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Tsarist and Communist Russia 1855-1964 > 2.7 Nicholas II and the challenge to autocracy > Flashcards

2.7 Nicholas II and the challenge to autocracy Flashcards

1
Q

Disaster at Khodynka Field

A

May 1896, coronation of Nicholas II - around 1400 trampled

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2
Q

what event had politicised Russia?

A

Great Famine 1891-1892 - failure of central government to cope - zemstva and voluntary organisations provided necessary relief work

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3
Q

1901, use of force against students

A

squadron of mounted Cossacks charged into crowd of students, killing 13 + in aftermath, 1500 imprisoned in Peter and Paul fortress

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4
Q

what were the years 1902 to 1907 known as

A

‘the years of the red cockerel’ - the many instances of arson in rural communities

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5
Q

where was the unrest of the years of the red cockerel the worst

A

in the central Russian provinces (where landlord/peasant relation most traditional), but also spread into Georgia, the Ukraine, Poland

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6
Q

Who was the Tsar’s minister who dealt with the years of the red cockerel? how?

A

Pyotr Stolypin
flogged, arrested, exiled, shot peasants in their thousands
gallows - ‘stolypin’s necktie’

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6
Q

industrial strikes in 1894 to in 1904

A

1894: 17,000
1904: 90,000

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7
Q

what did the Moscow chief of the Okhrana do to control illegal trade unions?

A

Zubatov - 1900, began organising own police-sponsored trade unions - to provide official channels for complaints
1903 - Zubatov exiled after one of unions joined a general strike in Odessa

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8
Q

what trade union was created along the Zubatov model in 1904? who led it?

A

Assembly of St Petersburg Factory Workers, in 1904, by Father Georgi Gapon - soon had 12 branches + 8000 members

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9
Q

what did Russia do in January 1904

A

respond to japanese assault on Russian far eastern naval base at Port Arthur - Plehve: ‘short swift victorious war’
beginning of Russo-Japanese War

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10
Q

end of Russo-Japanese War?

A

20 December 1904, Russian forces at Port Arthur surrendered to the Japanese - humiliation added to growing discontent

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11
Q

when was Plehve assassinated, what happened

A

July 1904, crowds in Warsaw turned out to celebrate on streets
renewed cries for representative National Assembly (Duma) - Plehve’s replacement Mirsky agreed to have talks with zemstvo representatives. Nicholas refused to give away his god-given rights - only allowed expansion of zemstva rights

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12
Q

when was Bloody Sunday

A

9 January 1905

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13
Q

what led up to Bloody Sunday

A

3 January 1905 - strike began at Putilov Iron Works at St Petersburg + soon involved 15,000.
Father Gapon decided to conduct peaceful march to Winter Palace Sunday 9 January.

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14
Q

how many troops were used to break up the protests on 9 january 1905

A

12,000 - bloody sunday

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15
Q

mutiny on Battleship Potëmkin

A

Over mouldy meat ration, 7 officers killed, Odessa townsfolk arriving to show solidarity with sailors - fired upon, more than 2000 killed, 3000 wounded

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16
Q

What organisation was set up to direct a General Strike in October 1905

A

St Petersburg Soviet - dominated by radical revolutionaries

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17
Q

who was the Chairman of the Tsar’s Council of Ministers? What did he warn?

A

Sergei Witte - warned that the country was on verge of revolution that would ‘sweep away a thousand years of history’
(also Tsars uncle repeatedly threatened to shoot himself if there weren’t reforms)

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18
Q

When did the tsar finally agree to sign a decree promising constitutional reform? what was it called?

A

17 October, the ‘October Manifesto’

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19
Q

what did the October Manifesto promise?

A
  • to grant civic freedom (conscience, speech, assembly, union)
  • to establish a state Duma (allowing a voice to all classes of the population)
  • to give state Duma power to approve laws
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20
Q

what did Trepov order troops, in contrast with the October Manifesto’s promise of ‘full civil rights’?

A

to ‘fire no blanks and spare no bullets’ in forcing striking workers back to factories

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21
Q

how did the Jews and peasants suffer in the final months of 1905?

A

Jews suffered in terrible pogroms
gangs sent to round up/flog the peasants to restore order

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22
Q

What happened on 3 December to HQ of St Petersburg Soviet?

A

surrounded, leaders arrested + exiled to Siberia

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23
Q

What institutions were created in the new constitutional arrangement?

A

Lower Chamber (The State Duma)
Upper Chamber (The State Council)
Government (Council of Ministers under the Prime Minister)

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24
Q

how was The State Duma elected in?

A

members elected under a system of indirect voting by estates - heavily weighted in favour of nobility + peasants (assumed as crown’s natural allies)

25
Q

how was The State Council elected in?

A

half elected by zemstva, half appointed by the Tsar - noble representatives from major institutions

25
Q

how was the Council of Ministers appointed?

A

appointed exclusively by the Tsar - government responsible to the Crown, not the Duma

26
Q

How did the system of indirect voting work?

A

every man over 25 could vote, but only those with more than 400 acres could vote directly - other groups had indirect vote. Country divided into districts, each elected delegate to vote on their behalf.

27
Q

how was the vote weighted, as a result of the indirect voting system?

A

31% landowners
42% peasants
27% town dwellers

28
Q

When did Nicholas the Fundamental Laws

A

23 April 1906, 5 days before the Duma first met

29
Q

What did Article 4 of the Fundamental Laws state?

A

‘It is ordained by God himself that the Tsar’s authority should be submitted to, not only out of fear but out of a genuine sense of duty’

30
Q

What did the Tsar claim the right to through the Fundamental Laws?

