CH 2 : SOCIALISM IN EUROPE AND THE RUSSIAN

REVOLUTION CONCEPTS THE AGE OF SOCIAL CHANGE

Liberals: Wanted a nation which tolerated all religions. They argued for an elected
Parliamentary government, subject to laws interpreted by a well-trained judiciary that
was Independent of rulers and officials. They were not democrats. Radicals: Wanted a
nation in which government was based on the majority of a country’s Population.
They disliked concentration of property in hands of a few, not the existence of private
property.
Conservatives: They resisted change. After the revolution they started accepting
changeprovided it was slow and had links and respected the past.

THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTION:

Economy and Society: Most of the Russian population were agriculturalist.

Industries were being set up which was mostly private property of industrialists.
Workers were divided into groups but they did unite to strike work when they were
dissatisfied. Peasants had no respect for nobility, very unlike the French peasant.
Russian peasants were the only peasant community which pooled their land and their
commune divided it.
Socialism in Russia: All political parties were illegal in Russia before 1914. The
Russian Socialist Democratic Labour Party was formed in 1900. It struggled to give
peasants their rights over land that belonged to nobles. As land was divided among
peasants periodically and it was felt that peasants and not workers would be the main
source of the revolution. But Lenin did not agree with this as he felt that peasants
were not one social group.

The party was divided into Bolsheviks and Mensheviks. The 1905 Revolution: Russia
was an autocracy. The Tsar was not subject to the parliament. Liberals wanted to end
this state of affairs. They worked towards demanding a constitution during the
Revolution of 1905.

Bloody Sunday: Prices of essential goods rose so quickly by 1904 that the real wages
declined by 20%. During this time, four members of the Putilov Iron Works were
dismissed. Action was called for. Over 110,000 workers in St. Petersburg went on
strike demanding a reduction in working hours and increase in wages. This procession
was attacked by the police and Cossacks. Over 100 workers were killed. Strikes took
place as a reaction. People demanded a constituent assembly. The Tsar allowed the
creation of an elected consultative Parliament or Duma. The Tsar dismissed the first
Duma within 75 days and announced the election of a second Duma.

The First World War and the Russian Empire:In Russia, the war was initially very
popular but later the support grew thin. Anti-German sentiments ran high. Russian
armies lost badly in Germany and Austria. There were 7 million casualties and 3
million refugees in Russia. The war also affected the industry. There was labour
shortage, railway lines were shut down and small workshops were closed down. There
was shortage of grain and hence of bread.

THE FEBRUARY REVOLUTION IN PETROGRAD EVENTS: In the winter of

1917, Petrograd was grim. There was food shortage in the workers’ quarters. 22
February: a lockout took place at a factory. Workers of 50 other factories joined
insympathy. Women also led and participated in the strikes. This came to be called
the International Women’s Day An officer was shot at the barracks of a regiment and
other regiments mutinied, voting to join the striking workers gathered to form a soviet
or council. This was the Petrograd Soviet.A delegation went to meet the Tsar, military
commanders advised him to abdicate.The Tsar abdicated on 2nd March. A Provincial
Government was formed by the Soviet and Duma leaders to run the country.The
people involved were the parliamentarians, workers, women workers, soldiers and
military commanders. Effects: Restrictions on public meetings and associations were
removed.Soviets were set up everywhere. In individual areas factory committees were
formed which began questioning the way industrialists ran their factories. Soldiers’
committees were formed in the army.The provisional government saw its power
declining and Bolshevik influence grow. It decided to take stern measures against the
spreading discontent.It resisted attempts by workers to run factories and arrested
leaders. Peasants and the socialist revolutionary leaders pressed for a redistribution of
land. Land committees were formed and peasants seized land between July and
September 1917. OCTOBER REVOLUTION: 16th October 1917 — Lenin persuaded
the Petrograd Soviet and Bolshevik Party to agree to a socialist seizure of power. A
Military Revolutionary Committee was appointed by the Soviet to organise seizure.
Uprising began on 24th October. Prime Minister Kerenskii left the city to summon
troops.Military men loyal to the government seized the buildings of two Bolshevik
15

