Russian Revolution: From Tsarist Russia to the USSR
The Russian Revolution and the USSR
Czarist Russia in the Early 20th Century
Political Immobility and Modernization Challenges
In 1900, Russia was a vast empire, stretching from the Baltic to the Pacific, with 140 million people under authoritarian rule. Its economy and society were among the most backward in Europe. Political power rested with the Tsar, supported by the nobility, the senior administration, the army, the Okhrana (secret police), and the Orthodox Church.
Under Tsar Alexander II, reforms were implemented, including the abolition of serfdom in 1861. However, these reforms did not significantly improve land productivity or alleviate peasant poverty. After Alexander II’s assassination, reforms were abandoned, and under Alexander III and Nicholas II, political stagnation ensued.
Despite this, limited industrialization continued, concentrated in a few areas with large industrial complexes and significant foreign capital. This industrialization led to social changes.
Opposition to Tsarism
Despite a ban on political parties, opposition to Tsarism arose within a small intellectual class. In the 1870s, the Narodniks (populists) advocated for agrarian socialism. After this movement failed, a terrorist organization, “The People’s Will,” assassinated Alexander II.
In 1898, the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP), inspired by Marxist principles, was founded. A key figure was Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (Lenin). In 1903, the party split into Mensheviks and Bolsheviks.
- The Mensheviks believed Russia needed a bourgeois revolution and capitalist development before a socialist revolution.
- The Bolsheviks advocated for the immediate overthrow of Tsarism and a revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat and peasantry.
In 1905, the Socialist Revolutionary Party (SRs), successors to the populists, emerged, advocating for agrarian socialism. The liberal bourgeoisie formed the Constitutional Democratic Party (Cadets), aiming for a constitutional monarchy.
The 1905 Revolution
Russia’s defeat in the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) and the precarious living conditions of workers and peasants discredited the Tsar. Strikes in St. Petersburg culminated in Bloody Sunday (January 1905), when police fired on a peaceful demonstration. This sparked widespread revolutionary activity.
Peasants demanded an end to landlord abuses, workers formed strike committees and Soviets (councils), and underground political parties worked to overthrow the regime. Discontent spread to the army, leading to mutinies like the Potemkin uprising.
In October 1905, the Tsar issued the October Manifesto, granting civil liberties and creating a representative assembly (Duma). This allowed him to quell the revolt.
The Failure of Reforms
The reforms following the 1905 Revolution were limited. The Duma had little power, as the Tsar retained veto power. Four Dumas were convened between 1906 and 1917, each dissolved or manipulated by the Tsar.
Stolypin’s land reform of 1906 aimed to create a class of prosperous peasants loyal to the regime, but it excluded the lands of the Crown, Church, and nobility. Political repression continued, exacerbated by the influence of Rasputin and courtly cliques. Russia’s entry into World War I worsened the situation.