Serfdom was abolished by decree. Serfdom in Russia: myth and reality (5 photos)

Serfdom in Russia was formed gradually and there are many reasons for this, according to historians. Back in the 15th century, peasants could freely move to another landowner. The legal enslavement of the peasants took place in stages.

Sudebnik of 1497

Sudebnik of 1497 - the beginning of the legal registration of serfdom.

Ivan III adopted a code of laws of the unified Russian state - Sudebnik. Article 57 "On Christian refusal" stated that the transition from one landowner to another was limited to a single period for the whole country: a week before and a week after St. George's Day - November 26. The peasants could go to another landowner, but they had to pay elderly for the use of land and yard. Moreover, the more time the peasant lived with the landowner, the more he had to pay him: for example, for a stay of 4 years - 15 pounds of honey, a herd of domestic animals or 200 pounds of rye.

Land reform of 1550

Under Ivan IV, the Sudebnik of 1550 was adopted, he retained the right to transfer peasants on St. elderly and established an additional fee, in addition, the Sudebnik obliged the owner to answer for the crimes of his peasants, which increased their dependence. Since 1581, the so-called reserved years, in which the transition was prohibited even on St. George's Day. This was connected with the census: in which region the census took place - in that reserved year. In 1592 the census was completed, and with it the possibility of the transition of the peasants was completed. This provision was enshrined in a special Decree. Since then, there has been a saying: “Here you are, grandmother, and St. George's day ...

The peasants, having lost the opportunity to move to another owner, began to run away, settling for life in other regions or on "free" lands. The owners of runaway peasants had the right to detect and return fugitives: in 1597, Tsar Fedor issued a Decree, according to which the term for detecting runaway peasants was five years.

"Here comes the master, the master will judge us ..."

Serfdomin the 17th century

In the 17th century in Russia, on the one hand, commodity production and the market appeared, and on the other, feudal relations were consolidated, adapting to market ones. It was a time of strengthening autocracy, the appearance of prerequisites for the transition to absolute monarchy. The 17th century is the era of mass popular movements in Russia.

In the second half of the XVII century. peasants in Russia were united in two groups − serfs and chernososhnye.Serfs ran their households on patrimonial, local and church lands, carried various feudal duties in favor of landowners. The black-eared peasants were included in the category of "hard people" who paid taxes and were under the control of the authorities. Therefore, there was a mass exodus of black-eared peasants.

Government Vasily Shuisky tried to resolve the situation, to increase the period of investigation of fugitive peasants up to 15 years, but neither the peasants themselves nor the nobles supported Shuisky's unpopular peasant policy.

Into the reign Mikhail Romanov there was a further enslavement of the peasants. Increasing cases of cession or sale of peasants without land.

Into the reign Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov a number of reforms were carried out: the procedure for collecting payments and incurring duties was changed. In 1646 - 1648. a household inventory of peasants and beans was carried out. And in 1648, an uprising took place in Moscow called “ salt riot”, which was caused by an excessively high tax on salt. Following Moscow, other cities also rose. As a result of the current situation, it became clear that a revision of the laws was necessary. In 1649 he was called Zemsky Sobor, at which the Council Code was adopted, according to which the peasants were finally attached to the land.

Its special chapter “The Court of the Peasants” canceled the “lesson years” for the search and return of fugitive peasants, the indefinite search and return of fugitives, established the heredity of serfdom and the right of the landowner to dispose of the property of a serf. If the owner of the peasants turned out to be insolvent, the property of peasants and serfs dependent on him was collected to compensate for his debt. Landowners received the right to a patrimonial court and police supervision over the peasants. Peasants did not have the right to speak independently in courts. Marriages, family divisions of peasants, inheritance of peasant property could only take place with the consent of the landowner. Peasants were forbidden to keep trading shops, they could trade only from wagons.

