Russian Revolution Essay

1255 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: What was the cause of the russian revolution in 1917

The Russian Revolution of 1917 was a rebellion of the Russian people against the rule of the Russian Empire. Russia was a country full of many unsatisfied people; the nation experienced a series of changes in the late 19th and 20th century that would ultimately bring about revolution. The Russian people were starving, industrialization was emerging and the middle class was asking to be a part of the ruling of the country. As a result of the revolution, Russia saw its withdrawal from World War I, major industrial growth and ultimately the spread Communism throughout the world. The inevitable causes of the Russian Revolution were the weaknesses of the Russian Empire, World War I and the collapse of the Tsar’s regime. The nation now began its path towards emerging as a world power following the revolution. At the turn of the 20th Century the Russian Empire began to show signs of deterioration long before the Revolution of 1917. The Russian Empire spread across Europe an Asia and consisted of roughly 125 million inhabitants. (Rosenberg, 2014) Although, these people were never unified because of the many different nationalities, languages and religions. This made it difficult for the government to rule since the nation was so vast at the turn of the century the empire was plagued with poor communication, bad roads and few railways. (Wilde, 2013) In an attempt to connect the far reaches of Russia the Trans Siberian Railway was completed in 1904 that connected Moscow to Vladivostostok. Also, the farming economy was out of date and most of the population was peasants who lived under the rule of nobles. However, the beginning of the century brought great change throughout Russia the nation began to industrialize, towns and factories began... ... middle of paper ... ...of World War I hampered those efforts as all resources and manpower was being devoted to the war effort taking an enormous toll on the newly formed working class. As they began to suffer from famine and poor working conditions they began to grow angry with the Empire that ultimately lead them to revolt against the Tsar. During Tsar Nicholas II he made many mistakes that led to the demise of the Empire. Taking command of the Army during World War I and leaving the Tsarina in charge proved to be a horrible blunder. Rasputin was able to influence decisions that Tsarina made angering many citizens and politicians in the Duma. In a last ditch effort to save the Empire Nicholas II failed to act and as a result he payed with his life along with his family. Although, brutal the Russian Revolution was it was needed for the nation of Russia to advance itself in the world.

Show More
Related

  • Industrialization Expansion in Russia and Japan

    1051 Words  | 3 Pages

    It was due to its great resources and population that Russia was able to compete with the other world powers in war and in commerce. Russia did not have the succession of leaders that supported industrialization like Japan did. Therefore, Russia, with Alexander II as czar, made few reforms to encourage industrialization. It was only through the multiple peasant revolts that Russia began to change. Both of these nations experienced changes in government, an increase in economic strength and transportation, and radical changes in the structure of the social classes.

    Read More

  • French and Russian Revolutions

    569 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1905 , Russia had a prerevolution that was put down of the Czar. Instead of learning from this prerevolution, Czar Nicholas II, made a very big mistake by in not introducing some reforms to correct the problems. So because of his actions, the situation grew worse. In 1917, the Russians were fighting in World War I. A good majority of the Russian people were weary and uncontent with the way the war was going and with the Czar's rule. This uncontent along with economic hardships caused riots and demonstrations to break out. The Czar called for the army to put down the revolution as they did in 1905. But the army joined the revolt and the Czar was kicked out of power soon afterwards. A temporary government was set up to decide on what kind of government Russia was gonna set up. Two political parties were set up. The Bolsheviks were one of the two. The leader of the Bolshevik party was a man named Lenin. Lenin was a firm believer of the theories and ideas of Karl Marx. So with his slogan of "Bread, Peace and Land", Lenin gained the support of the peasants and gained control of Russia and setup a communist state.

    Read More

  • Russian Revolution Dbq

    962 Words  | 2 Pages

    During 1917 to 1924 Russia was experiencing vast political, economic and social change that began with the Bolshevik revolution. The First World War had left Russia in a disastrous state where the nation, was facing alot of social unrest and facing a major uprising. During this time, the Bolsheviks who had just seized control, undertook several measures to establish their authority including the declaration of initial reforms ie the land decree marriage decree and the decree on workers, the signing of the treaty of Brest-Litovsk, fighting the Civil War, starting the ideologies of War Communism, starting the red terror and finally introducing the New Economic Policy NEP. All of these actions were each extremely significant in helping the

    Read More

  • Glorious Revolution Essay

    705 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Beckett mentions that the Glorious Revolution has been considered a historical event related to the political issues. The main target of this historical event was to create a commercial freedom in Europe. After this revolution was done, trade relations in Europe went up, and the Bill of Rights was also created in 1689. Today, the Bill of Rights is shown and known that it was the first building stone for the British constitution because it limited the monarchic power. During the eighteenth century, the period of the Age of Enlightenment is considered between 1713 and 1789 because Anthony Pagden states that Europe was like a republic of states, and it was like a union acting together and talking with one voice. The Age of Enlightenment

