RUSSIAN HISTORY

[shabz.xo]

To what extent was the Romanov regime under threat from internal and external influences by 1904?

any help guys?

[Menang]

I can't give you an exact answer (you should make up your own mind about which stance you want to take!), but here are some things to think about:

INTERNAL:
-The widespread nature of Russia's geography and nationalities (most textbooks should contain a breakdown of the different nationalities in Russia's population) --> Does this make it hard for Tsarism to exert/keep control? Does this represent a united country?

-The political backwardness and repression in Russia during the Romanov Regime (again, any textbook should explain further) --> Did this tend to drive the people (or at least some specific groups) towards extremism?

-Also think about the very uneven spread of wealth as well as the backwards economy and agriculture.

All these problems stem from the fact that the Russian Bureaucracy was an absolute mess, hence internal.

EXTERNAL:
-The growth of opposition to Tsarism: Think about the Populists (Narodniks), the Socialist Revolutionaries, Social Democrats, and Liberals (Octobrists/Kadets). All of these parties were formed before 1904. These problems, although INSIDE Russia, were not directly cause by the regime and I would consider these external.

-The Russo-Japanese War began in 1904 --> so think about the impact of an overseas war on the economy of Russia and the morale of its people. This war is extremely important and becomes one of the major talking points for the 1905 revolution.

Those are the major points I can think of right now that would contribute as a threat to the Romanov Regime, both internally and externally.

But to determine the EXTENT of the threat, one must also consider what Russia was doing well.
-Think about the concessions made by Alexander II (Emancipation of the Serfs is a big one), as well as the economic reforms made by Sergei Witte. (again, most textbooks should explain this further, but things to look out for are the industrial reforms, the great spurt, the progress made in building the Trans-Siberian Railway etc).

You can weight up how threatened you think Russia was in 1904 based on these strengths and weaknesses of the Romanov Regime.

Hope that helps!

[Phenotype]

Industrialisation from 1890-> was a risk to Romanov regime because Witte chose State Capitalism, which coincided with none of the Tsar's economic policies.