Attitude of Russian Leaders to Political Change

Question 1

Attitude of Russian leaders to political change

TSARS

Answer 1

• All Tsars showed desire to maintain autocracy

• some Attempts were however made to introduce some elements of democracy

• Alexander II introduced the zemstva
• Nicolas II created the national Duma

• but in both instances the changes were made alongside efforts to maintain Tsarism

• The Zemstva proved to be unrepresentative of the population as a whole

• the national state Duma had his powers limited by the fundamental law of 1906 which reinstated the fact that the tsar hand all the power

Question 2

Attitude of Russian leaders to political change

Provisional Government [1917]

Answer 2

The provisional government had a more positive attitude toward political change

by aiming to set up a constituent assembly the principles on which the achievement of this aim
( the idea of creating a constituent assembly)

also led to political change the more liberal nature

such as the release of political prisoners

and the formation of an allience of the petrograde Soviet

Question 3

Attitude of Russian leaders to political change

The Communists

Answer 3

The Communist initially wanted revolutionary political change

as a result the Tsar was forced abdicate
the provisional government was constantly challenged
and the constituent assembly disband

and once the October revolution was over
the Communist were more interested in consolidating power that using the political system they had created

although constitutions were issued that appeared to give a greater autonomy to certain regional groups in the Soviet Union

under Stalin power became more centralised
– stalin seemed intent on introducing totalitarianism using tools of extreme oppression to do so

Khrushchev showed greater willingness to embrace political change by desalinising Russia and shifting authority to the party

Question 4

Attitude of Russian leaders to political change overview

Answer 4

Tsars

• political change to maintain autocracy

• political changed introduce some elements of Liberal democracy especially under Alexander II and Nicholas II

Prov Gov

• political change to base the government on liberal principles and to move towards a constituent assembly

Com

• political change to overthrow the provisional government and to have a revolution (lenin)

• political change to consolidate communism (Lenin and Stalin)

• political change to centralise his own authority (Stalin)

• political change to move away from centralised authority (Khrushchev)