Why did the Tsar abdicate after the 1917 revolution

Why did the Tsar abdicate following the February 1917 Revolution, but not after the 1905 Revolution? Russian kings called themselves 'Tsar', meaning emperor. Unlike the rulers of the other great powers, by 1900 the Tsar still ruled the country on his own, with help from ministers he chose, who answered only to him. The people in Russia had no right to vote and there was no parliament. Local government was in the hands of provincial governors appointed by the Tsar. The whole system depended a lot on the ability of the Tsar. If the Tsar was talented and a strong leader then the government might work well, despite the size of the country. But in complete contrast if the Tsar was weak the country may slip back into anarchy. Therefore most of the Tsars were harsh and repressive in the way that they ruled. In many ways, Russia was still in the middle ages. Tsar Nicholas II (1868-1918) was Russia's last emperor, he was born on 18 May 1868 in Tsarskoe Selo. Nicholas succeeded his father's throne, Alexander III, when his father died from liver disease on 20 October 1894. Nicholas was 26. The same year Nicholas married Princess Alexandra of Hesse-Darmstadt, the grand daughter of Queen Victoria. Alexandra played a huge part in convincing Nicholas to resist ever growing calls for increased democracy within Russia. Alexandra was a firm believer in the autocratic principle. Nicholas

  • Word count: 2499
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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Why were the fighting and living conditions so bad for British soldiers on the Western Front in World War One?

A: Why were the fighting and living conditions so bad for British soldiers on the Western Front in World War One? The French and British had to push the Germans away from Paris, and there was a constant battle to gain ground. Neither side could advance so; they dug trenches to offer them protection whilst fighting. This was the Western Front. The German trenches were built better than the British's. The Germans trenches had a well developed firing step, duckboards, and the use of concrete construction. Meanwhile, the British trenches weren't constructed as thoroughly, they were built to maintain the position of readiness, and were more exposed to the elements, and this was why the Allies soldiers suffered from more illnesses than the Germans. The soldiers on the Front line needed ammunition, food, barbed wire, shells, timber, and sandbags, which were supplied to deposits behind the trenches by train. Getting the supplies to the trenches was difficult, but they eventually found that railway with Lorries with special wheels worked best. The first complaint was 'trench foot'. This was when the feet turn red or blue, go numb, severe chilblains and get gangrene. It's caused by exposing the feet to cold water for too long. Amputation of the toes or foot was sometimes necessary. The cause of this disease was stopped by daily foot inspections, dry socks, and rubbing whale oil

  • Word count: 632
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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Why were the major cities of Britain bombed by the Germans in 1940 - 1? (15)

History Course Work . Why were the major cities of Britain bombed by the Germans in 1940 - 1? (15) The bombing all started when German airships accidentally bombed London, which did not do much harm, but despite this Churchill made the accident seem worse than it really was and in retaliation bombed Berlin very heavily, this was one of the main reasons why the major cities were bombed during 1940 - 1 as the Germans wanted revenge. Major cities were also bombed because the Germans wanted to cripple the British economy, destroy the manufacturing industry so that would be starved of vital resources which would in turn make Britain not able to function as a country so that there would be little to none resistance against an invasion by the Germans. An example of bombing particular cities was Liverpool. Liverpool was the second most bombed city after London. The main reason for Hitler bombing cities like Liverpool was because Liverpool was a major shipping port which received imports from all over the world, and as a result of cutting off the major shipping ports Hitler could starve the British population into submission by cutting off the convoys supplying the country and Southampton was also bombed very heavily for the same reason. Other cities like Coventry were bombed for different reasons. Coventry had many war factories which accounted for a lot of war work. To prevent

  • Word count: 1902
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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" ... The most important reason why Germany hated the treaty Of Versailles was the loss of territory..." discuss