    Read More

  • Russian Revolution Essay

    2340 Words  | 5 Pages

    Russia entered the 20th century as an oppressed tsarist state and the last of the Medieval European strongholds. The people were poor, starving and hopeless and, unlike the rest of Europe, had not experienced revolution. Eventually, however, a small group of revolutionaries emerged and overthrew the tsarist regime. Russia quickly devolved into anarchy and the resulting turmoil saw the rise of the Bolshevik Party and Vladimir Lenin. This was the beginning of the Russian Revolution, a prolonged event that deeply impacted Russia and the whole of Europe and the effects of which continue to be felt today.

    Read More

  • The Russian Revolution: The Most Important Revolution In The 20th Century

    1481 Words  | 3 Pages

    Russia lost many men in the battle which made them lose the war and they had to pay back. When they lost this caused the Russian economy to crash and by that caused the Russian revolution. The Russian Revolution began in 1917 after Russia lost many wars which made the economy weak. During the 1914 in World war 1 Russia had lost many supplies and military men and Russia lacked good leadership. Tsar Nicholas was in control of Russian government and the army and he refused to share his power with the masses. Then the Duma Parliament in the summer of 1915 demanded the government with democratic values and to show responsibility to the citizens in the country that needed help. However, later that year Nicholas eliminated the Duma and went to war. Tsar Nicholas left the country to be destroyed. Then the government was taken over by Tsarina Alexandra Nicholas wife. She attempted to rule absolutely in her husband’s absence by firing and electing officials of her

    Read More

  • How Did Nicholas II Cause The Russian Revolution

    991 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nicholas II was the last Tsar to rule the Russian empire before the citizens demanded change within the government, resulting in the Romanov family being brutally murdered and the start of a revolution for Russia. Though Nicholas II was the most powerful man in the country, he did not use his power wisely to support his citizens. The unreasonable decisions of Nicholas II of Russia is what lead to the Russian Revolution. To begin with he made Russia suffer externally politically with his unwise choices during the Russo-Japanese War and World War One. Next, he brought hardship upon his people economically, allowing them to go malnourished without any support from the government; many people starved to death. Furthermore, these unwise decisions

    Read More

  • Modernization Of Russia Essay

    1905 Words  | 4 Pages

    Ultimately, by the time of Peter Romanov in the late seventeenth century, Russia had done little to keep up with the modernizing European continent. Technologically and culturally, it fell centuries behind. It had no Renaissance, no Reformation, no Scientific Revolution. It’s as if Russia was stuck in the European Middle Ages. Its army and navy lagged miserably behind, its Orthodox clergy govern education, there was no quality literature or art of which to tell, and even no emphasis on maths or science. In Western Europe, the seventeenth century was the time of Galileo and Newton, Descartes and Locke. It was a century of a growing merchant division. Rural peasants moved to growing cities for new work. As serfhood faded off in the West, it was growing in the Russia inherited by Peter Romanov. And while Western Europe, with its numerous warm-water passageways, sailed the seas and brought in unprecedented profits from subjugated colonies, Russia pushed eastward, finding nothing but frigid shore, cold taiga, and the remnants of a deformed Mongolian Empire that had depended more on plunder than infrastructure.

    Read More

  • The Russian Revolution

    750 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Russian Revolution was two revolutions. One was in "March of 1917" (Llewellyn, 2012) and the other one was in "October of 1917" (Llewellyn, 2012). The first revolution happened because "the Russian people wanted change" (Llewellyn, 2012). Tsar Nicholas II, the autocratic ruler of Russia. He clung stubbornly to his power and he believed that the power was to be his divine birthright. The people on the other hand would change the future of Russia, not God. The first revolution started as a peaceful march in Russia’s capital city. The march then grew into a torrent of protest. Within a week of the protest, Tsar Nicholas II had been toppled from power and replaced by an interim government. This government was filled with liberals and moderates. The new government lasted barely six months before the government was overthrown and replaced, this time by radical socialists. "This group, known as the Bolsheviks, struggled to keep their power by suppressing dissent and eliminating their opponents" (Llewellyn, 2012) The Bolsheviks also began planning Russia’s transformation which was from a backward economic state organized on medieval principles into a modern industrial and technological superpower. "This transformation alone made the Russian Revolution one of the most significant events in modern history for all countries" (Llewellyn, 2012).

