Nicholas II Flashcards
When did Nicholas II come to power?
1894
How did Nicholas II come to power?
After Alexander III’s death
What did Alexander III die from?
Kidney disease
How did Nicholas II feel about becoming Tsar?
He did not want to, lacked confidence, unprepared
How was Nicholas II described?
As weak, stubborn unorganized
Who influenced Nicholas II?
His father (Alexander III) and Pobedonostsev
What was Nicholas II commited to?
Tsarist conservatism
What did Nicholas II believe about democracy?
That it would be the collapse of the Russian Empire
What did Nicholas II’s wife, Tsarina Alexandra, support Nicholas II in?
His refusal to adapt politically to changing social and economic conditions
What did Russia need in order to compete and remain a “great power”
Modernization and industrialization
What was needed for Russia to remain a military power?
Industrial economy
What did Russia have to move away from to industrialize the economy?
an agriculture-dominated economy
What did the inefficient agricultural economy struggle to do in Russia?
Feed the growing population, provide government with a surplus for national security
What were the ‘peasant problems’?
‘land hunger’, low income, debt, starvation
What could Russia’s ‘peasant problem’ lead to?
Revolts, uprisings, threatened stability of tsarist regime
What did modernization lead to?
calls for parliament/democracy by industrial working class in poor conditions, greater opposition to tsarist regime
What was Nicholas II’s key issue?
he had to get political benefits of economic modernization without making concesstions to epposition calls for political change
What was Nicholas II’s key aim?
Modernize without revolution
Why was agriculture so inefficient/backwards?
Medieval farm tools were used, old-fashioned land usage
Why was Russia’s industrial output still at a low level compared to Wester Europe?
they had an underdeveloped banking system, serfdom prevented available source of workers, communication, transport system
Who was the Minister of Finance in 1992-1993?
Sergei Witte
What did Sergei Witte believe?
Russia had to industrialize, development could avoid dependency on more developed economies and create a strong modern state in Russia
What was Witte’s four-fold plan to fund program of capital investment?
- protective tariffs on foreign goods
- attraction of foreign capital (loans from France)
- Placing currency on Gold Standard to encourage more foreign investment
- Squeezing resources out of peasantry, workers through low wages, high taxes, exporting ‘surplus’ grain
