History- Russian Revolution

Who were the Romanovs?

The family that was ruling before and during half of WWI.

How many years did the Romanovs rule for?

300 years.

The Russian calendar was…

13 days different.

What was a big problem in the Russian Empire in 1914?

It was still feudal and not yet industrialized.

What year was Russia’s first revolution?

The revolution occurred in 1905.

Why did the Revolution of 1905 occur?

Due to the Tsar’s failure to solve basic economic and social problems in Russia.

What was created due to the Revolution of 1905 and was meant to stop it?

The Duma, which had no real power.

What was Bloody Sunday?

A group of workers marched to the Tsar’s winter palace with a peaceful protest and imperial forces opened fire on the demonstrators, killing and wounding hundreds.

What was the result of WWI on Russia?

The people suffocated by:

• lack of resources

• Lack of industrialization

• poor military leadership

• the death of two million Russians by 1915

What did Tsar Nicholas do to attempt to have a better cause in WWI?

The Tsar takes the military lead while leaving his wife in charge with Rasputin.

Who was Rasputin?

He was a peasant who had magical healing powers.

What did Rasputin do to become close to the Romanovs?

He healed the Tsar’s son and helped his wife with ruling.

What was the problem with Tsarina Alexandra?

She relied on her advisor Gregory Rasputin.

How did Rasputin die?

He was assassinated by a bunch of aristocrats that didn’t like a peasant on the throne.

What did the Febuary/March Revolution do?

It brought down the Tsar and his imperial government.

When and how does Nicholas step down from the throne?

In 1917, and because his advisors all suggested that the only way to end the suffering of the people of Russia was for him to step down from the throne.

Why was Nicholas advised to stand down?

Because of:

• Failures of WWI

• Fuel shortages

• Food shortages

What happened on Women’s day in the February/March revolution?

There were women’s protests in St. Petersburg:

• Women protested and had bread marches

• Workers joined a day later

• troops turned against the government and protested as well

What happened to the Duma after Tsar Nicholas left?

The Duma set up a provisional government.

What did the rest of the world hope for when the Tsar stepped down from the throne?

The other countries hoped for a new Russian Republic. They had hoped to influence democracy.

What was interesting about Lenin’s brother?

His older brother was arrested and hanged for plotting to kill the Tsar.

What did Lenin like to study?

He studied Marxism and believed in it very much.

Where was Lenin while the Tsar was in charge?

He was sent to Siberia and married his wife there.

What happened after Lenin was released from Siberia?

He was exiled to Switzerland.

Who led the revolution after the Tsar was off the throne?

The elites, or the Bolsheviks.

What kind of government did the Duma create?

The provisional government.

Who were the soviets?

They were councils of workers and soldiers.

Where were the soviets set up?

In Petrograd and other cities.

What happens while Lenin introduces Marxism to Russia?

Socialism in Western Europe evolves differently.

What was the name of the people who believed in the Western philosophy of European Marxism?

The Mensheviks

What does the October/November revolution result in?

It brings the Bolsheviks to power.

What was Lenin’s slogan to win the people over to his side?

Peace, Land, and Bread

Who else did Lenin work with?

Leon Trotsky

Who was the Duma led by before the October Revolution?

Alexander Kerensky

What were the causes of the October Revoltion?

• Duma

  • Continued fighting in WWI

  • failed the land reform

  • shortages in cities

• Bolsheviks seized army

  • communists

  • red army

Why was the land reform failed by the Duma before the October Revolution?

Peasants ended up seizing the land, or taking it for themselves.

Who attacked the Duma in the October Revolution?

The Red Guard

What was the Red Guard?

It was a group of armed factory workers that supported Lenin and the Proletariat ideas.

Where did the capital move to when the Bolsheviks were seizing power?

It moved to Moscow, and Kremlin was their headquarters.

What did Lenin do after he declared victory in the October Revolution?

He was attempting to build a proletariat socialist state.

