Nicholas II - Opposition Flashcards
Liberal opposition under Nicholas II
-liberalism was very strong in the zemstva, encouraged by the governments failured during the great famine
-Lvov demanded advisory body + all class district zemstvo
-shipov tried to set up all liberal org in 1896, banned
-gov dismissed hundreds of liberals from zemstva
-struve set up union of liberation in 1903
-grand meeting in 1904 planned for a constitutional gov
-achieved aim of the state duma being set up in 1905
The foundation of the SRs
-set up 1901 for those who wished to appeal to peasantry
- chernov most influential, law graduate from moscow
- contained various groups with differing ideals
- all agreed mainly on marxism combined with populism
-argued that peasants and workers should work together for the destruction of autocracy and redistribution of land
-large peasant membership, 50% still urban working class
The tactics and achievements of the SRs:
- similar tactics to those of earlier populists
- aimed to stir up discontent in countryside and commit political assassinations, 2000 between 1901 and 1905
-killed two ministers of internal affairs, Sipyagin 1902, Von Plehve 1904 - killed stolypin ending his premiership in 1911
- alot of activities still foiled by secret police, 4579 sentenced to death between 1905-09, 2365 killed
The creation of the SDWP:
- joined together multiple marxist groups to form in 1898
- first party conference 1898, 9 delegates present
-made a manifesto, change must come from the working men, broken up by ohkrana and 2 members arrested - 2nd party conference, shoreditch in 1903, 51 delegates
- Lenin favoured a strong organisation of revolutionaries to lead the proletariat
- Martov believed they should develop a party with a broad working class membership with cooperation with other parties
The split of the SDWP:
-Lenin said his supporters were the majority (bolsheviks)
- martov was supposedly the minority (mensheviks)
- discussion and disagreement continued between them
- 1906 the division worsened, effectively two parties
- Plehkanov abandoned the bolsheviks and Trotsky abandoned the mensheviks
Bolsheviks beliefs:
- bourgois and proletarian revolutions could occur simultaneously
- parties job was to educate workers, lead them to revolution
-membership should be restricted, work in small groups - favoured control in the hands of a central committee
Mensheviks beliefs:
- bourgeois revolution must precede workers revolt
- believed impetus should come from workers
- insisted party membership should be open to all, party should work with trade unions
- wanted to follow democratic procedures, feared bolshevik approach could lead to dictatorship
Trade union opposition from 1905:
- legalised after 1905 revolution
-government feared working class activity through unions - 497 unions closed and 604 denied registration 1906-10
-economic depression reduced chance of union action - lena goldfields massacre and economic recovery led to a new round of strikes from 1911 onwards
- father gapon formed union of st petersburg factory workers in 1904 - 8000 members
General opposition from 1894-1905:
-trouble at Russian unis, met by military and ohkrana
- 13 students killed by cossacks in 1901, 1500 imprisoned
-countryside disturbances, ‘years of red cockerel’
- stolypin worsened things by dealing harshly with offenders, whipping, shooting or exiling them
- zubatov head of ohkrana in moscow attempted to hear complaints to reduce violence
Bloody sunday:
- jan 3 1905 150,000 striked at putilov iron works
- gapon conducted a peaceful march to the winter palace
-12,000 troops broke up demonstration 150 killed, 9th jan - sparked an outbreak of rebellion throughout the empire
The events of the 1905 revolution Feb-June
- 4th feb tsars uncle is killed, nicholas agrees to meet workers but rejects demands angering them further
-18th feb nicholas creates elected consultative assembly - april workers begin forming illegal trade unions
- 8/9th may union of unions created demanding full rights,elections to an assembly with legislative powers
- june 14th potemkin mutiny, 2000 killed due to soldiers shooting them
Strikes pre 1905
- 3/4 of strikers occurred in st petersburg area
-anger fueled by measures taken to break strikes - little progress made, 12% of industries had a strike
-industrial strikes grew in number from 17000 in 1894 to 90000 in 1904
The events of the 1905 revolution July-Oct
- july 24th bulygin proposes plan for constitutional reform
-sep 12th-15th rejected bulygins duma and demands one elected by universal suffrage - october, strikes and demonstrations in all major cities, major peasant unrest and the st petersburg soviet organises a general strike
-ministers realise the need to reform, tsar signs oct manifesto
Decline in the SRs and SD
-weakened by exile of their leaders post 1905
-ideological divisions, disagreements on response to 1905
-secret police effective in smashing revolutionary cells
-industrial depression, lack of finance, organisation hard
-membership declined, no national/regional organisation
Bolshevik success/failure pre 1917
-took over legal labour institutions in st petersburg and moscow from the mensheviks
-‘pravda’ april 1912 gained support and circulation
-support limited, no success with army, navy or strikes
