[center][h3][b]Union Society of Decembrists[/b][/h3]

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[h3][b][i]Russia in Europe[/i][/b][/h3]
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[hider=Decembrist Movement of Russia]
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[b]Name:[/b] Union Society of Decembrists 

	The Union Society is a merger of many liberal and republican movements throughout the Empire, including the [b]Northern[/b] and [b]Southern Societies of Decembrists[/b], [b]The Society of United Slavs[/b], and the [b]Little Russian Secret Society[/b]. While the Northern Decembrist Society enjoys the overt support of the majority of the disgruntled Russian aristocracy, the radicalism of the Southern Society pushes forth and possesses some of the momement's most influential thinkers and spokesmen, and enjoys widespread support throughout the broader population.

[b]Leader:[/b] Directory of the Union Society of Decembrists

[b]History: [/b]

	Having lead Russia against several disastrous wars across the early 19th century, [b]Tsar Alexander I[/b] has far from earned himself a gracious reputation throughout broader Russian society. Against Ottoman, Persian, French, and British armies the Russian state limped across, broken again and again in the backdrop of severe hardship. [b]Alexander I[/b] was quickly proving in light of his flippant behavior and his Topsy-turvy politicking, of which he was infamous for constantly changing his mind. 

	After the end of the Napoleonic Wars the Russian economy, ravaged by the [b]Continental System[/b] and Napoleon's invasion, slid into a continuous economic crisis. Towards the final days of the war, the recovery of Western Europe had tanked Russian agricultural exports. Landed gentry tried to restore lost income through enclosures and driving away redundant serf peasants, but Alexander had previously outlawed the "emancipation" of serfs without land. Economic downfall fueled radical opposition inside Russian nobility and the peasantry alike. 

	The imperial treasury was bankrupted by rising state debt and falling revenues. Alexander was aware of the crisis but never tackled its root cause, the oversized peacetime army of 800,000 men. The Tsar expected future wars in Southern Europe and the Middle East, and feared that mass dismissal of veteran soldiers would cause insurrection. He could not let them go: they were not needed in their native villages, and there were no jobs in the cities. Instead of reducing the army to an affordable peacetime size, Alexander I tried to cut spending through the establishment of self-sustaining military settlements, which failed from start to finish. He replaced expensive field maneuvers with drill exercise and parades, alienating experienced commanders and contributing to dissatisfaction of the nobility.

	The first secret organization aspiring to change the system was formed by the veterans of Napoleonic Wars in February 1816. Their aims varied from establishing a constitutional monarchy to "getting rid of foreigners and alien influence". Some even considered murdering Alexander I after [b]Sergey Trubetskoy[/b] reported a rumour that Alexander was planning to incorporate western provinces into [b]Congress Poland[/b]. In 1818 the organization was reformed into the Union of Prosperity. In the same year [b]Pavel Pestel[/b], the most radical conspirator, relocated to Ukraine and began actively recruiting Army officers, which would become the core of the future [b]Southern Society of Decembrists[/b].

	In January 1821, internal conflicts between the radical [b]South[/b] and the aristocratic [b]North Societies[/b] led to the dissolution of the earlier [b]Union of Prosperity[/b]. Members of the [b]Northern Society[/b] indulged in writing elaborate aristocratic constitutions while [b]Pestel[/b] and his ring settled on changing the regime by military force. Pestel's own political program, influenced by Antoine Destutt de Tracy, Adam Smith, Baron d'Holbach and Jeremy Bentham envisioned "one nation, one government, one language" for the whole country, a uniform Russian-speaking entity with no concessions to ethnic or religious minorities, even the Finns or the Mongols. Contrary to the initial aspirations of the Northern Society, Pestel planned to reduce the influence of landed and financial aristocracy, which drove a stake in the credence of his leadership roles until his eventual replacement by [b]Alexei Yushnevsky[/b] in late 1822.

	[b]Tsar Alexander[/b] would find himself assassinated by a Southern Society republican months after the historic [b]London Congress of 1822[/b], leaving the future of the Russian throne uncertain amidst a backdrop of social and political upheaval. As there was no immediate successor apparent to the Russian throne, governance was promptly split between powers regarding its inheritance: One based from the Warsaw governate and the other from the de jure capital in St. Petersburg. Though initially divided, [b]Mikhail Miloradovich[/b], governor of Warsaw, would greatly encourage [b]Nicolas I[/b] to assume the throne, and had traveled to St. Petersburg to press his convictions further.

	Twice, in 1823 and 1824, the North and the South planned joint strikes against the Tsarist government: Believing their initiative to be lost forever should they not strike while the iron is hot, the two carried out attacks upon the tsarist government in [b]Kiev[/b] and [b]St. Petersburg[/b]. Both attempts resulted in bloody battles pitched against the tsarist government - and there in the 1823 attempt [b]Miloradovich[/b] would find himself caught in the crossfire of its most gruesome battle, where he was shot and later died of internal bleeding later that evening. This action would [i]de jure[/i] remain Poland under Imperial Russian rule, but [i]de facto[/i] [b]the Polish state[/b] would never be subject to Russia since. 

