Serfdom Abolished: Russia Modernizes After 200 Years
Tsar Alexander II signs a manifesto freeing over twenty million serfs from centuries of feudal bondage, shattering the rigid social hierarchy that had defined Russian life. This radical shift dismantled the economic foundation of the nobility and forced a massive migration of laborers into cities, setting the stage for the industrialization and radical turmoil that would follow in the next century.
February 19, 1861
165 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on February 19
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