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Reign of Czar Alexander III (1881-1894)
Czar Alexander condoned blaming Jews for the assassination of his father, and allowed pogroms to take place against them. In doing this, he contributed to the persecution, and forced assimilation of Jews. He also promoted, or favored, the Russian nobility, which angered peasants, who were the majority of the population. His three principles by which he ruled were autocracy, orthodoxy, and homogeneity. -
Reign of Czar Nicholas II (1894-1917)
Czar Nicholas supported the idea of absolute rule, which angered the Russian people because they felt ignored. The Czar also created the Duma, which was an elected legislature, it attempt to involve citizens in government, which lead to a provisional government and him being overthrown. Czar Nicholas was also blamed for the military failures during WWI because he lead Russia's troops into war. -
Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)
Russia and Japan had been previously fighting over land in Northern China, which lead to war. Russia lost the land in China to Japan, and afterwards became a constitutional monarchy. It was an embarrassing loss for Russia, and convinced them to industrialize. -
Bloody Sunday (Jan. 22,1905)
On January 22, 1905, 200,000 workers marched onto the Czar's Winter Palace grounds intending to get the Czar to improve their working conditions. The police open-fired on the protesters, which angered the people and caused strikes and disorder throughout Russia, and Nicholas II was blamed again. The Bloody Sunday also helped bring about the Duma, in attempt by the government to improve the Czar's reputation. -
Russia's Participation in WWI (1914-1917)
Russia joins WWI to help out Serbia. When they join, Germany joins. Russia was not industrialized, so they lost to Germany and its allies, and drop out of the war early. Czar Nicholas is blamed again for military failure, contributing to his bad reputation. -
Death of Rasputin (December 30, 1916)
Grigori Rasputin was an uneducated peasant who lived as an exorcist and healer. The Czar's wife was impressed with him because he seemingly gave her son relief from his disease when he was present. The Czar, however, was skeptical of Rasputin and his meddling in government affairs. so some nobles tried to kill him by poisoning him, shooting him twice, and then eventually killing him by drowning him in an iced-over river. -
Czar Steps Down/ Provisional Gov't Est. (1917)
Because of all the military failures that Russia endured, it only seemed fit to blame the Czar, since it was he who led them into most wars. In March 1917, street demonstrations broke out in the capital, against the Czar, and then on the 15th, the Czar gave up his power. Following his resignation, a Provisional Government was established, or a temporary government which became quite unpopular when it did not support reforms or end Russia's participation in World War I. -
Establishment of The Duma
The Duma was created in an effort by Czar Nicholas II, to gain respect and fix his bad reputation. It was an elected legislature intended for people to have some sort of participation in the government, and abolish absolute rule in turn for a constitutional monarchy; -
The Russian Civil War (1918-1920)
The Bolsheviks were a group of communists lead by Leon Trotsky, who wanted to change Russia and keep the revolution alive, they were known as the Red Army. The White Army were a group of conservatives who wanted Russia to go back to its old rule. The Red Army was organized and well supplied, while the White Army had many troops and the support of the Allies from WWI. The Red Army won the revolution, of which left 5 million people dead and Russia in shambles. -
Bolshevik Revolution (1917-1920)
The Bolshevik Revolution was ignited when the Provisional Government established after Czar Nicholas II stepped down, refused to end Russia's involvement in WWI and promote reforms. It was then overthrown by the Bolsheviks, who were composed of communists who were led by Trotsky. The Revolution set out to eliminate anyone who was a threat to the Revolution and or the regime. The "Red Terror" killed as many as 6,000 people suspected of being anti-revolutionists. -
Establishment of USSR (1922)
The USSR is the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics or the Soviet Union. It was a self-governing republic meant to discourage nationalism. They were communists, which came from the Bolsheviks. -
Lenin's Death (1924)
In 1924, Lenin died of a stroke, which set up competition for his replacement. On one hand, Trotsky wanted a more democratic communism, while Stalin went to extreme measures to make sure he gained and or stayed in power, and manipulates his way into power. -
Stalin's Rise to Power (1924-1928)
After Lenin dies in 1924, Stalin and Trotsky vie for his replacement. Despite Lenin's previous concerns about his successor, Stalin manipulates his way into power. By 1928, Stalin is in total command of the communist party. He later becomes dictator of the Soviet Union. -
Leon Trotsky's Exile (1929)
After Stalin rose to power in Russia, he had Leon Trotsky exiled to a remote part of Central Asia, and is later killed. As Trotsky was the leader of the Red Army, his impact dwindled as Stalin rose to become dictator of the Soviet Union.
