Russia Topic 2: Opposition to Tsarist Rule; Impact of WWI and the February Revolution Flashcards
(14 cards)
Loss of Trade
Economic Impact of WWI
- G blocked R’s access to Europe making trade w/ allies impossible
- G captured most important economic areas, e.g mining regions in P
- all imports + exports went through Vladivostok (froze over in winter)
Lack of Manpower
Economic Impact of WWI
- 15m men fought in war
- 1915, >500 factories closed, labour shortage
- fields left without crops
How much did the Russian Government spend on WWI between 1914 and 1917?
17 billion rubles
How much more money did the Russian Government spend on WWI compared to the Russo-Japanese War?
15x more
Battle of Tannenberg
- Aug 1914
- Russian Second Army destroyed
- defeated by H and L
- commanding GEN Samsonov suicide
What was St. Petersburg renamed to?
Petrograd
Russian Casualities during WWI
- end of 1914 1.5m casualties
- end of 1915 5m casualties
- March 1917 8m casualties
Battles of Masurian Lakes
both disastrous defeats delivered by H and L again
First Battle
- Sept 1914
- forced full retreat from East Prussia
- major defeat of First Army
Second Battle
- Feb 1915
- 100k casualties
- Tenth Army completely anihilated
Nicholas in Command
- Aug 1915 G occupied Warsaw, Russians forced out from Poland
- Sept 1915 N dismissed army commanders and assumed personal command
- had no mil. xp
- out of touch with domestic events in the capital
- personally responsible for all the defeats and losses
Political Impact of WWI
- Aug 1914 4th duma suspended
- 1915 Progressive Bloc formed
- domestic policy left to Tsarina and Rasputin
- Rasputing accepted bribes to appoint ministers
- 1916 3 Ministers of War, 4 Ministers of Agriculture and 5 Ministers of the Interior
- disorganisation due to changes in ministers
Influence of Rasputin
- could allegedly heal Tsarevich Alexei’s haemophilia
- rumours of affair w/ Tsarina
- PM Stolypin compiled dossier of evidence against Rasputin but assassinated in 1911
- gained influence over domestic policy after 1915
- assassinated by aristocrats in 1917
Strikes and Demonstrations and the Start of the Army Mutiny in Petrograd
February Revolution
- Jan 140k workers strike (12th anniversary of Bloody Sunday)
- Feb gov. announe rationing of bread from 1st March
- 23rd Feb International Women’s Day 250k marched against bread shortages (“Peace and Bread”)
- 26th Feb Pavlovsky Regiment mutiny
- causes full-scale mutiny
Army Mutiny
February Revolution
- Tsar based in Mogilev army HQ
- 25th Feb ordered police and soldiers to end strikes
- 26th Feb soldiers fire and kill 50 people (“Second Bloody Sunday”)
- Pavlovsky regiment refuse orders
- 150k soldiers mutinied
- 40k rifles and 30k revolvers stolen
Abdication of the Tsar
- attempted to travel back to Petrograd - delays in Pskov
- ordered GEN Ivanovov to take troops to the capital
- many commanders did not take troops out of fear their troops would join the mutiny
- senior officers and Duma tell N to abdicate
- agrees to allow his brother Michael to be Tsar
- strikers hate idea of new Tsar
- Michael declines ending 300 years of Romanov rule
- 1st March PG formerly recognised as new gov of Russia by Britain and France
