The Russian Empire stretched from the Baltic to the Black Sea and from Poland to the Pacific Ocean in the east, covering a sixth of the Earth’s total land surface. It was a multi racial empire consisting of many nationalities like the Poles, Latvians, Ukrains, Fins and the Mongols among others. The empire had an autocratic or absolute system of government known as Tsardom or the Tsarist regime and because of this the leaders of Russia had the title of the Tsar. By 1917, Russia was under the leadership of Tsar Nicholas II who had succeeded Tsar Alexander III in 1894. However, in 1917 Russia witnessed revolutions.
The Russian Revolutions were violent reactions by the people of Russia against the conservatism and despotism of the Tsardom or Tsarist Regime in Russia. The revolutions were two i.e. one in February or March and the other one in October or November 1917. The one in February or March 1917 overthrew Tsar Nicholas II and therefore led to the collapse of Tsardom in Russia. What followed was the establishment of a Provisional Government of the Mensheviks led by Prince Lvov and Kerensky. The one of October or November 1917 led to the collapse or overthrow of the provisional government and brought in the Bolsheviks under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin.
NOTE:
The Russian revolution of 1917 is also known as the Bolsheviks revolution of 1917.
THE CAUSES OF THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTIONS OF 1917
The despotic and harsh nature of the Tsarist regime caused the Russian revolutions of 1917. The Tsars in Russia were dictators and never allowed any degree of democracy. For example, there was no constitution, no freedom of the press, association as well as no equality before the law. There was also no freedom of worship because the Protestants and Jews were persecuted while the Orthodox Church was given monopoly over the religious affairs of the Russians. By 1917, Tsar Nicholas II had refused any demand for reforms which generated discontent that sparked off revolutions.
The rise of socialist reformist or revolutionary parties like the Bolsheviks and Mensheviks led to the outbreak of the Russian revolutions of 1917. These political parties spread socialist ideas demanding for improvement in the general welfare of the masses which proved to be a solution to peoples’ existing problems like unemployment. They therefore inspired the masses to rise up in 1917.
The negative effects of industrialization caused the Russian revolutions of 1917. Industrialization in Russia brought about problems like low pay, overcrowding in factories and poor ventilation among others. It also increased rural – urban migration which led to urban unemployment and the development of slums with poor sanitation and accommodation. Tsar Nicholas II failed to solve the above problems resulting from industrialization which caused discontent among the masses, thus sparking off the 1917 Russian revolution.
The weaknesses of Tsar Nicholas II contributed to the outbreak of the Russian revolutions of 1917. He was weak in character and therefore lacked the ability to solve the country’s problems. He accepted to be under the influence of his wife the Tsarina Alexandria who poorly advised him against reforms in Russia. He was a dictator and therefore banned political parties and trade unions while the opponents of his regime were either imprisoned or exiled. He also censored the press and public meetings were controlled. He also established secret police known as the Cheka Police which was very brutal in suppressing the masses. He also failed to curb down corruption which was wide spread in his government. As a result, Tsar Nicholas II became very unpopular among the masses which finally caused a revolution in Russia by 1917.
The negative influence of the Tsarina Alexandria led to the outbreak of the 1917 Russian revolutions. She was the wife of Tsar Nicholas II but she was very conservative. As a result, she always poorly advised the Tsar to introduce reforms that would have improved the conditions of the ordinary masses in Russia. This increased the unpopularity of the Tsarist government, thus forcing the masses to rise up in 1917.
The influence of Rasputin caused the Russian revolutions of 1917. He claimed to be a holy man or monk and a priest. Rasputin was unsympathetic to peoples’ suffering yet he had a lot of influence on Tsar Nicholas II. He advised Tsar Nicholas II to refuse any demands for reforms like freedom of speech, worship and association. As a result of this negative influence, the masses decided to organize a revolution against both Tsar Nicholas II and Rasputin in 1917.
The effects of the Russo – Japanese War of 1904 to 1905 led to the outbreak of the Russian revolutions of 1917. Following the Berlin Congress of 1878, Russian imperialism in the Balkans was checked. Consequently, Russia started expanding eastwards which brought her into war with Japan by 1904. This war was a disaster to Russia because she was defeated by Japan, leading to the death of many Russian soldiers as well as financial losses on top of losing the strategic Port Arthur to Japan. This increased internal opposition against the Tsarist regime of Nicholas II which finally sparked off a revolution by 1917.
The Russian policy of “Russification” of the conquered states caused the 1917 Russian revolutions. For example, the Tsarist government under Tsar Nicholas II imposed the Russian language on the people of Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Finland. This generated hatred against the Tsarist government, thus causing a revolution in Russia by 1917.
The land problem caused the Russian revolutions of 1917. By 1917, there was unequal distribution of land in Russia with most of the land owned by the aristocrats and the Orthodox Church. This left the peasants in Russia landless, hence forcing them to rise up in 1917 so as to bring about land reforms that would benefit the peasants.