newspapers. Progovernment troops were sent to take over telephone and telegraph
offices and protect the Winter Palace.In response Military Revolutionary Committee
ordered to seize government offices and arrest the ministers.The ‘Aurora’ ship shelled
the Winter Palace. Other ships took over strategic points.By night the city had been
taken over and ministers had surrendered. All Russian Congress of Soviets in
Petrograd approved the Bolshevik action.Heavy fighting in Moscow by December,
the Bolsheviks controlled the Moscow - Petrograd area. The people involved were
Lenin, the Bolsheviks, and troops (pro-government). Effects Most industry and banks
were nationalised in November 1917.Land was declared social property and peasants
were allowed to seize the land of the nobility.Use of old titles was banned.New
uniforms were designed for the army and officials.Russia became a one party
state.Trade unions were kept under party control.A process of centralised planning
was introduced. This led to economic growth.Industrial production increased.An
extended schooling system developed.Collectivisation of farms started. The Civil
War- When the Bolsheviks ordered land redistribution; the Russian army began to
break up. Non-Bolshevik socialists, liberals and supporters of autocracy condemned
the Bolshevik uprising. They were supported by French, American, British and
Japanese troops. All these fought a war with the Bolsheviks. Making a Socialist
Society — The Bolsheviks kept industries and banks nationalised during the civil war.
A process of centralised planning was introduced. Rapid construction and
industrialisation started. An extended schooling system developed. Stalin and
Collective Farming — Stalin believed that rich peasants and traders stocked supplies
to create shortage of grains. Hence, collectivisation was the need of the hour. This
system would also help to modernise farms. Those farmers who resisted
collectivisation were punished, deported or exiled. GLOBAL INFLUENCE: By the
1950s, it was recognised in the country and outside that everything was not in keeping
with the ideals of the Russian revolution. Though its industries and agriculture had
developed and the poor were being fed, the essential freedom to its citizens was being
denied. However, it was recognised that social ideals still enjoyed respect among the
Russians. But in each country the ideas of socialism were rethought in a variety of
different ways.

Very short answer type Questions [1 MARK]

Q.1.The people who wanted to put an immediate end to the existing governments in
Europe(in 1815) were called …
Ans: Revolutionaries
Q.2. By the mid-19th century in Europe, the idea which attracted widespread attention
on the restructuring of society was …
Ans: Socialism
Q.3. Who conspired in Italy to bring about a revolution?
Ans : Giuseppe Mazzini
Q.4. When was the Socialist Revolutionary Party formed in Russia?
Ans: 1900
Q.5.Why did the Tsar dismiss the first Duma within 75 days of its election?
Ans :Because the Tsar did not want anyone to question his authority
Q.6. Russia fought against _______ in the World War I that started in 1914.
Ans :Central Power
Q.7. Why did a lockout take place at a factory on the right bank of the River Neva on
22 February, 1917?
Ans : It was extremely cold for the workers to work, because of frost and heavy snow
and food shortages were deeply felt in the workers’ quarters situated on the left bank
of theRiver Neva.
Q.8. On 27th February 1917, soldiers and striking workers gathered to form a council
called …
Ans : Petrograd Soviet
Q.9.When did the Tsar abdicate the throne?
Ans : 2 March, 1917
Q.10. Why was most of the Bolshevik Party members initially surprised by ‘April
Thesis’?
Ans: They thought that time was not ripe for a socialist revolution
Q.11. Who led the Bolshevik group in Russia during Russian Revolution?
Ans: Vladimir Lenin
Q.12. Who started ‘Collectivisation Programme’ in Russia?
Ans : Stalin
Q.13. After 1905, most committees and trade unions were …
Ans: Declared illegal
Q.14.In the Russian Civil War the Bolsheviks and the socialist revolutionaries were
represented by which of the following colours?
Ans: Reds and Greens
Q.15.The commune of farmers was known as …
Ans: Mir
Q.16. Who led the procession of workers to the event ‘Bloody Sunday’ in Russia?
Ans: Father Gapon

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS [3 MARKS]:

Q.1. Differentiate between the ideas of the liberals and radicals in Europe (take the
time period as after the French Revolution).

Ans.1-The liberals did not believe in universal franchise. In contrast, radicals wanted
a nation in which government was based on the majority of a country’s population.
2-Liberals felt men of prosperity mainly should have the vote. They did not want the
vote for women. On the other hand the radicals supported women’s suffragette
movements and opposed the privileges of great landowners and wealthy factory
owners.
3-They were not against the existence of private property but disliked concentration
of property in the hands of a few.

Q.2.Why do we say that liberals during this time could not be called ‘democrats’?
Ans.The liberals opposed the uncontrolled power of dynastic rulers and wanted to
safeguard the rights of individuals against governments.
They also argued for a representative, elected parliamentary government, subject to
laws interpreted by a well-trained judiciary that was independent of rulers and
officials. But, however, they could not be called democrats.
They did not believe in universal adult franchise and also did not want the vote for
women. They felt right to vote should only be for men of property.

