Unit 3 AOS 1 Flashcards
Russian Geography
- Main cities far from each other, making communication, defence and control by the gov hard
- Weather was harsh and cold, giving farmers a finite time to let their crops flourish otherwise famine could begin
Russian Classes
Ruling Class (0.5%) Upper Class (12%) Middle Class (1.5%) Working Class (4%) Peasantry (82%)
Pillars of the Autocracy
almost all swore loyalty to the Tsar not to the country
- Gentry (lost income from emancipation of serfs)
- Bureaucracy (proven loyalty to Tsar but many unqualified so couldn’t respond effectively to crises)
- Russian Orthodox Church (organ of the gov, collecting taxes, paying salaries, lots of corruption)
“an essential propaganda weapon and means of social control” - Figes - Okhrana (secret police)
- Cossacks (brutal people who kept order)
Factors that sparked a rebellion against Tsardom
- Tsardom (unfair + corrupt, created a hierarchal divide)
- Russification (failed national identity)
- The Great Spurt
- Industrial Boom (overcrowding + poor working conditions)
- Recession
Russo-Japanese War
(1904)
Revealed the weaknesses of the Russian regime with their humiliating defeat (only 3 naval ships survived out of their two main fleets)
Bloody Sunday Strikes
cause: unfair treatment of workers (firing due to rumoured involvement in unions)
7th Jan: 82,000 striked
8th Jan: 120,000 striking
400,000 workers striked in Jan in response
Bloody Sunday
9th Jan 1905
cause: unfair treatment of workers (firing due to rumoured involvement in unions)
150,000 peacefully protesting
200 killed, 800 injured
effect: ruined the Tsar’s ‘benevolent’ image
Potemkin Mutiny
June 1905
cause: dissent towards harsh military officers’ abuse of power
2000 killed 3000 injured in Odessa massacres
effect: highlighted tsarist cruelty and their fear of the revolutionary movement
October General Strike
13th October 1905
cause: general discontent with Tsarist regime
paralysed Russia and halted economic activity
Troops were fighting in the East and couldn’t shut the protest down, army and police refused to repress the situation
effect: october manifesto
October Manifesto
17th October 1905
cause: to mitigate the october general strike
promised
- civil rights (citizens mass arrested, revolutionary newspapers shut down, freedom of speech limited, executions/exiles)
- universal franchise
- legislative duma (Tsar still had power)
effect: wasn’t fulfilled
Repression of the Tsarist Regime
punitive violence and terror in the countryside, the cossacks receiving rewards
Pyotr Stolypin’s suppression campaign
- 3,000 executed between 1906-1909 (stolypin’s necktie)
- 50,000 exiled to Siberia 1906-1909 (stolypin’s carriages)
effect: people realised promised reforms won’t be fulfilled - revolution is the only way
“Reform” to the “democratic” order of Russia with Dumas + “Universal” Franchise
cause: demands for democracy and reform
- Fundamental Laws (1906) stating laws went through the State Duma, State Council and Tsar (Tsar still ruled as an autocrat)
- Franchise granted to adult men over 25 (votes were skewed in the Tsar’s favour)
- In 1907, Stolypin altered election laws so representation of classes in voting for the Duma were misrepresentative of population (Gentry influence went from 31% to 60%, Peasants decreased from 42% to 22%)
effect: workers and peasants doubted whether a parliament would address their needs
WWI (1914)
5 million men
Battle of Galicia (1.2 million troops, 3:2 casualties vs. enemy troops killed), Tannenberg (400,000) and Masurian Lakes (1914) resulted in the destruction of the Russian Army’s First and Second Armies
effect: revealed the russian army’s incompetence
The Great Retreat
May-August 1915
Germany attacked Russia 1.4 million casualties 1 million surrenders 6 million citizens fleeing (displaced) Loss of countries they'd captured (retreat of their territory line)
Political Impacts WWI
Formation of Progressive Bloc (August 1915) –> unified opposition to the Tsar demanding a “government of public confidence”
Tsar went to the front line, leaving Tsarina in charge
- ministerial leapfrog (4 prime ministers in less than 2 years)
- rumoured affair with rasputin + her german heritage eroded the idea of the sacred monarchy, which was now infiltrated with traitors
effect: people doubted the Tsar’s leadership even more
Economic Impacts of WWI
cause: Russia’s lagging industry needed rapid improvement