Harboring runaway peasants was punishable by a fine, whipping and imprisonment. For the murder of a foreign peasant, the landowner had to give his best peasant with his family. The owner had to pay for the runaway peasants. At the same time, serfs were also considered "state taxpayers", i.e. were in charge of the state. The owners of the peasants were obliged to provide them with land and equipment. It was forbidden to deprive the peasants of land by turning them into slaves or letting them go free, it was impossible to forcibly take away property from the peasants. The right of the peasants to complain about the masters was also preserved.

Simultaneously serfdom spread to black-haired, palace peasants who served the needs of the royal court, who were forbidden to leave their communities.

The Cathedral Code of 1649 showed the way to strengthening Russian statehood. It legally formalized serfdom.

Serfdom inXVIII century

Peter I

In 1718 - 1724, under Peter I, a census of the peasantry was carried out, after which the household taxation was replaced by a poll tax in the country. In fact, the peasants supported the army, and the townspeople - the fleet. The amount of the tax was determined arithmetically. The amount of military expenses was divided by the number of souls and the amount of 74 kopecks was obtained. from the peasants and 1 rub. 20 kop. - from townspeople. Poll tax brought the treasury more income. In the reign of Peter I, a new category of peasants was formed, called state, they paid to the state treasury in addition to the poll tax, they also paid a quitrent of 40 kopecks. Under Peter I, the passport system was also introduced: now, if a peasant went to work more than thirty miles from home, he had to receive a note in his passport about the date of return.

Elizaveta Petrovna

Elizaveta Petrovna at the same time increased the dependence of the peasants and changed their position: she eased the position of the peasants by forgiving them arrears for 17 years, reduced the size of the poll tax, changed recruitment (divided the country into 5 districts, which alternately supplied soldiers). But she also signed a decree according to which the serfs could not voluntarily enlist in the soldiers, allowed them to engage in crafts and trade. It put beginning of stratification peasants.

Catherine II

Catherine II set the course for further strengthening of absolutism and centralization: the nobles began to receive land and serfs as a reward.

Serfdom in19th century

Alexander I

Of course, serf relations hindered the development of industry and, in general, the development of the state, but, despite this, Agriculture adapted to new conditions and developed according to its capabilities: new agricultural machines were introduced, new crops began to be grown (sugar beet, potatoes, etc.), new lands were developed in Ukraine, the Don, in the Trans-Volga region. But at the same time, the contradictions between the landowners and the peasants are intensifying - corvée and dues are being brought to the limit by the landowners. Corvee, in addition to working on the master's arable land, included work in the serf factory, and the performance of various chores for the landowner throughout the year. Sometimes the corvee was 5-6 days a week, which did not allow the peasant to conduct an independent economy at all. The process of stratification within the peasantry began to intensify. The rural bourgeoisie, represented by peasant proprietors (more often state peasants), was able to acquire ownership of uninhabited land and lease land from the landowners.

The unspoken committee under Alexander I recognized the need for changes in peasant policy, but considered the foundations of absolutism and serfdom to be unshakable, although in the future it assumed the abolition of serfdom and the introduction of a constitution. In 1801, a decree was issued on the right to purchase land by merchants, philistines and peasants (state and appanage).

In 1803, a decree “On Free Plowmen” was issued, which provided for the release of serfs to freedom for redemption with land by whole villages or individual families by mutual consent of peasants and landowners. However, the practical results of this decree were negligible. The provision did not apply to landless peasant laborers.

Alexander I tries to solve the peasant question again in 1818. He even approved the project of A. Arakcheev and the Minister of Finance D. Guryev on the gradual elimination of serfdom by redeeming landlord peasants from their allotments with the treasury. But this project was not practically implemented (with the exception of granting personal freedom to the peasants of the Baltic states in 1816-1819, but without land).

By 1825, 375 thousand state peasants were in military settlements (1/3 of the Russian army), of which a Separate Corps was formed under the command of Arakcheev - the peasants served and worked at the same time, discipline was tough, punishments were numerous.

