RUSSIAFROM ABSOLUTISM TO REVOLUTION

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THE TSARIST EMPIRE

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

• Despite the liberal revolutions of the 19th century, the

Russian Empire continued to be an absolute monarchy.

• The Russian absolute monarchy was ruled by the tsar.

THE TSARIST EMPIRET

he

tsar

Concentrated allthe powers

Was supportedby:

The nobility

The orthodox Church

The army

Burocracy

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

THE LAST TSAR: NICOLAS II AND HIS FAMILY

• Political situation:

• Civil rights were not recognised.

• Political parties faced repression.

• There was a Parliament called

DUMA:

• Its powers were very limited.

• The Tsar could gather or disolve

the Duma whenever he wanted.

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

• The economy

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

There was a semi-feudal economy:

A wealthy minorityowned most of theagricultural land.

A peasant majorityworked the

agricultural land.

• The pesants were extremely poor.

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

Russian peasants at the beggining of the 20th century.

• The economy

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

Industrialisation

Heavy industry

and railways

The workingclass

increased.

It depended on foreingcapital and on the State

The

bourgeoisie

was smaller

and less

significant

than in other

European

countries.

A capitalist

economy could

not develop.

• Working-class assembly in a Russian factory. 1905.

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

Po

liti

cal

pro

ble

ms

1898

1903

1905

1914-1917

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

THE TSARIST EMPIRET

he

op

po

sit

ion

Liberal parties Bourgeoisie

Revolutionaryparties

Social revolutionary party

Peasants

Social democraticparty

Workers

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

• In 1898, the Russian Social

• Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP)

• was formed.

It was composed by workers.

Its aim was to establish a Social statebased on the principles of Marxist ideology.

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

• In 1903, the RSLDP divided into two separate factions:

Moderatefaction.

Martov arguedthat gradual reforms couldachieve a Socialiststate.

The Mensheviks

Radical faction.

Lenin arguedfor animmediaterevolution toremove the tsarfrom power and establish a Socialis state.

The Bolsheviks

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

• THE REVOLUTION OF 1905

• Trigger:

• Russia tried to expand to Japan, but Japan defeated Russia.

• Russia suffered an important economic crisis.

• January 1905:

• There were protests against the

tsar´s absolutist regime.

• The Russians went to the

Winter Palace in St.

Petersburg, residence of the

Tsar, to ask him to make

political changes.

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

• THE REVOLUTION OF 1905• January 1905:

• In response to the repression:

• Workers and soldiers formed a revolutionary council or SOVIET in thecity of St. Petersburg.

Bloody Sunday: The

government suppressed the

protests with violence. As a

result, there were a lot of

dead and wounded people.

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

• From 1914-1917, Russia took part in

WWI:

• It worsened the economic and political

problems that the empire was already

experiencing.

• This caused more discontent and protests

because Russian soldiers did not have

enough food or military equipment.

• This led to a revolution in 1917.

• Video about Nicholas II: Russia's Last Emperor.

• Part 1

• Part 2

• The Romanovs in colour

THE TSARIST EMPIRE

THE REVOLUTIONS OF FEBRUARY

AND OCTOBER 1917

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RUSSIAN

REVOLUTION OF 1917• Why is the Russian Revolution so important?

• It´s an important milestone in the Contemporary

History:

1. It means the emergence of a new model of State based in

Socialism.

2. It means the end of the liberal Revolutions.

3. Two different social systems emerged: socialism and

capitalism.

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RUSSIAN

REVOLUTION OF 1917• Why is the Russian Revolution so important?

1. Two different social systems emerged: socialism and

capitalism.

1. The communists believed that capitalism was a system of

exploitation:

1. CAPITALISM: The Bourgeois factory owners exploited the proletariat

and then enjoyed all the profits.

2. SOCIALISM: All the production, industrial and agricultural, under the

communist system would be controlled by the Soviets, and the

profits of labour would be distributed fairly by the state.

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RUSSIAN

REVOLUTION OF 1917• Why is the Russian Revolution so important?

1. The new social system caused many consquences in

Europe:

1. Many communists wanted to reproduce this revolution and

apply it to other countries.

2. Many communist parties appeared everywhere.

THE REVOLUTION OF

FEBRUARY 1917• What are the causes of the revolution of 1917?

• Russia continued to be an absolute monarchy with a

semi-feudal economy.

• Russia´s participation in the First World War caused more

discontent and protests because Russian soldiers did not

have enough food or military equipment.

• WWI worsened the econmic and political problems of the

Tsarist empire.

THE REVOLUTION OF

FEBRUARY 1917• When did the Russian Revolution begin?

• The Russian Revolution began on 23rd February with a

demonstration in St- Petersburg.

• Slogan:

• Peace and Bread.

• What happened next?

• On 25th february there was a general strike.

• On 26th february the tsarist troops wanted to suppress it

but they refused to shoot

against the strikers.

THE REVOLUTION OF

FEBRUARY 1917

The Tsarist army

THE REVOLUTION OF

FEBRUARY 1917• There were demonstrations before the Palace of the Tsar.

THE REVOLUTION OF

FEBRUARY 1917What was the result of these protests?

• The protests involving peasants, workers and soldiers

forced Nicolas II to abdicate.

THE REVOLUTION OF

FEBRUARY 1917• What happened after the abdication of Nicolas II?

• At first, the Mensheviks formed a

provisional government led by Kerensky.

• The provisional government:

• Declared Russia a Republic.

• Made political parties legal.

• Its aim was to establish a liberal political

system.

• But the provisional government did not take control over all

the Russian territory:

• Because it was in favour of taking part in WWI

• Because it would introduce gradual reforms to achieve a

Socialist state.

