Russian Revolution - Land of the Tsars - Nicholas II
Czar Nicholas II: The Last Russian Czar
In 1894, Nicholas' father died from kidney disease. Nicholas was now the all powerful Tsar of Russia. Since the Tsar needed to be married and produce heirs to the throne, Nicholas quickly married the daughter of a German Archduke named Princess Alexandra. He was officially crowned Tsar of Russia on May 26, 1896. When Nicholas first took the crown he continued with many of his father's conservative policies. This included financial reforms, an alliance with France, and the completion of the Trans-Siberian Railroad in 1902. Nicholas also proposed the Hague Peace Conference of 1899 in order to help promote peace in Europe.
War with Japan
Nicholas was determined to expand his empire in Asia. However, his efforts provoked Japan who attacked Russia in 1904. This was called the Russo-Japanese War. The Russian army was defeated and humiliated by the Japanese and Nicholas was forced into peace negotiations.
Bloody Sunday
In the early 1900s, the peasants and lower class workers in Russia lived lives of poverty. They had little food, worked long hours, and had dangerous working conditions. In 1905, under the leadership of a priest named George Gapon, thousands of workers organized a march to the Tsar's palace. They believed that the government was at fault, but that the Tsar was still on their side. As the marchers peacefully advanced, soldiers from the army stood guard and tried to block a bridge approaching the palace. The soldiers fired into the crowd killing many of the marchers. This day is now known as Bloody Sunday. The actions of the Tsar's soldiers came as a surprise to the people. They now felt they could no longer trust the Tsar and that he wasn't on their side.
1905 Revolution and the Duma
Shortly after Bloody Sunday, many of the people of Russia began to revolt against the Tsar's government. Nicholas was forced to create a new government with an elected legislature, called the Duma, which would help him rule. This would be a so-called "constitutional monarchy", but the tsar would not follow many of the directions or instructions given by the new legislature.
World War I
In 1914, Russia entered World War I on the side of the Allied Powers (Russia, Britain and France). They fought against the Central Powers (Germany, Ottoman Empire, and Austro-Hungary). Millions of peasants and workers were forced to join the army. They were forced to fight even though they had little training, no shoes, and little food. Some were even told to fight without weapons. The army was soundly defeated by Germany at the Battle of Tannenburg. Nicholas II took over the command of the army, but things only got worse. Millions of peasant men died due to the incompetence of the Russian leaders. Russia was forced to make peace with Germany during the Russian Revolution effectively ending Russia's participation in World War I.
Nicholas II was a poor ruler who made a lot of mistakes that led to the Russian Revolution. Here are some mistakes:
1) Russo-Japanese War - Russia and Japanese fight over Asian territories, but Russia lost because Russia was not as industrialized and is humiliated over and over again by an industrialized Japan.
2) Bloody Sunday - The Czar's troops fire on a peaceful protest meant to show the Czar how people were suffering. People lose trust and faith in the Czar.
3) Ineffective Duma - after Russians revolt the Czar creates a Duma, or Russian Parliament, but gives it no real power. It was an non-existent constitutional monarchy in which the tsar had absolute power over.
4) Rasputin - The royal family faces scandal when a controversial "holy man" starts to become a very powerful influence in the government. His influence weakened the confidence in the Russian Government. He was assassinated in bizarre circumstances. Read about Rasputin here.
5) WWI - Like the Russo-Japanese War, Russia is completely unprepared to fight a modern war. The troops are short on weapons, ammunition, clothing, and food. Russia will sign the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk which was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918 between the new Bolshevik government of Russia and the Central Powers during the Russian Revolution and civil war.
