Introduction to Russia Pre 1917. Useful context for the later study post 1917 for the course. Insight into the economy, the government, society, opposition, the army, February Revolution etc
-Many Peasants/Workers in debt and very poor. Suffered from Rising Taxes. Very wealthy Aristocracy.
-Little land reform and redistribution.
-Rise of Revolutionary Ideas. Riots in cities.
3. Economy:
- 4 of every 5 citizens were peasants in 1900
- They try to work near their homes to improve their lives.
- As the population grew, plots of land grew smaller and smaller.
- Between 1861 and 1900 the size of plots halved.
- Nobles where 1 percent of the Russian population and owned about n25 percent of the land
- Average workday of 1 and a half hours.
- In 1900 another class of Russians started to become rich. They were the capitalists. Banking industry and
trade.
- Easy profits for capitalists made worse lives for workers.
4. Government:
- Autocracy led by Tsar Nicholas II and Alexandra his wife (monarchy without a share of power)
- He could make new laws, increase taxes, sack ministers
- Civil servants to control the vast population (government ministers-minor officials)
- Used the “Okhrana” or Secret Police to suppress any opposition (censoring, spying, arresting
- Used military soldiers “Cossacks” to handle violent opposition (uprisings, riots)
- His wife Alexandra was confident and self-willed encouraged him to rule as an autocrat
- The “Duma” (Parliament) didn’t have much power/wasn’t efficient as it was advisory (Tsar could dismiss it,
couldn’t reach agreements)
5. Religion:
- The Church massively influenced the Russian population
- This Church had some success in establishing itself as the dominant religion in Russia.
- The tsar had given the Church many privileges, and when the Bolsheviks took power in 1917, they separated
the Church and State, with the government taking over Church-owned lands.
- The Church supported the White Army in the Russian Civil War
- The Soviet government was atheist, so the Church had no place in society under Lenin.
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