Who was Tsar Nicholas?

• Alexander III died in 1895 at the age of 48 and Nicholas inherited the throne.

• Just two years before his death, Alexander said his son was ‘still absolutely a child, with infantile judgments’

• Nicholas himself said ‘What am I to do? I know nothing of the business of ruling.’

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Your aims as Tsar are:

To stay in power and pass the throne on to your son when you die.

You have 10 crowns, representing your starting power. Each decision you make will earn or lose you crowns.

Keep two scores – one for you and one for Tsar Nicholas – who will be the

best Tsar?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 1You have no experience of running a country.

You need advisors. Who should you choose?

a. Form a Committee of Ministers from members of the nobility

b. Ask the people of Russia to elect ministers to help you to govern them according to their wishes

c. Form a Committee of Ministers but largely ignore them, preferring the advice of those you trust most, for example your wife, Alexandra,

Decision: - why?

Decision 1Gain 1 crown – you will only get the advice of

the aristocrats, but it’s better than nothing

Decision 1b. Gain 2 crowns – what a democratic person

you are!Decision 1c. Lose 1 crown – your wife doesn’t know anything about

ruling Russia either!

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 2Of the 125,000,000 people living in the Russian

Empire, fewer than half are Russian. There are over 100 different nationalities with different languages , religions and cultures. Only 40% speak Russian. How will you govern them?

a. Celebrate diversity! b. Insist that schools and churches use Russian as

the only language, forbid the importing of any materials not in Russian and suppress other cultures.

c. Insist that everyone learn Russian as the official language but allow people their own cultures in private.

Decision: -why?

Decision 2 a. Gain 1 crown – there are more of them

than there are of you – wise choice!

Decision 2b. Lose 2 crowns – the peasants will feel

disenfranchised and you are giving them reason to revolt against you

Decision 2c. Gain 2 crowns – a sensible pragmatic

decision – generating stability and uniformity but not giving anyone reason to complain!

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 3About 80% of people in Russia are peasants. Although the

peasants were freed from serfdom in 1861, they had to buy their land. They usually couldn’t afford it and ended up owning very small bits of land, and working for a landlord – so not much had changed with freedom! Some peasants became prosperous. These are called Kulaks. But most peasants have terrible lives with a life expectancy of only 40 years. Much land isn’t suitable for farming and continues to be owned by the aristocracy anyway. The population increased by 50% between 1860 and 1897 so farming land has become very scarce. When a peasant dies, his strip of land is divided between the sons, so the plots are getting smaller and smaller. In addition, Russian peasants are still using ancient farming techniques of strip farming. What should you do?

a. Pass laws which reform the way land is distributed and farmed

b. Let the peasants carry on – after all, it’s a traditional Russian way of life

Decision: - why?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 3a. Gain 3 crowns – a progressive decision

which will help to address peasant grievances!

Decision 3b. No gain or loss – you are just burying your

head in the sand and storing up problems for the future

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 4From the 19th century Sergei Witte (a government minister)

introduced laws that lead to rapid industrial growth. Oil and coal production trebled and iron production quadrupled. Many peasants left the countryside to work in cities like St Petersburg and Moscow. These workers lived in terrible housing provided by capitalism businessmen and worked long hours for low pay. Overcrowding, terrible food, disease and alcoholism were major problems. What should you do?

a. Ask the capitalist businessmen to improve conditions for the workers

b. Allow the workers to form trade unions and hold strikes to force the capitalists to improve conditions

c. Do nothing to improve conditions for the workers, and forbid strikes and trade union activity

d. Pass laws that force capitalists to improve conditions to reasonable standards

Decision: - why?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 4a. Gain 1 crown – it probably won’t work, but you

have shown the workers you careDecision 4

b. No gain or loss – you have empowered the workforce but they may get out of control with their demands, and you have definitely upset the capitalists. It might solve matters or it might not!

Decision 4c. Lose 2 crowns – the capitalists will never improve matters

voluntarily. By refusing the workers permission to protest you are condemning the workers to a miserable life and giving them reason to hate you.

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 4d. Gain 3 crowns – the workers’ problems have been solved

but you haven’t given up any power to the workers

Decision 5The aristocracy in Russia is only 1% of the

population but controls 95% of the wealth. This seems very unfair in comparison with the lives of the peasants. What should you do?

a. Get the Russian Orthodox church to teach respect and loyalty to you. After all, you are the Tsar, chosen by God, and have the right to do what you like.

b. Redistribute the wealth of Russia.c. Pass laws which keep you wealthy but

improve the lives of Russian peopleDecision: - why?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 5Lose 1 crown – it might work in the short term, but there is a

limit to how much influence the church can have in persuading people that you have a right to so much more than they have.

Decision 5b. Lose 2 crowns – you think you can stay in

power if you redistribute everything fairly? If the peasants don’t get you the nobility will!

