Causes of the 1905 revolution

How far was the Russo-Japanese War responsible for the outbreak of the 1905 revolution?

Take into consideration -

• Russo-Japanese War
• Bloody Sunday
• Peasants
• Political opposition

Russo-Japanese War

• The war was a short-term factor that led to the revolution.
• There were humiliating defeats - for example, the loss of Port Arthur and the destruction of the Baltic Fleet at the Battle of Tsushima.
• Russian people lost confidence in Tsar Nicholas since he couldn't defeat a country that wasn't a great power like Russia was.
• The war brought about economic problems so Russia couldn't afford to deal with other problems.
• However, most of the greatest defeats of the Russian army occurred whilst the revolution was already ongoing. This suggests that the war wasn't a primary cause but encouraged people to keep resisting the Tsarist regime.

Bloody Sunday

• Bloody Sunday was a short-term factor leading to revolution.
• Many peasants moved to more urban locations and this led to slums arising as towns and cities were overcrowded. The population of St Petersburg and Moscow doubled. People…