1/3 soldiers without a rifle –> 1914: 2 shells, per gun, per day
- 1915-1916: industry manufactured 18x the number of shells
Poor working conditions, army supplies taking precedence with railway, depriving cities of basic goods
1916: wages risen 100%, costs risen 300%
1915: 140,000 workers went on strike (Petrograd)
1916: 380,000 workers went on strike
Supply crisis (Winter 1916-1917): inconsistent supply of fuel, metal and flour led to the closure of factories and bakeries 40 hours/week queuing for bread, only 4 days of reserve food
effect: created great anger and anxiety at the situation
Social Impacts of WWI
Conscription of peasants made them feel as if they’d gone back to serfdom
Army morale disintegrated, surrender rates 12-15x higher than other countries
15 million joined the army, 3.4 million perished, country suffered war weariness
effect: revolutionary fervour increased as dissatisfaction towards the monarchy increased
February Revolution
cause: growing anger and desire for reform + supply crisis tipped the people over the edge
23rd February: International Womens Day brought 70-100,000 women out protesting for lack of supplies
24th: 150-200,000 worker strike as police didn’t respond to previous strike
25th: Petrograd flooded with a general strike: 200-240,000 workers
27th: 1/2 of Petrograd Garrison mutinied and city comes under control of the crowds
1st-3rd March: Tsar attempts to return to Petrograd, ends up abdicating to the Provisional Government
effect: tsardom is overthrown and the Provisional Government come into power
Dual Power
Provisional Government held the responsibility, Petrograd Soviet held the power
Russia became politically fragile as the PG was weak but Soviet didn’t want to take power
Prov Gov lacked power as the soldiers belonged to the PG and disbanded their police force. They also thought it wasn’t liberal to repress opposition.
PG was dominated by soldiers 2:1, didn’t want to take power as they believed Russia should follow an orthodox Marxist path.
Soviet Order No.1 allowed the PG to undermine the Prov Gov
April Crisis
20th-21st April 1917
cause: people wanted Russia’s involvement in the war to end
Prov Gov announced that they would only fight until they were in a position of bargaining power with Germany. People were dissatisfied, so they said they’d end Russia’s involvement.
Pavel Milyukov wrote a secret letter saying they would remain as France and Britain’s allies, which was leaked
effect: soldiers and workers were angered and felt betrayed by the Prov Gov
Bolshevik’s leadership
- Exclusive membership
- Democratic centralism: central committee of experts that made decisions within the party
- Vanguard party: small group of revolutionary professionals that led the workers to victory
Lenin published his April Theses (7th April 1917) criticising the capitalist war, calling for a Soviet government
Changes to Classes in 1917
Peasants: promised that the land question would be solved by the constituent assembly, but were impatient and seized land illegally
Army: army started to democratise after Soviet Order No.1 w the formation of soldier’s committees, gaining more power over their lives.
Workers: resented their poor treatment, began forming militias called the Red Guards and striking more frequently (500,000 striking between April-July 1917).
Bolsheviks set up the Military Organisation, arming and training workers to join the red guards - 20,000 trained by July 1917
June Offensive
cause: prov gov felt compelled to help Britain and France out as they were helping them out financially
Alexander Kerensky launched the June Offensive on Austro-Hungary to revive patriotism and support in the gov
400,000 casualties, 48 battalions mutinied 400,000 soldiers deserted
effect: displayed the prov gov’s lack of authority, poor morale and effects of war weariness
July Days
- disgruntled workers, soldiers and sailors took matters into their own hand and initiated an uprising
- Bolsheviks didn’t support it as they believed the timing wasn’t right
- Prov gov blamed the protests on the Bolsheviks, publishing that they were allegedly German spies and funded by them
- 700 demonstrators killed/wounded, 800 Bolsheviks arrested, leaders charged for treason
effects: showed that spontaneous uprisings were easily defeated, and that the prov gov was willing to use violence to defend itself
