Russia 1848-1914 The Bear

Alexander II

Alexander II (1855-1881)• Perhaps the most liberal ruler prior to 20th

century

• Russian conditions– 90 % Russians lived on farms

– Serfdom still a problem• Uprisings• Poor production

– Serfs bought/sold

– Serve military 25 yr terms

I.

• Emancipation Act (Edict) 1861–Alexander II abolished Serfdom

–Most Russians unaffected • Lived in Mirs (highly regulated communes)

• Collective ownership

• Zemstvos established in 1864–Local assemblies

–Step toward political participation

–Lords, however, controlled Zemstvos

• Judicial system improved

• Censorship relaxed (not removed)

• Liberal education programs

• Put on Gold Standard

• Growth of Industry helped spread popularity of Marxism!

• Railroads and Industry–1860-1880 RR built: 1,250 miles to

15,500 miles

• Domestic manufacturing–Suburbs grew around Moscow and

St Petersburg

–Modern factory workers

–Strengthen military: Expansion South & East

Critics of Alexander II’s reign

• Alexander became increasingly conservative (realism replaced romanticism)

• Radical populist movement advocated utopian agrarian society

• Intelligentsia and Nihilism grew

• Alexander II assassinated in 1881

Intelligentsia and Nihilism• Intelligentsia

–Hostile group of intellectuals

–Believed they should take over Russia

• Nihilism–Intellectual philosophy

• Science only is real

• No spiritual ‘meaning’ to life

• Said society should be torn down and rebuild

Alexander III

Alexander III (1881-1894)• Most reactionary czar of 19th century

• Slogan:–Autocracy, Orthodoxy, Russification”

• Encouraged anti-Semitism–Pogroms initiated: resulted in

persecution of Jews

–Zionism was Jewish reaction (Herzel led: Jewish home in Holy Land

II.

Count Witte oversaw Industrialization

• Brought West Tech & built factories

• Rise in Russian middle class (small #’s)

• More railroads (35,000 miles by 1900)

–Trans-Siberian Railway biggest rail line• Moscow to Vladivostok (5,000 miles)

• By 1900 became 4th in steel industry (US, Germany, Britain, Russia)

• ½ World’s petroleum supply

Nicholas II

• Russo-Japanese War (1904-05)–Sphere of influence in Manchuria

–Sought Korea

–Japan moved to stop Russia expansionism

–Japanese defeated Russians• Very Humiliating!

• Russia turned away from Asia

Nicholas II (1894-1917)III.

• Revolution of 1905–Poor economy

–Russo-Jap war hurt

–“Bloody Sunday” Jan 1905• 200,000 worker/peasants march to

Winter Palace

• Czar not in town

• Fires shot; many killed

–General Strike and troop mutinies

–Czar forced to make concessions

• Duma created–Assembly serving as advisory board to

Czar–Freedom of speech, assembly, and

press–Czar could veto

• Revolutionaries politically divided–Unable to agree

• Propertied classes benefit at expense of workers

• Brief mild economic recovery 1907-1914

• Peter Stolypin make reforms–Agrarian reforms

–Broke down collective village ownership

–Encouraged enterprising peasants

• Post 1911, Nicholas II’s court dominated by Gregorii Rasputin–Caused doubt about Czar’s ability to

rule