Political authority and the state of Russia Flashcards
Alexander II’s Reign
1855 -1881
The Great Reformer
Emancipated the Serfs in 1861
Alexander III’s Reign
1881- 1894
The last true Tsar
‘Tsar peacemaker’ - relations with England greatly improved and France replaced Germany as Russia’s ally
Nicholas II’s Reign
1894-1917
He was unable to rule effectively
Population
The largest country in the world
population of 125 million
half ethnically Russian, other half included germans, poles and slavs
Methods of control
total autocracy
tsar controlled the secret police and the army
Church
reinforced Tsar’s authority reminding ppl that any insult to the Tsar was an insult to God
majority of the pop was illiterate so church was their only form of education
Hierarchy
ruling class = 0.5%
upper = 12%
middle =1.5%
working = 4%
peasants = 82%
Geographic state
1855 was one of Europe 5 Great powers
covered 20% of the world’s land surface
climate = harsh and inhospitable in some places
frozen lakes made it hard to import and trade on
size of Russia made it extremely hard due to poor communications
Economic state
had to cope with rapidly increasing pop
1855 = 70 mil ~ 1880 = 97 mil ~
international debts due to funding of the railway
lacked skilled labours and engineers
no consumer demand
economy remained rural
11:1 = village:town ratio compared to 2:1 in Britain
Political State
alex II made many political and social reforms
emancipaion in 1861
political state affected by crimean war
autocracy, no political opposition
Impact of the Crimean War
Russia suffered badly due to outdated tech, poor transport and inadequate leadership
highlighted Russia’s poor communication
outdated artillery compared to Britain’s faster and more accurate weapons
efficiency of the army?
west had undergone industrial rev (industrial might = military might)