Q.3. How should society, according to liberals and radicals, develop?

Ans. 1.Liberals and radicals were often property owners and employers.
2. They acquired wealth through industrial ventures and trade, they firmly believed
that such efforts should be encouraged that its profits would be reaped if the work
force in the economy was healthy and citizens were educated.
3. They put forth that societies could develop if the poor could labour, freedom of
individuals was ensured and those with capital could operate without restraint.

Q.4. Why were socialists against private property and saw it as the root of all social
ills?

Ans1-The people who propagated socialism said that individuals, who owned
property, did provide employment to many people but they were concerned with
personal gains only.
2- They did not bother about the welfare of the people.
3-They felt that if society controlled property, more attention would be paid to
collective social interests.

Q.5. Describe the incident known as ‘Bloody Sunday’.

Ans. 1.Over 110,000 workers in St. Petersburg went on strike in 1905, demanding a
reduction in the working day to eight hours, an increase in wages and improvement in
working conditions.
2. When this procession reached the Winter Palace it was attacked by the police and
the Cossacks.
3. Over 100 workers were killed and about 300 wounded. This incident, known as
Bloody Sunday, started a series of events that became known as the 1905 Revolution.
Q.6.What effect did the war have on the industry of Russia.

Ans. Russian industries were very few in number and the country were cut off from
other suppliers of industrial goods by German control of the Baltic Sea. Industrial
equipment disintegrated more rapidly in Russia than elsewhere in Europe. By 1916,
railway lines began to break down. Able bodied men were called up to the war. As a
result, there were labour shortages and small workshops producing essential
commodities were shut down.

Q.7. Why was the decision to collectivise farms taken?

Ans. 1.It was thought that rich peasants and traders in the countryside were holding
stocks in the hope of higher prices.
2. This created a shortage of foodstuff.
3. As shortage continued, the decision was taken to collectivise farms as Lenin felt
that the small size of farms caused the shortage.
4. They also felt that these small size farms could not be modernised.
5. They felt that the need of the hour was to develop modern farms and run them
along industrial lines with machinery.

Q.8. “By the 1950s it was acknowledged within the country that the style of
government in the USSR was not in keeping with the ideals of the Russian
Revolution.” Why was this said?

Ans. 1.In 1950s, it was acknowledged within the country that the style of government
in the USSR was not in keeping with the ideals of the Russia Revolution.
2. Russia, which was a backward country, had become a great power.
3. Its industries and agriculture had developed and the poor were being fed.
4. But it had denied the essential freedoms to its citizens and carried out its
developmental projects through repressive policies.

Q.9.What was the role of the Tsar in the peasant revolt of 1905? Discuss briefly.

Ans.1-During the 1905 Revolution, the Tsar allowed the creation of an elected
consultative parliament or Duma. The Tsar dismissed it within 75 days and re-elected.
2-Second Duma: within 3 months. He did not want any questioning of his authority or
any reduction in his power. He changed the voting laws and packed the third Duma
with conservative politicians.

Q.10.What was the basic principle of the Marxist theory?

Ans. 1-Marx believed that the condition of workers could not improve as long as
profit was accumulated by private capitalists.
2- Workers had to overthrow capitalism and the rule of private property.
3- Workers must construct a radically socialist society where all property was socially
controlled. This would be a communist society and a Communist Party was the
natural society of the future.

Q.11 Discuss briefly the Five Years Plans.

Ans.A process of centralised planning was introduced. Officials assessed how the
economy could work and set targets for a five-year period, on this basis they made the
five-year plans. The government fixed all prices to promote industrial growth during
the first two plans (1927-32 and 1933-38) centralised planning led to economic
growth.

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS [5 MARKS]:

Q.1. Explain how a society, according to socialists, can operate without property.
What would be the basis of socialist society?

Ans. Co-operatives could not be built on a wide scale only through individual
initiative.
1. They wanted that governments must encourage co-operatives and replace capitalist
enterprise.
2. They said that cooperatives were to be associations of people who produced goods
together and divided the profits according to the work done by members.
3. More ideas were added to this body of arguments.
4. These ideas were added by Karl Marx and Fredric Engels. Marx argued that
industrial society was capitalist. Capitalists owned the capital invested in factories.
5. The profit which came to them through these factories was produced by the
workers. The workers contributed to the profits but did not gain anything.

