To what extent did Russia undergo economic and political change?
To what extent did Russia undergo economic and political reform in the years 1906-14? – Sam Puckey
During the period of the four dumas, of 1906-14, the regime re-established its control through harsh repression, but also brought in some significant reforms to reduce the likelihood of another revolution. Whether these measures went far enough to do this is doubtful, but their impact is impossible to judge accurately because new problems caused by the WWI confuse the picture. Peter Stolypin, the Tsar’s chief minister until his assassination in 1911, was the key figure in the period. In this essay I will discuss how far Russia changed economically and politically and to what extent.
There was a large amount of repression in the period of 1906-14. The army, police and Black Hundreds had taken repressive measures in mopping up revolutionaries in late 1905, but government terror continued in 1906-07 to deal with the peasant uprisings, which continued to flare up in these years, encouraged by the SRs. It is believed that over 1,000 government officials were murdered in 1907. Stolypin met terror with terror, hanging over 1,000 in the six months between Oct. 1906 and May 1907, which caused the nickname “Stolypin’s neckties” In 1908-09 a further 3,600 death sentences were handed out and some 4,500 people sentenced to hard labour in prison camps. Between 1906-12 1,000 newspapers were closed down and 600 trade unions wound up. The result of all this was to restore law and order. The repression shows how the
However there was a significant change in the agriculture of Russia in 1906-14. Stolypin succeeded in creating a more prosperous class of peasants free from the restrictions of the commune. To leave a commune, a peasant no longer needed permission from the majority of its members. The Peasant Land Bank was instructed to loan money to freed peasants and redemption payments were cancelled in 1907. In 1910, any commune where no land had been redistributed since 1861 was
During the period of the four dumas, of 1906-14, the regime re-established its control through harsh repression, but also brought in some significant reforms to reduce the likelihood of another revolution. Whether these measures went far enough to do this is doubtful, but their impact is impossible to judge accurately because new problems caused by the WWI confuse the picture. Peter Stolypin, the Tsar’s chief minister until his assassination in 1911, was the key figure in the period. In this essay I will discuss how far Russia changed economically and politically and to what extent.
There was a large amount of repression in the period of 1906-14. The army, police and Black Hundreds had taken repressive measures in mopping up revolutionaries in late 1905, but government terror continued in 1906-07 to deal with the peasant uprisings, which continued to flare up in these years, encouraged by the SRs. It is believed that over 1,000 government officials were murdered in 1907. Stolypin met terror with terror, hanging over 1,000 in the six months between Oct. 1906 and May 1907, which caused the nickname “Stolypin’s neckties” In 1908-09 a further 3,600 death sentences were handed out and some 4,500 people sentenced to hard labour in prison camps. Between 1906-12 1,000 newspapers were closed down and 600 trade unions wound up. The result of all this was to restore law and order. The repression shows how the
However there was a significant change in the agriculture of Russia in 1906-14. Stolypin succeeded in creating a more prosperous class of peasants free from the restrictions of the commune. To leave a commune, a peasant no longer needed permission from the majority of its members. The Peasant Land Bank was instructed to loan money to freed peasants and redemption payments were cancelled in 1907. In 1910, any commune where no land had been redistributed since 1861 was