What were the reasons Tsar Alexander II of Russia wanted to free the serfs?
The short answer is that the Crimean War had shown Russia up as a backward, medieval society that couldn’t supply her troops, even on her own territory. Alexander thought that by freeing the serfs some peasants would become good farmers, buy up other peasants’ land, make a grain surplus – generating foreign capital, and cause unemployment in the countryside – forcing people into the cities for work. Alexander also wanted the landlords not to be out of pocket, so he ensured that the serfs were not freed – they had to buy their freedom over a very long period. See: http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.
