Socialism in Europe and the Russian Revolution

• The Age of Social Change

  • Conservatives, Liberals, and Radicals

    • Liberals: Wanted religious tolerance, uncensored press, representative elected government, but opposed universal adult franchise (no voting for women).
    • Radicals: Supported majority-ruled governments, women's suffragette movements, and opposed privileges for great landowners.
    • Conservatives: Initially opposed change, later accepted that change was inevitable but believed the past had to be respected.

  • Industrial Society and Social Change

    • Brought new cities, industrialized regions, and expanded railways.
    • Men, women, and children pushed into factories with long hours and low wages.
    • Housing and sanitation problems everywhere.

  • The Coming of Socialism to Europe

    • Socialists against private property, seeing it as the root of all social ills.
    • Robert Owen: Built a cooperative community called New Harmony in Indiana (USA).
    • Louis Blanc: Wanted the government to encourage cooperatives and replace capitalist enterprises.
    • Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels: Argued that industrial society was capitalist; workers must overthrow capitalism and private property to form a communist society.

  • Support for Socialism

    • By the 1870s, socialist ideas spread through Europe.
    • Formed an international body—the Second International.
    • Labour Party in Britain and Socialist Party in France formed.

• The Russian Revolution

  • Russian Empire in 1914

    • Ruled by Tsar Nicholas II.
    • Agriculture was the main occupation (85% of the population).
    • Highly industrialized pockets: St. Petersburg and Moscow.

  • Economy and Society

    • Peasants cultivated for the market and their own needs; pooled land together (mir).
    • Workers were divided by skill; formed associations to strike when disagreed with employers.

  • Socialism in Russia

    • Russian Social Democratic Workers Party (1898) founded by Marxists.
    • Illegal party; set up a newspaper, mobilized workers, and organized strikes.
    • Party split over strategy:
      • Bolsheviks: Led by Vladimir Lenin; believed in a disciplined, majority party.
      • Mensheviks: Believed in an inclusive party open to all (like in Germany).

• The 1905 Revolution ("Bloody Sunday")

  • Causes: High prices of essential goods, real wages declined by 20%, dismissal of ironworks workers.
  • Bloody Sunday: Procession of workers led by Father Gapon fired upon by police/cossacks at the Winter Palace. Over 100 killed.
  • Effects: Strikes generalized, creation of the Soviet (council of workers and peasants representatives), Tsar permitted creation of an elected consultative parliament (Duma).

• The First World War and the Russian Empire

  • War Dynamics: Fought between the Central Powers (Germany, Austria, Turkey) and the Allied Powers (France, Britain, Russia).
  • Impact on Russia: Anti-German sentiments ran high, renaming of St. Petersburg to Petrograd, heavy defeats (7 million casualties by 1917).
  • Economic Crisis: Destruction of crops and railways, food shortages, bread riots in cities.

• The Revolution of 1917

  • The February Revolution in Petrograd

    • Feb 1917: Severe food shortages in worker quarters; lockout at a factory.
    • Women led processions (International Women's Day).
    • Soldiers and striking workers formed the Petrograd Soviet.
    • Abdication: Tsar Nicholas II abdicated on 2nd March; Provisional Government formed by Soviet and Duma leaders.

  • October Revolution

    • Lenin's April Theses: Demanded war to end, land to be transferred to peasants, and banks to be nationalized.
    • Bolshevik Uprising: Led by Lenin and Leon Trotsky, Bolsheviks seized power on 24 October 1917.
    • Aurora ship shelled the Winter Palace; Provisional Government ministers arrested.

• What Changed After October?

  • Key Decrees:
    • Industries and banks nationalized (November 1917).
    • Land declared social property; peasants allowed to seize nobility land.
    • Banned use of old aristocratic titles.
    • Designed new uniforms for the army and officials (Budonovka hat).
  • Withdrawal from WWI: Bolsheviks made peace with Germany through the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
  • Civil War (1918-1920):
    • Reds (Bolsheviks) vs. Greens (Socialist Revolutionaries) and Whites (Pro-Tsarists), backed by French, American, British, and Japanese troops.
    • Reds emerged victorious by maintaining non-Russian nationalist and Muslim support.
  • Making a Socialist Society:
    • Centralized Planning: Introduced by the Bolsheviks.
    • Five-Year Plans: Set targets (e.g., 1927-1932, 1933-1938) to boost industrial growth (coal, oil, steel).
    • Collectivization: Stalin introduced a forced grain-collection program; eliminated kulaks (wealthy peasants) and consolidated farms (kolkhoz).

• The Global Influence of the Russian Revolution

  • Creation of Comintern (an international union of pro-Bolshevik socialist parties).
  • Inspiring non-Russians to join the Conference of the Peoples of the East (1920).
  • Inspired thinkers and leaders worldwide (e.g., in India: M.N. Roy, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru).
  • By the end of the 20th century, the international reputation of the USSR as a socialist country declined due to oppressive policies, but its socialist ideals remained globally respected.