--- title: "Nakaz — AP Euro Definition & Exam Guide" description: "The Nakaz was Catherine the Great's 1767 Enlightenment-inspired instruction on law and governance, the go-to AP Euro example of enlightened absolutism in action (and its limits)." canonical: "https://fiveable.me/ap-euro/key-terms/nakaz" type: "key-term" subject: "AP European History" unit: "Unit 4" --- # Nakaz — AP Euro Definition & Exam Guide ## Definition The Nakaz (1767) was Catherine the Great's written instruction to a legislative commission, drawing on Enlightenment thinkers like Montesquieu and Beccaria to propose reforms on crime, punishment, and the rule of law. In AP Euro, it's a prime example of enlightened absolutism in 18th-century eastern Europe. ## What It Is The Nakaz (Russian for "Instruction") was a document [Catherine the Great](/ap-euro/key-terms/catherine-the-great "fv-autolink") wrote in 1767 to guide a commission tasked with reforming Russia's legal system. It wasn't a law code itself. It was more like a philosophical blueprint, packed with Enlightenment ideas borrowed heavily from Montesquieu's *Spirit of the Laws* and Beccaria's *On Crimes and Punishments*. The Nakaz argued against torture and capital punishment, called for [equality](/ap-euro/unit-5/effects-french-revolution/study-guide/Otah3pAvJj659Eg0xR9I "fv-autolink") before the law, and promoted the idea that government should rest on rational, consistent rules rather than arbitrary power. Here's the catch, and it's the part [AP Euro](/ap-euro "fv-autolink") cares about most. The Nakaz produced almost no actual reform. The legislative commission debated for years and dissolved without writing a new code, and serfdom (the issue Enlightenment logic most obviously condemned) stayed untouched because Catherine depended on noble support. That gap between Enlightenment talk and absolutist reality is exactly what KC-2.1.I.C means when it says eastern and central European states "experimented" with enlightened absolutism. The experiment had limits, and the Nakaz is the clearest case study of them. ## Why It Matters The Nakaz lives in Topic 4.6 (Enlightened and Other Approaches to Power) in [Unit 4](/ap-euro/unit-4 "fv-autolink") and supports learning objective AP Euro 4.6.A, which asks you to explain how Enlightenment thought influenced different forms of political power from 1648 to 1815. Catherine the Great sits alongside [Frederick II of Prussia](/ap-euro/key-terms/frederick-ii-of-prussia "fv-autolink") and Joseph II of Austria as the CED's roster of enlightened monarchs. The Nakaz is your concrete evidence for Catherine. When a question asks how Enlightenment ideas reached actual rulers, you can name a real document with real philosophe sources behind it. It also matters thematically because it shows the central tension of enlightened absolutism. These rulers used Enlightenment language to make their states more rational and efficient, not to give up power. The Nakaz reads like Beccaria, but Russia stayed an autocracy with serfdom intact. ## Connections ### [Catherine the Great (Unit 4)](/ap-euro/key-terms/catherine-the-great) The Nakaz is Catherine's signature Enlightenment moment. She personally corresponded with [Voltaire](/ap-euro/key-terms/voltaire "fv-autolink") and Diderot, and the Nakaz is what that intellectual image looked like on paper. Knowing the document lets you back up claims about her with specific evidence instead of just calling her "enlightened." ### [Enlightenment Ideas (Unit 4)](/ap-euro/key-terms/enlightenment-ideas) The Nakaz is basically Montesquieu and Beccaria translated into a ruler's voice. If Topic 4.3-4.4 covers what the philosophes argued, the Nakaz shows those arguments landing on a throne, which is the cause-and-effect chain LO 4.6.A wants you to trace. ### [Frederick II of Prussia (Unit 4)](/ap-euro/key-terms/frederick-ii-of-prussia) Frederick is the comparison case. He also embraced Enlightenment reforms (legal streamlining, [religious toleration](/ap-euro/key-terms/religious-toleration "fv-autolink")) while keeping serfdom and noble privilege in place. Paired with the Nakaz, he lets you argue that enlightened absolutism across eastern Europe followed the same pattern of rational reform without surrendering power. ### [Arbitrary Power (Unit 4)](/ap-euro/key-terms/arbitrary-power) The Nakaz explicitly attacked arbitrary [justice](/ap-euro/unit-9/context-cold-war-contemporary-europe/study-guide/tMdX4w3SkXpVHCjat9SK "fv-autolink"), calling for clear laws, fair trials, and limits on torture. That's the Enlightenment critique of absolutism coming from an absolutist herself, which is the irony AP essay prompts love. ## On the AP Exam The Nakaz shows up most usefully as evidence rather than as a term you'll be quizzed on directly. The 2026 DBQ asked you to evaluate whether Peter the Great or Catherine the Great did more to transform Russia, and the Nakaz