In the seventeenth century Muscovia was a backward country in comparison with the progressive countries of Western Europe. The development of Muscovia had suffered a severe setback as a result of the Tartar invasion. The cruel Tartar yoke had lasted over two hundred years. Once the invaders had been driven out, towns and villages had to be rebuilt, and local crafts revived. The division of the country into a host of petty princedoms was a problem facing Russia, just as it had been in other feudal states. However, the unification of Muscovia was a particularly difficult task because of the tremendous size of its territory which was equal to that of many European states put together. Muscoviia lacked any convenient sea ports or developed industry. Neither did she have a properly organised army or fleet, and was thus prey to frequent raids and attacks by foreign invaders which undermined her economy still further. It was particularly important that Muscovia should combat this backwardness at the time when the countries of Western Europe were progressing so rapidly. Otherwise the latter would have subjugated the country and held back her advancement still more. 
At that period the time was not yet ripe for the emergence of capitalism in Russia—the country was still a centralised feudal state, its economy based on serf agriculture. However, important steps forward were taken and significant changes in the administration and economy introduced. 
It was a task of primary importance to restructure the out-dated state apparatus, promote cultural advancement and industrial expansion. Russia needed outlets to the sea in order to set up convenient trade routes with Western Europe and establish firm cultural ties. It was obliged to set up a regular army and fleet to defend herself from her powerful neighbours. These steps were to be taken during the reign of Peter the Great (1682-1725). 
During Peter's reign, while not overcoming her backwardness altogether, Russia nevertheless made significant advances, thanks to the efforts of the Russian and other peoples of the empire. The gifted and resourceful new Tsar and his councillors were to play an important part in these developments. The Muscovian state had long required a coastline. The White Sea was frozen over and unnavigable for six or seven months of the year and was anyway a long distance from all the main sea routes. The shores of the Baltic were then in Swedish hands and Turkey held sway in the Black Sea. Under Peter Russia embarked on a long, uphill struggle for power in the Baltic. Part of the lands bordering on the Baltic, such as the shores of the Gulf of Finland, had in the past been ruled over by the princes of Novgorod. Five centuries before Peter came to the throne pilots from Novgorod had come to the Gulf to meet German merchant vessels at the island of Kotlin (now Kronstadt) and then lead them up the Neva, through Lake Ladoga and down to Novgorod by way of the Volkhov. It was on this part of the coast that Prince Alexander Nevsky had defended the lands of Novgorod in a grim battle against the Swedes on the banks of the Neva in the thirteenth century. 
Peter the Great concluded an alliance with the Poles and the Danes against Sweden, and war with the latter broke out in the autumn of 1700. The Northern War, as it was known, was to last for 21 years. In the early stages, the Swedes, who were better prepared for hostilities, had the upper hand. The Russian forces confronted the Swedes near the fortress of Narva in November 1700, when winter was already at hand. The Swedes who were better shod and armed emerged victorious from this first encounter. 
The defeat at Narva proved an important lesson for both the Russian army and Peter the Great. Intensive work began to equip a new, more proficient army, and new troops were mustered and trained. When it emerged that there was a shortage of metal for weapons Peter gave orders for church bells to be recast as cannon. In this way 300 new cannon were obtained and in the autumn of 1702 Peter succeeded in capturing the heavily fortified Swedish fortress at the point where the Neva flows out of Lake Ladoga, where the ancient town of Oreshek of the Novgorod princedom had stood. To this fortress, which gave him access to the sea by way of the Neva, Peter gave the German name of Schliesselburg (Key-Town).
 These military successes meant that Russia was now in control of the shores of the Gulf of Finland. The foundations for the Peter and Paul Fortress were laid on Zayachy Island near the Northern bank of the Neva. It was near this fortress, built according to Peter's drawings, that in 1703 he was to found his new capital on the marshy banks of the Neva. It was to be known as Peter's town, i.e., Petersburg or St. Petersburg, and has since been renamed Leningrad after the founder of the Soviet state.
 The building of the new capital required the labour of thousands of serfs. Despite the severe cold and inhuman conditions the new capital gradually arose. Many of the labourers had to wprk knee-deep in water and were obliged to wage a grim battle with the elements as they laid foundations in the shifting marshy soil. This town, which cost the lives of numerous serfs and workmen, was to prove tremendously important for Russia's future. Ahe country had acquired a maritime capital and large trading port, a "window onto Europe". 
In 1707 the theatre of operations was transferred to the Ukraine and in June 1709 the Russians gained a decisive victory at Poltava. The Northern War dragged on until 1721. By the Peace of Nystad RussiaT received Latvia and Estonia along with the whole coastof the Gulf of Finland around St. Petersburg and part of Karelia This meant that Russia had gained two more convenient Baltic ports, Riga and Revel (now Tallinn), and become an established Baltic power thus attaining one of her most cherished aims. 
To mark the conclusion of the Peace of Nystad Peter laid on lavish celebrations in his new capital and that same year he was also to assume the title of Emperor of All the Russias. The Russian state was to be known henceforth as the Russian Empire, which reflected its emergence as a great power. "After being nonexistent we have started to exist and have now joined the community of peoples politic," declared Peter's advisers at the time. 

"A Short History Of The World", edited by prof. A. Z. Manfred, Progress Publishers, Moscow

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