Dawn of a New Century
Russia is Forced to Reform
How do you express yourself in an autocratic regime?
• Think of how an individual could politically express themselves in an autocratic regime:
How do you express yourself in an autocratic regime?
• Art
• Literature
• Violence
• Withdrawal of Labour
• Emmigration
• Corruption
Was Revolution Inevitable?
• Possibilities for the direction of Russia at turn of the Century– Status Quo– Reform– Revolution
• Brainstorm the difficulties and challenges associated with these 3 options in 1900
Simmering Discontent• Intelligentsia
– Denied power– Students
• Revolutionaries– Socialist Revolutionaries
• Peasant Based– Social Democrats
• Marxist Urban Based• National Minorities
– Want end of Russification policies• Peasants
– Land Reform– Population pressures– Inefficient practices – poor harvests
1900 and 1902 famine• Workers
– Poor working conditions– 1902 - 1904 Economic Depression
• Internationally – could not export• Domestically – Demand too weak
Russia’s Expansionist Foreign Policy
• Diversionary Tactic– Rally to flag– Appeal to Pride and Patriotism– Divert population from everyday realities
• Imperial – Land based
• Great Game• Europe sealed• Russia seeking to extend Asian Sphere of
Influence• Trans-Siberian Railway
– Vladivostock
Russo-Japanese War• Anglo-Japanese1902 Alliance• Korea
– Spheres of Influence, Boxer Rebellion• Russians looked down on Japanese as
inferior non-Europeans• Russian armed forces operating at limits
of communication and supply lines– Trans-Siberian Railway not yet complete– Army had to get off train and walk for 6
weeks to get to Korea– Navy was based in Baltic
• Long journey to far east
• Japanese Efficiency– Modern siege warfare
• Mukden
• Naval Debacle– Tsushima Straits
• Sue for peace• Treaty of Portsmouth
– Surprisingly lenient – good negotiating by Witte
– However critical damage to Tsar’s and Russia’s prestige
Weakened Authority
• Can you explain why the Tsar’s authority had become considerably weaker between 1900 and 1905?
Weakened Authority
• Can you explain why the Tsar’s authority had become considerably weaker between 1900 and 1905?– Pillars of Tsarism
• Aristocracy• Army• Secret Police• Church• Bureaucracy
– Bleak economic picture– Loss of prestige
1905 Tsarist Russia Stretched to Breaking Point
• Dissatisfaction with Economic and Military catastrophes
• Father Gapon– Police double (triple) agent
headed Russian Factory Workers Union March
• 150,000 wanting higher pay, shorter hours and free elections
– Bloody Sunday January 22nd
• Troops open fire kill 200
• Sympathy strikes– Workers, students, civil servants,
teachers, doctors and Imperial Ballet dancers!
Revolt Turns to Revolution? February – October 1905
• Tsar losing control of the country – Virtual anarchy
• Grand Duke Sergei Assassinated• Tsushima Defeat
– Potemkin Mutiny• Peasants attack landlords• Nationalist Revolts• Pogroms• Train Strike paralyses forces of order
– Army still in Far East• Soviets set up
– Rival Worker’s Government• Leon Trotsky headed St Petersburg Soviet
• Full General Strike in October
What Happens Next? Options available to the Tsar?
