the russian revolution!

Problems Arising

Need For Modernisation
There was a great need for modernisation of backward, archaic Russia. The Tsar and the ruling elite were eager for Russia to take centre stage in the world and the only way to do that was by modernising the conutry through industrial means. However, Russia was desperately poor and backward, with little machinery used in farming and a ballooning impoverished population. Nicholas II was not too keen on the idea of modernisation, as it would be difficult to maintain the institutions of autocracy in a modernised Russia. Industrialization would mean the growth of the middle classes that would create pressure for political change for a more accountable and fair government system. Industrialization would also increase literacy and the level of education of the workforce, enabling more people to challenge the government. There was also no leeway to allow modernisation, as there were no funds and the government needed to invest in industry on a large scale. They needed to buy expensive machinery to equip factories that would manufacture goods, but where would the money come from?

Solutions to Modernisation Problems
1. Foreign loans The government took huge foreign loans, particularly from France. The intereset payments on these loans, however, had to be made at regular intervals.
2. Squeeze money out of the peasants and urban workers The tsar increased both the state taxes peasants paid and taxes on everyday items like salt. He used the surplus grain from harvests to sell abroad and pay off the interest on foreign loans. The urban workers' wages were kept extremely low so that the money availible went into industrial development.

However, things went wrong after this new scheme was implemented for a while. Russia could not sell its products abroad due to an international slump, and the home market was incredibly weak as the peasants had no money to spend on manufactured goods. Thousands of urban workers were fired and strikes and protests broke out. Bad harvests pushed peasants into starvation, and there was massive discontent of the public.
The Russo-Japanese War In an attempt to divert attention away from the economic depression, the Tsar decided to declare war on the Japanese. He had also been hoping to galvanize the different ethnicities under a single banner. However, Russia lost the war, and the economic and social plight of the peasantry and industrial workers were further worsened. Russia suffered many casualties and the Russians were feeling unhappy over the defeat by the small country of Japan, whom they considered as inferior to might Russia. This led to a growing dissatisfaction with the governement and the pressure to reform the way the country was managed.

Before the Revolution

Social Structure
At the beginning of 1917, Russia was growing rapidly and the population was heavily diversified, consisting of many different cultures, religions and languages. A large percentage of the population consisted of peasants, with the nobility and clergy making up only 1-2% of the total, and an almost complete absence of a middle class. Non-russians were made to adopt Russian customs and speak Russian, and it was only the Russians who got the important jobs in the government, despite almost 50% of the population being non-Russian.

Lifestyle
Peasants - Practised backward forms of farming like subsistence farming with few tools. There was not enough land to go around and most suffered debt problems. Many years ago, they were once serfs owned by the nobility. After emancipation, they were given plots of land by the nobility and forced to pay for them. Most could not afford it and went further into debt, stemming a lot of discontent as the farmers felt that the land truly belonged to those who worked it.
Urban workers - Received basic education and most were literate and receptive to revolutionary ideas. They had extremel low wages and working conditions were poor, with many deaeths resulting from accidents and work-related health problems. Living conditions were appalling and overcrowding was a huge problem.
National Minorities - Were discriminated against as the Russians were favoured for better-paying jobs. They led oppressed lives and wished for equality and an end to the policy of 'Russification' (everything in Russia had to be Russian, no different languages/cultures etc were tolerated).

Political Structure
Russia was an autocracy, with the monarchy having absolute power and the tsars were thought to be appointed by God Himself. There was an imperial council that was responsible to the tsar alone, and there was no parliament. It was a rigid and oppressive hierachy marked by inefficiency due to its inflexibility. Corruption was rampant, and the council was practically impenetrable for the ordinary folks, who found that their interests were not being served fairly. Opposition was not tolerated and the government has a secret police network which was used to sort out rebels. Political critics who spoke out against the government were sent to exile or imprisoned.

Religious Structure
The Russian Orthodox Church had developed its own traditions and customs, and placed special emphasis on mysticism. Holy men were held in high regard, of which included Grigory Rasputin, a man who would later change the fate of Russia. It also supported the tsar's divine right to rule over Russia absolutely.

The Monarchy
Tsar Nicholas II was not prepared to assume the throne after the sudden death of his father. He was uninterested in the job and indecisive, disorganized and weak. He was unwilling to make any move towards a constitutional monarchy as he believed he possessed the divine right to rule, and could be vicious towards any opposition of his regime.

The Revolutionaries
Karl Marx's idea of Communism appealed to many people, especially the discontented. A new revolutionary party called the Social Democrats was formed on the basis of Communism and claimed that they would give the peasants, the urban workers, the middle class and the minorities the equality and political power that they deserved.

And so, this was the backdrop to which the seeds of the revolution were planted into.

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