Downfall of Russia
Tzar Nicholas II - downfall of RussiaIt was Tzar Nicholas 2 political naivete and extreme obstinance that led to the downfall of the RussiaCertain aspects of Tsar Nicholas 2's behaviour definitely contributed to bringing about the fall of the Russian Empire, however most of these qualities were not weaknesses in character as such, they were qualities we would associate with poor leadership. When we say 'weakness in character' we mean being easily influenced/controlled by others. Nicholas himself was a firm believer in autocracy; he was virtually unmovable in this belief. And this obstinant belief clearly illustrates he stuck to his beliefs, although in his early years as tsar his uncles had huge influence. That said, the fall of the Russian Empire was not all a result of Nicholas' character and poor leadership qualities, we must also see that the huge socio-economic changes happening as well as the outbreak WW1 hugely influenced the coming about of and the timing of the revolution. These changes would be hard for any government to manage. Nicholas 2's firm and obstinant belief of his commitment to autocracy can be clearly seen in a letter of reply he sent to a liberal zemstvo head before his coronation. "I shall ma
With the outbreak of WW1 the Russian economy had to produce everything itself after Turkey entered the war on the German side cutting off the last realistic trade route, this led to food shortages which contributed to the growing discontent among workers who were already deeply anti-government. They saw a tsar who had let a couple of incompetent people run the government. His ultra-conservative political outlook was influenced greatly when a child Tsar Nicholas was educated by the reactionary tutor Konstantin Pobenonstev, enemy of all reform. It created a new class of factory workers, the urban working class, mostly peasants moved to the city, and who now worked in shocking conditions. Before this there had been enormous changes to the composition of the upper-class; the nobles-traditional upper-class- had lost a lot of their power and influence. His fatal decision to go to the front to command Russian troops in WW1 proved to be a catalyst for the revolution, he left behind him in Petersburg his wife Alexandra and the mysterious 'man of god' Rasputin. An example of his political naivete was the 1905 revolution that nearly toppled the regime. As he had never taken a liking to political affairs he was underprepared to take the throne, this fact along -with his stubborn belief in autocracy- also goes a long way to explain his political naivete in many of the difficult situations he faced. There were other very big factors that contributed to the revolution that the tsar had little to do with. It was his character not weakness of character that helped bring about the fall of the Russian Empire along with many other complicated factors. His ultra-conservative outlook prevented the emergence of a stable middle class and a liberal type government. Pobenonstev was once called "The Highest Priest of Social Stagnation". In a sense he was living in an alternate political reality. The ultra-conservatism and political naivete of Tsar Nicholas 2 greatly contributed to the fall, as did the huge socio-economic changes, modernization/industrialization of the period. The October Manifesto gave basic civil liberties and a Duma with limited powers.
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