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Russia Industrializes
Industrialization changed the Russian economy. The number of factories more than doubled between 1863 and 1900. In the 1890s, Nicholas’s most capable minister launched a program to move the country forward. To finance the buildup of Russian industries, the government got foreign investors and raised taxes. These steps increased the growth of heavy industry, particularly steel. By around 1900, Russia had become the world’s fourth-ranking producer of steel. -
The Russo - Japanese War
The two nations signed a series of agreements over the territories in the late 1800s, but Russia broke them. Japan retaliated by attacking the Russians at Port Arthur, Manchuria, in February 1904. News of repeated Russian losses sparked unrest at home and led to a revolt in the midst of the war. -
Bloody Sunday: The Revolution in 1905
On January 22, 1905, about 200,000 workers and their families approached the czar’s Palace in St. Peters burg. They carried a petition asking for better working conditions, more personal freedom, and an elected national legislature.
Nicholas II’s generals ordered soldiers to fire on the crowd. More than 1,000 were wounded and several hundred were killed. Russians quickly named the event “Bloody Sunday.” -
World War l
In 1914, Nicholas II made the decision to drag Russia into World War I. Russia was unprepared to handle the military and economic costs. Its weak generals and poorly equipped troops were no match for the German army. German machine guns mowed down advancing Russians by the thousands. Defeat followed defeat. Before a year had passed, more than 4 million Russian soldiers had been killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. -
The March Revolution
In March 1917, women textile workers in Petrograd led a citywide strike. In the next five days, riots raged over shortages of bread and fuel. Nearly 200,000 workers swarmed the streets shouting, “Down with the autocracy!” and “Down with the war!” At first the soldiers obeyed orders to shoot the rioters but later sided with them. -
The Bolshevik Revolution
Lenin and the Bolsheviks soon gained control of the Petrograd soviet, as well as the soviets in other major Russian cities. By the fall of 1917, people in the cities were rallying to the call, “All power to the soviets.” Lenin’s slogan “Peace, Land, and Bread," gained widespread appeal. The Russian citizens wanted a very devoted leader and Lenin was that to many. -
Lenin Restores order
War and revolution destroyed the Russian economy. Trade was at a standstill.Industrial production dropped, and many skilled workers fled to other countries.Lenin turned to reviving the economy and restructuring the government. -
Stalin Becomes Dictator
Stalin began his climb to the head of the government between 1922 and 1927. In 1922, as general secretary of the Communist Party, he worked behind the scenes to move his supporters into positions of power. Lenin believed that Stalin was a dangerous man. Stalin was also known as the "Man of Steel." And then in 1928 Stalin gained full control of the whole country.