07.10.2002 History Essay Helen Gammons " ... The most important reason why Germany hated the treaty Of Versailles was the loss of territory..." The loss of territory was a very important reason as to why the Germans were very upset and angry about the Treaty Of Versailles. This was because it weakened Germany incredibly .The loss of Posen and west Prussia (a.k.a the polish corridor) was terrible, this basically divided Germany in two halves, which left it much more vulnerable and weak. It was also very humiliating as German speaking people who had once been German, were now (just because they lived in a certain part of the Germany ) had become polish , I cant really imagine that these such German people would have been too thrilled with that. They were also made to give back the land they took from Russia, which means that they had gained nothing from the war but debts! The demilitarisation of the Rhineland also left Germany open to attacks from the French as they were aloud to place there troupes right up

  • Word count: 1104
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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" If the west did not gain much from colonization, it does not mean that the third world did not lose much" There were many historical facts to suggest that in fact, the west, somehow, did not gain much from colonization but did the third world lose much?

" If the west did not gain much from colonization, it does not mean that the third world did not lose much" There were many historical facts to suggest that in fact, the west, somehow, did not gain much from colonization but did the third world lose much? However, many aspects can be consider of interpreting the statement above about the third world. If we look at the statement from the west's point of view. They possibly think that the third world did not lose much but that the third world are being helped to develop. Therefore, third world must gain much from the west through colonization. On the other hand, if we considered this from the third world's point of view, they would probably or quite definitely think that they have lost much from being colonized by the west. Therefore, in order to make any judgments to the statement above. We have to take into account both positive and negative aspects from both sides - The west and The Third world. First of all, let us look at the positive aspect the west gained from colonization - imported of resources and raw materials as well as the use of labour resources from the third world countries. Thus, this spare resources are essentials for the process of expansion and development of the west. This, in turn, lead to technological, economical and industrial development of the west due to a low cost of production and cheap raw

  • Word count: 1706
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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"...violence against women constitutes a violation of the rights and fundamental freedoms of women..."

"...violence against women constitutes a violation of the rights and fundamental freedoms of women..." Women all over the world have been discriminated against, be it a cultural or a religious discrimination. Violence against women is the harshest in the third world countries like Afghanistan, India, Iraq, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Thailand. Although there might be some charity groups in Canada that help out these third world women, Canada as a whole has not been playing a huge role in protecting these women from such ill treatment. There are many discussions and arguments on the treatment of these third world women: firstly, there are many ways that Canada is helping out these women because of groups like the United Nations; secondly, the Canadian government will only help these women (in the third world) if it affects them directly; and, lastly, when these immigrants arrive in Canada the cruel treatment still goes on in some of the households, and the Canadian government does not do anything to help. Thus, although there is a few problem solving that Canada is doing to help the third world women, but Canada has not completely been able to give these women total freedom as of yet. Women in Saudi Arabia, whether Saudi Arabian or foreign, come out time and again as victims of discrimination and human rights violations because of the gender bias in law, social mores

  • Word count: 1943
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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"America-Sweet Land of Liberty"

"America-Sweet Land of Liberty" Amy Gladd 172 Queen Junction Rd Butler, PA 16001 (724) 637 3173 165 70 0515 Herold J. Thompson American Legion Post 243 West Sunbury, PA 16061 Carl and Sara Gladd "America-Sweet Land of Liberty" Many Americans have different views on liberty. The definition of liberty is freedom. Martin Luther King Jr. shared his dream of liberty for all ethnic races to millions. John F. Kennedy believed free America needed to help the poor and unite nations. Lastly, Martin Luther took advantage of his freedoms and told the Catholic church all of its' faults. These three men expressed their views on liberty in unique ways. Martin Luther King, Jr., a son of a preacher man grew up to be regarded as one of the greatest leaders and heroes in American history. Mr. King expressed his desire for all races to be free by giving heart-felt but intense speeches. He also held strikes, picket lines, and started boycotts. He emphasized for people to put an end to violence and to dispute their differences. He desired for the white human race to give all the other ethnic races the same treatment. He longed for his children to grow up in a town where white and black children could play together. His view of liberty was that everyone should share it together. All races need to be free. President John F. Kennedy longed for America to assist other nations

