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The Nature of Russian Government > Administrative Structures > Flashcards

Administrative Structures Flashcards

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1
Q

What was the hierarchy in place up to 1905?

(2ish)

A
  1. Tsar
  2. Council of Ministers - Committee of Ministers
  3. The Imperial Council of State
  4. Society
  • Tsar
  • The Senate
  • Society
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2
Q

Up to 1905, which way did power go?

(2 main versions)

A

From top (Tsars) to bottom

Either through the main structure or Tsar-Senate-Society

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3
Q

Define the Tsar pre-1905

A

Autocrat, complete control, all accountable to him

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4
Q

Define the Personal Chancellory of his Imperial Ministry

A

Personal advisors, secretaries, and Third Section

Replaced in 1861 by the Council of Ministers

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5
Q

Define the Council of Ministers pre-1905

A

Chaired by Tsar with ministers appointed by him, discussed legislation

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6
Q

Define the Committee of Ministers

A

13 ministers including:

  • Interiour
  • War
  • Finance
  • Procurator of the Holy Synnod

Administrative roles only

Worked independently of each other

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7
Q

Define the Imperial Council of State

A

Advisors on financial and legal matters

‘A retirement home for old advisors’

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8
Q

Define the Senate pre-1905

A

Acted as Supreme Court that upheld the Tsar’s Ukaz and settled disputes between Landowners and Serfs/ Peasants

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9
Q

What was the hierarchy enforced on Alex III with the 1905 October Revolution and consequent Manifesto and then the 1906 Fundemental Laws

A
  1. Tsar
  2. Council of Ministers
  3. The State Council - The Duma
  4. Electorate
  • Tsar
  • Senate
  • Electorate
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10
Q

How did the power flow under Alex III after 1905/6?

A

Ostensibly some democracy with Duma, HOWEVER

  • Tsar could dissolve Duma - Fundemental Laws
  • Electoral colleges made representation massively squewed for the rich

So really just a slightly diluted autocracy

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11
Q

Define the Tsar post-1905

A

Autocrat, complete control, all accountable to him through 1906 Fundemental Laws

Alex III used Article 87 allowing Ministers to report directly to him and bypassing Duma

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12
Q

Define the Council of Ministers post-1905

A

Main law-making and administrative body

Chaired by a Prime Minister

A parliamentary cabinet above 2 houses (State Council and Duma)

Could bypass Council and Duma after Fundemental Laws of 1906

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13
Q

Define the State Council

A

To act as a check on Duma

Half elected, half nominated

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14
Q

Define the Duma

A

Elected

Could not pass laws but could block them

Elected through a college system designed to discriminate workers and peasants

After Fundemental Laws 1906 Tsar could disband Duma

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15
Q

Define the Senate post-1905

A

Acted as Supreme court that upheld Tsar’s Ukaz and dealt with disputes between Landowners and Serfs/ Peasants

Upheld the Fundemental Laws

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16
Q

What were the two hierachies under Lenin?

A
  1. A sham demoncractic Government/ State
  2. The Party system (real power)
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17
Q

What was the structure of Lenin’s (and by extension all following Communists’) democracy?

A
  1. All Russian Congress of Soviets
  2. Sovnarkom (cabinet)
  3. Local Soviets
  4. Electorate
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18
Q

What evidence is there that democracy under Lenin was a sham?

A
  • Constituent Assembly closed down within one day
  • Chain of elections, village, district, and provincial soviets dominated by Bolsheviks
  • SRs and Mensheviks kicked out of ‘All-Russian Congress of Soviets’
  • Electorate could only vote for Bolsheviks innit
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19
Q

Define the All-Russian Congress of Soviets

A

Ostensibly held elected government officials to act as a Parliament, however…

SRs and Mensheviks kicked out, so an annual Bolshevik Party Meeting

Provided link with the Party system - 1/10th members made up Centric Committee

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20
Q

Define the local soviets

(multi-level tasks)

A

Local party cells would organise meetings and recruit support

Would then choose members of town or district party committees

Would then send representatives to ‘All Russian Congress of Soviets’

(1/10th of Russia Soviet to Centric Committee)

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21
Q

What were the 3 major strands of the Centric Committee?

