Russia- industry Flashcards
What are the themes in industrial changes under the Tsars?
- Expansion of railway system.
- Catching up with the West.
- Ignoring consumer goods and focusing on heavy industry.
- Foreign investment and reliance on foreign loans.
- Peasants being exploited for industrialisation.
- Wanting to industrialise as quickly as possible.
What were the industrial successes under Alexander II?
- Reutern focused on railway construction and invested 2 billion roubles into the railways. As a result the railway system grew by over 20,000Km.
- Increased the extraction of raw materials, such as iron.
- Workforce grew from 800,000 to 1,320,000 by 1881.
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Who did Alexander II appoint as Minister of finance?
Mikhail Reutern
What were the industrial failures under Alexander II?
- He didn’t introduce laws to protect worker rights.
- Railway investment was still tiny for such a large country.
- Industry still very far behind the West.
- There was a dramatic fall in the value of the rouble by the mid 1880s.
What were the industrial successes under Alexander III?
- There was increased foreign investment.
- There was further railway improvements. The railway system grew from 22,000Km in 1880 to 53,234km in 1900.
- There was increased coal production. From 3.2 million tons to 16.1 million tonns by the end of his reign
- There was increased grain exportation under Vyshengradski : ‘‘we shall ourselves not eat, but we shall export’’.
What were the industrial failures under Alexander III?
- Although there was increased foreign investment, this moved Russia away from autarky, or self-sufficiency.
- Witte ignored consumer goods ,which resulted in poor living conditions.
- Because many loans were taken from other countries, colossal debts amassed.
What were the industrial successes under Nicholas II?
- In 1897, Witte put Russia on the Gold Standard. This made goods and raw materials even cheaper than before.
- Witte putting Russia on the gold standard resulted in the great spurt, where iron and steel production increased by 7 fold.
- Stolypin’s reforms gave peasants more freedom to leave the Mir and work in the industrial workforce, for example, in factories.
What were the industrial failures under Nicholas II?
- Russia still had not received a state of autarky, as the country was heavily reliant on foreign investment.
- Consumer goods were neglected again.
- Poor working conditions in factories.
- Despite increased industrial strength, Russia was still unable to cope with War and by WW1, steel, coal and iron production were still only 10% of what was produced in Britain.
What were the industrial successes under Lenin?
- NEP resulted in pig iron production rising from 0.1 million in 1921 to 2.4 million tonnes by 1926.
- Foreign trade was encouraged
What were the industrial failures under Lenin?
- Pig iron production was still nowhere near pre-WW1 levels, production levels were at 4.2 million tonnes in 1914, but had fallen to 0.1 million tonns in 1921.
- Coal production went down from 29 million tons in 1913 to 9 million tons in 1921.
- The amount of industrial workers fell from 2.6 million to 1.2 million by 1920.
What were the industrial successes under Stalin?
- Increased industrial output, coal output increased between 1927 and 1940, from 35 million tonnes to 150 million tonnes.
- Not over-reliant on foreign loans, achievement of Autarky.
- The USSR survived Germany’s invasion in 1945, as the Soviet’s industry outcompeted Germany’s industry.
- Steel production went up from 4 million tonnes in 1928 to 18 million tonnes in 1940.
- Tractor production went from 1,000 per year in 1928 to 31,000 per year in 1940.
What were the industrial failures under Stalin?
- Up until the 5th 5yr plan, consumer goods were neglected.
- Targets of the 5yr plans were unrealistic and this led to shortfalls in certain industries.
- Too many resources were devoted to projects that had little economic benefit, for example, in the case of the Belomor Canal.
What were the industrial successes under Khrushchev?
- Heavy industry production continued to rise.
- There was a focus on consumer goods. Whilst food and clothes remained expensive, items such as books and public transport were often cheaper than in the West.
- By 1968, 50% of Soviet households had a TV and washing machine, although few had cars and only 10% had a telephone.
- A minimum wage was introduced in 1956, though most earned more than this anyways.
- Household income increased by 3% between 1960 and 1965.
What were the industrial failures under Khrushchev?
- Living standards were still behind those of the West.
- Production was rushed in many instances, which resulted in poor quality goods being produced.
What did Reutern grow the railway network by?
By over 20,000 Km
What did the workforce grow by under Alexander II?
Workforce grew from 800,000 to 1,320,000 by 1881
What railway improvements were there under Alexander III?
The railway system grew from 22,000Km in 1880 to 53,234km in 1900.
What raw material was there an increased production of under Alexander III?
Coal
What did Vyshnegradski say about grain exportation?
‘‘we shall ourselves not eat, but we shall export’’.
What was the consequence of Witte ignoring consumer goods under Alexander III?
Poor living conditions
