Russian Revolution as a Cause of the Cold War

1. Russian Revolution as a Cause of the Cold War How was the theory of marxismapplied and how did the formation of the USSR scare the West ?

2. Essential Questions • How did the Russian Revolution shape the face of Europe in 20th century ? • How did Russian Revolution cause the “bipolar world “and become a leading long term cause of the Russian Revolution ?

3. Key Terms • Autocracy :A system of government in which all political power is vested in one person. • Liberals : individuals or groups committed to introducing an elected government along the lines of the British parliamentary system and who advocated safeguards for the liberties of the individual. • Duma : Russian word ( thought ) for Parliament

4. Bolchevik: the faction • By the 19th Marxist movement led by Lenin • Bolshevik means 'majority”. • The Bolsheviks split from the Mensheviks( meaning minority in 1903 )

5. Provisional Government • Temporary Government set up in March 1917 after Tsar Nicholas II abdicated : overthrown by the Bolsheviks following the October Revolution ( October Revolution 1917 )

7. Alpha History is the source for all primary documents • https://alphahistory.com/russianrevolution/russian-revolution-documents/

8. Fyodr Tutchev • Russia cannot be understood with the mind alone, • No ordinary yardstick can span her greatness: • She stands alone, unique • In Russia, one can only believe.

10. State Emblem of the Russian Empire, 1890s

11. Who was the leader of Russia before the Rev? Who were the Bolsheviks? Who was Alexandra? Who was Rasputin? What three things led to the revolution? (Hint WWI, Czar’s Gov and Revolutionaries) Who was the leader of the Revolution? Draw the communist symbol and explain the parts. What three things did he promise? What were some changes that Lenin made? Why were many Western nations freaked out about the Revolution? What happened after the Revolution? Why was it bad? Who took over after Lenin? As I go through the presentation , try to answer the simplest of questions : who , what , when ,

12. Why was there a Communist revolution in Russia in 1917?

13. Russian failures in the First World War The weakness of Tsar Nicholas II The failure of the Duma Factors that led to the Communist revolution in 1917. The discontent of the peasants Opposition of the Communists The discontent of the workers Rasputin and scandal The February Revolution 1917

14. Recipe for the Russian Revolution • 100 years of social unrest • 100 years of ruthless treatment of peasants • 1 Assassination of Tsar Alexander II • 1 Tsar Nicholas with weak leadership • 1 defeat in Russo –Japanese War • 1 Bloody Sunday • Handful of losses in WW1

15. Mix ingredients together and agitate with revolutionaries ,and wait for the revolution to rise

16. Introduction into the Imperial Russia • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR1lt5vowtY&list=RDFR1lt5vowtY#t=0

17. Russian Society • Russia was a population of more than 130 million people with great diversity of ethnicity, language and culture. • Russia was not a nation but an empire, spanning an enormous area and covering one-sixth of the Earth’s landmass. • The dominant classes were royalty, aristocracy and land-owners, who wielded significant political influence.

18. Russian Society • Russia’s middle class was small in comparison to other nations but was growing by the early 1900s. • The peasantry was scattered across the empire. • Russian society was intensely patriarchal, with men dominant in most spheres of decision-making and women denied many legal and civil rights.

19. Imperial Russia • Russian Empire in last half of nineteenth century - vast expanse of land; Siberia rich in natural resources • 1891 Trans Siberian Railway • 1891 w • idespread famine - “Golodnyi Khleb” Peasant conditions extreme - high taxes; speculators export grain • little organized rebellion

20. Russian Peasants • Russia in 1890’s - 80% of peasants lived in tiny villages • short lifespan • peasants - “Narod” - dark people • intermarriage - genetic disorders • “izby” - cottage - dark, filthy • ikons, vermin, “cockroaches”?

21. Peasants • village communes - insufficient land to support families • low technology; inefficient farming • bad diet - high mortality rate; vodka • incessant labor • superstitious, fatalistic, ignorant, and illiterate • Tsar viewed as “little Father”

22. Peasants and Intelligentsia • educated Russians ignorant of realities of peasant life • 1874 - young radicals go into the countryside; many believe village commune would be the basis for a new socialist society • 1891 - experts carry out research on peasant life and suggest solutions

23. Industrialization=Industrial Revolution highlights the flaws of the capitalism • by early twentieth century Russia had expanded its heavy industry • Sergei Witte - 1892 finance minister • proletariat lived and worked in dire conditions • workers - long hours, low wages, child labor • emergence of intelligentsia among the working class - adopted puritan lifestyle

24. Czar Nicholas II (1894-1917)Last Czar of Russia • Nicholas II was a harsh, yet weak ruler

25. The Last Tsar of Russia • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1W1b6j8U46k

26. Weakness of Tsar Nicholas II • He was an absolute monarch, meaning that he had total power in Russia. • Was a weak man. He used his secret police, the Okrana, to persecute opponents. • Books and newspapers were censored. The Church supported the Tsar – the ‘Little Father of the Russian people’. • The Tsar’s undemocratic government was a major cause of the revolution.

27. The Romanov Family • How was Russia governed? Tsar; Romanov family since 1613 • Nobles and Clergy: Landowning class • Serfs: 80%, lived in 750,000 small villages • No political parties • No legislator • No constitution

28. Alexander III Nicholas II Alexandra III, wife of Nicholas Olga Marie Tatiana Anastasia Alexie

29. The ‘Great Spurt’ • Rapid growth of industry in the 1890’s • Coal in the Ukraine, oil in the Caucasus • Private enterprise, encouraged by government policy • Military motive of the Tsarist government?