Decision 5c. Gain 2 crowns – smart move, Tsar! You are still at

the top of the heap but everyone below you likes you more!

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 6There is growing criticism of your rule. The Liberals (capitalist middle

class) want you to share power by introducing a democratically elected government (Duma). The Social Revolutionary Party want land shared by the peasants who farm it, not owned by wealthy landowners. The Social Democrats want the workers to take control of the factories and the ‘means of production’ and share them out between all the workers of Russia. In 1903 the Social Democrats split into the Mensheviks and the Bolsheviks. Although the Mensheviks believe that society will inevitably be transformed eventually, the Bolsheviks think the workers should take power by violent revolution, starting now. What should you do?

a. Listen carefully to the criticisms and pass laws to address the problems so the criticism goes away

b. Insist that you are the Tsar and have the right to govern Russia anyway you choose. Trust that the love of the Russian peasants for you will outweigh the criticism.

c. Use the Okrana (secret Police) to crush opposition and then exile opponents to Siberia, and introduce censorship to limit the potential for opposition.

Decision: - why?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 6a. Gain 3 crowns – you are getting smarter!

Progressive government that meets the needs of the people – you could stay in power forever!

Decision 6b. Lose 1 crown – the people might love you now, but

they won’t love you forever if their lives are rubbish!

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 6c. Lose 2 crowns – you continue to prove that you don’t care

about the lives of Russians, you just want to suppress them. That’s not going to make you popular, Tsar.

Decision 7Between 1890 and 1905 the Social Revolutionary

Party assassinate a number of important officials in protest at your government. Those assassinated include your Minister of the Interior Dimitri Sipiagin (2nd April 1902). How should you deal with these protests?

a. Accept that assassination was a last resort protest for the Social Revolutionaries, that they must be serious about their concerns and you should listen and negotiate.

b. Appoint Plehve as the new Minister of the Interior. Plehve is hardline and he will help the Okrana to crush opposition.

Decision: - why?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 7a. Gain 1 crown – it doesn’t look good to

negotiate with people who commit illegal acts like assassinations, but at least it will address the problem and stop it spiralling out of control

Decision 7b. Lose 1 crown. Illegal acts such as assassination can’t be

tolerated, but failing to address the root cause will only increase unrest

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 8Criticism is increasing. What should you do?a. Increase oppression and censorship. You must stop

criticism at all costsb. Relax censorship laws and try to establish

government-controlled trade unions, to address the needs of the worker without giving them too much freedom

c. Rely on the fact that the peasants love their ‘little father’ and will blame your advisors rather than you, as they have before

Decision: - why?

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 8a. Lose 1 crown – do you really think that’s

going to help now?!

Decision 8b. Lose 2 crowns – relaxing censorship laws increases

criticism and accepting the principle of trade unions makes the workers demand free trade unions, not government controlled ones.

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision c. Lose 1 crown – although the peasants have believed

this for a long time, if you keep refusing to listen to them they will start to question how much you care

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 9You have been trying to increase Russian control over

the area of Manchuria and Korea: the Russian government is always on the look out for ice-free ports in the Pacific and it would increase your influence over Beijing. The Japanese are nervous and are trying to negotiate ‘spheres of influence’ for both Russia and Japan in the region. What should you do?

a. Negotiate with Japan as war would increase Russia’s internal problems

b. Engage Japan in a war over Manchuria, in the hope that war against a foreign power will distract Russians from criticising you

c. Do nothing and hope Japan doesn’t become too powerful

Decision: - why?

Decision 9c. Lose 1 crown. Japan increases the size of it’s empire

and military strength. They are a growing threat.

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 9b. Lose 2 crowns – have you learned nothing?!

Decision 9a. Congratulations! This would gain you influence in

the Far East without any risk. A very sound strategy. Gain 1 crown.

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Decision 10The war against Japan isn’t going well and

have caused food shortages in Russia. This makes your government even more unpopular. Criticism increases. What should you do?

a. Meet the people and discuss their problems

b. Leave St Petersburg before any trouble starts

Decision: - why?

Decision 10a. Gain 1 crown – finally, an attempt to address

concerns instead of burying your head in the sand! You’re going to have a lot of work to do, as the workers have a lot of grievances by now, but it’s probably not too late

Decision 10b. Lose 2 crowns – this means you are absent on 22 January

1905, a day which becomes known as Bloody Sunday and is the final straw for many people in Russia.

You are Tsar Nicholas – are you the weakest link?

Summing Up

• So, out of a maximum possible score of 17 points, how much did the Tsar achieve?

• What does this suggest about the way the Tsar governed Russia?

Which 3 adjectives best describe Tsar Nicholas’ rule?

• Autocratic• Innovative• Traditional• Inexperienced• Misguided• Naïve• Paternal• Considered• Conservative• Unconcerned• Strategic• Consultative• Oppressive