Russia- the nature of government Flashcards
What does the word ‘autocrat’ come from?
The Greek word for ‘self rule’
What themes does the nature of government cosist of?
- Structure
- Ideology (beliefs)
- Repression/reform
- Opposition
What are some key terms to use when talking about ideology?
- Autocracy
- Marxism-Leninism
- Totalitarianism/Stalinism
- Destalinisation
- Communism
- Tsarism
What are some key words/phrases to use when writing nature of government questions?
- Diluted
- Liberalised
- Fundamental Differences
- Reaffirmed
- Strengthened
- Fundamental
- Limited
- Stark differences
How did Alexander III strengthen the secret police?
by introducing the Statute of State Security, which gave more powers to the Okhrana.
Why is Alexander II known as the Tsar Liberator?
because he gave the serfs legal freedom, with 40 million serfs
freed from being tied to the land
Can Alexander III be said to be reactionary?
Yes
Why can the provisional government be said to have a liberal ideology?
because they gave many freedoms during their rule, including freeing all
political prisoners and abolishing the secret police
What did Marxism-Leninism focus on?
Class, persecution of religion, equality etc
What did Totalitarianism focus on?
-Control of every part of people’s lives.
-Internal passports introduced, use of terror, propaganda, personality cult, and 5 year plans/collectivization to control all of Russian life
What did Destalinisation focus on?
Reduction in repression from Stalin’s rule. Millions released from repression, by 1960 only 11,000 political prisoners left in Gulags.
What are the best pieces of evidence for changes in ideology during this time period?
- Lenin’s introduction of Marxism-Leninism, as it marked the end of Tsarism and the autocracy.
- Alexander’s liberalism, with the emancipation and the introduction of the lateral reforms.
- Alexander III reaffirming his ideology with the Statute of State security, which gave more poweres to the Okhrana.
- Nicholas II reaffirming his autocracy by introducing the Fundamental Laws of 1906, which significantly reduced the powers of the Duma.
- Destalinisation under Khrushchev . Decentralised power, no more command economy.
How should a synoptic paragraph be written?
- Clear sentence starter
- At least 3 examples
- Trends/Exceptions?
- Explanation of why in relation to the q
- Mini judgement
Give some key features of a Tsarist autocracy:
- selected by God.
- Violent repression of real or imagined opposition.
- Service state
- Absolute power that wasn’t shared with anyone else.
- Power of monarchy legally unrestricted.
- Church justified autocracy.
- No democracy.
- Cult of personality built around the Tsar
Define ideologies
a system of ideas and ideals, especially ones which form the basis of economic or political theory or policy
When did Alexander II sign the Treaty of Paris?
In 1856
Before Alexander II was killed, was he going to introduce a new constsitution?
Yes
Who was the most repressive Tsar?
Alexander III
Who suspended all of Alexander II’s reforms?
Alexander III
Who introduced an intense form of Russification?
Alexander III
What is Russification?
forcing everyone to be Russian
Which Tsar closed newspapers and unis?
Alexander III
Did Nicholas II lose the Japanese war?
Yes
Which Tsar did the bloody sunday massacre happen under ?
Nicholas II
Who introduced the duma?
Nicholas II
Why did Nicholas II introduce the Duma?
Because of the 1905 revolution
Do all the Tsar’s change the structure of government?
Yes
What is Marxism?
The idea that the workers would overthrow the middle classes, then there would be a dictatorship for a short period of time, then a communist society would be established where everyone would be equal.
Who are the Proleteriat?
The working classes
Who are the burgeoise?
the middle classes/the better off
Where were the basis of karl Marx’s ideas laid out?
In ‘The Communist Manifesto’, which he and Friedrich Engels published in 1848
When was the Communist manifesto laid out ?
in 1848
What were the key phases of Marx’s views?
- Feudal phase
- Capitalist phase
- Socialist phase
- Communism
What was the feudal phase?
- Where there was competing social and economic classes.
- For example, the landowners and the serfs.
- This will change when society industrialies and the business middle class gain power.
What was the Capitalist phase?
- Where there was competing social and middle classes.
- For example, the middle class and the industrial workers.
- This will change when industrial workers are treated so badly under capitalism that they decide to revolt.
What was the Socialist phase?
- This was where equality and harmony will develop under the political guidance of the industrial working class.
- This will change when all class conflict finally ends and as a result, communism is achievede.
What did Karl Marx say about the economy?
That it was the dominant factor in a country and that it shaped the governement
what is the base?
the economy
what is the superstructure?
- everything thing else other than the economy.
- i.e government, family, religion, education, culture
did karl marx believe that the base should dictate the superstructure?
yes
who said that ‘power should rest with the proletariat and the poorer peasants’?
Karl Marx
What is the difference between Marx’s path towards revolution and Lenein’s?
- Lenin argued that the move to worker control of the means of production, distribution and exchange should be sped up.
- He rushed through Marx’s stages and didn’t wait for Russia to be industrialised.
- So, there wasn’t enough workers.
- This allowed the government to use political power to determine the character of the economy.
- Lenin also rejected democracy.
What did Stalin follow?
Marxism-Leninism-Stalinism
Did Stalin put an emphasis on the command economy?
Yes
What is a comman economy?
where the economy is dictated by the state, hence giving the government more control
Did Stalin rule as a dictator?
Yes
Did Stalin use propaganda to build a positive image of himself?
yes
What happened to the superstructure of Russia under Stalin’s rule?
It became hughly personalised
What did Stalin’s propaganda centralise on?
a cult of personality
What are the evidence of the use of a command economy in Stalin’s rule?
- 5 years plans
does the scale and scope of everything increase under Stalin?
Yes
Why did Stalin make all the changes that he made?
- Because of the circumstances i.e war
- Because of the megalomania
- Because he was continuing Lenin’s policies, just at a greater scale and scope
What is the definition of megalomania?
an individual’s belief that they are very powerful and important
Who launched a fierce attack on Stalin?
Khrushchev
Who blamed Stalin for all the atrocities of the terror and purges?
Khrushchev
What happened when Khrushchev made a deliberate and distinct shift from Stalin’s totalitarianism?
This allowed for the decentralisation of power and reduced repression. There was also a relaxation of censorship
Who coined the term ‘destalinisation’?
Khrushchev
Did Khrushchev progress with the idea of central leadership?
Yes
What did Khrushchev do to politcal prisoners?
He released them from labour camps
Under Khrushchev, was the legacy of the cult of personality destroyed?
Yes
What type of economic plans did Khrushchev have in place?
7 year economic plans
What were the similarities in ideologies of the Russian rulers?
- All believed in the need for absolute control.
- All used personalised power.
- All used repression as a means of maintaining control.
- All used reform to maintain control.
- All reluctant to allow openness and the proliferation of freedom.
- All used a cult of personality.
What were the differences in the ideologies of the Russian rulers?
- They had different justifications for autocratic rule- Tsar’s used God, whilst the Communists sued the need to transfer power to the workers.
- They had different views on progress. Backwardness VS forward-looking.
- The society under Tsars was upheld by the peasants, whilst the society under the Communists was upheld by the workers.
Why did the Russian rulers have ideological similarities?
because of…
- their desire to control every aspect of society.
- the size and diversity of Russia.
- difficulties in imposing new ideologies.
Why did the Russian rulers have ideological differences?
- because of the background of their ideology.
- because they were all trying to achieve different aims.
What does the Nature
Did the Fundamnetal Laws of 1906 re-assert Nicholas II’s autocracy?
Yes