  • Word count: 704
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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"Analyse the factors that enabled Hitler and the Nazis to assume power in Germany in 1933 and discuss which factor you conside

"Analyse the factors that enabled Hitler and the Nazis to assume power in Germany in 1933 and discuss which factor you consider was the most significant" Adolf Hitler (leader of the Nazi party) gained support throughout the 1920's and was eventually appointed Chancellor of Germany by Hindenburg on January 30th 1933, and became dictator on March 23rd 1933 after Hindenburg's death. The Nazis also had gained 288 seats in the Reichstag and three members in the Cabinet. Hitler and the Nazis were able to do this because of many important factors including, The Treaty of Versailles, Ineffective Weimar Constitution, Munich Putsch (Beer Hall Putsch), and The Great Depression which all contributed to Hitler and the Nazis gaining power in 1933. The Treaty of Versailles was signed on the 28th of June 1919 at the Palace of Versailles. This had huge ramifications on the Weimar Government and the way it was viewed by the German public. The treaty stated under clause 231 that Germany was to be blamed for the war. This caused the German public to feel 'pain and anger'. Frederick Schneidemann, the German Chancellor (June 1919) resigned rather than sign the treaty, saying: "May the hand wither that signs this treaty." The German public were angry about the reparation payments believing that France and Britain were trying to 'starve their children to death'. The treaty also stated a

  • Word count: 1654
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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"Antis Had More Convincing Arguments than Suffragists and Suffragettes."

"Antis Had More Convincing Arguments than Suffragists and Suffragettes." Every argument has two sides. In the case of votes for women, it was those who were pro-women's suffrage against those who were anti-women's suffrage. Those against Woman's suffrage were often referred to as "Antis." Antis had many reasons for why women should not have he vote, however many of those reasons were unfounded or could easily be made invalid. Although, to begin with, the views of the Antis were more representative of public opinion, people would soon come to see them as old fashioned and there arguments as unjustified and unconvincing. For many Antis, the only real reason that they didn't want women to have the vote was simply because they hated change. This fear led to many unfounded arguments that would cloud and distort any realistic arguments they had. Antis said that enfranchising women would destabilise the political structure and an uneducated and politically inexperienced class would come into power. However, politics was something that could be easily taught and many women would begin to follow politics during this period anyway. Antis also stressed that women could not fight in the army and they should not have the vote because they couldn't fight for their country. But just because women couldn't fight for the country doesn't mean that they wouldn't. This didn't change that fact

  • Word count: 1117
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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"By the beginning of 1929, the prospects for the survival of the WeimarRepublic looked good." Discuss.

"By the beginning of 1929, the prospects for the survival of the Weimar Republic looked good." Discuss. The mid to late 1920s are sometimes described as the 'Golden Years' of the Weimar republic, an era of prosperity and growth. Therefore many historians would take an optimistic stance towards the above quotation and the Weimar Republic's prospects, arguing that if it had not been for the Depression it would have survived. Conversely, some disagree on the note that key weaknesses were still apparent in the Weimar republic in 1929. In this essay I intend to argue that although the Weimar Republic had managed to put itself on course for a steady recovery pulling itself out of a difficult situation, the period known as the 'Golden Years' was a superficially promising period that in actual fact was blemished by major weaknesses. However, the culmination of economic, political and diplomatic progress brought about illustrated the Weimar republic as being much stronger than it actually was. Throughout the 'golden years' and by 1929, Germany's economy was showing very positive signs of flourishing. Germany benefited from an increase in foreign investment especially from the US. Foreign investment exceeded the amount being paid through reparations. Between 1924 and 1931, Germany received 18,000 million marks through foreign loans while 11,100 million marks had been paid off through

  • Word count: 2173
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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