No one doubts that Russia had begun to industrialize in the middle of the nineteenth century, and that an industrial bourgeoisie had begun to form. We only need to look at the extent of their development.

The industrial stage in the development of Russian civilization begins with the pivotal but hypothetical date of 1861, when serfdom was repealed. The date is hypothetical because in 1861 Russia was still not an industrialized nation. One must agree with W. Rostow that the movement toward...