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|  Peter
I, “the Great,” is a legendary figure
in Russian and world history. Exuberant, bold, often reckless,
Peter profoundly influenced the course of Russian development
in the early modern era. He founded St. Petersburg in 1703
and made the new city the capital of the Russian empire in
1721, during the successful Northern War against the Swedes.
Among his many accomplishments, Peter irreversibly set into
motion a process of intensive Westernization and modernization
of Russia and established the Russian Empire as an important
player in European and international politics.
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The
reform of Peter I
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system and the entire money-striking process had become
increasingly unworkable under the new political and economic
realities. Peter boldly decided to initiate monetary reform.
The reform solved multiple problems. Peter included the
Ukrainian Hetmanate and the newly conquered Baltic provinces
in the Russian monetary system. The monetary reform also
simultaneously helped to finance the rearmament of the
army, the creation of a navy, the building of canals and
harbors, and the many large purchases made abroad to help
achieve these goals.
The
copper kopeck and the silver ruble (worth 100 kopecks)
were taken as a basis of the new monetary system. In 1654
Alexei Mikhailovich, the father of Peter I, already attempted
to replace the silver kopeck with a copper kopeck, but
this had led to the so-called “copper revolt” in
1662. People did not want to accept the copper kopeck in
place of the silver one. As a result, Peter prudently kept
the silver kopeck in circulation next to the new copper
kopeck for almost 20 years to let his subjects get used
to the idea of copper money. The first silver ruble coin
appeared in 1704.
In 1700
the first round coins were struck by machinery. Initially
all the money production took place in Moscow
in multiple mints. In 1724 the St. Petersburg mint started
producing the new coins, the so-called “sun” rubles.
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Silver
ruble from 1705, illustrated with a portrait of Peter
the Great. The monetary system instituted by Peter
was a century ahead of most others in that it was based
on the decimal system. The basic monetary unit, first coined in
1704, was the silver ruble of 100 kopecks. Other silver
coinage consisted of the poltina (one-half ruble), polupoltina
(one-fourth ruble), grivennik (ten kopecks), altyn (three
kopecks) and kopeck. There were two copper sub-multiples
of the kopeck: den’ga (one-half kopeck) and polushka
(one-fourth kopeck); and three gold multiples of the ruble:
double ruble, chervonets or “ducat” (about
2 and one-half rubles), and dvoinoi chervonets (double
chervonets). Unfortunately, Peter’s profligate expenditures
steadily eroded most of the value of this otherwise admirable
currency.
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.302
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Silver
ruble of 1707. The reverse side shows the Romanov double-eagle.
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.303
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Silver
ruble, issued in 1720, with the obverse side showing
the “mature” Peter
the Great.
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.304
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Silver
ruble from 1725, the last year of Peter the Great’s
reign.
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.305
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1
kopeck piece, copper, 1710. The obverse side depicts
a rider with the lance thrust downward, showing continuity
with
earlier coins of Ivan the Terrible, which also were struck
with this motif.
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.315
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| Three
silver coins showing various denominations: |
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Altyn,
1704 = 3 kopecks
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.316
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Den’ga
= one-half kopeck
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.314
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Polushka=one-fourth kopeck
Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
Gift of Rev. William H. Owen
2001.87.313
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