1905 Revolution in Russia - Essay Example

? 1905 Revolution in Russia This is a research paper about the 1905 Revolution that was witnessed in Russia. The research paper will start with a brief overview of the revolution by stating when the revolution began and events that preceded and followed it. Moreover, the research paper will cover the causes of the revolution, events that transpired during and after the revolution, and the effects of the revolution. The research paper will also discuss why the Russian revolution was unsuccessful. Any changes witnessed due to the revolution will also be discussed in the paper. Introduction The Revolution of 1905 in Russia began on Sunday, January 9. This was after military guards massacred more than one thousand children, women, and men outside the Winter Place of the Tsar. On that Sunday, which came to1 be regarded as the bloody Sunday, 150, 000 workers on strike together with their families marched through St. Petersburg. The reaction to the massacre spread across the industrial centers, which experienced spontaneous strikes of workers (Ascher 2004, p. 68). Moreover, the massacre marked the beginning of armed preparations of workers. Peasants in the countryside extended their views through numerous evictions of landlords. It took more than one year for the Revolution to end and save the reactionary Tsar regime. This was despite the massive support the regime got from reactionaries and capitalists. Prior to the 1905 Revolution, Russia had witnessed a significant strike in 1902 and 1903. However, this was not the key factor that triggered the 1905 uprising. The main factor that triggered the Revolution was the Japanese and Russian War in 1904. During this war, Russian troops felt humiliated since the Japanese troops defeated them. As a result, the workers and the capitalist class perceived that the Tsar regime in Russia could easily be defeated. These high hopes of defeating the military triggered the onset of the Revolution. In addition, the War with Japan burdened the peasants and workers; this increased opposition to the Tsar regime. The Revolution can be regarded as an uprising of the Russian people who wanted change in their government (Ascher 2004, p. 70). Timeline of the Events du2ring the Russian Revolution of 1905 A timeline of the events during the Russian Revolution shows the occurrences witnessed during the Revolution. From January 3-8, 120, 000 striking workers marched through St. Petersburg as the government warned them against the protests. On the bloody Sunday of January 9, 150, 0000 striking workers together with their families marched in St. Petersburg. Their main aim was to deliver a protest to the Tsar, but the Russian army shot them down (Ascher 2004, p. 71). The reaction to this massacre spread to the neighboring regions; industries experienced numerous strikes of workers. On February, the strike spread to the Causasus; Grand-Duke Sergei Alexandrovich was assassinated in the height of the protests. During the same month, Nicholas II ordered the creation of an assembly to report on the reforms of the constitution. The following month, the unrest and the strikes reached the Urals and Siberia. On April 2, the second National Congress of Zemstovs demanded a constitutional assembly; this saw the formation of the Unions of Unions. The government got embarrassed on May due to the sinking of the Baltic Fleet, which had spent seven months sailing round to Japan. On June, the government used soldiers to counter strikers in Lodz, and on June 18, Odessa was halted following a massive strike. From June 14-24, there occurred a mutiny of Sailors on Battleship Potemkin. The first conference of the Peasants union was held in Moscow on August; the same month, Nizhnii held the first Congress, which comprised of the Muslim Union (Ascher 2004, p. 72). On August 6, Tsar issued a 3manifesto that detailed the creation of a state Duma; however, this plan faced massive rejection from the revolutionaries on grounds of its weak structure. The treaty of Portsmouth on August 23 ended the Russo-Japanese war. The first General Strike during the revolution started on September 23, with the striking of Printers in Moscow. From October 1905 to July 1906, the independent the Peasant Union of the Volokolamsk created Markovo Republic. During the same month, telegraph as well as Rail workers joined the protests. The Peasants Union held a conference in Moscow from November 6-12; it demanded the redistribution of land, a constituent assembly. The conference also called for political union between urban workers and peasants as well as land redistribution (Ascher 2004, p. 75). During the month of December, Nicholas II together with his son gave honorary membership of the Union of the Russian people. In the same month, Socialist Democrats (SD) handed out weapons, which led to the arrest of St. Petersburg Soviet. The Moscow Uprising from December 10-15 saw attempts by the militias and rebels to engage the city in armed conflicts, which failed significantly (Rawson, 1995). Causes of the 1905 Revolution in Russia The 1905 revolution can be regarded as the first time the Tsar faced rebellions from numerous groups at the same time. The revolution comprised of naval mutinies, assassinations, peasant disturbances, nationalist uprisings, and strikes. A number of factors triggered the 1905 Revolution in Russia; both short-term and log-term causes contributed to the Revolution. These included political, economic, social, and 4military factors. The causes of the Revolution are as discussed below (McDaniel 1988, p. 