Was Nicholas II Responsible for His Own Downfall? What can you learn from Source A about the situation in February 1917?
James Taylor 11MA Was Nicholas II Responsible for His Own Downfall? a) What can you learn from Source A about the situation in February 1917? Source A is an extract from Tsaritsa Alexandra's diary from the 25th February 1917. After reading through the source I believe it to be inaccurate and not very reliable. This for a number of reasons, the first sentence reads: 'Young people run and shout that there is no bread, simply to create excitement'. This is very incorrect, the workers weren't demonstrating just to create excitement; the workers wanted the price of bread lowered. Also the source says: 'But all this will pass and become calm if only the Duma will behave itself' The truth is the Duma was behaving itself, and although they wanted to take over the Empire, the Duma in fact had nothing to do with the demonstrations led by the peasants. The Duma was the Russian parliament, which Tsar Nicholas II created in an effort to make himself popular, but he later ignored the Duma and led the country using the army. Source A is inaccurate, although I believe there is a simple explanation. Tsaritsa Alexandra has written in her diary what she believes to be true. As the Tsar's palace is far outside Petrograd, I think the information from the centre of the city must have been altered slightly by the time it reached Tsaritsa Alexandra. As source A is quite inaccurate you
Was Nicholas II responsible for his own downfall?
Was Nicholas II responsible for his own downfall? Nicholas II acted as an autocratic monarch rather than a constitutional leader, and this was a factor in his eventual downfall and abdication. Other factors included, him leaving Russia in the incapable hand of his wife, Alexandra, who herself was greatly influenced by Rasputin. The 'Holy Man' Rasputin was becoming more and more popular with Alexandra for helping their only son, Alexis's with his haemophilia, and his strange but powerful brand of spirituality certainly affected both Alexandra and Nicholas. It could be argued that Nicholas was himself responsible for allowing the power of Rasputin to extend so far and to influence his political decisions. Historians are in agreement that Nicholas lacked the necessary skills and qualities to rule a rapidly changing country. There were however factors outside of Nicholas' control, including his son's illness, that he could not be held directly responsible for. Indeed Russia was a huge country which was very hard to govern even for the most competent Tsar. One of the first factors which Nicholas was responsible for was his weak character and the fact that he allowed Alexandra to be so dominant. She encouraged him to hold on to his absolute power when a change in his style of leadership may have been a more politically useful tactic. A very significant contributing
What problem did Russia face after the1905 Revolution? How effective was Nicholas II in dealing with these problems?
What problem did Russia face after the1905 Revolution? How effective was Nicholas II in dealing with these problems? In January 1905, there was a revolutionary tide in Russia. We called this revolution as 1905 Revolution mainly caused by the defeat of Russo-Japanese War in September and the Bloody Sunday Incident in January. In the country, workers, peasants and merchants were holding demonstrations in order to express their discontent to the Czarist government. Although Nicholas II issued the October Manifesto to pacify the discontent of people temporarily, he still had to face some problems after the 1905 Revolution. To regain the support from people, he needed to carry out the reforms in the October Manifesto. His reform included different aspect, such as political aspect, social aspect and economic aspect. He also appointed Peter Stolypin as the prime minister to stabilize the country. Nicholas II had tried his best to regain people's support and stop the revolution tide through the reforms after the 905 Revolution. Poor livelihood, no franchise of general Russians and the insult of Russo-Japanese War all these were reasons to cause the 1905 Revolution. The Bloody Sunday Incident was an immediately cause to lead the outbreak of 1905 Revo lution. After the 1905 Revolution, the Czar still had to face the above problems. IN order to prolong his rule, he was
Explain how the effects of the First World War caused the collapse of the Tsarist regime
) Explain how the effects of the First World War caused the collapse of the Tsarist regime (8 marks) There were many causes of the collapse of the Tsarist regime. One of the biggest causes, however, was the First World War, as it had many effects on everyone in Russia, who all blamed the Tsar. The Tsar abdicated in 1917 because he had no control over anyone in Russia. He had no support. This was because everyone in Russia blamed the Tsar for something. They layed all the blame at his feet because he was in charge and was the only person who could change things. One of the main reasons why the 1905 revolution failed was because the Tsar had the support and control of the military. By the time the 1917 revolution had started, the Tsar had lost this support and control. He had no protection. This happened because of the war. Firstly, the army was very poorly equipped, as some men didn't have any boots and only a third of men had rifles. The army also had very incompetent leaders. There is evidence of this in the battles at Tannenberg and the Masurian Lakes. In both of these, the 'huge Russian armies' (Brooman 1994) were wiped out when they should have easily beaten a single German army. The poor leadership combined with the poorly equipped army made Russia suffer many defeats in the war. By 1917, 0.8 million Russian troops had been killed, 4.6 million wounded and 3.3 million
Assess the view that the lives of the peasants in Russia did not improve in the period from 1855 to 1964.