AlexanderII - the king-liberator

Alexander II, who ascended the throne on February 19, 1855, set the following goals as the basis for the peasant reform:

• liberation of peasants from personal dependence;
• turning them into petty proprietors while retaining a significant part of the landed estates.

On February 19, 1861, Alexander II signed the Manifesto on the abolition of serfdom, he changed the fate of 23 million serfs: they received personal freedom and civil rights.

Manifesto on the abolition of serfdom

But for the land allotments allotted to them (until they redeem them), they had to serve a labor service or pay money, i.e. became known as "temporarily liable". The sizes of peasant allotments were different: from 1 to 12 acres per male (an average of 3.3 acres). For allotments, the peasants had to pay the landowner an amount of money, which, being deposited in the bank at 6%, would bring him an annual income equal to the pre-reform dues. According to the law, the peasants had to pay the landowner a lump sum for their allotment about a fifth of the stipulated amount (they could pay it not in money, but by working for the landowner). The rest was paid by the state. But the peasants had to return this amount (with interest) to him in annual payments for 49 years.

A. Mucha "Abolition of serfdom in Russia"

The peasant reform was a compromise solution in the abolition of serfdom (this path is called reformist), it proceeded from the real circumstances of life in Russia in the middle of the 19th century, the interests of both peasants and landowners. The disadvantage of this program was that, having received will and land, the peasant did not become the owner of his allotment and a full member of society: the peasants continued to be subjected to corporal punishment (until 1903), they actually could not participate in agrarian reforms.

Let's summarize

Like any historical event, the abolition of serfdom is not assessed unambiguously.

It is hardly worth considering serfdom as a terrible evil and only as a feature of Russia. It was in many countries of the world. And it wasn't canceled right away. Until now, there are countries in the world where slavery has not been legally abolished. For example, slavery was abolished in Mauritania only in 2009. The abolition of serfdom also did not automatically mean an improvement in the living conditions of the peasants. Historians, for example, note the deterioration of the living conditions of peasants in the Baltic states, where serfdom was abolished under Alexander I. Napoleon, having captured Poland, abolished serfdom there, but it was reintroduced in this country and was abolished only in 1863. In Denmark, serfdom was officially abolished in 1788, but the peasants had to work out the corvée on the landlords' lands, which was finally abolished only in 1880.

Some historians even believe that serfdom in Russia was a necessary form of society's existence in conditions of constant political tension. It is possible that if Russia did not have to constantly repel the onslaught from the southeast and west, it would not have arisen at all; serfdom is a system that ensured the national security and independence of the country.

Monument to Emperor Alexander II, Moscow

Coin dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the abolition of serfdom

“The most amazing thing is that such an important and fundamental phenomenon as serfdom, which determined all life for centuries Russian Empire, in fact, had no legislative basis and, until the Manifesto of 1861, relied on conflicting decrees and instructions that were not summarized in single system. Moreover, even the use of the very term "serfdom" was carefully avoided in legislative acts. (I.E. Engelman "History of serfdom in Russia")

On February 19, 1861, Alexander II signed the Manifesto on the abolition of serfdom, he changed the fate of 23 million serfs: they received personal freedom and civil rights.

Let us briefly talk about the essence of the peasant reform of Alexander II.

The peasants received personal freedom and the right to dispose of their property. The landowners retained ownership of their lands, but were obliged to provide the peasants with an estate for permanent use. personal plot, as well as a field put on. For this use, the peasants were obliged to serve a corvée or pay dues. According to the law, they could not refuse the field allotment, at least for the first nine years (and in the subsequent period, the refusal of land was limited by a number of conditions that made it difficult to exercise this right).

This indicated the landlord nature of the reform: under the terms of the "liberation", it was unprofitable for the peasant to take land. In turn, the rejection of it deprived the landowners of both labor and income, which they would receive in the form of dues.

Was there slavery in Russia?

