The modernization of Russia through the urban transformations in the cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg

Résumé du document

In the second half of the 19th century, Imperial Russia went through a lot of changes. Reforms of serfdom, administration, clergy and lot of others caused changes in the society and the formation of a new organization within the different social classes. The country was also going through a new era of industrialization. These transformations arguably implied an in-migration in Russia from the countryside into it's cities. Russia being a very extended country, not everyone had, of course, the opportunity to move to the biggest cities of St. Petersburg, Moscow and Odessa. The first remarkable characteristic of the urban transformation in Russia at that time is the increase in the number of cities. However, with the appearance of railroad and the development of industry in big cities, the cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg became more and more appealing for rural migrants. Furthermore, the development of trade in Moscow and the modernization of bureaucracy in St. Petersburg respectively brought a bigger population to those cities and municipalities had to adapt the urban transformation according to the increase in population. The policies themselves that they use in order to reach such a goal reveals the modernization of Russia. We will thus study in the paper how the modernization of the urbanization in St. Petersburg and Moscow reflects the social and economic modernization of Russia in the second half of the 19th century.

Extraits

[...] Being the capital city of the Russian empire, St. Petersburg had to be the reflect of the military power of Russia in Europe and therefore government built military squares, with officers' or heroes' statues. Apart from civil servants and militaries, St. Petersburg also includes a substantial number of people from clergy, which implies the construction of many churches in the second half of the 19th century. Subsequently, the city decided to be more and more like a model-city, and following the step of Paris, numbered the building in 1834. [...]

[...] We will thus study in that paper how the modernization of the urbanization in St. Petersburg and Moscow reflects the social and economic modernization of Russia in the second half of the 19th century. We will first see how the new organization of Russian cities reflects the social changes of the country. We will then focus on Moscow and St. Petersburg and the role they are taking on the Russian and international stage. Finally, the modernization of Russian cities would be studied as reflecting material progress in late imperial Russia. [...]

[...] In fact, one may think that industrialization is the main factor of urban growth in the cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg at the end of the 19th century. The question of the relationship between industrialization and urbanization is actually not that simple and it is important to study this relationship further in order to fully understand the modernization of Russia. Cities are obviously very attractive for industries because of the concentrated presence of workers and consumers. “Cities provided a favourable infrastructure in which the broad array of scale-type economies made possible by new productive techniques and mode of industrial organization could most fully be exploited”[3] explains Thomas Fedor. [...]

[...] Consequently, the trade and industrial activities started to reach all of the Muscovites and Petersburgers. Historians often describe the history of Russia in the late 19th century as a process of modernization. The country was obviously going through a lot of changes in every important characteristic. Under the reign of Alexander II (1855-1881), Alexander III (1881-1894) and Nicolas II (1894- 1917) economic system shifted, mainly after the abolishment of serfdom in 1861. Therefore, society is getting into a new organization. [...]

[...] Patterns of urban growth patterns of urban growth patterns of urban growth Berelowitch, Wladimir and Medvedkova, Olga. L'Histoire de Saint- Pétersbourg (History of Saint-Petersburg). Paris: Fayard publication - Berelowitch, Wladimir and Medvedkova, Olga. L'Histoire de Saint- Pétersbourg (History of Saint-Petersburg). Paris: Fayard publication The Shaping of Moscow by Nineteenth Century Trade” by Robert Gohstand, in Hamm, Michael F. editor. The City in Russian History. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky Op. cit. See the attached map of Moscow. Berelowitch, Wladimir and Medvedkova, Olga. L'Histoire de Saint- Pétersbourg (History of Saint-Petersburg). [...]