War and Revolution

Question 1

Why did the Crimean War break out?

Answer 1

It broke out over an obscure quarrel based around Christian and Orthodox monks but was pushed through by aggressive and confident leaders, including Nicholas I. Although Russia had initial success against Turkey, this brought Britain and France into the war, who sieged Sebastapol and inflicted significant casualties

Question 2

What happened when Alexander II took over the war effort?

Answer 2

Nicholas I died as the war progressed and Alexander II ended the war, agreeing to return to the policy of closure of the straits, blocking Russian access to the Mediterranean

Question 3

How many casualties were a result of the Crimean war?

Answer 3

75,000, many of disease

Question 4

What main observations were made about the defeat in the Crimean war?

Answer 4

Russian organisation, communication and industry were all inferior, and modern soldiers had defeated a serf army and industrial growth and modernity in the west had been decisive

Question 5

What was changed as a result of the Crimean war?

Answer 5

Modernisation was sought - liberalisation of the legal system, educational change, military reform and government changes were brought in, but there were still restrictions on change and autocracy remained

Question 6

When did the Crimean War take place?

Answer 6

October 1853 to February 1856

Question 7

What caused the Russo-Turkish war?

Answer 7

It was caused by continuing Russian ambitions to dominate the area, although the immediate cause was a massacre of Christian Orthodox rebels by Turkish forces in the Balkans

Question 8

When did the Russo-Turkish war take place?

Answer 8

1877-1878

Question 9

Where did Russia attack in the Russo-Turkish war and were the attacks successful?

Answer 9

Russia attacked on two fronts (Balkans and Caucasus) and both were successful for Russia but at high costs, and Turkey was supported by British finance and weapons

Question 10

What happened to Russian victories in the Russo-Turkish war?

Answer 10

They were overturned at the Congress of Berlin

Question 11

Why were there no major reforms brought about at the end of the Russo-Turkish war?

Answer 11

The war was seen more positively at home and was not fought against a modernised country, and the war was quite short and the mood was generally positive and pro-Tsar

Question 12

What led to the Russo-Japanese war?

Answer 12

In the late 1800s there was a shift of emphasis to the Far East, but still about taking over control of a falling empire (China)

Question 13

When did the Russo-Japanese war take place?

Answer 13

1904-1905

Question 14

What were the short term causes of the Russo-Japanese war?

Answer 14

Japan had taken Port Arthur in Manchuria. Russia had forced Japan to hand it over and took control of the area, promising to leave in 1903. Negotiations failed and Japan attacked without warning in January 1904

Question 15

Why did the Russians lose the Russo-Japanese war?

Answer 15

Russia was expected to win with ease but the Russian Navy could not break out of the blockade of Port Arthur and it fell in January 1905. Naval forces were defeated at Tsushima in May 1905 after an 18,000 mile journey

Question 16

What unrest did the Russo-Japanese war lead to?

Answer 16

News of defeat arrived at the same time as growing discontent, inflation and shortages, leading to Bloody Sunday and a year of revolution, as people blamed the Tsar for the inferiority of the army

Question 17

What was Nicholas II’s response to the 1905 Revolution?

Answer 17

He responded with the October Manifesto, although political change had limits

Question 18

Why was the Russo-Japanese war so significant?

Answer 18

It hit at a time where there was a rise in various opposition groups, the 1905 Revolution, which the war initiated, was the biggest ever seen in Russia, and the political and economic changes brought about by the war, though still limited, were highly significant

Question 19

Why did Russia enter the First World War?

Answer 19

To protect Slavs in Serbia following the assassination of Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand. Russia did not want Austrian control of the Balkans

Question 20

What was the impact of the military reforms since 1905 on the First World War?

Answer 20

They worked well initially and brought quicker mobilisation than expected and some early victories, however, superior German tactics and leadership brought crushing victories at Tannenburg and Masurian Lakes

Question 21

What led to a political crisis in 1915?

Answer 21

The Tsar’s decision to lead the war personally and with Rasputin’s influence at home

Question 22

What led to the Tsar’s abdication?

