Peter I was another notable ruler who tried to establish absolute monarchy in Europe and earned the reputation of being the most celebrated and the most controversial absolute monarch in the history of Russia. Peter ascended the throne of Russia in 1689 when he was only seventeen years of age.
At the time of succession Russia was quite a backward country and did not possess any strong government or an effective army. Peter was convinced that Russia could not attain position of importance unless western customs and institutions were introduced there and Russia acquired windows to the sea.
Soon after assumption of throne Peter asserted that Tsar was sovereign and autocratic and was not responsible to anyone in the world. In this regard he went much ahead of other rulers of purpose none of whom put forth such a claim with ruthless skill, He suppressed with firmness the mutiny of his bodyguards and hanged or beheaded several thousand mutineers. He replaced the old feudal army by a new national army on the pattern of European countries.
These soldiers were picked and paid to do whatever he commanded. Peter also paid attention to the building of navy because he was convinced that Russia could not become a great power unless she had a strong navy. He built a navy consisting of 48 large warships, 800 smaller vessels and raised about 30,000 sailors.
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Peter tried to bring the Russian Orthodox Church under his control .by abolishing the office of the Patriarch and placed the church under a committee known as Holy Synod. The Procurator General, who was an agent of the Tsar, acted as the President of the Holy Synod. Thus Peter established his control over the Russian Orthodox Church and eliminated a possible check to his absolutism.
In fact during the next two hundred years the church served as one of the most powerful agents and supporters of Russian absolutism.
Peter removed all vestiges of local self-government and carried out numerous reforms in administration to strengthen his absolute authority. He did away with the Parliament and replaced it by a small advisory body.
He himself appointed its members. He established a secret police to unearth the plots and conspiracies against the government. He punished those who dared to resist his authority with barbarity. He is said to have executed many nobles and churchmen who rebelled against the introduction of European customs.
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In the foreign sphere also Peter pursued an ambitious policy and tried to enhance his prestige. Realizing that Russia did not have any sea port which generally hampered her trading and commercial links with the western powers, Peter tried to wrest a port of the Baltic Sea from Sweden and a port on the Black Sea from Turkey.
In pursuance of this policy, he «formed an alliance with Poland, Denmark and Saxony and attacked Sweden in 1700. However, Charles XII, the ruler of Sweden, inflicted a defeat on Russia at the battle of Narva. Thereafter Charles XII got busy against Poland. After defeating Poland in 1707 Charles turned against Russia and sent his troops across the Russian border in 1708.
Peter, who had improved his army since the defeat at Narva defeated the Swedish forces at Pultowa in 1709. As a result of this victory Peter secured Karelia, Ingria, Estonia and Livonia from Sweden by the Treaty of Nvstafo. Russia secured eastern shores of the Baltic which paved way for Russia’s maritime trade and free communication with the western powers.
Before Peter died in 1725 he had firmly established absolute monarchy in Russia. He had raised Russia to a position wherefrom she could play an important role in the European politics.
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Under the successors of Peter the Russian monarchy suffered a setback, till Catherine II came to the Russian throne in 1762. She has been described as “the greatest woman, probably, who ever sat on a throne.” She continued internal reforms along the lines laid down by Peter the Great and vastly increased Russian territories through successful wars and diplomacy.
She waged a successful war against the decaying Ottoman empire and took the Russian southern boundary to the shores of the Black Sea. She also plotted with the rulers of Prussia and Austria and annexed half of Poland thereby pushing the Russian frontier westward into Central Europe. By the time Catherine died in 1796 Russia had emerged as a major European power.