Alex II Opposition 1855-1881 Flashcards
Why did Alex II reforms lead to opposition
Growth and independence of universities
More students and professors
Professional lawyers
Zemstva provided a forum for debate
Who formed the moderate opposition
Westernisers
Slavophiles
What did Westernisers want
Copy western ways
Wanted a National Assembly
What did Slavophiles want
Reform but in a Russian way
Believed Russia was superior
When were Slavophiles strong and when did they decline
Strong in 1881, but started to decline, especially after the 1891-92 famine.
Who was a key Slavophile writer
Leo Tolstoy
When was the great famine
1891-92
Who helped in the great famine 1891-92
The Zemstva - provided the relief work
Tsarist government were inactive
When was Young Russia formed
1862
How many shops did Young Russia destroy in St Petersburg
2000 shops
Also set a series of fires
When was ‘The Organisation’ formed and by who
1863
By Moscow university students
What happened in 1866
Student Dmitry Karakozov (noble birth) shot at, but missed, Alexander II
What happened in 1867
Polish immigrant fired at Alexander II’ carriage
How did Alex II restrict Polish liberties after the Polish Revolt
1864 - the property of the Polish Roman Catholic Church was seized 1869 - New Warsaw University was closed
When was the Polish Revolt
1863-64
What was the aim of Pyotr Lavrov
Aimed to mobilise the peasantry into a revolutionary force by inspiring them with messages of socialism and anarchism
What political idea was Pyotr Lavrov associated with
Populism
What year did Lavrov first try and go to the peasantry? With how many people?
1874
2,000 young people
Why were 2,000 young people going to the countryside
Raise peasants awareness of how they were still being exploited and oppressed despite emancipation
How did the first attempt of going to the people go
Bad
Many peasants didn’t understand the ideas of the populists
Around 1,600 populists were arrested, often handed over by the peasants who remained loyal to the Tsar
How many populists in the first attempt to go to the people got arrested
1,600
When was the second attempt at going to the people? How did it go?
1876
Bad
What was the third populist group called
Land and Liberty
When was Land and Liberty set up
1877
What was different about Land and Liberty
Better organised
More radical
Live alongside peasants for longer
Advance Bukunin’s anarchist ideas
Attempted assassinations
In 1878 who had Land and Liberty assassinated? What was worrying about this?
The head of the Third Section
Public support for the assassins
What year did Land and Liberty split
1879
Which two groups did Land and Liberty split into
‘Black Partition’
‘People’s Will’
What tactics did the Black Partition use
Longer-term tactics being developed through living and working with the peasants
What tactics did the People’s Will use
Terrorist tactics which aimed to destroy the Tsarist autocracy through violence and assassinations
Who led the Black Partition
Plekhanov
Who led the People’s Will
Mikhailov
How many assassination attempts on Alex II were conducted by the People’s Will
3
