Chapter 1 - Russian autocracy

Question 1

What was the empire predominantly held together by

Answer 1

the power of the Tsar and the Russian Orthodox Church which demanded obedience

Question 1

By 1855, how vast was the Russian empire

Answer 1

covered around 21 million square kilometres

Question 2

how was the tsar supported by the church

Answer 2

Tsar was regarded as the embodiment of God on earth
Russians were taught to show devotion to their Tsar
The church and state were closely entwined

Question 3

What type of state had Russia developed into and what did this mean

Answer 3

A police state
Freedom of speech, freedom of the press and travel abroad were prevented

Question 4

who was the secret state security network run by and what did they do

Answer 4

‘The Third section’
Its agents has unlimited powers to carry out raids, arrests and ensure imprisonment or exile of anyone suspected of anti-tsarist behaviour

Question 5

what percentage of the population were peasant-serfs

Answer 5

over 50%

Question 6

what were the two types of serfs

Answer 6

state-serfs = paid taxes and rent
privately owned serfs - which just over half the amount of serfs were classed as

Question 7

what was spreading into Russia by the 19th century

Answer 7

liberal ideas from the west
many Russian intellectuals were starting to argue for a civil society based on law

Question 8

which tsar wanted to prevent liberal ideas and what else did he want

Answer 8

Tsar Nicholas I - who followed a path of repression
he wanted to maintain autocracy and distance Russia from the west

Question 9

what brought the need for change to the new tsars attention

Answer 9

defeat in the crimean war - it exposed Russias backwardness

Question 10

what was the Russian army made up of

Answer 10

1.5 million conscripted serfs who were forced into service for 25 years

Question 11

how much of the governments annual expenditure did the army absorb

Answer 11

around 45%

Question 12

how were states such as Britain, Belgium and France different to Russia by 1855

Answer 12

they were industrially advanced, while the Russian economy remained predominantly rural

Question 13

what was Russias economic backwardness partly due to

Answer 13

inhospitable territory and climate in much of Russia limited progress

Question 14

what was the main reason for Russias backwardness

Answer 14

the serf based economy which limited the forced that drive change - markets, wage earners and entrepreneurs

Question 15

socially, how was Russia divided

Answer 15

between the privileged land owning elite and the serf majority

Question 16

how did Russia mostly remain essentially ‘feudal’

Answer 16

there wasn’t really a ‘middle class’ like most other places in Europe and there were only a small number of professions, the educated were mostly the sons of nobles

Question 17

what did some of the few people involved in professions make up

Answer 17

an ‘intelligentsia’

Question 18

when did Alexander II become Tsar

Answer 18

March 1855

Question 19

what was the final humiliation for Russia after the Crimean War

Answer 19

the treaty of Paris which prevented Russian warships from using the Black Sea in peacetime

Question 20

how did the crimean war reveal Russias inadequacies

Answer 20

it revealed their:
outdated technology
poor transport
inadequate leadership
the problems of having a conscripted army

Question 21

consequences of the crimean war

Answer 21

trade was disrupted
peasant uprisings escalted
much of the intelligentsia were appealing for action to close the gap between Russia and the west

mainly - it was a ‘wake up call’ for Russia

Question 22

what caused the crimean war and why did it go so badly for Russia

Answer 22

Nicholas I was attempting to increase Russian influence into the Ottoman Empire - this caused Turks to declare war.
The British and French wanted to defend their trading partners so entered the war.
Russians proved no match for the West and suffered many defeats.

Question 23

why was their a lack of entrepreneurs

Answer 23

landowning elite could obtain what they needed by using the serfs that they owned s although they were often in debt, money was of little use to them therefore they didn’t need to seek alternative ways of earning money
this also means they produced nothing for the Russian economy

Question 24

why was there a lack of markets

Answer 24

a few existed, but very few goods were purchased, instead they were mostly exchanged

Question 25

why was there a lack of wage earners

Answer 25

serfs were poor, and most of them just about managed to survive on produce they grew and therefore starvation was common in the winter and there was little opportunity for them to become ‘wage-earners’