Assess the view that the lives of the peasants in Russia did not improve in the period from 1855 to 1964. When assessing the view that the lives of the peasants did not improve throughout the 1855-1964 period, several key factors must be taken into consideration. These include their living and working conditions, policy towards them, the educational opportunities available to them and the political representation they had under Tsarist and Communist Governments. Once all of these factors have been taken into consideration, it becomes clear that the peasantry did not enjoy a prominent time under Tsarist or Communist Governments, and their lives did not improve in the period. For the majority of the period, living conditions for the average peasant remained uniformly bleak. Prior to 1917, accommodation was often of a low standard as demand outstripped supply following an influx to the cities, such poor living conditions had a detrimental effect on their quality of life which was also evident under the communists, where living conditions remained in an equally bad, if not worse state compared to the Tsars. Despite Khrushchev continuing Stalin's efforts to build more social housing and improve the situation, these were often of poor quality and hastily built. This meant that the peasantry did not see any real increase in living conditions between 1855-1964. In contrast to the
Discuss the way Williams Presents the relationship between Blanche and Stanley explaining what you think is at stake in the conflict between them.
Name: Camille Reid Form: 6A Novel: A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE Instructions: Discuss the way Williams Presents the relationship between Blanche and Stanley explaining what you think is at stake in the conflict between them. Tennesse Williams is a brilliant playwright. He is the author of numerous well-known and excellent plays and his mastery of symbolism is obvious in the way he uses it to convey significant situations and qualities in his main characters. In A Streetcar Named Desire, two of his main characters, Blanche and Stanley, have conflicting personalities and it is in this particular play that his skill in the use of symbolism is most evident as he uses it to depict the relationship between the two, using many relevant symbols. In so doing, he manages to clearly identify to his audience what is at risk in the battle between Blanche and Stanley. This raises questions like who will win, how will he or she win and what will result from this victory or loss as the case may be. The imagery, which best describes the relationship between Blanche and Stanley is that of "the moth versus light", with Blanche being the moth and Stanley being the light. Williams achieves this effect by likening Blanche to a moth by constantly portraying her as being frail. For example, "her white clothes that suggest a moth" and "her delicate beauty must avoid strong light" are in the stage
How does a change in the mortality rate explain population growth in the early modern period?
