ST JOSEPH’S RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL, SRIPERUMBUDUR

Grade:IX Socialism in Europe and the Russian Revolution Mr.Dass-SJRS

1.Distinguish between the ideas of liberals and the radicals.
Liberals Radicals
(i) They argued for ,i representative, elected They also argued for a representative elected
parliamentary government, but did not believp in parliamentary government, but believed in universal
universal adult franchise. adult franchise.
(ii) They felt men of property should have the right to
They felt all citizens should have the right to vote
vote.
(iii) They were in favour of giving privileges to the rich They opposed the privileges of the rich or the men of
or the men of property. property.
2.Who ruled Russia in 1914? How did he manage his empire? Explain.
Tsar Nicholas II was ruling over Russia, during the revolution.
 He was an autocrat.
 Though he created ‘Duma’ after the Revolution, but never cared for it.
 He was carrying the war against the wishes of the people.
 He worked under a monk called Rasputin.
3.Explain the views of different socialists and philosophers regarding the vision of the future or to
transform the society.
 Robert Owen, a leading English manufacturer and a socialist sought to build a cooperative community
called the New Harmony, in Indiana (USA).
 Louis Blanc of France wanted the government to encourage cooperatives and replace the capitalists.
 Karl Marx believed that to free themselves from capitalist exploitation, workers had to construct a
radically socialist society, where all the properties were socially controlled.
 Friedrich Engels was also against capitalism.
4.Explain any three reasons which led to civil war between the Bolsheviks and the Russian army of non-
Bolsheviks.
 Impact of Land Redistribution Policy on Soldiers: When the Bolsheviks ordered land redistribution, the
Russian army began to break up. Soldiers, mostly peasants, wished to go home for the redistribution and
deserted.
 Opposition from Greens and Whites: Non-Bolshevik socialists, liberals and supporters of autocracy
condemned the Bolshevik uprising. Their leaders moved to south Russia and organized troops to fight the
Bolsheviks (the reds).’ During 1918 and 1919, the greens (Socialist Revolutionaries) and whites (pro-
Tsarists) controlled most of the Russian empire.
5.‘A communist society was the natural society of the future.’ Explain.
 Marx was of the opinion that an industrial society was a ‘capitalist’ society.
 Capitalists earn profits because of workers.
 To increase his profits the capitalist uses two methods i.e., either by reducing wages or increasing the
working hours.
 Marx believed that to free themselves from the capitalists, workers had to construct a radically socialist
society where all the properties were socially controlled.
6.Mention four features of socialism.
 Socialists were against private property.
 Under socialism, the means of production are under the control of the government.
 Socialists regarded the private property as the root cause of all social evils.
 Socialism encourages cooperatives.
7.What were the main demands of April Theses?
 Lenin returned to Russia from exile and felt that it was time for Soviets to take over power. He declared
that war be brought to an end, land be transferred to the peasants and banks nationalized. He also argued
to rename Bolshevik Party as Communist Party.
 Started planning on uprising against government with the support of army.
 Military Revolutionary Committee was planned to seize the power and bring the city under control.
8.Which incident came to be known as Bloody Sunday? What were its consequences?
The year 1904 was a particularly bad one for Russian workers. Prices of essential goods rose so quickly that the
real wages declined by 20%.
  When four members of the Assembly of Russian workers were dismissed, the workers became agitated.
 In January 1905, a large number of peaceful workers led by Father Gapon reached the Winter Palace in
St. Petersburg to present a petition to the Tsar.
 The workers were attacked by the police. Over 100 workers were killed, and about 300 wounded. Since
the incident took place on Sunday, it is known as the ‘Bloody Sunday
Consequences: Tsar underpressure from the masses was forced to announce his manifesto which led to
the formation of Duma.
9.What is meant by ‘October revolution’?
 It was the revolution which occurred in October 1917. It was led by Petrograd Soviet and the Bolshevik
Party under the leadership of Lenin.
 A military Revolutionary Committee was appointed by the Soviet under Leon Trotskii to organise the
seizure.
 The uprising began on 24th October. Though Prime Minister Kerenskii resisted but the seizure was
complete within a day.
 The Bolshevik Party was renamed the Russian Communist Party (Bolshevik).
 In November 1917, the Bolsheviks conducted the elections to the Constituent Assembly, but they failed
to gain majority support. In January 1918, the assembly rejected Bolshevik measures and Lenin
dismissed the assembly.
 In the years that followed, Bolsheviks took full control over the government and Russia became one party
state.
10.Describe the circumstances which were responsible for the Russian Revolution.
(i) Agrarian Economy and Poor Condition of the Peasants: At the beginning of the 20th century, more than
85% of Russian population earned their living from agriculture. Most of the land was owned by rich people.
Most of the peasants worked from dawn to dusk with very low wages or share. Most of the peasants were
against the rich and the nobles.
(ii) Poor Condition of Workers: Most of the industries were controlled by the private individuals. In craft
units, and small workshops, the working day was sometimes 15 hours. Most of the workers were working and
living in poor conditions. Most of the workers were ill-paid.
(iii) Unemployment: Unemployment rate was very high. The rich industrialists were exploiting the workers.
(iv) High Prices : Prices of essential goods rose so quickly that real wages declinedxby 20%.
(v) Condition of Women: Most of the women were working in small factories. Women made up about 31% of
the factory labour force. They were paid less wages, and were forced to work for long hours.
11.Explain the Russian February Revolution 1917.
(i) Grim Condition in the Petrograd: In the winter of 1917, conditions in the capital, Petrograd, were grim. In
February 1917, food shortages were deeply felt in the workers’ quarters. The winter was very cold. There had
been exceptional frost and heavy snow.
(ii) Women Lead the Strike: On 22 February, a lockout took place at a factory. The next day, workers in fifty
factories called a strike in sympathy. In many factories, women led the way to strikes. This came to be called
the International Women’s Day.
(iii) Violent Incidents: In the next few days the workers tried to persue the government to fulfill their demand
but government called out the cavalry. The streets thronged with people raising slogans about bread, wages,
better hours and democracy.
(iv) Formation of Soviet: By that evening, soldiers and striking workers had gathered to form a soviet or
council in the same building as the Duma met. This was the Petrograd Soviet.
(v) Formation of Provisional Government: The very next day, a delegation went to see the Tsar. Military
commanders advised him to abdicate. He followed their advice and abdicated on 2 March. Soviet leaders and
Duma leaders formed a Provisional Government to run the country.
12.Describe the importance of Battle of Stalingard in the Second World War.
 The battle of Stalingard was fought between Russia and Germany on Russian territory.
 This battle is considered important because it marked the defeat of Germany and Hitler along with Nazi
party.
 Hitler had signed a non-aggression treaty with Russia in August 1939 A.D. Since he did not have faith in
Russia he considered Russia as a vital threat to Nazi Germany.
 He also wanted to Europeanize the area of the Asian Steppe.
 Due to the above mentioned reasons, Hitler violated the Pact of 1939 and attacked Russia from three
sides.
 This led to a battle in Stalingard near Moscow.