A

the right to:
- veto legislation
- rule by decree in emergency/ when Duma not in session
- appoint and dismiss government ministers
- dissolve Duma as he wished
- command Russia’s land and sea forces
- declare war, negotiate treaties + control all foreign relations
- control military and household expenditure
- overturn verdicts + sentences given in court of law
- control Orthodox Church

31
Q

Social Democratic Party (SD) - ideology, factions

A

Committed to Marxism, split into Bolsheviks: led by Lenin, Mensheviks: led by Julius Martov

32
Q

Ideology of Bolsheviks

A

Believed in discipline, centralisation, organisation + role of proletariat under party guidance. From 1905 favoured peasant/ proletariat alliance.

33
Q

Ideology of Mensheviks

A

Believed in cooperation with bourgeoisie/ liberals rather than peasantry. Believed in use of legal channels of opposition

34
Q

Main beliefs of Socialist Revolutionaries

A

Favoured populist ideas of redistribution of land and nationalisation. Left of party favoured terrorism.

35
Q

Main beliefs of Trudoviks

A

Non-revolutionary breakaway from SRs - moderate liberal views - supported by peasants and intelligentsia

36
Q

Main beliefs of Kadets

A

Central liberal party - favoured constitutional monarchy w/ parliamentary government - full civil rights

37
Q

Main beliefs of Octobrists

A

Moderate conservative party - accepted October Manifesto - opposed further concessions to workers or peasants - supported by wealthy landowners + industrialists

38
Q

Main beliefs of Rightists

A

Included Union of Russian People - extremely right wing - monarchism, chauvinism, Orthodoxy, Pan-Slavism, anti-Semitism.
Promoted violent attacks on left through street fighting gangs, the ‘Black Hundreds’

39
Q

When was the First Duma?

A

May- July 1906

40
Q

The first Duma - composition, standpoint?

A
  • boycotted by Bolsheviks, SRs and extreme right wing Union of the Russian People - therefore overwhelmingly radical-liberal - 1/3 of new deputies from peasantry
  • strongly critical of Tsar + ministers (brought about Witte’s resignation - replaced by Ivan Goremykin)
41
Q

What was the name of the demands the First Duma passed?

A

‘address to the throne’

42
Q

What did the First Duma request within it’s ‘address to the throne’?

A
  • political amnesty
  • abolition of the State Council
  • transfer of ministerial responsibility to the Duma
  • compulsory seizure of lands of gentry w/o compensation
  • universal and direct male suffrage
  • abandonment of the emergency laws
  • abolition of the death penalty
  • reform of civil service
43
Q

How did Nicholas react to the ‘address to the throne’? How did the Duma react in turn?

A

Nicholas: demands ‘totally inadmissible’
Duma then passed a vote of no confidence in the gov + demanded resignation of the ministers

10 weeks later, Duma dissolved + Goremykin replaced as PM by Pyotr Stolypin (even more ‘hard line’)

44
Q

When was the Second Duma?

A

February - June 1907

45
Q

The Second Duma - composition, standpoint

A

(despite Stolypin’s government trying to influence elections)
the number of extreme left wing ^ enormously, as Bols, Mens, + SR participated - even more oppositional than First Duma

46
Q

Relationship between Second Duma and Stolypin’s government

A

Stolypin struggled to find any support for his agrarian reform programme. He resorted to passing legislation under emergency powers when Duma not in session. Duma refused to ratify these - spread story of plot to assassinate Tsar, dissolved Duma, exiled the more radical

47
Q

What did Stolypin do after he dissolved the Second Duma?

A

He introduced an (illegal) emergency law to alter franchise - weight of peasants, workers + national minorities drastically decreased, weight of gentry ^

48
Q

When was the Third Duma?

A

November 1907 - June 1912

49
Q

The Third Duma - composition, standpoint

A

Stolypin’s altering of the Franchise produced a more submissive Duma - agreed to 2200 of approximately 2500 government proposals.

50
Q

What was the Third Duma called?

A

Duma of Lords and Lackeys

51
Q

How many government proposals did the Third Duma agree to?

A

2200 of approximately 2500 government proposals

52
Q

What was a sign of how unpopular the tsarist regime had become in the Third Duma?

A

Even Third Duma proved confrontational - disputes over: naval staff, proposals to extend primary education, local government reform.
In 1911, Duma had to be suspended twice while the government forced through legislation under emergency powers

53
Q

How many times was the Third Duma suspended in 1911? Why?

A

twice in 1911, while the government passed legislation under emergency powers

54
Q

When was Stolypin assassinated? Who replaced him?

A

1911, replaced by Count Kokovstov

55
Q

When was the Fourth Duma?

A

November 1912-17

56
Q

Relationship between the government and the Fourth Duma?

A

Fourth Duma a relatively docile body, + New Prime Minister Kokovstov simply ignored Duma, and its influence declined. It was too divided to fight back, and in any case workers were beginning to take direct action.

57
Q

In 1906, what did Stolypin establish in order to deal with political crimes?

A

Aug 1906 - Stolypin established court martials led by senior military officers to deal with crime deemed to have political intent.

58
Q

How did Stolypin’s Court Martials work? How many people were convicted and executed by this system between 1906 and 1909?

A

all cases had to be concluded within 2 days, the accused was not allowed a defence counsel, while death sentences were carried out within 24 hours.
Over 3000 people were executed through these courts between 1906 and 1909.

59
Q

What did Stolypin believe? How did this work?

A

Combined intolerance and ruthlessness with radical reform of agriculture - best strategy for resisting revolutionary demands.
By 1914, agrarian siutation improving + Dumas totally weakened. Revolutionary groups much weakened - police activity and internal quarrels.

60
Q

What caused labour troubles to resurface once again in 1912?

A

None of issues sparking 1905 revolution had been fully resolved + regime simply turned its back - believed it could continue as it always had

Tsarist and Communist Russia 1855-1964 (7 decks)

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