Modern

• Russia


  • Largest nation in the world in 1900
  • Spanning over 10,000 kilometres in length
  • Occupying 1/6th of the earth's land surface
• Siberia


  • One of the world's coldest areas to live in
  • Temperatures ranging from -50 to -60 degrees for 6 months of the year
• Southern frontiers of Russia

  • Endure searing heat from deserts
• Travel from Western Europe to Vladivostok on the Pacific Ocean


  Took 12 days by train in 1916
• This presented problems in regards to transport
• Russia's natural resources


  • Coal
  • Excellent farming of corn in Ukraine
  • Oil near the Caspian Sea
  • Minerals such as copper, iron ore, gold and nickel
• These resources would assist Russia in becoming an industrial power
• Invaders of Russia


  • Vikings (10th century)
  • Mongols (13th century)
  • Napoleon (1812)
• Population of Russia in 1897

  • 126 million people
  • About 68 million were Russian
  • Rest were from about a hundred different ethnic groups speaking dozens of languages and following a variety of religious beliefs
• This bred a feeling of insecurity and led to the belief that Russia needed strong, centralised rule to protect itself from outside enemies
• Autocracy


  An all-powerful monarch unwilling to share their power or have any limits placed on their rule
• The Romanovs had ruled Russia since 1613
• Nicholas II


  • Became Tsar (King) of Russia in 1894
  • Believed he ruled by 'divine' right - by being born a royal his throne was sanctioned by God
• As a result all Tsars or Tsarina's were the national heads of the Russian Orthodox Church and any criticism of either the church or the state was considered treason
• The people of Russia had no politicians representing them and had no influence over what decisions were made in their nation
• Social classes in Russia

  • Tsar, ruling family and ruling class (0.5% of population)
  • Gentry class (10% of population)
  • Middle class or bourgeoisie (2% of population)
  • Working class or proletariat (4% of population)
  • Peasants or serfs (80-85% of population)
• The Tsar, ruling family and ruling class made up about 0.5% of the population and held all political power and lived in luxury, isolated from the problems of the rest of the nation
• The Gentry class included Nobel landlords, leading figures in the church, the military and the imperial government, formed roughly 10% of the population, lived in luxury and paid little to no tax, and had little political power
• The middle class or bourgeoisie formed 2% of the population, included leading businessmen (Bankers, Factory owners) and educated intellectuals, lived educated and comfortably, but were small and powerless due to Russia's limited economic growth and Russia's isolation from intellectual movements such as the Enlightenment movement in the 18th century
• The working class or proletariat formed 4% of the population due to Russia's lack of industrial and urban development, experienced a squalid, miserable and unhealthy existence, lived in slums and worked in dangerous factories and mines
• The Peasants or serfs were the lowest class in Russia's Hierarchy, formed around 80%-85% of the population, in 1861 Tsar Alexander gave the serfs freedom from lords but this didn't improve their lives as many were giving poor amounts of land to farm, lived in hardship with low life expectancy, frequent famine and illiteracy, and were poor and powerless
• Three Emperors League formed between Russia, Germany and Austria-Hungary


  1873
• The three empires agreed to consult with one another on mutual interests on Europe and to remain neutral when any one member state took military action against a non-member (particularly France or Balkan nations)
• There was a major problem with this arrangement as Austria-Hungary and Russia were in competition with each other for influence over the Balkans
• Many European powers wanted to keep the weakened Ottoman Empire in the Balkans (maintain their control) to prevent any one European state from gaining full control over the Balkans
• Russia's desire to control the Balkans


  To protect its valuable trade routes and spurred on by the idea of Pan-Slavism (the unity of all Slavic peoples)
• Austria-Hungary's desire to control the Balkans


  To restore prestige and territory lost by the unification of Germany and Italy, and to prevent the Slavs within its empire from breaking away to join Serbia
• First Balkan Crisis


  1. In 1874 Bosnia and Herzegovina rebelled against the Ottoman rule

  2. Serbia declared war on Turkey in 1876

  3. Russia, based on its foreign policy of pan-slavism, declared war on Turkey

  4. In 1878 Turkey sued for peace

  5. Bismarck held the Congress of Berlin to mediate the dispute
• The Congress of Berlin forced Russia to surrender much of the territory she had won from the Turks, established Serbia as an independent state, and handed over Bosnia-Herzegovina to Austria-Hungary to administer
• Russia was resentful about Bismarck's role in their defeat and was now suspicious of German policy
• Russia begins to worry about the strengthened German-Austro-Hungarian link and its potential impact on Russian interests in the Balkans


  1881
• Russia and Germany sign the Second Three Emperors League
• Italy joins the alliance with Austria-Hungary and Germany, forming the Triple Alliance


  1882
• Under this alliance Germany and Austria-Hungary agreed to aid Italy if she was attacked by France, and Italy agreed to fight with Germany and Austria-Hungary if they were attacked by two or more powers
• In 1890, the new German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, dismissed Bismarck and German policy begins to change
• Dual Entente alliance between Russia and France was formed


  1891
• The Dual Entente agreement meant the two powers would consult each other in the event of a threat to European peace and agreed on mutual military aid if either were attacked by Germany
• Now even minor events in the Balkans had the potential to cause a European war as not only the Slavs, Austria-Hungary and Russia would be involved, but also Germany and France
• France ends the Triple Alliance by secretly negotiating with Italy to not join Germany in war against France


  1900-02
• France and Britain sign the Entente Cordiale, settling all outstanding colonial differences

  1904