The question of field size. The duties and sizes of allotments were to be fixed in charters, which were drawn up within 2 years. But these letters were drawn up by the landowners themselves, and checked by peace mediators from among the landowners. It turned out that the intermediaries between the peasants and the landowners were, again, the landowners.

Conditional letters were concluded with the "peace" (a rural community of peasants belonging to the landowner), i.e. duty was levied from the "world". Thus, the peasants were freed from the serfdom of the landlords, but fell into the same dependence on the "peace". The peasant did not have the right to leave the community, to get a passport - this issue was decided by the "peace". Peasants could redeem their allotments and were then called peasant proprietors, but again, redemption could only be made by the entire community, and not by an individual peasant.

The terms of the reform fully met the interests of the landlords. Peasants became temporarily liable to indefinite term. In essence, the feudal system of exploitation of the peasants was evident.

Abolition of serfdom. Reading the Manifesto in the Village

The peasants continued to bear duties for the use of the land. Duties were divided into monetary (tire) and sharecropping (corvee). The main form of duties was a cash quitrent, its size approximately corresponded to the pre-reform one. This clearly showed that the quitrent was established not by the result of the value of the land, but by the income received by the landowner from the personality of the serf.

quitrent was paid to the landowner from the whole of society "with the mutual guarantee of each other" of the peasants. In addition, the landowner received the right to demand it six months in advance.

Corvee. Work on the land of the landowner was divided into horse and foot days. The ratio of horse and foot days was determined by the landowner.

ransom field allotment depended solely on the landowner. Not all peasants could immediately contribute the entire amount for redemption, in which the landowners were interested. The peasants received a redemption amount from the government, but they had to repay it for 49 years annually at 6%. Therefore, the peasants were often forced to give up the land that they were entitled to receive under the terms of the reform.

As a result, the peasants remained in a certain dependence on the local nobility and temporarily beholden to their former owners.

The consequences of the peasant reform

"Manifesto" on the abolition of serfdom

Such results of the reform could not satisfy the peasants, they considered themselves deceived. Therefore, the abolition of serfdom caused not jubilation, but an outburst of peasant protest. Peasant unrest began: in the first 5 months of 1861 there were 1340 mass unrest, and in a year -1859 unrest. Most of them were pacified by military force. There was not a single province in which the protest of the peasants against the unfavorable conditions of the granted "freedom" would not manifest itself. Relying on the “good” tsar, the peasants could not believe that it was from him that the laws come, as a result of which they remain in fact in the same subordination to the landowner for 2 years, are forced to perform corvée and pay dues, are deprived of part of their former allotments, and the lands granted to them declared the property of the nobility. Some even considered the “Regulations” to be fake, drawn up by the landowners and officials who agreed with them, hiding the “royal will”.

Bread and salt to the king-father

The peasant protest movement took on a special scope in the black earth provinces, the Volga region and Ukraine, where the peasants were mainly on corvee. In the spring and summer of 1861, the peak of peasant unrest was noted, and in the autumn of 1861, the struggle takes on other forms: mass felling of the landowner's forest by peasants, refusals to pay dues, but especially peasant sabotage of corvée work: in a number of provinces, even up to half of the landowner's land remained at that time. year unprocessed.

A new wave of peasant protest began in 1862, it was associated with the introduction of statutory charters. The peasants refused to sign these letters, as a result they began to impose them by force, which resulted in new outbreaks of protests. Rumors stubbornly spread that the king would soon be granted a "real" will. Emperor Alexander II had to speak to representatives of the peasantry in order to dispel these misconceptions. In the autumn of 1862, in the Crimea, he declared that "there will be no other will than the one that is given." On November 25, 1862, in a speech to the assembled volost and village elders of the Moscow province, he said: “After February 19 next year, do not expect any new will and no new benefits ... Do not listen to the rumors that go between you, and do not believe those who you will be assured of something else, but believe only my words. But the peasants were hard to dissuade. Even after 20 years, they cherished the hope of a "black redistribution" of land.

