Nicholas II

Question 1

when and why did nicholas II come to power?

Answer 1

1894, after alexander III dies from kidney disease

Question 2

how prepared was nicholas II to claim the throne?

Answer 2

unprepared, unwilling, unable to rule; “I am not prepared to be the Tsar. I never wanted to become one. I know nothing of the business of ruling” (nicholas II’s diary, 1894)

Question 3

what did historians/politicians say about nicholas II?

Answer 3

• “nicholas had no knowledge of the world or of men” (hans rogger)
• “not fit to run a village post office” (leon trotsky)

Question 4

who were nicholas II’s influences?

Answer 4

alexander III, pobedonostev, wife tsarina alexandra

Question 5

how did nicholas II’s father influence him?

Answer 5

alexander III committed to Tsarist Conservatism and believed democracy would cause russia’s collapse and consisted of “senseless dreams” (nicholas II’s coronation speech, 1895)

Question 6

who was nicholas II’s wife and how did she influence him?

Answer 6

tsarina alexandra, an autocrat, reinforced refusal to adapt

Question 7

what problems did nicholas II face at the beginning of his reign?

Answer 7

1. backwards, agriculture-dominated economy threatened russia’s status as Great Power and failed to feed rapidly growing population; no surplus
2. “land hunger,” debt, starvation resulted in revolts and increasing political opposition, calls for parliament and democracy by growing educated workforce

Question 8

what was the key aim of nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 8

modernize without revolution (strengthen autocracy economically and militarily but not socially)

Question 9

how was russia’s agriculture behind at the beginning of nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 9

used medieval tools, mir prevented innovation/investments

Question 10

how was russia’s industry behind at the beginning of nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 10

underdeveloped banking system and serfdom resulting in no workers; had increased but still behind compared to west

Question 11

how was russia’s communication behind at the beginning of nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 11

22,000 km rail 1890 small for russia and compared to west

Question 12

who was sergei witte?

Answer 12

dutch minister of finance 1892-1902; believed in rapid and forced industrialization to avoid dependence on other economies; “one of the outstanding statesmen of the 19th century” (Seton-Watson)

Question 13

what was witte’s 4-fold plan to fund capital investment?

Answer 13

1. tariffs on foreign goods to prevent competition
2. foreign capital attraction (loans, especially from france)
3. convert to gold standard currency to encourage foreign investment
4. resources from peasantry (low wages, high taxes, export of “surplus”)

Question 14

what were the successes of witte’s plan?

Answer 14

foreign investment, industrial output, rail coverage increase

Question 15

how much did foreign investment increase as a result of witte’s plan?

Answer 15

200 million roubles 1890 to 900 million 1900, resulting in heavy industries

Question 16

how much did industrial output increase as a result of witte’s plan?

Answer 16

40% from 1890-1910

Question 17

how much did rail coverage increase as a result of witte’s plan?

Answer 17

7000 km 1890 to 60,000 1905; 1891 9600-km trans-siberian rail connected with vladivostok, 1897 manchuria rail

Question 18

what were the failures of witte’s plan?

Answer 18

minimal communication systems, foreign capital interest, uprisings

Question 19

how was communication still minimal after the implementation of witte’s plan?

Answer 19

rail minimal compared to US; trans-siberian more “symbolic” (only 1 track), other communication forms lagged

Question 20

how did foreign capital gained from witte’s plan negatively impact the government?

Answer 20

resulted in 20% government spending going to interest, and some saw courting foreign countries as unpatriotic

Question 21

how did witte’s plan lead to uprisings?

Answer 21

squeezed peasant resources resulted in starvation during bad harvest 1900-02; only 2% of population worked in industry 1900, and they had low wages, long hours, bad conditions; dismissed agricultural problems

Question 22

did witte stay as minister of finance?

Answer 22

became chairman of the committees 1903; was symbolic position instead of influential position because conservatives didn’t like his somewhat liberal policies

Question 23

what were the strengths of the tsar during nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 23

peasant and church support, control over government, army, secret police, and media

Question 24

what celebration increased the tsar’s popularity during nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 24

300th anniversary romanov dynasty (since 1613)

Question 25

how did control over the government, army, secret police, and media strengthen the tsar during nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 25

government and army controlled by nobles, cossacks used to shut down protests; okhrana and press censorship worked to some degree for alexander III

Question 26

what were the weaknesses of the tsar during nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 26

humiliation from russo-japanese war, vast multinational country, poverty and backwards economy, autocracy, opposition

Question 27

how was being a vast, multinational country a weakness for russia?

Answer 27

diverse population only united by romanov dynasty, 125 million subjects across asia and europe resulted in poor communication and difficult government

Question 28

were the increase in towns and factories during nicholas II’s reign beneficial?

Answer 28

no; still poverty, workforce was unaffected and concentrated in Petrograd, most population country peasants controlled by nobles, and middle class started wanting a say in government

Question 29

how was nicholas II’s autocracy a weakness?

Answer 29

forced to accept Duma 1905, but it had no power; nicholas II still acted alone, but was weak and didn’t act in 1917 crisis

Question 30

what opposition groups were there during nicholas II’s reign?

Answer 30

Social Revolutionaries (peasants) and communists (followed Karl Marx, divided into menshiviks and bolsheviks); assassinations and protests occurred after 1900 (eg bloody sunday jan 22/05, murder PM stolypin 1911)