Q.2.Discuss ‘Stalin’s Collectivisation Programme’.

Ans. 1.Stalin felt that collectivisation would definitely solve the problem of shortage.
2. From 1929 the Party forced the peasants to cultivate in collective farms (Kolkhoz).
3. The bulk of land and implements were transferred to the ownership of collective
farms.
4. Peasants worked on the land and the Kolkhoz profit was shared.
5. Enraged peasants resisted the authorities and destroyed their livestock. Between
1929 and 1931, the number of cattle decreased by 1/3.

Q.3. Comment on the role of Vladimir Lenin in the revolution and his contribution to
the economic policy.

Ans. 1.Vladimir Lenin played an important part in the Russian Revolution of 1917.
2. Lenin led the revolutionaries after the fall of the Tsar under Lenin’s leadership; the
Bolshevik Party put forward clear policies to end the war.
3. Transfer land to the peasants and advance the slogan ‘All power to the Soviets’.
4. He was of the opinion that no genuine democracy could be established unless all
the non-Russians were given equal rights.
5. These were the real objectives of the Russian Revolution and he fulfilled all these
objectives. That is why Lenin’s name has become inseparable from the Russian
Revolution.

Q.4.What was the immediate consequences of the Russian Revolution?

Ans.1.Most industries and banks were nationalised in November 1917.

 2. This meant the government took over the ownership and management. Land was
declared social property.
3. Peasants were allowed to seize the land of the nobility.
4. In cities, Bolsheviks enforced the partition of large houses according to family
requirements.
5. They banned the use of old title of aristocracy.

Q.5. How did Russia's participation in the World War cause the fall of the Tsar?

Ans. 1.The war was initially popular and people rallied around Tsar Nicholas II.
2. The war continued, support became thin and Tsar's popularity declined. Anti-
German sentiments became high.
3. The Tsarina Alexandra's German origins and poor advisers, especially a monk
called Rasputin, made the autocracy unpopular.
4. Defeats were shocking and demoralising. Russia's armies lost badly in Germany
and Austria between 1914 and 1916. There were over 7 million casualties by 1917.
5. The destruction of crops and buildings led to over 3 million refugees in Russia. The
situation discredited the government and the Tsar.

HOTS QUESTIONS:

Q.1- What conditions led to the Russian Civil War in 1918-1920? Mention any four
points.

Ans. (i) The Russian army began to break up after Bolsheviks ordered land
redistribution. Soldiers who were mostly peasants wished to go home for the land and
deserted.
(ii) Now Bolshevik Socialists, Liberals and supporters of autocracy condemned the
Bolshevik uprising. Their leaders organised the troops to fight the Bolsheviks.
(iii) During 1918 and 1919, the ‘greens’ (Socialist Revolutionaries) and ‘whites’
(proTsarists) controlled most of the Russian empire. They were backed by French,
American, British and Japanese troops. As these troops and the Bolsheviks fought a
civil war, looting, banditry and famine became common.
(iv)Supporters of private property among ‘whites’ took harsh steps with peasants who
had seized land.

Q.2- Comment on the global influence of the Russian Revolution.

Ans.1- Existing socialist parties in Europe did not wholly approve of the way the
Bolsheviks took power and kept it.
2-Still the possibility of a workers’ state fired their imagination across the world. In
many countries communist parties were formed.
3-Bolsheviks encouraged colonial people to follow their example. Many non-Russians
received education in the USSR’s University of the Peoples of the East. By the time
the Second World War broke out, the USSR had given socialism a global face and
world stature.

Q.3- What were the social, economic and political conditions in Russia before 1905?
Ans. Social conditions: People of different social status, classes, religions and diverse
nationalities were there. Imposition of Russian language was made to belittle the
cultures of these people. Main groups of Russian population were farmers, workers,
landowners, capitalists, industrialists and traders. Economic conditions: 85 percent of
Russians were agriculturists. Agriculture provided employment to a vast population.
Cultivators produced food for market as well as their own needs Political conditions:
Nobles got their power and position through their services to the Tsar, not through
local popularity. This was unlike France where peasants respected nobles and fought
for them. In Russia, peasants wanted the land of the nobles; they refused to pay rent
and even murdered landlords.

VALUE BASED QUESTION:

Q.1. Why socialists were against private property? Q.2. Mention the demands of the
workers who went on strike at St. Petersburg in 1904. Q.3. Discuss the causes that led
to the Revolution of 1917