socialism in russia

• The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, took power in Moscow in November 1917.
• The French Revolution opened up the possibility of creating a dramatic change in the way society was structured
• Before the eighteenth century, society was broadly divided into estates and orders controlled by the aristocracy and church
• New ideas about individual rights and who controlled social power began to be discussed in Europe and Asia after the French Revolution
• Responses to societal change varied from conservatives, liberals, to radicals
• Liberals wanted a nation that tolerated all religions and opposed uncontrolled power of dynastic rulers
• Radicals wanted government based on the majority of a country's population and supported women's suffragette movements
• Conservatives accepted the need for change but believed it should be brought about through a slow process
• Industrialisation in the nineteenth century brought about profound social and economic changes
• Liberals and radicals searched for solutions to issues like long work hours, poor wages, unemployment, housing, and sanitation
• Socialism became a significant idea in shaping society in the twentieth century
• Socialists were against private property and campaigned for collective social interests
• Socialists had different visions of the future, with some supporting cooperatives and others advocating for a communist society
• By the 1870s, socialist ideas spread through Europe, leading to the formation of the Second International to coordinate efforts
• Workers in England and Germany formed associations to fight for better living and working conditions
• Socialists never succeeded in forming a government in Europe till 1914, but their ideas did shape legislation
• In Russia, socialists took over the government through the October Revolution of 1917, leading to the fall of monarchy
• In 1914, Tsar Nicholas II ruled Russia and its empire, which included various territories and religions
• The vast majority of Russia's people were agriculturists at the beginning of the twentieth century
• Industry in Russia was found in pockets, with prominent industrial areas in St Petersburg and Moscow
• Most industry in Russia was the private property of industrialists, and workers faced long working hours and poor conditions
• Workers in pre-revolutionary Russia were a divided social group
• Some workers had strong links with the villages they came from, while others had settled in cities permanently
• Workers were divided by skill, with metalworkers in St. Petersburg considering themselves aristocrats among other workers
• Women made up 31% of the factory labour force by 1914, but they were paid less than men
• Workers formed associations to help members in times of unemployment or financial hardship, but such associations were few
• Workers united to strike work when they disagreed with employers about dismissals or work conditions
• Strikes took place frequently in the textile industry during 1896-1897, and in the metal industry during 1902
• Peasants in pre-revolutionary Russia were divided, with some surviving by eating at charitable kitchens and living in poorhouses
• Peasants cultivated most of the land, but large properties were owned by the nobility, the crown, and the Orthodox Church
• Peasants wanted the land of the nobles to be given to them, and frequently refused to pay rent and even murdered landlords
• Russian peasants pooled their land periodically and their commune (mir) divided it according to the needs of individual families
• All political parties were illegal in Russia before 1914
• The Russian Social Democratic Workers Party was founded in 1898 and operated as an illegal organisation
• Socialists were active in the countryside through the late nineteenth century
• The Socialist Revolutionary Party struggled for peasants' rights and demanded that land belonging to nobles be transferred to peasants
• Lenin felt that peasants were not one united group and disagreed with Socialist Revolutionaries about their role in the socialist movement
• The party was divided over the strategy of organisation, with Lenin advocating for a disciplined party while others (Mensheviks) wanted it to be open to all
• The 1905 Revolution in Russia led to revolutionary disturbances
• Revolutionaries demanded a constitution and were supported by liberals, Social Democrats, Socialist Revolutionaries, peasants, and workers