavalry and streltsy were no match for the new European powers. This was clearly demonstrated by the severe defeats at Narva. The Muscovite state was in real danger of losing its independence.

Peter the Great created an effective military machine based on strict European discipline. Russian infantry began to crush Asian armies, which were vastly superior. The battles of Kagul, Rymnik, and Aslanduz confirmed the absolute correctness of Peter’s reforms. Alexander Suvorov, Pyotr Rumyantsev, and Ivan Dibich achieved victories thanks to the excellent training of their regular troops. European tactics allowed for a dramatic reduction in combat losses. The reform ensured reliable protection of the state borders for decades to come.

Far East and logistics

The Crimean War revealed the country’s complete technological backwardness. The British and French attacked Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky in 1854. Governor Vasily Zavoiko and engineer Mrovinsky successfully repelled the initial assault. Admiral David Price shot himself just before the attack. The defenders later evacuated in an orderly fashion to the mouth of the Amur River. This logistical war clearly demonstrated the need for modern communication routes. The enemy won thanks to logistics (uninterrupted supply of troops) and the firepower of modern ships.

The sale of Alaska in 1867 was a purely forced move. The country had no way to defend the distant territory from the British navy. The $7 million deal averted inevitable military defeat. The government sold not a resource-rich land, but the war itself. The monarch clearly understood the physical impossibility of maintaining an overseas colony on another continent in the complete absence of transcontinental railroads.

Trans-Siberian Railway and the Russo-Japanese War

Finance Minister Sergei Witte pushed ahead with the large-scale construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Engineers Nikolai Garin-Mikhailovsky and Alexander Liverovsky laid the arduous route through the taiga and deep rivers. The railway reliably connected the European center with distant Vladivostok. Alexander Bezobrazov and Vyacheslav Plehve dragged Nicholas II into the Korean forestry adventure. Retired military officers created a fictitious commercial company to develop forests on the Yalu River. The brazen provocations of this corrupt group led to the severance of diplomatic relations.

The Japanese launched a surprise attack on the Port Arthur squadron in January 1904. The cruiser Varyag engaged in an unequal and heroic battle at Chemulpo, Korea. Viceroy Yevgeny Alekseyev demonstrated complete incompetence in commanding the deployed forces. The army suffered severe and bloody defeats at Liaoyang and Mukden. The fleet was tragically destroyed at the Battle of Tsushima. Nicholas II effectively returned the Russian army to the pre-Petrine era. The emperor shamefully surrendered his position to the young Asian power.

Diplomatic victory and the end of the dynasty

Japan aggressively demanded the cession of the entire Far East and the payment of a gigantic financial indemnity. Sergei Witte traveled to Portsmouth for the complex peace negotiations. Relying on the American press, he masterfully swayed public opinion in his country’s favor. Russia refused to pay the indemnity and ceded only the southern half of Sakhalin. The experienced diplomat saved the empire’s honor after military disasters. The country retained access to the Pacific Ocean and control over the waterway.

Witte also carried out a successful wine reform. The state monopoly permanently ousted greedy private tavern keepers. The new system brought colossal revenues to the treasury. The gold ruble significantly strengthened the financial system of the vast empire. The monarch removed a talented minister due to personal animosity and palace intrigue. Administrative chaos grew. Successive officials were unable to cope with the massive challenges. The economy suffered enormous strain due to systemic miscalculations at the top.

The monarch’s weakness and the betrayal of the highest political elites directly led to the dramatic events of February 1917. The Provisional Government, led by Prince Georgy Lvov and Andrei Shingarev, quickly destroyed the remaining system of local governance. The intelligentsia spent decades fighting the autocracy for an abstract future. The opposition proved utterly incapable of peaceful, constructive work. The government finally collapsed. The dynasty fell, plunging the once-great country into the brutal chaos of a bloody civil conflict.