Continuing peasant revolts were suppressed by the government. But life went on, and the peasants of each estate united in rural communities. General economic issues were discussed and resolved at rural gatherings. The village headman, who was elected for 3 years, was obliged to fulfill the decisions of the gatherings. Several adjacent rural societies made up the volost. Village elders and elected representatives from rural societies took part in the volost gathering. At this meeting, the volost headman was elected. He was in charge of police and administrative duties.

The government hoped that the "temporarily obligated" relationship would soon end and the landowners and peasants would conclude a redemption deal in each estate. But the government at the same time feared that the peasants would not be able or would not want to pay big money for bad allotments and would run away. Therefore, it introduced a number of severe restrictions: in the process of redemption payments, the peasants could not give up their allotment and leave their village forever without the consent of the village assembly.

However, the peasant reform was still a progressive event in the history of the Russian Empire. The country got the opportunity to modernize: the transition from an agrarian to an industrial society. More than 20 million people received freedom, moreover, peacefully, while in the United States, for example, slavery was eliminated as a result of civil war. The abolition of serfdom was also of great moral importance and influenced the development of culture, although the interests of the landlords were taken into account in it more than the interests of the peasants, and the remnants of the serfdom remained in the minds of people for a long time. The peasant reform carried out further strengthened the autocracy, but sooner or later it still had to happen - this required time.

To the master for help

But since the land problem was not finally resolved, it declared itself later, in the 20th century, when the first Russian revolution took place, a peasant revolution in terms of the composition of the driving forces and tasks that “stretched” from 1861. This forced P. Stolypin to carry out a land reform, allowing the peasants to leave the community. But that's another story…

Servants who do not have a master do not become free people because of this - they have servility in their souls.

G. Heine

The date of the abolition of serfdom in Russia is December 19, 1861. This is a significant event, since the beginning of 1861 turned out to be extremely tense for the Russian Empire. Alexander 2 was even forced to put the army on high alert. The reason for this was not a possible war, but the growing boom of discontent among the peasants.

A few years before 1861, the tsarist government began to consider a law to abolish serfdom. The emperor understood that there was nowhere to delay further. His advisers unanimously said that the country was on the verge of an explosion of a peasant war. On March 30, 1859, a meeting of noblemen and the emperor took place. At this meeting, the nobles said that it was better for the liberation of the peasants to come from above, otherwise it would follow from below.

Reform February 19, 1861

As a result, the date of the abolition of serfdom in Russia was determined - February 19, 1861. What did this reform give the peasants, did they become free? This question can be answered unambiguously the reform of 1861 made the life of the peasants much worse. Of course, the royal manifesto, signed by him in order to liberate ordinary people, endowed the peasants with rights that they never had. Now the landowner did not have the right to exchange a peasant for a dog, to beat him, to forbid him to marry, trade, or engage in fishing. But the problem for the peasants was the land.

Land issue

To resolve the land issue, the state convened peace mediators who were sent to the places and there they were engaged in the division of the land. The overwhelming majority of the work of these intermediaries consisted in the fact that they announced to the peasants that on all disputed issues with the land they should negotiate with the landowner. This agreement had to be in writing. The reform of 1861 gave the landowners the right, when determining land plots, to take away from the peasants, the so-called "surplus". As a result, the peasants had only 3.5 acres (1) of land per audit soul (2). Before the reform of the land was 3.8 acres. At the same time, the landowners took away from the peasants better land leaving only barren lands.

The most paradoxical thing about the reform of 1861 is that the date of the abolition of serfdom is known exactly, but everything else is very vague. Yes, the manifesto formally endowed the peasants with land, but in fact the land remained in the possession of the landowner. The peasant received only the right to redeem that land plot who was assigned to him by the landowner. But at the same time, the landlords themselves were endowed with the right to independently determine whether or not to allow the sale of land.