30. Problems • Playing catch up • Per capita production low due to expanding population • Dependency on foreign loans and investments • Light manufacturing neglected – no real basis for heavy industry to keep expanding • No attention to agriculture • Demands of the military • Resistance to change • Government obsession with military • Witte never trusted – secretive, obsessive, moody

31. The end of the ‘Great Spurt’ • End of a worldwide boom • Large population could not be supported • Lack of organisation and infrastructure • Overcrowding • Unemployment • Homelessness • Serious social unrest • Exploited by political groups

32. Tsarist Russia: How to understand autocracy briefly • 1. Tsarist government was predicated on the tsar’s supreme autocratic power, which was inviolable. • 2. Tsarism had no democracy, representation or accountability at higher levels. All officials were chosen by the tsar. • 3. Beyond the capital, tsarist decrees were implemented and enforced by provincial governors and bureaucrats. • 4. The bureaucracy was the public face of the government but was widely despised for its corruption and officiousness. • 5. Tsarism was also supported by conservative groups like the Black Hundred that sprang up in the early 1900s.

33. The Marxist • From 1883 onwards, the ideas German communist writer, Karl Marx, began to attract growing numbers of Russian intellectuals who sought to transform Russia by means of a revolution of the industrial proletariat (factory workers). • In 1898, the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party was established; Lenin was a founding member.

34. Russian Marxism • 1883 - Plekhanov establishes first Marxist group • Plekhanov criticizes terrorist approach of “People’s Will” - need to educate the masses • workers viewed as source of revolution, not peasants • Plekhanov helped prepare the way for Lenin • Plekhanov in exile in Switzerland

36. Lenin • Lenin - expelled from university; later studied law; convinced Marxist; his brother executed • 1895 - arrested for political activities and exiled to Siberia. Wrote “Development of Capitalism in Russia” • 1896 - widespread strike action • 1898 - Russian Social Democratic and Labor Party founded in Minsk

37. Lenin’s Political Philosophy • newspaper founded “Iskra” - The Spark; Lenin and Plekhanov disagree on political strategy • 1902 - Lenin writes “What is to be Done?” • Lenin believed party must consist of professional revolutionaries, an elite conspiratorial group

38. the party would guide the working class to victory • 1903 Brussels Congress - party split between Mensheviks and Bolsheviks • Lenin held an authoritarian approach to party discipline

39. Chasm between the marxists • However, the Russian Marxists proved very argumentative and remained divided throughout the period up to the 1917 Revolution, e.g. between the 'economists' who advocated pushing for better conditions for the industrial workers and those who argued for socialist revolution.

40. Vanguard: the advance guard of the army • In 1902, Lenin wrote What Is To Be Done? in which he argued for the need for a disciplined, elite party of full-time revolutionaries to act as the 'vanguard' of a proletarian revolution. • The following year, the Social Democrats split over this issue when its leaders gathered for a congress at Brussels and London.

41. Bolsheviks vs Mensheviks • Lenin's ideas were opposed by Julius Martov, who argued for a broad, less exclusive party; Lenin's faction became known as the Bolsheviks and Martov’s as the Mensheviks. • Before the outbreak of the First World War, both Marxist factions remained tiny in terms of membership and support.

42. The 1905 Revolution: Long-term Weaknesses of Tsarism Highlighted • The 1905 Revolution has often been presented as a dress rehearsal for the 1917 Revolutions.

43. Russo-Japanese War • changes in nineteenth century warfare - repeating rifles, long- range artillery, railroads and costs - placed Russia at a disadvantage • building of the TSR increased Russia’s involvement in the affairs of the Far East - China, Korea and Japan

44. Japan short of natural resources - oil, iron • Japan had already defeated China in 1894 • minister Witte had warned against a war with Japan • Nicholas II decides on war - “ little short-tailed monkeys” • Japanese fleet attack Port Arthur - January 1904

45. Russian involvement in Manchuria and Korea led to conflict with Japan • Japan in the late nineteenth century had modernized her economy and military

46. patriotic outpouring in support of the war • Russian navy - ships and tactics lead to catastrophe • Japanese lay siege to Port Arthur - Russians finally surrendered • war continued until August 1905, when peace terms were finally agreed • Nicholas II humiliated by defeat

47. Russo-Japanese War ends • Treaty of Portsmouth5 September 1905 • Japan: south Sakhalin, Korea, Port Arthur • Russia: evacuate Manchuria (but no indemnity) • Casualties: • Japanese dead: 80,000 (in combat 47,000; of disease 33,000) • Wounded: at least 100,000 • Russian dead: 60,000 (47,500 in battle; 12,500 of disease) • Wounded: 146,000 • Russia’s reputation as Great Power • First Asian victory over European power, though at great sacrifice.

48. Failure of the Duma • In 1905 Russia lost a war with Japan. This defeat caused strikes in the Russian cities, the Tsar nearly lost control. • Nicholas II offered to call a Duma, or parliament, with free elections. This was accepted by the demonstrators. • When the Duma met, it criticized the Tsar and demanded changes. • The Duma was dismissed and new elections, controlled by the Tsar, were called. • It became clear that the Duma would be shut down if it criticized the Tsar. As long as the Tsar had control of the army, his power could not be broken.

49. Bloody Sunday: the trigger for revolution • In January 1905 demonstrators, led by Father Gapon, marched on the Winter Palace, carrying a petition. Troops killed probably over 1,000. • This sparked a wave of strikes across Russia.

50. Bloody Sunday • Czarist troops open fire on a peaceful demonstration of workers in St Petersburg. January 9, 1905 ( Julian Calendar ) • Peaceful marchers in St. Petersburg carried a petition to Tsar Nicholas II asking for: • higher wages • Get out of the war • a shorter work day • better working conditions • a legislative assembly, • universal manhood suffrage • In reaction, Nicholas II ordered his guards to fire into the unarmed crowd; when news of 96 dead and hundreds more wounded escaped, public opinion almost universally turned against the old regime.