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Course of the Revolution 1905 (The Peasants (Peasants took advantage of…
Course of the Revolution 1905
The Peasants
Peasants took advantage of the Bloody Sunday revolting mood. They bagan siezing land, grain and animals as well as burning down landlord's houses. They also refused to pay taxes.
The peasants wanted an end to redemption payments and a reduction in rent rates.
At the end of July, the All-Russian Peasant Union met near Moscow.
The Army was used to overthrow pesant uprisings, but this lead to mutinies since much of the army was made up of peasants.
The Nationalities
National minorities started to demand autonomy, democratic government and the end to Russification. The Poles and Fins demanded complete independance.
The struggle became very violent, especially in the Caucus area where officials were attacked.
The demands made had a strong nationalistic character, such as local language and culture to be taught in schools.
The Tsar had to dispatch over 10,000 troops to Georgia to try and keep it under control. In Poland it was like civil war, and the Tsar kept a force of 300,000 soldiers in the region. 93 Poles died after being shot by soldiers in protests.
Mutiny of the Battleship Potemkin
On the 14th June 1905, the crew of the battleship Potemkin mutinied over harsh working conditions and rotten meat. They gained control of the ship and sailed to Odessa.
In Odessa, the arrival of the ship was well received, with cheering crowds. Except local troops were ordered to fire on the crowds to break them up, killing around 2,000 citizens.
The Potemkin escaped, and sailed away in the hope of rallying support from other ships. But this failed. They surrendered in a Romanian Port in exchange for safe refuge.
This whole affair acted as a wake-up call for the government. The government needed complete loyalty from the military to quash uprisings domestically, so the Tsar came round to ending the war with Japan, and ordered Sergei Witte to do so.
Matters come to a head
September 1905: A general strike was called. Up to 2 million workers supported this strike.
This caused real hardship, causing food and medical supply shortages, as well as unburied bodies piling up on the streets and an increase in crime.
On the 13th October, the St Petersburg Soviet formed. This was initiated by the Mensheviks. Leon Trotsky was the deuputy chairmen. The soviet managed issues such as food shortages and organisation of the strike.