Question

peter the great
in the 1600s, russia was still a medieval state. separate from western europe, it had not gone through the renaissance and reformation. the country had experienced years of disorder and foreign invaders. in 1682, a new czar took the throne. by 1689, he had absolute power over russia. peter the great brought russia into modern times.

1. what is the subject of this article?

a few years after peter became czar, he went on a trip to western europe. upon arriving home, he decided to make russia more like the west. peter wanted to use western european technology to make his army and navy strong. then, russia could become a great military power. peter thought that westernizing russia would help russia become a great european state. he introduced western customs and manners to russia. the czar even had a book of etiquette written to teach western manners.

1. why did peter introduce western european customs to russia?

because westerners did not wear beards or long coats, beards of russian men were shaved and coats were shortened. at the royal court, peter shaved off the nobles beards himself. outside the court, barbers and tailors were placed at city gates. they cut the beards and coats of those who entered. before peters rule, russian women had to wear veils and hide themselves from society. to become more like the west, peter said that russian women should take off their veils. he held parties where men and women were forced to dance together.

1. why did peter change social customs in russia?

russian nobles, or boyars, did not like the changes peter made. peter had no mercy for those who stood up against his rules. he gave vicious punishments, like beating, impaling, and roasting. when palace guards revolted, peter had over 1,000 of the rebels tortured and executed. to show his power, he left their rotting corpses outside the palace walls for months. peters goals were to strengthen the military, expand russias borders, and centralize royal powers. he brought everything in russia under his control, including the russian orthodox church. the czar forced boyars to serve the state in civilian and military jobs. peter used terror to enforce his power.

1. why did peter need to bring the russian church under his control?

Explanation:

1. The article focuses on Peter the Great and his efforts to modernize Russia, so the subject is Peter the Great's modernization of Russia.
2. Peter introduced Western - European customs to make Russia more like the West, aiming to strengthen the military and become a great European state.
3. He changed social customs to make Russia more like the West and achieve his goals of strengthening the military, expanding borders, and centralizing power.
4. Peter brought the Russian Church under his control to centralize royal powers and have everything in Russia under his control.

Answer:

1. Peter the Great's modernization of Russia
2. To make Russia more like the West and strengthen the military to become a great European state.
3. To make Russia more like the West and achieve his goals of strengthening the military, expanding borders, and centralizing power.
4. To centralize royal powers and have everything in Russia under his control.