Introduction
Since the 16th century, vodka has not merely been a source of pleasure and even of spiritual and religious experience, but has also circulated vast quantities of wealth through the long-suffering body of Russian society. But vodka was never just a drink: like all alcoholic drinks, it was also a social, economic, and political 'institution', in the sociologist's sense of the word. Viewed like this, alcohol appears as one of many different means of redistributing wealth, as one more expression of class conflict — that constant petty skirmishing by which the power and privilege of ruling elites are sustained. This book surveys the early history of vodka in Russia, its role in the distribution of wealth, and the overthrow of tax farming in Russia, including the emergence of upper-class opposition to the system, the popular protests of 1859, and the bureaucratic politics that led to the reform of 1863. The book argues that the abolition of tax farming should be treated as one of the more important of Russia's ‘Great Reforms’ of the l860s.
Keywords: Russia, vodka, wealth, tax farming, class conflict, politics, reform, popular protests, ruling elites
Oxford Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs , and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us .