THE REVOLUTION OF

FEBRUARY 1917

• Which alternative government emerged

in Russia?

• The Bolsheviks opposed the Mensheviks

and established and alternative

government based on the soviets.

• A soviet was a revolutionary council.

• The soviets spread throughout Russia.

• Peasants, workers and soldiers formed soviets.

• They had their own army: The Red Army.

THE SOVIETS´ IDEOLOGY

The key character: LENIN

• Lenin was the leader of the Bolsheviks.

• He was the promoter or the Russian

Revolution.

• He established a program

to be followed in the Revolution

based on his famous “April Theses”

THE SOVIETS´ IDEOLOGY

• “April Theses”

• These theses consisted on:

1. Withdraw of WWI.

2. Redistribution of lands to allthe pesants.

3. Control of the factories bythe workers comitees.

4. Autonomy for the differentRussian nacionalities.

5. Delivery of power to thesoviets.

THE REVOLUTION OF

OCTOBER 1917

• What happened in october 1917?

• There was another revolution:

• The soviets controlled by the Bolsheviks took

control over St. Petersburg and stormed the

Winter Palace.

• As a result, the

provisional government

fell.

THE REVOLUTION OF

OCTOBER 1917

• What were the consequences of the fall

of the provisional government?

• The Bolsheviks sized control of the

government and Lenin became the new leader

of Russia.

THE REVOLUTION OF

OCTOBER 1917

What were the consequences

of the fall of the provisional government?

• Russia signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with

the German Empire in March 1918:

• This allowed Russia to withdraw from an

unpopular war.

• But in return the Bolsheviks agreed to give large

amounts of land and resources to Germany.

REMEMBER!!

THE CRISIS OF 1917 IN WWI

(We saw this slide whenlearning about WWI).

• The Russian Revolution.• The Tzar was overthrown and a

Communist government wasimposed.

• The new government signed thePeace Treaty of Brest-Litovsk(1918):

• Russia withdrew from the war and gavea big part of territory to Germany.

THE REVOLUTION OF

OCTOBER 1917

• What were other consequences of the

fall of the provisional government?

• Land was redistributed among the poorest

peasants.

• Minor nationalities were recognised.

1918

• At the beggining of

1918 the Revolution

had succeeded.

1918

What did the

Bolsheviks do after

taking power?

• In July 1918 they

killed the tsar

Nicolas II and his

family.• Video

VIDEO: Murder Of The Romanovs

Min. 22:07

1918

What did the Bolsheviks do after taking

power?

• They began persecuting their opponents:

• Supporters of the Tsar: landowners, high-ranking

military, Orthodox Church.

• Supporters of the liberal political system.

THE CIVIL WAR: 1918-1921

In response to these events, a civil war

broke out:

Betweentwo

groups

White Russians

Thecounterrevolutionaries,

supported by the foreignpowers.

Red Army

The Bolshevik forces, who supported the

Revolution.

THE CIVIL WAR: 1918-1921

Who won the war?

The war was won by the

Bolsheviks, thanks of the

influence of Trotksy in the

Red Army.

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICSECONOMY

• In 1921 a NEW ECONOMIC POLICY (N.E.P.) was

established to improve:

• The production

• The social conditions

• One of the most important actions was:

• The State controlled transports,

foreign trade, the banks and great

enterprises.

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICSA NEW STATE

• In 1922, Lenin established the UNION OF SOVIET

SOCIALIST REPUBLICS (URSS or Soviet Union).

• It was a federation

of republics.

• It was a

plurinational and

multiethnic state.

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICS• The flag of the USSR (1921-1991)

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICS• The flag of the USSR (1921-1991)

The sickle and the hammer is a symbol

which represents the union of the workers.

It was also used to represent the

communism and its political parties.

It is composed by a hammer overlapping a

sickle. This tools are the symbol of the

industrial proletariat and the peasants,

respectively.

The overlapping of both tools symbolizes

the unity between all the workers.

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICS• The flag of the USSR (1921-1991)

The red five-pointed star is one of thesymbols of Socialism and Communism.

It represents:• the five fingers of the worker´s hand• the five continents. It is related to the

internationalism of the marxistslogan “Proletarians of all countries, unite!”.

• the five social groups who led theestablishment of Socialism: theyouth, the militaries, the workers, thepeasants and the intellectuals.

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICSPOLITICS

• In 1923 a new constitution was established.

• It was based on Communist principles.

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICSPOLITICS

• In the USSR, Karl Marx´s idea of the dictatorship of the

proletariat was put into practice through a system in

which workers´ interests were represented by one political

party: the communist Party of the Soviet Union

(CPSU).

• The party controlled the soviets.

• The soviets directed all state

institutions.

CHANGES IN ECONOMY, SOCIETY

AND POLITICSPOLITICS

• Under the Communist system, the state also controlled

the means of production, such as factories and energy

sources, as well as trade and finance.

http://kristaris2007.blogspot.com.es/2007/1

1/weblog-project-russian-propaganda.html

LENIN AND THE INTERNATIONALISM

• Lenin thought that it was necessaryto spread the revolution outside theUSSR.

• In 1919 Lenin created the ThirdInternational (KOMITERN).• Other countries were invited in

order to create communistparties.

• The communists parties followedthe model of the CPSU:• Very centralised party.

• Not much democratic party.

• Critics were considered dissidence(people who disagrees with thegovernment)

• In 1924 the USSR was recognisedby many countries.

• VIDEO

• Lenin´s speach 1919

• What is the Soviet Power?

Comrade Lenin cleans the world

from garbage.

• EXERCISES ON PAGE 173

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