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How Did The Russian Revolution Affect The Economy Between 1905 And 1917

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The economic situation of Russia from 1855-1917 undoubtedly had some influence on both the revolutions of 1905 and 1917. Furthermore, in 1891 Russia faced a famine leaving 40,0000 dead, followed by an economic slump in 1905. The First World War (1914-1918) had a drastic effect on Russian economy and society, with vast amounts of money spent on munitions. Some would argue that the economy was the main cause for both revolutions in 1905 and 1917. Nevertheless, according to the definition of a revolution; to ‘overthrow a government or social order, in favour of a new system’, it could not have been the economy alone, but other events such as war and society that contributed to the Russian revolutions of 1905 and 1917.
The economic situation in …show more content…

Working less hours meant production was decreased, meaning the economy was suffering. This suggests the economy led directly to the 1905 revolution. This is evident in events such as in Saint Petersburg known as ‘Bloody Sunday’ where a streak of violent riots followed workers requests for reforms. Similarly to this, in 1900-1903 Russia faced a period of industrial depression with firm bankruptcies and reductions in employment rates where again the economy, including its work force, led to a change needed to be made, a revolution. However, some argue that the economy is not such an important factor in the 1917 revolution. From 1914 onwards Russia was recovering from an economic depression with some improvements. Yet during this period of the war, demand for supplies and long working hours led to riots. Thus, it cannot be said it was the economy alone that caused both the 1905 and 1917 Russian revolutions, as it is evident that social factors had an impact. It is argued war in both 1904 and 1914 was a more significant factor that led to revolts due to directly impacting the people of Russia first hand. The Russo-Japanese …show more content…

During World War 1, Russian causalities were high and soldiers deserted in large numbers. Whilst previous wars had got a somewhat “positive” backing from the public, people were desperate for this to end whilst it also drained Russian of its resources and held over 14 million men in active service. The Great War drove already unhappy people to revolt against the regime before the war had even officially ended showing its severity. Some would argue here however it still shows how important the economy was, as it was a crippling one surrounding a mass scale war that caused the people to revolt. This also echoes another important factor in both revolutions of 1905 and 1917 in that ‘life in Russia’ including during war was a strain whilst food, fuel and raw materials remained short. Another view considering the cause of the 1905 and 1917 revolution in Russia is rather than being due to one solid event it is rather the general life of Russians, who revolted due to being dissatisfied. An extract from Witte’s Diary’ states ‘a general feeling of profound discontent with the existing

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