1894-1914 Flashcards
Give details about the character of Nicholas II. (10)
1) Weak-willed
2) Poorly educated
3) Kind
4) Benevolent
5) Poor judge of character
6) Obstinate - took charge of the Russian military in 1914.
7) Devoted to his family
8) Lacked the taste for power required to be an autocrat
9) Devious
10) Lacked confidence
Political problems in Russia in 1894. (4)
Growing opposition to the repressive measures imposed by Alexander III:
1) Centralised control of the police under the minister of the interior.
2) Replacement of elected Justices of the Peace by Land Captains.
3) Rise in censorship
4) Tighter control of the provincial government, the Zemstva and less peasant representation in these institutions.
Economic problems in Russia in 1894. (5)
1) Lack of productivity compared to international rivals.
2) Lack of free enterprise - the tsar and his ministers directed production by controlling the armaments industry and the railways who were the main consumers of industrial products.
3) Reliance on foreign investment.
4) Rising exports of grain which led to the famine of 1891.
5) Backward agriculture which limited output and productivity.
Social problems in Russia in 1894. (3)
How many died in the famine?
1) Peasants aggrieved about living standards despite the formation of the Peasants Land Bank (1883) and the abolition of the Poll tax (1886).
2) Famine of 1891 - 350,000 died.
3) Industrialisation led to urbanisation - poor housing, lack of sanitation and water supplies led to the spread of disease.
Which national minorities supported the tsar? (3)
1) Finns
2) Baltic germans
3) Christian Armenians
Which national minorities desired autonomy or independence? (3)
1) Poles
2) Ukrainians
4) Tartars
What was russification? (Briefly)
When did it begin?
The process of russification began in 1863 and was intended to force the national minorities to integrate into the Russian empire.
From which groups did Nicholas II receive opposition? (3)
1) Marxists: Social Democrats - later Mensheviks and Bolsheviks
2) Liberals: Kadets and Octobrists
3) Populists: Socialist Revolutionaries
Who were liberal westernisers and what did they want?
What was founded in 1904 and by whom?
Liberal westernisers demanded that Russia should be governed in a similar way to Western Europe.
In 1904, Pytor Struve founded the Union of Liberation which demanded greater freedoms and justice for all Russians.
Who were the Kadets and what was their ideology?
The Kadets were led by Paul Milyukov and they called for a constitutional monarchy.
What was it the Octobrists desired?
The Octobrists supported the tsar but desired changes to the system of government.
On what did the Social Democrats base their ideology?
When were they founded and where?
The social democrats based their ideology on the writings of Karl Marx, believing that the working class could be educated to overthrow Russian autocracy by revolution. Founded in Minsk in 1898.
When did divisions between the Mensheviks and Bolsheviks surface?
What was the difference between the opposing factions?
By 1903, there were signs of divisions between the Mensheviks and Bolsheviks.
The Mensheviks focused on improving pay and conditions whereas Bolsheviks argued that workers were capable of being sufficiently educated to create a revolution.
Who were the populists?
The populists were revolutionaries operating in the 1870s who believed that agricultural communes and cooperative workshops would provide a base for economic development without resorting to capitalism.
When were the Socialist Revolutionaries founded and who was their leader?
When did they split?
What was the difference between the right and left wing SRs?
They were founded in 1901 and led by Victor Chernov/
They split into left and right wing SRs in 1905.
The left believed in direct action and focused on workers whereas the right worked with other groups to gain momentum and support and appealed to the peasants.
Between 1901-1905, for how many political killings were the right-wing SRs responsible?
2000
What was Pobedonostev’s most notable position, in what year did he gain the role?
Give four points about his ideology.
Pobedonostev’s most notable position was a Procurator of the Holy Synod, a role he was appointed to in 1880.
1) Conservative and reactionary for most of his life.
2) Advocate of autocracy and enemy of liberal democracy.
3) Devoutly religious.
4) Held anti-semitic views and was behind many of the attacks on Jews that took place during this period.
What were Pobedonostev’s three main achievements?
1) He helped prepare Judicial reforms for the tsar in 1864.
2) He was a major influence on the policy making and manifesto of Alexander III.
3) In 1880, he became Procurator of the Holy Synod, a role which allowed him to advise the tsar on matters and influence the church and educational and social policies.
Give three points about Witte’s ideology.
1) He was the first government minister to show full commitment to industrialisation so that Russia could compete with other industrialised nations.
2) He resurrected Reutern’s idea of encouraging foreign exports to come to Russia.
3) He returned to taking out foreign loans and raising taxes and interest rates to boost available capital for investment in industry.
Give five facts about the Great Spurt as a result of investment in heavy industry thanks to Witte.
1) Coal production doubled and that of iron and steel increased seven-fold.
2) New technologies were introduced in the oil and chemical industries.
3)