6). First, the continuing dissatisfaction of the landowners as well as the peasants can be regarded as a long-term economic and social cause of the Revolution. The Emancipation Edict of 1861 did not appeal to peasants and landowners. Although it ended serfdom, peasants were still tied to the mir (village commune). The redemption payments in return for the land they received angered them. They purported that they should receive land of high quality without having to incur any costs (McDaniel 1988, p. 7). This resulted to the peasant disturbances witnessed in 1902. In addition, the terms of emancipation did not appeal to the landowners since they lost the labor of their serfs, which they got at no cost. Moreover, the landowners experienced large debts by 1905 due to loss of land. The people of Russia perceived reforms of previous decades with a lot of disappointment. This can be regarded as another long-term factor, which led to the Revolution. This can be evidenced by the fact that the emancipation had many promises, which it did not deliver. Similarly, the reign of Alexander II had similar reforms, which it did not succeed in accomplishing. Limited changes to the legal system as well as the local government led to call for numerous liberal reforms. Matters became worse during the reign of Alexander III; he tightened control of the government and led to numerous persecutions of minorities such as Jews (Heywood & Smele 2005, p. 80). The unsuccessful leadership of the Tsar can also be considered as another notable cause of the Russian Revolution. Under the Tsar, Russia had witnessed uneven development. While the rural economy was underdeveloped 5and stagnated, the army was equipped with modern weapons. The regime paved way to capitalism from Western Europe; the capitalists lent capital to the Tsar and established large manufacturing industries in main cities like Petersburg. This led to an alliance between the Tsarist regime and the Western capitalists. Consequently, Tsar’s reactionary regime propagated Western capitalistic ideologies. As a result, the people of Russia expressed discontent with the Tsar regime; this contributed to the revolution (Rawson 1995, p. 24). Another significant cause of the 1905 Revolution was the personal weaknesses that Nicholas II had. He always placed his family’s needs above those of the citizens. Moreover, he had no strong character as compared to his predecessors. Historians contend that Nicholas II contributed to his own downfall. For example, he did not appear at the Winter Palace in 1905 to receive the petition of demonstrators. This damaged the reputation of the Tsar as the father as well as the protector of his people. Consequently, the citizens lost trust and confidence in the regime and opted to oppose it (Heywood & Smele 2005, p. 84). The defeat of Russia by Japan in 1904 can be regarded as a significant military cause of the 1905 Russian Revolution. Contrary to what most people expected, the war did not lead to support for the Tsarist regime or growth in national pride. The military leaders of Russia had underestimated the Japanese forces. Therefore, they could not be convinced that Japan could defeat Russia in the war. Unfortunately, Japan emerged with victory; this humiliated the Russian monarchy and damaged6 its stability and prestige. The defeat created a belief in the masses that the Tsar regime could be defeated easily. As a result, the people of Russia decided to organize and stage protests aimed at overthrowing the Tsar regime (Rawson 1995, p. 26). The bloody Sunday can be considered as the most significant and widely acknowledged cause of the 1905 Russian Revolution. The procession of unarmed and peaceful demonstrators, led by Father Gapon, demanded a minimum wage and shorter working hours. Armed guards confronted the demonstrators and killed many innocent children, women, and young men. This event caused a lot of shock in the Russian population. The people of Russia staged numerous demonstrations, strikes, and disturbances to show their discontent with this act. As a result, the Revolution spread all over the country. The people had to retaliate against the bloody massacre that left thousands of innocent people dead (McDaniel 1988, p. 10). The worsening conditions of the urban workers and the peasants also led to the Revolution. The famines witnessed in 1897, 1898, and 1901 caused distress and numerous shortages, especially in the countryside. The working and the living conditions in the industrial towns of Russia had worsened. The factories were poorly ventilated, and people worked for long and extra hours, but with little pay. To make matters worse, trade unions, which could have protected employees, did not exist. Furthermore, workers experienced housing problems since they lived in poorly built and7 crowded homes. Moreover, the economic recession witnessed from 1899 to 1903 led to high unemployment rates throughout Russia (Rawson 1995, p. 28). The improvements in the organization of revolutionary groups also led to the Russian Revolution in 1905. For example, the revolutionary groups became increasingly and more organized than they used to be in the past. This led to Social Revolutionaries that saw the assassination of the minister of Interior (Plehve) in 1904. The strength of revolutionary groups meant that the Tsar regime stood to be challenged. The revolutionary groups had gained immense power, courage, and strength and could rebel against the Tsar regime (Heywood & Smele 2005, p. 86).8 Impacts of the 1905 Revolution in Russia The 1905 Revolution in Russia can be regarded as