2.11 Political authority, opposition and the state of Russia in wartime Flashcards
What did the Duma do after the Tsar’s decision to go to war?
Voted for war credits, before dissolving itself, declaring it did not want to burden the country with ‘unnecessary politics’
What is war credits
The raising of taxes and loans to finance war
What event initially dampened the spirit of national solidarity
Battle of Tannenburg in East Prussia, August 1914
What happened at the Battle of Tannenburg? When was it?
August 1914 - defeat to the Germans, left 300,000 dead/wounded + thousands were taken prisoner
What subsequent defeat caused the Russian army to temporarily retreat from East Prussia?
at the Masurian lakes in September
Where were Russian troops more successful?
in the south against Austria
What disputes over the war effort were there even before the end of 1914?
tsarist government’s ‘military zones’, opposed by the liberal zemstva - believed civilians had major role to play in war
What were ‘military zones’? When were they set up?
Set up in July 1914 by the tsarist government, within which all civilian authority suspended + military assumed command
What did the government do at the end of 1914? How did this come to negatively impact them?
Prohibition of the sale of alcohol
Resented + evaded. Vodka was regarded as a near essential - peasants + workers simply distilled their own -> government lost out on valuable tax revenue from legal sales
What did the zemstva establish in August 1914?
Union of Zemstva - to provide the medical facilities that the State seemed to neglect
What was formed in June 1915?
the All-Russian Union of Zemstva and Cities (Zemgor)
created as the result of existing zemstva and municipal dumas joining together
What happened with Zemgor?
Formed in June 1915
Chaired by Prince Lvov
Claimed right to help government in war effort, but never allowed direct influence + (like state Duma) turned into liberal focus for discontent
What did some deputies from the 4th Duma do in August 1915?
Kadets, Octobrists and Progressives from the 4th Duma organised themselves into the ‘progressive bloc’ and demanded Tsar change ministers + establish ‘government of public confidence’
What did the Progressive bloc’s request actually mean?
‘government of public confidence’ - effectively a constitutional monarchy
How did the Tsar respond to the Progressive bloc’s request of a ‘government of public confidence’?
In September, he suspended sittings of the Duma, and it remained officially closed until January 1917 (although unauthorised meetings continued)
What led Nicholas II to take on role of Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army and Navy? When?
Defeats in Galicia (on Austro-Hungarian Front)
–> took on role in September 1915 + travelled to the front line
Why did becoming Commander-in-Chief actually not help Nicholas II’s cause?
He had already lost the confidence and support of Russian General Staff + did not possess military experience to turn war around
Instead, made him appear more responsible for disasters of war + distanced him from Petrograd
What rumours were spreading within Petrograd?
Rasputin was beginning to meddle in political appointments + policy
–> rumours that the German Alexandra was deliberately sabotaging the Russian war effort
What was the effect of Rasputin in the 12 months after September 1915 (Nicholas II leaves for front line)
Many changes of ministers, including three or four changes in some ministries - put down to Rasputin’s influence
Who was the President of the Fourth Duma?
Mikhail Rodzianko
What did the President of the Fourth Duma warn Nicholas?
of Rasputin’s unpopularity + the damage he was doing to tsarist cause
Who murdered Rasputin? When? Effect?
December 1916, Prince Yusupov + Valdimir Purishkevich, in attempt to save reputation of the monarchy
Came too late + did little to quell growing discontent
By Christmas 1914, what was there already?
serious shortage of munitions
Between 1914 and 1917, how many men did the government mobilise?
around 15 million, mainly conscript peasants
What problem limited the effectiveness of these 15 million men?
Government was not able to provide for them - without suitable weaponry, basic warm clothing, or properly fitting waterproof footwear
In 1914, how many rifles did the infantry have for every 3 soldiers
2 rifles for every 3 soldiers
In 1915, what was it not unusual for Russian artillery to be limited to?
two to three shells per day
What did the winter months of 1915-16 allow?
the winter months of 1915-16 were relatively quiet for the Russians + allowed more time for training + production of ammunition
What was the situation by the Brusilov offensive in June 1916
Most front line units had a reasonable complement of machine guns and artillery shells
However, serious lack of experienced officers - most had been killed in early stages of war
The Brusilov offensive
succeeded in destroying Austro-Hungarian armies, but within 3 months ground to a halt by the Germans
How many desertions were there in 1916?
1.5 million
How did spending on war rise from 1914 to 1918?
1,500 million Roubles in 1914
14,500 million Roubles in 1918
What overrun parts of the country removed important industrial capacity
Poland + other parts of western Russia were overrun by Germans - removing important industrial capacity
What overrun parts of country brought Russian trade to a virtual standstill
Naval blockades of Baltic and Black Sea ports + loss of overland routes to Europe
What percentage of the population did the 15 million soldiers represent, compared to Germany and France?
only 9%, compared with 20% in Germany and France
How did railway locomotive production change between 1913 and 1916?
halved between 1913 and 1916
What happened to armament production in 1916?
rifle production doubled
heavy artillery production quadrupled
Why did unemployment soar in in urban centres (particularly Petrograd and Moscow)?
non-military factories, deprived of vital supplies, were forced to close
lock-outs + strikes (some encouraged by Germany) financially crippled what little industry survived
How did the cost of living rise?
300% increase
What was part of the reason for lack of foodstuffs in cities?
Left to rot beside railway beside railway sidings + huge cargoes of grain sent to front line, leaving none for desperate townsfolk (whose number had swelled as war industries increased employment)
Why did death rates rise?
worker’s insanitary lodgings + inadequacies of their diets
In January 1917, how many workers went on strike in Moscow and Petrograd?
