HISTORY 3 BY MR. KASIRIVU DEO

THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTION

The Bolshevik revolutions/ Russian revolutions took place in March 1917 against the Tsarist regime of Tsar Nicholas II and in November 1917 against the provisional government led by Lvov Alexander Kerensky etc. The people of Russia rose against their ruler Tsar Nicholas II. The revolution resulted into establishment of the first socialist Republic in the world.

Factors for the collapse of Tsardom/ Causes of the Russian Revolution of 1917

  1. The despotic and repressive nature of the Tsarist regime. There were no constitutional or parliamentary reforms, no freedom of press, speech and no equality before the law. Arbitrary arrests without trial discontented many people. Religious intolerance meant persecution of the Jews and Lutheran Protestants in favour of Orthodox as the only state religion.
  2. The weakness of Tsar Nicholas II’s character. He lacked ability to solve the country’s problems. He instead relied on the ill- advice of Tsarina and Rusptin who were anti- reform and unsympathetic to the people’s demands. It provoked the rise of opposition, movements of extreme socialism that led to the revolt.
  3. The weaknesses of Tsarist government led to the revolution of 1917. It had shallow roots of constitutionalism. Even when the first parliament (Duma) was called in 1905, the Tsar rejected the reform changes suggested by the masses. He instead resorted to oppressive measures by tightening the police system and spy network. The Duma thus failed to bring about the desired reforms.
  4. The rise of socialist reform political parties like Democratic Party 1898 and social Revolutionary Party in 1900 demanded for reforms. They later turned into the Bolshevik Party (Majority men) led by Lenin and the Menshevik Party (Minority) led by Trotsky – The two parties stressed Marxist teachings of socialism advocating for political reforms and complete change in the social and economic systems leading to the outbreak of revolution.
  5. The educational differences in Russia led to a revolution. There was discrimination in education where by children of the peasants went to poor schools while those of the rich landlords attended better schools leading to mass discontent among the majority peasants.
  6. The impact of the Red Sunday, 1905. This was a bloody Sunday where striking families brought together by a priest in St. Petersburg were killed in cold blood. The strikers through a worker’s union had presented a petition to the Tsar demanding for factory reforms, freedom of speech and constitution assembly. The result of the murder increased discontent and unpopularity of the Tsarist regime through the Bolshevik revolution.
  7. The industrial revolution and its impact. Industrialization came with widespread socio-economic discontents worsening labour conditions through poor working conditions, low wages and exploitation of workers by capitalists provoking the masses to revolt. It also led to rural migration and consequent unemployment, urban congestion, political chaos, poor accommodation, food shortage yet the government provided no practical solutions to such burning issues.
  8. Feudalism and serfdom. i.e the land ownership system. The land problem worsened the conditions of the peasants. Although the 1906 emancipation policy had freed the peasants from Serfdom never the less it imposed heavy emancipation fee to the freed serfs to compensate for lost labour. It thus compelled some peasants to sell off small plots to meet the redemption fee. Many became landless and thus revolted to abolish the land lord system of capitalism. It was thus the inadequacy of Alexander II’s half hearted reform initiated for the serfs that led to a revolt.
  9. The effects of the Russo – Japanese war of 1904 – 1905 in which Russia was defeated. Russia’s constant advance towards Asia and building of the Trans- Siberian railway in 1891 and the Eastern railway in 1903 led to the revolution. Such developments brought Manchuria and Korea under Russia and in retaliation Japan declared war on Russia. Russia was defeated, forced out of the two territories and lost the valuable Port Arthur to Japan. The loss revealed the weakness of the Tsarist regime and the masses desire for a change through the Russian revolution.
  10. The influence of Western Europe revolutionary ideologies and tendencies served as examples to the Russian Revolt. For instance the 1789 French revolution, 1830 revolutions in France, Spain, Belgium and Poland, 1848 revolutions in Central Europe and 1905 revolutions in Russia herself. Russian radicals adopted another preaching such west revolutionary ideas of liberty, equality and fraternity to Russian masses.
  11. The outbreak of epidermics and natural calamities in form of bad weather and food shortages played a key role in the Russian revolution. Together with the destruction of the Ukraine wheat fields by Germany forces against Russian forces, the resultant acute food shortage forced the masses to revolt.
  12. The effects of World war I where Russia participated and lost a lot in terms of human beings and economic resources. Russian soldiers desired withdrawal from war yet Tsar Nicholas II continued to pursue a policy in favour of continuing with war due to his ambition to get Constantinople. Tsar gave no attention to the suffering and problems at home. This aroused anger in the army due to the soldier’s ill preparation for first world war and by 1917 the Cossacks (military regiments) broke into mutiny and fraternized with the revolutionaries.
  13. The effects of trade unions and workers’ organizations coupled with economic hardships like inflation and unemployment amidst a shameless government led to the Russian Revolution. The aggrieved workers and the jobless mobs struggled against the Tsarist government in 1917.
  14. The declaration of political amnesty to Russian political refugees by Tsar Nicholas II e.g Stalin from Serbia, Trotsky from USA, Litvinov from London, Lenin etc. Their roles and ambitions incited the Russian masses to revolt due to the revolutionary ideas spread to the people.
  15. The weakness of the provisional government under Lvov and Alexander Kerensky led to the second revolution of November 1917. The government failed to address the socio- economic problems unsolved by the Tsarist regime like unemployment, inflation, starvation etc/
  16. The Russification policy against the conquered states e.g Poland, Estonia etc. The people in these provinces were to be assimilated to Russia in language, institution and faith. The policy created immense opposition against the Tsarist regime since it sparked off nationalistic feelings in the conquered states.
  17. Karl Marx and the roles of the middle class elites, merchants and lawyers who advocated for reforms and desired to eliminate state coercion led to the Russian revolution. Karl Marx was concerned with the exploitation of the workers while the elites and lawyers desired respect for the rule of law in Russia.
  18. The rise of nehism i.e calling government nothing. This was mainly by the urban mobs that were unemployed, starved and greatly suffered yet the government was not moved about their fate. They thus shouted and wrote placards undermining the government resulting into the revolt.

