| ----- | |
| --- 14902555 | |
| historically speaking were Russians the only people dumb enough to create an empire whose periphery was more developed than its core? | |
| --- 14903218 | |
| >>14902555 (OP) | |
| I think Brazil was more developed than Portugal by the time it became independent. | |
| --- 14903640 | |
| >>14902555 (OP) | |
| Russian Empire was like South Africa today. where less intelligent majority rules over more intelligent minority | |
| --- 14903650 | |
| >>14903218 | |
| Brazil is also a good example of periphery development. The coastline is where 90% of people live, there used to be fucking nothing westwards | |
| --- 14903908 | |
| >>14903218 | |
| It wasn't. Even the wealthiest regions (Rio de Janeiro, the Recôncavo, Maranhão) were still underdeveloped compared to Portugal. | |
| --- 14903926 | |
| >>14902555 (OP) | |
| The real core was Sankt-Petersburg and the Baltics, so not really. A significant part of Russian elites were Baltic Germans | |
| --- 14904873 | |
| >>14902555 (OP) | |
| >create an empire whose periphery was more developed than its core? | |
| That's just what happens whenever a barbarian horde subjugates a civilized region. Typically these arrangements are not very long lived, as was the case here too. | |
| --- 14904908 | |
| The periphery was the coast where trade was best. Before things like railways arrived Saint Petersburg was clearly the prime city. | |
| --- 14904914 | |
| What do the runes say? | |
| --- 14905006 | |
| >>14904873 | |
| 400 years is very short lived yeah | |
| --- 14906071 | |
| >>14905006 | |
| 75% of the nobility (including the royal dynasty) were of non-russian origin. mostly Balts,Batlic Germans, Poles, Georgians, and Malorussians(ukrainians) | |
| --- 14906544 | |
| >>14903926 | |
| St. Petersburg was still more of a periphery, thought your point is nonetheless valid. The elites of the Baltic and Polish-Lithuanian provinces were integrated into the ruling class and often were in charge of the imperial policies. | |
| --- 14906551 | |
| >>14906071 | |
| >mostly Balts,Batlic Germans | |
| Just Baltic Gemans. The Balts were overwhelmengly peasant, except for the Samogitian szlachta. | |
| --- 14906749 | |
| >>14906551 | |
| well I mentioned balts since a very big chunk of the polish nobles as well were lithuanians | |
| --- 14906770 | |
| >>14902555 (OP) | |
| Imperial Russia was centered on St. Petersburg. | |
| --- 14906775 | |
| >>14904914 | |
| Pretty sure it's literacy rates | |
| --- 14906788 | |
| >>14902555 (OP) | |
| The Greeks were arguably "more developed" than the Romans who conquered them, and that whole thing worked out really well for the Romans | |
| --- 14906926 | |
| >>14906749 | |
| Prior to the rise of contemporary Lithuanian nationalism, the "Lithuanians" were less Baltic than the Scots are Celtic. | |
| --- 14907224 | |
| >>14904914 | |
| >>14906775 | |
| Literacy rates | |