Chapter 8-The economic development of Russia to 1914 Flashcards
What did Witte do to help the economy?
He gave money to the government, he got a loan from France, he raises taxes, tariffs and interest rates, he makes money on the goldstandard, foreign investment triples in 10 years.
What were the problems with the new policies?
Higher taxes meant less money in people’s pockets, they had a high national debt due to loans, 20% of the budget was spent on servcing the debt, the goldstandard ties Russia to international finance markets.
What developments in railways were there?
By 1905 Russia had 59,616 kilometres of railway. This allowed grain-growing areas to the Black Sea ports, allowing more exports. By 1913 Russia had the second largest railway in the world with 62,200 km although it was much less than the 411,000 km of the US railway. They had invested a lot into the Trans-Siberian railway but it promised more than it delivered as it was only single track.
What developments were there in agriculture?
Before 1906 most farming was small scale as peasants were tied to their local mir by redemption payments. The population was growing but the land was not, meaning plots of land were falling in size. There was a government sponsor to encourage poeple to move to Siberia but this didn’t alleviate the pressure of the growing population. The grain output in Britain fot the same amound of farmland was four times as great.
What were Stolypin’s land reforms?
He made more state and crown land available to buy, government subsidies to encourage migration, peasants were granted equal rights, they were allowed to leave their commune as the redemption payments were abolished. A new peasants land bank was established in 1906 to help peasants fund their land ownership.
What wasn’t successful about his reforms?
By 1914 only 10% of land was transferred from communal to private ownership. Also, 90% of peasant land was still in strips, making it harder to use machinery and farm more crops. Less than 1% achieved kulak status.