A
  1. Politburo
  2. Orgburo
  3. Ogburo
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22
Q

Define the Politbure under Lenin

A

Small, elite group, decided policy.

Dominated Centric Committee

Directed People’s Commissars, who then effectively passed orders down the chain of Soviets

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23
Q

Define the Orgburo

A

Organised party affairs

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24
Q

Define the Ogburo

A

Dealt with opposition to maintain order

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25
Q

What concept was used to justify Bolshevik control

A

Demoncratic Centralism

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26
Q

Democratic Centralism became highly ____ and grew to a ____ ____

A

Democratic Centralism became highly centralised and grew to a vast scale

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27
Q

Who took key roles in running the country (2) ?

Definition?

A

Leading cadres

Top Bolsheviks charged with organising and educating the people

Nomenklatura

Approved fledgling middle-class of the Tsarist era

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28
Q

What happened due to all the undemocractic-ness of Lenin’s government and beyond?

A

Had a lot of disengaged masses

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29
Q

What was done to recruit peasants into party after Lenin’s death 1924?

Success?

A

Attempted Lenin Enrolement

Ultimately id not change demographic

30
Q

What was the structure of Stalin’s party system?

A
  1. Presidium
  2. Supreme Soviet
    1. Soviet of the Union
    2. Soviet of the Nationalities
  3. Electorate
31
Q

How did the Stalin Constitution of 1936 appear to form a more federal, democratic system?

A

Abolished long chain of elections

BUT

All people would have a representative in the elected Soviet of the Union

Soviet of the Union comprised half the new Supreme Soviet which elected the Sovnarkom

Sovnarkom headed by Presidium, which linked sham with party system

32
Q

How did the Stalin Constitution of 1936 not really make the system more democratic?

A

Other half of Supreme Soviet - Soviet of the Nationalities - was unelected

Article 126 still clearly idenitified the party as the ‘nucleus of all the public and state organisations of the working people’

The Presidium (most powerful organ which oversaw the Sovnarkom) was headed by Stalin with his even more elite leading cadres

33
Q

Describe the Soviet of the Union

A

A representative from a district of around 30,000 would be elected for it every 4 years

This meant all people would have a representative

34
Q

Define the Presidium

A

Took precedence over the Politburo (most powerful part)

Oversaw the Sovnarkom

Link between sham democracy and party system

Stalin supreme leader

Contained an even more streamlined elite of leading cadres

35
Q

What did Stalin’s policies of Vashenka and GOSPLAN do?

A

Oversaw economic targets

36
Q

What did Stalin’s Cominform and COMECON do?

A
  • Cominform:
    • Coordinated actions between all nations’ Communist parties under Soviet direction
  • COMECON:
    • Economic organisation of Eastern Bloc
37
Q

Define Stalin’s Soviet of the Nationalities

A

Contained unelected representatives of the regions of the USSR

More members for more important republics e.g. Russia, Ukraine

Was the first example of regionalism in Russian government

38
Q

State the 3 ways Khrushchev’s party government changed from Stalin’s party government

A
  1. Dissolved Presidium and restablished Politburo
  2. Initially more collegiate
  3. Gave more economic planning powers to regional soviets
39
Q

What was the name of the series of reforms Khrushchev pioneered?

A

Destalinisation

40
Q

What evidence is there that Khrushchev upheld the power of the party system?

A

His response to the attempt to oust him by the Anti-Party Group was to use the organisational structure to support his position

Claimed that only the centric committee had the power to change the system of government

41
Q

Before 1861, who were provinces largely under the control of?

Who were village issues discussed by?

A

Nobles and landowners

The mir (a conservative commune of village elders)

42
Q

How did the Emancipation change the role of peace keeping?

A

Landowners lost their political role

Replaced by local police constables or Justices of the Peace, appointed by interior ministries

43
Q

When were zemstvas created?

A

1864

44
Q

Why were zemstvos created?

Drawbacks/ negatives?

A

To administer regions more effeciently

  • Had no power to discuss national political issues
  • Ministers had to have high property qualifications, excluding most Russians
  • Minority regions not allowed zemstvos
45
Q

What were the Duma in relation to Zemstvos?

