Causes of 1905 Revolution Flashcards
What were the main causes for the 1905 revolution?
- Unrest amongst minorities
- Bloody Sunday
- Russo Japanese War
- Growth of the liberals
- Peasant grievances
- Urban grievances
What was the infamous Jewish Pogrom in April 1903?
Kishinev Pogrom
Where were Jews forced to live in Russia?
The Pale of Settlement
How many towns of over 100,000 people were located out of Russia proper?
12/17
What Tsarist policy were the minorities often opposed to?
Russification
What did Russification involve?
Russian officials ran non-Russian parts of the empire and imposed the Russian language in these places. Schools, courts and government were compelled to use Russian.
In what year were Catholic monasteries closed down?
1900
Who were the other two government bodies besides the Tsar? Did they have checks on absolutism?
Imperial Council
Cabinet of Ministers
Neither had checks on absolutism
What two groups of force was Nicholas’ power contingent on?
The Ohkrana and Cossacks
What was the problem with the ineffective banking system?
It struggled to raise capital for investment in industrial projects
What weakening institution gave legitimacy to the Tsar?
Church
When was Plehve, a strong advocate for war, assassinated by SRs?
1904
What impact did the Russo Japanese war have on the home front?
It accentuated shortages because food and fuel was prioritised for the fighting soldiers
List the notable defeats in the RJ war.
January (4th) - Port Arthur
March - Mukden
May - Tshushima Straits
How much money did the government spend on the war?
1bn roubles
Which major liberal gathering was prompted by a desire to end the war?
The St Petersburg Russian Zemstvo Congress
Why did the use of the army against Japan reduce inhibitions towards causing unrest?
Since the army was typically used to put down unrest, it was incapacitated when fighting Japan. Hence, the population didn’t need to fear such strong repression.
What were typical grievances of the army?
They disliked the length of their consription term. They had poor food and living conditions.
What was Nicholas doing for the majority of Summer 1905?
Hunting in the countryside
What did the Tsar offer in August 1905 in an attempt to placate political demands?
The Bulygin Duma
Out of which agreement did the Tsar pull out of, against Witte’s best advice?
Manchurian Withdrawal Agreement
What type of farming meant that peasants were unlikely to gain access to the new farming machinery?
Strip farming
Where did most of the young radicals come from?
University, where they were exposed to new ideas and young thinkers
How did urbanisation increase liberals?
Urbanisation saw the growth of a middle class and professionals e.g. small business owners, more doctors, lawyers. Their economic status however wasn’t reflected in politics and they therefore felt as if they deserved a greater say in how the country should be run.
How many students were there in 1880? 1897? 1914?
1880 - 15,155
1897 - 30,000
1914 - over 120,000
Why were many students opposed to the Tsar?
Student protests between 1899 and 1901 (many carried out in solidarity for St Petersburg e.g. in Kiev) were responded to with repressive measures, arrests and threat of conscription. Their university education often also exposed them to more Western European forms of governance, where students lived more freely and with a democratic vote.
What was the significance of the Putilov Plant strike in December 1904?
It was a strike in December 1904, just before the revolution which caused sympathy strikes throughout St Petersburg. Some 80,000 people called for an end to the RJ War, and 8 hour day, higher pay and an end to overtime
What type of taxes were imposed on urban workers to pay off industrialisation, the depression and RJ war?
Indirect taxes such as those on vodka and fuel
How much did real wages decline for workers in 1904?
20%
How high were literacy rates in the cities? (able to read propaganda/literature)
57.8%
How did urbanisation help increase the spread/ organisation of revolution?
Urbanisation put large gatherings of workers in one place. Dissident ideals could thus spread more quickly and workplaces became centres of debate and discussion
What did Zubatov (head of St P police) have implemented between 1901 and 1903? What organisation led by Father Gapon did he also patronise?
- Police Unions
- Assembly of the Russian Factory and Mill Workers of St Petersburg
What was the average length of the working day in 1905?
11 hours
