Russia Y10 Flashcards
What Year was Nicholas II coronated?
1894
what was a Kulak?
prosperous peasants
What was the Mir?
The Mir was the peasant council; controlling everyday life for the normal peasant. It was usually made up of elders
What was the Tsar’s secret police called?
The Okhrana
What started the 1905 revolution?
The march on the winter palace led by Father Gapon
How many people died on Bloody Sunday?
100 to 1000 depending on sources
How many marchers were there on Bloody Sunday?
Around 200,000
What mutiny happened in 1905?
The Potemkin Mutiny
What was written to satisfy the people in 1905?
The October Manifesto
What did the October Manifesto say?
Concessions to the government, Free Speech, Political parties are now legal
What are the fundamental laws?
Laws imposed in 1906 to consolidate the Tsar’s power
What was the Duma?
A pseudo-government brought about after the October Manifesto
Who was Stolypin?
The first Prime Minister of Russia
What was Stolypin’s stick, necktie and carrot?
The stick was to come down on strikers, the necktie was the nickname for the noose and the carrot was to win peasants over with land
What year did Stolypin get assassinated?
1911
Why was Nicholas II happy about the war?
It could boost National Spirit after defeat in 1904-5 against the Japanese
What happened in 1913?
The tercentenary of Romanov rule
What happened in 1915?
The Tsar took over control of the army
Why was the Tsar taking control of the army bad in 1915?
All military defeats could be blamed on him
How many Russians died in WW1?
9.15 million
What were the three things Russian society was based on?
Theology, Autocracy, Nationality
How were living conditions in the cities?
Awful. 12 hour work days, cities rife with disease and low pay
Why were living conditions so bad
Peasants rushed to the cities to get new jobs, meaning overcrowding.
What percentage of Russia lived in villages in the early 1900’s?
80%
What was special about the Russian industrial revolution?
It was very late and very forced in order to keep up with western countries. It was part of the reason why living conditions were so poor.
Why was Stolypin assassinated?
Because people thought he wasn’t doing enough. The Tsar thought he was doing much and the following year, Russia entered into an economic downturn
What year did the Social Democratic party split into the Bolsheviks and Mensheviks?
1903
What were the 9 problems effecting Russia?
Communication, Peasants, Workers, Resources, Bank, Farming, Democracy, Defeat in the Russo-Japanese war, Bloody Sunday
How many Dumas were shut down between 1905 and 1914
3 - each was more rigged and Tsarist than the last
Why was the Russo-Japanese war so bad for the Tsar?
He used it to boost nationalism yet he lost after a year, making opinions of him even more low.
Who opposed the Tsar in the late 19th and early 20th century?
Liberals/Cadets, Socialist Revolutionaries, Bolsheviks, Mensheviks
Why was the war so bad for the countryside?
The countryside provided the food, so there was a shortage of food for the peasants as it was all going to the front. Also, aristocrats had no one working their land, so they were unhappy with the Tsar too.
Who was Rasputin?
A peasant healer who was brought into the Tsar’s home, to heal the Tsarevich Alexis who had Hemophilia
Why was Rasputin a problem?
He was scandalous, and there were rumours of an affair between him and the Tsarina. The public didn’t know the Tsarevich was anaemic so this lowered the Tsar’s public opinion
How was Rasputin killed?
He was poisoned, shot and drowned
What happened in the February/ March revolution?
The Tsar abdicated
What started the Feb revolution?
March on women’s day then a Riot and Strikes the next.
How many Steelworkers went on strike in Feb 1917?
20,000
What percentage of St Petersburg was on strike by March?
50%
What happened on the 10th and 11th of march?
The Duma sets up a provisional government that is shut down the next day on order of the Tsar.
What date did the Tsar Abdicate?
15th of March
What was the provisional government?
A government set up to rule the country after the Tsar abdicated
When were elections going to happen
November 1917
What did the P.G do to the 3 main problems?
War- They continued it due to pressure from the allies, Land- Decided to wait until elections but there was a rush to grab land in the countryside, Food - Couldn’t find a solution to feed the people
When did Lenin return to Russia from Switzerland
March 1917
What were the slogans for Lenin’s April thesis?
‘All power to the Soviets’, ‘Peace, Land and Bread’
What happened in July 1917?
Russian attacks in the war are defeated and 500,000 workers strike against the government and war -Bolsheviks lead
What coup failed in September?
The Kornilov coup
Why did the Bolsheviks get weapons?
To counter the Kornilov coup
what happened on the 7 November?
Bolsheviks stormed the Winter Palace
who was the first P.M. of the provisional government and why did they resign?
Prince Lvov who resigned after strikes in July 1917
What month was it when the Bolsheviks start getting majorities in the Soviets?
September
who was Trotsky?
The right-hand man of Vladimir Lenin
who was Lenin?
The Leader of the Bolshevik party - the one that wash pushing for another Revolution
who was Lenin?
The Leader of the Bolshevik party - the one that wash pushing for another Revolution
What did Trotsky do?
He carried out Lenin’s ideas and led the Red Guards
Was the October/November revolution violent?
No - only 2 killed
How did the new council of People’s commissars stop the war?
The Brest-Litovsk treaty - a very harsh treaty
How much population was lost in the treaty of Brest-Litovsk?
lost 34% pop, 32% of agricultural land, 54% of industry, 26% of railways, 89% coal mines
What was the cheka?
The Cheka was Lenin’s secret police.
what did the Red Guards turn into?
