Russia Topic 1 Flashcards
Long term cause of revolution: police state 5
Police were given a lot of power to protect the tsar and government
Courts and police all served the tsarist autocracy not the people of Russia
Censorship to prevent the publication of radical ideas
Political opponents sent to Siberia or imprisoned
Secret police - Okhrana: infiltrated underground groups; kept watch on suspects and execute terrorists
Long term cause of revolution: 3
Nicholas did not know how to command others and had very few strong ideas
But strongly believed that he had divine power and that this must be handed onto his son- any attempt to take initiative by ministers was seen as an attempt to usurp his power.
Devoted to family particularly son Alexei who suffered from haemophilia - reliant on Rasputin which undermined his power
Long term cause of revolution: political 3
Nicholas ruled as an autocrat which meant there was no legal limit to his power
No parliament instead Nicholas was advised by hand-picked advisors (usually aristocrats or senior church leaders
Tsar controlled the army and the navy
If things went badly it was assumed the ministers had given bad advice
Grievances of the various social groups: Industrial workers
Industrialisation had only really begun in Russia in 1890s so had relatively few workers
Conditions in the factories were dangerous; working hours were long; pay was very low and the rules were harshly enforced
Housing shortage meant workers were forced to live in overcrowded, dirty barracks rife with diseases
The sudden growth of heavy industry had not allowed enough time to build appropriate infrastructure
Grievances of the various social groups: peasants
85% of population comprised of peasants
Population growth had led to more peasants who needed land but all were too poor to buy it
Famines in the 1890s killed 100,000s
People were shocked by how badly the famine was handled by the government - word famine was banned in newspapers
Overtaxed; desperate poverty; huge wealth divide
Grievances of the various social groups: middle class
Mostly liberals: wanted to have a constitution which guaranteed rights under a fair legal system and wanted a parliament
Feared the radicals who wanted to distribute wealth among the poor and violence that comes with great change
Grievances of the various social groups: Non-Russians
Of the 125 million people living in the Russian empire only 44% was of Russian nationality
Some other nationalities wanted independence as the empire always put Russia first
Policy of ‘Russification’- attempted to enforce Russian culture and language
Pogroms
Cause and effect of the Russo-Japanese War
Russia wanted control of a part of northern China called Manchuria as it had valuable resources such as coal and silver and (most importantly) an ice free port. However the Japanese also wanted Manchuria for similar reasons.
The Japanese easily defeated the Russians. This seemed very embarrassing for the Tsarist government who has hoped that this easy victory would stem the tide of revolution. Also the war was not very good for the economy.
Cause and effect of the Battle of Tsushima
The Battle of Tsushima ( 14-15 May 1905): Russians sent a Baltic fleet to East Asia to fight Japan after Manchuria.
3000 km of journey which took 7 weeks (starting in October 1904) they were attacked by the Japanese when sailing through the Tsushima strait.
As the Russian ships were older and less manoeuvrable and in bad conditions after the journey they were defeated by the Japanese a second time.
The Russians lost all their battleships and 5000 men were killed and 5000 men were captured.
Demands of the people on Bloody Sunday
factory workers and their families wanting 8h working days
the right to organise trade unions
a constitution guaranteeing these rights and other freedoms by law.
Who played a major role in Bloody Sunday
This was a massacre of unarmed protestors. The crowd, led by father Gapon and carrying icons of the Tsar, was brining a petition to the Tsar signed by 150000 people.
How did the Tsar and the soldiers respond to Bloody Sunday
It was a peaceful march but the protestors path was blocked by soldiers. The demonstrators started shouting abuse at the soldiers about military failure in Manchuria. In response the soldiers fired two warning shots and mounted Cossacks charged into the crowd attacking them with whips and swords. 100 men were killed and 100s wounded.
Consequence of Bloody Sunday
united people everywhere in anger and disgust at the Tsar, element of trust towards Tsar broken, caused huge resentment especially as the Tsar did not even read the petition at the Winter Palace and it was a peaceful protest
—> trigger for revolution
Events of the 1905 revolution: how did the workers and the peasants react?
1- From Bloody Sunday onwards there were strikes in the cities and riots in the countryside
Peasants rooted against landlords burning 3000 manor houses and sometimes killing landlords
Peasants created communes
The police found it hard to control and army could not deal with it as they were spread out too widely
Industrial workers used strikes to achieve aims, more than 400 000 workers went on strike in January 1905
From sept 20 - 2 Oct 1905 there was a general strike as workers from important industry e.g. railways went on strike
No railway = no transport resources = russia cannot function
Strikes liked workers together with liberals who wanted political reform so they united in a atonal strike supported by the middle class
What happened during the Potemkin Mutiny: Causes, events and the effects
Sailors face tough discipline and poor conditions + learn about socialism, also the majority of the officers were of the upper class and had complete control of the life of the sailors
Quartermaster Matyushenko organised a mutiny of the Black Sea fleet that would link up with the peasant families of russia to bring down the Tsar
The sailors refused to est maggot meat and an officer shot a leading mutineer which spark the Potemkin mutiny. What happened:
Officers were grabbed and thrown in the sea
They killed and attacked officers
They took control of the ship
They then sailed to Odessa where they were various demonstrations in favour of the mutiny and riots spread through the city, 1000 citizens were killed.