Page 1 Sarah Humphreys How does a change in the mortality rate explain population growth in the early modern period? Throughout the early modern period the mortality rate varied a great deal, and was generally characterised by "dramatic short run fluctuations," low life expectancy, high infant mortality and increased quantities of deaths as a result of severe epidemic outbreaks.1 Throughout this era, Europe experienced numerous mortality crises in which the number of deaths vastly exceeded the average number of deaths. An example of this mortality crisis can be observed by looking at the parish of Os, Norway. 57 deaths was the average number of expected mortalities per non crisis year between 1669 and 1735. Os experienced 9 crises throughout this 60 year period in which the rate of deaths grew by 50%. 2 This pattern was common throughout Europe. There were three key factors that caused these great fluctuations in the amount of deaths between 1500 and 1789 and they were; epidemics, war and famine. Epidemics of the plague and diseases such as influenza, typhus, typhoid and smallpox were a principle reason behind the millions of deaths throughout Europe. Figures show the devastation caused by these epidemics; it has been claimed that during the period of 1557 to 1559 "a tenth of the English population died"3 as a result of influenza. The infamous plague ravaged
Examine the role of women in Romeo and Juliet, and explore the role of women in 16th century society
Examine the role of women in Romeo and Juliet, and explore the role of women in 16th century society Shakespeare wrote the play Romeo and Juliet in the 16th century, a time in which the role of women was not to be a person in their own rights, but to be a wife to their husband and a mother to their children. Women had a specific place in society, and they were expected to conform to expectations of their positions. Women were owned by their husbands, and had little to no freedom from their spouses or parents. In the play, Shakespeare depicts this situation through the character Juliet and her relationships and role in society, a young girl growing into the expectations of women at that time. The theme of this essay is to examine the role of women in 16th century society i.e. Juliet, and contrast it to the role of women today. Juliet's relationship with her parents is very different to what would be expected today. In the 16th century it was common for wealthy parents to employ a nurse to bring up their children, to be what a mother figure is like today. Juliet's relationship is typical of the period in which the play was set: her affluent parents employed the Nurse (who had given birth at the same time as Lady Capulet) to care for their daughter when she was born, and "wean" her. A woman who had lost her own baby was an ideal source of milk for an upper-class infant whose
The ideology of the Democrats is liberal whilst that of the Republicans is Conservative. Discuss
The ideology of the Democrats is liberal whilst that of the Republicans is Conservative. Discuss 'Two glass jars with different labels, both empty'. This has been the traditional opinion of the differences between the parties ever since the federalist/anti-federalist issue was settled. However, in recent decades, we have seen the emergence of distinct ideological identities. That of liberalism - a belief that the federal government should have an active role in protecting the vulnerable & guaranteeing rights, and Conservatism - a belief that government should be restricted in order for the individual to achieve their potential. I will analyse to what extent the Democrats and Republicans adhere to these philosophies. Primarily, the Democrats have been associated with liberalism ever since FDR's New Deal of the 1930s. In this era, the government utilised Keynesian economics and expanded its reach nationally, helping the unemployed by providing jobs. Though these 'tax and spend' have become unfashionable in recent years, most Democrats would identify themselves as liberals. Recent policies would support this argument. In January 2009, a Democratic President and a Democratic Congress passed a 700 billion dollar economic stimulus package. This is clearly a liberal policy, affirming the state's role in the economy. Moreover, it was the same congress who passed the Patient
The development of scientific logic.
The Development of Scientific Logic The origins of science lie in the earliest civilizations, those of Egypt, Mesopotamia, China, India and Arabia. However, the school of thought which would undisputedly have the greatest influence on the development of modern science was that of Ancient Greece. The Greeks eventually broke with the mystical beliefs of their early development and came to focus on logic as the means of seeking truth. The theories of such great thinkers as Plato, Aristotle and Archimedes were to have enormous impact on the development of modern science. The earliest scientific theories were founded in philosophical and not empirical thought. In fact Plato, one of the most influential Greeks, asserted that the senses were deceitful and not to be trusted, and that only through pure reason could truths be uncovered. The modern scientific method was not to make its appearance for many centuries to come. The vast sources of Greek knowledge were preserved by the Romans when Greece fell to their rapidly expanding empire. Roman education was focused primarily on oratory, and politics, and less on the understanding of the natural world. Although the Romans made little contribution themselves, they produced Latin compilations of many Greek works, which the formed the sole source of knowledge for the scientists of the early Medieval Christian West. During the
