Info Flashcards
The provisional government
Formed 12th March 1917 By the leaders of the Duma Led by Prince Lvov Duma wants democracy Lasted only a few months (March-Nov) Everyone got annoyed at the PG for not doing anything!
How did Lenin get back to Russia ?
Made a deal with the Germans in Switzerland - provided the “sealed train”
Problems for the PG
Soviets were more popular
Peasants demand land
Economy - inflation…
Revolutionists..
PG’s freedoms: (5)
1) all citizens r equal before the law
2) freedom of speech & press
3) freedom of religion
4) freedom of assembly
5) freedom to strike
Reasons why the PG fell apart (5)
Brusilvov June offensive was a disaster - big casualties…
Land question wasn’t dealt with
- peasants unhappy 84% of population
Failure to deal with inflation - liberal
Criticised by revolutionaries & right wing
Hadn’t been elected democratically, so felt like they couldn’t do anything big until they’d been elected..
April theses
Written in March (calendar difference) What the Bolsheviks stood for "Peace, bread, land" slogan "All power to the soviets" slogan People liked soviets.. So good Lenin didn't want to cooperate with PG
The Duma restrictions
Could not..
Pass laws
Appoint ministers
Control finance in important areas, eg defence
Tsar could dissolve it any time
How many Dumas were there & when
1st Duma 1906
2nd Duma 1906
(Dissolved by tsar after only a few weeks)
3rd Duma 1907-1912 (stoplyn..)
4th Duma 1912 - 1914 achieved little, but tsar started working with it
Changes in the countryside under Stoplyn 1906…-1914
To make agriculture more efficient, Stoplyn introduced reforms encouraging “best elements”.
Peasants could buy strips of land with loans provided by the peasants’ bank.
1914 war - interruption
A lot of poorer peasants were forced to sell their land and became labourers
Very angry / misled / …
Changes in the cities 1906-1914
Industrial boom (+100%)
1914 - 2/5 of factories employed 1,000+ workers (+efficient, easier to organise strikes)
Workers did not benefit from the boom
Prices had risen really high!
1912 big strike in Siberia - similar effect like Bloody Sunday - sparked more workers’ protests)
Short term Consequences of WW1 1914
Tsar became more popular
People united against a common enemy
Problems could be set aside
St Petersburg was renamed Petrograd
Tsar started to work more closely with the Duma
Consequences of the war on the Russian soldiers
Enthusiasm didn’t last for long!
After success with Austria, Russians were heavily defeated at Tannenberg and the Masurian Lakes by the Germans
Soldiers blamed their officers, who appeared unfeeling and ineffective
Effects of the war on the Russians at home
Food shortages (less farm workers, less food production, railways used for supplying the front instead of cities..)
Shortage of coal & industrial materials (factories closed, so unemployment. Cold & hunger)
Continuously rising prices for food etc + longer working hours
Defeat after defeat: Russians lost confidence in the government, suffered from the economic consequences of the war.
September 1915 Nicholas II matters things into his own hands, decided to take over the running of the war & go to the front himself.. Consequences?
Nicholas himself was blamed for defeats
Hands over day-to-day running of the country to Tsarina - made a mess
She did not work with with the Duma at all
Rasputin was in charge - she dismissed able ministers and replaced the with less able friends of Rasputin…
Railways in chaos - food waste
People lost confidence
Why did people mistrust the tsarina
She was born in Germany (enemy, spy?)
Rumours about her close relationship with Rasputin - affair?
