Connections: Slavery in America and Russian Serfdom

Quick Summary

Russian Serfdom	American Slavery
35 year average life 90% of population in year of emancipation Russian nobles, Boyars, held Serfs Freed by Tsar Nicholas II April 5, 1861 Russian Orthodox Church used as a means of controlling serfs Tsar seen as a representative of God	21-22 year average life 13-14% of the total population in the years of the Civil War Slaveholders — majority were Southerners on plantations Freed by Emancipation Proclamation 1863 Second Great Awakening spread ideals of freedom + equality, and spurred on the Abolitionist movement Also used to support slavery (Epistle of Paul to Philemon)

History of Serfdom

Serfdom under Peter the Great (r. 1682 - 1725)

To help modernize and westernize Russia, Tsar Peter the Great began the expanding the practice of the forced labor of serfs (uneducated farmers). The serfs had no freedom of travel and were required to ask permission from their governing Boyar (noble) before leaving their village.
In addition to force, Boyars and Tsars were also able to control the serf population through religion. Many serfs were brought up to believe that the Tsar was a representative of God, in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
In 1825, some government officials believed that in order for Russia to economically advance, Serfdom must be abolished. Because of this, the army and students rose up against the czar and hierarchy to force this change, but the attempt failed However, this event known as the Decemberist Revolt helped popularize the idea of ending serfdom in Russia.

Tsar Alexander II (r. 1855 - 1879) and the End of Serfdom

Factors that lead to the end of serfdom included the Crimean Wars (1853 - 1856). Serfs were forced to serve in the Russian military, but were incredibly inefficient as they couldn't operate guns or read. Additionally, fearing rebellion, Tsar Alexander II emancipated the serfs, stating that it was better to abolish from above, than to have them liberate from below.
Unlike the United States, the nobles could not rebel against the emancipation like in the US and Civil War, because of the centralized government and state control (rather than noble control).

Slaves and Serfs

The institutions of slavery and serfdom are incredibly similar -- both rely on a captive and (generally) unskilled labor force. In both Russia and America, religion was used as a means of controlling the enslaved populations. The fear of further punishment and torment in the next life served as a deterrent for many would-be rebellions. As seen in the documentary, God in America, religion was used to further democratic ideas, yet in the case of slavery, it was used to prevent them from ever taking root. Just as the Eastern Orthodox Church in Russia kept the Serfs in submission (to rebel against the the nobles and their tsar would be to rebel against the will of God, and even God himself), the Bible, especially the Epistle of Paul to Philemon, was used to justify slavery as God's will. 

Both serfs and slaves worked in agriculture, where large masses of unskilled laborers was in constant need. Cheap labor allowed for more crops to be produced, benefiting their owners or nobles that supervised them. 

American slavery differs from serfdom in that America was founded on democracy, and Russia was a feudal-society until the autocracy came to fruition through the tsars. The American ideal of democracy and freedom directly went against the institution of slavery. Because of this conflict, slavery had to be justified, not by legal law, but by unwritten social codes and beliefs of white supremacy. Russian serfdom did not need justification, because the system of government condoned and supported the practice.  

Sources:

Merriman pages 782-795

http://www.civil-war.net/pages/1860_census.html

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtid=2&psid=3040

http://greenwhs.weebly.com/uploads/1/7/8/5/17857089/russianrevreadingpacketch..pdf

Downey Slide Lecture Notes (EHAP)