Almost a rhetorical question: why Peter 1 is called the Great?

The exclusive position of Peter the Great among other Russian monarchs is underscored by the fact that even after the October Revolution his respect was treated with respect. The cities that were named in his honor (except Petrograd) were not renamed, the monument to the Bronze Horseman, unlike the monuments to other kings, was not dropped from the pedestal, and so on - there are many examples. It turns out that even the Bolsheviks were not particularly indignant at what reasons and why Peter 1 was called Great; In any case, angry objections they apparently did not cause.

The youth of Peter 1 ended early enough - at the age of seventeen he became the de facto head of a large state. From the very first steps the young king showed himself as a fierce opponent of the old order, with which he did not want to reckon in either the big or the small. He craved absolute power, on the way to which he succeeded not only in destroying or neutralizing open enemies (in particular, by suppressing the streltsi rebellion inspired by his half-sister with his father, Tsarevna Sofya Alekseevna), but also to unconditionally subordinate all high dignitaries who had unsuccessfully tried At first to manipulate it. Even then, at the very beginning of his reign, the prerequisites to the fact that the question of why Peter 1 was called the Great Tsar, is now perceived almost as rhetorical. Failures of the first years of his rule - for example, not too successful a war with Turkey - did not discourage Peter the Great, And after a long overseas voyage, his ebullient energy found the main vector of his application: the scrapping of everything old and immediate immediate reforms in the European manner. Despite his youth, he was well aware that otherwise the Russian state was destined to continue to remain on the outskirts of civilization. Literally having won his legitimate right to the throne, Peter the First did not want to be content with the title of the ruler of the "Muscovite barbarians", as Russians were scornfully called in Europe. Hard, sometimes extremely cruel, he, in the figurative expression of the poet A.S. Pushkin, "Russia has risen on its hind legs", showing the whole world what this half-wild country considered capable of with skilful and resolute leadership is capable of.

The swiftness, incredible scale and success of transformations - that's what for and why Peter 1 is called the Great Emperor. For a few years he managed to introduce Russia into the number of the most powerful world powers, create a fundamentally new and strong army, build a powerful fleet, radically reform management mechanisms, and make changes to virtually all spheres of the state system. The reign of Peter the Great is unparalleled in Russian history in terms of pace and depth of modernization, and the great tsar himself (since 1721 - the first Russian emperor) is undoubtedly one of the most visible and dynamic personalities among monarchs of all countries and peoples. Even the shortest list of his achievements is enough to understand why Peter 1 is called the Great Sovereign. He deserved this title all his not too long, but quite bright, rich and creative life.