Russian Era Peasant Classes

thanks to Jan Sekta

To 1861 Russian peasants belonged to one of two categories:

Private peasants villein - - property of gentleman. Peasant one can was sell or to buy (one treated them as slaves). These peasants did corvee(obligatory work on field of gentleman), paid high taxes, served in army. Owner was judge of peasant {man}.
State peasants - - peasants living on land belonging to the state

19. 02. 1861 decree of Czar Alexander II introduced reform:

Serfdom was abolished. Peasants could no longer be bought and sold. Peasants could move from their villages, but only after 9 years of freedom.
The privilege of the nobility in judging peasants was abolished. Peasants became subject to a judiciary.
Peasants were affranchised [allowed to own the land they worked] - but only up to 7 hectares [a bit over 14 acres]. Any excess remained with the nobility. The peasant had to pay the lord 20% of the value of this land; the remaining 80% was paid the nobles in the form of a mortgage held by the state and repaid in installments by the peasants with all the legal trappings of a tax.
Former state peasants could either purchase their land outright or lease it. There seem to have been occasions in which state lands were turned over to noble families.

In official documents, the following terms were also used:

a financial peasant was a farmer who paid taxes
a revisory soul or person was one who appeared on one of the government registration lists (each type of circle maintained such lists).