Tsarist Rule in Russia Flashcards
How was Russia governed?
The Tsar ruled Russia himself with the help of ministers he chose
There was no democracy or parliament and local government was in the hands of officials appointed by the tsar
In many ways, Russia in 1894 was like England in the Middle Ages
Russia was deeply religious and subscribed to the deeply conservative Russian Orthodox Church
Who was Tsar Nicholas II
Came to the throne in 1894
He was indecisive, not particularly intelligent, inflexible, not able to respond to great pressure and ruled repressively
He had been tutored by Konstantin Pobedonostev (‘Grand Inquisitor’) who hated democracy and had repressive attitudes.
Nicholas ruled in an autocracy
Who were the upper and middle classes
The aristocracy made up 1% of the population but owned 25% of the land.
Peasants resented these rich landowners
Many at the top of society were appointed by the Tsar to run government departments
With growing industrialisation, a middle class emerged made up of bankers and rich capitalists who owned the industrial works.
They lived in luxury compared to the peasants and industrial workers
How big was Russia
Russia had a population of 160 million people and covered one sixth of the world’s surface
The discontent of the peasants
Over 80% of those people lived in the countryside as labourers.
The Russian aristocracy made up only 1% but owned 25% of the land
Until 1861, the peasants had been serfs, owned by the aristocracy as their personal property
The wealth gap between the rich and peasants was immense and peasant unrest was always bubbling below the surface
There were famines in the 1890s - the word ‘famine’ was banned from newspapers and the government dealt with them poorly
The discontent of industrial workers
Industrialisation was limited to major cities like St. Petersburg and Moscow. Working conditions were appalling even by the standards of the time. Hours were long, pay was low and conditions were dangerous
Trade unions were illegal which meant there was no push for improvements.
Industrial workers had little control over their own lives
The discontent amongst the middle classes
Most of Russia’s middle classes were liberals
They wanted change in Russia but at a gradual pace and they were scared of revolutionary radicals
They wanted a constitutional monarchy and a fair legal system
The discontent amongst national minorities
Russifications: this restricted the influence of the non-Russian national minorities by emphasising the superiority of all things Russian
56% of the population were not actually of Russian nationality - the country was huge and so had many different nationalities including groups like Baltic Germans, Armenians and Ukrainians
This led to these groups facing serious discrimination and government interference
Who were the SR’s
SRs wanted to gain recruits from the growing urban workforce
They remained most popular with the peasantry as they focused on land based issues like giving land back to the peasants for free
SRs were the most popular party in Russia until they were banned in 1917
They were involved in assassinations of key supporters of Tsarist rule
Who were the SD’s
SDs wanted to achieve revolution by following the ideas of Karl Marx
They wanted to support the workers rather than the peasants and so were never as popular as the SRs
After talk of revolution but not actually going through with it, Lenin pushed the party into a split in 1903
Who were the Bolsheviks
Believed the party should be a small and secret group of professional revolutionaries who would seize power when the time was right
They felt a large party could be infiltrated by police spies
Their leader in exile was Lenin
Who were the Mensheviks
Believed that the party should be a mass organisation to which all the workers could belong
The party could grow until it was powerful enough to take over
It would work with other groups such as trade unions
Their leader Trotsky was also in exile following the 1905 revolution
How was Russia policed
Police State
Censorship - books and newspapers were prevented from publishing radical ideas
Exiled - people suspected of working against the Tsar were imprisoned or exiled to Siberia
Okhrana (Secret Police) - kept watch on people suspected of being revolutionaries
Short term triggers of the 1905 revolution
Russo-Japanese War
Bloody Sunday
What was the Russo-Japanese War
In 1904, war broke out with Japan over land in Manchuria (valuable land)
Russia faced a series of disastrous defeats using out-dated military tactics
After the Battle of Tsushima in May 1905 forced Russia to make peace which was a shock for the Russian people as they thought Japan would be an easy target
The war also exacerbated economic problems including food shortages and unemployment. Liberal opposition grew as the situation worsened
What was Bloody Sunday
Bloody Sunday was a massacre of unarmed protestors in St. Petersburg on the 22nd January
Protestors, led by Father Gapon, were fired upon by the Mounted Cossacks
Over 100 protestors were killed and hundreds injured
The people of Russia united in anger and strikes broke out in St Petersburg and other cities
What events happened during the 1905 revolution
The Potemkin Mutiny Other military rebellions Peasant Rebellions Strikes in the cities The St Petersburg Soviet National minorities
What was the Potemkin Mutiny
The Russian navy endured harsh conditions and brutal punishments
The crew had revolutionary ideas
On the 14th June, the cooks complained the meat was riddled with maggots - the doctors decided that the maggots were only flies eggs and the meat was fine
Valenchuk, went to Commander Gilyarovsky to complain. Gilyarovsky shot him. Others seized Gilyarovsky and threw him overboard
The Potemkin raised a red flag and a ‘people’s committee’ was chosen to take charge
The ship made for Odessa
An attempt to spread the mutiny to the rest of the Black Sea Fleet failed
what were the Peasant Rebellions
Peasants organised rent strikes and tried to force landowners to increase their wages
By summer 1905, the harvest had failed again
3,000 manors were destroyed (15% of the total)
The peasants created communes by taking the land their parents and grandparents had worked on
What were the strikes on Cities
Waves of strikes spread across Russia
In January 1905, 400,000 workers went on strike including the most important industries, including the railway.
Socialist leaders returned from exile and workers began to rally to left-wing parties in 1906
What was the St Petersburg Soviet
Set up in October 1905 to organise the strikes
Only lasted from September to early December
The idea of Soviets became important later in 1917
Why did Nicholas survive the 1905 Revolution?
The October Manifesto
What was the October Manifesto
Created a legislative Duma to approve laws
Freedom of speech, assembly and worship
Political parties can exist
Legalise trade unions
It was met with celebration and the general strike was called off
However, it did nothing to improve conditions for workers, peasants or the armed forces
It did: split those wanting reform and those wanting wider revolution
What repressive measures did the Tsar use
In December 1905, the leaders of the St Petersburg Soviet were arrested and troops crushed the Moscow uprising. This followed with mass arrests
The work of Stolypin:
He was the Prime Minister elected in 1906
He set up military courts which could sentence and hang offenders on the spot.
Everyone in Russia was forced to carry internal passports and travellers had to be registered with police
Freedom of the press had been promised by the Tsar but the press still had little freedom
The Okhrana still rooted out anyone they considered a threat