	The heavy-handed responses drove the people further towards the Decembrist cause. The attacks failed due to their spontaneity and overall lack of effectual planning and coordination. Objectives of the attacks varied greatly and had little cohesion Although it would appear that the Decembrist movement was initially suppressed, the chaotic results of each individual strike as well as the deteriorating condition of the land drove the peasantry, army, and aristocracy alike further together.

	In the aftermath of their strikes, the [b]Northern and Southern Society[/b] would merge into the the [b]Union Society[/b] in late 1824 following the incarceration or exile of some of its most key leadership. Members would often regroup and rejoin over time, and eventually the Russian Empire would be disputed in a constant state of unrest. The overall beliefs of the Union Society would be further influenced by two figures - A poet and Captain of Artillery, [b]Gregoriy Matskevich[/b], hailing from Minsk, and an unassuming Don Cossack cavalry sergeant, [b]Ignaty Yevtushenko[/b] of the [b]Little Russian Secret Society[/b] - whom both pushed for the implementation of the federalist model throughout Russia. This series of low-intensity warfare gradually intensified from 1832 onward, which would see the state army heavily distracted by the Persian invasion of the Caucasus and drive deserters and dissenters into the ranks of the Decembrist armies entirely. By the invasion's end in 1834, most of Russia was fully up in arms and engulfed in civil war. 

	Advancing to [b]Tula[/b] by the summer of 1835, the Decembrists captured [b]Moscow[/b], whereupon the Union Society would proclaim a new government. After painstaking effort and endless debates, the demands agreed upon by the Union Society for a [b]new Russian constitution[/b] were laid out in Moscow of 1835 as followed:

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[i]State Structure:

- A trial would be held regarding the legal status of the monarchy. Whether Russia was to become a republic or a constitutional monarchy was up to the results.
- Formation of a federation of several states based on national and economic characteristics of the regions. 
- Separation of powers into legislative, executive and judicial branches of governance.
- The creation of a bicameral People's Council, consisting of the Verkhovna Duma (upper house) and the House of People's Representatives (lower house). The deputies to both chambers were to be elected for 6 years, and every two years a third of the deputies were re-elected. The upper house was elected by 3 deputies from each constituent state. In the lower one - one deputy for every 50,000 residents.
- The "states" elected Sovereign veche, whose deputies were elected for 4 years and a quarter of them were re-elected annually.
- Executive power would belong to either the President or to the Russian Emperor, depending on trial outcome, who was also the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. With the consent of the Supreme Duma, they also would appoint ambassadors, consuls, judges of the supreme court chambers and ministers.

Serfdom & Civil Rights:

- Serfdom was abolished, but the possessions of the landowners remained with the old owners.
- The liberated peasants received up to 2 acres of arable land per yard.
- Equality of all citizens before the law.
- Freedom of speech, press, and religion.
- Universal suffrage for all males over the age of 25.[/i]
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	By 1836, [b]Matskevich[/b] finds himself as the premier figure of the Union Society and acts as the effective face of the [b]Directorate Council of the Union Society[/b]. The rest of the Russian Tsarist government remains staunch in defiance in [b]Saint Petersburg.[/b] While the Decembrists have the upper hand, the future remains murky. How such a disparaged group of interests, backgrounds, and beliefs will pan out under the future government is unclear, and as republicanism dawns on one of Europe's great powers, the continent looks onto the Third Rome with interest and unease. 
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[Hider=Decembrists]

[b]Gregoriy Matskevich[/b] - One of the most prominent military leaders of the Union Society. Artillery Captain and hobbyist poet. He isn't fond of playing the role of "peacekeeper", but the position has fallen into his lap as he has to keep the Union Society together through its competing factions. 

[b]Ignaty Yevtushenko[/b] - Ukrainian Cossack and thinker. Pushes for the advancement of Federalism in the new Russian state. One of the main contributors to the Moscow Constitution of 1835. 

[b]Pavel Pestel[/b] - Russian military leader and one of the oldest members of the Union Society. Argues for Centralism over Federalism. Has a lot of support from Russian Aristocracy. Often butts heads with figures such as Yevtushenko. 

[b]Alexei Yushnevsky[/b] - Close confidant of Pestel and one of the founding members of the Northern Society of Decembrists. 

[b]Alexei Vtorak[/b] - Poet and Jacobin agitator from Saint Petersburg. Was tried and found guilty by the Tsar's authority for inciting insurrection, but during his hanging, the rope had been improperly secured, leaving many to believe that it was the will of God that had saved his life. 
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[Hider=Tsarists]

[b]Nicolas I[/b] - Current Tsar of Russia, fighting a bitter civil war between the Decembrists and his loyalists. Stanchly reactionary. In his public persona, described by his court, [i]"Nicholas I came to represent autocracy personified: infinitely majestic, determined and powerful, hard as stone, and relentless as fate."[/i]

[b]Fyodor Klementyevich Geismar[/b] - Commander of the Russian Imperial Army and Nicolas I's closest confidant. Of Prussian origins. Served with distinction against the Ottomans and Persians. 
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[hider=Civilians/Neutral]
[b]Jura Pasternak[/b] - Banker from Volynia, near the Russo-Polish Border (today in West Ukraine). Is an acquaintance and sympathizer with many Decemberists, but does not actively affiliate with the movement.

[b]Emma Konstantinova Gagarin[/b] - Widow of the late Kiril Gagarin - a Northern Society affiliate. 
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