Nicholas II early years

Question 1

Was Nicholas doomed before he started (issues with bureaucracy)

Answer 1

• The role of the Tsar meant he had an overwhelming amount of power and therefore responsibility created an uncoordinated, chaotic government - there was no room for change or criticism as ministers were so dependent on the Tsar for their position that they justified his behaviour
• The hierarchal nature of bureaucracy means that those working on local levels were poorly educated and underpaid - these were likely yo become revolutionaries
• The tsar was suspicious of experts, he is not willing to accept criticism from experts who are well experienced in their fields
• ‘second most powerful individual in Russia’ - minister of the Interior, Plehve aimed to stop any opportunity for reform

Question 2

How was the Tsar able to regain control

Answer 2

• Troops were sent out on punitive expeditions using brutal methods (beatings, rape flogging and executions, to bring the peasants under control)
• Between mid-October 1905 and April 1906, as many as 15,000 people were people were executed and 4,000 departed
• The role of the army was crucial in repressing the revolution as people became frightened of secret police and wanted authoirty and control to be restored

Question 3

How was the 1905 revolution limited in it’s attempts to overthrow Tsarism

Answer 3

Had different groups opposing the Tsar - workers, peasants, liberals, middle classes, students and national minorities who all had different aims and purposes
They were not able to provide coordinated and effective opposition to bring the Tsar down

Question 4

How did the zemstva liberals pose a threat for Nicholas

Answer 4

• The reforms shifted liberal progress in Russia. By reducing the autonomy of the Zemstva Alex III perhaps left high tensions for his father
• Many liberal bureaucrats pressed for the abolition during the first decade if Nichola’s reign

Question 5

Long term causes of the 1905 revolution - why were revolters angry?

Answer 5

Peasant grievances - poverty, land hunger due to industrial growth Urban workers - long hours, low pay
Middle class grievances -participation in government, opposed to corruption, no voice for Zemstva on national level
Revolutionary opposition - demanded a socialist society based on peasant communes, overthrow of Tsar and assassination
National groups - wanted more autonomy and end Russification

Question 6

How did the Tsar react to basic grievances that had been developing

Answer 6

• Declared his main aims ‘to maintain the principle of autocracy’
• Refused to consider reform to incorporate more liberal voices in the government of the country
• Employs coercion to tackle peasant and student unrest early in his reign

Question 7

Medium term causes of 1905 revolution

Answer 7

Economic slump
- 1902 Witte’s system of economic growth went into crisis - An international downturn cut the demand for manufactured goods, while bad harvests in 1900 to 1902 increased peasant poverty and further cut the demand for goods
Impact of war with Japan
- Economic - the war led to shortages of food and fuel and rising prices in urban areas, further putting living standards pressure
- Soldiers morale was low and there were mutinies military defeats undermined civilian morale and caused criticism of the Tsar and the government

Question 8

How had political authority shifted by the end of the 1905 revolutionary

Answer 8

• Overall the 1905 revolution weakened the Tsar’s political authority through the emergence of peasantry and working class who were now challenging the regime
• Pillars of autocracy lost yet he still has authority
• proletariat have become more politically aware and are more confrontational to the Tsar

Question 9

How was the state duma (lower chamber) voted

Answer 9

Elected under a system of indirect voting (every man over 25 could vote, but only those with more than 400 acres could vote directly) by estates - heavily weighted in favour of nobility and peasants

Question 10

How was the upper chamber (state council) voted

Answer 10

Half elected by Zemstva and half appointed by the Tsar so there was noble representatives from major social, religious and financial institutions

Question 11

The fundamental Laws - key features and date

Answer 11

On 23rd April 1906 Nicholas issued a series of Fundamental laws reasserting his autocratic power. He claimed his right to:
- Rule by decree in an emergency or when the Duma was not in session
- To dissolve the Duma as he wished

Question 12

Impact of the fundamental laws

Answer 12

These laws indicated the slow progress of Russia and showed how disconnected it was to the rest of Europe. The Tsar prevents any movement towards full democracy and has the power to prevent any anti-autocratic legislation

Question 13

Which of the Dumas was the most successful and why

Answer 13

Third duma: Their less radical demands meant the Tsar and the Duma could cooperate in a productive way to retain the stability of the Tsarist regime. The first two Dumas allowed their radical ideas to prevent policies that were best for the country from being imposed. The third duma agreed to 2200 of approximately 2500 government proposals

Question 14

When were the first Duma and actions

Answer 14

April 1906 (lasts 2 months)
- Overwhelmingly radical (liberals)
- Passed an ‘address to the throne’ in which it requested a political amnesty, the abolition of the state council ect. But Nicholas ordered Goremykin to inform the Duma that their demands were ‘totally inadmissible’.

