Nicholas II - Politics

Question 1

What were Nicholas’ political aims when taking power?

Answer 1

• brought up to take duties as a ruler seriously
• set out to rule in the romanov way, tsardom ‘god-given’
• aimed to maintain the principle of autocracy
• remained committed to orthodoxy and ensured the powerful influence of the church
• continued Russification and support of ‘black hundreds’

Question 2

The russo-japanese war

Answer 2

-von plehve encouraged tsar to respond to a japanese assault on the russian naval base at port arthur
-russians underestimated japan, defeated several times
-von plehve assassinated 1904, celebration in streets
-mirsky becomes pm, demands for a national assembly

Question 3

What was the october manifesto?

Answer 3

-oct 1905 empire in trouble due to riots, strikes + protests
-17th oct Nicholas signed october manifesto promised
to grant civil freedom and to establish a state duma
-still demand for a constitutional monarchy

Question 4

What were the fundamental laws?

Answer 4

-23rd april 1906, 5 days before duma met
-rule by decree when duma not in session or in emergency
-dissolve duma when he wished
-appoint and dismiss government ministers,
-control russian military, declare war, negotiate treaties
-overturn verdicts and sentences in court
-control the orthodox church

Question 5

What was the new constitution?

Answer 5

-made in early 1906, made a plan for duma
-split into lower chamber, upper chamber and gov
-lower: elected by indirect voting in favour of nobles/peasants, was the state duma
-upper: 50/50 zemstva elected, tsar appointed, was state council
- government: appointed exclusively by the Tsar

Question 6

What were the political parties?

Answer 6

• SDWP: founded 1898, split into bolsheviks and mensheviks in 1903
• SR: founded in 1901 led by chernov, favoured populist ideas e.g land redistribution and nationalisation
• Trudoviks: non revolutionary breakaway group from SRs, favoured nationalisation, min wage and 8hr day
• Kadets: led by pavel milyukov 1859-1943, central liberal party, aimed for constitutional monarchy
• Octobrists: conservative party which supported october manifesto and opposed concessions to workers/peasants
• progressives: businessmen who favoured moderate reform
• rightists: very right wing, favoured tsarism orthodoxy anti semitism and promoted violent attacks on minorities and left wing through the black hundreds
• nationalist/religious groups: sought rights and greater independence

Question 7

What did the first duma do?

Answer 7

• duma of national hopes, lasted may-july 1906
• Boycotted by bolsheviks, SRs and rightists
• radical liberal, critical of the tsar and his ministers, led to Witte’s resignation, replaced by goremykin
• passed address to the throne demanded: political amnesty, abolition of state council, seizure of lands of the gentry, duma getting ministerial responsibility, abandonment of death penalty etc
• rejected by goremykin led to vote of no confidence in tsars ministers which caused him to dissolve the duma
• stolypin appointed PM

Question 8

What did the second duma do?

Answer 8

• duma of national anger, lasted feb-june 1907
• more left wing due to bolsheviks, mensheviks and SRs
• stolypins agrarian reforms gained no support, passed under fundamental laws while duma not in session
  -duma refused to accept them so he spread a fake plot to assassinate nicholas and dissolved the duma
• stolypin altered voters increasing vote for gentry and reducing vote for peasants/workers/minorities

Question 9

What did the third duma do?

Answer 9

-duma of lords and lackeys, november 1907 - june 1912
-submissive produced 2500 proposals, 2200 accepted
-disputes over naval staff, primary education and local government reform with stolypin
-1911 duma suspended twice so legislations could be passed through fundamental laws

Question 10

What did the fourth duma do?

Answer 10

• 1912-1917
• relatively docile
• ignored by kokovtsov the new prime minister after stolypins assasination
• too divided to fight against him

Question 11

Stolypins political reforms by 1914

Answer 11

-had helped restore order in the countryside
-august 1906, court martials to deal with political crimes
-3000 people convicted and executed from 1906-09

Question 12

Reaction to the decision to go to war

Answer 12

-initial decision to go to war was popular
-strike activity ceased, extremists jailed for no patriotism
-duma dissolved itself, didnt want to burden war effort
-st petersburg renamed more russian petrograd
-vast army assembled quickly

Question 13

WW1 battles

Answer 13

-defeat at the battle of tannenburg, prussia in aug 1914
-300,000 dead or injured and thousands taken prisoner
-defeat at marusian lakes forced retreat from east prussia
-successful against austria but clear war wouldnt be quick

Question 14

Zemstva during wartime

Answer 14

-union of zemstva provided medical facilities
-zemstva and dumas joined together to form zemgor
-chaired by prince lvov claimed right to help with war

Question 15

Wartime demand for a constitutional monarchy

Answer 15

-aug 1914, deputies from 4th duma formed progressive bloc, demanded a constitutional monarchy
-nicholas not prepared to contemplate the move
-suspended duma, closed until january 1917

Question 16

Nicholases actions in wartime

Answer 16

-defeats in galicia in sep 1915 led nicholas to take on role as commander in chief of the army to raise spirits
-had already lost support of russian general staff and didnt have the experience to turn the war around
-made him seem more responsible for the failures

Question 17

Rasputins actions in wartime

Answer 17

-multiple changes of ministers following sep 1915 down to rasputins influence
-rodzianko warned tsar of his dangers
-prince yusupov murdered rasputin 17th dec 1916 to save reputation of the monarchy

Question 18

Military issues

Answer 18

-mobilised 15 million men 1914-17
-no suitable weaponry, warm clothing or good footwear
-winter months of 1915-16 gave time for training
-brusilov offensive 1916 more weapons and shells but a lack of competent officers

Question 19

The provisional government

Answer 19

-members were influential elites and those who had previously favoured constitutional monarchy
-supposed to be temporary + elections held soon
-accepted as legit by army officers, police, civil service
-set up in right wing of tauride palace petrograd

Question 20

Petrograd soviet

Answer 20

-seen by most as more democratic than prov gov
-dominated by mensheviks and srs, some bolsheviks
-set up in left wing of tauride palace petrograd
-mainly socialist intellectuals only 7/42 were workers

Question 21

The dual power agreement

Answer 21

-careful negotiations by kerensky to form agreement
-prov gov made promises of amnesty for political prisoners, civil liberties, right to strike, constituent assembly would be set up
-freedom of religion+press, abolished death penalty
-replaced police with peoples militia

Question 22

Issues with dual power

Answer 22

-prov gov tried to discipline deserters and restore order
-soviet encouraged defying authority and asserting rights
-prov gov wanted to win war, masses wanted to end it
-325 districts with peasant disturbances july 1917
-365,000 desertions between march and may 1917

Question 23

Changes in the prov gov

Answer 23

-milyukov and guchkov resigned replaced by soviet socialists
-chernov becomes minister for agriculture
-kerensky becomes minister for war
-prince lvov replaced as chairman by kerensky july 1917

Question 24

Kornilovs coup

Answer 24

-kornilov ordered 6 regiments to march on petrograd to stop the soviet and establish a military dictatorship
-failed when kerensky panicked, he freed and armed bolsheviks to stop the advance and coup leaders arrested

Question 25

Prov govs failures

Answer 25

-lack of support left by summer of 1917
-food supplies chaotic, wages decreased, prices rose
-prices 755% of 1914 levels by oct 1917
-factory owners given right to fire strikers
-lost support in countryside due to failure to redistribute land, peasants seized it anyway