Why Did the Tsarist Regime Collapse in 1917? Flashcards
(39 cards)
1
Q
Factors leading to LONG-TERM discontent.
A
- REVOLUTIONARY GROUPS, SR’s were popular among peasants. Peasants suffered in poverty, high taxes, little land, famines. Made up 80% of population.
- WORKERS, experienced unbearable conditions, long working hours, no civil rights, no vote, low pay.
- NATIONAL MINORITIES, hated Russification, Finns, Poles, and Jews all wanted more autonomy.
2
Q
Russification
A
The process of making ethnic minority groups adopt Russian customs, wear Russian clothes, and speak Russian.
3
Q
Autonomy
A
Having power over your own community
4
Q
Totalitarian Regime
A
Ruled by one person with absolute power/control.
5
Q
Tsar’s incompetence
A
- 1984, started Autocratic rule. Nominated a ministerial Council, but it never met.
- WEAK CHARACTER, fired people by letters, never face to face. Not interested in state affairs. He was aloof (disinterested) from current affairs.
- RESPONSE TO OPPOSITION, violent repression, many said her was responsible for turning minor protests into a full-scale revolt ( e.g. Bloody Sunday).
6
Q
Reasons for the 1905 revolution (2)
A
- Russo-Japanese war, lost to Japan, humiliation for the Tsar, lost much respect from the public. Viewed as a weak leader
- Peaceful demonstrations, Bloody Sunday, led by father Gapon is fired upon and causes innocent deaths, sparking rise of strikes and riots across country.
7
Q
Result of the reasons for Revolution in 1905.
A
ALMOST OVERTHROWN, however just holds on to power. In response publishes the OCTOBER MANIFESTO.
8
Q
OCTOBER MANIFESTO
short term results…
A
- THE DUMA, Russian parliament which would have to agree to laws that would be passed. (was the first of many, dissolved less than 1 year later).
- ADDITIONAL REFORMS, lowered taxes for the poor. Okhrana find and arrest revolutionaries.
9
Q
Liberals
A
Radical members of the duma that wanted progressively more modernizing reforms.
10
Q
Stolypin introduction
A
April 1906, Minister of the interior
July 1906, replaced the failed goremykin as Chairman of the Council of Ministers.
11
Q
Attack on Stolypin when and effects
A
August 1907, gov declares state emergency!
- Field courts-martial were used to deal with terrorists.
- Trials were secret, took place within 24 hours of the Crime.
- Sentences, often execution, took place immediately.
12
Q
Continued instability after 1905.
A
SR combat organisation carried out political assassinations, over 4,000 Gov. officials killed in 1906/7.
13
Q
Stolypin best known for
A
AGRICULTURAL REFORM.
14
Q
Law of Nov 1906
A
peasants allowed to leave the commune,
peasants allowed to buy up neighboring strips of land,
Stolypin hoped for more efficient farming systems as a consequence.
Wanted to create a class of landowners who had their own property to prevent revolution.
15
Q
Peasants’ land bank
A
Gave loans to individual peasants to help them buy their own land, motivation for more productivity.
16
Q
Resettlement
A
- gov encouraged resettlement. Reduced the effects of overcrowding, 3.5 mil people move to Siberia from 1906-1915.
17
Q
Consequence of Stolypin land reforms…
A
- hard to assess long-term impact, because the war and revolution prevented them from taking root in Russia’s future.
- Early death in a theatre in Kiev, assassinated by a Socialist Revolutionary September 1st 1911, he wasn’t able to continue his programme of reform.
18
Q
Percentage of Russian Population Peasants
A
80%
19
Q
First and Second Dumas
A
- Stolypin became Chairman of Council of Ministers after the dissolution of first Duma.
- Second Duma called in Feb 1907, even more radical than the first.
20
Q
Second Duma
A
- “duma of national anger”, very chaotic!
- many leftist parties trying to disrupt governmental business.
- Dissolved in June 1907 after deputies thought to be inciting mutiny in the army.
21
Q
Third Duma
A
- Stolypin tried to secure a more moderate 3rd Duma.
- Through an imperial decree, electorate was changed to reduce representation for workers (removing the most radical group from voting).
22
Q
THE OCTOBRISTS
A
- third duma called in Nov 1907.
- made up of Octobrists, who supported the 1905 October Manifesto.
23
Q
THIRD DUMA
A
- called upon in Nov 1907,
- made up of Octobrists,
- more stability, sat for full 5-year term. Stolypin developed a good relationship with members of the Duma.
- Duma’s committees became more and more important, as it used its right of interpellation by calling ministers to account and making sure they were acting legally.
- Ante-Duma, a committee which prepeared laws before they went to the main Duma. Contained members of the local councils from other parts of the country.
24
Q
The Naval Budget
A
1909, Stolypin supported a naval budget which the Duma approved.
Tsar saw this as Stolypin overstepping his authority because the Tsar was in charge of the military.
Tsar overruled, creating tension.
