Tsar Nicholas II 1894-1905

CIVIL UNREST EXAMPLES:

1905 - Bloody Sunday -

Demonstrators made up of workers and lead by Father Georgi Gapon marched to the Winter Palace in order to present the Tsar with a petition fully signed to emphasise the feelings against the Russo-Japanese war, long working hours, poor wages for the workers and more people power.

However - Tsar Nicholas was not in and as his palace guards panicked they shot and killed 200 of the demonstrators. This was a huge scandal - Tsar became swiftly unpopular.

STRIKES: 

Strikes occoured frequently before Nicholas' reign and during incredibly often. Too often.

TSARS PERSONALITY WEAKNESSES:

• He was Highly incapable of doing the job alone - his wife did all of the important jobs for him. 
• He Mistrusted the majority of his ministers.
• He had no self confidence.
• When he discovered he was Tsar he burst into tears and offered the position to his brother who declined as he knew he was uncapable of ruling. 
• He made quick and not thought through decisions.
•  It was said that he would be incapable of even running the local post office.

However -

• He was incredibly patriotic.
• He recognised his job was appointed by God and so accepted it is his duty.
• He always attempted to be a better leader for his country and making them like him.
• He was the most intelligent of the Tsars ever.

ECONOMIC PROBLEMS: Peasents:

• 80% of the population were peasents who tended to be farmers.
• Land for peasents was incredibly expensive and not sufficiant enough for crops.
• They consisted to be in constant poverty.
• No people power.

Workers: 

• Low wages
• Long working hours
• No people power
• Poor working environments

witte - current minister of finance, made peasents pay taxes in order to improve industry as he wanted to expand it.

RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR 1904:

• Battle of Mukden - Russia surrendered and signed the Portsmouth Peace Treaty
• Battle of Tsushima - 20 Russian Ships sank, 5 captured and 4 escaped.
• Tsar expected the Japanese to be inferior "little yellow monkeys" but was horribly wrong.
• The only reason for the Tsar going to war with Japan was to obtain Manchuria to extend the Russian Empire to make the people of Russia like him more. 
• Overall the war was a pathetic failure.

PROBLEMS BEFORE 1894:

• Limited Industrial growth
• Backward economy
• 80% Peasent population
• Large mortgage repayments
• Not enough productive land
• No parliment
• Government Censorship 
• Judges were sympathetic towards Liberals and so were removed

TSAR OPPOSITION:

• Liberals - which later split into the Kadets and Octoberists
• Social Revolutionaries - which split in 1903 into the Mensheviks and Bolsheviks
• The People (civil unrest)