Land redemption

No less strange was the amount at which the peasants had to buy land plots. This amount was calculated on the basis of the dues received by the landowner. For example, the richest nobleman of those years Shuvalov P.P. received a quitrent of 23 thousand rubles a year. This means that the peasants, in order to redeem the land, had to pay the landowner as much money as needed so that the landowner put them in the bank and annually received the same 23 thousand rubles in interest. As a result, on average, one auditor's soul had to pay 166.66 rubles for the tithing. Since the families were large, on average across the country, one family had to pay 500 rubles for the purchase of a land plot. It was an unbearable amount.

The state came to "help" the peasants. The State Bank paid the landlord 75-80% of the required amount. Peasants paid the rest. At the same time, they were obliged to settle accounts with the state and pay the required interest within 49 years. On average across the country, the bank paid the landowner 400 rubles for one land plot. At the same time, the peasants gave money to the bank for 49 years in the amount of almost 1200 rubles. The state almost tripled its money.

The date of the abolition of serfdom is an important stage in the development of Russia, but it did not give a positive result. Only by the end of 1861, uprisings broke out in 1176 estates in the country. By 1880, 34 Russian provinces were engulfed in peasant uprisings.

Only after the first revolution in 1907, the government canceled the purchase of land. Land was provided free of charge.

1 - one tithe is equal to 1.09 hectares.

2 - auditor's soul - the male population of the country (women were not entitled to land).

Serfdom is a phenomenon that many historians and writers of that time mention with very negative emotions. It is understood, because serfdom fettered not only the freedom of people, but also their opportunities for development. This article will tell you when serfdom was adopted and abolished.

To understand when and why serfdom was abolished, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with its essence and the history of its origin.

What is serfdom

Serfdom is a toughened form of feudal power. It originated in European countries long before its adoption in Russia and had a very negative impact on comprehensive development countries. At a time when Russian peasants, closely tied to the lands of their feudal lords, worked almost around the clock and paid huge taxes, European peasants were already adapted to the rapidly developing capitalist system.

The essence of serfdom is as follows. At that time, society was divided into two main layers - peasants and feudal lords. The peasants had no private property. Feudal lords - the main owners of the country's capital, who were the owners of land, houses and other private property. Since the peasants needed to survive, they had to work on the land of the feudal lords. For this, they took part of their harvest and the work done. This is ordinary feudalism.

Serfdom in Russia is a toughened feudalism, which not only rips off more than half of the crop and profit from the peasants, but also ties the peasant to the land of the feudal lord. Thus, the peasant is fettered and cannot move freely from one feudal lord to another, cannot accumulate funds and also become a feudal lord.

When was serfdom abolished in Russia

The realization that serfdom destroys society came to Russia much later than to Europe. If the main part European countries abolished serfdom in the 18th century, then in Russia it was finally abolished on February 19, 1861. At that time, the imminent approach of a peasant uprising was felt. In addition, from an economic point of view, serfdom was already beginning to suffer. It was these factors that led to the abolition of serfdom.

Although the above two factors are considered the main ones, some historians argue that there were other phenomena that played a role in the abolition of serfdom in Russia.

Instruction

According to the famous historian V.O. Klyuchevsky, serfdom is the "worst kind" of captivity of people, "pure arbitrariness." Russian legislative acts and government police measures "attached" the peasants not to the land, as was customary in the West, but to the owner, who became the sovereign master over dependent people.

Land has been the main breadwinner for the peasantry in Russia for many centuries. Own "ownership" was not easy for a person. In the 15th century most of the Russian territories were unsuitable for agriculture: forests covered vast expanses. Zaims were based on the arable land mined at the cost of enormous labor. All land holdings were owned by the Grand Duke, and peasant households used independently developed arable plots.