30,000 in Moscow
145,000 in Petrograd
On the anniversary of Bloody Sunday in January 1917, how many Petrograd workers were in demonstration?
150,000
By 25 February, how many people are on strike?
25,000 people (over half of the capital’s workforce)
Cossacks refuse to attack a procession of strikers when ordered to do so
What does the Duma President, Rodzianko, telegram the Tsar on 26 February? How does Tsar respond?
calls for immediate ‘formation of new government. There must be no delay. Hesitation is fatal’
Tsar, in diary: ‘some nonsense’ - tells Duma to stop meeting
How many soldiers mutiny on 27 February? What do they do?
66,000 soldiers join mutiny in Petrograd + arm protestors with 40,000 rifles
What do the Duma do on 27 February?
The Duma hold a meeting (against Tsar’s orders), set up 12-man provisional government - supported by army’s high command
What do revolutionaries set up on the 27 February?
Petrograd Soviet, which also intends to take over government - begins to organise food supplies for the city
What does the Tsar telegram Rodzianko on 28 February? How does Rodzianko respond?
The Tsar offers to share power with the Duma.
Rodzianko responds ‘the measures you propose are too late’, ‘there is no return’
What did the Petrograd Soviet produce?
The ‘Order No.1’ - a charter of soldiers’ rights
What were the terms of Order No.1?
- All units to elect a deputy to the soviet and agree to the political control of the Petrograd Soviet
- The Military Commission of the Duma to only be obeyed if it agreed with the soviet’s orders
Who was the Tsar under pressure to resign from?
The Chief of General Staff, General Alekseev
- Suggested that the Tsar should reign in favour of his son, with the Tsar’s younger brother Mikhail acting as regent
What had General Alekseev been reassured of by agreement of 1 March?
The Petrograd Soviet would recognise a Provisional Government formed by members of the Duma
What did Nicholas agree on 2 March?
To resign, named Grand-Duke Mikhail as new Tsar (fearing son’s health) to lead in ‘complete union with the representatives of the people’, but Mikhail then refused offer of the throne
Legitimacy of the Provisional Government
Grand-Duke Mikail relinquished political authority to Provisional Government, under Prince Lvov
- therefore accepted as legitimate by old tsarist civil service, army officers, and police
Make up of the Provisional Government
members represented cross section of influential elites + comprised those who had previously favoured constitutional monarchy - liberals, moderate socialists, and Kadets
What was the original intention of the Provisional Government?
to be temporary - that elections would be held as soon as possible for new Constituent Assembly, which would draw up new constitution
Where did it set itself up?
In the Duma chamber in the right wing of the Tauride Palace in Petrograd
By 10 March, how many members did the Petrograd Soviet have? What did this mean?
3000 members - so large, most of its work was done by its ‘executive committee’, dominated by socialist intellectuals
Make up of the Petrograd Soviet
Dominated by Mensheviks and Social Revolutionaries, but also contained a small number of Bolsheviks
Primarily composed of radical socialist intellectuals - only 7 of the first 42 members were workers themselves
Why was the Petrograd Soviet able to claim itself as the more democratic organisation?
Claimed direct democratic authority since its members were elected by the St Petersburg soviets
Who supported the Petrograd Soviet
The mass of workers, soldiers and peasants - regarded Provisional Government as a self-appointed committee of the wealthy
What agreement did the make with the negotiations of Alexander Kerensky
Dual Power, where the Soviet accepted the Provisional Government’s promises
What did the Provisional Government promise?
- basic civil liberties
- right to organise TUs + strike
- that a Constituent Assembly should be elected
They also allowed freedom of religion + press, abolished death penalty, dismissed provincial governors
Difficulties within Dual Power
While Provisional Government tried to discipline deserters + restore order, Soviet encouraged peasants + workers to defy authority
How many districts were affected by peasant disturbances in March 1917 vs July
affected 34 districts in March 1917
vs
325 districts in July 1917
What did Milyukov announce in April 1917, leading to a massive anti-war demonstration in Petrograd
He announced that the government would continue fighting until a ‘just peace’ had been won
Milyukov + Guchkov resigned, replaced by socialists from Soviet + 2 further Mensheviks added to Cabinet
How many desertions between 1914 and February 1917, vs between March and May 1917? What was reinstated as a result?
Between 1914 and February 1917, there were 195,000 desertions.
Between March and May 1917, there were over 365,000 desertions.
Death penalty reinstated as only way to control troops
Who was Prince Lvov replaced by as Chairman?
Kerensky
What were the street riots in July known as? Who might have organised them?
July Days - may/may not have been organised by the Bolsheviks
What happened at the Kornilov coup?
Kornilov order 6 regiments to march on Petrograd - presumably to crush Soviet + establish military dictatorship
Kerensky panicked + released imprisoned Bolsheviks + provided them with weapons to halt Kornilov’s advance - coup leaders arrested
In 1917, what happened to real wages as prices rose?
fell rapidly
In January 1917, what were prices compared to 1914? What about in October?
January - prices 300% of 1914 levels
October - 755%
In August, what right of factory owners was confirmed?
to dismiss workers who went on strike + meeting of factory committees during working hours forbidden
When was an electoral commission created? When were elections set to be?
electoral commission established in May to arrange elections for November
Why did the government also lose support in the countryside?
government’s failure to redistribute land - claimed such an important issue had to be left until Russia had a democratic assembly
However, peasants simply took it into their own hands + seized land anyway
Despite the establishment of an electoral commission in May, what suspicion was rife? Who benefitted most from this widespread disillusionment?
widespread suspicion that the ‘bourgeois’ government was deliberately delaying a move to greater democracy - most benefitted the Bolsheviks
