Russia 1894 - 1917 Tsarist Rule: Revolution and Reform

Russo-Japanese War

In 1904, Nicholas II decided to participate in a war against the Japanese for the territory of Manchuria. It was poor leadership on the Tsar's part that led to the death of many Russians. Moreover, people in industrial towns were suffering from shortages of food and famine. This military defeat severely undermined the authority of Nicholas II. 

1905 Revolution

On 22 January 1905, a peaceful demonstration under the government spy, Father Gapon (priest), occurred. The industrial workers and their families were complaining about their present conditions: Long working hours with low pay and horrible living conditions Protesters wanted a parliament  Questioned their loyalty to the Tsar Nicholas II left the Winter Palace in fear of the demonstrators. The Cossacks attacked the crowds in order to assert the authority of the Tsar. An estimated 130 were killed and 3,000 wounded. This tragedy resulted in unrest across Russia:  Sailors on the Potemkin carried out a mutiny in June 1905 Strikes occurred in industrial towns October rail strike - a national strike in the city of Moscow Food was not reaching industrial towns Demanded an overhaul of the system of government Workers and soldiers gathered together to from Soviets, these were committees formed to represent them Nicholas survived, barely, by publishing the 'October Manifesto'.

'October Manifesto' 1905

The Tsar promised a number of reforms to the Russian people in the form of a manifesto: The establishment of a parliament (Duma) Nicholas would make no laws without the approval of the Duma Liberals approved this development and many strikers went back to their jobs as they felt like they were getting their desired reforms. Some peasants continued to revolt, believing a Duma was not enough. When troops came back from the war against Japan the Tsar felt more secure. The Octobrists supported the Tsar in his manifesto. Further, taxes were lowered on the poor in society and Peter Stolypin was introduced as the Prime Minister. 

The Fundamental Law of the Empire

Many riots and strikes occurred after the 1905 revolution. However, Tsar Nicholas II felt his position was strengthened again. In 1906, he introduced The Fundamental Law of the Empire: The autocracy was ordained by God, therefore, it could not be subject to the Duma The Duma would not control the finances of Russia The Duma would have limited powers when it came to passing new laws "Supreme autocratic power is vested in the Tsar of all the Russias. It is God’s command that his authority should be obeyed" - Nicholas II

The Duma

There were four Dumas in total that were voted for by men in a secret ballot. The system of voting was fixed to allow those loyal to the Tsar to take up majority of positions. The aim of the first election was to elect a conservative Duma loyal to Nicholas II.  The Duma was split into two assemblies (houses):  State Council: upper house where over half the members were appointed by the Tsar. The rest were elected by privileged groups. This house had the power to veto the lower house. State Duma: this was the elected body that had few powers. It needed the Tsar's approval for legislation to be passed.    First Duma (April-June 1906): Kadets (Liberals) won majority of seats The Tsar was deeply disappointed The Kadets called for full control of the tax system; reminding the Tsar of his promise of constitutional governance in the October Manifesto The Tsar dismissed the Duma and called for another election Leading figures of the Kadets fled to Vyborg in Finland The Kadets issued a Manifesto to condemn government action (asked people to refuse to pay taxes and do military service) The Kadets were barred from the Duma and Peter Stolypin became Prime Minister He brought in a policy of repression to restore order   Second Duma (February-June 1907): Stolypin refused to allow some people to stand for election Anti-Tsarist candidates were sent to prison Many voters were removed from voting lists Membership of the Duma became more polarised - Social Democrats and Socialist Revolutionaries were the leading parties Stolypin wanted to introduce agrarian reforms but the majority opposed him The Okhrana (secret police) argued they obtained evidence of a Social Democrat plan to assassinate the Tsar The Tsar ordered the arrest of the Social Democrats for treason; the Duma refused and it was dismissed   Third Duma (1907-1912): Electoral changes resulted in a right-wing majority in the Duma 1909 - Things started going wrong for Stolypin Opponents were jealous of his success His repressive policies managed to restore order Agrarian reforms appeared to be going well When in Kiev with the Tsar, Stolypin was assassinated by a revolutionary in September 1911 This led to the eventually collapse of the third Duma   Fourth Duma (1913):  Stolypin's death brought about the abandonment of reform from the government The Duma was increasingly critical of the government for stopping reform However, the government ignored the Duma After 1914, its influence went into decline   Political Stalemate:  The Tsar continued to rule over Russia without ever giving any significant notice to the Duma. The first and second Dumas were critical of the Tsar and lasted short periods of time. In 1907, Nicholas changed voting regulations to prevent opponents form being elected to the Duma.  The third Duma did last for almost five years. Even the fourth Duma, which was 'loyal' to the Tsar was critical of his ministerial appointments and policies. However, the Duma had no power to change the path the Tsar took. 

Peter Stolypin

Stolypin became the Prime Minister in 1906 - he approached Russia's problems in a 'carrot and stick' manner.  He treated harshly protesters, revolutionaries and strikers Over 20,000 people were exiled and 1,000 hanged This suppression reduced any opposition that existed to the regime in the countryside Stolypin attempted to win over the peasant class by giving them land Wealthier peasants (kulaks) were allowed to leave mir communes and purchase their own land These wealthy farmers were able to obtain larger pieces of land and farm more efficiently As detailed below in the graph, production did increase significantly for grain produce However, 90% of land in the fertile west of Russia consisted of inefficient communes in 1916 Peasants still lived in dire conditions Through Stolypin's policies the kulaks became more loyal to the Tsar and opposed the idea of revolution.