PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Alexander the second was born April 29, 1818, in Moscow, Russia. Born in Moscow, he was the eldest son of Nicolas the first of Russia and Charolette of Prussia. Until his accession in 1855, when he was 37, nobody imagined he would implement such challenging reforms. Alexander succeeded the throne when his father died in 1855. The first year of his reign was devoted to the Crimean war and corruption and bribes were everywhere. In 1867 he sold Alaska to the U.S. For $7 million. In 1861 Alexander the second emancipated the serfs. This was not a humanitarian problem and caused many problems financially in Russia. It was one of the last nations in Europe to shake off serfdom.
It was during Alexander's rule that the Causican War reached its peak. S Russia was winning, Alexander needed to cleanse the Cirsaccan mountaineers and preformed genocide. In 1877, Alexander the second declared war on the Ottoman Empire. Alexander the second had many positive and negative impacts on the world. For example in 1856, he re-armed Russia and called for men of all classes, rich or poor, to serve in the military. He reorganized the judiciary system in Russia establishing local courts with an open system. He also instituted the zemstvo system which ruled rural districts and large towns. In 1861, he liberated the serfs and became known as Alexander the Liberator. Alexander died from an assassination March 31, 1881. Two bombers blew up his carriage and then him. They were part of a revolutionary group called the peoples will.
My opinion of Alexander the second is varied. He made many reforms and freed the serfs, but he also created a genocide and restricted the press and freedom of speech to some degree. I learned more about him from this project, and he was a good czar of Russia.
