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!