On the 30th of May 1672 the baby who was to become "Peter the Great, Most Wise Father of the Fatherland" was born. Even at his birth the title "Great" seemed entirely appropriate for this remarkable personage measuring as he did some thirty three inches from head to toe. The occasion of his coming into the world heralded a period of great change for Russia under his leadership. He was to attempt to reform Russia entirely, down to the most basic cultural ideas, during his drive for the Europeanisation of his country. His aim was to "cut through a window into Europe", but how successful was he in achieving this? To what extent did Russia become a "Westernised power" during his reign? This essay shall attempt to answer these questions.
Peter The Great as he became known, came to the throne in 1682 at the age of ten. At this time Russia could be said to be being behind a 17th century iron curtain. It was in many respects alien from much of Europe. Foreigners rarely travelled in the huge country and when they did they were met with suspicion and rarely felt welcome. This distrust of foreigners is demonstrated very clearly in the fact that foreign residents in Moscow were actually segregated from the rest of the residents and were made to live in what was known as the German Quarter. Russia's isolation from the rest of Europe was compounded by their poor access to the sea, especially the Baltic, which made trade and communication difficult.
The new Tsar recognised that these factors were a problem for Russia, which would only increase if left unchecked. Russia was rapidly falling behind much of the rest of Europe, mainly in terms of military and technological development and Peter believed that unless something was done Russia would emerge from this period stunted and vulnerable. He also saw that to combat this problem Russia would have to go through great changes not only in terms of increased military strength but just as importantly in terms of her culture and attitude to the outside world.