overview 11th nov Flashcards
when was the period of preservation of autocracy?
1855 - 1894
when was the period of collapsation of autocracy?
1894 - 1917
what does autocracy mean?
no limits to a ruler’s power; such a ruler was called an autocrat
what did Nicholas I say to his son when handing over the monarchy?
‘I hand over to you my command, unfortunately not in as good order as I would have wished’
what was the aim of the crimean war?
- russia wanted to take control of the southern ports as the northern ports freeze over winter
- take control of crimea as the ottoman/turkish empire was declining
why were russia at a disadvantage during the crimean war?
- outdated technology, poor transport, and inadequate leadership
- lacked flexibility and determination of the smaller british and french units
- russia’s serf-based economy held back their industrialisation processes
- the poor transport hindered transportation of equipment, soldiers and materials to the front lines and channel ports
- one in two soldiers had a musket
example of russia’s poor transportation systems during the crimean war
- one trainline from st. petersburg to moscow
example of russia’s outdated technology during the crimean war
- still used sails and wooden-bottomed ships
- compared to western ships that had metal cladding and were steam powered they were at a large disadvantage in terms of speed and durability
define enfranchisement
the right to vote
define manumission
being released
define manumission
being released
detail the 1879 assassination attempt
- attempt to blow up alexander II train
- however he got on an earlier train
- therefore wrong train was blown up
- conducted by the People’s Will
who are the ottoman turks?
those part of the dynasty originally founded by Osman, which governed the turkish empire until 1922
who are the ottoman turks?
those part of the dynasty originally founded by Osman, which governed the turkish empire until 1922
what is the eastern question?
issues that arose over the decline of the Turkish Ottoman empire
what is the eastern question?
issues that arose over the decline of the Turkish Ottoman empire
how big is russia’s empire? (square km)
21 million km (squared)
what was russias population in the mid 19th century?
70 million
what percentage of the population were peasants?
80-90%
what are examples of different cultures in russia?
ukrainians, tatars, latvians
what are echelons?
the highest members of society
what were the problems of the nature of autocratic rule?
- upper levels of society liked the westernised outlook of russian elites, undermining the autocratic political culture of russia’s ruling group
- dictatorial power contrasted with the western rule of constitutional governments and monarchies
- all government members were appointed by the tsar or hereditary, meaning even the university educated members of society did not have the right to vote
- most high powered people did not have the final say, the Tsar had to approve everything and would approve or disapprove the advice of ministers on his account
what did the small middle class consist of?
merchants, early industrialists, and professionals (lawyers)
however very small compared to the population size
who was able to control the often volatile peasantry and how?
gentry
adaptation of village councils led by village elders (the mir)
what was the role of the mir?
established and collected taxes, selected peasants for the army and allocated plots of land to be worked
who were the serfs owned by?
half by the gentry and half by the state
what did serfs do and what did they get in return?
- provided labour in return for their crop shares and shelter
- this is produced from a farming system based on cultivation of common fields
how were serfs disciplined?
- public floggings
what restricted a serf from living a normal life?
- had to receive permission from a noble landlord to move out of the community
- also had to have permission from them to marry
what were the working conditions for serfs like?
- appalling, often led to disease, starvation
what was the average life expectancy of serfs and why?
- 35
- because of the appalling living standards, deaths of starvation and disease were common
what was the main restriction on serfs in their every day lives?
the vicious cycle of poverty
at the start of the 19th century, what were Russia the world leader in? how did this change?
iron
- although by 1855 GB overtook and were producing 10 times more.
what was the main holdback to why russia were behind other countries economically?
- they had an unstable banking system meaning they were unable to supply investment capital which was required for the introduction of modern technology
details about Russia’s iron production
- 50k tons a year, mainly exporting to England
- iron production grew by over 50% in the first half of the 19th century
- this proved unimpressive as GB were able to produce three times as more in the 1850s, which astronomically compares to the figures at the start of the 19th century when GB were producing the same amount as Russia
why was there stagnation in the Russian economy in terms of iron exports?
- as iron became too expensive to sell into European markets as the transportation costs were too high (poor transportation system)
where was iron transported from?
the urals (mountain range with bad communications to)
what other industries other than iron suffered with stagnation?
- wool, coal and chemical
how did the cotton industry progress?
- technology was given from england
- expansion from the napoleonic wars as it protected the home industry from the english competition
- further protection from high tariffs after 1822
- after 1815, cheap yarn and spinning machines
- fifth largest cotton industry in the world by 1850, total production was not much above 10% english production
in what context was russia’s economy stagnated?
in the context of western countries
what was the consequence of a small middle class?
- little to no competitive businesses in the economy
what was the orthodox church?
split in the christian church
eastern orthodox church had developed its own beliefs and rituals
how was the Tsar viewed in religious terms?
- as god
- seen as the ‘little father’
- majority of the population were highly uneducated
define over-procurator
someone appointed by the Tsar from laity - highest church official
(archbishop of canterbury)
define holy synod
a group of bishops who form the ruling body of the orthodox church
- highest authority on rules
- regulations
- faith
- matters of church organisation
define laity
someone not ordained into the church community
what is a red corner?
- shrines decorated with icons and religious celebrations
- in peasant homes
how many russians supported the church?
- difficult to sat how many russians adhered strictly to the tenets of the church
what were examples of breakaway groups in terms of russian religion? what were their aims?
old believers or hysts
- challenged orthodox christians and focussed on dealing in rather unorthodox practices
- e.g. indulgence in orgies so that ‘original sin’ could be experienced to justify repentance
reasons for emancipation
- economic reasons = no middle class or production
- moral case = rape, limited freedom
- crimean war = loss and humiliation
- risk of revolt = ‘people’s will’ and uprisings
who was leo tolstoy?
owned 11 villages, 200 serfs, 12 acres each
- freed them with no payment
how long did emancipation take to come into place?
5 years
details of emancipation
- abolished right of bondage
- freedom to marry and enter trade
- receive land from nobility
- compensation to landowners
- MIR held the land
- redemption payments (pay back for land over 49 years)
how long did state owned serfs have to wait for full freedom?
five years
how long did privately owned serfs have to wait for full freedom?
two years
what was the mir?
had seniority in the village
responsible for redemption payments and taxes
local assembly
consequences of emancipation
peasants worse off
income fell up to 50% as redemption payments worked out to be a higher level than the value of the land