Question 15

Reasons for first Duma’s failure

Answer 15

It was driven by radical demands in a climate that was accustomed to giving autocratic power to one individual.
However, the Duma was the first true attempt of democracy in Russian history, creating a forum for political debate.They quickly voiced strong demands for reforms both politically and socially that reflected the aspirations of the popular

Question 16

When were the second duma and actions

Answer 16

February 1907 - June 1907 (3 months)
- Number of more extreme left wing politicians increased as Bolsheviks, Mensheviks decided to participate SRs made up 37.1%
- Duma was unwilling to support Stolypin’s agrarian reform programme so Stolypin passed them under the Tsar’s emergency powers

Question 17

Reason’s for second duma’s failures

Answer 17

They should have accepted Stolypin’s reforms to prevent their authority being undermined - needed to be more cooperative

Question 18

When were the 3rd Duma and actions

Answer 18

More submissive duma which agreed to 2200 out of 2500 government proposals
- Set up schools for children of the poor
- There were disputes over naval staff and Stolypin’s proposals

Question 19

When was the 4th Duma and actions

Answer 19

November 15, 1912, to October 6, 1917
- Relatively docile body so was simply ignored and it’s influence declined

Question 20

Main political parties under Nicholas II

Answer 20

• Social Democratic Workers party (SD)
• Social revolutionaries (SR)
• Kadets
• Octobrists

Question 21

SDs beliefs

Answer 21

Committed to Marxism - all SDs before 1917 were Marxists and social
Split into 2 into 1903
believed in an evolutionary path to revolution as opposed to a revolutionary one
Wanted to achieve revolution following Marx’s ideas and scientific principles

Question 22

SRs beliefs

Answer 22

Favoured populist ideas of redistribution of land and nationalisation
Favoured terrorism to achieve aims
Between 1901 and 1905 they murdered around 2,000 members of the establishment including Plehve (minister of interior)
Inspired by the thought that new workers could be attracted to revolutionary activit

Question 23

Kadets beliefs

Answer 23

A central liberal party that favoured a constitutional monarchy with parliamentary government, compulsory redistribution of private estates

Question 24

Octobrists beliefs

Answer 24

A moderate conservative party that accepted the October Manifesto and opposed further concessions workers or peasants
They supported the monarchy and wanted the preservation of the Russian Empire
They did not favour full democracy as it would have brought to power those who wanted to end the current system

Question 25

Mensheviks beliefs

Answer 25

Mensheviks: Believed in cooperation with the bourgeoisie/ liberals rather than peasantry and the use of legal channels of opposition - Did not wish to partake in a provisional revolutionary government

Question 26

Bolsheviks beliefs

Answer 26

Bolsheviks: From 1905 favoured a peasant/ proletariat allience Advocated a victorious popular uprising which would establish a democratic republic and a provisional revolutionary government

Question 27

How did the Russo Japanese war contribute to the 1905 Revolution

Answer 27

- Exposed the Russian Government's lack of cooperation and willingness to compromise - was not wanting to compromise when Japan offered a deal which involved their control over Korea. This led to opposition groups demanding a change in the way Russia was governed. A series of 'banquets', organised by the Union of liberals, were political meetings where the liberal intelligentsia discussed matters to do with reforming the political system - Economic impact of the war added to the misery of the general population: Trade with the East along the Trans-siberian railway was disrupted by military policies - led to shortages of cotton and chemicals which affected industries

Question 28

What was bloody Sunday

Answer 28

A large march on 22nd January 1905, initially sparked when 4 workers were sacked at a giant engineering company, which drew in over 100,000 workers. By the end of January 1905 over 400,000 people were out on strike

Question 29

How did Bloody Sunday contribute to the 1905 revolution

Answer 29

- Strikes and disorder quickly spread to other cities and towns. Demonstrations and disturbances increased in frequency. The regime had lost it's control over the country - Strikes indicated the government's weakness and insecurity

Question 30

How did the Union of Unions contribute to the 1905 revolution

Answer 30

In May a number of professional organisations and trade organisations came together to form the Union of Unions. Political meetings were held in universities thrown open by students. Students were becoming more radicalised. The government was being condemned as incompetent and reckless

