change and continuity in government

did the 1905 revolution lead to radical changes?

* the 1905 revolution did nor lead to the radical changes that many had hoped.
* nonetheless, tsarist was forced to embrace some limited reform

what were the fundamental laws?

* in April 1906 the Tsar attempted to reassert his authority
* he promulgated the Fundamental Laws in essence, a new constitution
* the tsar was in a stronger position in April than he had been in October 1905 - his opponents were divided and the workers had been crushed
* consequently, the fundamental laws re-emphasised the autocratic nature of Russian government

what powers did the Tsar gain from the fundamental laws?

* the fundamental laws gave the tsar extensive powers:
* article 4 stated that the Tsar had absolute, God-given autocratic power.
* the tsar retained sole authority over command of the army and dealings with foreign nations
* article 87 set out the nature of the tsar’s relationship with the new Duma. The Tsar retained ‘supreme sovereign power’. this meant that Nicholas had the right to make laws without consultation with the Duma - the Duma was given the right to ratify the Tsar’s laws
* the tsar was given the right to dissolve the Duma and call new elections at any time

what was the Duma?

the 1906 constitution altered the nature of Russian government:

* created a bicameral Duma
* the lower house was elected by an electorate of most male Russians
* the upper house, known as the ‘council of state’ was partially appointed by the tsar - the other hand was appointed by institutions like the Orthodox church
* the upper house had the right to veto laws proposed by the lower house
* it guaranteed individuals rights to freedom of expression, assembly, conscience, press and the right to form political parties and unions

why did the new constitution fail to satisfy liberals?

* the limited powers of the Duma did not fulfil the demands of liberals as the elected lower house did not have ultimate law-making power.
* liberals recognised that the promise of individual rights was largely meaningless

why did the new constitution fail to satisfy socialists?

* also argued that the new constitution failed to address Russia’s underlying problems.
* the SRs argued that the new constitution did nothing to satisfy the peasants’ desire for land
* Lenin argued that they would not limit the oppression of the working class

who made up the first duma?

* elected in April 1906
* it was largely made up of conservative Octoberists, the liberal Kadets and the Troudoviks.
* The Srs and the factions of the RSDLP boycotted the election

what radical demands did the Duma make?

* the creation of universal suffrage
* land reform
* freedom for political prisoners

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the tsar dissolved this parliament after 73 days because they were making too many radical demands

what was the Vyborg manifesto?

* led by the cadets, radicals from the First Duma fled to the Finnish town of Vyborg
* kadets assumed that they would be safe from persecution while in Finland as the Tsar had promised to respect the traditional rights of the Finns
* kadet radicals issued an open letter called the ‘Vyborg Manifesto’ which called on Russian people to refuse to pay tax until the Duma was re-established

how did peasants and workers respond to the Vyborg manifesto?

* they did not support the middle class kadets as the middle class had compromised with the Tsar in 1905.
* the manifesto failed to have an impact and the kadets who had organised the protest were imprisoned

what was the result of the Vyborg manifesto?

* the failure of the first Duma and the Vyborg Manifesto led many Russian people to lose faith in liberal reform.
* consequently, the Kadets lost popular support and public opinion became polarised between revolutionaries on left and reactionaries on the right