Growth Of Tsarist Opposition

Question 1

Emergence of opposition to the tsar

Answer 1

• brought on by the hope and latter disappointment of the 70s and 80s.
  -Through AII, literature was uncensored, education bred independently minded students, zemstva challenges to tsarist politicies and new défense lawyers had a platform to question autocratic rule.
• Equally, the repressive atmosphere which follows reinforced the demands for change from both liberal intelligentsia and socialists and radicals.

Question 2

Opposition from the liberal intelligentsia

Answer 2

-grown at the end of the 19th century due to the education and economic reforms.
-Had the benefit of education and wealth but also time and interest to discuss topical issues.
-Many were well travelled and so knew the social stagnation of their own country.
-Some sought meaning in nihilism and anarchism- ideas about the barelessness of human value and the downfall of all institution,
-but most were either westernisers and slavophiles,

Question 3

Westernisers

Answer 3

• those who wanted to catch up with the progress of the west by mimicking their society and abandoning Russian traditions.

Question 4

Slavophiles

Answer 4

-believers that the unique Russian culture such as peasantry and orthodoxy should be preserved in taking a uniquely Russian path to a modern future.
-dimished in the 90s when it became clear the country was moving towards western like industrialisation

Question 5

Intellectual liberals (intelligentsia) and the zemstva

Answer 5

-many hoped the local decision making could be made more national, however AII was firmly against a central body to coordinate regional councils and for them to have a part in state laws.
-By the end of the 70s AII was more pro representation through the loris melikov constitution but after his death AIII began the negative zemstva reforms.
-Shortly after this in the early 90s the zemstva was left to relief the famines and this created certainty that the system had to change.
-By the mid 90s there were renews zemstva calls for a national body of advisors.

Question 6

1890s split of the intellegestia

Answer 6

• now westernisers were the victors of the previous split.
  -Some were attracted to Marxist theory of socialism and so wanted a removal of autocracy completely.
  -Others had faith in a reform of tsardom rather than an abolition ( more liberal/slavophile)

Question 7

More radical tsarist opposition in the 60s

Answer 7

-came from younger gen, often children of liberals.
-In 1862 a series of fires in st Petersburg set by young russia destroyed 2000 shops.
-1863 ‘the orgnaisation’ set up at Moscow uni called for reform.
-This determination was heightened by the latter 60s repression and radical socialist writers.

Question 8

Herzen

Answer 8

-editor of radical journal the bell which was smuggled into Russia.
-He advocated for a peasant based societal structure and urged his followers to ‘go to the people’ this theodicy later morphed into populism

Question 9

Mikhaïl Bakunin

Answer 9

-began the idea of collective ownership
-he was thus exiled bu translated the communist amnifesto into Russian whilst there in 1869 and latter das kapital in 72.
-He wrote his own manifesto, catechism of a revolutionary which was smuggled into russia and urged people to be merciless and brutal in pursuit of a revolution.
-He in 1871 returned to russia in determination of a revolt but soon fled.

Question 10

Tchaikovsky circle

Answer 10

-named after their head member Nikolai Tchaikovsky, set up in 1868 in st Petersburg.
-Literary society that organised the publication of revolutionary literature incl das kapital.
-They sought for social rather than political revolution.
-From 1872 they followed the notion of going to the people and organised workers to live amongst the peasentry in the country.

Question 11

Populism/narodnyism

Answer 11

the idea of going to the people

Question 12

First working of the narodniks

Answer 12

-1874 championed by Pyotr lavrov.
-2000 young people from the intelligentsia trvalled to the countryside to exploit peasant anger over the emancipation and convince them russias future rested on the peasantry.
-Some dressed and talked like peasants.
-However peasants were too loyal and superstitious so over 1600 were reported to authorities and arrested.

Question 13

Second working of narodniks

Answer 13

-in 1876 they attempted again
- more were arrested and the following two years they were humiliated in a series of show trials

Question 14

Impact of narodnysim

Answer 14

-taken radical opposition into the public eye and the countryside.
-Made tsar and government more aware of the opposition from intellensia and even peasantry.
-made it clear due to peasant skepticism that perhaps revolt wasn’t held in the country peasants

Question 15

Mikhaïl romas

Answer 15

• tried to set up a fruit and vegetable store
• the rich peasants were angry at his cheap prices and the poor were intimiadated and skeptical.
  -In the end his populism failed as he had his stand blown up and assistant killed

Question 16

Land and liberty:

Answer 16

• sett up in 1877 and continued populist ideas.
  -They went to the country but not to obstruct but to work as doctors and teachers.
  -Some carried out political assassinations such as the leader of the third section.
  -They had a lot more sympathy and were in talks with the zemstvas over constitutional reform ideas.

Question 17

Two groups land and liberty split into:

Answer 17

• black repartition and the peoples will.
  -1879.

Question 18

Black repartition

Answer 18

-st Petersburg group organised by georgi plekhanov.
-Wanted to share the black soil, prosperous, areas of russia with peasantry
- were very peaceful and cooperative workers in the country in order to gain respect and stimulate peasant social change.
-It ultimately faileddue to arrests when plekhanov and such turned to Marxism

Question 19

The peoples will:

Answer 19

-lead by mikhailov,
had spy’s in the third section
more violent and bigger group than the black repartition. I
-in march 1881 after asking for him to agree to a constitution, they succeeded in killing the tsar.

Question 20

Change in populism as AII killed

Answer 20

• AIII moved to the fortified castle of gatchina.
  -Security was stepped up.
  -Only small acts of terrorism continued.

Question 21

Increase of literary popularism in the 1880s

Answer 21

-‘self education circles’ eg muscovite society, translated and published foreign socialist writing and contacted exiled radicals.
- Georgi plekhanov established 1883 ‘emancipation of labour’ which translate and distributed Marxist texts in Russian, underscoring socialisms message as applicable to russia.

Question 22

Impact of emancipation of labour:

Answer 22

• initial limited impact.
  -German contact, deich, who smuggled their materials to russia was arrested by German police.
  -However his ‘two stage revolutionary strategy’ and idea that revolution lay in the proletariat became very important for advancing Marxism and revolution.