Economy Under The Tsars. Flashcards
What were the aims of the Tsar with respect to industrialisation?
- Catch up with the west.
- Increase Russians world status.
Why was railway construction so important under Reutern?
- Reutern (minister of finance 1862-1878) based his policies around railway construction.
- Attracted foreign experts such as Ludwig Loop and JJ Hughs.
- Average growth of 6% a day under Reutern.
- Track opened increased sevenfold between 1862 and 1878.
Why were Vyshnegradskis policies seen as a failure?
- Resulted in the 1891 famine.
What policies were introduced in Wittes “Great Spurt”?
- Taking out foreign loans to boost investment in industry.
- Resurrected Reutern idea of allowing foreign experts to come to Russia.
- Placement of the Rouble on the Gold Standard.
- Insisted most investment went to heavy industry and the railways, copying from the west.
- State control of industry not private.
What were the effects of Wittes policies?
- Resulted in a “Great Spurt” in the economy.
- Coal production doubled.
- Iron and steel production increased sevenfold.
- Development of oil and chemical industry.
- Growth in foreign capitol rose 120% per annum from 1893 to 1898.
- Income earned from industry rose from 42million roubles in 1893 to 161million roubles in 1898.
- Track opened went from 17264 miles in 1891 to 31125 miles in 1898.
What were some of the criticisms of Wittes policies?
- Neglected parts of the industrial sector such as engineering and textiles.
- Reliance on foreign capitol seen as dangerous as loans could be withdrawn at any time and with little notice.
- Railway expansion was still inefficient.
- Neglected agriculture which caused rural discontent and led to his downfall in 1903.
What impact did the first world war have on Russian society and economy?
- Industry was shown not to be able to keep up with the needs of the armed forces.
- Railways were seen to he inefficient.
- Taxes increased and gold standard abandoned.
- Rampant inflation, price of food quadrupled.
- Showed Wittes “Great Spurt” had only created short term success.
What reforms did Bunge make to the economy
-Abolition of the Salt Tax 1881
-Creation of the Poll tax in 1883
-1883 Peasant Land Bank
-Greater state ownership of the railways which led to 69% of the system under public control by 1911
Why was Bunge replaced
-A3 blamed him for a dramatic fall in the rouble by mid 1880s
-Replaced by Vyshnegradskii
What was the Medele’ve tariff of 1891
-700 page book of tariffs on all imports of goods
-Income gained by exporting large amounts of grain
-Resulted in the 1891 famine
What were the aims of Stolypins reforms on agriculture
-Use land redistribution to create a class of more able educated peasants
-These peasants would act as a role model to other peasants and a force against the mir
-Reforms sometimes referred to as “wager on the strong”
What were the aspects of Stolypin’s reform on agriculture
-Unused or poorly utilised land made available to peasant land bank so peasants could buy on favourable terms
-Peasants on farming strips could consolidate their land (joining together of their resources)
Why did Stolypin’s reforms on agriculture fail
-Process led to expansion of peasants in wealthy class however were not loyal to the tsar as they believed best quality land was still inaccessible
-By 1914 2 million peasants left the village communes shortening rural labour. This was accelerated by WW1 straining the supplies in food
What is subsistence farming
Ensuring that just enough was produced to keep members of a community fed over a given period creating no incentive for investment into land and to produce surpluses
