96 The Warrior Tsar, I 689-I^725
prison ( 1718) after tortures which his father personally authorized. The cruel
streak in Peter's nature has to be set against the statesmanlike qualities that
have ied him to be hailed as a 'genius', not least for his battlefield exploits.
Already at an early age Peter demonstrated an uncommon int~rest in, and
talent for, the military art. Even his toys as a child had a martial aspect. Arbi-
trarily removed from the centre of power during Sofia's regency (168'2-9), the
boy was exposed to the influence of irresponsible advisers, among them' swash-
buckling adventurers from the 'German suburb' whose virtues and vices were
typified by his first favourite, Fram;ois Lefort. He grew into a giant of a man,
whose physical strength enabled him to withstand tremendous exertions, at
least until his health was undermined by alcoholic excess; he liked to live in the
open air and enjoyed all kinds of practical activity. He was justly proud of his
skill as a carpenter and as a fancier of several other trades-interests which
contrasted strikingly with those of the cloistered, ritualistic early Romanov
rulers. The same was true of his preference for simple acc6mmodation and
pleasures or the company of those from humble circumstances. Peter deliber-
ately sought to break with Muscovite traditions of gqvernance. He saw himself
as the prime exemplar of those norms of social conduct he wanted to encour-
age among his subjects of all classes: first and foremost, a conseienlious atti-
tude towards fulfilment of one's duties towards the state. An obvious
manifestation of this was his own 'progress through the ranks' of the armed
forces: starting as a bombardier in the Preobrazhensky guards regiment, he
rose to become an NCO and eventually a -lieutenant-general (While
simultaneously acting as Commander-in-Chief throughout!). There was an
element of role-playing about this, but it did have a serious educational, or at
least propagandist, purpose.
The innovative character of Peter's activities has often been exaggerated,
not least in regard to military affairs. His eagerness to assimilate the latest
achievements of foreign weapons technology or forms of military organization
had been anticipated by Ivan III, Ivan IV, and Alexis. They too had readily
accepted Western experts into their service. What was new was the scale of the
effort, the consistent determination that lay behind Peter's dnve to make
Russia a European power-and to do so by defeating her old rival Sweden and
gaining a firm foothold on the Baltic seaboard. There was a greater element of
rationality in his policies, for he was true to the spirit of his era and shared the
general belief that rulers should use their absolute power for predetermined
ends, in particular to enhance the strength and prestige of their realms. Such
prestige might be obtained by setting up a 'well-ordered police state' (as this
concept was then understood), not just by feats of arms; but the military com-
ponent was assuredly the most important-especially in central and eastern
Europe, where the values of the Baroque age acquired a more authoritarian
tinge than they did further west. Sweden, Prussia, and some of the lesser Ger-
man states-not to mention the German-speaking elite of the Baltic provinces,
which Russia now annexed-were the principal sources of Western influence
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(Wang)
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