Russia, 1861-1905

Read Part I (pages 1 - 12) The Beginning of the End - 1861 - 1905.


1. List the general goals of the:

a. socialists: Hoped to create a classless society that would end the exploitation and suffering of the peasants and workers.

b. liberal reformers : Put in place western constitutional practices and the rule of law to solce Russia's problems and correct the injustices of the past.


2. List three characteristics of serfs' lives.

• Living simply in small, dark, and dank cottages, the peasants often shared their modest homes with chickens and other farm animals.


• Lived in remote villages that lacked schools or communication with the rest of the world
• Extremely harsh and lasted an average of only thirty-five years

3. List four reforms of Tsar Alexander II.

• Elimination of the system of serfdom; in 1861 tens of millions of serfs were liberated and a new system of land transference was established. (emancipation)
  
• Created local assemblies known as zemstvos, which were established to address issues such as road maintenance, irrigation, primary education, and taxation.
• Jury trials and relaxed censorship laws
• State supported reforms- wanted to increase industrial production and reduce the industrialization gap between Russia and the West
  

4. Why did the populists go "to the people" in 1873-1874?
They wanted to get closer to the peasants, such as a more personal level, hoping to persuade them to join the revolutionary cause.


5. List two consequences of the famine in 1891.
Famine and disease struck thirty-six million peasants who lived between the Ural Mountains and the Black Sea, and since the government took forever to do something about, half a million peasants perished from famine and disease in 1891-1892.

6. Why was Karl Marx important to Russian intellectuals?
Intellectuals seized upon Marx's ideas as a means for transforming their society and his ideas seemed to offer explanation for the causes of the famine. They also believed Marx's "European ideas" could help Russia become more like Europe.


7. What were the Goals and Methods of the following political groups in early twentieth century Russia? (see page 8 of the reading)

a. Liberal Democrats: wanted to have a more Western European system of government. The liberals valued individual liberty and saw the role of the state as protecting the rights of citizens.


b. Socialist Revolutionaries: two changes; socializing all land and transferring it to the communes, and replacing the monarchy with a democratic republic


c. Social Democrats: focused on the working class instead of the peasantry. SDs insisted that a successful revolution depended on revolutionary intellectuals building a stronger sense of working-class consciousness among workers.

8. How did Bloody Sunday change people's attitudes toward the Tsar?

They went from seeing the Tsar as a benevolent protector to the complete opposite and hating him.

9. List four reforms in Tsar Nicholas's October Manifesto.

• Freedom of the press, assembly, and association were introduced in Russia
• Russians could now legally form political parties and labor unions
• The Tsar was to share power with a two-chamber legislature