The Red Army
how Red Army members were there in 1918 vs 1920
600,000 to 5.5 million
what were most of the members of the Red Army?
peasants who wanted to protect the new government
who were the whites?
opponents of the Reds (Tsarist supporters, Socialist Revolutionaries)
why did civil war break out in 1918?
Anger at being rejected from the constituent assembly, Anger at Brest-Litovsk, Bolsheviks set up the comintern
How many Russians died in the Civil War?
13.5m Russians died in the civil war
When did the Reds win the war
1921
why were the whites weak?
They had divided aims, and a lack of effective leadership.
Why did the Reds have an advantage?
the Reds had a geographical advantage of the heartland with factories and farmland
What did Trotsky do?
He installed order in the Red Army, with rules such as any deserting soldier would be shot.
What was War Communism?
Way Lenin ruled in the civil war. Factories were under gvmnt control, cheka took surplus food
why was the Kronstadt uprising so significant
The were some of the largest supporters of the Bolsheviks and made Lenin realise he had to change
what was the NEP
New way Lenin Ruled - trade was allowed an there was an incentive to produce food
when did Lenin die?
1924
Who was favourite to become the new leader of the Bolsheviks
Trotsky
Who were the competitors in the race for power?
The members of the politburo -Bukharin, Rykov, Tomsky, Zinoviev, Kamemev, Trotsky and Stalin
How did Stalin beat Trotsky?
Trotsky didn’t make secret alliances, he didn’t take Stalin seriously, Trotsky fell ill in 1923, Trotsky also wanted a world revolution, which was unpopular
what methods did Stalin use to consolidate his control
Propaganda, show trials, education, purges, control of the communist party, constitution, loyal followers and the cult of personality
What was Stalin’s secret police named?
The NKVD
what were Gulags?
Labourers built the infrastructure of Russia - labour camps
What were the purges?
Stalin was paranoid that he was going to be overthrown so killed or arrested anyone who he saw as a threat
What things did Stalin use in propoganda?
He excluded other leaders from images, promoted economic successes, and reinvented the history of the Bolshevik party.
What was the Cult of Personality?
Stalin wasn’t seen as evil, most ordinary people saw him as a paternalistic figure and a friend of the workers, while being oblivious to the atrocities committed by his government
what were the show trials?
Trials that persecuted loyal Bolsheviks as being evil - usually the people that stood against him leading to his leadership
What were people in the gulags used for?
They were used to help modernise the country by building infrastructure for free
What did Stalin do to his army?
Due to many good officers and generals being purged, The army was left weaker and without proper leadership
How long did Stalin take to modernise the USSR?
10 years
when was the first 5 year plan announced?
1928
What was Collectivisation?
Announced in 1929, the idea was to increase food production by creating farms to allow use of modern technology.
Was Collectivisation successful?
No. Kulaks refused to give up land. The countryside ended in chaos and it took 13 years to implement
What did the first 5 year plan focus on?
major industries such as mining.
How were targets set out for the 5-year-plans?
GOSPLAN set out overall targets -> each region was told targets -> region set targets for each mine/factory -> leader set targets for each foreman -> set targets for each shift and worker
When did the first 5 year plan span?
1928-32
Was the first 5 year plan successful?
Most targets were not reached but the achievements were never seen before. Cities were built (such as Magnito-Gorsk) to achieve this.
How were the working conditions for people working to achieve the first five year plans?
Terrible - negative 35 degrees was a common temperature and deaths were common. Most people only came because they needed work. Only a few came with enthusiasm.
What did the second 5 year plan focus on?
To build on the successes of the first - mining and refining. Metal was used for collectivisation
what was dekulakisation?
Kulaks were declared as enemies of the state. Regions were given numbers of kulaks to find, which they found whether they existed or not
What happened between 1932-3?
A famine caused by collectivisation and fighting between peasants and the state.
What happened if a worker made a mistake?
They were considered saboteurs
When was the third 5-year-plan?
1938-41 (interrupted by ww2)
How much did Stalin modernise?
He modernised enough to stave off Hitler in WW2
What percentage of pigs, cattle and sheep were killed during modernisation?
25-30%
what was WW2 seen as in Russia?
The Great Patriotic War
How many Russians died in WW2?
Up to 29million, only 8.7 million were serving
Who were removed from the west side of the country because people were fearful of them joining the Germans?
Tatars
What was the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact?
A non-aggression pact between the Nazis and the Soviet Union signed in 1939
How much of the Russian Airforce was destroyed in 1 day?
1/4 of the Russian airforce
What was Stalin’s response to the Nazi’s invading?
He was furious - went into a mental breakdown - his government was too scared to do anything so did nothing
How many Russians died in the siege of Leningrad?
1 million citizens although a Soviet victory
How many Russians died in the siege of Leningrad?
1 million citizens although a Soviet victory
What did the employment of women go to in WW2?
3 million to 13 million
Why was the Soviet Union so underprepared for WW2?
Stalin had just purged 3 of every 5 marshals and 13 of every 15 commanders
How many years did it take for economic output to return to pre-war levels?
almost a decade
How many towns and cities were destroyed in WW2?
almost 2000
What was 1944 known as?
The year of 10 victories
In which year did all of the Soviet land get retaken?
1944
When was the Zhenotdel (female section of the Bolsheviks) abolished?
1930
What percentage of the Bolsheviks were women in 1928?
12.8%