What did Lenin do in order to build a proletariat socialist state?

He redistributed seized lands to peasants and he made workers take control of factories and mines.

What was the meaning of the sickle in the new flag?

It stood for the peasants.

What was the meaning of the hammer in the new flag?

It stood for the industrial workers.

What was the meaning of the star in the new flag?

It stood for the communist party.

What was the meaning of the red in the new flag?

It stood for communism and it was the color of the Revolution.

What treaty does Lenin sign with Germany in 1918?

The Brest-Litovsk treaty.

What did The Brest-Litovsk treaty do to Russia?

It got them out of the war with Germany, so they can fight the civil war without worrying on a world war as well.

How long did the Russian Civil war last for?

It lasts for 3 years.

Who was the red army?

The revolutionary bolsheviks, or the communists.

Who was the white army?

The counter-revolutionaries, or the Mensheviks. They included the democrats, and other parties who hated the bolsheviks.

What did the white army do while fighting in the civil war?

They slaughtered lots of reds and even tried to assassinate Lenin.

What did the reds to the Tsar’s family in 1919?

The reds killed the Tsar and his family.

When does the terror start?

It starts in 1919

How was the terror used?

It was used by the reds to control the whites.

Who were the cheka?

They were a group of secret police that performed mass arrests, imprisionments, torture, and executions without trial.

What were gulags?

Networks for forced labor camps.

What was ‘War Communism”?

It was Lenin’s new policy that took over banks, mines and railroads.

What did war communism take over?

It took over banks, mines, and railroads.

What did peasants have to do according to war communism?

Peasants were forced to give up crops to feed the army and the poor.

What did laborers have to do according to war communism?

Laborers were forced to work in factories.

What was replaced by war communism?

NEP (New Economic Policy)

What does Trotsky do when he takes over the red army?

He used Tsarist officers to teach and portray principles and ensure party loyalty. He used CP officials to do this.

How does Trotsky motivate the soldiers to keep fighting?

In every unit that preformed poorly, he ordered to shoot every 10th man.

Why did the reds being positions in the center or Russia an advantage?

Since the whites had a lack of communication since they were spread out.

Who wins the civil war?

The communists win and they are in charge by 1921.

What was the new name of Russia after the civil war?

United Socialist Soviet Republics, or the Soviet Union

What did the new government of USSR write?

The government wrote a new constitution that combined socialist and democratic principles.

What were some new things written in the constitution?

• elected legislature (supreme soviet)

• universal suffrage→ everyone over the age of 18 votes

• all political power, resources, and means of production belonged to workers and peasants

What were the new things added to the Constitution used as?

They were used just for appearances and not for it to actually change the way the country works.

What was the reality of the constitution?

• The communist party was supreme, Not the people

• CP used army and secret police to enforce laws

• Russia dominated to the other republics

Why does Lenin abandon the idea of war communism?

He abandons the idea because the economy almost collapsed.

Why did the economy almost collapse during war communism?

• Factory and mine output dropped

• Peasants stopped farming→ knew crops would be seized→used to be marxist and changed their minds once they saw the conditions

What does the state control in the NEP?

The state controls banks, foreign trade, and large industries.

What did the NEP allow?

It allowed some capitalist features, which was exciting for some people.

What kind of capitalist features were allowed during the NEP?

• some small businesses were allowed to have some private profit

• government stopped taking all grain from peasants

• allowed to have and farm small plots of land and sell surplus crops

What was the result of the NEP?

• By 1928, food and industrial production went back to prewar levels

• standard of living improvised

What did the people of the USSR not know about the plan of NEP?

They didn’t know that it was only supposed to be a temporary plan and once Russia is stabilized it would be brought back to pure communism.

Who were the two people that fought for Lenin’s position after his death in 1924?

Trotsky VS Stalin

Who was more of a leader that was fit for Lenin’s job?

Trotsky.

Who ended up getting Lenin’s position after his death?

Stalin.