Russia 1855 to 1917 Reform and reaction

Russia in 1855 TTTTsar – autocracy BBBBackward country and very large PPPPeasants, serfdom and aristocracy

The Crimean war and reform  Crimean war disaster  Treaty of Paris humiliating  Alexander II saw Russia in crisis and believed that reforms would avoid a revolution

Emancipation of the serfs  Give serfs freedom and give compensation to landowners  Landowners against it but they were greatly in debt and most govt compensation money sued for the debts

Why was emancipation unpopular?  Peasants got small plots of land  Peasants had to repay govt the costs of the landlords compensation over 49 years  Mir to collect dues, taxes etc, crop rotation etc, movement of people.  Landlords still very powerful

Reform of local and central govt  1854 Zemstva set up  Law courts – trial by jury, judges paid  1870 town councils reformed  1874 Army reform  BUT…..  Power remained with Tsar

Alex’s II policies change  As he got older, less interested in reforms  For ordinary people, little actually changed  Alex became more interested in Pan- Slavism  Threats from revolutionary groups increased – Okhrana more important

Alexander III  Abolished many of the earlier reforms  Repression  Russification  Rejected Westernisers

Attempts at reform  Nicholas II weak willed, ruled as autocrat  Ignored the zemstva  1904 Union of Liberation set up – Nicholas ignored it

1905 Revolution  Protest against autocracy – by TUs, middle class, zemstva, workers in cities  Nicholas survived because the army stayed loyal  October 1905 – OCTOBER MANIFESTO  Duma met – but ignored by Nicholas

Changes  Stolypin PM  Abolished Mir control of land  1911 end of reforms  Unrest grew in Russia  Influence of Rasputin made Nicholas unpopular  1915 Tsar leaves for the front and never returned.

reaction

Why did opposition develop to tsarist rule in 1870s and 80s? NNNNo legal ways of complaining PPPPeople’s hopes raised by Alex II reforms – and then disapponted 1111876 – Land and Liberty set up PPPPeople’s will – terror group RRRRepression used by Tsar

The Marxists  1898 Social Democratic Party – Marxist -  1901 Socialist Revolutionaries – marxist but work with peasants

Why did opposition become more important? 1111903 SDs met in London – split PPPPlekhanov – use peaceful methods LLLLenin – use revolution – bolsheviks GGGGrowth of WC in cities – eg St Petersburg

Russia under Nicholas II  Backward, 80% pop in agric, extremes of wealth  Massive growth of cities – terrible conditions, growth of working class  Strikes!  Nicholas II weak willed

Revolution causes  Humiliating defeats in Japanese war  Protests – “Bloody Sunday”  Strikes and protests across the country

Revolution 1905  Union of Unions demanded parliament and universal suffrage  Unrest across the country  October – general strike began, St Petersburg soviet formed  October Manifesto issued

What was the October Manifesto?  Civil liberties granted  State Duma created  Nicholas had no intention of sharing power really  Three more Dumas met - powerless

Impact of WWI AAAArmy poorly equiped and old fashioned- machine guns, rifles, trains RRRRadio messages not in code! IIIIndustry and transport system can’t keep army supplied, FFFFood shortages in the cities iiiinflation

NNNNicholas takes over as C in C RRRRasputin left with Tsarina in Petrograd PPPPetrograd in real distress – prices, winter conditions etc.

Revolution breaks out Feb / March 1917