Chapter one - The condition of Russia before the revolution of February 1917

Question 1

Why was Nicholas so conservative?

Answer 1

His father was very conservative and he was raised in a very sheltered environment. His tutor Pobedonostev was very conservative

Question 2

What was his personality?

Answer 2

Obstinate, indecisive
Relied on repression of discontent
No interest in politics

Question 3

When was bloody sunday?

Answer 3

9th January 1905

Question 4

When did the Tsar become commander in chief?

Answer 4

September 1915

Question 5

When was the October manifesto?

Answer 5

17th October 1905
Full of empty promises
Missed opportunity to gain support of liberal intelligencia

Question 6

When was the first Duma?

Answer 6

April - July 1906

Question 7

When was the second Duma?

Answer 7

Feb - June 1907

Question 8

Did the Tsar like the Duma?

Answer 8

No. He said ‘Curse the Duma. It is all Witte’s doing’

Question 9

What were the conditions like for workers?

Answer 9

Common injury and death
Lived in rooms separated by curtains

Question 10

How were the nobles living?

Answer 10

Less than 1% of population but owned 25% of land

Question 11

Number of strikes?

Answer 11

1908 - 892
1914 - 3534

Question 12

How many workers were literate by 1914?

Answer 12

64% compared to only 40% of total population

Question 13

How many strikes were political?

Answer 13

2401

Question 14

What was the Lena Goldfields Massacre?

Answer 14

April 1912
Protests about conditions, low wages, and 14 hour days.
200 were killed by troops

Question 15

What were Stolypin’s reforms?

Answer 15

Encouragement of peasants to leave their mir, and consolidate their strips of land into a single unit

Question 16

Why did Stolypin’s reforms fail?

Answer 16

The communes weren’t always backwards and those separators used poor farming methods in order to make a quick profit

Question 17

What was some agrarian progress?

Answer 17

Grain production grew by 1.1 million tonnes each year
Investment in agricultural machinary rose at an annual rate of 9%

Question 18

Growth of st Petersburg in millions?

Answer 18

1897 - 1.26
1914 - 2.2

Question 19

Increase in production of coal?

Answer 19

In millions
1900 - 16.1
1916 - 33.8

Question 20

Keeping the country an autocracy?

Answer 20

Progressive block’s advice to make a constitutional monarvhy would have taken pressure off the Tsar

Question 21

Liberal criticism of the Tsar?

Answer 21

November 1915 - Guchkov - The government was revolutionising the people, and the outcome would be a ‘sad, unavoidable catastrophe’

Question 22

What did the Bolshevik’s gain control of?

Answer 22

Trade unions in St Petersburg and Moscow, like the metal workers union

Question 23

What was the circulation of the Bolshevik paper?

Answer 23

40,000 copies

Question 24

How strong were the liberals?

Answer 24

Kadets and Octobrists were divided and no real threat
Feared anarchy and did not support the strikes

Question 25

How strong were the revolutionaries?

Answer 25

Sr’s obsessed with the issue of double agents - the okhrana
Lenin was still in exile

Question 26

When did the Tsar mobilise his armies?

Answer 26

July 1914 in support of Serbia

Question 27

The first big loss?

Answer 27

Battle of Tannenburg in East Prussia in August 1914
800,000 dead or wounded
Thousands taken prisoner

Question 28

What forced a Russian retreat?

Answer 28

Defeat at Masurian lakes in September 1914

Question 29

How many troops were there?

Answer 29

12 million

Question 30

What was the rifle situation?

Answer 30

1914 - 2 rifles for every three people

Question 31

What was the shell situation?

Answer 31

1915 - limited to 2 - 3 shells per day

Question 32

What were the Russian succeses?

Answer 32

Tied down Germany on the Eastern front for three years
1916 - manafactured more shells than Germany

Question 33

What was the union of the Zemstva?

Answer 33

Tried to provide medical facilities but were neglected by the state

Question 34

What was the Zemgor?

Answer 34

Joining of the zemstva and municiple dumas to help the government in the war effort in July 1915
This was shunned by the Tsar

Question 35

What led to the Tsar leading the army?

Answer 35

Defeat at Galicia in September 1915

Question 36

What was the constant changes of ministers under the Tsarina?

Answer 36

4 Prime Ministers
3 Foreign Secretaries
3 Ministers of Defence
6 Interior ministers

Question 37

War losses in 1916?

Answer 37

Brusilov offensive - June 1916
1.5 million desertions by the end of the year

Question 38

Difficulties at the home front?

Answer 38

Food, goods and raw materials in short supply
Led to many factories closing down so thousands were out of work
Peasants feared conscription