• Tsar losing control of the country – Virtual anarchy
• Grand Duke Sergei Assassinated• Tsushima Defeat
– Potemkin Mutiny• Peasants attack landlords• Nationalist Revolts• Pogroms• Train Strike paralyses forces of order
– Army still in Far East• Soviets set up
– Rival Worker’s Government• Leon Trotsky headed St Petersburg Soviet
• Full General Strike in October
October Manifesto• Witte advised the Tsar to make concessions
– October Manifesto• A Duma (Parliament) would be set up to represent the
interests of the people• Civil rights granted
– Freedom of Speech– Freedom of Conscience
• Political Parties allowed to be created• Press Censorship ended
• Liberal opposition happy with promises– Small print not yet finalised
• It seems as if Tsar has made major concessions towards creating a Liberal Constitutional Monarchy– Liberals praise 1905 Revolution
The Tsar has Second ThoughtsFundamental Laws, 1906
• Tensions subside– Liberal Intelligentsia Content
• Army back from Far East• Tsar feels strong enough to reassert control
– Crushes St Petersburg and Moscow Soviets with army• With reduction of Tension, Tsar feels he does not need
to keep October Promises• Modifies October Manifesto with Fundamental Laws
– Tsar declared that he intended to maintain autocracy– Duma could not pass laws or control finance– Ministers to report to Tsar (not Duma)– Franchise limited to well off
• However, Russia still does have a parliament of sorts for the first time in its history
• Timeline
First Duma 1906“The Gathering of Savages”
• Many revolutionaries boycotted due to Fundamental Laws– SDs and SRs
• Kadets (liberals) and Octobrists (Conservatives) did well in election
• Kadets immediately overplay their hand– Immediate Land Reform– Rights for Minority Nationalities
• Tsar dissolved Duma– Vyborg Manifesto
• Kadets run to Finland to try governing from their– Mostly ignored and disqualified from standing for reelection
– Introduced electoral college system to try to stop liberals being reelected
– SD and SR Revolutionaries realise it was a mistake to boycott 1906 election – join in next election
Second Duma (1907)• The peasants Duma
– Tsar stops liberals from being returned • Ends up with more radicals and revolutionaries instead!
– Plenty of poor, uneducated representatives turned up in St Petersburg
– Delighted to have parliamentary immunity from prosecution
• Plenty of theft, drunkenness, fights etc…• Revolutionaries realised that they could hold up banks
etc…– The Bolshevik – Koba the Bankrobber
• Dissolved in just 4 months
Third Duma 1907 - 1912
• Stolypin adjusts franchise to ensure a Conservative victory– Landowners got 50% of the vote– Urban and peasant votes severely
restricted• Octobrists big winners but a
reasonably large Kadet grouping.– Stolypin still does not always get
his way– Has to resort to Article 87
• Bypasses Duma
• After severe rigging, the political system did stablise
Stolypin’s Reforms• Stolypin tried to modernise
– Industrialise• Gigantism
– Agriculture• Believed peasants conservatives and monarchists at heart
– Education• Increases literacy rates
– Diplomacy• Entente with Britain
– Military• Standardisation• Offensive reforms at request of French
• Strict policing of opposition– Stolypin’s Necktie – field executions
• Bolshevik leader Lenin concerned at successes of reforms– Will delay revolution
• However, Paradox– The more successful his reforms, the weaker the monarchy
Stolypin’s Downfall• Royalist and Tsarina Alexandra’s meddling (Rasputin)
– Concerned that Stolypin was being too successful• Eclipsing the Tsar
• Backroom intrigue– Western Zemstvo Bill (Poland)– Stolypin assumed no problem– Backroom intrigue with Tsar meant that Stolypin loses vote
• Stolypin furious and offers resignation• Tsar talks him out of it – says that he will allow the law to pass• Has to use article 87
– Octobrists withdraw support from Stolypin
• Assassination– Police double (triple) agent assassinates Stolypin in Theatre
• Russia loses its most reliable politician to meaningless intrigue that achieved nothing
Russia Adrift but Afloat 1912 - 1914
• Return to Authoritarianism– Government feels confident
• Rightists in control of Duma• Economy reasonably bouyant thanks to Stolypin’s reforms and investments by
Britain and France• Trying to claw back power lost to Duma in 1905
• Lena Goldfields Strike– 270 killed
• SDs split into Bolsheviks and Mensheviks– 4,000 strikes in 1914
• Beilis Affair 1913– Ritual murder of 13 year old
• Conspiracy blamed on Jewish Beilis– Very weak case
• Kerensky got Beilis acquitted
• Police and Okhrana still in control• Many Revolutionaries flee overseas• Tsarist Russia would probably survive
– Barring any unforeseen crises!