In a relatively short period of time, Peter the Great managed to bring the Russian state out of the shadows - thanks to his reforms, Russia became one of the leading powers in the arena of world life. This happened after the introduction of changes that concerned almost all aspects of life (especially the economic reforms of Peter the Great).
The reforms of Peter the Great primarily concerned the transformation of the central government. As a result, the Boyar Duma was abolished and replaced by the Near Office, which in 1708 was renamed the Council of Ministers.
The next item on the list of reforms was the creation of the Governing Senate (in 1711), which became the highest government institution. He took part in legislative, administrative and judicial cases.
Reforms of Peter the Great in 1718-1720s. cumbersome and clumsy laws were abolished and boards were introduced - initially there were 11 of them: the Board of Foreign Affairs, which was in charge of foreign policy affairs; The military college that ruled allland forces of the country; the Admir alty Board, which disposed of the navy; The Berg Collegium was engaged in the mining industry; The College of Justice subjugated the civil and criminal courts, etc.
Also important was the Decree on uniform inheritance, which was signed in 1714 by Peter the Great. The reforms were as follows: according to this document, the estates of the nobles were henceforth equal to the boyar estates, and the introduction of this decree was aimed at destroying the boundaries between the tribal and noble nobility. Moreover, now there was no difference between boyar and noble land. A little later, in 1722, Peter adopted the Table of Ranks, which finally erased the boundaries between the new and old aristocracy and completely equalized them.
In 1708, to strengthen the apparatus of power and increase its influence, the Regional Reform was introduced: the country was divided into eight provinces. Its logical conclusion was the reform of urban administration: more and more cities appeared, and, accordingly, the population of the country grew (by the end of the reign of Peter the Great, an average of 350 thousand people lived in large towns). And the composition of the urban population was complex: the main part were small artisans, townspeople, merchants and entrepreneurs.
Under Peter the Great, the process of transformation of the church was completely completed - the reforms of Peter the Great turned it into an important state institution subordinate to the highest secular authorities. After the death of Patriarch Adrian, the king forbade holdingthe election of a new patriarch, referring to the unexpected outbreak of the Northern War. Stefan Yavorsky was appointed head of the patriarchal throne. After the Northern War, Peter abolished the patriarchate altogether. The management of all church affairs and issues was entrusted to the Theological College, after which it was renamed the Holy Government Synod, which completely turned the church into a powerful support for Russian absolutism.
But the great transformations and reforms of Peter the Great brought with them many problems, the main of which were the tightening of serfdom and the development of bureaucracy.
