Assess the Reasons for the Outbreak of Revolution in February 1917
There are many reasons that could have been considered to be the cause if for the outbreak of revolution in February 1917. The many effects of the war proved to lead towards the revolution because it demonstrated how hopeless the Tsar and his government were in dealing with all the problems Russia faced. Also the ministers within the government also had a part to play in the events leading up to the revolution as many of them advised the Tsar to resign.
The war is an event that is widely considered to be a cause of the outbreak of the February 1917 revolution, despite in 1914 it appearing as though the Tsars’ power and authority had increased. This is because after Russia losing the First World War, many problems had been worsened such as Russia’s economy. The war lasted 3 years and proved to be a great strain on the Russian economy. Russia had never been economically advanced and the efforts of the ‘Great Spurt’ in the 1890s and State Capitalism had not been able to support Russia throughout the war. What is more is that other efforts to stabilize Russia’s economy had been destroyed as a result of the war, as the policies Witte introduced such as increasing taxes at home and negotiating large loans from abroad had not been able to support the cost of the war although it did help slightly. Furthermore, the rouble being placed on the gold standard had been abandoned because it allowed Russia’s government to print off more money. However, this was only good for the short term as it did eventually lead to inflation in Russia, but since they were desperate the government found no other way but to put more notes into circulation. Printing more money off allowed the government to continue to pay the workers’ wages but considering the long term effects the rouble had the potential of becoming worthless and unfortunately for Russia at that critical stage it became a reality and consequently Russia was left in severe inflation.
Inflation meant that the price of foods
The war is an event that is widely considered to be a cause of the outbreak of the February 1917 revolution, despite in 1914 it appearing as though the Tsars’ power and authority had increased. This is because after Russia losing the First World War, many problems had been worsened such as Russia’s economy. The war lasted 3 years and proved to be a great strain on the Russian economy. Russia had never been economically advanced and the efforts of the ‘Great Spurt’ in the 1890s and State Capitalism had not been able to support Russia throughout the war. What is more is that other efforts to stabilize Russia’s economy had been destroyed as a result of the war, as the policies Witte introduced such as increasing taxes at home and negotiating large loans from abroad had not been able to support the cost of the war although it did help slightly. Furthermore, the rouble being placed on the gold standard had been abandoned because it allowed Russia’s government to print off more money. However, this was only good for the short term as it did eventually lead to inflation in Russia, but since they were desperate the government found no other way but to put more notes into circulation. Printing more money off allowed the government to continue to pay the workers’ wages but considering the long term effects the rouble had the potential of becoming worthless and unfortunately for Russia at that critical stage it became a reality and consequently Russia was left in severe inflation.
Inflation meant that the price of foods