Alexander II of Russia

Alexander II was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 2 March 1855 until his assassination on 13 March 1881. He is also known as Alexander the Liberator because of his historic Edict of Emancipation, which officially abolished Russian serfdom in 1861. Crowned on 7 September 1856, he succeeded his father Nicholas I and was succeeded by his son Alexander III.

Basic peasant men's clothing

Peasant men typically wore shirts and trousers, while boys wore only shirts, with shirts often being secured at the waist with laces to keep them from interfering with work.

Lifelong festive peasant clothing

A peasant family would prepare a festive outfit meant to last a lifetime, which was stored carefully and worn only on the most important holidays.

Church ban on folk musical instruments

Russian Orthodoxy officially rejected folk instruments, and the church once famously burned five carriages filled with them in the 17th century. Consequently, no musical instruments were permitted in Orthodox church services during this period.

Improvised percussion for fast folk dances

During fast-paced dances known as pliaska, performers often used improvised percussion instruments, including wooden spoons, metal pots, or even farm scythes to keep the rhythm.

Essential road gear and carriages

Travelers commonly used specialized chests called pogrebetz, which featured internal partitions to hold essential items like tea-pots, glass carafes with rum, and milk jugs for long journeys. Many peasants used simple, horse-drawn carts known as telegi, which were frequently built without iron tires, making them highly susceptible to damage on rough roads.

Travel by horse-drawn relay transport

Between 1800 and 1824, ordinary people traveled between towns primarily using horse-drawn carriages, wagons, or sledges, often relying on the state-run relay system to secure fresh horses at designated postal stations. Travelers were required to carry an official permit called a podorozhnaya to document their route and status at these stations.

Children's home education

Many merchant and commoner children were educated at home by local sextons or clerks, with the Psalter and Book of Hours serving as their primary textbooks. Formal schooling remained rare for these groups, as even many noble children relied on varied levels of home instruction.

Lighting in the home

Peasant huts were illuminated by a torch inserted into the stove's crack or by simple oil lamps with wicks. In better-off homes, candles were used when oil lamps were unavailable.

Kvass as the universal drink

Kvass, a fermented drink made from rye flour and malt, served as the universal daily beverage for the lower classes.

Meat as a rare luxury

Meat was a luxury for many families, typically consumed only on major religious holidays like Christmas and Easter.

Common non-agricultural peasant jobs

To supplement agricultural income, peasants took jobs such as boatmen, longshoremen, construction workers, cabmen, and artisans in cities. In the central provinces, 27 percent of men did not plow land at all, relying entirely on these non-agricultural trades.

Earnings of Volga boatmen

In the 1810s, boatmen on the Volga earned about 300 rubles per season for their labor. However, the later introduction of steamboats caused these earnings to drop significantly, to between 60 and 90 rubles.

Cost of sending a letter

Letters were weighed in lots (one lot equaling 12.8 grams) and cost 10 kopecks per lot to send, which was expensive given that a bowl of cabbage soup with meat cost one kopeck at a tavern.

Disinfecting mail during epidemics

Letters sent during cholera epidemics were punctured with holes and fumigated with special smoke at checkpoints to kill potential bacteria.