The end of Romanov rule, 1906-17

Question 1

Why was the Tsar in a stronger position in April than he had been in October 1905?

Answer 1

His opponents were divided and the workers had been crushed

Question 2

What did Article 4 of the Fundamental Laws state?

Answer 2

Article 4 stated that the Tsar had absolute, God-given autocratic power.

Question 3

What did Article 87 of the Fundamental Laws set out?

Answer 3

Article 87 set out the nature of the Tsar’s relationship with the new Duma. The Tsar retained ‘supreme sovereign power’. This meant that Nicholas had the right to make laws without consultation with the Duma.

Question 4

In what ways did the 1906 constitution alter the nature of the Russian government?

Answer 4

• It created a bicameral Duma.
• The lower house of the Duma was elected by an electorate made up of most male Russians.
• The upper house, the ‘Council of State’, was partially appointed by the Tsar. The other half of the council was appointed by institutions such as the Orthodox Church.
• The upper house had the right to veto laws proposed by the lower house.
• It guaranteed individual rights to freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of conscience, the right to form political parties and unions, as well as freedom of the press.

Question 5

What was another name for the upper house of the Duma?

Answer 5

The ‘Council of State’

Question 6

What did the upper house of the Duma have the right to veto?

Answer 6

Laws proposed by the lower house

Question 7

What rights did the Duma guarantee?

Answer 7

It guaranteed individuals rights to freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of conscience, the right to form political parties and unions, as well as freedom of the press.

Question 8

Explain why the new constitution failed to satisfy liberals.

Answer 8

• The limited powers of the Duma did not fulfil the demands of liberals as the elected lower house did not have ultimate law-making power.
• Liberals recognised that the promise of individual rights was largely meaningless.

Question 9

Explain why the new constitution failed to satisfy socialists.

Answer 9

Socialists argued that the new constitution failed to address Russia’s underlying problems. The SRs argued that the new constitution did nothing to satisfy peasants’ desire for land, and Lenin argued that they would not limit the oppression of the working class.

Question 10

When was the First Duma elected?

Answer 10

April 1906

Question 11

Name the parties that made up the First Duma.

Answer 11

It was largely made up of conservative Octoberists, the liberal Kadets and the Trudoviks. The SRs and the factions of the RSDLP boycotted the election.

Question 12

What series of radical demands made by the First Duma?

Answer 12

• The creation of universal suffrage.
• Land reform.
• Freedom for political prisoners.

Question 13

Why did the Tsar dissolve the First Duma after 73 days?

Answer 13

They were making too many radical demands

Question 14

Why did Russian workers and peasants not support middle-class Kadets?

Answer 14

Russian workers and peasants did not support the middle-class Kadets, as the middle class had compromised with the Tsar in late 1905.

Question 15

When was a Second Duma elected?

Answer 15

1907

Question 16

Why was the makeup of the Second Duma quite different from the first?

Answer 16

• The Bolsheviks, Mensheviks and SRs took part in the election, therefore the Second Duma had a more radical makeup than the First.
• The Kadets lost a considerable proportion of their support.
• Right-wing parties who supported the autocracy also gained support.

As a result, the Second Duma was split between conservatives and radicals.

Question 17

Why was the Second Duma dismissed by the Tsar after three months?

Answer 17

The police claimed that Bolshevik members of the Duma were encouraging mutinies. The Tsar used this as a pretext to dismiss the Duma after three months.

Question 18

What had the first two Dumas exposed the limits of?

Answer 18

The first two Dumas had exposed the limits of the 1905-06 reforms, as well as the popular desire for greater economic and political reform. Consequently, they undermined the authority of the Tsar by exposing the true nature of his government.

Question 19

What did Stolypin introduce to guarantee a conservative majority in the Duma?

Answer 19

A new electoral law

Question 20

What were the problems of Stolypin’s electoral law creating a weighted voting system?

Answer 20

The vast majority of Russian men could still vote, but the new system over-represented the aristocracy and middle class, while it under-represented the working class.

Question 21

What did the election of 1907 produce?

Answer 21

A conservative-dominated Duma as Stolypin had hoped

Question 22

How long did the Third Duma last for?

Answer 22

The Third Duma lasted for the full five years specified in the Russian constitution.

Question 23

Why was Nicholas unwilling to work with the later Duma?

Answer 23

• Autocracy
• Nicholas’ opponents
• The Duma conducted research and wrote reports on aspects of the Tsar’s rule. This meant that the Tsar’s authority was challenged by experts.

Question 24

What was the number of changes that the Third and Fourth Dumas were able to initiate which improved the Russian government?

Answer 24

• Land Captains were replaced by more Justices of Peace.
• A plan to establish universal primary education was introduced.
• Some health and accident insurance programmes were developed to help workers.
• Some improvements to the Russian armed forces were implemented.

Question 25

Why were the successes of the Dumas, 1906-14 a problem for the Tsar?

Answer 25

The successes of the Dumas were a problem for the Tsar, as they suggested that the Duma should play a larger role in Russian government. In this sense the Duma’s victories undermined the Tsar’s authority.

Question 26

When was a state of emergency declared?

Answer 26

August 1906

Question 27

Between 1906 and 1910, how many people were found guilty of political crimes?

Answer 27

37.620

Question 28

Of the people, Stolypin’s courts found guilty of political crimes, how many were sent to labour camps?

Answer 28

8,640

Question 29

Of the people, Stolypin’s courts found guilty of political crimes, how many were resettled to Russia’s deserts or to the frozen wastes of Siberia?

Answer 29

1,858

Question 30

From 1906-07, what was the state’s main method of repression?

Answer 30

The state’s main method was to put revolutionaries on trial in military courts.

Question 31

Outline the two ways in which revolutionaries responded to Stolypin’s repression from 1906-07.

Answer 31

• The SRs continued their campaign of assassinations, leading to the deaths of 1,126 government officials in 1906.
• Revolutionary leaders fled Russia. Lenin, for example, fled to Finland and then to Western Europe.

Question 32

How many government officials were assasinated by the SRs in 1906?

Answer 32

1,126

Question 33

At the beginning of 1907, how many regional security bureaus did Maksimilian Trusevich, head of the Russian police, establish?

Answer 33

Eight

Question 34

By 1913, how many agents within revolutionary groups were found by Trusevich in St Petersburg alone?

Answer 34

94

Question 35

How many times did the police attempt to close Pravda between 1912 and 1914?

Answer 35

Eight times