The landowning boyars and monasteries invited new peasants to join them. To settle in a new place, the landowners provided them with benefits in the performance of duties, helped them to acquire their own farm. During this period, people were not attached to the land, they had the right to seek more suitable living conditions and change their place of residence, choosing a new landowner. A private contract or "row" record served to establish a relationship between the owner of the land and the new settler. The main duty of the plowmen was considered to be the performance of certain duties in favor of the owners, the most important of them being quitrent and corvée. It was necessary for the landlords to keep the labor force on their territory. Between the princes, even agreements were established on the "non-poaching" of peasants from each other.

Then the era of serfdom began in Russia, which lasted quite a long time. It began with a gradual loss of the possibility of free resettlement to other territories. Burdened with exorbitant payments, the farmers could not pay off their debts, they ran away from their landowner. But according to the law of “years” adopted in the state, the landowner had the full right to search for fugitives for five (and later fifteen) years and return them back.

With the adoption of the Sudebnik in 1497, serfdom began to take shape. In one of the articles of this collection of Russian laws, it was indicated that the transfer of peasants to another owner is allowed once a year (before and after St. George's Day) after paying the elderly. The amount of the ransom was considerable and depended on the duration of the landowner's residence on the land.

In the Sudebnik of Ivan the Terrible, Yuryev survived the day, but the payment for the elderly increased significantly, and an additional fee was added to it. Dependence on the landowners was strengthened by a new article in the law on the responsibility of the owner for the crimes of his peasants. With the beginning of the census (1581) in Russia, “reserved years” began in certain territories, at which time there was a ban on people leaving even on St. George's Day. At the end of the census (1592), a special Decree finally abolished the resettlement. “Here you are, grandmother, and St. George's Day,” people began to say. There was only one way out for the farmers - to escape with the hope that they would not be found.

The 17th century is the era of the strengthening of autocratic power and the mass popular movement in Russia. The peasantry was divided into two groups. Serfs lived on the landlords', monastic lands, who had to bear a variety of duties. The black-haired peasants were controlled by the authorities, these "hard people" were obliged to pay taxes. Further enslavement of the Russian people was manifested in various forms. Under Tsar Mikhail Romanov, landowners were allowed to cede and sell serfs without land. Under Alexei Mikhailovich, the Council Code of 1649 finally attached the peasants to the land. The search and return of the fugitives became indefinite.

Serf bondage was inherited, and the landowner received the right to dispose of the property of dependent people. The debts of the owner were covered by the property of forced peasants and serfs. Police supervision and court within the patrimony were administered by their owners. The serfs were completely powerless. They could not, without the permission of the owner, enter into marriages, transfer inheritance, independently appear in court. In addition to duties to their master, serfs had to perform duties for the benefit of the state.

Legislation laid certain obligations and on the landowners. They were punished for harboring fugitives, killing other people's serfs, and paying taxes to the state for runaway peasants. The owners had to give their serfs land and the necessary equipment. It was forbidden to take land and property from dependent people, turning them into slaves, and letting them go free. Serfdom was gaining strength, it extended to black-haired and palace peasants, who now lost the opportunity to leave the community.

By the beginning of the 19th century, in connection with the quitrent and corvee brought to the limit, contradictions between landlords and peasants escalated. Working for their master, the serfs did not have the opportunity to engage in their own household. For the policy of Alexander I, serfdom was an unshakable basis state structure. But the first attempts to free from serfdom were approved by law. The Decree of 1803 "On free cultivators" allowed the redemption of individual families and entire villages with land in agreement with the landowner. New law made few changes to the situation of bonded people: many were unable to redeem themselves and negotiate with the landowner. And the decree did not apply at all to a significant number of landless laborers.

Alexander II became the tsar-liberator from serfdom. The February Manifesto of 1961 declared personal freedom and the rights of a citizen to the peasants. The prevailing circumstances of life led Russia to this progressive reform. Former serfs became “temporarily liable” for many years, paying money and serving labor service for the use of land allotments allotted to them, and until the beginning of the 20th century were not considered full members of society.