Russia

Question 1

What were the pressures to reform in Russia after 1855?

Answer 1

Moral case
Fear of revolt
Crimean war

Question 2

What impact did the Crimean war have on Russia?

Answer 2

• the pressure to reform
• economic pressures
• political pressures
• moral and intellectual pressures

Question 3

When was the enlightenment?

Answer 3

18th century

Question 4

Westernisers

Answer 4

Look at the western countries (Britain, USA and Germany) and try and copy them

Question 5

Slavophile

Answer 5

Do it there own way

Tsarist autocracy

Question 6

What was Russia like in 1855 in terms of politics?

Answer 6

• Autocracy government- (like Britain in 1215)
• In only 28% of people could read and write
• Only country in Europe without a parliament in 1900s
• Tsar from the Boyar class (ministers)

Question 7

What was Russia like in 1855 in terms of economy?

Answer 7

- Russia mainly exported agricultural goods, including timber, coal, gold and other precious metals 
Weather dependant 
- had potential- raw materials 
-poor 
- wasn’t developing

Question 8

What was Russia like in 1855 in terms of social?

Answer 8

• police state which prevented freedom of speech
• can’t question the Tsar
• controlled by the church especially as people were uneducated (about 500 years behind Britain)

Question 9

What problems did the Crimean war highlight in Russia? (Factors)

Answer 9

Image 
Death toll
Technology 
Communication 
Transport 
Set up of the army/ leadership 
Peasant based army

Question 10

Image (highlighted factors of the crimean war to Russia)

Answer 10

Russia was convinced that they were the best and had the best army as they were the biggest country

What problems did this cause
Meant that Russia didn’t try as hard as they could have done as they thought that they were the best

Question 11

Death toll (highlighted factors of the crimean war to Russia)

Answer 11

450,015 Russians died in the Crimean war
Nicholas I died March 1855
Most of the Russian army were made of serfs

Question 12

Peasant based (highlighted factors of the crimean war to Russia)

Answer 12

This caused riots (over 300) because during the Crimean war they had been forced to produce more

Question 13

Technology (highlighted factors of the crimean war to Russia)

Answer 13

Had an inadequate communication system
Lack of railways
Main export was agriculture when places like UK were industrialising
Needed upgrading and modernising

Question 14

Communication (highlighted factors of the crimean war to Russia)

Answer 14

Poor as they had inadequate communication systems

Question 15

Transport (highlighted factors of the crimean war to Russia)

Answer 15

They had a lack of railway systems

Question 16

Set the up of the army (highlighted factors of the crimean war to Russia)

Answer 16

Army was controlled by the Tsar 
Mainly peasants ( serfs) made up the army 

Problems
Meant that the army had to follow the governments instructions

Question 17

Alexander II ‘s problems

Answer 17

Must reform to catch the West
Must keep landowner and nobility to happy
Not too much reform as we must maintain the Tsarist state

Question 18

What is serfdom

Answer 18

A labourer of the land (local village communes called Mirs)
Very similar to villeins in Freudal England
Either paid rent to the landowner or paid with their labour
Could be conscripted into the army

Question 19

Emancipation ukase- 1861

Answer 19

Serfs released firm ownership to become free men
Each serf family entitled to keep its cottage and land
Landlords would receive compensation form the government in bonds for loss of land

Question 20

The moral case

Answer 20

Members of the royal family considered that serfdom was morally and ethically wrong.
Radical intelligentsia was growing and opposed to serfdom
Novels didn’t accept as they though abolition of serfdom would be damaging to the Russian state

Pressure
People started to disagree with their democracy which could lead to uprising

Question 21

Fear of revolt

Answer 21

Peasants revolts had been increasing since the 1840s
Most of the army was made up of peasants which made it more worrying
Significant spike in disturbances between 1857 and 1859

Pressure
More and more uprisings caused the government to get worried as they wouldn’t be able to handle a major uprising

Question 22

Economy

Answer 22

The main reason why Russia wasn’t developing was because of serfdom
Adam Smith- free labour is more productive than forced labour
Other factors- poor transport links

Pressure
Russia needed to modernise and get rid of serfdom
Serfdom made up most of the population
Needed to industrialise- cost money

Question 23

Crimean war

Answer 23

Russia needed a smaller well trained army with a reserve like in European countries
Had to be in the army for 25 years of 15 for those with good character
Lead to 1000s of free serfs- risky proposition
Question of how long the serfs would remain loyal

Pressure
Russia needed to improve the lives of serfs to stop them revolting
Russians lost in a humiliating fashion