Causes
What kind of government was in charge of Russia BEFORE the Russian Revolution?
The Czar/Tsar had autocratic rule in Russia
Nicholas II / The Romanovs
Absolutism
What was the name of the group that started gaining popularity during the years leading up to the Revolution?
The Bolsheviks - Russian Communist Party
Define "Totalitarianism"
The government has total control over every aspect of society. Individual rights do not matter as much as state power.
What is the name of the philosopher that came up with communism?
Karl Marx
Describe the lives of Russian peasants before the Russian Revolution.
Terrible working conditions
Cruel landowners
Worked 16 hours
Little food and pay
Living in extreme poverty
What was the slogan used by the Bolsheviks to help them gain support from the Russian people?
Peace, Land, Bread!
Soldiers wanted peace from WWI, and Peasants wanted Land and Bread!
List two ways Stalin ensured total control of the government.
- Great Purge
- Secret Police (NKVD)
- Command Economy (government makes all decisions about the economy)
- Propaganda (Posters, education, arts & literature)
- Censorship
List two characteristics of communism.
What was one major result of the March Revolution?
What was the goal of the Bolshevik party?
Lenin & the Bolsheviks wanted to revolt and overthrow the Romanovs (Czar Nicholas II) and establish a Communist state in Russia, where the government was controlled by the proletariat (working class).
What was the Holodomor and what caused it?
The Holodomor was the Ukrainian genocide, and it was caused by Stalin's collectivism. The Ukrainians resisted agricultural collectivism, and Stalin wanted to ethnically cleanse them for rebelling. His man-made famine killed 7-10 million people.
Explain Lenin's idea of war communism.
Lenin’s idea of war communism was the nationalization of private businesses – the government took over private businesses. Lenin wanted to accelerate (make faster) the process of creating a Communist state. However, it negatively impacted both agricultural and industrial production and ultimately failed.
List two reasons Russian civilians were willing to revolt against the Czar.
Any of the following answers:
- Russia was still not industrialized and was extremely undeveloped compared to the rest of Europe
- Russia's continued involvement in World War I
- Miserable lifestyle for peasants on farms
- Horrible working conditions for industrial workers
- Bloody Sunday (harsh government)
- Corruption in the Czar's family (Rasputin)
Describe Lenin's "Red Terror"
What were Stalin's Great Purges and why did they happen?
The Great Purge was Stalin expelling everyone in society who he felt was a threat to him using his secret police. They would be kicked out from the government, sent to Gulag labor camps, or killed. He did this to consolidate his power and remove all threats to his control, and spread fear among the people so they wouldn't rebel.
Explain how class conflict played a role in the Russian Revolution.
The lower classes (Russian peasants and workers) overthrew the upper class (The Tsar & royalty), because they were being treated unfairly. They took part in Bloody Sunday and the March Revolution to force Nicholas II to abdicate.
Nicholas II's father, Alexander II, freed the Russian serfs from serfdom long before the Russian Revolution. Why?
He knew the peasants were unhappy and on the verge of revolt, so he wanted to avoid a popular uprising. It didn't make much of a difference, since the peasants were still poor, hungry, and had to live on the farms anyway.
What was Lenin's NEP plan, and why did he put it in place?
The New Economic Policy (NEP) allowed small-scale capitalism, and let people own small businesses to earn profit. Lenin put it in place because war communism was unsuccessful, and most people were living in poverty.
Define Stalin's "agricultural collectivism" and "five-year plans." In your definition, explain why Stalin implemented these policies.
Agricultural collectivism: the government took over private farms and forced everyone to work on them together. Stalin gave them high quotas for production to increase the agricultural production of the country.
Five-Year Plans: Stalin came up with five-year plans to set high production goals for industries. He wanted to make the Soviet Union catch up to the rest of Europe in industrialization.
How was the Russian Revolution a contradiction of Marxist theory? (Who is supposed to have the power in Communism? Who actually had the power during the Russian Revolution?)
In Marxist theory, the proletariat (working class) are supposed to have all the power, but during the Russian Revolution, first Lenin had all the power (the Red Terror) and then Stalin had all the power (Totalitarian dictator). The proletariat never had power under Lenin & Stalin.