5. The 1905 Revolution- the spread of revolutionary activity Flashcards
What was the structure of the 1905 revolution?
It was a series of spontaneous uprisings, not a co-ordinated and organised attack on the Tsar’s government.
How did the Peasants revolt?
By the summer of 1905, the authorities had lost control of 15% of rural Russia, with the unrest being its worst in the ‘Black earth’ region of western Russia. Peasant unrest took many forms, including:
. Violence against gov officials, landowners and gov property.
. Land seizures.
. Destroyed 3000 manor houses.
. Moderate SRs organised zemstvos’ petitions that demanded land.
How did national minorities revolt?
The Finns and the Poles rebelled, there were general strikes in the Baltic states and violence in cities like Warsaw and Lodz in Poland. Finland was impacted significantly by the 1905 Revolution, with Nicholas being forced to end the policy of Russification and restore Finland’s traditional rights in early November.
How did urban workers revolt?
Strikes broke out in Russia’s cities in a massive scale but the urban violence was focused on Jewish communities. The worst anti-semitic violence occurred in October in Odessa when 400 Jewish people were killed and over 1,600 Jewish homes were destroyed.
What military unrest occurred?
In June 1905, the mutiny of Battleship Potemkin occurred, where sailors rebelled against their officers and took control of the ship. The revolutionary sailors then sailed to Odessa where they fired on gov forces then fled to Romania.
What was the context around the creation of the St. Petersburg soviet?
A general strike developed between September and October 1905, with 2.7 million workers on strike. Workers then set up the St. Petersburg Soviet in October, an elected committee comprising around 500 delegates who represented 200,000 workers across 147 factories. It was initially set up to co-ordinate the strike but it soon took over the important aspects of running the whole city and was dominated by the Mensheviks.
How many Soviets were set up following the St. Petersburg Soviet and what did they begin doing?
By the end of October, 50 towns across Russia had their own Soviets including Moscow and Odessa. The Soviets started political campaigns, campaigning for 8 hour working days and they encouraged workers not to pay tax.
Who was Leon Trotsky?
Leon Trotsky played a leading role among the members of the SDs who were part of the Soviet. He persuaded the Soviet to drop some of its radical reforms and to act pragmatically in order to avoid confrontations with the gov.