an event that had significant impacts; it changed the course of events within the Russian regime. The revolution had an impact on numerous areas. It affected social groups, institutions, associative movements, provincial movements, politics, economics, as well as professional and intellectual spheres. Moreover, other structures of the society such as publishing, religious life and churches, and the media, were affected by the revolution. The Revolution set the empire on motion to cater for the rights of the citizens (Heywood & Smele 2005, p. 87). The revolution led to a change in the old autocracy, which gave way to the emergence of a new pseudo-constitutional regime. Moreover, the revolution led to a significant readjustment of relations between classes. Revolting farmers terrorized large landlords to the extent that the landlords sold their possessions to their tenants (Heywood & Smele 2005, p. 89). The revolution led to the introduction of an agrarian reform programme that dissolved the Mir. As a result, the best portions of land went to the agricultural bourgeoisie. This strengthened the bourgeoisie, with its members organizing every place on the co-operative basis. The Revolution strengthened the spirit of capitalism in Russia. This resulted from the changing conditions in the world market. For example, the price of wheat increased after the Revolution. As a result, it became a profitable venture to engage in agricultural production using modern capitalistic methods. This saw the end of the old and primitive farming system; consequently, agrarian capitalism became firm and strong in Russia (Bromley, 2002). Another impact of the revolution has to do with the concentration of capital, which increased tremendously. During counter-revolution, mighty trusts, combinations, syndicates, manufacturers’ associations, 9and banking corporations emerged. This led to growth of burgeois organizations, which were united and had a keen interest in trade and export. Why the Revolution did not succeed Unlike other revolutions witnessed in Russia later on, the 1905 revolution failed due to a number of factors. First, the Revolution failed since it was not an organized protest; each of the groups involved had separate demands and grievances. As such, the protests lacked the unity that could have made the revolution successful. The different social classes in Russia did not have a common purpose; this led to the ultimate defeat of the protesters in the 1905 Revolution. The leadership of the revolution stemmed from liberals in the middle class. Although these middle class liberals called for political reforms, and seemed liberal in terms of views and protests, they had no common ground (Bromley, 2002). Another reason why the Revolution failed was because the peasants were widely distributed. As a result, they seemed isolated and lacked a common and organized leadership. Moreover, the protests seemed traditionally peasant since they included burning manor records. The self-interests and personal motives also led to the failure of the revolution; thus, hope for revolutionary change went down. The Revolution also failed because, unlike the navy, the army remained loyal to the Tsar. The military played a key role in quelling the disturbances that rocked the country at the height of the 10revolution. For example, in Moscow, the army engaged rioting workers in running battles (Bromley 2002, p. 95). The revolution also failed because the government succeeded in compromising the two key groups that opposed it. This isolated the third group, which comprised of the working class in industries (Bromley 2002, p. 95). For the middle class, the government granted the October Manifesto, which led to the establishment of political and civil rights. Moreover, the Manifesto introduced the Duma, an elected parliament that had to agree to all laws in the future. The declaration that the payment of redemption dues was at an end played a key role since it made the peasants stop complaining. Since the regime succeeded in buying off the middle class and the peasants, the army could easily concentrate on the rioting workers in urban centers. Conclusion In conclusion, the 1905 revolution in Russia resulted from the discontent of people with the leadership of the Tsar regime. The poor economic growth, unfulfilled promises, and dictatorial leadership of the Tsar caused the 1905 Revolution. The revolution started with the bloody Sunday, which saw the death of protesting workers together with their families. The Tsar declined to grant the protesting masses their demands. Instead, the protesters met strong suppression from the military. The revolution led to the emergence of strong capitalistic ideals in Russia; capitalism spread throughout the country. The Revolution also led to the emergence of banking corporations as well as manufacturing associations. However, the 1905 Revolution cannot be regarded as successful since the protesting groups were not organized. Moreover, the Tsar regime succeeded in buying off peasants and the middle class. Bibliography Ascher, Abraham. The Revolution of 1905: A Short History. California: Stanford University Press. 2004. Bromley, Jonathan. Russia 1848-1917. Oxford: Heinemann. 2002. Heywood, Anthony & Smele, Jonathan. The Russian Revolution of 1905: Centenary Perspectives. New York: Taylor & Francis. 2005. McDaniel, Tim. Autocracy, Capitalism, and Revolution in Russia. California: University of California Press. 1988. Rawson, Don. Russian Rightists and the Revolution of 1905. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1995. Read More