25
local councils Russian Name
Zemstva
26
Causes of the Lena Goldfield Stike...
- Poor working conditions.
| - Their demands were an 8 hour working day, increased wages, improved food delivery.
27
Response to the Lena Goldfield Strike...
- administration refused to comply with workers' demands.
- The Tsarist regime send imperial troops to intervene.
- 170 killed and 373 injured.
28
Longer-term response... (Lena Goldfield strike)
-massacre sparked strikes across the empire. (bloody Sunday effect)
- After 13,995 strikes in 1905, strikes had depreciated to 222 in 1910. Lena goldfields had the same effect, and there were 700 strikes in April of 1912 alone!
According to Lenin, the massacre had "INFLAMED THE MASSES WITH REVOLUTIONARY FIRE" it had rekindled the revolutionary atmosphere of 1905, only far more factors were brewing in hand.
29
WWI economic effects...
- gov printed too much paper money, causing Russian currency to fall in value.
- Taxes were increased on the poor to fund the 17,000 million Roubles which the gov spent on war...
- Gov spending increased by a multiple of 8 between 1913 and 16.
INFLATION means that worker's wages could no longer afford everyday items. Wages increased by 200%, but food and fuel by a minimum of 400%.
30
WWI social effects...
- Army took priority over railroads and railways and requisitioned huge amounts of food to feed the army. Caused the collapse of the Russian railway system, causing further suffering and price rises in the towns and cities of Russia.
- Many refugees came from across Russia to Petrograd, but the city struggled to cope because it was far from food-producing areas. Bread ration fell, and insufficient wagons of grain less and less every month.
- 15 million peasants fought in the army and many injured or died. horses that had previously been used for ploughing seized for military. Very difficult for these rural families to suppport themselves or provide nearly enough food for urban areas
31
MILITARY DEFEATS
-Tannenburg and Masurian lakes were the key areas of defeat immediately in 1914 after the outbreak of war.
So many deaths; General Samsonov, one of the few experienced military leaders, committed suicide following news of such a diabolical outcome of Tannenberg out of the 150,000 entering the battle, only 10,000 escaped captivity or death.
-Autumn 1915 it was estimated that 800,000 soldiers had perished already in the war.
These enormous figures caused a huge decrease in public morale and support for the war, and because the Tsar was headlining the war with his leadership at the front, it made him the most responsible for these tragedies and the suffering brought by the war, and this significantly aided the rekindling of the revolutionary atmosphere that lead to his abdication on the 22 March 1917 and the eventual revolution.
-EVIDENCE WAS THE COUNTLESS CONSCRIPTION RIOTS AND ANTI-WAR RIOTS.
32
Political effects of the first world war...
- TSAR AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF, no experience in warfare, but ignored his advisors.
- he left for the war front in 1915, left the publicly despised Tsarnia (german heritige) and Rasputin (most hated man on earth) in charge, and became the central source of blame for all military loses and the havoc it caused back at home.
- UNREST IN PETROGRAD, he lost the respect of the people back at home, and the support of those among whom had once been popular as 'little father'.
- Both soldiers and ordinary workers were disillusioned.
33
Rasputin
- Rasputin became very religious.
- The Tsarina looked for religious men among the ordinary people to come to St Petersburg.
- The Tsar and the Tsarina believed that Rasputin was able to help cure their ill son of Heamophelia, and he was summoned to the Winter Palace often.
- He was hated by many for his many public sexual displays, he gained influence in the Tsar's shoes when he was gone to war, and controlled the actions of the Tsarina. Conditions at home got worse due to their lack of organisation of food imports and sometimes trainloads of food were left rotting on tracks across Russia.
34
Winter 1916-17
Petrograd and Moscow, a lack of food and unrest among workers led to instability in the cities.
35
Pulitov Steel Workers
40,000 workers go on strike over wages and declining winter living standards caused more and more frequent strikes.
-
36
Demonstrations
80,000 people demonstrated on 14th Feb, demanding Duma take control from the Tsar.
Cold winter had caused a great deal of suffering. Living conditions did not improve with the weather, and more people took to the streets.
37
When was the Putilov Steelworks Strike.
18th Feb 1917
38
Main features of Tsarist Rule
- He ruled as an autocrat, possessing absolute authority over the nation of Russia, with the aid of the civil service.
- Nobility accounted for 10% of the population.
- upper class owned all the land.
- Workers were the most radical group of the population.
- The Okhrana was the Tsar's secret police, which played a vital role on spying on enemies of the Tsarist regime and helped enforce his power through suppression of radical opposition.
- The Tsar had a large army which became very effective in enforcing his power, as he was the supreme commander and could deploy units at will.
- Orthodox church reinforced his power as it stated the Tsar was appointed by God. However this was not that important because knowledge of priest corruption was seeping into the minds of the peasants.
39
Difficulties in Governing the Tsarist State...
SIZE OF THE EMPIRE
| - enormous size c
