Chapter 4 - Political authority in action Flashcards
Political authority in action
How many ethnic groups made up Tsarist Russia
Over 100 ethnic groups.
2/3 of pop. made up of Slavs in Russia, Ukraine and Belorussia.
Why was a diverse population an issue?
Ethnic groups wanted to assert their distinctive identities when the Tsar wanted the implementation of a national ideology
What had some ethnic minorities done to try and make their identity distinctive?
- Poland = rebellion in 1830
- Finland = in the 1840s a Finnish language pressure group was set up
- Baltic regions = local language newspapers were founded
- Ukraine = secret ‘Brotherhood of Saints Cyril and Methodius’ provoked a national consciousness that sought to seperate Ukrainian Slavs from their Russian counterparts
This was met by Russian determination to assert their national superiority.
Alexander II and ethnic minorities
Polish rebellion
Polish rebellion broke out in 1863
- Alex II sent his brother, Viceroy Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich, to deal with the rebels
- 200,000 Poles had joined in creating an underground guerrilla warfare against Imperial Russia
- Crushed in 1864
Alex II did not engage in the systematic persecution of racial minorities.
Through decrees in 1864 and 1875, the Latvians and Estonians were allowed to revert to Lutheranism.
Furthermore, he allowed the Finns to have their own diet (parliament).
However, there was growing intolerance of national differences on the part of the Tsar’s ministers, who were keen to reinforce the tsarist regime.
This led to, for example, the prohibition on the use of the Ukranian language in publications or perfomances in 1876.
How was Russification imposed in Finland?
- the diet was reorganised in 1892 in order to weaken its political influence
- the use of Russian langauge was demanded
- the independant postal service was abolished
- local currency was replaced with the Russian ruble
How was Russification imposed in Poland?
- Polish National Bank closed in 1885
- schools and universities had to teach all subjects, apart from Polish langauge and reilgion, in Russian
- Polish literature had to be studied in a Russian translation
- administration of Poland was changed to curb any independence
- Catholic monasteries were closed down, the influence of Catholic priests was curbed, and incentives were provided for non-Catholics to settle in this area
How was Russification imposed in Baltic Germany?
- between 1885 and 1889, measures were introduced to enforce the use of Russian in all state offices, elementary and secondary schools, the police force and judicary system
- Even the German University of Dorpar was ‘russified’ and becamce Iurev University
- in the Baltic region, 37,000 Lutherans converted to Orthodoxy to take advantage of the special measures of support
How was Russification imposed in the Ukraine?
- laws limited the use of the Ukranian language were implemented in 1883
- in 1884, all the theatres in the 5 Ukranian provinces were closed
- military service arrangements were extended into areas previously exempt
- conscripts from national areas were dispersed to prevent national groupings developing in the army
- army entirely in Russian
How Orthodoxy was imposed across Russia?
- In Asia, the All-Russian Orthodox Missionary society worked to convert ‘heathens and Muslims’ this included forced mass baptisms
- From 1883, members of non-Orthodox chruchers weren’t allowed to build new places of worship, wear religious dress except in their meeting palce, or spread any religious propaganda
- Any attempt to convert a member of the Orthodox Church to another faith was made punishable by exile to Siberia
Results of Russification?
Met with resistance
- estimated in June 1888, 332 cases of mass disturbance in 61 of Russia’s 92 provinces
- includes 43 disturbances in 9 of the 12 central provinces
- but, troubles swiftly curved. In 51 of these cases, the military were employed
Russification not only resulted in popular disturbances, but also caused resentment among the more educated and wealthy Finns, Poles and Baltic Germans. Here:
- national groups continuted to petition the Tsar for more liberties
- the secret publication of local language books ocntinued
- some ethnic schools survived (particularly in Poland)
Did not acheive the intended result.
Peter Waldron: Russification “failed to acheive its ends” and “intensified national feeling among the non-Russians of the Empire”
Drove some of the wealthier citizens to emigrate and persuaded others, who might otherwise have proved loyal, to join political opposition groups.
Why did people believe in Russification?
- acting for the greater good of Russia
- believed it was necessary to unite the country in order to improve its administration, to allow for modernisation, and to reassert Russian strength
- time for strong nationalism over fears of growing German strength
“Russification was a reaction to the growing forces threatening autocracy and the Empire’s political stablity” - Walter Moss
How many Jews were there in the Russian Empire?
Around 5 million.
Most of whom had been confined to the Pale of Settlement since 1736.
What was the Pale of Settlement?
- a region in the south and west part of Europen Russia
- created in 1791
- included much of present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Poland, Ukraine, Moldova and parts of western Russia.
- comprised of 20% of European Russia
- a number of cities within the Pale were excluded
- a limited number of categories of Jews were allowed to live outside the Pale
Alexander II and anti-Semitism
- anti-Semitism among the poor who hated the Jews due to Orthodox teachings and their money-lending and personal riches
- Alex II had allowed wealthier Jews to settle elsewhere until the Polish revolt frightened him into withdrawing his concessions and reducing the participation of Jews in town government, encourging the growth of anti-Semitism
Alexander III and anti-Semitism
- encourage in his reign
- further encouraged as ministers, such as Pobedonostsev used inflammatory slogans such as “Beat the Yids - Save Russia” and suggested that “One third should emigrate, one third should die, and one third assimilate”
- Alex III was anti-Semitic on religious grounds
- fear of Jewish involvement in the growing opposition movements
