Russian rule, Nationalism and Independence, 1860 – 1930: Latvia, Poland and Finland

In 1860, the Latvians, the Poles and the Finns have known different developments. latvia belonged to the russian Empire since the end of the 18th century, but the Baltic Germans continued to hold power locally and enjoyed a great economical and social hegemony over the country. In poland, the Republic was destroyed in 1795 and subjected to the Partitioning Powers: Russia, Prussia and Austria. finland, after being a part of Sweden, was conquered by Russia in 1809. The Grand Duchy enjoyed a special status of autonomy within the empire and developed a relationship of mutual confidence with the tsarist authorities. So, despite the Latvian, the Poles and the Finns lived in relatively different contexts, they share something in common: these three countries were partially or completely under russian rule and, for that reason, their respective histories between 1860 and 1930 share many similarities.
Indeed, during this period, latvia, poland and finland witnessed the rise of national movements in the particular context of the russian autocracy, and all of them reached independence after World War I. Thus, in the following analysis, we will wonder how the respective national awakening of latvia, poland and finland finally led to their independence from the russian empire. First, we will see how these nations were constructed and became movements able to challenge the tsarist authorities. Then we will study the evolution of these countries towards independence and their developments as independent states until the 1930s.