Alexander II, along with most of Russia, acknowledged that the root of the problem lay in Serfdom; a form of modified slavery that was heavily implemented in Russia at the time. Serfs made up over half the population and many of them were forced to serve in the military despite being ill-equipped and under trained so it came as no surprise when Russia was defeated in the Crimean war. A national outcry then ensued for the Emancipation of Serfdom. The effects of the Emancipation cannot be overstated. Once serfdom was abolished in Russia in 1861 its economic growth ran at an average of 4.6 percent between 1862 and 1900, speeding up over the years.
Extended Response 1 At the turn of the year 1905 Russia was in a state of social, political and economic turmoil. The entire system, political, social and economic was manufactured by the ruling classes to support their own privileges. Russia’s economy was imbalanced to the extent that the majority of the country lived in poverty while the Romanov’s and the Orthodox church controlled a vast fortune. In Russian society, human rights and personal freedoms for citizens didn’t exist. Instead, the Romanov’s had created a police state where capital punishment and discrimination were tolerated and even encouraged by the government so, not surprisingly, many Russians feared the absolute power of the Romanov dynasty.
Some peasants left to work in the cities as the Tsar wanted Russia to be an industrial power, however the living conditions there hardly improved, which matched their dreadful working conditions. This poor treatment is what led to the 1917 strikes that helped force the Tsar to abdicate from the throne. This was an important factor in bringing down the Tsar because with so many people opposing him (over the years, because of food shortages and war failures, they were supported by women and army members, and the number of workers on strike rose to 250 000), he had no choice but to give up. However, I believe there is more causes behind this so I wouldn’t label it the most important factor of the Tsar’s abdication. Russia’s poor performance in WW1 played a very significant role in bringing down the Tsar too.
All Russian governments in this period faced strong opposition to their regime with the period as a whole punctuated by riots, disturbances and revolutions. Political change was expected in Russia during this period, particularly during the Tsarist regime where the growth of the revolutionary intelligentsia, ironically an effect of the Great Reforms, led many to question the need for a Tsar or a royal family at all. The first main success of political opposition is widely considered to be the assassination of Alexander II at the hands of the People’s Will in 1881. Although they assassinated their Tsar, it is very likely this did not actually lead to their desired outcome, it being greater political freedom/democracy. Many historians have said Alexander II was considering the formation of a parliament in Russia.
His army also consisted of millions of poor, starving peasants with bad equipment, poor supplies of rifles and ammunition. In 1916, two million soldiers were killed or seriously wounded, and one third of a million taken prisoners. The Russian population was horrified. They considered the Tsar irresponsible for taking over the army and held him responsible for everything; as a result instability was growing at an alarming rate for the Tsar who had once held himself so assuredly in power. Nicholas II took this course of action to assure himself he still had complete control of Russia.
To what extent was the lack of political representation the most significant cause of the 1905 revolution? There were a number of different causes that contributed to the start of the 1905 Russian revolution however some were more significant than others. One of the contributing factors was the lack of political representation due to the existence of an autocratic regime. Whilst this was an important factor, the most significant factors were the social and economical issues that caused unrest amongst the Russian population. 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.
Describe the Russia that Tsar Nicholas 2nd inherited and ruled; and its problems. ‘During the coronation of Tsar Nicholas 2nd in Moscow there was a mass-scale stampede on the Khodynka field where more than a thousand people were killed’. From the second Tsar Nicholas sat on the throne he was faced with an unruly Russia. Tsar Nicholas 2nd inherited Russia in 1894 after his father’s death, Tsar Alexander 3rd. He faced many challenges as the Tsar of Russia due to many factors and was his own downfall in his autocracy of Russia.
This question focuses on the events which took place in Russia leading up to 1905 to cause a Revolution. The events which took place were either long term factors which built up over a period of time or medium term factors which were less long term or short term factors which triggered the revolution. Arguably the most important factor which led to the 1905 revolution was down to Russia’s incompetent government. The main reasons for the incompetence of the government was that it always had the same views as the Tsar as the appointed governors were appointed by the Tsar and dismissed by him as he pleased. This made the government not original so the country could not benefit from it.
How far was the impact of World War One the crucial factor in the fall of the Romanovs in February 1917. This essay will argue that the impact of World War One was a very crucial factor in the fall of the Romanovs in February 1917. The events in the Revolutions of 1905 and 1917 also show that Nicolas II was not a good leader and these events led to the fall of the Romanovs. World War One caused many problems for the Government, the army and the people at home. Having a war caused inflation, government spending rose from 4-30 million, taxation increased, and money became practically worthless and the price of food and fuel quadrupled.
Built on the Socialist ideology of state owned and run business, the declining Soviet economy was plagued by economic inefficiencies and corruption. The country suffered from decades of being tossed on the rough seas of inconsistent and capricious political leadership. There were many economic problems caused from the communism system. All the things they knew was taken away so suddenly most didn’t know what to do with themselves. The Government and Economy had fallen with the Soviet Union.