The Peasant Reform of 1861 has been a widely debated topic in the history of Russia as it can be seen as having repercussions on not only Russia but also world-wide. At the same time as the emancipation decree, American slavery was abolished, but it was the Russian move that has been seen as most successful.

The decree published on 19^th February 1861 stated, ‘The serfdom of peasants settled on estate owners’ landed properties, and household serfs, is abolished forever.’[1] The basic principle of the reform was that it gave the peasants their freedom from the landlords and, in theory, allowed them to farm their own sections of land and then sell produce at local markets for profit. The reform also allowed the serfs to break free of the social barriers that they had been dictated by for years. The serfs were now allowed to marry whom they pleased, without needing permission and they no longer had to be answerable to the landlords.

However, as will be argued during this essay, were all these promises upheld and did the peasants gain the true freedom that they wanted? Although there was this, more positive, side to the reform, the other side was that the land given to the peasants was given on a collective, not individual basis and the peasantry was still subject to army conscription, paying of taxes and different judicial rules than the rest of the empire. Redemption payments were also to be paid by the peasantry, over a period of forty-nine years, with interest. If the peasant died within this forty-nine year period, then the debt that was still left to be paid off was passed onto their next of kin. In part, these redemption payments were a compensation for the landlords for the loss of labour and land.