Question 31

What was the mutiny on the Potemkin

Answer 31

On 14th June the crew of the battleship Potemkin mutinied over harsh conditions and being given rotten food to eat

Question 32

How did the mutiny on the Potemkin contribute to the 1905 revolution

Answer 32

It was an embarrassment for the government as the loyalty of the armed forces was paramount. With the growing insurgency in the country, the Tsar realised he had to end the war with Japan

Question 33

What was the October manifesto

Answer 33

- After speaking with Witte Nicholas reluctantly decided to introduce reform to placate the strikes. This formed the October manifesto on 17th October. - Freedom of speech (end of censorship and end of unwarranted arrest) - The establishment of an elected Duma (Parliament)

Question 34

How did the October manifesto arguably reduce the Tsar's political authority

Answer 34

At first there was a brief period of celebration New liberal political parties were formed such as the Octobrists - At the end of October however there was an explosion if violence. Fighting between right and left on the street

Question 35

What did Marx believe

Answer 35

- Believed that society would develop through different stages: feudal, capitalist and finally communism - Marxism proposed that the proletariat would rise up and revolt and transform capitalist society to a communist one - Belived there would be an evolutionary path to revolution

Question 36

Why was Marxism so attractive to the Russian people

Answer 36

It proposed that the oppressors would be punished by being dispossessed and the oppressed would inherit the Earth. This allowed justice to prevail

Question 37

Why did Stolypin aim to reform agriculture

Answer 37

- The 1891-92 famine provided a strong impetus to reassess the agrarian system. He was concerned about the increasing peasant anger and therefore understood change had to be taken for rebellion to reduce -Stolypin believed that peasant prosperity was key to political stability as it reduced motivation to challenge the regime - The principle of granting peasants greater autonomy theoretically would mean they would have no motivation to revolt against the Tsar - "The aim of his reforms was not create democratic order but to use democratic elements to underpin the Tsarist government" - Figes

Question 38

What were Stolypin's economic and social aims

Answer 38

Allow peasants to leave the Mir, to consolidate their strips of land into a single unit Reduce the power of the Mir Redistribute land of some nobles Help go-ahead peasants to buy land from less enterprising peasants and create larger and more efficient farms

Question 39

Stolypin's economic successes

Answer 39

Over the next few years there was a transfer of land from the poorer peasants to the more enterprising - he created a Kulak class but needed longer to develop By 1914 Russia had become the largest cereal exporter in the world Investment in agricultural machinery grew at an annual rate of nine per cent The agrarian reform was more successful in the west - in the Ukraine and Belorussia - but was not needed as much as other parts of Russia (especially the densely populated central regions)

Question 40

Stolypin's failures

Answer 40

By 1914 the vast majority of agricultural production was the responsibility of 20 million peasant households , many if which used old traditional methods of farming By 1914 only about 10% of households in European Russia had set up farms separated from the commune land Of those only a minority lived on farms in the western European sense The three-strip system was still in common use as were wooden ploughs and there was a lack of capital and draft animals Large parts of the agricultural sector of the economy remained unmodernised despite the improvements in overall production

Question 41

Why did Stolypin fail

Answer 41

- Lack of support from important groups political parties - Failed to create any change that can save autocracy - Pushed the Tsar further away from reform by challenging traditional autocracy - Natural conservatism: Peasantry lack of support - they didn't want to go against years of tradition. Many peasants were reluctant to leave the security provided by village life. By 1914 almost 90% of the land was held in communal ownership. - Stolypin combined his programme of reform with a vigorous campaign of repression in the country side which alienated the rural population from the regime and undermined the positive impact of any reforms

Question 42

How did the Duma limit the success of Stolypin's reforms

Answer 42

- Stolypin struggled to get many reforms through the Duma - Over scrutinised legislation , slow committee process and no time limit on debate - No governing party, so no one to give direction and impetus to reform

Question 43

How did powerful enemies limit the success of the Stolypin's reforms

Answer 43

- Nobility and church saw Stolypin as a threat to their power and therefore sought to undermine Stolypin - He became alienated from support as he became increasingly nationalistic and began ruling by fiat

Question 44

Economically was Stolypin successful

Answer 44

Did not really modernise to such an extent that it could compete with its closest rivals on the context of a war against one of them

Question 45

Politically was Stolypin successful

Answer 45

The de-revolutionising of the peasantry did not take place. By 1914 when the regime came under pressure as a result of WW1 the peasants were not committed to supporting the regime even if they were not great supporters of radical parties