When created?

A

Urban equivalent

Had even more restricted electoral rules

1870

46
Q

How did the zemstvas still back-fire on the conservatives Tsarist government?

Consequent actions of the upper Tsarist government?

A

By end of the 19th century these councils were dominated by proffesionals (voted in Social Democrats twice) who demanded a more liberal form of government along their lines (the Third Element)

Zemstvos often silenced or restricted further

47
Q

What replaced the zemstvos and duma in 1917?

Who led them initially?

Which system?

A

The Soviets (as in local unions)

Led by SRs and Mensheviks initially

Incorporated into the Bolshevik system

48
Q

What did the Soveit use to justify their takeover?

A

Soviet Order Number One

Put all the power in the hands of Soviet (as in during PG bit)

49
Q

How did Alex II make some reforms with the 1864 Legal Reforms?

Who dealt with political cases? Analysis?

A
  1. Juries used for the first time in criminal cases
  2. Better pay for judges to avoid bribery

Political cases dealt with by the Senate and the SEcret Police - not liberal

50
Q

What direction did Alex II take after 1881?

2 examples

A

Moved towards more central control

  • Special courts designed for political cases
  • Land Captains replaced Justice of the Peace
51
Q

How did the Communists change the judiciary system?

A

After 1917 offical judiciary replaced with ‘revolutionary justice’

1920 Criminal Code justified terror to control crime

52
Q

What proves that under the Communists the secret police and party became the judicial system?

A

Stalin’s use fo the NKVD an Show Trials in the 1930s

53
Q

Describe the leadership of the Tsars

A
  • Single leader
  • Dictatorial
  • Autocratic
  • Hereditary
54
Q

Describe the leadership of the Provisional Government

A
  • Democratic
  • Liberal
  • BUT unelected
55
Q

Describe the leadership of the Communists

A
  • Single leadership
  • Dictatorial
  • Autocratic
  • Non-hereditary
56
Q

Describe the delivery of justice under the Tsars

A
  • Heirarchical
  • Centralised
57
Q

Describe the delivery of power of the Provisional Government

A
  • Hierarchical
  • BUT shared power with the Soviet
58
Q

Describe the delivery of power of the Communists

A
  • Hierachical
  • Very centralised
59
Q

Describe the organs of power of the Tsars

A

Many

60
Q

Describe the organs of power of the Provisional Government

A

Two

  • Provisional Government
  • Soviet
61
Q

Describe the organs of power of the Communists

A

Many

62
Q

Describe the attitude to democracy of the Tsars

A

A nod to democracy with Duma - although ideologically completely opposed

63
Q

Describe the attitude to democracy of the Communists

A

A nod to democracy with the Soviet system

64
Q

Describe the local government of the Tsars

A
  • The mir
  • Zemstva
  • Duma
65
Q

Describe the local government of the Communists

A

Soviets soon abandoned

Localities run by party cells and officials

66
Q

Describe the judiciary of the Tsars

A
  • Some moves towards liberalisation
  • Trial by jury
  • Political cases still controlled by Senate and Secret Police
67
Q

Describe the judiciary of the Provisional Government

A

Liberal - political prisoners released

68
Q

Describe the judiciary of the Communists

A
  • Dominated by ‘revolutionary justice’, show trials, and purges
  • Legalised use of terror
69
Q

Summarise the Tsarist rule before 1905

A

Pre-1905 Tsars had advisors and ministers but none had any real power or authority

70
Q

Summarise the rule of the Tsars post-1905

A

Some more democratic and western practices but major restrictions maintaining power of Tsar

71
Q

How does the role of the Tsar and the Communist president overlap?

A

Both: autocratic, had complete control, all accountable to him

Central and hierarchical government structure

Communists: very personalised rule, government structure justified by Democratic Centralism

Tsars: personalised rule, government structure justified by Pobedonostev’s Tsarist autocracy ideology

72
Q

How is Communist government similar to Tsarist?

A

Also not really a democracy - gave illusion of democracy but became highly bureaucratic and vast

The Nature of Russian Government (4 decks)

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