Peter I and the origin of Russian absolutism

The origin of Russian absolutism is the debatable problem of Russian history. Previously, most historians believe that absolutism gradually developed in the XVII century, but recent studies have shown the failure of the traditional view. There are also differences in the question about the reasons for the final victory of absolutism under Peter I. The author sees the solution to the problem in using the theory of military revolu tion. According to this theory, the appearance of the regular army changes the balance of power between the monarchy and the aristocracy. Creating regular army requires considerable fi nancial resources and the monarchy seeks to take away part of the funds from the aristocracy. This leads to conflict, which is permitted by the «revolution from above» and coups. Peter I made such absolutist revolution in 1698.