Economy and the persistence of serfdom and its impact on economic development
Serfdom — the system that legally tied peasants to a noble's land — survived throughout Catherine's reign. Its survival kept Russia's economy underdeveloped compared to Western Europe.
Real World
While Britain's industrialists in the 1770s were paying wages to factory workers who could move between employers and towns, Russian serfs on nobles' estates had no legal right to leave — meaning Russia had no mobile labour force to drive an industrial revolution.
Exam Focus
Link serfdom explicitly to economic consequences (no wage labour, no internal market) rather than describing it in isolation.
Essay Framework
Use PEEL to structure every paragraph. Tap each step for guidance and an example.
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