    Read More

  • Changes In The Romanov Dynasty

    1064 Words  | 3 Pages

    At the start of the Romanov dynasty there where many drastic changes which effected a lot things in the social and governmental issues of oppressive Russia. It was a period in time of relapse , amend ,eradication and innovation .This major occurrence was the termination of the royal blood line which had been going on for 300 years - (The Romanov dynasty). WWI was a pivotal factor which led to the fall of the Romanov dynasty in February , 1917. without this crucial factor the revolution would not have happened at this point in time. I am not saying that a revolution would not have happened , as there were a lot of other contributing factors that sparked the occurrence of a revolution. However, what WWI essentially did was to heighten dissatisfaction

    Read More

  • Was Tsar Nicholas II As An Effective Leader During World War I

    1078 Words  | 3 Pages

    Some people can say that World War I left Russia vulnerable because it took everything away from them, including their army and their food supply. They say it is the only cause that led to the revolution. World War I may have contributed to the Russian Revolution because of its constant battles. This, however, only played a small role in causing the revolution. Consequently, “Indeed, one of the leading criticisms of Nicholass leadership has been that he single-handedly lost the war and caused the deaths of millions of Russian soldiers” (Quenoy). Nicholas II could not prevent economic conflicts from occurring because it was his decision that caused it. If he never appointed himself as the “Supreme Command,” he would not have caused millions to die and made Russia lose the war. If Russia had not lost the war, World War I would not have affected the country in such a harsh way. Since the Tsar was unskilled as an army leader and unfit as the Tsar, Russia was internally corrupt and

    Read More

  • Russian Imperialism Essay

    2384 Words  | 5 Pages

    Imperialism was the driving force behind European diplomacy in the Nineteenth Century. Peace, a major stated goal of the Concert of Europe, was pursued by the main players as a means of consolidating and securing their imperial gains and preventing further gains by rival states. The long stretches of peace celebrated as successes of the Concert system occurred simply because peace between the Great Powers was what the Great Powers desired. Later in the century, in the stretches leading up to the First World War, this celebrated peace was, as Pim den Boer put it, an “armed peace,” with many “consciously aiming at a great European war.” Under the Concert system, the First World War was not inevitable, but the self-interest of the Great Powers

    Read More

  • Why Was The Revolution Of 1905 Essay

    1089 Words  | 3 Pages

    There was pressure for Nicholas to change Russia’s government system from an autocracy to a constitutional monarchy, especially because of the discontent the people felt after Russia was horribly defeated in the Russo-Japense war. Nicholas was not prepared to be the Tsar of Russia, part of the reason he was so unsuccessful was because “he tried to emulate his father’s autocratic rule but he lacked his father’s domineering personality and there where-withal to provide a government.” A reason why this can be said to be Russia’s most important revolution is because of the events that took place on January 22nd 1905. Thousands of working class people came together at the Winter Palace to protest against their working hours and low wages. The peaceful protest was lead by father Gapon, many of the workers were holding portraits of the Tsar as a sign of respect, but there were troops called to attack the protesters. The palace guard attacking and killing these protestors showed how out of touch Nicholas was with his people. The response of the middle class and not just the peasants is really what turned the events of “Bloody Sunday” into a “revolutionary crisis of authority for the tsarist government”. Ultimately, Nicholas lost all chance of preventing a full blown revolution after the events of Bloody Sunday because “it drove liberals to the

    Read More

  • The Rise Of Communism

    846 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Russian Revolutions of 1917 led to the riddance of the czarist Russia as well as the ushering in of the socialistic Russia. The first of the two revolutions forced Nicolas II to abdicate his throne to a provisional government. Lenin headed the second of the two revolutions in which he overthrew the provisional government.

    Read More

  • 1917 Russian Revolution Essay

    1101 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the years leading up to the revolution, Russia had been involved in a series of wars. The Crimean war, The Russo-Turkish war, The Russo-Japanese war and the First World War. Russia had been defeated in all except the war with Turkey and its government and economy had the scars to prove it. A severe lack of food and poor living conditions amongst the peasant population led firstly to strikes and quickly escalated to violent riots. Tsar Nicholas II ruled Russia with an iron hand while much of Europe was moving away from the monarchical system of rule. All lands were owned by the Tsar’s family and Nobel land lords while the factories and industrial complexes were owned by the capitalists’. There were no unions or labour laws and the justice system had made almost all other laws in favour of the ruling elite. Rents and taxes were often unaffordable, while the gulf between workers and the ruling elite grew ever wider.

    Read More

More about Russian Revolution Essay

Open Document