Russia, 1905 to 1914

1. How did Tsar Nicholas II survive the 1905 Revolution?

• His opponents were not united


• There was no central leadership


• He had been willing to compromise at the critical moment by issuing the October Manifesto, promising concessions


• Most of the army remained loyal
  

2. What was the Tsar's general attitude about the Dumas?

3. What specific improvements occcured following the 1905 Revolution?

There were signs of improving working conditions as more factories came under the control of inspectors. By 1914 an extra 50,000 primary schools had been opened. And the revolutionary parties seemed to have lost heart; they were short of money, torn by disagreement, and their leaders were still in exile.

4. Summarize the 5 major weaknesses of the Tsar's regime.

• Failure of the land reforms: Stolypin's land reforms would not have the desired effect, partly because the peasant population was growing too rapidly, and because faming methods were too inefficient to support the growing population adequately.


• Industrial unrest: The wave of industrial strikes. Over 2000 seperate strikes in 1912, 2400 in 1913, and over 4000 in the first seven months of 1914.


• Government repression: The secret police rooted out revolutionaries among university students and lecturers and deported masses of Jews, thereby ensuring that both groups were firmly anti-tsarist. Dangerous because the government made the mistake of alienating three of the most important sections in society- peasants, industrial workers, and intelligentsia (educated classes)


• Revival of the revolutionary parties: As 1912 progressed, the fortunes of the various revolutionary parties, especially the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks, revived. Both groups had developed from an earlier movement, the Social Democrat Labour Party, which was Marxist in outlook.


• The royal family discredited: Had a lot of problems going on of their own, within their family.