The long-term policies of Russification imposed by the Tsar in the 1880s, caused a lot of political unrest within Russia and these contributed to the 1905 revolution. Russia was the only country within Europe with no elected national parliament. The only form of elected representation (what the Tsar referred to as ‘senseless dreams’) was the “Zemstva”. The Union of Liberation demanded in December 1904, that a parliament should be set up because they felt the Russian population needed an outlet to express their views. At the time, the formation of political parties was illegal but despite this, they still existed.
Nicholas II had tried his best to regain people’s support and stop the revolution tide through the reforms after the 1905 Revolution. After the 1905 Revolution, the Tsar still had to face the above problems. In order to prolong his rule, he was forced to reform Russia. At first, he agreed to set up parliament, Duma. It made Russia became a constitution country like Britain.
Their argument to autocracy was based on the view that it was a practical necessity due to the Empire being so vast and diverse. They did not take advice from an elected parliament and instead, the country was run by the Committee of Ministers (established in 1861) whose membership consisted of around 10 to 13 administrators. The Tsar had the overall power to both appoint and dismiss ministers, which therefore supports the view that repression was a consistent occurrence, as democracy for the people was never allowed. This autocratic style of government was exchanged between rulers in 1917 when the Bolsheviks seized power in the October Revolution, with Vladimir Lenin as their figurehead. The Commissars similarly demonstrated absolute rule during their reigns as Heads of State.
During the beginning of the 1900s, there were plenty of revolutions and violence that took place. The Chinese revolution in 1911 and Russian Revolution in 1917 shared similar goals, they wanted to end the power of their current leader and establish a new one. For Russia, it was Tsar Nicholas II and for China it was the Qing Dynasty, Russia wanting a functioning communist government and Chinese revolutionaries wanted a democratic government. The first outcome is different in that China relied on agriculture to maintain its economy and Russia relied on industry to fuel its economy. The second outcome of the revolutions was that the countries were dramatically changed, two great powers were stopped and communist leaders eventually took over in the two countries.
Preventing the spread of radical and even liberal ideas was a huge concern in the tsarist government. The government severely restricted press freedom; fourteen major newspapers were banned between 1882 and 1889 for displaying 'liberal' tendencies. There was a return to the pre-1865 system under which publishers were required to submit material to government censors before publication. In 1880 the Okhrana was created in order to replace the Third Department. Dealing with political opponents of the Tsar was its main task.
Known as the Czech Legion, they fought the Germans as a separate unit under the leadership of Masaryk until Brest-Litovsk ended that fighting. Trotsky gave them his agreement that they had his permission to travel through Russia to the Western Front so that they could continue their campaign against the Germans. The one provision was that the Czechs had to leave their weapons behind. As soon as the first units of the Czechs surrendered their weapons, the Red Guards shot them. This was to prove a costly error as it was obvious that the other men could not trust what Trotsky had promised.
How far was political change the most the most significant development in Russia in the period 1880-1989? During the period 1880-1989, right from Alexander III’s reign to the collapse of the Soviet Union under Gorbachev political change was very significant in Russia. However despite the importance of the political change that occurred during the period, more significant develops occurred elsewhere which overshadowed this. The importance of political change was significant right throughout the period with the counter reforms of Tsar Alexander III and Tsar Nicholas II fuelling the social unrest in the late 19th and early 20th Century which eventually led to the 1917 Revolution in February and October. The political purges of the Stalinist period eventually led to the attempted raising of living standards and the move away from state terror during de-Stalinisation under Khrushchev.
• In response to massive protest he created the October Manifesto (propositions) and promised to grant more rights, such as freedom of speech, meeting and association. Also, promised that no one would be imprisoned without trial. He agreed to set up a national legislature called the Duma but it had limited powers and did little to relieve peasant and worker discontent. Simran: He created the Fundamental State Laws 1906 but the rights were more limited than promised in Manifesto. Ex: created state council and upper chamber but he would nominate half members; he solely encapsulated the right to declare war, he would still control the Orthodox Church, the power to appoint and dismiss ministers and to dissolve the Duma, if he desired.
Pyotr (Peter) Stolypin Peter Stolypin, a controversially well known figure throughout the History of modern Russia, was known mainly for his inhumane and cruel methods in which he dealt with opponents. His agricultural reforms and involvement with the Romanov's Party contributed to his popularity. Stolypin assumed the position of Minister of the Interior and later Prime Minister. During this time he introduced various progressive military, education and finance policies, as his beliefs made him wane from the true definition of what was good for the people and social welfare. Historians have different views on him, some referring to him as the ‘Demon of Imperial Russia’, whilst others consider him to be the ‘Driving Force of Russian History’.
Which Tsar caused the greatest change in Russia from 1855-1918? Change caused by the Tsars can be put into three sections. These are the number of people affected by the policies, how much change caused and how much of a turning point over the history of Russia. When discussing Russia I will be focusing on the social and domestic policies of a particular Tsar over the period. Of the Tsars I believe that Alexander II, called the ‘Tsar Liberator’, caused the biggest change over the period.