Answer 22

Strikes and inflation hit the cities in winter 1916-1917, leading to demonstrations and revolution in February 1917, resulting in the Tsar’s abdication

Question 23

What was the impact of the First World War on Russia?

Answer 23

No other war in the period led to a leader’s overthrow, with huge economic damage, 300% inflation and social disintegration and peasant land seizures

Question 24

What did the Provisional Government choose to do in regards to war?

Answer 24

The chose to continue with the war, and although this was initially popular, it helped to raise support for the Bolsheviks by the end of 1917

Question 25

What other factors were reasons for Bolshevik success?

Answer 25

Lenin’s leadership, Kerensky’s decision making, the Kornilov coup and the economy

Question 26

What happened as a result of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?

Answer 26

Lenin signed away huge amounts of land, causing huge opposition in the Baltic States, parts of Ukraine and Poland

Question 27

What was the Civil War a reaction to?

Answer 27

It was a reaction to Bolshevik seizure of power and Brest-Litovsk

Question 28

What minority was notably suppressed as a result of the Civil War?

Answer 28

Ukraine

Question 29

Why did the Whites lose the Civil War?

Answer 29

There was a great deal of disorganisation, the Reds held the centre and main cities, and the Red Army was well organised by Trotsky, giving rewards and promotions based on skill rather than class

Question 30

How many people died as a result of the Civil War?

Answer 30

8-10 million

Question 31

When was Russia invaded by Germany?

Answer 31

Despite the Nazi-Soviet pact, Russia was invaded in 1941 in World War II

Question 32

What were the negative impacts of the Nazi invasion of the USSR?

Answer 32

Nazi forces almost reached the main cities before winter set in, Leningrad suffered a 900 day siege and 21 million people died; 13.7% of the population as opposed to 0.97% in Britain - the human impact was greater than any war in Russian history

Question 33

What were some positive outcomes of the Nazi invasion and the Second World War?

Answer 33

The Russians started to push back the Nazis in 1943, eventually occupying Eastern European countries. It was the only major war of the period that Russia won, even against a strong superpower. Land was recovered and new land taken and Stalin’s position was strengthened

Question 34

What happened as a result of Stalin’s paranoia after the war?

Answer 34

Political repression and paranoia went into overdrive, and the Leningrad affair pushed out war heroes Stalin suspected of trying to take credit

Question 35

What were the impacts of the Cold War on economy?

Answer 35

The war led to a costly arms race and nuclear diplomacy, with huge pressure placed on keeping up with the west at the behest of consumerism

Question 36

What happened in East Germany in 1953?

Answer 36

In East Germany, as a result of reparations, the people suffered shortages, leading to strikes and demonstrations, and order was only restored when Russian tanks appeared on the streets

Question 37

What happened in Poland in 1956?

Answer 37

As a result of de-Stalinisation, serious riots broke out in Poznan as workers protested against their low wages and living standards. There was a meeting between Gomulka and Khrushchev and tanks were used to clear the streets

Question 38

What happened in Hungary in 1956?

Answer 38

After Hungary tried to withdraw membership from the Warsaw Pact, Khrushchev ordered Russian tanks into Budapest, leading to a full scale uprising, and over 20,000 Hungarians were killed as a result of this

Question 39

What reforms were made to the military and by who after the Crimean War?

Answer 39

They were made by Dmitrii Milyutin from 1862 to 1874, and the service length in the army was reduced to fifteen years, training was modernised and rigorous instruction was provided for officers, leading to a far more professional army

Question 40

What were the consequences of the Crimean war?

Answer 40

The emancipation of the Serfs, the introduction of a Zemstva, military reforms and expansion of the railway system

Question 41

What were Russian casualties in the First World War?

Answer 41

8 million casualties, including 1.7 million dead and 2.4 million captured

Question 42

What happened to numbers joining the communist party during the Second World War?

Answer 42

Numbers increased from 3.6 million in 1941 to 5.8 million in 1945