The negative effects of World War I of 1914 – 1918 on Russia caused the Russian revolutions of 1917. This was a war that was fought between two hostile camps i.e. the Triple Entente powers and their allies led by France, Britain and Russia against the Triple Alliance or Central Powers led by Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey. This war led to the death of many Russian soldiers at the battle front. The government also spent a lot of money to finance the war which caused economic problems at home. Tsar Nicholas II continued with the war despite opposition at home. As the war progressed, the soldiers were being forced into the war with poor and inefficient weapons plus lack of training. As a result, most of them died and those who survived deserted the army and joined the peasants in causing the revolution by 1917.
World War I also resulted into the destruction and occupation of the Ukraine Wheat fields by the German forces and this was a major source of food supply for Russia. This resulted into shortage of food and unemployment in Russia. All these problems forced the masses to rise up against the existing government of Tsar Nicholas II which had maintained a war policy.
Natural disasters or calamities caused the Russian revolutions of 1917. For example, since 1912 Russia was hit by bad weather with extreme winter which led to poor harvests and subsequently food shortages. This made the government unpopular, thus forcing the peasants to stage a revolt demanding for food and better standards of living by 1917.
The role of Lenin and the Bolsheviks party inspired the masses in Russia to rise up in 1917. Lenin drew the attention of the working class to their bad conditions. He was the leader of the Bolsheviks party which was advocating for socialism in Russia. He advocated for the improvement in the working conditions like better pay, improved factory conditions in the factories. He therefore offered leadership which was vital in making the 1917 Russian revolution inevitable.
The influence of the revolutionary ideologies from Western Europe inspired the Russians to rise up in 1917. Revolutions like the 1789 French revolution, the 1830 and 1848 revolutions in Western Europe spread ideologies like liberalism into the Russian society. Such ideologies criticized the despotic policies of the Tsarist regime in Russia, thus encouraging the masses to rise up in 1917.
The weaknesses of the Russian parliament caused the Russian revolutions of 1917. By 1917, Russia had a parliament which was known as the “Duma”. However, this parliament had several weaknesses. For example, it failed to bring about the desired reforms. Instead of pressing for reforms the Duma or parliament just co-operated with Tsar Nicholas II in oppressing the masses. This caused discontent which finally sparked a revolution by 1917.
The inadequate or half – hearted political and economic reforms introduced by Tsar Alexander II led to the outbreak of the Russian revolutions of 1917. He was the Tsar of Russia from 1855 to 1881 and during his regime he introduced many reforms like the “Edict of emanicipation” of 1861 so as to liberate the serfs or peasants from their landlords, built schools and relaxed press censorship among other reforms. However, the reforms were inadequate. For example, the peasants or serfs did not enjoy real freedom and were denied secondary school education. This annoyed the peasants especially when Tsar Nicholas II continued with the same policy.
The impact of the “Red or Bloody Sunday” of 1905 led to the outbreak of the Russian revolutions of 1917. In January 1905, Father Gapon, a young priest and friend to the workers led a big crowd of people to the “Winter Palace” of Tsar Nicholas II in St.Petersburg. The demonstration by Father Gapon was peaceful and its purpose was to deliver a petition to the Tsar demanding for reforms like better pay for the workers as well as a reduction in the working hours. However, the royal troops, acting on the instructions of Tsar Nicholas II, blocked the demonstration and instead opened fire and many people were killed. This annoyed the masses and by 1917, it made a revolution inevitable.
The grievances of the army and police made the government unpopular among the soldiers. Tsar Nicholas II failed to improve the conditions of the army. As a result, there was poor pay as well as the continued death of the soldiers during World War I among other grievances. Consequently, there was a mutiny or rebellion of the Cossacks which was regarded by the Tsar as the more reliable supporters. This encouraged the rest of the masses to rise up against the Tsarist government.
The rise of socialism and communism in Russia increased the unpopularity of the Tsarist regime, thus leading to the outbreak of the 1917 Russian revolutions. These two economic ideologies advocated for the state ownership of property like land on behalf of the masses. They also advocated for the improvement in the conditions of the workers in the industries and factories. These ideologies therefore attracted the attention of the masses who were suffering under Tsar Nicholas II. As a result, they were inspired to join Lenin in 1917 to see that socialism or communism is established in Russia.
The support from the foreign or European powers contributed to the outbreak of the Russian revolutions of 1917. The European powers like Germany, Sweden and Switzerland provided funds, manpower and arms to the revolutionary leaders in Russia like Lenin and Trostky. Such support inspired the Russians to rise up against the Tsarist regime in 1917.
The weaknesses of the Provisional Government led to the outbreak of the second revolution of October 1917. For example, the new leaders continued with fighting in World War I as Tsar Nicholas II had done. The leaders were also weak in their policies and they failed to solve the social and economic problems that had caused the March revolution like unemployment and food shortages. That is why in October 1917, Lenin and Josef Stalin organized a second revolution which overthrew the Provisional Government.
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