is exactly the kind of specific outside evidence that earns the evidence point for Catherine's side (or, used critically, supports the argument that her transformation was more rhetorical than real, since the commission produced no new code). In multiple choice, expect the Nakaz inside a stem or excerpt testing whether you can identify enlightened absolutism, recognize Beccaria's and Montesquieu's influence on rulers, or explain why reform stalled in serf-based eastern Europe. The skill being tested is connection. You need to link a Russian document to French Enlightenment thought and then explain why the ideas only went so far. ## Nakaz vs An actual legal code or constitution The Nakaz was an instruction, not a law. Catherine wrote it to guide a commission that was supposed to draft a new legal code, but the commission dissolved without producing one, so the Nakaz never had legal force. If you call it "Catherine's law code" on an essay, you've flipped the most exam-relevant fact about it. Its failure to become law is the whole point, because it shows the limits of enlightened absolutism. ## Key Takeaways - The Nakaz (1767) was Catherine the Great's written instruction to a Russian legislative commission, proposing Enlightenment-based reforms on crime, punishment, and rule of law. - It drew directly on Montesquieu and Beccaria, making it the clearest evidence that Enlightenment ideas reached and influenced absolute rulers (LO 4.6.A). - The Nakaz never became law. The commission dissolved without a new code, and serfdom was left untouched because Catherine needed noble support. - It's a textbook example of KC-2.1.I.C, where eastern and central European states experimented with enlightened absolutism without giving up autocratic power. - On the exam, the Nakaz works as specific evidence for or against Catherine as a transformative ruler, including on the 2026 DBQ comparing her to Peter the Great. ## FAQs ### What is the Nakaz in AP Euro? The Nakaz is the 1767 "Instruction" Catherine the Great wrote for a legislative commission, laying out Enlightenment-inspired ideas about law, fair punishment, and rational government. It's the standard AP Euro example of enlightened absolutism in Russia, covered in Topic 4.6. ### Did the Nakaz actually become law in Russia? No. The legislative commission debated for years and dissolved without producing a new legal code, so the Nakaz never had legal force. That failure is exam-relevant because it shows the gap between Catherine's Enlightenment rhetoric and Russian reality, especially on serfdom. ### How is the Nakaz different from Joseph II's or Frederick II's reforms? Joseph II and Frederick II actually enacted reforms, like religious toleration edicts and legal streamlining, while the Nakaz stayed a proposal that produced no new code. All three rulers fit the same enlightened absolutism pattern, but Catherine's contribution was more a statement of principles than implemented policy. ### Which Enlightenment thinkers influenced the Nakaz? Mainly Montesquieu (The Spirit of the Laws) and Beccaria (On Crimes and Punishments). Catherine borrowed their arguments against torture, arbitrary justice, and cruel punishment, which is why the Nakaz is great evidence for explaining how Enlightenment thought shaped political power. ### Why did the Nakaz fail to abolish serfdom? Catherine's power depended on the Russian nobility, whose wealth rested on serf labor, so she wouldn't risk alienating them. This is the classic limit of enlightened absolutism, where rulers adopted Enlightenment ideas only as far as those ideas strengthened, rather than threatened, their rule. ## Related Study Guides - [4.6 Enlightened and Other Approaches to Power](/ap-euro/unit-4/enlightened-other-approaches-power/study-guide/8cP7fBYiiYKd6D392PzI) ## Structured Data ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"LearningResource","@id":"https://fiveable.me/ap-euro/key-terms/nakaz#resource","name":"Nakaz — AP Euro Definition & Exam Guide","url":"https://fiveable.me/ap-euro/key-terms/nakaz","learningResourceType":"Concept explainer","educationalLevel":"AP® / High School","about":{"@id":"https://fiveable.me/ap-euro/key-terms/nakaz#term"},"audience":{"@type":"EducationalAudience","educationalRole":"student"},"dateModified":"2026-06-11T05:53:28.912Z","isPartOf":{"@type":"Collection","name":"AP European History Key Terms","url":"https://fiveable.me/ap-euro/key-terms"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Fiveable","url":"https://fiveable.me"}},{"@type":"DefinedTerm","@id":"https://fiveable.me/ap-euro/key-terms/nakaz#term","name":"Nakaz","description":"The Nakaz (1767) was Catherine the Great's written instruction to a legislative commission, drawing on Enlightenment thinkers like Montesquieu and Beccaria to propose reforms on crime, punishment, and the rule of law. 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