causes of 1917 revolution

Question 1

why was the war considered a catalyst for the 1917 revolution

Answer 1

• food shortages angered the people as well as the ban on vodka sales
• morale of soldiers was hard hit by the incompetence of their officers and the lack of regard for their welfare - tens of thousands deserted and became more sympathetic to revolutionary ideas
• influx of refugees from German-occupied areas led to serious overcrowding and deterioration of living standards - meaning people are in large groups complaining about the regime

Question 2

what were the engrained social causes of the 1917 revolution?

Answer 2

• there was peasant discontent with issues such as tsar not addressing their needs and failing in reforms
• millions of peasants brought to fight so disrupted agriculture
• deeply embedded anger at the feudal system and upper class privileges

Question 3

why was the 1905 revolution a cause of the 1917 revolution?

Answer 3

• workers and peasants became used to committing revolutionary acts such as striking and burning landlords houses on a day to day basis so unlikely to return to complete normal
• was a level of incompetence and a reluctancy in peasants working after the 1905 revolution - anger that it didn’t fully work

Question 4

what political downfalls could be argued to have caused a revolution?

Answer 4

• lack of workers, peasant and nationalities representation in political affairs
• e.g. dumas, after second duma ‘Stolypin’s coup’ was installed to exclude non-Russian national groups and peasant and workers representation
• as a result the Octobrists had 154 seats and the rightists 147 seats

Question 5

why were strikes a cause of the 1917 revolution and which strikes in particular?

Answer 5

• Lena Goldfields massacre in April 1912 - striking workers protesting about degrading working conditions, low pay and 14hr working day
• clashed with troops an dover 200 killed and many injured
• opened floodgates to workers protests
• workers became increasingly militant and the frequency and scale of strikes increased in the years 1912-14
• July 1914 saw a general strike in StP involving barricades and street fighting
• becomes the norm for people to rebel - not going to go back to normal, want revolution

Question 6

why was reduction in censorship and a rising literacy rate a cause of the 1917 revolution

Answer 6

• more able to read so able to articulate their own opinions
• ‘people’s universities’ allowed learning of topics such as socialism and Marxism
• plants the seed for revolutionary ideas
• under Alexander II, newspapers, books and periodicals no longer ha to submit to prior censorship
• newspapers could discuss gov policy and editors were given more freedom

Question 7

why would the army going over to the side of the people be a cause of the revolution in 1917?

Answer 7

• replacement soldiers played a major role as they were sympathetic to the people on the streets and unwilling to suppress disorder
• generals also played major role when decided could not support tsar
• 14mil men mobilised and approximately half killed
• if army goes over to people then they have all the weapons

Question 8

what did Sheila Fitzpatrick argue about Russian society on the eve of war that can be considered a cause of the 1917 revolution?

Answer 8

• it was so deeply divided and the political and bureaucratic structure so fragile and overstrained that it was vulnerable to any kind of jolt, even without the war