Effects/ Consequences of the 1917 Russian Revolution/ Bolshevik Revolution.

  1. The March 1917 revolution led to the overthrow of Tsar Nicholas II and marked an end to the ancient regime of Tsardom in Russia which had been in leadership for many years. There was detention and execution of Tsar Nicholas II and his family in July 1918.
  2. The March 1917 revolt led to the rise of the provisional government in Russia under the leadership of the Prince Lvov and Alexander Kerensky. The revolution therefore temporarily brought new personalities to positions of leadership in Russia till November 1917.
  3. The November 1917 revolution led to the overthrow of the provisional government and the rise of Lenin to power in Russia and other new men like Trotsky, Stalin etc. who set up the first socialist workers’ republican government in Russia (Bolshevik government). This breed of new rulers addressed the socio- economic problems of the masses.
  4. There was heavy loss of lives and destruction of property registered in Russia due to the revolt and starvation that prevailed. Many people were arrested, imprisoned, starved to death and others killed in the course of the revolt against government.
  5. There were socio – economic reforms registered in Russia. Inflation, hunger, unemployment, working conditions, corruption, bribery and discrimination were seriously dealt with. Trade Unions were forced to become functional to protect the workers’ rights, new industries were built in addition to the legislation in the Duma.
  6. It led to the birth and spread of communism in Russia and Europe. Lenin and Stalin laid a foundation for the rise of socialism/ communism as a new political ideology in Russia as opposed to capitalism that existed before. It emphasized communal ownership of property and state responsibility for the socio- economic conditions of its people.
  7. The revolution led to the rise of nationalism of industries and land in Russia as opposed to the capitalistic system of privatization which led to the fall in production, unemployment and inflation. There was therefore an end to the land lord system of land ownership.
  8. it laid a foundation for the development of modern Russia. The socialist republic of Russia embarked upon economic development in terms of industrialization and other economic and social infrastructure like roads, schools, and health facilities etc. to improve on the people’s standard of living.
  9. After the revolution, the Russian leaders embarked on creation of a Russian empire to promote Russian imperialism in Asia. Russian imperialism was consolidated in Poland, Finland etc leading to creation of a larger political entity known as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR)
  10. The Russian imperialism after the revolt led to Cold War politics which became more prominent after the Second World War (WWII). It was mainly between the socialist East block led by Russia and the Capitalist West block led by USA. This disturbed world peace for many years as Super powers (USA and Russia) struggled to dominate the world affairs.
  11. It facilitated the rise of Nazism and Facism to fight Communism. There was civil strife in Russia as a result of the Anti – Bolsheviks in 1918 – 1920 which led to the dictatorship and the terror. Dictators like Mussolini came up to promote Fascism while Adolf Hitler promoted Nazism in Europe.

The Russian revolution therefore had both negative and positive consequences on Russia, Asian countries, Europe and the international communities.

Factors for the success of the Russian Revolution of 1917

There were two Boshevik revolutions in Russia in 1917. The March 1917 was against the Tsarist government and the November 1917 against the provisional government. The factors for the success included:

  1. The failure of the Tsarist government to control thegrowing agitation among the workers led to the success of the 1917 Russian Revolution. There were very poor working conditions in the industries combined with low wages and absence of minimum working hours i.e over exploitation of the workers. This made them to massively rise through their workers’ union since the Tsarist government had failed to solve their problems.
  2. The abdication of the throne by Tsar Nicholas II in favour of his brother Micheal on 15th March 1917 who refused the offer led to the success of the Bolshevik revolution. Micheal feared to inherit a poor state characterized by political evils and socio-economic evils.
  3. The foreign support particularly from Germany, Switzerland, Sweden and Finland to the peasants led to the success of the Bolshevik revolution. These countries gave moral, financial and military support which was vital for the success of the revolution for example Germany smuggled Lenin into Russia in disguise and helped him to overthrow the provisional government.
  4. The disastrous effects of the First World War on Russia i.e political, social and economic effects. Russia suffered greatly because of the war and there was famine, inflation, unemployment etc due to the war. This therefore made the government unpopular since it failed to solve the people’s problems and gave massive support to the revolutionaries leading to their success.
  5. The political amnesty offered to the political dissidents or political exiles by the provisional government accounted for the success of the revolution. Such politicians like Lenin promised food, peace and immediate solutions to the revolution. Such politicians like Lenin promised food, peace amd immediate solutions to the problems facing majority Russians and mobilized workers, soldiers and peasants through their speeches thus gaining much support leading to the success of the revolution.
  6. The mutiny of the Cossacks regiment and its support to the revolutionaries to the success of the revolt. The army had lost confidence in the Tsarist government as a result of the World war I effects and this made it to fraternize with the revolutionaries. Such conspirancy made it easy for the revolt to succeed.
  7. The able leadership of the revolutionaries led to the success of the revolt. Personalities like Trotsky, Kerensky and Stalin mobilized funds, man power and ammunitions especially from the friendly countries and in some instances the foreign powers gave direct assistance leading to the success of the revolt.
  8. The weaknesses of the provisional government led to the success of the revolt. After the Tsarist regime, the provisional government similarly failed to solve the socio-economic problems of the masses. Famine, inflation, unemployment, poor working conditions and discrimination continued to be the evils of the day. In addition the desired reforms were not evident. Therefore the masses had to do away with the provisional government in November 1917.
  9. The popular support from the masses to the revolution led to its success. There was a high level of unity among the Russians who were united under the Bolshevik party which made it easy for the revolt to succeed. The masses had confidence in socialism which made them determined to uproot the Tsarist government in favour of socialist government in 1917.
  10. The unpopular war policy of the provisional government led to the success of the revolution. The provisional government wanted to continue with World War I against the will of the Russian soldiers who wanted to withdraw from the war. By 1917, the majority Russians at home and the soldiers wanted unconditional end to the war which earned Lenin support in the 1917 November revolution.
  11. The provisional government failure to control the freedom of speech association and press was exploited by the Bolsheviks to woo support from the Russian masses. This contributed to the success of the 1917 revolt.
  12. The Bolshevik manifesto to the masses which was appealing and realistic won support and contributed to the success of the 1917 revolt. The ideas presented to the masses were the true reflection of their suffering and required a revolt to free them.
  13. The application of force and establishment of the Cheka (secret police) under Felix Dzerzhinsky to root out potential opposition led to the success of the Bolshevik revolution in 1917. All potential opponents were eliminated secretely to facilitate the success of the revolt.
  14. Lenin’s personality and oratory power led to the success of the revolt. He was a charismatic leader and made moving speeches during rallies which inspired and gave confidence to the masses to succeed.

Revision questions

  1. Examine the causes and effects of the 1917 Bolshevik revolution in Russia.
  2. Account for the collapse of Tsardom in Russia in 1917.
  3. Account for the downfall of Tsar Nicholas II in 1917.
  4. Account for the success of the 1917 Bolshevik revolutions in Russia.

THE WEIMER REPUBLIC

The Weimer republic was founded after the German empire created by Bismack was destroyed. The socialist democrats organized revolution and overthrew Jeiser William III and his governments; the Weimer was declared in 1919 with Fredrick as its first president and later marshal Hindenburg. However, the republic collapsed in 1933 when president Hindenburg appointed Hitler as chancellor of German several factors can explain the rise of the Weimer Republic as discussed below;

Reasons for the rise of the Weimer Republic

The need for a democratically elected government was one of the factors that led to the rise of the Weimer Republic. The constituent assembly delegates in Germany were influenced by the idea of liberty from Western democratic governments. They decided to destroy the Germany monarchy. Government in favor of a republic with such, the rise of Weimer republic in German was inevitable.

The defeat of Germany and the negative effects of the First World War also necessitated the rise of the Weimer republic by 1918, the allied powers had destroyed the German economy and German was defeated. Famine struck German starvation, inflation and unemployment leading to discontents. Such provoked strikes and demonstrations against Keiser William II leading to his abduction/ resignation. Having got dissatisfaction from the monarchy, the masses decided to come up with a republic in 1919 hence the rise of Weimer republic.